Fallout Equestria: Desperados

Fallout Equestria: Desperados

Haute Bohème, Part 1

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"Among the things Harp misses from her homeland, it was the food. Not simply eating it, though her describing the different kinds of dishes freshly made that didn’t involve mutant plants and animals made my mouth water. As she said, it was the whole process of how the food got to her that she missed.

The Marewaii Islands had a complicated system revolving around the growing, processing, and distribution of plant-based food. The plantations grow pigmy plants in their vertical farms, maximizing the yield within the smallest of spaces. Small factories take much of that food and convert it into high nutritional and long-lasting foods that are often low cost. Then the distribution by a train system that has run for over 200 years.

As Harp explains it, none of that could even work if the Marewaii Islands were as much of a disorganized mess as the wasteland was. It downright sounded like the most stable and civilized place in this world.

Still, I get the strong feeling that her home has, as a human once expressed to me, the sword of Damocles hanging over it." ~ Azure Dice

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Hardballer tapped his crude pencil on his desk while looking at the crude drawing of the robot Order. Though he had agreed that attaching guns to Order was worth giving it a try, he still had to do some quick brainstorming.

He then pointed at the underbelly of the robot drawing.

“The main issue, Harp, is the clamps. The best position is the belly, which would block them.” Hardballer moved the pencil to the underside of the robot's wing. “This leaves the position between the clamps and wings. The harness for the rifle is going to need to be thin and strong, otherwise it will obstruct the propellers or break from any strong force.”

I could see what he was getting at. Order was not some combat drone, so weapons larger than a pistol would be an issue on it. Also, the rifles themselves were a bit awkward, not designed to be placed on such a robot. Then I had an idea that, maybe, the rifle too could be changed.

Presting one of my bolt launchers, I pointed to the air tank on the back. “What if you added an extra part to have the air tank tilt to the side? Maybe shorten the barrel a little?”

Hardballer drew a rough sketch of the rifle, then nodded. “If you don’t mind me making a few more modifications to both the guns and the robot, I think I might have something that could work.”

Next to the sketch of the gun he drew another, but with the air tanks removed. “Your bolt launchers are well defined to be shot by hoof, with a mostly sleek form. Robots don’t need this. If I strip down the rifles and integrate them into the robots shell, I think it should be possible.”

“How long will that take?” I then asked.

He tapped on his beak. “Maybe until tomorrow. The gun itself is not the issue. It’s basically just a beefed-up syringe gun. I’ve made a few of those in my time. I know I have the parts for what I’m thinking of doing. It’s remaking your robots shell, and housing the talismans, that is the issue. But, when I’m done, I would have the rifle practically half the length as part of the robot.”

Hardballer gently took my rifle and lightly brushed the engraving of the gun's name. “The pony who made this was quite smart. The enter gun is modular, as though they had it in mind for it to be modified. If I wanted to, I probably could turn one of these rifles into an nasty sniper rifle, or maybe a micro grenade launcher if I was so willing to do.”

Now that he mentioned it, air rifles were commonly modified back in the metro. Some were turned into turret machine guns while others turned into shotguns. Sometimes two air rifles were strapped together as some double barrelled monstrosity.

I smiled a little. “It’s probably due to the culture back home. Air rifles were the norm there, and most of the ponies who used them would personalize them. I think the pony that made this is what they had in mind for it.”

I thought about what I just said for a moment, having an idea. “I probably should add a modification too.”

Hardballer nodded. “Not a bad idea, though best not to rush it. Give it some more thought.”

His suggestion felt like the best course of action for this idea. “You’re right. Unlike Order, I can't just calibrate.”

With that, our deal was done. Basically part of my pay would go into fixing and modifying my drone Order as well as giving me a fair amount of ammo for my revolver. This deal was good for the two of us. The Gunrunners needed to keep their caps to pay taxes and to pay scavengers for the raw materials. So the suggestion to pay us in labor sounded like a good compromise.

If I could get Order back to full working condition, with better defensive armaments, things will be different next time. Star had been quickly overwhelmed and Cloudy was no fighter at all. As for myself, I bumbled pulling out my revolver. The only one that got a good hit in when we were ambushed was Order, but he can only do that shock spell once before needing to recharge.

The bolt launchers may not be the ideal gun for an attack drone, but defensively, it may provide me the time to properly get my gun out or cover any pony with me.

Unfortunately, I would have to wait till tomorrow before I can test Order’s modifications, so I was going to stay here for the night. If some raiders were after me, no better place to be then a compound filled with heavily armed griffins.

Still, I had a few other things to take care of. First of all was to check in with the Ruffled Feathers to see if Waterspout had talked with the mayor.

As I trotted to the door out of the compound, Longslide startled me when he landed nearby.

“Sorry about that, Harp. Didn’t mean to surprise you,” he said with concern in his voice.

I took a deep breath and smiled. “It’s quite alright. It’s not the first scare in my life. At this point, I should be quite used to it. Is there anything you need?”

He nodded his head. “Mostly just making sure you're okay, but also I like your opinion.”

“The energy gun you're trying to draw up?” I asked.

Again he nodded. “Ya. The problem is that we lack the gemstones to make something as strong as old-world energy guns. Ya, we could use what we have to make some bigger gun, but that’s not making anything new. Javelina suggested using the lower quality gems, but-”

“They lack the power or distance,” I finished.

“Also, there is the issue of burnout. The rose quartz talismans can take the energy output that the other games can’t.” He pulled out a green and blue gemstone. “Javelina keeps suggesting to just use more than one, but even I know that will make the shots go wild.”

I thought about it for a moment, then something clicked. “What if we reduce the range and just have more beams shoot out? Would that be possible?”

Longslide tapped his beak for a moment. “Like some beam shotgun? Ya, that might be possible. Still, I might need to cut the gemstones into a more fitting shape before, but I’ll pass it by Javelina. Thanks Harp and stay safe out there.”

“No problem, and I plan to,” I said back before leaving the compound.

Even though it was still the day, I found myself watching every shadow and keeping an eye out for ponies watching me. I hated how I let some low life ponies shake me.

Who sent them? Well, I know that Victoria wants my bloodline, but she has her own goons. However, I wouldn't put it past her to send such ponies to force me to join her.

Then again, Quicktrot could have sent them. She does know who I am and what I can be used for. From what Slowtrot had said, she requires technology to live, and I am a powerful walking magical battery.

Still, though I doubt he is that level of petty, Deputy False Cap was made embarrassed by me, so if not last night, then he will pull something.

There was also the dreadful possibility that those midnight raiders aren’t connected to any pony I know. It’s possible some pony else wanted me for themselves. For what, I don’t know.

It was all too much, as things always were. I just hated not knowing who to direct my wrath. At least, back home, I knew it was likely my elder sister who was setting me up.

Arriving at the Ruffled Feathers, I noticed that it was slow as normal during the day. Cleaning ponies were hard at work, with Waterspout helping them out.

The hippogriff looked over at me and sighed. “Are you sure you should be out and about right now? Not only should your legs be sore, but I heard about what happened after you left.”

I moved my leg a little. The soreness from my dancing last night was considerably dulled. “Jali gave me a mild sedative. She added that it would help with both the pain and to keep me from having a panic attack.”

He trotted up to me, still looking concerned. “That ghoul is a treasure trove of medical expertise. Still, what are you doing here? You and Cloudy have the day off, so go cuddle or something.”

“Well, Cloudy is staying at the clinic for now. Jali wants to test psychological counseling on her and another mare,” I respond.

“And you don’t need that?” he checked.

I chuckled. “I doubt Jali has the time to deal with my issues. Anyways, I figure it’s better to get at the heart of the issue, or at least make sure it goes my way next time.”

I then sighed, steeling myself to get to what I really wanted to ask. I hoped to hear good news. “So ... have you talked with the mayor about last night?”

Waterspout covered his face with his claw, looking irritated. It was a bad sign, one I knew well, as mother made it all the time whenever a station started making demands. It was the look some pony, or hippogriff, gets when others are being unreasonable or irrational, and the solution would be something no pony likes.

“Espresso and I had breakfast this morning. Even if he openly denies it, the Ruffled Feather brings in a lot of caps to the town. Well, I told him about what False Cap got up to last night, and ya, he did get mad. The last thing this town needs is the local law stirring up trouble before a large event, so Espresso does plan to punish him.”

“But?” I prodded.

“But the news about the raiders getting into a fight with the ganggers spooked him even more. How the fuck the raiders got into town in the first place is beyond me. Because of that, the good mayor wants to increase security and give the sheriff more authority to make sure that does not happen again.”

I groaned. “Meaning that False Caps punishment will be postponed until after the festival.”

“Correct,” Waterspout confirmed.

Waterspout grabbed a rag and began wiping off a nearby table. “At the very least, False Cap will not be visiting this tavern anytime soon. That, at least, I can promise you.”

“Well, that is at least a relief,” I said with a sigh.

Still, I was hoping for more, such as having that asshole get fined or some actual punishment. I’d settle for him getting some lashings just to know he did get hurt in some way. What he did to Cloudy and Star, I was not going to forgive and forget any time soon, if ever. Maybe I should just go with the classic Marewaii assassination and have him pushed in front of a train in order to make it look like an accident. Realy, as long as something big, heavy, and fast hits him, I would be happy.

Waterspout grinned, telling me he had something less than pure in mind. “On the topic of the tavern, what do you say to putting on another show tomorrow night? I got this nice dress you can use, and maybe a rich customer to use it on.”

Right on the money. “I don’t know. I’m still recovering from last night.”

“It’s your choice, Harp. You and Cloudy make an excellent team for this. That’s something I rather not see wasted.” He said with a shrug.

I saw a glint in his eye before he continued. “Oh, and that rich customer I mentioned, I heard it’s some wealthy mare from out east who has some connections to the railway reconstruction, I think. Heard she’s into mares more than stallions, so I figured you and Cloudy could loosen her up.”

I rolled my eyes. “And what, take her to the brothel with us?”

“Your choice. Just come by tomorrow night, and I’ll make sure nopony bothers you or Cloudy. Alright?” Waterspout asked with a wink.

Well at least he wasn’t suggesting I fuck a random stallion, but still ... the brothel sounded like a really bad idea. “I’ll run it by Cloudy. Just don’t get your hopes up.”

Parting ways, I left the Ruffled Feathers feeling a bit annoyed by the request. Afterwards I headed my way to the uptown market.

I was looking for some scavenged electronics, the kind of things that could pass a spell through it with a magical energy current. When I was a foal, I had made a light talisman in my arcano science class using a potato as a power source. I was determined to try to remake that on a much bigger scale. From potato battery to spark battery!

It was still going to be a bit more complicated than that from what I remember, but if I can make the arcanotech device, the Gunrunners would be able to make simple talismans without my help. If I can pull that off, then I should have a big payout coming my way.

Now what I needed were electronics and wires mostly, along with an energy converter with a power breaker to help keep the talismans from burning out if the current is too strong. Actually the control of the magic flow would be the most important part.

One rough-looking merchant shook her head. “Sorry, got scrap metal and corn.”

Another merchant pointed to several old gun parts and canned foods.

A third simply told me to buzz off.

A lot of the traveling merchants in town seemed to be in a bad mood, not interested in questions. That's when I saw a familiar face. I trotted over to the merchant Moody Peddler, who had just finished selling a white scorpion supply box.

“Well I’ll be. Miss Harp, is it?” he said in his sales pony chipper tone. “I sure hope you're looking for anything I can sell. I see you have those glasses yo marefriend bought from me.”

“That’s my name, Moody, and I do hope so too,” I responded as I wiggled the orange shades on my face. I looked over what he had on display, but I did not see any electronics. “Say, would you happen to have anything for making arcano tech devices? Like electronics, cables, and anything of the like?”

He scratched his beard for a moment. “I might have something, but most of my good salvage is already sold.”

Moody got out a smaller sized chest. Inside was a bunch of what I could guess were robot parts. Picking through what's there, I found a few things that I was going to need. There was a power breaker, but no power converter.

I clicked my tongue.

“Let me guess, one of the more important parts is missing,” Moody correctly surmised.

“I need a power converter. Nothing major. I am just testing an idea, but without it, what I’ll make will just be garbage,” I told Moody.

He closed the chest then looked over to the general store. “Well I’m not one to tell you to go to a competitor, but if you buy all that, and one of my mystery lunch boxes, I’ll give you a tip to where you can find a small power converter.”

Great! He was trying to sell information.

“What’s in the mystery lunch boxes?” I asked.

He slowly waved his hooves up in a big archer. “Nopony knows.”

Pulling back a curtain to reveal over ten Stable-Tec and Sparkle-Cola lunch boxes stacked on top of each other in a pyramid. “Well, my kids know. I let them stock them after I got a load of random stuff from a less than great deal. You may get a bunch of junk, or you might get something useful. I just didn’t have the time to look it all over.”

He leaned in and whispered, “Also, might be best if you open it outside. My little bastard loves their pranks.”

I looked at him, eyebrows raised.

“Fine, I’ll buy.” I then took one of the lunchboxes, a fairly decent Sparkle-Cola box, which had a friendly green unicorn printed on it.

It took a minute for him to check and count the caps, reminding me of a casino mare folding a deck of cards with how he hoofs around the caps.

When Moody was done, he gave me a big smile and then told me what I needed to know. “The New Appaloosa general store does not have any power converters for sale right now. Trust me, I checked. But what they do have is a pinky party toast-o-matic in good condition. They can toast the perfect toast, or burn Ministry Mare Pinkie Pie’s face into the toast. More importantly, those things have built-in power converters to keep them from setting the toast on fire.”

I had a real hard time understanding what the old world was thinking with all their unnecessary tech. Well, at least it was not a solarus toaster. I hated those things! For some reason, the one kept in stable 50 had a radio speaker attached to it. Whenever I used it to toast bread, a message about burning down the world would play. I once had a nightmare about the toaster actually setting the stable on fire.

“Say, Moody,” I spoke up with one more question. “The merchants out here look a bit miserable. Did something happen?”

Moody Peddler sighed. “It’s more like what hasn't happened. We're all here for the festival, but there has been no set date. All of us have staked our small plot of land here to sell during the festival, so without a set date, we're stuck here until we give up or run out of junk to sell.”

“Let me guess ... a lot of you rather move around than stay in one place.” I suspected.

He shrugged. “Mostly true. We got products that we know will sell better in other places, but selling during the festival will be better caps. It’s a catch 22, and some of us merchants are just getting ornery because of it. Lucky other traveling merchants have been helping us resupply, though at a slight mark up, as expected of a merchant.”

The stallion pulled out an empty bottle with a big grin on his face. “Right now bottles are a big commodity considering how we're going into a drought soon. Several merchants have been hired on to work with water caravans, so this festival might be the last big ye-ha for the next few years. It all makes us on edge, as you can see.”

That makes sense. I was not the only pony trying to make a lot of caps before making a big move.

I copied his smile. “Are you going to try and sell everything and join the water caravans? Or are you going to just sell water independently?”

He scratched his chin with the bottle, trying to look as though he never gave it some thought before. “My wife suggested as much, as it would guarantee NCR protection and a steady income even though just moving some water would be a waste of my talents. Still, if the water dries up, no way ponies will be buying the random junk I have to sell. All caps will have to go to water.”

Throwing the sheet back over the mystery lunch boxes, he waved me off. “Good chatting with you, but you should buy that toaster before some other pony snatches it up.”

Why he needed to cover up the mystery boxes was a mystery in itself, so I waved back. After that, trotted over to the General store.

Inside, it looked like it sold almost every little bit and bob a pony could be fine with. All of it in various conditions. Finding the toaster was easy. The bright chrome appliance sat on the top shelf with the face of Pinkie Pie on it. Her face felt like it was really looking down at me.

The large stallion, who I guessed was Heavy Hoof, sat behind the counter while reading a book. There were a few other ponies inside. Some were looking like merchants themselves as they browsed the aisles. Trotting up to the counter, the stallion Heavy, looked over at me, and put his book down before he drearily said. “How may I help you?”

I pointed at the toaster and said, “I like to purchase that toast-o-matic up there, and any electronics you might have.”

Heavy nodded and grabbed the toaster, placing it on the counter. If it were not for Pinkie's face, the thing would have been charming looking.

Trotting over to where the electronics were, I found a few more cables and some circuitry. I wanted to make sure I didn’t need to trot back here, so buying some extra was a good idea.

We haggled, then came to a fair price. At that point we exchanged caps. Heavy hoof seemed to be an upstanding pony. He was nothing special, but not some slimeball either.

As I turned to leave, I heard the soft chuckling of Karat Gold as she stepped through the front door. One of her hooves was wrapped up and braced. “Oh, is that you, Harp? How's working at that whore house?”

Star warned me that she was going to be a bitch if I were to bump into her again. I also figured she was going to be this way. Ponies like her never knew what to do with power but abuse it. Now that Karat saw herself as socially higher than me, she felt in the right to act this way. It was a combination of being drunk on the littlest of power, and likely a lack of accountability.

It was common back home among the spouses of Station mayor’s spouses where they acted as though they actually ran the place. My family was not much different. My siblings would try to throw their authority around whenever they could, but unlike ponies like Karat, they had some actual power to make ponies fear them. Karat was just a boasting no pony who can’t even do her own work.

Another pony stepped in. It was the tall and thin unicorn Stopped Clock.

“So the new trouble maker is here.” Stopped said as he looked down at me.

I rolled my eyes. “If you’re talking about the incident with False, then maybe you should tell him to keep his hooves to himself.”

“Threatening a deputy's life is still a crime, even if we were told to not pursue it. Don’t think you’re above the law,” the Deputy said coldly.

I laughed. “If you're going to throw that at me, make sure I can’t easily call you out on your own hypocrisy. How many times has Ashy stuck a gun in someone's face? I was there for the standoff you all caused, and I heard about her incident with Hardballer a few days later.”

He lifted his duster jacket, showing his revolver. “Known criminals don’t deserve the same respect as decent ponies. But with who you choose to associate yourself with, I’m not surprised you don’t seem to understand this concept.”

I know I shouldn't argue, but knowing that he was just going to let False Cap go, it made my blood boil. “Known criminals? False knocked Cloudy unconscious over nothing. If any pony in all that is a criminal, it’s False. How in tartars is Cloudy a criminal?”

“Spoken like a stable pony who knows nothing. Even if she was not directly involved, she was part of the Enclave. That same Enclave that went on a bloody rampage all over the wasteland to wipe out the rest of the pony kind. All the pegasus are guilty of this crime. They were all complicit in that atrocity.” Stopped looked down at me with his one cold eye. I could see it; hatred. Pure hatred. It wasn’t the friary passion of a pony in rage, but a cold calculating hate that only a pony set on their path could have with no way to change their mind.

The only other pony I had seen with eyes like that was my eldest sister. The same mare who sold my family out to Victoria's goons. They literally walked through the front door. Their captain in the armor of the head of the royal guard, my once precious caretaker, Status Dancer. I had to watch as ponies I knew from the time I was born faced slavery or slaughter. Some were not even given the choice as they were cut down to satisfy the pirate’s bloodlust.

Whatever Stopped decided on doing, he was going to feel justified in it.

I broke eye contact. “Say what you will, but the Enclave I knew were heroic ponies that I owed my life to, and unlike you, I don’t tie civilians to the actions of the greater organization.” I gritted my teeth. “I’m not some damnable equalist.”

Stopped huffed. “Then you're a fool, and on the road to becoming a criminal. Step out of line, and I will be there.”

He trotted past me without another word.

I had nothing else to say to him. It would be a waste of my time and sanity.

That’s when I caught the smug smile of Karat.

“What?” I asked through gritted teeth.

Her eyes wandered away, looking off into the distance. “Oh nothing, just wonder that if you're working at that whore house, you must be hard up on caps. Maybe enough to take something without paying.”

I glared at her. “False accusations now, is it?”

She looked over at Heavy Hoof, a disappointing frown on her muzzle. “A mare like you can easily take advantage of that pathetic husband of mine.” She looked at my now full saddlebag, pointing at the toaster. “I know that’s all not cheap. Nothing a capless mare like you can afford.”

Karat began making an up and down motion with her good hoof while smugly smiling at me. “So did you do it here, or at that whore house like the slut you are?”

I was not going to let her get to me. I trot passed her to the outside.

“I heard that you and that pegasus bitch have teamed up. I guess the town's bicycle does need two wheels after all,” she said with a chuckle.

I whipped around, my left hoof still up, and the weight of my pipbuck sending it out. Or maybe I wanted it to fly. I know I did want to hit her, and I was pissed.

My pipbuck connected with her face. Karat stumbled back and fell over.

It was too late to hold back, so I felt now was better than any time to tell her how I felt about her. “Don’t you fucking even dare to say that again! Not when everypony knows how much you whore yourself out. Just because you can ride a dick to get some power does not make you any bit better than anypony else. No, it makes you just another pathetic whore who pretends to be better than what you are. You do know eveypony wishes that your husband would just ditch you already, not like those kids of yours are his anyways!”

I took a step towards Karat, who was now cowering as she held a hoof over her eye.

“That’s enough!” Stopped shouted.

His magic wrapped around me. I was slammed to the floor hard.

Stopped began dragging me to the door, his one eye glaring at me. “I’m taking you to the jail.”

I didn’t argue. It was going to be a waste of time. Better to just get this over with, not like I cared what this damned town thought about me.

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-Reputation-

-New Appaloosa Up Towners-

Bad rumors are now openly spread about Harp. True or not, their view on Harp is now quite negative.

-New Appaloosa Law-

Harp’s name is now written in as a known troublemaker. Somepony who had committed assault and battery.