Everything was black. Consciousness came slowly. As if her brain thawed out. Verrah's ice blue eyes fluttered open. Eyelids stiff. She could hardly breathe as the pod opened its hatch. A loud hiss escaped. Her vision took time focusing through the steam. It finally cleared, and she stumbled forward. Every joint rebelling against her brain's wishes. She could barely stand, much less hold herself above the floor.
Her arms trembled. Everything trembled. The frost covering her body slowly melted. She still couldn't breathe. There was plenty of air, but her lungs wouldn't fully expand. They had been used to almost no movement. She continuously coughed. Strained for the air. The thick air, damp with the released cold and underground atmosphere. Her head slightly lifted. Was she still underground? She didn't know.
Once Verrah gained enough strength, she dragged herself to her feet. Her knees wobbled, but she managed to stay upright. Turned to face the pod she came from. What on Earth? She inspected the lines and hoses feeding from the back to the large, yellow generator at the end of a row of the pods. Frost covered the surfaces. Freezing? She returned to the control panel in front of her pod.
[CRYOGENIC SYSTEM MALFUNCTION. EMERGENCY RELEASE PROTOCOL ENGAGED.] was all it read. Flashed, really. Her heart raced. Cryogenic freezing? She had been frozen alive? She whirled to the pod right of hers. The control panel flashed [CRYOGENIC SYSTEM MALFUNCTION. EMERGENCY RELEASE PROTOCOL MALFUNCTION. LIFE READINGS TERMINATED.] She wiped the condensation from the pod glass. A dead body nested inside. Rushing to the next one, she checked inside. Dead. Next one. Dead. Every single one was dead.
She stood in the middle of the chamber. Arms limp by her side. Everyone was dead. She knew all these people by name. The whole town didn't sign up for the protection from the bombs, but she still knew everyone. What happened? Why were they all gone except her? Her gaze shifted to the nearest control panel. And why did her pod open now?
Her jaw set. There was only one way to find out. Moving forward. She mourned the loss of the lives, but they wouldn't help her. With a final glance around, she quietly left the cryo chamber. They were definitely still underground. This was the same Vault they ran to when the bombs fell. Except everything was dull, fading. A startling contrast to her vibrant blue Vault suit.
How long had they been frozen? Five, ten years? Twenty, at max, certainly. She didn't think the human body could last longer than that. Shoot, she didn't think cryo freezing was possible. Her feet clanked along the metal floors as she crept down a hall. It was the only sound. It was silent. Too silent. Shouldn't there be doctors running around? Scientist? Vault-Tech workers? Somebody?
Verrah found the nearest room. Tripped upon entering and fell to the floor. Face to face with a skeleton in a lab coat. She screamed as she scrambled to her feet. Placed a hand on her chest. Poked the bones with a boot. No, it wasn't coming alive. She looked around the room. Nothing but data littered the desks.
Picking up a piece of paper, she briefly skimmed the sentences. Experiments? Test subjects? She stashed it in her pocket. Her eyes widened when she saw a paper with her name as a header. Cautiously lifted it to view. Highlighted were the phrases "mystical properties," "unknown physical properties," "possible bridge to the future," and "further testing required." Blinking, she stashed it in her pocket, too. She would have to come back to that. There were still no signs of life.
She continued her search. Came across another cryo chamber. Once again, everyone in the pods were dead. Skeletal assistants littered the floor. Still in their lab coats and faded Vault-Tech suits. Her nose scrunched. So much death. So much death in this Vault. She came across a large storage room. Smiled at the weapons inside.
"Jackpot."
Procuring a 10MM pistol, she examined and loaded it. It seemed like in working enough condition. She grabbed a utility belt. Holstered the pistol. Filled all her pockets with as much ammo as they allowed. Confiscated another gun and loaded it as well. This one, she kept in her hands. She didn't know what was out there.
As she wound her way through the Vault, she discovered one thing that was out there. A strange sound made her poke her head in a room. Inside was a cockroach the side the size of a small dog. Sweat formed on her palms. When it faced her, she screamed and unloaded the pistol until it died. Her nose scrunched at the yellow-tinted guts oozing onto the floor. Then she froze again, not daring to look around. Were there giant spiders, too? Because she did not want to face one of those.
Her skin crawled. She wasn't sticking around to find out. Sprinting now, she found her way to the main area. The area she had first seen upon exiting the platform that delivered them to their underground salvation. She gazed at the dilapidated area in wonder. Everything seemed so promising when they initially submerged. She remembered it all clearly. That fateful day.
She had been underneath her nuclear-powered car, chatting with Codsworth about a guy who wouldn't leave her alone while tinkering. She had formulated a plan involving flying wrenches when the sirens blared. The sirens indicating atomic bombs. She remembered rolling out from beneath her car. Remembered yelling at her Mr. Handy, that faithful robot. Remembered running to the Vault on the hill. There were so many families running, trying to save what they could. So much screaming.
Once a guard had checked the list, she remembered being directed to the platform. Remembered looking back and seeing all the people who wouldn't be saved just because their name wasn't on a piece of paper. They were stuck behind a simple chain link fence. Faces carved with horror and desperation. She wanted to help them. Wanted everyone to be safe.
Then it came. A flash of light streaked south. A rumble of the bomb hitting. They could see the fiery mushroom cloud without a problem, though none knew where it exactly landed. Next came the roar of the shockwave berating them with debris. She remembered shielding her face as the platform lowered. Lowered them into their new home. But how could it have been home? She couldn't save Codsworth. Machines weren't allowed in the Vaults.
The present Verrah gazed at the platform. Blinking away tears. So much for home. Everyone was frozen. Worse. Everyone was dead. Never had a chance to live. Pivoting, she recognized an outfit out of the corner of her eye. It was the body of the head of Vault 111. The one assigned to make sure everything went smoothly. Her grip tightened on the 10MM. How could they? How could they keep them from living?
She took a stance and fired. Hot tears streaming down her cheeks. Letting bullets fly into the skull. "How could you do such a thing? How could you turn us into experiments? How could you let so many die just because they didn't fill out your dumb form? We all trusted you!"
Her rage shooting continued until her second gun clicked when she pulled the trigger. The skull had all but been turned to dust. She angrily wiped the tears from her face. The adrenaline starting to subside. Taking a deep breath, she noticed the skeleton's hardware.
A Pip-Boy 3000 and a Holding Pack. Vault-Tech's latest aside from the Vaults themselves. "I'll be taking these, thank you." She ripped the devices off, tossing aside the bones. Slipped her own arms through the backpack straps. Snapped the Pip-Boy around her left wrist. The green screen flickered to life. This was her ticket out.
She looked back at the platform. Fully faced it. Her nostrils flared with another breath. She had no idea what it was like up there. It may very well be she was the only human left. Honestly, she was scared. She reloaded both pistols. One more deep breath, and she stepped up to the control panel. She unplugged the port from the Pip-Boy and inserted it. Entered the proper commands.
Loud cracks, creaks, and moans followed. The old metal was not happy at being awoken. She swallowed. After a few more echoing protests, the gate slid open. The platform was revealed. More swallowing. She hesitated. Then stepped onto the platform. Nothing happened at first. Then it jerked with a groan. She held out her arms to keep from falling. Began rising.
Her head tilted up. The door to freedom rested above her. But would it be freedom? Her old life would never return. Her new life would never be the same. She may not even live that long. There would be no home like the one she had before. She didn't even know if she would be able to breathe the air. Once she was exposed, she may die immediately. Her limbs tingled in anticipation.
There was a piercing hiss. A deafening crack. The Vault door unsealed. Platform gradually slowing. Hopping out her nerves a bit, she rolled her neck. A final crack. The large door slid away. Platform coming to a full halt. Intense light flooded her eyes, making her shield her face with an arm. She could breathe. That was a good start. Her vision finally adjusted. Almost afraid to look, she lowered her arm.