"What the ****? This isn't City 17," Shinn said to himself, trying to get a sense of his surroundings. The architecture all around him was in that familiar Eastern European style, blended with the Combine's own peculiar technological embellishments; to him, it resembled City 17, right down to the Cyrillic graffiti adorning random walls and the Citadel standing in all its austere glory off in the distance. However, Shinn knew it was not really City 17; from what he could see, there wasn't even a single Combine Civil Protection officer stirring, nor were there Combine hunter-choppers or gunships soaring off in the great blue yonder. The omnipresent video screens were showing nothing but snow and static; normally, the visage of the much-detested Dr. Wallace Breen would be broadcasted on the screens. The loudspeaker system, which usually played the voice of Breen in a seemingly unending loop, now played nothing but My Chemical Romance; the song "The Ghost of You" was currently playing. "At the end of the world, or the last thing I see, you are never coming home, never coming home..." the voice of Gerard Way echoed all throughout the empty streets.
Shinn felt somewhat unnerved upon hearing those lyrics. For some unknown reason, he had been separated from his home, his friends, and his adopted family; sure, Shinn hated his "home" and he wasn't really on best terms with the rest of the City 17 resistance (save for Jennifer Tomoe, his adopted mother), but City 17 was still his home, and he missed it dearly. At least in City 17 he could kick Combine butt, which was a task he relished; now, there wasn't even a single Metro Cop in sight to give the smackdown on. "The hell with this. I might as well make the best of my situation and scout out the surroundings," Shinn said to himself as he took out his ever-trusty FN P90 SMG.
"Who knows? I might actually find a way back to the real City 17."
Shinn began walking, P90 in hand. He had no idea where he was going, nor did he have any idea what he was going to encounter.