Fallout Season 2 may have just given away who its "unknown party" is, providing an answer to who was behind both the series' central bombs and mind-controlling tech. In Season 2, Episode 5, Justin Theroux's Mr. House revealed that the series' villainous picture may not be all it seems. In a tense conversation with Walton Goggins' Howard Cooper, Theroux's tech magnate makes mention of an "unknown party" getting ready to drop a bomb (the bombs that would leave America in the irradiated state that is seen in the rest of the series).
He connects this "unknown party" to the Deathclaw that Cooper crossed paths with on the Alaskan Front during the Sino-American War (seen during Episode 4's epic opening). At the time, the viewer is made to believe that it was the company behind the series' iconic fallout shelters, Vault-Tec, or Mr. House himself who was behind the bombs, but that does not seem to be the case.
Fallout Season 2's Secret Villain Will Be Familiar to Fans of the Games
One of the longest-running theories in Fallout lore has to do with the origins of the Deathclaw—something Mr. House notably brought up in Season 2. It has been widely speculated that a mysterious faction known as The Enclave is behind the horned monstrosities.
The Enclave is a secretive cabal founded by high-ranking government officials and members of the military before the events of the Great War. After the bombs drop, though, Enclave members begin to operate under the goal of maintaining American governmental power, declaring themselves the inheritors of pre-war America.
They even go as far as to deem anyone outside their ranks enemies of the state, eyeing to cleanse the wasteland of any non-Enclave members. However, before the atomic apocalypse that sets the world of Fallout, as it is often presented to fans, in motion, The Enclave was involved in some shady stuff.
The Enclave has been attached to the creation of the Deathclaw pre-war, but never outright confirmed to be behind the hulking beasts. Members of the Enclave Apalachian division have been noted for involvement in genetic manipulation similar to that used to create the franchise's iconic apex predator.
The horned lizard-like creatures, which made their Fallout show debut in Season 2's fourth episode, were a creation of the U.S. government. The beasts were initially designed as genetic monstrosities meant to carry out high-risk military operations under the control of the American military machine.
It is unclear how these American scientists intended to keep these titans under their control, but it may have been linked to The Enclave.
Elsewhere in its pre-war scientific exploits, The Enclave has been confirmed to have worked on mind-controlling technology just like that seen in the TV series being worked on by Mr. House and Kyle MacLachlan's Hank Maclean.
In one instance of Enclave experimentation, the faction created what was described as having 'tamed' Deathclaws by way of mind-controlling helmets. This made it so that Enclave members could operate alongside the snaggle-toothed giants, so long as they were within range of a nearby radio beacon.
How the Enclave Ties Into Fallout Season 2
Now, how does all of this actually tie into Fallout Season 2? Well, Mr. House was very clear in Season 2, Episode 5, that whoever was behind the Deathclaws was also behind the bombs dropping.
The Enclave has a proven track record of genetic modification and was founded by bigwig members of the American government. So, it would not be all that surprising if they were actually the ones who created the terrifying creatures.
The Enclave has yet to be properly introduced in Amazon Prime Video's Fallout series, but it may be only a matter of time.
In fact, a recent leak from Magic: The Gathering's upcoming Fallout TV show tie-in release mentions the faction by name (via Reddit). The leaked "Mindcrank" card shows a mind-controlling helmet (that very closely resembles the mind-controlling tech seen in the series so far) sitting atop the head of a Deathclaw, and features flavor text that reads, "Domestic units channel the fury of a Deathclaw to the Enclave's ends."
It is not too much of a stretch to think that The Enclave created the Deathclaws, lost control of the dragon-like creatures, and then scrambled to develop technology to keep them in line, something that other tech magnates like Mr. House raced to emulate.
This would mean that The Enclave was also behind the bombs, perhaps as an effort to destroy America and fashion it in its own image.
It may even indicate that Kyle MacLachlan's Hank Maclean is not actually working for Mr. House to recreate the mind control chip, but is instead an Enclave sympathizer trying to further the group's pre-war agenda.
This could explain why the Deathclaws seen on the New Vegas strip acted the way they did: they may have been mind-controlled by Hank's Enclave tech, using the creatures to scare his daughter, Lucy, and not kill her. This would have also been how Hank knew Lucy was in Freeside when he showed up at the end of the episode.
