Fallout: Equestria - War, War Never Changes...

by Bronie312

Rating: teen
Tags: Mystery, Spike, Other, Fallout, Suicide / Self Harm, Tragedy, Adventure, Derpy Hooves, Violence, Crossover, Death, Alternate Universe, Human, Narcotics, Princess Luna, Gore, Original Character, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic
Length: 14510

2277, the "Equestrian Wasteland" is now an almost abandoned land without any kind of hopes left. But, everyone knows that people and the world may have changed, but... War, War Never Changes.

Fallout Equestria: War, War Never Changes...
It's 2277, the Equestrian Wasteland... You all may know it, an almost abandoned wasteland; previously inhabited by many species, just like ponies and dragons.
However, there's another Equestria Wasteland, a very similar one; but, this one has an important difference, regarding the original, there are humans there.

The Great War between the "Equestria Unity" and the "Free Federations" ended with the falling of the mega-spells and balefire bombs; radiation fell everywhere, and just a few living beings were able to survive this catastrophe. Especially, a human, along with a... particular group of survivors.
This group of survivors will explore the undiscovered wasteland and its menaces, passing through a lot of dangers until they would find a way to fix it all.
Unfortunately, for them, the world and people may have changed; but... War, War Never Changes...

Inspired by "Fallout: Equestria" - Created by Kkat.

Recommendable to read the whole original story. It's a MASTERPIECE.

Published 2020-03-17 15:30:01 UTC
Last updated 2020-04-02 22:10:14 UTC

Introduction: The Past...

War, War Never Changes...

...Equestria, once a great and powerful union formed by the strong union of 8 different species, was responsible for taking care of life in the whole planet; all the species agreed on keeping an eye on their home, Equis. Since the defeat of the "Legion of Doom", 15 years have passed.

Then, in the year 2067, international relations between the entire species were beginning to deteriorate since the exploitation of natural resources began to affect every species living there; slowly, rumors of a possible war began to spread as the whole union was losing relevance for the rest of species who conformed it once. One by one, all the species opted to leave the union since the negotiation attempts didn't work; by the same period of time, the murder of one of the previous leaders led various species to support the zebras while others preferred to defend ponies' posture on the situation.

While the zebras blamed the ponies for over-exploiting Equis natural resources, the ponies began to accuse the zebras of treason against the union, before it was disintegrated; in the end, the situation was uncontrollable and it led to the beginning of a war between both sides at late 2070. This new war obliged 3 whole pre-nations to recall their neutrality, these newly formed nations were the governments of the Kirins, Hypogriffs, and Dragons; although the Dragons wanted some land and riches, they were automatically out of the war because of their inferiority in comparison of ponies' and zebras' military and technological advances.

The so-called "Great Equestrian War" for some, for others, called "Great Equis War", meant the end of a long period of peace and the beginning of the end, for so many living beings; during 2070 and 2077, this war took more than 1,500,000 innocent lives, even some important leading figures were part of the gigantic genocide that this war represented.

Princess Sparkle wasn't able to hold the whole situation alone, any longer, so she called for help to her friends; unfortunately, for her, just a few of them decided to help her. The ones who didn't want to help her were already affected by her regime or the war itself, so they said "no" and stood away from war issues.

The Wonderbolts, Shadowbolts and Royal Nocturnal Guard were merged and transformed into the Air Pony Force, at the same time, the Royal Guard was converted into the Royal Army; in the end, the Royal Equestrian Navy raised up, ending with the continuing war's maritime crisis during 2071 and 2072.

The "Free Federations" attacked the "Equestria Unity" army in Hoofington, the Crystal Empire fell and Manehattan was almost entirely destroyed; then, in 2075, the war took an unexpected turn of events. The first pony armors were created and developed by "WestPony-Tec", meanwhile, the "Mega-Spells" were finally created by Princess Sparkle and her best unicorns scientists; each and everything of these turn of events changed the war, which took a very different direction since then.

So, the war was prolonged until October 23rd, 2077, when they finally fell from the sky. Since that day, Equestria and Equis themselves wouldn't be the same, never again...

Welcome to...

Fallout: Equestria - War, War Never Changes...

Author's Note

Alright, then... Welcome to my New Story. Welcome to Fallout: Equestria - War, War Never Changes...

Prologue: What's Left...

Now... what's left after the "Great Equestrian War" is just a desert wasteland, which is, usually, full of radiation; unfortunately, the large amount of radiation in the Equestrian wasteland has caused the creation of many mutations of different living beings.

From the Ghouls, going by Radroaches, to the fearsome Hospital Horrors; they were all created due to the enormous amount of radiation combined with different powerful spells from the "Balefire Bombs".

During the last 200 years after the war that wiped out the entire Equestria, diverse monsters have instilled natural terror in the wasteland; although, unfortunately, they're not the only ones...

Approximately, since 2082, tens and hundreds of living beings that survived the catastrophe have dedicated negotiating based on trading ponies, kirins and zebras, all of them alive and being tortured. Almost always, these (generally) crazy ponies and zebras have become accustomed to mistreating their “slaves”, they also enjoyed it. Among these maniac ponies, there are a couple of real megalomaniacs... Red Eye and, his pal, Killer Caesar. The worst living beings that ever stepped the ground of this devastated wasteland...

On the other hand, after the destruction of their largest and most glorious city, most members of the Air Pony Force decided to abandon the war and seek the predominance of their own species, by obstructing the sky with their own clouds, causing everything is left without sunlight; this began to further strain the relationships between the ponies themselves. At the same time, a good part of the unicorns and earth ponies separated from the army; the unicorns (those who survived the war), seeing the course that the war had taken, chose to leave the continent and set sail with their ships towards new lands. Meanwhile, the earth ponies made the decision to try to get away from Equestria and try to have lived in peace, although they would dedicate themselves to rescuing all the technology abandoned after the war.

The three species made up three different sides: The Grand Pegasus Enclave, The Brotherhood of Hooves and the New Republic of Canterlot.

Near 2159, several ponies decided to try to help those who were helpless and not able to defend themselves, they named themselves: The San Palomino Rangers. Unfortunately, a large group of slavers led by Killer Caesar has been dedicated to face the San Palomino Rangers until they wanted to conquer the remains of New Pegasus, which have been "rebuilt" by the conviction of the city owner... Mrs. Hoof.

While all this was occurring, the nuclear bomb stables/bunkers manufactured by "WestPony-Tec" have been kept closed while various social experiments were taking place inside.

All of the above has been going on for years before the eyes of a single individual, who has struggled for decades to prevent this from continuing; Fortunately, the perfect help would come to him to end 200 years of endless death, mistreatment, and torture... Finally, in 2277, every single sign of suffering in Equestria would end...

It is at this moment, that our history begins, although the war would always be what it always has been...

War, War Never Changes...

Chapter 1: The Equestrian Wasteland.

Author's Note

BEFORE YOU SAY ANYTHING ABOUT CHAPTER'S TITLE!
-It's just a reference to Fallout: Equestria's original chapter; I'll understand if someone does get mad but, at least, let's have some respect and tolerance.

P.S: I'm not stealing the chapter's title, it's just a REFERENCE.

Now, enjoy the chapter.

Chapter 1: The Equestrian Wasteland.

A devastated wasteland...

That's what my eyes gazed at in that evening, while I continued my journey towards an old, deteriorated and destroyed barn from before the war; my sight traveled from one place to another as my footsteps made themselves heard as there was no noise in the place. All my concentration was focused on knowing if someone or something was threatening me from somewhere.

Fortunately, nothing happened in a fairly long period of time, which began to feel restless; suddenly, I heard fluttering buzzes, these were too familiar to me. I turned to look at where the noise came from, it was a Radroach flying slowly towards somewhere; in an instant, I grabbed my Winchester rifle and smashed that hideous bug's disgusting head with a clean shot.

The Radroach fell on the ground instantly upon being shot and then laid on the ground... motionless and lacking any trace of life. After what happened, I reloaded my gun and decided to take it in hand, in case something happened and that I had to defend myself against any type of threat.

I kept walking towards the barn for a few more seconds; however, upon arrival, I began to hear metallic noises and a loud alarm coming from below. I was confused for a few moments until I remembered the underground entrance to Stable 2 covered under wooden doors, which were near the barn; so I ran quickly to the wooden doors, when I arrived, readied my Winchester rifle and aimed my gun directly at them.

At this exact moment, I heard the sound of a metallic object, like a door, closing, so I deduced that someone was already coming towards me; at that instant, several footsteps were heard as a female voice began to be heard, I heard both noises coming from below, so I kept pointing my Winchester in the direction of the wooden doors.

Slowly, I heard footsteps on metal stairs becoming more and more present as they approached the place where I was. Finally, the wooden doors opened with a green magical aura, revealing a unicorn with gray fur and ginger-colored mane, who was terrified when she saw the wasteland; It was surely her first time outside Stable 2, so I took advantage of the occasion and put the barrel of my rifle at the nape of her neck, causing her to be scared...

"P-Please don't hurt me!"

I stood silent after hearing her speak aloud, she was nervous and scared, so I took the opportunity to make her shudder with fear when I put more pressure and weight on the weapon, causing it to be pushed with even more force to the nape of her neck. Consequently, the unicorn began to babble nervously while I only looked at her from behind with the weapon still on her neck; in the end, she begged...

“Forgive me if I did something wrong to you, but… please don't kill me. I escaped from my Stable to find a friend of mine who also escaped from it. I didn't come to hurt you. ”

I didn't say anything for a few seconds, I was processing the information that the unicorn had given me; it was then that, in the end, I decided to lower my rifle and let her explain her matter...

"Okay, you got 30 seconds to tell me why you are here, alone. Now, if you could be so gentle, turn around."

The unicorn swallowed, as she turned around so that she could be able to look me in the face; in doing so, she was surprised by the fact that I was...

"A Human?!... But, I thought they were extinct. The Overmare told us that- ”

"I suggest you not believe anything about what the Overmare says... In the Stables, they only tell lies, this is how they always end up becoming the Tartarus themselves."

The unicorn looked at me in surprise for a few seconds until she remembered the fact I was waiting to get answers...

"Well... My name is LittlePip, I am-... I was an inhabitant of WestPony-Tec Stable 2 until... m-my friend, the singer and celebrity of Stable 2, Velvet Remedy, ran away from the Stable; I don't understand why she did it and that is why I have decided to go out… I have a mission and that one is to look for Velvet, no matter the cost.”

I was somewhat surprised by this, but it still didn't seem like the most surprising thing in the post-apocalyptic world of Equestria; although, deep down, I knew I must help her. I've helped all possible living beings, why not do it one more time?

I looked at her one more time to verify that she was ready for anything, then I told her...

"Very well, LittlePip, I will help you find your friend. This may not concern me, but I have a dictum: Never leave those who need you, help them if it's possible. ”

LittlePip smiled at this, then she opened one of her bags and took out an apple from them; she gave me one of them and I, being the generous and respectful person that I have been, I accepted it without complaint and I ate it.

While this was going on, LittlePip began checking boxes and drawers inside the barn, although she stopped halfway when she noticed the presence of a terminal, so LittlePip lowered her bags with her magic and began to hack the terminal until she managed to enter it and its data. What happened next was melancholic and sad...

"(Static) ...Hello? Is this thing recording? *Sigh* ...Well, first of all, I would like to thank my family for... for giving me a great life, one that no pony or any other living being has ever experienced... *Sniff* ...seriously, thank you very much for having fathered me, mom and dad... Always... *Sniff* ...I will always love you two. Now, the doors of Stable 2 are about to close, so... if anypony, in the not too distant future, finds this recording... *Sniff* ...please do take this recording to my parents... Bright Mac and Pear Butter. When you could find a tree of pears and apples together, that is where they will meet. --End of Recording--"

I looked at the terminal with surprise, the voice of the recording was Applejack, the same pony in charge of the Ministry of Wartime Technology, the same ministry from which the Steel Rangers came; her voice always had a characteristic northern ranch accent, making it easy to differentiate from other voices heard in Equestria and its ruins.

LittlePip stood still, she did not move a single muscle to breathe, suddenly she turned to see me; LittlePip looked distressed, her gaze was sad and astonishment, then she walked over to me and hugged me. I did not expect that action from LittlePip, so I was forced to respond...

"...You didn't like what you heard, did you?"

"*Sniff* ...Yes, I can't believe that even before I was born there was already evil in Equestria."

By hearing those words, I froze as I remembered everything that happened to me before I got to this point; it was then that I corresponded LittlePip's hug with another, which took her by surprise but didn't displease her at all...

"The world of Equestria is cruel, it always has been, but not as cruel as it is now."

After what happened, LittlePip kept looking for the data of her friend Velvet Remedy, while I was in charge of watching the outside; for a few moments, I was sitting under the frame of the barn door, while I constantly looked everywhere to check that everything was fine.

It wasn't until I saw a couple of Radroaches approaching me that I grabbed my Ironshod “SAA” (Peacemaker) revolver and aimed the gun at the first one; after a few moments waiting, I fired my revolver 3 times. Two shots were aimed at the first Radroach, while the third shot was at the second Radroach. All of them right on their heads.

The next moment I fired, LittlePip came out of the barn to see what was going on, immediately went pale as she saw the bodies of the Radroaches with their heads mutilated; she began to make various expressions of disgust.

Seeing this, I smiled a little, although I stopped doing it almost the next instant since she really seemed to want to vomit; so, I went with her to try to calm her down a bit and keep her away from vomiting. When I reached her, she couldn't take it anymore and vomit.

To avoid problems with them, I turned any other way; I looked away while LittlePip kept pulling out what was left in his stomach, at the same time, I saw the terminal from which LittlePip was trying to extract information from it.

To avoid problems with her, I turned the other way; I looked away while LittlePip kept pulling out what was left inside her stomach, at the same time, I saw the terminal from which LittlePip was trying to extract information from it. Seeing it, I decided to help LittlePip a bit and look for the information instead.

After a short period of time, I found more recordings and several documents in it, of which there were 3 that interested me: one called "I'm Sorry", another document with the title "Apple Family - History and Members" and the last one "I Won't Come Back", which was a recording. This recording made me think that it could be Velvet's, so I reproduced it...

To any pony who has left Stable 2 in search of me:

Please, go home. I am doing what I have to do. The Overmare understands, even if she can never agree, and I hope one day you will too. I will not be back. Do not look for me. Do not endanger yourself further for my sake. Please forgive me.

Velvet Remedy.

"So... She won't be back?"

I turned to look at LittlePip, who was standing next to me as she tried to replay the audio repeatedly; unfortunately, it seemed that the audio had been corrupted, so it stopped working. LittlePip hit the ground hard as she looked down, her face seemed frustrated. I knew what she was feeling.

I looked at her for a few seconds, contemplating and understanding the situation she was into; she abandoned her own home in search of her friend, she abandoned everything because of her impetus of searching her and this is how life rewarded her, letting her know that her "friend" did not want to be bothered by anyone from Stable 2...

"So it seems, LittlePip... you know what? It doesn't matter, this can't stop you from finally being able to do something in your life.”

LittlePip looked at me bewildered and clearly confused for what I said, her lack of understanding showed, so I clarified...

"What were you usually doing in Stable 2?"

LittlePip looked at me even more confused than before, so she asked me...

"What do you mean with that?"

"I mean, what kind of things were you doing in Stable 2? What was your daily routine?”

LittlePip thought for a few seconds while formulating her answer, she looked at me again and answered...

"Well, I- Uhh... I don't know, it used to be pretty boring; usually, I would repair the PipBucks of Stable 2 inhabitants. Every day, at all times, the atmosphere wasn't interactive at all; I have hardly ever had long conversations with any of the inhabitants of the Stable... On rare occasions, some pony would speak to me for over a minute or two..."

Honestly, I never thought of that kind of response coming from her; it was obvious that she suffered a lot, although, in part, it wasn't reflected in her being. So, I approached her and gave a hug of consolation and forgiveness for having made her understand her probable raw life; after the hug, I continued talking...

“Then, my dear LittlePip, I invite you to join me on this adventure, which I call life. I know this is not the most pleasant of life, but it is the best you can find in these places. And I am telling you with all sincerity.”

She looked at me and then looked at the terminal, she was surely in a dilemma of whether to accompany me or continue looking for her friend Velvet through the entire Equestrian Wasteland; when I realized this, I smiled and said to LittlePip...

“I'll tell you what, I promise you that if we find Velvet on our way, I will invite her to join us; indeed, I would be returning you a favor and, by being more people together, we'll be able to work better as a team. So, what do you say? Do you want to join me?”

LittlePip, instead of giving me her hoof as a sign of agreement, jogged towards the terminal and began downloading various files, documents, and recordings on her PipBuck; after this, she returned to where I was and, at that moment, extended her hoof to me, so I reciprocated the gesture by extending my hand and doing a handshake/hoof shake with her…

"I agree to accompany you on your adventure-"

"It is not an adventure, nor is it only mine... It is our great journey, from now on."

LittlePip genuinely smiled upon hearing this, but immediately her smile faded and was replaced by an expression of confusion, so she asked me...

"What exactly is this journey of ours about?"

Hearing that question, I looked at LittlePip serenely for a few seconds; it was then I made the decision to answer her...

"I'm going to summarize it for you... *Ahem* ...I've always hoped to be a good person who's able to ensure after innocents' sake, defenseless inhabitants' lives and good people/ponies who fight for what it is correct, in addition to being dreaming of helping others who need help to avoid or get out of trouble... And this vast wasteland can be cruel and unpleasant for so many, but... it does give me the opportunity of being a better person, I have the chance to help others and save them from slavers and raiders, and to be someone in this world. Shortly, being a righteous man."

After my speech, I ended by contemplating the vast and desert wasteland, which has been given the name "Equestrian Wasteland"; LittlePip looked in the same direction I was looking at, then sat under the barn's door frame and concluded with a short monologue...

"...A righteous man who ensures over others' sake, rather than itself."

"Exactly, that's what our journey is about, now... What you think?"

LittlePip looked at the devastated Equestrian moorland for a few moments, then turned to look at me and said...

"I love it. We'll have a great journey, together."

LittlePip and I prepared to begin our journey of saving the innocent and defenseless from the cruelties that slavers and raiders would provoke; While we were preparing ourselves, LittlePip asked me…

“Now that we are journey companions. Where are we going, exactly?”

When LittlePip asked me that, I was checking over LittlePip bags while I put some supplies in them; so it took me a while to respond as I continued to fill her bags with some food, a couple of bottles of purified water and 2 first aid kits...

“Our destination is the city of Manehattan, I intended to go there to obtain information about possible slavers and raiders; although, along the way, we will be forced to pass through the ruins of Ponyville and resupply in New Appleloosa. Probably, we'll have to divert towards Junction R-7 to trade supplies, weapons, and ammo with some friends of mine who are there.”

LittlePip was shocked to hear those many places and the long journey we had to travel to reach Manehattan. Fortunately, she recomposed herself and asked again...

"Do we have to pass all that way?"

When I heard her question, I laughed ironically and replied...

“And I have not yet told you all the places we will have to enter to search for supplies. Among them, we'll need to enter Ironshod Firearms to get you a weapon that can be adaptable to you. Without forgetting the fact that, after our arrival in the city of Manehattan, we'll have to reach Baltimare, which is located between Manehattan and Fillydelphia. For now, don't ask about the reason for our subsequent trip because it is very important to me.”

"But, if you haven't come from New Appleloosa or Manehattan, where do you come from?"

I remained in silence for a few moments, her question surprised me, although I must admit that it was somewhat obvious that LittlePip would ask me that question sooner or later; so, being an honest person, I replied…

“I came from a nearly 6-month journey through Vanhoover and New Pegasus. If you're wondering why, well... Let's say I was hired by a rich old pony to help protect several guard posts that were on the road connecting Ponyville (and its ruins) with both cities of New Pegasus and Vanhoover.”

LittlePip looked at me confused, surely she was lost on the talking, so she asked...

"Did they hire you? Don't you protect and save defenseless living beings because that's the right thing to do?"

“Of course, but sometimes I have to do some... jobs to get information about slavers and raiders; what I do is not that easy either.”

LittlePip nodded, making me understand that she comprehended what I said; so, I proceeded to close their bags and gave them to her. Then, I grabbed my Winchester rifle and held it in my right hand; meanwhile, LittlePip levitated her bags with her magic and put them on her loin and proceeded to approach where I was. She looked at me for a few seconds, then looked at the Equestrian wasteland again and asked me...

"Thanks for everything... What's your name?"

I smiled upon hearing her question, then I looked at her for a few moments and answered...

"You may call me Marcus."

TO BE CONTINUED...

Chapter 2: Ponyville...

Since the "Great Equestrian War", Ponyville has become a bleak old town... without anything relevant...

That's what I thought in my mind after having gazed at the landscape, which was occupied, its most part, by the old town; the image of Ponyville ruins was not very encouraging, but at least I knew how to avoid the raiders who could attack us.

I turned to look at LittlePip, who was observing the surroundings very carefully; while she kept an eye on the surroundings, I was in charge of looking ahead and exploring the area a bit before moving on. I remained alert, as I held my Winchester rifle with both hands; for a while, LittlePip and I took turns watching the area and checking the surroundings with our sights, but nothing relevant happened… although, everything changed as the following happened…

"Marcus, you see that?"

LittlePip had caught my attention by asking me that, not having understood what she was referring to, I looked where she pointed her hoof; then, I managed to observe the fire of a bonfire behind a few trees, which were still standing, and a pony sitting in front of a tree trunk; that pony was on its back and could not be seen properly, although it appeared to be asleep. But, before anything else happened, LittlePip jogged towards the pony wanting to know if he/she was okay or not.

Fortunately, I stopped her before she arrived at the pony, she looked at me confused; it was then I whispered her...

"Be careful, LittlePip. It doesn't seem right to me, usually, these situations are more like bait or a trap for the clueless and fools who don't take into consideration its circumstances. It's possible there are raiders or slavers waiting for some fool ponies to go innocently to the place, and then capture them. So, you have to be more careful.”

LittlePip understood what I tried to mean, so she calmed down and stopped before making any other move, then she looked at me and asked...

"So, what do we do now?"

“If this is a trap, it's better that one of us goes as a decoy to find out if it really is; while the other one stays here hidden, and when the slavers or raiders come out, he/she shoots them. The only problem is… who stays here and who goes there?”

We both stood silent for a few seconds, we'd been thinking about who would go to look at the pony and who would stay covering his/her back; it wasn't until LittlePip spoke, that we were able to plan our strategy...

"I'll go."

I looked at her for a moment with a surprised and terrified face, since I didn't want to risk her life for another living being, so I spoke...

Sorry, LittlePip, but I won't let you risk your life for another pony's life, whom we don't know. It's better if I go-”

“Marcus, think about it… You know it, I have no experience in the use of firearms or in close combat weapons; how could I possibly help you?... Otherwise, you have effective precision, besides, it's noticeable that you know more about this wasteland than I do. So, let me go look at the pony. Obviously, if it's a trap, don't begin to kill them all either; I wouldn't like to witness something like that.”

What LittlePip said made sense, I hadn't taught her anything about the wasteland yet. However, I didn't want to risk her life for this; although, unfortunately, I had to ask...

"You're sure about this? It could be dangerous."

She nodded in response, for what I just gave a sigh of defeat and answered her...

"Alright, LittlePip. But if that pony or someone else tries to do something and doesn't stop, I'll blow his/her brain out with a clean shot right to the head. I'll try to not kill anypony at first, but I can't promise anything, LittlePip… Do you understand?”

She thought about it for a few seconds, but her decision was already taken, she was going to see if that pony was okay; consequently, LittlePip nodded and I sighed...

“Just… be careful, LittlePip. I don't want you to get hurt because of me. Okay?"

"I understand, just focus on protecting me, please."

I nodded, so LittlePip slowly approached the pony for a closer look; every step she took was heard with such clarity that I thought if it was really a good idea what we were doing, but my thoughts were interrupted after hearing LittlePip exclaim out loud...

"But what-?!"

I observed her gaze, her sight had turned to one of surprise and bewilderment, it was obvious that she had seen something in that pony; but, again, my thoughts were interrupted by several male voices coming near to where LittlePip was...

"Well, well, well... Look what we got here."

"A lost and confused unicorn..."

"...Not to mention the fact that she comes completely alone and without weapons or any kind of protection."

There were 3 male ponies approaching LittlePip with bad intentions; they were two earth ponies and a unicorn holding various weapons, two melee weapons, and a sawed-off shotgun. Looking at them and seeing their looks of malice, I knew immediately that I had to help her before any of the ponies hurt her.

Then, I pointed my Winchester rifle at the white fur unicorn and pulled the trigger...

*BANG!*

Immediately, the unicorn fell on the ground with his brain being pierced by the shoot of my rifle, he was definitely dead. So I proceeded to fire my weapon again at the earth pony that held a shovel between its teeth.

The pony saw me and tried to hide behind the trunk on which the pony we came to look at, but I managed to shoot him directly in one of his legs, so the earth pony could no longer walk well.

Next, I switched targets to the other earth pony, which was struggling with LittlePip; I tried to shoot him, but the pony managed to grab LittlePip from behind by putting a knife close to her throat. Because of this, I couldn't shoot him, as there was a risk that I would hit LittlePip and not him; seeing the situation, I shouted...

"LittlePip, move!"

"How?!"

"Hit him with your head's back!"

LittlePip tried to hit him with the back of her head, but it was unsuccessful; although, she forced him to back off and took the opportunity to hit him on the nose with her head; the earth pony took a few steps back and I fired my gun...

*BANG!*

"Die, motherfucker..."

A few hours passed after our confrontation with the ponies who turned out to be slavers, LittlePip and I managed to finish them off, including the earth pony that I wounded in his leg.

The pony we came to look at was captured by the slavers, who used him as bait to attract anypony who would be foolish enough to go help him without thinking twice before doing so. We released him and he thanked us, but at the next instant, he levitated a rock and threw it to me before I could do anything; he seized the opportunity and left with the sawed-off double-barrel shotgun.

He hit me very hard on the back of the neck, but I didn't pass out, instead, I was still conscious; although, by an act of generosity and forgiveness, I didn't shoot him, since it was clear that he did not need any help.

LittlePip looked at me confused, but I only told her that it was better to let him go, that it was his decision to come with us or not; so, we both picked up supplies that the slavers had and headed towards Ponyville...

"Marcus, can I ask you a personal question?"

I looked at LittlePip for a few moments before refocusing my sight at Ponyville's ruins and the Raider Toll Bridge, which we were about to cross; so, I replied...

"Sure, what is it about?"

"C-Could you please teach me how to use a weapon?"

I smiled when I heard her ask that question, it was funny to hear her babble and nervousness when she wanted to talk about something involving personal or intimate issues; then, I replied...

"Of course, LittlePip. But, first, we must find you a weapon that suits you perfectly; sure, you can grab any weapon and shoot it, but you must be comfortable with it in order to get the most possible advantage from it. Like, for example, my two weapons: my beloved Peacemaker and Perfectshooting.”

"*Giggles* ...Perfectshooting? Seriously?"

“Well, I've put a lot of confidence in my Winchester rifle and it never failed me; it has a perfect shot.”

LittlePip started laughing as I smiled when I saw her happy, I liked to see that people/ponies could have a good time and that those could finally have a smile on their faces; I was grateful to be able to see her with a positive attitude and a legitimate smile on her face...

"You know what, LittlePip?... I love these kinds of moments, I really love them. Seeing you laugh and smile like that reminds me of... a beloved one... Now, LittlePip, I'd like to give you a little advice... *Ahem* ...If you ever manage to possess some happiness, don't waste it, okay?”

She looked at me with a smile, anyone could tell she had the element of laughter, but I think she was more loyal to her values than anything; then, after a few seconds, she replied...

"Okay, Marcus. Don't worry, I'll try to keep my smile at any time. I promise."

Before I could respond, a projectile from a rifle passed beside my head; immediately, we both knew that a sniper was targeting us, so each one of us covered itself as best we could. While LittlePip took cover behind a cart, I covered myself with a pillar of the bridge, which was made of concrete...

*BANG!*

Another projectile hit the floor next to me, the sniper really thought on killing us; LittlePip looked at me with her face covered in mud, after having fallen while trying to take cover, and a look of terror, it was noticeable that she was not used to the wildness that the Equestrian wasteland became. I made a gesture to her to calm down, which worked for a while; meanwhile, I proceeded to reload my Winchester rifle to shoot at the sniper...

"Can you see him?!"

She looked at me with fear and denied with her head, so I tried to see where the bastard was; I poked my head through the concrete pillar and looked across the river, when I surveyed the area, another projectile passed very close to me, brushing my head very lightly.

The shot disconcerted me for a moment, but at least I could make out where he was, the damn bastard was leaning against a stone on the small hill across the river; it was then that I prepared to shoot and poked around the pillar...

*BANG!*

A fourth projectile grazed my face when I tried to cover myself behind the pillar again; seeing this, I knew that I only had one chance to hit the shot in his skull. So, I prepared to jump sideways toward the center of the place so I could shoot him while I "flew".

When the time came, I jumped sideways and aimed my gun at the sniper, who pointed his gun at me, too. We both look at each other for a thousandth of a second and fire our rifles...

*BANG!* *BANG!*

I woke up lying on the ground a little sore, it seemed that the sniper had hit me on the right shoulder; but, on the other hand, I had killed him with a direct shot on the right eye. How did I know this? Well, the corpse of the unicorn was lying about 2 meters from where I was lying.

Seeing that if I could stand up, I did and then proceeded to approach the corpse of the pony to see if it had any ammunition or medicine; unfortunately, I didn't find anything, so I got up and walked towards LittlePip, who was sitting on the stone near the bridge...

"You okay, LittlePip?"

She didn't answer, even ignored my question. When I did not get an answer, I turned to see her to verify that she was still awake, and she was; however, it seemed as if LittlePip didn't want to speak for a moment, so I spoke…

"You are in shock... Don't worry, that's natural in a living being after having a traumatic experience. Like, for example, witnessing someone you know being hurt by someone else… But, as I said, it's natural in living beings.”

"Then, why am I feeling like this?"

I turned to see her again; LittlePip had finally said something, but her question confused me a bit, so I asked...

"What do you mean by that, LittlePip?"

LittlePip looked down and sighed, she looked tired, choppy and in shock, she'd been through a lot in just a few hours; however, she knew what kind of situations she was going to witness beyond her Stable...

"I feel... distressed, sad, scared, guilty, tired, I'm not able to keep calm and now I feel so worried for your sake... You've been the only one who has accepted me and you are the only one I had interaction with for more than 1 hour... You are the first friend I've ever had.”

“Thank you… It's normal to feel that kind of emotions, usually negative and exhausting, but it's logical. You, LittlePip, care about me and my sake, and I appreciate that very much… It's been years since I had someone to talk to without being someone who should stay in a specific place.”

LittlePip smiled as she looked at the sky, fortunately, part of it opened on its own and let the moon itself be seen for a few moments; it was spectacular, that was my first time seeing the moon in more than 15 years. Without any doubt, I would treasure this moment in my memory for so many years. I turned to see LittlePip, who also looked at me for a few seconds and looked at the moon again, then said...

“In Stable 2 we were told so many stories about Princess Luna and her symbol, the moon itself, there we always saw images and recordings of the moon; however... this is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen. Undoubtedly."

“That's funny. From my part, I've only seen the moon a couple of times; the last time I saw it was about... 15 years ago, during a trip toward the ruins of Hoofington and the city's dam. Fortunately, that night was quiet, so I could appreciate the moon as long as I wanted until I fell asleep. It's funny how something so simple can be so beautiful, especially in times like these.”

LittlePip nodded in response to what I said; when the moon finally disappeared, I realized how late it was, so I told LittlePip that it was better to keep going until we reached Ponyville and that I knew a place where we could stay to sleep at night...

About 30 minutes had already passed, but LittlePip and I had not yet reached the place where we would sleep, Carrousel Boutique; during our walk, we were both wondering about several more personal issues, such as who our family members were before we met…

"So... do you have family, yet?"

"*Sigh* ...I had once, but they're all dead."

"Oh... I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-"

"There's no need to apologize, LittlePip. You didn't know about it; however, in the future, you'll have to know about them."

We both kept walking while remaining silent for a few minutes; when we weren't talking, our footsteps were loud enough to be heard from several meters away, the whole atmosphere was very quiet... and I didn't like that at all.

I decided to hold my Winchester rifle in my hands while I kept an eye on our surroundings, LittlePip noticed this and asked...

"Something's wrong, Marcus?"

I continued to watch over the whole area with my eyes while, at the same time, I replied...

"You feel that silence, right?... Well, this calm and quiet environment may be enjoyable and relaxing, but we must also still be alert because there's still the possibility that there may be enemies nearby."

LittlePip remained silent after listening to my explanation, she was surely processing the information that I had told her, in the end, she replied...

"That makes sense, we never know what the future holds for us, right?"

I smiled when I heard her say that sentence, it was obvious that LittlePip could quickly learn about the wasteland; I looked at her for a few moments with a small smile on my face, while she reciprocated the gesture, by doing the same, smile.

When I turned to look forward, I spoke to her...

“You learn very quickly, LittlePip, and that's good; if you continue like this, soon you won't need anymore my teachings. Although, if I can advise you something: Never forgive someone who has done much harm to another, even if he begs you to not harm him or tells you that he has a family.”

"Thanks, but... I don't think this advice you're giving to me is nice at all, is-"

"Is cruel, I know... However, there are ponies who have no regrets after having raped, kidnapped, tortured and/or killed innocent living beings. Those kinds of ponies don't deserve to live, they are cruel… And you know it perfectly.”

She didn't dedicate a word to what I said previously, so I decided to not say anything else until we arrived at Carrousel Boutique; for another 5 minutes, neither of us said a word. After those 5 more minutes of walking, we both managed to reach Carrousel Boutique, which was still standing, but with much of its structure damaged...

"We're going to sleep here?"

“Well, if I could, I would have taken you to a luxurious 5-star hotel; unfortunately, I can't, so… here we are.”

"*Sigh of Defeat* ...Okay, we better sleep now, I'm tired."

"Okay. Follow me, I know where there's a room in which we can sleep.”

LittlePip and I were already on the second floor, inside the room where we were going to sleep; we were both tired after the long journey we'd taken, so we went to sleep, but not before examining the place to know that we could sleep peacefully, at least for that night.

Surprisingly, we didn't find anything at first until we examined the roofs; dangling, there were several dismembered corpses of ponies, filled with blood and guts. LittlePip saw this and vomited instantly, having never seen such an atrocity in her entire life. Immediately, I went to comfort her and we decided to move the bed in which she was going to sleep; we moved it to another room, which appeared to be empty of corpses and clean enough to be viable for sleeping in.

Although, before sleeping, I found a chest locked, I opened it with little difficulty and, in it, I found a black dress, it was very elegant; seeing it, I whispered...

"This is unexpected to find."

LittlePip heard me whisper, so she walked over to where I was and, seeing the dress, began to say...

"Wow... that's a beautiful dress-"

"Do you want it?... It doesn't work for me, but maybe it does to you."

Almost immediately, LittlePip levitated the dress and put it inside one of her bags; later, she turned to look at me and said...

"If we meet Velvet, I may give it to her as a way of apologizing for looking everywhere for her."

"Alright then, it's all yours, so... Now, we better go to sleep."

LittlePip nodded in response, but remained thoughtful for a few seconds and asked...

"But where are you going to sleep? There's only one bed.”

"Don't worry about it, I'll sleep on the floor while you'll sleep in bed... And don't worry, I'll be fine. I've slept in worse conditions.”

LittlePip nodded in response, then headed for the bed to proceed to sleep; at the same time, I sat on the floor, leaning against the wall next to the bed. So, I spoke...

"Have a good night, LittlePip. You'll need some rest, tomorrow's going to be a shaken day.”

"Good night, too, Marcus. Sleep well."

At next instant, LittlePip fell asleep after closing her eyes. Meanwhile, I was looking towards the entrance of the room, seeing the last place before finally falling asleep...

TO BE CONTINUED...

Chapter 3: Watcher's Advice...

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 4: Ironshod Firearms...

Ironshod Firearms...

"Finally..."

At last, after several hours of walking and after having gone through many things in just one day, we had reached our first destination... The "Ironshod Firearms" armory was right in front of our eyes, making itself look giant before us; at the same time, LittlePip didn't stop contemplating the structure of the place, she'd been very impressed with the building, and though that she'd only seen it from the outside...

"Wow..."

"Impressive, isn't it?"

She nodded without saying a word, she was still amazed by the place, it seemed that she undoubtedly wanted to enter there; then, knowing what she wanted, I spoke...

"In that case, LittlePip... You better get ready, because we're going to get inside."

She shooked her head a little and then returned to normal, then, she spoke...

"You sure we'll get any weapons here?"

I laughed a little at her comment, she still underestimated my experience in the wasteland and my great knowledge about the devastated wastelands of the Equestrian wasteland; when I finished my laugh, she winced, but that only made me laugh a little again. In the end, after several seconds of waiting, I was able to calm down...

"Sorry, LittlePip... It's just that your question gave me a little laugh... *Ahem* ...Now, answering your question... Trust me, LittlePip. I know this place very well, I know where we can find weapons and ammo. And, if we're also lucky, we may be able to find a power armor; although, unfortunately, it wouldn't serve either to any of us.”

LittlePip could not help but be confused by what I said, it seemed that she did not know the concept of a power armor; and, although I already knew about her confusion, I let her ask about it...

"What is a power armor?"

I smiled again when I heard her say that, it's obvious that LittlePip had been locked in her Stable her whole life; when she saw me smile, she waited for an answer...

“The power armors, especially those manufactured by the WestPony-Tec company, are a series of combat suits specialized in the area of direct warfare; these power armors can give you the strength and resistance of a tank, and can also give you the mobility of an infantryman. In short, with these power armor, you are agile and resistant.”

LittlePip continued to stare at the building for a few moments, although she immediately looked down, thought for a few seconds, and said...

"And... then why would it be useless for us to find one of them?"

"*Sigh* ...Because none of us knows how to use a power armor, besides only you would be able to carry one of them, and the problem with that is you don't know how to use one of them, is it?"

She gave a disappointed sigh, I knew I had taken away her illusions, but I had to make her understand the fact that it was important to have a balance between being optimistic and realistic. So, without anything else happening, we both entered the building at the same time...

"I hope Derpy and the Kirin are okay, I still don't like the idea of letting them go to New Appleloosa, all alone."

I nodded when I heard her say that sentence since I didn't like having to let them go without any weapons or protection either; although, to be honest, it was the most reasonable thing to do because of two reasons: the Kirin still needed some rest and we couldn't provide that during the trip, and the second reason was that Derpy wasn't fit to be there, she had to be back to New Appleloosa as soon as possible and help in her own store. Therefore, I asked Derpy to go towards New Appleloosa and to take the Kirin with her so that she could get some appropriate rest; I also told her that LittlePip and I would be getting there as soon as we were done with our Ironshod Firearms' business.

As I reminded myself of getting a gun for LittlePip, we both walked down the main hallway on the first floor, looking for the weapons room, we observed many posters inciting people to join the war, the same war that devastated all Equestria...

"Join the Royal Army and be part of the Steel Rangers!"
"Help us guarantee a future for Equestria!"

-Ministry of Wartime Technology.

I stopped when I saw a poster of the “Ministry of Wartime Technology”, in which you could see 3 ponies wearing the power armor while looking a little up from the right side of the poster; largely from above, on the left, it was possible to see the symbol of the "Royal Army"...

"Hey, Marcus... Uhh... Are you okay?"

I sighed sadly while looking at the poster, I hadn't realized that LittlePip was talking to me; I just stood there, looking at the poster.

Before I knew it, LittlePip began to speak louder as she began to shake my right shoulder a little with her magic; it wasn't until she almost shouted, that I came back to reality...

"Huh?!... Oh sorry, LittlePip... I didn't mean to worry you, it's just that... *sigh* ...I don't know, I just saw this poster and remembered the other things I've seen about the war.”

"War?... Which war?"

I sighed again with a sad tone in it, I remembered everything that was, somehow, related to the "Great Equestrian War"; LittlePip decided to look at the poster that I was looking at, when she did, she was even more confused with me since she didn't understand anything about what I wanted to say, so she asked...

"What is the Minister of Wartime Technology?"

"*Sigh* ...I'll tell you when we get to New Appleloosa, for now, we better hurry up; 6 hours are missing before it gets dark and I'd rather get to New Appleloosa as soon as possible and get some rest… Let's go, LittlePip, we still have to get you a nice gun.”

We both kept walking along the main hallway of the building, while we went through some rooms to see if we could get some extra supplies that were left in there, but we couldn't get anything beyond a few shotgun bullets for LittlePip.

After having checked the entire first floor for extra supplies, we decided to go up to the second floor, since I already knew that the building's weapons and ammo warehouse was there; so, we went up by some stairs at the end of the hallway towards the second floor.

When we went up, we saw two different corridors that were parallel between both, towards the end of the building, the same direction from which we came; we both talked about where to go, but in the end, we chose to separate and cover more ground. Therefore, we walked into the hallways of the building; for each step we took, we both made ourselves heard in the deep silence that surrounded us. Slowly, we both seemed to be going in parallel, at the same time and speed, towards the armory.

Finally, we both stopped in the middle of the hallways, and then proceeded to try to open the doors of what was the warehouse; unfortunately, and in some illogical way, none of the doors opened, since we could both hear the other one trying to open its. In the end, LittlePip jogged to where I was to try to help me open the door of the hallway where I was.

As she used her magic, I began pushing to open the door with all the strength that I possessed; for a while, we both found ourselves striving to try and knock down the door of the right hallway; although, unfortunately, the attempt was useless. So, I proceeded to use a risky move, which involved detonating one of my last grenades to blow up the door.

It was then, that I took my penultimate grenade from one of my bags, activated it and placed it in front of the door; by the time it was about to explode, LittlePip and I had already moved back 12 meters from the door since those grenades used to provoke an explosion radius up to almost 9 meters. When the grenade exploded, LittlePip and I covered our faces from the grenade blast; when 4 seconds passed, the smoke dissipated and we saw the door destroyed, but still holding on to its frame. Fortunately, because of the explosion, the grenade caused a large hole on the door, allowing us to pass inside the armory.

Immediately, upon seeing the hole, LittlePip and I entered the warehouse, through the door; when we got in, we saw that most of the weapons and ammo had already been stolen and/or destroyed, surely, in an attempt to leave others without any weapons.

Almost instantly, LittlePip focused on checking the weapons on the right side of the warehouse (the ones that remained), while I tried to search for functional weapons on the left side of it.

I focused on looking for some rifles or carbines that could be useful and functional for combat; while I was searching among the lockers of former soldiers and in the medium firearms section, LittlePip concentrated her efforts on looking for ammo and short firearms; however, she didn't have any success, except for getting an "M3" submachine gun for herself and some grenades.

In the meantime, I had only gotten about 5 or 6 boxes of shotgun ammo, twelve 5.56mm caliber bullet cartridges and an M16A1 "Service Rifle", which I kept for myself; later, LittlePip and I met again in the middle of the warehouse and went out through the broken door.

After everything that happened inside the armory, LittlePip and I exchanged ammo and weapons that we'd found in it; while I gave LittlePip the shotgun projectiles that I had previously found, she gave me a couple of grenades that she managed to find when we left the place.

After the exchange we made, we both went straight towards the offices to look for any more ammo and supplies, then we arrived at the offices and started searching...

“Ok, LittlePip… You'll search by the offices at the end of the hallway and I'll search by these offices nearby; if anything happens, shout and come back here, understood?”

"Perfectly."

"Alright, let's go now."

About 10 minutes passed and I still couldn't find enough ammo and/or supplies for us; I was going through an office that was totally intact and, apparently, very well organized, it was then that I learned the fact that I was in a place that nobody had yet entered since the end of the war.

I arranged to search in it for several minutes, in which I obtained the lottery since I managed to find several bullet cartridges, mainly for 9mm pistols; however, it wasn't until I left the office that LittlePip told me about something interesting...

"Marcus, there's an office blocked back there. Should we get in?"

"Well, why not?"

We both started heading towards the office LittlePip had told me about, this one was at the end of the hallway we were in. The place wasn't light, so we both had to get flashlights that we obtained after searching at the other offices. When we got to the office LittlePip had told me about, I realized that this office was from Minister Applejack...

"Well... it looks like you've found a good place, LittlePip... Do you know who's this office?"

"No... From who?"

"From Applejack itself, the most important member of Apple Family."

LittlePip was surprised to hear this, as she surely had heard of it, although, I didn't know how it was possible. Then, she looked at her PipBuck and searched through the files until she got the one she was looking for. Then, she looked at me and spoke...

"I have this file about the Apple Family, both its history and members... Don't you want it?"

I smiled at hearing her saying that, then I replied...

"Don't worry, LittlePip... I think you better keep that file for yourself, it will give you a better perspective on our planet's past and its history. The more you know about the Equestria's past, the better your future will go for you. Believe me, I know it perfectly.”

"Alright, then... I'll keep it for myself. Now, do you want to get in?"

"Hell yeah! You don't have to ask me that twice... Let's move."

Then, after a few moments, she and I fired at the door handle, causing it to be smashed by the bullets and fall to the ground. When we saw this, we both get into the office and started searching.

She focused on investigating among the files of a terminal that was on the desk, while I tried to open the safe that was located next to the terminal; I tried to force the lock on several occasions, but I didn't succeed and I had to step back in surrender. Unexpectedly, the safe began to open on its own, and after a few seconds, the safe's door opened fully.

I turned to look at LittlePip, who smiled and said...

"Voilá!"

"Heh... Not bad, LittlePip... Not bad at all."

I looked back towards the safe and examined its interior, extraordinarily, I found something very cool...

"Wow!... Do you have any idea of what we just found?"

LittlePip looked at me somewhat confused, but clearly happy that she had opened the safe in front of me; so she asked...

"No. What?"

I smiled and started laughing with joy as I took what was inside the safe with my hands; I took it out of the safe and showed it to LittlePip...

“We just obtained the damn lottery, LittlePip. Do you know what revolver is this?”

She shook her head, to which I took as my signal to explain...

"What I have in my hands is, without any doubt, the best revolver in Equestrian history... The .44 magnum revolver, although this is the only version named: Lil' Macintosh; you, my dear LittlePip, are gazing at Minister Applejack's matchless revolver. The best quality and precision in one single revolver; the only one that may be able to match it, is the Colt-Iron Peacemaker, my revolver.”

She was stunned and totally happy to see the revolver recently discovered by us, and before she said anything else, I spoke to her...

"...And, LittlePip, knowing that you found this revolver and that it's modified for pony's use, I'll give it to you; now, finally, you have your own revolver and at last, you'll be able to fight comfortably… Heh… I even doubt you won't be able to use it well, after all, you have demonstrated me your gift using weapons.”

"W-Well, I still don't like shooting someone or somepony-"

"You mustn't like shooting someone, never... Remember this, you must never like to kill someone; if you kill, it means that you did it because it was the best for everyone, not only for you.”

After saying that phrase to her, she was thoughtful for a moment until we were both interrupted by a robotic voice...

*ALERT! INTRUDERS! - OBJECTIVE: EXTERMINATE!*

We ran and ran along the hallway while we were firing backward to damage the Sentry-Bot that was chasing and riddling us with its weapons, it even began firing rockets several times, which ended up destroying the roof and some of the walls; unfortunately, none of them fell forward to block the hallway, but fell inside the rooms.

I shot my Winchester rifle like 10 times before I ran out of bullets, so I switched to the M-16A1 “Service Rifle” that I had on my back and resumed shooting; at the same time, LittlePip was firing her new "Lil' Macintosh" at the Sentry-Bot and trying to reach it, but her efforts were unsuccessful.

While she kept shooting and running, I always turned forward to see how far we were from the window to jump out through it; I had to go ahead to receive the impact of the hit with the window, in this way, LittlePip would not receive any damage due to the hit with the window...

"LittlePip! We'll pass through the window!”

She looked at me with a gaze of surprise in her face, then she spoke...

"But what-?!"

*CRASH!*

We both went through the window, one behind the other, as we fell towards the ground with great force; as she began to protect herself with her magic, I tried to cover myself as best as possible, especially my face.

Imminently, we both ended up falling to the ground with great force; while she hit the ground with her hooves, I fell over my legs, so I ended up near to fracture my left ankle but managed to prevent that from happening.

We were both on the ground for a few seconds, a little sore, but we were still alive; immediately later, the Sentry-Bot reached the window and started shooting at us again, to which we both began running away while shooting at it to prevent it from reaching us with its bullets.

5 hours had passed since our encounter with the Sentry-Bot, by that time we had already walked quickly while we were approaching New Appleloosa; we were both exhausted, but we still had to move forward, if we wanted to reach the city.

However, we were forced to stop near a bridge a few kilometers away from New Appleloosa to get some rest; fortunately, to our luck, we found an old abandoned camp near the bridge.

I knew that there was nothing of value in it, so I told LittlePip not to bother looking for supplies or ammo since there would be nothing that could serve us there; LittlePip agreed, while we both prepared to lie down on the ground to rest...

"Hey, Marcus..."

"Yeah, LittlePip?"

"*Sigh* ...Have you ever killed someone, or somepony... and, in the end, it turned out to be an innocent?"

I was in shock for hearing that question, I never thought of anyone asking me that kind of question; I didn't know how to answer because I knew that what she was asking me was too painful for me. I immediately tried to ignore that question and began to change the topic.

She wanted to know about it, and she also noticed my attempt of changing topic, so she asked me...

"Marcus... why are you trying to change the topic? You know you're terrible at hiding your intentions... Now, please. Answer me."

"*Sigh of Sadness* ...LittlePip, you shouldn't ask me that. It's... difficult for me to think about that."

"What are you-?"

*BANG!*

Suddenly, a shot was heard loudly and LittlePip fell on the ground with a bullet wound in her loin; when I saw this, I immediately stood up and took my "Service Rifle", then I turned around backward; however, I received a shot on my left leg and I fell above my leg. Then, I heard steps in front of me, so I looked upwards. Consequently, I was able to notice a silhouette of a person, standing at me.

When I saw it, I recognized him. However, he spoke first...

"Marcus?"

*BANG!*

TO BE CONTINUED...

Chapter 5: New Appleloosa.

New Appleloosa, if you're lost, that's the best place where you can go...

I didn't know where I was, I knew that I was lying on a bed, but I had no idea what was happening around me; curiously, I did know that the place was serene and peaceful, I didn't feel any presence in that room, except for two, of which one was… LittlePip.

Slowly, and gradually, I began to open my eyes carefully to avoid having a headache and being forced to lie on the bed I was in at the time. While I was opening my eyes, I was seeing my surroundings; it was obvious that I was in a clinic since I was seeing some medical equipment and medicines near me.

At the same time that I was finishing opening my eyes, it became clearer that there was a person to my left since I could see a silhouette out of the corner of my left eye; progressively, I turned to see where the person was until I saw him face to face. I knew immediately that it was a man, although he was covered by a gas mask, so my options to identify him became more obvious, so the man spoke...

"Wow, Marcus... You're good even to be shot on the face. Don't you?"

"Aha... Sure. Who are you?"

"Heh... It's funny that you don't remember me, my friend... Although, well, it's been 17 years since we last saw each other."

I didn't say anything, the voice was familiar to me, yet I still couldn't recognize it; in addition, the fact that he spoke to me of not having seen him 17 years ago, made me doubt. Anyway, I had an idea of who it could be...

"You still don't remember, right?"

"No. Although, I have an idea of who you can be.”

"Heh... sure. I know you still don't remember me, so I'll make it easier for you… Remember the skirmish in the Crystal Empire?”

"...Yes, although I can only think in a couple of names, I need to ensure... Robert?"

He denied with his head, to which I had to ask, since the name that I had as an option, was about someone already dead...

"Then, who are you?"

He laughed for a few seconds since I hadn't guessed the person yet, according to him; after his laugh, he answered...

"I hope you remember me... I'm William."

Then he took off his gas mask, proving it was really him; my most fragmented hope in years had been fulfilled, at last...

"Damn man, how did you survive that horde of Ghouls?"

"Ha!... So, you remember?"

I laughed, I knew that what I had said brought memories to William; then, after laughing, I replied...

"How could you think I would forget about the Mad Protector of the North?... You're still one of my few friends in life, dammit!"

"And you still owe me that favor, Marcus."

I laughed again, I couldn't believe the fact that, even after saving a beloved one of his, I still owed him a favor. Therefore, I replied jokingly...

"Yet?... *Sigh* ...I thought I had already paid my debt to you after keeping your daughter safe, you bastard."

"Heh... Well, it seems that saving my daughter was not enough to pay off my debt, buddy."

"Ha... Son of a bitch."

We both started laughing in unison, although we didn't laugh that loud, so we wouldn't interrupt LittlePip's rest; after several minutes talking, William got up from his chair and extended his hand to help me get up, to which I agreed to give him my right hand so he could help me.

After I got up, William gave me my clothes and proceeded to wait for me outside, so I could change my clothes since I had with a patient dressing gown on; a few minutes passed, in which I finished changing my clothes, although in the process I noticed that the wound on my left foot had been healed and, it seemed, that I had healed a head injury.

It was then that I remembered everything that happened before I fell unconscious, so I understood that it was he who shot me in the leg; therefore, after collecting my bags and my weapons, and then putting them in their places, I finally left the place.

When I came out, I realized that we were on the second floor of a building, which seemed to be, precisely, a medical clinic; immediately after leaving, William, who was leaning against a railing on the balcony, turned to look at me and spoke...

"So?... What's new, pal?"

"I'm serious with you, William. You... are a great bastard."

"Many people say that to me, although most of them are raiders or slavers that I captured... and then tortured."

I looked at him surprised for a few moments, I was shocked that he kept doing that kind of things to raiders and slavers; although, to be honest, many of them deserve it, for sure. So, I told him…

“At some point, karma will reach you and you will receive your own medicine, William… *Sigh* ...Just- at least you could stop being like this; you can continue killing some, if you want, at least you would have done a good for many others... However, that doesn't mean you have to torture and then kill them all. Many also do it out of obligation or because they don't have any other option.”

"And you what? Eh?... You also kill various raiders and slavers.”

“I've killed almost all of them because they all wanted to kill me or someone else first. So, calm down a bit, buddy… I'm not in for absurd discussions.”

William was silent, as well as being thoughtful about what I said to him; consequently, I didn't speak about it anymore and changed the topic of discussion...

"And your daughter?... After I left her safe and sound here, I haven't seen her again."

"*Sigh of Sadness* ...I was going to ask you the same, Marcus. When I returned to New Appleloosa, I couldn't find her; the last thing I knew about her was that she'd been seen by Stalliongrad… but that was almost a decade ago.”

I sighed with a notorious tone of sadness in it, his daughter Charlotte had been like a niece to me, so I took out a couple of cigarettes and offered him one; William turned to look at the cigar, looked at it for a moment, and then accepted it. So, I grabbed a box of matches and lit one of them; later, he lit his cigarette and then I lit mine...

About 10 minutes passed, in which we both stayed smoking and talking about many things that happened to us during the last 19 years after the Crystal Empire; among what we talked about, we both knew many things that happened to the other one. Especially, I learned of his father's death at the hands of the Great Pegasus Enclave, in addition to how he lost his right hand and that had to replace it with one of steel. I, on the other hand, told him about my many journeys through the wasteland during these last 19 years, such as my stay in Hoofington and its dam, in addition to my trip through Vanhoover and New Pegasus, a few months before.

He was surprised by the large number of trips I had made and that I was still alive after that; I, in response to his surprise, laughed a little and then said...

"Trust me, none of those have been friendly at all, but each and every one of them has been worth it."

He nodded in response to what I said, he already knew about my attitude facing raiders and slavers, so he was not surprised at all. At the end of our conversation, we both finished smoking our cigarettes and put them out, then tossed them into a nearby trash can.

After that, we both went down the balcony stairs to the New Appleloosa Saloon, which was across the street from the front of the medical clinic. Therefore, we arrived in less than a minute walking; upon arrival, we began to listen some music coming from inside the Saloon, which I could recognize instantly, this was the song: “Way Back Home”.

We both entered the Saloon through the main door, immediately after entering the place, several ponies and griffins turned to look at us for a few moments; however, William and I looked at them defiantly as we put our hands on our revolvers, provoking an almost immediate reaction from the others, who eventually ignored us and went on with their own business.

Seeing this, we both stopped having our hands on the revolvers and walked towards the bar; when we sat down, William took out a few caps of Sparkle-Cola from his bag and put them on the bar...

"Sarah, two glasses of Vodka for me and Marcus."

One of the three bartenders, which was a red faucet with brown tones on it, turned to see us and nodded; later, she came to where we were and grabbed the bottle caps, looked at me and then spoke...

"Well, Marcus. Glad to see you again, Am I right?"

"Sarah, my dear bartender pal. Long time we haven't seen each other.”

"Yeah, 3 years... Long time, right?"

I scratched my head a little as I remembered the whole matter about Mrs. Hoof and New Pegasus; I looked at Sarah again and spoke...

"Sure is... Yeah, sorry for that. Remember I was hired in New Pegasus to end up with several problems near the city itself."

"Yeah, I remember... Who hired you, by the way?"

"I was hired by Mrs. Hoof, the leader of the entire city of New Pegasus and its surroundings."

William was surprised by hearing me say that since he didn't expect to hear that kind of stuff coming from my own mouth; then, after gazing at me for a few seconds, he spoke joking...

"Wow, you were hired by one of the most powerful ponies in the entire Equestrian wasteland... Not bad, Marcus. Not bad at all."

“Thanks… although, the jobs there were a great shit. The only thing that worth it was having received the location of several raiders and slaver camps near Manehattan, Junction R-7, and Baltimare.”

Sarah, who took the opportunity to go get our drinks, returned and handed us our glasses of Vodka; when we received them, I thanked her and said...

"And what about you, Sarah?... Have you solved the problems with those Old Appleloosa slavers?"

She immediately looked at me surprised and, later, nervous; next instant, she swallowed some saliva and spoke...

"Yeah... about that. We managed to resolve the disputes with Old Appleloosa, but... not in the way you expected."

Instantly, I realized what she was referring to since the only thing I disliked was...

"Negotiate with slavers... Are you serious, Sarah?"

William, seeing me annoyed, tried to calm me...

"I would have avoided it, but I wasn't present at the time it happened."

"I understand that, however..."

I looked at Sarah with a face full of annoyance and anger, although I did not want to explode, then I spoke...

"Why, Sarah?... Just- ...tell me why. All the town is more than capable of fighting them, you all possess a great arsenal full of weapons and, also, you negotiate with mercenaries; tell me why, Sarah. Why did you negotiate with those fucking slavers and did not attack them?”

"Many of us here have family, Marcus. I don't know if you knew that. And, if we wished to attack them, they would still end up killing us. Think before you speak, Marcus! That's why Thomas is dead, because of you!”

I was surprised to hear the name of my friend, on the other hand, William was immediately angry after hearing the name of his dead brother being used to blame me for something that occurred in the past...

"Alright, Sarah! If you ever talk about my brother like that again, I'll kill you!”

"Let's see, you two. Calm down now... William, put your gun in the holster, drink your Vodka and let's go. Trust me, it is best for both of you.”

Both Sarah and William nodded in response and laid down their weapons; while Sarah put her knife back under the bar, William proceeded to put his revolver in his holster. When they both calmed down, William grabbed my and his glasses then took the Vodka that was in both, then put both glasses on the bar and turned towards the door, while I followed behind him.

We both ended up leaving the place and headed towards the medical clinic; although, before going up, William told me...

"I'm won't let that bitch talk about my brother like that!"

"Wow! Calm down, William… She was talking to me, not you. Also, she's not a bitch. She's our friend, remember.”

"And?!... She spoke of my brother Thomas, who is buried 5 meters underground, in the village cemetery! Dammit!"

I tried to calm William for several minutes, but nothing worked, so I was forced to be frank with him...

Listen, William. I'll be honest with you… I understand you get mad at Sarah for speaking about your brother, but you must also understand that it is time to let your brother go, and she's not a bitch; it has been 20 years since he died, and yeah... I admit that it was my fault, I carry with all the responsibility... However, that does not mean you must have the same regret that I posses with myself. Calm down and everything will be fine, okay?”

"*Sniff* ...I-I know, pal. It's just-"

"Okay, I understand you, William... Just let him go."

“*Sigh* ...Okay, Marcus. Thanks, buddy."

I laughed for a few moments, I didn't make it too loud to avoid him getting mad at me or something like that, so I spoke...

"Well, 19 years is a lot of time... It's the least I can do for you, pal."

Finally, after about 5 minutes trying to reassure my great friend William, I achieved my goal by saying a phrase full of pure honesty; so, after all that happened, we both decided to enter the medical clinic, obviously, through the second-floor balcony. Therefore, and seeing that I still needed some rest, we both went up the balcony stairs at the same, although I was behind William.

When we finally reached the balcony on the second floor of the medical clinic, William went to the door and opened it, then let me in; when I entered the room, I noticed something that surprised me. Seeing 2 ponies in there near LittlePip, I was impressed, as I didn't expect to see anyone else in there, just hoped to see LittlePip still sleeping.

Immediately after I entered, one of the ponies present, precisely the one who appeared to be a doctor, walked towards us and spoke...

"Are you Marcus?"

"Yup, that's me. Who asks?"

“I am Dr. Blueheart, professional surgeon at the New Appleloosa Medical Clinic. I see you've already woken up, sir.”

"Yes, although I continue feeling a few discomforts in my left foot, every time I walk."

Dr. Blueheart put his right hoof on his chin as he began to think a little, while he thought, the other pony; this being a pegasus with a beard and mane of orange color (with a yellowish tone on it), in addition to having a rust-colored coat; walked to where I was and spoke...

"Good afternoon, Marcus. My name's Calamity… Sorry about the shot.”

"It was you?"

"Yes... That was me, however, it was not my intention to kill you both; I thought you were both raiders, because of your armors. Although, immediately, William warned me that you weren't raiders and that he knew you; later, we both carried and brought both of you here so you could recover.”

"How long have we been unconscious?"

Dr. Blueheart interrupted Calamity and replied instead...

“You have both been here for about 4 days. To be honest, I never believed that you and she could wake up after being shot in the head and back, respectively. Especially you, Marcus. The shot you received pierced part of the skull's upper section, even damaging a small part of the right hemisphere of the brain, specifically-”

"The Parietal Lobe, I know, doc. I've already been shot so many times. Although, almost always, I was practically unscathed.”

“And the most surprising of all this: first, you should still be in a coma; second, I have not seen any old damage in that part, I have even seen how your brain has regenerated completely on its own, even I did not put any medicine or chemical to cure you.”

Calamity, the pegasus who had shot me, looked at the doctor with a face full of surprise and then asked...

"What do you mean by that, doc?"

"Marcus's body, or at least the brain and some other parts of it, can heal by itself and with surprisingly fast speed."

An entire day had passed since LittlePip and I had woken up, and it had also been a day since one of my unknown abilities was revealed, I was able to fully regenerate myself and at an impressive speed. Everyone, especially LittlePip and William, was surprised to have discovered that about me; on the other hand, I could not believe it, although that would explain the many times that I got injured and that, after a few days, my wounds had healed. However, most of them were not very severe or notorious, so it was understandable to me the fact that I had not realized it myself.

Even so, when the morning of the next day came, no one gave too much importance on the topic, but they were surprised at that; anyway, in the morning, when we woke up, I preferred to avoid the topic in order to have a pleasant morning.

When we woke up, LittlePip and Calamity, the latter having decided to accompany us on our journey to compensate us for having shot both, ended up accompanying me to the store where Derpy worked, "Absolutely Everything".

While we were walking through the town towards Derpy's store, we met William, who decided to accompany us to visit Derpy, so we ended up being 4 of us who would go to see her. Along the way, William began to tell LittlePip about the town, while Calamity decided to talk to me...

"Hey, Marcus. How do you feel?"

“Fine, considering the fact that you almost killed LittlePip and me… Although I don't blame you for it, you were right to believe we were raiders; LittlePip wore an armor that she collected from various raiders and I may have been a mercenary hired by her.”

"And you are that?"

"...Excuse me?"

"I mean, are you a mercenary?"

I was silent after hearing him ask me that since I didn't know for sure what exactly it was; of course, I helped others and seemed to be a righteous man, but exactly... what was I?

I thought about it for a long time, during that moment I told Calamity that I only ensured the defenseless' safety, but that it was not a mercenary just like that. Although, shortly before arriving at Derpy's store, it finally occurred to me to say...

“Sometimes… I'm a mercenary, although not always since I only work in exchange for information about someone who's doing harm to an innocent living being or who is threatening the safety of a town or city. I am a righteous man, who is also a mercenary.”

"I understand... And, normally, what do you do when you meet new people?"

“If they only need help and protection, I escort or accompany them to their destination to a town or city where they can stay for a few days; however, if I notice that they need protection and do not have experience with weapons or melee combat, I teach them how to fight and the basics of firearms, so they can defend themselves. Finally, if that person or pony decides to accompany me and does not know about firearms, I help them learn about weapons and melees combat, as well as accompanying them to various places to help many others who would need our help.”

"Huh... Very interesting, it is also very honorable of you to protect and ensure the others' health and safety."

“I only do what I can, it is also my duty to help others who need help. I would not like to see an Equestria devastated and full of dirty slavers and raiders who only dedicate themselves to deteriorate the already deplorable state of this desolated wasteland.”

Calamity looked ahead for a moment, then laughed a few and said...

"Right, I've never really liked slavers or raiders, specifically those in Ponyville and Old Appleloosa, those are the worst."

"Ha!... Believe me, Calamity. In Fillydelphia and New Pegasus, there are even worse slavers than those you already know… Imagine dealing with Red Eye himself, completely alone… everything around you becomes a horrible nightmare, from which it's almost impossible to escape alive.”

He stopped for a moment, surprised. What I had said perplexed him; although, he immediately asked to me...

"Wait a minute! You faced Red Eye and his slaver army, all alone?”

I turned to see him in confusion, but I immediately understood what he was referring to, so I said with a sad tone...

"I've never been on my own to confront someone, but... I almost always escaped completely alone."

TO BE CONTINUED...