Chapter One: Welcome to the Outside
Steven opened his pale blue eyes and looked up at the sun for the first time. He laid on the coarse flat dirt, clouds floated carelessly overhead and a slight breeze blew lightly over his body. He yawned and sat up. It took a few seconds for him to realise the change of scenery. He rubbed his eyes once more and looked over the barren desert landscape that lay before him. He chuckled slightly. He got to his feet carefully, feeling a new feeling on his hip. Cold metal. He sent his hand down to investigate the object and found it to be a 10mm pistol. It seemed almost brand new; the vault-Tec logo on the grip as blue as the day it was made. He turned around and headed back into the cave where the entrance to his vault stood.
As he walked he heard a small rustle in the pocket of his blue jumpsuit. Inside he found a small piece of paper which read:
"Hello former vault dweller, if you are reading this, you have awoken outside the vault with only the clothes on your back and a gun on your hip. While we understand that you may have trouble coming to terms with your exile and you most certainly will come to a gruesome end very shortly, we want to wish you all the best in this new and short stage of your life.
Always yours,
Vault 84"
Steven stood staring at the paper for a while, his sleepy mind still absorbing the shock of the situation. He dropped the paper onto the dirt and fell to his knees. Through the darkness of the cave, he could make out the outline of the vault door, the numbers 84 stamped on it in bold print. Impossible to move, he couldn't get through. The password was unknown to him, and if nuclear bombs couldn't get through the thick steel, He doubted the sound of his thumping fists could. Steven sighed. There was nothing he could do, so why should he try? He accepted his fate and left the cave.
The sun screamed heat at Steven as he shuffled through the wasteland, his head bowed towards the floor, sweat dripping from his forehead and splashing on the toe of his boots. He remembered the survival lessons they taught to all the children in the vault, but he failed to see how "duck and cover" could help his situation. The ground was flat, stretching out lifelessly towards the horizon. Steven wandered for hours, the sun passed until the heat was at a more manageable level. Eventually, Steven spotted a small sign sticking up out of the dirt. The sign was obviously from before the war, advertising some business of some sort, but someone had painted over the grime in bright yellow paint the word "Storage" and an arrow pointing to Steven's left. He felt a small tinge of happiness for the first time in what felt like forever.
Steven followed the signs instruction over the level, taking care not to deviate from the path. Just as the moon was beginning to peak its head up, he spotted it. A large, concrete building on the edge of the horizon, surrounded by an ominous glow and tall fence. Steven smiled and began walking towards the structure.