Fallout Equestria: Moon's Bloodby SloupingChaptersChapter 1: Die hard (rewritten)Chapter 2: Me, go home ! (rewritten)Chapter 3: Other dwellers (rewritten)Chapter 4: A family's legacy (rewritten)Chap 5Chap 6Chap 7PrologueChapter 0: How it began.Chapter 8: Relationships, adrenaline and relics from the past !Chapter 1: Die hard (rewritten)The Sun rises … but I would prefer he stays behind the horizon ... The sun was a good thing, a symbol of a great power oldest than us … but also a sad memory from a ancient time when Equestria was a magnificent land of prosperity and friendship … and a time when some stupids governements decided to fight themselves and brights death and fel magic upon the fertiles lands of the world .. For ponies who think Equestria is still a lovely land … then stay in your stable, keep your eyes closed, maybe kill yourself or accept the innaceptable, because all you have learn at school or you have read in one of some half-burned books from before the Great War is just what I was able to see under the rising sun's light : A desert of grey dust sometimes raised by the wind, where fel magic radiation, ruins, mutated beasts and groups of psychotic murderers were always present … And when it wasn't these horrors, it was slavers, bounty hunters or just the lack of food supplies. Disappeared, the sweet grass from the fresh hay, Destroyed, the cute villages and lovely towns … Finished, the happy civilisation of Equestria, Fainted, the pride of yesteryear … And today, we all suffer of their stupidity … their childish jealousy between them … Now everypony from the stables calls "Goddesses" for the two who have doom their people, or rather their servants ... "Celestia protects, Luna defends" I learned at the school of my village ... Well ... I guess that disappearing and letting the Zebras shot balefire megaspell on your people, let them kill the survivors, it's well protecting ... And I guess that banish yourself on the moon to survive is well defending too ... But inside me, I was unable to hate or blame the princesses ... I was walking with two slavers at my side, chains at my hooves, a horrible headache ... The princesses were not the cause of all of this ... I was .. Be gone from my village was stupid: I was only twenty one year old, without guns, never gone at more than thirty meters from my home, alone and worst of all ... without food ... and cherry on the cake, I was a mare unable to fight ... and attack any beast from the wastelands in close combat was more a suicide than a real confrontation to survive ... So, two slavers with guns ... It was playing with my own life ... and my freedom if they decided to keep me alive ... and I was thinking I was able to steal them some food ... And now ... I know I was just a retard and they decided to keep me alive ... At the tip of the little road we were following, I seen a strange building ... a barricade … a pile of old vehicles, steel plates, wooden poles and other stuffs. When we arrived at the door, a unicorn appear on the wall of scrap metal. "Halt ! Who's there ?" he said as he pointed us with a machinegun. The mare named Steel talked at first. "It's Steel Mane and Bulletproof … We've got something for Wire ..." The guard looked at me. "Nice piece ! Alright then !" The massive doors opened before us in a metal gear sound and the slavers pushed me into the town. It was some strange place : Slaves were in spacious cages which looked like enclosures with in the center a roof of iron plates on four pillar which were rusty lamp posts. Some slaves were talking and other were lying under the roof. When I passed the door, every slaves in the enclosures looked at me, surprised. the slaves who were out of their jails were working in the town, pushing plows full of supplies: food, water containers, ammunitions, weapons, metal, rocks ... My kidnappers and I were going at a big building which should be a old mayor's house. The door opened, many ponies were checking old mosi paper and completing registers. we walked forward before being stopped by a guard. "Sorry guys, Barbed Wire is pissed off … Stay back for your own security …" he said. "Yeah yeah … like the one when it was because she didn't have sleep more than two hours in the same night …" sighed Bulletproof by passing the guard. "But-" The guard was cutted. "No worries, we've got a present for her …" said Steel Mane with calm as she pulled me to the door of the ancient mayor's office. The room was large, and in the background was a big bed full of old pillows and between them was lying a earth mare. Her fur was grey as the dust from outdoor, the base of her mane was black, then purple and finally fuschia at the tip of her hair. Her cutie mark was disturbing: a rusty horseshoes covered with blood and barbed wire twisted around it. The mare was looking pissed off and looked at my ravisher without real consideration. "I hope you're not here to announce me a bad new ... because I'm a little angry and if nopony have something good to say, I think I'll launch you Windigo just to see how many of you incompetent are gonna die before I feel satisfied …" she said with calm. At the word of Windigo, the slavers took a step back and gulped. It seen they feared "that". "Well ... why don't you take time with him ? you know ... like .. everytime ..." asked Bulletproof with dread. She looked at him with a unsympathetic look. "Do you remember the raiders ?" "Yes, Ma'am , why ?" "Because they're back and they want to test us in a fight between their best fighters against our ... Windigo doesn't have teammate anymore and I don't want to risk any of my slavers, including you two … You know the stuff ... If we win, they shouldn't attack us and let us tranquil ... But if we lose, they're going to destroy the camp and do what they do better ..." She said slowly. "Yes, I remember this stuff ... and I know what they will do ... Crush, Kill, Destroy, Rape ..." replied Bulletproof with a lazy tone. "What a surprise, Barbed, We got a gift for ya !" said Steel Mane with a large smile "Look at what we have !" Barbed Wire descended from her bed and began to turn around me. "That's a cool piece you got there ... young ... don't looks hungry or sick ... interessant ..." She stopped her eyes at my pipbuck. "And you got a S.A.T.S ? ... Do you know how to use a piece of metal pipe, a hammer or something else ?" She asked me. "Y-Yes, I guess" I answered with fear She looked at me for a moment in any seams. "Very well ... Put her in Windigo's room ... and for you two ... you have free time for two days ... bringing me this filly was exactly what I was needing." she said with a smile. Steel Mane and Bulletproof were leading me to that Windigo ... They were exchanging smiles, kisses and sweet words ... Their couple could look cute ... If I wasn't having chain at my hooves. Then we arrived at a big reinforced door of steel without guards. Bulletproof opened the door and Steel Mane retrieved the chains, making me free before they close the door after me. I heard Steel Mane's moan at what Bulletproof said about what a beautiful night they were going to pass ... Inside me, something told me it wasn't the same for me ... I turned to the room and I see it: It was something like ... two heads taller than me and he was just ... sitting ... It looked like a pony, but the darkness in the room makes me impossible to distingue was kind of pony ... He was looking at the door, waiting for something, his eyes were low glowing with a bluish white light and he was wearing something at his right forehoof, but it wasn't a pipbuck … his fur was pale grey and his mane was white as dead … he got two black things on his back … but impossible to determine what it was ... "Hum .. so you're Windigo, isn't it ?" I asked. No physical or linguistic answer ... He continued to look at the door, his eyes were whites like ... if he was blind. But how a blind pony could be such feared ? I looked around me and seen in the darkness a pile of pillows at a corner of the room. I lay myself on this soft thing and looked at him another time ... the fear of a stallions I didn't know was terrific, but this one was special ... I feared him and was interested by this strange pony at the same time. Finally I was so tired that I began sleep while I was keeping an eye on him since twenty minutes ... Mornings at home were sweets : Mom has always woke me up at 10 o'clock, then I ate a breakfast with some homemade bread and food from the Stable 13 ... Because my grand mother was from the Stable 13 ... elsewhere, our village was just a part of our town, because we had the Stable, where were born our grandparents and it was like a city underground : water cleaning, supplies creating, electricity production and houses … Our village was located somewhere near to Hollow Shade's dead forests and empty caves … Caves were perfect to build a Stable before the Great War … Yeah .. It was a good village ... and this morning was just here to remember how I was stupid to go in the wastelands ... The door opened and Barbed Wire entered, followed by two guards in armor of scrap metal. She looked at me, then at Windigo, walked forward to him and stopped almost in contact with the muscular chest of the big livid stallion and began to pass her hooves around his neck, whispering something at his ears. He didn't either made any linguistic or physical answer to her. A guard coughed and she stopped. "Oh ... yeah ... take her away .. I want to be alone with him ... You can play with her if you want but don't break it ... I need her for the raiders ..." I looked at the guards who were smiling at me and my fear went to grow inside me. As the first guard grabbed me, the terror was everywhere in my body. What were they going to do with me ? I didn't want to believe or think about this ! "STOP ! NO ! LEAVE ME ! HELP !" I screamed, the fear and dread in each part of my voice and my heart. I didn't realize what happens at this moment: Windigo moved ... no ... jumped between me and the guards with a speed I've never seen. Sitted, he was tall, standing, he was giant ! The guards were just taller enough to his wither. And he was having wings ... wait ... he wasn't a usual pegasus, pegasi don't have leather made bat-wings with giants claws on it ! He was facing the two guards and roared loudly revealing his trenchant fangs and his eyes were exposing vertical pupils and amber irises... I heard about Luna's guards, but books said they were just taller a bit than usual ponies, their fang were a little bigger, they were dark or blue colors and their wings were just bat-wings ..not bat-wings armed with claws on a white-grey beast tall as a bear with saber teeth ! "Leave the room !" screamed Barbed Wire at the guards. "But -" "Leave this fucking room NOW !!! THAT IS AN ORDER !!!" She shouted louder. The guards took retreat as fast as their hooves were able to make them leave from the beast's room. Windigo stayed at his place and seated before looking the door like nothing just happened ... his eyes started to glow again. Barbed Wire Takes him in her forehooves. "Sssh ... Everything's quiet ...Now calm down and be a good buck ..." She whispered sensually at his ears. Ok ... The boss of the slavers was using this half-beast or mutant stallion as a ... I didn't have words for this .. maybe I got it : a sexual punching-ball... or she was really in love for him ... and this was strange because he wasn't reacting to her sensual touch and soft whispers ... He was inactive like he was in coma ... but he just reacted at me when I screamed out ... He was really strange ... She approached her lips from his and kissed him before she ... introduces her tongue in his mouth, trying to pass between the sharp teeth of her ... how to describe this relationship ? ... well ... her stallion ... I thought just kissing another pony was disgusting ... but kissing a male with such carnivorous dentition was just unthinkable ... How was she able to kiss him without cuts and how can she be in love ? Ok, he was strong, and his fur in the tip of his ears and his chest were a little attractive ... but his wings and his fangs made him a bit too exotic ... "Wait ? Was I gauge his characteristics which could make him sexy at my eyes ?" I thought and asked to myself. She was going to bend down when she remembered me, stopping her movement at the middle of the stallion's stomach ... She stood up in confusion, turned to the door and gone out from the room, closing the massive metal room behind her. Oh, by talking about characteristics, I've forgot to introduce myself ... My name was Red Sky .... but you already know that ... I was just an unicorn mare with a yellow fur, brown mane with a bit of red in my neck, green eyes ... My cutie mark was a gray horn with red lightning at each side. Nothing special ... I think I've the time to talk about myself ... because I prefer you to know me before slavers send me with my new ... teammate in a pit against two raiders ... And I'm not sure he will fight to protect me this time ... I knew it's gonna happen, Barbed Wire said it ... Raiders were going to bet on their champions ... and our death ... Twenty-one years old, and I was going to die with a Luna's guard descendant against raiders in a arena full of dust and blood ... And I didn't want to think about what a band of raiders was able to do at a fresh dead corpses of mares: me, slavers and slaves included ... It was my life or their, and personally, I prefered mine ... I suddenly heard agitation from outdoor : sadical laughs, screams, it was the raiders band ! Afterwards came shouts from slavers. Raiders became quieter. The metal door opened and Steel Mane and Bulletproof entered with chains and attached it at Windigo's hooves and mine. They pulled me first, we walked out from the jail and the building, moved to a strange hole digged in the ground. It was a circle with a roof made of rusty iron fence retained by chains. In the arena, walls of clay were reinforced with wooden plates and some beams of wood or steel. The public made of slavers and raiders was above this pit. We were placed before a harrow, Windigo was at right, I was at left, no problem for the moment. "Don't disappoint Wire ... If you loose and we survive to the raiders, you'll regret it ..." whispered Steel Mane at my ears. She exited, letting my teammate and I alone. The gate opened, and it was the same at the other side of the arena : two raiders appeared, the first, a unicorn, was levitating a wooden bat with bloody nails on it. And the second was using a notched meat cleaver. They were looking at us like they were having a crazy hunger of sadistic murder. They were gauging us ... I was probably the most easy to gauge: I was shaking of dread, and the sentence "It smells fear up here" made sense because my fear was like a cloud almost palpable. I don't know how they saw Windigo's presence, but the one with knife focused on me. How I knew it ? Maybe he just launched his cleaver at me !!! I dodged the lethal object as fast I was able to do. "Oh Dear Celestia, Why ?" I screamed inside me. He turn to me, outgoing knives hanged on his armor. Oh Dear Luna, he was really wanting to kill me and nopony else ! He galloped right on me, knives in his mouth. He tried to hit me with his blade but missed. I jumped, landing at the other side of the arena. The other raider charged Windigo and hit him at the shoulder. No reaction ... Only two solutions: Or he was in coma like I was thinking, or he was resilient like hell ! When the raider retrieve his weapon with surprise and misunderstanding, instead of red and hot blood, a black liquid looking like pitch came out from the wound. I looked at the public: Raider where maniacally laughing and screaming, and slavers where silents or talking between them. I saw Barbed Wire, sitted in a place just for her. She took something like a vocal recorder and discreetly turn it on, but I heard nothing. "AAAARRGGGGHHHH !!" Screamed somepony in the arena. It was Windigo : he was on the ground like writhing in agony, holding his ears under his hooves. Now I was able to see the thing he was wearing at his right forehoof. It was hard to see it while dodging the psychopathic who was trying to cut me into pieces of meat. This thing was a piece of armor, dark, not only on the hoof, but from the elbow to the end of the leg. I was unable to see the details on it, but it looked gothic style. His reaction surprised his aggressor and all the raider, unless the one who was trying to kill me ... obviously ... Goddesses, Fate loves Irony ... I jumped, levitated the cleaver to me, then I returned to my enemy. "It's time to fight, or to die ..." I thought as I waited he was at my range. When he was close enough, I activated my S.A.T.S, or Sparkle Arcan Target System, and selected the raider. The cleaver drew a circular movement, touched the target, but only did a little wound at his shoulder. "RAAAAHHH !" roared the stallion at me. Dammit ... I was pitiful with these weapons ... I was really better with a varmint rifle or a hoofgun I heard a muffled scream from behind my enemy... Something was happening in the other fight. Then the bloody corpse of the unicorn raider landed just next of me and my adversary. He and I looked at his dead teammate, lying in the dust and blood. "H-h ... He's right behind you !!" screamed the unicorn at his fellow with fear. A giant shadow covered us, and the raider turned. "HOLY MOTHERF-" he yelled before my partner grab him at the throat with his gauntlet. Wait ... There was something around his neck ... metal claws ? Celestia lick me ! It was really metal claws from the gauntlet which were catching the raider ! Windido was on his back legs, holding the raider in his metal claws. I erased what I said about when he was on his four hooves ... Now, he was giant, looking more like a griffon with bat wings than as a pony. The unicorn use a healing potion to heal himself and stood up in hurry, levitated his bat and took me as a hostage, pulling is weapon under my neck. "SURRENDER NOW YOU FREAK ! O-OR I'LL KILL HER !" shouted the unicorn at my teammate. Windigo turned his head to him. I saw his eyes looking at me. All my eyes were able to say was "Help me, I implore you !". Tears came at my eyelids. He raised his right arm, raising the raider by the way, made a little shake to grab his victim at the chest. He looked at the unicorn, his eyes burning of wrath and hatred. The raider in his metal claws was above him, trying to escape. Windigo looked the unicorn in the eyes. His mouth opened, showing his clenched teeth. Suddenly, he lowered his ears and closed his claws on the ribcage of his prey, still watching the unicorn in the eye. The raider was sectioned in half. Blood splattered all around, and the smile he showed was a bad omen for the raider who was holding me. The unicorn dropped me, and Windigo charged. He jumped, opening his giant black leather wings and landed in front of the fleeing raider. The unicorn stopped ant tried to turn, but the bat pony harpooned his new prey with his wing's claws and pressed him against the ground, beginning to shred him with his teeth in a bloodbath. Like a predator ... and the two raiders were his preys... "So ? I hope you'll gonna run … because I'll lauch him at you if you're staying here in 30 seconds …" Said Barbed Wire at the rest of the raider gang. Raiders looked at her. "30 … 29 ..." They all runned away and Barbed Wire looked at her guards. "Ok, I want Windigo in my room and the mare in her jail, no aggression or violence on her ... I've a special reward for my gladiator and I don't want him trying to kill you ..." said Barbed Wire at Steel Mane and Bulletproof. They came in the arena and put chains around our hooves again, Windigo wasn't in his coma usual condition, he just looked at the chain silently, then looked at me with interrogation in his stare. They pulled us before Barbed Wire's room and Bulletproof put him in without chains. Stellmane and I continued to my jail. Steel Mane opened our team's jail. "It was a good fight ... You were maybe too dodging to me ... but it was good. The other slavers have been amused and raiders are now fearing your team ... Take your night, you'll need it ..." She said as she was retrieving my chains slowly. "And for Windigo ?" I asked. "Don't worry, he'll take his night ..." She answered with a little smile. "And for your two days ? Raiders and us just wasted it …" She laughed a bit "Don't worry about that too ... I think everypony's gonna take his night ..." The day was ended ... and it wasn't so horrible ... even I was still a slave. And during all the night, I heard Barbed Wire moans loudly in the room next to mine ... ___________________ Footnote: Level Up. New Perk: Team gladiator (Lvl 1) – Your first fight in a team increase your teammate's damages and resistance and their presence makes your stats increases by +1 per teammate. Chapter 2: Me, go home ! (rewritten)I opened my eyes, the dark room didn't change of lighting while I've slept. At my surprise I saw something on the ground right in front of me : a plate with bread, a bar of old chocolate and a glass of water. I was with a blanket on my back and a mattress under me, but remembered that these things weren't present yesterday. "Could these slavers made a special treatment with me during the night?" I asked myself. I checked my whole body. I got my horn, my two eyes, my four legs and hooves, my mane and my tail, no trace of any contact unless the presence of the food and the improvised bed. This was good in a sense. I took a look in the room and a detail took my gaze's attention. The door was a bit opened, just enough to let me pass and I should have to refine my belly and push when I'll have to make my hips pass. "Well, that gap looks pretty like a open door to Ms Freedom." I thought. Raising on my hooves was a bit difficult, like every mornings, 'cause I was a lazy mare at waking up, and my mother was the one who knew that more than anypony. But my freedom was just in front of me, and I didn't wanted to fuck up this chance. I walked to the metal door and stopped when I exited, next to a sleeping guard. "I should advance with caution..." I murmured to myself. "Not the time to get caught..." My hooves were slowly walking as I sneaked despite of my chains to the Barbed Wire chamber, she could have the keys for my metal ties after all. I stopped before the door, looked at right then left, checking the presence of some possibles guards. After verifying I was alone, I decided to act and pushed the door slowly. When it was opened, I took a look: Barbed Wire was in her bed, sleeping with her forehooves around Windigo's massive chest. Well, they weren't really in the bed, their coverage was lying on the parquet. "Ok... just search in a desk or something else... Don't wake her up and keep calm..." I whispered at myself. I advanced slowly and silently, crawling just in front of the bed, passed and focused my attention on a desk, centimeters per centimeters, it was closer, just some meters... and the wooden ground was creaking under each hoofstep. "Oh Luna, please, makes the sound don't wake her up... please please please..." I thought so hard I believed I was saying it. I opened the drawer with my magic in a raspy sound of wood against wood. "Oh please... Luna, I'll be a good pony, I promise, I'll go back to my village and do anything you want but pl-" A moan just came at my ears and I frozen then turned my head at the source of the sound: Barbed Wire was smiling as she slept, caressing her stallion's body, then she rotated on the matress, spreading her legs in a caricatural pose. I came back to my first objective : found the keys for my chains, escape away from this damn place and go back to my home. "Psst !" A masculine voice whispered. I looked again to the bed, Windigo was woken. "You're escaping?" he asked. "Of course I am, why do you think I'm here? for shopping?" He dropped a look at my chains then looked at me. "I think I got something for you..." he whispered calmly "Wut?" I didn't understand what he meant before he shows me the keyring with one of his wing's claw. "Gimme that!" I murmured nervously. I drawed a movement towards him and stopped when I saw he was ready to wake Barbed. "I've keys, but I can't escape by myself... So, ok for a deal?" he said as he was looking at me with half closed eyes. I gulped. "And why can't you escape by yourself? You'll be able to force the passage..." "They've guns, I don't... And..." He showed a chain around his neck which was hook to Barbed Wire's left hoof. "She won't to let me go..." "I've seen she was mad of you..." I said sarcastically. "Yeah, really funny... but while we're talking, the clock is ticking and our chances to escape is decreasing each minute..." He was right... I looked at the drawer and picked all. My inventory showed the stuff: ten picklock, twenty four .357 magnum ammunition, a healing potion and a butterfly knife... "I've picklocks..." "You know how to use it?" he asked. "Yes... I've learned a bit about lockpicking..." I began my business, introducing a picklock. I lend an ear at the lock. A bit to the right... another at left... and... finished! The collar around Windigo's neck fall on the mastress. "Thanks... Now, my part of the deal..." he said as he massed his neckline. He gently tended the key ring at me. "If you need help, just ask..." I retrieved my chains, but the sound when it hit the ground was a bit too loud to me. And not only for me : A friction sound came from behind Windigo: Barbed Wire just awoke. "Dammit! Hide under the bed!" The bat-pegasus whispered quickly to me. I did what the said and looked at a mirror from my location to see the situation. "Hum... good morning, my honey..." She softly said. Aw... I was under a psychotic slaver boss's bed, trying to hide, and I though it was Windigo didn't answer, feigning to sleep. I saw her raising her hooves on his shoulders slowly, lighted by the amber sun light between the orange curtains. "C'mon, sweetie, I want to play another time... " she said. Somepony knocked to the door, she stopped focussing at the door. She got up, and looked at her left hoof, noting the unlocked chain. "So cute, you've free yourself and you stay with me..." she muttered with a tone full of "love". As she walked to the door, she wiggled her thighs against each other. "Ugh... I really need to go wash myself... whatever, that's proves he loves me." I wasn't sure it was really sane to think about these things right after waking and I didn't wanted to think about it anyway. She opened the door, and Steel Mane was waiting her boss at the entrance. "Wire? We've the sale at 1:00 pm... and we need you, Red Eye's guys are gonna want to see ya..." "Oh... boring... I can have a little fun then..." "Wire... It's 11 am..." Barbed Wire looked surprised then stressed. "Shit! Why nopony woke me up?!" "You were with Windingo and- " "I don't care! Prepares the slaves, told to the others I'm coming! I just need my vest and a short wash!" shouted Barbed Wire quickly. He turned her back at the slaver, looking for her vest. "A short wash... yeah..." Steel Mane sneered. Barbed Wire pass the mare in hurry. "Shut up" she dropped at her subordinate. "Okay, boss..." The door closed, letting Windigo and I inside. The giant pony rose on this four hooves as I was crawling out of my stash. "Got an idea to escape?" I asked. "Hum... maybe I've an idea..." he said as he looked at the window. "Do you see the sewer entrance right in front of the building? I think it's another entrance in this building..." "And what makes you think that?" I continued, a bit surprised. "We are in a old mayor house, there must be a access to the municipality areas like sewers, police station, pipes and all the rest... If we take the sewers, we're gonna have no problems with the guards... only some rats or roach... nothing dangerous..." "And if we escape by outside?" He looked at the window another time. "Then you exchange rats, roaches and bad smells by guards with guns... personally, I've made my choice …" And I've made mine. "We'll take sewers..." I answered quickly. We opened the doors, nopony, not a cat... We walked slowly in the building, passing into the corridors and down the stairs to the ground floor. We both stopped at the end of the stairs and I scrutinized the piece. The desks were deserts, and a guard was sleeping on his chair and his back legs on a desk near to the entrance, his nightstick against the table. I decided to walk slowly to the door with a "staff only" written on it.We opened it, showing she was a way to a maintenance stairs which was going to the depths. I looked at my escape mate, then decided to follow the stairs. At the depths of the stairs, a metal door with a plate. -Sewer entrance, authorized personnel only- "Hey... our escape card..." Windigo said. The door was a little rusty, but opened after I pushed it with a bit of force. "Do you see something?" asked Windigo in the darknesses. "Let me just a second..." I felt something at my left forehoof. Clic - The light of my pipbuck was on, enlightening the sewers around me and the thing which was under me: a radroach. For ponies who don't know what is a radroach, then you're probably stupid or ignorant. The radroach is the most popular non-equine lifeform you can see when in a stable. Unless if you have some freaks in your stable, which raises most important questions about the security of your underground living space. This vermin is between twenty and sixty centimeters long and among seven hundred gram and a good weight of two kilos. And it was on my leg. "AAAHHH!!! REMOVE IT!!!" I screamed. "WOW! What the fucking Celestia is that bloody thing!" yelled Windigo. I grabbed a old metal pipe lying on the ground with my magic and activated my S.A.T.S. Four hits at the head and I killed it. "What was that?" asked my almost former roommate. "A radroach... You've never seen it before?" "The roaches I remember were only five centimeters long, not thirty..." He was really strange, don't I told you? We walked a time before find the outside, a river full of waste. As I put my hoof on the water, my geiger counter slowly cracked at less than 2 rad per seconds. "Ok .. I need to go to my home..." I said at the giant pony next to me. "And where it is?" I looked at my mini-map and selectionned an objective. - New objective, go back to home, marker placed on Stable 13 - "Right there..." I answered. "Let's take a look... Hey, it's on my way..." "What?" I asked, confused. "Yeah, I've to go... there!" I looked, focusing on the undiscovered place showed by the bat-pegasus at twelve kilometers south of the stable.. "Can I come with you before take my journey?" he gently asked. "Well why not ... But when we'll arrived, say nothing and let me speak ..." I answered. "Alright then, miss." he smiled. After a day of walking, we saw my village away, some column of smoke were coming from it. "Your family does barbecues? Sweet!" Said happily Windigo "Wait... We never do fire... Mom told me it could attract the raiders..." "Well... maybe they... oh shit! " "What?" "It's not a barbecue, it is houses in fire..." He said as he took off. I ran as fast I was able to do. As this pegasus said, it could be an attack. My family and my friends were in trouble and we weren't prepared to an attack. My mind imagined the worst things possibles. When I arrived at the village, there was only death, ashes and fire... corpses were half-shredded, blood everywhere... some corpses were raiders, half-eaten too... what could have happen? Tears came at my eyes, the village builded my our grandparents when they went out of the stable and made their new houses around the bunker entrance, where our parents were born and a part of our generation had born too. Efforts of three generations reduced to nothing... Windigo drew circles in the sky, maybe looking for survivors. I walked from houses to houses, looking for survivors too, but nothing... only cadavers and fire... "Oh Celestia... Why? " I muttered between my teeth. I continued to walk. "Mom? Mom!!!!" Something moved under a pile of burning wooden plate and a grey-crimsom hoof trying to go out. Only one pony was having this color, the pony I knew the best. "MOM!" I ran and tried to remove wood from my mother.I was able to see her characteristic horn which made her different of the other inhabitants of our stable-village. Windigo landed at my side. "Help me dammit! It's my mother!" I shouted at him, half crying. "Stay away!"he said, raising his right foreleg. His gauntlet brought out his metals claws and he removed the wood with a single hit, destroying the remnants. We plucked up my mother from the wooden heap. She was a grey-crimsom unicorn mare with long wavy dark-grey hairs on her mane and her tail. Her horn was a bit curved, with torsades only at the base, almost looking like a blade which was darker at the tip.Like a lot of the stable's engineer descendant, who were showing the same types of characteristics, her horn was a very rare thing in the stable. She was looking miserably, now, covered of blood and ashes, her usually splendid mane was completly messy, her eyes were like mad, looking for some help but her gaze calmed when she saw us. "Mom, are you alright?" "Yes... I'm fine, sweetheart..." She moaned of pain as she moved her right shoulder. She got a big piece of wood in it. "Not so fine after all..." She said. "Mom? Where are the survivors?" "In .. *cough* *cough* in the Stable's lower levels..." she answered, trying to breathe. Windigo helped my mother to walk with us. "Raider attacked us, they were completely in frenzy... they didn't care about their own protection, they only think to kill and eat ponies, no matter if they die... And there was a big pegasus mare, she wasn't mad like them... they obey to her …" Mom said. We were arrived at the Stable. "We need to go at the lower level... there will be a door to the caves..." my mother slowly told. "The caves?" I questionned "Yeah... I've something to say you... something that only engineers of our stable like me know..." she continued. "And what's that?" asked Windigo. "I think you know this... " "Sorry Ma'am, but I've no idea of what you're talking about..." answered the pegasus. We entered the Stable entrance, arriving at the giant steel blast door. There was my house, the house of my mother and the house of all our ancestors after the Great-war... With a slow walk, we passed the entrance, continued in the corridor and passed by the hydraulic door to really enter the stable. We stopped at the clinic and I looked by the glass. A unicorn nurse was lying on the ground, covered with blood on her white medical coat which was rose above her lower body part, showing her spreaded legs, covered of blood too... Her eyes an mouth were opened, her face frozen in a horrible fear, fixing at me, like she was asking for help a bit too late. A raider was on the ground next to her with his fifth member out, the head splitted by a bonesaw between his eyes. She have defended herself ardently at the sight of the shotgun shells, the Benelli M3T shotgun on the floor and several raiders killed. But it hasn't been enough… Her neck was bitten several times, half opened and showing a bit of her vertebrae in the bloody gap in her nape. The door was blocked by a table, so I levitated the shotgun at me. If raiders were still here, we would be able to defend ourself. We continued, descended the stairs to the living part of the stable, among the apartments, with bodies of dead raiders and guards, smell of blood, powder and a bit of decay. We passed over the bodies, going deeper inside the stable. The cafeteria was full of dead bodies ... the guard should have defend this room with a heavy defence, as the sentry turrets were out, but destroyed, the guards had change their usual ten millimeters pistol, uniform and their police baton to riot shotguns, kevlar armor and tactical fight knives. They had been regardless about calm down the situation or just approach some drunk troublemakers, they had been using lethal force to defend the stable at all cost, using the stable's "protocol 11". Security protocols were simple: If the stable security was compromised by an external threat, then heavier was the threat, heavier was the counter. If it was radroaches, protocol 1: low danger, usual extermination procedure, calling specialists. If it was rats, protocol 2: low danger, but threat of bites and contagious diseases, extermination procedure. At protocol 8, the security was beginning to use force. Protocol 11 was the higher rank of threat management: If protocol 10 didn't work and the invaders were entering the stable, lethal force was used, killing every threat, no matter the ethic, all invaders would be killed, outsiders stallions, mares, pregnant or not, foals and even pets who were going to harm our citizens. Protocol 11 had never been activated before. My gaze stopped above us. By her window, the "Overmare", or instead our mayor, was in her office, looking at our group. She shook her hoof at me, so I answered the same. "Mom, miss Mercy is alive!" I told to my wounded mother. She looked at the glass pane, and miss Mercy gone from the window. After a minute, the door of the cafeteria opened, showing the pale tall unicorn who was levitating her ten millimeter submachine gun, aiming at Windigo. I understood her intention and placed myself between the beast pegasus and the Overmare. "Red Sky! Get out!" shouted the unicorn at me. "No! Miss Mercy, stop before doing a shit! He's not our enemy!" I answered. Miss Mercy was a calm mare who was always thinking at the consequences before acting. Her cutie mark was a red lily flower, symbol of a high rank in hierarchy. She lowered her submachine gun a bit, considering my giant helper with her piercing and vindictive gaze. After analysing the pegasus, she stored her gun. "I hope you're not doing a mistake, Red Sky ... It would be regrettable that I have to kill him." she sighed. "Is somepony having a good idea how we're going to exit ?" "I got *cough* an idea..." said my mother. "We need to go to the lower levels .." "Well ... got to go..." whispered Windigo. " Show me the way, miss" We began to walk, Windigo with my mother on his back, miss Mercy and I behind. "So, miss Mercy? How did you survived?" I asked the Overmare. "I defended myself with Sleepytime, and hid in my office, when they tried to force the door, I took a stash inside my locker." she answered. "When they finally entered, a tall pegasus came inside and began to touch my terminal... I think she was looking for informations on the stable.." "What kind of info?" "Something like "genetical card", but I didn't understood and I was too focused on hide and survive to take attention." We arrived at the lower level of the stable, with generators and water purification. It seemed raiders didn't came here. We walked several minutes, then stopped in front of stairs. "I didn't know this stair." said miss Mercy. Windigo began to down the stairs slowly, trying to keep my mother on him. At the end of the stairs was a heavy reinforced door with a terminal. "Here it is... The code is : L-U-N-4-F-0-R-3-V-3-R..." my mother said. Windigo's metal claw were completly able to type the code and the door opened, showing a long coridor in the stone right in front of us. "Come on... they must be waiting..." My mother whispered as she lighted the cave with her Pipbuck. Our journey was not so long, but these caves were dark. "Hey... I heard something " Said Windigo "It sounds something familiar..." "What?" I asked "Don't I told you you were one of these... handsome pegasus..." "Wait .. pegasi? Did you say pegasi like me?" "Of course, I did .." she answered with a smile. Windigo showed a large smile, like hope came from the depths of caves to hit him. "Holy Nightmare Moon ! Luna be blessed!!!" he cried with happiness. My mother, miss Mercy and I looked at his with surprise... I because his reaction was... special, and miss Mercy because he said something... "Did you said Nightmare Moon?" She asked. "Yes, I did, but we... I mean I must go to them!" He galloped right forward and stopped on a overhang of stone. I stopped at his side with my mother and miss Mercy. It was beautiful, magnificent... I was speechless before this: a gigantic cathedral-like town in a giant cave, builded with black ebony stone... "Mom? Since when do you know this?" I asked, looking at the buildings... "Since twelve months before your birth, sweetie..." Miss Mercy and I were confused and unable to ask more. ___________________ Footnote: Level Up. New Perk: Lockpicking is magic (Lvl 1) - Your Lockpicking skill is increased 10, each picked lock gives you a small chance of achieving the second rank(Luck +1). Chapter 3: Other dwellers (rewritten)We followed a road of stone, and approached of this town underground. As I walked, my gaze was looking all around. The city was on a hill-like rock formation, a giant black cathedral enthroned on it and overlooking on the rest of the town. A bit of the houses was builded into the walls of the giant cave. Some crystals were coming out from the stone, slowly glowing in a pale blue, orange or white light. We descended the road before stopping at a stone bridge with two guards. They stood in front of us, their black hallebardes pointed to our group. These ponies were strange... Something was wrong. I tried to focus on them. They were tall as us, unless for Miss Mercy and Windigo, their eyes were amber irises, splitted wards, bat wings. I understood what was wrong. They were Windigo-bat-pegasus-like. Our bat buck approached them, making the guards growling a bit. "Oh, calm down guys." said prudently the pale stallion. "We're not going to attack you either." The first guard looked at my shotgun and shook his head in my direction. I immediately used the safety on the rifle and put it at the pegasus's hooves, who reacted by looking at Windigo then threw another look at his teammate. They both opened the way and we continued forward, entering the city. The streets were narrow, with large black tiled roofs timbered buildings at each side. Between these houses, above the streets we were walking, lamp post were weakly lighting around them. Some bat ponies were looking at us, like we were something strange... I looked around, searching for somepony, and my gaze stopped on a stallion at the entrance of a cabaret-like building. I though it was a cabaret at the lively music which was coming out. The stallion was a unicorn with bandages, sitting near to the door with a riot shotgun and a badly damaged body armor. He shook his hoof at us and we approached him. "Who are you?" Miss Mercy asked the buck. "Guard Mc Copper, ma'am." he answered as he tried to make a military salute. "We brought the survivors here, the bat-beasts have accepted, they looked to know some engineers." "Excellent, Guard, and about the survivors, how many?" she continued. "I could say... two dozens." "You've done well, Copper." Miss Mercy conforted the stallion. "Red Sky, enter in the inn and see how are our ponies, I need to talk with the bat-boss, if there's one..." I entered, followed by Windigo, who was still carrying my mother on his back. The inn was spacious and more or less lighted by candles and lamps , with a bar and a scene with three bat mares who were singing in a same calm relaxing voice. The most of ponies here were bat pegasi, drinking and eating, there were also some stable dwellers, harmed and covered of bandages In a corner, a group of young bat mare was trying unsuccessfully to comfort some stable foals who were more afraid than in confidence. We approached the bar-mare, who was wiping beer mugs with a cloth. "Hum? Excuse me?" I asked her. She rose her eyes to me, revealing a heterochromia blue left iris and a amber at the right one. She looked surprised, observing my face with an extreme attention, her eyes moving quickly from my check to my horn then to my ears. "D-Do you understand me?" I continued, pretty uncertain of what I was doing. The mare was still observing me, then shook her head slowly, doubtless to allow me to understand too. "C-Can you talk?" She placed the mug on the bar and put her right hoof on her throat. "Your...voice?" She shook her head another time, then moved her hoof from right to left several times. "Oh! I see, you're mute!" She made a smile, pointed Windigo, covered her eyes with her hoof, pointed the gray buck again and shook her shoulder. "You don't know him?" The bat mare answered with a negatively shook of her head. She continued by drawing a question mark in the air before pointing my companion. "His name?" She only smiled. "He's Windigo." She looked surprised, then blew air, mimed being cold and drew another question mark. "I guess that's it..." She smiled and stopped, looking at my mother. She gasped and jump over the bar, landing next to Windigo. The bar-mare approached my mother, trying to touch her but she didn't, looking very pained and confused. "Hi *cough* Blue Eye...*whispered mom. The mare grabbed Windigo's hoof and dragged him to the stairs, with my mother on the buck's back. The mare continued to drag my companion and my mother to the first floor, climbing stairs almost trotting quickly while I followed them. She stooped Windigo near to a white couverture and made a movement to a stallion in white coat. The bat pony looked at my mother then at me and Windigo and pointed the coverture. Windigo laid mom on it and the stallion pointed the stairs. "You want me to go out? She's my mother! I won't go anywhere!" I said to the buck. He growled a bit and windigo put his gauntlet on my shoulder. "Let it be..." He said. We walked to the stairs and I looked a last time over my shoulder to see my mother as I lowered the stairs. When we arrived at the bar, I sat and Blue Eye prepared me something to eat. The white plate was filled with a sort of sweet fruits salad. I slowly levitated it in my mouth and began to chew and looked around, recognizing some ponies: some engineers, farmers, but my eyes were attracted by somepony special... A complete white and slender unicorn was sitting alone. She was Killstreak, a kind and shy mare... Everypony at the Stable's school was mocking her when she was a filly, because of her color and her eyepatch that she was always wearing on her right eye... My mother told me she was something like 'albinos' and the doc said she got a 'degeneracy of crystalline lens'. Killstreak was having a noble body with long legs, soft and long mane, a ruby-like eye, she looked so beautiful, so shinny... Her fur was so pure, always clean. Then I must talk you about of her cutie mark : a stick counter showing five vertical lines scratched by a single diagonal she got when the stable was infested by radroaches and when she killed more than two dozens of them in less than a minute . Her cutie mark was red as her eyes. Yes, she was very beautiful... and I don't say that because she was my first flirt and marefriend… well… maybe... She was shy, and my only friend with my mom. Her mother were engineer like mine... and our fathers where unknown... Killstreak looked me and smiled. "Oh! Dear Celestia, you're safe!" she cried as she hugged me. "Where were you all this time? ". "It's a long story... but it include slavers, an arena, and the stallion here." I answered as I pointed Windigo. She looked at Windigo then came back at me. "I was so worried about you... What could happens to me without my only friend?..." "Shh... Calm yourself..." I said as I looked in her red shinny eye. "They're going to be out of healing potion for your injured friends... You're ready to come with me?" He asked. I looked at him. "Where?" "Somewhere I need to go for personal purpose and for medical supplies..." "I'm ok for medical, but I hope your personal won't divert us from our first objective..." I looked at my pipbuck and save my new objective. -New objective, found medical supplies- "Ok... where do you think we could found that?" I asked at Windigo. "I got an idea about that... we need to exit by the main cave entrance..." "Can I come with you?" asked Killstreak "Staying here is just going to make me mad..." "Why not..." answered Windigo. We exited the tavern and followed Windigo. "Do you know these caves?" asked Killstreak at the giant bat pony. "Yeah, I've grow out of it... You'll see when we're gonna be outside..." We trotted to the exit, the light of the day was blinding and when we were able to see again, the ruins of a village were receiving us. The buildings hadn't been destroyed, they looked abandoned, left to the vagaries of weather and time since decades. a large part of the tiled steep roofs were ruined or holding, almost at the wood breaking point from woodworks. All around the dead village was a giant forest of silver and verdigris half-dead pines, some brambles around the streetlights. All plants were dark grey wooden, the sky covered by same grey colored massive clouds. This sky was more oppressing than usually, like this cloud malediction was increased by something. Windigo was looking at the village, fear in his eyes. "What happens? H-How long was I absent?" he said with a trembling tone. "What do you mean?" I asked "Do you know the date?" he demanded, fixing the ruins before us. I looked at my Pipbuck. "What event should I use?" I asked. "The Canterlot's invasion by changeling army... please" I looked at my pipbuck's school history file. "It was... more than two hundreds years ago..." I said, confused. He sat and breathed depthly. "So long..." he murmured "Too long... And I saw it like a twinkle..." "What do you mean?" I asked. He began to walk slowly. "It's a very long story, maybe I would recount you it when I'll have time." I didn't understand. "Do you know the concept of talisman?" he continued. Of course we do, talismans were everywhere in a stable: water cleaning, air-cooling, repair and regenerative talismans... "Yes" I replied "Fine, because my business I told you is to find a talisman..." "But how did you survive so long? A regeneration talisman work for less than seventy years..." "That's why I want to find it, because it's more powerful... whatever, we need to find the medical supplies..." A little rock fell before us and we looked above. A cliff with a giant stone building was right on the plateau. "That's were we need to go." said Windigo. "You're sure? I mean, what tell you this is the place we are looking for?" Killstreak asked the bat pony "Yes, I came here long time ago, and we'll surely find what we are looking for." "If you say so..." I replied. We began to walk, in the abandoned and grim dead streets, no sounds unless the wind in these narrow passages, noises of our hooves on the paved ground and guttural croaks of crows. Sometimes, a shutter creaked in a metallic noise, slowly pushed by the wind. As we continued to the castle, it's forms began to be more detailed. The part of the castle on the cliff was more a stone fort overlooking above the village in its imposant stature as the parts of the castle were moving away were more architectural and aesthetic as they were away from the cave's entrance. There was minimum three different architecture styles. The first was the hold, the second style was still impressive with stylised ramparts but the third was certainly the most spectacular with flying buttresses, stained glasses and stone gargoyles. The building didn't seems to have suffered of the time, the three fourths of the glasses were intact, stone walls weren't damaged. The only thing really affected by two hundreds years of abandoning was the massive wooden front door which was broken by decades of wind, rain and insects. We entered inside the castle, passing under a giant steel harrow and arriving into a giant hall. The piece was decorated with a huge circular stained glass showing two profile viewed faces above a stair and a portrait, the first certainly of Princess Luna, the second was dark blue, almost black coat, with misty night-blue mane, azur irises and splitted wards. Big blue half moldy curtains where going from the ceiling, amongst the giants wooden frames structures, to te walls and falling along the stone walls. "So... you know this place?" "Yes, It was the biggest technology and medical development center of bat ponies and Luna's army..." said Windigo as whe were looking around us. "And also the place where my father and I learned medicine." I looked around to admire the space another time. "It seems they left in hurry" I said as I looked at a lot of old books and some student's stuff. "No bones, no corpse... Nopony died here... or I hope so..." We walked calmly inside this well good preserved pre-war castle... Windigo said the medical supplies could be in the North wing of the castle. As he remember, it was the wing of anatomy, first aid and chirurgical studies area. But he wanted to go in the director's office, so Killstreak and I followed. We walked in the long castle alleys, among exposed armors, portraits and statues, following the indications. After twenty minutes of wandering, we finally arrived at the director's office. The door was open, showing a desk full of paper. I made some of them floating before me and I readed. "A letter from Princess Luna... Dear Überdirektor Sawbones, We, Princess Luna, are authorizing and ordering you to prepare a wing of the Deathwing's Castle for: - The new secret weapon-tool designed by the Ministry of Wartime Technologies, the blueprints and materials will be in your possession in a week. - New pegasi powers armors designed by the Ministry of Image, We are expecting you to upgrade them for thestrals and bat ponies, and if possible to upgrade some armor with runic magic. - Preparing a very close collaboration with the Ministry of Awesome, this cooperation will use codename : Project Reaper and will include the projects above. We encourage you to continue your relationship with the Ministry of Peace. The project Reaper's theory part is in your hooves, Überdirektor, do not disappoint us Sincerely and with my best regards, Princess Luna " "Project Reaper?" Killstreak asked. "I know that Reapers were elite thestral soldier under Nightmare Moon's rise... Using magic and runic blades..." Windigo said, "My gauntlet is a old Reaper's weapon... But why a project?" "I've no idea..." I answered. "Pfff... Another stupid thing from a stupid egghead from before the war." sighed Killstreak. "I was going to say the same thing..." I dropped. "Whatever, let's go, I don't want to waste time here." We exited and went to the north wing. After something like twenty minutes, we stopped in front of a metal door with a control panel. "Let's see..." said Killstreak as she magically removed the keyboard and took two electric wires. The door opened after some sparkles, we entered and Windigo stopped in front of a room. - Medical and experimental supplies- The entrance was heavily protected by a steel reinforcement, looking like a bunker's door. I seems the bat pony scientist were wanting a real protection for these supplies. "Can your friend short-circuit the electric lock?" asked Windigo to me. Killstreak approached, involuntary shoving Windigo's chine a bit with her own. "Ho, I'm sorry" she apologized as her face blushed. "No worries..." he calmly said. She shivered as her look crossed his but turned back to the electric lock and began to short-circuited it. Some sparkles later, the door produced loud sounds of unlocking and opened, showing a laboratory full of strange crates. I looked on the boxes. All of them were showing 'Med-X', 'Rad-Safe' and 'Rad-Away'. "Jackpot!" I happily said. There was mountains of medical supplies! And nopony never touched it! We took everything we were able to take, charging Killstreak's inventory and mine to be almost in surcharge. "Did you take everything?" Windigo asked. "Yes, I'm almost unable to run." Said Killstreak "Ok, stay close to me… I don't know what could be in there..."He calmly said. We also walked out, going to the hall. "Vho are you? Vhat are you *cough* doing in my university?" asked a rusty voice with a germane accent. We looked behind us, an unicorn was standing in the dark, wearing a old white coat and red surgical gloves. "Hey, I believe I know this voice…" said Windigo. The unicorn exited from the shadows, showing himself and his physic. His skin was roasted, his white coat partially replaced by pieces of pink-red flesh, looking like a zombie, his mane black mane had fell in part since long time. Hairs which were still on his temples had turned ligh gray and he was having a strand falling on his front, before his horn. "Are you .. Sawbones?" I asked him. "Nopony called me like zis since a very long time, filly...*cough* Kan you explain why you are in zis damn place?" he told. "We're looking for medical supplies, a bat pony's village need it..." said Windigo. "Oh I see... hum... That not because I've became what I am that I'll forgot my promize… Do not harm and help ze injured. Can I help you? It would be a pleasure to help somepony after all zis time..." "You must have a story? I guess you've not been here, alone, without some story to tell..." said Windigo. "Yes… I guess too… I'll begin with zis place *cough*... Vhen I waz young, I came here to learn more about medicine… and, Luna, I've found what I wanted… batponies where having very good anatomic studies… zeir medizine waz only on it… no magic, only anatomy… after twenty yearz, I've became ze direktor of the university. Ze town at the hoof of the cliff was named Nachtburg , by Germane ponies but ze real name waz Hollow Shades… a beautifull town with gothics ornaments, full of life… and ze lord of the town was nothing more than my sister's husband. Vell... When ze war began, Luna asked me to prepare a place in ze castle to a new weapon created by ze Ministry of Wartime Technology and new suits for pegasi and bat ponies..." "We seen it in your office…" I said. "But zere was a problem… The suits never arrived, and ze weapon got hiz upgrades everywhere in Equestria… deep inside some Minister Applejack's technology developping bunkers or impenatrable facilitiez full of failed things from others projects..." "And what about Project Reaper?" asked Windigo. "Project Reaper? Just a kind of creating most lethal assassin-warrior with batponies in black ops of Ministry of Awesome… zhey are more bestials and more dangerous zhan usual pegasi in close combat, using teeths and clawz… Project Reaper was using the most dangerous of zhem : Thestrals. And you are one of zhem…" The ghoul answered." Look at you, you're bigger zhan an usual batpony by… two or three head taller." He stopped. "Some times ago, some mad ponies and a tall mare came here and take all Project Reaper's paperz but I can give you the files before zhey come back..." "Come back? What do you mean by 'come back'?" I asked "Well, zhey've take only the half of the paperz and zheir boss has said zhey'll need to come back, and-" The sound of a lot of hooves on the stone stopped us on the Hall's stair. A group of a dozen of raiders was between us and the exit. A tall pegasus mare entered, tall as Windigo, dominating the raiders by her size of giant. "Hey! What the hell are these guys doing in there" asked a raider "I don't care, I'm too fucking hungry! I want to eat one of those!" answered another raider "Wait just a little time before kill the mares, I want a little time with them" said a third. "You'll eat after you capture the big with the bat wings!" said the mare to the raiders "Oh, c'mon!" said the second raider "I said, capture the thestral first!" roared the mare. "Fuck it! I'm too fucking hungry!" said the same raider as he charged us. The mare jumped, landing righ before the raider and hitted him with something at her hoof and the raider's head rolled on the ground. "Any other question?" asked the mare. "Bring me the thestral alive… I don't care about the three others... Second group, take the rest of the Project Reaper's papers." Killstreak and I were unable to fight correctly, Windigo and Sawbones were going to protect us. "Where is the secret weapon, Sawbones?"asked Windigo. "In zhe east wing of zhe castle… why?" "I think we're gonna need it, now!" We turned and run, a dozen of raider wanting our asses, our flesh and one of us... "Go right! Now left! Oh Celestia, zhese pony are mad? What happenned to zhem? " hurled Sawbones. "Don't know, but if we'll survive, I promise to kill that bitch! She's the one who have attacked the village" answered Killstreak as she ran. Sawbones opened a metal door with difficulties. "Quick! Enter here!" he yelled. We jumped into the room and closed the door, raiders continued to run forward. They didn't expected us to hide. "Where the fuck are they?" roared a raider. "Do you think I know? I've no idea!" The hooves sounded to go away. Windigo looked something. "What's that?" "It's zhe weapon… Zhe MagicKraftWerk… It's a special magic weapon which launch magical orbs at the ennemy with primary fire and uses a beam to cut some thingz at close distance with the alternative fire... Never out of ammo, but long to reload .. It's zhe only one existing… A lot of upgrades are in Equestria, as I said…" answered the ghoul. It was a massive metallic gray object attached to a strange machine. All the machinery was in a large box made of bulletproof glass with metallic vertices and edges. One of the faces was a hydraulic door with a heavy steel plate between it and the "MagicKraftWerk". On the side of the glass box was a button panel. I approached the button, passing next to two desk filled with papers, prototypes and reports. My gaze scanned the panel: Electricity was operational. "Let's see." I though. I put my hoof on the button "Activate". Some amber rotating beacon lighted up as the principal light of the room lowered. "MagicKraftWerk test in progress." said a pre-recorded synthetic voice. The machinery in the box began to work and make the weapon roll around a axis, face to the door. A yellow-amber laser appeared from the weapon as the machine was spinning, but the steel plate in front of the door didn't seemed affected by it. The laser and the machine both stopped, as they were before I began the test. "Test completed." said the synthetic voice another time. Beacons stopped to spin and the light came back. "Is there a way to open?" I asked. "I have a terminal here." said Killstreak. "Let me just a second..." The steel plate rose, letting the door free. "Let me just another minute for the door." continued my ex-marefriend. The door tried to open, but the hydraulic system was broken. "Dammit!" spat the white unicorn. I used the button another time and same thing happened. "MagicKraftWerk test in progress" The gun fired another continuous amber laser which cut the doorin a large circle. The cutted part of the door fell on the ground in a metallic noise. "Test completed" Windigo entered the box and took the weapon, releasing it from the machine. The bat pony put his gauntlet on the gun's crosier, grabbing it perfectly, placed his claws on the trigger. He looked the weapon, turning it again and again, slowly looking for the weight and forms of the thing. "What a beautifull baby… It seems our raider problem won't survive so long." said the bat pony with a smile. ___________________ Footnote: Level Up. New Perk: - Steel Hips – Bringing so much things increases your stamina, your inventory capacity and your speed when walk/run/trot/gallop... Chapter 4: A family's legacy (rewritten)In an old castle reconverted into a pre-war developement facility, hunted by a group of mad and canniblalistic ponies, not the worst situation ever, but not the best either, and it was our situation : two unicorn mares with inventory full of medical supplies, a giant batpony and a germane unicorn ghoul, all locked in a experimental energy weapon test room. Well, when I said we were trapped, maybe I exaggerated a bit. In fact, we were owning the weapon, the "MagicKraftWerk", as Sawbones, the ghoul we met in the castle, was calling it. We also opened the box with the weapon inside and Windigo was now holding it with his gauntlet. "How does it work?" he asked the ghoul. "Do you see the button, under the red light?" Sawbones pointed before the crosier. "Press it and you will have zhe zecond fire mode." Windigo obeyed and used it and the handle near to the weapon's top retracted himself. "Alright." told the bat pony. "Everypony okay?" "Just let me give some guns." I answered. "Killstreak? You know how to use a shotgun?" "Of course I do, Sky, I'm not a plain idiot." I threw the Benelli M3T shotgun and she caught it with her magic. "Sawbones? How are you going to protect you?" I asked the buck. "Don't worry for me, Fräulein." the ghoul answered with a smile. Windigo placed himself next to the metal door, the MKW ready to fire, Killstreak stood behind him with Sawbones and me. The bat pony opened the door whit his shoulder, crushing unvolontary a raider between the metal thing and the stone wall. Windigo fired another and alone raider, and the MKW launched a blue orb which made the raider explode in a bloody mess and a disgusting roasted meat smell. We stood, ununderstanding what happened, in front of the place where was the raider some seconds ago. "Darn, it's powerful" said Windigo. "Alright, now, we need to escape!" I said We walked as fast we were able to do right to the hall and when we finally arrived, An entire group of raiders was present. However, they weren't looking about us, but about papers and when they saw us, they charged. "Hey, yellow mare? Take it!" shouted Windigo as he throwed the MKW at me. I took the weapon, threw my magnum at Sawbones and began to shoot raiders. After some exploded and killed raiders, the hall smelled more like a barbecue filled with powder and blood than an old gothic castle. The sounds of shooting were resonating in all the giant stone building, rioting more raiders each minutes. Finally, their boss, the tall pegasus mare, went out. "WHAT? You didn't capture them after ALL THIS TIME?!!" She shouted. "Must I do the work by myself?" She jumped and landed in front of me and draw a large swing with her right hoof and I jumped backward, dodging narrowly two sharp blades attached to the hoove by a rusty armor part. I aimed at her after recieve myself, but the weapon made beeping sounds, telling me I was out of energy and I should wait. Waiting at THIS time? Thank you, stupid gun, Thank you! She grabbed me and Killstreak at the throat, knocked Sawbones down and turned to my giant teammate. "Youhou, Big guy, I got your friends, I you want to see them alive, stop and surrender!" she shouted at Windigo. He looked at her, a raider in his metalic claws. All the raiders let a gap space around the tall ponies. "Oh yeah, you really scary! Come get some, you freakin' wuss!" He shouted. "Come at me, sist'! Stop hiding behind your stupid degenerate puppies and fight like a real pegasus, you coward!" "Very well…" She said, the tone full of rage, as she threw me and Killstreak away and we "landed" against the closest wall. They began to turn around each other like two beast in a fight, the raiders cheering the mare with equine screams. The mare charged and attacked the giant bat pony with one of her blade who blocked with his gauntlet and countered by an uppercut with the other hoof. She caught herself up after the knockback, then jumped on Windigo. He was now on the back, trying to stop her blades by grabbing her forehooves. The pegasus moved her wings and blades came from under her tips and approached them from Windigo's face. The bat pony used his backlegs to make his ennemy's body the more away possible.They were the same strengh, the same size, the same fight style. She was trying to get closer, he was trying to get the most away "I am Blade Beast, I am a Reaper, do you think you can defeat me?" She roared, pushing even more. "I… don't… know… who you are…" Windigo replied "But I know I will win!" he shouted before bitting Blade Beast at the neck and stab her ribs with wing's claws. She screamed and tryed to escape, making her wounds deeper and bigger, the blood flowing in big liquid red stains on the ground. Windigo bitten again, deeper, between the neck and the shoulder. Blade Beast released her neck with a horrible scream of pure pain, letting a piece of muscle between the bat pony's jaws and a gaping bloody wound where she got bitten. Windigo stroke the pegasus stomach with his back legs, sending her on the ground. "RETREAT!" she shouted at the raiders as she got up. "Take all the papers and retreat!" The group of raiders ran to take the papers the faster they can before go to the main entrance, with wounded Blade Beast among them, all trying to escape. We stood in the hall, smell of powder and blood all around, with corpses of raiders lying on the ground. Windigo went at me and Killstreak, then helped us to rose. "Are you fine?" he asked us. "I think I'm going well." I said as I stretched my back but stopped at a loud cracking noise. "I'm fine too." answered Killstreak. "Thanks to worry about us." "Where is Sawbones?" I demanded. "I lost him during the fight." I looked around and my gaze stopped on the ghoul who was hiding behind one of the curtains. "Nevermind..." I sighed. I approached the zombie-like stallion. "Alright, Sawbones, You worked on Project Reaper, what did they steal?" The ghoul showed a smirk which became a giant smile before he laughed. "Zhese paperz? Hahahaha! You have to be kidding, Fraülien! Zhese papers are not real Project Reaper! Zhey are just theory and calculz, nothing more!" he answered. "I wonder zhe face she will show when she will know the truth!" I stood there, in front of the laughing ghoul, then looked at the door the raiders used some second early to exit with the papers. I wondered what kind of face the big bitch could do when she'll see that and smiled. It was pretty idiotic and stupid, but funny. "Alright..." I said." I think we're gonna go, thanks for the help, sir." The ghoul stopped to laugh slowly, then took an almost-usual face. "You're going away?" he asked. "Well, I guess you can come with us, if my friends are okay with it." I answered as I turned to Killstreak and Windigo. The white unicorn shook her head affirmatively and the bat pony smiled. "... and I think they are." I smiled. "Wunderbar!" smiled the ghoul, or instead I guessed he was smiling despite his zombie-like shattered face. He rose and dusted off his chirurgical coat with a lazy movement of his hoof. "Vell, vhere are we going?" Sawbones asked. "Under the castle." I answered. "Deep under it." After a short journey from the castle to the village, we finally entered the underground town. "It's... It's outstanding." Sawbones said as he saw the building. "Simply magnificent!" We continued to walk, passing into the streets. A little foal, maybe only two years old, slowly walked to Sawbones, interest and curiosity shining in his eyes like two stars. His mother stood close to him, with the same expression in her eyes. in a minutes, bat ponies of all ages where looking at Sawbones like a horde of night butterflies around a bulb. "Hum... Hallo." said the ghoul with a certain discomfort. The group of bat pony got differents reactions: Some blinked, the younger smiled when they understood the creature was speaking, and certains moved their ears at the rusty voice. A teen filly, made a little move with her nose, accompanied with a "sniff" noise before she growled. "Sorry for the smell..." told Sawbones "Alright, everypony, sorry but we need to go." said Windigo. The bat ponies let us pass and we continued to the inn. I entered the tavern and walked to the first roof to see jow was my mother, letting the group with bat ponies. When I arrived at my mother's room, she was laying on a mattress with Blue Eye lain next to her, like a child as my mother was reading a book. "Hi, mom." I said. "Oh, sweetie." she replied with a smile. "Come over here." I advanced myself and sat next to the matress while mom was continuing her story. My gaze stopped on the book: A brown old coverture and a gold licorn head. "Hey! That's my book!" I complained. "Yes it is." my mother replied. "But perhaps you can lend it just once." "No, it's just..." "Is my daughter still my little filly who wanted her story every night?" she mocked with THE smile. THE smile she showed everytime she was right and nopony was going to counter, even Miss Mercy. THE smile when she just told THE thing that was making others dumbs and stupids. The only reply I could do was the same that everypony did when she did this: an unhappy growl. "Owww, come on, sweetie." said my mother. "Don't be so grumpy." She took me in her forehooves and hugged me like a foal. "You're my little filly, don't you know?" "Nah nah nah..." I replied. "I'm not a baby, you know." "You're not, but for me, you're still my little filly." "If you say so..." I sighed. I heard a little moan from behind me and turned my head to see. Blue Eye was there, still sat, looking at me and my mother, like she wanted to join but was holding back. "Come on, Blue Eye, you can come too." said my mother to the mare who slipped to hug us with some purrs. I stood, silent, tons of things in my mind asI saw mom and Blue Eye. "Mom?" "Yes sweetie?" "How do you know Blue Eye and the town?" I asked my mother. She breathed and stop hugging us. Blue Eye looked at my mother, then me before she sat next to the mattress, with something in the eyes I couldn't describe, something between fear and bother, like she understood that mom was going to speak about something hard to explain and left us. "I think... I think it's too early to speak about that." she replied. I sighed, accepting the reality I couldn't know the truth before a moment, like everytime I asked this question. "Well, see you later, then." I said. My mother smiled as I exited the room. "See you later, sweetie." I heard from behind me. Blue Eye was sitting next to the door, visibly waiting the end of our conversation which was already ended. "Hum, Blue Eye?" I asked the mare. Her ears shook a bit, like she was attentive. "You're the bar mare, so do you have a room for me and my friends?" She frowned and took my hoof to drag me to the ground floor. We down the stairs and went to the bar where Blue Eye looked at the key displayer, took the last key and gave it to me. I levitated the key and smiled at Blue Eye, then looked at the number attached to the silverish object. "The room fifteen?" I asked the mare. "Are you sure nopony will need it?" She nodded, pointed me, then the first floor. "Me? A-and the floor?" She made "no" with the head and recommenced. Something between me and the floor... "Mom?" She answered, affirmatively, this time. "Oh! You gave me this room because mom is... My mother?"I realised. "That's obvious." Blue Eye hided a sneer behind her bat wing. "Gah! You're not helping this with your mute condition..." Her wing was no longer enough to hide the giant provocative smile on her face. I sighed and turned to the stairs when she grabbed me at the shoulder and let a kiss on my check, the type of kiss a child does. My grumpy face turn to happy,not to very happy, but enough to be it. "Okay, I'll stop grumble." I moaned. She answered with a big smile, her little fangs making it even bigger and happier. I rose the stairs and walked in the corridors. "Room fifteen... fifteen... Fifteen!" I thought before I stopped in front of the door. I introduced the key in the lock, turned and opened the wooden door, then entered the room. It was just bigger than a Stable apartment, with a toilet, a cozy looking bed, a window with view on the city and a massive wooden wardrobe. I put the MKW on the bed and sat next to it before I levitated it in front of my eyes. The gun itself was within seven or eight kilos, like... a foal, maybe . The main colors of the weapon were dark blue-gray, black and silver with some yellow notes relative to the use of electricity and how it had to be used. The butt of the gun was simple, without extension. There was a kind of generator on the left side, positioned on the lower part of the weapon and there was a space, as if it missed something. Above the generator, which looked like a barrel, even if it was difficult to distinguish it from the rest of the machine. I activated the secondary mode and the part above the generator opened, revealing a gap between two parts of the barrel with a slight magical activity between these parties. Between the barrel and the generator, a sort of cable from the generator which was going above the butt and went fixing itself behind the gun. On the upper right, it seemed to lack some items that could be optional. The below handle of the gun was simple and retracted when I activated the primary mode. I left the MKW on the bed and went to the ground floor, joining Windigo and Killstreak at the bar. when I arrived at their table, I sat next to them, on a bench covered with velvet andplaced next to the wall. "So? what are you doing?" I asked. "Waiting for beer." answered Windigo. "I want to see if it changed after two hundred years." "And I want to taste." said Killstreak. "I guess I can drink a bit." I sighed. "Blue Eye? Please, add another cup for Red Sky." Windigo yelled above the constant sound of ponies around us. The bar mare went at us, three beer cups on her wing and made them slide on the table. Windigo took one of the first with his gauntlet, his hoof maybe too big to pass in the handle. "Thanks Blue Eye." he said before he began to drink. I looked in the cup and something bothered me. This beer was strange. "Is this beer... red?"I asked Windigo. "Yes, what the matter?" "Well, beer is goldish, not red like.. blood." I remembered some stories of vampire ponies and gluped loudly. "It's... super sugary! I love it! "said Killstreak as she swallows her beer. I turned my head and my gaze stopped on Sawbones, surrounded by young bat foals. A little purr came at my ears and I looked next to me. A bat foal was trying to climb on the bench, his little hooves were sliding on the velvet as he was trying desperately to come sat between Windigo and me. He was looking at me, his eyes asking "please, miss, I want to climb". I levitated and put him on the seat. After I released him from my magic, he snuggled between my forelegs, his head and his back in the fur of my chest, like he was looking for a hot hideout. I turned my head to look at him, crossing his amber irises with splitted wards which became rounder when he looked me in the eyes. His ears shook, their fluffy tops making him looking like a plush with little cute fangs,wich weren't sharp as Windigo's ones and lovely. I raised my head again to look at Sawbones, who looked well integrated by the bat ponies. They were more surprised and interested by this strange unicorn with roasted skin than afraid, and it was good after all. "Hum... Red Sky?" Windigo asked. "I told you about something I wanted to do?" "Yeah, about a talisman, is that it?" "Yes, it is" he answered. "It's somewhere I know, and I'm sure it's there." "Ok, I'm coming with you." I told after I put my cup on the table."But we'll wait tomorrow." "Alright then." the buck replied. Blue Eye went to us, with three other cups. "Blue Eye? Do you know where I could buy some stuff?" I demanded. She didn't answered immediately but after a minute, she draw a crescent in the air with her hoof, then imitated like she was making a pile. "Moon? And a heap?" She pivoted her hoof with a grimace. I was close, but not too much. The mare grabbed the diner blackboard and wrote something with a chalk after she erased the list of food sold by the inn. Moon's stuff. "That the name of a store?" I asked. She nodded. "Well, I'm gonna make a trip there." She took the empty cups and placed the new ones. I levitated the foal between my legs from his hideout and put him next to Windigo, then I rose. It took something like five minutes to go at the shop. Moon's Stuff was not different from outside, but when I went inside, I was surprised by the numerous old world's things here and there in the shop. A sound of electric guitar and drums came at me . "Der Mond schaut uns an und wir zurück. Der Mond ist über uns, wird uns gehören..." I looked around, searching for the source of the music. "Gestern die Welt und heute der Himmel, Denn uns gehört er und die Zebras fliegen..." It wasn't equestrian at all, with an horrible accent, even worse than Sawbones's one. "Mond, Mond, Ja, Ja Vereint wir sind unter dem großen Forscher. Mond, Mond, Ja, Ja Heute gehört uns die Galaxie." Horrible, but catchy. I advanced in the shop, where a bat pony was sitting on a chair, back legs crossed on the desk, while reading an old comic. "Can I help ya?" said a voice like honey from behind the desk and the pre-war comic. Her cutie mark was a half golden and a half silver star, and she wascalmly reading. "Hum… Yeah, I've things to sale and I heard you- " I began to say. "So, ya' welcome! Name's Silverstar, glad to see ya! Come over here and let me see what ya got." said the mare as she dropped her book. I looked my inventory and placed what I wanted to sale : the .357 magnum ammunition and the butterfly knife. She took a long look at it. "Well, ya got good stuff here.Ya want a trade or a simple sale" she asked. "It depends about what you got to trade, and what you have to pay" I answered. "Another trader, what a good surprise, 'didn't saw somepony like ya since so long... I got this for the trade" She placed a .357 magnum before me. "I give it if ya give me half of the bullets and the knife... deal?" Her offer was interessant : I got a gun with twelve bullets... "Deal!" I said "Happy to hear that..."She cried happily "I got a question, how can you talk and how can you have all…" I looked around us "… this?" She looked at me with surprise, then answered. " A lot of us here know how to speak ya language. 'guess in some lesser colonies, they couldn't continue speakin' but keep understandin' and for the stuff, that's my twin sister, Moon, who hates to stay inside the caves and go at night to scavenge the treasures of outside. Well, ' want to buy somethin'?" "No, thanks." I answered. "Alright, see ya later." I exited and walked back to the tavern. When I arrived at the room, My only will was to lay on the bed and sleep. I opened the door and put my stuff on a table before I went at this bed, Killstreak was lying on it, perhaps because of severals beer cups... I laid myself under the coverture and closed my eyes. When I opened them, some hours later, Killstreak has disapeared and Windigo has took her place. I woke up, went to the bar and asked for a lunch. After eating, I went to my room and looked at the window in the street of the gothic-cave-town. The glowing orange magic flames were lighting all the cave like a constant twilight during the 'day' and were turning weak blue flames for the 'night', and it was beautiful. I looked at my stuff. Sawbone gave me some healing potions, Rad-X and RADsafe when I tlked to him, I got the magnum too and Windigo while we will explore the 'Mansion'. Sawbones told me the RADsafe was a liquid to swallow or use by injecting, and it stopped any radioactive contamination by agglutinating the radiations in the body and expulsing it by natural ways like... well, I prefered to think by transpiration and think I wouldn't have to use it anyway. I waited Windigo to wake up, and when he do, we exited the caves and walked a certain time. We exited the ruins at the entrance of the caves and I followed Windigo to north. Little by little, the ground of dead grass around the feets of the giant grey pines became a ground covered by brambles and a slight fog began to surround us. A tall building appeared in the fog, massive and cold, with black steel barriers on bricks walls, all of it under spiny roses branches. Windigo stopped in front of the garden door. "So, it's here?" I asked Windigo. "Yes,I grew here, in the family's mansion." "Was that so creepy ans savage?" "No, it was a bit sad." The bat pony smiled. "But the coulds were always presents, so it didn't change so much, unless about the plants." I tried to push the door with my magic, then with my shoulder, but it didn't move. "The hinge must be rusty by the time." I cursed. "Let me try." Windigo began as he approached his gauntlet. "Maybe it's just-" The door opened slowly, without any help, in a grim grinding. "Oh Okay..." I dropped. "This gives me the creeps." I slowly entered the area and looked around me. The central allee of gravel was flanked by ornamental pines, dead since long. The mansion in front of us was as the buildings of the city, timbered with slate roofs. Three sharp roofs were on the face of the house with a big stained glass on the wall under the main. "This garden is... big." "Yes, I can't remember all the time I've spend here to play with my father..." "And what was his name?" "I don't remember, but I can see every details of who he was, I don't remember the names of before my... coma." "And does that feel?" I asked as I opened the wooden door of the 'Mansion' "It's strange. Jailed in your own body, unable to speak, you see and hear everything around you,and time pass, seasons disappear in a blink. But I didn't feel the need to feed, drink... Trust me, you don't want to really know what it feels like..." The entrance door was massive, but looked to have been forced, but we entered, this would have been done long ago. The hall was large, looking copied on the Castle's hall with a wooden ground. A old skeleton was lying on the ground, a gun at his side with dozens of ammo, four boxes and a book. "He's dead since long, but the bones have bites marks." Windigo said. I took the book and began reading. I'm the guard of the Frost's Mansion and it's not this stupids spells which will stop my duty and thieves won't came! I've took 'Savage Beast', my fidel engraved hunting shotgun and six boxes of ammo... I heard the timberwolves were coming closer to the town, ammo will be useful- I turned some pages Three days they've trapped me inside the mansion, Luna damn this fucking wood wolves… Before they came, there was only Worgs… these wolves were made of meat and fur, not wood... Fucking timberwolves, I promise I'll kill you if you dare come inside!- -Twenty days… I've no more food, timberwolves are now fighting with some worgs to know who will eat my poor corpse... Luna, my queen, I hope you've dammed zebras and you'll damn this fucking beasts.- "Seems lack of food can be deadlyer than predators…" I conclued. Windigo took the shotgun and all the ammo : a .12 gauge double barrel engraved hunting shotgun and more than sixteen .12 gauge ammunitions. "What a beauty…" he said as he placed his gauntlet's claws to use the gun. "Now, let's found the stuff…" We continued to a large wooden door. "My grandfather's office…" he opened the door. Savages roses had took control of this room since long. Windigo gone behind the desk and looked at the portrait of a family. "Who are they?" I asked him "My grandfather…" He pointed a thestral with strong face, big silver mane and some beard at each side of his checks. The bat pony on the paint was oddly not big as Windigo. "…My grandmother…" He showed a tall white pegasus with black mane "…My aunt…" A dark grey bat filly with fire-like orange mane "...And finally my father." A bat foal, older than the filly, with the same grey-white fur that Windigo and orange-pale mane. He moved the portrait and placed it on the desk, making a safe appearing and I began to try opening the safe, a ear agaisnt the metal. "And about your mother?" I asked. "Don't remmember." he answered as he was hearding the sound of safe unlock system. "She died when I was young." "Oh... hum.. sorry." "You don't have to excuse. Sometimes, you have to turn the page, and I turned it long ago about this." Suddendly, I heard the unlocking. Click-Clac-Clunk! - The sound did an echo in all the mansion and roars and grows came. The safe opened and Windigo took the stuff. "Sky! Take this!" he said as the launched a strange gun, then I took it. My pipbuck showed 'Hydra', the full name was 'Hydra, Frost's family's legacy', a three barrel sawed-off shotgun. I took the ammo too : Something like thirty .12 gauge. I charged the shotgun with my magic and Windigo loaded 'Savage beast' with his hoof, handing the weapon with his gauntlet's claws. "What's happening?" I whispered. "At the sound, worgs." he calmly answered. "A what?" "A big wolf." The silence was upon us. "I think we have-" I began to say. The door literally exploded in wood sharps and a giant grey dog jumped by the entrance. Windigo charged and placed the canons in the mouth of the beast. The gun made a sound like a beast's roar as the superior jaw of the wolf was blowed out of her place. Other roars and sounds of claws on wood came at my hears. Windigo took me, jumped jumped through the window and landed in the back garden. He dropped me and looked around. It was a trap. Worgs… worgs everywhere... Their teeth were like boar's, their claws like bear's and they didn't approached us. "What's happening, now?" I asked, uncertain. "I've no idea.My grandfather was having three worgs as dogs, I know a lot of thing about them, but I've no idea about what to do in this situation!" A big roar came from behind the beast's group and a giant one came. He was black fur, a lot have already fell. He was having a old chain collar and was covered with scars, his fangs were respectively coming out his mouth like boar tusks and saber teeth. With his fur, he looked like a ghoul, a giant-ghoul-wolf. He charged and Windigo used 'Savage beast'. Clic-clic! - Out of ammo... "OH CRAP!" Windigo shouted before jumping to avoid the beast. I was in front of the monster. I pointed him with 'Hydra'. "USE THE THREE BARRELS AT THE SAME TIME!!!" Windigo shouted. "WHAT?" "DO IT!" And I did it. The 'Hydra' made a thunder-like sound as the giant worg was cutted in his charge, the head blowed out by the extremely powerful firepower of my new aquisition. The other wolves gone slowly, growing at us, when they were all gone, Windigo came at me. "Whao. Nice shot." "Thanks." He looked at his inventory and took a pendant. "Is that your talisman?" I asked The "talisman" was a light blue long crystal, with a light mist coming from it. It was attached at a black chain. "Yes." He weared it and breathed deeply. "Now I feel much much better." He kneeled before me. "You've help me to found a half of my soul, I'll be able to give you the other half just for you, as a guardian." "Well,why not…" I answered with a friendly smile. ___________________ Footnote: Level Up. New Perk: Ammo's Radar – Finding ammunition like this make you able to found more ammo on corpses, in containers or by pickpocketing. New Companion : Windigo – A strong thestral fighter who has promised to protect you as a guardian. All your skills are increased by +5 (Team gladiator perk). Windigo gave you "Learn my knowledge" Perk. New Companion perk : Learn my knowledge – When Windigo learns in a skill, you gain +2 points for the same skill. Windigo can also learn you some special tricks from his life from the Old World in special situations. Chap 5We walked to the village, again. Arrived at the tavern, Windigo explained me how his talisman was working. "If you understand the concept of soul jar, you'll understand how it work ..." "Soul jar ? Sound like a soul jail ..." "That it !" he said "Inside this, are somes souls of my ancestors … each ancestor allows me to use a special power... but can make me like mad..." "Mad ?" "Yes, a personnality can take the control of the others and become stronger, but just for a moment … I know only three ponies who have used this, my oldest ancestor, my father and me... " "So, no real problems ..." "Yes, and in my family, we all have almost the same way to think … So if one of them take the control, don't worry …" "But … isn't that … Necromancy ?" "Not really … It is … Something else , even if I wasn't alive until I took my talisman back ..." I looked at him. "Very interessant …" I said and thinked. Killstreak came at our table. "Hi !" I said with a smile. "Watsup ?" dropped Windigo She answered by a kiss at each of us, and it surprised us. "I've informations about what is doing Blade Beast …" She said "C'mon … Don't focus on this bitch … take a little time for yourself …" moaned Windigo. This talisman has really changed him … he turned from a cold personnality to a very well living pony Killstreak sitted. " Maybe she's a bitch, but she want you … and if she find this village, imagine what could happens ..." "Well … you're not wrong ..." "Ok, we know she's a 'Reaper' as she called herself..." "Yes" I answered. "And Moon told me, while you were at the mansion, that reapers are at Hoofington." "Hoofington … that's damn far …" Said Windigo as he gulped his red beer. "And it's full of raider … as Moon heard from traders ..." "Ok … not good … "I said. "Yes, I know, but if we go there, and one of us defeat her in duel in front of others reapers, he'll take her place and will be able to found everything about project Reaper … " "And maybe the MagicKraftWerk upgrades !" I replied. "And after all that ?" asked Windigo. "We'll see later ..." Said Killstreak as she touched Windigo's muzzle with her own. "But our first ojective is to demand retribution … and adventures ! This place is great … but will become boring … So, who's with me ?" She raised her right hoof before her. I did same. "I am !" I said with a smile to Windigo. " Ok, very well … I am too !" Windigo sighed. "Alright then, see you tomorrow, at the cave entrance … prepare your stuff, we're gonna need it … Oh, and by the way … download this... " She trowed an old USB key. I took it and loaded on my Pipbuck. "What's that ?" Asked my bat-winged teammate. MagicKraftWerk upgrades location- Ministry of Wartime Technologies departement "A good thing …" I answered. I looked the list after I gave the key to Windigo. My minimap of equestria appeared as eight points with names. "Hoofington, Manehattan, Baltimare, Fillydelphia, Las Pegasus, Vanhoover, Canterlot, Stalliongrad, that's the places were we're gonna found upgrades ..." "And what are they ?" I shook my shoulders "I've no idea …" I answered "Well ...See you tomorrow ...I'm tired .."He said. He gone to the room. I looked at my pipbuck and my objectives. -New objective- Go to Hoofington and found a way to defeat Blade Beast in duel- -New secondary objectives- Found all MagicKraftWerk upgrades- 0/7 founded- The first upgrade was at Hoofington, and Blade Beast too ... I was tired … but I continued to search in the files. There was some about project Reaper : Files about batponies, thestrals and their flying abilties, files about scientific studies on them, comparisons with pegasis's capacities and others things about their possibilities to become assassins … a lot of informations like their sonic screams and more... It was the middle of the night when I seen it was late. I raised the stairs with a tired walk. I was behind our room's door I heard a sound from the matress and laughs. I entered silencly. Killstreak was tickling Windigo on the mastress and they stopped when they saw me. "He was on my part of the bed ..." said Killstreak. Windigo was breathing dephtly, Killstreat had almost kill him … or tried .. I lyed myself on the bed. "She tickles guys like this each time she's in the same bed ?" he asked me. "Only if she want to play ..."I answered. I sleeped slowly and sweetly. I woke up and looked above my shoulder, Killstreak was in Windigo's wings and forehooves. I raised on my hooves and walked to bar. I asked for a breakfast and the barmare gave me a cup of chocolate and some bread. I gone to my room and sitted at the window, then checked my inventory, and readed the project Reaper's files again. So much informations ... My pipbuck's radio began to sing something. I don't want to set the world on fire, I just want to set a flame in your heart ...- This song was sweet and I heared it to the end. -Hello there, It's DJ Pon3 right there … now, time to more music!- My pipbuck began to make a strange noise ... Krrrrkrkrkkrrrrkrrrr ! - "Gah … dammit" I thinked. I heard a moan behind me. Killstreak and Windigo woke up. Killstreak looked surprised to see me. "Hum … that's not what you think … I've asked Windigo because the night was cold …" She said quickly. I dropped a little laugh. I knew her … I has been her marefriend ... "C'mon, we have to go..."I said. We checked our inventories and our weapons : Killstreak got the MagicKraftWerk, Windigo got 'Savage Beast' and I got a .357 magnum and 'Hydra'... We got enough healing potions, some Rad-X and Rad-Away, some food and enough ammunition... I said goodbye to my mother and Sawbones came to see me. "Red Sky, if you need help about some medical tricks and other, use this radio frequence … You'll be able to contact me almost everywhere you'll be ..." I loaded the frequence. "Thank you, I hope it will be usefull... I hope I'll see you again..." "Don't worry … You will ..." "Goodbye Sawbones." "Goodbye, Red sky ..." I trotted to my companions. "Alright, let's do it !" I activated the radio's frequence and the music played as we trotted ouside. "To the road of Appleloosa, rode a stranger one fine day Hardly spoke to folks around him, didn't have too much to say …" we songed happily. We trotted for all the day with the music in the air... Nopony stopped us … unless the dead forests of Hollow Shades and a strange feeling of being followed since we exited from it. I stopped the radio. "What's happening ?" asked Killstreak "I heard something "I answered as I looked above my shoulder. A strange robot was flying right behind us. "WHAT A BLOODY HELL !!!" We screamed in a same voice. "Hum … sorry to afraid you … but I've seen your happy party in the wasteland and I've seen two of you with stable's vest and all three with pipbucks... I'm Watcher …" said the metallicvoice from the robot. "You're a robot ?" I asked. "Not really, this old Spite-bot is just a way to me to talk with potentials heroes of the wasteland ..." "Guy who uses robots to talk… Looks like an old horror film from when I was young …"Sighed Windigo. "No matters, I just want to know were you're are going ..." "Hum, going to Hoofington …" I said. "Hoofington ? T-t-t ! Bad land, bad ponies, tons of raiders, reapers's QG, big problems ..." "We know this, we just want to explode Blade Beast's face into a wall..." replied Killstreak. "Blade Beast ? Whao... You're aiming 'big game' category ..." "Yeah … and whatever ?" I asked "Well … You'll need weaponry … and thankfully, you're approching a old slaver base … maybe you'll found some ammo or weapon." We looked ourself. "I think he's right … We just have enough to fight a little band of raider ..."said Killstreak. "Yeah … and we'll maybe found some scrap and supplies to sale ..."continued Windigo. They were right ... "Ok, then … " I said. "Then, goodbye Watcher, and maybe see ya later ..." "You're welcome" said the robot. We walked until we seen the barricade of the camp. Lot of ponies were on the wall, dead and half eated … and the massive door was open. I entered slowly, the magnum levitating at my side, followed by Killstreak with the MagicKraftWerk and finally Windigo with 'Savage beast' at his right hoof. Some raiders were sleeping, others were 'playing' with some slaves who were alive. A group of raider was sleeping in the same place, out of other raider's visionfield. Windigo showed me some knives on a table and made a movement under his throat. Kill them while they sleep, then kill the rest. I made the knives levitating and approached the closer foe I seen. I placed myself above him, made the knife under his throat and introduced it with fast movements. "Gark-" tried to shout the raider as I shuted him by blocking his mouthin the dust. Critical hit – showed my Pipbuck Windigo was doing the same thing, with more skill and his wing's claws. A raider awoke, but he was too far for Windigo or me, then I throwed a knife at him and the cutting tool hit him at the neck, killing instantly. Windigo looked with surprise then did a movement with the head like a 'Nice shot'. We got almost killed an half of the raiders, almost all the sleeping. A raider entered the place an saw us. "Uh oh " I dropped. "ALERT-" The raider's shout was cutted by the sound of light machinegun shooting at him and blowing his body in sharped meat. I turned to the shooter : Killstreak ! She was wearing a dual-saddle light machineguns. The bullets were in pouch on her flanks like a unlimited ammo ressuply. "Look at these babies !" She proudly said. "Whao ! This is a real weapon !" cried Windigo with a giant smile. "There is the ammo stock right behind me, took everything !" replied Killstreak. I ran to this 'stock' with Windigo and looked at it. Tons of bullets … tons of shotgun ammo, magnum bullets and quickloaders… I took everything I needed. "Holy Celestia, I love be lucky" I moaned. "Killstreak, Windigo, can you fight them from the front while I kill them from behind ?" "Yeah, now, move !" said Killstreak. They took place at eah side of the wooden door. "You shoot them from long range and you let me kill them at close distance … ok ?"asked Windigo to Killstreak "Ok ..." They exited and shooted at all the raiders. I took an alternative way, my magnum at my side. My two companions were doing a fine job, but some raiders were covering behind blocs of concrete. I was behind the raiders and used my S.A.T.S. … A bullet in each head … could be a good beginning with four shoot. My first shoot was a sucess, but the others were … not so good .. My second shoot just missed, the third hitted at the shoulder and the last broked an unicorn's horn. The raiders who survived turned to me... no more energy for my S.A.T.S. … Dammit ! "Poor little thing, she don't know how to aim … come here, we're gonna play, stupid filly … unless you got anything smart to say now, faggot !" said the raider I missed. I switched to 'Hydra', then aimed at the raiders. "Ahah ! The stupid filly got something smart to say now !"I shouted with a smile. I used the first barrel, blowing a head in roasted meat and brain soup. The two other raiders looked at me with fear and I used the two last shoot of 'Hydra' to kill them. "Yay, the fun has been doubled !" I happily shouted. Windigo and Killstreak came at me and we looked at the slaves. They needed help … and we were gouing to help them. A mare was lying on the ground, beated almost to death. I took some healing potions and healed her. She was afraid, the fear in the eyes. "Sssh... they're gone … Everything is calm now … "I said to her. She calmed herself then looked at me. "T-thank you … " She said. "Where are the other slaves ?" She pointed a enclosure. Windigo opened it. I used the radio frequence of Sawbone … 87.8 MHz and let's go ! -Krrrrrrkrrrr- " Sawbones ? Do you heard me ?" Krrred Sky rrrrr Iz that krrr you rrr- "Sawbones !" Krrr rr zzz Red sky ? Ah, the frequence iz ok … Red Sky ? You got something?- "Yes, a group of slaves captured by raiders … We'll send you them … Can a Batpony patrol catch them before the forest of Hollow Shade ?" Of course, send them, the guard will recieve them at almost 6:00 pm- "Excellent, thank you Sawbones !" -Bitte Schön, Fraulein- I turned my radio off and gone to the slaves "Alright everypony, listen me, it's very important ! You're going to Hollow Shade frontier and wait, a group of batpony like my friend will recieve you and give you security and safety, food and healing … Understand ?" The slaves looked at me and started to talk. "The road is just the East and ONLY the East … No other road, and you'll wait at the frontier of the dead forest, do not enter the forest without the batpony's guards !" They began to follow the road. The mare came at me. "The Godesses bless you …" Then she gone with the others. ___________________ Footnote: Level Up. New Perk: Sneaky hoof (level 1) – You make less sound, deal more damages, have a better aim and have more chance to deal a critical hit when you're sneaking. New Companion : Killstreak – A 'noble' albinos unicorn, a childhood friend of yours and your first marefriend, loves big guns, hates raiders, all your stats are increased by 5% unless heavy machinegun, medicine and reloading speed skills which are increased by 10 % while she's your teammate (Team gladiator perk). Chap 6Slaves were gone, Killstreak was looking for ammo and Windigo was searching food. So I entered a old building, looking for some stuff. It was a ruined clinic which would be slaver's healing center. I didn't imagined that I entered a butcher's lair ... Patient's skinless corpses were hanged to the ceiling, the ground was covered of scarlet blood... Despite to the heat of the day, the ambience was like a cold room. I slalomed between some corpses and looked at what was the reception. A cadaver of a mare with the chest opened, ribs going out, the organs missing, forehooves attached to the back of the siet and her legs spread and tied to the chair leg. My gaze passed at the dead body. I was sorry for her ... These raiders were monsters ... I took a look at the desk and smiled. A box of cigarettes ... and a zippo lighter. I took the stuff and levitated it, then lighted one of the cigarettes and pull on it. I haven't took a cigarette since ... a week ... I slowly blew a puff of smoke and I began to think. In less than a week, I've been a slave, fighted in an arena with a giant bat pony, escaped with him, gone back to my village, found a town of bat ponies, was attacked by a group of raider leaded by a giant pegasus mare in a castle, found a ultra-secret weapon, has explored a pre-war mansion full of meat-made-timberwolves, killed a little group of raiders who have invade a slaver's camp with the bat pony and my first marefriend and now, I was smoking a cigarette next to a raped dead mare with organs missing in a ruined clinic full of skinless bodies ... "Bad times ... This period is a bad time ... You're the best example, don't take it wrong ..." I said to the mare on the chair. And now, I was talking to dead ponies ... I took another breath and levitated the cigarette to drop ashes. I looked around me, then exited from the clinic after taking some stuff. Windigo and Killstreak were talking in the center of the 'street', I walked to my teammates. "So ? found something useful ?" I asked "I got a lot of ammo, some grenade and a strange gun ... but I don't know how to use it ..." Killstreak answered as she showed the thing. "Hey ! I know this !" Said Windigo. "It's a flare gun ... You put the flare here ..." He took the thing, opened it and showed the barrel. " ... Then you aim the sky and you pull the trigger ... And if you encounter an aggressive beast, aim at it and shoot ... The light's gonna makes them flee and if they aren't afraid by the light, their burning skin should make them to think two time before come back to deal with you ..." He closed the barrel and took the flare gun in his inventory. "... And before they come back, you'll have the time to run to hide and take a most appropriate weapon ..." "But we're gonna use it only in critical moments ?" I asked. He looked at me "I guess if you use a flare gun just for a rattlesnake, the snake is gonna be the last of your worries, after ..." He began to count on his gauntlets claws. " ... Slavers, raiders, big predators ..." "Big predators ? What do you mean by 'BIG predators' ?" I asked, not really sure about if the answer was going to be reassuring. "By big predators, I meant griffins who are maybe hunting ponies, timberwolves, chimeras, cockatrices, manticores, ursas, changelings, bears and maybe dragons ...'' I was out of speech ... "You're kidding ? right ?" I said with a false laugh. "Nope ..." "Even for the dragons ?" "Yep ..." I felt my right eyelid move in a twitch. "Don't look at me like that ... I know how think predators because I'm one ... By the way I'm hungry ..." He looked around him and his right ear moved. "I think we're gonna have some visitors ..." He smelt around us. "What's happening ?" Asked Killstreak. "We're in the wind ... it comes from east ... and I smell a familiar odor ... " "What kind of odor ?" I demanded. "Three friends of us ... we're in their camp, and they don't know the raiders have kill every slavers" Windigo answered. "You mean ... we are in their camp ?" "Yes ... No, come take cover and reload !" We each galloped to a cover. Killstreak was hiding behind a wall of concrete, Windigo took a cache in the building full of dead raiders we killed and I took the clinic. We were in a triangle, when they'll be in the perfect center, we were going to shoot them down ... I pulled out my .357 magnum and levitated it at my side. I looked by a old window. Barbed Wire was before her troops, followed by Steel Mane and Bulletproof at her sides. Wire wasn't armed, but Steel Mane got a Zebra rifle and Bulletproof was having a flamer. They were having ten slavers with them ... maybe less .. "What the hell happened here ?" asked Steel Mane. "Fucking raiders ..." simply said Wire with anger. "But not the group from the last time ..." "What ? Raiders are all the same ! Hordes of mad killers who like to plant heads on spades, rape and torture everypony they capture ..." Cried Bulletproof "Raiders don't usually eat their victims ... those ones do ... But why ? They normally still vegetarians despite their stupidity and madness ... not those ones" muttered Wire. They were approaching slowly of the center of our positions. "Let see if these bastard are still here, if you saw one of them alive, I want him in front of me, alive and able to answer my questions .. NOW !" Slavers trotted all around. one of them was walking in my direction. "Dammit ! Please Luna, do something, I'll do everything you'll want but please !" I though the harder I can. - inspire ... 1 ... 2 ... 3 ... 4 ... expire ... calm yourself ...- "I got somepony !" shouted a slaver. The one who was going to me gone back to their guys. "I want to see him right NOW !" hurled Wire. The smell of dead bodies in the clinic by the heat of the middle of day was unbearable ! But I needed to resist to the envy to exit. Two slavers dragged Windigo before Barbed Wire. "He was in the tent which is full of dead raiders ..." said a slaver. Barbed Wire smiled. "At least, he's still here ... well, I guess it could make me forgot this little incident ..." They were exactly where I wanted to see them ! I exited from the building and aimed Wire. "Release him, you kind of insatiable cum's dumpster on hooves !" She turned to me. "What a surprise ... You're here too ... But you're alone and I'm with my band, little bitch ... I'm gonna put you back in your place ..." "I'm not alone ... I got my party too ..." Killstreak came out her cover with her war-saddle and her machine guns and shooted at the slavers. Barbed Wire jumped behind a old plow, avoiding bullets. Bulletproof slammed Steel Mane on the ground and placed his body between Killstreak and his mare. Windigo threw himself on the ground, trying to stay alive. The slavers replied, shooting at Killstreak who took cover. I fired one of the slave with a bullet in the back and others began to shoot me. I saw Windigo catch two stallions and threw them away. He made a jump, using his wings to go farest from the group, and took Savage beast with his gauntlet, firing at slavers before take cover. Smell of powder, blood and decay in the air ... I don't know why, but it was like this smell was making me drunk of adrenaline in my blood. It was like a muffled commotion punctuated by gunshots from different protagonists. It was a bloodbath ... a butchery ... There was still 5 slavers, I shooted at the closest and his jaw was blew by the shock. Another slaver took Killstreak out her cover and began to hit her with a police baton. My heart was full of anger. A slaver gone help his fellow to beat Killstreak up. I saw Windigo jump and flew up. Where the hell were he going ?! I finally understood after thirty seconds. A whistle came at my hears, becoming louder with the time. Windigo was doing a swoop and landed on the first foe, grapping his face with the ebony gauntlet on his right forehoof and crushing his prey's skull against the ground in a horrible cracking noise. The second slaver jumped of surprise, unable to attack the bat pony who just landed like a cannonball. Windigo blew the slaver in a barrel roll with his wing and took Savage Beast with his gauntlet and fired at close range, cutting his target in two. I exited from the clinic, my magnum levitating at my side. Bulletproof and Steel Mane looked unconscious, all others slavers slain ... unless ... Killstreak tried to get on her legs. "How do you feel ?" asked windigo "Pain, pain and more pain ..." answered Killstreak. "Just need one or two healing potion." I heard a sound behind me and turned. - BAM - A bullet brushed my ear. "I won't mich ya nexcht time !" said Barbed Wire despite the gun she held in her mouth. I drawed my magnum before me. It was face-to-face between she and I ... I activated my S.A.TS. and aimed. -Inspire ... 1... 2... 3... 4.. expire ...- "Now shoot that bitch and finish the job !" roared my soul with a rage from my guts burning of will to win and survive. All my six bullets, all in her head ... almost six hooves underground ... Like a cliché of old film from cowhorses and buffalos ... but in my life, and in this world, that was not always the brave who survive sysmeticatly ... My most brutal, bestial and primal entrails were roaring in unison, spitting pure adrenaline in my veins full of boiling blood. My vision was no more that a black tunnel pointing right on my opponent, like a gun's barrel ... and my hatred for this mare who sent stallions, mares and foals to die in horrific conditions, forced to obey to cruels masters. And this hatred, it was my bullets ... The sound of my heartbeat and eardrums echoing in my head ... - Bom-bom bom-bom ... bom-bom ... - Time passed slowly, I was using the S.A.T.S. at the same time that this rage ... Suddenly all the heat of my rage became pure cold. It was now or never! - BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM - Each sound of my magnum shooting Barbed Wire made me closer to the reality ... And each shot struck his target ... Wire's head didn't got the time to move at the first bullet than the second was perforating her skull ... with each bullet ... The time became faster, even more, and more ... And the time was passing normally. The dead corpse of Barbed Wire fell on the dusty ground, the skull perforated by six bullets of .357 magnum. Bulletproof got up, took Steel Mane on his back and runned out of the camp, letting us alone. I began to aim, but one of Windigo's leather wing opened in front of me, making me unable to aim or shoot. "Let them run ... They're only two against all the dangers of the 'wastelands' ..." Said Windigo has he place a hoof on my shoulder. "It was ... " I tried to said. "The first time when you kill somepony is always the hardest as I heard" said Killstreak as she posed her hoof on my other shoulder. I looked at my magnum. So it was that ... The survival instinct ... "It was... AWESOME !!!!!" I shouted to the skies with a giant smile and tears of happyness. Windigo and Killstreak looked each other with surprise. I know killstreak got her cutie mark when she killed roadroaches to the chain during an infestation in the town outside the Stable ... Windigo was the definition of "alive killing machine" with his claws, fangs and feline eyes... I was just a unicorn who got her cutie mark during a power-cut at home. I made electricity back by placing her horn in a power outlet, making red sparkles and lightning all around me ... and I got my cutie mark and charged all the quarter during three days … My entire life didn't made me a killer or a action-mare. But now I've felt this ... I was ... like made for this despite all my peaceful childhood. The world has return to an ancient world ... An ancient world leaded by a simple and ultimate rule: Kill or be killed ... And nopony wanted to be the killed ... And after all, this rule was always present ... Even in the peaceful age of pre-war time ... Now, raiders were like psychotic hyenas, killing everything which weren't raiders from their band. Slavers were a bit less brutal, capturing sentient species to sold them ... helping some cruels customers, so customers don't kill them ... There must have been a lot of ways to survive with this rule, and I got mine: With Windigo and Killstreak, we were a group ... And as the proverb said "Number is Strength" and the fight of today against slavers proved it ... "Everypony's okay ?" I asked "I think I'm okay ..." said Killstreak. "Everything's right to me" answered Windigo. I smiled, satisfied of our performance, a group of raiders and another of slavers killed in the same day ... Killstreak looked at her pipbuck. "What are you doing ?" I asked her, interested. "I'm looking on my mini-map ... to see our itinerary." She replied calmly. "You'll better do it too ..." Windigo and I looked at our pipbucks. "Hoofington is right there, near to a certain 'Everfree forest' ..." Killstreak continued. My pipbuck showed a map with some points, including Hoofington. "Were did you loaded this map ?" I demanded. "When you've opened files I gave you at the tavern, your pipbucks have downloaded location in undiscovered mode, as mine did ..." "So, we have an idea about where to go ..." Windigo deduced. "And we've to go east then go south when we'll arrive to Canterlot" continued Windigo. "Why don't go south right now ?" asked Killstreak. "Because I have learned Equestria's geography when I was a foal ... And I know Hollow Shade's environs very well ... If we take South right now, we'll going to arrive at Foal mountains, and because you're unicorns and you can't fly, travelling by the mountains will take to much time ..." He told. "Mountains ?" I questioned. "Your high-tech toy don't show reliefs, only informations ... My old pre-war methods using memory still best sometimes ..."He replied with a taunting smile . "Yeah, maybe ..." said Killstreak, visibly injured in his pride. "Don't feel bad, nopony is perfect ..." Windigo consoled her. Killstreak grumbled and Windigo looked her in the eyes. "Do not sulk, it's just a map ..." He calmly said. "... I don't like to see my friends sad." Killstreak tried to make a smile. "Much better" he said, then kissed her cheek. "So, we're going or what ?" I asked. "This place is full of bodies and smell decay ..." I began to loot corpses. "If you found Bottle caps, take it !" told Killstreak. "Why ?" I asked, looting intensively. "Moon said merchants and wastelanders are using as money ..." "As money ?" questioned windigo with surprise. "Yeah ..." "And if you found ammo you can't use, take it anyway, we're going to sold it if we meet a merchant... and take all of it, against raiders, we're never have too much ammo ..." I continued. We took an hour to collect every useful stuff. We also stopped at the gates of the camp. "Ready for a long travel ?" I asked. "Hell yeah !" replied Killstreak. "Let's do it !" cried Windigo. We began to walk forward to the west. After twenty minutes, a question began to grow in my brain. "Windigo ?" I asked shyly. "Yes ?" "I got question about pre-war world and ... every things like this, can I ask you about ?" "Yeah ! How was the world before it become this ?" asked Killstreak, looking interested Windigo took a moment. "Well ... I don't know where to begin ... maybe by the beginning ..." he murmured. "If you want" I continued. "More than a thousand years ago, Equestria was founded by three nations, pegasi, unicorns and ponies. Princesses Celestia and Luna came next and as Alicorns, became rulers of Equestria -" He recounted. "We already know that ..." I cutted him. "Yeah, whatever, so you know all the bullshit with elements of harmony, Nightmare Moon, etc ... So the history lessons is ended, I'll describe you how was the world before it become a dusty desert." He told. We were slowly trotting on a old railway. "So, being a bat pony, I wasn't destined to live the day, but my parent's couple was a bit ... weird for the epoch ..." He uncomfortable said. "Weird ?" Killstreak asked. "Red Sky saw it in the Mansion, my grand-parents were a bat pony and a pegasus mare, and my parent's couple were same composition ... so my father was ... diurnal and nocturnal at a time to have time with other bat pony and his family … And my mother being a day pony, I have grew like my father and it permitted me to see the world with a different look than other ponies ... By the time, Equestria was peaceful by this time, but it was just for official Equestria ... Ponies were always fighting before Equestria, and they didn't change ... competition between salers, to have better than other people ... zebras and griffins were not having a good reputation, also bat ponies ... but we were a bit more integrated ... because we were Luna's guard and her small protected." "Like puppies ?" I questioned, surprised "Not ... really ... more like her childrens ..." He said, searching for words. "My grandfather was a Luna's guard, and my father was a reserve soldier. And one day, I've travelled to Canterlot, the capitol ... Luna, it was beautiful ... A bit too white, but beautiful ..." He smiled like melancholic. "I don't really remember after my twenty fifth year old ... I remember a mare's face, a horrible sad feeling, and nothing else ..." He stood speechless for a moment. "And about your Stable and your childhood ?" He asked. I looked Killstreak. "Well ... My mother said that the stable was a hiding place during the war to protect ponies from a great cataclysm ... Approximately seventy years ago the stable opened because of lack of space for population, and our grandparents began to build a village at the entrance of the Stable ..." I said. "Interesting" muttered Windigo. "And about your youth ?" "Red Sky and I were child of engineers from the Stable ... The stable was not longer our real home, but it gave us electricity, water-cleaning ... Our mother were friends, and we were too ..." Killstreak told. "And do you became friends ?" the bat pony asked. "Killstreak is albinos and the medics told she was having a problem at the right eye, and bullies were always mocking her, and I defended her many times." "Red !" shouted Killstreak. "He need to know, he's with us after all !" I replied Killstreak growled. "And when we became teens, Killstreak grew more than all ponies of the stable, and bullies stopped their wickedness against her ... And we became very ... very close " I continued. Killstreak blushed. "So cute !" said Windigo. "Are you mocking me ?" I asked. "No, I'm not ..." "Yes, you are !" "Gaaah ! Mares didn't change after all this time !" he moaned. "Eyh ! What's that ?" asked Killstreak as she pointed a big thing in a pile of scrap metal. We looked at it. "It's a Sparkle-Cola distributor !" I cried. "Cool ! does somepony have some bits ?" Killstreak looked at her pipbuck and made a negative move with her head, Windigo did same. "Dammit, I forgot my money at the tavern ..." I sighed. " And I'm thirsty ... Gaah ! We'll see later ..." Windigo approached the distributor. "What are you doing bat boy ?" asked Killstreak. Windigo closed his gauntlet claws and destroyed the glass of the machine. "Are you stealing ?" I asked. "No police, no rules, nopony to say that's bad ... And I guess drink and survive is more important than dying because you didn't took a soda in a distributor ..." He replied calmly. He took all the bottles and shared it between us. "Health !" Windigo said has he raised his bottle in his claws. He opened the bottle and took the cap. Clic clac - "You're gonna need it, son ... now hooves behind ya head and lie down on the ground ..." said a voice behind him. Windigo lay himself on the dust. The stallion behind him was a unicorn, wearing a hardat and was pointing a strange shotgun at us. I heard something behind me. "Do like you friend, or you're all going to have a real bad day ..." said a mare voice behind me. Killstreak and I lay on the ground. "Hum ... We're not raiders ... we're just travellers ... we don't want problems" I said. "Rusty, they're right, mares got stable's jumpsuit, and they all wear a pipbuck." told the mare at her fellow. "I'm not darn sure for the mutant-like-pegasus ..." He replied. "I'm not a mutant or something else ... I'm just a bat-pony -'' said Windigo. "And what don't prove me you're like these damn Gorgon or Brass ? A reaper's monster ! A pony with a bloodwing ?" "No way ! I'm a bat pony, a Luna's guard pony, old-one !" shouted Windigo. The unicorn looked at the mare. "Well, I hope you're not lying ..." said the stallion. "Excuse us, we're a caravan to Dodge Junction ... I thought you were raiders ..." We got up, looking at these ponies. "I'm Rusty Wrench, and my fella is Tin Rivet" introduced the hardat-pony. "Travelling around here's dangerous ... You shouldn't be distracted by a Sparkle-Cola bottle ..." "You're going to Dodge Junction ? Right ?" Windigo asked. "Heck yeah, kid ..." replied the old buck. "Is it near to Everfree forest ?" "That's darn near, boy, you just got to trot to west-north and you're arrived after five minutes ..." "So can we travel with you ?" I questioned. "Why not, until you don't make troubles ..." "Thank you" "You're welcome, kids." ___________________ Footnote: Level Up. New Perk: Gunslinger - While using a mouth-held or levitated firearm, your chance to hit in S.A.T.S. increases by 25%. Chap 7Trotting during two days and three nights, debuting the third day of constant walking on pre-war equestrian roads ... It was boring, tiring and ... we all began to be hungry. Windigo had disappeared since more than thirty minutes and I was staring my last Sparkle-Cola, saliva at my dry lips. "Rusty ? When are we going to arrive ?" I asked to the old unicorn."We're are wasted by this ... Killstreak and I won't continue one more day ..." "In less than an hour ... The town's gonna appear at the horizon ..." I looked around and saw a strange beast looking like a giant pig, and it was running forward of us. I heard a soft whistle from above. It was like a light-gray lightning which landed on the beast, rolled with it and threw it against a old concrete wall in a bloody splash and a crushed skull noise. Windigo ... not surprising after all ... but the action wasn't in lack of 'punch', very brutal and fast. He took the body with his gauntlet and flew a little before landing between Killstreak and I. "Did I miss anything ?" He calmly asked. Rusty Wrench looked at him and his victim. "I've seen better sides of beef been run over by a combine." he cried. "you should sale it at Dodge Junction as bacon for some caps ..." "Bacon ? Ponies eat meat ?" Windigo replied. "Yep, they make bacon ..." Windigo looked at me and Killstreak. "Some free caps, what do you think about that ?" he whispered at my ears. "Hmm ..." I thinked about all this. " If you can hunt these ... things ... easly, then why not ... And you'll need a wash, you got a stain, right there ..." I said as I pointed his chest. He looked at it and turned bothered. "Yeah, maybe ..." he just moaned. We trotted a bit before I saw Dodge Junction. It was a pile of dirt with a barbed wire barrier on it. spikes were coming from the ground, like a fort with some turrets with old pre-war stuff on it. "What kind of weapon is this ?" I asked "That's our auto-piloted defenses ... We builted it cause of raiders, slavers, hellhounds and all the bullshit ..." Hellhound ? What kind of beast was that ? I knew Diamond dogs from pre-war stories my mother told me when I was a filly, but Hellhound ... No idea of what it could be ... "How does it work ?" Killstreak demanded. "We've connected these old gatlings to a mechanical arm, a rotating platform and an E.F.S. -like system ..." Rusty replied. "An E.F.S. ? How did you got it ?" I asked, surprised. "A pony came long time ago..." Rusty answered. "He gave us his 'Pipthing' and he learned us how to use it ... So, we've reproduced it with less or more success with electronical stuff from some old terminals ... ' wasn't easy, but we have succeeded after all. It attack all 'red' targets which are stupid enough to be aggressive ..." We stopped before the gate, between two heavy armored ponies. They aimed Windigo immediately. "Hello, old man, you're bringing outsiders and mutants in town, now ?" asked the first. "I'm NOT a mutant ! What the hell is wrong with everypony ? Why do you think I'm a monster !" moaned Windigo. "He's a kind of ... Luna's guard …" said Rusty Wrench. "Yeah ... maybe ... now enter and don't do trouble, freak ..." mocked the second armored pony. "Yeah, soup can !" murmured Windigo. We walked in the main allee, full of live. "You can go at the motel, right there." Rusty pointed a building. "It's only ten caps per night for a room ... If you want a job, ask me, I'll be at the workshop, for the bat boy, you can go to the butcher, Dust Mist …" New objective, go to the workshop - We entered the motel and I walked forward, letting Killstreak an Windigo behind me. A stallion was behind a desk with a terminal. "Hum ... excuse me, do you have a free room ?" He looked at me with a arrogant gaze. "Maybe, just let me look at my register ..."He said. "Yes ... the room number two is free, but it's a first class one, fifteen caps per night ... For one person ?" "Not really, it for three ponies ... I and my two friends behind me..." He looked over me, at my friends. I expected something I don't wanted to. "Sorry, miss, we do not accept pooch, hounds or mutants in this institution ..." "WHAT ?" Oh, Celestia, why ? Why did he tell that ? Why did Windigo heard him ? Windigo walked with a determined trot, stopped in front of the receptionist, knocked the desk with his left hoof and grabbed the stallion at the collar with his gauntlet. "WHAT DO YOU JUST SAID ABOUT ME ?! YOU SONOVABITCH ?!" Shouted the bat pony. "I just said ... *gasp* ... We don't accept pets or mutants ..." gasped the stallion. "Did I look like a dog ? DID I ?" Shouted Windigo louder as he slammed the receptionist against the desk. "Did I look like a freak ? Yes, I do !! I'm a bat pony, you freaking stupid ! I'm a Luna's guard, you faggot ! So stop calling me a mutant ! UNDERSTOOD ?!!" The stallion answered with a affirmative move with his head. Windigo slapped him. "I DIDN'T HEAR YOU, MAGGOT !" "Y-y-y-yes, sir ..." "That's more like it !" He took keys and dropped twenty caps on the desk. "Fifteen for the room, and five for tip ..." "Thanks s-s-sir ..." Answered the stallion, hiding under the desk. "Ok, ladies, I let you see the room, I got a job to do ..." Windigo said. He threw the key at me, and I grabbed with my magic. "See you later !" said Killstreak with a smile and her "predator's" eyes... Hell, I hate when she do that ! Because that means she want to seduce, and I stay really possessive ...even if I'm not with her anymore ... Goddesses dammit ! Killstreak and I walked to our room and opened it ... The room was made of three parts: A saloon, a water room and THE room with a crimson covered bed big enough to Celestia and Luna at the same time ... Gorgeous ... I layed on the couch of the saloon and looked at Killstreak. "Yo, Killstreak ? Is the MagickraftWerk recharged ?" She looked her Pipbuck and gave me the heavy energy gun. "Ouf ! That's big !" I said. "And only ... one third recharged ... Gaaaaaah ! I looked the weapon everywhere and I loaded my magic in my horn. "Sky ?" asked Killstreak. I used my magic on the MagicKraftWerk and filled all the charge. I felt like drunk and tired. "Killstreak ... you're so funny ... hihi ... did I told you you were cute ? hihihi ..." I moaned at her, then I closed my eyes. I was a phenomenon when I was drunk, I'm always today ... but less ... xxo0oxx I was in the darknesses, again ... I walked forward in the dark ... All sounds around me where like a night. "Gaaah ... boring" I moaned. "I'm in a complete night, nothing, nopony around ... this night is definitely BORING !!!!" "BORING ?!" "Eyh ! Who's there ?!"I shouted in a bit of fear. "Who are you ?!" "US ? WE ARE THE NIGHT !" "Wowowowo ! Calm down, please, I don't want problems ...alright ?" A cloud of purple, blue and black mist appeared and began to turn around me. "Problems ?" Asked the mist with a sweet voice." Why should I cause problem to my own childrens ?" Two ambers glowing eyes appeared in the mist which took a tall pony form. I was afraid, really freaking afraid ... Two part of mist took me between them, like two wings. My cheek touched the form, and fear disappeared instantly. It was like a hot fur and feathers from wings were like a sweet cover on my shoulder and my body. My cheek, my neck and my chest embraced this hot mist as a foal do with his mother ... It was comforting in this dark and cold night ... so cold ... as a blizzard ... "So ? is this night so boring ?" asked the mist. "No ... not at all ... I love night ..." I answered like the filly I was more than ten years ago. "Sorry, my little pony, but I have to go ..." "No, stay here, stay with me, please .." The mist was now cold as death, and stopped to hug me, going into a cloud and disappearing in the darknesses as the sun rose. "No, wait !" I shouted as I ran. "Wait !" "WE GOT TO GO !" "No ....NO WAIT !" The light was reflected and blinded me in a white chaos, then darknesses. xxo0oxx I opened my eyes, I was in the motel, lying on the couch . I looked around me and rose on my hooves, then walked slowly to the water room, but I stopped at the room entrance. Windigo and Killstreak were sitting on the bed, the bat pony was making a braid to the white unicorn. "And so ? about Red Sky ?" asked the thestral. "She's really kind, attentionate, maybe a little possessive ... but such playful at bed..." She was right .... unless for about the bed ... I wasn't such playful ... maybe not... I sitted myself behind the wall, hearing by the door. "Such playful ?" He asked calmly. Killstreak laughed a little. "More than you can imagine ..."She said as she turned the head to look Windigo in the eyes. " And about you ?" "Nothing special ...I've been with some mares before ... but it was already two hundred years ago... and I don't remember everything ... but mares didn't change so much ... by be friend, I mean ..." Killstreak smiled, then kissed the nose of the bat boy who blushed instantly. "Whao ... mares from before the war didn't do that after only one week ... maybe they changed after all ..." he half-smiled. "But maybe we should ... you know ... learn about the other, maybe have a diner alone together ... It bother me to be only an One night adventure, if you see what I mean ..." She took a step back. "You're right ... I understand what you mean …" I remembered ... She got this problem with a bully because of this ... Windigo jumped on her and began to tickle her. "I have my revenge to take !" he said with a smile. Killstreak was laughing as I've rarely saw she do. It was enough for me, I entered the bathroom and undressed myself in front of the shower. I dropped my Stable jumpsuit on the floor, only keeping my Pipbuck. I opened the water and entered. The water was hot, like a rain on me... My geiger counter slowly crackled at less than +1 Rad ... I took an old soap and began to wash and made a sponge levitating around me, begining to rub my body with it and the soap... I washed my hooves and my belly quickly and slowed at my intimate zone ... "Hmmm ..." I moaned as the hot water was flowing over my body. I took shampoo and began to wash my mane and my tail. I've not washed myself since a long time ... too long ... exiting the shower was so hard now I got hot water … I took a cigarette in my inventory and lighted it. I walked, took a breath and levitated my jumpsuit to wash it, but stopped at the room entrance. Killstreak and Windigo were lying on the bed, the giant bat pony was covering the tall unicorn with his wing, a cover over both of them. They were cute ... That was what Killstreak needed, a stallion who were protective, able to understand her ... That was what we needed, strong relationships between us and protecting each others ... I didn't wanted to bother them, but Windigo woke up. "You're finally awoke ?" he asked. "How long ?" " Maybe six hours, maybe more ..." he said." I've no idea ..." He got up and came to me. "Killstreak and you ... are ..." I tried to ask. "Together ?" "Well ... Yeah ..." "I don't know ... "He answered. "She's kind, looks like she need somepony in her life ... But we'll be together if she want to ... and if we got time ..." I gave him a little hit with my shoulder. "Don't tell me you don't want her, you're mad of her..." I mocked. "No, no ... For the moment we are just ..." he said." ... Close friends ..." "Close friends ?" I asked. "Yes, close friends ... Does this bother you ?" "No, not at all ..." "So why do you ask me so much about my relation's nature with Killstreak ? Are you jealous ? Or are you protecting her ? Or both at the same time ?" "I ...I ... Yes I am ..." I dropped in a sigh. "She was my first marefriend ... and I've seen her suffering because of a stallion used her ... And I don't want to see this happens to her again ..." He looked at me and placed his gauntlet on my left shoulder. "I promise you this will never happens again ..." he said with a formal tone. "Y-you really promise me ?" "Yes, I promise you, but first, if you want us to talk about Killstreak and I, we'll need to wait a little ... I don't want to go in a relation on a whim ... Do you understand ?" "Yes, I understand ..." His wings surrounded me and I placed my cheek on his chest as he began to hug me ... it was like in this dream, without feathers ... I felt like in my mother's forehooves ... A hot feeling of comfort and security ... I hugged him as well, like in lack of affection ... I rubbed my cheek against his hot light-gray fur. "If you're jealous of Killstreak, tell me it ... I'll do my best to limitate our relation in front of you ..." He whispered slowly. "Okay ..." I approached my lips of his, but his head took a step back, so I stopped. He kissed my nose and smiled. "Close friends ..." He said gently. "Ok ... " I replied as I lowered my muzzle. He quietly took my chin with his gauntlet and raised my face to see me in the eyes. "Sssh ... Is something wrong ?" "I ... I don't know ... I always felt something for Killstreak and ... I don't know about you ... I mean ... You look protective, able to care about us and ... We both never seeen a stallion like you ..." "Like me ? Like a bat-monster-mutant ?" He mocked. "No, not at all ... I meant so ... large-hearted stallion ... Is that a special trait of your ... race ?" "I don't think so ... My father wasn't like me ... more suspicious and cold, but he was like me with people he liked ..." "Do you mean like you and Killstreak ?" I asked with a mocking smile. "My father was having a wife, I don't ..." He answered with the same smile. He approached his muzzle to mine and moved it at my right ear. "If you want to sleep or rest, you can come with us ..." He said. I walked to the bed, Windigo placed Killstreak with precaution and let a place between him and her, so I laid myself between them, with a feeling of security. But I haven't the need to sleep ... "Windigo ?" "Yes, Sky ?" "You want to sleep ?" "Not really ... I just rest a bit ... hunting is exhausting ..." "How about your job ?" "I got a deal with Dust Mist, A radhog for thirty five caps, against fifty for the other hunters ... I got one hundred five caps at total today ..." I raised and sat on the mattress, Windigo did same and began to use his gauntlet with my mane as I through. "What are you doing to my mane ?" I asked. "Oh, nothing ... I'm just combing it ... " He said slowly. "You won't go outside with a humid hairs ? Don't you ?" He approached himself to brush with more efficiency, then I felt his thigh's inner face against my cutie mark. I blushed and turned my head a bit to look at him. He was whistling softly and was concentrated on my mane despite his groin's proximity with my back. " Mayyyybe you'll think of me, when you are aaaaall alone, maybe the one who is waiting for youuuuu …Will proooove untrue, then what wiiiiill you doooo? Mayyyyybe you'll sit and sigh, wishiiing that I were neeeear, then maybe you'll ask me to come back agaaaaaain … And maybe I'll say maybe..." He sang slowly. "It's a beautiful song" I said. "You've not heard my grand-mother's favorite song ..." He answered. " But my granny came from Pranche, so it's in Prench ... " "Your grandparents weren't from equestria ?" "My grand-father was equestrian, but not my grand-mother ..." "And ... Is it bat ponies in Pranche ?" "I've no idea ... She never told me about the kinds of ponies I should meet ..." I looked at him one more time. Hell, now I saw him with Killstreak, I was seeing him so close to me. "And about your parents ?" He asked softly. "I don't know my father ... You already saw my mom ... she is .. or was engineer in the Stable and was working in the lower levels of the Stable ... A vital work for everypony." I answered has I levitated my cigarette. If Luna had create bat ponies, she've done a well freaking done job ! "And about-" He began, but I grabbed him at the shoulders and kissed him. It was stronger than I ... My tongue slowly slipped on his and began to turn. His teeth weren't sharps at the touch, but slick. His tongue was slippery on the inner face and lightly rough on the top. He was letting me doing the movement, no doubt to don't fuck up my kiss ... His lips were sweet and tough at the same time. I pushed him on the back, laying him on the mattress and I placed myself above him, keeping my lips against his. I draw a movement with my hoof to his somepony's zone. His reaction was quick and clear. He stopped to let me kiss him and sent my tongue out of his mouth quickly. "Ouch !" My tongue was hurt ... I've maybe cut on his teeth... He push me out and I fell next to him and near of Killstreak, then he came above me and I was now between his four legs. "Sorry to be such crude, but no, Sky, I don't want this for the moment !" "Oooh ... Pleeeeeease ..." I moaned softly. "I said no ! Killstreak is right there and I don't do this until I'm sure of my feelings ..." He said with his teeth out. "Rusty said he got a job for you and you should go see him to change your mind ... " "You're not funny !" I sighed. "Maybe ... " He said as he moved to the side and sat me free. I rose and took my Stable's jumpsuit, dressed myself and exited the room. I lowered the stairs and arrived at the reception. The arrogant stallion was still here. "Is the room pleasing your friends ?" he asked with a stressed tone. "The other unicorn like it, and the bat-boy too ..." I trotted outside and continued my travel to the "workshop". It was a old building of redbrick arranged with wood boards and metal. The entrance was like a market's shop. "Is somepony here ?" I asked in the empty building. "You've take your time to come see an old unicorn ..." answered the old voice of Rusty Wrench. "Excuse-me ... but I-" "You don't have to justify yourself ... can you come in the back room..." I entered the "back-room". It was like a old garage full of ranged weapons, terminal's parts and electronic stuff. "Woah ... that's ... a real treasure ..." I said, surprised. "That's nothing ..." "Why do you asked me to come here ?" I asked. " Hey look, filly, I'm an engineer, that means I solve problems... Not problems like "What is beauty?", because that would fall within the purview of your conundrums of philosophy. I solve practical problems... Fr'instance... How am I going to stop some big mean mother hubbard from tearing me a structurally superfluous new behind? "I don't know ..." " The answer... " He continued. "...use a gun... And if that don't work.... use more gun. You have guns, but if you go Hoofington, you're gonna need more guns ..." I looked my magnum and his condition on my Pipbuck, he was almost broke ... "Ya see, your magnum is looking good, but in fact, his gunlock is fucked ... I think I got a magnum gunlock right ..." He searched in the stuff."... there !" "Don't you got something for me ?" I asked, uncertain. "Yeah, I got a long night of learning and training for ya..." ___________________ Footnote: Quest completed, special perk gained. New Perk: Workshop mare - Working at the workshop makes you Repair skill increased by 10 and allows you to upgrade your guns by your own. You deal 5% more damage with guns, explosives and energy weapons. PrologueSo? You want to know my story? There is a lot of stories and tales in the world, and heroes aren't rare. We are all heroes in a sense, everypony, from the humblest villager to the cruelest slaver, passing by wanderers, prospectors and like me, stable dwellers. I guess you heard stories from other ponies before mine, so I don't have to remind you the basis about what happens in these times. You know, the NCR, the Light bringer... My story began almost... one year, maybe, before her own. If you think she saved the wastelands all alone, then I could say you're either stupide and credulous, either you didn't listened her story with attention. She was helped by her friends, of course, but also indirectively by ponies like me, who did things too, but... Excuse me, it's going to look like a bad joke or a pun... But the actions from ponies like me are hidden, and slowly die in the shadows of the Light bringer. I won't complain about that. I might not have my relatively calm life by now if the Light bringer didn't hidden me in her shadows, even if it was involuntary. The best would be to ask her personally, but I don't think anyone could enter the S.P.P tower like that, and even if this pony could, I don't think she could answer any question either. It would be like talking to a vegetable, boring monologue in perceptive, right? But we're not going to talk about her, there's already too much ponies claiming to knew her by the time she walked in the wastelands. Before I begin my tale, maybe I should remind you some little things from far before me, very far. It could be obvious, but without it, my story should have never happened, like all the other stories in the wastelands. Equestria was not like that before, only two hundred and fifteen years ago, it was a magnificent place. There were the ponies, zebras, griffins, and all others. The ponies, however were made of "three" races: unicorns, pegasi and the earth ponies. They builded the land of equestria together with Friendship and Harmony, all of this for more than a millenia. A magnificent world, isn't it? So what happened? Industry. Everypony wanted more than a highly inflammable cozy house with a rusty lead pipe for water in the deeps of countryside. So they builded, with concrete instead of Friendship and steel in place of Harmony. All of this rolling on money. And with industry came a need. The need of coal. Equestria didn't have coal to harvest, only giant field of gems. Zebra lands needed gems, and had enough coal to literally throw it by windows. So, Equestria and Zebra land became friends, exchanging their resources. So what could have broke it? A bloody mess. That's not a pun... A succession of fucking bloody mess. Death of soldiers, a school massacre. Then war, more deaths, more fights, more kills and then, at the paroxysm of the war... Destruction. One day, the megaspells fell, with balefire, fel magic and other horrors... Millions of ponies died, and a few hidden in the Stables. Time passed, the land tried to reborn. But the scars of war were, and are, still visible. And so, my time came. Chapter 0: How it began.Darknesses. It was all I was able to see... darknesses. Then, I heard something, like some voices, but it was impossible to understand what they said. Afterward, the pain came, and the voices became clearer. "I don't think it will be enough for Wire." said the first voice, feminine with the equivalent of a whole life of smoking cigarettes in the throat, raspy to the ears and stripping my entire inner ear of its earwax. "You know how she can become mad if we don't bring enough slaves back.". "Can you stop being a pussy for ten minutes in your life?" replied the second, masculine as I heard. "She ain't so dangerous after all! And have you seen what Barricade and Bottleneck have found?" "Yeah? And what does that prove?" asked the mare. "That means if they've only found a little sick pegasus foal, I think this mare won't make her angry or something." answered the buck. "And look at her : A unicorn who don't looks hungry, young, in top form, she even have a Pipbuck and ain't injured…" "Not injured? If you didn't hit her with your rifle stock, she won 't be inconscious and I wouldn't have to carry her!" his fellow almost roared at him. Swas angry and her moving rumb which was rocking me became uncomfortable. "Oh come on! Steel! You're not gonna sulk, aren't ya ?" demanded the stallion with a worried tone. "Yes, I Am!" she said as she trotted a little faster. I felt like I was slipping... Wait, I was actually slipping from her back ! I struck the ground, too woozy to cushion the fall, my headache became more painful, now accompagnied by the result of falling head first on a rocky ground, and I opened my eyes. The moonlight wasn't luminous enough to blind me, but my vision was completly blurred. "See! She's alive! Don't I told ya she wasn't injured?" smirked the stallion to his partner with pride. The only answer from the mare was an exasperated groan as she put something around my forehooves. "Do you thing she can walk?" asked the buck. "Can you stop asking with your stupid question, of course she can!" Be on my four hooves was painful, but not painfully as my headache, then I was able to walk. "What's your name?" asked the mare to me. "Me?" I obviously answered. "Yes, you, you retard!" She asked again. "What's your name?" "Red Sky" I answered. "Red Sky?" The buck said. "Don 't sounds like a mare's name, but whatever, Wire's waiting." He walks just at my right side and slaped my flank by passing, making me squeak on the hit. "Bullet, if ya do that again, I'll broke!" roared the mare at her compagnion. "Ok, ok… " he said quietly. "Wire's gonna be pissed, and I don't want to suffer her wrath because we brought her a slave in the middle of the night!" Well, now I, Red Sky, was a slave… and it was just the beginning of my problems. And of my journey. Chapter 8: Relationships, adrenaline and relics from the past !I walked to the motel, exhausted by a night of work... When I entered the building, I went to the stairs and entered my room, laying myself on the bed. I was alone, Windigo and Killstreak were gone. I was tired and almost sleeping when Windigo entered, trotting to the water room. He stopped at the room's door and looked... I feinted to sleep. "Skyyyy?" he asked with a kind tone. "I know you're not sleeping..." "Dammit!" "Oooh... Come on... Don't you wanna play?" I was tired, but interested. "Is Killstreak around?" I asked. "Nope..." "Maybe I could play..." "Yeah, but first... I want you at the old sparring building..." A old sparring building? To play? "I'm to tired to move out the bed..." I moaned. He exited the bathroom, the mane half-wet, and went near to the bed and laid on it. "You're sure?" His gauntlet posed on my chine and began to caress slowly. The cold metal on my skin made me shivera bit. "Well, maybe I would..." He put is hoof on my muzzle, silencing me. "Sssh... At the sparring, in twenty minutes... no retard..." "Ok..." I moaned of exasperation. He got up and went to the door, exiting the room. I took my jumpsuit and wore it... I walked to the door to and continued to outside. Two heavy armored soldiers passed at each of my sides, ignoring me. "Have you seen the new mutant in town?" asked the first to his fellow. "Yeah, but he said he was not a mutant... I don't trust it, a pegasus like that must be a mutant... but that could be worst..." The second answered." It could be an alicorn, .. or Pegasus Enclave..." "AHAHA! It's just a story of a crazy pegasus! You can be very funny when you want!" "Maybe..." I don't knew who were these guys... But they were everywhere in the city. After several minutes, I finally arrived at the boxing building. A tawny gryphon was waiting, standing against the wall with a heavy incinerator at his legs. "Hi... Is it the sparring?" I demanded to the gryphon. " Yeah... It is... Your bat friend is inside... Don't make troubles, call if problems and discuss with Tyr', not me... " He dropped with a unamical tone. "Huum... Thanks..." I entered the building. Windigo was punching a sandbag with energy and a black gryffin was next to the entrance. "Hey, Stable Mare..." said the gryphon. "Hum... yes?" His upper beak was a piece of metal and he was covered of scars. "You're here for training?" he asked me. "Yes, that's it... Tyr?" "You can call me Tyrael... Your friend's waiting you..." Windigo was boxing a sandbag hooked to the roof. He was literally letting his hoof and his gauntlet talk for him. I thanked the gryphon and walked in the bat boy's direction. He was on his back legs, punching the bag like hell. "So, you wanted to see me?" I asked him. "Yeah..." He was still punching the bag. "But why?" He stopped and went back on his four legs. "Because Killstreak heard about reapers and asked the inhabitants... They fight at hooves to hooves to know who's going to kill each other... So, you need a training..." "A training? Me? For fight? No no no no, you're wrong!" I said. " I don't need a training." "That's not what I've seen in the arena..." he mocked. He was right, I haven't been great at the arena, against raiders... "Yeeeaah... But that's something else!" I stammered. "That's something else .. I agree... Because raiders were... small fry compared to Blade Beast..." "I tell you I don't need a training..." I continued He stood back from the sandbag and showed a smile. "Hit me..." he said. "What? Windigo, I'm not going to hurt y-" "HIT ME!" he roared. "If I tell you to hit me, you do it!" "Ok... ok..." I prepared the most powerful hoof I've ever done and knocked Windigo... Or instead tried... My hoof dashed in his face's direction, but the bat pony avoided it without problem and things became worse. He grabbed my foreleg with his gauntlet and turned, throwing me on the ground, back against the concrete. In first step, I didn't understood what just happened. "OH FUCK! I'm sorry!!" apologized Windigo. " I didn't .. I mean... I didn't wanted to hurt you like that... I-I... How do you feel?!" "It hurts..." I answered. "It fucking hurts..." He rose me on my legs again, inspecting almost every part of me. Now, My back was hurting me like hell. I felt like a block of stone, a block of stone with a horrible backache... "Maybe we should begin by basics..." Said Windigo. "Agreed…" Killstreak entered and walked to us. "Well well... Can I come in this "training"?" asked the tall unicorn mare. "Maybe, if you're bad as Red Sky..." answered Windigo. "Shut up!" I growled. "I think I can have a test." mocked Killstreak. "On the ring" Windigo looked surprised. "Why not!" he said. They mounted on the ring, facing each other. Windigo thrown his hoof to Killstreak, she took it and made the bat pony hitting the ground. He rose quickly. "Ahh... Let see what you're made of!" he smiled. Killstreak smote Windigo's china with her right back leg. He answered by a uppercut, sending the mare in the ropes. I used a med-X on my back and went knock Killstreak hoof and took her place. "Alright, let's do this, bat-boy!" I yelled, jumping on the ring. I ran at Windigo and jumped, hitting him with a dropkick. I felt my blood becoming hot and my hearth speed up. I didn't felt the backache anymore and I didn't care about it... He fell on the ground, then rose again. "Last time, it was warm-up!" I cried happily. He looked at me and get up on his back legs. He wasn't kidding... he wasn't kidding anymore. He draw his gauntlet to me and I avoid it before activating my S.A.T.S. and hitting him at many times, but he didn't looked affected at all... "I stop playing games with you..." he growled between his teeth. He grabbed me and threw me in the ropes, then jumped and prepared to hit me with his gauntlet. I jumped at right, dodging the hit. I mounted the pole and jumped from up the third string, landing in Windigo's head. The thestral fell in a loud noise. "Windigo? Are you ok?" asked Killstreak. "My head hurts... " I sat near to Windigo and breathed. My backache was slowly coming back... with a lot of grudge. I looked at the bat pony laying on the ground with satisfaction. "It seems you don't need a training after all..." he sighed. " Can you levitate me a drink, please..." "Incoming!" I said happily with a giant smile as I levitated three Sunrise Sarsaparilla to us. "Health!" I continued. "Health!" "Health... ouuuuh... my head..." XXXXXX A hour of checking my stuff… weapons, medicine, food... Maybe not enough for more than six days, but we would be able to found something. My package finished, I walked to the exit of the town. Windigo took a leather flight jacket with fur inside and a moon with a vertical pupils blue unicorn's head as badge on each shoulder. "Where did you found this?" I asked. "In the Mansion's strongbox... " he answered."I've a weapon, but I don't know if you'll be able to use it..." "What kind of weapon?" asked Killstreak with surprise. The bat pony took a sword. The ebony blade was incredibly brilliant and "It's a "katana" as say the pipbuck..." he continued. "Extremely dangerous, sharp... My father called it "Half Moon"... The grip is very good balanced, the blade is perfect... It's a real jewel..." he said as he stored the sword in the protective sheath. "Direction east?" asked Killstreak, her battle saddle armed. I looked at her and Windigo. We were ready... "Direction east!" I answered. We began to trot in our usual formation: Windigo at my right, Killstreak at my left, me between these giants... after some time, a forest began to appear at the horizon. My Pipbuck showed the name of this place when we arrived at the border of the forest. - Everfree Forest - This was a dark dead forest... A damn forest again... I looked at my pipbuck for the objective, hoping I could found a way to go at Hoofington without pass inside the forest. "We should follow the forest to the north and continue east when we'll arrive at a lake..." I said slowly as my eyes were focussing on the screen. "Why? We just have to walk into the forest and go right to Hoofington!" replied Killstreak. "Forest means beasts, and beasts mean predators... And remember what I told you about it..." answered Windigo has he took the flare gun. So we walked north for a long time... too long and too calm... I saw Windigo was a bit stressed, looking always at the forest or behind him. I decided to ignore it and focused on our road. At right, it was a flat dusty desert and at left, the forest made of grim black trees and strange plants. We finally arrived at a place full of scrap metal from the old world and... Skeletons... "It's freaky..." said Killstreak." Really freaky..." Something took my attention, a dead body half eaten, literally, but differently from the slaver camp. "What kind of pony can do this?" I asked, looking at the corpse. "It's not a pony who have done this, it's big, very big..." answered Windigo. "Bigger than a timberwolf..." The sound of a metal thing falling on a pile of steel behind us alerted me. I turned to see and frozen in fear. A giant beast with two head was facing us from the pile of wastes. A head and forelegs of tiger with sabertooth, another head and back legs of goat. "Windig?" I murmured. "What is that big big beast " He turned and looked at it calmly. "Oh .. Just a Chimera... wait." He said. "A chimera?" He instantly froze. "Look, sisters, the lunch is ready!" said the tiger head. "Three? It's like birthday!" replied the goat head. "Time to eat!" The monster roared as she jump at us, landing in front of us, then she rushed on us. Killstreak and I jumped to avoid the beast, arriving behind the monster. "Where do you thhhhink you are going?" asked a female voice. I bet it was the tail which just told this... and it was the tail... A snake head... The beast turned to attack us, Killstreak rose and began to fire at the chimera who roared as the bullets began to hurt her skin. I took my magnum an ran around the predator, firing at it. Her leather was too resistant, and bullet were inefficient against her... This "Chimera" was a a fucking creepy creature. I changed .375 magnum to Hydra, jumped the closer possible and shooted at the animal stomach with the three barrels at the same time. The shot splashed me with hot blood and entrails parts. The monster didn't liked it and roared to say it. I rolled at right, avoiding the claws of the beast. "WE WILL CRUSH YOU LIKE BUGS!" roared the chimera. Windigo jumped on the multi-animal creature, grabbing her with his gauntlet and knocking the tiger face with his hoof. "Then I'll crush your face until it looks like pudding!" he said with a smile. The monster threw the bat poy away and I ran to help him. "Windigo? Are you alright?" I asked. "Yeah .. just... hurt a little .." He got the katana at his side. I don't know why but I really wanted to use it... So I levitated it and turned to the chimera. Killstreak was jumping right then left to survive. I took a pill of something my pipbuck called "Buck" and suddenly felt somepony different. "GUTS AND GLORY LADS!" I roared as I was charging the beast. "YOU INSOLENT!" answered the Chimera as she turned. The monster swing his claws at me an I jumped at right, levitating a old pre-war vehicle's door to have a shield. I ran to the monster, my pseudo-shield before me and the blade at my side. The chimera tried to catch me with her teeth. I closed her big mouth with a shield hit and jumped on the beast back. The Goat head tried to hit me and I replied with a single swing of my sword, cutting the head as I was paper. The snakehead dashed to bite me but knocked on the car's door and I did the same thing than with the goat head. The last hed was the only master of the body now. I jumped to the ground. The beast threw Killstreak on Windigo who just began to rose. Now the monster was in front of me... "THERE COULD BE ONLY ONE!!!" I roared again as I charged the monster. The chimera jumped, landing before me, mouth opened with sharp teeth. I threw my scrap shield, blocking her jaws and mounted on her head. I draw a powerful swing with my katana and planted the blade between the monster's eyes who fell on the ground. I levitated the sword at my side and walked at Windigo and Killstreak. "What do you think about that?" I asked with an arrogant smile. "Can do better" answered Windigo as he rose. I took the blade's sheath and store it, then took it and tied it at my Stable jumpsuit's belt. Killstreak rose too. "Well, it was a real monster..." She said. "Let's continue... we have wasted enough time..." I sighed at the reaction of my teammates about my performance. We walked a little like three minutes and I stopped. Something just catched my attention. "What's that?" I asked. "It's just a car..." answered Windigo. "No, what's just behind the car?" In asked again. It looked like something I knew but I wasn't sure. Windigo got on his back legs and pushed the car out the way. A bunker door appeared behind the pile of scrap metal and wastes. "Do you think you can open this?" I demanded at Windigo. "Pfft... easy peasy!" he replied with a arrogant gaze. He touched the door and in place to be opened with some difficulties, the door opened easily. Windigo looked uncertain about this door. "What's wrong?" asked Killstreak "It was too easy to a bunker door..." he answered."almost easy as a pub door a friday night..." "Pub?" I questionned. "Sort of saloon in town from before the war..." he said. "Well, resolution number one, when Windigo talk about something I don't understand, that's because it come from before the war." I through to myself. I used my magic to light before us. The hall of concrete was covered of numberous scratches. "Hum... that's a beast?" I asked, uncertain. "It could be... but it's minimum pony size..." he continued as he took Savage Beast in his gauntlet. "Use your shotguns... short range...I go first." Yeah, Closed space, possibly monsters at each corner. Looks like a old film... "How do you know how to do?" asked Killstreak. "We have both lived in a stable, Red Sky and I." "I know it was a cliché at my time, but I've seen a film when I was young... And as I remember, we don't have flamethrower…" I made a amused sigh. The principal bunker door appeared before us, opened by a huge tear big enough to let Windigo, who was the bigger of us, pass. We entered slowly. It seems something big with claw has been jailed in this underground facility. We looked inside, saw robotic carcasses lying on the ground, disemboweled, beheaded or dismembered into electronics pieces. A battle happened here, and robots tried to stop it and unfortunately, they didn't win… We continued a little and finally arrived at the rooms. I saw scientist coats on some beds, others research stuff were in the rest of the piece. "Ok, It seems we don't need to worry about security here." I said. "Just look inside rooms and pick useful stuff... see you here in twenty minutes…" I began the harvest and looked into a locker. Some Med-X, clothes and a strange .. orb... I took it with my telekinesis and shook the orb. "What kind of thing is this?" I felt strange for a moment and saw only darknesses. <-=======ooO Ooo=======-> I woke up and my first surprise was to be handcuffed in front of a table, a giant glass behind it. My second surprise was I wasn't yellow anymore, but grey and I felt somepony else. As I looked into the glass, only a part of my muzzle and my forelegs were under the light. A unicorn mare in a scientist coat came in the room with some papers. She sat on a chair and put her papers on the table, she adjust her glasses and looked at me. "Subject S-zero-zero-nine-nine-nine..." She said as she put a first sheet of paper before me with a S00-999 written on the dossier. "You have said you agreed to become the fist subject for Project Reaper?" "Yes, I have." I answered with a calm male voice. It was strange .. like I was somepony, but I haven't the control, like in a dream or a memory. "And Why?" asked the mare before me. "Because I have nothing to lose anymore..." "Even your Equinity?" continued the unicorn. "I know how your kind works, day-mare... You've already read my court record, my background... Everything the Ministry of Morale has gave you about me..." The unicorn looked anguished and under heavy stress. "Yes, I've saw it" she answered before she swallow her own saliva and put another paper with pictures before me. "I saw... war crimes... torturer... murderer... insubordination... betrayer..." She was having a growing fear at each words, I was able to feel it... to smell it... "You're right, Doc..." I calmly said, accentuating ont he "Doc" word. "And why have you done this?" she questioned. "The answer is simple, Doc... Zebras took me everything... My wife, my son... My only reasons to still sane in all this masquerade... Have you lost somepony you loved because of them, Doc?" The unicorn looked at me and a tear flowed slowly on her cheek. "Sorry, I..." She tried to say. "You don't have to, I know how that feel... explain me, it's better outside than inside..." "My little daughter..." cried the mare" These fucking zebras have killed my little daughter at the Luna’s Academy .." "So, Doc... We're here for the same thing" I said. She rose her face and looked me in the eyes. I saw anger and hatred in her eyes. "The Project Reaper will give you a new life, a new chance... Princess Luna has personally asked for you to become the subject..." the mare continued. "We will upgrade you with a part of Project Steelpony and will adapt it to your morphology and the fact you're a pegasus... after your complete upgrade, we'll continue to the second part of the project if you survive... like the first real Steelpony, "Deus" Ex Machina"..." "I will survive… I always survive... " I said with a toothy smile. My vision went fuzzy and became darknesses. <-=======ooO Ooo=======-> I looked around in the room. So there was a facility for Project Reaper, interesting. I looked inside more lockers and found a metal briefcase full of these orbs. 'Subject S00-999's memory' was written on the box. I closed it and took it in my inventory... "It would be interessant to see it if I don't want to sleep..." I thought. After this, I exited the room, continued to walk and arrived at the security room, Windigo was inside, so I entered. "So? What did you found?" I asked him as I sat at his left side. "Some things which used to be at somepony important in this bunker..." He answered as he shook his head at the wall. The glass has been broken, and everything which was inside has disappeared, probably stolen. I looked at him again and put my shoulder against his, so his gaze went at me. His amber eyes were fixing mine and sometimes browsing my face. "Windigo?" I demanded to the bat pony as I sticked my hoof against his own. "Yes?" he said, visibly with a bit of bother."You want something?" "I-I wanted to know..." I began. "When I kissed you... at the motel..." "Yes?" "I'm- I'm sorry for... you know .. after, when I tryed to... well..." "Wonderful, Red Sky, you're not even able to tell a stallion you're sorry because you kissed him and tried to have your fun time with him!" I thought as I tried to speak normaly. Windigo rose his gauntlet and put it on my cheek, then I stopped to talk and looked each other. We both slowly approached our muzzles of each other. I closed my eyes and put my lips on his. The sensation of his gauntlet on my cheek disappeared as I felt the metallic thing lowering himself on my right shoulder then on my ribs. I introduced my tongue into his mouth and repeat as at the motel without pushing him. I passed my hooves around his neck, putting my body against his muscular chest. His left hoof began to caress my chine which shuddered at the contact. I stopped and put my muzzle near to his left ear. "Maybe we should close the door first... You know, In a Stable or a bunker, sounds are going very far." I sensually mattered to him. "Why? You can't just enjoy the present moment?" He asked with a slow voice . "No .. it just I- " I stuttered. "I just want to do more than enjoying this moment." He slowly put his muzzle at my ear, close enough that I felt his hot breath in my neck. "Are you in heat or something?" he demanded with a voice that made me literally melt. "I-I don't know..." I answered as I heavily blushed. It may be this... or a very big lack of love or affection. Windigo slightly bit my ear's lobe with the tip of his fore teeth, licking the part of my ear in his mouth with a very slow movement. I dropped a moan of surprise then retake control on myself. I looked the bat pony in the eyes and blushed even more. "Windigo?" I asked the thestral. "About when you kissed me, some minutes ago... was it- was it a serious kiss?" He looked disturbed and inside me, I felt embarrassed too. "I-I don't know... "He answered. "I was going to ask you the same thing about at the motel..." I looked at him, then at the stuff in the room. "And what did you found?" I questioned him. He took a metallic box and gave it to me. "Only this." He said with a sad tone. "What's wrong?" I demanded. "A problem?" "I just expected better from a bunker like this." I expected more about the stuff too, but only from the stuff. "Have you an idea where is Killstreak?" I asked. "She is collecting data on the server. " answered the bat pony as he grabbed a old military magazine. "Well,see you later..." "Ok then..." He said as he was turning a page. I slowly trotted in the corridors, looking at the metal walls covered of scratches. Something big should have unleashed his or her wrath... I looked at the panels and followed the way to the server room, stopped at the door and took a look inside. Killstreak was on a terminal, typing on the keyboard. I advanced me to her and sat at her side. "Found something?" she asked me without leave the monitor with her eyes. "Just some usual stuff, Windigo have found a metal box, but I can't unlock it..." "Nothing interessant, so." she continued. I levitated a cigarette and lighted it, then took a breath. "Yeah, that's it..." I answered. "Well, on my side I've found some data..." Killstreak said. "But something bothers me…" "Bother you?" I demanded with a raised eyebrow. Just a bit have bothered Killstreak since I knew her... at the time we were together, the fact to have to confess to her mother that she was lesbian... when she got her cutie mark of varmint killing instead of a informatic technician like her mother... despite that for this time, her mother was happy for her... Killstreak's mother was a good mare... a bit anarchist on the edges... but a good mare. She was the best computer specialist of our Stable-village, with a punk style and a crude humor that my mother liked. In contrario of Killstreak, I was having a cutie mark looking like my mother's one. A cutie mark of electrician mare... Building a wire circuit between the reactor, the stable and houses outside the stable was her main job when she wasn't checking it. Killstreak mother and mine were friends since childhood as Killstreak and I were and it was always nice when our mothers were inviting each other to discuss around a glass of aperitif after a day of work, letting their daughters playing and chat. "Yeah, the security has been disactivated a certain time ago, like somepony came here before..." said the albino unicorn. "Prospectors? Raider? treasure hunters? or Blade Beast?" I questioned. "Maybe, but why didn't they haven't just "cut an paste" all the data?" she answered. I looked over her shoulder to watch the screen. "All data are still here... and there is a strange thing into the server... like... ghost files..." "Whatever, your mother told me there was frequently ghost files in computers..." "Not a ghost file like usually said in informatician language, Sky... that like... this file was haunting the server, trying to come over all current applications... I've not stopped to close it to continue... " "What is the file type?" I asked, blowing my cigarette smoke and frowning. "A audio record... or a video... " told my friend. "Then let it run..." "Are you sure? It could destroy all data if it was programmed to do so..." "Let it run... If it destroys the data, it would be files that Blade Beast will never have..." "Ok then..." sighed Killstreak. She typed a key and a window appeared on the screen. - DO YOU WANT TO RUN THIS FILE?- - YES? - - NO?- -YES- -LOADING- A crackling noise came from two speakers. "To the stallion or the mare who was able to open this file... " began the audio record with a deep voice. "If you want to know why this file is trying to come over all others, it because I programmed it for this... All the files about Project Reaper on this server are falses... I've already took it... anypony who have downloaded it are exposing their informatic systems to viruses. These files are not allowed to be used once more... Equestria and Zebra empire has done too much atrocities like this one..." "Ok... I see... Thankfully I haven't downloaded the files from Project Reaper..." said Killstreak with a relieved tone. "So? You've downloaded something?" I asked while I took a breath on my cigarette. "Yes... but there are only some journal entries..." "Can I have it?" I demanded. "Of course you can..." replied the unicorn as she gave me an USB key. "I didn't want it anyway..." I took it an downloaded on my Pipbuck... more reading for the night... "Sky? Can I ask you about something?" demanded the unicorn. "It depend..." I mocked her. "About Windigo... " "Well... ask me..." I answered as I breathed my smoke. "I think there something between you and him..." she said. "And I wanted to know if I was right..." I looked at her with a bit of surprise. "Well... I'm not sure that..." I told. "And whatever? Must I deduce you got a crush on him?" She blushed and lowered her ears. "No no no! I... I just..." she stammered. "Well... yeah I do... but just a bit." I laughed at this sentence. "Killstreak... You'll never change" I sneered. "Did you remember our first date? I've asked you if you loved me... and you answered the same thing..." "Yes, but you were my first date of my life..." She replied. "And Windigo is a stallion, you weren't..." "I'm not a buck, indeed... but who was always making initiatives? And who was moaning when we were playing?" I mocked even more. "Stop talking about that! He could hear us..." she said as her face turned red as her eyes. "You got a question, I got one..." I said. "Are you still having feelings for me and having a crush on him at the same time?" "I... I..." I cutted her by kissing the top of her nose then put my forehooves on her shoulders. "Oh... Killstreak... you should know I'm still having you in my hearth..." I muttered slowly. "Are you really thinking it?" she demanded. "I mean... We've broke and... If you..." "If I what? If I'm with Windigo? I'm not with him for the moment... So I'm free if it's what you want to know..." I answered."But first, we need to exit this bunker, a cool place and then talk about this... ok?" "Yes, I see..." she replied with a smile. We both rose and exited the room in a slow walk, climbing stairs and calmly going to the armory. When we arrived, Killstreak and me stopped at the door. I looked by the door. Windigo was here, the back leaning against the wall, still reading the weapon magazine. "Windigo?" I asked by the entrance. "We're going outside..." He looked up from the book and turned to us. "I'm coming, ladies..." he answered as he got up. Our group ready, we exited the bunker and walked outside, going out of the landfill. We walked several minutes at the edge of the forest when two shadows passed on us. "What was that?" I demanded to Windigo. He looked uncertain, trying to locate and see these things. "I don't know... and I don't like this..." he growled. I took a look to the cloudy sky... two forms appeared, made circles above us and landed twenty meters in front of our group. These .. things .. were like ponies by the form, with strange metal gears, no doubt it was an armor... They were visibly talking to each other, sometimes taking a look at us. Windigo drew a slow movement with his gauntlet to the butt of Savage Beast, preparing to draw his shotgun. I put my hoove on his metal claw and slowly shook my head in a negative move. If these guys hadn't attacked us yet, maybe they would talk or something. Windigo put his foreleg to the ground and stood showing an inimical gaze. I pricked up my ears to ear what were saying these ponies. "I'm sure, it's a bad idea..." said the first with a mare voice. "We're just going to ask these inhabitants, there's nothing bad..." answered the other in a deep voice. "IT's something bad! What if they are radioactive? If their bodies are full of horrible germs? " asked the mare. "Have you any idea?" "Come on... don't tell me you trust these stupidities that parents use to afraid foals..." The buck replied. "Hum... Excuse-me... We aren't radioactive!" I yelled shyly at them. "And we don't have deadly germs inside our bodies!" "You're sure?" murmured Windigo. "If we were, you body who is adapted to pre-war viruses would be dead..." I replied with a bored tone. "Oh .. I almost forgot this..." he said. The ponies in front of us stopped talking and looked at us. "I think this one try to communicate with us..." said the stallion. "Don't be stupid... How could they even understand us?" replied the mare. "Look... Hey! You! The strange and illiterate surface inhabitant next to the mutant and the with thing? Can you understand me?" "Yes, I guess..." I answered. "See, they don't underst-"began the mare. "Wait... they understand us?" "It seems that yes..." moaned the second armored pony. "So let me ask and shut up... last time, they attacked us because you said they were stupids..." "Oh come on..." growled the other. The buck made some steps and stopped ten meters from us. "Excuse me, creatures from the surface..." he asked."Have you seen a vertibuck's squad out there?" I looked at my fellows. Windigo should have never heard of this, showing a grimace at the name. Killstreak and I never heard of this too. I shook my shoulder to indicate my interlocutor we didn't know this "vertibuck". The stallion facehoofed and dropped a heavy desperate sigh. "Have you seen an orange coated pegasus mare with a black uniform?" he asked again. "Or even a white pegasus mare with a blond mane, a feather for cutie mark and a black uniform too?" Windigo and Killstreak shook their heads negatively. "Sorry sir, we are formals... We haven't seen anypony like this..." I said to the buck. The pony turned to his fellow, then put this hoof on his headgear. "Reconnaissance unit Beta-five here, we've raked all the perimeter at five kilometers around the crash site... we've found no clues about the reconnaissance unit delta-four after the crash... We found some corpses... but we don't have idea about what happened to the dashite or the missing corpses... we are going back to the base... Over..." The buck muttered before opening his wing protected under metal wing armor like thing. "Thanks for you collaboration..." He said before flying off. The mare followed him and they disappeared at the horizon. "Strange people... " Killstreak said. "After seeing Windigo, I don't expect things more weird." I answered with a mocking smile. Windigo growled at me and began to sulk. "Oh! Come on, big boy, I'm kidding..." I conforted him before kissing his cheek but he continued."Killstreak? I need a hoof here..." "Oh no! You're big enough to fend for yourself with this kind of problem..." she mocked me. "Gaaaah..." I sighed heavily. "Alright then... Come on, we've got a long road to do…" ___________________ Footnote: Level Up. New Perk: Adrenaline junky - When you are fighting in a face to face, you gain +1 at strengh, stamina and luck. Bonus of strengh, stamina and S.A.T.S. precision by consumables are also multiplied by 20 %.
Chapter 1: Die hard (rewritten)The Sun rises … but I would prefer he stays behind the horizon ... The sun was a good thing, a symbol of a great power oldest than us … but also a sad memory from a ancient time when Equestria was a magnificent land of prosperity and friendship … and a time when some stupids governements decided to fight themselves and brights death and fel magic upon the fertiles lands of the world .. For ponies who think Equestria is still a lovely land … then stay in your stable, keep your eyes closed, maybe kill yourself or accept the innaceptable, because all you have learn at school or you have read in one of some half-burned books from before the Great War is just what I was able to see under the rising sun's light : A desert of grey dust sometimes raised by the wind, where fel magic radiation, ruins, mutated beasts and groups of psychotic murderers were always present … And when it wasn't these horrors, it was slavers, bounty hunters or just the lack of food supplies. Disappeared, the sweet grass from the fresh hay, Destroyed, the cute villages and lovely towns … Finished, the happy civilisation of Equestria, Fainted, the pride of yesteryear … And today, we all suffer of their stupidity … their childish jealousy between them … Now everypony from the stables calls "Goddesses" for the two who have doom their people, or rather their servants ... "Celestia protects, Luna defends" I learned at the school of my village ... Well ... I guess that disappearing and letting the Zebras shot balefire megaspell on your people, let them kill the survivors, it's well protecting ... And I guess that banish yourself on the moon to survive is well defending too ... But inside me, I was unable to hate or blame the princesses ... I was walking with two slavers at my side, chains at my hooves, a horrible headache ... The princesses were not the cause of all of this ... I was .. Be gone from my village was stupid: I was only twenty one year old, without guns, never gone at more than thirty meters from my home, alone and worst of all ... without food ... and cherry on the cake, I was a mare unable to fight ... and attack any beast from the wastelands in close combat was more a suicide than a real confrontation to survive ... So, two slavers with guns ... It was playing with my own life ... and my freedom if they decided to keep me alive ... and I was thinking I was able to steal them some food ... And now ... I know I was just a retard and they decided to keep me alive ... At the tip of the little road we were following, I seen a strange building ... a barricade … a pile of old vehicles, steel plates, wooden poles and other stuffs. When we arrived at the door, a unicorn appear on the wall of scrap metal. "Halt ! Who's there ?" he said as he pointed us with a machinegun. The mare named Steel talked at first. "It's Steel Mane and Bulletproof … We've got something for Wire ..." The guard looked at me. "Nice piece ! Alright then !" The massive doors opened before us in a metal gear sound and the slavers pushed me into the town. It was some strange place : Slaves were in spacious cages which looked like enclosures with in the center a roof of iron plates on four pillar which were rusty lamp posts. Some slaves were talking and other were lying under the roof. When I passed the door, every slaves in the enclosures looked at me, surprised. the slaves who were out of their jails were working in the town, pushing plows full of supplies: food, water containers, ammunitions, weapons, metal, rocks ... My kidnappers and I were going at a big building which should be a old mayor's house. The door opened, many ponies were checking old mosi paper and completing registers. we walked forward before being stopped by a guard. "Sorry guys, Barbed Wire is pissed off … Stay back for your own security …" he said. "Yeah yeah … like the one when it was because she didn't have sleep more than two hours in the same night …" sighed Bulletproof by passing the guard. "But-" The guard was cutted. "No worries, we've got a present for her …" said Steel Mane with calm as she pulled me to the door of the ancient mayor's office. The room was large, and in the background was a big bed full of old pillows and between them was lying a earth mare. Her fur was grey as the dust from outdoor, the base of her mane was black, then purple and finally fuschia at the tip of her hair. Her cutie mark was disturbing: a rusty horseshoes covered with blood and barbed wire twisted around it. The mare was looking pissed off and looked at my ravisher without real consideration. "I hope you're not here to announce me a bad new ... because I'm a little angry and if nopony have something good to say, I think I'll launch you Windigo just to see how many of you incompetent are gonna die before I feel satisfied …" she said with calm. At the word of Windigo, the slavers took a step back and gulped. It seen they feared "that". "Well ... why don't you take time with him ? you know ... like .. everytime ..." asked Bulletproof with dread. She looked at him with a unsympathetic look. "Do you remember the raiders ?" "Yes, Ma'am , why ?" "Because they're back and they want to test us in a fight between their best fighters against our ... Windigo doesn't have teammate anymore and I don't want to risk any of my slavers, including you two … You know the stuff ... If we win, they shouldn't attack us and let us tranquil ... But if we lose, they're going to destroy the camp and do what they do better ..." She said slowly. "Yes, I remember this stuff ... and I know what they will do ... Crush, Kill, Destroy, Rape ..." replied Bulletproof with a lazy tone. "What a surprise, Barbed, We got a gift for ya !" said Steel Mane with a large smile "Look at what we have !" Barbed Wire descended from her bed and began to turn around me. "That's a cool piece you got there ... young ... don't looks hungry or sick ... interessant ..." She stopped her eyes at my pipbuck. "And you got a S.A.T.S ? ... Do you know how to use a piece of metal pipe, a hammer or something else ?" She asked me. "Y-Yes, I guess" I answered with fear She looked at me for a moment in any seams. "Very well ... Put her in Windigo's room ... and for you two ... you have free time for two days ... bringing me this filly was exactly what I was needing." she said with a smile. Steel Mane and Bulletproof were leading me to that Windigo ... They were exchanging smiles, kisses and sweet words ... Their couple could look cute ... If I wasn't having chain at my hooves. Then we arrived at a big reinforced door of steel without guards. Bulletproof opened the door and Steel Mane retrieved the chains, making me free before they close the door after me. I heard Steel Mane's moan at what Bulletproof said about what a beautiful night they were going to pass ... Inside me, something told me it wasn't the same for me ... I turned to the room and I see it: It was something like ... two heads taller than me and he was just ... sitting ... It looked like a pony, but the darkness in the room makes me impossible to distingue was kind of pony ... He was looking at the door, waiting for something, his eyes were low glowing with a bluish white light and he was wearing something at his right forehoof, but it wasn't a pipbuck … his fur was pale grey and his mane was white as dead … he got two black things on his back … but impossible to determine what it was ... "Hum .. so you're Windigo, isn't it ?" I asked. No physical or linguistic answer ... He continued to look at the door, his eyes were whites like ... if he was blind. But how a blind pony could be such feared ? I looked around me and seen in the darkness a pile of pillows at a corner of the room. I lay myself on this soft thing and looked at him another time ... the fear of a stallions I didn't know was terrific, but this one was special ... I feared him and was interested by this strange pony at the same time. Finally I was so tired that I began sleep while I was keeping an eye on him since twenty minutes ... Mornings at home were sweets : Mom has always woke me up at 10 o'clock, then I ate a breakfast with some homemade bread and food from the Stable 13 ... Because my grand mother was from the Stable 13 ... elsewhere, our village was just a part of our town, because we had the Stable, where were born our grandparents and it was like a city underground : water cleaning, supplies creating, electricity production and houses … Our village was located somewhere near to Hollow Shade's dead forests and empty caves … Caves were perfect to build a Stable before the Great War … Yeah .. It was a good village ... and this morning was just here to remember how I was stupid to go in the wastelands ... The door opened and Barbed Wire entered, followed by two guards in armor of scrap metal. She looked at me, then at Windigo, walked forward to him and stopped almost in contact with the muscular chest of the big livid stallion and began to pass her hooves around his neck, whispering something at his ears. He didn't either made any linguistic or physical answer to her. A guard coughed and she stopped. "Oh ... yeah ... take her away .. I want to be alone with him ... You can play with her if you want but don't break it ... I need her for the raiders ..." I looked at the guards who were smiling at me and my fear went to grow inside me. As the first guard grabbed me, the terror was everywhere in my body. What were they going to do with me ? I didn't want to believe or think about this ! "STOP ! NO ! LEAVE ME ! HELP !" I screamed, the fear and dread in each part of my voice and my heart. I didn't realize what happens at this moment: Windigo moved ... no ... jumped between me and the guards with a speed I've never seen. Sitted, he was tall, standing, he was giant ! The guards were just taller enough to his wither. And he was having wings ... wait ... he wasn't a usual pegasus, pegasi don't have leather made bat-wings with giants claws on it ! He was facing the two guards and roared loudly revealing his trenchant fangs and his eyes were exposing vertical pupils and amber irises... I heard about Luna's guards, but books said they were just taller a bit than usual ponies, their fang were a little bigger, they were dark or blue colors and their wings were just bat-wings ..not bat-wings armed with claws on a white-grey beast tall as a bear with saber teeth ! "Leave the room !" screamed Barbed Wire at the guards. "But -" "Leave this fucking room NOW !!! THAT IS AN ORDER !!!" She shouted louder. The guards took retreat as fast as their hooves were able to make them leave from the beast's room. Windigo stayed at his place and seated before looking the door like nothing just happened ... his eyes started to glow again. Barbed Wire Takes him in her forehooves. "Sssh ... Everything's quiet ...Now calm down and be a good buck ..." She whispered sensually at his ears. Ok ... The boss of the slavers was using this half-beast or mutant stallion as a ... I didn't have words for this .. maybe I got it : a sexual punching-ball... or she was really in love for him ... and this was strange because he wasn't reacting to her sensual touch and soft whispers ... He was inactive like he was in coma ... but he just reacted at me when I screamed out ... He was really strange ... She approached her lips from his and kissed him before she ... introduces her tongue in his mouth, trying to pass between the sharp teeth of her ... how to describe this relationship ? ... well ... her stallion ... I thought just kissing another pony was disgusting ... but kissing a male with such carnivorous dentition was just unthinkable ... How was she able to kiss him without cuts and how can she be in love ? Ok, he was strong, and his fur in the tip of his ears and his chest were a little attractive ... but his wings and his fangs made him a bit too exotic ... "Wait ? Was I gauge his characteristics which could make him sexy at my eyes ?" I thought and asked to myself. She was going to bend down when she remembered me, stopping her movement at the middle of the stallion's stomach ... She stood up in confusion, turned to the door and gone out from the room, closing the massive metal room behind her. Oh, by talking about characteristics, I've forgot to introduce myself ... My name was Red Sky .... but you already know that ... I was just an unicorn mare with a yellow fur, brown mane with a bit of red in my neck, green eyes ... My cutie mark was a gray horn with red lightning at each side. Nothing special ... I think I've the time to talk about myself ... because I prefer you to know me before slavers send me with my new ... teammate in a pit against two raiders ... And I'm not sure he will fight to protect me this time ... I knew it's gonna happen, Barbed Wire said it ... Raiders were going to bet on their champions ... and our death ... Twenty-one years old, and I was going to die with a Luna's guard descendant against raiders in a arena full of dust and blood ... And I didn't want to think about what a band of raiders was able to do at a fresh dead corpses of mares: me, slavers and slaves included ... It was my life or their, and personally, I prefered mine ... I suddenly heard agitation from outdoor : sadical laughs, screams, it was the raiders band ! Afterwards came shouts from slavers. Raiders became quieter. The metal door opened and Steel Mane and Bulletproof entered with chains and attached it at Windigo's hooves and mine. They pulled me first, we walked out from the jail and the building, moved to a strange hole digged in the ground. It was a circle with a roof made of rusty iron fence retained by chains. In the arena, walls of clay were reinforced with wooden plates and some beams of wood or steel. The public made of slavers and raiders was above this pit. We were placed before a harrow, Windigo was at right, I was at left, no problem for the moment. "Don't disappoint Wire ... If you loose and we survive to the raiders, you'll regret it ..." whispered Steel Mane at my ears. She exited, letting my teammate and I alone. The gate opened, and it was the same at the other side of the arena : two raiders appeared, the first, a unicorn, was levitating a wooden bat with bloody nails on it. And the second was using a notched meat cleaver. They were looking at us like they were having a crazy hunger of sadistic murder. They were gauging us ... I was probably the most easy to gauge: I was shaking of dread, and the sentence "It smells fear up here" made sense because my fear was like a cloud almost palpable. I don't know how they saw Windigo's presence, but the one with knife focused on me. How I knew it ? Maybe he just launched his cleaver at me !!! I dodged the lethal object as fast I was able to do. "Oh Dear Celestia, Why ?" I screamed inside me. He turn to me, outgoing knives hanged on his armor. Oh Dear Luna, he was really wanting to kill me and nopony else ! He galloped right on me, knives in his mouth. He tried to hit me with his blade but missed. I jumped, landing at the other side of the arena. The other raider charged Windigo and hit him at the shoulder. No reaction ... Only two solutions: Or he was in coma like I was thinking, or he was resilient like hell ! When the raider retrieve his weapon with surprise and misunderstanding, instead of red and hot blood, a black liquid looking like pitch came out from the wound. I looked at the public: Raider where maniacally laughing and screaming, and slavers where silents or talking between them. I saw Barbed Wire, sitted in a place just for her. She took something like a vocal recorder and discreetly turn it on, but I heard nothing. "AAAARRGGGGHHHH !!" Screamed somepony in the arena. It was Windigo : he was on the ground like writhing in agony, holding his ears under his hooves. Now I was able to see the thing he was wearing at his right forehoof. It was hard to see it while dodging the psychopathic who was trying to cut me into pieces of meat. This thing was a piece of armor, dark, not only on the hoof, but from the elbow to the end of the leg. I was unable to see the details on it, but it looked gothic style. His reaction surprised his aggressor and all the raider, unless the one who was trying to kill me ... obviously ... Goddesses, Fate loves Irony ... I jumped, levitated the cleaver to me, then I returned to my enemy. "It's time to fight, or to die ..." I thought as I waited he was at my range. When he was close enough, I activated my S.A.T.S, or Sparkle Arcan Target System, and selected the raider. The cleaver drew a circular movement, touched the target, but only did a little wound at his shoulder. "RAAAAHHH !" roared the stallion at me. Dammit ... I was pitiful with these weapons ... I was really better with a varmint rifle or a hoofgun I heard a muffled scream from behind my enemy... Something was happening in the other fight. Then the bloody corpse of the unicorn raider landed just next of me and my adversary. He and I looked at his dead teammate, lying in the dust and blood. "H-h ... He's right behind you !!" screamed the unicorn at his fellow with fear. A giant shadow covered us, and the raider turned. "HOLY MOTHERF-" he yelled before my partner grab him at the throat with his gauntlet. Wait ... There was something around his neck ... metal claws ? Celestia lick me ! It was really metal claws from the gauntlet which were catching the raider ! Windido was on his back legs, holding the raider in his metal claws. I erased what I said about when he was on his four hooves ... Now, he was giant, looking more like a griffon with bat wings than as a pony. The unicorn use a healing potion to heal himself and stood up in hurry, levitated his bat and took me as a hostage, pulling is weapon under my neck. "SURRENDER NOW YOU FREAK ! O-OR I'LL KILL HER !" shouted the unicorn at my teammate. Windigo turned his head to him. I saw his eyes looking at me. All my eyes were able to say was "Help me, I implore you !". Tears came at my eyelids. He raised his right arm, raising the raider by the way, made a little shake to grab his victim at the chest. He looked at the unicorn, his eyes burning of wrath and hatred. The raider in his metal claws was above him, trying to escape. Windigo looked the unicorn in the eyes. His mouth opened, showing his clenched teeth. Suddenly, he lowered his ears and closed his claws on the ribcage of his prey, still watching the unicorn in the eye. The raider was sectioned in half. Blood splattered all around, and the smile he showed was a bad omen for the raider who was holding me. The unicorn dropped me, and Windigo charged. He jumped, opening his giant black leather wings and landed in front of the fleeing raider. The unicorn stopped ant tried to turn, but the bat pony harpooned his new prey with his wing's claws and pressed him against the ground, beginning to shred him with his teeth in a bloodbath. Like a predator ... and the two raiders were his preys... "So ? I hope you'll gonna run … because I'll lauch him at you if you're staying here in 30 seconds …" Said Barbed Wire at the rest of the raider gang. Raiders looked at her. "30 … 29 ..." They all runned away and Barbed Wire looked at her guards. "Ok, I want Windigo in my room and the mare in her jail, no aggression or violence on her ... I've a special reward for my gladiator and I don't want him trying to kill you ..." said Barbed Wire at Steel Mane and Bulletproof. They came in the arena and put chains around our hooves again, Windigo wasn't in his coma usual condition, he just looked at the chain silently, then looked at me with interrogation in his stare. They pulled us before Barbed Wire's room and Bulletproof put him in without chains. Stellmane and I continued to my jail. Steel Mane opened our team's jail. "It was a good fight ... You were maybe too dodging to me ... but it was good. The other slavers have been amused and raiders are now fearing your team ... Take your night, you'll need it ..." She said as she was retrieving my chains slowly. "And for Windigo ?" I asked. "Don't worry, he'll take his night ..." She answered with a little smile. "And for your two days ? Raiders and us just wasted it …" She laughed a bit "Don't worry about that too ... I think everypony's gonna take his night ..." The day was ended ... and it wasn't so horrible ... even I was still a slave. And during all the night, I heard Barbed Wire moans loudly in the room next to mine ... ___________________ Footnote: Level Up. New Perk: Team gladiator (Lvl 1) – Your first fight in a team increase your teammate's damages and resistance and their presence makes your stats increases by +1 per teammate.
Chapter 2: Me, go home ! (rewritten)I opened my eyes, the dark room didn't change of lighting while I've slept. At my surprise I saw something on the ground right in front of me : a plate with bread, a bar of old chocolate and a glass of water. I was with a blanket on my back and a mattress under me, but remembered that these things weren't present yesterday. "Could these slavers made a special treatment with me during the night?" I asked myself. I checked my whole body. I got my horn, my two eyes, my four legs and hooves, my mane and my tail, no trace of any contact unless the presence of the food and the improvised bed. This was good in a sense. I took a look in the room and a detail took my gaze's attention. The door was a bit opened, just enough to let me pass and I should have to refine my belly and push when I'll have to make my hips pass. "Well, that gap looks pretty like a open door to Ms Freedom." I thought. Raising on my hooves was a bit difficult, like every mornings, 'cause I was a lazy mare at waking up, and my mother was the one who knew that more than anypony. But my freedom was just in front of me, and I didn't wanted to fuck up this chance. I walked to the metal door and stopped when I exited, next to a sleeping guard. "I should advance with caution..." I murmured to myself. "Not the time to get caught..." My hooves were slowly walking as I sneaked despite of my chains to the Barbed Wire chamber, she could have the keys for my metal ties after all. I stopped before the door, looked at right then left, checking the presence of some possibles guards. After verifying I was alone, I decided to act and pushed the door slowly. When it was opened, I took a look: Barbed Wire was in her bed, sleeping with her forehooves around Windigo's massive chest. Well, they weren't really in the bed, their coverage was lying on the parquet. "Ok... just search in a desk or something else... Don't wake her up and keep calm..." I whispered at myself. I advanced slowly and silently, crawling just in front of the bed, passed and focused my attention on a desk, centimeters per centimeters, it was closer, just some meters... and the wooden ground was creaking under each hoofstep. "Oh Luna, please, makes the sound don't wake her up... please please please..." I thought so hard I believed I was saying it. I opened the drawer with my magic in a raspy sound of wood against wood. "Oh please... Luna, I'll be a good pony, I promise, I'll go back to my village and do anything you want but pl-" A moan just came at my ears and I frozen then turned my head at the source of the sound: Barbed Wire was smiling as she slept, caressing her stallion's body, then she rotated on the matress, spreading her legs in a caricatural pose. I came back to my first objective : found the keys for my chains, escape away from this damn place and go back to my home. "Psst !" A masculine voice whispered. I looked again to the bed, Windigo was woken. "You're escaping?" he asked. "Of course I am, why do you think I'm here? for shopping?" He dropped a look at my chains then looked at me. "I think I got something for you..." he whispered calmly "Wut?" I didn't understand what he meant before he shows me the keyring with one of his wing's claw. "Gimme that!" I murmured nervously. I drawed a movement towards him and stopped when I saw he was ready to wake Barbed. "I've keys, but I can't escape by myself... So, ok for a deal?" he said as he was looking at me with half closed eyes. I gulped. "And why can't you escape by yourself? You'll be able to force the passage..." "They've guns, I don't... And..." He showed a chain around his neck which was hook to Barbed Wire's left hoof. "She won't to let me go..." "I've seen she was mad of you..." I said sarcastically. "Yeah, really funny... but while we're talking, the clock is ticking and our chances to escape is decreasing each minute..." He was right... I looked at the drawer and picked all. My inventory showed the stuff: ten picklock, twenty four .357 magnum ammunition, a healing potion and a butterfly knife... "I've picklocks..." "You know how to use it?" he asked. "Yes... I've learned a bit about lockpicking..." I began my business, introducing a picklock. I lend an ear at the lock. A bit to the right... another at left... and... finished! The collar around Windigo's neck fall on the mastress. "Thanks... Now, my part of the deal..." he said as he massed his neckline. He gently tended the key ring at me. "If you need help, just ask..." I retrieved my chains, but the sound when it hit the ground was a bit too loud to me. And not only for me : A friction sound came from behind Windigo: Barbed Wire just awoke. "Dammit! Hide under the bed!" The bat-pegasus whispered quickly to me. I did what the said and looked at a mirror from my location to see the situation. "Hum... good morning, my honey..." She softly said. Aw... I was under a psychotic slaver boss's bed, trying to hide, and I though it was Windigo didn't answer, feigning to sleep. I saw her raising her hooves on his shoulders slowly, lighted by the amber sun light between the orange curtains. "C'mon, sweetie, I want to play another time... " she said. Somepony knocked to the door, she stopped focussing at the door. She got up, and looked at her left hoof, noting the unlocked chain. "So cute, you've free yourself and you stay with me..." she muttered with a tone full of "love". As she walked to the door, she wiggled her thighs against each other. "Ugh... I really need to go wash myself... whatever, that's proves he loves me." I wasn't sure it was really sane to think about these things right after waking and I didn't wanted to think about it anyway. She opened the door, and Steel Mane was waiting her boss at the entrance. "Wire? We've the sale at 1:00 pm... and we need you, Red Eye's guys are gonna want to see ya..." "Oh... boring... I can have a little fun then..." "Wire... It's 11 am..." Barbed Wire looked surprised then stressed. "Shit! Why nopony woke me up?!" "You were with Windingo and- " "I don't care! Prepares the slaves, told to the others I'm coming! I just need my vest and a short wash!" shouted Barbed Wire quickly. He turned her back at the slaver, looking for her vest. "A short wash... yeah..." Steel Mane sneered. Barbed Wire pass the mare in hurry. "Shut up" she dropped at her subordinate. "Okay, boss..." The door closed, letting Windigo and I inside. The giant pony rose on this four hooves as I was crawling out of my stash. "Got an idea to escape?" I asked. "Hum... maybe I've an idea..." he said as he looked at the window. "Do you see the sewer entrance right in front of the building? I think it's another entrance in this building..." "And what makes you think that?" I continued, a bit surprised. "We are in a old mayor house, there must be a access to the municipality areas like sewers, police station, pipes and all the rest... If we take the sewers, we're gonna have no problems with the guards... only some rats or roach... nothing dangerous..." "And if we escape by outside?" He looked at the window another time. "Then you exchange rats, roaches and bad smells by guards with guns... personally, I've made my choice …" And I've made mine. "We'll take sewers..." I answered quickly. We opened the doors, nopony, not a cat... We walked slowly in the building, passing into the corridors and down the stairs to the ground floor. We both stopped at the end of the stairs and I scrutinized the piece. The desks were deserts, and a guard was sleeping on his chair and his back legs on a desk near to the entrance, his nightstick against the table. I decided to walk slowly to the door with a "staff only" written on it.We opened it, showing she was a way to a maintenance stairs which was going to the depths. I looked at my escape mate, then decided to follow the stairs. At the depths of the stairs, a metal door with a plate. -Sewer entrance, authorized personnel only- "Hey... our escape card..." Windigo said. The door was a little rusty, but opened after I pushed it with a bit of force. "Do you see something?" asked Windigo in the darknesses. "Let me just a second..." I felt something at my left forehoof. Clic - The light of my pipbuck was on, enlightening the sewers around me and the thing which was under me: a radroach. For ponies who don't know what is a radroach, then you're probably stupid or ignorant. The radroach is the most popular non-equine lifeform you can see when in a stable. Unless if you have some freaks in your stable, which raises most important questions about the security of your underground living space. This vermin is between twenty and sixty centimeters long and among seven hundred gram and a good weight of two kilos. And it was on my leg. "AAAHHH!!! REMOVE IT!!!" I screamed. "WOW! What the fucking Celestia is that bloody thing!" yelled Windigo. I grabbed a old metal pipe lying on the ground with my magic and activated my S.A.T.S. Four hits at the head and I killed it. "What was that?" asked my almost former roommate. "A radroach... You've never seen it before?" "The roaches I remember were only five centimeters long, not thirty..." He was really strange, don't I told you? We walked a time before find the outside, a river full of waste. As I put my hoof on the water, my geiger counter slowly cracked at less than 2 rad per seconds. "Ok .. I need to go to my home..." I said at the giant pony next to me. "And where it is?" I looked at my mini-map and selectionned an objective. - New objective, go back to home, marker placed on Stable 13 - "Right there..." I answered. "Let's take a look... Hey, it's on my way..." "What?" I asked, confused. "Yeah, I've to go... there!" I looked, focusing on the undiscovered place showed by the bat-pegasus at twelve kilometers south of the stable.. "Can I come with you before take my journey?" he gently asked. "Well why not ... But when we'll arrived, say nothing and let me speak ..." I answered. "Alright then, miss." he smiled. After a day of walking, we saw my village away, some column of smoke were coming from it. "Your family does barbecues? Sweet!" Said happily Windigo "Wait... We never do fire... Mom told me it could attract the raiders..." "Well... maybe they... oh shit! " "What?" "It's not a barbecue, it is houses in fire..." He said as he took off. I ran as fast I was able to do. As this pegasus said, it could be an attack. My family and my friends were in trouble and we weren't prepared to an attack. My mind imagined the worst things possibles. When I arrived at the village, there was only death, ashes and fire... corpses were half-shredded, blood everywhere... some corpses were raiders, half-eaten too... what could have happen? Tears came at my eyes, the village builded my our grandparents when they went out of the stable and made their new houses around the bunker entrance, where our parents were born and a part of our generation had born too. Efforts of three generations reduced to nothing... Windigo drew circles in the sky, maybe looking for survivors. I walked from houses to houses, looking for survivors too, but nothing... only cadavers and fire... "Oh Celestia... Why? " I muttered between my teeth. I continued to walk. "Mom? Mom!!!!" Something moved under a pile of burning wooden plate and a grey-crimsom hoof trying to go out. Only one pony was having this color, the pony I knew the best. "MOM!" I ran and tried to remove wood from my mother.I was able to see her characteristic horn which made her different of the other inhabitants of our stable-village. Windigo landed at my side. "Help me dammit! It's my mother!" I shouted at him, half crying. "Stay away!"he said, raising his right foreleg. His gauntlet brought out his metals claws and he removed the wood with a single hit, destroying the remnants. We plucked up my mother from the wooden heap. She was a grey-crimsom unicorn mare with long wavy dark-grey hairs on her mane and her tail. Her horn was a bit curved, with torsades only at the base, almost looking like a blade which was darker at the tip.Like a lot of the stable's engineer descendant, who were showing the same types of characteristics, her horn was a very rare thing in the stable. She was looking miserably, now, covered of blood and ashes, her usually splendid mane was completly messy, her eyes were like mad, looking for some help but her gaze calmed when she saw us. "Mom, are you alright?" "Yes... I'm fine, sweetheart..." She moaned of pain as she moved her right shoulder. She got a big piece of wood in it. "Not so fine after all..." She said. "Mom? Where are the survivors?" "In .. *cough* *cough* in the Stable's lower levels..." she answered, trying to breathe. Windigo helped my mother to walk with us. "Raider attacked us, they were completely in frenzy... they didn't care about their own protection, they only think to kill and eat ponies, no matter if they die... And there was a big pegasus mare, she wasn't mad like them... they obey to her …" Mom said. We were arrived at the Stable. "We need to go at the lower level... there will be a door to the caves..." my mother slowly told. "The caves?" I questionned "Yeah... I've something to say you... something that only engineers of our stable like me know..." she continued. "And what's that?" asked Windigo. "I think you know this... " "Sorry Ma'am, but I've no idea of what you're talking about..." answered the pegasus. We entered the Stable entrance, arriving at the giant steel blast door. There was my house, the house of my mother and the house of all our ancestors after the Great-war... With a slow walk, we passed the entrance, continued in the corridor and passed by the hydraulic door to really enter the stable. We stopped at the clinic and I looked by the glass. A unicorn nurse was lying on the ground, covered with blood on her white medical coat which was rose above her lower body part, showing her spreaded legs, covered of blood too... Her eyes an mouth were opened, her face frozen in a horrible fear, fixing at me, like she was asking for help a bit too late. A raider was on the ground next to her with his fifth member out, the head splitted by a bonesaw between his eyes. She have defended herself ardently at the sight of the shotgun shells, the Benelli M3T shotgun on the floor and several raiders killed. But it hasn't been enough… Her neck was bitten several times, half opened and showing a bit of her vertebrae in the bloody gap in her nape. The door was blocked by a table, so I levitated the shotgun at me. If raiders were still here, we would be able to defend ourself. We continued, descended the stairs to the living part of the stable, among the apartments, with bodies of dead raiders and guards, smell of blood, powder and a bit of decay. We passed over the bodies, going deeper inside the stable. The cafeteria was full of dead bodies ... the guard should have defend this room with a heavy defence, as the sentry turrets were out, but destroyed, the guards had change their usual ten millimeters pistol, uniform and their police baton to riot shotguns, kevlar armor and tactical fight knives. They had been regardless about calm down the situation or just approach some drunk troublemakers, they had been using lethal force to defend the stable at all cost, using the stable's "protocol 11". Security protocols were simple: If the stable security was compromised by an external threat, then heavier was the threat, heavier was the counter. If it was radroaches, protocol 1: low danger, usual extermination procedure, calling specialists. If it was rats, protocol 2: low danger, but threat of bites and contagious diseases, extermination procedure. At protocol 8, the security was beginning to use force. Protocol 11 was the higher rank of threat management: If protocol 10 didn't work and the invaders were entering the stable, lethal force was used, killing every threat, no matter the ethic, all invaders would be killed, outsiders stallions, mares, pregnant or not, foals and even pets who were going to harm our citizens. Protocol 11 had never been activated before. My gaze stopped above us. By her window, the "Overmare", or instead our mayor, was in her office, looking at our group. She shook her hoof at me, so I answered the same. "Mom, miss Mercy is alive!" I told to my wounded mother. She looked at the glass pane, and miss Mercy gone from the window. After a minute, the door of the cafeteria opened, showing the pale tall unicorn who was levitating her ten millimeter submachine gun, aiming at Windigo. I understood her intention and placed myself between the beast pegasus and the Overmare. "Red Sky! Get out!" shouted the unicorn at me. "No! Miss Mercy, stop before doing a shit! He's not our enemy!" I answered. Miss Mercy was a calm mare who was always thinking at the consequences before acting. Her cutie mark was a red lily flower, symbol of a high rank in hierarchy. She lowered her submachine gun a bit, considering my giant helper with her piercing and vindictive gaze. After analysing the pegasus, she stored her gun. "I hope you're not doing a mistake, Red Sky ... It would be regrettable that I have to kill him." she sighed. "Is somepony having a good idea how we're going to exit ?" "I got *cough* an idea..." said my mother. "We need to go to the lower levels .." "Well ... got to go..." whispered Windigo. " Show me the way, miss" We began to walk, Windigo with my mother on his back, miss Mercy and I behind. "So, miss Mercy? How did you survived?" I asked the Overmare. "I defended myself with Sleepytime, and hid in my office, when they tried to force the door, I took a stash inside my locker." she answered. "When they finally entered, a tall pegasus came inside and began to touch my terminal... I think she was looking for informations on the stable.." "What kind of info?" "Something like "genetical card", but I didn't understood and I was too focused on hide and survive to take attention." We arrived at the lower level of the stable, with generators and water purification. It seemed raiders didn't came here. We walked several minutes, then stopped in front of stairs. "I didn't know this stair." said miss Mercy. Windigo began to down the stairs slowly, trying to keep my mother on him. At the end of the stairs was a heavy reinforced door with a terminal. "Here it is... The code is : L-U-N-4-F-0-R-3-V-3-R..." my mother said. Windigo's metal claw were completly able to type the code and the door opened, showing a long coridor in the stone right in front of us. "Come on... they must be waiting..." My mother whispered as she lighted the cave with her Pipbuck. Our journey was not so long, but these caves were dark. "Hey... I heard something " Said Windigo "It sounds something familiar..." "What?" I asked "Don't I told you you were one of these... handsome pegasus..." "Wait .. pegasi? Did you say pegasi like me?" "Of course, I did .." she answered with a smile. Windigo showed a large smile, like hope came from the depths of caves to hit him. "Holy Nightmare Moon ! Luna be blessed!!!" he cried with happiness. My mother, miss Mercy and I looked at his with surprise... I because his reaction was... special, and miss Mercy because he said something... "Did you said Nightmare Moon?" She asked. "Yes, I did, but we... I mean I must go to them!" He galloped right forward and stopped on a overhang of stone. I stopped at his side with my mother and miss Mercy. It was beautiful, magnificent... I was speechless before this: a gigantic cathedral-like town in a giant cave, builded with black ebony stone... "Mom? Since when do you know this?" I asked, looking at the buildings... "Since twelve months before your birth, sweetie..." Miss Mercy and I were confused and unable to ask more. ___________________ Footnote: Level Up. New Perk: Lockpicking is magic (Lvl 1) - Your Lockpicking skill is increased 10, each picked lock gives you a small chance of achieving the second rank(Luck +1).
Chapter 3: Other dwellers (rewritten)We followed a road of stone, and approached of this town underground. As I walked, my gaze was looking all around. The city was on a hill-like rock formation, a giant black cathedral enthroned on it and overlooking on the rest of the town. A bit of the houses was builded into the walls of the giant cave. Some crystals were coming out from the stone, slowly glowing in a pale blue, orange or white light. We descended the road before stopping at a stone bridge with two guards. They stood in front of us, their black hallebardes pointed to our group. These ponies were strange... Something was wrong. I tried to focus on them. They were tall as us, unless for Miss Mercy and Windigo, their eyes were amber irises, splitted wards, bat wings. I understood what was wrong. They were Windigo-bat-pegasus-like. Our bat buck approached them, making the guards growling a bit. "Oh, calm down guys." said prudently the pale stallion. "We're not going to attack you either." The first guard looked at my shotgun and shook his head in my direction. I immediately used the safety on the rifle and put it at the pegasus's hooves, who reacted by looking at Windigo then threw another look at his teammate. They both opened the way and we continued forward, entering the city. The streets were narrow, with large black tiled roofs timbered buildings at each side. Between these houses, above the streets we were walking, lamp post were weakly lighting around them. Some bat ponies were looking at us, like we were something strange... I looked around, searching for somepony, and my gaze stopped on a stallion at the entrance of a cabaret-like building. I though it was a cabaret at the lively music which was coming out. The stallion was a unicorn with bandages, sitting near to the door with a riot shotgun and a badly damaged body armor. He shook his hoof at us and we approached him. "Who are you?" Miss Mercy asked the buck. "Guard Mc Copper, ma'am." he answered as he tried to make a military salute. "We brought the survivors here, the bat-beasts have accepted, they looked to know some engineers." "Excellent, Guard, and about the survivors, how many?" she continued. "I could say... two dozens." "You've done well, Copper." Miss Mercy conforted the stallion. "Red Sky, enter in the inn and see how are our ponies, I need to talk with the bat-boss, if there's one..." I entered, followed by Windigo, who was still carrying my mother on his back. The inn was spacious and more or less lighted by candles and lamps , with a bar and a scene with three bat mares who were singing in a same calm relaxing voice. The most of ponies here were bat pegasi, drinking and eating, there were also some stable dwellers, harmed and covered of bandages In a corner, a group of young bat mare was trying unsuccessfully to comfort some stable foals who were more afraid than in confidence. We approached the bar-mare, who was wiping beer mugs with a cloth. "Hum? Excuse me?" I asked her. She rose her eyes to me, revealing a heterochromia blue left iris and a amber at the right one. She looked surprised, observing my face with an extreme attention, her eyes moving quickly from my check to my horn then to my ears. "D-Do you understand me?" I continued, pretty uncertain of what I was doing. The mare was still observing me, then shook her head slowly, doubtless to allow me to understand too. "C-Can you talk?" She placed the mug on the bar and put her right hoof on her throat. "Your...voice?" She shook her head another time, then moved her hoof from right to left several times. "Oh! I see, you're mute!" She made a smile, pointed Windigo, covered her eyes with her hoof, pointed the gray buck again and shook her shoulder. "You don't know him?" The bat mare answered with a negatively shook of her head. She continued by drawing a question mark in the air before pointing my companion. "His name?" She only smiled. "He's Windigo." She looked surprised, then blew air, mimed being cold and drew another question mark. "I guess that's it..." She smiled and stopped, looking at my mother. She gasped and jump over the bar, landing next to Windigo. The bar-mare approached my mother, trying to touch her but she didn't, looking very pained and confused. "Hi *cough* Blue Eye...*whispered mom. The mare grabbed Windigo's hoof and dragged him to the stairs, with my mother on the buck's back. The mare continued to drag my companion and my mother to the first floor, climbing stairs almost trotting quickly while I followed them. She stooped Windigo near to a white couverture and made a movement to a stallion in white coat. The bat pony looked at my mother then at me and Windigo and pointed the coverture. Windigo laid mom on it and the stallion pointed the stairs. "You want me to go out? She's my mother! I won't go anywhere!" I said to the buck. He growled a bit and windigo put his gauntlet on my shoulder. "Let it be..." He said. We walked to the stairs and I looked a last time over my shoulder to see my mother as I lowered the stairs. When we arrived at the bar, I sat and Blue Eye prepared me something to eat. The white plate was filled with a sort of sweet fruits salad. I slowly levitated it in my mouth and began to chew and looked around, recognizing some ponies: some engineers, farmers, but my eyes were attracted by somepony special... A complete white and slender unicorn was sitting alone. She was Killstreak, a kind and shy mare... Everypony at the Stable's school was mocking her when she was a filly, because of her color and her eyepatch that she was always wearing on her right eye... My mother told me she was something like 'albinos' and the doc said she got a 'degeneracy of crystalline lens'. Killstreak was having a noble body with long legs, soft and long mane, a ruby-like eye, she looked so beautiful, so shinny... Her fur was so pure, always clean. Then I must talk you about of her cutie mark : a stick counter showing five vertical lines scratched by a single diagonal she got when the stable was infested by radroaches and when she killed more than two dozens of them in less than a minute . Her cutie mark was red as her eyes. Yes, she was very beautiful... and I don't say that because she was my first flirt and marefriend… well… maybe... She was shy, and my only friend with my mom. Her mother were engineer like mine... and our fathers where unknown... Killstreak looked me and smiled. "Oh! Dear Celestia, you're safe!" she cried as she hugged me. "Where were you all this time? ". "It's a long story... but it include slavers, an arena, and the stallion here." I answered as I pointed Windigo. She looked at Windigo then came back at me. "I was so worried about you... What could happens to me without my only friend?..." "Shh... Calm yourself..." I said as I looked in her red shinny eye. "They're going to be out of healing potion for your injured friends... You're ready to come with me?" He asked. I looked at him. "Where?" "Somewhere I need to go for personal purpose and for medical supplies..." "I'm ok for medical, but I hope your personal won't divert us from our first objective..." I looked at my pipbuck and save my new objective. -New objective, found medical supplies- "Ok... where do you think we could found that?" I asked at Windigo. "I got an idea about that... we need to exit by the main cave entrance..." "Can I come with you?" asked Killstreak "Staying here is just going to make me mad..." "Why not..." answered Windigo. We exited the tavern and followed Windigo. "Do you know these caves?" asked Killstreak at the giant bat pony. "Yeah, I've grow out of it... You'll see when we're gonna be outside..." We trotted to the exit, the light of the day was blinding and when we were able to see again, the ruins of a village were receiving us. The buildings hadn't been destroyed, they looked abandoned, left to the vagaries of weather and time since decades. a large part of the tiled steep roofs were ruined or holding, almost at the wood breaking point from woodworks. All around the dead village was a giant forest of silver and verdigris half-dead pines, some brambles around the streetlights. All plants were dark grey wooden, the sky covered by same grey colored massive clouds. This sky was more oppressing than usually, like this cloud malediction was increased by something. Windigo was looking at the village, fear in his eyes. "What happens? H-How long was I absent?" he said with a trembling tone. "What do you mean?" I asked "Do you know the date?" he demanded, fixing the ruins before us. I looked at my Pipbuck. "What event should I use?" I asked. "The Canterlot's invasion by changeling army... please" I looked at my pipbuck's school history file. "It was... more than two hundreds years ago..." I said, confused. He sat and breathed depthly. "So long..." he murmured "Too long... And I saw it like a twinkle..." "What do you mean?" I asked. He began to walk slowly. "It's a very long story, maybe I would recount you it when I'll have time." I didn't understand. "Do you know the concept of talisman?" he continued. Of course we do, talismans were everywhere in a stable: water cleaning, air-cooling, repair and regenerative talismans... "Yes" I replied "Fine, because my business I told you is to find a talisman..." "But how did you survive so long? A regeneration talisman work for less than seventy years..." "That's why I want to find it, because it's more powerful... whatever, we need to find the medical supplies..." A little rock fell before us and we looked above. A cliff with a giant stone building was right on the plateau. "That's were we need to go." said Windigo. "You're sure? I mean, what tell you this is the place we are looking for?" Killstreak asked the bat pony "Yes, I came here long time ago, and we'll surely find what we are looking for." "If you say so..." I replied. We began to walk, in the abandoned and grim dead streets, no sounds unless the wind in these narrow passages, noises of our hooves on the paved ground and guttural croaks of crows. Sometimes, a shutter creaked in a metallic noise, slowly pushed by the wind. As we continued to the castle, it's forms began to be more detailed. The part of the castle on the cliff was more a stone fort overlooking above the village in its imposant stature as the parts of the castle were moving away were more architectural and aesthetic as they were away from the cave's entrance. There was minimum three different architecture styles. The first was the hold, the second style was still impressive with stylised ramparts but the third was certainly the most spectacular with flying buttresses, stained glasses and stone gargoyles. The building didn't seems to have suffered of the time, the three fourths of the glasses were intact, stone walls weren't damaged. The only thing really affected by two hundreds years of abandoning was the massive wooden front door which was broken by decades of wind, rain and insects. We entered inside the castle, passing under a giant steel harrow and arriving into a giant hall. The piece was decorated with a huge circular stained glass showing two profile viewed faces above a stair and a portrait, the first certainly of Princess Luna, the second was dark blue, almost black coat, with misty night-blue mane, azur irises and splitted wards. Big blue half moldy curtains where going from the ceiling, amongst the giants wooden frames structures, to te walls and falling along the stone walls. "So... you know this place?" "Yes, It was the biggest technology and medical development center of bat ponies and Luna's army..." said Windigo as whe were looking around us. "And also the place where my father and I learned medicine." I looked around to admire the space another time. "It seems they left in hurry" I said as I looked at a lot of old books and some student's stuff. "No bones, no corpse... Nopony died here... or I hope so..." We walked calmly inside this well good preserved pre-war castle... Windigo said the medical supplies could be in the North wing of the castle. As he remember, it was the wing of anatomy, first aid and chirurgical studies area. But he wanted to go in the director's office, so Killstreak and I followed. We walked in the long castle alleys, among exposed armors, portraits and statues, following the indications. After twenty minutes of wandering, we finally arrived at the director's office. The door was open, showing a desk full of paper. I made some of them floating before me and I readed. "A letter from Princess Luna... Dear Überdirektor Sawbones, We, Princess Luna, are authorizing and ordering you to prepare a wing of the Deathwing's Castle for: - The new secret weapon-tool designed by the Ministry of Wartime Technologies, the blueprints and materials will be in your possession in a week. - New pegasi powers armors designed by the Ministry of Image, We are expecting you to upgrade them for thestrals and bat ponies, and if possible to upgrade some armor with runic magic. - Preparing a very close collaboration with the Ministry of Awesome, this cooperation will use codename : Project Reaper and will include the projects above. We encourage you to continue your relationship with the Ministry of Peace. The project Reaper's theory part is in your hooves, Überdirektor, do not disappoint us Sincerely and with my best regards, Princess Luna " "Project Reaper?" Killstreak asked. "I know that Reapers were elite thestral soldier under Nightmare Moon's rise... Using magic and runic blades..." Windigo said, "My gauntlet is a old Reaper's weapon... But why a project?" "I've no idea..." I answered. "Pfff... Another stupid thing from a stupid egghead from before the war." sighed Killstreak. "I was going to say the same thing..." I dropped. "Whatever, let's go, I don't want to waste time here." We exited and went to the north wing. After something like twenty minutes, we stopped in front of a metal door with a control panel. "Let's see..." said Killstreak as she magically removed the keyboard and took two electric wires. The door opened after some sparkles, we entered and Windigo stopped in front of a room. - Medical and experimental supplies- The entrance was heavily protected by a steel reinforcement, looking like a bunker's door. I seems the bat pony scientist were wanting a real protection for these supplies. "Can your friend short-circuit the electric lock?" asked Windigo to me. Killstreak approached, involuntary shoving Windigo's chine a bit with her own. "Ho, I'm sorry" she apologized as her face blushed. "No worries..." he calmly said. She shivered as her look crossed his but turned back to the electric lock and began to short-circuited it. Some sparkles later, the door produced loud sounds of unlocking and opened, showing a laboratory full of strange crates. I looked on the boxes. All of them were showing 'Med-X', 'Rad-Safe' and 'Rad-Away'. "Jackpot!" I happily said. There was mountains of medical supplies! And nopony never touched it! We took everything we were able to take, charging Killstreak's inventory and mine to be almost in surcharge. "Did you take everything?" Windigo asked. "Yes, I'm almost unable to run." Said Killstreak "Ok, stay close to me… I don't know what could be in there..."He calmly said. We also walked out, going to the hall. "Vho are you? Vhat are you *cough* doing in my university?" asked a rusty voice with a germane accent. We looked behind us, an unicorn was standing in the dark, wearing a old white coat and red surgical gloves. "Hey, I believe I know this voice…" said Windigo. The unicorn exited from the shadows, showing himself and his physic. His skin was roasted, his white coat partially replaced by pieces of pink-red flesh, looking like a zombie, his mane black mane had fell in part since long time. Hairs which were still on his temples had turned ligh gray and he was having a strand falling on his front, before his horn. "Are you .. Sawbones?" I asked him. "Nopony called me like zis since a very long time, filly...*cough* Kan you explain why you are in zis damn place?" he told. "We're looking for medical supplies, a bat pony's village need it..." said Windigo. "Oh I see... hum... That not because I've became what I am that I'll forgot my promize… Do not harm and help ze injured. Can I help you? It would be a pleasure to help somepony after all zis time..." "You must have a story? I guess you've not been here, alone, without some story to tell..." said Windigo. "Yes… I guess too… I'll begin with zis place *cough*... Vhen I waz young, I came here to learn more about medicine… and, Luna, I've found what I wanted… batponies where having very good anatomic studies… zeir medizine waz only on it… no magic, only anatomy… after twenty yearz, I've became ze direktor of the university. Ze town at the hoof of the cliff was named Nachtburg , by Germane ponies but ze real name waz Hollow Shades… a beautifull town with gothics ornaments, full of life… and ze lord of the town was nothing more than my sister's husband. Vell... When ze war began, Luna asked me to prepare a place in ze castle to a new weapon created by ze Ministry of Wartime Technology and new suits for pegasi and bat ponies..." "We seen it in your office…" I said. "But zere was a problem… The suits never arrived, and ze weapon got hiz upgrades everywhere in Equestria… deep inside some Minister Applejack's technology developping bunkers or impenatrable facilitiez full of failed things from others projects..." "And what about Project Reaper?" asked Windigo. "Project Reaper? Just a kind of creating most lethal assassin-warrior with batponies in black ops of Ministry of Awesome… zhey are more bestials and more dangerous zhan usual pegasi in close combat, using teeths and clawz… Project Reaper was using the most dangerous of zhem : Thestrals. And you are one of zhem…" The ghoul answered." Look at you, you're bigger zhan an usual batpony by… two or three head taller." He stopped. "Some times ago, some mad ponies and a tall mare came here and take all Project Reaper's paperz but I can give you the files before zhey come back..." "Come back? What do you mean by 'come back'?" I asked "Well, zhey've take only the half of the paperz and zheir boss has said zhey'll need to come back, and-" The sound of a lot of hooves on the stone stopped us on the Hall's stair. A group of a dozen of raiders was between us and the exit. A tall pegasus mare entered, tall as Windigo, dominating the raiders by her size of giant. "Hey! What the hell are these guys doing in there" asked a raider "I don't care, I'm too fucking hungry! I want to eat one of those!" answered another raider "Wait just a little time before kill the mares, I want a little time with them" said a third. "You'll eat after you capture the big with the bat wings!" said the mare to the raiders "Oh, c'mon!" said the second raider "I said, capture the thestral first!" roared the mare. "Fuck it! I'm too fucking hungry!" said the same raider as he charged us. The mare jumped, landing righ before the raider and hitted him with something at her hoof and the raider's head rolled on the ground. "Any other question?" asked the mare. "Bring me the thestral alive… I don't care about the three others... Second group, take the rest of the Project Reaper's papers." Killstreak and I were unable to fight correctly, Windigo and Sawbones were going to protect us. "Where is the secret weapon, Sawbones?"asked Windigo. "In zhe east wing of zhe castle… why?" "I think we're gonna need it, now!" We turned and run, a dozen of raider wanting our asses, our flesh and one of us... "Go right! Now left! Oh Celestia, zhese pony are mad? What happenned to zhem? " hurled Sawbones. "Don't know, but if we'll survive, I promise to kill that bitch! She's the one who have attacked the village" answered Killstreak as she ran. Sawbones opened a metal door with difficulties. "Quick! Enter here!" he yelled. We jumped into the room and closed the door, raiders continued to run forward. They didn't expected us to hide. "Where the fuck are they?" roared a raider. "Do you think I know? I've no idea!" The hooves sounded to go away. Windigo looked something. "What's that?" "It's zhe weapon… Zhe MagicKraftWerk… It's a special magic weapon which launch magical orbs at the ennemy with primary fire and uses a beam to cut some thingz at close distance with the alternative fire... Never out of ammo, but long to reload .. It's zhe only one existing… A lot of upgrades are in Equestria, as I said…" answered the ghoul. It was a massive metallic gray object attached to a strange machine. All the machinery was in a large box made of bulletproof glass with metallic vertices and edges. One of the faces was a hydraulic door with a heavy steel plate between it and the "MagicKraftWerk". On the side of the glass box was a button panel. I approached the button, passing next to two desk filled with papers, prototypes and reports. My gaze scanned the panel: Electricity was operational. "Let's see." I though. I put my hoof on the button "Activate". Some amber rotating beacon lighted up as the principal light of the room lowered. "MagicKraftWerk test in progress." said a pre-recorded synthetic voice. The machinery in the box began to work and make the weapon roll around a axis, face to the door. A yellow-amber laser appeared from the weapon as the machine was spinning, but the steel plate in front of the door didn't seemed affected by it. The laser and the machine both stopped, as they were before I began the test. "Test completed." said the synthetic voice another time. Beacons stopped to spin and the light came back. "Is there a way to open?" I asked. "I have a terminal here." said Killstreak. "Let me just a second..." The steel plate rose, letting the door free. "Let me just another minute for the door." continued my ex-marefriend. The door tried to open, but the hydraulic system was broken. "Dammit!" spat the white unicorn. I used the button another time and same thing happened. "MagicKraftWerk test in progress" The gun fired another continuous amber laser which cut the doorin a large circle. The cutted part of the door fell on the ground in a metallic noise. "Test completed" Windigo entered the box and took the weapon, releasing it from the machine. The bat pony put his gauntlet on the gun's crosier, grabbing it perfectly, placed his claws on the trigger. He looked the weapon, turning it again and again, slowly looking for the weight and forms of the thing. "What a beautifull baby… It seems our raider problem won't survive so long." said the bat pony with a smile. ___________________ Footnote: Level Up. New Perk: - Steel Hips – Bringing so much things increases your stamina, your inventory capacity and your speed when walk/run/trot/gallop...
Chapter 4: A family's legacy (rewritten)In an old castle reconverted into a pre-war developement facility, hunted by a group of mad and canniblalistic ponies, not the worst situation ever, but not the best either, and it was our situation : two unicorn mares with inventory full of medical supplies, a giant batpony and a germane unicorn ghoul, all locked in a experimental energy weapon test room. Well, when I said we were trapped, maybe I exaggerated a bit. In fact, we were owning the weapon, the "MagicKraftWerk", as Sawbones, the ghoul we met in the castle, was calling it. We also opened the box with the weapon inside and Windigo was now holding it with his gauntlet. "How does it work?" he asked the ghoul. "Do you see the button, under the red light?" Sawbones pointed before the crosier. "Press it and you will have zhe zecond fire mode." Windigo obeyed and used it and the handle near to the weapon's top retracted himself. "Alright." told the bat pony. "Everypony okay?" "Just let me give some guns." I answered. "Killstreak? You know how to use a shotgun?" "Of course I do, Sky, I'm not a plain idiot." I threw the Benelli M3T shotgun and she caught it with her magic. "Sawbones? How are you going to protect you?" I asked the buck. "Don't worry for me, Fräulein." the ghoul answered with a smile. Windigo placed himself next to the metal door, the MKW ready to fire, Killstreak stood behind him with Sawbones and me. The bat pony opened the door whit his shoulder, crushing unvolontary a raider between the metal thing and the stone wall. Windigo fired another and alone raider, and the MKW launched a blue orb which made the raider explode in a bloody mess and a disgusting roasted meat smell. We stood, ununderstanding what happened, in front of the place where was the raider some seconds ago. "Darn, it's powerful" said Windigo. "Alright, now, we need to escape!" I said We walked as fast we were able to do right to the hall and when we finally arrived, An entire group of raiders was present. However, they weren't looking about us, but about papers and when they saw us, they charged. "Hey, yellow mare? Take it!" shouted Windigo as he throwed the MKW at me. I took the weapon, threw my magnum at Sawbones and began to shoot raiders. After some exploded and killed raiders, the hall smelled more like a barbecue filled with powder and blood than an old gothic castle. The sounds of shooting were resonating in all the giant stone building, rioting more raiders each minutes. Finally, their boss, the tall pegasus mare, went out. "WHAT? You didn't capture them after ALL THIS TIME?!!" She shouted. "Must I do the work by myself?" She jumped and landed in front of me and draw a large swing with her right hoof and I jumped backward, dodging narrowly two sharp blades attached to the hoove by a rusty armor part. I aimed at her after recieve myself, but the weapon made beeping sounds, telling me I was out of energy and I should wait. Waiting at THIS time? Thank you, stupid gun, Thank you! She grabbed me and Killstreak at the throat, knocked Sawbones down and turned to my giant teammate. "Youhou, Big guy, I got your friends, I you want to see them alive, stop and surrender!" she shouted at Windigo. He looked at her, a raider in his metalic claws. All the raiders let a gap space around the tall ponies. "Oh yeah, you really scary! Come get some, you freakin' wuss!" He shouted. "Come at me, sist'! Stop hiding behind your stupid degenerate puppies and fight like a real pegasus, you coward!" "Very well…" She said, the tone full of rage, as she threw me and Killstreak away and we "landed" against the closest wall. They began to turn around each other like two beast in a fight, the raiders cheering the mare with equine screams. The mare charged and attacked the giant bat pony with one of her blade who blocked with his gauntlet and countered by an uppercut with the other hoof. She caught herself up after the knockback, then jumped on Windigo. He was now on the back, trying to stop her blades by grabbing her forehooves. The pegasus moved her wings and blades came from under her tips and approached them from Windigo's face. The bat pony used his backlegs to make his ennemy's body the more away possible.They were the same strengh, the same size, the same fight style. She was trying to get closer, he was trying to get the most away "I am Blade Beast, I am a Reaper, do you think you can defeat me?" She roared, pushing even more. "I… don't… know… who you are…" Windigo replied "But I know I will win!" he shouted before bitting Blade Beast at the neck and stab her ribs with wing's claws. She screamed and tryed to escape, making her wounds deeper and bigger, the blood flowing in big liquid red stains on the ground. Windigo bitten again, deeper, between the neck and the shoulder. Blade Beast released her neck with a horrible scream of pure pain, letting a piece of muscle between the bat pony's jaws and a gaping bloody wound where she got bitten. Windigo stroke the pegasus stomach with his back legs, sending her on the ground. "RETREAT!" she shouted at the raiders as she got up. "Take all the papers and retreat!" The group of raiders ran to take the papers the faster they can before go to the main entrance, with wounded Blade Beast among them, all trying to escape. We stood in the hall, smell of powder and blood all around, with corpses of raiders lying on the ground. Windigo went at me and Killstreak, then helped us to rose. "Are you fine?" he asked us. "I think I'm going well." I said as I stretched my back but stopped at a loud cracking noise. "I'm fine too." answered Killstreak. "Thanks to worry about us." "Where is Sawbones?" I demanded. "I lost him during the fight." I looked around and my gaze stopped on the ghoul who was hiding behind one of the curtains. "Nevermind..." I sighed. I approached the zombie-like stallion. "Alright, Sawbones, You worked on Project Reaper, what did they steal?" The ghoul showed a smirk which became a giant smile before he laughed. "Zhese paperz? Hahahaha! You have to be kidding, Fraülien! Zhese papers are not real Project Reaper! Zhey are just theory and calculz, nothing more!" he answered. "I wonder zhe face she will show when she will know the truth!" I stood there, in front of the laughing ghoul, then looked at the door the raiders used some second early to exit with the papers. I wondered what kind of face the big bitch could do when she'll see that and smiled. It was pretty idiotic and stupid, but funny. "Alright..." I said." I think we're gonna go, thanks for the help, sir." The ghoul stopped to laugh slowly, then took an almost-usual face. "You're going away?" he asked. "Well, I guess you can come with us, if my friends are okay with it." I answered as I turned to Killstreak and Windigo. The white unicorn shook her head affirmatively and the bat pony smiled. "... and I think they are." I smiled. "Wunderbar!" smiled the ghoul, or instead I guessed he was smiling despite his zombie-like shattered face. He rose and dusted off his chirurgical coat with a lazy movement of his hoof. "Vell, vhere are we going?" Sawbones asked. "Under the castle." I answered. "Deep under it." After a short journey from the castle to the village, we finally entered the underground town. "It's... It's outstanding." Sawbones said as he saw the building. "Simply magnificent!" We continued to walk, passing into the streets. A little foal, maybe only two years old, slowly walked to Sawbones, interest and curiosity shining in his eyes like two stars. His mother stood close to him, with the same expression in her eyes. in a minutes, bat ponies of all ages where looking at Sawbones like a horde of night butterflies around a bulb. "Hum... Hallo." said the ghoul with a certain discomfort. The group of bat pony got differents reactions: Some blinked, the younger smiled when they understood the creature was speaking, and certains moved their ears at the rusty voice. A teen filly, made a little move with her nose, accompanied with a "sniff" noise before she growled. "Sorry for the smell..." told Sawbones "Alright, everypony, sorry but we need to go." said Windigo. The bat ponies let us pass and we continued to the inn. I entered the tavern and walked to the first roof to see jow was my mother, letting the group with bat ponies. When I arrived at my mother's room, she was laying on a mattress with Blue Eye lain next to her, like a child as my mother was reading a book. "Hi, mom." I said. "Oh, sweetie." she replied with a smile. "Come over here." I advanced myself and sat next to the matress while mom was continuing her story. My gaze stopped on the book: A brown old coverture and a gold licorn head. "Hey! That's my book!" I complained. "Yes it is." my mother replied. "But perhaps you can lend it just once." "No, it's just..." "Is my daughter still my little filly who wanted her story every night?" she mocked with THE smile. THE smile she showed everytime she was right and nopony was going to counter, even Miss Mercy. THE smile when she just told THE thing that was making others dumbs and stupids. The only reply I could do was the same that everypony did when she did this: an unhappy growl. "Owww, come on, sweetie." said my mother. "Don't be so grumpy." She took me in her forehooves and hugged me like a foal. "You're my little filly, don't you know?" "Nah nah nah..." I replied. "I'm not a baby, you know." "You're not, but for me, you're still my little filly." "If you say so..." I sighed. I heard a little moan from behind me and turned my head to see. Blue Eye was there, still sat, looking at me and my mother, like she wanted to join but was holding back. "Come on, Blue Eye, you can come too." said my mother to the mare who slipped to hug us with some purrs. I stood, silent, tons of things in my mind asI saw mom and Blue Eye. "Mom?" "Yes sweetie?" "How do you know Blue Eye and the town?" I asked my mother. She breathed and stop hugging us. Blue Eye looked at my mother, then me before she sat next to the mattress, with something in the eyes I couldn't describe, something between fear and bother, like she understood that mom was going to speak about something hard to explain and left us. "I think... I think it's too early to speak about that." she replied. I sighed, accepting the reality I couldn't know the truth before a moment, like everytime I asked this question. "Well, see you later, then." I said. My mother smiled as I exited the room. "See you later, sweetie." I heard from behind me. Blue Eye was sitting next to the door, visibly waiting the end of our conversation which was already ended. "Hum, Blue Eye?" I asked the mare. Her ears shook a bit, like she was attentive. "You're the bar mare, so do you have a room for me and my friends?" She frowned and took my hoof to drag me to the ground floor. We down the stairs and went to the bar where Blue Eye looked at the key displayer, took the last key and gave it to me. I levitated the key and smiled at Blue Eye, then looked at the number attached to the silverish object. "The room fifteen?" I asked the mare. "Are you sure nopony will need it?" She nodded, pointed me, then the first floor. "Me? A-and the floor?" She made "no" with the head and recommenced. Something between me and the floor... "Mom?" She answered, affirmatively, this time. "Oh! You gave me this room because mom is... My mother?"I realised. "That's obvious." Blue Eye hided a sneer behind her bat wing. "Gah! You're not helping this with your mute condition..." Her wing was no longer enough to hide the giant provocative smile on her face. I sighed and turned to the stairs when she grabbed me at the shoulder and let a kiss on my check, the type of kiss a child does. My grumpy face turn to happy,not to very happy, but enough to be it. "Okay, I'll stop grumble." I moaned. She answered with a big smile, her little fangs making it even bigger and happier. I rose the stairs and walked in the corridors. "Room fifteen... fifteen... Fifteen!" I thought before I stopped in front of the door. I introduced the key in the lock, turned and opened the wooden door, then entered the room. It was just bigger than a Stable apartment, with a toilet, a cozy looking bed, a window with view on the city and a massive wooden wardrobe. I put the MKW on the bed and sat next to it before I levitated it in front of my eyes. The gun itself was within seven or eight kilos, like... a foal, maybe . The main colors of the weapon were dark blue-gray, black and silver with some yellow notes relative to the use of electricity and how it had to be used. The butt of the gun was simple, without extension. There was a kind of generator on the left side, positioned on the lower part of the weapon and there was a space, as if it missed something. Above the generator, which looked like a barrel, even if it was difficult to distinguish it from the rest of the machine. I activated the secondary mode and the part above the generator opened, revealing a gap between two parts of the barrel with a slight magical activity between these parties. Between the barrel and the generator, a sort of cable from the generator which was going above the butt and went fixing itself behind the gun. On the upper right, it seemed to lack some items that could be optional. The below handle of the gun was simple and retracted when I activated the primary mode. I left the MKW on the bed and went to the ground floor, joining Windigo and Killstreak at the bar. when I arrived at their table, I sat next to them, on a bench covered with velvet andplaced next to the wall. "So? what are you doing?" I asked. "Waiting for beer." answered Windigo. "I want to see if it changed after two hundred years." "And I want to taste." said Killstreak. "I guess I can drink a bit." I sighed. "Blue Eye? Please, add another cup for Red Sky." Windigo yelled above the constant sound of ponies around us. The bar mare went at us, three beer cups on her wing and made them slide on the table. Windigo took one of the first with his gauntlet, his hoof maybe too big to pass in the handle. "Thanks Blue Eye." he said before he began to drink. I looked in the cup and something bothered me. This beer was strange. "Is this beer... red?"I asked Windigo. "Yes, what the matter?" "Well, beer is goldish, not red like.. blood." I remembered some stories of vampire ponies and gluped loudly. "It's... super sugary! I love it! "said Killstreak as she swallows her beer. I turned my head and my gaze stopped on Sawbones, surrounded by young bat foals. A little purr came at my ears and I looked next to me. A bat foal was trying to climb on the bench, his little hooves were sliding on the velvet as he was trying desperately to come sat between Windigo and me. He was looking at me, his eyes asking "please, miss, I want to climb". I levitated and put him on the seat. After I released him from my magic, he snuggled between my forelegs, his head and his back in the fur of my chest, like he was looking for a hot hideout. I turned my head to look at him, crossing his amber irises with splitted wards which became rounder when he looked me in the eyes. His ears shook, their fluffy tops making him looking like a plush with little cute fangs,wich weren't sharp as Windigo's ones and lovely. I raised my head again to look at Sawbones, who looked well integrated by the bat ponies. They were more surprised and interested by this strange unicorn with roasted skin than afraid, and it was good after all. "Hum... Red Sky?" Windigo asked. "I told you about something I wanted to do?" "Yeah, about a talisman, is that it?" "Yes, it is" he answered. "It's somewhere I know, and I'm sure it's there." "Ok, I'm coming with you." I told after I put my cup on the table."But we'll wait tomorrow." "Alright then." the buck replied. Blue Eye went to us, with three other cups. "Blue Eye? Do you know where I could buy some stuff?" I demanded. She didn't answered immediately but after a minute, she draw a crescent in the air with her hoof, then imitated like she was making a pile. "Moon? And a heap?" She pivoted her hoof with a grimace. I was close, but not too much. The mare grabbed the diner blackboard and wrote something with a chalk after she erased the list of food sold by the inn. Moon's stuff. "That the name of a store?" I asked. She nodded. "Well, I'm gonna make a trip there." She took the empty cups and placed the new ones. I levitated the foal between my legs from his hideout and put him next to Windigo, then I rose. It took something like five minutes to go at the shop. Moon's Stuff was not different from outside, but when I went inside, I was surprised by the numerous old world's things here and there in the shop. A sound of electric guitar and drums came at me . "Der Mond schaut uns an und wir zurück. Der Mond ist über uns, wird uns gehören..." I looked around, searching for the source of the music. "Gestern die Welt und heute der Himmel, Denn uns gehört er und die Zebras fliegen..." It wasn't equestrian at all, with an horrible accent, even worse than Sawbones's one. "Mond, Mond, Ja, Ja Vereint wir sind unter dem großen Forscher. Mond, Mond, Ja, Ja Heute gehört uns die Galaxie." Horrible, but catchy. I advanced in the shop, where a bat pony was sitting on a chair, back legs crossed on the desk, while reading an old comic. "Can I help ya?" said a voice like honey from behind the desk and the pre-war comic. Her cutie mark was a half golden and a half silver star, and she wascalmly reading. "Hum… Yeah, I've things to sale and I heard you- " I began to say. "So, ya' welcome! Name's Silverstar, glad to see ya! Come over here and let me see what ya got." said the mare as she dropped her book. I looked my inventory and placed what I wanted to sale : the .357 magnum ammunition and the butterfly knife. She took a long look at it. "Well, ya got good stuff here.Ya want a trade or a simple sale" she asked. "It depends about what you got to trade, and what you have to pay" I answered. "Another trader, what a good surprise, 'didn't saw somepony like ya since so long... I got this for the trade" She placed a .357 magnum before me. "I give it if ya give me half of the bullets and the knife... deal?" Her offer was interessant : I got a gun with twelve bullets... "Deal!" I said "Happy to hear that..."She cried happily "I got a question, how can you talk and how can you have all…" I looked around us "… this?" She looked at me with surprise, then answered. " A lot of us here know how to speak ya language. 'guess in some lesser colonies, they couldn't continue speakin' but keep understandin' and for the stuff, that's my twin sister, Moon, who hates to stay inside the caves and go at night to scavenge the treasures of outside. Well, ' want to buy somethin'?" "No, thanks." I answered. "Alright, see ya later." I exited and walked back to the tavern. When I arrived at the room, My only will was to lay on the bed and sleep. I opened the door and put my stuff on a table before I went at this bed, Killstreak was lying on it, perhaps because of severals beer cups... I laid myself under the coverture and closed my eyes. When I opened them, some hours later, Killstreak has disapeared and Windigo has took her place. I woke up, went to the bar and asked for a lunch. After eating, I went to my room and looked at the window in the street of the gothic-cave-town. The glowing orange magic flames were lighting all the cave like a constant twilight during the 'day' and were turning weak blue flames for the 'night', and it was beautiful. I looked at my stuff. Sawbone gave me some healing potions, Rad-X and RADsafe when I tlked to him, I got the magnum too and Windigo while we will explore the 'Mansion'. Sawbones told me the RADsafe was a liquid to swallow or use by injecting, and it stopped any radioactive contamination by agglutinating the radiations in the body and expulsing it by natural ways like... well, I prefered to think by transpiration and think I wouldn't have to use it anyway. I waited Windigo to wake up, and when he do, we exited the caves and walked a certain time. We exited the ruins at the entrance of the caves and I followed Windigo to north. Little by little, the ground of dead grass around the feets of the giant grey pines became a ground covered by brambles and a slight fog began to surround us. A tall building appeared in the fog, massive and cold, with black steel barriers on bricks walls, all of it under spiny roses branches. Windigo stopped in front of the garden door. "So, it's here?" I asked Windigo. "Yes,I grew here, in the family's mansion." "Was that so creepy ans savage?" "No, it was a bit sad." The bat pony smiled. "But the coulds were always presents, so it didn't change so much, unless about the plants." I tried to push the door with my magic, then with my shoulder, but it didn't move. "The hinge must be rusty by the time." I cursed. "Let me try." Windigo began as he approached his gauntlet. "Maybe it's just-" The door opened slowly, without any help, in a grim grinding. "Oh Okay..." I dropped. "This gives me the creeps." I slowly entered the area and looked around me. The central allee of gravel was flanked by ornamental pines, dead since long. The mansion in front of us was as the buildings of the city, timbered with slate roofs. Three sharp roofs were on the face of the house with a big stained glass on the wall under the main. "This garden is... big." "Yes, I can't remember all the time I've spend here to play with my father..." "And what was his name?" "I don't remember, but I can see every details of who he was, I don't remember the names of before my... coma." "And does that feel?" I asked as I opened the wooden door of the 'Mansion' "It's strange. Jailed in your own body, unable to speak, you see and hear everything around you,and time pass, seasons disappear in a blink. But I didn't feel the need to feed, drink... Trust me, you don't want to really know what it feels like..." The entrance door was massive, but looked to have been forced, but we entered, this would have been done long ago. The hall was large, looking copied on the Castle's hall with a wooden ground. A old skeleton was lying on the ground, a gun at his side with dozens of ammo, four boxes and a book. "He's dead since long, but the bones have bites marks." Windigo said. I took the book and began reading. I'm the guard of the Frost's Mansion and it's not this stupids spells which will stop my duty and thieves won't came! I've took 'Savage Beast', my fidel engraved hunting shotgun and six boxes of ammo... I heard the timberwolves were coming closer to the town, ammo will be useful- I turned some pages Three days they've trapped me inside the mansion, Luna damn this fucking wood wolves… Before they came, there was only Worgs… these wolves were made of meat and fur, not wood... Fucking timberwolves, I promise I'll kill you if you dare come inside!- -Twenty days… I've no more food, timberwolves are now fighting with some worgs to know who will eat my poor corpse... Luna, my queen, I hope you've dammed zebras and you'll damn this fucking beasts.- "Seems lack of food can be deadlyer than predators…" I conclued. Windigo took the shotgun and all the ammo : a .12 gauge double barrel engraved hunting shotgun and more than sixteen .12 gauge ammunitions. "What a beauty…" he said as he placed his gauntlet's claws to use the gun. "Now, let's found the stuff…" We continued to a large wooden door. "My grandfather's office…" he opened the door. Savages roses had took control of this room since long. Windigo gone behind the desk and looked at the portrait of a family. "Who are they?" I asked him "My grandfather…" He pointed a thestral with strong face, big silver mane and some beard at each side of his checks. The bat pony on the paint was oddly not big as Windigo. "…My grandmother…" He showed a tall white pegasus with black mane "…My aunt…" A dark grey bat filly with fire-like orange mane "...And finally my father." A bat foal, older than the filly, with the same grey-white fur that Windigo and orange-pale mane. He moved the portrait and placed it on the desk, making a safe appearing and I began to try opening the safe, a ear agaisnt the metal. "And about your mother?" I asked. "Don't remmember." he answered as he was hearding the sound of safe unlock system. "She died when I was young." "Oh... hum.. sorry." "You don't have to excuse. Sometimes, you have to turn the page, and I turned it long ago about this." Suddendly, I heard the unlocking. Click-Clac-Clunk! - The sound did an echo in all the mansion and roars and grows came. The safe opened and Windigo took the stuff. "Sky! Take this!" he said as the launched a strange gun, then I took it. My pipbuck showed 'Hydra', the full name was 'Hydra, Frost's family's legacy', a three barrel sawed-off shotgun. I took the ammo too : Something like thirty .12 gauge. I charged the shotgun with my magic and Windigo loaded 'Savage beast' with his hoof, handing the weapon with his gauntlet's claws. "What's happening?" I whispered. "At the sound, worgs." he calmly answered. "A what?" "A big wolf." The silence was upon us. "I think we have-" I began to say. The door literally exploded in wood sharps and a giant grey dog jumped by the entrance. Windigo charged and placed the canons in the mouth of the beast. The gun made a sound like a beast's roar as the superior jaw of the wolf was blowed out of her place. Other roars and sounds of claws on wood came at my hears. Windigo took me, jumped jumped through the window and landed in the back garden. He dropped me and looked around. It was a trap. Worgs… worgs everywhere... Their teeth were like boar's, their claws like bear's and they didn't approached us. "What's happening, now?" I asked, uncertain. "I've no idea.My grandfather was having three worgs as dogs, I know a lot of thing about them, but I've no idea about what to do in this situation!" A big roar came from behind the beast's group and a giant one came. He was black fur, a lot have already fell. He was having a old chain collar and was covered with scars, his fangs were respectively coming out his mouth like boar tusks and saber teeth. With his fur, he looked like a ghoul, a giant-ghoul-wolf. He charged and Windigo used 'Savage beast'. Clic-clic! - Out of ammo... "OH CRAP!" Windigo shouted before jumping to avoid the beast. I was in front of the monster. I pointed him with 'Hydra'. "USE THE THREE BARRELS AT THE SAME TIME!!!" Windigo shouted. "WHAT?" "DO IT!" And I did it. The 'Hydra' made a thunder-like sound as the giant worg was cutted in his charge, the head blowed out by the extremely powerful firepower of my new aquisition. The other wolves gone slowly, growing at us, when they were all gone, Windigo came at me. "Whao. Nice shot." "Thanks." He looked at his inventory and took a pendant. "Is that your talisman?" I asked The "talisman" was a light blue long crystal, with a light mist coming from it. It was attached at a black chain. "Yes." He weared it and breathed deeply. "Now I feel much much better." He kneeled before me. "You've help me to found a half of my soul, I'll be able to give you the other half just for you, as a guardian." "Well,why not…" I answered with a friendly smile. ___________________ Footnote: Level Up. New Perk: Ammo's Radar – Finding ammunition like this make you able to found more ammo on corpses, in containers or by pickpocketing. New Companion : Windigo – A strong thestral fighter who has promised to protect you as a guardian. All your skills are increased by +5 (Team gladiator perk). Windigo gave you "Learn my knowledge" Perk. New Companion perk : Learn my knowledge – When Windigo learns in a skill, you gain +2 points for the same skill. Windigo can also learn you some special tricks from his life from the Old World in special situations.
Chap 5We walked to the village, again. Arrived at the tavern, Windigo explained me how his talisman was working. "If you understand the concept of soul jar, you'll understand how it work ..." "Soul jar ? Sound like a soul jail ..." "That it !" he said "Inside this, are somes souls of my ancestors … each ancestor allows me to use a special power... but can make me like mad..." "Mad ?" "Yes, a personnality can take the control of the others and become stronger, but just for a moment … I know only three ponies who have used this, my oldest ancestor, my father and me... " "So, no real problems ..." "Yes, and in my family, we all have almost the same way to think … So if one of them take the control, don't worry …" "But … isn't that … Necromancy ?" "Not really … It is … Something else , even if I wasn't alive until I took my talisman back ..." I looked at him. "Very interessant …" I said and thinked. Killstreak came at our table. "Hi !" I said with a smile. "Watsup ?" dropped Windigo She answered by a kiss at each of us, and it surprised us. "I've informations about what is doing Blade Beast …" She said "C'mon … Don't focus on this bitch … take a little time for yourself …" moaned Windigo. This talisman has really changed him … he turned from a cold personnality to a very well living pony Killstreak sitted. " Maybe she's a bitch, but she want you … and if she find this village, imagine what could happens ..." "Well … you're not wrong ..." "Ok, we know she's a 'Reaper' as she called herself..." "Yes" I answered. "And Moon told me, while you were at the mansion, that reapers are at Hoofington." "Hoofington … that's damn far …" Said Windigo as he gulped his red beer. "And it's full of raider … as Moon heard from traders ..." "Ok … not good … "I said. "Yes, I know, but if we go there, and one of us defeat her in duel in front of others reapers, he'll take her place and will be able to found everything about project Reaper … " "And maybe the MagicKraftWerk upgrades !" I replied. "And after all that ?" asked Windigo. "We'll see later ..." Said Killstreak as she touched Windigo's muzzle with her own. "But our first ojective is to demand retribution … and adventures ! This place is great … but will become boring … So, who's with me ?" She raised her right hoof before her. I did same. "I am !" I said with a smile to Windigo. " Ok, very well … I am too !" Windigo sighed. "Alright then, see you tomorrow, at the cave entrance … prepare your stuff, we're gonna need it … Oh, and by the way … download this... " She trowed an old USB key. I took it and loaded on my Pipbuck. "What's that ?" Asked my bat-winged teammate. MagicKraftWerk upgrades location- Ministry of Wartime Technologies departement "A good thing …" I answered. I looked the list after I gave the key to Windigo. My minimap of equestria appeared as eight points with names. "Hoofington, Manehattan, Baltimare, Fillydelphia, Las Pegasus, Vanhoover, Canterlot, Stalliongrad, that's the places were we're gonna found upgrades ..." "And what are they ?" I shook my shoulders "I've no idea …" I answered "Well ...See you tomorrow ...I'm tired .."He said. He gone to the room. I looked at my pipbuck and my objectives. -New objective- Go to Hoofington and found a way to defeat Blade Beast in duel- -New secondary objectives- Found all MagicKraftWerk upgrades- 0/7 founded- The first upgrade was at Hoofington, and Blade Beast too ... I was tired … but I continued to search in the files. There was some about project Reaper : Files about batponies, thestrals and their flying abilties, files about scientific studies on them, comparisons with pegasis's capacities and others things about their possibilities to become assassins … a lot of informations like their sonic screams and more... It was the middle of the night when I seen it was late. I raised the stairs with a tired walk. I was behind our room's door I heard a sound from the matress and laughs. I entered silencly. Killstreak was tickling Windigo on the mastress and they stopped when they saw me. "He was on my part of the bed ..." said Killstreak. Windigo was breathing dephtly, Killstreat had almost kill him … or tried .. I lyed myself on the bed. "She tickles guys like this each time she's in the same bed ?" he asked me. "Only if she want to play ..."I answered. I sleeped slowly and sweetly. I woke up and looked above my shoulder, Killstreak was in Windigo's wings and forehooves. I raised on my hooves and walked to bar. I asked for a breakfast and the barmare gave me a cup of chocolate and some bread. I gone to my room and sitted at the window, then checked my inventory, and readed the project Reaper's files again. So much informations ... My pipbuck's radio began to sing something. I don't want to set the world on fire, I just want to set a flame in your heart ...- This song was sweet and I heared it to the end. -Hello there, It's DJ Pon3 right there … now, time to more music!- My pipbuck began to make a strange noise ... Krrrrkrkrkkrrrrkrrrr ! - "Gah … dammit" I thinked. I heard a moan behind me. Killstreak and Windigo woke up. Killstreak looked surprised to see me. "Hum … that's not what you think … I've asked Windigo because the night was cold …" She said quickly. I dropped a little laugh. I knew her … I has been her marefriend ... "C'mon, we have to go..."I said. We checked our inventories and our weapons : Killstreak got the MagicKraftWerk, Windigo got 'Savage Beast' and I got a .357 magnum and 'Hydra'... We got enough healing potions, some Rad-X and Rad-Away, some food and enough ammunition... I said goodbye to my mother and Sawbones came to see me. "Red Sky, if you need help about some medical tricks and other, use this radio frequence … You'll be able to contact me almost everywhere you'll be ..." I loaded the frequence. "Thank you, I hope it will be usefull... I hope I'll see you again..." "Don't worry … You will ..." "Goodbye Sawbones." "Goodbye, Red sky ..." I trotted to my companions. "Alright, let's do it !" I activated the radio's frequence and the music played as we trotted ouside. "To the road of Appleloosa, rode a stranger one fine day Hardly spoke to folks around him, didn't have too much to say …" we songed happily. We trotted for all the day with the music in the air... Nopony stopped us … unless the dead forests of Hollow Shades and a strange feeling of being followed since we exited from it. I stopped the radio. "What's happening ?" asked Killstreak "I heard something "I answered as I looked above my shoulder. A strange robot was flying right behind us. "WHAT A BLOODY HELL !!!" We screamed in a same voice. "Hum … sorry to afraid you … but I've seen your happy party in the wasteland and I've seen two of you with stable's vest and all three with pipbucks... I'm Watcher …" said the metallicvoice from the robot. "You're a robot ?" I asked. "Not really, this old Spite-bot is just a way to me to talk with potentials heroes of the wasteland ..." "Guy who uses robots to talk… Looks like an old horror film from when I was young …"Sighed Windigo. "No matters, I just want to know were you're are going ..." "Hum, going to Hoofington …" I said. "Hoofington ? T-t-t ! Bad land, bad ponies, tons of raiders, reapers's QG, big problems ..." "We know this, we just want to explode Blade Beast's face into a wall..." replied Killstreak. "Blade Beast ? Whao... You're aiming 'big game' category ..." "Yeah … and whatever ?" I asked "Well … You'll need weaponry … and thankfully, you're approching a old slaver base … maybe you'll found some ammo or weapon." We looked ourself. "I think he's right … We just have enough to fight a little band of raider ..."said Killstreak. "Yeah … and we'll maybe found some scrap and supplies to sale ..."continued Windigo. They were right ... "Ok, then … " I said. "Then, goodbye Watcher, and maybe see ya later ..." "You're welcome" said the robot. We walked until we seen the barricade of the camp. Lot of ponies were on the wall, dead and half eated … and the massive door was open. I entered slowly, the magnum levitating at my side, followed by Killstreak with the MagicKraftWerk and finally Windigo with 'Savage beast' at his right hoof. Some raiders were sleeping, others were 'playing' with some slaves who were alive. A group of raider was sleeping in the same place, out of other raider's visionfield. Windigo showed me some knives on a table and made a movement under his throat. Kill them while they sleep, then kill the rest. I made the knives levitating and approached the closer foe I seen. I placed myself above him, made the knife under his throat and introduced it with fast movements. "Gark-" tried to shout the raider as I shuted him by blocking his mouthin the dust. Critical hit – showed my Pipbuck Windigo was doing the same thing, with more skill and his wing's claws. A raider awoke, but he was too far for Windigo or me, then I throwed a knife at him and the cutting tool hit him at the neck, killing instantly. Windigo looked with surprise then did a movement with the head like a 'Nice shot'. We got almost killed an half of the raiders, almost all the sleeping. A raider entered the place an saw us. "Uh oh " I dropped. "ALERT-" The raider's shout was cutted by the sound of light machinegun shooting at him and blowing his body in sharped meat. I turned to the shooter : Killstreak ! She was wearing a dual-saddle light machineguns. The bullets were in pouch on her flanks like a unlimited ammo ressuply. "Look at these babies !" She proudly said. "Whao ! This is a real weapon !" cried Windigo with a giant smile. "There is the ammo stock right behind me, took everything !" replied Killstreak. I ran to this 'stock' with Windigo and looked at it. Tons of bullets … tons of shotgun ammo, magnum bullets and quickloaders… I took everything I needed. "Holy Celestia, I love be lucky" I moaned. "Killstreak, Windigo, can you fight them from the front while I kill them from behind ?" "Yeah, now, move !" said Killstreak. They took place at eah side of the wooden door. "You shoot them from long range and you let me kill them at close distance … ok ?"asked Windigo to Killstreak "Ok ..." They exited and shooted at all the raiders. I took an alternative way, my magnum at my side. My two companions were doing a fine job, but some raiders were covering behind blocs of concrete. I was behind the raiders and used my S.A.T.S. … A bullet in each head … could be a good beginning with four shoot. My first shoot was a sucess, but the others were … not so good .. My second shoot just missed, the third hitted at the shoulder and the last broked an unicorn's horn. The raiders who survived turned to me... no more energy for my S.A.T.S. … Dammit ! "Poor little thing, she don't know how to aim … come here, we're gonna play, stupid filly … unless you got anything smart to say now, faggot !" said the raider I missed. I switched to 'Hydra', then aimed at the raiders. "Ahah ! The stupid filly got something smart to say now !"I shouted with a smile. I used the first barrel, blowing a head in roasted meat and brain soup. The two other raiders looked at me with fear and I used the two last shoot of 'Hydra' to kill them. "Yay, the fun has been doubled !" I happily shouted. Windigo and Killstreak came at me and we looked at the slaves. They needed help … and we were gouing to help them. A mare was lying on the ground, beated almost to death. I took some healing potions and healed her. She was afraid, the fear in the eyes. "Sssh... they're gone … Everything is calm now … "I said to her. She calmed herself then looked at me. "T-thank you … " She said. "Where are the other slaves ?" She pointed a enclosure. Windigo opened it. I used the radio frequence of Sawbone … 87.8 MHz and let's go ! -Krrrrrrkrrrr- " Sawbones ? Do you heard me ?" Krrred Sky rrrrr Iz that krrr you rrr- "Sawbones !" Krrr rr zzz Red sky ? Ah, the frequence iz ok … Red Sky ? You got something?- "Yes, a group of slaves captured by raiders … We'll send you them … Can a Batpony patrol catch them before the forest of Hollow Shade ?" Of course, send them, the guard will recieve them at almost 6:00 pm- "Excellent, thank you Sawbones !" -Bitte Schön, Fraulein- I turned my radio off and gone to the slaves "Alright everypony, listen me, it's very important ! You're going to Hollow Shade frontier and wait, a group of batpony like my friend will recieve you and give you security and safety, food and healing … Understand ?" The slaves looked at me and started to talk. "The road is just the East and ONLY the East … No other road, and you'll wait at the frontier of the dead forest, do not enter the forest without the batpony's guards !" They began to follow the road. The mare came at me. "The Godesses bless you …" Then she gone with the others. ___________________ Footnote: Level Up. New Perk: Sneaky hoof (level 1) – You make less sound, deal more damages, have a better aim and have more chance to deal a critical hit when you're sneaking. New Companion : Killstreak – A 'noble' albinos unicorn, a childhood friend of yours and your first marefriend, loves big guns, hates raiders, all your stats are increased by 5% unless heavy machinegun, medicine and reloading speed skills which are increased by 10 % while she's your teammate (Team gladiator perk).
Chap 6Slaves were gone, Killstreak was looking for ammo and Windigo was searching food. So I entered a old building, looking for some stuff. It was a ruined clinic which would be slaver's healing center. I didn't imagined that I entered a butcher's lair ... Patient's skinless corpses were hanged to the ceiling, the ground was covered of scarlet blood... Despite to the heat of the day, the ambience was like a cold room. I slalomed between some corpses and looked at what was the reception. A cadaver of a mare with the chest opened, ribs going out, the organs missing, forehooves attached to the back of the siet and her legs spread and tied to the chair leg. My gaze passed at the dead body. I was sorry for her ... These raiders were monsters ... I took a look at the desk and smiled. A box of cigarettes ... and a zippo lighter. I took the stuff and levitated it, then lighted one of the cigarettes and pull on it. I haven't took a cigarette since ... a week ... I slowly blew a puff of smoke and I began to think. In less than a week, I've been a slave, fighted in an arena with a giant bat pony, escaped with him, gone back to my village, found a town of bat ponies, was attacked by a group of raider leaded by a giant pegasus mare in a castle, found a ultra-secret weapon, has explored a pre-war mansion full of meat-made-timberwolves, killed a little group of raiders who have invade a slaver's camp with the bat pony and my first marefriend and now, I was smoking a cigarette next to a raped dead mare with organs missing in a ruined clinic full of skinless bodies ... "Bad times ... This period is a bad time ... You're the best example, don't take it wrong ..." I said to the mare on the chair. And now, I was talking to dead ponies ... I took another breath and levitated the cigarette to drop ashes. I looked around me, then exited from the clinic after taking some stuff. Windigo and Killstreak were talking in the center of the 'street', I walked to my teammates. "So ? found something useful ?" I asked "I got a lot of ammo, some grenade and a strange gun ... but I don't know how to use it ..." Killstreak answered as she showed the thing. "Hey ! I know this !" Said Windigo. "It's a flare gun ... You put the flare here ..." He took the thing, opened it and showed the barrel. " ... Then you aim the sky and you pull the trigger ... And if you encounter an aggressive beast, aim at it and shoot ... The light's gonna makes them flee and if they aren't afraid by the light, their burning skin should make them to think two time before come back to deal with you ..." He closed the barrel and took the flare gun in his inventory. "... And before they come back, you'll have the time to run to hide and take a most appropriate weapon ..." "But we're gonna use it only in critical moments ?" I asked. He looked at me "I guess if you use a flare gun just for a rattlesnake, the snake is gonna be the last of your worries, after ..." He began to count on his gauntlets claws. " ... Slavers, raiders, big predators ..." "Big predators ? What do you mean by 'BIG predators' ?" I asked, not really sure about if the answer was going to be reassuring. "By big predators, I meant griffins who are maybe hunting ponies, timberwolves, chimeras, cockatrices, manticores, ursas, changelings, bears and maybe dragons ...'' I was out of speech ... "You're kidding ? right ?" I said with a false laugh. "Nope ..." "Even for the dragons ?" "Yep ..." I felt my right eyelid move in a twitch. "Don't look at me like that ... I know how think predators because I'm one ... By the way I'm hungry ..." He looked around him and his right ear moved. "I think we're gonna have some visitors ..." He smelt around us. "What's happening ?" Asked Killstreak. "We're in the wind ... it comes from east ... and I smell a familiar odor ... " "What kind of odor ?" I demanded. "Three friends of us ... we're in their camp, and they don't know the raiders have kill every slavers" Windigo answered. "You mean ... we are in their camp ?" "Yes ... No, come take cover and reload !" We each galloped to a cover. Killstreak was hiding behind a wall of concrete, Windigo took a cache in the building full of dead raiders we killed and I took the clinic. We were in a triangle, when they'll be in the perfect center, we were going to shoot them down ... I pulled out my .357 magnum and levitated it at my side. I looked by a old window. Barbed Wire was before her troops, followed by Steel Mane and Bulletproof at her sides. Wire wasn't armed, but Steel Mane got a Zebra rifle and Bulletproof was having a flamer. They were having ten slavers with them ... maybe less .. "What the hell happened here ?" asked Steel Mane. "Fucking raiders ..." simply said Wire with anger. "But not the group from the last time ..." "What ? Raiders are all the same ! Hordes of mad killers who like to plant heads on spades, rape and torture everypony they capture ..." Cried Bulletproof "Raiders don't usually eat their victims ... those ones do ... But why ? They normally still vegetarians despite their stupidity and madness ... not those ones" muttered Wire. They were approaching slowly of the center of our positions. "Let see if these bastard are still here, if you saw one of them alive, I want him in front of me, alive and able to answer my questions .. NOW !" Slavers trotted all around. one of them was walking in my direction. "Dammit ! Please Luna, do something, I'll do everything you'll want but please !" I though the harder I can. - inspire ... 1 ... 2 ... 3 ... 4 ... expire ... calm yourself ...- "I got somepony !" shouted a slaver. The one who was going to me gone back to their guys. "I want to see him right NOW !" hurled Wire. The smell of dead bodies in the clinic by the heat of the middle of day was unbearable ! But I needed to resist to the envy to exit. Two slavers dragged Windigo before Barbed Wire. "He was in the tent which is full of dead raiders ..." said a slaver. Barbed Wire smiled. "At least, he's still here ... well, I guess it could make me forgot this little incident ..." They were exactly where I wanted to see them ! I exited from the building and aimed Wire. "Release him, you kind of insatiable cum's dumpster on hooves !" She turned to me. "What a surprise ... You're here too ... But you're alone and I'm with my band, little bitch ... I'm gonna put you back in your place ..." "I'm not alone ... I got my party too ..." Killstreak came out her cover with her war-saddle and her machine guns and shooted at the slavers. Barbed Wire jumped behind a old plow, avoiding bullets. Bulletproof slammed Steel Mane on the ground and placed his body between Killstreak and his mare. Windigo threw himself on the ground, trying to stay alive. The slavers replied, shooting at Killstreak who took cover. I fired one of the slave with a bullet in the back and others began to shoot me. I saw Windigo catch two stallions and threw them away. He made a jump, using his wings to go farest from the group, and took Savage beast with his gauntlet, firing at slavers before take cover. Smell of powder, blood and decay in the air ... I don't know why, but it was like this smell was making me drunk of adrenaline in my blood. It was like a muffled commotion punctuated by gunshots from different protagonists. It was a bloodbath ... a butchery ... There was still 5 slavers, I shooted at the closest and his jaw was blew by the shock. Another slaver took Killstreak out her cover and began to hit her with a police baton. My heart was full of anger. A slaver gone help his fellow to beat Killstreak up. I saw Windigo jump and flew up. Where the hell were he going ?! I finally understood after thirty seconds. A whistle came at my hears, becoming louder with the time. Windigo was doing a swoop and landed on the first foe, grapping his face with the ebony gauntlet on his right forehoof and crushing his prey's skull against the ground in a horrible cracking noise. The second slaver jumped of surprise, unable to attack the bat pony who just landed like a cannonball. Windigo blew the slaver in a barrel roll with his wing and took Savage Beast with his gauntlet and fired at close range, cutting his target in two. I exited from the clinic, my magnum levitating at my side. Bulletproof and Steel Mane looked unconscious, all others slavers slain ... unless ... Killstreak tried to get on her legs. "How do you feel ?" asked windigo "Pain, pain and more pain ..." answered Killstreak. "Just need one or two healing potion." I heard a sound behind me and turned. - BAM - A bullet brushed my ear. "I won't mich ya nexcht time !" said Barbed Wire despite the gun she held in her mouth. I drawed my magnum before me. It was face-to-face between she and I ... I activated my S.A.TS. and aimed. -Inspire ... 1... 2... 3... 4.. expire ...- "Now shoot that bitch and finish the job !" roared my soul with a rage from my guts burning of will to win and survive. All my six bullets, all in her head ... almost six hooves underground ... Like a cliché of old film from cowhorses and buffalos ... but in my life, and in this world, that was not always the brave who survive sysmeticatly ... My most brutal, bestial and primal entrails were roaring in unison, spitting pure adrenaline in my veins full of boiling blood. My vision was no more that a black tunnel pointing right on my opponent, like a gun's barrel ... and my hatred for this mare who sent stallions, mares and foals to die in horrific conditions, forced to obey to cruels masters. And this hatred, it was my bullets ... The sound of my heartbeat and eardrums echoing in my head ... - Bom-bom bom-bom ... bom-bom ... - Time passed slowly, I was using the S.A.T.S. at the same time that this rage ... Suddenly all the heat of my rage became pure cold. It was now or never! - BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM - Each sound of my magnum shooting Barbed Wire made me closer to the reality ... And each shot struck his target ... Wire's head didn't got the time to move at the first bullet than the second was perforating her skull ... with each bullet ... The time became faster, even more, and more ... And the time was passing normally. The dead corpse of Barbed Wire fell on the dusty ground, the skull perforated by six bullets of .357 magnum. Bulletproof got up, took Steel Mane on his back and runned out of the camp, letting us alone. I began to aim, but one of Windigo's leather wing opened in front of me, making me unable to aim or shoot. "Let them run ... They're only two against all the dangers of the 'wastelands' ..." Said Windigo has he place a hoof on my shoulder. "It was ... " I tried to said. "The first time when you kill somepony is always the hardest as I heard" said Killstreak as she posed her hoof on my other shoulder. I looked at my magnum. So it was that ... The survival instinct ... "It was... AWESOME !!!!!" I shouted to the skies with a giant smile and tears of happyness. Windigo and Killstreak looked each other with surprise. I know killstreak got her cutie mark when she killed roadroaches to the chain during an infestation in the town outside the Stable ... Windigo was the definition of "alive killing machine" with his claws, fangs and feline eyes... I was just a unicorn who got her cutie mark during a power-cut at home. I made electricity back by placing her horn in a power outlet, making red sparkles and lightning all around me ... and I got my cutie mark and charged all the quarter during three days … My entire life didn't made me a killer or a action-mare. But now I've felt this ... I was ... like made for this despite all my peaceful childhood. The world has return to an ancient world ... An ancient world leaded by a simple and ultimate rule: Kill or be killed ... And nopony wanted to be the killed ... And after all, this rule was always present ... Even in the peaceful age of pre-war time ... Now, raiders were like psychotic hyenas, killing everything which weren't raiders from their band. Slavers were a bit less brutal, capturing sentient species to sold them ... helping some cruels customers, so customers don't kill them ... There must have been a lot of ways to survive with this rule, and I got mine: With Windigo and Killstreak, we were a group ... And as the proverb said "Number is Strength" and the fight of today against slavers proved it ... "Everypony's okay ?" I asked "I think I'm okay ..." said Killstreak. "Everything's right to me" answered Windigo. I smiled, satisfied of our performance, a group of raiders and another of slavers killed in the same day ... Killstreak looked at her pipbuck. "What are you doing ?" I asked her, interested. "I'm looking on my mini-map ... to see our itinerary." She replied calmly. "You'll better do it too ..." Windigo and I looked at our pipbucks. "Hoofington is right there, near to a certain 'Everfree forest' ..." Killstreak continued. My pipbuck showed a map with some points, including Hoofington. "Were did you loaded this map ?" I demanded. "When you've opened files I gave you at the tavern, your pipbucks have downloaded location in undiscovered mode, as mine did ..." "So, we have an idea about where to go ..." Windigo deduced. "And we've to go east then go south when we'll arrive to Canterlot" continued Windigo. "Why don't go south right now ?" asked Killstreak. "Because I have learned Equestria's geography when I was a foal ... And I know Hollow Shade's environs very well ... If we take South right now, we'll going to arrive at Foal mountains, and because you're unicorns and you can't fly, travelling by the mountains will take to much time ..." He told. "Mountains ?" I questioned. "Your high-tech toy don't show reliefs, only informations ... My old pre-war methods using memory still best sometimes ..."He replied with a taunting smile . "Yeah, maybe ..." said Killstreak, visibly injured in his pride. "Don't feel bad, nopony is perfect ..." Windigo consoled her. Killstreak grumbled and Windigo looked her in the eyes. "Do not sulk, it's just a map ..." He calmly said. "... I don't like to see my friends sad." Killstreak tried to make a smile. "Much better" he said, then kissed her cheek. "So, we're going or what ?" I asked. "This place is full of bodies and smell decay ..." I began to loot corpses. "If you found Bottle caps, take it !" told Killstreak. "Why ?" I asked, looting intensively. "Moon said merchants and wastelanders are using as money ..." "As money ?" questioned windigo with surprise. "Yeah ..." "And if you found ammo you can't use, take it anyway, we're going to sold it if we meet a merchant... and take all of it, against raiders, we're never have too much ammo ..." I continued. We took an hour to collect every useful stuff. We also stopped at the gates of the camp. "Ready for a long travel ?" I asked. "Hell yeah !" replied Killstreak. "Let's do it !" cried Windigo. We began to walk forward to the west. After twenty minutes, a question began to grow in my brain. "Windigo ?" I asked shyly. "Yes ?" "I got question about pre-war world and ... every things like this, can I ask you about ?" "Yeah ! How was the world before it become this ?" asked Killstreak, looking interested Windigo took a moment. "Well ... I don't know where to begin ... maybe by the beginning ..." he murmured. "If you want" I continued. "More than a thousand years ago, Equestria was founded by three nations, pegasi, unicorns and ponies. Princesses Celestia and Luna came next and as Alicorns, became rulers of Equestria -" He recounted. "We already know that ..." I cutted him. "Yeah, whatever, so you know all the bullshit with elements of harmony, Nightmare Moon, etc ... So the history lessons is ended, I'll describe you how was the world before it become a dusty desert." He told. We were slowly trotting on a old railway. "So, being a bat pony, I wasn't destined to live the day, but my parent's couple was a bit ... weird for the epoch ..." He uncomfortable said. "Weird ?" Killstreak asked. "Red Sky saw it in the Mansion, my grand-parents were a bat pony and a pegasus mare, and my parent's couple were same composition ... so my father was ... diurnal and nocturnal at a time to have time with other bat pony and his family … And my mother being a day pony, I have grew like my father and it permitted me to see the world with a different look than other ponies ... By the time, Equestria was peaceful by this time, but it was just for official Equestria ... Ponies were always fighting before Equestria, and they didn't change ... competition between salers, to have better than other people ... zebras and griffins were not having a good reputation, also bat ponies ... but we were a bit more integrated ... because we were Luna's guard and her small protected." "Like puppies ?" I questioned, surprised "Not ... really ... more like her childrens ..." He said, searching for words. "My grandfather was a Luna's guard, and my father was a reserve soldier. And one day, I've travelled to Canterlot, the capitol ... Luna, it was beautiful ... A bit too white, but beautiful ..." He smiled like melancholic. "I don't really remember after my twenty fifth year old ... I remember a mare's face, a horrible sad feeling, and nothing else ..." He stood speechless for a moment. "And about your Stable and your childhood ?" He asked. I looked Killstreak. "Well ... My mother said that the stable was a hiding place during the war to protect ponies from a great cataclysm ... Approximately seventy years ago the stable opened because of lack of space for population, and our grandparents began to build a village at the entrance of the Stable ..." I said. "Interesting" muttered Windigo. "And about your youth ?" "Red Sky and I were child of engineers from the Stable ... The stable was not longer our real home, but it gave us electricity, water-cleaning ... Our mother were friends, and we were too ..." Killstreak told. "And do you became friends ?" the bat pony asked. "Killstreak is albinos and the medics told she was having a problem at the right eye, and bullies were always mocking her, and I defended her many times." "Red !" shouted Killstreak. "He need to know, he's with us after all !" I replied Killstreak growled. "And when we became teens, Killstreak grew more than all ponies of the stable, and bullies stopped their wickedness against her ... And we became very ... very close " I continued. Killstreak blushed. "So cute !" said Windigo. "Are you mocking me ?" I asked. "No, I'm not ..." "Yes, you are !" "Gaaah ! Mares didn't change after all this time !" he moaned. "Eyh ! What's that ?" asked Killstreak as she pointed a big thing in a pile of scrap metal. We looked at it. "It's a Sparkle-Cola distributor !" I cried. "Cool ! does somepony have some bits ?" Killstreak looked at her pipbuck and made a negative move with her head, Windigo did same. "Dammit, I forgot my money at the tavern ..." I sighed. " And I'm thirsty ... Gaah ! We'll see later ..." Windigo approached the distributor. "What are you doing bat boy ?" asked Killstreak. Windigo closed his gauntlet claws and destroyed the glass of the machine. "Are you stealing ?" I asked. "No police, no rules, nopony to say that's bad ... And I guess drink and survive is more important than dying because you didn't took a soda in a distributor ..." He replied calmly. He took all the bottles and shared it between us. "Health !" Windigo said has he raised his bottle in his claws. He opened the bottle and took the cap. Clic clac - "You're gonna need it, son ... now hooves behind ya head and lie down on the ground ..." said a voice behind him. Windigo lay himself on the dust. The stallion behind him was a unicorn, wearing a hardat and was pointing a strange shotgun at us. I heard something behind me. "Do like you friend, or you're all going to have a real bad day ..." said a mare voice behind me. Killstreak and I lay on the ground. "Hum ... We're not raiders ... we're just travellers ... we don't want problems" I said. "Rusty, they're right, mares got stable's jumpsuit, and they all wear a pipbuck." told the mare at her fellow. "I'm not darn sure for the mutant-like-pegasus ..." He replied. "I'm not a mutant or something else ... I'm just a bat-pony -'' said Windigo. "And what don't prove me you're like these damn Gorgon or Brass ? A reaper's monster ! A pony with a bloodwing ?" "No way ! I'm a bat pony, a Luna's guard pony, old-one !" shouted Windigo. The unicorn looked at the mare. "Well, I hope you're not lying ..." said the stallion. "Excuse us, we're a caravan to Dodge Junction ... I thought you were raiders ..." We got up, looking at these ponies. "I'm Rusty Wrench, and my fella is Tin Rivet" introduced the hardat-pony. "Travelling around here's dangerous ... You shouldn't be distracted by a Sparkle-Cola bottle ..." "You're going to Dodge Junction ? Right ?" Windigo asked. "Heck yeah, kid ..." replied the old buck. "Is it near to Everfree forest ?" "That's darn near, boy, you just got to trot to west-north and you're arrived after five minutes ..." "So can we travel with you ?" I questioned. "Why not, until you don't make troubles ..." "Thank you" "You're welcome, kids." ___________________ Footnote: Level Up. New Perk: Gunslinger - While using a mouth-held or levitated firearm, your chance to hit in S.A.T.S. increases by 25%.
Chap 7Trotting during two days and three nights, debuting the third day of constant walking on pre-war equestrian roads ... It was boring, tiring and ... we all began to be hungry. Windigo had disappeared since more than thirty minutes and I was staring my last Sparkle-Cola, saliva at my dry lips. "Rusty ? When are we going to arrive ?" I asked to the old unicorn."We're are wasted by this ... Killstreak and I won't continue one more day ..." "In less than an hour ... The town's gonna appear at the horizon ..." I looked around and saw a strange beast looking like a giant pig, and it was running forward of us. I heard a soft whistle from above. It was like a light-gray lightning which landed on the beast, rolled with it and threw it against a old concrete wall in a bloody splash and a crushed skull noise. Windigo ... not surprising after all ... but the action wasn't in lack of 'punch', very brutal and fast. He took the body with his gauntlet and flew a little before landing between Killstreak and I. "Did I miss anything ?" He calmly asked. Rusty Wrench looked at him and his victim. "I've seen better sides of beef been run over by a combine." he cried. "you should sale it at Dodge Junction as bacon for some caps ..." "Bacon ? Ponies eat meat ?" Windigo replied. "Yep, they make bacon ..." Windigo looked at me and Killstreak. "Some free caps, what do you think about that ?" he whispered at my ears. "Hmm ..." I thinked about all this. " If you can hunt these ... things ... easly, then why not ... And you'll need a wash, you got a stain, right there ..." I said as I pointed his chest. He looked at it and turned bothered. "Yeah, maybe ..." he just moaned. We trotted a bit before I saw Dodge Junction. It was a pile of dirt with a barbed wire barrier on it. spikes were coming from the ground, like a fort with some turrets with old pre-war stuff on it. "What kind of weapon is this ?" I asked "That's our auto-piloted defenses ... We builted it cause of raiders, slavers, hellhounds and all the bullshit ..." Hellhound ? What kind of beast was that ? I knew Diamond dogs from pre-war stories my mother told me when I was a filly, but Hellhound ... No idea of what it could be ... "How does it work ?" Killstreak demanded. "We've connected these old gatlings to a mechanical arm, a rotating platform and an E.F.S. -like system ..." Rusty replied. "An E.F.S. ? How did you got it ?" I asked, surprised. "A pony came long time ago..." Rusty answered. "He gave us his 'Pipthing' and he learned us how to use it ... So, we've reproduced it with less or more success with electronical stuff from some old terminals ... ' wasn't easy, but we have succeeded after all. It attack all 'red' targets which are stupid enough to be aggressive ..." We stopped before the gate, between two heavy armored ponies. They aimed Windigo immediately. "Hello, old man, you're bringing outsiders and mutants in town, now ?" asked the first. "I'm NOT a mutant ! What the hell is wrong with everypony ? Why do you think I'm a monster !" moaned Windigo. "He's a kind of ... Luna's guard …" said Rusty Wrench. "Yeah ... maybe ... now enter and don't do trouble, freak ..." mocked the second armored pony. "Yeah, soup can !" murmured Windigo. We walked in the main allee, full of live. "You can go at the motel, right there." Rusty pointed a building. "It's only ten caps per night for a room ... If you want a job, ask me, I'll be at the workshop, for the bat boy, you can go to the butcher, Dust Mist …" New objective, go to the workshop - We entered the motel and I walked forward, letting Killstreak an Windigo behind me. A stallion was behind a desk with a terminal. "Hum ... excuse me, do you have a free room ?" He looked at me with a arrogant gaze. "Maybe, just let me look at my register ..."He said. "Yes ... the room number two is free, but it's a first class one, fifteen caps per night ... For one person ?" "Not really, it for three ponies ... I and my two friends behind me..." He looked over me, at my friends. I expected something I don't wanted to. "Sorry, miss, we do not accept pooch, hounds or mutants in this institution ..." "WHAT ?" Oh, Celestia, why ? Why did he tell that ? Why did Windigo heard him ? Windigo walked with a determined trot, stopped in front of the receptionist, knocked the desk with his left hoof and grabbed the stallion at the collar with his gauntlet. "WHAT DO YOU JUST SAID ABOUT ME ?! YOU SONOVABITCH ?!" Shouted the bat pony. "I just said ... *gasp* ... We don't accept pets or mutants ..." gasped the stallion. "Did I look like a dog ? DID I ?" Shouted Windigo louder as he slammed the receptionist against the desk. "Did I look like a freak ? Yes, I do !! I'm a bat pony, you freaking stupid ! I'm a Luna's guard, you faggot ! So stop calling me a mutant ! UNDERSTOOD ?!!" The stallion answered with a affirmative move with his head. Windigo slapped him. "I DIDN'T HEAR YOU, MAGGOT !" "Y-y-y-yes, sir ..." "That's more like it !" He took keys and dropped twenty caps on the desk. "Fifteen for the room, and five for tip ..." "Thanks s-s-sir ..." Answered the stallion, hiding under the desk. "Ok, ladies, I let you see the room, I got a job to do ..." Windigo said. He threw the key at me, and I grabbed with my magic. "See you later !" said Killstreak with a smile and her "predator's" eyes... Hell, I hate when she do that ! Because that means she want to seduce, and I stay really possessive ...even if I'm not with her anymore ... Goddesses dammit ! Killstreak and I walked to our room and opened it ... The room was made of three parts: A saloon, a water room and THE room with a crimson covered bed big enough to Celestia and Luna at the same time ... Gorgeous ... I layed on the couch of the saloon and looked at Killstreak. "Yo, Killstreak ? Is the MagickraftWerk recharged ?" She looked her Pipbuck and gave me the heavy energy gun. "Ouf ! That's big !" I said. "And only ... one third recharged ... Gaaaaaah ! I looked the weapon everywhere and I loaded my magic in my horn. "Sky ?" asked Killstreak. I used my magic on the MagicKraftWerk and filled all the charge. I felt like drunk and tired. "Killstreak ... you're so funny ... hihi ... did I told you you were cute ? hihihi ..." I moaned at her, then I closed my eyes. I was a phenomenon when I was drunk, I'm always today ... but less ... xxo0oxx I was in the darknesses, again ... I walked forward in the dark ... All sounds around me where like a night. "Gaaah ... boring" I moaned. "I'm in a complete night, nothing, nopony around ... this night is definitely BORING !!!!" "BORING ?!" "Eyh ! Who's there ?!"I shouted in a bit of fear. "Who are you ?!" "US ? WE ARE THE NIGHT !" "Wowowowo ! Calm down, please, I don't want problems ...alright ?" A cloud of purple, blue and black mist appeared and began to turn around me. "Problems ?" Asked the mist with a sweet voice." Why should I cause problem to my own childrens ?" Two ambers glowing eyes appeared in the mist which took a tall pony form. I was afraid, really freaking afraid ... Two part of mist took me between them, like two wings. My cheek touched the form, and fear disappeared instantly. It was like a hot fur and feathers from wings were like a sweet cover on my shoulder and my body. My cheek, my neck and my chest embraced this hot mist as a foal do with his mother ... It was comforting in this dark and cold night ... so cold ... as a blizzard ... "So ? is this night so boring ?" asked the mist. "No ... not at all ... I love night ..." I answered like the filly I was more than ten years ago. "Sorry, my little pony, but I have to go ..." "No, stay here, stay with me, please .." The mist was now cold as death, and stopped to hug me, going into a cloud and disappearing in the darknesses as the sun rose. "No, wait !" I shouted as I ran. "Wait !" "WE GOT TO GO !" "No ....NO WAIT !" The light was reflected and blinded me in a white chaos, then darknesses. xxo0oxx I opened my eyes, I was in the motel, lying on the couch . I looked around me and rose on my hooves, then walked slowly to the water room, but I stopped at the room entrance. Windigo and Killstreak were sitting on the bed, the bat pony was making a braid to the white unicorn. "And so ? about Red Sky ?" asked the thestral. "She's really kind, attentionate, maybe a little possessive ... but such playful at bed..." She was right .... unless for about the bed ... I wasn't such playful ... maybe not... I sitted myself behind the wall, hearing by the door. "Such playful ?" He asked calmly. Killstreak laughed a little. "More than you can imagine ..."She said as she turned the head to look Windigo in the eyes. " And about you ?" "Nothing special ...I've been with some mares before ... but it was already two hundred years ago... and I don't remember everything ... but mares didn't change so much ... by be friend, I mean ..." Killstreak smiled, then kissed the nose of the bat boy who blushed instantly. "Whao ... mares from before the war didn't do that after only one week ... maybe they changed after all ..." he half-smiled. "But maybe we should ... you know ... learn about the other, maybe have a diner alone together ... It bother me to be only an One night adventure, if you see what I mean ..." She took a step back. "You're right ... I understand what you mean …" I remembered ... She got this problem with a bully because of this ... Windigo jumped on her and began to tickle her. "I have my revenge to take !" he said with a smile. Killstreak was laughing as I've rarely saw she do. It was enough for me, I entered the bathroom and undressed myself in front of the shower. I dropped my Stable jumpsuit on the floor, only keeping my Pipbuck. I opened the water and entered. The water was hot, like a rain on me... My geiger counter slowly crackled at less than +1 Rad ... I took an old soap and began to wash and made a sponge levitating around me, begining to rub my body with it and the soap... I washed my hooves and my belly quickly and slowed at my intimate zone ... "Hmmm ..." I moaned as the hot water was flowing over my body. I took shampoo and began to wash my mane and my tail. I've not washed myself since a long time ... too long ... exiting the shower was so hard now I got hot water … I took a cigarette in my inventory and lighted it. I walked, took a breath and levitated my jumpsuit to wash it, but stopped at the room entrance. Killstreak and Windigo were lying on the bed, the giant bat pony was covering the tall unicorn with his wing, a cover over both of them. They were cute ... That was what Killstreak needed, a stallion who were protective, able to understand her ... That was what we needed, strong relationships between us and protecting each others ... I didn't wanted to bother them, but Windigo woke up. "You're finally awoke ?" he asked. "How long ?" " Maybe six hours, maybe more ..." he said." I've no idea ..." He got up and came to me. "Killstreak and you ... are ..." I tried to ask. "Together ?" "Well ... Yeah ..." "I don't know ... "He answered. "She's kind, looks like she need somepony in her life ... But we'll be together if she want to ... and if we got time ..." I gave him a little hit with my shoulder. "Don't tell me you don't want her, you're mad of her..." I mocked. "No, no ... For the moment we are just ..." he said." ... Close friends ..." "Close friends ?" I asked. "Yes, close friends ... Does this bother you ?" "No, not at all ..." "So why do you ask me so much about my relation's nature with Killstreak ? Are you jealous ? Or are you protecting her ? Or both at the same time ?" "I ...I ... Yes I am ..." I dropped in a sigh. "She was my first marefriend ... and I've seen her suffering because of a stallion used her ... And I don't want to see this happens to her again ..." He looked at me and placed his gauntlet on my left shoulder. "I promise you this will never happens again ..." he said with a formal tone. "Y-you really promise me ?" "Yes, I promise you, but first, if you want us to talk about Killstreak and I, we'll need to wait a little ... I don't want to go in a relation on a whim ... Do you understand ?" "Yes, I understand ..." His wings surrounded me and I placed my cheek on his chest as he began to hug me ... it was like in this dream, without feathers ... I felt like in my mother's forehooves ... A hot feeling of comfort and security ... I hugged him as well, like in lack of affection ... I rubbed my cheek against his hot light-gray fur. "If you're jealous of Killstreak, tell me it ... I'll do my best to limitate our relation in front of you ..." He whispered slowly. "Okay ..." I approached my lips of his, but his head took a step back, so I stopped. He kissed my nose and smiled. "Close friends ..." He said gently. "Ok ... " I replied as I lowered my muzzle. He quietly took my chin with his gauntlet and raised my face to see me in the eyes. "Sssh ... Is something wrong ?" "I ... I don't know ... I always felt something for Killstreak and ... I don't know about you ... I mean ... You look protective, able to care about us and ... We both never seeen a stallion like you ..." "Like me ? Like a bat-monster-mutant ?" He mocked. "No, not at all ... I meant so ... large-hearted stallion ... Is that a special trait of your ... race ?" "I don't think so ... My father wasn't like me ... more suspicious and cold, but he was like me with people he liked ..." "Do you mean like you and Killstreak ?" I asked with a mocking smile. "My father was having a wife, I don't ..." He answered with the same smile. He approached his muzzle to mine and moved it at my right ear. "If you want to sleep or rest, you can come with us ..." He said. I walked to the bed, Windigo placed Killstreak with precaution and let a place between him and her, so I laid myself between them, with a feeling of security. But I haven't the need to sleep ... "Windigo ?" "Yes, Sky ?" "You want to sleep ?" "Not really ... I just rest a bit ... hunting is exhausting ..." "How about your job ?" "I got a deal with Dust Mist, A radhog for thirty five caps, against fifty for the other hunters ... I got one hundred five caps at total today ..." I raised and sat on the mattress, Windigo did same and began to use his gauntlet with my mane as I through. "What are you doing to my mane ?" I asked. "Oh, nothing ... I'm just combing it ... " He said slowly. "You won't go outside with a humid hairs ? Don't you ?" He approached himself to brush with more efficiency, then I felt his thigh's inner face against my cutie mark. I blushed and turned my head a bit to look at him. He was whistling softly and was concentrated on my mane despite his groin's proximity with my back. " Mayyyybe you'll think of me, when you are aaaaall alone, maybe the one who is waiting for youuuuu …Will proooove untrue, then what wiiiiill you doooo? Mayyyyybe you'll sit and sigh, wishiiing that I were neeeear, then maybe you'll ask me to come back agaaaaaain … And maybe I'll say maybe..." He sang slowly. "It's a beautiful song" I said. "You've not heard my grand-mother's favorite song ..." He answered. " But my granny came from Pranche, so it's in Prench ... " "Your grandparents weren't from equestria ?" "My grand-father was equestrian, but not my grand-mother ..." "And ... Is it bat ponies in Pranche ?" "I've no idea ... She never told me about the kinds of ponies I should meet ..." I looked at him one more time. Hell, now I saw him with Killstreak, I was seeing him so close to me. "And about your parents ?" He asked softly. "I don't know my father ... You already saw my mom ... she is .. or was engineer in the Stable and was working in the lower levels of the Stable ... A vital work for everypony." I answered has I levitated my cigarette. If Luna had create bat ponies, she've done a well freaking done job ! "And about-" He began, but I grabbed him at the shoulders and kissed him. It was stronger than I ... My tongue slowly slipped on his and began to turn. His teeth weren't sharps at the touch, but slick. His tongue was slippery on the inner face and lightly rough on the top. He was letting me doing the movement, no doubt to don't fuck up my kiss ... His lips were sweet and tough at the same time. I pushed him on the back, laying him on the mattress and I placed myself above him, keeping my lips against his. I draw a movement with my hoof to his somepony's zone. His reaction was quick and clear. He stopped to let me kiss him and sent my tongue out of his mouth quickly. "Ouch !" My tongue was hurt ... I've maybe cut on his teeth... He push me out and I fell next to him and near of Killstreak, then he came above me and I was now between his four legs. "Sorry to be such crude, but no, Sky, I don't want this for the moment !" "Oooh ... Pleeeeeease ..." I moaned softly. "I said no ! Killstreak is right there and I don't do this until I'm sure of my feelings ..." He said with his teeth out. "Rusty said he got a job for you and you should go see him to change your mind ... " "You're not funny !" I sighed. "Maybe ... " He said as he moved to the side and sat me free. I rose and took my Stable's jumpsuit, dressed myself and exited the room. I lowered the stairs and arrived at the reception. The arrogant stallion was still here. "Is the room pleasing your friends ?" he asked with a stressed tone. "The other unicorn like it, and the bat-boy too ..." I trotted outside and continued my travel to the "workshop". It was a old building of redbrick arranged with wood boards and metal. The entrance was like a market's shop. "Is somepony here ?" I asked in the empty building. "You've take your time to come see an old unicorn ..." answered the old voice of Rusty Wrench. "Excuse-me ... but I-" "You don't have to justify yourself ... can you come in the back room..." I entered the "back-room". It was like a old garage full of ranged weapons, terminal's parts and electronic stuff. "Woah ... that's ... a real treasure ..." I said, surprised. "That's nothing ..." "Why do you asked me to come here ?" I asked. " Hey look, filly, I'm an engineer, that means I solve problems... Not problems like "What is beauty?", because that would fall within the purview of your conundrums of philosophy. I solve practical problems... Fr'instance... How am I going to stop some big mean mother hubbard from tearing me a structurally superfluous new behind? "I don't know ..." " The answer... " He continued. "...use a gun... And if that don't work.... use more gun. You have guns, but if you go Hoofington, you're gonna need more guns ..." I looked my magnum and his condition on my Pipbuck, he was almost broke ... "Ya see, your magnum is looking good, but in fact, his gunlock is fucked ... I think I got a magnum gunlock right ..." He searched in the stuff."... there !" "Don't you got something for me ?" I asked, uncertain. "Yeah, I got a long night of learning and training for ya..." ___________________ Footnote: Quest completed, special perk gained. New Perk: Workshop mare - Working at the workshop makes you Repair skill increased by 10 and allows you to upgrade your guns by your own. You deal 5% more damage with guns, explosives and energy weapons.
PrologueSo? You want to know my story? There is a lot of stories and tales in the world, and heroes aren't rare. We are all heroes in a sense, everypony, from the humblest villager to the cruelest slaver, passing by wanderers, prospectors and like me, stable dwellers. I guess you heard stories from other ponies before mine, so I don't have to remind you the basis about what happens in these times. You know, the NCR, the Light bringer... My story began almost... one year, maybe, before her own. If you think she saved the wastelands all alone, then I could say you're either stupide and credulous, either you didn't listened her story with attention. She was helped by her friends, of course, but also indirectively by ponies like me, who did things too, but... Excuse me, it's going to look like a bad joke or a pun... But the actions from ponies like me are hidden, and slowly die in the shadows of the Light bringer. I won't complain about that. I might not have my relatively calm life by now if the Light bringer didn't hidden me in her shadows, even if it was involuntary. The best would be to ask her personally, but I don't think anyone could enter the S.P.P tower like that, and even if this pony could, I don't think she could answer any question either. It would be like talking to a vegetable, boring monologue in perceptive, right? But we're not going to talk about her, there's already too much ponies claiming to knew her by the time she walked in the wastelands. Before I begin my tale, maybe I should remind you some little things from far before me, very far. It could be obvious, but without it, my story should have never happened, like all the other stories in the wastelands. Equestria was not like that before, only two hundred and fifteen years ago, it was a magnificent place. There were the ponies, zebras, griffins, and all others. The ponies, however were made of "three" races: unicorns, pegasi and the earth ponies. They builded the land of equestria together with Friendship and Harmony, all of this for more than a millenia. A magnificent world, isn't it? So what happened? Industry. Everypony wanted more than a highly inflammable cozy house with a rusty lead pipe for water in the deeps of countryside. So they builded, with concrete instead of Friendship and steel in place of Harmony. All of this rolling on money. And with industry came a need. The need of coal. Equestria didn't have coal to harvest, only giant field of gems. Zebra lands needed gems, and had enough coal to literally throw it by windows. So, Equestria and Zebra land became friends, exchanging their resources. So what could have broke it? A bloody mess. That's not a pun... A succession of fucking bloody mess. Death of soldiers, a school massacre. Then war, more deaths, more fights, more kills and then, at the paroxysm of the war... Destruction. One day, the megaspells fell, with balefire, fel magic and other horrors... Millions of ponies died, and a few hidden in the Stables. Time passed, the land tried to reborn. But the scars of war were, and are, still visible. And so, my time came.
Chapter 0: How it began.Darknesses. It was all I was able to see... darknesses. Then, I heard something, like some voices, but it was impossible to understand what they said. Afterward, the pain came, and the voices became clearer. "I don't think it will be enough for Wire." said the first voice, feminine with the equivalent of a whole life of smoking cigarettes in the throat, raspy to the ears and stripping my entire inner ear of its earwax. "You know how she can become mad if we don't bring enough slaves back.". "Can you stop being a pussy for ten minutes in your life?" replied the second, masculine as I heard. "She ain't so dangerous after all! And have you seen what Barricade and Bottleneck have found?" "Yeah? And what does that prove?" asked the mare. "That means if they've only found a little sick pegasus foal, I think this mare won't make her angry or something." answered the buck. "And look at her : A unicorn who don't looks hungry, young, in top form, she even have a Pipbuck and ain't injured…" "Not injured? If you didn't hit her with your rifle stock, she won 't be inconscious and I wouldn't have to carry her!" his fellow almost roared at him. Swas angry and her moving rumb which was rocking me became uncomfortable. "Oh come on! Steel! You're not gonna sulk, aren't ya ?" demanded the stallion with a worried tone. "Yes, I Am!" she said as she trotted a little faster. I felt like I was slipping... Wait, I was actually slipping from her back ! I struck the ground, too woozy to cushion the fall, my headache became more painful, now accompagnied by the result of falling head first on a rocky ground, and I opened my eyes. The moonlight wasn't luminous enough to blind me, but my vision was completly blurred. "See! She's alive! Don't I told ya she wasn't injured?" smirked the stallion to his partner with pride. The only answer from the mare was an exasperated groan as she put something around my forehooves. "Do you thing she can walk?" asked the buck. "Can you stop asking with your stupid question, of course she can!" Be on my four hooves was painful, but not painfully as my headache, then I was able to walk. "What's your name?" asked the mare to me. "Me?" I obviously answered. "Yes, you, you retard!" She asked again. "What's your name?" "Red Sky" I answered. "Red Sky?" The buck said. "Don 't sounds like a mare's name, but whatever, Wire's waiting." He walks just at my right side and slaped my flank by passing, making me squeak on the hit. "Bullet, if ya do that again, I'll broke!" roared the mare at her compagnion. "Ok, ok… " he said quietly. "Wire's gonna be pissed, and I don't want to suffer her wrath because we brought her a slave in the middle of the night!" Well, now I, Red Sky, was a slave… and it was just the beginning of my problems. And of my journey.
Chapter 8: Relationships, adrenaline and relics from the past !I walked to the motel, exhausted by a night of work... When I entered the building, I went to the stairs and entered my room, laying myself on the bed. I was alone, Windigo and Killstreak were gone. I was tired and almost sleeping when Windigo entered, trotting to the water room. He stopped at the room's door and looked... I feinted to sleep. "Skyyyy?" he asked with a kind tone. "I know you're not sleeping..." "Dammit!" "Oooh... Come on... Don't you wanna play?" I was tired, but interested. "Is Killstreak around?" I asked. "Nope..." "Maybe I could play..." "Yeah, but first... I want you at the old sparring building..." A old sparring building? To play? "I'm to tired to move out the bed..." I moaned. He exited the bathroom, the mane half-wet, and went near to the bed and laid on it. "You're sure?" His gauntlet posed on my chine and began to caress slowly. The cold metal on my skin made me shivera bit. "Well, maybe I would..." He put is hoof on my muzzle, silencing me. "Sssh... At the sparring, in twenty minutes... no retard..." "Ok..." I moaned of exasperation. He got up and went to the door, exiting the room. I took my jumpsuit and wore it... I walked to the door to and continued to outside. Two heavy armored soldiers passed at each of my sides, ignoring me. "Have you seen the new mutant in town?" asked the first to his fellow. "Yeah, but he said he was not a mutant... I don't trust it, a pegasus like that must be a mutant... but that could be worst..." The second answered." It could be an alicorn, .. or Pegasus Enclave..." "AHAHA! It's just a story of a crazy pegasus! You can be very funny when you want!" "Maybe..." I don't knew who were these guys... But they were everywhere in the city. After several minutes, I finally arrived at the boxing building. A tawny gryphon was waiting, standing against the wall with a heavy incinerator at his legs. "Hi... Is it the sparring?" I demanded to the gryphon. " Yeah... It is... Your bat friend is inside... Don't make troubles, call if problems and discuss with Tyr', not me... " He dropped with a unamical tone. "Huum... Thanks..." I entered the building. Windigo was punching a sandbag with energy and a black gryffin was next to the entrance. "Hey, Stable Mare..." said the gryphon. "Hum... yes?" His upper beak was a piece of metal and he was covered of scars. "You're here for training?" he asked me. "Yes, that's it... Tyr?" "You can call me Tyrael... Your friend's waiting you..." Windigo was boxing a sandbag hooked to the roof. He was literally letting his hoof and his gauntlet talk for him. I thanked the gryphon and walked in the bat boy's direction. He was on his back legs, punching the bag like hell. "So, you wanted to see me?" I asked him. "Yeah..." He was still punching the bag. "But why?" He stopped and went back on his four legs. "Because Killstreak heard about reapers and asked the inhabitants... They fight at hooves to hooves to know who's going to kill each other... So, you need a training..." "A training? Me? For fight? No no no no, you're wrong!" I said. " I don't need a training." "That's not what I've seen in the arena..." he mocked. He was right, I haven't been great at the arena, against raiders... "Yeeeaah... But that's something else!" I stammered. "That's something else .. I agree... Because raiders were... small fry compared to Blade Beast..." "I tell you I don't need a training..." I continued He stood back from the sandbag and showed a smile. "Hit me..." he said. "What? Windigo, I'm not going to hurt y-" "HIT ME!" he roared. "If I tell you to hit me, you do it!" "Ok... ok..." I prepared the most powerful hoof I've ever done and knocked Windigo... Or instead tried... My hoof dashed in his face's direction, but the bat pony avoided it without problem and things became worse. He grabbed my foreleg with his gauntlet and turned, throwing me on the ground, back against the concrete. In first step, I didn't understood what just happened. "OH FUCK! I'm sorry!!" apologized Windigo. " I didn't .. I mean... I didn't wanted to hurt you like that... I-I... How do you feel?!" "It hurts..." I answered. "It fucking hurts..." He rose me on my legs again, inspecting almost every part of me. Now, My back was hurting me like hell. I felt like a block of stone, a block of stone with a horrible backache... "Maybe we should begin by basics..." Said Windigo. "Agreed…" Killstreak entered and walked to us. "Well well... Can I come in this "training"?" asked the tall unicorn mare. "Maybe, if you're bad as Red Sky..." answered Windigo. "Shut up!" I growled. "I think I can have a test." mocked Killstreak. "On the ring" Windigo looked surprised. "Why not!" he said. They mounted on the ring, facing each other. Windigo thrown his hoof to Killstreak, she took it and made the bat pony hitting the ground. He rose quickly. "Ahh... Let see what you're made of!" he smiled. Killstreak smote Windigo's china with her right back leg. He answered by a uppercut, sending the mare in the ropes. I used a med-X on my back and went knock Killstreak hoof and took her place. "Alright, let's do this, bat-boy!" I yelled, jumping on the ring. I ran at Windigo and jumped, hitting him with a dropkick. I felt my blood becoming hot and my hearth speed up. I didn't felt the backache anymore and I didn't care about it... He fell on the ground, then rose again. "Last time, it was warm-up!" I cried happily. He looked at me and get up on his back legs. He wasn't kidding... he wasn't kidding anymore. He draw his gauntlet to me and I avoid it before activating my S.A.T.S. and hitting him at many times, but he didn't looked affected at all... "I stop playing games with you..." he growled between his teeth. He grabbed me and threw me in the ropes, then jumped and prepared to hit me with his gauntlet. I jumped at right, dodging the hit. I mounted the pole and jumped from up the third string, landing in Windigo's head. The thestral fell in a loud noise. "Windigo? Are you ok?" asked Killstreak. "My head hurts... " I sat near to Windigo and breathed. My backache was slowly coming back... with a lot of grudge. I looked at the bat pony laying on the ground with satisfaction. "It seems you don't need a training after all..." he sighed. " Can you levitate me a drink, please..." "Incoming!" I said happily with a giant smile as I levitated three Sunrise Sarsaparilla to us. "Health!" I continued. "Health!" "Health... ouuuuh... my head..." XXXXXX A hour of checking my stuff… weapons, medicine, food... Maybe not enough for more than six days, but we would be able to found something. My package finished, I walked to the exit of the town. Windigo took a leather flight jacket with fur inside and a moon with a vertical pupils blue unicorn's head as badge on each shoulder. "Where did you found this?" I asked. "In the Mansion's strongbox... " he answered."I've a weapon, but I don't know if you'll be able to use it..." "What kind of weapon?" asked Killstreak with surprise. The bat pony took a sword. The ebony blade was incredibly brilliant and "It's a "katana" as say the pipbuck..." he continued. "Extremely dangerous, sharp... My father called it "Half Moon"... The grip is very good balanced, the blade is perfect... It's a real jewel..." he said as he stored the sword in the protective sheath. "Direction east?" asked Killstreak, her battle saddle armed. I looked at her and Windigo. We were ready... "Direction east!" I answered. We began to trot in our usual formation: Windigo at my right, Killstreak at my left, me between these giants... after some time, a forest began to appear at the horizon. My Pipbuck showed the name of this place when we arrived at the border of the forest. - Everfree Forest - This was a dark dead forest... A damn forest again... I looked at my pipbuck for the objective, hoping I could found a way to go at Hoofington without pass inside the forest. "We should follow the forest to the north and continue east when we'll arrive at a lake..." I said slowly as my eyes were focussing on the screen. "Why? We just have to walk into the forest and go right to Hoofington!" replied Killstreak. "Forest means beasts, and beasts mean predators... And remember what I told you about it..." answered Windigo has he took the flare gun. So we walked north for a long time... too long and too calm... I saw Windigo was a bit stressed, looking always at the forest or behind him. I decided to ignore it and focused on our road. At right, it was a flat dusty desert and at left, the forest made of grim black trees and strange plants. We finally arrived at a place full of scrap metal from the old world and... Skeletons... "It's freaky..." said Killstreak." Really freaky..." Something took my attention, a dead body half eaten, literally, but differently from the slaver camp. "What kind of pony can do this?" I asked, looking at the corpse. "It's not a pony who have done this, it's big, very big..." answered Windigo. "Bigger than a timberwolf..." The sound of a metal thing falling on a pile of steel behind us alerted me. I turned to see and frozen in fear. A giant beast with two head was facing us from the pile of wastes. A head and forelegs of tiger with sabertooth, another head and back legs of goat. "Windig?" I murmured. "What is that big big beast " He turned and looked at it calmly. "Oh .. Just a Chimera... wait." He said. "A chimera?" He instantly froze. "Look, sisters, the lunch is ready!" said the tiger head. "Three? It's like birthday!" replied the goat head. "Time to eat!" The monster roared as she jump at us, landing in front of us, then she rushed on us. Killstreak and I jumped to avoid the beast, arriving behind the monster. "Where do you thhhhink you are going?" asked a female voice. I bet it was the tail which just told this... and it was the tail... A snake head... The beast turned to attack us, Killstreak rose and began to fire at the chimera who roared as the bullets began to hurt her skin. I took my magnum an ran around the predator, firing at it. Her leather was too resistant, and bullet were inefficient against her... This "Chimera" was a a fucking creepy creature. I changed .375 magnum to Hydra, jumped the closer possible and shooted at the animal stomach with the three barrels at the same time. The shot splashed me with hot blood and entrails parts. The monster didn't liked it and roared to say it. I rolled at right, avoiding the claws of the beast. "WE WILL CRUSH YOU LIKE BUGS!" roared the chimera. Windigo jumped on the multi-animal creature, grabbing her with his gauntlet and knocking the tiger face with his hoof. "Then I'll crush your face until it looks like pudding!" he said with a smile. The monster threw the bat poy away and I ran to help him. "Windigo? Are you alright?" I asked. "Yeah .. just... hurt a little .." He got the katana at his side. I don't know why but I really wanted to use it... So I levitated it and turned to the chimera. Killstreak was jumping right then left to survive. I took a pill of something my pipbuck called "Buck" and suddenly felt somepony different. "GUTS AND GLORY LADS!" I roared as I was charging the beast. "YOU INSOLENT!" answered the Chimera as she turned. The monster swing his claws at me an I jumped at right, levitating a old pre-war vehicle's door to have a shield. I ran to the monster, my pseudo-shield before me and the blade at my side. The chimera tried to catch me with her teeth. I closed her big mouth with a shield hit and jumped on the beast back. The Goat head tried to hit me and I replied with a single swing of my sword, cutting the head as I was paper. The snakehead dashed to bite me but knocked on the car's door and I did the same thing than with the goat head. The last hed was the only master of the body now. I jumped to the ground. The beast threw Killstreak on Windigo who just began to rose. Now the monster was in front of me... "THERE COULD BE ONLY ONE!!!" I roared again as I charged the monster. The chimera jumped, landing before me, mouth opened with sharp teeth. I threw my scrap shield, blocking her jaws and mounted on her head. I draw a powerful swing with my katana and planted the blade between the monster's eyes who fell on the ground. I levitated the sword at my side and walked at Windigo and Killstreak. "What do you think about that?" I asked with an arrogant smile. "Can do better" answered Windigo as he rose. I took the blade's sheath and store it, then took it and tied it at my Stable jumpsuit's belt. Killstreak rose too. "Well, it was a real monster..." She said. "Let's continue... we have wasted enough time..." I sighed at the reaction of my teammates about my performance. We walked a little like three minutes and I stopped. Something just catched my attention. "What's that?" I asked. "It's just a car..." answered Windigo. "No, what's just behind the car?" In asked again. It looked like something I knew but I wasn't sure. Windigo got on his back legs and pushed the car out the way. A bunker door appeared behind the pile of scrap metal and wastes. "Do you think you can open this?" I demanded at Windigo. "Pfft... easy peasy!" he replied with a arrogant gaze. He touched the door and in place to be opened with some difficulties, the door opened easily. Windigo looked uncertain about this door. "What's wrong?" asked Killstreak "It was too easy to a bunker door..." he answered."almost easy as a pub door a friday night..." "Pub?" I questionned. "Sort of saloon in town from before the war..." he said. "Well, resolution number one, when Windigo talk about something I don't understand, that's because it come from before the war." I through to myself. I used my magic to light before us. The hall of concrete was covered of numberous scratches. "Hum... that's a beast?" I asked, uncertain. "It could be... but it's minimum pony size..." he continued as he took Savage Beast in his gauntlet. "Use your shotguns... short range...I go first." Yeah, Closed space, possibly monsters at each corner. Looks like a old film... "How do you know how to do?" asked Killstreak. "We have both lived in a stable, Red Sky and I." "I know it was a cliché at my time, but I've seen a film when I was young... And as I remember, we don't have flamethrower…" I made a amused sigh. The principal bunker door appeared before us, opened by a huge tear big enough to let Windigo, who was the bigger of us, pass. We entered slowly. It seems something big with claw has been jailed in this underground facility. We looked inside, saw robotic carcasses lying on the ground, disemboweled, beheaded or dismembered into electronics pieces. A battle happened here, and robots tried to stop it and unfortunately, they didn't win… We continued a little and finally arrived at the rooms. I saw scientist coats on some beds, others research stuff were in the rest of the piece. "Ok, It seems we don't need to worry about security here." I said. "Just look inside rooms and pick useful stuff... see you here in twenty minutes…" I began the harvest and looked into a locker. Some Med-X, clothes and a strange .. orb... I took it with my telekinesis and shook the orb. "What kind of thing is this?" I felt strange for a moment and saw only darknesses. <-=======ooO Ooo=======-> I woke up and my first surprise was to be handcuffed in front of a table, a giant glass behind it. My second surprise was I wasn't yellow anymore, but grey and I felt somepony else. As I looked into the glass, only a part of my muzzle and my forelegs were under the light. A unicorn mare in a scientist coat came in the room with some papers. She sat on a chair and put her papers on the table, she adjust her glasses and looked at me. "Subject S-zero-zero-nine-nine-nine..." She said as she put a first sheet of paper before me with a S00-999 written on the dossier. "You have said you agreed to become the fist subject for Project Reaper?" "Yes, I have." I answered with a calm male voice. It was strange .. like I was somepony, but I haven't the control, like in a dream or a memory. "And Why?" asked the mare before me. "Because I have nothing to lose anymore..." "Even your Equinity?" continued the unicorn. "I know how your kind works, day-mare... You've already read my court record, my background... Everything the Ministry of Morale has gave you about me..." The unicorn looked anguished and under heavy stress. "Yes, I've saw it" she answered before she swallow her own saliva and put another paper with pictures before me. "I saw... war crimes... torturer... murderer... insubordination... betrayer..." She was having a growing fear at each words, I was able to feel it... to smell it... "You're right, Doc..." I calmly said, accentuating ont he "Doc" word. "And why have you done this?" she questioned. "The answer is simple, Doc... Zebras took me everything... My wife, my son... My only reasons to still sane in all this masquerade... Have you lost somepony you loved because of them, Doc?" The unicorn looked at me and a tear flowed slowly on her cheek. "Sorry, I..." She tried to say. "You don't have to, I know how that feel... explain me, it's better outside than inside..." "My little daughter..." cried the mare" These fucking zebras have killed my little daughter at the Luna’s Academy .." "So, Doc... We're here for the same thing" I said. She rose her face and looked me in the eyes. I saw anger and hatred in her eyes. "The Project Reaper will give you a new life, a new chance... Princess Luna has personally asked for you to become the subject..." the mare continued. "We will upgrade you with a part of Project Steelpony and will adapt it to your morphology and the fact you're a pegasus... after your complete upgrade, we'll continue to the second part of the project if you survive... like the first real Steelpony, "Deus" Ex Machina"..." "I will survive… I always survive... " I said with a toothy smile. My vision went fuzzy and became darknesses. <-=======ooO Ooo=======-> I looked around in the room. So there was a facility for Project Reaper, interesting. I looked inside more lockers and found a metal briefcase full of these orbs. 'Subject S00-999's memory' was written on the box. I closed it and took it in my inventory... "It would be interessant to see it if I don't want to sleep..." I thought. After this, I exited the room, continued to walk and arrived at the security room, Windigo was inside, so I entered. "So? What did you found?" I asked him as I sat at his left side. "Some things which used to be at somepony important in this bunker..." He answered as he shook his head at the wall. The glass has been broken, and everything which was inside has disappeared, probably stolen. I looked at him again and put my shoulder against his, so his gaze went at me. His amber eyes were fixing mine and sometimes browsing my face. "Windigo?" I demanded to the bat pony as I sticked my hoof against his own. "Yes?" he said, visibly with a bit of bother."You want something?" "I-I wanted to know..." I began. "When I kissed you... at the motel..." "Yes?" "I'm- I'm sorry for... you know .. after, when I tryed to... well..." "Wonderful, Red Sky, you're not even able to tell a stallion you're sorry because you kissed him and tried to have your fun time with him!" I thought as I tried to speak normaly. Windigo rose his gauntlet and put it on my cheek, then I stopped to talk and looked each other. We both slowly approached our muzzles of each other. I closed my eyes and put my lips on his. The sensation of his gauntlet on my cheek disappeared as I felt the metallic thing lowering himself on my right shoulder then on my ribs. I introduced my tongue into his mouth and repeat as at the motel without pushing him. I passed my hooves around his neck, putting my body against his muscular chest. His left hoof began to caress my chine which shuddered at the contact. I stopped and put my muzzle near to his left ear. "Maybe we should close the door first... You know, In a Stable or a bunker, sounds are going very far." I sensually mattered to him. "Why? You can't just enjoy the present moment?" He asked with a slow voice . "No .. it just I- " I stuttered. "I just want to do more than enjoying this moment." He slowly put his muzzle at my ear, close enough that I felt his hot breath in my neck. "Are you in heat or something?" he demanded with a voice that made me literally melt. "I-I don't know..." I answered as I heavily blushed. It may be this... or a very big lack of love or affection. Windigo slightly bit my ear's lobe with the tip of his fore teeth, licking the part of my ear in his mouth with a very slow movement. I dropped a moan of surprise then retake control on myself. I looked the bat pony in the eyes and blushed even more. "Windigo?" I asked the thestral. "About when you kissed me, some minutes ago... was it- was it a serious kiss?" He looked disturbed and inside me, I felt embarrassed too. "I-I don't know... "He answered. "I was going to ask you the same thing about at the motel..." I looked at him, then at the stuff in the room. "And what did you found?" I questioned him. He took a metallic box and gave it to me. "Only this." He said with a sad tone. "What's wrong?" I demanded. "A problem?" "I just expected better from a bunker like this." I expected more about the stuff too, but only from the stuff. "Have you an idea where is Killstreak?" I asked. "She is collecting data on the server. " answered the bat pony as he grabbed a old military magazine. "Well,see you later..." "Ok then..." He said as he was turning a page. I slowly trotted in the corridors, looking at the metal walls covered of scratches. Something big should have unleashed his or her wrath... I looked at the panels and followed the way to the server room, stopped at the door and took a look inside. Killstreak was on a terminal, typing on the keyboard. I advanced me to her and sat at her side. "Found something?" she asked me without leave the monitor with her eyes. "Just some usual stuff, Windigo have found a metal box, but I can't unlock it..." "Nothing interessant, so." she continued. I levitated a cigarette and lighted it, then took a breath. "Yeah, that's it..." I answered. "Well, on my side I've found some data..." Killstreak said. "But something bothers me…" "Bother you?" I demanded with a raised eyebrow. Just a bit have bothered Killstreak since I knew her... at the time we were together, the fact to have to confess to her mother that she was lesbian... when she got her cutie mark of varmint killing instead of a informatic technician like her mother... despite that for this time, her mother was happy for her... Killstreak's mother was a good mare... a bit anarchist on the edges... but a good mare. She was the best computer specialist of our Stable-village, with a punk style and a crude humor that my mother liked. In contrario of Killstreak, I was having a cutie mark looking like my mother's one. A cutie mark of electrician mare... Building a wire circuit between the reactor, the stable and houses outside the stable was her main job when she wasn't checking it. Killstreak mother and mine were friends since childhood as Killstreak and I were and it was always nice when our mothers were inviting each other to discuss around a glass of aperitif after a day of work, letting their daughters playing and chat. "Yeah, the security has been disactivated a certain time ago, like somepony came here before..." said the albino unicorn. "Prospectors? Raider? treasure hunters? or Blade Beast?" I questioned. "Maybe, but why didn't they haven't just "cut an paste" all the data?" she answered. I looked over her shoulder to watch the screen. "All data are still here... and there is a strange thing into the server... like... ghost files..." "Whatever, your mother told me there was frequently ghost files in computers..." "Not a ghost file like usually said in informatician language, Sky... that like... this file was haunting the server, trying to come over all current applications... I've not stopped to close it to continue... " "What is the file type?" I asked, blowing my cigarette smoke and frowning. "A audio record... or a video... " told my friend. "Then let it run..." "Are you sure? It could destroy all data if it was programmed to do so..." "Let it run... If it destroys the data, it would be files that Blade Beast will never have..." "Ok then..." sighed Killstreak. She typed a key and a window appeared on the screen. - DO YOU WANT TO RUN THIS FILE?- - YES? - - NO?- -YES- -LOADING- A crackling noise came from two speakers. "To the stallion or the mare who was able to open this file... " began the audio record with a deep voice. "If you want to know why this file is trying to come over all others, it because I programmed it for this... All the files about Project Reaper on this server are falses... I've already took it... anypony who have downloaded it are exposing their informatic systems to viruses. These files are not allowed to be used once more... Equestria and Zebra empire has done too much atrocities like this one..." "Ok... I see... Thankfully I haven't downloaded the files from Project Reaper..." said Killstreak with a relieved tone. "So? You've downloaded something?" I asked while I took a breath on my cigarette. "Yes... but there are only some journal entries..." "Can I have it?" I demanded. "Of course you can..." replied the unicorn as she gave me an USB key. "I didn't want it anyway..." I took it an downloaded on my Pipbuck... more reading for the night... "Sky? Can I ask you about something?" demanded the unicorn. "It depend..." I mocked her. "About Windigo... " "Well... ask me..." I answered as I breathed my smoke. "I think there something between you and him..." she said. "And I wanted to know if I was right..." I looked at her with a bit of surprise. "Well... I'm not sure that..." I told. "And whatever? Must I deduce you got a crush on him?" She blushed and lowered her ears. "No no no! I... I just..." she stammered. "Well... yeah I do... but just a bit." I laughed at this sentence. "Killstreak... You'll never change" I sneered. "Did you remember our first date? I've asked you if you loved me... and you answered the same thing..." "Yes, but you were my first date of my life..." She replied. "And Windigo is a stallion, you weren't..." "I'm not a buck, indeed... but who was always making initiatives? And who was moaning when we were playing?" I mocked even more. "Stop talking about that! He could hear us..." she said as her face turned red as her eyes. "You got a question, I got one..." I said. "Are you still having feelings for me and having a crush on him at the same time?" "I... I..." I cutted her by kissing the top of her nose then put my forehooves on her shoulders. "Oh... Killstreak... you should know I'm still having you in my hearth..." I muttered slowly. "Are you really thinking it?" she demanded. "I mean... We've broke and... If you..." "If I what? If I'm with Windigo? I'm not with him for the moment... So I'm free if it's what you want to know..." I answered."But first, we need to exit this bunker, a cool place and then talk about this... ok?" "Yes, I see..." she replied with a smile. We both rose and exited the room in a slow walk, climbing stairs and calmly going to the armory. When we arrived, Killstreak and me stopped at the door. I looked by the door. Windigo was here, the back leaning against the wall, still reading the weapon magazine. "Windigo?" I asked by the entrance. "We're going outside..." He looked up from the book and turned to us. "I'm coming, ladies..." he answered as he got up. Our group ready, we exited the bunker and walked outside, going out of the landfill. We walked several minutes at the edge of the forest when two shadows passed on us. "What was that?" I demanded to Windigo. He looked uncertain, trying to locate and see these things. "I don't know... and I don't like this..." he growled. I took a look to the cloudy sky... two forms appeared, made circles above us and landed twenty meters in front of our group. These .. things .. were like ponies by the form, with strange metal gears, no doubt it was an armor... They were visibly talking to each other, sometimes taking a look at us. Windigo drew a slow movement with his gauntlet to the butt of Savage Beast, preparing to draw his shotgun. I put my hoove on his metal claw and slowly shook my head in a negative move. If these guys hadn't attacked us yet, maybe they would talk or something. Windigo put his foreleg to the ground and stood showing an inimical gaze. I pricked up my ears to ear what were saying these ponies. "I'm sure, it's a bad idea..." said the first with a mare voice. "We're just going to ask these inhabitants, there's nothing bad..." answered the other in a deep voice. "IT's something bad! What if they are radioactive? If their bodies are full of horrible germs? " asked the mare. "Have you any idea?" "Come on... don't tell me you trust these stupidities that parents use to afraid foals..." The buck replied. "Hum... Excuse-me... We aren't radioactive!" I yelled shyly at them. "And we don't have deadly germs inside our bodies!" "You're sure?" murmured Windigo. "If we were, you body who is adapted to pre-war viruses would be dead..." I replied with a bored tone. "Oh .. I almost forgot this..." he said. The ponies in front of us stopped talking and looked at us. "I think this one try to communicate with us..." said the stallion. "Don't be stupid... How could they even understand us?" replied the mare. "Look... Hey! You! The strange and illiterate surface inhabitant next to the mutant and the with thing? Can you understand me?" "Yes, I guess..." I answered. "See, they don't underst-"began the mare. "Wait... they understand us?" "It seems that yes..." moaned the second armored pony. "So let me ask and shut up... last time, they attacked us because you said they were stupids..." "Oh come on..." growled the other. The buck made some steps and stopped ten meters from us. "Excuse me, creatures from the surface..." he asked."Have you seen a vertibuck's squad out there?" I looked at my fellows. Windigo should have never heard of this, showing a grimace at the name. Killstreak and I never heard of this too. I shook my shoulder to indicate my interlocutor we didn't know this "vertibuck". The stallion facehoofed and dropped a heavy desperate sigh. "Have you seen an orange coated pegasus mare with a black uniform?" he asked again. "Or even a white pegasus mare with a blond mane, a feather for cutie mark and a black uniform too?" Windigo and Killstreak shook their heads negatively. "Sorry sir, we are formals... We haven't seen anypony like this..." I said to the buck. The pony turned to his fellow, then put this hoof on his headgear. "Reconnaissance unit Beta-five here, we've raked all the perimeter at five kilometers around the crash site... we've found no clues about the reconnaissance unit delta-four after the crash... We found some corpses... but we don't have idea about what happened to the dashite or the missing corpses... we are going back to the base... Over..." The buck muttered before opening his wing protected under metal wing armor like thing. "Thanks for you collaboration..." He said before flying off. The mare followed him and they disappeared at the horizon. "Strange people... " Killstreak said. "After seeing Windigo, I don't expect things more weird." I answered with a mocking smile. Windigo growled at me and began to sulk. "Oh! Come on, big boy, I'm kidding..." I conforted him before kissing his cheek but he continued."Killstreak? I need a hoof here..." "Oh no! You're big enough to fend for yourself with this kind of problem..." she mocked me. "Gaaaah..." I sighed heavily. "Alright then... Come on, we've got a long road to do…" ___________________ Footnote: Level Up. New Perk: Adrenaline junky - When you are fighting in a face to face, you gain +1 at strengh, stamina and luck. Bonus of strengh, stamina and S.A.T.S. precision by consumables are also multiplied by 20 %.
