He was standing on a beautiful grassy plain. The green, soft grass stretched on for miles. The sun gently shone above. Clouds lazily drifted past the sky. He saw a huge oak tree far into the distance. A man in white robes stood underneath its shade. For some reason, Animus knew he was smiling.
Animus looked at himself. He was wearing a white t-shirt and jeans. His body was muscular and athletic. He turned his palms upward. He looked like his old self.
"Is this a dream? It feels so real." He said, and turned to look at the old man. He seemed to beckon him with a wave.
"I have dreamt lucidly before. If this is a lucid dream..." He said and took a step forward.
With one thought, he crossed miles with a single step.
Animus was standing right before the man now. Those familiar, kindly features looked at him. The man looked older than him, but he had aged gracefully.
"Impressive. You could control your dream so easily?" The man asked.
"I enjoy lucid dreaming." Animus smiled, his voice happy. "Hello there, Robert."
"You never fail to impress, my friend!" Robert chuckled.
Animus grinned.
"Hello, good friend. How are you? Is your new body suiting you?" Robert greeted.
Animus held his chin in thought. "I am well. I didn't expect my physical stats to be so miserable, however. My body nearly broke because of the events of today. Moreover, I suppose I have yet to acknowledge my new body and memories as truly mine. I look like my old self, don't I?"
"Indeed. Your insight continues to surprise me, Primulus. Or are you Animus now?" Robert asked with a smile.
"I am both. Thanks for acknowledging that." Animus spoke with gratitude.
He could visibly feel his muscles shrinking with those words. He felt like he went from the late 20s to the mid-twenties.
"It is no matter. I hope the powers I have gifted you serve your purpose. The System is merely a guiding reflection of who you are. Remember, this is all you. I have done nothing but aid your journey. If anything, the gratitude should be mine to give for undertaking this perilous quest," Robert replied, his voice sincere.
"It's fine. And yes, I've already begun leveraging the System's capabilities." Animus nodded.
"That's good to hear." Robert smiled.
"So, is this how we will meet in the future?" Animus asked.
"Yes. And I have news to share." Robert said with a serious look.
"Go ahead." Animus said, tilting his head in curiosity.
"This universe has seen too much intervention. The eldritch gods had not only entrenched their presence to make it easier for them to make their moves and eventually collide universes, but I altered history from the 20th century onwards to create decoys who could distract them from finding you. That plan has gone awry." Robert said with a grave look.
"How so?" Animus asked.
"In truth, all the decoys still exist. You have met two of them already." Robert said.
"No way." Animus' eyes snapped wide.
"Indeed, it's them." Robert said with a sly grin.
"Jasmine?! The Agrabah heiresses? They are actually from Aladdin? That was your doing?!" Animus asked.
"Yes. They almost died as the Resource Wars reached their end, but my guiding hand saved them. Multiple threats hit the other decoys too. Our enemies were relentless. I managed to save all their lives, but it was not enough. The eldritch gods singled all of them out and manipulated events with their apostles to make sure they all end up in the same vault. Which is, Vault 69." Robert said, his eyes locking on to Animus' gaze.
Animus' eyes widened in shock.
"How could that be...? That's the same vault where I am! Have I been found out? How many of them are there?" He asked in a hurry.
Robert raised a hand to calm him down.
"Fear not, my blessing surpasses their collective scrying abilities. You have not been detected. This is one massive cosmic plan by the eldritch gods to collect all my decoys in one place and strike them down at once. They most likely think the decoys are my apostles. When in truth, I have sent you to take the fight to them. Unfortunately, by sheer coincidence, the decoys somehow ended up in the same vault as you." Robert said with a look of consternation.
"Robert, such a coincidence does not happen." Animus said, his voice taking a sharp edge. "If I have not been found out, then this is either a result of the blessing acting as a beacon to the souls you forged or..."
Animus' eyes widened.
"Is this a result of my high Luck?" He asked in shock.
Robert raised an eyebrow in surprise.
"Possibly. I did consider that. The Fallout universe has its own divine engine. A system that governs karma, fate, destiny, and luck. It also controls the cycle of life and death. It might have deduced that its luckiest mortal needs my decoys with him. But the thing is, this goes against my wishes. Does a puny universe's Divine Engine think it can plan better than me? Robert frowned.
"I...can't say." Animus said, frowning as well. He didn't know anything about a Divine Engine to comment on it. "Could it be that the universe considered an angle you did not deem important? That's the only way it could all make sense."
Robert's eyes opened a little wide.
"Ah, I see!" He grinned.
"What?" Animus tilted his head.
"No, nothing at all. I fully support the Fallout universe. Hohoho." Robert chuckled.
"Damn it, Robert! Quit it with the mysteries!" Animus groaned.
Seeing that the mysterious god wouldn't reveal anything, Animus returned to the topic at hand.
"Either way, things are complicated now. We have too much attention all of a sudden." Animus said, running his fingers through his hair in thought.
Robert grimaced.
Animus caught his look.
His eyes widened.
"Don't tell me... There is more?" Animus asked, feeling a sense of dread.
"Yes. I suspect they will attempt to attack and destroy the vault in a year or two at most. Most likely, right after the nuclear winter ends." Robert said, his fingers running through his beard in frustration.
"What the fuck?! That is something to fear, Robert! I am not ready to face them yet!" Animus said with abject shock, cussing for the first time in a long time.
"I know, which is why you need to speed up your actions. I will leave the details to you. Taking weapons from your father's cache was a good move. Moreover, think of this situation as an advantage. All of my decoys are with you. I personally made each one of them. Every single one of them possesses unique capabilities that could grant you the edge you need in the upcoming battle." Robert said with a determined look.
"How many of them are there?" Animus asked, his voice dropping low.
"You could expect a raiding party of around a hundred fully armed cultists, led by an apostle. Perhaps more. But, diverting too many resources right after the nuclear winter is highly risky. The enemy will most likely aim to strike with few numbers while thinking they are using the element of surprise," Robert said, analyzing deeply.
Animus took a deep breath. Then, he opened his eyes. He had a fierce look in them.
"Fine. I'll seek out allies, forge a bond with them, and repel the cultists and the eldritch gods' apostle." He said, his eyes gaining a fiery edge.
"You've got a maximum Luck of 10, my friend." Robert grinned, matching Animus' intensity. "The enemies won't know what hit them."
Animus' mind began churning with ideas. A belated realization struck him.
"Wait. Vault 69 is full of women. I am the only guy there, which is an exception and the core purpose of the vault's social experiment. Are you saying all your decoys are women?" He asked, giving Robert a weird look.
"Yes." Robert said with a lopsided grin.
"I hope there is a strategic reason behind it." Animus raised an eyebrow.
"There is now. Helping my friend score." Robert laughed.
Animus deadpanned.
"Truly, the Fallout universe saw an opportunity for you to find love and aligned its interests with me! Hahaha!" Robert roared.
"You and the universe are crazy, man." Animus shook his head with a smile.
"Are they even real human beings?" He asked a beat later.
"Of course they are." Robert said without missing a beat, and continued speaking. "They are flesh and blood humans I made using the cosmic templates of multiple known beings across the Omniverse. While none of them have exceptional powers granted to them to prevent a huge response from my enemies, they have dormant abilities or unique skills that made me choose them. For example, Jasmine, who you met, has outstanding charisma and negotiation skills. Daphne, her twin, possesses business acumen that may be unsurpassed in the world."
Pausing Robert's bragging about his skills, Animus asked, "But there is no Daphne in Aladdin. Where did she come from?"
"My whims." Robert shrugged.
Animus rolled his eyes.
"Hey, I am way better than some of my peers, mind you." Robert said, defending himself.
"Sure." Animus smiled.
Robert coughed. "Alright, now get to it. Stay safe and win."
"Okay. Thanks, my friend." Animus smiled and turned.
"Remember one thing, Animus," Robert called out, making Animus turn back and look at him. "Do not forget who you are. Use the System to track yourself. You may manifest skills and Traits as a reflection of yourself. You may also be able to lose or merge them. The Pip-Boy System is a guide, not a replacement for your sense of self or your innate strength."
Animus turned back and nodded seriously. Another realization struck him.
"I get that, but can you make it so that my Pip-Boy functions enough to receive messages from the Overseer? They might try to replace it otherwise." Animus asked.
Robert shook his head. "It would only result in the experiment proceeding much further along with the passage of time. Whatever Pip-Boy you equip will function exactly as you see it now, discarding Vault-Tec's signals and working as your personal System. It will only connect with things you want to connect with. This will prevent the people behind Vault-Tec from seeing what's going on with the main experiment subject, which is you, in this case."
Animus fell into contemplation. He lowered his head to think for a minute. Robert patiently waited with a smile.
Animus lifted his head to ask, "Then what if I take off my Pip-Boy...and take the Overseer's Pip-Boy?"
Robert's smile widened. "Any Pip-Boy you discard will become a non-functional brick that has all data wiped from it. If you manage to take the Overseer's Pip-Boy, you will effectively have full control of the Vault's systems. You can block and bypass signals to and from Vault-Tec's mainframe. Your Pip-Boy can then be allowed to function normally."
A matching smile emerged on Animus's face.
"Then I know what to do now." He said, a grin on his face.
"Then get to it. See you, my friend." Robert said with a wave.
"See you later, Robert." Animus said, waving back.
The dream blurred before ending completely.