[A/N: Sorry for the wait. Got some chapters going again though and plan to release them more often. Enjoy.]
Unlike the Hermes dome, Hestia dome was wide open and a small city could be seen. Multi floor apartments towered to the top of the dome and the place wasn't crumbling like the buildings topside.
However surrounding the entrance was a makeshift wall and gate, put together using scrap and several people wearing vault security armor could be seen manning the wall.
As we entered, the eyes of the guards snapped to nervous attention upon seeing us.
"Halt!" One guard yelled and we complied by not moving forward. "Who the heck are you guys?"
I answered back.
"We are are soldiers from the surface. My name's Frankie. We found this child after we entered the vault and brought her home safely."
Surprise flashed on the faces of everyone present and murmuring began.
"They're from outside the vault?"
"I thought everyone on the surface was dead."
"...are they here to help us?"
The man who spoke to us first stood shocked but then appeared to straighten up. "You're... really from the surface? Hold right there! I'll get the chief. Nobody move!" He jumped down from the gate and ran, leaving all of us to stand there awkwardly.
'All these guards seem young. The oldest looking among them appears to be in his mid 20's... And a bit skinny.'
I took mental notes on everything I could see and hear trying to piece together the situation.
Not long the gate opened and a woman in her early thirties rushed out. She was tall and slender with black hair tied into a ponytail and a beauty mark under her right eye. She was a beauty although she seemed a little malnourished.
She immediately scooped the girl we came with into her embrace.
"Elizabeth! Why did you leave the dome?! What the hell were you thinking?!"
It seems it she was Elizabeth's mother.
"I went to find Anna, Mommy, but then we got attacked by monsters. These nice robots found me and brought me back."
'We're not robots!' I rebutted internally.
The woman stood up and then looked us over. "You brought my baby home so thank you! Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Lynette and I am the current chief of Hestia. May I ask who you are? We have never had visitors before..."
Lynette seemed sincere in her gratitude but I could tell she still held some caution towards us.
Understandable since we are outsiders.
"I'm Frankie Winter and this is my subordinate Lady. We came to investigate vault 120. We dont mean any harm, I assure you. If you could tell us the situation here, perhaps we can even help in some way?"
Lynette nodded and then said, "I see... Well then, I dont mind telling you about our vault, if you'll allow me to ask questions of my own. Let's go to my office to get some privacy. I suspect now that word is getting around, everyone here will turn you into a spectacle."
"Ok, lead the way." I nodded and gestured. She grabbed Elizabeth's hand and then the group of us entered the interior of the dome.
Lady and I were still in our power armor following along, causing heads to turn and stare at us. Some with curiosity, some with fear.
The Hestia dome was fairly large, with numerous apartments, streets and even what looked like a small park with a pond.
The place was nice, but the many of the people looked thin like they havnt eaten much lately and I had yet to see any older people.
'These people are starving inside a cage, eh?'
Our group led by Lynette ended up at the front of what looked like a luxurious two story building with marble steps going up to a pair of double doors.
"Hold on one moment please." I said before we entered the building causing Lynette and the not so stealthy group of people following us to come to a stop.
I popped out of the T-45, which cause little Elizabeth to gasp and me to nearly facepalm, "You really werent a robot!"
"That's right. Lady stand guard while I discuss with Lynette." I said then following the raven haired women inside.
The place was likely very nice ages ago but years of wear and tear left to former opulent building to feel more 'lived in'.
"Sweetie, go to your room. We will have a long talk about what you did but right now I need a moment alone with our guest." Lynette told Elizabeth sternly.
"But Mom..." The little girl whined.
"No buts! Now young lady!"
Elizabeth, noticing how serious her mother was, paled and then retreated down a hallway and slammed a door behind her.
Lynette sighed and then took a seat on a chair and I followed her example.
We were now sitting across from eachother so I broke the tension.
"Kids, am I right?"
Lynette giggled in response. "Yeah they are quite a handful. So... you're really from the surface? What's it like up there?"
"Like hell." I responded. "You would think after such an event people would band together to rebuild and heal the world, but most are in it for themselves and tend to fight over resources. Let's not even mention all the dangerous irradiated creatures around that will kill and eat you if they can."
Lynette digested the situation and then slumped back into her chair. "My parents told me how life used to be up there and would often say that things would be better once we returned to the surface... I used to believe them..." she seemed to slip into a depressed state but it was my turn to ask questions.
"What's going on here in the vault? Your daughter was with another girl and got attacked. That girl's corpse is cold in Hermes right now. What's the 'lottery' I heard about from Elizabeth? And why do all your people look they're starving?"
It was time to start getting some answered.
Lynette turned even more melocoly at my questions.
"My dad told me... years ago the Overseer was taking civilians under the guise of law breaking to experiment on them and the people rose up in a riot.
However the riot was put down by vault security and things changed rapidly afterwards. Hermes was flooded as a show of force and the people inside drowned.
The Overseer used this to keep the people of the other wards in line. He controlled everyone's lives and started the lottery. He would chose two people a year to use as sacrifices for his "research" and in exchange everyone gets to keep living..."
Lynette paused and took a deep breath, "A few years passed after the riots and those monsters began showing up. The people in Hephaestus were the first to fall victim to them, only a handful were able to escape and tell Hestia and Demeter about the threat."
"What exactly are they?" I interjected with a question.
"The Mermen. People say they are the ones that were chosen by the lottery, that they were mutated and released by the overseer. But no one knows for sure.
They look humanoid in appearance but have scales, gills and other marine features. And they are bloodthirsty and will tear any living thing apart on sight before dragging the meat back to thier nests over is Hephaestus.
It was also because they showed up that the people of Demeter decided to try and fight back again. And once again, the Overseer flooded them out. That was ten years ago, and we have been starving ever since.
The food we lived off of used to be supplied by Demeter, so without them we have to grow our own food or risk our lives trying to get food from what remains of Hermes and Demeter.
But we have nearly exhausted what food remained. And the worst part is the Overseer is still running the lottery... We probably wont last more than another year at most."
I took a minute to digest the info, my mind working all the angles. 'What an evil guy this Overseer is. He controls their lives and treats them like lab mice. If they rebel they are drowned. This guy needs to be stopped.' But I asked another question.
"So what's going to happen now? The girl who was supposed go be sacrificed was killed. Will the Overseer demand a replacement?"
Lynette's eyes shook as if remembering their situation. "I-if one of the people can't go then someone else will be chosen... oh god, please dont let it be Eli..." she began to sob.
"Hey calm down! Don't worry, I'll help your people put a stop to this nonsense. That overseer is someone I cant let live. So just tell me how to get to him." I tried to reassure her.
"How can you deal with him? He controls the whole vault and can flood any part of it he wants. There's no hope..."
"I have my ways. Or... would you rather sit and wait to die? The other people that fought back at least had the courage to fight and die on their own terms..."
That seemed to strike a cord. Lynette looked up at me and then her eyes shifted from despair to thoughtfulness and after several moments, finally resolve.
"We... will fight!"