Generations come and gone, decades long since passed—the world sat anew beneath the dawn of the rising sun.

Still somewhat stiff, sluggish, and slowly gathering her bearings—Olivia stood above it all directly atop the vault's big platform, sun shining brilliantly behind her as she gazed upon the new world, her robotic butler hovering loyally at her side as she did.

Her flannel jacket's sleeves rolled to the elbows, black tank top hugging her petite figure, satchel bag hanging from her shoulder, sunglasses on and headphones resting around her neck—she peered around, absorbing every inch of the new scenery, a solemn, peaceful world, if not somewhat desolate and still.

The batteries of her Walkman had died many decades ago—but now, courtesy of Codsworth, she wore a sleek black pip-boy looted from the vault, one that could play her every holotape to her heart's content. Now, the music was endless—and it echoed from around her neck as she observed the world before her.

"The last man to be here, was never heard from againhe won't be back this way, 'till three-thousand ten…"

"Great Scott," Codsworth said softly, scanning over the area around Vault 111. "I've never seen it so… peaceful around here…"

"Yeah," Olivia agreed with a nod, giving him a curious glimpse. "What year is it…?"

"I believe… 2287," Codsworth calculated swiftly. "Two-hundred years of sleep, exact."

"Huh. We're in the 80s again," Olivia smirked. "Not my 80s… but whatever."

"Yes. Though… I have to say," Codsworth said, waving a hand at her. "I do believe you'll have to do something about your apparel, if you choose to use the same methods of survival you used to. We've no idea how dangerous this world is. Should you need to fight, then you won't want that flashy little jacket of yours getting in your way."

"What… you don't think I could do my super-speed parkour in this?" Olivia grinned, lifting the side of her crimson flannel jacket, which was rather big and baggy on her. "Challenge accepted."

"Nooo—give me that," Codsworth stated, jabbing a metal finger at her and opening the hatch on his side. "We'll put that away until it's needed. I'll not have you tripping up when you're trying to leap from one building to another. Again."

Olivia groaned and tossed her head back, peeling off her bag and her jacket. "Fiiine…"

She stuffed the jacket into Codsworth's hatch, then closed it and strapped her bag back on, adjusting its strap until it was fixed snugly and tightly onto her torso.

Now, she stood only in her tank top and her dark cargo pants, a leather studded bracelet around her wrist, just beneath her pip-boy. The bracelet harbored several spikes and studs, and Codsworth eyed it, then gave her a look of intrigue.

"I forgot you had that," he commented. "Don't you think that's a rather hazardous thing to wear? I mean… given the circumstance of parkour arising again…"

Olivia stared down at the spiked bracelet, her expression distant and thoughtful.

She then sighed, facing the world again and stepping off the platform, Codsworth following closely behind her.

"Me taking off my spikes is like you taking off your bowler hat," Olivia remarked as they ventured across the clearing, heading for the dirt path. "Can't be done."

"Well… that's not exactly the same," Codsworth replied curtly. "The hot glue gun in the vault's engineering room saw to that. This hat certainly won't come off now, though I hardly think you've seared that bracelet onto yourself in the same fashion."

"Sheezus. No. That's not what I meant," Olivia mumbled, glancing down at her bracelet again. "It's just like… it's like part of me. It's part of my identity… like the hat is for you."

"Oh. A metaphor of sentimentality," Codsworth understood. "I see."

Olivia wandered on, glimpsing around at the autumn leaves gusting by as she walked down the open dirt path. For a moment, the only sound between the two of them was the gentle music emitting from her headphones.

Codsworth's eyes swiveled, narrowing at her for a second. "You know… that device around your arm can play music without headphones."

Olivia blinked and turned to him. "What?"

"Yes… though RobCo can't entirely measure up to General Atomics, they have done a rather fine job of manufacturing the technology of handy personal-wear," Codsworth explained. "That device can also pick up radio stations, as well as monitor your vitals, and it contains a rather detailed map, too. It's quite useful."

"Huh. Then no wonder you practically forced it onto my freaking arm," Olivia chided with a laugh. "Hope it's bulletproof."

"Oh… why, do you plan to run headfirst into an array of gunfire?"

"I'm not planning to, but…"

"Olivia, please try to be more careful this time around."

"I aaam…"

The two wandered on, Olivia stepping onto a small wooden bridge and waltzing over the shimmering waters of the creek. She stared ahead, where the dirt path led up to the homes of Sanctuary, between the autumn treetops—a sight that looked as familiar as ever, despite how very different the world had become.

She took in a deep breath—sparing the past a moment of thought—then broke into a brisker stride, marching up the hill and emerging in the center of the cluttered road.

Glancing up and down the neighborhood, everything was still and quiet, entirely uninhabited and desolate, contrary to how it had been in its heyday—and how it was in the unpredictable decade that unfolded thereafter.

Codsworth hovered beside her, and the two merely observed their old neighborhood, a place once bustling with life, now vacant, damaged, still, and utterly silent.

"I imagine Concord won't be much different now," Codsworth mumbled.

Olivia stared up the hill, sighing deeply. "Concord…"

They both fell silent again, a sense of tension in the air.

During their lives in Sanctuary, things were as ordinary as ever—but in the decade to follow the Great War, the two of them had lived in Concord. The town had become something of a hotbed for controversy and instability in the time directly following the bombs, and the horrific endgame that transpired there was ultimately what led to their decision of stepping out of time.

Olivia and Codsworth turned to face each other, meeting eyes and instantly thinking along the same lines.

Deciding in silent unison, they marched on, strolling down the street and heading for the bridge, intending to take a look at the town they once called home.

They marched past Red Rocket, sparing it a long, pondering stare as they ventured on.

Then—a glint of movement caught Olivia's eye, making her slow to a stop in the road.

A dog came dashing out of the bushes, leaping briskly over the railing and staggering to a stop in front of them, standing on its hind legs and making a whimpering noise.

"Hey, dude," Olivia smirked, reaching out to pet it.

The dog reared back, spinning around and racing off at once. Olivia and Codsworth watched as it ran down the street, turning back and howling, then running off once more.

"Seems it wants us to follow," Codsworth observed.

Olivia stared at the buildings of Concord in the near distance, wearing a serious visage and turning her satchel bag around, letting it hang around her stomach and sliding her arm inside. When she pulled her arm back out—she held her weapon, a dark black power fist with a bright blue displacer disc on its knuckles, one that an old friend had designed for her two-hundred years ago.

She slipped it on, fastened its straps, and marched onward, bracing herself for whatever she might find in town.

"Your laser still works, right?" Olivia asked as she walked.

"Well… yes," Codsworth replied, raising one of his two metallic hands and spreading its fingers wide open, a tiny laser barrel extending from the center. "But… do you really believe we'll find trouble so soon? I imagined there must've been some form of civilization in existence by now."

"Yeah, but not around here," Olivia remarked, gazing up at the nearest apartment building as they strolled into town. "You saw Sanctuary. Nobody's been building or repairing anything around here for a real long time. Which means… God knows what we're gonna run into."

"Fair…" Codsworth sighed.

They both continued on, walking into town and glancing in every direction—seeing only a desolate Concord, no hint of danger anywhere nearby, just empty buildings, streets, and abandoned barricades interspersed between.

In fact—there was no hint of anything here, not a single trace of the grand, hellish event that had ultimately led to Concord's downfall.

The signs and walls were gone, the government seemed to have long since vanished, and the only people in sight were a few scattered corpses farther down the main road, lying on the curbs and the streets just before the museum.

There were no rebellious protesters nearby the museum—there were no propaganda posters, warning about the dangers of Vault-Tec Truthers and their conspiracies—there were no power-armored military forces patrolling the streets—and, most noticeably of all, there were no walls separating Concord from the mutated dangers of the new world.

The place sat desolate and practically untouched, worn and weathered in a way that told no detail of the decade Olivia lived.

In fact—gazing upon the town now—it was as if none of it happened at all.

Olivia slowed to a meander, wandering down the center of the street and staring directly ahead almost trancelike—her eyes fixating on the area in front of the museum, that spot, right before the stairs, where the worst event of her life had taken place long ago.

Her heart gave an uncomfortable jolt, gulping, grasping her bracelet and forcing every rising emotion back down.

Codsworth eyed her, floating closer and placing a hand on her shoulder.

"That time is gone now," he said softly, as if he'd read her mind. "That is what we wanted… isn't it?"

Olivia nodded mildly, releasing a long, shaky sigh. "Yeah. I just kinda wish this whole place was gone. I thought it'd be… collapsed, or rebuilt, or something by now…"

"Well… it seems someone did try to make something of it. Quite recently, it appears," Codsworth said, his eyes turning, zeroing in on the bodies of raiders and minutemen scattered on either side of the road. "But, it looks as if it boded well for neither side…"

Olive followed his trail of vision—and then, she spotted the dog again.

The dog was down the road, hunching over a few of the bodies and making frantic pawing motions at them—the bodies wearing blue, adjacent from the raiders.

In fact—as Olivia took a step forward, examining the scene more closely—she was able to see someone else there, hunched beside the dog and trying to smack one of the bodies awake. It was a man in a deep tan overcoat, a crooked hat and a dark complexion, hovering over a fallen comrade and looking grimly distraught.

Olivia marched closer—and she saw another glint of movement, a little old lady in a lighter blue outfit, kneeling just behind the man and staring down at the body with dismay.

"By jove," Codsworth gasped. "Some are still alive!"

"Hey!" Olivia called at once—breaking into a sprint toward them.

Instantly—Preston and Mama Murphy raised their heads in alarm, watching as the stranger rushed over.

Olivia staggered to a stop with Codsworth close behind, both of them looking down and surveying everything from up close; a recently deceased couple were lying on the curb, riddled with gunshot wounds that stained their clothes all over, their eyes wide open and glazed, their dark black hair frazzled and matted as it lay sprawled over the ground. Beside the dead couple was another man—one who was still breathing, though he was bleeding from a gunshot wound in his abdomen, clutching it and wincing as his breaths sliced through his gritted teeth.

"You—you guys," Olivia panted, glancing at the wounded man, then the one hunched over him. "You need help?"

Preston stared up at her with a face warped with worry and frustration.

"I'm not one of them," Olivia assured, swatting over in the general direction of the dead raiders. "I just got here."

Preston gave her a quick scan up and down, seeming to believe her. He nodded, sighing gravely and giving the wounded Sturges another light smack on the cheek in an attempt to keep him fully awake.

"We need a medic," Preston mumbled, his voice low and shaking. "Are you one…?"

Olivia and Codsworth traded looks.

"Sorta," Olivia said. "I had someone teaching me a long time ago…"

"Sturges," Preston breathed, swatting his face and trying to make him stir. "Sturges—stay with me. We've got someone here who can help now."

"No," Mama Murphy exhaled, looking up and staring past everyone else. "Not now."

Preston turned his head, giving her a baffled sort of look. "What do you mean, not now? We don't have time to—!"

"Preston—somethin's coming," Mama Murphy breathed with urgency, giving him a serious stare. "We have to go—now."

Preston gazed into her, reading the severity off her face and looking utterly disturbed.

Olivia glimpsed oddly between the two of them, then sank to her knee and began examining Sturges intently.

"Oh dear," Codsworth uttered, slowly turning around and facing the main road from where they'd come. "M'um, I believe… there's a…"

"Codsy—I need you to help me tie this off," Olivia said distractedly, examining Sturges's wound. "It looks like the bullet went straight through, which is good—but we still can't let this guy bleed out anymore."

"Olivia," Codsworth said a little louder, his three eyes locked onto the road behind them. "My sensors are picking up something just… over…"

Then—a rattling bang shook the air, making everyone jump.

Olivia, Preston, and Mama Murphy all shot upright in alarm—staring in the same direction as the robot now.

"There," Codsworth murmured.

Far down the street—another deafening bang ensued, a huge metal sheet flying up from the road and being carelessly tossed away, as a great, scaly monster was crawling from the ground just beneath it, having thrown it aside without issue.

Everyone else stared in mortified awe, the dog beginning to bark madly at the beast.

Olivia stared—feeling a blast of adrenaline inside and instantly feeling every hard detail of their situation. A mutant beast was towering over the road directly opposite them—and they couldn't hope to run with a wounded man among them.

So—Olivia turned to Codsworth, just as the deathclaw's soulless white eyes landed on them.

"That car down the road," Olivia said, raising her power fist.

"Right-o," Codsworth agreed. "But please be careful."

Olivia smirked and scoffed, cocking her head at him.

Then—she was off, running down the street and barreling directly toward the monster.

Preston watched in bewildered awe—and Codsworth raced away as well, heading a different direction and vanishing behind the nearby buildings.

Olivia skidded to a stop in the middle of the road, blowing bangs from her eyes and facing the monster head-on.

The deathclaw bared its teeth at her, snarling its face and releasing a low, growly rumble.

Olivia stood front and center, electric power fist clutched tight, music placing from around her neck, and every muscle in her body tensing as her adrenaline peaked entirely.

"I don't know what it is about Concord," Olivia muttered. "But there's always some real final showdown energy here."

The deathclaw lumbered forward, its meaty clawed feet thumping hard against the pavement, heaving grumbling snarls and slowly opening its fanged mouth as it drew steadily near.

Olivia's eyes narrowed, wearing a caustic face and staring at the monster with nonchalance.

"Fuck off, mouth-breather."

She shot off like a bullet—whizzing over a barricade and vaulting over another car—sprinting with wicked speed and zipping directly between the deathclaw's legs. The monster swiped at her and narrowly missed—Olivia emerging on the other side and darting toward the old blue car directly ahead of her.

Codsworth appeared from the alleyway behind the buildings—his eyes fixing onto the blue car as his sensors began to scan every mechanism of the vehicle in milliseconds. Once he located the fusion core—he targeted it firmly, revealing his laser hand and waiting for the precise moment to strike.

The deathclaw staggered around and let out a deafening roar—furious at its fleeing target and thundering down the street after her.

Olivia leaped onto the car and ran over it—diving off its trunk and landing swiftly on the pavement again.

She ran on and on, buildings whizzing past her vision until—

Codsworth's free hand jutted out and snapped around her tank top—yanking her behind him and firing off a shot from his laser.

The deathclaw reached the car just when—

Ban—BOOOOM.

The car exploded in a ravenous nuclear blast—ripping to shreds and hitting the monster full-force. The deathclaw let out a pained howl as the explosion tore into its rough skin, metal slicing it all over as it slumped to the side, crumbling to the ground and falling deathly still.

Smoke and fiery embers crawled into the sky from the ruins of the now destroyed car—and Olivia straightened up, panting and watching with a marveling smile spreading across her face.

After a moment of rattled silence—Codsworth released a deep sighing noise, withdrawing his laser and narrowing his eyes pensively at her.

"I did say to be careful—did I not?" he chided.

"I was," Olivia protested. "Codsy, it was flawless! It just worked like a charm—!"

"It worked—but I'd hardly call it flawless," Codsworth stated. "You didn't see how close it was to ripping you open from behind, did you?"

"How would I see that? Seeing as how it was behind me."

"Oh, ha-ha-ha."

"Hey—we did it. That's all that matters," Olivia concluded. "We're all good, and so are they. We can go fix that guy up now. It's all good."

Codsworth hesitated, giving her a thoughtful sort of look.

"Well… it's good to see you haven't changed much, M'um," he remarked, his voice softening. "You just can't help but get involved when others are in peril, can you?"

Olivia stared at him—her expression suddenly entirely unreadable, stony in a way it hadn't been seconds ago.

"I don't see how I could," she grumbled darkly, turning and marching back toward the museum. "I never saw how anyone could…"

Codsworth gave her a somber look from behind, then began to follow.

"I believe that large dolly may still be around," he told her. "The one behind the shop, where Jim had his things unloaded every…"

He fell silent—as Olivia had slowed to a stop in the street, turning and staring into the worn, empty ruins of the old repair shop, wearing a distant visage and a deep, heavy grimace.

"Er… well… point being," Codsworth spoke up again. "We can use it to wheel the poor wounded soul up to Sanctuary. I don't think we ought to spend much more time here than we already have."

Olivia's gaze remained lost in the shattered window of the repair shop for several long seconds.

Then—she marched on, turning away from it and heading back to the museum without a word.