Vault

Rust

I sit on the bed picking at my nails the sun is beginning to go down and there is still no sign of Wentz and I am getting nervous. I push up off of the floor and pace the small space inside the shack running a hand through my hair, I press my eye to one of the cracks in the door trying to see anything, no such luck. 

I sigh pushing away from the door and looking around the small space. There is nothing to do in here except slowly lose my mind. I sit down on the mattress with a heavy sigh, I hardly did anything today, I managed to tidy up the place a little, dusted a bit and hung the wet rags I used to clean my cuts on the back of the chairs to dry. I lay down on the mattress and stare up at the metal rusted ceiling. I squint and quickly get up to turn the light off and then gaze up through one of the holes in the ceiling. Above me in the large expanse of the sky are tiny white flecks, they look like they are shining. 

I lay back on the bed and try to keep an eye on them, I pick at my nail beds and bite my lip. I hope that wherever Wentz is he is safe, because if he doesn't return...

I try to shake away the thought but it claws at the back of my mind because if he never comes back I have no way to get out of this shack even if I did the things waiting for me out there is a far more brutal death then dying of starvation inside these metal walls. I try to reassure myself, perhaps he just likes to take long trips? Maybe the food in the close area is all gone and he has to travel pretty far to get some? That is totally possible.

I roll over and face the wall. I use my fingernail to scratch off the paint and it flakes off and into a small pile on the floorboards. I yawn loudly and tuck my arm under my head to use as a pillow. I take off my glasses and set them aside off the mattress. I close my eyes and fall asleep with thoughts about Wentz. 

When I wake up the sun is shining in broken rays through the cracks in the walls and ceilings, I take a moment to just gaze at the particles of dust floating around in the light. This is what was normal, waking up with the rising of the sun. I wonder if the vault was on the same kind of clock at the outside world? Or if we were always sleeping during the day and awake at night. There is really no way to know. I sit up and slide my glasses on looking around the small room, and Wentz is nowhere to be seen. I push up off of the bed and shuffle across the floor toward the door when I go to peak out one of the holes.

I scream and jump back when I see someone's face staring back at me. I hear them laugh and then a loud screeching noise fills the room and I quickly cover my ears. Please no. The metal panel starts to shake and wobble, I gulp and my eyes dart around the room. I need a weapon and a place to hide. They continue prying at the metal and I feel tears prick my eyes as I frantically look around the room. Where did I put my gun? I paw around my belongings frantically until my hands finally land on it. 

"Come out and play little boy. Were all hungry out here and you have no guard dog left to save you." I back up till I hit the opposite wall. Clutching the gun in shaking hands my fingers quake to much to keep hold of it. I panic and tuck it into the waistband of my jumpsuit.

My eyes land on the chair and I grab it and drag it toward me. I yelp when the guys hand bursts from between the two panels by the door. His hand scrambles for purchase on the metal and in one horrendous, screeching ripping of metal the panel falls away, the panel being ripped off cause the whole place to shake. 

 I grip the chair and raise it above my head. The guy grins at me and climbs into the hole he created. My grip on the chair tightens but my whole body visibly shakes. My breaths are coming in short quick gasps and I feel like I am going to pass out as the guy stalks closer.

"Don't even try it." The guy says and takes another step closer. I whimper but my grip doesn't loosen. I hold the chair higher. "Your cute trying to defend yourself. I hear when people die when they are afraid they taste a lot better. Its been true so far." He lunges and I crack the chair down hard on his back. He lets out a loud grunt and stumbles backward in a daze, I drop the chair and there is a moment of hesitation my hand reaching for the gun but when the guy goes to lunge at me again I take a running leap through the hole in the door. I face plant into the dirt outside and a billow of dust explodes around me I scramble to my feet quickly and stand there a moment.

There are a few raiders who stop and are staring at me in shock. My heart is pounding so fast that it is the only noise filling my ears, the adrenaline kicks into overdrive when the raiders start walking toward me. I don't think twice before sprinting for the exit gate. My lungs burn with all the dust they suck in and my legs burn as I sprint across the uneven ground approaching the arch. 

That is when I quickly realize my mistake. I can hear the hollers from the raiders chasing me as I approach the locked gate. I have a terrified half second when I see the chain and padlock firmly securing the gate shut. I stare at the obstacle in front of me before I grip onto the eight foot tall rusted fence and haul myself up it. I can feel some of the raiders trying to grip my ankles but I kick them off and use my fear and adrenaline to haul myself over the top. I swing over the top of the fence and I can feel something slice open one of my palms I wince and look down, some of the raiders are climbing up the fence as well as others work on opening the gate. Some are holding knives waiting to stab them through the gaps in the fence. 

I look down and gulp at the eight-foot drop below me. I take a deep breath and squeeze my eyes shut before launching myself off of the fence. I hit the ground hard with a loud thud and the air is knocked right out of my lungs and my arm burns with a fiery pain. I grip my limp arm to my chest and take a deep breath through my nose. My arm is still attached to my torso, and that I can work with. 

I stand and run as fast as I can into the wasteland, I can hear them chasing me but I press on, running for my life into the great unknown because I need to live. I need to make it back to the vault and find Wentz.

I rush and hide behind a boulder and try to catch my breath. I muffle my cries when I hit my arm against the boulder on accident. I study my left hand and the wrist is swelling terribly and turning purple. A sprain or possibly a break, okay nothing is poking through the skin so I will be okay for now. I can't move the whole arm through which tells me the shoulder is possibly dislocated. I cringe I can perform relocation on others but that requires two hands and a lot of momentum. 

I can hear someone coming around the rock. I pull out the gun out of my waistband thankful that it didn't fall out. I cock it and take a deep steadying breath and as soon as the mohawked spike armored raider comes around the rock, a grin on their face and a blade in their hand I raise the gun and pull the trigger. 

The shot rings out loudly echoing out into the open expanse of land. When I open my eyes and look at them they stare at me in shock. Blood pours from their mouth and stomach they clutch at it but blood pours out over their fingertips. They fall to their knees in front of me and a horrible feeling overcomes me as they fall to the ground. 

The only thing I ever wanted to do was save lives, not take them away. I tuck the gun away and take a step back. I just killed a man. I feel my chest constrict and I struggle to take a breath. I squeeze my eyes shut. This is no time to panic. I grab the raider's blade and continue running away into the wasteland. 

A/n plot twists.