She doesn’t have time to think about it, so she says, “Okay. Get inside.”

At least he does what he’s told. She finishes queuing up the teleporter and strides in. The floor rocks beneath her just as the familiar flash of static goes through her, a wave of near-pain and nausea, and she closes her eyes against the flash of bright light.

With a crack, they fall onto the grass. She lands steadily, but the kid topples over before retching. She flinches in sympathy, and turns away just in time to see the mushroom cloud rise from what used to be the CIT ruins.

The shock of it knocks her into the grass next to the kid, and for a solid minute all she can do is stare. It’s gone. It’s all gone. The only thing she maybe could have called home is now a smoking crater, and everyone she knew is dead.

“It’s gone,” the kid says, snapping her out of her reverie.

She looks over at him, and he looks back unblinkingly.

“You saved me,” he says. “Thank you.”

“Ah- don’t mention it.” Something about the kid is familiar, but she can’t put her finger on it. “What’s your designation?”

“They just call me Shaun.”

Right. Shaun. The copy of the Director, who is also now dead. Everyone is dead. There is no Director, there is no Board, there’s not even an Institute. All of it gone, just like that.

“I asked sole to take me with them, but they wouldn’t. They left me.” He looks at her with teary eyes. “Why would they leave me?”

“I...”

She has no answers for him. She doesn’t even have answers for herself. Where does she go? What does she do now? She needs someone to tell her what to do, that’s what she’s used to, it’s what she thrives on. Without that, what can she do?

To distract herself, she looks around them. It’s a beautiful, sunny day. They’re not too far from Boston Airport; this is her usual teleport location for when she goes to spy on them. She and X7 would meet here for a joint mission, which was usually filled with him gossiping.

God, X7. The pain ripples through her again. He’s dead, too. She blinks harshly against the tears that threaten to spill, forcing herself away from those thoughts, from her friend who smiled while he killed and did the funniest impressions. She’ll mourn him later.

“We need to find shelter,” she says to the boy. “Are you hurt?”

He shakes his head, stands on unsteady feet. “Where do we go?”

She looks out across the expanse of the Commonwealth, searching for something familiar. Though she and X7 have spent many hours exploring here, somehow everything looks unfamiliar, strange, threatening. She shudders, thinking of the Prydwen above them, and hurries away from the airport, Shaun trailing behind.

The RobCo Sales and Service Center is perfect, and she ducks inside. She’ll need a change of clothes, and so will the kid. With the Institute down, it’s only a matter of time before the citizens of the Commonwealth get brave and start standing up to coursers. They’ll need to blend in. There’s a raider base not too far from here, and she’s confident she can handle them by herself and get some resources there, but for now she needs a place to stow Shaun.

He’s technically the director, after all. His safety is a necessity.

The RobCo building is quiet, as she knew it would be, and she runs a quick sweep of it before stowing Shaun in a corner.

“Stay here,” she says. “You’ll be safe. I’ll be right back.”

“You’re leaving me?” His face becomes panicked.

“I’m coming back. Don’t worry.”

“But what if something happens?”

She glances at her security weak points. “I’ll barricade the entrance, then lock the back door. The windows are already boarded over. Nothing can get in, and nothing’s inside.”

“But what if something happens to you?”

Her gaze snaps back to him. He snags the hem of her coat between tiny fingers, and a single tear drips down his cheek.

“If something happens to me, then you take off your jumpsuit and go to the Brotherhood of Steel. Do not tell them you’re a synth. They’ll keep you safe until someone else comes to extract you.”

Shaun looks lost, but he nods. Her heart breaks a little, and she reaches into the pocket of her coat, extracting a single Fancy Lads cake.

“Here. Count to 100 once I’m gone, then eat it. Not too fast, or you’ll get sick.”

The plastic sleeve crinkles in his hand. He watches with wide eyes as she shoves a desk in front of the entrance, legs screeching across the floor, and keeps his eyes on her as she crosses to the back door.

“I’ll be back soon,” she says, and locks the door behind her.

Through the metal, she can barely hear him say, “Bye.”

The air outside is cold, and reeks of stagnant water. Still, she takes a deep breath, fighting off the thoughts that threaten to drown her, forcing herself into work mode.

“Just a normal mission,” she says to the back of the building. “Go in, kill everyone in your way, and leave. Nothing you haven’t done a hundred times before.”