A/N: Before you start reading the new chapter I think we should all take a moment of silence for our dear friend Lug-Nut…. Ahhh yes Lug-Nut, good old Lug. Luggy boy. It is amazing how even when your opponents are Alice and Ferna your courage doesn't fail. Or maybe when you approach two badasses that blew up Megaton, and are both wearing full power armor with a Chinese Assault Rifle and Combat Shotgun, each in perfect condition. Ahhh yes…. I am sure your barely holding together sawed off shotgun will scare them enough to hand over the ever elusive Naughty Nightwear. A moment if you please…..
Alright moment's over. Join us once again for another adventure of Ferna 'Distracted' Lancaster and her lovely 'Psychopathic' British companion Alice Liddell!
Oh yah… there is also that demonic looking cat with razor sharp claws, who can disappear and reappear at his own will…. But don't worry about him…. Yet.
Chapter 5: Search for a Vault!
Ferna let out a moan as she woke up. She stretched her arms and blinked a few times. She didn't want to get up, she felt very warm where she was right now. Plus the rhythmic breathing she heard, and assumed was from Alice, made it for a rather peaceful wake up in the Capital Wasteland.
Ferna finally managed to take in part of her surroundings. She took in a deep breath before slowly letting it out. She felt very contented at the moment apart from feeling a little hung-over.
She felt as if she had done something truly wonderful last night, but she didn't really remember any details at the moment. She just remembered her and Alice took shelter in one of the houses in the now cleared out Greyditch for the night.
After a few more minutes she finally sat up, and gave her neck just a slight crack and sighed in relief at the sensation. Her groggy brain finally seemed to catch up to her a little when she looked down and saw her bare pink nipples. Ferna blinked a few more times and her eyes widened in shock.
The red haired girl then looked to her side where she heard the rhythmic breathing, and saw a beautiful and naked back with silky dark hair cascading along it. Ferna couldn't help but look over all she could of Alice's back as thoughts raced through her mind. In her head everything was all jumbled up and Ferna was pissed at herself. If she had scored with Alice last night in some way she wanted to remember it, damn it all!
Alice turned over and gave a soft moan. Ferna quickly looked away from Alice. Though she did like the split second view she got of Alice's wonderful bare breasts. Ferna shook her head. She really wanted to know what happened last night, but she just couldn't draw anything up in her memory.
Ferna was hoping to get out of the bed unnoticed, but then Alice woke up. The dark haired girl gave a yawn and a weak, "Good Morning Ferna. How did you sleep?" Alice then started to get dressed right away without any complaint or urgency.
Ferna gave a nervous laugh as she said, "Ummm… Okay I guess…" She then sighed and asked, "Did we do anything last night Alice?"
"Apart from the drinks no. Why do you ask?" Alice said as she pulled up her stockings and attached them to her garter belt.
"Why were we you know… naked then…?" Ferna asked starting to get dressed while she blushed.
"I believe you claimed it was too hot, and then Alice agreed with you Ferna." Cheshire said in his deep voice as he materialized in a corner of the room.
"Ack!" Ferna said as she threw a pillow at him. He just disappeared and reappeared in a slightly different spot.
"That was a rather rude way to thank me for keeping watch for you two all night." Cheshire said.
"I think she was startled by your sudden appearance Cheshire. She isn't used to you like I am. Plus you are a male cat." Alice said as she started putting on her dress.
The cat rolled his eyes. "Ohhhh…. Please. I am a Cheshire Cat! I am not interested in humans in such a manner."
"Still! You are a guy, and guys shouldn't surprise girls as they are getting dressed! You demonic Cat thing you!" Ferna said as she tried to cover herself up with a ragged bed sheet she swiped from the bed.
Cheshire chuckled as his body disappeared, but his mouth stayed long enough to say. "Demonic huh? You do me too much honor Ferna." Ferna glared at the mouth and Alice just rolled her green eyes.
As the two finished getting dressed Ferna asked once more. "And you are sure we didn't do anything Alice?"
Alice gave a sigh that sounded sad as she said, "No…" Alice sounded disappointed. Ferna was still turned away from Alice and blushed at the possible implications. Ferna decided to lock away Alice's answer to be reviewed again a little later, and maybe take a course of action on this tidbit.
{-} {-} {-}
After a breakfast of 200 plus year old preserved food, that was still ever so delicious, the trio set about to leave Greyditch for good. "So where are we going to go now Ferna?" Alice asked.
Ferna looked at her Pip-Boy and was about to answer when they saw a merchant caravan coming their way. "We are going to hopefully restock and then head out."
As they approached the caravan the merchant spoke up, "Welcome, madams, to Crazy Wolfgang's Traveling Junk Store! The Depot of Detritus, the Shop of Slop, and the Caravan of Crap! Now, what odds and ends can I, the Craziest of all possible Wolfgangs, offer to you?"
Ferna felt a little unsure about this merchant, but decided that he might actually be one of those that had pretty much everything. "Well let's see what you've got!" She gave him a charming smile hoping it would earn her better deals.
As Ferna started looking at what the merchant had to sell, Cheshire started trading Alice almost all of his "collected items" as he preferred to call them. Alice made a note of what items he traded her, and would pay him back his share, though she wasn't sure what he would do with caps. She didn't think many would trade with talking "Demon Cat Things," even if they were stupid not to do so.
After most of their trading was finished, Crazy Wolfgang spoke again. "You know you two lovely ladies have probably given me one of my best transactions for both parties. I tell you what. I have in my possession the coordinates and instructions to one of those amazing vaults!"
"Aren't most of them completely looted by now though?" Cheshire asked without thinking to keep his low profile.
"Hmmm… A giant talking cat." Crazy said dismissively. The caravan guard had her jaw open in shock though. Cheshire found the two very different reactions rather amusing, like he thought most everything.
Crazy then cleared his throat and said, "Yes most of them are completely looted sir. This one however is special you see. It is still closed and shut tight. Many have tried to get inside, but they all complain about some Overseer Override being in effect."
"What vault is it?" Ferna asked. She didn't need to be told how to get back to her own vault after all. Plus she wasn't sure if she was ready to go there again after everything that happened there.
"It is one of those few secret hidden vaults that you couldn't even find the location to on a Vault-Tec headquarters computer. I am talking about the amazing, wonderful, and luxurious Vault 100! Or well they say it is luxurious, but no one has been inside it yet." Crazy Wolfgang said to them.
He then gave a little cough and said, "Anyways. I think the two of you could get into it. Also because of the great business you three wonderful customers gave me today, I am offering to give you the location and map. In exchange for this, I would like it if you two brought me as much Vault junk as you can from vault 100. If you give me a Pip-Boy I could use, then I will give you three 500 caps each! I just know if you two are successful it will bring me a lot more business. Vault crap is the best crap after all as everyone knows!"
Ferna had a thoughtful look on her face. Alice was staring at her intently, and hoping her friend would accept the quest. Ferna gave a smile and answered. "Alright sounds good to me. Do we have a deal?" She then extended her right hand for him to shake.
Wolfgang gladly shook it and smiled as he said, "Deal!"
With those words Ferna noticed some writing pop-up on her HUD that read, "Founding the Junk Empire!"
{-} {-} {-}
Once the pack Brahmin was out of sight, Alice smiled and said, "I think I kind of like that merchant." They had really struck good with the junk dealer. Alice bought some ammo and more gun parts. He even actually had a gun kit for her 'Sarah'. It was a collection of the many pieces that need to be replaced most frequently and it had oils and decent rags for standard maintenance, which she felt eager to use.
She also bought some missiles for her Missile Launcher. There were also a few other things she bought because she had the caps and her curiosity got the best of her. These items included a toy car, some scrap metal, a paperweight and a Mini-nuke.
Ferna blanched at the thought of Alice using mini-nukes, but remained calm. She was also thankful that she at least wouldn't be the one to have the Mini-nuke from Alice fired on her. Also some part of her liked the thought of Alice using such weaponry.
Ferna ended up with good deals as well. She bought some scrap material she could use for armor repairs. She also bought some more ammo and a teddy bear. She knew it was a stupid child's toy, but it gave her a sense of nostalgia. She ignored the giggle from Alice.
Ferna also bought some other nick knacks she figured could be used for something later on, and a rug. She just knew the rug would really tie her place together in Megaton.
Cheshire rolled his eyes at the things his companions bought. He bought all of the medical supplies Crazy had. He also did buy some odd cat statuette as well, and a few other things. Really shopping with this junk man was a blast he thought. You could find the oddest and best things on the merchant's pack Brahmin. Plus he still liked the reactions he got from Crazy and his guard.
{-} {-} {-}
The group was now walking towards this Vault 100. Cheshire looked around and gave a small frown as he said, "You know we are headed away from the Ruins where this radio station is right?"
Ferna gave a nod. Cheshire then spoke again, "We are also headed towards Megaton." Alice nodded this time. "We could have walked that idiot kid there if we were heading there anyways you know."
Alice gave him a bemused expression as she said, "But then he would never learn to grow-up and not expect to have someone hold his hand."
Ferna gave a curt nod and said, "Really it was for the best that we didn't 'help him get a family.' That kid needs to learn fast that he needs to grow up."
Cheshire gave an amused chuckle as he said, "Fine by me. I was simply making sure you two weren't dwelling on sending him off like that." The two gave him confused expressions. They were clearly wondering why he thought it would bother them.
{-} {-} {-}
"Name's Lucas Simms, town sheriff. And mayor too, when the need arises. You stay out of trouble and we won't have any problems. You hear." Lucas said to the recent comer.
"But I'm only twelve… What could I do that would be too much trouble?" Bryan said in a scared little voice.
"I don't know… You tell me kid." The sheriff said with a hardened face before then going about his patrol.
"I don't know if I am going to like this place." Bryan said quietly to himself as he started to look around. He managed to snag a bunch of items from his home that might sell well, while Alice and Ferna were contemplating the bottom of a drinking glass and each other. He was angry at them, but he couldn't help but feel that he really might have missed out on something by leaving when he did.
Bryan made his way to this Craterside Supply store now. When he opened the door he heard a cheery voice say, "I wonder if you could make Nuka-Cola into an explosive!" Bryan's eyes bulged. He snuck back out and decided to try the store later. You know when the owner wasn't thinking about making his favorite drink into a lethal weapon.
Next he spent a good bit of time listening to the guy in the center of the town going on and on about the glow of Atom's Cleansing Light! He found the spiel amusing and a little interesting. He barely noticed a girl his age sit down next to him along with another kid.
"Hey there! You're new here. Did someone bring you here or did you find this place on your own? Oh yah I'm Maggie by the way. I live with my adoptive father Billy!" Maggie said with a smile.
"My name is Bryan Wilks. I was in Greyditch but these monsters came out and attacked. I only lived because of these two ladies. There names' were Ferna and Alice." He then frowned and said, "They didn't bring me here they just gave me some 'directions' to here while they enjoyed their drinks at the old diner's bar."
"Oh? So they're still out there and alive then?" Asked the other boy. He looked related to the sheriff. "My name is Harden Simms. My dad calls himself the town's sheriff." That answered that question.
"Yah. They destroyed all of those monster insect things. It didn't seem too hard for them either. Still… They didn't even bother to help me find a family or a new place. They instead just went on about how they were either working to help their Vault by ten, or they already lost all of their family at nine years old, and I should grow up."
The two kids nodded to this. "Well they are right in a sense. I mean I keep asking my dad to let me help him with keeping Megaton safe." Harden said.
"And I keep asking Billy to take me on one of his scavenge trips." Maggie added. The three kids then sat for a few minutes together in silence.
After some time, Bryan gave a half frown and asked, "How long does he keep going on like that?" He pointed to the man standing in the water by what looked like a deactivated bomb.
Both Harden and Maggie laughed to that. Maggie answered, "Well you see Confessor Cromwell spends almost the whole day saying that chant over and over again and again."
Harden chuckled a little more and said, "Even when everyone watched Ferna try to get Radiation sickness for a book assignment. He still went on and on about it without stopping except for his meal break or to take a sip of water."
Bryan nodded thoughtfully. He then gave a small smile and asked, "So what is that lady in Craterside Supply usually like? She was trying to make Nuka-Cola into grenades or something when I was in there earlier.
The two other kids laughed and Harden spoke up. "Oh Miss Moira Brown is just odd like that. She is very helpful though and has plenty of supplies if you need them. Anyways I should probably get back to what I was doing."
"Yes me too!" Said Maggie, she then smiled and said, "It was nice meeting you Bryan. I hope you stay here for a while."
"What do you two do?" Brayn asked before they were out of earshot.
"I sort of take care of everything around the house. Billy treats me nicely and he did save me. He also risks his life to get money and food for us. I want to help out the most I can." Maggie answered with a smile.
"I sort of act as an errand boy for most of the town. Mostly, I help with deliveries at Craterside Supply. I like it because I get to know a lot of the townsfolk here, and dad says that is very important for a law man!" Harden said before the two went their separate ways.
Bryan frowned to himself and finally sighed and said to himself, "Okay… I get it. I don't want to grow up yet, but that doesn't mean I can't do important work myself for Megaton here. I will show Ferna and Alice that I am not some weak little ungrateful brat!"
{-} {-} {-}
Alice was standing outside a rock with her jaw hanging open in disbelief. Cheshire had a similar expression. Alice spoke. "Wait a minute! Did we actually come straight here without pillaging every still somewhat standing building?"
Ferna looked neutral as she consulted the map in her hands. She was trying to ignore the other two.
Cheshire gave an amused chuckle. "Young Alice I do believe you are correct in your assessment. We did in fact get here rather quickly and only plundered two houses." Ferna's face was a small scowl now.
"I say that must be a record for our little group Chessie! This has got to be a first!" Alice then gave a teasing yet still beautiful smile as she said. "Do you think they have some kind of brain abduction device in this world? Because this is very odd for our friend."
Cheshire chuckled to that and Ferna glowered at the two. However after a couple of seconds she smiled and joined them in their laughter. Being around Alice had gotten her a little used to the ways Alice teases playfully without meaning harm and when to recognize when she was joking.
"Yah Yah. I know I like to explore every building we come across, but this was for a vault! I am very curious to see inside another one apart from my own. I'm sure you can understand letting one's curiosity get the best of yourself." Ferna said with an excited smile as she looked for the tell-tell signs of a vault entrance.
Alice gave a sigh as she said, "I do in fact know what happens in such cases Ferna. It is most often not entirely pleasant." Cheshire gave a solemn nod to her words.
"So what are we exactly looking for Ferna? I hardly think this vault will be easy to find, or otherwise someone would have found the entrance and emptied the place already." Cheshire said.
"I know what to look for. Don't worry." Ferna said. Her blue eyes then brightened as she saw a chain mesh door covered in thick wooden planks. "Here we go."
Ferna made her way but stopped when Alice said, "This is the entrance?" Ferna nodded and Alice's green eyes blinked in confusion. "This hardly seems substantial enough to protect hundreds of people from a nuclear blast. Let alone several bombs and then bombardment from desperate souls searching for safety."
Ferna gave a small chuckle as she said, "This isn't the main entrance Alice." Alice gave her a half frown. "Trust me. When you see the main entrance you'll know it."
Ferna then opened the door into a dark cavern and stepped through. She seemed to disappear into the darkness of the door. She then used one finger to give the other two a come hither motion.
{-} {-} {-}
On the other side of the door, it looked like just a normal cave. It took some time, but they finally worked through the passages, and now stood in front of a really large metal contraption. Cheshire gave a whistle and Alice just looked at the thing in complete awe. Ferna just gave them both a smug smirk.
"I take back what I said earlier. This does look like something that could survive all of those things." Alice said.
She looked at the door that could be best described as a really large and more complex Bank vault door. In the center of the door there was a three digit number, which had yellowed with age. The number was 100.
There were also some skeletons around the area and profanity painted on to the door itself. Alice didn't like the phrases used, but she could understand the frustration put into them. She immediately picked up the extra ammo laying near it, and even picked up a missile launcher that would only serve as a source of replacement parts for her own.
"Yep. This is one of the infamous vault doors. It is said they are impossible to open," Ferna said. Alice and Cheshire were again looking at the vast door with astonishment.
The red head then started looking over the entrance command console. It looked like someone had tried to blast it to little avail. She also had a hunch several tried to hack the terminal. The only problem with that was entrance terminals were very different from other terminals found in the Wasteland.
The entrance consoles were similar to Pip-Boy software and hardware wise. It was designed like this so the many vaults could eventually serve as a base camp for the supposed new metropolis each was charged with starting once it was 'safe' to go outside again.
Ferna gave a scoff to the word 'safe' as she got to work. This would be doable if not very easy for her. She was a Pip-Boy Programmer and make shift vault technician after all. She started getting to work as she overheard Alice and Cheshire talking.
"This does look rather sturdy cat," Alice said.
Cheshire gave a bored expression as he said, "Yes it is. What gave it away to you Alice? Was it the really large metal vault door?" He gave her a devilish grin.
Alice sighed, "Look cat you know as well as I, that I was just voicing my thoughts out loud."
The mischievous cat gave a wide dark grin as he said, "Be careful Alice. Some consider talking to yourself a sign of madness." Ferna didn't see it but Alice gave the grinning cat a dark and hard expression. Cheshire kept grinning but decided he had gone too far and wouldn't cross that line in the future. He figured with Ferna around, Alice wouldn't stand for such teasing.
{-} {-} {-}
It took longer for Ferna to crack the vault entrance console than she thought it would. Before she actually opened it up she tossed Alice several boxes of hunting rifle ammo. "Why Ferna?" Alice asked.
"In case we go inside and all we find are rats and radroaches. It would be a pity to use 'Sarah' on such weak annoyances," Ferna said casually. Her face then turned serious as she said, "Now remember Alice we have no idea what awaits us inside."
Alice gave a warm smile. "That is part of the fun and excitement of an adventure!"
Ferna gave a giggle. "Just remember this is real life, you can't just restart a game or anything." Alice nodded.
Ferna pressed a button and then pulled a lever. She next pulled out her Xaolin Assault Rifle and took aim. Alice had 'Sarah' ready to fire as well. She would switch as Ferna said after they knew what was inside Vault 100.
As the large vault door moved. Ferna and Alice awaited with baited breath. Cheshire merely waited. He wasn't licking his paws this time at least. They were excited to see what awaited them inside…
It took some time but finally the vault door was open. Ferna's blue eyes widened in surprise… The place looked very neat and clean even for a still functional vault. She gave a smile and both she and Alice relaxed a little as they entered.
{-} {-} {-}
It really was luxurious for a vault. You didn't see hissing pipes everywhere. The computer equipment and storage containers were neatly stacked and clean. The floors weren't rusty everywhere. It really was a haven of a vault Ferna thought.
Alice was unimpressed. It didn't really scream luxury to her. She did find it impressive though. She had never seen so much metal and concrete in a place. She immediately started to touch everything around her.
Cheshire looked around and smiled as he saw a shelf at just the right height for lounging. After they cleared the vault and Ferna and Alice set about taking everything they could, regardless if it was bolted down or not, he would make use of the shelf. He was tempted to do so now actually. He had a feeling they would spend some time here while Alice examined everything and Ferna examined Alice while she did so.
Ferna gave a little giggle as she checked Alice out while the dark haired girl examined everything. She even got down on her hands and knees to look under things. Ferna blushed a little while Alice looked at something and inadvertently stuck her ass kind of in the air. Ferna shook her head. She let Alice look around for a bit, since she was sure this was Alice's first time in a vault.
Fifteen minutes later Alice was finished looking around. Ferna thought it odd no one from security came to check on them during this time. She was starting to wonder if maybe the population had died out somehow. It was a possibility.
Vault 101 used to have twenty times the residents it did when she left. What she knew of its history was at one time the overseer instigated a population regulation act for the sake of keeping their resources sustainable. It was later repealed but still a lot of the people there only had one kid. The Mack family was an exception. Stevie was the oldest and Wally and Susie were twins.
The group entered into the next section of the vault with their weapons aimed and ready. Ferna was a little puzzled as they seemed to be in an abandoned wing of the vault. It was still in pristine just constructed condition though, and even had some nice cushioned benches here and there.
She even overheard music on the speakers. The music was calm and relaxing. After they made their way carefully, they heard a track end and then a smooth female computer voice spoke. "Remember Citizens. You are humanity's future, and it is currently reflection time. Your overseer loves you."
Ferna thought that a bit odd, but she kept going with Alice and Cheshire still behind her. They came to what looked like a family living area on the left side shortly after the music started again. Ferna crouched down as did Alice.
Once the door quietly whooshed open they saw a neat bedroom with a comfortable metal framed bed and some chairs and tables. Ferna noticed it had an actual closet instead of your usual chest of drawers or lockers. This really was a high class vault. It even had a private bathroom.
The red haired girl was tempted to search the place, but she usually tried to clear an area first before getting to some serious looting. They backed out slowly and looked into a few more rooms nearby that were close to the same. Ferna had a bad feeling about this place now. It was kind of creepy.
Alice slowly walked behind Ferna as they entered into what was an area called Commons A2. She still didn't see the luxury part of this place. She did like it though, but she was hoping to find something much more hospitable. When they entered the Commons area, they didn't see any rats or radroaches.
They saw people.
Ferna quickly halted when she saw all of the people in the room in front of them. They were all green on her HUD, but she wasn't sure if that was only because they had remained unnoticed. She looked to Alice before standing up carefully.
Once she stood up and took a deep breath, she raised her gun and waited to see what happened.
Nothing did. Ferna moved around and still nothing happened. "Huh… This is odd…"
Alice stood up as well and let out a deep exhale. "Next time actually tell me when you are going to stand up straight in the middle of a large group of possible enemies Ferna." Ferna just shrugged her shoulders as they looked around.
Cheshire vanished and reappeared on a table right in front of one of the residents and grinned his wide grin before saying in his deep breath, "Hello… I am a talking demonic cat thing, according to Ferna over there. Do you hear me?" The resident just seemed to stand there as if they couldn't see him. Cheshire grinned wider at this. He was really liking this 'Capital Wasteland'. It had all kinds of interesting and amusing sights.
Alice walked over to a woman sitting at a table and waved her hand in front of her. She gave a thoughtful frown and then poked the woman. The woman didn't budge. Alice leaned in closer and took a good look at her.
The woman in front of her was probably about her age and had nice blonde hair with light green eyes. She had a decent figure and a pleasant scent she was wearing. Alice gave an amused smile. "I don't think they notice us at all Ferna."
Ferna nodded to this as she pushed one of the humans. The man fell backwards and landed with a soft thud. Ferna narrowed her eyes and actually leaned in closer. She wasn't sure if he was even alive. She then noticed he was actually breathing. This vault was really confusing her.
Alice gave a devious smile as she leaned in closer to the girl in front of her and undid her ponytail. She got no response and giggled. "You know I bet we could do anything here so long as we didn't hurt them, and they wouldn't notice."
Ferna blushed as she weakly said, "yes…" She had thoughts running in her head. She thought of more scenarios with her and Alice. Again…
- Ferna dream sequence engage -
Ferna's hands slowly start undressing a blushing Alice as she confidently says in a sultry voice, "You know Alice. I'm just as disappointed as you, we didn't do anything last night together. How about we make up for that now?"
Alice uncharacteristically gets shy and madly blushes as she softly says. "But Ferna… All of these people here… They would see us?"
Ferna just gives her a seductive smile. "That is just part of the fun Alice. Besides… They won't really notice as a make scream and moan in pure ecstasy." Ferna then presses her soft lips on Alice's as the dark haired girl moans.
Alice leans back as she lets Ferna finish undressing her, exposing her breasts for all to see. "They aren't too small are they?" Alice asks quietly.
Ferna smiles at her and says, "No Alice, they are just perfect." Ferna then starts to slowly caress the dark haired girl's pale breasts.
Alice moans and gives a sexy smile as she says in a voice sounding like Cheshire's, "Are you day-dreaming again Ferna?" Ferna blinks several times…
- Ferna dream sequence terminated -
"Wha?" Ferna asked in a distant voice. She didn't notice the lustful face she had as she stared blankly.
"Never-mind. That clearly answers my question." Cheshire said with chuckle.
Alice gave a giggle. "Perhaps I should do something to bring her back to us?" She said in a sultry tone. Alice then leaned in close to Ferna's face.
Ferna blushed, stepped back, and cleared her throat much to her companions' amusement. "What was the question you were asking?"
Cheshire was his usual 'helpful' self and chuckled deeper. Alice gave a small smile and answered, "We were wondering if you wanted to continue looking through this vault for more people, or if you thought it would be clear for us to start looting? Cheshire said he found the perfect lounging shelf he wanted to try out."
Ferna nodded to show she was paying attention before giving a thoughtful look. "We should check around a little more first. It might just be this group. I don't even know how large this vault is. There might be a lot more to it." Her eyes then started scanning the Commons room for a console or something that might give her access to a virtual map of the vault.
"I certainly hope so. This hasn't really been that luxurious so far. I feel a little disappointed." Alice said. She then gave a frown as she tapped a finger to her lovely lips and said, "It's rather… Industrial…"
Ferna blinked a few times. "This is luxury for a vault. They don't have communal restrooms and showers everyone uses. Instead they have private bathrooms. The pipes aren't showing either, and all of the equipment is neatly organized. Plus these floors are incredibly clean! What were you expecting Alice?"
"I wasn't expecting it to be an underground version of Buckingham Palace or anything. Well maybe that was silly of me, but I was thinking it would be designed like one of those really nice mansions. I mean this doesn't even have half to luxury of Bumby's house, and he wasn't exactly in the high end of London," Alice said. She might have been more careful with her words, but she was overcome by everything in the vault, even if it wasn't what she thought it would be.
Alice then described Bumby's place aloud and even made mention of her own home. Her home really was rather high end. After all, her dad was a dean at Oxford University.
Ferna's mouth fell open. "What?! You mean like a Victorian mansion or something Alice?"
Alice gave a nod. "That is what they have been calling the time period, after our queen I believe." Alice's eyes then widened as she realized what she said. "I mean… I… Was… ummm…" She then gave a nervous giggle.
Ferna's blue eyes narrowed. She mouthed the name "Alice Liddell" and then "Cheshire Cat". Her eyes widened. "Alice… Are you actually from the past?" She asked warily.
Alice merely gulped and felt a little sick. She really had screwed up now. She didn't want things to end between her and Ferna like this. Cheshire gave her a look that more or less told her it was time to tell their friend the truth.
Alice sighed. "Yes… I kind of am… I don't know how to explain it. I had just been through a really tough time, and then I saw this bright beacon of light. I didn't really have anything left for me so I walked into it. Next thing I know, I was in this Capital Wasteland."
Ferna sighed and took a seat on one of the benches along the wall. She then gave Alice a no nonsense look and said, "Explain…"
Alice looked to Cheshire who gave her a solemn nod. Alice sighed. "I was born in the year 1856…" Alice then told her story to Ferna. She left out some of the details for now though. The last thing she needed was to tell her only real friend she had ever had, apart from her sister, that she was not only from the past, but also recently out of an insane asylum, and to top things off she was trained to be a high class prostitute, or "Escort" as Bumby sometimes called it.
Ferna listened to the story until Alice finished. She wasn't sure what to make of it. The whole thing sounded pretty crazy, but that only added to its authenticity. The red haired girl sighed. It figured the girl she was crushing on was from the past somehow. She had one thing that was really on her mind though.
"Would you leave and go back if you had the chance Alice?" Ferna asked in all seriousness. She had been through a lot herself recently that blew her mind in some ways anyways. It wouldn't be that surprising if there were a couple of time travelers with everything else out in this crazy wasteland.
"No. I wouldn't. Like I said I have nothing left there of my life." Alice said with a fierce glow to her green eyes. She was a little concerned how Ferna would react. Alice thought of many things, but it was the best but least likely of her guesses she found.
Ferna gave Alice a smile and a very friendly hug. Ferna than said to her. "It doesn't matter that you are from the past to me Alice. As long as you still want to romp through this post-apocalyptic world with me." Ferna then released the hug. She actually felt closer to Alice on some level now.
Alice blinked as a lone tear of relief ran down her face. "You really mean it Ferna?" Ferna smiled and nodded to her. Alice then gave a happy loud laugh as she gave Ferna a tight hug. Ferna laughed to this and smiled as she returned the hug. If accepting Alice's past only got her a hug like this and nothing more, then it was already worth it to the red head.
"I wasn't sure how you were going to respond to that Ferna." Alice said.
Once Alice let her go, the two finally stopped laughing. Ferna then said, "Well it is hard to believe, but so are thousands of other things about this world now. Plus I like being around you, and no matter what having you here on this quest with me is better than being on my own."
Alice was about to hug her again, and do who knows what else, but they both heard a gruff voice say, "Female bonding… As touching as this scene isss. We are in the middle of a very strange place without any idea as to if we have enemies here or not."
The two girls both rolled their eyes and got ready to look further into the vault. Ferna then shook her head and said, "You two really are very different form the book… Still… I am on an adventure with Alice Liddell and the Cheshire Cat! Now I can't believe I didn't make the connection sooner."
"What book?" Alice asked.
"That is right you wouldn't know about it. There are books on you Alice. The two original books were called, 'Alice's Adventures in Wonderland' and 'Through the Looking Glass'. They were written by a Lewis Carroll. There have been many different versions and rewrites of the books. However, they all seemed to have you as a Blonde haired Blue-eyed girl. Cheshire here is instead a rather fat and lazy Cheshire cat as well. Usually a color like purple or blue." Ferna explained.
Alice had a thoughtful look and gave a small smile as she thought about a fat Cheshire with a purple coat. She giggled. Cheshire scoffed and muttered about how stupid a purple or blue coat would be.
{-} {-} {-}
Ferna, Alice and Cheshire finally proceeded through the vault. At first they were cautious and preferred to sneak around, but after a while they just calmly and carefully made their way around the place. They found more people all the same as the first group.
Ferna sighed. "Ok I am tired of this slow and calm music…" She then looked on her Pip-Boy and found a couple of different stations available.
One of them was of course the Enclave Radio. She might have put it on, but Ferna decided that might upset Alice. She didn't know too much about that time period really. Most of it was lost to the years, but she did remember that the USA and England weren't exactly on the best of terms.
She decided to try a different station it was called Vault 100 Pirate Radio. She also noticed they weren't really picking up GNR in this vault. Ferna turned it on and had it loud enough that Alice could hear it as well.
The trio of friends heard a human voice talking. He sounded like he was in his late teens. "Hey Everybody! How's it shaking?! This is your one and only truly free DJ! One and a Half Cookie! So yah I know the 'Overseer Loves' us and all, but damn that music is crappy as hell AM I right?"
There was a pause for 5.7685 seconds before the guy spoke again. "I will take the silence to mean. 'Hell yah One an' a half!' Anyways here are some tunes from before everything went to hell up above." With that some rather upbeat music started to play. It was similar to GNR's kind of music but different. The trio liked it, even Cheshire.
Alice gave a smile and said, "I like this station already! Maybe we can find some holo-tapes of the music for Good ol' Three Dog Yeoow!" Ferna gave a giggle to Alice's impersonation of the GNR DJ.
Soon Ferna stopped giggling as she came to dead stop and said, "Well I'll be…" Alice gave her a questioningly look. "Sorry but right after you said that I got a quest notice on my HUD that read, 'The not so quiet Library'. It even has an objective listed that says 'copy vault 100's music library and give it to Three Dog.' Sounds like we will make our way to GNR after this."
Cheshire gave a chuckle. "Though it will probably be after we clear a few places of all the loot they have to offer." Ferna rolled her eyes as they kept going forward, and she made the newest quest her target quest.
Shortly, after their little talk, they heard the smooth female voice over the vault speakers again. "Service group 4c please report for duty. Cleanliness is godliness. Catering crew A3 please report to your designated cafeterias. We must feed ourselves if we wish to be the future of humanity. All others may continue what they are doing. A calm and peaceful mind is the only thing that separates us from those lost degenerates. Remember you Overseer loves you."
Alice got 'Sarah' ready to fire. Ferna brought up her Xaolin Assault Rifle and decided she needed to come up with a name for it. Cheshire narrowed his eyes and got ready to attack. The trio watched as several people emerged from rooms all along the hall they were in, and walked right past them.
"Uh!" Alice said. She watched a very strong and muscular man shift his weight to maneuver around her, and make his way to his duty as he pulled out a white chef's hat. Alice found the fact he was a cook rather intriguing, and kind of attractive.
The same man then gave a rather mechanical, "Hello" to a beautiful woman with loose flowing brown hair and hazel eyes, wearing a maintenance jumpsuit.
She gave a smile that was beautiful, but still seemed to be a computer's idea of a smile and lacked true emotion. She then spoke in what seemed like scripted conversation. "Hello. What is the menu today?"
"Steak, mashed potatoes with gravy, and mixed steamed vegetable surprise." The chef answered.
She smiled an actual smile and continued on her way as she said, "Sounds good! I look forward to it. Meet you then."
Ferna scrunched her eyebrows at the exchange. She gave a sigh and a frown. She had some ideas about what was going on, but she would need to snoop some first. However the exchange let know they were safe for now. She relaxed and so did her two companions. At the same time though she wished she had that kind of luck with Alice. She was very sure the chef and maintenance girl had something going on, or would if they were being normal.
"Well that was… interesting and rather cordial." Alice said.
Cheshire nodded. "It seemed an exchange of dialogue in a play with a mediocre cast of performers though." Ferna nodded but stayed silent. She wouldn't mind being in a mediocre play if she got a stage kiss from Alice or something like that. Alice had thoughts of her own running through her head at this time as well.
{-} {-} {-}
"So I have this theory you see… I know what you are thinking… 'Here goes One an' a Half with his stories again.' Or maybe if you are one of the many lovely ladies you are thinking 'Ohhh… Sexy Cookie… Do privilege us with the soothing sound of your voice and your deep thoughts!' right?" Ferna and Alice giggled to this One and a Half Cookie.
"But really I'm serious about this one folks! I think the war is over, and humanity is once again flourishing out there. However, Miss Overseer who loves us sooo much doesn't want us to go outside. I think she is keeping us here hoping we will all succumb to a severe case of Stockholm syndrome. That is why we aren't allowed to even see the entrance to our lovely underground metropolis home. Well except those Service personnel that keep it in pristine condition, despite the fact no one will ever see their lovely hard work in those areas." The DJ said.
"Anyways here is one of my favorites! 'Blues in the Night' or as some call it. 'My momma done told me'." Cookie said with a smile.
The duet song started:
"My Momma done tol' me,
When I was in knee pants.
My Momma done tol' me,
'Son, a woman will sweet talk'
And she'll give ya the big eye,
but when the sweet talkin's done…"
Ferna couldn't help but dance a little to the music as the virtual map finished downloading to her Pip-Boy. Ferna swore she would bring this One and a Half Cookie to GNR if she found him. He mentioned the party hall on one of his many talks where the place was hoppin'.
She had a sad feeling this was some prerecorded station set on replay or something though. She didn't think there was any place "hoppin'" in Vault 100. Ferna gave a smile as she noticed Alice was also dancing to the music.
Ferna really hoped this guy was still around. She figured if him and Three Dog worked together it would be pure awesomeness of a radio station, and maybe the news wouldn't be as repetitive. Once the song was finished they started on their mission again.
They were getting close to their goal finally according to the map. Ferna had detoured them to the nearest supply room in hopes of finding a couple of unused Pip-Boys for Alice and Cheshire. Unfortunately, they only found cleaning supplies and a computer, that once Ferna hacked it, showed messages that just repeated "Remember the Overseer loves us. Trust her and humanity will prosper!"
Ferna sighed after hacking the computer. She appreciated the practice, but now it was just dangling a very juicy and enticing mystery right in front of her blue eyes. She had to remind herself that once they got what they needed, she could hack every computer and pick ever lock Alice didn't break open with her very effective force.
The group was now right in front of a door labeled "Cookie's HQ!" Ferna looked at the door and noticed it was locked tight. Her blue eyes lit up in excitement. "This will be fun!" She said before then getting to work.
Alice gave a small laugh and enjoyed the view while Ferna was crouched down working her magic. Alice thought the improved vault suit was perfect for showing off the red haired girl's figure, especially from the rear. She just wished they had done something last night. It was still fun just drinking and talking with Ferna, but it could have been ever better.
"Ha!" Ferna exclaimed as the lock clicked open. The three looked inside and found the room was empty. They did see the computer equipment hooked up to a radio though, and plenty of holo-disks.
Ferna gave a frown and sighed, "I was really hoping One and a Half was somehow still alive. I knew better… but I was hoping for it Alice."
Alice gave a nod. "He would have been fun to meet I bet, and maybe he could have worked with Three Dog at GNR."
"Anyways might as well gather up these holo disks of the music at least. That way GNR will have more tracks to play." Ferna said. The other two nodded and started to 'store' what they could. Oddly enough the added music holos didn't seem to really hinder them as much as the group thought it would.
Ferna stared at the radio that was set to repeat. She contemplated if she should turn it off, or leave it alone. "Leave it alone Ferna. Even if none of these people are hearing it. This man dedicated his life to this station. It would be a dishonor to just shut it down." Cheshire said. He wasn't grinning, smirking, or anything like that. He was looking solemnly at the radio.
Ferna gave a weak smile and they left the room with the music ready to go. "We still need to get you two Pip-Boys. I don't know what to do about that though…" Ferna said.
Alice had a thoughtful look on her face before she asked, "You know how to get them off right?" Ferna nodded not sure where her friend was going with this. "Well you know these people here don't notice us at all. I bet they don't even use their Pip-Boys. We could just take a couple."
Ferna thought for a minute and then nodded. "First we need to go to the Pip-Boy Programmer office here. I want to try and get you two models similar to my own. They will have a registry of all Pip-Boys and who has them in detail. They might even have other pieces of information that would be useful to us."
The group then took off for the Pip-Boy Programmer office. They got ready and brought up their guard. They were sure it would be a long, and most likely an annoying quest of epic proportions. They were sure they would finally come across some resistance on the way there. They had no doubt!
{-} {-} {-}
Not even a full two minutes after leaving One and a Half's place they were in the room of their destination. Ten seconds after that Ferna had hacked into the computer. Thirty seconds later she had the list of all the Pip-Boys with their makes and models.
Alice then looked around and saw a locked locker. She decided to use her method of lock picking to open it. One solid punch later the group was looking at a total of ten fully functional and ready to use Pip-Boys of the same model as Ferna's.
"Well that was rather anticlimactic…" Ferna said in a deadpanned tone. Alice nodded, but was eager to get her new Pip-Boy. Cheshire, as expected, chuckled at the scene.
"So should we put it on, or do we not want to risk becoming like the others here?" Alice asked.
Ferna shook her head. "Whatever is causing their behavior isn't from their Pip-Boys. If it was affecting Pip-Boys then I would've at least had interference on mine. If you want though, we can check the ever 'loving and trustworthy' Overseer's office first."
"Do we want to free these people though?" Cheshire asked. "We could just leave them be. Besides I have a feeling they won't take to being awoken politely."
Both girls thought about it for a bit. Alice spoke up first. "No, we shouldn't leave them like this. They are obviously reproducing, and I bet it is the old fashioned way. I may not know much about this world, and I may not be the best to think about things like this, but if I was to give birth to a child. I would at least want to enjoy the sex! These people don't feel anything. That is no way to live."
Alice's green eyes then took in Ferna without any shame. Ferna blushed a little bit, but shifted positions "accidentally" so Alice could get the best view.
Ferna nodded and added her own two cents. "Yeah! I don't want to die before experiencing and enjoying sex. They should get that same chance. I can upload everything I know about the outside world, and I can write a program for the Overseer's computer to upload the information to their Pip-Boys. Also I can leave them a message as well."
Ferna then took her time looking Alice over. Alice decided to give Ferna the best view as she "casually" stretched her arms up and stuck her chest out. She then shifted her weight a little, and suddenly "needed to inspect a most curious object" on the floor right in front of Ferna.
Cheshire wasn't sure how in the world sex was brought into the picture, and why they were doing all of this posturing. He just shook his head and chuckled. "Really those two should just go at it with each other already. They are obviously very attracted to each other. They are even getting to be very blunt and bold in their advances." The Cheshire cat thought to himself. He also was willing to bet Alice's training under Bumby could make the actual encounter all the more enjoyable. If she applied it correctly.
Ferna now had a new vigor in her step as she led the group to where the Overseer's office was. She also felt more determined to actually make out with Alice and go further as well. Sometime at least…
{-} {-} {-}
The trio unsurprisingly made their way to the Overseer's office door without much problem. Ferna didn't even have to pick the lock on the door. She and Alice chalked it up to the power and determination to bring the joys of sex to those that couldn't feel it! God was clearly on their side with this quest of theirs.
Cheshire knew it was just dumb luck they made it without much trouble, and seriously hoped the two girls would find some way to release these sexual desires they both felt. He knew they could find the answer in each other, but he was never one to come out and say things out right. Plus he did find it a little amusing to watch them. He really loved it when Ferna went to her daydream land, which was probably filled with a naked dancing Alice.
On the other side, it seemed to cause them to do some crazy things. Cheshire deiced if they started coming up with sex chants or doing things for sake of sexiness. He would step in and tell them to both doff there duds and go at it with each other without abandon until they were finally satisfied.
Once the group entered the office, they noticed there wasn't anyone in it. "Well… I guess we should have seen this coming…" Ferna said.
"So what do we do now?" Alice asked.
"First I do this!" Ferna said as she went to hack the Overseer terminal. Ferna expected it to be a tough computer to hack. She noticed it had a lot of letters to the password. She would have gone for something complicated, but instead for some reason she went with "lovelove". She was surprised when that turned out to be the password.
"Wow…" Ferna said aloud in disbelief. Alice looked to her. "No one came here and guessed 'lovelove' was the password." The red head said to her friend. Alice rolled her eyes and shook her head to this.
Ferna typed away on the computer and read an entry that caught her eye along with many other entries she downloaded to her Pip-Boy for a little light reading.
Emergency Obedience Protocol (caution once engaged this cannot be undone unless the protocol is lifted by a Vault Experimental lead at Vault-Tec HQ).
As instructed and agreed upon by all residents, the brain augmentation must be undergone. If a resident or citizen disagrees with this they are to be either forcefully removed from the vault, or shot as an example of the dangers the spreading spreading disease known as 'socialism' poses.
The brain augmentation increases a resident's intelligence by at least ten fold. Some cases it is much more. This procedure is perfectly safe, so long a certified surgeon/technician preforms it. (Remember all vault citizens must undergo this treatment, and must first sign a waiver which removes all liability of the certified surgeon/technician and Vault-Tec Corp.)
This augmentation involves the introduction of a specialized chip in first generation citizens. The chip then re-writes a nominal fraction of DNA which is then passed to all genetic successors.
Humanity has always wondered what would happen if Nature and technology were merged together. We at Vault-Tec are always finding ways to improve life for humanity. You are fortunate in that your vault was selected for such an amazing cutting-edge experiment!
(Once again realize that you, and all of the residents have signed a waiver showing your trust in Vault-Tec! Remember we are the company that actually is your friend and loves all loyal U.S. Citizens!)
This augmentation has a hidden sequence in it that will be passed down and activated with each successive generation under the guise of a Health booster, or anything else that will get the new child's parents to agree with it. (Vault-Tec is not liable for any collateral damage sustained as a direct, or indirect result of this action, including mobs of angry mom's that want their child to be all 'naturally grown' and not genetically modified.)
This hidden sequence can be used to initiate the Emergency Obedience Protocol. Once this is set in motion, Our Amazing computer known as the Empathy 2000, or just Emmy, will take minimal control of the citizen's brains and have them go through safe and pleasant motions deemed preferable by the highly advanced Empathy 2000's in depth and highly evolved algorithms.
Once the protocol is started your vault, no matter how violent will soon be filled with peace. If you must end this protocol on your own, than the only way to stop it is to manually disrupt the Empathy 2000. Oh also even the overseer isn't immune to this protocol. Use this only if all else fails.
(Vault-Tec HR and Legal departments wish to once again remind you the company is not liable for anything this protocol does. Section 13 part B sub-section ii-a on the signed agreement form states the Overseer is not being coerced to use Emmy, and they are making the decision with full control, and proper state of mind! If they aren't than they will receive full legal prosecution for lying as they signed the document. Also Vault-Tec Legal and Research Departments wish to point out the Overseer or offending resident that 'manually disrupts' the Empathy 2000 will be expected to reimburse cost of the damaged Equipment.)
Anyways! Have yourself a Vaultastic day!
Ferna wasn't happy hearing about this Emergency Obedience Protocol. She decided to read the overseer's personal logs next.
Entry 68: I keep telling my people I love them and they should trust me, but for some reason they never believe me. The radiation may be of manageable levels out there now, but I have little doubt the survivors are little better than violent barbarians that only care about what they can take from you.
Ferna thought the first entry she came across was rather accurate considering things, and oddly specific. She kept reading.
Entry 75: I decided to start playing calm and peaceful music over the intercom system. I also decided to upgrade my personality and voice to the computer in case worst should come to worst. Too many citizens are asking questions about what it is like out there.
Ferna sighed to herself as she skimmed through the next entries. Most of them were rather boring, but one was a very steamy entry about a dream the Overseer, Anna Perks, had. She downloaded that one for later enjoyment.
A few of the other entries were about the residents of the vault. Some caused her to blush a very pretty color. She finally found another entry that seemed to be pertinent to the vault's current condition.
Entry 139: Just like I have been saying in the last several entries. I think this One and a Half Cookie guy is up to something. He is being all secretive and I overheard some music I knew wasn't on the certified playlist. It is a pity really that I may be forced to take action against him. He was such a great lay and all around halfway decent guy (Those are hard to find nowadays). I am tempted to activate the Emergency Obedience Protocol.
Ferna was a little excited and interested now, even though she was sure she knew what was going to happen next. She skipped through some more entries until she finally found the main entry she was looking for. Even though she was glad to reach the end of this tale. She couldn't help but frown a little as she read the last entry.
Entry 145: I am doing it! The vault residents have become unruly… They keep asking me why they must follow the schedule to the dot and if we can send people to survey outside. This isn't good. I blame One and a Half Cookie and his Vault 100 Pirate Radio. I already had security deal with him. I now need to activate the protocol for the safety of all of humanity! We are Humanity's future!
In case it is needed the Empathy 2000 is right behind the observer monitors.
Ferna sighed again at the rather pathetic tale over all. It was just like she read a book about conspiracy and intrigue with a little mix of adventure that kept you at the edge of your seat somehow. Then you find out it was just some desperate soul wanting attention and love because of a bad breakup or something, and everything was actually just a dream.
Ferna typed away on the console and said, "Okay! This is the plan! We first rob this place mostly blind… then we come back here and manually deactivate this computer right here." She pressed a couple of buttons, and the screens behind the Overseer desk pulled away to reveal a large computer. "Any questions?" Alice and Cheshire shook their heads.
It took them a good while, but the team managed to get a lot of good stuff. They also got plenty of junk for Crazy Wolfgang. They found plenty of ammo and Ferna found some modified combat armor. She would look into it later. Ferna also found digital copies of the Discworld series!
Also Alice lost a bet to Ferna. The two girls made a bet that Ferna couldn't remove a Pip-boy on one of the people in the vault while that person went about moving to do their task. In the end it took the red head a good twenty minutes, but she managed to remove the Pip-Boy. They replaced it quickly while the muscular cook blinked dumbly for a few seconds lost in some kind of daze.
Ferna was proud she won the bet and would put in a lot of thought before she claimed her prize for winning. Alice said she would do whatever Ferna asked of her one night. Ferna promised to do the same for Alice if she had lost. Neither girl would have been upset if they lost. Alice certainly wasn't too broken up about losing at any rate. Ferna wasn't sure but it was almost as if Alice was excited to have lost...
{-} {-} {-}
"Alright are we ready for this?" Ferna asked both Cheshire and Alice. Alice gave a small half smile/half smirk that Ferna had come to really like.
Cheshire laughed… Like he always does… "Of course we are Fair Ferna! It was all too much fun robbing these vault dwellers without them noticing. I find it a little ironic…" Alice and Ferna weren't really sure what he was talking about, but they didn't really care to dwell on it.
Ferna gave him a pout and said, "I will have you know that nothing we took registered as 'stolen'." The two gave her questioning glances. "You will understand once I hook up your new Pip-Boys."
Ferna was about the find a way to isolate "Emmy" from the rest of the vault's functions when she noticed Alice bent down, and fidgeting with something at the computer's base. Ferna just enjoyed the view "secretly" for a few minutes before finally speaking up.
"What are you doing Alice?" Ferna asked as she made her way to lean down by the green eyed beauty.
"I was setting up the 'manual' deactivation." Alice stood up and revealed what she had been working on. Ferna saw a weird looking metal rabbit figurine with a really large pocket watch. It had red glowing eyes and the watch matched their color and had a couple of grenades strapped to it on either side. It was ticking away…
Ferna's blue eyes grew as she asked, "IS that a BOMB?!"
Alice gave a simple nod. "I gave us at least three quarters of an hour to leave. Plus I am very sure once you close those screens on the metal doors, which encase the Empathy 2000. There won't be any harm."
Ferna's jaw was hanging open as she looked over the doors and nodded. She quickly isolated Emmy from all over systems with the click of a button. "That should be plenty of time."
The group then closed the doors. Seconds later the bomb went off in an explosion that shook the office, and sent bits of glass and metal everywhere. The falling debris seemed to have missed them all and done no damage to the other computers.
Ferna gave Alice a frown. Alice blushed. "Maybe I accidentally set it for three quarters of a minute…" Ferna raised an eyebrow at her. Alice blushed again as the ever laughing cat chuckled. "Well… Shall we go?"
"It's a good thing we found out they will be dazed for a period of time, or we might be in trouble…" Cheshire said before laughing again as the trio made their way out.
{-} {-} {-}
The chefs in one of vault 100's kitchens blinked a few times as they looked around. They talked about things and all agreed they could only remember calm peaceful music, and a computerized voice telling them all it loved them and they should trust her. Other than that they weren't sure what just happened.
The group of chefs final left the kitchens and entered one of the common areas thinking there would be an official announcement. It seemed a good number of the residents had the same idea. They were all whispering and talking among their selves trying to figure out what they were doing and where they were.
It was at this time the group in the main common area saw two lovely young women wearing interesting clothing followed by a strange cat thing. The dark haired girl spoke to them loud enough to be heard in a lovely accent. "Sorry… We got lost… Ummm… excuse me…" and various other phrases as the trio made their way through the crowds.
The red haired girl said in a more "normal" voice. "Ummm… yeah… What she said… We ummm went to the wrong vault sorry about that… We are leaving… The overseer already accepted our apology with grace…" Soon the odd trio went towards the vault entrance. A few minutes after that the citizens near it heard the thing open and then close and lock tight behind them.
It was after that one person spoke up. "Wrong Vault?! And the overseer let them go?!" Said a man in his early twenties.
"Why didn't I think of that?!" Shouted a woman with brown hair. The rest started murmuring again wondering what had exactly just happened as bits and pieces of memory started to form.
{-} {-} {-}
Ferna was tweaking something on Alice's brand new, to her anyways, Pip-Boy 3000. "There you go Alice!" Alice gasped as she saw the HUD pop-up in her vision without obstructing it. "You can change colors like this." Ferna then showed Alice how. Alice chose blue.
After Ferna got Cheshire in his new Pip-Boy, and he chose yellow for the color of his HUD. He grinned even wider than normal as he started figuring out all of the features on his own. Ferna just rolled her eyes and decided it only made sense the cat would figure it out on his own like that.
Once Ferna had given Alice a very through and 'hands-on' course on using the Pip-Boy the group made their way to 'find' Crazy Wolfgang. Alice was busy having fun using VATS to target signs and any little creature that dared cross their path. She was all smiles as 'Sarah' showed those rats and roaches who was boss!
"Do you think it was right of us to just leave those people in that vault not knowing anything like that?" Cheshire asked Ferna as Alice targeted a car with a nuclear powered engine and it exploded. It was a very beautiful, but terrifying moment really.
"Maybe… Maybe not… I mean I don't want all of that responsibility… Heck I can't even go on a quest without wanting to explore and 'liberate' any house or building we find of its treasures… I mean burdens…" Ferna said with a nod. Cheshire just shook his head with a little huff of amusement.
After a little longer, Ferna decided it was time to end Alice's experimenting with the VATS system. She wasn't sure why Alice decided to target a molerat using VATS with her Missile Launcher, but it needed to stop. "Alice don't waste a missile on that thing. Besides you haven't named your Missile Launcher yet… Don't you think he or she deserves that first before you start using it all willy nilly?"
Alice paused in thought for a moment as the molerat ran towards her. She then pulled out the hunting rifle Ferna gave her earlier, and found she was a much better shot with it using VATS.
Once the hairless mutated monstrosity was dead she gave a nod of approval. "I suppose you are right Ferna… I just couldn't help myself. I was so excited to have a Pip-Boy and VATS Finally! It makes things even easier!"
Ferna gave a frown and asked, "You aren't going to suddenly stop using it because everything is too easy are you?"
Alice gave a giggle. "After all I have been through in my life before now, I will take any break I can get." Ferna gave her a smile. Alice then had a 'cute' questioning look as she asked, "So where are we going now?"
Ferna gave a grin as she said. "I figured we will hand over the stuff we found to Crazy next time we see him. I have a feeling we will see him a lot on our romp through the lovely Capital Wasteland."
Alice nodded happily. She really did like Crazy. She didn't care if it was an act, she still felt like he was a long lost friend from Wonderland or something of that sort. "So do you have a plan that we will easily be sidetracked from as always?"
Cheshire chuckled as Ferna tried to protest, but sighed and laughed a little herself. "Don't you know it! There is this place to go visit for a quest in my log. It might even end up being a blast." Ferna said not at all trying to hint at what they would do next. Also she didn't care much to go find her dad yet. Knowing him he was probably visiting an old friend in another vault or something.
Ferna Level 6! Thief (Rank 1): You prefer to say you just have ambition in life, or call yourself a coinsurer of man-made puzzles in the form of locks. You also claim to just have a knack for finding hard to find goods! Any way your love for lock picking and sneaking around has really paid off to a certain extent. Rank 1 of 3 ranks possible: each rank gives you +5 lock pick and +5 sneak.
Alice Level 6! Bloody Mess: Finally! Ferna got you a working Pip-Boy 3000 of your very own! She wants you to have better accuracy and use VATS, which you will. However regardless of her wishes, all you know is that you can now use it to increase the damage you deal, and finally have a better chance to bring your secret dream of making headshots with a Missile Launcher come true! This perk gives you +5% overall damage and more violent deaths for your enemies! What more could a girl want?
A/N: Alright! If anyone bothers to read this section, and are wondering about the song… As I said before I am making this kind of a "Fallout Modded" experience. There are some mods that add more songs in the vein of what I can fallout music. "Blues in the Night" was one of these songs.
Unfortunately, I tried to look up the list on the website where I found the music packs and found out the person who posted it hid the mod. It is too bad, because I really loved that version of the song compared to others… *Gives you the most sorrowful of faces possible.* I really wish I could tell you all who sings the version I used as reference to this song. Hell if I knew who it was I would go out and buy it in some way. Plus sorry for the really long chapter… Sorta…