Fallout Equestria: Memento Mori

"Well there goes the neighborhood."

    Just when I'm about to end up riddled with bullet holes, something hits one of the zebras in the head. He blinks and looks down at the object.

"What th-"

    He wasn't able to finish his sentence before an explosion tore his face apart. The blast sent me a good five feet into the air. After hitting the ground (again) I struggle to my hooves, groaning. Ok adding to the list of things I hate. Explosions, check. Looking at where the zebras once stood I just see a crater surrounded by gore.

    "Aww you didn't go splat." I look up at the source of the voice and spot a bright green earth pony colt with a black mane peering down at me from his perch atop a building. He can't be more than eleven or twelve years old. I notice he's also wearing some sort of makeshift barding. Wait a second that little brat tried to get me with that bomb too. Why that little...

    The crack of a gun and the ping of the bullet beside my hoof later and I was ducking for cover. I here the colt up top shout something and a second later an explosion rips through the air. Little brat's right above me. I wince as my wing twitches and look at it. I was missing some feathers but the bullet had just nicked me. Grabbing a health potion I down it and a moment later my wounded wing is healed. Pulling my cowl over my face, I duck inside the building and begin going up the stairs. Once on the roof I spot the little brat near the edge. By mere chance I decide to look down.

Fuck. Six mines are between me and the colt.

    "You can't sneak up on me-" he starts to gloat as he turns to look at me. His words die in his throat as he sees my wings and eyes. Haha yes fear me.

    "You look weird."  Yes fear...wait what? I stare blankly at the colt, dumbfounded. Ok I scare a fucking raider shitless but this brat is completely unfazed by me.

The hell kinda irony is that!?

    Shaking my head I glare at him, to which he sticks his tongue out at me and laughs," Nya, nya can't get me with all those mines in front of you."

I just smirk and with a pump of my wings, sail over the mines. Landing beside him I cock an eyebrow at the colt. Seriously?

    "Right wings," he grumbles before a bullet rips the cement ridge of the roof's edge beside him. We both dive onto our bellies just as more bullets hit the roof's edge.  I extend a  hoof toward him," Truce."

He nods and shakes my hoof," Truce."

    I peer over the roof's edge and spot our assailants. Six zebras total are camped behind a lone crumbling wall, taking potshots at us. A plan formulates in my head as I turn to the colt," Got any more mines kid?"

He grins, nods vigorously, and pulls a pair of mines from the large sack beside him.

"You keep em busy and I'll give em a little surprise."

    He pulls out a frag and chuckles. I do believe he is enjoying this. I make my way down back through the building and go airborne. Staying low to the ground, I circle around to flank the zebras. Ducking behind a wall, I spot them. They are pinned down as the colt sends frag after frag at them. What the hell does he have in that bag a whole armory? Crouching low I go over to them and pull the mines from my saddlebag. I arm them and toss the mines at the zebras. One of them gets beaned in the head while the second mine lands in the middle of them. I turn tail and duck behind a wall.

BOOM

Six down no-

Chack

    Fuck. I turn and find myself staring down the barrel of a rifle. The zebra wielding it grins darkly but then something hits his head and sticks to it. It that a...? I frantically flap my wings and get the fuck out of there.

POP

    I look back and see that half of his face is gone as he falls to the ground dead. I look at the colt still perched up on the building in the midst of a hoof pump. Hell of a throw, I'm beginning to like this colt's style. He sees me as I fly toward him and grins.

"Glad to see your not died," he says when I land next to him.

Still a brat though.

"So who the hell were those guys?"

    "Don't know don't care. When they arrived they just started killing ponies shouting something about 'your purification has begun' or something like that. Some of the others are still holed up in the Le Grande Hotel, which gave me access to the gun shop."

He started cackling as he rubbed his forehooves together. Well that explains why he has a small armory in that bag.

"Boom Boom," he says suddenly.

"Huh?"

"My name." he chirps," Its Boom Boom."

"Oh Silk Edge."

He leans toward me slightly. What the hell? "We should team up."

"Um why?" I ask slightly shocked as I lean away from the psycho colt," Didn't you try to kill me earlier?"

"Your not dead though," He says, taking on an arrogant tone," Besides I saved you so you should be licking my hooves right now."

I glare at the brat, tempted to give him a lesson in flying," Yeah not gonna happen kid."

"You still owe me."

    "Uh huh yeah sure. But ponder this, oh wise one. If I hadn't come along what do you think those zebras would have done? " He blinks and tries to respond but I continue, "They would have waited you out. You'd probably last what two, three days tops without food or water."

He opens his mouth to respond but stops as a pensive expression appears on his face," Good point."

    Suddenly my belly rumbles and I blush slightly. Damn in all the excitement I forgot I haven't eaten anything in over twelve hours.

Boom Boom starts giggling and rolling on the floor as he does so. I roll my eyes at him then notice he has a cutie mark of a smiling black bomb with a lit fuse.

"So where are your parents kid?"

He just shrugs and says nonchalantly ," No clue probably died in a ditch somewhere."

    I just stare at him with my mouth hanging open. Boom Boom rolls his eyes," I'm an orphan so I never knew my parents. I was sorta taken in by the owner of the Etoile Bar but he's died. Took a bullet in the head. It was so cool how his head went all.." he brought his hooves together and then extended them quickly. Wow this kid has problems.

"So what are you gonna do now?"

    I glance at him," First I need to get some food then no clue." I extend my wings and start to take off but like an idiot I glance back the colt who is now looking as pitiful as possible. Fuck.

    "Do you want to come with me?" I sigh. He brightens significantly and grabs his saddlebag of goodies, securing them to his barding. I let him jump on my back and find that he's relatively light. I take to the sky and he tightens his hooves around my neck, choking me. I falter and start to descend rapidly but am able to correct myself.

"Kid loosen your grip damn it."

"B-but we-we're so high u-up."

    "I will drop you if don't. Loosen. Your. Grip." I growl. His hooves loosen but stay around my neck. I make a sweep through the city flying as stealthily as possible while my E.F.S is active. Lucky day no more crazy zebras, must have cleared them all out. Satisfied I start flying toward the Le Grande Hotel. Time to get some food. Spotting a hole in the roof I fly down into it and land on what I can only guess is the top floor. The kid jumps down and starts kissing the floor.

    "Oh sweet, merciful, safe ground how I missed you," He coos as he kisses the stained carpet. Now that I find insulting, I'm a descent flier thank you very much. I'm about to comment on how I can easily show him what a thousand foot drop is like until I hear someone come up the stairs.  Thinking quickly I launch myself into the air and hover silently near the ceiling. I see a large earth stallion come up the stairs. He spots Boom Boom, who is still worshiping the apparently 'safe, safe' ground (ungrateful little brat).

"Boom Boom what the? How did you get in here?"

    I notice his tone isn't friendly, at all. So I swoop down, flick out Memento, and wrap my hooves around his neck, the blade pressed up against his neck," Why we flew."

He instantly freezes up. Boom Boom jumps up," Oh that is sooo cool. Can I have one?"

I roll my eyes for what feels the thousandth time and choose to ignore the colt.

"A-are yo-you with those zebras?"

"Now that's insulting. I risk my neck killing most of those brutes and you think I'm with them. How ungrateful. Don't you agree Boom?"

"Yeah ungrateful," the colt scowls at the stallion then brings out a small orb wrapped in duck tape," Hey can I stick this in his mouth?"

    The stallion's eyes widen and I chuckle," Now there's an idea but first I'm feeling a mite peckish. I here a bunch of you ponies are holed up here and have a stockpile of food. Am I right?" He nods vigorously," Excellent. So here's my proposal we go downstairs and we get my saddlebags filled to the brim with food," I stop for a moment. Why not? The kid's been useful so far." and something for my little friend here and I don't let him stick that in your mouth and blow your head off."  I give his ear a lick and he shudders," Deal?"

He nods vigorous and chokes out a 'yes ma'am.'

"Good," I land on his back and press my blade against his throat a little harder," now move."

    We head down the stairs with Boom Boom skipping happily behind us.When we made it to the bottom floor, I was surprised by how many ponies were here. When they saw me holding a blade to the stallions neck they were less then thrilled.

"What is the meaning of this?!" a short unicorn mare stomped forward," Who the blazes are you?"

    I smirk and give my hostage kiss on the cheek," A sordid love affair." I joke with a chuckle and they all collectively blink. Wow tough crowd." I'm kidding this is I guess you say is-"

    "This is a stuck up," Boom Boom jumps out form behind my hostage. No manners I swear, interrupting a mare like that. What surprises me though is the looks of open disdain they give the colt. A stallion walks forward," You little shit you led her to us. She's probably with the Remnant. I always knew we should have let you die out there."

    Ouch geez the kid's annoying yeah but you don't have to go that far. Wait Remnant? "Ok two things only one pony gets to call the brat here a little shit and that's me-"

"Heeeey," the green fuzz ball whines up at me. Interrupting me again really?

    "I saved your can kid deal with it," I say at him, to which he pouts, (ugh foals) and turn my attention back to the bastard that mentioned the Remnant," Who the hell are the Remnant?"

    "You mean you've never heard of them?" the unicorn mare asks stepping forward. To which I press the blade harder against my hostage's neck. He hisses in pain as blood starts to leak from his neck and they take a step back. Good little ponies.

    "Why would I ask you if I didn't know. Oh and take another step forward like that again and I open his throat," I look at Boom Boom," How many more bombs you got?"

The colt pulls his saddlebag off and starts rummaging through it and pulls out a old chip," Ooh a chip." He eats it and I gag. So gross.

"I have three mines, four frags, and six stickies."

   That'll do it. I look the unicorn died in the eye," So lets get down to business and I don't let him start a snowball fight with grenades. Your choice."

   To emphasize my point Boom Boom cackles and pulls out a frag, and starts tossing it between his hooves. Nice intimidation technique considering they all take a good step back.

"What do you want?"  Finally to the heart of the issue.

"Just make a nice little pile of food, water and any Rad-away if you have it then place it in front of us then we'll be out of your mane."

"You can't possibly expect us to-"

    "What I expect is for you to do is to do as your told or I kill him then you all go boom. Then I just have to pick what I need from your corpses and make off with all the food. Either way I win. Now then think fast because I've had a very bad night so my patience is a bit thin right now."

"Fine," she growls and nods to the stallion

"Oh and don't forget the Sugar Bombs.!" I look at Boom Boom with a hint of disgust to which he just stares back at me," What?"

I roll my eyes," If you get fat your fucking walking."

"Hey I have a very slim figure thank you very much," he huffs, crossing his hooves over his chest.

    They bring forward the food and it's a sizeable amount. As well I spot several bottles of water and even a pack of Rad-away. Score. I set my bag down beside Boom Boom. He gets the message and darts forward grabbing the items and stuffing them in my bag. Trotting back like a good little dog, (always wanted a pet) he looks up at me and offers me the bag.

    "Take it up stairs." He salutes and drags the bag up the stairs. I look back at the ponies, who all quite possibly hate my guts at the moment. Now we can't leave the room hating each other. "Think of it this way. I get food and you get to not be killed by psycho zebras," I shove my hostage forward and gallop up the stairs," Your welcome by the way!"

    When I get to the top floor I spot Boom Boom eating a box of Sugar Bombs. Huh he asked and they delivered. Grabbing my saddlebag I lower myself to let Mr. Sticky Hooves on my back. Thank goddess for my barding because if he got my coat sticky I'd be pissed. He jumps on and I take off through the hole. My Pipbuck beeps and shows that my items are sorted. Cool I don't feel the weight of the food and there was a lot. I fly us to a small cemetery a mile north of Mioville to check out our spoils. When we land Boom Boom jumps off my back shouting something about a potty as he runs off. Shrugging, I pull my bag off and grab the Rad-away from my bag. Ripping it open I down the orange liquid. Mmmm oranges. I love oranges. I look to my Pipbuck and it reads that I'm rad free.

    I start rummaging through my booty. So two boxes of Sugar Bombs, six cans of assorted vegetables, seven bottles of water, and three packs of dehydrated apples. Not a bad haul if I do say so myself. Grabbing a can of vegetables I use Memento to pop it open and dig in. Boom Boom comes back looking relieved. I pass him the can which is half empty by then but he tries to push it away.

"Eat it kid you need your strength."

    "Fine," he grumbles, grabbing the can. As he chows down I pull open a bottle of water and take a careful sip. Good its purified. I take a few gulps and recap it.

"So what was up between you and most of those ponies?"

He looks up from the can," Huh?"

"Come on I saw how they looked at you," I nudge him in the side with a wing," What's their deal?"

    He goes silent for a moment and looks down at the can. After a moment he starts talking again," I used to travel with a slaver before I ended up living in Mioville. I actually learned how to make bombs from him, anyway he ended up capturing a lot of ponies from Mioville but left me behind. I was his decoy but they blamed me for what he had done. I sorta just stuck around cause I didn't have anything better to do and some of the nicer ponies would offer me food sometimes. I would also mess with some of them with cherry bombs. Then a year ago I started living with Mr. Prim but overall most ponies in the town tolerate me even him."

    He went back to his silence once he finished. Goddess I feel sorry for the little twerp. I reach a wing over and ruffle his mane, to which he smiles slightly. I decide to look around as he finishes his dinner. In the center of the cemetery I spot a small stone building. Eh maybe I'll find something good. I jiggle the door's handle and find it locked. I pout at the door, annoyed that its locked. Then out of pure chance I glance up and spot the symbol of the Shadowbolts above the door. What is that doing there?

    I trot back to where I left Boom Boom but I have to duck behind a tombstone at what I see. Two zebras are there, one holding Boom Boom down and the other going through our bags. Oh hell no. I stole that food fair and square. They have their backs to me as I creep up behind them. Boom Boom has the sense to not give away my position when he sees me and I jump on the zebra hold Boom Boom. Quickly sliding a blade into his throat as we roll. I buck him off me, flip back onto my hooves and skid from the momentum. Then with a pump of my wings I cock my hoof back and slam it into the side of the other zebra's skull. He geos flying a few feet and slumps against a tombstone. I go other to Boom Boom.

"You alright kid?"

"That was awesome!"

    Yep he's alright. I go over to the unconscious zebra and check his body. I find a small pouch of herbs and a couple of potions. I give them to BB, who puts them in our bag. I check the dead zebra and find a blow dart gun and some darts. Sweet find, will defiantly come in handy. I grab my bag," Come on lets check out that building over there," I point to the stone building.

"What about this guy?" Boom points to the zebra.

    "He can come with us." I drag the zebra with us. When we get to the door I set the unconscious zebra behind a tombstone," Hey kid use one of those little sticky bombs on the doors handle."

"Why?"

"Because its locked."

"Wait you can't pick a lock?" He gives me one of those 'are you serious' looks and I shoot him a glare and point to him then to the sky then to the ground.

"Splat." Needless to say he gets my drift as his eyes widen and he rushes over to the door, plants the bomb, and runs back over.

POP

    The door opens. Trotting inside with Boom grumbling behind me, I find myself looking at a terminal on a table that takes up most of the small room with a small wooden box beside it. In the box I find a black orb and a hoof written note.

I found it.

SC

    That was all it said. Wait SC that has to mean Shadow Cloud. That was my grandfather's name. He had been a Stable dweller but left for some reason. I was never told why. I hold up the orb and stare at it for a while.

"What is that?"

    I give Boom a look then continue staring at the orb," It's a memory crystal, these things hold the memories of a pony. Unicorns can access them directly with their magic but other races have to use different means to access the memories inside."

    I place the orb in my saddlebag and access the terminal. It calls for a password, on a whim I type in Memento Mori. Jackpot. I come to a screen that has a single audio file. I click it on.

    "I can't believe my good fortune. I had happened upon this orb by pure chance and when I found out what was on it I knew that this was not a chance occurrence. There are no words. Unfortunately I can't go searching for Grimblade's tomb, I've become a father today, my adventuring days are over. Strangely enough I couldn't be happier. Aria and I have decided to go south to Petitesabot, a small settlement and a good place to raise our daughter."

    Dad. That's defiantly his voice. As well the message is exactly eighteen years old. He made this on the day of my birth. I feel a tear roll down my cheek and I quickly wipe it away before Boom sees.

"Who was that?" the colt beside me asks.

    "No one probably just some crazy old stallion." I go outside while Boom Boom continues check the room out. Sitting the zebra up I give him a couple of slaps to the face. He wakes up and tries to take a swing at me. I respond by introducing him to his own hoof and press the tip of Memento to his throat.

    "Now then tell me handsome who the hell are The Remnant?" It's time for answers straight from the horse's mouth so to speak. He glares at me and I press the tip of by blade a little harder, drawing blood, but he doesn't even flinch. Either very stupid or very brave.

"We are the ones that will see to purifying the world of your race's filth," he says in a low, angry tone.

"What the hell did we pegasi do to you jackass?"

    "Not just the winged ones," his voice starts to rise in volume," All ponies will know the wrath of The Remnant and we will finish what we started two hundred years ago."

'Kill him. He is of no use to you.

    I don't flinch at the voice. I slide the blade into his throat, greatly enjoying watching the bastard bleed out in the dirt. The Remnant was responsible for the destruction of my home and the death of my family and my freinds. They just made an enemy tonight.

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Level up!

New Perk added: *Lucky Stars*: You get a +1 to your luck at night.