Fallout Equestria: Due North

When I awoke the fire was nothing but ashes, simmering quietly. Sunlight filtered down through the clouds and streamed in through the shattered windows and doors, illuminating the room less than my fire had the night before. I looked around; several once-backlit posters lined the walls, displaying adverts for films like "Power Ponies 2: The Mane-iac Strikes" and "Daring Do and the Zebra's Bounty". One featured a group of ponies with suspicious similarities to the Ministry Mares, locked in a deadly battle with a mare with ridiculously long hair-tentacles and her army of evil zebra henchmen. The other showed a brown mare with a short greyscale mane, positioned in a fighting stance which showed way too much of her plot to the camera, surrounded on all sides by demonic zebra tribals. I turned away, rolling my eyes at the obvious propaganda.

It was then that I noticed Sunbeam. The filly was sitting a few yards away from me, just… staring at the sky. She was watching the cloud layer through the windows with the utmost fascination, eyes darting across the featureless mass of rolling cloud as if it were the most interesting thing she had ever seen.

"Ugh," I groaned, "Sunbeam? What time is it?"

"Oh, uh, hi Cloudburst," she said, "No idea."

"Alright," I yawned, stretching out, "Let's see." I pulled out the pip-buck, making a mental note to get the clasp fixed. The green display read 7:34, not bad. I stood up slowly and trotted over to sit next to her. "So, what're you doing?"

"Watching for gaps in the clouds," she answered, as if it was perfectly normal.

"Gaps? Good luck. There's almost never any holes in the clouds," I replied without thinking.

"That's what the Enclave told you, huh?" she asked, leaving me unsure of how to respond. "Well they're wrong, or lying; there's a gap every few minutes. Ooh, there's one!"

"What, where?" I looked around, trying to see what she had noticed. Finally I saw it; a tiny circle of blue about a foot in diameter, drifting slowly across the sky. How she had noticed it I would never know. She tracked the hole across the sky until it closed, her eyes darting back once it had disappeared. "Wow. Well, I guess you win." I said, secretly irritated that she'd gotten the better of me.

"Aww, don't be like that," she smiled. "So, where are we going?"

"Uh, civilisation," I replied, trying to think on the spot, "Anywhere there's civilised ponies." Secretly, I was hoping wherever we found would have somepony willing to take in a filly, somepony who had a better idea of how to look after her than some inexperienced Enclave technician who had never even tried babysitting before now.

"There's lights in that statue," Sunbeam pointed to a large structure resembling a mare watching over the city with a raised torch in one hoof, stained green with verdigris, "Or we could head for that tower."

Shadows and lights danced in the windows of a distant tower, as well as through holes rent in the sides of the decaying statue. There was a gap in the skyscrapers between us and the former, a massive open space that could have only been the Manehattan Blast Zone, and that wasn't a place I wanted to visit if the 2nd's tales of it were to be believed. The statue seemed like a better bet.

"We head for that statue," I said, "Hopefully the ponies there'll be friendly." I started to pack up what few items weren't already in my saddlebag, including a few scattered emergency rations from last night and the pip-buck. After doing up my saddlebag I trotted for the exit. Sunbeam limped over, her wounded leg hindering her significantly. I knelt down. "Wanna ride?"

"Sure thing," relief flashed across her features as she scrambled up onto my back, "Thanks."

Outside the area was deserted, save for a few radroaches scurrying across the scorched ground. A large billboard loudly proclaimed; Visit Monument Island and see the fabulous Statue of Friendship! Admittance free for families! A picture of the statue, drawn glowing in the sun with happy families trotting around in front of it, was the central focus. Okay, Monument Island it was then. I set off once more, following the large arrow on the billboard.

The area had once been a large and wealthy shopping destination with glitzy stores selling jewelry and clothes. Designs by Suri Polomare! boasted one dilapidated advertisement; another had Sapphire Shores approved! written in fancy lettering. Most of the stores had glass fronts, many of them long-shattered. Along the centre of the road ran a series of withered hedges, killed off by the balefire. The cinema where we had slept matched the shops; large and glamorous, once anyway.

As I trotted down the street I became more and more uncomfortable; posters everywhere proclaimed the same message: Pinkie Pie is watching you! FOREVER! Each poster was adorned with a picture of a smiling pink pony, her poofy mane arranged in such a way that the grey streaks made it look like a candy cane. The poster had been designed so that the mare's eyes appeared to follow the viewer. With several posters staring at me at once, it sent chills down my spine.

"Wartime Equestria must have been horrible," Sunbeam observed.

"Who can say?" I replied, "Maybe they were used to having the government breathing down their necks; the Enclave's no worse."

"That doesn't mean they liked it," she shot back, "There must have been lots of riots and things too."

"I guess," I shrugged, "It was a troubled time." I looked around again, and suddenly she spoke up once more.

"Hey, what's that sound?"

"What sound?" I stopped, suddenly feeling very vulnerable.

"Shhh!" She chided, and slowly I became aware of a faint grinding noise. It was as if somepony was scraping two pieces of rusty metal together, and it was getting louder. My hoof stole to the holorifle, checking the weapon; it was still empty. Leaving it hanging from the sling, I loaded four microspark cells and pumped the weapon. Okay, I was good if anypony tried to attack.

The noise was coming closer now, slowly, and I could just make out the clop of hooves. On one hoof, whoever it was could be friendly, and travelling in a group would significantly increase our chances of survival; on the other, however, it could be more raiders. After a minute's consideration, I decided I'd prefer not to remain alone out here, and so I set off to find the source.

"Uh, Cloudburst?" Sunbeam asked.

"Yeah?"

"Where are we going?" She asked.

"To find out who's making that noise," I replied. She nodded in acceptance.

As we rounded a corner it came into view; a battered old caravan was rattling down the road towards us at a snail's pace, rear axle grinding against its housing. It had originally been one of those vehicles used for camping, a true caravan in the old sense, but the inside had mostly been ripped out to allow for more space. A large stallion pulled the rusty cart, within which rode a unicorn mare and a younger buck. I cantered towards them.

I half expected the ponies to start shooting at me as I approached, being a pegasus in full Enclave combat armour, but they instead regarded me with measured suspicion. I guess they must've seen Sunbeam. The buck pulling hadn't reacted at all, instead choosing to keep trotting onwards. As I passed him I shot him a sheepish smile; he rolled his eyes. The unicorn mare leaned out of the caravan.

"What're you after?" she asked, her voice tinged with suspicion.

"Not much, just heading to Monument Island," I replied, "And hoping to meet a friendly face."

"Hey, Pistol, hold up a second," she called, and the pony pulling the cart stopped, "Who's the kid?"

"Her name's Sunbeam; I uh, I saved her from raiders," I said quickly. The mare raised an eyebrow, and turned to face Sunbeam.

"Look, kid? Do you know this guy?"

"What, Cloudburst?" she asked in disbelief. "Of course I do." I breathed a sigh of relief.

"Alright then," the mare's distrust lessened just a little, "We're heading to Friendship City as well. You're welcome to come aboard, provided Pistol Grip thinks he can handle the weight."

"Sure," I grinned, "Thanks."

"Ugh, get in," grumbled Pistol Grip.

We set off again, and the duo in the caravan introduced themselves. The unicorn mare, who went by the name of Seaworthy, was the owner of the caravan; she had been born in Baltimare, in a makeshift fishing settlement built up in warehouses on the old docks. Apparently the war hadn't hit the city hard enough to kill off the marine life.

The younger earth pony was a buck from New Appleoosa who went by Steam Rivet. He had been one of the engineers on the trains there, and had been lucky enough to live in the town while a small shipment of coal had come in. Once the stuff had run out they had returned to pony-pulled trains and he'd been out of a job, and maintaining boilers or carrying out repair work hadn't seemed. He'd set out to make his fortune and met Seaworthy our near "Los Saddlos", which he claimed was just south of New Pegasus.

The buck pulling the vehicle was Pistol Grip, a veteran mercenary born and raised in the slave pits of Fillydelphia. He'd kicked his way to the top of the arena, fighting tooth and claw to get out, and now travelled the roads for a living. He'd been on the trails for over ten years, but despite his long history he still maintained a strict code of honour. A large shotgun was his signature weapon; an ancient break-action single shot weapon with a wooden stock. Into the wood various intricate carvings had been inscribed; complex patterns of swirls and lines. The body of the gun was plated with gold, similarly decorated.

The group was headed for Friendship City, the settlement within the statue. Out of the trio, Seaworthy had been the least impressed by my story. Pistol Grip had gone as far as congratulating me for my actions, and Steam Rivet had at least seemed interested, but she had simply rolled her eyes and gone back to stare out of the window at the ruined scenery.

======

For breakfast we ate some Fancy Buck's Snack Cakes which Steam Rivet brought. I initially rejected the idea of eating something which had survived two hundred years down in the wasteland, but eventually relented.

I smiled as I took the first bite; the cakes were delicious, beating out anything the Enclave could offer. I went to pick up the other half out of the package and Sunbeam looked up at me with an irresistible look; she'd finished hers.

"Aww, c'mon Cloudy. Just a little more, please?"

My heart melted; I broke the cake in half and passed some to her.

"Ohmygosh thanks!" she exclaimed, gobbling up the cake. Suddenly it hit me.

"Hey, you called me Cloudy," I said, prompting the others to turn and look at me.

"Yeah, uh, I didn't realise it was an issue. I-"

"Don't worry about it," I smiled, prompting a sigh of relief, "Sunny." Suddenly it hit me, and I stifled a foalish giggle; we were Sunny & Cloudy.

"Are y'all ready?" Steam asked, glancing around the rough circle we'd formed beside the caravan. The smouldering remnants of a couple of radroaches lay scattered a few feet away, sniped with Seaworthy's laser rifle.

It wasn't like anything in the Enclave; while they had the emitter gem on the end of the long conductor rod which protruded from the sleek, black metal body, the entirety of this weapon was contained within a titanium housing, giving it a long and square shape. The beam produced by the weapon was a ruddy pink, which seemed to burn longer yet not as hot with each squeeze of the trigger compared to an E-10 or E-11.

"Yup." I replied. Seaworthy just nodded, and without a word Pistol started packing up the food. After chucking the remaining snack cakes into the group's food bag, he threw it into the caravan and trotted up to the harness up front.

"Climb in back and we'll be off," he grunted, fastening the straps, "Friendship City's not too far from here."

"Fine," said Seaworthy simply, avoiding my gaze. Rivet rolled his eyes jokingly and climbed in after her. I let Sunny go first, before boarding as well. With a grumble from up front we set off once more, travelling down the causeway. By now we were on the waterfront, passing the bombed-out remains of cafes and restaurants.

Out in the bay numerous wrecked boats lay half submerged beneath the dirty water. The stern of one old ferry jutted out above the waters, perched upon by a trio of large, batlike creatures with great leathery wings and blood red skin.

"Bloodwings," Seaworthy said flatly, "Don't shoot at them; you won't live to regret it." The monsters were a good distance away, and didn't seem to have noticed us moving along the road. I was glad that they hadn't; the smallest of them was easily twice my size. Suddenly a loud screech drew my attention; a fourth bloodwing sailed overhead from the city. It had seen us, and was rousing its allies.

A cacophony of shrieks rose from the others, and they clumsily scrambled into the air. Pistol Grip increased his pace, going from a slow trot to a full blown gallop. One of the bloodwings swooped down towards us, leaving a dent as it slammed into the roof and hung on.

"Celestia fuck us all," snarled Seaworthy, levitating her rifle. The creature snapped down at Pistol with its fangs. He veered, and the creature's claws tore through the roof as it held on. She put an energy beam into its backside. The bloodwing screamed and took of, tearing a chunk out of the roof. It flew upwards, howling, and spun around to dive at us again. Two of the others tore towards us, leaving only one hovering further behind.

"Cloudburst, take the right; Steam, get the left; I'll handle the middle one," She barked. I lined up the holorifle and fired. Against all odds the hologram hit the beast, leaving an ugly scorch mark down its side. The creature broke pursuit and flew backwards to recover, the remaing monster swooping in to take its place. I fired a shot into its face as it did so. It glowed bright blue as the energy surged through it. Its ashes were scattered across the road.

"Holy shit!" I yelled. I knew it was powerful, but not like that. I turned to see Steam Rivet level an assault rifle at one of the creatures. It was an old fashioned, drum-fed weapon that looked home built. He took aim and fired. A hail of low-calibre bullets ripped forth, carving a ragged hole into the monster's wing. It dropped into the water, cartwheeling over and over, kicking up great plumes of dirty water as it spun.

Pistol's shotgun flew past my face, enveloped in Seaworthy's magical aura. She pointed it upwards out of the window just as another of the bloodwings flew overhead. With a deafening boom she fired, peppering its body with scattershot. It fell, partially hitting the roof and ending up as a crumpled heap in the road behind us. One left.

"Hey!" yelled Pistol, "Thats mine!"

"Shut it!" retorted Seaworthy. "Ah, fuck."Around half a dozen more bloodwings, attracted by the clamour, rose from the ruins around us. I turned; the statue was right there. Ponies were watching us from the viewing platform, pointing and waving, or screaming. The drawbridge was already halfway down, and the grinding noise from the axle became a hideous squeal as Pistol put on a final burst of speed. We readied our weapons again.

The crackle of laser fire filled my ears as the sky lit up with magical energy. They dodged between our fire, skimming across the sky as we barrelled towards Friendship City. One fell from the sky, its wings burnt away. Another dove for Pistol, and got a shotgun blast to the rear for its efforts. Seaworthy snatched up a pair of submachine guns from the caravan floor, adding to her levitating arsenal. One swooped in towards the hole in the roof. I fired at it and hit it square in the face. It screeched and barrelled away, blinded. The others' combined solid ammo fire ripped it to shreds moments later.

Suddenly we were on the drawbridge, Pistol's hooves clattering across the wooden floor as he skidded to a halt. Several city residents rushed out to help, driving off the bloodwings with various firearms and a grenade rifle. The monsters howled and sailed away, ignoring the corpses of their comrades.

I stepped down out of the wrecked caravan, letting Sunny climb down after me. She struggled significantly with her injured leg, and I made a mental note to get her checked up by a doctor. I trotted over to where Pistol Grip sat. He had released the harness and was slouched on the drawbridge, drinking purified water from an ancient plastic bottle. His white coat and dark green mane were both messy and slick with sweat, and several deep scratches marred his back, blood trickling down onto the wood. The bloodwings must have reached him after all.

Seaworthy trotted over, her large arsenal left in the vehicle. Her purple braids were tangled and fluttered in the wind, but she didn't seem to care.

"Hey, Pistol. Good work out there, kay? I'll get some extra caps through to you sometime soonish."

"Sure," Pistol grumbled in between gulps. One of the townsponies trotted over.

"You should get inside; we can't protect you from everything out here," he said amiably. "You can leave the caravan; that half of the bridge never moves." Seaworthy and I both nodded, and we headed across the drawbridge.

It had once been able to raise and lower to let ships pass, but the residents of Friendship City had disabled the bank side, locking it down. The other half was raised most of the time; lowered only when somepony needed access to the city. Various gaps in both halves had been bridged with old planks and rope bridges, creating a path across the decaying wood.

======

"Alrighty then, what seems to be the issue?" the doctor smiled, glancing between me and Sunny.

"Well, uh, this is Sunbeam, and I'm kinda, uh, worried about her leg," I stammered; something about talking to wasteland ponies was terrifying. Maybe it was just preconceptions caused by my Enclave upbringing; maybe it was because they didn't match those preconceptions: I wasn't sure. The doctor smiled again.

"Okay, well, I could take a look at it for you. Hell, I could run a full check up," he said. I honestly wasn't too comfortable with him examining Sunny, but it was for her own good.

"How much would that, uh, cost me?" I asked slowly.

"First check up is always free," he smiled reassuringly, gesturing to a sign by the door that said as much. At least he hadn't invented that on the spot. I was probably just paranoid.

"What d'you say?" I asked, turning to Sunny.

"Sure!" she smiled after a moment. I couldn't argue with that.

"Okay doc," I sighed. "Take good care of her, okay?"

"Of course! What kind of doctor would I be otherwise? Alright then, Sunbeam, could you come over here…" he began to talk to Sunny. I turned to leave, breathing a sigh of relief.

"Sunny, you be good okay?" I said, "I've gotta go find some supplies."

"You got it!" she grinned. I trotted out of the improvised clinic and into the main market area, built into the center of the vast statue. All around me ponies haggled and traded, swapping items and bottle caps at improvised stalls. I hadn't gone more than a few feet when Seaworthy whispered, out of nowhere.

"Follow me."

I nodded, confused, and followed her as she cantered over to behind a large stack of crates. As I wondered why she had wanted me, I heard the tell-tale sound of a laser powering up. "You'd better start fucking talking." she snarled. I glanced around; she was levitating the weapon behind my head.

"Wait, what?" I exclaimed, my mouth running before I had time to think. "What in Equestria could I know that you need to hear?"

"You think this is a fucking joke?" she spat. "No; you're going to tell me right now why you've got the Vanhoover Prodigy under your wing." Suddenly it clicked; Vanhoover: she was talking about Sunny.

"You mean Sunbeam? I told you already, rescued her from the Nightmare Moons."

"Don't give me that bullshit!" she hissed. "Your horseapples mean nothing. You know as well as I do how valuable she is."

I physically stepped back, scared. I had no idea that Sunny was worth anything. I said as such to her. She looked me dead in the eyes.

"You're for real?" her eyes narrowed. "You have no idea, do you? She never told you anything. Not that she's supposed to know any of it, but I've seen how alert she is."

"She told me she was born in Stable 58," I blurted out. "The water was enchanted to weed out bad genes, but sterilised everypony instead. She was the only child, and lived under intense pressure to perform. Eventually the stable fell under attack and she escaped with some others. They were then captured and killed by raiders, who took her prisoner. You know the rest."

"Alright, fine, I'm sorry. Happy now?" she snarled, rolling her eyes.

"Not until you tell you me why she's special." I demanded.

"Okay," she huffed, "You see, the experiment in 58 was to create the Aryan race of ponies; Celestia knows what those Stable-Tec fucks were thinking. Every generation the water sterilised a couple of ponies, becoming stricter each time. Then the Rangers move in literally as it's reaching the final phase; the ponies living in 58 then were to produce the perfect offspring. Of course, it sterilises all the Rangers at once. With no idea that this was even happening at the time, and being outnumbered ten to one by the new arrivals, only one couple ended up being between two stable ponies. Sunbeam was the result of that.

"Of course, the records were cracked open and the scheme revealed after the old overmare died and Rocky Road took over. So everypony wanted to get their hooves on her; we doubled protection around 58 and set to work training her. She's hyper intelligent, simply cannot have a cutie mark that wouldn't help the stable, physically superior to the average filly in every way, and for some reason she's alert as fuck. Why'd you think 58 got attacked, huh? Somepony with only half an idea as to who she was thought it'd be great to own her."

"Wait," I stopped her, "'We'? You're with the Steel Rangers?"

"I'm an Inquisitor-Paladin," she hissed, "Name's Deep Strike, and I serve the council of Elders, the Steel Circle, as part our 'special forces' branch, if you will. I was born in Baltimare, but as a member of the Rangers. As if you could fish in those waters."

"You're not taking her," I said suddenly, one hoof stealing towards the grip of the holorifle.

"And how exactly are you going to stop me?" she snarled. "An entire chapter died to keep her in our possession; you think I'm going to let some jumped-up wannabe hero make all their sacrifices vain?"

"You sound like a slaver," I said quickly, trying to think on my hooves, "I doubt Pistol would appreciate that." From beyond the crates I could hear hoofsteps approaching.

"He's just a hired gun," she admitted, only to jump at the sound. Her eyes glanced around, betraying the barest hint of fear. I jumped at it.

"He's a good hired gun," I spoke loudly and slowly, and saw the panic rise in her eyes. "He keeps to his honour; he won't appreciate you threatening me, or trying to kidnap a foal."

"Can it!" she demanded, but by now whoever happened to be passing by was almost on top of us. She looked over her shoulder, then back at me, and her horn flared.

She vanished in a flash of magic, a few sparkles of purple energy floating to the floor where she had just stood. I stood there for a moment, trying to process what had just happened. Finally, I stumbled back into the market, still dazed from the encounter.

I sought out the nearest weapon merchant, trying to take my mind off my newfound worries for Sunny. Sure enough, the stall I was looking for sat just across the market. I trotted over briskly.

"How much for this?" I asked, dropping my Enclave-issue laser pistol onto the stall counter. The vendor examined it; like the E-series, it was far more advanced than most wasteland laser pistols, which were literally short versions of the same metal boxes as the rifles.

"Hmm, good condition; how does three hundred caps sound?" he asked. It was probably worth around five, but back then it seemed like a good deal. I was about to accept when a pair of switchblades caught my eye; they weren't in great condition, but were of the same design. I could easily combine them to create a better weapon. The merchant noticed my interest.

"You like those, eh? Tell you what, two hundred caps plus the pair of 'em."

"Sure," I said quickly, taking the weapons and the caps that he dropped into the table from his saddlebags. I trotted away, and headed for the nearest unoccupied bench. There I pulled out my field tool kit and the pip-buck.

I activated the device's repair-aid spell, which began to highlight the best parts of both switchblades once I laid them out in front of it. Using a small screwdriver, I gently undid the screws and teased open the cases. Both cases were a reddish plastic, and the repair spell pointed out that one half of each case was significantly better than the other. By mating the two halves from different blades, I could greatly improve the overall condition. Both of the springs were equally rusted, but one blade was much sharper, and had only around half the notches in it, so I used that one. Finally, I slipped the few intricate parts back together and screwed the assembly back together, placing the remaining screws and spring in my tool kit and dumping the leftovers in a nearby aluminium bin.

The clatter of galloping hooves on the worn, metal floor drew my attention. I turned to see the doctor galloping over, a worried expression on his face. I stood up rapidly, throwing everything into my saddlebag.

"Hey, uh, Cloudburst, is it? There's something you need to see," he panted, trying to catch his breath.

"What is it? Is Sunny alright?" I demanded. He looked away.

"You'd better see for yourself."

He turned and cantered briskly through the market with me in tow, heading back to the clinic. As we arrived I pushed past him and hurried inside to where Sunbeam lay asleep on an old mattress. Her leg had been given a clean dressing, and she had been cleaned up significantly. She stirred slightly as if aware of my presence, and I ran a hoof gently through her mane. The doctor cleared his throat.

"If you'd look over here," he gestured to a grainy image projected onto the wall behind him. It was a diagram of an odd shape I vaguely recognised from biology at school, though unfortunately most of my knowledge on the topic had been overridden by numerous sex jokes and innuendos made by idiotic classmates; the female reproductive organs. The doctor continued. "This is, well, I'm sure you're aware of what it is. The thing is, this is what it should look like." He changed the slide to some kind of medical scan of the same thing, only this time the bottom portion was torn up and mutilated, to the point that I recoiled in horror from the outline.

"This," he sighed slowly, "Belongs to your filly over there." A surge of anger rushed through my body, rage simmering within me. I turned to the doctor. Why would they do this? This was unforgivable. I wanted with all of the energy in my body to go back and kill Speed Freak again.

"I-I rescued her from raiders. Th-they must have done it," my voice quavered, bordering on rage, "I killed the fucking bastards."

"Okay… uh, look, I've done all I could, patched her up as best I could, but there's not much that can be done. These are the wounds of a serrated weapon. I'm sure you're also aware of her flanks?"

"Yes. Serrated, like a bonesaw?" I demanded.

"Y-yes, I mean, but nopony could have got that kind of angle, unless…"

"They were a unicorn? I saw her die. The bitch got what she deserved," I snarled, casting my mind back to the death of Bone Saw, how she had screamed and screamed while her head was burnt beyond recognition.

"Uh, alright," he stepped back. "Look, she's going to be asleep for the next few hours. You should probably get some rest as well."

"Fine," I spat, and strode out without another word.

The anger started to drain from my body, as it had when news of Sky Strider's death had come. I trotted into the market and sat down, confused and worried more than angry. Why hadn't she told me? Even moving her hind legs must have been painful.

As I moped there my thoughts drifted back to the fateful day when Sky had died, how I'd screamed at my mother and ignored her. The thought of how I'd just believed Bone Saw's brutal death to be deserved merged with my regret over the way I'd treated Golden Heart, and it was then that it hit me; I wasn't worth the Dashite brand, I wasn't some hero defying the government to help the wasteland.

While I sat there, unsure of what to think, an elderly pony approached me. He was a pegasus, with the familiar brand burned into his hindquarters. He smiled slightly.

"Hey, uh, yew there. Yew're a Dashite, right? I need t' talk t' yew," he began. I looked up.

"Yes, I am. Not sure if I deserve it though."

"That's dangerous talk," he said, suspicion tinging his words.

"I don't mean that; it's too good for me," I sighed, "I'm a horrible pony."

"What d'yew mean? Why'd yew leave the Enclave?" he asked.

"To save a young filly from raiders, but that's besides the point."

"Seems pretty good, youngin'," he smiled, "Got any family above clouds?"

"How'd you guess?" I sighed, "Yeah, just my mum."

"Erry Dashite I've ever met who's beatin' themselves up has either left ponies behind or failed t' save somepony."

"Hit the nail on the head," I sighed, "Look, last time I spoke to her we had this huge argument as to whether I could go on battlefield service, just over a week ago. Thing is, she wasn't my mother by blood. She adopted me as a baby, took me in, and I just up and left. She was mentally broken after my brother died, and instead of supporting her I abandoned her."

"Yew chose a helpless foal over your own family; that's not 'n easy thing to do. Look, how's about I teach yew a little about the wasteland and the loose network, okay?" he asked. I smiled.

"Alright," I smiled, and he sat down next to me.

"So, yew've probably learnt a lot already," he began, "But one of the first things yew need t' know 'bout is that 'most erry Dashite knows 't least a couple others, and there' more of us than yew'd think; the mean ol' Enclave only makes one example erry few. That way, if somepony needs somethin' found or done, the message can get transferred 'cross the network until it finds the 'ppropriate pony. That's the loose network. Imagine, yew're in a town that needs rapid medical help; yew can send a message 'cross t' somepony good with medicine. Normally takes about a week, travellin' by radio, mail, and word of mouth, but pegasi can cover a lot of ground while flyin', so once it gets t' that medical pony he can be there in a couple days. So, if yew err meet a Dashite in the wasteland yew should try and keep in contact.

"Now, fer survival yew're going t' need a couple of good weapons, enough food, and a few friends. Yew'll want ponies yew can trust watching your back if you're going t' be wandering. Hey, have you got 'nything like a pip-buck?"

"Yeah," I sighed, pulling it out, "But the clasp's busted."

"Here, take this," he said, passing me a small black box with an attached antenna, clearly designed to interface with a pip-buck, "They call it a transmitter, lets yew send radio messages as well as receive em. As for the clasp, just get one of the ponies here t' 'ttach it t' yewr armor; there's plenty of ponies who could…"

======

Sunny yawned, stretching out her forelegs as her eyelids fluttered open. She looked around, her eyes scanning the room until they settled on me. She sat up slowly, almost confusedly. I smiled slightly.

"Morning Sunny," I said softly, "Feel better?"

"Yeah," she yawned, "Much better."

"Good, 'cause we have a lot to talk about," I tried to look reassuring, she looked away.

"You're leaving me here, aren't you?" she asked softly.

"No," I sighed, "I was, but then Dee- Seaworthy told me something."

"What was it?" she asked.

"How to put this…" I spoke slowly, cautiously. "Stable 58 was trying to create the perfect race of pony. Each generation the water enchantment would sterilise the 'undesirable' ponies so that they couldn't 'pollute' the gene pool. When the Rangers moved in that messed up everything since they were all below the current standard. The only child born to two stable ponies was you, and your generation was intended as the Aryan race, the culmination of the project."

"So ponies are after me?" she asked out of the blue.

"Probably," I sighed, "It's why the stable was attacked."

"Uhuh," she sniffed, her eyes welling up with tears.

"Don't blame yourself," I said quietly, approaching her bedside and sitting down next to her, "What happened wasn't your fault." She didn't reply, but instead just started to cry slowly. I gently pulled my forelegs around her and hugged her close, trying to comfort her. She turned so that her face was pressed against my chest, and even under my light armer I could feel the faint warmth of her tears.

After an eternity of sobbing, she stopped and pulled herself away from my chest enough to look up at me with big, bloodshot eyes. Dark patches ran down her face, stained by tears. I didn't know what to say; any words of comfort died on my lips. She wiped her face with a foreleg and tilted her head slightly.

"Why would you want me?" she sniffed.

"Huh?"

"I'm a liability," she explained, "If ponies are going to come after me, you're going to have to constantly fend them off."

"Sunny," I sighed, "I would never leave you behind, especially if you're a target."

"Thanks," she forced a smile, throwing her forelegs around me. I pulled out the switchblade, hoping that it could cheer her up.

"Hey, I've got a couple of things to show you," I laid out my left foreleg, showing the pip-buck welded onto one of the thin metal plates woven into my armour. It certainly wasn't pretty, but the device had recognised me, and a little cartoon pegasus flickered under the cracked screen.

"Cool," she said quietly, wiping her face again. I placed we switchblade down next to her.

"This," I explained, "Is for you." Her face lit up. I reached into my saddlebags again and pulled out a small leather holster I'd bought from the pony who had attached the pip-buck. She slid it onto her foreleg and tightened it to fit comfortably. She slotted the weapon into the holster and smiled at me again.

"Thanks," her smile was earnest this time. She slowly climbed out of bed and stumbled to her hooves. She was still limping slightly, but it was much better than it had been. She looked up at me, and I sighed again.

"Sunbeam," I began, "While you were asleep the doctor did a full medical check. I know about what Bone Saw did…" I trailed off, wishing I hadn't spoken. She turned away.

"I don't want to talk about it," she sighed.

"Okay," I relented, "Sorry."

A sudden calamity outside drew my attention, and I briskly trotted outside with Sunny in tow. In the main area a mysterious pony was demanding something. He was tall, and wore a distinctive black trenchcoat. Across his back, where a saddle might sit, a red stripe, lined in yellow was sewn into his uniform. Similar stripes ran around the outside half of each of his sleeves. A zip ran up the front of his uniform, and I could see the bulge of armour plates underneath.

His helmet consisted of two parts fastened together; a large stereotypical trooper's helmet, painted blue with a red strip just above the rim and a golden shield set into the stripe above the eyes, and a futuristic gas mask with red lenses over his eyes and and advanced rebreather. A large black revolver, decorated with a golden image of a bear, was strapped to one of his forelegs over his barding. Slowly I realised what the stranger was saying;

"-something not clear the last time? I'll ask you once more, where is Zeniba?" he demanded, while one of the security team ponies pointed a 10mm pistol at him. From across the room a zebra woman trotted over. She wore some kind of tribal attire, with several gold rings around her neck and numerous feathers and leather pouches scattered across her barding. Her mane was brushed flat down one side of her head, with the addition of two braids which framed her face. A .45 auto pistol was strapped to her foreleg.

"Is it for me that you seek," she rhymed, "Far out here, where I am weak?"

"Zeniba," the stranger snarled, "You are wanted dead or alive for crimes including murder and arson committed against citizens of the Northern Republic and their properties. As a Ranger of the Republic it is my duty to ensure that you are brought to justice."

"Ten years, since I committed these," she continued, "And yet you still come after me."

"The Republic will pursue any criminal," he spat, reaching for his helmet's clasp, "You're coming with me one way or another." By now a clamour had erupted around him, with several guns trained on the ranger. The zebra mare smiled.

"I will not go with you, fool," she sang, "Unless you best me in a duel."

"Fine," the ranger finally succeeded in removing his helmet, revealing a grizzled grey earth pony with white hair. He stomped towards her. She backed up until they were in the positions the mare wanted. She spoke again.

"Here we shall begin our match; last one standing takes the catch," she rhymed, "Stand back to back and pace we will, then turn and try to the other kill. Choose your weapon wisely, brute; for you must before me shoot."

The ranger nodded, and snatched the revolver from his leg. They both strode to the centre point, the ranger angry, the zebra arrogant. She prepared her pistol, loading it with a fresh clip, and steeled herself for what was to come. The ranger was unfazed, and simply stood in wait. Zeniba spoke one last time.

"On the count of three ten paces we trot, then spin and see who's a faster shot."

"Alright," spat the ranger, "Scum." Without any form of prompting they began to move, counting aloud the steps on their front hooves. I could feel my heart pound against my chest as they walked in slow motion, each one nearing their turn. Several of the security ponies were pointing small arms at the pair, and the entire city was watching, yet neither combatant faltered. Suddenly, they stopped dead, forty feet away from one another.

The ranger reacted faster than anything I'd yet seen. He spun and put a bulled through the side of Zeniba's head while she turned. She fell, dead, to the floor.

"Good riddance." he said, trotting over to the corpse. He sheathed his revolver and pulled out a large knife, which he used to slice off the zebra's head. He then wrapped her head in an old cloth and slipped it into a bag attached to his armer, all to the horror of onlookers. The buck turned and began to head for the exit, without so much as a thank you or goodbye. He had simply trotted into town, killed the zebra, and left again.

I looked around and realised that Sunbeam had shifted away from me and was standing near a couple of townsponies. Her head was tilted slightly, so that the ear towards them was higher, and though she wasn't looking at the pair she was deep in concentration, listening in on their conversation.

"Hey Sunny," I called, "Come over here."

"Okay," she chirped, proud of whatever knowledge she had obtained. I sought out Radar among the crowds.

"Hey, Radar, can I talk to you for a second?" I asked.

"Sure thing, youngin, what can I do yew fer?"

"What's the Northern Republic?" I said.

"Trouble," he snapped, "Nothin' but it. Couple decades back some survivors from Stalliongrad set up their own little republic dedicated t' ol' world values or some horseapples. Started on the east coast, north of Hoofington, but they're two thirds of the way t' the east coast now. Reason why they've got so far is the Republic's a strip, can't stretch north and don't want t' go far south. They just pretty much annex whatever they want, though Firefly won't fall in line."

"Firefly?"

"Firefly AFB," he corrected, "Was the Wonderbolts' base before the war. When they became the 1st Fighter they stayed there, until the 1st became the Shadowbolts an' moved t' Hoofington. Bunch of squads stationed there, 'fore the bombs fell. After the war it was empty, until 'bout fifty years ago. Bunch of pegasi came outta the Manehattan ruins, out in Bucklyn, an' flew there. Ponies call 'em the 'Boomers' 'cause of all the artillery they've got. Their population's kept up by Dashites and wasteland-born pegasi, who travel there t' help. Boomers aren't half bad, they do organised food handouts an' the like, but their own base is off limits to all who ain't their own."

"Alright," I asked, "What's keeping them from going north or south?"

"There's a whole lotta nothin' t' the south, he began, "'part from Hoofington. No point in it. T' the north there's the Crystal Mountains, then the Divide; what's left of Stalliongrad. Was a cold place, back when, but whatever hit it scorched it dry. There's sandstorms that'll rip yewr skin offa yewr body iffin' yew ain't careful. Ponies tend to blame it on the balefire, or the Empire."

"Empire?"

"Yew're tellin' me yew've never heard of the Crystal Empire?!" he exclaimed. "Greatest legend there is. Was a city state, but they turned it t' an MoA research facility. Ponies who's home couldn't be bought were forced out to make way for it. 'Parently got the best tech in the wasteland, but nopony's err come back."

"The MoA didn't do anything." I said flatly. He burst into laughter.

"Tha- that's what they told yew? That the Ministry o' Awesome did nothin'?" he found my ignorance hilarious. "Iffin' it weren't for the MoA, they wouldn't have their precious armour or even any energy weapons. Awesome handled the things the others wouldn't; controversial research, bleedin' edge an' black ops. They also controlled the Air Force, as in the MoA's officials were all generals."

"So some kind of research there caused the erratic weather," I said proudly.

"Eeyup."

======

I sat on the dirty mattress, munching on an apple. Sunny trotted over and sat next to me, leaning against my light blue coat. I had taken off my armour, and I could feel the filly pressing against my side as she sat there, drinking some purified water. The room and had cost the rest of my caps, but it was only for one night; tomorrow we were headed north. Sunny looked up at me.

"She was a healer you know," she sighed, "Zeniba. Helped a lot of ponies the doctor couldn't. Her brews are the only reason Radar's still alive."

"Alright, Sunny, alright," I said. I didn't really want to think about her good side; it made everything more complicated. She was a zebra and a criminal, and that was all I wanted to hear.

"You don't care," she cried, "Do you?"

"Honestly? I'm not sure."

Footnote: Level Up

New Perk:
Sneering Equestrianist - You don't take kindly to raiders, junkies, or tribals trying to 'settle' or 'stay alive' in civilised lands. Against dirty raider and junkie types as well as zebra tribals you do +15% damage and have a bonus to hit in SATS.