Nuka World Wasteland

Prologue

The clouds darkened up above as the sky filled with the sickly green wind of a radstorm. A hooded figure, limping and holding a bottle of beer in their hands stumbled forward through the streets of the fens.

They knew what back alleys to take to avoid the super mutants and raiders. They stumbled into the doors to the Combat Zone and threw the bottle to the side.

The bartender set down his glass and watched as the stranger walked past the common area and into Tommy Lonnegone's private residential area.

"Hey, you can't go there! Do you have a death-wish?" Blaze hopped over the bar counter and tried grabbing the arm of the stranger.

They yanked away from his grasp and pulled down their ragged hood, revealing a gaunt woman with swollen eye sockets, bruised and purple. She smiled, the scars at the corners of her mouth making her permanent smile even wider.

"You're back... Tommy still might kill you."

"I know Blaze. I have nowhere else to go. My situation has changed. Is he here?"

"He should be returning from a negotiation at Bunker Hill. I'm filling in for him."

She looked around at the large, post-war theater. Strings of lights hung from the ceiling and worn red cushioned seats were assembled all over the room, either facing each other or the stage. Bottles and used plates were scattered all over the tables, and debris littered the floor like every building in the Commonwealth. Smoke wafted up towards the ceiling, giving the room a permanent smog.

The people who spent their caps at the Zone all looked the same as well. Each one had the worn, wrinkled faces of weary travelers. Even the better-dressed ones who insisted on wearing the old faded suits tried to act like the dignified, wealthy businessmen they wished to be.

"I see nothing has changed."

"True. We've had one or two more raider customers than usual, but it's nothing to worry about- yet."

She turned to him, and stared, "Raiders? You allow them in?"

"Yeah, that's the one thing Tommy's changed. He says anything will do if it brings in more caps."

"I'm going to wait for him in my room. You tell him I'm here when he gets back."

"Alright, I want to know why you're back too Jayde." He patted her shoulder kindly and returned to the bar, serving the impatient wastelanders their drinks.

Jayde Lonegan walked down the secluded hallway until she reached her old room. Three years of dust coated the already-destroyed furniture. She plopped down into an armchair, coughing at the particles in the air. She sighed and looked across the room into the broken mirror hanging on the wall.

The broken surface reflected her tired, swollen face. Three years took a toll on her looks. Her black hair looked the same, but her eyes were deeper and wrinkles shown through the dust-caked onto her face. She frowned, the smiling scars a permanent reminder of the shitty life she led. It surprised her that Rig fell for someone like her. Maybe he didn't.

She leaned forward looking at the bruises on her face to prove her doubts. Maybe Rig only used her. She didn't know anything anymore, other than that she belonged in the Combat Zone.

The door slammed open and she whisked her head around at the intruder, only to see her brother, Tommy Lonegan, breathing heavily as he stared at her.

"I heard you were back," he glared at her, his hazy blood-shot eyes running her over.

She could almost feel his gaze on each of her bruises and brushing along her scars.

"I'm surprised you aren't rotting somewhere in the fens."