War. War never changes. And neither, it seems, does the wasteland. Over 200 years since the Great War scarred the earth, scorching the land and searing the earth in it's final, fiery climax that plunged the world into nuclear winter, and brought upon it the greatest disaster Earth has ever seen. Three great nations clashed, the Eagle, the Bear, and the Tiger--three great animals that, by themselves, managed to end civilization as it was known. And now, over two decades later, life is still a struggle. Survival is a privilege, it seems, one that is granted only to a fair few. Men and women venture into what has become known simply as the wastelands, never to return. Roving bands of raiders pillage and maim, murder and rape. The only law is frontier law, eye for an eye, and vengeance is cold, brutal, and sometimes swift. Retribution comes not from any police force or military, but from those who feel wronged. The value of life has become significantly smaller, people killing one another without a second thought or moments hesitation. 

The Great War brought about change. Change in the earth, in the flora and fauna, and even to humanity itself. Cockroaches thrived in the new radiation-filled environment, growing substantially, as did other insects like flies, ants, and scorpions. Some creatures that never existed began to appear, like molerats and Deathclaws. Others animals such as black bears became far more viscous and deadly, roving the land just looking for something to eat or kill. The world has become a dangerous, deadly place, and it's a wonder anything could have survived. But humanity has a way of proving time and time again that it has what it takes to adapt to nearly any situation, no matter how bad it gets. Mankind moved on, some surviving in vaults, others in smaller fallout shelters. And still OTHERS managed to live through the radioactive hell hole that was Planet Earth for decades. 

And now, in the area known as the Capitol Wastelands, one tiny insignificant speck in the scheme of the much grander world at large, one of the survivors in this deadly world trudges through the sand and the dust, sun bleating down upon her shoulders and sweat glistening on her forehead. Letting out a soft sigh as her black leather boots kick up little plumes of dust, Arianna Lahar stopped for a moment to rest, leaning against a large blackened rock and withdrawing a canteen from her hip, placing the metal to her lip and enjoying the crisp, refreshing water that she allowed to cascade across her face and through her lengthy blonde hair. Closing her eyes, she let out another sigh, this one of contentment, to have a chance to cool off. Waste of water? Perhaps, but she could buy more. She had the caps for it--and she had knowledge enough to gain caps if she came up short. Being skilled in the medical field, as well as the sciences and repair meant that wherever she went, she could always land a few caps or trade for a favor. 

Fastening her canteen back to her hip, Ari gazed at the giant hunk of metal that was Megaton, just a few minutes away. She was almost there...almost. She could kick back at Moriarty's, have a drink, and then....what? Pushing herself from the boulder, she stepped forward once more, considering. She needed to get a lab going. Correction, she needed to get a NEW lab going, because some jackass piece of shit raiders decided they wanted to see just how explosive a lab full of very valuable and very hard to come by medical equipment could be. Frowning at the memory of coming back to the only place she could call home a blackened husk of wood and debris, she shook her head softly as the town of Megaton seemed to grow larger and larger against the horizon. 

She needed more lab equipment so she could continue her research. She KNEW she could manage this time! She had been on the crux of discovery before the raiders ruined EVERYTHING. Still, she hadn't been stupid. She had one single vial of what was possibly the very first "cure" for Ghoulism in the wastes. One tiny vial of serum held in a freakishly fragile glass container. Her life's work. Or, rather, her life's work over the last three years. Her LIFE's work had been destroyed in the flames that cleansed the world of Raven Rock. [i]And good riddance too,[/i] Ari thought, as she remembered seeing the plumes of smoke rising through the air from the Northwest. She hardly believed it when rumors began to spread, whispers that the Enclave were destroyed. She would've gone to see for herself...but that would've brought her by...the place. The spot she hadn't visited in 3 years. Her eyes, brighter blue than the cloudless sky above, began to glisten with tears as she remembered her sister and her sacrifice.

[i]Just GO already! One of us needs to survive this, Ari--it might as well be you. Run!![/i] The words echoed in her mind, and the glistening in her eyes became tears as they trailed down her cheeks. Reaching up, she gently withdrew the holotags that hung around her neck, holding onto the one that read "Kara H. Lahar." [b]"I miss you so much, Kara...."[/b] she muttered softly, a whisper in the calm stillness of the afternoon. She blinked as she heard a metalic click, and a robotic voice in front of her. [b]"Welcome to Megaton Ma'am. Enjoy your stay."[/b] She had been so lost in the memory of her sister, clad in Mk2 Power Armor, that she hadn't even realized she'd made it to the front gate of Megaton. She dried her eyes with the sleeve of her white labcoat that she wore, draped over her midriff blouse. Completing her outfit was her pants, leather and stained at the knees from years of wandering the wastes. She stared at Deputy Weld for a few moments, then decided it was time to enter. Nodding, she moved towards the gates, and heard the whirring clank of the motor as they lifted, revealing the entrance to the bustling town (in so much as a town could be bustling these days). She looked up, saw the sniper that guarded the place high above, and nodded slightly. The man returned the nod, and she crept forward, pushing her way through the door and into the town.

More out of habit than discomfort, Ari rested her right hand across the plasma pistol that was held in place at her hip by a brown leather holster. It was Enclave issue, both the gun and the holster, the primary weapon for field scientists and the backup weapon for officers. Her fingers rested on the ribbon tied around the handle, pink ribbon that stood out; it was hard not to see. A ribbon that belonged to her sister, worn in her hair. A ribbon she'd taken from her body, and had been wrapped around the handle of her weapon ever since. Slung across her back was another high tech weapon--her sister's plasma rifle. Hard to come by in the wastelands, and not very common, she knew such weaponry made her stand out to some extent. But nobody knew she was Enclave though. She didn't exactly go around advertising it. [i]Ex-Enclave,[/i] Ari reminded herself quickly. If one looked carefully they could still see the slight discoloration on the right shoulder of her labcoat, which was slightly lighter and cleaner then the rest of it--where a patch had once been sewn in. A patch that Ari had removed long ago. Though she often came to Megaton for supplies, and knew both Moira Brown and the ghoul Gob at Moriarty's, she didn't have any friends here. She didn't trust easily, but it went beyond that. She also didn't want to care too much. The closest person to a friend she had was Moira, she genuinely liked the woman--and therefor made sure to keep distance between them.

It was time, Ari decided. Visit the Craterside Supply. She looked towards the old undetonated nuclear warhead in the center of town and shivered. Sure it wasn't active anymore (someone known as the Lone Wanderer disarmed it about two years ago, she heard that much over the radio), but it was still a symbol of the tragedy that befell the world two decades before. Craterside Supply was above the dismal weapon, she'd have to climb two flights of stairs. Lost deep in thought, Ari began to absent-mindedly ascend those stairs, hoping she'd find at least a few supplies to replace what she'd lost when her lab was destroyed.