An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
Written for @falloutober, using the 2021 Day 2 prompt. Diane belongs to @dannyburke; Donna belongs to @alaatus; Harrison belongs to @ventruee.
gen | 331 words
A handful of dwellers from Vault 76 encounter a few too many super mutants than they can handle.
The trailer park near Huntersville was a bust. Every house was littered with holes: in the floors, walls, ceilings. They did find one safe, its lock picked easily by Diane, but it was empty save for stacks of pre-war cash. As much as the four of them got stars in their eyes when they saw thousands of dollars just lying there, it didn't matter in the world they lived in now. Their childish pre-war pocket change was replaced by jangling bags of bottle caps in their packs.
Harrison was on lookout, sitting on top of one of the trailers. It was the most intact of the houses, its holes smaller than a person could fit through. He swayed his legs, heels hitting the metal with a clang every time he swung them. Squinting against the midday sun, he saw large, shambling figures coming over a crest in the near distance.
"Mutants," he hissed to his friends, sliding off the side and landing with a crunch of gravel under his boots.
Aurora was the first to scramble into the trailer, fear rattling her bones as soon as she caught sight of them. They didn't seem to notice the four humans yet, but there were five of them—too many for them to handle right now. Cold sweat broke out over her back, and she ushered the other three inside, her sniper rifle tossed onto the ratty couch.
Donna was the strongest, so she pushed a dresser in front of the door, bracing her back against it in a squat. The others ducked below windows, flatting themselves against walls, hands covering their mouths. Silence and stillness settled over them as they waited, hearing mutants enter the little trailer park with grunts and shouts they could hardly understand.
Can they smell us? Aurora wondered, tears stinging her eyes. She could barely kill a mole rat without squealing. The hour that passed before they could safely leave the trailer was almost more than she could handle.
