nukaworld | Nothing like boots on the ground.

Nothing like boots on the ground.

Who: Paladin Danse & Nora
Where: Sanctuary Hills
Summary: After Danse speaks to Nora about helping her with her duties as a Minuteman.

What: Danse is ready at the crack of dawn, and seeing he was not the best sleeper, he was well ready long before hand. And with a good supply of fusion cell ammo for his laser rifle, and his X-01 power armor that is always well maintained, Danse was just waiting to hear where it is both he and Nora would go. And like a good soldier he is standing there besides his defense post keeping watch over the settlers who have long since retired for the night.

It is a peaceful night without a drop of neither rain nor one of the famous radioactive storms that blew in from the Glowing Sea. And as he waits, Danse looses himself to the twangy sound of Johnny Cash singing about those Folsom Prison Blues that play on his radio. And as quiet and normally unnerving a night like this is, Danse seems to welcome in. He can allow himself sometime with his own thoughts, and allow himself to try to figure out everything that has happened to him since his banishment from The Brotherhood of Steel. And if he is to keep his sanity, Danse needs not only to keep his mind busy but also to try to figure out this new life as a synth out.

So there, he stands without his helmet on at the Sanctuary Sign like he promised. "Now watch this be a day where Garvey doesn't have work for her to do." He mutters aloud to himself, and he cracks the knuckles of his power armor.

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He's a soldier through and through. Nora doesn't think anything could ever change that. It warms Nora's heart to see that passion and desire to get back into the field in Danse's eyes. She had been worried for awhile that maybe that light had vanished forever.

"We're heading to Outpost Zimonja. Apparently they have a problem with some ferals - and a couple of their turrets are messed up."

She pauses to look at Dogmeat. "Sorry boy, you gotta stay here this time. We'll be back soon."

With a smile she nods at Danse. "Ready to head out?"

Danse is ready to move out and at the mention of ferals; he is aching to get out there to take care of them. "I take we'll figure out where those ferals are once we get to Zimonja." His helmet is blessed with a compass that allows him to see where they are going as he turns to head towards the north.

"But I'm ready to head out when you are, so lead the way, soldier," says Danse, and he may never stop calling Nora soldier. "And I wouldn't mind using this as a chance to get to know you better." For someone he trusts with his life, Danse doesn't know much about this stranger who came to rescue him from a pack of ferals back in Cambridge and saved him from Maxson.

And perhaps, this is the reason Danse was eager to travel with her again. That and the need to feel like a soldier and smash some feral heads in.

Dogmeat lets out a low whine at having to stay behind. He'd much rather go with his human and her friend. But like the good dog he is, he lays down by the sign watching as they walk away.

"You know Preston. Only gives me the basic facts. Leaves the rest up to me." Oft times annoying. More so than the constant missions in the first place. A little more detail would be good. At least this time she knows what the problem is before setting out.

Nora adjusts the Pipboy on her wrist, making sure the map is active. She's wandered the Commonwealth so many times by now that she could probably find her way blindfolded but she prefers to be prepared.

"You remember our first mission? Back before I even joined the Brotherhood. You remember? We went to ArcJet Systems." It seems forever ago. Way back before a lot of bad things happened. If Nora is honest with herself, the only reason she even joined the Brotherhood in the first place was so she could get to know Danse better.

"I was so worried when you got caught in that blast."

"For not being the one being in charge of The Minutemen, Preston sure knows a lot about what happens." Danse doesn't hate the guy, and he respects him for sticking to what he believes in. But he also thinks Preston is a little too soft, and it is what ran The Minutemen out of Quincy in the first place.

And as Danse sets out to follow behind Nora, and he happily keeps pace with her as they head out of Sanctuary and towards the shallow creek that surrounds the settlement. "I never forgot that mission." And from inside of his armor he is smiling at the fond memory of being roasted in his armor.

"Really? I had a literal blast, and it made for a great story once I got back to the station," teases Danse. "And I have to admit it was a pretty sight watching those old Gen 1's melt."

He steps into the water without having to worry about the radiation in the water, and he stops there and offers Nora a hand. "Need a hand getting across without taking any rads."

"Not funny! I thought I'd gotten you killed." Hardly the way she wanted their first mission to go. Imagine having to return to the station and tell them she'd gotten their Paladin barbecued! Way to win Rhys over. She's glad it didn't come to that. Thank God for power armor!

She reaches out to take hold of his proffered hand. The oversized metal hand of his power armor dwarfing her bare hand. Normally she would just wade through and deal with the consequences after, but since he's offering...

"It was also the first time I saw any Gen 1's."

As Danse lifts Nora up to carry her over the ankle deep water, he can't help but miss the sound of bloatflies in the distance. And he makes sure he is quick on his feet, the summer tends to bring out more of the insects to the Wastelands from his experience back in The Capital Wastes. And he isn't about to do anything to draw any attention from the swarm.

"I take it you weren't used to seeing something like that before," asks Danse, as he sets Nora back down on the shore. "Both a guy getting roasted in power armor, and well obviously the Gen 1's." He's trying to learn a bit more about her past life prior to the war. And this trip to the settlement is going to give him an excellent chance to do so.

"And I hope you don't mind if I ask you a few questions about your life prior to the war."

Bloatflies! Ugh. Nora hates bloatflies. Those creatures are vile. Spewing their maggots all over the place. Exploding all over the place. Not nice. Avoiding their attention would be preferable. Nora doesn't much fancy spending the next few hours scraping bloatfly ick off of her.

"Right on both accounts. I had seen power armor before - during the war. But never up close. Never saw just how much it could withstand." And synths? She had no idea about synths.

"You can ask me anything you like, Danse." A beat. "As long as you're not planning on selling my story to Piper for a few bottlecaps."

Edited 2016-06-15 02:08 (UTC)

The bloatflies are busy just buzzing around a fallen brahmin, and so long as they don't get shot at they or if the two don't wander too close all will be will. And even with Danse's armor he still has to deal with acid getting into the crevices of his armor.

"Thanks. And no, I have no plans on selling anything you tell me I'm not MacCready. I was just wondering what you did prior to the war." Danse is curious, and he wants to try and work on his conversation skills a bit more. He never forgot how Piper told him she wasn't surprised to learn he was a synth, and that how he spoke was a telltale sign of his lack of humanity.

And as they continue, further into the woods that consist of burnt maple and elm trees, and the sound of the cicadas grows louder as the sun fills the sky. It is turning out to be a nice day, with nothing more than a few wispy clouds in the blue sky. And while there is no true seasons anymore all thanks to the war, summer still is there and Danse can feel it in his suit. And eventually he pops off his helmet once he is sure they're going in the right direction.

Don't take Piper's words to heart, Danse. Nora has never once seen his poor communication skills as a telltale sign of his lack of humanity. She always just assumed he was just really bad at social interaction. He's not the first man she's ever met who's bad at talking to people, and she's sure he won't be the last. And look at Nick! He's a synth and he could charm anyone with his gift of the gab.

Nora takes a sip of water from her drink bottle as she walks alongside Danse, enjoying the sun. A beautiful day in wonderful company. What could be better?

"Before the war? I was a lawyer and a wife. Although once I fell pregnant I cut down on my workload so I could concentrate on being a mother... That was the idea, at least."

"A lawyer?" Danse sounds surprised to learn about her original career path. "I always thought you may have been a soldier. Or at least you were in the military in some capacity." And with the lawlessness and brutal form of justice of the Wastelands, Danse is really, really, curious about what a lawyer's responsibilities were.

But Danse sounds even more curious about Nora's pre-war life as he continues to trek through the woods. "But it still sounds very interesting." And he tries to figure out what kind of questions to ask her about her time as a lawyer. "Do you have any good lawyering stories?" He asks, as he wants to learn more about her.

And he reaches his hand into one of his compartments to pull out a mole rat chunk, and he pops it in his mouth to chew. And he still feels bad that he never really took the chance to get to learn about Nora before his exile.

"My husband was the soldier. Believe it or not, I never had to defend myself in battle until I left the vault. Never killed a person until I killed my first raider in Concord." Before that it was radroaches in the vault. She had to learn how to defend herself pretty damn fast. And let's face it, it made her one hell of a soldier.

She walks along beside Danse, eyeing the surrounding area for signs of danger. She spots some radstag doe in the distance wandering blissfully unaware of any dangers.

"I'm sure my stories of the courtroom aren't exactly that exciting. I was mostly involved in family law - divorces, that kind of thing. Not so much murder and such."

Danse stops to consider the radstag doe that Nora sees, good eating, but their supplies should get them to the outpost. And he remains standing there watching the deer while he listens to Nora, and he turns his head around to face her. "I bet it was hard for you to kill that raider." He knows war isn’t meant for everyone, and he has seen it first hand.

And he turns his attention back to where the doe was standing with his arms hanging down at his side. "And what you did seems interesting." Danse sounds honest about it, and he is. "And difficult to deal with people who have fallen out of love with one another."

And the doe has since left, and Danse starts to move off in the direction of the settlement again at a pace so Nora can keep up.

Just think, by saving that doe's life, it will go on to make baby deer which means more food down the road. Besides, skinning and gutting deer is so messy and they have plenty of supplies to get them to the Outpost.

"I did what I needed to do. It was the raider or me. Seems like I've been doing whatever it takes to survive ever since I left the vault. This life is a million miles away from my old life, yet... I've met some wonderful people."

She looks over at Danse. She has lost so much. Been through so much. And yet people like Danse and all her other friends make it worthwhile. She falls into line with him. "I suppose these days if people fall out of love they just move on. Move to another settlement and be done with it. Back in the day it could get messy. Especially if children were involved."

Danse knows everything about having to make the first hard choice to take a life. Raiders maybe human filth, but he can see how taking a human life no matter how much of a low life they are might impact someone.

And as he tries to grasp the old concept of needing a lawyer to settle a family issue, and then he hears how it can impact a family. A frown forms on his face as it leaves him to think, but he is very quick to shake it off with a neutral look on his face. "Sometimes it isn't as clean as you would think. And yes, sometimes people just fall out of love." Not as if Danse knows, he has never been in love with anyone before. His life always was The Brotherhood and nothing else. And before then he spent his time simply surviving, as one of Rivet City's many merchants.

He continues and the lake that feeds the creek is coming up, and crossing it or swimming across isn't something he wants to do. "But things still never are easy when there's children to tend to. And The Brotherhood is lucky enough to provide a decent life for any child born within its ranks."

And finally, the lake and Danse comes to a stop, and he looks down at Nora. “I really hope you don’t plan on going for a swim.”

"A decent life? I'm not so sure I agree with that." Her view on the Brotherhood is jaded at best. Even if her knowledge is limited. She doesn't know much about the other factions but as for Arthur Maxson and his loyal followers... she's not all too keen. Perhaps the fact that he wanted her to execute one of her best friends has something to do with it. She may be a Paladin, but she is definitely not Brotherhood and nothing but the Brotherhood. She never will be.

"The scribes aboard the Prydwen aren't even treated as children. They're mini soldiers. Children should have time to play, to have fun."

Nora stops at the bank, looking out over the lake. Once upon a time it would've been a beautiful swimming spot. "Too bad. I forgot my bikini. Maybe next time."

She misses swimming. And fishing. She misses a lot of things.

"Hey Danse... Speaking of children... There's something I want to ask you. I'm just not sure how to put it into words."

Danse turns to stare out at the lake with his metal fingers flexing. His wiring is still set to Brotherhood, but perhaps there is a bit of truth in those words. He got to see the scribes in The Citadel prior to Maxson's rise to power. "It wasn't always like that. But you are right; Maxson is training them to be soldiers. And outside of the scribes he is not giving them a chance to learn about the technology, we were sworn to protect. But it is still better than anything out there now."

His face is grim looking, and he looks up to the sky out of habit to make sure there are no signs of any Brotherhood Vertibirds.

Without any sign of trouble, Danse lowers his head to continue to stare out at the lake. But then he hears Nora's question, and he raises an eyebrow and the features of his face soften. "Oh? What is it you want to ask of me?"

Looking out for Vertibirds has become second nature to Nora. She's constantly listening, looking, making sure Danse is safe. She used to love seeing them in the sky, now she has a constant ball of dread in the pit of her stomach.

She sucks in a breath, still trying to figure out the best way to put her question into words without upsetting Danse. Maybe she shouldn't have said anything.

"So, I'm sure you've met Shaun - the uh, the synth copy of Shaun - back at Sanctuary. Well, he's a synth and um... you're a synth. So I was wondering... if - when - something happens to me... will you take care of him for me?"

And those words hit Danse like a thousand mini-nukes that have landed on him all at once, and he just stands there with his mouth agape and his eyes wide open. And he is left there utterly speechless, standing at the shore of the lake with his attention drawn away from any potential bloodbugs, mirelurks, and any other creepy crawlies.

Finally, Danse talks or more like it he stammers for the first time ever. This is just something he never was expecting from Nora. "I-I-I don't know what to say." He quickly tries to regain his composure, other than his voice, and Danse is still left in shock. "I never had a family, so I wouldn't even know where to start." It isn't a no, and it isn't a yes, seeing this is something huge.

The child maybe a synth, but Danse still has so many doubts and issues of his own to resolve. And yet, Danse isn't going to be callous towards the idea. "If anything happens to you, I will give you my word that Shaun will be kept safe. But of all of the people, why me?"

Nora shifts to sit down, digging her heels into the damp ground. She shouldn't have said anything. Should have kept her mouth shut. Just enjoy the view and the company and not make things awkward.

She never has been good at knowing when to keep her mouth shut. It's gotten her into trouble plenty of times.

"I know it's a lot to ask. I know I have no right to ask. But I trust you with my life. So I know I could trust you with his. And you're both synths... you'll both most likely outlive everyone around you. Neither of you would need to be alone if you had each other..."

Danse finally settles down, and then he thinks about the logic behind Nora's words. Sure, she has someone like Curie to ask, but then again Curie still is more machine at heart than human.

"It is a lot to ask, and I don't know what the future will bring for myself. But I never break a promise that I make." His offering to make sure Shaun, and any of Nora's friends safe despite his feelings towards them is real. But this is different than resisting the urge to punch Hancock in the face.

He takes in a deep breath, and he disengages the locks from his power armor and he steps out into the damp ground to join Nora. "He'll be safe. And if we have to leave the Commonwealth, then I'll make sure he's given a chance to try and make things here a better place." There has to be a place for both of them to go, and the future of The Commonwealth is still up in the air.

She could've asked Nick too, especially since Shaun has stated he wants to be a detective like Mr Valentine. He also wants to be a Minuteman too though, so it's probably not something she should take too seriously. But as much as she adores Nick, the chances of his mechanisms failing or wearing out are much higher than Danse's. He isn't a super shiny Gen 3 like Danse.

"Thank you. I know it's a lot of responsibility to drop on your shoulders. But I feel a lot better knowing he'll be safe. No matter what terrible things the Institute and the real Shaun did... The synth Shaun is innocent and deserves a good, happy and safe life. I failed to protect one Shaun. I can't fail another."

She sighs a long, slow sigh, her shoulders sagging. It's been something that's been on her mind for awhile.

"Course, I've no intention on going anywhere just yet. I'm planning on making old age just so I can be a cranky old lady who hits people with a walking cane."

"Good to hear." Danse says, in response to Nora not leaving, and he seems relieved about this news. "Just try to be careful." His voice softens, and he truly sounds concerned for her well-being. And he is not looking forward to losing any more people he trusts. "I would be lost if anything were to happen to you." It is true. He has lost a lot after his exile from The Brotherhood. And other than Haylen, Nora is his only other friend.

"Anyway, I believe we have a settlement to help and some ferals to eradicate." Danse goes to step back in his power armor, and he wants to try to let everything sink in while they walk. It is a huge undertaking, and Danse knows it. He just hopes he will be around long enough to live up to keep that promise.

Nora gives a nod and pushes herself to her feet, brushing the damp dirt from her clothes. She's pretty sure the next few hours will be clouded in awkwardness, but at least she managed to voice the worries that have been plaguing her without destroying absolutely everything. A little bit of awkwardness is a low price to pay for peace of mind.

She looks at her PipBoy map for a moment, making sure they're on the right course. "Smashing feral skulls with my best friend. The day doesn't get much better than that."

Danse waits for Nora to lead them in the right direction towards the outpost, and he can't help but to smile. "Nope. And lets hope we don't run in to too much trouble on the way." He tries to keep away from the subject of his future as a guardian for Shaun, but he finds himself having a hard time keeping his mind away from it.

This along with his being a synth are one big bombshell in his life, and as he stands at the ready he lifts his large metal hand to rub the back of his power armor. "And lets hope the ferals aren't too far from the outpost. This way we won't have to worry about supplies, or running into anything else on our way there." He continues to try to steer the conversation towards anything about what it takes to be a father.

But Danse's facial expressions seem to want to betray him, as is his attempt to find the back of his neck. Poor very awkward Danse.

Poor very awkward Danse indeed. Nora just wants to hug all the awkwardness away but a) his power armor is like a tank and there's no way she can give him a decent hug in that and b) hugging him would probably make things a lot more awkward - no, not probably - definitely. She really wishes she hadn't said anything at all.

She seems to be very good at screwing his life up. After all, if she hadn't joined the Brotherhood then she wouldn't have passed on the encrypted data from the Institute and Danse would still happily be a Brotherhood Paladin with all his brothers and sisters in arms. And now? Now Nora is asking the impossible of him. To take care of a synth replica of her son should something happen to her. Yeah. She should learn not to talk. Ever.

"At least we'll be able to replenish our supplies once we get there. Mutfruits should be at perfect ripeness by now." It's a poor attempt to try not to address the elephant in the room and she knows it.

Nothing like boots on the ground.

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