Strongly advise you check out the actual G.O.A.T. questions and answers from Fallout 3 so you can follow along as Marilyn takes the test!
Chapter 4 - Now and Later
Marilyn pulled the blankets over her head, irrationally hoping that would make her go away. It didn't work of course. Her mother reached over and yanked the blanket down, exposing her to the harsh lights again.
"Come on, out of bed," Her mother chided, "You don't want to be late."
"I don't feel good," Marilyn attempted, giving a little fake cough.
Her mother just stared at her flatly, hand on her hips. She gave another pathetic cough to try and really sell it. Not that it was working.
"Alright, that's it, missy," Her mother clicked her tongue, turning away, "I'm getting your father."
Marilyn immediately groaned, covering her face with the pillow as her mother leaned out of the doorway.
"Oi! Clyde! Get in here!" She heard her mother call, "Marilyn needs a reminder of her duties to the Vault!"
"Ugh, not the duty speech," Marilyn grumbled, muffled below the pillow.
"What's wrong, Lori? Is Mari sick?" She heard her father's voice say as it drew nearer, "On the day of the G.O.A.T. of all days?"
"No, she's not sick. But I'm sick," Her mother said, "Sick of her crap."
She heard her father approach, feeling him sit down at the foot of the bed. She couldn't help the weary sigh that escaped her before she removed the pillow, glancing down at his bespectacled face.
"Marilyn, honey, this test is really important," Her father began softly, shooting her a disapproving frown, "It'll determine the important role you play in the Vault as an adult. You know that we all have to pitch in and help with different things, or else the Vault would fall apart. The G.O.A.T. is designed so that you will get placed where you'll be the happiest and where you'll be able to do the most good. You understand that, don't you?"
"I know, dad," Marilyn sighed, glancing aside, "I'm just… nervous what the result will be."
At this, her father chuckled.
"Just answer honestly and let the test work its magic!"
Rubbing her face, Marilyn let out one more sigh before sitting up.
"Okay, yeah, I can do this," She told herself, mostly just to cut out of the lecture early, "Thanks, dad. I needed that."
"Anytime, honey," Her father said as he ruffled her hair, standing up.
After getting ready for the day, dressing a bit slower than necessary, Marilyn finally went off to the classroom. Whether she liked it or not, it was time to take the test that would determine what she would do for the rest of her life. No pressure.
As she rounded the corner of the corridor in front of the classroom, she spotted Dick and Timbo a bit further ahead. They were in the midst of conversation with Judy and… ugh, Carmen. Well, at least, Timbo was. Dick sort of just stood nearby and played with his lighter.
"Get out of our way, losers," Carmen sneered, waving at the twins to move aside.
"Aw, c'mon baby, that's no way to be," Timbo crooned, earning him a glare.
"Ugh, you are such a disgusting little slime," Carmen shot back.
"Yeah? That's not what you said last week when we were–ow!" Timbo cut short as Carmen jammed the heel of her boot against his foot.
"I told you not to tell anyone about that, you jerk!" Carmen hissed venomously, voice lowered.
"Huh?" Judy perked up, looking between them both, "Wait, are you two an item?"
"What?! No! Ew!" Carmen shrieked, turning to glare at Timbo again, "Right?!"
"Uh, well, uhh.." Timbo stammered, uncharacteristically flustered.
He even seemed to be sweating a bit, Marilyn noticed as she approached. Dick glanced over at his brother, who seemed to be choking on his words.
"You're drowning, man," He mumbled to him.
"Ugh! Just… Just stay away from us!" Carmen screeched, grabbing Judy and wrenching her away, practically pulling her arm out of the socket as she barreled past into the classroom.
"Ow! Ow! Carmen, not so hard!" Judy cried as she was foisted away by her friend.
Timbo opened his mouth and Dick shot him a look.
"Don't do it, man," He warned, raising his open hand.
Timbo bit his lip, like he was trying to fight the urge. The two brothers stared at each other for a long moment, before Timbo could no longer hold it back.
"That's what she said," He uttered in defeat, earning him a firm smack in the back of the head, "Ow, worth it…"
Marilyn snorted, shaking her head at him slightly. At this, Timbo jumped, startled.
"Whoa! Where'd you come from, baby?" He blinked at her, earning a roll of the eyes from both Dick and Marilyn.
"Looks like he's already up for round two," Dick muttered to himself as he finally pocketed his lighter.
"He still has another foot," Marilyn casually pointed out in response.
"Huh?" Timbo blinked, before wincing as Marilyn stomped on his other foot, the one Carmen hadn't.
As Timbo hissed and bounced in place, Marilyn turned to look at Dick.
"I think we should just get this stupid test over with already."
"Guess the fake cough didn't work, huh?" Dick perked a brow.
"Nope," Marilyn sighed, shaking her head.
"Did they bring in Quinn out of spite?"
"No, but I did get a bit of the duty lecture from my dad."
"Oof, that's a rough one," Dick said before glancing over to Timbo, who continued to hop around, "Alright, this ain't fun anymore. Let's go."
"This was fun?!" Timbo scoffed, glancing up at his brother.
Once Timbo was done carrying on, the three of them headed to the classroom where Mr. Alden tiredly greeted everyone. Just moments after taking her usual seat, Marilyn felt someone kick the back of her chair. Flinching slightly, she turned and glanced behind her. Craig now sat directly behind her, to her dismay. He blew her a kiss and shot her a wink, making her groan and turn to face ahead again. She was already far too stressed over the G.O.A.T. to bother dealing with him.
Once everyone was seated, Mr. Alden passed out the different test sheets, going to fiddle with the slide projector while everyone got ahold of their paper. Marilyn was a bit surprised to find the test was multiple choice, though it made sense after she thought about it. After all, there were only a limited number of occupational results.
"Alright everyone, let's begin with the first question," Mr. Alden began, clearing his throat before reading out the question.
This first question had something to do with a hysterical scientist yelling something or other. Marilyn didn't really understand what it meant, so she instead considered the options listed. She ultimately chose the final opinion to simply slip away, not wanting to do anything unfriendly or violent, even though she had a feeling the first option was the correct one.
The second question involved the clinic and treatment of an infection on a patient's leg. Marilyn knew from first-hand experience, thanks to years of punishments, that the third option was the best. However, she wasn't keen on ending up working in the clinic. What if the G.O.A.T. thought she should be a doctor like Quinn? Despite her father's advice about honesty, Marilyn instead decided to pick the worst possible option. This time she filled in the first option, choosing to amputate the leg.
The third question regarded a lost little boy with stolen property. Marilyn was caught between the first and last options, knowing she at least wanted to help the boy out of his predicament. But as to whether or not to turn him in, she was stumped. Would the G.O.A.T. think she was some kind of criminal if she didn't turn him over to the Overseer? Maybe she was overthinking it. She tried instead to imagine if she was truly in such a situation. Her gaze instinctively flicked over towards Dick, who was fixated on his own test. She couldn't help but imagine the little boy was him, and that only made her less inclined to turn him in. She ultimately chose the first option.
The fourth question was easy for her, as it regarded a desired position on a baseball team. Marilyn already knew from actually having been on one of the baseball teams that she had really enjoyed her position as the team's catcher. That is, when Dick wasn't accidentally hitting her in the face with the ball. The second option, obviously.
The fifth question was the first to give Marilyn considerable pause. She had never thought about killing someone before, but that's what the question entailed. It was actually rather absurd, and Marilyn almost wondered if it was some kind of joke. It had to be. So with that in mind, she decided to choose the most absurd answer. The third option, though she was a little uncertain what a minigun was.
The sixth question was another easy one, at first. How would she unlock a locked door? With the bobby pin she always carried around for Dick, of course! But then she had to stop to consider whether or not she should've factored Dick into her answer in the first place. Would it be better to proceed under the assumption that she was alone without Dick to help? She found the idea rather absurd, because they were almost always together. But then again, the G.O.A.T. was trying to determine the best job for her, not for Dick. She wavered but ultimately chose the third option to shoot the lock off, as she knew that was something she could do on her own.
The seventh question regarded the event of growing a mutated hand out of the stomach. As Marilyn skimmed the answers listed, she wondered why there was no option to simply keep it around. She could imagine a dozen ways an extra hand could be useful. Either way, she felt that the second option, to use an anti-mutagen agent, was the only one that wasn't outright ridiculous.
The eighth question regarded Grognak comics, and how to obtain them from another dweller. Marilyn was a little bit alarmed by some of the options. She was starting to think that the G.O.A.T. might be more of a test of criminal tendency than suitable occupation. With that in mind, she chose the reasonable first option, offering to trade for it. After all, she had many other comics to choose from.
The ninth question involved a variety of possible pranks to play on one's father. Marilyn didn't really like any of the options. Some of them were downright heinous, and nearly all of them were dangerous. Still, she had to choose something. She decided to choose the option that would result in the least physical harm, though would still create a considerable bit of property damage. She filled in the first option, to loosen the bolts on the sink pipes.
The tenth and final question was the one that truly gave her the most pause. It asked, directly, what was the most important facet of living in Vault 31. The options were safety, structure, community, or… nothing. Marilyn thought about it for a long moment. She appreciated all of these things, sure, but she couldn't deny the feeling she'd had since she was young. The feeling that she didn't quite belong. As her father's advice about honesty came back to mind, Marilyn hesitantly filled in the final option.
"Well, that's it, everyone. Wasn't so hard, was it?" Mr. Alden smiled from his desk, "Once you're finished, please come turn in your paper."
One by one, each of the students got up and stood in line before the desk with papers in hand. Marilyn ended up at the end of the line, and tuned out the majority of the noise until the line drew close to her. Soon there were only a few people left, with Cherry moving to the front of the line.
"Let's see here…" Mr. Alden began as he took her paper, examining the answer key, "Ah, it looks like you're heading for engineering. Congratulations, Cherlyn."
Cherry looked a little less than pleased, frowning as she departed. After she had passed, Greg Velline stepped up and held out his paper. Greg had always been a quiet sort of guy, friendly but distant. He wasn't particularly strong or particularly smart, but he also wasn't particularly lacking in any of these things. He wasn't even especially good-looking but he wasn't unattractive either. Really, he was just exceedingly average in just about every way.
"Oh my," Mr. Alden murmured, looking up from the answer key, "Congratulations, Mr. Velline. It looks like you'll be Vault 31's first Scout!"
Marilyn wasn't sure who was more surprised by this result, her or Greg. She hadn't expected someone so uninteresting like him to be worthy of becoming a Scout. In truth, she had been hoping for such a result herself. Ever since she had first considered being able to leave the Vault three years ago, it had never left her mind. Soon, she had found herself wanting nothing more. The requirements were still a bit nebulous, but she did everything she could to prepare herself anyway. She had dragged Dick along to the gym all these years, and she had even joined him in his excessive pre-war holotape viewings for research on what she might encounter out there. All of that to say, she never expected a guy like Greg to get the job.
And that made her wonder if maybe she had been way off the mark. Maybe she didn't have what it took to become a Scout, if someone like Greg did. As if sensing her mood dropping, Dick turned back from where he stood in front of her.
"Hey, you're doing that thing again," He whispered, poking her between the brows, "Whatcha thinkin' about?"
"Worried about the results," Marilyn admitted back quietly.
"Ah, what're you worried about?" Dick shrugged, "We both already know you're gonna be the next Overseer."
"You know I don't wanna be the Overseer," Marilyn glanced aside.
"Yeah, but you're still prolly gonna be the Overseer anyway," Dick said as he turned to face ahead again, "But then, if even Greg can be a Scout, then you definitely will."
Marilyn gave a small smile, glancing back towards Mr. Alden's desk, where he was looking over Craig's paper.
"No need to check the chart, Mr. Alden," Craig grinned, "Cause you're looking at Vault 31's second Scout."
"Sorry, Craig," Mr. Alden shook his head, "It says here you're actually better suited as a security officer."
"What? Ugh…" Craig grumbled before shrugging, "Ah, whatever. I guess that isn't so bad. At least it's not something crappy like a custodian."
As Marilyn scowled, feeling like that was somehow a dig at her mother, Mr. Alden cleared his throat.
"Language, Mr. Haley," He sighed tiredly, to which Craig only grinned again.
"Nah, I'm gonna be a security officer. That means the rules don't apply to me!"
"Oh dear lord…" Mr. Alden grimaced as Craig saunted out of the classroom.
Next it was Judy Russell's turn, and as fate would have it, she was Vault 31's actual second Scout. Not that she was very happy about it.
"No no no!" She cried, "I don't want to go out there!"
Marilyn watched uneasily as Judy ran from the classroom, unable to help the spike of envy. How could Judy be so ungrateful? She would've done anything to be let out of the Vault, by this point. Again as though he sensed her anxiety, Dick glanced back and elbowed her lightly.
"You got this, Mari," He whispered.
Marilyn went to respond with her uncertainty, but was cut off by a very loud Timbo.
"Lay it on me, teach!" He declared, slapping his paper down onto Mr. Alden's desk, earning a flat look in response.
But after glancing at the key, Mr. Alden chuckled dryly.
"Well, I'm hardly surprised," He smiled, "You'll be Vault 31's next radio broadcaster."
"Hey, not bad!" Timbo grinned, "I was shooting for Overseer, but that's pretty good, too!"
Upon hearing him, Mr. Alden's smile faltered slightly.
"Mr. DiMucci, my advice for you going forward is to lower your expectations. Significantly."
"Haha, whatever you say, teach!" Timbo said before turning to Dick, "I'm gonna go tell dad. Once you're all done, you should come too."
Dick nodded to him before approaching the desk. As Timbo left, Mr. Alden perked a brow at him.
"I hope your expectations are more reasonable than your brother's," He advised, to which Dick shrugged awkwardly.
"Yeah, uh, I don't really expect much," He admitted while rubbing his neck.
"That's probably for the best," Mr. Alden hummed before checking the key, "Now let's see…"
Marilyn watched him skim the key, stopping with a frown. Dick smiled anxiously as Mr. Alden shot him a sympathetic look.
"...Well, erm, it looks like you'll be a custodian," He said slowly, hesitating before adding, "Waste management, to be precise."
Dick coughed for a moment, raising his eyebrows.
"Well, uh, that's… it is what it is, I guess," He shrugged.
"It's honest work," Mr. Alden offered.
Dick just shrugged in response, hands moving to his pockets before stepping back to clear some space for Marilyn. She hesitantly stepped forward, flicking her gaze over to Dick before holding out her paper.
"Ah, let's see…" Mr. Alden mumbled to himself as he checked the answer key.
Marilyn watched him anxiously, heart beating in her chest. Though it was upside down, she could kind of make out some of the words of the key. Her heartbeat grew rapid as she watched his hand trail down the column, stopping on the box unmistakably marked Scout. She could tell, even upside down. But then after a brief pause, he dragged his finger down to the box below it.
"Another custodian," He declared, before quickly adding, "But in your case, you'll be working with your mother in the laundry department."
Marilyn's heart plummeted. She felt like she was about to die right then and there. She glanced down to the floor, sulking, when she was suddenly pushed aside.
"Move," Carmen sneered before turning to Mr. Alden, "You told me to come back at the end of the line, sir?"
"Oh, yes, um," Mr. Alden began, sitting up, "I wanted to inform you of this without as much of an audience."
"Yeah? What?" Carmen perked a brow.
"It would seem you are slated to be the Vault's next Overseer," Mr. Alden informed her with a smile.
"Oh, wow," Carmen blinked, pausing before glancing over towards Marilyn, "I guess I just take after my grandpa more than others."
Marilyn stared at her despondently, too crushed to pay much mind to really hear Carmen. But she did notice when Dick nudged her side with his elbow.
"Hey, Timbo and my dad are waiting for us in the diner…" He mumbled, earning a wordless nod in response.
It wasn't until they were out in the corridor that Marilyn exhaled a deep sigh. Dick glanced over at her, looking a bit anxious.
"Hey, you alright?" He asked quietly, nudging her side again when she didn't immediately respond.
"...No, not really," She admitted, stopping short to cover her face with her hands, "I just… I can't believe… of all the…"
Whatever else she had intended to say was quickly unintelligible behind blubbering and tears. And then even that was muffled by Dick's shirt as she cried into his chest.
"Hey, laundry ain't so bad," Dick said as he wrapped an arm over her shoulder, rubbing soothing circles onto her back, "Least it ain't waste management, right?"
Marilyn murmured something about the unfairness of the world, or something similar, before looking up at him with tears in her eyes.
"I-I just… how could my answers… lead to this!"
"Doubt it was because of your answers. Maybe we just shoulda been at the front of the line," Dick suggested, "Maybe all the good jobs were gone already?"
Marilyn was sure he was just trying to reassure her, but something about that just made her cry even more. The world really was unfair, wasn't it? She was going to be trapped in this stupid Vault forever!
