Computers, guns, potatos, and prefaces(edited)
Terminal:
Click, click, click, click, click. Day in, and day out, that's all I hear. The raping of hooves beating keyboards. Click, click, clickity click, click. It's enough to make a pony wanna take the nearest
Paladin’s side arm and blow their brains out. The green glow slowly eating away at your mind. Not that I don't love computers, I really do! But being forced to sit in front of them day in, and day out. Reading old pre war data files, looking for anything useful the Steel Rangers could use. It's not too bad, but when you read the ones from the day... It Happened.
I insert the holodisc and press the play button. "Oh my Celestia, she is dead!" I hear a young filly crying in the background as this older mare speaks. "I thought it was just a drill! I was closing the bar, and... And... I'm sorry Colgate... Lyra, if you get this... Celestia; I hope you don't, because that means you made it, but if you do, we are heading to Marapony." Just a load of static after that. That's how most of these are. Just ponies crying for help from 200 years ago. I open the notes program and add a new note.
[Population: 1 day after war; Marapony plus two residents. Mare, and foal.]
Why keep track of the long dead? The Steel Rangers are trying to keep records of everything. Why? I don't know. I asked why once... Never did it again. Thrashings hurt.
Oh ah, Name? ... Terminal. Yeah, kinda shit, and no, I wasn't named after the computers. I was named terminal because I was supposes to die as a foal. I became violently ill after I was born; I wouldn't cry, eat, sleep, and I was as small as a hoof. So I was never really named. I was stuck in a incubator and labeled as terminal. A few days later they pulled the plug and were about to dump what they thought was a dead foal into the incinerator. As my mom held me over the chute she noticed a small noise over the roar of the flames, her foal was crying. It was a light, almost silent cry, but I had a pulse.
I never grew to be as big as other ponies; I'm about the size of a normal mare, which would be ok... If I wasn't a stallion. My coat is a simple lime green, with a dark green mane and tail... Noticing a pattern? Care to guess my eye color? Did you guess green? You would be right. I'm green all over. Kinda fits my name. My cutie mark? A terminal.
Yeah, so a pretty rough life, cushiony compared to most, but I would prefer to be stuck outside in the wasteland than rotting in this place. I still try to keep myself happy by making cute pictures on the terminals using the keyboards. ((0-0)/) ... I never said I was creative... But I keep my sanity. I keep smiling, I keep alive. Click, click, click, click.
Ennis:
Click, click, click.
"Shit. I'm out of ammo!"
"Watch out, Ennis!"
I watched horrified as my father pushes me aside and takes a bullet for me...
"Dad..."
I jump up on the old mattress in an attack pose, ready to strike at the memory of the Raiders. My blue coat is full of sweat, and my black mane is a mess. I reach up and rub my forehead, right under my horn.
"Don't lose yourself" I start to speak to myself. "Just push the memories out... It's over, it's done with. Crying won't bring him back. Maybe tomorrow I'll look for a new job." I look towards the window. "Oh, it is tomorrow." I pack my saddlebags, and fix my mane, quickly washing myself in the sink. "Good morning, sunshine." I pick up my rifle, and sling it over my shoulder. "Ready for fun?" I raise my ear. "Oh, you’re all out of food? Well, I'll pick you up some nice .307s."
Don't judge me... It's a special gun.
Chip Crisp:
I drag the heavy plow though the soil, pulling the fresh life giving nutrients to the surface. I look out at the bright green field.
"Um... Sir?"
I look over to my newest hired farm hand, A young colt whose name I didn't know yet.
"Can I help you sunny boy?"
"Ah... Should you be plowing?"
"Why can't I? It's my farm ain't it?"
"But sir, you’re old enough to be in the retirement village."
I continue to pull as we talk.
"Do you wanna try and pull the plow? Or Davy field? Think he could pull this heavy thing? The supply must meet the demand. Till I drop, I'll pull this plow."
"But sir, what will we do without you if you did... Drop?"
"Twilight asked me herself for this delivery."
Fun fact, or so twilight told me, potatoes are natural absorbers, and containers of magic. She also tried to tell me about how she was going to genetically change them to uh... Work in the mechanical doohickeys to let them keep a charge. I understood that bit. She also said she needed over three tons for a special project. I tried to ask, and she just giggled, saying it would change the war. A lot of ponies make that promise, very little change has actually happened.
I just hope I live to see this war end.
"Just get back to work, sonny. We are almost done."
"Sir... We finished that order last month"
What? No... It's Monday right? But no...
"Oh... Right." I straightened up, and unhooked myself. " just a little memory slip."
The foal just stared at me with a funny look.
Oh... I do know his name.
I look at the full grown stallion I once saw as a foal.
"Hey, sprout."
"Hey Dad... I think we should talk."
"You’re not sending me to a home."
"I just don't want you to get hurt."
I pull him into a tight hug. "I'm not ok." I feel him crying into my chest. "I'm a grown stallion, I know I raised you right. Don't make me give up my farm."
"Dad, you know I could handle it!"
"I know son, but I'm just not ready t--"
And then life as we knew it ended. Bombs fell onto the lives of ponies. I wish I could say I joined my sons, and daughter in the afterlife... But I had a fate much worse. My skin peeled, my potato cutie mark disappeared, my mane and tail fell out over time. I died, without Dying.
Terminal(unedited waiting for editer to catch up.)
I ran, ran till I felt my hooves bleeding, and I didn't stop there. it had just been an instinct, I saw the soon to be patched hole in the fence, word was some paladin had got trigger happy with a rocket launcher on the outside shooting range, but it was something I had never seen before, a way out that didn't involve a body bag. So I did what anypony in my place would do, I ran.
"Halt or we will shoot to kill!"
A rocket flies past my head and explodes a safe distance in front of me, and by safe I mean just close enough to pepper my chest with tiny shrapnel. After crying out in pain.
"Scribe Terminal, Halt or I will drop you!"
I hid behind the only large rock I had seen for miles. My lungs burned almost as much as my hooves, but the Steel Rangers that had been on my tail the entire time where just on the other side.
"Scribe terminal. You stole three apples, a big book of science, a laser pistol, and two dash canisters. You are charged with attempted of theft from the Steel Rangers,"
Think Terminal think!
" Attempting to abandon your position at the Steel Rangers"
wait... Laser pistol with 30 charges... And dash... Dash main ingredient is methane...
I started to take the laser pistol apart as the paladin carried on"
"Making us waist ammo to catch your ass." Broke in a Ranger to the left of the lead paladin.
"I'll mark that down as stolen, but lost" stated the lead paladin coldly.
The ranger to his left finally broke in on there little chat. "Um... Is he even still there? I don't hear anything."
Showtime.
"I surrender!"
"Finally." The stallion to the right sounded relieved, and started around the rock quickly followed by his companions."now let's get this over with so I can get back to my mare" as they rounded the corner all they saw was a strangely warped laser pistol with a dash inhaler inside it."friend? The fuck is that?"
I sat on the other side of the rock, my back pressed seamlessly on to its surface moving with the paladins.
"Where is he!"
The left paladin decided to nudge the pistol with her nose
Her name was Blossom... Love Blossom. Sweet mare kinda cute, I'll cry for her when I can, but now...
Just as her nose touched the casing, BOOM. The explosion ripped her head off and sent it flying at full speed knocking out the paladin to the right, and temporarily blinding the lead paladin.
As soon as I heard the boom I took off in a random direction. I didn't know where I was going all I could see was the cloud cover, and some weird pink glow off in the distance.
An hour of running later, and I had had it, I fell on my face in the middle of the roads was lost, tired, hungry, and sacred, but I had one thing. Freedom, I was going to die in the wastland. That has to count for something. Just me... Alone... Forever...
Have you ever gotten so use to a sound you forgot it was there? Like the hum of a monitor, hum of random chatter in a crowded lunch room, or even, I don't know, maybe your own heart beat?
Well I just heard my heart stop, and yes that sentence sounds as weird to me as I does to you. To hear something go silent is a strange feeling. Like something is missing, but you can't quite understand it...
I lay there contemplation nothingness for another minuet before blackness overtook my vision, and a cold chill ran up my body and stayed there. I don't know how long I was out, as I awoke I say the scariest thing I had ever seen.
Why do my lips tast like corpse?
As my eyes fluttered open I see a strange unicorn mare who looked like she had made her way threw the incinerator her skin was a green hue and what was left of her cutie mark looked like a red plus. She was turned away from me so I couldn't see her face, but I could see what looked like a terminal.... "OH MY CELESTIA YOUR HIDEOUS!" The mare turned around with a scolding look in her pink eyes.
"Kind thing to say to the pony who saved your life. You Ungrateful pile of" "not you. THAT!"
I jumped off the bed and stared at the Franken termonal there was a model 35b screen, a old termonex keyboard..."is that a Solaris prosseser on a model 69a memory unit... This thing" I spat that word out, referring to this thing as a terminal would be almost sacrileges" is an abomination."
"Sorry it's not up to Tempony standards, we don't have much here." The mare glared at me from behind as I tried to save the terminal from suffering any longer."
"What are you doing to my terminal?"
"This hasn't been a terminal in years."
"I saved your Celestia damn life, a thank you would be nice." She stayed in a clearly angered tone.
"I just did, I press the on button on the terminal and the screen comes to life displaying a password needed screen."
"Wha... But... How?"
"Well I had to reroot the subnetworks in the." Her blank stare told me to stop."sorry"
"No no your fine, thanks I have been trying to get it fixed for weeks. I almost had to pay for a new one."
"Your welcome, now if I may ask where I am?"
"New Ponyville"
"Where is that?"
"Smack in the middle of the White Tale Woods."
"How close is that to Trotingham?"
Her eyes glinted with a hint of fear." Very far. Very very very far.
I breathed a sigh of relief."thank the goddesses"
She gave me an understanding look. "On the run from the Steel Rangers as well?"
"As well?" I test.
"Mhm Everypony in New Ponyville is" she opened the door to what I just now noticed was a wood cabin, I fallow her outside to see a town of ghouls in log cabins. And when I say ghouls I mean a LOT of ghouls.
Now I don't have a problem with ghouls, but the only ones I have seen where on all four knees begging not to be shot. I decided this info was best left unshared with my newest company.
A tall stallion with brown eyes, and a wooden pipe in his mouth trotted up to us.
"I see the smoothskin is up and walking."he said in a rough light voice.
"Yes sir Corncob" the mare stated happily."I haven't got his name yet, but I know he is good with machines, and he is on the run from the Rangers."
"Well sonny" he rolled the pipe in his mouth." What's your name?"
"Terminal.... Sir."
The mare was clearly trying to hold in a laugh, and the stallion just grind."what a cute name, and it fits as well. So you got miss Redhearts terminal working?"
"Ya, who ever fixed it must be an idiot."
A loud "Ahem!" Came from behind me.
"Um" I felt a bead of sweat form on my head." I mean... Um."
"So" Corncob broke in, thank Celestia. "What's got the Steel Rangers on your tail?"
"Oh I... Stole food from them" not a total lie.
"You broke into Trotingham, a huge Steel Rangers base, with nothing, just to steel a little food?" Redheart asked in disbelief.
"Well just look at the boy, he is as skinny as a twig."
I'm not that small... Ok so Redheart is taller than me.
"Still he could be useful."
"Now Redheart don't jump on a train with no coal, we ain't even asked him if he wants to stay."
He turned to me and gave me a soft look."well, If you don't have family anywhere we could really use your talents."
"I..." Of corse I had nowhere to go, but this was all so strange... But I have no choice. They where so willing to trust me."what would you do if you found a Steel Ranger?"
Corncob gave me a serious look."I would have em hanged in there armor so it killed them slower as the armor trys to heal them."
I tried to keep my face neutral.
Lovely, but what other choice is there?
"Then I'll stay, but I won't be around for any hanging of anypony."
"Far nuff, now we need to get you set up in a home. Currently we have one new house in construction you can stay with Chip till then" he pointed a hoof to a construction sight with one stallion pulling..."is that three whole trees?"
Corncob chuckled."strongest stallion I ever met, ain't the quickest whip, but nice enough."
I watched as this stallion lifted logs like they where twigs. "Hey chip, come meet your new house mate!"
Chip dropped the log he was holding causing the ground to shake, and me to end up eating a pile of dirt. As I spit out a worm I suddenly became aware that it was completely dark. After looking up at this skyscraper of a pony I felt a bit sick, what's the opposite of vertigo? Because I felt that. He was easily a head over a armored Steel Ranger, and had the girth of a wagon. Small patches of brown still clung to his rotting skin, and a few black hairs fell over his face as he looked down at me with large brown curious eyes, and a small smile.
"Names Chip, Chip Crisp." After I got done patching my bleeding ears from his shotgun blast boom of a voice he held out a hoof that looked more like a rotten log. As soon as I touched my hoof to his to shake he pulled me into his chest and squeezed me."rule one of New Ponyville, I get the first hug of new residents."
I image I look like a tube of glue, and he was trying to get the last drop out... Only the last drop is guts.
"Hey I just fixed him, you break him you put him back together." Redheart broke in.
"Sorry" he dropped me strait on my flank.
"Oh thank Celestia air!" I gasped as I began to breath again.
I watched Chip wince. "Sorry, I forget my own strength sometimes."
"Well I know who to call if I need somepony to wrestle a manticore." I said jokingly.
Chip smiled at that." So what's your name little buddy?"
A few minuets later Redheart had given me the all good on health, Corncob had went back to.. Whatever whittling is, and Chip showed me back to his place.
It was a cosy two bedroom made out of, you guessed it! Wood.
"Arnt you worried about anypony just coming in here with a flamethrower... Or a foal with a lighter?"
His flank swayed as he rummaged threw a cabinet to as he put it"rustle up us Some supper" I hold my hoof over my mouth as I try not to think about his rotten ass.
"Well as far as bandits with flamethrowers a town full of ghouls who never sleep, are armed to the teeth, and have a reputation with zero tolerance to unesisary violence tends to keep them away. As far as foals with lighters there are only two goals in town"
"So how old are you?"
"If I had a bit for every time I have been asked that I would own Tempony tower, but to answer your question I'm a pre war ghoul, and I was..." He pulled his head out of the cabinet and looked down in thought."I think I was about eighty six... Ish when the bombs fell."
"Wow so your almost 300 years old?"
"Ya" he said chopping up some potatoes. "So tell me about yourself, any family?"
"My mom died when I was a young colt, she died in child birth with my sister."
"Did your sister make it?"
"Dwarfism runs in my family, I was lucky enough to live with only minor medical problems... Sunny River was going to be her name."
"We have all lost kin."
"You as well?"
"I was a father" He looked me in the eye and Howe shared a moment of understanding. Everypony has lost someone, it's a twisting comfort. To know your not the only one who's life this world has ruined.
"So where are you from?" He asked as he sat a plate of chopped potatoes in front of me.
Shit, and this is why asking for a map is a good idea. I can't say Trotingham shit. Um say the first thing that comes to mind.
"Tempony."
"Oh so you where the son of an engineer or something?"
"Guard actually" again not completely a lie, my dad was a paladin.
"Well I'm glad to see there are still good ponies around there."
I sniff my plate of non peeled potato slices."so fresh." I put on a big as realist smile as I could.
Chip just laughed."I know I'm a bad cook, everypony knows I am. That's why they are raw, I could burn water if I tried. If you want something a bit better I think Ditzy is still in town. If you ask nicely and don't opt out of her hug she might just give you some snack cakes."
"Ditzy?" I ask. "What's she look like?"
"Can't miss her, only Pegasus ghoul I ever seen, also she has a lazy eye. You may also wanna thank her."
"Why?"
"They didn't tell ya? She flew you here. Found you near the base of Canterlot, had to give you mouth to mouth for a few minuets before your heart started again."
"Oh... That explains the taste."
He patted my back."lucky stallion, Ditzys pretty for a ghoul."
"Never really had a thing for ghoul mares." I say as politely as I can as I trot out the door.
I spent a few minuets trotting around till I found a small market with a few ponies petaling there goods, from home made baskets, to home made rifles. In the mists of the ponies running around to find the best deals, I saw a pegasus with a chalk board around her neck, and wings as bare as her coat.
I think she was staring at me, either it was me or the clouds, but judging by the fact that she was waving probably meant me.
She flew up to me at impressive speeds, and landed with her face a bit to close for my liking.
"So... I heard you saved my life?"
She just stared at me with that one piercing eye. I imagine somewhere there is a cloud that is freaking out, and doesn't know why.
"..." Oh Celestia lets just get this over with.
I open up my hooves for a hug witch she gladly uses as an excuse to try and choke me. Do all ghouls hug like they hate you? After she had her fill she let go, and began to write on her chalk board.
"Home?"
I tilt my head."Are you asking if I have a place to stay?"
She erases her board, and writes again."yes."
"Well I'm staying with Chip for now."
A look of sympathy washed over her face, and she hoped into a sky wagon, and tossed out a saddlebag in my direction, then wrote on her board again.
"Potatoes yucky, not good like muffins."
I open the saddle bags to see one was full of food, the other was empty. Still staring at the food I stammer."th-thanks. This is very kind of you."
The raping of a hoof on wood made me look back up to her smiling face, as well as a new message on her board."pistol, or rifle?"
"I'm a terrible shot either way."
She thought for a second, and wrote a new message."I have one other thing."
She walked to the front of the wagon, rummaged for a bit, and tossed out a broken plasma pistol at my feet."better?" She wrote.
I pick it up in my hooves and begin to fiddle with it."it needs a new coolant compressor actuator, but other than that it's in an ok condition."
"You fix it, you can have it."
"Is there any way I can pay you back?"
She gave me a simple smile.
Two hours of washing dirt filled cloths while she finished bartering later. Corncob sat beside me as I hung up the last business suit on a drying wire.
"Hard days work?" He asked around his pipe.
"I'm not use to a lot of physical work."
"Well if your done here we shore could use your help."
"I can't say no after all you have done for me."
He began to lead me to a, surprise, log cabin. "Miss Redheart told me of your little... Incident when you woke up, now don't many of us know computers like you. He opened the door to a room full of scrap metal, random electronics, wiring and..."is... Was that a generator?" True to my eyes a massive generator filled up over half of the quite spacious room.
" Ima make a deal with you. You get paid a flat five bits for every hour you can keep that thing running 24,7 what you fix, or build in your spare time is up to you, but ponies may come to you with requests how you manage that is up to you. Deal?"
I was already under the generator pulling out bad parts."oh, ya sounds great." I said not paying him any mind. I had a room full of broken terminals, laser rifles, a large generator, and all the time in Equestria.
