Chapter 565 - Cold Brothers

"I'm telling you, this is a really bad idea." Veronica states behind Christine as they both walk through the desert.

"And I'm telling you, I'll believe it when I see it." Christine retorts, concentrating on following the path. Veronica already knew where the base was, but Christine herself had left while the group was still in Helios One...​​

Veronica just huffs and speeds up to match Christine's pace, "And what are you going to do once we get there? Last I heard you hated your parents, all our old friends abandoned us when they found out our secret, is there anything left for you to care about?" she bluntly states, causing Christine to stop in place with a severe frown.

She turns and glares at Veronica, "In case you forgot, we were born under the codex, we grew up under the codex, we should have DIED, under the codex! It baffles me that you could so easily throw it away!"

"Like you threw me away!? Leaving without a word? I didn't want to go against everything we were taught Christine, I just thought that family should be valued above it... Family is the only reason I'm letting you go back, but family is also the reason I'll drag you back kicking and screaming if you try to reveal anything about Bulwark." she heavily warns, knowing that Christine knew enough to put Bulwark in some amount of danger... Sure, there wasn't much their enemies could do with such information now... But later on? Perhaps.

"I told you, I didn't throw you away!... Elijah manipulated me! All while I was under constant scrutiny by the others, you at least had Elijah's protection... You didn't have to worry about getting raped when you turned the wrong corner!" Christine exclaims, causing both of them to go silent momentarily.

...

"Was it really that bad?" Veronica quietly asks, not having realised how she must have felt. Looking back on it now, Veronica could barely spend any time with her, Christine's parents, friends, and colleagues abandoned and bullied her...

Christine just numbly nods, placing a hand on her chest, "The only reason I hadn't off'd myself or fled into the desert was because of the Codex. I thought that even if I was an outcast for the rest of my life, I could still be useful in serving it... That's when Elijah introduced me to the Circle of Steel..." she shakes her head and stares straight at Veronica, "That's why I need to see the Chapter's degradation myself, I need to see if it's true."

...

Veronica gives a long sigh, "Fine, but don't blame me if we have to shoot our way outta there. Your parents might be sorry for how they treated you, but the others? I never asked, but judging on how they received Afton, I doubt they think any better of you." she says, not stating the obvious that her appearance would certainly raise the Brotherhood's more xenophobic traits.

Christine's hair hadn't started growing back properly yet, and there wasn't really anything they could do for her scars either. Veronica didn't mind it, but she couldn't exactly be called 'attractive' anymore, nor do the Brotherhood think well of experimental subjects.

The Brotherhood was founded due to human experimentation after all, so it wouldn't surprise Veronica in the slightest if they demanded a full examination under threat of execution.

Soon enough, the duo reaches the road where the Brotherhood base was currently located... Judging by the many burned remnants of old caravans, Hardin had been busy. Just as they were able to see the new make-shift Brotherhood walls in the distance, they were accosted by a small group of people all wearing Power armour.

"Halt! You are in BOS territory, state your identities and reasons for being here, or we will execute you!" one of them states while their is voice muffled by their helmet.

Veronica raises a brow and scoffs, "You guys seriously forgot what we look like already?" she asks while raising the brim of her cowboy hat.

Their departure from Bulwark had been a rather frantic affair, so neither had elected to 'borrow' some Power armour from Afton, especially considering he didn't know what they were up to. Christine's head was also partially covered by a cowboy hat, but it still didn't cover all of her scars...

"Veronica, huh? You runnin' around here with another of your mutant friends? Tell me, was that Ghoul worth getting kicked out?"

Veronica snorts, "Oh, it was well worth it. At least now I don't have to deal with douche-bags like you... Let me guess, nasally voice, cocky attitude and thinks he's big shit despite only being 5.6... Jenkins. Hey, even in your armour you look short." she quips.

A few of the other BOS members snicker at their companion's face but quickly compose themselves. The now named Jenkins jabs a finger at Christine while still glaring at Veronica, "As you learned last time, take your pet Ghoul elsewhere or we'll remove it for you. Permenantly."

Christine had already had enough of this annoying douche bag, if she had a gun that could breach Power armour she might've had half a mind to shoot him... She raises her head and lifts the hat, "I'm not a Ghoul, maybe if you were smarter than the average feral, you'd have realised that." she spits in a low tone.

"C-Christine!?" a female voice squeaks from one of the soldiers, they step forwards and raise their helmet, revealing Melissa's face... Though, she looked absolutely awful, with heavy black bags under her eyes, clammy skin, and even a few scars around her neck where her armour was less thick. "W-what happened to you!?" she exclaims, sounding exhausted but still managing to muster up her emotions.

"Hell." she harshly states before continuing, "But it doesn't seem like you're doing all that much better." she questions.