Approaching high noon on a cold winter day, Selene glided down from the thick grey cloud cover that always dominated the Wasteland sky. As he landed on top of a high rise on the western edge of the Neighvada Desert, his weapons and equipment slung over his neck and back clattered against his thick leather armor. He had been traveling across the Equestrian Wasteland for just over a month to reach this point, somewhere on the far side of the Central Equestrian Irradiated Zone. After nearly 200 years the radiation had dropped off enough that the Irradiated Zone could be traveled without lethal consequences (Selene hoped), but the trek was still long and dangerous, passing across miles of lands completely devoid of life.

Now, he looked on a new land, a land he had never seen with his own eyes before. To the east lay the south stretch of the Neighvada Desert he had just finished crossing, a blurry light red stretch of sand that lead nowhere as far as he had seen in his five day flight across it.

To the south was another desert, this one grey and rocky. He did not know it's name. It was believed that across that desert was the land of the Zebras, the race that had been the Equestrians enemies during the great war. No one in the East had ever seen a Zebra, as far as Selene knew, and they were a myth as far as he was concerned.

To the west, across San Palomino Desert, was where Los Pegasus was originally located. Selene had no idea what had happened to one of the largest Pegasi towns, and the capital of their kingdom before joining the Equestrian Empire. He made a mental note to ask about the town at the first settlement he came across.

To the north was southern tip of the Rockies, an aptly named mountain range that stretched from far to the north to divide the Californeigha region from Neighvada Desert. "Damn Earth Ponies, always naming regions with neighs..." Selene mumbled to himself as he surveyed his surroundings.

He had hoped to run into a local by now. After traveling so far he was beginning to run out of water, and had already run out of food save for some old bread, and he had no idea where to go to find clean water let alone something to eat in this alien land.

He took one last look around, slowly turning in a full circle. He was surrounded by deserts on all sides, except north into one of the largest mountain ranges on the continent. Well, I guess that's that then, he thought as he pushed himself back into the air and began flying towards the mountains. There's bound to be a settlement somewhere along a river, and there are bound to be rivers running from those mountains... somewhere.

The wind ripped at the straps holding his equipment at his sides as he climbed back into the sky, once again thankful that his dark grey-green coat blended so well with the Wastelands eternal grey hazy cloud-cover. You'd think there would be ponies around here somewhere, or at least some animals... I've been in the Irradiated Zone for a month, and I come out to nothing more than I'd left. Typical.

Later in the day, as Selene approached the southern end of the Rocky Mountain Range, he finally spotted the first living thing he had seen in months. Make that seven living things, and they're ponies!

Selene rapidly descended from the clouds, instead racing along the desert floor as low as he could possibly fly, coming up on the group hidden below a small sand dune. He skidded to a stop just shy of the top, then pressed his belly into the sand and crawled to the top to get a better look at the ponies.

His spirits sank as they came into focus. They were in the tattered and bent metal armor that could only belong to a raider group. He had hoped that this side of the Wastes wasn't ruled by scum and villainy as the east was, but he appeared to be wrong.

Wait... only six of them are in Raider gear... the seventh looks like... a slave. And she was being lead along in chains. Where there are Raiders and Slavers, there are ponies to save!

Without thinking further—because would the greatest pony in the Wastes need to think?—Selene leapt into the air and charged down the dune, rapidly building as much speed as he could. It was only after he began his charged towards the six heavily armored and armed Slavers he began to consider how to deal with the situation.

Rifle? Yea, I can nail them pretty easily from here, but I've already left the dune behind... SMG? Yea, a fly-by would take out a few of them easily enough... but what about their guns? Yea, I need to kill them fast. I didn't bring any heavy weapons, traveling light across the continent... Damn it.

He was closing rapidly, and would be on them in moments. Luck was with him, and none of the six, tiered and weary from their day long march, had looked up or heard the soft rasp of his wings as he clawed his way through the air.

Shit, two are pegasi and one is a unicorn... I can't run, and I need to kill the corn before she guts me. Sword? Crap, I didn't bring it... I can't knife six ponies at once... Grenade! Ah pony feathers, did I bring some? Selene dug through the pockets on the outside of his armor—many ponies had called him crazy over the years, but he wasn't crazy enough to keep explosives in the pockets inside his armor, even if that armor wouldn't make a difference if it went off attached to him anyway. He found not just one, but two.

Thank Luna! He pulled the pins from each, holding one in each fore-hoof. "Eat shrapnel, you slaver scum!" he shouted as he flew directly over their heads, dropping both grenades in the center of their formation, one landing in front and the other behind the slave bound in chains.

"...Oh shit!" Selene shouted, realizing his critical mistake. He pulled up into a steep climb, but not for an instant considered flying back towards the innocent—for all he knew—slave mare he had just condemned to death. If I get myself killed trying to rescue somepony—from my own grenades—who is going to save the countless others undoubtedly enslaved across this forsaken land? Yep, that works for me. Instead he drew his 10mm SMG, preparing to dispatch any Slavers that might survive.

The grenades detonated, reducing the slave pony caught between them to paste. Four of the six Slavers were stuffed with so much shrapnel they died in seconds, but the one furthest to the back and the one furthest to the front both survived, albeit with severe wounds. Without a moments hesitation Selene raked the lead pony, a tall lime green pegasus stallion, with SMG fire as he flew back over them. The pegasus keeled over in the sand to join his comrades in eternal peace.

The rear guard was a red coated earth pony mare, who was too shocked by the brutality of what had just happened, as well as her own wounds, that she had yet to act. Selene decided not to give her a chance at redemption. She'd just shoot me in the back later. Without hesitation Selene gunned her down too.

Landing a decent distance away, Selene looked around, making sure there were no other groups preparing to rush to their aid. After a few moments of silence, Selene returned his SMG to his harness, and moved to inspect the corpses.

Too bad, he thought, looking over the bits of slave-mare spread over the dead Slavers, you could have been my first fan in the West. He took what little food they had—some half rotten apples and a bit of dried meat he really hoped wasn't pony—and then transferred their water from their canteens to his own.

As he returned his last canteen to it's strap at his side, he gave a little shake and listened to his possessions clattering around him. I have no idea how I ever sneak up on anypony, but then again, I am a God.

Taking one last glance at the devastation he had brought down on the first seven ponies he had come across, he shoved himself back into the air and continued towards the mountain range. Although I am not a merciful God, apparently.

The Slavers had been coming up from the west heading to the east, into Neighvada's norther desert, perpendicular to his current path to the north. I could go the way they were going, but I'd likely hit their main Slaver camp, which I'd rather not. I could go the direction they had come from, and find where they had collected the slave from... but they might not like what I have done to their captive... no, I'll continue to the north. I've had enough flat-lands and deserts, I want to spend some time in the mountains!

Now that I'm thinking about it, I don't think anypony will like what I've done here... they were not on a well beaten path though, so hopefully they won't be found... even if they are, this never happened...

Author's Note