Chapter 3: Climax
Kelvin disappears for a moment, and just as Zeta feels panic welling up in her, the door opens again and Kelvin emerges, holding a blanket that he wraps around her shoulders before helping her to her feet.
"I don't know what that is, but maybe there are more people in here somewhere."
Kelvin braces Zeta up, helping her walk as they follow the sound, finally arriving back at the front door of the vault.
It didn't make sense. The fires from the explosions should still be raging outside, and the radiation levels should be high enough to melt bones. But putting all of that aside, the front door of the vault was nearly two feet of solid metal. You'd have to hit the other side of the door with a tank for the sound to carry through this way.
"Computer, can you tell me what's making that sound?" Kelvin inquired of the vault AI.
"I'm sorry, overseer." The AI replied. "What sound are you referring to?"
"The sound coming from the vault door." Kelvin yelled. "Whats making that banging sound on the vault door."
"I'm sorry, overseer. All external sensors are offline. Radiation levels have overwhelmed all external sensors."
Zeta began to moan where she stood, gently rocking back and forth. Maybe Kelvin had gone too far trying to prove his point earlier. She did not seem to be taking this well.
"Alright, computer," he called out. "What would you postulate is making that banging sound on the front door."
"Overseer, I do not hear any banging. I would like to remind you that the possibility of someone banging on the outside of the vault door right now is zero percent. I would remind you that the vault door is 23 inches thick. If someone were to knock on said door, the sound would not penetrate to the inside of the vault."
These were facts Kelvin already knew, but the oddest thing seemed to be that the AI couldn't hear the noise. He turned to Zeta.
"Do you hear that sound? That banging on the vault door?"
She still seemed stunned, and didn't seem likely to answer, but he saw her flinch each time the sound echoed out, so she obviously heard it too.
"Computer, we both hear a banging sound. How can you not hear this?" Kelvin help his pip-boy out to the door to try and catch the noise.
"I'm sorry, overseer. I don't know how to answer that question. Perhaps you are experiencing a shared hallucination. My internal sensors do not detect any anomalous sounds in the area."
The AI's voice echoed through the vault, leaving Kelvin and Zeta in a tense silence. Kelvin looked at Zeta, her eyes wide with fear and confusion. He could see she was trying to process everything that had happened, from their heated exchange to the unexplained banging on the vault door.
"Zeta," Kelvin said softly, his voice barely above a whisper. "We need to figure this out together. Can you help me?"
Zeta looked at him, her lower lip trembling slightly. She nodded, taking a deep breath to steady herself. "Okay," she whispered back.
The terror of the moment caused a sob to rise up, and Zeta did her best to swallow it down again. "Can I have some clothes, please?"
Kelvin nodded, understanding her discomfort. "I'll have a Mr. Fix-It bring you some. In the meantime, let's try to pinpoint the exact location of the sound. It might help us understand what's causing it."
They stood there for a moment, listening. The banging seemed to echo through the entire vault, making it difficult to pinpoint its exact origin.
Kelvin didn't know if Zeta was going to be much help, as her eyes had begun to lose focus and she still flinched with every bang. He hadn't meant to scare her so badly, but unfortunately, it seemed that what he had done, coupled with the sudden strange sounds, had caused Zeta to shut down. He would need to be careful with her, keep an eye on her. But his priority right now was the noise.
Kelvin let Zeta slump to the ground to sit in a huddled pile, wrapped in her blanket, as he stepped up to the door. He hit his closed fist against the huge metal slab, and barely made a sound. This sound, this banging. It couldn't be coming from outside. But it couldn't be coming from inside either.
He stared at the door for a while, until her heard a keening wail start to build behind him. He turned quickly, but it was just Zeta, still on the ground, but looking at the door with a terrified look. A Mr. Fix-It had entered with clothes, but she ignored it it.
"Make it stop. You're the overseer, make it stop. Make it stop, make it stop, make it stop."
Kelvin watched as Zeta began rocking back and forth repeating those words. He sighed.
Today had been a long day. The world had ended, and the two of them had been stuck in this vault together, alone. It seemed that Zeta had reached her limit.
The noise could wait for another day, or else perhaps it would just stop altogether. But for now, he decided he had best tend to the only other person in his life.
He accepted the bundle of blue and gold clothes from the floating robot, then turned to the rocking Zeta. He tried to pull the blanket away, but Zeta held onto it with a white knuckled ferocity, so instead he lifted her to her feet, and guided her feet into the legs first, then raised the jumpsuit to waist, tieing it there for the meantime.
"Come, Zeta. We'll worry about the noise later. You need some rest."
Kelvin's voice was gentle, but firm. He helped Zeta into the jumpsuit, his hands steady and sure. She let him lift her, her body feeling limp and defeated. The blanket fell away, revealing her nakedness, but she didn't care anymore. She felt exposed, vulnerable, and completely defeated.
Kelvin guided her down the hallway, away from the ominous vault door and the banging noise that seemed to echo through her very soul. She stumbled along, her feet barely touching the ground. She felt like she was floating, detached from her own body.
Kelvin guided her back to the room he'd found her in earlier. The uniform still lay crumpled on the floor. He guided her to the bed and helped her sit down. He then covered her with a blanket, then reached to turn down the lights. Zeta immediately began to moan, so he left the lights on. He looked down at her, hiding under the blankets, and sighed again. She had seemed so proud and defiant a few hours ago, but it seemed that perhaps she'd just been trying to hold up a house of cards. For someone like her, used to people fawning over her and providing for all her needs, it must be hard to be here, with only him. And he'd been quite firm in his threats earlier, as he thought she'd never stop undermining him if he didn't do something. He just hadn't expected her to collapse so quickly. And the mysterious noise starting when it did, she was obviously feeling lost with no sense of control.
Well, Kelvin wasn't feeling much better himself, to be honest. But they couldn't both fall apart. Not right now. Tomorrow, he'd try to start over with her. There had to be some way for them to work together.
Kelvin turned away from the bed and headed out the door. Even from the living quarters, he could still hear the banging from the vault entrance. He needed to search through the vault systems to see if he could find any information.
He ordered the robot to stay nearby in case anything happened with Zeta, then Kelvin retreated to the overseers quarters to find out any information he could.