(A/N: Edit: got the number of vault residents wrong. Also, got the description wrong, while in the game you may be able to choose your race, in Fallout New Vegas it shows a picture of your mom and dad together. Canonically, your mom is black and your dad is Liam Neeson. Therefore you are black.)
The child came into the world, screaming and crying.
"It's a boy! A boy! We have a son Catherine! A beautiful, healthy, baby boy!" James shouted excitedly.
"Oh, James... We did it... A son. A beautiful son." Catherine stated, exhausted.
"You have a bright future ahead of you, I'm sure of it. Look at you... Hi there, I'm your daddy little guy, dad-dy. You're going to need a name, aren't you, what do you think about, Xavier. That's a good name, don't you think? It looks like they've finished the gene projection, let's see what you'll look like all grown up." It showed a black man with auburn hair and blue eyes, had a look on his face of being very sorry consistently, "You're going to look a lot like your dad, see that Catherine?"
"Oh, oh, very strapping."
"It's a big world out there, full of all sorts of people, what kind of person are you going to be...?"
"James... James..." Catherine's heart monitor began to emit worrying sounds.
"Catherine, Catherine!" He looked to the instruments, "She's in cardiac arrest! Start compressions, get the baby out of here! Move, move!"
"Don't look straight into the light pal, you'll hurt your eyes... Come on over here son, come here, come to daddy. You can do it!" James called from the pen.
Xavier waddled over into the pen.
"There you go, my goodness, just a year old and already walking like a pro. Your mother would be so proud. Listen kiddo, I know you don't like it when I leave you alone, but daddy needs you to take care of yourself for a little bit while he runs to his office real quick. I'll be back in a minute." James closed him in, walking out, closing the door behind him.
Xavier yanked on the latch on the gate, letting himself out. He crawled into the toybox and began playing with the teddy. That's where James found him when he got back.
"Quite the little explorer aren't you? Serves me right for trying to pen you in." James walked over to the framed paper, "Come over here. See this? It was your mother's favorite passage. It's from the bible. Revelations 21:6: 'I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely." He stood, "Come on, let's see if your little friend Amata wants to play."
"Happy birthday!" everyone shouted.
"You turned on the lights too fast, you've blinded the poor kid!"
"Happy birthday my son, I can't believe you're already ten... If only your mother..."
"Congratulations young man, I don't have to tell you how special this day is, now do I? Down here in Vault 101, when you turn 10, well you're ready to take on your first official vault responsibilities. So here you are. As Overseer, I hereby present to you your very own, Pip-boy 3000. Get used to it, you'll get your first work assignment tomorrow." The overseer chuckled.
Xavier just nodded.
"Happy birthday! We really surprised you, didn't we?"
"Great party Amata! Thanks for doing this for me."
"You're welcome, but your dad did most of it, I just helped with the decorations and stuff... Hey, I bet you can't guess what I got you for your birthday... Go on, guess!" Amata said with a smile.
"Something better than being able to hang out with you?"
Amata giggled, "Grognak the barbarian, issue 14. No missing pages. I found in a box of my dad's old things. Imagine him, reading comic books... I guess everyone was ten once... Well, I better let you get back to mingling with your guests." She went off to scold her father.
Xavier walked over to old lady Palmer. She always baked the best foods. It was much better than the stale fancy lad snack cakes that dad considered a treat.
"Are you having a nice party... Ten years old, my, my, seems like only yesterday your Daddy came... Listen to me ramble, you're waiting for your present aren't you?" She asked with a smile.
"Yes ma'am."
"Such a nice polite young man you are, don't ever lose your gift of speaking your mind so directly. We could use more of that down here... Here you go, a nice sweetroll that I baked for you just this morning. And it's all for you, you're the birthday boy, no sharing required today!"
Xavier heard Andy's buzzsaw going, knowing that he was about to ruin the cake. He sighed and was quietly grateful for the sweet roll Mrs. Palmer gave him.
"Andy, wait!" Xavier turned just in time to see the cake get destroyed.
He chuckled and grabbed a fistful of ruined cake, eating it and licking his fingers. He chomped down on his sweetroll as well.
"I'm hungry, and that stupid robot ruined the cake! Give me that sweetroll that Old Lady Palmer gave to you!" Butch growled.
"The cake's fine Butch, you should try some and calm down." Xavier said looking longingly at the nuka cola that Stanley was drinking.
Butch growled and sat back down.
"How do you like that pip-boy son?"
"Great, thanks, did you fix it up for me?"
"Sure did, some people think the A series a bit basic, but I always like them for their reliability."
"Thanks Stanley!"
"No problem, oh, I almost forgot. Happy birthday!" Stanley handed him a baseball cap.
Xavier nodded, turning to Amata, "What'd Butch want? I thought you were in trouble there for a second..."
"Nothing, just wishing me a happy birthday."
She chuckled, "Sure he was... Anyway, I'm glad you're having a good time, I was sure he would have found some way to ruin the party..."
James walked over to the intercom and Xavier sat in his seat, grabbing another handful of cake and shoving it in his mouth.
"Where's your manners young man!" The Overseer shouted at him. Amata glared at her father and he coughed nervously.
James went back to Xavier, "Hey, that was Jonas on the intercom. He and I have come up with a little surprise present. Jonas is waiting for you downstairs, on the reactor level. Go ahead, I don't think anyone will mind if you slip out for a few minutes."
Xavier ran down the hall, avoiding Beatrice and running down the stairs.
"What are you doing down here young man, I thought kids weren't allowed on the reactor level." Jonas said with a smirk.
"I'm not a kid, I'm 10!"
Jonas laughed, "Sure are, pip-boy and everything. You should wait for your dad, I think he'll want to give you the surprise himself."
James tapped Xavier on the shoulder, "Are you ready for your surprise?"
"What kind of surprise?"
"The Overseer gave you your pip-boy, so you're old enough to do some work, so I figured you're old enough for this... Your own BB gun, it's a little old, but it should work perfectly... Jonas found it down here, it was in pretty rough shape, took us a good three months to find the parts to get it working again. You know how tough it is to find a spring that small? Good thing Butch 'misplaced' that switchblade of his." James chuckled, handing Xavier the BB gun, "So, what do you think, want to give it a try?"
"Here? We can't shoot a gun here." Xavier said quietly, looking around for cameras.
"We sure can't, not unless we want the Overseer beating down our door. Jonas and I found a place though, come on." James walked to the area Jonas and him set up and Xavier followed.
Xavier leaned against the locker on its side, pumping the gun and shot the targets.
A radroach scurried in and he shot it in the head.
"Whoa, Jonas, get a shot of me with the big game hunter." James chuckled.
Xavier sighed, looking at Butch trying to harass Amata, "Butch, how many times do we have to go over this, harassment is not an appropriate form of flirting."
Butch growled, "Shut up!"
Amata giggled and Butch growled again, stalking off towards the classroom.
"Thanks, those guys are real jerks!" Amata groaned, "Like I get any special treatment for-"
"Being the Overseer's daughter... I get it, they're jerks and idiots." Xavier nodded walking to class.
Xavier stared at the sign, smiling when it rotated to "Procreation is your civic duty." he sometimes thought of reminding Amata, but was always too nervous to say it.
He sighed looking at his fellow students. Only thirty people were in the vault. Their predecessors seemed to have forgotten that.
"Well, you made it, ready to take your G.O.A.T.?"
"Mr. Brotch, we both know that the test is BS." Xavier chuckled.
"Listen... I like your dad, I might even like you if I wasn't your teacher. So here's what I'm going to do. If you wanna skip the test, just tell me how you want it to come out and I'll take care of it for you."
"Thanks Mr. Brotch. Let me see the results and I'll fill it out myself."
"Well... All right, here, take a look." He handed Xavier the paper that shows how to determine the results and a copy of the G.O.A.T.
Xavier filled it out so that he would be a new doctor and handed him back the paper, thanking him.
"Wake up, come on, you've got to wake up!"
"What's wrong Amata?"
"You've got to get out of here, your dad is gone and my father's men are looking for you!"
"Gone?"
"He's left the vault, I don't know how but he has... And my father has kind of gone crazy..."
"I've never seen you so upset Amata, what happened?"
"It's Jonas... They killed him! My father's men, they took him and... Oh god... You have to leave now!"
"Oh my god... Are you ok?"
"Yeah... don't worry about me, I'm sorry you had to find out like this. I know Jonas was your friend. But we've got to go now, my father's men will be here any minute!"
"You're right... But where do I go?"
"I'm sorry, but I think you'll have to follow your dad, you'll have to escape the vault. It may not be any of my business, but did he tell you he was leaving?"
"Well... He didn't exactly tell me... But now that I think about it..."
"Oh... I'm sorry... I'm sure he had his reasons. Maybe Jonas was supposed to explain things to you? But it doesn't matter, I can help you escape the vault, I have a plan!"
"How?"
"There's a secret tunnel that leads from my father's tunnel to the exit, you'll have to hack the terminal to get to it. Use these to get into his office, that's how I always got in."
"Sounds good, let's get out of here!"
"Oh, one more thing, I stole my father's pistol, I hope you won't need it, but you better take it just in case..."
She handed him the pistol.
"Thanks."
"I'll meet you at the door if I can, but don't wait for me"
Xavier grabbed his bat, and slung it across his back. He did the same with his BB gun, pocketing the extra BBs. He pulled the first aid kit off the wall and shoved it in his bag with his spare clothes and the comic book. He hesitated by his bed, looking at the teddy bear on it. He had it since he was a year old and was not going to part with it. He gingerly put the teddy bear in the bag. Xavier looked at the gun and shook his head, he didn't know what was on the other side of the door, the gun would be more useful outside. He set it in his bag and grabbed his bat, holding it with both hands.
Officer Kendall was waiting out in the hall, "There he is, hold it right there!" He got distracted by the radroaches attacking him.
Xavier took his opportunity, swinging his bat at the unguarded portion of the back of Kendall's head, knocking him down. He stomped the radroaches, crushing them underfoot. Xavier took Kendall's helmet off, and closed his eyes as he brought the bat down on the dazed Officer Kendall's unguarded head. He grabbed the roach meat stuffing it in his pack with his clothes. He switched what he was wearing with Kendall's guard outfit, he would need the little protection it offered.
Xavier walked past Kendall, leaving him to die from either blood loss or lack of treatment.
"You gotta help me, my mom is trapped in there with the radroaches!"
Xavier nodded knowingly, "Wait here."
He ran into the room, grabbing a radroach in each hand and stomping a third. He threw the two against the wall, gulping at he tore the meat off of the one he stomped. He shoved it in his pack and did the same with the other two, taking the meat off of them while they were still alive and squirming.
Butch rushed into the room as his mother left, "We did it! My mom's gonna be ok! Hey, I know it isn't much, but I want you to have my tunnel snakes jacket!" Xavier took the jacket, nodding, grateful for the extra protection it offered. He put it on over the armor breathing slowly. He picked up all the vodka in the room, feeling sorry that Butch probably wasn't eating much more this much. He shook his feelings of guilt away, leaving the vodka would serve no benefit to them, but him taking them would benefit him greatly.
He put in his headphones, even more grateful than he had originally been that he was able to load his pipboy with holotapes of baroque music and jazz. He turned up the volume, moving to his songs.
He went to the cafeteria, looking over the corpse of Mrs. Taylor and sighed, tearing apart the radroaches for their meat and shoving them in his pack. He thought it odd that dad had given him such a large pack and wondered where he had gotten it, but now he knew and he was grateful, even though he was sure dad didn't want him leaving.
He ran up the stairs and past Officer Gomez, Stanley and Andy fighting radroaches, going through the atrium door. It wouldn't matter if their meat would help him survive if he died here and he wouldn't risk fighting all three.
Xavier saw Mary and Tom Holden getting shot down and he moved around them, killing the radroaches as he went.
Hannon, the security chief was occupied with roaches by Floyd's corpse and Xavier saw his opportunity to strike, once again. He hit Hannon on the back of the head in the small exposed area under his helmet, knocking Hannon over in a daze. Xavier removed his helmet and dealt with the roaches, once again raising his bat. He brought it down heavily onto Hannon's head. He stripped Hannon's limp body, realizing he would need spares. He buckled the helmet to his pack, stuffing the security gear into it. He looked at Floyd's corpse and stripped him of his utility jumpsuit. Xavier didn't know what the natives outside valued or even if they had an economy, but he needed to collect things just in case.
Xavier picked up his toolbox, holding it in one hand and the bat in the other. He saw Officer Mack in the security office, not wearing a helmet, questioning Amata, with her father. Xavier set down the toolbox and entered the office. He hit Officer Mack in the back of the head, sending him to the floor. The Overseer ran off to the side of the room and Amata ran out, back to hers.
Xavier flipped over officer Mack with his shoe, "I was told Jonas was killed, I take it you were primarily responsible?"
Officer Mack nodded slowly, rubbing his head.
"I thought as much." Xavier said quietly, raising the bat. Xavier swung repeatedly, crushing officer Mack's skull and splattering his blood against the chair Amata had been sitting on a few moments ago. He stripped Officer Mack, putting his gear in his bag. He turned to the Overseer and looked away, going to the security lockers and emptying them into his bag. He went into the desks and pulled the prewar money out, shoving it into his bags, surely there had to be a collector or possibly it was still used.
He left, entering the Overseer's room and stripping the labcoat off of Jonas's corpse with a sigh. He found a holotape in its pocket and plugged it into his pipboy.
"Hold on Jonas, I need to record this first... I... I don't really know how to tell you this, I hope you'll understand, and I know you might be angry... I thought about it for a long time and in the end I decided it was best for you not to know. So many things could have gone wrong and there's no telling how the Overseer will react when he finds out but, it's best if he can blame everything on me. Obviously you already know that I'm gone, it was something I needed to do. You're an adult now, you're ready to be on your own. Maybe someday things will change and we can see each other again. I can't tell you why I left or where I'm going, I don't want you to follow me. God knows life in the vault isn't perfect, but at least you'll be safe." Xavier sighed, dad didn't know how wrong that was, "Just knowing that will be enough to keep me going..."
"Don't mean to rush you doc, but it will be better if we get this over with..."
"Ok, go ahead... Good-bye, I love you."
Xavier ejected the holotape, having recorded it to his pipboy, it might be the last words of his dad he ever heard.
All that sneaking around at night, his drinking, he had been planning this for a while. Xavier flexed his hands, going to Amata and patting her on the back. He went into her father's room, taking extra ammo from the dresser drawer.
He walked over to the office, easily picking the lock. He walked to the terminal, it was easy to guess the password, even though he was acting differently now it was obvious. Amata. Once he entered it he was let into the Overseer's computer. He punched the terminal as his suspicions were confirmed, scouting reports, the vault hadn't been closed all this time. He read the report, thankful that civilization was still out there. He made a note of visiting Megaton and going in to see if he could live there, it would be nice to have a new home next to the place he grew up in.
He downloaded the notes from the terminal and opened the tunnel.
He walked in under the rising desk and went through the tunnel, pressing the button to open the false wall in the way of the entrance.
Xavier flipped the switch to the vault door as Amata came in behind him.
"I was starting to wonder..."
"Oh my gosh, you actually opened it!"
"Of course... Will you come with me?" Xavier asked hopefully.
"It's tempting, but, my place is here, the vault needs me more than you do. I'm the only one who has a chance to talk some sense into my father. Listen... If you do catch up to your dad... Tell him I'm sorry... For everything that's happened... Goodbye."
Xavier's reply was interrupted by officers Wolfe and Park, opening the door behind Amata. Amata ran off and Xavier knocked Wolfe into the railing with his bat, going to park he swept Park's legs from under him with the bat by swinging into his left kneecap and continuing till his left leg met his right. Once he collapsed Xavier kicked the helmet off his head, hitting him once with the bat to daze him so that he wouldn't be able to somehow attack while Xavier finished Wolfe.
Xavier turned and saw Wolfe supporting himself against the wall, a large gash in his leg from the stair. Xavier put his bat on his shoulder and walked over to Wolfe and pulled off his helmet, buckling it to his pack.
He took the helmet off the downed officer Park as well, seeing that now they were crippled, they were no threat.
Xavier walked back to where they had come from, he knew the location of a few first aid kits, and he would be taking from them. He picked the locks and headed out, watching as the vault door closed behind him.