Fallout Equestria: Duty

Fallout Equestria: Duty

Chapter 30

Mistakes

“We've gotta do something!”

~O~Frostmane~O~

Firestorm was resting in one of the rooms of the former brothel, while Golden Sunshine and I were assessing the situation. After taking out all of the guards and remaining customers of this place, I had searched every corner of the building for surviving slaves. As it turned out, my newly acquired Alicorn senses were very helpful with that. Some of the new residents had hidden themselves in the cellar, but their heartbeats had given their positions away in an instant.

Golden Sunshine had used her healing magic to tend to her own wounds, and some of the wounded slaves. She was, however, still weak. According to her own diagnosis, her legs were permanently damaged, and she was only able to walk very slowly. It pained me greatly, but she was unable to continue our journey with us. Her magical power was more than enough to keep her safe from most dangers of the wasteland, but her slow gait would only make her a potential target.

That we had about sixty freed slaves on our hooves didn't make our situation any easier. No matter how much I wanted to be at Firestorms side at that moment, I knew that these problems needed to be solved fast. Our destruction of the settlement wouldn't stay unnoticed forever, and I wanted to check if Cherry Cream and Lemon Butter had decided to meet me. I really hoped they did, since I wanted to thank them for their attempt to safe me.

“So... what are you going to do with them? We can't exactly take them with us, and we can't just leave them here either.” Golden Sunshine asked, as she looked upon the group of mares and foals that was gathered in the former bar. I sighed and looked down at my hooves. I had regained my old coloration again, meaning that my coat was a light blue and my mane two toned. Even my eyes had reverted back to their icy blue color.

“There is only one viable option, really.” I replied, looking at the mutilated legs of my friend. She caught my gaze and sighed sadly.

“I know what you are about to say already, and you're right... I've become a burden. No matter what you decide for these Ponies, it will be my fate as well...” my friend said sadly, hanging her head. I put a hoof under her chin, forcing the white Alicorn to look up at me again. Her aura was as bright as the sun itself, but it was also tinged with black. I quickly realized that my friend did not want to leave my side, but knew that it was impossible for her to stay with me. In any fight, or a big battle, she was now a liability. I loved her, but I couldn't help but think about this. If I was foalish enough to bring her to the fight I was anticipating, there was only a very slim chance for her to get out of it alive.

“Golden Sunshine... You have always been a loyal friend to me. You were willing to go against Moonsinger and Mirage to protect me, and I will never forget that. When the world around me seemed to be falling apart, Firestorm and you gave me the strength to push on. You are my frie... no... you are more than that. You are my sister, and as such, I want you to be safe. Can you understand that?” I said, as I felt tears form in my own eyes. Golden Sunshine nodded, and pulled herself up to her full hight. I could see that it pained her to do so, since her injuries had yet to heal completely, but she did it anyways.

“You are my sister in more than one way. And I want you to be safe as well... Please... don't send me to far away...” she cried, but I had made my decision already.

“Golden Sunshine... I am sorry. You can't come with me anymore. I'm not even sure Firestorm can. Not after what she has been through this last week. I want to give her the time she needs to rest, and to heal, but it is time that I don't have. Each minute I delay further Gear Turn may come up with another plan to take over the wasteland. The Steel Rangers may have been able to repel them this time, but what happens if she gets a hold of...” I began, and then suddenly my blood ran cold as I realized my mistake. Of course! This was the reason she had her Ponies attack Manehatten in the first place! The MASEBS in Tenpony Tower was by far the strongest broadcasting station in the entire wasteland. If she got a hold of it, she could transmit the Sirens song, and then... she would have won...

“What...? What's wrong Frostmane?” my sister called out, as I slumped to my haunches. Almost automatically, I went for my Pipbuck and dialed into the Ministry of Awesome distress frequency.

“Golden Sunshine... Help will arrive shortly. Until then, I want you to keep these Ponies, and Firestorm safe. Bring them to the Alicorn. The ship has enough supplies and room for all of you. I'm sorry, but I can't wait. Please take care of them.” I said to the totally confused white Alicorn in front of me, before darting out of the room. There was no time to lose. If I knew anything about Gear Turn, then it was that the mare was by no means stupid. Why had the Manehatten contingent of the Steel Rangers been able to repel them? The answer was simple... They didn't!

OooOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Gelloping full force towards Manehatten, I sent a burst com-transmission through the either on the MoA emergency frequency.

*Sergeant Frostmane, Service number MoA-32-B-89-99-1287*

Requesting emergency extraction and escort

*Omega Level Priority*

I sent that message along with a map marker for Brothel, hoping that my friend would be true to her promise to help me if I needed it. I could see Tenpony Tower in the distance, but it looked so damn small from where I was. Usually I would have needed about two days to get there, even at a full gallop, but I didn't have that much time. The sun was setting and the darkening horizon around the tower was lit by countless fires. I had underestimated Gear Turn, and the Ponies of the tower were now paying the price for it.

“DAMN IT!” I shouted, gritting my teeth and spreading my wings for the first time. The wind blew threw my primary feather, but I didn't give a damn at that moment. All I cared for, was to start flapping as hard as I could. A few moments later, I was high above the outskirts of Manehatten. Fetlock flew past below me, as I did my best to reach Tenpony Tower in time. I had thought Homage to be safe here. Instead I had brought her into a warzone.

Even though it was my first time flying by my own strength, I didn't enjoy the experience.

“Faster! Faster!” I thought to myself.

OooOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Even at my best speed, it took me two hours to reach the outer ring of the towers defenses. I could see the bodies of dead Ponies strewn about the streets below. Only a few of them were Rangers, while most of them were wearing light security barding. It was obvious that the security Ponies of the tower had done their best to protect it, but the Steel Rangers were in a whole different league. They had plowed through the defenders like they weren't even there.

I could see, however, that they hadn't breached the tower yet. There was a fourth defense parameter close to the towers entrance on the Luna monorail line, and the few security Ponies I saw there were awaiting the Rangers with drawn weapons.

What they could not see from their vantage point, was that there was a group of black robed Unicorns who fought the Rangers a little way away from where they had decided to take their last stand. I dove down towards them, using my horn to fry three Rangers who were sneaking up on two of the robed Unicorns through a side street. The silver fire from my horn consumed them, and all that was left, were glowing piles of molten metal. It was then that I noticed one Ranger who stood with the Unicorns, firing towards his breathren. His gaze turned towards me as I landed in the middle of the group of Unicorns. The grenade machine guns on his Power-Armor swiveled towards me, but I raised a hoof to stop him.

“What's the situation, soldier?” I asked, putting on my best military demeanor.

“We're slowly being overrun. Whatever that signal is they're broadcasting, it makes everypony who hears it attack us. And who are you anyway?” the gravely voice of the Steel Ranger said, as he decided that I wasn't a threat after all. It might have had something to do with the fact that I created a shield behind him, intercepting several armor piercing rounds before they could hit him.

“Vice-General Frostmane. Service Number MS-00001, and who are you, soldier?”

“You're kidding. You're kidding, right? Frostmane?” the stallion asked unbelievingly as he turned around again to fire at another Ranger who tried to jump over the crude barricade these Ponies had erected. The mare was not killed, but merely pushed back by the explosion.

“You know me?” I asked, joining in his efforts to repel these Ponies without killing them. It wasn't easy, and I regretted having killed the three earlier ones, but it was worth the effort. The Unicorns around us were now pushing forwards, using shields, telekinesis and sedation spells to take out the oncoming tide of Rangers.

“SteelHooves...” he said flatly, before buying his hoof into the face of a strange looking creature. It was canine in nature, and vaguely reminded me of a diamond dog. Only... this one was much, much bigger. It's claws looked wicked, and I didn't take any chance here. One blast from my horn later, and the creature was flying through one of the upper floors of an abandoned skyscraper. I doubted that I would ever see it again. Turning around to the Ranger, I helped him back to his hooves.

“Well then SteelHooves, nice to see that you're still as stubborn as I remember you to be.” I said, as I leaped over the barrier, my stronger Alicorn shield repelling most of the Rangers attacks. SteelHooves was right behind me, firing matrix disruption grenades at any Rangers he could see.

“And you're still as insane... Some things never change...” he mused, and I couldn't help but smile. It was just like Apple Snack to joke around at a time like this.

We pushed forward, my shield and telekinesis providing cover and protecting the brave defenders of Tenpony Tower. Even though I did my best to keep an eye on him, I eventually lost sight of Apple Snack in the chaos of the battle.

When I was looking around once more to check if I could locate a broadcasting station other than Tenpony Tower, a sudden sharp pain ran through my left flank. The sound of a chainsaw alerted me to another incoming strike, as I bucked at my attacker and rolled to the side. A quick glance at my flank showed me that I had been severely injured and was bleeding heavily. A good chunk of flesh was missing, but I didn't see the bones beneath... yet.

“Damn it! I really need to get used to this body already!” I thought to myself as I took a fighting stance to face the mare who was responsible for all of this. Gear Turn stepped over the body of a young Unicorn stallion who she had just killed, a cruel grin on her face.

“And who, pray tell, are you? I thought we had taken care of you pests days ago.” she snarled, raising both of her chainsaw arms. I knew I wouldn't be able to fight her like this. So far, my magic had done most of the fighting for me, but that wouldn't work against her. No. If I wanted to fight her, I had to fight her in close quarters. Not having my body fully under control yet, however, ruled out my usual style of fighting.

“I'm your worst nightmare.” I replied, sending a blast of telekinesis her way. Of course, she deflected it with her custom build cybernetics... The moment she took to do so gave me enough time to close the distance and strike out with a hoof. I didn't have to defeat her right now, just keep her out of the main battle. I trusted Apple Snack, and his ability to turn this fight around if I was just able to keep some of their forces occupied for a little while.

“Pathetic.” Gear Turn said, ducking under my blow and countering it with her Scorpion tail. I was only barely able to avoid her attack, due to the pain in my flank. It came therefore as no surprise to me that the green mare followed her attack up with a strike from her left chainsaw. What did surprise me however, was the Pegasus in Power-Armor who batted her saw away with his own tail, destroying it in the process. Of course I recognized Lemon Butter right away.

“Vice-General? Let me take it from here. Cherry is waiting for you a little way ahead.” he shouted over his shoulder, rushing in to attack Gear Turn, who snarled in irritation. Of course she had heard how he had addressed me, and was now looking at me intensely. Lemon Butter didn't give her much time to do so however, since he didn't loose a beat with his attacks.

I was grateful for his help, and did as he had said. I just hoped that he was a match for Gear Turn. He had been a Shadowbolt once, while she had never even truly mastered her Pegasus Power-Armor...

“Please be safe...” I thought, as I made my way towards the map marker the stallion had sent me before engaging the enemy.

~O~Firestorm~O~

“You just let her go?” I shouted at Golden Sunshine, making some of the nearby slaves cower in fear. The white Alicorn just nodded, continuing to block the main entrance to the building with her body and shield spell. I was furious when I had woken up and Frostmane had been nowhere to be found. The revelation that my marefriend had flown off somewhere, without taking us with her, wasn't helping my mood in the slightest.

My body still felt sore all over, even though the shower I had taken earlier had done wonders in that regard. It didn't matter to me at that moment though. All I cared about was that Frostmane was out of range of my Pipbuck, and that she didn't answer my calls on the radio. If there was something wrong, then I wanted to be there with her. I had to be there. Why didn't my friend understand that?

“I'm sorry Storm, but she asked me to keep you safe here. No field trips. Frostmane promised that help would arrive soon, so I suggest you trust her, like you have done so far.” the Alicorn stated, not moving an inch. I grit my teeth, seriously considering going up to one of the rooms and just jump out of a window. But, if I judged Golden Sunshine correctly, she would just sedate me with her magic if I tried anything funny. Sighing, I slumped to my haunches.

That's when I heard it. First the glasses and bottles in the bar began to rattle, then the sound became audible to my ears. It was like a high pitched whine that got louder and louder, until it seemed to come from just outside the door. I had never heard anything like it, and the noise made almost all the slaves scamper off to hide somewhere. Closing my armor, I nodded to Golden Sunshine.

“Open that door. I want to have a look. I don't like the sound of it.” I demanded, and this time my friend seemed to agree with me, since her shield dissipated and her magic threw the double doors open. I could barely see anything out there, due to the dust that was being kicked up by a strong wind.

“What's causing this wind?” Golden Sunshine called out over the whine, that was now coming from all around us.

“No idea, but whatever it is, I don't like it!”

Suddenly, a glowing rectangle appeared in in the middle of the air and the whine toned down quite a bit. Having served on the Luna Dream, I knew what was happening here in an instant. This was an airship, using a Stealthbuck array to stay hidden. I readied my rifles, my mind jumping back to the Enclave. If they chose this moment to pay me back for attacking their patrol, I was royally fucked.

Instead of an entire squad on Enclave troopers storming out to attack me, however, a single mare in a lavender costume came trotting down the ramp. The cape and hat of it made her look ridiculous, but I soon saw that it was part of some kind of Power-Armor. Since her face was completely covered by a mask of dark lavender, I couldn't tell what her expression was.

“Mare Do Well?” my Alicorn friend asked from next to me, her eyes wide in amazement.

“Come again?” I asked, cocking my head.

“You know... that super hero from before the war. Was a quite popular comic book series when I was young.”

The Pony that had stepped out of the airship cleared her throat to get our attention, and I could tell that I was facing a ghoul by the sound of her voice alone. Still... her voice sounded distinctly familiar as she spoke.

“So... I heard you Ponies need extraction?” she said, looking back and forth between Golden Sunshine and me. I could only nod, wondering if this was the Pony who had helped us after the Luna Dream had crashed. The letter had, after all, stated that Frostmane only had to ask for help if she needed it.

“Good. Get everypony on board, and tell me where you want to go. And make it quick. Don't want the Enclave notice my little operation here.” she said, opening up her helmet and shaking out the remainders of her mane. Her prismatic mane. The mares face was missing several patches of skin, and her head was almost bald, but I still recognized her.

“Rainbow Dash?” I asked, my muzzle dropping to the floor. It was Golden Sunshines turn to look shocked. Before any of us could start to throw questions at the former ministry mare however, she threw up a hoof and looked at me sternly.

“Look, Storm, I'm happy to see you too, but there's no time for us to catch up. I can only trick the Enclaves sensors for about half an hour. We've got to be out of here before that happens.” she said, her eyes narrowing. I shook my head to collect myself, and then motioned for Golden Sunshine to board the ship. I was re-entering the former Luna Convention Center in which Brothel had been situated to gather up the slaves...

OooOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

It took me ten minutes to bring all of the slaves on board Dashs ship. As soon as I was sure that the last of them had boarded, the hatch closed behind me, and we took off. Rainbow had directed the former slaves to the medical bay, where another ghoul Pegasus was doing his best to treat the various injuries on them, as well as administering some psychoactive drugs to a good number of them. Golden Sunshine had refused to be treated, as long as there were still others to be treated, and was simply laying down in front of the medical bay.

“So where do you want to go?” Dash asked, as I followed her towards the bridge of the ship. All things considered, this ship looked almost brand new. Almost as if this was it's first mission.

“We have to find Frostmane. Can you do that?” I asked hopefully. Rainbow scowled at me.

“I certainly could, but she requested an extraction and escort. Not combat assistance. You have to understand, Storm. If the Enclave finds out about this ship, they'll do everything they can to get their hooves on it. I can't let that happen. There are lives depending on our supply runs after all.” she explained.

“But...” I began, but my former commander raised a hoof to cut me off.

“No Storm. Tell me where you want to go. If you don't, I'll just ship your flanks to Trottingham. I'm really sorry Storm, but I just can't risk it.” she said, looking truly sad. I sighed, remembering what Golden Sunshine had told me earlier.

“There's a ship, a little way away from the coast. North east of Baltimare. Bring us there please.” I said, hating myself for giving in so easily. But I understood what the mare had said. Quite some puzzle pieces fell into place now. The Zebras in the canyon had said that a Pegasus mare was providing them with things they needed from time to time, and I quickly that this ship was used to make similar supply runs all over the wasteland.

“I know the place.” she replied, nodding, before putting a hoof up to her ear and activating her broadcaster. “Set course for the dock.”

~O~Frostmane~O~

I was ducking behind a fallen slap of concrete, levitating a hunting rifle towards the Rangers trying to advance on our position. Cherry Cream had provided me with armor piercing bullets and a few healing potions. They had gotten rid of the nasty gash in my flank, even though I knew that it would leave a nasty looking scar.

I had been quite surprised to find the mare hold the line in one of the side streets, assisted by a group of ghouls. According to what the rose colored mare had told me, ghouls were immune to the effect of the sirens song.

“Yeeeehhhaaaaawwww!” Cherry shouted, as she galloped out of her cover and peppered four approaching Rangers with a volley from her two grenade machine guns. Differently from Apple Snack, the mare wasn't pulling any punches. Instead of matrix disruption grenades, she was using anti armor and high explosive ones. The armored Ponies were ripped to shreds, just as my former subordinate dived for cover to avoid their retaliation.

“You enjoy this way to much, you know that right?” I said as I dared to take a look at the about thirteen Rangers that were left. Cherry Cream chuckled as a soft click from her armor indicated that her weapons were reloading.

“Why the hay not? This is the first decent fight I've been in since I got out of the Luna Dream five years ago. Besides, these guys don't deserve to wear that armor. Most of the “modern” Steel Rangers aren't much more than recruits. Only very few of them have actual combat experience.” she snorted, jumping out from our cover once more to fire another volley.

I had already noticed this as well. These Rangers were... strange. They could use their armor, alright, but they weren't anywhere near as skilled as Apple Snack or Cherry Cream. The ghouls that had joined the fight were hiding behind their own cover, coming up occasionally to fire a few shots, before taking cover again. Cherry Cream almost bumped into me when she jumped behind cover this time, due to one of the Rangers missiles exploding almost directly next to her. I could hear a grunt of pain as the mare pushed herself back to her hooves.

“Are you alright?” I asked, worried for the Earthpony. She waved a dismissive hoof at me as she took of her helmet for a moment. I could see that she had suffered a deep gash on the right side of her head, a small piece of shrapnel protruding from it. My magic latched onto it, pulling it out of the mares skull as her armor administered healing potions.

“Ouch. That bucker with the missile launcher is starting to really piss me off. He's about the only one of that lot that can actually aim...” Cherry said as blood seeped into her right eye.

“Any idea how where they're broadcasting from? I mean... So far the Ponies in Tenpony can't receive their signal, but I don't know how long the DJ can overpower their broadcast.”

I had noticed earlier that the only broadcasting station I could receive was DJ PON-3's station. Now, that I was deeper in the city, my Pipbuck was also receiving the Sirens broadcast. That could only mean that the DJ had cranked up the output of his station to drown out their signal in the immediate vicinity of the tower. It also explained why the Rangers hadn't been able to break into the tower yet.

“Yeah. They have a few antennas set up on Horseshoe Tower. Gingerbread told us to keep an eye out for three strange Earthpony mares. As far as I can tell, they are there, operating the equipment.” she said, while the flesh on the side of her head knitted itself back together. I thought for a moment. If I could get there, I could shut down their broadcast, kill the Sirens and hopefully destroy any backing Gear Turn had in the wasteland. It was almost too good to be true.

“Any guards?”

“Not as far as I could tell earlier.” the mare replied, blinking with her right eye a few times to get rid of the blood that was tinging her vision.

“Alright. Cherry? I want you guys to hold this position as long as you can. If they get reinforcements, fall back and regroup. Think you can do that?” I asked, already forming a plan on how to get to Horseshoe Tower. A smile crept onto the mares face as she looked back at me. Her brown eyes were sparkling with joy at this opportunity.

“Of course. You go on and show these mares what it means to be a Moon Skull. If I can't hold them back here, them my name is no longer Cher...” she began to say, but the sudden report of a rifle cut her off. Part of the mares head exploded, spraying my face with brain matter and blood as she fell to her side. I dropped my rifle and lifted the mare in my hooves. As soon as I saw her eyes, however, I knew that there was nothing I could do. Her blip on my EFS had already winked out, while the shadow of her last cocky smile was still visible on her face.

“CHERRY!” I called out, looking around for the one who had fired that shot. I didn't have to look for long. The Griffon sniper was already taking aim at me when I found him perched on top of one of the buildings.

Footnotes:

Frostmane:

New Spell:

Moonfire: Releasing your magic without refining it in your body first, you can now cause a blaze of silver fire. The damage of this spell depends on the amount of action points you choose to use to cast it.

Maximum Level.

Firestorm:

No status Changes

Golden Sunshine:

No Status Changes.