Chapter One: Frozen
Rick remembered when the bombs fell. It had been a day just like any other, he had been at home, with his beautiful wife and Shaun, his son. They had planned on taking a trip to the park after some breakfast, Codsworth had prepared the coffee just the way Rick liked it, in fact the only peculiar occurence had been a visit from a vault-tec representative. The family was eligible for a free space in the nearby shelter due to Rick's service in the armed forces, shortly after the representative departed, Codsworth had called, urging the young couple into the living room. A reporter had been live on air, imploring those with spaces in the shelters to report to them immediately. Nuclear detonations had been reported in many different parts of the country, including Washington D.C. Suddenly the screen cut to static, Nora ran to grab Shaun and they rushed out onto the street.
The usually quiet cul-de-sac of Sanctuary Hills, had been buzzing with activity, those with clearance to the vault rushed to register, the entrance had been built underground on a hill that overlooked Sanctuary, so high that you could make out even the town of Concord on the horizon. Husband and wife held one another outside the gates at the realisation that they would not be admitted to shelter.
"But I am Vault-Tec" the representative from earlier was furiously ranting at having been refused entry, horror dawning in his eyes as acceptance sunk in. Rick and his family stepped onto a large lift, just as it began to descend there was a blinding flash of light in the sky, followed by a cloud that began rushing across the landscape, consuming all in its wake. Just as the darknes had begun to thicken and the lift descended into safety, the faint cry of an infant could be heard, just for an instant, before it was cut short and the exit to the outside world was slammed shut overhead.
Below ground there had been a welcoming committee of staff all dressed in a variety of uniforms, urging the family further into the vault, the family put on the bright blue jumpsuits that had been handed to them and followed a scientist down the hall to a row of strange looking pods like nothing they had seen before, when asked what they were, the scientist explained they were for decontamination purposes, to remove any traces of radiation that we may have been exposed to before the lift hatch had closed. Not knowing any better, Rick stepped into the pod and waited, Nora and Shaun had been directed to the pod opposite, swollowing the lump in his throat and ignoring the knot in his stomach Rick promised that things were okay, calling out to his son, trying to keep him calm. Suddenly the doors to the pods came down, it got very cold, very fast, before he had a chance to panic, Rick's world went dark.
Rick had woke to the sound of gunfire, freezing, confused. The silence that followed had been pierced by the unmistakable shriek of a dissatisfied child. glancing up to investigate, Rick saw his wife stare through empty eyes, a crimson stain spreading across her abdomen, she crumpled. Even as he cried out to her, the cold was creeping back into his bones as he struggled to stay awake, to escape his confinement and go to her, to protect his son. Instead, darkness descended along with the cold. The fight left him.
Waking for a second time to find himself free of his bonds, stiff legs crumpled beneath him at the first tentative step. The images of what had previously occured swam in his mind like the memories of a drunken night, not fiction, but not quite lucid enough to be accepted, just a thought. A haunting, crushing thought. The uncertainty would not last long however. Laying on the cold, smooth floor, hands grasping for any purchase with which to drag himself to his feet, Rick had come into contact with a substance that had become all to familiar to him as a soldier, blood.
Rick recalled the first time he had killed a man, the look in his eyes as his life drained onto the ground, the fear and regret that danced across his face as the magnitude of his mistake became apparent. In an instant, Everything that had led him to this moment questioned, the regret of every risk not taken, every chance squandered washed over him, like waves on the shore, thoughts of the loved ones he'd leave behind, never learning of his fate. There could be no worse a way to die, than with full knowledge that you were experiencing your last moments, yet utterly powerless to prevent this fate.
Rick had dragged himself through the blood of the woman he loved, every inch like crawling across glass. Whoever had done this had left her where she fell, one hand outstretched towards the exit, reaching out for our son to the last. Rick gently slipped the wedding ring off of her rigid finger, and closed her eyes. At that moment something broke inside him, any compassion, sympathy or charity that he had clung onto through all of the wars was gone, it left when her eyelids closed and he kissed her for the last time. Nothing mattered to Rick anymore, other than finding Shaun. whatever awaited outside would kneel and provide, they would help him or they would burn.
During the journey back to the surface Rick felt a sense of dread, an anxious anticipation of what would be waiting, there had been movies about these kinds of events, extinction level occurences that changed the face of the earth and altered those unlucky enough to be left behind. Shielding his eyes, Rick was shaking as the elevator carried him upwards into the blinding light. Allowing himself some time to adjust to the glare of the sun, having not been exposed to it in God knows how long, Rick stood, breathing in the air he thought he would never breathe again, listening to the sounds he had been sure on the way into the vault he would never hear again. Opening his eyes, however, was all it took for my Ricks momentary peace to be shattered. Sanctuary had been obliterated, those houses that had not been blown away entirely were only half standing, some had simply imploded, having sustained critical structural damage. Glancing into the distance Rick noticed that Concord had also been hit hard, though some of the larger buildings such as the post office and the town hall remained mostly intact. Taking a deep breath, Rick set off into the distance.