Behind the Mask

Full Summary: She still wasn't sure if this was right. So many things could go wrong and the fault would lie squarely on her shoulders. Desdemona had already lost too much to allow that to happen and Charmer knew that. But they still sought each other because only they knew what truly lay beneath the masks they wore. The determined leader and the perky prewar agent, both of whom deeply longed for an opportunity to rebuild a past dream they once had that tragically slipped through their fingers. With the war for the Commonwealth quickly escalating and tensions running high, can their relationship survive the coming storm? Or will circumstance sever their burgeoning relationship?

Author's Note: I haven't written in a long time and it's only until now that I've gotten around to making an account. I'll also try to get this story posted on AO3. Reviews are welcome as I try to polish my rusty writing skills. Just a heads up, this story will contain SPOILERS for the main quest-line of Fallout 4 and some slight canon-divergence because I want to take a few liberties.

This story is rated M for violence, gore and sexual content(maybe?)

Disclaimer: Fallout 4 and its characters are owned by Bethesda. OC's that appear in this story are of my creation.

Chapter One: Journey to Sanctuary

Things were never simple in the Railroad. With the Institute constantly breathing down their necks and the many high risk operations they undertook to fulfill the goals of the organization, all while scraping the bottom of the proverbial barrel, it was a bit of a surprise to even think that they have lasted this long. And with the arrival of the Brotherhood of Steel and Desdemona's declaration of war against them, many within the organization could only wonder if they were biting off way, way more than they could chew.

Everything was a gamble when it came to the Railroad. Whatever bit of success they might have experienced from time to time seemed to be a result of sheer luck. Though, it was quite often that they drank from the bitter cup of defeat and with the loss of the Switchboard, along with the resulting decline in morale and personnel, it had become all too clear that the organization was one step away from being completely wiped out.

But with the arrival of a new agent a few months back and the events that have unfolded since she had joined them, the Railroad might just be making the sort of progress that hasn't been seen since…well, ever. It was their one and only chance they would have to perhaps turn the tide of the war in their favor, or at least gain some sort of leverage that could give the organization any sort of advantage against their much more powerful and fearsome enemies.

And as the Railroad Alpha, it was up to Desdemona to personally ensure that their latest gamble would pay off.

"If only these idiots would get out of the way," Dez thought to herself as she took cover behind a tree stump, seeing a trio of Raiders approach her position. They hadn't completely noticed her yet, so she took the opportunity to aim her Railway Rifle at one raider and fired, the spike easily piercing her chest through the thinly armored harness. As the other two raiders took notice, Dez quickly aimed at another and fired, the shot piercing him through the lens of his gas mask and into his eye. The remaining raider spotted Dez and zeroed in on her location, charging at her with a bladed tire iron in hand.

"You fucking bitch! You killed Mick! I'll-"

The raider didn't get to finish his rant as a railway spike pierced his skull, yanking his head off and pinning it to a nearby tree.

"Daaammmnnn! That was some brutal shit! Don't know what you were worried about Dez. You still got it good with that rifle."

Desdemona reloaded her weapon, hearing the audible 'choo-choo' noise it made as Tinker Tom stood up from the dried shrubbery he was hiding in. Dez stood a moment to observe their surroundings and she could see they were approaching what looked to be an abandoned town up the road they were traveling on.

"Hold on," Dez raised a hand, signaling Tom to stop, "See those buildings over there?" she said, pointing in the direction towards the town, "If I'm not mistaken, we are approaching Concord. We should take a detour, preferably off road. No doubt there are more of those bastards hiding there."

Dez and Tom went off the road and snuck through the nearby fields. As there was little to give them cover, they maintained a far distance from Concord. No telling if there were more raiders in that ghost town but they weren't going to take that chance. After all, it is common wasteland knowledge that where there are two or three raiders lounging around, it was very likely that there would be a dozen more nearby.

"I told Charmer that we should build the Molecular Relay in one of the safehouses, but noooo. She got us haulin' ass to the ass end of the Commonwealth," Tom complained, "What is Sanctuary anyway? Didn't Deacon say it was abandoned? Like a ghost town or something? We don't got anything to deal with actual ghosts, if and when they show up."

Dez would've laughed if she wasn't so focused on the mission at hand. Part of her sympathized with Tinker Tom. There was a lot of distance to cover between Railroad HQ and Sanctuary, which meant they had to undertake a long and perilous trek, avoiding Raiders, Super Mutants, Gunners and pretty much anything and everything that called the Commonwealth 'home'. It was a good thing Tom had a surplus stock of Stealth Boys at the ready.

Dez also worried that something could go wrong at HQ in her absence. Another Institute attack was at the top of her concerns, especially since her more reliable agents were also away from HQ doing their own thing. Deacon had accompanied Charmer to Sanctuary, while Artemis was checking on Mercer and Frey safehouses. Which left Glory and Dr. Carrington to watch over headquarters. As long as they weren't at each other's throats, then they should be all right. Or at least Dez hoped they would be all right.

The construction of the Molecular Relay was a project too important for Desdemona to sit back and watch from a distance. After agent Charmer brought them Virgil's blueprints on how to construct the relay (how Tom managed to decipher those blueprints was truly beyond Dez, but then again, there was a lot about Tom that was beyond her understanding), the next issue to be dealt with was choosing a suitable location to build it.

"We could use one of our safe houses," Tom had suggested, "I think we got a good thing going in Mercer Safehouse. We'll set it up there."

Desdemona, Glory, Deacon, Tinker Tom and Dr. Carrington stood around the round table at the middle of HQ, discussing their plan of action. Artemis was absent again, which was becoming frequent as of late, no doubt hanging around with the mechanic friend she made some time ago. Although Artemis has never let the Railroad down, Dez was still going to have a serious chat with her when she comes back. Meanwhile, Charmer, who stood across the table, opposite of Dez, took this moment to speak.

"I don't think that would be a viable idea," she said, "This is a pretty big project were going to be working on. Constructing the Molecular Relay in one of our safehouses will no doubt grab the attention of our enemies. We would putting agents and synths located there at huge risk."

Dr. Carrington looked at Dez. "I would have to agree with Charmer. Building this…relay…in a safehouse, we might as well hang up a sign inviting the Institute and the Brotherhood of Steel to check it out and burn the place to the ground while they're at it."

Dez, who was busy looking at the plans before her, lifted her head to look at Charmer. She had taken off her shades and for a moment there, Desdemona couldn't help but gaze at her steely blue eyes. Dez quickly composed herself however, and asked her if she had an idea in mind.

"Yes, I do," she said as she took out a map and laid it across the table, "Though we have established two new safehouses, the Railroad lacks the necessary manpower to protect the construction site should our enemies come knocking. Which is why…" she pointed at the northwest corner of the map, "we should build the molecular relay somewhere that is defensible. Somewhere like Sanctuary."

"Damn, that's a long way to go," Glory said, "Why Sanctuary?"

"The Institute and the Brotherhood of Steel rarely operate around the Charles River," Charmer said, "On the other hand, the Minutemen have been gaining strength as of late and they have Sanctuary and the surrounding areas locked down tight. Their General is also a good friend of mine who would gladly work together with the Railroad and help keep our operations on the down low. I know it's very far, but it should attract little attention to our work."

"Well, it looks like Charmer's got this all figured out," Deacon said as he looked at Dez, "But it's your call boss. What'll it be?"

Desdemona thought it over for a minute and looked back at Charmer. "All right, Charmer. We'll do it your way. I'm entrusting you to go to Sanctuary and see this project through."

Two weeks have already gone by since that meeting, and Desdemona felt it was her responsibility to personally oversee the construction of the Railroad's latest project. If things continued to go as planned, then the Railroad would finally have a way to infiltrate the Institute and perhaps find some way to truly bring the fight to them.

Dez also happened to be escorting Tinker Tom, who would provide additional assistance and expertise to the project, as well as provide the holotape which Charmer would use to download any and all relevant information from the Institute's database.

At least, that was the "official" reason she was heading for Sanctuary.

As much as she tried to shake off thoughts about her, Desdemona couldn't shake off the fact that she wanted to see Charmer again. It's already been more than two weeks since Dez last saw or heard from her and she wanted to make sure she was doing well over in Sanctuary. After all, what kind of leader would she be if she didn't look after the well-being of one of her most talented and capable agents? It surely had nothing to do with the fact that she and Charmer have gotten…close, in recent weeks.

Desdemona sighed as certain thoughts started forming in her head. It was…an unexpected turn of events. She never realized she would have ended up developing certain feelings for the woman. The sort of feelings she thought were long dead and buried all those years ago. Especially when Dez was a bit reluctant to allow her into the Railroad at first.

For starters, Deacon had provided her with intel on this woman, which revealed that she was associated with the Brotherhood of Steel. Charmer had indeed confirmed it but had repeatedly assured Desdemona that her ideals were different from the Brotherhood's and her loyalties did not lie with them. Desdemona, understandably, took Charmer's assurances with a grain of salt.

Desdemona initially felt neutral towards them. The Brotherhood of Steel were a powerful force who could've been useful in fighting the Institute after all. But once she learned that the Brotherhood intended to purge the Commonwealth of synths, Desdemona knew that, sooner or later, they would end up in conflict.

All the sleepless nights she endured, all the agents who risked their lives to help synths and give them a second chance at life if they so desired it and all the others who had lost their lives fighting the Institute and other menaces that plagued the Commonwealth would be for nothing if those tech-coveting zealots had their way.

She was all too aware that the Railroad stood little chance in a head-on fight with the Brotherhood. But every army has a weakness and it would be Desdemona's responsibility to find and exploit whatever weaknesses the Brotherhood might have. In the meantime, she ordered all agents to avoid any and all possible conflict with Brotherhood troops for the time being while she took it upon herself to devise numerous plans and contingencies, with Operation Red Glare being her and Tom's main project. Time would be of the essence and Desdemona could only hope that by the time the Railroad and the Brotherhood clashed, she would already have a few tricks up her sleeve that would help even the odds.

Secondly, and on a perhaps less serious note, her initial reluctance into letting Charmer join was the fact that Charmer acted quite…unruly with her, responding to Dez with as much sarcasm as she could, despite the fact that Glory had her minigun aimed right at the intruder.

But Dez should've known better than to judge a book by its cover.

"I have a question. The only question that matters. Would you risk your life for your fellow man, even if that man was a synth?"

"I risk my neck out there every day for people, regardless if they are synth, ghoul, or human. I'll gladly defend any person out there who simply wants to make something out of their lives in this messed up world, without having to constantly fear the likes of raiders, the Institute and others who would torment them."

Desdemona remembered feeling a bit impressed by the woman's answer to her question. Very few recruits could say something like that, especially with as much conviction as Charmer had said it. It made her realize that there was more to the woman than the fool she initially tried to pass off as.

And if she may be honest, she has now truly accepted that the woman who would be known to her as Charmer was a godsend to the Railroad at one of their most critical moments. With her help, they had made plenty of progress the likes Dez hasn't seen in months, perhaps years. And while her behavior could be a bit annoying, especially when paired with Deacon, it had surprisingly done wonders for the morale of the other agents at HQ.

As Desdemona was lost in her own thoughts, she noticed now that she and Tinker Tom had just passed the Red Rocket Station, now dubbed 'Fort Red Rocket' as the pre-war gas station has become a repurposed military garrison for the Minutemen, and were already approaching the wooden bridge that led to Sanctuary.

Dez gave a sigh of relief at the thought that they had finally reached their destination. Despite the important tasks that lay ahead, Dez wanted to nothing more than a nice bath and a decent bed to rest her exhausted body before she got to work.

They continued up the road and crossed the wooden bridge, when they came up to the gates of Sanctuary and a lone Minuteman that stood guard there.

"Hold it right there missy. We don't just take in any random stranger into our town. Better identify yourself," he said.

'Oh, for the love of…' Dez sighed, a frown etched on her face as she glared at the man standing before her. "I'm not really in the mood for games, Deacon. Now let us in before I get Glory to kick your ass for me."

"Aw, you're no fun, Boss," Deacon said as he put away his rifle, "I could have sworn I was perfectly disguised as a Minuteman. What gave me away? It was the hat, wasn't it?"

"Just. Open. The gate."

"Alright, alright, boss. Just don't shoot me…or make mean faces behind my back," Deacon said as Dez rolled her eyes. He pushed open the gate and the three of them entered the settlement known as Sanctuary.

It seems they have arrived on a busy day. Desdemona took in the sight of the bustling town as she passed through the gate and walked up the street. Merchants peddled their wares from nearby market stalls. There were some settlers lounging around what appeared to be a local tavern, while others were busy at work, either at the workbenches or farming. Guards stood vigilant at strategically placed watch towers, keeping an eye out for any outside threat, while a squad of Minutemen and a freakishly large Sentry Bot patrolled the streets of Sanctuary, making their way towards the bridge.

She remembered the reports Deacon had brought her about Sanctuary all those months ago. How it was just broken down houses and ruins and its only inhabitant was a Mr. Handy robot that seemed fixated on one house in particular. In a matter of months, Sanctuary Hills had gone from a destitute pre-war ruin into a symbol of hope and progress for other villages and settlements across the Commonwealth.

"Well shit, this is nothing like the Sanctuary you described to me a few months back," she said.

"I know, right?" Deacon said, "I think in a few years from now, Sanctuary will be giving Diamond City a run for its money for largest and well-defended shantytown in the Commonwealth."

"I'm surprised the Minutemen have come this far," Dez said, "Last I remembered, they were even worse off than us, and that's saying something."

"Yeah, the Minutemen have been making a comeback as of late. The fact that they retook the Castle a while back was proof enough. Hopefully, they'll try not to royally screw up this second chance at life they got," Deacon responded.

"I doubt they would fail miserably twice, especially since Charmer had a hand in their revival," Desdemona curiously stated as Deacon looked back at her with a raised eyebrow, "Oh, don't give me that look Deacon. Do you really think I don't keep tabs on my top agents who go on week long field trips scouring the wastes?"

"Hey, that one time I told you that Charmer and I tried to train feral ghouls and form them into a singing choir was true. We were forced to put them down when they thought "sing me a C minor" was ghoul slang for "eat my brains."

Desdemona rubbed her forehead as she tried to hide her irritation. "I sometimes wonder how I put up with this shit," she thought to herself as she swore that the likelihood of dying of an aneurysm was becoming much higher than being murdered in cold blood by the Institute.

Nonetheless, they continued walking up the street, a large tree coming into view. That was when Dez noticed someone approaching them from up ahead. One quick glance and she couldn't help but smile a little as she recognized the person. The blonde, shoulder length hair, the shades, the armored greaser outfit with the Atom Cats logo, and that annoying yet alluring smirk were all unmistakable to Desdemona.

After two weeks, she was now once again face to face with her best agent. She is a Lieutenant to the Minutemen, an agent of the Railroad and she was once a Knight in the Brotherhood. The Commonwealth knew her as the 'Woman out of Time', a living, breathing relic of a bygone era.

She was Aveline Strauss, codename Charmer.