Just a little something I wanted to write about emerging into the wastes. This could turn into an actual multi-chapter story or stay a one-shot depending on reader feedback. I won't beg for reviews, but they are more than welcome! Hope everyone enjoys reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it.

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She can hear the panicked footsteps behind her, the click of the pistols as they ready for fire. They won't follow her past the door; this she knows. She chances a look back at the vault. The only place of true protection in the wasteland, the secure life her father wanted for her. Her home…

Good riddance.

Taking a deep breath, she runs toward the old wooden planks at the end of the underground tunnel. The light coming through the slats is so inviting, so real. Her small hand closes on the old, rusted door handle. Is this really the life I want? With a deep breath, she nods and opens the door…

Everything is bathed in light. She throws her hands up over her eyes while blinking back tears. It's a piercing wake up call. In the vault, everything was dim.

Here, out in the wastes, it is clear. Everything is defined. There are no stupid rules; no brainwashing overseer. There is no "We live in the vault and we die in the vault." It is life or death.

It's beautiful.

She's vaguely aware of the tears that paint her face as she looks at the world now bathed in bright sunlight. Real sunlight. The thought wrenches a twisted laugh from her throat.

She sinks to the ground; bows before the wasteland that was once a great nation. It is ruined, ravaged, radiated…And yet, nothing has ever seemed so lovely.

It's simple.

She is aware of the dangers around her. The muties could come out at any moment and rip her to pieces. But staring at the vastness that is the D.C. Wasteland, she is comforted. Here she is not alone. She has a purpose.

"Dad…"

The word is a choked sob, but it steadies her. She has a purpose. Her father is out here braving the wastes, and so shall she. Gallivanting across the D.C. Wasteland is probably suicide for a tiny girl like her, but if it means finding her father, she is more than willing to risk everything.

It's terrifying.

This new world is vast. The vault had been confined; space was hard to come by in the cold metallic underground. Up here, there are no boundaries. She can see far into the horizon; where the sky meets the earth. There are no trees, and the only landmarks are ruined towns and buildings. How can I survive this? Her heartbeat accelerates, the panic sets in. How will I be able to find Dad? The wastes are too big, too desolate. It will be like finding a needle in a haystack. What if I can't find him? What if I'm stuck out here, alone, forever? Her breathing is quick and shallow. What if he's dead?

Vomiting brings her back to reality. A vigorous shake of her head clears her thoughts away. Deep breaths, she tells herself. The panic recedes and her rational side takes the wheel again. She sure as hell can't stay here kneeling on the ground. She spits the bile out of her mouth and wipes away her tears. Squaring her shoulders, she sets off to find her future, however uncertain it may be.