Foe Hie Odyssey

It was a sunny day and I sat in a tree overlooking the little town of Plowton, situated on the edge of some far northern forest.  A sniper rifle was tucked against my side and a sandwich in my hand.  Living the good life, I thought while voraciously tearing into my vegie on cornbread sandwich.  Haywire was in the town below talking with the farmers.

This wasn’t the first pony village that I’d seen, but rather the thirteenth.  Each time we saw the same cobbled together huts or dilapidated buildings, the same stark eyed, suspicious ponies, and the same guns and pointy things pointed in our general direction.  Well in Haywire’s direction.  I was usually safe behind a grassy knoll or in a tree somewhere.

Each time Haywire would ask the same questions.  Have any griffins been through here lately?  No.  How about unicorn with a hammer and test tube cutie mark?  Thank you, Haywire for remembering me.  No.  How much for some food and water?  We always carried more food than we’d need to get to the next town in case their demands were too steep.  This had only happened twice, in the tenth and eleventh towns, and both were because of a drought.

We bartered for what foodstuffs we could get which if fresh were usually maize and maize products, using any of the junk from Canterlot that we didn’t think we’d need.  We had already been forced to trade the automatic rifle in exchange for about two months’ worth of clean water.  We would have also sold the 9mm except that it broke after about three uses.  Apparently the decay from the pink cloud had crept into the pistol and its mechanisms making the entire device dangerously fragile.  I count myself fortunate that when the pistol did brake it didn’t injure me too badly.

It looked like this was another of the towns which we wouldn’t be trading with, I thought as Haywire strode back down the road.  It was the first real road that either of us had seen in weeks.  We had abandoned the Canterlot road weeks ago, as soon as my companion had decided that she knew a better way to escape this Scar griffins and the crazy unicorn scientist with her strange tribal mark.

I clambered down from the tree and ran to meet her, being sure to keep myself out of sight of the townsfolk.  “So on a scale of one to ten, how willing to trade are they?”  I asked sauntering up to my pony pal.

“Zero.  They refuse to trade with anyone until the local raiders have been dealt with.”  Up until this point I hadn’t seen a raider despite more than three weeks of travel.  Apparently these raiders were supposed to be very common, but if they were than we must have been doing something wrong or we were just very lucky. We had however run into a plethora of wild animals many of them with a taste for pony flesh so perhaps they ate any ponies they found outside the small and isolated agrarian communities.

“Great, I have been hoping to get a look at these fearsome savages.”  I said taking another bite of my sandwich.  “Did they give us directions?”

“Simmer down.”  Said Haywire holding up a hoof.  “These aren’t your ordinary raiders.  In fact I think it might be best if we pass this town by altogether.”  This puzzled me as my companion seemed to enjoy helping people.

“What makes these raiders so special?”  I said now lowering my sandwich.

“Apparently these raiders have gotten ahold of magical energy weapons and stealth bucks.”  She said with a shiver.

“Oh.  So they have some kind of super special, high tech magic stuff.”  Now this peaked my interest.  High tech magic stuff could be useful for future endeavors.

“Yes and since neither of us has any experience fighting invisible enemies…”

“I do.”  I interrupted.  To answer her skeptical look I explained, “Back in Canterlot there was this blue horned Pegasus.  Or would it be a winged unicorn?  Either way its dead now.”

“You killed an Alicorn?” asked the mare, shocked.  I filed away the word Alicorn, in case I ever met another one.

“It was crazy and hostile.  I had no choice.  It threatened me so it had to die.”  I couldn’t understand why she seemed so shocked.  She knew I had already murdered innocent people.  I was literally wearing their skin, so it was kind of hard to forget.

“Oh no, I’m not accusing you of anything.” She took a breath steady herself, “I’m just surprised.  Those things are supposed to be like gods.  How did you kill it?”

“I chopped it up.”  I said thinking back to the moment, “It wasn’t really all that hard.  Yes it had magic and could turn invisible, but in the end it was flesh and blood like you and me.”

“Okay, so let’s say that we did fight these raiders.  How would we do it?” Asked Haywire, who still sounded like she wasn’t entirely onboard with the idea.

“First, before we can make an actual plan of action, we’d need to have an idea of how many raiders we’ll be dealing with and how many of them are using these magic watcha macall its.”

“Stealth Bucks.  And how do you plan on counting these raiders without first killing them all?”

“Reconnaissance.”

“Reconnaissance?  They’re invisible.  They are invisible crazy murderous psychos armed with some of the best weapons that money can buy!  And even if you knew where they were hiding, how in Luna’s name will you survive going near them?  The moment they see you, they’ll kill you.”

“Eeyup.  Reconnaissance.  I figure that these raiders have to sleep at some point and probably won’t be using their Stealth Bucks while they’re doing it.  As for getting close to them, leave that to me.  So, did the townsfolk give you any directions to their hideout?”  Haywire sighed in exasperation, but decided not to argue.

*****

Apparently Haywire hadn’t even asked.  When she went back into town to get directions I also had her ask for a few tools that I’d need in order to get close to the raider base of operations.  Apparently they were holed up in an abandoned asylum little more than a mile Southwest of the village and inside of the forest.  We weren’t supposed to fight the raiders as they had taken hostages, but the townsfolk dubiously accepted the offer to find out more about the raiders.  So far all that was known about them was that they were invisible, they had magical energy weapons, and they were led by a pegasus named Silver Wing who’d made unreasonable demands from the townsfolk in exchange for the return of the hostages.  To prove that he was serious about getting what he wanted he had crucified one of the hostages and would continue to execute hostages until his demands were met.

Within the hour we were headed out into the deep dark forest on the edge of town.  I had decided to enter it from a roundabout point in case the raiders had left an invisible scout watching the town.  Haywire thought that it was a ridiculous precaution, but she was also the one who had been saying it was too dangerous to even be meddling with these raiders.  I chose to error on the side of caution on this occasion.

As soon as we found a suitable tree I flung a long rope with a weight tied to one end over one of the lower branches.  As the weighted end of the rope came tumbling down to earth I grabbed onto the opposite length of rope.  My cyborg companion then grabbed onto the rope with her claws and hauled me up into the tree branches.  From this point on I would be operating alone.

Using my pipbuck to get my bearings I saw that I would have to travel due south about two miles.  Taking out another length of rope I secured a grappling hook to the end and tossed it onto a nearby tree in the general direction of south.  After checking to make sure it was secure I used it to swing across.  I repeated this process, occasionally checking my pipbuck’s automap, slowly and painfully making my way towards the asylum.

At last I arrived at the edge of a clearing and my pipbuck marked the place as the Plowton Insane Asylum.  I didn’t dare come any closer for fear of being spotted by an unseen sentry and instead opted to wait until nightfall.  I got out an issue of Sword Mares and started reading.

As the sun was setting I crept over to the edge of the branches and peered out.  The shadows had lengthened to the point where I would be completely invisible, unless they were sitting on top of me.  I have to admit that the Plowton Insane Asylum and base camp for a group of invisible blood thirsty killers was a little underwhelming.

A twenty foot wrought iron fence surrounded a compound consisting of four buildings.  It looked like there were two barracks, some kind of visitor’s center, and a building that I couldn’t identify that was more than twice the size of even the visitor’s center. All of the buildings had the same fading paint and broken windows that I’d come to associate with the modern or rather postmodern world of the demon horse.

What made the place underwhelming was that most of the buildings were painted in bright and garish colors with posters of smiling ponies peeling off the walls.  The asylum in its current state looked more welcoming than the creepy that one would associate with the words asylum and invisible blood thirsty killers.  There was even a huge sign in the front featuring a smiling white unicorn with a flowing rainbow mane and the words “Welcome To the Plowton Institute for the Criminally Insane Where Dreams Come True!”

The current inhabitants had done their very best to make their new home look more formidable by adding bloody graffiti to every available surface including the sign, which now featured several grim threats about torture and anal rape.  The raiders had also put the skulls of two ponies up on the gate to their little village, but the pastel colored heads barely provided any contrast with their background.  In the middle of the courtyard was an erected cross with a dead mare attached.  More startling than the sight was the fact that I was unaffected, but then again I had lost more sleep reading Sword Mares than by wearing and sleeping in the skin of two dead ponies.  In my defense Sword Mares had a good plot.

The raiders themselves looked little different from the town ponies except that most of them had odd glowing weapons and glowing devices attached to their fore hooves.  They were also armored and their armor looked piecemeal and spiky, but aside from that they looked like ordinary ponies.

Three of these raiders were roasting some kind of winged lion over a large fire.  There were several moving in and out of the barracks.  Full told I guessed there were about a dozen or so in the camp.  I watched and waited as they came out of their barracks and gathered around the fire to eat.  I noted that while raiders came and went from the visitor’s center there were always at least three who were inside it.  I didn’t see their Pegasus leader anywhere and assumed that he must also be inside of this building.

I also noted that while the raiders went about between the barracks and visitors center they seemed to shun the large building and had even made a makeshift barricade around the door with bits of scrap and cinder blocks.

There were also two sentries who had taken up their positions on the roof of one of the larger buildings and in a single guard tower on the opposite side of the compound.  I only saw them because they became visible long enough to get a slice of lion from their compatriots.  The pony at the top of the tower appeared to have a sniper rifle while the pony on the roof of the building had an assault rifle.  Both were attached to what I had learned was called a battle saddle.

Now I had information to deliver to the townsfolk.  About a nine raiders on the ground, at least three constantly in the visitor’s center probably guards, two sentries and one leader for a total of fifteen raiders.

I carefully made my way back to the departure point remembering the scrapes and bruises that I had received simply getting to the asylum.  As I approached my starting position, I heard the sounds of violence.  Following the sounds I brought out my sniper rifle and turned on the night scope.  I couldn’t make anything out other than rapid movement.

The sound of twin revolvers rang out and the movement stopped.  My breath caught in my throat as I stared into the eyes of a predator as it let out a howl of pain.  I was shaken by the sight but managed to fire twice and the creature’s howl turned into a pitiful squeak.  The rifle dropped from nerveless fingers and clattered to the base of the tree.  The predator heard it land.

I saw movement as the creature turned and then charged towards the tree I was in.  Within a moment I could see the beast and a

moment later it was scaling the side of the tree.  Trembling I drew the machete and nearly dropped that as well.  The creature backhanded me from the tree and I fell a dozen feet to the ground below.  I felt blood on my face, and as I tried to rise my chest seemed to catch fire.

The sniper rifle was out of reach and in the fall I’d dropped the machete.  I couldn’t pull out my axe quickly enough as it was strapped across my back.  All I had was a scalpel to fight a massive predator.  The creature I was fighting now leapt down from the tree and stalked towards me with a noticeable limp.  I raised the scalpel towards the creature in front of me who was now revealed by some eerie and unseen light.  I could now see that it was a winged lion like the one that the raiders were eating except that now I also saw its scorpion tail.

The Manticore approached me brazenly.  It wasn’t intimidated by my puny weapon and could smell my uncontrolled fear.  The world seemed to infinitely slow down as I defiantly slashed towards it, but I knew I was a dead man.  The creature accepted the stroke and I now saw in its eyes that it was in some kind of blood rage.  It would gladly take a dozen slashes from my scalpel if it could get in a single strike against me.  I didn’t get another shot with the scalpel as its tail lashed out like a striking serpent, and I felt a sharp pain in my arm followed by numbness flowing from the point of impact.  Just as the creature was about to rake at me with its claws the sound of a sniper rifle sounded from only a few feet away.

I was barely cohesive by that point and only remember a frantic run through the woods, a collision, a gunfight, and then bright lights.  Bright lights were shining all around me.

*****

I hurt so much that I wanted to cry out.  I tried to move my lips, but no sound came out.  I couldn’t move my mouth or any other part of my body.  I was on a table again and now I saw that there were ponies all around me. Many of the ponies around me were unicorns.  The one closest to me held a vial in her purple levitation field.  A mask with a funnel was lowered over my face.

“Hold him down!”  Shouted a gray maned unicorn satllion who levitated a syringe in his magic.  The light had changed now to a dim red.  There was no mask over my face.

“What’s going on here?  By the goddess what is that thing?!”  Shouted another voice.  They were too loud.  Why did they have to be so loud?

“Stay back!  He’s with the traveler.”  Said the unicorn as if that was enough of an explanation.  I dimly noted that he was one of only three ponies in the room.

“I’ve got him doc.”  Said another voice.  This one was calm and feminine.  With a start I realized it was Haywire and I tried to rise to see her and be sure that the manticore hadn’t gotten her as well.  The keyword being tried for I soon found myself restrained with a pair of hooves and mechanical arms.  I struggled for a moment before the doctor was able to reach me.  Even after he injected me with something I continued to fight.  Resistance was futile, but as if I cared.  After a few long minutes of fighting I started to feel very sleepy and knew no more.

When I awoke I found that I was no longer being restrained.  I was also no longer on a table, but rather on a tattered couch.  A quilt was covering most of my body from the neck down.  It conveniently also covered my gray fur coat.  I felt a slight ache in my chest and found it to be covered with bandages.  Closer examination however revealed that with the exception of some minor scarring I had made a full recovery so I carefully folded the bandages and standing, laid them out neatly on the floor.

Looking around I saw Haywire asleep at the foot of the couch.  “Some friend you’ve got there.  Most folk, even decent folk wouldn’t have gone through the trouble of fighting their way back to the nearest town to get you treatment for your injuries.”  I looked up to see the man or rather the pony from earlier.  This wasn’t the unicorn doctor, but rather the pony who’d barged in.  He was based on the ponies I’d seen so far a tall and well-built earth pony stallion, but at the same time he also wasn’t burly by earth pony standards.  His coat was tan and his mane was a rust color.  His voice was gruff and somewhat deep, but it was far from being baritone.

“She is isn’t she?”  I said pensively.

“The names Sun Flare.”  He said extending a hoof.

I assumed he intended to do something like a fist bump, so I brought my fist up to meet his which he shook fiercely albeit somewhat awkwardly, “Ulysses Haroldson”

“I heard her story about how raiders had glued the skin of dead ponies to your body.”  He said conversationally.

“Um. Yes.”  I said never having heard this story.  It had to be made up.  Perhaps Haywire wanted me to go along with it, so that we wouldn’t get chased out of town.  I suppose it is the least I could do for her after the whole her saving my life stuff.

“I also know that it is a load of minotaur shit.  Monsters like you don’t deserve friends like her.”  He said looking me in the eye.

I gazed into his bright golden eyes and said, my voice firm, “Maybe not, but It sounds to me like you trust her.  As soon as she found out that the organization that she was working for had some rather unethical business practices she quit, even though she knew it could get her killed.  She is currently on the run from those slavers and raiders.   As for me, it would be laughably easy for her to get rid of me, just tell the people in the next town that she is being chased by a big scary monster and then I’m dead.  My friend, Haywire, has let me stay with her, because she trusts me.  If you trust her, and she trusts me, than you should trust me.”

He averted his eyes and fidgeted for a moment as if unsure of himself.  “I trust her to do what she has to do to survive.” he looked up at me again, “She said you had an idea abought how to fix our raider problem and were busy scouting when you’d been attacked.”

“Yes.  I estimate that there were only about fifteen or so raiders in the group.”

“Fifteen huh.  Well it could have been worse.  I’ve heard about much larger groups up North closer to the trade routes.”  He made a motion using his hoof like a human scratching his chin and I noticed some prominent fur on his chin that vaguely resembled a goatee.  “Fifteen is still more than we can handle in a firefight, especially on their turf.  How many have stealthbucks?”

“All that I could see, but only two of the ones I was watching were actually using them.”

“And exactly how many could you see.”  He asked skeptically.

“I could see fourteen.  Of those fourteen every single one of them had a glowing device on their foreleg and glowing green weapons.”  I didn’t understand what he didn’t understand about what I’d told him.

“In the Sun’s name how on earth did they get ahold of so many stealthbucks and energy weapons?”  Now I understood.

“Stranger things have happened.  The important thing is that We are going to have to find a way to kill all fifteen of these raiders.”  I said putting an emphasis on the we.  These ponies had helped me and I wasn’t going to forget that or leave them to fight fifteen invisible magic ponies on their own.

“All too true,” he said looking at me, “What about the hostages?  And did We find anything else out about our enemy?”

Noting his emphasis on the word we, I replied “I didn’t see the hostages, unless you count the three ponies that they murdered, but there were always at least three raiders inside the visitors center.”

“So they left some of them alive then, although I suppose that the hostages probably wish they were dead. I’ve been there before when I was a colt.  Visitor’s centers the big round one at the entrance?”

“Yes.”

“Did you see any of their sentries, or were they all invisible?”  He asked.

“Only two, one on the roof and a sniper in the tower.  Do you have a plan?”

“Yes, but we’d need a way to get most of the raiders out of there in order to do it.”

“In order to do that we’d need even more information about these raiders, information that we couldn’t get from just watching them from a distance.”

“My thoughts exactly.”  Said the stallion, now smiling, “There are actually sixteen raiders.  Your friend ran into one just outside of town.”

“Is she alright?” I asked suddenly very concerned.

“He is fine.  We’ve got him in an old storage shed around the back.”  Said Sun pretending to misunderstand me.

“I meant my friend, Haywire.” I said gesturing in the mare’s direction.

“I know.  And if you want to know than why don’t you ask her.”  Sun Flare said also gesturing towards my friend who I now saw was drowsily wiping sleep from her eyes with her mechanical claws.  I will never understand how she can do that, only one of her eyes is cybernetic.

Sun and I left the doctor’s house where I had apparently been staying.  Haywire stayed behind with the unicorn doctor as he fussed over what she considered to be flesh wounds.  Sun gave me the sentry’s stealthbuck and had me invisibly accompany him around the unusually large house to the back.

It was the oddest experience trying to walk without being able to see your body.  It was insanely disorienting and I felt unsteady on my feet.  Despite all this I soldiered through like a roman and I was even able to do some sightseeing during our short trip.

The town was built around a hill with the doctor’s house situated on the top.  Apparently he was part of the original family that had lived there and his house now hosted town council meetings.  This part didn’t surprise me.  No, what surprised me was that this town was easily as large as three or four of the previous towns that we’d visited combined.  Where all the other towns we’d seen looked more like hamlets, this place actually looked like a real and functioning town.  The reason I hadn’t seen all this from my perch in the tree was simply because the hill with the doctor’s house was in the way.

Around the back we came upon a small shed that was made out of bits of metal welded together.  It looked like typical post war construction and was slightly asymmetrical.  Sun knocked five times on the door and then twice.  The other pony I’d seen in the room with me, this one also a unicorn, opened the door for him levitating beside him a cowboy repeater.  He was a lanky, albeit slightly muscular, unicorn stallion with a light blue coat.  “Storm Breeze” said Sun and I saw that the unicorn’s long mane was the gray of storm clouds interspersed with white and yellow streaks.

Storm wore a white cowboy hat and some kind of weird but matching white ceremonial flank garment.  While fashionable the garment also looked somewhat spartan as if there was something that was left to be desired about it.  It took me several moments of thinking about it before I realized it was also supposed to be a dress.  A moment after my revelation the transvestite spoke, “Is the ‘raider victim’ with ya”. He did little air quotes when he said the words raider victim.

“Yes, I’m here.  Mind inviting us inside?”  I spoke up from right beside the stallion’s ear.  I shall admit that I was pleased by how high he jumped although I was less pleased by the unwelcome sight that I soon beheld.  As the door guard reclaimed his dignity I made sure to avert my eyes from sights I did not wish to behold.

“Celestia buck.  Why’d ya have to go scarin me like that?”  He asked to nowhere in particular.  After a moment he said, “Fine come on in if ya must.  The prisoner has so far been uncooperative.”

“I bet I can make him talk.”  I brazenly declared.

“We ain’t gonna torture him.”  Said the unicorn, and then less certainly, “Right Flare?”

“We’ll do what we must.” Said Sun Flare walking towards a motionless figure chained up in the dimly lit rear of the shed.  “It’s up to you, trash, do we need to torture you?”

“Torture me if you must, but I will never tell.”  Said the raider in an evil voice, and then appended, “Townie Scum.”

“Yes. Yes. You’re really tough,” I turned to my companions saying, “I can take it from here.”  Storm made as if to object, but he was quickly silenced by a look from Sun who I assumed to be of some kind of high rank like mayor or sheriff.

The prisoner seemed unaware that I was even there until that point.  This time he was faster with his comeback, “Think you’re tough just cause your invisible.  Your pathetic attempts at intimidation are laughable.”  After saying this he proceeded to do just that, laugh.  In the meantime my companions vacated the premices leaving the two of us to my own devices.

As soon as the door was closed the room became almost pitch black.  I turned off the stealthbuck and waited for our eyes to adjust to the light.  In the mean time I said nothing.

As his eyes adjusted the raider stopped laughing. I could tell that he was slightly put off by my appearance although I couldn’t be sure.  Neither of us could clearly make out the other. “Oh you’re a hellhound.”  He said his voice quivering ever so slightly, but within a moment his tough guy attitude was back, “So what did the townies offer you to work for them?  Do they let you lick up their scraps and call you a good dog? Do they rut your arse when they can’t find a cow’s?  Oh no.  They,”

His next words jumped off a cliff and into the pit of his stomach, along with his fighting spirit, in the very instant I turned on the light of my pipbuck.  A crimson glow filled the room and in the red light my armor looked blood stained.  I looked into the raider’s eyes as he took in my appearance and the mangled corpses that had become my one-z.  A finely honed ax was strapped across my back and the ornamental machete was sheathed at my side.  In my left hand I held my surgical scalpel freshly sterilized by my new unicorn host.

I approached him determined to creep him out to the best of my ability.  Hopefully I won’t have to torture this wretched pony, I thought bitterly, and briefly considered what kind of fate must have forced him into this sordid life of banditry and murder.  Then the thought was gone.  I had a job to do if I was to save all the ponies who’d been taken hostage.

“Do you know how I came by this marvelous armor?”  I asked shoving my pipbuck under his nose.  I admit that the effect would have been magnified if my armor had decayed at all during my travels, but instead it had become more wholesome looking, until at times I imagined that it was the skin of a still living creature.  To my question, the raider’s response was a rapid headshake.

“I think you’re lying to me.”  I said bringing the scalpel out and then letting the edgeless part of the blade dance lightly along the bandit’s spine.  He shivered, pricked himself and then shrieked.  I winced seeing the look of hurt in his eyes, but I also saw that his defenses that hadn’t already crumbled due to his imprisonment were starting to give way to the fear and the shock of seeing me.

“Skin.  You skinned ponies.”  He said shaking slightly.

“How many did I skin you little rodent?” I asked.  He just stared not seeming to understand.  “How many of your kind did I skin?  Tell me meat.”

“One.”  He said and cringed as I brought my scalpel to rest gently beside his groin.

“Strike one.  You have two more guesses or mister happy gets it.”

I heard him muttering, “Not one, not one.” Before he at last said, “Two.  You’re such a large creature it would take two to cover you.”  I considered giving him anther strike for the large creature comment, before deciding it must have been his way of giving a compliment.  Looks like he might be willing to talk now, I thought relieved.

“Very large creature.”  I said and he echoed it.

“Very large, scary, pony eating creature.”

Again he echoed it although this time he asked dubiously “You eat ponies?”

I forced back memories of when I gorged myself on the flesh of living breathing thinking creatures like the one before me.  “I tell you, you’ve never lived until you’ve dined upon the flesh of pony.”  But he couldn’t know that while you’ve never lived until you’ve eaten the sweet flesh of pony, part of you also dies inside for each and every bite.  “Do you really want to bet your own flesh, that I don’t eat the meat of an animal like you?”  He shivered in fear.  “Now repeat after me; very large, scary, pony eating, and working for the highest bidder.”

As he was echoing these words he tripped over the highest bidder part.  “What is this about highest bidder.”

“The townies are offering me a lot of food.  Do you think that you and your little band of raiders can beat that offer.”

“Yes!  Come work with us.  I promise three meals with fresh meat every day and some of the best tech in the entire wasteland.  Just get me out of here.  Oh what I’d give to see the sun again.”

“How do I know that they’ll take me?”  I asked doubting his offer.

“Trust me, one look at you and Silver will make you his right hand pony!” I knew that he was exaggerating, but his next words surprised even me, “You don’t belong here among these town ponies.  You don’t belong where there are stupid rules and sheriffs.  Come join us.  You’ll be free.  We raiders look after our own, if we like them,” and then laughing, this time a genuine hearty laugh, “Or if they can scare us shittless with a look.  Tia’s Teats, Silver Wing will love you.”  While I had decided from the start not to take any of the raider’s offers, his monologue had given me an idea.

“I’ll make sure you get some sunlight.”  I said turning for the door.  Opening it, I turned toward the prisoner and flashed him a winning smile “it’s the least I can do for all the help you’ve given Us.”  Turning toward Storm who stood by the door I asked, holding up my scalpel, “Do you have a cloth I can use to get rid of these grease stains.”  Everyone just looked at me completely bewildered.

Haywire came up at that moment, “What did I miss?” she asked curiously looking between me and the ponies around me.  Seeing the scalpel she used her mechanical arms to snatch it away.  “Were you rubbing this all over a wet dog?”  She wiped down the surgical knife, disinfected it, before wiping it down again.  “You should really take better care of your things.”  She said passing me the knife.  “So, what did I miss?”

“At last my scalpel has been liberated from the foul smells of an unwashed raider pony.”  I said dramatically, before with a flourish putting the scalpel into a hidden section of my armor where it would be safe.  “As for what you missed, our raider friend gave me an idea.  Gather round kids, it’s planning time.”

We argued for nearly an hour over the best course of action, thankfully hidden from the sight of the townsfolk, inside of the Doctor’s large.  The plan was as follows. I would let myself be captured by raiders and earn their trust. If I got any opportunities to either help the hostages or weaken the raiders without compromising my position within their ranks I was to take it.

I would work to convince the raiders to infiltrate the town in order to acquire some mysterious pre-war artifact.  Apparently this relic was extremely dangerous and the raiders wanted to trade the hostages for the dangerous relic.  The relic would of course be moved, but additional guards would be posted around one of the pre-war warehouse’s to create the impression that the relic was hidden there.

The raiders might have also been willing to participate in a hostage exchange even if they didn’t leave.  When Haywire asked the towns ponies why they hadn’t tried to negotiate one Flare’s response was simply that they didn’t negotiate with raiders.

While I was infiltrating the raiders, Haywire would work with Storm to prepare the trap and then Storm and the Doctor would organize the defense of the town.  When I would be heading out to get captured, Flare would lead a small group of some of the best trained militia from the town into the forest and set up camp in a secret place nearby.

The defenders would fire up a flare to signal them when the trap had been sprung.  By that point it would be too late for the raiders to do anything except run away. Flare would then storm the compound and eliminate the remaining raiders at their base, and then he’d kill any others who came in.  Without a base or living compatriots, he hoped that the raiders would be inclined towards running for the hills.

This third part had been his original plan from the start, but my idea to put someone inside the enemy ranks, he said, greatly improved his chances of success and allowed us to split up the enemy.  Raiders he said are best handled when in small groups.

The reason we thought that they would be willing to try and infiltrate the town to steal the relic was simple.  Because they were outlaws, they would naturally try to take what they wanted.  First they would try using force like what they had done with the hostages.  If that didn’t work or proved to be too difficult and they were very determined than they’d settle for more subtle methods like infiltration via stealthbucks.  If both of these didn’t work or were too difficult and no other options made themselves available than the next best course of action would be for the raiders to separate themselves from the problem and find easier prey elsewhere.

Haywire thought that this would be difficult, because she believed that these raiders were being employed by somebody.  So long as their employer or their employer’s agents still had power over the situation than they’d likely try to get the raiders to fight to the death.  This was part of the reason why I would be placed within the raider’s ranks.

My only job really was just to survive long enough to convince the raiders that the relic was hidden in the warehouse without being too obvious about it and to also convince them that they’ll want to keep their hostages alive until then.  I expected that I would fail dismally and a lot of people would get hurt, but I swallowed my fears.  I whispered the mantra, “We have nothing to fear accept fear itself” to myself all night, but it did nothing to quite my nerves.

End of Chapter 2 (Level Up)

Ulysses

Level 2 Raider for Hire

Insanity 16%

Speech 13 +11 / 100 Sneak 24 + 6 / 100

Haywire

Level 4 Wanderer

Special

Strength 6 +2

Perception 6

Endurance 5 +2

Charisma 6

Intelligence 5

Agility 7

Luck 4

Small Guns 40 + 5 / 100 Unarmed 20 + 5 / 100 Medicine 15 + 5 / 100

Traits

Extreme Cybernetic Enhancements-You have received mechanical upgrades that not only enhance the ordinary functions of your body, but also provide you with additional limbs making you just a little overpowered.  +2 to strength and endurance. + 10 unarmed. +10% experience to increase in level.

Fast Shot-You don't have time to aim for a targeted attack, because you attack faster than normal people. It costs you one less action point to use guns and thrown weapons.