Fallout Equestria: Book of Blackjack

What remains of old friends

Seeking the truth no matter how bad it hurts

Velvet looked down at the passing landscape before her, the morning sun brightening the Hoof showing the bright green forest and lakes that made up the land. Hills and plains were everywhere with mountains dotting the horizon. The restored beauty of Equestria always made Velvet’s heart skip a beat. She and her friends had done this, all they had worked and fought for had paid off in the end. While the remains of the wasteland such as raiders and warring factions remain, restoring the land was a big step in bringing back Equestria.

“Ms.Velvet are you listening?” The words tore Velvet from her wanderlust and back to the Zebra mare sitting next to her. “Mistress I know the land looks beautiful from this view but please pay attention.” The zebra was a strange mare Velvet had ever met one, she was one of the Zebras Velvet had met in her travels around the south. Down there zebras were more numerous then they were in the north, with Velvet meeting several communities in her journey with her husband. During the war zebras in the south had been relocated to a town called, Happy Tails, where they were isolated from the rest of Equestria. When the bombs fell their area wasn’t hit due to the fact how far away from civilization made it the safest place in the whole country.

After the end, the zebras used lessons learned from surviving their own harsh homeland passed down for generations to easily survive the Equestrian wasteland. Keeping to themselves and scaring away any trouble makers, the zebra’s manage to keep their cultural roots intact. When Velvet and the Followers put out a call for any zebras to join their organization to help in restoring cultural history, the tribes sent one of their historians as a gift of goodwill. “Sorry Musa, I was thinking of how everything has changed.” Velvet closed her eyes and laid back into the seat. “Ten years ago this was all wasteland.” She pointed out the window. “And this area was probably the worst of it. Now it’s a thriving mini country.”

“Well Ms.Velvet you should take pride in your work, but there’s still more modern problems to discuss.” Velvet looked at the mare, her long black mane done into a ponytail, and the strange colored orange glasses covering her eyes as she gave Velvet an annoyed look. “We need to go over the medical shipments to the Hoof before we can return to Junction town.”

Velvet gave a long sigh, the job of an administrator was not easy. Talks of monthly balances, trade routes, the economic situation of both the Followers and NCR had driven Velvet from a happy mare full of life to one that just wanted to sleep for a week. “Yes, yes I know. But we can discuss that after our meeting today Musa.” While the shipments were important, the real reason she had come out this far was more personal. “After we get more information about Blackjack I promise to get the paperwork done.”

“Mh, fine we shall discuss it later.” Musa gave a hump and pushed up her glasses with a hoof.

Velvet breathed a sigh of relief, Musa could be pushy but she knew when to back off. “Now tell me everything about this village we’re going to.” Velvet turned her head back to the window, the land below got closer as the Skybus descended from the heavens.

“From what we’ve gathered the town is called Boardwalk, it was a fishing exporter before the Enclave war but after it opened relations with Sanddogs it started exporting scarp from around the Hoof. After the war in the Hoof they took on refugees from a nearby Stable, they got along with town’s folk well enough but there was always a divide. The Stable ponies seemed to practice a form of caste system where roles are assigned to you based on your mother’s role from birth.” Velvet winced at that, she too had known the burden of familiar legacy with her great grandmother's talents and role being forced upon her, and while she did take too well she was never allowed to have a life of her own. Such a burden drove her to leave the Stable and start her journey so many years ago. “Along with that fact male Stable ponies are treated like servants by the mares has lead to refugee area being called Maryville by the locals.”

“And the mare’s named is Midday?”

“Midnight and Marmalade Ms.Remedy.” Musa side with a hint of annoyance at Velvet’s question. “Midnight is the town’s technician, fixing a lot of salvage tech around town, and Marmalade is a guard.” Musa didn’t know what to think of Velvet sometimes, for as kind and worldly she seemed she always missed the finer details.

“Thanks, I don’t know what I’d do what without you Musa.” Musa just smiled a friendly smirk at that.

“Probably dead if that business in Vanhoover is anything to go by.” Velvet Remedy just rolled her eyes, you get a bounty on your head from an angry a warlord and now all of a sudden your idiot.

“Just make sure you’re taking notes when we interview them.” she said as she turned her attention back to the passing landscape below her. “This part of our search is the most important. To learn about who Blackjack is and where she went we need to find out where she started.”

The settlement of Boardwalk was a seaside town built on a larger boardwalk that looked like it had seen better days. While most of the bore the post-war look of grimy ruined buildings and objects that had not been clean in two hundred years, a certain section of town looked brand new with buildings made out of fresh-looking wood and metal. This part of the town held ponies who wore stable-tec appeal and the all too common Pipbucks around their left forehoof, these ponies also seemed more well kept than the rest of the town’s radiated, often having a custom made hairdos and clean clothes.

Velvet felt kind of at home when she and Musa rolled through this part of town, while she wasn’t fond of her life in the Stable but the civilness of its denizens compared to the rough nature of most Wastelanders was welcoming to say the least. Velvet and Musa passed multi shops and houses both took note of one detail, most of the ponies who did anything in this part of town were mares, no shopkeeper, guard, or fisher pony was a stallion. In fact, the only bucks they saw were inside houses, like they were kept away from the rest of society.

As the two mares trotted up to a building with the sigh ‘The Wreck Room’ They both were hit with the sweet smell of fresh pine. Entering the building the scent increased tenfold as if some pony had special candles made to hide the usual bar stretch. As they entered they were greeted with the cleanest bar one could hope to trot into, the room looked less like the typical wasteland bar and more like a cafe from before the war. Instead of wood the bar and tables were a pestle metal, red phon seats were nicely set up around the place, the floors were a square pattern of white and black. And to top it all off there were no signs of rot anywhere, the usual rot of the wastes wasn’t here.

Like the rest of the area, this bar was full of only mares, who paid the duo slight glances as they entered. The welcoming calmness of the establishment gave Velvet a sense of nostalgia, it was like trotting into Stable 2’s bar except without the stage where she performed. The thought passed her mind that these ponies had probably ripped parts of their stable out and moved it here, that would take a lot of horsepower, tools, and outside help to do it. These ponies were committed if anything to preserving their way of life on the outside. Even the ponies of Stable 2 didn’t go this far Velvet thought to herself.

“Do you see your contacts, Musa?”

“Well from the description the Finder’s gave I believe that’s them over there.” Musa pointed a hoof to a corner of the room where two unicorn mares sat around the enclosure, one looking bored while the other devoured a plate of greens like it was candy.

One was a midnight blue mare with black mane who fiddle with a device Velvet knew all too well, a Pipbuck. The other was a honey-colored mare who was on her third plate of food as Velvet and Musa neared them, she only broke away from mad dining when the duo’s shadow stood over her. She looked up with a confused expression that quickly turned into a welcoming smile. “Oh your that singer the Finders told us about.” She reached out a friendly hof to greet them. “Hi, I’m Marmalade.” She said ecstatically making Velvet wince a bit.

Velvet took her hoof anyway not wanting to offend, she only reeled a bit when the honey-colored mare shook her hoof vigorously.

“Eh? Yes, nice to meet you Miss Marmalade. I’m Velvet Remedy and this.” She pointed to the zebra beside her who bowed respectively. “This is Musa.”

Marmalade got up and quickly started shaking Musa’s hoof, the zebra gave a happy smile while Velvet stared at the dark blue mare. “And you must be?”

“Midnight.” She was the reverse compared to her partner, she almost seemed to fade into the background rather than greet them. “So the Finders told us that you wanted to know about Blackjack?”

Velvet cleared her throat, it was now time to get down to business. “Yes, we’ve come here to learn all we can about her. Most importantly what was life like in her Stable?” Velvet frowned as she saw that she got an unwelcoming look from the dark blue mare.

“Blackjack is a sore topic around here.” Midnight said coldly. “Most mares from Stable 99 want to forget her, but you're here asking about her. Can I ask why?”

The barely hid anger in her voice warmed Velvet of a minefield of responses that could end this interview real quick if she answered wrongly. “I simply just want to set the story straight about Blackjack that’s it.” Velvet said with conviction hoping this would be enough. “I want to give Blackjack the same treatment Little Pip got. I want to tell her story, her real story unbiased and alter by the ponies who knew her the most.” She looked at Midnight hopefully yet wanting eyes. “Please Ms. Midnight I need you and Ms. Marmalade, I will give you anything just to hear this story.”

Midnight gave a tired sigh, looking away from the charcoal unicorn. Marmalade who had retaken her seat was beaming at this. “You want to help out Blackjack!” She shouted, gaining several other mares in the bar's attention at the name. “Any pony that wants help out Blackjack is a friend of mine.” the honey unicorn mare couldn’t be more happy-making her companion stare at her in an angry expression. “Blackjack was a good pony, I don’t care what the mares around here say. I will help”

“Thank you Ms.Marmalade, you're a big help to a great cause.” Velvet needed a way to get Midnight on aboard so she went with an ace in the hole. “For your help, I will see to it that you can get a position in the Followers as a guard. You can have your own house in Junction Town completely free with no taxes for it.” That made the honey-colored mare light up in surprise, she’d dream of leaving this place for years but never could find a way.

Velvet’s gazed turned toward the corner of her eye, seeing the somewhat surprised looks Midnight gave the offer. She knew she had won when the dark blue mare groaned. “Okay I will bite, I will tell anything you wish to know, however,” she said with a tone express there would be no barging. “I want out of here, I want to leave the Hoof.” Marmalade looked at her like she grew a second head, about to say something but Midnight cut her off. “I don’t want to be here anymore, all this place has is bad memories for me. I want a technical job if you have any open?”

Velvet’s face lit up like a filly getting the toy they always wanted, she tried to shake the mare’s hooves but Midnight reel back feeling a little put off by her excitement. “You won’t regret this Miss Night, we will see you get a position in the Followers along with Miss Marmalade here. All you have to do is come with us for the interview and fact-checking, is this alright with you?”

Midnight just nodded her head, the unsure frown stilling showing that she was not sure she made the right choice, but she kept any displeasure at the situation to herself as the pair began to leave.

“I know this is a hard subject for you miss Night, so I will make sure I get the record straight about Stable 99.” Velvet stared back with conviction in her eyes. “The story of Blackjack and her life will be told as truthfully as possible, even if it reveals she was a monster under it all.”

Marmalade looked around the meeting room Velvet Remedy had chosen for the interview, it was mostly empty, say for herself, Velvet, and that Zebra she traveled with. All three sat with chairs facing the opposite end of the room where a white screen sheet had been placed. A crown-like device sat on the mare’s head with a strange black orb sitting in the middle of it. Marmalade tried to pick at it but Velvet assured her it was safe.

“Now Ms.Marmalad this device is designed to simply show us your memories.” She paused when the honey-colored mare looked surprised at that. “Think of it as a memory film, it broadcasts your memories to the screen that’s all, it won’t hurt a bit” that made her calm down as Velvet floated a recorder in her magic grip right next to the honey-colored mare, Musa held a notebook in her forehooves while keeping a pencil in her mouth. “Now I want to ask you a question, and I need you to focus on this one.” Marmalade nodded. “How did Blackjack get her Cutie Mark?

As Marmalade closed her eyes and focused, the orb began to glow, energy radiating from the crown as a beam light shootout toward the screen. Images formed into being, a pic of a table with three fillies sitting around it holding cards in their hooves.

“Finally it’s all coming together.” Velvet starred in joy as she laid back in her chair, she had come far but the answers she sort were here. She would learn about her hero, savior, friend, and began pulling the pieces together. But a lump of fear tighten in her stomach, what if she found out something horrible, what if Blackjack was truly the Hell Mare some called her, and she just saw the friend, the good image in her mind. Velvet shook her head, it didn’t matter she would tell the truth no matter how bad it hurt, those words were one she took to heart from a good friend.