Fallout: (Nuclear)Winter Is Coming

The entire drive to the raid, I had seen what Boston looked like before the bombs dropped. The city was full of life, with people bustling about. I couldnt wait to be free and explore the place.

I dont know how much from the game is different from this new reality I find myself in. But I could already tell the size of the city was much bigger than what was seen in game. Four times bigger it seemed.

I didnt have a photographic memory of every place in the game but there were many buildings that felt like they were new to me.

My memories from my life before I regained my past life's memories were still fragmented and alot of the little details I had learned about this city had slipped through the cracks.

I noticed many familiar places, and many details that could never be seen in the game.

I kept an outward facade, but internally I was more excited than a schoolboy who happened to see his classmate's panties.

As the law enforcement vehicles surrounded the sandwich shop and the police took thier positions, shots rang out from within, bursting the windows.

"RETURN FIRE!"

*POP*POP*POP*...

The sounds of gunfire exchange started so fast I could barely process it.

*crash*

The window next to me shattered from a stray bullet.

"Fuck!" I yelled as I got down, tucking myself between the seats so get as much cover as I could.

Nick was behind his car and returning fire alongside the other officers while I was cowering for my life.

"That bastard brought me here to get me killed, didnt he?!"

I didnt know if that was true but I felt fury at the suspicion.

The difference between synth Nick Valentine and human Nick Valentine were starting to be as clear as night and day.

The human Nick was more consumed by vengeance. While synth Nick only inherited a ghost of that anger and was much more pragmatic.

"Once I'm out of here I'll be able to outlive you Nick. Enjoy the apocalypse you heartless bastard!" My sympathy for the guy had already popped like a soap bubble. After all he had only looked at me with distain and may or may not have tried to get me killed.

The shots died down a few minutes after they started. I could hear the pained groans of a few cops who took a bullet.

I picked myself up and slowly snuck a peak, my hands still cuffed behind my back.

"Move in!" I heard someone shout and I watched at officers wearing tactical gear entered the shop.

I could see from here the carnage that was left in the wake of gunfire.

A dead gangster was bent over a broken window and several others fallen over tables and chairs. Their bodies leaking blood like pasta strainers.

Following the tactical team, the other officers and Nick entered the building, leaving only half of their total force outside to keep civilians from crossing their line and endangering themselves.

No thoughts of me it seems. I'm still sitting in a bullet riddled vehicle with my hands cuffed and a new trauma.

The intrusive thought of trying to make a break for it and escape had crossed my mind, but I remembered my deal and still had hope Nick would at least keep his word after this.

So I waited.

I soon heard faint gunfire coming from inside the shop and the sounds of men yelling in between.

But soon even that quieted down and the first thing I saw was Nick Valentine, pushing a bloodied Eddie Winter out of the building.

It looked like Eddie got into a shootout and only surrendered after getting shot in leg and shoulder.

He was hobbling and barely able to walk but Nick pushed him forward without care and with a faint but vicious smirk.

As I watched as Nick looked to be saying something to Eddie and then pointed in my direction.

Eddie's head snapped and zeroed in on me. His face contorted into a frightening appearance and he looked like he wanted to break free and murder me.

I met his eyes and wished I could flip him off at that moment. If only to throw salt on him and maybe earn a few points from Nick so he doesnt hate me so much.

Eddie was pushed into a squad car and Nick slammed the door with a flourish.

He made his way back over to his car and came over to my door and opened it.

"Looks like you had a close call..." he said passively before reaching into his pocket and grabbing a key.

"I'm a man of my word, turn around."

I was surprised it was happening here, but I quickly turned my back so Nick could release the cuffs.

*clink*

The cuffs came off and my wrists felt liberated.

"So... just like that? I'm free to go?" I asked just to make sure.

"Get out of here kid. You can go, but if I hear about you being involved in any more crimes, I'll lock you up in the same cell as your uncle."

He said and I wasnt even going to ask if he was joking.

I got out of the car and stretched my limbs. I wasn't sure where I would go from here but at least now I had options. My priority was my vault first though.

Nick got back into his car and gave me one last glance before leaving the scene.

There were still officers and paramedics there but no real reason to stick around.

Eddie Winter got taken down and his men were either already arrested or dead.

"I really love when a story has a happy ending..." I said to myself before walking away.

Things had been rough but I made it out in one piece. Nearly getting my head blown off was freaking scary though.

Just one stray bullet could have ended my life if it had been a few centimeters off its trajectory.

I tried not thinking about it too much. What was important is that after I was freed, my quest had completed.

*ding*

[Get Out Of Jail Free: You're in jail, but you want out. Help Nick Valentine bring Eddie Winter to justice to attain your freedom.

Reward: 1000xp, 1000 caps, Personal Vault Shelter.]

[+1000xp]

[+1000 caps]

[You recieved your Personal Vault Shelter.]

I opened my menu and saw I had four level ups to use, and there was now an option to place the Vault Shelter Entrance.

I was currently on the south west side of Boston and I had already thought of where I was going to place my vault.

Nick had handed me back my wallet before he left, and inside were a few bills of pre-war money.

'I have five hundred dollars, but with the economy in the state it is in, that's not a lot of spending power...'

I walked north through Boston and passed by a baseball stadium. The place that would become Diamond City in the future.

I found a bus stop for a bus that would take me where I wanted to go and I sat and waited about twenty minutes before the bus arrived.

The bus took me north and the drive lasted about an hour before I got off at a stop in Concord.

The place was much nicer than its future counterpart. It was a small town but had a huge museum dedicated to the Revolutionary War. It was also the place that the Sole Survivor would encounter Preston Garvey and The Minutemen.

I didnt come here to feel nostalgic though and kept walking north from Concord.

Up the winding road, past the Red Rocket gas station, I saw a bridge and a sign at the other side that read Santuary Hills.

But it was starting to get late so I didnt go there, as much as I wanted to meet the protagonists, I had other things to do.

I went west of Santuary Hills through the woods until I found the utility road that the power lines were at and eventually found the spot where I planned to place my vault.

This was near the forest ranger cabin that is west of Santuary. The reason I came here was not just its proximity to Vault 111 and Santuary, but because this was a place that I knew would remain relatively untouched even after two hundred years.

It's also supposed to be a low level area that at worst had raiders and molerats.

The Ranger Cabin was only 100 yards away from where I chose.

"Alright let's see how this works..." I mentally operated the menu and selected the Vault Shelter.

A green outline of a metal hatch in concrete appeared in my vision and I could move it with my eyesight.

"So cool! Will I be able to use the build menu?" I didnt think I could but it was fun to think about.

I placed the hatch down and heard a thud before quiet returned to the area.

Now before me was the hatch I placed.

I crossed my fingers and approached the hatch. I took a deep breath out of anxiousness and opened it slowly...