Fallout Equestria Stories: Strike

Chapter 2: Isolation

I should be dead.

It makes no sense that I still have air in my lungs, thick and toxic air, but nonetheless I’m still breathing. All I could see is thick layers of dust, blinding my path. I had to move, I needed shelter, and serious medical attention. FUCK! My whole body is pain inside and out.My mind raced but I knew there was no time for thought I had to find safety. This can’t be happening! I screamed inside my head. I should be able to find shelter in the SSS-1, I had put the extra quarantine gate so the overmare could send ponies out to the waste to check if it was safe without letting the other residents know. I should be able to enter into there I just have to mov… WHY THE FUCK CAN’T I MOVE! I looked down to see my hooves had melt to the ground. FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK I can’t be stuck here I can’t waste the chance at life I’d been given stuck on this Celestia damned hill. I knew there was only one way to get out of this. I had to rip my hooves off.

I knew how bad this would hurt but it was the only thing I could think of at a time. My mind was too jumbled by the events that have transpired to give one simple coherent thought or plan. I spread my wings and tried my hardest to fly up, to no avail. I wasn’t making any progress. I forced myself to keep flying, yanking and pull my legs frantically. I just need to tap into that wing power i had use back at the temple. I flapped and flapped trying to go higher, but my strength wasn’t with me, I collapsed. Tears poured from my face as if they were rain and I was the cloud formed by the pegasus known as Despair.

“I’m sorry Applejack I have failed my job.” I said aloud to nopony in particular, “I’m sorry Sweetie Belle I failed to protect you. I’m sorry Nova and Blue looks like daddy’s not coming home.” Wait I had sent them to Stable 74 they should hopefully still be alive. Stable 74 is hundreds of miles away and they probably wouldn't let me in even if I could make it all the way there. I have to make it to SSS-1 I could use the communication terminals there to get up with Stable 74’s Overmare to see if they were safe. I have to make it there I have to know and no ground, pain, nor will even the reaper pony himself stop me.

I used this new motivation to full my will and force myself to fly higher and higher. I felt the bones that connect to my hooves violently pop out of joint. The pain of that added to the pain already present made me feel light headed and on the brink of collapsing again. No I had to go, I had to check on my children. If flapped hard rising more and more until I could feel the skin and meat of my legs ripping violently apart. More pain washed over me like an ocean wave of knives crashing into me, settling back down, and another wave forming again. Crying and screaming I pulled myself toward the cloud covered sky those damn cowards had closed up.

“ggg-aaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!” With one final hard pull the last of the remaining meat holding me to this earth ripped apart and I flew forward directly into a puddle. I layed there in the irradiated water breathing heavily, my vision had blurred by the tears that had been flowing from my eyes. I could barely move, my escape from the all consuming earth had drained all of my energy. I layed there for what felt like hours, I felt some strength return to me. I felt like I had taken a small shot of restoration potion, only getting enough to carry on. I had to move, the hardest part is over.

I lifted myself of the ground with my wings, I didn't even want to attempted to touch my hoof-less legs onto to the ground. I could fly too high enough to look over the city to make it easy to find my stable so I had to just push forward and hope to find the right way.

*** *** ***

After lots of searching and bumping into rumble, I finally found my stable. I had hide the secret quarantine entrance under a sewage cover behind the old Cold Shake's ice cream parlor. I knew I had to land if I was ever going to open the entrance. I mentally prepared myself for the pain and tensed up as I very slowly descended.

Okay just a few more inches then I’ll just have to grit my teeth and take the pain long enough to get inside. Closer. Closer. aaaaaaand… No pain? I don’t understand I’m standing on four hoof-less legs and the feel like I never lost the hooves to begin with. First thing I check when I get inside are my hooves, then I try to get a hold of Stable 74.

I forced the sewer cover open and climbed down to find the reinforced steel door. I touched the door and was greeted by a robotic eye.

“Access code required”

“Access code: Hidden Hermes”

“Access Granted”

I could hear the metallic turning of the gears as the door slowly creaks open. Cool clean air rushed out and rapped around me like a long lost friend. I stood there breathing in the heavenly blessing of air, but I knew the longer I stood there the more disgusting, dusty, irradiated air would flow in and make the quarantine take longer. I stepped into my sanctuary from the crumbling world around me.

*** *** ***

I hate the quarantine chamber, and having claustrophobia doesn't help. Its the size of an Auto-Doc, it hoses the pony inside down with several strange chemicals, it scrubs them with almost painfully hard brushes, and administers Rad-Aways. It just feels so wrong, but sadly it was necessary as to not contaminate the stable.

I was too worried to look at my legs until I make it to the medical clinic, I knew if I looked down what I see could put me into shock and it be best to have a medibot on standby. I made my way to the clinic and gave the bot the standby command. Now the moment of truth I walked up to a full body mirror to see what had become of me. As I gazed into the mirror I realized I was not prepared for what I saw. My hooves had grown back somehow but my skin was gone and the meat was barely holding on to many parts of my body. I couldn't hold it I threw up everything my stomach had to hold. I was horrid, a monstrosity, how could I call my children, I couldn't let them see me like this. What would I tell them ‘Don’t worry dad’s alive, a walking pile of flesh and pus, but still alive.’ What am I going to do about all of this, the medibots can’t remake skin. Then looking in the mirror I noticed something I notice I did have some skin left. It was the part of my skin that surrounded my cutie mark on both sides the skin stopped right around the weird chaos symbol that surrounded it. The old burning pain in my flank returned again and i heard a strange voice in a snake like whisper speak in my head.

“If you want to look the way you once did I can help you.”

“What? What is it tell me, tell me please.” I must of lost it I’m pleading to a voice in my head.

“It’s really simple just take one of the healing potions stored here. Then, take three drops of your blood and put it in the potion. Finally all you have to do is drink the potion and you’ll back to your old self.”

It sounded so simple, too simple, there had to be a catch, but at this point I didn’t care I wanted to be me again. So I did it, I search for the first potion I could find and placed it on the table.Then I ran grabbed the a scalpel and placed one of my fore hooves over the potion taking the scalpel in my teeth and cut a small slice no my leg. What happened next shocked me, where crimson red blood a dark tar color liquid dripped from my blood vessel. I couldn’t stop to ask why, no matter how much it disturbed me, I had to continue. After three drops went into the potion I gave the potion one last look and downed the potion. The warm feel from the potion turn to searing pain my body felt like it was on fire, the pain kept rising, adding to the pain I gained from the outside. It overwhelmed me my legs grew weak and collapse my consciousness was fading and I passed out.

*** *** ***

Hours pass and I finally awoke feeling as if I had just rose from the dead back from the dead. I turned to the mirror to see that I had turned back to my old self and it seemed the medibot had clothed me with a Stable SSS-1 Jumpsuit. I was elated, I jumped up and danced around, terribly mind you, but dancing nonetheless. After I calmed down from my jubilee, I decided it was well time to make the call to Stable 74 and check on my children. I couldn’t to see the smiles on there face and give them the piece of mind to know that daddy’s ok.

I walked down the empty hallways to get to the overmares office so that i could make the call. The only thing filling the halls were the sounds of the air conditioning and of the robots doing the individual jobs they were assigned. It was quite, lonely, and longing for life. I knew that I’d be here for a while but as long as I could call my kids, I would at least have someone i could talk to.

I found the logged on to the the computer terminal and attempted to call Stable 74 but there was no response. This worried me so I decided to see if I could call another Stable to see if the problem was with my stable or theirs. I tried to contact Stable 2 to see if I can get up with Sweetie Belle and see if she made it there safely. I called and...no answer. Maybe Stable 3...no answer, Stable 12...no, Stable 23… nothing. There's no avoiding it the problem was obvious my communication system was completely gone.

I was alone.

The cold clammy hands of despair washed over me. I was stuck here, by myself with nopony to keep me company other than the emotionless robots to keep me company. Neither the quarantine door nor the stable door will open for the next 50 years. I couldn’t let this break me, if they were still alive I could see them again in 50 years, we may be old and decrepit, but we’d still would be together. I just have to be patient and occupy myself.

Its a good thing I had brought my workshop here when the robots and I were building this stable. I would sometimes stay overnight, and I needed something to keep me busy.

"Welp, might as well take the good with the bad and finish some long-running projects."

*** *** ***

Strike’s Log: 5 years after the megaspell

I am on the testing stage of my longest running project, S-003β. Project S-003α was to create a helmet to allow a pegasus and/or earth pony to use telekinesis as if they were a unicorn. I’ve always hated using my mouth to pick things up or shoot a gun with, and I hate battle saddles, they’re like a walking cage, so I tried to fix my problem with arcane science. Using bottled magic and technology I was able to create the helmet, which I named The Helmet of the Unicorn, it look like an ancient gold pegasus centurion helmet with a robotic horn. Though wearing a helmet everywhere I goes was impractical, so I had to do something.

With the help of my assistant Project S-006, a purple hard light hologram a.i. which I name Andromeda, I was able to make S-003β an ejectable serum that would allow me to implement the helmets power into my own body.

I will also input this in before I go test the experiment.I finished Project S-001, my new pipbuck, named the PipbuckΩ which I had attached into my own foreleg. It’s will only die when I do and it’s virtually indestructible. I now have near complete mastery of 8 instruments, I guess not having much to do is the best motivation to learn new things.

Strike’s Log: 5 hours from the last

The experiment was a success for the most part. Now if I focus on lifting an object my wings will light up with a yellow lightning like pattern, then the object is surrounded in a yellow aura and it lifts. I’m not that good at it I can’t lift anything too heavy but I’m sure I’ll be able to lift more with practice.

*** *** ***

Strike’s Log: 25 years after the megaspell

Halfway there.

I am now putting the finishing touches on Project-009, Brontophobia, it’s a pistol sized weapon. This weapon converted the ammo from laser and plasma pistols into energy and fires it out as a bolt of lightning. It’s shape like a old-timey sci-fi laser pistol. Last year I had finished my other pistol last year, Arachnophobia, this pistol basically look like a spider sitting on a wide barreled pistol with four of its legs pointing forward. Each of the four legs fired a different type of ammo, the top left leg fire sniper bullets, the top right fired pistol bullets, the bottom right fires assault rifle bullets, the bottom left fires sub-machine gun bullets, and the main middle barrel fires shotgun bullets.

I should be prepare if anything tries to attack me when I go back outside. Now all I have left to do is finish learning how to play the rest of the instruments here, up next is the glockenspiel. I could also teach Andromeda other card and board games other than chess, since we are now equally when in skill it comes to ancient military tactics.

I’d also like to note that for some reason I haven’t seemed to be aging I still look as young as I was the day I entered the stable. The medibot says that besides the whole black blood thing, which I came to accept as normal for me, I was perfectly healthy. I guess no matter whether I have skin or not I’m still a monster on the inside.

*** *** ***

Strike’s Log: 1 day before I leave (A.K.A. 49 years and 364 days after the megaspell)

Tomorrow's the day I feel as giddy as a schoolfilly. I was able to finish most of my projects and I learn how to play all of the 45 instrument types that the stable had. Andromeda has prepared me a saddle bag full of food, water, radaway, rad-x, and healing potions on one side and ammo for my weapons in the other. My first order of business is to go to Stable 74 and see my children if they are still alive. I can’t wait to see their faces again. Andromeda will stay behind and look after the stable while I’m gone. I will take the secret entrance, I don’t want anypony finding and destroying this place. This will be my last data log, signing out Strike.

*** *** ***

“ Wake up, Mr. Strike it’s time.”

I awoke to see Andromeda standing in front of me with a plate of breakfast.

“Thank you, Andromeda.”

It took the plate with my telekinesis, which I had gotten moderately good at. Sadly the heaviest thing I could carry is a rocket launcher or a minigun, but other than that I can carry anything else with ease.

I finished eating put on my armored SSS-1 jumpsuit and headed to the secret quarantine door.

“Stay safe!” Andromeda called from behind me.

“Don’t worry I will.” I looked back at her. “Are you sure you be fine with staying here by yourself.”

“I’ll be fine. Just promise me you’ll come back to visit.”

“I promise and hey I may make some new friends that I could bring back to meet you.”

“I’d like that.”

“ See you then.”

We hugged one last time and I exited back out the steel door and up the sewage hole. I climbed out into the world, out into the Equestrian Wasteland.