DIARY OF A WATER PURIFIER: EP4, THE CITY OF RIVETS

Recent events have made me question my previous stance on things like capital punishment. I'm warming to the idea that pissing me off is a major crime, and that justice should come swiftly to anyone who does so. And that justice should involve pieces of lead expelled from a steel tube at high velocity by the force of expanding gas emitted by a chemical reaction created by setting fire to a swiftly burning powder. In other words, I'm gonna shoot the next person who gets in my way. Killing Three Dog was... liberating. I feel like a new woman.

Unfortunately, this new woman has no idea where to go next. Dad's off somewhere, and Three Dog didn't actually tell me anything useful before I aerated his internal organs for him. I guess I'm off to Rivet City, it's the closest town. Hopefully it won't be anything like Megaton, all full of sharp bits of rusty metal and people who are either extremely friendly or extremely unfriendly.

About an hour later, I've seen more subway tunnels than ever wanted to, or even ever believed might exist in a sane world. Really, I'm getting sick of crawling through tubes filled with rubble. Judging by the sheer number of destroyed subway cars, I'd say that the population of Washington DC before the war was somewhere in the double-digit billions. Either that, or ostentatious displays of wealth got the better of everyone, and everyone had to have their own personal subway car. Whatever, I don't care, and from now on I'm staying OUT of the ghoul-and-bandit infested subways.

When I finally reach Rivet City, I realize that my hope for decent, or at least normal, people was a vain one. The city is a busted-ass aircraft carrier floating in the radioactive water, rusty and gunky in every way. It's protected by (1) a rusty bridge that some moron thought was a good idea to swing in and out for every person who approaches the ship, and (2) one asshole with a plasma rifle. Dude, a single super mutant could rip right through this place, and your little pew-pew gun would only make him angry. The bridge guard directs me to the local doctor in the belly of the ship.

Whaddya know? It turns out that this Doctor Li was a colleague of dad's, and he came to see her before he took off again! I'm honestly getting fed up with this asshole, he can't stay in one place for more than five minutes before running off. Sure, go and see your old Irish drinking buddy, an idiotic radio DJ, and then an old colleague, but don't bother to tell your only daughter you were leaving home. I'm seriously considering dropping my quest to go find him, but what the fuck else is there to do in this godsforsaken wasteland? Scavenging the rusted hulks of prewar office buildings? Professional ghoul-killing? Mirelurk hunting for fun and profit?

No, I'm a lone wanderer, and I'm off to seek my father. My goal hasn't changed, even if my reasons for pursuing it have. Before, I wanted to find dad because I missed him and felt lost without him. Now I just want to punch the guy in the face for being such a dick. Not just to me, but to everyone he meets.

So, it's off to some old vault, apparently good ol' number 101 just wasn't good enough for him. I'm sure it's going to be a safe journey. Ha! Nah, not really, I just said that for comedic effect - I'm actually pretty sure I'm going to die.

NEXT: TEENAGE WASTELAND

That is, it's possible there might be a next chapter, but... probably not for a while, if at all.

And Mace Raiden's saved game got fucked up all the way back to the Dark Brotherhood shack in the swamps, so it'll be a while before I do anything with him either.

Basically, this is the last thing I'm posting here... until I get up the desire to re-do everything I've already done with Mace and get back on track.