So I'd like to thank everyone who has read, reviewed, followed and favorited so far. I've been trying to get into a steady schedule now that I'm working on three stories at once, and I'm glad knowing that my work is being read. Now I know the first chapter of this story has been quite long compared to what I usually put out, and it's probably a one-time thing. I'm trying to go over a thousand words on each chapter I upload, and for this story you can probably expect no less than 3,000 words. I also want to inform you all ahead of time that I'm still a relatively new Fallout fan (having started playing Fallout 3 about six weeks ago), and that I am trying to make this fic as lore-friendly as possible, but it's very possible I could slip up on occasion. If I do, please do not hesitate to let me know so that I avoid making said mistake later on. Thanks for reading, and enjoy the chapter!
My dreams were haunted by Paul Hannon Jr. His jumpsuit was stained crimson from a bullet wound in his stomach, and dark red blood coated the cold steel floor beneath us. It crawled up the walls, engulfing me.
"You killed me," he would say, his eyes staring blankly at me. "You killed me."
"No!" I would deny desperately. "There was nothing I could do."
But he wouldn't stop. Those same three words would ring through my head, turning into a chant of, "You killed me. You killed me. You killed me."
Eventually, I would stop trying to defend myself and just fall to my knees, waiting for it to be over.
In between the dreams, I would plan out the first excursion into the Wasteland. I'd already decided that I would be going out there; I was sending these men out into the unknown. I owed it to them to face what I was making them face.
Gomez had agreed with enthusiasm, saying that he was itching to get out of the Vault. Next was Kendall, who also agreed to go. Three men would probably be enough, but I didn't want to gamble on our first trip outside. I looked over the list of officers; I'd need someone with a bit more muscle. Now don't get me wrong, Gomez and Kendall were big guys, but they didn't look it with all that security armor on. I needed someone who would send a clear message to anyone out there who would want to try something.
It was at that thought that I actually thought about what I was getting into. It had been hectic, becoming Overseer with barely a warning and immediately planning an excursion to the outside, so I hadn't really had time to just think about things. For all I knew, someone might gun us down the minute we even stepped out the door. Maybe we'd be robbed of all our possessions and left to die in the Wasteland. Or maybe someone would try and force their way into the Vault. The amount of unknown factors just piled up.
No, I thought. Don't overthink it.
Sighing, I decided the fourth man could wait until tomorrow.
Despite me insisting that they didn't have to, Amata and her father moved their belongings out of the apartment next to 'my' office and into a smaller apartment near the diner. James moved his stuff in, and I decided to stop putting off going to talk to Hannon.
"Good morning Overseer," said Gomez when I arrived at the small jail in the Vault. "Here to talk to Hannon?"
"That's right," I replied.
"Probably the best time to talk to him," Gomez noted. "This is as calm as he's been all week."
I looked into the jail cell. Hannon was sitting on his bed, his expression unreadable. Even without his heavy security vest, he looked thinner than usual. Too thin, in fact.
When he looked my way, his eyes narrowed like slits. "What do you want?"
"To talk," I said simply. "You've been refusing your meals, haven't you?"
"I'll eat when my hands have choked the life out of you," spat Hannon. I was taken aback.
"That's not going to happen, Paul," I said, despite myself.
"Then why are you here?!" he replied, shouting now.
"To explain myself," I said, taking a seat at the desk. "I can't get that day out of my mind, and I owe it to you to at least explain why I did what I did."
"Good," Hannon hissed, "I hope the day never leaves you."
"That's an understandable thing to feel," I told him. "Steve Mack was out of control. He raised his gun with the intention of killing another resident. I had to act."
"Only because said resident happened to be your girlfriend!" shouted Hannon, jumping to his feet and punching the window. "Tell me this, boy; would you have acted if it had been my son Mack was aiming at? Or if it was that dumb girl you're friends with that would be killed?"
I opened my mouth to respond, then hesitated. Would I have still stepped forward if Paul Hannon Jr was the one in danger? I probably would have, since he was never that bad to me when we were kids. But if I'd known that it would involve killing Amata, would I have been able to do what I did? I doubted it.
"What I did was basic instinct," I finally replied, keeping myself calm. "Sometimes we don't make choices about who lives and dies. We just do what we do."
"Keep telling yourself that," snarled Hannon, pressing his face against the glass. "As far as I'm concerned, you're a murderer who should never have been allowed into this Vault!"
"What do you mean?" I asked him, standing up, "I was born in this Vault!"
Hannon gave a sickening smile, flashing his yellowing teeth. "Daddy didn't tell you, did he? You're both from out there. You're tainted!"
"And you're lying," I shot back, "I'm trusting you enough to let you out of this cell. If you lay a hand on anyone in this Vault, you'll be in here a lot longer."
Dad was asleep when I returned. I didn't bother waking him; there would be plenty of time to talk about what Hannon had said when I got back tomorrow. I'd settled on Officer Taylor as the fourth man. He was more experienced, and a bit more level-headed. I made a list of all the equipment we'd be taking tomorrow, and went to sleep. We'd be up early tomorrow.
According to the clock, I'd woken up at six in the morning. Since you couldn't tell for sure underground, you'd just have accept that as the truth. I went down to the storage lockers to gather up the equipment. Taylor, Kendall and Gomez were already gearing up.
"Ready, boys?" I asked them.
"Aye, sir," said Gomez with a salute.
"Everyone's going out with a baton, a pistol, 50 rounds, two bottles of water a stimpak," I told them. The stimpaks were probably overkill, but I didn't want a man crippled fresh out of the Vault.
"Got it boss," Kendall replied.
"So what exactly is the plan?" asked Taylor. "I'd prefer to know what I'm doing, after all."
"The old scouting reports say that Megaton's the nearest settlement," I informed the group. "Officer Taylor, I believe your wife stayed there for quite a while."
"Yes, while sleeping not far a live atomic bomb."
"Don't worry, we're not going anywhere near that bomb if we can avoid it," I assured Taylor while pulling on a security vest. "We're just seeing how the locals will react to us, and take note of any dangers out there. We won't be gone long."
Amata, my father, and Alphonse were the only ones to see us off at the front door.
"Stimpaks?" the former Overseer said. "A little over the top, don't you think?"
"It's a precaution," I told him. "I don't want anyone going out there unprepared."
Alphonse shrugged in response. Anyone else might consider this rude, but anyone born in Vault 101 was used to far worse from Alphonse Almodovar.
"Just be safe out there," said Amata. "You don't know what's out there. I don't want any of you to get hurt out there."
"Don't worry, Amata," James said, "They'll all come back. Son, listen..."
He pulled me aside for a moment. "Listen, if you find a man called Colin Moriarty, do NOT do business with him. He's not a man that forgets a debt."
"Colin Mor-" I stammered. "Dad, what aren't you telling me?"
"It's nothing," James said quickly. "Just stay safe out there."
I was about to say more, but Gomez called me over.
"Come on! Let's go!"
This conversation isn't over, I mouthed to my father, before half-jogging back to the door.
"Ready?" Gomez asked, his finger on the Vault door control. Everybody nodded, and Gomez opened the door.
The alarm blared, and everyone covered their ears. The yellow light flashed above the Vault door, while a device descended from the roof and inserted itself into the back of the cog-shaped door. The device pulled the door backwards, and moved the door to the side.
Outside, I caught my first glimpse of natural light. At the end of the long, darkened cave, what must have been sunlight was streaming in through a cracked wooden door.
"This it guys," I said, taking a breath. "Be on your guard, and we'll be alright."
The four of us stepped out into the cave, onto a metal platform outside the door. It was here that I saw what might have been the most stomach-churning thing I'd ever seen. Alphonse apparently hadn't been the first Overseer to cut the Vault off from the outside world. Next to ancient signs that read 'We're dying, assholes!' were skeletons, or at least what was left of them. Darkened with age and missing limbs, their skulls sat empty and decayed. When had these people come here? When the Vault first closed, and the few people who escaped the atomic fire had come to plead for their lives? Judging by their conditions, it seemed the most likely.
"Let's go guys," I said, trying to sound unaffected, and probably failing. The walk to the end of the cave seemed to take a lifetime, and when we finally reached the door, it was a struggle to give Amata and the others one final wave, before the door of Vault 101 slid closed. I turned away from home, and pushed open the door to the unknown.
The full blast of the sunlight hit me as I led my team out, and I had to shut my eyes against the blinding white light. I staggered slightly, and felt something strange moving under my feet. It crunched with every step.
Of course, I thought, remembering my lessons. It was dirt. I'd only ever seen the samples brought in by radroaches. I slowly opened my eyes and took in the world. The sights, the smells, the light breeze against my skin. It was overwhelming. I allowed the officers to take it all in as well. I felt like a fish out of water, as the saying goes. Not that I'd even seen a real fish before.
Megaton was easily visible from the overlook by the Vault. I'd talked to Taylor's wife, who'd said that the town was surrounded by walls made from old plane parts. There was no way those walls in the distance could be anything else. I scanned the short distance between us and the town, but I'd have to get closer to see anything more than dirt and rocks.
At the base of the overlook were the remains of an old pre-war road. Where the concrete had disappeared, there was now a puddle of dirty green, heavily irradiated water. The Geiger counter on my Pip-boy began ticking. We steered well clear of the puddle.
I checked my Pip-boy and noticed that a new radio station had been picked up. In fact, two radio stations had been picked up. Under the out-of-reach Vault 101 PA system were Enclave Radio and Galaxy New Radio. Curious, I tuned into Galaxy News.
"And now for a public service announcement," said the voice on the radio. "Listen up children, because this stuff's important. Remember, children, that when the Raiders come, there ain't no shame in locking your doors, barricading your windows and cowering under the nearest bed. When these psychos come to play, they have one thing on their minds; making your life as fucking miserable as humanly possible. Raiders can't be bargained with, or reasoned with, and there ain't no use in surrendered, 'cause they'll just shoot you anyway."
The officers gather around me to listen in.
"So run, hide, or fight if you've got the balls and the guns, but for God's sake don't go waving the white flag. They'll just strangle you with it. And now, some music!"
'I Don't Want to Set the World on Fire' began playing on the radio. The news should have come as a shock, but I wasn't surprised. What was I expecting? A utopian society with no crime? That would just be lunacy. My hand went to my 10mm, and it gave me a sense of security.
We made our way to the front gates of Megaton, which opened upon our approach. A protectron stood by the gate.
"Welcome-to-Megaton," it said. "The-bomb-is-perfectly-safe. We-promise."
Megaton's walls surround a giant crater, at the center of which sat an unexploded atomic bomb sitting in a puddle of irradiated water. Crudely-built metal shacks covered the crater walls, some stacked on top of one another with support columns.
A figure approached us from what passed for a main road. He wore one of those old western duster coats and hats that people wore in those old movies, and he carried an assault rife.
"Well I'll be," he said, amazed. "You four are from that Vault, aren't you? I haven't seen one of those jumpsuits in a long time!"
"I'm Ryan," I said, extending a hand. "I'm Vault 101's Overseer."
"Lucas Simms," the man replied, shaking my hand. "Town sheriff, and mayor too when the need arises. What brings you folks to Megaton?"
"Just taking a look around," I told him. "We need to know what the world's like out here."
"Well, as long as you stay out of trouble, I won't complain," said Simms. "Be careful around the bomb, and don't start trouble. If you can do those things, then you're alright with me."
I thanked the sheriff, then a thought occurred to me.
"About the bomb," I said.
"What about it?"
"Shouldn't someone disarm that thing?" I asked.
"I don't trust any of the locals to tinker with it," Simms replied. "Why? You think you got the know-how to disarm that thing?"
"Possibly," I told him, "I can have one of the Vault technicians to take a look at it."
"Well alright," said Simms reluctantly. "Just don't go blowing everyone up. There'll be 100 caps in it if you disarm that thing."
I had no idea what he meant by 'caps', but I declined anyway. "I don't need a reward. I couldn't sleep at night knowing I left you all to die."
Simms looked at me, astonished.
"Well that's mighty decent of you," he said. "Just be careful."
He left us alone, and Kendall cleared his throat.
"You sure that's a good idea?" he asked me. "Not asking for a reward?"
"I want us to be on good terms with them," I explained. "People will have to get used to us, and I want them to be relaxed when we're around."
Kendall nodded in understanding.
"Alright," I said to the officers. "Feel free to wander around and mingle. Don't get into trouble, and don't touch the bomb. If you see or hear anything noteworthy, let me know."
"Yes, sir," they replied in unison before splitting up. I decided to walk down the 'main' street, the busiest part of the town. The locals gave me a few distrusting glances, and I kept to myself. There was a preacher of some kind, his clothes ragged. He stood barefoot in the irradiated water, rambling something I didn't bother listening to. I looked around. Above one of the shacks was a massive sign reading 'Moriarty's Saloon'. I remembered what dad had told me, but decided to check it out anyway.
The saloon was furnished with a mismatch of different furniture. Around the metal bar were stools, while the chairs were a mix of shapes. A radio on top of the bar emitted static, while the bartender hit it in frustration.
"Stupid radio," he said in a raspy voice.
"I told you, Gob," replied a red-haired woman. "It's not the radio, it's Galaxy News. Their signal's been shit lately."
It took all my strength not to start at the bartender. Was he even human? Most of his skin seemed to have fallen off, and what little was left was pale and covered in sores and boils. Was it radiation, or something else that had done this to him?
Out of the corner of my eye I noticed something. In the small sitting room away from the bar, a man gestured to me. He wore a dirty pre-war hat and suit, and glasses.
"Yes?" I said hesitantly, taking an empty seat across from him.
"My, my," he said coolly. "Just when I had all but given up hope. My dear boy, I am very happy to make your acquaintance. I am Mister Burke. And you, well, you are not a resident of this putrescent cesspool. That makes you a rather valuable individual."
"It does?" I asked, wondering what the hell I was getting myself into.
"Don't you see?" said Burke. "You're a free agent! You have no ties here, no interest in this settlement's affairs! Megaton means nothing to you!"
"I'm afraid that's where you're wrong, Mister Burke," I replied, turning up my jumpsuit collar to show the yellow 101. "In case you haven't guess, I'm from a Vault."
"Ah," said Burke, nodding. "Vault 101. I had suspected it, given the jumpsuit. Well, what I have to say might be beneficial to your Vault. I represent certain... interests, who view this town as a blight on a burgeoning urban landscape.
"If this settlement were to.. go away. Why, who would really care? Certainly not you, or I..."
At this point, I was gaping.
"Wait," I finally said. "You're going to destroy the town?"
Burke smiled, and continued. "No, no. I'm merely a recruiter. YOU get to have the real fun. 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. Once secured to the bomb, it will be detonated by you, from a secure location. Easy money, my friend."
I stood there, gaping. Surely this man wasn't serious! I backed away, and left in a hurry.
I told Gomez to keep an eye on Burke in case he tried to 'recruit' anyone else to rig the bomb before I could get it disarmed. I asked a local where I could trade, and he directed me to Craterside Supply, near the town gate. Craterside was run by Moira Brown, a red-haired women who seemed a little... odd. By odd, I mean extremely friendly for a Wastelander. Nonetheless, I was polite when talking to her.
"Oh, you're from that local Vault!" she said in excitement. "I haven't talked to one of you folks for such a long time! Hey, do you mind if I ask you a question about life in the Vault?"
"Uh, sure," I replied, noticing something hanging in the corner of the room. A blue jumpsuit, a little worn from a combination of age and use, modified with leather straps and a metal shoulder guard that only partially hid the number 101 from view.
"Where'd you get that?" I asked, pointing to the jumpsuit. Moira turned around.
"Oh, I had a girl come in about ten years ago, asking me to strengthen it, but I never saw her again. If you can answer my question, it's yours for free. So, what's it actually like living in a vault?"
"Well," I began, racking my brains for something noteworthy. "We've got a lot of pre-war technology, which gives us access to pure food and water free of radiation. The dispensers give us an almost limitless supply of useful things, such as water and medicine. The only real downside is that, since it's underground, you can't see any of the outside world."
"Fascinating!" said Moira, her eyes lighting up. "Thank you so much! Here, I want you to have this."
She brought over the modified jumpsuit, and I thanked her. After leaving Craterside Supply, I decided to meet up with the officers by the gate.
"So," I said to them. "How'd it go?"
"People here are friendly enough," reported Kendall. "But there's not a whole lot here worth trading for other than spare parts."
"They use bottlecaps as currency," replied Gomez. "We can get those easy enough as long as the dispensers keep working."
It was silly, but I didn't want to go with that option. Sure, we could have easily generated an unlimited amount of bottlecaps and become rich easily, but the idea seemed like cheating, and the last thing I wanted was for everyone in the wasteland to be jealous of Vault 101.
"We probably won't even have to do that," I finally told Gomez. "Purified water seems to be a luxury most people don't have access to out here, and we've got a limitless source of it. Anyway, we can discuss our next move when we return to the Vault."
"Did anyone else notice that man in the saloon?" asked Officer Taylor. "I don't like the look of him."
"Burke? Yeah," I replied. "He's trying to get someone to rig that bomb to blow."
"What?" came the voice of Sheriff Lucas Simms. "Who is?"
"Burke," I replied, turning to meet him. "He tried to recruit me to help him detonate the bomb."
The sheriff swore. "I never did like the look of him. Alright, follow me if you want an education on Wasteland justice."
Simms had his rifle loaded and ready long before we made it to Moriarty's saloon.
"Gomez, Kendall," I ordered. "You two block off the sitting room in case he tries anything. Taylor, you guard that door and don't hesitate to shoot Burke if he tries anything. Ready?"
"Got it, boss," said Gomez. We all walked inside, Taylor taking his place at the door, while Gomez and Kendall took their places, closing Burke in with me and Simms.
"Burke!" he barked. "Explain yourself!"
"Why, sheriff," said Burke calmly. "To what do I owe the displeasure?"
"The bomb! You want to blow it up! Have you lost your goddamned mind?"
Burke laughed. "Sheriff, I'm afraid there's been a misunderstanding. Someone has clearly been spreading rumors. I'll be sure to address the situation personally."
Simms, having none of it, narrowed his eyes. "You're coming with me, Burke. At least until I know what the hell's going on around here."
Behind his glasses, Burke scowled and said. "And I'm afraid I won't be able to oblige your request, sheriff. Now, tell these Vault idiots to step aside."
"It's not open for discussion Burke," said Simms, shaking his head. "Get up, now!"
"Why do you knuckledraggers always insist on doing things the hard way?" Burke sighed. "Fine, lead the way."
Burke stood up, and Simms turned his back, giving Burke enough time to draw a modified N99 10mm and aim it at the back of the sheriff's head.
"GET DOWN!" I yelled, forcing Simms to the ground as a bullet whizzed overhead. Gomez and Kendall opened fire, and I saw Burke fall backwards into the wall, his suit stained with red where the bullets had punctured him.
"Good riddance!" a bar patron yelled.
Simms stood up and looked over at Burke's body.
"Must be getting slow in my old age," he murmured before turning to me. "We'll take it from here. Thank you for the help."
I nodded. "C'mon guys, lets head back."
Everyone was silent as we walked back to the Vault, the sun casting the wasteland in an orange glow. Despite that nasty business with Burke, it had been a fairly good day. The settlers, while wary, weren't hostile, and we knew how people traded. And there was that modifid jumpsuit as well. I'd have to ask Alphonse who it had belonged to.
When we reached the Vault door, I knew something wasn't right. The door was open, and unguarded.
"Officers," I commanded. "Be on your guard."
We stepped into the Vault, only to be met with silence. Then, from the atrium, voices drifted up.
"Hannon! Drop your weapon!"
"Put the gun down!"
BANG. BANG. BANG. The gunshots rang out from the atrium. I barely had time to process anything before the four of us were running down the steps and into the atrium.
When we reached the atrium, I almost slipped on something. Looking down, I saw blood, dark red, spreading across the floor, the source of which was Vault resident Tom Holden, who lay face-down in a pool of his own bloody, his arm outstretched. Next to him were the remains of Mary Holden, whose brains had been blown all over the atrium walls.
I tore my eyes away from the sickening sight, to that of Paul Hannon, who looked at me with his stolen gun raised and rage in his eyes.
"Paul!" I shouted in vain. "Stop!"
Gomez tackled me from behind as a bullet impacted where I'd been standing a moment before. Kendall and Taylor opened fire on Hannon, who collapsed with several bullet wounds in his torso, a look of rage and agony etched on his face.
"Thank you," I managed to say to Gomez. I stood up and collected the discarded pistol.
"R-Ryan?" said a tearful voice.
I whirled around. Standing at the foot of the staircase that led to the Admin section, was Amata. She was leaning against the wall, a look of absolute terror in her eyes, shaking uncontrollably.
I hadn't even realized that I'd been holding my breath, worrying if my worst fear was a reality. Thankfully, it wasn't.
"Oh thank God," I exclaimed, running to her and catching her before she fell. I lowered her gently to the floor, and asked if she was okay.
"I'm fine," she said. "J-Just a bit skaken, that's all. Hannon...he was being given his food when he just lashed out. He killed Officer Wolfe and just started shooting!
"No one knew what was happening, and your father tried to calm him down, but Hannon shot him."
My stomach churned, and it must have shown, because Amata said quickly, "Oh no, he's fine, but he'll be recovering for a few days."
"Okay," I said slowly, almost collapsing myself due to the situation. "Okay, where's your father?"
"Upstairs," said Amata, pulling herself onto her feet. "In your office."
I led her, carefully, up the stairs and to the Overseer's office. Alphonse was putting the lock back on one of the lockers when we walked in.
"Jesus Christ!" he exclaimed, seeing Amata barely walking. "Amata, sweetie, are you alright?"
"J-Just fine," Amata manged to say before I helped her onto the couch.
"Amata said Hannon went on a rampage," I said. "What happened?"
"I checked the security footage. Hannon jumped Wolfe when he was giving Hannon his dinner. When Hannon went on his rampage, your dad tried to reason with him. We've got ten people wounded, your father included, and two with serious injuries. Officer Wolfe, Hannon, and Tom and Mary Holden make up the death count, sir."
I sighed. I leave the vault for one goddamned day and everyone goes to shit, I thought.
"Okay. If you two wanna get cleaned up, then that'll be all."
"As you wish."
Alphonse went to help Amata, but she insisted that she was fine before hurrying out. Alphonse gave an almost inaudible sigh.
"She just needs some space," I told him. "Today's been... traumatic."
"I suppose you're right," Alphonse replied, practically falling down in the chair opposite my desk in exhaustion. "I will admit though, things have been... better between us since I resigned."
"I'm glad to hear it," I said, sitting down at the desk. "It's nice to have some good news."
"So, how did the scouting trip go?"
"All in all, very well," I replied. "The locals in Megaton were wary, but that's to be expected I suppose. There's even a radio station set up in the D.C ruins. Bottlecaps are currency now, other than bartering. There's not a whole lot out there that we need, other than spare parts, but I think we can trade in other ways."
"Well, at least a few things went right today," muttered Alphonse, "What should we do about the bodies?"
I hadn't thought about that, and I paused for a moment.
"We should hold a service of some kind for Tom and Mary and Wolfe. As for Hannon, toss his corpse out, far away from here. I won't have murderers taking up space here."
"As you wish."
Alone in my office, I finally decided to go down and replace my equipment. In storage, I put away my gun, baton and vest while watching workers carry away Tom and Mary to the morgue, while two other carried Hannon up to the Vault door. I couldn't help but think, Good riddance.
The thought scared me. I'm not the hateful type.