//-------------------------------------------------------// Fallout Equestria: A Wanderer's Tale -by Fox-trott- //-------------------------------------------------------// //-------------------------------------------------------// Chapter One: Stable 30 //-------------------------------------------------------// Act I ACT I: Separation Losing family is a hard thing to endure, especially for one young buck. A young buck loses his sister after she leaves their home of Stable 30. But the journey to her is not as easy as he makes it out to be. In a world torn apart by war, Tornado drags himself across the Wasteland in order to find her. Tornado only hopes that he can find her in time before the horrors of the Wasteland claim her for themselves. //-------------------------------------------------------// Chapter Two: Outside //-------------------------------------------------------// Chapter One: Stable 30 Fallout Equestria: A Wanderer’s Tale By TornadoFIM Chapter One: Stable 30 “If the door was never to be opened again -- how would we know what was on the other side?” Silence. Stable 30 was never really the most cheery place, nor was it the most exciting. Ponies would just get out of bed and get to work depending on their cutie mark and what was predicted of them on the C.A.T. I had grown up here and with that being said, I was also destined to die here. I had no job which was pretty unfortunate and as you might think, pretty stupid. Most or rather, all Ponies within the Stables were meant to be given a particular job, I however was not so lucky and honestly, I could care less. My sister and I, Cyclone, live together. Same room, same Stable as you may have guessed. My sister however works as a nurse -- not the kind that will just do check ups, but she was the type of nurse who would check up on wounds and illnesses. Since our parents died, we’ve been much closer to each other. Stable 30’s employment system wasn’t exactly the greatest. If you were even slightly disabled in anyway, no matter if it was mentally or physically, they’d turn you down instantly. That’s what happened with my mother -- she was paralysed in the wings and they turned her down. Not that she needed them in anyway down here. My father however worked as a doctor who treated those with different injuries and illnesses. No matter if they were mental illnesses or illnesses like flu. It was within the dying minutes of the working hours. The very mundane corridors of Stable 30 were brightly lit up with the large, rectangular bulbs that ran along the ceiling, beaming down into the shiny, silver surface of the floor. The depressing, grey walls, scratched with large scratches draped all over the walls, revealing some of the silver plating of the steel beneath the colorless paint. Stains of different possible causes lingered around the cables that stuck out of the plastic boxing for the wires nailed to the corners of both the ceiling and the floor; some of the cables were laid out untidily along the floor, making it a blatant hazard. The corridors were tight and very claustrophobic which for some made it hard to cope with. The unfortunate ones very much like me were not within the Atrium, but were closer to the reactor level. Dust floated around in the dull atmosphere as it hovered around the warmth of the lights fixed onto the ceiling. The dark room I was sat within was poorly lit up. The windows were murky and stained with a yellowing, dry coating. The only light source I had was coming from within the corridors and also the healthy green light on the PipBuck on my left hoof, but the room was slightly visible within the dark. The bed, sitting against the right-hoof wall, where the rusty steel frame it was made out of was rough and degrading. It was a single bed, but the dull, green bed sheets laid upon it were fairly clean. There were two white, fluffy pillows at either side. One side being mine and the other side being Cyclone’s. The desk I sat at was placed against the back wall, where the cold, wooden surface pressed against my hooves. It had wheels beneath it, making it easy to move and adjust. It had three drawers stacked on top of each other, each of them with a handle in the shape of a half circle so those without horns much like myself could open it. One tall, grey and plain wardrobe sat within the right-hoof corner where two, thin and mundane doors made of the same scratched steel as the corridor walls were attached to the base of it. Two empty plastic boxes were sitting on top of wardrobe, gathering dust. I sat at the desk in complete silence, alone and bored. The sound of the fans within the air ducts around the Stable hummed through the atmosphere, making it quite relaxing for an upbeat buck like myself. But I just wanted some peace and quiet. Which for the most part I got, just me on my own sitting in the darkness. Not very exciting but it was as good as it got when it came to having some peace and quiet. I slouched down, placing my muzzle onto the desk, just staring at the scarred and dirty tabletop before me. The sound of hoof steps echoing through the corridors was heard, before the sound of the door opening and grinding against the rusty gears within the mechanics. A bright light from the corridors flooded in before a shadow took its place once again. I lifted my snout from the table, my ears twitching and then glancing back at the pony that had entered the room. “Look who decided to get out of bed.” Seeing a blue mare with a long, blue and white mane styled in a similar style as Rainbow Dash’s was standing in the doorway. Her PipBuck: glowing the bright green color that it had on the screen. Her scarlet eyes glowing within the green aura of the PipBuck screen and her bright blue and yellow Stable jacket that she wore underneath the doctor’s coat also revealed from the green glow. She had a small, brown pouch sitting on her back -- this was her saddle bag. It was a smooth and leather and also contained her cutie mark which was a gradient tornado with a black lightning bolt down the middle of it. The smirk upon her face growing as she looked at me. This was my sister. “‘Bout time you did -- while I’m at work, you get to sit here and do nothin’ all day!” She walked into the room, before sitting onto the bed and then taking off her doctor’s coat which wrapped over her Stable jacket. “I’m taking a guess that you’ve been sitting here all day.” “I didn’t actually…” I mumbled tiredly, “I had to run a few errands. I yawned before glancing back to her yet again, seeing her lying on the bed. She giggled to herself in a matter of disbelief. “Oh yeah? What exactly were those errands?” She said as she reached into the small saddle bag that lay beside her. Looking into the small pouch sitting next to her, she poked her nose into it as she looked around within it. “Just some errands…” “Yeah right. If you ever did a job, it would be sleeping for six hours.” Cyclone laughed to herself. Her disbelief made me slightly angry, but she was the average sister. The type who loves to irritate their family members especially brothers or sisters. It was fun at times, but sometimes it got a little… annoying. Sitting there in silence, I placed my head on the desk with my face looking down at the scarred surface of the desk. The sound of hooves shuffling in a full bag prevented me from sleeping. Cyclone soon let out a cry of success. As if she was searching for something and finally found it. I turned back to look at her to see her holding a small, round object within her hooves. It glowed softly with an aqua tone. The glow wasn’t too strong, but it faded in and out softly and gently. Getting onto my hooves and walking towards Cyclone, I looked at the orb within her hooves as she held it. “What’s that?” I asked with a tone of curiosity. She looked up at me, her red eyes looking into mine as I looked back into hers. A small, loving smile spread across her face as she soon closed her hooves over it to prevent herself from dropping it. “It’s an old good luck charm of mine -- it always helped me to get through my day, and maybe it might help you some day,” she slowly pushed her hooves towards me, offering to give me the small orb. “It helped me remember how mom and dad are still with us, no matter if they are dead. I want you to have it.” “C-Cyclone… I-” “Please… take it.” Cyclone interrupted me, as she used one of her hooves to take mine before lifting it off of the ground and then placing it on there and holding it there, “no matter how far apart we are, we’ll always be together my brother.” Staring at in silence, I nodded in a thank you. I felt like I was stealing off of her, as it was originally hers. I didn’t want to take it, but I didn’t want to refuse. I placed it on the desk I had just left, before hugging my sister gently. She hugged back. How I was grateful, I didn’t want the gift she gave me… but I didn’t want to refuse either. I took it for her sake, so she’d be happy. Within the night, sleeping within the surprisingly comfy bed of our room within the Stable, the sound of echoing alarms suddenly woke me up. Launching myself from the back end of the bed, the alarm lights within the corridors was the only source of light, as all the lights that were in the corridor were all out. I felt no warmth nearby; I felt no pony on the other end of the bed. The ringing noise of alarms echoed throughout the steel corridors of the Stable and so did the shouts of guards and the sound of ponies running down the corridor. I lifted myself from the bed before walking over to the large, plain wardrobe at the end of the bed. Opening one of the panel like doors, I grabbed my saddle bag which sat within the corner. Placing it onto my back and soon fastening it around me, I walked over to the desk and then grabbed the orb that Cyclone had given me. I looked into it, and then let out a sigh before placing into my saddle bag and then fastening the small flap on the top of the left bag. Walking towards the door, I opened it and then walked out into the corridor where the sound of the alarms echoed violently around the Stable. I had to rely on the split second of light that was from each complete rotation of the alarm lights that were mounted on the walls and ceiling. “Where is she?!” The sound of a voice shouting from down the hallway that I was stood by boomed through the corridors. Following the sound quickly, I heard the sound of an army of hoof steps trotting along the floor within the darkness. Seeing a glimpse of a guard’s flank, I quickly picked up the pace as the sound of gunfire was heard which followed by the sound of screams of agony. The sound of the Overmare’s voice through the speakers was heard through the speakers. “Attention all Stable 30 residents: remain within your homes, anypony seen outside of their homes will be shot on sight. This message will repeat!” Hearing even more shots echo down the hallway, as the sound of ponies screaming and begging for mercy echoed throughout, I tried to remain silent as I trod along the long and thin corridor. This was madness, all of this was. The killing, the sudden panic and drama. What had happened? Where had Cyclone gone? Why is everything just crumbling and decaying within Stable 30? “Find her and kill her!” Another guard’s bitter voice was heard within the darkness in the Stable. Reaching a small room at the end of the corridor, the glowing teal screens of computers upon dusty old and rusting desks that were hugging the plain, grey walls gave me enough light to see where I was going. Large, steel and dusty shelves stood around the room containing different books and boxes stacked upon each of the weak and thin shelves. But the lights from the computers also gave away my position. As I had entered, a window was on the left me. And unfortunately, by the window was the Atrium. Guards were within the atrium, preventing those who had tried escape through there getting passed. The sound of what seemed to be a thousand bullets being thrown at me was heard, before the glass beside me shattered as each of the bullets pierced their way through the glass. I quickly ducked down and curled up on the cold, steel floor as the sound of machine guns rebounded off of the steel walls. “There’s one here!!” Crap! I had to hurry and get out of sight. Quickly getting onto my hooves, I pushed my way through the large but cramped office as I tried to dodge bullets. The bullets pinged off of the shelves and walls as they failed to hit me, however I felt one of the hundreds of bullets skim the skin upon my flank. I fell with a yelp, as I felt blood draw from the thin cut upon my flank, quickly charging through the room; I reached the other side and burst through the door. Charging down the corridor, I saw one of the Stable guards with his back turned to me in front of me. Before the young security guard could turn to face me, I quickly used my hindlegs to buck him in the back of the head. He fell forward after the powerful jolt was applied to the back of his head and with that, a small pistol dropped beside his body. Grabbing the small, silver gun with my wing, I held it in a grasp and trotted down the corridor keeping a firm grip on it. Walking into another office, I saw a bloodied up pony lying in a pool of blood. The lack of light around the room made it hard for me to know who it was, but the wounds within the pony’s stomach and chest area were deep. The blood that leaked from them stained the Stable 30 coat with a blood red tint, as the mare coughed violently. “D-don’t… shoot… please?” Hearing the soft whimpers of a mare, I looked down at her with a saddened expression. They were monsters -- they were killing residents of the Stable for an invalid reason. I moved close enough so that the light on my PipBuck screen would show the face of who it was. Seeing the face come into clear view, it was not Cyclone. I felt relieved that it wasn’t her who was shot, but I felt pity for the mare that had been. The grey mare, whose mane was white and done up in a ponytail, looked up at me showing nothing but content. “F-finally, somepony who… won’t attack me…” the young mare winced. “You’re her brother… aren’t you? The brother of Cyclone Flash? Didn’t she tell you why she left?” I blinked as she asked this. She coughed yet again, but this time spitting blood onto the floor before turning back to look at me with a weak smile. “She never said anything…” I frowned, before looking down with a pout. She also frowned as she coughed yet again. “But why would she leave without saying why?” I felt a hoof gently touch my chest, before looking to the mare that was now losing the remainder of her life. “S-she left this for you… before she left the Stable. You might want to have a listen to it before you chase after her,” she coughed as she reached into her jacket’s pocket and then brought out a holotape. I took the small tape off of her, before downloading it onto my PipBuck. “Thank you…” I commented in a slightly depressed tone. So much had happened; so many ponies had been slaughtered. Was I the only sane one here? For a short while, there was silence. The only sound audible was the sound of my own breathing and the sound of guards wandering the empty Stable corridors. “Y-you have to go… if you want to have a chance at finding her, you must go,” the mare weakly said. I got back onto my hooves and then soon left the office to get back out into the dark corridors of the Stable. While wandering down the lonesome corridors of Stable 30, I finally found myself at a door with a glowing green sign above it stating: Overmare’s office. Upon opening the door, I entered to find the large office completely torn apart. Desks were toppled over and blood was smeared all over the walls and mainframe computers that sat near the wall. The steel, tiled flooring was no longer clean as the flickering lights that dangled and swung from side to side from the ceiling allowed some vision around the room. The Overmare’s body was mangled and curled up within the corner as various wounds had torn her body apart. There was no hope for her now. Seeing a small hatch within the wall beside the Overmare’s body, I went to inspect it. There was a small, and barely lit up tunnel. The walls within the passage were made of perfectly crafted out of stone. The lights which hung on small threads had a weak glow that only lit up a small portion of the radius around them. I took a deep breath before squeezing myself through and then slowly walking my way through the tight corridor. “I heard something over here!!” I heard one of the guard’s voices behind me. I heard the hooves of a group of guards getting closer as the clopping sound echoed around the walls. I had to hurry, they were close. I started to pick up the pace, as I felt the wound on my flank grind against the wall. I groaned in pain and agony as I tried to move as fast as possible. I glanced back to see a blood trail along the wall. Son of a bitch, scraping the wound hurt a lot! Eventually reaching the end, I pushed myself through a small gap at the end. I stumbled and fell onto the floor with a loud thud. The floor was made of a rusted steel grating, while the room I was in was a small control room where a large console sat just in front of me. Many of the glowing buttons upon the interface were large, hoof sized ones so that they could be easily pressed. The walls made of a smooth but scratched metal along the skin of it. The marks all over the walls were thin stripes that had been clawed onto the walls. Lifting my head from the steel floor, seeing a small doorway that lead into a larger room. “Did you hear that!?” Oh crap. There were guards here too!? But the main question was, how many? I climbed to my hooves, before walking to the doorway and then peeking out of it. A large room with the wall and ceiling being part of a cave. Crooked rocks and boulders made the walls and ceiling. A large circular, metal door at the end of the room to the left of me sat closed. There was a large number thirty on the back of it within the center. There were only two guards… thank Celestia. They were looking my way, but fortunately didn’t see me yet -- I gripped onto the pistol that was within my wing’s grasp before aiming towards the guards. “OVER THERE!!” Crap! They had seen me. With that bullets were soon thrown at me. Quickly ducking back behind cover, the bullets scraped against the metal. The screeching and pinging noises of the bullets grinding against the steel pierced my ears almost. I cringed and then peeked around before aiming with my pistol and firing a shot to one of the guards. BANG! The guards quickly ducked down and hid behind another console by the mechanism which opened the door if activated. I hid behind cover yet again and counted my breaths as silence dominated. The echoing hoof steps and whispers of the guards who were also planning were heard within the lonely silence. I quickly turned around to see the ponies peeking over the console within the center of the room. I then quickly targeted them in S.A.T.S. and then prepared to target their heads. S.A.T.S. S.A.T.S. is a targeting ability given to all residents of the Stables. When using S.A.T.S. you will see the limbs which are available to be chosen. Once selecting a target’s limbs, you can open fire and deal heavy damage. However, always check the percentage on a target’s limbs - the higher the percentage, the more likely you are to hit a target. Selecting the heads successfully I soon unleashed two spinning shots towards them that quickly struck them down. Blood splashed into the air as both bullets drilled into their skulls, as the screams of agony heard from the guards was heard and a loud thump of their corpses hitting the floor was also heard. Walking over to the bodies, I glanced around the room for anymore guards that could be within the area. Luckily, I was alone yet again. I sat down at the two, bloody corpses and began to search them for items. The sight made me gip, but I was trying to ignore it. However, I wasn’t very successful with loot. I only found a small amount of ammo and a few bandages for the wound on my flank. Standing back onto my hooves, I stood by the console which was slightly grazed by the bullets I had fired and then initiated the console to open the Stable door. The sound of an echoing alarm was heard before the mechanism moved towards the door and then gripped onto it. As the door was pulled from its locks, a loud screeching was heard as the metal grinded with the metal below the door. The door was soon rolled onto its side into the wall, revealing a cave exit beyond the large, metal door. Going into my PipBuck, I soon selected the holotape given to me by the mare I had seen earlier and I began to play it before I left. The tape was entitled: #000000 “Tornado. “I know it has probably shocked you that I am gone, but I have my reasons. However I cannot tell you what they are. But just remember, there are ponies at Stable 30 who will look after you and care for you. I promise you. “I am not going to tell you where I am going, or why I have left Stable 30. But I will tell you this. Don’t follow me. Stay where you are, don’t even go anywhere near the door to leave Stable 30. I have a life of my own now and it’s about time you took care of yourself. I’m sorry, Tornado.” The message finished there. As it did, I trotted down the rusty, steel stairs and slowly walked beyond the entrance of Stable 30. Walking towards a small gap within the cave at the end of the short walkway, the bright light coming into it was a sickly yellow color and it glowed brightly. I stopped at the small gap, staring into the light and then I took a deep breath. “Oh I’m coming, alright. And I am not resting until I find you.” Footnote: Level up! New perk: Dead Eye - your accuracy with pistols has increased by 10% another benefit of this perk is headshots without S.A.T.S. are now instant kills. Current level: 2 //-------------------------------------------------------// Act I //-------------------------------------------------------// Chapter Two: Outside Fallout Equestria: A Wanderer’s Tale By TornadoFIM Chapter Two: Outside “There ain’t no place like home… no place like home.” Wilderness. I was finally outside the home I had been born and raised in for twenty years. The first few seconds of inhaling the rotten and vile air that I had now been forced to breath in stung my lungs. The area around me was almost empty. Other than a few dead trees and a few grey and filthy dunes, the world around me was basically empty. There were a few ruined towns in the distance and advertisement boards sticking outside of the dirt which had them buried beneath the soil. The thick black clouds that linger above allowed a small amount of natural sunlight to creepy through and shine onto the soil. Around me were ruins of houses which were torn apart by some sort of blast. The remaining frame of the houses were made out of a beige colored wood as the roofing that was made of hay and structures of wood was now completely shattered. “Fuck…” I mumbled to myself at the sight of the Wasteland. I felt completely useless out here. One pony with a gun and a few bandages cannot do anything in an entire world waiting to hunt that pony down and gut them like they were some sort of wild animal. But I didn’t feel fear as such. At least not yet. I felt a little surprised and overwhelmed from the seemingly sudden transition from one place to another, but I didn’t feel fear. I however could not return to the place I had just left. I was an enemy no doubt and if I was to go back there, I’d never find what I came out to find in the first place. I felt slightly homesick. I couldn’t hear the sounds of the Stable like I could before. There were no longer ponies walking around nor sharing laughs or talking. Just a bitter silence that lingered for a while around me and the surrounding emptiness that seemed to stretch for miles. No longer were there dull, grey walls representing the Stable’s dull environment, but a large open Wasteland before me representing nothingness. Large mountains within the far reaches of the surrounding wilderness stood out in a form of silhouette. The peaks of the mountains within the distance reached up to the thick, polluted clouds that lingered above. Bones within the grey and dusty dirt stuck out of the ground, cracked and broken. They were crumbling apart. Skulls partially showing had the eyes removed from the eye sockets and jaws detached from them like if somepony had just ripped the jaw out with no mercy. Parts of ribcages and other body parts such as leg bones were laid out above the dirt, gathering dust from the winds that swept the filth of the Wasteland onto it. The wind whistled ever so softly as it passed through the crooked old trees that stood out of the soil. There was a gentle breeze that was cold and nippy grasping the back of my neck, as the sight of swirling dust drifted across the ground in the direction and pattern of the wind. I was alone out here and with no pony who I knew with me, I felt completely helpless. The broken stone and dark grey soil surrounded most of the Wasteland that surrounded me and a very light mist lingered around the entire wilderness. With only bandages, a gun and the lucky charm from Cyclone inside of my saddle bag, I began to take my first steps into the Wasteland. I was on a stretch of road made of cracked and crumbling tarmac. A wooden and splintered sign that stood out of the soil beside the stretch of road gave a name to a nearby settlement. The settlement’s name: Old Vermillion City. I wasn’t going to walk into the settlement expecting much there as I had never been out here, nor had I ever been to a city before. All I remember seeing was the grey walls of the Stable, the echoing voices through the hallway and the dull hum of the ventilation system. I had never seen the sun, I had never seen clouds in my lifetime, nor had I ever inhaled pure air. All I was breathing in was the filtered air of Stable 30, and personally, the air from the ventilation system was much better to breathe in than this shit. The stench within the air stung my nostrils as it reached all the way to the back of my throat. I gagged softly. Keeping on track, the surrounding Wasteland around me looked poisoned and desolated. I never really thought the world beyond the door would look… like this. Large advertisement boards sat by the road I was walking down, displaying advertisements for the area I was going to. Due to its age, the picture displayed on the wooden board that stuck out of the ground at a diagonal angle was cracked and fading. The slogan was only just visible from the fading white tone on it. Vermillion City “Looking to make a fresh start? Look no further, Vermillion City will give you the brand new start you need in a brand new and worry-free environment.” Walking along the dusty old, lonesome road, I had felt an eerie loneliness and anxiety build within me. I couldn’t help but glance back; the silence was making the anxiety grow even more! Seeing ruins of a city nearby, where once tall skyscrapers with large chunks ripped out of the side stood. Fumes of black smoke leaked out of the holes which were blown into the walls by some sort of powerful explosive weapon. The road soon bent towards the grey soil, as the thick layer of tarmac began to thin as it turned towards the city in ruin. Trotting onto the thin layer of road, I kept glancing around to see if anypony was there. I felt like I was being watched, I had no idea why… I just felt -- uneven. Not the disappointed type of uneven feeling, or the uncomfortable feeling. But more of the “feeling like I’m being watched” feeling. And I didn’t like it one bit. Not one bit. The mist that lingered around the Wasteland made the poison air feel thicker within my throat. With the large city that sat within ruin getting even closer to me, I saw a pair of stallions standing by a battered old and torn apart gate which allowed full view of the city. The two large wooden gates looked like they had been torn apart by some sort of large creature. Approaching the two stallions, both of them turned their heads to look at me with mocking grins. I froze in my tracks as they soon walked up to me. One of the stallions had a dark grey coat that was tatty and stained with dirt. His eyes: an emerald green color that shined brightly into my eyes as he looked at me with the vicious stare. He was a Unicorn. His horn was slightly blunt and scratched from what seemed to be gunfire and deep, permanent scars were carved onto his right cheek. As he grinned, his crooked and yellowing teeth were revealed within the grin that had slithered across his face. The brown and dirty old hand-me-down jacket that he wore was stained with blood and pierced with bullet holes. The grey shirt he wore underneath seemed to be similar: scars were slashed into the chest area, and around the scars on the shirt were stains of blood and scabs of where he had been injured. The other buck standing by him had a jet black coat, shot me a threatening look. Not so much of a grin, but more of an angry expression. I could see it in his eyes. He only wore some rags that looked like they had been picked out of a trash can. It smelled like it too. The dusty old rags he wore were grey and checkered all over. He wore no jacket over it, and he was just an earth pony. No horn or wings. His crystal blue eyes staring back into mine. I cowered slightly as they both daunted over me. “You look a little lost, pal,” I heard one of the stallions speak. “Is everything okay?” His accent was intimidating as I felt his breath drift against me. It was horrible to inhale as soon as I caught a whiff of it, it made me gag. I slowly looked back at them, seeing the grey unicorn watching over me with the same sadistic grin. I was scared -- more than I had hoped to be. I was already making a fool of myself and I knew it was only going to get worse. Finally coming out of the cocoon of fear, I looked at the two menacing stallions as they looked down at me. “I’m not sure that he’s from around here,” the black stallion spoke in a deep voice. But then his eyes slowly drifted towards the device on my leg before a mocking grin drifted across his face. “Oh, I get it. This guy’s a Stable Dweller -- so how did you get out, little guy?” The stallion walked up to me, literally being only inches apart. “I just got out… what’s it to you?” I mumbled below my breath, with my head down. I stared at the broken stones scattered out along the dirt covered road, and the dust sweeping across. I tried to not make any sudden movements. Snickers of mockery were heard from this point from both of the bucks, before the obsidian colored one proceeded. “Oh is that so?” “Blasphemy!” the grey stallion cried. “You can’t have just ‘got out’; there is no way in hell it was that simple.” Feeling the intimidation from both of them close in onto me, I heard the same voice that was just speaking grind against my ear. “You don’t belong out here…” I remained silent in both fear and shock. I mean, I had not even spent an hour out here and already I was in trouble. Or at least I thought. Either way, I felt like I was doomed and doomed was not good in any way possible. Their shadows were casting over me, covering me in darkness as I seemed to shake. Or at least, I felt myself shaking in fright. The fact that the stallion was right in my face did not help to how I felt being out here. The feeling that somepony was going to strike me down or shoot me, I just couldn’t take it. Cowering yet again, I soon heard them both burst out in laughter. Hearing their laughs of mockery and twisted joy, my cheeks flushed red and then I quickly darted out of my cowering cocoon and then yanked the gun out from my saddle bag with my wing, and aimed it at the grey stallion. They still laughed; I was so close to pulling the fucking trigger. “Oh lighten up, kid!” The black stallion chuckled, “we’re just having some fun, we aren’t going to hurt you!” I slowly lowered the gun, tilting my head in confusion to why they weren’t going to hurt me; I was thankful but slightly annoyed nonetheless. “Well… if you happen to stir up trouble, then we just might, so I’d be careful if I was you.” His partner cut in straight after the other stallion spoke. “Trust me -- if you even hurt somepony with the gun you can’t even use, then I swear I’ll kill you!” Okay… that was a little sudden. However, placing the gun back into the saddle bag and ceiling it up, I nodded before continuing into the ruins of the city. As soon as the ruins came into view, a lot of the area was spaced out and full of the decaying trees, however the few remaining buildings were skyscrapers, hotels and small offices. The skyscrapers: stood tall and thin. Their slender figure made it daunting to pass them as if they were to collapse onto us at any moment. Large holes torn within the buildings along the edges of the large space fumed a thick scented smoke into the atmosphere, which the glowing flames within the smoke were easily visible. Very few ponies were actually here too. In fact, many of them sat by the desolated buildings in hope of being given something from a stranger. “I’m so sorry…” I mumbled to myself, looking at them with a surprising feeling of guilt. I felt pity for them, despite not knowing them at all. The many seemingly stranded ponies were all staring at me. Some of them seemed to show threat while some showed a hopeful expression. All eyes on me, I walked down the dirt road as the wind whistled past my ears. Finding a small office building crammed in-between two broken and slightly tilted skyscrapers, I soon walked over towards the thin, metal door. The blue door on the left side of the building had been pierced with bullets all over the bottom of it, while the maroon colored walls of the exterior had been scarred by ammo being thrown at it. The blackened windows were shattered and broken, as the sharp shards that sat on the edge of the window frame had blood stained on the sharpest points. The darkness was caused by the wooden planks that had been nailed onto the windows as a replacement. It stood seven stories high, despite it being high in size, it didn’t look very wide. A wooden sign on the door hung from a nail that pinned into the thin sheet of metal that the door wore. The sign read: STAY OUT! Glancing around myself to see if any of the homeless ponies were looking, I soon tried the door lock feeling it twisting and turning. The sound of the locks playing around was heard as my hoof twisted and rotated around the doorknob. It was unlocked? But what about ponies staying out of this place? If somepony didn’t want anypony to enter the building, they should have done a better job of locking this place down. Pushing the door open slowly, I saw the room beyond the doorway filled with darkness. The light that brightly gleamed into the room from the doorway showed cracked and dusty floor tiles. The white color that was meant to be on them was now a hollow grey color. Small red boxes were stacked in the far corner of which I could see and skeletons sat within the same corner. Walking into the building, I heard my hoofsteps echo and rebound off of the surrounding walls. I silently closed the door behind me, before finding myself in complete darkness. The only light sources were the small cracks in the boards nailed to the windows allowing rays of light to pass through, and the PipBuck on my leg lit up a small ratio of the room. There really was no other light. I had to rely on the PipBuck mainly. I walked along the broken and dusty old tiles that were below me, hearing each of my hoofsteps echo inside of the room. Not only that, but the breaths leaving my mouth echoed in the room also. The cold breeze drifting through the building nipped at my neck making me shiver slightly, and as I took another step forward, a sound of a bottle rolling and banging against the tiles was heard. “There has to be some sort of light switch in here,” I grumbled, as I felt the chipped and rough walls that were around me. I felt some graze my hoof. Some sharp and… metal. It stabbed into the bottom of my hoof, stinging right into the bloodstream. I felt blood draw from my hoof and yelped as I held the hoof affected. I soon heard echoing hoofsteps, as I then fell silent to wait for who it was. Hearing a few echoing coughs as I heard the hoofs slowly come down the staircase that sounded like it was in the distance, I soon glanced to where the sound was coming from before hearing another weak cough in the distance of the room. Seeing another PipBuck come into view, glowing in the dark, this time more of a sky blue color lighting up the way for the pony, his hooves echoing as he took each step. The stallion within the dark soon came to a halt before speaking. “Didn’t ya’ see tha’ sign, wanderer?” His southern, old accent rebounded off of the walls as he spoke in the croaky tone he had, “by the looks of your PipBuck, Ah’ assume that you’re jus’ like me -- a Stable Wanderer. You mus’ be new ‘round these parts…” I nodded even though he couldn’t see me. “Yup. I haven’t even been out here for long.” I responded with a mundane tone. A weak, dry chuckle was heard within the abyss of the room, before he yet again spoke. “Uh-huh.” He coughed yet again, this time sounding eve dryer in the throat. “Let me get some light in here.” Click! The sound of a generator powering on was heard, before the beams of light bulbs fixed onto the ceiling flickered on, lighting the room up. It wasn’t a bright light, but it was dim and shady. The room was fairly large, and empty. There were barely any chairs or desks. Only a few wooden tables hugging the wall covered in dust and also having the odd few guns and ammo, and even rusty old and bent bottle caps sitting on top of them. It was wide open, but a large wall in the far center of the room, which I assumed the staircase, was over there. Many different wasted bottle caps were lying all over the floor, bent and the edges sharp. That must have been what I had cut my hoof on. The old, apple green earth pony seen standing not too far away. His grey and long mane which hung down and hugged his neck beneath the Stetson that sat on his head. His amber eyes stared at me, looking dry and grey-ish. The facial hair that covered most of his lips was also grey like his mane and was styled in a moustache. The Stable jacket he wore no longer contained the bright blue and yellow color it normally contains, it was degrading in both colors and the number on the collar which represented the Stable he was from displayed the number twelve. An old Winchester colored rifle sat within the battle saddle that rested on his back and the rusty old lever that had to be yanked to shoot the weapon within the holster. “That’s better,” the peculiar stallion mumbled. “Now, why did you leave the Stable, young one?” He soon took a few steps closer to me, before stopping only a meter away from me. “It’s complicated.” I mumbled, but it was loud enough to be audible. He laughed in a tone of what seemed to be sarcasm. “Oh really? Ah’ bet it isn’t as complicated as havin’ Stable Raiders invade your Stable an’ then killin’ your parents right in front of ya’ -- if ya’ haven’t heard of the Invasion of Stable 12 then you mus’ be really new out here. Despite the story being old, the radio presenter on Radio Equestria keeps retelling the story as if it was yesterday!” He spat out. I felt my heart sink as soon as he spoke the words that left his mouth. Imaging what he had gone through really tore me apart. I knew how he felt, my mother was shot down and my father died of cancer. And now losing my sister only just recently. “N-no… it isn’t.” I stammered, as I looked at the buck with a pitiful look. “My sister left the Stable without even saying goodbye; she’s the only bit of family I have left…” I paused, trying to swallow back the tears. I felt my voice shake. “I just want to find her.” “Uh-huh,” the buck mumbled as he gently nodded his head, looking slightly to the left. “Ah’ wish ya’ good luck and Ah’ would help ya’ if I could, but this is where I belong now. Ah’m no longer the young, athletic buck I used to be… this Wasteland does thin’s to ya’, and Ah’ can regrettably say they aren’t nice.” He soon began to walk around the room, but he stayed close to where I was. “The name’s Old Orchard, Ah’ don’t really help any o’ the residents, but if Ah’ have no choice, then Ah’d do it.” His voice tone seemed to raise slightly before he continued. “Since you’re relatively new out here, Ah’ll tell you a few vital things before you go out there and throw ya’self in front of bullets and what-not.” “Like what?” He looked at me in the eyes. “Well for starters, make sure you use ya’ ammo wisely, young buck. Ah’ made one big mistake back when I first came out here and many lives Ah’ was tryin’ to save were all taken within minutes,” he regrettably said with a frown. “Ah’ don’t want an innocent buck like you to make the same mistake -- not only does it endanger you, but it can endanger those around ya’.” I nodded with a small sigh. He turned away and then walked over to one of the small wooden tables that hugged the walls surrounding us. He grabbed a few items into his hoof. Sounds of bottle caps, and ammo cases chiming together as he soon placed the small amount of items onto his back. Seeing four scratched, small, steel ammo cases and a small pouch of caps sitting on top of one of them. He walked back to me, before he removed each of the items from his back slowly and placing them in front of him. He used his snout to gently push the pouch of caps and ammo cases individually towards me before showing a small smile on his face. “You can have these,” he spoke in a slightly uplifting tone. “If you don’t have a gun, Ah’m sure Twist Bolt can sort you out with somethin’. His gun store is by the old Ministry building by the river on the far side of town.” He yet again smiled, the wrinkles on his seemingly ancient body stretched across his face as the grin crept across his face. I smiled back. “Another thing ya’ need to know is friends and foes. Don’t trust anypony who ya’ meet, they could kill ya’ or even worse, feed you to Hellhounds,” his voice yet again turned stern, as he spoke. “Build trust, it might just save your life… Ah’d look out for any suspicious activities your companions do if you happen to meet any.” I nodded in understanding. “Okay.” I simply added. He tapped his muzzle, thinking of another helpful tip to help me with. Nothing. He soon shook his head, and looked slightly puzzled before focusing his attention back onto me. “Ah’d say that’s the basics,” he added. “Oh and one more thing… make sure you do have another gun with ya’ out there. Being alone out there can get awful lonely, let alone dangerous -- all I have to say now is, good luck!” As he said that, the sound of movement was heard upstairs. The sound of something heavy falling on the ground boomed across the building, making dust from the cracks collapse onto us both. I coughed bitterly as some of the grey dust fell onto my lips. Again, another minute of silence dominated. The only sound I could hear was the sound of my breathing. The light rays that beamed through in the window brightened up as the sun brightly flashed down onto the building, the floating dust particles by the windows were seen floating by them, “Wait...somepony’s inside -- and I cannot promise that they’ll be friendly.” I heard the dry, ancient voice speak. I looked to him and stared at him. He stared back at me with a stern look, before nodding and cocking the bolt on the rifle that sat in his battle saddle. He took a couple of steps towards the staircase on the far end of the room and I followed him shortly after he began moving. Our hoofsteps echoed throughout the offices as we slowly made our way towards the staircase. The red carpet on the stairs was ripped, stained and dry. The pattern upon the carpets was a degrading, golden swirling pattern and it stretched all over the carpet. “Keep on your guard, kid.” Old Orchard bitterly said with a croaky voice tone. “Ah’ ain’t so sure that the pony upstairs won’t be armed.” //-------------------------------------------------------// Introduction //-------------------------------------------------------// Introduction Fallout Equestria: A Wanderer’s Tale By TornadoFIM Introduction Logging onto StableTec servers, please wait one moment… … … … >Welcome to StableTec. Please select a file to open. > > >Stable Files > >Back Opening file: (3) - Please Wait. Password: ********* Access Granted. … … … File: #TornadoDash >A Wanderer’s Tale >Back Opening file: AWanderersTale - Please Wait. … … … Launching AWanderersTale.exe //-------------------------------------------------------// Prologue //-------------------------------------------------------// Prologue Fallout Equestria: A Wanderer’s Tale By TornadoFIM Prologue So much to tell, so little time - yet a guy like me is willing to tell you my entire experience of the Wasteland. Well just as the name sounds, the place ain’t pretty. However, during my journey across the Wastes, I had learned some new things and also discovered new things that I wouldn’t find in the Stable. Not necessarily great things, but new things that always made me smile. At least inside. Now you’re probably wondering who the hell I am and why I’m here, am I right? Well pull up a chair and make yourself some coffee, because my story isn’t a short one, I’m afraid. It all started about a year or two back. I was born and raised within these underground homes known as Stables. They weren’t the most exciting or joyful places in the world, but they were somewhere to live at least. I’m sure you’ve heard of the story of the bombs dropping and the story of why the Stables came to be what they were. My sister and I lived within Stable 30 on our own. No parents, no nothing. My father died of cancer, while my mother was shot for trespassing. We had done alright on our own since the passing of our parents; however a good friend of ours, Heart Leaf helped us along the way and was there to support us. About three and a half years later, that’s where my story began. My sister had somehow found her way out of the Stable and never told me at all where or why she was going. She never even said goodbye. I didn’t want to let her go, so I followed her out the open door of Stable 30 and into the Wasteland beyond the thick, round, metal door to hopefully reunited with her. During my journey, I promised both myself and those who I had encountered that I would bring light back into the Wasteland, in hope of spreading peace and harmony around Equestria. But who am I exactly? Am I just a lonely buck needing a pony to share my story with? Am I just of no importance? That’s for you to decide, friend. I am Tornado Dash, I am a Pegasus… and this is my story.