Shadow of Equestria

Ahead was the infamous town that scared half the population in the Zone, Ponyville. I studied the decrepit ruins of this once lively place. Before I considered stepping out there, I wanted to scope this place out—didn't want to get too cocky—as I surveyed the town. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Foliage and trees had taken over the town's ancient houses. Strange, spiked vines hung from the trees and dangled below like nooses. A mob of crows squawked and circled overhead, ominously waiting for their next meal. What struck me as odd ended up being the absence of battles.

Unimpressed by Ponyville. I stepped back into the forest and contemplated my next move. The first thing that came to mind was vodka. I needed to take the edge off, and I had to flush the radiation from my system. I cast my all-too-reliable levitation spell and maneuvered the bottle out of my pouch. That cork flew off with a satisfying pop, and with that, the bottom went up.

My vodka was feisty, it didn't cooperate with me at first, but after I pushed past the burning sensation, my lovely drink dove right into my stomach. I sighed dreamily, corked the bottle, and shoved it back into my pouch.

I levitated my AK off my back and stared down at its rough exterior with a grimace. I swapped a bakelite magazine for a worn black magazine that I knew was topped off. Once again, I turned to Ponyville and exhaled softly. My blood curdled with dread, as it did back at the Outpost. I mouthed a prayer and marched ahead with no ounce of hesitation.

I jogged forward, unsure of where to go. But, I knew I had to go somewhere. I spotted many pathways leading into the town of Ponyville. I had no choice but to pick the one ahead of me.

My hooves clip-clopped against the eroded, concrete road. I didn't stop until I reached an alleyway. My heart thumped in my throat as I braced my rifle against my breast and aimed down the sights. As I turned the corner, the alleyway stretched ahead with a slight bend. Along the sides of me were the damaged and abandoned homes—I made it.

Suddenly, my PDA chimed, and a hiss of static crackled through, and then a voice spoke, "Hey, word of advice, Rookie. Stay away from Ponyville. You don't want to end up like the rest of them." a husky-voiced male droned.

The sudden warning bemused me. I levitated my PDA out of my pocket at a newfound speed. I had nearly broken the response button when I crushed my hoof into my device.

"Hello? Who's this?" I stuttered a response. "Hello?" Silence. Even the static vanished. I frantically scanned the vicinity, desperately looking for whoever contacted me. I made the hasty decision to head into a house. I shoved my PDA into my pocket and trotted to the closest home. The door laid on the ground, somepony must've breached it at one point in time. I made my way inside and prepared for a fight if I had to—thankfully, no pony built a camp inside.

I swept the rifle muzzle in every corner and crevice of the moldy living room. It didn't hit me at first, but a pungent, musty smell scraped the inside of my nose. I heaved a gag and grimaced—Yeah, no way anypony would be hiding away here—Unsatisfied with my poor judgment. I decided to clear the stairway. A revolting smell wasn't going to keep most ponies away from a smart hiding place.

I sailed across the rotted floor and immediately cleared the upstairs—It was clear because the damned roof caved in—All tension unwound from my body once I ensured this place was empty.

I took a breather and mulled over what happened in the short run. My mind juggled with questions. Who the hell was that? Why didn't they shoot me right away? Are they, my friend? I wished he spoke to me at that moment. I had to know if he was on my side. I paced inside the house for some time until I realized I was wasting daylight. I concluded if he already saw me, I would've been dead already. So, maybe he's on my side?

I inhaled and exhaled rhythmically, steeling myself to head back out there. All I had to go off of was my theory. I trotted across the room and toward a door that led to the opposite side of the alleyway. I stepped out of the doorway and crept along the sides of the houses. Stopped seconds apart to listen for any unusual noises. When everything seemed clear, I carried on walking through the eerie maze-like alleyways.

I made my way into another house, cleared it, and stayed away from the windows as I checked my PDA. My PDA provided me with a new map interface that showed a variety of shapes, ranging from circles, squares, and rectangles. I knew these were buildings. The shapes were spaced apart and clumped together tightly. I noticed the center of the map showed a large circle. I decided if I were to find stalkers out here, they would be there. And so, I knew where to go.

Once more, I stepped outside and pushed through the alleyway. One of my devices chirped at me. My device reminded me of the anomalies. I crammed my hooves into the ground and stopped dead in my tracks—Where the Tartarus was it?—I squinted and surveyed my surroundings.

I stared ahead and didn't see any fluctuations in the air, nor did I see any indentations to signify there was an anomaly. I looked to the left and stared at an unusual collapsed house. The massive hole in the house appeared to take the shape of a sphere, and then I saw the air fluctuate—Found it! What the fuck? This must’ve caused all of the damage to the house. I found it notably fascinating, these anomalies moved around.

I knew this anomaly was no threat to me, and so I pressed forward. I reached the end of the alleyway, using one of the houses as a means of cover before I walked out into the open. I shimmied along with the building and briefly poked my head out to survey the area.

CRACK

Something struck the building beside me. I cursed and scampered backward into cover where it was safe. I never knew I could move that quickly. My heart rattled in my chest as I levitated my AK upward and pointed it toward the alleyway I knew I nearly got shot.

"Come on out, bandit scum!" A deep voice bellowed.

He thought I was a bandit? What the fuck?

"Don't shoot! I'm a free stalker just passing through!" I cried.

"Bullshit!"

"I'm telling you the truth! I came from Rookie Trials with somepony named Fox Meat!"

There was silence at first. I heard another distant voice. Whoever else was down that alleyway, they quarreled with each other. They must've argued for a few minutes, but to me, it felt like hours. Eventually, another voice sounded in.

"Come on out," a soft, feminine voice ordered.

I shakily picked myself up from the ground and stumbled toward the next alleyway, when I trotted into their view, I spotted a young earth stallion sitting behind a stack of sandbags, accompanying him was a unicorn mare.

I eyed the firearm both out of fear and curiosity. This had to be one of the strangest guns I've seen. The trigger guard design was comically massive, and that wooden furniture was also out of proportion from a standard firearm. I guessed it was a custom firearm to make firearms available to those who desired to use one.

"That's far enough," a slim mare barked. The tall mare studied me at a distance. She raised a hoof and pulled off the hood over her head. I took my chance to study her and her partner.

The unicorn mare was incredibly slim and tall. She didn't have much in terms of gear. She was wrapped in a soaked cloak, and I saw that she wore beneath it was a protective NBC suit with a bulletproof vest. The only weapon I saw was an old TOZ double-barrel slung at her hip.

Her partner was a disheveled, muscular earth pony. He also didn't carry much besides a saddlebag and a protective suit with a far larger, bulletproof vest. His Stetson was tipped forward, and a cigarette hung at the side of his lip. A muscle shifted in his jaw as he scowled at me.

"Who are you?" The slim mare asked.

I gulped and exhaled and said, "Name's Dossier. I'm looking for a pony named Swift Wings, have you heard of him?"

The stallion’s blue eyes lit up and he perked up. "Yeah. He was here. Got caught by them bandits. Been tryna free 'em for a while. Not just him, but our whole crew." The stallion replied.

"You said you were just passing through?" The slim mare stuttered. "We need extra hooves and horns back here. We're barely holding off the bandits as it is. We haven't rested in two days."

Oh, no. I didn't want any more trouble with those bandits, but on the other hoof, I would get to Swift Wings easier. I stood silently, contemplating my response.

"Dossier, you in?" The stallion asked as he tilted his head.

"I don't know," I scratched an itch at the back of my neck and suddenly felt heavy with guilt.

"Are you sure?" The stallion cocked his eyebrow.

Fuck.

"Okay… fine, I'll help." I huffed.

"Alright then!" The stallion exclaimed, slapping his hindleg. He stood up, and the moment he did so, his firearm clattered to the ground. The slim mare glared at her partner and struck his foreleg.

"Careful, damn it!" she growled.

He laughed heartily, scooped his firearm up, and slung it around his barrel. "Get over here, Doss. Got lots to explain." He motioned his hoof and trotted away from the sandbag pile.

I cautiously made my way toward him. The slim mare hadn't moved from her spot. She stared at me, still studying me, but I paid her no mind once I made my way past her and caught up with the stallion. He trotted hastily toward the center of the town.

A battered fountain covered in vines and graffiti stood in the center of this place. A few meters away, I spotted the building, which was the large circle on my map. It looked to be a town hall. The doors were missing, and I spotted several ponies hanging out inside the dimly lit structure.

"By the way, mah name is Stroke-a-luck. Mah friend, back there, is Marvelous Targeter." He looked back and pointed his hoof at Marvelous Targeter, "We been holdin' up here at the town square. Those bandits are comin' from the east and northernmost areas of Ponyville, and they just keep comin' we don't know what to do about 'em."

"Can't do much about it, can you? I'm not sure how I can help," I replied with a frown.

"As far as I know, no," Stroke-a-luck slowed to a saunter and stared wistfully at the town hall building, "Lot of us don't know what to do anymore. Losin' hope here, and any day those damned bandits will attack." He spat out his cigarette onto the ground and snorted.

Stroke-a-luck and I arrived at the town hall building. We trotted up to the decrepit structure, and I gawked at the improvisations that kept this place secured. Sandbags lined the windows. A rusted scaffolding sat in the center of the town hall building, and when I glanced up, I spotted a pegasus with one of those comically massive firearms. I assumed he was on guard duty.

I counted heads, three earth ponies, two pegasi, and one unicorn. I hated these odds. How did they expect to fend off a group of bandits without substantial numbers? I was skeptical at that moment, and I wanted to tell Stroke-a-luck that they were fighting a hopeless battle.

As we trotted across the floor, I heard quiet clinking beneath my hooves. I looked down, and my mouth nearly dropped to the floor. Shotguns shells and rifle cartridges of varied colors made a new floor. Now, I wondered how many battles happened here?

Stroke-a-luck stopped. He brought up his hoof to his mouth and whistled, catching the attention of his partners. "Hey, Y'all," Stroke-a-luck exclaimed, "this is Dossier, she agreed to help fend off them bandits. With the extra help, I'm sure we can kick their tails out of this place for good after this!"

Every pony, much like the ponies back at Rookie Haven, roared in cheerful whoops and stomping. Their positivity grew on me. I found myself smirking as I readied my firearm for whatever came next.

Stroke-a-luck hastily dumped information on me before he left. He explained that I had to watch the northern and eastern sections of Ponyville, with my PDA in my magic, and a bit of uncertainty, I set up my post and prepared to look out for anything unusual.

The free stalkers typically had individual bandits come and scope out the town hall, but unfortunately, these stalkers weren't that well trained with firearms. One pegasus told me they knew how to point and shoot, but their speed could be compared to a trotting elder.

"Dossier, you see anything?" A pegasus asked below me.

I looked down at him and shook my head in response. He nodded in return and immediately left the town hall building. They put me up on the scaffolding—the guard tower, although crude, seemed safe enough. At the top of the tower, the guard was surrounded by thick steel plates welded onto the windows. There was only one thing the guard could shoot and see-through, a small slit, appropriately sized for the muzzle of your gun to slot into.

As I stood guard, my mind wandered after this shtick became painfully sluggish. Was Ponyville as dangerous as others made it out to be? It couldn't have been. Maybe it was safe to leave? I'm sure nopony would notice that I vanished. Grey Steel is still out there, and they have all the answers I need.

For a while, I scanned the rows of decrepit houses. East, stood an eerie forest with a limited amount of Ponyville homes. North was the direction I watched meticulously. There were so many houses up north that I would've been able to miss anything if I looked away for a second—which, of course, I didn't.

I spent about an hour or two surveying, both the eastern and northern areas of Ponyville. In the distance, I stared at an old factory off in a mist, almost seemed like a factory where otherworldly beings would work. Above the dark clouds, sat another type of factory, by the looks of it, it was a sky factory. I'm not sure what it produced while it operated, but it was obviously abandoned like the rest of the structures.

Something tapped me on the foreleg. A pegasus clambered onto the scaffolding and pointed at the bottom. "Aight, off it then," he ordered. "It's my turn to do watch,"

"Alright," I said dismissively and climbed down.

That wasn't too bad, I perked up and trotted outside. The moment I stepped out to take a breath of the stale-air, a chill droplet of water pecked my cheek, followed by another, and then another. Eventually, the sky was sobbing. Nopony moved from their post, and here I was standing there like a buffoon.

North of the town hall, beside a pile of sandbags, stood Stroke-a-luck and different mare. They huddled together and used a makeshift umbrella. I swear, I saw the gentle glow of Stroke-a-luck's cigarette in the dimness of day, accompanying that was the puff of smoke.

I trotted over to both of them and made my presence known, so I didn't scare them.

"Hey, you two!" I called out.

Stroke-a-luck jumped as I called out. He glanced back at me but immediately turned his attention to one of the alleyways. No warming welcome. Oh, boy. It seemed they weren't as friendly as Rookie Haven ponies.

I stood a respectful distance and watched Stroke-a-luck. His eyes had bags, and he looked droopy from the last time I saw him.

"What is it, Doss?" He grumbled.

"I just came to say hi," I replied with a chuckle. "I didn't see anything out there. You two should go to the town hall and rest up while I take over," I suggested and patted the sandbags roughly.

Stroke-a-luck glanced at me and shook his head wearily and said, "Time ain't up yet, still got an hour left," he mumbled and fought to keep his heavy-eyes open.

"Look, I'm still awake, it'd probably be better if I took over." I stepped forward confidently.

Stroke-a-luck turned to me slowly, spat his half-finished cigarette on the ground, and pointed a hoof at my face. "Don't be tellin' me what to do, Doss. If I say I got this, I got this—aight?"

I thought it would be far better if we had conscious and aware ponies helping with this fight. But, the way he snapped at me pushed me into a corner that I couldn't get out of. I gnawed at my lower lip, took a step back and nodded slowly. "I thought it would be helpful if we had more situationally aware ponies, you know?"

"I get it—" I heard something whizzing before Stroke-a-luck's head exploded right in front of me. Fragments and chunks of his head sailed across the air and got on me. I heard the shot reverberate throughout the town.

In a split second, I fell to the ground and forced my head down low—Fuck! What the fuck!?—I stared wide-eyed at the corpse of Stroke-a-luck. The mare climbed onto his corpse and guarded his body with her own.

"Luck? Luck! Oh, no, no!" the mare sputtered and sobbed on—who I presumed was her dead friend.

"Get off him, hug the ground!" I screamed at her. "You're going to—"

Another bone-chilling whizzing. The mare was struck in the back, she howled out in pain and violently rolled around on the muddy ground. I covered my ears, hyperventilating. My heart battered in my chest so hard that it felt like it would climb out of my throat and plop on the ground.

What came next was an eruption of gunfire from all sides of me. I had to wait. Otherwise, if I pop up any time, I'll surely be shot dead. I levitated the mare's writhing body over to me and out of clear sight—At least she was safe.

"Are you alright?"

The mare tried to respond, she hyperventilated and blubbered uncontrollably as blood pooled beneath her. Her hooves desperately reached for me, and I couldn't do much more, but helplessly watch her die. I couldn't hold any tears back. My lower lip quivered as I looked away.

Somepony made their way around the sandbags. The first thing I spotted was the black bore of their twelve-gauge auto-loader aimed at me.

The unicorn stallion grinned and sauntered over. "Don't try anything funny," he sniggered. He glanced down at the dying mare beside me and sighed disappointedly. "Shame could've used her to pull around those wagons we got," what came next made me jump out of my skin. He changed his auto-loader muzzle direction and landed on the mare.

BOOM

I screamed and covered my head with my hooves. The sound of pouring blood made my skin crawl. The blood pooling beneath me made my stomach churn, and I couldn't help but gag. I dared not to look at the damage done to the mare. I know she didn't make it right then and there.

"Get up," the stallion ordered.

"Fuck you!" I bellowed.

"Get up!" he repeated.

He chomped down on my mane and pulled me to my hooves, forcing me to walk toward the old town hall building. What I witnessed next made my heart sink into my stomach. The remaining five of my teammates were hustled out of the town hall building with firearms at their heads; they led us to the fountain and circled around us.

"Barb, we got ‘em," The bandit who captured me spoke into his walkie-talkie around his foreleg. "Of course we're waiting for you. I rounded them up as soon as we could, and it went well, though we lost at least two of them." The bandit's face twisted and turned as he listened to what his leader had to say. After he finished having a chat with the pony on the other end, he groaned with a frown.

"Oi, listen up. We'll be taking all of your shit now. Don't try anything stupid," he intoned. He motioned with his head, and two female bandits trotted up to us with their pistols drawn.

I was the first pony to have my stuff stolen. They started grabbing, levitating, and pulling whatever they could get their greedy magic on. They took my guns, my rig—everything. I was only left with the clothes on my back. Those bandit scum also stole my dignity.

Much later, they had an ample amount of our belongings piled on the ground. A lot of us lined up were similar to each other. We were only left with the most casual looking clothes. Each pony in the row wore a blank expression, while some ponies watched with a fearful glint in their eyes. I was feeling a bit of both. I was angry and afraid of what would happen next. Not even a few hours in Ponyville, and I didn't last long.

"Hey, alright!" the stallion exclaimed. "Look at all these weaklings put in their place. You shouldn't have ever left Rookie Haven. A place like Ponyville is for the more elite ponies, ponies who know what they're doing," he said matter of factly.

The bandits laughed and chuckled after somepony in the crowd made a joke about our strength. I ground my teeth together. I glanced at the pile of firearms, and I knew what I had to do. I was prepared to concentrate my magic on my automatic AK—these fucks were going to die. But, before I could act, Marvelous Targeter rested a hoof on my foreleg and shook her head somberly. I looked up at her and then back to the pile.

I managed to suppress my urge to kill these fuck heads. When I finally got a hold of myself. I lowered my ears and clenched my teeth—well, fuck. We would’ve all died if I tried it.

"Hey, if you think I'm the monster, wait until you meet Barb," the bandit stallion cackled.