The Vault of the Rising Sun Chapter 1

	The heat.

	The heat was unbearable.

	Cracker panted heavily, his paws sore from walking on the cracked desert earth. He’d been shaved to his bare skin, which was red from the sun’s rays burning into it. He wanted to go back inside, but he also knew he’d earn a swift kick if he started towards the shade.

	His master threw a slab of food his way with a cackle. Cracker excitedly attacked the meat, and felt the bone crunch between his strong teeth. Fresh meat was something different, something wonderful, and Cracker tore into it hungrily. Master laughed more, and threw another bit of meat to him. Cracker caught the long piece out of the air and hungrily tore off the end. He stopped, his throat seizing. He chocked, a loud and horrifying sound to the dog, but Master laughed more yet. Cracker chocked again, a wet rasping sound, and his back arched. Bile rose out of his throat, and he threw up on the sandy desert ground. He licked his lips after, and sniffed at the recently eaten meat. It was now covered in an orange liquid, and with it was a small silver metal band.

	He picked his head up at the sharp sounds of stones clacking off of one another. The sound came from the west, and he had to squint against the brightness of the setting sun. The wind blew towards him from that direction, and it carried something…

	Master shouted something, and Cracker looked back at him in confusion. The man stood over 6 feet tall, and his black mask was pulled up above his head, casting shade on his face. He was drenched in sweat, shirtless as he sat on the baking rocks. He patted his leg, but his angry shouting warned of another kick if Cracker came close.

	Cracker looked back towards the spot where the smell was coming from. He may be burned, he may be tired, but his nose still worked. He growled.

	He heard his master stand from where he sat as a CRACK came from where he watched. Cracker had been shot at before, and recognized the sound. The zipping of a bullet through the air was clear to him. It was softer than it normally was, but the noise was unmistakable.

	Cracker began barking

	Master! Master! I must alert-

	Cracker turned to acknowledge his owner, but they lay face-down in a heap on the ground. There was blood oozing from his chest.

	Master?

	Another CRACK, and Cracker joined his master as a corpse baking in the desert sun.
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	“Did you get ‘em?” Kenji asked. Sweat pooled underneath the young man’s shirt. He was hot, he was thirsty, he was tired, and the back of his head was very, very, sore.

	“Quiet.” His masked companion hissed. “That dog got off barking, if anyone heard and comes to check, we’re fucked.”

	Kenji mumbled under his breath as he lay next to the figure whose helmeted face was pressed close to the scope of their hunting rifle.

	“How can you even see through that thing?” He asked.

	They ignored it for a moment, and Kenji figured he wouldn’t get an answer until they sighed. They motioned for him to stand, and he obeyed.

	“Yea, I got them. It was one raider wearing a welder’s mask who was apparently on watch with his dog.” They explained. “Please, Kenji, be quieter. I only have so many .32 shots, and we have no idea how many of them there are.”

	‘Ya catch more flies with honey,’ Kenji thought bitterly as he rolled his damaged eyes.

	“As for the helmet, you should get one too. The filter makes breathing in all of this sand a lot easier, and maybe your eyes wouldn’t be so bad if you protected them from the sun. Maybe one of the raiders will have one, but if the haul is what you say it is then I’ll be buying you one back in town.” The figure said. “Now, march.” They ordered, motioning with the gun.

	“Come on, I won’t try running again.” Kenji said, with every intention to bolt as soon as possible.

	“Oh no, I’m not falling for that. The moment we found out there were people here, you nearly sprinted off. We made a deal, and I’m holding you to it.” They said.

	“You’re lucky your stupid dad taught you how to use that thing.” Kenji spat back, but he walked forward and began descending the slope into the barren basin. “At least give me the shotgun when we get inside.”

	“No way, or I’ll find it pulled on me. If that raider had a weapon, you can have that.” The figure said. They stood over Kenji as he descended, their eyes fixed on the entrance that Kenji had pointed out was there. A slight crack in the rocks, what looked as if it might be a small cave den, held a substantial prize. Kenji finished descending and slunk forwards as the figure nimbly climbed down. He didn’t wait for them.

	‘How had the even found this spot?’ he’d wondered. Kenji himself had only found it about a week ago. He’d dived into the basin after… liberating some supplies from the back of a Brahmin caravan. It’s fat owner certainly didn’t need them, after all. However, the caravan had apparently hired a new guard, one a bit more jumpy than Kenji was used to. Before he knew it, 9mm bullets were piercing the air, and Kenji was forced to ditch his load and break for it.

	He reached the corpse of the dog and the raider. The raider had been throwing bits of some unlucky man or woman to the dog, probably from their latest village hit. A glint of light caught Kenji’s eye, and he scooped a silver ring off of the ground. It was covered in some orange vomit, but he’d touched worse. Definitely a woman, then. They’d probably brought her back for some ‘fun,’ and then cut her up for chow.

	“What do you have, there?”

	Kenji jumped, nearly dropping the ring. They’d come up on him silent as a shadow. The mask didn’t help, with that stupid looking filter over the mouth the person looked more like a bug than a human.

	“You need to wear a fucking bell.” Kenji said.

	“Let me know if you find one, I hear Santa’s in the market for more.” They retorted.

	Kenji’s scowl deepened in reply. “It’s a ring. They were feeding the dog humans.” Kenji said.

	“Huh, it looks female… There may be other survivors inside.” They said.

	“Oh, great, I’ll just go and grab a Ranger and I’ll-” Kenji said, starting to walk away. A strong grip grabbed the back of his tanned shirt and pulled him back.

	“No way, we’re going in here together.” They said. “Did you check the body?”

	‘Shit.’ Kenji thought. He looked over and saw the guy was carrying a pistol, same as that guard that had pulled one on him. ‘Dammit, there’s no way-’

	“Oh hey, he had a gun. See?” The figure picked it up, prying it from the dead man’s grip. “Here.” They said, extending it to him. “I’ll check him for ammo.”

	They patted down the man’s pockets as Kenji marveled at the weapon. “You’re… you’re giving this to me?” He asked, astonished.

	“Damn.” The person cursed, finding nothing. “Huh? Oh, yea. I said you can have what he had. It looks like that’s your only magazine though. Make it count. And I swear to God if you accidentally shoot me, I will ram whatever’s left of that pistol down your throat.”

Kenji, still amazed that he was actually allowed a gun, just nodded. He figured he’d have to try and take on the raiders with a lead pipe or something, and lord knew that wasn’t about to happen.

	The pair walked to the cave’s entrance, when Kenji suddenly had a very bad thought.

	“What if someone heard and is waiting for us in the dark?” Kenji asked.

	His companion laughed. “Then you have a chance to show off your pistol skills.” They said. Then they tapped at their head, knocking their skull. “If there’s one thing raiders don’t understand, its stealth. One person starts shouting and they all do, and they rush their enemies to beat them to death with overwhelming strength. Well, that, and the chems don’t make the brain work so good no more.”

	“More sagely wisdom from your father?” Kenji asked, the sarcasm in his voice palpable.

	“He hasn’t been wrong so far.” They walked on ahead of Kenji and into the cave. Kenji’s instincts told him to book it, but the sensible part of his brain knew he wouldn’t make it to the basin without getting noticed, and as his partner already shown, that wasn’t much of a distance. When the cave wasn’t immediately turned into a firework show, Kenji followed.

	The small den had another section of cave wall cut out in the back. The pair walked through that and down a small tunnel, winding down deep into the Earth. They halted for a moment as the masked companion switched their rifle onto their shoulder, drawing out the combat shotgun that had been there in its place. They also withdrew a glow stick from their backpack, handing it to Kenji.

	“Stay to my side, and stay crouched. This thing fires in a wide spread.” They warned.

	Kenji nodded, feeling much safer now that he carried his own weapon.

	After a few moments more, the tunnel suddenly opened up into a large cave. Some sort of glowing green fungus illuminated the cave, growing on the walls and floor. The metal of a huge door shined in the otherworldly glow. In yellow paint, the number 18 was plainly visible on the door.

	Kenji let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding. He stared at the masterpiece of engineering in awe, similarly to when he’d originally found it. It was a vault, something that was more myth than it could possibly be, and yet it sat right here. After all this time, countless years, and there was a vault less than a 5 mile walk from the place where his father and his father’s father grew up. And HE, Kenji Setou, had been the first to discover it. At least, before the raiders had. His companion must be having similar thoughts, as they stood their almost masked in shadow, staring up at the door.

	The yellow control panel sat to the left of the vault. “Come on, we have no idea what’s going on in there.”

	“That won’t work.” Kenji said. “There’s some sort of password.”

	The figure pushed a button, and a voice spoke out of a speaker like device. It was a language that Kenji had heard before at home, but didn’t ever learn.

	“Sekai saidai no teikoku wa nanideshita ka?” A feminine voice spoke rapidly and fluently.

	His companion paused for a moment, but only a moment.

	“The Empire of the Rising Sun.”

	An alarm sounded, and flaring yellow lights signaled some sort of alert. Kenji raised his pistol in alarm as a deep resounding thud echoed throughout the room from the door. Several metallic popping noises, and the door was suddenly being pulled back into the entrance.

	“Get over here!” His companion shouted as sudden florescent light shown into the dark cavern. Kenji moved, vacating the spot just as it was absorbed in the bright light. He crouched behind the figure as they shoulder the shotgun, pointing it towards the entrance. The door creaked loudly as it was rolled to the side, and with a resounding slam as it fell into place. The alarms stopped, the yellow lights faded, and silence filled the air. It was a silence so disturbing, so loud, it made Kenji rub at his buzzing ears. Nobody moved, not a sound was heard.

	The masked figure suddenly moved quickly, stepping forward. They peaked around the corner of the entrance, and then, when they weren’t suddenly filled with bullets, stepped into the center. Kenji followed, ducking past them and raising his pistol towards the first door he saw, waiting for someone to dare to open it. Overhead hung paper lanterns with symbols inscribed on them. A banner over the door that Kenji now stared at was yellowed with age, and the glass container it was in smashed. It read “Welcome to remains of the Empire of Japan.”

	“We’re here… we’re really here.” Said Kenji’s companion in an awestruck voice.

	Kenji heard the rustle of fabric and a zipper being slid. He turned around just in time to see them remove their mask, a long mane of purple hair flowing out and over her black leathered jacket. Her skin was pure and as white as snow, or rather, what Kenji had heard snow was like. Her purple eyes flickered up towards the banner, and a smile filled her lips. As often as he’d seen her, her beauty always caught him off guard.

	“You were right Kenji. Mom and Dad are going to be so happy. Thank you.” She patted him on the back. “Thank you.”

	“Y-yea, Hanako. No problem.” He said, his throat catching momentarily.

	She smiled. “Come on, let’s go and see what we can find.”