Fallout Equestria: Clever Alibis

Fallout Equestria: Clever Alibis

Chapter: one

Transcendentalism

   “I'd like to tell you a story, and it may very well be my last. One of the past, present, and maybe even future. Remember just because a story is sad and painful to hear doesn't mean it shouldn't be told, for it can still teach a lesson, and as long as you stand fast there can beith a happy ending, even if it bears the scars of the journey. Now if you'll allow me I would like to make my journey your own. Not just my story, but also of those dear and dire to me. I don't know if it will give a lesson. I can't promise you will like it. And I don't know if it has a happy ending, but I will tell it nonetheless. It is up to you if you are listen or not. So, where, oh, where do I start?”

    Closing the green folder I slid it to Chaucer and Rhetoric next to me, who were the only other ponies in the room I knew. The other three ponies sat idly across from us around the same table, occasionally glancing at us. The fourth pony we had been waiting for walked into the small room through the only door. He was the Flag Officer of the three other ponies, whose names I haven't been told yet. His name however was Lumen.

    “We're still a go,” he said walking up to us, “we still have an hour before the briefing, but I've called you here to let you know our original timeframe has changed. We'll only be bringing three engineers now, so our four to six hour plans have been changed to around sixteen to twenty. And that's pending with no setbacks.” He motioned for his three subordinates to leave. “So, Commander,” he said looking to me, “I ask that your team be prepared to operate at night.” He turned and left without waiting for a response.

    “Well I'm assuming you heard him,” I said to Chaucer and Rhetoric while standing up. “Be at the Barracks in an hour. This is our first sortie, let's not screw it up.” “See you there commander,” Rhetoric said as I left out the door.

                                                                                    •••

    Pushing the door to my house open I stepped inside. My mother, as I knew she'd be here greeted me at the door. “Day,” she said with a rather distressed tone. I paused in the door way looking at her. She never sounded distressed. “What's wrong?” I asked. “Come in. Sit down.” She beckoned me inside.

    I sat on our couch, and she took a seat on the chair opposite. “It’s Aegis, he's in ICU as of last I heard.” My, my brother! “Last thing I wanted to tell you before you leave I know, but you deserved to know.” I stood up. “Where?” “Too far Day. I'll go find him after you leave, but you need to come back in one piece, okay?” “Yeah,” I responded with a confused look, “I'm coming back.”

    She shook her head slowly. “Alright, then one more thing, the reason I wanted you to come here before you left. I won't take too much of your time. Follow me.” She got up and began walking towards my room. “How, when?” I asked following her. “I just found out. A messenger came. Collision, his neck is broken.” I stopped in shock, “the same way then. Again, how?” “It's not as bad. They didn't have to bring him back, and as I've been told they won't need to do a synthetic fusion. But the chances of him recovering are still not, well, not great.” I lowered my head. “Again, son of a bitch. One more thing I won't be back until tomorrow. The mission has been extended.”

    She opened my bedroom door and motioned for me to continue inside. I was confused as to why, but I complied nonetheless. Entering I noticed the one thing that was different since I left, after all I hadn't slept on it in a month. On my bed lay something I thought I'd never see again.

    It took but a second to identify, but my mind was having a hard time believing. “Are you serious?” I asked, but she just stared at me. It sat there on my bed in its blue case. A family air loom known as the Sloghammer. A sword that was old as the Black Eagles themselves. It was the weapon of their first commander, and everypony in my family since.

    My father was the last one to have it. “It wasn't with him?” “No,” she responded, “he wanted to give it to you on your first time out. Since he couldn't give it to you himself, here it is.” Reaching down I grabbed the handle in my mouth, turned it, and with a click it slid out of the sheath, making that lovely metal on metal sound. The cobalt steel blade slid out with ease. I lowered my head to the other sheath that was connected to the first and slid the handle into the second blades handle and twisted it again, and the second half slid out connected to the first. Light but perfectly balanced. A double sided double bladed sword.

    As strange as it might seem, I'd choose this over any other weapon, and I was a sharpshooter. I looked back to my mother who had the largest smile. “This could help,” I said as clearly as I could through the handle. She laughed, then shook her head “Good luck on your first sortie, Commander.”

    I sighed, putting the blade down on the bed.  “Yeah only took me two years. Bastards don't trust me after what happened to dad, and they think I'm too young.” She chuckled, “you are the youngest brigade there's ever been.” “Yeah, I know,” I retorted, “the number of times I've heard that. Even their recruits don't take my rank seriously sometimes. Anyways thanks, this means more to me than I can say.” I stepped up to my mother and pulled her into a hug, something I didn't do nearly enough. “I'll be back, and Aegis will be alright. I've kicked his ass enough times to know he can take a hell of a beating.”

    I pulled the sheaths with the harness over my back and connected them around my body. Picking up the Sloghammer I slid the blade into the sheath on my left, turned the blade disconnecting it, then put the other half into the right one. “Well, I better be on my way. Chaucer usually needs help getting his armor on.” “Maybe you are too young to be a commander, your father would never let something like that slide.” “Hay!” I said taken aback. “Me? What about you? You're how old, and have had how many kids? How are you even still listed under combat ready?” “I'll show you how combat ready I am, ‘filly’”, She returned.

    Deciding I didn't want to get my ass handed to me by my superior, I took my leave. I turned and started walking to the door. “Good luck Day, don't get pregnant.” She called from behind me. “Ok.” Wait, what? Forgetting to stop I walked face first into the door. That wasn't something I expected to hear from my mother. I turned and glared at her. “Ok I'll try not to.” she really knew how to get under my skin. “See you later mother.” Opening the door and stepping out, I was forced to squint. The sun was rather bright today.

                                                                                   •••

    Chaucer and Rhetoric sat side by side talking, waiting for the order to move out. The briefing was rather short. We weren't told much, because frankly to them we didn't need to know much, we were guarding them. That's what we were there for. The extent of what we were told was we were heading to a prewar communications array. Once there we were going to clear it out. After that we were going to set up a four corner three pony perimeter around the exterior of the structure, while they (Lumen and his three ponies) protected the three technicians, who were going to be talking anything that they saw as useful.

    We were all ready, just waiting for the word from Lumen. My team and I were wearing our Eagle Scout armor, which consisted of a Carbon fiber suit inlaid with small carbon fiber plates. Our legs bore segmented high carbon steel scales running the length of the limbs. The only distinction mine had from theirs was my rank along my right foreleg, along with its distinctive stripes, and an epaulet on my right shoulder. I also had the Sloghammer now resting on top of my armor. Lumen and his ponies were wearing power armor, which had no distinctions between each other. The only way I could tell which Lumen was because he wasn't wearing a helmet, unlike his Sous-troops.

    Lumen pulled me aside to talk one on one before the operation started. “Now commander, I know neither of us are garrulous, I'm going to make this short. I'm not up for falconry so, hopefully I won't need to. There will be no objurgating. You are under my jurisdiction. You follow my orders, or you'll find our justice system doesn't take nicely to disobedience. As I've read you've skilled in jurisprudence. I'm not a fool, and neither are you. You're a good leader, your age matters not to me. It's your lineage that worries me. Follow my orders, and have your ponies follow yours and we'll be just fine.”

    I glared into his eyes in hope to burn his mome sole with a stare. But there wasn't anything I could do, his ponies were the supremacy here. “I doth.” I turned and returned to Chaucer and Rhetoric. “I'm guessing he had nothing good to say if he couldn't say it in front of us,” Chaucer said as I sat I between them.

    That jackass was the same escort that went down with my father and his squad. And he still has nothing good to say about it.” Rhetoric blinked in surprise. “And they have the nerve to send him down with you now too.” “Yeah” I said pulling back the bolt the rifle I had attached to my side. “Funny thing is they went down, everyone dies except him, and he gets promoted and honored, then me and my family gets the blame for it. Finally I get to go down there, and maybe I'll get a chance to put a bullet in something, if not for revenge at least it'll feel good. But of course they just have to send me with him.” I released the bolt and it slid back into place chambering a round. Rhetoric nodded in agreement. “Just be careful what you shoot at, from what I heard the animals down there don't take kindly to it.” “That's why” I said pointing to the rifle on my side “I'm bringing this too. If we run into anything down there I figure if its alive then it has a brain, and if it has a brain I plan on correcting that.” I still had my laser rifle attached to my battle saddle, (of which I didn't like using, but it's better than mouth firing a laser rifle.) but the rifle was a backup. That I'd fire from a standing position. “That's problem solving.” Rhetoric said with a laugh. “Yup” I said patting him on the shoulder. “Troubleshooting at its finest.”

    “They don't have faith in me, and if they don't have faith in me they sure don't in you. However, they wouldn't be taking us if they didn't expect trouble in the least, so at the least they ‘do’ know we just might be what's going to keep them alive. We are ìolar dubh, just remember that.”

    Lumen and his team walked up to us. “We're ready. The techs are waiting outside.”  We got up and followed them out of the barracks. Lumen and his team took position in the front, the technicians (who were wearing something akin to power armor) in the center, and Chaucer, Rhetoric, and I in the back.

    Lumen turned to the south and broke into a trot, Everypony behind him promptly followed. After running several meters he reached the drop off at the end of the barracks and jumped off. Everypony followed in suit, jumping one by one. I jumped last, quickly gaining speed. After a few seconds I saw Lumen a good distance ahead level out and reduce speed. Waiting another moment I quickly extended my wings along with Everypony else. My large wings instantly caught the wind causing me to level out and slowdown from terminal velocity.

    We maintained our formation and continued our heading at a constant speed. The cloud cover extended indefinitely underneath of us in all directions. “Here we go.”