Fallout Equestria: The Metal Ring.

I need you to find her my friend. She needs to know stories of unicorns vanishing. It’s not as bad as most think it is right now. There are so many things I wish I could tell you over a letter. But I need her to know she is needed again. She needs to forgive those that backstabbed her so long ago. If you could at least give Melody these letters I am writing to you. Maybe she will look out for her. The final journey is coming my friend and we can’t just sit back and allow the past to stop us from winning this coming battle.

Written by the healer to the leader of the community.

I open my eyes and I hear a strange sound like an alarm. I look at my helm, it's like it’s trying to warn me of something. Then before I could do anything I saw eyes open in the darkness and a dark growl. Coming into the light a Manticore, a small one, jumps me.

I am finally able to move as it goes in for the kill. It’s a manticore that roars before anything could happen. A gun goes off and the manticore roars in pain and falls over dead. Amber quickly runs into the room.

“Oh, Goddess, you're awake. We opened the door and when we did all hell broke loose. Get your armor on, we need to defend the hive before they make it deeper into the tunnels.”

I quickly get out of bed noticing my door broken down and the rest of the inn full of gun marks and I am worried about the innkeeper before I could get my armor on when the rat comes in wearing heavy power armor. It looks like it is made just for her. It’s made of various garbage and old armor fused.

“Thank the goddess the Junk reapers made me this before I left home years ago.”

I get a good look at the armor and the rat takes the helm off her head staring at me.

“Look if you want to get gutted by these creatures go ahead keep gawking at me. Get your armor on now that is a damn order!!”

I quickly get my armor wondering why. I have no idea what she just said made me get it on. When I get the armor on I quickly arm the railgun. I finally named it when I got the arming button with my mouth. I say the name of my new weapon out loud.

“RailRoading.”

Amber laughs.

“Not bad. Now let’s clear this out, it's more than just manticores. These creatures have been over-breeding. I don’t know what else is in there but one of the Changelings said the door to the water treatment plant is broken. It’s time to finally get pure water again for this city. Hopefully, it will make it to the entire city.”

The rat creeper puts her helm back on.

“It won’t happen, it would take years to go through every pipe and replace them so some places are going to lose treated water. Many places won’t even have water and we don’t have the power to… Okay, enough standing around here talking, let's take care of these creatures.”

The three of us ran out of the inn. There are many creatures who I am sure wouldn’t ever be able to fit in here if they weren’t little ones. I see the bodies of dead hydras and other creatures I have never heard of before.

“Okay, Sprocket you’re with me. You and I are going to push to the water treatment plant. It would mean we go right in the middle of the zoo down here. I still don’t understand why they built it down here. Something to do with rich elites wanting a private place.”

I quickly nod snorting in the helm allowing my lungs to fill with air and remove air. I trot behind Amber while the two of us fire our weapons and allow the changelings to take on what they could. A large tiger blocks me from getting through the door. I try to fire many of the railway spikes into the tiger. When many of them enter the tiger it screams in pain.

The tiger couldn’t do anything laying there in pain but not dead yet a medic or doctor came to its aid stroking its head with magic trying to calm it. I watch while the stallion does what he can to keep it calm and heal its wounds it’s like this changeling is talking to it. I didn’t care at the time and continued forward to follow Amber to the door.

We make it through and when we get inside we see many bodies of changelings torn apart and creatures dead. It’s like a warzone in here but when we get here I finally get to see it. It’s like a normal zoo in a sewer. The layout is a zoo with pens and places for the elites to watch. Far away is another door.

“That door at the end there leads to an old tram. The tram, if it's still working, will take us the right to the treatment plant. If not we will have to walk there on the tracks.”

Before we could do anything we heard a large roar and standing in our way is a large old hydra. Not just that, a Chimera. I am told you could talk to them and try to reason with them But these creatures are old and have been here for years. Before I could do anything I got a surprise.

“Hisss. Pony…”

The hydra screams.

“Dragon.”

The heads scream.

“We come in peace.”

Amber and I stare at each looking back at the other creatures who didn’t look to be part of that peace. Amber and I went on ahead. We stood far away from the older creatures. A giant snake that I am told looks like a creature from mythology called the world eater. I was told a creature like this didn’t exist or maybe it did.

They didn’t even attack us.

“We are sorry about our children. The ponies of old did experiments on us old creatures so we could be smarter and do tricks for the ponies that came down here. What they didn’t understand is hiss. We could start talking like them.”

The large snake laughs.

“Just like a pony to not understand their problems. For they capture the last of the world eaters and make him smart enough to talk. Oh, such irony but I am too old to do my job these days. Again the children don’t have the same ability to think as we do. All the mating of the hydras and Chimeras and so on has been removed.”

A large tiger with arcing flowing through its body and a strange look like a cloudy tiger. Lighting flowed through its mane and the poor creature looked older than everything else.

“Why do you invade our home? So many of us have been here too long we are sure our old homes are long gone. Is the world still wounded?”

Amber chuckles.

“Yes, and many things have changed but not fast enough for some creatures. I wouldn’t say it’s ready for creatures like you to return. I am sorry if that upsets you.”

The hydra laughs.

“No, it’s for the best that we are relics of the past. Our world eater friend is older than the world. Most of us just want our lives to end so we can finally be free. We won’t ask you to do it, we will wait for the long sleep to take us.”

The chimera nods. I get a good look at it. It’s normally a goat, snake tail, and tiger. This one is a lizard with the body of a lion as the other head and a viper tail.

“My family here can’t speak for themselves. They never learned so I talk for them. They’re smart enough to talk. They just never had anything to talk about. Thank you for doing what we couldn’t. Thank you for killing those that came after us. We will clean up the bodies of our children and those that fought them. So why are you here?’

Amber sighs, taking a deep breath, blowing the air out after.

“We are here to get to the water treatment plant.”

The hydra hisses.

“There are nasty creatures in that plant. Something came through here not long ago. Creatures from the desert land. We have no idea what they want but they thought we were too stupid to understand them. They wanted to destroy the ability for the hoof and the world to fight the coming threat.”

The coming threat, what is this coming threat? I shrug my shoulders and I follow Amber to the door leading to the tram. I look back at the creatures. I feel bad for them while they go clean up the bodies of their children and give back the changelings who died.

The large world eater turns its head to look at me slithering closer to me.

“Pony before you go I wish you to do something for us.”

I take my helm looking into the eyes of the large creature.

“I would like you to tell your dragon friend when all this is said and done build walls around our homes lock us in to let us die and then when we die use our bodies to grow your food. I am going, to be honest with you. I had enough of living forever. My body is finally failing.”

Tears fell from my eyes. I feel bad for these creatures. Why am I crying for creatures that could just eat me? I might have been on the Metal ring for far too long and think my heart is losing its stone casing. The world eater weakly smiles removing my tears with the tip of his tail.

“I’m sorry I just never felt this way before. I know full well if I was still at my home I wouldn’t care less about either of you. Now I see how the ponies of the past treated you. I wouldn’t blame you if you try to hurt me because I am a pony.”

The large creature nods.

“We would have a right to. This world though has had too much sadness and pain lately. The idea of adding more pain for revenge on the past is not what should be done. It’s best to move on from those problems. If ponies can’t grow it doesn’t mean we can’t grow from the past.”

I felt honored by these creatures. I look at all the creatures who turn to look at me. They all give me a bow. I feel proud that they respect me. I may be part of the race that captured them and made them slaves. Even if they feel they don’t deserve to live any longer.

“Go pony.”

The Hydra yells and cheers.

“Save the future for our sake and your kind GO!!.”

They all yell in unison and I leave to follow Amber to the tram. When I see the tracks the tram is slowly returning looks like the tram has been blasted up a bit but it’s still working. Amber turns to look at me.

“What took ya Sprocket?”

I explain to Amber what the creatures want. She nodded. I could tell from the sound in her helm that she was close to tears. I feel it’s hitting her that these creatures want to help those who placed them in these cells.

“I will honor them after. I learned what we are dealing with by looking at the camera here.”

She clicks a few buttons and I see creatures I thought were only a myth. Troggles minions of Grogar and walking with them is a donkey dressed as a jester. I know him from stories about him. An odd donkey who gave up his soul to be in the good graces of Grogar.

“He has returned then?”

Amber turns her head nodding.

“Grogar the seals are almost fully broken. I doubt anyone would believe us.”

I shake my head. I know the stories about Grogar and his seals. I know much about what happened to him and how it’s told about in our schools and all the time in the cargo city. It’s one of the things the old guard forced into our heads over and over. Beware of the undead goat necromancer. For if he returns our world is doomed.

“My home knocks it into our heads over and over if he returns our world is doomed. Because many would never believe us because they’re too focused on their survival or if they get the next sexual intercourse or drug.”

Amber shifts a bit on her claws. I have a feeling I struck a nerve.

“I used to be that way myself Sprocket. Then I got my hatchlings. I am going to be leaving them to join you. I told my husband what I am going to be doing and he is going to watch them and raise them while I help you.”

I was taken aback by her words. The tram screeches to a halt and the tram groans and screams the metal rubbing on strange rust. She and I get on the tram and I feel I should thank her for giving up on a peaceful life.

“Come on, let's get the water going for our future. If we can bring a little bit of peace for those coming after us. My hatchlings need that future. If I die to give it to them then so be it.”

I nod arming my railway rifle filling it fully up with the spikes. I don’t know if these Troggles are like the Troggles of old willing to betray Grogar. Amber clicks the button and the tram starts to grind and move. It’s going to take a while for us to get to the treatment plant. The muscles in my body ache in pain. A pain that shows you haven’t moved those muscles in years.

While we go I turn on the screen again to read the history of what went through here. I found information on the creatures in the zoo. I look up at the giant snake or worm I think it is. I got some old information on this creature. I turn it on to listen in my hud.

“We have been searching for this giant snake for years. It has been labeled the world eater. So they say some just think it was made up to scare little ponies. We have cast many spells on the creature and it screams curses at us or we think it does. We can shrink it after many years of forcing spells on it. We allowed science ponies to take it and then they experimented on it and placed it in the zoo with the others. Goddess forgive me for what we did. I felt we could use him to fight this war. But they just wish to use him to gawk and laugh at. Someday I will be forgiven”

The recording ends.

It took a while but we finally made it to the treatment plant. When Amber and I fully go in we see many runes made from magic chalk around. Amber and I follow it as she reads the runes. She freezes a second reading one of them.

“This is a summoning spell. Some summons now it’s rare old-world summons needed water or some other fluids, some even needed fire. But if you have enough water you can do a large summon. This magic has been lost for years.”

I tilt my head.

“How do you know all this?”

Amber chuckles.

“Dragons know a lot about old magic even though we did our best to avoid ponies. Old stories from my kind and when it comes to old stories from my species we take them seriously. This is how some wizards in the old times would get around. Even how some would fight us.”

I will have to take her word for it. I have no idea at all since ponies never kept their old history. If they did I wouldn’t ever be able to read it. Most of the world died so long ago. When we finally get closer. I swear I feel magic going through my body. We see water forming in my symbols while it floats around us. We finally get to the main room and see the large army and them casting a spell. We see Bray laughing and giggling.

“Yes, the spell is almost ready.”

Amber whispers

“Now I see why the water stopped as it did. We need to stop them Sprocket.”

Before we could do anything I felt a spear in my back and it jabs in making me and Amber stop as we look behind us seeing Troggles standing there. Since we are unable to do anything she and I are led to the large group.

“Ah, ponies from this new generation. Weak dragons from this new world are still just as weak. The ponies of old would have beat us by now.”

I take a deep breath knowing if I allow Bray to talk he will monologue and then we can find a way to beat him.

“So what’s your plan?”

Bray stares at me.

“Are you that dumb? Are you thinking I would just stand here and talk and talk like a comic book villain? My master and I learned years ago that it will never work. So shut up and watch the doom of your world.”

Amber sighs, shaking her head. I can’t see her emotions but I know she thinks of me as dumb for even trying. There are too many of them and we can’t do anything it’s like they expected more than just me and Amber.

The last of the spell is yelled and the water forms into a circle and a portal open up. A right black hoof comes out of the portal. Then fully the large blue ram comes out. From the looks of it, the spell may not last. He has runes trying to push him back into his realm. Bray bows to the large blue goat

“Master, we did what we could to keep you here.”

Grogar just looks around with a sneer on his face. He then looks at me and Amber. A dark smile forms on his face. The troggles move out of the way and Bray cackles while the large goat stares at the two of us. He comes down to us. He is so much larger than I expected he is much larger than the stories give him credit for.

“So this is the army to keep me from returning. Then that bug failed to do what she told me she would.”

He laughs.

“Oh, the Irony even though I can’t fully stay in this world yet till the last seal is broken. I can still do enough for you two and whoever else stands in my way. Let’s see who that would be shall we?”

His black horns glow bright red and a strange red mist and we are transported with him and his army back to the zoo. I look around, seeing the world around us changed. He looks around laughing softly.

“Hmm, you ponies sure love your zoos for my children.”

I look around not seeing the creatures that we saw at all, not even seeing the changelings. The Troggles and Bray stay back to wait to see what Grogar does.

“Master, do you want us to do anything with these two?”

Grogar turns his head to stare at his minions. He shook his head and turned back at me and Amber.

“I will do it. Besides it’s just a pony and a dragon not like they would do anything anyway. Since ponies in this new generation are too scared of their shadows.”

While he wasn’t looking I charged at him Amber tried to stop me. This goat in my mind is too full of himself and when he turns to look back he has a look of surprise on his face. I smash into him and he backs up like he is in pain, his nose bleeding.

“How scared of our shadows?! Huh?! You think I am just going to let you come here and take over my world?!”

Grogar’s look of pain turns to anger. I feel his magic around me. He lifts me and spreads my body like he is going to rip me apart. I feel so much pain like I struck a nerve and he laughs and of course, he forgets about Amber. I am guessing being trapped for so long has made the goat’s brain forget or he is just that dumb at the moment. I am guessing it’s the spell that brought him here.

Amber doesn’t wait and she claws him deep in his side and he grunts. We see the runes glow even brighter like they’re making it harder for the brain to work fast. I was told stories he is good at what he does and a spell was placed on him to slow him down. I believe this spell is why it’s taken him so long to break these spells. Before Amber could hit him again he lifts her and puts her beside me.

“Damn pony spells. If I didn’t have this brain slowing spell on me I would have killed you two already!! Now. no one is going to save you now”

As if it was fate or stupid luck the large snake creature known as the world eater breaths a strange fire on Grogar he places a spell on himself to block it. He stares at the world-eater anger filling his eyes. While he sees more of his children coming to fight him. The Hydra, the strange tiger creature, and the Chimera.

“My children, your father has returned. You should be fighting with me to defeat this world and make it bow to you again.”

The hydra hisses laughing.

“Father? You make us and half of those you make father backstab you. The naga? The rumors you placed a genetic marker in them so they would die over time. Guess what they beat that marker. I will take pride in doing this.”

The hydra charges the three heads in unison and does what they can to attack Grogar but the Troggles and Bray get in the way the Troggles lift strange spears and Bray screams the words fire. The Troggles fire strange magic from the spears when it hits the Hydra it bores right through him. The hydra in as much pain as it tried to stomp on the Troggles and in an act of defiance takes as many out as it can and then falls over dead from an exploding heart.

Grogar uses his magic to cause Amber and me great pain. I scream and Amber screams. The tiger creature fires lighting at Grogar when it hits him it goes through his horns and he turns to look at the creature. It did hurt him and the tiger charges at Grogar and with it being weak and old he uses a magic spell to turn the hydra into an undead creature. With blood flying everywhere the mindless hydra attacks the tiger while they’re in a brawl of life vs undeath.

The chimera is the next to charge and she charges into the Troggles going after Bray. He backs up shaking.

“SAVE ME!!”

He gets into a ball shaking like he is a baby. The Chimera breaks through with many wounds on her body. She weakly pants so weakly from attacking the Troggles and Bray acts scared when she gets closer. He lifts a gun and fires right into her heart. The three sisters scream in pain falling onto Bray dead.

“Get this off me!!”

All that is left is the world eater. The weakest of the creatures after so much happened to it. He watches while his friends lay there dead and the tiger and the hydra fighting. He looks at me and Amber while he pulls the armor off our bodies making the pain worse. I feel it going deeper into my body as a rib bone snaps in my chest. Amber’s wing snaps in a weird position. He closes his eyes chants a spell to himself and quickly transports me and Amber away and he takes our place in the spell.

“WHAT?! You would stop me from having my fun?! Then you will die yourself!!”

The snake screams and the runes glow brighter on Grogar showing he is about to be forced back into the prison. He looks at me and the tiger who kills the hydra again. But the wounds on the poor creature are too much and the creature falls over convulsing and dies. The world eater snake looks back at me.

I swear I hear him in my head. I am back on the ship in the core room and my mother is there? Why is she there?

“Mom?”

The old mare comes over to me putting her hooves on my face.

“There is so much I wish to say to you. I wish I could tell you all I have seen.”

I was confused but then I realized I am not talking to my mother, I am talking to the world eater. I finally see he is telling me his last words.

“If only I was able to be my pony friend. I would thank you for the kindness you showed me. If I could have met more like you I wouldn’t have hated your species as I have. I am too weak to do anything else to Grogar. I can only weaken him just enough. Now goodbye my friend.”

I wanted to know so much more and then I came back out of my mind seeing the large snake doing the last thing he could. He is glowing and Grogar screams not realizing what is going on the snake is killing himself. Lights and beams of magic pour out of the wounds and the magic smashes into the goat and the Troggles killing some of them and Bray dances around them with no issue.

He finally explodes in magic. Causing the ground to shake above and causing me and Amber to fly and when I land I feel more of my body get hurt. I groan deeply, lifting seeing Grogar vanished and Bray and the Troggles gone as well. I look over to Amber who has a piece of metal lodged into her left shoulder. She looks to be breathing at least. I try to get up but I feel my world slowly getting fuzzy. I hear hooves at least I think I do I look over to the changelings helping Amber and picking her up.

My vision slowly goes dark as I see them lifting me and all I can do to keep my eyes open.

Footnote: Level up

Perks added: Railroaded and armor: You have been given a railway gun, a powerful one that will break through various armors. The armor you have fits you perfectly. It will not defend you against everything.

Two new Companions: Coal and Amber: Coal and Amber both have an engineer-like mind making it harder for some to understand you when they’re both around. Coal’s changeling’s ability to get into places you can’t. She has a charming perk that would help you convince stallions to give up their secrets.

Amber with her being an old dragon you will learn more of old history and with the motherly perk of being a new mother. She will do everything she can to keep you alive. She treats every creation she works on as her child and her friends she would die for.