I was up at first light the next morning, and wasted no time in gathering my things together for the journey ahead. I had already explained to Ilya how there was no better time to travel, the ghouls were just lying down for the day, while the raiders were still drunk from the night before. Of course, that didn't stop her from being as stubborn as a two-headed mule when it came time to get up. You would think that two centuries suspended in cryo-stasis would have been enough sleep to last her a lifetime, but instead all I got was a groan of "five more minutes" as she rolled over and fell right back to sleep. Hate to break it to you sweetheart, but this ain't no concierge service.

I flipped over the sofa and sent the girl crashing to the floor with a yelp of surprise. Ten minutes of screaming later and she spent the rest of the morning sulking over a breakfast of baked beans and warm Nuka-Cola. The silent treatment suited me just fine, in fact, the sooner she was safe behind the Wall, the sooner she was outta my hair and someone else's problem.

Once we'd hit the road however, her indignation was quickly forgotten. Suddenly I was under siege, bombarded with question after question, most of which I couldn't have answered even if I'd wanted to. How do ghouls degenerate without dying? How long did it take for the animals to mutate and evolve? Do you think it was the ionizing or the residual radiation that caused the different mutagenetic permutations?

What should have been a short walk seemed to drag on forever as the girl insisted on stopping at every coffee shop, laundromat, and ice cream parlor on the way, as if the answer to all her questions would be waiting for her on a silver platter. Worse yet, she had a knack for finding trouble where there was none. A minor encounter with a lone radroach escalated quickly when she stumbled over some debris and disturbed the rest of its family. I had everything under control, until one crawled up the side of her leg and she screamed so loud that every super mutant, rabid dog, and raider heard it for miles around. Three unscheduled detours later and we finally crossed the bridge into Boston.

Diamond City sat only a few blocks away, but I led her off the main road and into a nearby office building first. After a few minutes of digging through the piles of old junk, I finally found a suitcase with some Pre-War clothes inside. I tossed the girl a long coat and headscarf and she looked at them with disgust.

"What are these for?" She said with a grimace.

"It'll be a lot easier if no one knows you're a vault dweller, and if you're going to pass for a Wastelander, then you're going to have to look, and... ugh... smell, the part," I added as I pulled out a hideous plaid suit for myself, a vile orange number covered in some suspicious stains that I chose to ignore.

"But I thought you said Diamond City was safe?" She asked.

"It is, it's Outfield I'm worried about..."

"Outfield? What's that?"

What do I look like, the Wasteland's resident tour guide? She looked just like a tourist too as I watched her try on a pair of sunglasses in a cracked mirror, like this was all just one big road trip. Rather than spend the rest of my life answering stupid questions, I dragged the girl up to the rooftop and pointed to the skyline before us. Ilya gasped.

And there she was, the Great Green Jewel of the Commonwealth herself, Diamond City. What had once been an old sports stadium, now stood as the last bastion of civilization against the wilds of downtown Boston. The city's massive steel walls towered over the surrounding ruins, and you could just make out the homes in the high stands with their electricity and clean water, but that's not where I was pointing.

No. I was pointing below, where beneath the Wall's great shadow lay a sea of tents that flooded the plaza and into the surrounding alleyways beyond. Hundreds upon hundreds of people were crowded into the dilapidated buildings, taking up residence wherever they could find it. They were in the ruins, they were on the street, they were in the dumpsters and the gutters. Some had even fled to the sewers, all just to get away from the crumbling state of the Commonwealth. It was easily the biggest settlement around, and the most dangerous to boot. Goodneighbor was bad enough, but at least they had a code among thieves. Out here, it was every man for himself.

"That's Outfield," I said.

"Where did they all come from?" She asked, wide-eyed.

"All over. Farms, outposts, you name it. The Commonwealth is in shambles, ever since the Minutemen fell at Quincy the settlements have had no one to protect them after that. Those that could afford it packed up and took their chances out west, everyone else? They're either struggling out in No-Man's-Land or sitting right in front of you. C'mon, the entrance is down this way."

"Wait a minute, you're not saying... you can't actually mean... that this is "Diamond" City?!"

"What were you expecting, the Ritz Carlton?" I laughed, but Ilya just looked horrified.

"But that's a baseball stadium!" She cried, "Are you really telling me that this is as good as it gets?" I sighed and I pat her on the back before flashing my most charming smile.

"Welcome to the Wasteland, sweetheart."

*************

We weaved in and out of the bustling marketplace, amid makeshift shops and traveling caravans with their brahmin in tow. The traders shouted over one another with colorful slogans, desperately competing for what few customers there were to be had. There weren't many caps left to go around these parts, most of these people were farmers whose homes had been razed and their crops stolen. The raiders weren't the only thing you had to worry about either, the super mutants had been growing bolder as the Commonwealth continued to fracture into anarchy, their attacks becoming more frequent and brutal with each passing day. And if they didn't get to you, then the radiation would. Intense radstorms had been swelling up from the south, as if the Glowing Sea itself was rising up to swallow all of civilization whole.

And yet, none of this even scratched the surface of the dangers that were lurking around every corner, for there was something out here far worse than mutants and mayhem, something that none of us could escape. Something that was hiding in plain sight.

Everywhere you looked, you could see the fear and distrust in people's eyes. Who? Who would it be next? The man on the street corner? The new trader in town? Or would the hand of fate finally point it's accursed finger at you?

Reality can be far stranger, and more terrifying, than fiction ever could... and the Institute's newest abominations made the synths I'd met in the mine look like child's play. Not only were they smarter, faster, and more deadly than ever, but they actually looked human, and it's a hell of a lot harder to pull the trigger when the face staring back at you once belonged to someone you loved. You just had to remember that beneath the crude imitation of human flesh beat the mechanical heart of a monster, loyal only to the unseen hand that made it.

In the end, the Institute was no different than Vault-Tec or any other Pre-War company that had left the world in ruins, and it was only a matter of time before they all condemned us to the same fate in the fire.

At last, we arrived at the main gate where a guard stood with clipboard in hand. The man was built like a brick wall with a face to match, and like all Diamond City security, he was wearing a Pre-War baseball uniform and helmet, with umpire pads that just barely stretched over his wide frame. As the man looked over his paperwork, his brow wrinkled in confusion, it was like watching an ape trying to read.

Perfect, I thought, just the kind of meathead I was hoping for. And with that, I signaled to Ilya to follow my lead.

"Hello there, fella!" I said with my best northern accent, and the man looked up from his papers with an annoyed glare.

"Pardon me sir, but we are envoys from Far Harbor, sent here to negotiate a trade route with you and your fine city. We've come all this way to visit with your local market to see what our settlements have to offer each other, but we only got off the boat yesterday and have been walking ever since. My associate and I are very tired and were hoping to get a room before making our rounds. I'm sure a well-traveled man like yourself would understand..." I added with a winning smile.

The man looked us up and down, but to my surprise, said nothing as he folded his arms across his massive chest.

"Er, well," I continued as I fumbled with the suitcase I'd brought along, "We, uh, have an assortment of sample merchandise to showcase, and full authority to finalize agreements so there'll be no delay, but my superiors are very eager to hear back from me, so if you'd kindly let us in..."

"Youse gots an appointment, there fella?" The man said gruffly.

"Well... no, " I replied, a little taken aback, "Like I said, my associate and I just got off the boat from Far Harbor and we're here to negotiate a trade route-" The guard held up his hand and stopped me right there.

"Gimme a break," he said as he rolled his eyes, "Do youse gots any idea how many "envoys", "ambassadahs", and so-called "Kings of the Wasteland" I sees on a daily basis? Everyone wants inside this here wall, and I've heards just about every story in the book, but that hasta be one of the lamest ones I've heards yet. Ain't no's ways youse two are from that fah north. For one, this little philly here would freeze her pretty little ass off, and you? You look about as much like a fisherman as a dead mole rat."

"How's this sound, bub?" The man said with a smarmy smile, "I'll just go ahead and adds your names to this here list, and we'll get ya's in. Let's see... Oh, would ya lookee here! We gots an opening coming up in... about three months to never. How's ten o' clock work for ya?" And with that, the man's booming laughter chased us all the way back into the crowds.

As I hid my face from the jeering onlookers, I felt my blood begin to boil. Who the hell did that prick think he was, anyway? The last time I'd visited the Diamond, all it took was one good deal to waft under their greedy noses and they'd throw out the red carpet for just about anyone. We needed to regroup and figure out something else, preferably without calling so much attention to myself this time. The last thing I needed was to get recognized out here, the Citadel itself had set the bounty on my head and Outfield was full of mercenaries just itching for the chance to cash in.

"That went well, don't you think?" Ilya said with a wry smile.

"Fucking asshole," I spat, "You know, that would have worked a couple of months ago, they must have beefed up security since the last surge of refugees. I guess things have gotten a lot worse since I've been gone."

"So, what are we suppose to do now?" She asked.

"Well, that gate's the only way in or out, so I guess we wait until they change the guard and give it another go then."

"That's it? That's your plan? Now really Jacob, I had expected so much more from you, oh great master of disguise," she added with a tittering laugh.

"Oh yeah? So what's your plan then, smart ass?" I snapped.

"Have you always been this charming, Mr. Burns? Because I think I've met lab rats with better manners than you. My plans, as it happens, haven't changed one bit since last night. I say we go after the vault, starting with leaving this wretched city behind and never looking back. In fact, if we left right now, we could be resting comfortably at my father's place before sundown."

"Oh no you don't, I told you once before, I ain't interested in any more treasure hunts, mad adventures, or wild goose chases, so don't waste your breath," I said as I rubbed at my temples once again. I couldn't help but sigh as I stared up at the Wall that towered over me like... well, like a goddamn wall in my way. I knew there had to be another way in, but I just couldn't see it. All I could think about was how badly I wanted to wipe that smug smile off of Ilya's face.

Suddenly, a delighted cackle startled me from behind, and I whipped around only to stifle a gasp of surprise. I was expecting a guard, a bounty hunter, or even Hancock himself, but nothing could have prepared me for what I was seeing now.

An old woman was standing there, although she wasn't really standing at all. Instead, she was sitting within the modified framework of an old Mr. Handy, refitted to suit her like a high-tech hover-chair. Her frail body wobbled as one of the jet thrusters sparked every now and again, causing her to dip in the air like a drunken bloatfly. For a brief and terrifying moment, I thought I saw a look of recognition on the woman's face, that was, until her eyes met mine and I realized that she was completely blind. Even so, as I stared into those empty eyes, I couldn't help but feel she was hiding something just beyond that shrouded veil... as if she had knowledge of some great secret, and that this fact amused her to no end.

No sooner had the thought crossed my mind than a smile appeared across that ancient face, and the woman cackled again.

"He he he... Heart of steel, and charming as tin, the battle may be won, but the war will never end," she said with a mad glee.

"I... What?" I sputtered, baffled beyond words. The old woman was making as much sense as a junkie on jet, which seemed entirely possible now that I got a good look at her. The woman's skin was sunken and sallow, her teeth all but fallen out, and those that hadn't were stained with the tell-tale residue from years of chem abuse. No wonder the old bat was out here by herself, she was just another addict looking for a fix, and I wasn't about to support anybody's habits but my own.

"C'mon Ilya, let's get out of here. This old junkie seems one chem short of a cocktail, if you know what I mean..." I said as I turned and walked away.

"Hmph, just as mama thought..." the old woman said, "Nothing more than another coward running from his own shadow. The Wasteland is full of fools like you boy, but few have failed quite as spectacularly as you did just a moment ago. Mama may be blind, but even she could see that was never going to work."

"Although..." she continued coyly, "Old mama may be able to help you... for a price."

I stopped in my tracks, unsure what to think. I didn't trust the woman any farther than I could throw her, but then again, if she did know a way in, then it just might be worth it. I turned around and looked her straight in those dead eyes, and, certain I was going to regret it, I asked the question I knew she was after.

"You saying you know a way in?" I asked.

"Perhaps..." the woman said with a knowing smile, "Mama knows many things... the Sight shows her what her eyes cannot, and the Sight never lies. It can reveal all you need to know, of course, the answer you receive may not be the one you expect... and like all things in this world, nothing comes for free."

"It's the chems, child. They open the mind to a greater reality, beyond the universe that our flawed and imperfect eyes can perceive. And that is all I need, it's nothing really, just a little med-x to calm these old bones. I'm sure an adventurer like yourself carries an extra shot or two in case of emergencies..."

"And there it is!" I yelled, "I knew this old rust bucket didn't know a damn thing, you're just out here looking for an easy fix, well you can go ahead and take your "Sight" and shove it right up your wrinkled old-"

"Jacob!" Ilya yelled.

"Oh please, don't tell me you're actually falling for this? This has scam written all over it!"

"I don't care! That is no way to speak to a poor old woman just looking for some help! And besides, why not let her try it? She seems to have you pegged pretty well, and she must be doing something right if she's managed out here by herself. What could it hurt really? It certainly isn't as if you have any better ideas."

"I can't believe you are actually entertaining this...this... insanity! No, no way. Not happening. There is no way I'm giving up one of my last chems to some gypsy on the street, and that's final!" That should have been the end of it, but before I knew what was happening, Ilya had snatched the pack off my belt and tossed it to the old woman.

"Thank you, my child..." She said blissfully as she stuck the needle into her arm, and I watched in disbelief as the last of my med-x vanished into her veins. She rolled her eyes into the back of her head, and a look of absolute ecstasy appeared on her face. When she finally spoke again, it sounded as if she were drifting a million miles away.

"Mama can see... a man out of hope and a girl out of time, two lost souls on paths intertwined, and so very far from home. Your destiny awaits, far from the shadow of the Wall and beyond the reaches of the Commonwealth, through the great ghastly veil and past temples of gods long dead. There, you will find what you seek... But beware my child, for even to this day the radiation does burn, alive with the fire that was lit so very long ago."

The woman's breath became heavier and more labored, and she struggled to speak as the sweat poured down her face, the chemicals ripping through her at a terrifying rate. The once blissful expression was replaced by one of pure terror, and without warning, the woman seized and convulsed. She cried out in agony, and to my horror every eye in the marketplace suddenly turned toward us.

"Can you not hear the cries?" She screamed like a woman possessed.

"They are calling out from beyond the grave! Ancient echoes are rising up from the dark, whispers of men gone mad and the war that time forgot. Lo! What happened before shall happen again, the endless cycle of the downfall of men! The truth is hidden in history's pages, but beware! Beware, my child, the man with a thousand faces!"

"MAMA MURPHY!"

A yell echoed throughout the marketplace, and just like that, the woman's fever broke as suddenly as it had appeared. She woke from her trance with a desperate gasp, and I stood dumbfounded as a pair of refugees came rushing to her side. An Asian man knelt beside her with tears streaming down his face, his wife, on the other hand, glared daggers at us before she began demanding answers.

"What the hell is going on here, mama? Were you bothering more people about the Sight again? Please tell me you didn't trick them into giving you more chems..."

"...It is the only way... I can See..." Mama Murphy said through heaving breaths.

"God dammit, mama! If I've told you once, I've told you a thousand times, that "Sight" don't bring nothing but pain and misery. Why do you think we got stuck out here in the first place? I swear to God, those chems are going to be the death of you!"

"I can... take care... of myself!" Mama Murphy retorted with as much effort as she could muster, but the woman just shook her head.

"Let's go Jun, mama's going to need to sleep this one off, again," she said, full of spite. Her husband nodded as he wiped the tears from his eyes, and began to lead the hovercraft away when suddenly Mama Murphy broke free and grabbed ahold of Ilya. The woman drew her in close and whispered frantically into her ear before Jun was able to tear her away, leaving Ilya looking speechless.

"W-where are we going," Mama Murphy asked, suddenly seeming very lost and confused. "Are we going to Sanctuary? We are supposed to go to Sanctuary... We'll finally be safe there, you'll see. When are we leaving?"

"Mama Murphy... don't you remember?" Jun said as he led her away, his voice quavering. "Sanctuary... Sanctuary is gone. There ain't no place left to go..."

"No, not gone my son. Hiding. Sanctuary is hidden in darkness, awaiting the rise of a new dawn."

"Oh mama..."

*************

I fumed as I walked back through the marketplace in silence, refusing to so much as look at Ilya as we approached the Wall once again. Not only had her little stunt screwed me out of one of my last chems, but it'd be a goddamn miracle if I didn't get recognized after all that.

"Well, I hope you're happy!" I hissed under my breath, "Last of my goddamn painkillers and you throw them away to the first beggar you meet! Let me ask you something, have you any idea what it feels like to get shot? Well I do, and let me tell you kiddo, it ain't no fucking picnic. A stimpak might save your ass, but without something to dull the pain, then you may as well use a deathclaw talon to extract the bullet... Hey are you even listening to me?!"

Ilya was lost in her own head once again, with that same look of determined concentration on her face that I'd seen the night before. I rolled my eyes as we kept walking, I may as well have been talking to the Wall itself. As we approached the main square once again, we saw a line of carts sitting right outside the front gate. I glared as I watched the guard from before inspect each one in turn, pulling back the tarpaulin and taking stock on his clipboard, when suddenly Ilya was pulling me into the shadows and motioning for me to keep quiet. I watched curiously as she crept up alongside a shop stand and, with surprising deftness, she snatched a small package of firecrackers off the counter and turned back towards me.

"Have you got a light?" She whispered.

"Well, would you look at that... What are you up to, kid?" I asked, just a little impressed as I handed over my gold-plated lighter. Ilya said nothing as she snuck around one of the carts and waited until the guard finished with his inspection. As soon as Ilya heard him give the head driver the all clear, she lit the fuse and tossed the firecrackers at the feet of a brahmin. She rushed back towards me just as they went off in rapid fire, and the creature bawled out a terrified wail, both of its heads rearing back in panic. Before anyone knew what was happening, a mad two-headed cow was stampeding through the marketplace, and reeking havoc through all of downtown.

While the guards were scrambling around like radhens with their heads cut off, Ilya and I crept around the caravan and slipped into the back of a cart. I couldn't believe our luck as the driver returned and got behind the reigns without so much as a second look. As I laid back, listening to the chaos outside, I couldn't help but wonder what the old woman had said to Ilya to change her mind. She may have been madder than a patient at Parson's, but at least she'd been good for something. I decided not to worry about it as the cart began to move, and I watched through a gap in the tarpaulin as we slowly crossed over the threshold, a dazzling patchwork of brightly colored lights appearing above me.

We were in.