“Wait, what?!” Adam said, shocked.

  “We need to know what their goals are.” Mira said casually as she leaned back on the table again. “The only way to learn that is to get inside. It's not like they are going around advertising themselves, but they are numerous and they are everywhere. Something smells off. We need to figure out what.”

  “But I'm not good at infiltration, or anything. I was never trained for this.”

  “You were trained?” Mira said, with a smile, as if she was joking, not understanding how close she came to hitting on Adam’s secret he had yet to share with her. Adam sighed. “Look, just relax, all we will be doing is going into their base, gathering some intel and then getting out. Once we know if they are a threat that we need to handle we can go from there. If War was not losing the conflict I wouldn’t even be suggesting this, but we can’t let this be, not if you, the man who decided to throw himself into harm's way for the sake of Chicago, is here.” Adam remained silent for a few moments and then looked at the robe he was still holding.

  “Purple is so not my color.” He joked nervously.

  “I’m sure you will look good in it.” She said with a soft smile.

  “When do you want to leave?” Adam asked back as he threw the robe over his shoulder.

  “Right away, if you are ready.” Adam looked at her confused.

  “Didn’t you just get back? Don’t you want to rest first? I mean you’ve been gone a while. I’m sure you must be tired.” Mira waved him off.

  “No, I'm good on the road, I came back because I was ready to do this.” Adam sighed again and then nodded.

  “Alright, I'll get changed… though um…” He looked down at his vault suit and casual gear. “I’m not going to be able to bring most of my stuff huh?” He said with a soft laugh.

  “No, you won’t. Just bring whatever fits the vibe.” She said as she then reached into her bag and pulled out a second robe, no doubt also taken from a willing cultist. Regardless, with that Adam turned around to find some privacy to change.

  He was nervous about this. A standing fight? Yes, that he could handle. Scavenging for old world tech? Absolutely, he still had a lot to learn but he was good at it. Lockpicking? Eh, he was still pretty bad at it but he was slowly getting better. But acting like an infiltration agent? Sleuthing through a base full of enemies? That he has no experience with. He just had to hope he wouldn't out himself, or, worse yet, be killed. Mira assured him, however, that it was his name, not his face, that was well known. Without his iconic blue suit, pip-boy, and battlegear, the average person wouldn't even recognize him up close. He just needed to stay away from anyone who had direct contact with him in the past, which, as far as Adam could remember, was only one man. The cultist who led the army during the fight with Famine. So long as he mostly kept his head down and stayed away from him he would be fine.

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  Adam took with him his 9mm pistol and his rifle. He would much prefer to bring his laser rifle but he couldn’t justify it, after all how many cultists have a fully battle ready laser rifle. Same with Mira she put the recharger rifle down and instead took one of the spare guns from the Armory, a shotgun. Then, after telling people in the Vault he was going to leave for some time, he and Mira set off to do this incredibly risky mission as far as he was concerned. Though, honestly, he was pretty excited about it too. The thought of being caught and them having to fight their way out both terrified him and thrilled him in ways that couldn’t be explained in words. Mira for her part, seemed perfectly calm, unbothered by the actions they were about to undertake.

  “How long will it take to get to the cultist base?”

  “Seekers of Salvation.” She corrected Adam as they drove down the road. At Mira’s behest, they had decided to take the APC, as well as the rest of their gear stashed inside the APC, at least part of the way towards their target so that they could make a quick escape if needed and to cut down on unnecessary travel. So long as they were not spotted leaving the APC themselves it shouldn’t matter, especially if they hid it. Though to be on the safe side Adam brought Rae along, they would act as a bodyguard to the APC if necessary, making sure no bad actors would try to take or tamper with the vehicle while he was gone. Plus, in the worst case and they were spotted, Rae would make excellent fire support if they could make it back to the APC. Though this was all just him being extra careful.

  “The Seekers of Salvation base.” Adam corrected at Mira’s words.

  “I will direct you to a good place to hide the APC in a few hours and then from there it's about a day and a half walk to their main base. Their church.” Adam nodded slowly.

  “I still don't understand why you brought me along, I mean aren’t you the expert at this sort of thing?” Mira turned to look at Adam now.

  “I am good, but this is dangerous. Having a partner for something like this could mean life or death. Besides, I trust you to keep a cool head and follow my lead.”

  “Then wouldn’t Deccanus have been better? I mean he's a melee combat expert, has experience at least working alongside covert ops units, and probably has a more firm grasp on wasteland religion and cults than I do.”

  “Do I really need to spell it out for you?” Mira said with an incredulous look at Adam and then sighed softly. “It’s because I trust you, Adam. Not Deccanus. I’m sure he’s a good guy, aside from being a former Legionaire, but I know you. And I trust you with my back more than someone else I do not know very well.” She said resolutely. “Besides I-” She began then looked away and mumbled something to herself and then seemed to shake it off.

  “Anyway.” She continued as if she didn’t break her own train of thought. “Having you along will be a great help to me.” Adam shrugged.

  “Alright, I’ll put my trust in you. What do I need to know? How do I act, what sorts of questions can I ask and what can’t I? I will need a crash course on infiltration.” Mira smirked lightly.

  “Don’t worry, by the time we arrive you will be more than ready for this.” She said confidently.