Fallout Equestria: Desperados

Fallout Equestria: Desperados

Intermission, 03

The flying radio called a sprite bot cracked, announcing the beginning of the DJ’s message of the day. Thought I was sure it would be the same as yesterday.

"Hello every pony. This is DJ Pon3. Still here. Still fighting the good fight. I hope you are too."

The sprite bot cracked again, cutting off the radio signal. It even stopped in place. It turned to a pony hiding behind a rock. He was a dirty brown pony with a dark blond mane that looked like it had a bad run-in with a lot of fire.

It was a strange behavior for something mechanical, so I decided to just sit and observe.

“Hello, Gin Fizz,” the robot spoke in a deep tinny voice.

The pony practically jumped out of his skin, then dashed to the ground.

“Are you trying to kill me? Shut the fuck up!” Gin whispered.

“Don’t worry. The raiders are elsewhere right now. You're safe,” the robot informed Gin.

Breathing a sigh of relief, Gin cocked an eyebrow at the bot. “Hey, ain’t ya that watcher fella from Lightbringer story? I heard ya were Ministry Mare Twilight’s pet dragon or something.”

Somehow the robot looked a bit annoyed.

“I was her little brother, not her pet!” It corrected Gin.

“Oh. Sorry. But ... why are ya talking to me?” Gin asked.

“Your friends, they’re still captured by the raiders. I know how you can save them,” Watcher told him then looked over in the distance. “Not far from here there's a sewer that connects to their base. Take it while the raiders are out looking for you and you should be able to get to them.”

Gin chuckled nervously. “Calling ‘em friends is a bit much, ya know. More ponies who I just need ta run faster to survive than anything.”

Watcher lower it’s… eyes? Well, it looked very annoyed at the pont. I was surprised that it could even do that with what little ability it had to move its parts.

“Well, now you’re by yourself, and if the raiders even see you, you won’t have a pony to run faster, now won’t you?” it chastised Gin.

Gin’s eyes shifted. “But I’m no sneak, or much a fighter. They’ll catch me if I go there. If that happens then we all die.”

I had a feeling that I could help, and with how the strange sprite bot knew things, it figured I could help.

“Excuse me,” I interjected as I took off my sprite bot helmet, “maybe I could help.”

Gin screamed loud enough to may my sensory appendages hurt. Following that, he ran off to the sewer that the watcher told him to go to.

The sprite bot also looked surprised. “What… are you? And how long have you been here?”

“I guess I’m what’s called a Sparkle-Lurker. I’ve been following that spright bot for a few days now.” I informed this Watcher.

There was a pause before Watcher asked another question. “And where did you come from?”

This inquisitiveness was a good sign. Well, at least I hoped it was a good sign. From my experience, inquisitive people were far less likely to kill you on the spot, but that didn’t mean they won't try and kill me later.

“I’m from another world. I fell through some warp portal on my side, got lost, then ended up in this land of ponies.” I explained.

Again it paused. “Please don’t tell me you're from Canterlot High?”

I shook my head. “Don’t know what that is.”

A sigh came from the bot. “Right. Let's say I am experienced with dimensional travel.”

I breathed a sigh of relief since I have found someone who might be able to help me raise my spirits a bit. “What can you tell me that you know? Frankly, even though I was given the explanation of tears in the fabric of reality, it still confounds me. Walking through a door should not send you to different worlds.”

Watcher paused for a moment... “Well, it would not hurt to at least share what I know. You see, Caterlot housed several magical mirrors that connected to parallel worlds that mirrored this one. Sometimes they led to radically different worlds where creatures walking on two legs and wore a lot of clothes. Humas, I think they're called.”

“Humans,” I corrected him. “Tricky folk. Surprised I haven't seen any here.”

“Because they turn into ponies if they come here,” Watcher informed me. “Magic is… well ... confusing, to say the least. But, if you use the mirror, you take on a different form on the other side. That is, unless the other world is the same as it is here. Don’t ask me why. I’m not an acano scientist.”

Looking at my hoof-like appendages, it made me glad that I was already partially quadrapedic before coming here, but I still missed my claws.

“I understand. Would you be so kind as to point me to this Canterlot, then? Even if it doesn't take me home, just being near one of these mirrors may help a friend of mine find me.” I requested politely.

The sprite bot turns and bobs at a mountain with a large ruin on it. From the few surviving buildings, I could tell it once was a city. Maybe even a palace. Likely was a sight to behold. Now it was nothing but a long trail of rubble that extended down the mountain.

“Sorry, but Canterlot was destroyed eleven years ago by the enclave, along with most of the treasure it held. The NCR managed to scavenge some of the lost artifacts, but there's no way the mirrors survived any of that,” Watcher explained.

The sprite turns back to me. Somehow it looks sad. “I always wanted to return there, to go home…” The bot shook side to side. I could hear the watcher taking a deep breath. “Sorry. Got stuck in an old memory.”

“Well, if there are any mirrors left, then they're hidden away in places I don’t know. Again, I’m sorry.” He added.

I did my best to smile, hoping to put whoever Watcher was at ease. “Oh, don’t apologize. I’m just glad that this world at least has such magic. But, if you still want to help, can you point me in the direction that takes me somewhere safer? A place that has water would be best. I need to restock on traveling rations before I can go look for that young mare.”

“A young mare? Why? Who?” he asked.

“Harp Melody, to be exact. I met her inside a time-space warp before falling here. She seemed to know what might have caused the distortion. Right now, she’s my best lead to finding a way home,” I explained.

Watcher floated in silence for a moment. “This sounds familiar.”

The robot then nodded “Here, I’ll program this bot to take you someplace nearby that has what you need, and I’ll ask a friend of mine there about this Harp Melody.”

I gave the robot a little bow “Thank you Mister Watcher.”

With that, the sprite bot began playing music again and floated off in a new direction.

Putting my sprite bot helmet back on, I began following the bot much like I had before, but now with a real direction.