Chapter 1: Another Ordinary Day
It was a beautiful day at the university. The sky was blue, the air was warm and there was hardly any wind blowing about. It was days like these that made it impossible not to go outside and enjoy the weather. The campus was lively and full of energy in every direction. The Campus Center was full of people having a good time playing music, enjoying one ice-cold Nuka Cola after another, and simply enjoying each others' company. Outside, in the warm air, was a different type of luxury. People scattered themselves across the cozy grass, laying on towels or lounging in foldable lawn chairs. Everybody was enjoying themselves having picnics, reading comic books, playing instruments and enjoying the warm sun.
Tucked away in the back of a lecture hall, cut off from the sunshine and fun, was Max Green. He was fighting to keep his eyes open through the almost unbearable chemistry lecture. In the front of the lecture hall was a lone protectron robot called a Chem-Bot-3000. It had its own RobCo lab coat and often stood in front of the lecture hall projecting the day's lecture on the screen behind him. Max typically didn't like being taught by protectrons. At least they always knew what they were talking about and never got a calculation incorrect. But why were they always so difficult to understand? Max reached into his backpack and took out his notebook to start doodling. He decided he had heard enough of the robot's slow, monotone voice for one day. He started to draw a Mister Handy model robot. Just like the ones he always saw working around campus; maintaining lawns and replacing broken windows and such. Max had a fascination for technology. RobCo industries was his first inspiration to study engineering at the university. But what interested him even more than RobCo was Vault-Tec.
Vault-Tec corporations: put together by the American government to construct amazing underground bomb shelters called vaults. Max took a tour of a vault before the semester started as a part of his summer freshman orientation. Turns out Vault-tec decided to build one of their vaults underneath the university. Vault 136 they called it. Max was thrilled. He had always wanted to see inside a vault. Being enrolled as a full time student at the university guaranteed his entry into Vault 136. In the event of "Total atomic annihilation", as all the cliche instructional holotapes kept saying, at least he'd be safe in the vault. It felt ridiculous to think that the world could end at any moment. Before being in college he remembered sitting at the dining table every morning with his father. Together they would listen to the news on the radio while enjoying their routine bowl of Sugar Bombs. Every day the news had something new to say about the "ongoing threat of nuclear warfare!" Or something like that.
"Why would anybody want to start a nuclear war, dad?" Max would ask his father. "Who would win the war if everybody was dead?"
"Nobody, son… Nobody at all. So let's just hope we don't ever need to worry about it in our lifetime." Then they would drop the subject and continue getting ready for the day ahead of them.
Max didn't like the idea of being stuck in a vault without his family. However, being so far away from home, he understood that it was the only way.
After what felt like forever, the chemistry lecture was dismissed. Max walked out into the hallway to find his friend Todd Johnson waiting for him.
"Hey, Max! Awesome weather today, huh?" Started Todd.
"I wouldn't know, man. I've been stuck in here listening to a bucket of bolts talk about stupid oxidation numbers all morning."
"Sucks to be you! Here. I got you this at the Super Duper Mart."
Todd slung his bag off one shoulder and reached inside to pull out a bottle of red Nuka Cola, Max's favorite.
"Nuka Cherry!? You're the best, dude! How much do I owe you?"
"Don't worry about it. Let's go enjoy the weather."
Max popped the cap off the Nuka Cherry and took his first quenching sip. Delicious. The two of them started towards the door to go outside.
