Chaos Rules in the Wasteland

"Hello again Seth," said John to the town watchman. "I've got something to show you." He reached into his bag and pulled the scorpion tail out.

"BLEH!" exclaimed Twilight. "You took that thing with you?"

"It's proof that I took care of your little problem," John said, speaking to Seth.

"I suppose so," said Seth, impressed. "I didn't think you had the guts."

"So, we are both allowed to come in now, right?" John said in a civil tone.

"I did make you that promise," said Seth doubtfully. "But if there's any trouble, you're both out."

"Fair enough." said John bluntly.

"Wait, before you go about your business," said Seth, "would you see your way to Razlo, our doctor? I think he said that a tail is precisely the thing he wanted for his antidote."

"You have a doctor in town?" asked Twilight. "John, you should have been to see him before running into that accursed nest!"

"Hey, I did great, didn't I?" asked John smugly. "Who knows, maybe being in this state keeps me focused."

"That's not funny."

"Alright, alright," John said, throwing his hands up. "First stop, Doctor Razlo."

Razlo looked up at his two new guests. He looked at Twilight in surprise, but all he said was "May I help you?"

"I have a-" John began.

"My friend here," interjected Twilight, "has severe injuries from multiple scorpion stings. Can you help him?"

"Of course I can," replied Razlo in an apathetic tone. Let's see here..." He picked a device of some sort off of his table and scanned John with it.

"Great Brahmin!" he exclaimed, surprising Twilight. "This is very, very serious. It will cost you fifty caps."

"Fifty what now?" asked John.

"Caps, caps boy!

"What are caps?"

Razlo looked at John from top to bottom. "Has that poison caused you to lose your wits? Bottle caps."

"Why would I be carrying bottle caps?"

Razlo shook his head. "So you don't have enough money. I'm sorry, but my work ethic doesn't permit me to heal for free, you know. Come back when you have enough money."

"How can you do nothing when-" started Twilight, her voice raised. John held up a hand.

"How about-" said John as he pulled the tail out of his bag, "a radscorpion tail instead?"

"Let me see that!" said Razlo, snatching the tail away and examining it. "Yes, I can do something with this, as well as heal you for free for this great gift."

Twilight was taken aback, but said nothing.

"This will take a little time," said Razlo. "Come, relax in the back. You might have a slight headache from the junja juice as well."

Twilight Decided that she ought to leave for a while.

Twilight was wandering around the town, although "wandering" might be the wrong word to use. She didn't feel comfortable going anywhere without John, and she found herself near the entrance to the town. A woman had initiated conversation with her.

"Welcome to Shady Sands! My name is Katrina! I'm sorry I didn't manage to catch you earlier. My job is to greet... strangers..." The woman gave Twilight a funny look. "and to help them understand our village. We find that there are fewer problems if you listen to what we have to say."

"Oh, good!" said Twilight in genuine relief. In fact, she forgot about the bad mood that she was in. "I was afraid everyone here would treat me the way Seth did."

Katrina frowned. "I'm sure he was just trying to ensure that you are trustworthy."

"Perhaps," said Twilight nonchalantly. "So, tell me about yourself."

"Thank you for the help!" said Twilight to the man named Ian. Katrina had giving Twilight all kinds of insight about surviving in the wasteland, but directed her to speak with Ian for specifics about other settlements of the wasteland, specifically about two settlements; Junktown, and another town apparently known as "The Hub". It gave Twilight a small amount of hope, knowing that the wasteland was perhaps not as cruel and uncivil as she had imagined it. But the most interesting thing was that Katrina had given her exact directions to Vault 15, where she and apparently most of the whole town had grown up.

Unfortunately, Katrina had also mentioned "raiders" in that area. The prospect of crossing paths with a human trying to kill her was highly disturbing to Twilight, so she put it out of mind for the moment.

"Twilight!"

Twilight identified the speaker as John and looked around for him. She saw him walking to her.

"Razlo told me you had went out into the town. Did anything interesting happen?"

Twilight gave John a smile, at which he tilted his head.

"Yes actually!" said Twilight excitedly. "I was asking around for information, and it turns out that the people here actually used to live in Vault 15! I know exactly where we can find it!"

John stood blinking. "Whoa, seriously? We need to get going then!" He started for the town entrance.

"Not so fast!" said Twilight in a commanding tone. "We need to get supplies, remember?"

"Ah... yea, I suppose we should. We don't want you running out of shots for that pistol after all."

"I was hoping we could buy one for you."

"Oh," said John, uncertain. "I don't know, I really like the way I roll with the knife..."

"That thing is going to get you killed and you know it!"

"Okay, I get it." He looked around. the town. "I don't know where we can find anything like that though. Maybe we should check the other side of town?"

"Sounds like the best idea to me."

A few minutes later, they were speaking with a traveling merchant who was staying in town for the day.

"I need that hammer." said John longingly to Twilight. "Just imagine what I could do to-" he paused. "-anything trying to attack us!"

"John, I don't care how fast you are. You can't dodge bullets. You need something that won't put you right in the face of danger!"

"See, that's the beauty of this thing," said John, giving the sledgehammer an experimental swing. "I can reach much further with it."

"Hey!" shouted the merchant's bodyguard. "You break it, you're buying it."

Twilight ignored the guard and said to John, "You really are serious about this, aren't you?"

"Oh yeah! And besides that, If we buy another gun, we wont be able to get enough ammunition for both of us."

"I guess..." Twilight conceded.

"Well I'm going to do it." said John. He turned to the merchant. "Three flares and two knives for the hammer, a stimpack, a leather pack for my friend, and the box of ten millimeter."

"You seem eager to get rid of those flares," commented the merchant with a raised eyebrow. "They could save your life you know."

"Well, I would never remember to use them," rebutted John. "Besides, if I need a light, I happen to know a magical alicorn who can make one out of nothing!"

Twilight gave a John a look, and the merchant tried to decide whether the other man was trying to mess with his head.

"Suit yourself. By the way, I don't suppose you'd care to throw in a little something more for this?" The merchant produced a book titled "Scout Handbook". "I'm giving it away at a discount."

"Oh really?" asked Twilight, interested. "What is it about?"

"It was published pre-war," replied the merchant, now speaking to Twilight. "But it does still contain some relevant information about keeping yourself alive out there in the wastes. You can find a little bit of pre-war history in it too, if you're into that sort of thing."

"If this book is so great," interjected John, "Then why are you selling it at a discount?"

"Almost everyone has already read this issue." said the merchant plainly.

"I for one would really like to have a look at it," said Twilight.

"You have to buy it first," the merchant told her.

"Fine. I'll throw in one antidote," said John, withdrawing a red bottle from his bag.

"Where did you get that?" asked Twilight in surprise.

"Razlo let me have an extra dose, seeing as I helped him make it." He looked her directly in the eye and added in a lower voice, "I'm counting on not encountering as many scorpions out there. And on that book actually being of some use."

"Oh." said Twilight, a surprised look frozen onto her face.

"So how 'bout it?" asked John, turning back to the merchant.

"Yeah, it's a deal."

"HIYHAAAAA!" screamed John as he swung the sledgehammer out in front of him. "RHAAAGH!" he shouted again, spinning the weapon around his body in the opposite direction. He let it stop pointing out from behind him, holding onto it with only one hand. He grabbed onto the weapon with his other hand as he swung it overhead. "GAUGH!"

"Would you please stop that?" asked Twilight's exasperated voice. She was now wearing a large backpack after having undergone some difficulty. John had become bored within minutes of leaving Shady Sands and had decided to start swinging his new weapon around while shouting.

"I'm just getting a feel for it, Twilight," said John by way of explanation. "You wouldn't me want to start busting heads with a weapon that I've never used before, right?"

Twilight huffed in disbelief. "Then you should have thought of that before we sold your knife." Her expression changed to disgust. "It sound like you're enjoying it!"

"Why not? It passes the time."

"Why are you screaming?" demanded Twilight.

"Huh?" he asked in surprise, only just now asking himself the same question. "Oh, I dunno. I guess it keeps me focused."

"It's barbaric!" exclaimed Twilight, somewhere between disgust and concern.

"I..." John started, but stopped. I don't really enjoy killing like that, do I? he thought to himself. He said nothing.

After about sixty seconds of walking in silence, Twilight noticed him swinging the sledgehammer around again, but was refraining from making any noise. He immediately looked up at her and gave her an apologetic look, but made no effort to stop.

After a while, Twilight said "Hey, John."

"What is it?" he replied warily.

"That thing reminds me of a game we used to play back in Equestria."

"A game?" said John, surprised.

"Yep. Here, let me see the hammer, I'll show you," she said as they stopped walking.

John raised his eyebrows before holding it out to her. As soon as he let go, It fell to the ground head first, despite the purple aura surrounding it.

"Whoa," said Twilight in surprise. "Sorry, the hammers we use for the game don't weigh nearly this much."

"I rather doubt you hurt anything," said John dismissively.

"Ugh" groaned Twilight as she set the hammer on the ground again. "I'll have to find a couple of rocks to serve as balls first.

John watched her in mild interest as she scanned the area and picked up a couple of stray rocks.

"These are far from ideal," said Twilight as she set them down beside each other in front of her, "but they are the roundest ones I can find. I think you'll get the idea." She picked up the sledgehammer again.

She put a hoof on the larger of the two rocks and swung the hammer down at it as lightly as gravity would let her, causing the smaller rock to roll away slightly before settling in the dirt.

John looked back at Twilight. "I don't see the point."

"It isn't supposed to be practical, it's just interesting. I made the other rock move without actually touching it, or through the direct use of magic," she emphasized. "Don't you find that fascinating?"

"Not really," said John with a shrug. "You could make it go a whole lot further if you just hit it directly."

"Argh!" grumbled Twilight as she returned the sledgehammer to John. It was all she could think to say.

She saw John roll the smaller rock away with his foot. He held the hammer out behind him. Twilight watched.

John swung the hammer completely around using his full body weight, spinning in place, and then realigned its trajectory so that it would come down and hit the rock with maximum force.

Except it failed to do so. John felt the his arm muscles strain painfully as the sledgehammer tried to fly out of his hands from the lack of impact, throwing him off balance.

He managed to regain his footing before falling over, and then glared at his companion, currently on her back laughing.

"It's not funny!" he said to her sternly. "This thing is just a whole lot longer than the knife was, it takes getting used to."

Between giggles, Twilight managed to get out "Then maybe... you should... start practice on... the rocks instead of... swinging that thing through the air... like a feather duster!" She burst out laughing again at this. John turned back to the rock.

CRACK

Twilight abruptly stopped laughing and watched the rock fly out of sight.

"That was way farther than yours," insisted John.

Twilight was turning gloomy again, and John had taken notice.

"What has got you so down, Twilight?"

"I was just thinking about how much I miss all of my friends," said Twilight depressingly. "I could really use their help right now."

"You'll be see them again soon Twilight. I'm sure of it."

"Yeah," said Twilight, her tone unchanged. "It's a good thing none of them are here with me, actually. Nopony should have to experience this."

And yet I did this to myself, thought Twilight in disgust.

"I bet they are all wonderful ponies, Twilight." said John soothingly. "The wasteland is certainly no place for any of them. Or for any of us, for that matter. Nobody back home really knows what it's like out here."

"That's certainly the truth. I don't want them to know either."

"But I like to think to myself, I'm out here so that none of them ever have to be," John continued determinedly.

"Maybe you are," said Twilight in despair, "but what about me? I'm trapped here, and if I die here, nopony would know the difference!"

John blinked at her.

"I would know the difference Twilight. Although, I guess I'm not a pony." He instantly regretted saying that. "Come on," he said quickly. "You're helping me save everyone that I know. That definitely counts for something."

"I'm sorry," said Twilight. "I shouldn't have said all that." Twilight remained dreary as she said "I miss Equestria so much."

"Would you tell me about Equestria?"

"I guess so." said Twilight, less than enthusiastic.

By the time they reached Vault 15, John had heard several stories about Twilight's friends, and Twilight learned of life in the vaults. When they had grown tired of that, Twilight would read the Scout Handbook and share its knowledge with John. There was little else to do to pass the time. They had also not encountered another living thing throughout the journey.

Until now.

"I swear," said Twilight, seething, "if we run into any more scorpions after this, I'm going to..." She trailed off, not knowing what she would do.

"There are only two of them, Twilight. It wont be a problem."

BANG

John jumped and look at Twilight. "What are you doing?" he asked in suprise. The scorpions had both reacted and were coming for them.

BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG

John looked at the dead bugs with his mouth open. Twilight had not missed a single shot.

"What has gotten into you?" he asked, his tone of admiration.

"I really HATE these things."

"Think you can shoot that well if we run into anything else?" asked John, grinning.

Twilight rolled her eyes. "Please, of course. There is no logical reason that my accuracy would be improved just because of a- hatred for the target."

John frowned at her, but then shrugged. "Well, in any case, you've definitely improved."

"Thank you."

"So this is supposed to be the entrance to Vault 15?" asked John in disbelief, looking at the rusty metal shack standing before them.

"That's what we were told to look for," said Twilight.

John opened the door and looked inside cautiously.

"Well, I thought it would be better hidden," he remarked.

Twilight looked into the building and was surprised to discover that it contained nothing whatsoever aside from a hole in the middle of the floor. It had a ladder in it that led down into darkness.

"No time to waste," said John. He climbed onto the ladder and slid down into the hole, not even bothering to use the steps on it. Twilight looked at the hole doubtfully, but climbed onto the ladder.

"We're lucky I can fit down here," called Twilight as she came down the ladder. "This is a rather tight fit for ponies."

She heard an strange squeal from below. Quickly casting a light spell and sliding down the ladder, she stopped when she beheld the sight of John crouching over the bloody corpse of some creature.

"Oh, BLEH!" She shouted in a low voice, revolted at the abominable creature. "I didn't know the rats had 'mutated' this bad!"

"I've never seen these before. I don't think they are rats."

"I guess it doesn't matter what they are. Let's just hurry and find that water chip."

John put a hand on her back and pointed. Twilight looked and saw that the cave that they were in held many actual rats ahead.

"Should have figured," said Twilight with a huff.

"You know, I've never actually seen you do that," said John, watching Twilight float through the air while beating her wings. The backpack apparently did not prevent her from flying.

"I am not setting hoof in that- mess," snapped Twilight, trying to keep from looking down at the rat corpses.

"Why don't you do that more often?"

"I don't like to. I'm not actually that great a flyer."

"Oh," said John as Twilight landed beside him, her face frozen into a hardened expression.

"This is a vault, is it?" asked Twilight harshly.

"My vault is nothing like this," explained John. "This place has been abandoned for years."

"It does look as though the raiders must have stripped the place of anything useful," Twilight remarked, observing the broken computers and bare rusted corridors around her.

"Raiders?"

"Don't you remember?" asked Twilight urgently. "They've been causing Shady Sands all kinds of trouble!"

"Oh, yeah, that," said John dismissively. "I was a little more concerned with the scorpion problem at the time."

"Obviously."

John stuck his head through a doorway.

"Oh yeah," he said in a disgusted voice. "I already came through here. There's nothing in here."

"Don't you know where the water chip should be?" asked Twilight.

"More or less," replied John. "This place has a different layout than my vault though. We should be heading for the overseer's emergency supply cabinet, and that is on one of the lower floors."

"Is this the way down?" asked Twilight.

John looked at where her hoof was pointing.

"Oh. Well, it was. The elevator is- gone. Damn."

There was a metal thud as John smashed his fist into the wall. "DAMN."

Twilight peered into the chasm behind the open archway and mused, "I think I could actually get us down there."

"Really?" asked John curiously. "How?"

"You could get on my back and I could fly us down."

"Oh," said John. "Wait," he said suddenly. "We can do that?"

"Don't," started Twilight, pausing for effect, "get any ideas. I already told you, I'm a terrible flyer, and you definitely weigh more than I do. More than anything though, you can get around on your own just fine. This will only for a few seconds, so I think I can manage it. I will have to leave my backpack behind though."

"Sounds good. Are we ready then?"

"Don't see why not," she replied, removing the backpack and setting against the wall.

John slowly climbed onto Twilight's back.

"Ouch!" she cried. She looked up at him. "I kind of need to be able to use my wings, thanks."

"Oh, right," replied John, adjusting his legs so that Twilight had some room.

"Okay," said Twilight. "Hang on." She jumped into the elevator shaft.

As she floated down to the floor below, her eyes flew wide open and screamed at the sight of a huge version of the nasty mutant creature that they had encounter earlier. She tumbled to the floor in a panic.

John was up before Twilight was. It would be highly unwise to run deeper into the vault, so John held up the sledgehammer defensively, waiting for the rat to strike first, but it also stood its ground and hissed at him.

Fine, he thought, have it your way. He was interrupted by Twilight screaming again as more of the creatures came into view in the hallway, although they were smaller.

BANG BANG

John readied himself for a swing.

BANG

"AAAARRGHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Twilight dropped her pistol in shock as she saw blood splatter out of John's back and she realized what had happened. "JOHN!" she shouted helplessly.

John had fallen forward from the bullet impact, but seeing the creature before him about to lash out, he plastered its body into the floor in a single overhead blow. He barely bothered to confirm that all of the rats-like things were dead before flipping around to Twilight.

"YOU. SHOT. ME!" he bellowed in rage.

"It was an-"

"ACCIDENT?!"

He was interrupted by two more rats charging through the hallway. He turned to them and angrily and waited for them to come to him, at which point he bashed them into the walls.

He looked back at Twilight, who was too paralyzed with horror to speak. John just stood there, seething in his rage.

Finally he said "Stay here." in a much lower, yet very threatening voice. "Don't you go ANYWHERE. DON'T follow me."

He ran down the hallway and was quickly hidden from sight from the darkness.

A tears began to flow from Twilight's eyes right away, obscuring her vision. A moment later, she heard John's bellows of rage and the horrible squealing of the rats as he inevitably ended their lives. After a while it stopped, and Twilight had no idea how long she sat, alone.