Remains of a Dying World

Prologue

A solitary dust cloud slowly rolls onward in the dust-covered wastes. In these awful times, that could mean any number of things. Mechanics, Raiders, even Roaches, and we'll talk about those in their own time, because this dust cloud is nothing so destructive or ruthless, unless he needs to be. This is the dust cloud made by the custom built van of a man named Scott Weathers. It is bulletproof, shockproof, has mounted auto-cannons on the sides, just in case. Everything a van needs to be, in the wastelands, except reliable. The engine isn't working right, and we hear Scott wrestling with the controls, trying to get it back to his one and only safe house before the sun sets, so that he can live another day.

"C'mon you stupid thing, it's less than a kilometer away..."

Scott has built his own little 'safe house' on the remains of a technology depot from people known now as "The Archanics", who were a race of beings so advanced and concerned with their technology, it ripped them apart with wars and levels of destruction we may never yet comprehend. The people that still inhabit this hellish wasteland are the long descendants of the few Archanics that survived The Great War that ultimately ripped them all apart.

The van falls silent. The engine has stalled.

"No, no, not now. We're so close!" exclaims Scott as he repeatedly turns the key, attempting to bring the dead vehicle back to life.

On the 7th key turn, as the starter begins to weaken, the battered van finally sputters to life. The sun is nearly down, and if he wishes to survive another night in the wastes, Scott needs to get back inside and soon.

"Oh thank goodness, let's get the hell out of here"

As he rounds the last corner into the canyon where his safe house is located, he catches a glimpse of a Raider party driving off at the end of the canyon, which means he's most likely been attacked.

Pulling up into his garage, he unloads what little he has found from scavenging the wastes onto the dolly just inside the workshop door, so that he may use it later. Once finished, he opens the door into his cramped little workshop, preparing himself for bad news.