Chapter Two

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"...thank you for choosing... Vault. Tec."

The exit lift slowly made its way to the surface. Revna's mind was still reeling, her heart felt as if it would shatter - from grief, from fear of what lie above, and from anger.

"Fuck you Vault Tec!"

The door aperture began to slide open above her. It squealed and ground in protest so loudly it almost pierced her eardrums. She closed her eyes and took in a deep breath, holding it. Her body was shaking so badly now she thought she would collapse. The light, even through her tightly closed eyelids, was brutal after the darkened vault beneath. The churning and humming of the lift came to a stop with a loud clunk, nearly knocking her off balance.

A breeze caressed her face, moving a strand of long copper hair across her cheek. She let out her breath and reflexively sucked in a large lungful. It didn't kill her. It just smelled dusty, lifeless. Dead. She slowly opened her eyes and found herself looking straight down at her home town. The wreckage of what was once her life. Every fluid in her body threatened an immediate escape. She gasped. As she stared down at the hellscape, she heard the caws of crows nearby. Well, we always knew cockroaches would never die... at least some birds made it.

It had definitely been years. But wrapping her head around that fact had to wait in line behind all the other things swimming around in there. How could it have been years when it felt as though she had just put that suit on and sat down in the pod? Maybe it hadn't been that long, maybe this was just the aftermath of the explosion. But if that were true, she would not be breathing right now. She knew the basics of cryogenics only because science fascinated her. She knew it completely suspended all life function until revived. But why the fuck would a glorified bomb shelter freeze people?!

Her head began pounding. She rubbed her temples, feeling the urge to once again go fetal and give up. With no idea at all where to go, where to start, she began making her way down the rocky hillside toward... not home, but at least something familiar for the time being.

It was cool out, but not actually cold. All the trees that ran the perimeter of the little island of Sanctuary Hills were still alive somehow. But everything else was dead. As if to mock her, the sky was a pristine blue with luscious, fluffy white clouds, the sun shining happily as if everything anyone had ever known, all things that made life, life, hadn't been destroyed.

There was no way to even guess at what time of year it was because for all she knew, weather as it had been known could have completely changed. All she knew was that it was daytime, probably afternoon, early evening, judging by where the sun was. Hopefully she would at least be able to clean up and change clothes back at her house. The houses did appear to be standing, albeit the excuses for roofs was another matter.

The closer she got to Sanctuary Hills, the more her head spun. It was dead quiet save for the sounds of the breeze as it swirled detritus to and fro, the quiet babbling of the stream running the perimeter of town, and the jarring moans of steel from ruined homes. She took solace in the fact that at least she hadn't exited the vault at night. And then she heard a familiar sound, it was so familiar to her that she had to actually think what it was.

Oh my god! She rounded the corner of the house she had walked to at the end of the path and suddenly her feet stopped moving, her body was rigid and her breath caught in her throat... it couldn't be! Codsworth?! How... it wasn't... She broke into a sprint, hoping she wasn't imagining things.

"Codsworth?!" She croaked out as loud as her throat allowed.

The familiar Mr. Handy's eye stems whipped around at the sound. "Ms. Revna?! Oh... it's really you!"

Revna threw her arms around him, almost falling and taking him with her. "You're real? You're really here?"

The dignified robot jetted up slightly, as if standing straighter and wiping down his butler's tux. "Why yes, Mum, where else would I be? But I say, you certainly look worse for wear! Where is your better half, and dear Shaun? It will be so much nicer with you all back!"

Revna stared at him for a moment, trying to understand why he seemed so unfazed. "Codsworth, what happened? Where is everyone?"

The robot fidgeted before answering. "Mum, I don't know, I thought they were with you. When the bombs fell, I was worried that maybe... maybe you were all dead. But after thinking it over for the past two centuries..."

Revna cut him off. "200 years? What?! No, that's not possible. How can that... it's ... No! Are you sure?!"

Codsworth spoke with a hint of confusion. "Well, yes Mum, actually closer to 210 years." His artificial voice cracked slightly. "I never thought I'd see you again. Where are Sir and young Shaun?"

Placing a hand on Codsworth, and fighting back another jag of tears, she managed to answer. "Nate is... dead. Some people came into the vault and killed him, and they took Shaun!"

"Mum, these things you're saying..." Codsworth trailed off, pistons and gears humming as he was processing the information. One eye stalk moved up and down her body. "Ms. Revna, how is it you've managed to survive two centuries? You look the same as the day you fled!"

She explained how they were placed into cryosleep, what happened when the people came into the vault, and described the man who took her son. "Codsworth, did you see anyone coming or going from the vault while we were in there?"

"I'm afraid not Mum," replied the ever-faithful servant. "In fact, I've not seen another living soul around here in a very long time. Unless, of course, you count Concord. I did traverse there once to see if any anyone was around. However, the ones I did encounter seemed a bit... rough around the edges. They threw stones at me, even shot at me once! Dreadful affair. I've not returned since."

Revna was lost in thought for a moment. So there actually were survivors? People lived through it? It seemed impossible, but then again, hadn't living, breathing humans come and taken her baby? Maybe they came from the vault, too. Or maybe even another vault. A glimmer of hope warmed her heart for a moment. People. Living human beings. "Codsworth, when was this?"

"Hmm," Codsworth calculated, "I believe it must have been about 50 years ago last I was there. Yes, that is about the right of it."

With a sigh, Revna felt the hope slip away as easily as it had come. If the people who had taken Shaun had just kidnapped him recently, then that would confirm the fact that humans survived. Or at least had come from other places to her neck of the woods. It was all still too confusing and her headache was turning into a real killer of a migraine. "I need to find Shaun, Codsworth. I'm going to clean up and pack some things. I'll be heading out first light."

"Oh, Mum," Codsworth began, "I'm afraid there won't be much to pack. I tried to hold off the riff raff, but this town has been picked clean I'm afraid. I do believe all of Sir's provisions are still in the bunker, however."

Huh. It never occurred to her that there would be nothing left. She nodded sadly, "Thanks Codsworth." She was suddenly so tired, so very weary. "I'm going to get some rest. I'll see you in the morning."

Codsworth's stalks followed her as she moved past him. "Of course, Mum. I shall be here should you need anything at all. It truly is a relief to have you back Missus!" He returned to his eternal work of tending the shrubs, which miraculously, amidst all the dead foliage in town, were still thriving.

Approaching the heavy iron double doors of the bunker, she entered Shaun's birthdate into the keypad and waited for the automatic doors to open. Musty air plumed up dust from the inside. She descended the stairs and hit the wall switch to close the doors behind her, and another to turn on the lights. They flickered and buzzed then came to life. Good thing Nate was always prepared. She would go through everything later. For now, she needed to pass out and try to forget the past four hours.

Sleep was still a luxury she felt would not be afforded her for some time. The nightmares, the cold sweats, the images that were now all too real kept her tossing and turning most of the night. A few times she woke herself up screaming. She had been running down a corridor in some fortified building, turrets spraying bullets at her, an evil voice on a loud speaker, taunting and laughing. Shaun screaming, crying for her. The faster she ran, the longer the halls became. The evil voice laughed harder and louder.

She shot up from the bed, sweat beaded on her forehead, body clammy, heart racing. Frustrated and worn out, she tossed the blankets aside and rose from the bed and headed to the bathroom. After she and Nate dabbled in the "always be prepared" hobby on and off for a few years, Nate had gone full survivalist in the year he was home. It dawned on her that they probably could have just come down here instead of going to Vault 111, but she wasn't sure they would have been able to stay here long enough to wait out a nuclear winter.

Wriggling out of the vault suit was a dance of acrobatics. Insulated material clung to her damp skin and it was like trying to remove layers of cling wrap. Finally freeing herself from the garment, she started up the built-in generator that drew its power from neatly installed solar panels that lined the concrete around the outer doors.

She sighed in relief as she heard the hum and turned on the shower. The water sputtered and spat, darkish, brackish liquid spewing from the spout causing her to jump back. But eventually it ran clear and even warmed a bit. She slid down the wall to the floor and hugged her knees as the shower ran over her head. She allowed herself a few minutes of crying and self-pity before standing again and grabbing the soap.

Feeling slightly better after getting clean, she wrapped her hair in a towel and started to take stock of the supplies when she realized Nate's ring was still on her thumb. Another stab of pain. She swallowed hard and went to Nate's desk, removing a fancy flip up box that contained his dog tags. She took them out, threaded the ring on the chain and slid it over her neck. Her hands started trembling so she decided to get to work.

Nate's Army pack was sitting atop a large steamer trunk. She took it and started stocking up on what she felt she needed for her journey. Wherever that was going to be. She had absolutely nothing to go on. Anyone and everyone she ever knew had long since died. From what Codsworth said, the humans that were alive now seemed to be in survival mode themselves. But she swore that no matter what she had to do, she was going to find her son. For Nate. For her. And if she could take down Vault Tec as a side order, that would also work.

She decided on two weapons; one of Nate's favorites, a Kalashnakov AK-102 carbine assault rifle, and a Glock 9mm pistol, and laid them on the table next to the trunk. She dressed in some of Nate's fatigues, a bit large, but doable. The sleeves were a tad long, even covering the Pipboy, but that was the least of her concerns right now. She then set to cleaning her weapons.

Life's little ironies. It was actually her suggestion that he build the shelter, teach her to use weapons, and even take self-defense classes. They had no idea that the world would actually end - but with the climate of international affairs, Revna wanted to be ready for anything. As she meticulously cleaned and oiled every part of her weapons, her stomach began loudly protesting its emptiness. She grimaced and set everything down, moving to the foot locker that contained a healthy stash of MREs. She smirked as she remembered how awful they tasted. But right now she would have eaten one of those bile-inducing roaches, as hungry as she was. The thought made her shudder.

Holding one MRE in each hand she read the labels: "Hmm, let's have some turkey and mash." She tossed the other back. Yep, still horrid, but she finished it all in under 30 seconds. Next she grabbed a water bottle and twisted it open as she sat back down to finish reassembling her weapons. It tasted of plastic. Not surprising after 200 years she supposed. That was also gone in seconds.

Once everything was assembled, she gathered enough rations for a week, hoping that it would be overkill, holstered the Glock, packed up meds, some chems, a change of clothing, and as much ammunition as she could find for each weapon and stuffed the bag full, fitting the rifle in the side holster of the pack and slung it on her back. The weight was more than she was used to, but that did not deter her. She exited the bunker and got another of many firsts.

The sky was gloomy and tinged with green. Hell, everything was green! The wind was whipping the trees into a frenzy - and the sounds, what was she hearing? It was like someone dragging heavy chains over a kettledrum. Even the lightning was green! And then she heard the crackling sounds emitting from her Pipboy. "Oh, no" she whimpered. It was radioactivity! She momentarily panicked. This was a contingency she never counted on. Her fingers shook as she re-entered the passcode into the bunker doors. Back inside she jokingly thought, What's next, dinosaurs?

She rummaged through Nate's bookshelves, hoping he had some sort of manual or other information on this. Eventually she found what she sought and sat to read it.

She thumbed through the pages until she found a section on nuclear bombs. 'After a nuclear incident...'

War, guys, it was a war.

...fallout will spread from any site where bombs have been dropped. Best practices are to keep a Geiger counter and plenty of Rad Away on your person.' Then there were various images of what they were calling rad-suits, different gear one could use for highly contaminated areas, but she doubted the nearby Fallon's would be open for business, much less have these types of items.

She double checked the chems and found some Rad Away. "Bless you Nate, bless you." But where had he gotten it? Why did he even have it? These things were worth more than gold in the year before it all went to hell. She sighed and decided not to look a gift horse in the mouth.

After reading up on her new climate, she checked the clothing stash again and found an actual gas mask neatly folded in the corner and took it out. She cleaned it, tucked some extra filters into an exterior pocket on the pack and donned the mask before once again emerging from the bunker. Fuck did this thing smell. It was almost a toss up of wearing it or just taking her chances out in the storm without it.

She looked at the exit door, fingers poised to push the exit button. Would she ever face anything normal again? Or was this her life now, going from one uncertainty to another? She already knew the latter was going to be the theme song of this new chapter of her existence.

Author's Notes: Ah Codsworth. There really isn't much I felt I needed to change with our beloved butler. At least from a writing perspective. In this saga he will end up having a much more viable role in things and be more a part of the story than in the game where you only really interact with him a few times, or take him as a companion only to finally get fed up with hearing him talk about the dust everywhere. I greatly admire Stephen Russell who voices him, as well as the voices of DiMa and Nick Valentine. He's a fantastic voice actor.