Fallout Equestria: Black Dawn

Chapter 3: Scars

“Absolutely not!”

        “But I…” the filly protested.

        “Dawn, look, I like you and I’m sure that you think you can handle yourself out there, but there is no way in Hell that I am taking you with me.  From what Darkwater told me, this clinic sounds like the ideal habitat for raiders.  Its out of the way, abandoned, and no doubt built around a mountain of chems.  Not to mention I’m sure that they’ve probably “re-purposed” any medical equipment into some kind of sick maiming device.  I am not taking you in there!”

        “Well then where am I supposed to go,” she said, and then almost in a whisper, “back to the streets?”

        The filly seemed to have become rather attached to me in the few hours we’d known each other, which struck me as a bit suspicious.  Then again, it seemed that I was the only pony who ever showed her any compassion in this town.  I can only imagine that she feels the same way I did when I lost Ma, and if it hadn’t been for the caravan taking me in I probably wouldn’t have lasted very long on my own.  Looking at her now, I could see the uncertainty and fear inside her.  I had showed her kindness and, in doing so, given her hope.  Who was I to destroy something so precious?

        “Alright, here’s what I want you to do: Take my key, go back to my room at the saloon and stay there until I get back.  If things work out, I should be back by tonight.”  Ha, pretty big ‘if’, when does anything ever go according to plan?  “I promise that I’ll come back for you.  Ok?”

        She stared at me for a long moment before finally silently nodding her head.  I turned to get the key from my bag, but couldn’t seem to find it.  Whipping around, I saw Dawn slowly trotting off toward the saloon with the key in her mouth.  Celestia help me, I sure hope I know what I’m getting into with her.

        Now that Dawn was taken care of, I had to get down to business.  Darkwater told me that there was an old Ministry of Peace clinic about an hour’s trot to the west of the Hub that was supposed to have a fully stocked pharmacy.  He told me that the town could certainly use the supplies and with a fresh shipment he could afford to not only pay me handsomely, but also offer me a discount in the future.  I had taken enough contracts in my life to know that I needed some security on this one, just in case the place turned out to be empty.  Twenty-five caps, to be paid upon return, seemed like a paltry sum, but it was at least incentive to go check the place out.

*** *** ***

        With the low-hanging skyline of the Hub poking faintly up from the horizon behind me, I moved cautiously between the rusty wagons on the road sprawled before the buttery-yellow building that towered before me.  Part of the roof had collapsed and the entire building was caked with dirt blown in from the wave of a distant balefire bomb, but the three pink butterflies on the sign over the main entrance made it easily recognizable as a MoP institution.

        I stopped and checked the load on my pistol and made sure that all of my magazines were loaded with the little ammunition that I had left.  It wouldn’t really help me in a prolonged gunfight, but it still packed one hell of a punch and worked for dispatching raiders in close quarters.  I would have to make use of Darkwater’s discount (assuming that this place isn’t empty) and pick up a decent rifle.  I was a damn good shot, but then again so was anypony when your target is just on the other side of the room.  I wanted a long range problem solver; a gun that gave me an advantage.

        When I made it to the door I stood perfectly still, trying to listen for any movement on the other side.  When I was sure that there was nopony standing on the other side, I slowly inched the door ajar.  Peering in, the room was rather dim.  It wasn’t until I was already inside, however, that the smell hit me.  Blood.  Feces.  Death.  My fears had been confirmed the instant that wave of foul odor hit my muzzle.  This was a raider hideout.

        I wanted to run back outside, but the door refused to open.  Under closer inspection, I noticed a thin wire running along the base of the door.  Shit.  Now I was locked in with the most fucked up ponies the wasteland had to offer.  To make it worse, they probably already knew I was here.  I turned and started to float my pistol out of it’s holster.  With the glow from my horn illuminating the dark lobby I froze up.  I was face to face with a burly, orange earth pony.  A blow from the side knocked me off my hooves and left me gasping for breath.  Two more ponies closed in on me, stomping until my body went limp.  The world went black.

        I could feel the floor sliding beneath me.  When I finally dared to open my eyes, I realized that I was being dragged by two of the raiders that had ambushed me.  Something wasn’t right.  Why didn’t they just kill me?  Unless, they have some other sick plan for me!  To them I was a toy!  A punching bag that bleeds!

        We passed through a doorway into a large atrium, lit only by the sunlight that pierced through the holes in the ceiling.  I heard a sharp voice of a mare barking commands out before cutting off suddenly.  The two raiders let go of my barding, letting my head fall limply on the ground.  Ouch.  The mare that I heard was standing over me.  She was milky white and taller and much more muscular than the average mare with sticks of cinnamon adorning her flank.  Her bloody red mane was streaked with black and cut short to her head, save for a lock that hung over her face.  The voice she spoke in now was softer than I had just heard, almost...sensual.

        “Oooh, you brought me a new plaything?  He’s a cute one, too.  I hope you didn’t rough him up too bad.”  Now I was terrified and...well...a little turned on.  I would be lying if I said that she was unattractive, even for a raider.  She looked well groomed, unlike all other raiders I had ever seen.  I was conflicted.  My mind was horrified by all the awful things the being a “plaything” could entail, but my body was more concerned with primal urges.

        “Stand up!” I instinctively obeyed, forcing myself onto my hooves.  She put her forehooves on my shoulders and pushed my back up against the wall, inspecting me.  Despite where I was and what was likely to happen, my body wouldn’t let up.  Unfortunately, she noticed.  My spine tingled as she pushed her warm body up against mine.

        “Ooh, are you excited too?  This should be interesting.”  My eyes widened.  Well, they haven’t disemboweled me yet so I guess it could be worse, right?  Still, I don’t think she would really be all that interested in my pleasure.

        “Slasher!  Take him to the pen for now.  But be gentle.”

“Yes, Mistress.” the orange earth pony groaned.

She made me squirm with the most aggressive bedroom eyes I could ever imagine.  Still pressing against me, she whispered in my ear, “I want you to be well rested for later.  Its been a while since I had a little fun.”

        With that, she let me back down onto all fours and allowed her muscle to “escort” me to my pen.  The room was very dark and dirty, but surprisingly not disgusting.  I couldn’t ignore the smell of this place when I came in, but this room led me to believe that I was getting extra special treatment.  I heard the iron door lock behind me as I was left alone in the dark.  Or so I thought.

        “Ha, Spice must be in heat!”  The voice sounded gruff and annoyed, but I could tell he was teasing me.  Whoever it was, I couldn’t see them through the blackness and I was too weak to even try using my magic to light the room.  “Well I hope you know what you got yourself into, kid.  Spice is a demanding little cunt, but if she likes you she might just let you live.  You fuck up though...”  His voice trailed off.  It was strange, I had no idea who or even where this pony was, but he still seemed familiar.  I lay down next to the door, trying to rest up for Spice’s “playtime” later.  I could really use a healing potion right now.

        “So...you seem to know a little about her.  What’s this bitch all about?  She doesn’t strike me as your typical raider.”  I asked, hoping for some idea of just how unpleasant my future might be.

        “That’s because she’s not.  Spice wouldn’t know a goddess-damned thing about running a gang of raiders.  She fucked me over and let my boys take control of the place.  They have a deal worked out where they carry on business as usual and all she does all damn day is lounge around, fucking any new meat she can get her hooves on.  Bitch is crazy.”

        “Wait, she said ‘It's been a while’ since she had fun.  Does that mean that you weren’t...”

        “Ha!  That’s a good one!  Tough ol’ bastard like me?  Nah.  Little bitch is just keeping me as her trophy.  A reminder that she’s in charge now and I’m just her bitch.  I bet she’s feeling pretty smug right about now, the little twat.”

        “A trophy?” I asked.

        “Yeah, Spice used to be my bitch back when I was in control.  After she took over though....”

        “Whoa, hold on!  You’re a raider?”

        “Once.  Until she and the boys decided it was time to retire me.  I’d tried to put it behind me, started a peaceful life...at least until shit turned ugly.  After that I thought that maybe I could just come back and surprise them all.  Take what was mine.  Looks like I was wrong.”

        “So you aren’t a raider anymore?”

        “Not for a long time.”  He stopped talking for a while after that.

        “You said that you tried to start a new life.  Mind if I ask where?” I asked, trying to keep the conversation going.  Hell, it wasn’t like we had anywhere to be.

        “There used to be a little town about a day’s walk south of here.  Used to be...but not anymore.”

        “Hold on! You aren’t talking about Jackpot, are you?”  I had a feeling that this was about to get interesting,

        “Yeah, that’s it.  Why?  You hear about what went down?”

        “Not exactly.  But you’re about to fill me in on the details.”  This couldn’t possibly be right.  I stood up and managed to muster up enough strength for an illumination spell.  On the other side of a set of iron bars that bisected the room sat a familiar black stallion.  “And maybe while you’re at it you can tell me why you ran off to join back up with your gang instead of trying to save Jackpot!  They trusted you to keep them safe, Styx!”  I was burning inside with every emotion.  From rage, to relief, to just utter disappointment.  Maybe I could at least get some answers though.

        “Oh for fucks sake!  Crackshot!?  Is that you?”

        “You’re damn right it is!  Now tell me why you ran away and left your town to burn!”

        “The town was fucked whether I stayed or not!  What good would it have done if I died there too?” he retorted.

        “I can even justify that, but why would you come back here!?  I thought you left that life behind you?  You even just said that you wanted a peaceful life!”  I was so confused.  I had always trusted Styx even though he had been a raider, but this didn’t look good for him.

        “What else was I going to do!?  Everything I had was destroyed, everypony I knew was either killed or taken away in chains!  Where was I going to go?”

        “Wait, slow down.  What do you mean ‘taken away in chains’?  Raiders don’t usually take prisoners like that, right?”  Maybe I’d at least get something out of this ordeal.  Styx had betrayed Jackpot, but he may be the only one that knows what happened there.

        “Yeah, for some reason they were rounding up the mares and foals and locking ‘em up.  Any stallions that stuck around...”  I didn’t wait for him to finish.  Besides, I knew firsthoof what happened to anyone who resisted.

        “I...I remember somepony shouting about a contract.  ‘Mares and foals.’  Does that mean that they could still be alive?”

        “I dunno kid, but they were definitely taking prisoners.  Could be some kind of slavers I guess.”  I sighed heavily, trying to take in this new information.  All I could think about was finding those responsible for that raid.  Assuming that I made it out of here, that is.  “Anyway, none of that really matters so long as you’re stuck in here.”

        “Any bright ideas on how to get out of here then?”

        “Staying alive would be a good start.”  Styx answered flatly.

        “You don’t say!?  And how do you suggest I continue doing that?”  He sneered back at me.

        “Spice wants to ‘play’ with you.  Just do whatever she wants you to and she’ll probably keep you.  She won’t let you out of this cell though until she’s done with you for good.  We can work it out later, but for now you better rest up for your little playdate.”  So that was it then?  Whore myself out for the time being until we could form an escape plan?  Well, to be completely honest, it was probably the only thing that I could do seeing as her goons stripped me of all my gear (including the bobby pins I borrowed from Dawn).  Even if I managed to get out of this cell, I still wouldn’t stand a chance against a whole building full of armed raiders.  “And by the way,” Styx began again, “Lose the attitude or I’ll buck your fucking teeth out.”

        “Sorry.”  I had forgotten for a moment who I was talking to and although he was separated from me by the iron bars, he probably could plow right through them if he was really pissed.  Besides, I may need his help to get out of here.

        I managed to trip over a...well I suppose you could call it a bed.  It was a crude mattress made out of stained cardboard and rags.  I curled up on top of the dirty pile and tried to just rest until they came for me.  Styx did the same on his side of the cell.  For now I just needed to rest.  I was still sore from their little ambush when I came in and I would bet that what Spice had in store for me may leave a couple bruises.

        My hazy sleep was broken suddenly by the sound of screeching metal.  Slasher, flanked by another, unfamiliar pony, stormed into my half of the cell and bound my forehooves with heavy chains.  Now at their mercy, they forced my muzzle into a shallow bin of oddly colored powder and held it there for a moment.  I was forced to inhale the powder and, upon doing so, felt immediately...strange.  I felt a powerful surge run through my body and...well...an uncontrollable throbbing in my loins.

        “Oh yeah, I’d say he’s ready.” Slasher laughed as he pulled me back up on all four hooves.  I sneezed, blowing the powder in his face.  “Ugh, dirty little fuck!  You’re damn lucky the Mistress wants you for a little flank-spank, but I won’t forget about this.”

        They brought me to a large door at the end of the hallway and forced me up against it.  With nowhere to go except through, they unshackled me.  I could feel sweat running down my neck now, not from fear though.  I was rather...um...excited.  And no matter how hard I tried to ignore it, it just wouldn’t go away.  Slasher threw me through the door and into the room, slamming and locking the it behind me.  Whoa!

        This room was enormous and lavishly decorated with two symmetrical staircases leading up to a second level.  Whatever this place had been, nothing about it was even close to raider-like now.  Hell, remembering the stench when I first came in I wasn’t even sure that I was in the same building anymore.  There were red velvet curtains that covered most of the bare concrete walls and rugs and plush cushions scattered about the floor.  An impressive light sculpture of a mare and a stallion in flagrante delicto that hung over a large, heart-shaped bed dominated the room, bathing everything in the soft, sensual warmth of its glow.  On the far side of the room, I could see Spice bathing at the edge of the balcony.  She turned to look at me before smiling and slipping out of the tub into a bathrobe.

        “I hope you’re as excited as I am for this,” she cooed, “It's been months since I had the chance to enjoy myself like this.”  Spice slowly made her way down the staircase, her eyes seductively locked on me.  “You don’t have to be nervous, sweetie.  I don’t bite...hard.”

Maybe...maybe this wouldn’t be that bad after all.  Spice was definitely not a raider, what with her cleanliness and seductive (as opposed to sadistic) nature.  Her choice in interior decorating, while a bit lewd, didn’t involve any type of gore and was generally welcoming.  Hell, she seemed more like a horny schoolfilly than any kind of threat.  I suppose everypony has their kinks and that this was just her way of enjoying what the wasteland had left to offer.

“So...what’s your angle exactly?  You’re no raider.  What do you want?”  I asked trying to break the tension as I decided whether or not I was going to resent or enjoy this experience.  I was sure that it was going to happen whether I wanted it or not, so I figured that the least I could do was put a little effort into it.  For my own sake, of course.  To...convince her to...um...  Oh who the Hell am I kidding?  At this point I was actually sore from the passion burning in my loins!  Whatever that powder was, it must be a damn powerful aphrodisiac.

“Believe me, I never wanted to be Styx’s little whore.  He made me his bitch, so I did the same to him.  As for myself, all I really want is to just have a little ‘fun’ now that I have my run of the place.  Slasher and his boys decided to stick around and watch over the place after working out a little agreement.”  She winked and slowly moved towards myself and the bed.  “I still let them do as they please and they keep me safe.  It wasn’t particularly enjoyable, but it was only once and has since paid for itself.”  Spice sat at the edge of the large, inviting bed and stared longingly at me.  “Now I want to be able to enjoy myself again.  On my own terms.”

“Well then why not just ask?  Why the cell and the drugs?”

“Slasher and his boys answer to me, but they’re still raiders.  They govern themselves for the most part and deal with intruders.  You seemed like a fine specimen and I didn’t want them to hurt you.  I had them lock you up to keep them away from you until we got the chance to talk like this.  I figured that you would at least entertain the notion of a little flank-spank in exchange for being able to just walk out of here.  Win-win, right?”

“I...suppose so?  And the drugs?”

“Powdered unicorn horn acts as a powerful aphrodisiac when inhaled.  I figured that you would be too nervous to perform otherwise.”  She giggled, looking down between my hind legs.  “I suppose we won’t have to worry about that now though.”

I trotted over to the bed and climbed on.  Spice smiled at me gently as she laid me on my back.  The mare positioned herself over me and laid on top of my stomach.  Her fur was still damp, but warm pressing against my body.  I really didn’t need any coaxing at this point, but there was something I had to know before this happened.

“I want you to tell me about what happened with Styx.  The whole story.”

“Shhh.  I promise that there will be a time for that later.  Let’s just enjoy ourselves for now.”  This was happening right now, I was tired of waiting.  We could talk things over later, but for now she was right.  We both wanted this.

*** *** ***

For the first time in a long time I woke up happy and satisfied.  I was still in a terrible place and had a lot of difficult tasks before me, but I could take solace in the earthly pleasure that this mare gave me.  Spice had turned out to be much sweeter than she lead on, just the unfortunate victim of more raider brutality.  True, she had an unusual way of coping with it, but I wasn’t complaining.  I rolled over to face the mare laying next to me.  I hate to spoil this blissful moment, but I had questions that needed to be answered.

“Spice...?”  I whispered, “I think it’s time we talk.”

“Mmmh,” she playfully nibbled on my ear, “I did promise you answers, didn’t I?”

“Sorry to kill the mood, but I have things I need to do.  Now let’s start with Styx.  How’d you manage to get him out of the way?”

Spice sighed heavily and rolled off the edge of the bed.  “I always hated him for the things he did to me.  I eventually managed to used the gang’s jealousy to organize a coup to overthrow him.  It took a lot of...’favors’ to convince them to help me.  But that’s in the past now.  Slasher’s boys and I have a deal worked out: they keep me safe as long as Slasher gets to stay in control of the gang.  I have some power over them, but I try not to push my luck.”

“Alright.  So now what happens to me?”

“Well, I suppose you’re free to leave.  I wish you’d stay and play some more,” she winked, “but I’m not going to stop you.  I’ll tell Slasher to give you back your possessions and let you go.  You were kinda roped into this in the first place, so I guess I shouldn’t expect anything more.”

I moved to the edge of the bed and kissed her softly.  “Last night was wonderful.  Much better than I ever could’ve expected going in to a raider camp.  But I’m afraid that I have a job to finish, and a life to get back to.  I suppose you wouldn’t entertain the notion of letting Styx go free with me?”

“I...No.  There’s absolutely no way that I could let that monster loose again.  Not after the things I’ve seen him do.”  A single tear rolled down her cheek.  “He’s an animal, and deserves worse than I can ever dish out.  He stays here and rots.”

“That’s a sacrifice I’m willing to make.  And you’re sure that you’re safe here with these raiders?  I could take you back with me to town.  To a place where you’ll be safer.”

“That’s very kind of you to offer, but no.  I doubt that there’s anywhere ‘safer’ than surrounded by raiders.  Nopony in their right mind would ever try to fuck with them.”

“Then I guess this is goodbye.  Oh!  Before I go, the whole reason I came here was to gather medical supplies for a nearby town.  I don’t suppose that Slasher would be willing to part with any of those chems?”

“Not a chance.  Slasher loves two things: his drugs and his knives.  In that order.  And there’s no way in Hell that he’d ever consider parting with some of them.  Not even by my request.”  She moved in closer and gently ran her hoof along my mane.  “It’s a shame you have to go so soon...  Come on, I’ll see you out.”

        Spice unlocked the bedroom door and led me into the hallway.  Slasher was standing directly in our path, flanked by two of his goons.  Something wasn’t right.  Thanks to their agreement Spice was technically in command, but in a raider hierarchy its always the strongest, craziest fuck that the others all obey.  Who’s to say that Slasher isn’t fed up with being her underling and decided to just take her out of the equation?

        “Step aside Slasher, he’s leaving.” Spice commanded.

        “Maybe you forgot, but I get to do whatever the fuck I want with trespassers after you’re done with them!  Now its my turn to have my own ‘fun’ with that dirty little shit.”  Slasher nodded to his boys and they pinned my back against the wall.  “And trust me, my turn won’t be nearly as much fun for you as her’s was.”

        “Slasher!  You answer to me!  Now let go of him!”  Spice hissed.  Slasher turned and bucked “boss” in the side.  Hard.  She collapsed, gasping for breath as I struggled to break free from the raiders’ hold.  Shit, why did I have to be right?  Another raider coup.  Things were about to get bloody.

        “I answer to nopony you cunt!  I’m tired of you locking yourself up in your room and lounging around all day pretending like you own the fucking place!  I’m taking back my house, and you’ve overstayed your welcome.”  Slasher turned his attention to me now.  “Change of plans boys.  Throw the bitch in Styx’s cell, let him take care of her.”  The raiders let me down, only to be pinned back by Slasher’s hoof instead.  “I told you that you’d pay, you dirty fuck!”  He pulled back his other hoof to strike me square in the face.

        Luckily, Slasher was cocky decided to deal with Spice personally. While I’m sure the rest of his gang were behind him in spirit, only two of them came along for the ride, something that would prove to be a fatal error.  I had been eyeing up Slasher while he had been barking orders and saw a golden opportunity.  Before he was able to land his punch, I saw his face change in expression from anger to confusion to fear.  The glow of my horn distracted him just long enough for me to grab hold of the knife attached to his barding.  Blood sprayed across the two of us as I sunk the blade deep into his throat, leaving a fearful, lifeless expression on his face forever.

        Having heard his gurgling and seeing the walls of the narrow corridor painted with blood, I immediately lost the element of surprise with the other two.  However, I did still have the distinct advantage of telekinesis over the two bumbling earth ponies.  They dropped Spice’s limp body and turned their attention to me.  One charged with another knife, but the other drew a revolver.  I went after him first, thrusting the knife deep into his chest before turning my attention to the closer threat.

        This one was fast and closed the distance before I had a chance to strike.  He slashed at me wildly, cutting across the top of my muzzle.  In my shock, I broke concentration and dropped Slasher’s knife.  Now defenseless, I needed to strike back hard and fast.  Before he could come back up for a second strike, I stepped forward and headbutted him.  Now I was nowhere near as strong as an earth pony of his size, but my horn was good for more than just magic.  I was showered in gore once again as I pulled my horn out of his eye.  The hulking brute fell to the ground writhing in agony before I promptly crushed in his skull with my hooves.

        Although we were safe for the moment, we were still trapped in a raider base and killing their boss was a damn good way to stir up the hive.  Having killed them quietly would at least give me a little time before the others got suspicious.  Wiping the blood off of my face, I made my way over to Spice and helped her back up.

        “We need to move, now!  Are you alright to walk?”  Spice groaned and gritted her teeth, but nodded.  I took the revolver from the corpse of the one raider.  Four rounds left.  “Alright this will do for now.  Where are they keeping my gear?”

        “They...they probably threw it in with the rest of the hoard.”  Spice coughed, then immediately winced.  “Its in the pharmacy...that’s where Slasher always kept the drugs.”  I was worried that Slasher had broke something inside her.  My face would probably scar, but I would be fine with a simple bandage.  She needed medical attention.  At least I may still be able to get ahold of some medicine for Darkwater after all.  “You’re going to have to...fight your way there though.”

        “I have an idea.  You’re not going to like it, but I think it's our best bet.  But you have to trust me.”  Spice was horrified by my plan, but I managed to convince her.  I just pray to the Goddesses that this wouldn’t backfire on me.I pulled the knife out of the pistol-wielding pony and tossed it through the bars of Styx’s door.  The struggle outside had gotten his attention and now I had his full attention.

        “Haha!  Jailbreak!” the mountain of a stallion laughed, “Damnit, Crackshot, I didn’t know you had that kind of fight in you.  Now come on and bust me out!”

        “Listen up.  I’ll let you out to get revenge on your boys, but if you try to touch Spice I won’t hesitate to drop your ass.  You’ll have the element of surprise on your side and I’ll be there to help you out, but I need you to help me fight my way to the pharmacy.  After we’re done I don’t care where you go or what you do,” I floated the revolver up to eye level and pointed it at him through the bars, “But if you try to run or take a swing at either of us, I will kill you.  Understand?”

        “I guess I shouldn’t expect any kind of special treatment from you.”  Styx sneered, “Fine, now unlock the door and let’s go bust some heads!”  I took the keys from Slasher and carefully unlocked the door.  Styx stepped outside and glared at Spice.

        “Don’t worry about her.”  I said, keeping the revolver trained on his head.  “She’s not the one you want to fight.  She was just the coordinator.  Go get the bastards who beat your ass and left you for dead.”  Styx briefly trained his glare on me before turning and casually cantering down the hallway towards the atrium.  I turned back to Spice, who was struggling to keep up.  “Here, let me help.” I said, leaning her against my side for support, “We need to get you to a doctor after this.”

        I was worried about Spice.  I know it was strange that I felt compassion and even a bit of attachment to the mare who I thought was a sociopathic murderer only hours ago, but things changed last night.  Spice’s true form came out and I saw that deep down she was scarred and fearful as anypony would be after spending years among the raiders.  She never wanted this life.  I was determined to help give her a better one.  After what she had been subjected to here, she deserved it.

        She and I limped together down the hallway after Styx.  The room was more gory than usual with several raiders brutally slashed and stomped to a paste beneath the hooves of their enraged former colleague.  None of them, I noticed, had a weapon and one particularly large pony had been stripped of his barding.  Styx was a clever pony, looting whatever he could use off of the fallen.  He could take whatever he wanted from them for all I care.  As long as I got my gear and the chems out of the pharmacy I was a happy pony.

        Spice showed me the way as we moved deeper in the wake of Styx’s carnage.  I heard what sounded like gunshots coming from deeper inside the building.  I had noticed an empty holster or two on some of the corpses that littered the halls so who was shooting was really anypony’s guess.  The shots only grew louder as we got closer to the pharmacy.  And then...everything was quiet.  There was no more shouting, no more shooting.  Just an eerie silence.  The fighting was over.

        Styx had already bucked the pharmacy door open and wasted no time in jamming a syringe full of Rage into his forehoof.  He burst back out of the room in a fury and proceeded to take it out on the raiders, savagely beating them with his bare hooves as they bled, waiting for the darkness to take them.  I took the opportunity to grab my gear and as much medicine as I could fit into my saddlebags.  Not knowing if Styx would decide to turn his rage on us next, Spice and I quickly hobbled to back to the atrium and made for the door.

        My mind raced as we made our escape.  I thought of Spice and where I could find her a doctor in The Hub.  I thought of Dawn and how she had faired in my absence, alone and for much longer than I had told her.  I thought about Darkwater and the contract that had led me here.  But most of all, I thought about the pony who I thought I had known, the one who I once respected and trusted: Styx.

        Looking back over my shoulder, I saw the last raider’s head literally explode under the fearsome might of the savage’s hooves, his black coat sticky with blood and gore.  He snorted and bucked wildly, revelling in the bloodbath of his former brothers.  There was nothing I could say that would even reach him in his state of blind fury.  Styx wasn’t the pony I knew back in Jackpot, not anymore.  He was back to his savage way of life.  And that terrified me.