Tales from the Wasteland, Vol. 1-5

"The roads are the dustiest,
the winds are the gustiest,
the gates are the rustiest,
the pies are the crustiest,
the songs are the lustiest,
the friends are the trustiest
way back home.

Don't know why I left the homestead,
I really must confess.
I'm a weary exile
singing my song of loneliness..."

Celeste heard something, singing... but it was so far away. She tried to open her eyes, but the darkness was too strong. She was... moving? There was something warm, there was pain... and then nothing once more.

"Hey there, c'mon. You're still breathin', wake up."

Something rolled her over, and blinding light took over Celeste's vision. Someone stepped over her. She coughed, her eyes adjusting enough to make out the silhouette of a man. White hair, white beard, dark skin... He looked a bit older, but any details beyond that were hard to make out with the bright sun behind him.

"Not used to findin' people alive out here just lying around..."

Celeste felt her nerves suddenly spring to life, and the pain in her side was immediate, but dull. She winced, feeling far too weak to even sit up.

"Hey, hey, easy. My name's Doc Church, and I know a thing or two about patching folks up. if we can get you up and to Megaton, we can get you fixed up." Doc Church rubbed at his beard. "You look like you've lost a lot of blood... I'm not sure how long you've been out here, but I'd say you're lucky to be alive."

Celeste felt Doc Church heft her up. She was honestly surprised how strong he was. He threw her arm over his shoulders. She wanted to say how thankful she was, but the words weren't coming out. Celeste shifted her vision forward, seeing a massive chunk of rusty metal. She couldn't make out much before her head hung limply once more. The dirt beneath them was moving in short shifts as Doc Church continued to limp them both forward. Sweat that had been building on her for however long she'd be out here began to drip off her chin. What happened...? She tried to think, but the heat and pain overtook her and she passed out.

The air was cooler, something was blowing on Celeste. Her eyes fluttered open, and she was looking at an oscillating fan focused on her. She was thankful it wasn't near as bright as earlier, and even moreso that she was inside. The building looked terrible, put together by patches of metal, none of it perfectly shielding the inside from the elements of the outside. Where was she?

"Hey there, you're awake. Can you speak?" Doc Church walked in, rubbing his hands with a rag. Celeste winced as she sat up. "Whoa, whoa, take it easy." Celeste sighed with relief, rotating her neck to the left and right. "Do you remember anything at all? Your name? How you ended up passed out in the Wasteland?"

"My name... is Celeste," she replied, trying to recall what happened.

"You're wearing a Vault-Tec jumpsuit, Celeste. Vault 150. Does that mean anything to you?" There was something the doctor's eyes as he spoke, and Celeste wasn't sure if he knew something that she didn't.

"I... I live in Vault 150." Celeste tried to recall, and nothing was coming. She could only remember bits and pieces of her life in the Vault... And it suddenly hit her: she wasn't IN the Vault. Doc Church mentioned the Wastelands, but it didn't register until just now. She was out of the Vault in a world she no longer knew. "Wh... Where is everyone? Where am I?!"

Doc Church rushed to her side, his arms placed firmly on her shoulders. "Hey, hey... Calm down. I need you to stay calm, and recollect anything you can."

Celeste steadied her breathing, trying to focus and think. The only things she could remember were bit and pieces of common memories. Eating at the cafeteria, being in class, the G.O.A.T. exam... But whatever happened to get her to go as far as leave was beyond her memory right now. "I... I don't know..."

Doc Church patted her on the back. "Hey, it's alright, Celeste. Let's get you rested up and back to full health, and I'm sure the memories will come back to you in time, okay? Now, don't be alarmed, because I already fixed you up." He pointed to Celeste's side.

"Oh my God..." Celeste looked down and saw four large gashes in her jumpsuit. Her skin was bandaged up underneath, but she didn't want to know what it looked like. "What...?!"

Doc Church shook his head, "I'm not 100% sure what happened to you out there, Celeste. What I can tell you is that you look like you were attacked by one of the creatures in the Wasteland, you managed to escape, and the loss of blood and the heat got the better of you."

Despite how much she tried to remember, Celeste couldn't recollect anything, and she thought something like that would be hard to forget. "...Where am I?" Doc Church helped Celeste to her feet. She felt funny, but she was able to clumsily make her way alongside him to the door.

Doc Church opened the door, allowing in the warm afternoon sun, "Welcome to Megaton."

"The food is the spreadiest,
the wine is the headiest,
the pals are the readiest,
the gals are the steadiest,
the love is the liveliest,
the life is the loveliest way back,
way back,

Way back home.

No place like home..."

"Get up, bitch!" Celeste came to with a slap across her face and a shrill woman's voice, the song on the radio crackling.

"...sweet

home."