2. Megaton
In a matter of about twenty minutes Xaria arrived at her first town- Megaton. She glanced wide eyed at her surroundings- this was a town full of different kinds of people. Each person came from somewhere other than a vault and made their home here. She didn't know what to think of the town. How did they survive out here for so long? Her thoughts were interrupted by a tall, African American approaching her.
"What is this, another new comer? Name's Lucas Simms, town sheriff and mayor too, when the need arises," He greeted with a small smile. "Can I help you with anything?"
"Yes," She stuttered nervously. This was her first time talking to someone outside of the vault and for some reason it made her nervous. "I was wondering if you had seen my father come through here. He's a tall African American man, possibly in a long white coat or vault 101 jump suite."
"No I don't believe I've seen him, however if you ask around someone might have seen him," He replied. "Do you need any directions around town?"
She shook her head, replying: "No, I think I'll manage. Thank you."
Xaria walked away and further into the town. In the middle was nuclear warhead which made her extremely nervous. Could that bomb be set off or was it dead? Within the irradiated water that surround was the bomb was a man, chanting his praises to Atom. She fought to keep her face straight as she passed the man- why on Earth would he praise a nuclear warhead? She shifted her attention from the strange sight to questioning the residences. Her search soon brought her to Moriarty's Saloon. She glanced around the dusty saloon nervously, her eyes falling on the man she thought was in charge; however out of the corner of her eye she noticed a man in a white suite waving her over. She wanted to ignore the man but the owner of the saloon stepped into the backroom.
Well, I guess I'll see what this guy over here wants, she thought to herself. She took a deep breath, preparing herself for whatever the man had to say to her before heading his way. "Can I help you, sir?"
"My, my. Just when I had all but given up hope. My dear, I am very happy to make your acquaintance. I am Mister Burke. And you well; you are not a residence of this putrescent cesspool. That makes you a rather valuable individual," He told her in a slow and rather creepy voice.
She titled her head slightly in confusion. "It does?"
"Don't you see?" He asked. "You're a free agent! You've not ties here, no interested in this settlement's affairs. Megaton means nothing to you! I represent certain…interests who view this town, this "Megaton", as blight on a burgeoning urban landscape. If this settlement were to…go away. Why, who would really care? Certainly not you or I…"
Xaria looked at him blankly for a moment, not fully understanding what he was getting at. "Go on. I'm listening."
"The undetonated atomic bomb for which this town is named is still very much alive. All it needs is a little motivation. I have in my possession a Fusion Pulse Charge constructed for a singular purpose- the detonation of that bomb. You'll rig it to the bomb. Then you'll get paid. Handsomely. What do you say?"
She felt a sudden flare of anger course through her veins. How dare this man ask me to do such a thing. She growled in her head. All she could see were the small children she passed who played carelessly with smiles on their faces and the adults who simply wanted to live in peace. She wasn't about to take that away from them. Xaria crossed her arms, glaring down at the man in pure hatred. "You're out of your mind Burke. There's no way I'm helping you."
With that she turned on her heals and purposely walked away from the deranged man who had asked her to do something to horrible. Her feet lead her outside where she took huge gulps of air to calm herself down from the sudden emotional high. How could people be so cruel? Within the course of a day she lost her home, a friend, her father, and was asked to destroy a whole town. Never had she felt so much hated in her and she wanted the feeling to go away. Sure she disliked people, Butch being extremely high on the list, but she never felt hate before. It was a strange and consuming feeling.
"Alright, get yourself together and remember what you're out here for. Remember your mission," She whispered to herself while retying her thick wavy black hair in a ponytail. "Let's go find information about dad."
She walked back into the saloon, noticing that the owner what back at the bar. After taking a moment to gather her thoughts she approached him, saying: "Excuse me?"
The grey haired man looked at her curiously. "Hello! Colin Moriarty, at your service! Welcome to Moriarty's! My saloon, my home, my slice of heaven in this backwoods little burg. If you've got the caps, I've got your pleasure. Please, sit down, make yourself comfortable. Your troubles are a thing of the past."
She decided to get right to the point, seeing no point in stalling. "I'm looking for my father. Middle-aged African American guy. Maybe you've seen him?"
"My God…It's you." He replied, taking a closer look at her dusty face. "The little baby girl, all grown up. It's been a long time, kid! Oh, your daddy passed through here, all right. Here and gone. Got what he come for, and then left. I'm assuming you'll do the same, correct?"
Her eyes squinted in confusion. "Huh? My father and I were born in Vault 101."
Moriarty laughed. "Is that what your father told you? That you were born in that hole? That he was born there as well? Oh, the lies we tell to those we love." He sobered up a bit, before continuing: "Your father brought you to the Vault right after you were born. To keep you safe, you see. I remember it well- you stayed in my saloon, after all. That's right. Your father, his Brotherhood of Steel friend, and you, the suckling babe with nary a tit to suckle. Sorry about your mom. Truly." He shrugged, continuing on: "But, life goes on. Daddy lied. Life's full of little disappointments. And now…you're all grown up, and wondering where he's gone to…"
"My Dad told me we were born in Vault 101…" She protested lamely, unable to fully comprehend what she was being told. 'Your born in the vault, you die in the vault' is what she was always told and now this old man with a strange accent comes along and tells her otherwise.
"I see," He hummed. "I heard about the brainwashin' that goes on down there. From some other fella, escaped, oh…five years back. All hail the Overseer! We're born in the Vault; we die in the Vault! And all that other assorted lunacy. Kid, you better wise up quick before takes advantage of ya."
With fist clenched tight, she looked away from the man who was her closest lead to her father. So many thoughts circulated through her head; however she didn't have time to analyze them. "Look, I just want to find my Dad. Do you know where he is?"
He chuckled lightly. "You seem like a nice kid, so I'm going to be straight with you. Your dad was here, and now he's not, and yes I know where he went, but what you're asking me for is information, and information is a commodity. How about 100 caps, and daddy's location is yours. Very reasonable."
Xaria hands unclenched as she sighed in defeat. She never needed currency while she was in the vault, so she never gave it a thought when she left. How stupid of her. "I don't have 100 caps."
"Well then you can run an errand for me. I need you to take care of a woman named Silver and get back money she stole from. She's over in a shack in Springvale just a few minutes away. Think you can handle that?"
Xaria weighed her options. This man was currently her only lead to her father so she really had no choice but to take it. "Alright, I'll get your caps back." She quickly wrapped up her conversation and headed outside to find it dark. "Well, I guess I won't be going until morning."
She found a common house, but to her dismay found many of the beds either taken or clearly belonging to someone. She shuffled back outside where she found a couch to rest on. It could be worse, she thought as she laid down on the dirty couch. I could be out in the middle of nowhere sleeping on the dirt. She placed a hand on her holstered pistol, before slowly letting herself fall asleep. Today she took her first steps outside and acquired her first mission. Soon she would hopefully find her father and clear up everything that had gone on in the vault as well as between themselves. Maybe things could go back to the way it used to be.
