Patient Zero
by Piper Wright
I apologize for the lack of quotes in this article, but the subject of the article was unavailable for an interview. I have been working on this story for some time, and would love to have firsthand accounts, but I will have to follow up later.
Egret Tours Marina - He does not remember his childhood because his birth is far less than traditional. In fact, as we learned through our own investigation and from what are now public records throughout the Commonwealth that he was originally known as M7-97.
Not only does he not remember his childhood, his entire childhood, and, in fact, every memory before he was created in an Institute lab are false, not his own. Fake. That is what you call a heavy pill. And the man who is not a man at all is now known as Paladin Danse.
Those fake memories told him that he was an orphaned child in the Capital Wasteland, otherwise known as the former Washington, D.C. That memory told him that he was adept in scavenging the super mutant-infested D.C. ruins around the Mall. Speculation is that those memories were implanted in him, and then as a synth he opened a junk stand in Rivet City, a floating market city based in a former aircraft carrier. There he met a man named Cutler. Danse and Cutler became scavenging partners until the Brotherhood of Steel came calling and they both joined. Later Knight Cutler was killed by a group of super mutants, sparking Danse’s hatred for the FEV-created beasts.
While in the Brotherhood of Steel, Danse advanced in ranks, advancing up to the third-highest level. It was not until Nate Howard was working on finding his son that he met Danse. In time, the Brotherhood discovered that Danse was in fact a synth, which led to Elder Maxson dishonorably discharging him. Eventually, Howard convinced Maxson to reinstate Danse, thanks in part to the Synths Rights Act of 2289.
Up until two years ago, Danse was a perpetual 28-year-old soldier. It makes me wonder how the Brotherhood of Steel did not discover that Danse was not a human, but I suppose people do not take a long, hard look at a soldier spending the majority of his time armored in a power armor suit and wearing a helmet. Danse was one of a group of soldiers sent into the Commonwealth from D.C. in 2287 on a scouting mission. In the Commonwealth, Danse and his fellow Brotherhood members discovered that the Commonwealth was just as dangerous as D.C., if not more so. In addition to the usual dangers, Gen-1 and Gen-2 synths attacked in droves. By the time Danse and Howard met, Danse’s unit was down to three. Things then changed for the fate of Danse and the entirety of the Commonwealth-bound Brotherhood. Following Danse’s eviction and then reinstatement, he also helped to change the Brotherhood’s attitudes towards synths.
In 2292, Howard and the man only known as the Mysterious Stranger helped to teach Brotherhood soldiers recreational baseball. It later turned into a usual pitting of the sentinels, which included paladins like Danse, versus the scribes and lancers. The sentinels won most of the games thanks in large part to Danse, who had a knack for hitting the ball.
In January 2294, the Institute, as retribution for their past crimes of creating clone synths made from the dead bodies of their kidnapping victims, created a drug to help those synths who wanted to live out a normal human life. The drug was known as the Human Aging Serum Management Assistance Technology Program, or HASMAT Program. Danse was the first to volunteer for the serum, making him Patient Zero. It worked. Now, Danse has aged two years since that time, making him a realistic 30 instead of a perpetual 28.
One rule Howard set for Synths joining the CBO was that they had to take the HASMAT treatments for equality among players. Otherwise, teams could draft nothing but synths and have their lineups set for years without ever having to replace them. Howard believes a 10-15 maximum of ability is best for the game, making way for new heroes and stars to come through. That is why Danse is allowed to play and was considered to be a potential top player.
In the CBO draft in January of this year, Danse was taken with the 19th pick overall by the Egret Scrappers. That pick has really paid off. In 18 games, Danse is batting .451, going 32 for 71 in 84 plate appearances. Of those 32 hits, 11 were doubles, one was a triple, and five were home runs. He has walked 12 times, struck out 14, scored 20 runs, and driven in 15. He leads the Railroad League in on-base percentage, slugging percentage, OPS, doubles, OPS+, WPA, and WOBA, some pretty advanced stats accomplishments. His .524 OBP is tops in all of the CBO.
One would think being a trained elite soldier would give him advantages, but some of the other Brotherhood recreational players who tried out for the CBO could not get a second chance. That probably made Elder Maxson happy since the CBO is an added competitor for recruits with the Minutemen these days.
Still, Danse has accomplished much. He may not be human, but he has the heart of a warrior, and the compassion most wish they had. He is Patient Zero, and a welcome addition to the CBO.
-----
Pictures don't match, but I don't have any Facegen software, thus the in-game baseball pic looks different.