This story/series is available to read on AO3! You can find me under LostLacrimae

I don't own Bethesda or any of their Fallout franchise. I do own any characters I made.

Of Beauty and Rage

When You're Young sequel

"Will I wake up from this moment? Will I see you slip away? Or is this a new beginning of beauty and rage?" - RED

xxx

Charon had this uncomfortable feeling as he and Sylvia approached Smith Casey's garage. Dogmeat had his nose set on something on the left side of the garage, and Charon was hoping he wouldn't come across the grave and dig it up. He'd buried a girl there two hundred years ago, and he was afraid the memories would overwhelm him if he were to see her body again.

The mutt sniffed around the ground until Sylvia called him over, and Charon silently sighed in relief.

Dogmeat was growling lightly as they were ready to pry open the door. That meant there were enemies inside. Charon pulled out his combat shotgun and pushed past Sylvia as they went inside.

It appeared to be a normal garage that had somewhat survived the nuclear fallout Charon can remember so easily two centuries ago. The only enemies they came across were some mole rats. Charon only looked vaguely annoyed as he stepped back and let Dogmeat tear them to shreds.

Sylvia looked around cautiously. "I don't see a vault." She said with narrowing grey-blue eyes and accidentally stepping on a dead radroach.

Gross.

"Your father said in his recording that the vault is well hidden in here." Charon reminded. He didn't feel like mentioning that he knew where it was hidden. Sylvia was smart like her father; she would figure it out.

Maybe?

Sylvia nodded and walked over to a door that was next to a counter, which led to the actual garage. Dogmeat was sniffing at the floor in the corner, which caused her to notice there was an outline in the middle on the floor.

An outline that could open, possibly.

Sylvia raced over and crouched down, tracing her hand over the outline. Dogmeat was wagging his tail, amused she was on the floor with him. Out of curiosity, Sylvia pressed her Pip-Boy against the outline, as if that would magically cause the floor to split open.

Nothing happened, of course.

"What are you doing?" Charon asked from behind, cleverly hiding his amusement.

"Nothing!" Sylvia squeaked in embarrassment. She looked up at him to see that he had his hand on a red lever next to a power box, and he pushed it up. Instantly the floor gave way as the trap door split open, causing Sylvia and Dogmeat to drop and tumble down a set of stairs that appeared. Charon simply folded his arms over his chest as they were groaning.

"Are you alright?" He decided to ask in a calm voice.

"How did you know to do that?" Sylvia asked back in a daze as she sat up.

"I have been here before." Charon admitted as he carefully walked down the stairs.

"You have-?" Sylvia exclaimed, widening her eyes. "Why didn't you say anything?"

Charon's response was, "You didn't ask."

Sylvia was now completely dumbfounded as Charon passed her. She decided to let it slide. Charon had been alive since before the world ended; no doubt he had traveled to many places. Quickly she got up and looked down at Dogmeat. "You stay here." She ordered him. The mutt immediately whined, but he would obey.

The Lone Wanderer now followed Charon to a new set of double stairs that led to an electronic door. "When I first came here, Robobrains were guarding the door, and they wouldn't listen to me." Charon spoke quietly.

"Were you trying to get in?" Sylvia guessed.

"I was trying to find someone." He corrected.

"I need in."

"Entry denied. Vault 112 is sealed."

The door opened from motion detection and Sylvia now felt homesick as they walked along vault designed walls. She felt worse when she saw the entrance to the actual vault. The large gear door had already been opened. Hopefully that was evidence that her father had passed through here. Now the quickest thing to do was to follow the path of opened doors.

Eventually, they came across an active Robobrain that had a large crack in its case that protected the brain.

Sylvia was staring at the damage, even as the robot spoke to her. "Welcome to Vault 112, resident! According to sensors, you have arrived 200.3 years behind schedule."

"I'm not..." Sylvia started in confusion.

"Please redress in your Vault-Tec issued vault suit before proceeding. If you have misplaced your suit, I am authorized to distribute a new one." The Robobrain continued.

"Wait a minute..." Sylvia urged.

"Once dressed, please proceed down the stairs to the main floor so that you may enter your assigned Tranquility Lounger." The Robobrain finished.

Sylvia blinked. "A what?"

In a matter of moments, Sylvia draped her newly given Vault 112 jumpsuit over what she was wearing, leaving her blonde hair tucked into the back of her suit. She walked past the Robobrain with Charon following. "Did you see the crack on the robot?" She said in a hushed voice.

"Yes... I did that," Charon replied. "I was angry that I wasn't allowed in, so I punched it."

"Didn't that hurt?" Sylvia wondered.

"Yes."

Sylvia silently gulped as they went down a long hallway, a short set of stairs, two right turns, and finally: the main floor. Another Robobrain came up and offered to show Sylvia to her "assigned" Lounger - which to her looked like giant computer pods. Before she climbed into it, she realized there were people in the other Loungers. Was... was Dad in one of them-?

She wasn't able to see faces, but she could tell through the dark Loungers that the people weren't skeletons. "How long have they been here?" She wondered, checking out the computers that were across from each Lounger. "J. Rockwell," she named aloud. "R. Rockwell, Unoccupied... I guess that one is mine... T. Dithers, J. Carlisle, A. Carlisle..."

Charon knew what it was like to have his heart stop beating, but this time he felt it like never before.

J. Carlisle and A. Carlisle. One J. Carlisle was dead, and the other one... here, and he knew which one it was - and this is why at first he was unable to move until Sylvia called his name. Now he went over to the computer reading "J. Carlisle" and started to read her file.

"Do you know that person?" Sylvia realized. "Is that who you were looking for when you first came here?"

"Not anymore," Charon mumbled. "Go find your father."

"Do you want me to try to find her too?" Sylvia offered, reading the full name given on the computer.

"No," he growled. "No."

Sylvia had never seen Charon like this. It was freaking her out. A lot. She nervously pushed open her Lounger and climbed aboard. Once she was firmly in her seat, the Lounger shut on its own, and everything went all fuzzy on her.

Oh and all color disappeared before her eyes too.

Meanwhile, Charon was walking around all the Loungers, angry on the inside that you could barely see into them. According to the computer, J. Carlisle was in one of these Loungers.

Do you want me to try to find her too?

He wasn't lying when he told her no. If Sylvia could somehow get her Lounger open... no. It would change everything.

He'd heard things about this vault from over the years. People would say the Overseer had his Vault Dwellers trapped in the Loungers purposely. Would Sylvia be able to free them?

Would she...

Could she...

Can she find and bring back Juliet?