Nuka World Wasteland

Chapter 1- An Atomic Awakening

A woman out of time. Seconds before the bomb dropped, she had a house. A family. A newborn son who would someday make her and her husband proud.

The world was in turmoil. The threat of Nuclear warfare was the talk of the town, even cities. Children in schools learned how to duck under their desks if there was ever a bombing, but everyone knew that nothing would be able to save them from the blast and the fallout that followed an atomic bomb. They covered their heads under desks and whispered to each other, giggling and forgetting the solemn reason they ran their drill. They would be playing games with their hands and then the drill was over and recess began.

Annalee looked at the children playing in the playground on the school campus as she hoisted her toolbox up onto her ladder. Oil covered her gloves as she looked through her tools, finding the bits and screws she needed to fix the classroom's ancient projector. All this fusion powered technology these days yet the school still used machines that were made thirty years ago.

She accidentally nudged her wrench off of her step and it clanked onto the floor below her. She sighed and with heavy steps down her ladder, she retrieved it to continue her job as a simple handyman. Or handywoman, as she liked to call it. She often missed the days of sitting at her workbench, designing machines for companies. She had received her degree in Mechanical Engineering back in California, but after her company fired her when she became pregnant with Shaun, she decided to become a contracted mechanic. She already had the basic skills so she might as well continue to use them.

Nate was still at home, watching Shaun. He had protested about her going back to work, but she wanted to take one job and see how she did. All she wanted to do at the moment was to return home and see her son again. She didn't realize she would miss him so much for even a few hours back on her job.

She heard the children scream and laugh as they ran around in the field outside. She smiled, imagining Shaun as a child, running along with them. Good years were ahead of them.

She returned home from her work and immediately collapsed onto the couch, kicking off her work boots and let out a sigh.

"Honey, you're back! How was your day at work?" Nate sat next to her and leaned down to look into her eyes.

"Tiring. How was Shaun?" She mumbled into the couch, ready to fall asleep. She readjusted herself so she was now laying in his lap.

"He was the perfect child," Nate laughed and rested his hand on her head, stroking his fingers through her vibrant blue hair.

She strained her neck to look at him and laughed, spotting the very-recent burping stains on his shirt.

"Perfect child... sure..." She rested back down and let him continue to brush through her hair, out of her usual ponytail.

"Are you sure you want to start working again? I mean, we are getting the money for my leave..."

"I know, but I just want to prepare for if you have to leave again," she said, looking out from where she lay, the whole room at an angle.

"We don't know that yet," Nate stopped stroking her hair and stared at her.

He wasn't there when she gave birth to Shaun, but he didn't know anyone stronger than the woman he loved. To bo honest with himself, he wasn't even sure he knew her enough. If someone looked at their history together, they may say that they had a sort of shotgun wedding. They had found each other at the end of both their college careers and instantly clicked. They hurried and got married before he left for the war, not even spending a week for their honeymoon.

He returned to their suburban house, scarred by the war, and the only thing he wanted was to jump back into that honeymoon phase and live with her. But a distance had grown between them when he had gone away, and it had continued to grow with the passage of time that he spent fighting communists.