Fallout Origins: Chapter 3

Fallout Origins: Chapter 3, An Old Friend
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Town of Brenwood, United States, April 18 2083

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“B-Bentley you're ok!” Nick sniffled and wiped away a tear, he slowly stood up and gave a weak smile, he was so relieved that he wasn’t the only one left in Brenwood.


“Of course I’m ok sir, it’s going to take a lot more then a nuclear explosion to take down this old bot, may I ask what you are doing out here by yourself?” Bentley asked curiously. Bentley was the towns official Mr. Handy service bot, he often went around town helping everyone he could with pretty much anything they needed help with.


Nick sniffled then wiped his nose with the back of his right hand “T-The bunker ran out of food and…w-when I came out of the bunker everyone was…gone…”


“Where are your parents sir?” Bentley asked unsurely.


Nick sniffled a second time and it took all the willpower he had not to cry again “I-I couldn’t find my mom and my dad he’s…he starved to death”


“Mr Johnson is…gone…I am…so sorry for your loss sir” even though Bentley was, as the townspeople called him, a robot, he was programmed with personalities and emotions that were very similar to a human. “He was a good man…are you going to be ok sir?” Bentley asked in a worried tone.


Nick let a shaky sigh before responding “I-I think s-“ before he could finish his sentence his stomach growled really loudly.


“Either there is a bear nearby or that was your tummy growling sir” Bentley said somewhat jokingly.


“I…I haven’t eaten anything today besides a can of beans, I-I looked inside some of the stores and the food was rotten…I'm so hungry” Nick lowered his head and sighed.


“Don’t worry Mr. Johnson, I’m sure we’ll find some food somewhere around here, tell me, did you try looking for food at the Super Duper Market?”


“Um…n-no” Nick chuckled nervously and his face went slightly red from embarrassment.


“The fact that you didn’t think to go there boggles my mind, well if there’s any place in Brenwood that’s gonna have food it is definitely the Super Duper Mart'' Even under the circumstances Bentley’s voice and tone came out chipper and happy go lucky, everyone in town believed he was programmed that way. “Follow me sir, we need to get you fed before that tummy of yours turns into an angry beast”


Nick nodded and walked beside Bently, the one thing Nick liked the most about Bentley was how he would always move at the same pace as the person he was wandering with.


After about ten minutes of walking they finally reached their destination “Ah here we are, the Super Duper Market, the best value for the best prices…well I suppose that statement doesn’t exactly work anymore, follow me sir, oh and do mind the broken glass”


Nick nodded and did as he was told, he very carefully made his way through the broken window of the automatic sliding door, just barely avoiding the shards of glass that were still attached to it, the shards that laid on the ground crunched and shattered below his feet, the sound made him wince and shiver, once he was through he gave a sigh of relief then continued following Bentley.


As they made their through the entrance and tills Nick couldn’t help but look around “I haven’t been in this place in years, it looks so different”


“Indeed it does, but so does every other building in this town” Bentley said jokingly. “I do recall the days I used to offer my services here and if my memory does serve me well…hmmm…I believe it was isle fourteen, no seventeen…or was it twelve” Bentley stopped for a moment and didn’t move, he just hovered in the air, after a few seconds Nick started to get worried


“Um…Bentley, are you ok?” Nick slowly reached his right hand out towards the Service Bot, his hand shook nervously.


“I'VE GOT IT!”


Nick quickly pulled his hand back and nearly jumped when Bentley shouted and started functioning like normal again “ISLE NINETEEN, YES, I KNEW MY MEMORY WOULDN'T FAIL ME!” Bentley then remembered he wasn’t alone, he quickly looked at Nick who was still in shock “my apologies sir” he said apologetically, Nick didn’t respond, his heart was still racing from the unexpected scare he had just gotten.


“Follow me” Bentley demanded politely then started moving through the building, he counted the numbers on the isles as he went “seventeen, eighteen, nineteen, Ah here we are”


“Are you sure this is the one?” Nick asked while slowly catching up to him.


“Oh I’m certain sir, if my memory serves me right it should be at the end of the aisle and on the left” they made their way down the aisle and once they got to the end of it they finally found what they were looking for “Aha, I was right!” Bentley grabbed a can from the top shelf and handed it to Nick “Here you go sir, one can of Cram, don’t eat it all in one day or you’ll get a tummy ache”


“Thanks Bentley” Nick was about to open the cram, until he heard what sounded like containers falling “what was that?” He asked nervously while staring looking around in every direction.


“Maybe it would be best if you waited till you got home before you ate your super Mr Johnson” Bentley said while looking towards the back area of the building.


Nick nodded while holding the can of cram close to his chest “Y-Yeah, that sounds like a great idea”


Bentley, without saying anything quickly made his way back through the store with Nick quickly trailing behind him, once they were both outside they felt more calmer and safe, but they didn’t want to spend another minute near the store, so they decided to start heading back, none of them said a word as they walked towards home, that was until Nick let out a very sad sounding sigh.


“Are you alright sir?” Bentley asked worriedly.


“No…the town is destroyed, everyone is gone and…you're all I have left” Nick sniffled and wiped away a tear.


“I…I know how you feel sir, but…as dim and gloomy as things may seem the only way we can make it through this is to have a positive attitude, so…let’s just try and make the most of it shall we”


Nick sighed and took a deep breath “Y-Yeah, I guess you're right, I mean…at least we’re still alive and…at least we have each other, I don’t know what I would do withou- Oh my god what is that thing?!” Nick shouted, then quickly hid behind Bentley, about ten feet away from them, a very strange looking creature was digging a big hole in someone’s yard, it looked like a mix between a badger and a mole, it was about the size of a young child and had large buck teeth.


“That Mr. Johnson is a Mole Rat, they are completely harmless but they can be huge pests if you ask me” Bentley said in a disgusted tone.


“A what? H-How come I’ve never heard of them?” Nick asked confused.


“It would seem the radiation from the bombs have mutated our wildlife, and believe me it’s for the worse” the creature hissed at Bentley then quickly scurried away “Mother Nature sure can be cruel when she wants to”


Nick shivered and gagged at the sight of the creature, it was as of today the most ugliest creature he had ever saw, “I hope I never have to see that thing again”


“I hope so too sir, now let’s get you home and fed”


Once they finally made it back home Bentley didn’t waste any time and quickly got to work prepping Nick’s dinner, he grabbed a burnt cracked plate from the cupboard then opened a drawer that was below the sink and took out a rusty table knife, after that he made his way to the table and set the plate and knife down.


While Bentley was preparing, Nick had opened the can, he held it over the plate and dumped the cram onto it, Bentley carefully began cutting the cram into thin strips, once he had all the slices cut he put down the knife and gently slid the plate in front of Nick “Buon appetito”


Nick picked up a piece of cram and slowly started chewing on it, Bently couldn’t help but sigh as he watched Nick eat “I know this isn’t a very luxurious dinner sir but given the circumstances-“


“It’s fine Bentley, it’s not your fault” Nick gave a slight smile, but his smile quickly turned into a frown, he sighed through his nose and placed his half eaten cram back onto his plate “Bentley…” Nick was quiet for a moment, but after swallowing hard and letting out a shallow sigh he looked up from the plate and said “c-can you…” he took a deep breath and sniffled “can you help me bury my dad?”


Bentley was quiet for a moment before responding “Of course sir”


(38 minutes later)


Nick let out a loud sigh as he dumped the last bit of dirt onto his fathers grave, a part of him felt like like dropping to his knees and crying until his eyes were dry, but another part felt happy that he had finally buried his father, he felt happy that the sleeping his father slept in was no longer his final resting place.


“Bentley”


“Yes sir?”


“W-Would you mind saying a few words?”


“Of course sir” Bentley made a sound that was similar to a person clearing their throat “Mr Johnson was…one of the nicest gentleman I’ve had the pleasure of meeting, and he was also a good friend to have, even though he is no longer with us he will always be remembered and loved, we may never forget him but we can cherish the memories we shared with him and never stop loving him, we will all miss you Mr Johnson and may you rest in peace, amen…Are you ok sir?”


Nick sniffled, wiped away a tear and stared at his fathers grave, he then sighed shakily “…I’ll never be ok” he then turned around and slowly made his way back towards the house.


Bentley watched Nick walk towards the house and once he entered it Bentley turned back towards Tom’s grave then looked towards the sky “I promise you sir, no matter what happens…I will never let anything happen to your son”