Thomas stared up at the drab, steel ceiling. He should have known faking sickness wouldn't work on his Father, but felt he had to try. He honestly did feel like he was going to puke, but that was just nerves. Although, now that he thought about it, blowing chunks all over Doctor Dad's shoes might have been convincing. Too late now though.

His thoughts drifted to the GOAT, the test he was supposed to take today. The one that would stick him in whatever role he was supposed to fill in the vault. He hadn't thought much of it, to be honest. Until Butch suggested he might end up in waste management or something. Then he started to worry. Really worry. Getting stuck shoveling shit for the rest of his life? The thought was horrifying. Damn Butch.

A voice came down the corridor. "What'sa matter? Daddy's girl gonna cry?"

Thomas turned, noticing Butch and his cronies surrounding and taunting Amata. He glared at the group, who hadn't noticed him. They were always picking on Amata, just for being the Overseer's daughter. While Thomas might not have had a good opinion about the Overseer after he overheard a certain comment the jerk had made to one of the security personnel after departing his tenth birthday party, he liked Amata. You can't help who your parents are. This was obviously too complex for a peon like Butch to understand though.

Thomas listened to the taunts thrown out by Butch for the couple seconds it took to approach them, trying not to lose his temper on the way. "Butch."

Butch turned his gaze from Amata to Thomas, and a sneer crossed his face. "What the hell do you want?"

The tone of his voice, the look on his face, or the fact that Amata had been on the receiving end of his crap for years... Thomas wasn't sure which it was, but something made him snap. His fist connected with Butch's face before anyone knew it was coming.

Wally Mack, the brighter of Butch's minions, was the first to react. He rushed forward and Thomas moved to the side. He dodged the first swing, countering with a kick and driving his heel into Wally's ribs. He let out a cry of pain, but Thomas didn't think that would be enough to stop him after having fought with the trio countless times before. He grabbed Wally by his short hair with one hand, and pushed his shoulder with the other. Once he was facing the wall, Thomas tightened his grip and slammed Wally's forehead against it. He let out a weak groan and slumped onto the floor when Thomas released him.

By then Butch had recovered from the sucker punch and Paul had gotten what few brain cells he had to fire up. They both charged, but Paul obviously wasn't watching where he was going and ran right into Butch during his dash at Thomas. They both stumbled and Thomas took the opportunity to drive his fist into Paul's gut. He dropped to his knees, coughing. In one swift movement, Thomas brought his elbow down hard on Paul's head, and he dropped to the ground with a thud.

"Bastard!" Butch snapped, swinging at Thomas, who quickly moved away from him. Butch didn't follow right away, he reached into his jacket and produced a glimmering silver object. There was a click as the switchblade's point popped out. "You're dead meat now."

"Three on one, and now you're pulling a knife? You really don't know what a fair fight is, do you?" Thomas asked with a smirk.

Butch's expression turned vicious. He was about to make a lunge at Thomas when Amata's voice rang out. "NO!"

Butch's eyes widened and his mouth dropped open, releasing a breathless scream of agony. He dropped his knife, reaching down to his groin, where the toe of Amata's shoe was planted firmly between his legs. She pulled her foot free and took an uneasy step back, staring down at Butch as he cradled his, most likely broken, jewels. He toppled sideways onto the floor, twitching.

Thomas just gave her a thumbs up and smiled. "Great shot, Amata! A bit of a low blow, but he had it coming."

Amata looked from Butch to Thomas, clearly shocked at what she had done. "I... I..." She stuttered.

"Made sure a moron couldn't reproduce. On behalf of the entire Vault, I thank you." He said, stepping over Butch and giving her a pat on the shoulder. "They didn't hurt you, right? If they did, I can give Butch a kick to the head he uses less."

"N-no... I'm fine... I just didn't think I could-" She began, but Thomas interrupted her.

"Don't worry about it." He put his arm around her shoulders, leading her down the corridor to the exam room. "We've got a GOAT to take. If your old man gives you any crap about attacking Butch, just tell him I did it. He'd buy that."

She didn't answer, still a bit shaken. Though the mention of the GOAT made her stand a little straighter. Worry about the important things first. That's what she always did.

Thomas, however, usually tried to forget the important things that worried him. And the mention of the exam brought the urge to puke back in full force... but he couldn't, no, he wouldn't do that with Amata right next to him. After taking out three, well... two, Tunnel Snakes without a care and then letting her think a stupid test could get the better of him? Not a chance. His vanity was too stubborn for that.

Of course, no matter how brave a face he put on for her, the thought of the GOAT was making him scream on the inside.

---

Three years passed. Thomas, while not getting stuck in waste management like Butch suggested he would, ended up somewhere that wasn't much better. Being the Vault fry cook wasn't exactly a glamorous job, but he was good at it. Which meant the GOAT wasn't a total crock... even though he would never admit it. When not stuck behind a stove, he spent his time skimming the two issues of Pugilism Illustrated he had come across a long time ago, and practicing his fighting somewhere out of sight. Which is why Butch still wondered why he kept getting his ass handed to him by a cook.

He also saw Amata almost every day, even if it was only for a few minutes. The Overseer had been keeping her busy, probably preparing her to take over the Vault when he died. Which, in Thomas' opinion, was a time too far off. On the few occasions he and Amata managed to get together for an hour or two, they talked about everything like the best of friends. Neither realized they were the only social outlet the other had. Both of their Fathers were obsessed with work, and most of the other Vault residents never got too friendly with them. Amata because she was the Overseer's daughter, and Thomas for some reason he didn't understand.

It was a dreary lifestyle. At least it was... until all hell broke loose.

---

"Wake up! Come on, Thomas! Get your lazy butt out of bed!" Amata yelled, pulling Thomas up by the front of his Vault jumpsuit and shaking him.

He let out a yawn, looking up at her with blurry eyes. He blinked a few times to clear his vision. "Amata?" He leaned forward, hugging her around the waist and pressing the side of his face against her stomach. "Dreams do come true." He mumbled, still mostly asleep.

She let out a groan of frustration, grabbed ahold of his shoulders and pulled him upright with some difficulty. "Would you wake up and be serious?!"

Thomas stared at her, his eyes only half open. "This early, I think I can only manage one." He muttered tiredly. "Why? What's wrong?"

"It's your Dad, he's gone!"

"Gone?" Thomas' eyes opened fully at that. "What do you mean, gone?"

"What does gone usually mean, genius?" She said shortly. "He left the Vault, and now my Dad has his men looking for you!"

"Me? Why?"

"He thinks you know something, that's why! He thought Jonas did too, and my Father's men... they... they... oh God-" She took a few deep breaths, doing her best not to cry.

As much as he couldn't believe it, he knew what she was trying to say. Jonas was dead. Thomas swallowed hard, trying to take it all in. "Are you okay?"

She nodded weakly. "I'll be fine... but you have to get out of here. Vault security is coming for you, they could be here any second!"

"Where the hell am I supposed to go?" Thomas asked, starting to panic. "If the whole Vault is after me, the only place I'd be safe is-" He froze, figuring out the answer to his own question.

Amata confirmed it. "Outside. You have to escape the Vault like your Dad. I can help you... I know a way to the entrance, but you're going to have to trust me."

"Trust you with my life?" He asked, finally standing up. "You're the only person in this place I would."

She gave him a small smile, and glanced at the door. "All right, you have to get to my Father's office. There's a passage out there, you'll have to pick the lock and hack into his terminal, but that shouldn't be too hard. I've done it a few times with these." She handed Thomas a few bobby pins, before removing a pistol from inside her jumpsuit. "I have this too, it's my Father's. I thought you could use it... just in case."

Thomas hesitated, looking at it. He never really liked guns. Something bad always seemed to happen when he was holding one ever since his tenth birthday, when Jonas and good ol' Doctor Dad presented him with a BB Gun. With which he somehow managed to accidentally shoot poor Jonas in the left cheek... luckily it wasn't the one on his face, but he wasn't able to sit comfortably for a couple days. And that was just a BB Gun... the thought of what could happen if he was holding a 10mm was more than a little scary.

"You hang onto it. I'm not a very good shot." He said quickly. "I'd rather not give them a reason to start pulling guns either."

"I suppose you're right." She slid the pistol back into her jumpsuit, walking over to the door. "I'll meet you at the entrance if I can, but don't try to wait for me." She gave the path outside a quick glance and ran out.

Thomas was still trying to get his thoughts straight. He did his best to focus on two main goals. Get to the Overseer's office, get the hell out. Easier said than done.

He sighed, grabbing the baseball bat leaning against his desk, along with the BB Gun hidden behind it, if only for sentimental reasons. He also grabbed a few stimpacks from the first aid kit Doctor Dad had put up in the room and kept well-stocked.

Strapping the gun to his back and taking the bat tightly in both hands, he didn't even bother to look when he charged out of the room. A security officer was standing at the end of the tunnel, but was distracted by an onslaught of radroaches. Thomas welcomed the distraction, jumping over one of the roaches and darting around the corner, leaving the officer to deal with the ugly bugs.

He had only gone a few more steps when someone rounded a corner he was coming up to. He reacted on instinct, swinging the bat as hard as he could at the person's head. There was a sickening crack as it connected with their jaw, and their head had twisted almost completely backwards by the time they had hit the floor.

Thomas stared down in shock. He had only meant to knock out any security he came across. With the person's head in that position it was clear they weren't unconscious, they were dead. They also weren't one of the Overseer's goons.

"Butch?" Thomas muttered weakly, crouching down to check for a pulse even though he was sure he wouldn't find one. He swore, lingering over Butch's corpse. He knew he had to keep moving. Run now, regret later. Thinking it over of a second, he reached into Butch's jacket, feeling around for the pocket and taking the switchblade inside it. He stuffed the knife into the right pocket of his jumpsuit and started running again. He had to get out before someone else ended up dead.

Up a flight of stairs and past the medical bay, he heard shouts and a burst of flame behind him as he entered the Atrium, probably more people doing battle with radroaches. It suited him just fine, less chance of him hurting someone else. He passed by the Holdens, who were hiding behind a support beam and talking softly to each other, without a thought. As long as they weren't after him, he didn't care. He just kept running, under a door being held open by a locker. He didn't stop to wonder how it got there, or think about the gunfire that echoed up the stairs behind him.

Climbing to the second floor of the Atrium, he was slowed down by a handful of radroaches. A few swings of his bat crushed them. and he kept moving. He dashed under the door marked "ADMIN", ignoring the man pounding on a glass window and yelling for guards. He cast a glance at a corpse laying by a toolbox. Thomas recognized the man from when he worked at the Vault restaurant, Floyd Lewis, an engineer. Always ordered a plain burger... no pickles, no condiments... hell, not even a bun. The guy was an oddball... but a nice oddball. He didn't deserve to die. Neither did Butch. Or Jonas. Or anyone else that got caught up in all this shit the Overseer started just because Thomas' Father left the Vault. It was insanity.

He looked ahead and saw someone turn into the doorway he was headed to. He skidded to a halt instead of swinging wildly this time, which was a mistake. It was Chief Hannon, who grabbed his baton and charged without hesitation. He swung at Thomas, who barely managed to block it with his bat. Along with the two more that followed.

Thomas listened to the clatter of their weapons connecting, trying to figure out what to do. He didn't want to fight. He didn't want anyone else to die... but the chief wasn't giving him many options. Running wouldn't do any good, so he had to try and stop Hannon without killing him.

Thomas lowered his bat, hoping to try and talk his way out, but Hannon took the drop in defense to make a dive at Thomas' head. He ducked, the baton nicking the top of his head, and made a desperate swing at Hannon's leg. The snap of bone as Hannon's left kneecap started to bend backwards, coupled with his agonized screaming, was probably a good sign that he'd be out of the fight for a while. Thomas ran past as Hannon dropped to the floor, clutching his knee and screaming curses at the pain and Thomas.

---

He turned into the next hall and saw a clear path between him and the Overseer's room. He was going to make it without any more trouble... at least, that's what he thought before he heard Amata cry out.

"I don't know anything!"

Thomas stopped, almost falling on his face as he turned to the window he was passing. The prison. Amata was sitting in a chair, staring at the ground. He was being interrogated by a security guard and her Father.

"Now Amata, I don't enjoy this one bit, but I know you went to warn him." The Overseer said sternly. "Now tell me, where is he?"

"I don't know!" She repeated.

The Overseer gave the guard a slight nod, which must have been the signal to strike Amata across the face. She put her hand to her cheek, looking from the guard to her Father, horrified.

"Tell me where the traitor is. Now." The Overseer said. He voice was calm and stern, but Thomas thought there was something else mixed into the tone as well. Something that scared him. It obviously scared Amata too, since he noticed her hand twitching occasionally. Thomas knew immediately what she was thinking. He'd be thinking the same in her position... but he couldn't let it happen.

He rushed over to the door, slamming his hand down on the switch and ducking inside before the door was even fully open. Taking the same method as with Hannon, he smashed the bat into the guard's right leg, and added a blow to the head for good measure. He never even got the chance to turn around. The Overseer yelled something, backing away, and Amata looked at Thomas in shock.

"I told you to run, you idiot!" She said in a slightly panicked voice, but a small smile crossed her face.

He smirked at her. "You're welcome."

The crack of a gunshot filled the room and Thomas cried out, dropping his bat and stumbling a couple steps away from Amata. He covered his right forearm with his left hand where blood was beginning to stain the sleeve of his jumpsuit, glaring at the Overseer, who was aiming a gun at his head.

"What good fortune." He said, grinning. "You can go, Amata, I have half of what I want now."

Amata didn't move. "What... are you going to do?" She asked weakly.

"Get some information out of this one. Like, what that traitor James was up to. You know that one, I'm sure, Thomas."

"How the hell should I know?" Thomas asked.

A moment of silence, followed by another gunshot as the Overseer shifted his aim to Thomas' left leg was the only reply his got. Amata screamed as Thomas dropped to one knee, moving his hand from his previous wound to the new one.

"Father, stop!" Amata cried.

"It's what must be done in negotiations with traitors, Amata. Now be silent or leave." The Overseer said coldly. "Now are you going to answer me?"

"Go to hell, you psychopath." Thomas spat.

Another gunshot, this time the bullet tearing through his right thigh. Thomas dropped onto his side, crying out in pain. Amata stared at Thomas in silence, trembling. The Overseer continued to grin, clearly not at all troubled about what he was doing.

"I've had quite enough of this, so are you going to tell me what I want to know, or should I just end half my problems right now?" The Overseer asked, his voice low and threatening.

Thomas knew it wasn't just a threat, though. It was a promise. If he refused to tell the Overseer anything, he'd die right there... but he couldn't tell him anything. He didn't have the answers the lunatic wanted. So he rested his head on the steel floor and said nothing. He doubted he could manage more than a groan with as much pain as he was in anyway.

The Overseer just shrugged. "Have it your way."

Thomas closed his eyes and flinched at the sound of one, final shot. He didn't feel the bullet strike. His limbs continued to throb, so he knew he wasn't dead yet. Was it really just an empty threat after all?

He opened his eyes, and saw the Overseer. He was slumped against the wall, blood staining the chest of his jumpsuit and trickling out of the side of his mouth. Amata was crouched next to him, tears in her eyes and a smoking pistol in her hand.

"D-Dad... no... I wasn't trying to-" She stuttered, starting to sob.

The Overseer slowly turned, looked up at her and opened his mouth to speak. A gurgle and a brief rush of blood was all that came out. His head went limp, and he slid silently down the wall until he laid on his side, an empty expression in his eyes.

Thomas looked away, slowly reaching into his bloodied jumpsuit and groping around to find one of the stimpacks he had taken from his room. His fingers wrapped around a narrow cylinder and he flicked the cover off, thrusting the needle into his wounded arm. The pain lessened and the bleeding stopped. He grabbed two more and did the same with each of his legs. It made it easier to move, but his limbs still ached. The only small relief he had was that all three bullets had passed cleanly through, so he didn't need to worry about digging any out.

He unsteadily got to his feet, placing his hand on the wall for support. Amata was still by her Father's corpse, sobbing and shaking. Thomas bit his lip. What could he say? Thanks for wasting your Dad so he wouldn't kill me? That would really brighten her mood.

Thomas limped over to them, unnoticed by Amata as he dug through the Overseer's pockets and found both a key and terminal password. He pocketed them, picking up the gun the Overseer had been using and placing a hand on Amata's shoulder, making her jump. She looked at him with teary, reddened eyes, unable to speak.

Only two words came to Thomas' mind. "I'm sorry." He muttered. He was sorry. Sorry her Father had gone nuts... sorry for her that he was dead,.. sorry that she was the one that did him in... sorry his own Father had started such chaos in the first place... and especially sorry that he couldn't stay to give her a shoulder to cry on. He knew he had to keep going before more security showed up and they were in even more trouble. It killed him inside, but he did it, slowly standing up and heading to the door, leaving Amata to mourn. Alone.

He never even noticed Chief Hannon sitting silently on the floor outside as he left the prison and made his was to the Overseer's quarters.

---

Thomas was greeted with another corpse as he entered the room. Jonas was on his back, his face bloody and bruised, staring up at the ceiling. Thomas stopped to close his old friend's eyes and check his pockets. He found a recording with his name written on it, though barely visible through the blood that had been smudged onto it. He dropped it into his pocket and went to unlock the Overseer's office door.

It opened thanks to the key he got from the Overseer's corpse, and Thomas hurried over to the terminal, glancing at the password. He felt something ache as he read it, but it wasn't the holes in his limbs. He quickly punched it in and the desk in the middle of the room lifted away, revealing a passage underneath it. He darted down it as fast as he could, not stopping until the passage came to an end at a room with a huge, circular door.

Thomas stared, unable to believe that his Father, or anyone else, could open it. He walked around a railing that kept people from falling into the lower path that led to the door, coming to a stop at some kind of lever. He placed his hand on the switch, took a deep breath, and pulled it down. Lights flashed and a warning siren blared over the sound of grinding gears and steam. A mechanical arm, or something, attached itself to the door and pulled it back. There was a loud clang at it stopped, and rolled off to the right, revealing the cave on the other side.

"It... it actually opened..." A voice beside him said.

Thomas stumbled to the side in surprise, not having heard Amata come up next to him. "Yeah." He said after a moment.

They both looked at the tunnel out. Until the banging on the door behind them started. "Damn it, open the door before it's too late!" Someone on the other side shouted.

Amata turned, giving Thomas and urgent push toward the exit. "Hurry and go, before they get though!"

"What about you?" He argued. "Your Father, he-"

"He's gone... and someone has to take over his position. I think I'm the only one that was being trained for it... so... I have to stay. I have to help this madness our Fathers started end!" She said, her voice shaken but determined.

Thomas knew the look in her eyes. Nothing would change her mind. He smiled weakly, knowing she would do he damnedest no matter what. For the good of the Vault. Without thinking about it, he stepped forward and hugged her. "Take care of yourself, Amata."

She hesitated a moment, taken off guard, but returned the hug. "You too, Thomas."

The door slammed open and they broke apart, Thomas charging for the open door. He was halfway to freedom when one of the guards caught his attention.

"There's the little bitch the Chief said killed the Overseer! Get her!"

Thomas spun around just as one of the two officers in the room struck Amata in the back of the head with his baton and she dropped, tumbling down the short staircase and landing in a heap. The other guard jumped over Amata's body and kept running at Thomas, who quickly slid open a panel on the bottom of his Pip-Boy 300 and pushed the button underneath it.

There was a sharp stab on his arm under the Pip-Boy, and his body began to tingle. Everything around him slowed to a crawl as he took the pistol off his belt and took aim at the guard coming at him. Thomas fired off three shots at the closer guard, shattering the glass front of the riot helmet with the second and planting the third right between his eyes.

Thomas' shoulders drooped and he almost fell over when the rush wore off. VATS wasn't something he was used to. It was like a super-powered adrenaline rush on command, along with the sudden exhaustion when it wore off if you weren't used to it. He raised his arm and fired the rest of his clip at the other guard, hitting him three times in the torso and once in the leg, the other bullets digging uselessly into the wall behind him.

Thomas stuck the pistol back on his belt when the guard toppled, and hurried over to Amata. She was out cold, but breathing. He struggled to pick her up, looking around and wondering what to do. They knew she had been the one to kill her Father, so if she stayed she might end up being executed by some crazy member of security, and definitely not allowed to become the new Overseer.

He looked at the passage out. If he took her with him, she'd probably be in just as much danger... but he'd have a chance to protect her. If she didn't hate him for doing it. He looked down at Amata's pale face, her eyes still wet from tears and her left hand still somehow clenched around her Father's gun. He cursed both of their Fathers for screwing their lives up because of something that seemed so idiotic to him.

Amata opened her eyes slightly, mumbled something, and lost consciousness again. Thomas waited to see if she'd wake up again, sighed after a minute or so, and made his decision.

---

The light outside hurt his eyes, but he figured he should've expected that. It was a hell of a lot brighter out here. And bigger. And dustier. He coughed, still trying to get used to the new smells. He had come out by a sign that read "Scenic Overlook", and he understood why. The remnants of what might have been a town were to the left, a large structure was off to his right, and a few connected beams ran along almost behind where he had come out. Directly below him was some sort of path, a broken machine resting to the side of it. The land stretched out into the distance, further than he could see.

After spending his life in a cramped Vault, the seemingly endless vista was amazing. Wasteland or not, he couldn't help smiling at the thought of seeing what was out there, far from the dull life back in 101. He inhaled the dry, dusty air... and choked. He was still coughing when something struck his back.

"I told you not to do that." Amata sighed, giving Thomas another firm pat on the back. "The air's a lot different out here."

Thomas grinned at her. It was hell trying to explain why he brought her outside, and took the better part of two hours, but she seemed to have accepted it. The door sealed behind them, so it's not like she could go back anyway. Even if it was selfish to think, he was glad she couldn't go back. Being stuck out in the wasteland on his own, quite honestly, scared the hell out of him. At least with Amata at his side he'd have some courage... or they could just be scared together.

"Oh stop smiling... this isn't the day for it." She mumbled, walking over to the edge of the cliff and sitting down. "After everything that happened..."

Thomas joined her, doing his best to forget about what had happened during their escape from the Vault. He didn't think it was possible though. Especially not for Amata. He glanced over at her, putting an arm around her shoulders. "It's behind us, locked away. Out here... it's like it never happened."

"But it DID happen! Everyone, my Father..." She trailed off, tears rolling down her face again.

Thomas closed his eyes, pulling her closer. "I know. I'm sorry." He mumbled, still at a loss for words. He didn't think any existed for a situation like this. All he could think to do was be there.

They sat in silence, the death and chaos of the Vault behind them... but it was nothing compared to what lay in wait for them in the wasteland.