Fallout equestria: preparations

Chapters

Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 4
Chapter 3

Prologue

Everything felt wet.
I couldn't see anything.
My whole body felt numb.
My breath felt raspy.
There were noices, but they were muffled.

The noices turned into distorted voices after a while and i started regaining feeling in my limbs. I was lifted up by a pair of hooves. But that didn't worry me. I knew exactly who had grabbed me.
I knew were exactly were I was and what was going on. A few minutes went by until I could endly see and stand on my own.
"Are you alright, sir?"
Someone on my left asked. I didn't even turn before answering.
"yes."
My body felt awfull. But it also felt alive.
"Status."
A stallion on a terminal dutifully answered.
"Everything is going as planned. Energy levels are optimized. All systems are operative. Optics are on and vocals are functional."
Two other ponies moved a mirror in front of me. Had my feelings not been suppressed, I would not have believed it. It might have been fake, but it was an accurate copy of my old body. Five years younger and extremely thin as expected though. My mane also reached the floor. And I was so thin that had I had any real bones, I would have been able to see them. I tried to lift my wings up, but numb as they were I could only lift them a few centimeters up. It would take time getting used to everything.
"Sir?"
Again without looking I answered.
"Yes?"
"Everything seems to be fine on the terminals. And our data is consistent. If you could confirm that everything is functional on your end, we will be able to continue onto the next part."
I nodded. I simply told them how I felt.
"Everything is functional, though not at full capacity. Most of it feels numb. Even talking is a challenge to me. Bring doctor Joyful here. I'm going to need help to get used to this. "
"Yes, sir."
The pony that had answered turned around and went to fetch the doctor. The rest continued monitoring and testing me. As I looked around and answered a few other questions I noticed one of the many screens in the room had a pony on it.

I could see myself in it. An older me. A simulated image, a fake representation of my old self.
However I was the fake one. I had a body but no soul. The image had no body but it did have a soul. Ironic we thought in unison. We were the same. Our feelings, our thoughts, our memories. All i could see he could see. I was however but a puppet.
"All tests have been concluded sir."
I was handed a folder with all the data that had just been acquired. After reading through it I told them what to do.
"Inform all needed personnel for the next fase. Check for any discrepancies and make sure that everything is ready. Six months should be enough to prepare."
Everypony simply nodded and went to do as told. I kept looking into the mirror. I would have to cut my mane. And then i looked at the screen on my left.
The image on it had a fairly long mane. It stared back at me, but it didn't speak.
There was no need for it. We both thought the same thing.I always loved having a long braided mane. My mission would be dangerous, but I could at least grant myself that.
Just like old times.
Better times.

6 months later

After multiple months of therapy and training, I was now in proper fysical condition. I had regained full use of my wings and a lot of fat and muscle on my body.
My mane now lay into a pony tail. A bit shorter than when I first woke up. I was fascinated by what had been accomplished. My body was a made through a combination of cloning and cybernetics.
An extraordinary feat accomplished through science and magic. I was however more machine than pony. Any cut I had would heal instantly. Any broken bones, or rather hydraulics, would be repaired in a matter of minutes. Pain was non existent and pleasure limited. I could feel multiple talismans laying where my stomach should have been. Which meant I couldn't feel sick.
Good I thought as I stared at my armor.
The V29.
I never bothered in giving it a name. Why should I. Nopony beside me would ever use it.
It was just a superior version of the enclave armor. I had a lot of time to design it and then build it.
The real me to be exact. It was the only one of its kind. Unlike the v17 and v24.
The former being much weaker but perfect for mass production and the later just as good as real enclave armor.
I took the helmet in my hooves.
Made to resist the highest caliber of anti personnel weaponry. The best helmet there might ever be against headshots. Or anything really. I stared at the rest of my armor. It had thick armor and an incorporated shield alongside with multiple talismans that allowed it to fly with more ease and weight less. Alongside with air filters, thermal insulation and the best padding there was against shocks and blunt trauma.
There was a shotgun attached at the end of its tail instead of the usual enclave stinger.
It's helmet was red and black. The rest was the same. It took a lot of time to make.
We destroyed many prototypes testing it's resilience, until reaching satisfying results. It could take an shot from an antitank gun with relatively ease. I would be safe with it.
We could make more but they are extremely expensive and took a massive amount of time to make.
After one last sigh I put it on.

I walked out of my room. And headed towards the exit. Before I reached the main hall, I took some weapons and supplies for potential trade. All of which had been carefully prepared for my departure. And then I entered the main hall. Everypony was there, 1836 ponies to be exact. They looked at me. They all knew what was happening.
For them it was the first time they would ever see their "leader" in flesh and blood as much of an illusion as it might be. My helmet was off.
They could have a good look at my dark Grey fur and light grey mane. All reacted differently.
Some with fear And some with hope. Most would look away or cover their face when I looked at them. Nobody said anything to me or even got close to me. They just stared.
They weren't even scared of me, but of what I represented. Of what I would do outside and bring back. Things that would change their lives forever.

As I scanned the room I noticed a screen above the entrance I'm which my older reflection stood, simply watching. The ponies in the room waited for the front door to open. As it meant that our plan would be set in motion. I thought about those ponies around me and how they relied on me. If I died we'd just clone another body and learn from our mistakes. But we would lose time. Many of the ponies here wished they could live to see our goals accomplished. I hoped I could grant them that wish, to some of them at least. I analyzed the crowd surrounding me. All were quite massive ponies, just like my new body. Most of them were farmers, which had allowed them to live with plenty of food to spare and reach their current size. The rest were scientists, most of which tried to make sure we always had safe radiation free soil to farm on. And then there were our engineers who made sure our factory kept working.
Last was our tiny organic army.
84 ponies in power armor. Probably the best in what remained of equestria. It was, however, only a minuscule part of our true might.

The front door opened. There would be no speech to announce my departure. Everypony had been told everything they needed to know.
Everypony was smiling as I left. Sad smiles.
That's all you would get out of them. It did mean that they were hopeful. But after all this time stuck in this factory there wasn't much joy left in them. All that was left to them was a morbid loyalty.
I was like just like them. Hopeful, but any joy had left my body a long time ago.

I had now left.
I went through one of the factory main doors then crossed the construction site of our future city.
It was loud and hard to breath, because of all the construction going on. In there thousands of robots worked. Most were equidroids and their cheaper variants. They weren't made for construction, but for war. This meant that even making some simple foundations for a building would take time. It explained why so little progress had been made on that side of things. And why there were so many accidents. Luckily we had a massive stockpile of working equidroids. All of them came from the same place.
The Luxembuck military factory. It was one of many built all around l equestria. Producing massive amounts of weapons and robots for the equestrian war effort. And even some secret superweapons made to kill zebras. It now served a better purpose.
Underneath this factory lay a laboratory, without it none of this would have been possible. It had researched cloning and ai, also for the war effort. Thanks to which I now existed. And just like the factory it now served a better purpose.

I reached the wall.
A massive concrete barricade with towers and barbed wire surrounded our territory in which we would soon start building a city. Guarded by an army of robots, tanks and multiple ultra-sentinels. All staring mindlessly into the wastes searching for any possible threat.
I stepped though one of the walls entries. Taking one last look back.
It closed once i had gone through. I was now alone in unknown territory. Facing unidentified threats But that didn't matter.

For I had a task to accomplish.

Author's Note

Criticism and tips are welcome and appreciated.

Chapter 1

Now that I had left the confines of the factory, the main question became in which direction should I travel first? I had plenty of maps, which would likely be outdated. I had very limited information about the current state of equestria.

North wasn't an option, at least for now, as it would lead me to the mountains and some mines. Which I doubted would be inhabited. And I knew for a fact that the mountains had been hit by a megaspell. Going east would lead me to the rest of equestria. But Any information about Canterlot, Manehattan or any other city would be useless right now and take too long to acquire. There was also a stable not to far in that direction, but i wasn't prepared to search for it right now.
So the south and west were my best options.
West would lead to the border with griffin kingdom. They had never directly participated in the war, so they should have been spared from the bulk of the destruction caused by the megaspells. Their mainland at least. But they may blame the ponies for any kind of harm that came to their kingdom. So I might end up being greeted by minefields and hostile border guards if I went their. But I didn't know if any of that was true. So it was still an option. But it could also have been utterly annihilated for all I knew. Which is why I would first head south.

Going south would lead me to the coast. It would be colder, but the ability to fish and use boats alongside an easy access to water would make it easier to survive. And by heading southeast I could reach the city of luxembuck. Southwest would lead to a military base. Seeing as the zebra scum had actually bothered to bomb this remote, empty region, it would safe to assume that they had targeted the military base. And they probably didn't miss like they did with the factory. There was also a second stable in that direction.

The best course of action was to head south then west. So that's what I would do.

I decided to avoid flying so that I could properly analyze my surroundings. And my helmet was off as to appear less threatening. I could only describe my surroundings as cold and snowy. Had it been winter such temperature would have been normal, but it was mid-summer right now. And I knew winter would be worse by a lot. We lost quite a few equidroids due to snow storms and they made construction much harder. The only reason that I knew that there were ponies in this region, was because of the spritebots we sent out to explore. They never made it very far, but they spotted ponies and griffons on more than one occasion. Often before being shot at by said ponies and griffons. That's also how we heard them using the word wasteland to describe equestria.

After a few hours of walking, I was pulled out of my thoughts as my modified EFS showed five hostile life forms approaching. And with modified, I meant that it was inside of my skull.

The five of them were heading into my direction, though they didn't seem to know I was there when looking at their movement speed. I decided I would head towards them. If they were just animals I would leave. But if they were ponies, I would have to talk to them.

It wasn't long before I could see them. Five ponies. They hadn't spotted me yet, so I tried to get a good look at them.
Was that a skull?
One of Them seemed to be wearing a skull on his head. Then they endly spotted me. And rushed towards me. As they got closer, they started slowing down. Probably noticing that i was wearing power armor and at least one head taller than any of them. I could now get a proper look at them. One unicorn and four earth ponies. Two mares and three stallions. They looked quite disturbing and made me feel sick(thank the sister I couldn't actually get sick). Their clothes were torn up and half of it seemed to be made out of hides. Pony hides if the cutie marks covering them were real, a disgusting sight. One of the earth ponies had a pony skull nailed to his helmet. Another had a collar made out of pony bones. They all were covered in dried blood and reeked.
Then they endly reached me. The only one with a gun stopped in front of me while the others proceeded to surround me.

"Well, what do we have here?"
The green unicorn mare on my left spoke up. She was carrying a sledgehammer with her magic. And a massive grin on her face.
The blue stallion in front of me, the only one with a gun and battlesaddle , then shouted.
"Some enclave fuckboy, cunt, Fucker, bi..."
"Locks would pay a lot for a Pegasus."
The shouting stallion was interrupted by the other mare, one of the two ponies behind me. A second ,bulkier stallion on my right then spoke up, a club in his mouth.
"cHow mchuch wchas chit? 9000, 10000 chcaps?"
"NO, no selling , just maiming and killing and rapi.."
"Shcut ccthe FCUCK Up!"
The four of them started screaming and arguing, while the fifth one was simply watching me with disturbing smile stuck on his face. He was also drooling. They were quite clearly insane. It was unfortunate and not a good sign.

"If we sell him then how will we have fun with him?"
"Chacve CHfun anhd tchen schell chim."
"Then he won't FUCKING pay us!"
"We only need to bring him alive, in a descent state, with proof that he is from the enclave. We could rip his wings off and we'd still get paid."
"Anch...."

Their rambling was quite insightful. I learned about some griffon named Lock and what he would do to me. And what they would do to me some of which involved ripping my wings off and shoving them down my throat. And when they talked about how they would shove my guns up my ass, the one who hadn't said a word winked at me. His smile actually became bigger and bigger with each words the others said. well, no need to waste more time listening to their disgusting ideas about "fun".

"Excuse me, is there any way that i can help?"
All five of them turned towards me, as i interrupted them.
"YES, you can go Fu.."
"SHUT UP!"
The gun wielding stallion was swiftly told to shut up by all three other ponies.
"It would be nice if you could pull that armor off, that would make thing much easier and pleasant."
"After hearing all of that, i think that i'll say no."
The unicorn smiled. She also shifted her sledgehammer, ready to strike.
"You know..."
She said with a sickly sweet voice and a smile on her face.
"Well, it would be better if you were alive, but..."

And then she hit me right under the jaw. She had hit me hard enough that her sledgehammer broke in pieces. It only tore through my skin, but did no harm at all. Their smiles disappeared when they noticed i hadn't died or at least wasn't laying on the ground unconscious. Which the unicorn proceeded to do as i hit her in the face and broke her snout. I then uppercutted the pony on my right with so much force the club in his mouth was torn into pieces. Meanwhile i used my tail to hit one of the ponies behind me in the leg and snapping it before hitting the other one in the chest and throwing him on the ground. The only one that remained was the loudmouth with the gun. He looked terrified as he stared as his companions which had been beaten in mere seconds. He had been the most insistent on maiming and torturing me. I flashed him a smile and then knocked half a dozen of his tooth out. I then knocked the one with the broken leg out.

Beating them had been easy, but deciding what to do to them would be harder. They were clearly insane and dangerous. I couldn't simply leave them there. They would wake up and then attack somepony else. And most likely abandon their companion with a broken leg. They didn't seem to be very loyal to each other. Killing them would better for everypony involved. A quick twist of their necks and they would never cause any harm. Cruel, but the best option.

There was also another option. An untested, unreliable option. One that might end horribly if anything went wrong.
I pulled a syringe and a vial out of my saddle bag. There had been a lot of debate about what to do if we ever encountered anypony that might be insane. And after a lot of research and no testing, as nopony turned insane while in the factory(thankfully), our researchers came up with this. A powerful drug that would calm the mind and allow the pony to heal by itself with regular doses. If it didn't kill them. I had taken a few vials with me just in case, but i had hoped that i wouldn't have to use them.

A colder, more logical part of my mind told me to use the unconscious ponies on the ground as first test subjects. It would help in the long run and that made sense. I inserted the syringe into the vial, filled it, grabbed the nearest pony and injected him.

The next few hours had been uneventful. I had put three of the ponies on my back, grabbed the one with the broken leg with my tail and dragged the only one wearing pants, that weren't made out of pony hide, with a hoof. I had thrown their weapons (except for the gun) and pony hide clothes away. They would freeze with so little clothing but luckily, my armor had both an interior and exterior heating system, so i turned myself into a glorified radiator so they wouldn't freeze to death. They also had a few thousand bottlecaps on them. When one of them had talked about being paid in caps, he probably meant that. A strange choice for currency, but there probably weren't any working banks laying around. Before leaving i had tended to their wounds and used one of the healing potions that i had brought with me.

I managed to find an old cottage as nightfall neared. It's roof was gone, but it's wall would give us some shelter. There also were some curtains left, which i used to try and make some extra clothes for my new...
Well if they didn't die because of the untested drug i had injected into them, then they would likely become my companions.
I put them in a pile on the floor and started a few fires around them to keep them warm. And kept watch waiting for them to wake up.

The earth pony mare had been the first one to wake up. At first she had a look of pure hatred when she saw me. It then turned into a look of realization. Then a look of unbridled horror. She then pucked on the ground and then broke down crying.
" What... what have i done?"
As she sobbed i could hear her lamenting and expressing regret.
She calmed Down after a few minimal of wailing.
"What did you do to me? How... I... i feel so..."
I'm trying to... let's say cure you.
"Cure!? You call this a cure!"
She looked like she was about to attack me, but she broke down again. She curled up and sobbed.
That was a good sign. Theoretically that was supposed to happen, depending on what they might have done while insane. And after hearing them talk they had committed done some horrible deeds. I just let the mare cry. I would explain things when she had calmed down.

Over the next two hours the other four ponies waked up. They all reacted similarly(however two of them were unable to talk with a broken snout and jaw). After lots of crying and sobbing for the next few hours they all fell asleep. I had managed to explain that i may be able to turn them back into semi-sane ponies. They looked confused and scared, but seemed to understand. I managed to learn a few things. Very few things, as they were still very confused and scared. One thing was that they were called raiders. And there were a lot of them in the region. Which i could use to my advantage. Slavery was also common. Another thing was that there was an unnatural amount of disgusting zebras roaming around the region. Hundreds at least. Which was very worrying and strange.

I'd made a lot of progress in one day. Learned a lot more than i expected. And i now had guides.

Chapter 2

Yesterday had been busy and quite informative. While i wanted to continue moving during the night, due to my new companions we had to rest and could only start moving again in the early afternoon. After they had woken up and i had checked that they weren't dying we started traveling. I also had to shave the mane of the earth pony mare as it was covered in barbed wire. Now that they were calm and understood what i did to them, i managed to learn more about the region.

First was that going to the coast wasn't a good idea. One part of the coast was controlled by hundreds of "united" slaver gangs. The other part was controlled by some military group of scummy zebra, though no pony knew how they had gotten here so deep in equestrian territory. Going West also wasn't a good idea, as the whole border was controlled by extremely xenophobic griffons. So i would be shot on sight.

The ex-raiders also told me about the closest of the big settlements, New Luxembuck. So we would head there.

We trotted very slowly, as my new companions huddled close to me for warmth and i had to carry one of them on my back, because of his broken leg. After a while they tried to chat. Well, the Blue and the brown stallion couldn't because of their wounds. The first one to speak was the earth pony mare that i was carrying, which had a light blue fur and an even lighter mane.
"Who are you?"
From the looks of it they all wanted to ask that question but clearly didn't dare to. Then the orange stallion, the one who hadn't said a word when we first met, spoke.
"Most ponies wouldn't have let us live. Or be able to do... what you did."
It would be better in the long run to just tell them and not keep to many secrets.

"My name is Somber Dawn. Now we did not have the most pleasant of introductions so maybe after you tell me your names i could start answering any question you might have."
They gave me a perplexed look, as i was most likely acting in a very strange way compared to all of the wasteland inhabitants. The orange stallion was the first one to give me his name.
"I'm Buzzsaw."
Then the green unicorn answered.
"I'm Scourger."
Then the blue mare.
"And i'm Barbed wire."
Scourger then pointed at the blue stallion and then at the bulkier brown stallion.
"That's Cutthroat and Bloodbath."
They then stared at each other and after some nodding, Scourger then spoke up.
"What's an enclave soldier doing all alone here, especially one so young? And why did you even let us live?"
I let out a chuckle, i knew that this was bound to happen. My appearance was very misleading.
"I can see why you would think that but i am much older than what i look and i'm not part of the enclave. And i did consider all of killing you, but decided instead to take a "bet" you could say."
"A bet? What do you mean with that?"
"The drug that i injected you with is untested so who knows what it could have done to you. And if you want to know how it works, you'll have to ask the ponies who made it."
"Why did they even make this drug? And were do you come from if you're not part of the enclave? A stable?"
They still knew about stables. This meant that they were still important if they hadn't been forgotten. It was foolish to hope that they would have forgotten that stables existed after all this time. Let's just hope that they haven't been flooded by raiders or slavers as those stables would be extremely useful.
"No i'm not from a stable. And i won't tell you were i'm from exactly, yet, but i will say that when the balefire bombs fell that the zebras either missed their target or that it wasn't important enough for them to target, which is why i have access to this armor and some other equipment. And for the dr... well it's more of a medicine, but it was made because we expected to find quite a few insane ponies wandering around and i personally don't think that there are any working psychiatric hospitals lying around."
"But why try to heal us and not simply kill us?"
"Because that is not how you build a society."
They stared dumbfounded at what i had said. It looked like they couldn't decide if i was joking or serious.
"Build... are you implying that...?"

I sighed, one of the many fears that we had before when preparing to leave the factory was how any pony would react to our plans. Would they simply think that we're lunatics or would they react with outright hostility. I really hoped for the former.
"I am not implying anything, we will defeat the wasteland and build a new society. Were slavery doesn't exist and the insane get the help that they need."
"And how would you do that? A lot of ponies have tried and none have gotten very far. Do you even have a plan?"
"Yes, i do. We ha... well i have access to a lot of resources but i lack ponypower. Not enough workers or a proper army. I'll first use raiders to start solving both those problems."
"And how are you going to get raiders to wo... oh."
I grabbed Buzzsaw. Accidently dropping Barbed wire of my back. I know had a gleeful smile on my face.
"Exactly. The fact that this worked..."
I pulled a vial out of my saddlebags and showed it to them.
"You have no idea how helpful this will be."
"But... but raiders won't be enough."
The smile on my face grew even more.
"Indeed, but raiders and slaves, freed slaves, might be enough to start. I have resources. I could train the raiders, turn them into real soldiers, give them tanks, artillery and power armor and have them attack the slavers and free the slaves. And also buying slaves and then freeing them would also be a possibility. Turn them into paid workers and soldiers."

I now stood on my to hind legs, wings spread out, making big gestures with my front hooves. My new companions listened both with curiosity and fear.
"And then..."
I folded my wings and put all my hoofs on the ground.
"I'm getting ahead of myself. Let's focus on the shorter term, which would still take years if not decades."
It took a minute for them to regain their composure. They trotted a few steps away(shivering as my armor couldn't heat them at such distance) dragging barbed wire with them as she couldn't walk, then started whispering to each other. After a few minutes they came back huddled close to me for warmth. Scourger then spoke up.
"So you think that you can rebuild Equestria?"
"No, Equestria is long gone. I will build something new using it's ashes as a foundation."
"And how are you going to get ponies to join you?"
She raised an eyebrow as she asked that. I smirked.
"I have access to stockpiles of food and medicine. After enough trade and some necessary shows of force some will willingly join when asked. And for those that don't..."

"They'll join, by force if needed."
My five companions looked nervous and doubtful. They were too close to me to whisper amongst themselves, but the looks that they gave each other were more than enough for them to communicate.
"And as for the slavers, i will give them a chance to join. If they do they will be able to seek redemption. If they don't then their bodies will serve as a warning to others. Now are you with me, if not feel free to leave"
I stared at the five ponies. They were clearly thinking about everything i had said. For they needed to make a choice. They only let a few faint whispers out as they discussed between each other. I did not bother listening to it, as i waited for their answer. If they answered no, then i would leave as i didn't need them slowing me down.

"It's better than being a raider."
"Yeah. we'll take our chances with you."
They clearly didn't like that choice. I tried to put on the warmest smile as i could.
"You made the right choice. You may not like it, but i have told only the truth."
I lifted Barbed wire(i'll just call her wire from now on) on my back, before continuing to trot towards New Luxembuck.

After travelling for a while in silence Wire spoke up
"Before we reach any settlement you need to know that you're going to need to hide your armor if you want to have a chance to ever complete those plans of yours."
"Why?"
"Cause everycreature here hates the enclave with a passion. And you look like you're from the enclave."
"Because the enclave left the rest of ponykind behind? I already know that."
"Not here. Both griffons and ponies hate the enclave. And for a very different reason."
"Please explain."
"Evercreature in the region knows about this story, especially griffons. Just ask any griffon, they'll gladly tell you. But basically when the bombs fell many ponies tried to flee to the griffon lands. They didn't let anypony in at first so ponies made camps at the border in hopes that one day they would allow them in. There was also less radiation there. And after a few years there were talks about letting the refugees in, because the zebras hadn't done anything in years. Then came the enclave who were running out of resources above the clouds. And not only was Equestria covered in radiation but what little remained of the military had become very hostile towards those traitors."
"So they went towards the griffon kingdom for their resources?"
Scourge was the one to answer.
"Yes and pretty much raided every corner of their country. Leaving only ruins. Threatening to burn cities down if the griffons resisted. And sometimes they burned them down even when the griffons surrendered. Some even say that they brought balefire bombs with them."
"Because of all that the griffons dropped any plans to let any pony refuges in. But that wasn't even the worst thing to happen."
They became much sadder, they seemed unable to even think about it. It was easy to guess what had happened.
"The griffons seeked vengeance."
""Not all of them. luckily the first griffons to arrive simply told everypony to leave."
"Too little, too latte. More griffons arrived and started slaughtering anypony in sight."
Their tones were sad and regretful. And i understood why. The enclave had ruined the lives of millions, killed who knows how many and crushed the hopes of tens if not hundreds of thousands of fleeing ponies and doomed their descendants to a live of misery. Buzzsaw then spoke.
"And in a fit of irony griffons are now coming here to escape their warlords and own raiders."

I would have to take my armor off if i didn't want to be shot on sight. Fortunately it had multiple layers and it was made so that some layers and pieces could be taken off and still have a working(albeit weaker) armor, some parts were also thin enoughthat they couldbe hidden under my clothes. After taking parts of it off my grey uniform was visible and only my hooves were visible fully covered in armor. Most of it was now hidden under my clothes except for the neck guard and chest piece. I also kept the tail. Then after this one last stop we continued traveling.
I couldn't stop myself from swearing under my breath as i would now be much more vulnerable and less intimidating.
But if i could find ponies or griffons willing or desperate enough to work for me then it would all be worth it.

We reached New Luxembuck at night fall. It was bigger than i expected. According to my old maps it had been build around a train station and some shops. Before getting too close i quickly flew up took a good look. Leaving my companions in the cold. The train station was surrounded with shabby shacks and old trains were being used as houses, they build a little town using everything available. The whole thing was surrounded by a wall made out damaged train wagons, vehicles and fences. After having a good look i flew back down and joined my shivering companions. We then headed towards the entrance. In two days i had somehow made more progress than in almost two centuries.

I smiled as the next step of my plan was officially set in motion.

Author's Note

To anyone that might be reading this, i hope you like my story.

Any and every piece of criticism is welcome and appreciated.

(This story is supposed to happen around eight or ten years before the events of Kkat's original story. Also i wanted to make another story first, but decided to make this one first as it be shorter, have less characters and be a better learning experience.)

Chapter 4

As I ran, I could hear more and more shouts and gunshots coming from the north wall. Ponies and griffons were running around in every direction, sometimes bumping into each other because of the blinding snow. Some we're hiding, others running away from the wall. However some creatures didn't even look bothered and kept walking around, seemingly more used to whatever was happening.

It didn't take long for me to reach the wall. And I could hear something else besides the shouts and the firing. Shrieks. A cacophony of loud, raspy shrieks. I could see the silhouettes of griffons and ponies alike firing from above the wall. I quickly climbed up a ladder leaning against the wall. I took a look over the wall to see what they were shooting at. A horde of ponies were pressed against the wall, hitting and clawing at it while shrieking. I could only see the closest ones, with most of them hidden by the thick snowstorm.

But the ones that I could see...
Looked dead to put it simply. Their fur mostly gone, their hide rotten and holes all over their bodies. Their jaws unhinged and many of their bones visible. Manes half missing and any armor or clothes they had seemingly melted to them. Others impaled with pipes and rocks. They were mindlessly trying to climb or dig through the wall, tearing through themselves. Some were missing limbs or even had holes in their heads, yet kept clawing at the wall.

The guards were simply firing into the mass of bodies, occasionally throwing a grenade or molotov into the fray. They actually took cover behind the makeshift rampart, which seemed strange seeing as the horde of undead ponies didn't have any kind of ranged weapons. I decided to do the same so I wouldn't look out of place (well anymore than I already did).

I had brought some weapons with me to defend myself from the wasteland. I had a battle saddle, with four hatches on it, each hatch concealing a weapon. I pulled out a machine gun and started firing in bursts. I didn't need to aim with how many and how close to each other the undead ponies were. While I didn't miss, many of them were left unaffected by my bullets due to armor or even debris that had been melted to them. I did get some glances from some ponies and griffons sitting beside me, but quickly focused back on the matter at hand.

The first few minutes went by without a hitch. the bodies kept piling up, being unable to attack us in any way. And we simply tore into them with bullets and explosives.

Then there was a tiny clang just beside my ear. I looked up and saw a grappling hook, hanging off the wall. More were thrown onto the wall. Ponies quickly hurried to cut them or detach them. An earth pony went to cut the one beside me. Then he was suddenly as a hail of bullets was fired from beneath. So those things did have guns. A few ponies and griffons fell dead or wounded with the first burst.

"Cut the rope."
A griffon beside me yelled at me while pointing at the rope. Before being suddenly tackled by a corpse. Dozens of armored corpses quickly climbed on the walls with clubs and pistols.

I quickly bucked another corpse off the wall as It climbed and then shot the one pinning a griffon to the ground. A few bullets bounced off my armor, shot by a rotten unicorn. I pulled a plasma gun out and turned him into a pile of ash with a few shots. Then another one climbed up.

"FOR EQUESTRIA!"
I was taken aback by the fact that he could talk. I quickly filled him with multiple holes as he charged at me with a club. I stared dumbfounded at the corpse. I wondered how he could even speak in the state that he was. Didn't last long as a fourth one appeared with a shotgun. I took the body near me and threw him, causing both to fall off. I could hear him swear as the body hit him. So they weren't the same as those clawing at the walls.

"HELP!"
I turned around and saw a griffon being dragged off the wall. Two ponies were holding his hind legs trying to pull him back.
I quickly rushed over. Some bloated and slightly glowing pony, which looked slightly less rotten than the rest, was dragging the griffon down with him. The griffon was desperately slashing the bloated thing with his claws. I punched it with my left hoof snapping its neck backwards. It fell back limply into the mass of bodies beneath and the griffon was quickly pulled back up. There was no time to see if he was alright or for any kind of thanks as more corpses climbed up.

I took a retractable blade that i had on me and cut the nearest rope alongside the hoof of a corpse climbing it and then caved the head of another unicorn in. My hoof was now covered in rotten and mushy viscera. Another one was trying to pull a rusty blade out of the skull of an unfortunate unicorn. I turned his head into ash with a shot of plasma.

A grenade was thrown upon the wall, but was quickly thrown back by a griffon. More grappling hooks were thrown and more corpses climbed up. Fortunately more guards arrived with heavier weapons.

I ended up killing another three corpses, slashing one with a blade and then shooting the other two. I also threw a fourth one over the wall. But then the wall was cleared and the grappling hooks were thrown off.

Grenade launchers were being shot into the pile of bodies clawing at the wall. After a few more minutes they retreated as the snow storm seemed to calm down. Leaving hundreds of rotten corpses laying against the wall. Dozens of dead ponies and griffons layed on the wall stabbed, shot or even bitten to the dead.

Once the snow storm was over they proceeded to pile up the bodies and burn them.

A few minutes after I had left, I was stopped by a griffon. The same griffon that I had helped. He was missing fur and had holes in his clothes where the corpse had grabbed him.
"Hey, I just wanted to thank you for ,you know, saving me. if there is any way to repay you just tell me."
This was an opportunity to ask about what had just happened.
"Anybody would have done the same. While i don't need any kind of payment, i would like to know about what just happened?"
The griffon took a sour look at my first sentence, but quickly shook it off and took a more thoughtful look.
"Sometimes they just attack us during snowstorms. there's a lot of ghouls in the city and towns and they've got access to old railways and weather stations, the smart ones that is."
Ghouls, so that's what they're called. Pretty sure I heard that word while the alarm bells were ringing.
"Why?"
"Nobody knows. Most think that the semi-feral ghouls think that we’re zebras. Some believe rumors about some mastermind named Foul Play, but there's never been proof of that."
That was useful. I would ask more about ghouls to my companions. I thanked him and turned to leave.

"Wait."
The griffon sounded desperate. I turned around, again. He looked very nervous.
"Ho...how long are you going to stay here?"
I raised an eyebrow at the question.
"A few days then i'll leave. Why do you ask?"
"Can i come with you?"
He looked at me pleadingly. Almost on his knees.
"Again, why?"
"What you said, that anybody would have done the same, that's not true. While ponies might have helped me, any other griffon would have left me to die."

He sighed and continued talking before I could ask anything.
"I gave one of the bigshots here the wrong signals. I really didn't mean to, but when I rejected her, she felt manipulated and very pissed. So things have been getting worse and I've been trying to find a way out."
He looked sincere and I would like an extra companion. But this was very sudden.
"Ok, but why me? And what make you think that i wouldn't simply stay here?"
"I assumed and hoped. There are only two pegasuses here, so it was obvious that you were new here. And when you appeared and saved me, I just felt that I had to take that chance. There are other ponies I could go with, even if only to travel to another settlement, but I would like to be with someone that can fly. You, birds of a feather flock together."
He had a pleading smile on his face and clearly looked desperate. His hands were together and he was very close to kneeling. But maybe he was hoping that new and young looking pony would accept so he could then rob him or worse.

"I already have travelling companions, i wouldn't mind more, but you need to know that none of them can fly."
"I don't mind at all. If only one of you can fly, that's already good to me."
Well, i couldn't refuse the extra member, could i? I would give him a chance.
"I'm still staying for a while, so I'll think about it. I'm currently staying at the train station."
He nodded, looking slightly happier.
"I completely understand, you don't fully trust me, but I'll prove myself."
We then departed from each other. Today had been another informative day.

On the way back to the clothes shop I managed to find and buy a map. A very simplistic map that looked like it had been drawn by a child.

Chapter 3

While we had reached the settlement, we couldn't simply enter it. Not without a good cover story. Any competent guard would likely ask a lot of questions and it would be stupid to just tell them what I intended to do. And telling them that my new companions used to be raiders not one day ago, would be utterly moronic. Hiding their cutie marks was easy enough, but they still had many visible scars and their were clothes tattered and torn. But there wasn't much that could be done about that. After some discussion we agreed on a story to use, but they clearly didn't like it. I also needed to take proper facial expressions, as keeping my stoic expression wouldn't help.

As we got closer I could see dozens of armed ponies and gryphons guarding the entrance. Even more spread on their makeshift wall. They gave us dirty and distrusting looks, guns pointed toward us, especially at me. The ex-raiders accompanying me looked more and more nervous and scared as we got closer. I couldn't deny that I also felt nervous. One of the guards, an unicorn, came to greet us as we reached the wall.

The young unicorn guard stared us down and held a shotgun ready with his magic. The other guards pointed their guns at us ready to fire. Most however seemed to point them at me. I spoke up and hoped for the best.
"Hello. Would it be possible to enter? We need somewhere to sleep and buy supplies."
The unicorn raised an eyebrow. His gun was pointed at me. His eyes going all over me, before speaking.
"I need to ask you a few things first. Then maybe you can come in."
"Understandable, I'll try to answer as best as I can."
"First who are you?"
After a quick introducing each other and why explaining why I was carrying wire on my back and why Cutthroat and Bloodbath( we decided to call him Newblood instead, as his name was the most "raidery") couldn't talk. The guard raised another eyebrow at hearing my companions names. He was also clearly looking at my new companions torn clothing. He pointed at them and asked.
"How are you not freezing. You're almost naked."
I lifted my one of my hooves and put it closer to him. He first backed away, but then noticed the heat emanating from it.
"Huh, that's useful. But why are you clothed like that? And you don't look like you belong together, so how did you meet?"
He pointed at me and then at my companions as he said that last part. Scourger answered.
"We got attacked by...by..."
We had agreed on a story to explain our situation. They didn't like what we had picked, but agreed to it.
"..raiders. They took us by surprise, caught us and were about to... rape and eat us and all that raider stuff you know."
The guard nodded. He had a look of empathy on his face, but didn't change.

"They were tearing our clothes of and cutting us with their knives. But luckily he was close by..."
She pointed at me, as she said that.
"And he sneaked on the raiders while they were distracted. He saved our lives."
Scourger and the other ex-raiders clearly looked unhappy with the lie, but the guard didn't notice.
"That's fortunate. But where do you come from?"
He points his hoof accusingly towards me.
"You're a pegasus and you're way too clean looking. And that armor. You better explain that."
His face twisted in anger and he pointed his shotgun at my face. This made me nervous, though I hid it well. I wanted to avoid any altercation, as that would ruin everything and we weren't in a position to fight.
"I understand your suspicions. Its not the first time that I've been mistaken as part of the enclave and I know that you hate them. But I can assure you that I and my father were both born on the surface and that he found this armor in an old factory. I also pride myself in taking care of myself."
I found it smarter to use a dead parental figure than to lie to him that I found it. Gives me plausible deniability and allows me to feign more ignorance. I also made sure to change my facial expression as I spoke, to ad more believability.
"And where did he find it? And where is your father?"
"Near Stalliongrad, outside the city. And he died a few years ago."
He still looked doubtful, but less hostile.
"I'm sorry for your loss, but you lived near Stalliongrad?"
"Well not really near it, but it was the closest city. We lived in an old building not too far away."
The guard lowers his gun. Clearly debating with himself if he believes me or not. While any hostility seemingly disappeared, he still doubtfully eyed me.
"Alright, I'll give you the benefit of the doubt. for now."
He then continued asking us questions.

The interrogation continued for a while. The guard asked my companions things like where they came form. They didn't have to lie that much, they just omitted that they used to be raiders, which made everything more believable. He also asked me if I wasn't related to the enclave some twenty more times. After all of them he seemed to finally believe that I wasn't part or related to the enclave. He however didn't even bother asking why we came here. Which I found strange but didn't question. He repeated many of his questions, which made the already long and tedious interrogation worse. After an hour or so, he seemed to be satisfied and trotted back towards the rest of the guards. All of which had been watching us all the time. He went towards one important looking and heavily armed purple mare. They started talking with each other. The unicorn guard was likely telling everything he had learned from questioning us to the mare.

After a few minutes the unicorn came back.
"Follow me."
We followed him. When we reached the gate we were stopped by the purple mare. She took a long at us. She and all the other guards kept us under their gaze. The purple mare then shoved a hoof on my chest.
"You can come in. But you better behave. One wrong step and you'll regret it. Especially you flyboy."
My companions nodded fearfully. So did I. I actually felt threatened by her impressive frame and sizable gun.
"We've done so much to keep this place working and safe, so no trouble makers will be allowed. "
"I understand. We're just here to rest and get..."
I pointed at my half clothed companions.
"some clothes."
"Yeah, yeah. Just behave or I'll tear those wings of your back."
After some more nasty looks they allowed us to enter. But first I had to ask something first.
"Is there anywhere that we can sleep? Against a fair price."
The mare simply snorted and even looked insulted. A griffon guard was kind enough to answer.
"Just go to the train station. Most people sleep there."
"Thank you."
We entered the settlement. The train station was the biggest and most visible building in the whole place, so we knew where to go.

On the way towards the station, we saw some ponies and griffons wandering around. Most huddled close around fires. Most inhabitants were wearing thick, albeit dirty, clothes on. Some also had discolored scarfs and torn beanies. Most ignored us and only a few gave us dirty looks. But they seemed more preoccupied with keeping the fires on and repairing any of the disheveled buildings. It clear that while they had survived, there was a clear lack of food and medication. Many looked like they were starving and sick. And while most seemed to have thick jackets and other clothes, they usually had a few holes in them. In this area the buildings were simple shacks made out of half rotten wood and some cloth. The only real building was an old damaged rest stop. The words "Gun shop" were painted on it in blue paint. It also had metal bars covering it's windows and door. I would have to have a look at it once it opened. Another odd thing were the bells. multiple buildings had big rusted bells on their roofs with guard besides them. A potential alarm or warning system?

It wasn't a long walk to reach the train station. There were arrows painted on it that pointed towards the entrance. Most windows and doors had been closed down and barricaded. Only one of the back entrances was open. It looked similar to the entrance to the settlement. Guards and fires around the entrance. They ignored us as we entered, too busy chatting amongst each other.

The first thing we saw was a makeshift lobby. A male griffon was sitting on a chair with multiple books laying on an old table.
"Hello, how can I help you?"
The griffon stood up and spoke quite jovially with an honest smile on his face.
"I was told we could find a place to rest here."
"Indeed. You can either rent a private room or sleep in the hallways and floors for free. We put a lot of carpets especially for that."
"On the floors?"
"We don't have enough rooms and buildings for everyone and this place has the most cover against the cold. So we try to shove as many creatures in it. But we keep a few rooms to rent, usually closets and old break rooms, to make money from travelers."
"Makes sense. How much for a room?"
"100 caps a night."
I looked at my companions having little knowledge about the wasteland economies. Buzzsaw answered.
"It's as fair of a price as it gets."
"Alright. We'll have one room, for tonight."
"I just need you to put your name in here."
He opens a big book and puts it on a makeshift desk.
"We like to have everything properly organized. And you need to pay in advance."
I pulled out the caps out of one of my bags and handed them to him and then wrote my name and the name of my companions, as I learned that three of them didn't know how to write. I was then handed a key with a big 17 written on it.
"Your room is on the first floors. We've painted arrows everywhere to tell you were to find your room. Also don't break anything, we'll charge you for that."
"thank you, we'll make sure to be careful."
"Have a good night and rest well."
The surprisingly happy griffon waved at us as we left.

We moved through the station silently, as every hallway was filled with ponies and griffons sleeping in piles close to fires. the floor was pretty comfortable covered in thick, albeit dirty carpets. there a few guards patrolling around. Some other creatures still lay awake whispering or eating near some of the bigger fires. A lot of care had obviously been put into keeping this place comfortable and warm. Some holes in the walls and roofs had been closed with nails, wood and cloth to keep the cold out. The old shops contained more sleeping creatures. While a few seemed to be distributing soup. It was a sad sight.

While searching for our room I couldn't help but think about the past, when the war hadn't yet started ,when this station was filled with griffon tourists and travelling ponies, instead of starving and freezing wastelanders. And even when the war had started ponies still traveled. I, well my old self more exactly used to take trains here. It was a better time. Maybe something similar could one day be created. I would try and hope that I succeeded.

I was taken out of my thoughts, as a hoof shooked my left shoulder. Looking to my left, I could see Buzzsaw pointing towards an old rusted door. The door had an 17 painted on it. I shoved the hey inside the lock and opened the door, though it took some effort. There was no light inside so I used a flashlight, one of the many features of my armor. From the looks of it, it used to be a break room for employees. The ground was covered in the same carpet as the rest of the building and there was a pile of blankets lying in one corner. A barrel lay in the middle of the room, with wood inside it, likely to make a fire. I entered the room and proceeded to drop wire on the pile of blankets before closing the door. While my companions shared the blankets amongst themselves, I was busy carefully lighting a fire. Once it was lit, we layed around it.

They stared at me with a certain awkwardness that I had gotten used to it. Then Wire which had been the most talkative of the bunch, spoke up.
"So what are we going to do tomorrow?"
"First, I'll go out and buy some the clothes for all of you. Then using you as guide, I'll try and find anycreature desperate or willing enough to work for me."
They nodded. Buzzsaw then spoke up.
"We've never been here, so we can't really guide you around."
"With guides I meant that you could tell me about any customs that they may have or tell me more about the wasteland and anycreature living in it. I want to avoid making mistakes or say anything wrong."
"Oh, that makes more sense. So we can just go sleep now?"
"Not yet, first..."
I pulled out a vial out my saddlebags. The same that I had injected with, after having knocked them out.
"you're going to need regular doses, around once each two a three days."
"For how long are we going to need to take those drugs, before being fully healed."
Scourge seemed to ask that with genuine curiosity.
"A few years, it's not a miracle drug but it's better than nothing."
"True. I never expected to be given a chance to become normal."
"None of us did."
They all nodded in agreement. I then proceeded to inject them all with another dose. After that they all went to sleep. I stood awake, taking care of the fire.

It however wasn't an calm night. It was clear that they were all having nightmares. They couldn't stand still and kept shifting around in their sleep. They even mumbled some words from time to time. Usually in a regretful and fearful tone. Meanwhile I was stuck in my own thoughts. This place, this station, the trains themselves brought so many memories back. The world I once knew had gone to shit. Everypony I knew was dead and I was stuck inside a... a copy of my old self. No, not even that. My soul was stuck somewhere else. Both the body and mind here were but a puppet. As I my thoughts became more and more depressing, I was suddenly kicked out of my existential crisis. As I came back to my senses I saw that in their night terrors, somepony had hit me with their hind hoof. Cutthroat I think. It was a welcome distraction. After making sure the fire was still lit, I put myself comfortably and waited for the night to end.

I left the second my companions woke up to go and explore. I had left the key and the old rifle behind alongside most of my supplies. The hallways were more lively at day than at night. I was however greeted by judging and distrustful stares. I doubted that any of them would kindly answer any of my questions. Which meant that I would have find any shops on my own.

Fortunately it only took around half an hour to find a clothes shop. It was an old warehouse situated near the center of the settlement. It also had the word clothes painted on it just like the gun shop. As I entered I was greeted by a golden earth pony. He sat behind a makeshift counter with a door behind him, probably leading to a storage area. He didn't look distrustful but he still raised an eyebrow at my sight. The shop itself was filled with racks of clothes.
"I'm Garment ,how can I help you?"
"It's to buy some clothes against the cold."
The earth pony smiled.
"Well, you came to the right place. But you look already pretty well clothed."
"Thank you I'm quite prideful of my appearance, but I need clothes for my companions."
The earth pony pulled a big book out from the counter. He opened it.
"I just need their measurements, then we can pick something for them. We got a pretty big catalogue."
He pointed at the book with a smug look on his face.
"Just have a look."

I started reading through the fairly thick book. I kept being surprised by how well organized this settlement was. The book contained pictures and ruff sketches of pieces of clothing. The first pages contained illustrations of simple jackets and some light barding. further in the book there were pictures of military uniforms. The last pages contained full bodysuits and makeshift hazmat gear.
"Thank you, I'm quite prideful of my appearance, but I need clothes for my companions."
"Color wise we have grey and white, grey and black, white and lastly grey. Some hazmat suits are yellow but that's all."
The effort but in this was admirable. I was expecting them to sell only one or two different pieces of clothing. Yet they had a whole catalogue, literally. I ended up picking some old modified equestrian military uniforms. They had been given a lot of extra padding against the cold. I put my hoof on a picture of them.
"I'd like to..."

There was a sudden howl of the wind. The shopkeeper looked at the door. I turned around. It had started snowing. At first a weak small snowfall, which turned into a massive deluge of snow. You could barely see anything outside.
"Damn snowstorm, last one was only four days ago."
"Indeed, it's already hard to survive day to day, but these fucking things make everything worse."
We went back to talking about clothes. I told him which clothes I wanted. after carefully explaining my companions measurements, which I had taken before leaving, he called someone in the back. An other earth pony came in through the door behind the counter. After a short chat the earth pony went back through the door with an uniform. Which the shopkeeper took and then proceeded to intricately show off. Which only convinced me more.

"So, how much?"
"39 caps a piece."
"I'm no economist or trader, but that feels like it's a very low price."
"Indeed. You see thick warm insulated clothes are very important here. So everycreature here decided that it would be best to give our clothing "industry" a lot of funding. Up until this day we get all the available material for free. And the leaders of these place have created the bureau of necessities, which gives us caps to buy anything we need."
He smiled and pointed at all of the clothes that were strewn around. I handed him the caps and he shoved five uniforms inside a bag before hoofing it to me.
"Anything else that I can help with?"
"Do you sell beanies or scarfs?"
"[color=#F9A602No, but just in fro..."

The sound of bells could suddenly be heard over the snowstorm. Which was then followed by shouts. I could see faint silhouettes running around. I could hear the word "ghoul" being shouted. The shopkeeper and the other pony from the back ran past me in a hurry, carrying guns. I followed them out and saw their silhouettes running towards the wall alongside many others. Guards seemed to rush toward the wall, while many ponies and griffons took shelter inside buildings.

I followed the guards toward the wall as the sound of gunshots and screams became louder. The loud beating of hundreds of hooves became audible above the snowstorm.

Footnote:
Sanity: 78%
Perk: More machine than pony: -20% base sanity. Sanity grows and decays 50% slower. Becoming insane is harder, but regaining sanity becomes just as hard. Health Multiplied by a factor of 13, +30% base armor and massive pain tolerance. Massive health regeneration.
First sight of the wasteland: -2% base sanity.