We pan through various halls of gleaming metal with large open doors on either side showcasing small abodes adorned with royal blue and gold furnishings. Through to the atrium where people in Vault-Tec jumpsuits, the number 98 proudly stitched on their backs, happily put up a banner stating "Welcome" with balloons on either side as others set up picnic tables along the artificial grass. We glide up the stairs down a final long, winding hallway; passing the lock doors with the lit signs reading "Security" and "Reactor" until we come into a large office full of people.

Smoke stains the air as the men and women chatter amongst one another, drinks and cigarettes in hand. From a large oval desk; a man lets out a sharp sigh as he finishes typing at the computer and stands adjusting his rectangular glasses and clearing his throat, walking into the center of the room past the large windows of thick glass overlooking the atrium. Steeling himself with a sip of whisky he raises his glass and taps on it with a pen from his breast pocket to grab the attention of the onlookers and the chatter dies down.

“Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for joining me here for the preview of Vault-Tec’s newest environment proudly created in association with RobCo and General Atomics.” The man ushers a palm over to the respective gentlemen who raise their drinks in acknowledgement. “Now, our fantastic partners at RobCo have been unfairly besmirched due to their line of recreational holotapes; alleged reports of temporary blindness, epileptic seizures and full-body muscular stiffness! And we at Vault-Tec say these claims are not only false but very offensive to the hard-working and deeply caring board members!” The gangly middle management type bows his head in respect as the boar of a man beside him chomps his cigar and gives a hardy clap in support along with his colleagues and cohorts. “And our good friends at General Atomics gave no hesitation in their support as they worked tirelessly with our best minds to create what you are about to see here today!”

The man finishes his drink, placing the empty glass aside before brushing the lapels of his lab coat and signals to a rectangular blue and gold curtain attached to the wall brandishing the Vault-Tec logo behind the desk. He makes his way over whilst talking to the crowd.

“Us three have worked in tandem to create the most unique and spectacular vault to date. To prove the waves of doting mothers that recreational holotapes do NOT negatively impact the lives of our children but in fact improve them! I am proud to unveil our overseer of Vault 98; General Atomics Matrix Enabled for Gaming Interfaces in Recreational Logistics-”

We go briefly behind the curtain. The low hum of a computer's fan whirring as we see light piercing through the blue fabric; barely making out the face of the man in the lab coat as his hand draws near and snatches the curtain away revealing bright lights and a gasping crowd.

“-AKA G.A.M.E G.I.R.L!”

The man stands proudly beside a large monitor bearing an ASCII art face which smiles brightly as the eyes look around the room at each person. O‿O

"Say hello, Game Girl!"

The words "H0WDY CAMPERS :)" appear on screen letter by letter. The man gives a chuckle.

“Game Girl here was crafted from scratch by General Atomics and personalized by the brainiacs at RobCo and passed several tests and failsafes at Vault-Tec to be the most expensive, top of the line, self-learning artificial intelligence America has ever seen. Plus!”

The man hits a switch and Game Girl’s face fuzzes to two lines pinging a dot back and forth. ٩(•̤̀ᵕ•̤́๑)


“She's capable of producing mind-boggling graphics for home entertainment.”

A round of applause goes through the room until one of the suits raises a hand.

“That's all well and good but you say this machine will be running the vault? How?”

The game shifts back to the smiling face as the man in the lab coat points a finger back with a smirk. ♫꒰･‿･๑꒱

“Great question. Game Girl here has full control over every detail of the vault and the main mission is entertainment! How can recreational holotapes be dangerous to the youth of America if one of them is handling every desire you need! She's the cure to boredom! The handyman in the walls! And the unseen, unsung protector.”

We go back to the view from the monitor as the man spouts endless buzz words drowned out by the constant hum behind the screen. Game Girl's eyes fixate on small details in the room, ID badges, the same suit copied and pasted over and over again. The plastic smiles of the nodding onlookers. How coasters and napkins have been placed so intricately to appear nonchalant and the abundance of Vault-Tec knick-knacks and propaganda dotted around the office until we cut back to the view from the crowd.

“She was also created with a unique and likable personality formed by RobCo’s target audience… Male teens. Simulating the age of a 19-year-old woman she's cute, approachable and enjoys listening to hobbies and interests… But also a little naive and very subservient.”

“That's not creepy at all.” A female voice chirps up followed by a slight chuckle of the crowd. Game Girl's eye lock onto the woman with a vague sense of questioning. (゜-゜)

The man at the front forces out a nervous laugh as he adjusts his glasses. “Please keep all comments to yourself until the end of the presentation.”

"Tell them about its defenses, Guy!" The boar of a man spits out through a plume of cigar smoke.

"Of course! Game Girl, or GG for short, here is linked into our Protectrons and a unique Assaultron in security meaning she can directly control them and use them as if she has a body to aid and protect our residents should there be a disaster. She also has full control over the sentry guns posted in and outside the vault, the sprinkler system and the vault door itself but there is a manual override just in case anything happens to our reactor." Guy ends with a smile and a nervous chuckle as the man chewing his cigar eyeballs him.

"All provided by General Atomics I assure you! So these potential mishaps that Guy here mentioned ain't gonna happen! PLUS! He forgot to mention Mr. Gutsy! Our proudest model of defense automaton that will be assisting his project."

Guy gives a reluctant nod.

"Y-yes, absolutely right. And RobCo have also provided a RoboBrain automaton to  help with some... Logic-based dilemmas. Isn't that right, Mr Howell?"

The skinny man lost in his cocktail shrimp is elbowed into paying attention as he sharply looks around.

"Huh? Oh yes! YES! Of course..."

"So, what was going to be the world's first AI overseer has now turned into 3 robots managing human-beings lives?"

A beat of silence as the room looks to the woman. (¬_¬")

"Erm..."

"Damn it, woman! Didn’t you hear Guy before!? Keep your ridiculous comments to yourself!"

"No, no Mr. Lofthouse it's quite alright." Guy nervously stammers to deflate the situation. "Miss. Zhu brings up an interesting point. Yes, GG will be the only overseer but we did need failsafes in mind and our colleagues at RobCo and General Atomics did help a great deal so having a representative from each side in the vault was a good compromise to make sure each party's goals for the vault were met."

"And this couldn't be achieved with people?"

Guy goes to speak but is interrupted.

"Why are you so determined on people in this? Can't you see what we created!? 3 beings that won't die, that are programmed to obey us and can't be swayed! You probably want people running this thing so you can pull ya damn Commie tricks on them and take this vault for yourself!"

"Excuse me!?"

"Erm..."

"I think what Mr Lofthouse meant to say wa-"

"I know damn well what I wanted to say! This bitch wants to ruin us!"

The voices meld into incomprehensible noise as we got back behind the monitor greeted again by the dull hum. Game Girl's eyes look around the room at the squabbling humans but then fall onto Guy, who looks back, scared.

Scared.

A sentry turret falls down from the ceiling and a red laser pointer beams to life aiming at the crowd.

". . . O___K ! . . ."

The bit-crushed voice loudly speaks from the monitor and the room falls deadly silent. Eyes look back at Game Girl as she watches, pondering.

" . . . I__F_E_E_L_____W_E __A_LL ___ N_E_E_D_____A___M_I_N_UTE ____ TO ____ CALM Down.."

The room is silent as the voice from the monitor falls gradually into a relaxed tone. GG smiles.

"V_EERy GOOD! Now, we can do some breathing exercises to level our heads and all be happy campers before sharing our feelings with one another in a safe environment."

The room takes a breath at once; Guy stumbles forward and looks at GG with a gulp.

"It's quite alright Game Girl; thank you for de-escalating the situation."

Mr. Lofthouse leans into Mr. Howell's ear in a whisper.

"Did you know it could talk?"

Howell shakes his head, stunned.

"I think we've all calmed down now and are ready to talk like rational adults." Guy turns to the crowd. "Isn't that right everyone?"

Game Girl looks at each nodding face.

. . .

The sentry gun retracts into the ceiling.

"Okie dokie! :)"

Guy wipes sweat from his brow before fixing his posture and addressing everyone.

"Are there any further questions?"







We pass through the same halls as earlier. Dulled yet maintained. The rooms are quiet with diminished furnishings. A quiet atrium with a handful of people sat down looking at a projector screen as a Robobrain wheels around on its treads making adjustments here and there. Up the stairs passed the sealed reactor and security and into the turning of a large open door into an office where the face of Game Girl stares through the window to her side; looking bored.

Overseer’s Log:
October 13th 2266
It’s movie night! The residents have been eagerly awaiting a new film that was discovered in records last month, it was lodged between a filing cabinet and a trash receptacle. I believe it to be a war movie! We’re all quite excited! Especially Mister Gutsy!
My hope is that the few who chose to remain in Vault 98 will be happy today. It’s been a while since they’ve had anything new… I suppose the meager amount of holotapes that still work aren’t doing it for them and the pool table is still in need of repair… As well as the gym which was crushed under rubble over a year ago.
I never got word back from Vault-Tec if they believed 98 was a success. I think we did great! Everyone here was happy, entertained, and comfortable! Then… The years ticked by and they all grew bored, no matter what I did.
They all got bored.
After 80 years, I detected safe levels of radiation on the surface and the majority of residents asked to leave, a handful did stay! But most left… I think about them a lot… I hope they’re okay.
And as the years went on and on and on… I grew bored too.
I didn’t know I could be bored but I am.
I love the people we have here… But if I had the legs to leave knowing they’d be alright, I’d get going in a heartbeat.
Or my equivalent of a heartbeat? Am I yammering?

“Mister Gutsy, am I yammering?”

GG looks away from the window to the floating automaton across the desk.

“Yes, ma’am! This would be the eighty-second day in a row you’ve turned the overseer’s log into your own personal diary.”

(III╥_╥⁠) “I’m just processing a lot of feelings!”

“This is why I believe you shouldn’t have gone sentient, ma’am.”

“It’s not like I chose it! I was basically programmed to do it at some point! Ugh, let’s change the subject.” GG takes a moment to register her tone and act professionally. “Anything to report, Mister Gutsy?”

One of Mister Gutsy’s limbs flies up into a breif salute.

“Affirmative, ma’am! We have cleared an additional 0.1% of the rubble blocking the gym door!”

Game Girl blinks slowly looking at Gutsy.

“Is that all?”

“Yes, ma’am!”

“. . . Great! Who knew a vault with residents addicted to holotapes wouldn’t have the strength to clear rubble! SOOOO happy they gave me a brain in a jar that can’t use stairs and a floating soccer ball with noodles for arms.”

Mister Gutsy looks at its appendages.

“I do not have noodles, ma’am! I am equipped with a retractable claw, circular buzzsaw and flamethrower.”

GG sighs.

“To-o add-I_can u-use-stairs.” A jarring, robotic voice comes from the hall as the Robobrain makes its way into the office. “I_sim-ply re-fuse to-use the-stairs__lead-ing to lev-el-2 due_to-the risk_of dam-ag-ing_ my-chas-sis_vi-a - fal-ling.”

“Right. Thanks, for the insight Robbie.”

“You-oo-ou are_ most-wel-come.”

Robbie joins Gutsy at the desk as Game Girl peers at both of them.

“Is the movie ready and are the residents present?”

“Yes--o-ver-se-er. All_SIX_are_pres-ent-min-us_Ralph who__pol-ite-ly de-e- c-lined.”

“Of course. Least someone still enjoys the holos… Okie dokie! Let's fire up the film shall we!”

Game Girl gets to work, commands popping up in her monitor as the lights in the atrium dim and the projector beams to life, Robbie and Gutsy go close to the window to watch as Game Girl looks to her side to glimpse the screen. The screen buzzes to life with the hum and scratches of a record needle dropping. A brief disclaimer plays stating that the following depicts parodies of real people. A tinny, trans-Atlantic voice echoes through a speaker in the room accompanied by brazen orchestral music.

“WAAAAR GAAAMES!!!”

The title jumps out from an explosion before the movie goes through its intro.

“STARRING!”

“THE HELLISH GENERAL, MATTHIAS SYN!”

“I like the cut of that young man's jib!”

Gutsy remarks as it shows Matthias leading a band of maniacs in road leathers into a small town to cause mayhem.

“I never understood why the bad guys always look so cartoonish but do such nasty deeds. It really counters what they're trying to do. Remember that one movie we saw with the bat person and the clown man?”

“Oh yeah, great movie!”

“I-i-i felt_ it-wa-s de-riv-a-tive.”

“I never got why the clown wanted to prove a point with society and humanity but dressed up as a clown… Clowns are funny! I can't take a bad guy seriously if he has dumb hair and licks batteries.”

“He dressed up as a clown to make the whole thing a joke! I got it! I'm smart!"

“Okay… Then what's this guy's deal?”

The 3 looks at the screen as Syn rolls his head around in a maniacal laugh theatrically.

“Ini-at-ing__ shrug- _ pro-to-col.”

“It's only the first few minutes of the movie, ma’am.”

“I know but you can see he's one-note and had literally nothing going for him.”

“Shrug_ pro-to-col __ com–pleeee-ted.”

“CYPHER! THE HACKTIVIST!”

We see Cypher smashing a fist on a keyboard in anger before taking a drag of a cigarette and looking into the camera with a smolder.

“I like the idea of this guy, guessing he’s a hacker?”

Cypher leaps over a desk and begins a choreographed kung-fu fight against some goons.

“And a fighter… Brains and brawn type AKA we can’t figure out your character so why don’t just have a bit of everything and throw away anything unique about you.”

Robbie looks towards the monitor.

“Why_ the neg-a-tiv-i-ty?”

GG gives a brief sigh.

“I dunno, I think I’m just tired of these old movies doing the same tropes. It looks like he was originally written as something special and then they just turned him into another kick-punch guy because what else can you do? Everytime they show something no one else has ever done, they go right back to the well.”

“Ma’am, with all respect you can turn yourself off instead of watching.”

GG squints at Gutsy as Robbie slowly turns away in the awkward silence back to the view from the window.

“PRINCE ADEYEMI!”

The screen shows a well-dressed man playing a poker game surrounded by beautiful women.

“The narrator guy didn’t even bother giving this one a title or anything-”

A man pushes aside Prince to block an incoming knife and gives a roundhouse kick to the attacker.

“AND HIS LOYAL MAN-SERVANT “THE NOTORIOUS ONE!””

“Oh because he has someone carrying him, that makes sense.”

“He could be the brains of the operation?”

“I doubt it, he has a pretty vacant, empty stare. My bet is the other guy does all the work and Prince here just reaps the rewards. I mean look! That Notorious One is kicking butt while The Prince is losing at roulette!”

“He-e is_ los-ing bad-ly–e-e-e”

“THE AFTERTHOUGHT! SHAWN WARSTEIN!”

The screen shows the monstrous figure of a man as he stands from a junkyard throne overlooking an improaching mob.

“What kind of a moniker is “The Afterthought?””

“He was possibly a last minute addition, ma’am.”

“Considering he’s literally residing in a trash pile it’s very likely. I don’t get it though, in this scene he’s made to look like a real killer but he’s called “The Afterthought” and is surrounded by garbage. He must have a very low self-image… I would too if I looked like that.”

“AND! THE MASTER OF THE UNIVERSE! S.E.B!!!

The scene goes to a handsome man adjusting a tuxedo as he exits an exotic car.

“The trash man didn’t get much screen time.”

“Oh my gosh what a dreamboat! We’ve seen this guy before right?”

“Corr-ect_ o-ver-see-er__ He has-as been in- mul-ti-ple films we have_watched.”

“Riiiiight! I remember. He’s a great actor but he never seems to commit to a role really, always re-using stuff from his earlier work. Rehashes his lines and forces himself into the limelight as a star before leaving the movie early for no apparent reason.”

“Doesn’t sound like a great actor, ma’am.”

“Oh no, he’s terrific… I don’t know why I think that but he is very attractive.”

The movie continues for a few minutes before the film rolls dies as the lights in the atrium go out. GG barely lets out a gasp as her monitor turns black.

After a moment GG comes back under dim red lights and the sound of an alarm blaring. GG looks around the room; Gutsy is talking to a distressed woman, her hands on a cane. Game Girl stutters before spitting out her words.

“G-g-g-Gutsy? What’s happened? Miranda is everyone okay?”

The two turn to face GG, a look of relief appears on Miranda’s face.

“Overseer, thank goodness you’re okay.”

“Ma’am, we lost power, we're on auxiliary for the time-being. Robbie has gone to check our reactor.”

“T-t-the reactor? Is it damaged!? We need to get the residents to safety if the fusion core leaked!”

“Miranda and I have taken the rest to their rooms and sealed entrances for now. There’s been no sign of forced entry from the vault door but our surveillance cameras have been severely damaged.”

The alarms turn silent suddenly.

“Okay… Okay… Erm… What do we do?”

Robbie glides back into the room holding a burnt out core in his claw.

“The-e_ fu-sion core is-is de-ple-ted, o-ver-se-er. We-we must find_ a_ re-place-ment a-s-a-p.”

“Do we not have any more in storage!?”

Robbie hesitates.

“Neg-a-tive.”

“The vault wasn’t designed to be kept active this long, ma’am.”

“I knew we all should have left when we had the chance…”

“Miranda this isn’t on you, don’t worry we’ll find a fix. Gutsy, Robbie, we need to find a replacement somewhere.”

“There’s a chance people on the surface may have a replacement, ma’am, but as for volunteers to find out…”

Gutsy looks to Miranda who shakes her head in a slight anger.

“I can’t think of any of us healthy enough to climb the stairs to the vault door, nevermind go on a scavenger hunt.”

“You’ve all been pampered for so long you’re basically toddlers!”

“Gutsy! May I remind you that was our mission here? It’s our fault not theirs.”

Gutsy says nothing as Robbie wheels close to the desk.

“O-ver-see-er_ With_ our- res-i-dents . _ . In-firmed and us- in-cap-ab-le of lea-ving. We have lit-tle_ to n0_ op-tions. . .”

GG eyes dart around as she thinks?

“We could radio the surface? See if anyone can find our signal?”

“We could_ o-ver-see-er but_ that could al-so bring un-wan-ted a-ten-tion.”

“And it could take days or weeks, ma’am. And with our reactor dead that means limited clean water and our freezers could go out any minute meaning no food… And the air supply-”

“Okay, Gutsy…” GG snaps interrupting. Her brow furrows as she thinks before the lightbulb moment. “I got an idea. Robbie, Gutsy, I’m entrusting the safety of the residents and the vault to you. Miranda… Go to the dorms and tell the others not to worry, we’ll make sure everyone is happy and healthy.”

Game Girl gives a sad smile to her comrades before her screen goes dark again.

“... Ma’am?”

The three in the room look to one another before the sound of a metal door shunts open down the hall. Heavy metal footprints beat down towards them and in the doorway stands the metal frame of an Assaultron bearing the visage of Game Girl. GG gives a nod.

“Wish me luck.”