Deep in the ruins of Washington DC, mutants roam the desecrated landscape and despite the end of the great war, fighting rages on, the fight for survival. Several factions go toe to toe with each other in their search to gain land and supplies. Despite all of this settlements were built as some people try to live a normal life, showcasing the resilience of the human race and their need to fight on and on until their last breath, unfortunately for them, fighting until your last breath is the norm in the Capital Wasteland.

12:32 PM, East of the Nuka Cola Plant

Dust pours out of the Metro's entrance as I force open the heavy metal doors blocking the way. Taking a step back I wipe sweat from my forehead and let out a long sigh, sliding my other hand down my side and slipping a thumb behind my belt whilst staring down the pitch black staircase. I kneel down and pull off my backpack, unzipping it and taking out a box full of 9mm bullets. After opening the box, I slide a typical 9mm pistol out of my holster and check the magazine is loaded, taking the spare magazines from my belt and filling them all with bullets before putting the box back into the bag. I then take out a black gasmask, pulling it on and checking the filter is locked in place securely. Finally, I take a small flashlight from the rucksack and flick the switch. It flickers slightly before staying on. I stand up and pull the bag back over my shoulders, pulling back the slide on my pistol afterward and sliding the flashlight down my belt.

Slowly stepping down the stairs I hear something scuttling around in the darkness, I shine the torch towards the sound but I'm too far away from the bottom to be able to see anything. My footsteps echo around me as I near the bottom of the stairs, I take a quick glance behind me, the light from outside beginning to disappear. Lost in thought I suddenly realise I've reached the bottom. I shine my flashlight around the lobby of the metro, small radroaches slink back into their holes as the light washes over them. My eyes are drawn to a trail of blood streaked along the ground and into the ticket office, it's dried into the ground so whatever unfortunate thing it belongs to lost it a long time ago. Curiosity getting the better of me I follow the trail until I come to a door. I slowly pull the door open, aiming my pistol into the room and covering most of my body behind cover. In the middle of the room lies a mangled corpse which is all but entirely decomposed. I approach, my eyes darting around to ensure nothing is waiting to give me a nasty surprise. After reaching the corpse I kneel down beside it, something has torn right through its chest, leaving a black void in its place, all that remains is several bone fragments.

I run my hands through the various pouches and pockets on the man's clothes. Finding a few caps I slip them into my own pocket, standing up and leaving the room. I slowly step across the room and open the door to the men's restroom, creeping inside and listening closely for any sounds. A mirror adorns the first wall I see. I walk over to the mirror and wipe some dust off of it with the sleeve of my hoodie, staring into the reflection, my icy blue eyes staring back at me. I shake my head and quickly look around the room, finding nothing of interest and walking back out, deciding to venture further down into the metro. Before I reach the top of the staircase I catch sight of a desk in the corner of my eye. I quickly move over to it and pull the drawer open.

"Yes!" I say excitedly, pulling a laser pistol out of the drawer and checking the Cell port, it's loaded. Thanks to the increasing rarity of energy weapons, guns like these are going for inflated prices, meaning I'll be able to get a decent pay cheque from this alone. I smirk under my mask, sliding the laser pistol into an empty holster on my hip and walking back towards the staircase. I grip my 9mm tightly, aiming it in front of me as I take baby steps down the stairs. My torch flickers, the path in front of me becoming harder to properly see.
"For fuck's sake…" I mutter, hitting the side of the torch with my hand. Not paying attention to the path in front of me I step on something that cause me to lose my footing, sending me tumbling down the stairs into the abyss below.

I finally reach the bottom after what felt like an eternity. I slowly pull myself to my feet, an intense feeling of pain rushing over my body as I come back to my senses. I look around, taking in my new surroundings. I realise that I'm standing on a train platform, it's clear that it's been out of commission for a long time as the tracks are completely flooded with water and the only carriage in my sight is empty, apart from the presence of a few skeletons. I look down, noticing a corpse floating past me in the water. I take a firm grip of it and heave it up onto the ground that I'm standing on. The face of a young woman is the first thing I see after I flip the body onto its back. Large bruises and cuts cover her face but after further inspection I find what appears to be the main cause of death. Her throat was completely torn open by what looks to be some sort of vicious animal. The woman's dead eyes stare up at me, sending a shiver down my spine. I lean down and shut her eyes, it's the least I can do for her. This courtesy only extends so far as quickly after I check her corpse for anything of value, I reach into one of the pouches on her belt and find a few magazines loaded with .308 rounds.
"She's got bullets but no rifle, typical." I say to myself, standing up and sliding the magazines into my rucksack.

I step to the edge of the platform and step over into the train carriage, making sure not to fall into the water. I'm greeted by the skeleton of what looks like a child sitting on one of the seats, gripping tightly onto a teddy bear. Her clothing is pre-war so this kid has been here for a very long time. I grab the teddy bear and pull it out of the kid's hand, causing the skeleton to fall off the seat and crumble into a pile of dust. I let out a sigh and step back, staring down at the toy and gripping onto it tightly. Such a simple thing yet it invoked such powerful emotions within me. Thanks to the war I was never given the chance at having a normal childhood, just like everyone around me. I feel my eyes welling up and the teddy slips through my fingers, causing me to snap back to reality. I shake my head and take in a deep breath, turning back down the carriage and walking towards the door. I try to look through the window into the next carriage but it's obscured by dirt and grime. Gripping tightly onto my pistol I slowly open the door and step inside. Unable to see anything due to the darkness I hit the side of my flashlight to try get it to come back on. It flickers once. I swear I saw something there. It begins to flicker rapidly and an obscure shape in front of me grows larger. I hear a loud snarl and my flashlight flicks on, revealing what appears to be a feral ghoul. I let out a loud yelp and raise my pistol as it sprints towards me…

If you've gotten this far it means you read the first chapter. This is my first attempt at writing a fan fiction so any comments would be helpful. If the reception is good, then I'll continue to write. Also, constructive criticism is very welcome, thank you.