Fallout: Born Unto Trouble

11. And She was Free

Gloria knew bringing Butch and Stacy to Vault 87 would be a mistake. Somewhere, in the back of her mind, her conscience was screaming at her it would be a bad idea. Naturally, she didn't listen. When has she ever listened to good advice?

Butch was a lousy shot, and Stacy outright refused to hold a gun, so Gloria had to do most of the killing.

When they turned a corner into a long hallway, Gloria was about to give up and turn back, but a voice caught her attention.

What she hadn't expected was a talking super mutant named Fawkes who got the G.E.C.K. in return for his release in his cell. Gloria was happy to oblige, since it meant less radiation for her.

But the thing she expected the least was an Enclave ambush.

Butch and Stacy were of no help getting her out of the Enclave base as it burned in an explosion she caused. She didn't bother looking back at the largest explosion of all erupting from the base. The Vault Rejects looked impressed with her display.

The thought of taking them down was nice and all, but she needed to get back to the Citadel to get the Jefferson Memorial back into the Brotherhood's hands.

Gloria never knew how it would come to this. One moment, she's fresh out of the Vault, looking for her dad, and now—now she was fighting alongside with a giant robot with the Brotherhood of Steel, her childhood bully, and the nicest girl on earth taking back Project Purity from the Enclave.

It was an interesting moment, but short-lived when she was almost hit with a plasma blast.

It was a little nerve-racking when Butch, Stacy, Sentinel Lyons and Gloria reached the rotunda in the Jefferson Memorial. She had killed Colonel Autumn as petty revenge for killing her father, and somehow, the purifier was damaged due to the attack. The only way to keep it from blowing up was to turn it on. And to shut it down meant someone had to go into a radiation-flooded room and release even more radiation.

Gloria took that chance. There was no way in hell she trusted anyone else with the password.

She had no time to say goodbye to her new friends. Butch gave her a nod, silently thanking her and saying goodbye. Stacy hugged her and kissed her on the cheek, telling her she'll never forget she's the one who saved the Wasteland.

...How sad that she would be so selfish, even now. She would be a martyr, a hero, a saint to these people, and all she could think about was being able to hold Amata in her arms and tell her of the things she has done.

Even as radiation filled the chamber, the geiger counter on her Pip-Boy ticking in the beat of her own frantic heartbeat as she typed in the numbers.

She pressed the number 2 on the keypad.

A quick glance back to Butch and Stacy and Sarah; oh, how she wanted to tell them she was going to be okay.

1

That she wasn't going to die.

6

But, she was. There was no denying it.

Enter

The world turned white with a smile on her face and the water in the rotunda clearing up. Her wish had been granted.

She was free.