Fallout Equestria: Foreshadowby JustPonyboyChaptersChapter 1Chapter 2Chapter 3Chapter 4Chapter 5Chapter 1"Totoro!" A voice called down from the zig-zagging stairwell into the reactor room, a rust-red mare was knelt down on the floor with a wrench clenched in her mouth and power tools in her hands. Her dirty white mane hanging freely in her face She ignored the voice as a bead of sweat rolled down her forehead, over her goggles and dripping onto her dingy vault suit. The gold faded from its shiny glory and the blue now muted slightly. This wasn't out of the ordinary for her, she wasn't the only maintenance pony in the vault but she insisted to handle things by herself. After all, she didn't want to be disturbed by- "Toro!" She grimaced as a strong hand playfully tapped her shoulder. A tall stallion stood behind her, irritation was written all over her face. She looked and met the grey pegasi's gaze, she wanted to punch him right in his stupid smile, or better yet kick him in the groin to teach him a lesson. He'd probably not learn even after that. She thought darkly. But she didn't want to have to explain to the overmare why she had assaulted a guard, she sighed angrily. "Go away, Shield." The stallion wasn't deterred, "Come on Toro, you can't play hard to get forever. You'll never find a mate if you're always working and pushing stallions away. Maybe if you bushed your mane a bit you might have a few more admirers." She scowled even more at his sing-song tone, how dare he come in and start in on how she looks. She was about to open her mouth when he put a finger to her lips. His eyes danced over her body. "You know, I already think you're already hot now." She had enough now as she shoved him away with a snarl, "Shield, get the fuck out of here. Don't talk to me while I'm working, you know that already." The smile dropped from his face as his ears wilted, "Oh. I'll catch you later then I guess." Totoro sighed as he trudged out back up the stairs, she glanced back at her handiwork. It wasn't perfect but it'd due for now. She rose to her feet, stretching before grabbing the discarded tools and throwing them in the tool bin. It wasn't her job to sort that stuff. The mare slid the goggles down from her face and let them hang around her neck and carefully moved her mane so that it draped heavily over the left side of her face, it was compulsive, she couldn't help it. Once she was satisfied with her job she walked up the stairs and out into the engineering office, she looked around. It was empty, much to her relief. She walked over to the workbench in the corner where a rifle sat partially taken apart, she almost smiled as she rubbed her hands together. "Alright, T, let's get to work. Hello beautiful- " The sound of the office door opening and a knock assaulted her ears, she let out a frustrated growl and whirled around to give whoever the hell dared to disturb her a piece of her mind. "Hey Toro, you got a minute?" Her rage died in her throat, lavender unicorn stood leaning against the doorframe. Her violet mane tied back in a loose ponytail. She felt her legs turn to jelly. "Y- Yeah, what's up?" Toro turned back to the weapon she was taking apart to hide the flustered look on her face as she tried to calm her nerves. "I heard you chased off Shield." "He already knows I don't like being disturbed while working." "You didn't have to yell at him, T. He might be annoying as all hell, but he's still my brother and he has feelings." Toro sighed, of course, the only pony in the entire vault that could make her feel guilty is the sister of the stallion who kept trying to date her. "I'm sorry, Magnolia." "I'll forgive you if you eat dinner with me." Toro turned her head back, "What? But I- " "Toro, my dear friend. I love you, but we can't eat in the same place that you keep all your tools. That and I'd rather not have a security weapon explode while we eat." She added the last part quickly. "Hey!" The earth pony pointed a finger at the unicorn, "That was an accident, Mag! I had told Spines to take all the bullets out of the weapon, but noooo- 'I already did that, what do you take me for? An idiot?'" Magnolia threw her head back in laughter, "You punched him in the stomach so hard he stayed in the medbay for three days." "Alright, fine. I'll hit the lights and then we can go," Toro comically looked back at the weapon on the table and spoke dramatically, "I'll be back for you..." "You can romance that rifle later, I'm hungry!" The vault's common area was nothing to scoff at, it housed a cafeteria that could seat well over a hundred, a barber and just up the hall from it was the schoolroom. As the two mares entered Toro reflexively placed the goggles back over her eyes, the lights always were too bright for her. She watched as Magnolia sat at a particularly crowded table, full of all the stallions she hated. Toro followed, despite every fibre of her being telling her to just go back to her office. As long as Mag was there it wouldn't be a problem. She thought as she sat down. "So, Ms Totoro, you decided to join us? How are you feeling?" Toro glared at the stallion who spoke though her goggles despite him not being able to see her burning gaze, a white unicorn with a blood-red mane. His name slipped her mind, not as she cared though. Toro didn't like how he looked at her like she was his next meal. It made her uncomfortable. "I'd be better if Hotwire fixed these damn lights, Doc." "I told you my name isn't 'Doc', it's Life Support. It's on my office door." Toro huffed and Magnolia put an arm around the irritated mechanic, "Sorry Life, she's just grumpy because I tore her away from her pride and joy." Mastiff, a bigger more muscular brown earth pony with no mane chimed in. "You mean that broken rifle she's been tinkering with for the last few months?" Toro growled. It wouldn't be broken if these barbarians knew how to handle things with care! She mentally clapped back. "Hey, if anyone could fix it it's Toro." Everypony at the table turned to Shield who sat across from Toro. "She's got the Midas Touch with tech." "Thanks." She muttered and almost regretted it as the pegasus beamed. She geared up to fire an insult just to put him down when she felt a squeeze on her shoulder, Magnolia knew her too well. She held her tongue. How long until somepony finds out? She wondered as Magnolia left to get their food. She decided to distract herself and began thinking about the modifications she could make to the rifle muttering to herself, "Maybe extend the clip size, trash the iron sights for a more practical sight, replace the grip... A sensitive trigger wouldn't hurt." "Quite the list you're making for yourself," Life said with a smirk, "Don't overexert yourself- " "She'll be alright," Shield jumped to her defence, "You worry about yourself." Why? She watched the two stallions lock eyes, daring the other to make a move. Such primal behaviour, doesn't he know I don't like him? Why is he defending me after I shot him down? "Have a good day." Shield frowned as he sat back down, "I don't like him. He's always talking down to ponies like he's better than them." Toro spotted a familiar spiky blue mane and the moment the pegasus saw her he turned back around and walked out, "For once, I can agree with you on that." At that moment Magnolia returned with two trays. Toro instantly frowned at her tray, she hated vegetables. Mag knew that, why would she- "Toro you have to eat something healthy at some point. You can't live off of sweets and chocolate you know." She poked Toro's midsection. Toro looked at herself, by no means was she fat. She was short though which made her appear slightly stocky. Her vault suit really left nothing to the imagination. She turned her head towards Shield, who quickly looked away. She crossed her arms over her chest, "You're not my mother, I can eat what I want- " "Totoro if you don't eat everything on that tray I'll pin you down and force-feed you." Toro felt her heart skip a beat and she put her head down, doing as she was told and Magnolia chuckled. Why do I feel like this? Why is she so nice? "Engineer Totoro, you're needed in the OverMare's office." Toro looked up at the loudspeakers on the archways above her head, why had she been called? Surely the overmare would rather call Hotwire or Jumpstart. She quietly stood and marched her way to the office. Toro stood dumbfounded at the display before her. Overmare Flare, an orange pegasus with a fiery red mane, stood in front of her terminal wiping her wet hands on her vault suit. A puddle of water pooled under the desk as she sheepishly smiled at the clearly bemused engineer. Her face smiled but there was something Toro couldn't put her finger on in her eyes, she figured embarrassment given the situation. "Totoro, so glad you could come on such short notice-" She cut the Overmare off, "For Celestia's sake... Please don't tell me you spilt water on your..." Flare glanced at the terminal, "How long do you need?" "Give me two hours, if it isn't too bad I might be done sooner." "You're the best Totoro!" She snorted as the Overmare left the room, I don't need you to tell me that. She ran down to her office to grab her tools. Toro grumbled as she removed another piece of the terminal's waterlogged interior, cursing the stupidity of their Overmare. She knew colts and fillies more careful than her. She carefully screwed in a replacement part. She shook her head, Flare couldn't keep breaking things like this. "Don't worry, T here is gonna fix you right up. You'll be right as rain." She said as she tried the power. No dice. "Come on, don't be difficult you old hunk of junk! Work with old T!" She wiped the lens of her goggles and put her screwdriver in her mouth as she stuck her hands inside the wiring, she chuckled before she was zapped. "Sonofabitch..." She was glad the overmare wasn't there to hear that, she hated profanity. Her anger turned to joy as the terminal booted up, "Maybe I do have the Midas touch. Alright Flare, what..." She stopped, unable to process what exactly she was looking at. There were symbols on the screen but she couldn't decipher what they were. She plugged in her Pipbuck and downloaded the information, Flare had been typing something up and she needed to hard reset the terminal. She could let her know afterwards now that she had a copy. "Now let's hope she doesn't break you again." Toro sat down in her office checking the time on her Pipbuck, 10:45 pm. The door was locked this time so there would be no interruptions, she could finally work in peace. She whistled softly as she transferred her information to her personal terminal next to her workbench. "Alright, let's see what I have." She absentmindedly hit play while she began her work and her computer began to read the information aloud. "9 am. Today Totoro showed more hostility towards the stallions I was sure would have her hooked, she's a strange one. Personal note, have a heart to heart with her," Toro scowled, "1 pm. She's 19 already and hasn't actively searched for a mate. It worries me. It's like she has no interest in contributing to the vault. 7:45 pm. Tomorrow I'll need to speak to Life Support about Jumpstart, he hits our limit soon and we'll need to recycle him. Inform Spines and Mastiff to keep an eye on Toro, last I heard she was reconstructing a weapon for some reason. I may have to recycle her earlier than expected, she shows signs of borderline psychotic tendencies as well as anger issues and compulsive disorders as reported by Life Support. Not to mention she speaks to herself. I had hoped the plan with Spines would have taken her out and everypony would be none the wiser, but I have to be more direct now. I just need to convince her to see Life Support and a simple injection would solve my issue. If not I have other methods in place to rid the gene pool of her." Toro dropped her screwdriver and it clattered on the floor loudly, she sat mouth agape in stunned silence. W-what? Surely this was some sick joke, some prank and there would be a big 'gotcha' when they reveal it right? But she felt sick. Were they trying to kill me when Spines' weapon blew up in my face? What the fuck kind of joke is that? That wasn't funny, this is sick. What did she mean 'recycle'? She felt a headache coming on and growled pressing her hands to the sides of her head as gunshots rang out all around her, an alarm going off. She opened her eyes and saw the vault door opening before she blinked and was back in her office with tears streaming down her face. Her eyes stung. It was quiet, no alarms, no gunfire. She shakily slid the goggles back over her eyes. "What... What the fuck was that? What am I gonna do? This can't be real... This..." She couldn't convince herself that what she just heard was some kind of joke, there was no reason why she would even mention Jumpstart. No reason why her overmare would say these things, her mind was reeling. There's only one way to know. If anything happens to Jump... Oh fuck. She forced herself to take apart the weapon with more urgency. Chapter 2Toro slowly woke with her head down on the workbench, the gun in one piece. Did I finish it? She sat up rubbing her eyes, before standing up and walking into her connected bathroom. She turned on the water before staring at it. The Overmare said she had other methods right? She turned the water off. She contemplated just how long she could live without taking another shower or using any water that isn't from the public fountain. She glanced in the mirror, her eyes seemed more bloodshot than usual. She didn't know if this was real, but she damn sure wasn't taking any risks. She fastened the goggles over her eyes and rushed back over to her terminal, she began erasing the evidence. She wanted no trace of the data and she was about to wipe it from her pipbuck when the office door opened. "I'll be with you in a second," She growled turning around almost flinching as she saw Life Support smiling at her from the doorway, "Don't you knock? I coulda been in the middle of something, Doc." His smile seemed so much more menacing now, "It's... Important. Have you finished with Mastiff's rifle? It looks intact." She made no move to stop him as he grabbed the rifle, "Yeah, I made the modifications he asked for. Tell him to be more careful with it. I'm not his personal gunsmith." "Don't worry your pretty little head about what our security does. Just do as you're told." Toro balled her fists and forced herself to stay quiet as he walked out. She sat back down, trying to remember what Jumpstart was supposed to be doing today. "Fixing the lights." She swore a voice whispered to her. She shook her head. It sounded like her voice but... How tired am I? Regardless, as far as she could recall she'd been complaining all week for him to fix them, she waited a few minutes before leaving the office and checking her pipbuck for the time. 10:25 am. Toro entered the common area watching everything carefully as she walked up to Mastiff, "Hey you seen Jump? He's supposed to be replacing these lights." The massive security guard glanced over his shoulder, "Oh yeah, last I saw he was working on the residential lights. Made sure to let everyone know to steer clear, I don't know what it is with you engiees' and being anti-social." "Thanks." She walked off calmly but the moment she turned the corner she sprinted towards the residential suites. Unlike the other dwellers, Toro didn't like the residential suites. It was too frilly and nice for her, nevermind the fact that there was nothing for her to do. Her mouth dropped as she realized there were at least four different floors he could be on. Damn you Mastiff. She bolted down the first flight of stairs onto the second level. She rounded a corner and collided with a familiar lavender pony, landing on top of her. Toro panted heavily out of sudden anxiety and the fact that this was the most amount of cardio she's done in months, she stared into Magnolia's blue eyes. She mumbled an apology and took off leaving Magnolia to prop herself up on one arm as she watched the earth pony rush down the hall. She was just about to start down to the third floor when all the lights on the third floor blacked out for a moment before flickering slowly back to life. "No," Toro rushed down the stairs and slowed her pace as she saw one of the doors open with no light inside, "No..." She walked into the doorway and clicked on her pipbuck's light. She instantly regretted it as a charred form lay on the floor, what remained of Jumpstart's blonde mane was now dark yellow and singed almost beyond recognition. There was a strange low buzzing and the smell of burning flesh caused her to gag, she clamped her hand over her mouth and swallowed the bile rising in her throat. Toro mindlessly rushed forward, "Jump- " A strong pair of arms grabbed her and restrained her, "Toro are you out of your mind?!" She fought against the stallion, "Let me go! I gotta help him- " "You'll get yourself killed! Didn't you see all the power fail? Not only is it too late for him, but he's a live wire right now. I'm trying to help, I understand what you feel but he's gone already! If you don't calm down I'm gonna have to really restrain you and I don't want to do that to you, Toro." She knew who her captor was now but she still fought against Shield's grip. She didn't care what he said. I can still- Her thoughts were cut short as she was slammed hard against the metal floor outside of the room. There was a bit of an audience forming now. Her vision blurred and her head pounded, her eyes stung as they began tearing up from the pain. "Now, are you gonna listen to me?" His voice was level as he pulled her up to a sitting position as he put handcuffs on her before standing her up. He sounded apologetic. She weakly nodded, still dazed. "Good. You're lucky I like you, I coulda just used the stun baton and then I would have to carry you. Now walk, slowly and back to your office." Toro's mind reeled as Shield marched her up the stairs. No no no! What do I do? I can't run away from him... Wait why does he want to go to my office? Detained dwellers are supposed to sit in the security office. She walked in silence while her brain worked overtime to figure out a way out. Before she knew it, they stood in front of her door. She opened it and walked over to her bed, sitting down. Shield stood blocking the door as it closed behind him. "I saw you sprinting down the hall and figured there was trouble. I'm sorry about Jumpstart, nopony should have to die like that." He stepped forwards until he stood in front of her, he sounded sincere. She had an idea now. She thanked her lucky stars that he was dumb enough and infatuated enough with her that he'd break protocol. She began to feel slightly guilty and took a deep breath. Mag, forgive me for what I'm about to do. I don't wanna die. Not here, not by Overmare Flare's hands. Thanking her lucky stars that she never took off the goggles she patted a spot on the bed next to her, watching him carefully as he sat down. She could see the handgun in his thigh holster as he sat down, "I just... He was one of the few ponies I could really talk to you know? He was my mentor." "I didn't know you two were so close. Well I'm here if you- " Toro lightly began to push Shield down on her bed, she wanted to gag. "Well... If you're really here for me..." She could see the realization in his eyes as he willingly laid back and she straddled him. "I'm... I'm new to this so could you close your eyes?" He did exactly as she told him. She swore she could feel something guiding her hands as she continued. "Get the gun- Shoot him- Kill-" Toro's thoughts began to swarm as the small voices whispered to her, she slowly slid the pistol from the holster and felt herself pointing it at the stallion's head. "Kill-" With a shout she pulled back and pistol-whipped him, knocking the stallion unconscious. She panted as she hopped off of him, using a saw to cut the cuffs off. What was that? That... Voice. I would never kill Shield. Once the cuffs were off she grabbed his arm and began to access his pipbuck if she remembered correctly, all security was issued a specific code in their pipbuck whether they knew it or not. She'd discovered it long ago when tinkering with Mastiff's pipbuck, a phantom code that she figured might come in handy. I'm sorry Mag. Sorry, Shield. She found what she was looking for and stood up looking back at the unconscious stallion in her bed. Toro took the holster and strapped it onto her own leg, packing a bag and tightening the straps. The engineer tightened the strap on her goggles before stepping over to the control panel by the door, she was glad she insisted on converting this room into her bedroom. She slid the magazine out of the gun, it was full but she prayed that she wouldn't have to shoot anypony. She opened the panel and flicked one of the breaker switches, counting down as she heard the lights shutting off once the office went dark she opened the door and bolted down the pitch-black hallways lit with the emergency lights. She'd been running full pelt when the lights flashed back on. "Vault security," Overmare Flare's voice called through the loudspeaker, "Be on the lookout for Junior Engineer Totoro, she must be detained if possible. She is armed and extremely dangerous. Put the safety of the vault first." Now Toro had an official target on her, there was a deafening bang and she stumbled as a bullet whizzed over her shoulder. She took a hard left and made the second right, in her panicked state the Vault she was so familiar with was now a winding maze with trigger-happy armed guards after her. All she needed to do was make it to the vault door, it was easier said than done as she ducked around a corner just narrowly dodging the sight of another guard. She slowly drew the pistol and ran her fingers over it shakily before turning the safety off, she felt sick. How could ponies I grew up with just be ready to kill one of their own at a moment's notice? We've known each other for years! Sure, we may not have been good friends but I'm still... I'm still a living breathing pony dammit! Toro glanced down at her pipbuck, as far as she could see on the map she wasn't far. As long as I don't run into Mastiff I'll be fine. She exploded out of her cover again with the direction this time as she navigated the halls. Toro stood before the vault door control, despite the situation she still felt some doubt. There's no going back, the Overmare made that clear. I'm a dead pony walking, they didn't even try to speak to me. Shoot on sight. She flipped the glass cover over the button on the control. "That's far enough!" She flinched as a gruff voice startled her, "Turn around, slowly. I figured I'd find you here." She complied facing Mastiff, there he stood roughly 10 feet away from her holding the rifle she had worked on. Out of all the things she could have been worried about, she was almost angry that the guard had already scratched the paint on it. She was about to be killed by her own creation. It was almost funny to her as she smiled, not out of joy but her body's response to the situation. "Come on Mastiff. You don't have to do this, you know I didn't do anything. You know me-" "Oh, now you wanna play nice? I put up with your shit for years. All of us have, you always treated everyone like garbage. Magnolia would always come to tell us about how much of a fucking handful you are, you know I knew your shitty personality would get you in deep. And now you want me to throw away a golden opportunity to get rid of you? You're right. I do know you, I sure as hell won't miss you- " He didn't get to finish the sentence as the moment he pulled the trigger the rifle he had pointed at Toro exploded in his hands, he dropped to the floor his hands, or really what remained of the bloody stumps, blackened from the sudden combustion. It was poetic justice. So I hadn't finished it! That would explain a lot. You deserved it, asshole. Thank Celestia for that. She fumbled with her pipbuck and plugged in before smashing the button, watching in awe as the massive door rolled open. "Wow. Now that's a marvel of engineer-" "She's opened the vault!" Toro's thoughts interrupted by shouting coming from the hall behind Mastiff. She didn't wait for the door to finish opening as she got a running start and leapt the gap before the walkway extended, sprinting hard as she heard bullets ricochet off the metal door. Her foot caught a loose rock and she fell forward, she squeezed her eyes closed as she tumbled downhill. She suddenly hit the ground hard landing flat on her back, the moment her head connected with the ground she was out cold. Chapter 3"Hey, you dead or what?" A voice Toro didn't recognize sounded from above her, she was prodded and she swatted away the hand. "She lives. Good, I don't do bits and pieces." She sat up, opening her eyes. Her joints popped and cracked. There was a crack across the lens on the left side of the goggles, she gently traced her finger across the crack. "Excuse me, miss!" Toro turned her head towards the voice, a pony stood before her clad in a t-shirt, leather jacket and black pants. Confusion washed over her. What? They told us everypony died when- The mare flicked her head. "Wow, your brain must be mush. Then again, musta been one hell of a fall. I'm surprised a squishy dweller like yourself survived it." Now she had a clear view of her face as she knelt down to eye level with Toro. The cobalt mare's face was scarred in multiple places, mainly a large one that cut diagonally from her chin almost up to her violet eyes. Her rough-looking blonde mane slicked back into a spiky mohawk, she looked at Toro with a bit of genuine worry. "Have a drink," She held out a canteen for the engineer who gladly took it, her throat felt like a desert. "It might clear your head." Toro took one gulp and gagged. The liquid burned on the way down, "That... That's not water." The blue mare burst out laughing, "I never said it was, now did I? What's yer name?" "Pardon?" "Your name? Your handle? Unless you don't remember- " "Totoro. Toro's just fine." The other mare eyed her for a moment as if sizing her up. Seeing if she was really as she said. "Alright, well at least you don't have amnesia. That'd be a whole nother hitch." She smiled and Toro felt uncomfortable, "Consider this your lucky day, you could've had any asshole come to murder you while you were out or worse but you got me. I'm still an asshole, but I'm not gonna murder ya. Even though you seem pretty harmless I don't trust you with my real name just in case this is some kind of setup, call me... Call me Striker." "What kind of name is Striker- "What kind of name is Toro?" Toro shot Striker a dirty look as she was helped to her feet, "Fair point. Where are we?" Toro squinted at her surroundings, from the hill she stood on she could see there were sparse forest and surprisingly thick foliage. Even some flowers. Even a few dozen houses and even what looked like a city in the distance. She'd expected everything to be dead, as she had been told would be the case when growing up in the vault. Then again, they already lied to her once. There seemed to be a haze that seemed to hover like a fog all around, it wasn't thick but it was just barely noticeable. Mag woulda loved this view. Wasteland or not... "You mean what it used to be or what it is now? I don't remember what it used to be but we call it Sanctuary. Well, those of us who aren't mass-murdering raiders. I'll take you there and then we can talk without worrying about getting ambushed, wouldn't wanna get eaten now would you?" Eaten? Toro snapped back to attention and closely followed Striker. For the first time she eyed the large weapon she'd been holding in her hand, it looked like a rifle but smaller with twin barrels. She stayed silent, Striker seemed okay but Toro solely based that on the fact that her guide didn't just outright kill her. They began to approach a street full of houses as they descended down the hill. "Raiders..." Toro whipped her head around as she heard her own voice behind her. "You're not safe..." Am I losing my mind? She froze and flinched as she heard Striker's screams of pain and gunfire, she felt the corners of her eyes stinging. A fog rolled in as she watched four shadow figures rushed towards her with pure white evil grins. Then a loud bang, she felt pain in her chest. N-no... "Toro," The cobalt mare grabbed Toro's shoulder, the engineer blinked and everything was back. Striker alive and no fog. "You okay? You really musta hit yer head, come on. We'll double-time it and hopefully, we get there soon- " She tugged Toro forward but she planted her feet as she stuttered still in shock, "Are- Are you sure it's safe? Nobody is going to shoot at us?" Striker sighed, clearly annoyed. "Fine. We'll take the slow lane, I swear, you're lucky I like you." Toro was happy with that and allowed herself to be led along as they hopped over a small stream before cutting through what remained of a backyard fence. Striker smiled and sighed as they walked through a ruined house onto the sidewalk looking down the street. "See?" She pinched Toro's cheek, much to the earth pony's annoyance. "Perfectly safe- " A bullet whizzed by hitting the ground near Toro's feet, Striker shoved her backwards and she fell into a bush. "Shit! I missed!" A voice swore from nearby. "Fuck, I shoulda known they'd come back. Toro, go hide! I'll handle these fucks." Toro sat up and watched as Striker's wings flexed outward, and she charged down the street shotgun in hand with her wings propelling her faster. Toro scrambled to her feet and threw herself into the nearest house nearly hyperventilating as she jumped over a couch and darted into a bedroom, hiding behind a dresser. She flinched at every blast and winced at every scream. Suddenly it was quiet, everything just stopped. No gunfire, no yelling. "S-Striker?" Toro whispered. The rust mare was yanked out of her hiding spot roughly by a strong pair of hands, she squirmed and screamed breaking free momentarily. She took three steps into the hallway before she was grabbed by her tail and slammed, she hit the floor hard rolling over onto her back kicking at her attacker. The black stallion slapped away her kicks and grabbed her by the throat, lifting her up and pinning her against a wall with another rough slam that made her eyes water. She desperately clawed at his arm as she struggled for breath, to the point where he started bleeding but it didn't seem to bother him. "So old Striker was holding out on us, I wonder what price we can get on you? Some fresh Vault meat." He chuckled in his gruff voice. "Kick. Now." Toro's boot shot out directly into the raider's midsection, he dropped her and hunched over clutching his stomach. "You little bitch!" Toro curled up protecting her face as a hard kick to her back sent her rolling across the floor, she quietly writhed on the dirty floor. He kicked her again, and again, and again. "Now I gotta teach you a lesson- " A single gunshot rang out. Toro looked up and the stallion stood frozen, his wild eyes now fixed in a look of surprise. She rolled out of the way as he crumpled onto the faded tile floor, blood leaking from a sizable hole in his head. Toro slowly and painfully stood up clutching her ribs that she was sure had to be bruised by now. She looked out the front window of the house expecting to see Striker's confident violet eyes. A shadowy figure stood in the street with a black cowpony hat, black trench coat and a long black rifle. Glowing green eyes met her gaze from under the shadow of the hat. "Th- Thank you, whoever you are," Toro called out. The figure just nodded and began to walk off before slowly fading away. Was that- That had to be real right? I didn't just imagine a pony saving my life, did I? Striker barged in the front door, blood splattered across her face. "I been lookin' for ya kid! Where you... Oh. Friend of yours?" She pointed down at the body. Toro glared at her, "No, we just met. I didn't do this, I was saved by someone. They had glowing green eyes and an all-black- " "Suit?" Striker finished her sentence looking worried, "Sounds like the Phantom of the Wasteland if you ask me." Toro offered a confused look. Striker flipped the couch up the right way before sitting down and propping her feet up on the dead guy on the floor, she patted the space next to her and Toro laid across her lap with a wince. "Right. A bit of backstory. We call him The Phantom. Nobody knows who the guy is or what he really looks like, just showed up one day. He's been around forever basically. There'd be a raider issue somewhere and the next morning they'd all be dead. He's like a guardian angel. Some ponies are convinced he's secretly an alicorn, others think he's a prewar ghoul or something like that. I'm convinced that it isn't the same pony, like it's some type of passing the torch type shit you know? Like the one you saw might be the like tenth Phantom." "Whoever they are, I'm just glad they came." Striker nodded, awkwardly petting Toro's messy mane. "This asshole grabbed my tail when I was running from him." "Don't worry kid, we'll cut that tail tomorrow. Just get some rest, we can't stay here. After today I'll admit I was wrong, It isn't safe here anymore. At least not until I get rid of Armageddon and his idiots. I gotta call in a favour from one of my friends and you're coming with me. It's a bit of a hike so just be ready tomorrow." "Mhmm." Toro was already nodding off. Level up! Perk Unlocked: Phantom of the Wasteland. When danger strikes and hope is lost, you have a chance of the Phantom coming to the rescue. Chapter 4"So lemme' get this straight," Striker huffed as she helped Toro across a partially collapsed bridge. "You said that they killed your mentor?" Toro shuddered and the memory, gagging at the residual memory of the horrific sight of Jumpstart's burned corpse. "Overmare Flare said in her note it was needed for the sake of the vault, they planned to kill me next. Something about me having some type of psy- psycho-" "Sociopathic." "Right, sociopathic tendencies. She might have killed me anyways if I'd been found out." Striker ignored that strange bit as they walked past a dead mutated dog, "Found out? What do you- " "There was a mare. Her name was Magnolia. She was the only pony in that hell that made things bearable, she was all I needed. My dear Overmare wanted me to have a male partner so I could 'contribute to the vault's future' as she said- " Striker smirked as she cut Toro off. "Shit, why didn't you just shoot your shot? Seems like you really liked her-" "I couldn't, okay?" Toro suddenly shouted looking visibly shaken, she trembled slightly and Striker's smile faded, "Don't you get it? I couldn't put her at risk because I couldn't control my feelings! You know how hard it is to watch her smile at me and laugh and give me comfort and every time I want to close that distance I had to remember the fucking rules... I couldn't break the rules-" "I didn't mean to pry," The taller female holstered her shotgun and gently patted her head. "I'm sure you'll tell me when you're ready, but I would rather you not break down right now." Striker pressed Toro's head against her side. "We're gonna have to cut straight through the city," The mare pointed towards a tower with buildings clustered nearby, a misty fog seemed to permanently hover over the buildings. "Not only are we gonna have to worry about raider assholes, but those freaks as well. I'll try to keep you safe, but if it comes down to it... I hope you know how to use that pistol. I gotta tell Night that the asshole broke the agreement, hopefully, he's in Goodneighbour. Let's get a move on, kid." They didn't encounter much on the way towards the remains of the city, Toro struggled to keep up with the experienced mare. She stumbled over a pothole, Dammit! She hated walking, she hated not knowing where she was, she hated feeling vulnerable. She stumbled a second time and fell hard, tumbling down a small hill. She let out a weak whimper as she forced herself up on a knee before she collapsed. Striker stopped and turned, ready to give some words of encouragement when she heard Toro's heaving breaths. She came back and picked up the smaller mare bridal style, "Good lord, Toro. I can't leave you for two seconds- " Toro was hot to the touch, not enough to seem sickly but enough to cause concern. She went completely limp. She didn't think Striker frowned as she saw the sun slowly dipping below the horizon, she scanned her surroundings. To her right the ominous towers of the water plant, her eyes shot left and locked onto the light of a trashcan fire on a porch. She figured it'd have to do and she approached the front door and kicked it open. The building was dead silent, like a crypt. There was a lobby area, a front desk on her right and a couch and armchair waiting room on her left. "Shit, I hope those two can track me here... Tin cans better..." Striker muttered as she swept the rest of the building with her shotgun in hand. From what she could gather, it's a retirement home. Well, it was at one point. Many of the windows were shattered, debris everywhere and a hole in the ceiling. The occasional abandoned wheelchair here and there. Needless to say, Striker didn't feel comfortable but Toro was out cold on the faded red couch. She felt a warm smile creeping across her face, she removed her leather jacket and laid it over the mare as she took a seat in the armchair across from the couch in her dirty white shirt and jeans. She put her backpack on the floor and sat at attention resting her gun across her thighs. Striker jolted awake, it nigh pitch black outside. Dim moonlight shone in through the hole in the ceiling. Although she saw nothing she felt on edge. Striker rose to her hooves and cocked her shotgun, "Alright, come on out. Make it easy for Mama Bear." "Mama Bear?" "Is that what she calls herself now?" Two figures with glowing eyes hopped down from a hole in the ceiling, Striker relaxed and lowered her gun. "You two are late." "You," The pony with glowing purple eyes stepped into the moonlight, black pearlescent purple fur glimmering under her cloak, "Were supposed to meet us in Goodneighbor. What gives?" The pony with pink eyes stepped forwards in her hooded cloak and spoke in a playful voice, "Yeah, you're usually punctual- " She stopped as she saw the sleeping figure curled up on the faded couch, Striker looked visibly uncomfortable as she watched Speed lick her lips. "Oh hell no you don't." "Don't be like that 'Mama Bear'. Don't act like you haven't thought about it, from the moment you laid eyes on her." Striker looked away with a frown, she would have been right when they first met. But with what Striker knew now she wouldn't dare dream of it. "You are just about the creepiest bot I've ever known Speed. At least Endie is somewhat normal." "We're some of the only synths you're ever met, save for that detective guy." Striker relaxed, "Well I might as well fill you in while you're here, the mare's in a bad place right now and the last thing I want is for you to accidentally push her over the edge." Chapter 5Toro slowly woke, her eyes met a bright pink pair. Sunlight was streaming in the roof through a massive hole in the ceiling. In a panic, she struggled to reach for the pistol on her thigh but she couldn't move her arms. Whoever this pony was was holding her down with the tightest vice-grip she'd felt in her life. No matter how much she seemed to struggle, the pony on top of her never budged one bit. "Striker wasn't kidding when she said the girl was jumpy," The hooded pony holding her down smiled brightly down at her, "Calm down. If I was gonna do something to you I would have, Striker, wanted us to watch you for a minute. She doesn't like to admit she functions like everypony else." "She had to take a leak," Endie added tying back her mane. Toro stopped struggling, She's got a point. Wait what's up with her eyes? "You're one to talk." A whispy voice snapped back at Toro. "I didn't even say that out loud," Toro muttered. Speed raised a brow as she lowered her hood, her hot pink mane gleaming in the daylight and grey-green fur looking pristine. "You didn't say what out loud," She questioned. "Well... I'm Speedstar, the behemoth of a mare over there is Endie. Now I want you to introduce yourself so I'm going to let go of your arms and remove those goggles of yours- " "No!" Toro struggled again but was easily restrained by Speed, Endie walked over and tenderly placed her hands on the goggles. The last thing she wanted was to reveal one of her most closely guarded secrets. "If I can't see your eyes I can't trust you, love. If you need to hide your eyes that means you have something to hide. I don't like secrets, and if you think you can keep something from me just know I'll get it out of you. One way... or another." Speed stroked Toro's face and the pinned mare shuddered. "You and Striker may have this 'child I always wanted' thing going on but if I don't trust you... Now the goggles come off, trust me as long as we've been around the wasteland a scar or some deformity won't scare... us..." She trailed off as Endie removed the goggles Toro glared at the two, her milky red eyes squinted in irritation at the two. Speed released her and she sat up indignantly, snatching her goggles from the other pony before fastening them. "Are," Speed looked as if she was trying to look for the right words, "Are you- " "No," Striker's deep voice boomed from the doorway, the cobalt pony stood with her arms crossed. "She's not a synth. She's a dweller. Are you two done harassing her?" Speed smiled, "Just breaking her in on my trust policy. Had to let her know if she's going to accompany us- " "She's with me," Striker menacingly advanced towards Speed and the pink maned mare retreated a few steps, "It's my trust she needs if anypony. If you have a problem with that, feel free to be on your way." Speed chuckled rubbing the back of her neck with a smile that was a bit too wide, "N-now Striker, pal, don't be like that. We just wanted to be sure she wouldn't shoot us in the back- " "Speedstar!" Endie growled. "What? You pretend like it isn't a possibility! She could- " Toro was fed up and roared, "I'm right fucking here!" That shut everyone up. Her temper flared and she felt almost normal again. Almost. "How in the world am I supposed to trust you if you talk about me like I can't fucking hear you?" "Calm down." "No! I won't fucking calm down! How fucking dare you?" Toro stood up from the couch and jabbed a finger into Speed's chest. Toro was a good foot shorter than her but the point still got across. Striker came over and placed a hand on her shoulder, "Alright, that's enough kid. I think they get it. We still gotta get to Goodneighbor, Toro let's go. The last thing we want to do is stumble onto some Gunners. If you two want to join us you best get your shit together, that might fly with Nights but I have rules." With that Striker grabbed Toro's hand and they walked out the front door. "Come on Striker, you can't stay mad at us the whole way back to Goodneighbor!" Endie said as she and Speed kept stride. Striker stayed silent as they continued. The sun sat directly overhead as they walked under the mangled mess of tall buildings, due to Striker's direction they managed to avoid super mutants and any Gunners that were lurking about. "Hey," Toro finally piped up, "Striker are we far? I don't mean to complain but I'm kinda sore from all this walking." "Weakling- Toughen up- " Toro frowned as she glanced over her shoulder, it felt like that voice was right on her neck yet she didn't see anypony. The cobalt mare's face softened as she glanced back at Toro, "No, not far actually. Should be just around the corner- " There was a loud bang as Striker's shoulder jerked backwards as she let go of Toro's hand, the mare hit the ground hard. Blood splattered on the ground and began to pour out from the wound. Endie picked Toro up by the waist and dove into cover, while Speed dragged the bigger mare by her collar into cover. "Damn she's heavier than she looks," Speed huffed drawing a scoped revolver from her cloak. "Toro, where's that sniper?" "Wh-what?!" She looked shocked, how was she supposed to know. Another bullet whizzed by, taking out some of the brick on a nearby building. Endie gently placed her fingers on Toro's temples, Endie pulled her in closer to the point that she was in on the mare's lap. "Just concentrate sweetheart. I want you to carefully peek out and tell Speed where that nasty bad guy is." Toro didn't appreciate being spoken to like a child but she felt a calming tingling sensation. Another shot rang out. "Look. Now." She felt Endie loosen her grip and the moment Toro peeked out everything seemed to slow down. Sound distorted in her ears as time slowed to a crawl, her eyes darted around the semi-open trashed streets. Suddenly she caught a glint of light on top of a nearby building, then the figure of a raider lit up bright green. What is this? Why can I do this? This doesn't make- "Move!" She pulled back just as a bullet scored the ground next to them. "He-He's on the rooftop third building on our right, crouching." "I've always wanted to do this," Speed shot out of cover with the pistol raised, "It's high noon." With three consecutive shots, the raider tumbled off the roof, falling and landing with a dull thud. Striker sat up holding her left shoulder taking in sharp breaths, mumbling a string of curses. "Look at you, sleeping on the job. Thanks to Toro's eagle eyes we got that sniper." Speed spun the pistol on her finger playfully. "Did-," Striker struggled to her feet, blood coating her hand with a weak smile. "Did you really spot him?" Toro slowly nodded, She must be in so much pain. "Look at the pain you caused her. If you were more useful- She wouldn't have been shot." Toro felt a headache coming on, Shut up. "Why didn't you have a prophetic vision that time? Useless runt. Another life you couldn't protect- " Toro jolted to her feet with a shout that startled everyone as she drew the pistol clutching her head, "SHUT THE FUCK UP!" Tears threatened to pour from her eyes as she took laboured ragged breaths, as the headache began to die down she took a look around at her companions. Endie stood back, Speed gripped her pistol tightly and Striker offered a worried look. I'm... I'm not crazy, I swear... She wanted to say the words but they never made it out of her throat, Toro slowly put the pistol back in its holster and turned her head away from them. What could I possibly say? She decided to just act like it didn't happen. "So," Toro cleared her throat, "You said the place was close? We should hurry." Speed looked up, "... Yeah, we don't want to get caught when the ferals come out." Speed's gaze never left Toro and she kept her pistol out as she walked the rest of the way to Goodneighbor with Striker clutching her injured shoulder. She doesn't trust me. "Who would trust you after that display?" Toro offered no words to the voice as they entered. "Speed you take Toro down to the rail I- Fuck. Endie could you walk me to Doctor Amari?" "I gotcha." Endie nodded as the two rushed off. That left Speed and Toro, the engineer felt the tension. Speed wordlessly led Toro through a door and down a flight of stairs into a subway that had been converted into a bar, a mare in a sparkly dress finished her song on a high note and there were applauds from the patrons. "Whatever that shit was that happened before, don't do that here." Speed hissed as they approached the bar. Toro sat at the bar next to a well dressed ginger-maned pony, she accidentally bumped their elbow and they whipped about. The pony's piercing emerald eyes glared daggers into Toro. "Speedstar," A posh sounding voice came from them, "I didn't know you picked up strays now." Toro wilted slightly and Speed glared at the pony, "No, she's with Striker. Toro, this is Ginger. You happened to catch Gin in a bad mood which is always." "I can be nice." "You smashed a guy's face repeatedly into the bar in a rage because he touched you." "He grabbed my ass, what the hell else was I gonna do? I haven't seen him since so he must have learned his lesson." Ginger took a sip of their drink. What? Toro looked at Ginger's slender form framed by the suit, Ginger was pretty curvy actually. They didn't look too strong. "Nice to meet you, miss- " "For fuck's- " Ginger facepalmed and Speed giggled, "I don't look like a mare, do I? I don't sound like one either do I?" "Just a little bit," Toro replied carefully. "Whatever. Small mistake. Your name is Toro? I hate it. Please change it to something better. Now I assume Striker came here for Nights?" Speed nodded. "You missed him, left for the Castle. I kept trying to get him to wait, oh- before I forget. Some idiot in a metal outfit was looking for Nights as well. We'll handle that when we get to it. I'll be coming with you to the Castle, as much as I love getting hit on I'd like to be of actual use to somepony. We leave tomorrow morning, have your gear ready." Ginger got up and walked off. "He was nicer than usual," Speed commented as Toro put her head down on the bar counter. "What?" "Is Striker gonna be okay?" Worry in Toro's voice. "Are you kidding? You think one bullet could kill that stubborn bitch? Nah, she'll be alright." "How did you know I'd be able to see that guy?" Speed sighed, "That's simple. That pipbuck you're wearing has this advanced targeting system, well, at least that's what Night tells us. Why do you doubt that you'd have seen him- " "Could I tell you something? Something I haven't told anyone?" "Is it that you and Striker are fuc- " "What? Ew, no. Not that Striker isn't nice but she's more motherly than anything. I'm half blind- partially blind, something like that. My eyesight isn't normal and bright lights hurt my eyes." "That's why you wear those welding goggles?" "That and I... I used to be an engineer..." "Was it so hard to share that with me? Now, what's yer poison?" Toro looked genuinely repulsed, "Why would I drink poison?" Speed's smile widened, "Oh you're so pure... We'll change that."
Chapter 1"Totoro!" A voice called down from the zig-zagging stairwell into the reactor room, a rust-red mare was knelt down on the floor with a wrench clenched in her mouth and power tools in her hands. Her dirty white mane hanging freely in her face She ignored the voice as a bead of sweat rolled down her forehead, over her goggles and dripping onto her dingy vault suit. The gold faded from its shiny glory and the blue now muted slightly. This wasn't out of the ordinary for her, she wasn't the only maintenance pony in the vault but she insisted to handle things by herself. After all, she didn't want to be disturbed by- "Toro!" She grimaced as a strong hand playfully tapped her shoulder. A tall stallion stood behind her, irritation was written all over her face. She looked and met the grey pegasi's gaze, she wanted to punch him right in his stupid smile, or better yet kick him in the groin to teach him a lesson. He'd probably not learn even after that. She thought darkly. But she didn't want to have to explain to the overmare why she had assaulted a guard, she sighed angrily. "Go away, Shield." The stallion wasn't deterred, "Come on Toro, you can't play hard to get forever. You'll never find a mate if you're always working and pushing stallions away. Maybe if you bushed your mane a bit you might have a few more admirers." She scowled even more at his sing-song tone, how dare he come in and start in on how she looks. She was about to open her mouth when he put a finger to her lips. His eyes danced over her body. "You know, I already think you're already hot now." She had enough now as she shoved him away with a snarl, "Shield, get the fuck out of here. Don't talk to me while I'm working, you know that already." The smile dropped from his face as his ears wilted, "Oh. I'll catch you later then I guess." Totoro sighed as he trudged out back up the stairs, she glanced back at her handiwork. It wasn't perfect but it'd due for now. She rose to her feet, stretching before grabbing the discarded tools and throwing them in the tool bin. It wasn't her job to sort that stuff. The mare slid the goggles down from her face and let them hang around her neck and carefully moved her mane so that it draped heavily over the left side of her face, it was compulsive, she couldn't help it. Once she was satisfied with her job she walked up the stairs and out into the engineering office, she looked around. It was empty, much to her relief. She walked over to the workbench in the corner where a rifle sat partially taken apart, she almost smiled as she rubbed her hands together. "Alright, T, let's get to work. Hello beautiful- " The sound of the office door opening and a knock assaulted her ears, she let out a frustrated growl and whirled around to give whoever the hell dared to disturb her a piece of her mind. "Hey Toro, you got a minute?" Her rage died in her throat, lavender unicorn stood leaning against the doorframe. Her violet mane tied back in a loose ponytail. She felt her legs turn to jelly. "Y- Yeah, what's up?" Toro turned back to the weapon she was taking apart to hide the flustered look on her face as she tried to calm her nerves. "I heard you chased off Shield." "He already knows I don't like being disturbed while working." "You didn't have to yell at him, T. He might be annoying as all hell, but he's still my brother and he has feelings." Toro sighed, of course, the only pony in the entire vault that could make her feel guilty is the sister of the stallion who kept trying to date her. "I'm sorry, Magnolia." "I'll forgive you if you eat dinner with me." Toro turned her head back, "What? But I- " "Toro, my dear friend. I love you, but we can't eat in the same place that you keep all your tools. That and I'd rather not have a security weapon explode while we eat." She added the last part quickly. "Hey!" The earth pony pointed a finger at the unicorn, "That was an accident, Mag! I had told Spines to take all the bullets out of the weapon, but noooo- 'I already did that, what do you take me for? An idiot?'" Magnolia threw her head back in laughter, "You punched him in the stomach so hard he stayed in the medbay for three days." "Alright, fine. I'll hit the lights and then we can go," Toro comically looked back at the weapon on the table and spoke dramatically, "I'll be back for you..." "You can romance that rifle later, I'm hungry!" The vault's common area was nothing to scoff at, it housed a cafeteria that could seat well over a hundred, a barber and just up the hall from it was the schoolroom. As the two mares entered Toro reflexively placed the goggles back over her eyes, the lights always were too bright for her. She watched as Magnolia sat at a particularly crowded table, full of all the stallions she hated. Toro followed, despite every fibre of her being telling her to just go back to her office. As long as Mag was there it wouldn't be a problem. She thought as she sat down. "So, Ms Totoro, you decided to join us? How are you feeling?" Toro glared at the stallion who spoke though her goggles despite him not being able to see her burning gaze, a white unicorn with a blood-red mane. His name slipped her mind, not as she cared though. Toro didn't like how he looked at her like she was his next meal. It made her uncomfortable. "I'd be better if Hotwire fixed these damn lights, Doc." "I told you my name isn't 'Doc', it's Life Support. It's on my office door." Toro huffed and Magnolia put an arm around the irritated mechanic, "Sorry Life, she's just grumpy because I tore her away from her pride and joy." Mastiff, a bigger more muscular brown earth pony with no mane chimed in. "You mean that broken rifle she's been tinkering with for the last few months?" Toro growled. It wouldn't be broken if these barbarians knew how to handle things with care! She mentally clapped back. "Hey, if anyone could fix it it's Toro." Everypony at the table turned to Shield who sat across from Toro. "She's got the Midas Touch with tech." "Thanks." She muttered and almost regretted it as the pegasus beamed. She geared up to fire an insult just to put him down when she felt a squeeze on her shoulder, Magnolia knew her too well. She held her tongue. How long until somepony finds out? She wondered as Magnolia left to get their food. She decided to distract herself and began thinking about the modifications she could make to the rifle muttering to herself, "Maybe extend the clip size, trash the iron sights for a more practical sight, replace the grip... A sensitive trigger wouldn't hurt." "Quite the list you're making for yourself," Life said with a smirk, "Don't overexert yourself- " "She'll be alright," Shield jumped to her defence, "You worry about yourself." Why? She watched the two stallions lock eyes, daring the other to make a move. Such primal behaviour, doesn't he know I don't like him? Why is he defending me after I shot him down? "Have a good day." Shield frowned as he sat back down, "I don't like him. He's always talking down to ponies like he's better than them." Toro spotted a familiar spiky blue mane and the moment the pegasus saw her he turned back around and walked out, "For once, I can agree with you on that." At that moment Magnolia returned with two trays. Toro instantly frowned at her tray, she hated vegetables. Mag knew that, why would she- "Toro you have to eat something healthy at some point. You can't live off of sweets and chocolate you know." She poked Toro's midsection. Toro looked at herself, by no means was she fat. She was short though which made her appear slightly stocky. Her vault suit really left nothing to the imagination. She turned her head towards Shield, who quickly looked away. She crossed her arms over her chest, "You're not my mother, I can eat what I want- " "Totoro if you don't eat everything on that tray I'll pin you down and force-feed you." Toro felt her heart skip a beat and she put her head down, doing as she was told and Magnolia chuckled. Why do I feel like this? Why is she so nice? "Engineer Totoro, you're needed in the OverMare's office." Toro looked up at the loudspeakers on the archways above her head, why had she been called? Surely the overmare would rather call Hotwire or Jumpstart. She quietly stood and marched her way to the office. Toro stood dumbfounded at the display before her. Overmare Flare, an orange pegasus with a fiery red mane, stood in front of her terminal wiping her wet hands on her vault suit. A puddle of water pooled under the desk as she sheepishly smiled at the clearly bemused engineer. Her face smiled but there was something Toro couldn't put her finger on in her eyes, she figured embarrassment given the situation. "Totoro, so glad you could come on such short notice-" She cut the Overmare off, "For Celestia's sake... Please don't tell me you spilt water on your..." Flare glanced at the terminal, "How long do you need?" "Give me two hours, if it isn't too bad I might be done sooner." "You're the best Totoro!" She snorted as the Overmare left the room, I don't need you to tell me that. She ran down to her office to grab her tools. Toro grumbled as she removed another piece of the terminal's waterlogged interior, cursing the stupidity of their Overmare. She knew colts and fillies more careful than her. She carefully screwed in a replacement part. She shook her head, Flare couldn't keep breaking things like this. "Don't worry, T here is gonna fix you right up. You'll be right as rain." She said as she tried the power. No dice. "Come on, don't be difficult you old hunk of junk! Work with old T!" She wiped the lens of her goggles and put her screwdriver in her mouth as she stuck her hands inside the wiring, she chuckled before she was zapped. "Sonofabitch..." She was glad the overmare wasn't there to hear that, she hated profanity. Her anger turned to joy as the terminal booted up, "Maybe I do have the Midas touch. Alright Flare, what..." She stopped, unable to process what exactly she was looking at. There were symbols on the screen but she couldn't decipher what they were. She plugged in her Pipbuck and downloaded the information, Flare had been typing something up and she needed to hard reset the terminal. She could let her know afterwards now that she had a copy. "Now let's hope she doesn't break you again." Toro sat down in her office checking the time on her Pipbuck, 10:45 pm. The door was locked this time so there would be no interruptions, she could finally work in peace. She whistled softly as she transferred her information to her personal terminal next to her workbench. "Alright, let's see what I have." She absentmindedly hit play while she began her work and her computer began to read the information aloud. "9 am. Today Totoro showed more hostility towards the stallions I was sure would have her hooked, she's a strange one. Personal note, have a heart to heart with her," Toro scowled, "1 pm. She's 19 already and hasn't actively searched for a mate. It worries me. It's like she has no interest in contributing to the vault. 7:45 pm. Tomorrow I'll need to speak to Life Support about Jumpstart, he hits our limit soon and we'll need to recycle him. Inform Spines and Mastiff to keep an eye on Toro, last I heard she was reconstructing a weapon for some reason. I may have to recycle her earlier than expected, she shows signs of borderline psychotic tendencies as well as anger issues and compulsive disorders as reported by Life Support. Not to mention she speaks to herself. I had hoped the plan with Spines would have taken her out and everypony would be none the wiser, but I have to be more direct now. I just need to convince her to see Life Support and a simple injection would solve my issue. If not I have other methods in place to rid the gene pool of her." Toro dropped her screwdriver and it clattered on the floor loudly, she sat mouth agape in stunned silence. W-what? Surely this was some sick joke, some prank and there would be a big 'gotcha' when they reveal it right? But she felt sick. Were they trying to kill me when Spines' weapon blew up in my face? What the fuck kind of joke is that? That wasn't funny, this is sick. What did she mean 'recycle'? She felt a headache coming on and growled pressing her hands to the sides of her head as gunshots rang out all around her, an alarm going off. She opened her eyes and saw the vault door opening before she blinked and was back in her office with tears streaming down her face. Her eyes stung. It was quiet, no alarms, no gunfire. She shakily slid the goggles back over her eyes. "What... What the fuck was that? What am I gonna do? This can't be real... This..." She couldn't convince herself that what she just heard was some kind of joke, there was no reason why she would even mention Jumpstart. No reason why her overmare would say these things, her mind was reeling. There's only one way to know. If anything happens to Jump... Oh fuck. She forced herself to take apart the weapon with more urgency.
Chapter 2Toro slowly woke with her head down on the workbench, the gun in one piece. Did I finish it? She sat up rubbing her eyes, before standing up and walking into her connected bathroom. She turned on the water before staring at it. The Overmare said she had other methods right? She turned the water off. She contemplated just how long she could live without taking another shower or using any water that isn't from the public fountain. She glanced in the mirror, her eyes seemed more bloodshot than usual. She didn't know if this was real, but she damn sure wasn't taking any risks. She fastened the goggles over her eyes and rushed back over to her terminal, she began erasing the evidence. She wanted no trace of the data and she was about to wipe it from her pipbuck when the office door opened. "I'll be with you in a second," She growled turning around almost flinching as she saw Life Support smiling at her from the doorway, "Don't you knock? I coulda been in the middle of something, Doc." His smile seemed so much more menacing now, "It's... Important. Have you finished with Mastiff's rifle? It looks intact." She made no move to stop him as he grabbed the rifle, "Yeah, I made the modifications he asked for. Tell him to be more careful with it. I'm not his personal gunsmith." "Don't worry your pretty little head about what our security does. Just do as you're told." Toro balled her fists and forced herself to stay quiet as he walked out. She sat back down, trying to remember what Jumpstart was supposed to be doing today. "Fixing the lights." She swore a voice whispered to her. She shook her head. It sounded like her voice but... How tired am I? Regardless, as far as she could recall she'd been complaining all week for him to fix them, she waited a few minutes before leaving the office and checking her pipbuck for the time. 10:25 am. Toro entered the common area watching everything carefully as she walked up to Mastiff, "Hey you seen Jump? He's supposed to be replacing these lights." The massive security guard glanced over his shoulder, "Oh yeah, last I saw he was working on the residential lights. Made sure to let everyone know to steer clear, I don't know what it is with you engiees' and being anti-social." "Thanks." She walked off calmly but the moment she turned the corner she sprinted towards the residential suites. Unlike the other dwellers, Toro didn't like the residential suites. It was too frilly and nice for her, nevermind the fact that there was nothing for her to do. Her mouth dropped as she realized there were at least four different floors he could be on. Damn you Mastiff. She bolted down the first flight of stairs onto the second level. She rounded a corner and collided with a familiar lavender pony, landing on top of her. Toro panted heavily out of sudden anxiety and the fact that this was the most amount of cardio she's done in months, she stared into Magnolia's blue eyes. She mumbled an apology and took off leaving Magnolia to prop herself up on one arm as she watched the earth pony rush down the hall. She was just about to start down to the third floor when all the lights on the third floor blacked out for a moment before flickering slowly back to life. "No," Toro rushed down the stairs and slowed her pace as she saw one of the doors open with no light inside, "No..." She walked into the doorway and clicked on her pipbuck's light. She instantly regretted it as a charred form lay on the floor, what remained of Jumpstart's blonde mane was now dark yellow and singed almost beyond recognition. There was a strange low buzzing and the smell of burning flesh caused her to gag, she clamped her hand over her mouth and swallowed the bile rising in her throat. Toro mindlessly rushed forward, "Jump- " A strong pair of arms grabbed her and restrained her, "Toro are you out of your mind?!" She fought against the stallion, "Let me go! I gotta help him- " "You'll get yourself killed! Didn't you see all the power fail? Not only is it too late for him, but he's a live wire right now. I'm trying to help, I understand what you feel but he's gone already! If you don't calm down I'm gonna have to really restrain you and I don't want to do that to you, Toro." She knew who her captor was now but she still fought against Shield's grip. She didn't care what he said. I can still- Her thoughts were cut short as she was slammed hard against the metal floor outside of the room. There was a bit of an audience forming now. Her vision blurred and her head pounded, her eyes stung as they began tearing up from the pain. "Now, are you gonna listen to me?" His voice was level as he pulled her up to a sitting position as he put handcuffs on her before standing her up. He sounded apologetic. She weakly nodded, still dazed. "Good. You're lucky I like you, I coulda just used the stun baton and then I would have to carry you. Now walk, slowly and back to your office." Toro's mind reeled as Shield marched her up the stairs. No no no! What do I do? I can't run away from him... Wait why does he want to go to my office? Detained dwellers are supposed to sit in the security office. She walked in silence while her brain worked overtime to figure out a way out. Before she knew it, they stood in front of her door. She opened it and walked over to her bed, sitting down. Shield stood blocking the door as it closed behind him. "I saw you sprinting down the hall and figured there was trouble. I'm sorry about Jumpstart, nopony should have to die like that." He stepped forwards until he stood in front of her, he sounded sincere. She had an idea now. She thanked her lucky stars that he was dumb enough and infatuated enough with her that he'd break protocol. She began to feel slightly guilty and took a deep breath. Mag, forgive me for what I'm about to do. I don't wanna die. Not here, not by Overmare Flare's hands. Thanking her lucky stars that she never took off the goggles she patted a spot on the bed next to her, watching him carefully as he sat down. She could see the handgun in his thigh holster as he sat down, "I just... He was one of the few ponies I could really talk to you know? He was my mentor." "I didn't know you two were so close. Well I'm here if you- " Toro lightly began to push Shield down on her bed, she wanted to gag. "Well... If you're really here for me..." She could see the realization in his eyes as he willingly laid back and she straddled him. "I'm... I'm new to this so could you close your eyes?" He did exactly as she told him. She swore she could feel something guiding her hands as she continued. "Get the gun- Shoot him- Kill-" Toro's thoughts began to swarm as the small voices whispered to her, she slowly slid the pistol from the holster and felt herself pointing it at the stallion's head. "Kill-" With a shout she pulled back and pistol-whipped him, knocking the stallion unconscious. She panted as she hopped off of him, using a saw to cut the cuffs off. What was that? That... Voice. I would never kill Shield. Once the cuffs were off she grabbed his arm and began to access his pipbuck if she remembered correctly, all security was issued a specific code in their pipbuck whether they knew it or not. She'd discovered it long ago when tinkering with Mastiff's pipbuck, a phantom code that she figured might come in handy. I'm sorry Mag. Sorry, Shield. She found what she was looking for and stood up looking back at the unconscious stallion in her bed. Toro took the holster and strapped it onto her own leg, packing a bag and tightening the straps. The engineer tightened the strap on her goggles before stepping over to the control panel by the door, she was glad she insisted on converting this room into her bedroom. She slid the magazine out of the gun, it was full but she prayed that she wouldn't have to shoot anypony. She opened the panel and flicked one of the breaker switches, counting down as she heard the lights shutting off once the office went dark she opened the door and bolted down the pitch-black hallways lit with the emergency lights. She'd been running full pelt when the lights flashed back on. "Vault security," Overmare Flare's voice called through the loudspeaker, "Be on the lookout for Junior Engineer Totoro, she must be detained if possible. She is armed and extremely dangerous. Put the safety of the vault first." Now Toro had an official target on her, there was a deafening bang and she stumbled as a bullet whizzed over her shoulder. She took a hard left and made the second right, in her panicked state the Vault she was so familiar with was now a winding maze with trigger-happy armed guards after her. All she needed to do was make it to the vault door, it was easier said than done as she ducked around a corner just narrowly dodging the sight of another guard. She slowly drew the pistol and ran her fingers over it shakily before turning the safety off, she felt sick. How could ponies I grew up with just be ready to kill one of their own at a moment's notice? We've known each other for years! Sure, we may not have been good friends but I'm still... I'm still a living breathing pony dammit! Toro glanced down at her pipbuck, as far as she could see on the map she wasn't far. As long as I don't run into Mastiff I'll be fine. She exploded out of her cover again with the direction this time as she navigated the halls. Toro stood before the vault door control, despite the situation she still felt some doubt. There's no going back, the Overmare made that clear. I'm a dead pony walking, they didn't even try to speak to me. Shoot on sight. She flipped the glass cover over the button on the control. "That's far enough!" She flinched as a gruff voice startled her, "Turn around, slowly. I figured I'd find you here." She complied facing Mastiff, there he stood roughly 10 feet away from her holding the rifle she had worked on. Out of all the things she could have been worried about, she was almost angry that the guard had already scratched the paint on it. She was about to be killed by her own creation. It was almost funny to her as she smiled, not out of joy but her body's response to the situation. "Come on Mastiff. You don't have to do this, you know I didn't do anything. You know me-" "Oh, now you wanna play nice? I put up with your shit for years. All of us have, you always treated everyone like garbage. Magnolia would always come to tell us about how much of a fucking handful you are, you know I knew your shitty personality would get you in deep. And now you want me to throw away a golden opportunity to get rid of you? You're right. I do know you, I sure as hell won't miss you- " He didn't get to finish the sentence as the moment he pulled the trigger the rifle he had pointed at Toro exploded in his hands, he dropped to the floor his hands, or really what remained of the bloody stumps, blackened from the sudden combustion. It was poetic justice. So I hadn't finished it! That would explain a lot. You deserved it, asshole. Thank Celestia for that. She fumbled with her pipbuck and plugged in before smashing the button, watching in awe as the massive door rolled open. "Wow. Now that's a marvel of engineer-" "She's opened the vault!" Toro's thoughts interrupted by shouting coming from the hall behind Mastiff. She didn't wait for the door to finish opening as she got a running start and leapt the gap before the walkway extended, sprinting hard as she heard bullets ricochet off the metal door. Her foot caught a loose rock and she fell forward, she squeezed her eyes closed as she tumbled downhill. She suddenly hit the ground hard landing flat on her back, the moment her head connected with the ground she was out cold.
Chapter 3"Hey, you dead or what?" A voice Toro didn't recognize sounded from above her, she was prodded and she swatted away the hand. "She lives. Good, I don't do bits and pieces." She sat up, opening her eyes. Her joints popped and cracked. There was a crack across the lens on the left side of the goggles, she gently traced her finger across the crack. "Excuse me, miss!" Toro turned her head towards the voice, a pony stood before her clad in a t-shirt, leather jacket and black pants. Confusion washed over her. What? They told us everypony died when- The mare flicked her head. "Wow, your brain must be mush. Then again, musta been one hell of a fall. I'm surprised a squishy dweller like yourself survived it." Now she had a clear view of her face as she knelt down to eye level with Toro. The cobalt mare's face was scarred in multiple places, mainly a large one that cut diagonally from her chin almost up to her violet eyes. Her rough-looking blonde mane slicked back into a spiky mohawk, she looked at Toro with a bit of genuine worry. "Have a drink," She held out a canteen for the engineer who gladly took it, her throat felt like a desert. "It might clear your head." Toro took one gulp and gagged. The liquid burned on the way down, "That... That's not water." The blue mare burst out laughing, "I never said it was, now did I? What's yer name?" "Pardon?" "Your name? Your handle? Unless you don't remember- " "Totoro. Toro's just fine." The other mare eyed her for a moment as if sizing her up. Seeing if she was really as she said. "Alright, well at least you don't have amnesia. That'd be a whole nother hitch." She smiled and Toro felt uncomfortable, "Consider this your lucky day, you could've had any asshole come to murder you while you were out or worse but you got me. I'm still an asshole, but I'm not gonna murder ya. Even though you seem pretty harmless I don't trust you with my real name just in case this is some kind of setup, call me... Call me Striker." "What kind of name is Striker- "What kind of name is Toro?" Toro shot Striker a dirty look as she was helped to her feet, "Fair point. Where are we?" Toro squinted at her surroundings, from the hill she stood on she could see there were sparse forest and surprisingly thick foliage. Even some flowers. Even a few dozen houses and even what looked like a city in the distance. She'd expected everything to be dead, as she had been told would be the case when growing up in the vault. Then again, they already lied to her once. There seemed to be a haze that seemed to hover like a fog all around, it wasn't thick but it was just barely noticeable. Mag woulda loved this view. Wasteland or not... "You mean what it used to be or what it is now? I don't remember what it used to be but we call it Sanctuary. Well, those of us who aren't mass-murdering raiders. I'll take you there and then we can talk without worrying about getting ambushed, wouldn't wanna get eaten now would you?" Eaten? Toro snapped back to attention and closely followed Striker. For the first time she eyed the large weapon she'd been holding in her hand, it looked like a rifle but smaller with twin barrels. She stayed silent, Striker seemed okay but Toro solely based that on the fact that her guide didn't just outright kill her. They began to approach a street full of houses as they descended down the hill. "Raiders..." Toro whipped her head around as she heard her own voice behind her. "You're not safe..." Am I losing my mind? She froze and flinched as she heard Striker's screams of pain and gunfire, she felt the corners of her eyes stinging. A fog rolled in as she watched four shadow figures rushed towards her with pure white evil grins. Then a loud bang, she felt pain in her chest. N-no... "Toro," The cobalt mare grabbed Toro's shoulder, the engineer blinked and everything was back. Striker alive and no fog. "You okay? You really musta hit yer head, come on. We'll double-time it and hopefully, we get there soon- " She tugged Toro forward but she planted her feet as she stuttered still in shock, "Are- Are you sure it's safe? Nobody is going to shoot at us?" Striker sighed, clearly annoyed. "Fine. We'll take the slow lane, I swear, you're lucky I like you." Toro was happy with that and allowed herself to be led along as they hopped over a small stream before cutting through what remained of a backyard fence. Striker smiled and sighed as they walked through a ruined house onto the sidewalk looking down the street. "See?" She pinched Toro's cheek, much to the earth pony's annoyance. "Perfectly safe- " A bullet whizzed by hitting the ground near Toro's feet, Striker shoved her backwards and she fell into a bush. "Shit! I missed!" A voice swore from nearby. "Fuck, I shoulda known they'd come back. Toro, go hide! I'll handle these fucks." Toro sat up and watched as Striker's wings flexed outward, and she charged down the street shotgun in hand with her wings propelling her faster. Toro scrambled to her feet and threw herself into the nearest house nearly hyperventilating as she jumped over a couch and darted into a bedroom, hiding behind a dresser. She flinched at every blast and winced at every scream. Suddenly it was quiet, everything just stopped. No gunfire, no yelling. "S-Striker?" Toro whispered. The rust mare was yanked out of her hiding spot roughly by a strong pair of hands, she squirmed and screamed breaking free momentarily. She took three steps into the hallway before she was grabbed by her tail and slammed, she hit the floor hard rolling over onto her back kicking at her attacker. The black stallion slapped away her kicks and grabbed her by the throat, lifting her up and pinning her against a wall with another rough slam that made her eyes water. She desperately clawed at his arm as she struggled for breath, to the point where he started bleeding but it didn't seem to bother him. "So old Striker was holding out on us, I wonder what price we can get on you? Some fresh Vault meat." He chuckled in his gruff voice. "Kick. Now." Toro's boot shot out directly into the raider's midsection, he dropped her and hunched over clutching his stomach. "You little bitch!" Toro curled up protecting her face as a hard kick to her back sent her rolling across the floor, she quietly writhed on the dirty floor. He kicked her again, and again, and again. "Now I gotta teach you a lesson- " A single gunshot rang out. Toro looked up and the stallion stood frozen, his wild eyes now fixed in a look of surprise. She rolled out of the way as he crumpled onto the faded tile floor, blood leaking from a sizable hole in his head. Toro slowly and painfully stood up clutching her ribs that she was sure had to be bruised by now. She looked out the front window of the house expecting to see Striker's confident violet eyes. A shadowy figure stood in the street with a black cowpony hat, black trench coat and a long black rifle. Glowing green eyes met her gaze from under the shadow of the hat. "Th- Thank you, whoever you are," Toro called out. The figure just nodded and began to walk off before slowly fading away. Was that- That had to be real right? I didn't just imagine a pony saving my life, did I? Striker barged in the front door, blood splattered across her face. "I been lookin' for ya kid! Where you... Oh. Friend of yours?" She pointed down at the body. Toro glared at her, "No, we just met. I didn't do this, I was saved by someone. They had glowing green eyes and an all-black- " "Suit?" Striker finished her sentence looking worried, "Sounds like the Phantom of the Wasteland if you ask me." Toro offered a confused look. Striker flipped the couch up the right way before sitting down and propping her feet up on the dead guy on the floor, she patted the space next to her and Toro laid across her lap with a wince. "Right. A bit of backstory. We call him The Phantom. Nobody knows who the guy is or what he really looks like, just showed up one day. He's been around forever basically. There'd be a raider issue somewhere and the next morning they'd all be dead. He's like a guardian angel. Some ponies are convinced he's secretly an alicorn, others think he's a prewar ghoul or something like that. I'm convinced that it isn't the same pony, like it's some type of passing the torch type shit you know? Like the one you saw might be the like tenth Phantom." "Whoever they are, I'm just glad they came." Striker nodded, awkwardly petting Toro's messy mane. "This asshole grabbed my tail when I was running from him." "Don't worry kid, we'll cut that tail tomorrow. Just get some rest, we can't stay here. After today I'll admit I was wrong, It isn't safe here anymore. At least not until I get rid of Armageddon and his idiots. I gotta call in a favour from one of my friends and you're coming with me. It's a bit of a hike so just be ready tomorrow." "Mhmm." Toro was already nodding off. Level up! Perk Unlocked: Phantom of the Wasteland. When danger strikes and hope is lost, you have a chance of the Phantom coming to the rescue.
Chapter 4"So lemme' get this straight," Striker huffed as she helped Toro across a partially collapsed bridge. "You said that they killed your mentor?" Toro shuddered and the memory, gagging at the residual memory of the horrific sight of Jumpstart's burned corpse. "Overmare Flare said in her note it was needed for the sake of the vault, they planned to kill me next. Something about me having some type of psy- psycho-" "Sociopathic." "Right, sociopathic tendencies. She might have killed me anyways if I'd been found out." Striker ignored that strange bit as they walked past a dead mutated dog, "Found out? What do you- " "There was a mare. Her name was Magnolia. She was the only pony in that hell that made things bearable, she was all I needed. My dear Overmare wanted me to have a male partner so I could 'contribute to the vault's future' as she said- " Striker smirked as she cut Toro off. "Shit, why didn't you just shoot your shot? Seems like you really liked her-" "I couldn't, okay?" Toro suddenly shouted looking visibly shaken, she trembled slightly and Striker's smile faded, "Don't you get it? I couldn't put her at risk because I couldn't control my feelings! You know how hard it is to watch her smile at me and laugh and give me comfort and every time I want to close that distance I had to remember the fucking rules... I couldn't break the rules-" "I didn't mean to pry," The taller female holstered her shotgun and gently patted her head. "I'm sure you'll tell me when you're ready, but I would rather you not break down right now." Striker pressed Toro's head against her side. "We're gonna have to cut straight through the city," The mare pointed towards a tower with buildings clustered nearby, a misty fog seemed to permanently hover over the buildings. "Not only are we gonna have to worry about raider assholes, but those freaks as well. I'll try to keep you safe, but if it comes down to it... I hope you know how to use that pistol. I gotta tell Night that the asshole broke the agreement, hopefully, he's in Goodneighbour. Let's get a move on, kid." They didn't encounter much on the way towards the remains of the city, Toro struggled to keep up with the experienced mare. She stumbled over a pothole, Dammit! She hated walking, she hated not knowing where she was, she hated feeling vulnerable. She stumbled a second time and fell hard, tumbling down a small hill. She let out a weak whimper as she forced herself up on a knee before she collapsed. Striker stopped and turned, ready to give some words of encouragement when she heard Toro's heaving breaths. She came back and picked up the smaller mare bridal style, "Good lord, Toro. I can't leave you for two seconds- " Toro was hot to the touch, not enough to seem sickly but enough to cause concern. She went completely limp. She didn't think Striker frowned as she saw the sun slowly dipping below the horizon, she scanned her surroundings. To her right the ominous towers of the water plant, her eyes shot left and locked onto the light of a trashcan fire on a porch. She figured it'd have to do and she approached the front door and kicked it open. The building was dead silent, like a crypt. There was a lobby area, a front desk on her right and a couch and armchair waiting room on her left. "Shit, I hope those two can track me here... Tin cans better..." Striker muttered as she swept the rest of the building with her shotgun in hand. From what she could gather, it's a retirement home. Well, it was at one point. Many of the windows were shattered, debris everywhere and a hole in the ceiling. The occasional abandoned wheelchair here and there. Needless to say, Striker didn't feel comfortable but Toro was out cold on the faded red couch. She felt a warm smile creeping across her face, she removed her leather jacket and laid it over the mare as she took a seat in the armchair across from the couch in her dirty white shirt and jeans. She put her backpack on the floor and sat at attention resting her gun across her thighs. Striker jolted awake, it nigh pitch black outside. Dim moonlight shone in through the hole in the ceiling. Although she saw nothing she felt on edge. Striker rose to her hooves and cocked her shotgun, "Alright, come on out. Make it easy for Mama Bear." "Mama Bear?" "Is that what she calls herself now?" Two figures with glowing eyes hopped down from a hole in the ceiling, Striker relaxed and lowered her gun. "You two are late." "You," The pony with glowing purple eyes stepped into the moonlight, black pearlescent purple fur glimmering under her cloak, "Were supposed to meet us in Goodneighbor. What gives?" The pony with pink eyes stepped forwards in her hooded cloak and spoke in a playful voice, "Yeah, you're usually punctual- " She stopped as she saw the sleeping figure curled up on the faded couch, Striker looked visibly uncomfortable as she watched Speed lick her lips. "Oh hell no you don't." "Don't be like that 'Mama Bear'. Don't act like you haven't thought about it, from the moment you laid eyes on her." Striker looked away with a frown, she would have been right when they first met. But with what Striker knew now she wouldn't dare dream of it. "You are just about the creepiest bot I've ever known Speed. At least Endie is somewhat normal." "We're some of the only synths you're ever met, save for that detective guy." Striker relaxed, "Well I might as well fill you in while you're here, the mare's in a bad place right now and the last thing I want is for you to accidentally push her over the edge."
Chapter 5Toro slowly woke, her eyes met a bright pink pair. Sunlight was streaming in the roof through a massive hole in the ceiling. In a panic, she struggled to reach for the pistol on her thigh but she couldn't move her arms. Whoever this pony was was holding her down with the tightest vice-grip she'd felt in her life. No matter how much she seemed to struggle, the pony on top of her never budged one bit. "Striker wasn't kidding when she said the girl was jumpy," The hooded pony holding her down smiled brightly down at her, "Calm down. If I was gonna do something to you I would have, Striker, wanted us to watch you for a minute. She doesn't like to admit she functions like everypony else." "She had to take a leak," Endie added tying back her mane. Toro stopped struggling, She's got a point. Wait what's up with her eyes? "You're one to talk." A whispy voice snapped back at Toro. "I didn't even say that out loud," Toro muttered. Speed raised a brow as she lowered her hood, her hot pink mane gleaming in the daylight and grey-green fur looking pristine. "You didn't say what out loud," She questioned. "Well... I'm Speedstar, the behemoth of a mare over there is Endie. Now I want you to introduce yourself so I'm going to let go of your arms and remove those goggles of yours- " "No!" Toro struggled again but was easily restrained by Speed, Endie walked over and tenderly placed her hands on the goggles. The last thing she wanted was to reveal one of her most closely guarded secrets. "If I can't see your eyes I can't trust you, love. If you need to hide your eyes that means you have something to hide. I don't like secrets, and if you think you can keep something from me just know I'll get it out of you. One way... or another." Speed stroked Toro's face and the pinned mare shuddered. "You and Striker may have this 'child I always wanted' thing going on but if I don't trust you... Now the goggles come off, trust me as long as we've been around the wasteland a scar or some deformity won't scare... us..." She trailed off as Endie removed the goggles Toro glared at the two, her milky red eyes squinted in irritation at the two. Speed released her and she sat up indignantly, snatching her goggles from the other pony before fastening them. "Are," Speed looked as if she was trying to look for the right words, "Are you- " "No," Striker's deep voice boomed from the doorway, the cobalt pony stood with her arms crossed. "She's not a synth. She's a dweller. Are you two done harassing her?" Speed smiled, "Just breaking her in on my trust policy. Had to let her know if she's going to accompany us- " "She's with me," Striker menacingly advanced towards Speed and the pink maned mare retreated a few steps, "It's my trust she needs if anypony. If you have a problem with that, feel free to be on your way." Speed chuckled rubbing the back of her neck with a smile that was a bit too wide, "N-now Striker, pal, don't be like that. We just wanted to be sure she wouldn't shoot us in the back- " "Speedstar!" Endie growled. "What? You pretend like it isn't a possibility! She could- " Toro was fed up and roared, "I'm right fucking here!" That shut everyone up. Her temper flared and she felt almost normal again. Almost. "How in the world am I supposed to trust you if you talk about me like I can't fucking hear you?" "Calm down." "No! I won't fucking calm down! How fucking dare you?" Toro stood up from the couch and jabbed a finger into Speed's chest. Toro was a good foot shorter than her but the point still got across. Striker came over and placed a hand on her shoulder, "Alright, that's enough kid. I think they get it. We still gotta get to Goodneighbor, Toro let's go. The last thing we want to do is stumble onto some Gunners. If you two want to join us you best get your shit together, that might fly with Nights but I have rules." With that Striker grabbed Toro's hand and they walked out the front door. "Come on Striker, you can't stay mad at us the whole way back to Goodneighbor!" Endie said as she and Speed kept stride. Striker stayed silent as they continued. The sun sat directly overhead as they walked under the mangled mess of tall buildings, due to Striker's direction they managed to avoid super mutants and any Gunners that were lurking about. "Hey," Toro finally piped up, "Striker are we far? I don't mean to complain but I'm kinda sore from all this walking." "Weakling- Toughen up- " Toro frowned as she glanced over her shoulder, it felt like that voice was right on her neck yet she didn't see anypony. The cobalt mare's face softened as she glanced back at Toro, "No, not far actually. Should be just around the corner- " There was a loud bang as Striker's shoulder jerked backwards as she let go of Toro's hand, the mare hit the ground hard. Blood splattered on the ground and began to pour out from the wound. Endie picked Toro up by the waist and dove into cover, while Speed dragged the bigger mare by her collar into cover. "Damn she's heavier than she looks," Speed huffed drawing a scoped revolver from her cloak. "Toro, where's that sniper?" "Wh-what?!" She looked shocked, how was she supposed to know. Another bullet whizzed by, taking out some of the brick on a nearby building. Endie gently placed her fingers on Toro's temples, Endie pulled her in closer to the point that she was in on the mare's lap. "Just concentrate sweetheart. I want you to carefully peek out and tell Speed where that nasty bad guy is." Toro didn't appreciate being spoken to like a child but she felt a calming tingling sensation. Another shot rang out. "Look. Now." She felt Endie loosen her grip and the moment Toro peeked out everything seemed to slow down. Sound distorted in her ears as time slowed to a crawl, her eyes darted around the semi-open trashed streets. Suddenly she caught a glint of light on top of a nearby building, then the figure of a raider lit up bright green. What is this? Why can I do this? This doesn't make- "Move!" She pulled back just as a bullet scored the ground next to them. "He-He's on the rooftop third building on our right, crouching." "I've always wanted to do this," Speed shot out of cover with the pistol raised, "It's high noon." With three consecutive shots, the raider tumbled off the roof, falling and landing with a dull thud. Striker sat up holding her left shoulder taking in sharp breaths, mumbling a string of curses. "Look at you, sleeping on the job. Thanks to Toro's eagle eyes we got that sniper." Speed spun the pistol on her finger playfully. "Did-," Striker struggled to her feet, blood coating her hand with a weak smile. "Did you really spot him?" Toro slowly nodded, She must be in so much pain. "Look at the pain you caused her. If you were more useful- She wouldn't have been shot." Toro felt a headache coming on, Shut up. "Why didn't you have a prophetic vision that time? Useless runt. Another life you couldn't protect- " Toro jolted to her feet with a shout that startled everyone as she drew the pistol clutching her head, "SHUT THE FUCK UP!" Tears threatened to pour from her eyes as she took laboured ragged breaths, as the headache began to die down she took a look around at her companions. Endie stood back, Speed gripped her pistol tightly and Striker offered a worried look. I'm... I'm not crazy, I swear... She wanted to say the words but they never made it out of her throat, Toro slowly put the pistol back in its holster and turned her head away from them. What could I possibly say? She decided to just act like it didn't happen. "So," Toro cleared her throat, "You said the place was close? We should hurry." Speed looked up, "... Yeah, we don't want to get caught when the ferals come out." Speed's gaze never left Toro and she kept her pistol out as she walked the rest of the way to Goodneighbor with Striker clutching her injured shoulder. She doesn't trust me. "Who would trust you after that display?" Toro offered no words to the voice as they entered. "Speed you take Toro down to the rail I- Fuck. Endie could you walk me to Doctor Amari?" "I gotcha." Endie nodded as the two rushed off. That left Speed and Toro, the engineer felt the tension. Speed wordlessly led Toro through a door and down a flight of stairs into a subway that had been converted into a bar, a mare in a sparkly dress finished her song on a high note and there were applauds from the patrons. "Whatever that shit was that happened before, don't do that here." Speed hissed as they approached the bar. Toro sat at the bar next to a well dressed ginger-maned pony, she accidentally bumped their elbow and they whipped about. The pony's piercing emerald eyes glared daggers into Toro. "Speedstar," A posh sounding voice came from them, "I didn't know you picked up strays now." Toro wilted slightly and Speed glared at the pony, "No, she's with Striker. Toro, this is Ginger. You happened to catch Gin in a bad mood which is always." "I can be nice." "You smashed a guy's face repeatedly into the bar in a rage because he touched you." "He grabbed my ass, what the hell else was I gonna do? I haven't seen him since so he must have learned his lesson." Ginger took a sip of their drink. What? Toro looked at Ginger's slender form framed by the suit, Ginger was pretty curvy actually. They didn't look too strong. "Nice to meet you, miss- " "For fuck's- " Ginger facepalmed and Speed giggled, "I don't look like a mare, do I? I don't sound like one either do I?" "Just a little bit," Toro replied carefully. "Whatever. Small mistake. Your name is Toro? I hate it. Please change it to something better. Now I assume Striker came here for Nights?" Speed nodded. "You missed him, left for the Castle. I kept trying to get him to wait, oh- before I forget. Some idiot in a metal outfit was looking for Nights as well. We'll handle that when we get to it. I'll be coming with you to the Castle, as much as I love getting hit on I'd like to be of actual use to somepony. We leave tomorrow morning, have your gear ready." Ginger got up and walked off. "He was nicer than usual," Speed commented as Toro put her head down on the bar counter. "What?" "Is Striker gonna be okay?" Worry in Toro's voice. "Are you kidding? You think one bullet could kill that stubborn bitch? Nah, she'll be alright." "How did you know I'd be able to see that guy?" Speed sighed, "That's simple. That pipbuck you're wearing has this advanced targeting system, well, at least that's what Night tells us. Why do you doubt that you'd have seen him- " "Could I tell you something? Something I haven't told anyone?" "Is it that you and Striker are fuc- " "What? Ew, no. Not that Striker isn't nice but she's more motherly than anything. I'm half blind- partially blind, something like that. My eyesight isn't normal and bright lights hurt my eyes." "That's why you wear those welding goggles?" "That and I... I used to be an engineer..." "Was it so hard to share that with me? Now, what's yer poison?" Toro looked genuinely repulsed, "Why would I drink poison?" Speed's smile widened, "Oh you're so pure... We'll change that."
