Chapter 3: Going for a walk

I moved through the halls of the Titan. The low thud of my boots was the only thing I noticed, even with all the people around me. The atmosphere is… tense, you can easily tell as the soldiers go on doing their assigned tasks. Their voices are nothing but whispers to me, for I hardly care about what is happening. No, I have a bigger goal in mind, something much more important to me.

After the dust had settled and we finally had the chance to sit down, I was free tackle a single thought that had been nagging my mind ever since this crazy ass event happened. I needed to know what happened to my friend Barin. That bastard wasn’t just another soldier in my squad, he wasn’t a new acquaintance like Dima, that guy is one of my oldest friends and the only link to my home.

To my surprise, Suvorov had also taken this question and did everything he could to find out the truth. With his help, we quickly got information on his location and state. Thankfully, it turned out Barin was alive and out of danger. When the attack began, he was able to sneak back inside the vessel and assist other units located on that area. However, when “The Event” happened, he was wounded and was taken away from combat. Apparently, one of his arms was broken, what a lucky bastard.

Of course, as soon as I found out, I made my way to the medical section of the Titan. This vessel isn’t as well equipped as a real hospital, but it does have a sizable medical bay and infirmary to deal with wounded personnel and keep them stable until they can be taken to a safer location. That, of course, also presents the problem of dealing with a large number of EU and PAC wounded, which we can’t really take anywhere else. We have a dedicated medical team, but we lack the proper equipment and supplies to treat everyone.

"So, how are you holding up?" I said, trying to sound excited as I approached his bed. The infirmary wasn't very big, I had to watch my steps to avoid steping on anything important.

"Alex! Ha, great to see you man!" Barin answered, with a smile on his face. While seeing him alive and well lifted my spirit, it also reminded me of how easliy it could've been different. The image of finding that body inside the garage still burns in my mind. "Suvorov told me you were ok, but it’s nice to see you."

It was hard to keep a happy expression when I knew I had to deliver bad news. "Ah, yes, he was the one who told me where I could find you," And I was sure happy it wasn’t in a body bag, unlike Ilya… "You didn’t answer my question."

"They're treating me alright, still, kind of boring just staying here, waiting for this thing to heal up," He said while taking a glance at his immobilized arm. "About a week, they told me. Well, could be worst I guess."

Yes, you could end up with three bullets in the chest…

"Have you heard any news?"

"Not much, but the occasional Euro passing by tells me a whole lot," His voice taking a more neutral tone as he said that. "Is it true what they are saying? About being in some unknown land… and the… ponies?"

I closed my eyes for a second and let out a sigh. "Yes, to both questions, but look, don’t worry, we are working on things, I’m sure we'll find a way back ok?"

To my surprise, he burst out laughing; so much his whole face got red. Barin… he was always optimistic about everything, ever since I met him in the university all those years ago.

"I’m trying to be serious here" I said with an annoyed look.

"Oh, come on dude!" He answered while trying to contain his laughter. "You got admit, this is fucking rich! I mean, when I first heard about, I thought they were fucking with me, but now, holy shit!"

I rolled my eyes. "I suppose it’s kind of funny…"

"You think? How many people can say they went to war on the frozen north, and then ended up in fuck up ponyland!"

"Ok, look, the point is, we're doing what we can, so just hang in there all right?"

"Jeez, calm down Alex, I’ll be fine and I know you are doing what you can" Barin said with a sigh. "Give me a week and we'll be solving this whole thing together."

Well, guess it’s time to break the bad news. I wished I didn’t have to, but I suppose it’s better this way, he was my friend, he deserved to hear it from me.

"Barin… there is something else… something bad."

I didn't have to say what it was, this isn't the first time one of us has to say this."Who was it?" He asked, his expression becoming serious, his eyes fully locked into mine.

"Ilya" I noticed his eyes widening a bit in surprise.

"Was it quick?"

"I do not know, when we found him he was already dead."

"All right" His eyes casting down as he said that. "Dammit, he was a decent guy, and before you apologize, you couldn't have known, it’s okay."

"Still, he was under my command, I’m supposed to keep them alive."

"You said when you found him he was already dead; there's nothing to feel guilty about. I know you try your hardest, just as you did before the war" He countered. "How is the kid handling?

"Dima? Well, you know how he his, always getting attached, maybe in a few months he'll learn better."

Ok, enough with the problems, there was already too much of it outside.

"So… do need anything? I could bring you a cup of coffee if you want."

"Your coffee sucks Alex; I’m not drinking that crap" He said with a smirk.

"Well, I’m not your mother you asshole, you want better, make it yourself" We both laughed a little at that.

It wasn't much, but in times like this we must enjoy the little moments of peace. I couldn't help but to crack a smile.

-x-

It filled my heart with joy to know Barin was ok, I have known him for almost 8 years. However, I was a little afraid of what could happen, especially now with an unknown future ahead of us.

Right now, the Euro and I were standing in the south exit of the canyon, also the largest one. It seemed the location of our outpost only had two exits, this one, and another narrow way to the northwest (currently guarded by our only combat drone). It took us about 20 minutes to get here on foot.

The two of us were looking on what appeared to be a coastal area, mostly plain. The sea (or at least I think it was, it could very well be a huge lake or a big river like the Amazonas in South America) to the south, and the hills and the valley to the north, behind us. Right below us, downhill, was a small river, about five to six meters wide, heading east.

As I looked upon this alien coast, I couldn’t help but to think of home. Before the war, in the university, Barin me and some other friends, would often head to a bar near the beach. We would talk, drink and play for hours, mostly about silly things like girls or sports. And then, once sunset was close, we would watch the Persian gulf in all it’s beauty. Despite all problems, on those very moments, there was no refugee crisis, no food shortages, only joy, cheers and laughter of friends.

I knew I wasn’t there. What stood in front of me was not the clean sands and the blue waters of my city, but the hard soil of a dead land. What I heard was not the happiness of people, but the cold whispering of the wind. And I was not among dear friends, but at the company of an enemy.

Yet, despite all that, I still felt good. Perhaps once this is all over I'll go back there, and create more good memories with those who I care. Yes… I would like that.

"So, want to head down there and take some samples?"

But no… not now. My task is to scout this whole place with the EU lieutenant. Simple, and yet annoying, but I could see why we were chosen for this. We're the only officers, after the captains, fit for duty; from what I could find, anyone else is either dead or wounded.

Since our top priority was to find a source of water, I agreed to do what the Euro asked. It was also the easier task; all we had to do was get down there. I went to the river; he went to the nearest cover to provide watch.

The device we received, the IT-33 Active Camouflage, provided us with up to 90% transparency. It was very useful, but it had three main flaws, first, it was not 100% transparency, so anyone with a good eye and proper attention could spot something. The second issue was the sound, our devices didn’t alter it, so any hostiles close enough would be able to hear us. Lastly, it only worked for about 20 seconds before having to recharge. Because of all that, we still had to keep our guard up all times.

The river didn't looked very good; there was barely any vegetation close to it (mostly dead). The water also had a… slightly green tone to it. But well… it’s worth a try… right? Be optimistic and all that… Oh, whom am I kidding, I’m not Barin, that river was a gods forsaken sewer. However, it is the closest source of water that we know off, so I might as well check it.

Getting near, I noticed my Geiger counter beeping, just as expected. I took out a small bottle and filled it up, closing tightly and storing it away. We could use our purifier bars to treat the water (every soldier had a few for emergencies and we had some supplies of it at the outpost), but that would only be a temporary solution, since, like everything we had, we only had a limited supply of them. Still, I suppose it’s a good find, it will buy us a little more time.

Before I communicated my success to the Euro, I noticed a road not far from the river, at the other side. It wasn’t in a good state either, mostly just a path of broken rocks, but where there is a road, there might be towns and commerce.

"I got the sample." I stated.

"How is it? Any luck?" He asked. His tone was quite neutral, but I could guess he (like myself) was having a hard time accepting the idea of working with a former enemy.

"No, it doesn’t look good and it has some radiation in it."

"Well, it’s something I guess…"

Not wasting time, I made my way back uphill to meet the lieutenant. I suppose now our only options are to scout east or west. Hopefully without any major problems, we had enough as it was.

"I was thinking we should head east" The European said as I walked up to him. He attempted to sound calm and neutral, but I could feel some tension beneath his mask.

I shrugged a little. "Well, we don’t have any leads to possible points of interest, so I guess any direction is okay."

We set out east, keeping close to the hills. The day was surprisingly calm, after all the shit we had to endure in the last few hours. The sky was mostly clear, with only a few clouds far away in the horizon, and no sounds beyond the wind and our steps.

I was also quite calm; despite everything, we had the situation stabilized and most of the small canyon secured. The only issue was the lack of sleep, I have been up ever since we got here, and I had used the free time before this mission to visit Barin. Well, at least there're no hostiles around.

We spent a long time walking, probably around an hour, without speaking a word. However, soon after that I spotted something big; it was located on our side of the river, downhill. At first, I thought it was just a large rock formation, but as we got closer, it became clear we were staring at a settlement of some sort.

I raised an eyebrow. "Are you seeing that? Two o’ clock?" I asked him, pointing towards the place.

Shifting his head towards where I was pointing he said, "Yes, we should get closer and find some cover."

I looked around, searching for a good place to use as cover. I noticed a group of large rocks, resting close to a cliff which provided a good view of the whole area. "Those rocks up ahead, we can use them."

We made our way to them, keeping low to avoid detection and using our active camouflage at the end. The best part of being close to these hills, besides being on high ground, was the large number of rocks that we could use as cover.

The place we were looking at was unlike anything we had seen so far. There were four building, a big mansion, wide and tall, about three floors high, two smaller buildings right next to it, not as tall but equally wide (probably depots of some sort), and another smaller. What really stroke as different was the group of walls and barricades surrounding the whole complex, plus the large quantity of inhabitants.

They seemed divided into multiple tasks. On the walls, many were patrolling around, wearing armor and carrying weapons. Inside, I could see others walking, mostly either naked or wearing normal clothes (for ponies, that is).

We were both surprised by this find. "Looks like we finally found some evidence of civilization" The European commented.

"Indeed, not the best, but it’s something."

The European shifted a little, looking around a little bit. "Hey! I think I see a village, on the coast, one o’ clock!" He said in an excited tone, pointing ahead.

Turning my binoculars to where the Euro was pointing, I confirmed there was truly some sort of village, far away, at the coast (or a slum, if you are looking for a more aesthetic term). The evidence of greater social organization amongst those ponies could prove very good, maybe we wouldn’t have to shoot our way through this land, after all.

"Do you see those two buildings, near the gate?" The Euro asked. Looking back at the small settlement, I realized he was talking about the two medium sized buildings.

"What, the ones that look like warehouses?" He nodded. "Yes, what about them?"

"They look new," He said calmly.

I rolled my eyes. "What are you implying?"

"I don’t see any farmland around, so it’s not being used to store food, they must be using it to keep other things" He explained. "Since there's a road nearby, I wouldn’t be surprised if they were merchants of some sort."

That was quite an impressive analysis. If that was true, then we have even better chances, we might be just a few steps away from an actual nation-state. I cannot express how excited I was with these finds. There's still the communication barrier, but I'm sure we'll find a way to cross that bridge.

The two of us spent about half an hour watching the place. We did it mostly out of curiosity, hoping we could get anything useful. We even took a few pictures and video recordings. I couldn't hide my excitement. However, our watch was interrupted by something aproaching.

"I think I see a group of ponies coming from the road," I told him, as I spotted the small convoy. "I guess you were right about the whole merchant thing."

There was about 10 of them, most keeping guard, and two of them pulling… a wagon. That was quite ironic. The vehicle was fully covered, as it got closer I began to wonder what they were transporting, most likely merchandize of some sort, or perhaps food.

"Yes, I spot it" The Euro replied. "Let’s see what they're bringing."

As they crossed the bridge and went inside, many of the inhabitants started gathering around. Once everyone was in, some of the caravan guards went to the back of the wagon. I watched with a lot of attention as they started to uncover it, only to reveal a…

…A cage… filled with other ponies, most of them in a bad condition. My mind began racing with ideas, trying to find a reasonably way to explain what my eyes were seeing. Maybe this was a prison of some sort, yes; they could be criminals from somewhere else!

That idea was shattered when I spotted what appeared to be children (or foals, in this case) among those who were inside the cage. No, fuck, this can’t be happening! This was supposed to be a good find! To give us hope, not more enemies to deal with!

Soon, all ponies from the cage were gathered in a line, facing another pony. He was big, deep red coat and brown mane, cut Mohawk style, wearing an impressive set of armor. The apparent leader shouted things to the prisoners, most likely rules, with an aggressive and commanding tone. On his side, another guard brought a bucket filled with metal collars.

Spotting the bucket, he walked towards the crowd of prisoners, stopping in front of two. It was a foal and a mare, who had her forelegs wrapped around the little one in a protective manner. The leader snatched the foal and shoved the mother (I guessed) back in line. The mare desperately tried to reach him, tears streaming down her eyes as two guards beat her back in place. Seeing that scene unfold before me brought unpleasant memories to me.

Rage was taking over me, one of my hands gripped tightly on my assault rifle. Every part of my body wanted to shoot him, just one bullet, he was far but I could do it. Yet, a small part of my mind kept reminding me of how foolish that idea was, there was only two of us, and shooting would only give away our position. I could feel some sweat beginning to form beneath my hair as I kept looking at what was happening, silently debating if I should act or not.

The leader calmly addressed the crowd as he put the collar around the foal’s neck. A guard bearing a spear escorted the little one to the center of the whole event. The leader showed a small metal device with his hoof (how the fuck they did that was beyond me), holding it high so all could see.

I was wondering what he meant, until I saw a button on the device. The mare started screaming again, she was begging.

I begged all deities I knew off to stop that from being what I thought it was. I wasn’t unfamiliar with cruelty, for I grew up in a refugee camp, and those places were filled with it. My hands shook as I forced myself to watch, powerless to stop the display of insanity.

…He pressed the button, the collar exploded and the mother screamed once again. I used all my strength to stop myself from screaming too. Cold rage swept through me, part of my mind urging me to shot him, I tried to calm down, breathing slowly and closing my eyes for a few moments. We stayed there for another five minutes, trying to calm down.

With that foal’s life also went my hopes of a peaceful resolution with these creatures. I knew the Euro was thinking the same, we may be enemies, but we're also soldiers, always trying to follow rules of engagement (not that we always succeeded, but that's beyond the point). We rose from cover, just as the… slaves… were escorted to the two depots… so that's what they stored in there. I could almost feel the cold atmosphere around us as I forced myself to look at him.

"So… you want to do something about that?" The Euro asked; his voice was completely devoid of emotion, with only a hint of determination.

Letting out a sigh, as my rage turned into frustration, I turned my head to him. "I want to, but you know we can’t, there's only two of us" I answered.

"You know they'll become a threat later on."

He had a point, if those psychopaths were willing to do that to their… fellow equines, who knows what they would do to us. Still, this was not the time; we would have to be very careful when taking down that place, for it was a lot more organized and better equipped then what we had seen so far. There was also the issue with the slaves; we would have to find out more about those collars in order to disarm then.

We made our way back west, there was no point in keep heading east, especially with the possibility of slaver patrols nearby. Not a single word spoken on the way back, this time not out of antagonism, but of shock from what we had seen. After some time we passed the entrance to the canyon and kept heading west, with some hope we could end this assignment soon and go back to the outpost.

Yet, as it was proving common ever since we got here, our day was far from over, we were in for even more.

"Hey, do you hear something, nine o’ clock?" As he said that, I realized there was, indeed, some noise down below, quite far away.

"Yes, let’s check it out."

We got close to the river and proceeded to search for the source of the noise. It was a firefight, on the road, a group of ponies was attacking what appeared to be a caravan, who, instead of having a carriage or a wagon, as I was expecting, they had a… two headed… cow. As if this place couldn't get even more fucked up. The ones under attack were clearly out gunned and outnumbered, taking cover behind the body of the cow.

Great, another display of cruelty, well, there isn’t much we can do, plus, I’m not about to go into a fight after seeing what the… organized version of these ponies did.

You know, after all we had been through, I was quite surprised at the Euro. So far, we had been able to keep this whole affair in an educated and professional manner. In addition, we had spent over two hours without killing each other, now that was an achievement. Maybe I was too quick to judge, I suppose we could actually work this whole thing out.

My line of thought was interrupted by the European LT grabbing my shoulder. "All right, we need to get there and help!"

…Or maybe I spoke that too soon… what the fuck was he saying?! To help those psychopaths? After all the shit we had seen so far? Now this is just amazing, looks like I was sided with a god dammed hero.

I narrowed my eyes. "What the fuck are you saying? After all we have seen, you want to help them? Don’t you think that might be a little risky?" I didn't try my disapproval.

My answer only got him more agitated. "That's exactly why we need to do that," He replied, "you want those people to suffer the same fate of the slaves we saw back there?"

"We're outnumbered."

"There's only seven of them and we got the advantage of surprise."

Ten, if the ponies under attack decide to turn their weapons on us.

"That's not part of our mission; we're here for scouting, and only that."

The Euro got even more angry at that. "I’m asking you to help people, why are you being such a dick about it?" He almost shouted.

Well, because people die all the time and we got bigger priorities? Like getting the hell out of here and saving our panic filled, slowly freezing up world? You know, mass hunger, refugee crisis, and the war we should be fighting against each other? These look like excellent reasons for me.

Despite my internal rage, I tried to calm down. It's clear that any attempt to just look the other way won't work with him, I need to give him a good reason. "Look, I get what you're saying, but this isn't the time, we're in no state to go up in a fight against multiple hostiles." I tried to reason with him.

"You remember what the captains said about making first contact, right?" I nodded. "Well, what better way to present ourselves, than to save the locals from imminent danger?"

Fuck, he had a point, still, I’m not about to throw my life in line for that.

I'll admit that for a brief moment I had no idea how to counter that, luckly, I was able to remenber another issue."All right, but after we're done, how are we going to deal with the language barrier?" No answer from him. "Look, I want to help too, but this isn’t the right moment, we need to do that with an actual plan, or else we risk fucking things up even more."

Still no answer, I think he understood what I meant.

He let out a sigh, obviously trying to contain his frustration. "Ok, how do you want to proceed, sergeant?"

"I say we keep going west, if we don’t find anything else for the next half an hour, we go back to the outpost."

Therefore, we did, the sounds of fighting growing silent behind us. I was becoming tired, we've been walking for quite a long time, and we still had to make our way back. I could almost feel the anger of the EU lieutenant towards me, but I did not care, it was better this way, even if he couldn’t admit.

Right before our time was up we spotted another building. It was big, even bigger than the mansion we had seen, about five floors high. The thing was made with bricks and concrete, instead of wood, as everything we had seen so far. However, what really got my attention was what appeared to be solar panels around it (most of them destroyed, but that's beyond the point).

"A power station? With solar panels?" I commented. "Well, it appears they have more technology then we originally thought."

"It looks deserted. Do you think we should head in there?"

"Normally I would be against it, but this is a big find, there might be something useful in there. I say we wait a few minutes, make sure the place is truly abandoned, and then check it."

And so we did.

Footnote: 50% to next level.

Author's Note

Note: Once again, thank you all who liked the story, and all those in the "Fallout: Equestria" universe. Sorry for any mistakes.