(Jedi and clones only this chapter)
Anakin and Kenobi were meeting over a holocall, with Ahsoka, standing at the Holoprojector, Rex joined them.
"You know General, I heard about the Jedi having a probe that had some nifty stuff, that could change the war. But it's also has some pretty bad information, showing a people at it's worst." Rex said.
"It does, but We are hoping it starts to look up." Anakin said.
"As long as you don't give me that Nuka cola stuff I'm fine." Ahsoka said.
The holographic appearance of the AI's form, who still refused to give any name, simply called "Red" appeared.
"Ok, let's start this off." Red said, smiling.
A wise soldier knows it isn't the weapon that matters most, but the hand that wields it. An army equipped with the finest weaponry certainly has the advantage in battle, but what happens when the battle is over? Over the millennia, the tools of war have changed. From bronze, to iron, to steel, and eventually plutonium- mankind grows ever more capable of waging war, and always less capable of using those weapons responsibly.
*people in power armor using a ruined building as cover, various laser weapons used, including Gatling lasers in a fight, with various power armor suits used.*
"Sounds about right. Give an army good weapons but no training will be less effective compared to an army with poor equipment but good training." Rex said, getting a few nods from the other clones watching, and some Jedi.
There are those who feel that no one is responsible enough to wield such power as mankind had during the Great War. And then there are those who feel they alone are worthy. Travelers and merchants in the waste land have seen towering soldiers in suits of metal armor, with laser rifles slung over their shoulders. These are members of the brotherhood of steel, and it's easy to distinguish them from other armored warriors by their pre-war power armor. Those T-51b armored suits aren't just plates of metal strapped to their bodies. No, the brotherhood of Steel's armor is a fusion powered artifact designed before the Great War, it augments strength, protects them from harm and marks them as a member of an elite order.
*shows patrol of power armored people armed with energy weapons, passing by a man next to a pack Brahmin. Fades to blueprints of the armor*
"Sounds like the Jedi with lightsabers, and the force." Cody commented.
"We train those to use it properly." Kenobi said.
"Sure, that's why kyber crystals are so exclusive, we could use that type of penetration power on blasters, and torches." Wolfe said, earning a chuckle from Gree, Rex, Cody and Bly.
The Jedi suddenly felt the parallels were being a criticism on them. The Jedi did horde knowledge, both history, knowledge of Star systems, and of technology.
The brotherhood of steel is amount the most technologically advanced factions that the wasteland holds. There are relatively few in number when compared to the vast armies like the New California Republic or the Legion, but what they lack in numbers, they make up for in raw power and indomitable courage.
*shows brotherhood of steel member in front of their emblem, a set of wings with a sword going though gears*
"They do sound a lot like us." Anakin said.
"So we would make.....relatively good relations with them." Kenobi said.
"That is if we can make contact, they seem like a force that is very suspicious of outsiders." Luminara said, crossing one arm and placing the other hand on her chin.
The brotherhood can trace its history back to the Great War, Long before the military in mariposa California gave rise to the Super Mutant army, it was a research facility. In the days leading up to the Great War, there was a small contingent of soldiers assigned to guard the base and its loathsome content. That loyal band of men didn't know they were protecting a horribly unethical group of scientists who were engaging in unfathomable experiments. They only knew that it was an important project and they were doing their part to fight the good fight and keep their country safe.
*shows 2 men stand guard at a door, fades two scientists in suits around a table with a horribly mutilated mutated creature*
"Soldiers of a nation that was. Good soldiers who didn't question orders, even when it could be bad." Rex said.
Eventually they did learn the awful truth of the Forced Evolutionary Virus and that the base they were guarding was being used to experiment on human test subject, inmates from military prisons. The knowledge that they unknowingly participated in these atrocities, committed on their own brothers in arms no less, stretched their loyalty tot he breaking point.
*shows a horribly mutated creature, muscles exposed and skin ripped apart, mouth wide open and leaning head to one side.*
"What the bantha fudu is that?" Cody yelled.
"Failed FEV subject, A.I, play back the last log after this one." Aayla ordered.
"It will be done." Red said, smiling, "I also have recorded video of Super a mutant combat, if you'd like be to shown." She added.
Colonel Spindel, their commanding officer was unable to cope with this fact. Just a few days after the truth was reveled, he committed suicide, leaving second in command, Captain Roger Maxon, to deal with the aftermath.
*shows a man in armor leaning to one side over a desk, pistol near the hand on the table*
"Harsh, stressful, and my bet, pressure he couldn't keep living knowing what he helped in. No clone could fault him." Rex said.
No clone could understand what he thought, and hoped they never could, such actions were extreme, but with a mind as guilty as his, he probably saw himself responsible.
Today the brotherhood looks up to Roger Maxon with Religious reverence. Perhaps Maxon was destined to carry the fire of humanity, or he may have simply had the right balance of honor and pragmatism needed to lead men though the apocalypse
*shows Maxon standing on a platform being looked up at by the soldiers he now lead*
"He sounds like he'd make a great commander, maybe a damn good jedi general." Rex said.
"From how he sounds, he fits the desired traits." Plo koon said.
Maxon took it upon himself to take control of the base, ordering interrogation of the science teams to maintain a semblance of order. As he started to believe that the project was backed knowingly by his government, he attempted to contact his superiors for a response, even going so far as to declare secession from the union. At the same time, he and his soldiers then gathered their families with them and readies themselves inside their remote base.
*shows the scientists facing a wall, being aimed at by the soldiers, fades to families inside the base, soldiers and women with children dotted across the area*
There was a silence, the truth was, many jedi would do something if pushed and shown the atrocities that were committed. There was many a clone who had killed an enemy commander for the atrocities they committed.
"He prepared everything he could to make the soldiers he lead, keep what may they make them unloyal and keep them safe." Rex said.
"To think their own government would do such horrible things, it disgusts me." Anakin said.
They waited for a response, any kind of response, anticipating that their own government would never tolerate such an outright insurrection and would have to come and provide answered. But the response never came. Unbeknownst to Maxon, the Great War was already brewing even as he staged his revolt. If anyone in the government knew about Maxon's rebellion, they no longer cared.
*screen fades to black turns to a group surrounding a glowing table*
"The timing couldn't have been better, if not at the cost of so many others. They may have been the last of the good people of the old America." Cody said.
"Yes, or those brave enough to stand by what they believed." Kenobi added.
The base at Mariposa proved to be a reliable shelter against the onslaught of the atomic war. Maxon, his loyal troops, and their families were among the survivors. His own wife and son were at Maxon's side, and understanding that his children would live in whatever world he left behind must surely have influences his actions in the days ahead. Humanity is a stubborn species, and not one to die out easily, but mankind's knowledge, civilization and technology would easily disappear once living memory had passed. Would Maxon's descendants run barefoot through the desert, hunting food with stone spears? Or would they stride through the wasteland clad in power armor, felling their enemies with beams of light and fire?
*shows group pointing to spot on table having a map on it, fades to black before showing group walking towards the sunset power armor and weapons in tow.*
"We all know the answer we would pick between those two." Anakin said.
Many nodded in agreement, it was a "reasonable" answer to make. Many Jedi, however did feel the irony, they were once like that, they chose to stride into the future with their "power armor" having taken control of the senate in the past, they basically formed the Republic's future.
It was not a difficult choice to make as Maxon led his troops and their families from the Mariposa base to a hidden military bunker in what is now called the Lost Hills. There they used what materials they had gathered to build a place of refuge and learning. They preserved their military discipline and technological knowledge from generation to generation, carrying the fire, even if it was hidden beneath the desert.
The brotherhood limited their contact with other communities of survivors, primarily trading for food and other essentials with technology they recovered or made. Sequestered with their precious laser rifles, computers and power armor, they kept the most fragile of old world technology alive, but hoarded that knowledge to themselves. The tribal societies on the surface has saved pre-war equipment found it wearing out over time. Spare parts were used up and no one had the capacity to manufacture anything new.
As the years turned to decades, technology grew more and more rare, and the understanding of how to use it disappeared even as people learned how to hunt with spears and cook radscorpions.
*shows two brotherhood members holding men at gunpoint, shows people around a fire, wearing tribal clothing*
"Even with their advanced knowledge, they still need to survive, and with their ability to help, they only focused on what they could do to help themselves at the time." Ahsoka said.
'How many times have we done the same? How many people suffered due to our inaction to fix a broken system?' Anakin thought, scowling just a bit.
Some Jedi picked up on this, but misunderstood why Anakin was.
"We will help be there to help, we just need time." Mace Windu said.
In time, Maxon's son assumes command as the High Elder, and his son after him. Other respected members of the brotherhood formed a council of Elders beneath the High a Eldar, who has traditionally been a descendant of the Maxon line. Although sometimes the role of High Elder has fallen to a distinguished Paladin. Life within the Brotherhood still uses elements of the pre-war American Military, with a strict hierarchical structure.
*shows man in the middle of a set of desks, a dozen surrounding Him*
"Like a grand master, with the councils." Barris Offee said.
Although there are many ranks within the brotherhood, the three main branches of the organization are the scribes, the knights and the paladins.
*shows 3 people lined up*
Everyone watched closely, some idea of hiarchy could help them understand who they would meet, and the roles they play.
Scribes are responsible for scientific research and preservation of ancient knowledge. At one point they focused their effort on preservation, but the brotherhood has grown less concerned with chronicling history, than with the development of new weaponry.
*shows two people in red robes*
"The sound like the old consulars, focused on knowledge and history." Barriss said.
The title of knight once referred to an armored warrior who fought battles while mounted on an extinct species of animal called a horse. Those knights are a far cry from the knights of the brotherhood. In the brotherhood a knight is responsible for building, repairing and maintaining the weapons designed by the scribes. Should a knight distinguish themselves, they can eventually become a Paladin
*shows two people in power armor, no helmets and small arms energy weapons.*
"Sounds like the sentinels, more in keeping and order safe. Not combat focused or knowledge focused, but more of a ward against those who use the force in unintended ways." Aalya said.
The Majority of the Brotherhood personnel seen by outsiders are Paladins. These Elite soldiers cut a swath through the raiders, mutants and tribal barbarians that stand between the brotherhood and the technology they desire.
*shows fully power armored beings with heavy energy weapons.*
"Guardians, defiantly like the guardian." Anakin said, smiling
While the brotherhood is eager to fight any bandits or raiders that they come across, they are reluctant to assist the residents of the wasteland in any significant manner. They view most outsiders intellectually inferiors, unfit to receive technological assistance. Many people have attempted to join the brotherhood, only to be sent on suicidal errands to recover artifacts from heavily irradiated regions of the wasteland.
*shows brotherhood members fighting off tribal*
"Isolating themselves from the outside world, thinking any knowledge they don't have is useless. Sounds like a recipe for disaster. They also don't recruit, can be bad for a reputation, especially when you become desperate." Wolfe said.
"They are not perfect, but they show great promise." Obi-wan said.
Their errors has nearly been their undoing on several occasion. When the super mutant menace appeared, brotherhood scribes were first to determine that they were a new form of mutant and a clear threat. Yet it was not a brotherhood Paladin that defeated the mutants, it was a mere wanderer accompanied by a mongrel dog.
*shows a mutant,then a Paladin talking to a man in a vault suit with "13" on the the back*
Everyone remembered the video of the battle this lone wanderer had against the master, they didn't remember seeing a dog, just the horrid feeling the Master gave off, pure darkness.
Much later the brotherhood's view that they alone should control the wasteland's technology led them to wage a brutal war against the powerful New California Republic. Despite their technological advantage, the brotherhood lost the war. Nowhere was this defeat more severe that in the Mojave wasteland, garrisoned at a pre-war Solar Power station, the Elder of the Mojave Chapter attempted to Unlock it's dark secrets to use against the NCR in the war.
*Shows a large structure with a central tower next to a large building, shifts to a still image of the battle, a handful of brotherhood fighting dozens of soldiers cresting a ridge*
Many Jedi remembered their flawed view, their attack on the Arena, killing many of their brothers and sisters, masters and other knights, a mistake they learned from quickly.
"We share a lot with them. I think they would find us a good ally." Anakin said.
But Before he could do so, the NCR forces launched a confrontation. Outnumbered 10-1 the brotherhood was forced to retreat after loosing half the chapter and the disappearance of their Elder. The defeat at Helios was a crippling blow to the Brotherhood. After that, the Mojave chapter of the Brotherhood left the NCR alone, and retreated to their old base in hidden valley.
*shows group of brotherhood limping and holding themselves in a canyon*
The jedi who fought the battle clenched their fists, they were feeling the irony and pain from knowing the situation. They had decades of training lost in the battle against the droid army, and many jedi were wounded to extents they couldn't fight, even more were dead.
There they can tend to their computers and ray guns as much as they like. They still send the occasional Paladin up to the surface to procure crucial supplies, but recent years have proven to be a challenging time for the brotherhood. Sometimes individuals will leave the brotherhood for extended periods, often to procure rare resources, but occasionally just so the Brotherhood can discreetly get rid of rebellious youth.
*shows group in a canyon, walking out of the canyon*
Mace Windu rubbed his chin, the jedi would do the same, sending knights out to stop problems, if they were constantly testing the order's patience and temper, they were sent to meditate on distant worlds, with few settlements.
They were told it would be a learning experience, hoping their interactions would be helpful, have them become centered in the force again, often, it helped, but not always, some would stray from the light and become criminals, or falling to the dark, some....some turned their back on the order.
Wandered who prove themselves worthy just might find themselves with a brotherhood member as a traveling companion for a while, if they can demonstrate they their cause is of value of the Brotherhood.
*shows a man within"21" on back next to a person in rags*
"Let's hope we can find one, show them we are a force for good." Anakin said.
And well, maybe a few travelers will warm themselves by a campfire, and let an old tell his tales of the wild Wasteland to anyone who'll listen. Although the brotherhood of Steel has seen better days, they are nonetheless a pivotal factor in conflicts affecting the Core Regions. Records back at Lost Hills show that there's also a disavowed branch of the brotherhood who struck out east and took it upon themselves to defend the nation's former capital from Super Mutants.
But that is a story for another day
"That's interesting, they are the same group, but have become different enough they no longer see eye to eye. I wonder what's different about them." Rex said.
Red appeared and cracked her knuckles.
"Simple, you'll learn about them next. Hold on, data unlocked." Red said, before she opened her hand, showing a star map.......almost it was a set of dots on a background, with a single line across the side.
"What is that?" Anakin asked.
"Partial map, about 1/4. Along with a secondary file attached. "Data on this probe has been released after a designated number of logs. Other Probes will release other sections in order to spur a cooperation between recipients. Inclosed in Pod-1 is, [data expunged]'s brain scan, and will reveal more information after each video, note, continual playing of the videos will lead to core becoming over heated and destruction of data. Well Fuck me in the ass and call me a profligate that is something I wish I knew earlier." Red said.
"I would hope you would watch your tongue." Mace said.
Red drew a sword and pointed it at Mace Windu.
"I do not take commands from a man." She said, gritting her teeth.
Suddenly a data ping came from her.
"Shutting down, next log will play in a week, I will need time to think." Red said, before vanishing.
"She seemed agitated. Must have gotten some memories back." Anakin said.
"I wonder where she came from on her world." Ahsoka said.
In the temple, a small data card popped out of the side, and Mace Windu picked it up, looking at it.
Walking over to a terminal, a face appeared the background for a split second as code ran by, before it showed blue-prints, schematics, for T-54b Power Armor, and a fusion battery. Windu was surprised, it did have some power, he would show them to Rothana Heavy Engineering, see if they could make it, or maybe Blast tech.