Risen

Chapters

Chapter 1: A New Day
Chapter 2: Arrival
Chapter 3: Guidance
Chapter 4: A Way Out
Chapter 5: Discovery
Chapter 6: Assimilated
Chapter 7: Reunion
Chapter 8: Farewell
Chapter 9: Demon
Chapter 10: Back Up
Chapter 11: Moving On
Chapter 12: The Golden City
Chapter 13: Awakening
Prologue

Chapter 1: A New Day

For those that lived on the poisoned land below, the sun was a rare luxury when it decided to pierce through the clouds in its full glory. Plants would greedily assimilate its rays while others would look to it with a flicker of hope in their lost souls. For those who lived above the clouds, however, such a commodity was often overlooked.

So it frustrated Quickcase when his reading light was snuffed in shadow. He looked away from his book to the offending shadow, expecting to see heavy cloud cover. Instead, the shape of two ponies silhouetted his view. The first, a red pegasus, his mane and tail coal-black, his expression one of mild irritation. The other, slightly smaller pegasus had a cyan coat and white mane. She looked more forgiving, but still had her lips curled in a pout.

“Jeez, Quick, while we’re still young! Time to live up to your name and get moving!” The red pegasus huffed.

“You know, you could be more polite about it. It is a virtue after all,” The cyan pegasus countered. “Still, Quickcase, I strongly suggest you join us. You can’t survive on knowledge alone. Believe me, I’ve tried.”

“Thunder Cloud, you’re more of a nerd than he is.”

“There is nothing wrong with having a healthy thirst for knowledge, Echo,” retorted Thunder Cloud.

Quickcase kept his eyes fixed on his book, “Oh, you’re here?”

“Anyway, what are you reading that has you so entranced?” Thunder Cloud asked curiously.

“Well, it’s called ‘The Early Tales of Nighttide’.” Quickase closed his book, pointing to the cover.

“Boring history stuff, probably not your thing. Not enough guns in it for your liking.” Echo teased

“Sadly, not much truth in that particular book. An over-romanticized picture of a self-important hierophant who deceived ponykind into granting her power, posing herself as the great saviour,” Thunder Cloud spat as if it were sinful.

“Nighttide was the hero of her time; she brought the scattered tribes together in an effort to defeat the demons of the night realm,” said Quickcase.

Echo jumped in impatiently, “Demons, Goddesses, who cares?! There’s more important stuff to worry about. Like my empty stomach—which is not missing today's breakfast specials again for the third time.”

Quickcase casually lifted a wing, waving away Echo and Thunder Cloud in a ‘shooing’ motion. “You two go on ahead, I can eat after I finish this chapter.” Quickcase noticed that Echo wasn’t moving and he looked back at him with narrowed eyes. “Do you mind?”

“Yes, I do.” Echo stated as a matter-of-fact, with a small smile appearing on his face. “After all, Heavy is the one who sent us, and you wouldn’t want to keep her waiting, would you?”

“You most certainly can’t show up looking like that,” Thunder Cloud said, appraising Quickcase with a glance.

Quickcase’s ears perked up at the mention of their squad leader’s name. “Well, I suppose the book isn’t going anywhere.” He shut the book and eyed a nearby mirror. His dark purple mane was tied in a somewhat dishevelled ponytail, nearly hiding the yellow line that ran through it. His cutie mark, two blue celestial orbs orbiting one another, stood in contrast to his simple brown coat. His eyes, green and bleary with a bit of redness from lack of sleep, were underlined by heavy rings. It wasn’t his most presentable look, but it’d do for now. “Eating with friends does make the food better, after all, as you like to say.”

“Now we’re talking!” Echo lifted his hoof and tapped the green crystal he wore as a necklace. “And if we’re lucky, Heavy might have left us some sweet apples.” Echos said enthusiastically, Cloud and Quickcase just shook their heads and followed him out.

*****

Out in the hallway, Echo picked up his pace, forcing his companions to move at a brisk trot. “You know, these hallways are not designed for running in groups!” Cloud called to him.

Echo shrugged and kept moving. Quickcase, on the other hoof, had to admit to that he felt somewhat claustrophobic when surrounded with nothing but metal walls and only the weak lights on the ceiling to guide one's way. Enclave design was more for functionality rather than aesthetics, and at this point, even a few of those propaganda posters would feel better to look at than the dull, uniform walls.

“You should know better than to go to out looking like a mess. What would Heavy say if you couldn’t keep up proper dress code?” Thunder Cloud said, causing Quickcase to blush lightly.

Echo slowed his pace to turn to his friend with an ‘innocent’ smile. “Yeah, what would she say, I wonder. You’ll never get any tail if you don’t know how to keep yourself in order,” teased Echo.

Quickcase answered with an impassive, stoic stare, saying nothing for the moment, hoping the blush flaring up didn’t show through his fur. “You’re a virgin, too...” he countered.

“Ah, shut up,” muttered Echo in embarrassment, “Look, we’ve been friends long enough that I notice the little tics you have. Now, are you going to ask her out or do you need me to step in?”

Thunder Cloud rolled her eyes. “I swear, you boys are so unrefined.”

Echo nodded. “True, but as I recall, you were pretty loud with, oh what was her na-”

“Don’t you dare finish that sentence,” warned Thunder Cloud.

Echo continued, “-I’m pretty sure she got to know the Thunder from down under, if ya know what I—”

Echo flinched away as Thunder lashed out, only to have Quickcase block the angry hoof from hitting it’s mark.

Quickcase kept his voice steady, “You know how to aim and pull that mouth trigger for maximum damage.” Echo nodded approvingly only to receive a glare from his accuser. “But be careful not to hit the wrong target.”

Echo huffed and looked away from the two. “I thought it was worth it...”

“Can I have my hoof back?” asked Thunder Cloud. Quickcase looked back to her, releasing his grip.

Then, Quickcase stared back at Echo suspiciously. “Why the sudden interest in my love life? You’ve never been so forward like this before. Did you start a bet or something?”

“No!” Echo's answer was a little too quick. There was an awkward silence between both of them before Echo looked away. “Ok, maybe. But that’s not the point.” His gaze returned to his accuser., “Mate, you’ve been my best friend for as long as I can remember. I really want to see you happy, and I think Heavy is the best bet you're ever going to get.” He nudged Quickcase. “So are you gonna take the first step, or does your trusted friend need to intervene?”

“Please no,” begged Thunder Cloud.

"Let’s just get some food and worry about that later?” Quickcase responded dismissively.
Echo sighed in defeat. “Way to dodge the question. But you’ve got a valid point. The mess awaits! Onward!”

*****

The three of them arrived in the mess hall, and it was quite the sight to behold. The bland grey metal walls extended to the benches and tables, making it look that the entire room was just carved out of one slab by a bored architect, once again going for a practical rather than aesthetic look. That was a stark contrast to the many different colored pegasi that filled the hall, chatting away with their squad mates and actually bringing some life to the ship. A green hoof waved at them from the line, and Quickcase had to fight the urge to wave back like a school foal. Instead, Echo took that honor as he trotted up to their squad leader.

“Private Echo, Private Thunder Cloud, I see you’ve returned from your mission, was it successful?” The green pegasus spoke with authority, though there was a tinge of playfulness in her voice.

“Yes, Sergeant Heavy.” Echo responded with sarcastic seriousness. “It was a tough mission as he was trapped in the world of fantasy. But with quick thinking and well thought-out tactics, I was able to drag him back to reality!”

Heavy noticed the slight glare Thunder Cloud was giving Echo.

“Did something happen on the way here?” she asked Quickcase.

“Nothing in particular.”

Heavy looked skeptically at the three of them before shrugging. “If you say so.”

Quickcase couldn’t help but stare at Heavy. Though she was a full head shorter than most mares her age, she was well built and tougher than most stallions he’d met. She had an air of command that made her a natural leader, with a voice that was beautiful at least to him. His eyes wandered to her cutie mark, a hammer smashing into an anvil, which was attached to quite a curvaceous flank…

Quickase’s thoughts were interrupted by a light shove from behind. He turned to find another pegasus glaring at him. “Hey, how about you get to the back of the line where the rest of us have been patiently waiting?”

Quickcase stared at the grey pegasus, whose white mane was styled into a mohawk. Quick took a step back and opened his mouth to speak, but another pony beat him to it. “Really brother?” interrupted Thunder Cloud. “This isn’t preschool, and I’m fairly certain the rules do state that a squad member can support their team. Besides, there’s enough food for everypony, so simmer your wings.” Heavy and Echo nodded to each other before walking up to their teammate.

“You’re right, Thunder Cloud, this isn’t preschool. This is the military, and you either work together or fall alone.” The three pegasi flanking him nodded in agreement. “Since your team doesn’t understand that concept, perhaps you should practice that team work in the back of the line, where you belong. Especially so since you’re little better than those low-borns you associate with.”

Heavy’s ears perked up, while Echo looked as if he was ready to charge, digging a hoof into the floor. Thunder Cloud gasped at first, her eyes wide, glaring at her brother with her lips drawn into a scowl. Things looked like they’d come to blows till Heavy stepped in, placing herself between her team and Thunderwing, glaring right into his eyes. “I see you’re all in fightin’ spirit, aren’t ya? How about we trim down that mohawk of yours in the ring later t’night?”

Thunderwing took a step back, Heavy followed. Now he looked much, much less sure of himself than he was a moment ago. “D-Don’t step in the line like you own it, low-born!” He almost squeaked the words out.

Heavy reached out her hoof, drawing him in, so they were muzzle-to-muzzle. Nopony in the crowd thought about stopping her. Even from that close, Thunderwing had a problem meeting her gaze. “One more word about mine or my friends’ heritage, and you’ll eat through a straw for the rest of your life. Got it?”

The moment Heavy released him, Thunderwing stumbled back a few steps. Several ponies behind him who’d been listening in, along with his team visibly recoiled. Thunderwing’s legs trembled like they could barely support him, his voice betraying him. “T… Team Starbolt won’t be goaded into some lowly scuffle over something so insignificant! We’ll settle this in the ring and show you lowborn scum your p-place!” He then looked away as though he was too good for the ponies in front of him.

“Moron,” Echo muttered with a smirk.

“A gal’s gotta do what a gal’s gotta do, don’t ya think?” Heavy said. The team shared a quick chuckle at that.

There was an awkward silence in the line for several minutes as Quick and the others got their breakfast, choosing to sit at the far end of one of the tables near the back of the room.

Thunder Cloud let out an exasperated sigh as her head met the table. “My brother is such an embarrassing idiot! We’re all pegasi, it doesn’t matter who we associate with!” She turned her gaze to her cutie mark, a monkey wrench and a screwdriver crossing. “Just because I’m a mechanic instead of a ‘true’ soldier like the rest of my family…”

“Well, you twins are related to a former member of the high council.” Echo chimed in happily. “It's to be expected that at least one of you would be a pompous ass.”

If the blue pegasus could sink any further into the table, she would have melded into it.

“Not helping, Echo,” admonished Quickcase.

Echo let out a mock gasp. “What? It’s true! High society ponies always think they’re entitled to everything.”

Quickcase had finished the small amount of his plate. “Hm, food’s not bad for once.”

“At least they gave us real food instead of hayloaf and unflavored oats.” Heavy spoke up, “I don’t think I could have handled another month of tasteless meals. I know the world ended, but I at least want a decent meal in my belly.” She began eating her meal with gusto. “Still though, where does Thunderwing get off, calling us ‘lowborn’?! Somepony really needs to put him in his place.”

Echo looked to Thunder Cloud, “Was your brother always such a prick?”

Thunder Cloud’s head rose out of her forelegs, “Not until he signed up, guess the popularity got to his head. I never really cared much for the limelight. In fact most ponies kept away from me.”

“Well, of course they did. The sons become popular while the daughters are given a wide berth. Heck, I’m surprised you even managed to find-” Thunder Cloud glared at Echo and he stopped talking.

Thunder Cloud sighed, “Regardless of our origin, I’ve always seen you guys as equals.”

“Team Night Fang appreciates your modesty, keep it up and maybe you’ll inspire other high society ponies to do the same,” Quickcase said with an inspirational tone.

“How true! She’s like one of those heroes who will help bridge the gap between the classes, the low-borns and the rich snobs!” Echo chimed in, floating on his apparently boundless supply of optimism.

“Can I just build a bridge somepony can walk over?” Thunder Cloud asked. They all chuckled, which brought the blue mare out of her slump and meekly smiled as she began eating her meal as well. “Oh, this is delicious.” She swallowed. “Thank night the food crisis is over”

Heavy nodded. “It’s what made the Enclave start sending proper incursion forces rather than simple scouting groups to the surface.”

“So, are they sending us to the surface for a big scavenger hunt to find the magic gun of dragon slaying?” Echo asked in a snarky tone.

To her credit, Heavy ignored his tone and continued. “To a degree, yes. There is a lot that was left behind after the war with the zebras. Even after all this time, the surface still rewards us with well preserved goodies. The only problem seems to be those backward dirt ponies.”

“With all the stories I heard about the nasty things down there, I don’t doubt we’ll find anything of value.” Echo said as he was almost done with his meal. “I mean, I’ve heard stories of mutated animals, armies of degenerate ponies, and even mindless zombies!” His voice then dropped to a near whisper as he put on his best ‘ghost story’ smile. “But the most dangerous thing of all, are the zebras. Yes, those same zebras that ended the world still stalk the land as dark assassins, spectres of death who slay any pony they find with black magic rituals and terrible poisons. Slaves to the past, willing to do whatever it takes not stopping until every last pony is dead. Only then, will they rest, and the Great Calamity will finally be over.”

Thunder Cloud looked visibly shaken by the story, and even Heavy was biting her lower lip, though out of worry or annoyance it was hard to say. Even Quickcase shuffled somewhat uncomfortably at the thought. Echo looked back and forth between his team, then he shrugged, “Of course I could be wrong.”

“Well, can it! I like my sanity, thank you,” said Heavy. “I still owe that prick Thunderwing a good beating.”

“Still not sure about the challenge, I still remember you shooting me in the flank from last time,” Thunder Cloud glared at Echo.

“Hey, like I said before it was an accident, I swear,” Echo said dismissively. “Not my fault your butt got in the way.”

Thunder Cloud responded with a snort. Quickcase immediately looked away when Heavy cast her gaze toward him.

“Something on your mind?” Heavy asked, noticing a slight blush on Quick’s face.

“Oh, no. Nothing in particular,” Quickcase said nervously.

Echo slammed his hooves on the table in frustration. “By the night, Heavy, you’re so dense you create your own gravity well! Can’t you tell?” —he pointed to Quickcase— “he’s attracted to you, dammit!”

The rest of the team sat in stunned silence for a few moments after Echo’s outburst. Quickcase felt hot blood rush to his cheeks, and wondered how many punches he could get at Echo before Thunder Cloud pinned him down.

The bell chimed and the different squads of ponies who were enjoying their meals got up from their seats, some whose plates were half eaten.

“Uh...guess it’s time,” said Heavy as the rest of her squad began to depart. “Team, meet at the gym in two hours. Until then, I don’t care what you do. Dismissed.” She pulled Quickcase aside before he could leave. “Not you. I’d like a word.”

Thunder and Echo left the table silently. Echo slung a cheeky grin at Quickcase behind Heavy’s back, eagerly pointing his hooves at her like a freaking child. He mouthed the words, ‘Good luck bro!’ before Thunder dragged him out of the mess hall by his tail.

Quickcase stood before his commander, stewing in his own sweat. It seemed to take ages for everypony to leave.

When the room was almost empty, Heavy took a deep breath. “Is what Echo said true?”

Quickcase stammered, trying to form words that wouldn’t come out. “Well...I...um...yes.”

Heavy sighed. “I’m flattered you find me attractive but….”

“Oh, I see.” Quickcase mumbled disappointedly.

“Honestly, I never had somepony like me like that before. Not that anypony has like liked me.” Heavy rubbed the back of her neck and shrugged. “If I’m being honest, I don’t really know what to say.” She sighed, chuckling weakly. “Leave it to Echo to make things complicated.”

That seemed to relax Quickcase a bit, relieved at the potential for somepony he had a crush on. At the very least, he managed to get his feelings out.

“How’s about we talk about this after the match?” said Heavy.

Quickcase’s ears perked back up again. “Y-yeah, I guess that’ll work.”

“Well I gotta get going,” Heavy said as she walked out the entrance of them mess.

Quickcase soon followed after her, thinking maybe he wouldn’t punch Echo quite so hard anymore.

*****

“Fuck!” Echo yelled as a rocket went flying past his head, through the open door of the building he had taken cover in and exploded into a chaotic mess in the next room. He was thankful he had forgotten to shut the door. “They tried to snipe me with a rocket launcher! Who snipes with a rocket launcher?! From a library?! Seriously, who does that?!”

“Uncouth troglodytes...” Thunder muttered over the comm.

“Keep your head in the game, Echo! We’ve got a long way to go!” Heavy spoke over the radio as she loaded her grenade launcher, taking shelter in a destroyed toy store.

“Oh har har!” The red pegasus ducked again as several bullets smacked his hiding place in a second story building that use to be an apartment. “I can’t get a clear shot, I need some cover fire!”

Heavy tried to take a peek out of her hiding hole, but a few bullets forced her back into cover. “I can’t get a good view of them either, and Echo is pinned. Thunder, I need a targeting solution!”

*****

Thankfully, the unit managed to call in an airstrike, and the vertibuck that flew overhead annihilated the zebra forces that had Quickcase and his team pinned. In the aftermath, everypony managed to regroup at the old library, unfortunately for them the airstrike came a bit too close to their assigned destination and the entrance was blocked by rubble. Good thing Enclave armor increased the strength of the user.

“What took you so long?” Heavy asked Echo

“Sorry, toots, not exactly meant for speed.” Echo huffed.

She turned her gaze to Quickcase. "I thought you said the place was secure."

“I'm sorry, I should've done better.” he said defensively

Thunder Cloud had a somewhat arrogant smile on her face. Heavy caught glimpse of it. “And you could’ve given us better targeting solutions, instead you chose to dig your hooves into that mechanical pet of yours.” Heavy pointed at the sprite bot that hovered through a destroyed window.

Thunder looked down at the ground and the little bot mimicked her movements.

Heavy then smiled at her comrades. “Still, we took them down with great efficiency and no injuries. Well done, all of you.” Her team beamed at the praise. “Now, the item we are after should be in this building. We should split up in groups of two. Thunder and I will check the second floor. Quick, Echo, search the bottom floor. Stay frosty, there may be more surprises waiting for us.”

Everypony nodded and went their separate ways.

*****

Quickcase decided that the library was depressing. So many stories and so much knowledge had been lost to a conflict that no longer seemed to have any meaning. A terrible waste indeed. They’d been walking the halls with no updates from the other party.

“So, you gonna ask Heavy out after this?” Echo asked casually, bringing Quick’s train of thought crashing into a violent stop.

Quickcase turned and glared at his friend. “Is now really the time?”

Echo shrugged. “Hey, you never know what will happen if you don’t take that leap of faith. Sometimes you just gotta take that - DUCK!”

Quickcase found himself tackled to the floor and he scrabbled for cover behind a desk as bullets flew mere centimeters where his head had been. The constant fire of machine guns blasted away at the tables and desks riddling them with holes

“Report,” Heavy’s voice came over the com. “What were those shots?”

“Turrets!” Echo yelled. “Why does a library have automated gun turrets?! In the comic section of all places?!”

“To scare ruffians like you away?” Thunder chimed in happily.

“Not helping!” said Echo, “Seriously, pre-war ponies are more screwed up than the wasteland!”

“Do you need assistance?” asked Heavy.

Quickcase rolled his eyes at that before turning to his friend. He made a few quick gestures with his hooves which earned a nod from Echo.

“Nah we got this. We’ll keep you updated though,” Echo said arrogantly, his companion ready to engage.

Quickcase took a peek at his surroundings now that he wasn’t distracted by his friend. Two turrets guarded a seemingly unimportant section of the library, which he mentally wrote down. There was little cover beyond the main desk of the reading room they were in, with most of the foal sized tables already fallen apart. However, he did notice a crawlspace that had been created by bookshelves. He made a few more motions at Echo, who readied his weapon.

Quickcase took his own laser pistol in his mouth as he quietly made his way in between the fallen bookcases, which not only provided a path closer to the turrets, but some cover from them as well. He slowly moved towards them, closing over half the distance when he nudged one of the book cases by accident, causing it to shift.

The noise caught the turrets’ attention, which turned and began raining fire down on the pegasus. As his cover was nearly destroyed, a sniper shot rang out and caught one of the turrets dead on. The second turret shifted its targeting parameters to the new threat. With the opportunity, Quickcase pushed through the remains of his now destroyed cover and began firing his pistol at the auto turret. It spun back around to return fire, but as luck would have it, the auto turret overheated and was now in its cooldown cycle, leaving it helpless as laser rounds smacked into its body several times, causing it to explode.

“Not bad. I could’ve done better, but you were an excellent distraction.” Echo winked at Quickcase as he helped brush debris of his friend. “Seriously though, placing turrets in a random spot like this? Those pre-war ponies are crazy.”

“Or clever,” -Quickcase got on the comm- “Heavy, we have a live terminal here that needs Thunder’s expertise.” He motioned to a still flickering monitor near where the turrets had been guarding. Echo made a silent ‘ooh’.

******

Thunder Cloud and Heavy rejoined their allies in short order, with the blue pegasus moving to the terminal with her new ‘pet’ loyally following behind her while she casually hoofed a now repaired rocket launcher to Quickcase. “Pretty high security for a civilian library, but I got this.”

“Why are you giving me a loaded rocket launcher?” Quickcase asked as he looked at the heavy weapon with an odd expression.

“Because I don’t trust Echo. He would treat it as a toy and blow something up by accident. Besides, Heavy is already good at blowing things up and doesn't need further encouragement.”

“But you’re better skilled with-”

She waved a wing at him. “I’m busy. So be a dear and hold it.”

Echo laughed. “Reduced to carrier pony. Oh, how the mighty have fallen.”

“At least he doesn’t complain when somepony asks him to do something.” Heavy spoke.

“We all know he’s too much of a gentlecolt,” said Thunder Cloud in amusement

She hit a button and one side of the wall opened up. Heavy readied her grenade launcher and started to take up position when a bullet fired from the secret hallway and struck her wing. She screamed as it was set ablaze.

Enraged, Quickcase aimed the rocket launcher down the hallway. He barely heard Echo yell and didn’t even wait to verify his target as he pulled the trigger. The missile flew down the hallway and exploded in a cascade of fire and shrapnel. He didn’t hear the yells of his victims or his allies. Instead, realising he wasn’t being shot at anymore, he threw the weapon aside and rushed over to Heavy. He forced a health potion down her throat and the healing energy danced over her wing, canceling out the flame.

“Void fuck me with a meteor, that bloody hurt!” She yelled as she got on her hooves. “Thanks for the heal.”

Quickcase smiled at Heavy, nodding in relief. He was about to say something when his gaze turned to Thunder Cloud who had a horrified expression. “Ancients preserve us…”

“Damn dude…just...damn.” Echo whispered in shock

Heavy and Quickcase turned their attention down the hallway. The mare let out a sharp gasp while Quick’s eyes went wide. They were zebras, yes, but through the torn and mangled bodies, they realized that they were zebra foals.

“Mommy… mommy…” cried the voice of a young filly from the carnage. Thunder Cloud immediately ran into the room and came across the zebra, crying from a large piece of shrapnel that was embedded into her side.

“Hush now little one, I’ve got you.” Thunder Cloud readied a powerful restoration potion. “Be brave for me….” She pulled out the shrapnel and managed to convince the filly to drink a healing potion. The wound rapidly healed itself, and the filly shakily got to her hooves. “Are you alright?”

The filly looked at her for a long moment, and then turned to look at her fallen kin. Her voice let out a high pitched cry as she turned back at her savior with hatred burning in her eyes. “MURDERERS!” She screamed, biting down on the shrapnel that had been lodged inside her only moments ago and lunged at Thunder Cloud.

The filly’s body glowed brightly for the briefest of moments before it turned to ash that collapsed harmlessly on Thunder Cloud. She turned slowly to find Quickcase standing next to her, resolute with a somber look on his face as he holstered his laser pistol. He offered a hoof to the mare which she accepted.

No words were spoken as the group gathered together and reached the end of the hallway, which held their prize. A pipbuck with a complete map of all pre-war military facilities, with numerous bypass codes to make accessing them far easier. Such an item would be worth any price in the eyes of the Enclave. Heavy touched the item, and it shimmered out of existence. The entire world was then engulfed in a bright silver light, and then there was nothing.

“Simulation Ended. Opening training pods.” A mechanical voice spoke as the space around the team seemed to disappear.

****

Within the center of the mostly empty room were five pods that formed a circle. All five opened and Quickcase and his squad filed out, as if they were waking up from a long sleep. Quickcase was blinking the sleep away until he noticed Thunder Cloud who had tears in her eyes as she walked to a corner. Just as he was going to comfort her, the only entrance to the room opened and out came an older red stallion with an obsidian mane and tail, wearing a well-kempt military long coat.

“Lieutenant Turncoat, sir!” Heavy said as she saluted. Quickcase and Echo quickly saluted, with Thunder Cloud falling behind, still wiping away tears but still trying to keep a professional stance.

“An excellent performance, team Night Fang” said Turncoat. “You scored 87%”

“Really, guess Team Starbolt can suck it,” Echo said with excitement

“However, your score could’ve been higher had it not been for a couple of missteps,” The Warrant seemed disappointed. “Echo, snipers don’t get caught. Heavy, you failed to take proper cover when opening a door, had that been a machine gun you’d have been shredded.”

“Quickcase, you fired an explosive weapon in an enclosed environment. Not only did you threaten the lives of your team but you also failed to consider the potential damage you might’ve done to the artifact you were assigned to retrieve.” Then the Warrant’s eyes fell on Thunder Cloud. His expression softened but the sadness on her face was still apparent even after the tears have stopped. “Thunder Cloud, you failed to assess whether the threat was still active, you should’ve waited till the area was properly secured before deciding to heal those in need.”

“But sir, they were foals,” she struggled to speak the words “I couldn’t just-”

Turncoat interrupted. “I understand your feelings of sympathy, but letting emotions get in the way of the mission can have serious consequences. Had Quickcase not stepped in you’d be blinded at best or dead at worst.” He brought his gaze back to the team. “Tomorrow morning at 08:00 you’ll go through the simulation again, and I expect a better performance. For now, take the rest of the day off.”

“Sweet,” said Echo, and without another word he was the first to leave. “Catch y’all later.” Turncoat was not far behind.

“I’ll go lay down,” an aggrieved Thunder Cloud mumbled as she to left the room.

Quickcase was about to leave himself until Heavy blocked his path. He had been in such deep thought that he would have ran right into her if she hadn’t spoken up.

“Don’t think I don’t know why you acted the way you did in there. That was reckless.” scolded Heavy.

“I know,” Quickcase stated woefully.

Heavy sighed with resign. “If anypony is to blame it’s my fault. I should’ve taken cover. I’m the team leader for night’s sake, there’s no room for mistakes.”

Listening to Heavy like this made him feel empathetic. He shifted his stance slightly. “Mistakes were made yes, but all we can do is learn from them.”

Heavy chuckled at Quickcases words. “You read that in a book somewhere?” she stated amusingly.

Now Quickcase felt rather lighthearted. “Father owned a bookstore. He made sure I had a lot of material to keep me occupied.”

Heavy seemed to contemplate that, but then her expression turned serious. “I want to ask you a moral question.” There were a few seconds of silence before Heavy spoke again “When you shot that filly, what went through your mind?”

Quickcase took a deep breath as he gathered his thoughts. “I weighed the filly’s life over my teammate and I chose Thunder Cloud. I took no pleasure in what happened, but I did what was necessary.”

Heavy was quiet for a long moment before speaking again. “And if the filly were real?”

“I’d rather live with a guilty conscience of those I’ve killed then live with the consequences of having my friends die or, having you die.”

“You read that in a book, white knight?” Heavy snarked.

“Why, you inspire me to be as such,” he complimented.

“Ok, now I know you have been spending far too much time with Echo,” she said with a smile.

“He’s a terrible influence, but you get used to it.”

“I’ll bet.” Heavy paused, “You know what, I’ve decided I need a drink. You’re coming with me.”

For the first time in a while, Quickcase had a genuine smile on his face. “I’d be happy to.”

__________________________________________________________________
Quickcase - Hoof Note: Level Up

Book Worm- Your love of books allows you to gain more wisdom and knowledge when reading from new books and magazines.

Author's Note

I'd like to thank Cenkic for helping me edit this story

Fallout Equestria Loyalty takes place in an alternate universe from the original FOE. So it's pretty much it's own canon. There is no Equestria but Andalusa, there are no characters from the original FOE, all characters belong to the writer of the story. Which is me.

Chapter 2: Arrival

It was 6 A.M. when the alarm clock blared on Heavy’s nightstand. Squinting in the early morning light, she stuck her wing out from under the covers, gently lifted it up, and slammed the mechanical device to the ground. The clock made a dying croak, before it smoked and fizzled out, getting a brief disapproving ‘murr’ from Thunder Cloud who lay in bed on the other side of the room.

As Quickcase stirred and the morning light entered his vision, he caught sight of Heavy: and a warm smile crawled on his face when both their eyes met.

“Heyas.” Heavy greeted, in a soft tone.

“Hey.” Quickcase replied. The two just stared at each other for a good while before he broke the silence. “So, do you talk first, or should I talk first?”

Heavy responded to that by playfully shoving a pillow at his face. “Good talk.” She chuckled and climbed out of bed, casually pushing the remains of the alarm clock aside before letting out a yawn. “You’re such a lightweight. You know that right?”

Quickcase scoffed in a light hearted tone. “Says the mare who could outdrink the entire bar.”

“Well yeah, but you’re still a lightweight.” They both chuckled at the events of last night. “So, how about we do us a favor and keep this thing between us. Can’t imagine what ponies would think if they learnt I slept with a teammate.”

“Especially Echo?” asked Quickcase with a smirk.

“Especially Echo,” Heavy let out a small groan at the thought but eventually shook it away. “Well, I’m going to take a shower.” She stated as she entered the bathroom.

On the other side of the room, a tired Thunder Cloud rubbed the sleep out of her eyes and turned to Quickcase. There was an awkward silence as he just thought about how quickly hiding the relationship was already failing.

“How long were you there?” Quickcase asked nervously, shifting his body slightly as Thunder’s eyes seem to bear down on him. Nopony said a word, that is until the shower came on.

“Long enough.” Thunder Cloud slid the blanket off her. “Your secret is safe with me.”

She pressed a button near her bed and a small hatch opened. Out hovered a small drone no bigger than a baseball with four appendages and a screen that simulated facial expressions via emojis. Thunder Cloud petted it on the head and the little robot began grooming her misshapen mane with combs and occasional hair sprays.

Quickcase noted that the mare had none of the energy and enthusiasm she usually did about technology, even taking into account her just waking up. She wasn’t even bragging about her little robot. “Something on your mind?”

Thunder Cloud seemed apprehensive at first. It took a while for her to find what she wanted to say before she finally managed to get the words out. “I know why you did it. I was in danger and you did what you could to protect me.”

Quickcase figured it was about the zebra filly from yesterday. He relaxed himself, preparing his voice with as much calm and comfort as he could muster. “She was hostile.”

“Hostile!?” Thunder said with a hint of anger, “Quickcase, she was a scared filly!” The small droid placed it’s hair appliances back on the shelf, and then hovered in place, unmoving.

Quickcase got out of bed and began to stretch. “She was a hologram. Even if she wasn’t, she tried to kill you. I made a split second decision to preserve my team and I stand by that.”

Thunder Cloud seemed frustrated but she couldn’t find the words, and she struggled to keep herself from crying. “Promise we you won’t ever do something like that?” she pleaded.

“You know I can’t make that promise,” Quickcase tone was earnest but still kept himself calm, “To me, the well-being of my teammates outweighs the life of a hostile stranger.”

The mare let out a sigh. “I suppose I can’t fault you for thinking that.” The small robot nudged Thunder Cloud with an expression of worry on it’s face as it let out low beeps and boops. “It’s alright, I’m fine,” She turned to face the nearby mirror, where she found herself groomed and ready, “Well done as usual.”

The robot emitted an excited sound before turning to Quickcase. The screen on its face displayed a ‘gag’ expression before picking up it’s hair supplies from the shelf. It hovered near him and from the look on Quickcase’s face he didn’t seem to mind it’s presence. Of course, given that he usually had such a stoic expression, Thunder worried he might still swat her companion out of reflex.

“I think he’s offering to do your mane. You should probably accept, considering you look as unkempt as a dirt pony.” She said as she gestured to the mirror.

From where he stood Quickcase could see himself in Thunder Cloud’s mirror and he had to agree.

****

A few hours later and the two mares were still chuckling as they entered the briefing room.

“I still think you should have kept the style.” Heavy began with an evil smirk on her face.

“I’m sorry, Quickcase.” Thunder said, trying to stifle a chuckle. “I forgot I had it set to mare. At least we fixed your mane to your usual ponytail right?” She pointed at his ponytail.

“It’s rather...new to say the least” Quickcase said sheepishly, earning another round of laughter from the girls.

He just sighed and found Echo among those gathered, sitting on one of the benches. He seemed hungover, as the red pegasus lazily waved a wing to his friend offering a fresh seat next to him.

“Fun night?” Quick asked, which earned him a groan from his friend.

“Nah. Got rejected again, so I was hanging out with my second best friend, apple cider…” He rubbed his temple, “Now I have a headache the size of a Raptor.” He looked at Quick. “How ‘bout you?”

“Heavy challenged some guys to a drinking contest. Suffice to say she won, and I had to play designated flyer.”

“Lame.” Echo said tiredly, and then turned to look at the girls who were chuckling. “They’re in a good mood. So what happened with you?”

Quickcase hesitated, his thoughts scrambling to think of what to say. “Well-”

The door to the room opened and a dull yellow colored mare with a slightly brighter yellow mane and tail entered, wearing a navy blue uniform, “Officer on deck!”

Everypony stood at attention, even Echo joined in the silence as a second mare entered, this one was particularly well groomed with a frost coat and charcoal mane and tail wearing a black uniform. On her head was a black cap with the letter “E” and three stars emblazoned on it. The first mare that entered the room walked up to the center podium, her eyes gazing between each soldier that stood before her.

“At ease.” Everypony in the room relaxed, “As some of you should remember, I am Captain Peace Maker.” She began, waving a wing. “And as some of you know, today is your special day. You fledglings finally get to leave the nest and travel to the surface.”

Quickcase could hear the stirs of whispering among those gathered. The captain allowed it to go on for about a minute before raising a hoof, quieting them down.

“Now, I know you all have been training for this, but you’re still fledglings who’ve barely stretched their wings in this world. Hold fast to your training, look to your teammates for support, and above all, remember that you fight for the very future of all pegasi. When you return, you will be proper Enclave soldiers!”

The pegasi in the crowd turned to their partners, some smiling, some giving quiet affirmations of success, while others hoof bumped. Even the captain couldn’t help but smile a little at their enthusiasm.

“Now then, for your mission details, I would like to turn this meeting over to the heroine herself, Commander Lightwave.”

Dead silence went across the room as the frost colored mare from before walked up to the podium. While the silence for the captain had been one of respect, this silence was heavy, almost like mourning.

Lightwave cleared her throat. “Thank you Captain.” She then turned her attention to the gathered troops. “Looking upon all of you today, I see many bright and eager faces willing to prove themselves.” She unfurled her wings and extended them wide. “This proud ship that you stand on now is the result of brave pegasi like yourselves risking their lives for the greater good. Many were lost on our first attempt at a ground operation, but their efforts united the different provinces amongst our people. For the first time in several generations, we are setting aside old differences for the sake of the Enclave as a whole.”

She then hit a button from behind the podium. The lights in the room dimmed, and from behind Lightwave came a projector screen unfurled from the ceiling, and an image of the Andalusian continent appeared.

“Andalusa, the largest continent in the world. Generations ago, our ancestors crossed the seas of the Maneland during the Great Calamity. Their escape spared their destruction, and on arrival, they saved the few remaining pegasi that survived. We’d been forced to stay above ground ever since, but not anymore,” The image changed to an overview of a city and the area surrounding it. “This is the city of Samarera. It may seem like a pre-war relic but that is not what makes it interesting. What is interesting is that, we’ve discovered sections recovering from the effects of the magical fallout, and the science community is eager to know why.” She then pointed to the cadets. “Each fireteam will be sent on an expedition and act as escorts for our retrieval teams.”

A hoof was raised from the crowd by one of the other ponies.

“Yes private?”

“What exactly will the scientists be doing ma’am?”

“I’m glad you asked.” She said with a touch of confidence. “They will be gathering samples, from the soil itself, to whatever non-hostile flora they can get their hooves on.”

She could overhear some ponies grumbling about their first assignment, and overheard one mention foalsitting.

“Already many of you are questioning why such a simple thing as ‘gardening’ might be important. We’ve already suffered one food shortage, and we will not suffer another. As it so happens this city was known as a major distributor of food from local farms. While the chances are low, there’s slim hope we may find uncorrupted genetic samples for potential food replication.” She then visibly shuddered. “Unless of course you would all rather survive on a diet of tasteless oats and cloud apples for the rest of your lives?”

The sounds of gagging, gasps, and looks of disgust was more than enough to convince them that perhaps the mission would be worth something after all.

There was a few seconds of silence Quickcase raised his hoof. “Ma’am, any rules of engagement should we encounter the native population?”

A mare spoke up from the crowd, “Please, let those dirt ponies try and mess with us.”

Then Echo spoke, “I heard there were bat ponies that can turn you to stone just by looking at them.”

“What? No way!” exclaimed another private.

Everypony in the room started talking to each other. Lightwave tapped her hoof on the podium several times to get their attention. “Alright, alright.” The talking continued. “QUIET!” The room fell silent and she cleared her throat. “In answer to your question, any contact with the primitive population is to be kept to a minimum. Should you come across any hostiles, do not engage unless the threat is to either yourself or the team. We do not deal in wasteland politics.” The projector screen went blank and the lights to the room went flared back to life. “Now, if there are no further questions you are dismissed. Good luck to all of you.”

*****

Echo took a deep breath as he stared down the scope of his modified laser rifle. The scope’s sight linked directly to his helmet, giving him a readout of distance, wind speed, and other minor information useful to track his target. He didn't actually need the information, years of practice had taught him what he needed. But it did make things easier.

He had his target dead center in his sites, but the little tracker told him that his target was out of optimum range. He could try firing and hoped he got lucky, but there was no need. The target had no idea it was being watched, unaware it was about to meet it’s end. Echo let out a small breath and pulled the trigger with his tongue. A red lance of energy fired from his weapon and struck the radroach head on, turning it into a pile of dust.

"Gotcha!”

"Congrats," Heavy spoke in a deadpan tone. "You vaporized a bug. You have earned your badge in exterminating."

“Do you mind? I’d rather not we attract any unnecessary attention.” An unfamiliar voice spoke in a condescending tone.

Echo turned to the speaker, a mare with a sapphire coat and dull pink mane. Ice Blossom, the lead science pony looking for anything of interest to the Enclave. She would be cute if not for her high-and mighty-attitude. “Oh, really? It’s been a very, very, VERY boring three hours! IT’S NOT LIKE ANYPONY’S HERE!” he shouted, his voice carrying to the edge of the city they were close to.

Ice Blossom stared at Heavy with a dissatisfied look. "Your troops should show more respect. Are none of you aware of the dangers out here?"

"We are aware ma'am. We will conduct ourselves more appropriately while you do your work."

Ice Blossom huffed and turned back to her readings.

“You’re not seriously taking her side are you?” Echo asked Heavy in a quiet tone.

“I am putting up with them, as should you. Look, I know this isn’t exactly what we were trained for-”

“I don’t recall us signing up to be foalsitters for spoiled brats.” Echo muttered.

Heavy ignored him and continued, “-but we still have a job to do nonetheless. So stow the attitude…even if she is being insufferable.” She let out a small sigh. “Besides, do you really want Lightwave or, night forbid, Turncoat getting on your case just because you heckled our assignment?”

Echo had to stifle a laugh at the statement. “Best impression on our first mission and all that rot right?” He gave a salute and spoke in an obviously forced serious manner, “I will contain my enthusiasm for vaporising unless we encounter a legitimate threat ma’am! I apologise for my rude behavior!”

The words were so forced that Heavy couldn’t help but roll her eyes, even if her own helmet covered her features as well. “Don’t overdo it. You might break something.”

Quickcase had been quietly listening to the exchange from his own guard point and decided to bring his gaze to Thunder Cloud who was with the other scientist, a stallion named Whisper Rain who had largely been going back and forth about various tech talk that Quick couldn’t follow.

Ice Blossom returned to her colleague, while Thunder Cloud gave her a wide berth. “Of all ponies we could have been assigned to, we get the green team.”

“To be fair, I’ve seen them train in the simulations, and they’ve got one of the highest marks. This is just…quieter than what they’re used to.” Whisper Rain said.

Ice Blossom let out an exasperated sigh. “Our research in the Enclave’s ability to retake the surface is paramount compared to a soldier's peace of mind. You’d be wise to remember that.”

“Umm, yes ma’am.” Rain said as he went back to looking at his PipBuck.

Quickcase turned his attention back to his sector, staring into the dead city that they bordered. They had landed just outside the city proper, at an old greenhouse that long been abandoned, save for a few mole rats that made their home nearby. Ice Blossom had been keeping a professional attitude, but Quick’s team had been getting bored. There were no threats like in the simulators, and the scientists hadn’t found any plants that were promising. So instead they took soil samples every so often.

Quicks memory turned to the old holotapes he had watched of the Samarera’s history. A lively city with ponies going about their day to day affairs, wondering about simple things like what would be for dinner, how to pay the bills, what interesting movies were playing that night. Now, it stood as a dessicated corpse, slowly falling apart as maggots gorged themselves on any good bits that were left. It truly was heartbreaking to see that survivors of the surface were more intent on looting and killing one another than trying to work together for a better future like the pegasi.

“Oh, I think I found something!” Whisper Rain called out, getting the attention of his colleague and the fireteam alike.

Rain was staring at his PipBuck and nearly ran into an old sky carriage that looked surprisingly intact, minus the fact that it was upside down and the roof seemed partially buried. Undeterred, he flew up to one of the doors and began pulling on it with little success.

“Need some help?” asked Thundercloud.

“No, no I got it!” He stated confidently. Making three more futile attempts to open the stubborn door, his only reward being a shower of ancient rust, and he sighed in defeat. “You know what, go ahead.”

Thunder Cloud flew next to the upside down carriage and studied it for a moment. With her power armor’s scorpion tail, she jabbed it into the lock, breaking it loose from it’s frame allowing for whatever goods inside to be inspected. “There you go, good sir.”

“Ah, thank you.” When Whisper moved to open the door, Quickcase blocked his path with a hoof. “Um?!”

“Just need to make sure it’s safe. I heard creatures called ghouls are known to hide in unexpected places.”

“In a locked vehicle?” asked Echo.

Thunder pondered for a moment. “Well, one of these could potentially hold at least eight ponies, so it doesn’t hurt to make sure.”

“But we all have EFS, and I’m not reading any movement inside!” Whisper complained.

“Better safe than sorry.” Heavy spoke as she approached.

She pointed with her hoof and the group nodded. Quickcase took point as Heavy and Cloud took positions on either side, while Echo landed on top in case anything got out. Taking a deep breath, Quickcase opened the door and backed away. Nothing appeared on their EFSs, and there were no sign of movement. Slowly he peeked inside, and what he saw made his heart sink. Five adult pony skeletons lay on their sides, their bones badly shattered and decomposed. Embracing two of the adults were the bones of three foals, with at least one who looked as though their parent had attempted to use their own body to cushion the fall for their child, though it had been futile. Quick could only hope that their deaths had been swift.

He let out a small disappointed sigh as he backed away. “All clear.”

Whisper Rain eagerly went inside the carriage, casually brushing aside the bones of the dead, breaking the embrace of child and parent as he found what he was looking for.

“Fascinating! These ponies were transporting seeds of lavender and sage, yet it looks as though the two somehow fused together over the last two hundred years, if these readings are accurate! Professor Blossom, you simply must see this!” The excitement in Whisper’s voice was unmistakable. Ice was hesitant at first but eventually entered after him.

Echo allowed himself a sigh of envy. “At least somepony is excited, ’Woo we found some mutant flowers, mission accomplished! Those soldiers? Phhht, didn’t even need them, except to stomp bugs and open doors.’”

Heavy looked ready to chastise him, but stopped short as she turned her gaze just past him. She stared for a moment before lifting a hoof pointing in the opposite direction of the city. “What is that?”

Everypony turned to see what she was talking about. The sky had been largely cleared to make exploration easier, but far in the distance there were deep black clouds, with a strange purple light in the center, an incredible amount of lightning dancing around it. Normally such a storm wouldn’t be alarming, but this storm was different. It was approaching at speeds much greater than any storm had a right to, and nopony was trying to stop it. Pegasi have the means to prevent and control such storms from occurring but this one was an anomaly.

Heavy got on the comms. “This is fireteam Night Fang to Sky Eye, we are tracking a massive storm approaching from the south of Samarera, please advise.” There was nothing but but static over the radio. “Night Fang to Sky Eye, please respond.”

Static continued to come over the radio for several seconds. “Unidentified storm fr...unable to cont...evacuat...repeat, all ground forces...air support not viable… …. …” The radio went dead.

“Dammit,” Heavy flapped her wings hovering in the air. “Alright everypony, pack your things, we’re evacuating to the city!”

Ice Blossom turned to the soldier with a disgruntled look. “Now hold on, we just made a unique discovery that needs to be properly handled or-”

“We have a massive storm of unknown proportions just over the horizon, and our air support is gone!” She raised her voice, causing both scientists to flinch. “As the head of this security unit I am responsible for your well being, which means I’m in charge when faced with a crisis. Now gather what you can and move out!”

The two scientists began gathering their equipment as fast as they could and Heavy turned to the others of her group. “Quickcase, you studied the maps more than anypony else. Any ideas?”

Quickcase brought up the map on his EFS, scanning through the pre-war locations and highlighted a marker, transmitting it to other members of the party. “Should be a Ministry building if these readings are correct. They were suppose to be designed with fail safes in case disaster struck, though whether or not it’s active we’ll have to see.”

Heavy nodded. “Good, then you take point and keep an eye out for hostiles. Last thing we need are casualties. Now go, we won’t be far behind you.”

Quickcase gave a salute and took to the skies towards the city.

*****

Thunder cracked through the sky with the force of a sonic boom. Quickcase silently cursed as he weaved around an old pre-war sign that had fallen a meters next to him. He dared to look up and found the sky had now turned a deep black at the storm's approach. Lightning danced above the city, forcing him to fly as low as possible. Wouldn’t want to get struck with electricity, his power armor was tough but he didn’t want to test its resistance to lightning.

“What the hell is up with that storm?!” Echo asked over the comms. “I’ve never seen anything like it!”

Thunder Cloud chimed in, “It does seem rather unnatural, the winds aren’t moving in any predictable pattern.”

“Cut the chatter you two!” Heavy commanded. “Keep your eyes open, I’m not losing anypony to this whether Quickcase, how is our path looking?”

“Area is clear for the most part. A few stragglers here and there, but they seem more concerned with finding cover than causing problems. I recommend staying in mid altitude flight to avoid potential confrontations.”

“Acknowledged. Keep us apprised of the situati-” Heavy’s communication cut out, leaving nothing but static.

Several lightning bolts shot from the sky, one bolt striking a building dangerously close to the pegasus. The shockwave sent him sprawling to the ground and he crashed into the roof of an abandoned vehicle with small pieces of debris falling around around him. The impact knocked the wind out of him, a surprised cry strangled in his throat. Quickcase’s health display showed only minor injuries at best, with most of the damage being absorbed by his armor. Luckily he was still able to move, removing himself from the vehicle and shaking the rubble from his power-armoured frame.

Over the din of the thunder and lightning, Quickcase almost missed the sound of a panicked scream. His ears perked up as he looked around, though his view was obscured by dust and dirt. Relying on EFS, he noted two blue marks, both of which weren't moving. Slowly Quickcase made his way to that general direction, the EFS reading the blue ticks as ‘living’ and ‘not hostile’.

“Don’t worry Candy, I’ll get you out of there!” A young distressed voice called out.

“Well, hurry it up Twister, I’d rather not be turned into a pancake!” A filly's voice yelled back.

The dust and dirt settled as Quickcase got closer to the source, two small figures coming into view. To his surprise there was a pink earth pony filly whose teal blue tail was trapped under a large boulder, with a blue unicorn colt with a darker blue mane doing his best to free his friend.

Candy’s eyes fell on Quickcase and fear rushed to her face. “Twister, behind you!”

The colt, presumably Twister, spun to see the armored pegasus that now stood before them. His magic disappeared around the boulder as he stared for the briefest of moments before jumping in front of Candy in a defensive stance. “Stay back!” He yelled, levitating a battered-looking pistol at Quickcase, which honestly looked like it would do more damage to itself than him if fired.

Quickcase tried to speak but was interrupted by a loud sound of twisting metal. They all looked up and bits of bigger debris were falling around them. Quickcase spread his wings and leapt forward, using his stinger tail to smash the rock that trapped Candy. The pegasus grabbed both children in his hooves. He vaguely heard the calls of his teammates, but their words were lost from the screaming foals and grinding metal. The last thing his team saw was the building crashing on top of him.

********

Heavy stared in horror as the building smashed right on top of where Quickcase had stood just moments ago. She flew towards the wreckage, but was stopped by a lighting strike that impacted in front of her. Moments later the ground itself shook, and the surrounding block collapsed into a massive sinkhole.

“What in all the stars happened?!” asked Ice Blossom.

Thunder began speaking on reflex, though even her voice seemed hollow as the words were spoken. “Well, based on two hundred years or so of neglect, balefire bombs, weather-”

“Where is he?! Where’s Quickcase?” asked Echo in a distraught voice, catching up to the rest of the team who were now gathered around the sinkhole. Thunder numbingly pointed down it’s center. Lightning flashed again, illuminating the destruction that had occurred below. “No. No way! No fucking way!”

Ice Blossom stated coldly to Heavy, “Sergeant, we still have a job to do. He knew the risks.”

Heavy removed her helmet and gave Ice Blossom a glare that could’ve melted tank armor, shutting her up completely.As she backed away in fear Sergeant Heavy took two very long breaths before saying in a calm voice, “We have to keep moving. This area is unstable, and that storm is on top of us. We need to get to shelter first-”

Echo flapped right in front of her, meeting her gaze, “Now hold it, there’s no way I’m leaving him.”

Heavy kept kept her calm composure, “We don’t know if he’s even alive, and we can’t help him if we’re dead. When we get back to base I’ll issue a search and rescue party.” She then resealed her helmet and flew over the sinkhole. “Now come on, we need to find shelter and we need to find it fast.” The winds were getting worse and the rest of the team were forced to keep moving. All except Echo, who stared down the hole for a few more seconds before departing.

“Damn it! Stay alive you hear? We’ll come back for you.” Echo managed to choke out as he flew to catch up with the rest of the team.

New Perk: Toughness - You had a building fall on you and your still not dead. You are one tough Pegasus! You gain 25% to damage threshold.

Chapter 3: Guidance

“Ow...Candy, you alright?” Twister asked as he pushed a couch off of him.

“Never. Felt. Better,” The earth pony grumbled as she looked around the dark room, groaning. “I can’t see a thing. Where are we?.”

“Hang on,” Twister said as he ignited his horn, providing light. The room, it turned out, was actually the underground railway system, with debris scattered throughout the tunnel. Looking above was a huge sinkhole from through which they had fallen. “How’d we survive that?”

Twister took in his surroundings, his magical glow falling on the black armored form that was now covered in rubble, its top half sticking out from the bottom of the wreckage. Both children screamed and the light on Twister’s horn gave out. He focused his magic again, and the light re-emerged. This time, Twister was further away but there was enough light for them to see. “Is it alive?” he asked.

Candy gulped before slowly walking up to it, placing an ear up against its head.

“I hear breathing…” Her eyes fell on the creature's wings and she touched them gently. “Oh. Oh my gosh, are those...wings!?” she exclaimed with amazement.

“Say what? Wings?” Twister trotted over to take a closer look. “You mean it can fly?”

Candy looked at the figure with amazement. “Gotta be a sky-walker! Unless you know anypony else that has wings. Besides a griffin of course?” Candy asked, to which Twister shrugged. “Still, it saved us, that makes it a hero in my book.”

“You mean like that ‘Paragon’ from the radio?” Twister asked.

Candy peered closer to the unconscious pegasus. “Actually, this looks a lot like a cyborg.” The little filly gave a gasp. “Like Dark Steel!”

Twister facehoofed. “Again with the pre-war comics,” he said, getting a closer look. “Anyway, what do you want to do with it?”

“Well, we can’t just leave it. That would be totally wrong and not heroic at all. Though all that rubble looks very heavy.” She took sight of the plasma rifle on the floor next to the prone pegasus, then a thought came to her and she looked around the area. “Where did we end up anyway?”

Twister caught sight of one of the metro maps on the wall. “Huh. Looks like we’re in the Drako Tunnel system. We shouldn’t be too far from the camp.” Twisters eyes went wide at a sudden realization. “Hey, where’s our saddle bags?”

“You lost our stuff?!” Candy asked. “Great, we’re going to be in so much trouble.”

Twister pointed at the filly. “Hey, don’t blame me, going outside was your idea.” He sighed. “Forget it, let's just head back. The others will be worried about us.”

The filly shook her head. “No way we’re leaving the sky-walker! He...she...it, saved us from that!” She pointed at the rubble that pinned their saviour.

“Look, you can’t move it, I can’t move it,” Twister exclaimed, as electricity danced around the entrance to the sinkhole, the eye of the storm just overhead, “and I’m sure that’s not going to wait for us to find a way either.”

Candy looked to Twister and then back to the pegasus. “I’m not leaving without it.” She focused her strength, struggling to move a huge chunk of rock, heedless of the thunder around them. “Now quit your whining and help me!”

Twister sighed in frustration and joined Candy in her fruitless attempt to free the prone sky-walker.

*****

The darkness plaguing him was starting to come into focus as Quickcase’s eyes adjusted to the light. Red filled his vision but thankfully it wasn’t blood, just the blaring red text:

SYSTEM REBOOT IN PROGRESS
SYSTEM POWER - 60%
HEALING CHARGES - 4/10 REMAINING
WEAPON HARNESS - DAMAGED
FLIGHT TALISMAN - ONLINE
REPAIR TALISMAN - ONLINE - INSUFFICIENT MATERIALS FOR REPAIR PROTOCOL
EFS - OFFLINE
RADIO - OFFLINE

He wondered where he was, but as soon as his eyes fell on the foals who were trying to free him, everything started coming back. As he lifted himself up, bits of rubble fell off his hindquarters along with groaning metal and he noticed the awestruck expressions on the two foals.

“Woohoo, we saved Dark Steel! We can be heroes!” Candy joyously shouted over the thunder, jumping up and down in joy.

Lightning struck the top of the rubble several times and appeared to be getting worse as the number of strikes increased.

“Yay, that’s great. Now, let’s get out of here!” Twister cried frantically as he used his magic to try and drag the still beaming Candy away, her hooves grinding against the floor.

*****

Quickcase felt winded. While the healing talisman had kept him alive, his body ached from the exertion and he finally allowed himself to slump to the floor. To make matters worse, his armor made it more difficult to move since parts of it were bent, jammed and poking him.

A compartment of his armor opened and out came a canteen of fresh water. When he removed his helmet for a drink, the first thing that hit him was the smell of the underground system. He had grown accustomed to the wide fresh air of the higher climates and was totally unprepared for mold, rust, and the myriad of other bad smells two hundred years could inflict on a location, especially underground. It took a minute for him to regain his composure, and when he did so, he came face to face with a very disappointed filly.

“Awwww,” Candy mumbled disappointedly, “Dark Steel can’t take off his helmet…you’re no cyborg at all...”

Twister just shook his head. “So much for your hero.”

The filly then beamed. “But you’re even better since you saved us! Plus, Dark Steel didn’t have wings, so that means our vigilante is even cooler! Like, twenty percent cooler!”

“I’m no vigilante,” Quickcase said as he stood. “I am a soldier of the Enclave, which means I help civilians and lost little foals.” He took a drink and offered it to the two foals. Twister looked hesitant, but Candy happily took it in her hooves, gulping every drop. “So, why are foals like you outside in a place like this?”

“We’re not foals! Anyway, I’m Cotten Candy, but people call me Candy for short. This is Sweet Wind, but he hates that name, so we call him Twister.”

“Hey! Don’t go telling strangers my name,” he said defensively.

“He’s no stranger. He’s the sky-walker!”

Quickcase looked back down the tunnel they ran from. “It’s Quickcase actually. I don’t suppose you two know of a way out?” He started to become apprehensive. “Places like these can be dangerous.”

“Dangerous? Pfftt, nah. Well, I mean sure they used to, but then the Paragon came in and blasted almost all the nasty ghouls and even took out a raider camp!”

Quickcase couldn’t believe what he’d just heard, but he figured if this Paragon can do something as impossible as that, then this, hero, must be very strong. “One pony cleared out the entire tunnel system?”

Candy looked a little guilty. “Well, maybe not the WHOLE thing, but enough so that ponies could start using them safely. Actually, there’s a settlement not far from here.”

“Candy!” Twister began sternly. “Don’t go telling him all our secrets. We still don’t know him.”

She turned to face the colt. “He’s coming with us. As the leader of this party, my decision has been made,” she said in a low firm tone, then turned back to Quickcase. “I mean, you do want to come with us, right?”

The pegasus began carefully weighing his options, and not at all because this filly was begging him. “I have ponies who are going to be worried about me…” he began, watching Candy’s smile start to disappear before continuing, “but, I would be remiss if I allowed two foals to wander alone. More importantly, if there are merchants nearby then, I’m in luck.” He brought his helmet into his forehooves. “ I might be able to get this fixed.”

Candy’s smile returned and she jumped up in joy. “Awesome!” She then looked to her coltfriend expecting approval.

Twister sighed. “Fine. We can take him. Suppose we do owe you for saving us, and I guess it would be pretty lame if you got killed by a Lightning Phoenix.” He held up a hoof before Quickcase could ask. “It’s the creature that’s making the storm above our heads. If you want to know more you’ll have to ask somepony else.”

Quickcase nodded, and Candy jumped up in joy again, which seemed to be a default movement that came with the filly. “Best day ever!”

*****
Quickcase was lead to what had once been a main terminal location for the metro system, where the trains would load and unload passengers from the platforms. Candy had gone into further detail that it had once been a den for feral ghouls, but after the Paragon cleared it, it became a suitable site for settlers. There were guard posts and turrets watching the west approach and the main entrance to the surface. The east tunnels had collapsed, and the south was still in the process of setting up defences since few ghouls apparently came from that direction. It was from this location that the party of three approached. Two guards watching the entrance aimed their weapons at the black armored figure before them.

“Hold it right there. State your business.” An older earth pony stallion called out while a younger leveled his weapon.

Candy blew a raspberry at them. “We ain't strangers ya goof balls! And this is a hero, did I forget to mention he’s a sky-walker?”

The guards looked at the filly with confusion, causing Twister to interject. “I can vouch for him. He saved us, and won’t cause any trouble.”

“Wait, the boss's kid? What are you and this...sky-walker, doing out so late? You know what, don’t answer.” The younger guard looked at the older stallion with surprise as they both lowered their weapons. The older guard looked at Quickcase. “Don’t go trying anything fancy, we got our eyes on you.”

Quickcase nodded. “I understand.”

Candy took the lead as she raced ahead, then stopped to face Quickcase. “Welcome to Metro Port!” she opened her hooves in an overly dramatic manner.

*****

As they walked through the station, Quickcase couldn’t help but be impressed with what he saw. Half a dozen ponies were disassembling a train car and using it to build makeshift housing, and others were setting up a light system powered by a non-exhaust generator. He could smell an improved air quality, and his ears picked up on the ventilation system. A few simple stalls for merchants had been set up, while towards the collapsed east side tunnel were pens for beasts of burden.

He had ended up falling behind the two foals as he took in the wastelanders’ ingenuity and resourcefulness. Seeing over two dozen ponies working to turn an abandoned train station into a settlement made him hopeful.

“Where have you two been?!” A stallion’s voice admonished, catching Quickcase’s attention.

The two foals had entered the mezzanine of the station, specifically where it looked like the security hub used to be. Quickcase made his way up the ramp to figure out what was going on. His escorts were inside an office and the door was wide open, letting every yell fly out for all to hear. The stallion was a unicorn, who had a dark brown coat and mane similar to Twister’s. The unicorn was sitting in a chair, looking down at the two foals with a scolding look.

“You know full well not to be out on your own!” The older stallion exclaimed, then directed his attention to the colt, “and Sweet Wind, I expect better from you!”

Twister shifted uncomfortably. “We were careful, the south of the city—”

“The south?!” The stallion interjected in surprise, “You know that area is dangerous, there’s a reason we avoid it! Between the sinkholes, bandits, you—”

“Come now dear,” a mare spoke with a gentle voice, another unicorn with a coat very similar to Twister’s own, “yes, they did leave without supervision, and they will be punished accordingly, but at least they made it back in one piece.” That seemed to stem the stallion’s worry, and he took deep breaths to calm himself. The mare then turned her attention to the foals. “Now, care to explain why your saddlebags are missing?”

Candy smiled with guilt, “Well, we did manage to find some supplies. That is, until my tail got stuck, then a building fell on us—”

“What?!” The stallion yelled, and even the mare raised an eye at the filly’s story.

“Yeah!” The filly continued with her enthusiasm. “A big piece of concrete fell on my tail, Twister tried to save me but couldn’t, and when all hope seemed lost, we were rescued by the most awesomest hero ever! Aaaand, get this, he’s a sky-salker!”

Quickcase sighed. “It’s Quickcase actually,” he spoke softly, as he walked up the ramp.

“He saved us and we helped him and now we’re friends!” Candy beamed.

The area fell silent for a moment as bystanders were starting to take note of the power armored figure and began to whisper to themselves. The mezzanine had bright lights so it was pretty hard to miss the black armored figure standing out in the open. Their staring didn't go unnoticed by him, so he kept ready for any potential threats. It seemed the opposite was the case as most were in shock and awe, a few were wary, but only one stood out from the rest.

Outside the window that overlooked everything, a pale white unicorn mare with a russet mane watched Quickcase with steady eyes, showing a cool control of her emotions. She wore a brown cowboy hat and a leather jacket. At her sides were holsters for two pistols that seemed of a heavier caliber than any other pistol these ponies had. What impressed Quickcase was that she wasn’t keeping her focus on him alone, but occasionally eyeing her surroundings for any troublemakers.

“Where are my manners? Come inside and we can speak further.” The old stallion’s voice brought Quickcase’s attention back to the present. Nodding, he was led into an office and closed the door behind him.

“Name’s Long Haul,” the stallion began, then gestured to the mare, “This is my wife, Harvest Trail, and you’ve already met my son, and our mascot Candy. I’m the temporary mayor of Metro Port. Sounds like I have you to thank for getting these two back home safely. I suppose you’d want something for your trouble?”

From the window Quickcase could see a train car that was being worked on. “If you’ve got any extra scrap metal, I’d be more than happy to take that off your hooves.”

All four ponies looked at him with a surprised look before Candy spoke. “Scrap metal? But that's practically worthless, unless…can you eat metal just like Dark Steel?”

Quickcase tried to respond, only for Harvest Trail to beat him to it. “No deary, that's silly. The armor eats the metal to fix itself.”

“Ooooooooh.” Candy nodded her head in understanding. Then she looked confused. “What?”

“It has a repair talisman similar to those Silver Knights,” Long Haul said as he looked over Quickcase’s armor carefully. The pegasus was surprised that they knew about such repair functions from power armor. “Never thought I’d see a pegasus variant. Then again, I never thought I’d actually see a pegasus with my own two eyes.”

Candy cocked her head. “Huh? Why not?”

Long Haul took a deep breath. “Well, you see—”

“I apologise for interrupting,” Quickcase began as he raised a hoof. “The storm above has cut me off from my allies, and I need help getting back to them. I don’t suppose you know of a guide to get me through the sewer system?”

Long Haul placed a hoof on his chin for a moment before getting out of the chair and walking to the window. Quickcase noticed that he had a bad limp on his rear left leg. “I know a few who might be able to help. Where were your friends heading?”

“The nearby Ministry of Magical Technology.” to Quickcase’s surprise, he instantly felt a change of mood as he mentioned that name and he found that everypony was giving him a worried look.

Long Haul let out a sigh. “You don’t wanna go there boy. Ponies that do rarely come back out.” Quickcase stood firm, unmoving in his choice, which must’ve worked since Long Haul lowered his head in defeat and pointed out the window to a caravan wagon. “Bronco there has been trying to get ponies to salvage the place. He’ll have more information on what you’ll be facing.”

Quickcase nodded in thanks before turning to leave.

“Wait,” Harvest Trail spoke up. “You saved my son, I can’t begin to tell you how grateful I am. We of the Happy Trails Caravan remember those who are kind to us. Do you need anything else?”

Quickcase looked at his messed up battle saddle. “Spare electronics would be ideal. If not, then perhaps something to protect myself?”

Harvest shook her head. “Sadly no, any electronic scraps we have are in use. But I think I may have something else.”

The unicorn used her magic to lift a well crafted 10mm pistol along with its holster and two boxes of ammo. Long Haul looked ready to voice a complaint, but a quick glance from his wife was enough for him to keep quiet.

“This here is Bitter Mercy. Nifty little weapon that’s got a special enhancement, one that allows it to punch through thick armor. It’s not much, but this should give you an edge.”

“Mom! I thought I was gonna get your awesome pistol!” Twister complained.

Harvest turned to face him. “Somepony wouldn't be alive if not for our friend here, now would he?”

Twister grumbled and muttered under his breath at this.

It may have been a primitive weapon, but beggars couldn’t be choosers. “I suppose it’ll have to do. Thank you,” Quickcase said, taking the weapon and sliding it into his foreleg holster. He had to admit he was quite missing his inventory management system at the moment.

He bid his hosts farewell and exited the office. Trotting down the ramp, he noticed the glimpses several of the bystanders were giving him, but most just went about their business. As he approached the stall where the caravan wagon was parked, he noticed the same unicorn mare with the cowboy hat, and by the way she was looking at him, she had something to say. His thoughts were confirmed when she stepped in front of him, blocking his path.

“Business?” she asked.

“I’m here about the job at the Ministry building.”

She looked him over before turning to the stall. “Hey Bronco, we got another prospect, this one should interest you.”

From behind the stall emerged a white earth pony with a blue and orange mane setting down a tray of…odd looking vegetables? The stallion’s emerald green eyes looked Quickcase over and he whistled.

“You’re right. This one does interest me.”

*****

Bronco’s laughter echoed through the station, catching the curiosity of a few onlookers.

“My friend, you are just the right type of lucky and crazy, with an honest heart to boot,” Bronco said as he patted the pegasus on the shoulder. “I’ve met a few ponies in my time that qualify, but you definitely take the cake.”

Quickcase had gathered as much scrap as he could. While waiting for the repairs to complete, he had recounted the events from landing on the surface to the arrival at Metro Port, at Bronco’s insistence. He was a little reluctant to begin with, but Bronco managed to bribe Quickcase with a tasty vegetable called a ‘steamed potato’, which he resolved to acquire a few samples of them before he went back to the Neigherside.

“I did what I had to. Seemed right at the time,” Quickcase stated as a badly bent monkey wrench was absorbed into his armor, along with a few other metals whose origins was unrecognizable. “Though, I should’ve gotten a better view of my surroundings before acting.”

Bronco chuckled. “Most wouldn’t risk their life the same way you did, let alone survive to tell the tale. Yet here you are.” He patted Quickcase again. “I’d say he’s just what we’ve been looking for, right Bolt?”

The unicorn mare had been quietly listening in on the story. “He seems better than the other prospects.” She looked him over quizzically.

“Others?” Quickcase asked as the last of the dents in his armor finally corrected themselves.

Bronco nodded. “Been looking for ponies to raid the Ministry hub for a while now. Unlike some, I’m picky about who I hire.” He gestured to the market. “Plenty want to tag along, but I’m not betting on the lives of inexperienced adventurers with delusions of grandeur.” He turned to Quickcase after placing down the tray of food. “I’d like to think I’m a good judge of character, and can generally tell when somepony has that special something. Take that Paragon mare, for instance. I met her when she’d barely crawled out of the underground—”

“Bronco, you’re rambling,” Bolt Action cut in.

He let out a small chuckle. “Ah, right. Sorry, bad habit of mine.”

“What’s your interest in the Ministry?” Quickcase asked as his armor verified that it was repaired, and he set the excess scrap aside.

“Glad you asked,” Bronco began, lowering his voice. “See, during the Great Calamity, the Ministries did all sorts of experiments. The branch of the Ministry within this city did experiments on magical radiation when they discovered the zebras got ahold of a weapon of mass destruction. Now, I have good information that suggests they had a device that can cleanse food of radiation and if the rumors are true, maybe even replicate it. I believe it was called a ‘Food Processor Prototype’. Can you imagine what ponies could do with food that they can simply copy at the push of a button? What I want are the schematics. Even better if you manage to find one that’s fully functional.”

Quickcase looked at the stallion skeptically. “Your food seems fine already. Why would you need it?”

Bronco smirked. “Fair question. A lot of farms manage to get things going, but their crops are usually tainted with magical radiation. The land my family owned was able to avoid the worst of the apocalypse thanks to its location, allowing the potato family—”

“Bronco,” Bolt interrupted sternly.

“Right.” He cleared his throat before continuing. “As I was saying, if the technology still exists, I know ponies that could reverse engineer and mass produce it. I may enjoy the profits of my labor, but nopony wants to die from the very thing they need to survive.”

Quickcase was quiet for a moment. Not only do these ponies know how to survive off of scrap metal, but they also show genuine emotion for others. Enclave reports always suggested that the wasteland natives were savage, but this is the complete opposite. “So I suppose you want somepony to find it for you?” Quickcase asked.

“Eeyup, and there’s a reward in it for you should you decide to take the job.”

Quickcase pondered for a bit. Right now the only thing on his mind should be getting back to his unit in one piece, but if this stallion’s story was true, then finding this device could further relations between the Wastelanders and the Pegasi. Not only that but the Enclave would be able to use said contraption to strengthen their food supply, if he could find and copy the blueprints. “I’ll see what I can do.”

Bronco clapped his hooves together. “Excellent.”

“One thing still bothers me though. Why not go and get it yourself?” Quickcase saw no harm in asking such a straightforward question. If this device is as important as Bronco says he could've easily had it by now.

Bronco chuckled nervously. “About that.” He seemed rather reluctant at first. “Ministries are known to have, decent protection, you can’t just walk right in and take what you want. It’d be suicide. Besides, I’m a farmer and occasional business pony, not a fighter.”

Quickcase involuntarily took a step forward, eyes widened. “Are you saying my friends could be in danger?” Initially he dismissed Long Haul’s warning as the words of a superstitious civilian, but now the pegasus was having second thoughts.

Bronco nodded. “Well, potentially.”

“Then I have little time to waste. How soon can the rest of the team assemble?” Quickcase asked, trying to stay calm, though the sense of urgency in his voice was apparent.

Bronco turned his gaze to Bolt Action standing nearby. Her eyes fell on the grinning stallion and she sighed. Getting up from her bench, she tipped back her cowboy hat and spat out the lollipop stick.

“Fine. But it’ll cost you extra,” she grumbled, as she walked past Quickcase and to a door that lead downstairs.

“Is that all?” Quickcase asked in disbelief.

Bronco chuckled. “Trust me, she’s all the backup you need.”

The pegasus was quiet for a moment before he reached out a hoof to Bronco who kindly took it into a hoof shake. “I guess I should thank you.”

“Hey, you’re the one who is going to be risking his life. I don’t envy you that.” When Quickcase turned to leave, Bronco interrupted him, whispering in his ear, “Oh, and one more thing. Watch each other’s backs in there. Last guy who went in said his friends disappeared without a trace, claimed that ghosts of the old war got them. While I wouldn’t put much stock in that, keep your eyes open all the same. There is a reason those ministries are generally avoided.”

Quickcase nodded. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

Ghosts of the old war? A superstition to be sure, but rumors and stories usually formed from some basis of truth. Quickcase could only hope that his friends his friends could handle themselves until he arrived.

*****

The tunnels were long and tedious, and the lack of light made it difficult to see where one was going. While the scrap metal had fixed the damage in the armor itself, the electronics within the helmet were still off-line, so he had resigned to leave it off while traveling, and had to make due without any of its useful functions such as the radio or night vision. Thankfully, Bolt Action knew of a spell that allowed her horn to illuminate a limited area. It was a neat trick, and Quickase wondered if all unicorns knew the same spell, but he hadn’t yet asked. It would be an odd (and probably offensive) way to start a conversation

In fact, the entire trek was getting downright awkward. Nopony had said a word since their departure from Metro Port, the echoes of hoof steps was the only thing that greeted their ears. He was used to the idea of stealth missions and keeping radio silence, but that was with known friends in ‘high risk’ training scenarios. In this situation, Echo or even Thunder Cloud would have already broken the silence with something to say, especially with a new pony in the group. Echo had even attempted to chat up Ice Blossom, even though that had ended in less than stellar results.

Quickcase opened his mouth to speak, only to have Bolt beat him to the punch. “So, what’s your story?” she asked, before turning to him.

“Pardon?”

“Your story. Or perhaps you pegasi in general. We on the ground treated you lot as little more than myth for who knows how long, and then y'all show up out of nowhere and defeat the largest raider army the Wasteland has ever seen. Your actions saved countless lives and stabilized the region as a result. Call me curious.”

“I see our actions haven’t gone unnoticed,” Quickcase said with a touch of pride.

Bolt Action raised an eyebrow but nodded. “It was hard to miss. Ponies are calling it the Battle for Solace and I’d say that very few haven’t heard of it at this point. A near impenetrable fortress loaded with pre-war technology and the worst raiders known to ponykind. Then, from the clouds as though from legend itself, come flying ponies in black armor, raining fire from the heavens. Honestly, until I saw you I didn’t really believe it,” Her eyes narrowed. “So, why are you here? I doubt it’s to suddenly become new ‘heroes’ of the Wasteland.”

Quickcase couldn’t help but notice the emphasis on the word ‘heroes’, and the disdain behind it. He put that thought aside along with the fact that she knew about the Solace Incident. It would have to be something to report later.

“There are those among us who believe the surface is of great value.”

“What could possibly be of value about it?” Bolt asked with skepticism in her voice.

Quickcase shrugged. “We have books and videos of what the world was like before the war. Some want to help return the world to that peaceful state instead of continuing our isolation. Besides” —he pulled out one of Bronco’s potatoes from his armor’s compartment— “after eating this, I’ve come to like the surface a whole lot better.”

The unicorn tried to suppress a snicker, especially considering how serious Quickcase had just sounded. “That’s the best thing you’ve ever tasted?”

The pegasus placed the potato back in its compartment and pulled out a ration bar. “This is our version of food, at least for those of us in military service.” He broke a piece off and offered it to her. “Go ahead and try a bite.”

She raised her hoof and shook her head. “I’ll take your word for it. So, I guess not all of you fly around in power armor then?”

“No. With my family, it was only my mother that served in the Enclave military. Life was fairly normal. Nopony had to struggle to survive, and even in the toughest of times we always pulled through.”

Now she looked confused. “If everything was peachy, why come down here? The wasteland is vile and corrupted, twisted beyond all recognition. Your ‘videos’ cannot compare to the horror of our reality,” She spat the words as if they were poisonous. “Definitely not a place for delusions of making the world better.”

Quickcase fell silent for several moments before continuing, “Because we have hope.”

Bolt Action stared at Quickcase for a long moment before rolling her eyes. “You sound just like the Paragon all over again.”

“I’ve been hearing that name a lot lately. Someone I should know about?” he asked.

“Oh, believe me. Make enough noise and she’ll come knocking sooner or later. Now watch your step. We’re getting close.”

Walking up a flight of stairs to the second level of the underground train line, the area they were in was empty, save for a single train car laid on its side, the back frame covered in centuries old burn marks, the remains of a pony skeleton hanging from the side. If Quickcase had to guess, that pony probably tried to crawl his way out after the train tipped over. He felt for whoever the pony was, wondering if he or she died in pain. It put him on edge, he knew the ground below was bad, but had never expected this.

“What about you?” he asked Bolt with slight unease, eager for a distraction.

The unicorn sighed. “Caravan girl. Family never stayed in one place when it came to trade. If a town needed fresh food or water, ponies called the ‘Canary Caravan’. Always delivered, if you could pay the fee. Things went well, ‘til the Raiders came.”

“Raiders? I thought that was the name of their army?”

Bolt shook her head. “Before they became a huge threat, they used to be disparate groups of bandits, highwaymen, and other ne'er do-wells. Somepony just had an idea to unify most of ‘em, and that’s how it all started.”

“So what happened?” Quickcase asked.

Bolt Action stopped in her tracks, the shadow of her hat hiding her eyes. “I was of age to try my first delivery. It went well, but, when I returned, my brother was the only pony to escape the onslaught. With no family, we were left to fend for ourselves. Survived ever since.”

There was a sadness in her voice for sure, he could tell, but also a hint of self-confidence. Quickcase could only imagine what it must be like, to lose everypony in your family. If this is the type of thing that awaits his people, then vigilance would be needed now more than ever.

Quickcase’s eyes caught sight of the door that that blocking their path, and allowed his new partner some silence, so she could regain herself.

Bolt Action’s horn glowed with a mint aura, and from her trenchcoat came an unusual looking pistol that Quickcase had never seen before. It was silver, with decorative engravings of two roses on its barrel. The ‘grip’ was also odd. It wasn’t a mouth grip by any means, in fact, he didn’t think it belonged to any ’pony’. The cowgirl walked over to the door and readied herself, motioning for Quickcase to do the same. The door was slowly pushed open and they entered carefully, doing their best to watch each other's back. Quickcase had to admit that he was both glad and impressed that she seemed to understand the basics of military tactics. The place they entered had been a waiting room where ponies could buy tickets, visit small shops for souvenirs, and old security bots would wander around to deter troublemakers. One of the old protecta-bots lay in a heap, long rusted and stripped of anything useful.

When they turned up no hostiles, Bolt Action twirled the pistol around, showing it off. She must’ve noticed Quickcase was starring. “Catch your fancy? I call him Buccaneer Rose. Took it off a griffin who decided to break his contract.”

Quickcase took that in, now understanding and recognizing the weapon from the history books and how the bird-like creatures used them in days past. “Must have been a hard fight.”

Bolt grinned. “One of the hardest fights in my life, but it was totally worth it for this and the caps it brought in.”

“Caps?” Quickcase asked in confusion. The look of shock on Bolt Action’s face was priceless, and Quickcase wished for a moment that his helmet was still working, if only to capture the moment.

“No… you can’t be… you’re dead serious ain’t you? How in day’s end are you lot planning to descend to this place if you don’t even know that?! Caps, you know…bottle caps! They’re what we use for currency down here.”

Quickcase gave her a deadpan look. ”Really? You use bottle caps?”

“Well, yeah! I mean, it's always been that way,” Bolt said, sounding just a little defensive.

Quick nodded his head. “We’ve got a long road ahead of us indeed.” He had to admit, it was resourceful, though how these dirt ponies managed to keep such an economy stable was baffling.

“What would a pony living a peaceful life know anyway?” She said, annoyance in her voice.

“Less than I’d like, which is all the more reason I will be relying on your support.”

Bolt looked at him with surprise, and she gave him a small smirk. “Maybe there is hope for you yet.” She looked around the area and pointed at another door. “I’ll watch your back.”

Readying his weapon, Quickcase walked up to the door, only to find it locked. Looking atop of its frame he noticed a sign that read ‘Harding Souvenirs. Best souvenirs and snacks for long trips!’.

She nodded. “I got this.” She put her gun away, pulled out a bobby pin and a screwdriver, and began working on the lock.

“That only works in movies. There is no way—” Quickcase began.

A click from the door interrupted him, with Bolt Action giving him a very smug look. “You were saying?”

“So, why are we breaking into a moons-old store? I’m sure anything of value will be long past its expiration date.”

“To survive the wasteland, you scavenge what you can. Medical supplies, ammo, food and water. Heck, stuff you don’t even need can be useful for trading when you get back to town.”

Quickcase looked down at her and then the shop. “But… it's been two hundred years. You really think there’s anything left?”

Bolt let out an exasperated sigh. “Are you going to question everything you encounter?”

“Well, it's just that it makes no sense!”

“Who knows. Maybe ponies in the past were really good at making stuff last. Maybe some lesser spirit of chaos randomly refills loot boxes for scavengers like ourselves, or maybe the equipment magically restocked itself.” Quickcase gave her a skeptical look and she shrugged. “Hey, I’m not going to question it. Best to pay attention to the pony that’s been doing this all her life.

The two once again slowly made their way inside and found the place was empty. Bolt let out a breath of relief. “I’ll never get used to the fact that the Paragon actually cleared this place. Most would have figured it was an impossible task. Still, never let your guard down, or you will wind up dead.”

‘A cheerful thought,’ Quickcase thought to himself.

“Now, let’s see what we can find.”

The two began searching through the small store, though Quickcase was still skeptical that anything would be found. “So,” he began as they looked between store shelves, “you mentioned you had a brother?”

The unicorn stopped in her tracks, “I’d rather not talk about it.”

Quickcase recognized that that was dangerous territory and didn’t bother to push further. He looked around the store but again, it was empty, “Nothing but empty cans and a toy car at the moment.”

“Grab them anyway. Your armor needs metal right? There’s more of it here.”

He opened his mouth to argue, but realized she had a valid point. Crushing the cans, he placed them in the reserve compartment for repairs.

“Don’t carry too much, it’ll-” she said, halting mid-speech. In a blur Bolt whipped out her pistol with her magic, pointing it at…a trash can?

“Come out where I can see you,” she demanded.

There was a few seconds pause before the spy emerged, “You wouldn’t shoot a filly would you?” A familiar voice spoke. Then, jumping from the trash can (and somehow completely clean) popped out a pink and white filly with the biggest grin she could muster.

Quickcase’s eyes widened. “Candy?! What are you doing here?”

Chapter 4: A Way Out