Fallout Equestria: A Wastelander Tale

Fallout Equestria: A Wastelander Tale, Chapter Eighty

_______________________________________________________

Once the war council had planned everything through, and signed their orders, things moved quickly. Militia members were given their guns and sent out hunting. Applejack Rangers suited up and marched out. The Talons took to the air, vanishing off into the distance.

I was checking all my gear for the fifth time, my nerves on end.

"That old gun didn't unload itself, just feel how heavy it is, concentrate." Lucky Shot told me.

"You can't be serious?" I said balked at her.

She chuckled. "Trust me, if you practice enough you can tell. It'll save ya from drawing an empty gun if you know if it's loaded or not from how heavy it is."

She then trotted up to me, placing a hoof on my shoulder. "Just breathe, everything is going to be alright so long as you don't lose your head. I've been there, I know what your feeling."

"You mean the uncertainty of jumping into a mad stallions deathtrap of a base filled with mind controlling guns?" I asked her with an eyebrow cocked.

"One, unfair, and two, stop being a bitch." My grandmother said with a smirk. "Lottery, the Equestria wasteland is so full of forgotten magical brahman shit that nopony should be surprised by any of this. Fuck, it ain't my first tago with a mezmetron. Was lucky the fucker didn't stick a bomb collar on me, but I did have to suck his cock to get my shit back. Then beat the shit out of him when he let his guard down."

"You fucking with me now?" I said, not believing.

"Maybe I am, maybe I'm not." She answered smiling.

"She's not lying about dealing with a stallion with a mezmetron." Rattlebones said as he trotted in. "A fucked up mess that was to be sure. Though only Lucky here knows what actually happend between him and her. We got around a lot way back when, saw a lot of things, and survived some nasty shit. Well not all of us. Poor Blue Grass."

Lucky let out an angry forceful huff. "Fuck that ghoul and fuck that place!"

"I'm sorry for your loss." I said.

"Thanks, but don't." Rattlebones said as he passed me a box. "We're used to death. Lucky and I don't fear it at all. But Blue Grass was not granted the peace of death, no, far from it. He is likely still suffering even now, and not a damn thing we can do about it. Not yet anyways."

Lucky raised an eyebrow. "Your not going back there are you?"

"What, were?" I asked.

The old stallion sighed. "Best I not go into details about it, but there's a place that even how still surrounded by an unending radioactive storm, the Molly Manticore Mega Mall. A place filled with untouched tech that would make anypony wealthy beyond their dreams."

"And murder robots that shove ponies into them, useing their parts to make more murder robots!" Lucky snarled.

Rattlebones nodded. "I've seen a few other Molly Manticore places, and they're all the same with their robot mascots. But the mega mall is a beast on a different level. Just as evil, but far, far bigger."

"Rattle, Blue Grass and I had to run in there to save a bunch of foals lost inside. But in the end Blue Grass sacrifice himself to save all of us. Last we saw of him was shoved inside some deformed long necked deer-like thing." Lucky explained. "So ya, we've seen some messed up shit."

Just thinking about that sent a shiver up my spine. "Okay, I get it, I'm not special."

"Nether is Tripwire. But unlike him, you are loved, and you are helping to make Equestria better." Rattlebones told me, lowering his staff to tap on my gauntlets. "Another thing, you earned the right to be considered special. Not by birth or by luck, but by your own actions. So stop cutting yourself short, okay."

Lucky then lightly jabbed me on the shoulder. "Anyways, we old ponies already had our own adventures, so chin up and get back to your own. And also don't fucking die on me, I want to see my grate grandchildren."

"Don't plan to." I said, then eyed Rattlebones. "And are you going back to that place, the mega mall?"

He chuckled. "Oh yes. Had a vision of it not long ago. But don't worry, there will be allies there with me, though an odd bunch they seem to be. There was a wild mare whose eyes invoked fear, a regal mare in which magic danced around her, and a lost stallion who seemed to be able to move from the past and present. I think there were some others, but those three were more important."

"And you sure you wont need any more help then that, I-" as I offered to help, Rattlebones cut me off.

"It's fine. You don't need to offer your help. Anyways, the radiation storm isn't due to lighten up around it for the next eleven to twelve years. I'm sure you will have bigger responsibilities to attend to at that time." He told me before tapping on the box he gave me. "As for now, I was able to get something that may be of help for you."

Opining it, there was a glass bottle inside.

"It battle brew… well a kind of battle brew." Rattlebones explained. "Unlike the harsh chems of a traditional battle brew, this one is made from less side effects heavy herbs and other safer ingredients. It wont be as much of a burst of power, but it'll last longer, and not leave you feeling week when it ends." He then winked at me. "Also it tastes much better then that other stuff."

I placed the bottle into an inside pocket of my duster. "Thanks, this should help."

I no longer felt nervous, well not completely nervous, so I took a deep breath and got up. "Alright, time to go!"

Lucky the reached over, and with skilled hooved, placed several new cards in my hat. "I think this card hoof suits you better then the royal flush you mother fancied."

Taking off the hat, I saw a pare of black Aces and a pair of black eights. "Whys that?"

"It's the dead ponies hoof. From the ancient legends, it was the cards the legendary gunslinger Wild Hickory had before his death, and from then on it became an omen of death." She explained.

Rattlebones let out a whistle. "Going for the deep lore there Lucky. That story is over three hundred years old."

"Fuck you, We bandit are just as keen on remembering our history as you tribles are. Not only that, were pre-wasteland, unlike you." Luck said with a playful snarl, then turned her attention back to me as she adjusted the collar of my dress. "It sounds ominous and bad luck to have, but trust me, for ponies like us, it shows that were serous. As the legend goose, old Wild Hickory normally sat in a spot in which he could see everything, but one day that seat was taken, and strangely he didn't fight for it. Well a bastards saw that he back was open, and took the opportunity to cowardly shoot him in the back. Well, almost everypony took offence to that, and even Celestia appeared to capture the bastard and deal justice. Because of that, black Aces and Eights are considered a warning to the cowardice and the vile. Ponies will come for you if you cross a line that must not be crossed."

I smiled as I put the hat back on. "Then I'll live up to that legend."

"You better. Because I don't want to be dragging you out of no fire. I'm getting too old for that shit." She said with a wink.

_______________________________________________________

The room where I'd be setting off had little fanfare, just several of my friends and a few extra things on a table.

Silver Bristle Brush and Plasma trotted over, giving me a quick hug.

"I wish we could just bomb that place, and not risk any more lives." Plasma said.

"Same here." I replied.

"You sure you have to go, one of the Talons would be able to do the fighting just as well?" Silver pleaded.

"Fighting yes, but not tracking him down. Anyways, I want to be there when it's finally over." I answered.

The two gave me one more hug before giving me some space.

Trotting over to the table, I saw an anti-magic pulse bomb, along with the glasses, and Grizzly's pistol. I pointed at the gun, a bit confused. "Why's the Celestia gun here?"

"To make a point." Grizzly said. "I'm lending it to Spell, just to remind Tripwire that I was here, helping in his downfall for a second time."

"That's… rather cold of you." I said, having some understanding of wanting to do such a thing.

"Well like Uncle Rattlebones has been saying, magic and symbolism are strongly tied together." Grizzly said as she then passed me a pouch that was warm to the touch. "And this is for you, it's… a good luck charm."

"What's in the bag?" I asked.

"A pear and apple seed." She told me. "Supposably it holds the regrets of a patriarch to the pear family, or at least what Rattlebones told me. Don't know why there's an apple seed in the bag, but the bag has always comforted me at my lowest point. I can only guess that whoever that stallion was, he also once made a decision that he grew to deeply regret, just like I have."

Placing the bag into my pocket, It didn't feel right taking it, but I knew Grizzly was not going to just let me give it back. "Are you sure?"

"Very. You need all the luck you can get, and I know that bag will come back to me until I pass it onto Wiretap. So you better come back alive and in one piece, you got that." She told me.

I patted where the seed bag was. "I plan to. So I'm guessing everypony not here is off fighting then."

"Very much so." Grizzly said sternly. "We need to end this soon, and there is no telling how many mezmetron's are out there among Tripwire's scattered forces. They have yet to flee, so this is our last chance to kill off as many of them before they vanish off into the wasteland."

"We already know that a small, but sizable group had already gone into hiding." Majestic said as she trotted over. "Bandsaw was playing the proverbial safe bet you can say, and divided her personal forces in case things went bad. From what I can remember, she did give them two of the incomplete mezmetrons and planned on sending more out. Your raid on the center caught her completely off guard, so only the two are beyond our hooves."

I gritted my teeth at that raider's name. "Any way we can root them out?"

Grizzly shook her head. "They likely left the region and have already gotten word that the Bailfire Fiends are no more. In all likelihood they will move further on and start a new raider band, using the power of the Mezmetron. That or kill each other over it."

"I hope for the latter." Majestic said with a very serious look on her face. "But so long as we make sure no more of those vile devices leave this region. I call it a win."

"Here here!" Grizzly and I quietly cheered.

The door opened and Spell Circuit trotted in with Life Bloom right beside him. Oddly, Life Bloom had a glint in his eye as he looked at Spell Circuit that reminded me of some of the stallions that Low Pressure dated. It wasn't my business who was attracted to who, but I was a bit curious. Still, after how I had been with Plasma, the last thing I wanted to do was play matchmaker again.

"So what you're saying is that the reason why the radiation storms have not dissipated in intensity has to do with them being manifested by all of our negative emotions?" Life Bloom asked with a hint of excitement.

"It's similar to the storms on the cursed mountain, or at least that's what I've observed there and compared with the old records in the manor. I'm not surprised that nopony has been able to make the connections, as the radiation storms seem to be wild and unpredictable, where the storms there are anchored in place by malicious entities. Once you can see it on a smaller scale, the puzzle pieces start to come together." Spell prattled on with his smart magical stuff as he trotted over to us.

Once they came to a stop, the two unicorns wrapped up their conversation, and turned to us. "Right, so I guess everything is ready?"

Spell was in his usually tweed suit, with a patched up overcoat, giving him an air of sophistication that made me feel a bit dumber.

Grizzly tossed her gun over to him. "Take this with you, I'm sure you understand why."

"Yes, I can surmise why you want me to use your gun on my brother." Spell said, then eyed the bomb. "I'm sure that's only going to buy us a few minutes at best, known my brother and all."

"Then use that time wisely, okay." Plasma said as she did one more check on the bomb, then pulled her rifle from under the table, tossing too at Spell. "Take this too, I added a few more modifications to it."

The double barrel IF-64 now had some kind of beam pointy thing, a small scope, and two suppressors.

Letting out a sigh, Spell attached the sheathed rifle to his saddle bag. "Better to have it and not need it, then to need it and not have it."

I was still disappointed that Plasma and Spell were not a thing, since the two nerds were rather cute with how they acted together.

I picked up one of the glasses and put it on. Though everything was now tinted, everypony now had a light blue outline to them. "The fuck?" I said as I realized that I could see the outline through my missing eye.

"What's wrong!?" Spell worriedly asked.

Closing my one eye, I waved my hoof over my face, the gauntlet glowing even brighter through the darkness. "Um… I can see magic through both my eyes with these things. As in the eye that's not there."

I could see Spell look over at Plasma, who then shrugged.

"Actually I can explain this." Life Bloom spoke up. "The spell in those glasses doesn't modify your vision, but actually sends the sensory to your brain. From what was written about counter changeling magic at the tower, just enchanting one's vision was not enough to break through their magic. It's likely why they cancel out the mezmetron spell."

"Neat. So if I lose my other eye, can I keep these?" I then asked,

"You better not lose that eye, Lottery!" Grizzly said with a hint of anger.

I lifted my hooves up defensively. "Hay now, I don't want to lose it either, just trying to, well you know… lighten the mood."

Letting out a sigh, and a look that reminded me a lot of my mother when she was annoyed with me, Grizzly then told me. "I get it, Lottery, I really do. It's just that your humor is both bad in timing and subject. I rather not worry about you returning maimed again. We got lucky with your legs, but not so much with your eye."

She was right, my sense of humor had been real fucked for a wile now. "Then how about once I get back, you get me some help with my humor. See if it can be fixed."

"Actually I know of this old ghoul who was from Lost Pegasus. Funny as fuck, if a bit on the crude side. I'm sure he would love to return now that things are settling down here, and of course with a sizable payment to his booze fund." Grizzly said with a wink. "Now get going, and get back here in one piece."

"I plan to." I said back as I trotted over to, Spell Circuit.

He was already given the anti-magic pulse bomb, its safety placed inside a case and in his saddlebag.

"Alright, try and use it only when necessary, okay." Plasma instructed. "As the old Steel Ranger saying gose, the element of surprise can turn a certain loss into an overwhelming victory."

"I'm well aware of the zebra art of war, it's a rather famous book written when Celestia was young." Spell said with a smile.

But Plasma tilted her head. "Zebra? I was talking about Ranger strategies and tactics."

Spell then face hoofed. "Right, the Ministry of Images centered that book, or at least tried too. But I understand. The bombs our trump card. I'll make sure to use it when it's the most effective."

Plasma then backed away as Majestic trotted over. "Are you two ready?"

Spell put on his glasses. "Hard to say. More than I'll ever be, but less than I wish I was."

"Better said than what I was going to say." I replied. My friend then looked at me curiously, and I shrugged. "Let's just say I was going to make a sex joke, and get to the fighting and screaming, okay."

Majestic then sighed. "Over two hundred years, and the feeling of nervousness before a show never changes. Maybe once this is over, I'll go find my old cart and start my traveling performance again."

I raised an eyebrow at that. "But you can perform real magic, why do tricks?"

A chuckle escaped Majestics muzzle. "Why? Because it's fun to perform magic without casting spells. Makes the audience ask, How'd she do that? Then they just knowing that I cast a spell and a thing happened." Her wings then open up and over us. "Actually I was very well known for teleporting myself without ever casting magic, from one box to another. It was a favorite trick among the foals. But today, I'll perform a cheap spell taken from a pony that never understood the importance of… PRESENTATION!

_______________________________________________________

"Presentation?" I asked, then shivered as I felt so very cold. "What in fucking Tartarus?"

I saw my own breath as I cursed, then looked around, finding myself in a library covered in frost.

Majestic flicked her wings, sending glittering snow into the air. "I would love to explain, but this place is too dangerous for me to say even a second longer."

With that she vanished with a flash, leaving Spell Circuit and I in what I now realized was the library of Naysayer Manor.

"Brother, why?" Spell asked as he trotted to a smashed window. He then lifted a book with his magic, but it crumbled to dust. "The magic protecting this place, all of it, has been broken?"

"Along with the windows." I said as I got my IF-64 ready.

"No, he didn't do that, look." He then used his magic to move some of the snow and frost revealing broken glass, but it was all on the inside of the library.

That… that was not a good sign.

Spell then trotted to a nearby bookcase on the wall, all the books removed. Painted on the now bear and frost covered wall was a circle with a five pointed star along with symbols I didn't bother trying to understand. "He actually invited the evil of the mountain inside. What madness."

I put my IF-64 away and drew out Rime Frost. "So, Tripwire went insane then."

Spell shook his head. "Actually this might be the smartest move if he knew we were coming. I doubt any pony in the militia is ready to fight true undead. He's probably consolidated his forces in a better defended spot, and let the curse be a buffer between us and him."

"Well that fucked!" I huffed out a curse, blowing the dead streak in my mane. Though it was bright pink now, I knew at the roots it was still stark white from the last time I was here. "Last thing I wanted to deal with was those things again."

"Agreed. Though it's concerning that he has learned of this magic, meaning he hasn't been focusing on the mezmetron as much as we thought. Did something happen to change the scope of his research?" Spell then shook his head. "No time to ponder, we can find out once we find him, so let's get moving before the undead come to us." Spell said as he levitated Plasma's dubble barreled IF-64.

"Alright, then it's Will-o-Wisps turn. Can you take us to Tripwire, help us end this." I asked and the warm blue flame appeared, dancing around before floating out of the library.

"I wish I had more time to study that phenomenon." Spell said as he followed, books crumbling around him with each step.

"I have a feeling that it's best to leave her a mystery." I said, following him.

Spell stopped for a moment. "Somehow… I agree. Not everything needs to be explained, though it would be nice to understand it more." He then levitated a book over to him, but it was but dust before he could even read the cover. "So much loss, yet I feel nothing."

I pushed him along. "Maybe it's because you have something more important then books now."

He got moving, a serious look in his eye. "Ya, two things. Two things worth more to me than all the books in the world."

Leaving the library, we entered a cold frost covered hallway. The once beautiful wallpaper was torn up, and more of the magic symbols were carved into the rotting wood like mad rambling. Among the symbols were crude drawings of ponies performing rituals and sacrifices all while a large yellow painted eye looked down on them. It chilled me more than the cold.

Even Spell looked disturbed as we passed the writings, his eyes darting back and forth.

We trotted along, following Will-o-Wisp, and as our hooves crunched on the frost covered floor, we came to the greenhouse. Or what was once a greenhouse. The skeletal framework of the greenhouse still stood, with not a pain of glass left un-smashed, with ice covering everything, forming what looked like a frozen cage. Piles of snow covered the ground, forming a mound and covering the likely now dead plants.

Seeing the mounds of snow, I was filled with a primal sense of dread.

"Give me a moment Lottery, I need to recover something." Spell said as he trotted into the dead frozen garden.

"Not the time Spell!" I hissed.

Using his magic, he blasted away the snow, revealing a crate with a rather sizable lock on it. The lock was quickly removed by Spell, who then pulled out from the crate a rather ancient looking wooden box. "Thank Celestia, it's safe."

A rusty sickle then embedded itself in the crate next to Spell, and from the mounds of snow rose a pony. Their eyes were vancent and white, lips blue and cracks. And if that wasn't enough, the fact that this pony had a gaping hole in their side with their frozen organs for all to see, this pony was clearly undead.

Another zombie popped out of the snow, this one wielding a scythe, and a third with a wood chopping axe.

As Spell quickly returned to me, I took aim and fired at the first. The side of its head scattered, causing it to wobble, but not fall. It then glared at me with its one remaining milky white eye as its brain sloshed out of its head. The zombie let out an unnatural roar, which I felt down to my soul.

"Oh this is so much worse than ghouls!" I said as I fired another shot, decapitating the zombie, but it still didn't go down, and the headless corps took a step towards us.

The other two joined it, slowly trotting towards us with weapons raised, so we ran.

As we galloped away, all the door's slammed open, and the sound of hooves and rusty metal being dragged on the old wooden floor could be heard everywhere.

A zombie with a pitchfork rushed out of one room ahead of us and lunged at Spell, who managed to grab them with his magic and throw the monster into the wall. Pulling up his IF-64, he fired several shots into it. Blasting holes into it and even destroying a leg. But the zombie was unfazed, using the exposed and broken bone to push itself up, and grabbing its pitchfork. Spell was pushed back into a wall, not knowing what to do next.

I then rushed in and brought the axe head of Rime Frost down onto the zombie, cutting into its neck. The head fell from the body, and frost quickly covered the zombie. We watched as it then froze and shattered, no longer moving.

Both Spell and I looked at Rime Frost, then at the shattered remains of the zombie, then at each other.

"Right, let's just assume that magic can kill them and not lead." Spell said, and I nodded. He then pointed at my claws. "I'll do what I can to help, but you're the only one who can fight right now."

I smacked my front claws together. "Ya, I get it. Anyways, we should save our ammo for Tripwire's goons.

Looking back, the three zombies from the greenhouse were now catching up, joined by five more zombies.

"So… what's in that box you had to take?" I asked as I looked in the other direction, seeing four zombies blocking our path.

Spell put his rifle away and sighed. "Seeds actually. The box is an over thousand year old magical seed vault, made by Clover the Clever herself. Inside are seeds that could possibly be extinct out in the wasteland." His horn glowed, and a barrier formed behind us, blocking the zombies, then he pushed it, knocking them back. "But it doesn't matter if we die, so can we get moving?"

"On it!" I said as I chugged the battle brew, then launched myself forward. Diving into the group of zombies, the claws of my gauntlet raked across the face of one as I thrusted another into the side of a second zombie. Fire burst from wherever the claws dug into, and pushing the zombies back. But as one was taken down, two more joined the fight. So planting my front hooves into the ground, I reared back and let out a buck, kicking the other zombies, ripping rotted flesh off them as they were tossed back.

I then felt a knife cut across my armored duster, and then a sharp pain in my side as another zombie shoved a spear into my side. It hurt, but not enough to cause me to stumble or flinch. Instead I drove my hoof into the skull of one pony, and threw the now flaming zombie into the others. Jumping in, I finished off the last zombie with a slam of my hoof to its skull.

"Fuck, Lottery! Drink this!" Spell told me as he tossed a healing potion to me. Then with his magic, he pulled out a spear from my side, and two more knives from my flank. "They may be slow, but they don't stop attacking, even as you're crushing their skulls. How did anypony survive the long winter with them all over the place?"

As I gazed the healing potion, my wounds closed up. But even now, looking at these rusty blades that were in me, I was going to need a painful shot from Doctor Helga after this.

"I don't know, but we're going to survive like they did!" I said with full confidence, the influence of the battle brew numbing all pain and making me feel like I can take on the world.

Rushing after Will-o-Wisp, and turning a corner, more zombies blocked our path, but I didn't stop, and barreled through them. The grizzly gauntlets crushing their fragile bones under my hooves.

We couldn't waste time fighting, as more and more zombies appear, choking up the hallway behind us. So taking another turn and smashing through more undead, Will-o-Wisp finally entered a room, and as the two of us entered, we both slammed the door shut and pushed whatever we could in the way. Once the door was properly blocked, I quickly checked myself, finding a pitchfork in my leg, and another knife in my back.

So I chugged another healing potion as I turned around to see where we were.

This room was rather grand and still in good condition compared to the rest of the manor. Paintings of ponies decorated the walls, along with vases and other works of art. More amazing was the fireplace, which currently had a warm fire burning from a gemstone.

"Well this makes sense." Spell said. "This is my fathers study, if there's a secret passage, it would be here."

Will-o-Wisp hovered over a rather large desk, of which had an equally large chair at it.

We both then jumped as the door gave a loud thud and the zombies outside began to pound on it and wail with murderous intent. A loud creek then caught our attention, and we turned to the desk as the chair slowly turned.

I let out a gasp as the corps of Arcane Naysayer sat in the large chair, the hole from when Tripwire shot him still there.

"F… father!" Spell said in shock.

Arcane's eyes then flared open, milky white and void of any life. The undead pony then opened its mouth, letting out a ghastly moan as his horn glowed with power. Everything in the room began to shake as his magic reached out wildly.

Spell snarled. "No! This ends now!" His own horn glowed, and with his magic, he grabbed his undead father and threw him against the wall. "You damn fool! You intellectual moron! A bastard to the end!" Spell yelled as he slammed his father into the ground repeatedly.

But it didn't stop Arcane ability to cast magic, and shit began flying around and at us. Spell himself taking a few hits from what had to be heavy pieces of art.

"I get your pissed, but now is not the time!" I told him.

"Of course!" He said as he then dragged his fathers corpses to him. "Even you, despite all the damage you've caused father, don't deserve this fate. Be at rest, and may you find mercy in Tartarus."

As Spell's horn glowed brighter, fire spared across Arcanes body, and the zombie's body cracked as it burst into flames. In a few seconds, the zombie was reduced to nothing but an ash pile on the floor.

I watched, a bit shocked. "You have attack spells!?"

Spell shook his head. "It's a cremation spell. Hard to cast on a pony that is trying to stab you. Thankfully father was rather physically weak before his death."

He then trotted over the ash pile and over to the desk. "Let me see… oh, this is clever."

I looked over, and saw an artistic pattern on the inside of the desk. But one of the platters let off a slight glow I saw through my glasses.

Spell pressed down on the glowing pattern, and it let out a click. "A pony would need to be either rather lucky to find the button, skilled at detecting magic, or-"

"Have some nifty glasses that can see magic." I finished off what he was about to say.

The fire then went out, and bricks in the fireplace began to move.

I then watched as Spell ran his hoof across the desk, it stopping at a gold plated gem embedded quill in an equally fancy ink pot. Taking a deep breath, he then launched them, along with several other items across the desk and into the wall.

"Do you feel better now?" I asked him.

But Spell shook his head. "No, not a bit."

The thumping on the door then became a crack, and it was clear the undead were now breaking through.

Spell then trotted to the fireplace, looking down a deep dark tunnel. "But I'm not here to make myself feel better, I'm here to make Equestria better." He then began to climb down.

Joining him, the bricks reformed above me as I heard a crash from the study, and malicious wailing. The wails were then muffled by the sound of a crackling fire as darkness then engulfed us.

But a soft light flickered to life as Will-o-Wisp joined us, guiding us down into the unknown darkness.

Whatever Tripwire and Catalyst have been getting up to, we will soon find out.

_______________________________________________________