Mirabelle Aditi

In 2287, the Capital Wasteland was in chaos. The East Coast Brotherhood of Steel under Arthur Maxson had taken a reckless gamble in The Commonwealth. Elder Maxson had taken the Prydwen airship, the glory of the Capital Wasteland, and hundreds of their best troops to Boston. His mission was to defeat The Institute and eliminate its ability to make Synths. And The Institute was destroyed, but not by the Brotherhood. The local population of Boston, including The Minutemen militia and The Railroad Synth liberation organization, under the leadership of Nate DiNovo, vaporized The Institute's bunker in a surprise attack. Afterward, The Minutemen demanded total autonomy in their territory, terms which Elder Maxson would not accept. The once proud and feared East Coast Brotherhood was brought low by the Minutemen. The Bostonians attacked Maxson's expedition force. All Brotherhood were personnel killed, the Prydwen was destroyed by artillery fire, and Arthur Maxson was killed in the airship's destruction.

All of the Capital Wasteland's best and brightest were dead, their best equipment destroyed or captured in The Commonwealth, and morale was at an all-time low. The Washington D.C. area was home to Project Purity, an enormous water treatment plant, providing clean water for human use - and irrigation. The Capital Wasteland was rich and prosperous, but largely undefended, and with virtually no leadership.

Much of Mirabelle Aditi's story is the subject of hearsay and legend. Some say she was a simple farmer, the leader of an agricultural work gang, a woman who loved her people too much to watch it fall into chaos. Other stories say she was a Brotherhood Elder, a low-ranking clerk with no ambition or thirst for glory, but who could not sit silent when those around her faltered. The most dramatic of these tales cast Aditi as a lowly Brotherhood knight, a woman in charge of some small task aboard the Prydwen airship. They say that when the Prydwen was hit by Minutemen artillery, Elder Maxson was injured and Mirabelle Aditi rushed to his aid. The great hero of the Capital Wasteland died in her arms, and there she swore to continue his vision for the wasteland.

In any case, Mirabelle Aditi's rise to power brought along sweeping changes in the Capital Wasteland. The loose authority of the East Coast Brotherhood of Steel was reborn as The Capitol. Aditi assumed the title of "Great Leader" and was given absolute authority. This Great Leader emphasized Elder Maxson's policy that ghouls, super mutants and other "tainted beings" were a perversion of humanity. Under her leadership, tainted beings are hunted within Capitol territory. Other non-human intelligences, including robots, AI beings and Synths, were brought into compelled service to Great Leader. Post-war religions, such as the Children of Atom and The Reavers, were banned from the nation, suffering violent persecution.

These reforms also brought a wide-ranging policy of public surveillance and morality laws. Enclave EyeBots were refurbished and manufactured to watch the populace at all times. Great Leader banned curtains on windows and personal encryption. A secret police force was assembled to enforce these rules, The Capitol Correctors. These special agents are widely feared for applying torture and extortion in their investigations. The Capitol demanded constant discipline, cleanliness and honesty from its people. Hard work and ideological purity are required at all times.

Along with these fascistic actions came a policy of public works and social services. The agricultural output generated by Project Purity provided a quality of life which hadn't been seen in America since the Great War. Enormous improvements in infrastructure, public education and social supports were a welcome change, engendering fanatical loyalty to Great Leader in the populace.

Despite their enormous food resources, The Capitol had lost most of its military equipment in the Commonwealth campaign. Without their weapons and vehicles, they had to rebuild their military force with post-war technologies: crossbows, explosives and bludgeoning weapons. This left the new nation at a military disadvantage, one that Great Leader was desperate to rectify.

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