MLP-Multiverse: Chimera - The Snake's Charm

Chapter 10: The Green Gunpony

"I know who I am, and where I come from, but what I am... that's a bit tougher. One thing for sure, I'm NOT letting these people down. They're my FRIENDS."

As Dick and I continued towards the orchard, he started talking to me, partly about that argument at the bar, and partly to ask how on earth we're gonna build a house for four guys and a dog. I tried to reassure him it was indeed possible, the same way any of these other ponies built their houses, but I was bracing myself for the worst as well, I'll admit. I'm far better at fixing things that were already built, after all. I dunno how to build a house, but I sure as shit know someone around here should know.

"Hey Dick, I don't think you should worry. We'll be alright, we just have to get this house built and then we can relax."

"Ya think so?", Dick seemed convinced.

"Sure, and every time the Ponies want us to look around, we have an excuse to check out the wasteland, but let's just hope we don't meet many more raiders, ya know?", I say that jokingly, but despite that, I would like to meet less of those monsters.

"Well, there's something I oughta tell ya, buddy. There's not much worse than the raiders, but they're the ones who can think and plan. THEY are the true monsters, but there are some real nightmares. Ever see a deathclaw?", I stop for a second, and turn to face him.

"What's a deathclaw, Dick?", I ask, legitimately wanting to hear this horror story. He starts talking again, but motions for us to keep walking.

"The deathclaw is supposedly a hideous monster that dwells in the more deadly parts of the wasteland, supposedly some kinda mutated lizard. They're like TEN FEET tall, and each hand has five fingers, with foot-long claws on each one. That, and they got sharp teeth, and huge horns like a real demon, not to mention they run after ya like their cock is on fire.", Imagining this hideous abomination, the result of a freakish dragon breeding with Satan himself, I can't help but feel intrigued, excited, and scared all at once.

"Hehehe... Think we'll come across one? maybe we can tame it and let it follow us on a leash.", I say with a chuckle.

"Yeah, and maybe we'll find a magic gun that shoots beer, or I can teach Dogmeat how to shit caps.", Dick starts to laugh like a nut.

"Wait, caps? like a hat?", I ask, confused.

"No, no. Geez, how long have you BEEN here, man?", he asks me as if I'm an idiot.

"Dude, NOT long, ok? Now what are caps?", I get a bit testy as I answer him, but I am not about to have my intelligence insulted by Dick.

"Alright, alright, relax man. Caps are the bottle caps offa Nuka-Cola that people use as currency. You didn't notice?", He asks, and my mind flutters to a certain event...

"Wait a minute, we don't have bottle caps. How are we gonna pay our tabs at the bar?"

"Well, clearly we need to get some, right?", Dick looks at me and shrugs.

I put a hoof to my head, and sigh, exasperated with how despite only being best friend of the Tunnel Snakes' leader, I somehow find myself trying to organize everything. I urge Dick to move on as the trees are in plain view. Soon, we come across the aforementioned orchard, with several farming Ponies tending to the trees and apples. All we have to do is convince the locals to part with their trees so we can get started. I walk up to the main building, and I'm greeted by a rather chubby and rustic Pony who calls himself Caterpillar. I ask why, and he simply grabs a nearby apple and bites right into it, claiming he has no idea. I think I understand now. I tell him the news, that we need lumber to build our house on the vacant spot, and he goes outside to speak with the other farmers about the wood business. I take the time to look around, and I find several things around Caterpillar's desk. I find a basket with enough apples to choke a... I dunno what, but a large creature. I see a very decorative cider mug, and a bunch of crumpled up recipes for... apple jam of some sort, and a picture frame with several other ponies, all of them living together on a farm. I suppose this must have been a family business. Not soon afterwards, I hear the farmer come back in.

"Well buddy, no doubt we can part with some of the trees, but it'll cost ya for the work AND the loss of fruit.", he chomps another apple while he mentions this, and waits for me to answer.

"Well, what if WE do the work? We already have a house to build, and given the lot for sale, the help we might need, and the fact that we ain't got any caps... We might need to cut some corners. What do you think we should do? Do you have any experience building houses?", I ask him for his opinion on the matter.

"Well, hear me out kid, I DO have an idea. There are a lot of ruined houses out there, and the way I see it, the pieces of them ain't goin' anywhere, so maybe if we gather 'em up and uh, REPLANT 'em, so to speak, you could use whatcha got to build your place. We don't lose any trees, and you get free material. All we gotta do is go get 'em. ", He looks at me and waits.

"Well, that sounds like a good idea, but I doubt you're gonna wanna to come with us, right?", I ask him.

"Yeah, you'd be right, kiddo. We can give ya our wagon though.", he says.

"Well, we dunno how to ride one of those things, so what if one of you comes with us, and we protect you?", Caterpillar looks very nervous for a second, and responds, "Well uh... I dunno if that would be... well, you do need... Oh, alright, I suppose I can help."

"Alright, thanks man. Don't worry, we can kick the road-apples outta anyone who crosses us.", I try to instill a bit of confidence in the poor guy. I can appreciate the ponies living in isolation, but if they can't take care of themselves, that's definitely a problem.

"Well, I would rather not leave a mess, and kicking the road-apples out of a man sounds downright unpleasant..."

"No no, it's just a figure of speech. It means we'll beat 'em into the ground, ok?", I try to set him straight.

"Oh, well that sounds unnecessary. Couldn't we talk things out? Maybe invite 'em in for a mug of fresh cider?"

"Well, I suppose we could let them shoot us full of holes and drag our sorry asses off to be beasts of burden, or melted into adhesive too while we're at it...", I fight to resist hitting my face with my hoof at his suggestion, and I respond with a bit of a snappy comeback, even Dick seems surprised.

"OH, Celestia, don't even JOKE like that!", He nearly panics and covers his face with his hooves.

"Okay, OKAY... Geez, man, I'm here cause I'm NOT gonna let that happen. Calm down.", I reach over to the Pony's shoulders and try to calm him down. he seems a bit shocked at my gesture, but it works, as he uncovers his face and looks back at me, trying to compose himself.

"Alright, lemme bring ya to the wagon, and we'll get started. You gonna go and collect your friends, I assume?", he asks

"Dick, think you can wake the drunk tank? ", I ask Dick to go and pick up Butch and Freddie, and with a laugh, he hops to it.

I follow Caterpillar to the wagon he mentioned, and I see something pretty damn impressive as soon as I set foot into the shed where they keep them. It's a big, steel stallion, right in front of the wagon. It's on four legs, just like horses used to stand, and it seems to me powered by some unknown means. After I ask the farmer what exactly it is, he tells me it was created from spare parts long ago to haul the wagons, and powered by Unicorn magic itself. I feel compelled to ask him why it's on four legs... but I think I know why. Still, it's a huge pill to swallow. We were once a quadrupedal race of horses, and had we lived with the humans, we would have been subservient to them, pulling carts and carrying shit. THIS is why Miss Armstrong was so creepily possessive of me. I suddenly get a shiver up my spine and freeze in place. Caterpillar must have noticed, because he stops to ask what just happened. I brush it off and climb onto the wagon, getting my rifle ready as I wait for Dick and the others, but they never show up. I think about waiting around for them, but they'll probably be totally drunk at this point, not a good choice for an extra gun during a fight. I decide to move on without them for now.

The steel stallion starts up, paws at the ground, and trots forward like a real horse, and the wagon slowly starts rolling as it leaves town. Caterpillar waves for Gatekeyper to open the front gate, and we head out into the wasteland. We move outside of the mountain and out towards a ruined city I've not seen before as I point my rifle and take a look around. So much twisted steel and broken concrete everywhere. Sidewalks now smashed into pebbles, and houses blown apart, leaving nothing but the support beams and broken panels. If I were to venture a guess, THIS would be what we're looking to collect. It looks... not very promising, but well, this is a wasteland. What you see is what you get. I quickly scan for more threats, and look over to Caterpillar and ask about the steel stallion.

"Oh, the stallion? Yes, a highlight of our Unicorn engineering.", he answers, "You see, the Unicorns used to have a magic all their own, of course that all changed when our families found themselves here, among the Humans. We did our best to make them comfortable, and walk on two legs like they did, but that didn't work so well."

"And why is that?", I ask.

"Ya see, it took all the magic the unicorns had at that moment in time to change EVERY Equestrian being into a bipedal form. Basically, they made us all walk on two legs. Think about that, changing the skeleton of your entire race, and then about... seven or more other races."

"Holy shi-ummm... so all of the Unicorn magic went in to speeding up the evolutionary process?", I am completely bewildered by this.

"Well, I guess if that's whatcha call it."

"So why was it a mistake?", I absolutely need to know more about this.

"Well, the humans don't wanna live alongside Ponies... or Pegasi, or ANYONE for that matter. We welcomed 'em with open arms, and it seemed like all they did was push us away, or try to take advantage of our hospitality. Eventually they started treatin' us like pets, or servants of some sort. I even heard about a particular group trying to assault some of our younger mares.", I immediately sputter, thinking of the fucked up implications that brings.

"WHAT!? They did what!?"

"Yeah, ya heard me, boy. They tried to take 'em out for what was supposed to be a good time outside, but it turned into something rotten. All we have to go off of are what-ifs from that day. thank Celestia we heard her screams in time."

I feel rotten to the core. I cannot imagine any human who would do that, let alone to their own kind, but to another species? That's depraved. I think about it for a bit though... didn't Ellie have wings? What if two different species actually liked each other...

"Hey Caterpillar? What if two different types of ponies WANTED to mingle though?", I ask a bit cautiously.

"Hmm? two different types? Oh, are you talkin' about mixed-pony marriages? Those happen all the time. Ponies, Pegasi, Unicorns, we all have the Pony race inside of us. Tartarus, I've heard tell of a Pony who married a Yak too."

"A YAK? There are Yaks too?", I sound maybe a little too excited, but I MUST know who else I might meet. "What else is there?"

"Oh, Equestrians? Well, there were Minotaurs, Griffons, Seaponies, Changelings, those are like bug ponies, we got Zebras, Kirins, which are kinda like ancient Unicorns, Dragons, I mean there are so many different races of Equestria, but you'll be lucky to find half of em... I mean this world ain't necessarily the most friendly, let alone for our kind."

"Yeah...", I can only agree a little sadly. "Hey, so you said Unicorns used up their magic, right? ALL of it?"

"Well, that's a yes and a no. They were forced to evolve, like all of us, to match with the native races, and so they can still use it sometimes... I dunno how though, you'll have to ask one of 'em and find out. I'm just an apple farmer, brother. ", and with that, he threw his head back and laughed. "Hahaha, could you imagine, ME, makin' magic metal Ponies!"

"Well, yeah, you do look more like a farmer than a wizard. I suppose maybe ya grow the beard out, put on a fancy robe, go capture some goblins and make 'em your evil minions..."

"HAHAHAHAHAHA!!! I like the sound of that! Dark Lord Caterpillar, they'll call me!", and again, he howls with laughter. I like him, perhaps unfit for actual danger, but he has a good sense of humor once ya get to know him.

"But you have to know, how do they use magic if they used it all?", I press just a bit, hoping he can at least recall this fact.

"Hmmm...", he begins rubbing his bristly chin in thought. "Maybe it was... AH! I remember now! Robin Steel told me all about it. She created the batteries for this thing. Ask her about the details, but alls I know is this... The Unicorns channel whatever magic they got left through their machines. Batteries, wires, whatever is in the machines made by a Unicorn is coursin' with as much magic as they woulda had in Equestria."

"Wow... So just by whipping something up in a garage, that THING would be full of magic?", I ask excited at the concept.

"Yep, that there is the long and short of it. I recommend talkin' to Robin later, she's a smart one.", Caterpillar repeats.

"Alright, thanks for the advice.", I say to him as he pulls the wagon over and twirls a hoof as if motioning for me to get out and follow him.

I hop out of the wagon and keep my rifle at the ready, as I watch him keep behind the dilapidated panels and peek around as if trying to look for trouble. I offer to scout ahead since I have the rifle, but urge him to get behind me. I step out from behind the panels, and all I see are a few fat, ugly four-legged things with big teeth. I ask Caterpillar, and he tells me they're called "Mole-People". I have trouble believing that, as they look more like the creatures as described by Wally and Freddie. I freeze in my tracks... mole rats... THESE little bastards killed my friend. Without thinking, I pull back the bolt in my rifle and aim for the rodent. Caterpillar tries to stop me, but I fire directly onto the creature, splattering it's brains and skull onto the surrounding rocks.

"Why did you do that!? He didn't hurt you! He's just an animal...", Caterpillar seems worried, but more for me than the creature I practically obliterated.

"What... what did I do? Buck... C-c-caterpillar? I need to... sit down for a second...", I feel a bit sick at first, then it hits me, I don't even know if these creatures killed Paul or not. Oh Celestia... Is the wasteland getting to me this easily?

"Snakebit, what is going on with you? I never saw anyone just kill a mole rat like that. What d'you have against mole rats?", He seems visibly disappointed, but my slumping towards the ground and feeling like I have to throw up is probably noticed by the poor farmer.

"I... I dunno. I might not have told ya, how we came here, but there's a reason. We kinda got into a fight with our families when they sent us out to collect stuff for the vault, and we came back home to find out not only did they use me to find other Ponies, but my so-called friend let my friend get eaten by those rats..."

"Good Celestia! That's outrageous! They punished that boy, didn't they?", inquired the chubster.

"Of course not. Overseer's son. They tried to push me and Butch into a cell, and DICK was the one who saved us... with dynamite may I add."

"Dy-da-da-da-DYNAMITE!? He brought Dynamite into a stable!?", Caterpillar panics and questions me... but that's some oddly specific wording.

"Uh, Cat... I didn't MENTION a stable, what's a stable?", I turn to him with a bewildered look in my eyes.

"Oh, well that's like what you were in, though why they let you in, I have no idea. Everypony from Equestria lived in underground shelters called 'stables', but when we found the Humans, they had already built similar structures called 'vaults'.", he kindly explains.

I am shocked. My heart skips a beat and my mind grasps at every possible answer... I cannot believe I was lost to my own race seemingly since birth. How in the hell did I end up in a Human dwelling when I belong with own kind? How was I separated? Didn't anyone want me?... I sit there, feeling so strange. I can't tell if it's hopelessness, or POINTLESSNESS. Before I can weep at this prospect, Caterpillar leans down and grabs my shoulder.

"Hey, hey buddy, wait a minute. You ain't just some kinda monster... You got mad, and ya overreacted. Just go and see if maybe you can uh... eat the poor thing, I suppose. Those human friends of yours will have some food for a while."

"It ain't that, I feel... well, LOST. Why was I with those scummy Humans? I was so ready to help 'em, JUST because they were my friends, and they screwed me, just like you guys. Only difference is, I didn't even get my real life. Tartarus, you could've been my DAD for all we know!"

His eyes go wide, seemingly from the shock of my statement, but I think he understands. He sits down beside me and pats me on the back.

"Izzat all ya want, boy, a FAMILY? Well, I'd say you succeeded, look at whatcha got. Ya got those boys of yours, Bar Fly and Barkeep seem to like ya, as does that sweet little beekeeper on the side of town, and I think you're alright. Look, why else would I bother helpin' ya, right?"

I hate to admit it, but this pudgy Pony who pilfers and perforates pomes has a point. I DO want this community, even if I feel estranged... like a misfit puzzle piece. I never fit in with Humans, so perhaps the Ponies will truly accept me. I get back up, nod in agreement with Caterpillar and go to wrap up what's left of the mole rat, fending others off with a stick until I finish the job, with Caterpillar beginning work on the scavenging, and myself joining him once I get back to the wagon. Through all the work we finished together, collecting beams, corrugated metal, and roofing materials, I seem to have forgotten I wanted to ask him one more thing...

"Hey Cat? I wanted to say something, but I think I forgot. Do yo- BANG! My thoughts were cut short by a bullet whizzing past my head and into one of the rundown buildings.

"OH SWEET CELESTIA! HELP!", he runs behind the wagon as I ready my rifle, and aim in the direction the shots are coming from. Of course, I see a raider with a rifle like mine. I could score that rifle and maybe Cat could use it, but there must be more around. Humans wouldn't fight alone, too risky. I look around harder, trying to stay out of sight, and I think I see a few more raiders hanging around a nearby building. Road-apples... I must've brought them down on us with the noise. I try to think of something... He's using a scope! I grab a piece of metal, bend it, and aim it at the sun, trying to wiggle it around until I see him fumble, and I take a shot, just barely hitting him in the neck. I have had enough of raiders, I jump out of the wagon and shout to the others.

"HEY! You fuckers wanna get over here and fight like MEN!? C'mere and get ready to die!"

"What do you think you're doing!?", I see Cat look up at me and freak out.

"I'm taking care of the problem. Your job is to wait until it's over. DO IT." I stand out, hands in the air like a bucking cowboy out of an old western drama. I pictured myself in an armored suit with some kind of laser cannon... but this feels so right for the moment. My sharpshooter hovers just above my pistol, and I wait...

I see the raiders rush out at me, holding up their weapons, and making stupid demands as if I have any intention of negotiating... Given the mole rat I wasted earlier, these road-apples are nothing. The fact that they still stand is a testament to my generosity... isn't it? I sound horrible right now. I'd better just get this over with.

"Gimme a reason not to kill you right now, raider scum...", I shake with indignation, but I stand firm in their path.

"The fuck did you just say to me, horsey? Look at this weirdo, I'd be doin him a favor if I put a bullet in his-" SQUELCH! The ugly bastard's body dropped, due to a sudden case of a "splitting headache". The other one turns at me with wide eyes as if he didn't see the shot coming. Likely as not since I fired using SATS. I look at him and ask...

"Ok, if you can tell me in ONE sentence why I should let you live, I will CONSIDER it.", he looked sick, and he was about to break down.

"Uh... I was only doin it cause I needed to survive?", he finally says.

"Hmmm... not good enough.", I draw the weapon, and he panics like a kid, begging for his life. I can't trust him, can I? Imagine letting every murderer, slaver, or rapist go... eventually, one of them will take you down as soon as you try to help them.

"No! No no, wait! STOP! I'm sorry! I'll go away, I promise, just... Just don't shoot...", I start to hesitate, but out of the corner of my eye, I see something that makes my blood freeze... another sniper at a nearby window. BUCK.

"You sneaky son of a bitch! DIVE!" I call out to Cat, and he ducks behind the wagon, and as I slide my rifle over to him, I thrust my hoof into the face of that sneaky bucker who dared to play on my sympathies, and as the next loud BANG! rings out, I run towards the sniper, ducking behind a rock as soon as I hear what sounds like the click of the bolt. My heart is officially attacking, as I will soon... as soon as I figure out how to take out the sniper... I start to sweat all over as I try to peer over the piece of rubble I'm hiding behind. Man, I wish I knew what to do. All of a sudden, I hear another BANG! and I see another shot, but it isn't from him... it's from MY direction. That farmer tried to snipe the sniper. as he fires at Caterpillar, I see him already ducking again, so I run towards the building and duck inside. If I'm lucky, this bucker didn't even see me coming.

I have to be QUIET, and most importantly, hurry. I don't want Cat's ass getting shot off before I take out the crazed gunman. I have goosebumps all over my body as I walk up the stairs, supposedly sneaking up on him. I pass over old garbage, discarded ammo shells, and on the next floor, there he is. leaning towards the window with a high-powered rifle, even stronger than my own... Time to wreck his plot, but I see Cat out of the corner of my eyes, and I draw my pistol and decide to draw his attention.

"Hey fuckhead!", I shout as he fumbles his rifle, mumbling and spazzing out, probably chemmed out of his mind.

"Whoa whuh-what?... How did you? I was... I'll kill YOU, horse boy!", His delusions make me want to laugh.

"NOPE.", I shoot his rifle in the barrel, and aim for his head, with him raising his hands, "The next one'll turn ya to mole rat chow."

"No... n-no, NO mole rat chow... Look, whatever you had with those guys, I don't want any of it..."

"BULLSHIT!", I find myself uttering my old human swears from time to time... I must be getting angry... "You all say that once I've got your face behind the barrel, but you never think twice to attack my people. I would ask ya to stop, but ya won't listen. Know what that means?", He looks so sick right now. His face is pale, and he can barely swallow his own spit.

"Please don't kill me... I'm sorry, man. When you're in the middle of nowhere, and no one will help, then you start doin stupid shit, ya know? You're on chems anytime ya have 'em... cause ya just don't wanna feel the pain. and then ya wind up hurting people, and ya don't even remember it, not till you're done eatin', and ya feel like shit. I haven't slept in days, man. It's why they made me the sniper!"

"I'd believe you, but your little shit-stain of a friend tried the sob-story act on us. I smashed his face as soon as you fired on us, you opportunistic bastard."

"I WAS SCARED!", he's crying now... what the buck? "I'm SORRY, ok? I didn't want you to kill me like you killed my boys, so I tried to take a few potshots at you. Then your fat friend was-", I point my pistol at him a bit as if to correct him. "Whoa, ok, your 'slightly chubby' friend started shooting back, so I had to up my game a bit. I was on jet the whole time anyway... not like I'm an expert or anything."

"What do you plan on doing if I DO let you go?", I question him. "Of course I need you and your chemmie friends out of my face, but you attacked us, and we need some help, so I reckon you could help us out."

"What? Th-tha-that's all you want? You're not gonna waste us and take our shit?"

"What shit do YOU have that I possibly need, bucko?", I point the gun to the wagon, showing him the materials we were busy collecting. "I'm about to have a house and friends, but I need to build it first. All I need are the pieces. Wanna help me out?"

"Shit, man... if that's all ya want, we can break stuff easily. Lemme see what you're workin' with.", and he slowly gets up, throws the rifle aside, and shows me a pistol he was carrying. "It's all good, I ain't gonna shoot ya."

"Give it here, or the deal's off.", I hold out my hand, motioning for him to hand it over, which he does. "Your scummy friend have anything on him?", I lead him outside and we pass by his fallen comrade.

"Just a lead pipe, some chips, probably a broken nose.", I roll my eyes at his attempt at humor after their attempt on our lives.

"Now ain't the best time, clown. You still tried to kill us. I recommend you make the most of this and NEVER cross us again. If I see you and your specific little band of losers around again, I'll pop that head like a melon.", again, he makes little sicky noises and edges away from me. "Now, wake up your friend and tell him you're gonna help us collect panels and support beams... Oh, and a DOOR, that's very important." He turns away and tries to wake up his friend, who rises from his forced sleep, but clenches his nose and responds to our continued existence with a certain amount of hostility.

"Oy! This fucker broke my nose! and he shot two of our guys!"

"Do you even remember their names, ya buckin' tweaker?", I shout directly at this mouthy twerp. I can see Cat is getting uncomfortable, which reminds me, I better thank him for covering me earlier. "Look, You tried to trick me, and your friends tried to kill me. They're DEAD now. Wanna join em?"

"You're all talk, you ain't gonna do jack shit, Pony! I know your kind, all about friendship and love, it's why we OWNED your asses before!"... No sooner do these words leave his cesspool of a mouth than I open fire right at his kneecap. "AH! FUCK! WHY would you do that!?"

"I'm not your special little friend, MONKEY. I was raised with YOUR kind, those selfish apes who tried to pull the same shit on me. Well, no use fighting it. I tried, but you just signed your death warrant. You there, don't interfere, or I'll assume you deserve the same." and with that I lift the raider over my shoulder and carry him to the spot where I shot the mole rat. Seeing this, he understandably panics... but I have run out of mercy for the day, and I drop him right in the middle of that spot.

"Wait, you can't just do this! I don't wanna be mole rat feed either!", he has the NERVE to plead for his life now, really? After all he put me and Caterpillar through?

"Listen to me, you little bastard. Me and my friend came out here to find building materials so me and my friends would have a place to live. You seem to be well protected in this little ruined city you've got. You might as well settle down, but here you are, attacking us, for what? We have NOTHING with us. The fact that I haven't killed you already is more than you deserve. At least your friend offered to help... What about you?", I feel something coming over me again, like I usually feel when I'm trying to actually reach out to someone through my words.

"Look man, do you have a stimpak or something? I know they're rare, but... I can help, I promise... and for real this time!", I draw my pistol first and then reach into my bag to grab a stimpak.

"If you fuck up one more time, I'm capping you again, and I'll let the mole rats have ya. They deserve to eat more than you do.", he takes the stimpak, gets to his feet, and walks towards the wagon, a bit wary, but as soon as he reaches his raider friend, he starts talking, and they agree to help us sort through the debris.

After the work, I decide to share a bit of the water I brought with me, and they take to it. A few more hours pass, and I hitch up the wagon and start up the steel stallion to head back with the supplies, taking the raider's rifle with me, reasoning that it's useless until it's fixed. I can't look into the future and see what the consequences are of what I did for those hooligans, but for now, I try to justify what I've done. Humans are like kids. They're going to screw up eventually and they need someone who can set an example... even if they REALLY don't want to. I could have killed them, I could have taken what they had, but I guess it just felt too easy. They wouldn't learn anything. All I know is, if they're not completely inept, they'll know to stay away from us.

As the wagon pulled away, the two raiders kept a safe distance and began to talk with each other.

"So uh, whaddya think we should do now?", the dumb one said to the sniper.

"Well, He kept his promise. Maybe we should do the same... I'd feel better about it in the morning, and I think you would too."

"Yeah but... I wish we got something out of all our trouble today.", The sniper looked at him like he'd just crossed the line.

"Man, stop bein stupid. We tried to kill those guys and they DIDN'T kill us, what more're ya askin' for?", the dumb one looked around, but saw nothing except...

The green Pony, having spared two hapless criminals, left in such a good mood that he didn't notice something. A few feet away, near the same spot where he killed that mole rat, was the emaciated body of a young man in a vault suit and a leather jacket. A jacket exactly like the one he wore. The dumb raider removed the tattered jacket, and left the corpse to rot.

"Dude, check this out! Think he'll want this?", the dumb one asked.

"Ugh, no! It's been peeled off a fuckin dead guy.", the sniper responded pretty angrily.

"No, but look... The symbol on the back. It has the same symbol. This snake thingy. What was that gang out west in New California?"

"Awwww shit. That pony was a VIPER!? I told ya he was trouble, man!"

"If he is, he probably wants this back, don't he? If this guy was one of his boys...", the dumb one suggested.

"Well... I guess maybe he might. He told us to stay away, but maybe if we bring the jacket, he won't waste us."

"I dunno... he didn't seem like he was THAT scary, but if you say so, let's bring it to him."

"Man, keep your mouth shut and maybe you'll live through this." and the sniper punched his comrade in the back of the head, taking the jacket. Together, they followed Caterpillar's wagon, staying out of view... for the moment.

Leveled Up. Perk Selected.

"Lone Gunpony"

Make a move, hombre. I got six ways to kill you dead... or maybe as many as are actually in the magazine. Either way, as long as you have a pistol equipped, you can equip a second one, and you draw them 25% faster. Speaking of which, if you DO want two pistols, make sure you have two hands...