Overseer

In front of Adam stood Overseer Amber Campbell with a guard on either side of her. He knew Campbell from a briefing he recieved upon acceptance into the vault. He never expected to meet her in person, let alone actually speak with her.

"Hello," she gets with a friendly smile, "I'm Amber Campbell, the Overseer of Vault 69. May I come in?"

As if meeting a minor celebrity for the first time, Adam was caught in a silent daze until he snapped back to reality. "Oh, uh, yeah of course." Adam step aside to let the trio through. Campbell stepped through with a nod of thanks, but the two guards simply turned around and stood at attention on either side of the door. Adam took this to mean they weren't coming in and closed the door.

Campbell sat on the couch along the wall and motioned for Adam to sit across from her in a lounge chair.

"Mr Dalton, I'm glad see you're looking well." Campbell started. "How are you feeling?"

"Nothing's broken but I'm still coming to terms with all that's happened."

"I suspected as much. I've come to you personally to discuss something with you."

"Is it serious?"

"In a way, yes." Her smile fade to a more serious, yet calm and controlled expression. "You see, there was an error in vault tech's computer systems. One we hadn't noticed until just moments ago. And as you imagine, it's too late to correct."

"Oh no." Adam could feel himself turning white at the prospect of a disaster so soon after the world ended.

Campbell saw his fear and quickly back-peddled. "No-no, I'm sorry. We're all safe. I should have worded that more delicately. The error was in our resident assignment."

"Oh, OK." He sighed in relief. This is actually something Adam was thinking of just before Campbell's arrival. "I figured there was a mistake. This room is way too nice for me."

"Oh, it's nothing like that." Campbell said with a chuckle. "This dwelling is standard for a single person. If you ever visit others in their homes, you'll see."

"Oh. Wow. Ok." It felt weird to have ahome so spacious. But this brought up another concern. "Then what mistake are you talking about?"

"I can't go into too much detail as to why or how it happened, but all I can tell you is this; you are the only man in Vault 69."

"Wait, you mean all the other men were locked outside?"

"No! God no. They were assigned and moved to another Vault. You see..." Campbell looked to the side, intently thinking of her next move as though playing a game of chess. "I really shouldn't say, but it's the computer system in charge of assigning residents made an error. Instead of balancing between the sexes at 50% each, for reasons we currently don't know, it assigned all men to one vault and all women to another. You being the exception."

"Holy shit," Adam was dumbfounded, "You're really not joking."

"I came personally to inform you, this is no joke." She headed towards the closed door leading to the hallway, "Even our entire staff, as you'll eventually notice, is wholly female."

"Oh my God."

"I know you'll need time to come to terms with this information, but do you have any more questions for me now?"

"Probably." Several dozen questions were swirling about Adam's mind, too few could Campbell answer on her own. Though a few did come up front. "I mean, yeah. Is there anyway to contact the other vault?"

"I'm afraid not." Campbell shrugged, "We have a radio, but the other vault is significantly out of range. We can't send anyone outside either. It's still far too dangerous."

"Shit. Ok then." Another thought occurred to Adam, "Not to sound selfish, but will I be safe? With so many people who essentially lost their friends and family, they've got to be angry. And with over 900 of them, some would hate me, right?"

"Perhaps, but it would be short lived. I plan to broadcast to all residents via the television of what happened." Campbell gestured to a television screen Adam hadn't noticed before. It was tucked into the upper corner of the living room. Out of the way when not needed, but easily seen from anywhere in the run should it be attention. "I will emphasize this mistake was the fault of Vault Tech and you are as much a victim of it as anyone else."

"Still..." Adam knew a few words wouldn't quell everyone. There will be animosity towards him no matter what.

"We have an experienced and well equipped police **** should anyone, this includes you, disturb the peace." Campbell reassured Adam.

"Ok." Adam was still worried, but lessened with the knowledge there are people to enforce the law. "Is there any plan to return to the surface?"

"Someday, of course, but no time soon." Campbell seemed to sit up straighter, like this was a question she was better practiced at answering. "The world was just burned in nuclear fire. As such, it will take a while for it to heal. Possibly years. But Vault 69 is well equipped to survive such a length of time."

"Great. So what's the plan for the future, then?"

"Actually, that hasn't changed at all. The plan is to ensure the survival of Vault 69's residents until we recieve the All Clear signal to recolonize the surface. Despite what has happened, the original mission remains the same."

Adam felt somehow uneasy with this answer. It sounded rehearsed. Scripted. Adam stayed silent. No need to rock the boat further.

Campbell stood up from the couch. "If there's nothing else, I'll take my leave." She made her way to the door and nearly reached out before Adam had one final question. A request, really.

"Actually, one more thing." Adam stood to face the Overseer. "In your broadcast you mentioned, could you say my name? I don't want anyone hoping I'm someone else only to get disappointed."

Campbell thought it over for half a second. "Actually, that's a good idea. This could also notify any friends or family you might have here. Shall I mention your room number, as well?"

"Yeah, if you think it's a good idea." Adam shrugged. "Sooner or later everyone will know the room of the only man in the vault. Might as well get it over with, right?"

"A good point. Then I'll revise my notes a bit and broadcast in about an hour." Campbell opened the door revealing the hallway and the guards still standing at attention.

"Thank you, Overseer Campbell." Adam said.

"I hope the rest of your day goes well, Mr Dalton. And welcome again to Vault 69." Campbell steps away from the site and makes her way down the hall with the guards. The door closes on its own. Leaving Adam to think by himself.

He thinks of what this means. The hate and scorn he's bound to experience. So many people are hoping and expecting to see their husbands, sons, brothers, and friends. Instead they have to believe they're safe in another vault with no evidence and no hope of seeing them for possibly years.

But then again, he's the only man among hundreds of women. Women have needs, don't they? And while those needs could be met alone, the real deal is always more appealing. Adam had some wicked ideas flash across his mind. Nothing as extravagant as a harem of 900, but perhaps free reign to fuck scores of women all to himself. Even repopulation is a possibility.

About an hour later, the broadcast came and went. Overseer Campbell welcomed the residents, confessed Vault Tech's mistake, shared Adam's name and location, and explained a bit about what the vault can provide. Turns out it's significantly bigger than Adam ever thought. There were parks with real flora, theaters, several pools, and more on different levels of the vault.

Adam decided to call it a night. Despite his racing mind, Adam quickly drifted into sleep. His last thoughts being of the world as it once was.

Adam was jarred from his sleep by a loud, insistent knocking at his door. It was loud enough to reach him in the bedroom. An unpleasant awakening.

Adam, never a friendly guy after waking up, stormed to the door ready to scream at the jackass who woke him. All the while they were still knocking! He had reached the door before he remembered where he is. Vault 69. This reminded him of what he is, the only man in Vault 69.

Adam took a breath, quelling his rage for the sake of not ostracizing himself further. He cleared his throat and opened the door.