Once the game loads I find myself sitting in my house in Megaton. Everything was just as I had left it; Three Dog howling on the jukebox, my robotic butler Jeeves floating around the house, and the quiet hum of the upstairs NukaCola machine. A quick check of my inventory was in order since I had no idea what I was carrying; the Xeunlong Chinese assault rifle, a combat shotgun, a silenced pistol, A-321’s plasma rifle, a wealth of different explosives, and enough ammunition to take down a small country. I’m wearing the T-51B powered armor, which is the best in the game, but it’s very heavy so it slows me down a bit. I check my journal and notice that I still hadn’t completed the first task I had received when I initially arrived in Megaton. One of the local residents had asked me to deliver a letter to her brother, Ian West, who lives in the remote town of Arefu. I decided that would be a good place to start. I headed out of my house, then fast traveled to the closest location to Arefu that I could. Luckily it wasn’t that far and I managed to get there fairly quickly.
Upon arrival I discover it isn’t so much of a town as a few buildings clustered on the remains of a crumbling overpass. It’s a little tricky to find my way up, but I eventually make it. As I approach I see a somewhat grizzled man crouching behind some sandbags. He points his assault rifle at me and orders that I come no closer. They’ve been attacked by a local gang, he says, and he’s just not taking any more chances on strangers. Using my uncanny charm and a little bit of fast talking gets him to calm down enough to allow me into Arefu. There are about four houses total, yet I don’t see anyone else besides Evan. I ask if he knows where I can find Ian, and he tells me that Ian lives with his parents in the farthest shack. Evan asks if I could do him a favor and check on everyone since I’m heading back that way anyway. He’s still too spooked to leave his guard post, so I oblige to help him out.
The first shack I head into is owned by Ken Ewers, who tells me more about this gang that’s been attacking. They call themselves “The Family”, and have been raiding Arefu for awhile now. Some are killed; others are captured and taken away to the north or possibly east. Ken says they’ve been hit so bad that he and a couple other families are all that’s left. On my way out he notes that no one has heard from the Wests since the last raid. I thank him for the information, then head back outside.
The last shack at the end is the West home, and since no one has heard anything from them I don’t waste time knocking. I’m immediately greeted with a ghastly scene, and it’s apparent there is more going on here than I had originally anticipated. The bodies of Ian’s parents lay motionless; one sprawled on the floor and the other on the bed. Both are horribly mutilated, and upon closer inspection it appears as if they had been partially eaten. Ian is nowhere to be found, which means he was probably taken by The Family. There isn’t anything else in the shack, so I leave and break Evan the news. He is understandably upset, so I offer to track down this gang and bring Ian back. Evan tells me a few places I can start looking, one being nearby Seneca Station. It’s relatively close he says, so I pick a northeasterly direction and head out.
Traveling at night through the wasteland isn't a good idea, even for someone as heavily armed as I am. The Enclave have scattered since the Brotherhood of Steel and I razed their Raven Rock fortress to the ground, which also happened to destroy their super-computer leader, President Eden. Some new hellfire troopers have now started showing up, and I'm running across Enclave camps all over. Hopefully the darkness will keep me hidden if I am careful and avoid any hostiles.
