Fallout Equestria: A Changeling Perspective

Every brisk step I took, reminded me constantly of the freezing cold ahead. Already I could see the strange white mist that was being emitted underneath every breathe I took, and while the gear we had taken as payment for our jobs in the wasteland were helpful, they did little to stave off the chills going through my hooves with every step. Occasionally I would flex my wings, a slight motion to prevent them from being stuck in my shell. The cold was unsettling to the slight humid warmth that filled Vanhoover, as the grey skies turned blacker, before slowly parting into a distant white. That white was miles between us and the steel ranger outpost I sought, however.

The scarves we had been given were handy, something Gray said about an internal gem mounted in metal at each end, which were designed to heat up the scarf constantly. It would be needed in order to travel the bone freezing temperatures we were to encounter in the future, and Grey was just a slew of survival tips as we progressed. From building snow igloos to signs of something called an Ice Wolf. He had spent a number of hours explaining everything that he knew as well as everything he had gleaned from The Hole about the place until his throat became raw, and paused only for a drink of a flask before launching into another hour of lecture as we walked.

Soon enough we were approaching the end of our journey to the outpost, with less than a third of a day of trotting ahead of us. By this point Grey had quieted down, an kept shooting an suspicious glance at the distant fort as if expecting sniper fire to come down at us. In order to soothe Grey's suspicions, Cait volunteered to go on watch with Scrapyard, the grey dog affectionately nuzzling the grizzled former-pegasus until he relented, and a bit wordlessly, went to sleep behind the tallest obstruction there was in the camp between him and the outpost. A boulder. His shotgun, and rifle laid down beside him, as Lucky was kept within his coat.

I, unlike my friend, however, spent the night, just as the several nights before, learning more about my magic. With an undue amount of effort, I had figured out how to separate the shadow tendril from me, but doing so had made it sink back into my shadow instead, regathering some of my magic while the rest dissipated. Not one to give up, I had practiced and practiced with not just that, but with stretching the shadowy shapeless mass out, widdening it, and even trying to contort it into other simple shapes. Each one came with limited success, as I found myself taxing a new depth of myself each night. It was the night before that I was finally able to seperate the tendril from my horn, and stop it from simply regathering into my shadow and vanishing. It was still attached, but now it could stretch, shapeless, as if another limb was invisible on my body.

Carefully I inched the mass outward, continuing to fuel the magic as it connected underneath a small pebble, no bigger than a bit, and tried raising it. Now the effort escalated, as a blob slowly formed out and then around the pebble, refusing at first the effort to lift it, and trying to form itself over the top of the rock rather than under it. With additional effort, that blob slowly shifted from on to under the pebble and then finally lifting it a few inches off the ground. Pushing myself to the fullest extend, eventually I was able to lift the pebble an entire two yards from the ground before my effort and concentration broke, and I collapsed backwards, breathing heavily but happily with my progress.

"Well done." Grey's voice chimed in, the peagsus having pretended to be asleep, but with one eye evidently open, "Can't say that doesn't send shivers down my spine when you do that, but well done indeed."

My breathing, starting to slow, as though I had run a tough sprint, gave me enough leeway to respond, "It's a lot harder than it looks..."

Grey snorted, "Of course it is, most things are 'harder than they look', it wouldn't be worth doing if it were otherwise, a lesson you should remember well."

I nodded with that sentiment. often recalling Grey's often brutal training exercises back in the stable. They had left most of my caste squirming and wiggling in bodily pain as he put us through training courses that some of the other castes would have balked at. It was thanks to him that I had my considerable range and speed of motions where it was, for without it I highly doubted that I would have been the last one living in my caste. My mind wandered back to them, thoughts I had kept away from myself with the excitement of my recent exploits. It had been nearly two to three months since I had left the stable, and judging from my pipbuck, today was the end of yet another month. This meant yet another of the arena fights that would determine what Changelings got to join the ranks of servitude as a full fledged soldier and what changelings were to die at the hooves of their brethren. My heart wanted to break in sympathy for them, wanting to ever more strongly to save them from their abusive scientist masters. My eyes, gazing from the south, where Stable 103 lay, to the north, where supposedly something could help my quest to free them.

Though I still had naught a clue how anything would be able to save my fellows from their current predicament. My mind was fraught with wild ideas, from the logical, an army of robots, to the more extreme earthshaker megaspells. Maybe some method of controlling the Aqualights to an army, or perhaps some super power pony with the ability of mass hypnosis to capture the scientists and make them spank themselves for the rest of time!

Quickly I shook the notions away, realizing the unrealistic expectations I had held fancy for the past few minutes, though I had to grin at the thought of the scientists smacking themselves with a paddle in my head, filing away the thought for if I wanted a giggle in the future.

Unluckily for you it isn't any of those things, but something greater. Assuming we find it that is. It may take several trips or even years to find all the pieces of it...

I frowned, usually Roggar was gone at this point. Oh, I'm still here, even if I'm not talking to you constantly. The brand on your leg and the influence I've had on your mind so far has guarnteed me at least a spot observing your actions. How else would I know of most of your situations?

Even when I go to the bath- I started in my head, a quick blush of both embarrassment and anger starting to grow in my head.

He was quick to reassure me, I tend to turn away when... That... urge strikes your body. Though you do have some form of entertainment in your head.

I glared into space, Ever heard of Privacy? Don't go scooping around in my skull and messing with stuff.

If a disembodied voice could deadpan, it would of, I can't 'scoop around in your skull' Its a magic I know, but only enough to mentally communicate with others at a distance and read your surface thoughts and see through your senses.

Well...Alright then... So what is this thing that I'm hunting anyway?

I'd prefer waiting until you have reached the Crystal Empire before telling you that. Though, know now that it is a very potent form of magic in this world. One of the few artifacts that would be able to help you if it was recovered. Grey knows what it is, but then again, he's hunted for it before...

That gave me pause, How do you know that? I pressed to ask, and the response didn't come.

Great another mystery for another time, as I slipped into a sleeping bag.

...Besides the last time I messed with someone's mind and memories, they broke and forgot how to breathe.

Well that was nightmare fuel. I shuddered, pulling a bit deeper into my plastic like cocoon of waterproof cloth. My nerves were on edge but I was eventually able to fall into a dreamless sleep. Both a blessing and a curse, as I had expected either nightmares involving being unable to breathe thanks to that little comment, or failing in my goal of saving my fellow changelings from the stable. Pleasant dreams were for an era of peace that had yet to happen, or when I was more naive before the training had begun. Most of my memories before the combat training and arenas had been dwelling on what experiences I could share with my other family members that had consisted of the Caste 1993.

Luckily it was blessed dreamless sleep, a sleep that was purely rest, rest that was ended too soon by suddenly being jostled. My eyes flicked to wide awake, raised as I had been it was easy to get me up at a moments notice. In the darkness of the moonless night I was momentarily disoriented as Multiple bright lights were on our clearing. Cait and Scrapyard were standing firmly, facing the closest light source with one of his own headlights. Standing in the light of the Steel ranger's helmet light, was another ranger, this one painted with a yellow and black selection of stripes upon his armor. Grey was in his own bag still, though from my position I could spot that he was looking at me with an eye of caution, from the side that was facing the ground. The one visible to the rest of the light being shut in an imitation of sleep.

I, however, had blown any chance of sleeping by peering about openly. Instead, I rolled over into a crouch, head rising up out of my bag as I peered around. "Identify yourself and your purpose here." the Ranger demanded, his voice magically augmented into an echoing deep voice that was more fitting of an ultra sentinel than the power armored marine.

Cait's voice was changed as well, a similar modulator active as he replied as equally serious, "Sentinel Storm Blade, Transmitting serial codes now, purpose is escorting two V.I.P.s through dangerous territory and recovering an arcane artifact of great importance."

"Identify." The yellow ranger asked again, gesturing to myself and Grey.

"The Changeling is Aria Web, Ranger Initiate and previous stable-pony. The Older stallion is Grey Iron, veteran of the wasteland and her teacher and bodyguard."

Scrapyard barked.

"Oh and the wolf is Scrapyard, who is a Ranger as well." Cait chimed in as a last note, sweeping his light around to peer at the rest of them, seeing as you lot are all dressed up in the stripes of Elder Sarsaparilla, I assume you're chaps from the outpost we're going to pass through."

There was a silence, though I had the feeling that some of the rangers were saying something to each other, judging how the lights started bobbing to each other one ranger looking to the next for a few seconds as presumably they had radio chatter and being able to conceal it was a valuable ability among the armored rangers, and I compared it to the older changelings hive mind, it was a slower but provided more personal freedom that was often seen as denied within my stable. Briefly I wondered if Grey and I could somehow get a helmet as well that could connect with Cait's communicator. Being able to coordinate at a distance would be another valuable tool.

I also fancied the idea of being three power-armored rangers, and Scrap in power armor, but my minds wandering as I peered in those too-bright-lights ceased as the first of the strangely marked rangers broke the silence again, "Pack up, you're coming with us. Elder Sarsaparilla will want to talk to you personally."

"Agreeable, though is the elder up at this hour? It is the middle of the night afterall." Cait replied, his tone curious, no doubt having measured the distance and the current time, alongside an estimation to how long it would take to reach there.

The other Ranger waved the concern off dismissively, "The Elder has an inverted sleep schedule these days. You can ask him more about it during your meeting."

Grey muttered to himself, keeping his head down as we packed up, his eyes were active where his head was not. I didn't need the ability to taste the emotions to tell that he was tense with the rangers around him. From the best I could tell Grey barely trusted Cait as is. My mentors paranoia started to rub off me as we walked, surrounded by metal clad rangers with Cait in front of me and Grey, and Scrapyard bringing up the rear of our small group as rangers were around us, almost like a bubble, three rangers for every one of us, that I could count now that their lights were no longer blinding me in the face. Halfway there Grey tripped, falling ungracefully onto his face, worriedly I helped him up, the momentary lag causing a few wordless stares from a few of the rangers as stood up again, face covered in the grey ash like dirt that coated the wasteland. I reached a hoof up to wipe off some of it, but he intercepted it with one of his own, "Leave it." he said aloud, before saying quietly, "Be on your guard. I'll explain later."

I followed his orders, giving him a curt nod. Noticing that with the fall the scar that marked above and below his left eye was covered in the ashen substance, my mind raced in more unsaid questions, but my mouth resigned itself for later. reviewing over something else that Cait had said. Since when was I a ranger initiate? My mind searched back through my interactions with the rangers, and came up with nothing. Another question for later, I noted with some ire that I had a lot of unanswered questions that needed to be solved.

I tried to start conversation with a few of the rangers but were told more or less in a curt manner to be quiet and keep moving. Leaving my mind and eyes to wander, I explored the horizons ahead of me, and waited as we walked. Barely noticing out of the corner of my eye a brief flash of orange among the clouds as we arrived at the gates of the outpost. It had happened so fast that I wasn't entirely sure that I hadn't imagined it. Though I didn't know what it could of been if that was the case. My best guess was that it was a pegasus from the enclave who had accidentally flown too low before correcting their mistake. The clouds were near and consuming the top portions of a mountain range, and if my lessons in history were correct, that would be a likely spot for the 'Grand Pegasus Enclave' to farm resources like food, or minerals.

After a curt shout, from one of the rangers, a robed pair of scribes pulled open the massive gateways of metal that were connected to walls that had once been shipping containers for barges and trains to push around. Inside the complex it was a quiet affair, ponies in both armor and robes standing guard, a few moving with purpose between industrial buildings, the largest of which sat outside of a cave, recalling earlier in the past weeks that the twins who ran the vanhoover radio had said that this used to be a steel mill before it became a Ranger outpost. The signs of its previous occupation showed through in mining tools laying organized in one three walled shed, rail tracks that both led out the complex and into the mine, the later showing a lot more recent use, judging as even now two scribes, followed by a ranger pushed along a cart down the tracks and went inside the mines. Now that we were inside the facility itself I noticed that not one ranger donned the pointed metal helmet that Cait wore, far too many to simply be brushed aside as a coincidence of a lack of unicorns. My guess was that Sarsaparilla's rangers were a more traditional folk than the folks in the hole.

I swallowed hard as several pairs of eyes stared at my visible horn and hole filled legs, somewhat dark muttering just out of the edge of comprehensible hearing range as the group passed. A few scribes darting out of sight after noticing me and others ignoring our group all together. As we entered into the largest building, the steel mill the rangers began to split off, two bringing up our rear as the first one who had talked to us at the start, lead us up a winding stairway to the rooms above the lobby and into a set of hallways that had been long ago once papered with a flowery trail of wallpaper that was now all cracked and faded, worn from over a hundred years of post apocalyptic neglect. Grey kept an eye on the two behind us at regular intervals at this point, and Scrapyard had found himself now wedged between me and Grey as the two paraded closer than ever behind us, not having the luxury of the rolling hills outside the fortress.

After a curt nod to yet two more steel rangers, were herded into a large office room, where standing behind a metal desk bearing the Steel Ranger Emblem was Elder Sarsaparilla.

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Xp Footnote: 65% left until level up.