Chapter 32: Truth
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Ellie walks down a metallic hallway and enters a room.
Inside were her friends, Dallas, Sithis, Polonsky, Rufus, and Steiner
"What's this?" Ellie asked as she notices a weird device in the middle of the room
"This is called the Animus" Steiner answered "It is a device that allows you to relive the memories of people who have long been dead… All you need is their DNA"
"So… What does this have to do with me?"
"You want to know the truth, right?" Polonsky said
"I think it's time that you know everything now…" Rufus added
"Ok…" Ellie said, still feeling skeptical "So what do I do?"
"Just sit down and relax" Steiner answered "We will relive one memory from your past"
"Just one?" Ellie asked as she sits down
"Yes. Viewing it alone is enough for you to understand everything. Now then, all I need is a sample of your blood and… there"
"I hope this isn't a mistake…" Dallas uttered
"Come on, Dallas" Rufus said "Still no faith until now?"
"Just saying…" the medic replied as Steiner starts the machine
Ellie opens her eyes and finds herself in a small room surrounded by 4 men, with Gerard behind them.
"Eleanor Neumann" a tall elderly man said "You have displayed total loyalty to the virtues of our organization and have shown that you can get results when needed. Do you swear to uphold the principles of our Order and all that from which we stand and to do from now until your death whatever the cost?"
"I do" Ellie answered
"Very good" the elderly man said as he places a familiar ring on Ellie's finger "Then by the power vested in me, you are now one of us. May the Father of understanding guide us"
"Congrats" Gerard said as he walks closer to his little sister "You're now a Templar"
"I know…" Ellie replied "I couldn't believe it myself…"
"Now that you are one us" the elderly man said "It is time to tell you our purpose…"
2077… That was when the Great War began… The War that devastated not only America but the entire world… We are what's left of the US government and this country must be cleansed… That is what the academy teaches all of us but there is more to this story…
In the years before the Great War, Vault-Tec and the US government worked together in building these vaults to help preserve humanity in the event of a nuclear holocaust. We believed in them for a time but what we didn't know was that Vault-Tec had ulterior motives… And no, it's not that we did not know about the social experiments. It's the fact that Vault-Tec's objectives with these experiments differ from ours.
On the eve of the war, the officials of the US government figured out the lie too late… Vault-Tec had manipulated everything. They wanted the nuclear war to happen. They sabotaged all the nations and manipulated all of them to launch nukes at one another… The world was engulfed in the fire caused by Vault-Tec. The ones who survived in the surface mutated into grotesque shadows of their former selves… All for the purpose of a 'restart' for humanity. Vault-Tec's reasoning behind the genocide was to 'restart' the world claiming that our continued destruction of natural resources would end with making the Earth uninhabitable…
And that was how our purpose was born… We will hunt down Vault-Tec and make them pay for what they did to the world. They survived this holocaust, we know it. They are hiding somewhere in the wastes looking at the world. Fooling themselves that they saved it. And the poor people who degenerated into mutants… All we can do is put them out of their misery… There is no cure for mutations… But the least we can do for these poor souls is to end their pain… That is the true purpose of the Enclave. We will avenge the destruction and death caused by Vault-Tec.
And we, the Templars, will stand as the shepherd of humanity and lead them back to the prosperous years of the pre-war days…
Ellie opens her eyes and sees her friends surround her
"So now you know" Polonsky said as Ellie leans forward
"Vault-Tec caused the Great War?" Ellie asked
"Yes…" Rufus answered
"Templars…" Ellie muttered "Now I remember… So that means you guys are…"
"You guessed it" Sithis said
"But why? Why did you let me live?"
"It's because we don't have the time or luxury to be bickering anymore" Polonsky answered "Our factions have been at war for centuries but now we have a bigger threat ahead"
"Huh?"
"Vault-Tec, Ellie. They're planning something… And they're backed up by a bigger force than the Templars or the Assassins"
"So where do I fit in all this?"
"We need you to rally all of the remaining Templars" Rufus said "And we need you people to aid us in the fight against Vault-Tec"
"What makes you think the Templars and Assassins will get along?"
"I believe we can" Rufus answered "Just look at the Sons of Liberty- no, the Union – composed of so many people from different walks of life and there was once a time when these people were at each other's throats, the Super Mutants alone is a good enough example"
"So why me?"
"You were our best bet of making this alliance fruitful"
"So Ellie" Rufus said as he approaches the 'mercenary' "We need your help… Please, will you help us?"
Ellie then looks around the room and remembers all the moments in her life. From the time she joined the Enclave Science division to the Templars to the events the led to the formation of the Sons of Liberty…
After a few minutes, she stares at the insignia in the wall, which she now recognizes as the Assassin's insignia and smiles.