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[fallouttalesfromthewastes]

Chapter 3: Adventure Log #002 - The Brotherhood?

I successfully inoculated myself against the Scorched Plague, following the direction of what Dr. Hudson left behind. By no means would I consider myself a doctor or medical professional of any kind, hell… the Mr.Handys and their counterparts in the Vault handled all that for the most part, but her vision for prevention of the Plague was well documented and planned out. Shame she couldn’t see it through… Seems like most of the other 76ers followed the path too otherwise they’d likely be Scorch-ified by now.

I’ve also been working to solidify my homebase when I have the chance. If I’m going to find any success in staying alive out here it’s going to have to be with a strong foundation. Upgraded the generator, have workbenches for anything I need to make, even added some decorations and a pet salamander I scooped up in the river in Flatwoods. Named it Matilda because it likes to crawl on the book I placed in the terrarium as a sunbathing spot.

Next on the To-Do list was to check into this Brotherhood of Steel I had heard about. They actually made themselves easy enough to find by having a looped broadcast picked up on my Pip-Boy.

“This is Paladin Rahmani of the Brotherhood of Steel, broadcasting to the people of Appalachia.

We are en route to your region on a long-term mission. We will be taking the ATLAS Observatory as our base of operations. Consider this a warning for any persons occupying the facility. It will be ours. This matter is not subject to negotiation.

Know that we are coming in peace; we will provide aid and protection to the people of Appalachia.

Supplies for construction and repair are to be delivered to the ATLAS observatory in anticipation of our arrival.

Your cooperation guarantees our ability to secure a better future for Appalachia. Be part of that future, help us.

This has been Paladin Rahmani, First Expeditionary Force. The Brotherhood is returning, see you soon. Message repeats.”

Atlas was going to be a haul of a trip based on what I remembered of the area as a kid; so I packed what supplies were needed, checked my weapons and armor, and set out to make contact. Would the Brotherhood finally be an ally I could connect with and count on? Would they even potentially become a new home?

The trip was as pleasant as one might expect. It began rather quietly as a trek through Appalachia’s green hills towards Sutton and over the hill to Helvetia passing the old West Tek Industries building. The pre-war institution of science and technological feats, or so Ms. DeJean had mentioned in the Vault, sat quietly on top of the hill looking down upon Helvetia like a silent observer. While it didn’t make a sound, I couldn’t help but feel like the building… or something about it… was alive.

The silence of the trip met an abrupt end when I made it to Bolton Greens, at the intersection of 91 & 95. I thought I was traveling quietly but a group of Scorched got the drop on me giving me one hell of a firefight. Is it a firefight if you’re mostly swinging a hammer? Anyway, after about twenty minutes I was able to clear a half dozen of them or more before hastily leaving the area. Good news, it gets worse from here.

What’s worse? How about an enraged mutated bear outside of an abandoned motel as you’ve already been climbing up the cliffside? I did learn two things in this exchange that will make for helpful survival tools in the future. 1.) These mutated bears take a LOT of ammunition to take down, and that’s from .308 rounds that are meant for hunting and 2.) these bears cannot comprehend the idea of stairs allowing you to use the stairs as an impassable barrier. Bear dead, more climbing.

After a few more hours of climbing the Appalachian mountains through rocky cliffs, dense wooded areas, and the occasional stream or two Atlas came into view with its towering dome surveying all the land within its shadows. It was an impressive site and understandable why a group would set up their operations in the location of the old observatory.

At the base of the old observatory I found a stairwell that appeared to lead up to the entrance. Along the final stretch of my climb, as my feet were killing me and my legs grew weaker and weaker, I was… greeted, I guess by a Brotherhood soldier who thought the best first impression was waving a laser pistol in my face and telling me to move along. Charming group already…

Stopping at the top of the stairs I had no choice but to take a deep bend at the waist to stretch my legs. They were exhausted from the single day trip, but it was much safer than trying to camp overnight. Upon realigning to a straight position the sight was impressive. While I could have guessed they would have a militaristic operation, they were as organized as I had seen any group be since leaving Vault 76. Rotations of guards, supply management officers, a secured boundary and even someone welcoming visitors to the gates.

Guess that’s a good place to start.

[fallouttalesfromthewastes]

Chapter 2: Adventure Log #001 - Week One

To say this first week out of the Vault has been insane would be an understatement. I could have never dreamed how different the world is now from twenty-five years ago. Here’s a quick list of the things I've done this week:

Fought a variety of radiation mutated humanoid and non-humanoid creatures, played errand boy for a local bartender who’s friends are an assorted pile of monsters or robots (and one other regular guy), run up and down County Road 88 and Highway 59 tracking where the Overseer went and learning more about a plague that may kill us all, took training courses on how to become a Responder and a Firebreather (of which are two relatively extinct post-war groups) and was summoned to Point Pleasant along with other Vault 76ers to summon the folklore legend that is the (or a???) Mothman.

And those are just the big highlights…

For the first time in my life I have no idea what I need to do, who I need to become, or where I should go. I’ve set-up a camp back in Flatwoods as a base of operations on the hillside right behind Mom’s old house. No sign of her or anything at the old house. At least I have a place I feel I can safely put my head down at night, cook a warm meal, and prepare for the next journey out into Appalachia. 

As expected though, most of the Vault 76ers have latched onto ideas of groups founded on the surface from the post-war era before Reclamation Day. Some have picked up where the Responders left off, trying to help the people still in or coming into Appalachia survive and set up lives. Others have joined factions that seem to have pre-war roots like a group called the Brotherhood of Steel I’ve heard about. Don’t know much about them but they also seem like a group focused on rebuilding but with a military background. Then, there’s more… nefarious groups Vault 76ers have tied themselves to in various raider gangs, cults, and who knows what else. I kind of get it though, you have to do what it takes to survive.

The biggest issue I see though is the Scorched. Humanoid monsters that only know death and destruction wherever they wander. Seems like for the most part they’ve wiped out the first group of people that called themselves the Responders. I’m not sure how one becomes a Scorched exactly, but from computer logs from the Responders I’ve read it seems like it’s infectious. I’ve checked myself thoroughly after coming in contact with any of them and treated any wounds as soon as possible. So far so good.

Anyway, it’s honestly not great up here on the surface but this is the hand we’ve been dealt. 

Next objectives:

Find a way to create an inoculation to prevent catching or the spread of the Scorched Plague.

Make contact with the Brotherhood of Steel to find out what they're about.

Continue to follow the Overseer’s path as holotapes are uncovered.

[fallouttalesfromthewastes]

Check out the first recorded play session of Appalachia Burning here on our YouTube!!

[fallouttalesfromthewastes]

Chapter 1: One Last Hoorah

The Reclamation Day party had been well underway, and Zyn, was well underway through his, 5th… 6th drink? Tomorrow was the first day of a new life for everyone in Vault 76, for better or worse. Tomorrow the door that had been sealed for twenty-five years would disengage its locks, roll along the toothy track it sat on, and open the world above to the Vault 76 residents. The thought was both liberating and horrifying to Zyn and he was using the rest of the alcohol rations to drown those thoughts.

Zyn sat alone in a booth in the cafeteria area of the Vault that looked out into the atrium where everyone else was enjoying themselves. Twenty-five years of sitting alone was about to be over. Tomorrow, he'd be off into the world above alone… He took another swig of his brown liquor. 

That day, when he was taken into Vault 76, he'd been the only uninvited resident when the door sealed shut. As everyone entered the Vault, was issued their Vault 76 jumpsuit, and their identification cards the staff realized he wasn't on the residents list. He wasn't accounted for in the plans for living space, food rations, or anything else. He was instantly a burden on the entire Vault and that outlook on his existence never really changed over twenty-five years.

He only received housing because the Overseer forced Mrs. DeJean to take him into their living quarters since her daughter, Scarlet, dragged him from the crowd fighting to try and get themselves into the Vault for self-preservation. He had only received a Vault 76 jumpsuit when an older kid grew out of theirs. He received reduced rations because they couldn't dip into their reserves. That was his life, for twenty-five years he was a perpetual burden on Vault 76. 

Scarlet was the only one he could remotely call his friend, but even then her mother despised him.

“You’re drunk.” Scarlet chuckled as she slid into the booth beside Zyn.

“You’re correct.” Zyn gave a slightly delayed response, almost surprised someone sat in the booth next to him.

They sat in silence for a few minutes, because Zyn didn’t know what to say and it seemed like Scarlet didn’t either. He looked over and couldn’t suppress a smile that bubbled up from his gut. It was almost like Scarlet had the same look for twenty-five years with her ruby red headband with the bow on top, curley jet black hair that bobbed down to her neckline, and the good ole Vault 76 royal blue and sun yellow jumpsuit that starkly contrasted against her warm brown skin.

“Hey,” Zyn finally spoke up. “I have a favor to ask of you for when we all leave the Vault tomorrow.”

Scarlet perked up from her drink ready to listen for what was to come next.

“Don’t change your headband otherwise I’ll never be able to find you out there.” Zyn asked.

“Oh my god, are you serious?!” She sighed and laughed a bit. “I thought you were going to say something, like… deep or something. A real question. Like, a pact or something!”

“Nah.” Zyn replied, turning his glass of brown liquor up for the last drop. He placed his glass down on the table. “But… if you ever need something while we’re out there you let me know. Leave me a note at the church in Flatwoods, if it’s still there…”

Scarlet turned to Zyn and embraced him in a tight hug that caught him off guard. As she squeezed she said “Same.”. As she let go she slid out of the booth to stand. “You might not care, but you’ve helped a lot of folks here over the years, even if they didn’t want it or thank you for it, and I’m sure you’ll keep doing that after tomorrow too. If anyone will help rebuild the world above, it’s you.” 

Scarlet scampered off back to her other friends to enjoy the rest of the party while Zyn soaked in what could be her last words to him. Zyn knew the majority of the residents of Vault 76 would go their separate ways. Maybe some would team up, but likely everyone had their own vision for rebuilding the world above. Zyn also knew that he would absolutely be heading out on his own as the burden of Vault 76, but what was more of a strain on him was not knowing what his vision for a better world above was? Was it the cookie-cutter plan fed to him in the Vault-Tec planned classes? Was it latching onto a faction or set of ideals of a group that survived the Great War? Maybe it was simply just surviving until it was his time to take the ever looming dirt nap? He was terribly unsure, and that was something new for him as someone that always tried to have a plan.

He sat back in the booth and took a deep breath trying to calm his racing thoughts. There was always at least one plan, the plan his mother taught him at a young age: “1.) Stick together, safety in numbers, 2.) don’t stray too far from homebase, and 3.) smart thinking.”. The first was unlikely, but he could at least make it a point to follow the other two.

The last through rolled into his mind before the rest of the night became a blur.

Maybe, just maybe, Mom, Marie, or Damien had made it these twenty-five years…

[fallouttalesfromthewastes]

Prologue: Hide & Don’t Seek

The day of October 23rd, 2077 had begun like any other Saturday for Zyn on a day he was going to play with his friends. His mother woke him up from his slumber with promises of a warm breakfast, he slipped into his khaki shorts and summer short sleeve button up shirt, and they were off in the car to this weekend’s meeting spot. His mom, and his friend’s moms brought them to a local park or recreation area every weekend. She said it was to get all of their energy out for a quiet Sunday.

This weekend they were all heading up to the hill where they had built the big shiny Vault he had learned about in school, and ever since had begged his mother to take him.

“It’s nothing but a heavy metal door in the cliffside honey…” She used to say trying to convince him otherwise. But that wasn’t going to stop Zyn from dreaming about what they had locked on the other side! Zyn stared out the window, dreaming of what may lie behind the great metal door…

They arrived quicker than he imagined and unbuckled himself from the car seat almost as soon as the car had stopped. “Hey mister!” His mom glared and started at him. “What’s the rules on adventures?” She quizzed.

He stopped before he could open the door. “1.) Stick together, safety in numbers, 2.) don’t stray too far from homebase, and 3.) smart thinking!” He repeated knowing the three-step mantra his mother had set out for them. He hopped out of the car before she could even acknowledge he was right and made a B-line for his friends already waiting for him. He didn’t know it, but his mother gave him a lot of freedom for a six year old but she knew he had a good head on his shoulders.

_____________________________________________________

They played for hours; Marie, Damien, and Zyn exploring the hillside where people came from miles and miles around to see the gleam of the Vault 76 door towards the top of the hill. They were having so much fun playing hide and seek, tag, and other games Zyn almost forgot about the Vault door he was so excited to see.

They sat on a picnic table down the hill from the Vault catching their breath and watched as it seemed to get busier around the area. Military vehicles began to pull up to the parking lot below the Vault and as soldiers loaded out they all saw the most amazing thing. “POWER ARMOR!!” They all gasped in excitement. “WOAH…” Zyn said under his breath. More cars, fancy cars rolled in after them with logos from the Vault-Tec University up north in the city. Zyn recognized it and spoke up.

“I know those! Those are from the university up in Morgan’s Town!” He said proud of his knowledge.

“You idiot, it’s MORGANTOWN, not Morgan’s Town.” Marie corrected him. Zyn was smart but Marie was way smarter. She’d go to the university for sure Zyn thought.

Almost as suddenly as it all started, more and more cars piled in, but the soldiers didn’t let them all through. People were getting mad, really mad, when they wouldn’t let them through. “What’s going on?” Marie asked. 

“I don’t know…” Zyn replied as confused as she was.

“Let’s go check it out!” Damien said, hopping off the table. He was always the most adventurous and brave of the bunch.

Zyn and his friends snuck around to the fence where hoards of people were piling up and arguing with the soldiers. It seemed like they wanted to get to the Vault. The soldiers in Power Armor had to step in. The crowd swelled, pushed, and pulled like a tide was washing against the military barricade and soon Zyn, Marie, and Damien were pulled in by its undertow.

“Ahhhhhhh! Help me!!” Marie yelled as the adults around her enveloped her in their masses.

Before either friend could do anything, the same happened to them. Zyn began to panic as countless sweaty and violet appendages beat on him from all angles. He couldn’t get free from the mass of people and they were hurting him. He took an elbow to the eye, making him fall to the ground. Feet began to kick into him and step on him from everywhere as he curled into a ball to protect himself the best he could. “AHHHHHHH! STOOOOPPP!!!” He cried helplessly on the ground.

As he continued to take a beating of stomps, kicks, and other abuses he felt a hand grab his and begin to pull. Once the hand pulled him a few feet, it yanked him to his knees and offered a quick command. 

“Come on, let’s go!” Said an unfamiliar young woman's voice. 

Zyn was too beaten and bruised to not follow, and before he knew it he was following behind a young lady and her mother who took him past the tide of people, past the security, and trailed a group of armed Vault-Tec employees. His head hurt, the light bothered his eyes, and he wanted his Mom but he didn’t know what to do about any of them besides continue to cry. As they began to walk up stairs, leading to who knows where, Zyn heard a loud siren begin and an awfully loud creaking noise. He also heard the crowd he was pulled from swell in angry noises as well. He continued on being pulled by the unknown girl.

As they climbed more stairs Zyn had hoped, even prayed in a sense, that the young lady and her mother would be delivering him to his own mother. He realized next that wasn’t the case. They continued on and as Zyn squinted his eyes to protect himself from the harsh sunlight and peered through the waterfall of tears running out of his eyes, he realized they were at and soon passed the Vault 76 door.

He panicked, unsure of what to do, and the results were more tears and quiet sobs. He now realized how much the crying was causing him pain in his chest area. Everything was happening so fast! He didn’t know what to do. What happened to Marie & Damien, where was his Mom, why did a new alarm sound start, and why did the awful screeching sound begin again.

The door to Vault 76 rolled along its toothy track and settled into place. It fit snugly into its place as designed, let out a steamy hiss, and sealed for the next twenty-five years.

[fallouttalesfromthewastes]

Note on Appalachia Burning Story & Play

4/8/24

File has been corrupted for the play we started, and I'm not great with playing on a computer since this is the first time... Sooooooo we're gonna give it a fresh go. New backstory, new character out the vault, new us. Right?

We'll rise from the ashes of Appalachia better than ever (probably not...)!!

[fallouttalesfromthewastes]

Introduction & Master List

Appalachia Burning - A Fallout 76 Story

Played and Written by: Zach Cintron as Zyn Scrimm

Authors Notes: This story will be written as part of a recorded-play interaction entering a playthrough of Fallout 76 as a new character exiting Vault 76 at level 2 and little to no experience for the outside world. Sure, the Vault taught them things, but did they really prepare them for the outside world?

While the live-play experience will be the basis of this story, we'll also flesh out the story with other details to explore deeper tales of our main character and others he encounters. 

We will reference other player characters with names we assign them (based of game usernames), and should they become a continuous part of the story they will be fleshed out as well.

The expectation for this story is to explore the choices of individuals in a post-Great War era in which New beginnings and tragic ends are both on the table.

Master List:

Prologue: Hide & Don't Seek

Chapter 1: One Last Hoorah

Play Session: S1:E1

Chapter 2: Adventure Log #001 - Week One

Chapter 3: Adventure Log #002 - The Brotherhood?