All of the Brotherhood of Steel's available forces were gathering in the Citadel's courtyard. Adam couldn't help but wish that there were more; barely fifty power-armored Knights and Paladins were assembled into small squads, their armor gleaming in the morning light. Squires hurried around and between them, fetching ammunition or carrying messages.

"Is this everyone?" Fawkes asked.

Adam nodded. "According to Elder Lyons, this is everyone they could gather on short notice without leaving the Citadel undefended."

Still, despite the lack of numbers, Adam couldn't deny that the Brotherhood's strike force contained some truly formidable warriors. He and Fawkes had been assigned to the Lyons' Pride for this battle, the most elite team in the whole Brotherhood of Steel. Not far away the newly christened Wonderbolts were checking over their equipment; sitting under a shelter at the edge of the courtyard were the Rainbooms.

A storm of butterflies suddenly took flight in Adam's stomach as he noticed that Fluttershy was making her way over. The memory of last night's meeting, cut short though it was, made him struggle to keep a goofy smile off his face.

"Um, hey," Fluttershy said as she approached, her hair covering half her face.

"Hey," Adam replied. "Are, uh, are you okay?"

Fluttershy looked around at the assembled soldiers and said quietly, "I, um, I'm a little nervous."

"Yeah, I get that," Adam said somberly. "How's Twilight doing?"

"Oh, she's okay," Fluttershy replied. "She's still sleeping at the moment, but the surgery was successful and the medics think she should regain the full use of her arms when she heals."

"Good. That's good." Adam watched her awkwardly, unsure whether he should say something about last night or not, in case it made her run off in embarrassment. After a moment he threw caution to the wind and held an arm up; a clear invitation for a cuddle. To his absolute delight Fluttershy immediately ducked under his arm and squeezed up next to him. Her cheeks were turning bright red, but she also had a small smile on her face.

"I… um… I know I said to ask me after all of this was over, but…" Fluttershy glanced up at him from under her hair. "Well, I think you've got my answer." Adam felt a blush grace his own cheeks as he clasped his arm around her shoulders. "A-anyway, um, shouldn't you be getting in your armor?"

Adam glanced at the power armor he had 'borrowed' from the Enclave, currently standing empty waiting for him to step inside. The Brotherhood has been worried that people might mistake him for an Enclave soldier and shoot him in the confusion of battle, so their scribes, in a fit of irony, had painted it in the Vault-Tec scheme of blue with yellow trim. "I'll put it on when we're ready to go. I don't want to run down the fusion core, not until we can salvage some more from the Enclave."

"Good thinking." Adam looked up to see Sentinel Lyons walking towards them, accompanied by another woman.

The new woman wasn't wearing a helmet just like the Sentinel, but where Sarah Lyons had pale skin and a blonde ponytail the new woman had dark brown skin and a black buzz cut. She was carrying an immense sledgehammer, easily the same height as her, in a single hand as if it was a wizard's staff. She stopped just in front of Adam and held out her free hand. "Star Paladin Cross. It is good to finally see you again."

Adam raised an eyebrow as he shook her hand. "We've met before?"

Paladin Cross nodded. "Almost twenty years ago. I was the one who escorted you and your father across the wastes to Megaton after your mother passed." She clasped her fist over her heart and bowed her head. "I am deeply sorry that I was not present to prevent your father's death, but permit me the honor of aiding you in this battle to realize their dreams."

"I-I, uh, wow." Adam rubbed at his neck awkwardly then quickly pulled himself together. "Please, the honor would be mine. I just hope I don't drag you guys down out there."

Sarah smirked. "I've seen you fight. Trust me, you won't." Before he could reply she turned to Fluttershy. "What about you, are you joining us, today?"

"I will, but, um, I'll be with the rest of the Rainbooms and I'll just be doing first aid instead of, um, f-fighting," Fluttershy replied.

"Fair enough, in that case you'd best go and get some armor on, we'll be starting any minute," Sarah told her.

"Oh, um, okay." Fluttershy ducked out from under Adam's arm and made to walk away, then darted back and planted a quick kiss on his cheek before scampering away as quickly as she could, her own cheeks burning brightly.

No amount of self-control could prevent the goofy grin this time, not that Adam was trying particularly hard.

"She is a very sweet girl," Fawkes said approvingly.

"Yeah, I can feel my teeth rotting just from watching her," Sarah joked. "Come on, loverboy, get in your damn armor before you get diabetes or something."

Sunset sat on a bench near the edge of the Citadel's courtyard. Her stomach kept twisting in knots as she tried and failed to avoid thinking about what was about to happen. The rest of the Rainbooms were similarly lost in their own thoughts, save for Fluttershy who had gone to speak to Adam quickly before the mission began.

Glancing over at the two of them, Sunset allowed herself a smile as she saw Adam's arm around Fluttershy's shoulders.

"They do make a cute couple, don't they?" Rarity said, barely keeping the 'squee' out of her voice.

"Who?" Applejack turned to see where the others were looking, then blinked in surprise when she saw. "Huh? Since when have those two been dating?"

"Since last night, I think," Sunset offered.

Rainbow grunted. "I didn't even know that she was interested in him."

"Apparently he asked her out back in Vault 101, not long before James left, but Fluttershy turned him down because she didn't want to enter a relationship that would be doomed when we went home," Rarity supplied. She sighed dramatically. "After we met back up in Little Lamplight, she told him to ask again when everything had calmed down again. It seems she couldn't quite keep to her own restrictions." Rarity beamed and danced excitedly on the spot. "Oohhh I'm so glad about this! They look adorable together!"

Sunset was about to add her own thoughts on the subject when a group of squires hurried over. Each of them carried a heavy-looking bundle in their arms. "Miss, er, Rainbooms? We've brought some combat armor for all of you," the lead squire said loudly.

Snatched back to reality, Sunset struggled to remain composed as a squire helped her put the armor on. It was simple enough, really; a metal chestplate, backplate and shoulder pads for her torso, a belt with more metal plates to protect her hips and groin, and a set of metal shin-pads with matching knee-pads. The squire assured Sunset that it was comparatively lightweight, but it was still incredibly heavy to someone who wasn't used to it. She was glad that she had decided to ditch her backpack for this mission.

The others didn't seem to be having too much trouble with it. Rarity, predictably, was busy lamenting that the dull steel plates didn't go with her outfit, while Pinkie and Rainbow were both shifting around and swinging their arms to check their mobility. Applejack just gave the armor a quick check to make sure it fitted alright, nodded with satisfaction, and went back to fiddling with her Pip-Boy.

"Hey, whose is the extra kit?" one of the squires asked, holding up a spare set of armor.

"I think that's m-mine," Fluttershy called out as she hurried over.

Sunset tactfully chose not to comment on the incredible blush the young nurse was sporting. Instead she asked, "Any idea how much longer we're going to be standing here?"

"Yes… um… one second." Fluttershy let the squires help her get the armor on before replying, "Sentinel Lyons said that we'll be starting any minute."

Sunset nodded and tapped her Geode. "In that case we'd better get ready. Pony up, girls."

There were six flashes of light as the Rainbooms all ponied up, followed by a wave of gasps and muttering that spread rapidly through the courtyard. Sunset blinked in surprise as she realized that her new armor had taken on a reddish tinge. Looking around at the others, she noticed that the other girls' armor had taken on the faint color of their magic, too.

The noise in the courtyard was silenced as a pair of doors at one end slammed open and Elder Lyons stepped out. He looked impassively around at the assembled troops, then raised what looked like a walkie-talkie to his mouth. A moment later a series of speakers around the walls crackled into life, "Brothers and Sisters, the time is upon us. This may well be the most important battle of our lives. The Enclave have control of Project Purity, and intend to use it to force the local settlements into subjugation. We cannot allow that."

A sudden rumbling sound made Sunset look up. A large crane that towered over the walls was turning until it was positioned directly over the center of the bailey.

"The Enclave have fortified Project Purity against us, using advanced energy fields to block all avenues of attack," Elder Lyons continued. "They believe that they have us outgunned, outclassed, and outmatched. They are wrong."

As the crane lowered its hook, a huge circular hatch opened up in the ground for it to disappear into. Moments later the cable went taut and, with the sound of straining metal, hoisted out the immense robot that the Rainbooms had seen in the lab underground.

Astonished cries and cheers filled the air as Elder Lyons voice rang out through the speakers, "Liberty Prime shall open the path to the objective. Stay with the robot until your route is clear, then occupy Project Purity and drive out the Enclave."

The crane turned slowly, moving to place Liberty Prime outside the Citadel. Unfortunately, the crane's operator apparently misjudged the distance between the robot and the wall, and its leg collided with the top of the Citadel with an impact that knocked free a deluge of shattered bricks and plaster.

Elder Lyons glared up at the crane as it raised Liberty Prime a little more, just enough to clear the wall, then finished turning. With a nod, Elder Lyons held out an arm and called out to the troops, "Go forth, my Brothers and Sisters. Onward to victory!"

The assembled Knights let loose a great roar that echoed around the courtyard as they all piled through the Citadel's exit. Swallowing her trepidation, Sunset hefted her assault rifle and called out to the rest of the girls,"Alright, Rainbooms, let's go!"

The girls found themselves near the back of the miniature army making their way out of the Citadel; a splash of color among a sea of gray power armor.

Liberty Prime was waiting outside. As soon as the first Knights reached it the robot jerked into motion. The ground shook with each step Liberty Prime took as the giant robot led the way down a dirt track away from the Citadel. As it walked, the robot's speakers suddenly boomed, "MISSION: THE DESTRUCTION OF ANY AND ALL CHINESE COMMUNISTS."

Sunset looked up at it in awe. She suspected that Chinese communists must be the original foe that Liberty Prime was programmed to fight, but she doubted that it would have much difficulty dealing with the Enclave troops instead.

A short way along the route a couple of squads split off from the main group. They opened up a manhole cover just off the path and, with a shout of encouragement to the others, made their way underground one by one. The rest of the Brotherhood forces continued down the path after Liberty Prime.

After crossing a short metal bridge across a creek, they came to a battered old concrete bridge, a solid construct built for two lanes of traffic, that spanned the width of an irradiated river. Two large pylons had been erected at the top of the ramp that led onto the bridge. A crackling blue energy field shimmered between them, blocking the way ahead. Enclave soldiers could be seen getting into position behind it, taking aim at the approaching Brotherhood of Steel troops.

Out of nowhere a missile suddenly flashed across the river and slammed into Liberty Prime's shoulder, raising worried gasps from the Knights. Liberty Prime paused in its tracks to look in the direction the missile had come from. A moment later a series of blue laser beams lanced out from the robot's eyes and slammed into a Vertibird hovering on the other side of the river, blowing it out of the sky.

"COMMUNISM IS THE VERY DEFINITION OF FAILURE." Satisfied that its enemy was destroyed, Liberty Prime stomped up the bridge towards the energy barrier. "OBSTRUCTION DETECTED. COMPOSITION: TITANIUM ALLOY SUPPLEMENTED BY PHOTONIC RESONANCE BARRIER. PROBABILITY OF MISSION HINDRANCE-" Liberty walked directly into the barrier, arcs of electricity cascading all over its body, until finally the barrier collapsed in a shower of sparks, "ZERO PERCENT."

The Enclave soldiers on the bridge panicked and fired wildly at the robot, but Liberty Prime opened up with its lasers as it walked, mowing the troopers down with ease.

"Damn, that thing kicks ass!" Rainbow cried.

Encouraged by the robot's effortless destruction of their enemies, the Knights piled onto the bridge in Liberty Prime's wake. Sunset slowed to a walk as she reached the top of the bridge, crouching as much as she could and casting her gaze around warily.

"What's wrong, sugarcube?" Applejack asked.

Sunset bit her lip. "Something doesn't feel right. Liberty Prime may have taken the Enclave by surprise, but you'd think that they'd have something else up their sleeves in case we made it onto the bridge. We're seriously exposed up here."

The words had barely left her mouth before they were justified, as a whistling cry echoed over the bridge. One of the Knights yelled, "Artillery!" Explosions rent the air a bare second later.

Liberty Prime shrugged off artillery shells as if they were merely an irritant, but the Knights weren't so lucky. Even their power armor wasn't enough to save them; the explosions tore through metal and flesh alike with terrifying ease, scattering debris and broken bodies all over the road. The Rainbooms were saved by the fact that they were right at the back of the group, just out of the artillery's range, but even they were pelted by shards of tarmac.

Enduring the Enclave's barrage, Liberty Prime reached for a dispenser on its back, pulled out a man-sized bomb, then stepped forward and tossed it as if it was passing a football. The following blast was out of the girls' sight, but was powerful enough to shake the very ground beneath their feet.

"Sometimes I hate being right," Sunset said quietly, unable to hide the quaver in her voice. "This is way beyond anything we can handle."

"It's about to get worse," Pinkie hissed. As she spoke a pair of Vertibirds flew over the ruins, one on either side of the bridge and just out of range of the ground troops. The two of them launched a barrage of missiles that engulfed Liberty Prime.

Rainbow swore loudly. "I'll take out the one on the right!" She ignited Flashburn, then disappeared in a multicolored blur.

"Ah got the other one!" Applejack slung her rifle over her shoulder and snatched up a dislodged length of rebar, then hurled it like a javelin at the Vertibird. The steel pole smashed through the corner of the vehicle's windshield. It must have hit the pilot or an important part of the controls, because the Vertibird immediately spun out of control and crashed into the river below.

A loud blast from the other Vertibird snagged Sunset's attention just in time for her to watch it plunge into the river too, blue flames pouring from one of its engines. Rainbow landed back at her side a heartbeat later. "Got 'em, is the robot okay?"

Sunset tore her gaze from the Vertibird's watery grave and looked ahead. Liberty Prime seemed unfazed by the pounding it had taken as it pulled out another bomb and lobbed it at the distant artillery. The Knights that had hunkered down or taken cover soon noticed that the bombardment had stopped, scrambling back into some semblance of order and charging after Liberty Prime as it continued on its way.

"Looks like it's fine, let's go!" Applejack cried.

"You girls go on ahead, I'm going to help the wounded!" Fluttershy called out before flying over to the nearest fallen Knight.

The screams of the wounded and the dying hounded Sunset as she and the others hurried to catch up to the rest of the Brotherhood troops. Worse was the sight of those soldiers who would never cry out again; shattered bodies strewn across the road in pieces like some macabre puzzle.

Sunset tried to focus on the Knights who were still standing in an effort to take her mind off the carnage, but that just brought a fresh problem to her attention; counting the Knights that had taken the sewer route, the strike force had lost about half of their number already. Still, the Enclave had taken heavy losses, too, as the mangled remains of steel barricades would attest.

More gunfire broke out when Liberty Prime reached the far end of the bridge. Tall ruins rose up on each side of the road, providing the Enclave soldiers with excellent vantage points from which they could rain fire down on the Brotherhood troops. Fortunately, most of them concentrated their efforts on Liberty Prime. The robot weathered the storm and responded in kind, blasting them with its lasers or hurling miniature nukes that brought down entire buildings with their fury.

A short way past the end of the bridge the road turned to the right and down a ramp. The buildings on the right descended with it, but the buildings on the left stayed on the same elevation, until the floor was high enough above the road that it was level with Liberty Prime's shoulders.

Sunset looked up at the ruins anxiously as the Rainbooms started down the ramp. They had been lucky enough to avoid being targeted so far, probably because they were right at the back of the group and a much smaller threat than the massive battle robot currently causing mayhem up ahead, but this enclosed area would be a nasty place to get ambushed.

Almost as soon as the thought crossed her mind Sunset heard aircraft approaching from behind. Her heart leapt into her mouth as another Vertibird appeared over the top of the ruins. "Everyone get off the road!" The Rainbooms and the few Knights that heard scrambled into the nearest building just as the Vertibird opened fire, scouring the road with a storm of laser fire and missiles.

Before Sunset could catch her breath there was a loud crash as an Enclave soldier dropped down from a higher floor, landing hard enough to shatter the rocks beneath his feet. Pinkie shoved Sunset aside just in time to save her from getting a bolt of plasma to the chest. The soldier aimed at Pinkie instead, but a shining gemstone smacked into his gun and fouled his aim. A second later there was a colossal boom as Applejack used the distraction to punch him as hard as she could, sending him sailing through the walls behind.

"Are y'all okay?" Applejack called out. The others had to shout to make their replies heard as the sounds of fierce combat filled the air. Sunset swore as she realized that she had been right; they'd walked right into the Enclave's ambush.

"What do we do now?" Rarity asked.

Sunset opened her mouth to answer, but was cut off as a sudden burst of plasma fire from above forced the girls to scatter and run deeper into the building. Time seemed to lose all meaning as Sunset ran, each ruined corridor or debris-strewn room providing a fresh glimpse into Tartarus as Brotherhood Knights and Enclave soldiers clashed in a brutal melee.

In one room a Knight was emptying his minigun into an Enclave soldier's face at point blank range, firing until his enemy's head was little more than a red mist dotted with flakes of scrap metal. In another, several Knights had abandoned using their ineffective weapons and resorted to mobbing a lone soldier, holding him down while one of their number ripped off the soldier's helmet and bludgeoned him to death with it.

The Brotherhood wasn't having everything go their way. The Enclave soldiers had better equipment and training, and wherever they matched the Brotherhood's numbers the Knights were gunned down mercilessly.

Everything was too chaotic for Sunset to tell who was winning. She had lost sight of the rest of the Rainbooms, and the constant snap of laser and plasma fire coupled with intermittent explosions rendered her near enough deaf. Sunset had yet to fire a single shot herself. Every time she pointed her rifle at someone images of the raider she had shot flashed across her mind, keeping her from pulling the trigger.

Lost, confused, and scared, Sunset just kept moving until, as she ran across an open room, a single laser shot punched her in the chest. Her armor took the hit, but the impact threw off her balance just enough that she tripped over her own feet and fell to the ground, spraying bullets everywhere as she accidentally pulled her rifle's trigger.

Sunset rolled onto her back and looked up in time to see an Enclave soldier stomping towards her. She yelled and fired wildly at him, terror overriding her hesitation, but the bullets just pinged harmlessly off his armor. Just as the soldier raised his own weapon a Knight came charging out of nowhere and tackled him to the ground.

Granted a reprieve, Sunset surged to her feet and sprinted away, not daring to look back at the fight that erupted behind her. She ran through the ruined building as fast as she could, not stopping until she finally found herself in a small back room stocked with a couple of rusty filing cabinets.

Sunset was at the end of her rope. Pushed beyond rational thought, she tossed her assault rifle aside and sagged against the wall, running her hands through her hair as she tried to get her breathing under control. Panicked as she was, it took Sunset a few moments to realize that she wasn't alone. Pinkie was curled up in a ball in the corner, staring blankly at the wall ahead as tears streamed silently down her face.

Neither girl spoke. Sunset wanted to give Pinkie a hug, to at least try to comfort her, but when she tried to take a step her knees buckled and she instead found herself sitting on the floor with one leg folded underneath her. Belatedly, Sunset realized that she was shaking uncontrollably as she cried, too.

Heavy footsteps and a shadow falling across the door announced the arrival of someone else. An Enclave soldier stomped into the doorway, and Sunset was vaguely aware of a warm wetness spreading between her legs as she lost control of her bladder in her terror.

The soldier took a single step into the room, then slumped against the doorframe and slid down until he was sitting on the floor. A closer look revealed that the one side of his armor was battered and rent, with multiple holes dotting the deformed metal. Sunset stared warily at the soldier for several seconds before crawling over to him. When she got to him she reached up and, with a grunt of effort, managed to pry off his helmet.

The soldier was barely more than a boy, around the same age as the Rainbooms. His skin was waxy and deathly pale. Blood spattered from his mouth as he coughed out, "I… don't wa… don't wanna... die…"

"I-it's okay," Sunset managed to whisper. "You… you're going to be alright." Without thinking, driven by deep-rooted compassion, she reached up to wipe the sweat from his forehead. The moment her hand touched his skin her Geode pulsed and her magic flared into life.

A flood of images flowed into Sunset's mind, snapshots from the soldier's life. A little boy playing catch with his father in a hangar. Playing tag with friends in a makeshift jungle gym. Learning math from the kindly elementary teacher. Getting his first flight in a Vertibird with his father. Being treated to a real steak as a reward for getting accepted into the higher education football team. Standing nervously in front of Colonel Autumn as he started military training. Learning to field-strip a plasma rifle. A girlfriend crying out in ecstasy as he thrust into her. Crying tears of pride after graduating Raven Rock's military academy with honours. Hugging his mother before flying out to the Jefferson Memorial for his first mission. And finally stumbling into a back room, wounded by explosives after his first battle went sideways.

As the visions slowly faded to black Sunset felt something tugging at her mind, as if her very soul was being sucked into a dark abyss. She snatched her hand back and the magic cut off instantly. Sunset stared blankly at the corpse sitting in front of her, her heart hammering so hard it actually hurt. She tried to move, to stand or scream or do anything, but her body just wouldn't cooperate. The world span, and Sunset felt herself slump to the floor just before she slipped into unconsciousness.

Adam ducked instinctively as another missile slammed into Liberty Prime. The robot shrugged it off and retaliated with its lasers, easily obliterating the offending soldier. It looked up and down the street for any further targets. Seeing that all Enclave troops in the open were down, it turned to continue on its way.

"That's the last of them!" Sentinel Lyons called out. "Pride, Wonderbolts and Adam, with me! The rest of you head into that building and help the others deal with whatever's left of the ambush!"

Three Knights split off from the group and ran back towards the building the rest of the strike force had disappeared into. Adam just blinked dumbly, having expected there to be more troops left, then hurried to catch up with Lyons and the others. Fawkes and Paladin Cross kept pace with him; friendship on one side and duty on the other.

The few remaining Enclave soldiers on the streets were wiped out easily by the group as they advanced. Cross wielded her super sledge with an elegant brutality that spoke of years of experience, while the barrel of Fawkes' gatling laser glowed white-hot from the sheer amount of firepower he had unleashed. The rest of the team had scavenged plasma rifles from fallen Enclave soldiers, snatching up ammunition from the dead wherever they could; they were the only other weapons that could consistently breach the Enclave's superior power armor.

It didn't take long for the group to reach the end of the ruined streets. One more concrete bridge over a tributary river led to Project Purity, but the far side was protected by an extensive system of photonic resonance barriers that ringed the entirety of the Jefferson Memorial; one final obstacle for the Brotherhood to overcome.

Liberty Prime stomped over the bridge towards the barrier with no sign of concern whatsoever, causing cracks in the concrete that made Adam worry about the bridge's structural integrity. "DEMOCRACY IS NON-NEGOTIABLE." When it reached the barrier it reached out to grip the pylons on either side of the bridge. Electricity arced all over Liberty Prime's body, filling the air with the reek of ozone, until finally the robot collapsed onto all fours as the ring of barriers failed in a colossal shower of sparks.

The small team stared at Liberty in stunned horror, but they soon breathed a sigh of relief as the giant robot pushed itself to its feet and lumbered forwards once more. "COMMUNISM IS A TEMPORARY SETBACK ON THE ROAD TO FREEDOM."

A handful of Enclave soldiers tried to resist, apparently determined to fight to their last breath, but Liberty Prime's overwhelming firepower ensured that those final breaths were only seconds away. Adam actually felt sorry for them. Most of them were probably just ordinary people following bad orders, but that didn't make an ounce of difference to the cold logic of a combat robot.

Sentinel Lyons clapped Adam on the shoulder as she stepped past him. "Alright people, this is it. Liberty Prime has done his part, now it's up to us to get in there and secure the purifier. Let's go!"

Just as the team started towards the Memorial building they were caught off-guard by the sudden roar of rotors. Fear clenched Adam's heart as four Vertibirds soared around the exterior of Project Purity, two on each side flanking the group in a pincer manoeuvre.

Sentinel Lyons tried to shout a warning, but it was drowned out by the sound of the Vertibirds unleashing a furious salvo of missiles at Liberty Prime. Thankfully, the attacks were no more effective than previously. Unlike previously, however, the Vertibirds kept moving, shifting into single file and speeding up as they made a beeline for the robot.

"Shit, it's a bombing run!" Sentinel Lyons shouted. "Everyone scatter!"

Adam belted for cover, risking a glance over his shoulder as he ran. Liberty Prime managed to blast two of the Vertibirds out of the sky, scattering chunks of blazing debris all over the place, but the robot couldn't turn in time to target the other two before they reached it. Adam caught a brief glimpse of several small black masses dropping out of the Vertibirds as they passed over Liberty Prime, then his focus was shattered as the explosions started.

The ground quaked as nuclear fire enveloped the giant robot. Over a dozen blasts ripped through the air, each one rolling into the next like some nightmare crescendo. Adam threw himself to the floor and covered his head, desperately hoping that he was far enough away from the explosions for his armor to protect him. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the last of the blasts faded away, leaving a ringing silence in their wake.

Cautiously, Adam uncovered his head and pushed himself onto his knees before reluctantly turning to see the aftermath of the bombs. Black smoke shrouded the robot entirely. The two Vertibirds could be seen banking around, clearly lining themselves up for another attack. Adam felt his heart sink as he realized that their next target would likely be him.

"DEATH IS A PREFERABLE ALTERNATIVE TO COMMUNISM." Blue lasers suddenly tore out of the smoke, obliterating the Vertibirds with ease. Adam gasped and clambered to his feet, then whooped as the smoke dissipated to reveal Liberty Prime, blackened but unbeaten, one fist raised in the air triumphantly. "DEMOCRACY WILL NEVER BE DEFEATED."

A few scattered cheers and shouts of awe greeted his proclamation. Adam looked around quickly, mentally counting as the Wonderbolts and the Lyons Pride picked themselves up off the ground and gathered together again. Cross looked fine, if a little pissed off, and at least two of the Knights were obviously injured by the way they were moving, but Fawkes was nowhere to be seen.

"Fawkes? Where are you, buddy?" Adam called out. "Fawkes?!"

"Over here," came the gruff reply. Adam followed the voice around the mangled remains of a car to find Fawkes sat against the side of it. "I am glad to see that you are unhurt."

"What about you, how are you doing?" Adam asked, trying to keep the worry out of his voice.

Fawkes sighed and shifted his leg to reveal a foot-long shard of twisted metal sticking out of his knee, earning a sympathetic hiss from Adam. "Do not worry, I will live, but I am afraid I will not be able to help you secure your objective. Not unless you can wait for an hour while I crawl over there."

"It's fine, buddy, you rest," Adam replied with a relieved grin. "We'll handle the rest of these posers, then I'll fetch you a glass of fresh water. How does that sound?"

Fawkes chuckled softly. "That sounds agreeable indeed." He reached up to clasp Adam's hand. "Go. Carry out your destiny and fulfil your parents' dream."

Adam nodded and clapped him on the shoulder before jogging over to the others.

"How's Fawkes?" Metzger asked.

"He'll be okay, but he's going to have to sit this one out," Adam replied. "What now?"

Sentinel Lyons glared up at the Memorial building. "Now we finish this fight." Without another word she charged off towards the nearest door, forcing the others to follow quickly or get left behind.

The interior of Project Purity was far cleaner than Adam remembered. Most of the debris had been cleared and the accumulated filth and bloodstains had been completely scrubbed away. "Say what you will about the Enclave, but at least they keep things tidy."

Angry shouting could be heard from a doorway just ahead on their right. Sentinel Lyons held up a hand to halt her team, then gestured for Cross to come closer. Adam frowned as he tried to figure out their best option; there was only one way in or out, and the Enclave soldiers within were certain to have it well covered with as much firepower as they could muster.

As he was still pondering what to do, Cross stepped aside and crouched next to the wall opposite the door, just out of sight of whoever was inside. As soon as she was situated she nodded to Sentinel Lyons, who raised her hand again and called out to the Enclave soldiers, "This is Sentinel Lyons of the Brotherhood of Steel. We have you surrounded and outnumbered. Surrender and your lives will be spared; you have my word."

"With all due respect, Sentinel, you can go fuck yourself!" someone shouted in reply.

Sentinel Lyons just shook her head and dropped her hand. The moment she did Cross exploded into action, launching herself at the wall next to the door and barreling straight through it as if it were made of paper. Adam barely had time to register what had happened before he was caught up in the rush as the rest of the team charged in after her with a roar.

Three soldiers were in the room. They were clearly well disciplined, smoothly switching their aim from the door to the hole in the wall and firing in unison, but the moment of distraction cost them dearly.

Cross dove into a commando roll the moment the soldiers fired, an incredible feat in power armor, then swung her hammer in a wide arc as she rolled back to her feet, using her momentum to cave in the nearest soldiers' helmet. The last two soldiers were caught in a barrage of plasma fire that only ended when they both fell. Cross kicked their weapons aside, just in case they weren't quite dead.

Adam whistled softly as he lowered his weapon. He realized that he was going to have to learn and account for what power armor was actually capable of in the future, especially if he was going to get involved in more fighting. Putting that to the back of his mind for now, he asked, "What now?"

Sentinel Lyons gently wiped her brow with a gauntlet as she answered, "The squads we sent through the sewer tunnels are downstairs trying to take control of the reactor. We'll secure this floor, then go downstairs and give them a hand."

"That won't be necessary," a familiar voice called out. Adam and the Sentinel frowned at each other, then walked over to a nearby door, readying their weapons as a precaution. Colonel Autumn was sitting on the edge of a portable hospital bed with both of his arms in splints. A medic and an Enclave officer in dress uniform were in the makeshift clinic, too, holding their hands above their heads. Colonel Autumn looked up at the Sentinel as she stepped into the room. "You win, Sentinel Lyons. Major Johnson, give the order for our troops to lay down their arms. We surrender."

"Wise decision. It's a shame you didn't make the same call yesterday." Sentinel Lyons looked back over her shoulder at the rest of the team. "Wonderbolts, take these men into custody, then I want you to-"

"Hang on a second," Major Johnson cut in. "Colonel, we've got a problem."

"What kind of problem?" Sentinel Lyons asked testily.

The Major looked from her to the Colonel and back as if waiting for permission, but when none was forthcoming he shrugged and replied anyway, "Our scientists are saying that the reactor systems downstairs were damaged in the firefight. They're generating an immense amount of power and they can't switch it off, if we don't do something in the few minutes it's going to overload and explode!"

"He's telling the truth," one of the Pride's Knights supplied. "I've just got word from our troops down there, the reactor got hit by wayward laser fire. We need to evacuate the building!"

"Has the G.E.C.K. been installed properly yet?" Adam asked urgently.

Major Johnson nodded. "It has, but that won't help. Switching the purifier on would solve our issue but we don't know the activation code."

"No need, I know the code!" Adam turned to leave, but was stopped as the Major shouted after him.

"Wait! The control room is still massively irradiated, going in there will be suicide!"

That was enough to give Adam pause. Seeing his hesitation, Sentinel Lyons stepped up to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Tell me the code. I'll activate the purifier."

Adam looked at her as the rest of the Knights started arguing over whether they should evacuate or not. She was clearly terrified, but determined. That was enough to set Adam's mind. "Fine, but you'll need that monkey wrench over there."

As the Sentinel turned to see what he was talking about, Adam shrugged off her hand and sprinted out of the room, thundering through the building as quickly as he could. He could hear her following him, shouting for him to wait, but he paid it no mind. Fawkes was right, this was his destiny.

The rotunda containing the purifier was almost exactly the way Adam last saw it. The hole in the wall hadn't been fixed, but the debris around it had been safely cleared away. He charged through the hole, smashing more chunks from the edges in his haste, and surged up the stairs to the control room. Metal stairs buckled under his armor's weight, but he made it to the top and into the airlock without stumbling.

Sentinel Lyons reached the top a second after the reinforced glass door slid shut. She pounded a fist on the door as she yelled, "Damn it, Adam! Why?!"

"Sorry, Sarah, but I'm not going to let anyone else die for the sake of my parents' dream. This is something I have to do myself." He reached for the button to open the inner door, then paused and glanced over his shoulder. "Tell Fluttershy that I'm sorry."

"I will." Sentinel Lyons snapped a crisp salute. "The wasteland will never forget this sacrifice, I swear."

Adam just nodded and pressed the button. His armor's Geiger counter immediately crackled into life as a wave of dizziness passed through him. Forcing himself forward, he stepped over to the main control panel and looked down at the keypad.

The activation code was easy to figure out for anyone who had known James well. His wife, Adam's mother, had always loved the Bible, and one certain verse in particular. It was this verse that would inspire her dream, and what would now become her legacy in the form of Project Purity.

"Revelation 21:6." Adam typed in the three digit code. "I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life, freely." His heart broke as he heard the purifier kicking into life.

Adam sank to one knee as his strength rapidly faded, tears flowing down his face as he allowed himself to finally break down at the unfairness of it all. He had lost his mother on the day of his birth, then lived a lie for most of his life and had the comfort of that lie stripped away in one awful day. Ever since then his days had been a hellish conga line of misery. At the very last, when he had finally found a shred of light, a whisper of kindness in the harshness of the wastes, he was forced into this last and most cruel of choices by his own heroic nature.

"Sorry… Flutters… I didn't… want… to hurt you. F… forgive me…" Adam keeled over as the radiation in the room suddenly spiked, and the darkness claimed him as its own.

I've put a link to the character sheet in the long description of this story, and I'll be updating it with every chapter. Enjoy!