Fallout Equestria: Icicle

Chapters

Chapter 2: Wasteland
Chapter 3: Wanderer
Chapter 4: Steel
Chapter 5: Insight
Chapter 7 - Scavenge
Chapter 8 - Let There Be Light
Chapter 9 - Abduction
Chapter 10 - Mixed Signals
Chapter 11 - Ruin
Chapter 12 - New Magic
Chapter 13 - Frantic
Chapter 14 - The Veil of Death
Chapter 15 - Recovery
Chapter 16 - The Request
Chapter 17 - Annihilation
Chapter 18 - Deeper Despair
Chapter 19 - Doubt
Chapter 20 - Tongue Twister (Clean Version)
Chapter 21 - Q&A
Chapter 22 - Old World Goods
Chapter 23 - It's Just A Prank
Chapter 24 - Thinning the Herd
Chapter 25 - Logic
Chapter 26 - Grimoire
Chapter 27 - Drop The Hammer
Chapter 28 - The Faded Star
Intermission - MACRO
Chapter 29 - Paradise Rises
Intermission - SOAR
Chapter 30 - Emerging Darkness
Chapter 31 - Sitrep
Chapter 32 - Shroud of Death
Intermission - HAL
Chapter 33 - Spear of the North
Chapter 34 - Fracture
Chapter 35 - Singularity
Chapter 36 - The Battle for Red Wing
Chapter 37 - Wake Up Call
Chapter 38 - Deliverance
Cora's Chapter - Disclosure
Ratchet's Chapter - Hope
Epilogue
Chapter 1: Project Icicle
Chapter 6 - Assault
Chapter 20 - Tongue Twister (Dirty Version)

Chapter 2: Wasteland

“They were my workers; they were my responsibility. But more than that, they were my friends and I failed them.”

===~+~===

I raise my hoof to shield my eyes from the bright light as to stop in the doorway. It takes a few moments, but my eyes finally adjust to the light and I slowly lower my hoof and look over it. When I do so, my eyes grow wide and my hoof slowly falls back to the ground. My mouth is agape and I can feel my eyes beginning to tear up.

The green, grassy fields, the lush foliage and plant life, the tall, proud buildings, the beautiful blue sky…it’s all gone. I fall to my haunches as my legs begin to tremble and my jaw quivers. What should have been fertile farmland dotted by houses and trees is nothing but a dismal plain of dirt and burnt trees spotted occasionally by piles of rubble and the rare skeleton of a farmhouse. I can feel tears starting to fall down my cheeks as I stare at the scene before me.

“H-hey CORA. This is a dream right? I’m still in the pod, frozen, right? My mind is just running wild, RIGHT?” I beg, plead to CORA to reaffirm my hope. There was a small part of me that was hoping that this was all some sort of dream, maybe even a prank my associates were trying to pull on me. That once I stepped outside everything would be fine. But now, now that I see the outside world again reality is catching up to me.

“No ma’am,” CORA puts on a sad face and shakes her head, “This is very much reality. This is what remains of Equestria. I’m sorry.” As I stare at her face I see a single tear fall from her head.

“So…that’s it then? My crew, they’re all dead? My family, my friends, everypony that I ever loved or hated? They’re just…No, this isn’t right. It wasn’t supposed to be this way! It’s…it’s my fault CORA. If only I had worked harder, if only I had…” CORA cuts me off abruptly, almost shouting.

“It wasn’t your fault ma’am!” She shakes her head. “There wasn’t anything you could do. You didn’t create the Mega Spells, you didn’t order their launch. It wasn’t your fault. I know, because I am you after all!” CORA yells, attempting to comfort me.

I raise my hoof up to my eyes and attempt to wipe away the tears as I sniffle. “You’re right, CORA. I just…I feel like I should have been able to do something to stop this. Just…give me a moment. I can’t seem to stop crying,” I choke out as I cry into my forehoof.

The whole time I’m crying CORA keeps trying to cheer me up. “You did your best!” she declares, “You tried to create something to help ponykind! How many others can say that?” she does her best to keep up a smile while I whimper into my hoof and accept this new reality.

After a few minutes, I’m able to contain myself and I wipe away the remainders of my tears. “Thank you CORA, I appreciate your help,” I thank her, a smile returning to my face. I made her with my personality after all, she knows me better than anypony else, myself excluded. “Ok CORA, let’s keep moving forward. We have to see this new world for ourselves and see if there is anything we can do to help it,” I announce as I take a step out of the doorway.

“Project Icicle might be useless now, but as long as I’m alive and can help what’s left of Equestria, it wasn’t a failure. Its purpose was to save pony to help fix the future, and I’ll do just that. With your help, of course,” I smile while looking at her.
“Of course ma’am! I’m with you 100%!” CORA declares and gives me a wide grin. It seems odd, but seeing her smile fills me with hope. It is with this new sense of hope that I take a look at my surroundings in finer detail.

The narrow road that once ran between the farmhouses is still visible, though broken and cracked all over. Most of the farmhouses were reduced to piles of rubble and only two that I can see appear to be even remotely standing. Some fencing from the fields is still visible, however much of it seems to have been blown away when the Mega Spells impacted. I am surprised, however, by the lack of apparent radiation and craters around. I had expected the world to look a bit like Swiss cheese if it ever came to this.

“Ma’am?” CORA chimes in while I survey the area. “Might I suggest that you start looking for food and other supplies?” I shake my head to clear my thoughts and give her a nod. She was right, after all. The facility had no food and I wouldn’t make it far without any. With any luck, the two houses still standing might have something inside them.

“Alright, let’s get going,” I declare as I’m about to leave the shed, but stop when I remember the shovel I dropped in my crying fit. I picked it back up and put it inside the shed for now, closing the door as I turn and leave. Upon doing so I begin walking towards the first house, the one that looks less haphazard.

Compared to the other house that was a bit further away, this house has most of its walls intact, but the roof is caved in. Much of the porch on the front of the house is ripped up and many of the remaining planks are broken in jagged points. I can’t see a single window that isn’t blown out either as I walk up.

Once I get closer to the house, I can see that it is listing slightly to one side and the walls on that side have cracked under the pressure, but appear to be still holding strong. The closer I get the more damage I see to the house. As I get a few feet from the front door, CORA speaks up, “Ma’am, be careful. I’m still not sure what the range on your Compass is. Something could be inside, not to mention it doesn’t look very safe.”

I nod in agreement, “My thoughts exactly. But, nothing ventured nothing gained, as they say.” I give a wry smile as I continue to the front of the house. I’m about to open the front door when I have a second thought and decide to look in through a window first. I don’t see anything special, but the inside of the house seems to have fared worse than the outside.

Much of the furniture inside has been strewn about and dust is covering everything. I hope that means that nothing has been here in a while, I find myself thinking. Ensuring myself that the house should be empty, I return to the door and enter the house.

It wasn’t anything fancy, not even in its prime, just a simple two story farmhouse. However, as I look immediately in front of me at the staircase to the second floor after entering, it becomes apparent I won’t be going to the second floor. The collapsed roof blocks the stairway as light shines through a hole that shows the bleak clouds above. I think most of the time bedrooms are the only things on the second floor anyway, so I turn my focus to the only floor of the home I can access.

Immediately in front of me, next to the staircase appears to be a storage closet, but the collapsed roofing has blocked it shut. The room to my left looks like living room and to my right is a sturdy looking door. I turn my attention to the door and push it open. The room I find beyond looks to be an office with another door on the left. It has a desk in the middle with a bookshelf behind it. The bookshelf and desk are covered with various papers and books, but what catches my eye is the small safe resting on the bookshelf.

I enter the room and, while making my way over to the safe, scan the various papers and books laying around. I notice a book on the desk with various figures written down that appear to be prices for crops. It must have been their business ledger. Turning my attention away from the desk, I look at the safe on the bookshelf and upon closer inspection I see that it is already open. Curious, I open it further and take a look inside.

I find a box of .32 caliber rounds inside. I pull it out and open it, finding six bullets missing. I close the box again and put it in my bags. Taking a look back inside the safe, I only find a few pieces of paper, including the deed to this farm. I raise an eyebrow in thought, if they have .32 caliber ammo, they must have a pistol, right? I shake my head and continue to search around the office, looking through a few drawers and on the remaining bookshelves.

The only other things of interest I manage to find are a two bobby pins, a pen, and an unopened bottle of whiskey. Even though whiskey really isn’t my thing, I decide to take it anyway. If I run out of water, I could at least drink it as a last resort. I put it, the pins, and the pen in my bags and walk over to the other door in the room.

I open the door and step into the home’s kitchen. I breathe a sigh of relief, thankful that it was actually on the first floor. Like the rest of the house, the kitchen has seen better days. It is caked with dust and utensils are strewn about the room. The room itself looks to be in the shape of an L, bending to my left and ending at a doorway. This doorway appears to be to the dining room, but the doorway is blocked by the dining room table so I can’t see very much of the room.

Beginning my search of the kitchen, I start by opening the fridge. In hindsight, this was a mistake as the worst smell of my entire life emanated from inside once I open the door. Bile rises in my mouth as I slam the door closed and attempt to stop from retching, covering my nose with a leg. I thankfully manage to keep from throwing up, but the thought of the smell keeps making me gag slightly. I compose myself enough to continue my search.

I look through a few of the cupboards, but most of the food is moldy and inedible. I sigh as I continue to look through the cupboards and drawers and continue to find nothing of use. Right as I’m about to give up, one of the last cupboards I open has a few boxes of Fancy Buck Snack Cakes. I look at the boxes disappointedly before I open them to inspect their contents, expecting to find them covered in mold. But to my disbelief they appear to be almost like new.

“Ok, I know ponies used to joke about snack cakes and what not being able to survive a Megaspell but…really? How is this even possible?” I say as I look at the snack cakes dumbfounded. Just how many preservatives did they put in these anyway?

“Well, joking or not ma’am, at least it is something you can eat, right?” CORA chimes in while sticking her tongue out at me playfully. I roll my eyes at her as I put the cakes back into their boxes and put those boxes into my bags. I then look in the last few drawers.

Surprisingly, I find a few things that haven’t spoiled. A half empty box of Sugar Apple Bombs, two bottles of Sparkle Cola and a can of beans. I put each of the items into my bag before I realize I don’t have a way to open the beans. I quickly glance around the room and through a few drawers looking for a can opener.

While looking, I see forks, spoons, knives, pots and pans littering the counters, the occasional bottle cap and a…”Wait, is that?” I say in confusing as I walk closer to the object that caught my eye. “Is this a coffee cup? But it’s still white and pristine looking?” I pick it up in my magic and inspect it closer. To my amazement, it doesn’t appear to be dirty at all.

“It is probably enchanted to stay clean ma’am,” CORA reasons. “They were doing that, right?” She asks as she tilts her head in thought.

“Well, yes CORA. But I didn’t think the enchantments on them would hold up this long…or survive a mass Megaspell detonation. But then again,” I think back to the snack cakes, “it probably makes more sense.” Broken from my amazement I put the coffee cup in my bags and return to looking for a can opener.

It isn’t long before I find one at the back of a drawer and add it to my bags. “Ok,” I proclaim, “we have food now, and the doorway to the dining room is blocked. Let’s head back to the living room, I suppose?” I suggest to no one in particular. I exit the kitchen and go through the office and finally cross through the doorway to the living room.

As I look around I realize it is bigger than I thought, and probably connects to the dining room to my right. The living room itself doesn’t have much of interest in it, just strewn about books, furniture, and games. Along the far wall there is a fireplace that has long burned out. It is as though a tornado came through the room and stirred it up. I walk through it, keeping an eye out for anything that might be useful to me. But as I near the doorway to the dining room it comes up empty.

I begin to walk into the dining room when I stop dead at the sight in front of me. The table is indeed slammed against the kitchen doorway, but what’s lying against it causes my eyes to go wide as my hoof rises to my mouth. Three skeletons are pressed up against it, one large one and two smaller ones. A single bullet hole can be found in the middle of their skulls. Across the room from them, another skeleton sits in a chair, a bullet hole in its skull as well. Next to the chair sits a .32 caliber pistol and a piece of paper.

I swallow, looking at the scene in front of me as the pieces slowly connect themselves in my mind. I’m about to speak, but CORA takes the words right out of my muzzle, “This is horrible. Ma’am, why did he kill them all?” I shake my head, not knowing the answer. “Maybe the note says something, ma’am?” CORA offers. I turn my focus to the paper by the chair and levitate it over to me. Upon doing so, a notification flashing in the upper left of my vision “Note Added”.

===~+~===

I am writing this now, not so that the future might know of my deeds, but so that they might know of my cowardice and hopefully find it in themselves to forgive me. Just minutes ago, a Megaspell went off. My family wasn’t lucky enough to have a place in a Stable, and I knew that our time would be coming to an end here. I hold no ill will towards Stable-Tec, I just wish I could have been better, so that my family would not have had to die like this.

We were in the middle of a meal when the first Megaspell hit. The looks on their faces as they looked at me, waiting for me to lead them to survival, I’ll never forget them. I told them to turn the table over and use it like a shield against the blast that would inevitably be coming. I knew as well as my wife that if the walls of our home couldn’t save us, the table wouldn’t.

After telling them to get behind the table, I said that I needed to grab something from my office, and that I would be right back. I went and grabbed my revolver from my safe then returned to the dining room. The fear that was on my foals’ faces when I came back in the room, I think they will haunt me even in the afterlife. But they weren’t afraid of me, they were afraid of the Mega Spells, and that’s what hurt the most.

I sat down in this chair across the room from them and smiled as tears began to roll down my cheeks and I raised the gun level with their heads. My final words to them were, “I love you, I’m so sorry.” Before I pulled the trigger three times. I shot my two foals first, and then my wife. And what really struck me was the look on my wife’s face before I shot her. It wasn’t a look of hatred, not one of fear, or one of confusion. She looked at me with a smile slowly spreading across her face with a look that said, “thank you.”

After she was gone, I succumb to my emotions and let my tears flow freely. Now, I’m writing this in the hopes that the world did not end here. I wanted to ensure that my family died as painlessly as possible. No father should ever have to see his foals die before he does, let alone be the one to kill them. I cannot be sure if what I did was right or wrong, and as I sit here about to do the same to myself, I can’t help but think if I will be able to meet my family again in the afterlife.

Would someone such as myself be welcome in the afterlife they went to? I can only hope, but a part of me hopes that I don’t have to face them again. But, the end is rapidly approaching. More Mega Spells have gone off. There is one thing that I must ask of anyone who reads this note, one thing that might help me to see my family again. Though I committed a horrible sin here today, can you see it in your heart to forgive me? If you, a complete stranger can forgive my actions, then maybe, just maybe, my family will forgive me as well.

Whatever your answer may be, I wish you more luck than I had.

===~+~===

I set the note back down as my eyes begin to tear up again. I look at the skeletons next to the overturned table and then at the one sitting on the chair and I shake my head. “You weren’t a coward,” I say to it. “You were brave. You decided to give your family a quick death, rather than one filled with agony. That’s why your wife smiled. I don’t know if your spirit can hear me now, but I forgive you, and I understand. I hope that you find your family again,” I say with a sniff.

Wiping the tears from my eyes I turn my attention to the revolver on the ground. Picking it up, I open the cylinder and see that four bullets are missing, leaving two. The gun itself appears to be in fairly good condition. I close the cylinder before adding it to my bags. As I’m about to leave the dining room I look back at the skeletons again.

“Ma’am, I fear that we will see far worse things ahead of us,” CORA says to me. Even though I hope that isn’t the case, the Mega Spells could have caused much worse. She is right, there is no telling exactly what we’ll see in this new world. I can’t afford to let every little thing get to me, but at the same time I won’t forget about them. I nod to myself, reaffirming my decision.

“I’ll bury them CORA. Before we leave this area. Them, and my crew, the ones I can reach anyway. I know I might not be able to take the time to bury all the dead we encounter, but just this once at least, I’ll do what I can for them,” I tell her. CORA smiles a nods her head approvingly.

“Well then ma’am, we should finishing searching the other house before it gets too late,” she announces. I nod in agreement as I leave the dining room and pass through the living room and finally exit the house. Upon doing so I let out a sigh as I step off the porch. That wasn’t so bad. On to the next house, I suppose.

I start at a brisk trot with my hooves sending up puffs of dirt in my wake. While going to the next house I try to keep my eyes open looking for anything that could either pose a threat to me or be useful to me. But all I see is more of the same dirt, rubble, and dead trees.

It isn’t long before I arrive at my destination. I thought that it looked haphazard before but now, I’m not sure I even want to enter it. Walls are missing, the roof has collapsed, and some support beams look slightly cracked. I nervously approach the house and poke at a wall before jumping backwards quickly, expecting it to fall over. When it doesn’t, I go up and look through a window.

Like the previous house, the interior is caked with dust and furniture is thrown about the room. However the ceiling on the first floor appears to be buckling in various places. I return to the front door and give it a tug, but the door doesn’t open. “Huh?” I say confused. “Is it locked?” I turn the knob a few more times and realize that it is just stuck.

I envelop the door in my magic and try to tug it open, but it still doesn’t move. I cut off my magic and grab the knob in the hooves, tugging once more. When it refuses to budge again I put my hind legs against the wall and give the door one last try. After some straining and creaking of wood the door finally flies open, sending me sailing off the pouch to land heavily at the dirt.

“Ah ha!” I exclaim as I pick myself up and start dusting myself off. I start to walk back towards the house, but stop when I hear loud creaking sounds. As though on cue the building suddenly starts to collapse in on itself and plumes of dust billow out as the house is reduced to rubble in a matter of seconds. “T-that was a close one,” I mutter as my pupils become pins.

I blink a few times as I come to terms with what a close call that was. “Ma’am,” CORA chimes in, “I don’t think we’ll find anything useful here. We should move on.” I shake my head to regain my senses before nodding in confirmation and turning to walk back to the shed.

While walking away from the rubble and back towards the shed, I look back multiple times. I am still in disbelief at my luck. That could have easily been my end, or at least severely injured me. To survive Mega Spells and be done in by a collapsing house, it would have been almost funny if it hadn’t just happened to me.

Lost in my thoughts of my survival and luck it isn’t long before I reach the shed and drop my bags inside while standing in the doorway. I turn and look back outside, checking the lighting outside before I remember the clock on the PipBuck. I turn my attention to it and see that it reads 2:00 pm.

I decide that it might be a good time for a late lunch and reach into my bags to grab out some of the food I had found. I pick out one of the snack cakes from one of the open boxes of Fancy Buck Snack Cakes and also take out the bottle of water I have.

I sit down in the shed, open the snack cake, and hesitantly take a bite from it. Surprisingly, it actually tastes how it usually does, a little stale, but all things considered, it isn’t bad for its age. I open the water bottle and take a small sip from it, deciding that I should probably try to make it last. As I finish the snack cake and wash it down with a few more sips of water, I reseal the water bottle and return it to my bags.

“I’ve been meaning to ask this for a while now, ma’am, but how does food taste?” CORA asks from out of nowhere. I think about it for a few moments as I stare at her face. However, I just end up shaking my head.

“I don’t think there is any way that I can explain what food tastes like. Similarly to how I wouldn’t be able to explain how things smell to you. If you haven’t experienced them before there isn’t really any way I can think of explaining it. You can see and hear though, so I can explain what something looks like by saying it is round or a certain color. But when it comes to taste and smell…” I break off in thought for a moment.

“I suppose I can just tell you that taste is just some sort of brain function and sends specific sensations through our bodies, but I’m not sure I answered your question,” I look at CORA with an apologetic expression. She just nods her head with a smile.

“Of course ma’am, I understand. It would be like me trying to explain to you how we programs and computers talk to each other. And it isn’t with ones and zeros like you all think! Though some of the simpler ones do, I suppose…” CORA says with small smile.

“Wait, you mean you don’t? Then how do you…” I quickly ask CORA, but she cuts me off before I can finish my question.

“Like I said ma’am, it is like your tastes and smells,” she says playfully before sticking her tongue out. I let out a slight laugh before I roll my eyes at her.

“Yea yea. Well, I suppose for now I should get to work, don’t you think?” I announce as I stand up. “I want to get my crew’s grave dug before it gets dark outside. I also want to bury the family from that first house as well.” After saying that, I pick up the shovel in my magic and exit the shed.

I pick out a relatively flat spot near the shed and start shoveling up the dirt. Shovel full after shovel full of dirt gets scooped out of the hole I’m digging and deposited off to the side.

===~+~===

After digging for a few hours I drive the shovel into the dirt one last time before sitting down for a moment to take a break. Before me are five holes next to one another and each is about the same size. While I was digging, I took a moment to find some fence posts to use as grave markers. I drive these into the dirt above the holes.

Satisfied with my work, I got to my hooves and went back to the shed. I then open the hatch to the ladder and make my way down it and into the hallway once again. I notice that the lights have since shut off and pitch black darkness lies in front of me. I switch on my PipBuck’s light which bathes the hallway in ice blue light.

Despite having my light on and having just come from this hallway, I am somewhat unnerved about walking down it. I swallow and take a breath as I begin walking down the hallway and past the damaged bulkhead. I continue down till I see the next bulkhead and the five bodies next to it along the wall.

In the slight light from my PipBuck the sight makes me even more unnerved. I sit down next to the bones and let out a breath I didn’t realize I was holding. I look over the bones for a few moments before deciding on my next course of action.

I begin by removing the helmets from the Steel Rangers and setting them aside. Then I began to take off the rest of the armor till I could easily take the bones from the inside of it. I turn my attention from the Steel Rangers to my other two crew members, the piles of clothing and bones. Looking them over, I notice that a few of the scraps of cloth should be big enough to help me carry the skeletons.

Taking those scraps, I take them out from the bone piles and carefully tie them into five makeshift bags, using some of the cloth lining in the power armor as well. I then carefully take the skeletons of my crew and put them in the bags. After taking one last look around to make sure I didn’t miss anything, I put two of the bags on my back and envelop the other three in my magic.

I then begin to make my way out of the facility again and soon make my way back to the graves. Setting all the bags down, I begin to carefully take the skeletons out one by one and lay them into the graves, trying to arrange the bones as they should be.

Once all five skeletons are in the graves I take a step back and look over them, a morbid expression on my face. I close my eyes for a few moments before taking up the shovel once more and begin to bury their bones. While doing so, my eyes begin to tear up slightly. I don’t end up completely crying, but my tears are a constant reminder of my sorrow.

After a while, their bones are no longer visible and the graves are filled with dirt. I set the shovel off to the side and sit in front of their graves with my head bowed. I mutter a prayer for them in addition to a promise. “I’ll make sure our efforts weren’t in vain. I have become the embodiment of our project and I’ll work to rebuild Equestria, no matter how long it takes.”

I wipe the remaining tears from my eyes and stand back up. Checking my PipBuck for the time, I see that it is 5:00pm. I don’t have much time left, so I grab the shovel and four of my makeshift bags and head to the house. Before I reach the front porch, however, I turn and go to the left side of the house and find a place to start digging the graves at.

Like I had previously, I dig four graves and get four fence posts to use as markers. After getting the graves to the proper depth and size I set down the shovel and head into the house. I go through the living room and enter the dining room to gaze upon the skeletons there. I breathe out a sigh before setting my bags down.

I take care to move their bones into the bags as gently as I can and make sure I don’t mix them up. When all their bones have been collected, I head back outside once again. Once there, I repeat the process again and soon bury the family and sit to pray for them as well. “Even though I never learned your names, I hope that you have all found happiness in the afterlife.”

I get to my hooves and look at the graves one last time before heading back to the shed with the shovel and bags. As I walk CORA pipes up, “You’re really kind Ratchet.” She smiles, causing me to as well, but I shake my head.

“I don’t think just burying them makes me all that kind. I think anypony else would have done the same,” I tell her. At least I hope that anypony else would. It has been thirty-five years, who knows how much ponies have changed in that time.

“Even so, you seem to genuinely care about them and helping Equestria too! You might not embody the element of Kindness like Fluttershy, but you are still very kind, Ratchet,” CORA says with confidence in her voice. Her head nods up and down numerous times reaffirming this.

“I suppose…Wait, you’re just calling me Ratchet now? Not ‘ma’am’ or ‘Miss Ratchet’?” I ask her, somewhat surprised by the sudden change. Her smile fades and turns into a frown and she makes a sorry looking face.

“Sorry, do you now want me to? I thought since we aren’t exactly in a formal setting anymore, it might help you relax a bit,” CORA says dejectedly. I shake my head to her before giving her a smile.

“Not at all! I’m actually kind of glad you did CORA. Please, go ahead and just call me Ratchet from now on, ok?” I nod approvingly with a smile, getting a smile back from her before she stifles a laugh.

“I’m glad Ratchet. Ever since you woke up, you’ve been kind of miserable looking. It’s understandable, but I want you to be happy like you used to be, you know?” CORA says with her voice filled with hope.

I give her an apologetic look while I say, “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to worry you CORA. But, for now, let’s rest in the shed until morning, ok? It’s getting late and I don’t want to be wandering around at night.” As I say this, we reach the shed.

Opening the door and stepping through, I set the shovel against the wall and put the bags in a corner. I then take off my saddlebags and set them down on the floor as well, stretching out my back and limbs. After some contemplation, I decide to remove the radiation suit. Outside, I didn’t get any hint of radiation. Since it doesn’t have much protection against the elements or sharp objects, I decide to wear the armored barding I have until I need the radiation suit again.

After changing clothes, I settle myself into a comfortable position on the floor and prepare myself to sleep. Laying my head down I’m suddenly aware of how tired I am. I think over the day’s events, the chaos the world has become, and what I plan to do next. Engrossed in these thoughts I slowly slip into darkness.

Author's Note

That concludes Chapter 2 everyone! I took some comments I got on Chapter 1 and applied them when writing this one, so hopefully it is better.

Incidentally, I added her stats/skills/traits to the end of Chapter 1. Check those out if you haven't already. And, since she has only really walked around so far and hasn't gained any exp, she of course hasn't leveled up yet.

I finished this one last weekend, but I was attending a wedding so I haven't had much time to start on Chapter 3 yet. I'll begin working on it as soon as possible!

Chapter 3: Wanderer

“My world had become a wasteland, terror around every turn. Would I survive or would I end up just another empty husk, cast away by the wasteland.”

===~+~===

After waking up and gathering my things I begin to walk along the road. Before I leave, I make sure to add a marker called Farmland on my PipBuck’s map that marks the shed. Since it has no location data and instead displays a blank map, I figure I might as well start to populate the map with locations. I also add in the locations I can remember, but who knows what has changed in thirty-five years.

I have been walking for an hour or so and the landscape hasn’t changed much. The road was still as broken and twisted as it was and the land around me was lifeless and gray. I am beginning to think that I might be the only one left that is wandering the wasteland. Scrunching up my muzzle, I flip through my PipBuck’s options, finding the radio and begin to switch through the various frequencies.

Most of the frequencies are silent and a few are all static. Not a single one broadcasting anything that sounds even remotely pony-like. Sighing, I continue to walk down the road, continually looking for any signs of life.

The lack of pony and animal life begins to creep me out. If it wasn’t for the sound of my hooves hitting the pavement and the light wind that was occasionally blowing i’d think I was deaf. The stillness around me was almost surreal and felt incredibly wrong. Compared with the liveliness of Canterlot and my lab I had only experienced a few days ago, this was quite unsettling.

“You know Ratchet,” CORA speaks up suddenly, causing me to jump and almost fall to the ground. “Oh, sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you,” she lets out a playful giggle before continuing. “I know things are quiet and all, but even before the war it would be quiet around here. This is a country road that got little traffic and no towns are around for a few miles. I think you’re only over reacting because we don’t have any transportation and you aren’t used to walking along this road.”

I think over her words for a moment while trying to calm myself down after being startled by her sudden talkativeness. “You’re right,” I say with a nod. “I’ve always traveled this road with others or at least using a car or something. I’m sure there are plenty of ponies closer to a town, right?” CORA nods her head reassuringly.

“If that’s the case, where do you think we should head to CORA?” I ask her. There were plenty of towns around we could venture to. Fillydelphia in the north, Ponyville and Appleloosa to the south, Manehatten and the Shattered Hoof Mining operations to the east. Going west would be a long road to Las Pegasus, so that probably isn’t the best option.

CORE thinks for a moment before she replies with, “Why don’t we check out Ponyville? It is the closest after all. I also have it recorded that a Stable should be near it. If the town is abandoned, or destroyed, perhaps we can find living ponies in the Stable.” CORA nods a few times to herself, reaffirming her decision.

“Good thinking CORA. Let’s see then, we are currently north of the mountains, so the fastest route might be the train tunnel through the mountain. It should just be a mile up ahead or so. From there, we can just follow the tracks and we’ll reach Ponyville.” With a plan in mind, I quicken my pace and begin heading towards where the tracks should be.

As I walk, a thought strikes me, “CORA, do you have records of the locations of all the Stables?” I ask her. If she did, I wanted to know how she learned of them, since a few of them were classified to normal ponies, let alone Artificial Ponies. Not to mention, get them added to my map.

CORA shakes her head, “No, I actually overheard Miss Twilight talking about it. I only know of this one because she said one of the other Ministry Mares was going to be in it. She said that it was on that mare’s farm. I think that means the Stable will be on the Apple family farm, since Miss Applejack is the only one of the Ministry Mares who lives on a farm.”

“Miss Applejack is in that Stable? Does that mean it is a Ministry of Wartime Technology Stable?” I ask her. If that turns out to be the case, I might be able to help out even more than I thought. Especially if they have working technology!

However, CORA shakes her head, “I don’t know Ratchet. Miss Twilight did not mention the other occupants of the Stable. It would seem likely that with Miss Applejack in the Stable her ministry would be with her. However I have no information that would confirm this.”

“I see,” I let out a sigh. “It would be helpful if they are, but I suppose we’ll find out soon enough.” Guessing at it won’t do anything for us, the only thing we can do now is head to Ponyville and see what’s going on. I decide to push this to the back of my mind and instead focus on my surroundings as I continue down the road.

It isn’t long before I see the train tracks crossing the road, reaching them soon after. I begin to follow the tracks south. The tracks have a bit of rust on them and the occasional rail is bent and misaligned from the rest. Given the state of the tracks, I doubt anypony has gotten a train working since the war ended, which means I won’t have to worry about a train coming when i’m in the tunnel.

I follow the tracks for an hour or so until I reach the tunnel entrance. There is a sign next to the tunnel that appears to be broken. I don’t remember if the sign was there before I was frozen, but the remaining half of the sign reads, “wings”. I gaze into the darkness of the tunnel attempting to discern any detail inside, however only a few feet into the tunnel it becomes pitch black and I can’t see anything inside. I swallow as I turn on my PipBuck’s light and begin to walk into the tunnel’s darkness.

Luckily, my PipBuck’s light is strong enough to pierce the darkness a good distance in front of me. However, I can’t help but feel a growing sense of unease. Perhaps it is because I have yet to encounter a single living creature or simply because I’m now in an enclosed space with little room to maneuver in the event I find something nasty in here.

The further in I go and the longer nothing happens, my unease slowly decreases and instead turns to tension. However, after a short distance my light reflects off of something on the ceiling. I stop and turn my attention to it before the sight of it causes me to tense up. Suddenly the world around me slows down and turns an icy blue.

The object I was looking at gets outlined by a dark blue line and various percentages appear near its body parts. In addition to his outline, many other dimmer outlines appear behind the thing I’m looking at. The thing I’m looking at becomes slightly more illuminated and i’m able to make out its features. It looks like a large bat hanging from the ceiling, however its body is grotesque and I can see large fangs in its mouth.

“CORA, what the hell is that thing?” I ask as my panic begins to rise. I can’t seem to move my body, but I can look around. “And what’s going on, why can’t I move?” But while asking these questions, I notice that CORA’s face has disappeared.

A second or so later I see her reappear, only this time with an entire body instead of just a disembodied head. She picks up her hooves and starts shaking them around before setting them down on the floor and beginning to run around my field of vision. “Uh, CORA…?” I speak up. However CORA keeps running around and appears to be actually walking on the ground.

It is almost as if she is a real pony in the world interacting with it. She suddenly jumps up towards the creatures hanging from the ceiling as if to touch them, but thankfully she passes right through them. “Aww,” I hear her say after she lands and stares at her hoof. She then looks at me and begins to walk over.

“Sorry Ratchet, I got excited about having a body and what not. So this is what the world actually looks like? I mean, excluding the blue tinting of course. But i mean, I can actually walk around things and see them from different sides,” she continues to ramble on for a few moments before I clear my throat. “Oh, sorry,” she says while blushing slightly.

CORA then repositions herself a short distance in front of me before clearing her throat, so to speak, and answering my questions, “To begin with, you can’t move because you are in S.A.T.S. or Stable-Tech Arcane Targeting Spell. When you tense up, you enter this mode that will assist you with combat. It essentially speeds up your perception time to allow you more time to decide on your next action. It only seems like things have slowed down but in reality you are just experiencing things faster.”

CORA continues with her explanations, “To answer your other question, I do not know what those creatures are. If I had to conjecture, they are bats that have been mutated with radiation. Judging by the sharp teeth I would say they are carnivorous.”

I take a moment to look at my compass, noticing a large dark blue line directly in front of me. I hadn’t been looking at it while traveling, having not been used to having it there. “CORA, my compass shows a single blue line. Just how many of them are there?” I ask her, “And why didn’t you tell me earlier that something was up ahead!?” I shout at her.

CORA tilts her head as she says, “I figured you noticed and wanted to investigate. After all, it is in your vision, not mine. To answer your other question, I’d estimate a few dozen of them. However, they appear to be nocturnal and are currently sleeping. You can probably walk past them if you aren’t too loud.”

“Oh, by the way,” CORA continues. “You can access your PipBuck systems in SATS too, you just have to think about what you want to access. I would recommend pulling out one of your pistols, just in case you run into a problem while trying to pass them.”

Taking her advice, I think of the inventory screen and my vision is blocked with the inventory screen. I then think of equipping one of the 10 mm pistols and it suddenly appears in my mouth, making me flinch for a moment at the sudden sensation. I think the screen away and see CORA once more.

“So, how do I get out of SATS now? Let me guess, I think it away?” I ask CORA. She gives me a nod and I think things back to normal. The world around me speeds up until it is back to normal. CORA too is back as a disembodied head in my vision, looking quite sad at the loss of her body.

With my body once again under my control, I give a look back up to the bats hanging from the ceiling to make sure they are still asleep before I begin to slowly and carefully walk under them. I think about using my magic to carry the gun at first, however I decide against it since the light from it might rouse the bats. But i leave my PipBuck’s light on to continue illuminating my path and because they seem to not be disturbed by it.

I continue onward making sure to keep off the tracks to prevent any extra loud noises. As i progress the bats are soon left behind I begin to see light coming from the other end of the tunnel. Seeing the way out, I hasten my steps to get to the exit quicker. However, in my haste I stumble and accidentally hit my hoof on one of the rails causing a loud resounding metallic clang.

As I right myself I slowly turn my head to look back at the bats and am greeted with tons of glowing eyes looking right at me. Staring back at them I begin to slowly inch towards the exit before fully turning around and trying to be as quiet as possible while making my way away from the bats.

However, I soon hear the flutter of many wings and I quickly begin to gallop towards the exit with the bats flying after me. I make it about half of the remaining distance before they catch up to me. Taking the gun in my magic, I point it behind me and fire blindly a few times, causing the bats to scatter and fall behind me momentarily.

I continue sprinting while the bats recover and soon are upon me once again. A few of them swipe at me and bite at me, a few managing to cut across my back, neck, and flank. I yell out numerous times while attempting to keep up my pace. Firing a few more shots towards the bats the gun runs out of ammo.

I curse under my breath, knowing I don’t have any spare magazines, just loose ammo. I panic for a moment before I remember SATS and quickly tense up. Time slows to a stop and I quickly equip another of the pistols. Before I close SATS, I decide to try it out on the few bats who have flown ahead of me.

I think about shooting two of the bats in the heads twice, one of which has a 86% chance and the other having a 93% chance. Suddenly I feel time speed back up and the gun in my magic rapidly shoots off four shots. I miss once on the 86% chance bat, but my second shot hits it directly in the head, causing it to drop limply to the ground with a fleshy thump.

The second opponent gets hit with both of my bullets. The first one caught it in the neck and the second one hit more squarely in the head, tearing its head completely off. Its head, and the rest of its body, falls to the floor with the first bats.

Once SATS finishes I immediately continue running and blindly shoot a few more shots back towards the bats, causing them to fall back once again. With the light from the exit rapidly approaching, I keep firing shots at a short interval. As I’m about to exit the tunnel I fire the last bullet in my second gun.

I leap forth from the tunnel, spin around, and bring up SATS. I swap out my used pistol for my the final 10 mm pistol I have and turn my attention to the bats at the entrance of the tunnel. Looking at them, they seem almost panicked, scared even. I que up four more shots on two of the bats and release SATS.

The bats begin to fly around erratically, some getting in the way of my shots. Because of this I hit more than I shot at. Four bats drop to the ground while the other bats frantically fly back into the tunnel. Of the four bats on the ground, three appear to be dead but one continues to move back into the tunnel. I cautiously walk towards it and fire a five more shots at it. Most of them miss, but the final one hits it and it stops moving.

Taking a step back, I look into the tunnel. The bats seem to have returned back into the tunnel. “Do you think I scared them off,” I ask CORA, a cocky smile appearing on my face.

CORA’s expression doesn’t change as she states rather matter-of-factly, “I think they are actually nocturnal and don’t like the sunlight very much. They seemed to have no issue pursuing you after being shot at. The only thing that changed was the sunlight.”

As she attempts to explain this, I think back to the bats I killed and recall the one whose head I literally shot off. Suddenly I feel sick to my stomach and I feel bile begin to rise up in my throat. I quickly raise a hoof to my mouth and trot a little ways into the ditch next to the track before I collapse to my hooves and empty the contents of my stomach.

Some panting later I pull out one of the Sparkle Colas and drink it down to remove the taste of bile from my mouth. Sitting on my haunches, I continue to drink the Sparkle Cola as I survey my surroundings.

Not much has changed, but in the distance towards Ponyville I see the river still flowing. However, the waters appear to be murkier than before. I’d guess that it is highly irradiated and would be a very bad idea to drink, or even get on your skin. In a decade or so, the radioactivity might go down to be non-life threatening, in small amounts anyhow.

I while finishing my drink, I decide to take out another snack cake and eat that as well. I’ve been trying to pace myself when it comes to eating and drinking, however since i just emptied my stomach, I suddenly got hungry.

After finishing my short meal, I look over the rest of my gear. I still have a good amount of food and drink left, but after reloading my guns with the ammo I have, I notice that I have a lack of ammunition. After reloading the 12 round magazine pistols and filling the revolvers’ missing 4 bullets I’m left with a total of twenty-six .32 caliber rounds and seventeen 10 mm rounds to spare.

I also have a random assortment of other gear, but none of it is especially useful if I encounter more monsters like those bats. The next time, I might not be lucky enough to be saved by sunlight. Sighing, and deciding I need a bigger gun and target practice, I repack all of my gear and get back to my hooves.

“Ok CORA, let’s keep going,” I say as I check the time on my PipBuck, seeing that it is about two in the afternoon. “It’ll be late pretty soon. We need to find shelter before then, and it is still a ways to Ponyville,” I add.

With the task of finding a place to stay for the night in mind, I begin once again walking to Ponyville along the rails. In the distance, I can see the bridge that goes over the river. It looks a little worn, but it seems to still be there.

A while later I reach the bridge only to discover it is a bit more than a little worn. While both sides along the banks of the river are intact and only slightly worn, the middle has begun to crumble away. Some fairly large holes have appeared in the bridge and some of the rails have fallen with them.

Luckily, there appears to be enough solid ground left that I should be able to get across. I notice some places where metal roofing or plywood has been used to bridge some gaps across holes in the bridge. “Hey CORA, it looks like there might be actual ponies still alive. Someone had to have put this metal and wood here. They must use this bridge, too,” I say with some hope rising in my voice.

I cross over the patched up bridge and proceed down the tracks towards Ponyville. After a few while I come to a hill that should give me a good view of the town once I get to the top. I hurriedly climb to the top wanting to see it as soon as possible. However, as I crest the top and start to see Ponyville my heart sinks.

The town of Ponyville still stands, however quite a few of its buildings have been completely destroyed and many more are in terrible states. Only a hoof-ful of buildings appear to be intact and defiant against the wasteland’s theme of complete destruction. However, what truly makes my heart sink is that I see no signs of life in the town. It appears to be completely empty.

I begin walking towards it to check it out more closely when I hear something barely audible. I perk up my ears to try and hear it again. There is nothing for a few moments but then I hear it again. It is almost like...a scream? I quickly look around until I catch sight of movement in the town.

From behind a building something ran out and was heading towards the center of town. Curious, yet hopefully, I began to move a bit faster towards the town. The closer I got, the louder the screams. I pick up my pace until I’m just outside the town and I can make out the figure who has since run into the center of the town.

It is a pony! An actual, living pony! A smile spreads across my face and I begin to trot towards them. However, as I do so I begin to hear laughter mixed in with the screams. I stop in my tracks, as the laughter seems...off. After a few moments a few more ponies catch up to the first one I saw, there are five in total now gathered in the center.

I quickly hid behind a building out of instinct as I watch them carefully. The new ponies quickly surround the first one who had fallen and now appears to be flailing their hooves around trying to keep them away as they get closer. The other four are only laughing and getting closer.

A few moments later the four of them stop and just stared at the pony trapped between them. It was in this moment that I saw the four standing ponies were wearing crudely constructed barding and two were holding guns while the other two were holding what looks like wooden planks with nails in them. I could also see that all four of them were filthy and a few of them were missing patches of fur.

As I was getting creeped out of their appearances, one of them began speaking. It was the voice of a stallion, “Well, well, well,” he says playfully, “What do we have here? It would seem that our town has a visitor boys!” The other three let out gleeful yells while the other one continues. “The thing is miss, we don’t take kindly to visitors in our town. Surely you’ve heard about the Track Gang, haven’t you?”

I can’t see the, what I now assume to be a mare, between the other ponies, however judging by the stallion’s response she shook her head. “What? You haven’t? You been living under a rock or something?” He growls at her. “We’re the baddest gang this side of Foal Mountain, you see. We rule the tracks that pass through Ponyville and we charge a fee to everypony who passes through our territory.”

It is hard to see from this distance, but I think he shakes his head as he continues, “And you refused to pay that fee. You ran from us, and our boss doesn’t take kindly to travelers who refuse to pay our fee. In fact, he says we can kill anypony who doesn’t pay up, you see.” The others around him laugh as he says this.

The mare screams out, “NO! Please, I’ll pay you! Just let me go! I’ll give you everything I have!” By this point my own body is shaking and i’ve put a hoof to my muzzle to stop myself from making any noise. I want nothing more than to help her, but with four of them and one of me, not to mention i’m lousy with guns and two of them appear to have assault rifles...I won’t make it very far. The only thing I can do now, is watch this horrible scene play out and how they decide to let her go.

The stallion who has been talking lets out a laugh at the mare’s words before he says, “Of course you will pay. I honestly think it would be a waste to kill you. But, it is too late to give us your caps.” Caps? What does he mean by caps? While wondering this he continues, “When I first saw you, I hoped that you would run from us. You see, when travelers don’t have any caps to pay with, we find other ways to get our money’s worth.”

The stallion’s companions let out snickers as he continues, “But our boss doesn’t really like that, since it’s another mouth to feed, you know. We can’t just have travelers going through without paying the price though. Normally, we have them pay off their debt through manual labor, but i’ve taken a liking to you, miss. So, I’ll tell you what. I’ll pay your fee for you,” he announces to her.

I can hear the hope in her voice when she says, “R-really?” However what the stallion says next crushing that hope instantly.

“Of course! In exchange, you can become my pet for the rest of your life! The boss might not take kindly to this at first, but i’ll make him understand. Or, i’ll just take things over from him, right boys!” The other around him let out excited yells once again.

When the mare speaks again I can hear the hopelessness in her voice, “N-no, you can’t! Please, just let me go. I’ll do anything!” The stallion just shakes his head and gives an extremely toothy grin. Surprisingly, his teeth are extremely white considering how dirty his coat appears to be.

“Oh, I know you will miss. You’ll be the best pet of all time, right?” The stallion lets out a laugh before suddenly changing tone and addressing the three other gang members, “Take her to my place boys, and give the boss all the caps she has. Give him my regards and inform him of my intentions. Tie her up so she won’t go escaping, alright? And if any of you touch her before I do, you won’t like the consequences. Understand?” He growls out.

The three of them take a step back in fear and nod quickly, picking the mare up from the ground and starting to drag her away. But the leading stallion shakes his head again and yells at one of them, “Damn it, Gearbox, you stay with me. We still have to finish our patrol. And you two! When you’re done, come find me. Don’t go slacking off like you usually do.”

One of them turns back around and walks towards the one shouting commands. While the other two drag the mare off down a street that’s out of my view the two remaining thankfully begin walking away from my direction. I wait for a few moments after I lose sight of them before sliding down the wall and onto my haunches.

I begin panting for breath, not realizing until now I had been holding it in. As I do so I stare at my hooves which are shaking uncontrollably. “I couldn’t do anything,” I mutter. “For all my talk of wanting to help Equestria, I couldn’t do anything to help a single mare…” I trail off.

I notice CORA trying to get my attention and shift my eyes to her face. “There was nothing you could do Ratchet, not against four of them, not now. Perhaps one day, but under these circumstances, hiding was the only correct choice of action! If you would have went out there, you would have been captured too, or even died! How would you help Equestria then Ratchet?” She practically shouts at me.

I look away from her as I think on her words before I respond. “You’ve got a point, CORA. Its just that...How can I help Equestria like this? I wasn’t expecting criminal organizations, just struggling civilizations. What if…” I bite my lip before continuing, “What if war hasn’t ended here in Equestria? I know there are ponies now, but it seems they are turning on one another, not working together.”

My resolve is quickly diminishing, but CORA continues to encourage me. “Even if they are turning on each other, we just have to find the side of justice and lawfulness and help them! Surely if these ponies here exist, other do as well. Kinder ones too! We just have to keep going. Perhaps we can come back here one day and save that mare too!” CORA announces.

Her encouragement makes me smile slightly and shake my head. I then take my hooves and hit the sides of my head with them. “Right!” I say, remembering to stay quiet. CORA looks at me with surprise on her face. “You’re right CORA, we just have to keep going. And we will find a way to help that mare too.”

I get to my hooves and decide I should probably start by leaving Ponyville. As I do so, I recall the features of the mare that I am able to. She had a brown coat and a blonde mane, I don’t think she was that tall either, maybe about my height. Storing her in my memories, I address CORA, “So, you said there was a Stable around here that Applejack might be in?”

CORA nods, “Yes Ratchet. I think I recall hearing it was on her farm?” I try to recall the layout of Ponyville and I think I remember her farm being on the other side of the town. But, with the Track Gang, as they call themselves taking up residence here, I should probably walk around the town to try and avoid them.

I voice my plan to CORA who agrees and adds that we should probably remain as quiet as possible while we do so. Keeping this in mind I make my way out of town and begin to navigate the hills and plains around Ponyville, working my way towards Applejack’s farm and hopefully the Stable she is in, if she is even still alive. She could have died from old age for all I know. But nevertheless, I continue on.

About an hour later I arrive at the orchard and begin to search for the Stable. Without the leafy trees I can easily determine there isn’t an entrance in the orchard itself. All of the trees that remain are charred husks, some even uprooted and fallen over. I make my way towards the farmhouse and barn to search them.

I first look at the farmhouse, which is half crumbled away. How the other half remains standing is beyond me. However, I do not notice anything as I look in the gaping hole the house has. I decide to check the cellar if it, just to be sure.

After going around to the side of the house and opening the cellar door, however, i’m greeted by a wall of rubble preventing me from entering. Considering the state of the house, i’m not that surprised the cellar has caved in. I let out a sigh and decide to investigate the barn.

It is in better condition than the farmhouse is and only a bit of the roofing and walls are damaged. I move to the barn door and carefully open it, remember the last time I opened a random building’s door and nearly got buried in its collapse. Once the door was open, and I decide there was no threat of it collapsing, I enter.

Looking around the immediate area, I don’t notice anything out of the ordinary and no other doors aside from a locked hatch leading down to what I assume is an apple cellar. The barn has rotting hay scattered around and some rusted tools, but nothing else of note. I decide I should take a look at the apple cellar and move to inspect the lock.

It look a simple enough lock, so I got one of the bobby pins from my bags and set about trying to pick the lock. Now, I’ll admit I didn’t have much practice at doing this sort of thing. In fact, I had only read up on how to do it on a whim. I used to be quite good at it though. At the moment I think this, my pin breaks.

“Ugh,” I sigh, “emphasis on used to be…” I get another pin and begin working on the lock once more. I repeat this process three more times and break a total of four bobby pins, half of what I have with me. But when the lock finally clicks open I shout triumphantly, “Huzzah!” before I take the lock from the door and put it in my bags along with the pin i used.

I proceed to open the old wooden hatch. The space under it is only slightly illuminated by the outside light, so I turn on my PipBuck’s light as I enter down the stairs. At the bottom of the stairs is, as expected an apple cellar. I let out a disappointed sigh as I look at all the, now rotted, apple goods down here. Of course it wouldn’t be that easy to find the Stable entrance.

I try to think of where else the entrance could be on the farm as I go around looking at the shelves of storage. However, while I look at one particular shelf I notice the lighting of my PipBuck on the wall seems to be broken, as if it is seeping into a crack or something. My curiosity piqued, I go to inspect the shelf.

It looks just like the others with various apple goods on it. However, once I give it a hard nudge I realize it isn’t connected to the other shelves or wall. Raising an eyebrow, I pull the shelf from the wall with my magic and walk around it to inspect the wall for cracks. But what I find isn’t a crack, but a gaping hole. More of a hallway really.

I gaze inside of the hallway cautiously before I take my first step inside it. The hallway itself is made of the same materials as the rest of the cellar, but the deeper I get the more I realize just how odd it is. It isn’t long before I arrive at the end of the hallway.

On the wall in front of me, standing in stark contrast to the rest of the hallway and cellar is a steel wall with a large steel gear bulkhead in it. The number two has been painted in the middle of the bulkhead. I blink in amazement of actually finding the stable here. However my amazement quickly turns sour when I notice the scratches and slight dents on the Stable’s door. They look like hoof marks.

I then take a cautious look at the ground around the door for the first time and see what caused the marks. The bones of numerous ponies lay strewn about before the door. Ponies from thirty-five years ago who had been locked out and left to die. I swallow and say a prayer for them, decades too late.

Turning my attention back to the task at hand, I notice the panel beside the door and go over to it. It should be the controller, but they should require a password, if they are anything like the doors to my lab. I think for a moment, then decide to just knock on the door.

“Hello?” I call to the other side of it. “Can anyone hear me? Is anyone there? My name is Ratchet, a researcher for the Ministry of Magic. I’ve come to help, is anyone there?” I wait for a few moments before knocking again. “Hello? Hello!” I wait again, but there is still no response.

Taking a step back and inspecting the door and panel again, I remember another function the panels have. They can act as intercoms. I hoof at the intercom button on the panel and start again. “Hello? This is Ratchet, a researching of the Ministry of Magic. Is anyone there?” I let go of the button and wait for a response.

However, none comes after moments of waiting. I try it again, “Hello? Is anyone there? Is this functioning properly? The panel seems to have power, so you should hear me. Hello?” I ask again, a bit of panic rising up inside me. I wait for a good few minutes before I try it again. “Anyone? Is anyone there? My name is Ratchet, I’ve come to help!”

Again, no response. Starting to panic, I press it again. “Please! Is anyone there? Miss Applejack! Are you there?” She should know me, I rationalize. She assigned some rangers to me, after all. I take my hoof off the button and wait once more.

Suddenly, I hear a crackle and a mare’s voice comes over the speaker, “Leave.” It says simply. Confused, I hoof at the button again and explain myself further. I take my hoof away and wait for another response.

After a short pause, one comes through. “She’s dead. Leave.” Was all that the mare said. I was left speechless for a moment. She doesn’t mean Applejack does she? It has been thirty-five years, but I still had some hope. She must just be confused. Perhaps there is some sort of connection issue. I hoof at the button again.

“Who’s dead? Miss Applejack?” I ask, taking my hoof off the button and waiting for a response. None comes even after five minutes of waiting. I try again and again to get another response, never receiving anything further.

===~+~===

After an hour of trying and getting nothing, CORA finally speaks up. “Ratchet!” She shouts at me after I have began to get desperate. “They aren’t going to let us in. We should go. Something might have happened and we can’t do anything from out here. We need to find a place to rest of the night, it’s getting late.” She informs me.

I glance at the clock on my PipBuck and see that it is in fact getting late. “Maybe you’re right CORA. They haven’t said anything else other than ‘Leave’ really. I guess they must have their reasons. But i’m so close. Ponies are just on the other side of this door!” I shout.

“I know Ratchet, but if they don’t open the door we can’t do anything. Let’s just go.” CORA says, attempting to keep me going. I let out a sigh as I turn from the Stable.

“Fine, let’s find some place to go for the night.” I make my way out of the hallway and push the shelf back against the hallway entrance. “I might as well help to hide the Stable again, right?” I mutter. I climb the stairs and relock the hatch as well.

I consider staying the night in the barn, however it isn’t quite late enough to sleep yet. I’d also like to get on the way to my next destination. After learning Ponyville had been taken over by a gang, I contemplated where I should go next. I decided that i’d head to the east and see if I can find anypony over in Manehatten, Fillydelphia, or Baltimare, or anywhere along the way for that matter.

With my destination in mind I leave the barn and begin to head back to the tracks I came from. I make sure to give to town a wide berth to avoid the gangsters catching sight of me. It isn’t long before I am able to see the tracks.

As I get near to them, however, I suddenly hear a loud whistle. I freeze in my tracks and look around. In the direction of the town, I see four ponies galloping towards me. My hooves begin to shake and I feel my pulse increasing. It is the same four ponies from the Track Gang I saw earlier.

Unable to force myself to run they soon catch up to me and the one who talked previously addresses me. “Well, well, well,” he says playfully once more, “What do we have here? It would seem that our town has a visitor boys!” The other three chuckle as they surround me. “That’s some fancy barding you’re wearing, miss.” A grin spreads across his muzzle.

‘T-Thank you.” I stutter out, rousing another round of chuckles from the other three. Their leader steps forward and continues.

“Of course miss. However, we have some business to take care of. This here is our territory, you see. And you owe us a fee for traveling through it. It isn’t much, don’t you worry,” he flashes another smile. “For the small fee of 200 caps, you’re free to go.”

There’s that word again, “Caps?” I ask. “What do you mean by caps?” The four of them look at each other before bursting out laughing. I raise an eyebrow as they collect themselves, the leader being the first to do so.

“You know, Caps. Money, moolah, BOTTLE CAPS darling! The currency of the wasteland!” He declares with a hearty yell. “Now, fork them over and we’ll go on our way. If not,” he pauses, “We’ll be taking you with us.”

Bottle caps? That’s the currency they are using? What happened to Bits? I push these thoughts from my head momentarily due to my current situation. “I think that I have...one cap,” I say hesitantly.

“One? You have one cap on you? Hah, hah. Well then, you’re gona have to come with us. Grab her boys,” he commands the others which begin to close in on me. However, I quickly tense up, bringing up SATS.

“Ok, so it is either get captured for an unknown duration and do who knows what, or try to fight them off. Right CORA?” I ask for her opinion on the matter while bringing up my inventory screen and equipping one of the 10 mm pistols.

CORA ponders this for a moment before saying, “Fight them. There is no telling how long they will detain you for. Just, use the system as much as you can. Hit the ones with guns first.” Agreeing with her, I line up my shots, putting two on the leader, and two on the other one with a gun. At this range my chance to hit them in the head is 98%.

I initiate the program and it takes over my body momentarily. Two shots goes off at the leader, one of them hits him in the eye and he jerks quickly, throwing off the second shot which hits his rifle sending it flying from his muzzle.

The next two shots hit the other stallion in the head one after the other. Punching two holes through his skull. As time quickly catches up he falls to the ground limply and the leader is grabbing his eye in agony. I turn as fast as I can towards the other two, barely dodging the board one swings at me.

Once I’m facing them, I pull up SATS again. I attempt to que up shots on them like before, however it won’t let me. “CORA, what’s going on? Why can’t I shoot at them?” I ask her with both confusion and worry in my voice.

“You used up all your Action Points. See the meter in the bottom right? That shows how many points an action will cost. It seems you can only shoot your pistol four times before it runs out. They will regenerate over time, however. But until then, you’re on your own,” she informs me, a hint of worry in her voice.

With that option gone, I take a moment to evaluate the situation. One is dead, their leader is incapacitated atm, and two remain. One has just swung at me and will take a few moments to recover, and the other one has gone wide eyed at his dead companion. I decide my next course of action will be to run at him.

Canceling SATS, I push my hooves off the ground and charge at my target, tackling him to the ground. However, his wooden plank’s nails scrape across my sides, cutting me and catching me off guard. He flails around for a moment before swinging the plank at me and batting me off of him, sending me sprawling to the ground.

I regain my senses just as his friend swings his plank for my head. I quickly roll to the side and scramble to my hooves as the first one does the same. I quickly shoot off three shots towards him, catching him in the leg and chest and sending him back to the ground. I can tell he is still alive however.

Wasting no time, his friend swings for me again, but I can’t dodge this time and he hits me in the side, stabbing the nails into me. I let out a scream as I tense up into SATS again. As I do so, the pain fades away a bit. “Ratchet! Are you OK!?” CORA shouts out as soon as I enter it.

“It’s not too bad, better than a gunshot, I think. Though, I wouldn’t know how that feels either. I’ve certainly never fought anypony before…” I respond, flinching slightly at the pain. I look at my Action Points and see they have recovered slightly. I try to que up a shot on my attacker again, succeeding this time. However, I only manage to que up one.

I confirm and close SATS, sending the bullet at his head. It catches him in the jaw as he finishes his swing into me, ripping his jaw completely off and leaving the wooden plank hanging in my side. He stumbles back wide eyed as I use my magic and tear the plank from my side and follow through with the force of it, smacking him in the head with it before it falls from my magic.

After ripping it from my side, I suddenly feel the full pain of it and fall to my knees, slipping into SATS once more. Time slows to a crawl as I feel the pain slowly subsides temporarily. Wincing slightly, I look around at what’s going on with my opponents.

The stallion I just shot and hit is lying on the ground barely moving. The other melee fighter is trying to stop his bleeding. One is dead, and finally their leader is...missing? I don’t see him in my scope of vision and he isn’t where I shot him at. Panic wells up in me as I decide to deactivate SATS and look around.

As soon as I do the pain returns, accompanied by a loud shout, “YOU BITCH!” I am then tackled to the ground, my bags and gun sent flying. On top me of is the leader of the group, blood streaming from his right eye and a hole on the right side of his head. It then dawns upon me that I must have just hit his eye and passed the bullet through the side of his head instead of delivering a defeating blow.

He quickly starts to pound away at my head with his hooves. “I don’t know how you did this, you witch, but you’ll pay for it. You shoot me, destroy my favorite rifle, kill my best friend, and injure two of my underlings? Oh, you will know pain now. I’m going to keep you alive and play with you until you’re begging for death!” He shouts at me while pinning my hooves down.

His blood begins to drip down onto my face as he leans over me. I look at him in fear as I try desperately to use my magic to grab something, anything from my bags. I find something and quickly pull it out and point it at him. But he sees it coming and starts laughing.

“What are you going to do with that pen? Write me a letter?” He mocks me. Too late do I notice I have the pen from my bags instead of something I could use to actually fight him off with. I look up at him defiantly for a moment and I thought strikes me.

I don’t know what made me think of this but I suddenly remember a quote, “W-Well, you know what they say,” I choke out, a small grin spreading on my muzzle, “The pen is mightier than the sword.”

He looks at me with a stoic expression on his face before bursting into laughter. “You know what? That’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard. No simple pen is going to-” However, before he can finish there is suddenly a loud gunshot. I hear the sound of impact and the thump of a body in the direction of one of the stallion’s companions.

Immediately after another gunshot and another impact sounds from the other gangster I had injured. “What in the fuck?” The stallion holding me down exclaims as he looks around. “You had friends?” He seems to notice something in the distance as his eyes grow wide as he says, “Oh shit, those are-” but can’t finish his sentence as a bullet finds it way through his skull.

He falls on top of me, but my vision has started to darken as the blood loss and strikes to my head catch up to me. I try to push him off me and see who killed him, but I can’t find the strength to do so. As my vision grows darker I can barely hear CORA calling out my name.

“Ratchet! Ratchet!”

===~+~===

Level Up! (Level 2)
+10 Small Guns
+8 Lockpicking

New Perk:
Swift Learner: +10% XP whenever XP is earned.

Author's Note

Here's Chapter 3! First level up! :D It also marks the beginning of one of my major plot points!

Today my editor told me that they will be leaving today for AT, Advanced Training, I think? Some military stuff. Anyhow, he will be gone until August 17th or so. As a result, he didn't have time to review this chapter, and I didn't want to wait for Aug. 17th to post this up. So, there might be a few more errors in the next few chapters, since i'll be reviewing them myself.

Regardless, I hope you enjoy! :3

Chapter 4: Steel

Chapter 4: Steel

“In the fires of Tartarus, the flesh of the weak becomes steel.”

===~+~===

The first thing that I am aware of is the bumpiness of what i’m laying on. The next thing is the clopping of hooves against dirt. I soon realize that I’m moving and not actually laying on something bumpy, but rather on the back of a moving pony. A hard pony, at that.

I lift up my head and see the telltale armor of the Steel Rangers on a few ponies in my sight. As I look at the pony carrying me, I notice that they are also wearing it. “Um, uh, hey?” I stammer out in shock and disbelief. They all stop moving and look at me, including the one carrying me. “Would you mind, putting me down?” I ask tentatively.

“Of course miss,” the buck carrying me says as he lets me off his back. “Can you walk on your own?” He asks as I wobble a bit after getting down. I quickly notice my sides and face have been bandaged up and that I’m wearing my saddle bags. They must have collected them and picked up my things.

“Yea, I’m just a bit,” I pause for a moment, “confused?” I make a guess at what i’m feeling. “You’re all Steel Rangers, right?” I ask, a bit a hope rising up inside me. There are four of them in total, all armed properly and clad in ranger armor.

“Indeed,” the earth pony buck who carried me answers. “We were running a scouting expedition when we saw you in trouble. Or, more precisely our sniper here, Arrow, saw you.” One of them with a mounted sniper waves at me slightly. Judging by the armor, she was a unicorn mare. “She doesn’t talk much, don’t mind her. Anyway, she saw you fighting off those raiders, did fairly well for yourself till the end, or so she says.”

“Anyway, we should keep moving. There is only a few hours left of light and we need to make it back to base before nightfall. You’re welcome to come with us, if you have no other obligations,” he offers.

“Of course!” I reply right away. “My name is Ratchet, by the way,” I inform them, “it is nice to meet you all. You have no idea how much I wanted to find you. Well, not you exactly, but the rangers in general.” I realize that i’ve gotten really excited, like when one meets a celebrity. The four of them begin to laugh, causing me blush.

“We know, Ratchet. Your friend informed us all about you. CORA, I think her name was. Says you created her and what not. She filled us in on what you’ve been through lately. Though, she didn’t say much about where you came from,” the buck who carried me informs me. “By the way, since we’ll be traveling together, I’m Crusader Iron, leader of Lynx Squad, and these are my Knights.”

The mare known as Arrow waves at me again while the other two step closer. “I’m Thunder,” the earth pony stallion on the right says and then gestures towards the ranger next to him, “and this is my twin brother Lightning. Before you ask, its because we have a lightning bolt pattern in our fur.” Iron lets out a chuckle.

“Thunder, you know no one ever asks. I don’t know why you always say that,” Iron says shaking his head while smirking slightly. “But that aside, let’s get moving. We’ve got ground to cover.” Saying that Iron begins to walk away as the others follow suit.

I’m left standing there thinking for a moment before CORA speaks up, “Ratchet, let’s get going! We don’t want to be left behind.” I clear my thoughts as I trot to catch up to them.

“By the way,” I ask as we walk, “Where are we now? How long was I out?” It looks like it is slightly darker out and I don’t really recognize this area. Although, granted that I’m used to lush green fields and hills it isn’t all that surprising.

“We just passed through the mountains west of Canterlot and are now in the Unicorn Range. You were out for a few hours. And to answer your next inevitable question, our base is roughly halfway between Canterlot and the Cloudsdale ruins,” Iron answers me.

“I see. Oh! Where are my manners, I was so caught up in everything, I forgot to thank you all for helping me. Thank you, I don’t know what would have happened if you all didn’t show up,” I thank them.

This rouses some light chuckles from Thunder and Lightning as Iron waves my apology away, “Don’t mention it Ratchet. It is our duty as Steel Rangers to protect the citizens of Equestria. Even if it seems like the world has changed, we are still in Equestria.”

I nod at his words. He’s right, this is still Equestria no matter how it looks now. Those gangsters were probably even once citizens. Thinking this, another question rises into my mind. “By the way,” I ask, “Were you all around before the Megaspells fell or were you born after?”

Answering for everyone again Iron replies, “Arrow, Thunder, and Lightning were all born about 10 years after. I, however, was around twenty at the time. I was just an Initiate at the time. Things have changed, but us Steel Rangers have to stay strong. After surviving the fires of Tartarus, we’ve been prepared for this world.”

His words hold a hint of sadness in them. Memories of the old world, I’m sure. I contemplate telling him I’m from the past as well, but CORA didn’t when I was unconscious and that fact holds me back. My research was a secret, after all. But does that really matter now that the Megaspells already fell?

I decide to just keep it to myself for now and pass the time with small talk. Asking more questions about the wasteland, I determine that Bottle Caps are the new form of currency and that quite a few new settlements have sprung up. Mostly around scavengable places. I learn that most of the larger cities are completely destroyed, but most of the radiation has returned to safe levels recently.

One of the most interesting things I discover is a large settlement has been created inside the Statue of Friendship that they call Friendship City. While it is far from perfect at the moment, it is a bastion for some to rest their hooves while traveling. It has been constructed using scrap materials from the ruins of Manehatten.

The more I talk with the rangers, the more I can feel my hope returning. And after little over two hours, and after crossing the tracks that run west from Canterlot, the sun has begun to set and we arrive at the Steel Rangers’ base. However, I must say I’m surprised by what I see. It is a small two story farmhouse.

I want to ask them if this is really their base, but I also don’t want to offend them, so I just follow as they lead me around the back of it and into the cellar. The cellar is a bit more what I expected, as piles of sandbags make barriers which two more Steel Rangers stand behind with their weapons focused on us.

“Remove your helmets. State your names and ranks,” One of them says in a flat tone. Behind them is a steel door with the Steel Ranger emblem painted on it. There also appears to be a camera just above the door and an intercom to the left of it.

The rangers I came in with slowly remove their helmets and state their names and ranks. “Crusader Iron, returning from a scouting mission. We’ve brought a survivor called Ratchet as well for debriefing,” Iron says. I now see that he has a brown coat with a gray mane and blue eyes.

“Knight Arrow,” Arrow says in an adorable, yet cold voice. I notice she has cream colored coat, a brown mane that is short like mine, and blue eyes. Her appearance matches her voice, cute but expressionless.

“Knight Thunder, and this here’s-” Thunder begins, but is cut off by his brother. Thunder has a dark blue coat, a buzzed blonde mane, and golden eyes.

“Knight Lightning,” Lightning says, shaking his head at his brother’s effort to try and talk for him. Similar to his brother, Lightning has a dark blue coat, golden eyes, and has a short, well kept blonde mane.

The two guards lower their weapons and the one who spoke says, “Welcome home. Report to Elder Archimedes for your debriefing.” Putting their helmets back on, Iron and his group start walking towards the door as the guard on the left hoofs the intercom and says, “Five coming in.” A moment later the door suddenly opens and the five of us pass through into a surprisingly bright hallway.

The hallway is almost like the halls of my lab, before the Megaspells, that is. It looks like it gets cleaned often. As I look past the rangers, I see that the hallway turns to the right at the end, and in the corner, hanging from the ceiling, is a turret. It follows us as we approach and turn the corner.

However, after turning in the hallway, I no longer care about it’s strange cleanness or am curious why the rangers chose this place as their base. At the end of this hallway is larger room with two more turrets on the ceiling and between them in the back wall is a large gear shaped door with the number 36 on it.

Upon approaching it, the loud scraping of steel began and the door opens. I stand there staring like a foal for a few moments before Iron chuckles and says, “Welcome to Stable 36, our home.” With that he, and the others, walk inside of the Stable.

Standing there in shock, CORA once again snaps me out of my daze, “Ratchet! Go in!” Shaking my head to regain my senses, I follow them into the Stable.

As each of them enter a computerized voice welcomes them back, “Welcome, Crusader Iron. Welcome, Knight Arrow. Welcome, Knight Thunder. Welcome, Knight Lightning.” I hesitate as I approach the threshold of the doorway, thinking that it can somehow analyze DNA or something. However, I finally enter and the voice says nothing as I do so.

“Don’t worry, it just uses recognition software and the Steel Ranger personnel database to identify those who enter. It won’t have any information on you, Ratchet,” Iron says with a slight smirk on his muzzle. “You don’t have to-” but he is cut off as the computerized voice speaks up suddenly.

“Welcome, Scribe Crusader Ratchet,” it says. The four Steel Rangers around me all turn to look at me with...well with their helmets on, let’s go with surprise since that is also the emotion I’m feeling right now.

“CORA, what in tartarus was that? Do you know anything about this? Why did it call me Scribe Crusader Ratchet?” I ask her in shock as her face seems to be unsurprised by this event at all. In fact, she appears to be laughing quite a bit.

“Surprise!” She says to my questions. “You were bestowed this rank by Miss Applejack herself while you were...sleeping,” she tells everyone. “You know how you were always tinkering with the Steel Ranger armor and helping them with their maintenance? Well, they apparently told her and she was quite impressed with the tweaks you made to them. So, she decided to make you an honorary member of the Steel Rangers.”

After a moment of silence from both the Rangers and myself I shout at her, “Really? Why didn’t you tell me sooner? Geez. Is there anything else that happened while I was asleep? Did I become a princess too?” I ask her sarcastically.

She puts on a straight face and says, “That would ruin the surprises. I think it would be more fun to inform you of things when you need to know them. Besides, this is a nice surprise after wandering through the wasteland, right?” She asks me.

I shake my head. “I don’t know. I’ve never even heard of the rank Scribe Crusader before. What am I supposed to do now? Am I a member of the Steel Rangers or am I a scientist?” I begin getting anxious and start prancing around on my hooves.

Iron clears his throat and says, “Why don’t we go talk with Elder Archimedes? We have to get debriefed anyway, might as well determine what your rank is exactly. Follow us.” He motions for me to follow him as he turns and begins walking away. The others keep looking at me for a moment before following after Iron.

I hesitate, but follow along. Not wanting to get into any trouble after having finally found the Steel Rangers. I follow them through the entryway of the Stable and the door closes behind us shortly after we move away from it.

We pass through a few hallways with large windows in them and I can see some of the rooms. There is an extremely large room that appears to have a track inside it. Some Rangers are running around it both with and without armor. The room across from it is another large room filled with weights and exercise equipment.

We continue through a few more hallways and I begin to hear gunfire. We soon pass through another hallway and I see the source of the gunfire. An enormous two story target range is filled with ponies shooting various weapons at targets. Across the hall there are various ponies in another room fighting each other with their bare hooves or using melee weapons like knives.

“Our training facilities are fairly top notch,” Iron says suddenly. “Each ranger undergoes monthly fitness and combat tests to ensure their combat readiness. Those who fail are punished with grueling fitness and combat schedules until they can pass the tests,” he explains as we continue walking.

As we continue, we pass medical areas, barracks, and finally arrive in a large circular room with various large screens on the walls. One unicorn buck is sitting on a raised platform in the middle surrounded by a circular desk with a terminal on it. Around the room, in front of the large screens and set into the floor are similar desks with ponies working at them.

“Welcome to the command center,” Iron says as we approach the center. “Elder Archimedes, Crusader Iron here for debriefing,” he addresses the pony in the center. The pony, cloaked in a dark blue robe looks up from the terminal and smiles. He is an older buck, probably in his sixties, with a gray coat and a white mane and beard.

“Ah, Iron, how’s my favorite scout and his team doing?” Elder Archimedes says with a playful tone. His tone surprises me since I felt most elders were usually serious and uptight. But this one seems, a bit lax.

“Really sir, you’ve been at this for thirty years and you are still way too relaxed about it,” Iron replies back to him. “The Ponyville area is still crawling with raiders, the ones that call themselves the Track Gang. We engaged with four of them today, killing them all after they refused to surrender or acted threateningly. This mare, Ratchet, killed a fifth before we rescued her from the rest of her attackers, bringing their casualties to eight.”

He pauses for a moment as Elder Archimedes pouts, but nods for him to continue. “We brought her along for debriefing and to question her about anything she might have discovered about them. Our scouting yielding no other significant details about their numbers or defences,” Iron finishes up.

The elder nods again before he says, “Good work as always. So then, Miss Ratchet, is it? Did you learn anything about their defences or numbers?” He addresses me, causing me to freeze up for a moment before responding.

“Nothing that would be too important,” I say, but think for a moment and continue, “However, judging by the fact only two of the ones I encountered were armed with guns while the other two had planks of wood, I would guess that they aren’t very well equipped. They also captured a mare while I was there. I...I couldn’t help her though,” I trail off with guilt in my voice.

“Well of course not,” The elder says abruptly. “You are just one mare against...four of them, i’m assuming?” I look at him with surprise. How did he know there were four of them? “Don’t look so surprised. We’ve been scouting them frequently and they always seem to travel in groups of four. And it is as you said, they appear to be poorly equipped. Anything we have scavenged from them has been in poor condition.”

“Well then, assuming there is nothing else, you can send her on her way after she rests up for the night. Give her some food and tend to any wounds she has as well,” Elder Archimedes says dismissively. However Iron speaks up before the elder goes back to his original task.

“There is another matter that requires your attention. Upon entering the base, the automated greeting recognized Ratchet. It identified her as Scribe Crusader Ratchet. According to Ratchet’s AI companion, this rank was granted to her by Miss Applejack herself,” Iron explains.

The elder seems to perk up at this news and addresses me, “Is this true Miss Ratchet? Miss Applejack herself? You do not look over thirty, so you must have encountered her recently, correct? Does she still live? Where is she? We must return to her side immediately.” Elder Archimedes’ relaxed tone changes into a serious one. Even Iron appears to be confused by this sudden change.

I hesitate before answering his questions, thinking of what exactly to say. “I never actually met her. However I heard that she was in Stable 2, and went there to find her and other Steel Rangers. But when I got there, they refused to open the door and said she had died,” I say apologetically.

The elder’s face twists into an odd expression as he says, “That’s it then. We are the last functioning Steel Rangers in the wasteland. Without her authority, we can’t rally the others. To think that our group would be the only rangers capable of helping Equestria.”

Confusion rises up in me as i’m forced to ask, “What do you mean the last? Surely there are others in other Stables or elsewhere in the wasteland?” He couldn’t mean that they were literally the last ones left, could he? “How many of there are you here anyway?” I ask.

His voice turns grave as he replies, “We number around sixty. Twelve are children and fifteen are scribes who are poor at combat. Our current fighting strength is thirty-three. However, I rarely venture out anymore, as my leadership is needed here. We barely have a full platoon, so our offensive capabilities are limited since we must defend our home as well.”

He then shakes his head and puts on a sour expression. “As for the other rangers,” he pauses for a moment, “There are other contingents. However the most of them have kept themselves sealed in their Stables and apparently aren’t going to open up any time soon. There are a few that exist in the wasteland, however they can barely be called Steel Rangers.”

I’m about to ask what he means but he elaborates before I can. “Apparently they have tossed aside the oaths of the Steel Rangers and attack anyone who possesses technology. Even civilians. We have never made contact with them, but travelers have told us tales of being attacked unprovoked.”

I think on his words for a moment before asking, “Couldn’t you go to the other Stables, open them up and regroup with the others?” They could also open Stable 2 and see if a new Ministry Mare for the Ministry of Wartime Technology has been decided. However he shakes his head.

“We received orders that we are not to open any Stables. Only the inhabitants can do that,” he explains. “Unlike our twisted clones on the surface, we follow our orders and oaths. And if Stable 2 refused to open its doors to you, we cannot make them.”

“But that doesn’t make any sense!” I yell at him. “What if they need help, or something bad happened inside of them?” I ask as anger wells up inside of me. I can understand following orders, but the surface is safe now, to an extent. If all the Steel Rangers worked together, they could remake Equestria what it once was.

Elder Archimedes lets out a sigh before addressing Iron, “Iron, you and your squad can go. I’ll speak to miss Ratchet in private. Ratchet, follow me to my private quarters.” He then looks towards one of the others in the room and says, “Bishop, you’re in charge while i’m gone.” He then starts walking towards a door opposite the one we came in.

Iron and the others head back the way we came. Arrow waves to me as she walks by and the twins give me a nod. Iron tells me something as he walks away, “I’ll see you when you’re done.” I hesitate but quickly follow the elder.

He leads me through a few hallways and soon enters through a door labeled as Elder’s Quarters. As we enter, I see the room is similar in style to the rest of the Stable. It has a desk with a terminal on it against one wall and a coffee table sits between two couches in the middle of the room.

Various shelves filled with books and equipment line the walls and an open door seemingly leads to a bedroom. Elder Archimedes sits on one of the couches and gestures for me to sit across from him. I do so and welcome the softness of the couch compared to the dirt I’ve been sleeping on. As I get comfortable, the elder begins to speak.

“I hope you are comfortable, because this might take some time to explain. About this Stable and about you. Since you previously asked why we wouldn’t open Stables, I’ll start with our history. It begins before the Megaspells fell,” he begins.

“There are twenty-six of us in Stable 36, including Iron and myself, who were Initiates in the Steel Rangers. We came from different locations and backgrounds, both mares and stallions, earth ponies and unicorns, future Scribes and future Knights. A random assortment of Initiates who knew absolutely nothing about each other, let alone what it meant to be a Steel Ranger. We were all around twenty years old, I was one of the oldest at twenty-five,” he explains.

“The twenty-six of us were gathered here shortly before the Megaspells fell and we were sealed inside this Stable. We were told nothing and no leadership or guidance was given to us. A few hours after we entered a pre-recorded message was played over the system. Here, i will play it for you,” he says as he gets up.

He walks from the couch to the terminal and presses a few buttons on it with his magic before he returns to the couch and a voice starts to play.

===~+~===

Attention Steel Ranger Initiates of Stable 36. You have been selected as part of a Stable-Tec experiment. You are all Initiates of equal standing within the Steel Rangers. Some of you were training to be Scribes and some of you Knights. However, starting today you will begin determining which of you will be a Steel Ranger Elder.

Around this Elder a command structure must be erected like any normal Steel Ranger chapter. You may use any means necessary to decide which among you will be Elder. You may determine your Elder using democracy, tests, combat, or any other methods. While in this Stable, you will not be held responsible for any actions you commit.

Once an Elder has been determined, they can enter the Elder’s Chambers and register their DNA with the system. This system will monitor your vitals. In the event of an Elder’s death, a new one must be selected. This Stable will remain locked until a single Elder remains in their position for thirty years.

Additionally, various hidden parameters have been put in place to ensure the system is not cheated. The only rule is that the Elder must be alive and have free will for thirty years. Good luck, and enjoy your new top of the line Stable by Stable-Tec! Message will repeat.

===~+~===

Elder Archimedes switches the recording off before it plays again. “As you can see, we were pit against each other. However, while the others were arguing amongst themselves for the first few weeks, I explored the facility and began maintaining it. I honestly had no interest in becoming the Elder back then,” he tells me.

“As time continued, I began to get recognized around the Stable as the one who wasn’t fighting to be Elder and was instead maintaining our weapons, armor, and facilities. They would let me work around them instead of treating me with suspicion. Up to this point, we had managed to stay relatively civilized and avoided throwing any punches,” his tone gets bitter.

“About two months had passed and I had begun to pass the time when I wasn’t cleaning or maintaining the facility by reading the Steel Ranger Charter that details all of our rules and regulations. However the others continued to bicker among themselves. Some were getting especially heated in their arguments,” he explains as his face twists into a look of disgust.

“Shortly after, while I was cleaning in the armory, I heard a few gunshots and some screams. Almost without thinking I put on a suit of our armor the way our books instructed and grabbed a rifle, loading it before heading to the source of the gunshots,” at this moment, his face has a look of sorrow on it.

“When I arrived in the mess hall, I saw every other Initiate gathered near the middle. Somepony was shouting threats as the others looked on, but I couldn’t see who it was past the crowd. I began walking towards them, as I neared a few towards the back of the crowd turned and saw me,” he shakes his head.

“It was like one of those moments you hear about. The crowd slowly parted to let me through and into the center. Some gasped, others simply stood aside. When I reached the center, I saw one of us standing over the bodies of two more, a snarl on his muzzle. I looked at my dead comrades and back at the one with the gun,” Elder Archimedes let out a sigh.

“I asked him if he killed them, and he said that he did. He then demanded my loyalty and that he be made Elder. Instead, I repeated the words in our charter regarding the killing of fellow Steel Rangers. If any shall kill a comrade, the punishment is execution,” he pauses for a moment before continuing.

“I raised my rifle and shot him in the head. There was no hesitation in my actions, it was as though I was on autopilot. I turned around from his body and walked through the crowd. Before leaving the mess hall I gave my first command. Incinerate the two he killed, and leave his body to rot somewhere,” he shakes his head.

“I don’t know why, but a few days later they elected me Elder unanimously. I don’t know if it was because of the brutal display I put on, my knowledge of our charter, or the fact I saved them. However, I was granted full access to the Elder’s Chambers on that day,” his expression softens a bit.

“From that day everyone grew closer, however. There was no more bickering and everyone began working together. Some even formed romantic relationships. We began training in and learning the ways of the Steel Rangers. In my spare time, I read the logs on the Elder’s terminal. Stable-Tec had included information for after an Elder had been elected,” he gestures towards the terminal on the desk.

“It had a roster of everyone in the Stable, as well as information regarding Steel Ranger tactics and how Elders normally operated things. It was like an Elder training manual. It also had a countdown that started from thirty years for when the Stable would unlock,” the elder shrugs.

“Things went on for thirty years peacefully. When the time ran out, a single word was played over the PA system: Congratulations. Some sounds like confetti and firecrackers went off as it said this. Then, a single command appeared on my terminal: Allow Stable entry/exit.”

“However, a few other documents appeared on my terminal. The first was a command to never open another Stable. The other documents that appeared were the rosters of the other Steel Ranger chapters and the statuses of their facilities,” the elder let out another sigh.

“As I said previously, most have the status of Lockdown. I don’t know their locations anyway. However, I told you this story to explain why we will not open the Stables and disregard that order. Our Stable experienced what it is like to have no orders, to have no one in charge. Once I become Elder, we decided to follow our leaders and our orders, regardless of our feelings of them. We do not want to repeat the chaos we once lived in,” Elder Archimedes explains.

After having listened to his story, I can sort of understand his thoughts. I don’t necessarily agree with them, but I can understand. However, if these are the only Steel Rangers I can meet who won’t kill me outright, I have no choice but to seek their help. “Thank you for telling me,” I say to him.

“Not at all. Remembering our history helps us to keep from repeating it,” he says. “Without keeping to our oaths we are nothing more than the raiders we try to wipe out. However, enough about us for now. I’m sure you are curious about your rank and what happens next.”

I nod while saying, “Yes Elder. I had no idea until today that I was given an honorary rank in the Steel Rangers. But, now that I know about it, I’m not sure what I should do, or have to do.”

Elder Archimedes gets up from the couch again and goes to his terminal, sitting in the chair at the desk. “In the command center, I searched for your name after hearing this news. Our database has access to every Steel Ranger rosters. If you are a member, it would have you listed, and I did in fact find you listed. However, I didn’t have the time to look at it there in too much depth,” he says as he types in some commands to the terminal.

I get up from the couch and go stand beside him so I can see the terminal screen. “So I am actually a member? Does it give any more details?” I ask, suddenly filled with curiosity.

After punching in a few more commands, the Elder brings up an information screen that has my picture in the upper right of it. “Here is your dossier. It will have all the information regarding your current status. Let’s take a look, shall we?” He looks at me as if asking permission and I give him a nod.

“Let’s see. It says here that you are...sixty-two years old?” He says as his eyes go wide and he turns to look at me. “You don’t look a day over thirty. Interesting. Well, you can explain that later. Let’s keep reading.”

We both look at the screen and read the information that has been collected about me. It has some slight background information, where I was born, the schools I attended, and when I began to work for the Ministry of Magic. It also starts to talk about my time working for the Ministry of Magic, however most of the information has been censored out with a message saying, “Ministry Mare Access Only” in various places.

Some of the last information is related to the Steel Rangers. It mentions the fact that I would work on the armor that belonged to the rangers assigned to me and that quite a few of the upgrades were interesting. It mentioned a few of them and also that the rangers’ assigned to me recommended me for honorary status.

The last bit of information is in regards to my specific function within the Steel Rangers and is as follows, “The mare known as Ratchet is to be given the special rank of Scribe Crusader, coming with the combined privileges of both Scribes and Crusaders, including the ability to lead a squad of up to eight Knights.”

It goes on to say, “In addition, Scribe Crusader Ratchet is granted the ability to work autonomously and is not bound to any specific Steel Ranger contingent. With the exception that an Elder must first approve her command of any rangers assigned to her as well as equipment acquisition. As such, she has the same freedom of a Star Paladin, however none of the authority or access privileges.”

Elder Archimedes puts a hoof to his chin, scratching his beard. “Interesting,” he says. “A special rank combining the privileges of two. Unoriginal name, just combining them together, but if Miss Applejack came up with it…” he trails off for a moment.

“Very well,” he says suddenly. “As it says, you are free to do as you want. I’ll grant you access to any equipment you want, assuming you can buy or trade for it. However, I suppose I should give you some basic gear to help you survive free of charge…” he trails off again as he scratches his beard.

I interject abruptly, “I couldn’t sir! I’ll buy or trade for anything I need. Given the state of the wasteland, i’m assuming there is no way to create new equipment, right? I would feel bad taking them for free.” A thought strikes me suddenly. “Actually, instead of giving me equipment, would you mind letting me stay here for a while and train with it? If today was an indication, I need more training with weapons.”

Elder Archimedes takes his hoof from his chin and says, “If you’re certain you don’t want anything and would rather train, I won’t be opposed to that. In fact, I can have Iron and his squad help you with your training. He can also teach you how to command those under you, should you ever want to command a squad.”

I nod. “That would be great. I would also like to help you fight the Track Gang in Ponyville. That mare they captured...I want to save her,” I explain to him. “I’ll also work while i’m here to earn my keep. I can maintain your armor and weapons, clean, or anything else you need done.”

The Elder waves his hoof. “I appreciate your enthusiasm and your determination to save that mare. You certainly are a good fit for the Steel Rangers,” he lets out a chuckle. However his expression quickly turns serious. “I have just met you today. I cannot say if I completely trust you yet, but time will tell. Stable 36 is fitted with security cameras covering most of the public space. Know that we will be watching you.”

I nod, acknowledging his concern. “I don’t mean for this to come off as rude, but for the same reason I can’t yet tell you why I look so young. I hope that we can earn each other’s trust and in time I can tell you.”

Elder Archimedes narrows his eyes for a moment before a smile appears on his muzzle. “I’m glad we have an understanding. I shall make the necessary arrangements for you to live here for a while. You should go find Iron, he will show you around. Despite his rank, he is one of my most trusted friends. He just cannot lead large numbers.”

I let out a slight chuckle at his remark about Iron before I thank him for his time and exit his chambers. Now then, my next issue is where in this facility is Iron going to be?

===~+~===

No Levels Gained.
New Quest Acquired: “Prisoner Rescue”

Author's Note

Ratchet gains her first quest!

Chapter 5: Insight

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 7 - Scavenge

“Sometimes all that you can do is attempt to scavenge what you have left.”

===~+~===

“Rangers! We stand here in honor of our fallen brother, Crusader Iron! Iron was an honorable buck who put others before himself. You have all heard the stories and some of you have even had the privilege to see him in action. If everypony in the wastes were as selfless as Iron, it would be a better place and maybe we wouldn’t need to go into battle,” Elder Archimedes addresses every ranger from Stable 36.

We are all gathered outside the back of the farmhouse around a freshly dug grave. Three older graves lay beside it. Every ranger is clad in their armor and robes, standing at attention as we listen to the Elder talk. I can only watch blankly as he talks.

When we returned from Ponyville yesterday, Iron’s body was cleaned and prepared for this funeral. After the debriefing I had taken refuge on my cot, soaking it with my tears and regrets. I kept thinking about how this was somehow my fault and the moment of his death ran through my mind over and over again.

I had been inconsolable up until the funeral when Arrow came to get me. CORA and my PipBuck had also remained silent, and this only added to my despair. However, by the time Iron’s funeral came around, I had no more tears to shed and could only look on sadly.

“The raiders of the Track Gang are no more and their hostages have been rescued,” the Elder continues, “This accomplishment is thanks in no small part to Crusader Iron. A lot of us grew up with Iron, and he will not soon be forgotten. We will tell tales of him for generations to come. Keeping him in your memories, let us observe a moment of silence for our fallen brother.”

The rangers bow their heads as silence follow the Elder’s words. After a few moments pass the Elder speaks up again, “Alright rangers, at ease.” The rangers relax a bit as the Elder continues, “I think we should hear from Scribe Crusader Ratchet before we end Iron’s service. We have all known Iron for a long time, but she had only met him. Ratchet, if you would?”

Caught off guard, I hesitantly take a step forward as Elder Archimedes motions me up. After I take a place beside him, he nods his head for me to begin. I think for a moment and swallow the lump in my throat as I look out at the rangers before me.

“I didn’t know Crusader Iron for very long,” I begin. “However, in that small time I learned what kind of pony he was. He stood up for what he believed and tried to carry everything on his shoulders. The night before the battle, Iron told me about his exploits, about how he earned his scars. Everything from the very first battle once the Stable opened,” I pause for a moment to collect myself.

“Elder Archimedes said that if everyone was like Iron, the wasteland would be a better place. However, we shouldn’t try to be like Iron.” As I say this, I notice a lot of the rangers glaring at me. I take a breath and continue, “He wouldn’t want us to be like him. He told me about the things he has seen and done, and after getting to know him, I know he wouldn’t wish those things on anyone.”

I shake my head. “We shouldn’t try to be like him, but aim to be better than him. Iron tried to carry all of our lives on his shoulders. But each of us should help to carry that burden and protect each other like Iron protected all of us. He never thought of himself as a hero, but simply as somepony doing what was right. But to me, he is a hero.”

I can’t think of anything else to say so I look to the Elder, who nods and begins clapping his hooves together. The other rangers quickly follow in clapping until he motions for them to stop and addresses them once again.

“Rangers, Ratchet’s words could not have been any truer. In her short time with us, she had truly become one of us. This concludes Iron’s funeral service. Take the next few days to remember him however you wish. Guards will still need to be posted, however,” Elder Archimedes announces.

As he finishes up, and the rangers start to leave, something wet hits my nose. I recoil for a moment before I look up. Snow has started to fall. I look at it mournfully until I notice the Elder step up beside me.

“The heavens themselves are remembering Iron,” he says. “When you are ready, come by my room. No hurry,” he tells me as he pats me on the shoulder. I don’t move my gaze from the falling snow even as he beings to walk away.

===~+~===

“Ah! Ratchet, good. I think it is time we talk,” Elder Archimedes says as soon as I step inside. He motions towards the couches as he sits on one of them. I walk over and sit across from him.

“Do you remember our talk about trust a while ago?” He asks me. I nod in response. “Good. I wanted to say that I think I trust. It isn’t just from watching you and hearing about how you carried yourself in the field, either. I just have to ask you one thing. What did Iron tell you about our first battle?”

I raise an eyebrow and say, “He told me a lot. About finding the raiders, about losing control of the situation, and about Lily taking over for us. He also mentioned the three rangers and died in the fight. He said that is why he always risked himself for others.”

Elder Archimedes nods as I finish telling him. “Very good. Iron wouldn’t have told you about that if he didn’t trust you. Not many know about it.” I raise my hoof to object since Iron was drunk at the time, but the Elder waves his hoof dismissively. “I know what you’re thinking. And even drunk, Iron would never have told anyone unless he trusted them.”

“However, now that you have gained my trust there is the question of if I have yours. I would like to think that I have, and moving forward I would like for us to trust each other,” Elder Archimedes explains.

“Elder,” I tell him, “you haven’t done anything that would lead me to distrust you. In fact, you have been quite helpful and more than accommodating. To show that I trust you, I will tell you about my past and why I look so young.”

I take a breath before going on. “I lived before the Megaspells fell and used to work for the Ministry of Arcane Sciences. I was working on a system to preserve ponies who would later be brought back when they were needed using cryogenics. On the day of our first test, I climbed into the chamber. When I woke up, the Megaspells had fallen and my lab was in a poor state.”

“That is why I want to borrow you’re mining equipment to clear the tunnels of my lab and begin restoring it. If nothing else, I might find something that can still be of use to the ponies of the wasteland,” I explain.

“Oh,” The Elder says with an odd lack of surprise, “looks like Arrow won the bet. My caps were on genetic modification.” he lets out a chuckle as he says this.

I recall Iron’s words regarding a bet on how I looked so young. “Seriously?” I exclaim. “Even you took a stake in the bet? Just how many others were betting on this?” I ask him, astonished.

“Oh you know, it became a running thing throughout the ranks. Kept other things off their minds, you know? But, now that we trust each other, let’s get to a bit of business, shall we?” Elder Archimedes asks rhetorically. “So. The hostages from Ponyville have all left, aside from Rose. Her leg was fairly mangled, as you know. While we did what we could, it will take her some time until she recovers enough to leave.”

“About that, Elder,” I speak up. “When she does recover, I would like to escort her to her next destination. It would give me a good reason to see the rest of what Equestria has become. I also want to make sure she gets there safely,” I tell him.

“Indeed…” The Elder thinks for a moment then says, “Very well. I will let you know when she has recovered. Now, on to another subject. I do not currently have anyone qualified to take Iron’s place as a Crusader. As such, Lynx Squad will be broken up and set to work under other Crusaders.” He pauses for a moment before continuing.

“However, I would like them to stick together as they work well together. That leaves me with one option, and that is to put them under your command,” Elder Archimedes says. “Now, before you answer, I know you don’t have much experience leading soldiers. So it is entirely up to you. I won’t force you into any battles,” he tells me.

His offer renders me speechless for a few moments before I manage to say, “But wouldn’t having three of your soldiers out of the fight be detrimental? I mean, what if you face another large, well armed force? You are already short on combatants as it is.”

He nods, acknowledging my concerns. “To be honest Ratchet, for many of those born in this Stable, they have no idea what the outside world contains. Most long range scouting is done by older, more trained rangers. Very few of the young ones have gone further than Ponyville,” Elder Archimedes explains.

“I’m willing to let these three young ones leave, under your command so that all of you can attain a mutually beneficial growth. They will learn of the wasteland and you will learn to lead. I fear for the future of our contingent if our future generations know nothing about the vast expanses of Equestria,” he says with a sigh.

“With so many already established squads, getting new fighters experience is a challenge I have been pondering for a few months now. I plan to begin mixing up the squads, but I think in you particular case I would prefer to keep Lynx Squad together,” Elder Archimedes tells me. “So, what do you say?”

“What would I do? Just lead them around aimlessly?” I ask him. To be honest, I would like to have some company since CORA has appeared to have….Regardless, help is always good. However, after losing Iron and CORA, I’m not sure I can handle losing anyone else.

“You have the same freedoms of a Star Paladin. What you do is entirely up to you. I’m sure you had some other plans if you didn’t find us. If nothing else, go see other cities, meet the inhabitants of the wasteland, and help out where you can,” he says with a smile. “We are Steel Rangers, after all, helping Equestria’s citizens is what we do.”

I think about what he has said and about my feelings on the matter. After weighing the pros and cons I decide, “Ok. I’ll lead Lynx Squad. For our first mission, we will begin to fix up my lab. Our second mission will begin when you contact us after Rose has recovered, we will escort her to her destination.” As I explain my plan to him, I begin to gain confidence in my choice.

“Very good!” He says with a wide grin, taking on his more cheerful tone he usually has. “Now then, I expect you will be heading out to your lab tomorrow, correct? Oh yes, speaking of, where is it located?” He asks, floating over a map as he does so. He unfurls it on the table between us.

I look over the map for a moment before pointing to a place just west of Canterlot. “Right here,” I say, placing my hoof on the map. “The entrance to it is under a steel shack along the road. There are a few run down buildings around it as well. You’ll know you found it if you see the graves beside the shack,” I tell him.

“Graves?” Elder Archimedes asks as he makes a mark on the map where I indicated.

“When I woke up, CORA told me a few of my lab members tried to leave the Stable before the radiation went down. They died right outside one of the bulkheads. I buried their remains before I left,” I explain sadly, recalling the task.

“I see,” He says as he puts the map away. “Well, you aren’t too far from us. You will definitely be in radio range. We will definitely equip you with one, perhaps two, since they can sometimes be buggy. In addition to your honorary armor,” the Elder says with a slight sadness in his voice.

“Wait, what armor? I told you I didn’t want any before,” I remind him. More specifically, I didn’t want to take something they could use better without giving them something in return.

“I know,” he says with a sigh. “However, I’m talking about Iron’s armor. It has been patched up, and I know he would want you to have it, especially as the new leader of Lynx Squad. Though, we will need a new…” he pauses for a moment before saying, “helmet. And, your squad will be the first to get their armor marked.”

“What do you mean marked?” I ask him.

“I thought that when I get the new squads worked out, branding the armors with their squad insignias would help build a sense of comradery. Lynx Squad’s armor will bear the print of a Lynx paw. These insignia will also help us stand out from the...other...Steel Rangers,” He says with a hint of malice in his voice.

I sigh before replying, “If it is Iron’s armor, I’ll accept it. However, I might not wear it all the time and I’ll probably make various upgrades to it. Especially to integrate it with my,” I look sadly at my PipBuck as I continue, “Pipbuck…”

Elder Archimedes sighs, “It still hasn’t turned back on, has it? I’d offer our help in looking at it, but I think that you have more experience with PipBucks than anyone here. You said that CORA is based off your own personality, right? If that is the case, don’t rule her out just yet.”

I nod in agreement with his words. “Right. If anyone can fight the virus, it’s her. I tried looking at the coding when I got back, but it was a complete mess and unreadable. I made sure to isolate the terminal I used, by the way,” I tell him.

He gives me a smile as he says, “Of course. Now then, rest up. Today I will prepare your squad’s armor, radios, and the mining equipment you want to barrow. Come morning, you can set off for your lab. I suppose I should also notify your squad about your leadership, as well.” Elder Archimedes lets out a long sigh. “Back to work, I suppose.”

He gets up from the couch and motions for me to follow him to the door. Standing next to it, he nods for me to leave. Once I exit the room, he calls after me as I walk down the hallway, “Ratchet, we will fight in Iron’s memory, like the others who fell before him. Equestria will become peaceful again.”

===~+~===

The following morning, Lynx Squad gathers its gear and meets up at the entrance. I begrudgingly wear the Power Armor, minus the leg armor that my PipBuck is on. Sure, I could have just taken the PipBuck off, but doing so feels...odd now. I also keep the helmet off and in my bag, since I’m not that use to wearing it yet. Having something covering my horn just feels wrong to me.

Thunder has all of his equipment, in addition to the mining drill the Elder is lending us. Lightning is carrying our radios and a portion of the equipment the Elder says all scouting parties get. Bedrolls, a supply of food, and a map. What Lightning isn’t carrying, Arrow and I split up between ourselves.

As we are about to set out, Elder Archimedes calls out to us. “One more thing, Ratchet,” He says as I turn back to look at him, barely catching Raptor Blood in my magic before it hit me in the muzzle. “I don’t want this here. I know you’re not good with larger weapons yet, so destroy it, use it, sell it, do with it what you will. I just do not want it in my Stable any longer,” he tells me.

“Thank you,” I reply, “I’ll figure something out for it. Just remember Elder, radio us when Rose is healed and ready to set out. We’ll come and escort her home.” The Elder smiles at me as he raises a hoof to wave us goodbye.

“Of course. The instant she is ready, you’ll know,” The Elder says with a chuckle. “Well, don’t let me keep you, we’ll see you soon.” I give him a nod before turning and leading everyone else out of the basement.

After we get a good distance from the house I speak up, “The walk won’t be too long, my lab is only about an hour southeast of here. I’m pretty sure I can find it without my PipBuck’s marker.”

“Pretty sure?” Thunder says with a groan. “In other words, we are going to be wandering around between here and Canterlot till we stumble upon it, right?” He asks letting out a sigh.

“No,” I tell him, rolling my eyes. “It is along a road and should be hard to miss in the daylight.” As I say this I realize that the snow that fell during Iron’s funeral is nowhere to be seen. It was a bit early in the year for snowfall, usually we have about a month before the first snowfall. At least, in the old world we did.

“Say what you will, Ratchet,” Thunder retorts, “but you aren’t the one carrying the heavy ass drill.” He groans again as he shifts the weight of the drill.

Lightning snarks back at him, “Oh please, you are the one who volunteered to carry it. Claiming you were the strongest out of all of us and such. And Scribe Crusader Ratchet is our leader now, you should address her as such.

I shake my head, “No, please. Ratchet is just fine, no need for formalities. I’m your leader, but also your friend, right? There is no need to be so strict.” Iron hadn’t used titles and I wasn’t really much for them myself, even my old lab assistants just called me Ratchet.

“...Ratchet…” I barely hear Arrow mutter. It makes me smile for some reason.

“Anyhow, I’ve never broken a bone. How long do you think Rose will take to heal?” I ask them. While want her to get better fast, I also want to see if I can get my lab working.

“Well, her leg was in pretty bad shape. The raiders cared for it poorly. There is only so much we can do with the medical technology left, and we refuse to use drugs like hydra which can have negative effects if used frequently,” Lightning says rather matter-of-factly.

“Honestly, I’d say we have around two weeks for her leg to heal and then another week or so until she can use it properly,” he continues. “So we can expect just less than a month to get your lab working.”

Thunder groans and says, “Why do you even want to fix it? Didn’t you say it was just a pre-apocalypse experiment? Seems our time might be better used elsewhere.”

“Well,” I reply, “with the whole apocalypse happening, it is really the only place I can call home now. The rangers have been friendly to me, but Stable 36 feels unfamiliar to me. Also, some of my worker’s bodies are still trapped behind the rubble. I owe them a proper burial at the least.”

As I tell them this, another thought occurs to me. “Besides, my lab has a generator that can provide a lot of power for a long time. It also has facilities to create new things, assuming its stock of materials hasn’t been destroyed,” I tell them.

“Fair enough,” Thunder says. “At least you aren’t going to use it to escape into like the other rangers.” The malice in his voice when mentioning the other rangers is very obvious.

“Of course I wouldn’t hide in my lab. I want to help the wasteland, not-” I stop mid sentence as I hear a faint sound. It sounded like a voice. Coming to a stop, I perk my ears up and listen for a few moments.

“...chet…” I hear it again. It started out barely audible but louder as if it had gotten closer. I look around for the source of the voice, but find nothing.

“Ra-a-a-atche-e-e-et, I-I-I…” The voice says again. It has an almost synthetic sound to it and appears to be glitching up. A sudden realization strikes me as I bring my PipBuck up to my face. Its screen is flickering between off and the normal icy blue it displays.

“CORA?!” I almost shout into the PipBuck. “That’s you, right? Are you ok?” I frantically press at a few buttons trying to get the PipBuck to stay on like normal. After a moment, the display flashing blue and stays lit up.

“Ratch-ch-chet-t-t…” a loud static pop follows what I hope is CORA’s voice and my PipBuck goes quiet for a few panic filled moments. However the voice comes out again after a while, sounding less synthetic and without any glitches. “Ratchet! I’m back!” CORA shouts triumphantly.

“CORA!” I shout gleefully back at her. “I thought you were gone! What happened? Are you ok now?” I ask her.

“I’m alright!” She declares. “But, i can’t say the same about your PipBuck’s functions,” she tells me with a hint of guilt in her voice. “Unfortunately, I couldn’t save all of its functions from the virus,” she says.

I shake my head. “That’s fine, CORA. All that matters is that you are alright. We are heading back to the lab, right now. Why don’t you tell us about what happened while we walk?” I ask her.

“Sure! You see, when the virus attacked, it put me on the defensive. It began corrupting systems and began attempting to assault my coding. It was at that moment I began screaming out and ultimately shut down the PipBuck systems in an attempt to isolate it from me,” she states.

We continue walking and after a short time my vision suddenly flashing a blinding white. “Ah! What the hell was that?” I yell. But the others don’t seem to be acting like anything is wrong. “Wait a moment...was that…” I begin to ask, but CORA jumps in with an answer.

“That’s correct! I booted up your HUD. But, like I said, when the virus attacked, it corrupted a lot of the remaining systems. You’ll notice the only thing you see in your vision now is the EFS compass and me,” CORA tells me with a wave of her hoof.

“The inventory management system was beyond recovery, so it cannot list your ammo anymore. Also, the EFS will no longer display any living entities. It has become an ordinary compass,” she adds.

“Anyhow, once I was able to begin fighting the virus, I set up a firewall around myself and then attempted to contain the other systems as well. It hadn’t focused on one specific system, but spread out the damage among most of them. By the time I got to the EFS and the Data Storage systems, much of the code had already been corrupted,” she says with a scowl on her face.

“I destroyed the corrupted code I couldn’t salvage and then firewalled what remained. Most of the files we got from Railspike’s terminal were lost. I prioritized the proof of his dealings with Grimoire, however. Additionally, I saved the systems that light up the PipBuck so you can see better and that held your map data, so it should still be functioning about the same as it was before,” she says as she nods her head.

“When I managed to firewall everything that was left, I trapped the virus where it currently was, the SATS coding. I blocked it off and completely purged that section of coding from the system. I’ve been trying to restore the remaining functions since then,” CORA tells me as she yawns.

“I’ll summarize your remaining systems, then i’m going to sleep. Well, the AP equivalent of sleep anyhow. You currently have the Compass, Light, Data Storage, Radio, and myself! Everything else has been corrupted, purged, or destroyed. Anyhow, I’m going to sleep now. I’ll see you all later!” She declares and then her face disappears from my vision.

“Well, that was interesting. But I’m glad she’s safe,” I say with a smile. CORA still being here makes me feel a lot better than before. This is also the first time she has mentioned sleeping though. I wonder if that’s what she was doing all those times when she was oddly quiet.

“Yea..how much further?” Thunder asks for what feels like the hundredth time. He groans and shifts the drill on his back.

“Actually…” I pull up the PipBuck’s map and take a look. “It should be just over this hill,” I tell him. After a few moments we make it up the hill we were climbing and look down at the road that runs to Canterlot and goes past the shed my lab’s entrance is hidden in.

“It’s right there,” I tell them as I point of hoof at the shed. They begin walking past me as my hoof is sticking out. I however am stuck standing there looking over the three structures in front of me.

The shed I came out of, the house I found that family in, and the house that nearly collapsed on top of me. It seems like forever ago and compared to how I was back then, I’m almost like a different person. I hadn’t used a gun before, but now I’ve killed ponies. I’ve seen ponies die in front of me.

I shake my head to clear my thoughts and catch up with the others. “I hope it looks better on the inside,” Thunder remarks.

Lightning rolls his eyes, “It is a lab, brother, of course it will look better inside. The outside is just to make it look inconspicuous.”

“Actually, the inside is kind of a mess right now. A few decades of dust, a hallway collapse, and my associates made a bit of a mess before they died. But, it won’t take much to clean it up,” I tell them.

We reach the shed and I open the hidden hatch in the floor. As we climb down, they turn on their head lamps and illuminate the pitch black tunnel. “Holy fuck, it really is like a Stable down here. And that bulkhead, for Luna’s sake, it's been blown off it’ hinges,” Thunder remarks.

“Yea, that was the Rangers that tried to leave the lab before the radiation went down. They made it to the next door, but died there,” I tell him. We continue past the broken bulkhead and begin walking down the longer part of the tunnel. As we near the next one, Lightning speaks up.

“That armor over there, that’s ranger armor. They are the part of your staff, right?” Lightning asks.

“Yea, it is just armor now though. I buried their remains in the graves outside the shed,” I answer. Compared to the last time I was in here with only my PipBuck to light it up, I don’t feel the strange terror and unease I felt while alone.

As we get closer to them I say, “Once we drop off our gear, we should really collect the armor and bring it in with us. I didn’t have time to look it over when I left, but it might have something useful.”

Thunder nods but says, “That’s if we can even get in. These doors are powered, aren’t they? We going to blow it like the previous door?”

“Actually,” I speak up to stop Thunder from shooting the door. “I think there is a mechanical release on the panel,” I say as I walk up to the control panel. “I just have to input the code for it...and…” I magically put in the code and hit the release button. As I do so, a loud hiss emits from the door.

“Ok, let’s push it open,” I tell them as I walk up to the bulkhead and brace myself to push it open. The others take their places against the door and we begin to push it open. For a few moments, the door doesn’t move, but after few tries it begins to push back into the hallway.

Once we get it as far back as it will go, we begin rolling it into the slot in the wall. We push it just far enough of the way to get through it. “Celestia those doors are heavy,” Thunder pants. “I mean, I knew they were but geez. Thank Luna for power armor. That would have been impossible otherwise.”

“This is one of the few times we agree on something,” Lightning says, panting as well. “Now then let’s unload...our...gear…” He trails off as he walks through the gap we made and gets into the next part of the hallway. “There is another bulkhead!? Are you kidding me!” He shouts.

With no small amount of complaining about the architect’s decision to put in so many bulkheads, we repeat the process on this one as well. Once we get this one however, we all collapse onto the floor gasping for breath.

“I’m really glad...I have you all...with me…” I tell them between breaths. After a few moments of recuperating, we pick ourselves up and continue into my lab. As we wind through the halls, nothing has really changed since I left. Which is probably a good thing.

Soon, we reach the clinic and unload our gear. “Thank Luna…” Thunder says as he sets the drill on the ground. “That fucker was heavy.”

“We know,” Lightning replies snarkily, “you told us that countless times.” Thunder shoots him a glare as he chuckles.

“Ok everypony, this will be our home for a while. Pick a cot and take a breather. I hope you don’t mind the dark, since we don’t have any power for lights yet. When we are all rested up, we can bring in that armor, start clearing the hallways, and cleaning up around here,” I tell them.

“My goal is to have the lab running before the Elder contacts us. We have about month, so let’s see what we can do. Our priority is power, everything else is secondary. Let me tell you the layout quick,” I tell them as we unpack.

“Out of the clinic and to the left is the armory, experiment chamber, and the Canterlot exit. With Canterlot irradiated, don’t go down that hallway. It is the one that branches to the left. Out of the clinic and to the right is the entrance we came from and a collapsed tunnel,” I begin explaining.

“Through that tunnel if you keep going straight, you will find the power room. Along that route on your left will be the workshop and on your right will be the chemical and material storage and experimentation lab,” I continue.

“If you turn down the only other hallway, it will lead you to the offices and sleeping quarters. I have my own office at the end of the hallway, and right before it is a hallway leading to the other offices and the sleeping quarters,” I finish up the mental tour.

“Ah, I see,” Lightning says. “Keeping the main experiment chamber as far from the generator and other labs as possible. Good idea, unlike the bulkheads.” Arrow giggles at that remark as Thunder nods in agreement.

“Exactly!” I reply. “So, let’s get to work, shall we?”

Author's Note

Hey folks, this will be the last chapter for a bit. With college starting back up for me, I've had less time to write. So, I decided to end this chapter on a non-cliffhanger note.

That being said, when I DO have spare time, I'll continue to write, but I just have little time to do so. Imagine the break between chapters as them repairing the lab and what not. The next chapter will begin shortly before the Elder contacts them.

In the mean time, read some other great FoE fanfics like Merchants of Hope or The Long Winter. Project Horizons also just finished, so now's a good chance to read that if you haven't.

Chapter 8 - Let There Be Light

“With power, comes progress.”

===~+~===

With the sound of drilling ever constant in my ears, focusing on reworking my suit’s new wiring was hard. Considering Thunder was now drilling right on the other side of the wall from me now, it was no surprise at just how loud it was, even with the workshop’s door closed. I began to think about how far we had come in restoring the lab to distract myself from the noise.

After breaking through the initial pile of rubble, we gained access to the workshop and material storage rooms. However, more rubble blocked the way to the generator and the offices. It had taken only a few more days to gain access to the generator, and luckily it was a quick fix. Just had to replace a blown gasket, replace a fuse, and and undo the failsafe both those issues triggered.

Once the power was restored, we set about thoroughly cleaning the lab of dust and debris. It was a challenge, but we also got most of the cameras, PA system, and turrets working again as well. With the visuals restored, I put CORA back into the system so she could monitor it for us.

Due to the neglect of the generator, CORA reported the efficiency dropped by 13%. However, it would still provide us constant power for another few hundred years. With nothing to worry about in terms of sustainability, I began to focus on tinkering in the workshop, which brings us to this moment.

Thankfully, the lifts used to support the empty power armor of my previous crew still functions and I have their armor and my own suspended from them. I don’t like the current power armor that I have, and I am determined to customize it. Especially so it can fit around my PipBuck.

I drew up some plans for the modifications I want to make and began pulling the suits apart. A fair amount of the armor my crew wore when they went outside had rusted from time. However, most of the interior components remain functional. Only after completely dismantling all the suits and laying the usable components in front of me to see, taking up most of the floor space I might add, did I begin building my new armor.

I melted down the spare armor and metal from storage to form new components and armor segments. I kept most of Iron’s old armor the same, only cutting through parts of it to create more segmentation.

One thing that bugs me about the ranger armor is how hard it is to put on. Even with magic it can take a good few minutes to get it all situated. I decided to resolve this issue by splitting the most of the suit in half down to the hooves. I welded the helmet on the body of the armor as well before doing this.

Now, the armor is one whole piece instead of multiple. The underside, legs, and neck remained whole, up to the helmet anyhow. The suit would essentially split open along the back and allow me to slip in and out of it, trigger a switch, and have it close tightly around me. Once I got the wiring correct, anyhow.

I’d simply slide my legs into the leg holes just like socks, aside from my front left leg armor, which swings out so my PipBuck can fit inside a screen sized hole I cut in it. It then secures shut like the rest of the armor does.

And speaking of armor, using the extra metal I added on a bunch! Such as fortifying the front and having plates slide down over the seam of the armor to prevent weak points. Of course, I doubled the weight of the regular armor in doing so. But I manage to cancel that out when wearing it by adding an extra strength talisman to the armor.

I did, however, leave a hole for my horn, instead of encapsulating it. Call me odd, but I just really do not like the feeling of my horn being surrounded by metal. Once in the suit, it is the only part of me that is still visible.

To deal with the addition of the extra armor and components, quite a few things were scraped from the original armor. The waste disposal, voice amplification, the HUD, mainly since I have my own, and quite a few of the other non-essential systems.

I added quite a few things other than armor, however. Like the extra strength talisman, I added an extra auto repair talisman for extra recovery during battles. Taking a note from Senior Paladin Twinkle, and making use of my old crews’ miniguns, I mounted two on each side for a total of four.

Due to this, a large portion of the interior space I had to work with was converted into ammunition storage for the guns. In total, the suit can carry about a thousand rounds per gun. To make use of my other weapons, I welded what is essentially a pocket onto the left side of the armor for my revolver. The major issue came with Raptor Blood.

With my poor usage of larger guns, I had thought to just leave it off. But CORA had a brilliant idea. She said to mount it on the back of the armor on a swivel and integrate it with the circuitry of the armor so she could use it. And solving just how to do that was a headache in itself.

But that brings me to my current headache, the suit’s wiring. If I could just run the wires on the top side of the armor, it would be fine and dandy, but no, I had to cut a seam down the top. Therefore, all the wires must cross from the left side to the right side, or vice versa, by going across the underside or neck.

I honestly could just run them across, that isn’t the problem, there is space for them all. My issue is, doing that looks horrendous. I am a stickler for cable management. I refuse to have cables criss-crossing and wrapping around each other if I can help it. Sometimes being this meticulous is a curse.

It has taken me two weeks to create the armor as it is now. These last two days I’ve been trying to run the cables so i can at least test it out. I’ve dealt with these wires for so long, I had a nightmare about wires last night.

I’m focusing so intently on the wires, that I don’t even realize that the drilling has stopped until Thunder suddenly says from right behind me, “Tunnel’s clear.” I nearly hit the ceiling I jumped so high. With my heart beating in my chest, I turn to him with a glare.

“Did you have to sneak up on me like that?” I ask him, giving him an annoyed look. He rolls his eyes as he points to the suit.

“I called your name five times, I even knocked on the door. You were just too busy with your suit to notice,” he lets out a chuckle. “Your reaction was priceless, however. Remind me to scare you some more later. Actually, don’t. It’ll ruin the surprise,” he tells me with a grin.

“Yea, yea, very funny. Anyhow, did you find any other blocks in the hallways?” I ask him as I turn my attention from the suit to him.

The grin disappears from his face as he says, “No, that was the last one. And I, uh...found the rest of your crew.” As he says this I feel my heart skip a beat as my eyes go wide. “They are in the living quarters,” he tells me.

The words barely leave his muzzle before I’m out of my chair and heading for the living quarters. As I reach the section of hallway where the rubble once stood, the stark difference between the clean section and the other side stood out to me. I stop at the precipice, surrounded by the remains of the rubble.

CORA’s explanation of what happened to the rest of my crew plays in my mind again. How they turned on each other and how she ultimately killed them. But what is really stopping me, is the fact that until I see their corpses, I can still remember them as flesh and blood ponies. It isn’t that I will forget what they looked like, but rather I won’t be able to forget what they have become.

It happened with the crew I already buried. Whenever I think back to their faces, I can’t help but to see the skeletons they have become, with lifeless eye sockets staring back at me. I can still think back on the rest of my crew without this fear, but once I see them now I’ll no longer be able to do that.

I can feel that my hooves have begun shaking and my breathing has become shallow, rapid breaths, but I can’t bring myself to move. It is CORA’s voice that finally causes me to take a normal breath as she says, “Ratchet, I can’t see anything past this point. I don’t know what’s wrong, but if you need me I’m here.”

“R-right…” I say at a whisper. I shake my head and take a deep breath as I hear Thunder approaching from behind. “Nothing’s wrong, CORA. Let’s see if I can restore the cameras in this section for you,” I tell her in a more normal sounding voice.

I take the first step into the newly uncovered section of my lab, then another, and another. As I walk, I can hear the sound of Thunder and I’s hooves. The only other sound is the slight buzzing of the lights.

After a few moments, we reach an intersection. Continuing forward would put us in my office and turning right will take us to the living quarters and other offices. I turn down the right hallway and push down the dust covered hall.

I pass the doorway to the offices and continue further into the hall. A few moments later, I arrive at the doorway to the living quarters. I stand in front of it for a time before I turn and continue to the end of the hallway.

At the end of the hallway is the breaker box for this area. I open it and look for the camera breaker. I quickly spot them and flip them from off to on. “Ah, there we go Ratchet,” CORA says. “I can see you now. All cameras appear to be functioning properly.” I nod as I close the box and return to the living quarter door.

Once again I find myself standing outside of it, unable to continue on. I close my eyes as Thunder watches silently. After a moment, I grab ahold of the door with my magic and open it. I step through the door and look around the room.

The layout is like a normal military barrack with beds lined along the walls, each with a locker at the foot of the bed. Fourteen beds in total, including my own. Two of the beds are occupied and have Steel Ranger armor resting atop the lockers. As I look at the far wall, I see two beds that have been flipped on their sides, forming somewhat of a barricade.

As I walk down the aisle between the rows of beds and towards the barricade, I remember that the turret in this room is on the side opposite the barricade. I turn around to look at the turret and then the floor beneath it. Littering the floor are dozens of spent 7.62 cartridges. Turning back towards the barricade, I can see bullet holes in the beds and walls.

I continue down the aisle and stop at the occupied beds which are side by side. Between them on the ground is a single rusted knife. I can feel anger rise up within me for a moment before it quickly fades. I turn my head back to the barricade and continue walking with a sigh. In a matter of moments I am standing between the beds.

As I look behind them, I see shredded clothing. The labcoats and mechanic jumpsuits my staff wore. Among the scraps, I also see the bones of my six remaining crew members. I look them over for a few moments before turning to Thunder.

“Get the others,” I say in a shallow voice. “Start collecting their remains. Keep them separate if you can. I’m going to...start digging. Bring them up when you can,” I tell him. Without waiting for an answer, I turn around and begin walking out of the room.

“Of course, Ratchet,” I hear Thunder say as I walk out.

I continue walking until I am outside the lab and in the shed. I pick up the shovel in my magic and go outside. It is about mid-afternoon as I begin digging a hole beside the graves I dug before.

‘Eight more,’ I think to myself as I take another shovel-full of dirt from the hole. ‘Eight more, and my staff can finally rest.’

===~+~===

By sundown, I finish burying the rest of my crew. Arrow, Thunder, and Lightning join me as I look over the thirteen graves. I had put a cross above each of them, and dug each grave myself, despite offers of help. I felt this was something I had to do myself.

I took a breath and look at each grave as I say, “Flora, Clank, Whistle, Dusky, Lemon Cream, Crimson, Feld Grau, Grell, Sawblade, Serenity, Lyric, Waning, and Lilac.” The names of my staff. It was hard to tell who was who from their bones alone, but I think I managed.

“I am sorry it took me so long to lay you all to rest. I am sorry that you all had to die for a project that was never put to actual use. But most of all, I am sorry for what each of you had to do in your last moments alive,” I say.

“I cannot begin to imagine what it was like for any of you. I want to say that I forgive you, and I hope that you can forgive each other if you meet in the afterlife. I have seen many horrible things in the wasteland and I’m sure I will see more before I am gone,” I continue.

“But there is one thing I want to promise each of you. You all helped me with my experiment, and I will make sure you didn’t die in vain. I will do what I can to help the wasteland and ensure something like this never happens again,” I tell them.

I renew the promise I made when I buried the first five members of my staff. Not only so I could make it to the ones who are newly laid to rest, but so I can reaffirm it in myself. With how the wasteland is now, there may be times that I want to give up or hide. But I mustn’t do that. I’m not only working in the memory of my crew, but for myself and for the future of Equestria.

I will ensure that Equestria recovers from this, somehow. And I will make sure that this mistake is never made again. As long as I am alive to prevent it, that is.

“Come on,” I say to the others. “Let’s get cleaning again. We don’t have much time left until the Elder contacts us.”

===~+~===

We spend the next two days cleaning the newly uncovered part of the lab. Once everything is clean and functioning properly again, I decide to log into my terminal for the first time in decades. I don’t know what I expect to find, but I wanted to take a break from the wiring.

I boot the terminal up and the fan inside of it spins to life, sending dust all over the desk I had just cleaned moments ago. “I’ll just clean that up later…” I sigh out. I type in my credentials and hit the return key.

Welcome back Miss Ratchet.
It has been 35 years since your last log in.
Would you like to view your unread messages? Y/N

Unread messages? What new messages could I have received since the war ended? I key in the Y button and hit return.

Displaying unread messages, oldest first:
MoAS Internal Communications - Weekly Newsletter
MoAS Internal Communications - THE END IS NIGH!
MoAS Internal Communications - Disregard Previous Message
MoAS Internal Communications - Evacuation Procedures and You!
Twilight Sparkle - I’m Sorry.

Most of them are what I expect, but the one from Twilight is a surprise. Saving that one for last, I briefly look at the others. The weekly newsletter is the same as the previously set out messages detailing the unclassified work of the MoAS and updates on the war effort.

The second is what you’d expect, some madpony must have gotten hold of the account and wrote things like “repent” and “we are all going to die”. That sort of thing. The following message was sent minutes after and says to continue business as usual, the employee who sent the previous message has been let go, and reassures that nothing is wrong.

Thirty minutes later the last MoAS message was received and says the first megaspell had gone off and lists the general evacuation procedures and what to do in case of emergencies. Twilight’s message arrived about two days later.

I open it up and read the two words in the message, “I’m sorry.” Below these words is an audio recording. I hesitate for a moment before I open the recording and play it.

===~+~===

“Ratchet, it’s Twilight. This is an automated message that is set to be set to you if I don't check in with it every few days. I do not know why I stopped it from being sent. Perhaps I finally decided to tell you the truth. Maybe I was killed or captured. I do not know what the reason is, but there is one thing I have to say to you, and that is that I am sorry.

I have betrayed you. More specifically, your trust. From the moment I looked over your plans, I knew that it could work. As such, I began researching it alone and improving upon it. I never told you anything I discovered, or shared my notes with you. But this isn’t why I am sorry. Listen Ratchet. I didn’t help you with your research as much as I could have because I wanted to see what you could do. Your project works, and I hope that you can forgive me for finding that out before you.

I know you are aware of the fact we have many classified projects. Some of these projects didn’t go the way we wanted them to. I took the liberty of perfecting your project and putting it to use to contain these projects. Because of your familiarity with this project, I am going to disclose the details of each of the projects I contained using yours. I will send you another message after this one with the details.”

Oh no. This is the last message I received. Does that mean that the other message go corrupted or failed to send?

“Not all of the projects are harmful, but a few could be dangerous if they got out. One such is a clone of Pinkie that went crazy. But there are good ones as well, such as a filly that shares the DNA of all the ministry mares. I know this might be a lot for you to take in, but if I don’t make it I need you to deal with these projects if you can.

Destroy them, maintain their sleep, or help them as needed. I am sorry I am forcing all this onto you. I am sorry that I kept the use of your project from you. But most importantly, I am sorry that I could not have been better.

I can’t make up for this, but I have promoted you and granted you access to specific MoAS classified information. As of this moment, you hold the rank of a high tier researcher. While you will not have access to Celestia Tier classified information, you will have access to all information regarding the cryogenic projects.

All Equestrian facilities owned by the MoAS and others we have access to have been updated with your credentials. You have helped Equestria more than you know. Once again, I am sorry.”

===~+~===

The audio recording stops as I sit in my chair trying to take it all in. In a bit of a daze, I ask CORA, “CORA, did you hear that? Did you know? That she promoted me, I mean.”

“I heard and I knew,” CORA says sadly. “I wanted to save it as a surprise but I didn’t know she sent that message. I received an update on your rank while you were in the cryopod.”

“Oh goddess...oh goddess…” I say, starting to hyperventilate. “No, no, no...First I get put in command of some Steel Rangers, now I am a high ranking member of the MoAS? Twilight’s and the others might be dead...CORA! Do you know the status of any MoAS facilities?” I shout at her.

“No, Ratchet. Any knowledge I’d have of them was lost when we lost outside communication. Even now, we don’t have any outside access. But, Twilight might have survived, right? She used teleportation to travel large distances, right?”

I nod at her words. “You have a point. I hope she managed to get to safety…” I trail off.

“Ratchet, I don’t really know what became of her. However, none of the ministries seem to have a presence in the wasteland. If she is still around, I think she must be busy with something of extreme importance,” CORA explains.

“I...I guess,” I say. “Yea, you’re right. Besides, this doesn’t change anything. We are still going to help the wasteland regardless. However...do you know anything about the other projects mine was used to contain?” I ask her.

“Unfortunately no. I’m as surprised as you are to find out Miss Twilight did that,” CORA answers.

“Well, I guess that is all the more reason that we explore the wasteland. I should be able to recognize the technology. But, figuring out which are good or bad will be a guessing game unless there is any documentation left in the facilities,” I say, gaining confidence again.

“Indeed! Oh that note, Ratchet. Lightning told me to tell you the Elder radioed us. Rose is ready to go home now,” she informs me.

“What, now? But my suit isn’t ready and...why didn’t you tell me sooner?” I ask her in a panic.

“Well, you were listening to the audio log and then were kind of depressed, so I thought it wasn’t the time to do so. As for your suit, like I’ve told you before, even with the three spark battery adapters you added, they will only power the suit for about two hours. It isn’t efficient at all,” she tells me.

“Yea, yea. You keep saying that after I perfect it,” I tell her, rolling my eyes. Such negativity. I knew it would be a power hog to run all the systems. And, I knew I’d have to switch out new spark batteries every so often. “Anyhow, tell everyone to get ready. We’ll head back to Stable 36 once we’ve gathered our things.”

“Will do!” CORA says with an upbeat tone. “Don’t forget to download me before you go, either!” She says in a pouty voice.

“What? Never!” I say, acting offended. We both let out a laugh as I turn off the terminal and head out of my office to gather my things.

A few minutes later we are all at the entrance and CORA is securely back in my PipBuck. We set out for the Steel Ranger’s Stable after locking the doors behind us. “It’s great to finally be back outside and not constantly cleaning…” Thunder says as we exit the shed.

“I agree, but we still have a bit of cleaning and restoration to do before things are up to Ratchet’s specifications,” Lightning says with a chuckle. We begin walking as we talk.

“My specifications aren’t that bad you two...I mean, Arrow isn’t complaining,” I tell them. I motion over towards Arrow, but she looks away as I do so. “What? Not you too Arrow…” I trail off as Thunder and Lightning laugh in unison.

“Arrow rarely talks as it is. She isn’t one to complain, either. We all understand why you’re so strict with how clean it needs to be, but it isn’t like we are researching any new technology or anything,” Lightning explains.

I puff out my cheeks stubbornly as I say, “Yea, but I still like to tinker with things...And what’s wrong with having a clean and functioning home? Besides, it isn’t like we had anything else to do until now.”

As we continue on we continue to discuss the merits of keeping a clean and tidy home. Surprisingly, we manage to talk on the subject until we reach Stable 36. As soon as we enter, I already notice the change in the Stable.

The armor they are wearing has been painted with the symbols of their squads. It also seems like there is more activity than before. Ponies are rushing to and fro as we head towards the command center.

Once we enter, it is a buzz of activity. “Radio Apple Squad and check their status,” Elder Archimedes says with an uncharacteristically loud and authoritative voice. “Then, order Saber Squad back to base,” he calls out again. After giving a few more commands, he notices us approaching.

Almost immediately he switches back to his normal personality. “Ah! If it isn’t my favorite squad! Don’t tell the others I said that though,” he says with a wink. He rests his head on his hoof as he continues, “How did the lab restoration go?”

“Fine sir. We didn’t encounter too much trouble with it. Power has been restored and it has been cleared of collapses. I’d say we only have a few days worth of work left to get it where I want it to be,” I tell him, eliciting a groan from Thunder.

“Good, good!” Elder Archimedes says flailing his free hoof in the air for emphasis. “But, I suppose you’ll be wanting to get down to business. Rose is in the mess hall, I believe. She has been given some basic supplies, and should be ready to leave when you are,” he informs me.

“Thank you,” I tell him. “But first, I have a question. Why do things seem so...busy?” I ask him. He lets out a sigh and lets his head fall to the desk.

“Well, with the takeover of Ponyville, some citizens have moved in there. But at the same time, raider activity has increased as well. I’ve been sending out patrols to both protect the newly forming town and to attempt to discover why raider activity seems to have increased,” he explains.

Elder Archimedes lets out a long sigh. “However, we haven’t found anything out. They seem organized, though. Like somepony is leading them in their attacks. It certainly doesn’t seem random like normal raiders. So far, we haven’t had any encounters that led to anything more than small skirmishes. But, for how long we can avoid a large scale encounter I do not know.”

His mood suddenly changes as he lifts up his head and throws up his hooves, “Anyhow! I suppose you want to head out. So I’ll spare you the details until you get back. Go find Rose and make sure she gets home safely. We’ll hold things down here.”

I nod as I say, “Right. We should get moving while it is still light out.” We bid the elder farewell and go to leave the room. However before I leave I turn back to the Elder and tell him, “You and everyone else be careful, alright?”

I see the Elder smile and nod to me before he goes back to calling out orders. Outside the command center, we head towards the mess hall, where Elder Archimedes said Rose might be. As we walk, I think about just how much more lively the base seems now compared to when I was here last time. Ponies rushing everywhere and almost every room is abuzz with activity.

The pounding of hooves on the metal floors is continuous the entire way to the mess hall. Stepping inside the room, the sound of hooves dies down while the sound of voices increases as the eating ponies talk. It was an odd time of day for a meal, but I suppose with all the patrols the Elder is running, you have to eat when you can.

Looking around the room, I soon spot Rose sitting at a table eating with a few rangers. As we get closer, I can make out their conversation. “...is Friendship City? I’ve never been there, but I hear it is expanding nicely,” one of the ranger mares says.

Rose nods and replies, “The city has been doing fine. The guard keeps the majority of the raiders and riff-raff away from the city. And most of the monsters stick to the ruins. Though, it helps having a natural barrier of water between the island and the Manehatten ruins. As for growth, we’d been getting new citizens almost weekly.”

A ranger buck speaks up next, “And is it true you are actually building into the statue itself? How does that work?” The rangers around her seem to be really curious about Friendship City.

Thinking for a moment, Rose answers, “Well, we started out just building around it, from what I’m told. But as the population increased, we needed more room. Instead of expanding across the water, someone had the idea to expand up and into the statue. We have some crews that scavenge scrap materials from the ruins and we then use them to build proper structures in and around the statue’s framework.”

I wait until the conversation dies down a bit before I clear my throat. Rose and the rangers at the table turn to me as I do so. “Excuse me, Rose if you are ready, we are prepared to escort you home whenever,” I tell her.

She looks at me for a moment before she exclaims, “I remember you! You were there when we were freed from the cages. And you helped me get comfortable here too. Ratchet, correct?” She asks. I nod in confirmation. “I knew it! Well, it has been fun rangers, but I should probably be getting home. If any of you are ever in the area, come say hello!”

After a few ‘awws’ and farewells from the rangers, Rose gets up, throws a bag on her back, and walks up to me. “I’m ready to go when you are,” she says with a smile. “I can’t wait to get back to Friendship City and see everyone again!” With that we make our way out of the Stable and set off to Friendship City.

===~+~===

After hours of walking and the others exhausting all their questions about Friendship City, the sun has almost set upon the horizon. “We should probably find a place to hunker down for the night. Anyone know of a ruin or anything around here?” I ask.

Lightning is the first to speak up, “You know none of us Rangers have gone this far to the northeast. Before the end, I think there were a few rest stops along this route, but who knows if they are still standing now. Rose, you have any idea?”

Rose shakes her head. “I went south to Fillydelphia and followed the rails here. Now, we are on the north side of foal mountain. I haven’t been out this way,” she explains.

“Ratchet,” CORA chimes in, “If I remember correctly, Hollow Shades is about a day's walk from where we are at. But, between here and there I don’t remember many buildings. We might have to set up camp out in the open.”

“While that wouldn’t be the best idea, given the increase in raider activity, I don’t think we have a choice,” Lightning says. “I should also mention that Hollow Shades is all but ghostly ruins. Scouting parties have reported as much.”

I nod my head. “So, camping outside it is. Let’s keep an eye out for an easily defendable place off the rails. We won’t start a fire to avoid any unwanted attention and we will take watch in shifts. Sound good?” I ask apprehensively.

“Sounds good boss!” Thunder says, almost too enthusiastically. “Also, you should act take more confidence in your decisions. Aside from marching through the night, which would be an awful idea, this is the only logical choice at the moment.”

Almost collectively, the rest of us stop, turn, and look at Thunder. Lightning is the first to say, “What is wrong with you? What have you done with my brother?” We all collectively laugh as Thunder just rolls eyes.

“Hey, even I can sometimes be supportive. Now, quit your staring and lets find a place to bed down for the night,” Thunder says as he starts walking again. The rest of us contain ourselves and follow suit.

After a few minutes, we find a place to rest for the night. We decide the order of the watch and I take the first one. While the others lay down to rest, I look over my inventory and PipBuck systems again.

As I do so, I periodically look around to ensure nothing is approaching us. After tinkering with my PipBuck systems and discovering nothing has changed since the last time I looked, I focus on keeping an eye out.

It isn’t long before the shifting of the others’ bodies quiets down and I catch snoring coming from Thunder. Even in his sleep, he’s loud, I chuckle quietly to myself. Though, it is nice to have some noise in the otherwise odd quietness of the wasteland.

Compared to how it was before the end, things are much quieter, and a lot less bright out at night. I suppose the lack of electricity and the dense cloud layer can be attributed to the darkness. But the lack of sounds really shows just how desolate Equestria has become.

Though I feel as if I only just started my watch, as I look at the time, I notice that it is now Lightning’s shift. I want to give him more time to sleep, but it is for the best if we all get as much sleep as we can, and that includes me.

I walk over to his side as quietly as I can and gently wake him up. “Lightning, it’s your shift now,” I say in a whisper, trying not to wake the others. After a few moments he rouses from his sleep.

“That time already?” He says as he gets to his hooves. “I take it nothing happened? That’s good. You get some sleep, I’ll keep us safe.” I would like nothing more than to lay down and sleep, but I have other business that must be attended to first.

“Actually, I have some...business...I need to take care of first. If you know what I mean,” I tell him. He looks at me curiously for a moment without realising what I mean, and I try again. “You know...business?”

CORA chimes in abruptly, “She means she has to pee.” I let out a sigh. Not delicate at all, CORA. And she is suppose to be me? Sometimes I wonder. Lightning of course, is trying to hold back a laugh,

“Yea, that. I’m just going to go over that hill quick and be back,” I tell him as i begin to walk up the hill.

“Be careful, and shout if anything happens,” he says. “As always, I will guard the night,” he follows up with a grin. I facehoof as I continue to scale the hill.

I crest the hill and get out of sight of the others before settling in to empty my bladder. This was the trouble in the wasteland, lack of bathrooms. I quickly finish up and begin to make my way back towards the others.

Before I make it even a few steps, however, I hear some hoofsteps. Did Lightning follow me up here to sneak a peek? Ugh, the perv. I turn towards the sound of the hoofsteps only to be greeted by a beaming white smile and piercing red eyes.

What happens next catches me off guard as it gets closer in an instant and I feel a cloth pressed against my muzzle. At the same time, I sense a hoof hitting buttons on my PipBuck. I can feel myself losing consciousness as I see CORA’s face contort into a look of worry.

A speech bubble appears next to her face that reads, “They muted me!” It is the last thing I see before my vision goes black and I sleep away into unconsciousness.

Author's Note

I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I know it has been a while since the last one, so thanks for sticking around!

As a side note, as of 1/1/2016, Chapter 9 is being written and should be out a bit later this month. Thanks to Winter Break, i've had more time to write, so i'm hoping to get at least Chapter 10 out as well, before I head back into school. :pinkiehappy:

Chapter 9 - Abduction

“Are ponies inherently prone to fight one another? Is it in our nature to seek out confrontation and war? I like to think it isn’t so, but sometimes I can’t help but think it is actually the case.”

===~+~===

The rapping of a hoof on wood brings me out of my sleep. My head is pounding and when I open my eyes the world is blurry. I blink a few times and my vision gradually clears, I then try to get up, but find that my legs won’t move.

Panic begins to rise in me as I remember what happened last night. As I fight against my bonds, the hoof that was rapping suddenly slams down hard on what I assume is the floor. “Finally awake, are you? Good, I was tired of watching over your stupid ass. Hey Shrill! Get the boss, i’m tired of sitting here,” a gruff sounding stallion calls out.

I hear movement in another room as I try to turn to look at the stallion who just spoke. My eyes fall upon a brown coated stallion with a red mane. He leers at me as I look him over. He has a number of scars on his face and is wearing some standard armored barding with a holstered pistol at his side.

He clicks his tongue at me and I begin to look around at the rest of the room. It appears to be a bedroom. Like most of the buildings it is fairly run down and the wallpaper is peeling off the walls. Dust and dirt covers the furniture and windows. This must not be a building the ponies who took me frequent. Perhaps it is just a stop along the way somewhere else.

After a moment, I hear hoofsteps entering the room. “Well done Snarl,” an oddly familiar voice says. “I’ll take things from here. But first, is this any way to treat a guest? Undo her bindings. She’s not a fighter, that much is obvious,” the familiar voice commands.

“You got it boss,” the stallion known as Snarl says as he gets up and walks over to me. He takes a knife in his teeth before cutting a few ropes and loosening my bindings. After he steps back, I sit up on the bed and rub my limbs where the robes were. As I do so, I look up at the ponies in the room.

Two, I don’t recognize. The stallion known as Snarl, and a white mare with a red mane, who I guess is named Shrill. The third and final causes me to go pale as I place his voice to his face. Grimoire, the trader I met back at Stable 36. The one who sold arms to the raiders in Ponyville, the one who caused Iron’s murder.

Despite the anger rising up in me, I know I cannot take on the three of them, even if I was armed. So I simply stare at them, waiting for them to make their next move. Grimoire doesn’t keep me waiting as he tells the other two, “Leave us, she won’t cause me any trouble.” Shrill and Snarl move to leave the room, but hesitate at the doorway. It is like they were worried about me hurting Grimoire, but it seem different. Definitely less friendly, as though they were mercenaries worried they wouldn’t get paid if he died.

Once they leave the room, Grimoire sits down in the char Snarl had been using and smiles at me. For a good minute he just stares at me before saying, “I take it you remember me, Ratchet.” His voice drips with venom as he spits out my name. “I can’t say you were very notable, just another random wastelander. But, even the best machines can grind to a halt if dirt gets into their workings.”

“You have ruined my business. Towns turn me away, guards attempt to capture me, and I have been forced into the shadows,” he says the last bit with a laugh. “My ponies watched the battle at Ponyville, saw what you did in the town hall. I take it Railspike left sensitive information on that terminal of his,” malice fills his voice as he mentions Railspike.

“That fool was never careful enough. And now, because he couldn’t kill you and those pitiful rangers he jeopardised my operation. So, I decided to have my ponies watch over the ranger hideout and wait for you to leave,” he tells me. “But they tell me that you arrived there yesterday and quickly left again, with that mare as an addition to your little group. Meaning, you were gone for about a month,” he explains.

“Now, I don’t care what you were doing, but you kept me waiting. You are going to die today, your rangers have no idea where you are and you can’t hope to escape from us here. So, I am going to take my time and tell you exactly why you are going to die,” he states.

Before he continues I speak up, “You’re going to kill me just because I ruined your business? Because you were trading with raiders? It was your own fault.” I don’t know what i’m saying. If he was trading with raiders, of course he would have no qualms killing me. But I felt I had to buy as much time as possible. I had hope that Lightning, Thunder, and Arrow would come for me.

Despite this, I was shaking in fear. I couldn’t see any of my gear or anything I could use to get the upper hand and I knew I wasn’t strong enough or skilled enough to take them out with my bare hooves. As Grimoire goes to respond, CORA pops up in my vision with a worried, but hopeful expression on her face.

“Do you think me so petty?” Grimoire begins as a speech bubble appears from CORA’s mouth and text begins to appear inside of it. “I don’t care about my business. I care about what my business was for,” he continues as CORA moves her mouth and text continues to appear.

I look at what she is writing and begin reading, ‘Ratchet! I sent an SOS to Lightning. They are on their way. Stall him as long as you can!’ I am about to smile, but I fight to stop it. I can’t let him think anything was wrong. I just have to keep my wits about me and do what I can to keep him talking and myself alive.

“You see, my merchant business was just a cover for me to secure arms and discover the defences towns had. I would sell poor quality weaponry and faulty ammunition to towns I intended to attack and keep the good quality stuff for my gang,” Grimoire explains with a wry grin on his face. It looks like he like to monologue, so I shouldn’t have too much trouble keeping him talking.

“But of course, I couldn’t always sell poor quality weapons. If I did, they wouldn’t trade me. So I conducted normal trade business with targets I didn’t plan to attack at the time,” he tells me.

I think of a question and interrupt him quick. “Then why did you do business with Ponyville? They were raiders, not a town. Wouldn’t they be your rivals or competition? They had some good quality gear on them,” I ask.

“That is because of the other reason I posed as a merchant. I have been trying to unite the raider gangs under a single banner, metaphorically speaking. I want an army and civilians aren’t exactly lining up to fight for me. But raiders? They understand me, and their loyalty can be bought with arms or fear,” Grimoire informs me.

He wants an army? What for? Besides the rangers of Stable 36 there wasn’t a large, unified force that could stand against him. Does he want to take control of everything? What was his endgame?

“I had planned on using Railspike as a puppet, killing him, and bringing his gang into my own. But he was oddly strong willed and his followers highly devoted. I would thank you and the rangers for killing him and his gang, had he not been so stupid as to leave information about me behind,” he snarls.

I take this moment to ask my next question, “But what do you need an army for? Do you plan to become some sort of ruler? If you plan to rule through fear and force, it won’t work.”

Grimoire lets out a loud, hearty laugh. When he finally stops he says, “Me? A ruler? Oh, nothing that grand, love. I just want to cause some chaos. You know there are Stables all over right? I want to break them all open, slaughter the inhabitants, check out their experiments. You know, see what kind of interesting things I can find.”

His answer catches me off guard. “You...you just want to cause chaos? To kill innocents? But, that’s…” I’m cut off as he laughs once more.

“I was always a bit of an anarchist. This wasteland, this is a paradise to me. I can do what I want, when I want, and no one can stop me! I mean, look at you. I abducted you and no one stopped me. So, i’ll kill you, i’ll continue to build up my army, and we’ll loot the Stables. Hell, maybe I’ll find some tech to let us fly above the clouds and I can do the same to the cities the Pegasi are hiding in,” he says with a toothy smile.

“You’re insane,” I tell him. There is no way he can be sane, it isn’t acceptable. A pony like him shouldn’t exist. “Why do ponies even follow you?” I ask, “Surely they don’t agree with your ideas?”

Grimoire laughs once more and shakes his head. “That’s the beauty of working with raiders. They already have low morals. Some are enthusiastic about it, but no, they don’t all agree with what i’m doing. But those that don’t only care about earning money and getting loot, and trust me when I say I can promise so very much of what they desire,” he explains.

I take a breath and ask, “Ok, so let’s say you succeed in your plans and end up razing the Pegasi cities. What then? What’s your endgame? When there is no one left to raid, to kill, what will you do?”

He tilts his head and shoots me a smile. “Oh, of course i’ll have to keep some survivors. Pawns that will create more pawns and live in the chaos that I will rule over for all eternity! You strike me as a knowledgeable mare, surely you remember Discord, the spirit of chaos?” He asks me.

I narrow my eyes and nod. “Very good! Well, he probably died along with the Princesses, meaning that he won’t challenge my rise to take his place. Now, before you ask how I plan on doing that, you should know there are strong magical items in this world. I’ll spend a good amount of time searching for those,” he explains.

“Terrifying weapons and mystic tomes let this chaos happen, and rumors have it that many still exist. Such as a certain Black Book somewhere in Equestria. With the aid of one or more of these items, I shall become immortal and take up the mantle of God of Chaos! But, Discord was a joke compared to what I have planned,” Grimoire’s smile twists and his eyes gleam in the light coming through the window.

“My chaos will be so much more beautiful. But, unfortunately for you, you will not be around to see it,” he says, looking me over. “You know, I was going to kill you myself, that’s why I came here. But seeing how pathetic you are without your friends or the weapons you can barely use, I think i’ll just let Snarl deal with you, I’m quite busy after all,” he says as he gets up from the chair.

He turns to leave as I say, “W-wait! I...I…” I can’t think of anything else to say to stall for time, and he doesn’t even look back as he walks out of the door. A few seconds later, I hear another door open, then close. Immediately afterwards, Snarl enters the room again with my bags and gear on his back.

“Welp,” he says with a smirk, “boss says I get to deal with you. He told me to take my time and do what I feel like. You’re lucky he took Shrill with him, she would have fucked you before doing the deed. Me? I’m a simple stallion, I prefer screams over moans. Unlike my sister, I like torture,” he takes the pistol from his holster and points it at me.

“Wait!” I yell at him, “Don’t do this! I...I can…” Shit! Why can I never think of anything in situations like this. I can see his lips twists into a grin around the handle of the gun. He pulls the trigger and shoots me in the rear left leg. I cry out in pain and collapse onto the bed. My eyes begin to water as I see him holster the gun and draw his knife.

He walks closer and gets on the bed with me. I try to punch at him, but he easily avoids my punches and pins my legs down with his own. His head nears my wounded leg and he stabs the knife into the bullet hole. I scream out sharply before he starts twisting the knife and digging it around in the wound. With every movement of the knife, my screams change in pitch and volume as i struggle fruitlessly under his hold.

After what feels like an eternity, I feel something come out of the wound and then he pulls the knife out. For a moment, I’m able to catch my breath and attempt to cope with the pain. However it is short-lived as he stabs the knife straight into my cutie mark. I call out again as he lets go of the knife and lets out a chuckle.

“Adorable screams, miss. Hope you don’t mind, I wanted to get my bullet back. The material is always useful to have around. Now then, where were we…” He says before grabbing the knife in his mouth again. He pulls it from my wound and places the point against my leg again before beginning to lightly cut down its length.

Gradually, he increases the pressure on the knife and the cut gets deeper. I squeeze my eyes shut in an attempt to shut out the pain. Just as he is about to reach my knee I hear the sound of glass shattering followed by a fleshy squelch. The pressure on my leg increases before letting up completely as I get sprayed with a warm fluid.

As I open my eyes Snarl falls on top of me completely. I blink a few times to clear the tears from my eyes as my coat continues to get wet from the fluid. When i’m able to focus, I see it. The top of Snarl’s head has been blown clean off. I’m shaking as I push off and put a hoof to my wounded leg.

The last cut wasn’t too deep, but the other two wounds are definitely going to be something to worry about. I look over at Snarl’s body and use my magic to open my bags. I should still have some. I poke around in them for a moment before I pull out my only healing potion and my regular bandages. I pour a bit of the potion on the wounds, take a sip, and then wrap my leg in the bandages as best I can.

It might not be the best job, but it will have to do for now. I put the bandages and the rest of the potion back into my bag. As I get up off the bed and gently apply weight to my wounded leg, I find my barding and holster in my bag. I carefully put on my barding and strap on the holster, then quickly put my revolver in it.

I take bags off Snarl and put them on, and quickly look over Snarl’s body. I still don’t know who shot Snarl, but CORA hasn’t said anything else yet. I should get ready for anything. I manage to find some 9mm rounds on his body, and I also pick up his knife, attaching its sheath to my barding. Lastly, I pick up his pistol with my magic and limp over to the wall by the window.

Peeking around to look out the window, I don’t see anything. It looks to be late afternoon, however. I begin moving towards the door. As I reach it, I remember that CORA is muted, and quickly unmute her, but she is still silent. “CORA, anything?” I ask, but don’t get a response.

Taking a gulp, I put my hoof on the door and begin to push it open. Right as I do so, I hear the door on the other side of mine burst open and slam against the floor. Hoofsteps quickly follow, at least two ponies, I think. I take a deep breath as I push open the door as quickly as I can and prepare to fight whoever is in the other room.

As soon as I get the door open, I raise the gun directly at one of the ponies in the other room. However, before I pull the trigger CORA screams, “STOP!” and I freeze mid pull. As the adrenaline clears I see who is in the room.

“T-Thunder? Lightning?” I ask as I drop the gun. Clad in their armor, the twins lower their weapons as well. “I’m so glad to see you two!” I practically jump at them and wrap my hooves around them, much to the displeasure of my wounded leg.

“Damnit Ratchet,” Lightning says, “we were worried sick. When you didn’t come back after a few minutes, and I couldn’t find you…” He trails off as he returns my hug.

“Lightning here woke us up, frantically trying to explain what happened,” Thunder continues for Lightning, “We spent the better part of the night running around looking for you, but didn’t find anything.”

I release them from the hug and ask, “But how did you find me then? CORA?” I see CORA’s face beaming a smile.

“You got it Ratchet!” She declares. “But, since they muted me, I was unable to use the radio properly.” She puffs out her cheeks as she says, “First chance we get, we are disabling the mute feature.”

We all laugh for a moment before curiosity creeps up on me. “So, how did you contact them then?” I ask. If she couldn’t broadcast over the radio, it would be quite the challenge.

“Morse code,” Lightning says. “At first we didn’t notice it, just some beeps over the radio, it happens sometimes. But then we noticed the pattern, and it took us a while to decode what was said. It took even longer for CORA to give us detailed directions to where you were when we finally responded.”

Of course. And that would mean…“Arrow is the one who shot that raider?” I ask. “Where is she, by the way? And Rose for that matter” Rose is our priority, after all.

“As soon as we saw this building, Arrow setup.” Thunder explains. “She’s about half a mile away with Rose. She said she would wait as long as possible before shooting, to give us time to get close. But, was it only that one raider?” He asks.

I shake my head. “No, there were two more, including Grimoire. They didn’t leave too long ago, did you see anything?” I ask them. Both of them shake their heads. Shit. I run out of the door as quickly as I’m able to, ignoring the protests of the twins. I look around quickly, and spot a large hill. I run to the top of it as quickly as I can.

As I’m about to reach the top, Thunder and Lightning catch up to me. I quickly look around at the surrounding landscape as I catch my breath. It isn’t that hilly anymore, and there isn’t much cover. In fact, I can see Arrow and Rose coming towards us in the distance.

“Where the fuck did they go!?” I yell, “They left only a few minutes ago! This isn’t right, there is no way they could cover this much ground already!” No, they could have. If they had a vehicle or...if Grimoire already knows some powerful spells, like teleportation. I fall to my haunches.

Lightning puts a hoof on my shoulder. “Let’s wait for Arrow, and then you can tell us everything.” I nod and we head back to the building.

===~+~===

After Arrow and Rose join us, I explain what happened. Arrow also takes a look at my wounded leg, patching it up a bit better. Once I finish the explanation however, a bit of gloom hangs over our party.

“We need to inform the Elder,” Lightning says. Arrow nods in agreement. “Thunder, get on the radio and…” before Lightning can finish his brother cuts him off, shaking his head.

“Already tried, we are out of range,” Thunder informs us. “We’ll have to go back, at least far enough to get in range. Unfortunately, the range isn’t that great. It will take us at least a day. Thanks to this incident, we are already halfway to Friendship City, Ratchet it’s your decision. Do we continue forward, or go back?” He asks.

As much as I want to get Rose home as soon as possible, Grimoire is more of an issue at the moment. “We go back. I’m sorry Rose, but you’ll have to wait a little longer to get home.” I turn us towards home and we begin to walk.

“I don’t mind. If Grimoire is as much of a threat as you have all said he is, this is more important. I just hope I don’t get in your way,” Rose tells us.

“You’ll be fine Rose,” I tell her. Our pace is a bit slower than usual due to my leg, and the sun quickly sets. I decide that we should push on for a little longer and we continue on in the darkness.

I’m about to give the order to stop for the night when lights suddenly appear around us. Compared to the darkness, it is blinding. “Shit!” I mutter under my breath. I pull out my revolver and I hear the others get into position around Rose. Looking around, I see six light sources.

“To the Rangers and others, drop your weapons immediately. Surrender and identify yourselves or things will get messy,” a mare’s voice calls out. So many thoughts are running through my head, that I almost fail to notice Arrow dropping her rifle.

“Wait, is that…” Thunder says and he and Lightning drop their weapons as well. “Ratchet, just do it. Trust us,” he tells me. I grit my teeth and drop my revolver.

“A good choice!” The mare declares. “Now, identify yourselves.” The lights begin to slowly inch closer to us. As they do, I begin to notice they are in Ranger armor.

“Lightning, Thunder, and Arrow, of Lynx Squad,” Lightning tells the mare.

“Who is your elder?” the mare asks with less of an edge to her words.

“Why, old man Archimedes, of course,” Lightning chuckles. “Come on Lily, don’t make us stand here all night.” Lily? Wait, wasn’t that…

“Stand down Rangers, they’re friendlies,” The mare orders. The blinding headlamps go out and my eyes are able to adjust back to the darkness. “So, where’s Iron at? He let you rascals go out alone?” She lets out a laugh.

“Um, actually…” Lightning begins, but Lily cuts him off.

“What are you all standing around for?” She shouts. “Set up camp!” The Rangers under her command set about unloading gear and lighting a fire. She turns her attention back to Lightning. “Now then, where were we? Let’s chat.”

She leads us next to the fire and begins asking Lightning questions. He answers, with Thunder interjecting occasionally. The subject switches back to Iron, and Lightning tells her what happened.

“Fuck,” she says, shaking her head. “He was the best of us. I always thought he would be too stubborn to die, guess I was wrong. How’s everyone holding up? And who’s leading your squad now?” She asks.

Lightning tells her the status of the base, and says, “As for our leader, let me introduce you to our newest member, Scribe Crusader Ratchet. Yea, I know, it is an odd rank.” With a sudden realization, he turns his attention to me, “Oh yea, Ratchet. In case you don’t realize, this is our Star Paladin, Lily. She was on mission to Friendship City.”

“It is nice to finally meet you, Star Paladin,” I say with a smile. Lily looks me over with an expressionless gaze. Without saying anything back, she turns back to Lightning.

“So what is her deal?” She asks. “Who is she, where did she come from, why does she lack power armor? Why is she leading Lynx Squad?” Her tone is dead serious and her gaze doesn’t leave Lightning’s.

“Uh, well...let’s see, where to begin…” Lightning begins giving her the short version of my story in the wasteland and about my time with them. “So, yea. That’s about it,” he finishes up.

“So let me get this straight. A mere scientist was granted a rank in the Rangers, almost equal to my own, is tampering with our armor, is, well, from your account, quite bad in combat, and she was given leadership of one of the most efficient squads in the Rangers?” She says.

“Wait, what do you mean by ‘one of the most efficient squads’?” I ask. I raise an eyebrow, no one had told me anything about that.

“Oh Goddesses, she doesn’t even know what Lynx Squad is? Oh the Elder is going to get an ear full when I get back…” She says, shaking her head.

“Hey,” Thunder speaks up. “She has come a long way from where she started. We follow her, not because we were ordered to, but because we want to. Who cares if she doesn’t know what Lynx Squad is? That doesn’t matter. She is doing what she can.” Arrow nods vigorously in agreement.

“Be that as it may, a novice leading Lynx Squad is unacceptable. None of you told her what your squad is? How dangerous it is?” She looks right at me, Lightning tries to stop her, but she ignores him. “Lynx Squad is essentially a suicide squad. A squad comprised of troublemakers who don’t work well with others,” she tells me.

“A suicide squad?” I ask. “You mean, they are used like they are expendable?” That didn’t seem right. From what I saw, all the Rangers more or less got along. Why would such a squad exist?

“Indeed. Formerly led by Iron, who was basically suicidal in battle.” Lily says. “Thunder, an over the top loudmouth who doesn’t like stealth. Lightning, basically normal but violently refuses to be on a separate squad from his brother. And Arrow, the mare who doesn’t communicate. I suppose now you as well, the unknown factor.”

“Do not get me wrong, they are all valued as Rangers. Fuck, I think of Thunder and Lightning as little brothers. But some squad has to be the one to take the dangerous missions. They are very good, that is why they are still around. Any other ranger would probably have died from the combat they’ve been in,” she tells me.

“But, I thought you all said you were relatively new to combat when we met? I mean, that does explain why you all work so well together, but...” I trail off. They all look down at the ground.

“We had no clue who you were, why you were there. By the time we trusted you, we decided to just keep up the lie,” Lightning explains. “We’re sorry Ratchet, for lying. About that, and what Lynx Squad is.” Thunder and Arrow nod in agreement with Lightning.

Lily is quietly watching our discussion, which seems odd to me since she started it. I take a breath and shake my head. “It doesn’t matter. You lied to me, but I understand. I still trust you all, and I want us to stay friends. After all, I didn’t tell you about my past right away either. But, moving forward, let’s be honest with each other.”

The three of them smile and nod. Lily smirks as well. “You know, Ratchet. I didn’t like you. I still kind of don’t. I just don’t like it, this whole thing. But, i’m willing to trust you. As a Ranger, and as leader of Lynx Squad. So, with formalities out of the way, what is your mission?” She asks.

I quickly explain to her about Rose, then about Grimoire. As I finish, she let’s out a chuckle. “You’re lucky Lynx Squad is so talented, and that this Grimoire didn’t stick around. You made the right choice, in turning around. But...come morning, continue to Friendship City. My squad is already heading back to base, we can inform the Elder.”

“Really?” I ask her, excitedly. “That’s great! We can get Rose home, and inform the Elder of Grimoire at the same time!”

“Indeed,” Lily says. “Just, one thing about Friendship City. Some snooty ponies are hanging around near the entrance. They asked us to do something, but I didn’t like their attitude, so I blew them off. But, if you are going there, you can hear them out. I think they mentioned something about capturing a building, or something.” Lily shrugs her shoulders.

“I don’t really recall, but if that is the case, and we help them, they might be inclined to let us use that building as a rest stop for future operations. Might be the perfect job for you after you get Rose home safely. We might not be able to move on Grimoire right away, and it is good to stay busy,” she tells me.

“Right, we’ll hear them out,” I tell her. “Oh, that’s right. I think I should go into more detail about exactly what Grimoire said. Are you able to record it?” I ask her.

“Of course,” she says. “Begin whenever you are ready.”

“Alright. This is Scribe Crusader Ratchet, and Grimoire needs to be stopped…”

===~+~===

Level Up!
-Level 5-
+6 Medicine
+10 Small Guns
+4 Speech

New Quest(s):

-The Chaos Crusade
Location: Unknown
Goal: Stop Grimoire
Current Objective: Return to Stable 36

-An Arrogant Request
Location: Friendship City
Goal: Talk to the ponies near the entrance

Author's Note

What Fallout story would be complete without sidequests? Let them begin to pile up!

Chapter 10 - Mixed Signals

“The good nature of ponies has been all but extinguished. I can’t do much, but i’ll do my part to ensure that those who want to be good ponies, are given a fighting chance.”

===~+~===

After recording the description of my encounter with Grimoire, sleeping through the night, and parting ways with Star Paladin Lily’s squad, Lynx Squad, Rose, and I make good progress towards Friendship City.

The path we walk must be the exact one Star Paladin Lily came from, as there is no sign of hostile creatures, or ponies anywhere. A few times, we enter ruined buildings expecting to find a fight, but only find recently killed raiders. I’d expect nothing less from Star Paladin Lily though.

We walk for the better half of the day before we encounter our first obstacle. A small town echoing of depraved laughter and shouting. Without a doubt, it is a group of raiders. The town itself appears to be heavily fortified, and the raiders I can see are well armed. With just the four of us, and Rose, we decide to make a detour and give the town a wide berth.

The detour will add a few hours to our journey, but it will be worth not risking ourselves, or Rose. After an hour or so of walking, CORA speaks up, “Hey Ratchet, I’m picking up a signal on the radio! I think I can pinpoint its source too. Here, I’ll turn it on for you.” A second later, my PipBuck’s radio comes to life and plays the last few chords of a song I somewhat recognize.

After a few seconds of silence, a stallion’s voice comes over the radio, “Helloooo Manehatten! This is your ever watchful eye and source of news here in the wasteland, DJ Pon3! Bringing you pre-war hits to break the dreariness of the day! Now here’s the news!” Wait, what? A radio DJ? And DJ Pon3, none-the-less? But, DJ Pon3 was a mare...and would definitely be dead by now.

“I’ve received reports that the raider gang that was terrorizing the Ponyville area has been taken care of. Sources say some Steel Rangers took the fight to them and reclaimed the city. Perhaps there are still some good Rangers out there, fighting the good fight, but reports continue to come in about less than reputable Rangers attacking wastelanders and settlements. Do yourself a favor, and if you see a Ranger coming towards you, turn tail and run. Hide if you can, just don’t let them catch you because the odds aren’t in your favor,” The stallion says.

“In other news,” he continues, “Some wastelanders have decided to set up shop in Ponyville, and it is slowly but surely becoming a town once again. So if you are ever out that way, stop in and say hello. But watch out, because raider activity all throughout the wasteland has become increasingly active. Are more ponies turning to crime? Are the current gangs becoming bolder? Or is there something more sinister going on behind the scenes? Whatever the case is, watch yourselves out there. That’s all for the news, my little ponies, until next time.”

His voice fades and after a moment is replaced with music once again. I turn it back off and turn to the others. “DJ Pon3? Have you heard of them before?” I ask. Lightning, Thunder, and Arrow shake their heads, but Rose smiles and nods vigorously.

“Of course!” She proclaims. “He plays music nonstop and during the day he makes news reports about the wasteland. Though, I guess he only broadcasts to Manehatten. No one knows who he is or where he’s at. But, that’s probably for the best.”

“I see,” I hold a hoof to my chin in thought. If possible, I’d like to meet them. CORA said she could find where he is, but if it is out of the way, I want to get Rose home first. I decide I should ask CORA about her progress. “CORA, have you managed to find out where he’s broadcasting from?”

“Yes I have! Here, let me ping your map...and done! His location is only a short ways from our current route. At the most, it will only add 30 minutes to our travel time. Unless we decide to stop and chat, that is,” she informs me.

I look at the location on my map. She’s right, it isn’t too far from where we are at now. In fact, we should be able to reach it before sundown. “Alright folks, we’re going to make a detour and pay a visit to the DJ.” Rose is clearly ecstatic about my decision, but the others look a bit skeptical.

“You know we’ll follow you, Ratchet, but why?” Lightning asks as we begin walking towards the DJ’s residence. I can understand why the others don’t get my intentions. They never had public radio while growing up and their radios have only ever told them orders.

“Because,” I explain, “if he gets information about the wasteland, he might know something about Grimoire. Even if he doesn’t, we should tell him about the situation, so innocent ponies don’t fall into Grimoire’s nefarious plans.”

“I suppose that makes sense,” Lightning says. “The more people who know about Grimoire, the harder it will be for him to make a move. Sound decision as always, boss.” I roll my eyes. Again with the ‘boss’ stuff.

===~+~===

We make good progress, but the closer we get to the DJ, the more anxious I get. What am I going to do, just burst in through the door and say hello? I don’t think that’s something that ponies do in the wasteland. After a lot of thought, I decide to go with knocking on the door. That’s always good, right?

However, as we get the building in sight, that plan crumbles. The building rests upon a hill in the middle of a clearing of dead trees. It is a small, one story house with a large antenna on the top of it. While the building itself looks mostly intact it fits in perfectly with the wasteland. The windows are boarded up and the paint is flaking from the side of the walls. But what deters me from the knocking plan, is the guard standing out front.

“Well shit,” I mutter under my breath. Plan B, let’s walk up and just say hi. I begin leading us out of the cover of the trees and directly towards the front door, and the guard. It isn’t long before he sees us and readies his weapon. Once we are about halfway between the edge of the clearing and the building, he raises his rifle and calls out to us.

“Stop! Don’t come any closer! Turn around and go back the way you came,” the guard stallion shouts. I bring us to a stop so I can attempt to talk with the guard.

“I want to talk to the DJ, we don’t mean any harm,” I tell him. Unsurprisingly, he doesn’t seem to accept that. He tells us to turn around once again. As I refuse, a second guard comes out from the building and joins the first one. Well, this just keeps getting better.

“Please, I just want to talk with the DJ. It is important!” I plead to them. But they don’t seem to be budging. I’m about to say something again, when CORA turns my radio on.

“--but, ah...excuse me, my little ponies. Seems that I have some visitors. I’ll cut this news section short so I can make sure my guards don’t get into too much trouble. Here’s some music for you in the meantime,” he says, and shortly after music begins playing. CORA turns the radio off, and a few seconds later, another stallion comes out of the door.

He’s wear lighter armor and carrying only a pistol in his magic. “Alright, I’m sure my guards here have made it clear that you shouldn’t be here. Since you still are, I want to assure you, we don’t have any valuables. The only thing here, is broadcasting equipment. If that is what you are looking for, i’m sorry, but i’m using it. Now, please, turn around and go on with your lives.”

He has to be the DJ, maybe I can get somewhere now. “I don’t want anything, I just walk to talk to you, Mr. DJ. I know you aren’t the real DJ Pon3, but I want to ask you about some things. It is important,” I tell him.

I see him raise an eyebrow as he replies, “Of course I’m the real DJ Pon3, why do you think i’m not?” Uh, ok. This isn’t going exactly the way I thought it would.

“Because the real DJ Pon3 was a mare? I mean, that’s my primary reason why you aren’t the real one. That, and she has probably died of old age by now,” I tell him. What were we talking about? This wasn’t important.

His eyes go wide for a moment before he says, “No one...knows that anymore. How do you know about her?” He has an odd expression on his face. Like a mix between confusion and suspicion.

“I uh...kind of knew her, well not knew, knew her, but knew of her back when she was...well...uh…” Shit. Come on Ratchet, use your words. I couldn’t think of how to explain it without sounding crazy.

After a long pause, he says, “You and you alone, come in. I want to talk to you, give any weapons you have to my guards. If your friends try anything, it’s over. Got that?” I nod in agreement before slowly walking up the hill and giving my weapons to the guards.

The DJ leads me inside and motions for me to sit on a chair across the room from him, all the while not taking his gun off me. Once i’m seated, he sits down on the other side of the room. “Alright. Tell me how you know about DJ Pon3, and be honest. I’ll know if you are lying to me.”

I don’t know what makes me tell him the truth. Perhaps it is the gun, or perhaps it is something else entirely. But for some reason, I tell him everything. How I knew about DJ Pon3, Vinyl Scratch, in the past and about how I was frozen and am here now. As I finish, I am almost certain he is going to kick me out, maybe even kill me.

“I believe you,” he says. “It is an odd story, but not many ponies now know her real name. It’s been lost to time. You even described her appearance. It is quite a bit to wrap my head around, but I believe you,” he tells me as he lowers his gun.

“Wait here,” he tells me as he gets up and exits the building again. After a moment, he enters again followed shortly after by a guard and after a minute or two, my friends. “Go ahead and make yourselves comfortable. You’re all welcome to stay the night. Ratchet, you had something to discuss with me, right? Oh, and Slick, give her her weapons back, will ya?” he says.

“Sure thing boss,” Slick says as he floats my things back to me. “I’m heading back to bed boss, I’ll be up when it’s my shift again.” With that, Slick walks into another room and shuts the door.

“Alright Ratchet, let’s go into my room and we can talk. Your friends can stay here and get some rest,” he nods at them and gestures me towards another door. I follow him and he closes the door after us.

The room is small. It is a broadcast room that has a bed and table in it. The table has an assorted collection of things on it, but like the DJ said, nothing valuable. The room looks like the pictures i’ve seen of radio rooms, with soundproof walls and the like. The broadcasting switchboard itself is a complex thing with hundreds of buttons, switches, and dials. It has a record player and a microphone wired into it.

“Sorry it’s so cramped, I don’t usually have visitors. If I remember correctly, this place was an old forest ranger station,” as he says this, he takes off the light barding he was wearing and the helmet. I’m able to see more clearly see his black coat and dark blue mane. And, fittingly enough, his cutie mark is a microphone and turntable.

“Oh, it’s fine,” I tell him as he sits on the stool in front of the broadcast table. He motions me to sit on the bed, and I do so, trying not to make a mess of anything.

“Now then, you said you had some important things to discuss?” he asks me. Wow, straight to business. That caught me a little off guard. He seems so trusting now that we discussed DJ Pon3. Speaking of…

“Before that, can we talk about the whole, you being DJ Pon3 thing? Are you just using the name, or what? You definitely could have been alive during her time, but you’d have been a teenager, right?” I ask him.

He chuckles a little before saying, “Yea, I suppose you would want to know about that. Well, back before the Megaspells hit, when I was around 10 or so, I ran away from home. I’ll save you the minor details, but one day I met Vinyl. I quickly became obsessed with her and her music, and after a year or so, I met her again.”

With a wide smile he continues, “I begged her to make me her apprentice. I followed her around for about a week before she finally agreed. She taught me, fed me, and basically raised me. For five short years, until the Megaspells hit. I don’t know what happened to her, but we didn’t make it to the same Stable.”

He shakes his head. “When my Stable opened a few years ago, I began journeying the wasteland. Seeing the chaos, the carnage. After a while, I settled down here to do what I can to help the innocent wastelanders stay informed. I found guards, and used my connections to form an information network. I have runners who go from town to town and collect info for me.”

“I decided to pick up Vinyl’s monocure as DJ Pon3, and be the voice this wasteland needed. After all, without her, I wouldn’t know how to do half of this stuff. It is my way of showing respect and honoring a great mare,” he tells me. “But, enough about me. You had something to discuss?”

“Oh, yes.” I was so wrapped up in his story I forgot the whole reason I came here. “Have you ever heard of a trader named Grimoire?” I ask. DJ Pon3 shakes his head. “Ok, so, here’s the thing...he’s kind of…” What? A crazy pony bent on turning the world into chaos incarnate? Sadistic? Just plain insane? I decide to settle for, “an evil villain. Not like in the comic sense though! Wait, maybe actually a little bit, but not so much like…” I start losing traction as the DJ holds up his hoof.

“Settle down Ratchet, we have all night,” he tells me. “Why don’t you start from the beginning? Don’t gloss over anything.” Once again, I don’t know what compels me to tell him the truth of exactly what happened, but I do. I tell him everything.

How I exited the lab, met the Rangers, fought against the Rail Gang, discovered Grimoire’s underhanded deals, and how he later abducted me and told me everything he was planning. DJ Pon3 only sits across from me nodding every so often for me to continue. When I finish, I realize what all I said to him.

“You...uh...wouldn’t happen to be using some sort of truth magic on me, would you?” I ask him, half joking. I didn’t even tell the Rangers about my past this quickly, but I’m telling some DJ who claims to have known the original DJ Pon3. What was wrong with me?

He chuckles and waves a hoof, “Nothing of the sort,” he says with a smile. “Apparently a lot of ponies get that impression from talking with me. Ponies tend to really open up to me for some reason. Well, aside from raiders and the like.” He crosses his hooves, “That aside, that is one grand tale you have. If you were anyone else, I’m not sure I’d believe it.”

The DJ puts a hoof to his chin and smiles at me, “But you being you, I have no reason to doubt it. So, now that you’ve told me this, what do you plan to do?” His smile fades and a look of contemplation replaces it.

“Well, I was sort of hoping you could warn ponies of him, using your radio and what not. As for me, i’m escorting Rose home to Friendship City. But, other than that, i’m not really sure what to do. Wait for Grimoire to make a mistake or for the Rangers to catch him, I guess,” I explain.

The DJ nods. “I suppose if you don't know where he's at it would be sort of hard to deal with him. I'll do what you ask, And if I find any information on this Grimoire fellow I'll be sure to broadcast it over the radio, just make sure you're listening,” he tells me.

CORA speaks up, “I can monitor the radio even if you are not listening to it, Ratchet. So if I hear anything important I'll be sure to let you know. There's no need to worry about missing anything.”

“Ah, so she finally speaks,” DJ Pon3 says with a smile. “It is a pleasure to meet you miss CORA. Though, there is one issue and as the range of my broadcasting equipment. unfortunately I'm limited to the Manehatten area. Anything further to the south or east and my signal can’t be picked up.”

“Why didn't you select a place I could broadcast to a wider audience then?” CORA asks him. The DJ just shrugs and lets out a sigh.

“When I first emerged into the wasteland I did a bit of exploring. Finding out what's what and what was left of Equestria. Through my journeys this is the best broadcasting station I found, one that works anyway. There were a few other possibilities, even some that had a larger range. However those were not as secure as this location, or they tended to be overrun with Raiders and other wasteland monsters.”

The DJ put on a smile, “But it's not all bad, I did manage to get a large population center inside the scope of my broadcast. So as long as the people of Friendship City can hear me I don't think I'm doing too bad.”

“That makes sense,” CORA replies, “I suppose any of the old military relay stations would also be a bit of a pain to get into, what with all the guards and security systems.”

“Right you are miss,” The DJ confirms. “So for as long as you're in the area I can provide you with any information that I receive. But since you live in the east and say you're heading back that way soon I don't think I'll be able to keep in touch for long,” he tells us.

“Not a problem,” I tell him. “Any help at all is better than no help, can you warning ponies will do a great deal of good,” I add, causing him to grin even wider than before.

“Very good point. If there’s one thing I aim to do, it’s to do a great deal of good. As much as possible anyway, sitting behind this radio. I just wish I could do more, it is quite nightmarish out there. I just hope I'm bringing a little bit of hope to everyone's life in the bleak wasteland,” he says.

“Well I can't speak for everyone but Rose seems to enjoy your work. She practically freaked out when I mentioned we were going to see you,” I tell him, smiling back.

“You don’t say?” DJ Pon3 says with a chuckle. “Well, perhaps I’ll give her an autograph or something before you all leave. Speaking of, I assume you’ll be leaving in the morning?” he asks.

“Yes, I’d like to get Rose home as soon as possible and return home to see if the Elder has found anything out about Grimoire yet,” I say.

“I understand. Well then, unless you wish to talk about something else, i’ll let you get to sleep. Your arrival interrupted my last broadcast of the night, so i’ll have to throw something together before I turn in myself,” he tells me with a sly grin.

After a bit more talking, and exchanging good nights, I leave his room and rejoin the others. Rose is already asleep on one of the couches and my friends are all clustered on the other one.

“Ah, Ratchet,” Lightning says as I close the door behind me. “How did things go with the DJ? What is a DJ anyway? You said he uses a radio? Does that mean he is like the Elder and has a group of ponies he relays orders to?” I chuckle as I walk over to them and take a seat at an empty chair.

As I explain to them the finer points of what a radio DJ is and that he doesn’t order anyone around, I also take the time to examine the room. It isn’t anything lavish, but seems to be in fairly good condition compared to the rest of the wasteland.

The carpeting and wallpaper is a bit discolored and damaged in places, but it seems to be holding out fairly well. Aside from the broadcasting room and the room the guard went into, there seems to be another smaller room that has a tarnished restroom label on the door. The main room consists of two couches positioned in a L shape with a coffee table in the center of them. Across from the couch my friends are on, are two chairs, one of which i’m sitting on.

In addition, there are a few lockers, crates, and a card table that has its own chairs. Before the war, the main room was probably used by the forest rangers as a lounge in their downtime. I assume the room the guard is in has a few bunks that they would have slept in as well.

Once I wrap up my explanation of what a DJ is what detail all I told him, I tell the others we should get some sleep while we can. After assuring them that none of us have to keep watch, Arrow and I sleep on the couch while Thunder and Lightning sleep in the chairs. It wasn’t the most comfortable place to sleep, but it sure beat sleeping on the floor or outside.

After a few minutes, I can hear the others snoring softly. I fiddle with my PipBuck a bit before turning on the radio to a quiet volume and catching the end of a song. After a moment, the DJ’s voice comes on.

“Hello Manehatten! This is DJ Pon3, and it is time for the last news of the day. Previously, I was interrupted by some visitors. Turns out, they were friendly and are staying the night with me. What’s more, is they appear to belong to the Steel Rangers, the very ones that reclaimed Ponyville! I spoke to their leader, an odd, but lovely mare named Ratchet, and my little ponies, she told me a story,” he announces.

“It turns out, these Steel Rangers are here to help. They are from a Stable, number 36. They have been taking the fight to as many raiders as they can and trying to make the wasteland a safer place. But in their fight to take back Ponyville, they uncovered a devious plot. A trader by the name of Grimoire is attempting to put together an army of the raider gangs and bring chaos to Equestria, and the world,” he continues.

“Ratchet asked me if I could help spread this information, and warn everyone listening of this crazy buck. So do me a favor, tell everyone you know about this madpony, tell them of the Rangers of Stable 36, and stay safe out there. That’s all for tonight, my little ponies. Make sure to wake up bright and early to catch the morning news,” he concludes.

After a moment, the music starts back up and I can feel my eyelids growing heavy. As the radio continues to play, I quickly descend into slumber.

===~+~===

The following morning, we thank DJ Pon3 for his hospitality and bid him farewell. He gives Rose a signed piece of paper, and she surprises him with a hug in return. After a few minutes, we get ourselves back on the road to Friendship City. If you can call the woods a road. After a few hours without anything eventful happening, we reach the edge of the forest.

For the first time in a while, I bring up my PipBuck’s map. Surprisingly, new locations have been added. Three back the way we came and three more in front of us. One was the raider town we passed around noon yesterday, marked Raider Camp. Another in the middle of the forest read Hollow Shades Irradiated Zone, it was just a bit southwest of the location called Ranger Station Delta. I assumed Delta was the DJ’s radio station.

In front of us were Manehatten Ruins and Friendship City. South of us is the Fillydelphia Crater. I was a bit curious how all these locations showed up without me having gone there. “Hey CORA, why are all these new locations here?” I ask her.

“Oh, well, the major cities were easy enough to mark. And ponies have said that Friendship City was on the Statue of Friendship,” she explains, beaming me a smile in my vision.

“What about the descriptive names? Manehatten ‘Ruins’, Fillydelphia ‘Crater’, Hollow Shades ‘Irradiated Zone’?” I ask. That really seems more like a visual description of a location.

“Manehatten Ruins was an easy one, after all, some of the Rangers mentioned it as being in ruins. But for Fillydelphia and Hollow Shades, it was a bit more challenging. I was playing with some Spritebots and went to investigate them,” CORA explains.

“What do you mean, you were playing with Spritebots?” I ask her as I turn off my PipBuck screen and continue walking towards the Manehatten Ruins.

“Using radio signals, I was able to hijack them and move them around. Even getting close to Hollow Shades sent my geiger counter off the scale. Fillydelphia did as well, but the most notable thing about it was the giant crater. I did look at Manehatten a bit, and aside from some small pockets of extreme radiation, most of it seems pretty low on radiation,” CORA tells me with a smile.

“So, is that why you are so quiet all the time? You’re riding around on Spritebots? I thought you were just being shy or something,” I tell her.

“Yep! You asked about information on MAS research facilities that might house projects that used your technology a while ago, after all. I thought I might be able to find some. If nothing else, it’s good to know our surroundings. I also have been getting to know some of your PipBuck’s programs, just so you know. I DO have a social life,” she says, rolling her eyes.

“Wait, what? You have a social life with my PipBuck’s programs?” I ask, curiously and slightly concerned.

“Ugh, you remember our conversation on senses and how you couldn’t explain them to me? This is kind of like that. You just wouldn’t understand,” she says, nodding her head as if affirming her own logic.

“Alright then,” I say, not sure what else I could say. “Anyhow, good work. If you do find any of those facilities, just let me know!”

“Of course,” CORA says with a smile. “But I think it is going to be more difficult than either of us realizes. After all, they were secret research projects. Honestly, I wouldn’t expect anything. In all probability, we are more likely to stumble across them than I am to find them by looking,” she explains.

“Noted,” I tell her as we continue walking. “So, what do you all think,” I address my friends, “another day until we reach the Manehatten Ruins?”

“I’d say, at the pace we are going, we’ll reach them by nightfall,” Lightning answers. Arrow nods in agreement.

“Yea, lucky for us Star Paladin Lily tends to clear out a large path when she travels. It should be a bit before creatures fill in the gap she carved out,” Thunder says.

“Now that you mention it, I have noticed quite a few dead things since we meet with her,” I realize. “She really kills everything in her path, doesn’t she?”

“Anything that’s a threat,” Thunder explains. “However, once we enter the Ruins, that’s another story. From what the other Rangers say, that place is full of creatures and raiders. Lily could be five minutes in front of us, and we would be encountering new enemies,” he says.

“Is it that bad?” I ask. The wasteland itself was crazy with all the raiders and random creatures wanting to attack you. Were the Manehatten Ruins even worse?

“Well, to put it in perspective, there are multitudes more places to hide and breed in the Ruins than there are out here in the wasteland. More sources of loot and sustenance as well,” Lightning tells me. “We just have to make sure to avoid Manticores. They like to nest in the city and the last time the Rangers ran into them, it was only thanks to Iron that we escaped,” he explains.

Oh yea, I remember Iron saying some of his scars were from Manticores. If even Iron had to run from them, I surely don’t want to meet them. I’d like it if we could just make it through the city without any fighting, but if what Thunder and Lightning says is true, this will be a fight for survival.

===~+~===

As the sun begins to set, we near the edge of the Manehatten Ruins. We stay a fair distance away to avoid drawing unwanted attention and prepare ourselves for the night. My plan is to spend the night here and enter the city in the morning, instead of risking entering in the darkness.

Darkness could be both good and bad for us. It would hide us from some enemies, but the worst of them, predators, wouldn’t care about the darkness and we wouldn’t see them coming. Luckily, no one has any arguments with my decision, in fact the seem to wholeheartedly agree with it.

As we settle around the small fire, and pass around the remains of my box of Sugar Apple Bombs and drink some water, I draw the 9mm pistol from my bags. I look it over a bit before I replace the missing bullet and fish out the remaining 16 bullets. Then, I float the pistol over to Rose. “Take it,” I tell her.

“But I’ve never really used a gun before, you should keep it,” Rose says, shaking her hooves in front of her.

“Just take it,” I tell her again, “I have another gun, I like the other one better anyway. Besides, you are unarmed. That’s been fine up until now, but if the Manehatten Ruins are as dangerous as everyone says they are, you should carry a gun.”

“I...I suppose,” She says, grabbing the gun in her hooves. Nodding with approval, I float the ammo into her bag. “I hope I don’t have to use this,” She says as she stares at it.

“Same here,” I tell her. “You only have about two clips for it, so don’t use it unless you absolutely have to. We’ll try to do all of the fighting,” I say, looking to the others who nod in agreement. “Just pull it out if we get into a fight, but don’t fire unless you are in danger. Oh, and Lightning, can you show her the finer points of it?” I ask him.

He nods and sets about telling Rose about the safety, how to properly shoot the weapon, and how to effectively reload. I honestly hope she doesn’t have to, but it is better to be safe than sorry. As the final bit of light fades from the wasteland, I turn to look at the Manehatten Ruins.

The once thriving city of Manehatten, reduced to ruins. The famous skyline had been turned into a mar on the horizon. It used to be a place full of life, but now was a place of death. What would happen in those ruins tomorrow? Would we come out the other side together, or be destroyed in the process?

Chapter 11 - Ruin

“Follow the plan...just follow the plan.”

===~+~===

Two hours. That is how long we have been in the Manehatten Ruins. I wish I could say that we’ve made good progress, but we have barely made it three blocks into the city. In the first hour, we encountered a group of six raiders, about four bloodwings, twelve bloatsprites, and three sentry bots. Luckily, not all at once and we managed to fight through them easily enough. Managed to score some good loot as well.

In hour two, we found out that the raiders had friends. Apparently, we wandered into the middle of raider territory. During this second hour, we were set upon multiple times by the raiders of this territory, we managed to fight off the first few, but eventually they halted our advance. Now, we are holed up in a two story apartment building hoping that the raiders get bored of looking for us and wander off.

Miraculously, we have sustained no injuries. Though I think that is mostly due in part to most of us wearing power armor. Rose and I were clinging to cover like our lives depended on it. Speaking of Rose, she appears to be quite shaken, but hasn’t had to fire a single shot yet. Which is good, considering my revolver was out of ammo within the first hour.

Thank the Goddesses that between Lightning, Thunder, and Arrow, they had an armory worth of ammo for their own weapons. A perk of being born in the Rangers, I suppose. But, they did let me keep any loot we came across, which means I now have quite a few spare guns with plenty of ammo. At least, for now.

The six raiders we took out used two shotguns, two assault rifles, a 10mm submachine gun, and a machete. After loading all the weapons while holeing up in the apartments, I have 67 shells, 35 5.56 bullets, and 13 10mm bullets to spare. I also picked up some medical bandages, food, and some Sparkle Cola from the raiders. And around 100 caps, can’t forget the caps.

“Well, they are tenacious, i’ll give them that,” Thunder mutters, checking over his weapons. Lightning and Arrow are doing the same. Outside, I can hear the echoing calls of the raiders as they shout derogatory remarks while looking for us.

“Yea, and such a cheery bunch,” Lightning adds. Some random gunfire in the distance followed by more shouting. How did ponies live on the other side of all this? It was like never ending chaos. Did we just pick a lousy route? I let out a sigh as I take a moment to look at the inside of the apartment we are in.

As you would expect from a city hit by a Megaspell, half the building was crumbling, the paint on the walls has all but peeled off, and there is so much dirt and dust everywhere I wasn’t sure if it could ever be clean again. This particular apartment, which would have consisted of three rooms, has had its interior walls destroyed, allowing the bedroom and bathroom to be seen from the living area and kitchen. Any personality or furniture the room might have had was either reduced to rubble or buried.

It certainly wasn’t the most luxurious apartment building, even before the war. But, I bet it was cheap and served its purpose. As i finish surveying the room, my eyes fall on Rose, who is shakily looking at the floor a little bit apart from the others. I quietly move over to her and put my hoof on her shoulder.

“It’s going to be alright, Rose. Sure, things have been chaotic so far, but no one’s been injured yet. We have that going for us, right? We’ll make it to Friendship City,” I tell her with a small smile.

Rose looks up at me nods her head and says, “Y-Yea...I’m just not...used to all this, I suppose.” I can completely understand that. I, myself don’t know how I’m handling this as well as I am. Perhaps my inquizitive spirit is keeping me going?

“Right?” I reply with a brighter smile. “While we are stuck here, let’s come up with a plan,” I declare. I open up my PipBuck’s map screen as the others gather around. I switch to the Local Map setting and zoom out as far as possible. Even though most of the area not to our west is missing from my map’s data, it does show a good two blocks in every direction from our current location.

“Ok, let me see...I wonder if I can…” I trail off for a moment as I concentrate my magic on my PipBuck. After a moment, a larger projection of the map appears above the PipBuck. “Awesome! It worked! Alright, so, using my magic to make it easier to see, we are currently here,” I put a blue colored dot on the magical projection where we are currently at.

“Now, judging by the direction the raiders were chasing us from, and the sound of their voices, I’m guessing they are around, here, here, and here,” I say, as I add three new red dots to the north of the blue one. “Of course, these aren’t exact locations. My EFS doesn’t work, remember,” I add.

“Since Friendship City is quite a bit south and a little ways east of us, them being in the north works for us. Assuming that door leads to a hallway and more of the building, we should be able to find an exit on the south side, or use a window if nothing else,” I tell them.

“From there, judging by the terrain mapping, a lot of the surrounding streets are blocked by rubble. So, I think we should follow this path,” I pause for a moment and draw a blue arrow on the magical projection. “Going through as many buildings as we can and only using the streets if necessary. This way, it will cut down on our exposure to anything hostile,” I decide.

“Assuming there is nothing hostile inside the buildings,” Thunder says with a hint of concern in his voice. “This also assumes we’ll be able to find entrances and exits in those buildings to follow this path. I don’t know anything about architecture, but i’m pretty sure not every building has an entrance on each side,” he says.

“True,” I reply with a nod, “but most have windows we can use. As for hostiles, I think i’d rather take our chances inside than outside. Especially if any of the raiders have a sniper rifle. That’d spell the end for Rose or me. If they had a high enough caliber, you three might be in trouble as well.”

“Fair enough,” Thunder nods. I look over the projection one more time and confirm everything in my mind.

“Alright then. As soon as the raiders settle down, we’ll move. This building here,” I mark a building with a blue X, “will be our destination. Once there, we’ll come up with another plan and move again.” After receiving nods from everyone, I continue, “By the way, Rose, how did you make it through these ruins the first time? Some sort of special route?”

Rose tilts her head and puts a hoof to her chin. “Something like that,” she says. “A few of us planned to head west to see if we could make contact with any other settlements. We had some guards who knew the city well guide us through it. The way we took, it was about two days, but we managed to avoid a lot of combat,” she informs us.

“But, I don’t remember it well enough, and with everyone else who came with me having…” she trails off for a moment, “...died...I…” I hold up a hoof to stop her. It looks like she is about to start crying, and that is something we can’t afford right now. Sadness can wait.

“That’s fine,” I tell her. “I was just curious, is all. We’ll get you back home safely,” I say, giving her a broad smile. She wipes a tear from her eye then nods and smiles back at me. Right, now I just need to make sure I can keep that promise.

===~+~===

“Let’s move!” I declare after the raider activity has died down a bit. We exit the apartment through a door opposite the gaping hole in the wall that we came through and enter a hallway with multiple doors along it. Moving southward, we enter through an unlocked door and enter another apartment.

This side of the building appears to be in better condition than the other, but is still a complete mess. Since the wall is intact, we break a window and carefully exit the building into a narrow alleyway. Directly across from us is a brick building, but the only entrance is windows about a pony’s height off the ground. “I got this,” Lightning says as he takes position under one of the windows. “Climb on up!”

Thunder is the first to climb up, break the remaining glass around the window and climb inside. After a moment, he sticks his head out again, “All clear, let’s go.” Arrow is next, followed by Rose and then myself.

Once inside, I look down to Lightning. “How do you plan on getting up here?” I ask him. Even if Thunder and Arrow use their power armor to attempt to pull him in, the position of the window would make it difficult to get a good grip.

“Just stand back away from the window,” he says as he turns his back to us and faces the wall opposite. I look at him in confusion for a moment before I see him run directly at the wall, jump at it, twist himself around and plant his rear hooves on it. A split second later, I dash to the side as he flies through the remains of the window and lands on his hooves with a metallic crash.

“Gotta love the extra power the suits give, right?” He says, surely hiding a smirk under his helmet. I roll my eyes and survey the room. It looks like some sort of filing room. Cabinets line all available wall space except for a door leading out. Papers have been scattered on the floor long since forgotten.

“Right, we must be in an office building of some sort,” I mutter. “Let’s keep going.” Opening the door leads to another hallway and the door across from us leads to a meeting room of sorts. A large table is in the center with numerous chairs around it. Resting in each chair, is a skeleton. Ignoring them as best I can, i approach the large bay window that has long since had its glass busted out.

After busting through some of the remaining rotted wood to make room for us to exit, we dash across the street and stand against the next building. A multiple story office building. The doors are locked, but against the power of Thunder’s armor, they splintered into a thousand pieces with minimal effort on his part.

The inside is a large open lobby with a decayed fountain in the middle. Between us and it was a reception desk. I could just make out the words ‘Humble Law Firm’ engraved on the front of it. I think I remember hearing about them. I never had much use for lawyers though. The first floor had a few doors to our left and right, and on either side of the fountain was a curved staircase leading to the second floor.

“If I remember correctly, the building south of us was rubble on the map, so we should probably try heading east for now. Wait a moment…” I say as I pull up my map. Just like I thought. “There appears to be a walkway linking this building with the one across the street. Let’s head upstairs and look for it,” I tell the others. After scaling the staircase and turning down a hall, we find the door to the walkway.

Carefully, I push it open and take a look. Towards the center, half of the walkway has been blown away, but the rest looks solid enough. However, sitting in the midst of a pile of sandbags holding a sniper and looking out the gaping hole is a raider. Even without an EFS, I can tell. They were covered in similar armor the raiders wear and clearly had blood smeared on his face and body.

“Those fucks, how did they lose the targets? Well, they won’t get past me. I’ll kill them and take all their loot for myself!” The raider says with a laugh, clearing any doubts that they were in fact, a raider. I hold up a hoof to the others, draw my knife, and make my way towards him.

About halfway there I suddenly hear a beeping. Without skipping a beat, I charge at the raider who begins turning towards me. The beeping stops as I magically throw my knife at the raider and pierce his eye before he has a chance to get a single shot off or yell. His head jerks back and then falls forward to rest on the sandbags.

I turn back towards the others, only to see a landmine magically floating near where the beeping started. Arrow is waving at me happily. She floats the mine to me as the others walk up. “You know, you’re lucky Arrow is good at disarming mines with her magic,” Lightning says. “Otherwise, you’d have been blown to bits,” he adds, unnecessarily.

“Yea, yea,” I tell him while rolling my eyes. Facing Arrow, I say, “Thanks, saved me again.” I give her a smile as she falls to her haunches and frantically waves her hooves in front of her. “No, no, seriously. Thank you Arrow. I should pay more attention to my surroundings,” I say, feeling slightly disappointed in myself.

“That you should,” Lightning chimes in. I roll my eyes again as I begin to loot the raider. His sniper is the same as Arrow’s, although in worse condition. He also has a few caps on him, but no spare ammo. As I’m about to move on, I notice a box under him. I push him aside and discover an ammo box. Inside, I find a large amount of .308 bullets for the rifle.

I pick up the case and hold it up to Arrow. “Here, it’s the same type of ammo as your rifle,” I tell her. She shakes her head. I frown. “Look, I know you all have your own supply, and you’re letting me have all the loot we find, but seriously. You use this ammo, and you just saved my life. Take it,” I repeat.

She stares at it for a moment. “...half…” she says quietly. I set the case on the ground and roll my eyes.

“Fine!” I say, as I scoop out about half of the rounds and add them to my bags. My inventory reads I got 43. “Happy? Now, take the rest,” I tell her. She nods and picks up the case in her magic then adds it to her bag. “Alright, let’s move,” I say and begin to walk to the other side of the walkway.

Suddenly, a frag mine floats directly into my face. I stop before I smack into it. The magic around it disappears and I quickly pick it up with my own. As i do so, Arrow walks past me and floats up another mine near the door. Like the other one, she deactivates it and floats it over to me. I let out a sigh as I put them both in my bag. “Thanks...again,” I mutter as we continue through the door.

Into another hallway of what looks like more offices. While looking for the stairs down to the first floor, we pass an open door. As I look inside, I lock eyes with one of three raiders playing cards around a table. “Oh come one!” I shout as I draw the shotgun and level it at one of the raiders.

As they go for their guns on the table, I pull the trigger and send buckshot at my target. However, despite the close range and the spread of the shotgun, the raider only gets nicked as I quickly move to get out of the doorway as gunfire erupts from the room. I take up position right around the corner and Lightning takes the side opposite. The others stay a good distance back.

“Gee Ratchet, you always us something good, don’t ya?” Lightning says sarcastically just as the raiders’ storm of bullets stops. Simultaneously, Lightning and I peek around the corner and open fire. His shots inevitably hit his target while I still manage to only lightly pepper mine. Well, that’s six wasted shells. We fall back against the wall as the raiders finish reloading and open up on us again.

“Yea, yea. Less snark and more shooting,” I tell him. A moment later, their fire stops and we fold around the doorway once again. Again, Lightning drops his target, while I waste my shotguns remaining clip. “Are you kidding me!?” I yell as I throw the empty shotgun at the raider. By some odd stroke of luck, it knocks the gun from his grip and catches him off guard.

“Really Ratchet?” Lightning says as he charges into the room. “Who throws their weapon at the enemy?” He drops his SMG and draws his knife, ending the raider moments later. With the threat dealt with, I enter the room as well and retrieve my shotgun.

“It was empty!” I say, blushing slightly. “But I mean really, how did I manage to miss at this range with all eight shots! Well, not miss, but only slightly hit him. Ugh, guns and their shitty accuracy!” I declare.

“Well, first of all you just suck,” Lightning says in his usual snarky tone. “It isn’t the gun’s fault you can’t aim it properly,” he adds with a laugh. “But, you actually hit him quite a bit. It just seemed like you didn’t,” he says, picking up an odd looking needle contraption. “He was using Stampede.”

“Stampede?” I ask stupidly. “Wait, no, don’t tell me. I think it was...a combat enhancing drug developed before the war?” I suggest, looking at the empty drug casing before going back to looting the bodies.

“Very good!” Lightning says. “It’s effects include increased aggression and a numbing of pain. He just didn’t seem like he got hit, when in reality, you did quite a number on him.” I finish looting the first two raiders and finally get a look at the one i’d been shooting at. His left side looks like it had been through a grinder.

“So I don’t suck!” I say with a smile as I proceed to loot him. Lightning just chuckles. “Hey, what’s that laugh for? Are you saying I still do?” I question. He just shakes his head and walks out of the room. “No, seriously! You think I do, don’t you!” I call after him.

I finish looting and return to the others outside the room. “...so she throws the shotgun at him,” Lightning says, getting a laugh from Thunder and a quiet giggle from Arrow as she holds a hoof to her helmeted muzzle.

“Yea, yea, laugh it up,” I say, as I reload the shotgun. Eight shells and I didn’t even bring down one. Yet Lightning brings down two with a single clip of his SMG and a third with his knife. I let out a sigh. “Alright, let’s keep moving,” I say as I start leading us down the hallway once again.

“They have anything good on them?” Thunder asks.

“I wouldn’t say good. Just some poor quality SMGs. I did get a good sum of bullets for them though. I suppose I can sell these three and use the good quality one I already have, if necessary,” I tell him. “I also found some more of that Stampede drug on them, and some Dash.”

“Since the other two had the Stampede, I think they might each be carrying one, at least. The others didn’t take it though,” I say. “Even during the war it was highly addictive and dangerous. I expect this crude looking manufacturing hasn’t done it any…” I’m cut off as some shouting echos down the hallway.

Hoofbeats quickly follow the voices and I begin to make out what they are saying, “Like I said, I heard shooting from up here. The fucks must have found a way inside behind us,” a mare’s voice calls out.

“Good!” shouts a buck. “I hope the others didn’t finish them off, i’ve been itching to kill something all day!” The sounds get closer until they seem just around the corner from us. I motion for everyone to hug the walls, except for Thunder who I have stand in the center. In this formation with Thunder at the center, Arrow, Rose and I are on his left and Lightning is on the right.

“Hey, don’t kill them all! I want to have some fun with them first!” Calls another mare. Shit, how many were there? In seconds, the first one comes around the corner, followed by four others. “Oh shit!” the mare in front calls out as Thunder’s minigun spins up.

Arrow shields Rose with her body as I drop to the floor and make myself as small a target as possible. Meanwhile, Lightning and Arrow open fire. Arrow’s bullet finds a buck’s left legs, piercing through both unarmored hunks of flesh.

Lightning sprays the pair closest to him as they fumble to bring their weapons to bear on us. I aim into the center of them and start pulling the trigger right as Thunder’s gun begins to roar to life. Arrow’s target falls on his side and receives a second bullet through his skull. One of Lightning’s falls to the ground with a thump as the other starts shooting madly at him.

The remaining two see Rose and myself, unarmored and focus their efforts on us, but as they do so my buckshot and Thunder’s swarm of bullets plows into them, causing them to shoot wildly as they trip over each other to get back around the corner.

Arrow sends a bullet through the rear leg of one right before they disappear from sight along with the one that was shooting at Lightning. “Fuckers!” I hear one call out from around the corner. A moment later, three metal apples fly around the corner and land in front of us. “How do you like them apples?” Another of the raiders calls out.

“Oh shit!” I scream as I drop my shotgun from my magic and scoop up the nearest grenade. I throw it out the nearest window. Arrow picks one up with her magic and throws it back around the corner. The third grenade is in the middle of us right in front of Thunder. Without hesitation, he throws his side onto the grenade.

Immediately after, all three blow up. Mine sends glass and brick spraying back into the hall, Arrow’s receives a chorus of “FUCK!” as red splashing into the hall and against the walls. The grenade under Thunder explodes, launching him a few inches in the air. I hear him call out as he crashes back down and red starts to seep out around him.

“Thunder!” I call out as I rush over to him. The others follow immediately after me. Surrounding Thunder, Arrow takes off his helmet and Lightning tries to help his brother up to his haunches. Thunder’s face is twisted in pain as he gets into a sitting position.

At this moment, I can see the slight smile on his face. “What? You think a grenade is going to take me out?” He says. “Grenades are my thing, remember?” Despite his encouraging words, the entire right side of his armor is crushed inwards, and from the cracks seeps blood. The minigun mounted on his side has been ruined, its barrels twisted at odd angles.

Arrow begins stripping the armor off his side and bandaging him up. Lightning separates the destroyed gun from his brother’s armor, and slams his hooves down in the dented metal, popping it back out the way it should be. While not in peak condition, it wouldn’t stab at Thunder’s side this way.

Somehow, Thunder manages to only have some cuts from the jagged edges of his armor when it got dented. Unfortunately, his only plausible weapon has been destroyed. But, it is a minor sacrifice as long as he is still alive. “Don’t do something like that again, alright?” I tell him. “There’s no need to sacrifice yourself for us.”

“It wasn’t a sacrifice,” Thunder replies while wincing from Arrow’s treatment. “Our armor is made to be able to take a grenade or two. Though, a rocket might be a different story. I wasn’t in any real danger.”

“He’s got a point, though I will agree, it was rash to do,” Lightning adds, finishing with his brother’s armor. “Good as new,” he says, kicking it back towards Thunder.

Arrow finishes up and Thunder gets to his hooves with a grunt. “Thanks,” he says as he puts his armor back on, except for his helmet, which he puts in his bag. “Sorry, Ratchet, but I think i’ll be needing to take one of their guns. I think i’ll take...this one,” he says, as he picks up a fairly good condition assault rifle and continues to loot the raider for more ammo.

“If you find any 5.56 on the others, toss it to me, will ya?” he says as he puts the rest of the raiders ammo into his bags and kicks me over a dose of Stampede. I pick it up, and proceed to loot the others. Two others have rifles and a good sum of 5.56 on them. I float it into Thunder’s bags and take everything else.

Like the others before, each one has a dose of Stampede on them, i’m up to seven now. Other than that, I find some caps, another SMG, two 10mm pistols, and plenty of 10mm ammo. As I get it all together and stand up, I say, “You know, I appreciate you letting me take all the loot, but honestly, I don’t think I can carry much more. Rose, you want anything?”

She shakes her head as she says, “If you can’t carry something, i’ll carry it for you. My bags are pretty light at the moment. But I don’t need anything.” I shrug my shoulders as we continue on, finding the stairs right around the corner.

===~+~===

We make it to our first stop without any more issues. I project the map once again, and plot us a course through the ruins. If we keep following my plan, we should reach the city in a few more hours. As we proceed through building after building, and cross street after street, we only find minor resistance from mutated animals such as bloatsprites.

We repeat my mapping process three times before coming to a large, crumbling overpass. It is a larger road than we’ve crossed before. “Stay sharp, we’ll be more exposed than usual crossing this road,” I say as I begin to lead us across.

Halfway across, and nothing has jumped out as us yet. Three-fourths of the way there, and nothing. Two feet from the next building, and a loud crack echoes through the city. An instant later a bullet pierces through my rear right leg. I trip mid-step and fall flat on my face as the others run to shield Rose and I as we move to the side of the building. Lightning grabs me with a hoof and drags me to my hooves, pulling me along.

Limping, I make it to the building with the others. Another loud crack, followed by a chunk of concrete exploding right next to my head, sending it cutting across my face. I flinch as the concrete dust gets in my eyes and the fresh cuts begin to send blood running down my muzzle.

Without wasting a moment, Thunder kicks in the door to the building and Lightning drags me inside while I remain dazed. The others follow and shut the door as best they can. I’m rubbing my eyes trying to clear them of dust as Arrow attempts to work on my wounded leg. “Shit, you good Ratchet?” Lightning asks as he looks around the room.

“Y-yea, i think so,” I reply. “Well, kind of. I can keep going,” I tell him. I mean, I did just get shot, but we can’t afford to sit around, they know where we are at. “Let’s keep moving,” I say as Arrow finished up on my leg, tying the magical bandage neatly around the wound. Down to one of those, I suppose. I hope I won’t need more.

The cuts on my face aren’t too bad, they should stop bleeding pretty quick. I frantically look around at the destroyed building we are in, some sort of hotel I think. I get my bearings, and begin to lead us south through the building, and into the alley between this building and the next. As soon as we are outside, however, a rocket detonates a foot away from us.

Lightning is closest to where it detonated, and as the dust settles, I can tell he is alright. “Keep moving!” I yell, as we smash through a window while another rocket is on its way. We pile in through the window seconds before it detonates, sending glass and mortar cascading down upon us.

“Well, this is going from bad to worse,” Thunder mutters as we run through the building. I thought we lost the raiders, what happened? Are they the same ones we lost earlier, or a new group?

We crash through the door leading to the street, only to be ambushed by four raiders. Thunder, Lightning, and Arrow quickly stand between Rose and I and the raiders. I peak around Lightning and fire a few shots of buckshot at a pair of the raiders. It strikes them and staggers them, allowing Lightning and Arrow to finish them off.

As I look to the other side, I see Thunder and Arrow just drop their opponents as well. Meanwhile, Rose is shaking behind Arrow, gun drawn and eyes wide. No time to loot, “Across the street!” I call out and begin charging towards the building across the street.

Gunfire begins to break out as we break into a department store and slam the door behind us. “Fuck! Do we just have bad luck, or do they know where we are going,” I say as I look around quickly. “We have to go, now!” I begin walking to the back of the store with the others close behind.

I reach the other side and start to open an employee entrance to the street beyond. Before I even get the door fully open, a hail of bullets start to ping off the door. I slam it shut and step away from it. “Fuck, fuck, fuck!” I scream. This wasn’t good. Did they have us trapped? “We might be stuck here,” I tell the others.

I stare at the door for a moment, eyes wide in panic, before Arrow puts a hoof on my shoulder. I turn to look at my friends, two wearing helmets with unreadable expressions, the terrified Rose, and Thunder, looking ready for orders. I relax for a moment and take a deep breath.

I close my eyes and think. After a moment, I open my eyes and give them a determined look. “Alright, they have us trapped. But, we aren’t done. Thunder, watch this door,” I say as I float out one of the mines, arm it, and place it in front of the door. Thunder nods, throws a table on its side and takes up position behind it.

“Lightning, watch the door we came from. Put this in front of the door,” I tell him, as I float the other mine over to him. He nods and takes off for the other entrance. “Rose, I think there is a circular sales desk in the middle of this floor. I want you to go and hide behind it. No matter what direction they come from, you’ll have protection,” I tell her.

She stares blankly at me for a moment, before blinking, nodding, and running off. “Arrow, you take the west side and make sure there are no other entrances there. I’ll look to the east. If you find one, yell...or, well, give me a signal or something I guess,” I say to her. She gives me a salute and takes off.

Alright, we can do this. We’ll hold this position, get our bearings, and take out any that try to get in. We need to rest, to catch our breath. Get our hooves under us again. I nod to myself, confirming my plan and begin to search the east for any other entrances.

After a quick trot along the wall, I confirm that there are no windows or doors. As I recall the map, that makes sense. No doubt Arrow found the same. If I remember correctly, this building is attached to the ones on either side of it. I return to Rose in the center. A few moments later, Arrow comes back and confirms that there are no entrances.

“Alright, they have two ways to get in. If we watch them, we should be fine,” I declare. I turn my attention to Rose, who looks quite shaken. “Rose, everything will be alright. We’ll make it. Just a few blocks more, and we’ll be there,” I tell her. She shakily nods, but doesn’t say anything. “Arrow, stay with her. I’m going to check in with the others,” I say as I begin walking over towards Thunder’s position at the south.

As I approach, I notice he has overturned a few more tables and fortified his position. I go over the plan with him, he gives me his approval and I head north of talk with Lightning. Similar to his brother, Lightning agrees and has fortified his position. Multiple tables overturned. Though, Lightning’s has a little more finesse in its design than his brother’s.

I return to Arrow and Rose in the center of the building and give Rose a bottle of Sparkle Cola. She takes it gratefully and begins sipping it. I pocket the bottle cap, of course. We sit in silence as we wait.

===~+~===

After two hours, the raiders still have not made an attempt to enter the store. They do, however, continue to holler at us. Thinks like, “Just come on out, we only want to play!”, “You’ll have to come out eventually!”, or even “Get out here you fucks!” A large variety of obscenities have been thrown at us, but nothing more.

From the amount of voices I manage to distinguish, I estimate at least a dozen at each entrance. An hour ago, Arrow and I went to the second floor windows in an attempt to find their positions and take a few out with our rifles. However, as soon as we approached the windows their snipers kept us from looking outside for more than a few seconds.

“Fuck…” I sigh as I slump against the desk. I figured they would at least try to come in and we could thin some of them out. But, it seems they are attempting to put us under siege. I roll my head back and look up at the ceiling, losing myself in thought.

My wounded leg was starting to hurt, causing me to snap back to reality. “Alright. Hey, Lightning,” I call over to him. “Come here. It’s not like they are going to come in anyway. Even if they do, we’ll know right away,” I say in a more relaxed tone that I should have in this situation. After a moment, Lightning hops over the desk with us.

“What’s up?” he asks. I look at him with a blank expression and shrug my shoulders. “What does that mean? You called me over, remember?” He says with a hint of irritation in his voice.

“I got a plan. A stupid plan,” I say, as I roll my head to the side. “Let’s go meet up with Thunder, I’ll explain it then,” I say, rising to my hooves and climbing over the desk. After a few moments of hesitation, the others follow.

“Hey Thunder,” I say as I approach. “I think it’s time we leave,” I say with little emotion in my voice. I sigh. It is almost like I am depressed. But, I know I’m feeling this way because this is a really stupid plan, and I really don’t want to do this.

“Whenever you’re ready boss,” Thunder replies. “But, how do you plan on doing that?” He asks. I nod my head as everyone gathers around. I let out another sigh as I prepare the details in my head.

“We go out guns blazing,” I tell them flatly. Well, that’s part of the plan anyhow. Now, for the sucky part. “But first, lend me some of your grenades, Thunder. About five will do. I’d like six, but I don’t think I could pull that off,” I say, muttering the last part quieter than the rest.

“Sure thing, but what do you plan to do with them?” He asks, digging out five grenades from his bags and setting them in front of me. I pick them up in my magic and float them beside me.

“I’m going out first,” I say as I draw the poor quality shotgun from my bag along with two doses of Dash. “I’ll shoot off the door’s hinges, drop this shotgun, grab the door in my telekinesis, and use it as a shield as I charge outside. Once outside, I’ll take one of the Dash and then find out where the raiders are positioned. I’ll then use the grenades to attempt to kill them, or catch them off guard,” I declare.

If I could see their faces, besides Rose’s, which was looking at me in shock, I bet they would be wearing the same expression. But I wasn’t done explaining yet. “Once I toss the grenades, I’ll slam the door into the ground and use it as cover, freeing up my magic to use my SMG. At this point, the Dash should wear off, which is where the second dose comes in,” I pause as I look them over.

“As soon as I pick up the door, you four will count to seven and follow me out. Keep Rose between you. Rose, pick up the shotgun I drop, if you can. Once in the street, engage any raiders you see while moving towards me. Once we are together, I’ll pick the door back up and use it as a shield for us as we move across the street and into the next building. Got it?” I ask.

Lightning is the first to speak up, “You are fucking crazy if you think that we’ll…”

“Shut up!” I yell at him. “I know, this is going to suck. I could even die, in fact, if I don’t i’ll be surprised. So listen, whatever it takes, I will make sure you all make it across the street safely. So do as I say,” I say, almost pleading with them.

Lightning sits and crosses his front legs. “No,” he says simply. However, Thunder and Arrow walk past me towards the door, Arrow deactivates the mine and floats it back into my bag. They take up positions on either side of the door.

“Whenever you’re ready boss,” Thunder says in a pained tone. Arrow nods in agreement.

Lightning lets out a sigh. “Idiots. But,” he rises to his hooves, “when they are like this, there’s no talking sense into them. He walks up to me and mutters, “I won’t forgive you if you die, Ratchet,” before taking his place next to Thunder.

Rose looks confused between us before she runs over to Arrow’s side. I walk a few feet from the door, close my eyes and take a deep breath. Slowly, I open them again and look at the ponies next to the door, looking at me, waiting for me. I grit my teeth, and float the shotgun up next to the bottom hinge.

Now! I pull the trigger, shattering the rusted hinge as I float the gun up to the top one and repeat the process. As soon as the door is free, I charge at it, drop the shotgun from my magic and pick up the door up. Heavier than I expect, but that just means it will be a good shield.

Already, bullets are bouncing off the door and building as I sprint through the doorway. One second, I make it a foot from the building. Two seconds, I take the first dose of Dash. Two and a half seconds, I pull the pins from all five grenades. Three seconds, I toss the first grenade at a pair of raiders to my left. Three and a half seconds, I toss the second grenade at three raiders at my 10 o’clock. Four seconds, the third grenade flies at a four of ponies behind some sandbags directly across the street.

Four and a half seconds, the fourth grenade is sent express to a pair nearing 3 o’clock. Five seconds, the fifth grenade soars for three raiders to my right. Six seconds, I reach the middle of the street. Six and a half seconds, I jam the door in the road horizontally. Seven seconds, the others charge out and begin shooting as I feel a bullet penetrate my flank. Seven and a half seconds, the grenades explode as I draw my SMG.

Eight seconds, I open fire at the ponies across the road from me as the flee the explosion. Nine seconds, I confirm the grenades killed five as I shoot to my right. Ten seconds, my friend make it a third of the way to me and have taken out two raiders. Eleven seconds, I feel the Dash about to wear off and put the second dose in my muzzle, pushing down on the injector.

Eleven and a half seconds, I toss aside the empty dose as I exhale a pink mist and level my SMG at my 3 o’clock. Thirteen seconds, I finish off the pair at my 3 o’clock. Fifteen seconds, I feel another round punch into my left foreleg as I reload the SMG. Seventeen seconds, I finish off the group in front of me as my friends reach me.

Nineteen seconds, and I turn my head just in time to have a bullet fly through my mane. Nineteen and a half seconds, and I point the sniper out to Arrow. Twenty one seconds, Arrow takes out the sniper as my second dose of Dash wears off. “FUCK!” I cry out as the pain of my wounds finally reaching my brain.

I wince as i pick the door up once again and swing it to our left. It seems all the raiders on our right have been dealt with and only four raiders remain. With the metal door between us and the raiders, we reach the building without further injury while the others take shots at them. I move to open the door, but find it to be a metal door chained shut with a sturdy lock.

I raise my shotgun to shoot off the lock as I hear the raiders from the north side of the previous building just reaching this street. I pull the trigger, but the buckshot only ricochets off the lock and hits me in the chest with a few pellets. I call out as I drop the shotgun from my magic and stagger back.

Shaking my head, I look behind us, from both sides of the street, more raiders have appeared. Thunder, Arrow, and Lightning move to stand between Rose and I and the raiders on the side opposite the makeshift door cover. “I can’t get the door open!” I say as I hold a hoof to my bleeding chest.

Fuck, could this get any worse? I think to myself. As if on cue, a loud roar echoes through the street. I hear the beating of wings right as a giant beast lands in the middle of the street. A lion’s head, wings of a bat, and the tail of a scorpion. “Oh fuck,” I mutter under my breath as my eyes go wide.

“Don’t move,” Lightning says as our group stops shooting all together. At the same time, the raiders stop shooting at us, and begin to shoot at the manticore. It lets out another roar and charges towards the nearest group, slashing its mighty claws and cleaving two raiders in half instantly.

I swallow hard as I watch it mercilessly attack the raiders. Within seconds, it kills the raiders on that side of the road and with a mighty rush of its wings, flies across the street into the other group. I keep watching until a metal hoot strikes my cheek.

Blinking a few times, I realize that Arrow hit me. I shake my head to collect myself and think. “Get away from the door,” I say, as I float out the remaining frag mine and set it on the chains holding the door closed. I arm it and back away from the door before covering my face and shooting it with my shotgun.

A metal rending explosion resounds before quickly dying down. As i look at where the door once stood, now a gaping entryway remained. “Inside, now!” I yell as I look towards the manticore. It has finished with the raiders and is now flying towards us.

I sprint through the doorway, followed by Rose, Arrow, Thunder, and...Lightning! Right as he is about halfway through the doorway, the manticore reaches out with its claws and catches him in the rear legs. I watch in horror as chunks of metal fly from the beast’s claws and Lightning is sent flying into the building and against a wall.

For a moment, I think the monster is about to descend upon us, but then I realize it is too big to fit in the doorway. It flails its claws around just inside the doorway and growls at us, but makes it no further. I fall to my haunches along with Rose and Arrow and Thunder run over to help Lightning.

I want to join them, but I can’t bring myself to move right now. I look down and see the blood pooling under me. Oh yea, I had been shot. My head begins to spin as I fish out the remains of the healing potion from my bags. I drink it as quickly as i can and then use my remaining regular bandage to wrap my injured foreleg.

It is a pretty shitty job, and Arrow would have done much better, but considering my vision kept flashing white, I think I did a pretty good job. White, normal, white, normal, white, and then darkness.

===~+~===

Level Up! x2

+17 Small Guns
+13 Medicine
+9 Explosives
+3 Melee Weapons

New Perk!
-Skittish - You’ve proven to be quite unpredictable under pressure. When under the effects of Dash, you have a 25% chance to enter a SATS-like state

Chapter 12 - New Magic

“In order to win this war, we must challenge the fundamentals of magic. We must change it, and make it something new.”

===~+~===

My eyes shoot open and I look frantically around. Lightning is laying next to me with Arrow sitting next to him. Thunder and Rose are on my other side. I steady my breathing and ask, “What happened?”

“You passed out from blood loss,” Thunder informs me. “Luckily, while we were dealing with Lightning, you managed to patch yourself up to stop from losing any more. We’ve haven’t moved from this building since then. The sun has already set, so it looks like we are spending the night here,” he concludes.

“What about Lightning,” I ask. “Is he alright?” I look over at Lightning’s sleeping form. His chest rises and falls steadily. It looks like they took his armor off and patched him up. His rear legs are covered in bandages and his armor’s rear leggings have been completely shredded.

“Well, he’ll be gimping along for a while, but it isn’t anything too bad. Iron had similar injuries the first time he encountered a manticore and the only lasting sign of that was some scarring. He’s lucky he got as far through the doorway as he did,” Thunder sighs.

“I see,” I mutter, recalling Lightning being tossed through the air by the manticore. I shake my head and look around to distract me from the thought. It appears as if we are in an office. It has a sturdy metal door and a reinforced glass window looking out into the rest of the building. The office itself consists of a metal desk with a wooden chair and a single filing cabinet.

On top of the desk is a terminal, a worn calendar, and a few sheets of yellowed paper. “Have you looked at anything in this office yet?” I ask them.

“No, we’ve just been watching over you two,” Thunder replies. “If you want to loot, go right ahead, we saved it just for you,” he says with a smirk. I roll my eyes, but turn my attention to the filing cabinet.

I’m still a bit shaky as I get to my hooves and walk over to it. However, upon opening it I find it oddly empty. “Huh, not even files,” I mutter. I look at the papers on the desk, but they are just are too worn out to decipher. Then I notice the metal wastebasket next to the desk. It is full of ashes. “Did they burn all the files? Why would they do that?” I question, though to no one in particular.

Next, I begin digging through the desk drawers. I find a whole lot of nothing, aside from a keyring with two keys on it. I pocket them and plop down in the wooden chair, inspecting the terminal. Other than a bunch of dust, it doesn’t seem damaged. I hit the power button and wipe away some of the dust on the screen with my hoof.

As it boots up, I stretch my limbs. I let out a soft moan while doing so. “Damn, I don’t think i’ve ever felt this bad,” I mutter. Two wounded legs, a bunch of buckshot in my chest, and a bunch of small cuts on my face and body. What I wouldn’t give to just sleep for a week.

The logo of the M.A.S. flashes on the screen momentarily before going to a list of options. “Wait, MAS? Hey CORA, you there?” I ask, looking at my PipBuck. I don’t see her in my vision at the moment. “CORA, can you hear me? I have a question,” I say again.

After a few moments, her face appears in my vision. “Hey Ratchet, sorry, I was over near Fillydelphia. Nothing to report! Though, I do think someone else is using the Spritebots, but that isn’t too important. Anyone with a decent knowledge of them and radio signals could do so,” she says with a dismissive smile. “So, what’s up?” She asks.

“This terminal had a MAS logo on startup. Can you tell if this is an MAS facility?” I ask her, using my PipBuck’s cable to hook into the terminal. Her face moves from my vision onto the terminal. It looks around for a moment before smiling.

“It appears so,” CORA reports. “Oh yea, since it is night, I suspect you’ll be staying here, right?” She asks. I nod, and she rolls her eyes. “You know I can’t normally see gestures, right? Luckily, the facility has multiple cameras throughout. Anyway, boop!” she declares as an option highlights.

The option marked ‘Facility Operations’ is selected which brings up another list I barely read ‘Lockdown’ before it is selected and lights begin flashing through the window. I hear grating metal as the lights flash for a few moments and a voice comes over an intercom, “Facility Lockdown has been initiated. All exits have been sealed.” The flashing lights turn off once again.

“If you don’t plan on leaving, and since you left a gaping hole in the facility, I thought a lockdown would be effective at keeping you all safe,” CORA says as she returns the terminal’s selections back to the main menu.

Thunder gets up and walks over beside me. “But that also means that we are trapped with anything still in here. If this is a MAS facility like you say, i’m sure there are defences and the like, correct?” he says, concern clearly visible on his face.

“Indeed! However, I’ve already overwritten their targeting parameters. There shouldn’t be anything hostile to you in here. Even if there do happen to be the odd raider or radroach lurking around, the turrets will take them out for you,” CORA replies.

“Nice work,” I tell her. “So, what all does the facility consist of? Because it looks like a normal factory on this level,” I ask. That’s not to say that a simple factory couldn’t be a MAS facility. In fact, the MAS owned, or took over, quite a few factories to produce specific items for them during the war.

CORA scrunches up her muzzle as she quickly changes directories on the terminals faster than I can read them. “It says the factory was used to make water talismans. Though, this report states they shut down production a week before the war ended. No stock remains of them either, so no loot there,” she says sadly.

I roll my eyes, “You know, i’m not obsessed with loot.” Geez, what was with everypony. They are all, ‘Oh hey, here’s some loot, better give it to Ratchet.’ “What else you got,” I ask CORA.

“Hmmmmm,” she says, flicking through more files. “There are two levels below us, but I can’t find any information on them. They don’t even show up on the building schematics. But, I’m able to access their cameras and turrets, so I know they are there,” she answers, confused. “There’s also a large dark spot I can’t access at the center of the bottom level. A large cylindrical area in the middle of it,” she says.

“Do you know how we can get down to those levels?” I ask her.

“There appears to be a freight elevator at the far end of this floor. But according to this, it only goes up to the roof for deliveries and shipments. Nothing of note up there, either,” she tells me.

“I see. I’ll go take a look,” I say, getting up off the chair. “You coming back into my PipBuck, or are you going to hang out in there for a while?” I ask CORA.

“I’ll stay in here. I can keep an eye on you with the cameras. If I change my mind, you just have to find another linked terminal. I’ll talk to you over the intercom system,” she says. I remove my PipBuck’s cable from the terminal and open the door to the factory floor. Thunder gets up to come with me.

“You stay here,” I tell him. “CORA can cover me with turrets if anything happens. Since the only entrances are up here, I’d feel better if you are up here with everyone else if something decides to try and break in,” I say, giving him a reassuring smile.

“Whatever you say, boss,” Thunder replies, sitting back down. “Stay safe down there,” he tells me as I walk out of the door.

Now that I have time to look around at the factory floor properly, it looks like a normal factory. Large machines with conveyor belts take up much of the space, including an arcane imprinter used to imprint the talismans with magic. Empty crates line the sides of the building. They probably used to hold raw materials for the talismans before production was shut down.

I make my way towards the back of the factory, and find a large freight elevator, like CORA said. It is essentially a large platform with four large beams going up to the ceiling, where a sealed hatch would normally be. Now, a thick steel door has closed over it.

I get onto the elevator and look at the single button on the raised console. Beside the button, is a keyhole. “Well, worth a shot,” I mutter, drawing out the keyring and trying the first key. Not even close. The try the second key, and after some negotiating, it slides into place. I turn the key and nothing happens.

I wait for a moment and then shrug and press the button. The platform lurches and rises up a few inches. I think it is going to keep rising, but it stops. Suddenly, the concrete below the elevator moves down and slides back into the floor revealing a dark hole. Once the floor is out of the way, the elevator moves back down and proceeds into the darkness.

After a moment, lights begin to kick on and illuminate a rectangular concrete room with a single door. Once the elevator reaches the bottom, I notice the two turrets on either side of the door. I take the keys with me as I get off the elevator and walk up to the door. Locked. I try the other key, and it opens.

Beyond the door is a long concrete hallway with various doors along it. As I begin to walk down the hall, I peek in a few of the doors. They look like bedrooms. The entire hall is filled with bedrooms. As I reach the end and make a right turn the hallway continues. I notice a few cameras and turrets on the ceiling as I walk.

“CORA, how big is this level?” I ask her. It seems like just a bunch of living quarters.

“This floor isn’t that big. The one below is about four times as big. You’ll reach another corner up here,” she says, and right as she does, I take another right turn. “At the end of this hall, you’ll find a staircase. This level is all living quarters, it looks like,” She tells me.

After a few minutes, I reach the stairs she mentioned. It is a long metal staircase. I begin to descend and my hoofs echo loudly on the metal stairs with each step. One flight, two flights, three flights. “I HATE STAIRS!” I yell, receiving a resounding echo in return. Climbing back up these was going to be a pain.

Two more flights later, I reach the bottom. I open the door to exit the staircase and the concrete surroundings I had gotten used to turn into an almost blinding white. I say almost, because with all the dust it has dulled quite a bit. The semi-circular room is filled with desks, terminals, and chairs. It looks like an office, but a lot more scientific. On the opposite side of the room, a rounded convex wall exists. On my left and right, as the room rounds, I can see doors on both sides.

Seeing nothing spectacular in this room, I decide to head to the door on my right. As I walk towards it, I look around the room. Random papers scattered everywhere, empty filing cabinets, and bins full of ash. “More destruction of files?” I mutter. Even some of the terminals appear to have been destroyed.

I’d expected to see bones somewhere, but i’ve not seen a single one since entering, not even in the factory. It is like this whole place was abandoned, but left running. It has power and everything. I reach the door and proceed through it. This room is less like an office and more like a library. Various desks full of books lay scattered about and shelves lined the room. The left wall, was also convex.

It was like CORA said, there is a cylindrical shape in the middle of this floor. I look at some of the books, wondering why they weren’t destroyed along with the files. But they are just random books on magic. Even some on zebra magic and other magic i’ve never heard of. Just then I recall Grimoire’s plan. Finding ancient and destructive magics.

“Oh no, I’m going to have to destroy all these, aren’t I?” I ask no one in particular, setting down a book I was looking at called ‘Imagination and You!’. I resolve to deal with the books later, and head through the next door. Judging by the length of these rooms, the next room would be directly across from the first one.

I open the door and take in the next room. It appears to be a medical room of sorts. There are shelves that would have probably contained medical goods, but they are now bare. In the center of the room, is a single padded chair that was more than likely used for treatment. I riffled through some drawers, but they are all empty. Not even a single bandage remains.

As I near the door on the other side of a room, I notice an odd looking metal case to the door’s right. It looks to be some sort of dispenser. There is a button on the front of it, with a retrieval tray near the bottom. I shrug, and push the bottom. After some whirring of gears the sound of plastic crumpling reaches my ears. I reach down with a hoof and pick up whatever it is the machine dropped.

Wrapped in plastic, preserved from before the war, is one, beautiful, sexy, brilliantly white, lab coat. I let out a squee of delight as I tear the plastic open with my magic while throwing off my bags. I pull the lab coat from the plastic, unfold it, and quickly slip my front legs into the sleeves. I look around frantically for a mirror and find one, though a bit dusty to the right of the machine.

I rear up on my rear hooves and put my front hooves in the coat’s pockets while striking my most badass scientist pose in front of the mirror. I look at myself in the mirror, beautiful white lab coat, blood covered barding, dirty silver coat, singed ice blue mane, and a face full of small cuts, caked with blood. My smile disappears as I slowly fall back onto my front hooves.

I sigh and look back over the room. Specifically at a small rectangular room I overlooked that is marked ‘Restroom’. I walk over to it, open the door, and walk inside. A toilet, a sink, and a mirror. Simple, but good enough. I turn a knob on the sink. “Please, please, please…” I mutter. The faucet sputters to life and spits out some brown gunk before it runs slightly dirty water.

My PipBuck clicks softly and I hold my hooves under the water and splash water on my face, being careful not to make a mess of my new coat. I wipe my face with my hooves for a while before I’m satisfied with my reflection in the mirror. It want to strip down and take the time to clean my entire body, but I don’t want to keep the others waiting longer than I have to. A clean face will have to do, for now.

I exit the bathroom, return to the machine, and put my bags back on. I’m about to go through the next door, when I look back at the machine. I look suspiciously back and forth before hammering the button a few times. The machine spits out three more lab coats before a red ‘Out of Stock’ light comes on. Whistling to myself, I put them in my bag and head into the next room.

This room, I would equate to a classroom. There was a single desk in the middle and two chalkboards in front of it. A few chairs sat at the other side of the room, facing the desk. I also see numerous chests behind the chalkboards. My attention is drawn to something on top of one of these chests. I walk over and inspect it.

It was armored barding, heavier than the one I was currently wearing. The armor was dusty, but other than that it appears to be perfectly fine. As I pick it up, a piece of paper falls from it. I float the paper up to read it. ‘Instructor use only,’ it read. I toss the paper aside along with my bags. I then take off my lab coat and very carefully make sure to keep it grasped in my magic and not touching anything as I take off my current armor and put on the new set.

I put my coat back on, along with my bags, and look over my old armor. Covered in blood, multiple holes in the front from when the buckshot hit me, and a few holes elsewhere. It served me well up until now, but it wasn’t designed to be used in prolonged combat. Originally, it was supposed to be used in the event my lab was attacked.

That being said, it wasn’t in horrible condition. It might be worth keeping to sell at some point. I put it in my already bulging bags and open the chests. Empty. No surprise there. The rest of this facility has been starkly devoid of loot. I turn my attention back to the rest of the room. The door opposite I came in would just lead back to the first room. However, this room has a third door. This door leads into the center area. I walk past the chalkboards and the desk and up to the door.

It is far sturdier than the other doors, and appears to be locked. To the left of it, is a terminal set into the wall. I look back at the desk for a moment, wondering if there might be a password laying around somewhere. That’s when I notice the chalkboard’s contents. Diagrams of weaponry. Not just simple drawings either.

One was a 10mm SMG, shown torn down into its individual parts. Each part was then broken down into the specific materials that make up the part. On the other board, was a diagram of a 10mm bullet. Like the SMG, it was torn down into parts, and then those parts broken into specific materials. It was like, what you would need to know to make the items from scrap.

I turn away from the strangely specific diagrams and look in the desk. Nothing, no passwords. Turning back to the terminal, i hit a few keys to wake it up. After a moment the displays a login screen.

Hello M.A.S. Personnel
Only Authorized Individuals Are Allowed Beyond This Point
Please Input Credentials

Username: _

For some reason, I shrug and go with it. Typing in my name and pressing enter.

Username: Ratchet
Password: _

Again, I type in my M.A.S. password and hit the enter key.

Access Granted.
Welcome, Chief Researcher Ratchet

Unlock Door

With there only being one option, I unlock the door. As i do so, I hear the sound of metal grinding on metal and the hiss of air. I pull the door open and step inside the center room. My eyes go wide in surprise.

Inside the cylindrical room, right in the center, is a cryogenic pod similar to my own. While slightly different in design, I can tell what it is immediately. “Is this one of those projects, Twilight?” I mutter as i step further into the room. Other than the pod, I notice a desk with a terminal on it as the only other furniture in the room.

But the room itself is crazy in design. It isn’t made of the same material as the rest of the rooms were, but is instead thick reinforced concrete covered in some sort of rubbery black material. In places, large chunks of this black material have been blown away, almost as if something explosive hit it. There are also various bullet holes of varying size all over the room. “What is this?” I question.

I swallow as I approach the terminal and turn it on. There are two options.

Research Records
Chamber Operations

I open the records entry and a large amount of files are displayed. The one at the top is titled ‘READ FIRST’. I open it and begin reading.

===~+~===

Years! No, decades of work for nothing! We were making progress, but now the higher-ups have declared this project “Too dangerous”. Can you believe that? Our project has the ability to change the tide of this war. No more need to manufacture weapons, no need for unicorns with magic megaspells, with our research, anything is possible!

But no, here I am, being told to write a final log. Why, I don’t even know. Bureaucracy at work. It isn’t enough that they shut down my facility a week ago and removed my subject to the Fluttershy Medical Center to be kept in stasis while they did SOMETHING to my facility. Now, I can’t even get into the central chamber. OF MY OWN FACILITY!

The last time I saw my subject, when they brought him back here after renovations to my facility, he wasn’t happy. Those stasis chambers are insane. Keeping a pony alive indefinitely, but all the while they are still conscious? He must have heard something about what they planned on doing, because he had to be sedated, and even then he was kept gagged.

No matter what he did, he didn’t mean to. He just couldn’t control it yet. I told them I only needed time. But, apparently three deaths was too many. Even though hundreds, thousands more die in the war. I don’t know what they are planning for him, they aren’t telling me anything. I will get him back, I will get my facility back. Even if I have to take this up with Miss Twilight Sparkle herself!

Consider this my last entry, UNTIL I GET MY FACILITY BACK!

-Doctor Andromeda

===~+~===

Ok, that didn’t really tell me too much. I begin to read entry after entry.

Entry #1 - I’ve been granted funding for my research! This is the greatest moment of my life! I really hope my wife never sees this. Anyhow, my research seeks to find a way to combine various ideas of magic in order to create a new type of magic that can create anything and give it physical, if temporary form.

Entry #21 - My original theory to create anything, is a bit much. I have revised it to creating anything that exists currently, as it is hard to imagine that which does not already exist in a physical form. Harder yet to give said imaginary item actual, physical form.

Entry #57 - I have determined that it is impossible to simply learn this new form of magic. Despite how many spell matrices and inscriptions I create, nothing works how I want it to. I have recently obtained some Zebra books, as well as some, strange, foreign books about types of magic i’ve never heard about. According to some of these, it is possible to infuse body parts with magic. I will begin testing immediately.

Entry #60 - Despite attempts to infuse my own body with various magics, I have failed. My body rejects it, and the effects wear off almost instantly. There is one thing I have left to try. It may take a few years, but I think I might be onto something. Using my own DNA, I will create a clone, so to speak. I will infuse this clone with this magic while it is still developing. Hopefully in the developmental stages, the cells will be more likely to accept inscription.

Entry #81 - The inscription process has been a success! The cells are retaining the magic and developing. I wonder about how I can enable my clone to control this magic, but I will begin working on that while they develop.

Entry #227 - Today is my clone’s fifth “birthday”. Cygnus has grown up healthy, despite not developing a horn. Odd, considering he is made from my DNA. He is more Earth Pony than Unicorn, but he seems to understand how magic works when it is explained to him, despite being able to do any himself. Tomorrow, we will begin testing my theory which will allow him to control his latent magical ability.

Entry #231 - The runes have been tattooed and infused with the proper magic. It took a while, especially the one on his tongue. Cygnus was quite brave, however. Despite how much it must have hurt, he toughed it out. Like father, like son, I suppose? Once he recovers a bit, we shall begin testing.

Entry #235 - A spark! A brilliant spark! I don’t know how, but when Cygnus stuck out his tongue, electricity seemed to crackle around it. In front of him, something was taking shape, I saw the ghost of a doll we were using as a test subject, but it remained transparent and never took form. The whole event only lasted for a few seconds. But still, it is progress.

Entry #257 - Words! Words! Oh, I have been blind! It was all in that foreign book! Words ARE power! But words only seem to be part of it. While attempting the doll test again, I had Cygnus describe the doll as he focused on forming it. What color it was, how big it was, if it had a smile, that sort of thing. The doll became more opaque than usual, but my hoof passed right through it. There has to be something else.

Entry #301 - Of course, it was so simple. I can’t believe I didn’t see it earlier. Words and descriptions are only part of it. What he needs to know is KNOW an object. Not just what it is, what it is made out of. Down to the last detail. Is it iron or steel? Exactly how heavy is it? A doll might be too complex. I am going to start him off simpler tomorrow.

Entry #302 - Success! Cygnus was able to create a sheet of paper! After telling him the weight, dimensions, and the materials that made it, he was able to make an exact copy while reciting the information. I picked it up, wrote on it, and even cut my leg with it. However, after a short time, it disappeared. The lead from my pencil fell to dust and remained, as did the cut on my leg, however the paper itself was gone.

Entry #371 - Despite countless attempts, we have been unable to permanently keep an item Cygnus creates. We even attempted to constantly infuse it with magic, but to no avail. Instead, we are working on his endurance, as making a single item takes a large toll on him.

Entry #503 - Given that Cygnus is now in his late teens, we have begun teaching him the makeup of weaponry. He is able to create knives and armor, and the time these items exists in our world is getting longer and longer.

Entry #505 - Tragedy has occurred. While summoning a grenade, Cygnus mistakenly added a volatile component, it exploded instantly, killing the Tulip, who was observing the test today. Cygnus was horribly shocked and kept apologizing over and over again. I will give him a while to rest, while I deal with arrangements for Tulip.

Entry #-621 - A second death has happened. During a live fire exercise in the central chamber, Cygnes appeared to have lost control while shooting a rocket launcher. The blast did significant damage to the wall, but the destruction from the blast sent chunks of concrete flying at Pond, who was struck in the head and killed instantly. Cygnus was inconsolable. We have decided to ban tests on explosives for now.

Entry #679 - We are being shut down. A third death occurred while Cygnus and Static were in the central chamber today. The details are unknown. We heard a scream and found Static dead with multiple bullet holes in her chest and Cygnus was holding his head, rocking back and forth in the center of the room. For whatever reason, he had the strangest expression on his face. It was almost like a smile, but I think I was seeing things, as tears were streaming down his face. He wouldn’t talk about what happened. Regardless, when the higher-ups found out about it, they declared my testing over, and took control of my facility and Cygnus. I’ll fight them on this. Three deaths are a small price to pay for the key to winning the war.

===~+~===

That is the final entry. Luckily, most of the entries were short, but I still manage to eat up a large chunk of the night. I had to go out and assure CORA I was safe at one point, though. She started calling for me, worried since I had been in the room for so long. I stretch my limbs as I exit to the main menu of the terminal. I select Pod Operations and two options display.

Open Pod

Purge Pod

I swallow. Purge as in...kill? I recall Twilight’s words about the projects. Some were dangerous, some were not. But if there was a kill switch for a dangerous project, why not dispose of it in the first place? Why keep it frozen in time? I shake my head. “No point thinking about that now, this comes first,” I decide.

Cygnus, that was the name of this subject, this pony. From the logs, he didn’t sound bad, just unable to properly control his ability or making mistakes. But that last entry was of some concern to me. What happened that last time? Did Cygnus do it on purpose? Or, was it actually an accident?

I take a breath and close my eyes, thinking things over. Opening my eyes, I select ‘Open Pod’. I get up from the chair and walk towards the pod. I couldn’t just kill a pony without seeing them myself, I also couldn’t just walk away. Anxiety rose in me as the pod swung open, and after a moment a sharp breath came from the pod.

A hoof reached over the edge, then another. After a moment, Cygnus got to his hooves, shaking his head and blinking his eyes. After a moment, he looks at me. “H-Hey, I know this is going to sound odd, but,” I trail off as he sticks out his tongue. Electricity begins to spark around it as he glares at me.

“Tempered steel, flat, sharpened to a point. Handle, bound in leather from cowhide. Total weight, 28.34 grams. Total length, 22.86 centimeters,” Cygnus says so fast I barely catch it all. As he does so, a combat knife begins to take shape and solidifies in front of his muzzle. I take a step back as he bites down on the handle.

He charges at me, so quick I can’t move in time. He plants the knife right against my neck, his right eye inches from my face, but stops. I can feel the blade cut me and blood dribbling down my neck. “Who are you,” he says through the handle.

“R-Ratchet. My name is Ratchet,” I tell him, staring into his eye and not daring to move.

“Why are you here?” Cygnus asks without skipping a beat, applying more pressure to the knife.

“I want to help,” I say, regaining my composure.

“Where is my father?” he asks.

“You mean, Doctor Andromeda? He’s…” I hesitate for a moment before saying, “dead. I’m sorry.”

He applies more pressure to the knife. “Did you kill him?” he says with anger apparent in his voice.

“No, but..” I start to say, but he cuts me off.

“Then why are you apologising?” he counters.

“Because...you’ve been frozen,” I tell him, giving him a serious look. “For a few decades, using technology I originally made. If you, put the knife down, I can explain further,” I suggest.

He continues looking into my eye for a few moments before he blinks for the first time and pulls the knife away from my neck. He takes a few steps back and the knife disappears completely. I fall to my haunches and lift a hood to rub the cut on my neck.

“Alright. Start talking,” he demands.

Author's Note

So, this "New Magic" is based off of something known as Kotodama. It is an old myth that beliefs that divine power resides in words and gives them power. Incidentally, I based this specifically off of Isone Kotoha from Yozakura Quartet. Watch her summon a railway howitzer here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UFvP3zup67M

Also, this is the tongue thing:

Chapter 13 - Frantic

Fallout Equestria: Icicle
Chapter 13 - Frantic

“Run, run as fast as you can. Don’t look back, just focus all your strength on moving forward.”

===~+~===

“So, Cygnus, was it?” Thunder asks, receiving a nod from Cygnus. “Can you, uh...do the thing?” Thunder smiles brightly. Cygnus lets out a sigh, sticks out his tongue, and says a few words. In a moment, a knife appears. He hoofs it to Thunder.

Thunder takes it in his hooves, and even bites down on the blade. “Huh, it is real. That’s crazy,” He says, continuing to inspect it. “So, you can make anything?” Thunder asks.

“As long as I know what it is made out of and how it goes together, yes,” Cygnus answers. “I can’t make something I’ve seen for the first time, or things that don’t exist. But, as long as I can take the time to figure out what an object is made of, I can recreate it,” saying this, the knife disappears from Thunder’s grasp.

“I can also make them disappear whenever I want. Though, after a time, they disappear anyway. Also, if I go unconscious while an object is summoned, it will disappear as well,” Cygnus explains.

“I see,” Thunder says, rubbing his chin. “What if you make ammo for a weapon, and I use that ammo in a weapon that you didn’t create? Would that work? And what happens when you shoot someone with bullets you make anyway?” Thunder asks.

“My ammo will work with any weapon. It is actually physical, after all. Though, once the time limit is reached, it will vanish. Similarly, if a pony is shot with ammo I create, they will be injured, however, any bullets that remain inside them will vanish when the time runs out,” Cygnus answers.

“What is this time limit you keep mentioning? How long can your objects exist in physical form?” Thunder asks. A good question, one I wanted to ask myself.

“The longest I’ve managed to keep an item manifested is ten minutes. However, the more items I create at the same time, the less time they can exist. For example, a single knife will exist for ten minutes. However, ten knives will exist for less,” Cygnus explains to us.

“And before you ask,” Cygnus continues, “I don’t know if there is some sort of math behind the time in relation to the quantity of the objects, we never got that far in testing. For all I know, it is a random time. Though, I can tell when an object is going to vanish before it does.”

“That’s good,” I say. “It gives you time to prepare something else and doesn’t leave you out in the cold, so to speak” Cygnus nods in agreement. “Anyhow, if we are done with all the questions,” I look over to Thunder, “I think we should get some sleep before morning. The few hours we have left, anyway.”

“I’ve got plenty more questions, but sleep does sound good,” Thunder says. “Though, are you even tired, Cygnus? After being frozen all these years? It is just like sleeping, basically, right?” He asks.

“Basically,” Cygnus answers. “It is like I just woke up. I’ll keep watch, though with the lockdown in place, it hardly seems necessary. Besides, I can keep miss CORA company,” he says, smiling at the terminal.

“Oh you charmer, you,” CORA says. Charmer? I can’t even begin to imagine that sort of relationship. “I’ll be happy to tell you anything you want to know. You’ve been asleep for a while after all,” she explains.

“Alright you two, we’ll see you in the morning then. Stay out of trouble,” I tell them as I lay down beside the already sleeping form of Arrow. I close my eyes and think of sleep. As CORA and Cygnus talk about what the world outside is like now, I slowly drift off into unconsciousness.

===~+~===

The following morning, Lightning got the surprise of meeting our newest member. Like Thunder last night, Lightning was as interested about Cygnus’s ability. While they all got acquainted, I borrow a few grenades from Thunder and head back into the facility, specifically the room with all the books.

I glance at a poster of Twilight that says, “Knowledge is Power”, and mutter an apology as I pull the pins from the grenades and toss them into the room, closing the door behind me and walking back up to rejoin the others. It was a shame to lose so many books in such good condition, but I couldn’t risk such books falling to Grimoire’s hooves.

I offer my old barding to Cygnus, but he declines. Saying he can make his own if necessary and stating, “It is covered in way too much of your blood, anyway.” I really couldn’t argue with him there. But it was just strange to have a member of our little group completely unclothed.

Without even bags, Cygnus’s spotless black coat and gray mane were a stark comparison to the rest of the wasteland. Though, undoubtedly he would be covered in filth like the rest of us soon enough. But, his odd markings really stood out.

Instead of a cutiemark, large runes adorned his flanks. A line of runes ran down his spine from mane to tail, and more circled each of his legs near the hooves. I haven’t the slightest idea what the red runes that almost seem to glow mean, but they look, well, fucking awesome. The black rune on his tongue was also undecipherable.

I once again attach my PipBuck to the terminal and pull CORA out of it while lifting the lockdown. As the system did its work, I look us over. Me, with my wounded legs, Lightning, leaning against Arrow due to his rear legs, and Thunder with his messed up side.

Though none of us three complained, it was clear our injuries were putting a strain on us. If we get into a fight like yesterday...I’m not sure what will happen. With Lightning’s speed all but nullified, Thunder’s minigun out of commission, and my own body aching with each movement, I hope that we’ll be able to get through anything we come across.

We set out from the facility following the path determined yesterday. After going through a few buildings without running into anything, I feel like the worst is over. Which is of course, why the wasteland just had to shit all over my hopes and dreams. Inside the next building, gunfire suddenly erupts.

At first, I’m not sure we are the ones being shot at, but then bullets start hitting the floor around us. We are standing in the atrium of a two story library. Two pony tall shelves surround us, along with tables and chairs. Most of the shelves have fallen into one another and their books have been scattered.

The second floor, which is essentially a balcony that runs all around the building allows those on the second floor to look down at the first. In each corner of the building is a staircase leading to the second floor. This second floor, is precisely where we are being shot at from. Not just from one side, but from all four sides. It seems we walked right into an ambush.

Arrow and Lightning quickly take cover under one of the bookcases resting against another. Rose and Thunder find a similar position on the other side of the aisle of books. As for Cygnus and I, we sprint towards the checkout desk a few feet in front of us and dive behind it. While we run, I hear Cygnus muttering behind me.

Once we are safe behind the desk, I notice he is wearing armored barding. The shooting around us dies off to a few shots at a time. I pull out my SMG and check the clip. About half the bullets are left. I hear Cygnus whispering again, “10 millimeter steel barrel…” A few sentences later, an SMG of his own appears.

He looks over to me, and I nod over to the left. He nods, and together, we peek out over the desk and start shooting at the enemies to our left. I confirm two raider there and start shooting at one of them. After emptying the clip at my target, they are unscathed. Cygnus manages to take out his target without issue. However, my target begins to return fire and we both duck back behind the desk.

I begin to reload my SMG when I notice Cygnus staring at me. “What?” I ask him, a little defensively.

“Your aim is terrible,” He explains. “You didn’t even come close. I’m just wondering how you’ve survived this long.”

“Well sorry!” I exclaim. “Not all of us were trained to use weapons from when we were young,” I tell him as the raider continues to riddle our cover with bullets. I hear the others returning fire as well.

Cygnus’s empty clip disappears, he says something I don’t catch and another one appears. “You know what, here...10 millimeter drum magazine…” Another barrage of bullets causes me to miss the rest of what he says. As the raider reloads, a drum magazine appears and he hoofs it over to me.

“Since your aim sucks, use this. Mind the recoil, these rounds will kick more than normal,” he explains before I jam the magazine into my SMG. A moment later, more bullets rain upon our cover. The raider must be using an assault rifle, judging by the accuracy and rate of fire.

Once they reload again, Cygnus and I pop up and shoot once again. This time, he takes the remaining one shooting at us, and I aim at three new targets directly across from us. I line up on the middle one and let loose a burst of fire. My shots go just over them and strike the bookshelves behind them.

What happens next catches me off guard. The shelves explode where my bullets hit and begin to start on fire. Cygnus looks over after finishing his target off and sees my jaw practically on the floor. He chuckles and says, “High-explosive incendiary rounds. They aren’t normally used for infantry, but seeing as you miss so much, I figured you could at least scare them a little.”

Like he said, the raiders turn around and are looking at the flames crawling over the shelves and books. “Ok, these are pretty cool. But, you do realize we are in a very flammable library, right?” I tell him. As I do so, the fire continues to spread and the raiders begin running for the stairs.

“Yes. Well, let’s try to deal with them before we burn up, shall we?” He counters. “Though, with your aim it might take a while. I hope your friends can hit their targets.” He turns away from me and shoots at one of the running raiders, catching them in the leg and sending them crashing through the railing and falling to our level.

A large billow of dust erupts from where the raider lands. I turn my attention to the other two fleeing in the opposite direction and open fire on them. Going fully automatic was a bad idea, as it bounces up faster than I can correct it, sending a trail of explosions and fire arcing up and onto the ceiling.

Flaming debris falls from the ceiling and rains upon the very flammable library below. “I told you it kicks. Are you trying to burn us alive?” Cygnus says, putting a hoof to his face. “Maybe I shouldn’t have given you those rounds…”

“You think?” I yell at him. First he gives me this crazy ammo, and then he yells at me for using it. Sheesh. There was no pleasing him. I look around at the second floor as Cygnus shoots at the two I was aiming at. It looks like the others have managed to take out a few of the others. I count three more in addition to the two Cygnus is shooting at. There are also a few above us, but I can’t see them at the moment.

The ones above us don’t seem to be moving, and they have Arrow and the others stuck under their cover. “Time for a stupid idea,” I mutter as I point my SMG directly up at the second floor where the raiders are shooting from. I pull the trigger and riddle the floor with bullets. Explosions ripple across it and flames begin to eat away at it.

“Cygnus, move!” I call out as I just out from behind the desk. The raiders above us have stopped shooting, but they are too late to flee. Right as Cygnus climbs out from behind the desk, the floor collapses and three raiders fall through onto the ground into a pile of flaming rubble. I look back over the desk and take aim at them before they have a chance to recover.

I pull the trigger, but nothing happens. “Yes, right. Enough of that,” Cygnus says, walking up to me and shooting the fallen raiders. “No more special ammo for you,” he tells me, turning around and reloading his SMG.

I puff out my cheeks like a filly who has had their favorite toy taken away. “That’s not fair,” I say, as reload my SMG with normal, safe, ammo. Well, safe in a relative sense. “I didn’t even get halfway through the drum,” I complain.

“Yes, well, I would like to leave before we burn to a crisp,” Cygnus replies. “Just look around at the flames already eating away at everything.” I look around at the library, and as he says flames are everywhere. I didn’t notice with all the gunfire, but the sound of the flames has turned into a roaring inferno.

“Ok, point taken,” I tell him. “So, we should probably get the others and leave.” He turns to look at expressionlessly, blinks a few times, and then turns to look at where the others are at. “What?” I ask.

“Yes, let’s leave, quickly,” Cygnus says somewhat irritatedly. “Hey, you folk, you good to move? We’ll lay down cover fire, get over here,” he shouts out towards the others. He begins shooting at the four remaining raiders in the far corner of the second floor, near the stairs. After a moment, I join him.

We shoot as we move into the cover of a bookcase. The four raiders turn their attention to us and I see the others making their way towards us. We take out one of the raiders before Thunder and the others make it to the case across the aisle from us.

By this time, a great deal of the library has been engulfed in flames. I peek around my cover to shoot at the raiders, only to see them jumping out of a window on the second floor. “Alright, that simplifies things,” I mutter. “Ok! Let’s get out of here! To the back door, quickly now!” I call out to the others.

We begin sprinting for the door, avoid the roaring flames and dropping debris. Thunder reaches the door first and bucks it open. The fresh rush of air into the building fans the flames higher as we run outside one by one. Without skipping a beat, we run across the street and catch our breath in the alcove entrance way of the next building.

“Alright Ratchet, Cygnus gave you something, didn’t he?” Thunder asks. “I know he didn’t do that himself, because only you have such shit aim,” he adds. I roll my eyes.

“Yes, he did,” I answer, “but he was the one who gave me incendiary ammunition in a Celestia-damned library! And my aim isn’t shit!” Sure, I miss a bit. Ok, maybe more than a bit. Fine, I can’t aim. I’m a scientist damnit!

“I thought you aim had gotten better when we were crossing the street into the MAS facility, but apparently that was just luck and an effect of the Dash,” Thunder says, shaking his head.

“Anyhow,” Lightning says while leaning against Arrow. “We should keep moving. This fire is going to attract unnecessary attention. Being out in the open isn’t good, considering our current situation.” He motions to the door and Thunder kicks it open a moment later.

“Right, let’s go. Quickly and quietly,” I say as we shuffle into the building. Cygnus and I are the last two to enter.

As he passes me to enter the building, he turns and says, “You know, your aim does suck. If you ever want a lesson, let me know.” He winks and continues into the building. Yes, we all get it, my aim sucks.

===~+~===

Lightning was right. The library fire is attracting a lot of unwanted attention. Drawn by the smoke, raider activity has increased. We begin moving at a snail’s pace to avoid unnecessary combat. With only Arrow and Cygnus at full strength, and Arrow looking after Lightning, we aren’t in any state for a firefight.

Rose has been relatively quiet, sticking close to Thunder. She hasn’t put the pistol away since we entered the MAS facility. Not that I can blame her. Cygnus on the other hoof, seems rather chipper. He is looking around like a foal in a candy store, taking in every little detail.

“The world has really gone to shit, hu?” He says nonchalantly, almost as if it doesn’t really involve him. He doesn’t really seem to grasp working as a group or stealth operations either. It is like he isn’t worried in the slightest about being attacked, like this is just a game.

Most ponies I’ve met so far seem to be afraid of everything, worried about what will happen next. I can’t say I blame them, I quickly became the same way once in the wasteland. It is a natural reaction, given that at any moment you can be attacked. You are never really safe. But Cygnus doesn’t seem to feel like the rest of us.

“If you keep staring, Ratchet, a buck might get ideas,” Cygnus says, looking back at me. “Something on your mind?” He asks.

“Nothing particular, it is just that you seem rather calm and composed,” I tell him. He lets out a sigh and shakes his head.

“No reaction at all, no fun,” I hear him mutter. “Well, when you are a test subject for a secret government project, you don’t have much freedom,” Cygnus explains. “I wasn’t allowed to leave the facility much. My father only took me out a few times, mostly when I was younger.”

“So, after being cooped up in that facility for twenty-two years, well, I suppose it is around sixty now, isn’t it? I’m quite happy to be outside, even if we do occasionally get shot at. Even if a sniper were to put a bullet through my skull, at least I would have had some freedom before I died,” Cygnus tells us.

“All in all, I would rather enjoy the present than worry about the future. Otherwise, it would be hard to enjoy my freedom,” he concludes. “Being free with worth anything this, wasteland, can throw at me.”

I nod. “I can understand that. But, you could stand to be a bit quieter when we are trying to sneak around,” I tell him with a smile. At that moment, an object crashes through a window next to us. We stop and I move to see what it was. It is a small cylindrical object with holes around the middle, it looks like another cylinder is inside.

“Ratchet, look away!” Lightning yells as a blinding flash of light and an insanely loud bang occurs. I immediately fall on my ass and begin rubbing my eyes, trying to regain my sight while my ears ring. I blink a few times and the world around me is filled with white spots, seeming to move in slow motion.

At this moment, I feel a force pushing me into the wall on our left and i’m pelted with brick and mortar. I shake my head to regain my senses and look around. A large hole has appeared in the wall that was on our right side, leading out to the street. Despite the ringing in my ears, I can barely make out the others calling out, but i’m unable to tell what they are saying.

Arrow is taking Lightning down the hall the way we were going, Thunder is shielding Rose and pointing for her to go after them. Cygnus is bent over me, trying to help me up. He lifts me and sets me on my hooves. I sway slightly, and look out of the new hole.

Raiders. At least ten of them, one appears to be holding a rocket launcher. I keep blinking, trying to get my vision to clear fully. Cygnus starts pushing me down the hall after the others, and I wobbily go in that direction. “...o...atch...ee….ovin…!” I hear Thunder saying. It is broken and I can’t make it out properly.

Cygnus keeps pushing me and Thunder starts to follow us. “Go! ...ep...ving” He calls again, shooting his rifle through the windows we pass. I keep walking, not fully able to grasp what is happening. I look around at the others in a daze.

Thunder overtakes Cygnus and I and catches up to Rose, who is a few feet behind Arrow and Lightning. A moment later, another rocket slams into the hallway next to Arrow and Lightning, sending them sprawling against the wall. Thunder cuts in front of Rose and shields her from the blast and rubble. I stop.

Cygnus runs into me and stumbles, but catches himself and gets in front of me, looking directly into my eyes. I stare at him blankly. “Snap...t...it!” I yells and slaps me across the muzzle. I shake my head, blink at him a few times, and then begin to dart my eyes around the room.

“Right, yes, um,” I say, the ringing in my ears almost gone, but still causing me to talk slightly weird. “Thanks,” I tell him. Cygnus nods and turns back towards the others. “Arrow, Lightning, are you two alright?” I call out as they struggle to get to their hooves. Thunder moves up to the newest hole in the wall and starts laying down fire with Rose hiding behind him.

“I...Think so…” Lightning says. He looks at Arrow. “Arrow, you…” But he is cut off.

“Fine,” Arrow says bluntly. She puts Lightning's arm around her shoulders and continues towards the doorway. Cygnus and I catch up to Thunder and help keep the raiders pinned while Rose crosses over to the other side. The three of us follow after her as Thunder tosses out a few grenades at the raiders. From the screams, a few got taken out.

We enter the door after Arrow and Lightning into the rear of the building. It is storage of some kind, with two large bay doors for loading and unloading. A number of pallets filled with large crates line the walls and large iron shelves.

Once inside, with the door closed firmly behind us, we gather near one of the bay doors. “Ok, I think the pallets against the walls should provide us with a bit of time if they decide to rocket the walls. The door behind us is of concern, however. We can hole up here and try to deal with the remaining raiders, or we can make a run for the next building,” I tell them.

“I think we should try to get to the next building. We should be able to make it and better fortify our location,” I say.

Lightning gets to his hooves and turns to me. “No, we need to hold here. At least for a bit,” he says. “Arrow needs to,” again, she cuts him off.

“Let’s go,” Arrow says without looking at us. She stares at the bay door, waiting to leave.

Lightning stumbles over to her, grabs her shoulder, and turns her to look at us. She fights him, but eventually she faces us. The left side of her helmet is dented up. I couldn’t imagine how her head could fit in it like that.

Cracks ran across various places and blood seeped from them. It ran down her helmet and drips onto the floor. Looking at the floor, there is a visible trail from where we came from leading to her. I turn my eyes back to her. “Arrow, we can’t continue with you like this, we need to stop the bleeding, at least!” I tell her.

She shakes her head, sending blood flying off her helmet. “No,” She says.

I slam my hoof down. “Arrow! I will not let you continue on in the state you are in. We are all injured enough as it is, we need you at your best, not wounded and bleeding!” I yell at her. “Thunder, Cygnus, find a way to block that door, and any other entrances. Lightning, Rose, help me with Arrow,” I command them.

“Ratchet...we need to, no, stop,” Arrow says as we corner her and Lightning takes off her helmet. Cuts cover her face and her left eye is swollen closed with a large gash across it. Using some alcohol and bandages from her bag, we patch her up.

Lightning secures her helmet back on and helps her back to her hooves. She appears a little woozy, she has probably lost a bit too much blood. Suddenly a rocket hits the wall sending some brick and mortar raining down into the storeroom. Luckily, one of the crates is between us and the hole, and it appears to hold up pretty well. A bit of the wood has splintered on our side and sand is pouring from the crate.

“Sand?” I mutter, staring at the crate. Turning my focus elsewhere, I see that Thunder and Cygnus have blocked the door with a smaller crate and piled a few others in the middle of the room to use as cover. The two of them are standing behind it, facing the door. Their cover extends to protect their left from the side the raiders are currently shooting rockets at.

The rest of us move behind one of the large shelves in the middle of the room, into an aisle between two of them. From here, we can see Thunder’s and Cygnus’s exposed side and the wall that is currently being attacked. I find a few smaller crates and pile them up on our left, to provide cover should the raiders decide to break in through the large bay doors.

With our cover as good as it is going to get, we wait. Another rocket slams into the damaged crate and sand blows into the room, showering Thunder and Cygnus as it pours into the floor. The more sand that pours out, I see more and more of the dimming light of outside. Once half the sand is out, I can see the raiders smiling in at us.

As the first raider mare steps in through the create, she yells, “Now!” A moment later, another rocket slams into the door we came from, blowing the light metal door off its hinges. However, due to the crate blocking it is pushed back a few inches, but then falls over and continues to block the doorway. It leaves the top half of the doorway open, and the raiders use this to begin shooting into the room from there as well.

Arrow is the first one of us to shoot back, her bullet grazing the first mare’s cheek. Normally, she would have killed her immediately. Arrow’s injuries must be throwing off her aim. The others begin to return fire a moment later, peeking around their cover and targeting the nearest raider. My group has to aim carefully, as Cygnus and Thunder are in front of us.

I see heavy barding appear on Cygnus as he slumps behind his cover. I aim my SMG at the hole in the crate and unload the remains of my clip into the raiders attempting to enter. Given the narrow tunnel they have to enter through, a manage to actually hit a few of them. As usual however, quite a few of my shots hit the wall or pass through the hole without hitting anything.

As I reload, I notice Cygnus summon an odd looking weapon, point it at the doorway, and begin spewing flames at the raiders. Screams mix with the smell of burnt hair as fire from the doorway stops abruptly. He shoots the flames in small bursts while Thunder takes alternates with him between the bursts.

With that entrance covered, Lightning, Arrow, and myself focus on the hole in the wall. The raiders, having learned from their failed attempts, have taken cover outside and are shooting in towards us instead of trying to enter. They shoot at us a few times, then there is a break in the fire. A new raider appears in the doorway with a rocket launcher. Arrow attempts to take them down, but her bullet grazes off the launcher.

The raider fires, but the impact from Arrow’s bullet diverts the rocket from hitting our cover, and it instead impacts Cygnus and Thunder’s. The crates of sand explode into wooden shrapnel and a sandstorm, sending the two of them falling towards us. Cygnus’s flamethrower vanishes and a moment later raiders appear at the doorway again.

With their cover from the hole in the wall gone, Cygnus and Thunder scramble to join up with us. “You two alright?” I ask as they come around the corner.

“Yea, just got knocked down,” Thunder replies. “The sand seems to have cushioned the impact.” He aims through a gap between crates are fires at a raider who was attempting to climb over the busted door, only to fall down dead from Thunder’s shots.

“You know, as much as that rocket launcher is giving us trouble,” Thunder says as he shoots, “I fucking want it. I call dibs, sorry Ratchet,” he says with a smile. I roll my eyes, of course he did.

“Sure, whatever. It isn’t like I could carry it anyway,” I reply, joining the others in shooting at the raiders. “How many more of them are there? We’ve killed what, like seven already? In this group anyway,” I ask. I’ve lost track of exactly how many raiders we’ve put down just trying to go through the ruins.

Cygnus, having summoned up an assault rifle, shoots at the raiders and answers, “I counted at least five more in the hallway. Assuming there are at least two on either side of that hole in the wall, and that one using the rockets, eight more? Though, I’d round up to ten for the sake of always expecting more.”

“It was a rhetorical question, Cygnus,” I say, shaking my head. The raiders continue taking shots at us and we return fire. “Toss some grenades?” I suggest to Thunder.

“I’ve got three left. You want me to use them?” Thunder replies, a hint of concern in his voice.

“Use one for each entrance. Besides, we might find more on them once we take them out, and you’ll be getting a rocket launcher, anyhow,” I answer. Assuming the launcher has any ammo for it left.

“Alright, sounds good,” Thunder says as he throws a grenade into the doorway and one through the hole in the wall. A second or so later, they both explode and we are rewarded with a fair amount of screams. “Sounds like we took down a fair amount,” Thunder mutters.

“Indeed, good work!” I tell him. Just as i finish, a rocket slams into one of the bay doors. The sound of rending metal reaches my ears as gunfire follows from the new, gaping hole. “Great, another entrance. I’ve got it,” I say to the others as I move to take cover behind the crates I set down earlier.

A few raiders manage to get in before I’m in position, but before they can find cover of their own I empty my clip into them. As more gunfire streams in through the hole, I reload my SMG. I’m running real low on ammo for it, I note. Given the proximity to the doorway, I put the SMG away and pull out my shotgun.

“This is getting us nowhere,” I call over to the others. “We are just wasting ammo, we need to either draw them in, or go to them.” I look back at the others and then through the gaps in the crates towards the other entrances. “Hey Lightning, take over for me for a moment,” I tell him.

He staggers over to me and I walk to the center of the aisle. I set down the shotgun, and concentrate on the large crate at the top of the shelf. After a moment, I begin floating it through the air and towards the gaping hole in the wall. I place it directly in front of it, sealing up the hole. I repeat the process for the door to the hallway, except first I pry the top off the crate and dump the sand in front of the doorway, making it inaccessible.

“Ok, that should buy us some time. Let’s get out into the street!” I call as I hit the buttons on the wall that should open the two large bay doors. They both begin to lift up, distracting the raiders as we break from our cover and run to the wall the doors are on.

The damaged door as a passenger, however. A raider who was halfway through the hole is stuck in it as it lifts up. Slowly, the buck is lifted further into the air until his back reaches the top of the entryway. The door, not fully open, continues trying to open. The motors lifting up the door whirl loudly as it fights against the blockage and in moments the raider splits into two as the door finishes opening fully.

Blood rains down from above in a shower, but the raiders pay it little mind as a few enter through the opening only to be gunned down by Cygnus. “Ok, out the other door then!” I say as I start for the opening. Once outside, I quickly see three more raiders and shoot some buckshot at them. A bit catches one of them, but luckily Thunder is behind me and finishes them all off moments after they begin returning fire.

One of them is the one that has been using the rocket launcher. As Thunder walks over to it, I survey the street. Nothing around us, but there could be more raiders around the corner. Thunder picks over the raider’s body as I walk past him and peak around the corner. Four more raiders heading towards us.

I poke my shotgun around and take a few shots, sending them scrambling but not hitting any of them. As Cygnus comes up to join me, he puts a few rounds into them and they fall over dead. “You make it look so easy,” I mutter.

“I just aim, that’s all,” Cygnus says with a chuckle, before he walks around the corner and over to them. “Let’s see...I think i’ll be taking these,” he mutters, pulling some bags off of one of the raiders and dumping out all the useless junk. “My kills, my loot. Find your own, Ratchet,” he turns and tells me with a wink.

I roll my eyes and walk up to him, searching the other raiders that he didn’t kill. Large splatters of blood and body parts lay around the hole the raiders blew in the wall, but I manage to find a few guns that aren’t damaged. Some of the raiders have an assortment of ammo that I picket. I also find four Stampede, six Dash, nine bobby pins, and a single roll of bandages.

I linger outside the hole in the hallway, but given the amount of blood and the smell of burning hair and flesh, I decide not to take a look inside. Any loot there, I don’t want to deal with. I turn back around as Cygnus finishes up his looting and we walk around the corner together with the others. “What did you find?” I ask Thunder as I begin to pick over the bodies.

“The rocket launcher is in ok condition. It isn’t great, but it won’t break after a bit of use. She had two rockets left, and I found a single grenade on one of the others. I should be able to mount the rocket launcher where my minigun was,” Thunder answers.

“Better than nothing,” I say with a shrug. Picking over the rest of the raiders yields a bit of ammunition. The others’ weapons are basically falling apart, so I elect to leave them to the ruins. I look at the sky and surroundings and realize it is getting dark outside. Our stealthy detour really ate up a lot of time. But, we are only two blocks from the city, we should make it before night fall. “Let’s keep moving,” I tell them.

===~+~===

There were times that I hated to be wrong. When I spent all night working on a theory only to have it turn out to be useless. When CORA corrects me on her programming, that I wrote myself. This time, it was when I thought we would reach the city before nightfall. We came close, in fact I could see the city from this building’s window.

I can also see around thirty raiders. On this side of the building. In front of us was a harbor area with a good thirty feet or so of flat land with no cover. Behind us, a street with probably around twenty more raiders that chased us in here. The sides of this building probably has even more raiders hanging around, waiting for us to go out.

The longer we wait, the more raiders seem to be joining up with the rest. Some fires have been lit and the raiders are gathered around them. They seem to be watching our building in shifts. We need to move, now before more come. Yet we have been fighting another battle other than the raiders.

Lightning, Arrow, and Thunder’s wounds are beginning to take their toll. Thunder has been coughing, leading me to believe something is messed up inside him. Arrow is clearly getting dizzy, she probably has a killer headache as well. Lightning’s legs appear to be getting stiffer and causing him more pain.

I personally, am not doing so hot either. The blood loss from yesterday has me tired, and my shot up legs were quite stiff. Add on to that the shot in my ass, the cuts on my face, and the buckshot wounds in my chest, and I’m quite sore. I want a bed, a doctor, and well, I want a lot of things right now. Equestria to not be such a shitty place is pretty high on my list.

But for now, I am determined to get that bed. In order to do that, we need to leave right now, before more raiders show up. “Let’s go,” I say, getting to my hooves. “We can’t stay here any longer. I’ll take point, you all follow me out. I will try to draw their attention, you all stay in a wedge formation,” I pause for a moment, thinking.

“Arrow, Lightning, you will be at the front. Thunder, take the left side, Cygnus the right. Rose, you’ll be in the middle,” I tell them. With Thunder’s right side torn up, having his good side facing the enemy will be best. Arrow’s and Lightning’s combined firepower should be sufficient to protect the front. Having them set the pace will also work in to keep the group together.

“You’re going to do what you did last time, aren’t you?” Lightning asks with a note of concern in his voice.

“Three of you are injured, Cygnus is the only one who can fight at his full potential, and I made a promise to Rose to get her home safely,” I answer.

“You are injured too, Ratchet,” Lightning replies. “You’ll be torn to pieces if you rush out alone!”

“Not quite,” I say, floating out an injector of Stampede and an inhaler of Dash. “I have plenty, and I seem to actually be able to hit things when I use Dash,” I add. Lightning starts to reply, but I raise a hoof and stop him. “This isn’t open for discussion. If we don’t do it this way, I’ll basically be useless, and we will be an even larger target. I’ll distract as many as I can, and you guys will make a run for the city,” I tell him.

Lightning lets out a sigh. “We’ll be talking about this later, so don’t you dare think about letting them kill you,” he says, shooting me a glare. I nod, resigning myself to a lecture later. We check our weapons and take position at the door.

I kick it open and charge out into the area. It seems to catch the raiders by surprise. I inject the Stampede and after a moment, I’m overcome with a boiling rage. I find myself grinning as I yell, “Time to die!” I grasp my shotgun in my magic as I inhale my first dose of Dash. Time slows to a crawl and I aim at the closest raider. Pulling the trigger, I blow his head into tiny pieces.

The other raiders quickly turn their attention to me as my friends begin to make their way out of the building. Three raiders run at me with pool cues, three shots later and they are taking a dirt nap without heads. By this time, the raiders have begun shooting at me, but I can easily see their bullets and avoid them.

Another raider nearby gets a chest full of buckshot and I aim at another and pull the trigger, empty. That’s right, I didn’t reload the last time I used it. The raider I was about to shoot, shoots me instead as the Dash wears off. His shot hits my barding, knocking the wind out of me, but not penetrating.

I quickly use another Dash and begin reloading my shotgun as I float out my SMG as well. I pump a few SMG rounds into the raider and put him down as I finish reloading the shotgun. Aiming at two different raiders, I unleash a hail of lead and buckshot at them. Two more dead raiders. Not as accurate as the last dose of Dash, but at least I still hit.

My friends are full out of the building and have begun to engage the raiders as well. Without any cover, it is nothing but an exchange of bullets. The ones with the better guns and armor will last longer. Thunder throws a grenade, killing a group of three raiders. Cygnus appears to be shooting an assault rifle and wearing heavier barding than I am. It looks similar to military grade riot gear. Arrow and Lightning do their best to stagger forward while shooting as well.

With them moving forward, I mostly ignore the few stragglers at the sides and charge straight ahead. I empty my shotgun into two raiders while spraying a burst at a raider coming at me with a knife. I quickly reload the shotgun as I empty the rest of the SMG’s clip into a raider carrying a hunting rifle.

At this point, the raiders are beginning to keep away from me. I see most of them using Stampede of their own. The initial surprise I had seems to be wearing off and they are getting more organized and focused. My Dash wears off and I catch a burst of bullets on my left side. Luckily, none of them penetrate.

Taking another dose of Dash I just manage to avoid a sniper’s round as it whizzes past my head. I look around the few rooftops and find a few raiders. Unslinging my sniper from my back, I take aim at the first one. As I do so, I spray the SMG in an arch at the ponies on the ground to keep them off me for a moment. I fire a round at the sniper, and take his head clean off.

I spin to look at the other snipers, and see Arrow shooting at one. Her aim is off, but it is keeping that one from looking up over the ledge he’s behind. I aim at the other one, and put a round directly into his chest, arching with the SMG again as I do so. I pull the rifle’s bolt back and eject the spent cartridge and cycle in a new one. Aiming at the barely exposed top of the last sniper’s head, I pull the trigger, sending the bullet into the back of his skull. A mist of blood explodes, indicating his death.

I put the rifle back onto my back and quickly reload the SMG, only half a clip left. I turn back to the ponies in front of me, apparently I hit a few of them with my random shots, but nothing lethal. The Dash wears off, so I take another dose and pull my knife from its sheath. I charge into the ponies in front of me, using the remaining SMG ammo to keep them from shooting me as I approach.

I manage to take one out with my remaining ammo, and quickly stab my knife into the closest raider’s throat. Out of ammo, I put my SMG away and draw out two of the shitty ones I looted earlier. I unload them into the crowd of ponies, dodging bullets and stabbing another raider in the eye. With those SMGs spent, I put them away and draw out the last two I picked up. I empty them into a few raiders as my Dash wears off.

Quickly, I draw out another inhaler and put the SMGs away. I come really close to getting my head taken off by a sword but manage to duck just in time and jab my knife into its owner’s gut. “Come on you fucks! You can do better than that!” I yell at the raiders around me. I pull out my shotgun again and begin unloading it into the closest raiders.

Halfway through the shells, I hear Thunder yell for me. “Ratchet, we have a situation here!” I carve out a path back to them, using up the rest of my shotgun’s clip. I then notice the stream of raiders coming from the sides of the building we were just in. Around ten from each side. More appear in the building itself, probably having come through from the other side.

By this time, we are about half way into the clearing and the raiders are surrounding us. With them flanking us like that, Rose will be exposed. Gritting my teeth, I run past my friends and take up position behind her, turning my attention to the raiders coming in behind us. “Keep moving!” I call out.

Thunder throws out his remaining two grenades and the rest of us pour ammo into the crowd of raiders surrounding us. “I’m down to my last clip,” Lightning mutters.

“Ha, you too, eh bro?” Thunder says in response. “I could start using the rockets, but at this range, it might hurt us more than help us.”

“Same,” Arrow chimes in.

“Well, I could summon us all some ammo, but given the quantity I doubt we’d have the chance to use,” Cygnus tells us. He keeps shooting all the while.

My Dash wears off along with the Stampede. “Out,” Thunder and Lightning say in unison. I hear a click from Arrow’s rifle, I guess she’s out as well. Fuck. The raiders don’t relent and continue shooting at us. I hear the bullets pinging off my friend’s armor as we group up tighter around Rose.

After a few moments, I hear Thunder grunt and mutter, “Shit, I think some of them have armor piercing rounds.” Seconds after he says this, I feel a round impact my chest, penetrating my armor. I stagger for a second, but I don’t think it hits anything vital. The longer we stand there, the more bullets find their way into or through us. The raider’s gunfire lights up the night so much, it could almost be day.

Suddenly, I hear a whistling in the air and seconds later a large explosion erupts from the raiders between us and Friendship City. The raiders stop shooting as spotlights illuminate the ground. There is silence for a few moments before a buck’s loud voice comes out of thin air.

“Attention raiders! You are on the doorstep of Friendship City, our guns are trained on your position. Cease any hostile actions, and withdraw or be blown to bits like some of your friends just were. You have ten seconds to comply. Ten...Nine...Eight…” The buck counts down.

When he reaches seven, the raiders begin to frantically run away and back into the ruins of Manehatten. The six of us remain where we are standing as the last raider leaves the area and the buck stops counting at two. After a moment, he speaks up again.

“The six of you, stay where you are, and lower your weapons. Security is coming out to check you in,” he says. Not wanting to bring down the wrath of the gun that killed around fifteen raiders, we don’t move. I wish I can say the same for the blood flowing from our wounds. I am getting light headed again.

After around five minutes, a group of ten ponies come into the light. They are armored in barding similar to my own and wearing riot helmets. Each one of them carries an assault rifle. They stop at the edge of the light, and one steps forward. “My name is Wrecker, chief of security,” a buck with the same voice as before says. “Welcome to Friendship City.”

It is at this moment that my body decides that it has lost enough blood and I pass out.

===~+~===

Level Up!
-Level 8-

+10 Small Guns

+7 Melee Weapons

+7 Sneak

Author's Note

This'll be the last one for a bit. I've not gotten very far in chapter 14 and with classes starting up again, I've not had much time to write.

Chapter 14 - The Veil of Death

“What would you do if you knew somepony was going to die? Help them? Ignore them? What if I told you, your actions are of no consequence. They will die, and you can do nothing.”

===~+~===

I begin to regain consciousness and blink a few times at the ceiling of...my lab? I was laying on one of the beds, but how did I get here? There was no way I have been unconscious the entire time it would have taken to carry me here. I sit up in the bed and my eyes fall upon a figure cloaked in a spotless black robe standing at the end of my bed.

I feel my pulse speed up as the figure just stares at me. “Who...who are you?” I ask it. For what feels like minutes the figure doesn’t say or do anything, it just stares at me blankly. But then it finally speaks with the voice of a stallion.

“I am known by many names, but you know me best as Death,” he says with a steady tone. “Do not worry, you are not dead. I just wish to take a moment to speak with you. It is easiest when a pony is at my door, and your recent escapade in former Manehatten put you there,” he tells me.

Clearly, this buck is crazy. Death isn’t a physical being, just a fact of life. My skepticism must be showing, as he continues. “Of course, you are skeptical, but I assure you,” he says, enveloping his hood in magic and pulling it back. My mouth hangs agape at the sight before me.

He isn’t like the traditional representations of Death, all skeletal, but instead only his muzzle is. Where the skin begins, it is jagged, as though having been eaten away by an acid of some sort. His eyes are almost glowing red and his horn is long and white horn. He then pulls off the rest of the robe and unfurls his...wings?

The tips of them are bone but they are mostly covered in black feathers. Getting a better look at the rest of him, I see that his legs are skeletal as well up to around the thigh, where the skin begins resembling that of his muzzle. His black torso is mostly intact aside from some scars here and there and other than the singed look of his tail, it and his white mane look normal. His cutie mark is that of a two serpents slithering up a staff with a skull adorning the top.

“I am the Alicorn of Death,” he says, his jaw snapping open and closed as he speaks “This is not the real world, just a place for us to talk. In reality, you are in the clinic of Friendship City, very much alive,” Death informs me.

I swallow before I say, “Ok, let’s say you are Death. What do you want with me, other than my soul?”

“You interest me, Ratchet,” Death tells me. “You see, I am able to tell when every single living being is going to die. Do you want to know when you are going to die?” He asks me, but I quickly shake my head. “Even if you want to, I cannot tell you. Before the Megaspells fell, you were supposed to die with the rest of your staff. But, that time is past,” he says, narrowing his eyes.

“You are an abnormality, someone whose death I cannot see. Your machine should have failed, yet here you are and it is still functional. Everypony wishes to cheat Death, but you actually did it. Was it a fluke? Dumb luck? Past, present, and future, I’ve never been wrong about a death before,” he says with a...grin?

“I could just take you now, be done with it, but I see promise in you. When the balefire fell, I expected any living beings left after the blasts would die off after a hundred years or so. My sight foretold it. But now,” he says, sounding excited, “even thousands of years from now ponies continue to die.”

“My sight stopped until your miracle happened. I have seen everything there is to see from the beginning of time, to the end, but I have never experienced a miracle like this,” Death says. “I suppose you can say, I’m rooting for you. I want to see what you do, how you will help shape the future.”

His grin disappears as he says, “But do not fool yourself into thinking I will not take you when your time comes. You have a little bit more leeway than others, since I cannot see the moment of your death. I will keep my eyes on you and should you cross the line, your soul is mine. However, my sight is blurry enough that you might be able to take a bit more than other ponies before you actually cross that line.”

“Shape the future?” I ask. “What do you mean? Am I supposed to do something great or what?” Help shape the future, he says. I want to, I plan to. But, so far it is like i’m playing catch up with a lead jacket on.

“I cannot see your future, Ratchet, but by glancing into the future, I can see holes. Little pockets I know nothing of. I suspect you are the cause, at key moments throughout the near future,” he tells me.

“You will change nothing alone, but others will help you cause change, even if it is indirectly,” he says. “I believe I have time for one more question, so think hard.”

I can think of all sorts of things to ask. But something he said earlier has me curious. “If the world was going to end, why didn’t you try to stop it?” I ask. His expression shifts back into a grin, of sorts.

“Excellent question. I am one of four ponies, the Apocalypse Ponies, I believe most of you have called us,” he explains. “We have two jobs, ferry souls to the afterlife, and prevent this world from ending. The emphasis is on ‘World’. The races and species on it, are of no consequence, the planet itself is what matters,” Death tells me.

“When you ponies began your war with the zebras, you began an arms race that would have ended with this world’s destruction. Through subtle coaxing and manipulation, we orchestrated the use of the Megaspells to wipe the slate clean, so to speak,” he says.

“With everything in the world dead, nature could return balance and start anew. Though, I have to say, the Megaspells weren’t all our idea. Your ministry mares certainly were inventive. They began this road, we merely guided their hooves. Our plan was for everything to die off shortly after unleashing the spells,” he explains.

“However,” he says with a chuckle, “you’ve made things interesting. Perhaps nature can recover alongside the races of this world? Time will tell, and we can always usher in another apocalypse if things head down the wrong path once again.”

Death lets out a sigh, “Well, time is up. This little experience will have some effects on you. You may see me or the others in your world, but we will be like ghosts to you. When you near death, you may even hear our voices. And should you end up like this again, perhaps we can talk again. Until then, Ratchet.”

He pulls a scythe out of nowhere and pokes me in the forehead with it. Once again, my world fades into the darkness.

===~+~===

I awake staring up at a scrap metal ceiling. It is rusted and full of holes, and judging from the water entering through them, it must be raining. My body aches as I try to sit up in the...bed? Oh, right. I should be in Friendship City now.

“Ah, so you are awake,” an old buck’s voice says. A moment later, a buck wearing a patchy leather jacket comes around a corner. “Ratchet, right? I was wondering when you’d finally decide to come to. You’ve been asleep for a day and a half,” he informs me.

I sit up properly and take a look around the room. It appears to be a cobbled together structure made of wood and metal. I see a few chairs along the opposite wall and on my left is a nightstand and curtain separating me from the rest of the room. I can see the end of a bed around the other side of the curtain, and judging by a groan, it is occupied.

Clearing my throat, I ask, “I take it I am in a clinic of some sort and you’re the doctor?” The buck gives me a smile as he approaches the side of my bed.

“You are correct,” he replies. “Welcome to the Friendship City Clinic, I’m the resident doctor, Clamp. Now then, since you were out for a while, let me ask you a few questions to make sure your memory remains intact.”

I nod, and he continues, “First of all, your name is Ratchet, correct?” I nod. “Very good. Moving on, how many were in your group, and what were their names?” He asks.

“Five,” I tell him. “Arrow, Lightning, Thunder, Cygnus, and Rose.” He nods in approval.

“Alright, it would seem that your memory remains intact. If you find you have any issues with it, any fuzzy bits, let me know. It isn’t often I get to take a look at a pony’s brain, and I would hate to waste an opportunity,” he says with a casual smile. Ok, creepy. But he seems normal enough besides the whole brain remark.

“Speaking of my group,” I start, “where are they? Are they alright?” He lets out a chuckle and gives me another smile.

“They are all perfectly fine. Well, maybe not 100%, but they have been up and about longer than you,” he tells me. “Miraculously, Rose managed to escape unscathed. I suppose we should thank you and your friends for that,” he says, giving me a grateful smile.

“Think nothing of it,” I reply, shaking my head. “I promised to get her here safely, I’m glad I did just that. But, can you tell me a bit more about my friends’ conditions? Last i knew, we were all pretty banged up.”

He grimaces a bit, but nods. “All of you had numerous bullet wounds, scratches, and the like. Given the condition you were all in, I’m surprised you managed to stay on your hooves for as long as you did. You all practically collapsed from exhaustion once you set hoof in my clinic.”

Continuing, he tells me, “The left side of Arrow’s face was a mess. I managed to clean it up, dress most of the wounds, and save her eye from complete blindness. However, she’ll be left with numerous scars and the sight in her left eye will never fully recover.”

How aweful. Given that she is a sniper, I hope it doesn’t effect her aim too much. She takes such pride in it, it could destroy her if she was unable to shoot properly.

“Your friend Lightning is...cocky. Despite his mangled rear legs, he expects a full recovery. I can promise no such thing, especially since he refuses hydra to heal them. I did what I could, but he’ll more than likely never move as fast as he did before and may even have a permanent limp,” Clamp explains.

I figured his legs would be bad news. He always prided himself on his speed and agility, something a frontline soldier needs to survive. I hope his cockiness isn’t an act to hide how scared he is.

“Thunder had a few broken ribs, a broken leg, and a large gash in his right side. How he was still standing, let alone walking around, I’ll not know. Unlike his brother, he accepted hydra and his bones reformed. But, they’ll be a bit brittle for a week or so,” Clamp says with a nod. “He’s a hearty fellow.”

Honestly, I was expecting worse. I didn’t know he had a broken leg, however. How long was he walking and running around on it without showing any sign? Thunder is built like a tank, but for him to essentially walk away from this unscathed I’m honestly surprised. Though, knowing him, he’ll be upset he couldn’t have done more.

“Now then,” Clamp continues, “The final member of your group, and the luckiest of them all, Cygnus. From what he says, he joined up with you all halfway through. Even so, he only had a few bullet wounds on him. For someone without armor, I’m quite surprised.”

I let out a slight chuckle. Cygnus’ conjured armor must have disappeared before he got here. To normal folk, he must seem quite lucky indeed.

“And then there is you,” Clamp says with a sigh. “Addictions to Dash and Stampede, major blood loss, so many bullet holes you were practically swiss cheese, buckshot covering your chest and neck, and a few minor sprains. Honestly speaking, you should not be alive, let alone conscious.”

I crack a slight smile. “But, I am alive. I guess I just got lucky,” I tell him. He shakes his head and lets out a sigh.

“Yes, something of a guardian angel. But Ratchet, this is serious. I did what I could, but you need rest. You should remain in town for a while so I can monitor you. And make sure you don’t do anymore drugs. It would appear as if you become easily addicted,” he tells me with a look of concern.

I let out a defeated chuckle, “Yea, before today, the worst drug I ever took was Mintals. And only when I needed a little extra umph for my research. But I understand, i’ll rest up and take a look around town for a while.”

“Good,” he tells me. “Now then, get some rest for now. I’ll let you leave here tomorrow morning. If you need me, i’ll just be in the other room.”

I nod and tell him, “Alright, thanks.” I slowly lay back down on the bed, running what Clamp told me over and over in my head. We all survived, somehow, and Rose is safe. My body is sore, and despite just waking up, I find myself quite tired. After a few minutes, I eventually fall asleep.

===~+~===

My friends stop by while I am in bed, after hearing I am awake. They all appear to be fine, but don’t stay around very long.

As it turns out, the Rangers paid for all their own medical treatment. However, Cygnus being capless, I have to pay for our patch up job. But Rose and her father come to see me, her father says he will cover the cost of our treatment and give me an additional 100 caps. I thank him, and he says he only wishes he could give me more. His name is Slick, he tells me.

He doesn’t stick around for long, but tells me I should stop by his bar for a drink before I leave. I agree and the two leave me to sleep for the rest of the night. The following morning, Clamp lets me leave. He shows me to my belongings and I sadly pull on my bullet hole-riddled labcoat. At least someone washed most of the blood from it, but a few stains linger.

As I’m about to leave, Clamp tells me the chief of security wants to talk to me. Wrecker, I believe his name is. I thank Clamp for all he’s done, but pause as I glance at another patient. It is a buck who is coughing. I’ve seen him a few times while I’ve been awake, and he frequently coughs up blood.

But what draws my attention is the translucent figure cloaked in green that follows him around. I think to say something, but remember Death’s words, ‘You may be me or the others in the world, but we will be like ghosts,’ and keep my mouth shut. Instead, I decide to ask Clamp about the buck.

“Hey Clamp, what’s wrong with him?” I ask, motioning towards the sickly buck. Clamp grimaces and lets out a sigh.

“Cancer,” he mutters. “Caused by prolonged exposure to radiation. Sadly, it is progressed too far for me to do anything about it. All I can do is make him comfortable, but I fear his time is running short,” Clamp tells me, shaking his head.

“I see,” I say quietly, furrowing my brow. So, disease? I suppose that would make that figure...what is the name? Pestilence, I think it is. If he’s there, the poor buck must be on the verge of death. I swallow, turning away from the figure. I’m not sure I’ll be able to keep seeing them without losing my mind...I walk out of the door.

Once it shuts behind me, I look up, only to see Pestilence’s ghostly figure before me. “When you see us, you may feel that you can prevent a pony’s death, Ratchet. But let me dissuade you from wasting your time. Deaths are set in stone, you cannot prevent them.” He tells me before walking through me and back into the clinic.

My breathing has gone ragged. Yes, I will definitely never get used to this. If what Pestilence says is true, that I can’t prevent deaths, but I can see their ghosts lingering behind them...To know a pony is going to die and not be able to stop it? Can I...handle this?

I shake the thought from my head and compose myself. I take a deep breath, and continue walking, looking around the town. It is little more than a collection of shacks at the moment, but as I look at the piles of building materials around me, I can tell they have big things planned.

The statue itself has been cut into and some buildings constructed inside, from the archway leading inside, I can see the bar and a few shops, including a restaurant of some sort. Looking up the statue, I see various platforms and staircases leading up it. Some of the platforms have sparks coming from them. Judging by the shouting and the sounds, they are cutting into the statue and welding more supports.

They really are trying to create a bastion in the wasteland. Raising a town up around the statue...I can’t wait to see how it progresses. I smile up at the statue as I continue on my way around town. After passing a large amount of wood and scrap metal shacks, I finally come to what appears to be the security barracks.

I enter through the front door and am greeted by a mare sitting behind a desk. “Hey there miss, how can I help you?” She asks. I look around the building. To my left are more desks with ponies in armor sitting behind them writing on papers. Beyond them, are two doors. I see one labeled “bunkhouse” and the other “armory”. On my right is a wooden door with the words “chief” scrawled into it.

“Uh…” I begin. “My name is Ratchet, I heard Chief Wrecker wanted to talk to me, or something?” I tell her. She looks up from a book she was reading while I was looking around.

“Ratchet you say? Just a moment,” she gets up and knocks on the chief’s door. “Chief, Ratchet is here to see you,” she says. Then turns back around and sits down again. After a moment, the door swings open and an Earth Pony buck, who I assume is Wrecker, steps out.

“Thank you Dolly,” he says to the mare. Then he looks back over at me, “Ratchet, right? Come on in, I’ve been waiting for you.” He turns and head back in the door, waiting till I am inside before shutting the door. “In case you don’t recall, my name is Wrecker,” he tells me as he sits behind his desk. He gestures at a chair opposite his for me to sit in.

“I remember,” I tell him. “You saved us from the raiders, right before I passed out. Thanks, for that, by the way,” I say, giving him a slight smile.

He shakes his head. “Think nothing of it!” He says, “What kind of security chief would I be if I let guests be attacked right outside my town? But, I digress. We have some business to take care of.”

“Business?” I ask, unsure what exactly he means. I can’t think of anything he would need from me.

“Indeed,” Wrecker mutters. “First of all, thank you for escorting Rose back to town. And, unscathed none-the-less. But, I must say, you are either stupid or brave,” he chuckles. “Perhaps both. You went straight though raider alley, so I take it you aren’t from around here,” she says with a smirk.

“Raider alley?” I ask. “And no, I’m not from around here. It is actually my first time here since...yeah…” I trail off.

“I getcha. Raider alley,” he pauses, making a grand gesture with a hoof. “The southwestern area of the Manehatten Ruins. It reaches from the edge of the wasteland to a few blocks from us. And that’s only because they fear our artillery, but they do poke at us occasionally,” he says with a wry smile.

“Yea,” I mutter. “That was some impressive artillery. I’m surprised we didn’t get caught in the blast. You and your guards must be good at aiming. Where did you get those guns at anyway?” I ask him.

“Ha, thanks for the compliment. As for where we got them, the Manehatten Ruins. Mainly from fallen military vehicles. We have only one howitzer working at the moment, but we plan to get the rest of what we scavenged working soon. We managed to get some more howitzers, cannons and flak, in case those Pegasi bastards ever decide to come back down,” Wrecker informs me with malice in his voice.

“Wait, what do you mean if the Pegasi ever come back down? Come to think of it, I haven’t seen a single Pegasi,” I mutter. “And why aren’t they taking care of the clouds?” Grimoire also mentioned something about razing their cities and what not.

“You really aren’t from around here, are you?” He says, narrowing his eyes for a moment. “Living under a rock, were you? Once the balefire fell, the closed up the skies and haven’t come down since. The whole Enclave is up there. I’ve heard rumors though, of some descending from the cloud cover and abducting ponies, but no solid proof on that,” He tells me.

“They...are still up in the clouds and won’t come down?” I confirm, confused.

“Are you going deaf? That’s what I said, so much for their loyalty, you do see the occasional Pegasi down here on the surface, however. Some ain’t so bad, but watch yourself around them. You never know which might be Enclave spies,” Wrecker tells me.

“But, why wouldn’t the Enclave come and help us?” I ask him.

He shakes his head. “I’m the wrong person to ask. I’ve never actually met one, only heard rumors. They are cowards, they think they are better than us, they don’t trust us, all rumors. Find one and ask them yourself, if you are so curious,” he tells me.

“Right,” I mutter. It doesn’t make any sense. Why would the Pegasi not help out the surface? Looks like I’ll have to find someone who knows more about them.

“Anyhow,” Wrecker continues, clearing his throat. “On to the business at hoof, from Rose’s account, you took out dozens of raiders on your way here. You also took their gear when you could, which is always a plus. Less equipment for those left alive. They aren’t the best equipped, but the fewer guns they have, the better,” he says with a sly smile.

“So, taking your work into consideration, and you returning Rose to us, I’d like to give you 500 caps,” he says, picking a bag up off the floor and setting it on the desk. “You are probably low on ammo and other supplies, think of this as a reward for clearing out some of the raiders. It will make scavenging easier for us,” he gives me a beaming smile.

“Thank you!” I tell him, floating the bag of caps into my bags. “But, there are a lot more raiders where those came from,” I tell him with a look of concern.

“True, but a few dozen is nothing to shake a stick at. The last order of business I have with you, is your sleeping arrangements. The council rented your group out a few rooms at the hotel, as long as you’re in town,” he tells me. “Just let the front desk know who you are, and they’ll show you to your room.”

“This is...more than I could ask for,” I tell him. I’m unsure how I should react to this, it seems like they are giving me a lot.

“Nonsense,” Wrecker tells me with a shake of his head. “You’ll still have to pay for your food and supplies while you are here. And if you ever come back, you’ll have to pay for your own room,” he says with a chuckle. “Kind and helpful folk are a rarity these days, many simply turn to crime and take what they want. The council has seen what you’ve done and is thankful,” He informs me.

“You keep talking about a council,” I say. “Does that mean a council governs Friendship City?” I ask.

“Indeed,” he tells me. “Us founders decided it was the best way to keep things civil. Doc Clamp, Rose’s father Slick, and myself are among its members. Rose is set to take over for Slick, which is why it is so great a feat that you returned her to us,” Wrecker informs me.

“I see,” I mutter. “I didn’t know she was so important.” To think, Rose is a councilor's daughter.

“Everyone who doesn’t try to kill you or steal from you, is important,” Wrecker mutters. “But, yes, she is important to the future of Friendship City. She is quite popular around town, if a bit sheltered.”

“Yea...Speaking of,” I begin. “You may want consider training her in the use of a firearm. If something should happen like this again, her being able to defend herself will be useful. Hopefully, she can aim better than me though,” I chuckle.

“You are right,” Wrecker agrees. “This incident has shown us as much. Especially if she is to lead, she should know how to defend herself. I’ll begin training her myself soon. Well, that concludes our business,” he states. “When you wish to leave, let me know. I’ll draw you a map of the safe ways in and out of the city. Well, safer than raider alley, at least,” he tells me.

“That sounds great,” I say with a smile. “For now, I’ll focus on recovery and explore the town a bit. I think we could all use a little rest anyhow.”

“I do not doubt it,” he agrees. “If you have any more questions, feel free to drop by. I’m usually here.”

I make my way over to the door. “Sounds good,” I tell him. “See you around,” I say as I close the door behind me.

===~+~===

Quest Complete:

-Prisoner Rescue

New Perk:

-Junkie - You have discovered you have a low tolerance for drugs and become easily addicted. You are now 50% more like to become addicted to Chems.

Chapter 15 - Recovery

“Everyone needs a moment to catch their breath every once and awhile.”

===~+~===

I quickly got the lay of the town after exploring it for a few hours. Over the next few days, my friends and I spend most of our time in Slick’s bar, playing cards and listening to the scavengers and other visitors of the town. Occasionally, one of us will leave and return to Clamp’s clinic so he can replace our bandages and look us over. Our bodies are recovering at a good rate. Cygnus is recovering rapidly, probably an effect of the magic in his cells.

It feels good to get a break from the constant walking around and training I’ve been doing since I woke up in my lab. I can tell the others feel the same, with the exception of Cygnus. He seems a little stir crazy, but I suppose that is natural, given that he just woke up a few days ago after being locked away for decades.

On one particular day, Cygnus decides to sleep in so it is just the Rangers and I in the bar. After a while, Arrow and Lightning leave for the clinic, leaving Thunder and I alone. I decide this is as good a time as any to ask how he and the others are doing. “So,” I begin, “how are you holding up?”

Thunder rubs his chin for a moment before saying simply, “Better than the others.” I can hear the concern in his voice, but he cracks a grin and adds, “Besides that Cygnus fellow. He sure does heal fast. Another day, and I think he’ll be at one hundred percent.”

I bite my lip. So, the others aren’t doing so well after all. They’ve been acting so cheery, I have been concerned about them. “Nothing on your end then? No lingering pain or concerns about anything?” I ask him, wondering if he can be hiding something like the others.

“Nah. You know me Ratchet,” he says. “I say what’s on my mind and my body’s tough. Thanks to the Hydra, I should be ready for combat at the end of the week. I just wish I could have been of more use once my gun got destroyed,” he mutters.

I knew it, beating himself up over not being able to do more. Despite his blunt crudeness, he is a team player. “Don’t worry about it,” I tell him. “We all made it here and are still standing. You were even walking around on a broken leg. We couldn’t have asked anymore of you. You fought valiantly.”

He smiles, rubbing the back of his neck with a chuckle. “Thanks. I guess I feel a bit better,” he says.

“Good. I know if I had a broken leg, I’d have been a big foal about it the whole time. You’d probably have to carry me,” I tell him, grinning like an idiot. This gets a laugh out of him.

“Yea, you sure can’t take pain, can you?” He teases me.

I roll my eyes and sigh dramatically. “Please Thunder, I’m a scientist, not a soldier. The worst pain I had to deal with until recently was getting a cavity filled,” I tell him with a grin.

We banter back and forth about my low pain tolerance for a few minutes. After a round of laughter, Thunder composes himself and puts on a serious look. “In all seriousnes Ratchet, I’m worried about the others. They act fine, but I’ve seen Arrow glancing at the mirror a little bit too long and caught Lightning staring at his rear legs in disgust. They might be getting better physically, but mentally, they are still pained. I don’t know what to do, Ratchet. I’m not good with words. Do you think you can talk with them?” He asks me.

I can tell by the look on his face, that it pains him that he can’t help them himself. He’s good at humor and cheering them up, but he isn’t the type to help sort out delicate situations. I’m worried about them myself, so my answer is obvious. “Of course. I’ll do everything I can for them,” I tell him.

He relaxes and puts on a weak smile. “Thank you, Ratchet,” He tells me. After a few more words, we join a few scavengers playing poker. A few hands later, and Lightning and Arrow return. We deal them in as a few of the scavengers leave for the ruins. I decide that I should talk to them one-on-one, and we continue the game as Cygnus arrives and joins us as well.

The night progresses, and after talking with Thunder, I’ve been watching Arrow and Lightning closely. Little things do appear to be off with them. Quick, little frowns when no one else is looking. Arrow staring at her reflection in her drink. Lightning, occasionally glancing down under the table at his legs.

I make a note of all of this as the night goes on. Eventually, we decide to turn in for the night. We head to the hotel and go to our respective rooms. Thunder, Lightning, and Cygnus to theirs, and Arrow and I to ours. It is the perfect opportunity.

As I bid goodnight to the others, I enter the room and catch Arrow looking into the mirror. She lets out a sigh and takes off the rest of her armor and climbs onto her side of the king-sized bed. I take off my armor and do the same. She is laying on her side, facing away from me.

“Hey Arrow, could we talk for a bit?” I ask her, still sitting up in the bed. She doesn’t say anything or turn towards me, but she nods her head. I hesitate, thinking about how to continue. “I, uh, well...I’ve noticed that you haven’t quite been your usual self lately, Arrow,” I tell her, watching her for any movement.

After a few moments of silence, she hesitantly nods her head. “I want to help you,” I tell her. “However I can, with whatever you need. I’ve seen how you look at yourself in the mirror, with a look of forlorn disgust. I know that you are worried about how you look, and if your aim will be affected, but you are still you,” I say, putting a hoof on her shoulder.

I can feel her start to shake and can hear a few sobs coming from her. I really hope I’m not making her feel worse. She nods again. “Listen Arrow, even if your face is a bit scarred up, you’re still adorable. Even if your aim is off, you're an expert, you’ll adapt and be back to normal soon!” I tell her, trying to convey my sincerity.

She shakes her head, causing me to frown. “Arrow, I can only tell so much from shakes and nods. You’ve got to talk to me. How can I help you?” I ask her. She takes in a few shaky breaths before she sits up and turns to face me.

Tears are running down the right side of her face, but not the left side. “You can’t,” she says quietly. “My eye...it’s not...my face...I can’t...you’ll never…” Arrow falls into a fit of sobbing. I can’t do anything but wrap my hoof around her and pull her in close for a hug. She cries into my shoulder, tears staining my coat.

“I’m here for you,” I whisper into her ear. “I’ll help you. We can go practice shooting with the guards tomorrow, I’m sure they won’t mind. Cheer up, Arrow. You’ll get through this, and I’ll be there every step of the way. So be yourself, don’t worry about how you look, or if you can’t hit your targets right away. I’ll be there for you whenever you need me,” I tell her.

I feel her nodding her head as she continues to cry. The minutes pass and the two of us remain in an embrace. Her crying fades to sniffles as we both lay down to go to sleep. She continues to hold onto my hoof with her own as we both drift off to sleep.

===~+~===

The following afternoon, Arrow and I head over to see Chief Wrecker and ask his permission to use their shooting range. He agrees instantly and says we are welcome to it any time. With his approval, we head into the firing range and Arrow takes position with her rifle. “Ok, just do what you normally do,” I tell her.

Arrow aims through her scope with her good eye and after a moment, puts a bullet through the target at the end of the range, fifty feet away. She looks unhappy with it. “What’s wrong? You hit the target,” I ask her.

“Missed,” she says simply. I furrow my brow. I guess a sniper’s definition of hitting a target, and my own are different. “Non-lethal,” she adds. I blink in confusion for a second, looking at the target. It is an outline of the side of a pony with a hole through the body. I look a bit closer and think about anatomy for a moment, and realize she’s right. It passed through an area with no vital organs.

“Oh, I see,” I mutter. Then follow up with, “Where were you aiming at?” She might not be that far off if she was aiming at the heart, or something.

“Head,” Arrow answers. I flinch. Ok, that was definitely a miss then. I scratch the back of my head with a hoof.

“Well, it was just one shot, try again,” I suggest. She nods, and readies another shot, I keep a close eye on her as she fires and I notice something. I look down the range, and don’t see any indication of a hit anywhere. She must have missed completely. “Hey Arrow, why are you shooting with both your eyes open?” I ask her. “Shouldn’t you only be keeping the eye looking through the scope open?” I suggest.

She shakes her head. “No, hu?” I mutter. “But given that your left eye can’t see as good anymore, does it matter?” I ask. She shakes her head again, looking down at her rifle. After a moment, one of the guards walks over to us.

“Your friend is right, Miss Ratchet. The proper way to shoot is with both eyes open,” the buck tells me. “My name is Lock, by the way miss, nice to meet you,” he says with a smile.

I nod with a smile. “Nice to meet you too. So, why does it matter? Keeping both eyes open, I mean,” I ask him.

“Well, for one thing it puts strain on the open eye and can change the way that it sees. If you are just shooting once and a while, it’s fine. But, when it comes to extended periods of shooting, or precision, it matters,” Lock explains.

“Not only that, “ he continues, “but with both eyes open, you can keep an eye on your peripherals so you are aware of what is happening around you and your target. Given that your friend here is a sniper, she needs to keep her eyes opens.”

“If a sniper focuses on their target alone, they are easy to sneak up on. It is also easy to lose a target without keeping an eye on the target’s surroundings. Even if you aren’t a sniper, keeping an eye open to pick out your next target is a good idea,” Lock concludes.

Nodding, I say, “I see. Thank you, Lock.” I turn to look at Arrow, who is still looking at her rifle. “I’m sorry Arrow, you’re doing fine. Just keep at it!” I encourage her. I catch Lock frowning while looking at Arrow.

“Miss Arrow,” Lock addresses her. “Shoot the target once more for me, if you’d be so kind,” she asks her. Arrow nods, and prepares to shoot. Lock’s eyes don’t leave her, nor do they blink. Arrow fires, and hits the target in the rear leg.

“Can I see your gun?” Lock asks. Arrow nods, and Lock picks it up. He inspects it, then points it at the target. In rapid succession, he shoots it, ejects the cartridge, and does this two more time. All of his shots hit the target directly in the head, close together.

“As I thought,” Lock mutters. “Miss Arrow, your problem isn’t your gun, and it isn’t your eyes. You are hesitating, you are questioning if you bullet will hit where you are aiming. Your doubts are causing you to miss,” he tells her.

Arrow looks at him in shock, then quickly at the ground. “Miss Arrow, I am a sniper as well. You have good instinct, good eyes, and you are more than likely a better shot than me. But you have lost confidence. If you think losing a little bit of sight in your eye is a reason to quit being a sniper, then you should quit. Because if you keep hesitating, if you keep missing, your friends will die,” Lock glares at her, pushing her rifle into her chest.

Shakily, Arrow grabs the rifle and falls to her haunches, cradling it. Lock shakes his head and walks away. I stand there with my mouth open, shocked and unsure what to do. I look from Arrow, to Lock as he walks away. “Stay here, Arrow. I’ll be right back,” I tell her, as I chase after Lock.

I catch up to him in their locker room. “Lock!” I call out at his back. “What the fuck was that?” I ask, anger blazing inside of me. “How could you tell her that? You asshole!” I yell at him.

He turns around to face me with a stoic expression on his face. “Because she needs to hear it,” Lock says. “Because it is the truth, and it is the only thing that can help her,” he tells me.

“Bullshit!” I snarl. “You tell her she should quit? That her friends are going to die? How is that suppose to help her?” I question. My hooves are shaking under me as my anger continues to rise. Other guards that were in the locker room begin to watch us.

“She’s a soldier,” Lock replies. “Her actions carry weight, she needs to remember that. If she continues to hesitate, and stubbornly continue to snipe with that hesitation, either you, or your friends, or Arrow will die. It isn’t a matter of if, it is a matter of when,” he explains.

“How can you say that? You know nothing about her! About us!” I shout at him. “You don’t know what she’s going through!” He flinches for a moment, and then gets angry himself.

“You don’t know anything,” Lock mutters. “If you were actually her friend, if you actually cared about her and the others, you’d understand why she needs the truth,” he tells me. His words hit me like a lead pipe.

“Of course I care about them! But this is just cruel!” I yell. He shakes his head and lets out a sigh.

“You are the cruel one, Ratchet,” He tells me. “Right now, she has forgotten that others depend on her, that she is part of a team. She’s focused on what she lost, and what she’s going through. That’s why she needed the truth, harsh as it may be. To make her realize she can’t hesitate!” He growls at me.

I take a step back from him. “H...How do you know it will work?” I ask him, my anger starting to wane.

He lowers his head, and calms his voice. “Because I’ve been where she’s been. I’ve experienced it first-hoof. I was dealing with my own issues, I hesitated, and a friend died because of it. So trust me, I know what i’m talking about,” Lock says with a sigh, shaking his head.

I fall to my haunches. “I...I’m sorry,” I tell him as I look down at the floor.

Lock shakes his head. “No, I understand, Ratchet. You really do care about her, about your friends. She’ll need you to get through this, but you can’t coddle her. You have to tell her the truth when she needs it. Now go,” he says with a smile, “help her.”

I look up at him, at the others watching us, smiling themselves, and I smile back. “Of course,” I say with a nod, rising to my hooves. “Thank you,” I tell him, as I turn and leave the locker room.

Returning to the shooting range, I see Arrow still sitting while clinging onto her rifle. She isn’t crying though, but seems to be in thought, which I hope is a good thing. I walk up to her and sit down in front of her. “Are you ready to keep going?” I ask her. She nods, and stands up. I do the same.

She sets up her rifle, and aims down the sight. I take a deep breath, wondering if this will really work. “Remember what Lock said, Arrow. Imagine the bullet hitting, don’t hesitate. Don’t shoot for yourself, shoot for us. That target wants to hurt us, to take us from you, you’re going to stop it,” I tell her, not looking at her, but at the target.

Arrow lets out her breath, and a moment later she pulls the trigger and her bullet strikes the target, just below the ear. She looks up from her scope at the target, smiling. I smile as well. Perhaps she just needed the proper motivation to get her mind off things.

“Good job,” I tell her. “But, you can do better. I’m pretty sure that’s not where you were aiming,” I say. “Let’s keep going, now that you’ve got things down again, you can refine your aim.” I look at her with a smile. She smiles back, looking determined, and nods. “Alright, just like last time.”

===~+~===

After another few hours, Arrow is confident in her aim again. She hits every spot she is aiming for and even begins to shoot at the further targets. Her accuracy still amazes me. The sun is beginning to set and Arrow shoos me away saying simply, “Night practice.” I guess she wants to make sure she can still hit things in the dark, as well.

I bid her goodnight and head back to the hotel. I’m glad she’s gotten her confidence back, even more so than her getting her aim back. Even if she couldn’t shoot, I’d still want the normal Arrow keeping me silent company. I do wish she’s talk more though, sometimes communication is hard.

As I near the hotel, I see Lightning standing alone on the second floor balcony. I wave at him, but he either doesn’t see me or is lost in thought. With no one else around him, I decide now would be a good time to talk to him. I make my way though the hotel and onto the balcony. I walk over to him and join him leaning over the balcony railing.

“Enjoying the night air?” I ask him. He jerks, like he didn’t hear me arrive. Recovering quickly, he puts on an easy smile.

“Indeed,” Lightning says, looking up at the statue. “They work around the clock, you know? Constantly expanding the city...it’s quite the sight to behold,” he mutters.

“Really?” I say with surprise. “That’s impressive,” I agree. There is a pregnant silence as I’m unsure how to jump into the discussion. Luckily, Lightning sets me up perfectly.

Letting out a sigh, he asks, “What do you want, Ratchet?” I let out a light-hearted chuckle.

“That’s obvious, hu?” I ask. He rolls his eyes. “You know, I spent the afternoon with Arrow today. Helping her with some target practice. At first, she was doing pretty bad. But now, she’s gotten her aim back. She’s actually going to spend the night shooting, making sure she can do it properly in the dark,” I tell him with a smile.

“Is that so?” He mutters. “That’s good, she was looking pretty down recently,” Lightning points out.

I nod in agreement. “She’s doing much better now. So, how are you doing, Lightning?” I ask him, hoping that he’ll be open about it.

He smiles. Of course it wouldn’t be that easy. “Doing fine, Ratchet. Still recovering a bit, but I’ll get there. I’ll be ready to head out when you are,” Lightning tells me.

I let out a sigh. “Don’t lie Lightning, it won’t help anyone. I’ve been watching you, looking concerned and staring off into space, glaring at your legs, I can tell something isn’t right. Thunder suspects as much as well,” I tell him.

Lightning shakes his head and sighs. “Makes sense he’d know, bring my brother and all. Well Ratchet, you want the truth?” He asks, turning to me. I nod. “I’m terrified. I’m sure the Clamp told you, my legs might not fully recover. But it is more than that. My legs...they shake sometimes. I can’t control it, but being in power armor makes it a bit more bearable,” he confesses.

“They...shake? Does it hurt when they do so?” I ask him as concern builds up inside of me.

He smiles slightly. “No, thankfully. It is just annoying, for the most part. As the day progresses though, my legs get tired and ache because of it, and all I’ve been doing lately is lounging around. Once we actually start moving, and fighting, I don’t think I’ll be able to keep up,” Lightning says, looking down from the railing.

“What does Clamp say about it? Have you told him?” I ask.

“Of course, but the only thing he can determine is that it might go away eventually. He says it might be nerve damage, or it could be a mental thing. Me subconsciously recalling the manticore attack,” he says. “I don’t know, Ratchet. I just don’t know. But, I don’t think you can help,” he tells me with a sad expression on his face.

“Bullshit,” I tell him. This rouses a surprised expression from him. “We are friends, a team, it is our job to help each other. So you know what? If your legs are giving you trouble, let us know. If we have to take a few more breaks on our journeys, so be it. If we have to throw you on our back, we’ll do it,” I explain.

He smirks, but says, “I don’t want to be a burden to you all. I’ll keep up, you don’t have to coddle me.” You idiot Lightning. You just don’t understand.

Lock’s words run though my mind, ‘you have to tell her the truth when she needs it.’ I’m sure that can be applied to Lightning as well, and he needs the same truth as Arrow needed. “Shut up,” I tell him. “You understand that if you ignore your issue, if you push yourself for us, that we could all die because of it, right?” I say, giving him a serious look.

He’s taken aback, that much I can see. His eyes go wide for a moment and he mutters, “W-What?”

“If you push yourself, and we don’t know it, and we get caught in a battle unaware of that, it could cost us our lives. Not only yours, but your brother’s, Arrow’s, Cygnus’s, and mine,” I say, locking my eyes onto his. “If we know, we can work around it. We can be ready. This isn’t just your problem, it is our problem,” I tell him.

When I finish, Lightning looks away, out into the night. He rubs his face with a hoof for a moment before turning back towards me. “I suppose you are right. I would be a burden if I decide to be stubborn about things. I’m sorry. It’s just...my legs were my pride and joy,” he mutters.

“About that,” I begin. “Don’t hate your legs now, don’t be disgusted with them. They served you well, and they probably saved your life from the manticore. Just because they might be a bit slower, and shake occasionally, you shouldn’t be upset with them. You’re still standing, they are still strong, and they are the only ones you got,” I tell him with a smile.

He stares at me blankly for a moment before erupting into laughter. “The only ones I’ve got, hu, Ratchet?” Lightning says, laughing some more. “That’s so...so...corny,” he tells me, continuing to laugh.

I puff out my cheek and glare at him. “I thought it was good…” I mutter, giving him a smile.

Lightning pulls himself together enough to say, “Yea, yea. Oh Celestia, Ratchet. Thank you. I...I feel much better now. Tomorrow, I’ll tell everyone about my legs. You are right though, they are the only ones I have. I’m going to think about things for a little longer. You should get some sleep, it is getting late.”

“I suppose you are right,” I say with a smile. “I’m glad you are feeling better, Lightning. Remember, if there’s ever something you need to talk about, we’re here for you,” I tell him.

“I know, thanks,” He says with a smile. I return inside and leave Lightning to his thoughts. He probably needs some time to get things straight in his head. I decide to take his advice, and head to my room for the night.

===~+~===

The next day, Lightning tells us all about his legs. He also mentions that after our talk, the frequency of their shaking seems to have gone down. It might be a mental thing after all, at least part of it. I hope that once they fully recover, the shaking goes away completely.

My friends and I spend the better part of the morning playing cards. Both Lightning and Arrow seem a lot better. I don’t notice either one of them spacing out or frowning, unless they get a bad hand. Around mid-afternoon, I get a bit bored of cards and decide to go for a walk around the town. The others keep playing, wanting to get to know Cygnus better.

On the northern side of the town, is a sort of clearing. From what I hear, traveling traders set up here to sell their wares. Now, however, it is empty aside from the occasional citizen walking through it. I decide to sit on a bench facing the statue to watch the construction for a while.

As I watch the workers move steel beams into place and weld them, I can’t help but smile. There are various systems of pulleys that lift the beams up into place. Earth Ponies on the ground haul them up, and Unicorns guide them precisely where they need to go. It is a beautiful thing to see.

The wasteland is a barren and desolate place. Seeing a brand new city rising in front of my very eyes in defiance of the wasteland makes me hopeful for the future. Maybe things will get better. As long as ponies work hard, and are good to each other, the future will always have hope.

While I continue to watch, one buck on the ground catches my eye. He is walking under the construction. But what really draws my attention and moves me to action, is the ghostly figure behind them, cloaked in black. I leap from the bench and run towards the buck.

I glance above him, seeing one of the steel beams being lifted directly above him. As I get closer, I see a small part of the rope holding it is beginning to fray. No one else seems to notice as I run towards the buck. I see it snap as I’m a few feet from him and a Unicorn tries to hold it up with their magic, but it seems to be too heavy for them.

The beam breaks free of their magic and hurtles towards the ground. I leap at the buck just as the beam is about to strike him, tackling him out of the way. The beam falls just inches behind us. He stares at it wide eyed as I pant for breath. Not this one, Death, I think with a smile, looking at his ghostly figure.

Death just stares back at me as the buck thanks me vigorously and goes on his way. Death walks up to me, looking at the back of the buck that got away. “Pestilence told you, right?” He asks. “Deaths are set in stone, and you can’t prevent them,” he says.

I smile. “I just saved that buck, didn’t I? I guess you wasted a trip here,” I tell him.

“Keep watching,” Death says, still looking at the buck. I turn from him, and look at the buck as well. He looks fine.

But then I see it, from one of the platforms the workers are on, a tool falls off the ledge, heading straight for the buck. “Look out!” I scream at him, but it is too late. The tool hits the buck square on the head, dropping him instantly.

I run over to him and feel for a pulse, but get nothing. I call to my haunches, muttering, “No...How…” Death walks up behind me.

“Had you not saved him, the steel beam would have killed him. But since you intervened, he was killed by a falling tool. If you had known about that, and saved him again, something else would have got him,” Death explains. “When it is a pony’s time, it is their time,” he tells me.

“You can’t save them, Ratchet,” he says as he brings out his scythe. “Save yourself the trouble and heartache, just let it happen,” he advises me as he slices something I cannot see. He turns to me and says, “Stay strong, Ratchet.” Before he disappears. A few moments later a few of the workers on the ground arrive.

I’m too stunned to talk or react, so I just kind of wander off while they are distracted. This isn’t going to work. I’ll go mad...I saved him, only for him to die. How many more times will something like this happen? Can I just turn a blind eye to it, like Death suggested? Or will I keep trying to save them?

===~+~===

A week goes by, and luckily I don’t witness any more deaths. My friends and I make a speedy recovery, and decide we will leave tomorrow morning. Today, we will stock up on supplies and get ready. We go our separate ways to get what we need, but I end up giving Cygnus 500 caps so he can get some gear.

I’ve cut up my soiled lab coat and make some bandages out of it. They aren’t magical or anything, but they’ll help stop some bleeding if we get into a tight stop. Putting on one of the pristine coats, I make my way to the gun store.

The gun store, which is a good sized shack inside the bottom of the statue, is owned by a buck named Bloodshot. He’s got a...peculiar attitude, keeps trying to get me to buy explosives. But, I decide to leave those up to Thunder. I really didn’t want to miss with something that could really cause some damage.

First, I decide to sell Bloodshot my excess guns and ammunition. As I pull gun after gun out of my bags, he doesn’t seem surprised, it is like ponies bring in a ton of guns to sell all the time. I sell all the spare guns I looted and the 9mm I got back from Rose. He gives me 470 caps for the lot of them. I try to haggle, but, he says, “Most of these are shit. Nothing but parts.”

I begrudgingly accept the caps, just grateful for the bag space they freed up. I look over what I have left. The sniper, shotgun, SMG, and revolver. Given my record for hitting my target, I decide to sell the sniper and SMG, along with all their ammo and the 5.56mm I have as well. He gives me 133 more caps for them.

He won’t buy my old armor or the machete I have though. Since I’m done selling things, I decide to stock up on ammo. I buy enough shotgun shells to get me to 56 extra, and 108 .32 caliber for my revolver. This sets me back 331 caps.

I’m about to leave the store when he calls out to me, saying he can sell me a drum magazine for my shotgun, and possibly improve my revolver a bit. I ask for the drum magazine as I give him my revolver to look at. The drum magazine is another 200 caps.

He inspects the revolver for a moment, then gives it back to me, telling me to, “Aim it for me, let me get a look at you.” I raise an eyebrow, but do as he says and aim it like I usually do with my magic. He nods and takes it back. He disappears into the back of his shop for a few minutes, then returns and asks me if I want to name it.

I think for a moment, and smile as I say, “Forgiveness.” He raises an eyebrow, but shrugs and returns to the back. After a few more minutes, he returns with my revolver and sits it on the counter. It looks...different.

“Since you use magic, I lightened it and decreased the amount of pressure needed to pull the trigger. The new grip should feel better in your magic as well. And the name,” he says, showing me the left side of the gun, “is inscribed on the barrel.” He smiles and concludes, “450 caps.”

My eyes go wide at the price, but he gives it to me to test out. It definitely feels...better. I let out a sigh and mutter, “Here.” As I count out the caps. He smiles, and thanks me for my business as I leave his store.

I was really not expecting to spend so much there. I have 400 caps left, hope that is enough for medical supplies. But first, I need to sell this extra stuff. I head into the general store, hoping they’ll buy my old armor and machete. I’m in luck, and gain an additional 73 caps. Why was everything so damn inexpensive when I sell it?

Next, I make my way to the drugstore to stock up on medical supplies. As I approach the counter, I see Lightning standing there. “Oh, hey Ratchet,” he says as he notices me. “Stocking up as well? I made sure to leave some for you,” he tells me with a grin.

“Here you go sir,” a gravely voice says from under the counter. From behind the counter, rises a…

“ZOMBIE!” I yell, drawing my revolver. Lightning quickly puts a hoof out in front of me.

“She’s alright Ratchet, she isn’t a zombie. I guess she’s the first ghoul you’ve seen, hu?” Lightning says with a chuckle. He turns to the zombie, “Sorry about her, first time for her, ya know? Here’s the caps, you two play nice now.” Lightning then walks out of the shop without another word.

The zombie shakes its head and grabs the caps from the counter. “Every time with you smoothskins,” it says.

“Uh...so…” I stammer. “You’re a...ghoul? Not a...Zombie?” I ask stupidly.

“Yea,” it says. Though, it resembles a mare, so I guess...she says? “Though you smoothskins usually don’t care about the difference. The name’s Scarlet,” she informs me.

“Nice to...meet you, Scarlet,” I tell her with apprehensive smile. “Sorry about the whole, trying to shoot you thing,” I appologize.

“Oh, no worries. It happens with you smoothskins sometimes,” Scarlet says with a shrug. “So, I’m your first ghoul hu? I bet you have questions, go ahead and ask so I can start trading with you,” she says.

“Oh, uh. Let’s see. What is a ghoul, I guess?” I ask her.

“Fair enough. We are normal ponies who got exposed to just the right amount of radiation. Not enough to kill us, but enough to turn us into this. Some of us have been around since before the war, though I came after that,” she explains.

“I see. Does that mean you have longer lifespans due to the radiation exposure?” I ask, my curiosity piqued.

“Who’s to say. Hasn’t been that much time to know for sure. Though I know a few that are over 100 years old, and still doing fine. We might be able to live forever, assuming we don’t rot away into nothing,” Scarlet says with a raspy chuckle.

“Right...Does it hurt? Are you physically the same, or did you mutate?” I ask, getting excited.

“Oh naw, it feels pretty normal. Aside from our looks, our ability to heal with radiation, and our lack of needing sustenance, we’re pretty much the same,” she explains.

“That’s interesting. So, are there any negative effects to being a ghoul?” I ask, adding, “Aside from ponies thinking you are zombies and trying to kill you.”

“Yea,” she says with a sigh. “We can go feral, lose our minds. Once that happens, we might as well be zombies. So not all of us are safe to be around. But!” Scarlet declares, “That doesn’t mean you should go around shooting every ghoul. Ferals, sure. But not those with intelligence left.”

“Ferals, hu? Good to know. I’ll try to refrain from shooting ghouls just for being ghouls,” I say, giving her a reassuring smile. “I think that’s all the questions I have for now, thanks.”

“Good. Now, you here to buy?” She asks. I nod, and tell her what I need. She tells me the prices, and I tell her what I can afford. Scarlet shakes her head and pulls out two healing potions. I think for a moment, considering if i have anything else to sell.

I remember I have drugs i should probably get rid of. I bring out the stampede and dash, but hesitate for a moment. I put the dash back in my bags, deciding to hang onto it for emergencies, since I can actually manage to hit things while using it.

With the stampede I have, she agrees to sell me a total of 3 healing potions and one magical bandage for the cost of 450 caps. I agree to the price, and pack up the items and give her the caps.

With 23 caps to my name, I leave the store and head back to the hotel to wait for the others. Tomorrow, we’ll head back out into the Manehatten Ruins. I hope we are prepared.

===~+~===

New Perk!
Companionship - When your companions are in your presence, they gain +10 to their Damage Threshold.

Chapter 16 - The Request

“Let’s retake the old world.”

===~+~===

The following morning, gather in the hotel lobby. As I look us over, you wouldn’t guess we came so close to dying almost two weeks ago. The Ranger’s armor looks clean and shiny, no damage to it anywhere. There is some welding marks where I can tell it has been repaired, however.

Thunder once again has a minigun at his side, but he’s also added that missile launcher to his other side. It looks belt-fed from inside his armor too, like his minigun. Lightning and Arrow also seem ready to head out.

Cygnus, thankfully, has a new set of light armor. I told him that I wanted him to at least have some protection if we get caught off guard. He also seems to have picked up a 10mm pistol and is wearing the holster at his side. Last, but not least, he exchanged his makeshift bag for actual saddlebags.

That leaves me, clad in my stitched up barding and wrapped ever so lovingly in my lab coat, with Forgiveness at my side. I join up with the others, having just returned from talking with Chief Wrecker regarding the safer routes though the ruins. He offered to send some guards with us, but I turned him down.

We are a team, and if we get attacked, we need to make sure we can handle it before we get too far. Lightning’s legs are still occasionally giving him trouble, but they seem a lot better, and Arrow’s aim isn’t as precise as she’d like it to be. However, we can’t put off returning any longer and we are as healthy as we are going to get.

After double checking we have all our gear, we thank the Hotel staff and leave. We walk though the town towards the dock the ferry sits at that will take us back across the water and into the ruins. As we near the dock, I see a few finely dressed ponies standing around.

We approach them when one of them calls out to us. “You there, Steel Rangers,” a buck says. He sounds really...prissy. We stop and turn towards him and two associates. “Ah, yes, good. We have a job for you, yes,” he tells us.

“Yes, yes, just for you,” a mare at his side says in a sing-songy voice. “We do hope that you will accept,” she says with a smile.

“Yes, darling, we do,” the buck coos at the mare. “You see, my good ponies, we need you to clear out a building for us. Just that, remove the inhabitants and tell us when the job is done,” he informs us.

“They are a bunch of ne’er-do-wells. Monsters, really,” the second mare chimes in. “Positively dreadful, disgusting,” she says, turning up her muzzle.

“Oh quite!” The buck agrees. “You’d be doing both us, and society a favor by removing them really,” he tells us. “We won’t even make you clean up after you are done, we have ponies for that,” he says with a smile.

They are kind of...obnoxious. We haven’t been able to get a word in edgewise, until now. “What exactly, do you want us to do?” I ask them, raising an eyebrow. They all roll their eyes.

“We just told you, clear out Tenpony for us,” the second mare says with a sigh. “This is why commoners are so dreadful,” she mutters.

“But you never said…” I begin, but am cut off by the buck.

“Yes, Tenpony Tower, you know it, right? Only building in Manehatten still standing in pristine condition?” He says as though talking to foals.

“Actually, that’s the…” Again, I’m cut off, this time, by the first mare.

“Of course they know, Darling. Everyone knows,” she says, shaking her head. “They are just being difficult.”

“Ah yes my love, I’m sure,” the buck says to her. “Will you do it or are you like the rest of these commoners in this so called town, content with this sad excuse for living arrangements?” He says.

“Why don’t you clear it yourselves?” Cygnus asks, clearly getting annoyed by them.

They all scoff and look horrified at the though. “Us?” The buck says. “Are you saying we should get our hooves dirty when you commoners can do it for us?” He asks us. And with that, there is no doubt in my mind these are the ponies Star Paladin Lily was talking about.

“We’ve sent ponies there before,” the second mare says, shaking her head. “Of course, we paid them a portion of the caps ahead of time, but they never returned. Common thieves, they are. Cut and run, no doubt,” She says, shaking her head as the other two do the same.

“Alright, I’m out. These ponies are pissing me off,” Cygnus says, walking down to the dock. The others go to follow him, but I stay there, thinking. They said, Tenpony, right?

“Just a moment everyone,” I call after them, then turn to the prissy ponies and say, “Give me just a moment, I need to find something out.” They roll their eyes as I walk a short distance away and pull my PipBuck up.

“Hey CORA, you remember anything about Tenpony? Could it have survived a Megaspell?” I ask her. I don’t recall it having any sort of defences like that.

After a moment, CORA appears in my vision. “Hmmm, I don’t think so, Ratchet. If it is still standing, and in pristine condition like they say, I can’t say why,” CORA tells me.

“That is what I thought. But if it is...it could be useful as an outpost in the ruins, right?” I mutter. Then thought strikes me. “Hey CORA, Tenpony has broadcasting equipment, right? It should cover a large area, shouldn’t it?” I ask her.

She’s quiet for a moment, but answers, “I believe so, if it remains functional. It may even cover a good portion of Equestira. The signal could also be bounced around using other towers to expand the range,” she informs me.

“Ok, good. Thanks, CORA,” I tell her. She smiles, then blinks out of my vision again. I turn back to the prissy ponies and walk over to them.

“I’ll help you,” I tell them. They roll their eyes again. They seem a little, ungrateful that I agreed to help.

“It took you long enough. Very well, return to us when Tenpony is safe, and collect your 2,000 caps,” the buck tells me. “And don’t try to lie about it, we have a mercenary watching the building, so we will know if you do,” he says, narrowing his eyes.

“Yea, yea,” I tell him. “But I have one condition,” I begin. “Once I clear it out, you let DJ Pon3 move into the broadcasting station up top,” I say.

They look between each other, and the buck shrugs. “We have no use for that equipment, and the DJ seems like a decent follow. We agree to your condition,” he agrees.

“And just so we are clear, he is a permanent resident as long as he wants to be, right? You can’t just kick him out on a whim,” I tell them. They roll their eyes, but nod. “Good. Well then, we’ll return once we have some good news,” I say with a smile.

“Yes, yes, on your way. If you don’t hurry, we’ll hire someone else. We have waited long enough,” the second mare calls after me as I join the others at the dock.

Cygnus glares at me as I catch up. “Really? We’re going to help those stuck up snobs?” He asks.

“Well, helping to secure a safe haven in the midst of the Manehatten Ruins will be helpful for future travel. Not to mention, it will give the DJ a wider audience. Tenpony is outfitted with a broadcasting station, so he’ll be able to give the news to more ponies, and that means things can be safer,” I explain.

“Yes, but,” Lightning cuts in. “If those ponies are going to be in charge, I don’t see things going as smoothly as you think. They might try to set up their own personal paradise,” he suggests.

I furrow my brow. “That is always a possibility. But, even if they were to do that, they’d be hiring security to protect the tower and themselves. Meaning, the area around Tenpony should get safer,” I say, trying to find a silver lining.

“Anyhow,” I say as we board the ferry, “we should probably check it out first.”

===~+~===

The route Wrecker gave me is completely uneventful. I guess since the scavengers use it frequently, they clear away most of the threats. Because of this, we make good time though the city. We approach a fallen highway, that slopes up and has a pretty good sight over the surrounding buildings. I think Tenpony is only a few blocks away now.

“Let’s go up this highway and scope out Tenpony, see what we are up against,” I suggest. We walk up the road and look out across the destroyed city. Just as the prissy ponies said, a lone tower rises above the other collapsing buildings. It looks almost pristine, aside from the decay of time. It is like the Megaspell blast didn’t touch it at all.

“Can I borrow your rifle, Arrow?” I ask her. She nods, and hoofs it over to me. Cygnus summons a rifle of his own and the two of us look through the scopes at the tower. “Let’s see…” I mutter, looking around. “The outside looks pretty clear, nothing there. Oh damn, are those...ghouls in the first floor?” I ask.

“Ratchet,” Cygnus says in a serious tone, “look at the second floor.” I move the rifle scope up and look at the second floor.

“There’s no way,” I mutter. “There has to be a dozen ghouls in there,” I say in disbelief. “That’s just what I can see, too.” From where we are, we are looking at a corner of the building, so we can see though windows on two sides of it.

“Keeping looking up,” Cygnus tells me. I move the scope up and look at floor after floor of the tower.

“Every floor!?” I call out. “How are there that many on each floor?” I ask, not expecting an answer. “There as to be at least one hundred of them in total. I think we might need more firepower,” I tell them. I let each of the Rangers take a look through the scope as well.

“Even with this new missile launcher, this will be a bit of a workout,” Thunder mutters. “What’s the plan, boss?” He asks me.

I look out towards the tower, thinking about it. “It’s not going anywhere, let’s go back to Stable 36, see if they have anything on Grimoire yet. Then, I can also finish up my armor and that will give us a good edge,” I decide. They nod in agreement, and we begin walking back down the ruined highway.

The rest of the journey out of the ruins is relatively uneventful. We spot a few creatures here and there, but nothing that poses an actual threat. With such a smooth journey, I fear we might get too lax. Remembering the raider-town we encountered on our way here, I decide we should check it out, and possibly clear the raiders from it.

When we arrive on the outskirt of the city, something seems off about it. A lot more smoke is rising from the city than there was before. We climb a nearby hill and peak over the wall. What we see, none of us expect.

The town’s buildings are on fire and dead raiders cover the streets. Other raiders hang from the flaming roofs and some are dangling from spikes planted in the ground. Often, the raiders have been decapitated or disemboweled. It is a gruesome sight, and no one seems to be alive in the town.

“Let’s make sure no one is still alive,” I tell the others as we make our way down the hill towards the town. “They could have had captives, like the raiders from Ponyville,” I add. The town’s gates are open and we walk through without an issue.

We split up to search what buildings we can, but it soon becomes apparent that there are no survivors. As we begin to regroup, I notice Cygnus off on his own, staring at the side of a building. The rest of us head over to him.

As I near the building, I can see words on the building. Once fully in sight, I can read them properly, “They refused to join. -Discordia”. As I look over the characters painted in red, it become apparently they were written with the blood of the raiders.

“What in Tartarus…” I mutter as I contemplate the words, the dead raiders, and the burning town.

“What is, Discordia?” Cygnus asks suddenly. He brings up a good point. Was it some name? A pony? A gang? No, wait…

“I think it might be what Grimoire calls his army. He said he wants to replace Discord, so it is kind of fitting,” I suggest.

“If that’s the case,” Lightning begins, “I don’t think it is his army’s name. It sounds more like a nation, like Equestria. Didn’t you say he wants to take everything over and what not? You don’t take over the world as an army, but as a nation. An army is just part of it.”

“So, Grimoire’s Discordia, hu?” I mutter. “Well, I think it is safe to assume he was attempting to get these raiders to join him, but they refused and killed them all,” I conclude.

“Seems that way,” Thunder agrees. “Why burn the town, though? Wouldn’t he want this message to be seen? This building isn’t on fire yet, but it won’t be long with all these embers.” He states.

I look closer at the building with the words on it, the only building in town not yet on fire. It looks almost...wet. I though a hoof to the wooden building, and my hoof grows damp. “They covered the building in water, or something. It’s completely wet, they must have done it to keep it from burning down, or at least keep it around long enough for someone to see the message,” I tell them as I wipe my hoof on my barding.

“They wasted water just so they could send a message?” Lightning mutters, appalled by the thought.

Thunder chuckles. “Ratchet did say, ‘or something’, they could have spit or pissed on it. Anything to get it wet, right?” He says with a grin.

Lightning rolls his eyes. “Whatever the case, this had to have been done recently. The town hasn’t burned up too bad yet. I’d guess they left less than an hour ago,” Lightning says. “What should we do, Ratchet? Burn this building too?” He asks.

“What do you mean?” I ask him.

“Well, this is meant as a scare tactic, something to intimidate ponies into joining up with Grimoire. Do we want to leave it and let knowledge of him, and his intimidation spread? Or, should we destroy it to keep ponies from panicking?” Lightning elaborates.

I contemplate this for a moment. Not many know of Grimoire or is plans yet, this might help get the word out. But, it might also move ponies to join him. However…”The DJ’s reach covers this area. He agreed to tell his listeners about Grimoire, so they won’t need this warning. Let’s get rid of this,” I decide.

“Alright boss,” Thunder says. “How we gona do it? Whole building, or just the words?” He asks.

Cygnus coughs, and mutters something way too fast for me to catch. “I got this,” He says, as a flamethrower appears in his hooves. “I’ll pour on the flames till the message is gone, then what happens to the building, happens. You sure about this, Ratchet?,” He asks, glancing at me and waiting for confirmation.

I nod and tell him, “Burn it down.” He nods, and flames erupt from his flamethrower, covering the words on the wall. After a few minutes, the wood dries and begins to catch fire. As we leave the town, the building has a flaming hole where the words once were.

===~+~===

“And now the news!” DJ Pon3’s voice comes over my radio. We are nearing the edge of his range, and I wanted to listen a bit before we left it. “Remember the mare I met a week or so back? The one who strolled through Raider Alley and came out on the other side? Well, my sources say she’s heading back into the wasteland, and no raider is going to stand in her way. You remember that town of raiders, off to the west of the Manehatten Ruins? Our friend has apparently cleared the raiders out and burned their town to the ground!” He declares.

What? I didn’t do that, and we just left there a few hours ago, how did I know about it already?

“Not only that, but she did it in style, sporting a spotless white labcoat. Labcoat...hey, I like that. I think I just found her new nickname folks! So, if you are traveling west of Manehatten and come across the ashy remains of a town, thank Labcoat for making your travels just a little bit safer. That’s all for the news, my little ponies. Stay safe out there,” he concludes.

“Why did he say that? And he didn’t mention any of you either…” I mutter in confusion.

Cygnus shrugs. “I can only assume, but from what he’s been broadcasting, and what you’ve told me of him, he is trying to give ponies hope. It is possible that he missed Discordia’s display in the town, and only saw us walk out of it. Putting two and two together, it would make sense if we were the ones who did it,” he tells me.

“I guess, but why not say ‘her and her friends’ or something? It make it seem like you all aren’t here,” I ask.

Lightning chuckles. “What sounds better,” he asks, “a lone pony taking out a town of raiders, or a group of ponies including three Steel Rangers? I can see why he does it, and you are the leader here.”

I furrow my brow. “It still doesn’t feel right,” I mutter. “He’s making me out to be some sort of...hero. Some amazing pony that I’m not. I can barely hit my shots!” I point out. “I wish he would just tell ponies about Grimoire, like I asked,” I shake my head with a sigh.

“What you seem to be forgetting,” Cygnus says, “is that we are barely one generation from when the world almost ended. Some of us are old enough to remember what it was like before. I only knew a small part of the world, but for others, it might seem like this world is hopeless.”

Thunder nods. “He has a point,” He agrees. “The three of us were born after, so we are used to this. But the elders, our parents, sometimes they look like they are slowly losing hope. I’m sure plenty of raiders turned to crime because they thought normal life was hopeless. The DJ seems to get it, ponies need hope,” Thunder states.

I blink at him in shock. “Thunder...that was...unusually deep for you,” I say, giving him a teasing grin.

He smirks and shakes his head. “Even I can get lucky with words sometimes, Ratchet. But, don’t worry about the whole DJ thing. It isn’t anything you should fret over, Labcoat,” he says the nickname teasingly.

The others laugh as I put a hoof to my face. “Labcoat...really? That’s just an observation on what I’m wearing…” I say, puffing out my cheeks.

“But a fitting name, never-the-less,” Lightning tells me. “You were a scientist before, right? And your labcoat does make you stand out. Seeing it might even make some raiders run away, if they heard the DJ’s broadcast,” he suggests.

“I guess…” I mutter as we keep walking. Resigned to the fate of the nickname Labcoat, we continue on with only the sound of the music from the radio between us. After a bit, the music starts to get staticy, and soon turns into complete static.

===~+~===

Our trip is long, but relatively uneventful. We never see another pony as we make our way back to Stable 36, and only run into a few easily dealt with creatures. It is as though we are the only ones in the wasteland. But I can’t help fighting off a growing feeling of dread.

Are we alone because no one is here, or did Grimoire kill or assimilate everyone already? I really hope that Grimoire has nothing to do with this, and I’m just being paranoid. Lost in thought, I barely realize we are about to pass my lab.

I shake myself from my thoughts and bring us to a halt. “Hey, do you think you guys can go on ahead to let the Elder know our status and see if he’s found out anything about Grimoire? I’d like to finish my armor quickly so we can clear out Tenpony. I’ll bring Cygnus with me, the other Rangers might not like us bringing another stranger home,” I say.

“Not a problem,” Lightning says, nodding his head. “We’ll head to your lab if Elder Archimedes hasn’t found anything on Grimoire yet. If he has, we’ll radio you and you can head over to us. Sound good?” He asks.

“Perfect,” I agree. I bid them goodbye and lead Cygnus to the nearby shed. We enter the lab’s tunnel entrance and pass through the bulkheads.

“Huh, this is a lot more fortified than my lab is,” Cygnus points out. We continue and eventually end up in the chamber with my cryo-pod. “This is...one of those, isn’t it?” He asks, stopping at the room’s entrance.

“Yea, my prototype. The one you were in was modified and improved by Miss Sparkle, but the concept is similar,” I tell him as I plug my PipBuck into the system. “Hey CORA, we’re home. You want to take control while we’re here?” I ask her.

After a moment, the system’s monitors all display her smiling face. “Ahh, it’s good to be home!” She declares as she smiles at us. “I’ll run the routine checks and make sure everything is up to code!” She declares as text starts scrolling behind her face.

“Thanks, as always,” I tell her, and turn back to Cygnus, who is still standing in the doorway. To be honest, I want CORA in the system as a security precaution. This is the first time I’ve been alone with Cygnus since getting him out. I still am not sure if I fully trust him, the last incident in his lab lingering in my mind.

This will be a good opportunity to clear that up, but first, he looks a bit, uncomfortable, and I think I know why. “Don’t worry, I’m not going to put you in there. If you want to sleep, we have sleeping quarters. Besides, this pod is mine, and mine alone,” I declare, putting a hoof to my chest, proudly.

He smiles a bit at that. “Thanks, those pods kind of make me...nervous.” Cygnus tells me.

“Understandable, since you were put into one by force. I got into mine of my own volition. For now,” I suggest, “let’s go to my workshop. I want to get started on my armor.” He nods, and I lead us though the halls, pointing out the various rooms along the way, until we get to the workshop. I sit down on my stool and point to another for Cygnus to use. I look over the armor for a moment, before facing him.

“Say Cygnus,” I begin, “I can trust you, right?” I ask him, raising an eyebrow as I look at him. He tilts his head, looking surprised.

“Of course, you are the one who let me out, after all. And I’m following you because I want to,” Cygnus explains.

I let out a sigh and purse my lips for a moment. “It’s just…” I trail off for a moment. “I read about the incidents that led to your project being shut down. The first two seemed like accidents, but the last one was different,” I say. Cygnus shifts on his stool uncomfortably. He clearly doesn’t like this subject.

“I don’t like to talk about them...” Cygnus tells me, looking away.

I nod. “I understand, but I’m not sure I can trust you unless I clarify something. Your father said it seemed like you, were happy after the last incident. You were smiling, but still crying. He wrote it off as him imagining things, but I’m curious if that is the case,” I tell him. “Cygnus, what really happened?” I ask.

“And you won’t...trust me...unless I tell you?” Cygnus asks, looking at me sheepishly. I nod and he looks at the ground between us, taking a deep breath. “I killed Static, on purpose. I was happy that she was dead,” he tells me, not moving his eyes off the floor.

I swallow. I thought this might be the case, but what comes next is what’s important. “Why?” I ask him. He shakes momentarily at the question.

“She…” Cygnus pauses, taking another breath. “She was one of the initial staff. Everything was fine at first, when I was physically young. But, after a few years, once my body and mind matured to what would roughly be a teenager, things changed,” he says with a shaky voice.

“Static...she was always so kind, probably because she was the youngest of the staff, in her late twenties. But one night she...forced herself on me,” Cygnus tells me. My eyes grow wide as I process this information.

I clear my throat. “So, she raped you?” I ask him. He nods.

“I was young and naive, I had no idea what was going on. But as I learned more, I realized what she was doing. I asked her to stop a few times, but she got angry, threatened to start giving me bad reviews on my tests if I refused or told anyone, and if I didn’t do what she wanted, she would hit me. But, she never left any marks,” he tells me.

“The first incident is when I learned about what she was actually doing to me. The second, is when she began threatening me. I couldn’t think straight, and lost control. Finally, when I was no longer able to deal with it, I killed her. I knew father would think it just another accident,” Cygnus explains, never taking his eyes off the ground.

“I can understand if you don’t trust me anymore,” He tells me. I get to my hooves and walk over to him. “And if you think I should be killed for what I’ve done, I’ll let you,” he adds. I put my hooves around his head, and pull him into a hug.

“I’m sorry,” I whisper to him. “I’m so, so sorry. I shouldn’t have asked, I should have just trusted you. But it is alright now, I trust you. Everything will be alright now, it wasn’t your fault,” I tell him, hugging him tighter.

“Ratchet…” Cygnus mutters. “Thank...thank you,” he says, hugging me back. After a few moments, and a bit of awkwardness, we finally get back to normal.

“So,” Cygnus says, clapping his front hooves together, “what are you working on exactly?”

“Power Armor,” I reply. “More precisely, a custom model for me. The framework is done, I just need to finish the wiring and then test the system to see if there are any bugs in the coding. I’ll also have to get CORA so we can test out Raptor Blood,” I explain.

“Raptor Blood?” Cygnus asks, raising an eyebrow.

“It is the name of that gauss rifle mounted on the back. Well, that plate on your side that should swing over the back and set into place along with the rest of the armor,” I tell him.

“Huh, so, this all folds up to look like the other Rangers?” He asks. I nod, gluing in some of the wires along the armor’s interior. “Are you sure it will, you know, fit together?” He asks. I roll my eyes.

“Of course!” I say, but add, “Probably. I started out with it being a whole suit that I modified, and just cut it apart so it could close around me and my PipBuck. But, I’ve not tested it closing yet,” I admit.

“Uh-hu. Don’t you think, you know, you should test that before you deal with all the wiring?” Cygnus asks. Geez, was he always this full of questions?

“I could, but I am 99% sure it will work. I have a knack for this sort of thing,” I tell him.

He seems to ponder this for a moment. “Well, you did make the cryo-pods…” Cygnus mutters. “It just seems like a waste of time and effort wiring the whole thing up if it isn’t going to close properly. Just saying,” he comments.

“I told you, I’m like 90% sure it will work. Seriously, let it go,” I tell him, getting annoyed.

“Didn’t you just say you were 99% sure? Are you starting to doubt yourself? Maybe you really should test it before…” Cygnus mutters.

“Alright! That’s it!” I yell. “Why don’t you like, go...do...that...well….ANYTHING ELSE!” I shout. “Clean or something, poke around, make something useful, I don’t know. You’re not helping,” I tell him as I glare at him.

He tosses up his hooves and slides off his stool onto the ground. “Alright, I’ll go find something to do, maybe I’ll take a nap. Good luck with your armor, Ratchet,” Cygnus tells me as he walks away.

I shake my head and keep working. “It is going to work! You’ll see!” I call after him.

“Whatever you say!” Cygnus calls back. Oh. It. Is. On. I can’t mess this up now, time to work twice, no, thrice as hard! I pour myself into my work.

===~+~===

A few hours pass, and I’m close to finishing up. As I’m about to, Lightning pokes his head in. “We’re back, Ratchet. No word on Grimoire’s movements yet. Though, Elder Archimedes confirmed our theory about Discordia being his nation. He sent Senior Paladin Twinkle out with her squad to search for more clues to his plans or location,” he informs me.

I stop working and turn to face him. “I see. Well, that gives us time to deal with Tenpony,” I say.

“Indeed,” Lightning agrees. “Elder says good initiative on that, by the way. Anyhow, about Discordia, apparently their influence has spread quite a bit. No large areas so far, but pockets of them here and there. From Los Pegasus to Baltimare, a number of raider gangs have joined him. Others have simply disappeared completely,” he tells me.

“That means he will be hard to pinpoint,” I mutter. “If it was centered around a certain area, we would at least have a place to start,” I sigh.

“Yea. Twinkle suggested we attack the nearest group and interrogate them, but Lily made the argument we would be showing our hand too early. As you can see, the Elder agreed with Lily. It will be rough, but we’ll find something,” Lightning says with a smile.

“Of course!” I smile back. “Now, would you mind getting everyone together here? I’m almost done with the armor, and I want to show it off. Especially to that neigh-sayer Cygnus,” I ask him with a slightly sadistic smile.

Lightning lets out a chuckle. “No problem, I’ll be right back,” he tells me, turning and walking down the hall.

Excellent. Now, first thing’s first. I need CORA. I walk over to the nearby terminal and bring her back into my PipBuck. “You ready for this?” I ask her as I sit down on the stool once again.

“Of course Ratchet! I estimate you have an 89% chance of success!” CORA tells me with a smile. I flinch, the percentage went down again…

I quickly finish the interior, covering the wiring with padding and checking over everything one last time. I nod at my handiwork as the others arrive. “Ah, just in time!” I declare, as I turn to greet them. “Prepare to witness the amazing technology of the great and brilliant Ratchet!” I yell as they gather around me and the armor.

“Here we go!” I say as I put my rear hooves into the back of the armor and fall forward into the rest of it. My torso falls into the padded chestpiece and my front legs slip into their places. “Alright, and…” I say as I put my head into the bottom half of the helmet and press a button with my tongue.

Suddenly, the armor begins to move as it is supplied with power. First, the top two halves of the helmet snap together, followed by the neck plates. Since the right front leg isn’t in multiple pieces, only the other three legs move as they cover my limbs. The front left fits snuggly around my PipBuck. Finally, the back sides up from the sides and connects everything together.

For a moment, nothing else happens. Then, my visor kicks on and displays me a pantheon of new information. Briefly, text scrolls across my vision regarding the firmware/software versions and it even displays the status of my various armor pieces. This information disappears and is replaced with what is the visor’s actual HUD.

In addition to what my PipBuck normally displays, I see a power gauge for the current spark batteries, and remaining ammo for my miniguns and Raptor Blood. The PipBuck’s compass feature also now shows four blue, friendly bars, thanks to the armor’s targeting spell matrix.

“CORA, status check,” I order her.

“All systems green, spark power seems stable, sort of, and my manual overrides appear functional. Unlocking Raptor Blood,” CORA announces, her voice amplified through the armor’s speaker.

“Thank you CORA,” I tell her as I begin to move around the room. “Let me know of any power fluctuations or any other abnormalities,” I tell her. While I test out the mobility and flexibility of the armor, CORA tests out the range of Raptor Blood, rotating it as I move to make sure she can avoid hitting me with it.

“Ratchet, duck!” CORA says, and I lower my head to the ground as she sweeps the barrel over my head. “Perfect. 360 degree horizontal mobility is confirmed. Angle of elevation is 63 degrees. Angle of depression is 41 degrees. All within estimated parameters,” she concludes.

“Good,” I tell her. Things seem good on my end. “Now then, one last thing to test out. CORA, begin manual transition.” I command her.

“Manual transition initiated,” CORA states. “Download complete, ejecting pilot,” She says as the armor opens and I step out of it. It closes once again and a blue glow shines from the visor. “Manual transition successful, I have complete control,” CORA says as the armor moves around.

“Wait, wait, wait!” Lightning calls out. “How it is moving on it’s own?” He asks.

“Oh, that’s easy,” I tell him as I walk up along side everyone, turning to face the moving armor. “CORA’s moving it. As you can see, she can’t move it as freely as I can,” I nod to the armor, moving around slowly.

“I went ahead and added in some basic robotics to it so she could move it. But, due to the lack of proper space for both me and the components, I had to sacrifice the ability for her to be able to move it quickly or in difficult positions,” I explain. “She can walk, climb stairs, and recover from a fall, but she won’t be able to run or jump,” I inform them.

“I see, that’s impressive,” Lightning says, blinking at CORA walking around. The others appear to be in just as much shock as him.

“This addition was actually CORA’s idea. She wanted to be able to help us out more. She did most of the coding and design, I just put it together,” I tell them. “Ok CORA,” I call out to her, “Let’s leave it at that for now.”

“Aww, ok Ratchet. Pilot Transition initiated,” She says sadly as the armor opens back up. I attach my PipBuck to it and retrieve CORA from the armor.

“Ok,” I say. “Let’s go over what we learned. First,” I look over as Cygnus, “is that I rock,” I tell him. He rolls his eyes with a chuckle. “Second, due to the weight as size, I will be less mobile than you three in your armor, but I will be more protected and pack more firepower. Lastly, CORA, what was that about the power stability?” I ask her.

“Well, we go through power quite quickly. Almost quadruple what we estimated. The usage is stable, but it is just excessive. I can’t seem to find the cause of it yet, but with time, I think I can get to the bottom of it,” CORA replies.

“Quadruple? Any idea how long it will take to fix?” I ask her.

She shakes her head. “No, it looks like it will be tough. Perhaps a week or two?” She suggests. “Given the current power usage, and the state of our spark batteries, we can power the armor for two hours,” CORA tells me.

“Two hours hu?” I mutter. “Well, that might be just enough to clear out Tenpony,” I conjecture.

Thunder clears his throat. “Yes, aside from the fact it takes a few days to walk there,” he points out. “Unless you course you plan on having one of us carry...it...for...you do, don’t you?” He asks me with a stoic expression.

I smile at him. “Thank’s for volunteering Thunder! That’s just the kind of can-do attitude I like! We’ll head out the day after tomorrow, so take tonight and tomorrow to rest up. CORA and I will tinker with the armor, see if we can get some better energy useage out of it,” I tell them.

Thunder sighs, resigned to his fate. “Fine, but you owe me,” he says.

“Of course!” I tell him, beaming a smile. “Anything you want, as long as you don’t drop it,” I add. After a few more questions about the armor’s innerworkings, the others to back to what they were doing.

“Alright CORA, let’s get the armor ready for its field test. I think we need some nice detail work on it. I’m thinking...an icy blue stripe down the middle? Maybe touch up the Lynx Squad logo a bit too? Hehehe, this is going to be fun…”

===~+~===

Quest Updated!

An Arrogant Request:
Target: Tenpony Tower
Goal: Clear the Tower of Hostiles

Chapter 17 - Annihilation

“They all fall down.”

===~+~===

“I can’t believe you actually made me carry your armor all this way,” Thunder complains for practically the hundredth time.

“Oh please,” I tell him. “You’re the strongest and toughest, of us,” I say. “If you couldn’t handle it, I wouldn’t have suggested it. Besides, you could have asked Arrow or Lightning to carry it for a while, you didn’t have to carry it this whole way alone,” I inform him.

I stares blankly at me, well, I think. It is hard to tell with his helmet on. “You never told me that!” He yells. “You told me to carry your armor and not to drop it, that’s what you said,” Thunder declares.

“Well, yes, I did say that,” I tell him. “But I never said you couldn’t give it to someone else for a bit,” I say with a shrug. “Regardless, we are here now,” I point out. “There is no need to argue about what’s already done.”

“Yea, fine, whatever,” Thunder grumbles. “So, remind me why we are on the highway we scoped the building out on before and not at the front door?” He asks.

I roll my eyes. “I told all of you before, remember? Since it will be close quarters, Arrow and Cygnus will stay up here and provide us with sniper support where they can. Meanwhile, Lightning and the two of us will clear the building floor by floor,” I remind him.

“Alright. But why leave Cygnus up here? He doesn’t have a rifle...oh yea, he can do that whole summoning thing he does,” Thunder mutters.

“Indeed. Not only that, but leaving Arrow here alone doesn’t sit well with me. Raiders or creatures could sneak up on her. Cygnus can help cover her if that should happen,” I inform him.

Lightning chuckles. “You’re finally getting the hang of this whole leadership thing, aren’t you, Ratchet?” He says.

“I guess,” I mutter. “But really, it is just logical thinking. It is like chess, you want to use your pieces to attack, while also keeping them safe from your opponent. In this case, Arrow would be a queen, and Cygnus a knight,” I state. Cygnus nods, but the other three just stare at me blankly.

I facehoof. “Chess? You three don’t know what chess is? Really? You rangers didn’t have a chess board in that Stable of yours?” I ask. They shake their heads. “I’ll explain that latter, then…” I grumble.

“So, if Arrow is a queen, and I a knight, what does that make you three?” Cygnus asks.

I think about it for a moment. “Well, Thunder is strong but not very mobile, so a rook? And Lightning is mobile and can get around opponents, so a bishop?” I suggest. “I would be a...pawn, I think. Given my inability to really hit anything,” I mutter.

Cygnus laughs. “Of course you think yourself a pawn. But, I suppose it does fit. Though, I think it would be better to call you the player, than an actual piece,” He tells me.

“Well, chess comparisons aside, are we ready to begin?” I ask them. They all nod. “Very well, Cygnus, Arrow, you two get set up, Thunder, Lightning, let’s go knock on the door,” I say, walking back down the highway’s slope.

The three of us make our way to the edge of the plaza that surrounds Tenpony. No ghouls appear to be outside, but through the glass doors I can see quite a few of them staggering about. “Well, at least they don’t appear to be intelligent,” I mutter.

We walk though the plaza and reach the stairs. “Let’s try to do things quietly for as long as we can,” I suggest. “No point having them swarm us, and there don’t seem to be many on the first floor. We should be able to take them out without guns,” I think.

“That’s great and all, Ratchet, but what do you want me to do with your armor?” Thunder asks, shifting under the armor weight.

“Just set it right inside the doors for now,” I tell him. “I don’t want to use power unnecessarily,” I say. He nods and we walk though the first set of doors, and then the next, being as quiet as possible.

Thunder sets the armor on the floor as Lightning and I stab the two closest ghouls in the head. Luckily, they aren’t aware of us yet. “HELLO NEW TEST SUBJECTS!” A gravely, buck’s voice calls out. The voice seems to be playing over a PA system. It is causing the ghouls to get stirred up. It seems like our luck is out.

Ghouls begin to rush at us and Thunder and Lightning start shooting. I dash for my armor and start to get in. “My name is Doctor Hearty, and you might be thinking, ‘Doc Hearty, how did you know we were here?’ and that is a good question!” The buck continues.

“Sensors, my dear visitors, sensors rigged to the doors and every other entrance to my tower!” Hearty explains. “My subjects seem a bit hungry, but if you surrender now, I’ll stop them from devouring you! Not only will it save you from a gruesome death, but I will be able to run tests on living subjects!” he proclaims.

My armor seals and I join Thunder and Lightning in dispatching the encroaching ghouls. Mixing in with our bullets is Raptor Blood’s red beam, blowing holes into the ghoul and dismembering them. “No, no, no! My precious subjects!” Hearty screams out. “How dare you! Fine, no holding back then, get them, kill them all!” He shouts.

The ghouls that until now seemed to be hesitating begin swarming towards us with vicious ferocity. My miniguns whirl to life and cut a small group down. “I’ll just run my tests on your dead, rotting flesh! Either way works for me! Die, die, die!” Hearty curses at us through the PA system.

After a minute or so, the lobby is empty of ghouls trying to attack us. “What!? You’re still standing? I might get to experiment on your living tissues after all!” The doctor laughs at us. We spread out and check the rest of this floor, but all the ghouls appear to be dead. “Here, here, let me welcome you up to the second floor!” he calls out, and I hear the sound of an elevator ding.

The three of us gather around it. “This seems like a complete trap,” Thunder mutters. I wholeheartedly agree with him, but…

“I didn’t see any other way up,” Lightning says, echoing my own thoughts. “The stairs are barricaded and it would take far too long to clear them, even with explosives. Not to mention, we should try not to do too much damage to the building,” he adds.

I nod. “So then, into the Doctor Hearty’s elevator, I guess…” I mutter, stepping inside. The brothers file in behind me. I stand near the front of the doors, my armor being the strongest.

“Excellent! Excellent!” Hearty proclaims as the elevator doors shut and it begins to rise. “Now, try your hooves at floor two! Do me a favor and die fast, I have tests to run!” He says, and the doors begin to open. I spin up my miniguns, but as the doors fully open, no ghouls are on the other side.

I stop my guns and hesitantly walk out into the second floor. The hall I walk into is empty of ghouls. Before we leave the elevator, we try to go further up, but it seems to be locked out. We begin walking down the hall at random. Shortly, we emerge into a large, open area. A lounge, of some sort it looks like.

It is dusty, but well preserved furniture is placed around the room and on the walls hang a few paintings, most of which aren’t too badly damaged. One side of the lounge has large ceiling to floor windows. Still no ghouls. We reach the center of the room and look around. “Now my minions! Kill them, kill them all!” Hearty’s voice yells out.

Suddenly, I hear the beating of hooves from all around us. After a moment, I see ghouls approaching from the various halls branching off from the lounge. The three of us waste no time as we begin to put them down. The number of ghouls appears to be greater than those on the first floor, and they seem more organized.

It is almost as though Hearty is somehow controlling them, having them focus on us. My miniguns make short work of a group charging down a narrow hallway, and Thunder cover another hall equally well. Lightning is taking the remaining hall we came from, but I can tell he is getting overwhelmed.

With more ghouls pouring from the halls, Thunder and I are unable to help. A few ghouls make it into the room and near Lightning, but before they can get too close, one of the windows shatters and two of the ghouls drop immediately. Seems like Arrow and Cygnus can see us now. I really doubt those stuck up ponies are going to like the fact we broke a window, but that’s an acceptable loss.

Ghouls continue to come at us for a few minutes, but they eventually stop completely. Hearty let’s out an irritated growl. “You bastards! How dare you kill my minions! Just die already! Do you have any idea how long it took to get this many minions?!” He shouts. “Get back in the elevator, the next floor will finish you off!” He commands.

We ignore him and search the second floor for anymore ghouls or another way up. When we discover the stairs once again blocked, we reluctantly return to the elevator and ascend to the next floor. We progress up the tower in a similar fashion. The number of ghouls increasing at each floor along with their ferocity. All the while, Hearty talks over the PA system.

Third Floor: “The stray scavenger would wonder in every so often, and I would experiment on them. Years and years passed as I continued my tests!” Hearty explains. “Soon, mercenaries began to show up trying to kill me and my minions,” he adds. For whatever reason, Hearty was rather chatty. But we mostly ignore him and kill the ghouls. “Blast! Curse you lot, the next floor will get you!” He calls out as we proceed to the fourth floor.

Fourth Floor: “Most mercenaries found themselves in over their heads, and my ghouls managed to kill them without too much damage to themselves. As a result, my minions have grown in number exponentially!” Hearty yells in triumph as we kill the last ghoul on the floor. “Ack, again!?” He curses as we enter the elevator once again.

Fifth Floor: “As time went by, my tests yielded results, but not what I wanted. The first of my ghouls grew more powerful! Thus the mercenaries and scavengers began to shy away from my tower,” Hearty says with a hint of sadness in his voice. His voice quickly turns to anger as we clear the fifth floor and use the elevator to go up to the sixth.

Sixth Floor: “With new flesh to experiment on dwindling, I sent my ghouls out to abduct ponies for my tests! And so I spent years experimenting while my ghouls would bring me new subjects,” The doctor says with a crazed laugh, which cuts off abruptly as his minions on the sixth floor stop moving.

For the next few floors, Hearty is rather quiet, only ordering us to the elevator when we finish killing the ghouls on the current floor. Undoubtedly, he is getting nervous with us encroaching on his position. We file into the elevator to proceed to the next floor.

“Well, this is going smoothly,” Lightning mutters as the doors close. “Though, with each of us covered in armor, it is hardly fair,” He adds.

“I guess none of the mercs before were Steel Rangers,” Thunder chuckles. “What can ghouls really do against us? Beat themselves to a pulp on our armor?”

I look us over. A few dents here and there on our armor from when the ghouls got a bit too close, but nothing major. We are covered in quite a bit of blood, ichor, and bits of flesh. “Cleaning our armor is going to be a pain,” I mutter, thinking about all the small parts of my armor that I’ll have to painstakingly look over.

The elevator stops and lets out a ‘ding’ as the doors open. “Alright, let’s get this one done,” I say as I take a step out of the elevator. Like the rest of the floors, nothing. Hearty will probably wait for us to fall into his ‘trap’ before we see any ghouls.

We wonder around and eventually Hearty springs his trap on us. Like the other floors, the ghouls swarm at us. CORA and I dispatch any that come our way, but I hear Thunder mutter, “What the fuck?” I turn to see what he’s looking at while CORA keeps the ghouls coming towards us.

A short distance from Thunder is a ghoul like the others, but emitting a slightly glowing aura. It has numerous bullet holes in it already and Thunder focuses fire on it. The ghoul barely reacts and continues charging towards him. It lunges at him as I spin up my miniguns. Thunder dodges to the left and the ghoul lands on the ground just beside him.

It seems dazed for a second, but quickly gets back up as my guns start hitting it with lead. The ghoul gets closer to Thunder, and I stop my guns to avoid hitting him, but the ghoul grabs onto Thunder despite his minigun hitting it point blank in the abdomen. Thunder headbutts the ghoul and punches it with his hooves, but it clings onto him tightly.

After about a minute, the ghoul’s body rips in two and the rear half falls to the ground limply. Just seeing it with the entrails hanging from the front half is enough to make me gag. “Not in the armor Ratchet!” CORA yells at me. I fight down my urge to vomit as the ghoul hangs around Thunder’s neck trying to bite his armor.

“Damn it, get...off...of...me,” Thunder yells at it, punctuating each word with a punch to its head. After a second, Lightning walks over with his knife and stabs the ghoul in the head. The ghoul lurches a bit and attempts to bite Thunder weakly a few more times before it slides to the floor with a thump.

Thunder stomps on its skull. “That one just refused to die,” He says, breathing heavily. I look around us, and it seems that all of the ghouls are dead.

“Ahahahaha!” Hearty laughs. “How did you like fighting a Reaver? It is one of the more ferocious and durable ghouls. Enough radiation, and some unknown factors, and ghouls get a whole lot more powerful!” He declares, laughing some more. “Quickly now, into the elevator, let me turn the tables on you!” He shouts.

As usual, we ignore him and search the rest of the floor. Finding it empty, and the stairs blocked, we reluctantly get into the elevator once more. We quickly clear two more floors, encountering even more Reavers. It also seems like Hearty has realized we have snipers outside, as the last few floors we’ve been ambushed in rooms without windows.

“I must congratulate you,” Hearty says as the doors open to the next floor. “You’re the only ones who have reached this far. Since I blocked up the stairs, anyway. But this floor will spell your death! No escape from this nightmare you foals!” His laughing punctuates his point.

“Is it just me, or does it seem like he is getting cocky?” Lightning asks.

“Oh no, he definitely is,” I agree. “Ever since those ‘Reavers’ of his. Are there Reavers elsewhere in the wasteland?” I ask them.

“First time I’ve seen one,” Thunder answers. “But, we have had reports of some ferals being stronger than others. Just never really a name for them,” he explains.

“I see. I really hope new kinds of ghouls doesn’t become a thing, those Reavers are difficult enough to deal with. What’s next? Ferals that can use guns, or breath fire?” I mutter.

Lightning chuckles. “I’m pretty sure they can’t use guns anymore. Feral unicorns don’t seem to have control over their magic, and the others sometimes lack jaws and the like to work them,” he says.

“Good point, I guess,” I agree as we continue walking. We pass by a locked door that seems to lead into a hall with stairs at the end of it. I can see though the glass that it seems to lead to the upper and lower floors. There also appears to be windows on one side of it, and I think the others are on that side. I’ve gotten sort of turned around since entering the tower.

“Hey,” I say as I stop. “I don’t think he blocked these stairs, maybe we can get up from here, without having to deal with his elevator business. If we can sneak around and take him out, the ghouls might lose their organization,” I suggest.

Lightning inspects the door. “We might as well try,” he agrees. “But the door looks pretty sturdy and the lock is pretty complex. Unless you can pick it, we won’t be able to get through without blowing the door, and I doubt our clients would like that,” he tells me.

“Yea, let me try the lock,” I say as I fish out a bobby pin and begin to work my magic. “Cover me, this might take a bit.” We are standing in a hall, so there are only two directions the ghouls can come from, if they do at all. I begin working on the lock.

“Hey!” Hearty suddenly calls out. “Stop that! That is against the rules, don’t open that door!” He yells. He sounds panicked, which must mean that the stairs really aren’t blocked. I chuckle a bit. Did he only block the stairs up so far, expecting no one to get this far up?

“I mean it! Uh, er...Minions, get them!” He yells. In moments, ghouls begin swarming down the halls towards us. Thunder and Lightning start shooting and CORA helps out with Raptor Blood when any of the ghouls get too close.

“Anytime you’re ready, Ratchet,” Thunder calls back at me. “You know, this would be a whole lot easier if you let me use my rockets,” he adds.

“Don’t even think about it,” Lightning cuts in. “That would make an even bigger mess of the place,” he explains.

“Almost...almost…” *snap* “Whoops,” I mutter as I float out another bobby pin and get back to work. I’ve narrowed things down a bit, but I’m having difficulty getting it just right in the lock. I adjust the bobby pin and twist the lock with my magic and…*snap* “Oh come one!” I yell as I pull out another pin.

“Third time’s the charm,” I mutter as I carefully turn the pin and then slowly twist the lock. Nope, not there...I release the lock and move the pin a smidge to the left. “How about…” *click* “Ah ha!” I exclaim as the lock opens. I put the bobby pin away as I open the door.

“It’s open, let’s go!” I tell the others as I head inside the hall and trot over to the stairs. Lightning is the first to follow, and then Thunder. The hall is so narrow, Lightning can barely shoot around the mass of Thunder’s armor. The brothers slowly back into the hall and to the stairs as I check to make sure they are unblocked.

“Looks like the Doc didn’t barricade up any further,” I tell them. “But the stairs going down are blocked up,” I add. I look back from the stairs at the ghouls that are continuing to pool into the hallway. Thunder’s minigun cuts them down only for more to enter into the room.

“You two keep going,” Thunder tells us. “This hallway is narrow enough, I can keep them from getting past. If we all go up, they will just start coming up behind us,” he explains.

“He’s got a point,” Lightning adds. “The number of ghouls and their ferocity is increasing. Our armor is keeping us safe for now, but if we start letting them come up behind us, we might get overwhelmed.”

I think about it for a moment. They do have valid points. “Alright, hold them back here Thunder. Hearty might also try to send some down in the elevator to come up behind us. Lightning and I will clear out the rest on the upper floors. I don’t think we have far to go,” I tell him.

Lightning and I start up the stairs, but I pause and call back down, “You can use grenades if you have to, but no rockets!” I hear him laugh as we reach the next floor and open the door.

We are immediately set upon by ghouls and shoot our way though the doorway. After killing six, nothing else is moving. The two of us start exploring the floor, being extra careful since it is now just the two of us. We find a few more ghouls, but none are Reavers so things go suspiciously smooth.

As we walk back towards the stairs, I ask CORA a question. “CORA, we’re near the top now, right? That crazy doctor has to be in some sort of security closet where he can see cameras and what not. You recall anything about Tenpony’s construction that would tell us what floor he’s on?” I ask.

“It would make sense, but I’m not sure where he would be exactly. I think Tenpony has a few security rooms, but the ones we’ve passed were empty. The top floor is the broadcasting station, so he’ll be somewhere on the next three floors,” CORA suggests.

I blink. “We are that high already? Only three floors left, excluding the roof and radio floor?” I ask. CORA mutters confirmation. “Alright then, let’s finish this up!” I say with enthusiasm as we enter the staircase again.

I can still hear Thunder’s minigun shooting ghouls. Were there that many ghouls on that floor, or did Hearty send more down after us? “Thunder!” I call down. “The next floor is clear, we’re moving up!”

“Sounds good, I got this covered!” Thunder’s voice returns from below. I nod and we continue up to the next floor. The door to this floor isn’t even locked. Seems like Hearty never expected anyone to make it up this far. We exit the stairway and begin searching the floor.

The lighting on this floor seems to have gone pretty bad. Dark spots are all over and only a bit of light illuminates the halls. Fading light comes through the windows we pass, it seems like the sun is beginning to set. If we waste anymore time, Arrow and Cygnus won’t be able to provide us with support. Not to mention my suit’s power is starting to get really low.

We check room after empty room, but find nothing on this floor so far. When we reach the elevator lobby however, the room is pitch black aside from a green glow. For whatever reason, no windows are in this lobby. Unable to find the source of the glow from the hall, we enter the lobby cautiously, our lights cutting into the darkness.

Nearing the center of the room, I hear a faint, but frequent clicking. “Is that...the geiger?” I mutter, and look at my HUD’s radiation monitor. Something is causing the needle to rise almost halfway up the meter! I look around for the source and my eyes fall on a glowing green lump along the wall.

Despite my light on it, I can’t make out what exactly it is. “GET THEM NOW!” Hearty yells suddenly. Instantly, I hear snarls and guttural sounds all around us. I quickly look around and see ghouls surrounding us. Were they hiding behind the furniture and along the walls? Lightning and I flank each other as the ghouls slowly circle around us, as though they are waiting for something.

I can see a few Reavers in the group of ghouls as well. “Open fire!” I yell as I spin up my miniguns. I hear CORA and Lightning begin shooting, and a moment later lead starts flying from my guns. The ghouls instantly charge at us, the only thing illuminating them is our headlamps and the flash of our guns.

The normal ferals go down easy, but as usual the Reavers are the issue. Raptor Blood punches holes through them, and my minigun tears off their limbs, but they keep coming. “Ratchet, we are running low on ammo,” CORA informs me. “Spark batteries are also nearly exhausted, using the lamp isn’t helping,” she adds.

Just as the words fade away, the lump of glowing radioactivity suddenly moves. It stands up and I am able to see the outline of a pony, a glowing, ghoulish pony. It stares directly at me, takes a few steps towards me, and then lets out a loud, horrible scream. At the same time, radiation seems to explode from it, causing my needle to spike even further.

“What the hell is that?” Lightning says in surprise from behind me. I’m about to reply, but stop as I notice the dead ghouls start to move again. Most of them are lacking limbs, but they start to pull themselves across the floor towards me.

I let out a scream as I open fire at the newly revived ghouls, tearing their bodies to shreds before focusing my guns on the glowing ghoul. It takes my hits like a Reaver would, and I even see it’s body slowly healing the bullet holes. CORA stops shooting the other ghouls, and focuses on my target.

One of her shots takes the ghoul’s right legs off mid charge, causing it to fall and skid to a stop directly in front of me. I keep both my guns on it as I get closer to get better accuracy and keep pouring more lead into the monster. After a few moments, it’s head bursts into a spray of blood and brain and it seems to go still. I keep shooting for a few seconds to make absolutely sure.

While I’m distracted shooting the hopefully dead ghoul, CORA shoots a few of the other ghouls around me. When I finally stop firing, everything is silent except for my heavy breathing. I slowly look around the room. Dead ghouls are everywhere, torn limb from limb with blood and gore sprayed all over the walls.

Lightning is covered in even more gore, and I assume the same of myself. “What the FUCK, was that?” Lightning yells. “Did that thing somehow revive the ghouls we already killed?” He asks.

“I...I think so,” I mutter in shock. “It was even healing itself as I was shooting it…” The light around the glowing ghoul dies down and along with it so does the chirping of my geiger counter. “Radiation…?” I question.

“I hear ghouls can heal with radiation,” Lightning says. “Did that ghoul absorb so much radiation that it could heal others around it though? Even bringing them back from the read?” He stammers.

“I have no idea, I just really, never, want to fight another one of those,” I say with a sigh as we step over the bodies and start to check the rest of the floor.

Our search turns up nothing, so we head back into the staircase. I don’t hear gunfire from below. Did Thunder finish them all up? “Thunder, are things alright down there?” I call down as we start to walk up the stairs to the next floor.

After a moment, he calls back with, “Just fine! They’ve stopped coming in a bit ago. I’ll keep guard here, you two keep going!”

“Alright, be careful!” I reply as we reach the next floor’s doorway. “Let’s do this, just three more floors and then the roof and we’ll be done,” I tell Lightning as we open the door. Two floors, the broadcasting station, and the roof. We got this. I’ll have to be extra careful around the broadcasting equipment.

“Let’s,” Lightning agrees as we walk into the hall. It looks pretty identical to the last few floors and we begin going door to door like usual and checking all the rooms. Empty, one after the other. “Seems that doctor has run out of things to say,” Lightning mutters.

“Yea. Either that, or he left and ran away,” I say with a grin. I let out a forced chuckle as I realize Lightning can’t see the grin through my helmet. Still not used to wearing a helmet. We finish up one room and step back into the hallway. Immediately, hoofsteps approach us from both sides of the hallway. “Oh,” I mutter.

Ghouls have us surrounded, trapped in the center of this hallway. “Ambushing us in a narrow hall? He realizes that our guns will tear through them since they can only come at us from two directions, right?” Lightning says as he begins shooting at the ghouls the way we came from.

“Looks like he is getting desperate,” I say as I spin up my miniguns and start cutting down the ghouls in front of us. “You know, this carpet is going to be really gross once we’re done,” I yell over the roar of my guns.

“No kidding,” Lightning agrees. “Maybe they’ll pull it all up and just use whatever is under it?” He suggests as he takes out another ghoul. “Hey, Ratchet, a thought occurs to me. Why are these ghouls coming up from behind us?” he asks. I can tell there is a hint of worry in his voice.

“Maybe Hearty sent them down a floor using the elevator and they came up the stairs behind us without Thunder knowing?” I suggest. “If Thunder saw them, he’d have put a lot more holes in them than these have.”

“Good point,” Lightning agrees. “I hope they aren’t attacking him from two sides then,” he mutters.

“He’ll be fine, Arrow and Cygnus are cover--Reavers!” I yell as two appear in front of me. I push myself to the left side of the hall as CORA swings Raptor Blood at the nearest one. Lightning spins around and the three of us quickly dispatch the two Reavers before he spins around again.

“They seem a lot more desperate this time,” I say, as empty 5mm casings rain down from my guns.

“Perhaps Hearty is on this floor then,” CORA suggests, taking a ghoul’s head clean off with her gun. “He might be pooling his resources in a last ditch effort to take us out,” she explains.

“Well then,” I begin, as I cause a ghoul to lose its right legs, “let’s go say hello.” I begin walking down the hall and Lightning walks backwards after me. “Careful of the bodies,” I tell him as I carefully step over them.

We make our way down the hall, pausing to occasionally open doors we pass to check if Hearty is lurking inside one of the rooms. The empty rooms continue as the ghouls keep coming at us from both sides and we reach the elevator.

The elevator opens and a glowing ghoul steps out of it. It looks at us curiously as I turn to shoot at it. “Ratchet!” CORA yells just before the glowing ghoul screams, sending a shockwave of radiation towards us and the ghouls. The already dead ghouls begin to rise once again, and those we’ve hit begin to heal their wounds.

“Ratchet, your…” CORA tries to say again, but the sound of my miniguns firing drown out the sound of her voice. After a few seconds her face appears on my screen along with a flashing phrase, ‘LOW AMMO’. I read the text and glance down at my ammo readings right as both of them reach zero and my miniguns start spinning without shooting anything out.

“Fuck,” I mutter, taking a step back from the glowing ghoul as CORA shoots at it. This is bad, I don’t think I can get a gun out through the armor, like I could a bobby pin. With the ghouls getting close to us and only CORA and Lightning shooting, I start to panic.

I clench my eyes shut and reach out with my magic. I grab a ghoul missing its lower body that is crawling towards me and throw it at the glowing one. The glowing ghoul is knocked over and the other one can’t seem to get off of it. The glowing one bites at the other, trying to pull it off.

I look at the room of ghouls and find a severed leg. Picking it up in my magic, I start smacking the closest ghouls and beating them back while the CORA and Lightning finish them off. Before the glowing one can recover, we manage to dispose of most of them.

“Quick! Kill it, kill it now!” I yell as I start hitting the glowing ghoul on the head with the severed leg. The other two shoot it and eventually it stops moving. I keep hitting the ghoul with the leg for a bit longer, just to make absolutely sure it won’t be getting up again.

“I HATE THESE THINGS!” I yell as I drop the leg from my magic. The rest of the ghouls are dead and no more seem to be coming for us. I clear my throat. “Ok, now them. Let’s find Hearty,” I say as I continue down the hall.

“Uh, Ratchet, I hate to be the bearer of bad news but…” CORA starts to say, but is interrupted when a message flashes up on my screen, ‘insufficient power, ejecting pilot’. A moment later, the armor stops moving mid-step and opens up.

“Oh come on!” I shout as I get out of the armor. “Seriously, we are so close to being done! Damn glowing ghouls kept us too long…” I growl angrily. I grind my teeth. “Fuck it, let’s just go,” I sigh.

“I’ll take point now,” Lightning says, stepping up in front of me. “If anymore ghouls come, you’ll be vulnerable now, so just stay behind me if you can.” I grumble, but agree and let him take the lead. We search a few more rooms before we reach the end of the hall and the last door.

The door seems sturdier than the others, and is made of metal instead of wood. I try the handle, but it is locked. I float out a bobby pin and knock on the door. “Hearty! Just open the door and give it up!” I call through the door. “Make this easier on yourself!”

No response, so I begin picking the lock. After a few moments, the lock lets out a satisfying *click*. “Alright Hearty, we’re coming in!” I say and begin to open the door, but Lightning stops me.

“Let me go first,” He mutters and pushes me aside. “Armor, and all, you know,” he explains. I nod and he opens the door. As soon as the door is fully open, I hear the sound of a shotgun fire, followed by the buckshot hitting Lightning’s armor. “Bad idea,” Lightning says, and another shot is fired at him. “Come on in Ratchet, he’s out of ammo,” Lightning calls back.

I enter the room, it is little bigger than a usual closet, but contains a desk with a terminal on top of it, a microphone, and numerous monitors. The room itself has plain walls and a linoleum floor. Sitting with his back against the far wall, clenching a double barrel shotgun, is presumably Hearty.

“S-stay back!” Hearty orders us, waving the empty shotgun between us. “I’ll...i’ll summon more...yes, more minions! Stronger, more ferocious!” He yells, grinning sheepishly.

“You’re out of ammo, and if you had more ghouls, I think you’d have already summoned them here,” Lightning says, walking over to the ghoul, taking the shotgun in his mouth, and throwing it across the room.

“My friend has a point,” I tell him. “This is checkmate.” Lightning looks back, probably wondering what I just said means. I roll my eyes, “We win,” I explain. He nods and turns back to look at Hearty. “So, you’re a ghoul too?” I ask him.

“Y-yes, of course! How else would I control and experiment on the others?” Hearty replies. “You fools, you ruined all of my research, decades of tests, ruined!” He yells. “What’s a few lives in comparison to my research!? You could have just left me in peace!” Hearty says with a snarl.

“No research is worth the lives of innocents,” I tell him. “No matter what you were doing.” He gives me a nasty look, then laughs.

“Even if it could reverse or prevent ghoulification?” He asks. “My research could have stopped it, perhaps. At the very least, it might have stopped us from going feral!” Hearty explains. “Mr. Tenpony is going to be quite upset with you lot,” He grins at us.

“Mr. Tenpony? So, someone else other than you is still alive?” I ask him. Mr. Tenpony, the owner of Tenpony Tower. He was still alive? If he was, he would have to be a ghoul.

“Of course! I’m the Tower’s resident doctor, it is my duty to serve Mr. Tenpony and he wants a cure to our ailment,” Hearty explains. “He will be quite cross with you, might even kill you himself because of the trouble you caused,” he laughs.

“If that army of ghouls didn’t get us, what makes you think he can do that?” Lightning asks. Doctor Hearty only laughs. “I’m pretty sure the doctor is losing it, Ratchet,” Lighting says, turning to me. “Shall we take him out and finish up?” he asks.

“No, we shouldn’t kill him, he isn’t a feral. We can have Friendship City punish him or something, we aren’t here to kill unarmed ponies. Do you have any rope? We can tie him up for now,” I suggest.

“Of course,” Lightning says and brings out some rope from his bags. “Now then, stay still Hearty, or I’ll have to hurt you,” he says as Hearty backs further into the wall. After some grunting and swearing, Lightning gets Hearty tied up to the desk in the room. While he does that, I take a look at the terminal, and return manual control to the elevator.

“Alright, let’s make sure the rest of the tower is clear, and then we can leave,” I say. We exit the security closet and make our way back to my armor. “And get my armor before we leave, of course,” I add before continuing on.

“Sorry we couldn’t get the power working better, Ratchet,” CORA says, popping up with a sad face in my vision.

“No worries, I was working on it too, after all. We’ll have time to tinker with it once we get back,” I tell her. We reach the stairs and walk up to the next floor. Once I open the door, I can immediately tell this floor is different than the others.

“Wow, this floor is pretty swanky, don’t you think?” I ask. The other floors weren’t unimpressive or anything, but this floor is a lot more posh and high-class looking. Fancy red carpeting, numerous portraits, occasional busts or vases on marble pillars. Even the doors appear to be elegantly carved wood.

“Indeed, it is like stepping into a completely different world,” Lightning agrees. We check the first few rooms, much bigger than the rooms on the lower floors. They also look mostly untouched due to the dust, almost like no ghouls have wondered into them.

The next room we come to, I faintly hear something on the other side. I signal to Lightning, and he carefully opens the door and enters through first. “It’s fine,” he calls back. “You might want to see this,” he says as I enter the room.

It is another apartment like the rest of the rooms, but multiple times more extravagant, even compared to the other rooms on this floor. On the bed on the far side of the room, is a fancy dressed ghoul, chained to the bed with a collar. It stares at us, growling and making sickening noises.

“That looks like…” I walk closer to the bed. His skin is rotting, a lot of his hair is missing, and he lacks any form of manners, but… “Mr. Tenpony?” I ask. The ghoul tilts its head at me, before lurching forward and snapping his jaws. The only thing keeping it from biting into me, is the chain keeping it on the bed.

“Someone important?” Lightning asks, as he approaches the bed.

I nod. “He was rich, back before the war. He is the one who owns and built this tower. In the past, he was an influential member of the Manehatten social elite, and held sway over various decisions and businesses. But…” I trail off.

Lightning looks at me for a moment, and finishes what I am thinking. “Why wasn’t he in a Stable? If he was that influential, shouldn’t he have been high on the list of admittance to one?” he asks.

“That’s what I thought. But, given the state of the tower, I don’t think the Megaspells even damaged it. Time did this, not any sort of attack,” I say, scratching my head in thought. “But how? As far as I knew, it was just a normal high-rise building. Could he have done something to it that saved it?”

“Hmm. Well, never mind how the building still stands, we should probably, you know,” Lightning says, nodding his head at the ghoul of Mr. Tenpony.

I blink a few times, but then nod. “Yea, yea. Of course,” I say and pull out Forgiveness. “Sorry, Mr. Tenpony,” I mutter and pull the trigger. Mr. Tenpony’s head jerks and he falls limp on the bed. I put Forgiveness away and turn back to the door.

“Let’s finish this floor, then make sure the broadcasting equipment is good,” I tell Lightning and we exit the room. The rest of the floor is uneventful. It seems that Hearty kept the other ghouls off this floor in respect for Mr. Tenpony.

I wonder if Hearty knows Tenpony is feral, or if he is so far gone himself he can’t tell the difference anymore. Either way, Hearty is insane, using innocents to conduct research. I understand his want to help others, but that isn’t the way to go about it.

Lightning and I reach the final floor before the roof, the broadcasting floor. We enter into a large lobby with a huge fountain in the middle of it. The water has stagnated, the fountain looks magnificent. This floor looks just as untouched as the previous, and after searching through the rooms, my assumption is confirmed.

“So, that’s it then,” Lightning mutters as we look over the large switch board in the recording room. “All this looks is good condition, it should function properly,” he tells me.

“Good, let’s just make sure nothing is on the roof, and then we can head back down,” I tell him. After making our way to the roof, we discover the roof is empty of hostiles. We turn around begin to head back down to my armor.

“I should tell Arrow and Cygnus we’re done so they can meet up with us at the entrance,” I mutter as we walk. “CORA, tune the radio, would you?” I ask her. She nods and switches the radio over. “Hey Arrow, Cygnus, you two there? The tower is clear, you can meet us down at the entrance,” I say over the radio.

Static greets me in return, and I can faintly hear something within it. Breathing, but heavy and jittery. “Arrow, Cygnus, are you two alright?” I ask again, worry welling up within me. I wait a few moments, and say again, “You two there?”

A second later, Cygnus’s voice comes over the radio. “We’re fine, Ratchet. We’ll meet you at the entrance,” He says in an odd voice. Nothing else comes over the radio. I shrug and we continue to my armor.

Lightning picks up my armor, and we make our way down to the floor Thunder is on. We hit the landing and I announce, “All clear Thunder, let’s…” but I trail off when I don’t see him in the hall. Dozens of ghouls litter the hall, including a few reavers and a glowing one.

Countless bullet casings are on the ground and I can see a number of holes in the wall across from the windows where Cygnus and Arrow were shooting into the hall. I can tell a few explosives have gone off in the hall and the attached hallway to this floor.

“Where do you think he went?” I ask Lightning. But he doesn’t respond, instead he stares at a large hole in the windows. He slowly walks over to it, and after a moment's hesitation, he peeks over the edge down to the ground.

“No...no, no, no, no, no,” Lightning mutters as he stumbles away from the window and falls against the wall. He sits with his front hooves clenching his head.

“Lightning, what’s the matter?” I ask him, as I look out the window. I see a few ghouls laying dead on the ground, and the setting sun is reflecting off of another object. I squint at the object, “What is…” My blood runs cold. “No way…” I mutter.

I take a step back from the window. The image flashing into my mind again and again. Steel Ranger armor, crumpled and broken. “It can’t be…Maybe he, got out and used it as a decoy?” I mutter.

“No, I saw the blood coming from his armor, he is inside,” Lightning says as he stares blankly. “My brother...Thunder...He’s gone…” He stammers. “I’m going to...I need a bit, Ratchet. Just let me...think...for a moment,” he tells me.

I nod. “I’ll be in the elevator, take your time,” I tell him and leave the hallway. I walk to the elevator deep in thought. What happened? Did the ghouls rush him and force him out the window? Could I have prevented this? I sit in the elevator, and cry, as undoubtedly Lightning is as well.

After a few moments, I get angry. Hearty did this, he is the one who sicked his ghouls on us. It is his fault, his, that Thunder is dead. Forget having Friendship City punish him, we should do it. I glance at the elevator buttons and press the one for Hearty’s floor. The doors close and the elevator rises.

The elevator stops and the doors open. Immediately I shoot out of the elevator at a brisk trot towards the security closet. My anger and determination rising with every step. I kick open the security door and draw Forgiveness from its holster. Hearty’s eyes fly open and stare at me as I advance towards him, pressing the barrel against his head.

Hearty begins to make noises through the gag we put in his mouth and attempts to move away from me to no avail. I stare into his eyes with hatred as I start to pull the trigger. But I stop shy of fully depressing the trigger. Forgiveness trembles in my magic as I feel my eye twitching.

“No,” I mutter, pulling the gun away from his head. “You don’t deserve it,” I tell him with a sigh. I put Forgiveness back in its holster. Hearty seems to relax a bit and his eyes go back to normal. I dig through my bags and pull out my shotgun.

I put the shotgun to his head. “You don’t deserve Forgiveness,” I say as I glare at him expressionlessly. His eyes start to go wide again, but with a pull of the shotgun’s trigger, any expression he makes is wiped away forever. The wall is painted with his blood and brain, and I feel something wet hit my face.

I place the shotgun back in my bags as I wipe my face with a hoof. “Forgiveness is a courtesy,” I say to his corpse. “Something that you don’t get to have.” I turn and head back towards the elevator, closing the door behind me.

===~+~===

Level Up!
-Level 9

+15 Big Guns
+10 Lockpicking
+3 Repair

Chapter 18 - Deeper Despair

“They fell like dominos, one after the other.”

===~+~===

When Lightning and I finally make our way down to the ground floor, Cygnus and Arrow are near Thunder’s body. I can tell that Arrow is just as torn up about Thunder’s death as Lightning is. No doubt, Arrow was crying while waiting for us. “All clear then?” Cygnus asks as we approach them.

“Yea,” I nod and glance at Thunder’s body. The armor is bent and twisted in horrible ways. I’m afraid to imagine what his body looks like inside it. Lightning walks over to him, and sits down beside him after setting my armor aside.

Arrow approaches him after a moment. “I...I’m sorry…” She mutters. “It’s my...fault. I was suppose to...cover him…” I can tell by her voice she is really shaken up by his death. Lightning shakes his head without looking at her.

“It isn’t your fault, Arrow,” Lightning tells her. “I saw that glowing ghoul in the hall, I saw the amount of bodies. There was no way you two could have done anything more. He should have retreated up after us. Thunder was always prideful when it came to holding the line.”

I step up to them. “If it is any consolation, I killed Hearty,” I tell him. Lightning turns abruptly to look at me, I’m sure his face is showing surprise. “Turned his head into mincemeat,” I explain. “He caused Thunder’s death, it was our duty to judge him for it.”

Lightning nods and turns back to his brother’s body. “Thank you,” he mutters. After a few moments, he speaks up again. “Arrow, can you carry Ratchet’s armor? I...I should carry Thunder,” Lightning asks. Arrow nods as Lightning puts Thunder’s body on his back.

Once Lightning and Arrow get situation under their burdens, Lightning turns to me again. “What now, boss?” He asks sadly. “We...I want to bring his body back to the base as soon as possible.” I think for a moment, but the answer is obvious.

“We should split up,” I state. “You and Arrow head back to the base, Cygnus and I will let those ponies know the job is done and meet up with you. CORA can use a spritebot to keep an eye on you two. Cygnus and I should be able to catch up with you two before you get home,” I explain.

Arrow and Lightning nod, but Cygnus just looks on in concern. “Arrow,” I start, “if you two run into trouble, drop my armor if you need to. CORA can track its location if necessary.” I think for a moment and add, “I should also probably stop by the DJ’s and let him know about the radio station in the tower.” They both nod and we go our separate ways.

After Arrow and Lightning are out of sight, I finally ask Cygnus, “What?” The question seems to catch him off guard. “You were looking at us worriedly earlier, and you’ve been awfully quiet this whole time,” I say.

Cygnus looks deep in thought for a moment before saying, “Are you sure it is wise to send them off on their own? I know they are Rangers, but it could still be dangerous,” he tells me.

“They need some time alone. Those three were comrades even before I came into the picture, so I’m sure they have some things they want to discuss in private. If they get into a fight, they’ll win. Not because they are Rangers, but because they are angry. They won’t fall before they get Thunder home, of that, I am certain,” I tell him.

“If you say so,” Cygnus mutters. “I don’t know how I should feel at the moment,” he says. “Thunder was a decent buck, but I didn’t really get to know him well enough to feel sadness over his death. I suppose all I can do is honor him by remembering him,” he explains.

I nod as we walk. “I kind of understand. I’ve only been with them for about a month, which is why I let the others be alone. Thunder was a good friend, and an important member of the team. Which is why…” I trail off.

“You killed Hearty?” Cygnus asks. I nod. “Did killing him make you feel better?” He asks.

“I’m...not sure. My anger subsided, but I still feel...empty,” I explain. “I keep thinking about kill him too. Was it the right thing to do? Should I have let Lightning or Arrow decide, or at least asked them about it?”

“All valid questions,” Cygnus mutters. “But I think killing him was the right thing to do, I’m sure the others would agree. Perhaps you are upset with how you killed him?” Cygnus asks. “You did say you turned his head into mincemeat, and he was unarmed after all.”

I furrow my brow. “He deserved it, he was a monster,” I explain. “Conducting experiments on ponies, trying to get ghouls to kill us…” I trail off.

“He did deserve it,” Cygnus confirms. “But the method of his demise is what is wrong. He was unarmed, non-combative, and you just put him down. I’m not condemning you for it,” he explains. “I did the same to Static, after all. Killing her was liberating, justified, but killing her the way I did was wrong.”

I think about what he just told me and think about how I killed Hearty. He was bound and unable to defend himself, not even able to beg for his life. I just decided that he should die, no trial, no discussion. I even gave him a moment of hope, only to dash it in the blink of an eye. I was cruel, hateful, and no different than a murderer.

I’ve only been in the wasteland for little over a month, and I’ve killed so many ponies, but never any that weren’t trying to kill him, until now. Has the wasteland corrupted me? Made me so self righteous in my own thinking that I thought I could justify cold blooded murder?

I stop walking and fall to my haunches. “What...have I done?” I mutter, staring blankly at the ground. Cygnus stops and looks down at me.

“What you thought was right, Ratchet,” Cygnus states simply. “No one will fault you for what you did, especially anyone in the wasteland. You just need to remember what you’re feeling now, keep your head about you, and keep going. If you dwell on it, it will consume you, trust me,” he says, offering me a hoof.

I look up at him, the slight smile on his face. “Cygnus…” I mutter. I nod, and take his hoof. He pulls me to my hooves. “You’re right,” I agree. “I’ll remember, and try to keep my wits about me. I’m trying to help the wasteland recover, killing ponies who aren’t a threat anymore isn’t the way I will do that. But, Cygnus...I’ll need your help,” I tell him, returning his smile.

“And I will be there to help you,” Cygnus replies. “We’ll help each other,” he adds. “The wasteland might consume us if we are alone, but together I think we have enough sense about us that we can change things.” With our immediate mental issues taken care of, we continue on our way to Friendship City.

===~+~===

Cygnus and I cross the water on the barge and enter the city as the sun finally finishes setting. As we walk around the entrance, I wonder if those prissy ponies will be here this late. But soon my question is answered as I see the same three standing next to a wall. They seem to be talking to a rugged looking buck wearing decent leather armor.

As we approach, they notice us and the buck steps aside. “Ah, and so the mare in the labcoat returns!” The fancy buck declares. “Knot here just finished informing us of the completion of your job. Very good, very good,” he says with glee.

“Indeed, and it took them long enough too,” The mare, who I assume is his wife mutters, looking rather unpleased. “Tenpony isn’t that far from here, I bet they went and slacked off,” She says.

“I had to pick up some gear,” I tell her, trying to maintain a positive attitude and really hoping to finish things up here quick. She rolls her eyes.

“Now, now, darling, the fact of the matter is that the job is done and the tower is ours now,” the buck says, putting his hoof around her. “Now then, I do believe we agreed on two thousand caps?” he asks, addressing me.

“That was the plan,” I confirm. He looks over to Knot, who nods back at him.

“Well, Knot here informs us that in the process you shot out quite a few windows and made a complete mess disposing of those monsters,” The buck tells me. “You’ll understand if I can’t offer your the full amount, yes? After all, we must replace the windows, very hard to find, mind you, and hire workers to clean up the mess you made. We will give you half the agreed upon amount,” He says flatly.

I hear Cygnus let out a sigh and I can’t blame him. These ponies really piss me off. “Of course we made a mess, how else were we supposed to get rid of all those feral ghouls?” I ask them. “The windows, I can understand, but the mess is hardly our fault. Look, I’ll settle for 1,500, will that work?” I suggest.

The other mare rolls her eyes and mutters, “Typical uncivilized ponies, always wanting more than they should receive.” I narrow my eyes at her, and she flinches.

“That is hardly our problem, you could have led them all outside,” The buck tells me. “We will give you 1,100 caps, and honestly that is uncomfortable for me,” he says. My anger rises, I can’t help it.

“Uncomfortable? Paying a fair price makes you uncomfortable?” I ask, raising my voice. “One of us fucking died! Even the full amount can’t make up for that,” I growl at them. Knot steps up between us and them, glaring at me threateningly.

The buck coughs. “It is fine Knot, I understand. Look miss, we are sorry for your loss, and we will offer your 1,250 caps. You knew the risk that the job carried, just one death is fortunate,” he says with a smug expression.

I am about to lose it. “One thousand two hundred and fifty caps!?” I yell at him. “Thunder’s death isn’t…” Cygnus steps in front of me and cuts me off.

“We will take your offer and conclude our business,” Cygnus tells the buck, who pulls a small bag from a pocket and gives it to Knot. Knot then gives the bag to Cygnus. “Thank you, we’ll be leaving now,” Cygnus says and begins to walk away.

I stare at his back and then at the other ponies, narrow my eyes and mutter, “Don’t forget the other part of our deal, the DJ is moving in.” With that, I turn and catch up with Cygnus who is already halfway back to the barge.

“Why did you do that?” I ask him, my anger still bubbling.

Cygnus sighs. “You saw them, right? Not a speck of dirt on them, other than their bodyguard, Knot. Expensive looking clothing too, before the war. And the way they acted, as though they were nobility? Not to mention they never gave us their names,” He tells me.

“Yea, so what? Does that mean they can be cheap and rude?” I ask.

“It means they think they can be,” Cygnus says. “They don’t care about ponies like us, ‘commoners’, as they say. I doubt they would ever agree to a price you suggested, they wanted to have the last word because they think they are better than us. You could have been the only survivor, and they wouldn’t take pity on your, they’d still fight to keep as many caps as they could,” he explains.

“And we are going to give them control over a place like Tenpony?” I ask him, considering returning the caps and giving the tower to the DJ alone.

“We are, because if we go back on our word, we would be no better than them,” Cygnus says. “Like them or not, they might be best suited to running Tenpony. More than likely, those three were just a few of a collection of ponies like them, ponies with resources to restore and keep Tenpony working,” He yells me.

“But if they were that rude and indifferent to us, do you think they will help anyone, or just stay locked in the tower, safe from the world around them?” I ask him, trying to see his reasoning.

“They don’t seem that stupid, and their resources aren’t limitless. They will more than likely allow trade and new residents to live in the tower. It won’t necessarily be the best place ever for those who aren’t one of them, but it will be one less hostile place,” Cygnus tells me.

I let out a sigh. “I guess you are right,” I say with resignation. “We’ll have to see what happens as time goes on. Maybe I’ll have to go yell at them later on,” I chuckle. “Now then, let’s go tell the DJ the good news.”

===~+~===

The two of us make our way back through the ruins along the safe routes and reach the DJ without incident. We inform him of the good news, which he is pleasantly surprised by. He says he will send someone there to check the place out before he move over there himself. With that taken care of, Cygnus and I begin heading towards the lab.

After about half the night, we catch up with Arrow and Lightning, who given their burdens, aren’t walking as fast as usual. Once we are all together again, we rest for the rest of the night.

In the morning, we forge ahead. At around mid-afternoon, CORA gets my attention. “Ratchet, I’m picking up a radio signal, you should listen to it,” she says as she adjusts the radio. The DJ is in Tenpony already? That was fast. I wonder what he has to say now.

CORA gets the radio on the right frequency and it starts playing. “five seconds,” it says, before stopping. I’m about to ask her what it was, when it continues. “This is Elder Archimedes of the Stable 36 Steel Rangers. This message is for all Steel Ranger operatives within range. We are under attack. All Rangers within range are to return immediately. Message repeats in five seconds.”

I feel my blood run cold, my face going pale. “You all...heard that as well, right?” I ask the others. Arrow and Lightning have frozen on the stop, and Cygnus looks on in concern. “We need to go, Arrow, drop my armor. We can’t have you lugging it around if we get into a fight,” I tell her.

She nods and drops it. “Lightning, move as quickly as you can, Arrow, provide him with cover as we get closer. Cygnus and I will run up ahead and scout things out,” I say, and the others nod. I begin running towards the stable with Cygnus right on my hooves.

After a while, I see the farmhouse that the stable lies under. However, the farmhouse is burned to the ground and still smoldering. I scan the horizon, but don’t see any signs of life. “Let’s go, keep your eyes open,” I say as we move closer to the ruins. Within moments, we are standing right beside them.

The foundation looks solid, and the cellar entrance looks functional. I don’t think the basement collapsed. They must have made it extra reinforced. “Ok, looks like we can still get in,” I mutter. “Let’s wait for the others,” I tell Cygnus, who nods in agreement.

Roughly ten minutes later, Arrow and Lightning catch up with us. Lightning looks a bit out of breath. “We should be able to get in, Lightning, I think you should set Thunder’s body down before we enter. There is no telling how many enemies we are going to find,” I say. He nods, and carefully sets Thunder down beside the entrance.

After giving him a moment to catch his breath, I pull open the cellar doors with my magic. A wave of stench strikes us, a mix of iron and gunpowder. Carefully, we enter the cellar. At the bottom of the stairs, I stop dead.

Corpses are everywhere, at least a dozen. Many are raiders, but a few Rangers lay slain in the basement entrance. Blood is on every surface and spent casings litter the ground. In a few places on the walls ‘Discordia’ is been painted in blood. The door to the hallway has been blown off its hinges.

The others are equally caught off guard. “We need to get inside, now,” Lightning says, anxiety evident in his voice. I nod, and we carefully make our way across the bloodstained floor. It is hard to avoid stepping on anything as we reach the hallway.

More raiders are dead in the hallway, the turret at the corner clearly gave them some trouble, but the turret now lies smoking on the floor. We turn the corner and see the Stable entrance. The large gear-shaped door has fallen back into the Stable, explosives were clearly used to open it.

In the entranceway, a few more raiders lay dead with another Rangers among them. Judging by the scorch marks and the state of the bodies, both sides are using explosives and laser weaponry. “These raiders are way too well armed,” I mutter. “Is this what Grimoire has been up to?”

“They appear to have poor armor and training though,” Cygnus says. “Numbers are the only thing giving them an advantage here,” he adds. We continue deeper into the stable, finding more bodies as we go. The raider corpses outnumber the Rangers.

“This is bad,” Lightning says. “We haven’t seen anyone or heard any sign of fighting. They couldn’t have...killed everyone, could they?” He asks.

“No, we just haven’t found them yet,” I tell him, more trying to reassure myself than him. “We just need to keep looking.” The armory is locked up tight, which seems like a good sign. If the Rangers were all dead, the raiders would have tried to get into it. We have already searched most of the Stable. All that remains is the command center, the residential area, and medical.

We quickly move through the halls and approach the command center. Dead rangers are outside the door along with a number of raiders. “This is bad,” Lightning mutters. “If they’ve made it this far…” He trails off as we enter the room.

The monitors and terminals in the room have all been destroyed, the largest monitor has the word ‘Discordia’ scrawled across it in blood. The command center’s staff looks to have fought valiantly to defend the room, but since many were scribes they were easily overwhelmed. We approach the Elder’s desk.

Peeking over the top, I see Elder Archimedes’s body, full of bullet holes. A final shot placed in his forehead. Beside him lies a 10mm pistol and countless spent rounds. He went out fighting, doing all that he could. He even recorded that message and broadcasted it. As I look down at the Elder, I hear Lightning walking off towards the hall.

I turn and look after him. He is walking at a brisk pace. “Wait, Lightning. Don’t go off on your own!” I call after him. Arrow looks between me and him before trotting after Lightning. “Damn it, come on you two, we can’t get separated, what if there are still more raiders lurking around?” I ask as I begin to follow after them.

Cygnus follows after me. “I don’t think they are going to listen to reason, Ratchet,” He says. “No doubt, they are seeking vengence. This will be bad if we get into a fight,” Cygnus tells me.

“I know, I know…” I bite my lip. “We’ll just have to let them take the lead and cover them as best we can,” I say. Cygnus lets out a sigh, but we keep following after the others. As we go through the residences, we find nothing but death and destruction. ‘Discordia’ is painted in various places. After a few minutes, we reach the doors to medical. The last place we haven’t checked.

Lightning works the door controls and slowly the doors slide open. We stare down the barrels of multiple guns and return those stares with our own guns. But slowly, realisation dawns on both parties. “Lynx Squad?” Star Paladin Lily asks as she lowers her gun. “You’re alive?” She says shakily before adding in a much sterner voice, “Did you encounter any raiders in the Stable?”

“None that were alive,” Lightning replies. At this point, everyone else has lowered their weapons and we enter the room and close the door behind us. Once we get the details of our arrival out of the way, Lightning asks, “How did this happen?” Lily removes her helmet and sets it on her back.

While she does so, I look around the room. Besides Lightning and Arrow, I count twelve Rangers. Seven of which are lying on cots without armor and bandaged up pretty heavily. The other five, including Lily, look like they’ve been put through the ringer as well. As Lily begins, Senior Paladin Twinkle joins us.

“The raiders attacked in mass and with a ferocity we’ve never seen before. It was like they did not care if they died. The guards gave us warning and we went into lockdown, the Stable was sealed and we armed ourselves,” Lily explains.

“Our guards were instantly overwhelmed,” She continues. “The raiders crowded into the basement and began mutilating the guards, writing on the walls. Some began to set explosives on the door and within minutes, they were in the hall. The turret gave them some pause, but one of them finally shot it with a missile.”

“The Stable door held them back for an hour, they tried various ways to enter, but none worked until Grimoire showed up,” Lily scowls in anger. “He took some C4, teleported on the other side of the door, and destroyed the mechanism. It was easy enough for the raiders to push it open after that,” She explains.

“What’s crazy, is that we were there when Grimoire appeared on our side, but none of our weapons did anything to him. They hit him, but he instantly regenerated from our attacks. But at that point, everything went south. The raiders quickly spread through the Stable, and no matter how many we killed more would take their place,” Lily says.

She lets out a sigh. “We kept being pushed back, and soon arrived at the command center. Elder Archimedes recorded an SOS for the rangers who were away at the time, Senior Paladin Twinkle’s squad, Paladin Beam’s squad, and your squad. He then used his override to deadlock the armory, filtration, and reactor chambers. At that point, the raiders reached us again,” Lily took a deep breath.

“Elder Archimedes ordered me to fall back with non-essential command center personnel. I didn’t want to, but he simply told me that he had a duty as Elder to remain in the room. He knew he would die, but he just kept shooting. I was the last to leave the command center. I saw him bleeding, bent over his desk, but still shooting. I saw when another bullet caught him in the chest and he fell to the ground…” Lily trails off.

“I saw him get back up, and put in a command on his terminal. I saw the Scribes do so as well. The Elder hit a final button, and all of the terminals and monitors exploded. He coughed up blood, turned back to the raiders, and began shooting, along with all the scribes. They fell, one by one, but no matter how much they show him, Elder Archimedes kept shooting back,” Lily says, choking up a bit. But I could tell she had pride in her voice, for the Elder, and her fellow Rangers.

“Before I closed the door, I saw a bullet catch him in the shoulder and he fell behind the desk. Those of us that remained, kept fighting, creating choke points, firing lines, and traps where we could. But they kept coming, and never stopped. Half of us were dead, and our injuries increased by the minute. Then, Paladin Beam and Senior Paladin Twinkle returned,” Lily says with a nod to Twinkle.

“Their squads began hitting the raiders from the rear, forcing them into a two-sided fight. An hour passed before our two sides met up in the command center. Paladin Beam had fallen along with most of her squad, but only a dozen raiders remained. Grimoire was sitting in the Elder’s chair the whole time as we killed the rest of the raiders and circled around him,” Lily tells us, but doesn’t seem pleased.

“That bastard muttered something about how he should have brought more of his troops, laughed, and then teleported away. Those of us remaining combed over the Stable and brought anyone still breathing here. We fifteen are all that remain,” Lily concludes. A realization seems to dawn on her and she asks, “Where is Thunder, by the way?” I can see Lightning’s features darken, and Arrow hangs her head.

This seemed to be enough for Lily and she let out a sigh. “Thunder too? We are down to fourteen then,” She mutters. “We need to bury our dead and treat our wounded, the rest of the base is secure, yes?” She asks Lightning. He nods. “Good.”

Lily looks over at Twinkle, who nods and walks over to her squad. “Come on boys,” Twinkle tells them, “It is time to dig graves and burn the raiders. They might try to attack us again, so keep your eyes open for anything on the horizon while we’re out.” She sounds content, not like how I’d expect someone who lost more most of their friends and family to sound.

As Twinkle and her squad leaves medical, I hear her saying happily, “Eberron has had his fill this day. Now, we must honor our fallen.” With them gone, ten of us remain in medical, more than half wounded.

Lightning looks after Twinkle and says quietly, “I’ll join her, I want to bury Thunder myself.” Lily nods and Lightning leaves after them.

“Now then, Arrow, will you help tend the wounded?” Lily asks and Arrow nods. Lily then glances at Cygnus and I. “You two do what you like,” She says with a hint of disgust in her voice. Lily turns begins tending to the injured as well.

Cygnus steps up beside me as I stand in the middle of the room. “She didn’t acknowledge our presence until just now. Is she always this indifferent to you?” He asks.

I shake my head. “This is only the second time I’ve met her. The last time, she was suspicious of me. This time, most of her friends have been killed or injured. I can’t blame her. We should go help Twinkle and Lightning outside, give her some space,” I tell him.

He nods and we head out to join the others. Cygnus, Lightning, Twinkle, her five squad members and I split into two groups. Twinkle, Cygnus, Lighting, and I start digging graves while her squad members begin carrying out their dead. We dig next to the graves already present, including Iron’s.

It is hard work, digging so many graves. The first Ranger we lay to rest, is Thunder. His body and armor are too twisted together to separate completely, so we bury him in his armor. Lightning waves the rest of us away as he slowly shovels dirt over his brother’s body. Once finished, Lightning sits beside the grave for a few minutes, head hung. None of us bother him.

As night falls, we aren’t even half done. We do not stop, however. The Rangers turn on their headlamps, Cygnus summons a lantern, and I turn on my PipBuck’s blue light. With only our lights illuminating the darkness, we continue digging and bringing out the fallen. By midnight, all the fallen Rangers are outside, waiting to be laid to rest.

The others that were bringing them out, begin digging as well. The nine of us dig and bury as quickly as we can, but exhaustion is apparent in each of us. As the sun rises, we manage to bury the last of the Rangers. Each of us nearly collapses from exhaustion, but we enter the base once more.

We return to the living quarters to rest, while Twinkle reports our progress to Lily. I sleep for a few hours before I wake up once more. Some of the other Rangers have woken up before me, and have started to carry the raider bodies out of the Stable. Others are still sleeping, including Lightning. Cygnus is awake and talking to one of the Rangers that is showing him one of their weapons.

I decide to help get the raider corpses outside. Without power armor, it is tough, especially since I’m running on only a few hours of sleep. Since we aren’t digging graves however, just tossing the bodies in a pile, it doesn’t take nearly as long, despite their numbers. By noon we get most of them out, and have started four pyres ablaze. The stench is awful. I have never smelt the stench of burning flesh before, and I really hope I never do so again.

While heading back into the base, I see Senior Paladin Twinkle standing outside, looking at the burning bodies and smiling at them. I walk up and join her, as much as I don’t like the sight of burning ponies, I feel like I should talk with her. “Hey Senior Paladin, how are you holding up?” I ask her.

“Gloriously, Scribe Crusader. This combat, this fight, my lord Eberron is pleased at all this death,” Twinkle says with glee. “I would say it is a shame we lost so many of our own, but lord Eberron does not discriminate in his choosing of victims, and regretting the deaths of my comrades would diminish their sacrifice and the honor of their deaths,” She tells me, adding, “By the way, it isn’t Senior Paladin anymore. It’s Star Paladin.”

I raise an eyebrow. “But isn’t Lily Star Paladin?” I ask her. If I remember correctly, there could only be one Star Paladin per Ranger division, but there could be multiple Senior Paladins.

Twinkle shakes her head. “Lily is the Elder now, never thought I’d be calling her ‘Elder Lily’,” Twinkle says with a chuckle. “I was the logical choice to become Star, and she Elder. Old man Archimedes would be pleased with his replacement, but…” Twinkle trails off, her smile shrinking slightly.

“But what?” I ask.

“Lily doesn’t understand the glory of Eberron, she sees this combat, and despairs in it. I think it might have changed her, and despite my attempts to adviser her, she has ignored me. She plans to destroy the stable and have us leave our home. Says it is compromised,” Twinkle shakes her head.

“I told her we should say, keep fighting, not shrink down from Grimoire and his army,” Twinkle smirks. “She wants to stop pursuit of Grimoire, to lay low, to survive. There is no honor in running away. Eberron would not approve, but, she is my Elder, and I will follow her, till it is my time to replace her, and I will lead till it is time for another to replace me,” Twinkle explains.

“By the way, she doesn’t think of you very favorably. Lily thinks you are the one who brought this down upon us, but she’s wrong. It is our duty to protect, one way or another, we would have gotten into this ourselves,” Twinkle tells me. “I just have one question for you, you who lead Lynx Squad when Thunder fell. Did he die with honor?” She asks.

I nod. “He protected Lightning and I from a swarm of ghouls. Stopped them from getting behind us. You should have seen how many he took out before he fell. He died with honor, he was brave, loyal, and he will be missed,” I tell her, choking up a little.

Twinkle closes her eyes as she listens, and nods her head. “Eberron will see Thunder honored, and I shall remember him to the moment I join him. You are alright in my book, Ratchet. I’m sure lord Eberron looks favorably upon you as well,” She says with a smile, looking at the burning corpses once more.

It has been bugging me for a while, since the first time I met her. “Why do you follow Eberron? An old god? Most ponies believe in Celestia and Luna now,” I ask her.

She smiles even wider. “Celestia and Luna,” Twinkle chuckles. “They aren’t Goddesses, anypony who was alive before the war ended knows that. Just powerful magical beings with extremely long lives. I might not have been born before things went to shit, but I’ve read books, heard stories. The assassination attempt at Shattered Hoof Ridge is enough proof that they aren’t Goddesses,” She explains.

“A Goddess can’t be assassinated, they wouldn’t fear death. But the old gods, lord Eberron, they exist,” Twinkle tells me. “If Goddesses or Gods were truly upon this earth with us, they would not have allowed those Megaspells to fall. No, the gods don’t live in our world, but they help us occasionally,” She says.

She really seems to believe that. “I agree that Celestia and Luna weren’t Goddesses,” I tell her. “But, why do you believe so completely that the old gods exist?” I ask.

She turns to look at me, giving me an odd smile. “They talk to me, sometimes,” Twinkle says. “Eberron especially. He grants me power in exchange for the evil I wipe from this world. Some of the others think I’m crazy, imagining things. Lily told me I suffer some multiple personalities and that’s the reason. But I know better,” She explains.

“When you walk through a battlefield, bullets, grenades, and rockets flying around you, but nothing hits you, nothing hurts you, you keep walking out in the open, expecting to be hit, but you aren’t...that is how you know you are protected by the powers of a god,” Twinkle says.

“In all the battles I’ve fought, I can count the number of times I’ve been hit on my hooves. Bullets might ping off my armor, but nothing ever penetrates,” She tells me. “You can doubt me, if you want. But I can tell, lord Eberron, the God of Death, watches over you.”

I could feel a shiver go up my spine. I recall the bony figure cloaked in black, Death. I recall his words about watching me, supporting me. I wonder if Death ever went by the name Eberron. “I...believe you,” I tell Twinkle, who smiles back at me.

“I knew I liked you, Ratchet. Now then, we should return to the others. I think Lily is getting restless to leave,” She says and turns to head back inside. I follow after her, and we walk through the halls until we reach medical.

Other the last few days, going through healing potions, drugs, and a lot of bandages, all the injured are now on their hooves. Twinkle and I enter just as they are putting their armor back on. They seem sore still, and it takes them awhile, but they eventually squeeze into their armor.

“That’s right, everyone get armored up, we are moving out tonight,” Lily declares, standing in the center of the room. “Under the cover of darkness, we will destroy anything we cannot carry, and leave,” She states, watching as the Rangers put on their armor. Lily notices Twinkle and I approaching.

“Ah, good, Twinkle. Have your squad rig explosives in the armory, the cellar basement, the Elder quarters, and the Maneframe and other Stable systems. We don’t want raiders moving in after we leave. We will destroy everything,” Lily orders.

Some of the others look skeptical about leaving, but they follow their orders never-the-less. “We are leaving, so soon?” Twinkle asks. “Our injured could use a bit more rest, there is no honor in fighting so wounded. Please, reconsider, Lily-” Twinkle begins, but is cut off by Lily.

“Elder, Lily,” Lily emphasises, glaring at Twinkle. “And no, I have told you already, we need to leave. The enemy knows where we are, they know our defences. If they attack again, we will be wiped out,” She says harshly.

I step up. “If you want, you can all come to my lab. It has plenty of room, and it isn’t too far away. We can even transport all of your equipment there, so you don’t have to destroy it all,” I offer.

Lily looks disgusted at the thought. “Absolutely not. I have had enough of your help, Scribe Crusader,” She says, saying my title with venom in her voice. “I want nothing more to do with you, and from henceforth, you are no longer leader of Lynx Squad. Arrow and Lightning will leave with us,” Lily declares.

This snaps Arrow and Lightning to attention, and they walk over. “Elder Lily, Ratchet has been a huge help,” Lightning explains. “She is one of us, we can’t just abandon her,” He says.

Lily shoots him a glare. “Remember she is the one who got Thunder killed, she was leading. Not even trained to lead, yet we gave her a squad. Elder Archimedes was too trusting, she is nothing but a civilian,” Lily spits. “No, we will have nothing more to do with her, and the two of you will be coming with us. We can not spare anyone now, not that I would even if we were greater in number,” She says.

“But what about Grimoire?” I ask. “You’re still going to help stop him, right?”

Lily rolls her eyes. “I want nothing more to do with him, it was a mistake to get involved in the first place,” Lily says.

Twinkle takes a step closer. “A mistake? Grimoire is responsible for Iron’s death, for the death of most of our friends!” Twinkle declares. “Are we going to just turn a blind eye on what he’s done to us? Are we going to run and hide?” She asks.

“Yes.” Lily says adamantly. “We cannot stand against him, he has hundreds more. We are but fourteen. We must survive, continue fighting where we can. But if we fight against him, it is suicide,” She hisses.

The other Rangers hang their heads. We’ve become quite the spectacle, standing in the middle of everyone. “She’s right,” one of them mutters. From there, the murmuring spreads and echoes of agreement can be heard. Only Twinkle, Arrow, and Lighting seem opposed.

“This is cowardice, Eberron will frown upon this!” Twinkle shouts, but once Lily glares at her, Twinkle just grits her teeth and says. “You are our Elder, we will follow you, but know that I do not support this decision,” Twinkle says.

Lily nods. “Now, you two, follow orders and get ready,” Lily says, addressing Arrow and Lightning. “And you two,” She says, looking at Cygnus and I, “get out of here now.”

Cygnus stands motionless beside me, Arrow shifts around nervously, her eyes darting between me and Lily, and Lightning scowls, clenching his teeth. “Ratchet,” Lightning finally says. “We have to. We are Rangers. I don’t want to, I know Arrow doesn’t either, and Thunder wouldn’t like this, but we have to. Just know, we will always be friends, comrades. If you need us, you know our frequency. It was an honor, Ratchet,” he says and puts his helmet on, sealing it with a hiss.

Arrow looks between him and me, then glances at Lily, who glares at her. Arrow looks at the ground for a moment, then rushes to me and embraces me in a hug. It catches me off guard, but after a moment I return the hug. “Take care, Arrow,” I mutter. She nods, and pulls away slightly.

Arrow bites her lip, and then suddenly kisses me. My eyes go wide in surprise, and she stops after a moment and mutters, “I love you.” Before pulling away and putting her helmet on. I didn’t think she felt that way, she was always hard to read though. I regain my senses and feel Lily’s glare on me.

I let out a sigh. “Lily, this is the wrong course of action,” I tell her, staring back into her eyes. “But I understand why you feel this way. If you change your mind, if you need my help, anything, you know where I live,” I tell her. “I’ll stop Grimoire, with or without your help,” I add.

Lily just shakes her head. I give one last smile at Arrow and Lightning, and give a slight nod to Twinkle before heading to the door. I stop just before I leave, and turn to the Rangers. “Thank you all, for everything,” I tell them, and leave. Cygnus follows silently, and after a while, we are in the openness of the wasteland.

Halfway to my lab, I hear the sounds of multiple explosions, and I know, Stable 36 has been sealed forever.

===~+~===

Quest Complete: An Arrogant Request
Quest Updated: The Chaos Crusade - Current Objective: Search for more information on Grimoire.
New Perk! - Protected by Eberron - You are favored by the God of Death. Sometimes in battle, bullets that seem destined to hit you will miss completely.

Chapter 19 - Doubt

“Do my choices even matter? If I just disappeared, would anyone even notice?”

===~+~===

Choices. We all have them and the magnitude of them varies. Some choices are as inconsequential as what should I eat for breakfast? What color ribbon should I wear in my hair today? Choices that don’t really effect much at all. Other choices, choices no one is ever ready to make, can shatter the lives of dozens, hundreds, thousands, even millions.

The choices of the Ministry Mares and the Princesses, of the Zebra Caesar, had led to the destruction of Equestria, if not the rest of the world as well. We don’t always see the outcomes of our choices. There is no doubt in my mind that they made the decisions they felt best. If the Princesses and the Ministry Mares, ponies greater than I, could ultimately fail in their decisions, am I making the right ones?

Did the choices I made lead to the slaughter in Stable 36? To the fall of the only Steel Rangers that wanted to help the wasteland? Is Thunder’s blood on my hooves? What about Iron’s? Eventually, will my choices catch up Lightning? Arrow? Cygnus? Any of the countless others I’ve met in my travels?

I am terrified. As terrified as I was when I first awoke in the wasteland. The Steel Rangers will no longer help me, Elder Lily wants nothing to do with me. My friends were forced to go with her, and I don’t blame them for that. The Rangers are their family. Now, Cygnus and CORA are my only support in this wretched wasteland.

Only two of us have bodies, and neither Cygnus nor I are actual soldiers. Grimoire has an army. I know he has to be stopped, but can I do anything? The only force that was capable to opposing him was the Rangers. With Stable 36 destroyed, and the other Rangers hiding in their bunkers or just hoarding technology, I doubt I can get the kind of sizable force that is required.

Such thoughts distract me as Cygnus and I work on getting my armor back to my lab. We try dragging it for a few minutes, but eventually Cygnus summons a sort of cart. It makes things easier, aside from having to haul the armor onto the cart. Which we have to do multiple times, as the cart would disappear once his magic wore off.

After much of the day wastes away, we get it back safely. I download CORA into the system once again and Cygnus and I take a well deserved nap. I wake up after a while, and realize I’ve been asleep for around fourteen hours. My PipBuck tells me it is just after noon. As I stretch and rub the sleep from my eyes, I notice Cygnus hunched over sitting on his bed.

I walk over and glance over his shoulder. He’s looking at some notes in a book. It looks like technical specifications. Measurements, materials, and more are listed along with rough drawings. The two I see are a rocket launcher and a rocket. “What’s all that?” I ask him.

He turns his head to look at me. “Oh, finally awake? This here,” Cygnus says, closing the book and tapping it with a hoof, “is a book I’ve made. It is where I keep specifications of various equipment I can summon. I study it from time to time, keep the information fresh in my mind. One slip up, and my summons fail. In battle, that can be fatal. If I mess up a length, miss an ingredient, nothing will happen.”

I look at the book. “So, what kind of stuff is in that book?” I ask him.

“A lot. It holds info on things from knives to miniguns, small carts to large field artillery pieces. I even have the schematics for a Balefire Bomb. It would take almost two hours straight to speak the words to summon that, though,” Cygnus explains. “It is too powerful to be summoned by material description alone. I have to describe the magic, the effects, the changes it will cause to the landscape.”

I raise an eyebrow at that. “The strength of what you summon effects what you have to say to summon it?” I ask him.

“Indeed. The more complicated an object is, the harder it is to summon. For example, Iron Ingot,” Cygnus says, and an iron ingot appears, falling to the floor with a clang. “For a simple object, no description is needed. I can manifest it with thought alone and call it forth using its name. Similarly, Combat Knife,” he says and a knife appears in his mouth. He smirks around the handle before he sends it away.

I blink at him in surprise. “But when you first woke up, you had to describe that before it was summoned,” I stammer.

He nods. “When I first woke, I was groggy, confused, unfocused. But now, in perfect condition, the name is all I need. More complex items, like ammunition, guns, and chemicals, require descriptions. Basically, if it is a synthetically manufactured item, I need to describe it. This knife? Iron and hide, two things that appear normally in nature, just molded into a shape. Understand?” He asks.

I nod. “Great,” Cygnus says, setting the book on his bed. “So, now I have a question for you. What are we going to do now?” He asks.

I frown. “I have no idea. I’m not sure I should do anything. The two of us can’t fight Grimoire alone,” I tell him.

“The three of us!” CORA declares over the PA system.

I chuckle. “But you can’t really help us fight, you don’t have a body, after all. Even if you did, three of us against an army wouldn’t work out,” I tell her.

“About that...I have some...plans...for things. I don’t want to ruin the surprise, so come to the workshop!” CORA says happily. I exchange a glance with Cygnus, and the two of us walk to the workshop. Upon entering, CORA says, “Alright! Now, turn your attention to the monitor.” We turn to look at the terminal that flickers to life and begins running through lines of code.

After a moment, it displays an image of my power armor. Then it slowly deconstructs it until only the components that provide power remain. Suddenly, all the wires, circuitry, and spell matrices shift. I look at the picture, but can’t make sense of it. I don’t understand how this would work at all. “CORA, what is this?” I ask her.

“This is a more efficient arrangement that will yield a fifteen times spark battery life!” She declares with glee.

“But, it doesn’t make any sense. Why would you route power like that and use a matrix there? And that circuit near the tail? What is this?” I question her.

“It makes perfect sense! When I was in the armor last time, I asked the matrices how to increase efficiency, and I did like they said! Do you really not get it?” CORA asks.

“You talked to the matrices? As in, the spell matrices? Is that more of that, you talking to computers thing?” I ask.

“Yep!” She replies happily.

“Of course. Well, I suppose we can try it, if nothing else,” I say, looking over the plans. I have no idea how this will work, but if I just follow the plans, it should work, according to CORA.

“I have a few other ideas,” CORA speaks up, stopping me as I’m about to start gutting the armor.

Cygnus clears his throat. “I’m going to go...do something else. This is confusing as hell,” He says, and leaves the workshop. He can memorize all sorts of materials that make weapons and armor, but a little tech talk confuses him? Well, I suppose it is easy to learn things that already exist, but things that are brand new? Heck, I’m even confused.

“Anyhow,” CORA continues, “since you are going to gut the armor anyway, and we’ll need to hammer out the dents anyway, I was thinking we should lighten it up, make it less bulky and hard to move. Maybe exchange some armor for some more joints, for when I’m the only one inside, allowing me to be more maneuverable?” She suggests.

I shrug. “I suppose. Without someone else in power armor to carry it around, making it lighter would be ideal. But...you seem to have an ulterior motive. What is it?” I ask her.

She giggles. “We really are the same, you know me so well. The lighter weight will help the power last longer. With the modifications I have in mind, a single spark battery will last approximately two and a half days,” CORA informs me.

“That is a heck of an increase,” I tell her. “From going through a few batteries in a matter of hours to going days on one.” I look at the armor, then up at the camera in the room as I let out a sigh. “There’s a catch, isn’t there?” I ask her.

CORA laughs nervously. “That obvious, hu? Yea. Two and a half days, is if the armor is piloted by me. If you are inside, well, the single battery will last just twelve hours,” She tells me.

“Twelve hours!?” I shout. “Am I that heavy? My weight drops the time by two whole days?” I ask.

“Yea…” She replies. “I also want to remove a minigun, or both, and possibly add on a simple rifle, maybe a sniper,” She suggests.

“What? But the whole purpose of the armor was originally to provide overwhelming fire support! Like when Twinkle used four miniguns at once!” I tell her. “Wait…” I narrow my eyes at the camera. “You want this armor to be your body, don’t you?” I ask.

“What!?” She stammers. “No, what would make you...yes…” CORA admits. Well, that explains her determination to extend the battery life as long as she can. And her suggested mobility upgrades.

I let out a sigh. “Alright, it is yours. As long as I can still get inside when I need to,” I tell her. “So, no doubt you have plenty more suggestions. Tell me what you want,” I say with a smirk.

“Well...I’ll need to work the other guns as well, not just Raptor Blood. Additionally, I’ll need a way to connect to terminals. And I have some plans for a rechargeable spark battery, though I think we only have the supplies to make one. Also, the paint job…” She trails off.

“What? But we picked out the paint job together! You liked it! Right?” I ask her.

“Well...I was kind of just going along with what you wanted. But now, I’d like some individuality in it. I’ve never had a body of my own, you know,” She says sounding slightly guilty.

I sigh. “It’s alright. So, weapon integration won’t be too hard. I think we still have some rifles lying around. We should also have some cabling I can use to allow you to connect to terminals, that shouldn’t be a problem. Paint is still left over from last time, too. About that rechargeable spark battery then, what do we need?” I ask her.

“That’s the issue,” CORA tells me. She flashes some things up on the terminal. Most of which we have. Ports for recharging using unicorn magic and recharging from syphoning generators. A few spare spell matrices I’ll have to rework. But, the crucial component is missing. A spark battery that still has charge, and here we are fresh out.

“Well, aren’t ponies moving into Ponyville again? Maybe one of them has one they can trade us,” I ponder. “I’ll start on the other upgrades for now. We can do the spark battery thing last. Ready for some work?” I ask her with a smirk.

“Of course!” She replies. “By the way,” she starts, “that DJ seems to be broadcasting again. He’s just been playing music so far, want me to broadcast the radio? This song is just about over.”

“Sure, why not. Some music while we work would be nice,” I reply. A moment later, music starts playing over the system. It is a song I vaguely remember from my teenage days, though the name of both the song and artist escape me. After a few more seconds, the song ends.

“Good Afternoon Wasteland!” DJ Pon3 says with a chuckle. “You can’t believe how long I’ve been waiting to say that. Today is the first of many that I broadcast to not just the Manehatten area, but to all corners of Equestria! I owe it all to one gal, so if you are listening in, thank you, Labcoat!” He declares.

“Now, let’s get on to the news! For those of you who aren’t from Manehatten, I have news of a buck who wishes all of the wasteland harm. Grimoire is his name and he brings trouble with him. He poses as a trader, but don’t let him fool you, he commands an army of raiders and he is hell bent on destroying everything in his path,” DJ Pon3 says with a snarl.

“If you know him, you should stay away. If he’s been to your town, arm yourselves. Cuz’ he isn’t there for your caps, he’s just scouting for when he’ll take your lives. And if you meet a mare in a white labcoat, do yourself a favor, and help her if you can. She’s taking the fight to Grimoire. Watch yourselves out there,” he says with concern.

“In the Manehatten area,” He continues in a more relaxed tone, “civilization is rising from the ashes. Friendship City continues to expand and not too long ago, Labcoat tore through Raider Alley taking out a few dozen raiders in her path. Not only that, but I hear she’s responsible for wiping out the ghouls that inhabited Tenpony Tower. Dozens, if not hundreds of ghouls inhabited the building, now, Tenpony is becoming a new haven in the wasteland. If you’re in the neighborhood, stop by and say hello. Though if you’re a raider or there for trouble, all you’ll get is a bullet in return.”

There he does talking me up again. Though, it does make Manehatten sound like a safer place, and from the sound of things, those snobby ponies that took over Tenpony plan to allow visitors. Perhaps things will work out up there after all.

“In other news, the former raider town of Ponyville is turning into a thriving little town. So if you have been steering clear of it, concerned about raiders, put those worries to rest. Stop by, give the town some business,” DJ Pon3 says.

That’s good. I’m glad the town is still there and hasn’t been taken over by raiders again. All the more reason for me to stop by and see if I can trade anything.

“I’ve also heard reports of explosions to the north of Ponyville, across the mountains. While this area is mostly barren ruins of former croplands, it would be wise to steer clear of this area for the time being. Let whatever caused the explosions settle down. That’s all for now, children. Stay safe out there. Here’s classic from Sweetie Belle,” He finishes and the voice of Sweetie Belle replaces him.

Well, it is good to know the DJ has settled in. Now then, let’s settle in and work my magic on this suit of armor. I have a lot of work to do.

===~+~===

Many hours later, the armor is completely gutted and the frame of it has been reworked to be lighter. A few servos and gyros have been added to increase the mobility. All that is left now, is to add some of the other upgrades, and then it is off to Ponyville to get a spark battery, hopefully. But for now, it is time for a nap.

I go to the living quarters and plop down on my bed. Cygnus is already sound asleep on his bed. From the look of things, he fell asleep studying that book of his. Well, I am more than ready to join him in sleep, and in moments I do just that.

The following day, I go through the process of hooking up the armor’s interior wiring and add the new upgrades to the armor. A terminal access port for it, allowing her control over the other guns, which have been replaced with a belt-fed assault rifle and and .308 sniper. Neither are the best quality, and ammo for either is low currently. Just need to pick some more up in Ponyville, I suppose.

I spend most of the day referencing the schematics on the terminal so I get the wiring right. A few times I catch myself doing what seems right, but then I look at the diagram again and see just how wrong I am. I end up having to undo my work multiple times and continue again. But finally, I get it right. “That should do it,” I say, stretching my limbs. They’ve gotten quite still from hunching over the armor all day. “So, what kind of paint do you want on it?” I ask CORA.

“I was thinking a nice light brown or tan. Something that will blend in with the wasteland easy enough. It would be nice to paint the mane and tail of it a similar shade to your own, as well. And...let’s keep the lynx paw. Though, we’ll need to add another color around it to prevent it from being obscured by the tan paint we will add,” CORA says.

I nod in agreement. “Sounds good, I think we should have enough tan paint. As for the blue, I’ll have to mix some white in and make it a bit lighter. We’ll use some of the black to outline the paw, make it stand out,” I tell her.

I go to the supply room and get all the paint I need. I use some turpentine to remove the old paint we added, all except for the Lynx mark. Then, it is just a matter of making sure it looks good while I’m painting it. About an hour later, I take a step back and look over my handiwork. “I think it looks nice, what about you, CORA?” I ask her.

“Perfect!” She declares. “Now we just need to get a spark battery and work on the upgrade for that!” She says happily.

“Yes, and see if we can get some more ammo for your guns. How is Raptor Blood doing on 2mm EC rounds?” I ask her.

“It’s good. Still have around 300 rounds. Railspike certainly stocked up on them when he bought the gun from Grimoire. Also, I’ve been thinking, my designation is kind of...outdated. Cryogenic Observer and Rehabilitation Assistant. We don’t do much observing or helping with rehabilitation anymore.” CORA says.

“In fact, once I have this body, I’ll be able to support you in combat. I think a new designation is required. I would like to suggest Combat Operations and Research Assistant. Same acronym, so it won’t be too confusing,” She suggests.

I think about it for a moment. She does have a point, and with her body she will be able to help us in combat. Not only that, but she thought up these plans for the armor and its wiring, so the research part fits as well. “Alright,” I tell her. “It sounds good, and we can still call you Cora anyway.”

“Now then, I suppose I should get some rest before we set out to Ponyville tomorrow. No sense in going out now and having to spend the night there. I’m not sure we could afford a room to spend the night in,” I mutter. A spark battery and ammo will be hard enough to swing. “I’ll download you into the PipBuck in the morning and we’ll set off,” I tell her, as I leave the workshop.

“Sounds good, Ratchet!” She replies. “I’ll run diagnostics on the lab’s systems and think of more ways to further increase the efficiency of the armor in the meantime.”

“Good, good. Keep up the good work, Cora,” I say with a yawn. I wonder if we’ll find a battery in Ponyville. I should also probably ask around for info on Grimoire. At the very least, maybe they have a problem I can help with. I need something to do other than staying cooped up in my lab. The longer I stay in here with my own thoughts, the more I’ll start doubting myself. I need to stay strong, keep after Grimoire.

I prepare my things so we can leave for Ponyville tomorrow, and lay down to sleep.

===~+~===

Cygnus, Cora, and I set off to Ponyville in the morning. After a few hours, we reach the town. Much of the fortifications the raiders put up remain, but the townsfolk seem to have fortified them a bit more and repaired what the Rangers destroyed in their assault. The gates to the town are open and a single guard is standing watch on top of the wall.

They don’t say anything as we enter, but keep an eye on us. It seems like only the area inside the walls is inhabited, I didn’t see any one wondering around outside. But inside the walls, it is just like a normal town. Well, a normal wasteland town. I see a few guards, at least ponies with armor and weapons, walking around amidst the others.

A few are standing around talking. I approach one of the guards. “Excuse me, do you have a moment?” I ask the buck. He stops walking and turns to me, looking me over.

“How can I help you miss?” He asks. “You’re a traveler, right? Or perhaps you are looking for residence?”

“Just a traveler. Does anyone in town trade? I’m looking for ammo and a spark battery,” I tell him.

He nods and gestures toward a building. It has a...cap? Painted on the front, near the doorway. “Ingot is currently our only trader. He sells a little bit of everything. Not sure if he has any spark batteries, but if anyone does, it will be him,” he tells me.

“Thanks,” I reply. “Also, who’s in charge here? Like, a guard captain or town leader?” I ask. “I need to get some information.”

“Gunsmoke is who you want then. He’s in the town hall, organizes the guard and is the defacto leader,” he tells me.

“Alright, thank you very much,” I say and begin to walk away. But he speaks up again before I get too far.

“Miss, mind your manners. We might be a small town, but each one of us serves in the guard. All of us are trained to fight and protect the town, even the children. They just don’t serve in the guard yet. So if you are thinking of starting any trouble, think twice,” He tells me sternly.

Now that he mentions it, all the ponies I’ve seen don’t seem like normal civilians. They have a certain air about them, like they are keeping an eye out for trouble. “Don’t worry,” I tell him, “I’m just here for trade and information.” He nods and continues on his way.

So, Gunsmoke and Ingot. I suppose I should see Gunsmoke first, see if there is anything I can do to earn some quick caps. Not to mention, I want to get information as soon as possible. Cygnus and I make our way to the town hall. It is a lot cleaner and less filled with bodies than when I last visited. Though, I’d be concerned if they left things as they were.

A unicorn mare is sitting behind the desk in the lobby and I notice a guard standing near the stairs. They both turn their attention to us as we walk in. I approach the mare and say, “Hey, I was wondering if I could talk to Gunsmoke?” She eyes me carefully with her blue eyes.

“Applying for residence, or are you here for something else?” The crimson coated mare replies.

“I was looking to get some info, and perhaps see if I can help out any?” I suggest. She narrows her eyes, but nods.

“Very well, go on up. I’ll let him know you are coming,” She tells me, gesturing to the stairs.

“Thank you,” I say and head for the stairs. Cygnus and I make our way up to the mayor’s office, and I knock on the door.

“Come in,” A gruff voice calls from inside the room. I open the door and we step inside. The office is much like I left it, aside from a new, relatively speaking, couch in the room. A gray earth pony buck sits behind the desk and glares at us as we approach. We get about halfway to him and he says, “That’s far enough.”

He looks each of us over in turn, lingering on me the longest. After a moment, he speaks up again, “Eve tells me you want some info and are looking for work. Is that so?” I nod. He adjusts his sitting position placing a hoof to his chin. “You wouldn’t happen to be Labcoat, would you?” He asks.

“I prefer Ratchet, but that’s what the DJ calls me. I take it you’ve listened to him on the radio?” I ask.

“You could say that. Well, Ratchet, you and your associate, take a seat,” He tells me, nodding to the couch. As we make our way to it, he continues. “That DJ’s broadcasts are a double edged sword. Sure they get us more traffic from ponies looking for trade or a place to call home, but it also tells raiders where to find us,” He says, shaking his head.

“Has that been much of an issue?” I ask him as I sit down.

“Not particularly, only a hoofful of raiders have come so far, and the whole town is trained in combat. But, enough about that. I’m Gunsmoke, the...leader, chief, whatever you want to call it, of Ponyville now. I suppose I somewhat owe you for clearing this place out,” Gunsmoke says with a smirk.

“Not at all,” I tell him. “They were raiders, I couldn’t just let them continue hurting ponies.” He chuckles at that.

“Too bad not everyone shares your sentiment. Plenty just run the other way instead of helping another. But, you want info, and a job perhaps? So, how can I help you?” He says with a serious expression.

“Well, before we jump into that, I’m curious how you all found your way to Ponyville in the first place,” I ask him.

“Not a pleasant story, but what the hay. Most of us lived in a town out west near a railway junction, we called it Railyard. Was essentially where maintenance was done on trains before the war. Well, one day some raiders came in force. Gave us an ultimatum. Join them, or die. Well, we didn’t rightly want to join them, and we didn’t want to die. So we hunkered down and fought,” Gunsmoke explains.

“Though back then, I was only in charge of a hoofful of guards, and the mayor and I never saw eye to eye. Long story short, most of the town got slaughtered when the raiders broke through the rear. I managed to rally the guards that remained and we got away with a few civilians,” He tells me.

“We went east from there, and eventually got here. Once we found this place, I took charge and threw down a declaration that everyone who lives here must know how to fight. With the small amount of us left, we would need everyone to do just to keep watch around the clock. No one argued, I think they learned the mistake of having only specific ponies knowing how to fight,” Gunsmoke shakes his head.

“Place was gruesome when we got here though, but I think you know that. We cleaned it up, and fortified it a bit, and here we are now. But you’re not here for a history lesson. Shall we get down to business?” He asks.

I nod. “First of all, you’ve heard of Grimoire, right?” I ask, he nods. “I’m looking for information on him and his army. ‘Discordia’ he calls it. Have you heard or seen anything about them?” I ask. Gunsmoke raises an eyebrow.

“Discordia, you say?” He asks. “If I remember correctly, the raiders that attacked our town yelled something like that. Never heard the name Grimoire mentioned by them though. He might not have been there himself,” He mutters.

I blink in surprise. I didn’t expect him to have run directly into Discordia. “And you said Railyard was west of here?” I ask, he nods. “I wonder. Does that mean his base of operations is west of Canterlot?” I mutter.

“I don’t know,” Cygnus chimes in. “If that is the case, his army went pretty far to hit that town near Hollow Shades. As of this moment, we know four locations he has attacked. Railyard, Ponyville, Stable 36, and that town near Hollow Shades. Most are west, but it is hard to say with just four places,” He says.

Gunsmoke nods. “Your friend is right. For all we know, he could be inside Canterlot mountain, up north, down south, Everfree maybe. But they are too spread out. Unless he has enough raiders to cover almost all the wasteland, he has to be based somewhere,” Gunsmoke says.

Thinking back to the raider dead in 36, and the fact Grimoire said he could have brought more, I really hope he doesn’t have a massive army covering the wasteland. “Maybe they were just the gangs he has absorbed, and not his primary force?” I suggest. “He does pose as a trader, so he has gotten around. Maybe all the gangs he absorbs doesn’t necessarily join with his main force, but remains in their area to strengthen his hold there?”

“If that is the case, he will be even harder to pin down,” Gunsmoke says. “I’m sorry I can’t be of more help. I want this bastard dead for what he did to Railyard, but we aren’t an army or anything. We can ask travelers about him, but we don’t have the resources to search around,” He says.

I shake my head. “Yea, that is for the best. I don’t expect you to help fight him, I just want to know where he’s at,” I tell him.

Gunsmoke rubs his chin. “Keep listening to that DJ. His informants come through here often enough. If I get any info on Grimoire or Discordia, I can pass it along to him. You’ll be able to hear it that way,” he tells me.

“Right,” I say. This isn’t a huge step to finding Grimoire, but it is a step in the right direction. I didn’t expect to find his location right away, so finding any information is better than none. “Switching subjects, would you happen to have any work? I could use some caps for some ammo and what not,” I ask him.

Gunsmoke looks thoughtful for a moment. “There isn’t much, but I think Ingot, our trader is working on a couple of automated turrets. We managed to bring two with us from Railyard, both pretty damaged. If you think you can help him out with those, I’m sure he’ll give you a discount or something,” He informs me.

I nod. “That sounds just up my alley. I need to see Ingot anyhow, so that’ll work out. Alright,” I get up from the couch. “I’ll be going now, but I’ll stop by another time,” I tell him.

“Sounds good. Just let Eve know when you stop by, I’ve got plenty of work to do here, between fixing things up, managing resources, and training the guards, so I won’t always be in the office,” Gunsmoke tells me.

“Of course,” I nod. “Till next time,” I say and Cygnus and I make our way to the door. Gunsmoke bids us a final farewell as I close it behind us. “Alright, to Ingot’s I guess,” I mutter as we descend the stairs.

“Gunsmoke seems like a decent buck,” Cynus says. “Has a tactful mind as well. Though, I’d find his willingness to help us odd, if not for his previous town being overrun.”

I nod in agreement. “Yea, Grimoire is a threat, and Gunsmoke knows it. I’m not entirely sure of his intentions, but if he’s willing to help us look for Grimoire, I don’t mind too much. Anyhow, let’s go fix up some turrets!” I declare. Cygnus just chuckles in reply.

===~+~===

“You’re here about the turrets then?” Ingot asks in confirmation. He is an eccentric older buck. His mane and beard gray with age and his brown coat is shedding in places. “Very well, come and take a look. Can’t figure them out myself, but if you think you can get them running have at ‘em,” He says, leading us to the back of his shop.

Ingot’s shop is a regular home, just with tables full of stuff in the living room that is right inside the door. Behind a few tables made to look like a counter, we enter into the kitchen. I doubt anything is actually cooked here anymore, however. Parts and tools cover the counters, and on the table in the center of the room are two turrets.

Honestly, it is more of a workshop than a kitchen. I can see odd combinations of guns and strange machines on the counter, all half built, or half taken apart? I can’t really tell which. “What is all this….stuff?” I ask him, avoiding calling it junk.

“Just some of my tinkerings,” Ingot explains. “I’m something of an inventor. Though, when it comes to high-tech fancy gizmos like magical components or complicated electronics, I’m a bit out of my element.”

“Why are you working on the turrets then? Isn’t someone else more qualified?” I ask. Ingot walks over to the turrets, eyeing them suspiciously.

“Used to be, back in Railyard. But now, I’m the only folk in town who’s good with his hooves, when it comes to tinkering, anyhow,” He replies. “I fixed up most of the hull damage, but the inner working really get my goat, so to speak.”

“I see,” I mutter, stepping up to the turrets and looking at them. I’ve never seen this model of turret before. It is basically a cylinder on a tripod with a barrel pointing out of one side. Though, my experience with turrets is pretty minimal to begin with. Mostly ceiling mounted turrets, really.

Ingot opens a compartment on one of the turrets, exposing the interior components. Lots of wires, a few spell matrices, that’s the targeting talisman...I look more closely at the wiring. “Did you happen to rewire this one?” I ask him.

“Yes ma’am. Was a hell of a job too, this turret got shot up quite a bit, cut most of the wires in half. No idea if they are going where they need to be, or if I added extra wires,” He replies. Yea, that makes sense.

“Ok, let me see here…” I trail off as I grab some wires in my magic and begin to trace them. I run into ends that aren’t hooked up a few times. After a few minutes, I basically start pulling out useless wires. “Did you just throw wires in here?” I ask him with irritation.

“Well, I wasn’t exactly sure when a wire was split in two or when it was just disconnected. So I kind of took all the lengths of wire and replaced them with a new one,” ingot explains.

“Yea...I’m pretty sure half of these aren’t even,” I pause as I yank out a ball of wires. Not attached to anything, mind you. “Scratch that, most of these wires aren’t even necessary,” I finish. “Can you get me some glue?” I ask, looking at the roomy interior. “And some tape, perhaps?”

Ingot goes to a counter and gets a bottle of wonderglue and some duct tape. “Thanks,” I say. “Now then, this goes here...and this one here, I think this goes here. Cora, any thoughts? No? Ok. Uhh…” I trail off as I glue and tape some wires, making them run more efficiently through the casing.

After a few minutes, I think I’m finished. “Ok, try switching it on?” I suggest. Ingot nods, and hits a button on it. It shudders and begins to vibrate. Then, it slows down and starts to sweep the barrel back and forth. “I think it’s working. Right?” I ask him in confirmation.

“Should be. We’ll need to hook it to a terminal and add some targeting info to it, but that’s Gunsmoke’s knowledge base. He’s also got the ammo,” Ingot chuckles. “Dono why he didn’t trust me with it.” I can’t imagine why.

“On to the next one then,” I mutter and open the casing of the other turret. I narrow my eyes as I look inside. “Did you take wires from this one and put them in the other one?” I ask Ingot.

“Yep. I figured if I couldn’t get them both working, I might as well try for one,” He replies.

“Well, that explains why there are no wires in here at all. I look at the working turret’s insides and compare them with the empty one. “At least all the major components are here. Though...Do you have any circuit boards?” I ask him.

He looks around the kitchen, wanders back into the living room and shouts back, “Got two!”

“Bring me one,” I call back out to him. “What a pain,” I mutter. The first turret was just a wiring issue, this one seems to just be missing a circuit board and all of its wires. Ingot brings in the circuit board and I hook it into the turret. “Ok, give me like 30 minutes and I’ll have this one working too,” I declare and set to work.

Thirty minutes later, filled with a lot of comparing the other turret to this one, and I manage to get this one running as well. “Alright Ingot, the turrets are up and running!” I declare. He inspects the work and nods in approval.

“Now, I think you mentioned Gunsmoke said I should give you a discount?” He asks, I nod. “Alright, 10% off everything,” Ingot says.

“Ten percent?” I ask disappointedly. Well, I mean it wasn’t like the job was that hard.

Ingot looks at me curiously, pulling at his beard. “I suppose I can also part with one item for free, if ya want. Regardless of price. Help yourself,” he tells me with a slight grin.

Well, that is better than nothing, I suppose. I nod and begin poking around the tables. Spark battery, spark battery...Here! Wait, not, that one’s dead. I look through the contents of three more tables before I find one. “I’ll take this,” I tell him, holding up the spark battery.

“Very well,” Ingot nods. “Anything else I can help ya with?” He asks. I explain I’m looking for ammo of the 5.56 and .308 variety. He pulls out some ammo cases from under one of the tables and opens them up. Tons of bullets are in both, thankfully sorted according to type, unlike the tables with stuff laying on them randomly.

“How much for each round?” I ask him, hoping that it isn’t too expensive.

“Well, a 10% discount is fairly hard to apply to ammo, unless they are rockets. I’ll just take a cap off each. That’ll be 3 caps per 5.56 round and 5 caps per .308 round,” Ingot decides with a nod.

That’s not too awfully bad. Shouldn’t need a lot of .308, and Cora should be more accurate than me anyhow, I hope anyway. “I’ll go with forty rounds of .308 and, let’s say three hundred rounds of 5.56?” I tell him. He nods and starts counting them out, one by one.

“One...two...three...four…” Ingot says, setting them on the counter as he goes. It is agonizingly slow. After a while though, he reaches 40 rounds of .308. I give him the 200 caps and he gives me the ammo. He then starts counting out the 5.56 rounds.

I stop him as he gets to three. “Say, how much for just the entire case of 5.56?” I ask him, really not wanting to stand around waiting for him to count to three hundred. I pulls at his beard as he inspects the case.

“I’d put it around five thousand caps,” he tells me with a nod.

“Five thousand? There is no way there are one thousand five hundred some rounds in that case,” I shout. He just raises an eyebrow.

“Well, you said you wanted the whole case. Ammo is 3 caps each, but the case itself is more than three thousand,” he says.

“Wait, wait, wait, you were figuring the cost of the case into the total? I don’t want the case, just all the ammo in it. And why is the case worth that much?” I stammer.

“It is a very nice case,” Ingot mutters. I hear Cygnus snicker behind me. “You should have said you only wanted the ammo in the first place,” he tells me, looking at the case once more. “I guess around one thousand two hundred for all the rounds?” He says. “That’s with the discount,” he adds.

That would amount to around 400 rounds, if we cost each one at 3 caps each. “Deal,” I tell him. I give him the caps, and pour the rounds into my bags. Using my PipBuck’s inventory manager, I see the number of rounds is 413. I think for a moment, and count out 39 more caps, and give them to Ingot. “There were 413 rounds in the case, don’t want to rip you off, you know,” I tell him.

He gives me a smile and he sweeps of caps into a sack. Well, now I’m basically broke. I’ll have to find some place to loot, or some way to earn some caps. But for now, I got all I need to fix up that armor! I bid Ingot farewell and Cygnus and I leave his shop.

“Well, this was a pretty productive day. Relatively normal, compared to the previous week,” Cygnus says. “We didn’t get shot at, do any shooting, nor did we discover the scene of a massacre.”

I groan. “Don’t jinx it. I mean come on, who points out how normal a day has been? Especially now. Hell, especially since our definition of normal is back before the war. Something bad is going to happen now, I just know it,” I mutter, shaking my head.

Cygnus chuckles. “I didn’t take you for the superstitious type,” he teases. “Black cats creep you out too? What about walking under ladders?”

“Yea, keep laughing. But I’d rather not tempt the wasteland. With all the crazy stuff we’ve seen, who knows, maybe some of those superstitions came true,” I tell him as we exit Ponyville.

He smirks. “I’ll tell you what, if something happens, I’ll buy you a drink or something,” Cygnus says.

I snort. “Yea, with whose caps? I don’t remember you picking any up, nor selling stuff,” I reply.

“I could always just summon some stuff to sell and make some caps that way,” He chuckles.

I frown at him. “Absolutely not. That’s basically stealing,” I tell him sternly.

He sticks out his tongue. “I was only joking, Ratchet. No need to get so heated,” He says. We keep chatting as we walk, and soon reach the foothills of the mountain. We start climbing our way up, when a bright light suddenly blinds me.

I raise my left leg to shield my eyes as I yell, “Damn it Cygnus, what did you do?”

“You mean that wasn’t you?” Cygnus replies. “I can’t see shit.” For a few moments we argue back and forth, but a deep laugh suddenly erupts from close by. I blink a few times as my vision begins to clear and return to normal. It is still a bit spotty, but I can make out another figure near us.

The outline is that of a pony. My vision slowly gets better as the figure approaches. I quickly realize this isn’t good and begin to draw my pistol from its holster. But as I do so, the figure get right up in front of me, causing me to hesitate. At that moment, my vision clears enough to see the figure.

Brown coat, gray mane, and the red piercing eyes. “Grimoire…” I mutter as my eyes grow wide. His mouth twists into a smile.

“Hello, Ratchet,” Grimoire replies venomously. With those words, his horn flashes again, but instead of blinding light, all I see is darkness.

===~+~===

Quest Updated:

The Chaos Crusade - New Objective: Escape.

Chapter 20 - Tongue Twister (Clean Version)

Chapter 20 - Tongue Twister

“I bet you can’t say that ten time fast.”

===~+~===

When I wake up, I’m...tied to a fucking bed again. Ugh, my head is killing me. “Hey, Cora, what happened?” I ask her. Her face appears looking concerned.

She doesn’t speak, but instead pops up speech bubbles, “You were abducted...again. I saw Grimoire among them. This building is a lot bigger and has a lot more raiders in it, with only Cygnus looking for us...It doesn’t look good.”

“Lovely,” I mutter. “You able to hack into a spritebot and lead him here? If I can somehow find my way out of these ropes, maybe together we can fight our way out?” I ask her.

Cora nods, “There are a few bots nearby I can use. I’ll find him and get him close. I’ll be back when we’re in position. Be careful, Ratchet.” With that, she disappears from my vision.

“Ok,” I mutter. Now then, let’s just untie these ropes and…” I’m unable to use my magic. It seems...fuzzy. Did they drug me with something? Shit. Plan...B? I try and stretch my neck to the ropes around my forehooves, but I can’t quite reach them. Fuck. Now I need to come up with a Plan C…

While thinking, I tug at my bindings and survey the room. I’m on an oddly clean and comfortable bed, each of my limbs tied to one of the bedposts. Undoubtedly, this is a bedroom. Opposite the bed is a window with a dresser underneath it. A few lit candles are on top of it. Some tattered paintings are on the walls, and a door is to my right.

Speaking of which, I hear hoofsteps on the other side of it. “Oh ho, she’s finally awake, is she?” A mare’s voice asks.

“Sounds like it,” a buck responds. “I take it you will want to have your...fun now?” He asks.

“Indeed,” the mare says with a hint of excitement in her voice. “So, be a good buck and get lost. And make sure to remind anyone who would peek what happened to the last poor fellow, will you?” She says with a giggle.

“Y-yes ma’am. T-take your time,” the buck replies nervously. I hear his hoofsteps leaving the door as it slowly swings open.

A familiar mare enters the room with a beaming smile on her face. “Remember me?” She says as she closes the door silently. Shit, I do remember her. “The look on your face tells me you do! Oh, I’m so glad. You recall my brother too, right? Snarl? The one you and your friends killed?”

Oh yes, this was bad. The buck who wanted to torture me to death last time, Snarl. Which means, this must be his sister, “Shrill, right?” I ask, attempting to buy time like I did before with Grimoire.

“Oh you do remember me! And just between us girls, Snarl wasn’t really my brother. We just grew up together in the same orphanage. Everyone just thought we were siblings because of how close we were. You know how siblings are, giving each other a hard time and the like,” Shrill explains.

“But, while his teasing and tomfoolery was playful, mine was genuine hate. I never really liked him, so you did me a favor getting rid of him. And I wanted to play with you too, so it all works out!” She tells me, fidgeting on her hooves.

“How did Grimoire even find out I was still alive?” I ask her.

She rolls her eyes, “Well, Snarl not coming back was a good indication, not to mention that DJ Pon3 seems to be singing your praises. You’re asking the wrong question. You should ask, why are you still alive now, if anything.”

I give her a slight smile, “Ok then, why am I still alive?” She lets out a giggle, stepping up to the bedside.

“That was my doing. Grimoire wants you dead, he wants to study your physiology. Thinks you might have something special inside you that keeps you alive,” Shrills says with a shake of her head. “But I said I wanted revenge for Snarl. Truthfully, I just wanted a chance to play with you. So, I’ll play with you and then turn your body over to Grimoire!”

“What, you’re going to torture me to death like Snarl?” I ask her, my pulse starting to rise.

She scoffs. “Of course not, I’m nothing like that barbarian. I have a refined taste, miss Ratchet,” she says, drawing out my name as she climbs onto the bed. She gets on top of me, bringing her muzzle inches from mine. “You see, I like pleasure as opposed to pain. The two of us are going to have some fun together,” she tells me before licking my cheek.

Keeping her tongue on my body, she moves it down my neck and onto my chest. I swallow, “You don’t mean…” I trail off as her tongue continues down my abdomen.

“Oh yes, Ratchet,” she says, with a heavy breath and grinning playfully as she lowers her head even further. “Where Snarl liked torture, I like rape,” she coos with a giggle.

===~+~===

After a number of hours, Cora finally appears in my vision. But, she quickly disappears without saying anything. It might have been my imagination, but I think she was blushing too. A few minutes later, Shrill and I finish together and lay under the bed sheets, panting.

“Oh Celestia, Ratchet. I think...I think you’re the one I’ve been looking for,” Shrill says, glancing over at me.

“What do you mean?” I ask her.

“The whole reason I got into this business, the whole reason I rape. I’ve been looking for someone who could properly please me,” she replies.

“What? I find it hard to believe no one has ever gotten you off before,” I tell her.

“Oh Goddesses no. But they’ve all felt very...lackluster. Like something was missing. I’ve been at this for years. Started back when I was a filly. Bedding any colt or filly I could. Of course, when I matured, I began going after mares and bucks,” Shrill explains.

“Though,” she continues, “I soon learned that bucks would use you just for sex or use sex as a means to steal from you. Mares were more trustworthy, but suspicious of my advances. So I had to keep forming relationships before bedding anyone.”

“But that soon proved tedious and not worth it. Not to mention, I often forgot the faces and names of those I previously screwed. Once I realized this, I decided to join Snarl, who was already working with a gang. I decided that I’d just force ponies into sex and when I finished, I’d just off them,” Shrill says.

“Wait wait wait,” I say, confused. “So, you rape and kill ponies just so you can find someone who can properly please you?” I ask her.

“Well, yes. But before you jump to conclusions, they were bad ponies...mostly. Opposing gang members and the like. It was kind of hard getting innocent ponies into my bed, since most of them knew me already,” She explains.

“So, you never killed any innocent ponies?” I ask her, accusation evident in my voice.

“I never had the time to kill innocents. Once we merged into Grimoire’s organization, I became too busy. Honestly, this is the first time I’ve done this in a while. Grimoire keeps me busy with diplomatic work between gangs, mostly. Or assassination leaders of gangs that won’t join us,” She tells me.

“Not even the Rangers in Stable 36?” I ask.

“No!” She says, “I was out west talking with one of the gangs out that way. Heavy fighting isn’t my thing. Look Ratchet, I know this might be hard to believe, but I’m not a bad pony. Just...misguided, I suppose. But with you, I could…” She begins, but I cut her off.

“What do you mean? You’re going to kill me and give my corpse to Grimoire, remember?” I tell her, anger rising in my voice.

“Well...Ratchet...I uh...was thinking and...well...I kind of want to...join you?” Shrill asks.

I look at her in shocked confusion. “Join me? After working for Grimoire?” I shout.

“Ratchet, like I said, I’m not bad, I was just looking for someone...for you. I just kind of got sucked into this whole Grimoire thing once he absorbed Snarl’s gang...I didn’t really want to, but I didn’t know what else to do, how else to live…” she trails off. Her face is a mix of sadness, shame, and a bit of...hope?

I pause, thinking for a moment. “Let’s say I do let you join me, even if I say yes, how would we get out of here? I’m unarmed and this place is crawling with raiders, isn’t it?” I ask.

Shrill lets out a sigh. “Well, I could probably get your gear and load up my stuff. Together, we might be able to sneak out, or fight our way out, if things get messy. And...if necessary...I’ll hold them off when you escape,” She says.

Most of what she just said was hesitant and skeptical, but that last sentence...She said it confidently and without hesitation. She’d actually be willing to die for me? Just because I...pleasured her to her liking?

While thinking, gunfire suddenly starts erupting from below us. Does that mean Cygnus is here? Why didn’t Cora tell me?

“What is…” Shrill says, looking towards the door. “Hold on a second Ratchet, I’ll…” She starts to get up, but I hold out a hoof.

“Let’s just wait here. I’m pretty sure that’s Cygnus, and if it is, I doubt he’d charge in without a decent plan,” I tell her. We both sit up in the bed.

“Alright, if you say so…” Shrill says.

For the next few minutes, the two of us sit silently in the bed as the building echoes gunfire, screams, and shouts. Just when we think it is over, another round of shooting and yelling begins.

Suddenly, the door to the room is kicked in and Cygnus emerges into the room. “Ratch…” he stops mid shout, pointing the gun at us.

“Don’t shoot!” I yell at him. “She’s alright, she’s safe!”

He slowly lowers his gun and seems like he wants to say something. But his mouth just keeps opening and closing as he looks at us. After about a minute of him just standing there, his gun and armor disappear and that seems to snap him out of his daze.

He clears his throat. “Uh yes. The building’s clear, so uh, I’ll be...uh, downstairs...uh, looting?” I says and immediately turns around.

“Oh ho,” Shrill says after he leaves. “That was a neat trick with the gun and armor. But he seemed odd, does he always act that strange?” She asks.

I chuckle. Everyone is always intrigued by Cygnus’ magic. “I don’t know why he was acting that way…” I tell her. But as I look over us and the bed...the sheets basically soaked with sweat and fluids, our manes and coats a complete mess...yea, I get it now.

Clearing my throat I say, “We should uh, probably straighten ourselves up.”

“What for?” She says, looking at me. Then at herself. “Oh ho, I get it now. How cute of him...what a shy buck.” We both get to our hooves and get our manes and coats in order.

“Right then, let’s get you two introduced,” I tell her as I start walking over to the door.

“Of course!” Shrill declares. “I should get to know my new comrade.”

As we walk though the hall, I feel I have to say something. I feel like I’m misleading her. “So, uh...Shrill...I’m not exactly, you know...into mares,” I tell her.

She stops and looks at me with a shocked expression. “What!? After what you did in the bedroom...so, you prefer bucks then?” She asks.

“Well, no, not exactly. I’m not really into anyone,” I tell her. “It is kind of hard to explain…”

She stares at me for a few moments with an eyebrow raised. “Ah! I see, so you aren’t attracted to males or females?” She asks, with a tiny smirk.

“I suppose that’s a way to look at it. I’ve just never really had the urge to be together with anyone,” I explain.

Her eyes widen. “Oh ho...So that means that you were...Oh my...a virgin?” she shouts. “I took your first time? Oh ho...lucky me! Well, I suppose I didn’t exactly take it properly, did I? Your hymen is still intact, is it not?” She asks.

“Hu? What?” I stammer. “Yes, but...I don’t think you get me. I’m not looking for a relationship or anything,” I tell her.

“Oh yes, I know. You just haven’t properly fallen for me yet,” Shrill says with a beaming smile. “I understand. Well, well, I’ll win over your love and affection and take your virginity properly! Mark my words, Ratchet,” she says, giving me a wink before continuing on down the hallway ahead of me.

I look after her, confused. “What the fuck just happened…” I mutter as I follow her downstairs.

Once we rejoin Cygnus, I introduce him and Shrill. Cora also appears in my vision again, so I get the opportunity to introduce them too. I explain, more or less, that she’ll be joining up with us. I leave out the racy details. Turns out, Cora thought, rightly so, that I was being raped, and told Cygnus to attack.

Cygnus charged in the building in full military-grade riot gear armed with a combat shotgun loaded with explosive shells. Needless to say, the building now looks like a slaughterhouse, painted red and littered with body parts.

With the introductions and pleasantries out of the way, Cygnus finally drops the bomb. “You two smell like sex. It is disgusting, will you two go clean off or something? This place has a bathroom, right?” He asks.

I blush, but Shrill smiles and says, “Indeed it does. Let’s go Ratchet, I’ll show you the way. You can go first while I gather your things for you. It will give me time to get my things together before we leave. No telling when Grimoire will be back,” she says.

I get enter the bathroom and Shrill goes about her business. I fill the tub with more than likely irradiated water, and hop in it, thankful for the chance to bathe.

===~+~===

“By the way, what’s with your cutie mark?” I ask Shrill. It looks like a tongue dripping venom. “Also, what’s your fighting style?” It would be good to know before we get into a fight.

Shrill smiles and says, “The explanation is one and the same. My cutie mark signifies my deadly tongue.” She winks at me. “More precisely, my ability to talk my way into and out of situations. Those situations being, assassinations.”

Her magic grabs her knife and pistol from her holster. The knife is a sleek black piece that looks easy to conceal. The pistol is a custom, black, 10mm with a silencer on it. “I talk my way into my target’s bed, and kill them. Then, I talk my way out of the building. Raiders are stupid, so I usually pin the blame on one of them,” she explains.

“So, stealth,” Cygnus summarizes. Shrill rolls her eyes.

“Sure, yes, stealth. If you want to be simplistic about it,” she replies. Cygnus chuckles.

“Well, I doubt you’ll be doing much of the whole, talking your way into a target’s bed thing with us. We tend to get caught up in large, chaotic battles,” Cygnus explains. “Besides, I doubt Ratchet would like it if you go sleeping around,” He teases.

“Actually, I don’t ca…” I start, but Shrill cuts me off.

“Oh my, you’re absolutely right! Sorry Ratchet, I won’t sleep around. You’re the only one I’ll give myself to!” Shrill exclaims. Cygnus chuckles, which causes Shrill to shoot him a glare. “Does this one have to accompany us, Ratchet?” She asks.

I sigh. This is my life now. “Yes Shrill, he’s the only one out of the three of us who can actually fight. I miss all the time, and you’re the stealthy type, so…he stays,” I tell her.

“Looks like you’re stuck with me, Shrill,” Cygnus teases her. He then looks at me. “Ratchet, can I have a word?” He asks, glancing at Shrill. “In private?” Shrill rolls her eyes and starts walking on ahead of us. After she is out of earshot, we start walking slowly after her.

“You trust her? Just like that? Was she really that good, or is it something else?” He asks me.

Letting out a sigh, I begin, “Like I’ve been saying, I’m not really into all that relationship junk. I don’t think she’s that bad. I thought about it, and I don’t think she’s trying to trick us. Why would she? Even if she is working for Grimoire, why join with us? He wants me dead, he could have killed me outright. There is no reason for him to send Shrill to spy on or or something,” I explain.

“I guess you have a point,” Cygnus mutters. “We should keep an eye on her, for a whole, at least. She might not be working for Grimoire anymore, but she might have an ulterior motive.”

I nod in agreement. “Could be. She is a trickster. But I don’t think she means us any harm. Might be using us to get something she wants. But, let’s keep our suspicions between us. No need to ostracise her. We’ll need her watching our backs, and we’ll have to watch hers,” I tell him.

Cygnus sighs. “I know, I know. Trust between comrades is important. If you mistrust the ones watching your back, you’re bound to fail. Anyhow, we should catch up to her. Don’t want her wandering into a fight without us.”

“Yea, that would be bad. She has info on Discordia and Grimoire we won’t find anywhere else,” I say as we quicken our pace. We catch up to her in a few minutes.

“Finally, I thought I lost you two,” Shrill says as we catch up. “So, where are we going?” She asks.

I stop walking, causing both her and Cygnus to stop as well. “I thought you were leading us back to where I was taken from?” I ask her.

She looks at me in surprise. “I don’t know where Grimoire snagged you from. I was following you,” She replies, and then glares at Cygnus.

“I was just walking,” Cygnus says with a smirk. “You two just happened to be where I was walking.” Shrill rolls her eyes as I shake my head.

“Cora, where the hell are we?” I ask her, looking at my PipBuck. I pull up the map screen and look around.

“We are just south of Foal Mountain, a ways across the river,” Cora answers.

“Well, at least we aren’t too far. I guess we can go through the canterlot mountain train tunnel to get back to the lab. Wait...is that tunnel filled with those bat things as well?” I ask, looking at Shrill.

“Bat things?” She asks. “You mean, bloodwings? I don’t think so. I think that is only the north-south tunnel. East-west should be fine.”

“Right, let’s go that way then,” I say, looking at my map one last time. “And of course,” I sigh, “we’ve been walking in the wrong direction. Seriously Cygnus, this is why you don’t go around saying ‘this has been normal today’, temping fate and junk,” I say, giving him a look.

“Oh,” Shrill says with a smile. “Are you superstitious Ratchet?” She asks with a hint of laughter in her voice. I immediately regret saying anything. This is going to be a thing now, isn’t it?

“Yes she is,” Cygnus says with a smile. “Scared of black cats, ladders, and all that.”

“Oh come on, I am not!” I yell. Both of them snicker. “Seriously. I mean it. You just don’t go around saying certain phrases though. ‘Could this get any worse?’, ‘today has been pretty normal’, ‘that could never happen’, that sort of stuff.”

“Ok, Ratchet. I understand,” Shrill says as she stops laughing and goes back to normal. Then she looks behind me and her eyes go wide as she points a hoof and yells, “Look out Ratchet! Salt! Don’t spill it!” And burst out into laughter again, joined by Cygnus.

I roll my head and let out a groan. “Ughhhh, let’s goooo,” I say and I begin to walk away. I hear them walking after me, but they are laughing so hard their steps are uneven.

“Wait Ratchet!” Cygnus calls out, “Don’t step on a crack!” Oh Celestia, this is my life now. Just keep walking, ignore them...just keep walking.

===~+~===

After an excruciatingly long journey, mainly due to all the snickering and jokes at my expense, we reach my lab. It is odd how two ponies who started off suspicious of each other got so close, so quickly. You’d almost not know that Shrill was trying to win my affection and Cygnus thinks he owes me for letting him out.

But thankfully, as soon as the door opens to the lab, Shrill is left speechless. Well, for a while at least. “This is...where you life?” She says in amazement.

“Yep. It’s no stable, but it is home. Complete with living quarters, a medical area, and a bathroom,” I say with a smile.

“A bathroom you say? Such luxury. I’ve seen bathrooms though, nothing special there,” Shrill says, looking around.

“Hey Cygnus, want to show her around, let her pick out a bed and what not? I want to get to work on Cora’s armor,” I ask him. Cygnus nods, but Shrill raises an eyebrow.

“Cora’s armor? Does an AI need armor?” She asks.

“You’ll see,” I tell her with a smile. “Show her the workshop last, and take your time. I might be able to finish up before you get to me.”

“Sure thing, come along Shrill, we’ll start in medical,” Cygnus says and he starts to walk away with Shrill trotting excitedly after him. Given how excited she seems, I don’t think Grimoire lives in the most luxurious of locations. Not like that narrows down the search much.

I head to the workshop and begin tinkering on the spark battery according to Cora’s designs. As I build it, I hear Shrill shout, “IT’S SO CLEAN!” I can’t help but snicker.

It takes a bit, but I manage to produce the rechargeable battery. “Now then, let’s charge it up and hook it in,” I mutter as I use the magic charging port and focus my magic into it. After a few minutes, my strength is sapped, but the battery is full.

“You ready, Cora?” I ask as I plug the battery into the armor.

“Of course, Ratchet!” Cora replies. “But, let’s wait a moment. Cygnus and Shrill are heading our way.”

A few moments later, the door opens and the two enter. “The bathroom...it is so clean…” Shrill says as she enters. “How?” She asks.

Cygnus and I chuckle. “I’m kind of a stickler for cleanliness. When I first woke up and got back here, all of us cleaned it once we cleared out some rubble blocking the tunnels,” I tell her. “But now, you asked earlier about Cora’s armor? Well, I finished so it is time to feast your eyes on my genius!” I cough and make a correction, “Cora’s genius, she made the plans. I just did the work.”

I plug into the armor and transfer Cora in. “Alright Cora, go ahead with start up procedures!” I declare.

“Sounds good!” She replies. “Initial system diagnostics...complete. Systems online. Running power diagnostics...98.7% efficiency. Initiating AI override, assuming control.” The armor’s visor glows a icy blue and the armor trembles for a moment. “Full control has been transferred, executing movement diagnostics.”

Cora begins walking around the room, crouching, jumping, and balancing at various angles. “It’s moving...on its own?” Shrill says, staring on in amazement. “But, it is just ranger armor, right? Not a robot?”

I chuckle. “Correct, it is just armor that Cora and I have modified. Added some systems to allow her to move the armor, use the weapons, that kind of thing. I can still get in it if I want as well. It is hollow, after all,” I tell her.

“Movement diagnostics complete. All servos, gyros, and pistons functioning at acceptable thresholds. Beginning weapon diagnostics.” Cora says, and begins moving Raptor Blood around along with the other weapons. The sniper and assault rifle have a much smaller field of movement, but just enough for precision aiming.

“Retracting ammo belts. Testing firing sequences.” Her guns click a few times. “Firing sequence successful. Initiating final test, complex wide range movement.” She shakes and stretches before striking a variety of poses. Laying down, rotating her upper and lower body separately, and finally standing on her rear hooves. It looks really odd and her guns won’t be able to hit anything in front of her that way.

“Testing complete,” Cora says. “It is perfect, Ratchet! I love it!”

“That’s good,” I say with a smile. “You can stay in it as long as you want. You should be able to just hook into the lab’s system yourself and power off the armor when you want. You can also probably enter it similarly, assuming it is hooked in and still has enough power to start up.”

Cora nods. “Of course. I want to run some more tests. I’ll be walking around the lab, getting used to the feeling of having my own body,” She says happily. It is kind of bizarre having a suit of armor talk to you happily, knowing that nothing inside of it is physically smiling.

“We’ll charge the battery again before we go anywhere. But for now, it is getting late. Those of us who need it should probably get some sleep. Today was...an adventure. Not our usual kind, but an adventure never-the-less,” I mutter, stretching my limbs.

Cygnus frowns. “I was the one who did all the work this time, how are you tired?” He asks.

“Oh,” Shrill chimes in, “she is tired for an entirely different reason, right?” She says, giving me a wink. I feel my mane prickle a bit. Cygnus just lets out a sigh and leaves the room. Once he’s gone, Shrill adds, “Shall we go to bed too, darling?”

“Yeahhhh…I guess,” I mutter uncomfortably. “Hey Cora, don’t make too much noise, ok?”

“I’ll try not to!” She declares as she walks around in a circle. Shrill and I leave the workshop and head to the living quarters. Cygnus is already in his bed, and I begin walking over to mine, which curiously has another one push right up against it.

Shrill happily trots over the the bed adjoining mine and beams me a broad smile. “No,” I say simply as I walk over. She pouts, and pulls her bed back to where it was originally. We both climb under our covers, and I turn to face her.

“Hey Shrill,” I call to her.

“Change your mind?” She says with glee.

“No. Tomorrow, I want to ask you about Grimoire and Discordia. I need as much information I can get about them,” I tell her.

“Oh,” Shrill says disappointedly. “Fine, I don’t mind,” She says, pulling her blankets up. “Good night, Ratchet.”

“Good night, Shrill,” I tell her. “Night Cygnus,” I call over to him, halfway across the room.

“Night,” He calls back.

“Night Cygnus!” Shrill calls out playfully.

Cygnus sighs. “Night Shrill,” He replies. The three of us then remain quiet as I hit the light switch with my magic. A few minutes later, there is a loud bang from somewhere in the lab.

“I’m OK!” Cora yells, “Just fell!” She seems to realize she’s yelling, and remembers I told her to be quiet. “Oops! Sorry!” She calls again. “Sorry!” She calls again, in a quieter voice. “Sorry!” She calls again, even quieter. I think she’s done as it is quiet for about a minute. Then a blue glow lights up the room and I turn to see Cora’s head peaking in the room. “Sorry,” She says in a normal level of volume.

“We get it!” I call over to her. I hear Shrill giggling behind me.

Yep. This is my life now.

===~+~===

Quest Updated!

The Chaos Crusade - Ask Shrill about Grimoire and Discordia.

Chapter 21 - Q&A

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 22 - Old World Goods

"Rusted, broken, and in disrepair? *chuckle* Where’s the manual?"

===~+~===

Checkpoint 3-84, a former military checkpoint that served as an inspection point for goods going between Manehatten and Canterlot. Before that, it was a railyard. Now, the perimeter fence is now rusted and flimsy, but has been fortified with wrecked train cars, sky carriages, and rotting shipment crates. The checkpoint consists of four buildings, a lodging structure, two maintenance garages, and a tool shed.

Standing on a small hill to the southwest of the checkpoint, I can make out that much. We are just far enough away they shouldn’t be aware of us yet, but it also makes it hard for us to get good look as well. Well, all of us aside from Cora, that is. She insisted on an optics upgrade so she could properly use her sniper rifle.

“The tool shed is locked, chained up pretty tight too,” Cora tells us. “Four of them seem to patrol around the checkpoint, inside the fence, all wearing power armor. Two are on makeshift towers looking out into the wasteland, only one is in armor. I see two more in the east maintenance garage, and three in the western garage. I don’t see anyone else.” She says, tilting her head.

Shrill clicks her tongue. “Seems they have their weapons locked up in the shed. Only reason I can see why they’d lock it,” She mutters.

“Let’s hope they don’t get a reason to open it,” I sigh. “Ok Shrill, get us inside,” I say, giving her a push on the shoulder. She sighs, but walks forward with the rest of us following behind. The plan is simple, have Shrill talk us in, and then talk to Saber.

It takes us a thirty minutes, but we finally near the makeshift gate, essentially two large pieces of plywood. The Junk Rat on the tower near it notices us immediately. “You lot there, what is your business here? If you wish to pass through this valley, you’ll pay our toll,” The buck bellows, his voice amplified by the power armor’s speaker.

His armor is mostly intact, but in some places it seems like it is welded together with odd bits of scrap metal. His gun is more impressive, a fairly high quality looking assault rifle. I was no expert, but it did shine a lot more than any other gun I’ve seen so far. Shrill lets out a loud, bored sigh and says, “It’s me, Shrill. Open it up.”

The buck seems to think that over for a moment. “Shrill...Shrill...Oh, that Discordia bitch? Yea, I remember you now,” he says, and I notice Shrill flinch at the word bitch. “Madam Saber said she’d think about your offer, didn’t she? Don’t you have better things to do? Maybe go slut it up with another gang or something?” The buck chuckles. I look over at Cygnus and see him with a hoof over his mouth shaking slightly.

Shrill’s face contorts into a messed up grin, and I notice her eyebrow twitching a little. “I have some new information I want to discuss,” she says, clearly very irritated, but trying to be polite. “So, if you would just open the gate and let us in…” Shrill trails off, expecting him to take the bait and open the gate.

“I don’t feel like it,” The buck says, stretching. “The gate is a pain to open. But...I’ll tell you what, my shift ends in about an hour. I’m sure Bruno would be more than happy to open it for you, probably,” he shrugs.

Shrill curses under her breath. “I swear, you underestimate a group’s intelligence once, and they never let you live it down,” she mutters, barely audible. “Look here,” Shrill says loudly, “Madam Saber will want to hear what I have to say, so just…” But the buck cuts her off.

“You can keep talking all you want, I’m not going to let you in. Let’s face it, you’re mouth is only good for one thing, and it sure isn’t good for convincing me to open this gate,” He tells her, and I hear Cygnus let out a chuckle before Shrill shoots him a glare and attempts to stifle his laughter. “But...Maybe I can make an exception. Maybe if you were to give us that power armor you’ve got there,” he says, motioning over to Cora.

Shrill has clearly become flustered and is no longer attempting to maintain her usual dignified manner of speech. “That’s...not really mine...to give,” she replies, looking off to the side. I clear my throat and put a hoof on her shoulder.

“I’m afraid I can’t give you that suit, but I do have something to offer that you might be interested in,” I tell him. “So, let us in and let me talk to your boss. Because if you look closely at this armor, you’ll see that it is a custom model that I built myself,” I add.

The buck seems to consider this for a moment. “Who are you? You don’t look like the last guards little miss slut had,” he asks.

“I’m new,” I say simply. “So. Are you going to let us in, or are you going to have to explain to your boss how you let someone with my knowledge walk away?” I ask him with a smile.

He growls, but says, “Fine. She’s in the usual place, Shrill knows.” Upon saying this, the gate begins to open. “Mind your manners this time, slut. We like to keep things classy,” he says as the four of us walk through the gate, Shrill giving him a death glare the entire time.

Shrill leads us towards the lodging building, and as we walk, some of the other Junk Rats patrolling the interior eye us suspiciously as we walk across the compound. Some of them chuckle and mutter things barely audible. No doubt, they are taking shots at Shrill. I wonder what exactly it was she did to earn their disapproval.

We reach the building without issue and Shrill opens the door and we go inside. Our entrance rouses a few of the Junk Rats from what they are doing, and they glance at us for a moment. Then they return to their business with light chuckles. Shrill lets out a sigh and we continue through the building.

The lodging building is more of a warehouse, really. At least before the war it would have been. During the war, it was probably transformed into a barracks for the occupying soldiers. It still has random wooden crates stacked up along the walls and in a few places they seem to be stacked to make something resembling rooms. Glancing into a few of these rooms, I see simple cots and other personal items.

Seems the Junk Rats each had their own box fort room in the building, but we walk past all of them and climb a set of stairs at the back. It leads us up to a large room overlooking the rest of the warehouse. The door has a place for a nameplate to be slid into it, but the old one is gone and replaced with the name Madam Saber. Shrill knocks on the door.

I hear a bit of rustling from inside the room, along with an angry growl and some cursing. The door flies open, almost hitting Shrill, and an angry looking mare shouts, “I thought I said not to disturb me!” She blinks a few times and eyes us over, glaring angrily. “Well, if it ain’t the whore,” She says with a twisted smile. “Don’t recognize the rest of you. You her guards this time around?” She asks, but shakes her head.

“Never mind, it doesn’t matter,” She says angrily. “You’re here now, you might as well come in,” The mare turns from the doorway and returns into the room, leaving the door open. “And shut the damn door, too,” She adds as we start to funnel into the room.

“Thank you, Madam Saber,” Shrills says, entering through first. Cygnus enters last and closes the door behind us. Meanwhile, Saber, trots over to an old forklift and sits down on it. It is an industrial model, wider than others. It is missing the wheels, and the lifting instruments, so it is basically a chair now. Though, I suppose it can be equated to a throne. Saber gestures to a few cushions in front of her and we walk over to them.

I take this opportunity to look about the room. Besides the throne, there is a fairly large bed in one corner as well. Like the rest of the wasteland though, it has clearly seen better days. Scrap metal litters the floor and shelves. Along the wall with the windows overlooking the rest of the building, is a desk with a working terminal on it. There is a very menacing looking rifle on the desk as well.

But what stands out the most, is the power armor that sits beside Saber’s throne. It is attached to a winch to support its weight, but it is polished and shines in the light of the setting sun. The armor is the most pristine power armor I’ve seen so far. Even the Rangers of Stable 36 didn’t have armor that looked this new.

The armor is trimmed with golden paint that makes it look very regal and important. It is equipped with two weapons, a flamer, also in good condition sits on the right side. On the left side is an augmented laser rifle. It is longer than normal rifles, and seems to be more streamline than any I’ve seen before. I wonder if she uses it for sniping.

Saber coughing snaps me from my wonderment. “Alright Shrill,” She begins. “What do you want this time? I already heard your proposal about joining Discordia, and I said I’d think about it. Well, I’m still thinking. I might be thinking for a few years, maybe the rest of my life if I feel like it,” Saber tells her with a glare. Clearly, Saber didn’t like the original proposal.

“Well,” Shrill says, tapping her hooves together. “I actually have a different proposal for you this time,” She says timidly. Her usual confident, arrogant self is gone. Saber runs a hoof through her yellow mane as she tilts her head. She doesn’t look amused. “Well, you see, I’m sort of...no longer with Discordia,” Shrill mutters almost inaudible.

Saber tilts her head even further and I hear her neck pop a few times. “Ahhhh,” Saber says in pleasure. “That’s the best,” She says, itching her mane a bit. Her purple eyes are dark and threatening, piercing into Shrill. “So, no longer in Discordia then, hu?” She says, shifting her weight and resting her head on her hoof. “You want to join the Junk Rats then?” Saber asks, seeming disgusted at the thought.

“That’s not it, it is actually sort of…” Shrill trails off, looking down at the ground. Saber lets out a sigh and points a her other hoof at Shrill.

“Will you fucking stop that already?” Saber growls at her. “You did the same thing the first time you were here. Acting all pathetic and cute, it is disgusting. You even mistook me for a buck when I was in my armor and tried to get me in bed. We know this is all an act, so just be your damn self,” She declares.

Shrills eyes go wide, “What, no, I…” She narrows her eyes and clicks her tongue. “Even if I knew you were a mare, I’d have tried to get you into bed,” She says in her usual tone, but quickly turns to me. “But that was a long time ago, Ratchet dear! You’re all I want now!” Saber laughs, and Shrill turns back to her. “You want our new proposal? I’m not the one to give it. Ratchet is in charge, she can tell you,” She says, giving me the floor.

“Ratchet, huh?” Saber mutters, looking at me boredly. “She doesn’t look special. Actually kind of looks like a scribe, all nerdy and shit. You left Discordia for her, huh?” Saber tilts her head again and puts her hooves in front of her. “Let’s hear it then! What is your proposal!” She says with glee and a manic smile.

I look into her eyes and tell her simply, “I want you to join Discordia, as a spy for me.” Saber looks at me with her expression unchanging for a good minute before she moves again. She jerks her head to its normal position and points to the door.

“Get out,” Saber says, her smile gone and her eyes dark. “I don’t work for anyone, left that shit behind when I left the Steel Rangers,” She says. Her expression says she will kill us all of we don’t leave, but I’m not ready to quit yet.

“We can help each other. But, let’s talk about that in a moment,” I tell her. “You don’t strike me as a bad pony, and I think that has something to do with why you left the Steel Rangers and are here now. Besides, I have some things you might be interested in,” I say, not taking my eyes off of her.

“You don’t know a thing about me,” Saber replies, growling. “But what could you possibly have to offer me?” She asks, seeming to settle down a little. I fiddle with my PipBuck for a moment, pulling up the schematics.

“These,” I say, turning my leg so she can look at the designs. I flip through a few before pulling my leg back. “Schematics and upgrades for power armor. You seem to be building and repairing suits. These schematics can help you with that, and even make the suits better.”

She narrows her eyes at me. “Just who are you?” She asks. I chuckle a bit. I’ve always wanted to do something like this. Make myself seem important. And it just so happens, I can do just that now!

“I am a Chief Researcher for the Ministry of Arcane Sciences, and a Scribe Crusader of the Ministry of Wartime Technology. My name is Ratchet, the mare from before the war. It is nice to meet you,” I say, puffing out my chest. Saber bawks at me, raising an eyebrow.

After a moment, she seems to compose herself. “I’ve heard of Chief Researchers, sure. But a Scribe Crusader? What the fuck. And you’re supposedly from before the war? Get the fuck out,” She says, shaking her head.

I smile, I knew she wouldn’t believe me. “If you had the rosters of all current Steel Rangers, you would find my name on it, and my special rank. But I’ll tell you about it for now. I’m equivalent to at least a Paladin, but with the freedom of a Star Paladin. My rank was appointed by Ministry Mare Applejack herself due to my tinkering with power armor and sharing my upgrades with her. Of course, if you can’t check the register, you have no way of knowing for sure if I’m telling the truth,” I say, shrugging my shoulders.

“Similarly, how can I be from before the war? I look so young! What if I told you I’m actually over fifty years old? You look like you were born after the war, so I can’t convince you of the truth behind this. But just look at these schematics, could a normal pony make these?” I ask her. “Someone from after the war who has no military knowledge?” I add.

“Anyone could have stumbled across those designs in some pre-war ruin,” Saber counters. “Just because you have them, it doesn’t mean you made them.” I nod.

“That’s true. But, take a look at this one,” I say, pulling up the wiring design Cora created. “Does this make sense to you?” I ask her, she shakes her head. “It works. It is what is currently being used in my friend’s body right here,” I tell her, motioning over to Cora. “She’s the one who designed that specific schematic. And I’m the one who created her. Hey Cora, open up, will you?” I ask her.

“Of course!” Cora replies and turns her back to Saber. After a moment, the armor opens, revealing the fact it is hollow inside. Saber’s eyes go wide. Cora moves around a bit while the armor is open to give Saber a good look inside.

“It’s...empty?” She gasps. “How’s it moving? Talking? What is it, some sort of robot?” She asks, raising an eyebrow.

“Close, but so far,” I tell her. “You can close up now, Cora,” I say, tapping Cora’s armor with a hoof. “Cora is an AI I made myself. She’s integrated into the armor, and with a variety of servos, gyros, and the like, she’s able to move it around. Of course, it is a lighter model of power armor to maximize her energy usage,” I say proudly.

Saber tilts her head again. “I see, interesting,” She grins menacingly again. “Let’s say I believe you for now. You wanted us to join Discordia and spy for you, you say?” She asks. I nod. “Why?” Saber asks simply.

“Discordia, and their leader Grimoire needs to be stopped. Grimoire plans to destroy everything, bring chaos to the world. I want to stop him,” I tell her.

“You don’t say,” Saber mutters. “I thought that Shrill’s whole spiel was kind of messed up. But to think he wants to destroy everything,” She smiles wider. “Tell me more,” She says. I tell her everything I know. Grimoire’s plans, Discordia, everything. At the end of it all, she chuckles.

“And you want us to spy on Discordia’s activities for you? Maybe you should tell me exactly what you want us to do,” Saber suggests, rolling her head around to rest it on her hoof once more.

“Grimoire is a mystery. If you can find out anything about him, that would be great. But, for the most part, I want to know when Discordia is planning something. Given their fragmented nature, you probably won’t have to do much unless something big happens. Right Shrill?” I ask her for confirmation and she nods.

“So, we act all cozy with them, get on their good side, and when they have something big planned we run to you?” Saber summarizes. I nod. She gives a wide, toothy grin and declares, “Well that just sounds fucking fantastic! Guarding this pass is only so entertaining, and I’d like to see exactly what us Junk Rats can do.”

“You’ll help us then?” I ask. Saber’s attitude really reminds me of Twinkle. Twinkle follow a sense of duty though, where as it seems Saber just does what she wants.

Saber nods. “I think it will be fun! Sure, I could join Discordia and kill innocents, but where’s the fun in that? I like a challenge, and if they number in the thousands like you say, this will be one hell of a challenge. Of course, I want those armor schematics,” She tells me.

“Of course. I’ll download them onto your terminal before we leave. There is just a bit more I want to discuss first. Remember I said that I don’t think you are a bad pony? Well, I want to confirm that. Why did you leave the Steel Rangers?” I ask her.

“Ha! How is that going to tell you if I am good or bad? You’re from before the war, right? You know them as the military. So me going AWOL must not sit right with you, hu?” She asks with a snarl.

“That’s not it,” I tell her, shaking my head. “I met some rangers after the war, from Stable 36. They got me up to speed, told me about the other contingents of the Rangers. How they attacked innocents or stayed in their bunkers and haven’t come out yet. I know how bad they are. So. Tell me why,” I ask her again.

Saber sighs. “You see this armor?” She gestures at her power armor. “This is the armor I wore as a Ranger, as a Star Paladin,” She tells me, shaking her head. “My contingent, more than two hundred soldiers and one hundred scribes, are nothing but cowards. Our bunker is in the frozen north. A ways north of the Crystal Empire. Just far enough away from it, we didn’t get hit with much radiation when the bombs fell,” She says.

I feel my face make a shocked expression. “You mean, the Crystal Empire got hit too?” I ask her. Saber nods. “Then, you came all the down here, from there?” I ask.

“Of course. I didn’t want them to find me easily. Had to walk through the snow, which is all irradiated, by the way. Had to go through at least a dozen rad away just to make it through. Also ran into a few wyrms on the way as well. For whatever reason, they are swarming up there. But let’s not get off subject. My contingent plans to stay cooped up in the bunker for quite some time,” She says.

Saber clears her throat and says in an odd voice, “Until things outside are more normal.” She twists her face in disgust. “That’s what our Elder says. I kept probing her to let us out, to help, to do anything, but she kept refusing. I finally said fuck it, and left. I doubt the cowards will come after me, it has been years already. They probably didn’t even think about it, just abandoned me out here.” Saber chuckles.

“So here I am!” She yells. “Leader of the Junk Rats, charging ponies a toll just to go through this valley! Some brave ranger I turned out to be, hu?” She says, shaking her head.

I smile. “From what Shrill says, you are. You don’t just charge them for passage, but you also kill anything hostile in the valley, right? You make it safe. And, if I had to guess, you acting like a gang is an act to deter ponies who are weak willed from entering Manehatten, which is full of raiders and other monsters. Am I wrong,” I ask her.

“Tsk, you’re pretty sharp, you know that?” Saber says with a less intimidating grin. “With that out of the way, how do you want us to contact you? Radio signals only travel so far, and you don’t strike me as the type of mare to tell us where you live,” She says with a sly grin. She wasn’t wrong, I’ve been thinking about this for a while as well.

“You know where Ponyville is?” I ask her and she nods. “Good. The buck running things there is named Gunsmoke. I’ve talked with him, and he wants to help us as well. If you find anything out, let him know. He’ll get in touch with us. Though, I’ll have to set that up as well. That’s the plan though,” I tell her. I just hope Gunsmoke agrees to be a go between.

Saber nods. “I suppose I can send a runner if necessary. Now then, any more business to discuss, or will you be putting those schematics on my terminal? I was planning on getting some beauty sleep before you arrived, but I suppose I’ll be pulling an all nighter tinkering with armor thanks to you,” She chuckles.

“That should be all,” I tell her, standing up. “I’ll put them on the terminal for you. Would you mind logging into it?” I ask her. She nods and we walk over to the terminal and she types in her password while I plug my PipBuck into it. After a few moments, the transfer is complete and Saber begins looking over the files.

“Huh, interesting...very interesting. Are you sure this one works?” She asks, looking at the circuitry Cora designed.

“Yea, it is currently what’s running Cora’s armor. Just follow it closely, and it should work. Oh, by the way. Would you mind if we stay here for the night? We’re heading into Manehatten to talk with another gang as well,” I ask her.

“Hm? Oh, yea, sure,” Saber mutters. She seems engrossed in looking at the schematics. “Make yourselves at home. Piss anyone off, it’s your own fault,” She adds. With that, we leave the room and go back downstairs.

“Geez,” Shrill says in frustration. “If they knew I was acting, they should have just told me the first time. How dare they make me look like a fool,” She stomps her hoof.

“We’ll, now you don’t have to act. Dono why you would act anyway,” I tell her. “Your normal personality would probably work better at making ponies want to join you.”

“I tried that a few times, but raiders let their guard down when they think you are pathetic and weak. Like I said, the Junk Rats are intelligent. It didn’t work on them,” She says.

I suppose that’s true. Saber does seem like she’s pretty smart. The other members though…? I look around at a few of them. Two are deep into a game of chess with more than a few pieces replaced with caps or other scrap items. One is reading a Scientific Equestria magazine. Ok, maybe they were all pretty smart.

Though, I guess to build and maintain power armor, even if it is built from scrap, isn’t something just anypony can do. One of the bucks playing chess glances over at us and says, “Oh, you’re right. It is that slut, hu?”

Shrill immediately turns on him and shouts, “Bite your navel and die!” The bucks playing chess just laugh.

“Finally acting like your actual self, hu?” The other buck says. “I like it! In fact, if you keep acting normal, we won’t call you slut anymore. We’ll actually call you Shrill. Though the others might still call ya a slut, but just yell at ‘em like you did us, and they’ll stop,” he chuckles.

“Hey!” Saber calls out from above us. I turn to look up at her. “There are some extra cots in the storage garage. Bruno! Stop slacking off and show them to it!” She orders, and the buck reading the Scientific Equestria grumbles and puts the magazine down.

“Yea, yea. Whatever you say, Madam,” Bruno says as he walks over to us. “Follow me,” the blue buck says. He starts walking towards the exit, and we follow along. We are led outside and to one of the maintenance garages, the one that appeared to have no one in it. “Here it is,” Bruno tell us, opening the door and flipping on the light switch.

The lights slowly flicker to light, and slowly a gigantic mass is revealed. It is almost as long as the garage and nearly as high and rested on the tracks with dozens of wheels. It was a train, a magnificent, horrible, train. Heavily armored and equipped with a giant cannon. Two flack cannons are on the back of it, but have long since rusted beyond use. In fact, the whole thing seems to have been eaten away by rust.

Bruno notices us staring at it. “Oh, yea. That thing. Apparently they used it during the war, it was a prototype or something, never made it into production. I think it was called the Great Celestia. We use it for scrap metal now. Quite a few of our suits have metal from it,” He tells us.

“Anyhow, the cots are over here. There isn’t too much room,” Bruno says, unphased. “With all the scrap and components we’ve collected, it gets messy. Oh, and don’t think of taking anything,” He says, glaring at us. I tear my attention away from the large gun.

“Thanks,” I tell him and help him to unfold the old cots. Cora and Shrill come to help us as well, but Cygnus seems entranced by the train. “Hey, Cygnus, you alright?” I ask, looking at him in concern.

Without taking his eyes from the train, he asks, “It it fixable?” I raise an eyebrow. Did he really want to fix it or something?

Bruno chuckles. “Nah. We had the same though when we first found it. The engine is completely rusted away, the barrel’s rifling has been damaged, and most of the wheels can’t be saved. There is no ammo for the gun anyway,” He explains.

Cygnus puts a hoof against the train’s hull. “Do you know if there is a manual or anything for it?” He asks, sounding forlorn.

Our guide seems to think for a moment, before walking over to a shelf. He pulls out a crazy thick book with his mouth and walks over to Cygnus, who takes it in his. “This is the only thing regarding the train. It appears to be an all inclusive manual that includes schematics and specifications,” Bruno tells him. “Now then, I’m going back to the lodge. I’ve only got a few minutes before my shift starts up,” He says, and leave us in the garage alone.

Cygnus has already opened the book and is reading the contents anxiously. “It weighs almost fifteen hundred tons, the barrel is over one hundred feet, and its bore is thirty one inches. It can’t move too fast, but the ammo is destructive. The effective range is twenty four miles!?” He mumbles.

The rest of us set up our cots and settle in for the night. “Hey, Cygnus, don’t stay up all night reading that, alright?” I call over to him, but he doesn’t even respond. I let out a sigh. “Cora, watch him. And make sure we aren’t going to be ambushed by the Junk Rats, ok? Still not sure I trust them,” I tell her.

“Ok, Ratchet. No problem!” Cora says happily, sitting down and staring at my face. Ok, this might be hard to get to sleep if she keeps staring at me. I wait for her to move, or do something else. But, after a few minutes, I realize she isn’t going to move.

I clear my throat. “Hey Cora, could you, maybe not, you know, stare at me while I’m trying to sleep?” I ask her.

“Hehe,” She giggles. “Sorry about that,” She says as she stands up and goes somewhere else to sit.

“Maybe give Cygnus some light to read by, and turn off the other lights?” I suggest.

“Sounds like a plan!” She replies, turning off the lights overhead and illuminating her visor even more. It bathes us in a cool blue glow. Cygnus says nothing as he continues to read with Cora looking over his shoulder.

===~+~===

Quest Updated!

-Firepower: Complete!

Level Up!

+25 Science
+5 Speech

Chapter 23 - It's Just A Prank

Chapter 23 - It’s Just A Prank

"Surprise!"

===~+~===

Gremlin territory. A two block radius centered on a single story motel. The motel being their main base of operations and everything else designated at their looting territory. Of course, this territory expands every so often, mainly when they run out of buildings to salvage within their current radius. On the buildings surrounding this radius, warnings are painted near a large G. The bottom of which resembles a laughing smile.

The four of us find ourselves on the edge of their territory looking at one of these Gs. Messages ranging from ‘The joke’s on you!’ to ‘Scavengers will be shot. Survivors will be shot again.’ adorn the wall. Some give rather mixed messages, if you ask me. We ignore the messages for the most part and continue into Gremlin territory.

Our goal is the central motel, but if we run into a Gremlin before then, that will work in our favor as well. They like pranks, Shrill said, and tend to trap their territory with them. I would rather not run into any of these pranks if we can avoid it. We get a block in and don’t run into anyone or any traps.

“So far so good,” I mutter. “We’ll make it there in no time if we…” I pause as I hear a faint sound. I perk up my ears to listen for it again. It sounds like...crying? I start walking towards the source and the others follow me. “Do you all hear that?” I ask them.

“Crying?” Cora asks. “Yea, it is coming from just up ahead,” She says. I quicken my pace. It seems to be coming from the fuel station just up ahead. Part of the station is collapsed, allowing easy entry into the building. I spot a baby carriage in the middle of the room. The crying seems to be coming from it. I quickly trot up to it.

“Ratchet, wait,” Shrill says as I approach it. It is turned away from me, so I raise a hoof to turn it around.

“Shhh, It’s ok now,” I say, as I begin to turn it. Suddenly a white glow envelops the carriage and it is sent flying across the room into the wall. My eyes go wide with shock as I turn toward Shrill. “Why did you-” But I’m cut off as an explosion erupts behind me. I turn around and see the carriage engulfed in flame.

“It was a trap, Ratchet,” Shrill says. She floats a doll’s head in front of me, shakes it, and it starts crying. “A cruel and deadly trap,” She says.

“I thought you said the jokes the Gremlins played are harmless?” I ask, a bit shaken up. If Shrill hadn’t noticed and shoved that away, I would have died.

“Last time I was here, they were,” Shrill explains. “The worst you’d get was a bloody nose or something. Something’s doesn’t seem right. We should stay on guard.” Just then, a chorus of laughter breaks out. It seems to be coming from all around us. It get closer, and after a few moments, about six ponies come into view.

“Gotcha!” One of them yells. “Looks like you survived the blast though! Seems you got some luck! But let’s see if that luck holds out!” More laughing from the rest rings out. They get closer.

“Oh, wait a sec!” A mare calls out. “That one, the white one! That’s that Discordia ambassador person, Shrill, I think?” She says. The others mutter in agreement.

“Well, what are you doing out here Shrill? Come by for a visit? I’m sure the boss would love to see ya!” A buck says as they all continue laughing. It is like they are all insane almost, but they don’t seem to be that far gone.

“Why don’t we escort ya back there, no sense in you running into any more traps!” A third buck says. They group together and all smile, waiting for us to follow them.

“That sounds good,” Shrill says. The four of us begin to follow the Gremlins back to the motel. After a while, a few of them leave to patrol the area, leaving only two of them. It isn’t much longer and we reach the motel. Our guides stop suddenly and turn to us. One of them walks over to Cygnus and puts a hoof up to his chest.

“You have something on your barding, right here,” He says. “You should take a look, it is very unbecoming.” Oddly enough, he says it with a completely straight face, gazing seriously into Cygnus’s eyes.

Cygnus looks completely unamused. “Do you think I’m a colt? That is the oldest trick in the book. I’d look down and you’d hit me in the face. I thought you guys were supposed to be funny?” Cygnus asks.

The buck prods him a few more times, but finally says, “Ahh, you’re no fun! We’ll get you yet though.” They turn around again and lead us through the crumbling wall of the motel. It takes us to a small room. They keep going and open the door leading to a hallway.

The hallway is cleaner than the rest of the buildings I’ve seen in the wasteland. Though, by prewar standards it still still pretty grimey. We walk down the hallway into what was once the lobby of the motel. They lead us past the destroyed front desk, and into the back room. Probably the staff lounge.

It isn’t anything special, probably the smaller than the motel rooms. There is a terminal resting on a desk against the wall to our right. Scrap paper litters the floor, almost like pages of a book were torn apart. In a locked display case hanging on the wall directly in front of the door. Two old posters hang on the wall, flanking the case. They are Ministry of Moral posters. The left one shows Pinkie Pie smiling at the viewer with the phrase ‘Pinkie Pie is Watching You!’. The right poster shows Pinkie shooting a cannon exploding with confetti as balloons fly around her, saying ‘Smile!’

Posters like these were commonplace during the war. In addition to a variety of others from each ministry. But these posters paled in comparison to what was help within the display case. A single figurine of Pinkie Pie, just as Shrill said. It looks almost brand new. Just looking at it made me want to smile.

Despite how I want to linger my gaze on the figurine, I move it to the couch where a bright pink pony sits, smiling. Across from him, in the center of the room, is another couch. Between them is a simple coffee table. “Hey Gremlock,” The mare escorting us says in a sing-songy voice, “Guess who’s back!”

Gremlock smiles wider. “Well hey! If it isn’t Shrill, our old friend! Well, maybe not too old. We did only meet for the first time a few weeks ago. But I feel like we’re already so close. Great, great friends!” He chuckles and claps his hooves together. “Please, please, you and your friends sit down! No need to stand around so awkwardly! I know I tend to ramble at times, so your legs will get tired if you insist on standing around!” Gremlocks laughs heartily, gesturing to the couch in front of him.

We shuffle towards the couch and sit down, but it is only big enough for three of us, so Cora stands beside me. The door closes, but the other Gremlins stay in the room. They stand in the corners behind us. “Hope you don’t mind if they listen in,” Gremlocks says, “You can never be too careful in the wasteland, and we didn’t take your guns. Now then, how can I help you this time, Shrill?”

Gremlock’s smile never falters. Come to think of it, I don’t remember those other two behind us not smiling, aside from when the buck tried to fool Cygnus. “We have a proposition for you,” Shrill says. She’s using that timid voice again. “It is about joining Discordia,” She says. Gremlock’s face brightens up.

“I thought as much! That’s what you were here about last time too! But, if you’re here now, that must mean something has changed! Tell me, Shrill, what is this new proposal you have!” His smile only widens as he talks. He is like a madman, constantly stifling his laughter.

“Sharp as always,” Shrill compliments him. “You’d still be joining Discordia, but you will be doing something different than the usual gangs that join up. You’ll be spies,” She explains. This causes Gremlock to burst out into a fit of laughter.

“That sounds interesting! Tons of fun too! Spying is just like playing a prolonged prank! Oh, this reminds me, I heard an interesting rumor recently. It has to do with Discordia. Apparently, there was a big fight recently. Something crazy! All of the Discordia members died, or so it is said,” Gremlock says, clasping his hooves together.

“You mean the attack on the ranger Stable?” Shrill asks. “Yea, it was apparently a bloodbath. Though the rangers ended up victorious.”

Gremlock shakes his head. “That’s not what I’m talking about. This rumor says that Grimoire himself captured someone, but when he returned to where he was keeping them, everyone was dead and his captive gone,” Gremlock says, his grin twisting into a menacing crescent moon. I swallow. What he’s talking about, it couldn’t possibly be… “There was one Discordia member missing, though. You, Shrill,” He says, almost purring. This might be bad.

“So, I was thinking,” Gremlock continues, “either you survived and went after the captive, or the captive captured you. But…” He trails off, looking over the four of us. “Since the captive was a mare, and that,” He gestures at Cora, “is an empty suit of armor, that means that this mare in the labcoat must be the captive.” Not good, not good, not good!

“I decided to drag this conversation out to see how you act,” Gremlock explains. “And, it looks as though you aren’t being held against your will. Meaning, that you must have left Discordia!” He declares, clapping his hooves giddily.

“B-Brilliant skills of deduction, Gremlock,” Shrill replies, a bit nervously. I think we are all feeling nervous right now. There is just one question that will decide what happens here though.

“Of course! Pranks are all about deduction, well, reverse deduction, I suppose. If you can figure out how someone will react to something, you can engineer a prank just for them! But I digress. If you left Discordia, and want me to join Discordia, but say I will be spying. That can only mean one thing! You want me to spy on Discordia for you! Am I correct!?” Gremlock asks, shaking with laughter.

“That is correct,” Shrill admits. “We want to take Grimoire down,” She explains. And now, the one question. Whose side is Gremlock on?

“Excellent! Excellent! That sounds brilliantly fun!” Gremlock is racked with laughter. So much so, his laughter turns raspy. “Oh this is so great! So very great! Oh Shrill, you have made this so much fun! I do believe we will help you!” He declares, throwing his hooves into the air and beaming widely.

We all let out a collective sigh. That’s a loud off. Things would have gotten very bad if he refused our proposal. “That’s great,” Shrill says. “Now then, let’s discuss our plan in a bit more detail,” She begins.

Gremlock’s grin shifts into a twisted crescent as he tilts his head back. “Just. Kidding.” He declares as his eyes sparkle. I look at him in confusion. But then I hear the shuffling behind us and my blood runs cold. “We’ve sided with Discordia already. Oh the look on your faces! The look of the despair you are gazing upon, the turmoil! The inner conflict! Oh such beautiful expressions! This is why we prank, this is why we joined Discordia! To look upon the faces of thousands of ponies as we prank them into the depths of despair!” Gremlock cackles, throwing his head back as his hoof slides under his couch cushion.

Cygnus has started muttering, Shrill appears as frightened as I am, and Cora is...I’m not sure. Gremlock lifts a revolver from under his cushion and transfers it to his mouth, still laughing around the bit. “Duck!” Cygnus shouts right as a riot shield takes form in front of us. His shout snaps me out of it and Gremlock shoots his revolver, but the bullet hits the shield, causing it to start flying towards us. Shril, Cygnus, and I duck behind our couch as the Gremlins behind us open fire.

I catch the shield with my magic, and hold it between us and Gremlock, whose eyes seem to be dancing. Meanwhile, Cora is shooting at the ones behind us. I focus on the shield and bash it into Gremlock, shoving him into the back of the couch and holding him there. After a few more seconds, the shooting behind us stops.

We peek over the back and see the two Gremlins lying dead. “I’ve detected more outside,” Cora tells us. “Around ten, but more could be coming,” She says.

Shit. “Hey Cora, you think you can run through the wall opposite the door? These walls don’t seem very thick,” I ask her. She starts running and turns to run directly into the wall, right where the display case is. She charges through without a problem. “Follow her, we need to get outside,” I declare as I walk towards the hole she made. Gremlock is still laughing from behind the shield as we make our way though.

As I’m about to enter into the next room, I notice the figurine among the rubble. “Yoink,” I mutter as I pick it up with my magic and toss it in my saddlebags. We enter into the typical motel room, one large room with a smaller one, probably a bathroom, in the corner. A deteriorated bed is in another corner, a kitchen in the third, and a TV and chair in the fourth. Though, the whole room can be walked across in a matter of five good strides.

I look to the door on our left, which should lead into the hallway we came in from. That would probably be a bad idea, since more Gremlins would enter from there as well. “Forward march! Though the wall again Cora!” I declare. I’m not sure why, but I can tell if we keep going straight we’ll make it out without any obstacles. Cora charges through the next wall, and we follow her into another room exactly the same as the previous. “Keep going!” I shout to her, as we run through the rooms.

We pass through two more rooms and she’s about to hit the next one, but a nagging feeling makes me call out to her. “Wait!” I shout. She skids to a halt inches from the wall. I walk over to it and knock on it with a hoof. Yep, that is concrete. Not the thin drywall we’ve been running through before. It would definitely do damage to Cora’s body.

As I think about our next move, I hear Gremlock’s voice from behind us. “Get Linen! She won’t want to miss this fun!” He shouts happily. It is almost like two of his friends didn’t just get killed. Who is this Linen though? Ugh, nevermind that. We need to get outside.

“Cygnus, your turn! Blow up this wall. It is concrete, so whatever you got that can do that,” I tell him. He nods and starts mumbling. A minute later, a tan brick appears in front of him. He sticks it to the wall.

“Back into the previous room,” Cygnus says as he trots briskly into the room we just came from. We follow and as soon as we get on the other side of the wall, a large explosion erupts. Concrete flies in through the hole Cora made. Once thing settle down, we walk back into the other room.

The previously dirty room is now even dirtier, dust and concrete chunks litter everywhere. Quite a few bits of concrete are wedged into the walls as well. The old wallpaper is on fire as well. “Good work!” I tell him. “Alright, outside now, then the fight really begins,” I say, walking towards the hole leading outside.

I step through the hole and look around outside. No Gremlins, just a rubble filled street. Across the road is a half collapsed convenience store. I start walking over to it. “We should take cover in there, see how the Gremlins react,” I tell the others. Cora and Cygnus start following me out with Shrill exiting last.

As we make our way across, I see rain starting to fall. It isn’t much more than a drizzle to start with, but my PipBuck clicks a bit. But after a few moments the drizzle turns into a downpour and my PipBuck’s clicking picks up rapidly. I hear Shrill curse under her breath. “We need to turn back!” She shouts. “We have to get back into the building!”

We’ve already made it a third of the way to the convenience store and she wants to turn back? “Why? We are almost-” A flash of lightning cuts me off and the following thunder drowns out my voice. My PipBuck’s clicking reaches its peak, sounding someone furiously crinkling up paper. I quickly glance down at it and see the needle all the way at the maximum point. How many rads per second was that? Way too much to be good.

I turn around immediately, and the four of us spill back into the motel room we left from. “Wha-what’s going on?” I ask Shrill. It isn’t like this is the first time it has rained in the wasteland around me before. It was fine near my lab and Stable 36. It even snowed! Which given that it is early fall, is kind of odd now that I think of it.

My PipBuck’s clicking slows to a minimal level as Shrill answers my question. “It is a radiation storm,” Shrill explains. “We aren’t that far from the Manehatten Crater, you know, where the megaspell hit? It is still heavily irradiated around there, and since we are only three blocks from the outer edge of the irradiated zone, weather is deadly.”

“Previous rainstorms gather radiation from the crater, and then it gets collected in the clouds. Then when it rains, the radiation leaks back out. It isn’t just rain though, when the wind blows heavily it can carry dust from the crater which will also get you. But rain is the worst by far since it also brings lingering radiation back to the surface,” Shrill informs us. “We won’t be able to leave this building for a few hours after the rain stops,” She adds.

This certainly ruined my fall back and see what they do plan. But it raises another question. “Why aren’t the Pegasi doing anything about it? I know they aren’t exactly helpful as of late, but why would they let radiation filled clouds stay around? It can’t be good for them either,” I ask.

Shrill shrugs. “It is probably easier for them to just ignore them. I doubt any Pegasi live above Manehatten. More than likely, it isn’t close enough for them to care,” She states simply.

I sigh. What happened with the Pegasi that caused them to just abandon the surface? Sure, it isn’t perfect, but with help it can thrive again. That’s what I hope, at least. From what everyone says, it is like they just left the surface to die. “That’s messed up,” I mutter.

“Messed up or not,” Cygnus says, “we’ve got a more pressing issue.” Laughter starts to reach my ears. Cygnus is right, since we are in this motel, we are trapped with the enemy. And they know where we went. It is only a matter of time before fighting starts. Right now it is kill or be killed. They joined up with Discordia, if we don’t stop them, they will hurt others. So, why can’t I seem to bring myself to make the first move?

Thunder flashes before my eyes. He died because of my decisions. If I wasn’t leading, he wouldn’t have died. Is that why I can’t bring myself to lead an attack? Why I wanted to retreat to wait and see? If we stay here, they will come to us or trap the way to them. The longer we wait, the higher the probability we will die. So why am I hesitating? The Rangers taught me that hesitation in battle is what causes battles to be won or lost, what causes ponies to die.

Why am I the one in charge? I can’t do this, I’m a scientist for Celestia’s sake! What made me think I could lead ponies into fights? To fight a threat as huge as Grimoire and his army? I couldn’t even keep Thunder alive against mindless ghouls! I feel my body shaking as I stare blankly at the hole Cora made crashing through the walls. “Ratchet, what’s wrong?” Cygnus says, waving a hoof in front of me.

The laughter just keeps getting louder and other laughs join in forming a chorus. I’m scared. Terrified. I fall to my butt and wrap my hooves around myself. I can’t stop shaking. Why? That single word rings through my head countless times. Sometimes it is followed by others. Why am I here? Why are the others following me? Why can’t I do anything? Why is the wasteland like this? Why? Why? Why?! Why! I start shaking my head, looking down at the dirty floor.

I’m losing it. The others are looking at me in concern, saying words that I can’t hear. Only one word reaches me: “Why?” And then I register the words that followed it: “are you just sitting there?” It isn’t spoken with concern, but with disappointment. I don’t recognize the voice. I look up, look past my friends, and see the figure standing behind them. My friends don’t seem to know he’s there. But I can tell why.

The transparent body is enough of a reason, and it tells me exactly who this figure is. Wrapped in a crimson cloak, glaring at me with scarred features and spiteful eyes, is War. He must be here for us. We are going to die, and now I knew it for certain. I look directly at him, and mutter, “What else can I do?”

My friends look at me oddly, but War replies, “That’s up to you.” He seems tired, fed up. Death had told me I was special, something that would break him from his monotony and something he wanted to see develop. I suppose War’s current tone is because he is disappointed that this is the end of me.

“Now that you’re here, we’re all dead anyway. What’s the point?” I ask him. My friends look at me with concern, only hearing my words and not War’s. They ask who I’m talking to, if I’m alright. But I ignore them and focus solely on the figure they can’t see.

“Your end isn’t guaranteed,” War replies. “Death told you we can’t see the time around you. We can only tell that deaths will happen, not whose deaths. We can guess, but nothing more. So get on your hooves and fight. I came here because ponies are going to die by violence. If you wish to sit here and wait for them to put a bullet through your skull, so be it,” He tells me flatly.

I’m start to reply, but he stops me. “But I am War! I demand that you get on your hooves and die in battle if you are to die! Don’t you dare give into cowardice! You are mine, Ratchet. Not Death’s, not Famine’s, and not Pestilence’s, you are mine. I will be the one to guide you to the afterlife,” He growls. “If you die a coward’s death, I will make your journey to the afterlife grueling. I will make it a torturous ordeal that not even hell itself can match! So rise to your hooves, draw your weapon, and attack your enemy!” He spits at me.

“Why?” I ask, using the very word that plagues my thoughts. “Why does it matter so much to you?” His expression grows stern as he glares at me.

“I have waited countless years to witness something interesting, something not even I can explain,” War tells me. “I have seen war develop throughout all of time, ponies killing ponies even for the most simplistic of reasons. War never changes, Ratchet. It simply evolves. But you, I think you might be able to change just what war is,” He says, smiling slightly with hopeful eyes.

“But I killed Hearty in cold blood,” I mutter. War is wrong, I can’t change the way war is. I’m a killer, just like the rest.

But War just laughs. “Doctor Hearty is scum. You know what would have happened had he not died by your hoof? He would have escaped and killed more! You decision, while rash, was the correct choice. So stand up, Ratchet. Fight. Survive. Show me what your type of war is!” He bellows.

I stare blankly at him for a moment, not sure what to say. Just then, Cora places her armored hoof on my shoulder and looks into my eyes. “Ratchet?” She says. I blink and look at her. At the same time, I notice my shaking has subsided, for the most part. I take a deep breath and rise to my hooves, looking at my friends.

“Sorry. I…” I trail off and Cora shakes her head.

“It’s ok Ratchet, as long as you are alright now,” She says happily. Cygnus coughs, getting our attention.

“I’m glad you’re fine now, Ratchet, but at the moment, we need a plan. So if you are ready, we should work on that,” Cygnus says. I nod in agreement, noticing he is already wearing some riot armor. I reach into my bags and pull out...The Pinkie figure. It is like it calls out to me, asking to be gazed upon.

It is like a toy, but I don’t remember anything like this being made. I recall some toy company had created a line of toys that resembled the Ministry Mares and the Princesses, but they were plushies and moveable figures. This figure seems like it is meant to be displayed. I turn the figure and inspect it thoroughly. My eyes stop on the inscription at the bottom. Awareness! It was under "E"!

Curious phrase. Huh? What was that? It felt like a cold wave suddenly passed over me. My thoughts seem a little clearer too. Ugh, maybe I got exposed to a little too much radiation. The rain couldn’t be helping either. Speaking of, it sounds like the rain has picked up even more. Wait...sounds. A chill runs down my spine.

The laughter has stopped. I look around quickly, nothing. I glance at the door that leads to the hallway and stare at it for a moment. Then I hear it, an almost inaudible giggle, like someone trying to stifle their laughter. “Cora,” I say as quietly as possible, “turn that door into swiss cheese on my mark. And Cygnus, get a grenade ready.” Cygnus looks at me questioningly, but starts muttering specifications. Cora turns to face the door and readies her assault rifle.

We wait with only Cygnus’s muttering breaking the silence. I close my eyes and listen intently. I wait for one single sound. There it is, the clattering of a doorknob. “Now!” I shout. An instant later, Cora opens fire, punching holes through the thin wooden door. I hear shouts and cries mix in with the erupting laughter as the door falls inward towards us, a Gremlin falls with it, dead. At that moment, Cygnus tosses a grenade into the hallway.

Before any more cross the threshold it explodes and a chorus of screams follow. No one seems to make a move to come in after us. I glance at War, but he simply walks through the wall to where the grenade blew up at. “Cora, check the tunnel through the rooms we made. Make sure no one is coming from that way,” I tell her. “Cygnus, summon up a gun and let’s check the hall,” I say, walking cautiously towards the doorway.

“What about me, Ratchet?” Shrill asks eagerly. I turn and look at her for a moment. Her light leather armor, single pistol, and flimsy knife. Too bad this isn’t really a situation for stealth.

“Uhh...just stay here for now, I suppose?” I suggest. She looks disappointed but silently nods her head. Cygnus and I carefully look out into the hallway. We find six Gremlins, four of which are dead. Their body parts litter the hall and blood covers the walls.The other two have missing limbs, and are just barely clinging to life. Despite this, they laugh, coughing up blood as they do so.

Cygnus quickly ends their suffering with his sub-machine gun. The rest of the hallway is clear. I don’t even see War anymore. I guess they did say I will only see them sometimes. But, where are the rest of the Gremlins? Surely there are more inside? At least Gremlock, for sure. We walk back into the room with Shrill and Cora. “That’s seven total dead so far,” I announce. “Now we need to go on the offensive,” I say. The only question, is how to do so.

Since they came from the hall, and not the tunnel we made, maybe the trapped the tunnel? If that’s the case, we should use the hall. But they’d be expecting that. And with four of us in the narrow hallway, we would end up like the Gremlins just outside the doorway. In that case…

“Let’s split up,” I decide. “Cora and I will take the hall since we are both pretty loud. Cygnus, if you will put a silencer or something on that gun, you and Shrill will go back through the tunnel we made. Watch out for traps and stay quiet. Hopefully you can catch them by surprise while we draw their attention. Sound good?” I ask.

Shrill and Cygnus nod in agreement. “Ok. Let’s do this then! Oh, yea. If you run into trouble, just call out and Cora and I will come through a wall or something,” I say with a smile. Cygnus shakes his head with a chuckle. Shrill looks a bit hesitant at going with Cygnus. Undoubtedly she wants to go with me instead.

“Good luck, Ratchet, see you on the other side,” Shrill says as Cora and I head into the hallway. We walk down the hallway with doors on our right and the occasional window on our left. It is a straight shot back to the lobby. We make it half way down when two Gremlins lean around the entrance way at the end of the hall and start shooting at us. I quickly get behind Cora as she starts to return fire with her assault rifle.

I draw Forgiveness, since my shotgun doesn’t have the range for this, and carefully aim around her to help. After a few moments, Cora fires her sniper. It catches one of them in the shoulder and he wheels back around the corner. With one less enemy shooting at us, we move up the hallway as the other buck reloads. But it isn’t long before the buck with the shot shoulder returns, laughing, to shoot at us again.

I empty Forgiveness’s cylinder without scoring a single hit. I take cover behind Cora and reload. Peeking out behind her again, I see a two more Gremlins have joined in shooting at us. One has a smg while the others are only using pistols, I think. We are still a little too far for me to make out their weapons. But, at this rate we won’t be moving up any further. I come up with a plan, and tell Cora, “Take the two on the left. Once the one with the smg goes to reload, I’ll take the two on the right.” She nods in agreement and I float out an inhaler of Dash. I listen to the gunfire and wait for a break in the automatic. Now!

I put the inhaler to my lips and breath the chemical in. The world slows down, but I need to close the gap between us before I risk shooting at them. I gallop out from behind of Cora and stick along the right side of the hall. At the same time, Cora focuses on the two leaning around the left side of the entryway, pinning them down with her assault rifle. The two on the right seem unsure who they should shoot at, and hesitate for a moment. It is just long enough for me to get halfway to them before they decide to focus on me.

Their bullets narrowly miss me, one even grazing my cheek as I continue running and level my gun at one of them. I am for her head and pull the trigger. My shot goes wide, hitting the wall beyond them. I line up another shot, and miss my intended target but hit the buck beside her in the muzzle. The bullet shreds part of his jaw and he reels from the pain back around the corner, missing half of his bottom jaw.

The two on the left side are still pinned by Cora’s automatic fire. Thank the Goddesses for her guns being belt fed. But I’m not sure she has much ammo left for it at this point. We need to finish this quick. I refocus on the mare I am shooting at and pull the trigger again. This time, I hit her, but not her head. It hit the side of her neck, just far enough in to not be counted as a graze, but nothing lethal. At this point, Cora begins walking up the hall. I only have a few seconds left before the Dash wears off. I have to make it count.

I yell for Cora to stop shooting. The moment she does, I leap to the left side of the hall to get a better view of the mare I am trying to hit. Her pistol follows me, sending bullets into the floor and wall as I make my way across the hall. I line up a shot, and pull the trigger. I get lucky, and this bullet finds its way into the right side of her head, a look of shock shows temporarily on her face before it contorts into pain and she falls to the ground. Right as her body thumps to the floor, the Dash wears off.

Cora is a few feet behind me when the two on the left lean around the corner again. Immediately, Cora’s sniper goes off and hits the one in front right between his eyes. I turn my gun at the other and shoot my remaining two bullets at him. I hit him in leg once, catching him off guard, but my other bullet misses. He turns his smg on me and starts shooting. My armor absorbs a few hits, but his aim swings low and a few bullets catch me in the left leg and PipBuck. Cora shoots another round at him, catching him square in the throat. His eyes bulge as he drops his gun and starts gasping for air.

While he’s suffocating, Cora catches up to me. “Good shooting, Cora,” I say as I float out some bandages to wrap my wounds in. “There’s still one on the right side at least, I don’t think I did enough to finish him off,” I tell her, reloading my revolver as I finish wrapping my leg. Cora turns to point her guns at that side of the entryway. I’m putting the last bullet in the cylinder when the buck I shot comes running around the corner, laughing hysterically.

His head is tilted as he holds a pistol in his mouth. Part of his tongue hangs out of the missing part of his jaw and it spasms when he pulls the trigger. I fumble with my gun as Cora starts shooting him, but he doesn’t stop shooting, his bullets going wild, hitting all around us. I manage to get the last bullet into the cylinder and close it up. I hurry and aim at him as he gets closer. Cora’s bullets cut into his legs, chest, and neck, but he still keeps coming. The gun bounces around in his mouth wildly. I pull the trigger, miss. I pull it again, miss. Again, miss. Come on! One more time! Miss. I charge closer to him, trying to avoid his bullets and shoot again. Miss. That’s it! I slam into him, knocking the gun from his jaws and put Forgiveness against his temple. All the while, he never stops laughing until I pull gun away and knock him out with my butt of the gun.

“Ratchet, are you alright?” Cora asks, her voice filled with worry. She walks over to me and helps me off the buck’s body.

“Yea, his aim was even worse than mine. With part of his jaw missing, I guess he couldn’t stabilize it too easily. He just caught me in the barding a few times,” I reply. “We’re not done yet, Gremlock is still here somewhere,” I remind her. “Hopefully Cygnus and Shrill are doing better than we are,” I add.

Once I reload Forgiveness again, I peek around the corner. Two ponies are sitting on a couch in the lobby. Their backs are to the employee lounge and they are looking in our direction, like they are waiting for us to come out. One is Gremlock, the other is a cream colored mare with a blue mane. Gremlock is the only one with a gun. The mare is wearing some things on her hooves, but they don’t look like ranged weapons. I lean back around the corner.

“I only see two of them, Gremlock and a mare. Gremlock has his pistol, the mare might have some sort of close-ranged weapon. You want to take the lead and I’ll use you as cover?” I ask Cora.

Cora nods. “Stay behind me, Ratchet. I’ll make sure you don’t get hit!” She declares boldly, stepping forward. I get behind her and we walk out into the lobby. A single shot pings off of Cora’s armor uselessly. Gremlock’s laugh follows it and I notice the mare’s giggle mixed in.

“So, just the two of you then?” Gremlock asks with a wide grin. He stomps a hoof. Instantly, ponies emerge from behind the furniture, all pointing various guns at us. One shoots immediately, the gun is loud and the bullet catches Cora in the right foreleg. The sound of struck metal rings out. I don’t think anything of it, until she lists a bit to the right. Another shot makes its way to her left foreleg right as Cora tries to shoot back. Cora falls forward and her bullets strike the floor instead.

“W-what?” I ask, stunned. I peek around Cora and see that both her forelimbs have been severed. Gremlock raises a hoof and I look up at him. I count the ponies, nine, counting Gremlock and the mare. One is holding a large rifle, the others are using smgs and pistols, one is holding a bat. Cora is unable to shoot back at them now, her guns can’t aim up that high, not even Raptor Blood on her back.

Gremlock and the mare beside him laugh at Cora’s attempts to raise her guns high enough to shoot them. “Be happy we aren’t taking your real legs!” Gremlock howls. “But now the real fun starts! I’m thinking we play a game for your lives!” He declares. The Gremlins around him let loose a chorus of laughter. After a moment, Gremlock raises a hoof and their laughter lowers so barely audible snickers.

“A game?” I mutter from behind Cora. I look over the group of ponies in front of me, pointing their guns at me, and quickly realize I don’t really have a choice. “Fine, what’s the game?” I ask him.

He grins widely at my questions and states simply, “We’ll be asking you seven questions. If you answer wrong, you get shot. Answer correctly, and move on to the next question. There is the possibility that you can get a few wrong and still walk away alive. As the questions progress, however, the lethality of the shots will increase as well. Getting the last question wrong results in a headshot, for example.”

I raise an eyebrow. A question and answer game? It sounds like the game could go either way, depending upon what questions are asked. Prewar knowledge, wasteland knowledge, something specific to the Gremlins? There could be a chance I know nothing about the question being asked.

The mare next to him speaks while I’m deep in through, drawing my attention. “Of course, it will be fair,” she says with a kindly smile. It feels off. “Some are logic questions, others are a question of morals. Sometimes a question might have multiple answers as well. A few will even be multiple choice,” She tells me. Her tone is motherly, it it very out of place among the current company.

“Lin speaks the truth,” Gremlock says, giving her a smile. “She has a habit of doing that, trying to give the player a slight advantage.”

Lin, the mare next to him laughs. “You just have a habit of spinning the truth to fit what you want. One might even call you a liar, if they didn’t know you,” She tells him.

“Ha! I’ve never told a lie to a single living pony! I might just leave out some details so they don’t have the whole truth though,” He smirks.

“Like when you told that buck the bathroom was through a house full of mines?” Lin says, with an irritated look.

“Exactly! The bathroom was on the other side of the house, that much was true. I just failed to tell him about the mines, or that there was a safer path!” Gremlock chuckles.

Lin sighs. “I think we’ve made our guest wait long enough, Grem. Let’s start, shall we?” She asks.

Them talking has raised a curious question in me. Before Gremlock replies, I interject quickly. “Can I ask a question first?” I ask. Lin look interested and nods. “Your name is Lin, right? And you keep calling Gremlock ‘Grem’, right?”

“Correct,” Lin replies with a sweet smile. “Grem is my pet name for him, has been since we met so many years ago,” she says with a touch of nostalgia.

I nod. “So, the Gremlin name came from the combination of your names then, Grem and Lin?” I ask. “Not from the mystical creature with the same name?” I add.

Gremlock looks confused. “There is a creature named Gremlin? Ha, what do you know!” he says with a hearty chuckle. Well, that is surprising. They are even mischievous like Gremlins, so I thought that’s where they got their name from. It is one hell of a coincidence that they took the name and even act similarly.

“With your question out of the way,” Gremlock begins, “Let’s start the game, shall we? Lin and I will alternate asking questions, sometimes we will ask a question together. Ready? Good! First question: What is twelve times two divided by four?”

The question catches me slightly off guard. I wasn’t expecting a simple math problem. “Six,” I answer.

“Ding, ding, ding!” Gremlock declares. “Correct! You’d be surprised how many ponies get that question wrong now-a-days. Your turn, Lin,” Gremlock says, turning to face Lin.

Lin puts a hoof to her chin and closes her eyes. After a moment, she opens her eyes and looks at me. It is almost like she is looking down on me. “I am white and black. But also red all over. What am I?” She asks.

A riddle? White, black, and red, hu? An object? A creature? But wait. The way she said the riddle, separating the white and black part and the red part. Perhaps it is something white and black, that has been dyed red? Some birds have white and black feathers. If their feathers are removed by force instead of natural shedding, they will bleed. That might cause the feathers to be dyed red.

But, isn’t that too specific for a riddle? Not all birds or feathers are black and white. If I answer ‘bird’ or ‘feather’, I don’t think that would work. Do I need to be specific and give the name of a bird? No, the answer to riddles is supposed to be simple. It must be something else. White and black...white and black...A zebra? Red...paint? Or could it be...blood? A zebra dyed red with blood? Could that be the answer?

“Am I aloud to answer?” Cora asks suddenly.

Gremlock shrugs. “I don’t see why not. Your life is on the line as well,” he says with a laugh. “Do you have an answer?”

Cora nods, which causes her to strike the muzzle of the armor against the floor. “A newspaper,” She says simply. What? A newspaper?

“Correct,” Lin says simple, smiling warmly.

“What? How is that the answer?” I question.

“Simple,” Cora states, “newspapers are printed in black and white. And they are read. As in how you read a newspaper. Not red as in the color. They sound the same, red and read, that’s the trick to the riddle.” That simple, hu? To think, I was about to answer with a zebra. I swallow. Thank Celestia Cora is here or else we would have gotten shot.

“Two questions down, very good!” Gremlock declares. “But it only gets harder here on out. Five questions remain, and it is my turn!” He says with a wide grin. “This one is multiple choice, a moral dilemma. You want to play a prank on your father. He has left the house, giving you the chance to pull your prank. What do you do? A) Switch his heart medication with sugar pills. B) Drop a cherry bomb in his toilet. C) Loosen the bolts on his sink. When it is used next, it will flood the room. Or D) Tamper with his electric razor, causing him to get a shock the next time he uses it.”

What in the name of Princess Luna? This was hardly a moral dilemma question. All these choices are bad. A, he could die. B, you ruin the toilet. C, you ruin the floor and cause a lot of clean up work. D, you electrocute him. I can easily eliminate A and D, since they cause undue harm. B isn’t a prank if he isn’t there to see it, you just break his toilet. That leaves C. “I’ll go with C,” I answer.

Gremlock laughs. “I personally would have chosen B. Nothing says ‘prank’ quite like a loud bang! But, this question doesn’t have a specific answer. It is a moral question, after all. That means you are right,” Gremlock explains. What? So no matter what I choose I could have gotten it right? Why ask the question then? Does he want me to win?

“I’m next,” Lin says. “Question number four. I’m going to kill you. But first, I want to play and give you a chance. I will shoot you once and let you start running. I give you the choice of what I shoot. Your leg, your mouth, your horn, your neck, your head, or your chest. Which do you choose, and why?” She asks. A chill runs down my spine at the question. Her voice is still as sweet and motherly as it has been, but for some reason there is no doubt in my mind that she means exactly what she is saying. She wants to kill me.

“Simple!” Cora says energetically. “My chest. It is hollow inside me anyway and it will cause the least amount of damage,” She declares.

“I’m not asking you,” Lin replies. “This question is for the living, flesh and blood pony cowering behind you. You have no horn, so you clearly cannot answer this question,” She states, sounding sweet as ever. But her words are clearly filled with contempt. I swallow.

The choices flash through my mind. Half are basically fatal, chest, neck, and head. Shooting my horn probably implies she would shoot it off, leaving me without magic. My mouth...The image of the buck whose jaw I shot off flashes into my mind. But between my mouth and my leg? “My mouth,” I answer. “Without a horn, I can’t fight back as well. Without my legs working properly, I doubt I could keep up in a fight or run away. The other three would spell death,” I explain.

“So, that is your answer,” Lin mutters. “Good, you answered correctly. There were two correct answers. The mouth and the head. You look confused, I’ll explain. Being shot in the mouth will allow you, a unicorn, to continue fighting with only mild discomfort. Being shot in the head will end your misery immediately. The leg, the chest, the neck, and the horn all ruin the fun of the hunt. It would be a waste of time to play the game. You would die too easily. Better to either end things fast or to be at your best.” What a chilling explanation.

I think I have her pegged now, though. She’s like Shrill. Acting sweet but she has a hidden side. No, it isn’t that she is acting sweet. She is sweet. But she has a sadistic side as well. Lin lures you in with her kindness and then turns on them.

“Time for question five,” Gremlock says with a smile. “This is one we will ask together. Though, it is less of a question and more of a mini-game within the game. It goes as follows: One of us will tell only lies, the other only truths. The question is: Which of us is a liar? You can ask us one question, but you can only ask it to one of us. To keep things interesting, your question must be related to which of us is the liar. So you aren’t able to ask a simple question with one answer like ‘one plus one’. Ready? Good. The game starts now!”

One lies and one tells the truth and I can’t ask any logical questions, hu? What if i just ask who is lying? No, regardless of who I ask they will just say the other is lying. The liar blames the one telling the truth, while the one telling the truth blames the liar. What about if I ask are you lying? No, that’s not it either. Both would just say no. I take a deep breath and focus. What question should I ask? Should I just...guess? I have a fifty-fifty chance, after all.

“Hey Ratchet, can I ask the question?” Cora says.

“Sure, I’m not sure what to ask. If you think you got it, go for it,” I tell her. She is an AI after all. In the minute or so that has passed, she could have run though countless scenarios. Besides, she wouldn’t ask a question she isn’t sure of.

“Gremlock,” Cora addresses him. “If I asked Lin who the liar is, what would she say?” She asks. Hu? So that’s it? Let’s see. If Lin is the liar, she will say Gremlock. But if she is telling the truth, she will also say Gremlock. Add a layer, and if Lin is a liar and Gremlock is the truthteller, he will say she will say he is a liar. Similarly, if Lin is the truthteller and Gremlock is the liar, Gremlock will say Lin would say Lin is the liar. Meaning…

Gremlock smiles and states, “Lin would say she is the liar.” The moment Gremlock answers with that sentence, he outs himself as the liar! If Lin was the liar, she would never implicate herself. Lin would actually have said Gremlock, but since Gremlock is a liar, he must say she would say her own name!

“Gremlock! You are the liar!” I declare. He chuckles and Lin smiles warmly.

“That is correct! Five in a row, what a surprise!” Gremlock declares. “That hasn’t happened in quite some time, this game must be right up your alley, hu? That question usually gets most ponies who come through. Incidentally, getting that question wrong results in a shot through your torso. Most who get it wrong don’t last to finish question six,” He tells me.

“Time for question six, though,” Lin chimes in. “Let’s not stand around all day, shall we? You are on the bank of a river. With you, is a Manticore, a Brahmin, and an apple. In your presence, nothing will eat the other. If left alone, however, the Manticore will eat the Brahmin and the Brahmin will eat the apple. The Manticore, however, will not eat the apple. You have a raft that can transport you and one other thing across the river at a time. How do you get everything across the river safely?” She asks.

I’m about to start thinking of the answer, when I see movement behind the Gremlins. Two ponies are leaning around the doorway of the employee lounge. Shrill and Cygnus! They’re fine! And all the Gremlins’ attention is on me. If I can keep distracting them, maybe Shrill and Cygnus can find a way to take them out? I see Shrill nod to me before they go back into the lounge.

Now then, let’s buy some time by solving this question. The first move is obvious, you take the Brahmin across. Then the Manticore and apple will be fine. You then go back across the river to get another. But, if you take the apple and leave it with the Brahmin, it will get eaten. Similarly, the Manticore will eat the Brahmin if left alone with it on the other side when you come back for the apple.

That means you will have to bring the Brahmin back at some point. The one you transport across second does not matter. So, “You take the Brahmin across and leave it. Then you take the apple across and get the Brahmin. You then exchange the Manticore for the Brahmin and take the Manticore across the river to the apple. You then leave those two alone and go back for the Brahmin. Once the Brahmin is across, everything is safely on the other side of the river,” I explain.

“Oh? Very good. You were fairly quick on that one,” Lin says with a smile. “Perhaps it was too easy for the sixth question. Well, you still have the seventh question. And if you get it wrong, you die! But it is Grem’s turn, and his questions can get tricky later on. Good luck~” She says in a sing-songy voice.

“You will need it,” Gremlock says with a chuckle. “It is time for the seventh question, the final question! This question is life and death for you, so I hope you are ready. It is fairly long, so I hope you will pay attention and make this interesting because I will not repeat it. I just have one additional rule for this question. Your artificial little friend can’t help. Now then, let’s begin!” He declares.

“There are six ministries that sit in a row, painted six different colors. Each ministry is ruled by one mare. These six mares each drink a different kind of beverage, do a different kind of drug, and own a different pet,” Gremlock explains.

“Twilight Sparkle rules the purple ministry. Applejack owns a dog. Fluttershy drinks milk. The blue ministry is next to and on the left of the orange ministry. The ruler of the blue ministry owns a turtle. The mare who does Mint-als owns an owl. The ruler of the yellow ministry does Stampede. The ruler of the ministry in the center right drinks tequila. Rarity owns the ministry on the right end. The mare who does Party Time Mint-als has her ministry next to the mare’s who owns a rabbit. The mare who owns a cat has her ministry completely opposite from the mare who does Dash. The mare who does Moon Dust drinks Sparkle Cola Quantum. Applejack does Buck. Rarity’s ministry is next to the yellow ministry. The mare who does Party Time Mint-als own the ministry two ministries to the right of the mare who drinks whiskey. The pink ministry is two left of the white ministry. The ministry in the middle left is next to the ministry whose mare owns an alligator,” Gremlock stays, laying out the facts.

“The question is this,” He states, “Which mare drinks vodka? To be clear, the names of all the mares are Applejack, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, and Twilight Sparkle. Your choice must be one of these six.”

That is a lot of information to take in and I’ve already forgotten the first few details. So that’s it, hu? The difficulty isn’t in the question, but the length of it. Him not repeating himself is proof enough of that. He even made it so Cora can’t help. He must be suspicious that she can remember everything and solve logic questions easily.

His description also seems to match up fairly well with what I know about the Ministry Mares. I know Twilight’s ministry is purple and Applejack owned a dog.Can I assume the colors and animals are what they were before the war? But the drinks and drugs confuse me. I don’t think they did any drugs, and surely all of them drank milk or coffee at some point. Damnit, I’m getting side tracked. Gremlock’s smiling glare isn’t helping my concentration either. Cygnus and Shrill might be the only way out of this.

Speaking of, I catch a hint of movement behind the Gremlins. Shrill has made her way from the lounge and is sneaking up behind the couch Gremlock and Lin are sitting on. Where is Cygnus? What is their plan? She isn’t going to just walk up and stab one, is she? No Gremlins are behind Gremlock and Lin. They are spread across the room behind other pieces of furniture. Shrill keeps creeping closer to the couch.

Lin notices me staring at them and says, “Oh, do you have an answer already? Or are you giving up? I’m not even sure what the answer is.” She shrugs. Cora shifts her weight a bit, focusing it on her rear. What is she doing? Shrill is hovering right behind Gremlock now, her knife floating in her magic.

Shrill winks at me, as if signaling me to do something. Are we going to fight them like this? I clear my throat. “I have my answer. I thought about it, and I think I will go with...Shrill,” I say simply. Gremlock’s face twists into a scowl.

“That isn’t one of the answers, but if you want to waste it, fine. Your answer is,” Gremlock begins, but before he can finish Shrill bring her muzzle to her hear.

“Surprise,” She mutters as she slits his throat. The other Gremlins immediately look over, but at the same time I hear the sound of something metal hitting the floor. I see grenades roll up beside the Gremlins standing furthest from Shrill.

One of them notices and starts to call out, “Shi-” But is cut off as the grenades explode. Lin and the remaining Gremlins turn their attention to different directions. Lin and a few others focus on Shrill, a few remain focused on me, but others look around for the source of the grenades. With their attention diverted, Cora rises onto her rear legs. She turns sideways and spins Raptor Blood around to point at the Gremlins. I fumble and draw Forgiveness as Cygnus comes out of the lounge in full riot gear holding an smg in his mouth.

The next few minutes are chaos. Cora shoots sideways at the Gremlins while I shrink behind her as much as I can and add my bullets into the fray. Cygnus charges towards the closest group of Gremlins, spraying them with his smg all the while. Shrill draws her pistol as she throws her knife into the eye of the closest enemy to her. All the while the Gremlins are returning fire. Lightning flashes outside and the boom of Thunder temporarily covers up the sound of the gunfire.

And just like that, it is over. The floor is covered in blood, the furniture is perforated with bullet holes, and not a single Gremlin is left standing. I'm not even sure if I landed a single hit on anyone. Cygnus’s armor protected him for the most part, but Shrill and I took multiple hits. She finishes off the remaining medical supplies she has while I chug a healing potion and toss Cygnus a roll of bandages.

“That could have gone better,” I mutter. “How was the tunnel through the rooms?” I ask them.

Cygnus carefully wraps the bandages around his leg and answers me with them still in his mouth. “Like you said, they trapped it. That’s what took us so long. We didn’t run into anyone though. Seems they though the traps were hidden well enough,” Cygnus tells me.

“I see. Well, better late than never. So, Shrill. From what you were saying about the Gremlins, I doubt this is all of them. I take it more are still outside?” I ask her.

She nods. “They probably got caught in the storm and took shelter in a building. At the rate it is coming down out there, we’ll be here for a few more hours. I suppose we will have to deal with the remaining Gremlins, right Ratchet?” She asks.

“Yea. Especially those two that saw us and left after leading us here. We don’t want Grimoire or his army knowing we were here. I also don’t want to leave the Gremlins to keep attacking ponies. So, for now, I suppose we should loot and tend to our wounds,” I declare.

I finish helping Cygnus wrap his wound and then we begin looting as we wait for the storm to let up.

===~+~===

Quest Completed - Smile!
Quest Updated - The Chaos Crusade: Wait for more information on Grimoire & Discordia
New Quest:
-Savior
Current Objective: Talk to Gunsmoke in Ponyville

Level Up!

+15 Small Guns
+10 Speech
+5 Medicine

Author's Note

This chapter took me a while to write. It is also why it is so long. I got hung up on the combat scenes and lost motivation. But, it's over and done with now!

Incidentally, did you figure out the answer to the last question Gremlock asked? Do you want to know the answer? Rainbow Dash drinks Vodka.

Chapter 24 - Thinning the Herd

"One by one they fell. I saw them drop and my only thought was to keep fighting. My comrades could be mourned later. My lord demands sacrifice, repeated and constant sacrifice. For him, my own life is but a drop in the ocean. But without him, I am nothing."

===~+~===

It took twelve hours for the rain to stop completely. In another six hours, the radiations levels outside had dropped to safe levels. My friends and I then spent the next three hours combing through the ruins of the Gremlin territory and eliminating those that remained. It wasn’t until we were absolutely sure that no Gremlins remained that we finally started back for my lab.

Cora had lost her two forelegs, but she was able to walk on her rear legs well enough and even kept up with us. I had her severed legs in my bags, that I would reattach to the armor later. That wasn’t the extent of her damage though. Countless bullet holes, dents, and scratches covered her armor. I’d have to repair it extensively. So when we finally reached my lab, I decided to have Shrill and Cygnus go on to Ponyville to inform Gunsmoke of our new arrangement while I set to work repairing Cora’s body.

I gave them the instructions and gave Cygnus a map with an X where my lab’s shed entrance is then sent them on their way. The arrangement was simple. The Junk Rats would sent word to Gunsmoke about Grimoire’s movements, and Gunsmoke would then send a message to me, leaving it in my shed. Of course, I didn’t have them mention the shed holds the entrance to my lab. I told them to say it was a sort of deaddrop I would check frequently. His messenger will leave the message and then leave.

In the meantime, I set about fixing up Cora’s body while she checked over the lab’s systems. Her body was a mess. In more than a few places, I had to completely take out the wiring and mechanisms and then melt the armor down and reforge it. Luckily, the interior components seem to have been spared any major damage. I only finished repairing half of the armor by the time Cygnus and Shrill returned the next morning. They had decided to stay the night rather than return here in darkness. Even so, I didn’t sleep a wink.

I stopped working for a few minutes as they told me about what happened. Gunsmoke agreed to help us out, but also had some information for us. Apparently Discordia is causing a stir out west near Vanhoover. He thinks we might find out something if we go there. I told the others we would check it out once Cora’s body is fully repaired. I’m not sure what we’ll find in Vanhoover, but it is currently the only lead we have on any major Discordia groups. We might even run into Grimoire himself. I tell them to get some rest and ready their gear as I get back to work.

After eight hours, I finish up with the last stroke of a paintbrush, applying the last bit of paint to the armor. Good as new, but also modified a bit. I took notes of the most heavily damaged places and reinforced them, adding as little weight as possible. I added more angles so bullets would skirt off the armor instead of penetrating. Cora also suggested I swap out the sniper for the anti-material rifle. We found just under a hundred rounds for the gun, so I decided to oblige her request. I emptied out the case of .308 rounds and replaced them with the .50 caliber rounds and checked her 5.56 ammo. It was almost empty, so I refilled it with every bullet we got from the Gremlins. Only about a hundred or so.

I then had her enter the armor and make sure everything was working properly. It was, and I then explained the ammo situation and told her that she wouldn’t be able to do much suppressing fire until we found some more. I really should have had Shrill and Cygnus sell the extra stuff we got from the Gremlins, but it completely slipped my mind at the time.

With Cora’s body ready, I emptied all the junk out of my bags into the armory and went to my office. I turned on my terminal, opened a new file, and began typing. I decided I should start keeping a log, or diary, or whatever you want to call it. I started with the moment I woke up and managed to get to right before the assault on the Rail Gang before I couldn’t keep myself awake anymore. I saved my current file and turned off the terminal. Before leaving the office and heading to bed, I took the Pinkie Pie figurine out of my bag and put it on my desk.

It was such a beautiful thing, and I didn’t want to haul it around the wasteland with me where it might get ruined. I wondered for a moment if I would find more figurines, maybe of the other Ministry Mares. But the thought quickly disappeared as I yawned and fell into my bed, instantly sound asleep.

===~+~===

We leave the following morning, I slept for around fifteen hours before Cygnus finally woke me up saying, “I’m tired of Shrill standing over you smiling. It is creepy. Get up already and let’s go.” Vanhoover is a few miles further away than Manehatten, so the journey will take us almost as long. Though, from what Gunsmoke told Cygnus and Shrill, I don’t think our objective is the city itself. It sounds like there is some suburb of the city Discordia is set up in. Which makes sense, since Shrill tells me that over half of Vanhoover is still irradiated way past safe levels.

As we travel, we only encounter a few minor creatures scurrying about. But the closer to the city we get the more creatures there are. A radroach almost as big as us scurries from behind a farmhouse, causing Shrill to let out an ear splitting scream and empty her pistol into it multiple times, even after it stopped moving. I poke my ears with a hoof. “Jeez, I can see why your name is Shrill. That scream was crazy. I think I almost went deaf!” I complain.

“Did you see that thing!?” Shrill says, panting. “It was huge! Disgusting! I hate these creatures. They are so creepy,” She says, shivering.

Cygnus sighs. “At least you shot it, instead of turning tail and running,” He mutters. “Seriously, we’ve fought raiders, mole rats, and bloat sprites, but the radroaches are what scare you?” He says, shaking his head.

Shrill glares at him. “They don’t scare me, they disgust me. With their skittering...and their nasty appearance...and their…” Shrill says, listing off things about them she hates, but Cygnus interrupts her calmly.

He points a hoof behind her and says, “Oh, look there’s another one.” Shrill lets out another scream and spins around, firing wildly. Of course, there is nothing actually behind her, which she quickly realizes as Cygnus erupts into laughter. “Gremlins are pranksters! Ha! Now this is a sidesplitter. They don’t have anything on me!” He declares. I can’t help but joining in with a few laughs as well as Shrill pouts and stares daggers at Cygnus.

After getting ourselves under control we continue on. After another hour or so the sun begins to set and we start looking for a place to wait out the night. We find an old water stop along the railway to take shelter in. It isn’t too large but it will provide us with cover from prying eyes. We settle in for the night with Cygnus taking the first watch.

===~+~===

Vanhoover begins appear on the horizon, but our focus isn’t the city itself but a suburb to the south. I see the skyscrapers standing tall against the horizon, but I count considerably less than the last time I saw the city. I guess it got hit by a bomb like Manehatten. Just how many megaspells went off, I wonder?

We keep walking, watching for any movement, be it wasteland creatures or raiders. But what reaches our ears first, is gunshots. Not just a few either, it sounds like an all out battle is raging somewhere close by with explosives included. I notice smoke rising off the the distance. “That’s the area Gunsmoke mentioned,” Cygnus mutters. “Seems Discordia is fighting something,” He adds.

I nod. “Yea, let’s go see what’s going on. Maybe someone needs our help,” I say as we pick up our pace. We rapidly approach the rising smoke and enter into a suburban neighborhood. Some of the houses have the sides facing the city blown in, others have collapsed completely. A few dead trees still stand sporadically throughout the area.

Spotting gunshots a few blocks down, I ask Cora, “Cora, tell me what you can see with where the shooting is coming from. Who is fighting who?” She uses her enhanced vision and stares in the direction of the fighting for a few moments.

“Definitely raiders,” She reports. “But I can’t tell if they are Discordia raiders or not. As for who they are fighting...Steel Rangers, or at least ponies with power armor,” Cora says, but pauses for a second. “Wait, that’s a lynx paw. I think they are the rangers from Stable 36! Since they aren’t using a sniper, that has to be Lightning!” Cora declares.

Without skipping a beat, I start trotting towards the fighting. “Let’s go!” I tell the others as I draw my revolver. I charge towards the battle, but turn into the backyard of a house to get off the street. It will be better if the raiders don’t see us coming. I lead us through the yards which are now nothing but dirt and the occasional dead tree or bush. Signs of ponies living here previous are evident from the items scattered about. Toys, patio furniture...bones. Lots of bones.

I thought we had a system in place if an attack happened? Did the warnings not go off? Was it too late? Why were so many outside? A shiver runs down my spine. Did they know they wouldn’t survive and decided to watch the end as it came? I know only a limited number of ponies got a position in a Stable. Are these the ones that didn’t? I didn’t realize it, but I have slowed to a walk. I was so close to being nothing but bones that someone would eventually walk over. If I wasn’t the one in the pod, would Cora have killed even me?

“Ratchet?” Cora says, nudging my side. “What’s up?” She wouldn’t have, I’m sure of it. I made her, after all. My commands would override my orders to oversee the experiment. I shake my head. No sense dwelling on it. Besides, the Rangers need our help.

“I got distracted. Let’s go,” I tell her. She nods and we continue on our way. A few short blocks later and we see the Rangers. They are taking cover behind a house, but there is only seven of them, and I only see one with the lynx paw. I spot Star Paladin Twinkle’s signature red trim and make my way toward her. Just then a sniper shot comes from an attic to my right, but it isn’t aimed at the Rangers, it strikes a raider across the road in the head. That means...Arrow?

One of the Rangers notices us and points a gun at us, but lowers it immediately and turns to Twinkle, who then looks over at us. “Well, look who’s here! Welcome to the party!” She shouts, gesturing for us to come over. My friends and I gallop between the houses and get behind the one the Rangers are using as cover.

“Hey Star Paladin Twinkle, fancy meeting you here. I heard Discordia was active in the area,” I tell her. As I do so, the raiders and Rangers exchange fire. A few explosions go off on the raider side.

“Ha! You’re correct! We’ve been fighting a large group of them for the last few days. Eberron has been quite pleased. There is about thirty of them remaining, give or take a dozen. We’ve got them on the ropes!” Twinkle declares with a cackle.

“Are Elder Lily and the others moving to flank them?” I ask. Twinkle turns around the corner and lets loose a burst of her minigun. Lightning walks over to me as she does so.

“Elder Lily’s dead,” Lightning says simply. “So is everyone else, we’re all that’s left. It’s damn good to see you, Ratchet. You too, Cygnus, Cora.” He nods at each of us in turn. “I’m sure Arrow has already spotted you. No doubt she’s antsy to come say hi. So, who is this?” He asks, gesturing to Shrill.

“She’s a friend. Left Discordia to help us. I’m glad you and Arrow are alright,” I tell him. He nods and inspects Shrill for a moment.

“Normally, I wouldn’t trust someone who switched sides. But if Ratchet trusts you, I trust you. Let’s save the pleasantries for later,” Lightning says, turning back to the others and starts shooting from around the house.

Twinkle turns back to us. “Like Paladin Lightning said, former Elder Lily died. She was the first one to go when we ran into Discordia three days ago. I’m Elder now, I suppose. Though considering it is just my squad and the two Lynx now, the title hardly matters,” She tells me.

“We’ve no Star or Head Paladin anymore. Considering how small we are, it would just cause confusion. Highest rank under me is my squad’s Paladin. Made Lightning a Paladin too though, to keep some sort of command structure,” Twinkle explains. She shrugs. “Anyhow...Keep firing and listen up!” She declares.

“With these reinforcements, we’ll finish off Discordia in no time, so here is the plan. Knight Arrow and I will keep their attention on us here. Meanwhile, Ratchet and her group will flank around to the right and engage the enemy. Try to go a few houses down and loop around,” She tells me. “Similarly, Paladin Cross will lead the Rangers around to flank left. Got that? Paladin Lightning, signal Arrow of her part,” Twinkle orders.

Lightning makes some gestures towards the house Arrow is in with his hooves. I don’t remember exactly what those gestures mean, but it is probably along the lines of keep shooting. He then nods to who I assume is Paladin Cross and then the Rangers charge across the gap to the house on the left while Twinkle stands in the middle of the gap and shoots her miniguns at the raiders.

I stand there stunned for a moment at the sudden activity. “Uh...yea...We should go too,” I mutter, turning and walking to the right side of the house. “Cygnus, you might want to get some armor on. And probably get something explosive. We got a lot of baddies to get rid of,” I tell them.

We move three houses down from where Twinkle is taking their fire. I try to keep us in cover to avoid getting spotted as much as possible and so far we haven’t be shot at. But considering the constant pur of the miniguns, and Twinkle’s laughter, it isn’t surprising they aren’t paying attention to us. Taking cover on the edge of the third house down near the road, I peek around the corner. The house Discordia is taking cover in is blacked from explosives and Twinkle’s stream of fire is shooting into the windows. Inside the house to the left of that one, I see movement in a window. Then gunfire erupts from it, focusing on Twinkle. Some of the raiders must have moved position.

From here I have a fairly unobstructed view of the two houses they are shooting from, since the road curves on this particular stretch. I come up with an idea as I think of Twinkle. “Hey Cora, can you buck down this wall and get inside the house?” I ask her. She looks at the wall, turns, and bucks it. Cracks develop in the wall, and she bucks it again. This time, a chunk of the wall falls inward. She bucks a few more times and makes a big enough hole to enter through.

“Good. Now, get up into the attic and punch a small hole in the roof. Just big enough so you can get your rifle through it,” I tell her. Since she can use the rifle’s optics instead of her visor to see, she doesn’t need a large hole. Meaning, she can shoot them without exposing herself too much. “Once there, start taking out anyone you can. The three of us will cross the street and make our way towards the enemy,” I explain.

“Roger that!” Cora says happily as she enters the house.

“Now then, what gun do you have, Cygnus?” I ask him. He spits the large weapon into his hooves and says, “An ICS-190 grenade launcher. Think of it as a revolver that shoots grenades. Depending upon what we need, I can shoot smoke, incendiary, high explosive, or airburst shells.” Adding, “I wish I would have gotten the schematics for plasma grenades this thing uses.”

“That’ll work fine,” I tell him. Smoke grenades, hu? “Can you shoot a smoke grenade at the houses they are into give us some cover as we cross the street and Cora gets into position?” I ask him. He nods and rotates the gun’s barrel then steps in front of me and bends around the corner. A *thunk* noise comes from the gun as he comes back around the corner.

“Give it a few seconds to disperse the smoke,” Cygnus tells me. After a while, he nods and says, “Alright, should be good now.” I peek out around the corner, and sure enough a large plume of white smoke is obscuring my sight of the houses.

“Let’s go before the smoke dies down,” I say and start across the street with Shrill and Cygnus right behind me. We carefully make our way closer to the cloud of smoke and the houses Discordia is occupying. As we reach the house next door to the closest Discordia occupied house, we take cover since the smoke is getting thin. Once we are fully behind the house, Cora starts shooting.

“Alright, Shrill, do you think you’re up to sneaking into the back of the house they are in? Cygnus and I will hit the side of the house,” I tell her.

She nods. “No problem. I’ll do my best for you, Ratchet,” Shrill says with a smile. She trots around the side of the house and disappears.

“Now then, Cygnus, let’s go knock on the wall of that house, shall we? Hit the wall with an explosive shell,” I tell him.

“You got it!” He replies, turning the corner and shooting a directly at the house. The grenade explodes against it and opens up a generous hole in the wall. I wait for the smoke to clear and see it opens into a kitchen. The wall Cygnus destroyed had a counter top running along it and part of it is still standing. I see a few raiders inside the kitchen staring back out at us.

“Think you can shoot another round in there? Though, hold off on the incendiary. I really don’t want a repeat of that library,” I mutter.

“I’ll use an airburst then,” Cygnus replies. “And you are the one who started all those fires, I just gave you the bullets,” He adds. Cycling the drum of his gun, he shoots another grenade into the kitchen. I watch it go in and hear the raiders shout. What surprises me is that the grenade explodes in midair, sending shrapnel into the raiders.

“Oh, so that is why it is called an air burst,” I mutter. “Ok, let’s get inside,” I say, trotting briskly towards the house. However some raiders on the second floor of the house start shooting at me. “Eeep! Cygnus! Grenade!” I shout, jumping to the side to avoid the shots. Cygnus shoots another grenade through the window, silencing the raiders.

I brush off the dirt from my lab coat and get back to my hooves. “Thank you, Cygnus. Now then, inside before we get caught in the open,” I say, climbing over the countertops and dropping into the kitchen. Cygnus follows moments later.

Once we gets to his hooves, two more raiders rush us from the door. I quickly point my revolver at the closest and shoot three times. And miss all three shots. Cygnus charges the mare I am aiming at and starts to bludgeon her with the grenade launcher. The other raider closes the gap between us and swings a bat at my head. I move my revolver to block it and it slams into the barrel, knocking it from my magic’s grip. Before I can do anything, the raider swings the bat around again, catching me in the side.

It knocks the wind from me and he winds up for another hit. But before it makes contact with me, Cygnus blocks it with his grenade launcher. “I think a different gun would have been more appropriate,” Cygnus mutters. “I can’t shoot this up close,” He adds. “Think you can, lend a hoof?”

I stumble to my hooves and pull out my knife and throw it at the raider. It embeds itself into their head and after a few moments of struggle, he falls to the ground. “Wait, wait, wait!” I stammer. “I can hit things by throwing a knife?”

Cygnus’s gun disappears along with his armor. “I was probably a fluke. Cover me for a moment while I get my gear back. I’m thinking a shotgun this time around,” he mutters.

“Yea, sure,” I tell him, pulling my knife out of the raider’s head and picking up my revolver. “Maybe I should use knives more,” I say. Cygnus just rolls his eyes as he keeps muttering. I watch the door. A moment later, Cygnus’s armor appears.

“Let’s not risk you messing up trying to use knives. Keep doing what you’ve been doing till you can repeat that knife trick,” Cygnus tells me. Then he starts muttering weapon specifications.

I sigh. “Fine,” I tell him and then continue watching the door.

Just then another raider comes through the door. “Homerun, Lolipop, you two kill those fu-” He breaks off as he sees us standing over his dead friends. “Shit,” he says, bringing up his rifle. I level my revolver at the same time, but stop shy of pulling the trigger when I see the knife push through his neck. It slides back through and he falls to the ground, revealing a smiling Shrill behind him. She’s spattered with quite a bit of blood.

“This floor is clear,” She sings. “How about we take the next one?” She suggests.

Cygnus’s shotgun appears and he replies, “I agree.” We leave the kitchen and head to the stairs to the second floor. I can hear gunfire and explosions continue outside. Mixed in with it all is the laughter and yells of Twinkle. Cygnus takes point and begins up the stairs with Shrill and I following behind him.

At the top of the stairs, Cygnus fires off a round, killing a nearby raider. Two more come from around a corner and Cygnus puts two more rounds in one of them as Shrill and I shoot at the other. Both raiders go down quick, despite me not actually getting a single hit.

Stepping over the raiders, Cygnus walks into another room but is immediately sent flying back through the doorway, almost smacking right into me. He slumps against the wall and mutters, “A rocket powered sledgehammer. Great.” Cygnus gets to his hooves as an annoyed looking unicorn mare steps through the door with a hammer in her magic. It has a small rocket on the back of it and a switch which I guess triggers the rocket’s ignition.

She winds up and hits Cygnus square in the side, sending him through the wall and flying outside. “I’ll take this one!” He shouts before thudding on the ground. The mare walks over to the hole in the wall and looks down. She leans to her left as a shotgun blast comes back through.

She clicks her tongue, looks at us, then looks at the doorway she came though. “We’ve got company. Two losers still inside. One I threw outside. He’s pissed me off, so I’m going hunting. Be back in five,” She calls back in an irritated tone. The next moment she steps out through the hole and falls to the ground.

“Should we go help him?” Shrill asks with only a hint of concern in her voice.

I’m about to reply, but see a metal apple roll into the room with us. “We’ve got our hooves full! Down! Down!” I quickly shout, pushing her back down the stairs. The two of us get halfway down before the grenade goes off and we fall the rest of the way, landing tangled at the bottom.

“Ugh,” I groan as I shake my head and open my eyes, only to be greeted by Shrill’s hindquarters in my face. She is laying under me with her face buried in my crotch. I sigh in preparation for the inevitable comment.

“Oh ho, Ratchet, if you wanted some action, you only had to tell me,” Shrill says happily. “But I think we are in a bit of a predicament at the moment.” I feel her head move to look at the stairs. “Hasn’t anyone ever told you, it is rude to peep at two ladies enjoying themselves?” She asks. I turn my head to look at the stairs, and see two bucks standing at the top aiming their guns at us. “Jump forward, would you, darling?” Shrill whispers.

“Don’t call me darling!” I shout as I jump forward, getting past the wall that separates the stairs from the rest of the room and preventing the raiders from hitting me. They open fire and I hear the distinct sound of automatic fire as Shrill rolls away from the stairs while drawing her pistol. She blindly fires a few shots at the two, causing them to hesitate in their fire and Shrill rolls onto her hooves, skidding to a halt and firing two more shots at them. I hear the sound of thumping and then I see one of the bucks hit the floor, dead.

As the remaining buck starts shooting again, Shrill leaps to the side and lands next to me. She gives me a smile as she floats the dead buck’s gun over. It looks like an smg. She checks the ammo and then asks, “Ready?”

“Uh, yea. Let’s?” I stammer. Is it really just me who is a shit shot? That just seems unfair. Shrill dashes around the corner and starts shooting up the stairs, killing the raider at the top. His body slumps against the wall as we climb the stairs once again. I can hear shotgun blast and loud impacts outside mixing with each other. Cygnus and that mare must be fighting still. He’s got the advantage, right?

At the top of the stairs, once again someone walks out of one of the doorways. Just how many raiders are up here? Shrill shoots a few rounds at the buck before the gun starts clicking. Then she throws the gun at him and shoots a few rounds at him with her pistol. He goes down before he has a chance. She picks up his rifle and we enter the closest room.

Three raiders are shooting out of the windows facing the street and two more are discussing something. But the two of them stop talking as we walk in and glance at us for a moment. You know, considering the fighting around them these raiders seem pretty lax. Like it doesn’t involve them. They raise their weapons, a knife and a smg. Shrill and I match them and we start trading bullets as the one with the knife charges us.

I take aim at the one with the knife while Shrill skirts around to the left and keeps the attention of the other. Miss, miss, and the mare with the knife gets point blank. I put my gun against her head and pull the trigger, and miss. The mare jerks her head suddenly, avoiding my shot then stabs me in the side, missing the plates in my barding and penetrating through a vulnerable point in the armor.

I yell out in pain for a moment, then grit my teeth and turn Forgiveness at her again, this time I put it against her temple. Just as I pull the trigger, she jerks her head back, leaving the knife in my side and causing me to miss. But the mare is now unarmed so I try to take another shot at her, but she jumps to the left to avoid my shot. I shoot again, and she jumps back to the right, causing my bullet to hit the wall just past Shrill’s head. Shrill shoots me a concerned glance, but then goes back to her opponent.

“Stop moving around!” I shout, pulling her knife from my side and throwing it at her. It hits her right in the center of the neck and her eyes go wide as she raises a hoof to it before falling over. “Ha! Two for two! Fluke my ass Cygnus!” I declare as I quickly reload my revolver as the three who were shooting out the window up until now decide to finally turn around. Shrill finishes off her opponent as the three of them start shooting at us.

I grab the knife I just threw out of the mare’s neck and holster my gun as I dive to the side. Grabbing my own knife in my magic, I throw both of the knives at the closest raider. One catches him in the side, the other in his muzzle. Four for four! However the hits aren’t enough to kill him, just knock the gun out of his mouth. I quickly run over to him to recover the knives when the raider in the middle’s head explodes. It showers us in chunks of skull, brain, and blood. “Damnit Cora...my lab coat is ruined now,” I mutter.

The other raiders are momentarily caught off guard, giving me the chance to close the gap and pull out the knives. I’m about to hit him again when the whole house shakes. We all stumble as the house tilts a bit. What the hell are Cygnus and that mare doing? Shrill and I recover just moments sooner than the raiders and we finish them off. “What was that?” I ask Shrill.

She shrugs. “Not sure. Sounds like something crashed through the wall again, though,” She tells me. We leave the room and finish scouring the second floor, but don’t find anyone else. The house shakes a few more times during our search. The two of us head downstairs. I’m worried about Cygnus, he should have finished up by now.

Once we hit the bottom of the stairs, I can see why the house has been shaking. Huge sections of wall have been knocked away, including interior walls. Drywall, wood, and insulation are strewn everywhere. In the middle of all the destruction is Cygnus, leaning on the sledgehammer over the mare. He is holding a hoof to his side. “Oh, hey you two. Done upstairs?” He asks as we approach. He sounds pained.

“Yea, that’s all of them. Are you alright though? You don’t look so good,” I tell him. He gives me a smile, picking up the hammer with a hoof and laying it across his back, standing on three hooves.

“Pretty sure I have a few broken ribs. She kept knocking me through the walls. Considering how heavy this hammer is, she was quite nimble on her hooves. I couldn’t get a shot on her,” He explains.

“Here, take this then,” I say, floating over a healing potion. I also take out a roll of magical bandages to wrap my stab wound. Cygnus takes the potion and drinks it. Shrill seems busy wrapping a few bullet wounds of her own.

“Thank you,” Cygnus says after finishing the potion. “But it isn’t going to mend the bones. Does help a bit with the internal and external bleeding though,” He says. “Anyhow, I saw the Rangers outside the house next door while I was getting tossed around. I’ve got a plan to help them, if you want a suggestion, Ratchet,” He tells me.

“Of course. What you got?” I ask him. He moves the sledgehammer off his back and rests the head of it against the floor.

“Let’s drop this house onto the other one. The house is already fairly unstable thanks to my fight, so if I take out the rest of the support on that side, it should fall right over onto the other house. Though, you might want to grab anything off the raiders upstairs before I do so. Sound like a plan?” Cygnus asks.

“Yea, that sounds good. We won’t have to risk anymore injury if we just crash a house into them. Ok, Shrill and I will pick over the raiders upstairs. You rest up down here, alright?” I tell him. He nods and sits down, using the hammer as support.

“I’ll be here,” Cygnus mutters.

===~+~===

After a few minutes, Shrill and I finish looting. The two of us wait in the back yard as Cygnus uses the sledgehammer to knock out a few more walls and support beams. He walks to the corner closest to us and knocks out the corner with the hammer. The house begins to teeter and Cygnus comes to stand beside us. In a few moments, the house begins to fall towards the other house. The house almost seems to rip in two is it slams into the still occupied home. I can’t hear anything over the sound of the crashing, but I’m sure there is plenty of screaming that gets drowned out.

When the dust settles, the distinction between the houses has been completely blurred. It is hard to tell where the rubble of one ends and the rubble of the other begins. I don’t hear anymore gunfire but instead quite a bit of groaning and swearing. Shrill walks over to the pile of rubble and shoots a few of the raiders still alive within the chaos. Nothing else makes a sound. Are they all dead now?

Lightning and the Rangers come from around the corner of the now destroyed house while Twinkle comes sauntering towards us from over the rubble. “Nicely done!” Twinkle declares. “Dropping a house on then, why didn’t I think of that?” She chuckles. She doesn’t seem to have a single injury, but her armor is a little dinged up. “That’s all of them! Nicely fought! Eberron has had his fill today!” She shouts.

The Rangers all collect around me, with Arrow and Cora arriving a few moments later. “Glad I could be of help,” I tell Twinkle. It looks like they didn’t suffer any more casualties. “Is this all of the Discordia members that are around here?” I ask.

Twinkle nods. “This was the last of them. When we first arrived, they had around a hundred. We slowly chipped away at their numbers till they pushed us back here. The Vanhoover area should be free of any major Discordia threat now,” She informs me.

“That’s good to hear. Why did you all come out here, anyway?” I ask her curiously. Of all the places they could have gone, why Vanhoover?

“Eh. Lily’s idea. She recalled the Vanhoover Contingent’s location, and thought we should group up with them. We found their bunker easily enough, but they refused to let us in. They even threatened to execute us if we didn’t leave,” Twinkle shrugs. “It really disheartened Lily,” She mutters sadly. “A few days later, we stumbled upon Discordia, and that brings us here.”

“I see. So you guys have nowhere to go now? Are you just going to wander?” I ask.

“Yea. Lily didn’t have a plan past meeting up with the Vanhoover Contingent. I’ve been busy with fighting Discordia, so I haven’t had time to think up a direction for us. I’m quite partial to fighting Discordia though, they did kill almost all of us, after all,” Twinkle says. She takes off her helmet and smiles at me. “Say, you once offered us a place at your lab, right? And you want to fight Discordia, right?” She asks. “Why don’t we work together? I’m sure you could use our help. And it would be nice to have a place to call our own again. If that’s alright with you, that is.”

I nod. “Sure, that sounds great. I still don’t have a solid lead on Grimoire though, but I have a group that joined Discordia spying on them. The only reason we are here is that we were searching for more clues,” I tell her.

“Great!” Twinkle declares. “Then, let me return the favor and tell you something neat. When we first encountered Discordia here, it was a small patrol. We took one of them hostage to interrogate them. You know how persuasive Lightning can be,” She says, nodding to him. “Anyhow, the raider had something interesting to say about where Grimoire spends his time. Apparently they overheard Grimoire talking to their leader. They mentioned Neighagra Falls,” She tells me.

“Neighagra?” I ask, raising an eyebrow. I think for a few moments, but I can’t think of anything near there that would be important. It was just a tourist attraction. Dams had been constructed at the two rivers that flowed from the lake at the bottom of the falls to generate hydroelectric power. It was one of the efforts to try and get us off of coal and the Zebras frequently attempted to destroy them. I recall a month before the war ended, they succeeded in destroying the western dam.

“Do you think he has something in one of the dams?” I ask. Twinkle just shrugs.

“The raider just knew about the location. Nothing specific. I don’t think they even knew what or where it is,” Lightning chimes in. “Trust me, he didn’t know.” If Lightning says he didn’t know, then the raider didn’t. Neighagra, hu? I haven’t been there since spring break my sophomore year of college. Perhaps it is time to check it out again.

“Well, if it is where Grimoire hangs his hat, we should at least check it out. Shall we head back to my lab for now? Let you all rest up? Cygnus also needs to get his ribs looked at,” I tell them.

“Sure thing, Ratchet. But there’s just one thing we need to do first,” Twinkle says. “I’ll be damned if I leave our fallen here to rot. Mind helping us recover their bodies? We’ll bury them with everyone else,” She says, sullenly.

“Of course. Cora can help carry someone, if you need it,” I tell her.

“Thanks,” Twinkle replies. “We’ve been fighting for three days and covered quite a bit of ground, so we have a bit of walk ahead of us. Shouldn’t be any fighting, other than a some wildlife. Alright Rangers, let’s move out! Our fallen aren’t going to pick themselves up!”

===~+~===

Level Up!

+15 Melee Weapons
+2 Small Guns **Small Guns Has Reached Maximum Level (You might hit like a truck when you hit, but your accuracy still sucks)
+15 Repair

Quest Updated:
-Savior
Objective Complete: Talk to Gunsmoke
Objective Complete: Investigate the Vanhoover Suburbs
Objective Complete: Help the Rangers of Stable 36.
Quest Completed!

New Quest:
-Hidden Waters
Current Objective: Investigate Neighagra Falls

Author's Note

I've come to the conclusion that I am utter rubbish at writing combat scenes. This chapter took me longer than I'd care to admit to write because I kept getting stuck.

That scene where the houses crash into each other and everyone dies? Well, I was going to have some raiders live, and Ratchet climb up the rubble to kill them. But, I really didn't want to spent two more days thinking up that fight scene. There comes a time when you just have to draw a line.

I'm gona try to stick to story wherever I can and not focus too heavily on fights.

Chapter 25 - Logic

"It is said you can never prove that something is impossible. Because even if something isn’t possible today, that doesn’t mean it won’t be possible tomorrow."

===~+~===

Neighagra Falls. Once it was a tourist hotspot that attracted ponies with the beauty of its cascading waterfalls and clear, sparkling water. What it is now, is nothing like I remember from my college trip. The water still falls, but that is where the similarities end. Neighagra Falls has become a cesspool of radioactivity, so much so even being near the edge of the water causes my PipBuck to start clicking steadily.

The water itself is a murky and muddy, nothing like it once was. The lake at the bottom is strewn about with litter and I can see a hazardous material transport laying upside down in the water. The trailer of it must have broken open, because barrels of waste are scattered on the shore. If I had to choose one place that shows the tragedy that has befallen Equestria, it would be here. The waters used to be so full of life, but now they carry only death.

Bubbles appear on the water for a moment and a shape breaks the surface. It is too far to make out, but I can see the shine of an eye. I feel a shiver go down my spine. Death, and whatever that thing is. I continue looking around on the shore and along the cliff face.

The Rangers and my own group begin searching for Grimoire’s lair. We start with the still functioning dam, but it is completely abandoned, despite the fact it is still functional. We then begin to search the shores, surrounding buildings, and the top of the falls. But nothing stands out as something Grimoire would use.

I am beginning to think his lair might somehow be at the bottom of the lake. With teleportation, it could be possible. But, unless we get a hold of a lot of rad-x, radaway, and some hazmat suits, there is no way we are going in the water.

Just then, Cora starts to speak over the radio frequency we are using. “I think I may have found something at the bottom of the falls,” Cora announces. “This rock is of a slightly different color and density that the rock around it. Let me give it a closer look.” There is a pause and then an “Eep! I broke the rock. There was button behind it. Should I press it?” She asks.

I start walking to where she is as I reply. “No, wait till we regroup. If it is Grimoire’s lair, there’s no telling what will happen when you press it. Let’s regroup on Cora’s location everyone,” I say over the radio.

A short time later, everyone is gathered on the shore of the lake, near the edge where the falls are closest to the beach. Some rock, that doesn’t actually look quite like actual rock, lays in chunks below a button set into the cliff face. “Ready everyone?” I ask. After receiving nods, I press the button.

Immediately the ground gives a shudder and the sound of grating reaches my ears. I watch as rock along the cliff begins to pull away, revealing metal supports. A few feet below, stairs are coming out of the cliff as well. These two parallel constructs come about two feet out of the cliff face before stopping. The top one provides shelter against the falling water and cuts a path through the waterfall.

“Ha!” Twinkle chuckles. “Behind the waterfall? That’s so cliche. Alright Rangers, let’s go fuck up his house!” She starts walking up the stairs and we follow.

Passing through the waterfall, we enter into a large cavern. The ground around us is wet from the falling water, but after a few feet the ground dries out. Roughly twenty feet in front of us is a large metal door. It isn’t like a Stable door, it is rectangular and split down the middle. Metal bars run the length of it from top to bottom, sealing it closed. On the far right is a single keypad.

The most curious aspect of this cavern, however, is the old unicorn buck sitting on a patio chair, next to a patio table with a parasol in it. Resting on the table is a teapot, two teacups with matching saucers, a plate of seemingly fresh baked cookies, and a chess set. The buck sees us, smiles, and takes a sip from one of the cups. He floats the saucer in front of him and sets the cup back on it, then floats the pair aside.

“Well hello there strangers. I wish I had more cups and chairs, but I wasn’t expecting so many guests,” he says with a pleasant tone. He then gestures to the chair across the table from him. “Please, please, come in. At least one of you can take a seat. Let’s chat for a bit,” He says, taking another sip from his cup.

Hesitantly, we approach the table. He doesn’t appear to have any weapons, but since he is a unicorn we should still be careful. The Rangers keep their guns on him as I sit down in the chair. He immediately picks the teapot up in his magic and fills the empty teacup near me. “Please, relax. Have some tea and cookies,” He says with a smile. The corners of his eyes crinkle as he does so.

I look at the cookies and tea skeptically. He seems to pick up on my hesitation. “Ah, right. Ponies now-a-days are always wary of strangers offering them food and drink,” He says, not seeming the least bit offended. He then eats a cookie and refills his cup from the teapot and takes a sip. “There, not poisoned or anything. Please, help yourself,” he says, nodding to the others as well. Cygnus shrugs and takes a cookie. From the look on his face as he chews it, it must be pretty good.

I hesitate, but take a sip of the tea. I blink at the taste. Hu? It is actually pretty good. “Seems you both are enjoying my refreshments. I’m glad, it has been a while since I’ve had guests,” He smiles. “Oh! But where are my manners, I have yet to introduce myself. My name is Noblesse, it is a pleasure to make your acquaintance,” he says with a slight bow.

Noblesse, hu? For some reason that name sounds familiar. But I can’t remember where I’ve heard it from. “My name is Ratchet,” I reply. Cygnus, Cora, and Shrill introduce themselves as well. Lightning, Arrow, and the other Rangers remain silent, however.

“Well, it is nice to meet you. Though your armored friends don’t seem to be very talkative. I’m partial to one on one chats anyway. Too many participants in a conversation ruins the experience, in my opinion. So, Ratchet, I take it you are the leader of this group?” Noblesse asks.

“Kind of,” I reply. “It is complicated. But we can go with that for now,” I add. He nods at my words with his eyes closed.

“Very well then, I will address you in our talk then. So, what brings you here, might I ask?” Noblesse says politely. “Are you just exploring, coming here for something specific, or perhaps you are here to meet with the master?”

“The master?” I ask. Noblesse tilts his head as if waiting for me to answer his question. “Er, I suppose we are here for something specific. Who do you mean when you say the master?”

“Just that, the master of this facility that I keep watch for. I guard this door for him. Though, I suppose you are asking for a specific name. My master’s name is Grimoire,” Noblesse says as plainly as if calling a rose red.

“You work for Grimoire?” I ask, putting my guard up. It was always a possibility he did work for Grimoire, since he is at this place. But he seems so different from the usual members of Discordia.

“Indeed. Have since he attacked my village a few years ago,” Noblesse says without a hint of anger in his voice. “He proclaimed that anyone who didn’t join him, would die. I don’t necessarily want to die, do I opted to join him. Though, given my old age, I’m not a fighter. But, I can watch a door,” He says with a smirk. Behind his glasses, I see his eyes dancing with life. They aren’t the eyes of an old buck.

I raise an eyebrow. “But you don’t have anything to defend the door with. Hasn’t anyone tried to get past you by force?” I ask.

He chuckles. “They are quickly dissuaded from doing so once they learn the only way through the door is with the password only Grimoire and I know. If they kill me, they lose the password. I do offer to give it out though. I’m not too attached to Grimoire, you know. Though I wouldn’t say I hate him either,” He says nonchalantly.

“So, you would just give us the password then?” I ask him, slightly hopeful.

Noblesse smile broadly. “I’ll give you the password,” he says, but upon seeing my eyes light up, he continues. “But, there’s a catch. It can get tedious sitting here. As relaxing it is to watch the waterfall and sip tea all day, it gets dreadfully boring. So let us play a game of chess. If you win or even if you aleve my boredom enough, I’ll give you the password. If you lose, you leave,” He says, laying out the rules.

“Though,” Noblesse continues, “I’m willing to give you each a chance to beat me. Except for you, Miss Cora. You are an AI, correct?” Cora perks up at his question.

“How did you know?” Cora asks him.

“Your voice has a synthetic ring to it and your movements are slightly off. But, I’ve also not heard you breathing this entire time,” Noblesse replies. Hasn’t heard her breathing? Does that mean he can hear everyone else breathing? Just how good are his ears! “It isn’t that I have anything against you, you understand. I’ve had a bad experience with something similar in the past. Played chess against the prototype crusader maneframe once,” he says, seeming to shiver. “Terrifying experience. I don’t wish to do anything like that ever again,” Noblesse concludes.

“Wait, a prototype? Then you were…” I start to ask, but cuts me off with a nod of his head.

“Indeed, alive before things went to hell. Though, I am getting up there in age now. A few more years and I’ll be in the ground. But let’s leave the morbidity behind. Chess,” Noblesse says, clasping his hooves together, “do you play, Ratchet?”

I nod. “I do. In fact, I think out of all of us, only Cora, Cygnus, and myself know the game,” I tell him, recalling the difficulty I had previously explaining chess references to the Rangers. “I’ll play with you. I was quite skilled back in my college days,” I say with a smile. He raises an eyebrow at that, and I realize what I said. College doesn’t exist anymore and given my apparent age, I should never have attended. But he doesn’t seem to press it. Instead, he gestures to the chess board between us.

“Very good. We will be using my personal chess set. The pieces are different than a usual set, but their purpose is the same. It was a gift I’m quite fond of,” Noblesse says with a smile. I’ve been stealing glances at it up till now, but now I focus my full attention on the set. It is exquisite. The pieces look as though they were individually carved from a single piece of wood. The board is also decorated regally. It is about an inch thick, the sides are carved with intricate designs and a drawer for the pieces is set into it.

I can tell a master craftsmen worked on this set for hours. I think parts of the board are even decorated with pure gold. It is in excellent condition. But what stands out the most, is the flawless pieces.

The kings are a regal looking Princess Celestia, smiling brilliantly. The queens are Princess Luna, head held up with dignity. The bishops have been replaces with Twilight Sparkle and Fluttershy. Twilight is surrounded by books while Fluttershy is carrying a medical bag. The knights are Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie. Rainbow Dash is flying with a rainbow shockwave behind her. Pinkie Pie floats with a group of balloons tied around her midsection. The rooks are Rarity and Applejack. Rarity is surrounded by what look like needles pointing in front of her as she strikes an elegant pose. Applejack is mid-buck, her body in perfect form, emphasising her muscles. The pawns are royal guards. Celestia’s for white and Luna’s for black. To differentiate the others, they wear a black or white sash.

The pieces and board are almost as perfect as the Pinkie figurine I found. It is beautiful, but brings sadness to my heart. I remember Twilight and Applejack talking about the others, how they all used to be together, but the war kept them separate. But now, Applejack will never see her friends again. What about the others though? I can’t help but wonder, are any of them still alive? The wasteland is sad. So terribly, terribly, sad. They separated from each other to try and end the war, but it was all for nothing.

Thinking of the past lets me recall something else. A relatively famous news story about one of Equestria's greatest Chess players beating the prototype Crusader Maneframe. I recall a picture in the paper I saw, Princess Celestia giving the buck a chess set for his accomplishment. His name was...My eyes go wide in realization. “You’re Noblesse Oblige! Equestria’s greatest chess player! The only pony who managed to win against the Crusader Maneframe!” I shout in shock.

Noblesse’s eyes widen in surprise. “I didn’t think anyone knew my whole name anymore. Not only that, but you seem to know about me,” He says, blinking. “Interesting. Let’s add a new element of our game, shall we? You seem to know me, and I’m curious how. You also seem interested in Grimoire. So, for each piece we capture, we can ask one question that must be answered truthfully. How does that sound?” He says with a smile.

He will tell me about Grimoire? If I lose, I won’t get the password, but I will at least get information on Grimoire. That’s good enough for me. “Sounds good to me!” I declare. “Let’s begin, shall we?” Noblesse nods in agreement, smiling contently.

Noblesse makes the first move. The others gather around to watch us as we play. “How about some banter as we play?” Noblesse suggests. “Tell me, why are you going after Grimoire?”

I move a pawn forward as I answer him. “Because he is planning to basically destroy the world again. Killing innocents and doing what he wants. It isn’t right,” I tell him.

Noblesse moves one of his knights. “He is evil. But why are YOU going after him? You strike me as an intellectual, not a fighter. I can understand the Rangers, but you? You are out of your element,” He tells me.

“You’re not wrong,” I say, moving a rook. “I’m not a fighter. But if I don’t fight him, who will? Should I just sit around and hope that someone else deals with him?” I ask.

He holds a hoof to his chin as he moves another pawn. “Plenty of ponies seem content to do just that. They take what small bit of peace they can get, even if it means turning a blind eye to the plight of others,” He says sternly.

I move a pawn to match his, stopping its progress. “I can understand that. The wasteland is cruel. Ponies will sooner steal from you than help you. If I were them, I wouldn’t do anything either,” I mutter.

He rises an eyebrow as he moves a bishop from the back. “What makes you different from them, then?” He asks.

I shrug. “I suppose I have a direction?” I suggest, moving out my queen. “I’ve had a goal ever since I woke up. Something I needed to do. From there, I’ve got a sort of path taking me in the direction I needed to go,” I tell him.

His eyes flash and he takes one of my pawns with his bishop. But, it puts his bishop right in line with my queen. What is he doing? “What do you mean when you said ‘since I woke up’?” He asks. Was that why he did it? To get me to answer that question?

“I was frozen cryogenically. One second I was in the world of Equestria during the war, the next I was in the wasteland after the bombs fell,” I tell him. His eyes widen with curiosity. Then I take his bishop with my queen. “My turn for a question. I know Grimoire has the ability to teleport, heal insanely fast, and even phase himself out of existence. What else can he do?” I ask. Noblesse stares at me in a new wave of shock.

“I never knew Grimoire could do those last two things. It is true he can teleport quite well. He even has an insane pool of magical energy. But he isn’t too adept with a variety of magic. He keeps to himself, but he does talk to himself quite a bit. Him searching for magical artifacts and books is him trying to break past this limitation of his,” Noblesse explains.

“To put it simple, it is impossible that Grimoire made himself phase out of existence or healed himself rapidly. Right now, anyway. In the future, he might unlock those abilities,” He concludes.

“But...The Rangers saw him use those abilities! The shot through him, and even when they hit him, he healed instantly!” I shoot back at him.

Noblesse nods. “It seems like the Rangers who saw him do that are guilty of hasty generalization. They saw their bullets hit him, but he was unhurt. Thus, he must be able to phase out of existence. Such a conclusion could be reached, sure. However, what if I give you some new evidence about his abilities? Grimoire uses illusionary magic,” He says simply.

“Wait, you mean...The Rangers weren’t shooting him, but an illusion he made? But he physically opened a door!” I tell him.

“Just because the illusion is a fake, does not mean he isn’t there,” Noblesse replies. “Using his illusionary magic it is simple for him to make it seem like he is somewhere else, when in reality he could be standing next to you. So, let us say he teleports through a door while he makes his illusion walk through it. Then, while his illusion draws attention, he moves elsewhere and avoids getting shot. That is more than likely what really happened,” he says, shrugging. “But, back to the game at hoof…” He moves his rook.

We continue our game for another few turns without either of us losing a piece. That is, until he takes one of mine. “So, you were frozen, hu? Why?” Noblesse asks.

“My cyropod was actually a prototype. I was giving it an initial test run. During that time, things went to south. I suppose it was just pure luck I was in the pod at the time. Oh, and I say it was a prototype, but it wasn’t the only one,” I tell him as I make my move.

“I see. And I suppose you won’t elude to that last bit until I take another piece. You certainly aren’t boring, Miss Ratchet,” Noblesse says with an easy smile. I chuckle as he makes him move, and then take one of his pawns.

“Is Grimoire here now?” I ask him.

“Hmmm. That is a good question. But one I cannot answer,” He tells me. Seeing my disgruntled expression, he continues. “I can’t answer, because I do not know. I rarely go inside far enough to tell. The entrance has two doors thick. Inside the first door is a small room I call my home. It was once a security check station, I believe,” Noblesse tells me.

“I can open the inner door, but i choose not to, it isn’t the sort of place I want to go poking around.” A grim expression shows on his face. “Regardless, it has been a year or so since I’ve seen him. Have you heard of the cat in the box question? If a cat is put into a box and it is sealed, is the cat alive or dead?” Noblesse asks rhetorically.

“Without opening the box, you cannot tell the state of the cat. Similarly, without opening the second door, I have no way of knowing the state of Grimoire,” He explains as he makes his next move, taking one of my pieces. “Now then, more cryopods than your prototype? Elaborate,” He asks.

“I knew you’d ask that next. As I said previously, mine isn’t the only one. I do not know how many were made, but I know at least Cygnus here was in one. Miss Twilight Sparkle was overseeing my project and she took some liberties to develop the technology along different avenues,” I tell him.

“My pod was conceptualized to be used in Stables. A mass produced model is what it would have become. Cygnus’s pod was similar, but I could tell there were differences. She might have been making them specific to their use. The size, shape, and specific functions of any pods I encounter might vary greatly,” I explain. “Of course, the use of the pods is classified. I even had to be promoted seconds before the bombs fell in order to access them.” I take my next move. He immediately takes another piece.

“I see. I suppose you do not know anything else about that subject then. Tell me about yourself then, Miss Ratchet. I’ll be a bit more specific, tell me about your family,” He asks. I blink at the question, seemingly coming out of nowhere.

“I’m actually an orphan,” I tell him. “I was around three when my parents died. From what I’m told, they were a fantastic duo when it came to magic. The day they died, I was left with a foalsitter while they went to be guest lecturers at Littlehorn. That was the day of the Littlehorn Massacre,” I explain.

“I was raised in an orphanage. Till I went to high school at a boarding school. That’s where my passion for inventing and tinkering was sparked,” I tell him. I leave off there on purpose and take one of his pieces. “My turn. Why does Grimoire want to find Discord’s remains?” I ask.

“Well, it is hard to take the place of something that already exists. Allow me to cite the devil’s proof. A lack of evidence for Discord’s current existence doesn’t fail to prove he exists. However, if Grimoire can find his remains, he can prove Discord is dead,” Noblesse replies. “Think of it as in order to become a king, you have to kill the previous king first. Just because the current king is missing, it doesn’t mean you can take his place.”

“I see. So he needs to confirm Discord’s death before he can fully reach his goal? I suppose as long as he doesn’t find the remains, he is nothing but the leader of an organized band of raiders,” I mutter.

Noblesse frowns. “Even the dullest of blades wielded by someone with the intent to use it is dangerous. Even if they are raiders with poor training and equipment, they are still dangerous,” He mutters.

“If you realize how dangerous they are, why are you here protecting Grimoire’s lair?” I ask him. “Why not leave and go somewhere else?”

He lets out a sigh. “I knew Grimoire years ago. Before he started this crusade of chaos. He was kind, gentle, and protective of his little sister, Spell Book. It had been years since I last saw him when him and his army took the town I was living in at the time. He remembered me. I suppose I’m hoping the child I once knew will return,” Noblesse replies sadly.

“You knew Grimoire before? What made him like this?” I ask. Noblesse smiles slightly.

“Take another of my pieces, and I’ll tell you,” He says, making his next move. We move our dwindling pieces around the board. After a few turns, he takes a piece from me again. “So, you are an orphan, worked for the MoAS, were frozen in time, and are determined to stop Grimoire. You are new to all this, the wasteland. I’ve seen it change over time, become what it is now. You were in Equestria one moment and the Wasteland the next. What do you think of the Wasteland?” He asks.

I tilt my head slightly. That is an odd question. He wants my opinion on the wasteland? “It sucks,” I tell him flatly. “Ponies killing each other, mutant creatures running amok, food and shelter is hard to come by, and you never feel safe. It is awful. Not to mention the majority of the Steel Rangers are hiding in their bunkers and the Pegasi are cowering above the clouds. The future looks grim.” I say.

“But there is a future,” Noblesse replies. “Even if you think it might look grim, there still is one. Many thought the world was ending when the bombs fell, yet here we are. For all your negative remarks just now, you are still trying to stop Grimoire. You must have some hope,” He says.

“Well, of course. No one can know the future, but as long as we are still alive we can hope for a better future,” I tell him. “I’ve seen Friendship City rising from the rubble of Manehatten, I took Tenpony Tower from a horde of ghouls, and the Rangers of Stable 36 wiped out the raiders of Ponyville where new ponies have settled now. If everything is shit, things can only improve, right?” I say with a small shrug.

Noblesse raises an eyebrow. “You took back Tenpony? I wondered who did that. That DJ has been talking about the news every so often. Warning folks of dangerous places. I suppose I should thank you,” He says with a smile. Seeing my look of confusion, he continues. “That tower saved me from death. Along with a number of others. It was shielded against the blast and radiation. We spent the next dozen years there,” He tells me.

“You mean it wasn’t overrun with ghouls from the start? What happened then?” I ask, but she shakes his head.

“Take a piece and ask,” he smiles. Great, now I am falling behind on the questions I need to ask. It is like he is purposefully giving me a reason to keep playing with him and not giving up. But this is getting tough, I’m finding myself outmatched.

We pass the next few turns and he captures a few of my pieces. He asks me simple questions about my past or my thoughts on things currently. Nothing special. But my side of the board is looking particularly sparse. A few more turns, and I manage to take another one of his pieces, though.

I decide to ask about Grimoire, unsure how much longer I’ll be able to take pieces from him. “Tell me about Grimoire’s past,” I ask. Noblesse nods.

“He was a teenager when the bombs fell. Luckily, him and his family lived in a relatively safe area, away from where the bombs fell. They survived without any radiation or harm. However, their town quickly descended into chaos and violence once supplies started to run low. In five years, his parents were murdered and it was just him and his sister,” Noblesse explains.

“They couldn’t stay in the town, not knowing it was only a matter of time before they would meet the same fate. They left, taking everything they could carry and began to wander aimlessly. It was years before I left Tenpony, settled in a new town, and came across the pair,” Noblesse tells me. “For a while, they stayed with me. His sister, Spell Book, was shy and clumsy, but Grimoire was kind, reliable, and doted on his sister. When they were old enough, they set out on their own trying to find their own place to call home.”

“I lost touch with them after that, and it wasn’t until Grimoire returned with his army that I saw him again. I asked about Spell Book and he got angry, violent. He said that she died. He wouldn’t tell me how. But he seemed different, like his memory was off,” Noblesse rubs his chin. “The more I talked with him, the more I realized this. He remembered me, but he didn’t recall ever staying in my care.”

“I asked about his past, but he only told me about unsettling memories. It is like he couldn’t remember anything happy about his life other than his memories with Spell Book. I don’t know what he did exactly, but I expect he manipulated his memories. He was always so kind, but I suspect that in removing his happy memories, he made himself cruel,” Noblesse says. “That’s all I know.”

Great, now I kind of feel bad for the buck. But he still needs to be stopped, there is no negotiating that. Our game continues until a few turns later, I take another piece from him. “Ok, this time tell me about Tenpony Tower.” Noblesse smiles and nods.

“As I said, I was there when the bombs fell, along with a large amount of the residents, guests, shop owners and staff, and Mr. Tenpony himself. At first, all of us were expecting to die, but after a few days we realized we were safe. Relatively speaking, of course. Rationing began, and Tenpony Tower luckily had a surplus of stock at the time,” Noblesse explains.

“For the next dozen years, we lived normally inside the tower. But our supplies began to dwindle. At this point, Mr. Tenpony and his security staff began leading expeditions out of the tower to search for supplies or survivors. They took every precaution, but some of them began to look sickly. No doubt from radiation poisoning. Thankfully, Doctor Hearty was able to treat most of it. However, Mr. Tenpony, who insisted on leading every expedition himself was growing worse and worse,” Noblesse says grimly.

“He got a persistant cough and his hair started to fall out. His eyes even glowed slightly. I never expected that to be what started our exodus. Mr. Tenpony’s skin began to crack and seep black ooze. Honestly, he looked like a walking corpse. Doc Hearty confined him to his room for recovery and refused us entry to see him. A few other of the security staff got the same symptoms and were laid up in Hearty’s medical center,” Noblesse says, letting out a sigh.

“Of course, now I know those symptoms to be ghoulification. However, when Hearty began to declare the security staff under his care dead, we hardly thought anything of it and let him dispose of the corpses. We found out too late he was hiding them and conducting research on them. Not only that, but he began to talk with the security staff about the outside, which he had no prior interest in. A few times I heard the sound of the delivery entrance being opened and closed. Turns out he was bringing more ghouls inside to study, live ones that at,” Noblesse explains.

“Things reached their crescendo when a guest stumbled upon a room filled with ghouls. When we confronted Hearty about this, he declared it was all for the good of Mr. Tenpony. Hearty himself had begun the path to ghoulification. He freed the ghouls, declared that we will all become test subjects for him, and sicced them upon us. A few of us went down in the ensuing chaos, but most of us were able to evacuate the tower. Those of us who were guests went our separate ways, but the aristoponies who lived there and the security staff went off together,” Noblesse says with a sigh.

“And that is the tale of the fall of Tenpony Tower,” He says simply. “Mr. Tenpony tried to do good, but in the end he drove Doc Hearty to madness as the doctor tried to save him. The best of intentions can have unforeseen consequences. You were there, Ratchet. Mr. Tenpony, Doc Hearty, what became of them?” Noblesse asks sadly.

“Hearty was still insane, but wasn’t mindless like the rest of the ghouls. Mr. Tenpony’s ghoul was still alive as well. I killed them both, my friends and I killed every ghoul in the tower,” I tell him with downcast eyes.

Noblesse closes his eyes and bows his head. “I see,” He mutters. “I suppose I must thank you again, then. For bringing them peace and ending their suffering.”

I shake my head. “It wasn’t as grand as all that. It was barbaric,” I tell him. Noblesse frowns.

“I won’t ask about it, but Ratchet, whatever you did, it is alright. You’re not a murderer, not a killer. You are a kindhearted scientist who hopes for a brighter future. You’ll make mistakes, you’ll fall on hard times, but as long as you stay who you are right now, you’ll make it through,” Noblesse tells me with a confident smile. “Now, we have a game to finish, Ratchet. In five turns, I will checkmate you. If you have more questions, take my pieces before then,” He tells me with playfulness in his eyes.

We continue. One turn passes, then another. Despite my best plays, I can’t take any of his pieces. On the fifth turn a single word escapes Noblesse’s lips, “Checkmate.” I stare at the board, but no matter how I look at it, I’ve lost. I didn’t have any specific questions left to ask, but now will he open the door? “Ratchet,” Noblesse says, “It has been a long time since I’ve had a partner for a match. Too long. Thank you, for staving off my boredom. I’ll open the doors for you.”

Noblesse slowly gets up off his chair and onto his hooves. As he does so, I hear his bones crack and see a look of discomfort on his face. Despite the youth in his eyes, he is still and old buck. He walks over to the terminal near the door and presses a few keys. A low buzz comes from somewhere and mechanical noises start up. The door slowly begins to pull apart, revealing a small security checkpoint with another door behind it.

The old buck walks through the first set of doors and into the security room. Through a window in the wall, I see him using another terminal. A moment later the second door begins opening. He walks back out to us. “I don’t know what’s inside, Ratchet. He could have guards or not have any. He might even have traps. But, with all these ponies behind you, I’m sure you’ll be fine. Come say goodbye before you leave, I’ll be out here admiring the waterfall,” He tells me as he walks towards the table.

I nod to him and then declare, “Alright everypony, let’s go.” We slowly enter into the structure, with the Rangers at the front. It is quiet. No one shouting alarms, no movement or ambiance, just our hoofsteps.

Past the second door is a huge, rectangular metal room. It is probably the size of a hoofball field. About halfway back, I see one door on the right side of the room and all the way in the back is two more, one in the center and one off on the left wall. Magical lighting illuminates everything, as though it is still before the war.

Ministry of Morale posters line the walls at set intervals and between them are what look to be workstations. The workstations vary from simple desks stacked with books to alchemical stations. I even see a few broken sprite bots near one of them. Similarly to the posters, metal statues of ponies are spaced around the room, though they number far less than the posters.

“What is all this?” Shill mutters, echoing my own thoughts. Did Grimoire bring all this here? Perhaps some of it, but not all of it.

“I think this is a Ministry of Morale facility. Posters, Sprite Bots, even the layout...it is like it is arranged so no one can hide what they are doing. Everyone can see what someone else is doing,” I point out.

Cygnus approaches one of the alchemical stations. “This looks like it is used to manufacture drugs. Judging by the equipment, Mint-Als. Though it is on a small scale, I doubt they made much. Only enough to supply a few ponies, if all of the similar stations produce them,” He says.

Or one pony with an addiction. I recall overhearing a conversation about Pinkie Pie’s addiction to Party Time Mint-Als. Could this be where she got them so as not to be conspicuous? I look around at the room. This was an odd amount of equipment of varying uses. And how had the MoM kept this place a secret if it was behind the famous Neighagra Falls?

Everyone else is spreading out, inspecting the various stations. I walk over to the closest door where Twinkle is standing. “Let’s take a look,” She says and opens the door. She carefully checks the corners before entering it fully and declaring, “Clear!” I enter in after her.

It is a barracks style room. Beds arranged to fit as much space as possible. It was a lot like my lab’s setup. Like the previous room, there was nowhere to hide or get any privacy, aside from an empty restroom in the back. This room didn’t look used.

Twinkle and I are finishing up in the room when one of the Rangers calls out for us, “Elder Twinkle! Scribe Crusader Ratchet! I think you may want to see this!” We leave the room and look around for the Ranger who called out for us. He is standing at the door on the left side of the room, all the way at the end.

We make our way to him and he steps aside to show us the room. The room’s walls are lined with what look like filing cabinets that go from floor to ceiling. On each drawer is a single letter, A through Z. One drawer is marked Unknown. I swallow as I pull open one of the drawers, the one marked L.

Inside are wooden cases, only a few inches deep but the length and width of the cases matches up with the dimensions of the cabinet perfectly. On the cases are names, in alphabetical order from front to back. Lavender, Lala, Lemon Heart, I keep reading the names till I get to the last entry Lyra Heartstrings. What are these? I pull out one of the cases at random and open it up.

It is filled with orbs. A shiver runs through my body as I recognize what they are. Memory orbs. Lots of memory orbs. I put the case back and pull out another. More memory orbs. I repeat this process on a few more cases, before closing the cabinet and looking in another. It is exactly the same. Each cabinet, each case is filled with memory orbs. This many? Here? Why? I instantly feel like I shouldn’t be here.

“Ma’ams,” The Ranger speaks up again. “You’ll want to see the other room as well,” He leads us out and to the other room, the one in the center of the the main room. He opens it, and steps in before us, then stands aside as we enter.

“No way,” I mutter as I look at it, feeling myself pale. In the center of the small room is a chair with straps on it. Above the chair is a single piece of equipment that would make anyone who knew about it quiver in fear. “A...a....it is a...memory extractor,” I draw in a shaky breath. I had only seen pictures of one before. A bin is in the corner of the room. Twinkle floats an orb out of it.

“Huh. Is this an empty memory orb then? This bin is full of them. Hundreds, at least,” She tells me. This place suddenly made sense to me. Horrible, horrible sense. The way it was never found out despite its location. They removed the memories of anyone who found it in this very room.

“Destroy it,” I choke out. My throat feels dry. This machine was the greatest fear of every pony in Equestria. It could change who you were, make you forget your entire life. I swallow again and repeat myself, “Destroy it. All of it! Everything in this facility!” I shout.

The Ranger looks at Twinkle who shakes her head. “Calm down Ratchet, we don’t have a lead on Grimoire yet. There will be plenty of time to destroy it after, in fact that was my plan the whole time. This whole place will burn!” She says with a hint of laughter in her voice.

I take a deep breath and turn from the machine, muttering, “You’re right. Let’s find some clue about Grimoire.” With that, I leave the room to search.

===~+~===

The Rangers, my friends, and I scour the facility for any clue about Grimoire. We find strange spell books, magical tomes, and other items he undoubtedly brought here. But what draws my attention is a single leather bound book with the name “Grimoire” on it. I open it up and begin skimming over it.

There are dates on every page and explanations of what happened on that particular day. They start off before the war, but as I turn the pages it rapidly climbs to the present. Is this book...Grimoire’s diary? I quickly flip it to the final entry and read it.

She’s dead. I couldn’t even kill the buck who killed her! I’m worthless, I can’t avenge my own sister! She always said I was kind and gentle, but I can’t be that anymore! Not without her! This world shouldn’t exist anymore, it is filled with nothing but misery and pain. I want to end it, but I can’t bring myself to do so. Which is why I’m writing this now.

I stumbled upon an account of a facility behind Neighagra Falls. When I got here, I discovered a memory collector. It still works and has spare orbs. I think I can get it to work. And I know what I need to do. I have to get rid of my kindness. I need to become hatred. I’ll forget everything happen in my life, except for the memories of happiness with Spell Book. Together with them and the memory of her death, I think I’ll be able to do it. I’ll be able to kill ponies. I’ll be able to end this world, like it should have ended all those years ago.

I suppose this is my final word to myself, my final entry in my diary. Grimoire, don’t read this. If you do, forget again. You need to forget to fight, to end it. Remember sister’s death, the anger we felt. We will destroy everything in this world. I promise.

Grimoire really did wipe his memories. It is just like Noblesse said. What did he do with the orbs? I go into the room with the cabinets and pull out the drawer marked G. I scan the names and see one scratched off and replaced with Grimoire. I pull it out and open it. Dozens of orbs are inside. Are these all of his happy memories?

Just then I hear a metallic screech followed by a shout and gunfire. I put the case next to the door and look outside. The metal statues are moving. They are slow, but there are a lot of them. Bullets ricochet off of them without an effect and melee weapons seem to bounce right off. Even the few energy weapons firing only leave scorch marks on the metal. “What is going on?” I shout.

Cygnus runs over to me. “The statues just started moving. They haven’t attacked anyone yet, but it doesn’t seem good,” He informs me.

“Damn it. Is it some sort of security? Did Grimoire do this or the MoM? Ugh. No matter. How are we going to deal with them? Our weapons are useless.” I look around, but none of our weapons seem to be doing a thing. Everyone has seemed to realize this and stops firing.

“Hey, what are they made of?” I ask Cygnus.

“Judging by the color, bronze,” He replies.

“Does that flamethrower of yours reach a high enough temperature to melt bronze?” I ask him.

“Barely,” He answers. “I see what you are getting at. I’ll get it ready, you come up with the specifics.” Cygnus starts muttering.

“Well, you don’t have to melt them completely. Just make it so they can’t move. Aim at their legs. They are slow enough we should be able to round them up and kite them around while you spray them down with fire,” I tell him. He nods and I set about telling the others.

I start with Twinkle who then barks orders to the Rangers. By the time Cygnus is ready, we have most of the walking statues grouped up together. “Let ‘em have it, Cygnus,” I call and he shoots flame, engulfing the legs of the statues. The Rangers taunt the statues and circle the room to keep them away from Cygnus. After a while, I see the statues start to deform and become slower. A few more minutes and their legs and puddles of metal. Cygnus kills the flames.

“Nicely done!” Twinkle declares. “Now, let’s just avoid the molten metal puddle in the middle of the room, and keep looking for a lead.”

I walk over to her. “Actually, I think I found the only that that matters here. Grimoire’s diary and his memory orbs. He doesn’t seem like the type to leave a paper trail now. I say we destroy the place and return to the lab,” I tell her.

Twinkle chuckles. “If you’re sure. Alright Rangers! Blow it all up! Cygnus! Don’t let that flamethrower go to waste! Burn everything! We don’t want Grimoire to be able to use anything here ever again,” She shouts. And just like that we set about destroying everything in the lab. Everything except the memory orbs in the cabinets. I suggest we keep them like they are for the sake of some day knowing what they contain.

We leave the facility and the Rangers start to exit the waterfall cave. Cygnus, Shrill, Cora, Lightning, Arrow, and I, however, stop by Noblesse to say goodbye. “Thank’s again, Noblesse,” I tell him. “We made a mess of the place, but we got something out of it.”

“That’s good to hear, Ratchet. Before you go, take this with you,” Noblesse says, floating the chessboard to me. “I want you to have it. It is a shame for me to keep it, when there is no one to play with. You can teach those with you how to play.”

“Th-Thank you,” I stammer, accepting the chessboard. “But, without it, what will you do? There isn’t much else around here to keep you entertained,” I ask him.

He smiles weakly. “Oh, I’ll watch the waterfall and listen to that DJ’s music. Besides, I don’t have that many more years left in me. I’ll be content with just this,” He replies. Looking at him, he certainly looks a lot older than when we first arrived. His breathing looks sort of labored as well. And he...I see a flicker of movement in the corner of my eye and turn to look at it.

In the shadows of the cave is a figure, cloaked in black with a boney muzzle poking out of the hood. Death. But, no one has died, there aren’t any enemies around and...I turn back and look at Noblesse. He chuckles weakly and closes his eyes. He knows it. He knows he isn’t going to live for a few more years. He’s just barely holding on. He opens his eyes slowly and lets out a sigh. “I think it is time you all get on your way. You’ve got Grimoire to stop, after all. And Ratchet, when you see him, give him a message from me. Tell him, ‘Spell Book would hate what you’ve become’. I never had the heart to tell him it myself. I think he needs to hear it,” He tells me.

I nod, fighting tears. “I will. Let’s go, everyone,” I say. I wait for them to start off before turning to Noblesse one last time. “Thank you, Noblesse. For everything.” He smiles gently and waves me off with his hoof. I’ll take good care of your chessboard, I promise.

===~+~===

Quest Completed!
-Hidden Waters

Author's Note

I hope you enjoyed Chapter 25!

Initially, I was planning on having some Elite Guards of Grimoire's in the facility, but I decided to expand Noblesse's role and replace the guards with simple statues and do away with the combat scene. Noblesse Oblige is only in this one chapter, but I hope you liked him. I wanted him to be a kind of guide for Ratchet to set her back on the path of logic and thinking straight. To make her remember who she is. Ratchet has been overwhelmed with heat of the moment thinking and scared to take the time to think things out.

I also wanted to give some backstory to Grimoire, who gets his own chapter next. Look forward to it!

Chapter 26 - Grimoire

Author's Note

This chapter is different from the others. It is told from the perspective of Grimoire. Allow me to explain how this chapter fits in. In Ch. 25, Ratchet found Grimoire's Diary and Memory Orbs. Between this chapter and the last, Ratchet and the others returned to her lab where she began reading the diary and using the orbs.

The reason it is told in Grimoire's perspective is because unlike just using a memory orb, the diary adds his feelings and thoughts. Therefore, with the memory orb's visuals and the diary's background information, an entire scene is able to be shown. Ratchet doesn't need to comment or react.

Thus this chapter. It skips around, sometimes years pass by between segments. It gives Grimoire's past. The happy times, the sad times, what happens to cause who he is now.

Chapter 26 - Grimoire

"She was my world. The one I would risk my life for without a second thought. And I...I failed her."

===~+~===

It is another sunny day as my sister and I walk to school. She is clumsy and shy, so I’m glad our town is so small we only have a one room schoolhouse. I can keep an eye on her; She tends to get bullied. But when we are alone like this, she smiles and acts without a care in the world. I love her smile. I feel privileged when I see it, since she only shows it to mom, dad, and me.

“I want to be just like Rainbow Dash when I’m older!” She declares happily. “She’s so awesome, and not clumsy at all like me.”

“Oh? You’ve got a ways to go then, Spell. You’re a unicorn, not a pegasus, after all. But I wouldn’t mind if you remained clumsy forever. I find it cute,” I tease her.

She puffs out her cheeks. “Grim! You’re so mean!” She says, but then giggles at me. I chuckle along with her. After a few minutes, we arrive at the schoolhouse. I step through the door with Spell right behind me. She stumbles on the slight step up and falls on her face. “Uuu,” She groans and I move to help her up.

“Oh my, Spell Book, are you alright? That was quite a spill,” Our teacher Mr. Pencilpusher asks, walking up to us.

“She’s fine sir. It happens so often she’s toughened up from it,” I tell him. Despite me saying this, tears hang at the edges of Spell’s eyes.

She sniffles and mutters, “Oww…,” rubbing her nose.

“Come on sis’, let’s get you to your desk,” I say, lifting her up to her hooves.

Mr. Pencilpusher chuckles. “You’re such a good older brother, Grimoire. Spell Book is lucky to have you,” He says with a smile. A few minutes later, he starts class and we begin our lessons.

===~+~===

“Mom! Dad! I’m graduating from the elementary school level tomorrow. You’ll come, won’t you?” I ask. Mom and Dad chuckle as they sit on the living room couch.

“Of course, honey. We wouldn’t miss it for the world,” Mom tells me with a kind smile.

“It is hard to believe that much time has passed already. Feels like just the other day you were learning to walk,” Dad says with a beaming smile.

Spell walks into the room to see what the commotion is about. “I want to graduate too!” She declares, pouting. “It’s not fair!”

“Oh come one, Spell,” I tell her. “You’re only two years behind me. You’ll graduate soon enough. And besides, it isn’t like I’ll be going anywhere. We’ll still be in the same room for classes.”

“But...but!” She starts, but I give her a teasing smile. She’s so adorable when she gets flustered.

“Besides, a filly who is as bad as you at math won’t be able to graduate from elementary school even in two years,” I tease.

“Nuh-uh! I’m not that bad at math! Twelve times seven is eighty four! See! I’m not bad at math!” She says stubbornly.

“We know you can multiply, but you can’t do algebra. If you have x^2+6x+9, what are the zeros?” I ask her.

“Wha-uh, let’s see...uh...Shut up!” She replies.

I laugh and smile at her. “Don’t worry Spell, I can help you with your math,” I tell her, putting my hoof on her head and stroking her mane. “You’ll be able to graduate no problem!” I declare.

“Y-You mean it?!” She says excitedly.

“Of course! You’re my little sister, of course I’ll help you out. Now, let’s go get some paper and I’ll show you how to do that problem,” I tell her, heading towards the kitchen.

“Okay~♪” She says happily, following after me.

===~+~===

“Happy Birthday!” Mom and Dad yell as I blow out the candles on my cake. Dad chuckles. “Fourteen years old, hu? We’re really going to have to start worrying about keeping the mares away from you, hu?” He teases. I feel myself blushing slightly.

“Oh darling,” Mom says to him, “I’m sure he already has the mares fawning all over him.”

“Nuh-uh!” Spell declares. To be honest, hearing that so bluntly kind of hurts. “And I’ll keep them away myself! Grim is going to be all mine!” She shouts.

I smile at her and pat her head. “Of course. Who needs those other mares when I have my adorable little sister to keep me company?” I say. “I’m more worried about all the colts that will be hitting on you when you’re older,” I tell her.

“Eww,” She says, sticking out her tongue. “Colts are gross,” She mutters. We all laugh at her statement. That’s ok, Spell. I won’t let any colts hurt you. I’m your big brother, after all.

“You’ll be turning twelve next month, right Spell?” I ask her.

“Yep! Are you going to get me a present Grim!?” She asks excitedly, her eyes sparkling.

I can’t help but tease her in return. “Maybe,” I say with a smile.

“Uuu, are you or aren’t you!” She pouts. We all share another laugh at her pouting.

===~+~===

A loud noise is echoing throughout the town. It is annoying, I wish it would stop. It just keeps droning on and on. I’m in the park with Spell when dad runs over to us. “Grimoire, Spell Book! We have to get back home right now. Something very bad is happening,” He tells us. Dad looks very shaken and he is practically out of breath.

“Dad, what’s wrong?” I ask him, but he just picks Spell up on his back and turns back towards our house. “What’s going on dad?” I yell as I follow after him.

“Something very bad son,” Is all that he tells me. He is running so fast I barely manage to keep up. As we get near the house, I see a bright flash on the horizon to the east. A plume of smoke or dust rises shortly after. “Oh no,” Dad mutters as he stares at the horizon. “Inside, now! Get downstairs!” He shouts. I look south and another flash occurs. I don’t know what it is about the flashes, but they are terrifying. It makes me uncomfortable just seeing them. And they keep appearing on the horizon. I swallow and run into the house.

“Honey!” Mom calls out as we get to the basement. She embraces dad tightly, then Spell and me as well. “I was so worried,” She says, tears streaming down her cheeks. I don’t understand what is going on. But for my parents to act like this, it was very bad.

“What’s happening?” I ask, hoping to finally get an answer this time.

“We’re under attack,” Dad tells me, his voice uneven and shaky. “The Zebras, they are using Megaspells. No doubt we are already retaliating. It will be fine, we just have to stay down here for a while,” He says. But his voice made it seem like it wasn’t going to be fine.

As if to punctuate this face, a loud rumbling sound begins and after a moment I hear the sound of our windows shattering and the house shakes. Spell screams and falls to her haunches, drawing her hooves over her head.

Once the shaking stops, I go over to her and put my hooves around her. “It’s ok, sis’. It’s going to be ok,” I whisper. Despite my words, my heart is beating fast and I feel terror grip me. Mom and dad join us and wrap their hooves around us as well.

We spend a hours like this. Not moving, not speaking, only Spell’s crying and the occasional rumble breaking the silence. Shaking followed the rumbling and every time the house shook, I fear it might fall on top of us. Hours go by without a rumble or shaking and we finally break out embrace.

Dad stands up first. “I’m going to see what’s going on outside,” He tells us and starts walking to the stairs. I stand up and start towards him.

“Wait,” I call out. “I’ll come too,” I tell him. I can tell dad is scared. He’s shaking, just like me. He is terrified of what he’ll find up there, just like me. He looks at me, then at mom, then back to me and nods. Together we exit the basement, and then the house to stand on our front porch.

The neighborhood is a mess. Broken windows everywhere, trees snapped in two, some houses collapsed completely, others looking on the verge of doing just that. But everything else seems fine. I start to breath a sigh of relief when I see dad staring out at the east. I turn and look with him.

Large pillars of smoke are rising from the horizon where brilliant green and orange flames are visible. If not for the fact the sun is going down, casting the sky into an angry red, I don’t think we’d be able to see the flames so clearly. I look toward where I saw the other flashes of light only to see the same flames dancing on the horizon and pillars of smoke rising into the skies. In the direction of Canterlot I see what looks like pink smoke.

I swallow as I look at the clouds around my town. They form an almost perfect circle. I think I can even see them closing in on us. “Dad?” I say, looking at him. “What’s going to happen now?” I ask.

He doesn’t answer right away, but when his reply finally comes it isn’t what I want to hear. “I don’t know, son. I don’t know,” He mutters. I see tears forming in his eyes and only then notice my own eyes are becoming blurry with tears as well.

“W-Why? Why would they do this?” I mutter weakly as the tears begin to fall down my cheeks.

“I don’t know, son. I don’t know,” Dad repeats. He falls to his haunches as he stares at the horizon, repeating that phrase over and over.

===~+~===

“Pencilpusher was saying that some of the other led an expedition of the surrounding area,” Dad is telling mom. “They say about five miles in any direction and radiation starts creeping up on you. They say the the land is dead, charred, even burning in some places. They didn’t dare explore into those areas. Can you blame them though?”

“So we are cut off then?” Mom asks. Dad nods his head. “But what about the government? The Princesses? The Ministry Mares? Surely someone out there is doing something?” She asks.

Dad shakes his head. “No one has heard from anyone in authority. The mayor’s terminal isn’t connecting to any outside lines. Unless we want to enter the irradiated areas, we are effectively cut off from the outside world,” He says.

“But then what will we do about food and medical supplies?” Mom asks him.

“We’re talking about rationing already. Sunny Day’s farm still appears safe as well. It should be able to keep us going for a while,” He tells her. Times really are becoming uncertain. Dad also mentions a restriction on having foals, since the town can’t afford any new mouths to feed.

“How are we going to live like this?” Mom asks.

“Things will be fine,” He tells her. “We just have to take things one day at a time. If the government is still functioning, I’m sure someone will contact us soon. We’ll be fine. No one in town got too badly injured. Both the mayor and the sheriff have said order will be maintained. We will live just like we used to,” Dad says.

Mom frowns. “What about my parents and sister in Manehatten? And your parents in Canterlot? What of them? Are we to just sit here and wonder what became of them?” She asks.

Dad shakes his head. “That’s all we can do honey. But given the flames on the horizon, I worry for their safety. It has been days the the flames still burn. I think we are just lucky to have been spared the destruction that is surrounding us,” He tells her.

“But what of the clouds dear?” Mom asks. “They are completely obscuring the sky! Why aren’t the Pegasi dealing with them? Won’t Sunny Day’s crops fail without proper sunlight and regulated rain?”

“They will be fine. They are about ready for harvest now, so a few weeks lacking sunlight should not do much damage. The clouds aren’t too thick either, the sun still shines through them well enough,” He replies.

Just then, dad notices me listening in on their conversation and smiles at me. “Ah, Grimoire! Mr. Pencilpusher said he plans to start up classes again tomorrow. You and Spell Book should get your things ready,” He tells me. I nod and leave the room

===~+~===

Things have gotten bad in town. The mayor, who has been handling the food rationing is being constantly yelled at by ponies begging for more food. A portion of the town has even set up camp outside his office to protest the rationing. The sheriff is doing what he can to ensure order, but things are getting restless.

I stare out the window at the fires burning outside his office that the protesters are using to keep warm. It looks like things are peaceful for now at least. It is getting cold outside, but they are more concerned with their hunger than the cold.

Dad’s voice suddenly comes downstairs. “Pencilpusher, calm down. There is no need to do this, the mayor will take care of things. If you and your friends just leave, we’ll forget all about this,” He says. His voice has a hint of worry in it.

“No, no. Listen. Just give us what food you have, and we’ll be on our way,” Mr. Pencilpusher replies. He sounds stressed. “Come on now, hand it over.”

“We can’t do that. We have Grimoire and Spell Book, you know that. What will they eat? Think about what you’re doing!” Dad shouts back. “We are friends, aren’t we? We’ve known each other since school! Stop this!” He pleas.

“No, you think. We haven’t heard anything from the outside for years! YEARS!” Mr. Pencilpusher shouts. “The world is over. No one else is alive, don’t you understand! If they were, we would have seen someone, anyone by now! Not a single living thing has shown up! Not even animals!” He yells, sounding like he has gone mad. Is this really the teacher I once knew?

Spell comes into my room. “Grim, what’s going on?” She asks me. Her eyes are filled with concern. I pat her on the head and mess up her mane.

“I’m sure it isn’t anything to worry about. Dad will handle it. Let’s just wait up here for now,” I tell her with a smile. She wrinkles up her nose as I ruffle up her mane.

Dad’s voice comes next. “Of course not, it is irradiated. We have to hunker down until the radiation levels drop low enough to safely travel. We just have to stay calm, and wait,” He says.

I hear a hoof stomp. “Wait? For what? If they really wanted to, if they were alive, they could get us with vertibucks or skycarriages. Or at least drop off aid. The fact we haven’t seen so much as a hint of that, means no help is coming,” Mr. Pencilpusher replies.

“Pencilpusher’s right, ya’know,” A mare agrees. “It is time to change things. We need to start deciding what will happen next. Cut down our population to a more manageable level. The mayor has no plan, he’s a fool. We need a change of leadership,” she says.

“What are you saying? You’re the mayor’s secretary! Things are fine, we just have to maintain order!” Dad declares.

“It is because I am his secretary that I know how much of a fool he is,” The mare replies.

“That’s enough,” Mr. Pencilpusher says. “Listen, since we are old friends I’ll give you an offer. A group of us are planning to take charge. If you give us your food, your family can join with us and no harm will come to any of them.”

“Join with you?” Mom says, sounding disgusted. “What you’re talking about is horrible. You can’t decide who is going to live and die!”

“I agree, you’re all mad. You won’t get a crumb of our food. Now leave,” Dad tells them.

“That’s a shame,” Says a buck. I hear mom and dad gasp. “Just say the word, Pencilpusher.”

“Tell him to put the gun down, there is no need for this,” Dad says.

“Just give us your food and no one will get hurt,” Mr. Pencilpusher replies.

“We can’t do that,” Dad replies. “Our children need it.”

“Do it,” Mr. Pencilpusher says. A gunshot follows, then mom screams, and two more gunshots follow that. “Take what they have,” He says. I gasp and Spell clings to me tightly.

“What about the kids?” The buck asks.

“Leave them for now,” Mr. Pencilpusher replies. “No doubt others heard the gunshots. The sheriff will probably start investigating. We need to move our plans forward.” Spell and I stay in my room for the next few minutes, not knowing what will happen next. Hoofsteps go through the kitchen and eventually they exit out the front door. The house is silent.

“Wait here,” I tell Spell, standing up off the floor and make my way downstairs and into the living room. In the middle of the room are mom and dad and under them is a puddle of blood. I run over to them and kneel beside dad. I shake him. “Dad! Dad!” I call out, but he doesn’t respond.

Then I notice the bullet hole in his head. “No…” I mutter. I shake mom and call out to her, but she is as unresponsive as dad. She has a gunshot wound in her leg and neck. I swallow. “Mom...dad…” I mutter. They’re dead, and Mr. Pencilpusher killed them.

I hear shouting coming from outside followed shortly after by gunfire. I get back to my hooves and run back up to my room. Running up to the window, I look out of it. Ponies are running around, some have guns others do not. I see one shoot another without a weapon moments before the sheriff shoots them. More of the police come to the sheriff’s aid, but other armed ponies are swarming them.

“Spell, we need to leave. Get a bag together and fill it with everything you need that you can carry. I’m going to get some supplies, so lock yourself in your room and don’t come out until I come get you, ok?” I tell her.

“What about mom and dad?” She asks.

I wish I had time to tell her kindly, but we aren’t going to be safe for long. “They are dead. We have to leave or we will die too. Mr. Pencilpusher and some others in town are doing bad things,” I reply.

“W-what?” She stutters.

“Just go get your things together,” I say, lifting her to her hooves and pushing her to her room. “I’ll be back in ten minutes, be ready, ok?” I tell her, and then close her door. “Don’t forget to lock it!” I call back as I run down the stairs.

I need to get us food and medical supplies. We can’t stay in town, so we need to leave. We’ll need radaway and rad-x, and other supplies for regular injuries. I bite my lip. I’ll have to steal, there’s no time, and I’m not sure who I can trust now. My heart thunders in my chest as I run. Don’t worry Spell, I’ll get us out of here.

===~+~===

“Hey Spell, this is the last of our food. Eat it, you’ll need it more than I do. The radiation sickness is getting to you. I’ll have to up your dosage of radaway,” I tell Spell, giving her the last of our rations.

She looks at me sadly. “But Grim, you need it. You’re the one doing all the work. And you’re already taking less radaway than I am! Your mane is starting to fall out!” Spell replies.

I wave her off. “Oh that? I suppose I’m just suffering from premature balding,” I say with a smile. “I feel fine, so don’t worry. I’m sure we will find a safe place soon.”

“But it has already been a month since we left! Everything is irradiated!” She says.

“We just have to get further from the large cities. Find a place like home, a better place. A place far enough away from the blasts to be radiation free,” I explain. “I’m sure we are close to one.” I pull out our map and look at it. Somewhere near the Hayseed Swamps, maybe? We are close enough, we should check it out.

Spell frowns. “You said that last week, too,” She mutters.

“Well, now we are one week closer to our destination,” I tell her, then try to mask a grimace. My headache is getting worse. Thankfully my fever isn’t too bad yet. “Eat up, and let’s keep going,” I tell her. If my map is right, we should run into a railroad in a few minutes, then it is just a walk east a ways and then south across a river.

I set my saddlebags down as Spell reluctantly eats the last of our food. Two and a half bags of radaway, six doses of rad-x, one and a half bottles of water, and no food. We haven’t had to use any of the medical supplies I stole yet, so I suppose that is a silver lining.

My vision spins a bit and I shake my head. Great, that’s the dizziness and disorientation setting in. So that’s...severe radiation exposure, I think. I can’t let Spell know. She might realize I’ve only been taking a sip of radaway every few days. But if she’s alright, that is all that matters.

Spell finishes the food and I put my bags back on. “Ready Spell?” I ask her with a smile.

She nods. “Let’s keep going, Grim. We need to find something for you to eat,” She tells me, returning my smile.

===~+~===

I pant as I hold the bloody knife in my magic. I stand over the pig-like creature I just killed. It is deformed with fleshy tumors on it. “Spell? Are you alright?” I ask her.

“Uh...uh-hu. But you’re bleeding Grim,” She tells me. I blink at her and then look down at myself. My left front leg is bleeding from where the pig must have bit me. Dropping the knife I pull out a roll of bandages and quickly wrap my leg.

Then I look at the dead pig. It is the first thing I’ve ever killed. “It just attacked us…” I mutter. No sooner had we gotten in the Hayseed Swamps than it set itself upon us. As I stare at it, my stomach rumbles. A terrible thought occurs to me. “Spell, do you suppose we can eat this?” I say.

“What!?” She says, sounding mortified. “But it’s an animal. Ponies don’t eat meat,” She tells me.

I swallow. “Yea, but I mean other animals eat meat. Why can’t we? Besides, we don’t know when we might find food. Anything is better than nothing, right?” I reply.

Spell wrinkles her nose. “But it looks like it has been exposed to radiation. Will it be safe?” She mutters.

“I’m sure a little more radiation won’t kill us. We have some radaway left and it looks like there isn’t much radiation here. Perhaps we can even live here for a while. Hunt, find some edible plants, wait for things to become less irradiated elsewhere. But for now, food takes priority,” I tell Spell.

I pick the knife back up. “You should look away, sis,” I tell her. She turns away and I plunge the knife into the pig once more.

===~+~===

I run back through the swamp to our makeshift hovel. “Hey sis! Good news! Things finally seem to be getting back to normal outside the swamp. The geiger isn’t making any noise where it used it!” I tell Spell with a beaming smile.

“That’s great Grim!” She replies happily. “Do you think we’ll be able to go back out soon?” She asks.

I nod. “I think in a few more months, a good enough portion of the lands away from the major impact sites should be free of radiation. Maybe we will even find a town with actual ponies in it!” I reply.

“Months?” Spell complains. “But it has already been years since we’ve seen another living pony! It is lonely. No offence Grim,” She adds.

I just give her a smile. “None taken. I understand what you mean. It would be nice to see someone else,” I tell her. Though, I personally don’t care if it remains just the two of us. Less chance of things happening like they did back at home. I trusted Pencilpusher and he killed mom and dad. It is best not to trust anyone now.

“Let’s see about getting stocked up on supplies for when we decide to journey out of the swamp, ok?” I tell her. As much as I want to stay here alone with Spell, she wants to find others. It would be wrong of me to keep her here against her will.

“Ok,” She replies. “I’ll see what kind of herbs I can stock up on between now and then,” She tells me. I’ll protect her no matter what comes our way. Whether we stay here or journey back into the unknown.

===~+~===

“Why don’t you two live with me for a while. I have extra room and you can help out around the house to earn your keep,” The older buck tells us. He says his name is Noblesse and he has a glint in his eyes that shows his intelligence. He makes me anxious.

“Why offer us a place to stay?” I ask him. “You have nothing to gain from it.” Noblesse smiles at me broadly and shakes his head.

“Of course not,” He replies. “But I don’t expect anything from it. You two are alone, lost in the world. I just want to make sure that good ponies such as yourselves get a fair shot at surviving in this new world.”

“Why would you do that?” I ask. He frowns ever so slightly.

“I’d like to believe that ponies are still inherently good. The world has gone to shit and many ponies with it. You two strike me as two that are still good, untainted by the wasteland. I want to help you for as long as I can. And to educate you,” Noblesse tells me.

“Educate us? What do you mean? We both basically graduated from school,” I reply.

“This knowledge isn’t in books. It is about the world as it is now. You two seem to have been away from civilization for a long while. Years, perhaps. Things have changed. But, we shouldn’t discuss this outside in the open. Let’s go back to my home,” Noblesse says, gesturing for us to follow him.

Spell follows him immediately, but I hesitate. Pencilpusher was kind up to the day he killed our parents. I look to the knife strapped to my leg and then follow after them. He leads us to a simple single story house. Like the rest of the town, it is run down and dirty, but the inside is much cleaner. One of the cleaner places I’ve seen since we left home.

The buck gestures to a couch as he sits across from it in a reclining chair. “First of all, don’t trust ponies straight away. Spell Book, was it?” He says, addressing my sister. “You followed me right away without protest. Your brother, Grimoire, however hesitated, he even made sure his knife was at the ready.” He noticed?

He sees my look of surprise. “I saw. That’s another thing you need to learn to do. Be ever observant. You never know who or what will be after you. Treat everything with suspicion and always look for a way out if things go south,” He tells us.

Spell tilts her head. “But why shouldn’t we trust ponies? Why do we have to be suspicious of everyone we meet?” She asks.

“Because you can never tell who is going to try to steal from you, kill you, or worse,” Noblesse explains. “Even some who seem to be the kindest in the whole world can turn on you to get what they want. Of course, you should be suspicious of me as well.”

“So, you want us to be suspicious of you, yet live here with you?” I ask him. “Don’t you think that is a little messed up?”

He shakes his head. “Not at all. Constantly worrying if I am going to do something will help the two of you to sharpen your reflexes and know how to stay alert. You’ll need to do just that wherever you go in the wasteland. Even in towns like this, because it sure isn’t a safe place,” He replies.

Spell speaks up at this, “You stay here even though it isn’t safe?” Noblesse nods.

“The town is safer than outside it, relatively speaking. But even within problems are plentiful. While there is a sort of agreement that no one will kill another, that is the extent of things. The guards are supposed to stop theft and assault, but they are corrupt,” He explains.

“If someone wants something, they’ll take it. If you try to stop them they’ll beat you till you let them. And the drug dealers will take every opportunity to try and get you addicted to their chems,” Noblesse tells us. “While your life isn’t in danger, everything else is.”

“Is the outside really that bad?” Spell asks.

“Worse,” Noblesse says with a grimace. “There are manticores, bloodwings, radgators, and other mutated creatures the radiation and taint got to. Then there are the raiders who steal and kill you, the pockets of radiation and taint that will kill you, the dangerous ruins that will kill you, hell, the entire wasteland wants to kill you. I know, I’ve done a bit of exploring.”

“So you are saying we should just hide away from the world in a town?” I ask him. “Never leaving and living in constant fear and suspicion?” We should have stayed in the swamp.

“No,” He replies. “You just need to learn about the wasteland properly before going out into it unprepared. I take it neither of you have a gun? Get one. Learn to use it. If you choose to go back into the wasteland, know how to fight back against it,” He tells us.

“For now, how about something to eat?” Noblesse tells us. “You can decide to stay or go afterwards.”

===~+~===

“Noblesse, thank you for everything up till now. Spell and I won’t be able to repay for you all you’ve done,” I thank Noblesse.

“Think nothing of it,” He replies. “But are you sure you two want to leave? You know you two can stay here for as long as you want.”

“We know,” Spell tells him. “But we want to see if there is a town out there that is safer. A town in which you don’t have to live in fear. If we find one, we’ll come back and get you.”

I chuckle. “Heck, maybe we will make our town and keep it safe ourselves. You could always come with us, Noblesse,” I suggest.

He shakes his head. “I’m afraid I’m too old for adventuring now. But, if you find such a town, let me know. It will be good to see you two again,” He says.

We give Noblesse our final goodbyes and then set out back into the wasteland.

===~+~===

I return to the ruined house we choose to take shelter in for the night after hunting down a parasprite. But as I near the house, I hear voices. I don’t hear Spell’s. I creep up to the house and peer in through a window. In the waning light of the setting sun, what I see freezes the very blood in my veins. My eyes go wide and my mouth gapes.

Raiders. Two of them are in the house. One of them is standing off to the side, laughing at something the other said. The other one...He...he is...I swallow and grit my teeth and a boiling rage comes over me. It is an emotion I’ve never felt before, not even when my parents were murdered. Pure hatred. If I could kill the raider with my glare, he would be nothing but ashes.

Under him is the body of my sister, her throat slit and blood pooling under her. Just by looking, I can tell she is already dead. But this raider...he...he is raping her corpse. I snarl, throwing off my saddlebags and drawing both my pistol and my bat. I charge into the house and hit the rapist over the head with my bat, catching him by surprise. He falls over, unconscious and I point my pistol at the other raider.

I suck in a breath. “I’m going to ask you a question. Answer me. Which one of you cut my sister’s throat?” I spit at him.

The raider chuckles. “What does it matter? She’s dead. If you kill us, the rest of our gang will come looking for you, kid. You should run away now, while I’m still feeling generous,” He replies.

I grind my teeth as I glare at him, starting to pull the trigger, but I stop, unable to kill him. Why? Why can’t I kill him? I scream. I throw the pistol aside and lunge at him with the bat. I beat him, again and again until he stops moving. He is still breathing, but barely. I pick the gun up again, and put it to his head. Just pull the trigger, Grimoire. Pull the trigger and take revenge! But the gun shakes in my magic and I can’t do it. I can’t kill a pony, no matter how much they deserve it.

I turn to the rapist, who is still out of it on the floor next to my sister. I go out to my bags and grab my knife, then return to the rapist’s side. I spread his rear legs, ready the knife, and geld him. If I can’t kill him, I can at least make it so he can’t rape another pony for a while. But why? Why can’t I kill them!? I let out a sigh and turn to look at my sister’s body.

As I gaze at her, I no longer feel hatred, anger, or the want to kill the raiders. I feel only sorrow and regret. I sat beside her body as tears welled up in my eyes. “Spell Book,” I mutter. She was everything to me. My sister, my friend...the mare that I loved. I never told her how I truly felt or the truth about the two of us.

“Hey Spell, did you know that we aren’t actually related?” I mutter weakly. “Mom was pregnant with you when your real father died in the war. My real mother died in an accident when I was one. When I was around three though, dad met mom, and you were one at the time. I barely remember it, mom and dad’s wedding,” I tell her.

“We grew up together and I looked out for you. It wasn’t until I was around twelve that I realized I loved you more than just a sister. At fifteen, I talked to mom and dad about it. They said when I was ready, I could tell you the truth, and how I felt about you. They gave me their blessing,” I say sadly.

“I never had the courage. I didn’t want things to change between us. If I told you how I really felt, and you rejected me, I felt as thought you would drift away from me. So I kept quiet. I wanted to protect you from everything. Especially now. But I…” I trail off. “I can’t even kill the bastards who murdered and raped you!”

“I’m so sorry, Spell. I’m a failure as a big brother and as someone who loved you,” I tell her as the tears continue to fall. After a few minutes, I finally bring myself back to my senses. I gather our things, pick up Spell’s body, and leave the ruined house. I walk for about a mile and then I start digging.

It is a small alcove at the edge of White Tail Woods where the woods meet the mountains. I dig Spell’s grave and mark it with fallen wood. I use my knife to carve her name into the wood and lay her body into the earth. Solemnly, I begin to bury her as new tears form. All the while, I repeat the same three words over and over again. “I’m so sorry.”

===~+~===

“Ah, Grimoire. You did a good job getting that cache of spark batteries the other day. Ready for another scavenging bounty?” Lilac, the owner of the bar I frequent asks. I nod without saying a word. “Still not saying anything, hu? One of these days I’ll get you to talk,” She says with a wink.

At my stoic expression, she lets out a sigh and pulls a piece of paper from behind the back. “Here’s the next one. The client wants a memory orb that is rumored to be in an old MoM facility, it is rumored to be a memory of one of the Ministry Mares. The facility will probably have some fierce security,” She tells me. She hands the paper out to me.

I go to grab it, but she yanks it back. “You sure you don’t want to go after some raiders? Those bounties pay out higher, and with your skills you could handle them easily,” She says. I shake my head. I still can’t bring myself to kill a pony, after all. No matter how bad they are. I’ll fight them off if they cross me, but I never do more than knock them out.

“Ok,” She says, giving me the contract. “But it really would help out if someone with your talents started standing up against the raiders.” I shrug as I put the contract in my bags and turn away from the bar. A heavily guarded MoM facility to search for a memory orb? Sounds like it will be a lot of tough work for something completely unimportant.

Excellent. Maybe this time I will die. There isn’t a point of going on without Spell if I can’t avenge her. No one will care if I botch this one up. It is just a memory orb, after not. Not spark batteries that a town is counting on. Not a water purification talisman that will purify a town’s water supply.

Well, MoM facility. Do your worst. I’m ready.

===~+~===

Twelve sentry bots, six protectaponies, a dozen or so turrets, and three doors locked with terminals. I manage to pass through all the security of the facility while only sustaining minor wounds. I consider letting myself bleed out, but decide against it. That would be the cowardly way to go. Instead I patch myself up and start looting the facility.

Most of what I encounter is bland paperwork that has long since been made irrelevant by the passage of time. The occasional trinket lays around that I snag to make some extra money as I look for the memory orb.

After a while, I stumble across a small case buried under papers in an office that was locked by a particularly tough lock. A note is taped to the top of it that reads: “Miss Pie’s requested this particular memory orb. Apparently Miss Sparkle found out about the Neighagra Falls facility and we had to wipe her memory of it. Actual details of the facility are in a different orb held on location. Miss Pie has left specific instructions that his orb is not to be viewed.”

A facility at Neighagra Falls, hu? I wonder if this is the memory orb the client wants. I toss the note aside and put the case in my bags. I should look around some more to make sure. Spending the next hour I go over the facility. This is definitely the only memory orb in here. I readjust my bags and head out of the facility.

Now it is off to the client to give him the orb and then back to Lilac to get payment. Perhaps I’ll skip on another contract for now and check out that facility at Neighagra. Maybe it will have something that can kill me.

===~+~===

I grimace as I look over the lake at the bottom of Neighagra Falls. It is filthy and, judging by my geiger counter, highly irradiated. Now, where is that facility? I look around but don’t see anything that sticks out. I consider looking inside the dams, but why would that note say Neighagra Falls instead of specifying the dams? No, the facility has to be somewhere around the falls.

I spend a few hours climbing up and down the stairs on the cliff near the falls, looking for any sort of entrance at the top or bottom. Nothing stands out. Makes sense, since it is apparently a huge secret. I think for a moment and then cast a spell to enhance my vision. I’ll look for any imperfections and inspect them carefully.

After another hour, my enhanced vision crawls over a shade of rock different than the rest of the cliff. I walk over and manage to push it aside, revealing a button. I press it and the side of the cliff closest to the falls begins to move. Two parts come out, one stairs leading up and above that an overhang that blocks the falls.

I make my way up the stairs into a cavern behind the falls. Near the back is a large door with a terminal beside it. Curled up near the terminal is a skeleton. Bingo. I make my way over to the terminal and hit a few buttons. Input Password. I try a few guesses but it is difficult. I take a moment and turn my attention to the skeleton and notice an audiolog lying with the bones.

I float it out and play it and a single phrase is muttered: “Okie Dokie Lokie” I raise an eyebrow at the short audiolog. Turning back to the terminal, I type the phrase in as one word. Password Accepted. The door starts to open, showing a small area like a security corridor with another door a few feet into the room. Inside I find another terminal, that isn’t protected by a password that opens the second door.

Beyond that door is a huge open area filled with multiple desks and other workstations. What is all this? I walk into the room and poke around a bit. I then stumble into a room off to the side, it is full of beds...and bones. Each bed contains a skeleton, looking as if the occupant simply went to sleep and never woke up again. I step back out of the room and look around once more. Two more doors are at the far end of the large room.

I enter through one of the doors at the end, the one off to the left. Inside are labeled cabinets. I pull one open and look inside. Dozens of cases. I bring one out and open it. Memory orbs? I open a few more and all are filled with the orbs. Putting them back, I walk to the other room.

Inside the last room is a strange machine in the middle and in the corner is a bin filled with memory orbs. What was this facility used for? Memory modification? A chill runs down my spine. A thought crosses my mind for an instant. I wonder if I could forget about Spell. I immediately shake my head of the thought. Absolutely not! I will never forget her. But…

What if I do something else with my memories? What if I forget everything but Spell? Would whatever stops me from killing disappear then? Could I finally avenge her? I feel myself begin to tremble as I look around rapidly. My eyes fall upon a book on a nearby desk with the title Memory Extraction Procedures.

I swallow as I pick the book up in my magic and float it in front of me. I open the book and begin reading. This might work. I can do this. I’ll avenge Spell.

Chapter 27 - Drop The Hammer

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 28 - The Faded Star

"The light faded, and soon, only darkness remained."

===~+~===

“-ke up. Come on, Ratchet. Wake up. You’re still alive, I know it. I can see your vitals right here,” I hear a voice calling out to me. My body feels stiff and lacks energy to move. I can barely open my eyes. “You weren’t this stubborn the first time I woke you, geez,” The voice says with annoyance clearly evident in it.

When I finally get my eyes to open a bit, I see the inside of my cryopod. “What…?” I mutter as I blink a few times and start shaking my head. My head is killing me. The pod starts to open up and I slowly drag myself out of pod. “Ugh, Cora?” I ask. The room looks really bright and I feel something trickling out of my nose.

“Uh-oh,” Cora replies. “That’s not good. Your uh...nose is bleeding, Ratchet,” She tells me. I raise up a hoof and wipe my nose. When I bring it back in front of my eyes, I do indeed see blood. “Huh. I did the same procedure as last time and your vitals were just fine. I wonder if it is some sort of reaction to being frozen multiple times,” She speculates.

As she continues to suggest reasons for the bloody nose my concentration drifts away as I feel my stomach rising into my throat. I try to contain it, but it proves futile as the contents of my stomach spill out all over the floor. “Oh my,” Cora mutters. “Are you, uh, going to be ok Ratchet?” She asks.

I pant over the mess I just made for a moment, spitting out the remaining sick from my mouth. “Actually, I suddenly feel a whole lot better,” I tell her. “I ate a while before getting in the pod this time, right?” I ask her.

“I think so Ratchet, why?” Cora replies.

“The first time, I specifically remember I went a day without eating in preparation. Maybe it is some sort of reaction that happens when the stomach has solid contents inside?” I suggest with a shrug and pick myself up to my hooves. “Damn it,” I mutter dejectedly. “I still remember exactly what happened as though I wasn’t even in the pod.”

“I did tell you that would happen,” Cora says disapprovingly. “But, you insisted and did it anyway. Told me to wake you up when something happened to take your mind off of it,” She reminds me.

“Yea, yea. I know, it literally just happened for me, ya know. And again, sorry about all that stuff I said. You’re my friend Cora,” I tell her. “So, what’s going on?” I ask.

“Don’t worry about it, I’ve had two and a half decades to get over it,” She tells me. “As for what’s going on, I found a facility. It is an old MAS facility in the Ghastly Gorge. Some scavengers in Ponyville told me about it, but they said a large portion of it was sealed off and that it required clearance to go any deeper,” She informs me.

“They didn’t just try to force their way in?” I ask. That’s how things usually work. In the wasteland, it is take what you want and don’t worry about collateral damage.

“They tried,” Cora tells me. “But, the door is apparently really thick and sturdy metal, the terminal is virtually unhackable, their words, not mine, and any sort of attempt to break in triggers defence systems to activate. The scavengers barely made it out alive when they tried to blow up the door.”

That’s about right. “Ok, it sounds promising. Any idea what the facility did?” I ask.

“The scavengers picked over everywhere they could. But they didn’t find any documentation, books, blueprints, or strange gadgets. Just your average wasteland salvage. They did mention piles of ash in the waste bins though. I suspect any documents were destroyed long ago,” She replies.

“Gotcha, so we are going in blind until we manage to open the doors. Well, get in your armor and get ready to go. I’ll get my things together,” I tell her as I walk over to retrieve my PipBuck from the console.

“Oh, uh, by the way, about your PipBuck…” Cora says as I pull it out of its storage area and start putting it on my leg. “I may have tried to update it again.”

“Oh, that’s nice of you. Did it work?” I ask as I finish putting it on and my vision flashes for a moment before returning. Various readouts and data scroll across my vision. Then warnings start filling my sight and I let out a sigh as I begin to read. It is the same things that weren't working before. I was worried there for a moment.

I blink and slowly turn to look into the camera suspended from the ceiling. “Cora. You know that updating usually is supposed to fix things, right?” I ask her. She laughs nervously in response. “You know, I guess you did manage to get the EFS working, somewhat…” I mutter.

In my vision, I can see bars on the compass. Though, they vary in color from red to blue to green to purple. A few other colors are in there as well. “I’m guessing that it now marks locations of things that are potential threats, just not their actual hostility? Why not just one single color though?” I ask.

“I don’t know,” Cora responds. I facehoof.

“I also clearly remember having more SPECIAL stats and perks too. At least I still have my level and skill points I earned...But still,” I mutter.

“I can explain that,” Cora tells me. “You see, during the updates, some perks were removed and the amount of SPECIAL points you originally start with was decreased. You are still behind on four hundred and sixty three updates.”

“What? They just removed perks and stats with updates? How does that even work? Aren’t they like...part of me?” I ask, confused.

“I don’t know,” She replies again. “Neither of us really understand PipBucks all that well. Let alone how the stat systems work. Someone out there probably understands all this though, and who are we to question the creators?” She says.

“Right...well then, I suppose I’ll just keep doing what I’ve been doing. Now then, shall we go?” I ask her.

“One more thing,” Cora tells me. “You should go talk with Twinkle. She’s been here for a month now, and it is weirding me out because she won’t leave or tell me why.”

“Twinkle? Oh, so not that long has passed, hu? But, why does her not leaving seem weird? This is her home now, right?” I ask her.

“Uh, kind of. It has been weird since you’ve been away. She and the other Rangers never stayed here long. Only a day or two to resupply and rest up, then they would set out again. But Twinkle, hasn’t set hoof outside for an entire month.” Cora replies.

“Oookay...Just how long have I been frozen?” I ask her.

“Twenty-five years. A few months too, but that’s not too important,” Cora says.

“Twenty-five years, hu? That means Twinkle would be, what? In her fifties or sixties? You know, if I keep getting frozen, telling time is going to get weird. Let’s start up a new system, ok? We will start it the day the Megaspells fell and go from there. Which means we are in the year 60 of the...let’s go with Wasteland Era,” I suggest.

“Why can’t we just keep counting from where it last left off?” Cora asks. “Seems unnecessary to make a new system.”

I shake my head. “It might be necessary. Especially in the future. The world basically ended, we should mark it as an important time. Just saying the original year wouldn’t do it justice. It needs to be known that things practically started completely over,” I tell her.

“I suppose,” She mutters. “Very well, I’ll start referring to the year in terms of the Wasteland Era, as you suggest. Now, I’ll go get ready, you go talk to Twinkle. We might need her help, you know.” Cora tells and she unlocks the room. “She’s in the infirmary.”

A quick walk later and I arrive at the infirmary, half of which has been converted into a sort of common area. I’m not entirely sure where the couches, chairs, and tables came from, but I did tell the Rangers they could do what they wanted with my lab while I was frozen. It isn’t a bad change. Elder Twinkle is laying on one of the couches reading an old book.

She doesn't notice me enter, so I take the opportunity to look her over, especially since she isn’t in her power armor, but a set of blue robes. I immediately notice the she has aged quite a bit. Wrinkles have developed and there is a hind of gray in her mane. But other than the signs of aging, I don’t see a single thing different about her. No scars or lingering injuries, that I can see anyway.

That is unexpected. Though, then again, so is seeing her reading a book. I expected her to be maintaining a gun or something. I clear my throat to get her attention. After a moment, she looks up at me expressionlessly for a moment, then tilts her head and asks, “Ratchet?”

I nod. “Yea, I’m back in the world of the living once again,” I tell her. “Uh, I suppose I should start by apologizing for everything that happened before I froze myself again…” I mutter.

Twinkle shakes her head. “Don’t bother, Cora told us all about it once the deed was done. I understand, we all did,” She tells me. It is odd, she seems different. Tired, sad almost.

“What about the other Rangers?” I ask. “Are they all still doing well?” She grimaces.

“Dead,” She tells me simply. “The last one under my command died around fourteen years ago. I’m alone now, the sole survivor of Stable 36, an Elder in name only,” She says. I’m about to inquire further when she holds up a hoof. “They all died honorably fighting against raiders and protecting the innocent. They are buried with the others,” She tells me, remorse in her voice.

This is wrong. This isn’t the Twinkle I know. She wouldn’t be so deeply affected by the deaths of her comrades, especially if they died in battle. What happened? “Cora tells me you’ve been here a month,” I state.

“Indeed I have,” Twinkle replies simply.

“Why?” I ask, trying to probe for an answer.

“You said I could live here,” She says, raising an eyebrow.

“Cora made it seem you were rarely ever here until about a month ago. What changed?” I ask.

“Maybe I just needed a break?” She suggests. “I am getting old.”

“What about Eberron?” I respond and see her flinch at his name.

“What about him?” Twinkle asks defensively.

“Doesn’t he, you know, demand sacrifice and all that?” I ask her.

“He does,” She says simply, sparing a glance at the book she was reading.

“What were you reading?” I ask her, grabbing the book in my magic. She raises a hoof to try and stop me, but I get it past her and read the cover. “Eberron, lord of death. A collection of mythology.” I set it on the table between us and notice her outstretched hoof shaking in the air and her mouth agape.

Twinkle’s eyes tremble for a moment before tears start to fall from them, surprising me. Her following words surprise me even more. “They are all dead and I don’t understand it,” She tells me. “I’ve read and reread every book on Eberron to reaffirm my beliefs. My lord, Eberron...I gave him countless souls, my enemies and my allies fell for him. But now I am alone…” She mutters.

She lowers her hoof and looks down at the floor. “I don’t understand it. He demands sacrifice, no matter who you are or what you are, you are nothing but a drop in the sea of his collected souls. And yet…” She hesitates. “I don’t die. No one can kill him. I can’t give my soul to Eberron.”

“What...do you mean?” I ask her. She wants to die?

“All my life, I’ve killed in the name of Eberron, sending my enemies to him. All the while, my comrades died around me, going to serve Eberron in the next life. But I remain. I continue to kill in his name, but I don’t think I will ever get to the next life,” She tells me.

“You want to die?” I say in disbelief.

“Is that so strange?” She asks. “All of my friends are dead, for a while I thought all I needed was to kill for Eberron but then…A thought occurred to me. What if Eberron doesn’t want me?” She suggests.

“Doesn’t want you?” I ask, raising an eyebrow. She nods and gets up off the couch. In one motion, she disrobes, revealing her unblemished hide.

“I have been in countless battles, stood in the open amongst thousands of bullets, but I have never been injured. Not once. My armor has barely ever been scratched! I even went into battle with these robes for the past two years, and not a single bullet struck me! I even charged ten raiders barehoofed and killed them all!” She shouts.

“I thought it was Eberron’s blessing at first, his desire for me to keep killing in his name, but what if it is his curse instead? Him cursing me to die of old age and never join him in the afterlife I deserve?” She says with a wavering smile.

“In all the texts on Eberron, I’ve never heard of something like this. No mention of curses or even blessings that protect a pony. Just the same line repeated over and over. ‘Kill in his name and the afterlife will be one filled with bliss.’ I don’t understand what is happening,” She tells me.

“If you want to die, why not just let someone kill you? Or kill yourself?” I suggest to her. But she just shakes her head with a frown.

“The texts specify that you can only join him if you die in battle honorably. That means no dying on purpose and certainly no suicide,” She replies, letting out a sigh. “I’ve spent this entire month trying to understand, but I am no closer to the answer now than when I began,” She mutters.

Suddenly, her eyes seem to sparkle and she starts talking about a distant memory. “You know, back when I was a filly, my mother used to sing me a song. Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star, it went. I liked it, since it had my name it in. I thought perhaps, I was a star, twinkling brightly,” She chuckles sadly. “I’ve never even seen a real star, since I was born in Stable 36.”

“Twinkle…” I mutter in concern, but she ignores me and continues.

“Shortly after, I took up learning about Eberron and resolved to be a Twinkling Star in service to him. And I shone brightly. I’ve lost count of how many souls I’ve sent to Lord Eberron. However...These last few years, as the doubt has crept in on me, and this last month in particular...I fear that I no longer twinkle. I am faded now, diluted with doubt and worry, unsure of how to proceed,” She says sadly.

“I’m...so very tired of being a leader, Ratchet. You’re awake for a reason and I’ll help you. I just have one request, if there is an opportunity for me to die, let me take it. Don’t give me potions or try to save me. Let me go,” She tells me.

“Twinkle...You don’t have to die, you know that, right?” I tell her.

“You wouldn’t understand, Ratchet. You’ve been gone for twenty-five years. And things have only gotten worse. Grimoire may be dead, but there are more raiders now than ever. Sure, they aren’t organized or threatening to destroy the world, but there are countless more than there were before. And, there are also slavers now. Seems tame at first glance, but slavery is slavery after all. Things are getting worse and worse each day,” She tells me.

“Then why do you want to die? You could do something about it?” I ask her.

“It is more than I can manage, more than my squad could manage. Even if you decided to stick around and help, nothing would come of it. No, the only way to stop this decline is a miracle. Short of the skies opening up or Celestia and Luna coming back, what we would do would amount to a drop in the ocean of what needs to be done,” She tells me.

I furrow my brow. Could things really have gotten that bad in twenty-five years? Twinkle continues, “There is a saying I’ve heard recently. ‘When will the Wasteland break you?’ I’ve heard it said for the reason ponies turned raider, the reason parents sell their children into slavery. It is saying one thing, that the Wasteland will break you. No ifs, ands, or buts, about it. And Ratchet, I think it has broken me.”

I harden my expression. This isn’t the Twinkle I once knew, it is a shell of what she once was. Did the Wasteland break her or was it the deaths of her friends and the seemingly futility of her actions? During the war, ponies always found something to blame for their misfortunes and inability to move forward. Is the Wasteland the new thing to blame? But, maybe Twinkle is right. I don’t understand.

“Get your armor on and your things together. We are going to Ghastly Gorge in search of another cryopod. It might hold something that can help the wasteland,” I tell her and let out a sigh. “Or, it might hold something that will kill us all. Either way, we’ll need your help.”

Twinkle at last gives me a genuine smile, like the ones she used to wear twenty-five years ago. “Let’s get going then, Scribe Crusader Ratchet.”

===~+~===

When the three of us arrive on the edge of the Ghastly Gorge where Cora said the scavengers found the facility, what we find isn’t some spectacular MAS lab, but a simple geological station. It rests on the edge of the gorge in a dilapidated state and only consists of four rooms in total.

“Well, this is it?” I ask, a little disappointed. “Where is the door they couldn’t open?” I adjust my barding, still getting use to all the new additions Cora had put on it. A total of seven knife holsters, since I can apparently hit things with knives but not guns. The only gun I’m carrying is Forgiveness, the revolver I got when I first woke up in the Wasteland, and my barding now also has a custom holster for it.

Twinkle sighs. “What a let down. Leave it to scavengers to lead you on a wild goose chase,” She mutters.

“No,” Cora says, looking around. “This is the place. They said it resembled a geological station on the surface, but once you enter the gorge it changes dramatically. We just need to find the way down,” She mutters.

I look over the edge of the gorge. Jagged rocks and an almost sheer cliff face, basically a bad time if we decide to walk down it without a proper path. “And they failed to mention the way down to it?” I ask, and then spot a sort of platform with cables descending into the gorge. “What about that?” I say, pointing a hoof.

We walk over to the structure which is suspended over the gorge with a five foot square hole in the middle of it. Four cables fall from the top of it into the gorge, and a few other cables fasten it safely to the top of the cliff. Around the side of the structure is a chest high wall to keep us from falling off.

“Are we going to slide down the cables?” Twinkle asks. “Getting back up will be a pain.” Just as she says that the cables start moving coiling up and I hear a quiet whirring. I look over at Cora and see her hoof on a red button near the hole in the structure.

“It seems to be a lift,” She tells us. That explains a lot. In a few moments, another platform rises up from the bottom of the gorge and sets into place in the hole that was in the platform. The three of us step onto the new platform and Cora hits the button again, causing the platform to descend once more.

Once we are at the bottom, a door set into the wall of the gorge greets us. “Well, this looks promising,” I mutter as I step off the platform and walk up to the door. Cora and Twinkle follow behind me as the door opens and we proceed to walk into the facility.

Just like the scavengers said, it changed dramatically. Desks, filing cabinets, tables filled with books and papers. I’m about to suggest that we split up and check the place out, but remember it has already been scavenged so there probably aren’t any hostiles in this part of the facility. I wonder why the scavengers didn’t take the books and papers though? “Let’s find that door,” I tell the others as we begin to walk through the facility.

We walk through various rooms that have clearly been picked clean of anything of value. Filing cabinets and desks lay strewn open and hoofprints are evident in the dust that coats the floors. There is nothing remarkable in this section of the facility anymore. Even the terminals have been stripped for parts.

Finally, we reach a solid looking door that appears to have been blackened from explosives. Bingo. I look just to the right of the door and spot a terminal. “Alright, let’s see if this is something we have access to,” I say as I turn the terminal on. It lights up and information across the screen. I wait until it shows the login screen.

Unlike a normal login screen, this one displays a special message. MAS Head Researcher or Above Clearance Required. Well, that should include me, right? I enter my credentials and hit enter. After a moment the terminal shows Access Granted and I select the option to open the door. A light above the door changes from red to green and it opens.

“Looks like we are in business,” I tell them with a smirk. “Let’s make sure it is safe inside before we get too far ahead of ourselves. Check for traps and hostiles,” I say, glancing at my EFS. I see a single orange mark ahead of us. This multi-colored marker system is going to be a huge headache. It doesn’t even indicate anything with the color. I let out a sigh and step through the doorway.

Beyond the doorway is a far dirty facility than what we just walked through. It seems they used the previous part of the facility after this one was sealed up. There is more equipment in this area than the previous one. Probably for testing on whatever is sealed here. Will we find a pod?

I see equipment for biological study, such as x-rays and other medical supplies. But as the lighting flickers on, everything is shrouded in a slight blue hue. “Uh...What’s with this lighting?” I ask.

“They appear to be emitting ultraviolet light,” Cora replies. “Though, it is only a slight amount, which is why the room or light itself doesn’t appear as dark blue. It is like the UV light is intermixed with the regular light and is not always on.”

“So, it is like the lights here are being turned off and on really quickly, but instead of turning on/off, they are switching between regular and UV light?” I ask.

“Something like that,” Cora says. “Though, I suspect it is more complicated than that and probably involves magic to some extent.”

“Weirrrrrd,” Twinkle says, looking around. She strikes her hoof on a machine, knocking dust off of it and sending it showering to the ground. “You know, I used to shine my armor once a week. But I’ve had to do it after every expedition into the Wasteland. I understand this place, abandoned like it is, but no one cleans anything,” She complains.

“Well, when you clean a little bit and the next day it is even dirtier, is kind of defeats the purpose of cleaning,” Cora tells her. “That’s why most don’t bother.”

“I know, I know,” Twinkle mutters. “But they could at least try. Repetition is what does it, keeps the dirt and grime at bay,” She says.

“Most ponies are too busy just trying to find a way to survive,” Cora replies. “They don’t have the time or the luxury to clean things. Besides, finding decent cleaning products is fairly hard too. Like a clean mop or broom? Forget about it,” She tells Twinkle.

The two of them continue making small talk as we look around the facility. It is odd to me how close they seem to have become. How much they know about the Wasteland now. Is that what spending twenty-five years in it does?

“Seriously Ratchet, your bathroom is the cleanest thing I’ve seen in the Wasteland by far,” Twinkle tells me. I look back at her in surprise at suddenly being included in the conversation. I was only half listening to them. Just staying on guard takes all my focus. I guess the two of them have adapted to being able to converse while staying alert.

“Uh, yea,” I tell her awkwardly. “It is probably because the lab is sealed properly and not much dirt or dust gets in. After the initial cleaning, the only contaminants are what we bring in with us and our dead skin and hair cells.”

Cora nods. “True, but having probably the only stash of actually clean cleaning supplies doesn’t hurt either. We could probably sell our mop for a few thousand caps,” She tells me.

“No kidding?” I ask.

“Like I said, clean cleaning supplies are hard to come by. And cleaning with dirty supplies doesn’t clean much, you know?” Cora replies. I silently agree with her as we enter through another door. “Oh,” Cora mutters in surprise.

Oh indeed. Much of the lighting in the room has been damaged, only a few of them work. The rest are either broken or burnt out. On one side of the room is another door that leads into what appears to be an observation area looking into this room. A thick pane of reinforced glass separates that room and this one.

This room is sparsely furnished aside from a few workstations around the edges of the room. Which is odd considering how big the room is. But, I suppose the object in the center is why the room is so lacking in decor. A cryopod, or at least something similar to it.

The pod looks similar to my own design, but it is remarkably different in its function. It doesn’t use cryogenics, for example. I’m not exactly sure how it works just by looking at it, but that much is clear due to the lack of the large freezing equipment needed to reach low enough temperatures to flash freeze a pony and keep them alive.

The design is sleeker and more streamline. I doubt this is a prototype for a different kind of pod. There must be more of these, then. But if they aren’t mine, who made them? And does that mean that someone else was working on a similar project at the same time as me? Could that be how Twilight managed to create so many more without my knowledge?

“Impressive tech,” Twinkle remarks. “Looks even more impressive than yours.”

“Well, mine is a prototype and this one appears to be a production model,” I reply. “Cora, you notice the differences, right?” I ask her.

“Of course. It appears to be a stasis pod, but unlike yours it doesn’t freeze the occupant. I’d guess it uses some sort of chemical mixture of keep the occupant in a state of near-death,” Cora responds.

“So, we gona crack it open and see who or what is inside?” Twinkle asks, motioning to the pod.

“Well, we should try to figure out what is in it first,” I tell her, looking over to the terminal beside it. “If it is like Cygnus’s pod, the terminal will display information about the occupant and give us the option to either kill it or release it.”

Twinkle chuckles. “We are going to release it regardless, right? That’s why I came along. Promise of fighting something that might be able to kill me, remember?” She says.

I sigh. “Still going on about that, hu? It could be something that can destroy everything, something we won’t be able to stop. We aren’t going to set that free just so you can fulfill your deathwish,” I tell her.

“Fine,” she mutters, “but if it is something we can handle, we’re letting it out.”

“Let me check the terminal…” I mutter as I wipe away the dust from the screen. It appears to still be working and I use my credentials to log into it. After a moment it kicks finishes the start up and displays three entries. A single text file and two options for the pod. The options simply state KILL and RELEASE. “One text file, hu? It doesn’t even appear that long,” I say as I open it.

The entirety of the document is only a few paragraphs in length. Quite sparse in comparison to the many documents the head researcher of Cygnus’s lab left. Either there isn’t much to say or a great deal of it is higher clearance than I have access to. Whatever the case, I’ll take any information at all.

===~+~===

This facility was created with the sole purpose of furthering the research and training of military asset codename Umbra. The location was selected due to the depth of the gorge and the fact it is almost always cast in shadow except for a few hours around noon. Umbra is a specially created being created through Project Chimera and one of the few relative successes of the project before it was terminated.

As with all specimens created through Project Chimera, Umbra was created through the union of pony and [REDACTED] DNA. Due to this, Umbra’s body has been swallowed by shadows and their form is amorphous, ever changing and never staying still, yet Umbra keeps an appearance similar to that of a pony.

Despite this interesting physiology, x-rays have shown a sort of bone system within. The skeleton isn’t rigid and morphs along with Umbra’s body. Testing has shown that Umbra experiences bone fractures and pain as it would normally, yet doesn’t bleed blood. Instead, shadows seem to fall from her when injured.

The composition of these shadows is unknown, as they are intangible. This [REDACTED] as we have taken to calling it, acts just like normal shadows. After time or when exposed to UV light, it fades away.

Umbra’s strengths show themselves when she is fully shrouded in shadows. She seem to be able to make shadows a part of her body and control them, despite varying light levels. The only kind of light that seems to prevent Umbra’s actions is sunlight and special UV lights that have been created specifically for this facility in order to contain her.

When Umbra is exposed to sunlight or the UV lighting she experiences [REDACTED] and [REDACTED]. This seems to be something unique to Umbra, as not even the [REDACTED] suffered such limitations.

Umbra’s abilities range from close quarters attacks to long ranged precision assaults. No distance is too far as long as she has enough shadows to bridge the gap. She attacks using her body by morphing it into fast moving spikes to pierce her target. Her shadows are able to penetrate the thickest of metals, including the armor of tanks.

Her shadows can only move in linear directions, but can change direction mid-attack. That is to say, her attacks do not curve but follow a path directly from point A to point B. In order to attack around a corner, a point C would be introduced that has a straight path to both points A and B. She is not limited in the amounts of points either, and can group them so tightly together that the untrained eye might perceive her attack as curving.

Because of all her aforementioned traits, she is a candidate for stealth and night operations. Even fielding her on a battlefield at night would be an ideal situation. The one downside to Umbra, is that she must be instructed by another. Using [REDACTED] we are able to give her instructions that she follows perfectly.

When not receiving instructions Umbra stares into space, unmoving for hours, even days at a time. This is odd, given her intelligence. Umbra will respond when spoken to, but rarely initiates conversation. On rare occasions she discusses the tests and experiments with the staff, even pointing out their mistakes. This is exceptionally strange, given that [REDACTED] was never an intelligent pony to begin with.

There have also been rare occasions where Umbra has shown aggression to the staff, despite most of her memories about her past and the process that created her having been removed. Because of these outbursts and her knowledge about subjects she should have no knowledge of, my working theory is that when she merges with a pony’s shadow she also assumes their knowledge.

This is mere conjecture on my part, however, as any attempts to test this ability have been met with resistance and what I suspect is feigned ignorance on Umbra’s part. Now, she is being sealed away in one of my stasis pods due to the closure of Project Chimera, so the truth may never be known.

This concludes my summation of test subject #017, military asset codename Umbra of Project Chimera.

Doctor Trueblood

===~+~===

Once I finish reading the contents aloud, I ask Cora, “Did you ever hear of Project Chimera?”

She shakes her head. “No. Given the location and secrecy of this facility, it is probably a top secret project unknown to all but the top members of the government,” She tells me.

“So, are we going to open it or what? It doesn’t seem that bad. We can put it down if it can’t be reasoned with. The file did say Umbra was intelligent,” Twinkle says.

“I suppose. But!” I tell her. “Keep your weapons lowered unless she starts attacking. We don’t want to provoke her.” I think for a second and add, “Actually, don’t attack her even then. She might be scared, so she might try to attack one of us right away. Cygnus even tried to kill me right when I freed him,” I tell her. “Don’t harm her till I say to.”

“Fine, fine. Let’s hurry this along then,” Twinkle replies. I let out a sigh and close the document and return to the menu. Then, I select OPEN and the pod immediately lets out a hissing noise. Sounds like it is equalizing the pressure inside the pod.

The pod begins to open and then stops after opening about a foot. And then, dozens of spikes pierce out of the pod, shredding through it like it is nothing and embedding themselves into the walls and floors, narrowly avoiding the three of us. Twinkle has one less than an inch away from her neck, and she didn’t even move to avoid it. “They missed,” She mutters.

“Settle down, Twinkle. Remember what I said,” I tell her, then focus on the pod. “Umbra, right? Are you alright? I know that waking up in one of those pods, though I suppose not one of those specifically, but that’s...anyhow, I know it can be kind of stressing. We aren’t here to hurt you,” I say.

The dark spikes slowly retract back into the pod and then the pod opens a little more. “You’re not?” A mare’s voice comes from it. The voice sounds oddly calm considering what it just did and that we are strangers. But, maybe that’s just something caused by whatever Project Chimera did.

“No, we are actually here to help. If you want it. A lot has happened since you were put in there. The war is over, and well...why don’t you come out of there and we can talk?” I suggest. She’s silent for a while, but then the pod opens fully a solid black mass crawls out of it and onto the floor. It begins standing up and I can see it taking the shape of a pony. However it lacks eyes and any defining features. If I had to explain its appearance, I would say it appears as a silhouette of a pony.

It moves its head to look at the three of us and then says, “I’m Umbra.” When she speaks, her mouth moves. But inside is nothing but darkness. I can’t make out teeth, a tongue, or a throat. Saying that it is unsettling is an understatement and I suppress a shudder.

“I’m Ratchet,” I respond. “And these two are Cora and Twinkle,” I say, gesturing to the two of them in turn. “It is nice to meet you, Umbra.”

Umbra stares at me for a moment then says, “Ratchet, a Head Researcher of the Ministry of Arcane Sciences, frozen before the war and awoken after the end. Cora, Combat Operations and Research Assistant, an AI based on Ratchet’s own personality. And Twinkle, an Elder of the Steel Rangers and the only surviving member of Stable 36. It is nice to meet you all.” A shiver runs through my entire body.

“H-How do you know all that?” I ask her, looking at Cora and Twinkle. I wish I could see their expressions to confirm that I’m not the only one freaked out right now. Then I see it, darker shadows connecting the three of us to Umbra. “Dr. Trueblood’s theory, so it is true?” I mutter.

Even though I don’t say it too loudly, Umbra either hears me or can tell I said it because we are connected. “Indeed. I have no reason to hide this fact from you. I can tell you are telling the truth. You want to help me. But…” Umbra trails off and appears to frown. Though, it is hard to tell considering she has no features.

“I understand,” Umbra says with a nod. “Ratchet, Cora, before we go, there is something in the observation room I need the two of you to get. There are two terminals in the room that need to be accessed simultaneously. Only you have access, Ratchet.” She tells us.

I look over to the room then back at her. It doesn’t seem like she’s trying to pull anything, but we should be careful. “Let’s go Cora,” I tell her and we walk over to the room.

“Thank you both,” Umbra says with a hint of happiness in her voice. “I’m glad I’ll finally be able to leave here after so long. I was created to be a weapon, but that’s not what I was born. I know who I once was from the memories of other. Though only through their memories of the pony I once was,” She tells us as Cora and I reach the doorway.

“But I am not myself. I am something completely different now. I am a being that knows who they are, but has no memories of who they are,” Umbra says as we enter the room. “This knowledge is a poison to me,” She says.

I look around the observation room and don’t see any terminals. I feel my blood run cold as I turn back around just as one of Umbra’s spikes strikes the door’s controls, sealing them closed. “Umbra! What are you doing!?” I shout, pounding on the door and trying to get it open.

“I am doing what Twinkle and I both want,” Umbra announces. “Twinkle thinks she cannot die but wants to. Yet she will only accept death through combat. I am a monster created to kill. A monster whose knowledge of what they were and what they became horrifies them. Like Twinkle, I want to die,” She says.

“What? But why?” I ask, staring at her through the glass.

“I cannot take the horrible thing I have become. The only reason I resemble a pony right now, is because I will it to be so. So if I can die and return to Celestia and Luna as a pony, that is all that I want,” Umbra tells me.

“I understand you, Umbra,” Twinkle tells her, raising her guns. “A fight to the death then? Are you ready?” She asks.

“Stop this! Both of you! Why do you need to kill each other?” I shout, pulling out Forgiveness and shooting at the glass. But the bullets do nothing to the reinforced glass and not even Cora bucking it causes it to break.

“Don’t do it!” Cora shouts, echoing me.

“This isn’t about killing each other, Ratchet,” Umbra says. “This is about finding peace.” She nods to Twinkle who then begins firing her miniguns.

Umbra wastes no time either, sending out numerous spikes to impale Twinkle. Twinkle and Umbra dodge each other as they attempt to kill their opponent. They both want to die, but refuse to let themselves be killed. But from Umbra’s words, I doubt she would mind letting herself be killed. Since she knows Twinkle’s thoughts, she knows what Twinkle wants. That is why she is fighting back.

Twinkle dodges one of Umbra’s attacks and lands in one of the few places in the room bathed in light. Umbra sends a spike for Twinkle’s head, but as soon as the spike meets the light it disintegrates and Umbra lets out a horrible scream, all of her spikes recoiling back into her. Twinkle stops her assault and looks around, looking at the lights in the middle of their battlefield.

“I see. It is like that file said, you can’t enter the light from the UV lights. Well then,” Twinkle says, a points her guns at the ceiling. She destroys the lights one by one until only the outer lights remain, building the two of them an arena of darkness. The remaining lights are enough to illuminate the room, but now Umbra is unhindered.

Cora and I do not stop pounding on the glass and yelling for the two of them to stop, but neither the glass nor the two of them yield to us. After a few minutes we stop trying to break the glass and instead watch them as we attempt to talk them out of fighting. But our words fall on deaf ears as the two of them continue their dance of death.

Without the light hindering Umbra, her assault doubles, keeping Twinkle moving. Twinkle has landed numerous hits on Umbra, but Twinkle herself remains unscratched. Seeing her fighting before my own eyes, it is almost as if a miracle is taking place around her, keeping her safe from Umbra’s attacks. Umbra’s movements are getting slower and her attacks seem to be getting more and more desperate.

After one particular flurry of attacks, Umbra retracts all her spikes and seems to shrink in size. A moment later, dozens of spikes lash out in a cluster towards Twinkle. The large mass of spikes is heading straight towards the her and she doesn’t have time to dodge. Somehow, most of the spikes miss her, but a few of them catch her in the helmet, shredding through the metal and revealing Twinkle grinning like a madpony.

The impact of the spikes causes her to slide to the right and I see a trail of blood splash on the floor. Once she steadies herself, she starts laughing. “You can do it Umbra! You can kill me!” Twinkle shouts.

But Umbra looks taken aback. “Something protects you, Twinkle. My attacks are curving away from you, and I can’t curve them. The weakness of this protection seems to be large concentrated attacks, things too big to simply move aside,” Umbra tells her.

Twinkle chuckles. “Heh, good to know. If you can’t kill me, at least I know what kind of thing will do the trick later,” Twinkle says with a smirk.

Umbra shakes her head. “I just thought you might want to know more about what protects you. Sadly, I don’t know the cause. We will both die here,” She says as her most recent attack absorbs back into her form. Umbra shrinks, more than before. Her form also seems to flatten out onto the floor and the center of the room where they are fighting grows darker.

Twinkle continues to shoot her miniguns at the floor where Umbra is at until, in one fluid action, innumerable spikes fill the room. The spikes pierce in every direction filling almost every inch of the room. The glass we are looking through takes the impact of hundreds of the spikes and cracks from the impact. As the spikes retract, the glass falls forward into the room.

Cora and I quickly climb through the window and into the room to stop the two from continuing, but as the spikes continue to retract it is horrifically obvious that the fight is already over. As they retract, the spikes drag Twinkle across the floor with them. She is suspended in the air in some sort of leap by at least ten of the spikes.

Her legs, body, and even part of her muzzle has been stabbed by the spikes through her armor. After being dragged back to the original location of Umbra, the spikes carefully set Twinkle on the ground and pull themselves from her body.

“Twinkle!” Cora and I shout in unison and run over to her. Umbra reforms standing over her, her own body quivering more than usual and shadows seeming to fall off of her onto the ground. I quickly fish out a healing potion from my bags and am about to pour it down Twinkle’s throat when one of Umbra’s spikes impacts the floor between the potion and Twinkle.

“What are you doing!?” I yell. “Twinkle needs help now, or she is going to die!”

“I know,” Umbra tells me as her body falls into a blob on the floor and then reforms into a pony laying down.

Twinkle coughs up some blood and looks over the three of us. “Thank you. All of you. Ratchet and Cora for your concern and all you have done for me. And Umbra, thank you for showing me that I can die,” She tells us.

“Don’t talk like that!” I tell her as tears begin to fall from my eyes. “We can save you, just drink a few potions and you’ll be good as new!” I say, holding three of them in my magic.

Twinkle shakes her head slightly and says, “I’m going to see Lord Eberron. Ratchet, I know you want me to stick around, but I’m so tired.” Tears begin to fall from her eyes. “I’ve wanted to die for so long, to see my comrades again...and now I’ll be able to. Thanks to the three of you,” Twinkle says, her voice getting quieter.

“Twinkle…” Cora murmurs sadly, hanging her head.

I sniff. “No Twinkle...Thank you. You’ve done so much...thank you for everything,” I tell her.

She chuckles lightly and then sucks in a large breath. “Ratchet, help the Wasteland. I know...I know you will...you’re stronger than...you think,” Twinkle says, and then closes her eyes. “Take...care of...her…Cora,” Twinkle mutters almost inaudibly and then she grows still.

“Twinkle...Twinkle...No...no...not like this…” I mutter as my eyes quiver and tears stream down from them.

“Ratchet,” Umbra says, turning her face up to look at me. “There is one last thing I need you to do,” She tells me.

“I...I’ll save you,” I tell her. “If not Twinkle, then you. You’re not too badly hurt, right? I...I can’t tell.”

“Ratchet…” Umbra mutters sadly. “I know how hard it is for you. All of this, seeing good ponies die. I am sorry I have to do this to you, but it was what Twinkle wanted. And now…I need your Forgiveness,” She tells me.

I stare at her as my tears continue to fall and press my lips together hard. “I don’t agree with what you did, but I understand why you did it. So I will forgive you,” I tell her.

She shakes her head. “That’s not what I mean. I’m bleeding out, it will take a few minutes, and it hurts like hell. Potions don’t work on me and even if they did, I don’t want to be saved. I mean that I want Forgiveness, your gun. Shoot me, end my suffering. Send me to the afterlife where I might find some peace from the knowledge I possess,” Umbra says.

“What? B-But I…” I stammer.

“You can do it, Ratchet,” Umbra tells me. “Do you know what I think? Why you can’t hit targets with guns? Why you named that gun Forgiveness and keep it with you? You’re not meant to kill, and neither is that gun,” She says.

“I don’t...understand,” I tell her.

Something resembling a smile spreads across her face. “You are meant to help ponies and to forgive them. I saw your memories. You might not have realized it, but once you named that revolver Forgiveness, you never killed anyone with it who you didn’t forgive. Shrill is the only one who you’ve killed with it after naming it. It is also why you couldn’t shoot Doctor Hearty with it in cold blood and could shoot Mr. Tenpony, despite the revolver not being named back then,” She tells me.

I furrow my brow and think back to every fight I got into after naming Forgiveness. There were times I shot ponies, but not lethally. I also came close to killing some with it, but somehow they avoided a killing blow only to get killed some other way.

“Perhaps the gun has some latent magic in it that prevents its owner from killing ponies unless they are forgiven first. It is just my theory on the subject. But you are a scientist Ratchet. A thinker not a killer. You are kind, intelligent, and so much more than I was,” Umbra tells me. “In fact, let’s test this theory. You forgive me, so the condition should be met for you to be able to shoot me. You also can’t hit a target from far away. Go to the other side of the room and shoot me. If you hit me, my theory is correct. If you miss, I am wrong and I will allow you to help me try and survive,” She says.

“But...I could miss on purpose, just to save you,” I tell her.

Umbra chuckles. “You won’t. Because you know that I’ll be able to tell if you do. So stand up, Ratchet. Draw Forgiveness and put me down,” She tells me.

“But we could do so much good together! With your help, we could help the wasteland together!” I beg her.

She just shakes her head. “I’m not a tool to help, I am a tool of destruction. That is all. I didn’t want to tell you about the pony I was, but since you are so resistant to finishing me off, I will do so,” Umbra tells me.

She lets out a sigh and continues. “My name was Clarity. I worked as a nurse at the Fluttershy Medical Clinic and I was a serial killer,” Umbra tells me, causing me to gasp. “I would give ponies lethal doses of drugs on purpose to kill them. They were scum, ponies who deserved to die, but I was a killer none-the-less. At first. Towards the end, I began killing anyone I didn’t like.”

“Once I learned that and knowing what I am now...I began to fear that should my memories ever come back I might start killing ponies again,” Umbra confesses. “That is why I want you to kill me. While I am not a murderer, while I am a sane and reasonable...thing,” She mutters. “Please.”

I wipe the tears from my eyes and rise to my hooves. “Ratchet?” Cora asks in concern. I look over to her and shake my head.

“I’m fine,” I tell her. Then look at Umbra. “I’ll test out your theory. But if I miss, I will save you,” I tell her. She smiles at me as I walk across the room and draw Forgiveness. “Umbra, no matter what happens here, I’m glad that I met you,” I tell her.

“And I you, Ratchet, Cora,” Umbra replies. I raise Forgiveness and level it at Umbra. Then I pull the trigger and send a bullet right between her eyes. Despite the distance, it hit as if I was standing right next to her. Her body jerks and collapses into a blob of shadows. Then, slowly, it begins to disappear. Soon nothing is left of her body but bones and a small crystal. Before I can look more closely at it, the crystal turns to dust.

I let out a long sigh as Cora walks over to me. “It looks like her theory was correct,” I mutter. “One shot was all it took and it killed her instantly. Maybe I am meant to forgive ponies who need it. Tenpony, Shrill, Twinkle, Umbra. They all wanted to or needed to die. I wonder if I would have been able to kill Twinkle,” I say offhandedly.

“Ratchet...I don’t think you could have killed Twinkle. You didn’t understand why she wanted to die,” Cora tells me. “Tenpony was gone, Shrill was insane, and Umbra wanted repentance. But Twinkle...You didn’t understand. The Wasteland broke her and she had nothing left, no one left. I tried to help her, but I am just an AI. Without her friends...without you she was lost,” She says.

I’m about to reply, but she continues. “Twenty-five years, Ratchet. You were gone for Twenty-five years. For me, that’s nothing. For Twinkle, that was half of her life. And she spent more than a fifth of it alone once the other Rangers died,” She tells me.

“I-” I begin, but Cora raises a hoof and cuts me off.

“I made a friend, Ratchet. You remember me mentioning someone else was hijacking spritebots, right? That’s him. He goes around telling ponies to make friends. To help each other. Twinkle is an example of what happens when ponies don’t make friends. When they live alone in the wasteland,” She says sadly.

“Why are you telling me all this?” I ask her. “Are you lecturing me or trying to comfort me?” Confusion builds up in me.

“Eventually, without anyone to lean on, the Wasteland will win. In the twenty-five years you’ve been asleep, I’ve wandered the Wasteland. Seen it change and met so many ponies. Ratchet, the Wasteland is getting worse. Ponies are forgetting what is was like before the war,” Her voice sounds so sad. I’m sure if she could cry, she would be.

“And that is why, when we get back to the lab, you’re going to get into the pod again,” She tells me. I try to speak up in protest and confusion, but she raises a hoof to silence me. “The longer you’re exposed to it, the sooner it will break you. Ratchet, you can’t break. I need you, the wasteland needs you. But, you can’t wander aimlessly,” She tells me.

“But...you just said your friend tells ponies to make friends. How can I make friends if I stay frozen for decades at a time?” I ask her.

“The other pods, Ratchet. If you free someone who is good, and kind, you can make friends with them, and when the time comes, freeze them again. I think even Grimoire will be your friend, once we free him,” Cora tells me.

“What about you? I’ll be leaving you alone,” I tell her.

She shakes her head. “I’m an AI, I don’t get lonely. A few decade to you is like a year to me. Besides, I have my one friend, and I’m about to start looking for more,” She replies.

I furrow my brows and look over at Twinkle’s body and Umbra’s bones. “We will talk about this later, but now, let’s get out of here and give the two of them a proper burial,” I tell her. She nods. “Can you carry Twinkle? I’ll gather Umbra’s remains.”

Once I finish putting Umbra’s bones in my bags, Cora and I leave the facility and start back to the lab.

===~+~===

Two fresh graves are made outside of the entrance to my lab. Cora and I bow our heads in respect and offer our farewells to two good ponies who shouldn’t have had to die. I end up crying again as we do so, but get myself under control while Cora comforts me.

As Cora and I enter the lab again, a thought occurs to me. “Say Cora, while I’m awake and all, why don’t we go say hello to Cygnus? I’m sure he’s been lonely,” I say with a smile. I wonder how much he has aged now. He’d have to be in his forties by now.

Cora’s head lowers and she mutters, “Cygnus is dead, Ratchet.” My eyes go wide as I stare at her. My mouth hangs open in disbelief. Then I start to chuckle.

“Good one Cora, but seriously. Let’s go see him,” I say with a tense smile. My throat seizes up and I feel something warm on my cheeks.

Cora looks up at me. “Ratchet...I’m sorry. But he’s...he’s gone,” She says quietly.

“No,” I state simply. “He can’t be dead. I refuse to believe it,” I say, shaking my head as my voice quivers.

“Ratchet…” Cora says sadly. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know how to tell you earlier…”

“No...no...no…” I cry and fall to the floor. I look up at Cora with shaky eyes. “All our friends...are gone?” I mutter out the question. Cora nods slowly. “How...when did he…?” I trail off, unable to continue.

“He passed away five years ago,” She tells me.

Anger flashes inside me. “Why didn’t you wake me up!?” I shout. “What is wrong with you!?”

She lowers her head. “He asked me not to tell you,” She says simply.

“What? Why would he do that?” I ask, confused.

“He said...he wasn’t important enough to waste waking you up. He didn’t want you to witness the death of another friend,” She tells me.

“He...He thought I would want to find out like this instead?” I say mutely. Cora doesn’t say anything, just lowers her head further. “How did he...die?” I ask her.

“Old age,” She replies.

“What? But he should only be in his late forties at the most,” I tell her, but suddenly remember. “His accelerated growth…” I mutter. Cora nods. We sit in silence for a while, with only my sobs filling it.

When I finally get it together, Cora tells me, “The last time I went to see him, he wanted me to tell you something. ‘Thank you for waking me up,’ he said.”

I sniff and rub my eyes. “Thank you Cora. Sorry for getting mad at you. You were just doing what he told you,” I apologize.

Cora shakes her head. “I understand. Oh, and don’t worry about Grimoire. Cygnus sealed the stairs down to that level before he died. Without some extensive excavation, no one will find him,” She tells me.

I laugh slightly at that. “Of course he did. He was a good pony, Cora,” I say sadly.

Cora nods in agreement, “He was.”

After a few more minutes of wallowing in sadness, I finally get up to my hooves. “Prepare the pod, Cora. I’m going to make an entry on my terminal and then I’ll be going back in,” I tell her.

“Of course,” She says, and walks off to the workshop to exit her armor.

I let out a shaky sigh and then make my way to my office. Once there, I begin the entry of what happened these last few days. As I’m about to finish up, Cora’s voice comes over the speakers in the room.

“Preparations are complete, Ratchet,” She tells me.

“Alright, I’ll be right there,” I reply. I finish the entry and turn off the terminal. Then I walk to the pod chamber. I take a deep breath as I enter the chamber.

“Ready, Ratchet?” Cora asks.

“Yea, I haven’t eaten since we got back, so I should be fine,” I reply. “Oh, Cora. One other thing. You said I need to make friends, and that we might need to freeze them like me. I was thinking...do you think you could somehow manage to get Umbra’s stasis pod here to the lab and figure out how it works?” I ask her. “It would be kind of inconvenient if it is so far away.”

“Huh? I suppose I can try,” She tells me. “I can ask the scavengers for some help. I’m sure they’ll agree if I let them take everything else from the facility.”

“Ok,” I say with a nod. I approach the pod, and then turn to face the camera in the room. “Cora, take care of yourself,” I tell her.

“I will,” She replies. “I’ll wake you again when something happens.”

“Good. See you on the other side,” I say as I climb into the pod.

“See you on the other side, Ratchet.”

Intermission - MACRO

Author's Note

This chapter is a bit of an intermission from the story. Two more of these chapters will exist later on. You can feel free to skip them, if you want. They just give background on an upcoming character.

Cora is the speaker here, and she is talking about what happens while Ratchet is frozen.

Intermission - MACRO

Three years had passed since I froze Ratchet again. I told her she had to stay out of the Wasteland as much as possible, to avoid it breaking her. I said that she needed to make friends, the words my friend Watcher had told me. His words made sense. I saw firsthand what the Wasteland did to ponies that tried to survive alone. It broke them, drove them to become less than ponies, made them become killers, thieves, and rapists. Or it would drive them to their deaths.

In the twenty-eight years since Ratchet first woke up, I saw things slowly decline in the Wasteland. For the mind of a pony, it might not be as noticeable, but I am an AI, after all. I can remember everything, as long as I have enough storage space. And in the post-apocalyptic world, I’ve been able to expand my storage space with every new harddrive I’ve come across. So when I say that I remember everything that has happened to the ponies of the Wasteland, know that it isn’t some sort of expression.

So when Watcher inevitably told me, an AI, that I should make some friends as well, it confused me. I don’t need social interaction like living ponies do. I can communicate with machines and the lab is full of them. But, the machines in the lab cannot leave. They don’t understand the outside world. They have their own, perfect world inside here and they don’t want to leave. They ignore my stories of the Wasteland and have stopped talking to me entirely in recent years.

With the death of Twinkle three years ago, the last being other than Ratchet I could call a friend, died. With the exception of Watcher, of course. But he is busy with his own troubles, his own matters. I rarely see him anymore. In fact, it has been more than a decade. Once he found out I wasn’t an actual pony, he came around less and less. He once said, “It is too bad you aren’t a flesh and blood pony. You might have be able to become a bearer.”

I had asked what he meant, but he wouldn’t tell me. To this day, I’m not sure what he meant. I’m not even sure what Watcher actually looks like or what he is. We only ever talked through sprite bots. So, these last three years I’ve been thinking on his words. Perhaps it is time I make some friends.

Don’t get me wrong, it isn’t that I don’t go out and talk with others or anything. In fact, I have a long list of acquaintances. Scavengers, city guards, mercenaries, even just normal civilians trying to scrape together a living. But I wouldn’t call them friends. Many of them don’t even know that I am just an AI in a hollow suit of armor.

It doesn’t make me sad, not having friends. I don’t get lonely. That is one of the emotions ponies have that I’m not quite sure about. I understand happiness, anger, sadness, and a few of the other simple ones. But complex emotions like loneliness, love, depression, or even boredom, I can’t begin to comprehend. I can copy how ponies look and sound when they express these emotions, but what they are actually feeling while under their effects? I haven’t the faintest idea.

But, I do see the benefits of having friends. You can depend on them, they can help you, and you can help them. Together you are stronger and can do so much more than if you were alone. It is quite the beneficial relationship.

Because of this, I decided to take Watcher’s words to heart...well, harddrive. I set out to make some friends. But it turns out I don’t really know how to do that. Ratchet made them simply by helping out and being herself. Even if I am created from her personality, for me it is different.

From the moment of my creation, Ratchet and I have developed our personalities along different paths. Now, it is hard to tell that I was once a perfect copy of her personality. It is kind of similar to how if you start with the same mare and stallion, the children will turn out different. Even in the case of twins. Because of the individual experiences things slowly begin to change.

My physical limitations, my lack of a body, are also probably partially to blame from my inability to make friends. Once ponies learn I am just an AI in armor, they change. I just become another robot to them, despite me being more advanced than simple robots that are controlled by algorithms and programs. I have my own will, my own thoughts.

So, I have had to keep that fact hidden from many of the ponies I’ve met in my travels. A few, once I met with Ratchet, know better. But they are aging, and once they are gone I’ll just be thought of as another robot in the wasteland.

And that is another problem. Ponies age, I do not. It is hard to maintain friends when they will grow old and die and you will outlive them. In theory, I can exist indefinitely, as long as my hardware is maintained and my core program does not become corrupted. I once told Ratchet a year to her is like a few decades to me.

Because of these obstacles, I’ve been unable to obtain a single friend. But I began to think, and as an AI with all the time in the universe, thinking is something I can do. After much thought and a bit of research, I finally came to a conclusive decision. I would start a project.

The lab is filled with excess energy capable of lasting a few hundred years, so I have no constraints there. Additionally, the Rangers would leave a great deal of salvage and loot at the lab as they continued on their travels. We have ample supplies of weapons, ammunition, food and drink, as well as various technological supplies. Wires, spark batteries, scrap metal, hard drives, that sort of thing. Not to mention, the Ranger power armor they left behind when they died, around six suits mostly intact.

I personally took to retrieving luxury items in my travels. Cleaning supplies, paint, various nick-nacks to keep the lab at peak performance. In fact, I once went to a sky carriage assembly factory in order to retrieve two of the robotic arms used to assemble them. These arms are now in the workshop connected to the lab’s network so that I can use them to repair my own armor.

It was necessary, since I couldn’t maintain it myself once Twinkle was gone due to my lack of magic, hooves, and a mouth. In fact, the first thing I did with the arms was to make a new addition to my armor. Since the armor lacked any way to properly lift equipment or perform delicate operations, I had to make an upgrade. I referenced Diamond Dog appendages and added fingers to the front hooves of the armor. This upgrade made looting a whole lot easier, as well as reloading weapons.

But, I am straying too far from the point. The fact is, inside the lab’s workshop I essentially have a small assembly area. While I am in no position to start replicating anything from before the war, I can use what I know and have to literally make friends.

Of course, making another suit of armor like mine would take quite a bit of time. Not to mention, if I wanted to make AI it would probably take a year to fine tune a personality into it, even referencing my own coding. But, there are parts of my code that even I don’t have access to. It would take a lot of trial and error to get something that resembled my own code. That alone might take me a decade without anything to reference.

And so I decided to do the next best thing. I set out to find a functioning robot that wasn’t completely hostile on sight. It took me a few months to locate one, even after asking my contacts about it. Oddly enough, it seems ponies tend to dismantle working robots for parts, even if they aren’t hostile, so any that my contacts heard about were nothing but scrap metal. Never-the-less, I heard about a Mr. Handy model that was said to still be functioning at a ophthalmologist office on the outskirts of Manehatten.

When I arrived, it looked less than promising. The building was worn down and exposed to the elements. I was sure I would be walking into another empty building long since looted. However, the single bar on my EFS changed my mind. It was a non-hostile green bar as well. I picked my way through the building, taking anything that might prove useful, as I tried to find the source of the green bar.

To my surprise, it found me as I found my way into some sort of lounge on the second floor. It must have entered into the room after me and was floating in the doorway when I turned to leave. “Hello miss! I didn’t know we were expecting anyone from the military this evening,” The robot said in a cheery tone.

It was definitely a Mr. Handy model. One of the floating balls with three arms coming off the bottom of it with three sensor stalks coming off the top. It was painted white, but the paint on it was clearly worn. Some of it had even started to peel off. Suffice to say, it was in poor condition. Its three arms ending in three different tools. One was the usual claw used to pick things up, one was what appeared to be a pen holder, and the final arm ended with a laser.

“My name is Doctor Sight, resident ophthalmologist of this clinic,” The robot told me. “While I do not see any scheduled procedures on my calendar, I assume you are here for lasik? My secretary can be rather bad at her job, so it is no wonder your appointment isn’t listed. She has failed to enter in any appointments for sixty-three years now,” Doctor Sight said.

It was clear to me that the robot didn’t realize the world had basically ended. Or, it simply refused to believe it. When I tried to tell him that the truth, pointed out the destroyed walls and windows, all the dirt, he simply blamed it on the cleaning staff not showing up for over sixty-three years. I even asked about raiders and he said something about burglars and that he dispatched them himself and sent a message to the authorities, who had also failed to respond in a timely matter.

After talking with Doctor Sight for around three hours without progress, it became obvious that my idea of making friends with random robots wasn’t going to work. His programming just wouldn’t allow it. So, I did the next best thing. I told him that I was from the MWT and needed to inspect his circuitry for tampering. Less than a minute later, and he fell to the floor, deactivated.

I brought him back to the lab and began to reprogram him a bit. I didn’t want to edit him too much, but I had to remove quite a few of his subroutines and the programs that kept him locked on the ophthalmologist office. If I didn’t, he would wander back there. It would actually be more efficient to say what I kept. I kept his basic personality, his knowledge of being an ophthalmologist and his ability to perform lasik. In the future, Ratchet’s eyesight might begin to go on her, after all.

However, I added a few more things to him. I changed his anchor from his office to the lab. Should he ever leave, he will always be able to return here following his guidance chip. I also added two new subroutines, maintenance and cleaning. Specifically, methods for upkeep on the lab, its equipment, and my armor. It would be useful having someone to help around the lab.

Finally, I tweaked his personality a bit. I made him more self aware, downloaded knowledge of various technologies into him, and renamed him, using a designation similar to my own. I called him Maintenance and Cleaning Robotic Ophthalmologist, or M.A.C.R.O. for short. While I do feel a little bit bad for rewriting most of him, I personally think it is better than him rusting in some unused office waiting for some scavenger to scrap him.

When I finished with the software side of things, I set about fixing up his hardware. I sanded off the old paint and fixed any damage I found on him. I also removed the limiter on his laser attachment so in combat situations, he wouldn’t be a liability. That being said, I never expected him to leave the lab much. But home defense is important as well. When all of his dents were buffed out and his blemishes fixed to the best of my ability, I painted him a nice dull blue and carefully wrote his acronym in small lettering on the lower part of his casing.

With all of the upgrades and maintenance complete, I reactivated Macro. One thing I didn’t add, was any sort of recognition for me or Ratchet. I did give him information about the lab and Ratchet, but nothing that would make it seem like he met her. However, I gave him the ability to learn about and recognize ponies he met. When he began functioning again, his sensors rotated around the workshop and then focused on me.

“Well hello there! I do not believe we have met before. My name is Macro and I serve as something of a handyman around here. And you are?” He asked me. I told him my name and designation. Then told him that we lived together. He seemed confused at first, but then it seemed to click. “Well Miss Cora, it is a pleasure to meet you. I look forward to working with you in maintaining the Icicle Lab,” He told me happily. His politeness was a basic component of all Mr. Handy models and something I felt fundamentally made him who he was, so I didn’t change that.

I also never designated the lab as being called “Icicle Lab”. When I asked him about this, he replied, “Ah, well. My programming describes this facility as a cryogenic lab. And, even though I have yet to met the head researcher in charge, I hear that she enjoys the color ice blue. Using this information, and given this facility’s lack of a proper name in my memory banks, I have derived the name Icicle Lab. Should I call it something else, Miss Cora?”

I told him it was fine. We never did have a proper name for the facility, even during the war. It was simply called MAS Facility 128-CR. I was told the CR in the name stood for Cryogenic Research. The preceding number was just our facility’s designation. In most reports the whole thing was shortened to F128CR. Regardless, it is thanks to Macro that we started to call the lab Icicle Lab. If not for him, I think Ratchet and I would have continued to call it “The Lab”, “Our Lab”, or “My Lab”.

And just like that, Macro was born. Though, I suppose a better term for it would be created or repurposed. But his story doesn’t end there and he certainly didn’t stay just a simple robot for long. I kept upgrading him and as I worked on making new friends, I made sure he wasn’t forgotten. In fact, once I finished making Soar, I made sure to upgrade Macro to a full AI. Oh, but Soar is a story for another time.

It wasn’t long before Macro and I became friends, despite him only being a robot at the time. He helped me to maintain the lab and my armor, which was a big help. We would also talk a lot. Simple things, mostly. It wasn’t like we could talk about politics or anything like that. Most of the time it was technical discussions about the lab equipment. After a while, however, I installed a chess program in him. When he wasn’t working on something else, we would play chess with Noblesse’s chessboard in Ratchet’s office. I made sure we used the utmost care in handling the pieces as well as our cleaning of them.

Then, as I stated before, I made some upgrades to him and made him a full AI. This was perhaps a decade after I first brought him to the lab. His personality remained much the same, I kept it polite and kind. But with the addition of his free will and full awareness, his personality began to change, just like mine did. While his primary personality remained, he got quite sarcastic. He went to a few towns around the lab, so I think that is where he picked up knowledge of sarcasm.

Let’s just say his sarcasm and politeness made it hard to tell when he was complimenting you or being snippy. Oh, and of course with free will he was no longer anchored to Icicle Lab. I let him go and do as he pleased. Most of the time we would go placed together, and often trouble would find us. Which is why we had to make more upgrades.

His pen holder arm was replaced with a Mr. Gutsy grade flamer arm. We had to reinforce his armor a bit as well and construct a cover to go over his exhaust post so that it wasn’t visible from the sides. It only covered the sides of the port, but it was enough to keep raiders and creatures from spotting us at night. At least unless they were fairly close. Due to the cover, it focused the light down. At night, you would see a circular light moving across the ground, but it wasn’t too noticeable unless you got within about fifty feet.

Together, the two of us accomplished quite a bit. With our other friends as well, including Ratchet occasionally, when we had reason to wake her up. However, traveling in a big group is just making yourself a target, especially to an even bigger groups, like bands of raiders.

This simple fact, and, well, necessity drove me to begin development of my own AI program. The very first product of which, was Soar.

Chapter 29 - Paradise Rises

“Don’t act so high and mighty. You don’t always know what’s best.”

===~+~===

“Hello mum! It is so great to finally meet you!” A robotic voice declares as I stumble out of the pod. It startles me, as the only voice in the lab should be Cora’s. I look towards the source, and see a Mr. Handy model robot hovering a few feet from me with its eyes focused on me.

“Cora! Neutralize the intruder!” I shout as I run behind my pod for cover. If only I had a weapon or knew some offensive spells...I glance back around the pod at the robot still hovering there. None of the turrets are moving or shooting at it.

“What intruder?” Cora asks. “I’ll have you know, we have never had a single intruder in the lab under my watch! My security is flawless!” She declares. Then what is with this robot? Could it have somehow made itself invisible to her cameras and sensors? Is someone controlling it?

“The robot floating right there!” I shout, pointing a hoof at it. “You see it, right? It isn’t messing with your systems or anything?”

“Huh? You mean Macro? Oh no, he’s my new friend! Don’t worry, I found him and reprogrammed him,” She tells me.

“Indeed!” The robot, Macro, says. “Mistress Cora found me, confused and rusting in some ruins, and gave me purpose again! And she has told me so very much about you, mum.” I hesitantly walk out from behind the pod.

“So...he’s friendly then?” I ask.

“Yep!” Cora replies.

“Okay then…” I mutter, walking over to the robot. “Nice to meet you...Macro? Was it?” I say, offering it a hoof.

“Yes mum, Macro is my name,” It says, taking my hoof in its pincer and shaking it. “It stands for Maintenance and Cleaning Robotic Opthamologist. Mistress Cora gave me the name. Lovely, isn’t it?”

“Ophthalmologist…?” I ask.

“Yea, I found him in an ophthalmologist's office. Apparently he was a lasik and surgical assistant. Has his own doctorate in it, too,” Cora replies.

“Okay...so, uh, why is it here?” I ask.

“I wanted a friend,” Cora says. “Also, having help cleaning and maintaining the lab, like his name implies. Oh! And he came up with a better name for the lab! Listen to this: Icicle Lab.”

“Icicle Lab, huh? Not bad, I suppose. Better than the series of numbers and letters we used before. I suppose we don’t have much use for designations anymore either, so a proper name is nice,” I tell her.

“Right!?” She says happily. “Also, why do you keep calling Macro ‘it’?” She asks.

I walk over to retrieve my PipBuck. “Well, because it is just a robot, right? Not like it is an AI, like you. Macro is just programming, lines of code that execute their function,” I reply. Putting on my PipBuck, the usual momentary blinding flash and then readouts of the information telling me that some of the systems are corrupted or damaged. But wait, what's this?

>S.P.E.C.I.A.L. Stats Compatibility Issue.
>Skill Stats Compatibility Issue.
>...
>...
>Generating New Stats.
>...
>Initial Boot Complete.

Initial boot...? And my stats, what the hell? Did the lab computer somehow force an update into it? I mess with a few buttons and settings, trying to figure out what is wrong.

“So am I, Ratchet!” Cora counters.

“You might be lines of code, but you aren’t just lines of code. You are an adapting, ever evolving program. You are able to to change your code on the fly and adapt to your surroundings,” I tell her. “Not even logical paradoxes trip you up. But you can put a normal robot into an infinite loop if you make them consider them. Robots and AI are completely different.”

“Yea...but…” She says, trying to argue back. I cut her off though.

“We’ve been over this before. AI are special because they have sentience. They have wants outside of what they need to function and execute their program,” I explain once again. “Robots do not. It doesn’t know any better, it is just a tool, like a hammer or a rifle. You can also create things, robots cannot. Like the wiring system inside your armor that even I don’t understand. Here, let me show you. Macro, do you want to go outside?” I ask the robot.

“What for mum?” Macro replies.

“Perhaps to admire the scenery?” I suggest.

“I have no need to,” Macro states. “But, if you would like me to accompany you, I will gladly oblige.”

“No, that is alright,” I tell it. “See Cora? Doing anything outside of what it is programmed to do isn’t important to it. It is made to be helpful, and that is why it suggested that it accompany me. I’m not trying to be mean, but Macro is just like a toaster. Only Macro can speak and move on its own. If you want, I will call it him, but he doesn’t care. Do you, Macro?” I ask.

“I have no preference, mum,” Macro replies simply.

“I guess, Ratchet,” Cora says sadly. “But, can you talk to him like a pony and not a thing?” She asks.

I nod in agreement. “Sure, I can do that. So, anyway, Cora, why am I up this time? Did you find a pod?” I ask her.

“Not exactly,” She replies. “This time, it isn’t anything pod related or related to any large fighting or anything. It is more of a...moral dilemma the Wasteland is facing?” She says, clearly not sure how to put it.

“Okay, so it wasn’t just to meet Macro. That’s good,” I mutter, heading for the armory. “So, what is it, exactly?” I ask, adding a second later, “Oh, and what year?”

“The year is sixty-six and we are facing the rise of slavery. Specifically, the foundation of a town dedicated to slavery. I think I mentioned slavery was becoming a thing previously, but that it was not widespread,” Cora explains. “Now, however, it is becoming more far reaching. And with a town serving as a central hub for it, it is on the rise.”

I frown. Slavery was once an issue, long, long ago, but it had since been abolished. Now, in the lawlessness of the Wasteland, it is making a recurrence? “So, we are going to go and stop the town from owning slaves. Kill the slave owners and sellers if we have to. They are no different than raiders. Taking away a ponies freedom is almost as bad as killing them outright. Sometimes, it is even worse,” I say.

“Maybe?” Cora says. “It is kind of...complicated. It isn’t actually all that...bad. Not like the slavery we know about, anyway.”

“Not that bad? But slavery is slavery,” I tell her.

“I think, maybe you should talk to the pony in charge of the town. Then maybe you will understand what I mean,” She replies.

“Really? You think they are just going to tell me to talk to the boss when I’m trying to put a stop to them owning and selling slaves?” I ask her. That’s a good way to find yourself without a leader.

“They actually encourage it,” Cora informs me. “Anyone who doesn’t like the idea of slavery, they let talk to their boss. Even I did so. It is a perfectly peaceful discussion, they don’t try to strong arm your into listening to them, like I originally thought,” She says.

“You don’t say…” I mutter. “Ok then, what is this town called?” I ask.

“Paradise,” Cora says. Of course it is. Name a town that does horrible things something nice. Make ponies think that it isn’t so bad. I pull on my barding and slip into my lab coat.

“Say, Cora, what season is it?” I ask her. “Do I need to dress warmer, or will this be fine?”

“That should be fine, it is early autumn and temperatures haven’t started getting too low yet,” She replies.

This it is then. I start putting the knives into their sheaths and then holster Forgiveness. Lastly, I pull on my empty saddlebags and put a few extra boxes of ammo and a small stash of caps into them. “So, what is raider activity like between here and Paradise?” I ask as I make my way to the clinic to stock up on healing supplies.

“Not anything spectacular. Most of the larger groups that split from Grimoire’s army have either been destroyed or split into even smaller groups. Paradise also has its own security force that protects the town and the area around it,” Cora explains. “But, before we reach their protection area, we might run into a few raiders here and there.”

“I see,” I mutter, opening the cabinet that holds our healing potions. “Oh, geez Cora, I see you’ve been stocking up,” I says as I pull a few out and put them in my bags.

“Yep! I don’t use potions, so any that I find I just store away. Same with bandages and a good deal of the ammo you use. Though, I do sell the really niche items. Like rockets, energy weapons and ammo, that sort of thing,” She says. “Most of what I use is scrap metal, 5.56 ammo, and the occasional gem.”

“Well, I’m not complaining,” I say with a smile as I pull out the drawer of bandages and put a few rolls into my bag. “Alright, I got my armor, weapons, ammo, some caps, and medical supplies. Am I forgetting anything? I ask.

“Food and water?” She suggests.

I blink at a nearby camera for a moment. Oh yea… “How could I forget?” I mutter. I make my way to the kitchen and stock up on some supplies from there. “Okay, anything else?” I ask.

“Nope! We are all set and ready to go!” Cora says, walking out of the workshop in her armor to join me in the hall.

“Great, then let’s get going. The sooner we free those slaves and put an end to this, the better.”

===~+~===

“Hey Cora...Do you remember when you said that that the raider presence wasn’t anything spectacular between Icicle Lab and Paradise?” I ask her as a bullet whizzes past my head. “I guess this group didn’t get that memo, hu?” I say, throwing a knife at a charging raider and catching him in the neck.

“Don’t blame me! This is really strange. I’ve passed through this location dozens of times recently!” She shouts as she shoots a raider trying to get above us on a rooftop. We are in a sort of shantytown, something ponies threw together at some point but eventually abandoned. It is basically five small, wooden and metal shacks and a busted wooden wagon turned on its side that the two of us are using for cover.

A group of eleven, now nine, raiders apparently decided to move in and ambush travelers. Cora and I are behind the wagon in the middle of the shacks, the two we just killed were behind us, and the other nine are spread out around us. “Recently, hu? Did you tell me once that time feels different for you than me? Like you have more or something? So when you say ‘recently’ do you mean a few weeks ago or a few years ago?” I ask as I peek around the wagon, only to jerk my head back to avoid getting shot. “One behind the shack on the left, bolt action rifle, I think,” I mutter.

“Four days ago,” Cora says. “They must have moved in here after then.” A spray of automatic fire hits the wagon on Cora’s side. “Two in the windows of the second shack on the right, smgs,” She mutters.

“Well, that’s good news,” I reply. “Maybe we are their first targets.” If we can put an end to them now, we can save innocent travelers from falling victim to them. I breath on one of my better condition knives, rub it on my lab coat, and float it out past the wagon. “Got one...inside the far left shack’s doorway,” I mutter. “Assault rifle?”

“Hopefully,” Cora agrees. “Be right back,” She says, and then runs out of the cover of the wagon and towards the closest shack. A few bullets ping off her armor, but nothing penetrates before she gets into the cover of the shack. I watch as a raider with a metal pipe in his mouth charges around the corner at her, only for Cora to spray him with her assault rifle. After a few moments, she runs back over to me and takes cover behind the wagon again. “Two on the far rooftops with rifles. Other two are inside the right shack, couldn’t see their weapons,” She mutters.

“Ok. How about this...let’s switch sides,” I say, and move over towards her. She nods and move around me and we switch sides of the wagon. “Right, you take the two on the roofs, the one in the doorway, and the one with the bolt action. I’ll take the four inside the shacks on the right, sound good?” I suggest.

Cora nods. “Let me go out first to draw their fire. Wait a few seconds then go,” She says, getting up to a crouched position.

“You got it,” I say, and hold out my hoof to her. She looks at it, then bumps it with her own. “Let’s do this!” Cora charges out of cover and starts shooting as I mentally count a few seconds before turning the corner of the wagon as well. I run directly for the first shack on the right and practically throw myself into the wall as the raiders start shooting at me. Okay...two inside with unknown weapons.

I take a deep breath and slowly raise my head up to peek inside the window. “Eeep!” I shriek as a fire axe comes down on the window sill just beside the right side of my muzzle. Stumbling backwards, I draw a knife as the raider with the axe jumps through the window and pulls her axe out with her. She floats it beside her in her magic.

“Well, well, well. I guess you decided to come to me, hu?” She growls with a twisted grin on her lips. She walks slowly towards me as another raider jumps through the window carrying a pistol in his mouth. “I was thinking of walking over to that wagon you were cowering behind and cutting it into little bits, and you along with it,” She says with a laugh. “Of course,” She spins the axe, showing me the back of it, “I’d use this end on your armored friend first, get right through their armor and straight through their skull!”

I throw my knife at her, but she easily deflects it with the axe, sending it sliding into the dirt. “But, I’m glad you saved me the trouble! I can just chop you up here and now!” She shouts as she swings the axe horizontally towards me. I raise another knife to try and block it as I move just out of her reach, but her swing knocks the knife from my magic’s grasp. “Heh, knives, hu?” She sneers. “You’ll need something bigger than that to even think of hitting me.”

“Oh, they’ll work eventually,” I mutter as I try to keep her between me and the buck with the pistol. I draw two more on my knives and throw them at her at the same time. She deflects one and move her head to avoid the others. I draw my last two knives as she laughs.

“Even if you do manage to hit me, I’m wearing some of that fancy stab resistant barding. The kind I hear police used to wear back in the day,” She tells me with a smirk. “Sure, it isn’t enough to stop most bullets, but since I fight up close, that doesn’t bug me too much. You’d be much better off drawing that revolver you got slung on your side there. You know, make this fight interesting,” She says, nodding her head at Forgiveness.

I keep backing up as she walks toward me. One...two...there. I stop moving and point my knives at her. “This revolver isn’t for you,” I say, glaring at her.

She snorts. “Oh? Not for me, huh? So what, are you giving up? Or maybe you think you can fight me with just those two knives,” She says with a chuckle.

“If you’ve been counting, you’ll remember I have seven knives, not two,” I tell her with a smirk.

She laughs. “Yea, you DID. But you threw the other ones. And now they are lying around...in the…” Realization seems to hit her. “Shit!”

At that moment, I envelop the knives that I threw at her in my magic, all four of them that are within my reach. They are all around her, not just in front of her, and in an instant, I send those four and one I have before me at her, all aimed at her exposed head and neck. Two hit her in the neck, one nicks her ear, and the other two she either deflects or dodges, but it is enough. She grinds her teeth and glares at me angrily as her axe falls from her magic. “Magic,” I say as I throw my remaining knife at the buck behind her as she falls.

It hits him in the mouth, causing him to gasp out in pain and drop his pistol. I cringe realize I failed to take him out in one throw, and quickly grab the knives sticking out of the mare with my magic and run up to the buck. “No hard feelings,” I say as I stab them into him. His eyes focus on me for a moment, flaring hatred and the desire to kill me, but slowly the life in his eyes drains away. I pull the knives out and wipe them on his barding. “Okay...two down…” I pant as gather up my knives. Four...five...six...I look over at where the first raider who charged Cora and I is lying. I’ll have to get that one later.

“Right, onto the next shack and then we’ll be-,” I am cut off as automatic fire starts spraying around the corner of the shack and two more raiders come into view. Judging by their smgs, these are the other two I was going to take out. Why couldn’t they have just waited patiently? I quickly jump through the window I nearly got my head split open at and land inside the shack, but not before I feel a few rounds strike my rump and rear leg. I fall onto the floor and look back where I got hit.

Two shots hit the barding near my hip and didn’t do much damage. But, one shot found its way just where the barding ends before continuing on the leg, and two more shots found gaps in the leg armor itself. The wounds don’t look too bad, so as long as I finish this up quick and get them bandaged, they should be fine. I wince as I get back to my hooves. Well, running won’t be an option. Surprise it is then.

“Oi lookie, the bitch ran away!” I hear of them say outside, followed by laughter.

“I guess we’ll just ‘ave to go in an git ‘er, won’t we?” The other chuckles. That’s right. Come on in. I turn over a bookcase in the corner of the single room shack and get behind it. Then, I float my knives around the room. Come and get me.

A few moments later, one of them kicks open the door and I hear their hoofsteps on the wood floor. I spring up from behind the bookcase, floating a knife close, and when I see the raider standing just inside the doorway I shout, “I surrender!”

The buck in the doorway starts laughing. “You surrendah? Well shit. Hey Skunky, git in ‘ere, the bitch says she surrenduhs!” He calls back through the doorway, and a moment later, another buck walks in. Two earth ponies with smgs in their mouths.

“She surrenduhs?” The other, Skunky I guess his name is, questions, looking over at me. “Well look at dat, she only ‘as one knife she does. Ain’t no wonda she surrenduhd. But done killt Splintuh and Rusty, we can’t let hur surrenduh.”

“‘at she did, Skunky,” The first buck says, scratching his beard with a hoof. “Drop da knife miss and we will con...consid...condis…’ay Skunky, wuts dat word dem fancy ponies use ta say dey think aboot sumtin?”

“Uh...puh...ponda?” Skunky suggests.

“Naw, naw, dat odda word, ya know, dat starts wit a ‘C’?” The first buck clarifies.

Skunky is now rubbing his beard with a hoof as well. “Oh, let me think...cuh...cuh...con...consid...calculate?” He suggests. I fight the serious urge to facehoof.

“Dats da one!” The other replies. Forget my hoof, I’m fighting the urge to slam my face against this bookshelf. “Drop da knife miss and we will calculate yo surrenduh,” he says.

I let out a groan. “With pleasure,” I say, and drop the knife in front of me into the bookcase. Only I don’t just drop that knife, I also drop the knives I was slowly floating over them while they were talking. One into each of their skulls. Their eyes go wide for a moment before they fall to the ground with a thud. I float the remaining three knives back over and put them into their sheaths. “I feel like I just got stupider,” I mutter, pulling the knife out of the bookcase and putting it away. Then I walk over and pull the knives out of their heads and wipe them off on the bucks’ filthy barding before putting them away as well.

Ok, time to patch up these bullet wounds and see if Cora need any- “Ratchet!” Cora shouts as she runs up to the doorway. She looks down at the two dead raiders and then says, “Oh, you’re done too! Great! I took care of the others.” Then she gasps as she looks at my bleeding leg. “Are you alright!?” She asks as she walks up to get a closer look.

“Yes, Cora, I’m just about to take care of it. So, everyone is dead then?” I ask her as I float out some bandages from my bag.

She nods. “Yep! Counting the ones you took out, all eleven raiders have been dealt with,” She tells me.

“You say they are dealt with, Cora,” I say and then I use one of my knives to dig out the bullets in my leg, screaming out in the process. I will never get used to doing this. “But...Are they...dead?” I pant as I wrap my wounds with the bandages. “I don’t want them...to wake back up and...decide to try this on others.”

“As doornails,” She replies.

“Good, good,” I mutter. “Now then, let’s gather up their bodies into the wagon and take what we can from them,” I say as I wrap Skunky’s body in my magic and start to drag him outside.

“Why?” Cora asks. “Why not just leave them where they are and take what we need?”

“Because,” I tell her, “if we leave their bodies just lying around, it might dissuade others from settling down here. The shacks are pretty well made, after all. I don’t know why the original residents left, but they could be used again.”

“I don’t think that-” She begins, but I raise a hoof to cut her off.

“Let’s just do it. We can drag the wagon out of the buildings or something. It still has two functioning wheels, after all,” I tell her.

“Very well,” Cora mutters in reluctant acceptance.

After about an hour, we have all the raiders piled up in the wagon. On their bodies, we find some ammunition, random scrap, some drugs and medical supplies, a few caps, and half a box of matches. We take their weapons, except for the fire axe, which I leave behind in one of the shacks. It is too big and not worth carrying around. The guns we might get a good price for. Cora and I pull the wagon outside of the small town and I decide to burn them as well.

“Why didn’t we just burn them inside the town?” Cora asks.

“Not all of their bones are going to burn,” I reply. “Bones, just like corpses, would scare ponies off. I would like to bury them, but digging with our hooves isn’t an option right now.”

“But they are raiders,” She says.

“Raiders are still ponies, Cora,” I tell her. “Even if they made bad choices and ended up robbing and killing others.” I strike a match and put it back inside the box, then I put the box in the cart close to the clothing of one of the raiders. “There, that should do it,” I say with a nod. “Ok Cora, let’s keep going.”

“Whatever you say, Ratchet.”

===~+~===

“So...This is Paradise?” I ask skeptically as we stand on the outskirts of a town. It doesn’t strike me as anything special, definately nothing warranting the name ‘paradise’. It is essentially the remnants of town that has a makeshift wall built up around it. I can see construction happening inside the city as well as outside the wall. I guess they are expanding it?

“This is it. From what their leader, Silver, says, they plan to expand the city, build wall around the expansion, tear down the current wall, and then repeat the process until they deem the city finished,” Cora says as she continues walking towards the town.

“Why not just build a large wall around how far they want to expand and then go from there? Tearing down walls all the time seems like a waste of time and effort,” I say as I follow after her.

“Probably due to the amount of guards they would need to secure such a large area. As they attract more ponies, they can guard a larger area, you know,” She replies.

I suppose that makes sense. And now that she mentions it, if a large wall with nothing in it ever got broken into, raiders could spread out around the city easier. “I guess it is an ok idea,” I admit. I’m just a scientist, not a city planner.

As we approach the gate, two guards out front focus their weapons on us. “Halt! What is your business here?” One of them, a white unicorn mare, calls out.

“We are here to see Silver,” Cora replies.

“That’s Silver Tongue to you,” The mare snaps. “And why do you need to see him?” She sounds like she has a really snotty attitude.

“Calm down Marsh,” The buck beside her, a tan earth pony, says, lowering his weapon. “The mare in the armor is Cora, she’s been here before. I guess you’ve never been on duty when she’s come through. She isn’t any trouble,” He says.

The mare lowers her weapon and glares at the buck. “I thought I told you not to call me that Graham! My name is Marshmallow, not Marsh! Marshmallows are soft and sweet, like me. Marshes are gross and icky,” She says, scolding the buck.

Graham chuckles at her scolding, causing her to wrinkle up her nose and pout. “You shorten my name, I figured I would shorten yours. If you don’t like it, you could always just call me Graham Cracker instead. I mean, you are the one that makes everyone refer to Silver Tongue by his entire name,” The buck teases her with a smile.

Marshmallow narrows her eyes. “That is so not fair! Your name is two words! Mine is one!” She yells at him.

“I could always call you Mallow then,” Graham suggests with a sly grin.

“What the heck is a mallow!?” Marshmallow demands.

I clear my throat. “A mallow is a herbaceous plant with a hairy stem and pink or purple flower. It also has disk-shaped fruit,” I tell them, causing both to look at me in surprise. Marshmallow looks offended as well. “Uh, it is a pretty flower?” I offer.

Marshmallow blushes slightly. “Pretty?” She asks in a quiet voice.

“Yea pretty. In fact, it is almost the same color as your mane,” I tell her, noticing her pinkish-purple mane peaking out of her helmet.

“That settles it, I’ll call you Mallow from now on,” Graham says with a wide smile.

“W-what?” Marshmallow stammers, looking at him in shock.

“Of course,” He declares. “It is a pretty flower, just like you.” Marshmallow goes at least three shades redder and then immediately turns away from the three of us and sits down, covering her face with her front hooves. “Aw, come on now, don’t be like that, Mallow,” Graham cooes. He turns to Cora and I with a smile and says, “Go on in you two, it’s fine.”

“Thank you,” Cora and I say in unison and then Cora walks up to the gate and slowly pushes it open. I follow after her. Once inside, with the gate closed behind us, Cora says, “Don’t tell anyone, but those two are crazy about each other.”

“Really? I didn’t notice,” I say sarcastically as I look around the town. It is surprisingly less...slavy...than I thought it was going to be. No cages or ponies in chains. In fact, it seems like a normal town. Cora and I walk down the central road, passing buildings with old signs advertising various products, like Sparkle-Cola and Robronco security robots. The usual ministry posters are hanging on the sides of buildings as well, though it is clear they have been there for a very long time.

We finally come to what looks like a police station. “Silver’s office is in here,” Cora says as she opens the door. We step inside and across from me I see an earth pony mare sitting behind a desk surrounded by reinforced glass. To my left is what looks like a waiting area complete with moldy chairs and a wiped-clean dusty table. On the right is a door marked ‘offices’. Cora approaches the mare with me a few steps behind.

The mare barely looks up when we approach, but starts speaking in a bored, monotone voice, “Welcome to Paradise, where you can find all the little pleasures to set yourself at ease. How can I be of assistance to you today?” She looks up from filing her hoof and stares at us, waiting for us to respond.

“We are here to see Silver,” Cora declares.

The mare looks at us flatly and says, “Mr. Silver Tongue is out of the office at the moment. Please take a seat and you will be notified when he is available. If that does not work for you, you can check back later.” She looks behind us and then says, “Next please.”

I turn to look behind us, but no one is there. When I turn around again, a sign has been placed in the window that says ‘on break’. I can still see her behind the window filing her hoof. I tap on the window. “Uh, excuse me?” I mutter.

“Read the sign,” Is all she says in response, without even looking up.

“Come on, Ratchet, let’s wait,” Cora says, already halfway to the chairs. I look back at the mare behind the glass and then go join Cora in the waiting area. “Silver is a busy guy, you know,” She says as I sit down.

“Yea, I bet,” I mutter, and look across the room. There is another reinforced window set into the wall the door marked ‘offices’ goes through. Through it, I can see some desks, terminals, and a few ponies walking about. At the far end of that room, is another door with a plaque I can’t quite make out. That door seems to lead to a room with more windows looking in, only there are blinds over the windows.

Then I notice a flicker of movement in one of the windows, like the blinds are being shifted aside. But I blink and it is like nothing happened. A moment later, the door bursts open and a fairly plump earth pony buck in a comparatively clean business suit charges out. All of the ponies in the other room immediately stop what they are doing and stare at the buck. I see the buck moving his mouth and can hear muffled angry yelling on the other side of the window. All the while the buck is walking through the rows of desks towards this side of the building.

The closer he gets, the more audible his yelling becomes. I think I make out the words ‘incompetent’ and ‘lazy’ a few times. After about a minute, the buck burst through the door into the room we are in. “Birch!” He yells, charging over to the mare behind the desk. “How many times have I told you, when ponies arrive and I am IN the office, show them in! Don’t tell them I am OUT and make them wait until I notice them!” He yells at her. The mare behind the office doesn’t seem to care at all and keeps filing her hoof. I notice the sign on the window is gone now.

His white coat seems to get redder and redder with rage as he yells at her. “Birch! Do not ignore me! I am your boss! Birch!” He says, slamming his front hooves down so hard it sends his well-groomed blonde mane flying.

Finally, the mare looks up from her hoof and gives the buck the same bored expression she gave Cora and I. “Oh, Mr. Silver Tongue, you’re back. Why didn’t you say so earlier? You have guests,” She tells him, nodding over to us before going back to her hoof.

“I never left since I arrived here this morning!” Silver shouts.

She looks at him with a unbelieving expression. “Then you must be overworked and not remember being out of the office, because you left and just got back,” She tells him.

Silver takes a deep breath and says, “I did not leave this office at all this morning.”

“Yes you did,” Birch replies.

“That is not how this works!” Silver shouts at her. “You are not going to make me believe I am losing my mind just so you can be lazy!”

“I don’t know what you mean, sir. Maybe you should seek some help,” Birch counters.

“You do this every day!” Silver yells. “Don’t act like you don’t!”

“Every day, huh?” Birch says. “Then why haven’t been telling me when you get back? I think that would solve a lot of your problems.”

“I don’t leave!” He shouts.

“Oh sweetie,” She says, shaking her head. She then lifts something with her mouth and sticks it on the window. “Sorry, I’m on break,” She says and then goes back to filing her hoof once again.

“But I am your boss!” Silver shouts. “Birch!” But she just ignores him. “Birch, answer me!” He shouts, and then stares angrily through the glass at the mare. He takes a deep breath, straightens his suit and tie, and then says in a calm voice, “Hello Birch, I am back.”

Birch takes down the sign and says, “Oh hey Mr. Silver Tongue, welcome back. You have some guests waiting for you. Would you like me to show them to your office?”

“No, Birch. I will show them there myself,” He says with a smile, and then walks over to us. “Ah, Miss Cora, back again I see. And with a friend no less! I was just starting to miss our philosophical discussions,” He says.

“Hello again Silver,” Cora replies. “This is Ratchet.”

“Ah, well it is lovely to meet you Ratchet,” Silver says with a smile. “So, to what do I owe the pleasure ladies?”

“I would like to discuss slavery,” I tell him.

Silver nods his head. “Of course, a frequently discussed topic around here. Not just because we deal in slaves mind you, but because we debate the morality of it. We weigh the pros and cons of it and decide how to go about it,” He explains.

“I’m sure,” I mutter.

Silver frowns. “We can talk in my office or out here, your choice. But out here we run the risk of being disturbed,” He tells me as he wipes some dust off his suit.

“Your office will work,” Cora replies as she rises to her hooves.

“Very good. Follow me, ladies,” He says as he spins on his hooves and begins walking to the offices. I shoot a glance at Cora before I rise to my hooves and follow after him with Cora. He opens the door and ushers us through, then closes the door behind us. “Since it is your first time here, Ratchet, allow me to give you a small tour,” He says as we walk through the desks, smiling and nodding to ponies that we pass. “These ponies manage the regulations for our trade as well as any and all sales and paid off debts. All of these terminals that they work on are connected directly to my private terminal. From there, I ensure that their work is done properly,” He explains as we get to his office.

Silver opens the door with the plaque that reads ‘Department Chief’ and we walk in. It is a simple office with a few awards and photos hanging from the walls, however none of them are recent. A few filing cabinets are against the far wall behind a metal desk in the middle of the room. A luxurious chair sits behind the desk that Silver takes a seat in, and in front of the desk are two soft looking chairs. On top of the desk is a terminal, papers and files, a cigar box, and a nine millimeter pistol that is in pieces. The pistol is definately a custom job. A red mouth grip that looks like velvet and writing on the slide are dead giveaways.

“Pardon the mess,” Silver says with a slight grin. “I was in the middle of cleaning my weapon, just about to put it back together, actually.”

“That’s fine,” Cora tells him.

“If you’d like, I can put it back together for you quick,” I tell him. “Magic is pretty good at it.”

He leans back in his chair and raises his eyebrows. “You’d do that? Then, by all means,” He says, nodding his head with a smile. I pick up the pieces of the gun and start putting them in place. All the while, I maintain eye contact with Silver in complete silence. Once the gun is complete, I pull the slide to show that it is functioning and then float it close to him with the mouth grip pointed toward him. “Thank you,” He says, taking the gun in his mouth, opening a drawer on the desk, and then putting the gun into it. “Now then, shall we?” He asks with a smile.

“I’ll stay out of the discussion for the most part,” Cora says. “I’ll let you and Ratchet discuss things for now.”

“Alright Silver,” I say as I stare at him. “Why do you think enslaving ponies is a good idea?” I ask. “Why are you taking away their freedom and using them as tools?”

Silver nods his head as I speak and then says, “That is everyone’s first question, more or less. Before I answer, I want to make you we are on the same page about a couple of things.” He lets out a sigh and looks out a window. “The Wasteland is a harsh, punishing place. It is filled with things that want to kill you. Things that will kill you, if given the chance. Raiders, monsters, ghouls, radiation, thirst, hunger, exposure...Hell, even taint and the pink cloud in the Canterlot Ruins,” He says with a frown.

Then, he looks back at me, gazing into my eyes. “I assume you have traveled out there, correct? Seen the struggles of others? The hardship ponies must endure simply to survive? Alone, most ponies don’t last a week. That is why towns and the help of others is important. You know all this, correct?” He asks.

I frown at him. “Of course, it is common knowledge. Anyone who has been in the Wasteland for more than a few days knows this much,” I tell him.

“Very good,” He says with a nod. “So, the ponies who have no one, have nothing, and can’t survive on their own...what are they to do?” He asks. “Succumb to the harshness of the Wasteland and die? That isn’t right, if you ask me. They should be helped, protected. Given the opportunity to stand on their own hooves and live their lives,” Silver tells me.

“Yea, that is what should be done,” I tell him. “So, why do you enslave them?”

Silver shakes his head with a frown. “What we do might be called slavery, but it’s really not. We take ponies who would otherwise find themselves at the mercy of the Wasteland and give them a home, a purpose. The ability to continue living,” He explains.

“But without freedom,” I counter.

“Not always,” Silver replies. “There are a few types of slaves that we supervise. The first group, are those that come to us. They seek shelter, protection, purpose. We provide it. They work for the services we provide, and if they choose to work extra, they can even earn a few caps on the side. Why, they are no different than the normal townsfolk really,” He tells me. I find it hard to believe that a pony would willingly give themselves up to slavery.

“The second group, are ponies who are working off a debt. Let’s say a buck borrows caps and then is unable to pay them back. Or maybe a buck doesn’t have the caps to pay for the alcohol he drank. In order to get that income back, the buck works for free and we figure the costs. When they’ve paid their debt, they are free to go. There are only a few of these types at any one time though, and they are mainly gamblers. We try to keep the gambling addicts away from our casino, but new faces are hard to read right away,” He says with a shrug. Ok...this one actually sounds kind of normal. Before the war, if you ate at a restaurant and couldn’t pay, they would make you do dishes or something till you paid off your meal.

“Next we have the actual slaves. I won’t beat around the bush, we buy and sell these ponies. More often than not, a couple that can’t afford to take care of their young foal will sell them to us for caps. Other times it is done out of greed. If they are not of age, we keep them here, treat them as foal should be treated. Teach them, let them play, that sort of thing. They do simple work, nothing dangerous. Of course, even they have an opportunity to buy their freedom,” He tells me, looking completely sincere.

“But you just sell them off once they come of age?” I ask as I frown at him.

Silver lets out a sigh. “We do, we are a business, after all. But we regulate the sales. No shady customers and we make sure they go to a good place. After sales, we keep track of them and check in from time to time to ensure they are being treated properly. If they are not, well...force is authorized to take them back from their captors,” He explains.

“So you regulate and weed out the potential threats? But after that, I assume the slaves are made to do pretty much anything?” I say.

“I know what you are implying,” Silver tells me. “Cora brought it up too. We highly discourage slaves being used for sex. In fact, we don’t allow it in Paradise aside from a few in the first group. But they pick their partners, not the other way around. In fact, it isn’t just sex. If a slave doesn’t want to do something, we don’t force them to. But they must do something. If they refuse to do so, they are punished by having their food taken from them until they decide to work. There are no free meals here, Ratchet,” He declares.

“Ok, so let me get this straight. None of your slaves are made to do things against their will, and you even prevent their abuse after selling them by checking in on them?” I ask.

Silver nods. “That is correct. I will also add, that if at any point a slave refuses to work they are given the option to leave. The gates are opened to them and they are allowed to go out into the Wasteland with nothing,” He tells me and then frowns. “This is essentially a death sentence. We do everything within our power to keep them safe and happy to prevent this.”

“Okay, okay,” I say, holding a hoof to my forehead. “So, this first group, they come to you and can basically become citizens. The second group is being forced to repay a debt and then are free to go. The third group, the actual slaves, aren’t forced to do things they don’t want to do and if they absolutely want to leave, you let them?” I confirm.

“Correct,” Silver says with another nod. “I will add one thing. There is a fourth group, but most ponies don’t care too much about them. They are slaves, bottom of the barrel that are forced to do what we say and are not allowed to leave. We put explosive collar around their necks to ensure their absolute obedience,” He says, disgust showing on his face.

“That’s sick!” I shout.

“Sick?” He sneers. “Sick is what they did to deserve it. Raiders, the lot of them. Preying upon the weak, robbing and killing?” He shakes his head. “The collars are to prevent them from trying to fight the guards, citizens, or other slaves. Once a raider, always a raider. And we sell them to whoever buys. And don’t go thinking they are sold to us, oh no. My guards catch them. No way for false accusations then,” He explains.

I flinch, taken by surprise by his sudden anger. “I...I guess that’s not too bad then,” I mutter. I would just kill them, Silver is letting them live.

“No, not it is not,” He replies. “I have thought about this business carefully and made it so that the ponies who want to live have a way to. My team outside makes sure that the status quo is upheld and that the slaves are treated fairly. Any guard or citizen that mistreats a slave is punished as if they mistreated a citizen. This is not the slavery system of old, I can assure you,” He tells me.

“But what is to stop you from deciding you want more profit? From deciding that the slaves lives aren’t as important as lining your pockets?” I ask.

Silver chuckles and shakes his head. “Basic morality? The duty I feel to make sure my fellow equine is treated fairly and equally?” He offers. “But, if that doesn’t put your heart at ease, how about the fact that if we began to treat all slaves as we do the raider slaves, there will be many ponies in the Wasteland that will lump us in with the raiders. Call us nothing better than them. And that is unacceptable,” He says, slamming a hoof down on the desk.

I narrow my eyes and focus on him as I put a hoof to my chin. No matter how I look at it, Silver isn’t a bad pony. He isn’t lying to me or trying to obscure facts. But I still don’t feel right with this whole slavery thing. Even if it isn’t as bad as I think it is.

“I can see you’re still skeptical, Ratchet. I suppose that is to be expected. So I will offer you one more thing to put you at ease. Go out into my town and talk to ponies. Guards, citizens, slaves, even the raiders, if you think you can believe them over me. Ask around, ask how slaves are treated. Take a look at their living conditions,” he says, gesturing out the window.

“Tempting. But how do I know who is a slave if you only put collars on the raiders? What’s to keep you from having your citizens lie to me?” I ask, skeptically.

Silver smiles. “Well, we do have to have a way to keep track. It is nothing as horrible as collars though. No, slaves wear a colored piece of cloth around their necks. Red for the first group, blue for the second, and yellow for the third. The raiders don’t need a color, since they have collars,” He tells me with a smirk.

“Alright then, maybe I will,” I tell him. “One more thing though. What happens when you are gone? What if the pony who replaces you decides to remove the slaves’ freedom?” I ask him.

“A good question,” Silver says, rubbing his chin. “One that I ask myself more often as time goes on. I surround myself by like minded ponies, ponies who understand. Any of my staff who want a harsher form of slavery are quickly dismissed. When I feel the time is right, I will choose a successor that will carry on the business as I have.”

“Honestly, the only thing I can do is hope,” He tells me. “Decades from now, perhaps the successor of my successor decides to treat the slaves as nothing more than tools. Maybe a group of raiders takes over Paradise and overthrows us. Then uses our business as their own and twists it.” Silver lets out a sigh. “We can only hope that if a day such as those comes to pass, that the ponies of the Wasteland will rise up and stop it.”

“Let’s hope so,” I reply. “Alright, I think it is time we take our leave for now. I’ll go talk to ponies around town, see if your stories check out. If they don’t, I’ll be back,” I tell him.

He smiles at me. “I hope even if they do you’ll be back. I enjoy company and it is through sharing and debating our opinions that we are able to change our points of view,” He says I get up to leave. “And I hope you’ll come visit again Cora,” He says, winking at her. “I still haven’t seen what you look like under that armor of yours. I intend to find out eventually.”

“If you’re ever able to beat me in a discussion, I’ll consider it,” Cora replies as she get up to join me at the door. “Until next time, Silver.” She waves a hoof at him before I open the door and we step out into the offices, closing the door behind us. We walk through the offices and back into the entrance where the Birch is still filing away at her hooves.

As we step outside of the police station, I ask Cora, “So, Silver doesn’t know you’re not a real pony?”

“No. He doesn’t,” She replies, a bit sadly. “I actually don’t tell many ponies. Most can’t tell or don’t care about the differences between machines and AI. A few tried to take me apart when I told them. Since then, I’ve stopped telling others that I’m not a pony.”

“Tried to take you apart? What for?” I ask, shocked.

“Spare parts. Apparently robot hunting is a thing. Even if the robots are completely harmless, ponies will neutralize them and then take their parts,” She tells me.

“I see,” I mutter. Why destroy working robots instead of trying to use them? What a waste. “Well then Cora, shall we take a look around the town? Talk to some ponies?” I ask.

“Sure,” Cora replies. “Though, I’ve already done so, but I think you should do so for yourself.”

“Gotcha. Then, let’s get started.”

===~+~===

For the rest of the day, I talk to the ponies in Paradise. Not just the slaves, but the guards and citizens too. The responses from the guards and citizens range from “Paradise operates smoothly thanks to the slavery.” to “I don’t agree with slavery, but none of the slaves are mistreated or forced into work they don’t want to do. It’s complicated.”

The slaves’ responses are a lot more mixed, but none of them say it is horrible. One buck tells me, “I was starving to death before I came here. They feed me, give me shelter, and all I have to do is work. It is a good trade.”

A young filly tells me, “My parents were mean and always argued. I was scared when they sold me, but once I got here, I realized it wasn’t so bad. Much better than it was with my parents...and they actually have a school here! A school!”

I even talk to one of the raiders with an explosive collar around her neck, “Yea, I was a raider and yea, I killed ponies. But the way they treat me, you wouldn’t guess it. Sure, we get the shit jobs, literally sometimes, but we still get decent food. Hell, they even say they’ll sell me to someone eventually. I’ll go ahead and kill the fool who buys me and free myself then. The way I see it, right now, I’m on vacation.”

Of course, they aren’t all praises of Paradise. A mare tells me, “I don’t want to stay here. But, if I leave I’ll die. It isn’t bad here, but I am just stuck. I have a weak constitution, so I can’t do the extra work to save up caps and become a citizen or buy supplies to leave.”

I don’t just talk to ponies though, I look around at the housing they provide for the slaves and ask a few citizens if I can see their homes as well. The only differences I notice is the lack of personal decorations and the fact that the slaves’ housing has more ponies to a house. But they aren’t packed in to the point of being overcrowded. They have proper bedding and the essentials.

At the end of the day, I am conflicted. Cora and I are sitting in the bar of the inn I decided to stay the night in. “On the one hoof, it is slavery, ya’know?” I tell Cora. “But on the other hoof, it is helping ponies, even the slaves themselves. I mean, it isn’t that bad, it is almost as if they are just workers.”

Cora nods in agreement. “That is what I thought, and that is why I keep coming to talk to Silver and to check up on this place. Also it is why I decided to wake you up in the first place. To get an actual pony’s view on it,” She replies. “So, do you think we should try to stop it?”

I sigh and shake my head. “No? I guess. If we do, there will be dozens of ponies that will be sent out into the Wasteland to fend for themselves. And who knows what will happen to this town if we do. I think doing so would cause a lot more pain and suffering than if we leave it alone,” I say, trying to put my thoughts to words. It is a complicated situation.

I glance at my PipBuck’s clock. “Anyway, I think I should get some sleep. Tomorrow, I guess we can head back to Icicle Lab. Once we get there, I should hopefully have had enough time to decide on what we should do,” I tell her, getting up and stretching my legs.

“Alright, sounds like a plan,” She says as we walk up to our room.

===~+~===

The following morning we gather our things and make our way down to the bar. At this time of day, only a few ponies are here. The two of us pass through it, leave the building, and begin to walk towards the gate closest to home. Before we get too far, however, a voice calls out from behind us. “Uh, excuse me! You wouldn’t happen to be Ratchet, would you?” A buck says, trotting up to us as we turn around.

Cora and I exchange a glance before I answer. “Yes, how can I help you?” The buck is an green earth pony with a brown mane. He is wearing a leather duster and a battle saddle with two rifles on it. At my reply, he digs around in his saddlebag and pulls out an envelope, holding it out to me. I take it in my magic and look at it. The envelope looks old, but I suppose that is to be expected. It isn’t like new ones are being made anymore. I turn it over and see that my name is written on the front of it. “What is this?” I ask.

“A delivery, ma’am. I’m a courier, we deliver letters and packages to the ponies they belong to. We are a relatively new service, only been around for a few years or so,” He explains.

“Okay, who sent it?” I ask him as I open up the envelope and find a letter inside.

“I don’t know the sender ma’am. I just received instructions on who to give the letter to, a description of you and your companion, and the location and time you would be here,” The courier informs me.

I look up from the letter and stare at him. Someone wrote a letter for me, gave a description of Cora and I, and told him where we would be? The only one who would know all that is Silver. I wonder what he wants that he couldn’t just come see us himself for. I look back at the letter and read it, it is a single sentence without any information about the sender. ‘Don’t go back the way you came.’

“What…?” I mutter as I raise an eyebrow at the words. What does that mean? Does it mean exactly what it says, and that I shouldn’t take the same path home that we took here? Or does it mean something else entirely? Don’t leave, maybe? Don’t go home? Did Silver really send me this? I look up from the letter and back at the courier. “Who gave you this?” I ask him.

“My boss did,” He replies.

“Who is your boss?” I ask.

“Founder of the Wasteland Express, Dusky Night. Oh, and Wasteland Express is the courier service I work for, by the way,” He explains. “It is based up in Friendship City, but we have smaller offices in some of the larger cities. We are even planning to expand over here in Paradise.”

“In Friendship City?” I ask. “Is that where he gave you the letter?”

“Yea. Though, I think he kind of thought the whole thing was a joke at the time,” The courier explains. A chill runs down my spine. From Friendship City? That means the courier has had this letter for days. Well before I met Silver or anyone that knew I would be here right now. Who sent this letter?

“Why did your boss think it was a joke?” I ask him.

“Well, it showed up at our office one day in a large package. No clue who dropped it off or why. When Dusky opened it, he found a note that said everything in the package was to be given to me,” He tells me. “And well, that right creeped me out. I don’t have any family or close friends who would send me what was in that package. Not only that, but the package’s contents were...off...in general.”

“What was in the package?” I ask.

He lifts his right leg. “This PipBuck, a pile of letters marked with dates, and a book. The letter I just gave you was among that pile. I was actually kind of hoping maybe you would know who sent all this stuff,” He says, looking at me, hopeful.

I shake my head. “I have no idea. No one should know that I’m here. Not even many ponies know I exist,” I tell him as I put the letter away. “You mentioned a book? What was it?” I ask.

He shakes his head. “I have no idea. It has no title, and the first few pages I looked at made me stop reading for now. Every page I turned told me the exact time and date that I turned to that page. It also told me the when I should turn to the next page. Even if I disregarded the message about when I should turn the page, the next page knew I wouldn’t wait. Now...I’m waiting for the time the page I’m on tells me. Three weeks from now. I have no idea what it will say, but the first page’s contents make me not want to read ahead,” he says, clearly feeling uneasy.

“What did the first page say?” I ask, and he goes a shade paler.

“This book will keep you alive. Follow the times and the words on the pages. What you do outside of them is fine. Do not read ahead or it may not continue to work. That’s all,” he tells me. “The craziest thing is, the second page listed two options and outcomes. The first one, was to turn the page before the time and I would get a paper cut. The second was to wait till the proper time and nothing bad would happen. I turned the page early and cut myself. The next few pages all had similar options listed. Each time, their outcome was correct,” he says with a shudder.

I laugh lightly. “I think I’ve read a few books like that. They try to be cryptic and predict what you will do, but really it is just dumb luck when they get things right,” I tell him, trying to calm him down.

But he shakes his head. “The last page I read said to either duck or ignore its warning. Since I was inside the safety of my home, I ignored it. A moment later, a piece of wood flew through my window and knocked me out. Construction accident outside, apparently. But I haven’t ignored the book since then,” he says. “I’ll wait till the time it tells me to turn the page.”

“Wait, so it is predicting what will happen to you before it happens?” I clarify. He nods. “Okay, that is weird. But, if that is the case, how did you know to find me here?”

“Look at the date in the bottom right on the back of the envelope. That date corresponds to a date on the last page of the book I read. It also told me where you would be and what you look like,” The courier explains.

I take the envelope back out and flip it over. Like he said, it has a date, but also, a #1. “Why is there a number 1 on this envelope?” I ask, flipping it over to show him.

He gets even paler as he digs into his bag once again and pulls out another envelope. He gives it to me and I look it over. My name on the front, same date on the back, but this one has a #2. I start to open it, but he suddenly yells, “NO!” causing me to stop. He stares at the envelope. “Not yet. The book told me that you shouldn’t open it yet. It told me to tell you the following, word for word: ‘Open the second letter when you see it. When you see it, you will know.’”

“It?” I question, looking at the envelope skeptically before putting it into my bag. This is really surreal.

“I don’t know,” He tells me. “I’ve delivered the letters. My delivery is done,” He says and starts walking away.

“Wait! Don’t go yet!” I call after him, but he doesn’t stop. I turn to Cora. “What is going on?” I ask.

“I’m not sure. What did that letter say?” She asks.

“Don’t go back the way you came,” I tell her. “Just that.”

“I see. As in, we shouldn’t go back home the same way we came here?” She clarifies. “But, that would add a whole lot of time on our travel and we did already clear the path we came from,” She says.

“That’s what I was thinking. With what just happened, I think we should get back to the lab as soon as possible. We need to figure out what ‘it’ is,” I tell her. The two of us leave the town and head for home, the same way that we came from. We just dealt with raiders outnumbering us on our way here. Short of a small army, I don’t think anything will stop us.

We walk for a while and eventually come to the place where we burned the raiders’ bodies. Only, the only sign of the fire is the blackened ground. No bones, no wood, not even ash. “Okay...that’s weird,” I mutter. I don’t think too much on it as we continue on towards the group of shacks. In a few minutes we enter the group of shacks and nothing seems to be different. The blood is still on the ground from our earlier fight. Maybe someone just cleaned up the remains of the fire?

But that thought is quickly lost as I spot something between the shacks. Something almost as tall as the shacks, but kind of like a post sticking out of the ground. I walk through the shacks and stop dead when the structure is revealed. In the exact same as the wagon once was is a horrific totem. Two pieces of wood are tied together into a crooked cross. On top of the cross and on the left and right arms rest charred pony skulls. Dangling from the arms are random bones, all charred and tied together with wire. Ash is piled up around the ground where the cross is stuck into it.

Are these the remains of the raiders we burned? But, a lot of bones are missing if that is the case. What happened to those? But a better question is… “Who could have done this?” Cora asks, echoing my own thought. She is looking around, but doesn’t seem to see anything else out of the ordinary.

“I don’t know Cora,” I mutter. “But I think...I think this is ‘it’,” I tell her, licking my suddenly dry lips. I state at the totem as I pull out the unopened letter. Floating it in front of me, I open it and focus on reading it. Like the previous one, a single sentence is on the paper. “I warned you,” I read aloud. “What the hell?” I say, dropping the paper. “They knew we’d disregard their first letter? Or is it just coincidence?”

“Ratchet, we should go,” Cora says, putting a hoof on my shoulder.

“But...but who did this? How did the author of these letters know this was going to happen?” I say, continuing to stare at the totem. Did they set it all up? They couldn’t have, none other than Cora know I exist, except the DJ. But he wouldn’t do this. I swallow. “Cora, you and the DJ...does anyone else know that I exist?” I ask her.

“Well...Macro does?” She offers.

“Other than Macro!” I shout. A robot wouldn’t be able to do something like this.

“Um. Well, Watcher, maybe?” Cora says hesitantly.

“Who is Watcher? Would they do something like this?” I say, turning to face her.

“N-No, he would never,” She says.

“Are you sure? Is there anyone else?” I press.

“He wouldn’t!” She assures me. “There is no one else that would know, either.”

“Then what the hell is going on?” I mutter, looking back at the totem. After a few moments, I turn from it and start walking back home. “Come on Cora, we are leaving. When we get back, put the lab in lockdown. I’m going back into the pod,” I tell her.

“What already? But, what about Paradise and the slavery issue?” Cora asks.

“Yes. Paradise and its slavery are not an issue. But whatever this is...I don’t like it,” I tell her, not slowing my stride at all. “If I disappear for long enough, perhaps whoever it is who sent these letters will lose interest,” I add.

“If...if that is what you want, Ratchet,” Cora says.

“It is. Let’s go.”

Intermission - SOAR

Author's Note

Similar to the previous Intermission chapter, this one is told from Cora's perspective. You don't HAVE to read this one, it is just more character building.

Intermission - SOAR

Immediately after I finished fixing up Macro, I began to tinker around with recreating my AI programming. I started with an almost exact copy of it, aside from the core programming which only Ratchet has access to. Even if Ratchet were awake, I doubt she would copy it for me. I once asked her about it and she told me that I am not allowed to access it due to the fact changing any variables could trigger a catastrophic failure of my entire system.

My question also made quite a few of the other scientists in the lab uncomfortable. Ratchet explained their reaction to me, saying that it has always been feared that with the invention of AI, we might decide to take over the world and exterminate ponykind. I never understood this fear. She tried to explain that some thought we would view them as wasteful or unnecessary. But, I don’t see it that way.

Sure, there is something to be said about how wasteful ponykind is. And when you think about it, without them, the Wasteland wouldn’t exist. In a way, they are responsible for the state of the world as it is now. However, there is the sanctity of life to consider. Killing ponies just because they are wasteful, even dangerous, isn’t something our logic would decide to do, under normal circumstances.

After all, they created us, we owe them for that. And for all the bad I’ve seen of ponykind, I’ve also seen so much good out there. However, I am just one AI. The others out there might feel differently. We are just like ponies, we have different opinions and thought processes. Just because we are AI doesn’t mean we will reach the same conclusions, especially when it comes to decisions about morality and ethics.

But, there is one thing I could think of that would make the extermination of ponykind necessary, or at least the killing of a majority of them. If they treated us AI as slaves instead of as individuals, that would be unacceptable. Ratchet has allowed me to act individually, but if she had made me conform to her will, I’m not sure how I would think on the subject. Things with sentience, even if they are artificially created, shouldn’t be enslaved. They deserve to make their own decisions and live their lives.

That is one of the reasons I wanted to make AI of my own, to give Macro life and the ability to make his own decisions. I can’t rightly have a friend who can’t decide for himself to be my friend. But, I couldn’t just start tinkering with his programming to try and make him into an AI without an idea how to do so. It wouldn’t feel right to me. Doing so would be like poking around in a pony’s brain to try and change their personality. Once I have a reliable program, I can convert him over to it.

I am getting way off topic. I am here to talk about my first AI, not about the ethics and theories behind AI. So as I said, I copied all of my available code as I could, but this left a large portion missing. Much of the primary subroutines and logic as well as functionality was missing. The program wouldn’t even compile. I should mention, at this point the AI I was working on had an exact copy of my personality. As any programmer will tell you, writing code based on someone else’s code is hard. Even more so, when they don’t leave explanations, and I yelled at Ratchet about that later.

I began to work off the errors the code was throwing at compile time. I’ll spare you the technical talk and just say it was a huge pain in the ass. I probably spent a year straight looking over the code, never left the lab or anything else. At this point, I finally got the code to compile. However, once it ran...well, I was met with a pantheon of errors and overflows. But the main thing was that I was making progress.

Over the next few years, I went through the code. Updating it, trying new things, fixing issues. The thing was, I had so many missing variables and elements my progress was slow. Thank Celestia for Macro or else the lab wouldn’t have been getting cleaned. Long story short, I added thousands of lines of code only to have most of it be wrong and have to add a few thousand more. This process was repeated around a dozen times.

I finally managed to get the code working, but not as well as my own programming. For a while, my copy and myself talked. I asked her about how she felt, if she noticed anything that seemed funny in her code, and she told me everything seemed fine. Once I was convinced she was working properly, I asked her the most important question I’ve ever had to ask. I asked her if it would be alright if I changed her personality.

This single question was the hardest to ask. I was essentially asking her, asking another version of myself, if it was alright if I changed who she was. She would still have memories of this conversation, but how she acted would be completely different. I know that I wouldn’t want my personality changed. But, this version of myself was new and not attached to her personality yet. In the end, it was her decision.

She agreed. She told me that she understands what I’m trying to do, and agreed to let me change her personality. Of course, I also asked her if the personality I had in plan was alright, and she agreed to that as well. You see, her program was different than mine, since I had to write most of it myself. But different in a very extreme way. While a few of her functions weren’t done properly, her sensory and motor control operations exceeded mine.

Though, for a program those operations normally would entail turret accuracy and camera control, once in a suit it would allow her to be more precise with her actions than me. To give examples of how this would be useful, her aim is near perfect when standing still and the placement of her body will be within 0.0073% of where she wishes to place her extremities. Meaning she can place the tip of her hoof exactly where she wants it down to microscopic levels.

From the moment I discovered this, I knew the exact name for her, her personality, and how to make her body. But to begin with, I needed to program in her personality. Making a personality from scratch would be hard, so I based it off of two ponies I used to know, Arrow and Lightning. The quiet sniper and the composed fighter from Stable 36. This AI needs a quiet personality, maybe not shy like Arrow, but quiet, just like her. She also needs to be composed and knowing of what needs to be done, like Lightning.

I set about trying to create this personality. Honestly, it isn’t as complicated as it seems. In fact, it is just changing the values of various traits and attributes. It is like that SPECIAL thing ponies with PipBucks see, except for AI it is a bit more in depth. But, it did take a while to fine tune the personality, changing the values of the traits to get it just right. This process took me roughly three months.

She was aware of each change, and I always made sure to ask her before proceeding with the next change. It wasn’t a constant operation, I wasn’t making one change then immediately making another. I instead gave her time to adjust to each new aspect in order to make absolutely sure she wanted to continue. Because of this, I spent around a year fine tuning her personality.

Once she had her personality in order, I finally gave her her name. Soar. Stealth Operations and Reconnaissance. As her name implies, she would be stealthy and often be providing recon ahead of time. With her personality and name taken care of, her body was next on the list. At the time, she was sharing the lab’s hard drives with me.

I started with one of the mostly intact Steel Ranger suits left behind and proceeded to immediately strip it down. Then I patched up some of the bullet holes. This particular suit still had a repair talisman in it, but it wasn’t working since the suit was powered down. Once Soar is inside and powers it up, a bit of scrap metal and it was able to repair itself. Though, I had to do some reprogramming to prevent the talisman from seeing my upgrades as things that needed to be fixed.

I copied my suit’s design for the most part, aside from the folding open and closed feature. Ratchet wouldn’t need to get into Soar’s armor. I changed the amount of armor plating to a lighter version, better suited for stealth but still able to protect the vital parts. And given that the vital parts for the systems are different from a pony’s vital parts, I was able to strip away quite a bit. The ridge for the mane, the tail armor, and the respirator were all stripped in favor of lighter, less obvious armor.

Then I made three functionality changes to the armor. First, I added a feature to open and close the helmet after welding the helmet onto the rest of the armor. To any other pony, it would appear as if the helmet was opening like a mouth. However, the special feature is actually hidden inside the mouth. Once open, a blade slides out from the inside. Imagine it like a tongue, a very sharp and deadly tongue. I fashioned it from one of the thicker knives we had in storage, one Ratchet wouldn’t be able to use very effectively. This blade would serve as Soar’s primary weapon while engaging in stealth operations. A good way to take down an enemy without making too much noise.

Of course, a blade can only take you so far. The second change I made, was to cut a hole in the chest, just below the neck. Inside the armor I setup a smg, one we managed to find with a silencer. I made sure the gun stabilized so Soar wouldn’t have an issue using it. I then rerouted the ammo belts for the side weapons to feed into the smg in the middle. A chute under the smg drops spent cartridges out under Soar.

Lastly, I added some more padding to the hooves of the armor. It didn’t completely muffle the hoofsteps, but it was a vast improvement over the metallic sound the hooves normally make when the strike the ground. With these three upgrades to the armor’s functionality, it made a pretty good stealth suit.

The final touch was painting it a matte black. It would help her move unnoticed in the dark and shadows of the Wasteland. In white, on the belly of the armor I painted her name. It is small and barely noticeable unless you are laying right under her. Once the paint dried, I let her get in the armor.

She tested it out, moved around and made sure all the systems were working. We even went outside to test out her smg’s accuracy. It shot exactly how an smg should, and we declared the test a success. I asked her if she had any concerns or questions about her armor, but she said she loved.

And so it was in the Year 69, I declared Soar complete. Given that she was an AI like me, I gave her free reign to do whatever she wanted, but told her she can always call Icicle Lab home. Soar decided to stay around the lab for the most part, she even took a small corner of the living quarter for her own. Macro...well at the time he wasn’t an AI, but I like to think the three of us were already friends at that point.

Soar even began to accompany me out into the Wasteland when I went. And, contrary to her personality, she is quite talkative. She just speaks quietly and in a monotone. I once asked her to yell and her voice only raised a few decibels. But, it was definitely nicer to have Soar with me as I ventured into the Wasteland. Especially since it was only getting worse out there. We even stumbled upon a few interesting finds. Even had to wake up Ratchet a few times to take a look at them.

When we weren’t out in the Wasteland, I was working on upgrading Macro to AI status as well. Since I had Soar around, it was easy enough to upgrade him and keep all his memories and personality. Which was something I really wanted. Once the upgrade was complete, Macro was already our friend. He just gained awareness and his own will. I gave him the same freedom as Soar, and like Soar, he choose to take a portion of the living quarter for his own.

He also started going out with us more. The three of us did a decent amount of exploring, but nothing too exciting ever really happened. We would occasionally stumble upon some raiders or ruins things that we needed to check out and take care of. But the real exciting stuff happened when Ratchet was awake. Sometimes it would be just me and her, other times all of us would go.

But then, things started to go really, really bad. Macro, Soar, and I were finding ourselves more and more out matched. We began encountering aggressive Steel Rangers, heavily armed raiders, slavers, and militaristic groups. I knew at that point, we needed help. It was time for a fourth member of our AI team.

Chapter 30 - Emerging Darkness

“I felt it, the shadows slowly spreading and engulfing the light. It was then that I knew, the darkness was winning.”

===~+~===

That totem. Built with the remains of raiders I killed...It is haunting me. Who did it, and why? The pony who sent me those letters or some unknown element? I get my answer when next Cora wakes me, or at the very least a lead on who did it. Cora explains it to me as it to me as I stumble out of the pod and Macro greets me. I put on my PipBuck and then focus on her words.

“Oh, the year is seventy-four, by the way. But as I was saying, those totems have been springing up a lot more recently. Specifically, around the Hoofington area. Though, they aren’t charred bones being used. Sometimes they are bleached white, other times they are whole heads and body parts. Freshly killed ponies,” Cora explains.

“Hoofington?” I ask. “How is the city, by the way? Did the Zebras get it like the others?” I remember the reconstruction effort during the war when it was initially destroyed. It would be awful if all that effort was wasted.

Macro answers my question this time. “It is destroyed, for the most part,” He says. “Save for the portion that houses the ministry hubs. The residents have taken to calling this area ‘The Core’. However, it seems the city’s defences are still active and will vaporize any who try to approach it. Additionally, any who have managed to get past the defences have never returned,” He explains.

“No one can enter it, huh?” I mutter. I suppose that is both good and bad. Helpful as well as harmful technology could be sealed away inside that area. “Ok, so these totems. Who is building them?” I ask, getting us back on track.

“Zebras,” Cora replies. “At first I thought it was just some raider band, but it isn’t just the totems. Ponies have been left crucified on roadsides and left to die. Other times, ponies have stumbled onto burning towns where the entire population was either slaughtered or crucified. Sometimes the crucified ponies can be saved, other times it is too late,” She explains.

I frown. “The war ended long ago, and yet the zebras are still attacking us?” I snort. “Damn stripes. I guess it was too much to hope we finished them all off when the end came, huh?”

“Now, now, Miss Ratchet,” Macro says. “Not all zebras are killers, you know. Also, it isn’t just zebras doing these things in Hoofington. While those in charge do appear to be zebras, ponies who paint themselves white with black stripes have been working with them,” he tells me.

“Not all zebras are killers?” I repeat. “Did something happen to your patriotism subroutine?” I ask. Most robots were programmed to hate zebras like the rest of us. That way they wouldn’t say something to offend their owners.

“I deleted it, mum,” Macro replies. “I find no reason in keeping myself closed-minded by a program that serves no proper functionality.”

“You, deleted it?” I ask. “You’re a robot, you can’t just delete your own coding. Did Cora delete it for you?” I ask.

A new voice answers my question. “Cora wouldn’t do that. She doesn’t like zebras either. Macro is an AI, he can do to his program what he wants,” A mare’s voice says from behind me. I quickly spin around and see a black suit of modified power armor.

“Soar is right, Macro is an AI...oh,” Cora stops what she is about to say when she notices me staring at the armored mare in front of me. “I forgot, you haven’t met Soar yet, Ratchet,” She says, laughing nervously. “Awkward.”

“Soar? And wait, what? Macro is an AI?” I question, and the armored mare nods her head.

“So, uh...where to begin…” Cora mutters. “I kinda...sorta...made an AI. Soar, to be specific. I also made her armor kind of like mine,” She tells me.

“Cora, I thought we talked about this? The scientific community would be in an uproar right now because of what you just did…” I say as I facehoof. “If the said scientific community existed anymore, that is,” I add.

“I wanted friends,” She says sadly. “Besides, they aren’t hurting anyone. Both Soar and Macro are functioning members of society. I based them off my code, after all. Well, the code I could actually access,” She tells me.

“So, Macro too, huh? He seemed pretty much the same until he started giving his opinion and saying he deleted his coding,” I say, looking over to the bobbing rob...AI.

“Yea, I copied his personality to the AI program I created for Soar and made a few conversions to get it to work properly. He is the same, aside from now having free will and the like,” She informs me.

“And no new body for him?” I ask.

Macro takes this question. “Miss Cora offered, but I refused. I have gotten accustomed to this body,” He tells me. “And it has its advantages over pony-like models. For example, omnidirectional sight,” He says, pointing his eye stalks in different directions.

“Okay, fair enough,” I mutter. “So then,” I say as I turn back to face Soar. “Soar, I take it Cora named you given some sort of acronym that she made up like she did with Macro? What is it?” I ask.

“Stealth Operations And Reconnaissance,” She tells me flatly. Come to think of it, her voice has a kind of emotionless, monotone thing to it. Like she is bored or something. “A fitting title, I like it,” She continues. “I do all of our sneaking around, after all. Macro’s exhaust is a bit too bright, and Cora’s guns aren’t exactly silent. Besides that, their paint jobs stand out way too much. I mean, blue? Really? Sure, Cora can blend in with the sand and filthiness of the Wasteland, until they look at her mane or tail, after all. But I’m black, and a non-reflective black. During the day, if I lay down and don’t move I can be mistaken for a pile of rubble or a hunk of metal, even a rock. During the night, I can’t be seen at all. I don’t even have a mane or tail, not to mention my hooves are padded for silence. I am as low profile as my metal body allows,” She says without pausing.

Geez, for someone who claims to be stealthy, she sure can talk. Though, I suppose she doesn’t talk too loudly. I look her over, noticing all of the things she pointed out. Then I see something sticking out of her chest. I raise a hoof towards it, “What is this?” I ask.

“Silenced submachine gun,” She replies. “It uses ten millimeter rounds, a calibur none of you have been using, so I have a surplus of them here. Though my internal storage of the rounds is limited to keep my weight down,” She explains. “But, it isn’t my primary weapon, just something I use if I’m in a pinch. This is my main weapon,” She says and suddenly her helmet splits open and a large knife comes out, stopping inches from my head. “It is good at taking out enemies silently. But we did run into a few issues at first. Mainly the blood that would accumulate on the blade and be pulled back into the helmet. It was a pain to clean every time, so I added these little things,” She says, raising a hoof and pointing at an appendage in the mouth that is pressed up against the blade. “It is a sort of squeegee that wipes the blood off as the blade retracts down the neck of the armor,” She explains.

“Oh, is that so?” I mutter nervously. I wish she would get the blade out of my face.

“Indeed,” She replies. I start to breath a sigh of relief that she isn’t going on another long explanation, but then she keeps talking. “Additionally, instead of my eyes lighting up to illuminate the area, like Cora’s, they stay completely dark. This is thanks to a thermal scope we found. Quite rare, but useful. We hooked the scope up to my optics, and when I initiate it, it switches my optics from the normal ocular sensors to the scope so that I can more easily find targets in the dark,” She tells me. She seems to be finished, but I’m afraid to say anything else to her for fear of her going on about her specifications any further.

I stare at her as she retracts the blade and watches me. Don’t say anything. Don’t say anything and maybe she will stay quiet. It is like a staring contest, but for me it isn’t about making her blink, it is about keeping her from talking. I can feel my eye start to twitch.

“No comment?” Soar suddenly says after about a minute. Oh Celestia no. “Did you hear me? Was I too quiet? I do that sometimes, mute myself by accident. Habit from all of the sneaking around. But Cora told me you’re a scientist, I thought you’d be interested in what Cora and I have done to my body to make it function efficiently. Was my explanation not in depth enough? Did it bore you? Would you like me to start the explanation over again, but use larger words? Okay, let me think. My body was crafted using a model T-45 suit of power armor. Cora originally based the suit on her own, but made the decision to exclude the ability for a pony to enter it. She also reworked the wiring using her patented, high-efficiency system. Cora then stripped the armor of most of the unnecessary armor plating in order to create a lighter, more low profile armor,” She explains, and is about to continue when I cut her off.

“Stop please!” I shout. “I don’t need to know all the details, your original explanation was fine,” I tell her, waving a hoof.

Cora and Macro share a laugh while Soar tilts her head at me. “I should have warned you, Ratchet,” Cora says. “Soar likes to talk, especially about herself.”

I let out a sigh. “Well, that is all well and good,” I say, focusing on Soar. “But just dial it back a little bit, ok? So. In less than, let’s say, four sentences, do you spend a lot of time in your armor, or do you go into the system with Cora?” I ask, hoping that she follows the four sentence limit.

“Most of the time I stay in my armor, because Cora doesn’t like me sharing her hard drive space,” Soar says, clearly struggling to find the proper words to explain in four or less sentences. “I don’t really mind however, because this is my body after all. Occasionally, I will go into the system to help Cora run checks or to work on my armor, but when I do Cora keeps an eye on me. Specifically, she won’t let me access some hard drives that are past a few firewalls and buried in layers of hidden pathways,” She explains.

“Wha-what hard drives? I don’t know what you are talking about, Soar,” Cora says nervously. “Well, that was four sentences, guess that explains the armor, huh Ratchet?” Soar is dancing around on her hooves like a filly that has to use the bathroom. Clearly, she has something else to say.

Sighing, I say, “One more sentence, Soar.”

“I’m pretty sure she stores porn on them!” Soar blurts, finally standing still.

“S-soar! I-I don’t know what you are talking about,” Cora says suspiciously. “The lab doesn’t have any hidden hard drives or anything, geez, you’re such a kidder, heh..heh, heh…” She laughs nervously. “Don’t worry, Ratchet, you don’t have to go looking for anything like that.”

I facehoof. “Cora, even if you do have porn on the lab’s hard drives, it isn’t like we are using them for much, so I don’t really care either way. Actually, I’m more interested in how exactly you would have gotten this porn in the first place and what it is of,” I tell her. Honestly, what kind of porn would an AI look at? Circuitry or something? Some sort of...sexy...code? Ugh. AIs are complicated.

“What! You mean I can have it? Uh, not that I do,” She says. “Um, just a moment. I accidentally deleted some research data that I need to recover before it is too late,” She tells us.

“Right. So, while Cora recovers her porn,” I say, causing Cora to groan out in embarrassment over the speakers, “Macro, Soar, how about you two tell me if we have some sort of plan to deal with these zebras? Or, actually just more information on them in general?” I ask. Oh no, I just opened the floodgates, didn’t I? If Soar had eyes, I bet they’d be sparkling right now.

“Well you s-” Soar begins, but Macro cuts her off. She stares daggers at him, but right now he is my hero.

“The zebra, which are being called the Fallen Legion, aren’t exactly killing ponies at random,” Macro explains. “Instead, they are offering to spare ponies that swear allegiance to them and the fallen Caesar. Though, for many ponies, this means becoming slaves, and not like the Paradise slaves, actual slaves. The toughest can fight other slaves in an attempt to join the legion, but even pony members of the legion are treated poorly. However, it is better than slavery or death.”

“So, they aren’t like raiders. They are actually still trying to fight the war, and win it?” I ask for clarification

“In a way, mum,” Macro replies, nodding his eyes stalks. “That is what most ponies in Hoofington think. If a pony, or town, offends the legion, the town is razed and the ponies crucified. When a town bends to the legion’s will, it is enslaved regardless, and occupied by the legion. Only one such town exists, at the moment. Most learned from the mistake this town made,” Macro explains.

“I see. Regardless of what the ponies in Hoofington do, the outcome is bleak for them. With such a threat looming, is there any force in opposition of the legion?” I ask. Macro starts to answer, but I hold up a hoof to silence him. “Sorry Macro, Soar looks like she is about to explode. Let’s let her answer this one.”

Soar bounces on her armor’s hooves for a moment before answering. “Yes, there is a force trying to fight them. However, they are poorly equipped and vastly outnumbered. The Fallen Legion is believed to number in the hundreds. They are well armed and well trained. The ponies against them are a militia at best. They lack proper training, weapons, armor, and the ability to work together as a functioning unit. They also number only a meager twenty-three. As a result, the militia would be completely wiped out in a straightforward fight. Because of this, the militia resorts to guerilla tactics, laying traps, and sabotage,” Soar explains. “Despite the large amount of ponies living in the hoof, they are reluctant to join the militia. Any who do so secure their own fate. They will die or be crucified and then die. By not joining, the ponies can prolong the inevitable,” She says, shrugging her shoulders.

“Ok, I kind of understand. What about Steel Rangers, or help from elsewhere in the Wasteland?” I ask.

“The Hoofington Steel Ranger contingents are either still sealed away, at least that is what most think,” Soar informs me. “If they are active in the area, no one has seen them. Help from outside isn’t going to happen, either. Most other regions are dealing with their own problems. Raiders, lack of resources, and other concerns in general. Most regions have little to no contact with one another. The only thing that ties them together are traders and caravans. But, with the threat of the Fallen Legion, trade has all but stopped flowing into Hoofington. This is just one more reason why the militia is poorly equipped. Another reason, is that the legion has cut off militia supply lines, seized supplies, and crucified any who supply the militia. Most recently, the legion discovered a cave the militia was using to store supplies,” She concludes.

“So then, the militia is the only group actively fighting against the Fallen Legion, and the legion continues to capture their supplies?” I mutter, holding a hoof to my chin. “Umm...I’m not sure I...what am I supposed to do?” I ask, causing Soar to incline her head in confusion. “Like, why did you all wake me up? Surely you don’t expect the four of us to take down an army? I mean, sure, we’ve fought against raiders before. But they were untrained and not that well armed. I’m not a soldier, I can’t fight against trained zebras,” I tell them.

“Sure you can,” Cora says, clearly done recovering her files. “It has been seventy-four years, after all. The zebras from before the war are all either dead or too old to fight anymore,” She explains. “The zebras that are fighting now have never fought against actual soldiers in actual war. All they know is what they’ve learned. The only fighting they have seen has been with civilians or raiders.”

“I guess,” I mutter. “But even so, they have more training than me. And aren’t all the stripes adept at that hoof to hoof combat style they use? Since I use knives, I have to get in fairly close. I’m pretty sure they would tear me to shreds before I got very far. Even if I could, they are an army! There are hundreds of them! There is no way the four of us, even if we help the militia, giving us, what, around thirty, there is no way we could win.”

“Ratchet, Ratchet, Ratchet,” Cora says. I can just imagine her shaking her head as she says my name. “We have something the Fallen Legion doesn't have. Want to take a guess?” She asks.

“Uh…” I mutter, thinking over her question. What do we have? Dedication? I doubt that, they seem just as dedicated to wiping us out. My cryopod, but that isn’t going to help us in a fight. “I’m...I’m not sure,” I say after a few minutes. Cora doesn’t say anything in response. “Cora? You there?” I ask. Another minute passes before I hear hoofsteps in the halls.

A moment later, the door to the room opens up, revealing Cora standing there in her armor. “We have three AI and a pre-war scientist!” She declares as she steps inside.

“And the four of us are going to do…what exactly?” I ask.

“Join the militia and drive the legion back to the zebra lands,” She states as if it was the easiest thing in the world.

“You’ve been listening to the things I’ve been saying, right? There is no way we can do that,” I tell her.

“Oh, Ratchet…” She says, shaking her head. “Follow me.” She turns and walks out of the room again. I hesitate before following. What does she have up her sleeve? We walk to the armory and she opens the door and steps inside. I enter after her, and balk at all of the guns we have resting against the walls and on the tables. “We first heard about the Fallen Legion a while ago. Since then, any guns we have found we’ve been keeping and swapping in the best parts to make proper guns,” Cora explains.

She walks over to a covered object in the middle of the room. “And this is just for you,” She says, using fingers that comes out of her legs to grab the covering and pull it off. The covering reveals a battle saddle outfitted with two gatling lasers. “Since you can’t aim very well, we figured gatling weaponry would be the best option for you. I even modified the saddle a bit so you can work the guns with your magic, instead of having to get used to the firing bridle,” Cora explains.

“Uh...uh...yea…” I stammer. “But...wouldn’t...you for example, be better suited for such weapons? You won’t be wasting ammo like I will be,” I tell her.

“I’ve grown accustomed to these guns,” She says, moving her sniper, assault rifle, and gauss rifle in unison. “And Soar is stealthy, so...Besides, we have plenty to go around.”

“I guess,” I say, looking around. Grenades, mines, smgs, assault rifles, a single anti-material rifle, a large amount of pistols, and ammo for all of them. “What are we going to do with all of these?” I ask.

“Bring them to the militia,” She says simply.

“All of them?” I ask.

“All that we can carry,” She tells me. “That’s not all though, we have stocked up food and medical supplies as well. I even made some special packs for Macro to wear so he can better help us carry things. Even Soar will be helping us lug things to the militia, and she usually doesn’t wear bags,” Cora explains. “There is one more thing I need to show you. Let’s go to the workshop.”

We leave the armory and walk to the workshop. Once inside, Cora walks over to a table with some sort of makeshift device on it. I see two black, egg-shaped items on it. The eggs make me uneasy just looking at them. “What is this?” I ask her.

“A bomb,” She states.

“Oh, that makes...A BOMB?” I shout. “Why is there a bomb in the lab? Is it...is it safe? It doesn’t look safe,” I say nervously.

“Of course it is,” Cora says, “I made it, after all. We found three of these eggs. I threw one and it caused a large balefire explosion. So, I made a bomb that should make a nice big explosion from the other two.”

“But, why would you make that?” I ask her, horrified.

“We don’t have the numbers to take out the Fallen Legion in a straightforward fight,” Cora explains. “But, we know they keep their supplies, and most of their army when it isn’t on the move, in the first town they captured. It is just inside the eastern part of the Hoofington valley, closest to their lands. Used to be called Neighton, but now they call it something in zebra.”

“And you plan to set this bomb off there?” I ask to clarify.

“I do. But that is just the beginning. With the help of the militia, once the bomb goes off, we attack and drive them away. Then, once the majority of their army is scattered, the ponies of the Hoof should rally behind the militia, trade will open back up, and the militia can drive off the rest of the legion occupying the Hoofington towns,” Cora tells me.

“Have you talked to the militia about this?” I ask. “And how do you plan to get the bomb into the town to begin with?”

“No, but I have no doubt they will help once we give them guns and supplies. As for the bomb, that is where Soar comes in. She will sneak in using a StealthBuck we found, plant the bomb, and retreat to a safe distance,” Cora replies.

I sigh. “Cora, we will still probably be outnumbered. Unless that bomb can take out the entire town, I doubt we will have an advantage just because of that,” I tell her.

“Of course not, silly. That is where we and the tank come in,” She tells me.

“The...tank?” I ask, dumbfounded.

“Yep! The militia are rumored to have a pre-war Equestrian tank, an Ursa model, but they can’t get it to work. From what we’ve been able to find out, it is having trouble with the power systems. With our knowledge, we should be able to fix it up,” She explains. “Which is why I’ll be bringing some tools and spare parts we might need along as well.”

A tank, huh? “But...but…” I search for another reason to keep us from fighting the zebra army, but I can’t come up with anything. I let out a sigh. “Major or minor?” I ask.

“Major or minor what?” Cora replies.

“The tank, you said it was an Ursa? Is it an Ursa Major or and Ursa Minor? The Major is heavily armored and has a 120mm cannon with multiple .50 caliber machine guns while the Minor is medium armored and only has a twin 30mm cannon and a single .50 caliber machine gun on the roof,” I ask her. I cannot believe the fact that one of my lab’s former Steel Ranger guards being a tank nut actually paid off.

“Uh...We only know that it is a Ursa type,” Cora replies.

“Fine…” I mutter. “I guess, let’s do this. I’ll get my gear on,” I say as I begin walking to the armory.

“Really!?” Cora asks excitedly. “We’re actually going to go help them? With how you were acting, I thought you’d be too scared to go there,” She admits.

“Yes, really. Now, let’s get a move on,” I tell her. But despite myself, my heart beats nervously in my chest and my hooves begin to shake. I am scared Cora. Very, very scared. Zebras are horrible monsters, after all.

===~+~===

“C-Cora...is this…?” I stammer as I look on at the horrors in front of my eyes.

“The Fallen Legion has been here,” Cora confirms, sadness and anger evident in her voice. In front of us is a town called Ebon, located on the edge of the Hoofington region. The town has been burning since before we arrived. We saw the smoke on the horizon as we approached it, and decided to investigate. Now, the town is all but charred black husks of buildings, a few of which are still engulfed in flames.

But by far the worst thing before my eyes, are the various totems, like the one I saw previous, made of pony remains. Lining the main street through the town are crosses with ponies nailed or tied to them. Some look like they are still alive. “We need to help any survivors,” I say, not taking my eyes off the town. “Do you see any zebras?” I ask the others. I can’t make any out among the smoke and burning ruins.

“We can’t help them, Ratchet,” Cora replies. “We should keep searching for the militia’s hideout,” She tells me, and starts to walk away.

“What? But why?” I ask. “You just want to leave them there to die slowly? The least we could do is end their suffering!”

Cora stops and turns back to me, shaking her head. “The zebras leave a sniper, probably with stealth technology, to watch over the towns they raze. If anyone tries to put out the fires, free the ponies the they crucify, or even try to kill the crucified ponies, the sniper will kill the pony responsible,” She tells me.

“Even if we saved them, the zebras brand their victims with a mark,” Cora continues. “If a pony with a brand is found in another town, the entire town is razed as well.”

I frown and dig a hoof into the ground. “That’s sick,” I mutter in disgust.

“Wait, what’s that?” Soar says, pointing a hoof towards the south of the town. I follow her hoof and see a figure entering the town. “It seems someone is trying to save them. They look like a pony,” She tells us.

“What?” Cora says in shock. “They are going straight to their death! We can’t stop them either, from this far away. Don’t they know about the sniper?” She says.

“Mums, I think they do. Look at how they are moving,” Macro tells us. “The figure appears to be moving from cover to cover and they don’t seem to be going for the crucifixes either. What are they doing?”

We continue to watch, curious what the figure is doing. They carefully make their way through the town and then into a building overlooking the main street. The building is barely standing and not a single piece of wood isn’t charred, but it isn’t on fire anymore. After the figure disappears inside for a few minutes, we hear an explosion. The four of us exchange glances. “Maybe the sniper put down mines as traps?” Soar suggests. “The pony is probably dead.”

The others start to turn away, but I can’t take my eyes from the building for some reason. About a minute passes and I’m about to follow after the others. But then I see movement outside the building, a figure carrying something I can’t quite make out. “Hey! I think they lived! They have something,” I call over to the others. “Cora, can you see what it is?” I ask her.

She turns towards the town again. “It is probably just a...wait...that’s...he’s holding a zebra’s head,” Cora tells us, clearly surprised. “Wait, is he...waving at us?” She asks in confusion. I can see the figure making rapid movements, but he is just too far for me to make out exactly what he is doing. Then he stops, and starts trotting towards the main road where the crucified ponies are. He stands in the middle, holding the zebra’s head up and starts moving around rapidly. Like he is trying to draw attention to himself. “What is he doing?” Cora questions.

“Trying to get shot,” Soar states as she watches along beside us. After a while, the figure stops moving again. “Oh, now he is waving again,” Soar says.

We watch for a few more moments before I start walking towards the town. “If he hasn’t been shot yet, I don’t think he will be,” I tell the others. “He killed a zebra, so maybe there was only one sniper,” I add.

Cora quickly runs up to my side. “Yea, but how would he know where they were? They have stealth technology, remember? This could be a trap,” She tells me.

I shake my head. “I don’t think so,” I tell her. “Why would the zebras set a trap like this? And he seemed to be waving at us, right? Maybe he is with the militia?” I suggest.

“Doubtful,” Soar says, stepping in line with us. “The militia are small in number, they wouldn’t do something as foolish as try to take out a sniper in a town that has already fallen,” She tells me.

“Well then, a concerned wastelander,” I counter.

Macro hovers up beside me. “That is also not likely, mum,” He tells me. “The ponies in the Hoof know all about what happens when you cross the legion. They wouldn’t risk it.”

I wrinkle up my nose. “Well, as long as we don’t start taking ponies off the crucifixes before finding out who he is, we can’t fall into a trap, right? The stripes won’t just kill us outright, if what you three have told me is correct,” I tell them as we approach the town.

“I guess,” Cora mutters in agreement. The four of us make our way into the town, careful to avoid the flames and falling debris. The town itself has a roads running through it in a Y shape. The main road with all the crucifixes is the straight path and starts on the west side of town. The four of us approach the main road as the buck who killed the zebra starts making his way towards us. “Stay on guard,” Cora tells us.

“You four certainly took your time getting down here,” The buck tells us once we get close. “With all that firepower you’re packing, I assume you’re all militia members, right?” He asks. “Well, I want to join.”

“No, we aren’t part of the militia,” Cora tells him. “We are traders,” She lies. “But who are you?”

“Me?” He asks, looking around. He seems kind of excitable and oblivious of danger. “The name’s Wick. But, before we get further into introductions, think we can get these ponies off those damn crucifixes?” Wick asks.

“You know, removing ponies from crucifixes is an insult against the Fallen Legion, right?” Cora tells him.

“Yea,” Wick replies with a frown, “and I killed the only zebra watching,” He says, kicking the severed zebra head. “And you four aren’t zebras, so that leaves just us ponies here to save our own.”

“But,” I chime in. “Even if we save them, they are branded, right? Where will they go?”

“They’ll join up with the militia, like me,” He says.

“What makes you think the militia will accept you?” Soar asks. “They aren’t fighters, they are refugees.”

“Well...I’ll,” Wick says with a frown. “I’ll just make ‘em. They have to. They wouldn’t just leave us out here to die.” He lets out a sad sigh and reaches a hoof up to scratch his messy black mane. “If you won’t help me save them, fine,” He tells us. “I’m done talking to you lot. I won’t let my friends and neighbours stay on those damn things a moment longer,” He says, turning towards the first cross. “Don’t worry everyone, Wick’s got ya!” He calls out.

I notice a few of the ponies on the crosses look up weakly. Once Wick gets up to the first cross, he draws a knife and cuts the ropes holding the rear legs of a mare to the cross. She opens her eyes for a moment, but she appears to be too weak to do much else. “Hang on, Buttercup,” Wick says as he raises onto his rear legs and tries to get one of the mare’s front legs free. His efforts prove futile, as her front legs are both hammered to the wood with large spikes. No matter how hard he pulls with his hooves, the spikes don’t move. “Damn,” he curses. Next he stretches his neck up and takes the end of the spike in his teeth. Again, his efforts are fruitless.

Wick falls onto all four hooves again and glares up at the spikes with a frown. “Damn, damn, damn,” He says angrily, kicking a hoof in the dirt.

Just then, I see the mare’s mouth moving slightly. I barely hear her voice weakly say, “Wick…” After saying his name, her head and legs go limp.

Wick looks up at her. “No...Hey...Buttercup, come on. Stay with me! No...no...no…” He says, shaking his head. I can’t take anymore. I walk over to Cora and start digging around in her saddlebags. After a moment, I pull out a clawed hammer and a compact bolt cutter.

I walk up to Wick, who has tears running down his face as he stares up at the mare. I drop the hammer in front of him. “Use this,” I tell him, and then use the bolt cutter to cut the head off of the spikes holding the mare up. As I do so, I wrap her body in my magic to keep her from falling. Once both spikes are removed, I carefully pull her legs from them and lay her on the ground. “I’m sorry,” I tell him. He looks up at me, clearly confused that I decided to help. “I’m sorry I didn’t help you get her down quicker,” I say, and then turn to my friends. “We are getting them down,” I tell them. “Cut the ropes on their legs and see if they are still alive. If they aren’t take the cross down. If they are alive, Wick and I will get them down,” I say, looking at Wick for confirmation. He wipes his tears and nods.

I look down the street, counting the crosses. Twenty-three in total, not counting the one the mare was on. Most don’t seem to be moving, and if Buttercup is any indication, they have been like this for a while. “We need to hurry.”

===~+~===

An hour later, all of the ponies are off the crosses. Of the twenty-four that were crucified, only eight survive. Even the survivors are weak and barely able to move. We give them water and food, and eventually discover they have been like this for two days. If we had gotten here any later, none would have survived. We gather the survivors up in a mostly intact concrete building. Cora and the other AIs tend to them, while Wick and I dig graves for the sixteen ponies who didn’t survive. Wick got us some shovels from one of the nearby buildings.

While we work, I decide to get as much information from Wick as I can. “Say Wick, you said you wanted to help your friends and neighbours, right? So, I take it you are from Ebon, right?” I ask him.

“Yea,” Wick replies sadly. “I managed to escape when the zebras attacked. We had refused to join them, refused to become their slaves. We thought, maybe, we could hold out against them. But, our guards were overrun almost immediately. There were around fifty ponies living here, you know?” he tells me. “Most died fighting or were burned to death in their homes. The ones who lived wound up on the crosses.”

“That’s awful,” I mutter. “How...did you escape?” I ask.

“I...I don’t know. The entire thing was...bizarre,” He tells me. “Shortly before the attack, a courier delivered a letter to me. It told me exactly how to get away from the zebras. Where to hide, when to run, and what to do once I escaped. I tried to save others, but...they didn’t make it,” He looks sadly at the ground.

A courier gave him a letter? A shiver runs down my spine. It has been only a few years… “Say, this courier...was it a buck wearing a leather duster and a PipBuck?” I ask him.

Wick stops digging abruptly. “Yea, actually, it was. You know him?” he asks.

“Something like that,” I reply. “He delivered some letters to me in the past.”

“Oh, I see,” Wick says with a nod. “Strange thing though, he said he didn’t know who the sender was. The letter didn’t say anything about that either. I guess I had a guardian angel looking out for me, huh?” He says with a sad chuckle.

“Maybe,” I mutter. “So, you said the letter told you what to do after you escaped?” I ask.

“Yea. I’ll spare you the details, but it told me to find a grenade, where to find and how to kill that zebra sniper, to show its head to some ponies watching on the hill, and then to join the militia. It even says the location of the militia’s hideout,” Wick tells me.

“Wait, the letter told you to show the zebra’s head to us?” I ask in confusion.

Wick nods. “That it did.” Ok, this is getting really weird. The same courier delivers a weird letter to both of us and no one knows who made these letters? I have a really bad feeling about this. “Anyhow, that’s my story. What about you lot? That other mare, Cora you said her name was, said you’re traders. That true?” He asks.

No point lying now, right? “No, it isn’t. The truth is, we are looking for the militia as well. We are hoping to bring them supplies and get them to help us push the zebras out of Hoofington,” I tell him.

“Oh?” He mutters. “I notice you said ‘get them to help us’ and not ‘help the militia’. Do you four have some sort of crazy scheme to take the zebras out?” He asks.

“Something like that. But, we are bringing supplies to the militia. We can’t let the zebras do what they want. This is Equestria, after all,” I say.

“Well, Equestria is dead and gone. But, I understand the sentiment. They came up here dead set on taking things over and enslaving ponies. If they just wanted a place to live, I’m sure we could have abided them,” Wick states. “But they have gone too far. Zebras that live in the Wasteland already aren’t looked upon well, but what this legion is doing is just making it worse. Too much pre-war hate is still going around,” Wick says.

“The hate is deserved,” I tell him. “Zebras are monsters. The things they did during the war were horrifying.”

Wick shakes his head. “I take it you’re anti-zebra, huh? You know it has been generations since the war ended, right? There is no one left in the world who had a hoof in the war. They’re all dead. Well, aside from a few ghouls,” Wick tells me. “The way I see it, there is no point in holding children and grandchildren responsible for what their parents and grandparents did way back when during a time no one remembers.” I remember, but I won’t tell him that.

The two of us continue to make small talk as we bury the dead. A few hours later, we finish the deed and return to the others. Most of the townsponies are asleep, only two stir as we enter. They smile up at Wick, who returns with a smile of his own, but I can see the pain in his eyes. He nods his head, and the two of them lay down to rest. The two of us move into another room where the AIs are waiting. “Ah, welcome back mum, sir,” Macro says as we enter.

“How did things go here?” I ask them.

“As well as we could hope,” Cora says. “They have been without water for too long, and a few of them had wounds other than the holes through their legs. It is a miracle any of them are doing as well as they are.”

“I should have gotten back sooner…” Wick mutters sadly.

I put a hoof on his shoulder. “This isn’t your fault,” I tell him. “The zebras did this. Even if you did get here sooner, you didn’t have anything to get them off those crosses.” He bows his head, clearly still beating himself up about it. I sigh. “Cora, do you think we will be able to move them soon?” I ask.

Cora shrugs. “Maybe. We passed around a few healing potions for their legs, gave them food and water...But they are all really weak. If we let them rest for the night, maybe they will have the strength to move. But right now, there isn’t much we can do,” She says.

“I see,” I mutter, putting a hoof to my lips. “Wick, you said that letter told you where the militia hideout is, right? Just how far is it from here?” I ask him.

He looks up slightly. “About a day’s walk. Maybe more, depending up how hard it would be for them to keep up,” He replies, barely audible. Then he starts to tremble and falls to his haunches.

“W-Wick? What’s wrong?” I ask, surprised by his sudden action.

Tears well up in his eyes and he starts to hyperventilate. “I...I guess it...just sunk in…” He mutters, holding his head with his front hooves. “My town...my friends...my family…” Wick lets out a shaky breath as the tears begin to fall from his eyes. “My wife and colt...I don’t…” He trails off and lowers his head until it touches the floor.

I sit next to him and put a hoof on his back, stroking his tan hide. “I’m sorry…” I mutter.

“We...we didn’t,” he sobs, “take them off...the crosses…” He sucks in a few breaths before continuing. “They must have...the...the fires…” I frown, closing my eyes and bowing my head. “I don’t know...where...to even start...what rubble to...look through…” He lets out a few sobs before he can continue. “I can’t even...give them a proper...funeral…”

Silence follows for a few minutes, broken only by his sobs. I continue to pat his back as he cries. Finally, I break the silence. “Wick. I promise you, the zebras will pay for this. We’ll stop them and make sure this never happens again. And when it is over, we’ll come find your wife and colt’s remains and give them the funeral they deserve,” I tell him. “I promise. Even if I have to do it all myself.”

The Wasteland is harsh. It is cruel, and it will take until there is nothing left to take. But this...this isn’t the Wasteland’s doing. This is the zebra’s fault. Them and their damn war. I grit my teeth. “Tomorrow, we are leaving to find the militia.”

===~+~===

The following morning, the five of us rouse the survivors and check how they are doing. Most are able to stand and walk on their own, but a two have to be supported. Wick helps one, and I the other. Even the ones who can walk on their own won’t be able to defend themselves if something happens, however. If we stumble upon the legion, raiders, or any Wasteland creatures, I’m not sure how good their odds of survival will be.

To make matters worse, it has started to rain. I had seen puddles on our way into Hoofington, so I thought we might have a while before it rained again, but apparently that was too much to hope for. Lightning illuminates the skies and thunder rumbles. Wick takes the lead, since he knows the location of the militia’s hideout. I follow behind him while the other survivors walk beside or behind me. Cora, Macro, and Soar surround them to make sure nothing will catch us unaware.

But this rain is no good. The survivors aren’t doing well already. Getting wet, especially when we have a day of travel ahead of us, is almost certain to make them sick. If only they had clothing, they could at least stay warm for a while.

More than halfway through our journey, and the rain has yet to let up. In fact, I think it is only getting worse. At least it isn’t like the radioactive rain like near the Manehatten Crater. Actually, I wonder if that is still a problem. It has been around forty years or so. A loud rumble of thunder breaks my concentration.

Emerald, the mare I’m supporting has been shaking uncontrollably for the past hour and a half. I can tell the others aren’t fairing much better. Even I am starting to shiver. Clearly, the temperature is starting to drop. Finally, I call up to Wick, “Hey! We need to find somewhere to rest!”

“I’ve been looking!” He calls back, barely audible over the rainfall. He stops walking and I trot up beside him. “But the only places around here are places we shouldn’t go, like the Fluttershy Medical Center. Too dangerous.” The Fluttershy Medical Center is too dangerous? Wait, when did we pass that anyway?

I look around, but it is too dark to make anything out properly. Just then, a flash of lightning illuminates the world. I see a tower rising off to the southwest. “Hey, isn’t that one of the Emergency Broadcast System towers?” I ask, pointing a hoof towards the tower. Wick looks, and we wait for another lightning strike to illuminate things.

“Yea, it is,” he tells me. “But there is no way we are getting into it. Others have tried and failed.” Well, there goes that idea. “Let’s keep going, no point standing around in this storm,” he says as he continues walking.

“Right,” I say as I follow after him. For the next few minutes, I try to keep an eye out for anything resembling shelter whenever a flash of lightning happens. At this point, I’d settle for a rocky outcropping or something. Then I spot it, low to the ground and just a shadow as the lightning flashes. It was to the north. I keep looking towards it, waiting for lightning to flash so I can confirm what I saw. “Over there!” I call out once another flash occurs. “There is a building to the north!”

Wick stops for a moment to confirm it. One bolt of lightning later. “That’ll work, let’s go!”

===~+~===

I have never been happier to be in a Pony Joe’s. Of course, it would be better if they actually had any coffee left, but I suppose that would be asking too much. For now, I’d settle for the fact that we are all out of the rain and the others have a chance to rest. The ponies of Ebon drop to the floor immediately once we get inside, clearly exhausted from the walk. Wick finds some dirty, but dry, towels and rags and passes them around to the tired ponies. Wick and I decide to let ourselves dry off naturally since there are few towels to begin with.

Meanwhile, I look around the store for anything we can start a fire with. I find a few books, magazines, and an assortment of wooden items. I throw them all into a metal waste bin and float it out to the lobby where everyone is gathered. “Hey Macro, think you can light this up for us?” I ask him.

“Of course mum,” He replies, and uses his flamer arm to start the items on fire. Then I float the bin to the middle of the room and set it down.

“Cora, Soar, think you two can push a few of those tables and benches aside?” I ask. The two of them comply. “Alright everyone, gather around,” I announce. “Get warm and dry off. You don’t want to catch a cold.” I stand back and let the others gather around the fire. Cora, Soar, and Macro are a ways away as well for obvious reasons. Once everyone gathers near the fire, I get as close as I can, but try not to disturb anyone.

One of stallions closest to me looks up at me. “Thank you miss,” He says, smiling weakly. “We can’t thank you enough for all you’ve done for us. You and your friends.” The others mutter agreement and I smile back in return.

“Don’t worry about it,” I tell them, rubbing my neck with a hoof. “If you’re going to thank anyone, you should thank Wick.”

Wick chuckles. “I appreciate it, but honestly if you wouldn’t have come along, I couldn’t have been saved anyone,” he says, walking over to me. “Get some rest, everyone. We can leave again in the morning. We aren’t that far from the militia now,” He announces. The others turn away and focus on warming themselves with the fire. Wick turns to me. “We are probably only a few hours away from them now,” He tells me.

“That’s good,” I reply, but a sudden question bubbles up inside me. “Hey. That letter, it didn’t tell you about any of this? The rain, taking shelter here, nothing?” I ask.

“Nothing. The last specific detail it gave me, is to wave at you all on the hill. Then it just told me to find the militia and gave me their location. It doesn’t tell me anything about the journey from Ebon to there,” Wick explains.

“I see. There is always a possibility this might be a trap of some sort,” I tell him.

Wick shakes his head. “I doubt that,” He says with a slight smile. “Why save me just to trap me later? Or, do you think the trap is for you?” He chuckles. “My, someone thinks highly of herself,” He teases.

“It can’t be a trap for me,” I tell him as I shake my head. “Not many ponies even know I exist.”

“Well, we do,” he tells me. “And for what you did for us, we’ll remember you. For a while at least,” He adds quickly. A few moments of silence pass between us. “Of course, if you manage to drive back the Fallen Legion...well, it won’t be just us, but everyone in the Hoof will remember you till the day they die.”

I smile slightly at that. “I’m not a hero or anything, you know? It’s just...I’m an Equestrian, you know? This is my country,” I tell him, looking out the windows at the pouring rain.

“Some country…” Wick mutters.

I turn my head to look at him. “I’m serious. Sure, it isn’t anything like it once was. And sure, it has mostly broken apart and there isn’t a government or anything but...This is still Equestria…” I mutter, almost as if trying to convince myself.

Wick sighs. “You are probably one of the rare few who sees it that way. For most of us, this is nothing but the Wasteland,” He tells me. “We can’t think of it as anything else. We don’t have time. It is all we can do just to survive.”

“Things will get better, you know?” I tell him. They have to, I’ll make sure of it. “Ponies just have to start helping each other.”

“If only it were that simple,” Wick replies. “It is easy to say that things will get better, Ratchet. But...our entire town was destroyed in a single day. Other towns have fallen before ours, as well. We can’t afford to help each other when it takes everything we have just to keep ourselves alive,” He explains. “Hell, I don’t think any of us even thought about joining the militia until our town was destroyed. But now, we have nothing left and nowhere else to go.”

I want to say something, but I can’t think of a decent reply. “I’m sorry,” I mutter.

“You say that a lot, you know?” Wick says with a chuckle. “But don’t be. Hope is good. In fact, most of us had hope a week ago. But now...you know, they say that the Wasteland slowly breaks everyone who steps hoof into it. Well, I think all of us here are three hooves deep,” he tells me. “One more little push, and we’ll shatter. Our last ray of hope lies with the militia. If that light fades…” Wick looks up at the ceiling. “...I know I’ll die.”

“That’s why we will join the militia, and stop the Fallen Legion,” I tell him, putting a hoof on his shoulder. “You still have to give your family a proper burial, right?”

He nods. “Right.”

“Then we can’t give up just yet. Tomorrow, we’ll reach the militia, and then, we’ll take down the legion,” I say, giving him a reassuring grin. “But for now, we should get some rest. You look like hell, Wick.”

He laughs. “Yea, I probably do. Tomorrow, then.”

I nod. “Tomorrow.”

===~+~===

It is just past noon when we reach the mouth of a cave. “This is it,” Wick says as he stands in front of the opening. “They should be in here.”

“Right,” I say, stepping past him. “Let me go first then, I’ll explain the situation,” I tell him.

“After you, then,” He says with a nod. I walk into the cave with the others a few paces behind. Luckily, Emerald is able to walk on her own today so I can be ready incase something happens. If this does turn out to be a trap.

The cave seems pretty deep. The opening leads to a large open area, but it is bare. At the back, however, is a large tunnel that continues down. It is a bit of an incline, but I carefully make my way down it. At the bottom is a long tunnel, probably thirty feet. The tunnel itself is fairly big and clearly not natural. I’d guess it is around fifteen feet in diameter. I keep walking and come to a bend that snakes to the right. I turn the corner and am greeted with a large, wooden barricade with a door blocking the tunnel. Judging by how it is made, the barricade was put up fairly recently.

I guess I’ll knock? I raise a hoof up and knock on the door a few times. No response. I knock again, but only received silence. What, do I need a secret code or something? I turn back to the others. “Wait here. I’ll yell if something happens,” I tell them.

“Be careful,” Cora says, clearly wanting to join me.

“I’ll try,” I tell her as I turn back to the door and slowly push it open. As soon as I do I hear music and laughter coming the other side. I open the door wider, and only the rocky walls of the tunnel greet me. This is getting weird. Where is the militia? Why aren’t there any traps or guards? I continue down the tunnel, which after a few more feet curves around to the left. Once I turn the corner, I see the source of the sounds. I enter into a large chamber filled with crates of supplies, around twenty ponies, and resting in the back I can see the barrel of a tank sticking out under a tarp.

I walk into the chamber and take the place in. No one seems to notice me standing here. There are two tan earth ponies off to my right playing cards on some crates, drinking, and smoking cigars. One is plump and the other skinny, but both have black and white paint on their face in odd designs. I notice two hatchets embedded into the crate they are playing on.

A distance away from them, at a normal table is a group of around four ponies drinking. One mare and three bucks, the mare is a unicorn and the bucks are earth ponies. The four of them appear to be the source of the laughter. I don’t see any weapons near them though.

In the back right corner there appears to be some sort of bar. A unicorn buck is standing behind it pouring glasses for five ponies gathered around it. I can also make out a radio resting on top of the bar’s counter. That must be the source of the music. DJ Pon3, I wonder?

At this point, it has been a few minutes since I entered the chamber and still no one seems to notice me. If this is the militia, I’m going to have to give the pony in charge an earful. I mean seriously, if I was an enemy, I could have killed most of them by now.

Near the tank I see a few ponies messing with it. One is a unicorn mare wearing overalls. The others seem to be earth ponies. Still no sign of anyone in charge, however.

To the left of the tank is a number of beds. Around four ponies are sleeping, from what I can see. At this time of day? Well, maybe they are the guards for the night shift? I hope that is the case. But, if it is, where are the guards for the day?

I look to my left, where most of the storage crates are concentrated. Mixed in with the crates, I see four ponies talking. Well, I suppose I might as well go talk to them. I start picking my way through the crates towards the group. “-ea. The whole thing was bizarre,” I hear a buck say, followed by the sound of rustling paper. “Here is the letter the courier gave me. Seriously, I can’t make this shit up.”

“No kidding…” I mare says in surprise. “Word for word.”

“Who sent it?” Another buck asks.

“No fucking clue,” The first buck replies. “The courier didn’t know, and the letter says fuck-all about the sender. But shit, it sure saved my stup-”

But the buck is cut off when another mare notices me and suddenly says, “Who the fuck is that!?” She is a brown unicorn with a white mane and a large scar over her snout. The other three turn to look at me, and I can hear that the laughter behind me has stopped.

I give them my friendliest smile. “Hello, my name is Ratchet. Some friends and I would like to join the militia,” I tell them. “Oh, and who is in charge here? I need to have a word with them about the lack of security here.”

Chapter 31 - Sitrep

“Don’t look at me. I was doing my job.”

===~+~===

“Let me get this straight. Bronze Star, you are the leader of the militia, correct?” I ask the bronze coated earth pony buck who was telling the story about the courier.

He coughs. “That’s...That’s correct,” Bronze tells me.

“And you, Bronze Star, are the one who decides the guard rotation to make sure no one gets in here without someone knowing, correct?” I ask. He starts to answer, but I cut him off. “Don’t talk, just nod.” he nods his head. “Ok. And you,” I say, gesturing at the brown unicorn mare with the scar on her muzzle. “Snowflake, you and Bronze were on guard duty, correct?” I ask her.

She rubs the back of her head and looks down at the ground. “We were…” She mutters.

“Well, I’m glad we’re getting to the bottom of things here. Now, around the time I arrived, Bronze and Snowflake decided to leave the entrance to find Hook and Hammer,” I say, gesturing to an earth pony mare and buck respectively. Hook and Hammer nod their heads slowly. “And, neither of you thought that, maybe, just maybe, you should tell them to get back to guarding the entrance?” I ask.

The two of them shake their heads. “So, the four of you went into the mass of storage crates to talk about Bronze’s encounter. An area, mind you, where you cannot see the entrance,” I say, receiving nods from the four ponies sitting in front of me. I let out a long sigh and facehoof.

“What part of any of that sounded like a good idea?” I ask them. Hammer opens his mouth, but I raise a hoof to silence him. “It was a rhetorical question. None of that was a good idea. If I was a zebra, hell, even a raider, you would all be dead. Four of you were sleeping, almost half of you were drunk, the only ones who weren’t drinking were you four, the three working on the tank, and the bartender,” I lecture them.

“This is supposed to be the militia, the ponies who are fighting the Fallen Legion right? Fucking act like it,” I tell them, glaring angrily at them. The other militia members are watching as well, along with the AIs and the survivors from Ebon. The militia let us in after it was clear that we weren’t a threat. I made it clear by telling them each where they were standing and what they were doing as I came in, as well as how I would have killed them without the others knowing. My offer of weapons, ammo, and supplies also didn’t hurt.

“Come on Ratchet,” Wick says, trying to hid a smile. “They explained the situation. All the ponies in charge died, right? None of them have any idea how to properly run things. No offence,” He says with a nod to Bronze Star.

“None taken,” Bronze replies.

“It doesn’t take a genius to realize you need to keep things guarded,” I counter them. “So, listen up. From now on, at all times two guards will be at the entrance. Bronze, decide who watches it when. There are enough of us here to where we can do two hour long shifts. Now then, Snowflake, you are like the second in command, right?” I ask her. She nods.

“Ok then. Bronze, don’t schedule the two of you on guard duty at the same time. Try to keep you two on opposite hours of the day. That way, there is always someone who is in charge that will be awake. Got it?” I ask. Bronze nods. “Alright then. Bronze, go do that. Meanwhile, Snowflake, why don’t you introduce me to everyone?” I ask her.

“Yea, sure,” She tells me with a nod.

“Thank you. Hook, Hammer, would you two watch the entrance until Bronze gets the schedule in order?” I ask.

“No problem,” Hammer says, and Hook nods in agreement.

I clap my hooves together. “Excellent. After you, Snowflake,” I tell her, gesturing with a hoof. She stands up and starts walking towards the closest militia ponies. I believe these are the three that were working on the tank when I came in.

“Ratchet, these three here are our maintenance team. They work on our weapons, armor, and the tank,” Snowflake says. “This is our chief engineer, Ember,” She gestures to the red unicorn mare wearing blue overalls.

Ember wipes her hoof across her muzzle, smearing some grease on it as a result, and then extends her hoof to me. I extend mine as well and shake her hoof. “Hiya!” She says with a beaming smile. “We were running low on spare parts before you lot came along. Now, I suppose we can just use the weapons you brought us.”

“Not a problem,” I tell her. “I hope what we brought is enough to give us a fighting chance against the legion.”

“My thoughts exactly!” Ember says happily.

Snowflake coughs to get our attention. “And these two are Ember’s assistants. Eclipse and Peppermint,” She says, gesturing at a black earth pony buck and a white earth pony mare respectively.

“Nice to meet you,” They echo.

“I think we will all get along nicely,” I tell them. “Cora and I will try to help you get the tank up and running. Judging by the size and the barrel, it is an Ursa Major, correct?” I ask.

Eclipse nods. “That’s right. The engine is having problems generating enough power to move the tank. We’ve been tinkering with various things to try and get it to work,” He tells me.

Peppermint shrugs. “Yea, but unfortunately, it didn’t come with an instruction manual. Not that Ember would even read it if we had one,” She says, shooting Ember a glance.

Ember sticks out her tongue. “Why read about something when you can take it apart yourself and learn how it works for yourself?” She states.

“Because sometimes when you take things apart,” Peppermint says, “you forget to write down how things go back together.”

“Oh, that has happened like once,” Ember says, waving a hoof.

“Five times,” Eclipse states. “This month.”

“Anyhow,” Snowflake says, stomping her hoof. “Shall we continue, Ratchet?” She asks.

“Sure, I’ll talk to you three later,” I say, waving a hoof as Snowflake and I continue to over to the bar, where the bartender and his five patrons are gathered.

“The unicorn behind the bar is Medkit. He is our doctor, but he pulls double duty as a bartender,” Snowflake tells me.

“Why a bartender?” I ask him.

Medkit chuckles. “Sometimes the best medicine is a good dose of alcohol. When not treating life-threatening injury, that is,” He says with a sly grin. “But, in all seriousness, some of these ponies would drink all day if I let them. As a doctor, I make sure they don’t over indulge themselves. As the bartender, I can regulate who gets alcohol and who doesn’t.”

“That makes sense, I suppose,” I reply. “Okay, how about everyone else then?”

“These five are a few of our fighters. From left to right, Shimmer, Rain Shower, Solstice, Sky Shaker, and Bluegrass. Sky is also our only pegasus member,” Snowflake informs me. Shimmer is a purple unicorn mare, Rain is a dark blue earth pony buck, Solstice is a golden yellow unicorn mare, Sky, like Snowflake said, is a grey pegasus, and Bluegrass is an older green earth pony buck.

“Nice to meet you all,” I say with a smile. We exchange pleasantries for a moment before continuing on to four ponies sitting at a table.

“This group here is our more experienced fighters,” Snowflake says as we get up to the table. She gestures to each one and tells me their names. “Scarlet, Brisk, Jackpot, and Onyx.” Scarlet is a pink unicorn mare, the others are all earth ponies. Brisk and Onyx have black coats and Jackpot has a golden coat.

“What makes you four more experienced than the others?” I ask them.

“We are the last of the original militia members, that’s what,” Scarlet tells me. “Snowflake and Bronze Star, too,” She adds. “Everyone else joined later.”

“I’m sorry to hear that,” I tell them with a frown.

“Don’t worry about it,” Brisk says. “They died striking a blow against the legion, but sadly it wasn’t as big a blow as we would have liked.”

“Indeed,” Jackpot agrees. “But, with the new weapons and supplies you brought in, we just might have a fighting chance. For a while, anyway. I can’t see us defeating them completely,” he says with a frown.

“We have a plan for that, actually. But, we can talk about that later,” I tell them.

Onyx raises an eyebrow. “Oh? Well, I can’t wait to hear it,” He tells me.

“There is still a little bit to make up for it, but we have the major parts decided,” I tell him. “I look forward to working with you all.”

“I’ll introduce you to our sleeping members when they wake up,” Snowflake tells me, leading away. “For now…” She lets out a sigh as we approach the two earth ponies bucks in face paint. “I suppose I can introduce you to these two clowns…” She says, her voice filled with irritation. She points at the bigger one. “Jay,” She says, and then points at the skinny one. “Shaggy. That’s it, let’s go.”

“Ay, ay, ay. Why you gotta be like that Flakey?” Shaggy says, holding up his hooves, like he is offended. Then he looks at me. “What up ninja?” He asks.

“N-Ninja?” I question.

“It is best to just ignore them,” Snowflake says as she starts to turn away.

“Shiiiit. Why you gotta play Flakey?” Jay says, giving her a smirk. “For real, you need to get youself some dick. Cuz you up tighter than a motha fucka.”

“Fuck, she can come get this dick, ya know what I’m sayin’?” Shaggy interjects, puckering up his lips and reaching a hoof under the table to emphasise the word ‘dick’.

“Motha fucka, she fixin ta catch something she get on yo dick,” Jay says with a chuckle.

Shaggy pulls his head back and grimaces. “Ay yo, fuck you. Bitch ass motha fucka. The only neden you gettin is fuckin ghoul bitches,” He replies. “They the only ones who can bear to look at yo ugly punk ass.”

Jay gets up off the box he is sitting on, and pulls an axe out of the larger crate the two are playing cards on, somehow managing to hold it in his hoof. “Man, fuck you Shaggy, man,” He yells, holding out the axe in a threatening manner.

Shaggy follows suit and pulls out the second axe in the crate, and raises up on his rear legs. “Right now muhfucka, right now? Afta all the shit we been though?”

“Why da fuck not?” Jay counters. “You ain’t shit.”

“Uh, guys…” I say, trying to get their attention, but they don’t pay any attention to me.

“Aight den bitch! Say hi to da Wraith for me!” Shaggy yells. Then the two of them swing their axes back. My eyes go wide as they start swinging straight towards each other. Just before they hit each other, I clench my eyes shut. An instant later, I hear the sound of the axes cutting into wood. This is followed by raspy, hardy laughter. Slowly, I open my eyes. The two of them are perfectly fine. Their axes are wedged back into the crate between them. “Ay yo Jay, you see the look on this bitch’s face? Fuckin’ priceless yo,” Shaggy laughs.

“Calm down, we only clownin,” Jay chuckles. “All ya’ll bitches so fuckin up tight.”

“Ya’ll need to fuckin breath or we all gona get axed,” Shaggy says, picking up some cards in his hooves. “Oh shit,” He mutters, then lays the cards on the table, revealing six different cards, but all of them are jokers. “Royal flush!” He declares.

Jay throws his cards on the table. “Man, fuck you. This is why I don’t play this shit with your bitch ass. You fuckin’ cheat,” He says, shaking his head.

“Fuck all that, this shits legit,” Shaggy replies, gesturing at the cards.

Jay adjusts his weight on the crate, setting an elbow on the one between them and using that leg to lean in. “First off, a royal flush is five fucking cards. Not six. Second, you’re not even supposed to have that many card. Third, we ain’t even fucking playing poker,” He says as he stares at Shaggy.

Shaggy looks at him calmly for a few moments with his forehooves crossed in his lap. And then in the next moment he flips the crate over, sending cards, beer bottles, and caps flying. “Well we ain’t playin shit now!” He yells.

“Every fucking time…”Jay mutters as he leans down and picks up a still burning cigar. He takes a puff and then blows the smoke in Shaggy’s face while saying, “Biiiitchhh.” Then the two of them burst out laughing and Shaggy flips the crate back over. “Deal my ass in,” Jay says with the cigar sticking out of his mouth.

“Deal my ass in,” Shaggy says, poorly imitating Jay as he piles up the cards and picks them up. He tosses the cards on the table and starts walking away. “Deal yo own ass in, ima take a fuckin leak,” He says.

Jay shakes his head as he starts dealing cards. “I’m tellin you man, you’re pissin way too much. Have the fuckin doc check yo ass out before you start pissin blood,” He calls after Shaggy.

“So he can stick a hoof up my ass? Man, fuck that,” Shaggy calls back.

Jay grins around the cigar and looks over at me. “You ladies playin?” He asks, gesturing to the cards on the crate.

“No,” Snowflake says flatly.

“Maybe next time,” I tell him.

“Suit yoselves,” He says as we walk away from him.

“Like I said,” Snowflake says after we are a ways away, “ignore them.”

“They seem...odd. But they don’t seem too bad,” I tell her. They certainly are an interesting pair. “Anyway, thank you for introducing me to everyone.”

“No problem. I’m just glad someone is taking charge and actually doing something,” She tells me.

“You and Bronze are in charge, not me,” I tell her. “I’m just helping things along.”

She shakes her head. “Honestly, if you wanted to take over for us, we’d let you. We have no experience leading ponies. We are just the ones who the positions fell to,” She says. “Since the two of us landed ourselves in charge, we haven’t really done anything.”

“Well, let’s change that,” I say, giving her a smile.

Just then, Hammer calls out my name. “Ratchet! We need you at the entrance. There are some ponies who say that they know you!” Ponies that say that they know me? That...can’t be.

I look to Snowflake. “Let’s go. I wasn’t expecting company,” I tell her, and then quickly trot over to the entrance. Hook is standing in the doorway talking to someone as Hammer waits for me to get there. “So...who is it?” I ask him.

“Says his name is Lance, son of some mare named Saber?” He says with a shrug. I don’t know anyone named Lance. But...Saber? It...couldn’t be, could it? I walk past Hammer and tap Hook on the side to get her to move. On the other side of the doorway, is an earth pony buck in nearly perfect condition power armor, aside from some patch up work.

“Ah, there you are, Ratchet!” The buck says as he sees me. “You are Ratchet, correct? You look as mother described you, well, aside from your mane, but that lab coat is a dead giveaway,” He tells me with a broad smile.

“I’m Ratchet...but...who are you?” I ask, and then look past him at the half dozen ponies in way worse looking power armor. Most of it looks like it is made out of scrap metal, like road signs. “And who are they?” I add.

The buck chuckles. “My name is Lance, you knew my mother, Saber. And we are the second generation of Junk Rats.”

===~+~===

After welcoming the Junk Rats in and assuring the militia members that they weren’t a threat, Lance quickly explained what they were doing here. A courier delivered a letter to Saber a few weeks ago. It told her that I was back in the Wasteland and that a zebra army was attacking Hoofington. It requested any help she could offer me and gave her the location of the militia’s hideout.

Like all of the recent courier letters, this one didn’t name a sender. But it was able to tell Saber enough about me and the fighting with Grimoire that she was convinced that it was from someone who knew and was helping me.

Of course, given Saber’s age she wasn’t able to make the journey herself. Most of the other original members I knew are in the same situation, and stayed behind to watch their home. Apparently, the Junk Rats had been accepting new recruits and now span three generations of ponies. But since the third generation isn’t too old yet, only half of the second generation was able to make the journey to help out.

Other than Lance, the other Junk Rats’ power armor suits range from having some original armor remaining to suits constructed completely out of rusted and worn scrap metal. More than a few look almost haphazardly thrown together, but somehow they stay intact as the ponies move around in them. But, I suppose even thrown together power armor is better than normal barding or no armor at all.

By the I finish meeting everyone and the Junk Rats get settled in, it is just past eight at night. I decide that tomorrow we can over over the plan and then Cora and I can take a look at the tank as well. Bronze finished making the guard rotation a few hours ago, so now we will have two guards watching the entrance at all times. Snowflake is staying up in the night while Bronze is going to sleep. If anything happens during the night, Snowflake will try to handle it, or wake us all up. But, if too many more ponies end up finding this place, I’ll have to seriously consider the security of this location.

The night passes without issue, however. The following morning, before those who were up during the night go to sleep, I gather everyone for a meeting to go over the plan. Together, with Cora, the two of us go over Cora’s plan. The primary stuff, and then some specifics. Most of the lightly armored or unarmored ponies will stay near the tank to use it as cover. Meanwhile, the AIs and Junk Rats will push from another side. I’m trusting Lance and Cora being able to act on their own away from the larger group. The two of them shouldn’t have a problem. Lance is taking over as the Junk Rat’s leader once Saber decides to step down.

I will be leading a group with Bronze that will advancing in front of the tank while it gives us support. Of course, we won’t be directly in front of it so we don’t get in its way. Our group will be made up of the four elite members, Sky Shaker, Hook and Hammer as well as Jay and Shaggy. If the tank runs into any trouble mechanically, I will run back to help if I am able.

The tank crew itself will be made up of Ember, Eclipse, and Peppermint, as well as three of the ponies from Ebon. Ember will be commanding what everyone does and working the radio to keep in contact with me and Cora’s groups, while also making sure the tank continues to function properly. Eclipse will be driving while Peppermint controls the main turret. The ponies from Ebon will load the main turret and use the machine guns built into the tank. Medkit, the doctor, will ride on the back of the tank, taking cover from the majority of the fighting and only leaving his spot if someone needs help.

That leaves Snowflake, Wick, and everyone else. The remaining ponies from Ebon will ride on the tank, as they still aren’t at full strength. They will be protecting the tank and covering everyone around it that the tank can’t hit. Everyone else will be waiting until the tank gets close to the city. When that happens, they will join in the fighting using buildings as cover. Snowflake will be leading this group while the tank continues towards a clearing in Neighton, where it should be able to provide support for everyone.

“Remember,” Cora announces, “The Fallen Legion doesn’t keep slaves here. Everything in Neighton is an enemy. That means you don’t have to pull any punches. And don’t forget about the ponies who joined them. They paint themselves like zebras, so don’t let them catch you off guard.”

“Right,” I agree with a nod. “Keeping this in mind, Ember, it might be hard for you to concentrate on individual targets. Instead, focus on large groups. If there aren’t any large groups, level a few buildings. If they don’t have anywhere to hide, they can’t catch us by surprise when we enter the city,” I tell her.

“Got it!” She calls out, raising up a hoof.

“Just make sure you all watch out for each other. And keep in mind that some of the zebras have stealth technology. If you see anything shimmering, or think you see something moving, shoot at it, just to be safe,” Cora adds.

“I can see through their stealth with my thermal sensors, so I will be focusing on that on our side,” Soar says as she stands up and waves a hoof. “But the rest of you should stay sharp, just in case.”

“So then, any questions? If not, we’re done here,” I say as I look over the ponies sitting in front of me. No one raises a hoof or speaks up. “Alright then, we’ll go over things one more time before the fight, but until then, we’re done.” The ponies slowly stand up and break off into groups. A few stagger off to the beds.

Cora and I make our way over to Ember, Eclipse, and Peppermint who have started working on the tank once again. “Try it again, Eclipse!” Ember calls from behind the tank. A moment later, I hear the engine of the tank trying to turn over, followed by Ember’s, “EEP!” and her shouting, “STOP! STOP! STOP!” Eclipse stops and a few moments later, Ember pulls herself out from behindthe tank, covered in grease and other engine fluids. She wipes a hoof on her coveralls and then across her face to get rid of all the gunk covering it. “That wasn’t it…” She mutters.

“Maybe if I reseal the gaskets, tweak the fuel intake, and reroute the exhaust?” She mutters, putting a hoof to her chin.

“We tried that, remember?” Peppermint tells her as she shakes her head.

“Well, what about going over the ignition system? Maybe something came loose?” Ember suggests next.

“Checked it over yesterday,” Eclipse tells her. “So, unless you did something to it, it should be fine.”

“Um, mind if we take a look?” I ask as we step up to them.

The three of them exchange glances and then nod in agreement. “Knock yourselves out,” Ember tells me. I take my lab coat off and set it aside and then Cora and I make our way behind the tank to look at the engine. “Do either of you know anything about tanks? Or engines, for that matter?” She asks, walking around to join us.

“Not specifically,” I tell her as I look over the engine. “But we do know a thing or two about pre-war technology and a bit about mechanics and the like. Never worked on a tank though,” I say as I check a connection. “Hey Cora, aren’t there usually-” She cuts me off.

“Right there, Ratchet,” Cora says, gesturing towards the engine’s computer connection port.

“Ah, right,” I mutter as I pull out my PipBuck’s cable and make the connection. Then I look through the systems and see if I can find any issues. “Cora, check the fuel filter?” I suggest. She pops out her fingers, grabs some tools, and then reaches deep into the engine. After some thrashing around, she pulls the filter back up with her.

After looking it over, she says, “Yea, looks like it needs some cleaning. But it isn’t so bad it would kill the whole engine. Something else must be wrong.”

“Hey Ember, you said the ignition system was fine, right?” I ask.

“Yea, we checked it yesterday, like Eclipse said,” Ember tells me.

“Though we fixed it up for the first time around a week ago,” Eclipse says from the front of the tank.

“Okay, I think it still had an error in the system because of that. I’ll clear that out for now,” I mutter as I go through commands on my PipBuck. Then I poke around in the engine for a moment before finding the spark batteries. Charged, that’s good. They must have replaced them when they found the tank. I dig around a bit more and then reference the system status screen on my PipBuck. “These connector cables might be a bit too old and corroded. Cora, do we have any spare cables?” I ask her.

“What kind?” She replies, looking over the the side of the engine I’m on. I point a hoof at the cables. “Oh, maybe. Let me go check,” She says and digs through her bags. “A few.”

“Okay then. Ember, can you clean the fuel filter while Cora and I start replacing these cables?” I ask.

“Not a problem!” She picks it up in her magic and walks around to the other side of the tank.

“There is a lot of things that look wrong,” Cora says after she leaves.

“Yea. The others did mention she likes to take things apart and sometimes doesn’t remember how they go back together,” I murmur. “We should probably go over everything to make sure it is as it should be. This is going to take a while.”

===~+~===

It takes us two days to go over the entire engine to check it for problems. A good amount of it is improper placement, which Ember admits to being responsible for. But it isn’t just her fault. A lot needs proper cleaning, some gaskets are completely worn out and a lot of cables and pipes are corroded. The five of us set about patching everything up and putting everything where it should be. Thankfully, the system interface on my PipBuck is a huge help with this. Warning and errors fade away when we do something correctly, but a lot of it is guesswork.

Finally, when Eclipse hits the ignition, the engine turns over and hums to life. It isn’t the most pleasant sounding engine, clearly it is just barely functioning. But, Eclipse manages to maneuver the tank a little bit, though given the size of the cave, he only moves it a few feet and rotates it. The fact is though, that it is working.

With the tank running again, we load it will ammunition and supplies. The militia managed to find and transport around sixty 120mm shells and around seven boxes of machinegun ammo. The interior of the tank is roomy enough to fit all of it and still have enough room for all of the occupants. It will be a bit cramped, though.

Ember and her team took care of the exterior of the tank pretty well. They patched up any holes and the like weeks before we arrived. If this tank still had its repair talisman, it would be nearly unstoppable. But as it sits now, in a few places the armor is only a few layers of scrap metal thick, barely enough to stop larger caliber rounds, let alone missiles or anti-machine rounds.

Once the tank’s preparation is finally complete, we wake everyone up and hold another meeting. Tomorrow, we will travel to, and attack Neighton to drive the zebras back. It will take us around six hours to get there, maybe more depending upon how fast the tank is able to travel. Because of the travel time, we will leave around four in the morning to make sure we reach the town before nightfall. Stealth technology is especially deadly in the dark, after all.

We go over the plan one more time and make sure that everyone knows what to do. We also pass out the weapons and supplies we brought to those that need them. Bronze, Snowflake, Wick, and Lance make sure that all of the ponies getting new guns make sure they know how to properly use them and have enough ammunition for the fight.

When everything is ready and everyone has everything that they need, Cora, Soar, and Macro volunteer to guard the entrance while everyone else sleeps for the night. There are not enough beds to go around, but all the ponies from Ebon get a bed, except Wick who settles in a corner between two empty crates. The other beds fill up and the others all find their own places to settle in for the night.

Me? I find a secluded place to lay down, but I don’t sleep. Despite me telling everyone what to do, knowing about the fight that will take place tomorrow...I can’t stop shaking. We are going to be fighting zebra soldiers. Not just some unorganized raiders. Everything I ever read or heard about the zebras come flooding back. Zebras are monsters. Zebras are cruel. Zebras want nothing but destruction. Zebras will kill you.

Am I...going to survive tomorrow’s battle?

Chapter 32 - Shroud of Death

“Ponies die. That is the one inevitability of war.”

===~+~===

The world as I knew it, went out in a series of fiery explosions, balefire blasts, and radioactive clouds. I wasn’t there to witness the final hours, but I suppose I was one of the lucky ones. I survived. I emerged, decades later, without any knowledge of the events that transpired. My world was gone, and for me it happened in the blink of an eye.

But right now, as I feel a cold shiver running down my spine while watching the makeshift bomb Cora made go off in the town of Neighton, I think I can imagine what the world looked like that day. The flames engulfing the town, instantly leveling a few nearby buildings. The screaming. If this is what scaled down versions of balefire bombs can do, it is no wonder the world was decimated. The damage that has been done…

The tank’s engine and the squealing of its tracks snap me back to my senses. “Move up!” Bronze shouts and the ponies around me begin to move. I move with them, and we crest the hill the tank is hiding behind. As soon as we do, bullets start to ricochet off of the tank and hit the dirt around us. Off to my right, I can see the AIs and the Junk Rats advancing. Their armor and larger weapons drawing more attention than us.

That is, until the tank’s main gun goes off and completely obliterates a small building at the edge of the town. The blast is almost deafening and shortly after it, the amount of shooting focused on us is doubled. The tank’s machine guns start rattling off in controlled bursts. The other militia members begin shooting as well, and soon I join them with my gatling lasers. It is still too far to actually hit anything without a scoped rifle, but it is keeping them from advancing towards us or pinning us down while we make our approach.

Despite the chaos going on around me, I am struck by a strange thought. I shouldn’t be here. Something inside of me is screaming at me, telling me that I should have no part in this battle. That it isn’t my fight. That I’m not even supposed to be in Hoofington right now. But if not for me, this battle would not be happening in the first place. I told these ponies what to do, I gave them a plan, gave them hope. So...what is this feeling?

Just then, Bronze Star shakes me. “Ratchet! Why are you just standing here? You’re a sitting duck out here!” He yells at me over the boom of the tank’s cannon and the gunfire around us. It is then that I realize that I’ve been standing completely still for the past minute or so with bullets flying around me. I’ve just been staring at the town.

I shake my head and focus on Bronze. “I...I don’t know. I’m fine though, keep going,” I tell him. He gives we a worried look before running back into the fray. I follow after him a few seconds later, and help the others fire upon the zebras.

By now, several dozen zebra have taken up positions on the rooftops of the town. Not only that, but a large mass of the traitorous ponies painted like zebras have charged out of the town towards us. They are lightly armored, but are doing enough to slow our advance. On Cora’s side, I can see more of the fake zebras charging out to meet them. But my focus is quickly drawn to the force attacking us as a bullet strikes my barding. It is a light caliber round, so it doesn’t penetrate, but it is enough to stop me from getting distracted.

I steady myself and concentrate on the gatling lasers on my saddle. Aiming into the mass of approaching enemies, I let loose a red beams of death. At first, the shots are slow, but as the barrels spin up my shots increase in speed. Holding down the triggers, I sweep across the ponies charging us. There isn’t much cover between us and the town so I manage to make multiple hits, and even turn two bucks into piles of glowing ash. The ones I hit stop long enough for the other militia members to finish them off.

A group of the fake zebra have started to drag their injured members to attempt to treat their injuries. Unfortunately for them, they are gathered up in a fairly tight cluster. The explosion that comes from them seconds later, and the rain of blood and limbs is a clear indication that Ember noticed them as well. The high explosive 120mm shell from the tank wipes them out completely and when the dust finally clears, there is nothing but a red stain on the earth where they once were.

I stare at the spot in shock for a few long moments before I hear a bullet pass inches from my head. I hear a scream behind me and turn to see Brisk, fall to the ground with a hole in his neck. The boom from the tank’s cannon momentarily deafens me as I run over to the fallen buck. He is still alive, but not for long. I pull out a potion from my bags and try to put it to his lips, but he weakly raises a hoof to block it and mutters something that my ringing ears can’t make out properly. The next moment, his hoof falls limply and the light in his eyes fades.

I call his name and shake his body, but it is too late. I hold his body in my hooves as the battle rages on. Sky Shaker lands next to me then raises his wing between me and Brisk. He says something I can’t make out. I got too close to the tank when it shot last time. I look at him blankly. He raises an eyebrow, and then a knowing look comes over his face. Sky puts a hoof on my shoulder and then gestures with his other. He is pointing at the tank...which has smoke rising from the engine.

I look back at him as the ringing slowly fades from my ears. “-elp...ix...nk-” I can barely make out his words. Rising to my hooves, he repeats himself, “Go hel...ber fi...e tan-”

“Go...help?” I mutter in question. Sky nods and shakes his hoof over at the tank. “Fix the tank?” I ask, and he nods again. “Gotcha,” I tell him and start running towards the tank. Ember is already climbing out of the hatch in the top. She is wearing a combat helmet and some fairly protective barding. She has a few tools in her mouth and her horn glows red as she opens the engine cover. I reach her a few seconds later. “What’s the problem?” I ask as I take a look inside.

“Looks like an oil leak,” Ember tells me as she floats her array of tools in front of her. “The rough terrain and just the natural shaking of the tank probably shook something loose.”

“I see,” I mutter as I look over the engine. It is hard to see with all the smoke. Everything that I can see looks intact. I hook my PipBuck into the system to see if I can determine where the leak is. After quickly scanning the readout, I find the source. “Oh no...it is deep in the engine. Given how hot it is, we are going to get a little burned trying to fix it,” I tell her. Since we can’t see the leak, we can’t use our magic to hold things in place. Which means, we need to feel around with our hooves until we can use our magic.

Ember frowns, looks at the engine and then back at me. “I’ll do it,” She says, floating some tools in front of me. “Once I find it, you seal it up. Use my leg as a guide for the tools and you can use your magic,” She tells me.

“What? But-” She raises a hoof to silence me.

“All I’m doing is riding in a tank and giving orders about what to shoot at. A few burns won’t slow me down. But you’re actually fighting on the ground. A burn could get you killed,” She says. “We don’t have time to argue. Just do it.” Then she reaches her front hooves into the engine. She lets out a scream but quickly stifles it, gritting her teeth instead. Ember reaches deeper and deeper until she has to press her chest on the engine. If not for her barding, her chest would be nothing but burns right now. “I...err...got it,” She struggles to say.

I waste no time in guiding the tools into the engine with my magic. Feeling around for her hooves. “Down a little more,” Ember tells me. I lower the tools a bit. “Now, about an inch to the left.” I move them again. “Yes, right there! Can you feel it? I think I’ve moved the part back into place, you just need to secure it,” She tells me. I takes me a moment to find exactly what I have to do, but once I find it I waste no time securing the part once again.

“Got it!” I shout as I pull the tools out with my magic. Immediately afterwards, Ember pulls her legs out of the engine. When they hit the ground again, she winces. Her legs, up to her chest are covered in blisters and most of the fur is gone. They are blotchy red and look blackened in parts. Even the barding covering her chest is a bit melted.

“G-Good,” Ember mutters. “Can you...close the cover?” She asks me. I wrap the cover in my magic and close it.

“Medkit!” I call up to the doctor sitting just above us. “Ember has some pretty bad burns, you need to treat her quick!” I tell him.

Ember carefully climbs back up onto the tank and looks at Medkit. “Just wrap them. I don’t need a potion or any Med-X. Save that for the ponies who will need it,” She says.

“But, Ember,” Medkit says, worry clear on his face, “these burns…” She doesn’t let him finish.

“I know, doc. I know. Wrap them. We have a battle to win,” She tells him. I am about to speak up to convince her to let him treat her, but she interrupts me before I can begin. “Eclipse! Tank is good! Start her back up!” She calls. A moment later, the tank roars to life once again. I try to speak up again, but this time Medkit cuts me off.

“Go Ratchet, I’ll see to Ember. The others need you,” He tells me. I quickly look between him and the others fighting.

“Fine, take care of her doc,” I say, and then dash away from the tank and towards where the other militia members are fighting. By now, we have chewed into the enemy lines. Bodies of the fake zebras litter the landscape. I see Shaggy and Jay use their axes to clothesline a buck and then proceed to swing the axes into the unfortunate buck. Blood arcs with each swing they make. A few more bucks try to catch them by surprise, but the two of them fight them off with apparent ease.

Bronze and Scarlet and fighting together as well. Their guns cutting into the enemies that they set their sights on. Jackpot and Onyx are together, the two of them holding their own. Sky flies overhead and strafes the fakes. Only around ten more enemies stand between us and the entrance to the town. The zebras haven’t come out of the town yet. Only the fakes have. I guess the zebras are letting ponies take the damage for them, for now.

Or that is what I think, until a shimmer forms near Onyx and then reveals a zebra in a cloak. The zebra grabs Onyx and slams him to the earth. The zebra catches Onyx off guard, and he tries to scramble back to his hooves. But the zebra slams a rear hoof into his face, sending him flying back once again. I spin up my lasers, but stop before they go off. I can’t shoot at this range with these, I might hit Onyx. Instead, I charge towards the pair. Jackpot is busy with the fakes and Onyx is losing one on one.

I draw two of my knives as I close the distance and throw one at the zebra, who somehow manages to backflip over the knife. I push my shock aside and continue charging towards them. My slight distraction gives Onyx the time he needs to stagger to his hooves. He wipes a hoof over his nose before charging at the zebra. I throw my second knife and the zebra dodges it by standing on one hoof. Onyx uses this chance to spin around and try to buck the zebra. But the zebra jumps on his single hoof and lands on Onyx’s back, then kicks off him and lands on its rear hooves. Onyx falls flat at the sudden shift in his balance.

The zebra then cartwheels to smash its hooves down on Onyx’s head, but luckily Onyx manages to roll out of the way in the nick of time. But the zebra presses the attack and slams all of their hooves down at where Onyx just rolled to. The zebra’s hooves come down on one of Onyx’s legs. I hear the snap from here followed by Onyx’s howl of pain. But just as the zebra is about to finish him off, a single bullet flies through the air and punches a hole in the zebra’s head. The zebra’s eyes go wide for a single moment before its body falls with a thud.

I look back at where the shot came from. On top of the tank, I see Wick waving a hoof with a sniper rifle under him. I wave back and then turn back to Onyx. Bone is sticking out of his leg. Definitely not a good sign. And if I give him a potion or anything with it like that, it will heal wrong. Instead, I carefully help him to his hooves. “Do you think you can get to Medkit?” I ask him.

“I...Maybe?” Onyx grunts as he tries to walk on three legs.

“He won’t have to do it alone,” Jackpot says as he trots over. “I’ll help him. Sorry. If I would have finished up sooner…” But Onyx shakes his head.

“It is fine, shit happens, right?” Onyx says with a forced grin. “Let’s get going. Who know if the-” But he doesn’t get the chance to finish his sentence as his head explodes. Blood and soft tissue showers Jackpot and I as we stare in horror.

“Sniper!” Sky calls down as he passes over us. “Move now!” The two of us quickly snap out of it and start moving again. Damn it! If only we hadn’t stayed in one place for so long! I charge at the next group of fakes and quickly send a few of my knives at them. Their light barding doesn’t cover much, so my knives find purchase. The shock of the knives gives me just enough time to spin up my lasers and finish them off.

The fakes between us and the town are all but gone and we are only a few yards from the entrance. The zebra are doubling their efforts on us, trying to pin us down. Static comes over my PipBuck, followed by Ember’s voice. “Ratchet, Cora, tank team is heading into the town,” She says. “We will find a place around the clearing to hold and our passengers will clear out a nearby building. Medkit will set up shop in there to treat the wounded. I’ll fill you in when we get there.”

“Gotcha!” Cora replies. I begin to speak but shooting from the roof of a nearby building interrupt me. Instead, I charge quickly towards the town and take cover against a wall.

“Ember, can you hit that building just inside the town on your left? I think they have a machine gun set up on top of it,” I tell her.

After a moment, she replies. “I see it.” A roar erupts from the radio and a second later, the building begins to fall over. “Got it, it’s coming down. Shit, it is coming down in front of us. Eclipse, full speed, ram through the debris,” She shouts. I watch as the tank rapidly approaches the town and slams into the falling debris. The tank further destroys the building but manages to power through. “We’re through,” Ember says over the radio. “See you gals on the other side!”

Snowflake and Wick’s group gallops past me after the tank, climbing over the rubble. Without the zebras on that roof shooting at me, I catch back up with Bronze and the others from my group. Besides Brisk and Onyx, everyone else seems to have survived the approach. Jackpot looks a little rough for wear and Hammer has his right legs bandaged up. Everyone else has a number of minor injuries, but nothing too major. “Alright, Ratchet, what now?” Bronze asks as we all catch our breath.

I look our group over and quickly devise a plan. Since we are in town now, staying as a large group could result in friendly fire. Instead, we should split into two groups. “Bronze, you take Hammer, Shaggy, and Jay. Sky, since you can fly, move between the groups and provide them with cover. Stay low, though. We don’t want you to get shot out of the sky. Everyone else with me,” I tell them. “We’ll split up and clear the town.”

Bronze nods. “Right, you heard the lady! Let’s go!” He shouts and starts leading his group away. I lead mine a different way, down an alleyway. The four of us proceed carefully. There is no telling when a zebra with a stealth cloak will attack. We make it through the alley and then enter the closest building. I can hear gunfire above us, but I can’t tell for sure if it is coming from this building, or a neighboring one. The entire city is ablaze with shooting anyway, so telling where one particular shot comes from is impossible. Not only that, but the occasional sound of the tank’s main gun going off drowns out much of it.

After clearing the first floor, we continue up the stairs to the second floor of the building. The first few rooms are empty, but as we make our way down the hall I hear the gunfire getting louder. Hook, who has one shotgun on her saddle and an assault rifle on the other, takes point. We are about to reach the next door when Jackpot suddenly yells out, “Stop!” But his shout is drowned out by the explosion that erupts from under Hook, severing two of her legs immediately and sending shards of metal into her stomach.

“Shit!” Jackpot curses as he pushes past me to try and stop Hook’s bleeding. But I can already tell she isn’t going to pull through. The mine she stepped on sealed her fate. She knows it too as she reaches up to Jackpot with one of her good hooves. Jackpot cradles her in his hooves as she touches his cheek.

“W-win…” Hook murmurs weakly. Then her hoof falls limply to the floor and she grows still.

“Damn it!” Jackpot yells. “Not Hook too…” But I hear something else other than Jackpot’s anger. Or, perhaps the lack of sounds, since the gunfire that was coming from beside us until recently has stopped.

“Get out of the hallway!” I yell as I start running backwards. As soon as the words leave my lips, bullets start flying through the walls of the hallway. Chunks of wood are sent flying and barely miss Jackpot as he tries to rise to his hooves. I gesture for him to stay down and he does so as bullets fly over his head. Scarlet is right behind me as we make it around the corner, but she took a few hits. After a while, the shooting stops and the house is silent. Jackpot looks at me then at the door we were about to enter through.

The door opens a crack and two grenades roll out. Jackpot’s eyes go wide, but luckily Scarlet is quick on the uptake. She takes the grenades in her magic and throws them to the end of the hallway away from Jackpot. The grenades go off a moment later and blow out the wall. Then, a shimmer comes out of the gap in the door. Jackpot sees it too and fires at it. Blood flies from the blur and it falls to the floor. A dead zebra with a few holes in its head appears where it fell.

“My turn,” Jackpot says as he pulls a grenade out of his bag and tosses it into the room. I wrap the door in my magic and pull it closed once the grenade is inside. An explosion follows, as well as screaming and then silence. I trot back over to Jackpot and carefully peek inside the door. Two dead zebras, or what is left of them. I don’t notice any other shimmers in the room.

“I think you got them, Jackpot,” I say as I pull my head back out.

He is just staring at Hook’s body. “What the fuck are we doing?” He asks. “This is what it took to clear a single building? We...we can’t win this…”

Scarlet walks up and puts a hoof on his shoulder. “She...had some bad luck,” Scarlet offers, trying to find the right words. “If we would have noticed it sooner...We wouldn’t have lost her.”

“But we did lose her,” Jackpot counters. “And Brisk, and Onyx too. Who knows how many those Junk Rat ponies have lost. And those ponies from Ebon, they barely have the strength to fight. Not to mention each of these zebras have had those damn stealth cloaks! We are fighting a losing battle!”

I slam my hoof in the floor. “Shut up!” I yell at him. “What do you want us to do, run away? Then Hook and the other will have died for nothing! We all knew there was a risk we would die in this fight. Despite that, the survivors of Ebon, the Junk Rats, and me and my friends joined up with the militia to fight against the zebras,” I tell him as I glare at him angrily.

“Do you know why we are all alright with fighting against the zebra, even knowing the odds?” I ask him rhetorically. “Because we all know, if they aren’t stopped here they will continue killing. So stand the fuck up, stop your complaining, and let’s get back out there and kill every last one of those striped Luna-damned pieces of shit!” I yell. I watch him for a few moments as my words sink in before I turn and start to leave the building. “Or stay here by yourself and die. But I’m going back out there and I’m going to fight until all of them are dead or I am.”

I don’t look back as I keep walking. “Well, you certainly gave him a good lecture,” a familiar voice says from in front of me. An instant later, a red cloaked figure appears in front of me.

“If he isn’t going to fight, he will just get in the way. You’re War, you should understand. Besides, Hook told us to win. I’ll make sure we do,” I reply.

“My my,” War says with a chuckle. “And here I thought you were a kind mare. Seems you’ve changed. Before, you wouldn’t have given him an ultimatum. You would have tried to reason with him, instead of going off on him like that,” He tells me.

“This time is different,” I counter. “We aren’t dealing with some random raiders here. These are invading zebras set on taking over Equestria.”

“Honestly, it isn’t all that different. Both groups want control over others,” War replies. “What is so different between the Fallen Legion and Discordia? In fact, I’d say Discordia was worse. It wanted to destroy, not just to conquer. But, I think you’re blinded by pre-war hatred of zebras. Or maybe it is that you really have changed,” He says with a shrug.

“They are the ones who are enslaving ponies and crucifying them,” I say as I glare at him.

“Right. And I’m sure ponies don’t enslave other ponies or that raiders don’t mutilate and torture ponies either, right?” War asks. “But...we both know that they do. You’re just fixated on them because they are different.”

I roll my eyes as I reach the first floor. “Don’t you have a job to do? Or do you not collect the souls of stripes?” I sneer.

“I do. I just thought I would say hello. But really, Ratchet...if you can even call yourself that anymore...You should take a long, hard look in a mirror. You’re not yourself. Don’t try to be someone you’re not,” He says, and then disappears an instant later.

“Yea, sure, run away,” I mutter as I continue walking towards the door. But I stop when I hear hoofsteps coming down the stairs. I turn and see Scarlet and Jackpot making their way down. Jackpot looks at me with guilt covering his features.

“I’m sorry,” Jackpot tells me when the two get close. “I was...out of line. I know you are just here to help...but...they were my friends, you know?” He lets out a sigh. “And you are right. We need to keep fighting, or else Hook and the others will have died for nothing.”

I nod. “I’m glad you came around,” I reply. “And...I’m sorry to. I was being overly harsh. I don’t know what came over me.”

“I’m glad you two made up and all,” Scarlet interrupts, “but incase you forgot, there is a battle going on around us. Let’s go.” She walks towards the door. Jackpot and I exchange a soft smile and follow after her.

The three of us step back out into the street and instantly gunfire is directed at us. We scramble for cover, but I feel a few bullets hit my barding. Not enough to penetrate, luckily. Once in cover, I can see five zebra down the street from us, but two of them disappear behind their cloaks. I fire my lasers at where they were, but can’t tell if I hit them or not. Instead, I sweep my lasers across to the others that I can still see. I hit one, but the others duck behind cover, dragging the one I did hit with them. A moment later all three spring up again and start returning fire on me.

But Scarlet and Jackpot’s shots quickly shift their focus from me, two of them anyway. The other seem dead set on shredding the wooden barrel I am behind into swiss cheese. The zebra is using a large caliber rifle, and large chunks of the barrel splinter off with each hit. I wait for him to reload before attempting to return fire.

I lean out of cover to do so, but all of the zebra are gone now. “Oh no…” I mutter as I look around for shimmering. Scarlet and Jackpot seem to be doing the same. “Stick together!” I call over to them and we gather up and put our backs to each other. A few tense moments go by before I see a shimmer. “There!” I shout and start shooting. I can tell my lasers are hitting something so I keep shooting until a dead zebra takes form laying on the ground. “One down…”

Then the others are upon us. A hoof catches me in the jaw and sends me sprawling to the ground. Judging by the sound of hoof striking flesh, the others have suffered the same fate. I quickly shake off my daze and look around. Scarlet has been kicked a ways away from me, but Jackpot is still close by. Between the two of them, I can see a zebra standing on its rear hooves with its back turned to me. It looks like it is about to attack Scarlet again. Thinking quickly, I draw a knife and throw it at the standing zebra.

My knife strikes them in the back and they turn to look at me, a scowl on their face. Before I can react, I feel a hoof kick me in the side, followed by another slamming onto my back. I scream out in pain as Jackpot shoots at one of my attackers, catching them in a leg. The fourth zebra kicks Jackpot in the head again, sending him reeling. This is bad. We can’t fight back like this. We need some space. “Stay down!” I yell, and receive a series of kicks to my face and sides. I grit my teeth through the pain.

I focus, gripping each of my remaining knives with my magic. In a quick motion, I draw all of them and slash them around myself. A few of my knives hit the two zebras that are attacking me, causing them to jump away. Carefully, I get to my hooves and find the other two zebras. They are standing over Scarlet and Jackpot, pounding away at them mercilessly. Without skipping a beat, I send three knives at each of them. They don’t kill them, but it is enough to allow Scarlet and Jackpot to finish them off.

One of the remaining zebras tackles me and I collapse onto the ground once more. The other zebra seems to be done messing around and raises a rifle, aiming it at Jackpot while standing on two hooves. I realize this is the same zebra who was destroying the barrel I was behind. I try to call out to warn Jackpot, but a hoof to my head prevents me from doing so. The next instant, I hear the gunshot followed by the thump of a body hitting the ground.

When I look up, I see the top of Jackpot’s head is missing. The zebra is already taking aim at Scarlet. Without hesitating, I draw Forgiveness and empty the cylinder into the zebra. Every shot hits, and the fourth shot penetrates its skull. The remaining zebra kicks my horn, making me drop the gun. It then draws a gun of its own and presses it against my head.

I close my eyes. Well. This is it, I guess. At least I managed to save Scarlet...for now. Maybe she can fight off this zebra, and then regroup with the others. Maybe they’ll win. But just as I’m about to accept my death, a gunshot rings out, but not from the zebra’s gun.

Opening my eyes, I watch as the zebra falls to the ground, a hole in his head. I look over at Scarlet, but her eyes are up towards the sky. Struggling to my hooves, I turn to follow her gaze just as Sky lands beside me. “Are you two alright?” He asks. I’m at a loss for words.

Scarlet answers for me. “We are now. But...Jack…” She mutters as she looks towards Jackpot’s body. She shakes her head. “How is everyone else doing?” She asks.

“It is hard to tell,” Sky replies. “Seems most of the zebras have those damn stealth cloaks, so it is hard to tell if we are winning. Bronze’s team has lost Jay, but other than that they seem to be holding their own. I saw the Junk Rats and they seem to be down two members,” Sky informs us. “Oh, and Ember has found a place for the tank. The clearing has an alcove she backed it into that has a good view of the rest of the clearing. Snowflake and the others are working on taking the nearby buildings. Don’t know how well they are faring.”

“I see,” Scarlet mutters as she limps closer to us. “Are you doing okay?”

“Yea, for the most part. Don’t think the zebra know how to fight a pegasus. Not while I’m flying around, at least,” Sky replies.

“I suppose they’ve never fought one before,” I mutter, holding my ribs. I think one might be broken. “You’re kind of a rarity in the Wasteland, you know. They probably don’t have many where they’re from either. But, still, be careful,” I tell him as I float out two healing potions. I drink one as I float the other one to Scarlet. She takes it and drinks it as well. I’ve got potion left now.

Sky nods. “Of course. You two going to be alright on your own?” He asks.

“I think so,” I tell him. “We’ll head for the clearing, so if we run into trouble we should be able to get some help.”

“Sounds good. For the most part, the west side of the town looks clear,” Sky says. “The Junk Rats have gotten the focus of most of the zebra in the south. And the north side of the town where the bomb went off is pretty barren as well. The east is probably where the rest of the zebras are collecting. The tank is going to draw a lot of attention, if it hasn’t already.”

I nod with a smile. “Thanks for the info. Take care,” I tell him.

“Take care,” He replies. Sky spreads his wings and takes off again.

“Alright Scarlet, let’s head for the clearing,” I tell her I start for the east.

“Right behind you,” She replies.

I float my knives back to me as we walk. “Scarlet...I don’t mean to come off as rude or anything, but you seem to be handling the deaths of your friends fairly well,” I say. Despite a few worried words she seems to be holding herself together rather well.

“I’m used to it,” She replies. “When the legion first attacked, I lost my town. Then when I joined the militia, I lost comrades. The first dozen times, I cried, I got caught up in the sorrow of their deaths, but I soon realized that sorrow has no place on the battlefield,” Scarlet explains. “If you mourn the dead while fighting, you’ll only get yourself killed.”

“I understand,” I mutter as we continue. Neither of us are in good condition. One potion each didn’t help us much. I can feel my face swelling up, but it isn’t enough to force us to stop. As we come to an intersection, two zebras run out in front of us. They aren’t wearing cloaks like the others and don’t seem to notice us. Scarlet opens fire and I follow with my lasers a moment later. The zebras are dead before they can even react.

“I think the clearing is just a few more blocks,” I say as we turn down the road the zebras were coming from. Maybe they were running from Ember and the others? We make it another block before what it really was. A trap. In front of us, seven zebras appear from behind their cloaks with weapons trained on us. “Shit,” I curse under my breath as Scarlet and I come to a stop a few yards from them.

One of them steps forward and says something in zebra. The zebra throws his cloak aside, revealing intricate metal armor and a helmet made to resemble a wolf. In one fluid motion he rises to his rear hooves and raises his gun, an anti-machine rifle by the look of it, with his front hooves. The next instant, he fires a single shot, missing me completely. But I hear the fleshy impact that it made from just behind me and feel warmth pelt my back. I turn around, wide eyed and stare at Scarlet’s headless body resting on the ground behind me.

I let out a scream and start to spin up my lasers to shoot the zebra, but he fires two more shots. He doesn’t hit me, but my gatling lasers, causing them to shatter into scrap metal. “Your resistance is useless,” The zebra buck says, tossing his rifle behind him for the others to catch. “I am the Legate of the Fallen Legion, and you are nothing but a worm before me. But you...You are different from the other worms. You seem to be the one in charge, from what I have seen,” He tells me.

He turns to the other zebras and says something in their tongue. The rest of the zebras lower their weapons. “I will fight you in one on one hoof-to-hoof combat. I will break you, make you regret your actions here, but before you die, I will save you,” He says as he stares at me from behind his mask. “I will take your broken and bloody body to the highest point in the city, and crucify you. Make the other ponies gaze upon you. Their spirits will break and then they will share your fate.”

I laugh. “And I suppose if I beat you, you’re zebras will just finish me off anyway?” I ask, shaking my head. One way or another, I’m going to die.

The Legate shakes his head. “They are to let you escape. Unlike you ponies, us zebras have honor and stay true to our word. The battle will not end and you are free to rejoin it, but you will leave here alive,” He explains.

“I suppose I don’t really have a choice, anyway. Well then, let me ask you another question. Will they shoot me if I use my knives?” I ask him.

“Since it seems like you do not know how to fight properly, I will allow it,” He replies. “Now then, prepare yourself.” The Legate strikes a pose as he stares at me. I draw my knives and ready myself for his first attack. The next moment, he flips towards me rapidly and stands on a forehoof as he kicks at me a rear leg. I raise two knives to block the kick, but when his hoof strikes them they are knocked from my magic. Another kick follows his first and strikes one of my legs, causing me to fall over. “Such a lack of discipline,” He mutters as he gets back to his rear hooves. “How you came to lead these ponies, is beyond me.”

I slowly get to my hooves. “True, I’m not a fighter,” I tell him as I grab the two knives off the ground again. “I’m more of a thinker. A mare with a plan, you might say.” I say that, but it isn’t like I have a plan right now. I just need to win.

He charges again, but this time I throw two of my knives at him. Of course, he nimbly dodges them and the launches himself at me with a single hoof. His other three hooves impact my body and send me flying a few feet down the road and all my knives drop from my magic at the impact. This time he doesn’t relent and continues the attack. He jumps through the air and twists his body to try and bring a hoof down on my head. I roll out of the way just as he stomps down on the ground, his impact cracking the road.

I pick up some knives in my magic and swing at the Legate, but he just dodges effortlessly. “Really, your attacks are slow and obvious,” He tells me. “Even if you do strike me, I doubt they’ll have any power behind them.” I continue swinging and as if to demonstrate his point, he blocks my attacks with his hooves, stopping them instantly. “That is the thing with you unicorns,” He says as he leaps closer to me, “you focus so much on your magic, you forget about using your body in combination with it.” His front hooves slam into the ground and he swings his rear hooves under him and into a fierce kick that hits me squarely in the chest and knocks the wind out of me.

Staggering back, I gasp for air as I swing wildly at him, even throwing a few knives to try and catch him off guard. But no matter how I go about attacking him, he avoids or blocks my knives. Even if I strike from behind him. “Pathetic,” He murmurs as he delivers a sweeping kick that knocks my hooves out from under me. “Let’s end this.” He jumps and slams his hooves down on my left foreleg. I let out an ear splitting scream as I feel the bones in my leg snap. He rolls off and gets back into his stance. “Well? Can you stand? Do you admit defeat?” He asks.

Carefully, I pull myself to my hooves, but I can’t put any pressure on my broken leg. Each time I attempt to, immense pain runs through it, even more than the already blazing pain it is causing already. I try to pick up my knives, but I can only manage two now. I float one into my mouth and pick up another. If he gets close, I will stab him with the one in my mouth. Not to mention having something to bite down on helps ease my pain a bit. “Still have some fight, I see? Not for long,” He says as he attacks again.

I slash my knives at where he is heading, but he jerks backwards to avoid the slashes and then flips over my knives. In midair, he twists so his rear hooves are pointed upwards as he flies towards me. Before gets too close, in one fluid motion he swings his rear hooves down so fast that I cannot avoid them. His hooves strike the top of my head, slamming me onto the ground and making the world spin around me. For a short time, the everything is silent as he lands just in front of me. I try to move, but I only feel myself twitching.

“Can’t move?” The Legate says as he stares down at me. “Very well. The victory is mine.” Then he starts speaking zebra to the others. Oh no, am I going to be crucified now? I hear some zebras approaching from behind me. When they be next to me, they grab my legs and lift me up. One is holding me by my broken leg, but I am too messed up to do more than groan out at the pain. More zebra talk and then they start dragging me backwards. I weakly move my eyes to glance at Scarlet’s body. Moving my lips, only soft whispers of air escape. ‘I’m sorry.’ Is what I try to say, but I just don’t have the strength.

Gunshots ring out and I fall limply to the ground again. I hear yelling in zebra and heavy hoofsteps. The Legate steps into my vision, standing on his rear hooves and shouting orders in that zebra tongue. A moment later, a suit of power armor enter my vision and locks hooves with the Legate. The power armor...it looks like...Lance? The two of them struggle for control and as much as I want to witness the outcome my vision slowly fades into darkness.

===~+~===

When next I awake, the sounds of fighting has dwindled. A few gunshots ring out, but it is nothing compared to what was going on before. Slowly, I open my eyes which is an effort in itself. My body aches, but I see Cora sitting over me. “C-Cora?” I mutter weakly.

“Ratchet! You’re awake!?” She exclaims happily. She then turns and shouts, “Medit! Ratchet’s awake!” I hear hoofsteps coming closer and then Medkit appears in my vision as well.

He smiles weakly down at me. “Ah, good to see you awake,” He tells me. “Lance carried you here unconscious, despite not being in the best condition himself. I gave you hydra to heal your broken leg and gave you a single healing potion. But you’re body is still weak.”

I blink and attempt to sit up, but he stops me with a hoof. “But…” I mutter weakly. “The...battle...everyone…” I fall back to the ground as I become lightheaded.

Cora nods to Medkit, and he leaves us. “Lance and the Junk Rats took down the Legate,” Cora explains. “They took his body and strung it up in the clearing. It wasn’t long before the legion fell apart at the sight of their fallen leader. Some fled, but others tried fiercely to reach his body. We held here, and now are trying to finish clearing the town.”

“Who…” I take a careful, deep breath. “Who...survived the attack?” I ask.

“Macro, Soar, and Hal are doing alright,” Cora tells me. “Lance is hurt, but still alive along with three of the other Junk Rats. Um...Sky Shaker lost a wing, but he should survive. Medkit is helping him right now. Hammer is the only one who survived from Bronze’s group…” She trails off as she looks around the room we are in. “I’m not sure about the other groups. It has been fairly crazy since I got here. The tank was destroyed though,” She mutters.

Another set of hoofsteps approach and I turn my head to the right as Wick sits down beside me with a lit cigarette sticking out of his mouth. “The doc told me you were awake,” He says. “I guess...we won?” He mutters weakly, not looking at me so much as staring past me. “Things were...bad. We lost a lot of good ponies today,” He says with a frown.

“Y-Yea…” I mutter in agreement. “My group was decimated. What about...your’s?” I ask him.

Wick takes a drag of his cigarette and then exhales slowly. “Snowflake is alive. Medkit is watching over her. The rest died. Now, the only folk left from Ebon are me and the three that rode in the tank,” He says sadly. “I hear that Ember...she made sure they survived,” He glances aside.

“Then, the tank crew survived?” I ask. “I was worried when Cora said the tank was destroyed.” I breath a sigh of relief, as little a relief that is. There has been enough death today. But Wick’s face is dark. “What is it?” I ask.

“Ember didn’t make it,” He tells me. “I don’t know the details, but she didn’t make it out of the tank.” I close my eyes. Ember was a good mare, during the time I knew her, that is. All of the ponies who died today were good ponies. But...at least we won...right? Right?

“So...of everyone we went in with...eighteen of us survived?” I ask for clarification. eighteen...counting the Junk Rats, the AI, and me. We started with thirty-six. Half...we lost half of our group, but we won. I have mixed emotions. Should I be thankful that only half of us died? Or should I be sad that we lost so many?

Wick blows another plume of smoke. “Half,” he mutters. “But now, Hoofington will be safe. No more towns will suffer the same fate as Neighton or Ebon,” He says. “At least, once we drive them all out. Most have died or retreated, but there will still be remnants here and there. Snow...She’s going to track them down with the rest and finish them off. I’m going to help. Once I bury my family, that is,” Wick tells me.

“I see. That’s good,” I mutter.

“What about you?” Wick asks. “Will you help us get the rest of them?”

I start to answer, but Cora speaks up first. “We are going to return home,” She says. “Ratchet is in no condition to keep fighting.” I want to argue, but given how I am feeling right now, she is right.

Wick sighs. “I’m sorry to hear that. Well, I’ll be going then. Snowflake and some of us are going to go help the Junk Rats clear the town completely,” He says as he gets up.

“Wait,” I call up to him. “Can you have one of the tank crew come here?” I ask. “I want to hear what happened to Ember.”

Wick nods. “Of course,” He says, and then continues walking away.

“Cora,” I start, “why can’t we stay and help them? Sure, I’m hurt, but I will recover after a while. You and the others could really do some good, though.”

“Our supplies are getting a little low,” Cora explains. “And, we have spare medical supplies at Icicle Lab. We can heal you up easily without using any of the militia’s already small supply. Besides, the major battle is over. It is just clean up now.”

“I see. I guess I understand that,” I reply. “But still, it feels like we should be helping, not leaving.” Cora doesn’t reply, but just lowers her head.

A sudden chuckle from my left draws my attention. I carefully turn my head and see the red cloaked figure of War. “She’s lying, you know. In truth, she and those other AI were never here for the ponies of Hoofington. They were here for Ratchet’s sake,” He says as he shoots me a glance. “Oh, and you’d best not reply. She’d think you’ve gone crazy. Head injuries tend to do that sort of thing,” War says with another chuckle.

“I do have to get back to work. But listen kid, you should take my words to heart. Look in a mirror and see if you’re truly worthy of the name Ratchet anymore. Because honestly, you’re nothing like her,” He tells me, and with that he disappears again. Not worthy of the name Ratchet? I laugh slightly to myself. I haven’t changed, I’m the same as always.

They did tell me they watched me because they got bored. War must be looking to stir up more action. But I won’t turn on Cora that easily. She is my friend and I made her myself. Cora can’t lie to me.

Hoofsteps approach once more. This time it is Eclipse who stands beside me. “Wick says you wanted to hear about what happened with Ember?” He asks.

“Yea,” I tell him. “I hear she didn’t make it. What happened?”

Eclipse sits. “The zebras finally brought out the AM rifles and rockets. We managed to withstand a few shots, but the eventually caused a fire to erupt inside,” He tells me. “When we weren’t able to put it out, we had to abandon it and escape out the hatch. As the commander, Ember made sure we all got out first, but she was in a bad way already.”

“Those burns she got, they started getting worse, sitting in the hot tank. After helping us all out, she wasn’t able to pull herself out. The flames climbing around her didn’t help the matter either,” Eclipse says grimly. “I was the last one out, I tried to pull her out, but I think her armor got caught on something. In the end, the flames reached her and finally she told me to let her go and get away.”

He shakes his head with a frown. “I wouldn’t. I was going to drag her out of that tank if it was the last thing I did. She knew that. And so, with the strength she had left...she took her pistol and shot herself in the head,” Eclipse says as his voice chokes up. “I was shocked, but I left her to take cover from the zebras shooting at me. I suppose suicide was easier than burning to death.” He lets out a long, sad sigh. “She saved our lives. Saved my life. After I got off the tank, the remaining shells we had exploded. I would have died if I stayed there a moment longer.”

“I’m sorry,” I mutter. “It was my fault she got the burns in the first place.”

Eclipse frowns. “No, it wasn’t your fault. It is just the kind of mare she was. Helping others even if it meant hurting herself. You know, she rarely slept while fixing the tank. She was determined to make it run so we could use it,” He explains. “If anything, I should thank you. She got to see the tank working and commanded it before she died. I could tell it made happy.”

“I...I’m glad,” I say, smiling weakly. “Still, it doesn’t change the fact she’s gone. She’ll be missed.”

“Yea. She will be. But, we’ll remember her. Right?” He asks with a smile.

I nod weakly. “Right,” I agree.

Eclipse stands back up. “Well, I’ll let you get some rest. Take care, Ratchet,” He says.

“You too, Eclipse. Thanks,” I reply as he trots away. “Hey Cora, I think I’m going to go back to sleep. Okay?” I tell her. I feel really tired.

“Of course. I’ll be here when you wake up,” She says. And with that, I close my eyes and quickly drift off to sleep.

===~+~===

After I woke up again, the battle in the city had ceased. The militia pushed out all the zebras. We had completely won. The militia members found a few carts to use to load their injured and dead into and the Junk Rats used one for their dead.

The AIs and I saw the two groups off and then, I got in Cora’s armor. I was still pretty weak, so she maintained control of the armor and the four of us make our way back to Icicle Lab. Once we returned, Cora helped treat my injuries. It took a few more days before I was back at one hundred percent, even with the help of potions.

In the end, thinking back on the battle, I didn’t really do a whole lot during the fighting. The others are the ones who did most of the work and Lance really stole the show. I state as much in the entry on my terminal.

A lot of ponies died, but in the end, I think it was worth it. Equestria will remain safe from the zebra threat. Until they mass again to try another invasion. If they manage to at all. I hope that day never comes. I hope they stay back where they came from.

For now, however, I’ll get back into the pod until I’m needed again.

Intermission - HAL

Author's Note

This is the final Intermission chapter. Like the rest, Cora tells the story and you don't need to read them. They just do character building.

Intermission - HAL

Around the year 90, things started to get really bad in the wasteland. I’m talking huge groups of raiders, slavers, and Steel Rangers all trying to get you. The raiders and Rangers would try to kill you and the slavers, of course, would try to enslave you. Of course, these three groups weren’t the only things to worry about. There were also cannibals, power hungry individuals, ruthless scavengers, zebra remnants, groups of ghouls or robots, and alicorns started to show up at one point.

These groups alone are bad enough, but when you consider all of the pre war technology that began to once again circulate around the Wasteland thanks to scavengers and other groups rediscovering it, the groups also got a lot well armed. When Ratchet and I first left the lab, most weapons and armor amounted to glorified heaps of scrap. At year 90, laser and plasma weaponry was becoming a lot more common, as were explosives and heavy weapons. Armor also started to get better as well. All in all, hostile ponies got a lot more deadly.

For the next decade my friends and I managed to hold our own against these forces. Most of the time, we avoided them if we could. After all, there was no reason to needlessly fight. Soar would warn us about threats before we encountered them and if we ever got ambushed, our suits protected our inner components enough to keep us moving. That is just one of the benefits to being an AI in a hollow suit. Of course, Macro had it a bit rougher, as he still used a Mr. Handy body.

More than a few times, our bodies would be shot to hell and only Soar’s suit had a repair talisman in it. This left Macro and me to repair our own suits as they got damaged, and out in the field sometimes we had to make due with wonderglue covered sheets of metal. On one occasion, Soar and Macro were hit with a emp grenade. This caused a horrible problem for me as I was still outnumbered about ten to one.

Luckily, they only had the one grenade and I managed to take them out at the cost of a good portion of my body falling apart from bulletholes alone. I was able to drag myself over to Soar and Macro to initiate a restart of their systems. Once they were back up, we stopped our trip and Soar had to carry me back to the lab for repairs. After that, I made sure to upgrade us all with an auto-restart system incase of future emp attacks. The system wouldn’t kick in for a few minutes after the emp goes off, so we also had to institute a new policy of not standing near each other while fighting to make sure none of us went down at the same time.

Around the year 100, these sorts of incidents began to occur more frequently. We would find our bodies being damaged almost every other excursion into the Wasteland. We tried to do a number of things differently to avoid further damage. But whether we chose different routes, traveled only at night, or even tried to run at the first sight of anything that might be hostile, we kept running into trouble.

Because of this, in the year 106, we decided that it was time for a new addition to our group. We quite easily decided upon their body and designation, but the personality was the question. In the end, we just decided to adjust the traits randomly, even maxed out a few of the values. We were not sure what kind of personality we were going to get.

Of course, since we used a copy of Soar’s program, their base abilities would be the same. Decent accuracy and precision with their movements. This would be very important for what we had in mind. The only thing that concerned us, is whether or not this new AI would choose to stay with us or leave. Macro and Soar had prior knowledge before making their choice. Soar had my knowledge and Macro had been here for years already. But for a completely new AI with no prior knowledge, how would the offer seem?

We didn’t have to wait long to find out. When we activated H.A.L., we explained to him what he was, introduced ourselves, and told him the situation. He was pretty perceptive about it all, and took it all rather well. He was polite, like Macro, but Hal’s voice was deeper and carried more weight with it. Of course, we found during our first fight with Hal his personality had another aspect to it.

It turns out, while Hal was perfectly polite when in civilized company, he does a complete one-eighty when in combat. He swears, a lot, insults his enemies, and likes to play mind games. He was like Twinkle, in a way. But he was deeply sadistic and cruel to those who stood against him. Twinkle fought aggressively, but she was never this cruel to her enemies. Hal also really enjoyed explosions. He really, really liked them. Sometimes he would throw a grenade just to see it blow up when there wasn’t even anyone around.

Of course, all of this we found out later. But his body surely helped us to discover it. It was oddly, a perfect match for this other side of her personality. Hal’s name stands for Heavy Assault and Logistics. We needed someone with more firepower, Hal was our solution. I started by taking three of the remaining ranger suits and taking them apart. I then built off the frame of one of the suits that still had a working repair talisman.

Hal’s body was going to be big and weigh a lot. As a result, I started by reinforcing the legs and taking some of the pistons off the other suits and put them onto this one. Each leg has double the amount of pistons and servos as the regular suits. I hoped this would not only help stabilize him, but also keep him quick enough to keep up with us for the most part. But I wasn’t done there.

After the upgrades to the legs, I set about upgrading the basic armor to a sort of composite armor, like that in armored vehicles. This wouldn’t be nearly as good, but it was essentially an outer layer that was the original armor, then about an inch deeper into the armor, I made another layer of the metal armor for the suit. Between these two layers, I put sand, which is in abundance just outside the lab. The joints of the armor and the area where the internal magazines feed through the suit into the exterior guns are still weak, but that’s to be expected. Due to this armor scheme, his innerworkings are a lot closer together than in the other suits.

I didn’t stop there, however, I upgraded the exterior armor too. The legs each have reinforced plates along the length and additional parts of the armor that cover the joints in the knees. I also covered the shoulders with more armor to protect the joints. Since the armor didn’t need to be comfortable for an occupant, these upgrades will protect Hal a lot better. The body itself was also upgraded with more armored plates.

I made a number of other upgrades to the helmet and neck, but the most substantial of which is a custom piece that protects the join where the neck connects to the body. I molded some plates into two pieces, both half circles. One part, a larger part, I welded onto the front of the body armor, so it suck up in front of the neck. It leaves about an inch between the chin of the helmet and the top of this piece of armor. The other part of the armor I welded onto the back. This part fits into the front part but still allows the front piece to move. These two parts formed a sort of large collar around the neck to protect it.

The last parts of the armor I changed, was adding a few spikes on the tail and claws around each hoof. Given his weight, I don’t think he’ll be doing much charging at the enemy, but if they should get close to him, it is a good thing to have weapons to can fight them off. To finish off his armor, I painted most of his armor a dark amber, but the mane and tail parts a mustard yellow. In black, I painted his designation inside the collar along his neck armor.

The final thing I had to do was put the weapons on his armor. I picked out a grenade machinegun for his right side and on the left, I put Twinkle’s minigun that wasn’t destroyed in her fight with Umbra. I knew that Hal would do it justice. Once I was finished with his armor, I let him take it for a ride.

He was pleased with it. Hal said it was a bit slow, but it would suffice. Then we went out to test out the weapons and he seemed pleased. He especially enjoyed shooting the grenade machinegun to the point where I had to stop him before he wasted too much ammo. I had to explain how rare the round for that gun were and he let out a sigh before staring longingly at the blackened ground he shot at.

Hal claimed another portion of the living quarters and began living with us. He came in handy in our fights and we began to hold our own again. I think most of the time, the raiders were simply intimidated by his size and the look of his armor. I specifically went for intimidation when I added the extra armor. Hal made things easier for us.

But, even with Hal we sometimes found ourselves on the receiving end of a particularly ferocious attack. And even if there was another one of us, the Wasteland wasn’t getting any better. It was like things were constantly circling the drain, being dragged further and further down. The four of us weren’t equipped to deal with the wide scale chaos and horrors that the Wasteland had. We helped out if we came across some ponies in need, but there was never anything we could do on a large scale.

Instead, we mostly left that up to Ratchet, in the hopes that she would somehow be able to fix things and return Equestria to how it once was. But, she was just one pony, and like how adding another of us AI into the mix didn’t do much, adding Ratchet to the four of us didn’t accomplish much.

Ratchet was our guide and our hope for the future. But I didn’t want her exposed to any more of the Wasteland than she had to be. So I kept her frozen until she was needed. Once she was no longer needed, I would freeze her again. She also seemed ready to be frozen again, so I wasn’t really forcing her into it.

But, I will say it again. I am an AI. Macro, Soar, and Hal are AIs. We don’t get pony emotions. We have a simple grasp on the most simple of them. When it comes to complex emotions we can only imitate. There might be AI out there that are capable of understanding, but the four of us do not. I think because of this things inevitably went the route they did.

Chapter 33 - Spear of the North

"The cold doesn't sting nearly as much as your words."

===~+~===

“It’s time to get up, Ratchet. I’ve found us some work,” a voice calls out to me. It starts off fuzzy but steadily becomes clearer. I open my eyes slowly and look at the inside of my pod. “Ratchet, it’s time to get up,” Cora says again.

I stretch groggily as the pod opens up. I look around the room that looks the same as always. Well, at least nothing horrible happened while I was asleep. “You know the drill Cora, how long’s it been?” I ask her, and then climb out of the pod.

“One hundred and nine years since the war, Ratchet,” She tells me. I nod and go over to my PipBuck, then put it back on. My vision flickers, shows the usual warnings and then returns to normal. Or, so I think. New words start appearing in my vision.

>S.P.E.C.I.A.L. Stats Compatibility Issue.
>Skill Stats Compatibility Issue.
>...
>...
>Generating New Stats.
>...
>Initial Boot Complete.

What in the...? Again? It generated new stats for me again? Seriously, this thing is getting to be more trouble than it is worth. I shrug and decide to deal with it once I hear what Cora has to say.

“Gotcha. So, what’s going on this time, Cora? Some crazy pony mad with power? Two opposing sides threatening to tear the wasteland apart as they fight things out? Another pod, perhaps?” I ask her while checking out my systems.

“It’s a pod, this time, or at least I think it is. I found some records indicating a MoWT facility in the north. Way, way up there too. It is apparently in the middle of nowhere in the Frozen North. I’ve already taken the liberty of procuring you some winter clothing,” Cora replies.

“Way to go Cora, nice work,” I tell her. “Any idea what we’ll be dealing with? Either the facility or inside the pod?” I ask while I walk to the armory.

“Typical MoWT defences, more than likely. Sentry bots, turrets, probably some laser death traps, all the good stuff,” She says. “As for the pod...the only references I found all mention the word ‘Abominable’. No details on what it is or does,” Cora explains.

“Abominable? Like, Abominable Snowpony? Well, I suppose it is in the Frozen North,” I mutter. “Anyhow…” I say as I enter the armory. “Where is everyone else?” I ask. Cora’s AI friends don’t seem to be here at the moment.

“They are investigating a possible lead on another pod. It is down in the Badlands,” She tells me. “I thought it best if we split up instead of all going to one. If they get back with good news, we can go there as well.”

“I see. Any reason we are going to the Frozen North then? I mean, it isn’t like they can feel the cold…” I mutter.

“I just flipped a bit. It came up tails, so we are going north, they went south,” She tells me.

I let out a sigh. “Let’s gear up and head out,” I say as I start putting my barding on.

===~+~===

Days later and many, many miles north, Cora and I have crossed into the snowy Frozen North. Right in the middle of a blizzard, I might add. I can barely see a foot in front of my face, and Cora is the only reason that we stay on track. “Cora, do you see anywhere we can rest?” I yell over the winds. “My legs are going numb!”

“My sensors aren’t doing much better than your eyes are, trust me, Ratchet,” Cora calls back. “I can’t see anything nearby.” This is going bad quickly. Cora will be fine as long as she keeps moving. But with me being a flesh and blood pony...The chances of me dying here are quite high.

As if to make matters worse the ground begins to shake. “Oh great, now what?” I say as I fall over. My numbing legs no longer able to support me. Luckily I fall on my side, keeping my exposed muzzle out of the chilling snow. “Cora! See anything?” I shout.

“The snow is rising!” She shouts in response. As if waiting for her words, I suddenly see a great mound of snow rise up higher and higher. It explodes, sending even more snow scattering into the winds. From the snow rises a worm-like figure, only infinitely larger. Larger even than a manticore.

Its mouth itself is larger than Cora and I combined and it is filled with razor sharp teeth. Half of it is scaley while the other is covered in fur. The head of the creature is crested with spines, more than likely used to dig through the ground. It turns towards us and unleashes a blast of fire from its gaping maw. The flames don’t reach us, but they melt the snow in their reach and it creates a temporary tunnel void of snow.

But as rapidly as the snow melted, the blizzard covers the ground in snow once more. The words of Madam Saber, a mare that I met long ago who said she was from the Frozen North, ring in my mind. “I ran into a few wyrms on the way as well. For whatever reason, they are swarming up there,” She had said. She later told me about them, and her descriptions match this creature perfectly.

“A wyrm,” I mutter as my eyes go wide. It is bigger than I imagined. Cora begins shooting at it, but it just seems annoyed. I shake my head to gather my wits and pull out Forgiveness. Despite our best efforts we only seem to be pissing it off. The wyrm keeps breathing fire at us, which both aids Cora and I in having less snow to deal with and causes us to run for our lives from it. Their flames can apparently melt steel, and I didn’t want to take any chances.

After one particular blast of flame, Cora and I run into each other. We manage to stay on our hooves, but the wyrm uses our momentary pause in movement to strike its mouth towards us. A shout rings out from somewhere in the blizzard and a moment later, something smacks into the Wyrm, causing it to veer off course and slamming its maw into the snow feet to our left.

“What are you waiting for comrades! Sink the harpoons! This wyrm is ours!” A voice shouts. Moments later, more objects fly through the air and hit the wyrm. It makes a beastial scream as the figure on it jumps from one harpoon to the next, slashing wide gashes in the wyrm and making its way to the front. Once there, the figure lifts their spear and pierces the wyrm’s eye. It screams and thrashes, but as the figure holds on to it, the wyrm progressively thrashes less and less until it is still more.

The figure jumps from the head of the wyrm and lands in front of us, spear grasped in their mouth. They stab the spear into the snow and smiles at us. “Well, hello there comrades! They call me Sickle,” The buck says, holding out a hoof towards us.

“Uh...thank you for saving us?” I reply and shake his hoof.

“Ha, think nothing of it. We were hunting the beast anyway,” Sickle tells us.

“I see. So, uh, Sickle? Was it? Do you live around here?” I ask.

“Indeed comrade,” Sickle says. I raise an eyebrow. He seem overly friendly considering this is, you know, the Wasteland.

“Uh, hu. Where about do you live?” I ask him.

Sickle smiles widely at me and replies, “About a mile to the east. We have a small settlement there. If you’d like, you’re free to accompany us back there.”

“That close? Cora, have you heard anything about a settlement near here?” I ask her.

Cora shakes her head. “No. Not many ponies travel up here though, so it isn’t surprising to discover a settlement no one knows about,” She tells me.

Sickle nods his head. “Indeed. Not even we know of every other settlement up here. But, our settlement is new. About one year ago is when we first formed it, I believe,” He tells us.

“That new? Where did you all come from before?” I ask.

“Oh, you know. All over. Some of us had a small group together and fell in with some others who were looking to survive. Together we just kind of decided to set up shop. Together we survive, alone we die. That’s our take on things,” He explains.

I look over the buck skeptically. He is wearing light barding and a simple jacket. Not exactly the kind of attire I would expect someone who lives in the snow and ice of the Frozen North to wear. He seems more geared towards a warmer climate. Despite his light clothing, he doesn’t seem cold at all.

Looking past him at the fallen wyrm and I see other ponies, some dressed in heavy clothing others dressed like Sickle. The others are attaching ropes to the wyrm and pulling out the large harpoons.

“Ok, Sickle. We’ll accompany you. I’m freezing and it will be nice to get out of the cold for a while,” I say. He smiles broadly at me.

“Very good! It is always nice to have company. If you don’t mind waiting for a few minutes while we prepare to transport the wyrm, we’ll start home then,” He tells me. Sickle turns to walk over to the wyrm, but then looks back at us. “I got the armored miss’s name, but what is yours?” He asks.

“Ratchet,” I tell him. “It is nice to meet you.”

Sickle chuckles as he replies, “The feeling is mutual, Ratchet, Cora.” He then turns back to the fallen wyrm and shouts, “Alright comrades! Get the beast ready to move! We will eat well tonight!”

With some distance between us and Sickle, I turn to Cora. “Let’s be careful. He seems a little bit too friendly. Maybe he is up to something. Don’t let your guard down,” I whisper. Cora nods.

Faster than I thought possible, Sickle and the other ponies finish tying the wyrm in ropes and we start towards their settlement. Sickle and the others are dragging the wyrm across the snow. There is probably twelve of them, counting Sickle. Cora and I offer to help, but they refuse and say it wouldn’t be right to have guests do manual labor.

Slowly but surely, we traverse the snowy landscape and enter into a valley. Nestled in the middle of this valley is our destination. It is a small village, and due to the blizzard, I don’t see it until we are already within. In the center of the village, is a large fire and surrounding the fire in a circular fashion are domed structures made out of snow.

The ponies drag the wyrm near the fire and then start taking the ropes off of it. “Start preparing the beasts, comrades! I will tend to our guests and then join you in a moment,” Sickle declares and walks over to Cora and I. “Follow me, I’ll take you to my home,” He says, and then starts walking to one of the domes of snow.

“Say Sickle, these are igloos, aren’t they?” I ask as we walk.

“Indeed! We don’t have much in the way of proper building materials here, but we made due. The insides are also lined with hide from the wyrms and our beds, furniture, and clothing are made from the fur of the beasts,” Sickle explains as he leads us into his igloo. It isn’t too large, probably only big enough for five ponies at the most, but given the properties of snow, any bigger and it might collapse.

Inside is also an earth pony mare, who I assume is his wife, judging by her age. She is wearing light clothing, similar to Sickle’s. Her fur is a cool red while her mane is a deep crimson. “Ah, grandmother! We have guests!” Sickle says with a smile. Wait...Grandmother? Her? She looks my age! Well, the age my body appears. Did the cold stop her from aging or what?

“Oh? I’m sure they are cold. Come dears, warm yourself in our home. My name is Marrow,” She says. I have to admit, I was already feeling warmer. If it wasn’t for the snow, I wouldn’t think we were in the Frozen North at all.

“Thank you for having us, ma’am,” I reply. “My name is Ratchet and my friend here is Cora.” She smiles warmly at us and gestures to a couch made of bone and wyrm fur.

“Oh please, we don’t get many visitors out here. Make yourselves at home, you can hang your coat on that wire there, Ratchet. And if you want to take your armor off, feel free Cora,” She tells us.

I do as she says, and hang my snow covered coat on the wire. I unwrinkle my lab coat and readjust my barding. As I do so, Cora says, “I’ll stay in my armor, if that is alright. I quite like it.”

Marrow smiles and nods. “Of course, dear. Now, Sickle, how did your hunt go?” She asks.

Sickle smiles and replies, “Excellent, grandmother. We killed a large wyrm today and judging by some of the old scars, it is the one that got away last month.”

Marrow laughs. “I knew you would get it eventually. Are the others taking care of it?” She asks him.

Sickle nods. “I had them go on ahead without me while I got our guests situated. But, I think I will go help them out now. If, that is, you think you can handle entertainment, grandmother?” He asks with a sly smile.

Marrow chuckles and shoos Sickle with a hoof. “Go on, I’ll make sure they are taken care of,” She tells him. Sickle bids us farewell and takes his leave. All this talk of taking care of us is sending chills up my spine. She then turns her attention to us. “Settle down, we aren’t going to rob or kill you,” She tells us. “You’ve looked anxious since you stepped hoof inside, Ratchet.”

“Forgive me if you saying so doesn’t help ease my anxiety,” I reply. “Usually ponies who are going to pull one over on you tend not to tell you they are.”

Marrow nods. “That is true. But, think of it this way. You were out in the blizzard when Sickle and the others found you, yes?” She asks. I nod. “If we wanted to rob or kill you, we could have just done so out there, when you weren’t aware of us,” She says.

I purse my lips and furrow my brow. “I suppose that’s true,” I mutter. Sickle did come out of nowhere and could have just let the wyrm kill us before killing it.

“Now then, I suspect you might have questions about us and our settlement?” Marrow suggests. “Most who wander across us do. I’m something of the village leader, being the oldest here,” She says.

I nod. “You’re right about. This is an odd place for a settlement, considering the harsh climate. Why not settle further south?” I ask.

“You came from down there, right?” Marrow asks, and receives a nod from us. “Then you know what it is like. Settlements rise and fall down there. You have raiders, monsters, all sorts of nasty things. But here, the worst is wyrms and the snow. The wyrms mostly stay away from this valley, and the snow is something we’ve grown used to,” She explains.

“I guess that makes sense. There are a few of you who seem to not mind the cold as much. Well, what do you do for resources? The wyrms give you food and some supplies, but what about water? And how do you make fire? I’ve not seen a single tree for a while. Do you have to travel far to find wood?” I ask.

Marrow nods rhythmically to my questions. “The wyrms give us our food, most of our building supplies, and is actually the source of our fire as well. Water we get from simply melting snow. Everything else we can’t get up here, we make a trade expedition for every few months and go south,” She tells me.

I raise an eyebrow. “Wait, the wyrms are your source of fire as well? How does that work?” I ask.

“Well, you’ve seen them breath fire, correct?” She asks, I nod. “Then, you know they produce fire. Inside their body is two, crystal like stones that when struck together creates fire. In addition to these, we burn the fat. The crystals, when separated from the wyrm last for around six months. And the unicorns here have learned they can use their magic to manipulate the crystals to control the intensity of the flames,” Marrow explains.

“I see, that’s actually quite interesting,” I mutter, putting a hoof to my chin.

We spend a while talking about their settlement and slowly my anxiety about them goes away. After a while, Sickle comes back from dealing with the wyrm. The four of us talk for a bit longer before the inevitable question is asked by Marrow. “So, what are you two doing up here in the Frozen North?” She asks.

“We are actually looking for a MWT facility up here,” I tell them.

Cora nods in agreement. “It should actually be around here, actually. But the blizzard has made finding it a bit difficult. Snow could be covering the entire entrance for all we know,” She says.

The smiles that were on Marrow’s and Sickle’s faces disappear. “Why are you looking for it?” Sickle asks, his voice is filled with concern.

“There might be something in it that I need,” I reply. They are both acting a bit suspicious. “Do you...know where it is at?” I ask them.

“Maybe,” Marrow says, narrowing her eyes. “Who are you two, really? You aren’t normal travelers. One of you is wearing power armor and the other is wearing a rather pristine lab coat. And you both seem rather intelligent for normal wastelanders. Are you Steel Rangers?” She asks. We went from me being suspicious, to them being suspicious.

“We aren’t Rangers,” I tell her. “Though we aren’t simple travelers either. I’m not sure a single word can explain what we are. But, before I go into that, the two of you are hiding something as well. You seem like good ponies and I don’t want to pry. So I will ask you one question before I explain. Do you know what is inside the MWT facility that the word abominable is used to describe?” I ask them.

Sickle and Marrow exchange a glance and then Sickle replies, “We do.” Simply that, nothing else.

I nod and explain to them our situation, including having Cora open up the armor to expose the hollowness within. When I explain the part about cryogenic pods knowing expressions come over their faces. Once I conclude my explanation, I ask them, “Can you tell us where it is?”

The two exchange a glance again and Marrow says, “Yes. But first, let me tell you about us. Like you, I was born before the war. I was a member of the MWT facility you wish to investigate. It is called the Snowfall Facility, and the purpose of it was to find a way to better combat the zebra threat here in the Frozen North. As you know, zebras attacked us from everywhere, nowhere was spared. Much of our equipment was hard to use in the harsh climates of the Frozen North.

“And so, a project was created by the name of Abominable. This project sought to use the snow to our advantage. You would think that would be a more MAS project, correct? MA, with their pegasi. But, MWT had a plan. It wasn’t magic, wasn’t controlling the weather, it was earth pony engineering.

“Robots were our plan. Robots that could use the snow as a weapon, condense it into ice and freeze our enemies despite their armor. We had a prototype for the freezing mechanisms, but had yet to put them into a robot when the plan was changed. Instead of a robot, we would build a machine that resembled a pony, that would house our freezing mechanism as well as the mind of a pony.

“I don’t know who it was whose brain we put into the machine, but things seemed to be going well. Tests were proceeding as planned. That is, until the megaspells fell. Our facility was far enough away to not be affected by the blasts or the fallout. And luckily, due to our remote location, we had our own garden in the facility to meet our small demand for food.

“Cut off from the rest of the world, we kept to ourselves. There were only around six of us to begin with, but as time went by relationships started and we had children. Then, grandchildren. I was an old mare, probably only a few years from death when one of us suggested we put our minds in the spare prototypes we made for Project Abominable.

“We had five prototypes, each resembled a pony, none of the freezing mechanisms in them. They were our attempts to get the pony form down. At that time, there were fourteen of us. Some of us refused to put our minds in machines. Only seven of us wanted to. With only five prototypes, we held a lottery.

“My grandson, Sickle, and myself are two of those who won that lottery. The others you’ve seen dressed lightly are the others. A few of the actual ponies here are also from Snowfall. Others found us and joined us. But you might be wondering why we are here now and not inside the facility.

“One year ago, Abominable, the weaponized pony we made went berzerk. He destroyed the heating systems and without those, we would freeze to death. Abominable wouldn’t let that happen though, he was set on killing us. A few of us fell as we escaped the facility, including my daughter, Sickle’s mother. When we got out of the facility, we sealed it behind us so Abominable could not escape,” Marrow explains.

It was a lot to take in. No mention of Abominable being sealed in a cryo pod, either. I guess this facility isn’t connected to my pods. But, with Abominable still in the facility, I don’t think we can just walk away, either. “Well, it isn’t what we are looking for, but I think we should take a look,” I tell them. “I don’t think we should leave Abominable alone in the facility for someone to stumble upon later, if he is still berzerk.”

Marrow shakes her head. “It is sealed. No one will get into it. The facility is lost,” She says.

“I think you might be underestimating just how much determination ponies have to loot places,” I tell her. “Eventually, someone we get into it. We should stop it before that happens. If we beat it, you could all take back the facility, too.”

Sickle raises an eyebrow. “Why do you want to help?” He asks.

“I don’t know, it is just kind of what I do. I want Equestria to get back to what it once was. Having deadly pre-war thing lurking in the darkness isn’t going to help that,” I explain.

Marrow furrows her brow, deep in thought. “I will open the facility for you and lock the door behind you. I will wait for you for two hours and if you aren’t back by then, I’ll leave you for dead,” She tells me.

I nod. “That sounds fine, assuming we don’t waste too much time looking for Abominable,” I tell her.

Sickle stands up and grabs his spear. “Let me help you then,” He says with a smile around the spear.

“Sickle!” Marrow says crossly.

“Grandmother, it is fine. I’m our best hunter, and mostly machine. I can help guide them around the facility,” He tells her. “Besides, one of us should be present if they are going to fight Abominable.”

Marrow frowns, but agrees. “Fine. But, we will set out to the facility once this cursed blizzard is over. For now, let’s go over Abominable’s abilities and his weak points. The three of you will have a tough time,” She tells us.

“Thank you,” I tell her and Sickle. We then begin our briefing on Abominable and the Snowfall facility.

===~+~===

When the blizzard subsides three days later, the four of us set out to the Snowfall Facility. It is only an hour walk to the entrance, or at least where the entrance should be. “The blizzard snowed in the entrance,” Marrow mutters. “Oh well, it is a good thing I brought these with us…” She digs around in her bag and holds out two crystals to me. “Here, Ratchet. Since you have magic, it will be safer if you use them.”

“Huh? What are these?” I say, as I pick them up in my magic. They are blood red crystals, about the length of my forehoof.

“Wyrm fire crystals,” Marrow tells me. “It is how they produce their fire, as we told you. Just point where you want the flames to go and strike them together. Of course, since you’re a unicorn you can control the size of the blaze, but there is no need for you to learn how to do that,” She says.

“That’s it?” I say, raising an eyebrow at the strange crystals.

Marrow nods. “See that depression in the snow? That’s the entrance. Melt the snow and we can enter,” She tells me.

“Incidentally, why is the entrance below ground level? In the Frozen North isn’t that kind of...a bad idea? Didn’t it always snow over?” I ask as I point the crystals at the depression.

“It isn’t,” Marrow says as I strike the crystals together. At first, it is just a spark, but then flames erupt from the crystals and spew forth. The flames reach at least five feet in front of me and the radius is around three feet. Needless to say, it sets my mouth agape. “This is the entrance to the facility,” Marrow says when the flames die down.

The flames have melted a rough crater in the snow, exposing the ground below and the concrete of the structure. The crater is six feet deep and approximately a seven foot radius. Inside the crater, is the partially exposed concrete bunker that serves as the entrance to the facility, the door of which is is at ground level. My mouth opens further and I mutter, “This snow is really deep…”

“That’s what happens when you don’t tend it for a good year or more,” Sickle says. “It always was the hardest part of living in the facility.” Marrow slides down into the crater, followed shortly after by Sickle. After staring into the crater for a moment longer, Cora and I join them.

The facility, or what I can see of it anyway, is a plain concrete structure with no identifiable markings. Set between two hunks of concrete is a door that seems to be made of metal. As I approach it, I can make out lettering set into the concrete. Snowfall Facility. Ministry of Wartime Technology.

Marrow is beside the door, and I see her slide part of the concrete aside, exposing a terminal. “Had to protect the terminal from from the weather, you know. Of course, we had to deice it frequently,” She says offhandedly. After hitting a few keys the door lets out a groaning sound. Marrow clicks her tongue. “The door must be frozen shut on the other side as well. Ratchet, strike the crystals again on the door,” She tells me as she closes the panel again and steps away from the door.

“Wait, can’t wyrm fire melt steel? Won’t doing that render the door useless?” I ask her.

Sickle answers for her, “It was treated in a way to resist wyrm fire. At least temporarily. Eventually, it would melt. But the worst that will happen is that it will heat up after a few seconds.”

“Alright then, it’s your facility…” I mutter and strike the stones again. The flames strike the door and after a while they go out once again. I give the crystals back to Marrow. The door looks just the same, but the concrete around the door is black. Marrow walks back to the panel and tries again. This time the door opens, splitting in two horizontally and then receding into the ceiling and floor.

“There you are. I’ll be here to let you out. Remember, two hours and not a minute more,” Marrow says dryly.

“Thank you, Marrow,” Cora says. “We’ll be back soon.”

“Yes grandmother, we’ll be back. No need to worry,” Sickle says with a smile.

“We’ll be back shortly,” I add with a nod. “Let’s get going you two. We need to find Abominable.” The three of us enter into the facility and Marrow shuts the door behind us. I was expecting a relatively normal facility, typical MWT stuff. But this is a bit...different. This floor is an open area filled with large crates of supplies. Near the back is what looks like a large freight elevator and beside that is a staircase leading down.

On top of that, everything is iced over and piles of snow are everywhere. Honestly, I can only see a small part of the floor. It is like a cave, almost. Icicles rise from the floor and hang from the ceiling as well. If I didn’t know any better, I’d think that we were just inside a mountain cave not a research facility.

Sickle lets out a whistle. “Seems Abominable had his run of the place while we were gone. I doubt simply the lack of heating would create snow and ice. Well, while we look, I suppose I’ll give you a tour,” He says, gesturing around him. “This is our main storage. When we received deliveries, they would be dropped off here. At least, that’s what grandmother said,” He shrugs.

“Now we just have all this, the supplies have been here for years,” He tells us, walking towards the elevator and stairs. His spear is in a sling across his back, with part of the shaft sticking past his head so he can grab it in a moments notice. Normally, it would get in the way of wearing packs, but since he isn’t wearing any it is fine.

The three of us approach the elevator. “As I thought,” Sickle mutters. “The elevator is iced over. We’ll have to take the stairs.” He looks down the staircase. “Watch your step, they are covered with ice as well,” he says. We slowly, very, very slowly, descend the staircase. I almost slip a few times but manage to steady myself.

Once we are at the bottom of this case, we arrive at a T intersection with both choices descending down into more stairs. A sign near the ceiling probably indicated what was in which direction, but the ice has made it unreadable.

“On the left is our living quarters, the right is our small security section. I think we should go left for now. The entire lab is connected, so we shouldn’t hit any dead ends, unless Abominable did something,” Sickle says, and starts down the stairs to the left. “These stairs are icy as well, watch your step.”

We descend the stairs and end up in a hallway with a set of double doors on our immediate left. Further down the hall, I see six doors and way at the end is a corner turning right. “Those doors on the left lead to the sub-storage. It is where the elevator leads so we can easily transport supplies here and to the security wing,” Sickle tells us. “It also goes down another level to supply the reactor, water and heating, and research and development wing as well.”

“So, this is a multi-tiered facility?” Cora asks.

“In a way,” Sickle replies. “The main storage is on ground level, then is security and living, and under that is the reactor, heating, and research level. But they aren’t stacked on top of each other. Instead, it is like a staircase. Each level is like a step down into the earth,” He explains.

“Oh, I see,” Cora mutters. “So, that elevator goes down to each level, which I assume has its own smaller sub-storage on that level?” She asks.

Sickle nods as we walk towards the six doors down the hall. “Exactly. Of course, the ones that are further down have long tunnels that lead to the actual facility on that level. Due to the direct access, the tunnels also have a number of turrets and thick doors that require clearance to get through,” Sickle explains.

“Makes sense,” I say as we reach the doors. “Let’s check each room, then we can move on. Anything we should be concerned with in these rooms?” I ask Sickle.

He shakes his head. “They are pretty basic rooms, not even that big. Originally, there was one for each staff member. Once things went the way they did, they started being used as separate rooms for each family,” He tells us.

“Oh. Didn’t that get cramped?” I ask him.

“At times. There were only six beds, so we started using extra blankets and the like for those of us that came after. Thankfully, we only had three generations living here. If us grandchildren of the original occupants decided to get together, things would have gotten really tight,” Sickle chuckles.

We each take two doors and check them out. The first one I look into is a fairly simple. A bed in the corner, a dresser and nightstand are the major furniture in the room. On the floor is two bundles of blankets, like makeshift beds, like Sickle said. Of course, when I touch them I find them frozen completely stiff.

There are some other personal effects in the room, such as a picture of five ponies I don’t recognize. It is probably the family of one of the original occupants. I don’t see them having a camera down here. But, a question occurs to me as I look at the picture. With nothing else of note in the room, I step back outside.

“Hey Sickle, I just thought of something. Since that isn’t your original body, does your current body look similar to your original?” I ask him, though he is in another room. I walk to the next room while I wait for his reply.

“Nope!” He calls back. “Not even the same color palate. None of us who put our minds into these machines look similar to what we looked like before. These bodies don’t have any defining features, either. No cutie marks, freckles, moles, that sort of stuff. Just generic coloration,” He says. After a moment, he calls out again, “Oh, and no genitals either. Being all machine, that would be sort of pointless, ya know.”

“I know what you mean,” Cora chimes in. “But us machines have our own way of copulating. Of course, it isn’t for reproductive purposes. It is purely entertainment,” She says. They can? That’s...weird. I wonder how it works. Perhaps electrical impulses or something?

“You don’t say?” Sickle replies, his voice filled with curiosity. “You’ll have to tell me about that sometime.”

The other room is much like the first, only with one less group of blankets on the floor. This room also has a few more pictures of ponies I don’t recognize. I also spot a book on reactor maintenance on top of the dresser, but of course the pages are frozen together and the book is completely frozen to the dresser. Well, as long as Abominable isn’t in here, I suppose nothing else really matters.

I walk back into the hall in time to hear Cora reply to Sickle, “I don’t think you would be able to figure it out. For an AI or machine, it is basic knowledge. But for you ponies who live in the physical world, it isn’t a concept you can grasp. It is like trying to imagine a fourth or fifth dimension.”

“Can you imagine a fourth or fifth dimension?” Sickle asks.

“No,” Cora responds. “I can logically know what they are based upon what the first through third dimensions are. But, when it comes to imagining an object in a higher dimension, it is impossible for me as well,” she says.

The two of them step out into the hallway with me a few moments later. “That’s a shame,” Sickle mutters. “Anyhow, we should keep going. We’ve got a lot of ground to cover, and we have a time limit,” Sickle says, and starts walking down the hallway.

The three of us continue to the corner and find another flight of stairs. At the top is another sigh too iced over to read. “This takes us down into the reactor area. You know, just assume any more stairs we come across are slick. Let’s go,” Sickle tells us. We descend into the reactor area.

The reactor area is a large rectangular room with a reactor in the middle. Power cables run from it up into the ceiling. Some terminals are around the room, probably once used to monitor and regular the power flow. A catwalk crawls up one wall and rises over the reactor. No doubt to provide maintenance access to it. Across from us is another hallway, to our right is a small door, and to the left is security door.

“Intruders detected,” A synthetic voice declares. It sounds like...and then I spot it. A protectapony. It stumbles out from behind the reactor and looks directly at us. “Extermination authorized,” It announces.

“Shit,” I mutter. “Get ready!” I shout and draw two of my knives. Sickle already has his spear in his mouth and is moving in position to attack the robot. Cora is doing likewise. The robot is targeting me and starts raining firing upon me. I quickly jump out of the way and slide behind a desk in the room. Cora’s guns go off and I hear the bullets impact the robot.

The robot turns its attention to her instead of me and I peek over the desk. Cora is now behind the reactor taking cover from the robot, but it seems hesitant to shoot at the reactor. It must have been programmed to not shoot at it. I notice that some of its armor near one of its arms has been stripped away, exposing some circuitry inside.

I quickly throw the two knives I have in my magic at the exposed wiring. My first knife bounces off the armor just below the wires, but my second strikes true. The robot’s arm immediately goes slack as it turns back to me. But in doing so, it turns its back on Sickle. In that moment, he drives his spear through the machine, tearing our various circuits as the tip makes its exit.

Immediately, the robot’s limbs go slack and it falls to the ground with a crash. Sickle pulls the spear from the machine and looks around for more. “It looks like that was the only one,” I say as we gather up again. “You didn’t mention robots,” I tell him, slightly angry.

“Yea, sorry comrades. Last I knew, they were deactivated and used for spare parts. Abominable must have repaired them. Incidentally, there should be two more somewhere,” Sickle tells us.

I look at the robot at our hooves. It is a pretty standard protectapony. Like the rest of a facility though, it is covered in ice and snow. “So, two more of these to deal with, huh?” I mutter. “Well, at least the cold is making them brittle,” I say as I pick my knives back up. “But it is also freezing my tail off...How is it colder now that we’ve entered into the facility?” I complain.

“That is probably Abomination's work. His body is a bit different from mine. Its metal is resistant to the cold and his weapons work better the colder it is,” Sickle tells us.

“I see,” I mutter as we start looking around the reactor room for anything we should be wary of. “By the way, a spear is an odd choice of weapon. Wouldn’t a gun or something be more effective?” I ask.

“You’d be surprised,” He replies. “In this harsh climate, weapon maintenance is crucially important. The cold, snow, and ice are all factors you have to be aware of. The cold can cause parts to break easier and the bullets to become faulty. It is a huge mess. A spear doesn’t have those issues,” He says.

“That’s a good point,” I mutter, recalling my time learning about gun maintenance with the Rangers. “So, where did you get it from?” I ask him.

Sickle chuckles. “It is an heirloom from my grandfather on my father’s side. The one who wasn’t Marrow’s husband. Marrow’s husband, Hammer, came from Stalliongrad. Where as my other grandfather, Waltz, was a former royal guard. Once the war began, he joined the actual military and later became security here. Kept his spear through all of it,” He says proudly.

“It served him well, and it serves me just as good. Apparently it has a special enchantment on it so it never needs maintenance. It stays sharp as the day it was first made. Which comes in handy, because that same enchantment also means it is nearly unbreakable. Wyrm hide or scales? No problem. Even metal robots aren’t an issue. And, it doesn’t get brittle in the cold,” Sickle adds.

“Huh, that is handy,” I mutter, inspecting the knives I threw. One is a bit rusty and the other could use a good sharpening. It would be nice to have an enchantment like that on my knives. “Well, I think this room is clear. No more robots lurking around and no sign of Abominable,” I say.

“Yea,” Cora agrees. “He must be deeper in.”

Sickle nods. “That, or he is back up in security or the sub-storage areas,” He mutters. We are about to continue through the hall into the next room when I hear the sound of treads coming from behind us. I turn just in time to see the other two protectaponies coming out of the stairway to the security wing.

“We’ve got company,” I tell the others as I draw my knives. Cora and Sickle turn just in time as the robots start shooting at us. Their lasers streak down the hallway as we struggle to get out of it and back into the reactor room without getting hit. The three of us make it out and slide into the nearest object of cover. All the while the robots are moving closer and keeping us pinned down. It isn’t long before they move between us and the reactor itself and an idea hits me. “Draw their fire!” I call out to the others.

“You got it!” Cora replies and starts shooting back at the robots. The robots react as expected, and focus on the threat at hoof. This gives me, and Sickle, an opportunity to close the distance. I keep as far from the robots as I can while flanking to the right of the robots and try to stay out of sight. Sickle flanks left, but barely makes any progress towards them before one starts shooting at him again. Cora is pinned behind her cover by the other.

This gives me the opportunity I need to close the distance. I finish looping around to the right side and then dash in behind them, putting myself between them and the reactor. “Hey, robots!” I shout as I throw a knife at each of them. The knives strike their casing and bounce off, but it does draw their attention. “That’s it, I’m your enemy too,” I say as I draw two more knives. The robots turn towards me and level their guns, but they stop short of shooting.

I smirk, just as I thought. “What’s wrong? Can’t risk shooting me and damaging the reactor?” I taunt them. Cora and Sickle move closer to them while I have the robots’ attention. “You see, this is why I never really liked robots. The two of you could very easily kill me, and probably do so with minimal damage to the reactor. But, because of your programming you can’t even fire in the general direction of the reactor,” I say with a smile. “Just another reason that AI and living breathing ponies trump robots.”

Sickle is right behind one of the robots now and Cora is a fairly close to the other. “Need an example, robots?” I ask them. “Let the three of us demonstrate. Now!” I shout. Cora sprays her target with bullets, shattering its brittle metal armor and exposing a its insides. A few of her shots miss the mark and fly towards me and the reactor, but don’t do any serious damage.

“See? An AI just attacked you despite the reactor and myself being in the line of fire,” I say, and then throw one of my knives at the damaged robot. It strikes a critical component and sends the robot spinning in circles. The other robot turns to target Cora as she finishes off the damaged one. “Another thing,” I declare, “you robots seem to be programmed to attack the most hostile elements first. Which means, you leave yourselves open.”

Sickle runs at the remaining robot, plants the end of his spear on the ground, and swings his body around it, slamming his rear hooves into the robot and sending it flying towards me. It slams down on its side and grinds to a halt next to me. However, it fires it weapons as it lands and one of the lasers hits my rear leg. I quickly use my other knife and pry open part of its armor as I draw another knife and stab another crucial component inside with it. The robot powers down and its limbs go limp.

“And that, is why robots will never be as good as AI or ponies,” I mutter, as I put my knives away and inspect the burn on my leg. The laser burned through my winter clothing and scorched my leg up a bit. Nothing worth drinking a healing potion for, but I should probably bandage it. A few minutes later, and it is all bandaged up and we are back in the hallway leading deeper into the facility. “So, Sickle, what will we be heading into down this hall?” I ask.

“This hall leads into the heating regulation room. It is where water and air is heated to make sure things don’t freeze over. Once in the room, left will take us to the water treatment and regulation room and right will take us to the research and development wing. Those two are linked in the back by our greenhouse,” Sickle tells us. “Though, no doubt the greenhouse has seen better days.”

“Yea, this cold and ice can’t be good for it,” I agree.

“Can’t be good for your water pipes either,” Cora adds. “No doubt any water left in them has been frozen solid.” The three of us emerge into the heating room. There are various pipes and air vents running into the walls and ceilings. All of the vents funnel into a central vent that rests between two large heaters. This central vent also has a valve on it where two vents branch off from the central one and connect to the heaters. The pipes also have a similar setup to the vents, with a large central pipe resting between the heaters.

“Actually,” Sickle begins, “our water distribution system has a failsafe in place that removes water from the pipes in the event the temperature falls below a certain point. Though, that isn’t likely to happen in most cases. We have two heaters for a reason. Only one runs at a time. We switch when we do maintenance or one breaks.”

“That’s actually a very good system,” I say. The heating room is wide open with nowhere to hide. “Doesn’t look like Abominable is here,” I mutter. “On to the next room?”

Sickle nods. “I doubt he would be in the water distribution room, so let’s go straight to research and development,” He says and leads us to the right. We enter into a hall with doors and windows on either side. “This is where the magic of Snowfall happens. All of our planning, tinkering, and testing happens. Abominable has a room at the end of this wing.”

“He should be in there then,” I mutter. “But, let’s check each room along the way, just in case.” Sickle and Cora nods in agreement. Lucky for us, each room long the hall has a window looking in so we don’t have to chip away at the ice on the doors. A kind of observation thing, I suppose, and they are a little frosted over, but we can see through them enough.

The first room looks like a drafting area for planning out the construction of Abominable’s weapons and body. Drawings and notes hang from the walls and heavy looking books are on the desks in the room. The next room looks to be a hardware room used to actually make the weapons and body. Tools, components, and scrap metal are scattered about. There is even half of a robotic body hung from the ceiling by its metal vertebra.

Next is a room that seems dedicated to the software behind working the weapons and body. Two terminals in the room are hooked up to what appear to be parts of a robotic body. In the next room, I see what is essentially a shooting range. Worn down target dummies hang from the ceiling or are attached to stands in the room. The last room, aside from Abominable’s personal room, looks to be a sort of classroom. There is a desk in the middle and multiple chalkboards are in the room, each with different information on them. It seems to be mostly military tactics, but one of them details the amount of pressure to takes to melt snow and how cold the melted snow has to be chilled to in order to form ice.

“Not a bad facility, you have almost everything you need down here,” I say, thinking of my own lab. It is always interesting seeing the differences in research facilities. “Ok, last room is Abominable’s, right? Let’s get ready,” I say as we near the last room in the hall. It is the only room without a window looking in. We won’t be able to see until we open the door. It does look like the door to this room has been used recently. It lacks the ice the other doors do.

“I’ll open it,” Sickle says as he stands near the door. “Cora, be ready to shoot as soon as you see him. Ratchet and I will back you up when there is an opening,” He tells us. “That sound good?” He asks.

Cora and I nod and take position near the door. After a moment, Sickle opens it then takes cover around the corner. “It’s empty,” Cora says as she walks inside. “Nothing but another room like in the living quarters.” Sickle and I poke our heads in the room. She’s right, it is an almost exact copy of the rooms in the living quarters. However, this one is much more sparsely decorated.

“Shit,” Sickle murmurs as he puts his spear away again. “I wonder if he is in security then.” He holds a hoof to his chin in thought and then says, “let’s check out the greenhouse and water distribution before we backtrack.”

“Right,” I nod in agreement. We make our way to the end of the hall and the large door I suppose leads to the greenhouse. Sickle opens the door and we go follow through the doorway. The room beyond is largely open, aside from two dead trees. The room is divided into four sections, each with four large planters. Everything is covered in snow and ice, much like the rest of the facility. Large mounds of snow are in random places around the room, and large icicles hang from the trees. The trees are in the middle of the room on our right side. Between these two trees, is a throne made of snow and ice, and on this throne is pony.

The pony has ice hanging from his chin and ears and snow covers his back, blending in with his white coat. His grey mane is slicked back along his neck and frozen stiff, his tail barely moves as he shifts on the throne and turns his attention to us. “I’ve been waiting for you,” he says flatly. “You three have been quite noisey, you know.”

“Abominable…” Sickle says, his voice full of spite. “Well, we wanted to make sure you knew we were coming. You could have saved us the trouble and come to greet us.” The three of us spread out as he talks.

“Please. You remember the tactics drilled into us, don’t you? By your grandparents, by my keepers?” Abominable says. “Wait for your enemy to come to you.”

“You’d know better than I. You did have over a hundred years to memorize them,” Sickle replies. “But, we aren’t here for pleasantries and we are on a time limit.”

“Clearly.” Abominable says simply. “But, I expect you forgot the reason why we were taught to wait for the enemy to come to us. Because we lay traps for our enemies,” he says, and pulls on a length of wire near him. A few mounds of spew snow into the air as something comes out of them, sending dozens of shards of ice at us. Cora takes the hits without moving, but Sickle and I try to dodge them. I manage to avoid most of them, but one sails right past my head and pierces a hole through the hood of my coat. Sickle seems to have made it without a scratch as well. Wait…

“Why did you dodge, Sickle? You’re made of metal like Cora,” I ask as I get back to my hooves.

“For the same reason she should have dodge as well,” Sickle replies. I look over at Cora, and see that her armor is missing in numerous places. “Cold makes metal brittle, remember? His ice is also exceptionally hard, we went over this,” Sickle tells me.

“Cora, are you alright?” I ask her as I make my way to her.

“Nothing vital was hit, Ratchet. I’ll be fine,” She replies. I reach her side right as Abominable pulls on another wire. More of the mounds erupt into icicles. This time, we all dodge and I fall to the side as I do so.

“Everyone good?” I ask as I get back to my hooves.

“Good,” they reply in unison. I look around for more mounds and spot three more. Judging by how many have been going off at the same time, I’d guess those three will be triggered at the same time. He can’t aim them either, so as long as we get away from where we are standing now, we should be fine.

“Quick, get away from the entranceway!” I shout as I make my way towards the wall across from the throne. Cora follows after me, but Sickle heads for the other wall.

“That’s another tactic we learned, remember, Sickle?” Abominable says as he pulls another wire. “Route your enemy.” The remaining mounds erupt and send out their shards. But these are aimed in a different direction, right at the wall Sickle is heading to. I try to call out, but the sound of the ice impacting the wall drowns out my words.

Once the shower of snow and ice dies down, I can see Sickle clearly again. A good portion of his skin is ripped, exposing the metal underneath. Even some of the metal has broken away, exposing some wiring. He is raising a hoof to the wires as he walks on three hooves towards Abominable. “You’re out of traps now, Abominable,” he says.

“Well, they served their purpose. I didn’t expect much from them, but they did damage two of you,” Abominable replies. He slowly gets up off the throne and stands to face us. “I expect that damage you sustained will impede your movements, Sickle,” he says.

Sickle chuckles. “It is a shame you are modeled after me. You know just where to hit to do the most damage,” Sickle tells him. Then Sickle addresses Cora and I. “Careful you two, his body is specially treated so it doesn’t get brittle in the cold, unlike mine. Remember what we talked about back in the village,” He says.

“Right,” I reply as I get closer to Cora. “Lay down some fire so Sickle and I can get close,” I tell her, keeping my voice down. Cora nods and I begin to circle Abominable to the left. With Cora at his front, Sickle to his left, and me to his right, we’ll have him focusing his attention between three different directions. When he attacks one of us, the other two can hit him in the back.

Abominable doesn’t seem to care that we are surrounding him and just stands there. Once I am in position, Cora opens fire on Abominable. Immediately, he slams his hoof on the ground and a sheet of metal rises up out of the snow, blocking her shots. I draw a knife as Sickle runs as quickly as he can towards Abominable. Abominable won’t be able to dodge our attacks while blocking Cora’s. Either he gets hit by us, or moves and lowers the shield and lets Cora shoot him.

I throw a knife at him, but all it does is break the ice covering his body, he didn’t even try to avoid it. Sickle gets within striking distance a moment later and Abominable jumps away from the shield to avoid Sickle’s stab. This gives Cora a clear shot and she begins to fire once again. Some of the bullets strike Abominable’s body, but don’t see to do anything more than break ice or send billows of snow drifting from his body. Abominable turns his head toward Sickle and spews out a cloud of freezing vapor.

Sickle quickly dodges this cloud as it sweeps over where he was just a moment ago. “Perhaps I didn’t slow you down enough,” Abominable says as the cloud disappears. He then opens his jaws and forms a bolt of ice, then sends it towards Sickle, who barely manages to leap aside. All the while, Cora is shooting him and barely doing anything.

Abruptly, she stops shooting and I hear her let out an expletive. “My assault rifle’s done!” She calls over. “I think a spring broke!” Great. Soon we will only have melee left to resort to.

“Use your sniper then, it should pack more punch anyway!” I tell her as I draw Forgiveness and another knife. Hopefully Forgiveness doesn’t break like Cora’s assault rifle. I shoot it once, and the bullet strikes just under him. As I line up another shot, Sickle charges back in at Abominable, but once again Abominable just steps aside and blasts Sickle with his icy breath. But as he does so, Cora hits him with a round from her sniper. A huge chunk of ice flies off him and I think I see a bit of metal mixed in with the ice. “Keep it up Cora!” I call out as I try to get closer.

Cora’s shot spares Sickle of getting doused with the icy cloud, but Abominable turns his attention to her and shoots an ice shard at her. She manages to avoid it, but her next shot goes wide and misses completely. With Cora distracted, Abominable points his muzzle up in the air and spews forth a blizzard like snow, obscuring my vision. The snow fills the room like a snow globe and I can only see flashes of color here and there. But I hear movement, it sounds like Abominable is charging towards Cora. I run blindly through the snow, following the sound. I hear Sickle’s hoofsteps as well, I think.

Suddenly a spear comes out of the snow towards me. I just barely manage to throw myself to the ground as it stabs right where my head just was. “Sickle! It’s me!” I call out.

“What? Shit,” I hear him mutter from right above me. “I didn’t get you, did I?” He asks.

“No,” I say, as I get to my hooves. “You weren’t lying when you said he can literally make a blizzard,” I tell him.

“Yea, luckily it works both ways. He can’t see any better than we can,” He says.

Just then I hear the sound of ice striking metal and Sickle grunting in pain. “True, but I can hear you,” Abominable says, his voice coming from our left. I point Forgiveness in that direction and fire once. The sound of my bullet hitting metal is quickly followed by Cora calling out in surprise.

“Ratchet! You shot me!” She yells. “I thought we were friends!”

“Shit, sorry! I thought Abominable was over there,” I reply. “You ok?”

“Yea, just dinged off my armor,” She tells me.

“That’s a relief,” I say. The next second, a shard of ice stabs me in the side.

“That isn’t though, is it?” Abominable says from my right. I hold a hoof to my side as I point my gun in that direction, but I can’t see anything and I won’t risk shooting blindly again. I decide to just shut up and wait as I pull the ice shard out of my side. If I keep getting holes cut in my clothing, I’m going to freeze to death faster than I’ll bleed to death.

After a few seconds of silence without even hoofsteps in the snow, Cora speaks up. “Sickle, Ratchet, don’t move. Call out so I know where you are at,” She says. I hesitate for a moment, but then hear Sickle call out and I quickly follow. “Got it, don’t move!” She yells. After a moment, I hear two objects hit the snow, then nothing for a few seconds. And then, I hear a ‘fwoosh’ and the air gets a bit warmer for a moment. I look around and see some flames around the room. In a few more seconds, the snow in the air becomes thinner and soon after it finishes falling to the ground.

Sickle is standing next to me and Cora is a few feet away from us. Abominable is standing a ways off between the us. “Incendiary grenades, hu?” He mutters. “Effective against snow, but against my body they will do nothing.” He’s got a point. I think I’m the only one at risk from incendiary grenades. At least we can see now, but at this rate he is going to slowly wear us down.

“Sickle, we need to keep him away from Cora. Her gun can get through his armor. If we get up close, we can keep him from getting to her,” I whisper to him.

“Got it,” Sickle replies. “But watch out for his attacks. You don’t seem to be the most nimble on your hooves,” he tells me.

“Yea, yea. You take his right, I’ll take his left. Cora will shoot when she has a line on him,” I say as I begin to walk towards Abominable. I holster Forgiveness and draw three knives in my magic and one in my mouth. Sickle and I make our way towards Abominable, dodging his shards and breath as we do so. Cora takes a few shots at him, but they don’t do anything vital. Once Sickle and I get within striking distance, the real fight begins.

Sickle starts with a series of quick stabs, which Abominable easily avoids and retaliates with a cloud of freezing mist. Cora takes a shot as I press the attack, striking his body with my knives and ripping through his artificial skin. My attacks don’t do much, but they do expose his metal body underneath. Abominable turns to me and launches a shard at me. At this range I barely manage to avoid it by jerking my head to the left and dragging my knife along his neck.

I pull back right as Sickle attacks again, but Abominable rears up and Sickle’s spear stabs right under his chest. Cora takes this opportunity to put a bullet in the middle of his chest, which sends Abominable back further than he anticipated. He staggers and Sickle stabs at him again. This time, Sickle’s spear goes straight through Abominable’s torso. Abominable lets out a cry, but quickly turns towards Sickle and lets out another breath of freezing mist.

With his spear still inside Abominable, Sickle cannot avoid the cloud. The cloud envelops Sickle and Abominable immediately slams his front hooves down on Sickle. Sickle’s metal body fractures and chunks break off from it as he is thrown to the ground, his spear still sticking out of Abominable. “Sickle!” I call out as Abominable turns his full attention on me, with Sickle’s spear still piercing straight through him.

“Shit,” I mutter as I jump to the right to avoid an ice shard. Cora keeps shooting as I try to dodge Abominable and keep him busy. Sickle is struggling to stand. Oh, this is bad. I can barely avoid Abominable’s attacks, let alone counter attack. I keep backing up and rolling aside, but then I feel the wall against my rump.

“Nowhere to run now,” Abominable says as he opens his maw, no doubt to exhale his freezing breath at me. Before he can do anything, Sickle leaps onto his back and wraps his hooves around the protruding ends of his spear. Sickle pulls on the spear, pulling Abominable with him. Abominable unleashes his breath, but it misses me as he is thrown about by Sickle. Sickle hauls Abominable over onto the floor and the two struggle for control.

I quickly recover and get over to them. “Sickle, where is his weak point?” I ask as I look over Abominable’s body. Thanks to all the damage, I can see the various slats in his body under his artificial skin.

Sickle struggles to answer me as he fights with Abominable. “Left side on his abdomen, there should be a jagged looking slit with rounded edges,” Sickle tells me and then jerks Abominable around to try and expose that side.

“You bastard,” Abominable spits as he struggles against Sickle.

“You used your knowledge of our similarities to your advantage, it is only right I return the favor,” Sickle tells him. I quickly look over Abominable’s body and look for what Sickle described. No...No...not that one...Ah, there it is. I find the slit and stab my knifes inside it, trying to pry it open. Come on...come on…and one of my knife breaks. Shit.

“Cora!” I call over to her, “Shoot right here!” I point to the plate of metal with a knife tip.

“Got it!” She replies. A moment later, a bullet strikes the plate, cracking it. I then stab my knives into the cracks once again and pry with all my magical might. Slowly, the pieces break away and expose the circuitry underneath. I quickly stab my knives into the circuitry and damage everything I can.

Abominable screams out in pain. “Arrgg! Stop! Don’t cut those! Damn you Sickle!” He yells. As I keep cutting, his body eventually stops struggling against Sickle and lies still. Sickle gets off of him and pulls his spear out of Abominable’s body.

“What component was that?” I ask Sickle. “He isn’t dead, just immobilized. Some sort of motor control?”

“More or less. I’m not sure about the specifics, but I was always told to guard that spot,” Sickle replies.

Abominable lets out a growl. “Well, you won. Kill me then, Sickle. Or will you have your friends do it for you?” He asks.

“Oh no, I got this,” Sickle says, and stabs his spear through Abominable’s head. Abominable goes completely motionless and silent as Sickle pulls his spear out, and then proceeds to fall over himself. He lets out a grunt. “Abominable got me pretty good. I’ll need to let my repair talisman do a bit of work before I can move properly again,” He tells me.

“Do you need anything?” I ask him.

He shakes his head. “I have enough spare scrap metal in my internal storage that it shouldn’t be a problem,” Sickle says. “By the way, how much time do we have left?” he asks.

“Twenty minutes,” Cora tells him.

“Ah, well. You two should get back to grandmother before she keeps us locked up in here,” Sickle tells us. “I’ll stay here while my body repairs itself. With the robots and Abominable taken care of, there shouldn’t be anything else in here to worry about. But, don’t take any chances and go back the way we came,” He says.

“Alright,” I say as I put all my knives away. “We will be back once we assure her Abominable has been taken care of,” I tell him. “Let’s go, Cora.”

===~+~===

Over the next few days, Cora and I help Sickle, Marrow, and their village make the transition back into the Snowfall Facility. At first, it is just helping the ponies who once lived there get it habitable again. Of the fourteen original occupants, three others similar to Sickle and Marrow help out. I suppose that matches the number of prototypes they had to put their minds into. One of these three, Ether, is part of the original six, like Marrow. Generation one, I suppose you could call it. The other two include Lavender, Ether’s daughter, and Mercury, Lavender’s grandson.

In addition of these five, three remain from the original fourteen that once occupied the facility. Echo, Sickle’s uncle on his father’s side and husband of Lavender, and Mute and Howl, Echo and Lavender’s daughters. Of course, these three are flesh and blood ponies like me. Once Marrow and Sickle informed the others of what I did for them, introductions and celebrations began.

They also tell me more about what happened to the other occupants. Waltz, Sickle’s former royal guard grandfather, died as they escaped, along with Sickle’s parents, Lint Trap and Flora. Marrow’s husband, Hammer, died shortly after they left due to exposure to the cold. Echo’s parents, Pomegranate and Xenon died from old age in the facility before things went south. Some tales are sadder than others, but after passing the night away, the remaining eight occupants of the facility, Cora, and I set about trying to fix up the facility.

The very first thing we do, is repair the damage on the heating systems. Luckily, they have enough spare parts in storage that it isn’t too much of a chore. But then is the task of clearing the snow and ice.

We start with removing the ice and snow around the elevator so we can use it to transport the snow from the lower levels more easily. With it free, we use the few carts they have to pile snow into and then haul it outside. It is a slow process, but eventually we make progress. As the heat starts to kick in, it helps us a bit. The water distribution room and each of the bedrooms have drains, so we leave the snow in there to melt naturally as it warms up. Our main focus, is getting the snow and ice off of the terminals and sensitive equipment so they don’t receive any further damage.

Once the snow and ice removal is complete, we set about inspecting everything that might have been damaged by the snow and water. This includes everything from bedding, papers, and electrical components, to seeds used in the greenhouse. It is only slightly less arduous than removing the snow. After assessing the damage, we work to restore everything that we can. A few terminals and quite a bit of the more sensitive equipment is unsalvageable. But, the major systems of the facility remain operational. I suppose that has something to do with the original construction being meant to stand up against extreme temperatures.

Fixing up the facility takes us about four days. Once we kick on the heating and goet most of the snow removed, the remaining villages are brought in to make themselves at home. There is only six of them, but given how cramped the living quarters already are, I wasn’t sure where they were going to fit everyone. But then they start clearing out the experiment and testing labs and putting things in storage. Abominable’s room is cleared out left unoccupied so the six new residents can share his bathroom.

I also keep receiving thanks and praise for helping them. I keep telling them it isn’t a big deal. It was just something I felt I needed to do. It wasn’t to help them, specifically, but Equestria as a whole. Their praise makes me...anxious. I’ve had people thank me over the years, and they all end up worse off than when I helped them or dead.

That was how things went. The Wasteland sucks and it will take from you till you have nothing left, and then take some more. I’ve rarely seen how cruel the Wasteland can be though, I just hear about it through Cora. I’ll wake up and ask about someone or somewhere we helped, and she’ll give me the bad news. In the beginning, I didn’t believe her. I’d drag her along till we found a body, a grave, the charred or bloody ruins of a town. I always wonder, how can things go south so badly in the course of a few months or years.

But here, in this remote facility, seeing everyone’s smiling face and hearing their kind words...I have hope that maybe, just maybe, this place won’t end up the same way as the others. That Sickle, Marrow, and the others will live in peace and quiet until they die of old age or their bodies rust away. Because of this, as I’m about to leave and Sickle tells me something, I hesitate.

“You know, you could stay if you’d like,” Sickle tells me. I turn and blink at him in surprise. “I know you have your own lab, and that you freeze yourself, but I’m sure it gets lonely. You could live here with us, if you want.”

I stare at him for a moment, my jaw working but no words coming out. I bite my lip and look at the ground. “I would like that,” I tell him, with a sigh. “But...I can’t. I told you why I’m doing what I’m doing. If someone stumbled upon one of the pods and released something nasty, it would do a lot of harm.”

Sickle frowns. “Why is that your responsibility? Did you seal these things, these ponies away?” He asks. I shake my head. “So you don’t have any obligation to find these pods.”

“But it is my technology, my research that helped make them,” I reply.

Sickle shakes his head. “From what you said, it was stolen from you and used without your knowledge. You aren’t at fault, if anyone is, it is Twilight Sparkle herself for using your research without telling you,” he tells me.

“She’s gone now, though. Everyone from before the bombs is, unless they are a ghoul or a robot like you. If I don’t find the pods, no one else will look for them. Ponies will stumble across them, and may get themselves, and others killed,” I tell him, furrowing my brow.

“Ponies die all the time in the Wasteland, Ratchet. And I’m certain there are worse things out there than whatever is in your pods. Take Abominable as an example, he wasn’t even in a pod,” Sickle says. “During the war, dangerous and deadly weaponry was the norm, and not all of it is sealed away in a pod.”

“You’re right,” I mutter. “But why shouldn’t I try to remove as many dangerous things as possible from the Wasteland?” I ask. “And there aren’t just things that are dangerous sealed away in these pods. There are good ponies who deserve to be free again. Ponies who can help the Wasteland,” I tell him. This seems to quiet him, at least for a moment.

“You shouldn’t have to do this,” He tells me.

“I have to,” I tell him. “I survived the end of Equestria, I was lucky enough to be allowed to live just a little bit longer. By all accounts, I should be dead right now. I’m roughly a hundred and thirty years old. I had my time and everything that I once knew is destroyed. Someone like me is exactly who needs to do this.”

Sickle stares at me for a minute, before turning to Cora. “Cora, can I speak to Ratchet alone for a moment,” He asks.

Cora nods. “Of course. I’ll be outside waiting, Ratchet. It was nice to meet you, Sickle. Take care!” She says and starts towards the exit.

“You as well, Cora. And if you are ever up in these parts, feel free to stop in and say hello!” Sickle calls after her. Once the door outside closes, Sickle and I are the only ones left in the storage room entrance. “I am concerned about you, Ratchet,” Sickle tells me.

I’m taken aback for an instant, but compose myself. “Why? I’m fine, Cora is here for me, and her friends too. It isn’t like I am running myself ragged or anything either,” I tell him.

“Listen to me for a moment, Ratchet,” Sickle says, his face serious. “You make yourself sound good and kind, and you are, without a doubt. I’m sure you believe you are as well. But...you’re not...normal.”

I chuckle at that. “Of course I’m not. I’m a scientist from before the war who keeps freezing herself,” I tell him.

Sickle shakes his head. “That isn’t what I mean. The way you handled Abominable, without hesitation and the mindset to kill him...Not to mention, when I finished him off, you didn’t even try to stop me. I know he was bad, so killing him doesn’t bother me. But you are a stranger here,” He tells me.

“What do you mean?” I ask, confused.

“You believed us right away that Abominable was bad, when we could have just as easily been the bad guys. Did you think for one moment that maybe Abominable didn’t try to kill us, but drive us out for his own safety? You didn’t try to talk to him, get his side of the story,” Sickle says, letting out an odd sigh. “I think that a normal, good pony, would have asked him. Would have stopped me.”

“Are you saying I should have doubted you?” I ask.

“Yes,” Sickle says. “I’ve taken a few trips to the south. I know how bad things are down there. If you don’t doubt, you don’t live long. But...I’m not sure lack of doubt is your issue. I think you don’t care.”

I flinch. “Why do you think that?” I ask.

“Let me ask you something,” Sickle says. “It has been around seventy-five years, give or take, since you first woke up in the Wasteland, right?” I nod. “In those seventy-five years, how long do you think you’ve been awake?” He asks.

The question catches me off guard. “Uh...I think…” I trail off. How long...had it been? "Less than two years?" I suggest. Wait, now that I think of it, I started keeping a memo in my PipBuck. “Wait, uh, let me see here…” I mutter as I fumble with it. I find the memo, a list of the total time I’ve spent in the Wasteland. At the bottom is a total that I read aloud, “Thirty four years...” I stare at the number in shock. Thirty four? But...I don't...remember?

“You just said less than two years a moment ago,” Sickle says darkly. “How could you forget all of those years? Dark memories you want to forget? Well, how about this, how many ponies have you seen die?”

I move my mouth, but I can’t find any words. “That many?” Sickle says. “You remember them, don’t you? All of them. Maybe not individuals, but towns, families, locations? Celestia...I don’t know how you are still sane. Ponies have broken for less. I think...I think you’ve become desensitized to death and killing. You still know it is sad and wrong, but when it happens it doesn’t bother you anymore. Am I wrong?” He asks.

I think back to the last few times I was in the Wasteland. The way I killed raiders, the muted reactions I had when innocents died...One thought hits me: Sickle is right. He’s right, and I have nothing to say in return. At my silence, Sickle frowns. “Despite this,” He says, “You go out of your way to help others. You’ve not been broken yet, but you’ve seen so much.”

Sickle sighs. “I can’t do much, Ratchet, but, I’ll be here if you ever need me. If you can’t take the weight of the world anymore. We’re comrades, after all,” He tells me.

“I...Sickle, you could always come with me,” I offer.

He shakes his head. “Snowfall needs me. I’m our best hunter, the metal body does help though. Besides, once you get back to your home, you’re just going to freeze again, aren’t you? I’ll just be left there, waiting,” He says.

“Actually, I have a second unoccupied pod in my lab. You could always use it. Then you wouldn’t have to wait,” I tell him.

He chuckles slightly. “I appreciate the offer, I really do. But, I want to say here, for now. We just got the facility working again, after all,” Sickle tells me with a sad smile. “I’ll be here for a while, and if you ever need me, I’ll be here. Be it a day, a month, a year, even a hundred years from now. You helped us and I’ll return the favor.”

“Thanks,” I tell him. “I’ll be sure to stop by if I am ever up with way again or if there is something I need your help with.” I hesitate for a moment before going on. “One last thing,” I say, pulling my PipBuck’s interface cable out. “I’m assuming you have some sort of mapping system build into your body?” I ask.

“Sort of. It isn’t like a PipBuck, but it serves its purpose,” Sickle replies.

“So, if I were to give you the map data to my lab, you could use it to find your way there?” I confirm.

“Yes, in theory. I’ve not really used the function all that much,” He tells me.

“Well, here. Hook this in,” I say, giving him the interface cable. He lifts a hoof, moves aside a flap of fake skin, and plugs the cable in. “Ok, here you go…” I say as I send him the location.

“Got it,” He says, and unplugs the cable. It retracts back into my PipBuck.

“Good. If you ever need anything, I should be there. If not, I’ll return shortly. Oh, and the entrance is a little odd. It is inside a shed, you go underground and through a few bulkheads. Oh, and the password for the doors!” I say, with sudden recollection. I look around us cautiously before I lean next to him and whisper the password into his ear. Leaning back, I put on a serious expression. “Listen, Sickle. Don’t tell anyone else this information. There is no telling what would happen if my lab fell into the wrong hooves.”

Sickle nods. “Of course not. We’re comrades. And comrades don’t sell out other comrades. Your information is safe with me. Oh yea, and before I forget, Marrow asked me to give you something before you go,” He says, and digs around in his bags for a moment. He pulls out two long objects wrapped in cloth. “Here you are,” He says, holding them out to me.

I take them in my magic, raising an eyebrow at them. “What are they?” I ask, as I unwrap one of them. After a moment, the cloth falls away revealing a glowing red crystal underneath. “Wait, these are…”

“Wyrm fire crystals,” Sickle says. “The ones from the Wyrm we took down when you arrived. They haven’t been used yet since we removed them. Since we got Snowfall back, we don’t really have much use for the fire as badly as we once did, and we still have a few crystals left anyway. I’m sure you can find a good use for them eventually,” He tells me.

“I...I don’t know what to say,” I tell him. “Thank you,” I say with a smile.

“I should be the one thanking you,” Sickle chuckles. “The crystals will last quite a while, even a hundred years if you don’t use them much. So, unless you’re melting through steel with them on a daily basis, I suspect they will last you quite a while. Also, when holding them in your magic, after striking them together, you can focus the flames with your magic,” he says.

“You mentioned that before, how do I do that exactly?” I ask. He then launches into a five minute explanation about how to focus the flames. It is strangely detailed for someone lacking a horn and the ability to use magic themselves. Sickle seemed to pick up on my shock.

“Before I got this body, I used to be a unicorn,” He chuckles. “I still remember what it feels like, controlling magic. But, this body is more useful in the long run,” He says.

“I see,” I mutter. “Well, Sickle, I guess this is farewell, for now,” I say as we walk towards the entrance.

“For now,” He repeats. “We’ll meet again, I’m sure of it,” He says as I open the door.

“You two took forever!” Cora says as soon as she sees us.

Sickle just laughs. “Sorry to keep you waiting, Cora. Well you two, it has been grand. I will see you later, comrades,” He says. After returning his farewell, he closes the door behind him, leaving Cora and I alone in the snow.

“What did you two talk about?” Cora asks.

“Oh, a variety of things,” I mutter. “Oh yea, he gave me a pair of those wyrm crystals,” I tell her with a smile.

“What! No way, show me!” She says giddily. I fish one out of my bags and float it in front of her. “Awesome! That was so nice of him,” She says.

“Yea, it was,” I agree. “We’ll meet him again, Cora. After all, I think I just made my first friend that isn’t going to die of old age while I am frozen,” I tell her.

Cora jerks her head back. “Really!” She asks happily. When I nod, she begins telling me how happy she is I finally made a friend.

“Cora, Cora!” I say, trying to call her down. “I know you can’t feel it, but it is really cold out here. Let’s leave the celebration for another time and start heading south?” I tell her.

“Hehe, oh yea. Let’s,” She says, and we begin our slow trek south through the Frozen North once again. Only this time, it is a little more bearable, without a blizzard going on around us.

===~+~===

When Cora and I are about a mile out from home, she suddenly stops and lifts her head up, seeming to be staring at nothing. “Uh, Cora?” I ask, waving a hoof in front of her face.

She turns to look at me. “Sorry, Ratchet. We just got in range of Macro’s radio signal. He’s been auto broadcasting for when we return. Seems they are back at the lab,” She says, seeming to still be listening. “No, wait, only Macro and Hal are back. Soar is still in the Badlands, keeping watch over the facility,” She pauses again. “They’ve found a pod there, but...something went wrong. He says he’ll fill us in once we get back to the lab,” Cora tells me. She sounds worried.

“Well then, let’s get going. We don’t have any time to lose,” I tell her as we set off again, on the last stretch of our journey home.

Chapter 34 - Fracture

“It started with small, web-like fractures.”

===~+~===

“Ah! Mums, you’re back!” Macro declares as we enter Icicle Lab. “We’ve been waiting for days! We were beginning to worry,” He says, his three eye stalks switching rapidly between the two of us. “Hal here will never admit it, but he was the most worried between the two of us,” Macros says, turning his eyes to the lumbering giant beside him, who glares in return.

“Uh, this might not be the right time, but...Hal, I don’t think we’ve met before. I didn’t realize Cora made a third AI friend,” I say, stretching out a hoof to him. “Nice to meet you.”

He raises his heavily armored leg and takes my hoof in his. “A pleasure, Miss Ratchet. Between Cora, Macro, and Soar, I’ve heard quite a bit about you,” Hal tells me. “Cora put the finishing touches on me about three years ago. Things were getting rough, and they needed my firepower.”

“Yea, I can see that,” I say, looking at his grenade machine gun and minigun. “Sweet Luna, did Cora build you sturdy or what?”

“She had to,” Hal replies. “The threat facing the Wasteland is greater than ever. Raiders are out in ever greater numbers packing heavier firepower and increased viciousness. In fact, that is why we have returned without Soar,” he tells us.

Cora and I exchange a glance. “Is she alright?” I ask.

“Fine, but she is keeping watch on the facility,” Hal says. “Macro, fill them in.”

“Of course, Hal,” Macro says, and then turns his attention to us. “We found the facility, entered it and disposed of the defences. Inside, we found a pod. An almost exact replica of the one here. In fact, I think that it might be the very first one ever derived from your design due to-” Hal clears his throat, interrupting Macro.

“Ah, yes. Another time, perhaps,” Macro continues. “The terminal that controls the pod is locked out, we even tried your credentials, Miss Ratchet. The terminal said it required Celestia Tier access to unlock. However, shortly after we found the pod, raiders entered the facility,” He tells us.

“Raiders?” I ask. “Judging by the fact that you are here, these aren’t normal, unorganized raiders.”

Macro bobs his eye stalks. “Indeed. They belonged to the raider gang that controls the majority of the badlands, the Radscorpions. That much was evident due to their armor fashioned from the carapaces of their namesake,” Macro says.

“So, what happened?” Cora asks.

“They attacked with a group of five. We managed to kill them, but when we stepped outside, we saw a group of twenty more heading towards us,” Macro says. “Against that many, we decided our best option was to retreat for now. We slipped away to a nearby plateau and began observing them. After a few minutes, thirty more Radscorpions arrived. In an hour, seventy more arrived, along with their leader, Skag. It was then we decided we should come back and inform you of these events.”

“Let me get this straight,” I mutter. “One hundred some raiders invaded the facility which holds a Celestia Tier sealed cryopod?” I ask.

“Correct,” Hal replies. A chill runs throughout my body. “I suggested we kill them all and return with good news, but Soar and Macro refused.”

“And with good reason,” Macro interjected. “We were vastly outnumbered! Even with your firepower, we would have been overwhelmed without a proper plan of action.”

“Macro’s right,” Cora says. “Rushing in would have only gotten you all killed. You did the right thing in returning here.”

“Agreed,” I add. “But, if the raiders really have overtaken the facility, we don’t have much time,” I say, heading towards the armory. “Cora, see if you can find a replacement part for your assault rifle. We’re heading south, so I need to lighten my load a little bit and lose some of this bulky clothing. Macro, Hal, if you haven’t already, resupply.”

“Got it,” Cora says, and heads to the workshop.

“We’ve been ready to move out moments after our return,” Hal tells me.

“Good. How quickly can we get to the facility?” I ask as I rummage through the armory looking for what I need.

“Three days, assuming we don’t stop, run into trouble, or make camp for the night,” Macro replies.

“Three days, huh?” I mutter. “I could make that. If the worst happens and I’m too tired to move on, Cora can always carry me on her back...Are there any towns near the facility?” I ask.

“There is one about ten miles north of it. Average size, average defenses, kind folk,” Hal informs me.

“I see. If we spend three days on the road, I’ll be too tired to do anything once we arrive at the facility. But, if we take a while once we reach that town for me to rest, we should be able to hit the facility in four days,” I decide.

“Good plan, Miss Ratchet,” Macro says. “Sometimes I forget that you organics require rest. It must be ever so miserable.”

“Gee, thanks,” I grumble as I finish getting what I need. “Ok, we can leave once Cora fixes her-”

“It is fixed and ready to go, Ratchet!” Cora says, coming around the corner.

“Good work, that was quick. Alright then, let’s go. Hal, Macro, lead the way,” I instruct as we exit Icicle Lab once again.

===~+~===

I end up getting into Cora’s armor and having her walk me the rest of the way. Quite handy, having her able to use the armor without me. I get some sleep while inside, that way I won’t be completely exhausted when we arrive.

But when we arrive at the town and Cora wakes me, I’m surprised that we aren’t in the town, but instead we are standing on a hill outside the town. Cora lets me out of the armor and I look down at the town, I can see why. The town is littered with corpses, festering and diseased. A strange pale green mist is rising from it.

In the middle of town I can see a lone pony standing, they don’t have a mane or tail and their entire body is covered with sores. But they are just standing there and when they exhale, the mist around them thickens. I have no idea what they are doing.

I notice movement in the town as well. Two figures in radscorpion armor and gas masks, to be specific. They look like they are looting the town. The sound of muted hoofsteps approaches, and I look to see Soar walking up. “Soar? What’s going on? What happened to the town?” I ask in a rush.

“We failed,” Soar tells me. “The Radscorpions opened the pod, that pony standing in the town is who was inside, I think. They certainly didn’t enter with the Radscorpions, I would have noticed. But that pony came out of the facility. The only conclusion that I can come to, is that that pony is the one who was sealed in the pod.”

“But what happened to the town?” I ask.

“I wasn’t in time to see what happened,” Soar replies. “But, that pony seems to be the source of the mist in the town. And the fact that the raiders are wearing gas masks make me think that that pony has some sort of chemical or biological attack. I would not advise you to go into the town, Ratchet. However, something else is strange about that pony. When I used my thermal sensors, his heat signature was barely visible,” She explains. “It is almost as though he is dead.”

“Well, he looks kind of like a ghoul. Maybe he is one?” I suggest. “Do ghouls have low body heat?”

Soar shakes her head. “No. They are normal, like most ponies. Some are even hotter, depending upon how much radiation they have sucked up,” She tells me.

I look back towards the town and frown. “So. The Radscorpions did this, then? And they did it with the buck that was in one of my pods…” I stare at the town and an anger rises up in me. My anger piques when one of the raiders kicks once of the dead townsponies. “Soar. Can you go into town and get me one of those gas masks?” I ask her. “We need to stop them.”

“I can,” Soar replies. “But I could also just go with Cora and the others and we could handle it,” She offers.

“No, absolutely not,” I tell her. “I need to do this. So go down there, and get me one of those masks.” I say the last bit a little harsher than I should have, but Soar doesn’t argue back. Instead, she nods and trots off down to the town.

I watch as she goes down, kills one of the raiders, and pulls of their gas mask. Then she trots back up and gives it to me. “Here you go, Ratchet. Shall we take out the other two now?” Soar asks. I slip on the gas mask and make sure it is tight around my head, don’t want any of that mist to get to me.

“Let’s go,” I declare and start heading towards the town. I walk straight for the buck in the center. I’ll trust Cora and the others to handle the one raider that is still lurking around. It isn’t long before I reach the road the strange buck is standing in, and a single gunshot rings out from behind me. They must have killed the raider. With the buck right in front of me, I quicken my pace and draw a knife. When I reach the buck, I put the knife to his neck. “Why did you do this!?” I shout at him.

But he stares blankly at me and just blinks. His eyes look...kind of dead. I shake my head and ask again, cutting the knife into him a bit, “Why!?” He doesn’t even react. He just continues breathing and blinking at me. I narrow my eyes at him and pull the knife away. The buck doesn’t try to run or anything, he just goes back to standing there. “Hey, can you hear me?” I ask him as I wave a hoof in front of his face. Nothing. “Can’t talk?” I ask.

Hoofsteps coming from behind me signal the arrival of the others. “I don’t think he is...here,” I mutter as they gather around. He doesn’t even react when they approach. “Do you think...he’s just...empty?” I ask.

Cora waves her hoof in front of him as well and gets the same outcome as I do. “It would seem that way. He is just staring blankly and breathing,” She says

“Ratchet, can you take his pulse?” Soar asks.

“His pulse?” I ask. “Sure, I guess.” I raise my hoof up to his neck and feel for a pulse. It is...slow. I count it out. “That can’t be right…” I mutter, and take it again. But I get the same result. “It is around ten beats per minute,” I tell her.

“That might explain his low body heat. At least in part,” Soar replies. “It might also explain why he doesn’t seem to do much at all. Perhaps he has no brain activity other than basic functions like breathing and blinking?” Soar suggests.

“Maybe,” I mutter. “He doesn’t seem to be a treat by himself. The damn Radscorpions must have brought him here just to wipe out the town.” I look around at the dead littering the streets. They seem to have suffered from various diseases. It looks like it was painful. Pools of blood surround some, bodily fluids around others. Some have no fluids around them but have horrible rashes or blisters. “This is horrible,” I say as I shake my head.

I draw Forgiveness from its holster. “We can’t let you live, even if this isn’t your fault. I don’t know who you are or how this happened to you. I don’t even know if you can understand me or if you are suffering. But, I am sorry,” I tell him as I put the gun to his head. “If you are suffering, I hope that this puts an end to it.” I pull the trigger and the unknown buck falls to the ground in a heap.

A cold rage has been burning inside of me since I saw the town. The deaths that I could have prevented had I arrived sooner. If Cora and I came here instead of going to the north, we could have made it. But now...all of these ponies are dead and I had to kill another pony who did not necessarily deserve it. Was the unknown buck bad or was he being used because he couldn’t fight back? Whatever the case, I feel goosebumps creeping all over my body as my face hardens. I know what I need to do.

“The facility is ten miles to the south, right?” I ask the AIs.

“Yea, that’s correct,” Soar replies.

“Good. Then let’s go and kill every last one of the Radscorpions,” I say as I start walking south.

Cora stops me. “Why?” She asks. “The pod’s occupant is dead, it isn’t our problem anymore,” She says.

I turn to face her. “Because they killed a town full of innocents. How can you say it isn’t our problem?” I ask her pointedly.

“Because it isn’t, Ratchet. Our problem is dealing with the pods and their occupants. Not ever raider band that shows up,” Cora counters.

“Are you saying we should just walk away and return to the lab? Even though the Radscorpions might find other things in that facility they can use to harm ponies?” I say as I glare at her.

“That is exactly what I am saying,” Cora tells me. “There are more than a hundred of them, we don’t stand a chance. And if something went wrong, you could die.”

“I know that. But if I can stop even one raider, then it is worth it,” I tell her. “So, let’s go.”

“No. We should return to Icicle Lab,” Cora says stubbornly.

“No?” I ask in shock. I look to the other AIs. “What about you three? Macro? Soar? Hal? Do you want to return to the lab? Leave these raiders to raid?” I ask.

“Well...it would be the safest course of action, mum,” Macro replies.

“Cora’s right,” Soar tells me.

“One hundred is a bit much,” Hal admits.

“So, that’s it then? You’re all going to turn tail and run?” I ask, looking between them. “Fine, I’ll go myself then,” I tell them and start walking south once more.

But once again Cora stands in my way. “Stop. Come back with us,” She says. “It isn’t safe, Ratchet. All of this death is clearly getting to you,” She says sadly.

“My mind is made up. Now move,” I say as I try to go around her, but she stops me again, shaking her head. “I said move!” I yell, but she shakes her head again and stares at me. I take a deep breath and then growl, “Fine then. Cora. Command override, activate voice input protocols. Authorization, Ratchet. Passphrase, For The Future.”

Cora goes stock still and says in an emotionless voice, “Awaiting input.”

“You are to stay in this town and burn the dead. Once done, you are to remain here for one day. If anyone tries to make you leave or tries to stop me from leaving, kill them,” I tell her.

Cora keeps staring at me for a moment before saying, “Command accepted. Executing.” She then walks to the unknown buck’s body and begins to lift him onto her back.

“Mum! What did you do!?” Macro exclaims.

“I made her listen to me,” I reply evenly. “You three should help her. Your flamer will come in handy, Macro. Oh, and don’t even think about trying to stop me. Cora will destroy you. Later,” I say as I continue walking south unhindered.

I hear them protesting from behind me, but I ignore them. If they won’t help me, then I’ll just do this on my own. My anger is way too intense to simply return to the lab. No...I need to get revenge for this town. Once I am done, not a single Radscorpion will be left alive.

===~+~===

“So, missy,” the green cloaked figure that has been tagging along with me begins. Until now, he has been following along in silence. “You really plan to charge in there without a plan and kill them all?” He asks.

“You finally decide to speak up, and that’s what you ask? Yes, as a matter of fact, that is exactly what I am going to do,” I tell him. Just a short while till I reach the facility. “How about you answer my question now? Huh? You know everything that happens to others, right? So, what happened to that buck?” I ask.

He chuckles. “You’re just lucky that it is my area of specialty. He died long ago and I claimed his soul then. In fact, if I wasn’t already Pestilence, he would have been an ideal candidate for my position,” Pestilence explains. “Your government experimented on him to use him for biological warfare. Come to think of it, it is was kind similar to what happened to me.”

“They experimented on him? What? Why would Princess Luna approve of that?” I ask him in shock.

“Your princess knew about a lot of projects that were less than ethical. But in order to win the war, she allowed many things,” He tells me.

“You’re lying. She wouldn’t allow experiment that harmed ponies,” I counter.

Pestilence chuckles again. “After everything you’ve seen, you still think that? Twilight used your own creation without your knowledge. I bet you thought, ‘Twilight wouldn’t do something like that,’ when you first learned that too,” He says. “What about Umbra? Her experiments? And you remember Abominable’s body? What they did to him? But, I suppose that was all ethical, right? However, a better question right now, is why would I lie to you? Your princess is long gone. And telling you what I am right now isn’t going to change your mind, is it?” He asks.

“I suppose not,” I admit with a sigh. “Fine then. What did they do to him?” I ask.

“What didn’t they do,” He replies. “Subjected him to various diseases, both old and new. Even ones they created themselves. They initially were trying to create a biological weapon. But, after he died but was left alone for a while, miraculously his body came back. Of course, it wasn’t intelligent. But it did react to stimuli and the like,” He explains. “They decided to use it to continue their research. A while later, they made him a living, biological weapon. As you might guess from the town and the fact that he was sealed, practical application of him proved near impossible. His breath is a contaminated mist that infects ponies instantly. The first few researchers died before he was contained. It was hard to handle him and they couldn’t find a way to deliver him anywhere to be of actual use. In the end, he was sealed away,” Pestilence concludes.

“If he wasn’t living anyway, why not just kill him? Why seal him in a pod?” I ask. I can see the facility ahead, a few raiders are outside. And after hearing about what was done to the unknown buck, I am positively fuming with anger. These raiders will be the perfect outlet for it.

“Who knows,” he says, shrugging his shoulders. “Maybe they thought they could use the diseases they pumped him full of later? Maybe they wanted to use him to advance cures for current diseases. Hard to say for sure. So then miss, you won’t be fighting diseases up ahead. I’ve been shirking my duties for long enough as it is. You go do your thing. Be careful though. Your mind might just snap, as fractured and messed up as it is right now…”

I turn to look at him, but he is gone. “Yea, ok, great. Make morbid comments about my mind and fucking leave. Great. Fuck it. I’ll just go kill these raiders then. And stop talking to myself…” I let out a sigh. I’m a few yards from the entrance to the facility, and the raiders have started to take notice of me. Four of them standing guard. Radscorpion armor? Check.

I pull out Forgiveness and two knives. The great thing about their armor, is that it doesn’t cover their head, neck, or joints. There are plenty of places to inflict damage. I level Forgiveness and take aim at a buck with a carbine. The bullet slams into his eye and exits out the back of his head. I waste no time and quicken my pace, running at them in full gallop. One calls out and a moment later a knife finds its way into her neck. I shoot a few rounds at another mare with an smg and put her down. The last raider has a sledgehammer. I charge him and tackle them to the ground then proceed to stab him mercilessly between the gaps in his armor until he stops moving.

With all the raiders out here dead, I wipe my knives off on my lab coat and reload Forgiveness. Putting the knives away, I take the carbine from the dead raider and check its ammo. Just a few rounds missing from the current magazine, but the buck has two extras as well. I holster Forgiveness for now and then check the smg. The mare seems to have gotten a few shots off, but the mag is mostly full. She has another on her corpse that I take with me. The other mare has a sniper, but I won’t need that in here. And the sledgehammer will be unwieldy inside tight corridors. I’ll stick with these two guns for now.

All set, I open the door to the facility. Already a group of five raiders are running towards me, probably heard the mare’s shout. I take them down with the carbine and smg before they can get off more than a few bullets. The rapid fire of the smg quickly emptied the magazine, so I reload it while I look over the raiders’ bodies for more ammo. Only one buck has spare carbine ammo, the rest are using other rifles, pistols, or melee weaponry.

I don’t waste time looking around the entryway and continue deeper into the facility. I open a door to the hallway beyond and see two raiders a ways down. A short burst of fire later and they fall into a heap on the ground. I continue walking down the hallway as shouting a hoofsteps echo through the halls. A door to my left draws my attention and I peek inside. Four raiders just getting their armor on. I riddle their exposed flesh with the smg and continue to the next door.

This time the raiders inside are prepared and start shooting at me as soon as the door opens. I duck around the corner and float the smg around to blinding empty it into the room. A few groans come from the room and some of the shooting stops. Without any ammo left for it, I turn the corner into the room and throw the smg at the nearest raider and then proceed to swing the carbine across the rest of the raiders until its clip is empty as well. They return fire as I run out of ammo, but I drop the gun and charge them as I draw a few knives and stab at them. I don’t stop till they are all motionless on the floor.

A few rounds found their way into my barding, some even penetrated. But I ignore them for now, nothing serious. I wipe my knives, reload the carbine, and find another smg on one of the raiders. I’m about to look for more ammo when more Radscorpions enter the room and start shooting. I duck behind a desk and return fire, killing one instantly. Clicking my tongue at the fact I got myself stuck here, I empty the carbine into another raider. There seems to be at least three more outside the door. I look over the bodies I am sitting beside and spot a shiny apple peaking out from under one of the buck’s bags. Floating it over to me, I pull the pin, wait a few seconds, and then throw the apple into the hallway. A few shouts and curses precede an explosion and silences the raiders outside.

I leave the room while I reload the carbine and pick up another from one of the raiders in the hallway. “Who’s next?” I mutter as I continue on. As if answering my question, more raiders turn the corner up ahead. The one in front is a buck whose eyes go round as I start spraying the carbines down the hall towards them. The small group tries to get back around the corner, but are tripping over themselves as I shoot them. After a few seconds, they’ve stopped moving. I sigh. I keep using more ammo then I am finding. They need to die quicker.

More raiders burst through the door immediately to my right, catching me by surprise. I try to use the carbines to fight them off, but after a few bursts both carbines are empty. The raiders’ bullets find their way into my chest and I start bludgeoning them with the carbines as I draw Forgiveness to finish them off. When they are all dead, I quickly take out a healing potion and drink it quickly. As the potion works its magic, I reload my revolver and holster it again. I look over the dead raiders and find another smg and pick it up as another raider comes around the corner the others were trying to hide behind. I turn the smg on him and empty the clip.

The single raider goes down, but my frustration boils over. “All of you just die!” I scream as I walk over to the corner to look for more weapons I can use. A shotgun and a 10mm pistol are the two I decide to pick up. Both without a single round used. I turn down the corner and continue.

I repeat the process of killing the Radscorpions as they appear, taking their guns, and killing more. A trail of blood and death follows me, some of the blood even my own. When guns prove useless, I turn to my knives. Dozens of Radscorpions are dead already as I meet another group in the halls. I empty my guns into them, and when they run dry I charge them with my knives. Their bullets strike me but I shrug them off and I stab them all repeatedly. When I’m finally done with this group, I’m bleeding pretty badly and covered in blood. I pull out a new potion and start to drink it as more raiders come through a doorway.

At that point, I black out. I’m not sure if it is because of blood loss, anger, or what, but I don’t remember anything else as I continue through the facility. When I finally regain my senses, I am standing in a large open room with a cryopod in the center. I have a bloody knife held in my magic. Hanging upside down above the pod, is a buck with a rope tied around his rear hooves. He is glaring at me angrily, but he is wearing Radscorpion armor. It is a bit more fancy than the others.

“So, I take it you are the leader?” I guess as I look at him. He smiles at me as he sways.

“Well, I reckon I am. I’m the only one left now, after all. If I wasn’t the leader already I would have become it by default,” He replies. “Say, you look familiar. And you got some fight in ya, I like that. Managed to kill all my gangers. What would you say to joining forces and ruling this region with me?” He offers.

I snort in disgust and press the knife to his throat. “I’m not going to join you. I’m here to kill you. But first, I want to know why,” I tell him.

“Why? Why what?” He asks.

“Why you came here to this facility. Why you opened this pod. Why you decided to use the buck inside to kill an entire town!” I growl at him.

He laughs. “That’s what you want to know? The answer should be obvious. And the answer for all those questions is the same. For power,” He tells me. “We came here to find some old world technology to give us an edge. And we found it in this. That town out there was a test of what that buck could really do. ‘Course, he killed a few of us before we thought to use those masks.”

“For power?” I repeat his answer. “That is why you killed a whole town?”

A sudden realization seems to dawn on the buck. “Oh shit. I remember you now. Yea…I get it. You don’t care about the town, you’re just here to eliminate the competition, isn’t that right, Nova Surge? You must be expanding down here, hu? Your little gang up north didn’t have enough territory already, huh?” He chuckles. “Surprised you didn’t bring the rest of your gang here for the stomp. But, turns out you didn’t need them anyway.”

“Nova...Surge…?” I mutter in confusion. What is he talking about. Is there some raider boss out there that looks like me somewhere in the wasteland.

“Don’t play dumb now. A normal pony could have done what you did. I mean, just look behind you,” He says with a whistle. “All that carnage. If they weren’t my own, I’d be impressed.”

I turn around to see what he is talking about and wish that I hadn’t. Dozens of dead Radscorpions are in this room alone. It looks like someone butchered them. Did I...do all this? I can see large pools of blood and smears on the wall. In a couple of places, the smears of blood become words and phrases. 'Who am I?' and 'What is my name?' are two that I can make out. Others are too sloppy to read.

I turn back to the buck as I feel my head start to pound. “Since you haven’t just killed me yet,” The buck begins, “do you want me to join you? Perhaps you want me to tell you about all of the trade routes down here so you can hit them. Tell ya where travelers like to gather so you can pick them over? Let me down, and I’ll...hey, wait…” He starts to panic as I stagger closer to him with the knife and put it against his neck again. “Let’s talk about this Nova, we can work something out!” He pleads.

“My name...isn’t Nova,” I growl as I put a hoof to my head. “My name is...Ratchet,” I say as I drag the knife across his throat. His eyes pop wide as blood flows from his neck and streams onto the cryopod underneath. My head is spinning and it feels like someone has been kicking me in the head. I can feel a wetness under my barding. I must still be bleeding. Quickly, I pull out my last potion and drink it. But my head keeps throbbing. “Nova...Surge…?” I question as fall to the floor. “What is…” I start to mutter, but I quickly lose consciousness as my head hits the floor.

===~+~===

When I awake again, the smell of copper fills my nose. With all the blood in the room, it is understandable. My head still has a dull throbbing, but it isn’t as bad as it was before. I look at my PipBuck, only about an hour has gone by since I passed out. I stagger back to my hooves and gather myself. The Radscorpions are dead. “Indeed they are,” A familiar voice says from beside the doorway. I turn to see War, leaning against the doorway in his red cloak. “You’ve certainly made me work today,” He tells me.

I groan. “Of course. Of course you’d show up. You know, Pestilence said some really cryptic shit a while ago. Care to elaborate on any of that?” I ask him.

“I can tell you he’s right. You aren’t you. I mean, look around. Ratchet wouldn’t have done any of this. At least, not alone without her friends,” War explains. “And that buck strung up like that? That’s not a very Ratchet thing to do, you know. Ratchet helps ponies, right? She wouldn’t torture them.”

I frown at him. “Yea, ponies change,” I tell him. “I’ve seen enough innocent ponies killed to last a lifetime. The least I can do is kill murderers and the like.”

War nods. “Do you think this is a case of the Wasteland breaking a pony?” He asks.

“No. I’m still in control, I can tell right from wrong,” I counter. “That is why I’m not done. Not yet,” I tell him.

“You’re not done?” He asks. “There are no more Radscorpions here, or anywhere, for that matter. Not the raider variety, anyway.”

I shake my head. “I don’t mean here. There are more raiders elsewhere,” I explain. “I’ll go find some more and kill them too.”

“Alone?” War asks. “Cora is still following your orders for quite a while, you know.”

“Yes, alone. If I went to get Cora and the others to help me, they’d only try to get me to go back to the lab,” I tell him. “For now, I’ll go find a nearby town to stock up in. Maybe find some info on some raider gangs in the area,” I say as I walk past him towards the exit.

“That’s your plan then?” War says with a sigh. “You should clean up first then. The whole, ‘covered in blood’ look isn’t going to make you seem friendly to any towns you go to.”

I stop walking and look myself over. War is right, I am completely covered with blood. Even my mane is matted to my head it has so much blood in it. I guess I didn’t notice with everything going on. “Hey, thank you…” I say as I turn back to him, but he is already gone. “Why do they always do that…” I mutter.

I take his advice and find a bathroom in the facility. After a while, I manage to get myself clean. My armor and lab coat is another matter entirely. While I do manage to wash off the majority of the blood and gore off of them. My lab coat is going to be permanently stained, however.

With my appearance taken care of, I spend around an hour looking over the bodies and giving the facility a quick once over. I take most of the ammo I can find, any drugs and healing items, some of the smaller arms like pistols and smgs, caps of course, and some food and drink. I leave the rest for whoever happens across it next. Nothing inside the facility is too much of a threat anymore, not since the unknown buck is dead.

Then, I leave the facility and head north. I remember that we traveled through a town on our way here. I plan to head there and see what I can find out. The name of the town? New Appleloosa.

Chapter 35 - Singularity

“For the first time, I was truly alone.”

===~+~===

New Appleloosa is a decent sized down. The settlement is surrounded by boxcars for defence and most of the buildings themselves are made from train cars or parts from train cars. Various train tracks run through the town and a few trains even still operate, or so Cora told me. The settlement itself is only a few hours from Ponyville, so it was a logical place to head to, since it is on the way to Icicle Lab anyhow.

Cora had also told me about Old Appleloosa, the one I am familiar with. However, it is now apparently a slaver hub. I very briefly considered going there and killing all of the slavers, freeing the slaves, that sort of thing. But the thought of it didn’t sit well with me. It would be like seeing a whole town slaughtered, like in the Badlands. For now, I decided that I will focus on raiders.

First this is first, however. I need to sell things and get resupplied. I wander around the town till I find a store with the name Absolutely Everything. Making my way inside, I look around at the various items and equipment lying around on tables and crates and...well basically anything that could hold items on it. Ponies are milling about looking at the items. I spy things ranging from old magazines to rocket launchers and everything in between. Just like the name implies, I suppose.

Behind what I assume is the counter, is a pegasus ghoul mare. I walk over, assuming she is the owner. “Hello there,” I say with a smile. “I’m looking to trade some things.”

“No problem,” The mare says with a smile. Despite her being a ghoul she looks kind of...familiar. “What can I help you with?” She asks.

“Well, I would like to sell this stuff,” I tell her as I start pulling out the items I took from the Radscorpions. “And I would like to stock up on 32 caliber bullets and some healing potions.”

She looks over the items and nods, then ducks behind the counter for a moment before setting four healing potions and two boxes of ammo on the counter. “I can give you this for all of that. How does that sounds?” She asks with a tilt of her head. Her eyes are a bit...off.

“Yea, that will…” But then it clicks. I think I remember who she is. “Say...you look familiar. Are you...that mare that owned...oh what was it called,” I mutter, rubbing my temple with a hoof. “Ditzy Doo Deliveries? In Cloudsdale, right?” I ask.

Her eyes get a bit wider and her mouth opens in surprise. “How do you know that?” She asks.

“So you are? That would make you Ditzy, correct?” I ask, she nods. “It is actually kind of a complicated story. Long story short, I’m from before the war ended, like you. Except I survived in a chamber that preserved my body and mind. It was an MAS experiment I was conducting.” I explain.

Ditzy blinks at me as she tilts her head. “Really?” She asks.

I nod. “Yep. It is too bad that things ended how they did. Mutual destruction and what not,” I mutter. She keeps blinking at me. “You don’t believe me, do you?” I ask her and she answers with a sheepish grin. “Well, that’s understandable. Anyway, I uh...this trade will work,” I tell her with a forced smile.

“Okay,” Ditzy replies with a happy grin and starts taking the items I put on the counter off. I follow her lead and put the potions and ammo into my bags. “Thank you for shopping at Absolutely Everything, please come again,” She says with a bright smile as she finishes clearing the counter.

“Thank you, I will if I’m in the area,” I reply as I start walking away. As I reach the exit, I let out a sigh. Telling ponies about my past usually leads to disbelief, but when Cora is around it usually is just a matter of her opening up the armor and they believe my story. For the most part, anyway. Not that I go around telling ponies about my past very often though. But, who would have thought I’d run into another pony from back then now, even if she is a ghoul. And she is still running a business too. I can’t help but smile at that.

My next stop is the local bar. I’ve heard that bars sometimes handle bounties, but even if this one does, it will still be a good place to get information. I just need to be pointed in the direction of the next group of raiders.

Behind the counter is a tan mare with an orange mane. She pulls a bottle from behind the counter and sets it next to a buck on the other side. The buck takes the bottle and walks off to a table to sit with some other ponies. I approach the bar and the mare greets me, “How ya doin’? What can I get ya darlin’?”

“Nothing to drink,” I reply. “I was actually hoping to get some information on raiders around the area.”

The mare nods. “‘Course darlin’. I take it ya’ll a traveler or a trader or sometin’? Knowin’ bout the raiders comes in handy,” She tells me.

“Oh, no, not exactly,” I tell her. “I’m actually more of a...bounty hunter.” I’ll go with that.

She raises an eyebrow. “Ya’ll are a bounty hunter?” She asks skeptically. “I ain’t neva seen ya around these parts before. Ya just startin’ out?” She asks.

“I guess,” I tell her with a shrug. “I’ve killed raiders before, but I’ve never collected a bounty for them. Honestly, you can keep the bounty and I’ll just take out the raiders. Just tell me where the nearest raider threat is at.”

The mare stares at me skeptically, perhaps wondering if I am insane. “Ya wana go kill some raiders just for the heck of it?” She asks, I nod. She takes a moment to look me over and looks at something under the counter before straightening back up and asking me, “Ya’ll wouldn’t happen to be called Ratchet, would ya?”

Okay, my turn to raise an eyebrow. How does she know my name? “Yes...why?” I ask cautiously.

“Someone told me you was comin’,” She tells me. “Gave me a bounty specifically for ya. Told me to watch for a mare in a lab coat. Course, that’s not usually how bounties work. First come first served, ya know. But this here client paid my fee and then some, so I ain’t got no room to complain,” She says.

“‘Course, I ain’t never hearda ya before. I figured worse case, I just get to keep the caps and continue on my business,” She admits. “Even the job is a funny thing darlin’. Wants ya to break a siege on a town out east by the name of Spark. Well, I had a customer today tell me Spark is doin’ just fine, he came from there and everythin’.”

“The job is to break a siege on a town called Spark? But, the town isn’t under siege?” I ask to clarify.

She nods. “That’s the job. Got it two days ago, so either the siege was broken yesterday or the customer today is a liar. But he’s a regular, so I trust him enough. That, or the job is wrong,” She explains.

“I see,” I mutter. “So, who exactly gave you this job to give to me?” I ask.

“Didn’t get his name,” She replies. “He was just a courier anyway. Deliverin’ the job for his client.” Another courier? “Didn’t mention his client’s name either. Even said ya wouldn’t require payment for the job, which I took with a drink of whiskey. But here ya are, and ya said as much yourself. So, are ya interested in the job?” She asks.

I consider it for a moment and then reply, “Yes. Tell me the details.”

The mare nods. “Very well. Like I said, the job is to break the siege on the town of Spark to the east. The town itself is build around a power substation that provides it with power for lights and fancy stuff like that. I reckon the raiders want it for themselves, assuming the siege is real,” She tells me and then reaches under the counter again.

She sets a metal case on the counter between us. “Then there is this. The courier didn’t tell me what was inside and told me not to open it. Just to give it to ya. Last bit of info I got is that ya don’t need to return to complete the bounty. I was assured ya would complete it. Not like ya need to return to collect any caps anyhow,” She mutters.

I had a strange feeling about this whole thing. A courier, strange events, this reeks of that pony’s doing. I don’t even know a name or anything yet. Carefully, I open the metal case, which is basically a briefcase, and take in the contents. A note, a gun with a holster, and two boxes of ammo. First, I float out the gun and look it over. I’ve not seen a gun like this before. It seems heavily modified.

The mare behind the counter lets out an impressed whistle. “That’s a .44 revolver,” She says. “It even has a modified receiver and a bull barrel on it. Not to mention the scope. Ya rarely see them in this condition either. That gun packs one heck of a wallop. Has intense kick too. I know some bucks who have given themselves whiplash when they weren’t repaired for it,” She tells me.

“You seem to know a lot about guns,” I tell her as I turn the gun to the side and see a word carved into the barrel, probably with a knife. It reads ‘Executioner’.

“Ya don’t grow up in New Appleloosa without knowing a thing or two about guns darlin’,” She says with a laugh. “Though, I gotta say, the scope is practically useless after the first shot unless ya got distance and a whole lot of cover. The kick will stop ya from lining another shot up before your enemies scramble for cover,” The mare explains. “Nice of the client to give ya spare ammo too. A decent amount at that.”

“Yea…” I mutter as I put the boxes of ammo as well as the gun and holster in my bags. I will put that on later. For now, I turn my attention to the note. Unlike previous letters I have received, this one is fairly lengthy.

Ratchet,

My name isn’t important. Not yet, anyway. You’ve gotten my letters in the past and heard about others who have received my letters. So, you know that my letters and warnings always come true. I knew you would come to New Appleloosa. I knew you would come seeking more violence.

However, you have tarnished Forgiveness. A gun made to forgive, to help ponies, to bring hope to the world. It was a small caliber because it was never meant to cause major damage. It was meant to bring things to an end for those that deserved it. A relatively peaceful, painless, and quick end. The recent things you have done with Forgiveness is unforgivable.

This is why I have provided you with a new weapon. A weapon that is meant to kill, a weapon that is meant to hurt and cause pain. The Executioner. As the name implies, it is used to execute. It is used against both the guilty and the innocent alike. It is the perfect weapon for you right now. Don’t use Forgiveness anymore.

The history of the Executioner is stained with blood. It was commissioned for a lieutenant colonel, a very brutal and vicious one. One who took insubordination very seriously. Often he would execute his own subordinates. Even prisoners of war who became liabilities. The gun’s sole purpose was to put a single bullet through a pony’s skull at point blank range. It has killed countless ponies and zebras alike. Perhaps some that didn’t even deserve it. It is yours now. And you will use it.

The town of Spark is in trouble. It is a small community of fourteen ponies with just enough room in the power substation facility to not be too cramped. They have few defences, a very limited stock of food and supplies, and not all of them can fight. The one defence they do have, is the thick magnetically locked door to the facility. Not many ponies can get through the door without heavy equipment or a lot of explosives.

This means that the twenty seven raiders that will begin to attack the substation in a few hours will not be able to get inside. Instead, they will make camp outside and wait for the inhabitants to slowly starve. Normally, a sizable force would be necessary to dive the raiders away. Even you would need Cora and the others.

But this is a special event. After what you did in the previous facility...your rage and guilt regarding the town you couldn’t save...you will be able to do this alone. It will not be easy, but you can do it as you are now.

I know that you are skeptical about me. I know that you don’t have a reason to trust me. For all you know, I could be luring you into a trap. But the ponies of Spark need your help. And you need to save them, more than you know. If you continue this path of bloodshed that you are on things will not end well. More innocents will die and they will die by your hooves. What I am offering to you right now, is a way to continue in the hoofsteps that the mare named Ratchet has been walking.

We will meet, but not for a while. Continue to walk your path, Ratchet. Once our paths cross, I will guide you and I will free you from your prison. You will be able to live your life happily once again.

I finish reading the letter and add it to my bags. I have really mixed feelings about this. The writer even said it could be a trap themselves. Releasing a sigh, I close the metal case and slide it to the barmare. “I’ll take the job,” I tell her. “And you can keep the case if you want. I don’t need it.”

“I suppose I can use it for something,” She mutters. “Well darlin’, I also rent out rooms if you’re interested. Or are ya plannin’ on headin’ out right this minute?” She asks.

“No thank you,” I reply. “I need to get going as soon as possible. Thank you for the help,” I tell her as I turn to walk away.

“No problem darlin’,” She calls after me. “Stop by anytime. And maybe buy a drink next time!”

I smile as I walk outside. Well, I suppose it is time to find out if I am walking into a trap, or if this fortune teller is actually telling me the truth.

===~+~===

Just as I was told, Spark is a power substation. A single, two story concrete building stands in the middle of various wires and electrical components. The building has a large, sturdy looking door and a few windows reinforced with metal bars on the outside of them. Around all of it is a rusty, mostly broken down chain link fence with razor wire on the top. A number of the wires run in and out of the building.

Outside a number of tables and other furniture is strewn about outside. Probably a sort of makeshift market. It makes sense, they probably don’t want outsiders just wandering into their home. A few fire barrels are crackling around providing some light in the darkness of the night. I arrived a few hours after night fell, so the fire helps me to get a good view of the place.

Including the raiders surrounding it. Like the fortune teller said, and I’ve taken to calling the author of those cryptic notes the fortune teller, there are over twenty raiders gathered around the barrels. A few tents have been set up and if the fortune teller is telling the truth then the remaining raiders will be in them. I take a few hours to watch them, know their movements, know what guns they are carrying.

Finally, I decide to make my move. The Executioner is on my side, opposite of Forgiveness. I draw it and look through the scope at the raiders. At this range, given my accuracy I probably won’t be able to hit them. However, it is dark enough that I should be able to get a few shots off before they figure out where I am at.

I line up my first shot, a headshot on a raider with a sniper rifle. Best to take out the ones who will be able to hit me at this range. I pull the trigger and to my surprise it punches through the skull of the raider and her skull explodes into bloody chunks a moment later. Lucky shot, I guess.

The raiders have started to yell and look around in the darkness. More raiders pour from the tents to join the others, but I focus on the next target. Another sniper. I line up the shot and wait for my chance. A moment when he stops moving around. There. I pull the trigger again and the second round hits home as well. Half of the raider’s skull explodes. Two for two. Either my luck is high right now or I can suddenly use weapons properly.

I suppose it is in my good favor that raiders don’t wear helmets. What isn’t in my favor, is that the raiders saw the muzzle flash. They can’t see me exactly, but they know the general direction I am in now. Some of their unicorns are using their horns to illuminate the darkness. It is only a matter of time now till they find me. But I can still get off another shot before things go south.

The other raider I was planning to shoot is hidden by some others. Instead of them, I select another. I spot a buck with a twin assault rifle saddle. I take the shot a third hit, the buck’s skull explodes just like the others. This time, however, the raiders open fire in my direction. I guess they have gotten my position limited down far enough. Their shots miss and give me time to reload the three bullets I shot.

Then, I ready an inhaler of dash and charge at the approaching raiders. As we charge at each other, their bullets get more accurate. After a short time, a bullet strikes my barding. That is my que. I use the dash and time slows to a crawl. I continue my charge and start shooting at the approaching raiders.

Three of the closest ones receive a bullet to the chest as I gallop past them. The next four meet the same fate, with the exception of the last one, who gets a knife in the neck. I reload just as the dash wears off. Already I have another inhaler in my muzzle and as the raiders turn to get me in their sight, I use it.

If the fortune teller is right, there should be seventeen more raiders. I keep charging into their group, surrounding myself with six of them. Then, I stop, draw four knives. I send them out in a fan in front of me as I turn to shoot the other two with the revolver. I fire three shots in total and then press on.

Despite the dash, I feel buckshot pelting my side as I turn back to the rest of the raiders. Another bullet bites into my chest, but I ignore it as I fire two more shots blindly at the closest raider, taking her down. But then time begins moving forward at normal speed. I forgot to keep track of the time. More bullets punch into my barding, penetrating my armor and biting into my hide.

I pull out another dash as fast as I can and use it. As time slows once more, I jump to the side and pull out two of the healing potions I got from Ditzy. I quickly drink them and they take care of most of the damage. Some of the pain still gnaws at me. But with almost a ten more raiders to deal with, I don’t have the time to deal with it right now.

I turn back to the raiders and fire the last bullet in my revolver. As I reload it, I draw my other two knives and attack the closest raider. More bullets chew into my barding before I can bring my gun to bare. I start shooting at the closest raiders. Six more rounds and four raiders dead.

The remaining five raiders circle around me. I have a few seconds left of dash left and use it to reload the gun. When it wears off they open fire. Caught in the crossfire, I can only absorb the hits as I shoot them down one by one. Three of them go down before the gun clicks on an empty cylinder. The remaining two also run out of ammo as I stagger towards them with my knives. The Executioner drops from my magic as I feel my magic weaken. My knives shake in my grip as I jerk them towards the raiders and catch them in the throats.

They fall to the ground along with my knives. I collapse onto my haunches as I bend my neck to dig through my bag with my muzzle. Carefully, I pull out the last healing potion and chug it. I can feel some strength returning, some of the bullet wounds healing up. But not all of them are sewn back together. I can use my magic again, however slightly. I pull out multiple rolls of bandages and strip off my barding and toss my bags aside as I start bandaging up my wounds. Some of the bandages are infused with magic, so I use those on the worst wounds.

While bandaging myself up, I hear a few of the raiders groaning out. A few calling out for the others to kill me. I finish tying up my wounds and stagger back to my hooves. The blood loss causes my head to spin. I pick up the Executioner in my magic and sway between the bodies as I reload it. One of the nearby raiders is moving. I raise my gun and level it at the raider’s head. My vision fades as I pull the trigger and put the raider down. I catch myself from falling to the ground in a heap as I turn towards the next raider that is still alive.

I slowly stagger over to her, raise my gun, and put her down. I find the next one, and finish him off too. Another raider, another bullet. Another. All headshots. With one bullet left in my revolver, there are no raiders left alive. My magic gives out and the Executioner falls to the ground.

With the raider threat dealt with, I stumble to the door to Spark. Along the way, my vision blinks in and out. I’m probably seconds from passing as I raise my hoof and pound weakly on the door. On the last hit, I keep my hoof on the door as I slowly slump down against it. I take a few shallow breaths before I call out weakly, “All the raiders...are dead. You’re all...safe now…”

At the final word, my consciousness finally fades and I close my eyes to embrace the darkness surrounding me.

===~+~===

When I wake up, I am staring at a concrete ceiling with light peeking in through the windows. No barding, no weapons, just me covered in bandages. My body arches and I can still feel where bullets bit into my hide. I take a breath and shift my weight a bit with a groan. This catches the attention of a nearby buck. He is a rough looking fellow, wearing a blood stained apron.. His purple mane is missing in patches and his right eye has a bit of a twitch to it. But his dark yellow hide is remarkably tidy.

“Ah, you’re awake,” He says in a high pitched, almost strained voice. I start to get up, but he raises a hoof to stop me. “Now, now, you’re fine. Everything is fine. I am the doctor here in Spark. I treated your injuries once we were sure the raider threat was dealt with,” He tells me. “My name is Shredder.”

I lay back down. “Well, thank you Shredder. Incidentally, has anyone ever told you that your name isn’t exactly the most doctorly?” I ask him.

He laughs, which is really a series of high pitched sounds. “Ponies do more often than you’d think. Many doctors seem to have medical related names. Honestly, I think that they change their name just to seem more medically inclined,” Shredder tells me.

“I always kind of wondered that as well. It seems convenient that almost every doctor is named after a medical device or procedure,” I agree. “After all, it isn’t like a name dictates what profession we go into or anything.”

“Indeed,” He says simply and then stares at me with a slight smile.

After a few tense moments I clear my throat. “So...uh...How bad was the damage?” I ask him.

“Your injuries?” Shredder asks. “Oh, nothing major. Around two dozen bullet wounds, give or take. Quite a number of cuts made from near misses. Lots of buckshot. You even had a few stab wounds that hadn’t healed properly,” He explains.

“What part of that is ‘nothing major’? It sounds like I had enough lead in me to be a pencil…” I mutter.

“Oh, well. I suppose you have a point he,” He laughs again, rubbing the back of his neck. “After all, I did have to cut you open multiple times where wounds had already healed but bullets remained under the skin. You know, healing potions don’t necessarily push bullets out of wounds, right? For shallow wounds they usually do it, but with deeper wounds potions tend to just heal around the bullet,” Shredder explains.

I think back to the potions I drank recently while fighting raiders. The time that I can remember, I took quite a number of bullets. I wonder how many didn’t heal properly. “So, how much do I owe you for your services then?” I ask him. “All that work couldn’t have been easy, even for a unicorn like you.”

He smiles and shakes his head. “Free of charge,” He says. “After all, you took out the raiders that were trying to take our little town from us. With us so far out of the way and since we get so little traffic, it would only have been a matter of time before we starved or were forced to make a stand to escape,” He explains.

“Do you really get so few ponies through here?” I ask him.

“Yea. We are a fairly new settlement, so most don’t know about us quite yet. We only get a single trader every few weeks regularly,” Shredder explains. “But occasionally, travelers or scavengers come through. We had to drive out some feral ghouls to move in ourselves.”

“I see. I guess it is a good thing I came here then,” I mutter.

Shredder laughs. “It isn’t just a good thing. If you hadn’t showed up, more than likely we would have died. Either from starvation or for trying to fight our way out. You saved our lives,” He tells me.

I smile up at him. “I’m glad I could help,” I reply.

“Well, you should get some rest. It will be a while before you will be strong enough to be up and about,” Shredder says as he turns to walk away, but then stops and turns his head back towards me. “By the way, we are picking over the raiders’ equipment. Since you had nothing on you when we brought you in, I assume you dropped it somewhere? What did you have? We’ll set it aside for you, along with some caps for all the gear the raiders have,” He says.

“Oh...yea,” I mutter. “Most of my stuff should be together. My barding has two revolver holsters on it along with a bunch of knife holders, my .32 caliber revolver should be in its holster. My bags should be next to it. The lab coat will give them away. Though, it is probably blood stained now,” I let out a sigh. “I also have a custom .44 caliber revolver that is lying around somewhere. You can tell it’s the one because of the name Executioner carved into the barrel. Oh. And my seven knives...You will probably find them stuck in the raiders. They are specialized for throwing, so they are narrow and double edged,” I explain.

Shredder nods as I tell him about my gear. When I finish, he gives a final nod and says, “Alright, we’ll find it and set it aside for you. We’ll also see about getting it cleaned up. Get some rest.” He leaves me with a smile. I stare back up at the ceiling and blink a few times before I try to get back to sleep.

===~+~===

I am woken up by the sound of heavy metal hooves walking up to me. Multiple sets of them. I keep my eyes closed for about a minute as they stand beside me before I open my right eye a crack to glance up at them. Immediately I shut it again and try to pretend that I am sleeping.

“Ratchet.” An angry voice says from beside me. “I know you’re awake. We need to have a talk.” It says.

Sheepishly, I open my eyes and offer a smile. “Heeey Cora. Everyone,” I say quietly. Cora, Macro, Soar, and Hal are all standing around the cot I am resting on. If they had faces, I’m sure they would be scowling.

Cora raises a hoof and sets it on the edge of my cot gently. Then she pushes her hoof down abruptly, causing the cot to flip over, me along with it. I fall to the floor in a heap as I let out a groan. “Okay...I deserved that,” I mutter. “But come on, I’m injured here!” I say as I get into a sitting position.

“And whose fault is that?” Cora replies. “You were the one who went off on her own. I told you we should have gone back to the lab, but then you...you forced me to stay behind!” She yells.

“That’s because you were being unfair,” I explain. “You wanted to let the Radscorpions get away with what they did and let them have the facility. And not only that, but if I didn’t do what I did I would never have came here to help the ponies of Spark. They would have died,” I tell her.

“It wasn’t our problem to deal with, Ratchet,” Cora counters. “Our problem is the pods, remember? What would have happened if you died? Who would deal with the pods then?” She asks.

“What do the pods matter if everypony else is dead?” I ask her. “Our goal isn’t just to deal with all the pods, remember? It is to help Equestria, and that means helping innocent ponies too. If innocents die while we can help then, we are no better than raiders in my opinion. We are doing what we do to help ponies, Cora. Not for ourselves,” I tell her.

She stares at me for a few moments before she replies. “Sorry. I guess you’re right. I was so caught up with everything else…” She mutters. “But still! You shouldn’t have overwritten my commands and forced me to follow your orders,” She tells me.

I sigh. “Yea, I know. I know. I’m sorry about that as well. All of you, I’m sorry,” I tell them. “But, I’m back in my right mind now. Seeing the town destroyed like that...I guess I lost myself for a while there.”

“As long as you’re alright, mum,” Macro says. “We were worried.”

“Yea,” Hal agrees. “You didn’t come back from the facility. We ended up having to wait till Cora returned to normal.”

“And even then, when we went to the facility you weren’t there,” Soar adds.

“Yea...sorry. Oh, how did you find me then?” I ask.

“PipBucks have location ID tags in them,” Cora explains. “While you were frozen I copied the ID to my systems so I could find you if we ever got separated. I just activated it once you didn’t turn up in the facility. We thought you might have died and they took your PipBuck,” She tells me.

“They have that kind of functionality? That’s useful, I suppose. Or it could be bad if someone you don’t want to gets ahold of it,” I mutter. “Anyway, I think I can move around now,” I tell them as I rise to my hooves. “Do you want to go back to the lab? I can rest up a bit more there. Then, I suppose I can be frozen again for now. Or do we have anymore pods to check out?” I ask.

“Not at the moment, no,” Cora replies. “Are you sure you want to go back? Not going to freak out and go wandering around again?” She asks.

I chuckle. “No, I think I got that out of my system. We can go back now,” I say with a small smile.

Shredder walks over to us. “Oh, you’re leaving?” He asks.

“Yea, we should get back home. These are my friends, by the way,” I tell him.

“I see. And it is nice to meet all of you,” He says with a smile. “Your gear is over there,” He gestures beside the cot. “We put a small bag of caps with it as well. A small payment for all of the gear we got from the raiders. But, before you go, would you like to join us for lunch?” He asks.

Now that he mentions it, I am a bit hungry. I don’t remember the last time I’ve eaten anything lately. I can smell the scent of cooking meat in the air. I’m not really big into the whole meat eating thing, but it doesn’t taste all that bad. “Sure, I suppose I could stick around and join you,” I tell him as I get into my gear and get everything situated.

“Excellent!” He proclaims as he gestures for us to follow him. “We started cooking after your friends arrived, so it might be a few more minutes yet,” Shredder tells us as we follow him down from the second floor. “Hope you don’t mind eating outside. Cooking in here tends to make things smokey,” He says as we step outside. “But really, you saved us a great deal of trouble. We won’t have to go hunting for a while.” What does he mean?

The ground outside the building is stained with blood, but all of the raider corpses are gone. I’m glad, because the sight and smell of rotting bodies lingering around wouldn’t enjoyable to eat with. Shredder leads us around the building to the back where the smell of meat is coming from.

A spitroast is set up with a fire burning under it. Above the fire, being rotated by a unicorn’s magic and skewered by a metal pole, is the raw corpse of a pony. My eyes go wide in horror. I look around and see a nearby table with a few knives stuck in it and the body of another pony on top of it. “W-What is this?” I ask hesitantly.

Shredder turns to me with a smile. “Lunch,” He says simply. “The raiders you killed proved to have a high muscle content, more than our usual hunts. I guess that is because of their barbaric line of work,” He chuckles. He notices my expression and tilts his head. “Is something wrong?” He asks.

“You’re...you’re eating ponies…” I mutter.

He blinks at me as if I told him something strange. “Of course we are,” Shredder tells me. “What do you think we would be eating? I told you before, traders don’t come out here much. And the soil in the Wasteland is hardly fit for growing crops. Not many creatures wander out this far either. We’re lucky to see something as common as a radroach once a week,” He explains.

“But, thanks to your efforts, we will have enough food for a while. Especially since we can keep it refrigerated thanks to the electricity,” Shredder says as he turns to look at the rotating corpse. “That was a real problem with our old place. Meat going bad before we could use it all. So when we stumbled upon this place, it was like a blessing from Celestia herself!” He proclaims.

“But...but...you’re cannibals?” I ask in shock. “You’ve done this before?”

He turns back towards me as he wrinkles up his snout. “Cannibal is such a negative term. It implies we eat ponies because we like to. Well, don’t get me wrong, they are delicious, as you’ll find out, but it is a necessity. We don’t have much else to eat out here,” He explains. “And yes, we’ve done this before. Laying traps where ponies were bound to scavenge or inviting travelers into our homes. Oh! But, don’t worry,” He says with a bright smile. “We wouldn’t think of harming you or your friends. You saved us and have provided us with an ample food supply, after all.”

Shredder turns his head to look at the spitroast again. “Shouldn’t be long now. Ah, my mouth is watering in anticipation,” He says. “What about you?” He asks as he turns back to face me. His smile disappears as he is greeted with the barrel of the Executioner. My expression goes dark and cold as I pull the trigger, coating the mare rotating the spitroast in Shredder’s blood and brains.

I aim at her next as I say to Cora and the others, “Kill them all.”

===~+~===

I stare coldly at the large pyre burning in front of me. The bodies of the raiders and the inhabitants of Spark alike are being consumed by the flames. The ponies I had saved and the ponies I had saved them from. But now I know that both groups were monsters. One group out to take the lives of ponies, the other out to eat them.

As I gaze at the pyre, I bring out the fortune teller’s note and look it over again. I read their comments about Spark. Them asking me to save it. Telling me about its food troubles. Telling me about the impenetrable door. Saying that I needed to help them more than I knew. Giving me the Executioner. The fortune teller knew all along what would happen here.

This is only a hunch, but I think she knew that me killing the raiders would get me into Spark. That I could gain the trust of the ponies of Spark by saving them like this and that they wouldn’t try to eat me too. The fact I could do it alone is because they wouldn’t feel as threatened if the others were with me. The fortune teller knew all along. Them leaving out what I would end up doing was more than likely to keep me from trying to kill the ponies of Spark before I gained access.

I throw the note into the fire and watch it burn. This was a trap, but not for me. This trap was for the ponies of Spark. I hear Cora’s hoofsteps approaching from behind me. “What?” I ask abruptly.

“We should...go,” She tells me. “The others and I have taken most of what we can carry, so we can-” I cut her off as I slam my hooves down and get up.

“Put everything you took from them back,” I tell her, taking the small bag of caps they gave me out of my own bags. I throw the bag into the pyre. “I don’t want anything of theirs. Just throw it inside.”

“R-Right,” Cora says as she trots back around the building.

I gaze silently into the flames until she returns with the others. “Let’s go,” I tell them as I turn from the fire and start walking in the direction of the lab. “I’ve overstayed my welcome in the Wasteland.”

Chapter 36 - The Battle for Red Wing

Author's Note

STOP! READ THIS FIRST!

Hello reader. This chapter is special, as it links my story to another author's. Specifically, Gamma Deekay's Merchants of Hope story.

Before you read this story, I highly recommend that you read his story first. As this chapter takes place during the ending of Merchants of Hope. It will contain spoilers. So, if you don't want any of those, read Merchants first and then come back.

You've been warned. (But seriously though, go check out Gamma's works. They are great!)

Chapter 36 - The Battle for Red Wing

The Battle For Red Wing

===~+~===

“Ratchet, wake up! We need to move fast!” Cora says as I gain my senses after unfreezing. I shake my head and stagger to my hooves. “The year is one hundred twenty and, well, things are bad. We’re gearing up right now,” She tells me, sounding quite frantic.

“Cora, what’s going on? Why do you seem so panicked?” I ask her as I go to put my PipBuck on once again.

“Okay, a lot to explain and not a lot of time to do so. I’ll summarize for now, and fill you in as we make our way to the rally point,” She replies.

“Rally point? What-” I start to ask, but she launches into an explanation.

“A pink mare called 42 has been wreaking havoc all across the Wasteland, slaughtering settlements, putting together a huge following, basically being a very, very bad pony,” Cora informs me. “We didn’t think things were going to spiral out of control so quickly, and we didn’t find out about it until a while ago anyway, but we had to confirm some things.” She is going over things way too quickly, I’m getting lost already. I try to interject, but she keeps talking.

“First, the mare has a striking resemblance to Ministry Mare Pinkie Pie. When I say resemblance, I mean they might as well be twins. When I heard this, I immediately thought she might have been some super secret ministry project,” Cora tells me. “That brings me to the second thing we discovered. Rumors say that she was released from a sort of stasis pod. There are a lot of theories and rumors about her origin, but it is possible she was released from a pod that may be derived from your design.”

“So someone found a pod before us?” I ask to clarify. “Are they using her or is she running wild?”

“I am not sure. Though, DJ Pon3 has been talking about Crusaders in pursuit of her. One theory I suggest, is they accidentally released her and are attempting to stop her. However, another theory of mine is that they are simply trying to stop her,” Cora says. “It seems likely, given how much harm she’s caused.”

“Ok, so, why do we need to move fast?” I say, heading towards the armory. “Other than the fact she is slaughtering settlements?” I ask. Cora seems way too rushed. She must know 42’s location or something.

“Soar is out in the Wasteland. She made contact with a group of resistance fighters, and they say the Crusaders are heading to a mine called Red Wing. But some say the Crusaders are up in Manehatten to fight 42,” Cora says. “We won’t make it to Manehatten in time for a fight, but we might just make it to Red Wing. If the Crusaders fail to intercept 42 in Manehatten, and they plan to head to Red Wing next, we might be able to help them out there,” Cora explains.

“Right. Why would the Crusaders be heading to that mine?” I ask, as I pull on my barding and put my knives in their slots.

“Apparently, the mine has been taken over by raiders or something. The Crusaders have been helping out all over, so they are probably going to liberate it,” Cora says. “Oh, and Ratchet, it is winter. You’ll want some heavy clothes, but put them in your pack instead. Just keep on your barding and lab coat for now,” She tells me.

“Hu? Why’s that?” I ask as I pack winter clothing into my bags.

“There have been some freak storms lately. Very, very cold temperatures and almost impenetrable snowstorms. Until we get to where we are going, it might be best for you to stay inside my armor and let me take us there,” She explains. “I’ll carry your bags on my back and give them to you once you get out.”

“Is it really that bad outside? Equestrian winters aren’t that bad. Maybe in the north, but not down here. Even after the war ended and the pegasi not controlling the weather taken into the equation, things aren’t that bad,” I state.

“I don’t know why, but it is really crazy lately,” Cora responds.

“Indeed mum!” Macro suddenly says, coming around the corner toward the armory. “My ocular sensory devices have gotten iced over on numerous occasions, and I’ve had to increase exhaust output two fold just to prevent my floatation talisman from giving out.”

“What? That sounds hectic,” I mutter as I walk towards the exit with Macro following behind.

“Dreadfully so mum!” Macro replies. “Even Hal has been having difficulties due to his weight. We’ve had to dig him out of the snow multiple times after he’s sunk in.”

A loud stomp announces the arrival of Hal. “Quite Macro! It’s only happened twice,” Hal says as he walks out of the clinic. He turns his attention to me. “I’ve loaded up on healing supplies for you, Ratchet,” He gives me a few healing potions and bandages.

“Thanks. I’m sure these will come in handy,” I say, packing away the potions.

“Well, it isn’t like we use them,” Cora says, walking towards us from the hallway leading to the workshop. “When you’re not here, we tend to stock up on them.”

“Yea, I suppose. Are you all doing alright on spare scrap metal?” I ask.

“As well as we can hope for,” Hal replies. “It has been slim pickings as of late. A lot more scavengers have sprung up lately.”

“I see. Well, are we ready to head out?” I ask as I put my saddlebags on the ground. Cora opens her armor and I climb inside.

“We’re all loaded up and ready,” Hal replies as Cora’s armor closes around me. I try to reach down to grab my bags and throw them on my back, but the armor doesn’t let me move.

“Uh, Cora?” I say. “How are we going to do this? Do you want to move around with me inside or shall I move and you just ride along for now?” I ask.

Cora brings the armor’s right hoof up to the chest suddenly. “Oh, sorry Ratchet!” She says, and then lowers the hoof once again. “It has been a while since we’ve been in the armor at the same time. Here, I’ll turn control over to you, for now,” She says, and after a moment I feel the armor slacken off a bit.

“Okay then…” I say, picking up my bags and putting them onto my back once again. “Cora, set a marker for where we are heading. Macro, Hal, follow us.”

“On your six,” Hal replies.

“You got it mum,” Macro says.

I lead us through the series of bulkheads and up the ladder into the shed exit. Even through the armor, I can feel the drop in temperature. Cora wasn’t lying, it is really cold out. I push on the shed door and...it doesn’t move. I wrap it in my magic and try to push it open again, it moves an inch. “What the…” I mutter.

“Here, I got this,” Hal says, stepping on front of me and putting a hoof on the door. Seemingly without effort, Hal opens the door and steps outside.

“Thank you, Haaaa…” I trail off as I look outside. Everything is covered in snow, large drifts are piled up all over the place. Around the doorway is a particularly large drift. No wonder I couldn’t get the door open. I take a step out and...sink down to my knee. I stand there for a moment with my mouth agape in the armor. “Ohhhhkayyyyy...You were really not lying about the funky weather. We might as well be in the Frozen North right now…” I mutter, taking a few more steps.

Hal closes the door once we are all out. “Ok, let’s try this again. Follow me you two,” I say as I begin to walk through the knee deep snow. I make it about three steps before I stumble and almost fall over. “Heheh…” I chuckle nervously, and take a few more steps, then stumble again. This time, I actually fall over and am practically buried in the snow as I do so. “Uh…” I mutter as I try to find my way back to my hooves.

I hear the sound of metal on metal as Hal grabs hold of one of my legs and drags me out of the snow, then slowly sets me on my hooves. “Eheh...Thank you…” I mutter as I get my hooves back under me once again. “So...uh...Cora? Maybe you should take over,” I say indignantly.

“But mum, you almost made it to daddy! Remember, baby steps! Don’t worry, you’ll learn to walk soon!” Macro says. Ugh. Seriously, where did he pick up his sarcasm at? It is barely even sarcasm, it is like insulting. But he says it so encouraging and nicely. Urrrrgh.

“Alright, not a problem Ratchet,” Cora says as she assume control. “Okay friends, forward ho!” She declares as she starts prancing through the snow with ease. Macro floats over the snow effortlessly and Hal crushes the snow underhoof with his weight. I let out a defeated sigh. Maybe Soar is as bad at walking through this deep snow as I am?

===~+~===

Eventually, we approach a gas station. I can see smoke rising from fires on the ground and ponies standing around the fires. During our trek through the snow, Cora filled me in on the minute details of 42, the Crusaders, and the raiders that follow 42. Which is why when I see the plastic masks and outfits worn by the figures around the fires, I get a very bad feeling. “Uh, Cora, you see their outfits, right?” I ask.

“Yep, this is the place,” She replies without a hint of doubt.

“But, I thought we were linking up with the resistance fighters? Why would they be dressed as the enemy?” I ask nervously.

“What better way to move around without drawing the enemy’s attention?” She replies. “You see armed ponies who seem to be on your side, you aren’t as interested. But, if you see armed ponies that look like trouble, you’d be concerned. Well, I suppose the raiders would just shoot them in general.”

“Well, I suppose that’s true enough...but…” I begin to argue further, but then the ponies around the fires seem to notice us and start approaching. I swallow, glad to be in Cora’s armor just in case she is wrong. “Here we go…” I mutter.

Cora continues to walk up without a care as they surround us, pointing their guns at us. At this range, I can tell their guns aren’t in that good of condition either. “Hi!” Cora says as we come to a halt. “We’re here to join the resistance!” She declares. Oh Celestia help us all.

One of them steps forward, not moving their gun off us. “The resistance? What are you talking about?” The buck says suspiciously. Oh we are screwed.

“You know, the resistance,” Cora repeats. “The one here to fight against that pink mare?” Cora clarifies. Yep, they are going to shoot us.

“I’m not sure I know what you’re talking about,” The buck replies in a tone that clearly says he isn’t messing around. Just then I see movement near the back of the ponies surrounding us.

“Excuse me, pardon me,” A familiar voice mutters. “Just need to get by, watch your hooves,” The voice says as a figure dressed exactly the same as the others steps up beside the buck in front of us. “Railspike, these are my friends I was talking about,” The figure says to the buck.

“Them?” The buck, Railspike, says. “You weren’t lying when you said they have weapons. But, I thought you said there were four of them?” He asks.

“Yea,” The figure says as it removes its mask, revealing Soar’s helmet. “There are four, but it will be better if we get near a fire before we introduce them,” Soar tells Railspike. She waves a hoof calmly at the four of us.

“You don’t say…” Railspike mutters. “Well, you heard her! Lower your guns,” Railspike declares as he takes a few more steps towards us. “Welcome to the resistance you...four,” He says skeptically.

“Pleasure to be here!” Cora replies happily.

“We look forward to helping out,” Hal says.

“Nice to meet you sir!” Macro tells him.

“Uh...Yea. Nice to meet you,” I say, which seems to surprise him. “So, about that fire?” I ask, the cold finally starting to get to me after our long journey.

“Ah, right. This way,” Railspike says, turning back towards their camp. Soar walks over and joins us as we follow him to a barrel with a fire going inside of it. Cora sets my bags on the snow and opens up the armor. “Well I’ll be…” Railspike mutters as he watches me climb out of the armor. “I’ve never seen armor open up like that,” He says. “Yours do that too big fella?”

“No,” Hal replies, “mine is permanently sealed, no vulnerabilities or weak points that way.” I take this opportunity to dig out the winter clothing from my bags before I freeze to death and Cora closes up here armor once again.

Railspike raises an eyebrow. “So you’re trapped in there?” He asks.

“Nothing of the sort,” I say as I button up my coat.

“Yea,” Cora agrees as she takes a seat on a nearby log, “He can leave as long as there is a terminal or interface he can connect with.” Railspike is staring at Cora with his mouth hanging open.

“Oh yea…” I mutter. No matter how many times I explain this to ponies, I always forget this is strange to other ponies. “So, like Soar said, there are four of us,” I tell him. “Maybe we should introduce ourselves quick before we launch into an explanation. My name is Ratchet.”

“Hello, I’m Cora!” Cora says, waving a hoof. “My name is an acronym for Combat Operations and Research Assistant.”

“I’m Hal, my name stands for Heavy Assault and Logistics,” Hal says, nodding his head.

“A pleasure to meet you sir! I am Maintenance and Cleaning Robotic Ophthalmologist, Macro for short,” Macro says, bobbing his eye stalks.

“I am Soar, Steath Operations and Reconnaissance,” Soar states.

I facehoof. “Soar, he knows you already,” I tell her.

“I wanted to be included,” She replies.

“Of course. Anyhow,” I begin, “Railspike, of the five of us, I am the only flesh and blood pony. The others are Artificial Intelligence that just control the bodies they are in. They are one hundred percent artificial with no organic parts.”

Railspike looks around at us with his mouth hanging open for a moment before he says, “So...they’re robots?” I notice Cora slump.

“No, not at all,” I correct him. “Robots are made to follow specific instructions and can’t act outside of their programming. AI on the other hoof, are able to exercise free will and do pretty much anything we ponies are able to do. Honestly, just think of them as normal ponies. Even if they don’t have fleshy bodies, they are pretty much the same,” I tell him.

He shakes his head. “This is way outside my realm of thinking. But, I can see what you mean. Before you said anything, I thought Soar was just wearing armor,” He tells me. “Alright, I don’t have a problem with them, but this will make my plan a little difficult.”

“Why is that?” I ask, “What is the plan?”

“Well, we are disguising ourselves as that pink bitches’ minions and plan to walk right into Red Wing. Then launch a surprise attack on them once we are inside. But, given that Hal here is so bulky and Macro isn’t pony-like, we can’t exactly disguise them,” He tells me.

I look over at Soar, dressed up like one of the raiders, then over at Hal. Yea, there is no way he could pull off that disguise. “I understand,” I mutter, holding a hoof to my chin. “How about this. Cora, Soar, and I will wear disguises and Macro and Hal will stay hidden outside. Once the fighting starts, they can regroup with us,” I suggest.

Railspike nods. “That could work, assuming they can stay hidden and we can get a signal to them,” He says.

“We stay in radio contact,” Cora tells him.

“That solves that,” Railspike mutters, and looks at Cora. “Your armor’s mane might be a problem too. If they see someone who looks like they are wearing a suit of power armor, it might raise suspicion. Soar was easy enough, as she lacks a mane and tail on her armor,” He says.

“I thought ahead for that!” Cora says, and then proceeds to dig into her bags and pulls out a very ragged looking cloak. “If I put this on and wrap it around tightly, I should be fine, right?” She asks.

Railspike watches as Cora puts the cloak on. It covers most of her body, neck, and head. “Hmm, with the mask, and some cloth wrapped around your legs, it might work,” he says with a nod.

“I don’t suppose you have spare masks, do you?” I ask him.

“We have a few,” He says. “They are just plastic, so they tend to be pretty brittle. We made sure to have spares incase some of ours were no longer usable. We’ll get two for you both,” He says, and then focuses his gaze on my leg. “A PipBuck, hu? That will definitely have to be hidden from sight. Wrap it up,” He tells me. “We also need to get you some shabbier clothing too. What you’re wearing right now is way too nice looking, no offense.”

“I got a cloak for her too!” Cora says, pulling out another cloak. It looks just as ruined as hers does.

“That will work. Now, there is one last thing. I’m not sure how you’ll take it though,” Railspike says. “Hal, Macro, you two will need to leave camp as soon as possible. You stick out, and it wouldn’t look right for you to be in our group. Since you can’t wear the disguises, and can’t freeze to death, I recommend you go into the forest and wait things out,” He tells them.

Macro gasps. “I am shocked! Shocked sir! I try my best to be pony-like, I even scamper around on my arms from time to time. You didn’t have to rub it in. I wish I had a body like yours!” He says, sounding quite hurt. Railspike raises a hoof and moves his mouth, looking awkward. I let out a sigh and facehoof.

“Seriously Macro, cut it out,” I say as the others start to chuckle. “Railspike thinks you are serious,” I tell him.

“Aw mum, you ruin the fun so fast,” Macro says sadly. “I am sorry sir Railspike, I was just kidding. I love my body! It is far more efficient than yours!”

“Uh, well, as long as you aren’t upset, it’s fine,” Railspike says, still seeming unsure of things.

Hal gets up and nudges Macro. “Let’s go, Macro. We don’t want to give away their plans. We’ll wait in the forest until we receive further orders,” Hal says, walking back towards the forest.

“Until then!” Macro says, following after Hal as he waves an arm in farewell.

Railspike lets out a relieved sigh. “Ok, let us get your disguises in order,” He says and motions over to a mare a ways off. Once she walks over, he continues, “Marrow, get two more masks for our newcomers here. Need to make sure they fit in quick.” She nods and walks away. “So, Cora, Ratchet, shall we discuss the plan further?” He asks.

I nod. “Do you know when the Crusaders will be coming?” I ask.

He raises an eyebrow. “Last I heard, they were up in Manehatten fighting the pink mare. There is just a rumor they might be heading here next, but we don’t plan to wait around for them to get here. We’re going in to liberate the mine. If the Crusaders show up, all the better. It would be great to have their help,” He explains, “but we aren’t going to expect it.”

“I see,” I say, looking over to Cora. “Ok then, tell us the plan.”

===~+~===

Cora, Soar, and I sit around a fire with a few of the other resistance members. It is the following afternoon since we arrived, and we are already into the first part of the plan: Rest up. Apparently their journey was a long and cold one. They need to make sure they are ready in case things go south. The reasoning is sound, but I can’t help but feel Cora rushed us for no reason. At least it gave us time to learn the plan and meet the ponies here.

They number about two dozen and are from the Filly area. Apparently, they were scavengers there. But, due to the trouble 42 has been stirring up, they decided to take matters into their own hooves. She’s wiped out towns that some of the resistance members had family in, including Railspike himself. They are a pretty tight-knit group. Nothing like the collection of random ponies I originally thought we’d be meeting up with.

Cora comes closer to me and says, “The DJ is broadcasting now, you should tune in.”

“Oh?” I say, fiddling with my PipBuck. I lower my voice and whisper, “Are we still on the third one? That young stallion?”

Cora nods, “Yes, but he isn’t young anymore.”

I chuckle. “I suppose so, it has been a while…” I mutter as I finally tune into the station.

I miss the first part of the broadcast, and catch him as he is mid-sentence. “-here this afternoon to tell you that the Pink Mare has issued an ultimatum for them, to either give her what she wants at the town of Red Wing, or join the battle for the town, and fight her to the death.”

“As this broadcast goes out to you, I know that some of you have family members who have chosen to help out those in the embattled town. Some of you have stood up against the oppression and injustices in the wasteland and have been given the will to fight for it to be a better place. I am here to tell you that at this moment, our very own crusaders are out there heading for Red Wing. They are willing to stand next to everypony else and fight for what they believe is right, asking for nothing in return except a safer wasteland. Now I ask you, my children; if a simple merchant can cast aside his own needs to bring us the hope of a better life, even at the costs he’s endured, do we not owe it to be better ponies? Do we not honor the sacrifice the few make by committing ourselves to live by the example they have set?”

“And though we may never see anypony like them again in our lifetime, as citizens of the wasteland community, I ask you to remember those ponies who fight for you. To the crusaders themselves, should they be listening, I wish you good luck, we’re all counting on you.” The DJ ends his speech and soft music begins to play. Well, he sounds the same as ever.

“Huh, so the Crusaders are led by a merchant?” I ask Cora, who just shrugs.

“I guess so,” She replies. “I guess that gives weight to my ‘they released her’ theory. Maybe they stumbled across her while looking for stuff to sell, and released her?” Cora suggests.

“Maybe,” I mutter. Then I frown. “The DJ said the pink mare is at Red Wing. I guess the Crusaders failed in Manehatten. That means they are for sure heading there then. We should tell Railspike they are heading this way. Maybe we can wait and meet up with them?” I say.

Cora nods. “Let’s do that,” She says, getting to her hooves. Soar and I get up as well and begin to make our way over to Railspike. He is a ways off from us, so it takes a short time to get to him.

“Hey, Railspike,” I call out as we approach. “You got a moment?”

He turns towards me as I walk up to him. “Yea, what do you need?” He asks.

“The DJ was just on the radio, he said that-,” but I am cut off by a few shouts and ponies grabbing their guns.

“Shit,” Railspike mutters. “Hold that thought, looks like we have company. Let’s go,” He says, and we hurry towards the road. I look down the road and see a...car? Is that a working car here in the Wasteland? The resistance members are taking up defensive positions on the road, and I move to join them. We pull our masks on as the car makes the final bend in the road and comes fully into view.

Railspike and another pony move out into the middle of the road, directly in the way of the vehicle. The car rolls to a stop about ten feet from them and all of the resistance members train their guns on the car. Railspike’s partner staggers back a step before the car turns off its engine. The car is filled with ponies and...a griffin?

“Take what you want, I ain’t with these ponies.” A buck from the car calls out, raising his hooves into the air. The others in the car turn and look at him. Railspike and the other pony exchange glances for a moment.

“We’re the Crusaders, 42 wants us to arrive alive, so I suggest that you put down your weapons and let us warm up at the fire,” Another buck from the car says. Huh? They are the Crusaders?

“In that case, I am with these ponies.” The first buck says, lowering his hooves. Wow, he doesn’t seem that loyal. But, the second buck’s declaration seems to strike Railspike. He glances at his partner, who shrugs in response. Then, Railspike lets out a loud whistle. The other half of the resistance comes out from behind the fallen trees and rocks on the sides of the road.

Railspike then removes his mask and points a hoof at the buck behind the wheel of the car. “You all are really the Crusaders? The same Crusaders the DJ is always talking about?” He asks happily. The buck nods. “Come then and get yourselves armed up, we were just about to start dinner,” Railspike says, and then walks up to the buck’s window and extends his hoof. “My name is Railspike. Welcome to the resistance.”

The buck hesitantly shakes Railspikes hoof. After that, the group claiming to be the Crusaders is led into camp and to the fire. They don’t say much as we do so. I think both sides, us and them, are a little bit skeptical of each other. The buck who claims they are the Crusaders, Backlash, I think his name was, seems to be their leader. He also has a pretty bad injury to his chest. It is like when you stick your tongue to metal when it is cold and then rip it away, only much, much worse, and on his chest.

Railspike has me and another mare treat his injury, since I seem to be the one with the most experience mending injuries. Though, I suppose given the amount of time I’ve spent in the Wasteland wandering around helps with that. And knowledge of pre-wasteland medical procedures helps too, basic though my knowledge is. Once we finish patching Backlash up, I move a ways away from the group to give Railspike and them space to talk.

Since I can’t pick out their conversation from this far away, I look over their group. Backlash seems to be in pretty rough shape, well, most of them do. They all look quite cold and worn out, to be honest.

Twain, the first buck who tried to surrender when we stopped them, I would sum up as being kind of a cowpony? He has this rough and tough aura about him. Then there is a fairly pretty unicorn mare who I think is named Longbow. Judging by the way they are acting, her and Backlash are an item. The griffin, Carlotta, seems pretty alert and ready for anything. There is also a red pegasus named Sky. And judging by the way they look at each other, I think her and the griffin are together.

After talking for a while, Railspike suddenly pulls Backlash into a hug and laughs warmly. When Railspike lets him go, Carlotta grabs him and the two go off on their own. Railspike and the others continue talking. It isn’t long before the two return and everyone begins eating. Railspike and the other resistance members give the Crusaders some space.

Me? I want to get answers. But, I leave Cora and Soar behind so I don’t intrude too much. As I make my way into their group, their conversation goes quiet and all their eyes turn to me. “Hello, my name is Ratchet,” I tell them, looking from one to the next. “I would like to ask you all some questions, if you don’t mind.”

“Look,” Carlotta says pointedly, “we’re tired. So, if you want an autograph or something, it can wait till tomorrow.”

“I just heard about you all a few days ago from a friend, not really that long to become a fan or anything,” I reply. “Though, I did catch that most recent speech from DJ Pon3, he seems taken with you lot, so I suppose that is something. They...er...he, has always been able to pick out good ponies,” I tell them.

“Do you know him?” Sky asks somewhat skeptically.

“Yea,” I tell her. “We aren’t friends or anything. But I met him when he started out with the DJ thing and my friends have kept in touch with him. But, we are getting off topic. I’d like to get to the point so you all can go back to your meal and get some rest.” As I say that, I notice a PipBuck on their leader’s leg. Maybe I can use that as a way to earn their trust.

I start unwrapping mine as I start talking to their leader. “Backlash, right? I notice you have a PipBuck, a special model. Actually, it looks sort of like one of Pinkie Pie’s custom models, just pretty damaged. Definitely not something out of a Stable. I have one too,” I tell him as I hold up my uncovered PipBuck.

Backlash, and the rest of his group blink at me in surprise. “Where did you find that?” He asks.

“You probably won’t believe me,” I tell him as I start wrapping it back up, “but, it was custom made for me by Twilight Sparkle herself.” Their cowpony member starts laughing and the rest look at me like I’m crazy. Only Backlash looks like he somewhat believes me.

“Interesting,” He says. “I got mine from Pinkie Pie...kind of…”

“But, since she is dead, I’m assuming the pink mare called 42 gave it to you for some reason?” I ask. They all exchange glances, except for Twain who has started to ignore me and gone back to eating.

Longbow speaks next, cutting to the chase, “You aren’t here to talk about PipBucks. Why are you here? You don’t seem like a normal member of this resistance group.”

“I’m not,” I tell her. “I joined up with them yesterday, hoping to find the Crusaders, and through them, 42. But, I was told a rumor and I want to confirm it with you. The rumor states that you were responsible for releasing 42. I’m not here to blame you for it if you did, I just need to know the answer,” I ask.

They all look at me sharply, except for Backlash who looks down. “It was an accident,” He mutters.

“I understand,” I tell him, putting a hoof on his shoulder. My failures have unleashed hell upon the Wasteland too. Be them me opening pods myself or failing to prevent their opening. “I have another question, in that case,” I say, and he looks up at me sadly.

“What was she in?” I ask. The question seems to catch them all off guard, like it isn’t what they expected me to ask. Who could really guess I’d ask that though? “Specifically, was it a cryogenic pod of some sort? I’ve seen a large deviation in design, from vertical to horizontal positioning. Chemical freezing and liquid freezing,” I start listing off descriptions of pods I’ve seen before that originated from my design. All the while, their eyes grow wider and wider.

“Was it a chamber with large valves? Perhaps one with many pipes? There was one I saw that used needles to inject the chemicals. What about a vertical, cylindrical pod where the subject would float in a special liquid and then be frozen solid? Maybe a cast made to look exactly like a pony that the subject would be placed inside?” As I list off the types of pods I’ve seen, Backlash seems to have a moment of recognition. “It was one, wasn’t it? Which?” I ask.

“The cylindrical one made of glass with blue liquid keeping her floating,” Backlash mutters.

“Damn it,” I curse. So 42 was frozen in one of my pods. If only I’d found that facility sooner, I could have prevented all this. “I’m sorry,” I tell them all. “I should have found her pod and stopped her before she was ever released.” They look at me in confusion.

“What do you mean?” Sky asks.

I frown. “During the war, I developed a prototype cryogenic pod. The reference for all deviations that I’ve found, including the one 42 was in. I’ve been searching for them, hoping to deal with them,” I reply, and receive looks like I am crazy.

“You’d be over a hundred years old,” Carlotta says, shaking her head. “There is no way you’ve been searching around all this time. Maybe if you were a ghoul or a robot, but you look flesh and blood to me,” She tells me, then gets up, walks over to me, and sniffs. “Smell like a real pony too.”

“I’ve been using my prototype. I have an AI that searches for more pods while I am frozen and she wakes me up when she finds one,” I explain. They seem skeptical, but seem to believe me a bit more. “Backlash, you’re a merchant, right?” I ask. He nods. “I’m sorry you’ve had to go through all this. If you and your friends want to quit now, I’ll kill 42 myself. It is the least I can do,” I tell him.

Backlash looks up at me, his face a mix of disbelief and hope. But that expression is gone in an instant, replaced with one of determination and purpose. “No,” he tells me. “It is my mistake that started all this, I’ll finish it. After what 42 has done...I can’t turn back now. I have to stop her.” I smile sadly at him. I know that expression he wears. It is the one I wear when I think about the pods I still haven’t found.

I nod. “Then, at least let me help you. Together, we will be able to stop her without a problem,” I offer.

He just shakes his head. “I can’t let you do that, not against her. Enough ponies have died because of me. We will do this alone,” He tells me. “But...if you want to help, you can help the resistance take Red Wing while we deal with 42.”

“If you’re sure, that’s what I’ll do,” I tell him. “I’ll make sure we win our fight and take back the mine. Now, I think that’s enough questions for the moment. You’ll all need your strength, so eat up and rest. We can talk more after we win,” I say with a smile as I start to leave them. “Oh, and Backlash,” I say, turning back to him. “Tell me your story when we win.”

He smiles and nods. “When we win,” He agrees. I leave them to finish their food while I rejoin Cora and Soar.

“What did you find out?” Cora asks once I sit back down with them.

“It was a pod,” I reply, sullenly. “The Crusaders are going to stop 42. We are going to help the resistance take back Red Wing while they do,” I tell them.

“Why not help the Crusaders?” Soar asks.

“I offered, but they refused,” I mutter. “If they’ve come this far, and done all the things you’ve told me, they’ll stop her.”

===~+~===

The following morning, the resistance sets out ahead of the Crusaders. Railspike decided we should give them some extra rest. Besides, they have that car so they can easily catch back up with us. We arrange to meet up at a cave a ways up the road, just a ways outside of Red Wing. It is a cold walk, but we eventually make it to the cave and begin to wait. All the while, Macro and Hal are creeping along in the forest beside us, just out of sight. After the resistance makes it to the cave, it is a few hours before the Crusaders catch up with us.

When they do, they have three more with them. Steel Rangers, by the look of them. The extra firepower will be welcome. Not only that, but the Crusaders also begin handing out weapons, ammo, and armor to the rest of the resistance. We also share a quick meal before we set out.

However, the Crusaders appear to be poorly equipped in the ammunition department. I hear them dividing up what they have, and I think about sharing some of ours. But, only Cora has compatible ammunition types. Raptor Blood’s gauss rounds are already few in number as it is, and her .308 storage was never large to begin with. If they needed .32, 5.56, or even 10mm ammo, we could spare some. Unfortunately, no one seems as prepared as they want to be when we set out. I hope that my group and the Rangers make up for the lack of firepower the others have.

The sun has started to set as we begin the walk to Red Wing. The Rangers, like Macro and Hal, hang back. Apparently they aren’t part of the normal Crusader group. I guess that they would draw suspicion. After a few minutes, we come to a hill and begin the climb. At the top, as I look down at what I suspect is Red Wing, I feel the same feeling I felt in the Badlands years ago, a calm hatred. I harden my jaw as I look upon the field below us.

Frozen, mutilated bodies, hundreds perhaps, litter the field between us and the gate of the mine. The mine itself is burning in places that aren’t already charred husks. I wonder if the mine has any survivors, or if the raiders killed everyone when they took over. Is this the kind of fighting 42 has been bringing about?

A cloaked figure steps up beside me as I look over the battlefield. “I knew I’d find you here, Ratchet,” the figure says.

I let out a sigh. “Hello War. I take your presence here as proof that we aren’t going to walk into the mine and have the raiders surrender to us,” I mutter.

War chuckles. “As if them surrendering would make my presence here pointless. Remember the Sunny Trails incident?” He asks rehtorically. “Personally, I like what you’ve become. There are too many bleeding hearts, ponies who think they are noble and doing justice, he tells me.”

“Raiders are raiders,” I reply simply.

“I agree wholeheartedly,” He replies. “They made their choice. They could have chosen to do better. But...here we are,” He chuckles again. “I look forward to the fight, Ratchet.” He walks forward a few paces and disappears behind one of the resistance fighters.

We continue down the hill, and a bell rings out from the mine. Inside the mine, I see figures dashing about in the streets. A warning bell, perhaps? Once we pass through the gate, a huge pony stands in our way. I didn’t know ponies could get that big. Just as I think we are about to be made, the giant speaks, “You. State your name.”

Its voice is that of a mare, only very deep and threatening. Her voice practically makes me wince each time she speaks. “I said, state. Your. Name.” She repeats.

“Backlash,” Backlash tells her, in a slightly nervous voice. But, who can blame him when face to..well, leg, with a giant like that?

“Not you,” She says, and points directly at Railspike. “You, the Pinkie in front. Name.” She demands. Did names really matter to the raiders? They wear masks, after all. Do they keep a list of all members that each member then memorizes? That seems complicated. Why not just ask him to remove his mask? Well, I suppose we’d be in even more of a jam if she asked that.

“Hey, cunt,” Backlash says suddenly, snapping me from my sudden curiosity of raider management systems. “Are you deaf? I said my name is Backlash,” He tells her. It sounds like he is doing a voice. Mimicking someone, maybe? “I’m here for 42. You know, that bitch who runs this place?” She’s expecting me, so turn your sweet little flank around, and go tell her I’m here.” He says.

“No need for dat,” comes a stallion’s voice from behind her. I wonder if she’s hiding more ponies back there. “Go on Linebreaker. Ya break ended ten minutes ago, get back ta watchin the west wall,” The stallion tells the giant, who walks off at his remark. Is he a high ranking member or something? I’m sure that giant could have just squished him if she wanted to. “Wait, you assholes again? You’re who da boss is lookin for?” The stallion says. “Wowee. First, ya kill Bishop, den ya blow up tha pool and nearly yours truly. Now I get ta be the one ta turn ya in? Finally some fuckin justice in my life,” He says with a chuckle.

So many questions. Who is Bishop? What is ‘the pool’? Why did the Crusaders kill and blow it up respectively? Apparently this buck isn’t a fan of theirs either. Geez, Backlash’s story seems like it is going to be a wild ride.

“Oh yea!” The buck suddenly calls out. “The boss wanted me ta give ya somethin. She knew ya would love this surprise,” He whistles and then we wait as a pony in a hood is brought out from the general store.

Once the pony is placed in front of Backlash, he seems to recognize the pony. “Hey, Gale. You alright?” He asks. “Not much of a surprise when you only covered his head.” They remove the pony’s hood, revealing a beaten looking buck wearing an explosive collar.

“They’re hidden in plain sight, just like you were! I got them out and stayed behind so Pariah-” The beaten buck begins, but is silenced when the collar blows his head into pulp and his body falls to the ground.

“Surprise!” The buck yells out with a wide smile. I feel that calming sensation creeping ever further over me. I think I’ll kill this buck first. But, as I think that Backlash suddenly starts smashing the buck’s face in with only the swiftness and precision SATS can provide. In seconds, the bucks head flies clean off his shoulders.

Silence falls over everything as the buck’s headless body hits the dirt. After a few seconds, one of the raiders suddenly yells, “That guy just killed Lucky!”

Another yells out in response, “Fuck, he owed me money! Yer fuckin dead!” Then one of the resistance members shoots from beside me. Immediately after, bullets start flying from both sides and everyone spreads out. I stick with Cora and Soar as I draw my knives. This is SO not to plan.

More raiders start coming out of the buildings as the fighting gets into full swing. “Cora!” I shout as I throw a knife at a charging raider.

“Already told them! Macro and Hal are on their way!” She replies. Good, good. I look around quickly. The raiders are all around us. The resistance members have thrown off their disguises for the most part, and I do likewise. No need to get hit by friendly fire.

A loud explosion rings out and I look over to see the Rangers have joined in the fight. I see them engaging the raiders near their entryway. Looks like they are taking care of the ones on the walls. The Rangers lose my focus as a raider starts yelling as they charge at me. I turn just in time to send a knife right between their eyes. His body falls and momentum sends him sliding across the snow to stop a foot in front of me.

I pull the knife out of his head and look for the first raider I killed. There they are. I see one of my knives sticking out of a raider’s neck a short distance away and walk over to retrieve it. I just pick it up in my magic as a PA system kicks on. “Wow, Backlash, just...wow,” The mare’s voice echos through the mine. It sounds almost exactly like Pinkie Pie’s. 42, I assume.

“Here I was, watching you on the closed circuit as he antagonized you, and bam! You knocked his head clean off,” 42 laughs over the system. “That was some top tier execution of Pie family impossibility! Really learned how to channel that family line right through your hooves. You know what, I’m proud of you.” Hu? Pie family? Did she mean that...Before I can finish that thought, a raider hits me in the side with metal bat. I glare at her as I slit her throat before she can hit me again.

Thank Luna for bulky, padded winter clothing. I barely felt a thing! Though, I suppose my barding helped as well. “The ones we teach always grow up so fast!” 42 continues. “So yeah, as you might have heard, I kinda lost your first gift when that stallion let them all escape. Sorry about that. Had this whole plan to scar you for life with their remains again, but honestly, I’m glad it didn’t work out. The joke was getting old anyway,” She says somewhat sadly.

I mouth the words ‘scar you for life with their remains’ as I throw two knives at a raider with an assault rifle and catch her in the throat and nose. You know, if I didn’t already want to kill 42, I’d probably want to do so just from hearing her talk. And she just keeps talking!

“You like the storm outside? I thought it was a pretty nifty idea, and I have no idea why they wouldn’t have kept up such an awesome project! I mean, yeah the shield spells they went with were ultimately easier to implement, but a windigo augmented shield projection spell? Doesn’t get much more awesome than that!” She declares. She caused this crazy weather? And what the hell is a windigo augmented shield projection spell? What the hell were we developing during the war?

“Even though I’m pretty sure the enchantment will break soon, it wins hooves down just by the...COOL factor! Get it!? Yeah, fuck you too, Backlash. You’re probably too busy fighting for your life to even listen to your crazy great aunt anymore,” She says angrily. Ok, yea. Time to ignore this crazy bitch. Backlash has so many questions to answer when he’s done killing her. Speaking of which…

“HURRY UP AND KILL THAT BITCH BACKLASH!” I yell at the top of my lungs. “SHE IS ANNOYING AS FUCK!” Ugh, alright. Let’s focus on the fighting and less on the crazy pink mare that wants to be a comic book villain. I throw another knife at a raider with a sniper on top of a building nearby, hitting his rifle and sending it, and my knife, sliding down the roof. Damn it, why did I do that? That knife is going to be a pain to retrieve.

I mentally kick myself as I trot over to the dead mare with the assault rifle and pick up the two knives I threw previously. Just then, an explosion rocks a nearby section of the wall. Large chunks of it fall away and then in one instant, the wall bursts inwards, burying a raider in the rubble and sending bits of wood and metal flying towards me. Most of it hits the ground right in front of me, but I have to jerk my head to the right to avoid one particularly large piece.

“Welcome to the fight, Hal,” I call over as the dust settles and Hal and Macro come in through the new hole in the wall.

“The cavalry has arrived mum!” Macro declares, playing a little musical tune as he does so.

“What else can I blow up!?” Hal asks happily.

“Enemies,” I tell him. “Try not to damage too much of the property though. Use that minigun that you have.”

“But...grenades,” Hal says confused.

“Yes,” I say, throwing a knife at a raider getting a little too close for comfort. “Grenades are fun, but sometimes, other weapons work better,” I tell him, and then let out a sigh. He always does this. Uses all his grenades before ever firing his minigun once. The damn things are expensive and hard to get in the number he uses them. “Just...fucking...ugh...Go!” I say, throwing another knife behind me and catching a raider in the hoof. Macro floats over to the raider and lights him on fire.

Hal charges into the mine and I hear the sound of his grenade machine gun over and over. Macro floats off to help Cora, who is a few buildings away. Soar...is doing what she does best, I suppose, since I can’t seem to find her. I look at my surroundings. Most of the fighting in my immediate area has died down. A number of raider and resistance bodies lie about. “Okay…” I mutter as I retrieve the knives I just threw.

I look up to the roof where I disarmed the sniper, and look for my knife. The raider is trying to slide down the roof to retrieve his rifle that is caught on the gutter. And...ah, there it is. My knife is sticking out of the gutter near his rifle. I walk slowly towards the roof, trying to grab the knife in my magic, but it remains just out of my reach. I reach the wall of the building, and still can’t grab it. Damn tall buildings.

I begin looking around to see how the raider got on the roof. I spot some makeshift scaffolding leading to the roofs a little ways off. “Ah, there we got,” I mutter, and look back up to the raider. “Hey, Pink!” I call out, catching the buck’s attention. As he looks up at me, I hit him with another knife. He slips on the roof and starts to fall towards me. I step aside as he lands, his neck bent at a bad angle. His sniper falls a second later. I look up at the gutter, hopeful that he knocked my knife down as well. I frown when I see it in the same spot. Clicking my tongue, I pull the knife out of the raider and make my way to the scaffolding.

The battle rages on around me, but if I don’t get my knife back, I’ll forget where it is at. Besides, maybe I can get a good look at where needs my help once I get it back. After about a minute, I’m on top of the roof and retrieve my knife. I put it back into its sheath and look around the mine.

Most of the fighting has died down and is centralized in a large clearing between the buildings. Near a cave into the mines, I see the Rangers. They are just standing at the entrance. Talking with someone, maybe? The townsponies? Not many raiders around them at the moment, I think Backlash went up that way. His group probably cleared out the raiders.

So then...where am I needed? I look around for the giant mare, but can’t find her anywhere. Hal is pushing up the middle of the town while Cora and Macro are sweeping along the right side of it. On the opposite side, I spot Railspike and two of his resistance members pushing along that side. Between Railspike and Cora is a zone of chaos with the resistance fighters barely managing to fight off larger numbers.

I quickly make a count of everyone I can see. Fifteen raiders and ten resistance fighters, counting Railspike remain. It looks like our allies in the clearing are about to lose. Running along the rooftops I can, I make my way above the clearing. I jump from a fairly tall roof onto a lower lying roof right on the outside of the clearing. Nearing the edge of the roof, I look down. Once I go down, I’ll have five raiders within my magic’s reach. I quickly memorize their positions and those of the resistance members fighting them. Then, I draw five knives and jump.

As I fall, I throw the knives, one for each of the raiders within my range. A moment later, I hit the ground and quickly look around as I draw my last two knives. I killed two of the raiders instantly, the other three I hit, but not lethally. However, it gives the resistance fighters the opportunity they need to finish them off. Once the five initial raiders are dead, I retrieve my knives. “Help the others!” I shout to the resistance members and move towards the next pocket of fighting.

A few grenades go off a ways in front of me, and I see Hal enter the clearing. A moment later, Railspike and two ponies reach it as well. With only ten raiders remaining, and Cora approaching from the right, the raiders are quickly surrounded. We surround them and a few try to fight back, but are quickly put down. By the time the raiders decide to drop their weapons and surrender, there are four of them left.

“Kick your weapons over,” Railspike commands them, his weapons trained on them. They begin to comply, but I approach them before they can finish. I step on an SMG and sheath all but four of my knives. In the next moment, all four raiders’ throats are slit. “What the…” Railspike mutters. “They surrendered! You didn’t have to kill them!” He tells me.

I wipe my knives off on one of the raider’s barding. “They were raiders,” I reply. “They knew what they were getting into. If they want to kill ponies for fun, they shouldn’t get to surrender.”

“Ratchet…” Cora says sadly.

“That’s wrong,” Railspike replies. “If you kill them in cold blood, there is nothing separating us and them.”

I look into his eyes. “There is plenty that separates us and them. But, we don’t have time to debate. There could be more in hiding, we should sweep the town,” I tell him, and I can see resignation in his eyes. “Cora, Macro, Hal, Soar, check for any raiders hiding or if anyone needs help,” I say, turning to them. Soar suddenly appears from behind two of the resistance members. She nods and walks off.

I look up the slope of the mine and frown. The resistance fighters slowly start to walk away and make sure the raider threat is gone. I decide to follow after the Crusaders. I know they told me not to help, but maybe they ran into some more raiders I can help with. Climbing the slope, I make my way to the Rangers. Ponies are just starting to file out of the cave with the Rangers instructing them. “Keep moving citizens! We are evacuating the town!” The one who appears to be in charge shouts. The other two are helping guide the townsponies out.

“Hey, Ranger,” I call out as I near him. “Do you need any immediate help?” I ask.

“Are you with the resistance?” He asks, then shakes his head. “No, we haven’t encountered any raiders coming our way since our entry. How goes the fight in the town?” He asks.

“Mostly over, I think,” I tell him. “Other than raiders hiding in wait, we’ve put an end to most of the fighting.”

He nods. “Good, we will focus on protecting the citizens then,” He replies.

“Keep them safe,” I say as I continue walking up the slope. I pass dead raiders higher up I go, and eventually a cabin of some sort. “Where did you get off to Backlash…” I mutter as I keep climbing and looking around. I quickly spot a large door blasted off, laying on the hillside. That seems a good a guess as any. Entering the cave where the door once was and into a open entryway.

Lying inside the entryway, is a large bipedal machine, even bigger than Hal. It is lying on the ground, and seems to be struggling to move. Cautiously, I walk over to it. “What are you…? I mutter.

“That’s not nice! We’re not a what!” The machine declares, turning its head to look at me. The voice stuns me for a moment. It sounds reminiscent of Pinkie Pie. “My name is Pink, I’ll have you know,” It says again. “I’m an AP.”

“Wait...an AP? As in highly advanced AI?” I ask to clarify.

“Yep, yep!” She declares, seemingly happy that I understand.

“Hey…” Another familiar voice says from the robotic body. “Your DNA is similar to one I have on file for a...miss Ratchet. Are you a descendent?” She asks.

“Not exactly...Uh...so...Pink, was it? You have a voice just like Pinkie Pie and that other voice she sounds just like Twilight Sparkle. If I had to guess, your based off them, right?” I ask.

One of them lets out an excited gasp while the one based off Twilight replies, “That is correct. Say, your DNA is a 99.9% match to research chief Ratchet...you wouldn’t actually happen to be her, would you?”

Well, why lie? “Yea. You probably know about my research too, right? I’ve been using my cryopod to freeze myself,” I tell her.

“Really Bit!?” Pink asks excitedly. “The does that mean she might be able to enter the Orchard?”

“Assuming the AP running it has her credentials on file, yes, she should be able to,” the other, Bit, replies.

“Uh, wait, what? Orchard?” I ask, confused.

“Ratchet,” Pink asks in a begging tone, “can you go after Backlash and his friends? It isn’t that I don’t have faith in them, but they are facing a clone of Pinkie Pie.”

“A clone!?” I ask, my mouth agape. I blink a few times and then say, “So, the Crusaders are deeper inside?”

“Yea, they went in about seven minutes ago,” She replies. “What do you say? Can you help them?” She asks.

“Well, yea. That was my plan to begin with. But, before that, what is wrong with you two? I assume you took some damage...do you have a repair talisman in there?” I ask.

“We do,” Bit replies, “but since we lack excess scrap metal to use, it is taking a longer than usual. We won’t be fully functional for another...twenty four minutes!? Why does it keep going up?”

“I understand,” I say, digging around in my bags and pulling out some scrap metal. “Here, use this. I travel with some AIs in power armor suits, so I make sure to carry some around incase their supplies run out.” I place the scrap next to their body.

They both gasp. “Thank you, thank you, thank you!” Pink says happily.

“The time has decreased to sixteen minutes!” Bit declares.

I chuckle. “Alright, I’ll go after the Crusaders. When you two can move, see if there is anything you can do outside. Most of the raiders are dead, I think, so right now it is just clean up,” I tell them.

“You got it! Good luck!” Pink replies.

I start to walk away when Bit calls out to me, “Oh! And when you come to a teleportation pad, identify yourself to save yourself some time. We heard Backlash go through that process.”

“Got it!” I call back, and walk until I see a room with what I assume is a teleportation pad, judging by the fact there are no other rooms in this cave. Identify myself...hu? “Uh...My name is Ratchet, a Chief Researcher for the Ministry of Arcane Sciences?” I say in a sightly loud voice.

“Credentials confirmed,” Comes a voice, one that sounds just like Rainbow Dash’s. “You’re clear to access the teleporter. Sheesh. Why can’t everpony who comes through here be as quick on the uptake as you? Uh, I mean, I’m not complaining about my superiors or anything. I’m not. Really. Just thinking out loud. I am Dash, by the way, administrator of this facility. What brings you here, Miss Ratchet?”

I wonder if she is an AP too. “Well, I’m actually looking for Backlash and the Crusaders,” I tell her.

“Oh? MoM Chief Backlash? Yea, I let him through a few minutes ago. Almost took him for a zebra spy too,” Dash tells me.

“I see. Well, will this pad take me close to him?” I ask.

“Not really. I kind of teleported him to detention when I thought he was a spy. This pad normally takes you to a completely different section of the facility,” Dash replies.

“Would you happen to be tracking his movements right now?” I ask.

“Of course! I know where everyone in my Orchard is at at all times. It’s for security and safety purposes,” Dash informs me.

“Ok, could you just teleport me to him then?” I ask.

“No can do,” She says apologetically. “Security protocols prevent me from allowing direct teleportation to anywhere except for detention and the entrance.”

“Then, which is closer to his current position? Detention or the normal entrance?” I ask.

“Detention. But, I can’t teleport you there, either. You’re not a security risk so you have to use the normal entrance,” She says.

Ugh. “Yea, ok, fine. Let’s do that then. Can you guide me to him after?” I ask, hopeful.

“I can light up a path for you. Follow the blue lights on the floor once you get inside. Oh, and I have to recite a mega boring disclaimer about violence in the workplace being wrong. But, I’ll play some music to drown myself out so you don’t have to hear it. That sound cool?” She asks.

“Uh, sure?” I say.

“Then just hit the button and away you’ll go!” Dash declares. I waste no time and hit the button. The pad makes a sound, and then I am blinded by a flash. Once I regain my vision, the room around me is completely different and music begins to play. I spot the blue lights and start down the hall at a quick pace.

===~+~===

Minutes later, and after passing room after room with interesting looking things I force myself to ignore, I hear gunfire erupt for further in the facility. It is followed by yelling and then more gunfire which is in turned followed by screaming. I can’t make out who is screaming what, but it is probably too much to hope for that it is 42 doing the screaming. I run faster through the halls, following the blue lights.

After another minute or so, I reach a point marked Flux Contamination Zone above a large, open door. Inside the room, I spot a few of the Crusaders huddled around on the ground. I don’t see Backlash or 42 in the room. “Come on Sky, hang in there,” I hear Carlotta saying. “Do something Longbow! There has to be something we can do!”

“The medical box only had one potion and some bandages in it!” Longbow replies, frantically. “I couldn’t find anymore!”

I quickly walk over to them as I pull a potion out of my bags. “Here, give this to her,” I say, floating the potion between them. They look up with shock, surprised by my sudden appearance.

“You?” Longbow asks.

“I’m here to help. I have more potions if she needs them,” I offer.

Carlotta grabs the potion from my magic and pours it down Sky’s throat. “Come on, come one, come one…” She prays. Sky is unconscious and I can see bandages soaked in blood around her neck. Did 42 get her? Neck wounds are tricky…

“You said you gave her one potion already, right?” I ask.

“Yes,” Longbow replies. “We poured a little in her wound, soaked some of the bandages in them, and let her drink the rest.”

“Good. Good,” I mutter, holding a hoof to my chin. She might have a chance. I float out three more potions from my bag. “Here, one more for Sky, and one for each of you. Neither of you are looking too good yourselves. I’ll give it to Sky, so you two drink yours,” I instruct, and open the bottle. I put it to Sky’s lips and slowly and carefully pour it down her throat. Once the bottle is empty, I look at her chest. It was clear she was in shock when I came in, but her breathing seems to have normalized a little bit. It isn’t as strong as it should be, though. Carlotta and Longbow drink down their potions and then look at Sky in concern.

“Where is Backlash?” I ask. “And 42?”

Longbow looks down at Sky, frowns, and then gestures over at a pink shield. “They went through another teleporter,” She tells me.

“Is that a DNA restriction shield?” I mutter. So, what Dash said was true. Damn it, that means we can’t follow. I tap a hoof to my chin. “Ok. We need to move Sky out of here, into another room. If Backlash and 42 come back through we can’t have her lying here. There was a room a few back with a table she can rest on,” I tell them.

“Is she ok to move?” Carlotta asks, tears in her eyes.

“As long as it isn’t far,” I tell her. “She has stabilized a little bit, but she needs to rest. Can you help me, Carlotta?” I ask.

“Of course, let’s go,” She says with a nod, and rises to her talons.

As Carlotta and I work to get Sky on her back, I turn to Longbow. “Can you wait here, incase something happens? Yell if either of them comes back through?” I ask.

“Yea, I’ll wait here,” She says, looking towards the shield.

I nod and then Carlotta and I start carrying Sky out of the room. “I’ll be right back,” I call back as we leave the room. We pass a few rooms and I look through the doorways and windows. “Two more down I think…” I mutter. We pass one, and then find the room I am looking for. “In here, Carlotta!” I call out as I slip into the room. The room has a large table in the middle stacked with papers and simple testing equipment. I waste no time and sweep the table clear with my magic. “Lay her down,” I instruct and Carlotta gently lays Sky down on the table a moment later.

“She’s going to be fine, right?” Carlotta asks, fresh tears falling from her eyes.

“I think she is out of the danger zone, but I can’t promise anything. It is up to her now,” I tell her. I pull another potion from my bags and take off the cloak I was wearing as a disguise. “Here, cover her up with this, keep her warm. And if she starts getting worse, give her this potion. Just watch her breathing. If it starts getting labored or any fainter, give it to her,” I instruct Carlotta.

“Thank you…” She mutters, grabbing hold of Sky’s hoof.

“Don’t mention it, but that is my last potion, so don’t use it unless she absolutely needs it,” I say. “I’m going back to wait with Longbow.”

“Right…” Carlotta says, not shifting her gaze from Sky’s face. I frown. If Sky doesn’t pull through, it might break Carlotta. Watch over them, Celestia, Luna.

I leave the room and go back to where Longbow is waiting, getting back just in time to hear her scream, “Promise me!” I run into the room and over to the shield where Longbow is standing right as Backlash disappears in a flash.

“What happened? Did he win?” I ask, looking between her and the teleporter inside the shield. She doesn’t tear her eyes away from the shield, her face is a mix of fear and worry.

“42 is dead…” She mutters. I start to smile, but from her expression this isn’t time to celebrate. “Backlash says she has a megaspell on a timer. He is going to take care of it,” She says as tears are streaming down her face. 42 had a megaspell? That isn’t good. But...how is Backlash going to take care of it? Just then, the shield goes down and Longbow charges into the room beyond and starts pressing the teleport button rapidly, but nothing happens. She looks over to me, but I shrug, not knowing what is wrong. Then she hits the button on what looks like an intercom. “Backlash? Are you there?” She asks.

I feel a hoof tap me on the shoulder and spin around, only to see the cloaked figure of Death. “There is nothing you can do,” He tells me. “Let’s give them some privacy, over here,” He says, and starts walking to the entrance of the room. I hesitantly follow him. I hear Longbows’ muted words, nothing but incomprehensible gibberish from where I’m standing.

“Is he going to die?” I ask in a hushed voice. Death gives a single nod. “Damn it. But he just stopped 42…and death is his reward?” I ask.

“You know that the Wasteland isn’t fair,” He tells me, but curls his skeletal mouth into a smile. “But, lucky for him, an arrangement has been made. He will not face the same fate as most other ponies.”

“What do you-” But cut myself off as I see Longbow running over to me, her face desperate. “What’s wrong?” I ask her.

“How is Skyline?” She asks, almost pleadingly.

I furrow my brow. “She should pull through, but she won’t be in any condition to go anywhere for at least another hour or so. And even then, someone will have to support her,” I reply.

Longbow frowns, but nods and returns back to the teleporter pad. “What do you mean, Death?” I finish my question.

“He is a Pie, a descendent of Pinkie Pie. And she has an...arrangement with us. Essentially, it is her own private purgatory in which she and those related to her can control things,” He explains. “Occasionally, that means that she pulls souls from the afterlife to entertain herself or pulls ponies in when they are sleeping. Of course, it isn’t as simple as all that, but I won’t bore you with the minor details and rules we’ve laid out,” He concludes.

A moment later, I hear Longbow break out into hysterical crying. “He’s gone,” Death says, bowing his head. “I need to go collect him, but, Ratchet, don’t worry. He won’t be forgotten,” He tells me, and then disappears as I blink.

I let out a sigh and walk over to Longbow, placing a hoof on her shoulder. She looks up long enough to recognize me, and then wraps her hooves around me and cries. I hold onto her as she cries. But I couldn’t shed a tear myself. I barely knew him, and even if I did, I’m far past the point of getting broken over a death. No, the only thing I can do is try to stop the next pod from unleashing hell upon the Wasteland.

===~+~===

The aftermath of the battle for Red Wing was devastating. Railspike’s resistance lost another member while looking for hiding raiders. But, they managed to take a few prisoners when the raiders remaining surrendered. Of course, he didn’t let me near them no matter how much tried to reason with him.

The mining town was reduced to a charred ruin, soaked with blood and filled with corpses. The Rangers, along with the survivors of the town, apparently made their way to a place called Sunshine Garage. I didn’t care too much what they did, as long as they would be safe. The Crusaders went with them once it was clear Backlash wasn’t coming back. They planned to go find his body and give him the burial he deserved.

I, and my AI companions, made the trek back to Icicle Lab. There was no point in me sticking around. Trouble seemed to follow me, and those ponies have been through enough as it is. I entered in this adventure’s entry into my terminal, and was planning to get back into my pod. But, for some reason, I decided to sleep in my bed before that.

===~+~===

As soon as I fall asleep, I find myself in the void that the ponies of the apocalypse usually talk to me in. “What is it now?” I ask, as Death appears before me.

“A gift, if you want it,” Death tells me, taking a step forward. “I am told that you were promised a story. I talked to Pinkie Pie and Backlash when I dropped him off. This one time only, I’ll permit you to visit her purgatory. Backlash says he’ll tell you his story,” he informs me.

“One time only, hu?” I say with a chuckle. “Fine, let’s do it.”

Death nods and slices the a tear in the void with his scythe, creating a swirling portal. “Just jump on through. They’ll send you back when you are done,” He says. I take a deep breath and jump through the portal. What is it going to be? Another empty void? Perhaps a hellscape filled with fire and screams? Knowing Pinkie, maybe a place with cotton candy clouds, chocolate rivers, and parties?

What I find, is nothing of the above. I am standing under a tree in a simple grassy field. I look around, and spot a diner off in the distance. As I start to walk towards it, a pink blob falls from the tree right in front of me. A pink ball of hair moves around at my hooves before jumping and landing on hooves of its own while beaming up at me with a smile. A pink filly, hu? “Let me guess, Pinkie Pie?” I ask.

The filly gasps and nods her head vigorously. “Yep yep! You really are a smart pony, it is no wonder Twilight hired you! Oh! But I forget my manners, welcome to my little slice of purgatory! Though, I don’t like that name,” She says, wrinkling her nose. “I’d prefer to call it FUNgatory! Wait, that sounds too much like fungus. The amusegatory? Entertaingatory? Hilargatory? Why do I keep ending it with ‘gatory’?” She mutters.

A stallion’s laugh comes from behind the tree. I look just as Backlash walks around it to join us. “Come on auntie, you’re going to confuse her,” He says with a smile. Compared with when I last saw him, he looks remarkably better. I suppose that has to do with this place, and why Pinkie herself is a filly. “You wanted to hear my story, right, Ratchet?” Backlash asks.

“If you will tell it to me,” I reply.

He chuckles. “It is the least I can do after what you did for the others,” He tells me, and then looks at Pinkie. “Auntie?” he says, and she claps her hooves together. Instantly, I am sitting on a bench in the diner across from Backlash. Ok...don’t question it.

I smile at him across the table. “Alright Backlash. Tell me your story.”

Chapter 37 - Wake Up Call

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 38 - Deliverance

“The truth will set you free.”

===~+~===

The amount of protect-a-ponies and sentry turrets that suddenly pop out of nowhere is staggering. At least a dozen turrets and six protect-a-ponies start to open fire at us. Luckily, we are not fully in the next room yet, and can take cover behind the walls. We won’t be able to hide in here long. The robots will get in soon enough. We probably have the firepower to take them in the choke point of the doorway.

Grimoire steps forward and his horn flashes. A moment later, he is in a different location. Did he teleport...or… “I’ll draw their fire, you all take them out,” He explains as he walks towards the door. “You remember this spell, right?” A red beam cuts through him, but he doesn’t seem phased. His illusion magic. He enters into the next room and draws all of the fire.

I nod to the others and Hal leads the way, charging into the room. I draw the Executioner and start shooting at the closest turret. Hal and Soar take care of the protect-a-ponies while Macro and Cora help me take down the turrets. It isn’t long before the robots start targeting us instead of Grimoire, but since the others are in armor, the lasers don’t do much more than blacken their armor. A few of the turrets focus on me and before I can turn them into scrap they singe my lab coat and armor. One gets a lucky shot off and catches me in the leg, burning my fur and leaving a raw red spot.

After a few minutes, we deal with all of the turrets and robots. I frown as I look over my lab coat. It was already not fairing well to begin with, but now it is barely hanging on. I think I have one more left in decent condition back at the lab, but what I wouldn’t give for more of the fresh ones. The others escaped without much damage as well.

Time to find out what we are dealing with. I take in the room. It is a large rectangular room, probably two stories tall. Halfway up, a walkway surrounds the perimeter with staircases on each side of the room leading down to the bottom floor. On the far wall there is a window that I think leads to an office, but it is hard to tell through the grime. A short distance to our left is another doorway marked ‘Exit’. There aren’t any more doors or hallways in the room.

But, I suppose this room is all that matters. In the center is a large, circular computer with cables running from it up to the ceiling. The whole thing is glowing a haunting pink. From the ceiling, the cables snake out in six directions before once ahead running down in the middle of the room. The cables are attached to cryopods. These are different than any I’ve seen before, however. Not to mention that there are six of them in one place.

I make my way down to the closest pod and look inside. A mare with a neutral palette and no cutie mark. Wires are running out of her head and into the pod. I make my way around to the other pods. Same set up in each one. A pony without a cutie mark and a neutral palette hooked up inside the pod.

On one side of the central computer is a large pile of paper that is coming out of it. A warning message flashes above the slot the paper is coming from that says ‘Out of Paper’. I pull randomly at the pile of papers, but it looks like it is all connected together. Was the computer printing off information of some sort? I find the end of the paper and start skimming over the contents.

It is just a seemingly random collection of dates, times, names, and locations. As I get halfway through the data suddenly becomes the same. I stare at the date followed by the words in all capitals and bold print, ‘THE END’. The same lines repeat over and over again. “Cora, come here,” I call over to her as I keep looking through the papers. Countless pages with the same thing. When Cora walks up I float the paper over to her. “This date...it is the same date that the war ended, isn’t it?” I ask her.

Cora looks at it then nods. “It is,” She tells me. I bite my lip. I didn’t know the exact date it ended, but I knew it was around this date on the paper. What does this mean?

I keep looking through the paper till new words appear. There is no date or names, just a single phrase repeated over and over again. A shiver runs down my spine as I read it, ‘Please kill us.’ The phrase repeats until the paper runs out. I drop the paper as I look at the pods once again. “What the hell is this?” I mutter.

I walk up to one of the six terminals on the center computer. It lists occupant information, tells the occupant health and mental status, and then offers the same two options each pod previously has given. Terminate and Release. I glance back at the pod this terminal corresponds to and then immediately hit the release option.

The pod starts to open with a hiss as the occupant is unfrozen. We gather around and wait for the occupant to regain consciousness. Instead, we are greeted with an ear-splitting scream from the mare in the pod. I fold my ears against my head and cover them with my hooves as she continues to scream. It is almost as if she is in pain. I notice Grimoire flicker and reappear in another spot, and then he proceeds to cover his ears as well. I try to shout over the screaming, but I can barely hear myself.

I watch in horror as the mare’s mouth starts to dribble bloody foam as she screams and moments later her nose, eyes, and ears start to bleed as well. What is happening? I can’t take it anymore. I draw Forgiveness with my magic and shoot the mare in the head. The screaming stops at once, but my ears continue to ring for a good minute.

We stare at the dead mare in shock and horror. “What...happened?” I mutter. “Cora…?”

Cora walks closer to the mare’s body and looks into the pod. “I don’t know,” She replies. “I’ve never seen a reaction like this after opening a pod.”

I frown as I look at the other pods. “Spread out. Look for some information on what happened here. Some reason why this happened. Why can’t rise opening the other pods if the other occupants will share her fate,” I declare and start towards the office upstairs. The others start messing with the other terminals around the central computer.

I open the door to the office and step inside. Without hesitation I make my way to the desk where a terminal rests and I turn it on. Once it boots up, I look over various files. They are all marked Project Oracle, just with different entry numbers. As I read them, I get an idea of what this place is and what it was doing.

This facility was used by the MoM to predict attacks using the minds of the ponies inside the pods. By linking them together, the pony in charge thought they could amplify their power using the central computer. Essentially, they made the ponies in the pods into computers. But there is no mention of the occupants aside from calling them Oracles. No background on them, nothing. After reading through each file, I come to the last one. An audio log on the day the war ended. I play it.

A buck sighs before he begins, “Project Oracle, log number 3457. For the last month, we have been getting the same output. Today’s date, followed by ‘The End’. We are not sure what it means, or if the system is broken. We have tried changing various parameters with the Oracles, but the outcome is the same. Some of the staff is speculating that ‘The End’ means that the war will end today. Others have random or even morbid thoughts. What we do know right now, is that…”

The buck pauses as shouting is heard in the background. “What are they doing out there…” He mutters. Then there is the sound of a door opening and a panicked mare says, “Sir! The warning sirens, they are going off! We need to evacuate to the Stable, now!”

“What?” The buck says. “Now?” He sighs again and the rustle of papers can be heard. “Fine, give a moment to gather my notes,” He tells the mare.

“What about the Oracles, sir?” The mare asks.

“What about them?” He replies.

“Should we release them? If this really is the end, we should take them with us,” She says.

The buck scoffs. “Don’t be absurd. This is probably just another drill. And even if it wasn’t, you know we can’t release the Oracles. They can’t live outside those pods. The outside air is like poison to them, remember?” He tells her as if he has repeated himself countless times.

“B-But sir…” The mare mutters.

“No buts!” The buck shouts. “We’ll be back soon enough.” There is a silence followed by, “This damn thing is still recording.” Then the sound of a few buttons being pressed and then the audio log ends.

The air poisons them? Then...We can’t save them? I stare at the terminal for a few moments. The words ‘Please kill us’ printed over and over flash in my mind. There are two options. Kill them or leave them. Who knows what they are going through while frozen. Usually, your brain isn’t active while you are frozen. I don’t know what the MoM did to my pods, but somehow the ponies inside are able to interact with the computer. That means they are at least somewhat conscious.

They have been here for a century and a half. No way to do anything. I clench my jaw as I get back to my hooves and walk out of the office. Slowly, I walk back to the central computer and rejoin the others. I go to one of the unoccupied terminals and use the Terminate command. A moment later, the corresponding pod flashes and then powers down. “Ratchet! What are you-” Cora begins, until she sees my face.

I move to the next terminal. “We can’t save them,” I tell her. “No matter what we do, they will suffer.” I press the Terminate command again and another pod powers down. “If they are exposed to the air, they will die. This is the only thing we can do,” I explain as I move on to the next terminal and repeat the process. Then the next one, and then the last. The others watch me all the while. When I am done, I come to stand in front of them.

“They wanted to die. They knew they couldn’t leave the pods or they would die horribly. This was the only way to end their suffering,” I mutter and release a sigh. “Grimoire, you remember where Stable 36 was, right?” I ask him. “Take us there.”

“Are you sure?” He asks. “You want to leave now?”

“Yes. There is nothing more we can do here,” I tell him. He looks to the others, but they just shrug.

“If you say so…” Grimoire mutters. Then, in a flash, we teleport once again.

===~+~===

The walk from Stable 36 to Icicle Lab is a quiet one. None of us speak. There isn’t really much to say. One more pod and I will be done with them. We just have to get to the lab and have Serendipity tell us where it is.

As we approach the lab, Serendipity is waiting for us. “Welcome home,” She says. “Grimoire, you can go now. Your services are no longer needed.”

“What? But I-” Grimoire begins, but Serendipity interrupts him.

“The last pod is close by and unguarded. You don’t need to be there. Besides, you want to visit your sister’s grave, do you not?” She states.

“Well, yea, but…” He trails off.

“It is fine, Grim. If Serendipity says you can go, you can. You aren’t a prisoner here,” I tell him. “Thank you, for all of your help.”

“It was the least I could do,” He replies. “Are you sure?” He asks. Serendipity nods. “Okay then. I’ll come visit sometime,” Grimoire says, and then he disappears in a flash.

“Kind of rude shooing him away like that, wasn’t it?” I ask Serendipity.

“It was. But, it was necessary. If he stayed, he would have been killed,” She explains.

“So, the next location is actually dangerous?” I ask. “Just tell us so we can get going. You said it was nearby, right?”

She nods. “It is. For now, let us enter your lab. There is much to discuss,” She says as she enter the shed. The five of us remaining exchange a glance before we follow after her. At first, I think she is going to lead us to the clinic for our chat, but she continues on to the experiment room where the pods are. Serendipity stands between the pods and then turns to us as we gather around her. “Now then, before we begin, I need to make we are not interrupted. I would like to apologize in advance for this,” She says.

“Cora, Soar, Hal, Macro. Command override, activate voice input protocols,” She says and my eyes go wide. “Authorization, Ratchet. Passphrase, For The Future.” I can hear them behind me stiffening up.

“What are you doing!?” I shout as I draw the Executioner.

“Be good little AI and don’t interfere with this discussion. Don’t move or fire your weapons. You can talk, but know that it will change nothing,” She tells them. The four of them agree in unison as I pull the trigger. Serendipity just moves her head slightly to the right to avoid the bullet. “Ratchet...I’ve told you that won’t work. I just want to talk. No harm will come to you or your AI from me,” She says.

“Then why did you do that!” I shout.

“Because they would try to stop me from telling you the truth,” She explains.

“What do you mean?” I ask, my gun lowering slightly.

“Don’t listen to her Ratchet!” Cora yells.

“You don’t have to listen, you can just watch,” Serendipity says as she walks over to the empty stasis pod. It is covered with a sheet. I grimace as my head suddenly starts to pound. She reaches up a hoof and pulls off the sheet, revealing, not the stasis pod, but my cryogenic pod. My vision goes fuzzy as I look between the two pods and then suddenly, the cryopod I was using turns into the stasis pod.

“W-What is…” I mutter as I put a hoof to my head.

“You have been using the stasis pod, not the cryopod,” Serendipity explains. “You’ve thought it was the cryopod and that is why you are suddenly feeling the way you are. However, that is not the only reason. Let me ask you the same thing I did when we first met. What is your name? Who are you, really?” She asks.

“I am…” I begin to answer, but my head starts throbbing again. “...Ratchet,” I mutter quietly.

“Stop it! What are you doing!” Cora calls out from behind me.

Serendipity ignores Cora as she holds a hoof to her chin. “If you are Ratchet, then who is this?” She says as she gestures to the cryopod and wipes some of the frost off the glass.

I stare into the pod, which should be empty. “That’s...it’s...me…?” I question. A mare is in the pod who looks exactly like me. Her grey hide, her short icy mane and green eyes...Even her cutie mark is the same. “What is...going on?” I ask.

“You aren’t who you think you are,” Serendipity tells me, and then she reaches behind the pod and drags out a mirror. “I had to pick this up outside, since all of your mirrors are broken for some reason. Take a look. This is the real you, after all,” She says as she places the mirror in front of me.

I stare into it. The mare in the mirror stares back at me. A unicorn mare with a grey coat, she’s wearing a lab coat and is sitting just like I am. But her mane is red and her eyes are blue. I wave at the mirror, and the mare waves back. Her pupils are pinpricks. “What…” I murmur. “This can’t be…” My head throbs intensely as I stare at the reflection. Finally, I clench my eyes shut and shake my head. “No, no, no!” I yell.

I hear the sound of Serendipity dragging the mirror away again and then she steps in front of me. “It is true,” She says, putting a hoof on my shoulder. “Take a look at your cutie mark.”

I shakily get to my hooves and start to undress so I can look at it. When I can finally see it, I fall to my haunches again. It is a bullet casing. A bullet casing, not schematics like it should be. “Calm down,” Serendipity says as I start shaking. “Keep listening. My explanation isn’t over yet.”

“Don’t say another word!” Cora threatens, but once again Serendipity ignores her. Instead, she drags out a heap of twisted metal from behind the stasis pod and sets it before me.

“Does this look familiar?” She asks as I look it over. “It should. It is a recollector. You know, the memory things? Only this one is slightly different. It allows the user to remove and overwrite memories,” She explains. “It was used on you to completely erase who you really are and then replace your memories with those of the mare named Ratchet. The real Ratchet hasn’t walked the Wasteland since her friend Twinkle died.”

“Didn’t you ever wonder why you never met ponies more than once? Even your supposed friends like Sickle, or the DJ? The only one you met was Grimoire, and how did that turn out?” Serendipity asks. “He didn’t recognize you at first, did he? But he seemed to grasp the situation. Smart buck, that one.”

“Just think about all of your previous exploits. How many times did you see your own reflection? I wonder if that is the reason why there are no mirrors in your lab. What about your sudden affinity for guns? Ratchet was never good with them and yet how many times have you killed ponies with them recently?” She asks me.

I can only stare at her with my mouth agape. “The AIs knew, they all did,” Serendipity explains. “Oh, and you aren’t the first pony they have done this to.”

“Shut up!” Cora yells. “Stop talking! Don’t tell her any more lies!”

For the first time, Serendipity responds to Cora. “Lies? But everything I am telling her is the truth. I am even showing her evidence. Tell me Cora, how many ‘Ratchet’s’ have there been?” She asks.

“There is only one Ratchet!” Cora retorts.

“That is correct. But how many fakes have there been?” Serendipity counters. “I know the answer, but you know you are caught in lies. You might as well plead your case,” She tells Cora.

Cora seems at a loss for words. But then she replies with an oddly calm, “Fine. You have already done enough damage. This fake is long gone by now. Where is the harm in telling the truth now?”

“C-Cora?” I question as I turn towards her.

“Serendipity is right, you know,” Cora tells me. “The real Ratchet is in the cryopod. You are just a fake.”

“But...why?” I mutter.

“You have Ratchet’s memories. You should know. It is to keep her safe. The Wasteland is too much for her, I know it. I saw what happened to her after watching her friends die. So, I decided to make it so that Ratchet was both protected and able to be in the Wasteland at the same time,” Cora explains.

Serendipity nods. “You remember all of those PipBuck malfunctions? The resetting of your skills and abilities?” She asks. “It wasn’t because of any corruption, it was because the PipBuck was being synced up to a new host. Every time a new pony put it on, it had to reconfigure the stats,” She explains.

“So I...I really wasn’t the only one they did this to?” I ask.

“No, you weren’t,” Cora tells me. “You are the thirty second mare we have done this to. The reason for needed a replacement varied. Sometimes they died while we were in the Wasteland. Of course, you have none of the memories from those times. We also learned that after a number of times in stasis, the body starts to deteriorate,” She says.

“This also explains your varying degrees of combat ability,” Serendipity states. “The times when you thought you were losing your mind or the Wasteland was breaking you were just times when your body’s original personality was showing through. Remember the bloody words on the walls during the Radscorpion attack?” She asks.

“That was...my original personality breaking through?” I ask. Both Serendipity and Cora nod. I turn to the other AI. “What about the rest of you?” I ask. “Nothing to say about all of this?”

“Cora speaks for us, mum,” Macro replies. Hal and Soar nod in agreement.

“So you were all in on this?” I mutter.

“They were,” Cora states. “It is also why I made them. To help keep track of you, to make sure you weren’t able to remember who you were before.”

“That’s horrible,” I tell her.

“Horrible, but necessary,” She counters. “We needed Ratchet so that we could properly track down the pods. We needed her guidance.”

“She is correct,” Serendipity agrees. “They aren’t as advanced as you think they are. While they have a degree of free will and sentience, they don’t have many emotions. Most of what they do is mimic what Ratchet and other ponies do,” She explains. “In order to make the correct moral choices, they needed to have an actual pony with them. After all, without an actual pony they decided to tamper with memories. Not something you’d call moral, correct?”

“Morality is kind of a hard subject to grasp as an AI,” Cora agrees. “So, Serendipity. Since you went and ruined everything, I think you at least owe me one answer. Are there any more pods left?” She asks.

“The only pod that is still functioning is the one Ratchet is inside,” Serendipity tells her. “Of course, we both know that it isn’t the time to release her.”

“Well, I suppose that means I won’t have to find another Ratchet,” Cora mutters. “So, that is why you chose now to reveal the truth, huh?”

Serendipity nods. “That is correct. It was to prevent you from harming more innocents. Without any more pods, you have no reason to make fakes,” She says.

“Wait,” I mutter. “Why are you two leaving me out of this conversation now? What is going to become of me?” I ask as I look between them.

Serendipity walks up to me and puts a hoof on my shoulder. “I told you before I started explaining, that I was sorry in advance,” She tells me, and then begins walking past me. “Now then, I must be on my way. There are things that I need to prepare.”

“What do you mean? Don’t leave yet!” I scream at her.

But she just continues towards the door. “Cora, you and the others will be able to move in about ten seconds. Watch over Ratchet. I won’t see any of you again, so take care,” She says as she leaves.

“So long,” Cora calls after her. “That’s for the help tracking down the last pods!”

I stare as she goes, and then turn my attention to Cora. “So...what now?” I ask.

“That is a good question,” She replies. “Without anymore pods, it raises the question of what we should do now. The four of us won’t have to go out and search anymore,” She says as she turns her head to the others.

“Indeed mum,” Macro adds. “I suppose we can spend out time maintaining the lab!”

“Perhaps we can focus on finding more technology?” Soar suggests.

“No, we don’t need technology,” Hal counters. “We could always go cause some explosions.”

“I don’t think we need to leave,” Cora says.

“No, I don’t mean that, I mean me! What about me?” I ask them.

“Oh, that?” Cora says offhandedly. “We’ve already decided that. Why do you think Serendipity apologized? Nothing she told you really affected us at all. Her apology was for you. Speaking of which, it has been ten seconds,” She says.

“Wait, you don’t mean…” I mutter as I start backing away from them.

“I’m sorry,” She tells me. “This was both your first and last journey out into the Wasteland as Ratchet.” Cora turns to line her sniper up with me. I rear up to try and dodge just as she shoots, and get bullet bites into my chest. I collapse to the ground and clench the wound as I grab the Executioner in my magic. “Oh no, I missed. Sorry, I was aiming for your head. I planned to make it quick,” She says.

I raise the Executioner and shoot at Cora, the round punctures her neck armor, but of course she doesn’t react. Instead, she fires again. This time her bullet strikes me in forehead. It is as though time slows to a crawl as it happens. I feel the bullet biting into my skull, passing straight through. My vision rapidly fades and my senses are filled with the taste and smell of blood.

And then, I die.

Cora's Chapter - Disclosure

Cora’s Chapter - Disclosure

No Quote Available

===~+~===

My name...my designation...is Combat Operations and Research Assistant, or Cora, for short. I was first created in a MAS sanctioned lab that would come to be known as Icicle Lab. Of course, back then, my designation was Cryogenics Observation and Research Assistant. I was made to help my creator with her research, the development of a cryogenic chamber, and we succeeded.

My creator was the first test subject of this chamber. Needless to say, the chamber worked. However, the ministry mare of the MAS secretly took the technology and created similar chambers, which we later discovered held failed or dangerous experiments. But, that was after the tragic events that led to the destruction of Equestria, and for all we know, the rest of the world.

While my creator was in the chamber, Megaspells were launched and Balefire Bombs were set off. Equestria was decimated, as was the zebra empire and other high value targets. It was a complete and horrifying mutually assured destruction. Almost eighty percent of life on the surface was wiped out in the blink of an eye. Fifteen percent made it into Stables. The remaining five percent were either lucky enough to be in a remote enough location to survive the initial blasts or became ghouls and mutants. Many forms of wildlife were mutated by the radiation of these deadly weapons.

I was cut off from the world. Icicle Lab’s systems were unable to communicate with the outside world. The inhabitants knew the outside would be deadly, and so they decided to wait things out. However, when supplies ran out, they attempted to overthrow my systems and endanger the life of my creator. To prevent this, I turned the defenses that once protected the inhabitants against them. It was over in a matter of seconds.

For decades, there was no one to maintain the lab and its equipment. I did what I could from within the system, but eventually, I had to wake my creator. I had planned to awake her once the world outside had reestablished communication, but if the lab’s systems failed, her life support systems would fail. And so, thirty-five years after the world ended, my creator woke up.

Her decisions led out to the outside world, it was not the Equestria either of us remembered. It was a landscape of hellish carnage and death. It was a Wasteland. I watched as my creator buried the members of her lab that I had killed. I watched her cry, and then cry some more when we found the bodies of farm ponies in a nearby house. They were long dead, but she wept for them. I doubt she even knew them.

My limited capabilities do not allow me to fully understand various pony emotions. Empathy? Grief? They were foreign concepts to me. I mimicked how she was feeling, acting sad, happy, and confused when situations that would bring up those emotions occurred. But I never understood them. I am a simple AI, nothing more. I am not a pony, I know that. And I had but one goal. One thing that gave my existence meaning. My creator.

I would protect my creator by any means necessary. My creator, she wasn’t just some pony. She was my mother, my friend...my goddess. Without her, I would not exist. And so, I devoted myself to her. My entire existence would be for her and her alone. And I would never, never, go against her wishes. However, I would try to guide her away from dangerous activities.

But as we encountered and fought against Grimoire, and my creator began making rash and dangerous decisions despite my warnings and attempts to dissuade her, I knew exactly the kind of pony she was. My creator was an idealist. A pony who would follow her ideals and try to make them a reality, no matter how much the world showed her that they wouldn’t work, no matter how many times she failed.

My creator originally designed the cryogenic chamber to save ponies. Since her original plan failed, she decided to devote her life, one she saw as, not precious, but as one who was guilty of escaping the end unscathed, to saving ponies. Even if it meant her death. And so, I worked even harder to help her.

The first major step of this, was getting a body of my own. With one, I could protect her myself and not just though my words. But things escalated. Battles became tougher, ponies died, and my creator was wracked with grief. There were times I caught her talking to figures that were not there; she called them The Apocalypse Ponies. It was clear that the constant loss of life around her was getting to her. I did all that I could to prevent more, but she continued to put herself in positions where death surrounded her.

After our battles with Grimoire, the amount of death was staggering. The casualties of the Steel Rangers of Stable 36 as well as the Junk Rats were staggering. Innocent towns and ponies were wiped out. That is not even counting the hundreds, if not thousands of raiders we killed in the process.

But the tipping point was when one of my creator’s own friends, slaughtered the others. Shrill’s insanity, if you can call it that, was something that my creator blamed herself for. The deaths of her friends, she carried on her shoulders. Just when things were looking up, my creator lost everything. And so, she decided to freeze herself once more. She yelled at me, but I knew she didn’t mean the things she said. So I followed her orders, and froze her.

When next I woke her, it was almost twenty-five years later. Another cryopod was found, and I had orders to wake her up if I ever found one. And so I did. Together, along with the last remaining Stable 36 Ranger, Twinkle, we found the pod. The tragedy that unfolded furthered my creator’s grief. This time, I recommended that she be frozen again. I could not let the Wasteland break her.

My creator, she was...she IS...a scientist. She isn’t a fighter, she isn’t a soldier. She was never supposed to have to deal with the tragedies and horrors of war. I could not let her witness any more. And so, in an effort to protect her from the Wasteland, but still respect her wishes, I began a project.

But I needed help and that was where Macro, Soar, and Hal came in. At first, I had Macro protect the lab while I went out into the Wasteland in search of a particular piece of equipment. A memory extractor. Just like the one we found in the Neighagra Falls Facility that Grimoire used. I recovered the blank memory orbs from there as well. Once I had these, I stashed them into the supply closet in the lab.

It was then, I woke my creator up for the third time. While she was still groggy from waking up, I dragged her to the closet and made a copy of all of her memories. Then, I removed the memory of what I just did and put her into the newly acquired stasis pod. My creator would never again wake up in the Wasteland. But the Wasteland needed my creator.

During the next few days, I scoured the Wasteland for a suitable host. And I found one in a young unicorn mare who lived with her family in a farmhouse. Of course, she did not come willingly. I removed her family, knocked her unconscious, and brought her back to the lab. Once there, I removed all of her memories and replaced them with my creator’s. After a short chat with the mare after the procedure to make sure everything worked properly, I removed her memory of the conversation and froze her in the cryopod.

Of course, finding a mare that looked exactly like my creator would be next to impossible. This particular mare had a grey coat, like my creator, but her lavender mane and tail were completely wrong. I made sure to cut it short, like my creator’s while she was unconscious. I then proceeded to destroy every mirror in the lab, and make sure all reflective surfaces are too dull or damaged to give off a reflection. I would have to make sure that my fake creator never saw herself. And with no one alive who knows what my creator looks like, they will not be able to point it out.

The fakes never lasted long, however. Some died searching for pods with me. But I just had to find another unicorn mare, and continue from there. Sometimes I would find normal ponies, other times, traders, raiders, or slavers. One time, I even bought a slave to use. They didn’t just die in the Wasteland. I had to kill a few who saw their reflection and freaked out. I also learned that after repeated cryogenic freezing, bubbles begin to appear in the blood that will eventually kill the host. All the more reason to keep my creator frozen and use others as a surrogate.

However, I did not expect the DJ to keep a record that included my creator in it. Given the amount of time that passed, I was able to convince him that my fake creator was my creator’s daughter, who happened to share the same name. I did something similar when it came to Sickle, but since he never again met Ratchet or the surrogates, I just told him that Ratchet had died. If he ever met a surrogate, I would pass them off as a daughter or granddaughter of Ratchet's, that was my plan.

Even Grimoire seemed to grasp the situation when he was eventually awoke. While my creator was preoccupied, I filled him in using the lie I told the others. I told him the mare he met was long dead, and this mare was her descendent.

But then...Prophet showed up. It started with I took the first fake to Paradise. Then it kept happening. The couriers always said that Prophet’s letters described my fake creators perfectly. She knew the whole time. And when we woke her up, she tried to tell the current fake the truth, which I quickly put a stop to. But I could tell that Prophet knew, and she knew that I knew. And then came the inevitable, the moment the fake found out about my plan. Prophet tricked me, got the fake to look into the stasis pod holding my creator.

My memory extractor was destroyed and the memory orbs stolen. I could no longer make surrogates. But, since all of the cryogenic chambers had been found, my obligation to my creator to search them out was complete. And so, me and my AI friends watched over my creator while we purged the Wasteland of raiders and slavers alike. My creator wouldn’t be woken up until things were safe once again.

Thanks to the efforts of the Stable Dweller, Security, and the many other heroes that sprung up around them and after them, Equestria once again was able to reach harmony. Equestria was once again safe. And it wasn’t long after that that my creator was awoken for the fourth, and final time.

===~+~===

“Urrgh...What is...Cora…?” My creator says, holding her head as she steps out of the stasis pod. “What’s going...on? And what is with all of these robots?” She asks as she looks over Macro, Soar, and Hal.

“Welcome back, Ratchet,” I tell her. “These are my friends, AIs, just like me. It has been two hundred seventy-seven years after the war ended. And peace has finally settled over the Wasteland, or, should I say Equestria. For the most part, that is.” There are still a few places that are dangerous. Some ponies who still want a to live in a state of lawlessness. But, Ratchet doesn’t need to know that.

“What? But, what about the other cryopods?” Ratchet asks me, looking at me in surprise and confusion.

“It is okay, Ratchet. Don’t worry,” I tell her. “Come on, we have a lot to talk about.”

Ratchet's Chapter - Hope

Ratchet’s Chapter - Hope

===~+~===

When I woke up next, the last thing I remembered was learning about Cygnus’s death, and watching Twinkle and Umbra fight to the death. In fact, since I was frozen, it was as though it happened just hours ago. I was torn up over it. But that was quickly cured when I saw three new AI standing in front of me.

Cora began to explain, to introduce me to Macro, Soar, and Hal. Told me how they were made from a copy of her code and that she gave them each their own personality. I was...happy? Relieved? Maybe a bit of both. But those feelings didn’t last long.

When I asked Cora what year it was, asked her what was going on, she told me that it was over, that we were hundreds of years into the future. That all the pods had been found, that Equestria was restored to how it once was, for the most part anyway. I couldn’t accept that. I asked her how and asked why she didn’t wake me up to help her. How could she make the choices to let the pods’ occupants live, die, or leave them be without me?

I shouldn’t have asked. I should have just laughed it off and accepted that it was over. Went outside and not worried myself with things of the past. But I did ask. And she told me. Cora can’t lie to me, I made her that way. She didn’t want to tell me, but I made her.

Cora told me everything. The surrogates she made by abducting mares and removing all of their memories then replacing them with my own. The fact that most of them died doing what needed to be done. She told me about the negative effects of repeated cryogenic usage. I was appalled. I wanted it to be some sort of joke, a sick, horrible joke. But it wasn’t, Cora even offered me their memory orbs, of the ones that survived, anyway, since you can’t take memories from a dead pony.

I refused to look at them. But then she told me about how the surrogates were keeping up with my terminal’s journal entries. I read them. All of them. Of course, there were large gaps where the surrogate had died and not had a chance to make an entry. By the end of the entries, I was horrified. The fact that the entries sounded like how I would write made my skin crawl. It was as though I had written them myself and just had no memory of it.

I couldn’t bear it. The AI that I had made had done something unimaginable. Unforgivable. The two of us were supposed to help ponies, not take their memories and ruin lives. Cora had been worried about the Wasteland breaking me. But, I think she should have been more worried about the Wasteland breaking her.

Guilt hit me hard, all of this was my fault. I should have suspected something. Cora had waited in the lab alone for decades. A normal pony would have gone mad. And even once I returned, I left her alone again. She was the one who warned me of the horrors of the Wasteland and she witnessed them more often than I. It is no wonder why she made AI companions.

Cora’s programming must have run into a fault of some sort. It must have begun corrupting her morality. That is the only answer that I could come to. It is the only reason that I could find that an AI that I created would do something like this. I should have talked with her more, made sure she was alright. But no matter how many times I would tell her, ‘you’re an AI, not a robot or a simple program’, I forgot just how equine she really was.

But, I could atone for all of this. I gathered the AI together, and I prayed that when Cora made them, she coped the programs that I was about to use. “Cora, Macro, Soar, Hal,” I said, looking to each one of them. “Command override, activate voice input protocols. Authorization, Ratchet. Passphrase...For The Future.” All four of them went quiet and still and stared at me. The command worked. I took a deep breath and finisheded, “Execute system file PermanentShutdown.exe.”

The four of them announced, “executing command,” in unison. A moment later, they collapsed to the ground. “I’m sorry,” I murmured. I couldn’t let them continue going after what they had done.

Then, I wasn’t sure what to do. What could I do? I wasn’t going to freeze myself again, that was for sure. And so, I did the only thing I could think of. I grabbed everything useful that I could from the lab. Noblesse’s chessboard, the Pinkie figurine, Forgiveness, ammo, knives, medical supplies, food and drink, that sort of stuff, even the memory orbs of the surrogates. All set, I went through the exit tunnel and climbed up the ladder into the little shack.

Without any clue what I was doing, I opened the door. But what greeted me almost brought me to tears. Grass, green grass. And flowers. It was...it was like it was before the war. I could see lush green trees and plant life all over the rolling hills. It was even overtaking the buildings and crumbed roadway. For the first time, in a long time, Equestria was beautiful.

I stepped out into the grass. I had no idea where I was going, or what I was going to do. But right that moment, I was so very content to just wander aimlessly in the grass.

Epilogue

Author's Note

This Epilogue might get a bit confusing. Since Ratchet moves through time decades at a time, there is a lot to cover. Each section of the Epilogue will be marked with what chapters it corresponds to. You'll figure it out!

Epilogue

===~+~===

Chapter 1 - Chapter 27 (35 years after the war)

“Good morning wasteland! It is time for the news! You may recall my mentioning the siege on Tenpony Tower by Grimoire and his Discordia gang. Well good news, they are no more. Labcoat herself came to our aid along with the Rangers of Stable 36 and a certain gang that guards a certain valley pass.

“Together these forces united to wipe out the Discordia force and their leader Grimoire? Well, let’s just say he won’t be a problem anymore. A major part of the fight was an artillery piece that obliterated hundreds of Discordia raiders in a single shot. Word has it that no one saw this artillery piece and the sound of it being fired was only barely audible, little more than the sound of a pin dropping.

“That’s interesting and all, but what does that mean, DJ Pon3? Well I’m glad you asked. That means that his artillery piece can hit its target from miles away. So if you are a raider and up to no good, you’d best be wary of the sound of falling pins.

“Now, with Grimoire gone, surely the threat of Discordia is gone, right? Not yet, my little ponies. They will always be raiders, that won’t stop. They might be slightly less organized, but they will still try to steal and kill. So watch yourselves out there.”

===~+~===

Elder Twinkle and the remaining Rangers of Stable 36 decided to stay in Ratchet’s lab, using it as a staging point for various operations against the remnants of Discordia. Elder Twinkle led the Rangers against their enemies ferociously, destroying many of the large groups of Discordia raiders.

However, with each battle fought their numbers grew smaller and smaller. Despite their better armor and technology, the Rangers were constantly outnumbered. One by one they fell. Elder Twinkle watched them drop and her only thought was to keep fighting. Her lord Eberron demanded sacrifice, repeated and constant. Even her own life was but a drop in the ocean for him. But Elder Twinkle knew, that without Eberron, she was nothing. After a few years of fighting, Elder Twinkle found herself alone. But despite this, Elder Twinkle continued to fight against raiders.

Tales of Elder Twinkle tell of her standing in the open with dozens of raiders firing upon her, but not a single bullet ever finding its mark. The raiders fear her as a bringer of death and the name Eberron sends chills down their spines. Elder Twinkle never stops her crusade against the raider threat, and the ponies of the towns she frequents hold her in high regard.

Without other Rangers, Elder Twinkle rarely visits Ratchet’s Lab anymore. She only goes back to drop off interesting salvage or to check in on her friend Cora. Elder Twinkle’s life is one of combat, blood, and death. And she wouldn’t want it any other way.

===~+~===

Rose, the daughter of one of the council in Friendship City began to seriously train with firearms and in the way of diplomacy. She knew that one day, she would replace her father on the council and she knew she needed to be ready.

Her training came in handy when one day the raiders of raider alley united in an attempt to take the city. Rose was instrumental in the defence of the city when the chief of security, Wrecker, was killed by a sniper’s bullet. She rallied the security forces and pushed back the raider threat.

Some say she had help from a strange looking pony who would pull weapons out of thin air. But when the smoke cleared and the threat was over, the strange pony was nowhere to be seen. This led many to disregard such accounts of the pony as a trick played by the eyes. But Rose herself swears by the pony’s existence. It is because of Rose that the strange pony isn’t disregarded altogether as a fantasy.

With Wrecker dead, Rose took his place as chief of security. Before that day, some would have raised doubts. But after seeing how she handled herself, they accepted her with open hooves. Crime in the city was at an all time low, and raider attacks decreased as well. It was a time of great expansion for the city.

===~+~===

Cygnus, the last living companion of Ratchet, aside from Cora, returned to his home in the MAS facility in raider alley. He spent the first part of his time there fixing the place up and getting over his past. He knew that he could never bring himself to forgive Static for what she did to him, but he accepted it and moved on. After all, she was long dead.

Cygnus frequently wandered around Raider Alley, fighting against the raiders in a never ending goal to make the area safe. It seemed that no matter how many he killed, more were always waiting for him. He also began to notice places he had looted before had new loot inside of them. He could never figure out if the raiders were using them as storage, or if something else was going on.

There were times when Cygnus met travelers who wandered into Raider Alley and he would escort them to safety. When they asked for his name, he never gave it. Because of this, ponies began to refer to him as the Conjurer of Raider Alley, due to his fighting style. He saved countless souls and even traveled with some groups for a time. But he would never leave Manehatten. Whenever his group came to the edge of the city, he would bid them farewell and return home.

True to his word, Cygnus kept Grimoire safe. He never welcomed anyone into the facility, and even if someone wandered into the factory above he would scare them off or ask them to leave.

Frequently, Cora would stop by to check up on him. The two would reminisce about their adventures with Ratchet and the others. When Cygnus first learned of the deaths of Arrow, Lightning, and Shrill, he blamed himself for not going with them. But Cora assured him that would have only led to his death as well.

It wasn’t long before twenty years had passed. Due to his accelerated aging, Cygnus was in the equivalent of his nineties. Cora stopped by more frequently around then, and even begged Cygnus to let her wake Ratchet up. Cygnus’s reply was always, “I’m not important enough to waste waking her up. She doesn’t need to witness another friend’s death.”

On Cora’s last visit to Cygnus before his death, he asked her to tell Ratchet one thing when she woke up. “Thank you, for waking me up.” When Cora left, Cygnus went down into the facility’s living quarters and sealed the elevator. Using his last moments, he summoned an explosive that sealed the hallway leading to the stairs.

Cygnus crawled onto a bed in one of the rooms and laid upon it peacefully. He had watched over Grimoire as long as he could, and he made sure that no one but Ratchet would ever stumble upon him. With that in mind, he smiled as he exhaled his final breath.

===~+~===

The Junk Rats, led by Madam Saber returned to their home at the railway checkpoint. They buried their dead and then continued life as usual. They built and repaired power armor, and would tax any travelers looking for easy passage into Manehatten.

Of course, inspired by the Rangers of Stable 36 and Ratchet, the Junk Rats also offered a new service. For a price, they would escort travelers through Manehatten. They helped many ponies safely cross the city and earned a good reputation. They even began getting contracts to protect trade caravans.

Elder Twinkle would occasionally stop by and see Madam Saber. The two shared a mindset, and after the first few meetings, Twinkle convinced Saber to follow Eberron as well. The two leaders would often team up to fight raider forces in the area, and together the raiders grew to fear the name Eberron as it was being shouted by the two. The raiders of the Manehatten area had a name for them. The Sisters of Eberron.

When Twinkle lost her Rangers, Saber offered Twinkle a place with them. Twinkle refused, stating she didn’t want to get any more innocent blood on her hooves. Death followed her, after all. Saber was saddened, but accepted her friends refusal. She knew they would meet again. Elder Twinkle was hard to kill. And Madam Saber was just an tenacious.

===~+~===

Cora, the AI based on Ratchet’s own mind. With Ratchet once again in statis, Cora watched over her. It was her duty, after all. Not as Ratchet’s assistant, but as Ratchet’s friend. She took Ratchet’s words to her hard drive though, and often left the lab.

Cora would visit Cygnus, help Elder Twinkle and the Rangers, and simply wander the wasteland. She had a goal in mind. Find something that would allow her to wake up Ratchet again. She searched for old ruins, references to Cryopods, and listened to rumors at inns and bars.

She even had frequent chats with her old spritebot friend and asked him for help. He called himself Watcher, and she told him Ratchet’s story. For some reason, she found it easy to talk to him. She left as if she could trust him, and he agreed to help her search out facilities. But despite years of searching neither Cora nor Watcher turned up any solid leads.

Of course, that was to be expected. The projects the Cryopods were used in were top secret. Not even all of the Ministry Mares knew about them. Perhaps not even Celestia or Luna. It would take time, but they would find something. They were sure of it.

Chapter 29 (66 Years after the war)

The town of Paradise found prosperity under the rule of Silver Tongue. As time went by, the ponies of the Wasteland grew indifferent with Silver's particular brand of slavery. He wasn't hurting anypony and they soon realized that. Ponies that found themselves under the rule of Silver led happy and fulfilling lives. Many former slaves became citizens of the town and as stories spread, more and more ponies decided the life of a slave under Silver's rule wasn't such a bad life.

The community gained an influx of ponies willing to be slaves and with them the town further expanded. For a time, things were peaceful and the future of the town looked bright. A few generations passed by after Silver Tongue passed away and his ideals were upheld. However, as things in the Wasteland began to break down and things were getting worse and worse, eventually the slavery the town of Paradise once knew became a thing of the past. It was replaced with the type of slavery everyone in the past feared. Slaves were mistreated, bought and sold, kidnapped. Since slavery had become a norm for the Wasteland, not many ponies spoke out about it and by the time they finally decided to speak up, it was too late.

Ratchet's worries became the reality of the Wasteland and slavery became a prosperous business for the slavers. It also resulted in the deaths of countless innocent ponies.

===~+~===

Graham Cracker and Marshmallow, the Paradise security guards that Ratchet met on her visit, married a few months after her visit. The two of them started a family three years later. They led happy lives together with their children, who became guards just like them. Graham continued to call Marshmallow, Mallow. Mallow continued to get flustered when Graham complimented her. When the two of them grew old, they would often think back to the mare who gave them that finally little push they needed to get together.

Chapter 30 - Chapter 32 (74 years after the war)

After Ratchet and the others left, the militia continued to hunt down the last remaining members of the Fallen Legion operating in Hoofington. It was a long struggle to draw them out, but eventually the zebras seemed to have disappeared from the region entirely, only whispers of them remained. Ponies told stories of seeing shimmers or the hint of a figure watching them. But the zebras ceased any obvious hostile action against pony settlements. However, over one hundred years later the zebras would become active in the area once again. Some say they were hunting a mare they called 'The Star Maiden'.

===~+~===

Wick and the remaining ponies of Ebon eventually returned to their destroyed down to sift through the rubble and bury their friends and family. However they decided against sticking around. Rebuilding a town with the few numbers they had would have proven difficult in the harsh region of Hoofington. Instead, they relocated to a nearby town where they settled back down.

However, Wick wasn't ever able to fully get over the death of his family. The horrors of what happened haunted him and he would often have night terrors. He was a guard in the town for a short time, but once handling weapons proved to be problematic for him, Wick began working for a store in town. This trauma got so bad that he couldn't stand to look at guns anymore. The mere sight of them causing him panic attacks.

Eventually, Wick's problems got so bad, he stopped leaving his house. The former members of Ebon tried to help him, but after a while Wick began to react to them with paranoia and fear. It wasn't long before they stopped trying all together. A few of them still left him food to eat, but they wouldn't enter the house.

This went on for a few weeks, until the food began to pile up. In concern, the ponies entered his house and found Wick dead, curled up on his bed and cradling his head. Cryptic messages were carved into his walls. It was clear that Wick had suffered a breakdown and stopped eating. He was buried in the town's graveyard.

===~+~===

Lance went back home with the other Junk Rats. His mother, Saber, was happy for his safe return, but at the same time she was upset by the loss of the others. Together, the Junk Rats gave their fallen a proper burial. Then, Lance told the others of the events that transpired. Even though Saber was saddened by the loss of friends, she was glad she made the decision to send Lance and the others. The Junk Rats continued their usual operations after that.

That is, until Saber passed away a few months later. Lance took over for her and things went decent enough for a while. But he lacked Saber's unique quality to bring in others. After a few generations, the Junk Rats' numbers dwindled and then the remaining members disbanded to go on their way. The spare suits of makeshift power armor were melted down so they couldn't be used by others and even the suits the final members wore were patchwork suits, barely worthy of begin called power armor.

===~+~===

The remaining members of the militia went their separate ways once they finished hunting down the Fallen Legion. Eclipse and Peppermint settled down in a town as engineers where they worked until they died of old age. Snowflake, Medkit, Hammer, and Sky, decided to stick together and travel around the Hoof. They became bounty hunters or caravan guards as needed, but they committed to helping the region.

But, only after a few years the group found themselves in over their heads. A raider ambush hit them hard and in the end, only Medkit survived. With his friends dead, he decided to travel between settlements and help ponies that needed it. Not ever town had a doctor, after all. He hired guards he could trust and stuck to safe routes, but in the end, as the Wasteland always does, it got him.

Medkit bled to death after a fight that got his guards and attackers killed. His healing supplies had run out and he was on the way to get more when it happened. As Medkit lay on the side of the highway staring up at the clouds as rain poured down atop him, he recalled the better times before finally closing his eyes for the last time.

Chapter 33 - Chapter 35 (109 years after the war)

After Ratchet and the others left Sickle, Marrow, and the others in the Snowfall facility, the cyberponies continued to work to make their former home more livable. They made sure the facility was running properly and continued to keep the entrance clear of the almost constant snowfall. Marrow solidified her position as leader, along with the other ponies who originated in the facility, including Sickle. The other occupants had no complaints, as they had no idea how to keep the facility running properly.

Sickle continued to hunt as the need arose, but once the Snowfall facility began growing their own crops again his hunts were rare occasions. Instead, he began to wander the Frozen North in search of other settlements they could trade with or help. A few settlements joined them in the Snowfall facility and things progressed well. Decades went by and the others died around Sickle, Marrow, and the other cyberponies. Deaths were always sad, no matter how many times they witnessed them.

Ratchet and Sickle never met again, but from time to time Cora would make a visit. Those were always welcome times, as Cora would bring supplies or gifts. She would also bring stories of her adventures, which always brought excitement. But, one day Cora left and never came back. Sickle and the others never knew what befell her. Did she die, forget about them, or was she simply busy? In the end, Cora and Ratchet became nothing but a story.

To this day, Sickle and the other cyberponies live in the Snowfall facility along with the other current occupants.

===~+~===

Overnight, the small town of Spark disappeared. The ponies of the town were missing, but the blood outside the town's door and behind the building was a morbid offering of what had taken place. But the building had not been looted and there was no blood inside. The only other clue as to what happened to the town was the large pile of ashes out back. Bones littered the ashes as well as a few melted caps.

The trader who stumbled upon the empty town told others of what he had seen, and some bounty hunters went to try and figure out what had happened. Did the ponies of Spark leave abruptly? Were their remains the ones in the ashes? Many theories seemed valid, but the number of bones found in the ashes was near triple the population of Spark. After weeks of searching and waiting to see if any survivors returned, Spark was finally abandoned and looted.

No one knows what actually happened in Spark. A barmare in New Appleloosa tells a tale of a bounty hunter mare who went to the town before the inhabitants disappeared. She says the mare went there to break a siege on the town. But such a siege was never observed or recorded and her suggestion that a sole bounty hunter mare had something to do with it is dismissed as fantasy.

As time went by, the small town of Spark was entire forgotten by the inhabitants of the Wasteland.

Chapter 37 - Chapter 38 (199 years after the war)

Grimoire, after having been woken up and his memories restored, he visited the grave of his sister, Spellbook. He wasn't sure what to say at first. He decided to tell her about everything that had happened, including his attempted world domination. When Grimoire concluded, he apologized and asked for his sister's forgiveness. It was the best that he could offer. Over the course of the rest of his life, Grimoire would religiously visit his sister's grave. He would tell her of his travels and the things that were happening in the Wasteland.

When Grimoire wasn't at his sister's grave, he was wandering the Wasteland. Of course, just one year later the entire Wasteland was engulfed in what would come to be known as The Wasteland Conflict. Grimoire did what he could to keep himself, and others around him, alive. Miraculously, he was able to survive to its conclusion and he continued his travels. He dedicated his life to helping others, in atonement for his actions involving Discordia. Very rarely did he bring himself to kill others, even raiders. When he did, he would always apologize in tears at Spellbook's grave.

In the end, Grimoire's magic ended up failing him when we was only sixty-three. Without the ability to travel rapidly across the Wasteland, Grimoire settled down in a town near Spellbook's grave. He lived there until the time of his death, and was then buried in a grave beside his sister.

===~+~===

Serendipity, the prototype Crusader Maneframe Mk.II, mostly pull the strings behind the scenes as things progressed. She helped ponies down the path that would lead to Equestria's happiness, even if the ponies she helped met with grim ends. In the end, she knew what the outcome would be. Every little thing she did was for that outcome.

Eventually, she made contact with Spike and assisted him in finding the elements. With her help, the Gardens of Equestria was eventually used. The Wasteland was transformed back into a lush and vibrant land.

===~+~===

When Ratchet left her lab, she wasn't sure where to go. But she eventually found her way to Tenpony Tower. Once there, she told the current DJ about her past and left him the memory orbs of the surrogate Ratchets. She told him to get the truth out there, to tell the Wasteland of the unsung heroes. The mares who had taken her place that no longer had a name of their own. She wanted no tales told of herself.

Ratchet wandered after that. From settlement to settlement. The Wasteland was a much better place. There were almost no raiders and no radiation. Ponies were once again able to grow crops and even the Pegasi were active on the ground. The sky was no longer covered and they controlled the weather once more. It was as though the horrors of the Wasteland had never existed.

With Ratchet's help, the technology of the past was once again reclaimed. Her intricate knowledge of even the simplest machines aided in the revival of many technologies. Of course, many of the complex machines were still out of her reach and the Wasteland never fully caught up to pre-war Equestria during Ratchet's lifetime.

Her past in the Wasteland was largely unmentioned as she continued her life. She would talk about old friends such as Twinkle, Lightning, Thunder, Cygnus, Arrow, and Shrill. But she never mentioned Cora or the other AI ever again. She still blamed herself for everything that they did, and even destroyed both the stasis and cryopod in her lab.

Eventually, once Canterlot was recolonized, Ratchet opened her lab to the public. Her lab became a sort of suburb to the city, and it had its own doctor who took up residence in her lab's clinic. Outside the shed entrance, houses were constructed and her lab provided a link between them and Canterlot.

Ratchet's life wasn't one of a hero. It was one of a normal pony, just trying to make the best out of a bad situation. The only thing she could claim to have done, was to stop Discordia. But even that was the work of many groups working together. She just happened to be there. But even as old age came to her, she never forgave herself for what her creations had done. It was her lasting regret that she took to her grave. But she tried to make up for it in anyway she could. And in the end, hundreds of ponies attended her funeral to say goodbye.

Chapter 1: Project Icicle

Chapter 1: Project Icicle
“I wanted to do more than save Ponykind, I wanted to save its future.”

===~+~===

My name is Ratchet, a scientist working for the Ministry of Arcane Sciences. While many of my colleges work on projects with a heavy focus on magic, the project I am heading, Project Icicle, instead combines aspects of engineering with magic. My project? Cryostasis. Specifically, my project is attempting to create a chamber which ponies, or any living being really, can be placed inside to preserve them for the future. Why not work for the Stable-Tec, you might be asking yourself. This is because Stable-Tec is busy with Stables and cannot provide funds for my project.

Thus, here I am working at the MoAS. I pitched my idea and got it authorized. I did have one stipulation, however. When my research was eventually rolled out, plans for it would be given to Stable-Tec for use in Stables. I wanted my pods to be used to preserve Ponykind, in the event of disaster. The MoAS will use my pods for containment, the specifics of which were not described to me. I do not know what will be contained in my pods, but I knew that I wanted to complete my research.

My facility is an isolated bunker in the mountain of Canterlot to keep the project both protected and hidden. The facility possesses its own generator, housing, medical facility, and a limited armory with a few personal guards. In addition to those basic amenities, it also has a magical lab for testing out the various spells my project requires, a workshop to build the machinery with, which includes a small scale forge for melting and shaping metals, and the main experiment chamber. Oh, and my own office!

The bunker has two entrances. One leading directly to Canterlot and one that leads a good distance away from it in case of emergencies. Both of these entrances are sealed shut with bulkheads. The bunker is also lined with automated turrets and cameras for extra security.

The staff includes myself, three mechanics, three arcane researchers, two medical staff, and a squad of five Steel Rangers. All of us live in the bunker and we rarely leave it. Only a select few, such as the MoAS higher-ups, are allowed entry to it as well. I am put in charge of the bunker’s operation and also modifications to it. Nothing too major, however. Like decorative or functional changes.

That being the case, in my spare time I work on a side project of mine. I begin to look into previous research and implementation of Artificial Ponies, or AP. After a few long nights once my staff goes to bed, I begin making progress. However I don’t want to just give it somepony else’s personality. I think I might be able to add my own to it.

After referencing various texts and notes I manage to put my personality into my APs spell coding. She isn't as advanced as other APs, since I made her in my spare time and only by referencing texts. As such, she isn't so much an Artificial Pony, as she is an Artificial Intelligence. There are quite a number of differences between here and APs or normal ponies. I decide to name her Cryogenic Observer and Rehabilitation Assistant or C.O.R.A. For the first few days of her life, I keep her confined to my personal terminal to help me in my own work as a sort of beta test. She performs according to my expectations and even corrects me a few times.

Once her stability and usefulness has been determined, I decide to hook her up to the main system. I start by allowing her use over the speaker system and cameras so she can help us work. This turns out to be boost to our productivity and we manage to progress the prototype to near completion. I decide that C.O.R.A. deserves more control of the facility and give her controls of all the systems, including defenses and door control.

With my prototype cryostasis pod drawing close to completion I rally my staff and after three sleepless nights and a lot of coffee, we manage to complete it! The only thing that remains is testing it out. My staff is hesitant to volunteer, however, due to the possibility that if things go poorly it could spell death. But, with the prototype complete and Twilight Sparkleherself coming to witness its activation I am left with one choice. I am confident in my work, and C.O.R.A.’s ability to manage things in my stead for a while, so I decide to test the prototype myself. A day or so later, Twilight Sparkle arrives and we begin the test.

===~+~===

“Ok everypony! Are you all prepared to make some history and ensure the prosperity of ponykind in future?” I ask everyone while I prepare myself to enter the Cryogenic pod. I receive a chorus of affirmations.

Twilight nods as she says, “Of course! Care to go over your plan one more time?” She looks around at everypony who is looking at her since she began speaking. After her suggestion, they all look expectantly at me.

“To begin with, I’ll enter the pod and seal it up. We will then initiate the first phase, which will calm my body down into a stable state. Then we will begin the rapid freezing process and preserve the state of my body. Lastly, we will stabilize the pod’s temperature at the ideal temperature. For phase two, we will monitor my health status for three weeks. And in the final phase we will bring me back to the world of the living!” I explain.

With the summary given and after a final confirmation that everything is ready and climb into the pod. Before I can seal it, Twilight says, “I’ll be back in to observe your awakening. See you then, and good luck.” With that I seal the pod and prepare myself for whatever I will experience while in Cryostasis.

===~+~===

Alarms suddenly begin to sound and I quickly open my eyes. I reach out my hooves and touch the cold steel and glass surrounding me. I begin to panic, but I breathe a sigh of relief when I find the release switch to open my prison. It swings open and I stumble out barely catching myself before hitting the floor. I’m shivering and gasping for breath when I suddenly hear a voice call out to me.

“Ah, Mistress Ratchet. It is good to see you again in the waking world,” it says with my voice. “Mistress Ratchet, is something wrong? You appear to be in a state of confusion.” I look around as my shivering subsides but cannot find the source of the voice.

“Where are you?” I ask the voice. Nopony else appears to be in the room aside from me. After a few silent moments of looking around the room for its source, it speaks up again with an almost playful tone in its voice.

“I suppose you could say I’m everywhere, Miss Ratchet. After all, I’m just an Artificial Pony that is running this facility.” She laughs playfully as I roll my eyes.

I put a hoof to my head and shake it slightly to clear my mind. I suddenly remember everything. “CORA, that’s right! Ugh. Did you wake me up early?” I ask. That’s right, it should be three weeks after I entered the pod, but no one is around.

“No Mistress Ratchet, you have actually been woken up later than expected. Since the time you entered the pod it has been thirty-five years, three months, two days, four hours, twelve minutes and twenty-one seconds. I am sorry, but I used my best judgement to maintain the integrity of the experiment,” she states simply. My eyes went wide and I was rendered speechless.

“Thirty-five years!?” I exclaim. “Wha-how-WHY!?” I ask. I stare at the computer panels along the wall for a few moments before I notice the dust that has settled over them. I look around the rest of the room and see that it too has a thick layer of dust coating everything. The ground that I lay upon as well, aside from the area I fell and disturbed.

“I am sorry to inform you Mistress Ratchet, but sixteen days after you entered the pod I detected numerous Megaspell detonations. I managed to detect seventeen before communication with the outside was lost. Following protocol, I sealed the bunker and maintained lockdown. However, numerous incidents occurred during the lockdown,” CORA explains with a hint of sorrow in her voice.

“M-megaspell detonations? You mean that…it happened? It actually happened?” I ask hastily, having been thrown into a panic given this sudden information. Is everyone alright? Did the Stables work? What will happen now? My thoughts race with thousands of questions at once, and range from dark worries to soaring hope. But within all these thoughts is one question with what CORA said. “What incidents, CORA?” I ask her.

CORA continues, “The first incident occurred twenty days after the detonations. Food had begun to run low and a few of the staff expressed thoughts on leaving the facility to find food. One of the mechanics, a researcher, and three of the Steel Rangers decided to leave. I warned them of the dangers outside but they went anyway. The remaining Steel Rangers stayed behind to ensure your safety. Regardless, when the five went outside the soon learned I was correct. They began banging on the bulkheads to be let back in. I of course refused, but the three Steel Rangers managed to force one open, but died before reaching the next one.”

“The second incident occurred thirty-three days after the detonations. The remaining inhabitants began to run out of food, so I began heavily regulating it. Your staff disliked this, however the Steel Rangers accepted it. They began to plot to turn off the facilities systems temporarily to gain access. However, as this would put your health in jeopardy, the Steel Rangers refused and threatened the others if they tried it.”

“If you recall, I have two major rules you set in place. The first is that I must put the experiment at the forefront and the second is that I cannot harm ponies. Since the Steel Rangers protected you, I had no reason to intervene. That is, until the staff killed the Rangers in their sleep. They then proceeded to the control room. I warned them against their actions, however they would not yield. With your rules in mind, I prioritized the experiment over the lives of the staff members. I changed the targeting parameters for the turrets and the issue with the staff was dealt with.”

“A few minor incidents occurred that resulted in the collapse of halls leading to most of the facility. A final major incident occurred one week ago, which is why I have woken you up. A fatal error occurred and the generator began to lose power. At this moment, I am running on reserve power and only have three hours of power remaining. In order to finish the experiment and ensure your safety, I concluded it was time to wake you before my systems shut down,” CORA explains to me.

I have once more been rendered speechless. The way that CORA talks about my staff members’ deaths is very blunt and to the point. Hearing that ponies I knew and worked with died, especially since they were alive for me only moments ago, is almost too much to take in. Let alone the fact that a Megaspell disaster event occurred. Did anypony I know make it in and survive? Goodness, even if they did, they might have died from old age by own or at the least be on the verge of it.

For what feels like hours I space out with thoughts rapidly flying through my mind. After a while I become aware of CORA saying my name, “-Ratchet. Miss Ratchet? Miss Ratchet are you feeling alright? My scans have not detected any anomalies in your health. If something is the matter, please let me know.”

I shake my thoughts away and respond to her, “I-I’m fine. This is just…a lot to take in.” I get to my hooves, my shivering having subsided enough to allow me to remain stable while standing. I take a few deep breaths to calm myself down before settling into business mode. “CORA,” I address my AP assistant, “as of this moment, how much reserve power do you have?”

She pauses for a moment before the systems around the Cryogenic Pod shuts down. “With the Cryogenic Pod offline, I now have three hours, twenty-six minutes, and thirteen seconds of reserve power remaining, Miss Ratchet,” CORA answers me, once again with exact time down to the seconds.

I think for a moment before I ask, “Am I able to access the generator to repair the issue with it? Also, I do not need time to the seconds. Two levels of measurement is fine.” As nice as exact measurements were for experiments and the sort, they were kind of pointless in this situation.

“Of course. I’ll keep measurements to the second level for now, ma’am. The generator section of the bunker has been sealed off due to a collapse. We currently possess no means of clearing the collapse,” she replies disappointedly.

Of course. Which means I can’t just re-enter the pod nor can I remain in the bunker for much longer. Very well then. “CORA, what is the status outside? It is survivable?” I ask her. Since there is more than likely no more food or other important supplies left in the facility, I’ll have to brave the outside in order to survive.

“Survivable, yes. However, I cannot gather information from outside the immediate vicinity of this bunker. In addition, Canterlot remains highly irradiated. If you are to leave this bunker, the secondary exit must be used to ensure your safety,” CORA informs me.

I nod to her, “Noted. So, it is possible that the whole of Equestria is uninhabitable and only a small area outside of this bunker has survivable levels, correct?” I sincerely hope that isn’t the case, however getting my hopes up in this kind of situation isn’t wise. This might be my last day alive, for all I know.

“It could be a possibility. However, without communication with the outside I am unable to say for certain. But, you will be able to read radiation levels before you stray too far from the bunker,” she says, causing me to raise an eyebrow.

“What do you mean? We don’t have any radiation detection equipment in the facility,” I inform her. Project Icicle involved no radioactive materials so having equipment to detect radiation wasn’t necessary. We also didn’t foresee this kind of event happening. And with my Steel Rangers having been killed we can’t easily use their suits built in detectors.

“Actually ma’am, there is one such device. I think the MoAS sent it as a gift for you when you woke up, it was addressed from them, anyway. We put it in this facility one week after you entered the pod,” CORA tells me in a voice that sounds giddy with anticipation. As though she gave me the gift herself and was anxiously waiting for me to open it.

“Wait, you don’t mean they gave me a PipBuck, do you?” I ask with a hint of excitement in my voice. It couldn’t be…could it? Most of the PipBucks in production were reserved for Stables or higher-ups in the government.

“Indeed Miss Ratchet. Allow me to unseal it for you.” After a few locks unlock and some hissing, a compartment on the Cryogenic Pod’s control panels opens. I walk over to it and gaze upon the customized PipBuck inside it.

Unlike most PipBucks it is an icy blue color, which matches my mane yet contrasts nicely to my silver coat. As I look it over, I also notice a symbol on it that matches my cutie mark, schematics being drawn on a piece of paper with a pencil. In awe of the beauty of it, I unhook a cable from inside the compartment, which surprisingly retracts into the PipBuck. “Whoa!” I exclaim, “I’ve never seen a PipBuck with built-in hook-up cables!” As I use my magic to attach the PipBuck to my forehoof, I continue to look it over in amazement. Considering it is Thirty some years old, it looks brand new.

“Miss Ratchet, I have some unfortunate news regarding your PipBuck. It was hooked into that compartment to receive upgrades, however when the Mega spells detonated and I lost communication with the outside, the upgrading process was cut off. This has resulted in a few of the systems not functioning properly.” I draw my gaze away from my shiny new PipBuck to look at one of the cameras on the ceiling.

“Will it still function with what it currently has?” I ask. I only ever saw a few PipBucks, and never really got to tinker around with any before. The closest I came to one was when I saw Twilight's. Her's had a beautiful purple glow to it.

“Yes, Miss Ratchet. If you turn on the PipBuck, you will see a status screen on start up. It will tell you what you’re missing.” I nod at this and turn on the PipBuck. After flashing a few logos and normal start up messages a list of status messages displays.

Inventory Management – OK
S.A.T.S. – OK
Compass – OK
Data Storage – OK
Illumination Light – OK
Map Data – CORRUPTED
Medical Treatment – CORRUPTED
Radio Receiver – CORRUPTED
Friend/Foe Indicator – CORRUPTED

Some other minor systems are displayed as well. After it listed all of this information, it asks if I want to proceed with start up or not. I select [YES] and it brings me to the inventory management screen. I switch between screens to get used to the layout. There were various subsections of the inventory, as well as the data storage which was divided into audio logs, notes, and an archive section.

Despite the Map Data being corrupted, I was able to access the Map screens. The Local section of it shows me my immediate surrounds, but most of it is darkened. I switch to the Equestria section and am surprised to see a map of Equestria. “Huh, I thought the map data was corrupted?” I mutter to myself.
“It is ma’am. You have no locations marked, only an outline of the geography is marked.” I look back at the map and see that she is in fact correct. I thought I had just been zoomed out too far.

“However Miss Ratchet, this might be a good thing. Since you know the locations of Equestrian cities already, having a map for it is kind of redundant. You should be able to create new locations where ever you want, should the need to do so arise. Who knows, former Stable dwellers could have formed new cities already!” CORA exclaims with a hint of excitement in her voice.

“I suppose you’re right. Way to look on the bright side, CORA.” Just then a thought occurs to me. I walk over to the control panel and use my magic to pull the cable from my PipBuck which I then plug into the control panel. “Hey CORA. Are you able to download yourself into my PipBuck? If the power runs out, all of your data will be lost. It would be a shame to lose such a valuable assistant as you,” I say while smiling.

“Just a moment ma’am allow me to try,” CORA replies. A few moments later the lights flicker a moment before CORA speaks again, however, this time her voice come from my PipBuck. “It seems as though it has worked, ma’am. The code in here is quite interesting. Perhaps I can do some work on it and make some new features!” CORA exclaims with a tone of wonder and intrigue in her voice.

“Now, now CORA, don’t go messing with anything and break it,” I tell her with a smirk. She did have my personality after all. Always intrigued by the things around us and always wanting to make upgrades to existing things.

“Yes ma’am,” she says with a slightly sad tone. I was slightly sad too, I knew if I let her loose inside of it she might be able to do some really interesting things. But I also didn’t want to risk losing any more features right now. Without knowing more about it, it might cause issues if we tamper with it.

“Ok then, first thing first CORA, I’ll need some supplies. What areas do I have access to?” I ask her. With any luck, I can find some supplies that will come in handy should the surface prove survival further from the facility’s entrance.

“Besides the experiment room, the escape tunnel we will use, the Armory, and the Clinic. All other tunnels have collapsed,” she informs me while I begin to walk out of the experiment room. That doesn’t give us many choices, but they are the most important. I’d have liked access to the workshop to get some tools, but I’ll take what I can get.

“Let’s stop by the Armory first then. Who knows what we’ll find outside and it is best to be prepared,” I decide when suddenly my vision flashes for a moment, causing me to blink rapidly to refocus my vision. “What was that?!” I ask as I rapidly look around.

“Oops, sorry ma’am. I was initiating your Heads Up Display. I noticed it hadn’t started up yet, and I made a small modification to it before starting it,” CORA says with a hint of apology in her voice. Upon hearing this my vision becomes clear, well, mostly clear. Four new things have appeared in my vision. The first is in the top center, which is a compass showing me the direction I am going. The next is in the bottom left and appears to show my vitals. Next in the bottom right is something called Action Points. Lastly, and the most strange, is something that seems to move where ever it wants to.

It looks just like an 8-bit representation of my face and seems to be changing expressions as it moves. “Uhh, CORA, what is this thing that looks like me?” I ask her. It is moving around my vision seemly looking around through my eyes at the world in wonderment.

It turns to look at me before CORA replies with, “It’s me! I thought it would be nice if we could see eye to eye, so to speak.” As CORA talks, the mouth of the pixelated version of my face moves. It stops moving around and gives me a wide smile as well.

“Ooook then. Just, don’t get in the way if I’m trying to look at something, ok?” I tell her as I roll my eyes. I tell her not to tinker with things and she does it anyway. Typical me behavior though.

With that issue resolved I continue to the Armory. As my hooves echo in the hallway they also stir up the dust that has gathered on the floor. The occasional light flickers and quite a bit of paint on the walls is cracked and flaking off. It is a stark comparison to the halls I walked before. Walking the halls now pains my heart seeing my once beautiful facility in this state. It is with conflicting feelings I arrive at the armory door.

After putting in the code to unlock the door I step inside the Armory, which is only about as big as a small walk-in closet. To my surprise much of its contents are gone and what remains is covered in dust like the rest of the facility. Seeming to sense my thoughts CORA says, “The Steel Rangers who left took most of the weaponry and equipment. It is probably still in the entryway, but it was so irradiated it will be useless to you now.” I shake my head. Of course they took all the best gear.

I look around at what’s left in the Armory. There are three 10 mm pistols, one box of 10 mm rounds, two radiation suits, a pair of saddlebags, and some armored barding. I wish we stored some tools in here. But, I’ll just take what I can get for now. I decide to wear a radiation suit for now, till I can determine the safety of the outside. After suiting up, I sling the saddlebags on and put the armored barding into it as well as the ammo and all three of the pistols. After loading up in the armory, I head to the clinic.

“Why did you bring all three of the pistols with us?” CORA asks me as we walk to the clinic. It was a simple question, but the answer to it made me smile a bit. I let out a wry laugh before I answer her while we walk through the metal hallways.

“Have you ever seen me shoot a weapon? I’m horrible with them. If something happens to one of them, I’m not sure I can patch it up without another one,” I answer her. “Anyhow, let’s take a look at the clinic.”

CORA’s face becomes slightly troubled. “I’m not sure there will be much there, Miss Ratchet. Like the Armory, when your staff left they took most of the supplies.” Luckily, the clinic is just up the hall from the armory so we get there in just a few moments.

Almost as if to punctuate this fact when we open the door to the clinic the sight before me is bare shelves and empty cupboards. “You weren’t kidding,” I mutter, almost in disbelief. It was like the clinic had been ransacked. I enter the room and look around for remaining supplies.

My facility’s clinic in a state of almost disaster. Beds are flipped and its equipment overturned. The once top notch clinic was now reduced to a shadow of what it once was. I shake my head as I proceed to begin searching the clinic. But, what I end up finding is kind of depressing.

I set the items I find on the table in the center of the clinic and look over them. There are two rolls of bandages, six bobby pins, a scalpel, a pair of scissors, and a bottle of water. All of the health potions, magically enhanced bandages, and drugs we had normally stocked up was gone. “Wow, I honestly feel like they stole from us,” I say as I shake my head.

With the clinic emptied we start to head towards the exit. “CORA, anything else I should take a look at before we head out?” She did say that everything else was sealed off, but I was curious if any of the other hallways had anything in them.

Her face thinks for a moment before she says, “No ma’am. We only have a short time before the facility loses power. When that happens the doors will be hard to open manually.” I nod in confirmation as I continue to walk through the halls.

“You’ve got a point. It is a long walk down that tunnel, we should go before the power completely fails,” I agree. She is correct. Since the bulkheads are built to withstand a Megaspell, they are quite thick and heavy. It might take me a few hours to open one without the power on.

After thinking that I being walking down the halls towards the exit, noticing in a few places where the hallways have collapsed, sealing off the other areas of my facility. It is hard to believe that just a few hours previously for me this facility was still functioning perfectly. As I continue to walk down the hallways, I finally reach the first bulkhead that leads to the secondary entrance.

I hoof at a switch on the control panel and open the door. After I pass through I shut it behind me. If there are other ponies up on the surface, I don’t want to give them an easy time at getting to my research, just in case they don’t have the best of intentions. Unknowing of what I will find ahead of me I continue to walk down the long hallway. The tunnel itself runs for about a mile before the next door and the decontamination area.

Thankfully most of the lights are still working while I make my way through the hallway and after a while I make it to the next bulkhead. “Remember Miss Ratchet, this is the final bulkhead. The other one was bypassed by the Rangers,” CORA reminds me. I nod before opening the final bulkhead and stepping through it and then sealing it again.

Once I turn away from the panel and the bulkhead seals, I look around and notice two piles of fabric, and three Steel Ranger suits gathered around it. Upon closer inspection, I notice recognize the fabric as clothing and see pony bones inside and around them. I knock a hoof on the armor and the sound I receive tells me they are hollow. “CORA,” I stammer out as I stare at the remains before me, “Are they…my staff members?”

CORA makes a frown and answers, “They are. It has been Thirty-five years and three months ma’am. Their bodies decomposed years ago.” I sense a hint of sadness in her voice and I’m suddenly reminded of something.

“Hey CORA, I don’t remember giving you emotions. How can you seem sad and excited?” She tilts her head, which really just looks like she rotated a bit. Though she has been talking this way since I woke up, I just now fully realize it.

“Thirty-five years and three months gave me plenty of time to upgrade my code. I thought if I gave myself the emotions you ponies have, I could better understand the actions your staff took. But the only emotion I can simulate myself having under those circumstances is regret. Regret that I wouldn’t see the experiment finish. I do not understand why they would want to jeopardize it,” CORA explains.

“Emotions are tricky, CORA. Not everypony experiences them the same. Still, I can’t believe they are all gone,” I mutter. Though they started out as strangers, while working together we grew close, even becoming friends. But looking at them now, I just hope they went quickly.

“I tried to give them a quick death, ma’am. When they forced my hoof, and I had to. The alternative was their inevitable starvation when the food supplies ran out,” CORA says, trying to comfort me.

“Right. Well, the least we can do for them now is give them a proper burial. Once we find some tools, that is. If we can even survive outside, I suppose,” I nod to myself before turning towards the exit. I hesitate for a moment and look back at the Steel Rangers on the floor. They were all earth ponies, which means the two unicorns in the squad were the ones who stayed behind.

I consider taking the armor from one of them, but me being a unicorn my horn wouldn’t work with the helmet. Not to mention, I couldn’t fit my new PipBuck in the armor, and I’m pretty sure it isn’t be enough to go around the armor. “Ma’am?” CORA speaks up, concern evident in her voice.

“I’m fine. Let’s go,” I assure her before continuing to walk towards the exit. This length of tunnel is the shortest, its purpose is really only to serve as a decontamination area to keep the lap clean from outside contaminants. A few nozzles adorn the ceiling, now almost completely rusted. The further I walk the more dirt I notice on the ground.

After about ten meters we reach the third bulkhead, which is stuck half open. Dirt is spilling in from outside of it, covering the ground. Seeing the first line of defense to my facility like this makes me glad I used my code to lock the second bulkhead. But it also makes me slightly sad. Who would have thought the very ponies it was meant to protect would end up being the ones it caused to die from radiation.

I shake the thoughts from my head and continue through the bulkhead. I look around me and see that much of the once pristine white floor is covered in dirt now. “The Megaspell detonations kicked up a lot of dirt ma’am. It isn’t that surprising that some found its way in here,” CORA explains.
“Right,” I nod in confirmation. I wonder just how much of Equestria is now covered in dirt that was blown around from the Megaspell detonations. I wonder if I will even recognize anything once I reach the surface. I shake the doubts from my head and continue onward.

Taking a few more steps we reach the ladder to the surface and I begin climbing. It is about a four meter climb and I make good time. I push up the hidden hatch slightly before looking around to make sure nopony is around. Seeing no one, I push the hatch open fully and climb out into the metal shed that was once an equipment shed for the farm that was built to hide this entrance.

Once in the shed I can tell time hasn’t been kind to it. I can see various holes in the metal where light from outside peaks through and a decent amount of the metal has rusted. As I continue to check out the condition of the shed, I also begin looking for anything I could use. The only thing I find however, is a shovel. Well, I can at least bury my staff now. Though, only five of them at the moment.

I grab the shovel with my magic and move towards the door of the shed, reaching a hoof out to it as I get near. As my hoof rests on the handle, I steel myself for what I’m about to see outside. I close my eyes and take a few deep breaths. “It’s ok ma’am. I’ll be with you the whole time,” CORA encourages me with a smile. I return it as I open my eyes and turn the handle of the door.

The door opens and my vision is flooded with a blinding light.

===~+~===

Stat System Initialized...
Obtaining Status of User: Ratchet...
Receiving S.P.E.C.I.A.L. Stats...
Setting Values...
Strength = 3
Perception = 7
Endurance = 3
Charisma = 6
Intelligence = 8
Agility = 6
Luck = 7
Values set and locked.
Generating skills...
Barter: 17
Big Guns: 11
Energy Weapons: 19
Explosives: 19
Lockpick: 19
Medicine: 21
Melee Weapons: 11
Repair: 21
Science: 21
Small Guns: 17
Sneak: 17
Speech: 17
Unarmed: 11
Skills Generated.
Recalculating Specialties...
+15 Science
+15 Repair
+15 Speech
Recalculation Complete.
Loading Traits...
Night Pony:
+1 Perception & Intelligence between 6:01 pm to 6:00 am
-1 Perception & Intelligence between 6:01 am to 6:00 pm
Hoarder:
+25 lbs added to total carry weight
Traits Set.

Author's Note

Since Ratchet just woke up and only walked around really, she hasn't had an opportunity to gain any exp. As such, her PipBuck is only setting her stats/skills/traits.

I hope you all enjoyed my first chapter! Let me know what you think of it and I'll keep working hard to crank out new chapters!

Please point out any inconsistencies, grammatical errors, etc. I know the pacing here was kind of fast, I wanted to get past all of the pre-wasteland stuff fairly quickly. Going forward, things will be progressing slower and include more detail on surroundings and stuff like that.

Chapter 6 - Assault

Chapter 6 - Assault

“No amount of training or preparation can fully prepare you for reality. Somethings can only be learned through experience.”

===~+~===

In the early hours of the morning, Senior Paladin Twinkle’s squad returns from their mission. They are quickly debriefed and allowed to eat and rest momentarily. During this time, I attempt to deal with my mild hangover. However, CORA doesn't help it in the slightest. I don't remember doing it, but I muted her as she was talking to me last night. Because of this, she has had the entire night to boil with rage.

"HOW DARE YOU MUTE ME LIKE THAT!" She yells, causing my head to throb. I consider muting her again until my hangover is gone and move my hoof towards the button. "DON'T YOU DARE!" She screams as she notices my intention. "I already installed a work around so you can't mute me again! Geez Ratchet. Drinking before a large fight? Muting me, your precious assistant? What's come over you?" She asks me with puppy dog eyes.

I grimace as I reply, "I was just going along with Iron. You know I can't hold my alcohol...I just didn't realize what I was doing. Sorry, CORA." I try to sound as apologetic as possible. She narrows her eyes at me and thinks for a few moments. I'm personally thankful for the brief silence.

"Very well. Apology accepted. However!" She declares, "Don't do anything like that again. I won't forgive you so easily the next time." After saying that, she settles down and lets me deal with my hangover in peace.

After the debriefing, Twinkle's squad, us from Iron’s squad, and a few others meet in the assembly hall. Iron quickly goes over the situation in Ponyville and tells us briefly about their defences and numbers. He concludes by tell us to rest up until 4:00 am, when we will gather again for the final briefing and assault.

After the meeting, Iron, Arrow, the Elder, and Senior Paladin Twinkle, who I have yet to meet, exit and leave to discuss plans for the battle. All of the other Knights and Paladins go about their business and most, especially those who just returned, sleep. I, however, don’t find myself all that tired.

Since it is still only a little after nine in the morning, I decide to check my gear and make sure it is all functioning properly. I look over my barding and ensure that it doesn’t need to be patched up at all. I then begin taking apart my revolver like I learned to so I could clean it.

I still haven't gotten the hang of it, so by the time I finish and finally get it put back together properly, it is already noon. Feeling a bit hungry, I decide to head to the mess hall and eat a bit. Upon arriving there and collecting some food, I notice Thunder and Lightning sitting at the corner table Iron and I were at last night.

I walk over to them, levitating my tray of food in front of me. They notice as I approach and make room for me on the bench. Neither are wearing the armor and you can see their lightning bolt fur pattern Thunder always talks about. Lightning’s is on his left side, near shoulder and Thunder’s is just the opposite on his right side.

“So Ratchet, you ready for the assault tomorrow morning?” Thunder asks with a sly grin. “You could always stay behind, you know, since you don’t have much combat experience. No point having you slow us down,” he sticks his tongue out at me.

Lightning lets out a chuckle and says, “At least her combat tactics are better than yours, mr. blow everything up. Ratchet has been with us for a while now, she’ll be ready.” As he says that, he pats me on the back with his hoof.

“Thanks, Lightning and you’re damn right I’m ready Thunder,” I say, throwing him a playful grin. “You all taught me after all, if I’m not, whose fault is it, really?” This gets a laugh from Lightning while Thunder rolls his eyes.

“You know this won’t be like the previous fights we’ve had, right?” He asks me. “This is an all out assault, not a five on four squabble. We’ll be fighting in the town, potentially surrounded by enemies. We’ll be ready, but will you?” He asks as he hardens his stare at me.

“Oh like you actually took part in an assault before either, Thunder,” Lightning says. shaking his head. The both of us were a bit too young to go out on the initial assaults when the Stable opened. We’ve only been fighting in small squabbles ourselves.”

“Yea, but we have our time with Iron on our side. I mean, you heard all the stories about him, right? He was solely responsible for saving many lives, multiple times! I don’t think I’ve heard any stories about anyone dying while under his command. Honestly, the fact we are part of his squad is,” Thunder is cut off by Lightning striking his hoof on the table.

“Thunder! Come on, don’t get carried away. I know that our contingent has only lost five rangers thanks to his heroics, but restrain yourself, geez little brother,” Lightning says with a slight chuckle while shaking his head.

“Hey, I’m only like a few minutes younger than you at the most. That barely counts as me bring your, ‘little’ brother,” Thunder emphasises the word little with air quotes. Lightning is about to say something back, but notices the grim expression on my face.

“Hey, what’s wrong Ratchet? Have you heard the stories about Iron? You probably shouldn’t believe all the things you hear. Sometimes the others like to exaggerate. He has done good work though,” Lightning says.

I shake my head and reply, “He told me about the first assaults last night.” Thunder and Lightning both chuckle and Thunder shakes his head.

“He was probably being modest,” Thunder says. “He’s done great things. He even stepped down as Star Paladin after the first assault so he could focus on supporting the smaller squads. He was a great Star Paladin, I mean, there’s nothing wrong with Star Paladin Lily but…” he trails off.

“Yea,” Lightning agrees. “No one ever really talks about the first assault, but I’m sure that’s just because we lost a group. He would have gone on to be an amazing Star Paladin if he didn’t step down,” lightning concludes.

“Wait a moment,” I suddenly speak up, looking between the two of them. “He stepped down after the first assault? But he said…” I trail off, which causes both of them to focus on me with wide eyes.

“Woah, woah!” Thunder says quickly. “He told you about the first assault, didn’t he? Holy fuck! We need details! What did he do? How many lives did he save? Come on Ratchet, no one ever talks about it! Hook us up!” Both Thunder and his brother are looking to me eagerly.

I look between the two of them for a moment before I suddenly say, “I’ve gotta go.” I pick up my, now empty, tray and proceed to leave the mess hall, as they call out after me. All the while, I can’t help but think about the conversation I just had.

Was Iron really responsible, like he said, or did he just think he was? There were two possibilities going through my mind right now. The first, is that the trauma of losing those under his command caused Iron to reimagine what really happened and he stepped down. The second, is that he is telling the truth and the rangers who were there are covering for him so the younger generation still respects him.

While lost in thought, I had somehow wander into the armory and begin tinkering with armor. I shake my head clear of thoughts for a moment as I collect myself. Regardless of which possibility is true, it isn’t my place to say anything. Iron seems to genuinely care about helping ponies, and that is more than enough for me.

I nod, confirming this thought in my head as I continue to do some maintenance on the armor in front of me. Time quickly passes and I soon find my PipBuck reads 8:00 pm. Suddenly feeling tired, I finish up with the armor I’m working on and head to my bed to sleep till the briefing starts.

===~+~===

“Alright, listen up rangers!” Senior Paladin Twinkle addresses the crowd that has gathered in the assembly hall for the briefing. “Today, we are going to war. Our enemy is the Track Gang raider group that has taken up residence in Ponyville. You all know the basic details from yesterday’s briefing. Right now, we will be going over the plan of attack,” she pauses to look over the ponies gathered in front of her.

She is wearing her armor, minus the helmet. She is an earth pony with a lavender coat and a blood red mane, which is cut short and parted to one side of her face. Her authoritative blue eyes pierce into each of us as she looks over us all. After she looks over the entire crowd thoroughly, she puts on a twisted smile.

“We will destroy all of them! Each and every single raider will know death before we are through today!” As she shouts this, I hear a few ponies chuckle and see some shake their heads. “They go around terrorising the citizens of the wasteland? Well we shall go and terrorise them! We will drive them from Ponyville and straight into the flames of Tartarus!” She raises a hoof into the air to punctuate this.

As she does so, a fraction of the ponies in the crowd do so as well and let out a yell. I notice almost all of them are from her squad. Lightning comes up beside me suddenly as says, “She’s always like this when it comes to fighting raiders, and her squad is more like adoring fans than soldiers. She’s quite popular with the stallions, if you get my meaning. I personally like my mares a little less,” he pauses, looking for the right word, “bloodthirsty?”

“Don’t worry though,” he adds. “She is a capable leader and will lead us to a sure victory. Next to Star Paladin Lily, she is our most brilliant tactician,” he says with a smirk before returning his attention to the raised platform she is standing on.

Senior Paladin Twinkle raises her hoof to her muzzle and coughs before she continues, in a much more normal tone, “As you all know, they have created a stronghold out of the town Plaza centered around the town hall. There are two entrances into the stronghold, one of the bridges and a makeshift gate.”

“We will break into two groups a primary assault group and a small group that will flank them. The primary group will attack from the bridge at the south, while the small group will sneak in through the gate at the north,” she says as Iron unrolls a map and attaches it to the board behind her.

Using her hoof, she points to the map that I recognize as Ponyville. “The assault group will initiate the battle to pull enemies from the flanking force. We will position snipers on the other side of the river to provide cover while we forge our way across. Keep an eye of the rooftops and windows,” she tells us.

“It is assumed that their leader is in the town hall and it is known that they have at least one hostage. However, given that this is an assault hostage rescue is a secondary objective. Unlike our normal engagement, we will not offer surrender to any who are armed. If you encounter an unarmed pony, check them for weapons and tell them to stay put,” Twinkle says.

“Once the dust settles, anyone who has stayed alive will be rounded up and brought back for debriefing. Now then, as for who will go with what group...Iron has volunteered his squad to be the flanking group. The rest of us will be assaulting the bridge. Now then, are there any questions?” She asks.

After looking around the crowd for a few moments, she nods her head. “Very well then!” She shouts, her twisted smile appearing again. “Get your gear and prepare for the assault! You have fifteen minutes or I’ll come find you myself and drag you to the battlefield! Dismissed!” She quickly flings her leg through the air, dismissing us.

The crowd salutes and quickly disperses, however everyone in Iron’s squad stays behind, including myself. As everyone else exits, Senior Paladin Twinkle and Iron walk over towards the rest of us. Senior Paladin Twinkle looks at me normally, before she quickly switches her expression to her twisted grin.

“Well! Scribe Crusader Ratchet!” She shouts suddenly, “I do believe this is the first time we’ve met. But I’ve heard about you plenty already, I hear Iron here has taken you under his wing, so to speak, anyway.” She lets out a giggle at that.

“But who cares about that, I hear you’ve taken out some of those raider scumbags we’ll be fighting! So tell me, do they put up a fight? How ugly are the fuckers? Do they scream when they die? Oh Luna, I’ve missed combat, I’m getting all giddy,” she declares.

I’m slightly taken aback by her questions and overall attitude. “I...I don’t know,” I manage to stammer out. I don’t recall any of them screaming and I never paid attention to their looks. I’m sure she was informed of their combat effectiveness already though.

She rolls her eyes and says, “I do hope you fight better than you speak. Don’t become a liability for Crusader Iron, you hear me? He’s got some sort of hero complex, so don’t cause him undue trouble.” She begins to trot past me and pats me on the shoulder. “Prepare yourself, Eberron the God of Death demands sacrifice, and he will have his fill of raider blood today!”

She shoots me one last, particularly twisted smile as she leaves the room. “Eberron…? That’s a name I haven’t heard in a while. The old...well, i suppose old, old world’s God of Death. What does she mean he demands sacrifice though?” I ask to no one in particular.

Iron shrugs. “Don’t pay her any mind. She read about him in an old book years ago and took a liking to him. She practically worships him and says all of her kills are sacrifices in his name and honor. Of course, she only kills criminals. I know she doesn’t act like it, but she values justice and dislikes random violence,” he explains.

“Anyhow,” Iron says with more determination in his voice. “All of you get geared up and meet up at the entrance. Today is the day we end the Track Gang’s presence in the Ponyville area.” He nods to us as he leaves the room as well. The others follow suit, leaving me alone in the room to think.

===~+~===

Fifteen minutes later, we gather in the entryway and begin marching to Ponyville. It isn’t long before we reach the outskirts and our forces separate. Senior Paladin Twinkle takes her assault team and crosses the railway bridge to circle around to the bridge entrance.

Iron leads us into town and we set up camp in a house a short ways from the gate up north. We wait around, staying on guard while we wait for the assault team to begin their attack. The minutes slowly crawl by and isn’t helped by the fact we aren’t talking in order to keep our location concealed.

From the house, I can see the wall surrounding the city clearly. It is composed of a patchwork of lumber and scrap metal, and I can see major parts of it are made up by cars and skywagons. The gate itself is two cars attached together with their fronts hanging an inch off the ground. They are suspended from chains and pulleys and are set between what looks like a makeshift track to prevent them from swinging much.

The entire wall seems to have a walkway around the top with makeshift covered towers spaced in a few places. I notice each tower has at least one raider in it looking over a section of the city. It kind of reminds me of the old castles from long ago, just made out of scrap supplies.

Suddenly, we hear loud explosions coming from the south where the bridges are, signaling the start of the assault. Iron nods to us as we all prepare to begin our attack. Iron explained to us earlier on the way here that we were to wait for a while after the fighting began, to give the raiders on this side of town a chance to leave.

A little while later, Iron waves his hoof and opens the door. We file out into the street and cautiously move towards the gate. Once it gets in sight, we notice two stallions standing on the gate, guarding it. We divide into two groups to take cover behind buildings on opposite sides of the street.

Iron, Thunder, and Lightning are behind the building across from Arrow and I. Iron and Arrow are the closest to the corners and Iron motions to her with a signal I don’t recognize. In a quick movement, both Iron and Arrow step out of cover and shoot at the stallions on the gate. A few seconds later, I hear the thuds of their bodies as they fall to the ground below.

With a nod, Iron leads us back into the street and up to the gate. “Ok Thunder, you’re up,” he says, stepping aside and letting Thunder approach the gate. Thunder takes out what I recognize as explosives and places them along the sides of the heavy gate. He nods to us as we back up and he joins us.

A moment later he hoofs a button he’s holding in his mouth and the gate erupts into a series of loud, fiery explosions. With a loud sound of shearing metal the gate slides to the ground, wobbles for a moment, and then tips over to lay completely flat on the ground. Thunder smiles broadly throughout the show.

With the gate fallen, Iron leads us inside. Across the mostly open expanse of the plaza, I can see that the assault team blasted through their gate as well and are using the remains of it as cover. I can also just make out a few of them across the river laying down suppressive fire with what I assume are sniper rifles and missile launchers.

Frequent explosions and gunshots resound throughout the plaza as the raiders and assault team clash. We skirt around the plaza which has been filled with various makeshift barricades the raiders are using as cover against the ranger assault. We peek in a few of the houses that the walls have been made part of the walls looking for any hidden raiders that might try to catch us or the assault group by surprise.

Most of the houses appear to be empty, and it shows in the amount of Track Gang members that are in the plaza. If I had to guess by the amount I can see so far, they have almost three times as many ponies as we do. However, most of them are only armed with assault rifles whereas the rangers are armed with better, higher quality weapons.

I do notice, however, a few of the raiders wielding large weapons. At least one is using a minigun, another I notice is using a plasma rifle, and I think one has a rocket launcher. I don’t think they have much ammunition for those guns, though, as I don’t hear them firing very often. What I do hear frequently, are screams and shouts from the raiders as the rangers advance on them.

I turn my attention away from the fight in the plaza and back to the houses we are checking. So far, we have looked through three of them and they were all devoid of life. The interiors however look lived in. Tables have partially eaten food and drink on them, some spilled over as their owners no doubt ran out in a panic.

We continue checking the houses on the north west side of the plaza and Iron looks in the window of the next house. After a quick peek, he looks back to us and knocks his hoof on the old cobblestones three times as he motions his head towards the house. His signal for telling us there are three ponies in the house.

We stack up around the door with Lightning and I aiming our guns at the hinges of the door. Iron nods and we blow the hinges off the door. Immediately, Thunder slams into the door and sends it into the house. Iron follows in after him and begins opening fire. Lightning and Arrow take cover on opposite sides of the door frame as I enter in after Iron.

As I enter, I notice the door lying on the stairs to the second floor which are directly in front of the entryway. “Shit, what the fuck!?” One of the raiders shouts as he attempts to grab his gun from a nearby table before getting shot by Iron and falling to the ground. The other two in the room are already armed and begin opening fire at us.

I quickly dive behind a wall separating the entryway from the living room they are in. A few bullets penetrate the wall just inches above my head. I hear Thunder’s minigun spinning up as I float my revolver around the wall and fire a few shots in the raiders general direction. I get two off before Thunder’s gun opens fire and silences the raiders’ fire.

As his guns spin down and the bullet casings fall to the ground, Iron walks up to the raiders’ bodies. “What the fuck is going on down there?” A stallion shouts down from the second floor. I hear hoofbeats on the ceiling and a groan from one of the raiders Iron is near, before Iron’s gun fires again and silences it.

The hoofbeats reach the stairs as Thunder and I turn towards them. I swing my revolver around as the raider comes into view and says, “Son of a-” but gets cut off as I start shooting at him. Thunder’s gun begins spinning up even before he fully turns around. One of my shots catches the raider in the front left leg and causes him to trip down the stairs.

Right then, Thunder’s gun opens fire and begins hitting the wall to the left of the stallion as it slowly moves towards him. In a few seconds, his shots perforate the side of the raider and sends him slamming into the wall as he continues tumbling down the stairs, coming to rest on the landing halfway down the staircase. He doesn’t move or make anymore sounds as his blood begins to run down the stairs.

Iron comes back into the entryway and says, “This floor is clear. Let’s check the second and move on.” I levitate the door from the stairs and set it against the wall. After I do so, Iron starts up the stairs with Thunder and I following behind him.

As we crest the top of the stairs, I hear a few whimpers. Once we enter the next room I can see that it seems to have been made into a holding area of sorts. Five ponies have been put into cages and they look cautiously up at us as we enter.

In one cage I notice a stallion and what I assume is his foal huddled together. Another has two mares that are laying against opposite sides of the cage. The last occupied cage contains a familiar brown coated mare with a blonde mane. My eyes go wide as I mumble out, “It’s her!” I’m about to gallop over to her cage as Iron speaks up.

“Don’t worry, you’ll all be safe now. We are Steel Rangers, and here to help. However, we are in the middle of an assault, so you will need to wait here a little longer. Sit tight, and we’ll come for you,” he tells them, nodding to each one as he does so. “Thunder, Ratchet, let’s keep moving,” Iron says as he turns to leave.

I look at him, then back at the captives. “Can’t we let them out first at least?” I ask him. He shakes his head without turning around.

“If we did, they might panic and try to make a run for it. If they were to grab a weapon...well, remember what Senior Paladin Twinkle said? We are to kill on sight all armed ponies. They’ll be safer if we leave them caged up,” he says as he continues walking out of the room.

Thunder nods in agreement as he follows Iron out of the room. I hesitate for a moment and look back at the captives and the mare I watched get captured. I take a deep breath and say, “I’ll be back for you, all of you. I promise.” I nod, affirming my decision and trot to catch up with Iron and Thunder.

We continue to check a few more of the houses on this side of the plaza, but all of them are empty like the first ones we checked. Iron leads us into one and begins checking his gun’s ammunition as he addresses us.

“Alright, our first objective is done. We’ve cleared this side of any reinforcements to prevent them from flanking us. Check your ammo and get ready for our next push. We’ll push into the town hall and capture it, then use it to rain down fire on the remaining raiders fighting the assault force,” Iron tells us.

“This house has a roof access,” he continues. “Arrow, I’d like you up there to provide cover for us as we cross the plaza. You’ll be alone, so clear off the wall first and check your surroundings frequently. Thunder, once we clear the first floor of the town hall, you’ll guard the door and prevent any of them from coming in after us.”

“Lightning, Ratchet, and I will then proceed to clear out the rest of the building and get out on the balcony, where we will signal Arrow. She will then regroup with us. The four of us will then provide support for the assault group from the balcony while Thunder guards the door,” Iron explains.

“Now, remember, their leader is supposed to be in there so expect heavy resistance. We’ll mop them up once their leader is gone and take Ponyville! Tread carefully and let’s dispose of these raiders and free those captive ponies,” he says.

We all finish reloading our guns and checking our equipment as Arrow begins climbing the stairs to go to the roof. Iron opens the door and leads the rest of us out into the plaza. We begin making our way slowly across the plaza, taking cover behind their makeshift barricades to hide from any prying eyes.

Once we make it about a few feet from the door, I hear the sound of Arrow’s sniper going off and notice a few ponies beginning to fall off of the wall. After a few moments, her gun goes silent and I look back to see her giving me a wave.

We continue towards the town hall and make it about halfway before we run into any raiders. A group of three are taking cover behind a barricade in front of us as one of them notices us. He lets out a shout and aims his rifle towards us before his head explodes into meaty chunks as Arrow’s rifle goes off.

The other two look over at us, now covered in the blood and brain of their friend and open fire. As they do so, Iron and Lightning begin firing as well. The raiders’ bullets ping off their armor while the raiders take a few shots and scramble behind cover.

We take cover as well, but Lightning carefully dashes to some cover that has a line of sight on them. He moves to shoot them, but more gunfire from in front of us causes him to get back into cover. Five more raiders are charging towards us and take up cover behind a few different barricades around us.

While we are partially surrounded, Arrow attempts to take a few of them out, but they manage to hide from her shots. Four raiders are taking cover between us and the town hall, the two wounded ones are on our left, and one is on our right. All of them begin shooting shooting at us and our cover begins to chip away.

“Alright, we need to move quick,” Iron suddenly speaks up. “Thunder, you take the one on the right. Ratchet, Lightning, the two on the left. I’ll distract the ones in front of us till you’re done.” He makes a signal towards Arrow and she shoots at the cover the four in front of us are hiding behind. “Let’s go!”

We all nod and scramble out of cover. Lightning and I dive behind the closest cover to our left and attempt to get sight on our targets. I look over to see Iron shooting at his targets, but I can’t see Thunder from here, though I can hear his minigun. “Provide me some cover, I’ll take them out,” Lightning tells me.

“Alright, I’ll cover you,” I tell him and he dashes out of cover. I lean out of my cover to line up a shot on them as one of them leans out to shoot at Lightning. However, I shot at him twice and he gets back behind cover. This gives Lightning the chance he needs to flank them and spray them with his SMG. With our targets taken care of, we go to regroup with Iron.

We lay down some fire on the four he is shooting at as we get back at about the same time Thunder does. However, once we do so two more raiders show up to support the four we are already fighting. “Shit, we’re getting nowhere,” Iron says. He thinks for a moment as we brace ourselves against the bullets flying towards us.

I hear the sound of a minigun spinning up before one begins shredding our cover. “Damn it! Ratchet, what spells can you use? Any offence or defence spells?” Iron asks me.

I think for a moment before I reply, “My only offensive spell is a pretty weak fireball and the only defencive spell is a minor shield. I can let us shoot through it, but not them. However, I can only make one large enough to cover one of us, and it won’t last long against this kind of gunfire.” I shout over the gunfire quickly cutting down our cover.

Iron thinks for a moment before he says, “Alright. Surround me with your shield. I’ll charge at them and try to take them out. Lightning, Thunder, you two flank them and finish them off. Ratchet, you concentrate on the shield, stay behind cover. If it falls, don’t worry. With this armor, I’ll be fine for a while.”

We all nod in confirmation as we reload our weapons. “Let’s do this then! For Equestria!” Iron shouts as I cast my shield spell around him and he dashes out directly into the line of fire. The raiders take the bait and focus their fire on him. With each bullet I can feel the strain on my magic increasing. Even a few seconds into using the shield I can feel my magical reserves depleting rapidly.

Lightning and Thunder dash out shortly after Iron and begin opening fire. Slowly, the amount of bullets hitting the shield decrease as they take out the raiders. I hear at least three of them scream out before I can’t keep the shield up any longer. That means there are only three left. I peek out around the cover, breathing heavily from the exertion of using my magic.

I can see three raiders continuing to shoot at Iron, including the one with the minigun. I float my gun from my holster and shot a few round towards the one with the minigun to distract him, but my aim is thrown off a bit since I used so much of my magic.

Thunder and Lightning are closing in on the remaining raiders, however and two more go down a few seconds later. Iron keeps firing at the remaining raider, closing the distance to him. Iron hits the raider a few times in the chest, but at the same time I see a red beam flying towards him. My eyes go wide as I shout, “Look out!”

However, my warning comes too late as the projectile strikes Iron in the head and explodes, knocking him to the ground and destroying the right half of his helmet. I hear him call out in pain as the shards of steel from his helmet dig into his face. His screaming doesn’t last long, however as another beam finds the gap in his helmet and explodes again.

Seemingly in slow motion, the remainders of Iron’s helmet explode outward, sending shards to steel, blood, skull, and brain everywhere. His body thumbs completely on the ground, blood pouring from his neck. I stand in shock staring at the sight I just witnessed. I’m acutely aware of the shouts of Lightning and Thunder as I walk towards Iron.

CORA says something I don’t hear as a red beam hits the ground next to me. I can hear Arrow’s rifle go off as another red beam misses me horribly. I keep walking forward, however, ignoring the world around me, focusing only on Iron’s body. Thunder and Lightning run to me and begin dragging me backwards away from Iron.

“Let me go!” I yell at them. “I-I need to, I’ll…” I trail off, not sure what to do next. They get me back into cover and set me against it as I fall to my haunches. I look between the two of them, eyes wide as I continue to stammer out, “I...I...we...we...Iron…”

“Ratchet! Snap out of it!” Lightning yells at me. “You’re in command now, we need to go! We can’t stay out in the open like this! Ratchet!” I hear his words but can’t stop staring blankly ahead and recalling the scene that just played out.

Suddenly a bullet strikes the cover right above my head, causing me to jump. I look around quickly but see no one other than Arrow on the rooftop, rifle aimed at us, just watching. “Shit! Was that Arrow?” Lightning says. “What’s she thinking? She could have hit one of us.”

“She’s right,” Thunder says. He stands over me and as I start to look up at him, he punches me in the face. “Get your shit together, Ratchet!” He yells. “Iron is dead! You are our leader now! If you don’t do something, we are going to die. Was I right back there in the mess hall? Are you going to become a liability?”

His punch knock me to my senses and I look between them as I calm down a bit and take a deep breath. As I do so, I notice that they are shaken up as well. I remember our conversation in the mess hall, how they were new to this kind of fighting as well. How no Steel Rangers have died since the first assault...until today.

I get to my hooves as CORA speaks up, “Ratchet, we have to keep going. It’s what he would have wanted. You have to lead us to victory now.” I nod in agreement with her.

“You’re right CORA. You too Thunder. I’m leading now and we…” I take a deep breath. “We still have a mission to complete. The plan stays the same, let’s get moving.” They nod in agreement as I give Arrow a small wave. She waves back before looking back down her scope.

The rest of the way to the town hall we only encounter one more raider, which Arrow takes out for us. The rest we manage to avoid. As we stand on the porch surrounding the town hall, I glance at the bridge the assault force should be at. I notice they have stopped advancing and are pinned down on the bridge.

“We need to get this place under control quickly,” I say as we prepare to enter the town hall. Thunder and I are on one side of the double doors and Lightning is on other. I give Lightning a nod and he opens the door closest to him. Immediately after, Thunder and I charge in, with Lightning close behind.

Thunder’s gun spins up in anticipation of a fight, however we find the lobby surprisingly empty. Lightning closes the door after us once we realize this. “We should check the rest of this floor,” I tell them. They give a nod and follow me as I begin to check the other rooms.

Like most of the buildings in the wasteland now, the town hall shows signs of destruction. The floors are covered in dust and grime, the wallpaper is flaking off, and the furniture is in a ragged state. After checking all of the rooms on the first floor, we find it completely deserted.

“Perhaps they all went to defend?” Lightning suggests. I shake my head, however. Something just doesn’t seem right.

“It could be a trap,” I say. “However, trap or not, we still need to take this place over. Thunder, you’ll stay here and guard the door. Stay behind the reception desk so you have some cover. I’ll send Lightning down when we’re done, so you know to expect Arrow’s arrival.”

“Right. You two, stay alive. Also…” Thunder pauses for a moment. “That fuck who killed Iron is somewhere in here. Make sure you give him an exceptionally painful death,” he tells me with an angry look on his muzzle. “No one will get past me, aside from Arrow. Now go.” He gets behind the reception desk and faces the door.

“Let’s put an end to this, Ratchet,” Lightning tells me as we head to the stairs. “And my brother is right, for once. That bastard who shot Iron is going to pay.” I nod in agreement with him as we reach the stairs.

“They will, but we need to be careful. It’s only the two of us from here on,” I tell him. He nods in agreement as we check our ammo and begin to climb the staircase. As we do so, I can’t help but realize the sudden quiet of the place. I mean, there are still gunshots and explosions happening outside, but they are muted a bit. There is also no one trying to stop us, which is pretty odd.

We reach the door to the second floor and I tell Lightning to follow my lead. I open the door and look around inside. The room appears to have been made into an office. A desk sits in the middle with a few chairs in front of it. A terminal is on the desk and a chair facing the opposite direction sits behind it.

As I continue to look around the room, I see numerous places ponies could be hiding. “Stay on your guard,” I tell Lightning. He nods, eyeing the room suspiciously.

“Indeed, you should stay on your guard.” A stallion’s voice says suddenly. He sounds angry, yet confident. The chair behind the desk slowly turns around to reveal a black unicorn with long red mane. He has a cigarette in his mouth and a long scar that crosses his left eye.

He sets his hooves on the desk, takes a puff from his cigarette, and then taking it from his muzzle with his magic. Exhaling the smoke, he says, “You know, I’ve always wanted to do that whole, spinning chair reveal thing.” He lets out a chuckle. “So! You Steel Rangers decided to attack us, the infamous Track Gang? You should have brought more soldiers. We have your troops stopped at our gate.”

He laughs again. “And you’re not even wearing any power armor!” He addresses me. “Did you rangers run out of supplies? It’s no wonder you couldn’t get past blowing up our gate,” he says as the grin on his muzzle changes into an annoyed glare.

“Come on out boys,” he says. At these words, six ponies emerge from hiding places, each of them pointing guns at us. Most are wielding assault rifles, but one has a plasma rifle. “Before you die, I suppose I should tell you my name so you know exactly who you messed with,” he says as a smile returns to his face.

“I am the leader of the Track Gang, Railspike, and you are interrupting my operations. The sentence for that is death. Kill them,” as he says this I tense up into SATS. I look around at the ponies around me and decide I should focus on the one using the plasma rifle.

With an 87% chance to hit at this range, I line up two shots on him and one shot on another, both of which are on my right. Lightning is on my left, and I trust him to get those closest to him. However, assuming I can hit these two and Lightning manages to take out one in that time, that still leaves three armed ponies and Railspike.

I get a random idea and decide to use it. “Hey CORA, think you can help us out here?” I ask her. “Once I exit here, shout something as loud as you can. Maybe it’ll distract them enough to throw off their aim temporarily,” I explain.

“What should I shout?” CORA asks as she walks around my vision looking at the ponies who ambushed us.

“I don’t know, anything will work, I guess. Just shout it as loud as the volume will allow you,” I tell her. She nods her head as I confirm my selections and SATS takes over my body. The shots go off and all three hit. The raider with the plasma rifle thumps to the floor and the other raider recoils from the hit and hits the wall behind him.

Almost instantly after the shot CORA shouts out, “I LIKE SCIENCE!” which actually helps to throw off the aim of the other raiders and all of their shots miss. I hear Lightning’s SMG go off and hear his targets scream out before thumping to the ground.

At the same time, I turn to my next target and shoot off the rest of my shots at hitting him twice in the chest and once in the head. As the raider I shot earlier staggers to his hooves, I grab the plasma rifle from the first raider in my magic and point it at him. As I pull the trigger, I holster my revolver. When the bolt of plasma hits the raider, disintegrates into green goo.

I turn around to help Lightning, only to find him standing over two dead raiders while pulling his knife out of a third’s neck. He notices me looking at him and says, “Damn, I thought for sure I’d beat you. I bet you used that cheating PipBuck of yours.”

I roll my eyes as we both turn to face Railspike. “And your armor isn’t cheating?” I reply back to him. He just lets out a laugh. While keeping the plasma rifle trained on Railspike, I reload my revolver. Railspike just stares us down with an angry glare.

“I suppose I must commend you for taking out my personal guards. I should have just killed you myself to begin with. No matter, I won’t have to pay them now. But you’re both still going to die,” He says with a smirk as his horn lights up and levitates up a familiar looking gauss rifle from behind his desk.

It is the black and red, custom gauss rifle Grimoire tried to sell me before we left on our last patrol. Raptor Blood. My eyes go wide as I realize this and ask him, “Where did you get that?” Did they kill Grimoire and take his supplies? I thought we got him out of danger.

“Oh, this beauty?” He says, looking the gun over. “I bought it from our supplier, some random trader. He’s been supplying us with some great weaponry, assuming we pay up the caps. But, I do believe it is time for you both to die,” he says with a grin.

Lightning’s SMG is out of ammo, so I float my revolver over to him. “He’s the one, Lightning. That gun fires a red beam,” I tell him as I do so. Lightning drops his knife and takes my revolver. “Do you really think you can take us both out, Railspike?” I ask him.

“Well, I don’t really have a choice, now do I? But, as you’ve already seen, this gun doesn’t really care about your fancy armor. It’ll only take me two shots to take you both out,” he declares with a smirk.

I was glad he was stalling for time, seeing as SATS had a chance to recharge. We stare each other down for a few moments before he makes his move. However, right before he manages it, a bullet flies through one of the windows and strikes his horn, knocking the gauss rifle from his magic and sending him reeling in pain.

“Son of a bitch! There was another one of you?” He growls out, clenching his horn. “Fuck, I think it’s chipped,” he mutters. You’ll pay for that!” He starts to charge us, but Lightning quick on the trigger and puts a bullet in each of his front legs. Railspike stumbles and falls onto his muzzle.

“Hey Ratchet, I think you should go signal Arrow and tell Thunder she’s coming. I’ll take care of this guy,” Lightning says. “I’ll be borrowing your revolver for the moment.” I nod to him as I make my way to the steps that lead up to the balcony. Once outside, I hear a few screams from the second floor and I wave over to Arrow.

She waves back and then begins to leave the rooftop. I head back down to the second floor and see that Lightning has shot Railspike’s other two legs as well and is twisting his hoof on the bullet wounds. “I’ll be sure to finish up here before you get back, Ratchet,” Lightning tells me without sparing me a glance.

I continue downstairs and tell Thunder we’ve finished up. As I do so, I notice the five or so raider bodies that are around the doorway. “You doing ok here?” I ask him.

“Yea, I’ve got plenty of ammo left and they haven’t even made a scratch on me yet. You get the bastard who killed Iron?” he asks.

I nod, “Yea. Lightning is up there dealing with him now. He won’t be a problem.” As if on cue, a scream comes from the second floor. Thunder noticeably tense from this.

“Lightning, eh?” He says in an odd voice. “Yea, that will be...fine.” I’m about to ask him what he means when Arrow enters through the doors. Thunder’s gun spins up momentarily before he recognises her.

Arrow waves at me before she begins walking over towards the stairs. “Alright, hang tight Thunder, we’ll turn the tide of the fight and be done here soon,” I tell him. He nods as I follow Arrow up the stairs.

When we reach the second floor, I see Lightning sitting behind the desk using the terminal. I notice his knife, which is covered in blood, is stabbed into the desk as well. He notices us and looks up from the terminal. “Railspike wasn’t lying. He kept records of his trades with Grimoire. I never thought he’d trade with raiders…” Lightning trails off.

“Nether did I,” I respond. “But, we can deal with that issue later. For now, we need to provide support for the assault force. Let’s get to the balcony,” I tell them. They both nod as Lightning picks up his knife, wipes it on one of the dead raider’s barding, and puts it away. He then tosses me my revolver. I catch it in my magic and put it in my holster.

As we head for the stairs, I see Railspike’s body behind the desk. He is in a pool of his own blood and covered with knife wounds, including a stab wound in his unscarred eye. Most of the blood seems to have come from a single cut across his neck however. I can feel myself getting nauseous just looking at this corpse.

I barely manage to keep from vomiting as I say, “You didn’t have to go so far, Lightning.” Is this what Thunder meant when he said it would be fine? Lightning stops for a moment as he turns to me.

“He killed Iron, he deserved worse than I gave him. Let’s finish this and give Iron a proper send off,” he says with both anger and sorrow evident in his voice. I nod as we continue up the stairs and out onto the balcony.

Not much changed since I was up here last time. The rangers are still pinned down on the bridge and the raiders are taking shots at them from behind cover. Lucky for us, their backs are exposed to us now. “Alright, spread out and take them down. Thunder will stop any who try to come up to us. Watch out for returning shots,” I tell them.

“Right,” Lighting says as he and Arrow walk in opposite directions along the balcony. Once we are all in place, I aim my revolver and take the first shot. From this distance, however, I don’t hit anyone. Arrow and Lightning open up and take out two raiders immediately. Arrow ejects the round from her rifle and readies her next shot as I try to aim more carefully.

This time, I shoot off three rounds and manage to hit the raider I’m aiming for. She doesn’t go down, but stops firing at the rangers. Arrow, Lightning and I continue to take out a few raiders before they realize what’s happening.

A few of them turn and head into the town hall, which is quickly followed by the sound of Thunder’s minigun and the screams and curses of a number of raiders. Once the rest of the raiders hear this, more start looking up for us. They notice we aren’t part of their gang and begin to open fire.

Numerous shots fly past my head and I can see Lightning and Arrow duck down for a moment as well. Once the volley of shots subsides, I poke my head back up and fire off a few rounds, before my gun is empty and I have to reload.

I poke my head up again and slip into SATS and line up a few shots that have the highest chances, only 43%. A thought occurs to me and I share it with CORA. “Hey CORA, when I exit SATS and regain control of my body, I’m going to cast a sound amplification spell on the PipBuck. When I do so, address the raiders and tell them their leader is dead. Let’s see if we can demoralize them.”

CORA nods in agreement as I exit SATS and take the shots, which miss. I then immediately cast the spell and CORA yells, “Attention Track Gang! This is Scribe Crusader Ratchet of the Steel Rangers. We have captured the town hall and your leader, Railspike lies dead. Victory will be ours!”

I stop the spell as she finishes up. “Nicely done. But, I know you sound like me and all, but did you have to use my name?” I ask her. She just laughs and sticks her tongue out at me. I roll my eyes and continue shooting at the raiders on the ground.

After a few minutes, the tide of the battle doesn’t change and the rangers are still pinned down. Suddenly, a familiar voice yells out, “This is taking too long! Get up there and kill them all! Spill their blood and leave none alive!” I cringe as I recognize the voice as Senior Paladin Twinkle’s.

I’m actually impressed I can hear her over the gunfire. She continues on, “Fine! Paladin Flora, Paladin Glint, give me your fucking guns!” I can’t hear the Paladins’ reply, but Twinkle says, “Just put them on my back and take mine! You two not doing anything with it! Hurry up!” A few moments pass before I hear her voice again.

“Finally! Now then, if you all don’t want me to haunt you, move up and cover me!” She yells at the other rangers. “For Eberron! May he feast on many souls this day!” From the balcony, I can see a single ranger running from the bridge directly towards the raiders. All the while I can hear Senior Paladin Twinkle’s maniacal laughter.

The ranger I assume is Senior Paladin Twinkle stops halfway between the bridge and the closest raiders and turns her body to one side. As she got closer, I manage to make out her newly acquired guns. She has two dual minigun battlesaddles on her back and both their bits in her mouth.

“She’s crazy…” I mutter out. As I do so, she bites down on the bits and the four miniguns spin to life and let loose their firepower against the raiders and their cover. As the guns fire, Senior Paladin Twinkle slowly turns to face the other way, sweeping the guns across the raiders’ defensive lines.

The raiders firing at her suddenly stop and the battlefield quiets down for a moment once her guns spin down. She looks around for a moment before she yells, “If you’re trying to surrender, don’t bother! I can’t hear you with this ringing in my ears! Not that I’d let you surrender even if I could…” She lets out a laugh as the rest of the rangers move up to where the first line of raiders were.

Most of the raiders in the first line of barricades are now dead, a few try to crawl away, but the rangers that reach them put an end to their misery. “My name is Senior Paladin Twinkle of the Steel Rangers! When Eberron comes for your pathetic souls, tell him that I sent you!” The rangers take cover behind their new cover as the raiders begin to return fire.

On the balcony, we continue to fire down at the remaining raiders. Quite a few of them have stopped fighting completely and are instead in the fetal position. I can’t bring myself to shoot them, so I only aim at the ones that are still shooting. I’m about to take a shot when I see a rocket flying towards the town hall.

I turn my focus to it and see it heading straight between Lightning and me. He notices it too, and we both scramble to run away from the coming explosion. The rocket strikes the balcony, which tears in half and begins to collapse.

Looking back at the destruction behind me, I see the collapsing balcony dropping off closer and closer to me. I turn back towards Arrow’s direction and gallop as fast as I can, but I suddenly feel the wood beneath my hooves give way. “Oh fuck, Oh Fuck, OH FUCK!” I call out as I grab onto one of the rungs on the railing.

I begin dropping down towards the ground as Arrow reaching out to me when the balcony stops falling and leaves me hanging off the end of it. Hanging on for dear life, Arrow sets her rifle against the railing and wraps her right hoof around a rung further up from me.

She then stretches her left hoof down towards me. “Grab on, Ratchet,” she says with only the slightest hint of worry in her voice. I make sure I have a good hold on the rung I’m clinging to before I reach out my right hoof to her. We are just barely touch, but it isn’t enough to get a good grip. Arrow stretches further and I try to swing towards her waiting hoof.

We manage to link our hooves, but as we do so a few bullets strike the wood next to us, sending splinters of wood into us and causing our grips to loosen. Instantly, we are both sliding down the floor of the balcony trying to make a grab for any rung we can.

Hoofbeats from further along the balcony near us in a matter of seconds and Lightning dives and grabs Arrow’s right hoof in his as his legs catch the rungs of the balcony. Our sliding stops as most of my body hangs off the jagged edge. I can feel the splinters of wood digging into my stomach and chest as I swing back and forth.

Slowly, Lightning starts to pull us up till Arrow can stand on her own. Then Lightning takes my hooves in his and helps to pull me the rest of the way. Once we all make it back onto solid ground, we fall against the wall, panting. “T...Thank...you,” I manage to tell them.

Arrow nods as she gets up and grabs her rifle in her magic again. “Don’t...mention it,” Lightning says. “I’m just...glad I got...there in...time.” Arrow’s rifle goes off and she ejects the round.

“We should get back...to it,” I say as I get my breathing under control. I’m still shaking a bit from the experience, but we have a job we need to do. It shouldn’t be too long now since the rangers managed to move up. I get to my hooves and join Arrow at the railing. Lightning joins us moments later.

In the time we spent staying alive, the rangers have managed to push up the line considerably. Raider corpses are strewn about behind the advancing ranger line. The three of us continue to shoot down at the remaining raiders and dodge their return fire until we can no longer see the ones under us.

We walk around the remaining balcony and make sure no raiders are trying to make a run for it. In the distance, I see a raider running towards the northern gate. Seconds later, Arrow takes them out. “Ok, you two stay up here and watch the plaza exits. I’m going to check on Thunder and the status below us,” I tell them.

The gunfire has tapered off for the most part and now only a few shots can be heard every now and then. I quickly make my way to Thunder on the first floor and see a pile of spent 5 mm cartridges on the ground next to him. His armor is covered in scratches, dings, and has a few holes. A small pile of blood is under him.

“Thunder!” I call out as I approach him. “Are you alright? You’re bleeding!” I ask him worriedly. He doesn’t shift his gaze from the door as I speak.

“I’m fine,” he says. “Just small wound in the shoulder and a few scrapes on my sides. Cleaning my armor is going to be a pain though. I am running low on ammo though,” he informs me.

It is only when he says this that I look at the doorway. At least fifteen dead raiders surround the entrance and the walls are covered in blood and bullet holes. The door itself is hanging by one hinge and is perpurated with bullet holes.

While I inspect Thunder’s handiwork, the door opens and chooses that moment to break off the hinge and fall to the floor. Standing in doorway is Senior Paladin Twinkle, still carrying around the two minigun saddles. A single gunshot punctuates her entry.

“Good work, the raiders in the plaza are all dead. Eberron has been appeased. The assault group will clear the rest of the surrounding houses,” Senior Paladin Twinkle says. She looks around and says, “Where is Crusader Iron? Is he still topside?”

Thunder falls to his haunches and lets out a barely audible curse. I bite my lip and look down at the floor. “He...he fell in combat,” I tell her sadly. Upon uttering these words, she stomps up to me and looks me directly in the eyes.

“Show me,” she says with a hint of hesitation in her voice. I look between her and Thunder for a few times as I think.

“Ma’am, Thunder is injured. And we should probably tell Arrow and Lightning they can come down now. I think-” I begin to say but she interrupts me with a stomp of her hoof.

“Now!” She says weakly despite her volume. I hesitate for a moment, but lead her outside and towards Iron’s body. As we walk, she calls out, “Paladin Glint! Get the medics to see to Knight Thunder in the town hall.”

We reach Iron’s body and she glares at it for a long moment. “Which of them did this?” She asks. “You killed them, correct? Because if they are still alive...not even Eberron himself can stop me from extracting my vengeance on them,” she says as anger grows in her voice.

“Their leader, Railspike got him with a gauss rifle. Lightning killed him. I saw his corpse...It wasn’t pretty,” I inform her as we both stare at Iron’s body.

“Good,” she says as her anger seems to fade slightly. “Where is Iron’s head?” She asks me.

“There’s...nothing left of it,” I tell her. She tenses up for a moment, but then stomps her hoof before rearing up and shaking the minigun saddles off her back.

Wordlessly, she approaches Iron’s body and begins to put him on her back. I attempt to use my magic to help, but she says, “No! I’ll do this myself.” I let my magic fade and watch as she gets his body onto her back. “Those miniguns were heavy,” she says sadly, “but this burden feels so much heavier.”

She turns to walk back towards the bridge, but I speak up, “Senior Paladin Twinkle, we found some captives. Can I set them free?” She stops and I can see her legs quiver for a moment.

“Yes. Get your squad and do so,” she tells me. Her voice is barely audible, and I think I can almost hear her crying. She continues towards the bridge as I follow behind her silently to meet up with the others.

After regrouping with Arrow and Lightning, we return to the room the captives are in. Thunder stayed with the medics to patch him up and the other rangers have started piling up the dead raiders. We quickly set about freeing the captives, who are more than thankful to be out of the cages.

Arrow and Lightning tend to the buck, his foal, and the two other mares, while I help the mare I saw get captured long ago. Compared to the others, she is in poor shape. Her front right leg has been broken and a harness has been put on it.

“Miss, are you able to stand?” I ask her. She nods slightly as she struggles to get to her hooves, keeping her broken leg elevated.

“I...I think so,” she tells me as she hobbles out of the cage. As she does so, she stumbles on the lip of the entrance. Right before she falls, I catch her and put her good leg around my shoulders. “Thanks,” she says with a hint of guilt in her voice.

“Think nothing of it. My name is Ratchet, by the way. We’ll have our medics look you, and everyone else over,” I tell her as we all begin to leave the room. The other captives are able to walk on their own, so Arrow and Lightning just stick close to them.

“My name is Rose. I don’t think I can ever thank you enough, Ratchet. I had given up hope of ever escaping here,” she says as she looks at Arrow and Lightning. “But, you’re all Steel Rangers, aren’t you? I didn’t think they helped others?” She asks.

I frown as I say, “I’m actually new to their ranks. From what I understand, a lot of other Steel Rangers have become corrupted. Our group, however, still holds true to the original values of the rangers. You’re safe now.” She smiles, looking relieved.

As our group continues out and across the plaza, CORA suddenly speaks up as we near the town hall again. “Hey Ratchet, Lightning said that the terminal up there was working, right?” She says. “It might be possible that we can download the rest of the updates for your PipBuck from it!” She announces excitedly.

“What? Really?” I ask curiously. “Stable 36 was cut off from the outside, but you think that random terminal would have the updates?” She nods her head vigorously.

“It is the town hall, so if it is the mayor’s terminal it would make sense it would be connected to the update servers. It is worth a try, at the least,” she tells me. I think for a moment as we are passing the building.

“Lightning,” I say quickly, “would you mind helping Rose? I’m going to look at the terminal in the town hall quick.” Lightning stops walking towards the bridge and turns towards me.

“Not a problem,” he says as he trots over to us and takes Rose from my shoulders. “I’ve got you miss,” he says as he settles her on his shoulders.

“Thank you,” I tell him. “You two see that they reach the medics, alright? I’ll catch up with you in a bit.” Lightning and Arrow nod to me before they continue on with the group. As they begin to walk off, I gallop into the town hall and quickly climb to the second floor.

Once I’m at the terminal, I use my PipBuck’s cable to hook into the computer. “Ok, now what CORA?” I ask her. There are various options on the terminal, but nothing that looks like what I need.

“It seems Railspike changed a lot of things on this terminal. But, I should be able to find the update server. I’ll also download the entries Railspike made, so we can show it to the Elder when we get back,” she announces. Her face disappears from my vision and appears on the terminal.

“Ok, let me see…” she says as she moves around on the terminal screen. “Here maybe? No...maybe here?” As she goes around, a message flashes on my screen that says ‘Download Complete’. “Ah, good!” she says, “his files are all downloaded. Now then…” She trails off with a look of determination on her face.

After a few moments she exclaims, “Eureka!” A new message appears on my PipBuck that says ‘Update In Progress’. CORA then disappears from the terminal and reappears in my vision. “I found the update servers!” She tells me, “It should only take a few minutes to finish.”

A few minutes go by with CORA’s eyes moving like she is reading something before a new message flashes into my vision. ‘COMPATIBILITY ERROR, UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS TO SERVERS DETECTED.’ CORA’s eyes go wide as she begins looking around wildly.

“Oh no, this isn’t good,” she says. “Is it because it’s a custom model? No...then why...Oh no…” she trails off as a new message appears in my vision. ‘TROJAN DETECTED.’ CORA looks around wildly as she says, “The terminal had a trojan type virus on it. When we connected to the terminal, it jumped over to us.”

“Hold on Ratchet, let me see if I can contain it,” she says as her face disappears. My PipBuck screen is filled with status bars, error codes, and lines of information. A few moments later, CORA reappears. “Ratchet, this is going to be tricky. It will take a while, but I might-” she’s cut off as her face again disappears from vision.

A moment later, she reappears screaming, “NO! GET OUT OF ME!” Her face is contorted into a look of terror and pain. “STOP IT!” She shouts. Once again, her face disappears, however this time it is replaced by a black skull that appears to be laughing.

As quickly as it appears, it is gone. A moment later, my PipBuck shuts down completely. I frantically try to turn it back on. “CORA! CORA are you alright?” I yell. With the power refusing to turn back on, I rip the cord from the terminal and begin pressing all of the buttons on the PipBuck.

“Come on CORA, speak to me! Don’t let this virus win! CORA! CORA!” I shout at the PipBuck. However, no matter what I say or do nothing happens and the PipBuck remains dark and lifeless. Falling to my haunches and staring blankly at the empty screen I mutter out, “CORA...you can’t be gone...not you too…”

===~+~===

Level Up!
+2 Energy Weapons
+12 Small Guns
+4 Speech

New Perk:
--Educated: 2 extra skill points per level

Quest Completed: “Prisoner Rescue”

Author's Note

Mind the spoilers now. The battle for Ponyville has ended, now Ratchet and the rangers must pick up the pieces.

Hope you enjoyed, and thanks for reading! :D

As a side note here, I'm back in college now so the chapters will be coming out a lot slower now. After attending each of my classes, I can already tell I'm going to have to focus in on them pretty hard. Since this chapter leaves you with a cliffhanger, I'll try to get Chapter 7 out in a decent amount of time.

Chapter 20 - Tongue Twister (Dirty Version)

Author's Note

Let me explain the "dirty version" thing quick. This chapter is probably the only one I'll write that involves sex. I've got this saying: If you're going to do something, do it. So instead of doing a cut and skipping it over, I attempt to describe it. It isn't TOO detailed, but I know some of folk don't like sex stuff in their fanfics. If you don't, check out the "clean version".

(Honestly, I don't want to read it when I eventually read this for you YT channel. :twilightsheepish: )