Prologue

War never changes. . .

In 2077, the Great War started and ended on October 23, and the United States became a wasteland. Many Americans died, but some survived. Yet it took groups like the NCR and Legion nearly two centuries to take control, a large amount of time. The Callihans, on the other hand, built an empire in much less time, and with much less effort.

Declan Callihan was an ancestor of Irish immigrants who moved to Nebraska in the 1800s. He inherited the largest gun dealing business in the world, working with the United States and NATO up until the Great War, making him a target to the Chinese. His manor in Lincoln was the only target in Nebraska, and his home was destroyed. What the Chinese didn't know was Declan had a bunker under his house that stretched, forming a ten by five mile safe haven for the citizens of Lincoln. Along with every man and woman in Lincoln, besides the Governor who was assassinated two months before, survived the War, with supplies of guns, ammo, food, and other items to last an estimated three hundred years underground, but Declan thought otherwise. He opened the bunker, and the citizens returned to Lincoln, which was decimated.

Declan stored machines and robots that he used to cleanse the surrounding hundred miles of radiation, creating the area around them suitable to live on. With the wreckage left of Lincoln, along with wood and steel stored in the bunker, housing was built. By 2078, every person had a house, and even the Callihan manor was rebuilt. Then came the task of survival.

Even though the bombs were dropped, Nebraska never lost its nutrients, and farming became their main source of food. Maize, potatoes, carrots, jalapenos, and tobacco became their primary crops, along with the fruits and vegetables that developed after the War. Also, the local herds of two headed cattle, called Brahmin, were rounded up, and domesticated, creating more jobs in the form of ranching for the citizens of New Dublin, the name dubbed their settlement, on account of their leader Declan's heritage.

As the years went by, expansion occurred. Declan's son Lance took over as leader of New Dublin in 2099, and sent scouts east, hoping to find some hint of life. One scout found an underground cavern with an abundant amount of explosive plants, that when grounded up, can be used as gunpowder. Along with the new finding, the Callihans gained their first allies in the form of the Mandan tribals, who worked and tended the plants. Lance also gained hope, as their just could be more humans out there, so his scouts went further east.

Near the edge of where pre-war Iowa ends, Lance's scouts found three settlements linked together with trade and roads, and formed alliances with them also. They were called Broc, for the flowers that grow wild around them, Cambridge, and Victoria. They also gained their first currency, the use of bottle caps to barter with. This new success led to more expansion, as Dublin's farmland spread north, and south went more trade routes, where the settlement of York was found, and aligned with.

Although it wasn't until 2133, when Lance was forty-six, did he find more tribals, establishing relationships with eight different tribes in thirty-four years. First his scouts found the Blackfoot and Lakota tribes, who roamed the western brinks of Callihan territory. Blackfoot were peaceful horse herders, which were untouched by radiation, and they quickly intertwined with the Dublin trade, since horses were well desired. The Lakotas were skilled hunters, and traded their hides and services for water and supplies, usually ammo for guns.

Then came the Tonkawa tribe from New Mexico. They migrated north, away from deathclaws, where nearly half their tribe was slaughtered. They proved to be agile, and skilled horseman, so they were chosen as couriers for Dublin, riding all over the territory carrying messages between leaders in the small villages and large towns springing up around the Callihan Empire. They proved also great fighters, and they vowed to serve in any and all skirmishes or wars. But since New Dublin was peaceful, their bravery wasn't needed, but their women had a different talent: building with clay. Wood and Stone was scarce, as all the resources that Declan stored in 2077 was nearly depleted, so building was halted. Now they could continue to expand, making the Tonkawa useful allies. They even received Bomb Valley, a twenty mile long, horizontal crater formed when a stray bomb struck. Lance's robots were sent to cleanse the area, and then the Tonkawa built their homes their.

Next came the Omaha tribe, who originated from the ruins of Omaha Nebraska, which was left alone by Dublin citizens, as they heard strange noises. In fact, it was the Omaha tribals raising bighorners, the mutated buffalo on the plains. The radiation created a haze that lasted until 2141, and then disappeared, and the tribals ventured out, to find maize fields surrounding them. They too joined Lance and New Dublin, giving them yet another form of trading.

In the late '50s, the Poncas and the Wichitas ventured to New Dublin, hoping to bring their trades to use in the bustling city. The Ponca tribe were skilled brew masters, and they quickly began to make alcohol for the citizens. In '57, Lance ordered the building of the Dublin Brewery, which acts as the home of the Ponca, and their shop where they brew and sell their alcohol, along with chems brought in by caravans. The Wichita tribe originated from Vault 0, and were driven from Kansas when Super Mutants flocked there. They proved to be excellent in repairing and making items, so they were given a factory on the northeast side of New Dublin, where along with the Mandan, they make bullets and top notch rifles for New Dublin. They also own fifty solar panels and a dozen windmills that generate the energy used to power the facilities in New Dublin.

But none of these tribes proved to be allies like the Kaw tribe. They were the last to migrate here, in 2166, and they brought one secret that changed New Dublin. They could create paper from the skin of banana yucca fruit, which they grew year round, giving New Dublin a unlimited amount of paper to record information. This new resource brought along the education boom.

In 2170, Archer Callihan assumed control of the Callihan territory, and he became their best emperor yet. In 2171, a money printer was salvaged in Omaha, and he had the Wichita repair it, giving New Dublin their first paper currency. Now they let traders exchange caps for their money, ranging for 5, 10, 20, 50, and 100 numeral dollars. Two years later, he created the Dublin University and Library, where all the pre-war books were stored, and children and teenagers went to school to learn math and reading. The more wealthy citizens could even pay for their child to learn a trade other than farming. Those who couldn't afford this let their children remain on the farm, join the local military, or join one of the tribes to learn their trade.

Archer didn't forget about his military either. In 2176, he ordered the building of Fort Lincoln, which was the largest building project since the outer walls in Lance's reign. The fort housed several garrisons, and could hold nearly ten thousand troops if needed. This influenced the growth of the army, and the Dublin military grew monthly, until every able man offered to fight if war were to occur. They trained often, whenever their job would allow a break, and the best were offered a spot as elite troops, who simply lived on the base, or were sent to aid small battles between farmers all over the territory. They became known as the Dublin SF troopers, and they were respected by all, even the Callihans.

By 2230, the Callihan empire controlled Nebraska and Iowa, and they had their sights on Wyoming. But expansion was halted with the death of Archer, and his daughter Hanna was crowned empress. She ruled in a rather bland time, where he only excitement was her demise when cazadors attacked her convey during a visit to Cambridge. Her son Erik, only seventeen, took control of the empire, and that is when the citizens got their first taste of war.

In 2264, a neighboring tribe called the Apaches, who controlled Wyoming, Montana and, Idaho saw New Dublin as a threat, and attacked them accordingly. Their targets were the highways connecting the settlements to New Dublin, hoping to isolate the large city from its resources. Erik wasn't faltered, and took only only six months to drive them back across the border, but no farther. The Apaches didn't accept defeat, building stretches of walls, creating a barrier between the two nations, and attacking any person that came close. To defend their borders, Erik sent builders to create Belfast, a city where he housed the SF soldiers, and where his most trusted advisors and generals were sent protect the citizens of the empire. For twenty-five years, the Apaches watched from the wall, building their armies on, but otherwise showing no signs of attacking. They did regain hope when a group of brutes called the Great Khans migrated their, and added nearly a thousand able body troops to the armies.

So the year is 2289, and Erik is nearly fifty-five. His son Sami just finished his SF training, and he along with the new recruits, transferred over to Belfast, where Sami will begin to lead the troops, like Erik did before him, and Hanna's husband, Chris, before him. The bunker still remained closed to the public, only seen by the choice few, and the pre-war gear still remains there. Erik seriously thinks its time for them, but he has no control over the military now.

But our story isn't about Sami, but about two Tonkawa tribals, who have chosen to leave their father in Bomb Valley, and enlist in the army. Ohanko and Kitchi are brothers, sons of the chief, and the best warriors. They are currently leading their tribesmen, who also choose to serve the Dublin Army, to New Dublin, when something happens that makes them all the more useful to Sami and Erik. . .