The Tide Staff glittered as Luna turned it over in her hands. It was just over three feet long and an inch or two thick, more of a stave than a staff, wickedly sharp at one end while the pearl nestled in the root-like fronds at the other was utterly flawless. Luna was sure that the stave was a darker blue than it had been when she ripped it from Rivet City’s flight deck; a gorgeously vivid sapphire that matched the stripes in her hair. Unfortunately, despite its provenance, it didn’t seem to have any obvious magic.

With a sigh, Luna set the stave down and looked over at the others. Trixie and Sonata were both sitting on their beds, the former fiddling with what looked like a trick wand, while the latter was lovingly polishing her torc with a dry cloth. The three had essentially been stuck in their room since the coordinated Super Mutant attack, so Luna was glad to see that the girls weren’t going stir-crazy. They hadn’t even argued all that much, which was a real blessing.

Just as Luna was deciding whether or not she was in the mood to get some maintenance done on her assault rifle, someone knocked tentatively on the door.

“Is it dinner time already?” Sonata asked curiously.

“Not yet,” Luna replied as she stood and strolled over to the door. She was surprised and a little concerned to see Initiate Peters standing outside. “Good afternoon, do you need something?”

“I’ve got a request from Elder Lyons,” Peters replied evenly. “She wants to speak to the three of you as soon as possible,”

Sonata looked up with an excited grin. “You guys need my magic?!”

“Why does she want to speak to all of us?” Trixie asked warily.

“Calm down, girls, it’s probably nothing serious,” Luna assured them, though she couldn’t help a flutter of fear herself. She didn’t let her feelings show on her face as she turned back to the Initiate. “We’re not busy at the moment, so we can see the Elder right now if she wants.”

Peters nodded. “She hoped you’d say that. Follow me.”

Luna ushered the girls out of the room, making sure to lock the door behind them, and gestured for Peters to lead the way. Instead of heading to the Brotherhood of Steel’s temporary command room, the Initiate led the three to the nearest T-Port. One priority teleport later and the group were shown out into the corridor with the security lounge.
Walking straight past the lounge, Peters instead led the trio to a room further down the corridor, knocked on the door, then opened it at an order from inside and gestured for them to enter.

The room beyond looked like some sort of training area, with padded mats on the floor and crates and lockers around the walls. To Luna’s surprise, not only were Elder Lyons and Squire Maxson waiting inside, but President Shoichet and Agent Drops were present as well.

“I appreciate you all coming on such short notice,” Elder Lyons said as Peters closed the door. “We’re on the clock here, so I’m going to skip right to the chase; we need Sonata’s help.”

“I knew it!” Sonata exclaimed.

Luna arched an eyebrow, hoping that this conversation wasn’t going where she thought it was going. “I assume this is an inquiry about magic that can’t wait until the Rainbooms return?”

“Actually, yes, at least to an extent,” Lyons replied. “Have you heard of the Brotherhood Outcasts.” Luna nodded, having been given a rundown of the recent big meeting by Rainbow Dash before she left for the Mall. “Well, their envoy has just turned up and asked us to lend them someone knowledgeable about magic. I offered the services of one of the Rainbooms when they get back from their missions, but the Outcasts say they need the help by tomorrow at the latest, and the girls will not be back by then.”

Hearing that the issue was an urgent request from a group outside of Rivet City or the Enclave did little to assuage Luna’s concerns. “Surely it would be more appropriate to send one of your Scribes, or one of the Enclave scientists that have been researching magic?”

The President shook her head with a rueful smile. “All of our scientists are currently at either the Exodus building or the Air Base, and I can’t spare any Vertibirds to shuffle them around. Believe me, if I had any transport available, I’d be back at the Exodus building with Tara already, and I’d have Horrigan escort our scientists just to put the fear of God into those Outcast assholes.”

Elder Lyons smirked at that, but her expression quickly turned somber. “As for Scribes, the only ones here in Rivet City are the apprentices who are just beginning their studies on magic; most of the ones who have prior experience with it are either at Raven Rock or helping see what we can salvage from the ruins of the Citadel. I wouldn’t be asking if I had any other options whatsoever.”

“It’s fine, I’ll totally help you,” Sonata said smugly.

“Excellent! This should help us rebuild the Brotherhood that much faster.” Seeing the look on Luna’s face, Lyons added, “Don’t worry, the location they want Sonata to look at is just to the west of the D.C. ruins, and their envoy brought an escort with them. She’ll be as safe as anyone can be out there.”

Luna wasn’t convinced, but Sonata was well aware of the dangers and had still agreed to go anyway. “Sonata going is one thing, but why did you want to speak to all three of us?”

“A few reasons,” Lyons replied. “First, it’s clear that you hold yourself responsible for Miss Dusk while she’s here, so I feel I should at least do you the courtesy of keeping you in the loop. Second, the Outcasts want to borrow a Pip-Boy for this mission, so I was hoping you could provide the one the Disciples of Harmony gave you.”

“Sure, that won’t be a problem,” Luna said, relieved that this at least was an easy request. “You’ll just have to have someone unlock the biometric lock though, I’ve already keyed it to myself and I don’t know how to undo it.”

Lyons groaned and massaged her temples. “I forgot that the D.C. Vaults had that feature fitted as standard. That’s going to be a problem. I think Scribe Rothchild and his apprentices knew the finer details of Vault-Tec programming, but they were all killed at the Citadel.” She glanced at Shoichet. “I don’t suppose you know how to program a Pip-Boy?”

The President shrugged and shook her head. “I know a little programming, but Pip-Boys are beyond me. The Enclave hasn’t really messed around with them for over a hundred years. We do have a Vault-Tec representative who could probably tell us how to undo the bio-lock, but it’s Doctor Turner, and contacting him isn’t really an option as he’s currently locked in a secure lab experimenting on his own mutations. Not in the time frame the Outcasts have given, anyway.”

A memory of the horrifically mutated scientist in the Exodus building rose up in Luna’s mind and made her shudder.

“So, does that mean Luna is coming with us, or are you just going to find another one?” Sonata asked.

“Pip-Boys don’t pop up in markets around the Capital Wasteland very often, which is part of the reason traders are so interested in Vault 101 finally opening its doors.” Lyons turned to Luna with a grim expression. “I know this is a big ask, but would you be willing to go along with the Outcasts as well?”

Luna wanted nothing more than to refuse, but doing so seemed like it would affect diplomatic relations in the wastes, and Sonata or the Rainbooms would probably end up getting wrapped up in it all anyway at some point or another. It would be better to get it over and done with. “Alright, but only on the condition that the Outcasts escort us back here the moment we finish what they’re asking.”

“Wait a minute, you can’t leave me here on my own!” Trixie exclaimed.

“This is going to be dangerous, Trixie,” Luna said firmly. “You of all people should know how bad things are out in the wastes, staying here in Rivet City is your safest bet by far.” Trixie opened her mouth to argue only to give up and look down at the floor.

“I suppose this makes the third reason I called you all here all the more important,” Lyons put in. “The Enclave brought some armor for the three of you with one of their supply shipments.”

President Shoichet nodded. “The security team has been screening everything the Enclave ships in, but I asked them to check these crates over as soon as I heard about the Outcast’s request so Sonata could get kitted out before she left.” She stepped over to a trio of shiny Enclave-issue crates by the wall and hauled them open one by one. “Come take a look.”

As curious as she was cautious, Luna looked in the crate the President directed her to. A dull gray bodysuit was folded neatly on top. It was supple and surprisingly soft to the touch, and when she pulled it out Luna noted darker padded sections on the chest and shoulder blades as well as on each of the joints. Heavier-looking, matte-black armor sections were packed neatly beneath it in the crate.

“It’s armor given to Secret Service members when combat is expected,” Agent Drops explained as she sidled up next to Luna. “You put the underarmor on first, that’s the bodysuit you’re holding, and the rest goes on top.”

Luna raised an eyebrow. “If it’s meant for the Secret Service, doesn’t that mean that it’s pretty rare?”

Agent Drops shrugged. “I’m the only surviving active or former member of the Secret Service at the moment other than Horrigan, and this stuff doesn’t fit him. Besides, this particular set is designed for nocturnal operations, which the President thought you might appreciate.” Luna couldn’t help a small smirk upon hearing that. “I can help you put it all on if you want, but you’ll have to strip down to your lightest clothing first. There’s a vest in the crate as well if you need one.”

Torn between nerves at the thought of venturing outside and excitement at wearing genuine military armor, Luna changed into the underarmor and let Agent Drops help her get the armor on. First up was a plated chest piece that completely enclosed her upper torso, a utility belt that went around her waist, and a smaller piece with hinged plates that protected her pelvis. Next came pauldrons and vambraces for her arms, greaves for her shins, plates that Luna was fairly sure were called cuisses for her thighs, and finally tiny plates that clamped over the top of her boots to protect her feet.

“That’s all of it,” Agent Drops said when it was done. “There’s supposed to be a helmet with this, but we couldn’t find it anywhere in storage.”

“It’s fine,” Luna said simply. Looking down at herself, she felt like some sort of dark paladin ready to go and punish those who did evil. Shaking her head to try and clear the ridiculous notion, Luna glanced over at Sonata.

The siren was wearing a less comprehensive set of armor, with less bulky torso protection and smaller plates over her limbs, all painted with a blue and gray camouflage pattern. Even her underarmor looked to be made of a paler and rougher material than Luna’s.

“Urban scout armor,” the President said simply. “The armory guys tried to find a suit of Secret Service armor for each of you, but we don’t have many complete suits left. Miss Lulamoon has the same set.”

Luna looked around to see Trixie putting on her cape and hat over a suit of identical scout armor. The young magician scowled as she realized she was being watched. “I can at least try it on and get used to it, can’t I?”

Luna wasn’t fooled for an instant. “You’re planning on sneaking out and following us, aren’t you?”

“Excuse me?! I would never do something like that!” Trixie exclaimed in an impressively indignant tone despite having done exactly that once already. She maintained a shocked and offended expression under Luna’s glare, almost convincing the Vice-Principal that she was telling the truth, but after a few seconds she caved and averted her eyes. “I can’t be the only one left behind when everyone is out there in the wastes. I can’t stand it.”

As much as she hated to admit it, Luna understood the sentiment. On top of that, if Trixie was determined to sneak out, then she would almost certainly succeed even if Rivet City Security were tasked with keeping her contained. Luna sighed heavily. “If you’re going to come along, then at least wear a helmet.”

“I can’t see through it,” Trixie said flatly. Seeing Luna’s expression, she added quickly, “It’s fine, if anything goes wrong I’ll just drop a smoke bomb and get out of the way, I promise.”

Applejack squinted as she tried to see through the darkness. Adam and Wernher were taking the first turn pumping the handcar’s lever, so she was sitting on the front of it to serve as a lookout.

The last of the burning barrels was far behind the group, leaving just intermittent and weak ceiling lights to provide faint illumination, and the only sounds were the creak of the handcar’s lever and the trundling of its wheels echoing down the tunnel.

“How long will it take us to get to the Pitt?” Applejack asked.

Wernher grunted as he pushed the lever down. “It took me almost two days, but with three of us it shouldn’t take more than one. There’s a whole network of tunnels and old highways down here. It’s easy to get lost, and there’s a few dangerous areas we’re going to have to pass through, but we should be able to pick up a guide along the way, and it’s way safer than going above ground.”

“Are you sure about that?” Applejack pressed.

“Positive,” Wernher replied. “The Brotherhood of Steel might have managed it all those years ago, but things have changed since then. You’ve got the Buchanan Rotlands, the giant ant megacolony in Merset, Berk Rings for fuck’s sake, the Red Flags have been building some sort of base in Inchest, and that’s before you get into all of the trogs, wildmen, ghouls, deathclaws, and yao guai that infest the places between.” He hawked up a gobbet of phlegm and spat it onto the floor. “Trust me, this way is better. The Skavvers might be creepy ass mutants, but at least they can be reasoned with.”

Applejack didn’t quite understand everything he mentioned, but she got the gist of it. She sighed and turned her attention back to the tracks ahead. Adam was the next one to break the near-silence, “I assume there’s magic in the Pitt?”

“How did you guess?” Wernher asked.

“You weren’t all that fazed by Rarity’s magic,” Adam replied. “Most people who see the Rainbooms in action for the first time don’t just shrug it off and call them sorceresses.”

Wernher let out a low laugh. “Fair enough. Yeah, magic turned up in the Pitt a couple of months ago. It freaked the fuck out of all of us at first, especially when it started changing the trogs even more, but we’ve been getting it under control. Ashur and his goons have been trying to figure out how to make magic alloys with the steel the slaves gather.”

Applejack whipped her head around as a thought occurred to her. “Wait, does that mean there’s magic down here, too?”

“You’ll see soon enough,” Wernher replied cryptically.

Next Chapter: Chapter 190 - Underground, Overground, Wombling Free... Estimated time remaining: 3 Hours, 44 Minutes