Fallout Equestria: New Beginnings

Daylight was what woke me up the next morning, sitting up I felt a little dizzy, at least I wasn't vomiting purple anymore and I could hear, music? Wait a minute, music, looking around I noticed the small radio on the living room table producing the sound.

"ah, you're awake." Clay spoke, walking through the door, and at least you're able to stand up now without vomiting radioactive taint all over my floor," Clay exaggerated.

"Yeah, at least that," I yawned, as Clay thew a sling at me with my gun in it.

"That's quite a nice piece you got there. Alongside that shoddy broken shotgun that I fixed up." Clay said momentarily, laying down on the couch I had been sleeping on.

"Now, I don't know how many more shots that gun can take so only use it when you really have to," Clay explained.

“How did you? I said stunned.

I used to be a gunsmith back in the day- Clay interrupted, that was before I became sheriff of Dynamo Feura.”

"Gun smith?" I asked not knowing what that was.

"Yea, I used to take guns from other folks and replace or fix the parts inside them, explained Clay tipping his hat, Of course I would ask for caps in return."

"Caps?, as in bottle caps?" I quizzed Clay confused.

"Uh, yea." Clay returned.

The idea of caps being the replacement of bit's after two hundred years was a weird concept to take in, then again so was the come apocalypse .

"Thank you," I smiled as Clay got off the couch.

"and uh, pardon me for asking but isn't that a pip-buck, Clay queried, It was kinda hard not to notice it from all the noise it was making when I was cutting the taint off your coat."

"Yes." I answered like I was guessing.

"So do you know about S.A.T.S.?, It's a special arcane targeting spell, that makes it a hell of a lot easier to hit your target,"

Checking my pipbuck's interface, I saw the button for it, S.A.T.S. Lowering my fore hoof back to the ground.

"I can teach you how to use it if you don't know know how." Clay offered, Handing me two rounds of six.

Knowing I would need it I took Clay's offer, strapping on my gun.

We walked out back where a fence had been set up with empty sarsaparilla bottles set on each post.

"Well?" asked Clay, "Take your shots."

Turning on S.A.T.S I targeted the necks of three bottles.

"Very good." Mused Clay, "Now let's try something a little different." Clay threw a few disks in the air.

Settling into S.A.T.S. I hit every one.

"Not only is it important to use S.A.T.S. Hazy, It's effective and efficient. Do you want to try a few more?"

I nodded yes, aiming at the last bottle on the post.

The last bottle on the post shattered, I jumped as it did.

"That wasn't you, was it?" Clay spoke.

I gave a head shaking no.

"Ugh, well it looks like they're back."

"Who?" I asked shoving my gun back into my sling.

"Thundershot, and his group." Clay cautioned.

Turning, I came to face a mud red buck walking towards us in armor made out of some kind of reptile and a gun of his own in his mouth.

"Went and stole our water talisman now didn't ya Ben?" Thunder Shot blistered.

"It's Clay to you and no I didn't steal it, I bought it off one of your faction."

Clay's badge came flying off his vest with one shot of Thundershot's gun

"What was that Ben? You bought it off of us? No, Scooterbead betrayed us and so have you, so here's the deal, we shoot you and we take back the talisman that you stole." Thundershot said.

"Not much of a deal," Clay argued.

Clay took a shot to the fore hoof, the bullet tore the flesh off Clay's forehoof, Clay screamed in agony loud enough to be heard over the next ridge and then some. The bullet came out the other of his hoof making Clay go into convulsions from the amount of pain endured.

I couldn't stand by and watch this anymore, I had to do something, reloading quickly I opened S.A.T.S. Just before Thunder Shot let off a round, targeting two ponies that just had come in the head and the third that had shot Clay in the back leg, I Watched as the two ponies heads exploded with blood and the third Thunder Shot, drop his gun in pain to grab his back leg with both fore hooves.

I was laughing like a mad man in the process of killing them and couldn't stop myself, walking up to Thunder shot I was still laughing.

"Open your mouth so I can shove my gun into it and shoot." I laughed

His eye's widened in fear as I forced his mouth open with my gun and wedged it between his teeth.

Clay surprised me when he gripped onto my back leg begging me to stop.

I cried as reality came back and hit me in the face, Hard. “I don't want to end up like that mindless killing machine Happy, I just don't," But here I am putting a gun in another pony's mouth, I pulled the gun out of Thundershot's mouth and dropped the telekinetic hold I had on it.

With a slow nod and death stare towards Thundershot, he fled in the direction he came from.

"One pony's loss of humanity is a blind and powerful thing, Don't let the wasteland consume you," Clay coughed.

I was crying,"I don't know how you made it over to me Clay, but I'm grateful you did," I assured.

"Your welcome Hazy, now could you please help me inside? Clay suggested, I need to bind this wound before I bleed to death."

Lending Clay a helping hoof inside I helped him bind his wound inside his house, we spent a long time enjoying the silence between us, beside the occasional pain that came from Clay.

"So what happened to you out there kid?" Clay asked, "Did you snap or was it something else?"

All I could do was look down while tying the last binds on his wound with tears in my eyes.

"Hmmhm." Clay nodded.

Clay got up after I finished the binding, limping his way to the door.

Opening my mouth I couldn't speak.

"Yes Hazy?" Clay implied calmly.

"I have regards towards living things Clay, and that includes ponies, I don't know where it comes from, it's just, when I see one pony killing another, I see it reason enough for that pony to die" I explained, trying to hide my face away from the flickering flames that illuminated Clay's room.

"Well let me tell you this, regards or not, this place is unforgiving and it changes you, I'm sorry to say it but this ain't the equestria you knew anymore. This is a radiated tainted world that we live in and if you can't adapt, you will die, but your actions out there proved that you can adapt, a little to well, you almost let it consume you."

Clay got up and limped out of the room to the front porch, looking off into the distance, "ThunderShot will be back, no doubt in my mind about that and probably with more fire power, I need you to go after them Hazy," my jaw hit the floor. Thunders Shot has bone breaking bullets and he want's me to go after him?

"What, why?" I asked

"Because you're the one who killed two of his faction Hazy, and nopony forgives you for that out here, Thundershot will most likely come after you to if we don't kill the rest of the faction, Clay explained, besides my hoof was just obliterated by a special penetrating bullet, I'm in no condition to walk the long distance."

"So where am I going?" I questioned, nervous of the answer.

"To a filly correctional facility about three and a half miles south west from here, I can mark it on your pip buck's map."

My pip buck has a map? Of course it does, the supprizes just keep coming.

"I don't see a pip buck on your fore hoof Clay, how do you know so much about them?" I asked Curiously.

"There was a stable-tech facility further out west that is now a maximum security prison secured by slavers, They started small, gathering slaves to dig to their own deaths to build this place, making them dig straight down within the walls using only their hooves to make room for more, play mates. As the slave numbers grew the faster they were able to dig down and make room for more, That place is now a deep fortress inside a fortress. Very few managed to escape, including myself, but while I was there, manuals for stable-technologies occasionally dropped into my cell from the above facility floors and I read them, every one that wasn't a copy of one I had already read of course. To my knowledge I could for instance take that pip buck apart and make it into a bomb."

Great. Now I know there might be somepony cruel enough to try that.

Clay limped over and sat down on his porch chair as I set off to my destination south west toward the filly correctional facility, gun in hand ready for who ever dared get to close to take a shot at him.

I really don't know what I'm getting myself into, but I know there is going to be a long road ahead of me.

I could make out the watchtowers of the facility in the distance, the sun setting on the right side of the building blinded me if I dared to put my arm down, a flash from one of the watch towers caught my eye, instinctively I moved to evade what probably was a bullet entering the ground.

I thought all guns were loud, but this one was silent, The next bullet hit my ear with such traumatic force that it went numb instantly, I didn't even realize I was bleeding until the blood dripped down my face, a third shot followed hitting my foreleg right above my knee shattering bone, I screamed from the sheer force of the bullet, Blood gushed out with splinters of bone, I fell to my stomach, numb from the pain and to cold from the loss of blood to move, when they came up the dirt path.

"I can't believe I missed my target, I was aiming for the head Snippy, I hope you know that, oh well, at least I got a few hits on it, oh my she's still breathing."

The other pony that walked with her just shook his head with his hoof to his face. "Would you just take care of her, Charity?" Snippy insisted.

"Oh fine, but only because you said so," Charity aimed her sniper rifle point blank over my head ready to fire.

I was in no condition to fight, my vision was blurring, and I still felt like I couldn't move, but at least my will to live was strong, as the trigger was pulled I lifted my body with everything I had pushing the barrel away from my head, and I was snarling like a rabid dog. Needless to say the bullet hit the ground with my hoof on the barrel.

"Which one of you pricks shot my ear and leg?"I growled trying to stand up, ignoring every little sign my body was giving me to lay down and die.

Both of them just looked at each other before the lack of oxygen got the better of me.

Charity pulled her gun back and raised it above my head one more time.

"No, don't waste anymore rounds," Snippy objected pushing Charity's rifle down with a hoof on the barrel.

"But all I have to do is.

No Charity, she's bleeding badly enough she will die soon, the bloat sprites like em' fresh anyway."

My head was swimming, as I was being dragged to the fence of the facility, blood was still flowing out of my body at a rapid rate, I was dropped among other corpses of ponies that were piled up along the fence, but it gave me a better chance and the reminder of death in my nostrils. Charity and the other asshole just might have unknowingly saved me. The door shut with both of them safe inside the facility's front door leaving me to be eaten by, bloat sprites?

What in the world could these things be? A blurred swarm of small flying bloated spheres with long spines came zooming around the buildings exterior and consumed an entire body until it was nothing but bone. Well, fuck.

If I had to guess, these are the bloat sprites and in my condition, I would be devoured alive before I could even make it to the door.

I have only one shot at this."Let's make it count."I said feeling for my gun and barding, six rounds and three out of chamber for the small gun, okay, nine and five for the big gun. This is going to be interesting.

Making my way towards what I thought was the front door may not be the smartest thing to do but it's the only chance I have, The second body beyond the first melted as these things went to town on it, I kept moving with every small breath I could take, ignoring how much pain was in my shattered crunching leg each time I moved, by the time the body next to me was devoured I was half way to the door, the bloat sprites were on their fourth when two came after me when I reached the door, shooting at both of them, figures, the door was locked from the inside and I missed both shots, I became frantic, looking for anything to close up the pathway to the door, feeling to my left, this part of the fence moved, a rolling gate!, exactly what I needed. I rolled it shut with my hoof just as the bloat sprites got close, making a wall between me and them, going back to open the door, pain shot out from my back, what?
They can fire their spines? Oh you gotta be kidding me, I beat on the door with one hoof.

"Hey! Let me in! You bastards!" I yelled still banging on the door.

"What's the password?"

"Password? Just led me in you fuckers." I yelled.

The door opened when the swarm of bloat sprites nailed me in the front all at once with their needles and got a blast of my big gun in return killing most of them.

"Ok but you better"
The pony who opened the door had a dumbfounded look from all the needles he saw sticking out of my body from where I was laying in my own pool of blood.

"Uh, Thundershot?!"

It was the same asshole pony that dragged my body with Charity to the fence to be spine ball food.

"Yeah, what is it Snippy?

Dragging myself inside I held myself up against the wall of the room I entered.

"Oh," Thundershot spoke moving Snippy aside, He couldn't help but stifle a snicker from all the needles sticking out of me like a pony voodoo doll.

"Hmm, what do you want pincushion?" Thundershot insulted.

"Pincushion?!" I seethed in anger unholstering my gun inches from Thundershot's face, knowing that every pony else in the room had their guns pointed at me and were ready to fire.

"Hmm, yes, we've been here before, Thundershot confessed rolling his eyes."

"Why aren't you limping?" I stammered in the process of holding my gun.

"Stimpacks, work like a charm as i always keep a little on hand, Thundershot smirked, so why don't you settle down, I have a proposition for you."

"What makes you think I would make any kind of deal with you?"

Thunder shot pulled out his gun,"I can wait for you to die or I kill your right where you stand by sticking my gun into your head, sound familiar, Hmm?"

Damn it, he's right, I walked into a death trap that was burning at both ends and I didn't even know it, damn I should have stayed outside, I can't imagine what Clay felt like when he was shot by Thundershot's special bullets and I don't doubt that he wouldn't empty that gun into my fucking head if I didn't take this.

"Fine, what is this “proposition” I contemplated scared and annoyed.

"I want you to take a little present to another faction for me since no one in ours will,” Thunder shot pointed to a metallic box in the corner of the building nearest to me.

"Well, what's inside?"

"I won't say Thundershot said, and don't try to open it. It may trigger."

That worries me a little.

"Just a few more things before you go," Thundershot announced clapping his hooves, more pain was endured, in my head and in my broken fore leg before my head stopped swimming and my foreleg let out a disgusting bubbling popping sound mending itself anew.

The last thing was a collar that they had put on me that blinked red.

"Just to let you know, I'm not going to send you out to this place on your own, I'm sending Charity as your company on this run and she has the remote to that collar, So do try anything funny to make her press that button and don't even think about trying to shoot it out of her hooves, It has sensors that talk to the collar you're wearing, If one or the other stops communicating."

Thundershot got really close to my ear before saying anything else.

"Boom, your head will become shrapnel."

"Is that supposed to frighten me?

"Hmm, maybe, maybe not, but I know that does." Thundershot pointed a hoof at Charity, who was gleaming as she was handed the remote, pretending to press that button in whatever fucked up fantasy she was having.

"And I see you're wearing one of those stable tec pip bucks, here, let me put in the coordinates, White Rattlers tunnel, It's a two day trek on hoof," Thundershot explained mocking if I'm even going to make it back.

Charity stopped her fantasy, remote in hoof. "Two days?!"

"Ugh, stop your whining Charity you're going with her and that's final," Thundershot argued rolling his eyes.

"Just between you and me, letting that mare into our faction, bad idea." Thundershot whispered.

"Hey, I heard that!" Charity returned.

I couldn't help but chuckle a little, considering the situation I found that quite surprising.

"Best be off, they don't like ponies coming around day time and, I'll be expecting you in four days time," Thundershot stated walking out the room they were in, Charity and I were practically shoved out the door, Charity however kicked and screamed and wouldn't let go of the door jam, trying something different, they picked her up and dropped her outside. Charity hit the ground as the door slammed shut, she hit it multiple times, begging them to let her back inside, "Fine," Charity pouted, Charity's gun was dropped on her unnoticed nailing her in the head butt first, "Ow, That hurt!" Charity complained.

It was Snippy who dropped the gun using telekinesis from one of the towers.

"Oh stop your whining Charity, you will be let back in when your task is complete," Snippy assured Charity taking a shot and missing.

"You're lucky you're such a bad shot Charity!, Go before I take that sniper of yours and shove it up your ass."

This journey just keeps getting better and better.

"Can you slow down? I can barely keep up with you." Charity whined noticing I was already a good length away from her.

"No, where on a time schedule here Charity, we have no time to slow down or take breaks based on the small time frame given to us, if we are to make it there on time and back we have to keep moving, I stopped when I noticed my collar blinked twice.

"I said slow down! I will press this button!" Charity threatened.

Was that really all she had, threatening me with that button?

"Charity? is that all you have?"

Charity hovered her hoof over the button.

"Go ahead, press it, they will never let you back in," I threatened hoping to Celestia that she wouldn't.

Resuming my course, Charity pouted herself into leading.

"Ugh, look, we're not going to keep playing this game of back and forth, so get the little spoiled brat out of your system now, you're going to get us both killed." I stated trying to get her to reason with me, my collar blinking twice was the only response I got for my little rant, stopping me, again.

"Or take as much time as you need." I said as Charity was giving me a cold hard stare that made me sweat, I should have just kept my big mouth shut, I was raging on the inside, my life was in the hooves of a childish mare that could possibly kill me if I don't watch what I say, fucking damn it, this sucks.

"Let's get one thing straight between us, I hold your life in my hooves and if I wish to make your head explode I will do it, got it?"

"yeah." I said disgusted.

"Got it?!" Charity asked again, eyeing me down.

"Yes, I got it." I responded nicely, forcing myself not to strangle her right there and then.

"Good, you better." She let out before we moved again, the sun was rising as I looked at my pipbuck to see how much longer we had to walk, we were close to our destination. Looking a little closer at my pipbuck I noticed a small label near to where we were on the map.

"Charity?" I said her name to get her attention.
She looked back.

"We should find a place to rest."

"Oh, I thought you'd never say so, but where in equestria do you see shade?, " Charity raised an eyebrow

She said it that way just to spite me.

"Ugh. There seems to be a building or some structure on my pipbuck directly west of our current location."

"How far?".

" A mile, It's probably just over those hills, " I said catching up to her pace.

"Well that's good news, my hooves are killing me," Charity complained climbing over the hill,

My pipbuck was telling me this was the sunny-side up motel, the integrity of this structure as it stood was horrid, the doors and walls had been compromised, most of them anyway, the very few that weren't were reinforced with stronger material that had seen better days, the doors that were open showed nature had taken it's recourse throughout, rooting in and climbing their way up the walls. Deciding it would be best to take one of the rooms with the door still intact, to avoid any surprise visits from wandering bandits.

The room we were trying to open was locked, not surprising, taking into consideration what this place was.

"Wait here, I'll be right back, I said turning the corner of the building.

"Wait here, where do you think your going?" Charity complained.

"To find the motel office, the key should be in there," The office was right around the corner.

Walking in I could see the skeleton of the clerk still sitting at the front counter, lifeless but whole, It, was staring at a blown out terminal that had gone probably two-hundred years ago. He or she or whatever it was must have been impaled by the glass from the terminal's screen causing instant death, death, something I have been walking to close to lately, behind the counter I could see the key for the room.
"Gotcha," I said a step away from the keys, my collar beeped and blinked, either she was playing with the remote again, or this was the constraining length of the collar and the remote. "How am I supposed to get the key with this radius? Oh, I face hoofed, levitation" focusing, I formed a grip on the key that I needed, pulling it off the hook my magic faded away, staring at the key I wondered how was this possible? I bent the entire bottom half of a door a few days ago, where did my magic go?

"Hey, you find that key?" Charity came wandering through the office door.

"Huh, oh yeah, I did," I stammered grabbing the key off the floor.

"Let's go then, this heat is killing me." Charity tried to say staidly.

Unlocking the door the musty air that came out hit us like an old sock that lay waiting in the back corner of this room, Charity thought it would be a good idea for herself to rest up until sunset flopping onto the bed with great glee, she kicked up the covers and enough dust to make a dust pony.

"Charity didn't that sound a lot like, something pony like?"

I pulled the covers off the bed revealing two pairs of pony bones, clutching each other for the impending doom, Rarity flew in the process.

"Ew ew ew ew, and I just flopped onto that?" Charity pointed her hoof at the bed, that's disgusting."

I couldn't help but to feel bad for the dead ponies in the bed but also Charity for unknowingly laying on them even though she deserved it. "Well you should have checked before you jumped on it." I said lethargically.

"I hate you," Charity pouted

"Brat," I returned.

"I should have killed you on the spot," Charity said sitting in a corner, facing the wall.

That stung, not because she wasn't capable of doing it, but because she would have been so boastful if she did shoot and kill me.

"How did that faction end up with the likes of you anyway, knowing that every pony doesn't want you there but allows you to stay says something,"

"Don't worry about it, Charity cried.

"No, I will worry about it Charity, because it just seems that your trying to prove something to them that you cant, So what is it, Spit it out" I shouted at her, probably more than I should have, but, she needed to hear it she needed to wake up.

Charity, I called, she pulled away, slowly lowering her head.

"We were traveling the wasteland looking for somewhere called Paradise, the few days we had been out in search of it, we soon became short on food and water, and that was when they stumbled on us, they made me kill my parents, eat them, threatened to kill me too if I refused, oh how I tried to refuse, but they just grabbed my hooves and made me do it, the blood, the carnage, the cannibalism, that blood is on my hooves, My parent's blood, my blood, the ponies from the correctional facility? My guess is that they were outcasts from White Rattlers tunnel, I had heard word a day before on the radio that a pony led a rebellion from White Rattlers tunnel, I believe that pony to be Thundershot, The same pony who made me kill and eat my own parents, the same bastard pony who made me do such a fiendish thing found that place and brought me there! “Allowing” me to stay, just to spite my soul! They just ignored me at first, making me feel lost and confused, Then they started to take turns on me until I showed them that I could be useful." Charity finished hysterical curling up into a ball.

The hatred towards these ponies was beginning to manifest even more so than it had before, How could these ponies be so sick and twisted, to do this to another and then to leave her alive, to live with that, after all of that, they get to live with this, I pushed my revolver up against the wall.

"Charity!, I can promise you this after, this little trip is over, they, all of them over at that filly correctional facility are going to pay for what they have done to you I swear it" I yelled in anger at the sheer evil these ponies have done.

The sun was slowly slipping behind the horizon and I couldn't sleep, that and I was to pissed at the ponies at filly correctional to do so, making my move away from the window, I focused my gaze back to the corner Charity curled up in, she was gone but left the collar control where her body had lay, The red explode button was still blinking from being armed.

"Well, Time to get moving." I said to myself pressing the release button.

The road to the White Rattlers tunnel wasn't an easy one, it was littered with flat round disks that exploded when I got to close, I found out when I nearly got my forehooves blown off by one of them. Noticing that they make a chirping noise before going off gave me the impression that they take time to explode, and the box was really starting to feel it, even though it's still strapped to my back, the metal it's made out of seems to be hard as steel,or light aluminum, I figured the ladder since it was now a weird shape, fuck my life, the bright light coming from the large lamps over a rail road tunnel in the side of a mountain made me guess this was White Rattlers tunnel, closer up , I noticed the ponies holding these lights had moved them on me.

"Welcome to White Rattlers tunnel kid,"One pony yelled down from a spot light, "State your business."

"I have a gift for... -Clover hoof?- Yea." I finished blinded by the bright lights.

"Bring it in, through the tunnel make a right at the fork."

"Okay, thanks." I yelled up to him.

The tunnels were full of greeting ponies smelling of cooked flesh and the pony who was cooking whatever it was over a barrel of fire, Others in the tunnel were pouring a red liquid, that smelled too familiar, blood, second thoughts of running for the door filled my mind as much as the couple that were fucking each other on the walls of the tunnel.

"What is this place?" I wondered out loud walking over the familiar threshold.

"Gear shaped door, metallic floor, take a guess," Another voice echoed off the metallic blue walls.

"A stable," I stated creeping forward to face the pony the voice came from on my left, a blue pony with grey features and a shamrock on her flanks, appeared as soon as the corner ended, "You must be Clover Hoof."

"Clever Pony, I hear you have a gift for me," Clover admitted warming up to me. "May I ask, who is it from? and don't lie, I will be able to tell if you do," She swished her tail over my muzzle as I had my mouth open trying to talk.

"Well, If that's true I may as well be straight. It came from thundershot."

"Oh?" Clover Hoof acted surprised.

"Yeah, he wanted me to give it directly to you," I spoke plainly.

"Of course, he would have wanted you to say that," Clover turned with her tail still on my muzzle."You know you're kinda cute."

"What, huh," My ears must have burst into flames because they were burning. "well, uh." I couldn't stop stammering

"What's the matter, does this make you nervous?" She giggled.

fixing in her direction, she had the biggest daring smile on her for me to say yes.
"You need to stop," I pushed her tail off my muzzle.

"Why?" Her giggling smile faded.

I untied the box from my back and set it down before continuing, "I'm not that type."

“Are you certain,” Clover asked an inch away from my muzzle

"Yeah I, No,"

"Would you like to know?"

"How?"

I wasn't sure what was about to happen but. She kissed me making my whole body twist and turn uneasy.

"Just follow me." Clover hinted still smiling, she dragged me deeper into the stable to a room that held three memory orbs on pedestals around some sort of projection table,
"I know that unicorn magic is normally used to watch memories, however I was able to craft this machine that uses zebra magic to tap into the memories allowing them to show up on the projector in the middle. Here watch this one."

The projector began to swirl into a big black nothingness.

OoOoOoOoOoO
"Are we ready to go?" Joke-Blue spoke.

"Damn it, no Joke-Blue, just let me do my repairs."

Ricochet eyed Joke-Blue from across the table

"Can I help?" Joke-Blue asked slamming his hooves on the table making springs flew left and right.

"Ugh, great, no, just go do something else, Joke!"

Joke-blue up and walked away, afraid of what she just caused.

"You tried to help Ricochet again, didn't you" Homage asked calmly

"Homage I," How many times do I have to tell you, you're good at disarming traps, Like this one, not guns, why don't we find somewhere while he finishes up?"

I couldn't feel the stupid smile on Joke-Blue's face but I could tell it was there based on all the nodding she was doing.

OoOoOoOoOoO

"I've watched the second memory orb again, again and again, this, is the one that taught it all to me, this is one of Homage's memories, entirely her perspective."

The orb was all scratched up and looked like it had gone through a long war to get here.

OoOoOoOoOoO

Joke-Blue was laying down with the host on top of her nipping at her ear and I, we, could hear heavy breathing.

"Wait,what is that" questioned Joke-Blue.

"Don't worry, it's only,"

"That's a foal crying"

Walking away from where we could barely see them lay, Joke-Blue took a turn around a corner, Homage after her.

"Joke?" Homage called.

She turned the corner to Joke-Blue in a panic.

Click!

"Homage, no!" her hoof out as to stay her hoof."

"Oh, joke blue." Homage cried clouding her vision, blurring projection worse than it was.

OoOoOoOoOoO

"I was crying for Homage's loss of Joke Blue, no pony should have to go through losing another like she did."

Clover, standing next to me didn't show a single wavering sign of sadness in her eyes.

"Why aren't you showing any emotion towards this?" I questioned Clover.

"It's like I told you, I've watched this one over and over again, I can't cry to this anymore, no matter how hard i try, I've seen it that many times, It's like Homage herself is taking over in my absence to do so.

and the third one, I quizzed hoping to know.

"I don't like to watch that one much," Clover Hoof admitted letting out a sigh.

"what's on it?" I asked

"You really want to know" Clover returned.

"Yes." I replied.

"Alright" Clover Hoof agreed placing the memory into the projector

OoOoOoOoOoO

It was raining, and an earth pony was on an old chariot along side another our host was on.

"You ready?", the light green pony called in our direction.

Our host nodded, "you know it brother."

Both chariots moved, fast building greater and greater speed.

"First one there who's alive gets to live forever!" The light green pony pulled out his gun giving our host a dubious smirk.

The light green pony made a shot at our host, missing.

Our host shot the rotating shaft on the light green pony's chariot.

"What are you doing!? I'm up here!" called the light green pony.

The next one hit our host's shoulder, letting out a yell of pain, refocusing she made more shots at the chariot's axle.

The axle of the light green pony's chariot fell apart making him fly free into the air and hit the ground with a splintering crack that came with the opening of his skull, our host stopped her chariot to walk up to his

"Why?" he whispered.

"Some ponies just don't have it in them, that includes you," Checking the last shot, our host emptied it into the light green ponies head, taking his gun, she got back onto her chariot and moved on towards a tunnel, White Rattlers Tunnel, as the last few ponies were entering the Stable, she managed to slip inside.

OoOoOoOoOoO

My imagination went wild as to who this pony was and what she did after she got into this stable. Only Celestia herself would know the answer to that.

"Clover Hoof? Who was that?"

"I don't know, none of us do, the only evidence we were able to find that she was real were the inhabitant of the stable dead, but even that is a stretch.

"And what did they mean by live forever, what's down here Clover?"

Contemplating if I was a threat or not, Clover took me deeper into the stable, where strange alien symbols were designed into the wiring and panels powering them.

"I have no idea of how this machinery made it's way down here but, from what I have experimented and tested on myself, this stable was meant for age degeneration." Clover Hoof shared.

"Age, what now?" I asked warily.

"Age degeneration, taking years off of one's life to make them younger, to my knowledge these machines can even reverse the effects the pink cloud that affected many ponies when Canterlot fell, through this process."

"Canterlot?," looking at my map, Canterlot ruins had been added.

"Yes, Canterlot, there were mega spells that hit that place and hit it hard."

Mega spells, those must have been the same ones rainbow dash talked about in her journal.

"Many that inhabited that place after the mega spells fell were blown off the cliff face due to the Enclave coming and eviscerating everything. The ponies of the wasteland never cease to amaze me. But if any of them were able to make it to this place, I would help them in anyway I could starting with these processes."

This mare isn't anything like those at the filly correctional, now I see why they sent the bomb, Either they wanted this place destroyed or they wanted to kill Clover Hoof out right and take this place.

"I just want to help other ponies and perhaps find a lover like she did.”

She snuck up on me while I was thinking, "Hey!" I said turning around quick.

"Hm, You taste lovely," Clover giggled.

"Thank you, but I still."

"Don't know which way you swing?," Clover added.

“Yeah,"

"That's alright, Clover got close, we can explore" she put her front hooves on my shoulders sending shivers down my spine that, felt, good.

"I'm sorry, I just don't know."

Clover's playful smile started to dull a little, "you don't know what you're missing."

"Trust me I saw and I think I do, and I think I will pass, sorry."

Walking back to the entrance I placed the box back on my back and walked out of the tunnel.

I can't just let her open this box with it this dangerous, how do I disarm it without putting anyone in danger?

I can't let it go off in the tunnel, no, the spikes would ricochet off the walls.

Setting the box down at a safe range outside I opened up S.A.T.S and fired at the lid, the box let out an explosion with spikes riding the explosion.

"Well that worked."

The box lid was wide open with all kinds of spike holes in the box.

Maybe there is a way I can help her.

I Walked back to the motel, with lots of time to think up this plan, opening the door I was greeted by charity's nagging and yelling.

"What the hell were you thinking, why didn't you give that bomb to Clover Hoof, why are you back here? Thunder shot is going to kill us! I hope you know that, I hope your happy knowing that."

"Charity calm down."

"Calm down? How can I when you clearly didn't follow our order. "

"Charity, How long have you been with the ponies at that facility?"

"as far back as my parents why?", Sadness broke onto her face.

"I think it's time for a change," Click!, I Put the collar back onto my neck and handed her the remote,

"What do you mean?" Charity questioned.

"Well, do you want to be someone and not just a shadow?" I smiled.

She thought about this for a long while before answering.

"Yes, Yes I do."

"Alright then, here's the plan."

We arrived at the door to the filly correctional facility right on schedule with the bomb box on my back, this was perfect, one quick stop at Clay's place and the explosives in my collar were removed, Charity walked up to the door and started to bang on it like a crazy old bat trying to get back into a nursing home.

While I just stood there with a stupid grin on my face, This was going to be good.

"Yeah, yeah I hear ya, just give me a second," Snippy was the one who looked over the watchtower wall.

"Who? oh it's you two."

"We did our job let us in." I beamed with such confidence.

"Alright! Let me gather everyone into the courtyard, Oh and I have to get Thundershot, Wow, I didn't think you two were coming back alive and now we get to live forever, Hang on, I'm coming down to get the door."

Heh, live forever, that's a ponies joke if I had ever heard it.

Charity busted open the door as soon as it started to crack, running inside before Snippy even had the chance to get out from the wall behind it.

"You okay?" I asked Snippy, not that I really cared.

"Yeah, I'm okay, wow that mare has gathered some strength since we picked her up way back when."

"Snippy, everyone is in the courtyard, Is she ready?"

"Yea, she just ran off somewhere."

"Well we can start without her."

"Yeah, that would be fine," Snippy was rubbing his head trying to stop the pain.

"After this, you're welcome to stay with us little lady."

Like I would stick around this place, It's a complete death hazard with those Bloat sprites around, besides that it reeks of death and decay, making it that much more undesirable, in the courtyard Thundershot and the rest of his faction were standing in the middle with an exclusion of one Charity.

Her sniper was pointing towards the outside of the facility, capturing some sunlight through the eyepiece I saw the glint at the corner of my eye, signaling she was ready.

"I hear you took care of Clover Hoof, is this true" Thundershot queried stepping forward.

Yes, her head is inside that box that blew up on her ass as you can see, I pushed the box to him, not even a thud, Excellent.

Thundershot opened the box, pulling the string off the pin off the modified mines and one grenade, giving everypony near the box only a split second near the box to get away, I thanked Clay for that.

“NOW CHARITY!” I yelled, telling her it was time to focus on our fight to kill, every, last, one, of these raiders.

Charity had the advantage shooting from above like she was, since most of them were still getting up off the ground, I however was still trying to get off ground level, shooting any pony who was trying to stop me.

Electricity danced down the pony's body that was on my right about to shoot me.

Whoa, I would hate that to be me.

Taking out rainbow Dash's knife, I levitated it to kill the three ponies headed up to where charity was shooting from, one, two, my magic faded at three, shit.

"Why does this have to happen now?" I choked on my own saliva as I unholstered my gun, I aimed it at the last one settling into S.A.T.S.

One of charity's shots went past me.

"Hey, careful!" I yelled at her.

"Sorry!" Charity pointed a hoof in my direction.

There was a pony with a bullet in his neck dead center behind me, all I could hear from him was a gurgling of blood in his throat. "Is that all of them?" I quizzed her.

“I think so” Charity assured, Shrieking “look out”, but it was too late, I felt a sharp pain penetrating my back right on my spine.

The pony who shot me fell to the ground immediately after Charity shot him in shoulder.

Charity got closer to deliver this ponies prize for shooting me in the back, a bullet to the head.

Getting close meant she would be able to get a good look at the bastards that shot me and of course it had to be Snippy.

"Why charity? Snippy asked in a sly sad tone, why would you do this to your own family?"

"you're not my family.” Charity cried lowering her head.

"What?" Snippy said tense.

"They're long dead because of all of you and It's been long overdue for me to return the favor."

His ears flattened in fear of what she was about to do.

She shot him in the knee, the neck, the other knee and the hoof.

All of which Charity rang a scream loud and true for each shot taken, One last shot.

"Stop!" I yelled crawling on my stomach to grab her sniper by the barrel, breathing heavily to get to her, I worked through the pain using my upper body strength to reach her, "One pony's loss of humanity is a blind but powerful thing. Don't let it consume you." Charity lowered her gun, she wanted to lay down, she wanted to sleep and hope to Celestia that this wasn't real, she wanted to wake up somewhere else, I don't blame her, because I was there once, still crying, Charity looked into my eyes and seeing something, something that spelled trust.

Saddling me on her back we headed for the exit.

Snippy was crying in pain with both front hooves practically immobilized.

"That's it?! You're not even going to finish me?! Come back here you cowardice bitch!"

"Think of this as a gift Snippy, the gift of life," Charity walked out of the Filly correctional facility with me on her back heading back to Clay's place.

I was yelling in all tones and curses.

"Can you Hold still for one second Hazy? It's hard for me to get a grip on anything that's moving like a worm," Clay warned.

"Let me shoot you in the spine and then try to pull the bullet out, I offered, maybe then you will see how this feels. You don't need to do that." My scream rang louder than Clay's did when he got shot in the foreleg by Thundershot. The bullet came out with a loud bone crunching tack.

"Your lucky your skinny as a rail Hazy, otherwise that bullet would have kept on spinning, moving clean through you," Clay assured me of that fact.

It felt like it already did.

"It was lodged between two links of your spinal column which amazingly saved your life. I can dress this wound up the best I can but the electrical pulses that run down your back legs might be permanently severed if we don't get you any healing potions sadly I don't have any.”Clay reckoned.

"You gave me a handful of Rad-x but don't have anything for healing" I queried in anger

"I'm sorry but the only one I had I used shortly after you had left to take care of Thunder Shot and his boys," Clay stated giving an explanation.

"Oh great, so where in Equestria are we supposed to find more?” I questioned annoyed at Clay for using the only healing potion he had.

"Well I, I don't know, That kind of stuff has been in limited supply since the beginning of the Equestrian war,” Clay said, making it even worse.

"Wait, Something is coming to mind." I remembered something as I was tapping my head with my hoof.

"I have no idea of how this machinery made it's way down here but, from what I have experimented and tested on myself, this stable was meant for age degeneration.

"Charity, after Clay wraps me up, get your saddle bags and your gun, Were going back to White Rattlers Tunnel," I smiled.

"I still don't see why you want to go back to White Rattlers tunnel, even if Clover Hoof managed to live for so long, she can only offer us so much, what could you possibly have that she wants in exchange for this information anyway" Charity questioned.

"Don't worry about that part." I explained in a passive manner.

"You know you're heavy, Charity remarked, even though Clay called you all meat and bones, you're still heavy to be carrying on my back."

"Hey, that hurt." I complained as my back responded to that with pain running up and down my spine.

"I'm sorry you were falling off and I needed to fix that," Charity argued calmly.

No, she wasn't, that was just payback for me calling her a brat and we both knew that no matter how much I was hurt.

"Who's there?"queried the pony sitting up on the spotlight.

"Hello!" I shouted up to him.

"Oh it's you again hey what the hell happened to you, Oh well, let's just say there was a revolt to a rebellion that came from here a few years back."

"You? Took care of Thundershot?" His eyes lit up with amazement.

"Yeah, I would love to sit here and talk more but this wound is killing me, I mentioned making sure I wouldn't stay still long, where is Clover Hoof?"

"Inside as always, Probably tinkering with those machines is my best bet, I'll let her know you're coming," He yelled down.

"Oh goddesses, please don't."

Charity couldn't help but facehoof at that reaction before walking inside with me still on her back.

"What?" I asked bluntly.

She heard that?

"I don't get why you had to take it that far and yes I heard that."

This silly mare, how long have I been talking to myself out loud for everyone to hear? As far back as the filly correctional? No, they would have heard all my remarks as to what they were saying. It must have been right after I got shot in the spine. Jeez injuries can do funny things to you.

A floating stretcher came down the tunnel towards us with Clover Hoof at the other end of it, "Can you get her on the Stretcher? Miss. "

"Charity, My name is Charity."

"Well Charity follow me and let's see what we can do for your friend Hazy."

This obviously perplexed her, Clover hoof calling her a 'friend' to me.

"I have never had a friend before, what do I do," Charity quizzed Clover.

"Well you can start by standing by her while I put her through some tests to see how much damage there is." said Clover Hoof sympathetically.

Charity nodded with a concerned smile.

She looked really worried about me, even though hasn't been traveling with me that long, it was apparently long enough to allow he to become that attached to me, Charity and I becoming friends would have been unthinkable a week ago.

But yet here we are, Charity standing by my side as a friend, I guess, I have learned to accept her funny ways, no, not just yet, but I do as of now call her close.

"Oh my, Hazy, you've lost all electrical pulses to your back legs."" Clover said with the last hums of the machines doing their work, knowing that, she still looked supprized.

Just what I need right now, a wounded spine and two back legs that are basically useless wet noodles, Is it possible to throw any more shit my way?

"I-I don't see any other choice but to degenerate you if you even want to come close to walking again," Clover informed.

Well fuck me with Luna's star shine, If there was anything more wrong than that, it would have to be this, surgery.

"There is a special procedure when it comes to this sort of thing Hazy, I will be right back."

"Right back with what exactly" I questioned.

Charity gave the same queried look I had.

You'll see Clover said calmly. But for now, step into that metallic tube right over there. As she pushed the thing I was floating on into it. Great so I get to be sealed in a metallic container like some sort of bad tuna joke. If I had known this was coming I would have done a better job at getting myself maimed.

Clover came back with a memory orb in hoof. Pressing the button to talk to me on the intercom. "Stay still while I make the proper preparations to do this."

"To do what" I wondered.

“Just stay still." Clover insisted

"Will she be alright?" Charity asked looking at Clover for some sort of assurance for her friend.

"Uh, yea, she will be fine, She's just going to feel a little tingle that's all," Clover said setting the memory orb into place and dialed in how many years ago it was made as well as Hazy's age.
"Now let me see, no, that's not possible."utter shock shown over Clovers face,

"What is, whoa." Charity said showing just as much shock., both the age of the memory orb and age of Hazy were exactly the same. two-hundred twenty years old.

"Hazy, how old are you?" Clover questioned making sure nothing was broken

"I um, don't know, Why does that matter?"

"Take a guess, Hazy."

Okay, um twenty three? I guessed.

Clover couldn't believe what her ears were hearing enough to face hoof.

"She doesn't even know," Clover said.

Charity was dumb founded, She had never seen a mare this old, and yet look so young.

"Hazy, from what I'm getting your actual age is Two-hundred twenty."

"Wait what, How was that possible? I couldn't be that old, I just cant, I don't even have any gray's yet."

"My only guess is that you have been preserved somehow and that had slowed your aging process and if that is the case, this is also probably your memory."

"The last one we had watched in the viewing room? Shock hit me like a speeding train, did I really kill my brother?"

"I didn't even realize you were that dangerous of a pony, Hazy."

"Neither did I, But I'm still willing to sleep with you." Clover said happily.

"Uh, what?" What is with this pony, She just found out I could possibly be a controlled psycho killer and is still offering to have sex with me, Desperate much, or just plain crazy?

The intercom let out a loud screeching sound as Clover Hoof made an announcement "everything is good on our end and I'm ready to begin the operation, listen carefully, I don't know how to do this in small increments so you will have to bare with me, You're going to be a lot younger than you are now, I'd say around your thirty's to forty."

"At least I will be able to walk again." I sighed.

The chamber I was in began a slow low humming sound shortly after talking to Clover Hoof.

"Will she really be okay in there Clover Hoof?" asked Charity.

Clover glanced over in Charity's direction, "Yes." Clover confirmed, "She will be fine, I have done this a number of times now that it's almost like walking," The floor of the chamber started to glow brighter and brighter as the humming noise got louder and louder, Clover was moving dials and knobs the even numbers of two-hundred twenty started to shift, Hazy's age started to go down as the light of the memory orb in place started to darken, crack and lose it's clear with each year added onto it.

Progress was being made, I could feel my youth as well as my magic return past what it was to greater strength, The light within the chamber started to fade as the reminisce of a memory entered my mind, It was one of a brother I once had, as I got off the floating thing, The door of the chamber opened, stepping out I felt refreshed, new and.

"Oh my goddesses," Looking at both of them, they were tearing and in awe.

"Hazy!?" both of them exclaimed

"What?"

"Look at your flank," Clover said in alarm.

"What, What?" I asked switching my head back and forth to try to see what they were talking about.

"You have a cutie mark." Charity pointed out.

"Cool, What is it?" I questioned with great interest.

Clover looked closer, "I don't know but It looks like an hourglass, thinking and pacing, Clover stopped.

I know who may be able to help you."

"Really, Who?" I asked.

"There is an old doctor that I know," Clover Hoof said.

"Where does he live?" Charity queried herself wanting to know.

"In Okefenee swamp", said Clover Hoof, "It's in the deepest part of the marshlands at the other end of White Rattlers Tunnel, Many stories have it that this stallion is a legendary brewer, practically rivals the Zebra folk that live in the town since he was the one who helped them build it, now a days he just sits up in his hut making potion recipes rather than potions."

Charity walked for the door, "Well you have been mighty helpful lately and I thank you for that but we really must get going now if we want to meet this legend, Come on Hazy."

"Charity!?"I yelled shrugging at Clover who couldn't help but stifle a snicker and a sexy pose as I walked out.

Oh goddesses what was this feeling that's burning inside me? And why does it have to be her to give it to me?

"Wait up Charity!" I yelled as I ran down the tunnel.