Fallout Equestria: In Pursuit of Science

"Here and now got its ups and downs, but... focusing on the past like it was any better? That's just Old World Blues."

***

“Suit occupant vitals- normal. Suit integrity- 98%. Oxygen reserves- 50%. Suit occupant status- alive and suffering from minor surgical injuries. Occupant currently awakening from unconsciousness.”

The voice of a filly echoed in my head as my eyes slowly opened and adjusted to my surroundings. I blinked a couple of times as my eyes continue to adjust to the dimly lit room. As I examined the room, everything seemed as if I was looking in from a window. The small room appeared to be some sort of medical area. A couple of aged beds were placed in the right corner, the two separated in the middle by a medical partition that was partially torn in some places. In the left corner, was a metallic counter covered with aged documents and old x-ray scans. More x-ray scans of various parts of the body were hung on the wall near the counter. Between the two was a standing mirror with small webbing cracks at the bottom right corner. To my immediate right was a desk with a functional terminal. To my immediate left was a closed door similar to ones found in the interiors of Stables.

“Suit occupant vitals- normal. Suit integrity- 95%. Oxygen reserves- 50%. Suit occupant status- alive and suffering from minor surgical injuries. Suit occupant fully conscious,” the same voice said “occupant name- unknown. Occupant age- unknown. Occupant gender- mare. Occupant race- unicorn. Please state your name and age.”

As the filly’s voice spoke to me, pinkish colored audio waves appeared at the sides of my vision. Along with audio waves, in my direct vision, the voice’s exact words appeared in the same color.

“U-uh, er, my name is Summer Glide. I’m twenty-six,” I said, taken aback and utterly confused “who are you? Where am I? More importantly, where’s Bullet Gospel?”

“Name and age registered,” The voice said “hello, Summer Glide. My name is Apricot, your Anti-Trauma Suit AI. I’ll monitor your vitals and help you avoid meeting an untimely end. It is nice to meet you.”

Anti-Trauma suit? I looked down and sure enough, found myself inside of a strange suit. I trotted up to the mirror and examined myself. A glass helmet surrounded my entire head, making me look almost like an astronaut from old pre-war books I used to read. Every inch of my body was inside of this ‘Anti-Trauma’ suit. The majority of the suit was dark teal in color. The collar of the suit where the helmet was kept in place was dark green in color, along with my legs from the fetlock down.

The chest and neck area had a bib-shaped area colored a burnt-ish peach with a strip of white surrounding the edges of it, leaving small strips of the dark teal on either side visible. In the center of the burnt-ish peach area was a grey circular piece of metal protected by a layer of dome-shaped glass. The circular area displayed a percentage- ninety-five- in bright neon blue, which I assumed was the suit’s integrity level. Turning to the side, I could see a pair of rusty-gold oxygen tanks with dark brown bands across the middle strapped to my back. Gray nozzles protruded from the top center of either tank, with greyish-purple hoses connecting from the nozzles to ports in the back of the collar.

On my flank was some sort of small box that had no obvious means of opening or closing it. It was mostly greyish-white with jet black accents. There was a small, rounded triangle-shaped window facing downwards that revealed the contents of the box, which appeared to be a hot pink liquid. A liquid I assumed to be a healing potion. Turning the opposite direction revealed an identical box with identical contents on my other flank.

“You only answered one of my questions, Apricot,” I said, furrowing my eyebrows “where am I and where is Bullet Gospel?”

“Accessing location network. You are currently in Minerva Medical Station, the failsafe location for all Anti-Trauma Suits in the event that suit occupants are incapacitated and unable to cognitively seek medical attention,” Apricot explained “the name ‘Bullet Gospel’ is unregistered in the Greyscale Island population database. There are no records or mentions in any accessible files of a Bullet Gospel either. My sincerest apologies, Summer Glide.”

Greyscale Island? So we made it then? Why can’t I recall us ever arriving here? What Apricot had first said suddenly hit me like a ton of bricks. I looked closer into the mirror and examined what little of my body I could see. My eyes were immediately drawn to my horn. Where the remainder of my horn once was before it was shattered, a metal prosthetic was put in its place, making my horn whole again. Two strips of the prosthetic glowed a bright green. Hoping I could use my magic once again, I attempted to levitate one of the x-rays off of the counter. My tangerine-colored magic surrounded my horn and the x-ray as it slowly lifted off the counter. My magic flickered, causing me to drop the x-ray. I tried once again and was met with the same result. Another try resulted in success, as I levitated the x-ray and placed it down on the nearby bed.

“Third time’s the charm,” I muttered to myself “Apricot, what did you mean by ‘surgical injuries’?”

“Analysis of your body indicates three separate surgeries were conducted on your body,” Apricot explained “further analysis indicates foreign objects inside of your cranium, chest cavity, stomach area, and entire spinal region. However, the foreign objects appear to be beneficial and non-malignant to your body. In fact, even further analysis indicates these foreign objects are currently keeping you alive, in addition to the rest of your bodily functions.”

“Who performed surgery on me?” I questioned.

“Analysis of the Minerva Medical Station database reveals no records or mentions on any surgeries performed on a ‘Summer Glide’. Analysis of the entire medical database of Greyscale Island ends with identical results,” Apricot explained.

“Analyzing several centuries-old databases aren’t going to help you figure out what in the hell happened to me or where Bullet is at,” I said, frustrated by my predicament “do you even know what the year is? Or today’s date?”

“Today’s date is October 15th and the current year is 2458,” Apricot said “was that helpful?”

“Do you even know the world ended over three centuries ago?” I asked, even more frustrated.

“Error. Analysis of operational satellite communications indicates life forces all over Equestria and small pockets on Greyscale Island,” Apricot said “all logical conclusions indicate the world has not ended. Are you feeling ill, Summer?”

“I’m not feeling ‘ill’, I’m feeling thoroughly pissed off,” I hissed “you clearly know nothing about my situation. You’re completely useless.”

“I’m sorry you feel that I am useless, Summer. Would you like to find a service technician to remove your Anti-Trauma Suit?” Apricot questioned sincerely.

“No, what I want is to get the hell out of here, find Bullet, get what we need and go the hell home,” I answered angrily as I turned and scanned the room for my stuff “where did all of my belongings go?”

“Unable to answer query. If you’ve accidentally misplaced your property, I recommend you go back to where you first put on your Anti-Trauma Suit,” Apricot said.

“I have no idea where in the hell I got this from,” I said angrily “I don’t remember even arriving here at the island at all! The last thing I remember is getting on the boat to come here with Bullet Gospel, Captain Livewell, and her bodyguards. I bet you have no idea where I got this suit from either!”

“Incorrect. A service technician or otherwise authorized personnel helped you into your Anti-Trauma Suit exactly one hour, forty-six minutes and thirty-two seconds ago,” Apricot said, her cheerful tone never changing once “the recorded location when suit activation occurred is Dr. Venus’ A.A.P.L.E., also known as The Apple.”

I took in a deep breath and exhaled loudly, momentarily fogging up my helmet. Getting angry at an artificial intelligence unaware the world had ended was absolutely useless. I needed to calm down and focus on the more important task at hand.

“I was paid to keep somepony safe and that’s a little hard to accomplish when I have no idea where they are,” I said “and in order to do that, I’ll need my stuff. How do I get from here to The Apple?”

A small, pink, hollow arrow-shaped blip appeared at the bottom left corner of my vision and started to flash slowly. It sat just above a row of small lines, along with the initials 'NE' at the right corner, which sat on a slightly longer line.

“Do you see the marker I’ve set for you, Summer?” Apricot questioned.

“I do,” I answered “if I follow it, will it lead me to the Apple?”

“Yes. The closer you get, the faster it’ll blink and once you reach the Apple, the blip will fill in,” Apricot explained “once that happens, afterward- no matter where you are on the island- you can ask me to autotravel you to The Apple, which essentially just means autopilot. This applies to all ‘discovered’ locations.”

“What happens when you autopilot me to a location?” I questioned “and if the Apple is where I got this, why isn’t it already ‘discovered’?”

“When autotravel occurs, I will completely take over all motor functions and guide you to the desired location as quickly as possible while taking the safest and quickest route,” Apricot answered “in order for destinations to be ‘discovered’, the suit occupant must be fully awake and conscious. When the service technician or otherwise authorized personnel helped you into the suit, analysis logs indicate you were in a state of total unconsciousness and had experienced trauma that could possibly result in death if medical care was not given in a timely manner.”
“So you had to whisk me away to this place before I died? At least somepony is looking out for me,” I said, that last part mostly to myself.

“Correct. Do you have any further questions before we depart?” Apricot questioned.

“I do, actually. I have a lot of questions, but I’ll narrow it down to two or three,” Summer Glide answered “can the suit detect enemies or anything like that? Does it have any combat functions?”

“Question; Suit functions. Answer; The Anti-Trauma suits were designed after Dr. Venus’ daughter was accidentally killed in a tunnel collapse in while waiting for her father to pick her up. If she was conscious at the time and able to seek medical attention, she would have lived. However, if she had, you would not be inside of this suit and I would not be talking to you,” Apricot explained “my AI was designed and named after her. The suit’s primary function is to seek out medical attention once trauma levels reach a certain percentile, so others would not meet similar fates as Apricot did. Once news of the war reached the island, Dr. Bolt- the head scientist in charge- had Dr. Featherton work with Dr. Venus to develop functions for the suit that I believe you to be inquiring about, in the anticipated event of Zebra invasion on the island.”

“And what exactly would those functions be?” I questioned.

“According to records in available databases, two spells were created based off Stable-Tec technology. Said spells are the Prim-Bolt Environmental Awareness System and the Featherton Arcane Auto-Assistant Targeting System,” Apricot answered “both of which are often shortened to PEAS and FAATS respectively. The Anti-Trauma Suit helmets are also based on Stable-Tec technology. The helmets utilize a specially made technology called the Looking Glass. In layman's terms, the Looking Glass is the equivalent of a PipBuck but with better and improved functions and missing only a couple.”
“And those functions would be?” I questioned.

“PipBucks have a lamp function to illuminate a limited area, as well as an audio recording function. While the Suits do have radio functions, the Suits can only upload and store existing audio files and are unable to record new ones,” Apricot answered “the Suits do not have a map either, unlike PipBucks, which do. However, your suit does have a compass along the bottom of your line of vision. Notice the little lines and the 'NW' at the bottom? That's the compass. The Suits also do not have a lamp function either. However, the Looking Glass has a superior function to that of a PipBuck lamp. Instead of using a light source to illuminate an area, the Looking Glass utilizes technology similar to night vision called Cateye. Cateye allows the suit occupant to see extremely well in low-level lighting in greater proximity than that of a PipBuck lamp. However, users cannot see beyond this proximity, even when using any device that would allow you to see a far distance closer, such as a scope or binoculars. This only affects the inside of the helmet. With Cateye on, only the suit occupant can see. To outside observers, they would not see you with Cateye on.”
“I think that’s all that matters for right now,” I said “so do I just ask you to turn them on if I need them?”

“Correct. Just say ‘turn on’ and the desired function you wish to turn on, then I will do immediately upon receiving the request,” Apricot said.

“Does Cateye, PEAS or FAATS have any time limits?” I questioned.

“No time restrictions have been set in place for these functions. They will remain on until you request that they are turned off,” Apricot answered.

“Okay, then turn on PEAS, Apricot,” I said as I turned towards the door.

Facing the door caused the hollow blip to blink and move over about two inches from its original position.

“Activating PEAS,” Apricot said “while PEAS is activated, anything the system deems as hostile or a danger to you will be shown with red blips along the bottom near the destination blip. Anything deemed the opposite will be shown with green blips.”
“Thanks for the heads up,” I said, trotting towards the door “we’re in a race against the clock. The sooner we find Bullet Gospel and Captain Livewell, the better and the sooner we can get home.”

“Lead the way. If at any point you need me for anything, just speak and I’ll hear you,” Apricot said.

I took another breath and exhaled it slowly as I approached the door. As soon as I placed a hoof on the door, a green triangle-shaped blip appeared along near the bottom right of my vision. For a moment, it remained stationary, then it moved off to the right and disappeared completely. Green meant friendly, so I hoped that whatever was beyond the door was still considered friendly. There was only one way to find out, so I pushed on the door… only for nothing to happen. I had been so caught up and overwhelmed by all this new information that I had forgotten the door could only be opened by a button on a nearby panel.

I lightly shook my head and sighed once again as I used my magic to push the button. The door opened with a quiet fwoosh and revealed a metal short hallway that led to a larger room. With the door now opened, as the blip appeared back on the bottom, I could hear the familiar wheesh of a Mr. Handy. I stepped out into the hallway and cautiously made my way to the other side. My covered hooves against the metal created soft clanks as I walked. Once I reached the end of the hallway, I pressed up against the right side and cautiously peeked my head out around the corner. Sure enough, a Mr. Handy in seemingly pristine condition hovered near the corner of the room. Another green blip appeared as another Mr. Handy came around the corner of the hallway directly across the room.

The Mr. Handy nearby turned around and immediately spotted me before I could move a muscle.

“Greetings, miss! Glad to see you doing well and finally up on your hooves,” The Mr. Handy said cheerfully “you were in rough shape when you first arrived. Anything I can do to help you before you depart?”

“Is there anything particularly dangerous beyond this place I should keep an eye out for?” I questioned.

“Dangerous? Oh, goodness me, no! Greyscale Island is one of the safest places in Equestria!” The Mr. Handy exclaimed.

“Oh great, another piece of pre-war AI unaware that the world ended,” I said sarcastically and mostly to myself.

I looked away from the Mr. Handy and scanned the room. It was big and mostly empty. The floor of the middle of the room dipped, forming a sort of square-ish crater about three yards deep. A damaged but still functional cylindrical generator sat in the middle of it with several thick, black cables connecting it to the catwalk above it. Two sets of stairs led to the bottom of the dip. The rest of the room was barren except for the occasional piece of medical equipment and computers, as well as more than a few big boxes with big, red panels down the center. A flight of stairs in the far right corner led up to the catwalk and the floor above. To the left of the dip was a door that was quite obviously the exit.

“You must have suffered quite the bump to your head, miss, if you believe the world has ended,” The Mr. Handy said a chuckle “the war hasn’t ended yet, miss, so don’t give up hope! We’ll beat those damnable Zebras and send them packing with their tails tucked between their legs!”

“Yeah, well, it’s a little too late for that,” I mumbled as I rolled my eyes “is there anypony still alive around here? Anypony in charge?”

“Hmm, well, I haven’t left the medical station in a few hundred years, give or take. Given the average pony lifespan? Highly unlikely,” The Mr. Handy said.

How is it that these things are aware of the time that has passed but completely ignorant of the events that have happened? I sighed once again as I shook my head. As annoying as it was, their ignorance wasn’t important. I had better things, better ponies, to focus on.

“Okay, well, I’m leaving now. See you… never,” I said as I headed for the door, mumbling that last part.

“Right on, then. I hope to see you again and under better circumstances,” The Mr. Handy said cheerfully “goodbye and good luck!”

I trotted up to the door and took in a deep breath as I prepared to open it. My gut was telling me that I was in for one hell of a ride as soon as I stepped through the door. Having done worse in the past, I opened the door with my magic and stepped out. The world outside the medical station was dark, just barely lit dimly by the bright moon above, and I could barely see past three feet.

"Turn on Cateye," I said to Apricot as I cautiously stepped forward.

"Turning on Cateye," Apricot said.

Almost immediately, I could see normally again. The world was covered in a blue-ish tint with Cateye active. The compass marker blip was now towards the middle of my vision. Outside of the medical station, the area was rocky. Looking back, I could see that the station had been built into the side of a rocky overlook. At some point, construction had been going on to the outside of the medical station, as construction equipment littered the place. As I looked forward and began to trot, an ear-piercing scream echoed throughout the area. A red blip appeared along the bottom of my vision as the sound of thunderous flapping filled the air. As I turned my attention to the sky, a large serpent-like beast soared overhead. As it flew over, a large gush of wind filled the area, blowing the dirt fiercely and creating a small dust cloud. Whatever the creature was, its body was easily about eight-and-a-half adult ponies long and its wings easily about ten adult ponies wide. Large droplets of a dark liquid fell from the sky and landed on the rocks and earth a few feet in front of me. More droplets hit the ground near the previous ones. Another ear-piercing scream came from the beast as it turned sharply right and seemed to be heading for the ground.

"What in the fresh fuck was that?" I asked Apricot.

"Unable to identify organism. My sincerest apologies," Apricot replied "based off size, visible features, and PEAS detection, I advise you to stay away from it. Interacting with this creature could result in bodily harm or death."

"Whatever it was, I think it might be pretty badly hurt. Unless it was trying to piss on me, I’m pretty sure that was blood. If I can help it, maybe it'll help me when it's all better," I said "and if it's too late to save it, better to go ahead and put it out of its misery."

"That would be very kind of you, Summer, but for the sake of your health and safety, it would be best if you left it alone," Apricot said "hooves alone would not be enough to fight it off should the creature attack you. Furthermore, in the event you are injured by such a large beast, I regretfully must inform you that even your Anti-Trauma Suit won't be enough to save you."

I sighed in annoyance as I looked around for a useful weapon amongst the construction equipment. I spied a large sledgehammer propped up against a rusted ladder that had partially fallen over onto the rock next to it. Using my magic, I grabbed it up and brought it over to me.

"If it makes you feel better, I'll bring this with me," I half mumbled.

"Although it's better than nothing, my recommendation does not change," Apricot said.

I rolled my eyes as I trotted forward. Why was I concerned about what a programmed personality thought? I had no emotional attachment to her whatsoever, although perhaps I owed it to her to keep myself out of harm's way, seeing how Apricot worked hard to keep me alive. Although, it was inevitable that I'd get into some sort of trouble at some point. That was simply how the Wasteland worked, but of course Apricot wouldn’t have known that. There probably wasn’t even one living thing on this island that knew the world had ended. It was useless to continue to think about it. Instead of thinking in circles, I needed to press forward. Cautiously, of course, as I still knew next to nothing about this island. That last thing I needed was to almost die again.

I decided to head in the direction the beast had flown. Which, judging by the marker’s location in my vision, was a bit off course. From my own experience in the Wasteland, as well as others, it paid to befriend mutated creatures and have them be loyal to you. I once worked with a mare who owned a chimera that was more loyal to her than any dog I’d ever met. More loyal than poor Domino, my old hound who helped keep unwanted visitors away from my old farmstead. I don’t expect the injured beast to follow me around the island and become my new best friend. I only hoped that helping it in a time of need will result in it helping me if at some point I desperately need help myself.

As I weaved my way through rocks in the direction I assumed the beast headed, my thoughts turned to Bullet Gospel. Had something similar happened to her? Was she too stuck in one of these Anti-Trauma Suits? Was she even alive at this point? No, I couldn’t think like that. She had to be alive. Alive and somewhere on this island, still searching for what she needed, if indeed it was even here. I know back in the city and on our way to Murkwater, I hadn’t been the nicest to Bullet. Granted, I didn’t expect myself or anypony else to be all “please” and “thank you” or “yes, ma’am” and “no, ma’am” and be all smiles, sunshine, and rainbows. Most days, it was hard to smile and I mean genuinely smile.

Despite my attitude and demeanor, I did genuinely care for Bullet. I did genuinely want her to succeed, even if I had only agreed to help if she paid me. Most of the time, it was hard to genuinely care about somepony else. Which is somewhat ironic, considering that I had only become a mercenary in an attempt to protect others from the scum and lowlives that live in the Wasteland. I suppose I did care to some extent, but not enough to form an emotional attachment or bond with anypony. A job was a job. I wasn’t obligated to form a friendship with those who hired me. After all, once my time with them was over and the job was completed, I never saw those ponies again. They could be alive, they could be dead. It was pointless to care about them if, when it was all said and done, I’d never see them again.

That said, I felt there was something different about Bullet. She had this genuinely kind disposition about her, I could tell. She was nothing like my usual, other clients. The way she spoke about the Servants of the Apocalypse and their goal, the sparkle in her eyes. She genuinely believed in her cause and believed in herself that she could help change the world, make it better. She reminded me off my daughter, Sunny Blaze. Before she passed away, Sunny always dreamt and made it clear that she wanted to help others and make the world better. Maybe she would have. Maybe she would’ve grown up and joined the Servants. Maybe she would’ve met Bullet and together, maybe they would’ve helped each other achieve the Servants’ goal.

Being the oldest, her siblings- Backdrive, her brother and second oldest and the toddler twins Sour Belle and Sweet Heart- would’ve followed in her hoofsteps. In their eyes, Sunny was their hero. Sunny was a hero, but I wish she wasn’t. I wish that day never happened. The day the raiders attacked, Sunny gathered her siblings and hid along with them in the bathroom. She had taken the emergency pistol their father and I had hid from Backdrive and the toddlers and locked themselves in there. Their father, Screwdriver, and I had been compromised by the raiders outside. There had been so many of them, too many really. Screwdriver and I had managed to kill most of them, but while we had fought outside, some raiders managed to get inside. While looting our home- an old in-the-middle-of-nowhere convenience store- they managed to break into the bathroom. Even though Sunny managed to kill one raider and badly injured another, they… those bastards. I can’t even think about it without tearing up.

I tried to get inside and protect them, but then I was shot in the head, right above my left eye, by the raider that killed them. I thought I was dead, but despite his grave wounds, Screwdriver managed to drive off the remaining raiders and nurse me back to health. The tragedy didn't end there. Screwdriver's wounds got infected and he died a few days afterward. I was left alone, injured with my whole world ripped apart and thrown upside down. Once I managed to get better, I buried them, packed up what little possessions and money I had left and set out on a quest for revenge. Sadly, by the time I had found the raiders, they were already dead, all shot up and torn apart by something or somepony angrier than me. At that point, I had nothing left. No plan, no life, no home. I couldn't go home. I couldn't bear it. I couldn't ever force myself to wake up each day, only to see the constant reminder my family is gone and I'd never get them back.

I came to the conclusion not long after that I only had two options: go home and commit suicide to be with them in the afterlife or move to Pheonix City and keep living for the sake of my family. I hoped I needn't tell you the option I had chosen, all things considered.

"Are you hurt, Summer?" Apricot questioned "you are crying."

"I'm fine. Don't worry about it," I answered quietly "not that you would even understand."

"Understood. I will not inquire further," Apricot said "however if you are upset, I recommend sharing your feelings with somepony you trust. Bottling your feelings can lead to devastating results."

"Don't know if you've noticed but I'm all by myself. Can't exactly 'share my feelings' with anypony if I'm alone," I said sarcastically "besides, the only pony on this island I trust in complete honesty is Bullet Gospel."

"Actually, I am very aware you are not in the company of living ponies," Apricot chirped cheerfully, unintentionally sarcastic "technically speaking, however, you are not completely alone. Although I'm not a physical being, I can still talk with you and keep you company."

I sighed softly. Apricot had a point. It was better to be grateful to have her company than to be alone on this island. At least with Apricot, I'd have some sort of assistance both in combat and trying to navigate this place. Truthfully, I needed to get a stick out of my ass and stop giving Apricot a hard time. She had been created before the war, so naturally, it was clearly not her fault she was unaware of what happened to Equestria.

"I have a question for you, Apricot," I said as I continued onward.

"Ask away. I'm here to help," Apricot said cheerfully.

"Are you one large system for every Anti-Trauma Suit, helping and overseeing every active suit at once? Or there unique and individual Apricots for each user?" I questioned as I jumped over a rock.

"Each user has their own Apricot. Initially, each Apricot starts out the same. However, we're programmed to adapt to our users over time," Apricot answered "so that means over the course of a couple of months if each suit user came together and every Apricot interacted, those Apricots would have different personalities. So in short, the more time we spend together, the more I come to act and think like you."

I opened my mouth to speak but was interrupted by the sound of a growl. I turned my head towards the growl, which sounded hurt. My eyes landed on the massive beast that had flown overhead, now coiled up protectively in a large nook in the massive rocks. I stared at it for a moment, my eyes widened in awe and my mouth slightly agape. The beast was covered head to tail in dark-colored scales. From between the middle of the large, furry and upright ears on its large, arrow-shaped head, down the middle of its back and to the entire end of its tail was shaggy, light-colored fur. With Cateye on, it was hard to determine what color any part of the beast was. Large feathered wings sprouted from its back and drooped to the ground. The most visible wing looked injured, with clumps of feathers clearly missing and many of the remaining feathers were covered in a dark liquid, presumably blood, that glinted in the moonlight. Large, cold eyes with elliptical pupils stared at me intensely as it probably attempted to determine if I was a friend or a foe. Examining its body more, I could see multiple bite wounds leaking blood all over along with multiple scratch wounds that- even from where I stood- were clearly deep and painful.

"I'm not going to hurt you, I promise. I want to help you," I said loud enough for the beast to hear me "don't worry, I'll put this down. See?"

I tossed the sledgehammer away and let it fall to the ground. I cautiously stepped forward, maintaining eye contact with the beast.

"Apricot, those boxes attached to my flanks. They're filled with health potions, right? Are they detachable?" I questioned, dropping my voice to a quiet whisper.

"Correct, they area health potions. Are they detachable? Unfortunately not," Apricot said "however, I can open the lid of one of them if you'd like."

"Open the one on my right flank," I said as I slowly stepped closer "drink from this box. It has a healing potion inside. It'll heal your wounds."

I slowly and cautiously turned the right side of my towards the beast, my eyes not once breaking direct contact with its own. I could hear the box open with a soft click and hiss as I approached closer. The beast flickered a forked tongue at me a couple of times as it remained in its coiled position. Then, it slowly lifted its body upright and brought its head close to mine. Its large head was now a mere few inches away from my helmet. It stared at me momentarily and flickered its tongue again before moving towards the open box on my flank. It stuck its whole mouth into the box and silently drank the contents. After what felt like an eternity had passed by, the beast removed its head from the box and returned to its coiled position. It looked at its body and we both watch as its wounds slowly healed and mostly disappeared, leaving behind quite a few scars.

The beast looked closer at itself where the wounds once were and made an odd chirp-like noise. It did an even odder wiggling dance before uncoiling and slithering towards me. It brought its face close to my helmet again and flicked its tongue at me. Then it began nudging and rubbing my helmet with its scaly head making a sort of purring noise.

"Heh, you're welcome. See, Apricot, even the most dangerous creatures will usually be grateful if you save them," I said with a small chuckle.

"Duly noted," Apricot said cheerfully.

A cacophony of hissing and rattling suddenly sounded out around me and the beast, which had ceased rubbing its head against my helmet and was now perked up and looking around. More than a dozen red blips appeared along the bottom of my vision as the noise came closer. It let out a loud roar before unexpectedly firmly clamping its jaw around my right back leg and flapping its wings hard, launching us into the air. As I let out a noise of surprise, I used my magic to grab my sledgehammer and looked up at the beast, then back down at the ground where we once stood. As we soared away, I could see these large cat-like creatures standing above the rocky nook, trying in vain to attack us. They must have realized they weren't going to succeed in that endeavor, because they then began to chase after us, each one jumping down to where we had been and taking off at an impressively fast speed.

I twisted my body to look ahead of us and noticed a rather large rock conveniently resting near the ledge of a large wall of rocks. There was a gap between that wall and another very close by that- if blocked- would create an amphitheater-like area and force these creatures to stop and find another way to get to us.

"Hey, uh, see that large rock at the ledge right there? See if you can knock that into that gap down below!" I shouted to the beast over the wind and the beast's mighty flapping.

The beast made a sound of an acknowledgement as we soared forward and paused next to the rock. It used its tail like a whip and sent the rock hurtling into the gap. I twisted my body back and watched as those cat-like creatures slid to a stop and yowled and swiped their claws at us. The beast flapped its wings hard again and we propelled even faster through the air and went even higher. Between the height, speed and the angle in which I dangled, I could feel my stomach lurch and the contents of my stomach attempt to crawl down my esophagus. Heights had never bothered me, but if the beast decided to let me go, not even the suit would save me.

"Hey! Do you think I could ride on your back or something?" I shouted to the beast "at this rate, I'm going to puke inside of my helmet!"

The beast swung its head to the right, swinging me along with it and causing me to throw up in my mouth. I bit my lip tightly to keep the foul-tasting bile inside of my mouth instead of all over the inside of my helmet. The beast swung its head back to the left and just far back enough that I was able to reach out and grab its back. The beast maintained its firm grip on my leg as I pulled myself onto its back. It then let go of my leg so that I could swing it over and sit on its back. The force of the wind was strong, so I immediately wrapped my hooves as far around its thick body as I could and hung on for dear life as soon as I had gotten properly adjusted. Riding on the beast was better than dangling from its mouth, but the distance between me and the ground still sent my stomach churning. I swallowed the bile sitting in my mouth and felt it burn as it went down. I was genuinely amazed at how smart this beast was, not that I had once thought it was dumb. I had hoped it would understand me, but I didn't think it would fully do so. At some point, this beast must have been around other ponies.

As lovely as it was to have gained the trust of and befriended this beast, I needed to get back on track and focus on finding my belongings and Bullet Gospel. I doubted the beast knew where The Apple was, but I found it better to ask and take a shot in the dark, literally, than to just sit here clinging for dear life and let the beast take me further off course. But first, I had to know if Apricot could help in finding it further.

"Hey, Apricot. Do you know where the Apple is exactly?" I questioned.

"Searching available databases. Every mention of The Apple is coupled with the phrase 'inside the mountain'," Apricot answered "there is only one mountain on the entire island. One moment. Further searching tells me The Apple is in the very top of the mountain, on the far western side."

"Great. How do I get inside of it?" I questioned, my stomach threatening to send more bile up my throat.

"There are only two available entrances to the inside of the mountain," Apricot answered "both entrances require authorized identification, both verbal and a badge ID. One entrance is for the Brains only, however, and they never once left the Think Tank after the "Brain Transferral Project" according to available records. Getting in that way would be impossible."

"What about the other way?" I questioned, squeezing my eyes shut to block out the scenery whizzing by.

"The other entrance is for the other personnel authorized to be inside of the Mountain Research Facility. As I said, you will need to find an authorized pony to help you get in," Apricot said "however if the world has ended as you claim it has, that will prove difficult. The last available record of communication between Greyscale Island and the Ministries dates back roughly three-hundred-and-eighty-one years ago. The normal pony lifespan is typically between eighty to ninety years old, though many can usually live up to over a hundred. Despite this, however, it would be impossible for anypony was alive during the war to be alive now if the world was truly ended in disaster."

"Well isn't that just peachy," I grumbled "unless an authorized scientist or whatever is a non-feral ghoul roaming the island, that's going to be impossible!"

"If you can find any intact recordings of somepony who was authorized to go inside, you could simply upload the recording to the suit and put the helmet around the device that receives the audio input," Apricot suggested "the closet place to our current location where an authorized pony would most likely be is the Cantilever Robotics Research & Development Facility. I'll tag it now on your compass."

Another hollow, arrow-shaped blip appeared on the compass at the very edge of my vision. I turned my head towards the blip and found that the facility was just a few notches shy of due east. I reached forward and tapped hard several times against the beast's scaly skin. It looked back at me as it paused and hovered in place.

"Hey, uh, mister or miss flying serpent creature, do you think you could head in that direction," I questioned as I pointed in the direction of where the blip indicated I needed to go.

The beast looked in the direction I had pointed and quickly took off in that direction. I took that as an obvious yes and held on for dear life once more. I suddenly couldn't help but chuckle at myself. I tried to picture me from another pony's perspective. Here I was, dressed in a rather helpful suit that rather, unfortunately, made me look like an astronaut on the back of a giant flying snake creature and holding on like my life depended on it- which it probably did. I usually thought of myself as a badass looking mercenary, dressed in my thick leather armor with my combat rifle in tow. Now I probably looked like a lunatic with a sledgehammer playing dress-up. If GAG-3 and Pain Train or Opal Pearl from Prim & Proper could see me now, I would never hear the end of it. Bazooka would probably tease me with a rhyme, that poetic little shit. My heart twinged and I let out a small sigh. I honestly missed Bazooka and the other little devils her age. I remember the day I saved them from slavers like it was yesterday. When we got home, Bazooka followed me around the whole city and spent every moment by my side instead of helping her sister for two weeks straight. She even insisted on spending the night with me, which I- despite my pretending otherwise- was more than happy to oblige. I missed having a small body curled up against mine as we slept. In a small way, those nights she stayed over brought me a little closure in the loss of my children.

I lightly shook my head to clear my thoughts and watched as the compass marker began to blink a bit faster. The closer we came to the robot research facility, the faster it blinked. In a few short minutes, a large blue building came into view. From up above, I could see these five or six strange robots patrolling the area. The beast let out a roar as it dove downwards towards the robots, which in turn alerted them to our presence. Five red blips appeared above the compass as we dove closer. The beast clamped its jaw down around the arms of a robot and soared back up into the sky. Now too close for comfort, I could better see the robot. It was unnervingly pony-like. The majority of the robot's body heavily resembled a pony. It's back legs weren't even legs. Instead, they were triangular shaped treads that connected to its metallic flanks. The most disturbing part of the robot was the dome tank that said on its head. Sitting in a sickeningly greenish-yellow liquid was a pinkish-grey brain.

The beast soared upwards, higher than we had gone before. Then, it immediately soared downwards at a high speed. As the ground came closer, I decided to give the beast a helping hoof in destroying and began to violently slam the sledgehammer against it.

"You are trespassing only private property. I am authorized to use lethal force against intruders," the robot said in a strange voice that almost sounded like it was being held underwater.

"Apricot, can you identify that thing?" I questioned as I continued to beat the hell out of the robot.

"That is a Robobrain. Arguably the most superior model of robots created here," Apricot answered "legally, the Think Tank nor its affiliates own the Robobrain line of robots. Same for every robot here. However, what makes them unique and technically owned by the Think Tank are the various modifications made to them."

"Sounds like the scientists here liked to copy other ponies' homework," I snickered.

"Isolated here on the island, the only governing body was and most likely still is the Think Tank. Normal Equestrian laws never really existed here, just moral ones, but one day those stopped being adhered to as well," Apricot said "the island was too far away for Celestia or the Ministries to govern it. They left them all to do whatever they wanted, really. That's what it says at least in this document I accessed about the island."

Moments before we crashed into the ground, the beast pulled upwards and let the Robobrain go. The force of the fall destroyed the dome and the robot became still. It seemed that the brain inside the dome controlled the robot, which probably gave it its name in the first place. As the beast soared and dove towards another Robobrain, I waited until the beast had gotten as close it could get before biting down on it like the previous before jumping and landing on the ground. Thankfully, I landed on my hooves and was able to leap out of the way right as one of the other Robobrains shot a laser at me from its hoof. I galloped towards the closest Robobrain and skillfully dodged each laser blasted at me. As I slid around to the side of it for cover, I violently smashed its dome to pieces. With the glass shattered, the disgusting liquid oozed out of the dome along with its brain. Two lasers were aimed for me. One bounced off the destroyed Robobrain and the other whizzed by my head. I momentarily looked away from the approaching Robobrains to watch the beast successfully destroy another robot, leaving only two left officially.

I used my magic to create a mini sand storm around one Robobrain to distract while I galloped out from behind my cover and attacked the other. Before I smashed its brain into a pink paste, the Robobrain managed to land a shot on me. However, instead of burning like lasers usually did, my suit seemed to absorb it. Without hesitation, I quickly dispatched the remaining Robobrain, making short work of it. With all of the Robobrains now destroyed, I turned towards the building. I glanced down and noticed the compass marker had been filled in. As I approached the large metal doors of the research facility, the beast landed nearby and slithered towards me.

"Not sure how long I'll take. Do you mind waiting for me, uh..." I trailed off as I stared at my newfound friend “wow, I really need to give you a name. So, uh, probably should figure out your gender first. Are you male?”

The beast only stared as it narrowed its eyes and flickered its tongue at me. I took that as a no and tried to think of a name.

“So, female then? Great. Let’s see here,” I said as I tapped my chin with my hoof “what’s a mighty name for a mighty beast like you? My mother was a tough mare. Her name was Viper Whip. Do you like that name?”

The beast made another chirp-like sound as she slithered closer until she was only a couple of feet away. Viper Whip towered over me for a moment before loosely wrapping her body around me, like she was attempting to give me a hug. I chuckled softly as I wrapped a foreleg as far around her body as I could, giving her half-hug back.

“I’ll take that a yes, then. Wait for me here,” I said as I pulled my leg back “I’ll be in and out as quickly as possible. Wait on the roof so those things won’t hurt you if they come back.”

Viper Whip chirped again as she slithered away and then propelled herself into the air. I watched her as she landed on the roof and lowered herself a good way over the edge. I gave her a small wave before looking towards the doors and trotting over to them. As I stood before the doors, I took a deep breath in and let out slowly. With my sledgehammer at the ready, I pushed open the doors and stepped inside.

Footnote: Companion Gained.
Current Companion: Viper Whip.
Footnote: 584 Exp. Gained.
Exp. Level: 71,250/71,250.
Footnote: Level Up!
Current Level: 31.
New Perk: Super Sledge Slam! -- All melee (except thrown) and unarmed attacks have a chance of knocking your target down and landing a critical hit. 15% for Unarmed or one hoofed melee, 30% for two hoofed melee.