Fallout: Canterlot

Date: July 14, 2074

Area: Stable 88, Cellblock 14

Raiders

Raiders are the scum of the wasteland, the common bandits, barbarians of the new Dark Age of Equestria. Yes, all these tribalistic scavengers are just lovers of guns, drugs, murder, sex, list goes on. Evil, disgusting, racist, sexually-perverted....but...all ponies are in a way, evil, disgusting, racist and sexually-perverted. Wasteland fucks with a pony's mind, all minds. It's only that the Civilized ponies just like to point their hooves at a single group. First it was the Alicorns, then each other, then the Gryphons, the Dracocorns, Gryphons again, Zebras, Mutants, now the Raiders. Damn, talk about a cycle of abuse.

But fuck, what do I know? I'm just a lonely little pony trying to stay positive in the depths of the Stable in which I lived in. I was interested in the Raiders, hell, my own MOM was a fucking Raider. An imprisoned, Radflea-bitten, gun loving Raider...or Raideress? nah, that sounds just fucking stupid, Raider it is. Needless to say, first time we met...it was pretty weird. to say the very VERY least, weird. When you grow up in a Stable with a well intentioned father who spent most his life monitoring the lifespan, behavior, diet, and all that other stuff to caged ponies, you think you have a normal life.

My dad worked with the Stablehand, a disturbed mare named Julia Kaiser, and the rest of her team of Security to act as some kind of messed up Zookeeper of the Wasteland. He was a stalky Earth Pony, who oddly took a career in the intellectual field rather than in brute strength like the rest of his brethren. Hell, even Kaiser herself was more of a brute than dad was, whether that meant something is beyond me. He let me see what he did for the Stable when I was 7, and when I was younger and didn't know any better, I just thought they were separate cells for poorer ponies. I didn't know they were prisoners of enslavement and study.

For my tenth birthday, he showed me Cellblock 14. Boy...I remember that time like it was just yesterday...

Date: July 14th, 2070

"Hey slugger?" I felt my father's hoof on my back, slowly rocking me back and forth on my bed. "Just wake up, you have a big day today."

I struggled to wake up, usual for me. I always slept in, mainly cause I usually got lazy after the school year was over. During that time, each day I'd wake up from 5 AM and got to sleep around 11 PM. After that, screw the clock, I slept until noon. My head was throbbing now, as usual.

"Luxicon" I heard him say my name. "Today's your 10th Birthday, you should be more excited than this" I felt him bite my blanket and forcibly throw it off. And when the cold air hit my flesh, I immediately thrashed about. It was like I was running a fever, where all the warmth is sucked from your body and just transferred to your forehead. it left you cold and hot at the same time, just weird.

"Fine dad...I'm up I'm up..." I got up and stretched my neck and spine out, as I get on all four hooves. my bones creak and pop a little bit, thanks to all my lazy sleeping. You'd think with how late I stay up and how late I sleep in that it would start to affect my mind. But, oddly enough, I'm one of the smartest ponies I know. Yeah, some call that Narcissistic, but I'm just kinda prideful about that. I wasn't really picked on cause I was a nerd, perse, but bullies were a problem.

"Come on, we'll get some food in the Diner." Dad said to me, helping me put on my Stable tunic. I always thought it was weird that it had the number "88" on the back and the collar. Unlike most Stables, most denizens in The Post (Which is what most of the ponies called it) had to get the number branded on your neck. It's for security measures only, and helps in case ponies leave the Stable without consent from the Stablehand. Some Security ponies had them, but most didn't. Maybe it was due to the fact that they wanted to have some Hierarchy, strong above the weak.

But I'm getting off topic.

I followed my dad to the supposedly closed down Diner section of the Stable. I said closed down cause the lights were off and the door seemed to be locked. "Huh...it's closed...weird" Dad was confused. I decided to hit the button, and the door opened up. Weird...if this part of the Stable was closed, then wouldn't it be locked down tight. I'm no technician, but I'm sure they could've bolted the place down. But hey, door's open.

I ran inside, like a little boy hopped up on sugar. Before long, the lights just flashed on, suddenly. It was blinding, and since my irises were red, it made the light that much more intense to me. I quickly shielded my eyes, and heard the loud sounds of party blowers as if I had entered some kind of Party. Well...Le no shit...it was my birthday, lights, part blowers...yeah this is my birthday party. And my 10th to boot. It may have been something a pony my age would be ashamed of if it were about a couple years ago. To be fair, I wouldn't want this for my 9th Birthday, but since this year was important, I let it all slide.

"SURRRRRRRPRIIIIIIIIISSSSEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!"

The light finally subsided, and my eyes adjusted to the now illuminated Dining area. I kept rubbing my eyes, still struggling to see

"Dammit Stamford!" I heard a pony's voice say out. "I told ya we shouldn't have used the lights. you could've BLINDED the poor kid!" He swore for no good reason in front of a colt, but it's ok cause it was kinda appropriate. I still couldn't see properly, hell, I think my eyes were permanently damaged. I soon felt something come at me from behind, grabbing at my stomach and putting weight on my back. It's warm, furry, almost chubby feel was clear enough even to a blinded colt.

"Happy Birthday there, Hot Shot!" the voice was loud, raspy, holding a small hint of femininity. "Betcha we surprised ya good, didn't ya?" It was undeniable, and when I squinted my eyes to see better, I could see her beak poking at my ear. Yup, it was Angel alright.

"I admit it, you got me good Hot Wings" I chuckled, trying to get my Gryphoness friend off me. She got off, still keeping a talon on my back. "Heh, I wasn't THAT surprised though." I said as suave and cool as I could...for a 10 year-old at least.

"Lux, you're such a bad liar!" Say what you will about the Gryphons, Angel was obviously one of the smartest creatures in Stable 88. Bird-brain my flank. "If you weren't surprised, then I bet you won't guess what I got you for your Present." She'd always get me off guard, like always. If it weren't for tight Stable Codes, I bet Angel could be Stablehand.

"Uhhhh...uhhhhh....uhhhhh" was all I could say. I tried think of as logical of an answer as I could. It's not like I'm dumb or anything, quite the contrary actually. I was smart enough to pass classes with flying colors, and even get into some advanced Holotape Classes. I studied History, and it was my best subject, second only to technology. Angel...she passed flying colors...and fucking rain-boomed the advanced courses. So you can see that this was an ordeal to trick her.

"Uhhhhhhhhhhh...a date with Peppercorn?" it was all I could say, and it was pretty random and out of the blue. and the look on Angel's face CLEARLY showed it.

"Ewww!" she was disgusted with my answer. "I didn't even think you LIKED girls let alone a bully like Peppercorn."

"You're a girl" I rebuttled. She just gawked again. "Yeah, but we're FRIENDS...and totally different species...but that's not the point!" her reaction was priceless, I had to admit. She searched through her makeshift jacket, and pulled out what looked like a comic book. Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh...was I a dick.

"No, it's the Red Sabre comic you wanted. It was from dad's collection...Faust, what is wrong with you?" I usually steered clear away from Angel's dad; A Blood-hungry Security Pony. How he spawned a Gryphon is still beyond me, but it's either A) He had her adopted at a young age, or B) Love works in clearly fucked up manners. I just go with A and not really ask anymore questions. But, a Security Pony who had comics? Heh, I guess we were all 10 at one point. But still...somepony who could make me shit myself with a good glare...a comic nerd!?

"Heh, guess I surprised YOU now, huh Angel?" The Gryphoness nodded in agreement, before awkwardly walking away. I then began to enjoy most of my party. It was nothing fancy; A couple friends, their parents, good music, and Stamford at the bar serving up food. Compared to most parties that were thrown here, and they got crazy, let me tell ya...mine was very small scale. The fact this many ponies and critters came her is surprising enough! I began to talk to other ponies, got a couple things like a Security cap(which I quickly wore, liking how it felt on my little head. made me feel cool for once.). I went to the sweet old mare, who was only called 'Grandma' by all the Denizens of Stable 88, and she gave me one thing I didn't think I'd ever get my little hoofies on...

Sweet Roll

Sweet Faustus above who broke the Oblivion! 'Grandma's' Sweet Rolls were fucking LEGENDARY. First off, these things were hard enough to make perfect, since they were part of an old Pre War recipe that was chained with lock and key. Second, Ingredients were scarce, since no pony leaves the Stable(unless you're Security, they go on manhunts for Faust knows what). So, not only are these treats actually...well...a treat...but they're also baked for only one pony each time they turn 10. you get one for your life, so you better savor the taste...the taste...oh sweet goddess above...the taste...I could only imagine.

"GENTLECOLTS, IT'S TIME TO CUT THE CAKE" I heard Stamford in his monotone Braytish accent. the Mr. Hoofy began to rise near my birthday cake, and it let out a big saw blade. Oh....this'll end up just fucking swell... I began to here my dad, Angel, Kaiser, Everypony in the room try to stop the crazy machine from overblowing the cake cutting, but it was too late. the blade spun and destroyed my cake. just like that...

"OH, I'M TRUELY...MORTIFIED EVERYPONY" he said, in his usual, unchanging voice. Bollocks to them, I got my Sweet Roll. As I was about to take a bite...

"HEY! NERD!!!" it was a loud, very angry sounding voice. I turned to see a white Earth Pony with spotty, almost speckled black markings on her. she had on a Stable-88 Vest, and had a pepper-grinder for a cutiemark. Her eyes were...Faust her eyes...the most beautiful shade of violet. and her mane was a solid gunmetal in color, and was short like a colt. It was Peppercorn.

You see...part of the reason that the lie I told to Angel was about Peppercorn is...well...I do kinda have a little crush on her. I always wondered why, but it was one of those things that always came into pure oblivion. I didn't know why I had the hots for a bully who could pummel my face into the Stable's metal walls and still have me manage to forgive her.She even called me a filly at one point. But it always always ALWAYS fell on deaf ears. Heck, I even felt MORE infatuated after she beats the shit out of me. Peppercorn didn't have her goons out to get me, so I KNEW this was personal.

"Uhhh..Hey Peppy" I was fighting my urge to blush and slowly backed away. "Wh...what's wrong?"

"I'M HUNGRY YOU STUPID LITTLE NOSEBLEED!!!" she flared her nostrils. "And that dumb robot DESTROYED THE CAKE!" She got closer, getting me near the wall. "GIMMIE THAT SWEET ROLL!!!!" It was against everything I waited 10 years for, but I gave her my whole Sweet Roll. She ate the whole thing in a few chomps. She was quite the messy eater, and I saw crumbs and icing cover her mouth. I couldn't help but blush, seeing her pretty face and having her close to me.

"What's wrong with you, Nosebleed?" Peppercorn kept me up against the wall. I quickly covered my face, but it was too late. "Are you...crushing...on somepony?" she smiled cruelly at me. "Hey Songbird, Lucky, I think Luxicon here is in love!" I felt the bones in my legs turn into jelly, and my blush burning brighter. A smaller filly, Pegasus with a hummingbird cutiemark, added to the taunts. "Who's the lucky filly there, Love-Sick Luxy?" a colt with a clover cutiemark soon held me up closer again. "Yeah Red Face, who?" I couldn't help it. I fell flat on my ass, and I began to break down. Peppercorn and her crew kept laughing and beating me up. I cried softly, and tears ran down my face. "Ha, Love-Sick Luxy is a little crybaby!" Pepper got closer, her nose touching mine. At that point my face was ALL red, hot, and I felt myself sweating. I'm sure she could see through me as if I were made of glass. I was so tempted to press her lips against mine in a kiss, just to see what would happen.

"HEY!" I heard a familiar voice call out, a friendly voice. "Leave the poor guy alone!" It was Angel, saving my ass once again. Peppercorn pushed her nose away to see the angry Gryphoness showing concern for me.

"Awwww...is she your little crush?" The speckled filly mocked me, and I only looked at Angel in horror. "Hey Lucky, let's put these Love Birds together!" I saw the colt push her closer to me, while Peppy did the same to me. Both of us tried to struggle against our aggressors. I tried my hardest, and closed my eyes tightly. I tried my hardest, really I did....but Peppy was FAR stronger than I ever was...or would be. I couldn't stop my fate...and before long, I felt soft paw pads press against my hooves...and something hard against my lips.

I didn't open my eyes, I never wanted to see again. With either clear 20-20 or my fucked up excuse for eyes, not ever again. But...I inevitably pereked my eyes open, and saw Angel's deep green eyes, fully dilated...like she saw something terrifying. she quickly pulled away, wiping her beak quickly in disgust about what happened. I wouldn't blame her, she was just a friend, and I'm sure both of us have our own crushes here in the Stable. My blush immediately vanished, as I turned unto see the speckled Earth Pony. "...what the heck?" she said, stunned a little, before turning to Songbird. "Why isn't Love-Sick Luxy red after that kiss? he should've been CRIMSON at that point!"

"...H-he..." Angel turned, her blush still vibrant through her feathers. "He...doesn't like me....he likes...ohhhhh..." she sighed, before crawling away in a depressed manner. Kinda sad, since Angel was the spunkiest little Gryphon I know. Seeing her down was always kinda hard for any pony in the Stable. Guess being an adopted little tomboy had it's disadvantages...or at least it wasn't as carefree as I remembered. "Angel?" I asked, before turning back to Peppercorn.

"Well, if Kitty-hawk over there aint your crush, then who the heck is?" she said, getting close to me again. Soon, my cursed blush came back. This time, the admitably thick Earthpony finally had her brain gears 'click'. "Ohh...oh you little stupid nosebleed!" She growled. Yeah, I was afraid this will happen.

I saw Peppercorn raise her hoof up and she struck my face pretty hard. The hit itself was from her stronger-than-the-average-filly hoof combined with the Steel Horseshoe she wore. When it hit my jaw, I felt it a couple teeth of mine break and a lot of blood spurting out of my nose. She gave another slug to my belly, stunning me as if I was tased. She was a strong mare. very strong...and it made her look even more beautiful

I have no fucking idea why I'm so weird either.

Soon, I felt Peppercorn stop her assault, followed by the sound of her voice yelping. "PEPPERCORN GRINDER!" I heard her father's voice, in a clearly disappointed tone, mixed with anger. "What the hell do you think you're doing to the poor guy!?" Peppy tried to rebuttal, but she was actually too scared of her father to do so. "Hitting a boy, and on his BIRTHDAY no less?!"

Thank goodness. I don't think I could end up in another fight without becoming a pony splat on the walls. I soon felt another hoof on my shoulder. I opened my eyes and saw an earth pony with a Security Vest on. I read the tag on his chest; Grinder

"Are you ok, little guy?" he asked, giving a look of concern. I nodded quickly, looking at the now sad looking filly. I felt bad for her...

I DON'T KNOW, AIGHT!?

"Well, I'll make sure she won't hurt you anymore, ok?" I nodded. Officer Grinder smiled and helped me up. "Hey, kids will be kids. but Pepper should've known when enough was enough. I mean, hurting an innocent little pony like you, one who just turned TEN is crossing the line." The Earth Pony helped me to dad, who was chatting it up with...Stablehand Kaiser for some reason. Weird. She was...laughing at him too. and dad was LETTING her.

I soon noticed the bright blue Pegasus look down at me, and she recoiled. "Oh my! Iron!" she even said my dad's first name! every other time it was either "Dr. Cross" or just "Cross". Soon, I saw my dad look back at me, and he gave just as shocked of an expression. "LUXICON!" he said, his voice cracking a little. I simply turned my head away, only to feel his hooves turn it back to his face. "Lux, dd you get in another fight?" I then heard Kaiser turnback into the Stablehand I knew. "You're not raising a little troublemaker now, aren't you Iron Cross?"

Great, turn on and off your emotions. mare's a robot I tell you.

"I-I-I-I" I sniffled. "I did...I started it..." Dad looked at me with a look of disappointment. He simply patted my back with his hoof. even if he didn't show his emotions that often, he did for me when I'm hurt or down.

"Luxicon...you know that you should think before you speak" he said. I've heard it before, yadda yadda yadda.

"And...you didn't get your present yet, Mr. Hoosier" I heard Kaiser say, before I turned my head to see her. She pushed a machine that I knew all too well on the table. It was a Pipbuck 3000, much like I was using at the classes. It's nothing really special. most are just controlled by Kaiser's computer. However, this one looked different. It looked like it's been used before. It was an A-Model. "Now, like every pony else, you will be assigned this so you can schedule most of your pre-Test responsibilities. Stuff like dusting the floors and fixing defective models of Pipbucks, etcetera etcetera." She then pushed it further to me. "And some other...distractions, like the PA system...but this is a tool for work, nothing more, understand."

I simply nodded

"Good, now be prepared, because you'll get your first responsibilities tomorrow, and I expect the best, Mr. Hoosier" she said, very seriously. I nodded again, keeping my tongue held. She was actually being MERCIFUL for once!

"Yes, Miss Kaiser." I said. Soon, I actually heard the intercom system ring. I excused myself and slipped the machine into my forehoof. I then trotted up to the system and clicked the button to get a response. "Yes? Cross? Hello?" It was the voice of some pony big, gruff, strong. Maybe a security pony. "Is Iron Cross there?" I then trotted back to dad, saying the intercom was calling him.

"Is that right?" He asked, turning back to the Pegasus. "I'm sorry, Julia, I need to...go check that out." The Stablehand allowed it, and dad trotted to the system that was calling for him. I followed along, still unknowing and curious about what's going on. I eavesdropped on the conversation

"It's ready doctor, all of them are sleeping like foals" the voice said. Dad rebutted. "Good, the little guy should meet this one...it's best that he know"

He got off and turned to me. "That was Kintober, leader of the Expedition Corps, he and I work together on the...Wildlife...of the Wasteland." The way he said "Wildlife" was a little unsettling, but he still tried to keep his usually cool demeanor. "Anyway...I'm going to take you to one of the Cellblocks."

Cellblocks? I didn't know we had those back then. Or at least...to my knowledge. The doors to the diner opened again, before me and dad decided to go. As we trotted outside, we ended up bumping into Cilla, another Gryphon who worked the machines in the Stable. She was...special to say the least. She was kind and sweet, about EVERYTHING.

"Happy birthday, dearie" she said, ruffling my blonde mane all around. "How's the little munchkin doing on his special day?" I hated her, so much. Which was weird, cause she did absolutely nothing wrong. Maybe it was voice that always seemed to(Faust forgive me) chirp. Best thing to do was to simply smile and walk away.

"I'm 10 now Cilla, please quit talking to me like I'm a foal." I said, holding back my displeasure.

"Oh your not a foal, you're a big strong stallion now!" She said, a smile not leaving her beak. "Well, now I'm sure you're ready for my one of a kind poems." She did Jet a lot. This should be interesting. She handed me the Holotape, and I plugged it into my Pipbuck. It read as followed:

Grey! Walls of grey, shield us from the harshness from the world!
A castle, a tower, a hive for the peasants to hide and brood as the barbarians and brigands breed within the cages of steel and concrete!
Worm to Shell, Shell to Ant, we all work to bring for beautiful queen, our glorious leader!
She, the queen, princess, and empress who trumpets her army of shelled changelings!
From Birth to Grave, Womb to Tomb, before the sweet slumber with Skorpan!

........ok...I was right about interesting.

"That was a beautiful little poem, Cilla" dad complimented. "But, me and the littlest one that I own need to go to the Cellblocks, it's a little surprise I set-" dad was cut off by the Gryphon. "Oh, why would he need to go and see a bunch of smelly, filthy Raiders anyway?" If I knew who I was gonna see then I seriously would've punched that grin right off her beak.

"...just, keep Julia occupied, please?" He asked. The chipper-than-biologically-should-be Gryphon nodded and pinched my cheek with her talons. "Happy birthday again, and 65 more!" She said, turning and leaving
"...that girl needs to be checked out" I nodded in agreement. Very quickly.

Soon, dad led me downstairs to the Cellblocks and...goodness to Faust's grace it smelled like a zoo. Or, whatever a pre-war zoo smelt like. I saw cages of ponies, many of them either coated in dirt and grime, or even filthy, junky armor. One of them actually leaped from his cage and clawed his hooves on the bars like a rabid wolf. I trembled and stayed by dad, keeping myself close. He put his hoof over me, keeping close as we walked through. I stopped when I felt dad not moving his legs anymore. I looked up and saw him look at the Cellblock. I turned my head and looked at what he was looking at

A Raider Mare

It was a rather large mare. A Pegasus that looked even taller than dad, big as a Gryphon almost. She had a very deep, purple colored fur, and it made the brown dirt and grime stand out. Only thing I saw on her that looked totally out of place was the giant tire over her left shoulder and the spikes on her forewings. Her face had scars, well, one big scar on her cheek. I looked at her flank, seeing a rifle crossed over a combat knife. She was DEFINITELY a Raider.

"Hey...Hey Heavy Dog?" Dad rustled the mare's dusty red mane, urging her to stand up. She growled, before standing up and stretching her limbs. Her wingspan HAD to be at least a good 3 feet, and full of noticeable sores. I swear I saw a flea jump off it and land into her mane. The rest of her body was surprisingly strong and muscly. Not like a bodybuilder, but a good amount showed. The areas that didn't show was covered by the rest of her armor. I saw a piece of a bed, a tattered belt that connected to her pauldron. Her back legs had some kneepads and I even saw a welding mask on right foreleg. Both back hooves had leather straps wrapped around, like Gryphon Sandals. Her eyes opened, revealing blood red eyes, full of veins, chornias irritated. The fur that showed me the extra scars she probably had obtained. The mare yawned, spewing a gust of disgusting smelling air. The yawn at least showed her two sharp fangs, yellowish pink.

Soon, the beast looked down at me, growling a little more. I began to shiver a little, especially when she smelt my mane and cheek. She then licked my cheek, and Faust above I almost cried. She licked it again, and dad began to chuckle. "Down girl! Don't eat your little baby!" My eyes opened at his words. I looked up, seeing the almost goddess sized pony smiling and rubbing her head on my jumpsuit, purring almost. She acted so much different than she looked. I thought she'd tear me to shreds...now...she was like a puppy.

"...Happy birthday, son." Dad said, pulling me back from the caged Raider. "Lux...This is Heavy Dog...she's...well...your mother." I looked back at the large mare, seeing her smile and licking my cheeks again.

"Ewwww..." I cringed. Her tongue felt like sandpaper covered in mucus and sudsy soap. I then heard dad laugh. "That means she really likes you"

Heavy Dog then pounced on my dad, where she basically made out with him. Yeah...it's an awkward scene. She broke the kiss. "Kick Ass, Doc." Darn, she was a vulgar mare. "I missed my coltfriend...and my little precious gun" she then pounced me, forcing me on my back. She then licked my face. I struggled, but she was way too heavy. "My little gun-runner" she licks me some more.

I see where I get my bully-loving from.

"Well, I didn't tell you about her cause...well...I thought the Expedition Corp may throw you out for being from my blood and not a Ranger. When we threw her in the block, I was assigned to monitor her. Simple stuff, mainly blood intoxication, hormone levels since she was pretty young by then. But she was the size of me, so I didn't know by then."

I looked up. "How old was she?"

"She was 15"

I let the thought sink in. "Raiders here got a big dose of radiation. Some of their bodies resisted the IMV, like your mother here" he said. "It's why we capture these ponies and have them breed with the Security teams. Kaiser and the Steel Rangers want us to craft some master race to rule the remnants of Equestria. You...Angel...Peppercorn...all of you are descended from these Raiders...you're all test subjects."

I said nothing.

"...I know your taking this pretty hard...it's a lot to take in...I'm so sorry" he said. I sighed and Heavy Dog whimpered.

"...Gun-Runner?" She said. "I never say this...but...I cried when you hid with your dad...I-" she sniffled. "I never cry...never...I'm tough as nails..." I looked back at her, where I saw a tear fill an eye.

"Mom" I said. "Can you come down here? Just your head?" She got her massive head close to me, where I began to lick her salty tears away. It may have been gross and unpleasant on my taste buds, but this is my mom for Faust's sake. She hasn't seen me in 10 years! Of course I'm gonna at least show her I care about her. I heard her sniffle more.

"Son..." She pulled away and gave my cheek the wettest, slimiest Raider-kiss she's given to me yet. "...I love you" I smiled at her, and decided to lick her foul tasting, almost salty cheek.

"Awww, this is just precious!" I heard dad say. "Kintober, get a camera ready, give the boy a family portrait for his birthday." The massive Security pony levitated one such camera. Dad trotted next to me, and I stayed in the middle.

"Ok every pony, smile" I gave a smile, and then pony flashed the camera.