ACT 1: WASTED IN THE WASTELAND

Chapter 1: A Fallen Hero

"Do you believe a word?

What the Good Book said?

Or is it just a holy fairy tale

And God is Dead?"

-Black Sabbath, God is Dead

Dawn Crenshaw was leaning against the torn and frayed wall of her apartment. She drank the last bottle of liquor and threw the bottle to the ground. Dawn now had short blonde hair. She had a small frame but fit body and was physically strong when she needed to be. Her eyes looked worn and tired despite being in her early twenties. She attempted to walk towards the refrigerator. A few steps later, she stumbled to the floor and stared up at the ceiling. Everything she saw was a swirling blur. She finally made it to the refrigerator and opened it. There is nothing but empty beer cans and liquor bottles inside. She slammed the door and stumbled towards her couch. Dawn managed to catch a glimpse outside at the sunset. She went over to the window to get a better view outside. She looked down and saw people wandering about. Her job, along with others in the town of City 17, was to protect each one of them. But here she was, an alcoholic. It has been this way for the past two years now. She grabbed her .357 magnum and headed out.

The Combine, who had once taken over the earth, was no longer in existence thanks to the rebellion of the citizens of City 17. They were in the process of rebuilding America. It was once known as a country for opportunity and freedom. Many of the citizens had forgotten what that was like. Dawn on the other hand had forgotten what it was like to have friends, be sober, and live life without having to look behind you to see what type of terror was lurking. She didn't care anymore, all she wanted was a drink, and she'll do anything to get one.

During the past 5 years, her friendships fell apart with Alyx Vance and Kurt McCall. Dawn began feeling frustrated with the way life had to be lived after the Combine invasion and even after they had been defeated. She turned to alcohol because it was the only way to make her feel good again. After her uncontrollable drinking and anger issues, Kurt left City 17 and ventured far into the wasteland. Alyx went back to Eli's lab and hasn't been in contact with Dawn since.

Dawn did not care anymore about living or dying. City 17 still did not look like the citizens had reclaimed it. Many buildings were still destroyed. Some of the buildings had been remodeled as the citizens began opening stores as one of the ways to rebuild the world. There were also citizens attempting to rebuild cars and trucks and there were new roads being paved. Dawn did not care if the world was rebuilt or if an invasion was occurring, all she wanted was a drink, and she knew were to get one. Dawn walked towards what she believed was a restaurant. As she got closer, she recognized the logo on the front. It was half of a star. The other half was long gone and the other was still hanging on the building, cracked and damaged. The doors were like an old Wild West saloon. She walked through and went straight to the bar. The bartender, Donald, noticed her.

"You know what I want," Dawn said.

Donald opened a bottle of beer and placed it in front of her. Dawn began drink.

"Why do you come in here wasted all the time?"

"It makes me-I don't know."

Donald walked away. Dawn looked around and saw there were two more citizens even more wasted than her. Then, three men entered the restaurant. Dawn rose up from the table as she heard their footsteps on the old wooden floor. She turned and saw three men dressed in tactical gear sitting down at a table. The logo on their uniforms brought back some bad memories. The City Enforcement. The replacement for the Civil Protection. Their modus operandi was to be friendlier while still enforcing the law. Dawn knew the man with the short black hair, the friendly face, and nice guy attitude. Barney Calhoun, the chief of City Enforcement. He was smiling and laughing with the two other guys. Dawn took another sip and her vision became more impaired. One of the guys at the table began to look familiar. He was a short blonde hair man with a muscular build. He looked right at her and smiled. Then he got out a katana blade, pointed it at her, and ran towards her. Dawn shook her head and closed her eyes, realizing it was a flashback. Dawn paid her tab. She walked past Barney and left the restaurant. When she got outside, the sun was descending. She walked past two citizens who were in conversation.

"I can hear it," one of the said, "It's not a howling from those zombies. It's woman laughing."

"Yeah, I hear it too," the other one said, "It's creepy as hell. Who is she?"

"I don't know. But that's the reason people stay in a night. I think I saw her scaling the rooftops I actually thought the fast zombies came back."

"Yeah, I could have sworn I heard footsteps on the rooftops. That's what we need right, another terror."

In the distance, as the sun continued to go down, Dawn saw the skyline of another city across the river. The river had improved over the months, but was still polluted. She walked towards there, passing more abandoned and repaired buildings as well as citizens who looked like they were in despair. She contemplated the idea that may have been her. Sleeping in an alley or an abandoned building, eating scraps, and waiting and hoping something would drag her wretched carcass out of this hellhole. After the Combine defeat, Dawn was awarded a large sum of money. It made her financial situation comfortable, but everything else made her miserable. Some of the citizens called her a hero, others called her the fallen hero. She was approaching the bridge by the river when she came across a City Enforcement car. Two CE members were standing around a dead body lying in the middle of the street. Some citizens were watching. Long ago, Dawn would have investigated. She would have cared and worried about what happened to this unfortunate victim. But those days were long gone.

Dawn stared at the city across the wasted river. She could not recall the name of the city but did remember how much more horrendous it was. It was a prison where the insane and more ruthless criminals would spend what was left of their lives. Maybe she belonged there, she thought. In the last five years, she had done nothing worthy for anybody. She watched as a security boat floated by. It did not make her feel better but it made the citizens feel safe. A worrying suspicion always clouded her mind about the City Enforcement. It may have been the alcohol consumption that caused her to feel that way. She kept telling herself that she would secretly observe them. But being the deadbeat she had become, she never had the determination to pursue it. She needed to be motivated by something they had done because it was the only way for her to do what she needed to do. In this type of a world, she knew that day would come.

Dawn walked along the bridge keeping her head down. Then, true to form, someone was lurking in the shadows behind her. It started to follow her, hiding behind large pieces of rubble, broken down cars, and dumpsters. Whatever it was, it was no ninja. Dawn did not hear the noise that was made behind her. The figure pulled out a large knife and snuck up behind her. This was when she saw the shadow behind her and quickly turned around. It was a young girl with scars on her face. She looked diseased and wore a ragged black robe. The young girl came at her with a knife. Dawn blocked the knife and kicked her in the ribs. She turned the young girl around and put her in a sleeper hold. A few seconds later the young girl passed out. Dawn let her fall to the ground. It did not matter to her if the young girl was dead. She continued on down the bridge as if it was business as usual. The City Enforcement would soon make their rounds by the bridge and find the body. After all the commotion, Dawn was beginning to crave another alcoholic drink. She was now on the other side of the bridge and knew where to find a drink. There were vagrants all around the area. This was the part of the city were there were no plans to rebuild. Everyone who did not care about the new rebuilt city lived here. She walked past groups of people who were either passed out, sleeping, or even dead against the walls. None of them had alcohol. If any of them did, she would take it by force if she had to. As the minutes passed by, her neediness for a drink grew more. Many of the vagrants looked at her with desire. Here she was a young woman in an area full of drunken citizens. Dawn could care less how these vagrants looked at her. Then, she saw three men sitting in a corner. They had plenty of alcohol. Dawn spotted a big bottle of whiskey on the table. As she walked over there, one of the men spotted her. All she could care for is that bottle of whiskey.

"How much for it?" She asked as she took out a handful of coins.

One of the vagrants looked at her stomach and chest.

"No charge for you pretty lady," he muttered, "Let's go inside. I want a special kind of payment from you."

Dawn knew right away what he wanted and she was going to have none of it. She threw the coins at the ground near him and took the whiskey bottle. She took a sip as she stormed out of the alley. The feeling she experienced while drinking the whiskey was bliss. Of course, this feeling would not last. The three men followed her as she continued to drink.

"Hey little lady," the vagrant shouted, "Get that sweet ass back here."

Dawn stopped and turned around. One of the vagrants had a baseball bat and the other had a knife.

"Just crawl back into the little piss hole you came out of," Dawn said.

"Get her boys," the vagrant demanded.

"Don't do it, or you'll get hurt," Dawn said as she pointed at them.

The two vagrants ignored her request. She set the whiskey bottle down. The man with the knife tried to stab her but she evaded the attack, kicked him in the knee, and elbowed him in the face, knocking him down. The man with the bat swung at her but she dodged each swing. He swung once more and Dawn was able to deliver a punch right in the nose causing him to stumble down. Dawn got on top of him and hit him in the face with her elbow, knocking him out. The last vagrant grabbed a rock and ran at her. She quickly picked up the bat and hit him right in the face. He is instantly knocked out. She picked up her whiskey bottle where the knife wielding vagrant was still on his knees. She took a sip and kicked him in the face, knocking him unconscious. During the commotion someone contacted the City Enforcement. She saw the lights flashing and made a run for it.

A young woman wearing a hoodie was watching her from the rooftops. She was able to navigate across the rooftops as Dawn ran through the city. The young woman stopped following her when Dawn ran across the bridge. She had blonde hair, was thin, and was wore white face paint with red lips and black paint smothered over her eyes. She had an evil grin on her face and let out a small chuckle. She suddenly stopped smiling and laughing as she stood up on the rooftop. She stared into the night as Dawn disappeared over the bridge. Then, the flashing lights caught her attention. She quickly made her way back. The young woman was very agile as she was able to leap across rooftops, avoid large air ducts, and climb over railings with ease. The flashing lights got brighter as she approached the crime scene. She got down on her stomach and crawled closer. There they were, the City Enforcement, investigating the crime scene. Barney Calhoun and others were interrogating the vagrants.

"So, you say this woman attacked you, is that right?" Barney asked.

"Yeah, she stole my whiskey," the vagrant mumbled.

"That's not what witnesses say. You were the one causing trouble."

Barney signaled a CE member over.

"Put him in the van with the others," Barney told him.

"Ah, screw the City Enforcement," the vagrant shouted. "You are the real criminals."

The young woman had her eyes fixed on Barney. She smiled with a small giggle. She took out a knife and pretended moved it across his throat from the distance. The vagrant was placed in the van. Barney and the others drove off and of course, the young woman followed. She had no trouble keeping up with the van due to the fact that she took shortcuts and knew exactly were the station was. She was so quick she waited for the van to arrive. She smiled and the van stopped. Barney and the others got out of the van and opened the door. Barney pulled the vagrant out and threw him on the ground. He kicked him in the stomach. The other CE members took the other vagrants out of the van and escorted the inside. The young woman giggled.

"No liberal jack offs to save you now," Barney shouted. "Now stand up asshole."

The vagrant struggled to stand up with his hands cuffed.

"Filthy drunk," Barney muttered.

Barney grabbed him by the hair and slammed him into the van. Instead of the traditional escort into the police station, Barney kicked him until he stumbled inside. The young woman watched Barney until he went in the station. She lay on her back with a smile on her face as she stared into the night sky. She began to laugh.