Work Text:
Eli had wanted to return to Vault 111 for some gun he’d seen when he’d first left the place. He had said it looked shiny and expensive, a rifle the likes of which he had never seen before. But, it was locked securely behind a bulletproof glass case, and he didn’t have the skills or tools to properly free it and was forced to temporarily leave it behind on his journey through the wasteland. But now that he had gained some new... skills, the man had decided he wanted to go back to see if he could get it out now, armed with a box full of bobby pins and a pair of very deft hands. He claimed he was in need of a possible weapons upgrade anyway, and even it turned out to not be what he was looking for, he could always sell it or scrap it for parts.
Danse had been hesitant at first, wondering if it was such a good idea to return to the Vault, given Eli’s history with the place, but the man had simply waved it off, saying that he had learned to cope and had moved on. He had reluctantly agreed, figuring it was best to defer to the other’s judgement. He knew himself best, after all, and their relationship was a testament to something, at least. So, they set off early one morning to make a journey back to the Vault, a surprisingly short distance away from Sanctuary.
Danse can’t help but watch in awe as they come to the vault door, a faded and worn number ‘111’ appearing on the front, slowly disappearing as the door rolls aside to allow them ingress. He shakes his head, thinking on horrors he knew happened inside of Vaults like these. They could have been used for so much good, to save people in a time of crisis, but were instead used to perform gross and heinous experiments on unsuspecting civilians, often resulting in disaster and mass death. Just one of the many examples of mankind’s exploitation of technology and another reason to reaffirm his allegiance to the Brotherhood.
He follows Eli as they make their way through the maze-like corridors of the Vault, surprised that he still can remember his way around. Hell, the man had only seen the place twice, yet it’s as if he’d lived here all of his life...actually living, that is. Maybe he’s just following a map on his Pip-Boy. Either way, they come shortly to the office of the Overseer, the case with the weapon sitting on the wall, just waiting for its prize to be claimed. Eli smiles and rushes over, taking a few bobby pins and a screwdriver from his back and beginning to work. Danse stands back and watches him fiddle with the lock, smiling at the way he scrunches up his face when he concentrates, his tongue sticking out a little as he makes tiny movements this way and that to try and get the lock open.
It takes a few tries, and he hears him mutter something about tumblers from hell, but there’s eventually a soft ‘click,’ the case finally opening. Eli gives a shout of triumph, and Danse chuckles, watching as Eli frees the weapon from its prison, turning it over excitedly in his hands and trying to figure out how it works.
“This is...weird,” Eli says, frowning as he continues to look the gun over. “It looks like some sort of laser weapon, but I’ve never seen this type of cell before. I can’t quite get a feel for how it works. The tech is too unfamiliar. Guess there’s only one way to find out what it does.”
He steadies the gun, aiming it towards the wall, holding steady as he pulls the trigger. But instead of a laser or a bullet firing from the barrel, a pressurized white mist sprays out, the room temperature abruptly dropping a few degrees as the wall in front of Eli is coated in a layer of frost.
“Well...that was unexpected,” Danse says, frowning in confusion. “So it’s some sort of cryogenic shotgun?”
“Looks like it,” Eli responds, unloading the weapon and looking it over once more. “Not exactly to my tastes, but I think I could work something out to give it some more range...maybe to fire some sort of projectile as opposed to a spray. I’ll tinker when we get back home.”
“I’m sure you’ll figure something out,” Danse says with a reassuring grin as Eli stashes the weapon away. “Now that that’s taken care of, shall we continue on with our mission?”
Eli looks as if he’s about to agree, but stops short as a strange look comes over his face for a moment, as if he’s remembered something wholly unpleasany.
“I...yeah, we can head out soon,” he responds, suddenly quiet. “I just...I think I want to make one more stop before we leave.”
“Anything you want,” Danse says with an affirming nod. “I’ll be with you.”
Eli gives him a small smile before moving over to give him a tight hug, the position made awkward by Danse’s power armor and Eli’s lack thereof, but Danse does his best to reciprocate without crushing the smaller man.
Eli turns about and heads further down into the depths of the Vault, and Danse follows dutifully behind. He wonders where exactly Eli is wanting to go. A short while (and another labyrinth of corridors) later, his curiosity is sated, though perhaps not for the better. They come to a large bay of small chambers, a transparent glass window looking into each one. Danse can see the troubled look on Eli’s face as he stands before the room, taking a shuddery breath before walking slowly inside. Danse walks as quietly as possible behind, not wanting to interrupt the man’s obviously emotional moment.
Eli moves slowly down the row of pods, looking into each one. Inside each chamber is a body, easily mistaken for a sleeping person if the sheen of ice crystals covering their skin wasn’t a giveaway that something was amiss. Danse thinks back to the reports he’d read on the Vault here and the stories Eli had told him. This facility was designed to test the effects of long-term cryogenic suspension on humans, but due to a site malfunction, everyone in the facility died, save Eli. It leaves a sour taste in Danse’s mouth to think that all these people died due to a company’s hubris-driven desire for knowledge, their deaths resulting in nothing in the end. But he keeps his mouth shut, more worried for Eli as he is for these people, as terrible of an occurences as their deaths were.
Finally, Eli stops in front of a pod, looking forlornly through the window at its occupant. His lower lip begins to tremble, and he takes a shaky breath in, blinking a few times as a tear rolls down his cheek. Danse moves up behind him, also gazing in at the pod’s occupant. It’s a woman, her face beautiful even in her death. The front of her jumpsuit is stained red with blood, though it didn’t have time to travel very far before freezing.
“Is...is this…?” Danse asks, immediately recognizing her from Eli’s descriptions. Eli says nothing, but he knows the answer. “I’m so sorry, Eli. Take all the time you need, soldier.”
Eli sniffles and closes his eyes, looking away from the pod as he stifles a sob.
“I...I need a moment alone,” he says, quickly turning to walk back the way they came. Danse watches him go, torn between wanting to follow behind to make sure the man is alright, to comfort him and reassure him and let him know that he’s there for him, and respecting his wishes, giving him the time that he needs. He opts for the latter, not wanting to make the situation worse by moving in where he’s not wanted. Instead, he turns his attention back to the cryo pod with the frozen body of Eli’s deceased wife.
“Mara, isn’t it?” Danse asks, taking a few steps closer to see through the window again. He looks at the dark curls of her hair, the thick locks resting to frame her delicate face. He can only imagine how beautiful she was when she was alive.
“I suppose I should thank you,” he continues. “For Eli. He’s...he’s the best man I’ve ever met, and I love him with all my being. Just like you loved him and he loved you. He still misses you, you know. He claims he’s moved on, and in ways he has, but sometimes he sits alone at night, looking up at the night sky with a profoundly forlorn look on his face, and you can tell exactly what he’s thinking. Our Eli was never really good at hiding his emotions, was he? I just...thank you for him. Thank you for allowing me to be with him. He is the most important thing in my life, and I can’t imagine living without him. It’s a miracle that he ever came across my path, that our relationship has progressed this far, and I know some of it comes from you.”
He reaches up and presses a gloved hand up to the glass, sighing as he looks at Mara’s lifeless form, forever preserved in ice.
“I hope that you can forgive me for being so selfish as to want him as mine, and I pray that you can find the compassion to let us be together, that you can see how much he means to me. I don’t mean to take him from you, to replace you, but to be an addition to his life, a new beginning upon the closing of a previous chapter of life. I hope that you see that my words ring true, that I love Eli with all my heart and desire only your blessing that we might be together.”
Danse removes his hand from the glass, taking a few steps back with a determined set in his jaw, snapping to attention, saluting in front of the cryopod.
“Upon my life, I swear that I will do anything and everything within my power to keep Eli safe. Be it raiders, super mutants, or any other scum of the wasteland, I will see my own bitter end before I allow any harm to come to him. I swear to make him happy, to provide him with what he needs to pursue his joy, even if what he needs is...is not me. I swear this to you, Mara, on my honor as a paladin, that Eli will be protected and happy, and I hope that you can rest easily.”
Danse lowers his salute, looking over as Eli approaches, looking somewhat better, though his eyes are red and puffy. He takes one last look at the cryopod, pressing his hand against the cool glass.
“Ad victoriam, Mara,” he says, his voice but a whisper. “Steel be with you.”
He turns to face Eli, making the quick decision to step out from his armor, leaving the shell behind him as he moves over to the man. Eli stares at the floor, and Danse gingerly reaches out, tilting his chin up to look at him. Seeing the pain and sadness in those beautiful green eyes sends a stab of pain through his chest, and he wraps his arms around the other, pulling him into a tight embrace, Eli burying his head into Danse’s shoulder as he’s wracked once more by a bout of sobbing. They stand like that for what seems like hours, Danse holding Eli as tightly as possible, lightly stroking his fingers through his hair as Eli nuzzles his head into his chest, taking slow, shaky breaths as he calms down once more.
“Let’s go home,” Eli says after a while, his voice uncharacteristically quiet and frail.
“Yes,” Danse replies, placing a soft kiss atop Eli’s head. “Let’s.”