Fallout Equestria: Forgotten Days

Day became night as the blue of the sky was replaced with a magical darkness. Shimmer blinked in amazement as she looked up. Even before the war, Shimmer rarely had seen the sky so full of stars. Even the small plume of smoke from the cooking fire could not block out their glow.

Two days on the road had taken its toll. If it hadn’t been for Rocket, they would have kept on marching. But, in the end, they needed food and rest; the quarry was only an hour’s walk now, thankfully.

Rocket used her magic to hover a small pan above the fire. Inside was one of the most foul-smelling creations that Shimmer had ever smelled. Maybe it was the grains. Maybe it was the dirty water. But either way, Shimmer couldn’t help but make a face as the oatmeal cooked in front of her.

She looked at Zephyr who was sharpening a knife with a rock, then back at Rocket who quietly hummed to herself as she cooked. Glancing down at her foreleg holding the Pip-Buck, she slowly spun one of the small dials on the device. The screen jumped to life.

Her hoof pressed against the top dial and brought it to the Data Screen. The smaller dial beneath it moved the submenus and she found the Radio tab. She brought that up and began reading the limited selection of incoming radio signals.

“Tenpony Radio, Ballad and Sonnet Radio, and Unknown,” Shimmer muttered to herself as she read the choices aloud.

“DJ-Pon3 is pretty good; he’s got music from all over the place. Sweetie Bell, Vinyl Scratch, Octavia, hell he’s even got that new mare.” Rocket said as she gently rocked the pan back and forth. “Damn, what’s her name…”

Zephyr looked up in moderate annoyance. “You mean that Sweetie Bell knock off, Velvet Remedy?”

“Yeah! That’s her!” Rocket said enthusiastically. “She’s got a lovely voice.”

Zephyr simply scoffed as he went back to sharpening his knife, “Sorry, but she’s too pitchy and whiny for my taste.”

Shimmer turned her head to glance at Rocket, who looked as if she had a knife plunged right through her heart. The two continued to argue as she toggled Tenpony Radio. Immediately the speaker crackled to life, ceasing their arguing.

“Hello Wasteland! This is DJ-Pon3 coming at you live from Tenpony Radio!” The voice began cheerfully. “Today I’ve got a new story for you that you’ll not believe! Do you remember hearing stories of an Empire so beautiful that their castle was made of PURE crystal? I sure do! It still exists everypony! And boy, is it lively as ever!”

Shimmer raised an eyebrow as she listened to the broadcast. The male voice caught her off guard. It was especially cheerful, though cheerful about what? The Wasteland was a vast devoid of death and destruction. If there was joy to be found, maybe it was in small, rare quantities.

“Just yesterday I received a report that several Raider camps were attacked and destroyed two days ago. As you know my little ponies, Raiders are nasty! Raiders are evil! But these Raiders, let me tell you, were especially bad.” The voice paused long enough for Shimmer to look up at the confused faces of Zephyr and Rocket. Two days, that was all it took for their actions to be noticed. Zephyr’s face was filled with panic and worry. Rocket’s was a mask of pure confusion.

“One of the larger camps had prisoners inside. Young and old ponies alike were used as breeding stock. I know it hurts to hear, but it’s the truth. And when has DJ-Pon3 ever lied to you? Anyway, it was bad—and somepony heard the call to fight. The Raider camp was attacked and every single Raider was killed. One of “The Saviors” was injured but she pulled through when brought to a clinic. The survivors of the camp were also brought to a nearby clinic and now I hear they’re heading to a new home.”

Shimmer felt herself being drawn closer to the screen of the Pip-Buck as her hoof gently turned the volume dial. The volume increased as her interest was piqued and the words of DJ-Pon3 sucked her in. Rocket was right; DJ-Pon3 was extremely good, almost to the point of being hypnotic.

“The camp was hit by three ponies willing to fight the good fight. Helping to restore Equestria, or maybe just the Crystal Empire. But wherever they are, thank you! I’d give you a hoof-bump if I could but if I left, who’d bring you the news?!” The voice let out a series of small chuckles before continuing. “If you’re still out there, please, continue to fight the good fight. All of us here in Tenpony are rooting for you! Especially the pink one with the Pip-Buck and I hope you’re listening. You took more than your share of hurt; we’re in your debt. Anyway, that’s all we have for news today everypony! We return you to your regular music!” The voice ceased and the sweet melodies of Velvet Remedy began.

Shimmer looked at Rocket who appeared to be simply beside herself. Zephyr, on the other hoof, looked as if he was ready to tear the Pip-Buck from Shimmer’s foreleg. “That damn DJ-Pon3 just painted a target on our backs,” he hissed as he pushed his hat forward to cover his eyes.

“I thought it was rather nice,” Rocket said as a smile crept up her features. “He called us ‘Saviors’.He doesn’t name just anypony that unless he thinks they’re doing good.”

Zephyr huffed in reply as he turned away from her and collapsed on the ground, kicking up a small dark cloud of dust around him.

“I’ll be right back,” Shimmer said, rising and pushing dirt out of her coat. “Call me when you’re done cooking?” Rocket nodded in reply. Shimmer then moved off from the two and found a nearby spot in privacy. She sat down and giggled as she looked at the Pip-Buck on her foreleg. As she listened to the voice of Velvet Remedy she found herself agreeing with Rocket; her voice was soothing.

She looked up as she spotted movement in front of her. She nearly pulled her pistol out when she recognized what was doing the moving. A Sprite-Bot floated in front of her, wings flittering rapidly as it moved closer towards her.

“Watcher?” Shimmer asked curiously as the Sprite-Bot ceased its movement.

“How’d you know it was me?” the familiar voice asked as the Sprite-Bot hovered a foot and a half away.

Shimmer smiled as she shook her head. “The only time that I’ve seen one of these silly things is when you’re using them.”

The Sprite-Bot went silent for a moment before a quick chuckle filled the speaker. “Good point, Savior.”

Shimmer felt her face light up with red. “I didn’t pick the name.”

“DJ-Pon3 rarely gives names out,“ he said as the Sprite-Bot gently floated to the side of the rock they sat behind. “You trust your friends?” he asked quietly. A whirring could be heard as a single camera zoomed in on Zephyr and Rocket as they argued with each other. “Not exactly harmonious, are they?”

Shimmer giggled as she shook her head, her mane fluttering as she did. “They’re…unique, I won’t deny that. But they didn’t leave me to die in the middle of that Raider Camp. They could’ve left me there, but they brought me to the clinic.”

In the distance Zephyr and Rocket argued. Their voices were loud but the words themselves couldn’t be heard from this distance. Shimmer rolled her eyes as she turned back to look at the stars. “Time may have frozen for me, but even so, I’ve never seen so many stars,” she said quietly as the lights blinked slowly against the black of the sky.

The Sprite-Bot turned to face her for a brief moment before turning to look up at itself. Shimmer giggled at the sight but continued to look up as he spoke. “Without the lights from Canterlot, Manehatten, and the Crystal Empire, the night’s sky has changed significantly. The only place you could see a sky like this before the war was in Yakyakistan,“ he said as the flittering orb rotated to face her.

Shimmer looked at the orb. “You remember before the war?”

“I was young when the war first started. But yes, I remember,” the voice said in a somber tone. “I was there when the Ministries were formed. When things were falling apart around us as we fought to keep Equestria alive when in fact we were just killing her. I remember arguing with someone special to me before taking a nap.” His sigh was loud as the Sprite-Bot flittered away from her a little bit. “And when I awoke, the world had ended and everypony I knew was gone.”

Shimmer felt a tear dripping down her face as she pushed a hoof across it. “I’m sorry Watcher. I was asleep for the whole thing. Frozen in time, not aging... This world is completely alien to me. There’s so much unhappiness here.” Shimmer slowly rose to her hooves and looked out over the horizon. The Crystal Castle glistening in the moonlight. “Even now in the night time I know that looking out there, ponies are suffering. Despite the beauty I see, unhappiness grows, and I want to so desperately give those in pain a chance to be happy again.”

She didn’t get much of a reply. Watcher only managed one small grunt before the Sprite-Bot suddenly popped and the silly polka music began once again. She gritted her teeth. “THAT IS SO ANNOYING!” She quickly clamped a hoof over her mouth as Rocket and Zephyr looked in her direction. She quietly cursed to herself as the two scrambled over, weapons drawn.

“What’s wrong?!” Rocket asked as her pistols floated beside her. Zephyr would’ve asked something if not for the knife in his teeth and another ready to throw in his special grip on his hoof.

Shimmer laughed nervously and pointed at the Sprite-Bot. “The music that thing is playing. It’s so annoying.” She said half-heartedly as the polka playing orb flittered off in the opposite direction. “It was so quiet until it got close to me and loudly started playing that music.”

Both Zephyr and Rocket shared the same annoyed expression on their faces. They briefly looked at each other and then looked at Shimmer. She shrugged nervously before they both reared back and shouted at her, “Idiot!”

The following morning Shimmer woke rubbing her head. Following the shout, Rocket had proceeded to thump her on the head with a hoof. She spent a good quarter hour nursing the lump before finally falling asleep. But now, she looked down into the Quarry and her heart sank.

Smoke rose from the large hole in the ground. This was a recent battlefield. And the signs of survivors became less and less likely as time went along. Rocket looked down with a pair of oculars and frowned as she scanned the area slowly.

“A lot of bodies…mostly Raiders…whoever they chased gave them a hell of a fight,” Rocket said as her gaze passed over seven Raider corpses. Her gaze then met that of a small shack. “Got a shack, might be where they fought at one point. There’s bullet holes littered across the walls.”

Shimmer frowned as she squinted to see down below. The area was so large and open, anyone with a high powered rifle would be able pick anyone off easily down there. But at the same time, there were so many crystal blocks that someone could use them for cover.

Even so, several crystal blocks looked completely obliterated from explosives and gunfire that what cover used to remain was severely damaged. Rocket turned her head slowly and then lurched forward. “I don’t believe it…they’re still fighting down there!”

Shimmer looked down and raised an eyebrow, “I don’t hear any gunfire.”

“That’s because they aren’t shooting. Look!” Rocket said as she jammed the oculars across and in front of Shimmers face. She frowned as she then peered into them. Her jaw dropped as she looked down into the furthest edge of the quarry.

Sitting alone remained what was once the CEO’s shack. Half of it was blown open and smoking, a single pony corpse laid across the wreckage. However, in front of the shack, fifteen ponies stood in a perfect circle, five of them forced to sit. Six of them wore the familiar uniform Vista had worn at the Clinic. The rest were bloody thirsty Raiders, happily dancing in a circle around them as they held five of the soldiers in position. One on one the strongest Raider brawled hoof to hoof with one of the uniformed soldiers.

Shimmer watched as the soldier squared off and gave a sturdy buck to the Raider’s chest. The Raider, however, looked as if he was chuckling as he brought a forehoof upwards. Knocking the soldier off of his hooves he sent him sprawling across the wet ground of the quarry. Shimmer pushed the oculars away quickly and pointed.

“We need to get down there. Now.” She looked at Zephyr and Rocket. “Those Raiders are going to take out those soldiers one at a time. While they’re distracted we can move in and take them all out.”

Rocket looked at Zephyr skeptically then at Shimmer. “How do you know the Raiders won’t turn and attack?”

“They probably will,” Shimmer replied as she pushed to her hooves and began to gallop down the path into the quarry. “The only difference is, they’re so distracted right now that Zephyr can probably kill a few of them silently if we get in close enough. It’ll give the CPR Soldiers time to escape or attack. Then you and I will move in and take out the rest.”

Rocket and Zephyr galloped to keep up. They listened as they caught up and Zephyr spoke. “How close do you think I need to get? There are a LOT down there.”

Shimmer nodded ahead. “Do you see that wrecked Sky-Wagon? The one with the massive hole in the side?”

Zephyr looked for a brief moment before spotting it. “Got it. The bright blue one?”

“Right! You’ll get inside the Sky-Wagon and open one of the windows. That’ll get you close enough to throw your knives.” She then nodded to a large grey pipe. “Rocket will hide inside that pipe and wait for the fighting to start. I’m going to stay on the opposite side behind those Crystal Cubes.” She said nodding to the large stack directly across from the pipe.

Zephyr nodded in understanding. “Once the fighting starts, the Raiders will be so caught off guard, you can catch them in a cross fire. But what’s stopping you both from hitting the CPR guys?”

“Luck and good aim?” Shimmer suggested as she waved a hoof. “We don’t have much time. Get into position, we need to move quickly.” As if fate itself heard her, the fighting CPR soldier cried out in a blood curdling scream. Rocket and Zephyr didn’t even argue as they split up and moved to get into position as quickly as possible.

Shimmer herself panted as she weaved between obstacles as she entered the main quarry area. All around her were bodies of Raiders and the occasional CPR Soldier. She quietly approved, for every three Raiders she found a single dead soldier. Whatever the CPR was once, they proved to still be very well trained or extremely lucky. How Vista became separated from these soldiers was a question for another day.

Shimmer gasped as she found herself falling forward suddenly. Her hoof had caught a trip wire and a small explosive device beeped behind her. She went wide eyed as she hit the ground hard and rolled away. A moment later a large explosion filled the air. Crystal shards and mud flew in every direction possible.

“Hey! You hear that Lugnut!?” a Raider shouted as Shimmer’s hearing slowly came back.

“Go check it out you slugs! I’m not done with the lady soldier yet!” another Raider called, this one’s voice sounding as if he had swallowed glass for fun. Despite the ringing in her ears she heard the desperate cries of the CPR soldiers begging the Raider to stop whatever he had planned.

She groaned as she pushed off of her hooves. “So much for plan A,” she said, shaking her head and dizzily crawling between two crystal cubes. It was barely in time as two Raiders ran around the stack and appeared in perfect view of her.

She dropped to the ground and raised her pistol as she watched the ponies begin searching. “Lugnut, I don’t see nopony.”

“Quiet, whatever bitch set off that bomb might be still alive,” the other Raider hissed as his pipe rose with his magic. Shimmer frowned; the idea of a Raider being smart enough for telekinesis disturbed her. She watched as they slowly examined the blast site.

“Yeah…whoever set it off is toast…look at the body parts.”

Shimmer blinked several times, “Body parts?” she asked herself quietly. But not quietly enough; the closest Raider heard her and his head snapped up and looked directly at her.

“Hey! You bit-“ He was cut off by the blast of a handgun going off. His body fell limply to the side as the pistol from Shimmer’s mouth smoked in the early morning chill. The other Raider turned and began firing. His angle thankfully wasn’t in sight of Shimmer as his bullets peppered the crystal block to her right. She shielded her eyes with the Pip-buck as shards attempted to pierce them.

“What in Equestria!” Shimmer shouted as she charged outwards when the bullets stopped flying. The Raider struggled to fix his weapon. A single shell hadn’t ejected from the side of the old weapon and jammed. Shimmer charged forward and rammed the barrel of her pistol against his neck and pulled the trigger. His head exploded upwards and outwards as brain matter and blood filled the air.

The body fell and she slid the pistol back into her bag. She looked down at the rifle and raised an eyebrow, it had been modified so that a pony sitting on their rear could have it rest on their back and still be fired by an Earth pony. It was similar to a Battle-saddle but was only half of one. The rifle itself looked ready to fall apart in her teeth as she held it. She slid the straps on and around her neck and the rifle fit snuggly to her form.

She looked down and, using her teeth and hooves, removed the jam in the ejector. She looked down and quickly pulled out two more clips from the Raider’s bags. She dropped them into hers and turned. In her own small skirmish she had forgotten about Zephyr and Rocket. Her ears twitched as gunfire and shouting reminded her that the battle wasn’t over yet.

She galloped between the stacks of crystal and rounded a corner. In the center of the stacks rested the CEO’s shack and the group of raiders and soldiers. Two more soldiers had died in the ensuing fight that she accidentally triggered. But the rest had rushed to their hooves and were fighting tooth and nail to bring the Raiders down.

“Shimmer get down!” she heard Zephyr cry as a knife flew through the air. She went wide eyed as she dropped and felt the cold steel pass through her mane and impact with a wet thump. She looked over her shoulder as the knife protruded from between the eyes of another Raider whose hooves had been brought up in reaction to attempt to grasp the sudden attack.

She turned to face Zephyr who had been knocked from his feet from a Raider at his side.

Shimmer frowned at the Raider as he reared up and prepared to bring his hooves down. She then bit down on the trigger of the rifle and felt herself being pushed backwards as the saddle recoiled. Several bullets flew through the air and planted themselves in the belly of the Raider.

The pony recoiled under the onslaught and collapsed in a heap next to Zephyr whose eyes went wide immediately. Shimmer then turned and found a hoof connecting with the left side of her face. She closed her eyes as she recoiled against the punch. She took several wide steps as she shook her head and attempted to locate her attacker.

Instead, she felt her chin being bucked upwards by two hind legs. She cried out in pain as her E.F.S. blinked a warning that she was extremely hurt and required either a potion or a doctor. She landed with a thud in the mud and slid underneath a small stack of rubble and wood. She groaned as the world seemed to slow around her.

As she looked up she saw the Raider that was previously brawling with the soldiers approaching her. Fury blazed in his eyes as he closed the distance between her and him. She watched as he began to leap through the air when Rocket appeared at his side, her forehooves wrapping around his body and she pushed him mid-air into a Crystal cube. She landed gracefully, brought her pistols up and began firing.

Shimmer swore she could see the bullets as her daze began to slowly subside. The brawling Raider was torn apart by the projectiles as the world returned to normal speed. Rocket extended a hoof towards Shimmer. “On your hooves! We’re not done yet!” she shouted as Shimmer took her hoof and climbed out of the pile of rubble.

She looked to her right and watched as the soldiers fought to hold their ground. “Rocket, we need to take them out. Flank them to the left, I’ll join the main fight with Zephyr. You’re the best shot out of all of us. You get the shots, you take them!”

“On it boss!” Rocket said with a smirk as she galloped off and behind some more Crystal Cubes.

“Zephyr, with me!” Shimmer shouted as she charged into the crowd of remaining soldiers. She brought her rear hooves upwards as she spun on her forehooves. Her hooves connected with a rather sensitive spot of one Raider and he collapsed with a howl.

One of the soldiers looked at her in shock. “Who the hell are you, lady?” she asked with a forehoof punch to one of the Raiders.

“Vista sent us! We’re here to get you out!” Shimmer replied as she pulled the trigger on her rifle. Several bullets were fired before it clicked on an empty clip. She pulled the release as a Raider clutched his hind leg, howling in pain. She didn’t even bother reloading as several loud pistol shots filled the air. Three more Raiders dropped dead, leaving only two to contend with, who instead took the chance to turn on their hooves and gallop away. The soldiers turned to face Shimmer, winded and wounded but still alive.

“Thank you stranger, we’re in your debt,” a mare said, stepping forwards to reveal herself. “I’m Sergeant Glimmerlight, the last NCO with the CPR. The rest of these fine ponies are the last of our people.”

Shimmer nodded at Glimmerlight as she opened her bag. “Here, these healing potions will get you all back on your hooves,” she said with a smile as she placed several bottles down in front of them. Each took one—only one—as they quickly gulped them down. Almost immediately the potions took effect and they all appeared to be much stronger.

“You said that Colonel Vista sent you to find us?” Glimmerlight asked as she finished her potion. “Where did you find him? Were there any more of us with him?” she asked as she looked over the rest of her unit.

Rocket stepped forward after reloading her pistols. “Vista was alone. He said he was separated from you in a fight. He was captured by the Raiders soon after. They probably killed the rest of your unit. I’m sorry.”

Glimmerlight and the unit looked as if they all were killed. “Thank you. It’s sad to hear. There were forty of us a week ago. Now we’re down to ten of us, including Vista. The rest of our group is in the old Manager’s Office. The Raiders beat them hard...but they wanted to keep the mares alive, myself being the exception.” Rocket bit her lip as she hung her head and shook it somberly. Zephyr appeared unaffected as he moved about the quarry, pulling knives from the Raiders that he had attacked.

Shimmer stepped forward. “Maybe you can one day restore your numbers?” she offered optimistically as she closed her bags.

Glimmerlight shook her head, “There just aren’t enough of us to go recruiting now.”

Rocket stepped forward, “That might not be entirely true. See we rescued Vista and twenty four others, they’ve made a home at a place called The Grove. In fact, Vista said to tell you to meet him there as soon as we found you.”

Glimmerlight turned, her face a mix of confusion and hopefulness. “The Grove you say? Isn’t that where that old Stable is supposed to be?” Shimmer and Rocket nodded multiple times. “If he’s there and there are that many…maybe…just maybe…”

Shimmer stepped forward and raised her Pip-Buck up. “I can show you how to get there or we can take you there ourselves. It’s your call but either way, you’re being asked to bring the rest of the unit to The Grove and report.”

Glimmerlight looked at Shimmer for a moment and looked her up and down. “We’ll follow you…for now. If we find any kind of funny business with you lot, we’ll –“

“Sergeant, you have nothing to fear from me or my friends.” Shimmer said firmly as she approached her.“We were sent to find you and bring you home and we’ll be damned before we see you ambushed again. Understood?”

Oddly Glimmerlight became rigid as she looked down at the suddenly confident and commanding mare before her. “Yes Ma’am! Understood!”

Shimmer smiled as she pointed. “Gather your unit and police the weapons and ammo. We’ll be leaving in ten minutes.”

Glimmerlight nodded firmly and turned to her unit and began giving orders. Shimmer turned to find Zephyr and Rocket staring at her blankly. “What?” she asked in confusion at them. “They’re soldiers, you don’t show them that you’re afraid or willing to be second guessed and they fall in line. Don’t you know that?” They both shook their heads in reply and she sighed. She moved between them and said with a final word, “Let me know when they’re ready to leave.”

As she trotted off, Zephyr looked at Rocket. “She really is something isn’t she?” Not waiting for a reply, he too began to trot off in another direction as he began rifling through a Raider’s bag. Rocket nodded in reply as she too began to search.

Several minutes passed before Glimmerlight approached Shimmer. “We’re ready to go.”

Shimmer looked back at Glimmerlight and nodded. “It’s a two day trot to The Grove, I hope you’re ready for the long haul.”

Glimmerlight smirked in reply before turning to the eight remaining soldiers. “Valkyrie Squad, double time!” The four soldiers began to quickly trot ahead of Shimmer and she found herself laughing. “You coming Ma’am?” Glimmerlight called over her shoulder as the soldiers moved into a slow gallop. Shimmer smirked as she galloped with Rocket and Zephyr close on her hooves as they caught up to the small group and together they began moving in the direction of The Grove.