The one Vault.
- Thread starter Tycell
- Start date
c0ldst33ltrs4u
Vault Dweller
Don't mention it man, it was the least I could do. After all you are the one doing all the work and providing us with a damn good story. I just tried to help you out a bit. Thanks for noticing, knowing I helped a bit does make me feel better and that is my reward.
Um hello?? Anyone here?? Did this story just die or something?? Typical... Just like Fallout... YOu make something good, get everyone hyped about the continuation and then poof*! Just like that no more Fallout...
I think I'm just gonna sit in this corner right here and cry...
I think I'm just gonna sit in this corner right here and cry...
A is *still* the winner!
Final scores;
A - 7
B – 1
Hey guys, guess whose back.
I’m going to try and keep on top of this story as much as possible, the reason I stopped so abruptly is because my computer’s MB took a static hit and fried. It took me close to a full year to get this computer back (yeah, I was slack) and when I did the story wasn’t on it any more. Fear not I can remember where I was going with it all but please forgive me if there are a few minor mistakes from here on in it has been a while since I had a decent net capable computer.
Note: I have also read through the whole thing again and re-created the stats page for Tim. So the previous choices weren’t all in vein.
Chapter 1: Leaving the Nest, part 14 – ‘If the boot doesn’t fit…’
Tim pulled himself up to his feet. If he was going to make it out of here he would have to think smart. He made his way over to his fallen Vault dweller and checked to see if he had anything of value. His gun was missing and Tim couldn’t find it in the immediate area, how ever he did have a spare clip in his holster and Tim gratefully pulled it out and slid it into his own ammunition belt. That brought him up to 1 pipe rifle and 1 spare magazine full of 9mm rounds, 13 rounds in all.
Unfortunately the dead man didn’t seem to have anything else of value on him. Tim could feel the cold rusted grid of steel under his bare foot. Sitting down next to the man quickly Tim shot a glance at the door to make sure none of the littler critters was going to jump him and pulled on the man’s boot. Pulling it in line with his bare foot Tim compared sizes; he was at least 4 sizes too small.
“Damn it!” Tim cried out half under his breath.
“Squeak.” Came the reply.
Tim’s eyes shot up to the open doorway. One of the smaller rabbits was stood in the door way staring at him. It glanced at him and then spotted the large platter of bullet riddled meat which represented the larger beast they had taken down moments before. The small rabbit jumped forward landing on the corpse of its fallen comrade and instantly began checking through the skin. Tim slowly stood up and edged towards the door way.
“That’s right… big meal for you and your friends’ right there. No need to pay that pesky human any notice.”
Tim edged, back to the wall, towards the doorway not taking his eyes off the little hungry critter for a moment. Tim stopped dead in his tracks as his eyes caught the sight of another of the little critters. It looked at him for only half a second before spotting the big meal before it. It jumped over next to its comrade and began tucking in to the feast. Tim let him self breath and then resumed his course for the door. On his way another of the small critters darted through the door, this one however jumped straight past the large dead monster and instead sunk its teeth into Tim’ fallen comrade. Tim turned his head away, he couldn’t watch any more.
The critters were coming fast and in a steady flow now, no doubt drawn to the prospect of a free meal. Tim managed to get lucky with the timing and hop through the door way, backing away, at a brief pause in the flow of diners. Tim could hear more and more of the little bastards coming down the tunnel. It didn’t look like there was a lot of chance of getting out the way he had come in. Tim backed towards the metal door that connects this small corridor to the Machine shop. It was quiet this way, didn’t seem to have a flow of hungry critters, Tim figured it was his best chance for finding something to allow him to escape; thirteen bullets and a manual reload pipe rifle didn’t give good odds on getting through the tall grass in one piece or in any piece at all.
As quietly as possible Tim stepped backwards through the doorway and pulled the door shut, letting it bang loudly as metal hit metal. Tim spun the handle quickly locking the door in place. The sound of small teeth on bone was stopped by the thick metal door and Tim could hear nothing but silence and the faint subtle hum of a large open space. Turning around Tim took in the surroundings. This room was well lit, in comparison to the rest of the submerged facility. Light beamed in from the slit windows high above. Tim stared as, for just a moment; he caught sight of one of the small rabbits as it hopped up the motionless dirt waterfall and out through one of the slit windows, its dark shadow being cast back through the dusty sunlight just before it disappeared.
Tim gripped his pipe rifle holding it ready. It looked like this place was pretty safe, if any of the little critters were aware of him being there they would probably be charging by now. Slowly Tim walked into the room. The concrete floor felt like marble under his bare foot; cold, perfectly flat and smooth. The room was clearly a large vehicle shop or mechanical bay of some sort. Center piece in the room was what appeared to be a large armored vehicle. Set in rust and half buried at the front end in the dirt and mud that had build up through the open window over the years. Tim pulled back his sleeve and slid open the S.E.I.D. panel. Pressing the button for Sensors and then Radar time glared at the screen. The small clicking noise emanated as the circle expanded, stopping in a slight glow when it hit the walls or various large items scattered around the room.
The main thing was, Tim thought, that nothing was moving. The room seemed completely void of all or any undesirables. Tim wasn’t going to start taking chances though, with the radar unit still functioning Tim began to make his way into the room, using his flash light, still clipped to his chest to examine tables and cabinets for signs of weapons or anything he could use to help him escape. Most of the tables were covered in various mechanical devices or tools, the row of tables and work benches stretched down one side wall of the room until about two thirds of the way down where they stopped to make way for lockers and shelf’s which appeared to be covered and filled with pieces of engines. The last table on the row however was different, it was nearly completely clear of anything at all.
Tim’s torch beam passed over the table and stopped as the glint on torch light on metal bounced into Tim’s eye. A wash of good feelings passed through Tim as he stepped closer and examined the metal glint more closely. It was a very old six round magnum, just sitting there on its own next to a selection of torn and faded paper work in a folder. Tim set his pipe rifle down on the table and picked up the Magnum, looking at it in admiration of the craftsmanship. He flicked the release catch and the magnum’s round magazine slid almost effortlessly out of the side of the gun. Tipping the gun up above the table Tim shook it gently to see if any of the rounds were live.
Six metal shells fell from the open gun chamber and landed in a disorganized pile on the table. Two shells had been fired and were nothing but empty shell cases now but four of the rounds were unfired and looked perfect.
“Point four five caliber, wham-bam thank you mam.” Tim whispered to himself as he flicked away the two spent shells which went spinning off the end of the table.
Picking up the four unused shots Tim Re-Loaded the magnum and gave it one last look. It was a little worn, but it had stood up to time well. Good old stainless steel one, old father time zero. Slipping his new found ‘pop stick’ into the holster his 9mm used to occupy Tim looked at the paper work on the table next to where the gun had been sitting.
Someone had scrawled “User: c0ldst33ltrs4u PW: lolercopter” in pen as a foot note on the inside of the front cover. All the other paper inside the folder was far too faded to make out in this light and probably wasn’t of any relevance anyway. As Tim examined the paper work the SEID let off a worrying ‘ping’.
Tim’s arm darted up to just in front of his face and he examined the radar. There was a contact moving behind him. Tim spun around, scooping up his pipe rifle as he turned. Looking in the direction the SEID had indicated Tim could make out the silhouette of one of the smaller ex-rabbit creatures skittering along just outside of the slit windows high above. The creature passed the farthest window and, presumably, carried on about its business without ever glancing towards Tim. The ping from the SEID unit stopped and was once again replaced with the re-assuring click of the radar pulse.
“No time for sight seeing.” Tim said to him self.
It was a dark reminder of the grim circumstances Tim was in. Looking at the radar screen again Tim noticed that the path they had taken to get into the sub surface base was mapped out. The SEID had kept a record of the corridors and tunnels it had been down and where they were in relevance to Tim’s position now. It appeared that if Tim carried on through the machine bay he could probably come full circle and end up at the armoury from the other side. Also noted on the map was a strange symbol in the room on the wall next to the entrance with a small arrow pointing up. Tim couldn’t make out what it was but it looked like part of a grid of some sort.
Shining his flash light in the direction of the small symbol he realized what it was; a ladder. Following the ladder Tim could see it connected to a metal walkway above, which in turn lead to an opening. The faint glow of sunlight was echoed on the walls of the opening. It could be a way to the surface, but would he be fast enough, with only one boot, to make it out of the long grass? Looking at the other option Tim peered at the large doorway leading out of the mechanics bay on the other side. It was dark and appeared to lead further in to the facility but it did head in the same general direction as the armoury. Tim weighed it up.
Choices:
A: Climb the ladder up leading towards the sunlight, hope to find a way out and make a break for it across the long grass. Risky with only one boot on as Tim can’t run as fast.
(+ 1 Strength + 1 Endurance + 25% Unarmed skill)
B: Head through the Machine shop and try to make it to the armoury. With any luck there will be more ammo for his Magnum and perhaps a new set of boots.
(+ 1 Agility + 1 Perception + 25% Small Guns Skill)
Choice is yours as always. Also here is an update on the character stats so far to help (or perhaps complicate) your decision:
::: Statistics:
Strength: 06
Perception: 07
Endurance: 07
Charisma: 05
Intelligence: 07
Agility: 08
Luck: -10 (Not going to be used, but -10 sounds about right)
Hit Points: 035/040
Melee Damage: 03
Carry Weight: 175 lbs
(Perks are Gifted and High metabolism.)
::: Skills: (As more skills come into use I will add them in).
Small guns: 75%
Big guns: 10%
Energy Weapons: 10%
Unarmed: 60%
Final scores;
A - 7
B – 1
Hey guys, guess whose back.
I’m going to try and keep on top of this story as much as possible, the reason I stopped so abruptly is because my computer’s MB took a static hit and fried. It took me close to a full year to get this computer back (yeah, I was slack) and when I did the story wasn’t on it any more. Fear not I can remember where I was going with it all but please forgive me if there are a few minor mistakes from here on in it has been a while since I had a decent net capable computer.
Note: I have also read through the whole thing again and re-created the stats page for Tim. So the previous choices weren’t all in vein.
Chapter 1: Leaving the Nest, part 14 – ‘If the boot doesn’t fit…’
Tim pulled himself up to his feet. If he was going to make it out of here he would have to think smart. He made his way over to his fallen Vault dweller and checked to see if he had anything of value. His gun was missing and Tim couldn’t find it in the immediate area, how ever he did have a spare clip in his holster and Tim gratefully pulled it out and slid it into his own ammunition belt. That brought him up to 1 pipe rifle and 1 spare magazine full of 9mm rounds, 13 rounds in all.
Unfortunately the dead man didn’t seem to have anything else of value on him. Tim could feel the cold rusted grid of steel under his bare foot. Sitting down next to the man quickly Tim shot a glance at the door to make sure none of the littler critters was going to jump him and pulled on the man’s boot. Pulling it in line with his bare foot Tim compared sizes; he was at least 4 sizes too small.
“Damn it!” Tim cried out half under his breath.
“Squeak.” Came the reply.
Tim’s eyes shot up to the open doorway. One of the smaller rabbits was stood in the door way staring at him. It glanced at him and then spotted the large platter of bullet riddled meat which represented the larger beast they had taken down moments before. The small rabbit jumped forward landing on the corpse of its fallen comrade and instantly began checking through the skin. Tim slowly stood up and edged towards the door way.
“That’s right… big meal for you and your friends’ right there. No need to pay that pesky human any notice.”
Tim edged, back to the wall, towards the doorway not taking his eyes off the little hungry critter for a moment. Tim stopped dead in his tracks as his eyes caught the sight of another of the little critters. It looked at him for only half a second before spotting the big meal before it. It jumped over next to its comrade and began tucking in to the feast. Tim let him self breath and then resumed his course for the door. On his way another of the small critters darted through the door, this one however jumped straight past the large dead monster and instead sunk its teeth into Tim’ fallen comrade. Tim turned his head away, he couldn’t watch any more.
The critters were coming fast and in a steady flow now, no doubt drawn to the prospect of a free meal. Tim managed to get lucky with the timing and hop through the door way, backing away, at a brief pause in the flow of diners. Tim could hear more and more of the little bastards coming down the tunnel. It didn’t look like there was a lot of chance of getting out the way he had come in. Tim backed towards the metal door that connects this small corridor to the Machine shop. It was quiet this way, didn’t seem to have a flow of hungry critters, Tim figured it was his best chance for finding something to allow him to escape; thirteen bullets and a manual reload pipe rifle didn’t give good odds on getting through the tall grass in one piece or in any piece at all.
As quietly as possible Tim stepped backwards through the doorway and pulled the door shut, letting it bang loudly as metal hit metal. Tim spun the handle quickly locking the door in place. The sound of small teeth on bone was stopped by the thick metal door and Tim could hear nothing but silence and the faint subtle hum of a large open space. Turning around Tim took in the surroundings. This room was well lit, in comparison to the rest of the submerged facility. Light beamed in from the slit windows high above. Tim stared as, for just a moment; he caught sight of one of the small rabbits as it hopped up the motionless dirt waterfall and out through one of the slit windows, its dark shadow being cast back through the dusty sunlight just before it disappeared.
Tim gripped his pipe rifle holding it ready. It looked like this place was pretty safe, if any of the little critters were aware of him being there they would probably be charging by now. Slowly Tim walked into the room. The concrete floor felt like marble under his bare foot; cold, perfectly flat and smooth. The room was clearly a large vehicle shop or mechanical bay of some sort. Center piece in the room was what appeared to be a large armored vehicle. Set in rust and half buried at the front end in the dirt and mud that had build up through the open window over the years. Tim pulled back his sleeve and slid open the S.E.I.D. panel. Pressing the button for Sensors and then Radar time glared at the screen. The small clicking noise emanated as the circle expanded, stopping in a slight glow when it hit the walls or various large items scattered around the room.
The main thing was, Tim thought, that nothing was moving. The room seemed completely void of all or any undesirables. Tim wasn’t going to start taking chances though, with the radar unit still functioning Tim began to make his way into the room, using his flash light, still clipped to his chest to examine tables and cabinets for signs of weapons or anything he could use to help him escape. Most of the tables were covered in various mechanical devices or tools, the row of tables and work benches stretched down one side wall of the room until about two thirds of the way down where they stopped to make way for lockers and shelf’s which appeared to be covered and filled with pieces of engines. The last table on the row however was different, it was nearly completely clear of anything at all.
Tim’s torch beam passed over the table and stopped as the glint on torch light on metal bounced into Tim’s eye. A wash of good feelings passed through Tim as he stepped closer and examined the metal glint more closely. It was a very old six round magnum, just sitting there on its own next to a selection of torn and faded paper work in a folder. Tim set his pipe rifle down on the table and picked up the Magnum, looking at it in admiration of the craftsmanship. He flicked the release catch and the magnum’s round magazine slid almost effortlessly out of the side of the gun. Tipping the gun up above the table Tim shook it gently to see if any of the rounds were live.
Six metal shells fell from the open gun chamber and landed in a disorganized pile on the table. Two shells had been fired and were nothing but empty shell cases now but four of the rounds were unfired and looked perfect.
“Point four five caliber, wham-bam thank you mam.” Tim whispered to himself as he flicked away the two spent shells which went spinning off the end of the table.
Picking up the four unused shots Tim Re-Loaded the magnum and gave it one last look. It was a little worn, but it had stood up to time well. Good old stainless steel one, old father time zero. Slipping his new found ‘pop stick’ into the holster his 9mm used to occupy Tim looked at the paper work on the table next to where the gun had been sitting.
Someone had scrawled “User: c0ldst33ltrs4u PW: lolercopter” in pen as a foot note on the inside of the front cover. All the other paper inside the folder was far too faded to make out in this light and probably wasn’t of any relevance anyway. As Tim examined the paper work the SEID let off a worrying ‘ping’.
Tim’s arm darted up to just in front of his face and he examined the radar. There was a contact moving behind him. Tim spun around, scooping up his pipe rifle as he turned. Looking in the direction the SEID had indicated Tim could make out the silhouette of one of the smaller ex-rabbit creatures skittering along just outside of the slit windows high above. The creature passed the farthest window and, presumably, carried on about its business without ever glancing towards Tim. The ping from the SEID unit stopped and was once again replaced with the re-assuring click of the radar pulse.
“No time for sight seeing.” Tim said to him self.
It was a dark reminder of the grim circumstances Tim was in. Looking at the radar screen again Tim noticed that the path they had taken to get into the sub surface base was mapped out. The SEID had kept a record of the corridors and tunnels it had been down and where they were in relevance to Tim’s position now. It appeared that if Tim carried on through the machine bay he could probably come full circle and end up at the armoury from the other side. Also noted on the map was a strange symbol in the room on the wall next to the entrance with a small arrow pointing up. Tim couldn’t make out what it was but it looked like part of a grid of some sort.
Shining his flash light in the direction of the small symbol he realized what it was; a ladder. Following the ladder Tim could see it connected to a metal walkway above, which in turn lead to an opening. The faint glow of sunlight was echoed on the walls of the opening. It could be a way to the surface, but would he be fast enough, with only one boot, to make it out of the long grass? Looking at the other option Tim peered at the large doorway leading out of the mechanics bay on the other side. It was dark and appeared to lead further in to the facility but it did head in the same general direction as the armoury. Tim weighed it up.
Choices:
A: Climb the ladder up leading towards the sunlight, hope to find a way out and make a break for it across the long grass. Risky with only one boot on as Tim can’t run as fast.
(+ 1 Strength + 1 Endurance + 25% Unarmed skill)
B: Head through the Machine shop and try to make it to the armoury. With any luck there will be more ammo for his Magnum and perhaps a new set of boots.
(+ 1 Agility + 1 Perception + 25% Small Guns Skill)
Choice is yours as always. Also here is an update on the character stats so far to help (or perhaps complicate) your decision:
::: Statistics:
Strength: 06
Perception: 07
Endurance: 07
Charisma: 05
Intelligence: 07
Agility: 08
Luck: -10 (Not going to be used, but -10 sounds about right)
Hit Points: 035/040
Melee Damage: 03
Carry Weight: 175 lbs
(Perks are Gifted and High metabolism.)
::: Skills: (As more skills come into use I will add them in).
Small guns: 75%
Big guns: 10%
Energy Weapons: 10%
Unarmed: 60%
mr. pastorius
A Smooth-Skin
B
First of all, this is by far one of the most interesting Fallout-based stories I've seen here. Great storytelling, attention to detail and, what I like the most, a high level of suspense. Apart from occasional typos (which are probably unavoidable considering the amount of coucentration it requires to write one chapter), it's fantastic.
Now, to explain my vote. If Tim tries making a run for it without one boot, he'd probably be too slow to escape without getting overrun by the rabbits. Therefore, to make his survival chances slightly higher, he should head to the armory to get some better equipment, because, frankly, taking on a pack of rabid killer rabbits with a pipe rifle and 13 rounds doesn't sound like a very good idea.
First of all, this is by far one of the most interesting Fallout-based stories I've seen here. Great storytelling, attention to detail and, what I like the most, a high level of suspense. Apart from occasional typos (which are probably unavoidable considering the amount of coucentration it requires to write one chapter), it's fantastic.
Now, to explain my vote. If Tim tries making a run for it without one boot, he'd probably be too slow to escape without getting overrun by the rabbits. Therefore, to make his survival chances slightly higher, he should head to the armory to get some better equipment, because, frankly, taking on a pack of rabid killer rabbits with a pipe rifle and 13 rounds doesn't sound like a very good idea.
Thanks man 
Yeah, hopefully their shouldnt be any more typos in the chapters at least. I am quite dyslexic but I am writing all the chapters in word (good old spell check). I know some of the earlier chapters have typos (very obvious ones too) which is annoying.
Thanks for the vote. I am continually trying to come up with good varied choices for the players. I think this one is pretty varied. Do you run, or do you delv deeper into the labrynth?
Thanks for reading and commenting
Yeah, hopefully their shouldnt be any more typos in the chapters at least. I am quite dyslexic but I am writing all the chapters in word (good old spell check). I know some of the earlier chapters have typos (very obvious ones too) which is annoying.
Thanks for the vote. I am continually trying to come up with good varied choices for the players. I think this one is pretty varied. Do you run, or do you delv deeper into the labrynth?
Thanks for reading and commenting
Definitely B. Thought the Magnum is quite nice, the extra four shots aren't going to be enough to get out, especially with that missing boot.
Welcome back, Tycell! I really missed this story, and I'm glad you're picking it up again. I'm using the same voting mechanic for a Stargate SG-1 story I started writing on another board a few weeks ago, but that one doesn't keep track of stats and skills and the reader votes for the actions of multiple characters. I'm also thinking of making a Fallout story of my own using this method if I ever have time.
It's hard to catch every typo, but the spellcheck does help a lot, as does previewing and proofreading it before submitting it. I just write my posts directly instead of typing them up in Word or something first.
Welcome back, Tycell! I really missed this story, and I'm glad you're picking it up again. I'm using the same voting mechanic for a Stargate SG-1 story I started writing on another board a few weeks ago, but that one doesn't keep track of stats and skills and the reader votes for the actions of multiple characters. I'm also thinking of making a Fallout story of my own using this method if I ever have time.
It's hard to catch every typo, but the spellcheck does help a lot, as does previewing and proofreading it before submitting it. I just write my posts directly instead of typing them up in Word or something first.
Chapter 1: Leaving the Nest, part 15 – ‘Spoilt for choice.’
Tim decided it was a far better option to head for the armoury. Gripping his pipe rifle in hand he walked over to the doorway at the far side of the machine shop and stepped through. Only with one foot first, leaning through the open doorway and looking up the new corridor which presented itself to make sure there was nothing ready to pounce on him on the other side. The heavy metal door was wide open and was bolted back on a small catch; clearly it had been left open since the bombs fell.
Tim stepped through and turned left, his back to the wall. He examined the new corridor as he slowly crept up it. It was nearly identical in appearance to the corridor which he and his team had taken to the generator room. There were several doors lining the right side of the corridor and every so often there was a large sort of hatch doorway that cut broke the corridor up into several sections. Most of these bulkhead doorways were locked open.
Most of the doors on the right were closed but some were ajar and one was even completely missing as time noted. There were large scorch marks around the door and the hinges were twisted and distorted – someone had blasted through this door. But they were either gone or long dead, along with everything else in the base, bar the mutant rabbits. The floor crunched under Tim’s boot and squelched under the bare foot. The flooring was comprised of dust, moss, moisture, rabbit droppings and the odd crunchy crumbly bit where, Tim assumed, someone had been standing when the bombs hit.
The place was nearly completely pitch-black, Tim’s eyes had adjusted to the light but it was still nearly impossible to see outside of the main beam of the flashlight strapped to his chest. Tim was now more so fond of his lost boot than ever, flicking his foot slightly now and again to shake off the mud, moss and shite. This place smelt like one big dry rabbit hutch.
Tim heard a metal hinge creek behind him; he spun around pipe rifle at the ready. One of the small rabbits had spotted him. It made a sort of growling sound for a moment and then broke into a dashing attack, leaping up at Tim. Tim kicked out with his one boot and sent the little critter flying backwards, coming to a rolling stop on the floor. This was enough time for Tim to take aim with the pipe rifle. The small rodent’s eyes fixed on Tim for a moment, and then turned to face each other, actually touching for a moment before being expelled through the back of the rodent’s skull in a wash of blood and matter to the sound of the gunshot.
The shot echoed out in the relatively small corridor, alerting anything with ears to his position. Tim didn’t waste any time, flicking the catch he let the rifle break, the empty 9mm shell being auto ejected leaving a short trail of smoke as it flew off just to his right. With his left hand Tim had already reached down to his belt with his left hand and slid a 9mm round out from the ammo clip on his belt. Tim slid the live round into the broken open barrel of the Pipe Rifle and flicked his wrist. The barrel came up and clicked into place with the butt and cock just in time to be caught in the teeth of another beast.
This one was slightly smaller than the one from the generator room but it was clearly the same mutated creature underneath. The weight of the pouncing monster threw Tim back against a wall, he hadn’t seen it coming. The monsters teeth clamped hard around the barrel which promptly collided with a wall, monster and all. The gun twisted up out of Tim’s hands and went limp in the beast’s jaws; the monster dropped the gun almost immediately which then fell to the floor. The open mouth with all its teeth presented flew at Tim’s face.
Tim grabbed the monster with both hands on its upper and lower jaw, just missing the Teeth with his fingers. The monster flicked its head trying to attack but wasn’t as strong as it had first appeared and Tim had a good grip on it for the time being. It didn’t however still have its front claws which went to town on Tim’s stomach, ripping his suit and putting deep scratches all over his abdomen. Still wrestling the monster with his hands Tim pulled his feet up putting his boot and foot onto the monsters chest and pushed away.
The creature went tumbling backwards rolling onto its arched back. With a flick of its upper body it got its front paws back onto the ground, its lower body soon followed and it was back on all fours. It had already turned its head and upper body back around to its prey. The magnum was already out of the holster; Tim emptied all four rounds into the creatures head while lying on his back, shooting over his exposed foot. Pieces of the monsters head went flying off behind it and just before the last shot was fired it fell to the floor, dead.
Tim froze for a moment, the flashlight still trained on the dead creature, his heart racing and breathing heavy. A thin trail of blood trickled from his stomach down his side and soaked into his vault suit which was still in pretty good condition considering the beaten it had taken moments before. Everything was silent for a moment but then the sound of more critters homing in on the action and getting closer slowly ebbed up. Tim sprung up to his feet, the adrenalin still pumping strong through his veins despite his moments pause.
Grabbing the pipe rifle Tim holstered the now empty Magnum. Pulling the loaded pipe rifle up to his shoulder Tim aimed back down the corridor. He could make out another of the large creatures rushing towards him in the far gloom. Tim squeezed the trigger, the resulting kick of force knocking Tim back hard and no shot left the muzzle. Glancing at the rifle Tim could see the barrel had distorted by the monster ramming it against the wall just moments before. Tim dropped the pipe rifle, turned, and sprinted, like he had never sprinted before. Behind him he could hear the panting of a hungry undesirable hot on his trail.
Tim’s mind was blank, he couldn’t think of a way out of this short of turning and going hand to hand with whatever was behind him. Maybe he would get lucky and there would be a piece of pipe or metal near by he could utilize but even then what if there were more than one of those things behind him? He would be overwhelmed. It was then Tim spotted the open door, illuminated every other half second as the bouncing flashlight on his chest knocked from side to side. Tim saw his opportunity and took it, diving into the open door way Tim grabbed the door and slammed it shut, spinning the wheel which moved with keen inertia to the flex of his adrenalin flooded arm. The door locked shut; a heavy thud soon knocked it as the creature or creatures outside it pounded on the door hoping it would open.
The door held strong, its heavy metal build resisting the paws, nails and teeth of whatever it was on the other side. Tim turned and leant against the door still breathing heavily. After a very quick glance forward to make sure he was safe he shut his eyes and let his head fall back onto the door, after a moments pause he picked his head once again.
“Jesu… Fuc… Chri…” He half panted.
Tim looked around the room he was in a little closer. Intrigued by the dark shapes in the gloom outside of the flashlight beam he raised up one hand and aimed the beam more precisely around the dark room. The room was about six meters deep and four wide. At the opposite end was another, slightly larger, metal door with a heavy locking system in place. Tim’s eyes lit up as he read the words “ARMOURY” in cracked paint above the large door. Rushing over Tim searched the door for a handle or wheel. The only handle was a large bar which served as a gripping point above a small electronic screen which had ‘Locked’ and ‘Unlocked’ in red and green panels which presumably lit up if the power was on.
“Right behind this door, it’s RIGHT BEHIND this door!”
Tim beat his hand on the door and looked around the room for something to pry the door open with. It wasn’t very likely, the door could easily be a foot thick of solid steel but Tim had to try. Scanning the rest of the room Tim noted a desk on the right of the room and shelves and lockers on the right. Tim went over to the lockers, there were five in total all lined up side to side. Opening the first one Tim could see nothing but a few books and a faded worn picture of a woman – probably the guy’s wife stuck on the inside of the door. Tim opened the next one, much of the same, nothing of value.
The third locker however proved invaluable. Inside on the floor were a set of boots and hanging from the pole mid center of the lockers was a thick leather jacket. Tim grabbed the boots and compared them to his feet – they would fit! Tim untapped his Vault Issue boot and cast it aside, using some long faded paper work that was lying on the desk while sitting on the chair he cleaned off his bare foot and slipped on the new set of socks and boots. They were “M4gnum Leather Military Combat Boots” according to the label. They were a snug fit and much more durable than the vault issue boots.
The leather jacket was perfect; heavy and thick. Slipping it on Tim threw down the now useless rifle back mounted holster. This jacket would help soften the enemy blows, at least until he found something better. Tim opened up the other lockers but they didn’t seem to have anything of value in them. Opening one of the desk draws Tim felt that small crack of hope widen into a fissure. Lying there, resting on the thin plywood was a Magnum Auto Loader and a box of .45 magnum rounds.
Tim quickly collected all of it in his hands. The box had 23 shells left in it and the auto loader was a perfect fit for his Magnum. Tim loaded up the Magnum with fresh shells and filled the auto loader. Holstering it and holding the now empty .45 box in his teeth, having poured the rest of the bullets into the zip-able jacket pocket, Tim glanced over to the shelf quickly to see if there was anything of interest. Tim’s head pulled back to the magnum and then shot back at the shelf, the box dropping from between his teeth a second or so after his head came to a rest.
Sitting on the shelf was not only an over shoulder chest resting ammo strip of 12 gauge shotgun shells, fully loaded but a full length double barrel shotgun already fitted into a sort of side mounted webbing which clipped onto the chest resting ammo belt to be held at the front over the stomach. Stepping forward and laying his hands on the shotgun Tim noticed another little trinket.
Two rifles were neatly stacked next to each other under a piece of cloth. Pulling off the cloth Tim could make out what appeared to be an Assault Rifle and an FN FAL. Both good weapons for situations like this, however Tim only had the one rifle holster and he was weighed down enough as it was with the shotgun, magnum and ammo belt. Tim had to choose which one to take. Both weapons had two spare magazines sitting next to them.
Choice time (this one might cause some discussion).
A: Take the Assault Rifle. Good at medium to short range, also has a short burst capability. Good for close encounters or dicey fire fights.
B: Take the FN FAL. Accurate at long range, Semi-Auto capabilities, this one is slightly broken so it can’t go Full Auto. Good for long range targets or providing support or sniper fire.
Keep in mind: Tim already has the shotgun for close quarters, but you can never have too much close quarter’s fire power. This is a close quarters setting, but Tim wont be down in the bunker forever. Both weapons can be modified (and will be, at a later date) but you can only pick one. Tim CANNOT come back for the other. I hope to get some good discussion going with this one. Let the voting commence!
Stats update:
::: Statistics:
Strength: 06
Perception: 08
Endurance: 07
Charisma: 05
Intelligence: 07
Agility: 09
Luck: -10 (Not going to be used, but -10 sounds about right)
Hit Points: 027/040
Melee Damage: 03
Carry Weight: 175 lbs
(Perks are Gifted and High metabolism.)
::: Skills: (As more skills come into use I will add them in).
Small guns: 100%
Big guns: 10%
Energy Weapons: 10%
Unarmed: 60%
Tim decided it was a far better option to head for the armoury. Gripping his pipe rifle in hand he walked over to the doorway at the far side of the machine shop and stepped through. Only with one foot first, leaning through the open doorway and looking up the new corridor which presented itself to make sure there was nothing ready to pounce on him on the other side. The heavy metal door was wide open and was bolted back on a small catch; clearly it had been left open since the bombs fell.
Tim stepped through and turned left, his back to the wall. He examined the new corridor as he slowly crept up it. It was nearly identical in appearance to the corridor which he and his team had taken to the generator room. There were several doors lining the right side of the corridor and every so often there was a large sort of hatch doorway that cut broke the corridor up into several sections. Most of these bulkhead doorways were locked open.
Most of the doors on the right were closed but some were ajar and one was even completely missing as time noted. There were large scorch marks around the door and the hinges were twisted and distorted – someone had blasted through this door. But they were either gone or long dead, along with everything else in the base, bar the mutant rabbits. The floor crunched under Tim’s boot and squelched under the bare foot. The flooring was comprised of dust, moss, moisture, rabbit droppings and the odd crunchy crumbly bit where, Tim assumed, someone had been standing when the bombs hit.
The place was nearly completely pitch-black, Tim’s eyes had adjusted to the light but it was still nearly impossible to see outside of the main beam of the flashlight strapped to his chest. Tim was now more so fond of his lost boot than ever, flicking his foot slightly now and again to shake off the mud, moss and shite. This place smelt like one big dry rabbit hutch.
Tim heard a metal hinge creek behind him; he spun around pipe rifle at the ready. One of the small rabbits had spotted him. It made a sort of growling sound for a moment and then broke into a dashing attack, leaping up at Tim. Tim kicked out with his one boot and sent the little critter flying backwards, coming to a rolling stop on the floor. This was enough time for Tim to take aim with the pipe rifle. The small rodent’s eyes fixed on Tim for a moment, and then turned to face each other, actually touching for a moment before being expelled through the back of the rodent’s skull in a wash of blood and matter to the sound of the gunshot.
The shot echoed out in the relatively small corridor, alerting anything with ears to his position. Tim didn’t waste any time, flicking the catch he let the rifle break, the empty 9mm shell being auto ejected leaving a short trail of smoke as it flew off just to his right. With his left hand Tim had already reached down to his belt with his left hand and slid a 9mm round out from the ammo clip on his belt. Tim slid the live round into the broken open barrel of the Pipe Rifle and flicked his wrist. The barrel came up and clicked into place with the butt and cock just in time to be caught in the teeth of another beast.
This one was slightly smaller than the one from the generator room but it was clearly the same mutated creature underneath. The weight of the pouncing monster threw Tim back against a wall, he hadn’t seen it coming. The monsters teeth clamped hard around the barrel which promptly collided with a wall, monster and all. The gun twisted up out of Tim’s hands and went limp in the beast’s jaws; the monster dropped the gun almost immediately which then fell to the floor. The open mouth with all its teeth presented flew at Tim’s face.
Tim grabbed the monster with both hands on its upper and lower jaw, just missing the Teeth with his fingers. The monster flicked its head trying to attack but wasn’t as strong as it had first appeared and Tim had a good grip on it for the time being. It didn’t however still have its front claws which went to town on Tim’s stomach, ripping his suit and putting deep scratches all over his abdomen. Still wrestling the monster with his hands Tim pulled his feet up putting his boot and foot onto the monsters chest and pushed away.
The creature went tumbling backwards rolling onto its arched back. With a flick of its upper body it got its front paws back onto the ground, its lower body soon followed and it was back on all fours. It had already turned its head and upper body back around to its prey. The magnum was already out of the holster; Tim emptied all four rounds into the creatures head while lying on his back, shooting over his exposed foot. Pieces of the monsters head went flying off behind it and just before the last shot was fired it fell to the floor, dead.
Tim froze for a moment, the flashlight still trained on the dead creature, his heart racing and breathing heavy. A thin trail of blood trickled from his stomach down his side and soaked into his vault suit which was still in pretty good condition considering the beaten it had taken moments before. Everything was silent for a moment but then the sound of more critters homing in on the action and getting closer slowly ebbed up. Tim sprung up to his feet, the adrenalin still pumping strong through his veins despite his moments pause.
Grabbing the pipe rifle Tim holstered the now empty Magnum. Pulling the loaded pipe rifle up to his shoulder Tim aimed back down the corridor. He could make out another of the large creatures rushing towards him in the far gloom. Tim squeezed the trigger, the resulting kick of force knocking Tim back hard and no shot left the muzzle. Glancing at the rifle Tim could see the barrel had distorted by the monster ramming it against the wall just moments before. Tim dropped the pipe rifle, turned, and sprinted, like he had never sprinted before. Behind him he could hear the panting of a hungry undesirable hot on his trail.
Tim’s mind was blank, he couldn’t think of a way out of this short of turning and going hand to hand with whatever was behind him. Maybe he would get lucky and there would be a piece of pipe or metal near by he could utilize but even then what if there were more than one of those things behind him? He would be overwhelmed. It was then Tim spotted the open door, illuminated every other half second as the bouncing flashlight on his chest knocked from side to side. Tim saw his opportunity and took it, diving into the open door way Tim grabbed the door and slammed it shut, spinning the wheel which moved with keen inertia to the flex of his adrenalin flooded arm. The door locked shut; a heavy thud soon knocked it as the creature or creatures outside it pounded on the door hoping it would open.
The door held strong, its heavy metal build resisting the paws, nails and teeth of whatever it was on the other side. Tim turned and leant against the door still breathing heavily. After a very quick glance forward to make sure he was safe he shut his eyes and let his head fall back onto the door, after a moments pause he picked his head once again.
“Jesu… Fuc… Chri…” He half panted.
Tim looked around the room he was in a little closer. Intrigued by the dark shapes in the gloom outside of the flashlight beam he raised up one hand and aimed the beam more precisely around the dark room. The room was about six meters deep and four wide. At the opposite end was another, slightly larger, metal door with a heavy locking system in place. Tim’s eyes lit up as he read the words “ARMOURY” in cracked paint above the large door. Rushing over Tim searched the door for a handle or wheel. The only handle was a large bar which served as a gripping point above a small electronic screen which had ‘Locked’ and ‘Unlocked’ in red and green panels which presumably lit up if the power was on.
“Right behind this door, it’s RIGHT BEHIND this door!”
Tim beat his hand on the door and looked around the room for something to pry the door open with. It wasn’t very likely, the door could easily be a foot thick of solid steel but Tim had to try. Scanning the rest of the room Tim noted a desk on the right of the room and shelves and lockers on the right. Tim went over to the lockers, there were five in total all lined up side to side. Opening the first one Tim could see nothing but a few books and a faded worn picture of a woman – probably the guy’s wife stuck on the inside of the door. Tim opened the next one, much of the same, nothing of value.
The third locker however proved invaluable. Inside on the floor were a set of boots and hanging from the pole mid center of the lockers was a thick leather jacket. Tim grabbed the boots and compared them to his feet – they would fit! Tim untapped his Vault Issue boot and cast it aside, using some long faded paper work that was lying on the desk while sitting on the chair he cleaned off his bare foot and slipped on the new set of socks and boots. They were “M4gnum Leather Military Combat Boots” according to the label. They were a snug fit and much more durable than the vault issue boots.
The leather jacket was perfect; heavy and thick. Slipping it on Tim threw down the now useless rifle back mounted holster. This jacket would help soften the enemy blows, at least until he found something better. Tim opened up the other lockers but they didn’t seem to have anything of value in them. Opening one of the desk draws Tim felt that small crack of hope widen into a fissure. Lying there, resting on the thin plywood was a Magnum Auto Loader and a box of .45 magnum rounds.
Tim quickly collected all of it in his hands. The box had 23 shells left in it and the auto loader was a perfect fit for his Magnum. Tim loaded up the Magnum with fresh shells and filled the auto loader. Holstering it and holding the now empty .45 box in his teeth, having poured the rest of the bullets into the zip-able jacket pocket, Tim glanced over to the shelf quickly to see if there was anything of interest. Tim’s head pulled back to the magnum and then shot back at the shelf, the box dropping from between his teeth a second or so after his head came to a rest.
Sitting on the shelf was not only an over shoulder chest resting ammo strip of 12 gauge shotgun shells, fully loaded but a full length double barrel shotgun already fitted into a sort of side mounted webbing which clipped onto the chest resting ammo belt to be held at the front over the stomach. Stepping forward and laying his hands on the shotgun Tim noticed another little trinket.
Two rifles were neatly stacked next to each other under a piece of cloth. Pulling off the cloth Tim could make out what appeared to be an Assault Rifle and an FN FAL. Both good weapons for situations like this, however Tim only had the one rifle holster and he was weighed down enough as it was with the shotgun, magnum and ammo belt. Tim had to choose which one to take. Both weapons had two spare magazines sitting next to them.
Choice time (this one might cause some discussion).
A: Take the Assault Rifle. Good at medium to short range, also has a short burst capability. Good for close encounters or dicey fire fights.
B: Take the FN FAL. Accurate at long range, Semi-Auto capabilities, this one is slightly broken so it can’t go Full Auto. Good for long range targets or providing support or sniper fire.
Keep in mind: Tim already has the shotgun for close quarters, but you can never have too much close quarter’s fire power. This is a close quarters setting, but Tim wont be down in the bunker forever. Both weapons can be modified (and will be, at a later date) but you can only pick one. Tim CANNOT come back for the other. I hope to get some good discussion going with this one. Let the voting commence!
Stats update:
::: Statistics:
Strength: 06
Perception: 08
Endurance: 07
Charisma: 05
Intelligence: 07
Agility: 09
Luck: -10 (Not going to be used, but -10 sounds about right)
Hit Points: 027/040
Melee Damage: 03
Carry Weight: 175 lbs
(Perks are Gifted and High metabolism.)
::: Skills: (As more skills come into use I will add them in).
Small guns: 100%
Big guns: 10%
Energy Weapons: 10%
Unarmed: 60%
mr. pastorius
A Smooth-Skin
B.
The FN FAL makes a more reasonable choice since he already has the shotgun and the .45, two weapons most effective at close range.
Once again, a great chapter.
The FN FAL makes a more reasonable choice since he already has the shotgun and the .45, two weapons most effective at close range.
Once again, a great chapter.
Thanks.
I am hoping that the choice of weapons will promtp a little more discussion, perhaps even heated. Although I suppose the story is a little biased (I write the story already knowing which choice I would pick).
Keep in mind this FN FAL does NOT have full-Auto or burst fire capabilities.
I am hoping that the choice of weapons will promtp a little more discussion, perhaps even heated. Although I suppose the story is a little biased (I write the story already knowing which choice I would pick).
Keep in mind this FN FAL does NOT have full-Auto or burst fire capabilities.
B is my choice. The FN FAL is in general superior, and makes the better long-term choice. It can only fire single shots right now, but it can be repaired later. The Magnum and the shotgun are good enough at close range. The FN FAL is accurate at long range, unlike the Assault Rifle (presumably our old friend the AK-112), which I'm sure will be vital later on.
The Vault Dweller
always looking for water.
Thank God your back! I missed you and the story...I was worried you had died and also that I'd never read the story again.
You're continuing it so well just as much as before. I'm also hoping you'll be active all around the forums as before too.
A
Sure the Fal is better and long range and its something he has none of, but its only single shot. A good mid-range weapon with burst can hit a long range target using a burst though its somewhat of a waste of ammo.
Sincerely,
The Vault Dweller
You're continuing it so well just as much as before. I'm also hoping you'll be active all around the forums as before too.
A
Sure the Fal is better and long range and its something he has none of, but its only single shot. A good mid-range weapon with burst can hit a long range target using a burst though its somewhat of a waste of ammo.
Sincerely,
The Vault Dweller
Looks like its a tie breaker situation. After thinking it over and over I have decided to pick A. I was sort of planning to pick B if it came to it when I wrote the chapter, but on second thoughts I think realistically somone would deffinatly pick a full auto weapon, and one that wasnt broken.
So in conclusion;
A - 2 votes
B - 2 votes
My tie breaker: A.
A is the winner, writing up the next chapter now.
Nice to see you again Vault Dweller
So in conclusion;
A - 2 votes
B - 2 votes
My tie breaker: A.
A is the winner, writing up the next chapter now.
Nice to see you again Vault Dweller