Bear, Scribe and Paladin

Chapters

02: Introductions
03: Breakfast and News
04: Sergeant Grimfeather
05: Broken Bones and Pride
06: Ghouls and Trauma
07: What Lies in The Past
08: Calm Before the Storm
09: Getting Started...
10: Show of Force
11: Cooldown
13: Recruits and Playgrounds
14: Fathers and Fillies
15: Hellfire and Innocence
16: Torched
17: Past Mistakes
18: In The Morning
19: From Bad To Worse
20: Threats and Intel
21: Happier Times
OMAKE THE THIRD
22: TITLE NOT FOUND
23: Reminisce
Interlude: Lady of War
24: Back Again
25: SURPRISE!
Interlude: The Blind Eye
26: Red-hoofed
27: Raising Questions
28: Removing Chance
Interlude: Relic
OMAKE THE FOURTH
OMAKE THE FIFTH
30: Bright Future
31: Opening Shots
OMAKE THE FIRST
01: Prologue
12: ERROR TOKEN NOT FOUND
OMAKE THE SECOND
29: Words of Courage and Dark Changes

02: Introductions

Project Purity, late 2277

Dominica breathed heavily as she looked at what was left of Colonel Augustus Autumn, the man responsible for the death of her father. She kicked the pile of ash he had been reduced to, not sure how to feel. She had expected to feel some joy, some vindication, anything, but there was nothing.

She was shaken from her thoughts by Sentinel Lyons tapping her on the shoulder. “There’ll be time for that later. Let’s secure the room.” Not that there was much left to secure. Apart from Autumn, there had only been two Enclave soldiers with him, and one had been decapitated by her Metal Blaster. The other was still smouldering from Sergeant RL-3’s Flamer, his leg in Dogmeat’s mouth.

“Well, what are we waiting for?” Dom asked, looking into the purifier’s control room.

“One of us is going to have to go in there and turn the damned thing on. And whoever does it isn’t coming back out.” The Sentinel said that in such a way that it was clear that she hated it.

Dom paused before shoving the rifle towards the power armoured woman. “Hold onto this for me.”

“Dom, are you sure? You won’t have much time.”

“This is my father’s work. It’s only right that I finish what he started.” She kneeled and grabbed Dogmeat’s head with her hands. "I think it's time for us to say goodbye, old buddy. Take care of yourself, okay?" she said, ruffling his ears gently. Her companion, the one true constant since running into him in the Scrapyard, whined sadly and licked her. She turned to the Mister Gutsy, his green paint scratched and scorched. “Sergeant, I guess this is goodbye.”

“It’s been an honour serving with you, ma’am,” the robot replied.

With those words, Dominica took a deep breath and stepped inside the chamber.

She ignored the ticking of her Pip-Boy and the sound of the airlock closing. She passed by the Auxiliary Filtration Input system and stood in front of the number pad that would activate the purifier.

She stared at it blankly for a few precious moments before realising she still didn’t know what the code to start it was. “Fuck!” she yelled as she thought hard.

The purpose of Project Purity was to give clean, fresh water to the Wasteland, a fountain of new life that would - she smiled. Of course, she thought. It’s so obvious.

“I am Alpha and Omega,” she said as she pushed the ‘2’, “the beginning and the end.” She pressed the ‘1’. “I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.” She pressed the ‘6’ and watched as the water within began to clear, revealing a statue. She breathed a sigh of relief before doubling over.

She made her way shakily to the airlock, leaning against it as her sense of balance abandoned her. She looked through it to see Sentinel Lyons, looking at her sadly. Dominica gave her a shaky smile and a thumbs-up before slumping against the glass. The Sentinel could only watch as the red-haired girl from Vault 101, wearing nothing more than a set of combat armour given to her as a gift, began to die.

Veronica looked at Thomas. “I’m betting he did something to deserve that.”

Dom rolled her eyes. “One-night stand,” she answered, kicking the man for good measure. “You’re an idiot.”

“Wait, a one-night stand?” the power armoured woman asked. “But that means...” She looked between the man who had given her somewhere to stay for the past seven months, and the winged horse that had just smacked him in the face. “Ewww! What is wrong with you, Thomas?”

Luna and Thomas ignored them. “Two months! Two whole months it has been! And now, you have the gall to just show up and act as though nothing happened!”

“Luna, I’b sorry, okay?” Thomas pleaded. “I’b terrible at ebotional stuff. I - ”

“That is not what I am upset about!” she yelled. She stomped closer and glared at him with the intensity of a nuclear blast. “You know what this is about, Thomas.” As she spoke clouds seemed to gather and the sky darkened.

“Anyone else notice that?” Veronica asked as she slowly backed away, eyeing the black clouds uneasily.

“They definitely weren’t there a second ago...” Dom muttered, taking a few steps back.

“Laying with me and leaving without even talking about it I can deal with, but returning with a number of females - ”

“Wait, what?” Thomas stood up, still clutching his face.

“You think I slept with him?” Veronica asked, pointing a finger at the man. “No! Just... no!”

“How does she know we’re women?” Dom whispered. “I mean, you’re in that armour, and, well...”

“It’s in the way you carry yourself.” Luna replied, turning to the pair. She hastily stepped back when she caught sight of Dom’s face, eyes wide from shock.

“What’s the matter, never seen a ghoul before?” she asked.

“Obviously,” Luna replied curtly. “Thomas did tell me, but I still wasn’t sure what to expect.”

Their conversation was cut off by the sound of thundering hooves, signalling the arrival of the guard. Three ponies, their coats completely obscured by the golden metal of their full-body armour, skidded to a halt five feet from the group. “Your highness, we saw - you!” the leader exclaimed, looking at Thomas, still clutching his nose.

“Hello Shining,” he muttered, pulling his hand away from his face.

“Who are - ARGH!” he exclaimed, levelling his horn at Dom. “What is that!?”

“If you call me a zombie, a shuffler, a brain-muncher, a walking corpse, or anything else that alludes to me being undead, I will hit you,” she declared, hefting up the Auto-Axe threateningly and pulling the ripcord, making the piece of machinery emit a sound somewhere between a growl and a whine. “Hard.”

“Holy crap!” Veronica exclaimed. “Are those unicorns in power armour?”

“Technically, it’s not power armour,” Thomas explained, wiping his bloody hands on his pants. “So, back on duty?”

“How can you make small-talk with that... thing standing there?” Shining asked. Behind him, the other Knights were backing away slowly.

“Firstly, I am Dominica Esposito, Paladin of the East Coast Chapter of the Brotherhood of Steel,” she exclaimed angrily, her voice gravelly and yet carrying a feminine lilt. “Secondly, I will not take any shit about me being a ghoul, I get enough of that back home.”

“Dom, put that thing down,” Thomas said, waving his hand at the Auto-Axe. “Shining, point that somewhere else.”

“Stand down, Knight-Commander,” Luna said. “I’m sure she means no harm, and I am sure I can handle myself should she turn hostile.”

Shining Armor took a more relaxed posture, though his gaze remained fixed on the ghoul. Dom set down the Auto-Axe, and began to roll her shoulders. “What are you?” he asked, trying and failing to keep his voice civil.

“A ghoul,” she answered, leaning down to turn off the machine. “It’s what happens when a human absorbs an ungodly amount of radiation and doesn’t have the good fortune to die.” She paused, bringing her hand to her chin and rubbing it. “Or is it the good fortune to not die? Either way.”

Shining took of his helmet to show just rightly shocked he was. He gawked at Thomas. “That’s what we nearly did to you?”

“A fate worse than death,” he replied, ignoring the glare Dom shot at him. His expression became a puzzled one when he looked at Shining’s face. “Where’d that scar come from?”

Knight-Commander Shining Armor led the three humans through the castle to the dining room. Through some good fortune they had managed to appear close to breakfast, and Celestia had been alerted of their coming.

“Geez, I knew you were friends with royalty, but this...” Veronica said, waving her hand around. She had taken her helmet off and was looking around in awe. “This is amazing.” She had been relegated to ‘pack mule’, carrying the large, heavy duffle bag Dominica had brought with her.

“You got that right,” Dom replied, flipping the oversized pauldron on her left shoulder up. “It’s like something from a storybook.”

Members of the Guard, from both the Day and Night regiments, backed away cautiously from the group. Part of it was their impressive armaments, part of it was the imposing form of the T-51b, but most of it was Dominica. Given that she looked like a walking armoured corpse, their response was justified, if not particularly welcome.

Dominica pulled a microfusion cell out of the pauldron and tapped Veronica on the shoulder with it. “Gimme another MF cell, would ya?”

“Hm? Oh, sure.” She opened the duffle bag as they walked and gawked when she saw the contents. “Holy crap, how much stuff do you have in here?”

“Just give me the MF cell,” Dominica repeated impatiently. Her left arm had gone limp, and she seemed to have some trouble balancing. Veronica passed one of the bright yellow batteries to her, which was quickly inserted into the pauldron. It went back down, and a small whining that quickly left audible range sounded. “Thanks.”

“At least you didn’t tear out the servos,” Veronica said. “How long does one of those cells last, anyway?”

“About two weeks.” The ghoul clipped it on properly and wriggled her arm. “And it powers more than just a few servos.”

Before Veronica could ask what she meant, Shining brought the small procession a halt. “Before we enter the dining room, I have to ask that you leave your weapons here. After your last visit, the princess wants no possible incidents.”

Dom set down the Auto-Axe and pulled her Metal Blaster off her back. As she unstrapped the holster that housed the plasma pistol, she turned to the unicorn. “And just what kind of ‘incidents’ are we talking about here?”

“Well, Princess Luna nearly injured herself with one of Thomas’ weapons.”

“She was pointing it at her face, she would have died,” Thomas retorted.

“If you really think the princesses can be killed that easily, then think again,” Shining snorted. “It’ll take a lot more than a bit of lead to bring one of them down permanently.” With those words, the doors were opened that the small procession entered.

Sitting at the head of the table was Princess Celestia, looking as resplendent as she always had. She smiled serenely at them, though her expression quickly became one of horror and revulsion when she laid eyes on Dominica. She responded with a roll of her eyes and a huff. “Great, a bigot,” she muttered

“Commander, explain why you’ve brought that - ” That was all that could be said before Dominica interrupted.

“I don’t care that you run a country. I don’t care that you have ungodly power. I will not sit here and listen to you insult me based on my appearance!” she yelled, taking steps forward. “I did not lose my father, my innocence and my humanity to take any kind of shit from a talking god horse!”

The silence that followed was one that could be felt. Shining Armor, along with every other guard, noble and servant in the room, just stared dumbly at Dominica. Not all of them had understood what she had said, but the general tone was more than enough to convey the message. In the background Thomas facepalmed while Veronica just stood there, jaw hanging open in shock.

Most shocked of them all was Celestia. The only ones who had ever talked to her like that had been her parents and her sister. To have someone just... But they had been right. To judge one on nothing more than appearance was impolite, to say the least. “Forgive me,” Celestia said, bowing her head. “You are right, it is not right of me base my reactions on appearances.”

Dominica blinked. “Wait, really?”

As if at the behest of some cosmic puppeteer, every single noble in the room stood up at almost the same time and made for the exit. This meant getting uncomfortably close to the group of dusty cross-dimensional travellers, which only made them speed up. Thirty seconds after Celestia’s apology, there was only her, a number of servants, the guard and the three humans.

“Would you like some tea?” the princess asked, not seeming to care about the behaviour she had just witnessed.

Author’s Notes:

That’s my explanation for the absurd amount of ammo you can carry around in Fallout 3.

Anything to do with Season 3 is to be completely ignored for the sake of this story. That includes any and all things to do with the Crystal Empire. Just consider this a separate universe.

Also, fuck adding the colours. Takes too much fucking effort.

Why Dominica? Blame Urdeth, he gave me a male name and the Wanderer was ended up female.

03: Breakfast and News

Adams Air Force Base, late 2277

Dominica looked at the great, crawling, heavily armoured monstrosity that the Enclave had as their base. The mobile command center sat in the middle of the runway of Adams Air Force Base, seemingly undamaged. The interiors, though, were painted with the blood and littered with the corpses of every Enclave soldier who had stood in the Lone Wanderer’s way, its armoury looted and its contents used by the one-woman army as she carved a bloody swath through them. Even then, they’d landed a few lucky shots. Parts of her T-45d had several half-melted plates, and the right pauldron was missing. Her helmet had taken the most damage, and she had abandoned it within after the visor had been melted.

She looked up and saw a glint through the clouds. “Boom,” she said moments before the orbital strike impacted. She brought a hand up and covered her face as the warhead impacted, setting the sky on fire for a fraction of a second. Dom peeked out and saw the last sign on Enclave power in the region reduced to nothing more than a smoking crater and scrap metal. She yelped when a particularly large piece impacted not two feet from her.

“A bit jumpy, aren’t you?” Sentinel Lyons said with a smirk. “You did good, soldier.”

“Thanks,” Dom said, turning around. “So, what now?” she asked the other members of Lyons’ Pride that were there.

“Well,” Sarah said, climbing into the reclaimed Vertibird, “we’ll be mopping up for a while. Odds are, there’s more than a few squads who’ll fight until the end. The rest, though, might just give up and surrender peacefully.”

“What’ll we do with them?” Kodiak asked as they took off.

“Depends. If they were commanding officers, and knew they were doing things that were wrong, then we might execute them. If they were just following orders, I guess we’ll give them a second chance.”

“What about that?” Dom asked, gesturing at the smouldering wreck.

“We might be able to find something useful. Tech, notes, locations of their production facilities,” Sarah said.

“Does that mean we’ll have a fleet of these things?” Kodiak asked, sounding shocked by that.

“Don’t forget all the plasma weapons we can carry,” Dom added with a chuckle.

“Dom, it’s an apple.”

“I know it’s an apple, but it looks... wrong.”

“What do you mean?” Thomas asked, munching on an orange.

Dom leaned against the table and raised the apple to her eye. “It seems... too perfect. Like it was drawn. No apple should look that perfect. Ever.”

“Dom, just eat it,” Thomas said as he rolled his eyes. To his left sat Veronica, having removed her helmet. She was digging into a small salad.

“How is she so okay with this?” the Paladin asked, pointing to the armoured Scribe.

“The stuff I’ve been through with Thomas is nothing compared to this,” she said in between mouthfuls. “Honestly, this is a nice change of pace. No running from packs of feral ghouls or punching junkies to death.”

Shining Armor, who had been ordered to eat something to not seem so out of place, spat his mouthful of food across the table as he choked on his waffles. “What!?” he asked loudly when he recovered.

“Hey, not my fault they tried to pick a fight they couldn’t win,” Veronica said with a shrug.

“Can’t argue with that,” Thomas added, either oblivious or not caring about the shocked expressions the princess and Knight-Commander had. “You’d think they’d stop after watching their buddy’s skull get pulped, though.”

“At least the raiders in D.C know when to give up,” Dom chipped in, taking a bite of the apple. She froze and stared at it, chewing slowly.

“Is something wrong?” Celestia asked, desperate to depart from the rather disturbing conversation she had found herself witness to.

“This... tastes too good,” Dom said, her gravelly voice full of uncertainty. “How is that even possible?”

“I’m sorry?” Celestia wasn’t sure if she was meant to apologise. She could truthfully say that this was the first time someone had been less than satisfied with the food provided from the royal kitchens. “Would you like something else?” she asked, hoping that this was the right course of action.

“Meat!” Thomas said loudly, interrupting them. The rest of them just stared at him. “Hey, I barely managed last time, and the last thing I ate in Vegas was a Brahmin Wellington.” He paused for a moment. “Probably not my best decision.”

“Up there with mixing Jet and absinthe,” Veronica said offhandedly.

“We agreed not to talk about that,” the black man said darkly. In response, the power-armoured Scribe beamed at him.

“The Griffons serving brought their own cook, and they have meat most nights,” Shining said, wondering what Jet was. “I don’t think they’ll object to three more mouths.”

“Wait, Griffons?” Veronica asked. “As in, bird-lion things?”

“Calling them that is a good way to get killed. They’re very proud,” Shining warned.

“Wait, why are there Griffons here?” Thomas asked. “And how are you a commander? Last I checked, you were a captain. And suspended from duty,” he added as an afterthought.

Shining Armor sighed and absently ran a hoof along the scar that crossed his muzzle. “I guess you should be brought up to speed.”

“If you are going to be staying for the same amount of time you did last time, then that would be best,” Celestia added, nodding in agreement with the unicorn’s suggestion.

“I should start from the beginning.” Shining Armor cleared his throat. “About a week after you left, one of our frontier towns, Appleloosa, was - ”

“Wait wait wait,” Dom interrupted suddenly, raising a hand. “Appleloosa?”

“The town was founded by apple farmers,” Shining said flatly, not happy with the interruption. “Anyway, they were attacked by Diamond Dogs.”

“Diamond Dogs?” Veronica asked. “What are they?”

“Large, sentient canines, about 6 and a half feet tall. Some are capable of digging through granite.” Shining Armor fixed his gaze on Thomas. “The one we captured said that it was in retaliation to an attack on a warren close to Ponyville.”

“They took children,” Thomas said harshly. “I was not going to sit there and let them get away with that.”

“I wasn’t saying I disagree with your actions,” Shining clarified. “What this has meant, though, is that every small town now has a permanent guard presence to deter any attacks. There have been six attacks since. In retaliation, we’ve destroyed three warrens. I got this scar when I led the most recent one,” he said, pointing at his face. “We’ve also been in talks with the Dogs’ leaders, but none of them admit to giving the orders to attack.”

“Congratulations,” Dominica said sarcastically as she turned to Thomas. “You managed to start a war in candy-land.”

“War was inevitable,” Celestia said in response. “The Diamond Dogs’ leadership fights itself so frequently it was only a matter of time until one of the more hot-headed ones gave an order they shouldn’t have.”

“Thankfully, we haven’t lost anypony yet, but I don’t know how long that will last,” Shining Armor said worriedly.

“So, where do the Griffons come in?” Veronica asked. “And can I meet them?”

“We are military allies,” Celestia said. “In the event of an attack on our nation, we can request their aid, and they can do the same.”

“Many Griffons go through basic military training from a young age. Swords, axes, bows... Their armed forces are probably the best in the world,” Shining explained, looking out the window. “While many are happy with a peaceful life, they are always ready to answer the call to arms.”

“Like every town in the Wasteland,” Dom muttered.

“It helps that Diamond Dogs and Griffons have been at war three times in the last century,” Shining Armor added. “The wounds from the last one are still raw, if what Sergeant Grimfeather said is any indication.”

“Grimfeather?” Dom muttered. “Oh god.”

Veronica finished her salad and burped. “‘scuse me.” She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and stood up. “So, what? Are we just gonna sit here or are you gonna make us fight?”

“Of course not,” Celestia said jovially. “You are a guest in our lands, and you are free to do whatever you want, as long as you remain within the bounds of the law.”

“Sounds reasonable,” Dom replied as she swallowed the apple core. “I think I might stay in this castle, though. You smoothskins don’t tend to react well to ghouls.” Shining Armor and Princess Celestia, along with a number of the guard, looked at her in mild confusion. “Right, I guess that doesn’t work for ponies,” she muttered unhappily.

“Ghouls tend to call normal people ‘smoothskins’,” Thomas said, trying to explain what she had meant. “Probably just as a way of differentiating.”

“It’s meant to be an insult,” Dom said sulkily.

“Isn’t the NCR fine with ghouls?” Veronica asked.

“The ones from Necropolis practically founded Gecko and Dayglow. Took a few packages to and from those towns back in the day,” Thomas answered. “I think Dayglow was one of the NCR’s founding states.”

“Hey, I wouldn’t know,” Veronica said with a shrug. “Being raised in a bunker with a bunch of xenophobic technophiles kinda limits your education.”

“Yet you can dismantle and reassemble a laser rifle with your eyes closed,” Thomas answered with a wry smile.

“Yeah, well, one of the benefits with growing up around technophiles. So, can we go see these griffons?” Veronica asked, sounding a bit like a young, eager child.

“What are you, ten?” Dom asked unhappily.

“Hey, we’re in a fantasy land populated by talking animals that can use magic,” she argued. “I think I can be excused for how I am acting.” The ghoul’s response was to facepalm.

“I swear, my life is a game to some bastard up in the clouds,” she muttered.

“Talking animals?” Shining asked, not very happy with that description.

Shining Armor led the three Wastelanders to the main barracks. The normally open field that acted as training ground was only half its normal size, the other half occupied by tents. On the canvas of each was a stylized talon, one that seemed eerily familiar to the Paladin.

“There are fifty griffons here,” Shining said. “There are also a few in the more distant towns, providing support where we don’t have the numbers.”

“Like trusting a town’s security to mercs,” Dom mused.

“I wouldn’t trust a mercenary to bring me food, let alone protect a town,” Shining replied acidly.

“So what do you think of me, then?” Thomas asked indignantly.

“You’re a civilian contractor. That’s different,” Shining replied, completely serious. Thomas blinked before grinning at the unicorn’s response.

“You’re a good man, Shiny.”

Dominica shook her head at this display of male camaraderie. Without any warning, she was tackled to the ground by a mass of feathers and fur. Acting purely on instinct, she clocked her attacker with a left hook, pushed them off, drove her right elbow into their throat and then drew the combat knife under her chest plate and held it to their throat. All that happened in the span of about two seconds.

Her snarl disappeared when she realised that she wasn’t pinning down a raider, but a strange mix of bird and big cat. “What the fuck?”

The griffon let out a screech as he was suddenly enveloped in a purple glow and yanked unceremoniously from the Paladin’s grasp. “Private Blacktalon, what is wrong with you!?” Shining Armor screamed at him.

“S-sir, that thing was following you!” the young Blacktalon stuttered.

“That ‘thing’ is a personal guest of the princesses!” the stallion yelled, spraying the unfortunate soldier with spit. “You will not attack her, or any of the others with me, under any circumstances! Is that clear!?”

“Y-y-yes,” the griffon squeaked.

“Yes WHO!?”

“Yes sir!” He let out a pained squawk then the Knight-Commander dropped him.

“I didn’t understand a single word of that,” Dom said as the griffon private was berated by a fellow griffon. “But I know what a commanding officer yelling at an inferior sounds like.” She slipped her knife back into its sheath.

Shining Armor let out an aggravated sigh. “Can’t believe that happened. Hot-blooded idiot. That kind of action in a battlefield situation is just asking to be sent home with a sword in your throat.” He rubbed his face and looked at her. “Sorry about using magic so close to you too, by the way.”

Dominica blinked, confused by the apology. “Why are you sorry?”

Now they were both confused. “Magic is toxic to your kind. Isn’t it?” he asked.

“Heh. To smoothskins, yeah. But to ghouls? We’re immune to the poisoning, and it heals us,” Dom explained. “Probably half the reason the Brotherhood keeps me around.”

“What’s the other half?” Shining asked, watching as Veronica stared rather creepily at a group of griffons armouring up for a spar.

“The fact that I practically wiped out half the military forces of a fascist paramilitary organisation shortly after I turned nineteen.” She sighed. “And that was after we lost Liberty Prime.”

Shining Armor blinked in shock. “You were only nineteen?” he asked, unable to believe that.

“Would you believe I’m only twenty-four?” she asked.

Author’s Notes:

Way to go, Thomas.

Why do we like to pit the D.Dogs and Griffons against each other like this? I know this isn’t the first time I’ve seen something like this in a story.

04: Sergeant Grimfeather

The Citadel, mid-2278

“Dom, wake up! You gotta wake up!”

“Huh? Whuh?” Dominica was roused from her slumber to see a face she hadn’t seen in close to a year looking down at her. “Oh great, this dream again,” she muttered.

“This isn’t a dream, soldier,” another familiar voice said. Now wearing a puzzled expression, she sat up and saw Sarah Lyons, in full armour, standing next to her first friend.

“Amata?” she asked, completely confused. “What the fuck are you doing here?”

“I need your help, Dom.” Now looking closer, she could see that the Vault 101 jumpsuit Amata was wearing was tattered, torn and stained. Her black hair, while usually not perfectly kept, looked as though she’d been caught in an explosion. The worst thing, though, were her eyes. They held a haunted look, the sort one had after witnessing an atrocity.

“Amata, what’s wrong?” Dom asked, not sure whether or not to hug her friend. As if to answer her concerns, Amata suddenly leapt forwards and hugged her. She began to speak, but in her desperation to get the words out they became a jumbled, unintelligible mess. “Amata, breathe.”

“T-they killed my father!” she yelled out, tears streaming down her face.

“Who did?”

“I-I don’t know. They had power armour, but it was painted red - ”

“Outcasts,” Dom growled. “Should’ve known they’d go for a Vault.”

“Those bastards have been attacking water caravans, too,” Sarah muttered. “I guess the purifier at Fort Independence gave out.”

“Fuck fuck fuck.” Dom ran a hand through her hand. Normally, she’d be slow and sluggish in the morning, but this news was like a dozen shots of adrenaline. “Okay, we need to do something. Amata, when did they attack?”

“T-two days ago.” Vault 101’s Overseer wiped her eyes on her sleeve and sniffed. “I ran the whole way here.”

“Two days? Fuck. We need to move.” Dom turned to Sarah desperately. “Can you prep a Vertibird, ASAP?”

The Sentinel very briefly considered reminding the Knight that she was the one who gave the orders, but the look in her eyes made her stop. “Right.”

“Thanks.” Dominica’s voice dripped with relief. “Oh god, I can’t believe this is happening.” She jumped from her bed and grabbed her armour. “Amata, I need to know... what happened?”

“I... I’m not sure. All I know is that the guards we assigned to the Vault door w-w-were...” Amata broke down again. “Daddy,” she whimpered.

“Thomas, can you ask your mate to stop staring at the soldiers like that?” Shining asked uneasily. “It’s a little worrying.”

“My what?” he asked, thinking he had misheard.

“You’re mate. Veronica, was it?”

Thomas blinked before laughing. “What!? Oh, god no! You think me and her- Ahahahahah!”

“What’s so funny?” Shining asked, thinking he had made a big mistake.

“Hey, Veronica!” Thomas called out, still laughing. “He think’s we’re sleeping together!”

“What!?” Her response was the complete opposite of his. Her expression went from glee at being around such amazing things to complete horror and disgust at even the thought of what was being suggested. “Eww! No! Just... No!” she exclaimed loudly.

“Y’see?” Thomas said as he jabbed a thumb at the Scribe. “Probably the only single woman in Vegas I haven’t slept with.”

“Only single - what?” Shining shook his head in disgust. “I don’t want to know.”

Thomas, having succeeded in making the unicorn uncomfortable, chuckled and stuck his hands into his duster. “I want to ask you something.”

“Hm?”

“How are you a commander? I don’t know a thing about military ranks, but I can’t see how you jumped from captain to commander in two months.” Thomas looked around to see the numerous armoured ponies and Griffons looking at him, some curiously, some hostilely.

“Only a month and a half,” Shining corrected. “The Knights are new. Four months, if that. That... incursion into the Changeling Hive was our first actual mission. The armour is still having all the kinks worked out. There are only a dozen of us, and the princesses wanted the stallion who came up with the idea to be in charge.”

“So, what, she just forgave you?” Thomas asked, refusing to believe that.

“No,” Shining said unhappily. “She ordered me into therapy. Once a week. I can’t see the point.”

“Hey, you got treatment for that bullet I had to put in your leg, right?” The stallion nodded. “That’s all therapy is, treating an injury.”

“Are you saying I have brain damage?” Shining asked, shooting a glare at Thomas.

“We’re soldiers, Shiny. We have blood on our hands. Anyone who has to fight and kill for a living doesn’t come out the same they came in.” That shut him right up. “Some nights, I... I remember things. Things I’d rather forget.”

“I know what you mean,” he said quietly. “Thank you, again.”

“Okay, I’m getting sick of the looks I’m getting from those bigots.” They both turned to see Dom stomp towards them angrily. “It’s like they don’t care about how I feel.”

Shining looked at the ghoul. Her skin, including her entire nose, seemed to have fallen off her face, leaving raw exposed flesh that had hardened and scarred. What was left of her hair, a vibrant red, hung limply like it was dead. Her eyes were sunken into her face, and seemed to make her less alive. “I can’t say I blame them,” he said carefully.

“Yeah, I don’t either, but it still hurts.” Dom sighed. “Two years. Two years and my squadmates still have trouble looking at me. I don’t need it from a bunch of talking horses and freaky bird-things.”

Shining Armor began to look around frantically. “Keep your mouth shut, they might - !”

“What was that!?” a loud, commanding voice said from above them.

“Oh, buck me sideways,” Shining muttered in Equestrian. “Sergeant,” he said louder.

“Commander,” the griffon said, alighting softly next to him. Sergeant Grimfeather was wearing a style of armour that had been decommissioned decades ago, simple unadorned plating on his forelegs and haunches. Along his wings was more metal, wing-blades that could slice through another griffon with ease if the wearer had enough momentum. He also had a green vest and a large sword strapped to his back. Half of his beak on the right side was badly scratched and chipped. He gave the unicorn a look. “What was that I was hearing before?”

“Nothing to concern yourself with,” the unicorn said nervously.

“Oh? It certainly didn’t seem like that.” The griffon’s ruffled his wings and looked at Dom. “Well, I say!” he exclaimed, leaning back in shock. “Aren’t you something?” he said amicably, looking the ghoul up and down.

“If you’re gonna insult me, get it over with,” Dom said tiredly.

“Insult you?” he asked in Zebrican/English. “Good heavens, no! I would never insult a fellow soldier, if your armour is anything to go by. Tells me you’ve seen a bit of action! Though you do seem like you’ve been put through a grinder, I see physical appearance as no reason to judge someone.”

“Thanks?” Dom replied. This was practically the first time someone had accepted her appearance without making a great fuss over it. “Uh, sorry about what I said.”

“So you did say something? Thought so.” Grimfeather’s good mood faded a little, but not completely. “Suppose I should introduce myself. Sergeant Reginald Grimfeather,” he said as he stuck out a claw.

“Paladin Dominica Esposito,” she replied, grasping his claw. Her eyebrows (or rather, where they had been) rose slightly when the griffon began to put a surprisingly large amount of strength into the handshake. She responded in kind, trying to crush the griffon’s claw with a vice-like grip.

This exchange of attempted maiming continued for close to a minute, their expressions contorting into pained grimaces the longer the exchange went on. Grimfeather was the first to give up. “You’ve got quite a grip on you,” he said happily as he shook his claw.

“So do you,” the ghoul replied, shaking her hand about to get the feeling back. “I guess you’re not that bad.”

“I can say the same for you, m’dear. I’ll give the troops a good ear-bashing, get them to stop treating you so badly. Sound good?”

“Wow.” Dom really didn’t have anything to say. “Um... Thanks. Really.”

“Oh, it’s nothing, really.”

“Nicely done,” Shining Armor said as he watched the sergeant loudly and viciously berate the soldiers under his command. “Not everyday someone impresses a griffon that easily,” he added, sounding quite impressed himself.

“I get the feeling he was going easy on me,” Dom said with a shrug. “Still, nice change of pace.”

“How strong are you, anyway?” Thomas asked, speaking up for the first time in minutes.

“Strong enough to swing around twenty pounds of fuck you like it’s nothing,” she said proudly. “Hell, I once ripped a man’s arm off and beat his buddy to death with it.”

Shining Armor looked like he was about to be sick, while Thomas raised an eyebrow. “Well, I certainly hope you don’t go doing that to any of my soldiers, then,” Grimfeather said unhappily, rejoining the conversation.

“Why would I do that?” the ghoul asked, worried that he even thought she would do that to potential allies.

“Some of them refuse to believe that you are as dangerous as you seem.” The griffon sighed. “Honestly, anything that was able to take down Blacktalon as quickly as you did is not something I want to face in single combat.”

“Yeah, I wouldn’t want to fight me either,” she chuckled.

“Which is why they want to fight you three against one,” the griffon said unhappily. “I do hope you don’t kill them.”

“This seems familiar,” Thomas said, rolling his eyes.

Author’s Notes:

I blame the fact that Sergeant Grimfeather appears to be British on Borderlands 2 and Sir Hammerlock.

Next chapter, FIGHT SCENE!

Any and all idiot 'First'ers will be deleted. Immediately.

05: Broken Bones and Pride

Vault 101, mid-2278

The three Outcast Defenders stood at the door that separated the great Vault door of Vault 101 from the rest of the Vault itself. “You guys hear that?” one of them asked.

“Yeah, what is that?”

“Sounds like... duct tape?” The three power-armoured soldiers looked at each other before the door was ripped off the wall, courtesy of an earth-shattering explosion. It flew into two of the Defenders, pulverising them and compacting their armour. One was left standing, and he quickly fell to a bolt of plasma sent right through his visor as he tried to see who was responsible.

“Knew I’d find a use for those missiles,” Dom smirked as she stepped in to admire the carnage. The explosion would get everyone’s attention, she knew that. That had been her goal. With any luck the Outcast responsible for the attack would send troops to see what had happened. She holstered the Novasurge and picked up her Gatling Laser, Vengeance, that she had brought along with her. She stood there, waiting for the first Outcasts to come investigate.

It was only twenty seconds later when the first group came into view. One of them, obviously not expecting something hostile, didn’t even have his helmet on. He only briefly managed to look terrified before a stream of crimson death impacted, and tore through, his skull. The other three quickly suffered a similar fate, their armour and bodies riddled with new holes.

Dom had decided that this would require a different approach, and wanted to make the last moments of every Outcast one of pure terror. To that end, she had donned a set of Enclave Tesla Armour. The sleek metal plates and the horrible insectoid helmet, combined with the frighteningly sparking coils on the shoulders, was more than enough to inspire fear. The woman inside the armour was just icing on the proverbial cake.

She stepped over the corpses and deeper into the Vault, smiling behind the helmet as she heard the sounds of scared Outcasts yelling at each other. When she stepped into the atrium, she was greeted by a dozen of them, each frozen in varying states of preparedness. “Alright, you sonsa bitches!” she yelled as she opened fire. “Eat laser!”

Later, she would muse that it sounded much better when the line was ‘Eat lead’.

Dom let out a sigh. “Fine. Let’s get this over with. Got something I can use?”

“You’re going to go through with this?” Shining Armor asked, sounding worried.

“If I don’t, I’ll never hear the end of it,” the ghoul replied.

“What’s going on?” Veronica had finally decided to stop gawking at the locals and rejoin the rest of the humans.

“Three of them want to fight me.”

The Scribe looked at the Paladin. “Oh neat! Can we watch?”

Before anyone else could say anything, Thomas spoke. “I swear you were depressed a few days ago.”

Veronica shrugged. “A little hard to stay depressed in a place like this, even if I can’t understand a word anyone says.”

“That is some rather impressive armour you’re wearing,” Grimfeather said, looking Veronica up and down.

“Thanks.”

“Are you absolutely sure you want to fight three Griffons?”

“So I’ve only been fighting since I was nineteen,” she shrugged. “I’ve been forced into a war simulation, enslaved, abducted, anal-probed, lobotomised and ghoulified. I can manage easily enough.”

Veronica, Shining Armor and Grimfeather stared at her. “You’ve been lobotomised too?” Thomas asked.

“You weren’t lobotomised, you had your whole fucking brain pulled out. Anyway,” she said loudly. “I’m going to need a weapon, something I can use to crack some skulls with. Also, I want to talk with Shining alone.”

Five minutes later, Dom emerged from the armoury with a large training sword. While she would have preferred a sledgehammer or even a Super Sledge, it was the best they had. “Let’s do this.”

Shining Armor followed her out, looking at her worriedly. “Just letting you know, you can still back out.”

“Fuck that,” she said harshly. “I’m gonna teach them that you don’t piss off the Lone Wanderer. Besides,” she continued as she rolled her shoulder, “I’ve been cooped up in a freaking Vertibird for weeks. I need to stretch.”

“I’m afraid we have another problem,” Grimfeather said to Shining, knocking him from his musings. “One of your unicorns wants to take a crack at our flesh-rotten friend as well.”

Shining let out an aggravated groan while Dom chuckled. She muttered something about someone called ‘Daring’ Dashwood and went over to the other humans. “This won’t end well,” the stallion muttered.

“Yes, you’ve got that right,” his counterpart said.

“No, I mean for your Griffons and the unicorn,” Shining clarified. “Thomas, the one with the dark skin?” Grimfeather nodded, showing he knew which one he was talking about. “He faced three Night Guard captains in combat, left two of them unconscious.”

“What of the third?” the griffon asked in a whisper, not entirely sure why he was keeping voice so low.

“She surrendered.”

The sergeant began to splutter. “S-surrender!? Impossible! Why, the reputation of the Night Guard is one of complete - ”

“What makes any of our higher ranked soldiers so dangerous is the healing amulets built into their armour,” Shining explained. “Without them, they’re no more a threat than any other pegasus or unicorn.”

Grimfeather blinked. “Isn’t that classified?”

“Not really. All the soldiers know, and they’re free to tell their families. What is classified is that those things have limits, a... well, a set amount of injuries they can heal with the magic contained.” Shining shuddered. “He fought so hard, they ran out of power.”

“Oh merciful heavens,” the griffon muttered. Then he blinked. “But that was him.”

“I get the feeling the ghoul, as she calls herself, is even deadlier.”

“All right, anything you can tell me?” Dom asked as she swung around the padded training sword.

“Well, Grimfeather over there told me that a Griffon’s claw can slice through metal,” Veronica said cheerfully. “And that they’re fast.”

“Go for the wings,” Thomas said. “If they get airborne, you’ll get tackled like before.”

“What about the unicorn?” Dom asked, removing her weapons and placing them on the ground.

“Unicorn?” Thomas asked back. When the ghoul nodded, he face-palmed. “Well, they’re completely fucked then.”

“Why?”

“For reasons I have yet to determine, their magic is identical to gamma radiation,” Thomas explained to the Scribe. Her eyebrows disappeared into her fringe and her jaw dropped. “So, while me and you are fucked without a lot of Radaway, Dom is practically invincible.”

“How does that even makes sense?” Veronica asked.

“Guess I didn’t need Shining to pump me full of radiation, then,” the ghoul muttered.

“What? I thought you had to be in radiation to heal,” Veronica said as she picked up her jaw. “I don’t think you can use stored radiation to heal yourself.”

“I’ve been like this for years, I’ve picked up a few tricks,” Dom replied cryptically. She reached into her armour and pulled out her pair of Lucky Shades. “Let’s do this.”

Standing across from the three feathered killers and their unicorn companion, Paladin Esposito felt confident. True, she had never found herself in such a situation before but, as she had learnt shortly after leaving Vault 101, she was very adaptable.

The griffons were wearing little armour, instead relying on speed and agility. What armour they did wear was mostly leather barding with metal plates over the more vulnerable areas. Their heads were completely uncovered.

The unicorn was a member of the Day Guard, a mare at that. Much like every member of the guard, her armour had rendered her a clone of her compatriots, though there was a purple star set in the barrel. She was wearing a fierce scowl that, were it actually possible, would probably melt Dom’s left arm.

Around them, and separating the combatants from the spectators, was a shield erected by Knight-Commander Shining Armor. It was a translucent, colourless bubble, approximately twenty yards in diameter. He assured her that it would keep anything within the shield safely contained, meaning they could fight as viciously as they liked. He made it abundantly clear that he did not like the notion.

“Alright, chaps, the rules for this shall be simple. No gouging, no excessive clawing, no ripping out throats, no disemboweling, no magic above third tier spells and no killing. This is a friendly fight, I do not want to be the one to tell your families you died in a spar. That would just be embarrassing,” Grimfeather groused as he hovered above the dome. “Now then, I believe you want to get this over and done with, so I won’t delay your insatiable bloodthirst any further.”

“Did you really have to say that?” Shining asked as the Griffon alighted next to him.

“Well, it is the truth.”

Before the unicorn could respond, there was a horrific sound from the bubble. Two of the Griffons had managed to take flight and had moved as if to tackle the ghoul. One of them dove over her head, providing a distraction for the second. Unfortunately, things didn’t go as planned for the flying beasts of myth.

Dom had expected something like that, and had brought her padded sword right into the second griffon’s flight path. Unable to abort, he flared his wings in an attempt to slow down. It succeeded, but that only gave her a chance to bring the sword down onto his head with a mighty two-handed, overhead swing.

While the padding may have prevented the blow from doing too much damage, more than enough was done when the Griffon hit the ground. He now lay unconscious, a crack in his beak marking the point of impact.

The audience could only watch as the textbook maneuver failed spectacularly. The two remaining Griffon combatants immediately switched things up, going in for a no-bars-hold beating. The ghoul could only do so much to block the damage, but her armour took a heavy number of scratches, as did her uncovered arm.

Without warning, she let out a horrible, gravelly scream as she dropped her sword. One of the Griffons had managed to grab hold of her right arm and, using enough force to snap a charging manticore’s neck, broke it.

The Griffons backed away, while the unicorn simply watched in disdain. “So, the great warrior falls to a broken arm,” she sneered. “How pathetic.”

Shining resisted the urge to facehoof. “Why is Captain Starburst in there? She hates non-ponies.”

“Honestly?” Grimfeather asked. “I was hoping your friend would show her some humility. Heavens knows that arrogant mare needs it.”

“You think I’m done, don’t you?” Dom asked as she stood, seemingly ignorant of the pain she was surely in. She brought her injured arm up and held it out for a moment. Green fumes seemed to rise up, much to the confusion of everyone watching. Without warning, the arm snapped back into place in a completely unnatural fashion. “What the fuck!?” Thomas exclaimed, looking horrified.

“That’s not normal,” Veronica claimed in an unusually small voice.

There was the sound of at least one audience member throwing up, but apart from that there was silence. Captain Starburst gaped, her confident expression gone. “W-what are you?” she stammered.

“Let me introduce myself,” Dom declared to her shell-shocked audience. “I’m the Lone Wanderer.” She bent down and picked up her sword. “Now I’ll show you how we do things in the Capital Wasteland.”

Author’s Notes:

Are the bits with Dom’s past unnecessary, or are they fun bits of extra information?

Also, thanks to my good friend Beese for making Grimfeather’s lines so very British.

06: Ghouls and Trauma

Vault 101, mid-2278

Dom watched as the door to the Overseer’s Office opened, Vengeance pointed through the gap. She had purged the Vault of every single Outcast, she was sure. The Maintenance level, the Lower levels, the Atrium and Upper levels, she had walked through them all, exterminating the power-armoured invaders like one would a Radroach infestation. The residents had been rounded up and placed under something akin to house arrest, locked into their apartments to keep them from causing trouble.

They hadn’t reacted well to the Lone Wanderer’s return. The last time she had returned had ended in a change in management and plenty of hurt feelings. Finding out she was here to save them, along with a number of radio reports from Galaxy News Radio, was enough to sway a good portion of the Vault’s population, much to her relief. The ones that weren’t, she wasn’t concerned with.

The Outcast standing at the Overseer’s Terminal looked up. Dom had seen him before. She’d even helped him numerous times. “Casdin,” she growled.

“How do you know my name?” the man asked, sounding panicky.

“What, don’t remember your local scavenger-for-hire?” Dom asked sardonically. “Look how far I’ve come, Protector,” she sneered. “Get out.”

“Out?” he asked. “Out!? The tech in this Vault is incredible! Those savages have no idea what they’re sitting on!”

“Their home. The one place untouched by the Capital Wasteland, until you fuckers showed up. You ruined everything.” Dom stepped closer, pointing the Gatling Laser at his bare face. “You claim to protect technology, to protect it from those who don’t understand. You’re just a pack of Raiders with a hard-on for anything more advanced than a lightbulb.” She let out a stream of crimson fury into the Protector’s right shoulder, melting holes through his armour. As the man writhed on the ground in pain, Dom stepped closer. “You know what I do to Raiders.”

“You sick - ” His last words were cut off as lasers impacted with his face. Sheer chance reduced the man responsible for the attack on Vault 101 to nothing but ash.

Dom ignored the sizzling sound as she walked away. She sat down in one of the alcoves and took off her helmet. She sighed as she looked at the face of the helmet. In the visors she could make out her reflection. Her dirty face, her unwashed red hair, the scars... Hard to think it had barely been a year since she had been forced out into the Wastes on a quest to find her father. “Am I doing the right thing, dad?” she asked. “I know this isn’t what you wanted for me. You just wanted me to be safe. Now I’m a soldier, fighting a war I never wanted.” She closed her eyes as the tears came. “Why can’t I just let things happen? Why do I have to get involved?”

Dom stomped towards the unicorn, the sword’s tip dragging along the ground. If it was an actual sword it would have been really impressive, but the padding just made things a little bit funny. No-one was in any state to laugh, though. It had taken the ghoul barely three minutes to incapacitate the two remaining Griffons, leaving them both unconscious. One had a broken wing and legs, while the other had been smacked in the head so hard he had simply collapsed.

Starburst had done what she could from a distance, but there seemed to have been no effect. Every blast of magic seemed to dissipate harmlessly on impact, and every time Dom had laughed. And now, she was coming for her.

Captain Starburst backed away as much as she could, stopping with a frightened squeak when she hit Shining Armor’s bubble. “Stay away from me, you skinless freak!” she screamed, a trace of defiance in her voice. Unfortunately, she had done so in perfect Zebrican.

“Freak?” Dom asked, her tone the kind reserved for divine fury. “Freak!?” She brought the sword and swung it with such force the unicorn was sent flying. “No-one calls me a freak!” she screamed as she began to violently bludgeon the mare.

She stopped after ten swings when she noticed that none of the injuries were permanent. “That’s right,” Dom hissed menacingly. “That little star keeps healing you, doesn’t it?” she asked as she hefted the pony up in a terrifying display of strength. With her left hand she gripped Starburst’s throat and brought her up to eye level.

As Starburst struggled to breathe, she locked eyes with the ghoul. What she saw in those small, beady eyes was nothing short of demonic. There was no compassion, no love, no joy. There was only malice, hate and anger. All of it directed at her.

Dom’s right hand came around and grabbed the captain’s star on her barrel. With the sound of protesting metal, she ripped it off. “Not anymore!” she yelled maniacally, dropping the terrified mare.

The once-proud Captain Starburst, now a blubbering wreck, tried to get away. But the bubble meant to separate the combatants from the non-combatants was now her prison. And Dom was not the sort to let someone she was fighting get away.

“Help!” Starburst screamed, hammering against the shield with her hooves. “Let me out! She’s gonna kill me! She’s gonna kill me-e-e-e-e!” she wailed.

“Commander,” Grimfeather said, finally breaking his silence. “Commander!” he repeated, this time yelling.

“Huh? Whuh?” Shining Armor came out his stunned state and looked at the Griffon.

“The shield! Drop the bloody shield!”

“What? Oh, right!” His horn lost its glow and the bubble evaporated. Starburst, now with nothing to lean against, landed on her chin before getting to her hooves and galloping away as fast as she could through the crowd.

“Get back here, you sack of brahmin shit!” Dom yelled as she gave chase. Before she could even get three feet, Thomas came out of nowhere and tackled her to the ground. “Oof!”

Before she could do anything, he smacked her in the face so hard he heard her jaw crack. “What the fuck was that crap!?” he screamed. “A friendly fight! What don’t you get about that!?”

His scowl disappeared and was replaced with disgust when her jaw snapped back into place. “Get the fuck off me,” the ghoul growled. “I’m gonna make that fucking horse my bitch.”

“Are you listening to yourself?” Thomas asked, the anger gone and replaced with confusion. “Fucking hell, you’re the Lone Wanderer. You wrote the Wasteland Survival Guide. You’re a fucking hero, for god’s sake. Heroes don’t act like this,” he said, the anger coming back.

Dom’s furious expression evaporated at those words. She recalled something, words her father had said not hours before he had sacrificed himself.

”My little girl, a hero. I’m so proud of you.”

The ghoul blinked as she pushed herself up, the manic energy gone. She stared at the ground for a moment before bowing her head, not saying a word.

Ten minutes later, Shining had managed to get the humans into a small, secluded part of the barracks, a meeting room or sorts.

“Mind telling me just WHAT THE HAY HAPPENED!?” Shining Armor screamed at the still-desolate Paladin.

“Go easy on her, Shiny,” Thomas said nervously.

“Shut up,” the stallion said harshly. “I may not like Starburst, but I hated seeing her traumatised like that. And your ‘friend’ here is responsible,” he finished, jabbing a hoof at her violently.

“I... I’m sorry,” Dom said quietly. “I don’t know what came over me.”

“Uh...” They all turned to Veronica, who had until this point remained completely silent. “I think I do.”

“What would you know about ghouls?” Thomas asked. “You lived underground.”

“I was also the ‘procurement specialist’. I went topside all the time. Met a few ghouls.” Veronica stood up from the chair and began to pace the small room. “There’s two main reasons a ghoul will turn feral.”

“Feral?” Shining asked, not liking the implications.

“They become mindless animals. Every ghoul fears that,” Dom explained. “Ferocious post-necrotic dystrophy, if you want to be fancy.”

“The main one is isolation. Doesn’t help that ghoulification does things to the brain to start with, but with no-one to talk to you’re bound to end up feral,” Veronica said, ignoring the others. “The other is, well, kind of ironic.”

“Ironic?” Thomas asked. “What do you mean by that?”

“Radiation.” The other three stared at Veronica dumbfoundedly.

“That’s bullshit,” Dom said. “Radiation heals ghouls, how can it turn us feral?”

“You’ve seen glowing ones, right?” the Scribe asked. When the Paladin nodded, she went on. “And how many weren’t trying to rip you apart with their bare hands?”

Dom blinked as what she was saying sunk in. “Oh god. Oh god!” she exclaimed. “Radaway! Give me some fucking Radaway!” she started yelling. Shining backed away, worried that he would get hit, but also a little upset that he was partly responsible.

“Calm down!” Veronica yelled, pushing the panicking Paladin back into her chair. She grabbed Dom by the shoulders and looked her in the eyes. “The main thing that stops ghouls going feral is willpower.”

“That explains Bright,” Thomas muttered.

“All you have to do is want to stay sane. It’s just like chem addiction.”

“When the fuck did you get so serious?” Thomas asked.

“I only make bad jokes when it’s appropriate,” she retorted smartly, before turning back to the panicking ghoul. “Being around people you can trust will help as well.” Her tone had turned from serious to calm, gentle, something one would use to reassure a frightened child. “From what Sentinel Lyons tells me, everyone in Washington likes and respects you, even if they’re too scared to show it.”

“I... I guess they would, huh?” Dom asked, her voice shaky and full of false confidence.

“You defused a live nuke, saved a town from Super Mutants, wiped out slavers, helped escaped slaves, and toppled the Enclave,” Veronica said warmly. “Of course they do.” Without warning, she leaned in and hugged her.

Dom stared across the room for a moment before returning the gesture, despite the fact that Veronica’s T-51b meant she couldn’t feel it. “Thanks.”

“Okay, I call bullshit. Defusing a nuke?” Thomas asked loudly, destroying the happy moment.

“It was Chinese, the Chinese made nothing but junk.”

Author’s Notes:

Originally, it was gonna be Dom bitch-slapping the everloving crap out of the bigot pony. Then I realised that was bad. And wrong. It was badong.

And the reason Dom had such an easy victory over even deadlier foes is because she has experience that Thomas simply doesn’t. Anchorage, the Pitt, Point Lookout, Mothership Zeta...

07: What Lies in The Past

Capital Wasteland, north of the National Guard Depot, early-2279

Greg ducked behind a rock and panted for breath. Life had been pretty easy for the simple Raider. Attack a caravan, get high off the chems they stole, use the corpse to decorate their base, then repeat the process. Then, she showed up.

In the two years since she had crawled out of that hole in the ground, things had changed. Greg’s gang, close to a hundred strong and with three permanent bases, had been reduced to him and five others. As the oldest, the others looked to him for guidance and leadership. All he wanted to do was run as far as he could into whatever lay east of DC. He didn’t care if there were feral ghouls, killer robots or Super Mutants. Anything would have been better than -

“Stop hiding!” She had found them. “You’re only making it worse for yourselves!”

Greg peaked around the rock and saw her. Hidden behind the power armour was an emotionless killing machine, with enough firepower to put them all in their graves.

Dominica looked around, trying to find the Raiders. She knew they were here somewhere. She didn’t like hunting people down like animals, but she had to make a point to the criminal population of the Wastes, and the only language they understood was violence. She sighed under the Winterized T-51b and shifted her Gauss Rifle in her grip. She was sorely tempted to just walk away and leave them alone. True, the Elder wouldn’t like that she had let Raiders get away, but she just didn’t care anymore. The Capital Wasteland was, for the first time ever, safe.

Well, as safe as a place could be when it was populated by murderous criminals, mutated animals and crazed killer robots. But the fact was that the towns of the Wastes were thriving and expanding thanks to Project Purity. Rivet City had a small tent town on the old runway. Big Town had moved its perimeter fence and now encompassed over three dozen houses. Paradise Falls, the former slaver stronghold, now had a peaceful, law-abiding populace. Arefu was no longer confined to the old freeway, several shacks having been built in the field next to it. There was even talk of moving Megaton’s walls to accommodate a larger population.

The fact of the matter was, criminal activity like that performed by Raiders was becoming a rarity, and maybe leaving one group alone wouldn’t be a problem in the long run.

Just as Dom considered throwing up her arms in exasperation and turning around, a Raider with dirty brown hair popped out from behind a rock and opened fire at her. She had no idea what she had been hoping to do. Maybe she had expected to catch her off-guard. She snorted at the thought: if you wanted to catch Dom off-guard you’d want a set of wings to fly on.

The Raider emptied the magazine of 10mm bullets from her Chinese pistol into the Lone Wanderer, each shot bouncing off her poly-laminate composite shell. “You done?” she asked when the Raider looked at her gun as though wondering why it had stopped working.

Before the spike-and-scrap-clad woman could respond, the Paladin’s Gauss Rifle sent a metal slug through her gut at several times the speed of sound. She exploded in a shower of gore, one that elicited a scared shout from behind a rock.

“We surrender! For the love of god, we surrender!”

Dom sighed as she polished her left arm with an old rag. It was several hours after the fight that went so horribly wrong, and she still sat in the meeting room. Despite what everyone else had said, she managed to convince them that leaving her alone with her thoughts was best for now.

Her thoughts travelled back to her earlier life, her time in Vault 101. Things had been so carefree, so innocent. Life was so much easier when everyone believed that the outside world had essentially been destroyed, and the Vault was the only thing keeping anyone alive.

Then, not long after she turned nineteen, her life was thrown upside down. She had been forced to flee from her home, found out she hadn’t been born in the Vault, and killed a man to save another. All in one day. The fact that Burke was a heartless, evil bastard happy to massacre an entire town for his own gain didn’t help Dominica sleep easy that night. She had taken a life, she had killed another person. And nothing could ever change that.

It was because of that that she decided to wait before searching for her father. She wanted time to try and figure things out in her head. To that end, she became a small-time mercenary, performing odd jobs that wouldn’t put her too much in harm’s way. During that time, she managed to defuse the bomb in the Megaton crater, did all the practical research for the Wasteland Survival Guide and found herself a rather rare laser rifle. During that time she also had her first run-in with Talon Company.

After she had barely survived, she decided that she had to change her outlook on life. Killing was wrong, there was no denying that, but some people had to die. Some people were so horrible that their deaths would leave no mourners. It had still taken her some time to properly feel that way, but after she had she decided it was time to go after her father and get some answers.

In Vault 112, she had learnt another harsh, horrible lesson. To kill in mercy is not to kill, but to save. Activating the failsafe in Tranquility Lane had reduced her to a bawling mess, and she hated herself for doing what she had to.

”I killed them!” she screamed as she sat huddled against one of the loungers. “I killed them!”

“Dom,” James said, wrapping his crying daughter in a tight hug, “the right thing isn’t always easy. Braun was doing horrible things to those people for centuries. You saved them. And I’ve never been prouder.”

After that, things seemed to be simple enough again. She had her father, she had a purpose, and she was going to do something. Then the Enclave showed up. Barely two days after the reunion, and he was ripped from her life again, this time permanently. And she let her rage win. For three days, she was violent, moody, and liable to yell at someone for no good reason. It had taken one of the younger Initiates in the Citadel, not much older than she was, to help her get her head back on straight.

She was shaken out of her reminiscing when someone knocked on the door. “Um... Paladin Esposito?”

“Don’t bother with any of that, Veronica,” the ghoul replied as she stood up. “You’re not with my chapter, just ‘Dom’ is fine.”

“Oh, right.” She could hear the sound of fidgeting outside before she spoke again. “Well, it’s lunch time, if you want. Just letting you know.”

“Thanks.” She walked over to the door and opened it, seeing the Scribe there looking concerned.

“How are you doing?”

“Better, thanks. I was just thinking about my father.”

“The Sentinel told me about that. I’m sorry.” Veronica stepped to the side and started walking, Dom following close behind. “I know what it’s like.”

“You do?” she asked, raising the muscles that used to control her eyebrows.

“Well, not really, but I know how hard it is to try and go on without your parents.” Veronica sighed. “People expect you to just forget it because it’s the Wasteland, but - ”

“But to forget that kind of thing means you stop being human,” Dom said, finishing her sentence.

“Wow. I was just gonna say that’s it not that easy, but what you said works,” Veronica said happily.

“Well, both are true.” The ghoul was silent for a while. “Say, why’d you leave the Brotherhood anyway?” she asked suddenly.

Veronica became rigid and her expression froze in an awkward grimace. “I... I don’t want to talk about it.”

Dom blinked. “Was it that bad?”

“It wasn’t the leaving that was bad, it was what came after.” Veronica sighed bitterly. “It wasn’t enough that I decided I’d had enough, they had to come after me and make sure I wouldn’t say anything I shouldn’t.”

“What, like where the Brotherhood was?” For Dom, that made perfect sense. If she had to remain hidden and a member of her group had decided to leave, she too would want to make sure that no-one knew where to come looking.

“No, like anything to do with how anything worked. They were sooo convinced that they were so much better than everyone else that they went and murdered doctors and scientists.” Veronica looked at the ground sadly. “They nearly got me, too.”

Dom just blinked before shaking her head. “Fuck. Sounds like the Outcasts. They splintered off when Elder Lyons decided to focus his efforts towards helping the Wasteland instead of gathering tech,” she explained when Veronica raised an eyebrow at her. “Had to wipe them out a while back,” she added sadly.

“Oh... wow.” Veronica didn’t have much to say about that. “That can’t have been easy.”

“Yeah, a lot of the ones that stayed had friends who left.” Dom made as though to run her hand through her hair, but it went through thin air instead.

“So... what, you couldn’t convince anyone to come back after you got the giant killer robot and the water purifier working?” Veronica asked. “You’d think that’d be enough.”

“I guess it was a matter of principle at that point,” the Paladin said thoughtfully. “The way they saw things, anyone can make another human, but no-one can remember how to put together a P94. Whatever that is.”

“Plasma caster,” Veronica answered immediately. “Really rare, and really powerful. It can melt a hole right through a set of T-51b.” She pounded her chest, eliciting a clang, as if to emphasize her point.

Dom made a strange whistling noise. “And I thought plasma rifles were dangerous.” They emerged from the barracks, and made their way over to where the Griffons were. “Damn, that smells good.”

From the group of predators ripping into their meat, they could see Thomas waving at them. “Hey! You need to try this. It’s good!”

Author’s Notes:

Yeah, a bit different, kind of a self-imposed challenge/experiment.

Also, I think the game really glossed over just how someone would react to essentially committing mass murder in Vault 112 (if you’re going for good karma). Also, another reason the Outcasts wouldn’t touch it the place: rather fresh corpses.

Oh, and you need lips to whistle. One of the downsides to being a ghoul.

08: Calm Before the Storm

Galaxy News Radio broadcast, late 2279

Hey, kiddies, this is Three-Dog coming to you with a special live news bulletin.

Normally, I don’t bother with this kind of thing. Usually I just pre-record and press a few buttons, y’know? But this... Oh god, this...

*sigh* It’s the Enclave. I know, I know, I thought they were gone as well. I haven’t had this verified, but reports seem to indicate that what we’re seeing are those who haven’t been captured, don’t give a damn that their organisation is gone, and are more than willing to march in and wipe everyone out.

So far, Arefu and Big Town have been attacked. They’ve been using hit-and-run tactics, mainly plasma and laser weapons. I’ve also heard that these bastards even have a few Vertibirds of their own. According to the Paladins stationed here at the station, those things can be rigged to drop bombs. So if you see one fly overhead and you can’t tell if it’s Brotherhood or not, get to cover. Lay a trap if you can.

The Brotherhood has started preparing to fight. I know our boys and gals in power armour are brilliant, but they’re gonna need all the help they can get. So here’s what I want you to do. Anyone with an assault rifle, a pistol, hell, even a sledgehammer, offer your help wherever you can. Even if they just have you lugging stuff around, every bit helps.

Every merc, hunter, hell, even any Raiders that are still out there. This is not an enemy you can just ignore or run from like you used to with the Frankensteins. They will track you down, and likely do everything in their power to make your death as painful as possible. Your only option is to fight.

The good news is that their numbers will be limited. Brotherhood intelligence seems to indicate that it’s only a few squads. I know for a fact that enough Raiders can overwhelm those power armoured bastards with enough numbers. And that armour will stop a bullet, but it won’t do much about explosives. Use everything you’ve got. This is your survival we’re talking about here, and if you want to keep on living you’re going to have to fight for it.

What’s more, we have our own superweapon. No, it’s not a giant killer robot that shoots lasers out of its eyes or anything like that. No, it’s a woman. Yes, just one. She toppled the Enclave before. She’ll do it again. Don’t you worry about that.

The two humans, the ghoul and the Griffons sat around a small fire, where a number of small creatures were being roasted on a spit.

“What is this?” Thomas asked as he chewed.

“Rabbit,” one of the Griffons replied.

“What’s a rabbit?” Veronica asked.

“What we’re eating,” Dom replied smartly. “Tastes gamey.”

“We sent out a hunting party a few days ago,” Grimfeather replied as he tore at the rabbit in his claws. “From what they said, they didn’t even have to try.”

As they sat and ate, Dom noticed a few Griffons, males and females, giving her looks. They weren’t the looks she was accustomed to, though.

Thomas noticed he was getting a few as well. “Okay, what’s with the stares?” he asked nervously.

One of the other Griffons leaned over and whispered to them. “For our kind, the most... appealing thing is how good one can fight. Scars are a good sign of that.”

The Lone Wanderer and the Courier blinked before looking at each other. There was no denying it, they both had their fair share of scars, and had seen more fights than any living person had a right to. Between them, they’d seen their fair share of killer mercenaries, crazed robots, tyrannical maniacs and bloodthirsty murderers. This, though, was new.

“I’m... not sure how to feel about this.” Dom’s voice was full of unease. True, it did feel nice to be attractive again after two years of being seen as unappealing at best. What she didn’t like was that the ones who were interested in her were creatures ripped straight from the pages of myth.

“You guys think I’m sexy?” Thomas asked while smiling smugly.

“No-one wants me?” Veronica asked, pouting and making sad puppy-dog eyes.

Before anyone could make any comment on the Scribe’s love life, a pegasus in Day Guard armour flew into their midst. He wrinkled his nose at the meat but didn’t appear to say anything. He jabbered at Sergeant Grimfeather for a few moments, gesturing to the three humans. The Griffon nodded and the pegasus disappeared.

“Looks like we’ll have to cut lunch short.”

“What do you mean, there are only three!?”

“That’s what the letter said, sir.”

“I assigned fifteen! The Elements of Harmony are close to useless without the Bearers to use them!”

“Sir, I really - ”

“Get out. Prepare a chariot, I’m leading the charge myself.”

“Yes, sir.”

Two ponies, another pegasus in gold armour, and Knight-Commander Shining Armor, walked out of the latter’s office. The unicorn’s filthy expression was mercifully hidden under his helmet. “I swear, when I find out who was responsible - ” His furious tirade was cut off when he nearly ran straight into Veronica.

“Why do you need us?”

Shining Armor took a deep breath to compose himself. “I’m assuming the sergeant told you about the situation.”

“Actually, only that you need us,” Dom replied. “Then he flew off, something about going ahead.”

“Thank heavens for small mercies,” the armoured pony muttered. “Ponyville was attacked, the largest one yet.”

“Isn’t that where your sister lives?” Thomas asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Her, and the other Element Bearers. I’ll explain later,” he added when he saw the matching blank looks. “What matters is that we protect the town. We can’t let them be captured. Or worse.”

All three Wastelanders immediately knew that he meant by ‘worse’. “So, what? You want our help?”

“As much as I hate to admit it, yes. There are only two other Knights in the castle, and only one of them has armour.”

“What, you custom-fit the armour?” Dom asked.

“It’s better than chafing.” Thomas cringed in response. “There should be a chariot able to take us there ready in a few minutes. I’ll lead you there.”

“Is it just me, or do things happen around us?” Veronica asked as they followed.

“I know what you mean,” the ghoul added unhappily. “And I left DC to relax,” she lamented.

“What.”

“There is no way that can hold me.”

“You’re not that fat.”

Veronica made a threatening gesture with her Power Fist towards Thomas. “Have you forgotten how heavy power armour is, Thomas?”

The Courier climbed in and sighed. “Look, it’s magic. That’s all there is to anything here.”

“I’ll ignore the gross over-simplification,” the armoured mare in the chariot muttered. Her Knight armour made it hard to see any truly distinguishing details, but the cutie mark, indigo tail and dark grey horn were familiar to Thomas.

“Have we met before?”

“Well, because of you, Firebolt walked away with half my paycheck,” she muttered unhappily.

“Captain, quiet down,” Shining Armor said harshly. “You two, get in. I can guarantee that you can’t fall out of this.”

“Yes sir,” Shadow Dancer muttered in Equestrian. “Just as long as you promise to keep your emotions in check this time.”

“We agreed not to discuss that,” he muttered wearily as he watched the Paladin and the Scribe step carefully onto the chariot.

“So she’s the one who made Starbutt cry?” Shadow asked, nodding at the ghoul.

“What have we said about calling her that?”

“Hey, that self-righteous nag had it coming. I just wish I was there to see it myself.”

With a lurch the chariot became airborne, startling the five occupants.

Dom and the two unicorns were completely unphased, the Knights by years of service, the Paladin by numerous Vertibird flights. Thomas was looking uneasy, but had distracted himself by removing his dismantled anti-materiel rifle from his duster to reassemble it. Veronica’s reaction was quite unexpected.

“WHOOOO! THIS IS SO COOL! AAAAAAHAHAHAH!”

“Not the smoothest take-off I’ve had,” Dom said calmly as the other three stared at the Scribe.

Ponyville had been deserted. Any sign of the daily grind had vanished with the residents. The only signs of life was the great purple bubble erected around the Town Hall and the numerous Diamond Dogs hammering against it, and the numerous skirmishes between the Dogs and the Griffons under Grimfeather’s command.

“Keep attacking!” one of them yelled. “We’ll get through soon! It can’t last forever.”

Suddenly, the one that had spoke vanished in an explosion of burning gore. As his underlings looked around in terror, there was another, this time ripping two Dogs in half and leaving their bodies ablaze.

Up above, the chariot travelled in a circuit around Ponyville.

“What did you say that was?” Shadow asked, her tone a mix of awe and fear.

“My .50 caliber flaming sword of justice with telescopic sight.” Thomas pulled the bolt of his rifle back and ejected the spent shell. “God I love incendiary rounds.” He chambered another round and looked back down, trying to pick a target. “Fuck, they’ve disappeared.”

“They’ve probably burrowed down.” Shining looked at the huge weapon Thomas had. “I don’t think it’d be a good idea to bring that with you.”

“Yeah, feels more like a shotgun situation,” the black man replied as he set down the rifle and pulled the pump-action 12 gauge off his back.

Veronica, who had since calmed down, rolled her shoulders. “I want to punch something,” she said as she cracked her knuckles.

Dom didn’t say anything, letting her grin as she pulled the ripcord of her Auto-Axe do all the talking.

Author’s Notes:

Okay then, I may have made Dom and Veronica genre savvy. It just happened.

Thomas is not overcompensating. Luna can attest to that.

There will be much violence next chapter. Today’s weather, excessively violent, with a chance of dismemberment.

09: Getting Started...

Arefu, late-2279

“No, no, no...” Dom muttered.

She looked around hopelessly, refusing to believe what she was seeing. “God damn it,” Sentinel Sarah Lyons muttered.

“Those bastards,” Gallows said quietly.

The settlement of Arefu, built on an old overpass bridge and the fields around it, had been destroyed. The ones who had set up on land had gotten lucky, their homes reduced to piles of scrap. Those on the bridge had suffered a much crueler fate. Not only had the bridge been attacked, it had been blown up. What was left was lying in the dried-up Potomac River.

“How the fuck did they do this?” Dom asked, walking slowly towards the rubble, the servo-motors in her T-45d helping her climb over the rubble. She strained her eyes and managed to see the remains of shacks made from scrap. From this distance it was impossible to see any bodies. She was thankful for that.

“You think any got out?”

“I hope so, Gallows,” the Sentinel muttered.

To the south, a pair of Enclave troopers sat on a rock. “There they are, power-armoured boy scouts.”

“Do you have to call them that?”

“It’s what they are,” the first one replied. “The rifle any good?”

The second one looked at the old sniper rifle they had stolen from a mercenary. “Should be. Looks like it’ll just fall apart, though.”

“Give me gauss weaponry any day,” the first one grumbled. “Think you can make the shot?”

“Should be easy enough.” The second one shouldered the weapon and looked down the scope. “I’ll have to compensate for drop... wind... Which one should I go for?”

“Take your pick.”

“What the...?” The one with the Sniper Rifle leaned forwards slightly. “Holy crap, it’s her.”

“Her? You don’t mean...?”

“You seen anyone else with one of those wrist computers?” the sniper asked excitedly. “If I kill her - ”

“Take the shot,” the first one interrupted. “Take the fucking shot, we won’t get this lucky again!”

The Enclave sniper pulled the trigger. Four hundred yards away, Dom fell to the ground with a scream.

“Holy shit!” Sarah looked around, and saw the glint of a scope and two armoured figures running. “Gallows, help!”

“This is Gallows, we need Vertibird extraction, now! Paladin Esposito is hit, and we have two Enclave personnel running south. They may be part of a larger force, so send reinforcements too.”

Dominica forced herself up with a grunt and unholstered her plasma pistol. She fired wildly in the general direction of the Enclave sniper, using all the power in the energy cell before collapsing. “Oh shit,” Lyons muttered.

“How bad is it?” Gallows asked, pulling his R91 Assault Rifle off his back.

“They got really lucky,” Sarah said, jabbing Dom with a Med-X syringe. “Hit the servo, sent shrapnel everywhere.” Gallows didn’t say anything, instead opting to stand guard. “I don’t think we can save it.”

Veronica was the first out of the chariot, jumping from it before it landed. For her eagerness, she landed face-first after losing her balance.

“Real smooth,” Dom said as she walked over to the Scribe.

“Shut up.”

Thomas walked up, flanked by the two ponies on either side. “So, what’s the plan?” he asked as Veronica pushed herself back up onto her feet.

“Shadow Dancer and I will go to the town hall to assess the situation there and provide assistance if necessary,” Shining Armour said commandingly. “I can trust you three to help?”

“Sure, why not?” Veronica dusted her armour off and looked around. “Wow. Colourful.”

“Thank you, Captain Obvious,” Dom said snidely. “With observational skills like that, you’ll make Elder in no time.”

Veronica shot a glare at the Paladin that, due to her helmet, went completely unnoticed. “This is nothing, wait until you see the rest of the ponies,” Thomas said with a snicker.

“You mean what we saw in the castle wasn’t nuts?” the ghoul asked.

“I feel insulted,” Shadow Dancer muttered unhappily.

“Look, you can poke fun at us later, we have a job to do!” Shining said irritatedly.

Thomas opened his mouth to respond, but instead spun around and pulled the trigger of his shotgun.

A Diamond Dog had unfortunately chosen that moment to burst out of the ground in an attempt to take the counter-attackers by surprise. What he got for his trouble was a face full of fire as the shotgun spat a fifty-foot long tongue of flame out of its barrel.

“How’d you like a face full of Dragon’s Breath, you furry son of a bitch?” Thomas taunted as the Dog writhed on the ground in agony.

Shining and Shadow stared in shock for a moment before the latter slit the Dog’s throat with a shadow to stop its pained howling.

“Did you really just do that, Thomas?” Veronica asked flatly. “Really?”

“What do you mean?” he asked as he pumped his shotgun, ejecting the spent shell.

“You just called a dog-thing a ‘son of a bitch’,” Dom said, clarifying the situation.

The four waited for the shotgun-wielding black man to get it. “Fucking...” he muttered as he placed his left hand on his face.

“That wasn’t real dragon’s breath,” Shadow said with a roll of her eyes. “Real dragon’s breath wouldn’t have left a body.”

“I do the best with what I have,” Thomas retorted.

“You two can argue later, my sister is likely running herself ragged keeping that barrier up!” Shining yelled.

Twilight Sparkle took a deep breath as she poured more power into her spell. All around her the residents of Ponyville milled about nervously, some clinging to each other. Ponyville was well-known to suffer the occasional disaster, and the unspoken plan was to congregate in the town hall. In the past this had saved countless lives, but those events had been monsters wandering out of the Everfree, or more recently Discord’s insane warping of reality. By holing up in one place, they had inadvertently saved the Diamond Dog attackers from having to search the town.

“Twi, you can’t keep this up.” Rainbow Dash detached herself from the throng of ponies and walked slowly towards her friend. She could see the sheen of sweat coating the unicorn’s body, and the blood vessel that threatened to burst in her forehead.

“I have to,” the mare said through gritted teeth. “I need to protect everypony.”

“Twi, you need to rest. You can’t keep this up.” Rainbow landed next to her and looked into her eyes pleadingly. The rest of what she was going to say was cut off by a loud, familiar voice from outside.

“This is the Royal Guard! We are here to help!”

Twilight’s eyes widened. “S-Shiny?” she asked quietly. Her horn fizzled out and the bubble around the town hall disappeared.

The heavily-armoured stallion slammed open the door, damaging the hinges and wall it was attached to in his haste. The gathered ponies stared in a mix of awe and trepidation at this intruder.

The metal pony ignored the stares and rushed towards the purple unicorn, who chose that moment to collapse. “Twily!” Shining Armor caught his sister in his telekinesis and set her down softly.

“Sir!” A stallion called out from the civilians and made his way to the Knight-Commander. “Thank Celestia you came.” The gold-armoured pegasus looked as though he had just flown the Pegathlon, and had more than a few gouges in his armour.

“Give me a sitrep.” Shining Armor said commandingly, entering full-military mode to block out his sister’s condition.

“The Deltas attacked about an hour ago. We weren’t able to repel them with just two pegasi and a unicorn, so we rounded up the civilians and got them to meet up here.” He winced as he moved a wing. “Got more than a few scratches keeping the Deltas away. Beacon got hit pretty bad, but one of the doctors from the clinic is taking care of him.”

“Okay, it’s not that bad,” Shining muttered. “Still a bucking disaster, but we can recover.” The stallion pulled off his helmet and looked at the pegasus. “What about the other pegasus...?” He trailed off, realising he didn’t know who he was talking to.

“Oh, Private Overcast, sir,” the pegasus said after a few moments. “Corporal Hailstorm left about five minutes after the attack. She didn’t say why, though,” he said uneasily.

Before Shining could question the private any further, he was barrelled over by a pair of mares. Ignoring the pain and slight embarrassment, he righted himself and realised that he knew who they were.

“The school! She went to the school!” The orange-coated, blonde earth pony mare looked at him desperately, her face etched with worry.

“The school?” Shiny was confused. Why would Hailstorm go to the school?

“It’s just terrible!” The white, purple-maned unicorn faced him, her make-up ruined by tears. “I can’t imagine what it’s like for poor Sweetie Bell...”

That name was familiar to him. His jaw dropped when he remembered why.

Thomas looked down the sight of his shotgun uneasily. “Where the fuck are they?”

“Hiding,” Dom growled, keeping a finger on the switch that would send the blade of her Auto-Axe spinning.

Shining Armor had instructed them, along with Shadow Dancer and Veronica, to wait outside the town hall, both to keep watch and because the ponies would panic even more.

Without any warning whatsoever, the shield reappeared. The four turned to see Shining Armor, still without his helmet, poke his head out from the door.

“I’ll stay here and keep the townsfolk safe! You four need to get to the school! Now!” Before any of them could question him, the door slammed shut.

“What did he just say?” Veronica asked, pointing at the space the Commander had just occupied.

“Why would we need to go to the school?” Shadow asked loudly in Zebrican, hoping for some input.

Thomas’ expression turned grim. “We need to get moving.”

Dom’s expression had hardened. “Blood and Steel,” she muttered.

“A school?” Veronica sounded shocked. “That’s just...”

Author’s Notes:

If anyone says that the Enclave sniper destroying Dom’s left arm with a lucky shot isn’t possible, remember that the T-45d is quite primitive compared to the T-51b, and even more so compared to the Advanced Mk II. The T-45d is all riveted steel plates, with subsystems and electronics exposed or not as protected as they should be.

And yeah, a Dragon’s Breath round does in fact shoot fire about fifty feet . That’d be a on a good day, though. You’re more likely to get somewhere between thirty and forty.

The Royal Guard uses a phonetic alphabet. I haven’t got all the particulars worked out, but it’s definitely not the same as the NATO or Western Union phonetic alphabets.

Sweetie Bell was a flower girl (filly?) at his wedding.

Next chapter, I Pinkie Promise. (What does she actually do if you break one of those, anyway?)

10: Show of Force

WAPL-58 Power Station, early-2280

Dom looked out from behind a rock, unable to believe her luck. Months, months of searching that had turned up absolutely nothing, and here they were, practically waiting for someone to stumble across them. The only reason she was even in the area was to pay her respects to the dead of Arefu.

It had been four months since the incident with the Enclave sniper, three since she’d been allowed out of bed. That had not been a pleasant time for her. The years of fighting and travelling had made sitting around doing what amounted to nothing near unbearable, the only thing to break the monotony being assigned to oversee the delivery of several Mark IV laser turrets to Vault 101.

She’d only been back out in the field for two weeks, and she had decided to take the time to walk the wastes. The Elder didn’t like it, but he agreed that she had done enough to deserve a break. Much had changed. There was actual green grass, several trees had actual foliage, and people seemed much healthier. Seeing these things was enough to tell her that all her hard work, her blood and tears, her pain and sacrifices, they had all been for something.

Dominica unslung the Tesla Cannon from her back and took another look. Three of the Enclave soldiers were huddled around a flaming barrel to ward off the chill, while two more seemed to be working on their Vertibird. The Vertibird had clearly seen better days, if the cracked windshield and scorched paint-job was any indication. From what intel the Brotherhood had managed to gather, this group was all that remained. It was a small miracle that they had managed to avoid capture for the past seven weeks as well as they had.

“So fucking cold.” One of the Enclave soldiers rubbed his hands together and held them out in front of the fire.

“Stop your whining.” Another one, this one wearing an officer’s uniform, sat down and unholstered a plasma pistol. As she twiddled with it she spoke again. “All you do is complain.”

“Can you blame me?” the first one asked. “All we do is run. We never fight. We lost Jenson to a scorpion a few weeks back. A fucking scorpion!”

“It was the size of the ‘bird and fast. We’re lucky we got away at all.”

“Speaking of the ‘bird, isn’t the nose-mounted gatling laser useless?”

“The crystal array is damaged, but we can fix that.” One of the soldiers pulled his head out of the Vertibird and looked at them. “What worries me is the engine trouble we’ve been having. I can’t figure it out.”

“We’ve been doing pretty good for not actually being mechanics,” the second soldier said as he stepped out of the aircraft. “Have you seen the smoke coming from the propellor, though? Seriously, this thing is a fucking deathtrap.”

The Enclave soldiers were completely oblivious to their power-armoured audience and her intentions. As they continued to talk and complain, the Lone Wanderer steadied herself and took the shot.

They never saw it coming.

Thomas pulled the trigger of his shotgun and let loose another tongue of fire. Again, the Diamond Dog he had fired at didn’t seem to react, despite its armour becoming scorched. The Dog, which happened to be charging at him, swung its oversized club at him.

“Oh shi - ” was all he managed to say before the great, metal instrument of death slammed into his stomach. He lost his grip on his shotgun and went flying twenty feet back. When he hit the ground, he just lay there in a daze as his brain tried to comprehend just what had happened.

It had taken them five minutes to get to where the school was. When they got there, it was to the sight of close to three dozen heavily-armoured Diamond Dogs with axes and clubs, some of which were as long as Thomas was tall. Dom made a comment about their similarities to Super Mutants in stature and build. They seemed to be standing around as though waiting for orders, as the school building appeared to be completely untouched.

There had been a brief, stunned silence as the four newcomers looked at the sheer number of enemies. Eight of them had detached from the group and engaged them in combat. The only one who hadn’t seemed nervous about being so heavily outnumbered by such large foes was the Paladin.

Speaking of the ghoul, she was standing on a Dog’s chest and plunging the spinning blade of her Auto-Axe through its armour as though it wasn’t even there. “It’s called the Man Opener for a reason!” she yelled in her gravelly voice over the sound of screaming metal and screaming canine.

Veronica was faring much better than Thomas, taking the smart move and firing from a distance with her laser rifle. Then again, faring better than the Courier wasn’t exactly a challenging feat at that point in time. As another emerald beam shot out of the rectangular weapon, she screamed out to Thomas “I could use some help here!”

Thomas rose to his feet uneasily as he felt his chest. At least two of his ribs were cracked, and a third seemed to be completely broken. He couldn’t be sure until he could check his Pip-Boy. “Fuck...” he muttered, trying to find his shotgun. He found it, laying out of reach. With the Dog charging at him, there was no time to grab it. He unholstered A Light Shining in Darkness and emptied the six-round magazine at it.

Five shots went through the thick metal plating that covered the Dog’s chest, stumbling it with each impact. The last shot, through some miracle, managed to find its way through the visor. The Dog fell forwards like a puppet with its strings cut as the bullet killed the Dog almost immediately. Only for another to replace it on the field of battle.

The only member of their party who was actively giving the invading force trouble seemed to be the pony. Befitting her station as a Knight, Shadow Dancer had already taken down three Dogs and was engaged in a fight with another three.

“Are you gonna hit me?” the mare taunted as she dodged another powerful swing. Her enchanted armour would ensure that it wouldn’t cut, but the sheer force behind the blow would likely cause severe internal hemorrhaging, not to mention the number of broken bones.

Two of the Dogs charged at her, attempting to trap her in a sort of pincer movement. In retaliation, she simply disappeared, leaving the two seven-foot tall brutes to crash into each other with a loud bang. As one of the attackers fell, knocked unconscious from the collision, Shadow quite literally stepped out of its shadow much like one would pull oneself out of a bath. Before the sixth could do anything, the mare grabbed the still-conscious canine and used it as a club, beating them both into submission. “Too easy.”

Thomas just watched this rather terrifying display in silence. “Holy crap.”

“You got that right,” Veronica said, similarly awestruck. The Scribe dropped her rifle when a club slammed into her. Her Power Armour, capable of absorbing 2,500 Joules of kinetic impact, dissipated the blow harmlessly. She looked at where the club had hit her, then back up at the stunned Diamond Dog. “That was a bad idea.” The Dog didn’t know what she said, but the Power Fist slamming into its throat with deadly force got the point across. Veronica had a powerful punch as it was, the pneumatic battering ram strapped to her arm simply turned the blow from ‘crippling’ to ‘lethal’.

Dom let out a startled yelp when a Dog managed to thrust a small blade right through her left arm, causing her to drop the Man Opener she was using to disembowel its comrade. She looked at the dagger sticking out of her upper arm in annoyance. “Do you have any idea how long that’s gonna take to fix?” she asked matter-of-factly. The Dog was simply too stunned by the complete non-reaction that it failed to react when the ghoul spun around and melted a hole through its head, helmet and all, with her Novasurge.

Thomas slid a fresh magazine in his pistol just in time. He managed to get two shots off before he was tackled by a seven-foot tall mass of angry muscle. Unfortunately, the second shot managed to penetrate and rupture the Dog’s heart, leaving him pinned under dead weight. “Help!” he screamed. “Help!”

Veronica was quick to respond, but was cut off by a pair of axe-wielding Dogs. She raised her arms in a fighting pose, ready to punch them, but was stunned when their shadows jumped up and stabbed them both through their throats. As the Dogs fell, she turned to see Shadow Dancer standing there, horn glowing.

“I’ll hold them off,” the Knight said, facing the Dogs. “Go help him.”

At the loss of so many of their own, the Diamond Dogs decided to use a different tactic. It was a simple one, one as old as warfare itself, possibly older. They rushed. All of them. At once. With twelve of their number down, they had been reduced to twenty-two, but they were confident enough that they could simply overwhelm the lone unicorn.

As Veronica rushed to help Thomas, Shadow simply faced the oncoming horde, her smile hidden by her helmet.

“Under the sun, we will never fall

We give our lives, one and all

No matter our foe, we will never sway

By Celestia's will, and light of day!”

The mare shone like a nuclear furnace, temporarily blinding those who were looking at her. When they could see, everyone stared in shock. Her tail had become fire, as had the plume of her helmet. Her armour, already a shining gold, now glowed like a miniature sun. Where she stood, the ground melted.

“What the fuck...?” Veronica asked, slack-jawed. Thomas and Dominica were similarly dumbstruck.

“Leave,” she commanded. It wasn’t just her voice anymore, though. Behind it was a... feeling of immeasurable power. The Dogs backed away, unsure how to deal with this new development. “Leave, and I will spare you.”

The Diamond Dogs seemed to talk amongst themselves for a moment. “Let us take our dead,” one of them said.

“Fine, but be quick.” The flaming mare turned to the three humans just as Veronica finished pulling the carcass off of Thomas. “Do not harm them. They are only retrieving the bodies.” Under any normal circumstances, the Wastelanders would have protested. But her voice was so commanding that they found themselves doing as she said.

Dom pulled the Man Opener from the Dog she had disemboweled with it from the body with a sickening squelch with her good arm. She glared at the two Dogs who had come to take it away. Thomas clutched at his chest as he took pained breaths. “I think all my ribs are cracked,” he gasped.

“Is that even possible?” Veronica asked as the man collapsed into a sitting position.

“As long as I don’t have a collapsed lung, I don’t care.”

“Let the foals go,” Shadow Dancer commanded once the Dogs had finished their grisly business.

“What foals?” one of the more articulate Dogs asked nervously.

“Do you wish to leave this place alive?” the mare asked. “You will tell me where they are.”

“The school was empty when we arrived.”

There was a tense pause. “Very well then. Now, begone.”

She watched as the Diamond Dogs dig several tunnels and go. As soon as the last one disappeared, she reverted back to her normal state. Then she fell with a crash as consciousness abandoned her.

Author’s Notes:

The TVTropes page needs some loving! Add examples! Feel free to add stuff from this story as well. Just make sure to label them as such.

Anyway, the weapons we’re seeing here:

Dom is using one of the unique variants of the Auto-Axe, the Man Opener. Basically, an automatic Deathclaw Gauntlet.

Veronica has her hands on the AER14 Prototype. Only twelve shots per Microfusion Cell, but it has more base damage and an insanely high crit chance. Also, green lasers.

I’ve expanded on Shadow Dancer’s abilities, as you can see. I thought it only fair to give the ponies a bit of a boost. She would have made a brilliant thief. And remember, the Knight Armour amplifies the wearer’s magical capabilities.

And did I just turn the Diamond Dogs into a mix of Dwarves, Orcs and Super Mutants?

And yep, what Shadow Dancer says to become... whatever she did (still haven’t got a name for that) is based off of something similar written by Aegis Shield for his Lunar Stallions. If anyone says that its overpowered, just let me say that much magical energy flowing through a mortal being is unhealthy. Extremely so.

11: Cooldown

WAPL-58 Power Station, early-2280

“No,” the power-armoured soldier muttered as he pushed himself away on a broken arm. “No! I shot you! I-I-I fucking killed you!”

Dom simply stared at him as he kept moving. As she watched, he bumped into the charred body of one of his squadmates.

“Why!?” he screamed. “Why are you doing this!? What did we do to you!?”

“Arefu, over two hundred dead. Underworld, over a dozen fell in its defense. Big Town, a dozen house destroyed and fifty dead. Rivet City, they still haven’t repaired the bridge.” Dom calmly listed their most recent atrocities as she stepped forwards. “You bastards have been destroying the peace the Brotherhood managed to carve into this hellhole. Because of you, I’ve lost some of my best friends. Brothers and Sisters in arms that I’ll never speak to again. Four of the best mercs D.C ever saw now lie dead in Arlington. All of because of you and your fucking Enclave.” She punctuated her hatred of what was left of pre-War America by spitting on him.

“We were just following orders!” the soldier replied loudly. “That’s all we were doing!”

“So you murdered innocents because you were told to? You cut off a settlement from the outside world just because some idiot gave the command? Do you know how weak that sounds?” Dom unholstered her laser pistol and pressed it against his visor.

“I don’t wanna di-i-i-i-ie!” he cried out as he tried to turn away.

“Yeah, neither did anyone in Arefu.” Dom pressed harder. “You didn’t give them a chance, you just blew the bridge out from under them. How do you think they felt?” She yelled into the blubbering soldier’s face. “There were children there! Children who had a chance at something normal! And you murdered them,” she hissed.

“I-I wasn’t even there!” he claimed, trying to get away. “I swear, I didn’t do - ” He didn’t get any further as a crimson beam went through his eye. The armour fell to the ground as the man within was reduced to ash, accompanied by a rather unsettling sizzling sound.

Dom took a few steps back before sitting down on the now-overturned barrel. She let out a sigh as she pulled out the Small Energy Cells and inserted new ones. It was done. The Enclave, at least on the east coast, was no more. After a few moments spent inspecting the wreckage, she asked a simple question. “Now what?”

“What was she thinking!?” Shining Armor screamed angrily.

Thomas, Dominica and Veronica could only watch awkwardly as the stallion vented his fury. Shortly after Shadow’s collapse, a number of griffons had arrived, a little too late to provide support. They hadn’t been happy when they had learned that the Dogs had gotten away, but they carried the unconscious mare back to town.

Twenty minutes later, the three humans and the Commander had taken shelter in the library. Twilight Sparkle had yet to return, though Spike the baby dragon sat near them, staring at the deadly warriors in awe. He tried asking them a few questions, but after receiving no response went right back to staring.

Shadow Dancer and most of the Griffons had returned to Canterlot, the Knight in a medical chariot. Two dozen guards, an even mix of Day and Night, had been sent to clean up the town and help the ponies in any way they deemed necessary. The remaining griffons provided overwatch, making sure that the Dogs stayed away.

The schoolchildren had been found at the edge of the Everfree, accompanied by Corporal Hailstorm and the local teacher Cheerilee. Knowing how Diamond Dogs hated anywhere with a large amount of plant life, she had led them there, thinking it would be rather safe. The Commander had praised her swift thinking, then reprimanded her for bringing children so close to what was basically the most dangerous place in Equestria.

Thomas was on his back, trying to ignore the pain from his injured ribs. His Pip-Boy’s medical tab revealed that three of his ribs were bruised, two were cracked and two more were fractured. He had also sustained bruising and small cuts along his arms, though his PHOENIX Monocyte Breeder was repairing what it could.

Dom had pulled the dagger from her arm after removing the MF Cell from her pauldron. She looked at the blade carefully, trying to figure out what it was to punch right through the steel plates of T-45d.

Veronica just sat there twiddling with her Power Fist.

“The transformation is meant to be a last resort! She very nearly died, and all she did was intimidate them!”

To relieve her boredom, Veronica stood up and walked over to Spike. To the young dragon, this was easily one of the more terrifying experiences of his short life. The six-foot tall metal giant (at least, from his viewpoint) stopped before him momentarily before bending over and picking him up. It briefly held him at arm’s length, long enough for Spike’s life to start flashing before his eyes. Suddenly he was pulled in close to the creature’s chest.

“He’s so cute!” she squeaked as she hugged Spike. Thomas and Dom looked at her weirdly. Her behaviour was odd enough to get Shining Armor to momentarily cease his brooding.

“Be careful, he’s practically my little brother.” Veronica looked up and smiled sheepishly, though her helmet obscured this.

“But he’s so adorable!” she said as she squeezed harder, making the poor dragon’s eyes threaten to pop out of his head.

“Help,” he croaked.

“Wait ‘til she sees the children,” Thomas muttered to the ghoul, finding some amusement in the young dragon’s plight.

The door opened to reveal an exhausted Twilight Sparkle. The lavender unicorn had spent a brief period of time in Ponyville’s clinic for treatment of her magic fatigue. Luckily, it had been a rather minor case (compared to what was detailed in her medical records) and they discharged her quickly. “Shiny, why are you yelling?”

The stallion, still in his armour, let out a sigh. “Just... one of my soldiers might have revealed something she wasn’t meant to. It’s not major, but - ”

“Huh,” a gravelly voice suddenly said from across the room. “You weren’t kidding. The purple does look like gangrene.”

“I’m sorry, what was thah ah ahhhhh!” Twilight’s complaint quickly turned to shock when she saw just who had made the comparison. “What is that!?”

“That is Paladin Dominica,” Shining replied. “She helped fight off the Diamond Dogs earlier. As did Thomas and Scribe Veronica.”

“Wait, Thomas?” In response the man raised an arm and waved lazily.

“I’d get up, but I might puncture a lung or something,” he said unhappily.

“You’re a big baby,” Dom replied. “I once stabbed a guy in the eye when I had two broken legs and a dislocated shoulder. Broken ribs are nothing.”

Twilight made a point of ignoring that rather gruesome statement and turned to Veronica. “Hey!” she yelled when she saw what the woman was doing. “Put Spike down!”

The faceless helmet turned to her and faced the mare for a few moments, completely unnerving her. “Fine,” the Scribe muttered unhappily as she put down the dragon.

Spike fell over and began to take deep breaths. “I’m just... gonna... go to bed.” And then he walked away, rubbing his chest from where he had been pressed against the breastplate. “Crazy aliens...” he muttered as he ascended the stairs.

“Why was your robot hugging Spike?” Twilight asked as the dragon disappeared from view.

“Did the purple unicorn just call me a robot?” Veronica asked as she pulled off her helmet.

Twilight gaped. “That’s armour!?” she asked loudly when she found her voice.

“Yeah, some of the most advanced stuff you can get.” Veronica’s eyebrows went up when she noticed the strangely hungry expression the mare now wore. “Uhh...” she said as the unicorn started circling her.

“But... how does it even work? It must weigh hundreds of pounds! Something like that would need it’s own power supply! And what’s it even made of? It’d have to be metal, but I’ve never seen metal that looked like that before!” Before she could get further, the ghoul spoke up.

“How can she not find the person without skin more interesting?” At that, Twilight looked up at her. “Ah, crap. Er, little help?”

Shining Armor didn’t respond, instead looking at his sister with his head tilted. “I... I’ll never be able to unsee that.”

“Unsee what?” Thomas asked, taking amusement from the ghoul’s plight.

“Why don’t you have skin?” Twilight asked loudly. In response, Thomas and Veronica cringed and started moving away.

Dominica glared at the mare for a few moments. “How come you have absolutely no tact?” she asked coldly. “A little ‘advice’. Most ghouls don’t like being treated like some high school science project. It’s a step up from ‘mindless monster’, true, but it still hurts.”

That quickly put Twilight in her place. She turned crimson and backed away. “S-sorry, I didn’t mean - ”

“I know you didn’t, but next time think before you open your mouth. Stupid smoothskins...” Dom said unhappily. “As for why I don’t have any skin, part of the package. Too much radiation in too little time and I look like you pulled me outta my grave.”

“I was pulled out of my grave,” Thomas said as he carefully pushed himself into a sitting position. “I came out looking pretty good.” He grinned.

“I’m sorry, did you take a nuke to the face?” Dom asked, turning to glare at the black man.

That caused the grin to disappear. “What?” Veronica stood there, slackjawed. “A nuke? As in, ‘nuclear weapon’ nuke? How did you survive?”

“Flash-ghoulification. The skin didn’t start falling off for a few days, though,” the ghoul explained. “It’s a good thing they knocked me out the whole time, probably would’ve been torture.”

“So you weren’t born that way?” Twilight asked. Dom spun around and saw the mare levitating a piece of parchment and a quill. “What else is there?”

The Paladin let out an angry sigh. “I’m not getting out of this, am I?” Everyone present shook their heads. “Fine.” She began to juggle the knife as she rattled off a list. “No soft tissue, high levels of ambient radiation heal me, I age slower...” She scowled. “What else is there?”

“Chance of going feral,” Thomas chipped in.

“You look like a corpse.” Dom shot a venomous glare at the Scribe. “What? You do.”

“You’re lucky you’re wearing that armour and my arm is useless,” the ghoul said angrily.

“Speaking of that, why?” Shining Armor asked, having kept silent to watch the small display.

“That damn knife,” Dom raised the dagger, “hit something and I can’t fix it.”

“So, get one of the ponies to pump you full of magic,” Veronica suggested.

The Paladin slid the edge of the blade in between two of the plates. “Won’t work.” She let out a grunt as she tried to pry it open. “Damn it, it’s bent out of shape.”

“Why won’t it work?”

“Last I checked...” She grunted again. “Radiation can’t heal...” More grunting. “Circuits!” With a pop the plate came off and fell to the ground. “There!”

The other four leaned around to peer within the now-open armour. Instead of the scarred, skinless arm they had been expecting, there was nought but metal, circuit boards and wires. More than a few had been severely damaged, even destroyed by the dagger’s forceful passage.

“How bad is it? This was more Rothchild’s thing,” the ghoul asked.

“You’re a cyborg?” Thomas asked as she inspected the damage.

“No, I’m a Super Mutant,” Dom deadpanned.

“I’ve never seen anything like this before. Where did you even get this kind of tech?” Veronica asked, eyes sparkling as they took in every detail.

Naturally, the revelation that her newest house guest was a mutant cyborg sent Twilight Sparkle a little crazy. Shining had to pull her away to give Veronica a chance to attempt to make any repairs. Not that that managed to stop the mare from bombarding the Scribe with questions.

“It can reflect lasers?”

“If it glances,” Veronica replied as she carefully extracted a circuit chip from the Paladin’s arm. “Against a direct hit it isn’t any good, though it won’t burn through.”

“And the fuel source?” Twilight asked, scribbling it down so fast ink splattered her snout.

“A back-mounted TX-28 MicroFusion Pack. Lasts about a century, though I don’t know how much fuel’s left.” It had been a long time since the Scribe had been able to talk shop with anyone, and even though the audience happened to be a small pastel-coloured equine, it felt good.

“MicroFusion?” Twilight asked, looking up.

“A self-contained fusion plant.”

As the ghoul was subjected to the two talking about things that went over her head, Thomas approached Shining Armor.

“You’re gonna be taking your sister with you, aren’t you?”

“What choice do I have?” the stallion said unhappily. “She and her friends are amongst the most important ponies outside of the royal family. It’s either we take them to the capital or fortify the town. And it’s easier to relocate six ponies than it is to move an entire garrison.” Shining glanced at the three girls. “I hate that I have to do this.”

“The right thing isn’t always easy, Shiny.”

“Hey, Commander?” the ghoul called out. “You have any idea how this damned knife punched through two inches of steel like paper?” she asked as she raised the dagger in question. “And why it has a sun on it?”

Shining took the small blade in his telekinetic grasp and brought it closer. His eyes widened and his expression turned to shock. “How did one of those Dogs get this?”

“What is it?”

“Every guardspony carries a dagger, in case their magic or wings fail them,” the unicorn explained. “This particular design is from before Princess Luna’s return.” He dropped the dagger into the human’s outstretched hand.

It was a simple thing, much like a combat knife in design, though without serration. The blade was easily nine inches long, the handle clearly designed to fit better in a mouth than a hand. On the flat of the blade, near the hilt, there was a small sun imprinted into the metal.

“So, what, they got old equipment?”

“That isn’t possible. All guard equipment, armour and weapons are either recycled or melted down,” Shining said. He took a breath before continuing. “I honestly can’t think of how someone managed to get this..”

“A bit like the Brotherhood,” Dom muttered. “We can’t let anyone get their hands on our power armour, we have to send squads to retrieve bodies.”

“So, what?” Veronica asked as she attempted to reattach a wire. “You think they stole it?”

Twilight kept herself quiet, not sure how to integrate herself into a conversation that was clearly military in nature.

Author’s Notes:

I am fully aware that the numbers given for the towns in the first part seem large. Remember, the size of towns are small because of processing limitations. It only makes sense that, if things were real, the towns would have a rather decent population as opposed to the ten or so you actually meet.

Did the plot just thicken?

Oh, and just a head's up, I may pull this chapter down and re-submit after my proofreader friend decides to emerge from whatever pocket dimension he's hiding in...

13: Recruits and Playgrounds

Fort Constantine, mid-2280

Dom led the Initiates to the Vertibird, which sat some distance from the old base, hoping that Jonas really was just asleep on the job. “Initiate Robinson, go check,” she ordered when they were about 100 feet away from it.

“Yes ma’am.” Robinson jogged to the aircraft, his armor clanking as he did so. “Oh shit!” he exclaimed. “He’s dead!”

“What!?” Dom couldn’t believe what she was hearing. True, Jonas wasn’t the most attentive, but there was absolutely no way someone could have snuck up on him.

“The entire cockpit is shot up!” the Initiate yelled back. “Someone emptied a few mags in here!”

Dom cupped her hands to yell at him, but she was cut off by an explosion. The Vertibird went up in a small mushroom cloud, incinerating the dead pilot and Initiate. It left her standing there completely stunned. She just gaped as the wreckage fell to the ground, her brain trying to understand just what had happened.

“What... just happened?” one of the Initiates asked quietly.

“It just exploded,” the other one pointed out redundantly. “It just fucking exploded!”

“Goddamnit!” a third, unfamiliar voice called out. “That wasn’t meant to happen!” The three Brotherhood soldiers turned to see a man in black combat armour holding a Type 93 Chinese assault rifle frowning at the burning pile of scrap. Dom just stared at this stranger.

“Who the fuck are you?” she asked, trying to ignore the sinking feeling in her stomach.

In lieu of an answer, the man did a double-take. He stared at her Pip-Boy for a second, his eyes widening. “Oh shit!” he exclaimed as he opened fire, spraying wildly from the hip. Only a few rounds hit before his head disappeared, courtesy of a blob of glowing plasma.

“Was that a Talon Company merc?” one of the Initiates asked, walking up and prodding the corpse with their boot.

Dom leaned down and rolled the headless corpse onto it’s back. Indeed, on the left side of the chest plate was the ever-familiar white eagle claw, scratched into the black body armour. “Oh this is bad,” she muttered as she back away. “This is bad.”

“Yeah, it’s bad!” Dom turned to face the source of the voice. About fifty feet away stood another Talon Company merc, two more with him. Each one had a AER9 Laser Rifle and a confident smirk.

“I wiped you bastards out!” Dom yelled back, aiming her plasma rifle at them.

“Do you really think that?” another voice called out. The Paladin whipped around and saw three more mercs, each one carrying a Chinese assault rifle.

Dom’s face creased with worry. “Oh boy.” There are only six, she thought to herself. We can deal with this.

“Kill those fuckers!”

“You’re dead, meatsack!”

“I’ll wear your face like a damn hat!”

“I want her head on a fucking plate!”

Dom and the Initiates looked around in shock and horror as more and more Talon Company mercs appeared. Before long, the three Brotherhood soldiers, in T-45d power armour and carrying plasma rifles, were surrounded by more than forty men in black combat armour. Their armaments were impressive, an intimidating mix of Type 93s, AER9s, combat shotguns and missile launchers.

“Fuck.”

Night had long since fallen, Celestia’s sun giving way to Luna’s moon. The stars glittered in the cloudless sky as the city of Canterlot bustled with business. Everypony seemed to enjoy the nightlife despite the heavier guard presence. One couldn’t be too careful in a time of war.

Thanks to the higher number of armoured ponies, the six ponies of the Night Guard carrying the luggage of the Element Bearers to the castle barely received a glance or mention. The Bearers themselves had gone ahead, under a full military escort, and the six-unicorn squad had been sent to retrieve their belongings from the station. They had just reached the barracks, their next destination the suites the six national heroes would be staying.

“Can’t believe we’re doing this,” one of them grumbled. “Don’t we have porters?”

“National security,” another replied breezily. “Can’t have some Dog spy take their things. Who knows what these mares have.”

“I hate you guys,” the stallion bringing up the rear muttered, struggling under the weight of an obscenely large and heavy suitcase. “You always give me the heavy ones.”

“Stop your complaining,” the guard leading them said with a roll of her eyes. She carried a rather small, dainty suitcase in her magic.

“What’s in this thing, bricks?” The armoured stallion shifted the baggage in his telekinetic grip. This quickly turned out to be a bad idea as it fell loudly to the ground, where the latches failed and the contents spilled. “Crap.”

“Damn it, private, what is... that?” The six guardsponies stopped to stare at what had fallen out. Apart from the expected toiletries and personal belongings, there was a large number of blankets. Nestled in those blankets were three sleeping fillies, an earth pony, a unicorn and a pegasus. “Okay, that’s not good.”

“Are we at the castle yet?” the orange-coated, purple-maned pegasus asked sleepily. She yawned and looked around. The sight of six snake-eyed purple ponies in armour was more than enough to completely wake her. She looked around. “Uh-oh.”

“Ah, Thomas.” The three wastelanders turned around. They were still sitting outside, long after Luna had risen the moon and retired to court.

“Shiny,” he answered. He blinked when he saw the second armoured pony. “That’s not Shadow, is it?”

“No, she has a few weeks of bed rest ahead of her,” the commander said sadly. “She’s one of our best, too. Anyway,” he said as he cleared his throat, “this is the newest member of the Knights, Private Lulamoon.”

“Sir, what did you just say?” the private asked quietly. “I didn’t understand a word of that.”

Shining had to suppress a groan. “Of course, you can’t understand Zebrican,” he muttered.

“A Private?” Veronica asked. “What the hell is a Private doing in an elite squad?”

“Yeah, it’d be like sticking an Initiate who barely knew how to walk in armour with the Pride,” Dominica commented. She made a point of ignoring the way the new pony actively recoiled, though she did start grinding her teeth.

“We have the resources to properly train our soldiers,” Shining retorted. “We don’t just throw them into battle.”

“Neither do we,” Dom answered calmly. “We just give them easy jobs defending places no-one will attack. Not like that ever goes well, though,” she added.

“Anyway, I’m going to greet my sister and her friends and was instructed to bring you along.” Shining Armor looked at the sky. “We’d better hurry, I think they’re in pretty bad shape.” The stallion turned around, the rest following him, the private recovering from her revulsion in time to canter after them.

“I thought they didn’t get hurt,” Veronica commented as they entered the castle.

“Not physically, no. But all six of them have commitments in Ponyville.” Shining let out another sigh, the latest of too many. “You don’t know what it’s like being forced to leave home like that.”

“I know a bit about that,” the ghoul muttered angrily. “They weren’t forced out on pain of death and torture. And they didn’t end up in a place that makes war look like a playground.”

“Is D.C really that bad?” Thomas asked, ignoring the unicorn and his expression of shock, horror and disbelief.

“It was,” she answered with a shrug. “Things are better, as long as you stay away from the old Metro tunnels. I have no fucking clue where those Raiders keep coming from. The Pitt, though...” the ghoul muttered, trailing off with a shudder. “Oh god, the Pitt.”

“Sir, should I be glad I can’t understand a word they’re saying?” the other unicorn asked as they approached the door to the throne room.

“Very glad, private. Very glad,” the commander muttered.

“Ah, there you are Commander.” The five turned to see Princess Luna approach them flanked by two pegasi from the Night Guard. The purple-armoured ponies paused when they saw Dom.

“I am getting real tired of everyone looking at me like I’m a monster,” she grumbled. “Can’t anyone just be curious instead of scared?”

“Understand, Paladin, that your appearance is not dissimilar to that of the undead,” Luna said calmly. “Their trepidation is more than justified.”

Her eye twitched, and the other humans and ponies backed away. After a few tense moments, Dom took a few deep breaths. “I’m good now.” There were at least three sighs of relief at that statement. “But, I swear, if one of them, one of them, suggests anything, I’m walking out,” she added angrily.

“That is your choice, but I suggest you give them a chance. I know what it is like to be feared without cause,” Luna said sadly. “It is not an easy thing to deal with.”

“Oh, there’s cause,” Dom commented unhappily. “That’s what makes it worse. People have no idea when the friendly ghoul next door will suddenly go feral and become a mindless, murderous animal, so they have to be careful.” She noticed how the Knight-Commander and the Princess stepped away warily. “Oh come on!” she exclaimed angrily. “It takes decades for a ghoul to get that bad! Or flash-ghoulification.”

“Didn’t you say you were flash-ghoulified?” Veronica asked.

“Shut up, you’re not helping,” the ghoul muttered.

“Anyway,” Luna said loudly, “I wish to talk with Thomas. Alone.” She walked away, one of her guards following. The other went to Thomas and nudged him a few times.

“Er... Woah!” he yelped when the armoured stallion put enough force in to move him several feet. “Hey, little help?” he asked.

“Hey, this is your fault,” Dom said tauntingly.

“Have fun!” Veronica called out as he disappeared around a corner. “You don’t think they’re gonna - ”

“No,” the ghoul said quickly. “Don’t even suggest that.”

“Yes, please, don’t. I don’t want those mental images of my aunt,” Shining said quietly as he cringed. “Was what you said before true? About going ‘feral’?” he asked louder.

“I told you before,” an annoyed Veronica said. “Ghouls that stay around people don’t go feral.”

“Besides, flash-ghoulification is either completely sane or feral. No middle ground,” Dom explained. She looked at the large, ornate doors. “Let’s get this over with.”

Author’s Notes:

I apologise for the delay, I went and got World of Warcraft. I wasn’t thinking.

Cutie Mark Crusader Stowaways YAY!

14: Fathers and Fillies

SatCom Array NW-05a, mid-2280

“God damn that bitch,” a Talon Company merc muttered, looking at the fight through a pair of binoculars.

“Why do you think we brought forty men?” the second asked, throwing his cigarette butt over the edge of the railing they were standing on.

“She’s gone through about fifteen of them already,” the first one replied, his voice a mix of worry and anger.

“It’s a good thing that ghoul bitch managed to figure out how to get that missile satellite working.” The second merc opened the door to the inside of the array and stepped inside. “Fucking miracle we got those parts too.”

“Tell me about it.” The first followed, sitting down at a small terminal. He handed the binoculars to his companion. “Here, take this and tell me how bad things are going. I don’t want to kill good men.”

“Yeah,” the second muttered, taking them and stepping outside. “What the fuck kind of name is Highwater-Trousers, anyway?” he asked when the door shut.

“Now what in tarnation were you girls thinkin’, stowing away like that?” Applejack asked harshly, her sister cowering under her glare.

“But you seemed so sad!” the crimson-maned filly replied.

“What if you got hurt?” Rarity asked, looking at her sister with worry.

“We were being careful!” Sweetie Belle answered. “We made sure we had cushioning and everything!”

“But what were you even thinking, sneaking in like that?”

“When that guardpony came to the farm and told ya that ya had to go to Canterlot, ya looked so sad!” Apple Bloom explained.

“Yeah, and then we decided that if we came to Canterlot too you’d be happy!” Sweetie exclaimed enthusiastically.

“Um, girls...” Fluttershy murmured. “Does anypony know you’re here?”

“Ah left a note for Granny and Macintosh,” Apple Bloom replied.

“And I told Mom and Dad you said I could go to Canterlot with you,” Sweetie replied timidly.

“Why didn’t you just ask?” Applejack asked. “It woulda been safer than hidin’ in a suitcase,” the farmer pointed out.

“You wouldn’ta let us!” Apple Bloom protested loudly. “Ya woulda j-just told us to go back h-home!” she said, tears starting to form.

“Yeah!” Sweetie answered in kind, nodding. “And what if the Diamond Dogs came back?” she asked, sounding a little scared. “I-I don’t want to end up in a cage again...” she muttered as she turned away.

Apple Bloom flinched and curled up slightly when her friend said that. Though it had been months since Thomas had rescued the fillies, they still hadn’t truly gotten over the experience. It wasn’t just something one could sleep on and get over, either. Rarity remembered her mother telling her that Sweetie had had nightmares about the ordeal.

The unicorn scooped up her sister and hugged her tightly. “I’m so sorry, dear. I shouldn’t have yelled.”

“We were just worried, is all.” Applejack was comforting her sister as well. “Of course you can stay with us.”

The ponies present, which included all their friends and Princess Celestia, looked at this display of sisterly affection fondly. This heart-warming moment was tactfully shattered by Rainbow Dash. “Hey, where’d Scootaloo go?”

The other ponies took a moment to look around, suddenly worried about the potentially wayward pegasus filly. They didn’t have to search far, quickly finding her tucked under the wing of a stallion of the Night Guard. They stared for a moment as they watched as the stallion hold a hoof up against Scootaloo’s head.

“Ow! Dad, stop!” the filly said as she tried to escape the noogie.

“Oh, no. Stowing away in luggage? I should ground you for a year!” Despite the stallion’s words, it was quite clear to everypony that he wasn’t serious. “And what do you think your mother’s gonna say when she finds out?”

“You’re gonna tell Mom?” The orange filly stopped her protests and looked up at her father. “You wouldn’t.”

“I might just have to,” the stallion said with a smile. He looked up and blinked when he realised that he had garnered an audience. “Eh-heh... Sorry about that, your highness, improper of me.”

“Oh don’t worry,” Celestia said jovially. “It always warms my old heart to see family together, Sergeant. Especially given your circumstances.”

The other ponies took a moment to comprehend just how informal the Princess was being. “Well, um, thank you, your highness,” the stallion replied awkwardly, unfurling his bat-wing to let his daughter drop to the ground. Scootaloo hit the ground with a clop and rushed over to rejoin her friends.

“Yer dad’s in the guard?” Applebloom asked, having escaped her sister’s embrace. “How come ya never said anythin’?”

“You never asked,” the pegasus replied.

Before any further conversation could be had, the throne room doors opened. Shining Armor stepped in, followed by the other Knight, her face still obscured by her helmet. He raised a hoof to try and quell the six mares’ questions. He caught sight of the three fillies and raised an eyebrow before dismissing it as relatively unimportant. “I’m guessing you want to know more about why you’re here,” he started.

“That won’t be necessary, Commander,” Celestia interrupted serenely. “I have already explained to them everything they need to know.”

“Ah still can’t believe we’re really that important,” Applejack muttered.

“Despite what a lot of ponies might say, you six are the most important ponies in Equestria outside the Princesses. Your safety is paramount,” Shining said. “And there’s another reason you six - well, nine - are here. The Courier has returned.” There was silence. “And you already know,” he said dejectedly.

“Twilight mentioned it on the train ride up here,” Rainbow commented.

“I never got to throw him a party!” Pinkie said angrily. “He’s getting one this time, even if I have to tie him to a chair!” The other ponies looked at the pink mare strangely. “What?” she asked innocently.

“Wasn’t he the one that saved us from the Diamond Dogs?” Sweetie Belle asked.

“Yeah!” Apple Bloom added. “He had that scary helmet on and that strange stick thing.”

As the Cutie Mark Crusaders started talking excitedly amongst themselves, the door behind them opened. “Can I come in yet?” Veronica asked, poking her armoured head around. The ponies gasped at the sudden appearance of the expressionless metal mask. “Should I take that as a yes?”

“What is that!?” Rarity asked loudly, pointing a quivering hoof at the helmet.

“Nice to meet you too,” Veronica replied, acid in her words. She stepped in and looked around. “What?” she asked in response

“Thomas brought some companions with him,” Shining explained.

“That’s Veronica,” Twilight added.

“Cool, a robot!” Scootaloo exclaimed as she and the other Crusaders stepped closer.

“Why does everyone think I’m a robot?” the Scribe asked as she pulled off her helmet. The removal of the obstruction to her view allowed her to get a better look at the ponies. Mainly, the Cutie Mark Crusaders. “Oh my god, they’re so adorable!”

“Hey, I’m not adorable!” Scootaloo argued in the face of all the evidence against her statement.

“Can I hug them?” Veronica asked eagerly, her smile getting wider and wider. “Please?”

Rarity and Applejack looked at each other uneasily. “Ah guess?”

In response, the Scribe let out a happy squeal and scooped up Sweetie Belle, catching the filly off-guard. “Woah!”

“You’re so cute!” Veronica squeaked as she gently hugged the little unicorn. The gathered ponies looked at this display with complete confusion.

“Your armour’s cold,” Sweetie said quietly, her mind still playing catch-up. Why was she in the figure’s grasp?

This statement was just enough to shake Veronica out of her cuteness-induced state. “Sorry,” she said awkwardly as she carefully put Sweetie down.

“That’s okay,” the little unicorn said sweetly as she rejoined her friends. She was immediately bombarded with questions, while the adults raised their own concerns.

“So, what are ya, exactly?” Applejack asked.

“What are you doing here?” Rainbow Dash added.

“What is that atrocious armour?” Rarity asked, trying and failing to keep her disgust hidden.

“Are you going to stay for a party?” Pinkie asked, not even attempting to mask her excitement.

“Well, I’m a human like Thomas, a girl, though. I don’t know why Thomas brought me here, something about keeping my mind off things, this armour has saved my life multiple times, I don’t care how it looks and if I have to drug Thomas and tie him to a chair, sure,” the Scribe rattled off, pointing to each pony as she answered their questions. “Any more questions?”

They blinked, remembering how Thomas had at least the decency to go into some detail. The only problem was that there was nothing else to really ask.

“She’s from the same place Thomas is,” Twilight explained, hoping to fill the awkward void. “There isn’t really much point asking her anything, we’d just get the same answers.”

“Hey, what kind of assumption is that?” Veronica asked in mock indignation. “Besides, you were the one begging for information about the Brotherhood. Now I might not tell you anything,” the Scribe said cheekily.

Twilight sputtered as her friends laughed at her expense. “What’s this Brotherhood?” Rainbow asked. “Sounds kinda awesome.”

“The Brotherhood of Steel, a bunch of xenophobic technophiles,” Veronica explained. “They’ve been around since the end of the world, though all the chapters on the West coast are gone.”

Veronica then went into a simplified explanation about the Brotherhood, including its history and philosophy. The ponies didn’t like some of what they had heard, but remained a polite, if noisy audience.

“I have no idea what anything’s like in the other chapters,” Veronica lied. “But, I know someone who does.” She paused, a look of unease marring her features. “Um, she’s a little... sensitive.”

Twilight, Celestia and Shining Armor shared a look of concern. “It might be best to introduce her to you one by one,” the princess suggested.

“Come on, how bad could it be?” Rainbow asked dismissively.

“Yeah, Dom’s a big girl. Just don’t make any comments about her appearance,” Veronica advised. “She might get violent.”

“Oh my,” Fluttershy mumbled. The Scribe had to stop her from hugging the dainty pony. “Is it really that bad?” Around her the other ponies muttered to each other, wondering just how bad it could be.

“It’d be easier to show you. Paladin!” Veronica called out, eliciting an “eep!” from Fluttershy.

“I thought I told you to call me Dom,” the ghoul said as she stepped in cautiously.

There was close to a full minute of silence as the ponies just stared at the ghoul. One could almost hear the gears grinding in their heads as they to comprehend what they were seeing. Pinkie was the first to open her mouth. She raised a shaking hoof at Dom and stammered “Z-z-zom - ”

“Okay, that’s it! You had your chance!” Dom yelled as she stormed out.

Thomas was shunted into the room unceremoniously by the guard. The door closed ominously and he turned around to see that he was standing in Luna’s room. The dim lighting made it hard to see, so he turned his Pip-Boy screen’s brightness up.

Princess Luna was laying on a bed, fixing a stern gaze on him. “Thomas, do you know why I brought you up here?” the princess asked.

“Uh...” Thomas said uncomfortably. “Crazy, angry sex?” he asked jokingly.

Luna simply gave him a look. “No,” she said seriously. “Nothing like that.”

“This is about how I...”

“Left without even a goodbye? Yes.” Thomas flinched at how forceful she sounded. Never before had he truly understood the phrase ‘Hell hath no fury like that of a woman scorned.’ He was beginning to get a feeling what was meant.

“I can understand how eager you were to depart,” Luna answered. “I have been both soldier and diplomat, and the yearning to see home is a great one. That desire does not give you a reason to simply abandon your newest friends with barely a ‘fare thee well’,” she finished sharply.

The Courier had faced many terrifying things. The horror of the Sierra Madre, the desolation of the Divide, the Deathclaws of Quarry Junction, Cazadore nests... Yet this angry pony somehow managed to top the list. Not that he would ever admit such a thing.

“I... I wanted to avoid all that talk,” Thomas said as he began to pace. “I knew how it was going to go. Talking about how you feel about me, and how you don’t think it’s right, and how we should avoid any sort of - ” His rambling was cut off by an amused snort.

“I’m sorry, did you think a relationship is what I am interested in?” Luna asked, holding a hoof to her muzzle. “No, no. I knew it couldn’t work, and I am not that fond of you. What happened that night was because of alcohol and a lapse in judgement.” She lowered her hoof and returned to scowling at him. “No, what angered me is that you decided to just disappear without letting me tell you that.”

“So... you’re not going to try and maim me?” Thomas asked hopefully. When she nodded, he let out a sigh of relief. “Thank god. I was worried you’d break my legs.”

“Oh no. It wouldn’t be right for me to injure the father of my unborn child.” There was a short pause, followed by a large black man hitting the ground with a thump. Luna peered over her bed and looked at Thomas’ body. “Hmm. That may have been a bit much. Guards!” she called out. When one of them poked their head in, she gave him an order. “Please, carry him to the throne room.”

Author’s Notes:

I’ve never been too good at emotional stuff. There was that one story where I had the main character off himself because the one he loved had died that reduced people to tears, but that was an alternate ending... Anyway, I may have slightly messed up.

Yeah, fuck that ‘Scootaloo the orphan’ crap. It’s overdone. Just because we haven’t seen any of her family on-screen doesn’t mean she has none. We haven’t seen any of Rainbow’s family, or Fluttershy’s. But we don’t make THEM orphans, do we?

It has been a while since I’ve played New Vegas, so I’m worried I’m messing up Veronica’s personality a bit. Am I?

A little reminder, this fic diverges completely after the Season 2 finale. So, anything from future episodes, including Crystal Ponies, does not occur and I will not be writing to accommodate them.

15: Hellfire and Innocence

Fort Constantine, mid-2280

Paladin Esposito’s legs gave out as she collapsed into a sitting position. To her left the only other survivor lowered her plasma rifle. “Holy crap, we did it,” she stated, looking around at the mass of Talon Company bodies.

“Yeah, but we lost Initiate Jenkins,” she replied, panting for breath, looking around at the broken, scorched bodies of the forty Talon Company mercs.

“Leeroy was an idiot,” the Initiate stated as she glanced at his mangled body. Despite how effective the T-45d was, it just wasn’t capable of withstanding a few hundred bullets. He’d gone down without any actual bullet wounds, the impacts instead breaking and fracturing almost all his bones. The missile that finished him had just been overkill. “Not to mention he was a sexist pig.”

Dom just sat there for a moment, trying to ignore the dull pain coursing through her entire body. “Come on, Initiate Day. We... we have to get back to the Citadel. Paradise Falls is the closest settlement. We can get help from there.” The Paladin forced herself up, using her rifle as an aid. “We need to move, don’t want to run into a Deathclaw out here.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

They had barely moved ten feet when there was a tremendous explosion from above them. They both looked up to see several somethings bearing down on them. “What the fuuuOH SHIT!” Dom exclaimed. “Run! Fucking run!”

The Initiate didn’t have to be told twice. True, she didn’t know just what she was running from, but the fact that something was threatening to land on them was enough motivation.

Not that there was much point. There are few things that can be outrun. The only ones the average Wastelander had to worry about were the wild animals.

There were several more sonic booms as the rest of the missile satellite’s payload entered the atmosphere. Then, a few seconds later, the sky burned.

Twilight rushed after the angry Paladin, but as she reached the door she paused. Should she follow? Would it be best to leave the ghoul alone?

“What was that for?” She heard Veronica ask loudly. “I told you she was sensitive about her appearance!”

“Just what in tarnation was that thing!?” Applejack asked loudly.

“She is a ghoul,” Veronica replied calmly. “She’s just like any normal person.”

“Normal!?” Rainbow yelled out as she took to the air. “How is she normal!?” she questioned, pointing a hoof at the door.

“Because she has tears. She has feelings. She has a soul.” Each point was punctuated by a step forwards, making the ponies realise just how tall and threatening she was. “She has suffered more than you can ever dream. Just because she looks different does not give you a reason to treat her any differently. Or should I start treating you like Brahmin, hm?” she finished, now nose-to-nose with Rainbow Dash.

The pony could only gulp as the Scribe’s gaze bored into her. Up until this point, she’d seen her as kind of funny, not really that dangerous. But now? This close, she could not only smell the sweat and blood that had become ingrained in the armour, she could feel the sheer power this woman possessed. Rainbow had no doubt that, if this armoured stranger wanted it, she would be dead before she hit the floor.

“I’m going to go get her. By the time I come back, I expect you and your friends to have gotten your shit together. You are going to apologise to her. Okay?” The colourful mare nodded furiously. “Good.”

Dom was simply staring at a wall when Veronica found her. If anything, it was even more unnerving than if she’d been lashing out violently at something. “Uhh, Dom?” she asked carefully as she approached.

“Leave me alone.” The ghoul’s voice was barely audible, nearly unintelligible because of how gravelly it was.

“Look, Dom,” Veronica started, trailing off as she tried to think of what to say.

“I don’t like repeating myself, Scribe. Leave. Me. Alone,” Dom growled forcefully.

“Give them another chance,” she pleaded. “They were shocked, how did you expect them to react?”

“The first time I saw a ghoul, I at least had the decency to hear them out first,” Dom explained, scowling at the Scribe. “I may have freaked out a bit, yeah, but at least I didn’t go straight to insults.”

“She didn’t know she was insulting you!” Veronica said loudly. “I bet she’s tearing herself apart because of this!” The Scribe had absolutely no idea just how right she was. “Just give them one more chance. Please?”

Before either of them could say anything, they were interrupted by something tapping Veronica’s power armour. They both looked down to see the three fillies looking up at them with wide, bright eyes.

“What the hell are they doing here?” Dom asked quietly, her anger momentarily forgotten.

“They wanted to meet you.” Both women looked up again to see Twilight Sparkle approach them.

“Really?” the Paladin asked unbelievingly. “You didn’t just drag them along?”

“No, they really wanted to come with me.” Twilight looked down at the fillies, who had crowded around Veronica’s legs. “I’m really sorry for my friends. I don’t know why they reacted so badly.”

“Well, I’m used to idiot bigots, it’s no big deal,” Dom said airily, waving the unicorn away with a hand.

“My friends aren’t bigots!” Twilight exclaimed loudly. “You just caught them off guard,” she added much more timidly.

“Right,” Dom said flatly. “Maybe the nuke I took to the face caused some major brain damage, or maybe they really are just as bigoted as I say they are.”

Before Twilight could say anything in retaliation, she was interrupted by a high-pitched squeaking. Both unicorn and ghoul turned to see Veronica wearing a huge grin as she held all three Crusaders in her arms.

“How did this even happen?” Apple Bloom asked.

“Miss Dominica, don’t be sad,” Sweetie Belle said. “Pinkie Pie didn’t mean to hurt your feelings.”

“Put me down!” Scootaloo said angrily as she failed to squirm from the Scribe’s iron grip.

“I didn’t get a single word of that,” Dom muttered.

“Let me put up a translation field.” Twilight’s horn glowed briefly and the Paladin’s Pip-Boy ticked for a split second. “Veronica, you might want to take some Radaway later.”

“I’ll grab some off Thomas...? How do you know about Radaway?” the Scribe asked.

“Okay, girls, she should be able to understand you now.”

“Pinkie Pie hates hurting anypony’s feeling.”

“Yeah! She’s all about makin’ ya smile.”

“Let me go!”

Dom looked at the three. “Right.”

“And ya came with Mister Thomas!” Apple Bloom exclaimed loudly. “Ya must be nice!”

For some reason the ghoul burst into laughter. “Nice? Oh, god no. I’m not nice.”

“Huh?”

“There is a big difference between a good person and a nice person. I’ve met plenty of nice people who were so evil it didn’t make sense. The other way around, too,” she explained. “Where I’m from, being a good person means doing a lot of evil things.”

“What do you mean?” Sweetie asked, her head tilted in a way that only made Veronica squee some more.

“You don’t think this armour is all scratched because I fell over, right?” The three fillies all shook their head simultaneously. “Exactly. I’ve done horrible things, all in the name of survival.”

“Uh, Dom? I really don’t think the girls should hear this,” Twilight said worriedly.

The ghoul looked at her for a moment. “Fine. Just remember that I am not always nice.”

As the six made their way back, the fillies still in the Scribe’s firm grasp, they were intercepted by Luna. “Things did not go well, I take it.”

“I’m giving them one more chance,” the ghoul replied. “Honestly, I prefer the griffons. I can relate better to soldiers than you pacifists. No offence,” she hastily added.

“Equestria has grown quite complacent during my absence,” Luna said unhappily. “Had the Changeling attack happened before the Nightmare Wars, they would have been nothing but a footnote in a history book.”

“What happened to him?” Veronica asked, looking around the Princess to Thomas’ unconcsious form, draped over an unfortunate Night Guard pegasus.

“Turns out that making jokes about being pregnant are quite unwelcome.”

Twilight gaped at that. “What!? But that means... Argh!” she screamed, clutching her head as she put two and two together. “The images!”

“Trust me, that’s not the weirdest thing Thomas has done,” the Scribe muttered.

“Really?” Dom asked unbelievingly. “Like what?”

“Fisto.”

“Really?” the ghoul asked. When the power-armoured woman nodded, she shook her head. “That hypocrite.”

“Do I want to know?” Twilight asked, still cringing from her aunt’s revelation.

“Nope,” Veronica replied cheerfully. “Want me to wake him up?” she asked, pointing at the black man.

“I was going to give him a small electric shock,” Luna replied, sounding a little disappointed. “You can try if you want.”

In response, she received a giggle as the three fillies hit the ground. “Finally,” Scootaloo muttered.

“She’s nice,” Sweetie Belle mumbled back.

“Strong, too,” Apple Bloom added, the little farmgirl watching as the metal-clad giant pulled the Courier’s form onto the ground.

Veronica pulled off one of her gloves and stuck her pinkie finger in her mouth. She then plunged it into Thomas’s left ear, twisting it around for a few seconds. Much to everyone else’s surprise, it worked.

“Aaaah ahh!” He shot upright, arms flailing like a madman. He shot a glare at the Scribe, who had managed to extricate her finger and was wiping it against her armour. “I hate it when you do that!”

“Hey, it works,” she replied. “Besides, it was that or let Luna electrocute you.”

At the mention of Luna, his head swivelled around so fast it was almost funny. “What was you said true?” he asked, sounding desperate. “I can’t be a dad, I don’t know the first thing about raising a child!”

At his panicked outburst, Luna let out a loud, hearty laugh. “I still can’t believe you fell for such a joke!” she answered, wiping at her face with a hoof. “No, you will not be a father,” she said. “If it weren’t for your biology’s fatal allergy to magic, then there would be the possibility, but alas, it is impossible. A shame too, for I am sure you would have sired such fantastic foals,” she added wistfully.

“That was a joke?” Thomas asked, sounding hurt. “You sick twisted - ” he stopped himself when he caught sight of the three wide-eyed fillies. “I won’t finish that sentence,” he mumbled, shooting a venomous glare at the midnight alicorn.

“What’s ‘sired’ mean?” Scootaloo asked, head tilted in confusion.

At that, Twilight Sparkle grabbed all three with her magic and rushed back inside the throne room. “That’s not important right now, Scootaloo!” they heard her say as the door shut behind them.

“So, did something happen?” Thomas asked, still unhappy with Luna’s prank.

“One of them called me ‘zombie’,” Dom growled.

“No, she got half the word out before you lost your shit,” Veronica clarified. “You’re really sensitive about this.”

“Why wouldn’t I be?” the ghoul asked back. “Look at me.”

“I get the feeling Rarity’s gonna pass out when she get’s a good look at you,” Thomas added with a dark chuckle.

Dominica

SPECIAL

Strength: 10

Perception: 9

Endurance: 9

Charisma: 4

Intelligence: 8

Agility: 6

Luck: 9

Author’s Notes:

Veronica can be scary when she wants to be.

Yep, just Trolluna.

Dom’s Charisma and Agility both took hits because of ghoulification. Her really high Luck is the reason she didn’t drop dead.

16: Torched

The Citadel, mid-2280

When Dominica woke up, it felt like she’d just been stomped on by a behemoth. Her entire body was unresponsive and breathing was a struggle. As if to compound things her throat felt like she had swallowed radscorpion venom and her eyes wouldn’t open.

“Holy crap, she’s awake! Get the Sentinel!” In response, someone rushed out, the swish of robes audible along with hurried footsteps.

The Paladin tried to get up. She really did, but her body just refused to respond.

“Dom.” She could hear Sarah’s voice. “We thought we’d lost you.”

“Water,” she managed to croak. Her vision was obstructed by a water bottle being pushed against her mouth. As it was slowly poured into her mouth, the pain began to fade. “Thanks,” she said, noticing her voice was still very rough.

“What happened? Everyone in Paradise Falls just mentioned a bunch of explosions, and a few mentioned mushroom clouds.”

“You remember... how we took down that Enclave base? The orbital missile satellite?” She paused for a moment. “Talon Company... managed to find one. Used it. On me.” She smirked. “I really am invincible, aren’t I?”

“Yeah,” Sarah said uneasily. “Talon Company? I thought - ”

“So did I. Should’ve known they’d still be around.” Dom coughed suddenly, causing the Sentinel to spill the water on her. “Oh god that hurt,” the Paladin groaned, trying to raise her arm. “How long have I been out?”

“Only a few days. How do you feel?”

Dom was a little confused by the question. Wasn’t it kind of obvious? “Like shit. My throat is really dry.”

As Sarah poured some more water into her mouth, she asked another question. “Anything else? You don’t feel any... different?”

“Not really,” Dom replied, her confusion mounting. She doubled over into another coughing fit, this time bringing her right hand over her mouth. “Oh goddammit that... that...” The Paladin’s mouth just hang open in shock as she took in her hand. “No...”

“Dom I’m... I’m sorry,” Sentinel Lyons said softly as the newly-ghoulified woman stared at what she had become in shock.

“Get me a mirror.” When there was no response, she repeated herself. “Get me a fucking mirror.”

Sarah could only watch as an Initiate retrieved an old hand mirror and uneasily passed it to the ghoul. There was a terrible moment of silence as she stared at her face. Then, she began to weep.

As the four entered the room again, Dom was forced into a situation that tested her willpower and instincts. Every fibre of her body was screaming at her to punch the thing with its arms wrapped around her before driving a knife through its skull.

“I’m so sorry!” the thing wailed. “I didn’t mean to hurt you! I wasn’t thinking and I said the first thing that I thought of but I never thought you’d take it so badly and now you hate me!”

Everyone else in the room looked at this in shock. Shining Armor was especially worried, knowing full well the Paladin’s deadly capabilities. Yet, he did nothing to stop what was happening. He was fully prepared to intervene, if the need arose. but he hoped that wouldn’t happen.

“You have five seconds to let go of me,” the ghoul growled. Pinkie Pie looked up at the scowling face and quickly detached herself.

“Does... does that mean you forgive me?” the pink party pony asked, rubbing at her running nose and tear-streaked face.

“It’s a start,” Dom replied. “But if any of you insult me, my family or my friends, then I am leaving,” she warned. “Clear?”

The ponies murmured their uneasy agreement, now curious as to why she would react so badly to the last two. “Those terms seem agreeable,” Luna commented, now next to her sister.

“A little harsh, don’tcha think?” Applejack asked.

Dom pointedly ignored that and pushed on. “Alright then, I’m sure you have questions. Let’s get it over with.”

The ponies were taken aback by how brusque and irritable she was.

“Just what are you?” Rainbow Dash asked loudly, hovering closer to the ghoul.

“A ghoul. As for ‘who’ I am, Paladin Dominica Esposito of the East Coast Chapter of the Brotherhood of Steel. I am also known as the Lone Wanderer.”

“How did ya get a title like that?” Applejack asked.

“Well it certainly wasn’t because I surrounded myself with people all the time.” The farmer shot a glare at the ghoul after her cruel remark. The ghoul sighed. “Not that I wouldn’t have minded that.”

“What do you mean?”

“I may be the Lone Wanderer, but it was never because I wanted it,” she explained solemnly. “Fawkes. Jericho. RL-3. Reilly’s Rangers. Even Dogmeat. God, I miss that little son of a bitch.” At the last name she smiled sadly as she recalled her canine companion.

“Could you watch the language?” Rarity asked, covering Sweetie’s ears with her hooves. “There are children present. And what is that hideous armour you’re wearing?”

The ghoul’s expression hardened. “Watch your mouth. What did I say about insulting my friends?” This quickly shut the unicorn up.

“You’re not very friendly,” Pinkie Pie muttered.

“After all I’ve been through, it’s amazing I can carry a goddamn conversation for five minutes,” Dom replied harshly. “Nearly everyone I’ve met has tried to kill me or manipulate me. Hell, nearly got killed by those damn Commie freaks once. God that was weird,” she muttered to herself.

“Commie?” Shining asked, trying to understand what she meant. Meanwhile, the Element Bearers were all trying and failing to hide their shock and horror at how easily she was discussing this.

“Cool!” Scootaloo said loudly.

“What of your home?” Celestia asked, hoping to steer the rather gloomy conversation to somewhere brighter. “Surely things are much better there.”

“The place I grew up or the place I live now?” Dom asked in response.

“Didn’t you say you grew up in a Vault?” Veronica asked.

“Yeah. About eighteen years.”

“What’s a ‘Vault’?” Twilight asked, still not fully recovered from the rather disturbing things the Paladin had said.

“Giant underground bomb shelters, designed to house thousands and protect them from nuclear holocaust,” Thomas said, speaking up for the first time. “Not even a hello?” he asked cockily.

“That’s what the advertisements said,” Dom added darkly. “Only a few actually did what they said they would. For the most part, they were giant laboratories. Some of them were pretty benign.”

“Vault 21 in Vegas had all problems solved through gambling,” Thomas added. “Still can’t believe the place lasted two centuries.”

“And the one I grew up in, 101, had a dictator. Not as bad as it sounds. But some of the others...” Dom chuckled. “Let’s just say it was probably a good thing the bombs wiped out civilisation.”

“What do you mean?” Fluttershy asked timidly, her voice so small even the mares right next to her had trouble hearing her.

“Subliminal suggestion, cloning labs, mind-altering drugs pumped through the vents...”

“There’s one near Boulder City where the residents were convinced that they had to sacrifice someone every year to keep the place running,” Thomas added. “And everyone in Vault 19 went completely nuts.”

“So that’s what happened?” Veronica asked curiously. “I remember a few Paladins talking about that place a few years back. Also something about Fire Geckos.”

“What kind of government could do that to their citizens!?” Luna yelled, horrified and furious.

“The kind that shipped protesters to a science facility to be human test subjects,” Thomas spat. “One run by monsters.”

“I wasn’t kidding when I said the end of the world was the best thing that happened to America,” Dom added. “Gave the world a fresh start. Rise up from the ashes, and all that. Wasn’t that simple, though.”

“H-how so?” Twilight asked nervously, her own morbid curiosity compelling her to ask.

“Washington got hit bad. No clean water, most of the city turned to rubble, and the surrounding areas are still filled with wild animals. The White House took a direct hit from a nuke, too. Nothing but a smoking hole in the ground.”

“The what?” Thomas asked. The ghould turned and let out a groan when she caught the matching blank looks the Courier and Scribe were giving her.

“Do you know nothing about American history? It’s where the President of the United States lived.”

“How significant is this?” Luna asked.

“Basically, he had your position. The final say in any major political decision.” She looked around with a grim smile. “The White House blown up like that, it’d be the same as if this palace was destroyed.”

“Are you sure about this?”

“We have orders, Frost.”

“Yeah, I know, but they seem so...”

“I’m not happy with this either, okay?”

“Come on you two,” a third unicorn said. Even in the gloom his golden armour shone slightly, his flanks showing a pair of crossed trumpets with cobalt banners attached to them. Poking from his helmet was a slate-gray horn. “Firebolt, Frost Lance, you know our orders.”

“This seems wrong,” Frost muttered, the ice-blue unicorn looking around the moonlit dirt plain.

“We just take out the hostiles,” Firebolt muttered. “Only the hostiles, not the civvies, only the hostiles, not the civvies,” he repeated, the mantra keeping him calm.

“Shut up, corporal,” the other Knight replied, pulling rank in an attempt to maintain order.

“Yes, sir.” Despite his superior’s order, he kept muttering to himself.

“Clarion Call, are you really sure about this?” Frost Lance asked nervously.

“Honestly? I can’t help but think this’ll only make things worse.” The unicorn sighed. “But orders are orders. We don’t have a choice.”

“They pulled us out of Fillydelphia for this? A torch-and-burn op?”

“Hey, makes sense they brought you along, then,” Frost said with forced cheerfulness. “Dunno what I’m doing here.”

“Alright you two. The sooner we get this over with the sooner we can leave.” Clarion Call led the three into the caverns. “Let’s show them what happens when they mess with Equestria.”

Author’s Notes:

This one was a pain.

Who else had this massive “Holy shit” moment when they came across 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue in Fallout 3?

And another Knight! Wanna guess his talent?

17: Past Mistakes

Jefferson Memorial, late-2280

Giacomo Esposito
2226 - 2277
Scientist, father, dreamer
May his work live on forever

So read the simple plaque, crudely nailed to the outer wall of the Jefferson Memorial. Dom knew her father wouldn’t have cared, though. She knew that the greatest tribute she could give him was to be the best woman she could be.

“Hey, Dad,” the ghoul said awkwardly. The reason she was talking to a metal sheet as opposed to a gravestone was that they had never found his body. The Enclave had disposed of it somewhere, as if to taunt Dom with a lack of closure. “I guess it’s been a while, huh?”

She stood there in silence, shuffling her feet awkwardly. “God damn it, Dad, I miss you. Why did you have to do that?” she asked bitterly. “I need you, Dad. You always knew what to say, or what to do. I... I don’t know how I’ve lasted three years without you.”

“The world is a sadder place without James.” Dom turned around at the sound of the elderly, gentle voice. Behind her stood Elder Owyn Lyons in his dark gray-blue Brotherhood robes, his long bushy beard now reaching down to his chest. “His actions were always dictated by what others needed. The only selfish act he ever committed was abandoning Project Purity to raise you.”

Dom stood there silently as the Elder stepped closer. “I know why you’re here, Elder,” she stated.

“You do?” the old man asked, sounding a little surprised.

“Yeah. You’re gonna tell me to leave the Brotherhood.”

Lyons began to chuckle. “Did you really think me so heartless, Esposito?” he asked. “I would never force you to do that. You’re free to leave if you want, but we’ll never force you,” he calmly explained.

“But... I’m a ghoul,” Dom said slowly.

“And one of the best Paladins we have,” Lyons countered. “That counts for more, the way I see it.”

“Won’t the others complain?”

“Let them. They haven’t been through the things you have.” Lyons turned to look at the Citadel, on the other side of the Potomac. The Enclave had managed to collapse one of the outer walls in one of their attacks, but the damage was superficial. “We’ve sacrificed so much, and lost so many. To turn away anyone willing to help would be the height of foolishness.”

Dom nodded, thinking his words over. “Thanks, Elder.”

“Call me Owyn, dear.”

Princess Celestia cleared her throat. “Perhaps we could move away from that topic,” she suggested, trying to hide how sick the very notion of the palace’s destruction and abusive treatment of civilians made her.

Dom shrugged. “If you want.”

“Oh yeah, I just remembered,” Thomas said suddenly. “Dom, that bet?”

“Oh, that,” the ghoul replied with a smirk. “Which one busted your jewels, again?”

“If’n ya mean the one that went and bucked him in his stallion bits, that was me,” Applejack answered timidly.

“They still hurt,” Thomas commented.

“We want to see if you can put a dent in that,” Dom said, pointing at the Scribe.

“Hey, what did I do to you!?” Veronica asked loudly as every eye in the room fixed on her.

Applejack stared at the woman, one of her eyebrows disappearing into her mane. “Now why would ya want me to go and buck her?”

“Yeah!” Apple Bloom added. “Why would ya wanna hurt her?”

“It took hours for my implant to undo the damage you did when you kicked me,” Thomas said, ignoring the little filly’s protests.

“Is that a big deal?” Rainbow asked, herself not entirely happy with the idea of meaningless violence.

“A knife in the gut takes half an hour, if that.”

Applejack’s friends turned to stare at the shocked farmpony. “This is why we need more earth ponies in the Guard,” Shining muttered.

“Am Ah really that strong?” she asked quietly.

“Okay, now I’m scared.” Veronica had started backing away slowly, hoping to make a run for it.

“Calm down, we just want to see if she can put a dent in a T-51b,” Thomas commented offhandedly.

Veronica just looked at the man. “Are you completely insane? If she can put a dent in this, it’ll shatter my ribs!”

“You could just take it off,” Dom suggested.

“Yeah, but I don’t have anything else to wear,” Veronica pointed out. “I’m not going around topless around this pervert, either,” she added, jabbing a thumb in Thomas’ direction.

“I’m not a pervert!” Thomas declared angrily.

“Oh, right, sorry, it must have someone else who slept with ten different women last week,” Veronica replied sarcastically as she rolled her eyes.

“That’s neither here nor there,” he retorted.

“Do you mind?” Rarity demanded loudly. “There are children here!”

The other ponies had mixed reactions to the little argument they had just witnessed. Rainbow and Pinkie had found it hilarious, both of them trying and failing to hide their laughter. Twilight stared at the pair as though they were completely insane, which was a fair assumption to make. Fluttershy was trying to make herself as small as possible, and had already curled up into a ball about a third her normal size. Applejack and Scootaloo’s father, just like Rarity, had grabbed their family members and were covering their ears, lest the bickering humans say something else inappropriate. Shining Armor and the other Knight stood there stoically, but the stallion’s expression showed his bemusement.

Celestia and Luna simply watched. They fight like siblings, the elder commented.

The way Thomas seems to care for the armoured one, they may as well be.

What do you make of the third?

Troubled, to say the least. She seems to overreact to the slightest thing, and I wouldn’t be surprised if she were to break down from the stress. To be in such a state, she must have seen so much evil, Luna replied. It’s truly quite sad.

“Yeah, both of you shut up,” Dom said loudly, butting in. “Don’t make me smack your heads together.”

“Do you have to resort to violence for everything?” Twilight asked. “Couldn’t you just talk about it?”

The ghoul stared at the unicorn. “I used to be like that,” she said quietly.

“Like what?”

“Like you. Naive.” When the mare began to splutter, the Paladin continued. “I used to think everything could be solved with a sharp tongue and clever wording. That you could talk a man down from doing something stupid or violent. But no. I learned that the hard way.”

“What happened?”

Dom glanced over at the three fillies and their protective family members. “Get the kids out of the room. I don’t want them to hear this.”

“It’s that bad?” Veronica asked skeptically.

“Well, it’s a few things,” the ghoul explained. “Nothing I want them to hear.”

“But why?”

“Thomas told me that they’re innocent. I don’t want to destroy that.”

The ghoul’s answer shocked them all. Up until that point, she had seemed perfectly fine with traumatising the ponies to the best of her abilities, as well as being crude and inconsiderate. To suddenly have this change of heart, what she had to say must have been horrible, even by her standards.

“Your highness, have suites been set aside for the Element Bearers?” the Night Guard pegasus asked.

“Yes they have,” Princess Luna replied. “Escort the fillies there and supervise them, Sergeant.”

“As you wish,” he replied. “Come on, you three.”

“But Daaaaaaad!” Scootaloo whined, “I wanna hear what she’s gonna say!”

“No,” he replied as he exited the room, the Crusaders in tow. “Consider this your punishment for stowing away like that.”

As soon as the door closed, Dom spoke up. “Tenpenny Tower. Practically a fortress. Even had its own security force. The man who ran the place, Tenpenny, was a bigot. Refused to let a group of ghouls in. The chief security officer, Gustave, wanted the ghouls dead.

“The ghoul’s leader, Roy Phillips, wanted me to let them in through the basement, along with a pack of ferals. Basically wild animals,” she clarified. “He wanted every human dead.”

“You didn’t let that happen, did you?” Rarity asked quietly. She was regretting not following her sister, she did not like the direction this story appeared to be heading.

“No, I managed to get them all in peacefully. Managed to convince the other bigots to leave, while Tenpenny just wanted the ghouls to pay up like everyone else had.” Dom let out a sigh. “It was about a week later, after I’d finished scavving through a RobCo building, that I went back. Not a human in sight. I found Roy, and asked him just what the hell had happened.”

The ghoul’s expression hardened as she faced her boots. “That sick bastard had them all killed. I got him what he wanted, but it wasn’t enough. I have over one hundred deaths on my conscious because I didn’t shoot that homicidal maniac when I had the chance.”

“I... I’m so sorry,” Twilight said quietly, not sure what else to say.

“How could he do that?” Applejack asked, her tone a mix of angry and shocked.

“Because he was greedy. And now he’s dead,” Dom spat.

The sudden turn from sombre and depressed to furious and spiteful was alarming.

“No wonder you are so...” Everyone looked around at the source of the quiet voice.

“Private Lulamoon, I almost forgot you were there,” Shining commented. “Take off your helmet, Private.”

“Tri - I would rather not, sir.”

“Private, it’s not as if you’re disfigured,” Shining replied seriously. “Take off your helmet.” When the mare did nothing, his expression hardened. “Private, that was an order.”

The Private’s head was enveloped in a glow of magic as the helmet came off. She shook her head to get her mane out of her eyes before giving a tired, uncaring stare at Twilight Sparkle and her friends.

“You!” she exclaimed.

“Yes, me,” Trixie replied with a roll of her eyes. “Prepare to be behold feats of magic and yada yada yada,” she said flatly, rotating a hoof. “If you’re planning on yelling at me about the Ursa incident, get it over with. Trixie’s armour fitting was tiring and she needs her sleep.”

“What the hay are you doing here!?” Rainbow asked loudly.

“I’m sorry, did you miss that Commander Armor called me by rank? Or the armour I’m wearing?” Trixie snorted. “And here I thought the Element Bearers had to be smart like Sparkle.”

Shining sighed angrily. “Private, don’t antagonise her.”

“Are you calling me stupid!?” the rainbow mare yelled as she tried to surge forwards. Only Applejack grabbing her tail in her mouth stopped her.

The former showmare blinked. “This is why Trixie is glad she is no longer in show business,” she muttered as she turned her gaze to one of the stain-glassed windows.

“Am I that bad?” Dom whispered to Veronica as she pointed at Rainbow. When the Scribe nodded, the ghoul frowned. “Well shit.”

“Trixie, why are you in the guard?” Twilight asked.

Trixie glanced at the other bearers, their expressions a mix of distrust, anger and confusion. “The Ursa incident ended Trixie’s career. After several months, I signed up, hoping to become strong enough to best you in single combat.”

“The only reason you joined was to get revenge?”

“What did you expect, Trixie was shallow and petty back then. And the Ursa had destroyed my caravan, so I had nowhere else to go.”

“What about your family?” Fluttershy asked quietly.

“As far as Trixie is concerned, they are as useful as a scalpel made of chocolate,” she replied angrily. “If they had their way, Trixie would have gotten involved in the nobles’ petty politics and been married off to some fool with more teeth than brain cells. I knew the idea of a noblepony’s daughter enlisting in the guard would infuriate them,” she smirked. “So I did.”

“Ah don’t get it,” Applejack piped up, having let go of Rainbow’s tail. “Ah thought a lotta nobleponies were in the guard.”

“None of them enlisted like a commoner,” Trixie explained, briefly turning the haughtiness up a few dozen notches. “For the most part, it’s symbolic, a throwback to when the nobility actually had significance. Half of them need help putting their armour on,” she chuckled.

“And the bulk of the guard is pegasi,” Rainbow chipped in. When everyone turned to look at her, she shrugged. “Hey, my grandfathers were guardsponies, they told me this kind thing all the time.”

“Anyway, shortly after Nightmare Night, Trixie realised how petty she was being. I also enjoyed what I was doing in the guard. When Commander Armor approached me several weeks ago, about becoming a Knight, I accepted.” When she got a series of blank stares, she sighed. “Why, what did you think Trixie did after the Ursa incident? Worked on a rock farm to get enough bits to buy an ancient pendant so she could banish Twilight Sparkle from Ponyville?”

“Uhh, sorta?” Rainbow replied.

“That does seem like the kind of thing you would do,” Rarity added.

“Once a upon a time, Trixie might have. But, she has matured.”

“Well, good for you!” Pinkie suddenly exclaimed, popping up behind the unicorn. “Now that you’re nice, we’ll have to - oof!” The party pony fell to the ground suddenly as an attempt to put a hoof around the armoured mare’s neck failed, with her leg going right through her.

“Sorry, but Trixie was worried that at least one of you would try to hit her,” she said as she cancelled the illusions. Everyone performed a double-take when she appeared next to Shining Armor, Thomas and Dom being especially disturbed.

“She fooled my Pip-Boy,” the ghoul muttered. “First time I’ve seen that happen.”

“Private, what have you been told about doing that?” the Commander asked.

“Sorry, sir, I thought it was a matter of personal safety.”

“Is there anything else that needs to be said, Commander?” Luna asked, turning to face him.

“No, your highness, everything that had to be said was said within the first ten minutes,” Shining replied, scowling slightly.

“In that case, have our guests escorted to their rooms. Night Court is opening soon,” she explained.

“But-but-but the party! For Trixie! And Dom!” Pinkie spluttered gesturing wildly between them. “And Thomas! And Veronica!”

“A party can wait, Pinkie,” Twilight replied. “Right now, I just want to get some sleep.”

The other girls agreed with Twilight, leaving Pinkie sitting on the ground looking scandalised. “Fine,” she pouted adorably. “But none of you are getting out of a party!” she yelled loudly as she followed the rest out. “Especially you!” she finished, pointing a hoof at Thomas.

“That’s scarier than it probably should be,” he commented as the door closed.

“Yes, the Bearer of Laughter can be like that on occasion,” Luna answered, wearing a small smile.

“Again, something about a Bearer,” Veronica said. “What’s up with that?”

“I’ll explain it along the way,” Shining replied, motioning towards the door.

Author’s Notes:

No I’m not fucking with Fallout canon. Giacomo is the Italian equivalent of James. It makes sense that he would just use James as it’s simpler.

I reckon Tenpenny Tower would make her feel that diplomacy is a lost cause.

Trxie keeps switching between first and third person because she’s trying to break the habit, with some success.

I actually did enjoy the episode, just thought it’d be nice to poke fun at it, and to reinforce that this story completely ignores Season 3 canon.

18: In The Morning

When Veronica woke up, it was to a rather noticeable lack of pain. “Oh god, I’m dead!”

After a few seconds, she calmed down and realised that the absence of pain was due to the fact that for the first time in weeks she hadn’t woken up with a bad hangover. After her mild bout of panic, she took stock of her surroundings.

To say her room was luxurious would be an understatement. She had thought that the suites at the Lucky 38 were amazing, like the one Thomas had given her, but everything about this one put that to shame. At the moment, she was occupying a marvellous four-poster bed with a mattress she could just sink in, and sheets as smooth as silk. She felt a bit ashamed that she hadn’t bathed before using it.

Her power armour had been discarded on the floor, as had her weapons. As she climbed out of bed, her eyes passed over the wardrobe. “Why didn’t I bring a dress?” she asked herself, thinking back to the small collection she had managed to put together back home. It would definitely beat walking around in T-51b all day. Not that she didn’t like it, but it could get really stuffy and sweaty, even with the self-contained cooling system. And it was really hard to pick up girls in that thing.

As she walked over to her armour and got ready to put in on, there was a knock at the door. “Come in!”

The door opened silently and in stepped a white unicorn with an expertly-groomed violet mane. Veronica looked at her for a moment, trying to remember who this pony was. The unicorn spoke, but all the words made no sense to her. “Uhh...”

The unicorn made an “o” with her mouth and tapped a small necklace around her neck. “I’m sorry about that, I completely forgot you can’t speak Equestrian.”

“Oh, that’s okay,” Veronica replied happily. “So, why are you here?”

“Well, it might be silly but...” Rarity levitated a measuring tape that she had tucked into her tail. “You said that your armour was all you had, did you not?”

“Yeah...” Veronica had no idea where the unicorn was going with this. “Why?”

“I just felt so sad for you! So, I am going to make you a dress!” Rarity proclaimed loudly. She turned with a smile to the Scribe, who stood there dumbfounded.

“A... a dress?” she asked hesitantly, unable to believe her ears. “You want to make me a dress?”

“Is that going to be a problem?” the unicorn asked uneasily, worried she had stepped over some line.

“THANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOU!” Veronica squealed, pulling the pony into a sudden hug, smooshing Rarity’s face into her breasts. She was so excited she failed to notice the unicorn struggling to pull herself away.

Dom had never been one to rise with the sun. She often got in trouble with the other members of the Pride for having to be shaken awake at a quarter past ten every morning. So the fact that she was awake at what her Pip-Boy told her was barely eight was a little worrying.

She climbed out of bed and padded over to her armour. She had slept in her underwear, though she had kept on the fake arm. Putting it back on was a two-man job, and even then they had to have a good idea just what they were trying to do. More than once she’d had to walk into the lab under the Citadel to get Rothchild to fix a damaged connection because an Initiate had tried to help her.

As she scratched at herself, she nudged a plate of her armour. Truthfully, she didn’t feel like wearing it today. But it was all she had, and it had the extra benefit of covering up a large amount of her body. A naked ghoul could be really unsettling.

As she finished strapping on the breastplate, the door opened. She looked up to see a rather welcome sight.

“Good morning there!” Grimfeather said cheerfully as he stepped into the room.

“Sergeant,” Dom replied with a small smile.

“Oh, none of that. Reginald, or even Reggie, is fine.” The griffon ruffled his wings. “I saw your form yesterday during your fight. Terrifying stuff.”

The ghoul smirked. “That was kind of the point.”

“But you were sloppy. You haven’t had a minute of training in your life, am I right?”

“Don’t get a chance to train in the Wastes,” she explained. “Every fight is win or die. The best way to win is to break their arms and then finish them. No time for anything fancy.”

“Which explains the sheer brutality you demonstrated against the poor captain,” the griffon muttered.

“Personally, I prefer stabbing and electrocuting,” Dom continued conversationally as she tightened the straps for her right shoulder pad. “The screams are usually enough to scare the rest away.”

“I... see. Anywho, I am here for a reason, and that is to take you to breakfast.”

“I’d thought you’d be married,” Dom answered flatly.

“Please, me, married?” Reginald replied with a laugh. “No, the battlefield is my mistress, armed conflict my love. No hen has been able to claim my heart like warfare has.”

“Maybe war is different here,” the ghoul mused as she followed the griffon.

“It would be safe to assume that,” Grimfeather answered. “One can learn much about another from their fighting style.”

“Really?”

“Indeed, m’dear. You can be heartless and savage, prepared to do anything to win, but from what I saw you can also be merciful.”

“No point wasting ammo on some people,” Dom shrugged. “Easier to let them run.”

When Thomas awoke, it was to the sound of hammering at his door. Clad in nought but his underwear, he trudged to it and found himself staring at half a dozen golden-armoured pegasi. An eyebrow disappeared into his hair. “Two things. One, that is creepy. Two, what the fuck are you doing here?”

“Princess Celestia has requested your presence,” one of them said.

“That’s it? This couldn’t wait until I had pants on?” When he received no answer, he rolled his eyes. “Fine. Let me get dressed, then I’ll follow you,” he muttered as he closed his door.

“So, what’s going on?” Thomas asked when he emerged five minutes later.

“Her Majesty has decided that revealing your presence to the greater public is in the greater national interest.” From the stallion’s tone, it was clear he felt uneasy about the situation.

“So, what, reporters?” Thomas asked. He remembered when Radio New Vegas reporters had tried to talk to him. He’d ran into raiders who had more manners than those vultures. A set of broken ribs happened to be an incredibly effective way to send a message, though. “Fuck.”

“Yes, the press can be terrible,” one of the guardsponies responded.

“I’m at least getting breakfast first, right?”

“The press conference is scheduled for 10 A.M.”

Knight-Commander Shining Armor had awoken at the crack of dawn, forced out of bed by the large amount of paperwork the attack on Ponyville had caused. Among the mountain of paper that now occupied his desk were a dozen forms that would effectively ruin the lives of twelve ponies forever. He knew it had to be done, though, that they had to be made an example of.

“Which one of you gave the order?” he asked harshly, the morning sun shining off his golden Knight armour. Before him, standing outside the barracks, were the twelve ponies, nine unicorns, two pegasi and an earth pony, who had abandoned their posts at Ponyville, thus allowing the attack to even happen. “I asked who was responsible.”

When he was met with more silence he started grinding his teeth. “If I do not get an answer in the next ten seconds I will physically maim each and every one of you.”

One of the unicorns spoke up at the threat. “You really think we’re scared of some upstart princeling?” he asked gruffly.

“I take it you were responsible, then?” Shining asked, recognising the stallion as a member of the minor nobility.

“You mean if I told the soldiers to pull out of that backwater, then yes.”

The Knight-Commander rose an eyebrow at the other stallion’s insolent tone. “So it means nothing to you that that ‘backwater’ as you so elegantly put it happens to be the home to all six of the Bearers of the Elements of Harmony?” Shining couldn’t help but smile as the expressions on each pony in front of him went from stoic stubbornness to shocked horror in an instant.

“None of us wanted to leave our posts, sir, but Sergeant Pride ordered us,” the lone earth pony said, sounding panicky.

“Is that right, Sergeant? Did you give an illegal order?”

“I - I had no idea! If I’d know that the town was so important - ”

“HOW IMPORTANT THE TOWN IS IS IRRELEVANT!” Shining Armor yelled, the volume of his voice threatening to rival that of the Royal Canterlot Voice. “YOU WERE MEANT TO DEFEND THE TOWN, REGARDLESS OF ITS SUPPOSED VALUE! YOUR DUTY IS TO PROTECT EQUESTRIA AND ITS CITIZENS, AND THE MOMENT YOU GAVE THE ORDER TO PULL OUT YOU FAILED! YOUR! DUTY!” he screamed, punctuating each word with a step forwards. By the time he was finished, the two stallions’ muzzles were touching and Shining was panting heavily. The sergeant, on the other hoof, looked like he was about to wet himself. “YOU HAVE DISGRACED THE ROYAL GUARD WITH YOUR ACTIONS, AND FOR THAT ALL OF YOU WILL BE PUNISHED!”

“A-all of us?” one of the pegasi asked timidly.

“You followed an illegal order, abandoned your posts and endangered the lives of the citizens of Ponyville. As of this moment, you are all stripped of your rank,” Shining said, forcing himself to keep his voice calmer. He stepped back and glared at the group, ripping any symbol of rank from their armour with his magic as he did. “I’d see you all dishonorably discharged, but we need every able pony we have. Even if that is just to throw you in front of the Dogs,” he added threateningly, making how he felt about them as clear as crystal. “Pride, Stardust, step forward.”

The former sergeant and a pegasus stepped forwards, the latter shaking in her horseshoes. The unicorn had a grim expression, not knowing what the angry pony had in mind.

“As a Prince of Equestria, I am stripping you both of your lands, your titles and your wealth. They now belong to whoever is next in line.”

“What!?” the stallion yelled in shock. “You can’t do this!”

“I have the blessing of Princess Luna on the matter, and both the houses you belonged to are insignificant enough that the chances of a power struggle are non-existent. Do you have anything else to say, Private?” When the stallion just stood and gaped at him, he picked up his helmet. “That’s what I thought.”

Author's Note

Filler chapter? Sort of. Sorry about that. Beats another omake, though, right?

And oh god Shiny can be scary.

19: From Bad To Worse

“Why do I have a bad feeling about this?” Thomas asked quietly, looking at the amassed crowd in front of him. Nearly all of them were ponies of each kind, though a few griffons and even a minotaur could be seen. “This place is way too open,” he mumbled, talking about the large hall. There were numerous windows, the door was wide open and the pillars off to the side provided great hiding spots. His HUD was useless amongst so many non-hostiles, anyone who wanted to attack him would simply not show up.

“Oh, calm down,” Veronica moaned, wearing her full set of T-51b.

“Easy for you to say. You’re fucking bulletproof,” he muttered.

“Yeah, and you chew metal and shit bullets,” she replied. “So shut the fuck up already.”

“You may now ask any questions you have for my guests,” they heard Celestia say.

“This is gonna suck,” Thomas muttered as he stood up from his chair. “Hello!” he exclaimed loudly. “As the Princess said, I am Thomas.”

“What is your response to the allegations that you are responsible for the current conflict?” one of the reporters asked.

“Firstly, don’t cut me off when I’m talking,” Thomas replied harshly, shooting a glare at the blue unicorn. To his credit, the pony didn’t even blink. “Secondly, between leaving three children to a lifetime of slavery and starting a war, I’ll pick war every time.”

“Does this mean you enjoy such things?”

“No. I’m just very good at it,” Thomas replied, sounding curiously unhappy.

“The Princess told us that you have experience our Royal Guard don’t.” From the pegasus’ voice, it was clear she thought that claim was utterly facetious.

“Have your soldiers faced a horde of completely fanatic murderers, most of them better armed than them?” he spat back. “Have they gone against wildlife so deadly going within a hundred yards is suicide? Do they know how to use weapons designed to punch through half a foot of solid steel?” Thomas could feel Veronica’s eyes on the back of his head, knowing she was frowning at his exaggerations. “I’ve fought monsters who used children as suicide bombers, and wiped out towns for fun. I have experience your military never will. And the only way I survived was in armour that makes the stuff your soldiers have look like tin foil.”

The response to that was overwhelming silence. “Way to freak them out, jerk,” Veronica said, slapping him in the back of the head as she stepped forwards. “Ignore this idiot,” she called out to the crowd, pulling off her helmet.

“W-was he telling the truth?”

“He was exaggerating, but for the most part... yeah. He really did wipe out the upper command of those ‘fanatic murderers’ by himself, too” she air-quoted.

“Actually, I had help.”

“Oh, right, Boone.” The power-armoured woman turned to her black friend. “What’s he up to?”

“Back with 1st Recon,” he replied.

“Uh...”

Thomas turned back to the reporters, who were now staring at the pair in shock. “Right, sorry, got distracted. Uh, you there, at the back,” he said, pointing at the minotaur.

“Thank you,” he said, standing up. “What is your opinion on the Diamond Dog forces? Do you feel that the Equestrian military is capable of winning this war?”

“Honestly, I have no idea. The Dogs are strong, probably the toughest thing I’ve faced that wasn’t an animal. As for you ponies... Honestly?” he asked. “Without the griffons, I think you’d be in over your heads.”

The response was everyone shouting in disagreement. “Why do you feel that way!?” one voice, louder than the others, called.

“Because your army is - ” He spun around, raising his arms to cover his face. Just in time, too, because that quick action saved his life, the crossbow bolt meant to end him instead going through his right arm. “MOTHERFUCKER! VERONICA!” he shouted.

The Scribe had acted the even before the first syllable had left his mouth, sprinting for one of the open windows. The lone grey-coated pegasus hovering there, a crossbow in his hooves, only stared in shock as the power-armoured woman managed to somehow jump the fifteen feet from the window ledge with ease. “Oh shit!” she cried as she wrapped her arms around the stallion, bringing them both crashing fifty feet down into a shrubbery.

“My wing...” he moaned.

“That’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever done,” Veronica muttered as she picked herself up. “And I slept with Cass.”

“Veronica! You okay!?” She looked up to see Thomas looking out the window, yelling down at her.

“I just jumped out a damn window, what do you think!?” she yelled back. “What about you!? You got shot in the arm!”

“One second!” He turned back to the shocked crowd and made his way back to the stage, dripping blood the whole time. “I’m afraid we have to cut this short,” he said diplomatically. “Sorry about that.” He walked back to the window. “It fucking hurts, but I’ve had worse!”

“Now hold still,” the nurse told him. “The last thing you want to do is make it worse.” The moment the white earth pony turned around, she heard a cry of pain. “Or you could be like the griffons and completely ignore every word I say,” she muttered through her teeth.

“I’ve had two holes in my skull,” Thomas replied, looking at the freshly-removed bolt. “And this isn’t the first time I’ve been shot, either.”

“Regardless of your experience on the matter, it is my job to make sure you are okay.” The nurse grabbed a roll of bandages. “Now stay still or I will go and collect some volunteers to hold you still.”

Thomas complied, holding out his arm to give the mare easy access to his wound. “I’ve treated myself for worse, you know.”

“There is a difference between field first aid and actual medical attention,” the nurse said tersely. “You don’t know how lucky you are that it went right through, you know.”

“I have two holes in my arm, how is that lucky?”

“Because it missed the bone. No telling how much damage that could have done.”

It was only five minutes later that he emerged from the nurse’s office, a bandage now covering the damage. “Need a drink?” Veronica asked, holding out a bottle of whiskey.

“Thanks.” Thomas gladly took the bottle and drunk from it briefly. “Find out anything about the pegasus that shot me?”

“Never imagined I’d ever hear you say anything like that,” the Scribe commented with a smile. “Anyway, that pony thought you were some demon trying to enslave Equestria or something.”

The man stared at her. “And he thought a bit of steel would stop a demon?”

“I don’t know how crazy people think,” Veronica replied loudly.

“Okay, okay,” Thomas chuckled. “How’d he even fire the crossbow, anyway?”

“It was modified,” Grimfeather replied, landing next to them.

“Way to get yourself shot,” Dom called out snidely, a smirk on the skinless face.

“Modified? How?”

“The model of bow your assailant used is a minotaur design,” the griffon explained. “The only way a pony could use it with hooves was if the trigger and grip were modified to be more hoof-friendly.” He turned to the black man, who had listened patiently. “Someone wants you dead, it seems.”

“Not the first time,” Thomas shrugged calmly.

“What do you mean, everything went to Tartarus!?”

“Exactly what he said, sir,” Clarion Call panted. The grey stallion stood there stoically, but it was very clear that he was in pain.

“There must’ve been at least eighty of them, sir. All heavily armed, all waiting for us.” Frost Lance wheezed as he rubbed at his barrel One of his armour plates had been badly damaged, and the bent metal had gouged into him.

“No civvies, though,” Firebolt added. His face was a mix of blues and blacks, so much so that it hid a lot of his actual crimson coat. “We’re lucky we got out at all.”

“You three are among the best trained soldiers Equestria has seen since the time of Nightmare Moon. Your armour is like nothing seen on this world. How did this happen!?” Shining asked loudly.

“There were three Diamond Dogs down there with magic. Magic, sir,” Clarion repeated.

“Why do you think it looks like I got hit by a train?” Firebolt asked, pointing at his face.

“One of them threw half a boulder at me,” Forst Lance added.

Shining just gaped. “Oh, this is bad.”

Author's Note

Is it lacking? Yes.
Could I have done better? Yes.
Do I feel like keeping you waiting? No.

20: Threats and Intel

“How are Dogs that use magic such a big deal?" Veronica asked. The wastelanders had met up with the commander on one side of the training fields, along with Clarion Call.

“Dogs with natural magic are an oddity,” Call explained. “The rarer the number of natural magic users in a species, the more powerful they tend to be.”

“And they’re intelligent. Not saying the rest of the Dogs aren’t, but the magi make the rest of them look like slobbering animals. Typically, though, they’re simply limited to geomancy.”

“Geo-what?” Veronica asked.

“Means magic to do with rocks or dirt,” Dom explained. “Makes sense, from what you’ve told us.”

“The use of the word ‘typically’ worries me,” Thomas muttered.

“At least one of them was slinging lightning,” Clarion grumbled.

The three humans blinked. “That does not sound normal.”

“It isn’t. Which leads me to believe that the Dogs are being helped.”

Not long after, Thomas and Veronica were making their way to where the Courier’s assailant was being held, led by an earth pony.

“Veronica, are you sure about this?”

“Oh yeah, I’m sure.” The Scribe cracked her knuckles and put on her helmet. “That sack of shit hurt you.”

“You know I’ve been through worse,” Thomas replied, trying to calm the angry woman. “Let me deal with this.”

“Oh no, you’re not talking me outta this,” she said as they went down the stairs to the interrogation room. “I’m gonna get some damn answers.”

“It’s what Grimfeather said, isn’t it?”

“How are you not worried, Thomas? Someone is trying to kill you, damnit!” Veronica yelled angrily, her helmet slightly muffling her voice. “And I don’t want to lose you!”

“Whuh? Veronica, what do you mean by that?” Thomas was shocked. “Am I really that important to you?”

“Since I left the Brotherhood, you’re all I’ve had. Whenever you were off, doing whatever it is you did, I was so worried.” She stopped for a moment before turning around. “I don’t know what I’d do if something happened to you,” she said, grabbing him in a big hug.

“I didn’t know you cared so much,” he replied after a moment, returning the hug.

“Of course I do.” Her anger had faded. “We’re practically family.”

“So no fucking?” Thomas asked in mock disappointment.

“Grow some tits and lose the dick, then we’ll talk,” the Scribe replied cheekily as she let go.

“But I like my dick!” he protested as the power-armoured woman opened the door.

The grey pegasus sat there for a moment, staring at the two figures occupying the doorway in shock. “No!” he exclaimed, half a second before he tried to run past them. Unfortunately for the stallion, either Veronica had expected something like this or her reflexes were too great, for the sound of his skull clanging against her leg echoed throughout the small room.

“Well that was sad,” the Scribe said as she picked up the pony, his eyes spinning around in their sockets.

“Put him back in the chair,” Thomas said, closing the door behind him.

Veronica plopped the dazed pegasus down and took a step back. “You better start talking.”

“T-talk?” he asked, looking around in fear. “No, no, I won’t say a thing to you daemons! You’ve fooled the Princesses, but you haven’t fooled me! You will bring nothing but death and ruin to Equestria! You - ”

“Cut the crap, we know you were paid,” Thomas said flatly.

“Paid!?” the stallion asked indignantly, fixing the man with what was meant to be a threatening stare. “My only payment is removing your taint from - ”

“You getting sick of this?” Veronica asked. “Because I’m getting sick of this.”

“We can do this two ways, buddy,” Thomas said, glancing at the pegasus. “The easy way, or the fast way. Trust me, I prefer the fast way,” he growled as he leaned forwards menacingly. “But,” he added as he leaned back with a smile, “I’m a good man, so I’ll let you choose.”

“Fuck letting him choose, I wanna get some fucking answers!” Veronica yelled angrily back at her friend.

“I was not paid!” the stallion repeated nervously, eyes darting about as he searched pointlessly for a way out.

“Look, I know a liar when I see one,” Thomas told him, making him gulp. “So, do us all a favour, and tell us who sent you.” When the silence returned, he added, “And we won’t have to find out if my friend can punch your wing off.”

“I bet twenty caps I can,” Veronica commented cheerfully.

“You’re on,” the black man replied, sounding deadly serious.

The stallion stared between the pair, not knowing what to think. Up until that moment, he was sure he was seeing some bizarre take on the ‘Good Cop, Bad Cop’ routine. With those last two statements, though, it would’ve been more accurate to label them ‘Bad Cop, Worse Cop’.

“You know what’s funny?” Veronica asked, leaning down behind the pegasus so she could whisper into his ear. “I’m the nice one.”

“And you know what’s funnier?” Thomas asked loudly. “You’ve been released into our custody, which means we can do whatever. We. Want.” He looked over at his power-armoured companion, who nodded. It felt good to have someone who could play along. “Are you going to talk, or are we going to have to administer some Wasteland Justice?”

Those last two words sent a shiver up and down the stallion’s spine. The information he had been given was that these individuals were incredibly dangerous, with the one with brown skin the most deadly. He didn’t want to know what his idea of ‘justice’ was. “Okay, I’ll talk, I’ll talk!” he screamed desperately. “Just let me go!”

“Who sent you?”

“Ididn’tseetheirfacebutitsoundedlikeamarebutshehadclawslikeagriffonoraDiamondDogshejustgavemeabunchofgemsandthecrossbowandtoldmetokillyouatthepressconference.” The words came out in a complete jumble, leaving two confused humans.

“Can you try that again? With, y’know, spaces?” Veronica asked.

The stallion took a few deep breaths and tried again. “I didn’t see their face but it sounded like a mare. But she had claws like a griffon or a Diamond Dog. She just gave me a bunch of gems and the crossbow and told me to kill you at the press conference.”

“Great. They’re paying civilians to kill you,” Veronica deadpanned.

Thomas stood there in thought for a moment. “I’m gonna need my ranger gear.”

Author's Note

Okay, are people familiar with the Ogre Magi from the Warcraft series? They tended to be smarter than the average ogre, and I've kind of gone the same route with the D.Dog Magi. That's also why Diamond Dog Magi are a threat.

21: Happier Times

“Okay, Veronica, I’ll be back in a day or so.” Thomas reached into his duster and pulled out his green Transportalponder.

“Nice to know you’re actually taking me seriously.”

“Hey, if someone wants me dead, they’re gonna have to go through a proper set of body armour and all the firepower I can carry.” Veronica shook her head at that. “Want me to bring back something for you?”

“A Ballistic Fist, maybe?” she asked hopefully.

“I’ll see if I can find one.” With those parting words Thomas pointed the device skywards and pulled the trigger.

As the ball of light disappeared, the Scribe heard something. “And where the fuck is he running off to?”

She turned and saw a grumpy ghoul and a curious griffon. “He’s getting better armour and weaponry,” she explained.

“And you’re sure he’s coming back?” Dom asked skeptically.

“Of course he is!” Veronica yelled back angrily. “He wouldn’t abandon us!”

“Woah, calm down,” the ghoul replied, holding her hands up as she took a step back. “No need to get your armour in a bunch.”

Veronica made a point of ignoring the jab and turned to the griffon. “Sarge, you got any idea why that pegasus just did it, though? He didn’t seem like the violent type.”

“We had a few unicorns look at the weapon. They found a compulsion charm on it,” he explained. When all he got were two matching, blank looks, he chuckled gently. “Heh, don’t worry. I needed Miss Twilight Sparkle to explain it to me.” The griffon cleared his throat. “An object with a compulsion charm on it forces whoever is holding it to undertake a series of actions. Our poor friend was not only forced to attack Thomas, his mind was also altered to make him believe it was his idea from the start.” He shook his head, though whether it was with anger or sorrow was unclear. “Exactly the reason why such magic is illegal. Those caught doing it are dehorned.”

“Yeesh.” Dom grimaced. “I’ve seen plenty of fucked up shit, but that’s just...”

“Wow. Now I feel bad about the stuff I said to him,” Veronica mumbled. “Anyway!” she exclaimed loudly, “I need to find the pony that makes dresses.”

“What, the prissy one? Why?” the ghoul asked.

“I still feel bad for nearly suffocating her,” the Scribe admitted sheepishly as she tried to walk past.

“What?” Dom tried to hide her smile, she really did, but it was futile. “This I gotta hear.”

Veronica sighed angrily when the ghoul began to follow her, leaving the griffon to return to his soldiers. “She came to my room this morning and said she was going to make a dress for me.”

“I don’t like wearing dresses, but I’ve never tried to murder someone because of that,” Dom replied seriously. “You should probably try to talk to someone about that.”

“No! I didn’t try to kill her! I hugged her and... well...”

“Go on...”

“I might have overreacted and sort of... nearly suffocated her with my boobs.” Veronica’s shoulders slumped as the ghoul burst out into raspy laughter.

“Oh god! That... ahahaha!” Dom doubled over as tears came to her eyes. “That’s the funniest thing I’ve ever heard!”

“Yes, laugh at me, just like everyone else,” Veronica quipped. “Not like I care or anything.”

“I’m sorry, it’s just...” the ghoul cleared her throat as they walked towards their rooms. “Seriously, the last time I laughed so hard, we found Kodiak in his underwear tied to the flagpole in the bailey.” Veronica cracked a smile at that. “And that’s why we don’t let him drink anymore.”

“Who can’t drink anymore?” Both wastelanders turned to see a lavender unicorn walk past, a small stack of books floating in front of her.

“One of my squadmates,” Dom replied, suddenly very serious.

“Hey, Twilight, right? Where’s your white friend?” Veronica blinked. “And that sounded a little weird, didn’t it?” she asked quietly, looking at a wall for no real reason.

“What’s with the books?” the ghoul asked, pointing at them.

“I’m trying to find out everything I can about Diamond Dogs. But because of our history with them, there’s really only common knowledge.” Twilight Sparkle let out an aggravated groan at that point. “The castle’s library is supposed to be the most comprehensive private repository of knowledge in Equestria. This oversight is just unthinkable.”

“At least you have a library.” Dom leaned over and took the top book from the stack. She flicked it open and stared blankly at the unreadable text.

“Don’t you have one where you’re from?”

“We have archives, but they’re mostly digital. Books have a habit of being used for fires and toilet paper.” Dom looked up when she heard the unicorn splutter. “You okay?”

“W-why would anyone do that?” she asked loudly, her eye twitching at the thought of her beloved books being treated that way. The very idea disgusted her.

“Partly the fact that a lot of people are illiterate, mainly that survival comes first.” Dom shrugged. “The illiterates are mainly raiders, though. I helped write a book, once,” she added.

“Wait, really? You wrote a book?”

“Well, the actual research for it, yeah. Seriously, you would not believe how many times I nearly got killed for that damn thing,” she added with an eye-roll.

“What... what was the book called?” Twilight asked, both worried and curious about what book would involve such danger.

“The Wasteland Survival Guide,” the ghoul said proudly. “A whole month of doing stupid things so someone else wouldn’t have to.” She chuckled at the memories.

“What kind of stupid things?” Veronica asked, her desire to find Rarity temporarily forgotten.

“Well, there was that one time I jumped off a house onto a frag mine.”

Both mare and Scribe just stared. “Why the hell did you do that?”

“Moira wanted to practice some first aid. Nearly killed myself.” Dom scratched absently at something under her pauldron. “Looking back, doing one or the other would have been more than enough.”

“Wow.” Twilight grabbed the book Dom had taken and replaced it on the stack. “That’s... kinda stupid.”

“I was young, and I needed the money,” she shrugged. “I could’ve slept around, but I have standards. Not that I... that I wasn’t asked.”

“You’re okay with the fact that people wanted to pay to have sex with you?” Veronica asked, sounding curious. Twilight, who until that point wasn’t entirely sure what they were talking about, blushed.

“Not at the time, but...” Dom sighed. “I kinda regret not taking advantage of how good I looked at least once.”

“Wait. You’re a virgin?” Veronica asked, eyebrows shooting into her fringe.

“No, no. Had a lover a while back. He... he was a good man,” she said sadly. “Made me feel special. God I miss him.”

“I... I know how you feel, Dom.” Veronica bowed her head, trying to push back the painful memories.

“Uh, Veronica, you wanted to find Rarity?” Twilight asked, a little uncomfortable with the depressing turn the conversation had managed to take. “She’s in her room.”

“Oh. Right. Which way is that?”

“Her room is three doors down from yours’,” the unicorn elaborated, pointing in the general direction she needed to go.

“Sweet. Thanks.” The Scribe quickly disappeared in her hunt for the white unicorn.

“Why does she need to see Rarity for, anyway?” The lavender mare watched curiously as the power armoured woman disappeared from sight.

“Something about smothering your friend by accident. So where were you going, anyway?” Dom asked before Twilight could interrupt.

“I’m returning these to the library. I still can’t believe I couldn’t find anything, though.”

“It happens. You just need something to take your mind off things.”

“That’s why I’ve been studying,” the mare admitted as she resumed her walk. “I’m still having trouble believing that Ponyville was attacked. I hope Spike will be here soon,” she added.

“I was shown a map earlier. Pretty gutsy attacking a town so close to the capital, let alone one almost in the middle of the country.” Dom looked at the ceiling. “Reg did say something about ‘strategic importance’, though.”

“I don’t know where those rumors about the Elements of Harmony being a superweapon came from,” Twilight muttered angrily. “It’s not like we can just use them on just anyone. Nightmare Moon and Discord threatened the harmony of the natural state of the entire world. Two or three countries fighting a war isn’t enough to force them to activate.”

The area where Dom’s eyebrows were rose. “Nightmare Moon? Discord?”

“Oh right, you wouldn’t know.” Twilight perked up as soon as she realised what she had said. “You don’t know! Come on, I’ll tell you all about it,” she said eagerly as her pace quickened.

“Those sound like the names of myths. Like Thor or Heracles,” Dom replied, lengthening her strides to keep up.

“That’s what everypony used to think.” The ghoul blinked at that. “I’ll start with the story of Nightmare Moon first...”

Thomas pushed his way past the old railway crossing outside the ruins of Nipton. Despite the threat of attack being nonexistent and the ease with which the town could be resettled, it had been left abandoned after the Legion had wiped out its inhabitants months earlier. Bones and ash littered the streets, and the buildings had fallen into disrepair. All of this was ignored by the black man as he made his way to the Vegas Strip. Accompanying him was the sound of music coming from his left arm.

“I got spurs that jingle, jangle, jingle...”

Author's Note

Yep, Dom was a looker before ghoulification. Wanna take a guess at who her lover was?
I know that that's not the same version of Jingle, Jangle, Jingle as the one in the game. But it's a better version.

OMAKE THE THIRD

Location Unknown

“God damn it!”

“Well, that hurt.”

Thomas tried to hold up the Transportalponder, but it fell from his grasp. “Damn it.” He leaned over to where it was and made to pick it up. For some reason, though, it just wouldn’t happen. “What the fuck?”

“Oof!” The sound of something metallic and very heavy hitting the ground sounded next to Thomas. “What happened to my hand!?” he heard Veronica scream.

He rolled his head and saw a pony on their back, looking at their hoof. Any distinguishing features were completely hidden under a set of heavy armour. It took him a moment to realise that he was looking at what closely resembled a set of T-51b, though why it was made to fit a pony was beyond him.

“What the fuck?” The third voice was not one he was familiar with. On his other side was a unicorn mare. Unlike the other pony, he could see that she had an off-white coat and blood-red mane, along with an incredibly ferocious scowl. As she struggled to her hooves, she shot a glare at him. “Thomas, you never said anything about this.”

“Anything about what?” He tried to stand on two legs and managed it for all of four seconds. His balance abandoned him and he fell onto his back. Pain unlike anything he had ever experienced before shot through his body as a pair of somethings on his back were pushed into his body. “Motherfucker!”

The unicorn mare jerkily made her towards him, a metallic clank accompanying every other step, and rolled him on his stomach before shoving her muzzle so close her head was the only thing he could see. “Thomas, you have five seconds to tell me why we are ponies,” she hissed.

“What?” He carefully pushed himself onto all fours, a position that felt far too natural, and looked at his hands. Instead of hands, though, he was greeted by a pair of dusty-brown hooves. “What!?” He looked behind him and saw not only a pitch-black tail swishing behind him, but a pair of wings poking through holes in his duster. “WHAT!?”

The other pony was lying on their stomach and was trying to force off their helmet. Eventually, they succeeded, revealing a mare with a dirty blonde mane and a coat the colour of iron. “Thomas...” the mare said in Veronica’s voice. “What’s going on?”

The man-turned-pegasus turned to the unicorn. “Dom?”

“Who else?” she asked back, her scowl hardening.

“Why do I have hooves?” Veronica asked.

“This didn’t happen before,” Thomas muttered.

“What, pray tell, didn’t happen before?” a cold, unamused voice asked. The three looked up to see a tall, imposing figure walking towards them. The lone stallion gulped. “And just what are you three doing in the gardens at this hour?”

Thomas looked around, noticing that they were indeed in a garden of sorts. Their weapons and belongings had scattered, though nothing seemed to be broken. He looked back at the speaker, having recognised who it was the moment he had heard her voice. “Hello, Luna. Long time, no see.”

“I have never seen you before in my life,” Luna replied, ruffling her wings. She pointed her horn at the group, at Thomas in particular. “Give me your name, lest I call the guards and have them force it from you.”

“The Courier.” The words had an immediate effect. It wasn’t the one he had been expecting, or the one he had wanted.

“You spineless, two-timing coward!” A blast of concussive force shot out of the princess’ horn and sent the shocked pegasus into an uncontrolled flight.

“Argh!” he screamed, his wings flaring from the shock. He hit the ground with a thud and rolled onto his side. “Ow...”

Author's Note

Because it had to be done.
In all honesty, though, this might not have been a bad idea.

22: TITLE NOT FOUND

Thomas opened one of the doors of the Lucky 38’s presidential suite, what was technically his home. While he may have had three bedrooms, he really only used two of them. The third had been converted into a personal armoury that would put even the NCR to shame with the sheer diversity in arms and armour it contained.

Pistols and rifles, both energy-based and gunpowder, covered one wall. Along another a large number of explosives and launchers were stored. A third wall was dedicated to all forms of close-quarters weaponry, ranging from boxing gloves to Legate Lanius’ own Sword of The East.

He had also moved a large number of closets and chests into the room to make storing his daunting amount of armour easy. Legion centurion armour, Republic trooper uniforms, pre-War combat armour, power armour, radiation suits, even a high-tech stealth suit.

However, he had one particular set of armour in mind. Last time he was in Equestria, he had been known as the red-eyed demon by those who stood against him. This time, he felt that a slightly different name would be better. He looked at the wall of explosive hardware and smiled, his eyes resting on one weapon in particular.

“So, we’re fine now?”

“Oh of course dear,” Rarity answered with a warm smile, not looking away from her sewing machine. “I had no idea it was like that.”

“Well, you don’t ever see much new clothing in Vegas,” Veronica explained. “Even when you do, it’s not exactly good clothing, either.”

“I can’t imagine how you stand it, though,” Rarity muttered.

The Scribe shrugged. “Neither do I, sometimes. Try picking up a date wearing a set of dusty robes. Doesn’t happen.”

“I can imagine that,” Rarity replied. “Would you like some more tea?”

“Yeah, thanks.” Veronica held out her teacup and let the mare fill it before reclining again on the small couch. “This is really relaxing.”

Rarity hadn’t wanted her to wear her armour all the time, so she had put very quickly put together a simple sky blue dress. Veronica had to stop herself from repeating the morning’s reaction, something which had required all her willpower. Unfortunately, she hadn’t been able to stop herself from giving Sweetie Belle another hug. Neither unicorn had minded too much, though, especially the filly who nuzzled into the Scribe’s chin. That had set her off into another series of happy squeals.

Rarity was still sitting at a sewing machine, working on a gown. It was unlike anything she had ever made before, a biped with a strangely slim body. She had seen clothing for a minotaur cow before, but they had upper bodies comparable in size to the bulls. In comparison, Veronica was frighteningly slim, though her breasts (Rarity couldn’t understand why the word ‘udders’ upset her) were strangely soft, like pillows. The Scribe had said that this was perfectly normal, but the unicorn had seen the scars on her stomach shortly before she had been smothered. That certainly wasn’t normal.

Their attention shifted when a small yelp came from the other side of the room. “Help!” They turned to see a set of small white legs flail around comically under a large bolt of silk cloth. “Get it off!”

“Sweetie, what have I told you about being careful?” Rarity asked, moving the bolt with ease.

“But I’m so bored!” the filly exclaimed as she picked herself up. “Why can’t I see Apple Bloom or Scootaloo?”

“Because they are being punished. Like you.” Rarity sighed as she returned to her work. “I still can’t believe you three would do something so... foolish.”

Trixie turned around and sighed. What was meant to be a relaxing jog around the training fields had turned into anything but. “Aren’t you bored of following Trixie yet?” she asked irritably.

In response, Rainbow Dash glared at her. “I know you’re up to something. And I’m going to prove it.”

Trixie rolled her eyes and stopped. “Do you really want to waste your entire day tailing me? Surely you have something better to do.”

“Normally, yeah, but this stupid war kinda ruined that for me,” the pegasus admitted unhappily. “I’m not even allowed to fly above a certain height! Do you have any idea how much that sucks?”

“Seeing as I happen to lack wings, no. But Trixie can understand your frustration.” She made to walk away, but the pegasus just flew over her and planted herself in the unicorn’s path.

“Oh no, I’m not done - ” Trixie walked into Rainbow Dash and exploded in a cloud of smoke. “What?!” she spluttered, looking around in vain. “How did - when - but - ARGH!”

On the other side of the training field, thankfully concealed by a group of sparring griffons, Private Lulamoon continued walking. Unfortunately for her, this reprieve didn’t last long.

“Hey! Just what do you think that was about!?”

Trixie gritted her teeth and turned around, fixing a glare of her own at the troublesome speedster. “Well, Trixie was trying to avoid the crazy mare who decided that following me into an area off-limits to civilians was a good idea,” she growled. “So unless you want to spend a few hours in the cells, you should leave now.”

“Cells?” Rainbow asked, thinking the unicorn was bluffing. “Pfft, yeah, right.”

“I have the authority to physically restrain you if you don’t leave,” Trixie added.

“I’d like to see you try!”

“Hey, what’s the civvie doing here?” a golden-armoured pegasus asked as she walked by.

“How should I know?” her friend asked, a unicorn in the murky purple armour of the Night Guard.

Rainbow and Trixie watched the pair walk past. “Private,” another voice said unhappily. “Being a Knight does not give you the privilege to bring civilians into restricted areas.”

“Sir, I did not bring her,” Trixie replied, turning to face her superior, who was wearing the plates of a set of Knight armour. “She followed me, even after I warned her.”

The dark-coated stallion raised an eyebrow. “Is this true?” he asked Rainbow.

“Wait, she was telling the truth? But - ”

“You have ten seconds to leave before you are detained.” The stallion cut her off, his tone making it clear that there was no argument that would sway him.

“Fine,” Rainbow replied, knowing when she was beat.

As she hovered off back towards the castle, Trixie turned to the stallion. “Thanks for that, sir.”

“Don’t worry about it, Trix,” he replied, the hardness in his voice replaced with kind-hearted joviality. “And I keep telling you, just call me Blink. None of that ‘sir’ stuff. Makes me feel old.”

Author's Note

Anyone want to guess what manner of explosive death Thomas will be bringing back to Equestria?
Is RD out of character?
And whoever gets the talent of this Knight correct gets to create the next one! Good luck!

A short chapter, just something I wanted to do. Deal with it.

23: Reminisce

In the depths of Canterlot Castle’s library, a conversation in Zebrican could be heard. The two voices were low, as if they were conspiring. In reality, it was much more benign.

“So what happened after that?”

“Well, Simms gave me a key to a shack and I started living in Megaton.” Dom sighed, leaning back in her chair. “It’s been ages since I’ve told that story. Feels like a lifetime ago.”

Twilight was a little unsure how to feel. It had been a great story, but so many details left her uneasy, namely a town built around a weapon of mass destruction. At the same time, she felt relieved that the ghoul had made the right choice in saving the town. A thought flashed through her mind of an immoral, evil version of this woman, and she shuddered.

“You okay?”

Twilight smiled thinly. “Yeah, just thinking.” There was a brief pause. “I was wondering. About your left arm...”

“You’re wondering why it doesn’t match my armour?” the ghoul asked with a smirk. “Well, two reasons. The first being that is hurts to wear a set of T-45d, which this is from, without skin. There’s a specialised body suit but...” Dom shuddered. “I dunno, I just can’t stand to wear the damn thing.”

“T-45d?” Twilight asked. “Is that a different version of what Veronica’s wearing?”

“The T-51b is much more advanced, and was only in action for about two years,” the ghoul explained. “The chapter I’m from had switched to the older stuff after finding enough to outfit a small brigade. That, and Liberty Prime.”

“Liberty... Prime?” Twilight tried for a moment to think what she meant. “Was that a weapon?”

“A fifty-foot tall, nuke-tossing, laser-shooting, propaganda-spewing metal behemoth,” she replied proudly. “He was built to help reclaim Anchorage, but they couldn’t power him up. Instead, they deployed soldiers in power armour. Rothschild got him working. The Enclave didn’t know what hit them,” Dom replied wistfully. “It’s been five years, and we still haven’t put him back together.”

Twilight took a moment to process that. “Okay then,” she muttered, scribbling down a note to ask for more detail later. “What’s the second reason?”

At that, the ghoul sighed sadly. “Well, it’s the uniform of a mercenary group that used to operate from the DC ruins, Reilly’s Rangers. Four of the best mercs I ever knew. Reilly, Brick, Butcher and Donovan.”

“How did you meet them?”

“Reilly got her men trapped on top of a building with no way down. When we met, she just came out of an induced coma.” Dom purposely neglected to mention that she was responsible for that. “Even when Doctor Barrows had to tie her down to the bed, the only thing she cared about were her Rangers.” The ghoul chuckled at the memories. “Anyway, she offered to pay me if I rescued them for her.”

“Did you save them?” Twilight asked nervously.

“Oh yeah,” Dom replied dismissively. “Had to fight my way through... must’ve been a hundred Super Mutants, at least. That was a nightmare. Trust me, nothing is scarier than an abandoned hospital,” she told the pony darkly.

Twilight’s eyebrows went up when she heard something she had never expected from the ghoul: fear. Okay, maybe not fear,, the lavender scholar admitted to herself. But there was definitely something akin to that in her voice and expression. “It can’t have been that bad,” Twilight commented. “It was only a hospital.”

Dom only stared for a moment. “Most of the beds had skeletons on them. People who were too sick or injured to get away or be saved. The place was swarming with Super Mutants, eight-foot tall psychopaths who would eat you without a second thought. And you know what made it worse?” the ghoul asked. “I found little bits and pieces, notes and messages from the people that worked there. Everything was so... normal, peaceful. And then, in an instant, gone, destroyed. I saw at least one note saying that a few doctors were gonna stay behind, let the patients die with dignity. Odds are, that meant pumping them full of painkillers. I had nightmares for weeks about that place,” she said. “Never tell me that it wasn’t that bad.” Before Twilight could respond, though, the ghoul continued. “Anyway, I fought through the hospital, used a collapsed radio antenna to get into the hotel across the street, and fought my way up.

“When I met them, they were out of ammo, hungry, and scared. When they asked where the rest of the rescue team was,” Dom chuckled, “and I said it was only me, they couldn’t believe it. I’ve seen mutants grab a guy in power armour by the arm and just pull it off like it was nothing. To think a nineteen year old girl in a padded jumpsuit made it is pretty ridiculous,” she explained.

“Wow,” Twilight exclaimed, terrified and amazed. “How did you do it?”

“Frankensteins are stupid,” Dom explained. “Makes those dogs look like damn geniuses in comparison. I managed to trick a few into walking into traps. Long story short, I got them out, we got to their base, and Reilly thanked me. Gave me this,” she said tapping her breastplate, “and made me a Ranger. That night, we got drunk, celebrated being alive and, well... I’m a lightweight. Or at least, I was. Never really drank booze before, so I had too much and...”

“Did you sleep with one of them?” Twilight asked

“Yeah. This was years before I became a ghoul, and I looked good. Wouldn’t have blamed him for taking advantage of me,” Dom said with a laugh. Twilight was a little surprised. “The thing is, I jumped him. Alcohol makes me...” She paused for a moment trying to find the right word.

“Amorous?” Twilight suggested. The Lone Wanderer wasn’t exactly happy to see that the mare was smirking, but couldn’t really be angry either, so she shrugged.

“If you want to look at it that way, sure.”

Twilight’s expression turned to confusion again. “Why are you telling me all this? From the way you acted before, you seemed perfectly fine just keeping to yourself.” Her head tilted quizzically. “Why the sudden change of heart?”

The ghoul looked at the high ceiling and sighed. “Well, mainly, it was seeing how your friend reacted last night. Actually seeing it from the outside made me think,” she explained. “She get insulted a lot about her intelligence?”

“Rainbow isn’t stupid. She can be a bit... slow on the uptake, though,” the mare conceded. “I wonder where she is, anyway.”

“I dunno. Not like it really matters, she can’t get in trouble.” The ghoul pushed herself off her chair and stretched. “I can relate better to Reg, though. We’ve both seen people we know and care for die, we’re both war veterans, and we get along.”

“I guess someone who’s seen the same experiences would be more relatable,” Twilight considered, still a little uneasy with the ease she would talk about those things. “Is that why you prefer the griffons?” she asked as she led her guest towards, bringing a few tomes, each the size of a newborn foal, for light reading.

“That, and the griffons don’t give half a shit about me not having skin. Seriously, some of them found it attractive,” she added, sound a little disgusted. “Not entirely sure what’s up with that.”

“Ew,” Twilight commented before gasping. “Sorry! I didn’t mean to - ”

Dom waved her off. “Shut up before you actually insult me. Besides, I know I look as sexy as mincemeat. Not many people into necrosis where I’m from. Thank god,” she added under her breath.

Twilight blinked as they exited the library. “Um... Did... did your lover leave you?”

“What?” Dom whipped around, completely confused.

“You know, after... after you became a ghoul. Did he...?” She let the question trail off.

“Oh. Oooooh. No, no. He... he died about a year before this happened,” she replied glumly. “I was considering leaving the Brotherhood, becoming a merc, just so I could be with him. But the universe hates me,” she spat. “Every time I get close to someone, or something goes right, fate finds a way to kick me in the ovaries. I find my dad? He sacrifices himself to save me and his friends. We reclaim Project Purity? The Enclave manage to take out our biggest weapon. We take down the Enclave base? They come back two years later, destroy an entire settlement, take off my arm and kill some of my best friends, including the only man to really love me!” At this point, she had begun to yell. “Then, after that, when the only problem we have is raiders, Talon Company comes out of fucking nowhere and nukes me! And I survived! What does that say about me!? I am fucking cursed!”

Twilight began to panic. What was she supposed to do when the dangerous cyborg mutant soldier went briefly insane? She looked around, trying to find something that could be used to placate her. With only shelf upon shelf of books, some dating back further than she could trace her family tree, there weren’t many options.

“Everything that happens seems to be designed to make me suffer! What next!? I lose my legs!? Fucking Deathclaws figure out how to use guns!? Or maybe Communist China will decide to inv - ”

SMACK!

Dom slowly turned her head and absently rubbed her cheek. Twilight stared at the book held in her magic, unable to believe what she had just done. I just slapped her. I JUST SLAPPED HER! She began to back away as slowly as possible, preparing herself to run if she had to.

“Thanks.” That simple word caused the mare to stop for a moment. “I... I needed that.”

“Buh?” And the mare’s mind ground to a complete and utter halt.

“Sometimes, I get a little... crazy. Pain helps me think, helps me get it back together,” the ghoul explained. “Sorry if I scared you,” she added, sounding apologetic.

“Oh.” It took Twilight a few moments to say anything else. “Oh.” She tried a third time. “Huh.”

“If that happens again, feel free to break my foot or something,” she added as though it was the most normal thing in the world.

“Wait, what!?” the mare asked loudly, finally finding her tongue.

“The bones’ll jump back into place and mend instantly. You don’t have to worry about hurting me,” she added with a smirk. “People have tried. It never lasted.”

“Your bones heal instantly?” Twilight asked disbelievingly. “How?”

“A mutation I picked up ages ago.” She looked up and scanned the area. “The hell is that noise?”

“... with that monster in there! Remove it immediately!” The sound of yelling, though deadened by distance, could be heard if one strained their ears.

“Oh no,” Twilight muttered, recognising the voice. “Not him...”

“Who?”

“The biggest tail-chaser, bigot and all-around unpleasant stallion in the castle, Prince Blueblood,” Twilight seethed. “I still can’t understand why Princess Celestia puts up with him.”

“Hmm,” Dom grunted thoughtfully. “Want me to break his legs for you?”

The mare could only double-take at the bluntness of the question. “What!?”

“Hey, he sounds like a complete dick. He needs to be taken down a notch,” she explained calmly. Twilight would have found the response better if it weren’t for the rather twisted smile she was wearing, though. Before she could respond, the ghoul pushed past and turned right, straight towards the exit.

“You got a problem with me?” she asked sweetly as she poked her head out, seeing a white unicorn with a blonde mane and tail harassing one of the golden-armoured ponies of the guard. Her gravelly voice, though, made the question sound oddly sinister.

“You!” the prince screamed, spinning around to face her. “What are you doing here, abomination?”

“A little advice,” Dom answered, doing an amazing job at keeping her tone polite, “the last idiot to call me that ended up with his head jammed down a toilet.” Blueblood raised an eyebrow. “The rest of him, I nailed to a wall,” she added, causing the unicorn to back away in revulsion. “You want to end up like him?”

“How can you speak of such things so easily?” he asked, not even trying to hide his disgust.

“Practice.” Dom grinned, showing a set of sharp, slightly-crooked teeth. “But I could always use more,” she went on, letting a hint of malice through. “You wanna be my new torture doll?” she asked sweetly. A second later, she started giggling.

Prince Blueblood kept backing away until he hit the wall behind him, trying to get away from the laughing psychopath. As he turned and galloped clumsily away, he could hear her laughter echo through the corridors.

Dom was left leaning down, her hands resting on her knees, trying to regain her breath. “Hahahah! Oh man, he’s more spineless than a raider!”

“What was that!?” Twilight asked, having watched the entire thing unfold.

“Just a little intimidation,” the ghoul replied breezily. “Man, that was just pathetic.” She chuckled for a few seconds. “Look, I wouldn’t do that without a good reason. I’m not a murderer.”

Author's Note

Holy crap I wrote more than 2,000 words of Dom talking to Twi! Never thought I could do that.
And damn you Americans and your weird spelling. What is with your country's obsession with the letter 'z'?
Well, a hint, if you will, was thrown in.

Interlude: Lady of War

Smith looked around the corner to the interior of the workshop. They’d been arguing since before he’d showed up, and he had no idea how much longer it was going to go on. Then again, it wasn’t often he saw his boss and a member of royalty fight.

“Your highness, the answer is no!” Ironshod turned away, the grey earth pony trying his best to keep calm. “I will not be known as the stallion who endangered his princess!”

Luna sighed. Half an hour of arguing and she was still getting nowhere. “My sister and I are not made of glass, Ironshod. We have lived for millennia, and faced foes the likes of which exist no longer. I personally fought half the demons sealed in Tartarus to this day. And I did so in armour crafted by a master smith, your predecessor. It is presumptuous of you to tell me what I can and cannot do.” As Ironshod paused for a moment, Luna struck. “You would be the first to create a set of armour meant for a princess in generations,” she added, trying to appeal to his sense of pride and ego.

“I’m already responsible for every set of armour the guards have used for the past ten years. Personal glory isn’t important to me,” he argued back. “Besides, I’m already responsible for the dozen suits of Knight armour, the most magically advanced personal protection Equestria has ever seen.”

“Yes, I am aware of that,” Luna cut in calmly. “I personally went over the designs myself to make sure that it was viable. I even added the retractable hoofblades some of them have.”

The blacksmith blinked. “Oh. I thought the prince was being vindictive when he showed me that.”

“No, it was me being practical. Sometimes, blunt force isn’t enough in a close quarters combat situation.” Luna looked around the workshop for the tenth time. “And surely it wouldn’t be a challenge for a stallion of your skills to use the materials here and make me something.” Her eyes stopped when she caught sight of a beaked head poking around a frame. “You there, griffon, what is your opinion?”

“You ain’t bringing Smith into this,” Ironshod interjected angrily. “He’s only my assistant - ”

“And his input is just as valuable as anyone elses’,” the princess countered.

Smith nervously stepped forwards and looked between his boss and the alicorn. “Well, your highness, um...” He took a deep breath. “The soldiers would no doubt be honoured to have you grace the battlefield with your presence and fight beside them. What’s more, you have centuries of experience, and that’s a resource we’d be stupid to ignore.”

“Exactly. I may be out of practice, but my experience shall more than make up for any shortcomings.” She turned to the earth pony, who groaned.

“I can’t see any way out of this,” he grumbled. “Smith!” he barked. “Get the measuring tape!”

“Measuring tape?” The princess watched as the griffon disappeared into a store room.

“If I’m gonna be making you a set of armour, your highness, then it’s gonna be a good set of armour,” he stated. “Smith! Hurry up, boy!”

“It’s not in here!” the griffon yelled back.

“It should be!” Ironshod shouted. “Look harder!”

“After this, I wish to spar with several griffons,” Luna calmly stated.

“You sure about that?” Ironshod looked at her worriedly. “They won’t go easy on you.”

“Which is exactly what I want. There is no point in fighting if you are given a victory,” she said, glaring at a wall.

“Are you sure you’re not a griffon, your majesty?” Smith asked jokingly, stepping out of the storeroom with his goal in his clutches.

“Seeing I was partly responsible for helping the warchiefs of old unite, I am in fact an honorary Aerie Reckoner.” Luna sighed before going on. “A shame this title is no longer recognised.” She calmly held her wing out so the pair could go about their work.

Author's Note

Celestia is diplomacy and kindness. Luna is an old warhorse. At least, that's how I like to view the sisters.

24: Back Again

“Okay. Ammo, check. Holdouts, check. Meds and chems, check. Present for Veronica, check.” Thomas patted his pockets one last time before looking around. The area around the Crimson Caravan Trading Company’s compound was still very dusty, and people only frequented the area if they were part of a trade caravan or on their way to Usanagi’s clinic. He looked around, the green eyes of his mask scanning the horizon. His centuries-old green duster fluttered lazily in the slight breeze, and the new light of a dawning sun shone on the dull black words written on his helmet.

On his back were two weapons: one short weapon with a drum barrel and the other black and sleek with a curved magazine. Resting on one shoulder and being held up with one hand was a dangerous-looking piece of weaponry. The thing that stood out the most was the stripes and circle of stars on the barrel. On his right arm was something quite frightening and undeniably dangerous. A small circular sawblade, attached to a yellow-and-black metal gauntlet, rested above his fingers menacingly.

Thomas reached into his duster and pulled out his special Transportalponder. In a flash of emerald light, he was gone.

“Ow.” Thomas carefully picked himself up, being careful to not accidentally pull the Red Glare’s trigger. “Why does this keep happening?” he asked no-one in particular.

“I knew I saw something!”

“Okay, okay, you can shut up now.” Thomas looked around and smiled. Standing there were Dom and Veronica, though the latter was a dress he hadn’t seen her in before.

“Nice dress, Veronica,” he said, looking up and down at what she wearing.

“Thanks.”

“Is that...?” Dom cocked her head and stared quizzically at what Thomas was wearing.

“I don’t remember you having a set of Desert Ranger gear,” the Scribe commented.

“Found it in Zion.”

“It is.”

They both turned to the ghoul, who was staring at the set of armour in awe. “It is what?” Thomas asked.

“That,” the ghoul pointed a finger at his body armour, “is a set of pre-War United States Marine Corps armour. That would have seen action in China.” She walked around, gasping when she saw the words scratched on the back of the helmet. “It did. Nanjing and Shanghai. Both were taken by the U.S during the Yangtze Campaign, after they reclaimed Anchorage,” she explained.

“How do you know all this stuff?” Veronica asked loudly, wondering just where the ghoul’s knowledge of pre-War history came from. “Seriously, you know more about this stuff than half of the damn Republic Senate.”

“I grew up in a Vault and I stumbled across a few history books. Well, more like magazines, but still,” she admitted with a shrug, “I learnt enough. Education was mainly science and maths and stuff needed to keep the place from falling apart.”

“Again, sounds like living with the Brotherhood.”

“So, what did I miss?” Thomas asked, grabbing the Red Glare from where it lay.

“Well, Rarity made me a dress!” Veronica squealed happily, as though it was the greatest thing to ever happen to her.

“What are you, five?” the ghoul asked, eyeing the woman weirdly. “Seriously, why are you so happy about a damn dress?”

“Because it’s the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me that didn’t involve anyone getting hurt,” she shot back. “Hell, it’s the nicest thing, period.”

“Anything else?” Thomas asked carefully.

“Your girlfriend spent yesterday afternoon beating five griffons into the dirt,” the ghoul added.

Thomas simply turned, the green eyes of his helmet staring blankly in her direction. “She is not my girlfriend,” he growled.

“Fine, your fuckbuddy then.” Dom chuckled when she heard Thomas mutter under his breath.

“And Dom’s been getting friendly with the ponies,” Veronica added, hoping to make Thomas’ bad mood disappear.

“And?” he asked, making his way towards the training field.

“It seemed important,” she shrugged, doing her best to keep up. “I really need some shoes,” she muttered, bending over and picking at a rock she had just stepped on.

“Is that the best you have!?”

“What was that?” Thomas asked, looking around, trying to locate the source of the voice.

“aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!” A hooded griffon in barding slammed into the ground barely five feet from where the three Wastelanders were standing, digging a thirty-foot trench with her beak as she slid through along the grass. They stared in shock as she pulled herself up before falling right back down again moments later.

“That... just happened.” Thomas turned to his companions, who were just as surprised as he was.

“Remember how I said Luna beat a few griffons up yesterday?” Dom asked. Without waiting for a response, she continued. “I’ll bet she’s doing it again.”

“Aren’t we at least ten minutes from there, though?” Veronica called out worriedly, poking at the unconscious griffon curiously. “I think she’s dead!” The griffon mumbled something unintelligible. “Oh, never mind.”

Dom rolled her eyes and picked up the injured griffon with ease, draping her over a shoulder. “I bet Reg is looking for this one,” she said, not even trying to hide a smirk, heading in the direction the unfortunate griffon had come from.

“Do you think she’s using that club again?” Veronica asked cautiously. “That thing was thicker than my leg.”

“Nothing seems broken, so I don’t think so,” the ghoul muttered, taking a moment to inspect the griffon for any injuries. “That was a pretty hard fall, though.”

“Ah, I see you found Razorbeak!” The three looked up at the sound of the voice and flapping wings to see Sergeant Grimfeather hovering above them. “How is she?”

“Out like a light,” Dom answered. “What the hell is going on?”

“Princess Luna decided to face them in magical combat. Stormfeather seems to be the only one having any luck,” he added. “Razorbeak there is much better at close-quarters magic, and she just wasn’t given a chance.”

“You guys can use magic?” Thomas asked loudly, making sure to point the Red Glare at something unimportant.

“Not personally, no. We’re much like those blasted Diamond Dogs,” the sergeant growled, very unhappy with comparing the mindless savagery of those subterranean fools with his own people. “Only a small number of us can actively use magic in any form. We’re all capable of manipulating clouds, though, just like the Dogs can move dirt and rock as though it’s not even there.”

Grimfeather led the group to where the princess was sparring in silence. As they got closer, the sounds of explosions and crackling electricity could be heard. “What the hell?”

“Sounds like a malfunctioning generator room,” Dom commented as the source came into view.

A griffon, wearing armour just like the one the ghoul was carrying, was rearing on its lion legs, flapping its wings to keep balance. One of his claws was thrust forwards, a stream of bright blue lightning shooting towards his target.

His target was standing calmly behind an opaque barrier, the electricity dancing across its surface. Clad in deep purple armour that was every bit functional as it was intimidating was Princess Luna. In place of her obsidian-black crown was a helmet, similar to the ones worn by the guard, except black as night, lacking a plume and significantly more pointy, almost as though it was also designed as a weapon.

On her barrel were numerous plates, the same colour and material as her helm, the central plate stamped with a pearl-white crescent moon. A lot of her body was similarly armoured, covered in sleek metal that hid the mare’s fragile-looking form. For some reason the plating was the most plentiful around her hooves, giving off the impression that they were several sizes too big for her body.

As they watched, Luna sent a buffet of force towards the griffon war-mage with a flap of her wings, knocking him off-balance. As his talons touched ground, the lightning stopped, giving her a chance to strike. She dispelled her shield and charged forwards, hoping to catch her opponent off-guard.

Her attack paid off, an armoured hoof striking the mage’s armoured barrel. The moment her hoof made contact, it was enveloped in an aura of emerald light and a blast of magical energy shot out, sending the unfortunate target rocketing backwards at an incredible speed.

The griffon bounced along the ground a few times, coming to a stop eighty feet from where he had started. He groaned as he tried to pick himself up, but his feet slipped and he fell heavily. This time, he stayed down.

“You fought well, war-mage,” Luna stated loudly, walking calmly over to him.

“Thank you, ma’am,” he croaked.

“Jesus, that was kinda terrifying.” Thomas just stared, his face-concealing helmet completely hiding his expression.

Luna turned at the sound of his voice and smiled. “Ah, Thomas, you have returned.” She changed course and headed towards him, leaving her opponent to be assisted by his own. “I trust your trip was fruitful?”

“Yeah,” he answered. “Where’d that armour come from?”

“Ironshod crafted it for me,” she answered. “He has yet to complete the protection for my wings, though. He should be done soon.”

“An impressive display, your majesty!” Grimfeather commented loudly. “I trust you gave our mages a good work-out?”

“In truth, sergeant, I was the one that received the work-out.” Luna pulled off her helmet, revealing her sweat-matted coat. “It has been quite a while since I have exerted myself so thoroughly.” She smiled tiredly. “It feels good.”

Grimfeather chuckled. “As it should!”

Author's Note

Desert Ranger armour is in fact old USMC armour.
Action sequences are a lot easier to write for a bipedal character. You've already got a point of reference.
Griffon war-mages are the sort to run into a fight with a sword/mace and blast you with fire.
Also, this will be the last update before uni starts. Do not hold your breath for another any time soon.

25: SURPRISE!

Dom had gotten used to the stares she got when she walked through Canterlot Castle. She didn’t like it, but it was the same in almost every town in the Capital Wasteland. Well, maybe not Underworld, but she was an outsider even there, stared at for a different reason.

So, it was refreshing to see that the attention of the palace staff and guards was focused on Thomas. The sheer size of the weapon the man had brought with him was frightening, and everyone was keeping at least one wary eye on it, worrying that is might go off.

“Why is everyone worried?” Thomas asked. “I took all the rockets out, it’s not like I’ll blow a hole through the wall.”

“Yeah, but they don’t know that.” Dom didn’t bother trying to hide her smirk. “Plus, you look damn intimidating, dressed like a Marine.”

“What is it with you and these ‘Marines’, anyway?” The helmeted man turned to the ghoul, his tone easily conveying his confusion.

“They did things that the power armoured units had trouble with.” That was as far as she got when she was cut off.

“Thomas, we’ve been looking for you.” They both turned to see Shining Armor, his head and legs uncovered, coming towards them from a side corridor. “You too, Paladin.”

“Hey, I have a name,” she snapped angrily.

“You also have a rank, something civilian contractors don’t,” the unicorn replied smartly.

“In that case, you should be calling him Jefferson,” she retorted, smiling when she realised his game.

“I’ll call you Horny and Rotface if you keep this up,” Thomas growled unhappily.

“And I’ll shove a power fist up your ass. Then again, that’d probably get you off,” she added quietly.

The trio progressed in silence for a while, trying to find a way to bridge the uncomfortable silence that had arisen.

“Why were you looking for me?” Thomas asked the stallion, braving the awkwardness.

He cleared his throat uneasily. “My sister managed to enchant a few necklaces with a simple translation spell. She wanted you to be the first to test it.”

“That’ll be handy. Why me, though? Why not Dom or Veronica?”

“I’m not too familiar with how they work. What I do know is that they release minute traces of magic when they are activated. We’re not sure if this will poison you.”

“And because I absorb radiation, and Veronica doesn’t have a Pip-Boy, they need you,” Dom finished.

“And I thought I got out of being a lab rat after I got out of the Big Empty,” he sighed. “I guess you’re taking us to her?”

“Yes. Though why she wants you to go to her room I don’t know,” Shiny replied. “Don’t say it,” he said suddenly.

“Wasn’t going to,” Thomas said innocently.

Eventually, they reached the suites. As they walked to the door, Dom paused suddenly. “Something doesn’t feel right.”

“What do you mean?” Thomas asked.

“Feels like... feels like I’m walking into an ambush,” she whispered. Her hand drifted towards her right hip, but clutched thin air. “I left my pistol in my room.” Her left hand went towards her sheath, but that was gone too. “Fuck! My sword, too,” she hissed.

“An ambush? In the castle?” Shining looked at the ghoul skeptically. “No, security is too tight for that. Changelings can’t get in, and there’s no way Dogs could either.”

“Trust me, I’ve been through enough shit to know what an ambush feels like.” She edged towards the door slowly, resting her left hand against it, her right hand grasping the grip of her concealed combat knife. She carefully pushed the door open, revealing that the room was completely shrouded in darkness. “Thomas, you’ve got low-light optics. Take point.”

“Okay.” The man obeyed her uneasily, worried about what he might be walking into. He put down the Red Glare, resting it against a wall, and poked his head though the barely-open door. His right hand reached up and flicked a small switch on the side of his helmet. He put one foot inside the room, the helmet’s optics still warming up. Half a second after he could see perfectly in the low light, the brightness intensified.

“SURPRISE!”

The gathered ponies’ cheer was rapidly replaced with confusion at the sight of the biped rolling on the ground in complete agony.

Luckily for Thomas, he had managed to turn off his optics before the damage became permanent. Unfortunately, everything had been reduced to colourful blurs, leaving him to resort to hearing and touch.

“I’m so sorry!”

“I’m not angry at you,” Thomas replied calmly, clumsily patting the distressed pink party pony on the head. “I’m angry at the tactical genius over there who thought we were getting ambushed.” He pointed at the vaguely-brown-and-green blob.

“A surprise party is an ambush,” Dom argued. “Just not the sort that ends in a fight.”

“Just admit you were wrong,” Rainbow Dash chimed in.

“On the plus side, these translation thingies work fine. Pip-Boy’s barely ticking,” Thomas said, hoping to change the conversation topic.

“Thanks. They’re usually used by ambassadors who have trouble pronouncing Equestrian,” the lavender blob in his vision explained. “In a way, you three are ambassadors for America - ”

Dom chuckled at that. “No. I’m a representative for the Brotherhood of Steel, and that’s being generous.”

“Yeah, you’re more like a moody attack dog.” Thomas looked up at the predominantly-cyan blob hovering two feet off the ground. “What? You are.”

Dom sighed. “I know I have issues, but that last thing I need is someone with an ego the size of the Citadel telling me that,” the ghoul shot back.

“Okay, no need for you two to start fightin’.” An orange blob pushed its way between the other two. “This is meant to be a party, and Pinkie spent alotta time getting this whole shindig together. It won’t be right if you two hurt each other.”

“Can I sit down somewhere?” Thomas asked, squinting to try to make things clearer. “The last thing I want to do is accidentally kick someone’s teeth out with these boots.”

“Grab onto my mane.” Pinkie pushed her head up into his left hand. “I’ll lead you to Twi’s bed.”

Thomas decided to just laugh, knowing that it would anger Shining Armor. Sure enough, the stallion began to grumble, as most of the other ponies began to snicker. “Pinkie!” the lavender blob exclaimed.

“What?” she asked innocently.

“Why is everypony laughing?” Applebloom asked, the little filly looking around in confusion.

“Yeah, what’s so funny about him being in Twilight’s bed?” Scootaloo asked, completely unaware of just what she had said.

Unfortunately, Thomas couldn’t restrain himself, and neither could Rainbow Dash. As both of them laughed themselves silly, Shining Armor decided to join in with a poorly-concealed snicker. “Shiny!” Twilight shouted. “Not you too!”

“Sorry, Twily, but that was funny.”

“So sorry we’re late.” They all turned to the door which had just opened. “I had to... make a few adjustments to Veronica’s gown,” Rarity added.

“Err, why?” Applejack asked. “This ain’t some fancy ball.”

“I know that, but she wanted to wear it. And, I admit, I wanted to see how it looked on her as well. From a professional standpoint, of course,” she hastily added.

“Right,” Rainbow replied skeptically. “I’m sure it had nothing to do with getting a chance to play dress-up,” she added. “How can someone like Veronica like to dress up anyway?”

“Hey, what’s wrong with wanting to look nice once in awhile?” someone asked from outside. “A girl’s not allowed to try and get a date?”

“Veronica, your last ‘date’ was a drunk Republic trooper,” Thomas called out.

“Hey, in my defense, I was drunk too. That, and that girl had a nice rack,” the voice replied. “Seriously, how was I meant to say no to that?”

“Wait, did she say ‘girl’?” Fluttershy asked quietly, blushing a little.

“Yeah, she’s a lesbian.” Thomas’ eyes darted around the room. “Are you all staring at me?”

“So that explains her reaction...” Shining muttered.

“Huh. She sure don’t act like it,” Applejack stated loudly.

“Yeah. She seemed so... straight.” Rainbow looked around, her brow creased in thought.

“You do know I can hear you, right?”

The farmer and speedster glanced at the door nervously, both wearing apologetic smiles. “Oh, I’m well acquainted with her sexuality,” Rarity growled.

“I said I was sorry!” the distressed voice cried out.

“What happened?” Dom asked, the space her eyebrows once occupied rising.

”Well, Veronica, do you like it?” the unicorn asked, holding up the garment in her magic.

The Scribe’s eyes went wide in glee. She carefully reached out and touched it, shivering in delight. “This... this is amazing.”

“Oh I knew you’d love it!” Rarity squealed, delighted that the woman was so happy with her gift. She turned around to carefully set precious gown down on her bed. “Now, I’ll need you to try it on before I let you wear - ” She was suddenly cut off when a pair of hands grabbed her head. She attempted to squeal, but before a single sound could be made her lips were enveloped by Veronica’s. “MMHMMM!?”

The unwanted and unexpected kiss ended abruptly when Veronica pulled herself away. From her expression, it was clear she couldn’t believe what she had just done. “Oh god! I’m sorry! I wasn’t thinking, I didn’t mean to - ”

“Wow.” They both turned and saw a small purple and green dragon staring at them in shock, a confused but very happy smile on his face.

“Uhh... Is he okay?” Veronica asked.

“Spike disappeared to his room after that,” Rarity muttered.

“I already apologised!” Veronica called out again. “Can I come in now?”

“God damn it, Veronica,” Dom muttered, putting her face into her hands.

“Was there tongue?” Thomas asked loudly.

Author's Note

You are now imagining Thomas being intimate with a power fist.
And Spike saw the greatest thing ever.

Interlude: The Blind Eye

While the Bearers of the Elements of Harmony were enjoying a small get-together with their interdimensional guests, the on-duty Knights had to deal with a few problems. Or rather, a single large problem.

“So let me get this straight.” The only thing that kept the expression of disbelief from Trixie’s face was the years of stage performance. “You want to be a Knight. Despite not having any training, or even being a member of the Guard, you insist that you will be a valuable addition.”

“That’s right.” Oh, how she wanted to smack that smug look right off of Blueblood’s face. But, unfortunately for the former showmare, that would be assault, and it could see her suspended from duty. “Get out of my way.” But it would be worth it, she mused.

“Knight-Commander Armor is the only one with the authorisation to promote a pony to the rank of Knight. Take it up with him.” Blink was just unamused, and didn’t even bother to hide his contempt for the prince. “Leave us alone, we have a war to fight and you - ”

“You dare speak to a member of the royal family like that!?” Blueblood shouted at them. “I will have you court-martialed!”

Trixie rolled her eyes. “How about this, your highness,” she said through gritted teeth, “you beat one of us in a spar, and we’ll take your request to the Knight-Commander.”

“You.”

“I’m sorry?” The suddenness of the statement had caught her off-guard, leaving her standing there and blinking in confusion.

“I said you. As in I will spar with you,” the prince said with complete confidence.

The Knights glanced at each other. They all knew the rampant sexism that made up much of life, and the idea of a mare beating him up was one too good to pass up. “All right then, your highness,” Blink replied with a smirk. “We’ll let the private here give you your spar.”

“A private? Bah, this should be foal’s play.”

Trixie followed Blink into the barracks, away from the suicidally overconfident royal. “Trix, you know what to do.”

“Humiliate him. Like Trixie didn’t know that,” she added sarcastically.

“No, you’re going to make him look like the biggest idiot Celestia’s sun ever had the misfortune to shine upon,” he whispered. As Trixie removed her armour plates, he continued. “A few illusions should do the trick."

“Actually, no, I’ve changed my mind.” Blueblood’s obnoxiously loud voice drifted through the doors. “I’ll think I’ll fight him instead.”

“If you want,” came the reply, the stallion sounding very distant.

“Astral Gaze?” Blink muttered. “Oh this is gonna be sad.”

“Sir, could you give me some help removing my armour?” the stallion asked. “I want to get this over with as quickly as possible.”

“Help me out here, Frost,” Firebolt said, his brother moving to assist.

“He’s blind!” Blueblood said in shock, catching sight of the misty blue unicorn’s milky-white eyes.

“I don’t need my eyes to see,” he replied, his sightless eyes focusing on the prince. “If anything, I see more than you ever could.”

“Did he just make a joke?” Blink asked quietly.

“I think so,” Trixie answered, just as quietly.

“Did you just insult me?”

“Not as much as you insult the crown by existing,” the Knight responded, smirking slightly.

“You - !” The gathered Knights did their best to hide their amusement, but more than a few ended up snorting. “How dare you!? You think you can speak to me like that!?”

“You think you can throw your power about and brandish your title like some spoilt brat?” Astral asked back calmly, his tone never rising.

The gathered ponies could practically see the steam rising from the infuriated prince’s ears. “How dare you!?” he screamed, lashing out with a hoof. Astral Gaze barely moved, instead just tilting his head a little to the left. The loss of balance sent Blueblood sprawling in the dirt.

“The right to freedom of speech,” he replied calmly as the royal picked himself up. “I can say what I want, and there’s nothing you can do to stop me.” He ducked under a clumsy left hook before tapping the prince with a hoof, making him lose his balance again.

“You - !” Blueblood decided to forgo all subtlety, instead unleashing a wave of telekinetic force at the Knight.

Astral Gaze moved with all the grace of a dancer, dodging to the left with a pirouette before dropping back to all fours himself. Before the prince could do anything, he took a shot to the gut that felt more like a kick from a hydra than any mere show of magic.

As he lay there in the dirt, panting for breath, Blink appeared in his field of view. “Consider your application denied,” he said before kicking some dirt into his face to rub it in.

26: Red-hoofed

“Come on!”

“No.”

“Please!”

“No.”

“Why not?”

“Apple Bloom, leave her alone!”

Dominica was doing an incredible job being patient around the Crusaders. She couldn’t help but smile as they were pulled away by their siblings, and in Scootaloo’s case Rainbow Dash. “Fine, you want a story?” The fillies’ faces brightened at her words. “You have to be quiet, though. Can you do that?” When all nodded, she went on. “Well...”

As the ghoul told a suitable tale to the children, Twilight went over to Thomas. In addition to his ruined eyesight, he was now nursing a bruised shin and a punch to the stomach. “I can’t say I’m surprised.”

“I am,” he grunted. “Who knew Rarity could kick like that?”

“She once kicked a manticore in the face,” Twilight commented. “And she was willing to beat up a group of teenage dragons for Spike.”

The Courier looked over at the white unicorn. “Well I have more respect for her now.”

“And you didn’t before?” Rarity asked the question innocently, but Thomas knew what her game was.

“I said more respect. Besides, shouldn’t you be keeping an eye on your sister?” he asked back, thinking it would distract her.

“As much as I find your friend’s appearance disturbing, I think I can trust her to not say anything too bad.” Despite her words, it was easy for him to catch the worry in her words.

“And that’s how I learned how to make explosives using cola,” they heard Dom say.

“What?” Everyone turned to look at her.

“Why would anyone do that!?” Pinkie Pie was the first to break the silence. “Cola’s for drinking, not for exploding!”

“Normally, I’d agree,” The ghoul responded. “But a sip of Nuka-Cola Quantum is like swallowing a whole bag of sugar. Trust me, I’ve tried.”

“Why would ya tell them that?” Applejack asked angrily. “Now they’re gonna try and make it themselves!”

“No we won’t!” Scootaloo answered sweetly.

“Yeah, because if they do I’ll smack them so hard their grandchildren will feel it.” Despite the ghoul’s smile, there was cold steel in her voice. “And that’s a promise,” she added redundantly.

“You’d hurt them?” Veronica asked, not liking what she was hearing.

“No, I’d discipline them,” she corrected. “There’s a difference between hitting someone and hitting someone who did something to deserve it.”

“Can’t believe Ah’m sayin’ this, but she’s right. Though I’d like it if you let me take care of punshin’ mah kin,” Applejack told the ghoul.

“Go for it. You hear that girls?” Dom asked, turning to the frightened fillies. “Don’t try doing that. Ever.”

“Okay Miss Dominica,” Sweetie Belle said timidly.

“Hey, you’re the sensible one. Just keep those two in check,” Dom said with a chuckle, ruffling her mane with her left hand.

“Hey, I can be sensible!” Scootaloo replied angrily.

“Whose idea was it to bungee-jump, hang-glide, cliff-climb and get shot out of a cannon for our cutie marks?” the little unicorn asked. “All your suggestions are dangerous.”

“What was that?” a new voice asked, the sound booming through the room.

“Uh-oh,” Scootaloo muttered, making herself as small as possible.

“Scootaloo, is that true?” the sweet motherly voice asked.

They all turned to see a large-ish pegasus mare at the door, a worried expression disturbing her features. She was wearing a simple jacket, and her coat was the same shade of orange as Scootaloo’s. The only thing that made them sure that it wasn’t a magically aged-up Scootaloo was that her mane and tail were quite a few shade lighter than the fillies.

“H-hey, mom,” the pegasus filly said nervously, looking around for a way to escape. Unfortunately, her friends had the sense to get themselves clear of the area, and had taken to hiding behind their sisters.

“Don’t you ‘hey mom’ me, young lady!” she said harshly, crossing the room to her daughter. “If you keep this up I’m going to quit the Guard just to keep an eye on you!” Her angry expression and her harsh tone evaporated as she pulled the filly into a tight hug. “I don’t want you getting hurt!”

“Can’t... breathe... mom!” Scootaloo croaked. “Lemme go!”

As she let the filly regain her breath, she turned to the others. “Sorry, I never introduced myself. I’m Staff Sergeant Roller Derby. Nice to meet you.”

The humans and other ponies introduced themselves, Rarity and Applejack apologising profusely about their failed attempts at keeping her daughter and her friends in check. The older mare waved her hoof at them.

“No, no, I guess I’m to blame. She’s just doing it for attention, what with me and her father away all the time.” Derby looked at her daughter, who was again sitting at Dom’s feet. “The last time we were together as a family was Nightmare Night,” she said with a sigh. “We visit, or my sister brings her up here, but it’s not enough.”

“I can’t imagine what it’s like for a filly that young,” Rarity muttered.

“Seeing Apple Bloom ain’t never known our folks...” Applejack mumbled sadly. At that point, the conversation quickly ended, having taken a turn for the depressing..

“No! I will not show you them!”

The Staff Sergeant turned slowly to the ghoul. “You have highly dangerous materials on your person?” she asked coldly. “Around foals?”

“No, they’re in my room and they’re currently inert. Give me ten seconds, though, and I could rig up enough IEDs to level half a town,” the Paladin replied proudly. She froze for a second. “Crap. No-one’s keeping an eye on my stuff.” She stood up and marched out of the room. “Be right back.”

“IED?” Twilight asked, looking at the closing door.

“Improvised Explosive Device,” Thomas explained. “And speaking of highly dangerous materials, I brought something for Veronica.”

“Did you?” The Scribe turned to the man, her eyes shining with excitement.

“Yeah.” He reached into his duster and pulled out two small pieces of machinery. “Catch,” he said, throwing one then the other.

Veronica caught them both before gasping. “Greased Lightning and Two-Step Goodbye!? Thomas, I could kiss you!”

“So that’s all it takes, weapons? Didn’t know you were so easy,” Thomas smirked.

“Don’t make me test these on you,” she threatened.

“Oh, like you’d do that.”

There was the sound of a scuffle outside and Dom walked in, dragging a bruised pony in by the tail. “This bastard has some explaining to do,” she growled.

When Dom got to her room, it was to find the door ajar. Her suspicions were verified when she heard the sound of someone in there. Quietly, she pulled her combat knife from its sheath and walked in quietly.

The stallion failed to noticed her entrance, too engrossed in digging through her duffel bag. “What is half of this stuff anyway?” he muttered. “There has to be something here.”

Dom padded her way across the room, dropped her knife on the bed and picked up her rifle. She pointed it at the pony and tapped her foot on the ground, getting his attention. As the stallion turned slowly, she spoke. “Tell me what you’re doing, and I won’t turn you into a job for the cleaners,” she stated.

“Y-you think you can scare me?” he stammered.

“Oh, I know I do.” She took a step closer, the stallion backing away. “Why are you here?”

“I-I won’t tell you!

“Wrong answer,” Dom said through gritted teeth. She aimed the Metal Blaster up a few inches and pulled the trigger. The stallion let out a very unmasculine squeal as he ducked, the nine lasers burning away a good portion of his mane. “That was a warning shot. The next one’s going through you. If you’re lucky, it’ll just kill you,” the angry ghoul said.

“You assaulted him?” Roller Derby asked angrily.

“Yeah. I even left him alive, I don’t do that often.” Dom gave his tail another tug. “He was going through my stuff, that’s justification enough.” When the pegasus refused to stop glaring, she leant down closer. “Wasteland justice demands that I string up his corpse in front of my home as a warning. And I’m quite tempted to do that,” she explained. “But I’d rather not start some national outcry, so I brought him here.”

To her credit, the mare didn’t even seem surprised, instead just sighing angrily. “I’m off-duty, so you’ll have to take him elsewhere.”

Shining Armor tapped something on his breastplate and whispered into it. “Somepony should be here shortly,” he stated.

“I thought you said you were off-duty,” Twilight said unhappily.

“That’s why I’m staying here. Not entirely sure that just worked,” he muttered uncomfortably.

A flash of light and a pop sounded from the middle of the room, and when they could see again a stallion in Knight armour was there. “You called for me, sir?”

“Blink, take him to the holding cells and prep him for interrogation. We found him rifling through an ambassador’s belongings,” Shining ordered.

The stallion hissed uneasily. “That’s big. You think he was paid?”

“Not around civvies, soldier.”

“Sir.” Blink saluted and went over to the stallion that Dom had dragged in. “Hold on, and try not to throw up.” With another flash he disappeared.

“I’m an ambassador now?” the ghoul asked, shooting the Commander a look.

“Technically, yes. You have diplomatic immunity and any crime committed against you will be considered an act of treason,” he explained.

“Will he get turned over to my custody?” she asked eagerly.

“I’m considering it,” Shining replied. “I’ll wait until my Knights have interrogated him first, though. If we fail to get anything out of him - ”

“Shiny!” Twilight Sparkle had had enough. “This is meant to be a party.”

“A small party,” Pinkie added unhappily.

The pink mare was ignored. “Could you not talk about work? Especially something like that?”

Shining Armor sighed. “Sorry Twily. This whole war is stretching me thin. And with Cadance busy helping her aunt, we haven’t really had much time to - ”

Twilight clapped her hooves over her ears and turned away. “I don’t want to hear this!”

Thomas leaned forwards. “Go on...”

Author's Note

I've tried some new formatting. Should be easier to read.
Also, blame the collab for taking up so much time.

27: Raising Questions

The Knights gathered outside the small interrogation room couldn’t help but be confused. The most prevalent question amongst the elite soldiers was ‘Why?” What purpose did the stallion have for breaking into what was essentially an ambassador’s room and going through her things? They had only heard stories, true, but what they had heard about the biped with the unsettling appearance was not pretty.

What was confusing them the most at that moment, though, was the choice of interrogator.

Firebolt turned to his brother. “Are we really gonna send her in?”

Frost Lance was just as confused. “Yeah, I don’t get it either. She’s not one to hurt somepony.”

Blink just snorted. “We don’t need to hurt him, only make him think we will.”

“All right then, let’s get this over with,” a fourth voice said. The owner was another Knight, the only thing signifying her status the small broach with the twelve-pointed golden Knight Star she wore around her neck.

“Lieutenant Field Surgery,” Blink said with a smile.

“Just call me Surge, I keep telling you that,” the mare retorted, her cropped blood-red mane bobbing slightly against her off-white coat. “Okay, Frosty, what do we need out of him?”

“He was found going through the belongings of one of the otherworldly guests,” he explained. “We need to know what he was looking for, and why.”

“Wow.” She hadn’t been informed about why he was under arrest, but she would never have guessed anything like that. “Which one?”

“The one that calls herself a ghoul,” Blink answered, frowning a little.

“I still refuse to believe what you idiots said about her broken arm snapping back into place on its own.” The mare pushed her way past the stallions. “That’s physically impossible.”

“Ask the commander,” Clarion Call suggested. “He was there.”

“I doubt I’ll get a demonstration, so I don’t really have much choice,” the medic unicorn mumbled.

“Hold up!” a boisterous voice called out, followed by the sounds of heavy galloping.

“Blossom, you are not taking part in this,” Field Surgery yelled back.

“The name is Martial Glory,” the other mare retorted angrily, the pair of swords on her back bouncing loudly against her armour. Unlike the rest, she was fully armoured and ready for battle.

“Glory, what have we told you about running around all the time in your armour?” Frost Lance asked, tilting his head.

“I’d rather not spend half an hour getting this stuff on before a mission, thank you very much,” the other unicorn replied haughtily. “No telling when something’ll happen.”

“Glory, this is an interrogation. You going in there, completely armoured and armed, we’ll be lucky to get anything outta him,” Firebolt added. “And what we do get will need to be cleaned up.”

“So?” she asked, her golden tail swishing about. “I heard about what he did, he deserves to be scared.”

“Glory, no,” Blink said harshly. “Don’t make me pull rank.”

The mare glared at the stallion through her helmet. After a few seconds, she gave up. “Okay, fine. Ruin my fun, why don’t you?” she asked bitterly.

Blink rolled his eyes. “You can go in, but leave your swords here.” The mare brightened up considerably. “And your hatchet. And if Surge tells me that you went and used those hoof-blades, you’ll be on guard duty. For Blueblood.”

Glory gaped. “That sexist pig? Are you serious?”

“Then don’t do anything to make me put you through that,” Blink replied with a smile.

“If you weren’t my superior I would smack you so hard, sir,” she growled.

“And that’s why I can get away with this,” Blink replied, chuckling a little. “Now go, we need that information,” he added seriously.

“Yes sir.”

Field Surgery found herself joined by the incredibly enthusiastic Martial Glory, now deprived of all her extra weapons. “Really?” she asked, ignoring the sweating stallion.

“Hey, I volunteered,” Glory answered with a shrug. “Can I beat him?”

“No, Glory,” Surgery retorted angrily. “We need him to talk.”

“So? I break his jaw, you fix it. That’ll work.” Field Surgery glared at the other mare. “Okay, fine. Be that way.”

“I swore to use my magic to heal,” she explained, “not to maim. I won’t heal him just so you can hurt him again,” she told her sister-in-arms angrily.

“Then how are we gonna do this?”

The stallion had stopped sweating, instead just sitting there, completely confused about what was going on around him. Why were they arguing? “Err, aren’t you two meant to - ”

“Shut up,” Glory replied. “We’re thinking.”

Surgery just sighed and turned to their guest. “Before we start, we’ll need your name.”

“Oh no, I have rights,” the stallion protested. “I’m not saying a word until - ”

“Shut up,” Glory suggested. “You were found going through the belongings of an ambassador. That counts as treason, and we can hand you over to her if you refuse to cooperate.”

“She’s right. You do what we ask, and we’ll treat you right,” Surgery told him reassuringly. “You don’t, well... we can’t be held responsible for whatever happens.”

The stallion gulped. He had overheard what the skinless monster had said. He didn’t want to die. And he didn’t want to know what she would do to him before offering that mercy. “You gonna talk now?” Glory asked encouragingly.

“We don’t need a name right now,” Surgery explained calmly. “That can wait. What we need is what you were doing in there.”

The stallion gulped. “I... I was looking for anything dangerous.”

The two mares glanced at each other. “Yeah, can you be more specific?” Glory asked.

“Why go through her bags?” Surgery asked.

“I already knew about her weapons,” he replied. “I had to see if there was anything I missed though.”

“Were you looking for anything in particular?” Glory asked, pushing her helmeted head right into his face.

“I was just told to grab anything dangerous!” he squealed. Then his eyes widened as his brain caught up with his mouth. “Oh crap.”

“You were told to steal?” Glory asked, sounding ecstatic. “Ooh, this is big!” she squeaked, clapping her front hooves together.

“Glory, no. No Guard brutality,” Field Surgery warned her, glaring at the other Knight. “We don’t beat up suspects.”

“Oh come on!” the blonde mare moaned. “The last thing we need is organised crime in Canterlot! We have to send a message to those back-alley thugs before it becomes uncontrollable! Why else would they send somepony to grab anything dangerous from the room an alien is staying in?”

The unarmoured mare just stared. “Really, Glory? Again with the conspiracy theories?” She sighed. “At least its more sensible than the one with the Dogs being led by a pony,” she muttered.

Glory rolled her eyes at the other mare’s lack of faith. “Why else would the Dogs suddenly attack for no reason? They’ve had no problem with their slavery operations being stopped before.”

“Why a pony? It could just as easily be a minotaur,” Surgery replied sarcastically.

“So you agree it’s not the Dogs in charge?” she asked, completely missing the sarcasm.

“Look, we have more pressing matters at hoof here,” the other mare replied, resisting the urge to facehoof hard enough to concuss herself. “Like who gave you the orders,” she said, turning back to the stallion.

“Yeah,” Glory added. “Just who are you working for?”

“I-I’m not working for anyone!” the stallion protested.

“Anyone?” Martial Glory asked, seizing on the word like a wolf. “So it was a non-pony that sent you?”

“Didn’t the pegasus who took a shot at one of the other aliens say he was paid by a non-pony?” Surgery asked, turning to her friend.

“Yeah, a griffon or Dog.” The armoured mare turned to the stallion again. “Is that it?” Unfortunately, the stallion had decided that now was a good time to keep his mouth shut.

Surgery took a deep breath and steeled herself. “If you don’t want to talk, fine. But it’s only fair you know this.” She leaned in closer until her snout almost touched his. “I know everything, everything, about how a pony’s body works. I can give you injuries nopony will ever see. Bruises that leave no mark. Broken bones that not even the best doctors in Equestria can heal. Is that what you want?” she hissed.

“Y-you said you don’t hurt ponies!” the stallion squeaked.

“No, I don’t. You’re a traitor to Equestria, though,” she hissed.

“Just tell us, and you’ll be able to walk without it hurting,” Glory suggested.

“I can’t! I never saw their face!” the stallion said, tears coming to his face. “I was just told that if I didn’t they’d kill me!”

Martial Glory glowered. “So you have nothing?” she asked menacingly.

Field Surgery and Martial Glory left the interrogation room a few minutes later, the prisoner left there to help him calm down. The other Knights were nowhere to be seen, having left when the pair had began.

“Can’t believe I had to do that,” Surgery mumbled.

“Neither can I,” Glory replied. “Scaring them is my job, not yours,” she added jokingly.

“I feel sick,” the other mare said quietly.

“You did what you had to,” the blonde mare said reassuringly, pulling the other pony into a hug.

“Glory, your armour is freezing.”

“Well excuse me for trying to make you feel better,” Glory replied. “Now come on, the Commander is gonna want to know what he told us.”

Author's Note

Have an update.
You know, I should probably do a fic after this that focuses on the Knights. So much potential.

28: Removing Chance

Shining Armor listened as the two mares reported to him what the arrested thief had told them. “Just what we need,” he growled, glaring at some of the paperwork his desk was covered with.

“I don’t like it either, sir, but there’s nothing we can do,” Field Surgery replied.

“Nothing?” the commander asked. “No, what we can do is put an end to this war as soon as possible. Then we won’t have Diamond Dogs or griffons or whatever threatening ponies with murder!” he screamed.

“Sir?” Martial Glory asked flatly.

“What?” the stallion asked back angrily.

“When was the last time you slept with your wife?”

The serious tone caught him completely off-guard. “W-what!?” he spluttered. “How is that - ?”

“Sir, please,” Glory interjected, holding up a hoof. “Sex is great for stress relief and you need it bad.”

“The sex or the stress relief?” the stallion shot back.

“Both.” Glory just stared at the stallion some more through her helmet. “Sir, you know I’m right, and we need you to be thinking straight. If that means you need an hour with your wife, then so be it.”

“Can’t believe I’m saying this, but she actually is right,” Field Surgery agreed reluctantly.

Shining sighed. “You - fine. I’ve been so worried about this war. I need to take my mind off of things.” He stepped out from behind his desk. “First the attack on Ponyville, then the idiots who deserted their posts...” he grumbled, trailing off as he disappeared.

Surgery turned to Glory. “How did you do that?” she asked, staring at the other mare in complete shock.

Glory shrugged. “No idea. Just thought I’d give it a shot.”

That response only inspired more confusion from her colleague. “Really?”

“Hey, it worked, didn’t it?” Glory asked cockily. She tilted her head as she thought for a moment. “I wonder what it’s like being married to the Princess of Love.”

Surgery stared at the other mare as though she had suddenly sprouted a set of wings. “What,” she stated as she led the pair out of this commander’s office.

“I bet it’s more than just emotional love,” Glory added, something suggestive in her tone.

Surgery just looked at the other mare. ‘You are disgusting.”

By the time the party had ended, Thomas’s eyesight had recovered significantly, once more vindicating the small fortune he had forked over for the PHOENIX implant. His vision was still impaired, but he could make out distinct shapes well enough to move about on his own.

“Has anypony seen Spike?” Twilight asked as the others left her room.

“Not since, well...” Veronica trailed off uncomfortably. Rarity shot a glare at the woman, still upset about the event in question.

“That’s what I’m worried about,” the unicorn muttered. “Do you think he’s okay?”

“I can talk to him, if you want,” Thomas suggested.

“You sure that’s a good idea?” Dom asked, hefting her duffel bag onto her shoulder. Since the break-in, she was understandably paranoid about anything else going missing.

“He’s a guy, he needs another guy.” The man rubbed at his eyes. “Still blurry,” he muttered. Next to him the ghoul frowned before opening her bag.

“And Shiny disappeared before,” Twilight muttered. “Fine,” she conceded. “The princess said that he was being given his own room. It should be - ”

“God damn it!” They all turned to the ghoul who was currently staring at her bag furiously. “That rat did get something.”

“What?”

“One of my bottles of Quantum,” she growled. “That stuff is rare.”

“Pinkie, where did you get that?” They all turned again to Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie, the latter holding a glowing blue bottle.

“When did you get that?” Dom asked quietly. “How did you even open the bag?”

“When you weren’t looking.” The pink pony looked at the contents critically, uncaring about the stares directed towards her.

“Hand it over,” Dom said, holding a hand out.

“I just want a sip first.” Before she could get any kind of answer the bottle was opened and a whole swig had been consumed. Everyone watched as Pinkie’s face went from joy to confusion and then to disgust. She spat out what she hadn’t swallowed and started scraping at her tongue. “Too sweet! Too sweet!”

The ponies stared at the friend in alarm. “Too... sweet?” Rainbow asked, looking scared and confused.

“Never imagined you would find something you couldn’t handle,” Rarity muttered worriedly.

“It’s worse than that time I tried to eat a whole bag of sugar!” the pink earth pony exclaimed.

“Yeah, I’m not surprised you did that,” the blue pegasus dead-panned.

“I’ll take that,” Dom said wearily, grabbing the bottle and its cap. “Still enough for two, at least,” she muttered as she looked at how much was left..

Suddenly Pinkie’s stomach growled. “That’s not good,” she noted.

“Everypony, get back,” Applejack instructed, preparing to pull her hat over her face.

“Pinkie, dear, are you okay?” Rarity ignored the warnings and went closer to her friend, who had now doubled over and was clutching her belly.

“Oh no,” Fluttershy mumbled. “We need to - ” The timid pegasus got no further when Pinkie suddenly looked up, opened her mouth, and unleashed the half-digested contents of her stomach in front of her. Unfortunately, Rarity happened to be right in the line of fire.

“Never seen that reaction before,” Dom muttered as the unicorn began to hyperventilate.

“Oops,” Pinkie squeaked, looking worriedly at the friend she had projectile-vomited all over.

Rarity wiped at her face and stared at her hoof for a moment. Then she unleashed an ear-splitting scream.

Thomas had been led to the room Spike had been given. It was nowhere near as luxurious as the one he’d been spending his nights in, but he guessed it was more due to the fact that he was only two feet tall and still a child. He knocked on the door as Twilight walked away, still massaging her ears in pain.

“Go away!” a voice called.

“I just wanna talk,” Thomas replied calmly.

“Oh.” The door creaked open. “It’s you. I thought it was Twilight.”

“No, I convinced her that you needed a man-to-man thing.” Spike opened the door all the way, allowing him in. “You okay?”

The dragon shuffled on his feet uncomfortably. “I... I dunno.” He clambered onto his bed and sat on the side, his legs dangling off. “At first, I was upset, then I was realised that she was kissing another mare and...”

“And you had no idea what to think,” Thomas said, finishing his sentence. “Yeah, I kinda know what it’s like,” he added, sitting down next to the dragon.

“Why? Why did she kiss Rarity? Is Rarity even like that?”

“Calm down.” Spike looked up at him. “Veronica explained what happened, she was just really excited about getting a new dress. She was just as disgusted as Rarity.”

“Oh.” Spike seemed conflicted at that revelation. “That’s... good?”

Thomas shrugged. “Maybe? I have no idea. I’m no good with the emotional side of a relationship.”

Spike looked at him, making it clear that his eyebrows would have risen as far as they could, if he had any. “Then why are you here?”

“I’m good with personal emotions,” he explained. “And I’d bet a hundred caps that you’re pretty confused about a lot of things right now,” he chuckled.

“Yeah,” the little dragon admitted. “But I’m not sure I wanna talk about it.”

“I won’t force ya.”

The pair sat there in silence for a while. Eventually, Spike decided to break the silence. “Can I tell you a secret?” he asked nervously.

“Go for it,” Thomas replied. “I’m good at keeping things hidden.”

“I um... I have a crush on Rarity,” he muttered.

“Well that explains... Actually, it doesn’t explain anything,” Thomas mumbled. “Why?”

“Well... She’s beautiful, kind, generous, hard-working...”

“All right, you have a lot of reasons,” Thomas interrupted, not feeling like getting swamped under information.

“But I don’t know how she feels,” Spike muttered. “And what happened today...”

“How old are you, exactly?”

“Sixteen,” the little dragon replied. “Still a baby dragon, but that’s only physical.”

“You’re more mature than a lot of people I’ve run into,” Thomas commented.

“Thanks,” Spike answered happily. “Er, that was a compliment, right?”

“If I was insulting you, you’d know it,” the man explained. “Still, aren’t you a bit...”

“What?”

“Young?” Thomas finished. “I mean, Rarity would be early-twenties. I think.”

“I’m not worried about that. I’m happy to wait.”

Thomas looked at the dragon with a raised eyebrow. “But you’re worried about something else.”

Spike shuffled uncomfortably. “I’ve met a few other dragons. They were all... terrible.”

“Oh?”

“They were mean, selfish, self-centered, greedy, lazy...”

“Ah. I see it now.” Thomas sighed and leaned back. “It’s all about what you choose, kid.”

“Is it really that simple?” he asked, looked up at the man worriedly.

“Hey, I could have sided with the Legion. I could have become a mass-murdering rapist,” he answered uncomfortably. Spike looked at him with disgust. “But I didn’t choose that. You can’t choose how you’re raised, but you choose how you turn out. Do you want to be like them other dragons?” he asked.

“No!” Spike answered harshly, sounding insulted by the idea.

“Then don’t. Simple as that,” Thomas said with a smile.

Spike nodded, the little dragon taking in the deceptively simple-sounding advice.

When Thomas showed himself out, having put the young dragon’s mind at ease, he was surprised to see Luna there, waiting for him. “Hello,” he said cautiously.

“That was a very kind thing you did,” the alicorn said, smiling at him.

“You were eavesdropping on us?” the man asked uncomfortably.

“Well you certainly weren’t trying to be quiet about it,” she explained. “And I only heard the tail end of your discussion.”

“The little guy needed some reassuring.” Thomas shrugged. “I had to do something.”

“And I am glad you did. There are few things more worrying than a dragon not knowing what to do.” Luna led the man away from the room. “My armour was completed earlier today, during your little party.”

“Good for you,” Thomas replied, following the alicorn down the darkened corridors.

“Yes, I look forward to getting to the root of this problem.” Luna’s gaze hardened somewhat. “I’m still unsure of what to make of things, though.”

“You mean whoever forced that stallion to attack me?”

“Among other things.” Luna looked out a window at the starry sky. “I can’t help but worry that some darker force is at play here. The fact that it seems that you are being targeted indicates you are an unwanted variable, something it can’t account for. It wants to eliminate any chance of failure.”

“Wouldn’t be the first time. Got my hands on some NCR reports from just before the Second Battle of Hoover Dam. You know what I was labelled?” he asked. “Wherever I wasn’t called ‘Courier’ I was labelled ‘Wild Card’.”

“You were considered unpredictable, your loyalties unknown,” Luna mused.

“Even now, I’m only with the NCR for my own purposes. The moment they do something that isn’t good for Vegas, well...” He trailed off ominously.

“Should I be concerned?” the alicorn asked him, raising an eyebrow.

“What, that I’d betray someone who can put me through an agonising death with a thought?” he asked back, smirking at her. “No, I’m here to do right and stop this war. And there is no way I’d side with slavers.”

“I am glad to hear that,” Luna replied. “The idea of someone with your capabilities working for such individuals is... unnerving.”

“Hmm,” Thomas grunted in agreement. “If someone wants me, Dom and Veronica out of the way, there’s only one thing we can do,” he said, returning to what Luna had said earlier.

“Oh?” the alicorn asked, curious.

“Preemptive strike. Knock out as many of their resources and options as soon as we can.”

“You are suggesting that we take the fight to them, to engage them in territory they find familiar?” Luna questioned, not particularly enthusiastic with his suggestion.

“This war will end in one of two ways. Quickly and decisively, with minimal loss of life, or long and drawn-out, with hundreds of thousands of innocents getting caught up in the fighting.” Thomas stopped walking and turned to the alicorn. “I’ve seen what happens when you let the enemy build up their strength for too long. You don’t want to. Trust me.” Thomas fought off the memories of Nipton as he turned away and continued to walk.

“Thomas...” Luna called out weakly. She sighed as she turned and let him disappear. He was right. They had to act now. But how?

Author's Note

It wasn't the ungodly sweetness that made Pinkie throw up, it was the strontium-90 isotope. Or something.

Interlude: Relic

“Sister, why are you so adamant to continue attempting diplomacy?”

“Because I refuse to see my work crumble around me.”

Luna looked at Celestia in confusion. “What do you mean, sister?”

The alabaster alicorn sighed before clambering onto her bed. “Do you know why the Changelings’ attack on the city went as well as it did?”

“The guard was heavily outnumbered,” the younger replied. “Couple that with a large number having been replaced - ”

“Luna, you know that in the old days that wouldn’t have mattered, that our ponies would have driven them out.” Celestia turned away. “After I was forced to banish you, I changed the military structure. The guard was changed. Instead of a sword to punish our foes, they became a shield to protect Equestria and our allies. It took a thousand years to forge them from bringers of death to defenders of life.”

“That is a noble thing sister. But I fail to see how this is relevant,” Luna added.

“This war, Luna, it goes against everything I’ve taught my ponies. I instilled in them the virtues of peace. Any battle was purely defensive. We never pressed the attack, and never killed unless we could avoid it.” Celestia sighed and looked despondently at the ground.

“You said ‘your ponies’,” Luna pointed out.

“For a thousand years, they were. It will take time to see them as anything but.”

“Sister, do you not see the fallacy in your argument? A shield is not just for defense. What is a shield but a wooden board with metal furniture? Striking someone with a shield can cause even more damage than with a sword or mace. And you know as well as I that sometimes the best defense is to press the offense.” Luna walked up to her sister. “We have to show whoever is commanding the Diamond Dogs that we will not be trampled upon, that we will fight to defend what is ours.”

“At what cost?” Celestia looked up at her sister with tearful eyes. “Equestria has become a beacon of peace and progress. What will fighting do?”

“It will prove to our detractors that we are not weak,” Luna retorted forcefully. “Sister, you know some of our allies still look down on us for how we handled ourselves when Chrysalis attacked.”

“Violence is not always the answer, Luna.”

“In this case it is!”

“We may still resolve this peacefully!”

“Peace was discarded when they attacked Ponyville with the intention of enslaving the residents!” Luna yelled back angrily.

“There is still a chance!”

“There is not and you know it! I will lead the attack myself if I must!”

“Luna, don’t, please!”

“Why not!?”

“I don’t want to lose you again!”

Luna blinked. She was shocked. Was this all it boiled down to? “Sister?”

“A thousand years, Luna, a thousand years having to wear a mask of serenity and strength while we suffered.” Celestia’s composure broke, and tears started to fall. “I have only had you back for a few years. I don’t want to see you hurt.”

“Tia...” Luna went over and nuzzled her sister. “I understand your concern, I do, but you must understand. This is your Equestria, something you made. It is too peaceful for me. I am a relic of the past, and part of that past is fighting. At least this way I can feel useful again,” she finished under her breath.

“Luna, you are not useless,” Celestia said reassuringly, wiping away at her tears. “Your skillset is simply...”

“Undesirable?” the midnight alicorn shot back. “Sister, you know as well as anyone that I was never one for the machinations of politics or back-room dealings. That was always your domain. Ironic, in a way,” she added with a snort.

Celestia smiled sadly. “Yes, you always enjoyed hunting the demons that preyed on our ponies.”

“Somepony had to, and you were far too reluctant.” Luna smiled back. “It heartened our subjects to see us fighting for them.”

“That’s what you want, isn’t it?” the elder asked. “To be seen as a mare that will fight for her subjects. To be a hero.”

“Well... yes. I am still treated with distrust and caution. It hurts,” she said sadly. “If fighting with our guard will ingratiate me with the populace, then so be it. And I am not made of glass, sister, you know that. It will take far more than a Diamond Dog sword to slay me.”

“I know. I still worry.” Celestia pulled her little sister into a hug. “Promise me you’ll be careful.”

“I promise, sister. It will not end like last time.”

OMAKE THE FOURTH

Location Unknown

“God damn it!”

“Well, that hurt.”

Thomas held up the Transportalponder. “At least it’s not broken this time.”

“Where are we?” Veronica asked, achieving the rather incredible feat of sitting up in fifty pounds of armour. Something seemed off about her voice, like it was deeper, but Thomas didn’t say anything.

“Looks like the middle of a courtyard.”

“Thomas?” a fourth voice called out. They all turned to the source and saw a large, winged, horned, indigo equine with a mane and tail like the night sky approach them.

“Hello Luna,” Thomas said as he stood up. “Long time no see.”

Princess Luna, for it was indeed her, came to a stop about a foot from him. She raised a hoof the size of a dinner plate tentatively, which Thomas made to grab. “You’re not Thomas,” the mare said warily.

“What do you mean?” Thomas then put a hand to his throat. “Does my voice sound weird?”

“Yeah, it kinda...” The figure in the T-51b trailed off. “Oh my god.”

“What?”

“Holy shit,” Dom said. Thomas looked to her and realised something seemed off. It was normally a little hard to tell with ghouls, but there was definitely something more masculine about her.

“What?” Thomas asked again, looking between the pair. “What’s so strange?”

Veronica didn’t answer, instead poking him in the chest. His expression turned into one of complete confusion. She had touched him, but it had been a point several inches too early. He looked down and gaped. “What the fuck?” he asked.

Where his chest had once been flat, there now rested a pair of perky breasts. Moving his - no, her hand further down told Thomas that she had lost her favourite piece of anatomy.

“Wait,” Veronica said slowly. “If you’re a girl then that means...” The helmet came off to reveal a masculine face. “Oh god.”

Author's Note

Because why the fuck not?
A big thanks to ed2481 for the idea.

OMAKE THE FIFTH

Location Unknown

“God damn it!”

“Well, that hurt.”

Thomas held up the Transportalponder. “At least it’s not broken this time.”

“Where are we?” Veronica asked, achieving the rather incredible feat of sitting up in fifty pounds of armour.

“It... looks like the Wasteland.” Dom looked around.

“Okay, this isn’t right.” Thomas stood up, confused. The area they were in definitely resembled a ruined city, though it wasn’t one he recognised. Behind him was an old warehouse, the walls crumbling, and before them was a dilapidated office building, every window missing.

“Thomas, you promised ponies.” Veronica turned to him. “Where are the ponies?” she asked petulantly.

“Wow, look how cloudy it is.” Dom was staring at the sky, which was covered in a blanket of cloud. There weren’t any gaps, and as a result the entire landscape had a washed-out feel. “Never seen that before.”

Thomas looked at his Transportalponder angrily. “God fucking damn it! Klein promised me this wouldn’t happen!” he yelled.

“Shut up,” the ghoul snapped. “We need to figure out where we are. This ain’t Washington, I can tell you that much.”

Suddenly, a fourth voice called out from the distance. “Hey, over here!”

“Fuck.” Thomas put the troublesome device that had dropped them in God-knows-where back into his duster. “Raiders.”

Dom reacted instinctively, reaching back and grabbing her Metal Blaster. “Piece of cake,” she smirked. Veronica clicked a switch on her Power Fist, turning it on, and raising it up.

As Thomas unholstered A Light Shining in Darkness, the source of the mystery voice made itself known. All three got a surprise when they say what it was. They weren’t the only ones.

“Hey boss, what the fuck are they?” a sickly-green mare asked, barbed wire wrapped around her hooves. She was one of around fifteen, each one armed with crude weaponry. Only two of them had a firearm, and a glance told them that they were close to falling apart.

“No idea,” a crimson unicorn stallion replied uneasily. “Still, bet that stuff on them is worth a lot.”

“Thomas, what the fuck is going on?” Veronica hissed.

“I don’t know,” he replied honestly. These... raider ponies had completely derailed his thought processes. How had this happened? “I don’t know,” he repeated numbly.

“All right, boys!” the crimson stallion, the boss, yelled. “Fresh meat!”

Location Unknown

“Ow...”

“Fuck.”

“Okay, shoulda warned ya,” a thickly accented voice said. The sandy-brown pegasus pushed himself up unsteadily and looked around. He wore a modified duster, and a pair of barrels poked out of it, one on each side, evidence of the stallion’s semi-automatic battle-saddle.

“Holy shit.” A heavily-armoured earth pony, her entire body concealed in highly-advanced armour, looked around in awe. “It’s so green.” Her right forehoof had additional metal covering it, evidence of a deadly pneumatic horseshoe.

“Wow.” The third member of the little group got to her hooves. Her coat and mane had fallen out long ago, one of the unfortunate effects of ghoulification. What was left indicated that she once had an ivory coat, with a vivid crimson mane and tail. Strapped to her back, on top of her old pre-war combat barding, was a magical energy laser rifle, worn from years of use. “So where are we?”

“Good question...” The lone stallion looked around, worried that he couldn’t see anything he could recognise. “Huh.” He looked up at the sky, the fact that there was barely a cloud taking a moment to register. “My Goddess...”

“Sweet merciful Luna...” the heavily-armoured mare responded in kind.

“Holy Celestia...” the ghoul agreed.

None of them had ever seen a clear sky before, and it was blowing their minds. It stretched further than they could see, and their minds were having trouble comprehending the sheer size of what they were seeing.

“And just why are you taking the names of my sister and I in vain?” a fourth voice asked suddenly.

The three looked back down and got the scare of their lives. “ALICORN!” the earth pony screamed, backing away as fast as she could.

Before Luna could react, the pegasus bit down on a set of wires hanging in front of him, causing the tubes at his side to extended, accompanied with the sound of whirring machinery. The unicorn, who she was alarmed to see had no skin, pulled the strange box thing off her back with her telekinesis. She still had time to erect a barrier, causing the bullets and laser beams shot at her to bounce off harmlessly.

She shot a glare at the group as she grabbed them with her magic. As the group flailed, trying to get away, she spoke. “You have one chance to explain yourselves,” she said in a low, murderous voice.

The pegasus stopped moving and took in her features before grinning awkwardly. “Eheh, wouldya believe me if Ah said it was all a misunderstandin’?”

Author's Note

Because why the hell not?
Dump the three Wastelanders in the Equestrian Wasteland, dump three Equestrian Wastelanders in... an alternate Equestria, I guess. I don't like the idea of the three popping up and stopping the war with their knowledge.
Besides, Thomas sort of already did that here.

30: Bright Future

On the mountain face opposite Canterlot was something that not many ponies knew about. This was not because it was hidden from the general populace, but simply something they had never bothered to find out. Carved into the mountain, much like the city itself, was a great airship dock. Within sat the one and only Harmonious, the flagship and airborne base of operations of the Equestrian Air Force. With both a heavily reinforced balloon as the primary method of remaining airborne and a large number of downwards-facing propellers providing additional lift and stability, it was almost impossible for it to be knocked from the sky.

Captain True Sight looked at the earth ponies under his command. Due to their affinity for machinery they were trusted with the maintenance and operation of the Guard’s sole airship. The Harmonious was meant to be the first of several, but funding cuts and the general attitude of the nobility (“What’s the point of an airship without en suites?”) had left the Equestrian Air Force severely weakened.

Unlike those that would be fighting on the ground, they wore only a golden cap. Their role would not be to face the Dogs, but to rain down fire and death from above. However, given the nature of the Dogs they would likely be relegated to ferrying supplies and the wounded. Not that True Sight minded terribly, he wanted to do his part, no matter how small.

“Quit your slacking, you rock-munching idiots! We have a war to fight, and that means you do everything the moment I say it!” he yelled.

“Shove it up your tail-hole, sir!” one of the ponies shouted back.

True Sight laughed with them. “Would if I could, but we have a job to do. Odds are the guns won’t be needed, but the ship definitely will. I want the mess hall converted to a field hospital, and the supply rooms stocked with medical equipment. We won’t have ponies and griffins dying on my ship,” he finished sternly.

“So we won’t actually be fighting?” a mare at the back asked nervously.

“No, we’ll probably be too far out of range,” Sight clarified. “We are there mainly in a support capacity. Now stop standing there and get to work! I want this ship ready to take wounded in half an hour!”

“Yes sir!”

Shining Armor had called a private meeting in his office, ordering all the Knights to meet him. He hadn’t expected them to be so prompt, though, nor all of them to ready to fight.

Shining Armor looked at the fully-armoured, battle-ready Knights, his Knights. He still had a little trouble believing that the most powerful unicorns the Guard could offer were under his direct command. Unfortunately Shadow Dancer was still absent, not fully recovered from the damage unleashing the armour’s Solar Wrath had done to her. Her skills and experience would have been incredibly useful.

“I know most of you haven’t seen a real fight before, that the worst you’ve had to do is fight a bundle of straw shaped like a Dog. But we cannot afford to falter out there. The others will be looking towards us, to lead and inspire.” He sighed. “It’s a burden, but - ”

“Sir?” Blink asked, cutting him off. “Stop worrying so much.”

“It’s my job to worry,” Shining replied dourly. “We nearly lost Shadow Dancer.”

“You won’t lose any of us, sir,” Firebolt said happily, his head bobbing slightly.

“We’re the best trained force Equestria has to offer,” Frost Lance added, supporting his brother.

“I am sure we can cope,” Trixie said, smirking behind her helmet.

“That kind of overconfidence is dangerous,” Shining replied, reprimanding her. “Promise me that you will all be careful out there.”

“Of course sir,” Astral Gaze answered in his strange, flat tone. “You don’t even have to ask that of us.”

There was a sudden knock at the door, catching them all off-guard. “Who is that?”

“It’s me, Blueblood,” came the reply.

“Oh great, it’s the self-entitled rat,” Glory muttered.

“Quiet,” Shining hissed. “What do you want, Blueblood?”

“A warmer welcome, for starters,” the prince replied snidely. “I was going through some historical texts, and came across an idea I thought you might appreciate.”

“Is that so?” All the Knights were intrigued by this. None of them had really considered that Blueblood did anything except complain and spend more money than was strictly sensible.

Blueblood explained to them what he had found. When he was done, the Knights looked at him, aghast. “Pegasi used to do that?”

“I knew the Celestine Junta was brutal, but...”

Shining was the most worried. “Blueblood, are you crazy?”

“Oh please, what I’m suggesting is nothing compared to some of the Hyracotherium Republic’s weapons, or what the Kingdom of Unicornia did to prisoners of war,” Blueblood replied, sounding a little disturbed. “Believe me when I say those books are in the restricted section of the library for a good reason.”

“You’re talking about weaponising something that has seen nothing but peaceful use for centuries, Blueblood,” Shining responded, sounding a little sick.

“I understand that, but this will help us win the war, I am sure of it,” the prince said.

“Maybe you’re not that bad,” Glory said suddenly. “Better than those other nobles, at least.”

“You mean the ones Luna forcibly conscripted?” Clarion Call asked.

“Oh yeah. I will never see anything funnier than that,” she answered, trying to hold in her laughter.

“You two, be quiet,” Shining shot at them. “Gambit?”

“Tactically, it’s a brilliant decision,” she mused. “They won’t see it coming, it’ll definitely sap their morale, and it’ll inflict heavy casualties. Morally...” the mare trailed off uncomfortably. “I’d say it’s a grey area, but that’s a lie and you all know it.”

“I’ve seen what can happen when you get some on you by accident, and this is the stuff mixed for industrial use,” Field Surgery said suddenly. “I don’t even want to imagine what being hit with a weapons-grade mixture can do...”

“Actually, a little research tells me that there is barely any difference between the two. Though with today’s refining techniques...” Blueblood stood there, a hoof to his chin as he thought.

Thomas had asked the other Wastelanders to come to his room, to help him form a plan of sorts. While the other two prepared themselves, he looked at the map he had been given. “So, they’re gonna dig up, right?” Dom asked, digging through her duffel bag.

“Yeah,” Thomas muttered. “If I’m on that airship, I should be able to snipe a few...”

“Screw that,” Veronica replied loudly, messing with a screw on Greased Lightning. “Punching is the gift that keeps on giving.”

“You have a rifle, get some use out of that first,” the ghoul replied seriously.

“I am wearing a set of T-51b. Do you really think anything has a chance of getting through this?” she asked, patting herself on the chest.

“Both of you, shut up, I’m thinking. Dom, you said something before about explosives.”

“Huh? Oh, yeah.” The ghoul pulled something out of her bag and threw it at the man. “Catch.”

Thomas caught it and stared. “This is a tin can.”

“It’s what’s in the tin can,” the ghoul smirked, crossing her arms. “It makes plasma look like hot water.”

“That’s...” Veronica searched for words, gave up and looked at her. “What the hell is in that thing?”

“Quantum, Abraxo and turpentine.”

Veronica blinked. “That... doesn’t make any sense. At all.”

“I don’t question it,” Dom replied with a shrug. “I just make it work.”

“That’s the scary thing. Still, if it works,” the Scribe shrugged, “I can’t really complain.”

“Okay, Dom has explosives, I have my anti-materiel rifle, and Veronica has... punching.” Thomas added that last point uneasily.

“You also brought the Red Glare,” Veronica added.

“That’s for emergencies,” the man replied.

“Thomas, I’ve seen that thing. You used it on Fiends,” the Scribe deadpanned. “That’s like using C-4 on a bloatfly.”

“I had to send a message,” he shrugged.

“You knocked down a building and didn’t even leave enough of those idiots for the birds. Even that’s taking overkill too far.”

“I once used a Fat Man on a raider base,” the ghoul commented. “I don’t see the difference.”

Veronica looked between the two. “You... really? I give up,” she said, throwing her arms up and turning around. “You’re both nuts.”

Luna inspected the weapons in the armory. None of them suited her needs or were appealing to her. “Hmm...”

“Sister?”

The younger alicorn turned around and saw Celestia standing not far from her, next to a rack of spears. Luna turned back and rolled her eyes. “I know what you’re going to say.”

“This is a mistake, Luna,” the alabaster alicorn pleaded.

“According to the Knights, something is controlling the Dogs. If it’s what I think it is, then I am simply doing my duty,” Luna told her coldly.

“At what cost?” Celestia asked. “If it is what you think, then I may lose you again.”

“I already said that would not happen,” the younger replied. “Last time I was alone. This time I have an army at my back. Not one as large as I would like, but an army nonetheless.”

“And if you do fall, an entire generation will be extinguished.”

Luna turned, doing her best to hide her anger. “Do you have such little faith in me, sister? I am not the jealous, weak-willed mare I was a thousand years ago. I know my subjects care for me, they just don’t show it,” she trailed off awkwardly. “And in any case, our armed forces are far too inexperienced in actual battle.”

“They are well-trained,” Celestia argued.

“Training is not everything. Look at our guests. No training, but a lifetime of experience. It makes them incredible warriors. But our guard?” Luna asked with a sigh. “All they know is spars with each other and stabbing bundles of straw with pointed sticks. I worry that many of them will turn tail at the sight of their friends’ blood or be paralyzed with fear when the time to fight comes.”

“You don’t give them enough credit,” Celestia argued. “They are not as weak-willed or pacifistic as you believe. They may not have the same fire as they used to, but they will fight for what they hold dear, whether it be their home or their friends.”

“I know, but... I rarely see any evidence of such. Maybe I will be proven wrong.” Luna’s eyes roamed the weapon racks, her eyes alighting on a large mace, its head a great ball covered in evil-looking spikes. “Hmm...” she hummed in approval. “May I strike fear into the hearts of my enemies, and bring courage to the minds of my allies,” she whispered, taking the mace in her magic.

Celestia stared at her sister. “That is an old vow, sister. I have not heard it since - ”

“My banishment, yes.” Luna gauged the weight and gave it a few experimental swings. “It is far from perfect, a few enchantments should be enough,” she muttered. “I shall take this weapon with me. Between it and my magic, I will not fall.” She turned to her sister. “I promise, sister, I will return, no matter what.”

Twilight stared at her food. She was hungry, but just couldn’t muster the will to eat it. She pushed her salad away, instead looking to her friends. She had invited them to eat with her in her suite, hoping that their presence would help put her mind at ease. Unfortunately, it only managed to achieve the exact opposite.

“That was a good speech by the Princess,” Applejack commented,

“Yes, and it’s about time those horrible Dogs were put in their place,” Rarity said airily, sipping from her glass of wine.

“What do you mean?” Pinkie asked, her normally chipper tone subdued.

“Well, they took me captive,” the unicorn pointed out. “Then they took Sweetie Belle, Apple Bloom and Scootaloo!” she added vehemently.

“Just what are you sayin’, Rares?” Applejack asked cautiously.

“They are nothing but pony-enslaving, murdering, marauding brutes!” she shouted. “The world will be a much better place without them!”

“Rarity!” Twilight yelled, deciding to intervene. “Are you seriously advocating genocide!?” she asked, unable to believe one of her friends was capable of this.

“They hurt the ponies I love! They don’t deserve to live in Equestria!”

“Most of them don’t even live in Equestria, Rarity!” Twilight pointed out loudly. “And you’re sounding a lot like you never bothered with history classes,” she added.

“What do you mean?” Pinkie asked.

“Yeah, none of us are into that stuff like you,” Rainbow Dash added.

“The Kingdom of Unicornia used to utilise some of the most heinous torture devices in history,” Twilight explained. “They used them on anypony they suspected of disagreeing with the way things were run, or on prisoners of war.”

“What... kind of tortures?” Fluttershy asked timidly, hiding under her mane.

The lavender unicorn looked at her friends, trying to think of a good example. “Rainbow, your worst fear is losing the ability to fly, right?” she asked. When the pegasus nodded, she continued. “Well, imagine being forced to repeatedly live out the agony of having your wings broken and ripped from your body.”

“R-r-repeatedly?” Rainbow Dash asked, the colour draining from her as she tried to keep her lunch down. Her wings clenched to her sides fearfully.

“And earth ponies and pegasi weren’t much better. There used to be weapons that could make entire cities sink into the ground, and pegasi used to weaponise weather. Among other things,” Twilight added.

“Weaponise weather?”

“Blizzards to kill crops and freeze armies to death, torrential storms to drown entire towns and cities, hurricanes and tornadoes... Well, you get the idea,” she concluded.

“What... what was the point of that little history lesson?” Rarity asked, her fervor replaced with apprehension and disgust at what she had heard.

“As vile as the Diamond Dogs can be, ponies can be just as horrible. Even worse, if we want to,” Twilight said uneasily. “That’s why Princess Luna’s speech makes me feel so uneasy.”

“You think we’re going to become like that again?” Pinkie asked.

“My... my brother proved that it wouldn’t be that hard. And if one of the more level-headed members of the Guard can succumb that easily... I really am scared that the rest of us might follow,” Twilight answered, a note of unease entering into her voice.

Author's Note

Late update is late. Very late.
Written with help from my good friend ed2481. He also wanted me to write Rarity as an equine supremacist and an advocate of genocide.

31: Opening Shots

Aboard the airship Harmonious, the three Wastelanders had gathered, in preparation for the upcoming battle. Despite their experience, nothing they had gone through could really match up to what was going to happen.

The Knights were set up within as well, along with a large number of unicorn and earth pony guards. The pegasi and griffins would arrive by commandeering giant cloud formations as mobile, nigh-unassailable aerial bases of operation. The tactic was an ancient one, from the time of the Celestine Junta, designed to deploy wave after wave of hardened fighters in a short timespan, as well as providing somewhere to rest and resupply.

“This is the craziest thing I have ever done,” Thomas muttered, looking over the railing and trying to ignore his fear.

“Yeah,” Dom muttered, uneasily rubbing at her Metal Blaster’s scratched paint-job. “Beats that thing with the aliens hands-down.”

Veronica looked at the ghoul, head tilted in confusion. “Aliens? You’re kidding, right? Please tell me you’re kidding.”

“Wish I was,” she muttered. “Getting anal probed ain’t fun.”

Thomas and Veronica turned to each other, both trying to determine if the ghoul was just joking or being deadly serious. “I don’t want to know,” the Courier muttered carefully.

“Yeah, the less said the better. God I need a drink,” Dom rasped, stowing her rifle back in its sling. “There any alcohol on this thing?”

“Only medicinal,” an earth pony replied, walking past with a stack of folded white sheets balanced on her back.

“Shit.”

“Are the chariots ready?” Knight-Commander Shining Armor asked.

“Yes sir, they’re being kept on the cloud bases.”

“Good,” he nodded, glancing at the armoured stallion next to him. “Make sure they’re ready to perform medevac and casevac after the main force has touched ground.”

“I’ll get somepony to relay that, sir.”

“What about weapons?”

“Lances, swords, spears, maces and javelins. The griffins and a number of pegasi are also taking crossbows to provide fire from above.”

“And the Harmonious?” the armoured unicorn asked, glancing at his subordinate.

“The reserve magazines have been cleared out to hold medical supplies, but the main magazine has enough powder and balls for half an hour of sustained fire.”

“Good. Hopefully they won’t need to use any of it.”

Trixie was a proud mare. A little too proud at times, and it had cost her both her home and livelihood in the past. So it was to no-one’s surprise that she tried to hide how scared she was about the upcoming battle. None were fooled, though. So she had holed up in closet in an attempt to calm her nerves and stay hidden.

“Trixie?” a voice called out,

She looked up, almost smacking her head on a mop. How had they found her? She was sure that this hiding place had been a perfect choice!

“Come out, Trix.” The voice belonged to Blink, she knew that. She didn’t want him to see her like this, scared out of her mind. “I’m not mad. Please?” When the voice didn’t get an answer, it sighed. “Shade? Can you make sure she’s in there?”

Trixie let out a squeal as the pale white unicorn poked her head through the still-closed door. “Shade!”

“Yeah, she’s in here!” the seemingly-disembodied head called out.

“Do you have any idea how terrifying that is!?”

“That’s sort of the idea, Trix,” Blink said, opening the door. It phased right through Shade’s body, stopping to a rest when she stuck out a tangible leg.

“Why are you hiding in a closet, anyway? I definitely didn’t see a stallion in there,” Shade commented wryly.

“Shade, be serious about this, would you?” Blink asked, shooting his compatriot a flat stare.

“Just trying to lighten up the mood,” the mare shrugged.

“Why were you two looking for me?”

“It was his idea, I just tagged along because I wanted to scare somepony,” Shade answered, not giving Blink a chance.

“Shade! I am trying to be serious!” Blink yelled. “If you’re just going to be a nuisance, leave!”

“Fine. What’s under here, one of the medical bays?” she asked. Without waiting for an answer, she stuck her head through the floor. Then she slowly sunk through the deck, eliciting a few screams from whoever was unfortunate enough to see her fall from the ceiling.

Blink just rolled his eyes. “Why were you hiding?” he asked again.

Trixie looked down the corridor, making sure nopony else was there to hear her. “Trixie is... I mean, I’m scared.”

“What, about the battle?” the stallion asked. “That’s natural.”

“I was a performer,” she continued. “I mastered my stage fright when I was a filly. I shouldn’t be so - ”

“Trixie, there is a big difference between performing on a stage and what we’re going to be doing.” Blink eased himself into a lying position before gesturing to the mare to join him. “Fear is the right thing to feel.”

“I’m meant to be a Knight!” she exclaimed. “Fearless and courageous!”

“Courage is not the absence of fear. That’s stupidity,” the purple unicorn explained, sounding a little angry. “Courage is being scared and fighting through it. You can’t be courageous and fearless at the same time. It’s not possible.”

“Well Trixie is still scared!”

“That’s good, though. Fear is the appropriate response.”

The sun’s light seemed subdued upon the dawn, almost as though it was disheartened by what it knew would come. The Harmonious and the numerous cloud bases flew west, where the Diamond Dogs’ native lands were. The Dominion’s borders lay many miles from any Equestrian settlement, nothing but rocks, dirt and barren wastes. The Dominion itself was a rocky, unpleasant place, with very few place to farm or form settlements. Due to that fact, the majority of the Dominion’s population was actually underground, something which suited them just fine. A small number of outposts were maintained above-ground as a mere formality and to keep potential squatters away.

“How much longer?” Shining Armor asked, his golden armour gleaming in the dying sunlight.

“We’re above their lands now,” Captain True Sight replied. “We should be in position within the hour.”

“Sir?” Gambit asked, the mare without her helmet. “Something about this whole thing feels... off.”

Shining glanced at his tactician for a moment. The next second, his horn glowed with an intense light-purple light and the Harmonious was enveloped in a giant bubble. “Sir?” the airship’s captain asked nervously. The rest of the crew looked around, muttering to themselves.

“If she has a bad feeling, then - ” He was cut off by a tremendous boom! and he winced.

“We’re under fire!” somepony shouted out.

“Gambit, get Astral!” Shining shouted, his eyes closed in concentration. “Get him to determine where those shots are coming from!” There was a second explosion, another Diamond Dog shot impacting harmlessly on his shield.

“I’m already here,” the stallion said suddenly, eerily calm compared to the panic around him. Nopony had heard or seen him arrive. “Give me a moment,” he added, his horn glowing.

There was a flash and a bang, and when everybody near them could see again Blink, Trixie and Shade had all appeared in the formerly blank space, each one of them completely armoured. “What the hay is going on!?” he shouted, making himself heard over the explosions.

“The Diamond Dog’s cannon emplacement is to the north, approximately half a mile,” Astral said. “They appear to have a shield of their own around it.”

“Like this wasn’t hard enough already…” Shining groaned.

“It’s primitive, and being sustained by crystals that are outside its protection,” the blind stallion continued. “They didn’t expect us to come from this direction, it seems.”

“Would a full salvo knock it down?” True Sight asked. “My crew can have the guns ready in two minutes.”

“Possibly,” Astral Gaze answered uneasily. “It may take more.”

“Okay, why the hell is the ship shaking, and why is there a giant shield?” The ponies turned to see Thomas striding towards them, frowning as his Pip-Boy ticked away.

“The Dogs are attacking us, and their guns are behind a one-way shield,” Shining hastily explained.

“Aye, but the commander reckons we can punch a hole through it,” True Sight added.

Thomas stood there for a moment before developing a very unsettling smile. “Let me get my high explosives,” he said before he disappeared.

A minute later he had returned with the large, somewhat unwieldy contraption that was the Red Glare, some of the other Knights coming up as well. “What is that?” Martial Glory asked, pointing a hoof at it.

“A pre-War masterpiece.” Thomas calmly loaded a pod full of high-explosive rockets before marching to the side of the airship and putting his eye to the scope. “I think I see it,” he muttered.

“True Sight?” Shining asked, grunting as another blast impacted against his bubble shield.

“Loaded and waiting for the order!” the earth pony responded enthusiastically.

“The moment the shield drops, give the order,” the unicorn calmly commanded. “Astral Gaze?”

“They appear to be reloading,” he replied in his flat, emotionless tone. “They’re firing.”

Another series of blasts slammed into the shield before it vanished. “FIRE!” True Sight roared. He was soon joined by the sounds of a dozen 68-pounder cannons firing in succession. Their payload found their target, the enchanted projectiles exploding spectacularly on impact.

“The shield still holds,” Astral muttered.

“Fire in the hole!” Thomas shouted, pulling the trigger on the Red Glare. Thirteen crimson rockets shot out, soaring at the shield, while the weapon itself glowed an eerie red. Martial Glory took a step back and coughed, having gotten a lungful of rocket exhaust.

There was a moment of silence as they all waited for something to happen. There were a series of small explosions, barely visible. “Well that was a letdown.”

“His weapon destroyed one of the generator crystals,” Astral said, sounding a little surprised. “The shield is down.”

“Sir, next volley is ready!” an earth pony called up.

“Fire.”

“FIRE!” True Sight yelled, echoing Shining Armor. The guns roared again, and the area they had been aiming at vanished in a pillar of flame.

“Their magazine was hit,” Astral stated, confirming their suspicions. “The emplacement is destroyed.”

“Send a message to the cloud bases,” Shining commanded. “Have them prepare the chariots for landing.”

Author's Note

The 68-pounder is a real cannon. With an effective range of about 3km.

OMAKE THE FIRST

Location Unknown

“God damn it!”

“Well, that hurt.”

Thomas held up the Transportalponder. “At least it’s not broken this time.”

“Where are we?” Veronica asked, achieving the rather incredible feat of sitting up in fifty pounds of armour.

“Looks like the middle of a courtyard.”

Before either of them could say anything, there was another voice. “Who are you?” it asked.

Thomas sat up and blinked. Many of the feature were definitely familiar. The coat, the eyes, the ethereal mane and tail. But there was a problem. “Luna?” he asked. “Why are you a guy?”

“‘Luna’?” the alicorn asked, sounding equally confused. “Who is Luna? I am Prince Nocturne. Who are you?”

“I’m Thomas, the Courier,” the man replied cautiously. Already he had an idea just what was going on, but he needed confirmation.

“The Courier?” Nocturne asked, looking unamused. “No, the Courier was a female by the name of Tamsin. Traitorous harlot,” he muttered venomously.

Thomas didn’t say anything, instead looking at his Transportalponder furiously. “Okay, Klein, you’re fucking dead.”

MEANWHILE

Location Unknown

“God damn it!”

“Well, that hurt.”

Tamsin held up the Transportalponder. “At least it’s not broken this time.”

“Where are we?” Victor asked, achieving the rather incredible feat of sitting up in fifty pounds of armour.

“Looks like the middle of a courtyard.”

Before either of them could say anything, there was another voice. “Who are you?” it asked.

Tamsin sat up and blinked. Many of the feature were definitely familiar. The coat, the eyes, the ethereal mane and tail. But there was a problem. “Nocturne?” she asked. “Why are you a girl?”

“‘Nocturne’?” the alicorn asked, sounding equally confused. “Who is Nocturne? I am Princess Luna. Who are you?”

“I’m Tamsin, the Courier,” the woman replied cautiously. Already she had an idea just what was going on, but she needed confirmation.

“The Courier?” Luna asked, looking unamused. “No, the Courier was a male by the name of Thomas. Traitorous coward,” she muttered venomously.

Tamsin didn’t say anything, instead looking at her Transportalponder furiously. “Okay, Klein, you’re fucking dead.”

01: Prologue

~Seven months after the Second Battle of Hoover Dam~

Lucky 38 Casino

“Veronica, get up.”

“Mmmh.”

Thomas sighed as he ran a hand through his hair. The former Brotherhood of Steel Scribe had been like this for the past three weeks, passed out in the suite he gave her from too much alcohol. It was a small miracle that it had taken so long before she turned to the bottle. “Veronica, you can’t keep doing this to yourself.”

“What else am I meant to do?” she asked, still face-down in her pillow. “I tried to leave peacefully, and they tried to kill me.”

“I was there, remember?”

“Yeah, yeah.”

Thomas grimaced as he left the room. He missed the snarky woman he had first met at the 188 Trading Post. He really hoped something would happen to get her out of her funk.

Airspace over the Colorado River

“Do you know what we can expect?”

“No idea Kodiak, we haven’t had any contact with any chapters this far west in years.”

The Vertibird, a VTOL aircraft designed pre-War and perfected by the Enclave, soared through the air towards Hoover Dam. The occupants, though, were certainly not Enclave. For starters they would never allow an unrestrained ghoul to ride as a passenger.

“Either way, we’re looking at something,” the ghoul said, looking out the cockpit. “That tower’s all lit up.”

“Yeah, though whether that’s good or bad - ” Sentinel Sarah Lyons was cut off before she could continue by the crackling of the radio.

“This is Colonel Henry Smith of the New California Republic. You have twenty seconds to give your name and purpose here in the Mojave. Failure to do so will be seen as an act of hostility and we will react as necessary.”

The pilot flicked a switch and spoke into the headset she wore. “This is Sentinel Sarah Lyons of the East Coast Chapter of the Brotherhood of Steel, we are here to try and re-establish contact with any chapters in the region.” She took a breath as she killed the connection. “Hope that’s enough...”

There was a tense silence. “You have clearance to land on Hoover Dam, follow the blinking lights for the landing zone. You are to keep your weapons within the Vertibird. Failure to do so will be seen as an act of aggression,” the voice warned ominously.

The four Brotherhood members glanced at each other, not sure what to make of the situation. “Anyone else got a bad feeling about this?” the ghoul asked.

Five minutes later, Hoover Dam

The small garrison of NCR troopers stood at attention, ready to act if the occupants of the recently-landed Vertibird proved hostile. Atop one of the small towers dotted along the dam was a small team of explosive experts, Boomers who had taken the opportunity to leave and donate their skills to the Republic’s military. They had a pair of missile launchers pointed at the aircraft, ready to turn it into a smoking pile of scrap in an instant.

The side door opened, and the soldiers got a small shock when a ghoul jumped out. Wearing the bastard child of combat and power armour, as well as a Pip-Boy 3000, she looked around before making way for the other three occupants. They were more to their expectations, each one wearing a set of slightly battered T-45d power armour.

The ranking NCR officer went to the small group and saluted. “I am Colonel Smith. I apologise for the radio transmission, we can’t be too careful,” he said apologetically.

“I can respect that,” replied the fully-armoured Brotherhood soldier in the middle. “I am Sentinel Sarah Lyons. The others with me are Paladin Kodiak,” the one on the left waved, “Knight Captain Dusk,” the one to her right nodded, “and Paladin Esposito.” The ghoul nodded before giving a crude salute.

“Forgive me for asking, but I thought the Brotherhood hated ghouls?” the colonel asked.

“I was a Paladin before this happened,” Paladin Esposito rasped.

“And we’re not going to ask her to leave,” Sentinel Lyons added. “She’s one of the best Paladins we have. You don’t want to get into a knife-fight with her.”

“I’ll take your word for it,” the colonel responded skeptically. “You said something about linking up with other Brotherhood chapters, didn’t you?” Lyons nodded. “Well, we have a scribe from the Mojave chapter here helping us get the dam working at full capacity. I suggest you talk to her about a meeting with their Elder.”

“Thank you,” the Sentinel replied. “What about the California chapter? We haven’t had any contact with them in over a decade.”

The troopers glanced at each other nervously. “It might be best to talk with the Elder here,” the colonel said, evading the topic.

Freeside

“Look, Veronica, I don’t care, you’re going to the Followers! I’ll drag you there if I have to!”

“Let me go!”

“Do you want those Brotherhood guys from the east seeing you drunk and smelling like vomit?” Thomas asked as he pulled the whining woman after him.

“Like it matters, I bet they’re just like those close-minded idiots here,” she said petulantly.

“They have a ghoul with them, a Paladin at that.”

That was enough to shake her out of her depression. “Wait, they have a ghoul that high-ranked?”

Thomas used this opportunity to pull her harder. Before they knew it, they were at the Old Mormon Fort. Unfortunately, trying to open the door and hold onto the struggling woman was difficult. “Hey!” he yelled, hoping to catch someone’s attention. “Little help!?”

The large wooden doors opened and he was greeted by a blonde, bespectacled man in a lab coat. “Oh hey Thomas,” Arcade Gannon said happily. Then he noticed Veronica. “That bad, huh?”

“She needs a detox, Fixer and something to repair her liver,” he said. “She needs to be at her best for a meeting with the Brotherhood.”

“We can do the first two, but the third’s gonna require a miracle,” Arcade replied. “And the Brotherhood? Didn’t she leave them?”

“Different chapter. They seem a lot more open-minde - Fuck!” Veronica had managed to get out of Thomas’ grip and was running. “Get back here!” he yelled, giving chase.

Hoover Dam

“Thank you, Scribe,” Sentinel Lyons replied unhappily.

“Sorry to be the bearer of bad news,” the short brunette replied.

“We had our suspicions that they tried something stupid, just never thought it was that bad.” Sarah sighed under helmet. “So it’s just the Washington chapter, the one here and the one in Chicago?”

“There’s one in Chicago?” the Scribe asked. “First I’ve heard.”

“From what I know, they split from the West Coast chapters before ours did. I guess there’s the chance they never told you?”

“Don’t know why the Elder would keep that from us,” she answered uneasily.

“Er, Sentinel?” Sarah looked at the NCR trooper who had called for her. “The Colonel would like a word with you.”

“One moment.” She turned to the Scribe. “Again, thanks.”

“Hey, anything to do with knowledge is my job,” the Scribe replied happily, turning back to the machine she was working on. “I’ll let you in the armour walk into the meat grinder.”

Sarah chuckled. “You have no idea.” She turned back to the trooper. “So, what does he want?”

“He said that he managed to get clearance from General Hsu to have your Vertibird land at Camp McCarran,” the trooper explained as they walked. “Also, a friend of the Republic has offered four high-end suites at his casino as a gesture of goodwill.”

“Really?” Sarah asked, her eyebrows raised. “Why would they do that?”

“I don’t know,” the trooper replied as they emerged into the open air. “All I know is that he could have taken over the whole Mojave but didn’t want to.”

Sarah didn’t know what to make of that as she made her way to the Vertibird. Kodiak and Dusk were there, along with Colonel Smith. “Colonel, I want to thank you for getting us permission to land at Camp McCarran.”

“It was actually pretty easy. General Hsu’s always been pretty level-headed,” Henry replied. “Ah, there’s your ghoul.”

“I don’t belong to no-one!” Paladin Esposito retorted as she made her way back, a smile on her face.

“Where’d you go, Dom?” Kodiak asked.

“Found a few explosives enthusiasts, taught them how to make Nuka-Grenades.”

“You didn’t,” Dusk replied. “Did you?”

The ghoul shrugged. “They asked nicely. I couldn’t just refuse them.”

“The Boomers asked a ghoul politely?” Colonel Smith asked. “I always thought they were a bit too close-minded,” he commented quietly.

“You start talking about anything that goes ‘Kaboom’ and they’re real friendly,” Esposito replied with a shrug. “I’d suggest staying away from them if you see them with a tin can,” she added.

“Get into the Vertibird, Dom,” Sarah said as she placed her hand on the front of her helmet. “I want to apologise for any trouble that happens.”

“How worried should I be?” Colonel Smith asked as the Paladins clambered back into the Vertibird.

“I’ve seen one level a house. Keep an eye out for any blue fireballs.” Before he could respond, she jumped into the cockpit and started the engines. “What the fuck were you thinking, Dom?” she asked.

“What?” she asked innocently.

Lucky 38 Casino

“Thanks, Arcade.”

“Yeah, thanks. Sorry for how I was acting.”

“Hey, don’t worry about it,” the doctor replied happily. “We’ve had worse, trust me.”

Veronica hung her head in shame. “Still can’t believe I needed that, though.”

“Honestly, Veronica, you did a damn fine job, holding on until now,” Thomas replied. “Now, how about you put on a dress and get ready to meet those Brotherhood folks?”

“Why are you so eager to get me to meet them, anyway?” she asked as she headed for the elevator, walking among the various patrons.

“A change of scenery, new faces, something about a giant robot...” he muttered. As the lift whisked Veronica away, he turned to Arcade. “Hard to believe, huh? Six months ago this place was covered in dust.”

“And now it’s one of the most popular casinos in the Strip.” Arcade looked at a couple sitting at a roulette table. “And the NCR haven’t made a complete mess of governing Vegas. Yet.”

“How’s work with the Followers?” Thomas asked as he led the scientist to the bar.

“A lot less addicts now. We have the Kings to thank for that. The ones we do get are a bit like Veronica, pretty calm about everything.” He sighed as he pulled up a seat. “Not much luck finding alternatives to medicines though.”

“Well, good luck with that.” Thomas turned to the bartender. “Give him whatever he wants, he’s a friend.”

“You know I’m not one for drinking, Thomas.”

“You look like you need one,” he replied. “You don’t need to get something really strong, just enough to take off the edge.” Before he could go any further towards convincing his friend, someone tapped his shoulder. “Yes?” he asked, turning around.

“Someone here to see you, boss. Three in power armour, and a ghoul,” replied the suited man, an employee.

“Ah, the Brotherhood,” he said as he stood up. “Sorry Arcade, gotta go. Seriously, drink something. It’s on me.”

“Fine,” he said as Thomas walked away. “Uh, I’ll have a Rum and Nuka.”

Thomas walked up to the Paladins and Sentinel, who were looking around in awe. “Wow,” the ghoul said.

“This is amazing,” Kodiac replied, taking off his helmet.

“You got that right,” Dusk replied, removing hers as well.

“Hello,” Thomas said as he approached. “The name’s Thomas Jefferson.” They started snickering. “Yes I know, laugh it up.”

“Jefferson? Really? God that is unfortunate,” Kodiak muttered.

“Better than Dawn, right?” Dom muttered. In response, Dusk smacked her in the back of the head. “Worth it.”

“Cut it out, you two.” Sentinel Lyons pulled off her helmet. “Sentinel Sarah Lyons, of the East Coast Chapter of the Brotherhood of Steel.”

“Knight Captain Dusk,” the other woman introduced herself. Unfortunately, Thomas began to snicker as well. “What’s so funny?” she asked, threateningly.

“Sorry, sorry, personal in-joke,” he answered, to which he received a confused stare.

“Paladin Kodiak,” the black man introduced himself as.

“Paladin Esposito,” said the ghoul.

“A Pip-Boy?” Thomas asked, looking at her arm. “That’s some valuable tech.”

“Yeah, got it on my tenth birthday. Vault tradition,” the ghoul said.

“So, anyway, what brings you to Vegas?” Thomas asked as he led them towards the lift.

“We’re establishing contact with any chapters in the region. We’ve got a meeting with Elder McNamara in a few days,” Sarah said as the doors opened.

“Oh!” Standing there was Veronica, wearing a gown that had been taken from the White Glove Society. “Hi there.”

“Ladies and gentleman, this is Veronica. She left the Brotherhood for being too progressive,” Thomas said, introducing her to them as they entered the elevator.

“All I wanted to do was help people. All they wanted to do was stay shut in a bunker until they died,” she explained. “Like I was gonna do that.”

“Sounds like... well, let’s just say I know the feeling,” Dom replied, sounding a little unhappy. “At least you got away from them.”

Veronica’s expression soured, and Thomas quickly steered the conversation in another direction. “So, what’s Washington like?”

“An armpit of a ruin,” Dom answered. “We cleared out the Muties, but the Raiders just don’t get the message.”

“I don’t know where they keep coming from,” Kodiak added.

“Hey, means more target practice,” Dusk said with a smirk. She turned to Thomas. “You seen what a .308 hollow-point does to the human skull?”

Thomas answered with a question of his own. “You know what a .50cal explosive round does to a Deathclaw?”

The members of Lyon’s Pride watched as the jaw of their dedicated sniper hit the floor. “Show me that gun,” she said pleadingly.

Thomas chuckled as the doors opened to reveal the cocktail lounge. “You should feel lucky, not many folks get to see this view.”

“Y’know, I’ve been up here plenty of times, and it still amazes me,” Veronica said as she moved to one of the great windows to look at the stars.

“How the hell did these windows last two centuries?” Dom asked as she did the same.

Lucky 38 Presidential Suite, two days later

“So, what, you want me to tell Sarah I’m gonna disappear for a few weeks?”

“Something like that,” Thomas answered as they entered the lift.

“She’s not gonna like this one bit,” Dom growled.

“You talk to her, I need to see Veronica.”

“What, you gonna leave her in charge?” the ghoul questioned as the elevator descended slowly.

“No.” The doors opened with a ding. “See you in five minutes?” Dom growled as she walked into the cocktail lounge, looking for the Sentinel.

Veronica was sitting on a stool, holding up a glass of whiskey. “You doing okay there?” Thomas asked as he sat next to her.

She didn’t bother looking at him. “Why would I be? Yeah, it’s great that those east coast guys want to take me, but that means leaving everything behind here. And just because I left doesn’t mean I want to cut all my ties.” She sighed and downed her whiskey before pulling a face. “How does Cass drink this?”

“Look, you need something to take your mind off this. I think I have something.”

“Really?” she asked, turning to him.

“This will sound crazy, but...” Thomas took a deep breath. “I have a device that can take us to a magical land populated by talking ponies.”

Veronica just stared at him. “Are... are you high?” she asked.

“Not since last week,” Thomas answered seriously. “So, wanna come with?”

Veronica stared at him some more. “Holy crap, you’re serious.”

“Of course I’m serious, why would I joke about this?” he asked, sounding insulted.

Just at that moment, Dom decided to come back. “Amazingly enough, Sarah’s fine with it. When are we leaving?”

“Tomorrow morning sound good?” Thomas asked.

“You’re both crazy,” Veronica said looking between the two.

“I wouldn’t be the Lone Wanderer if I was completely sane,” Dom replied.

The next morning, just outside the Gun Runners’ Mojave store

“And this is completely safe?” Veronica asked, wearing a full set of T-51b power armour. strapped to her arm was a simple power fist, one of the few things she actually had from her time in the Brotherhood. She also had a laser rifle, given to her by Thomas as a precaution.

“For the tenth time, yes.” Thomas was wearing his Courier’s Duster, the two-headed bear of the Republic printed on the back in brilliant gold. With him he had a hunting shotgun, a trail carbine, an anti-materiel rifle and A Light Shining In Darkness. The anti-materiel rifle was dismantled and resided in pockets.

“Let’s just get this over with,” Dom complained. On one hip was a sword, the other a strange plasma pistol. On her back was a laser rifle of her own, a memento from her time in the Pitt. She also carried a duffle bag and a large piece of modified industrial equipment, the suitably-named Auto-Axe.

“Just why are you bringing so many weapons, anyway?” Veronica asked, looking between the two. “I thought you said magical talking ponies lived there.”

“Yeah, and so do a few things that can tear a man apart.” Thomas pulled out the special Transportalponder. “Ready?” he asked.

“Wait, what was that about - ” The trio vanished in a brilliant orb of emerald light.

Location Unknown

“God damn it!”

“Well, that hurt.”

Thomas held up the Transportalponder. “At least it’s not broken this time.”

“Where are we?” Veronica asked, achieving the rather incredible feat of sitting up in fifty pounds of armour.

“Looks like the middle of a courtyard.”

“Thomas?” a fourth voice called out. They all turned to the source and saw a large, winged, horned, indigo equine with a mane and tail like the night sky approach them.

“Hello Luna,” Thomas said as he stood up. “Long time no see.”

Princess Luna, for it was indeed her, came to a stop about a foot from him. She raised a hoof the size of a dinner plate tentatively, which Thomas made to grab. Suddenly, it shot forward, smacking him in the face. “You spineless, two-timing, coward!” she screamed as he fell to the ground.

“I dink you broke by bose,” he said as he rolled on the ground in pain.

Author’s Notes:

Here it is!

Thomas was never going to get away with what he did.

12: ERROR TOKEN NOT FOUND

Fort Constantine, mid-2280

“God this place freaks me out.”

“Shut it, Initiate.”

Paladin Esposito was leading three Initiates on their first excursion. They had chosen the relatively safe pre-War military facility, far to the north of DC. Dom knew it was safe, having cleared it of robots and ghouls years ago. Also, she may have accidentally launched a nuclear ICBM at China. She wasn’t entirely sure about that.

A few wastelanders had settled nearby, leeching power from the base’s generators, and a few Deathclaws had been spotted, but apart from that the place was empty.

They were currently walking through the large warehouse dedicated to bomb storage. Each one was about half the size of a Vertibird, and over three dozen lined the walls. Dominica would never admit it, but the idea of walking through what felt like an atomic powder-keg was daunting. She knew that they couldn’t explode without a correct trigger, and that the fuel within had likely eroded from the centuries of neglect, but the sight of so many of the weapons responsible for the destruction of the world just sitting there...

“Damn shame we didn’t see something I missed the first time.” Dominica pushed open a wooden door with her plasma rifle and took point. Just as planned, they had made it through to the outside without anything leaping out and trying to kill them. In a way, the Paladin was disappointed. It had been weeks since she had a good fight. Raiders had fled to and filled the Metro system, and she wanted to be with the rest of the Pride pushing them back. Unfortunately, she had drawn the shortest straw. At least they had given her a Vertibird ride.

“That was a piece of cake!” one of the Initiates said loudly.

“Of course it was, I cleared this place out years ago,” Dom replied as she looked around the dusty, barren base. Something felt... wrong, but for the life of her she didn’t know what. “Did any of you see any Molerats or Radroaches?” she asked.

“No,” an Initiate said, shaking her armoured head. The other two answered similarly, deepening her unease. “Why?”

“This place has been empty for about three years,” the Paladin responded. “You’d think something would start living in there.”

“There were the locals outside the base,” someone said after a brief silence.

“They said they didn’t go into any of the buildings, though.”

As the Initiates argued with each other about why the place was completely abandoned, Dom tried to raise the Vertibird pilot on her radio. “Hey, Jonas, you there?” Silence. “Jonas? Damnit Jonas, this isn’t funny!”

“Er, ma’am, is something wrong?”

“Jonas isn’t responding,” she said angrily. “That fucker better be sleeping, or we are in some serious shit.”

Twilight always liked visiting Canterlot Castle. She just wished the circumstances were a bit more pleasant. After all, being escorted to the station by a full military guard wasn’t very fun. Not even Pinkie Pie found anything to laugh at.

They weren’t the only ponies leaving Ponyville, though. The attack had left so many of them shaken, and some of the townsfolk were packing their bags. The pegasi that were leaving were making plans with family in Cloudsdale and the other cloud-borne towns to stay, though none knew for how long. The land-bound residents had more mundane places in mind, Canterlot, Manehattan and Trottingham the three most popular destinations.

Those that were staying either had nowhere to go, business that couldn’t be abandoned on such short notice or roots that went too far back. Leaving town was a betrayal in their minds.

Applejack had been the hardest to convince. Given how her flesh and blood were responsible for Ponyville even existing, that was no surprise. What was more surprising was just how hard Rarity had protested. Twilight had long since lost count the number of times she had spoken about joining the nobility, but this crisis had revealed who she really was. Her family, her business, she just couldn’t find it in her to leave them behind. Everything she had talked about was just that, talk.

Twilight had done what she could to alleviate her friends’ concerns. The mention of Thomas and his two companions had gone some way to distracting them from the depressing situation they now found themselves in, but it wasn’t enough. The truly torturous thing was that Ponyville could be seen from the castle itself. To be so close, and yet so far...

“Oh, this is interesting,” Ironshod muttered as he pushed his goggles up.

“What do you mean?” Shining Armor asked.

“This design is at least a few centuries old. They might have taken it from a squad that got ambushed ages ago.” The earth pony walked between the racks of armour and opened a small cabinet. As he pulled out a dusty tome, the commander tried his best to avoid breathing in the acrid fumes that filled the workshop.

“Let’s see...” the metal-worker murmured as he flipped pages and compared what he was seeing. “Here we go, used between 700 and 750 CR. Three centuries old.”

“How can...” Shining shook his head. “That’s not important. How did they get it?”

“That was when the last major military conflict we were involved in was. Against Dogs, too.”

“Of course,” he muttered. “The Gem Colony Massacre.”

“Aye,” the grey pony replied. “An entire town wiped out, and close to five hundred dead soldiers on both sides. Makes sense the Dogs would have taken any weapons they could get their paws on.”

Shining Armor let out an aggravated sigh. “Great. Heavily-armed Dogs are one thing, but well-armed Dogs?”

“Don’t worry,” Ironshod said with a wave of his hoof. “The design’s old, and armour’s improved a lot since the Massacre.”

“It punched through two inches of solid steel,” Shining said with a flat look. “Two inches of solid steel that regularly goes against supersonic lead projectiles. The wearer says that this is the first time something made of metal has gone through so cleanly.”

The way Ironshod’s face fell would have been comical had it not been for how grave the situation was. “Two inches!? You better be pulling my leg, commander.” He stared at the knife. “There’s no way, even with the ridiculous strength those Dogs have, that that should even be possible! Even the standard issue one you have isn’t capable of that!”

“Is it possible it’s enchanted?”

“Certainly a possibility,” the blacksmith mused. “Definitely doesn’t look like it, though,” he added, glancing at the Knight’s golden armour.

There was a short silence. “How’s the new armour?”

“That mare is more irritating than my mother-in-law,” Ironshod said loudly. “Always talking herself up, going on and on and on...”

“I’ve talked to her about that,” Shining said with a sigh. “Where is she now?”

“Smith’s showing her how it all goes on. Poor fool,” the earth pony said with a shake of his head. “The sooner you get her out of here, the better.”

“She may be a hoofful, Ironshod, but she’s the best when it comes to illusions. Pretty good at everything else, too, honestly.” Rhythmic metal clanking was heard coming from a different part of the forge.

A unicorn entered the workshop, fully clad in golden Knight armour. Her powder-blue tail swished about as she looked around, her azure horn poking out of her helmet. On the armour’s flank was her Cutie Mark, a wand and pixie dust.

“Private, what have we said about your attitude problems?” Shining Armor asked with a glare.

“The Great and - “ She cut herself off when the glare intensified. “I apologise, sir,” she said timidly. She walked out the armoury, followed by the commander.

“We have some important guests, you’re coming with me to greet them,” Ironshod heard him say as they left.

He rolled his eyes as he shut the door. “Not even a thank you,” he muttered as he replaced the book. He glared at the dagger intently before looking up to the sound of metal hitting stone. “Dammit, Smith, be more careful!”

“Sorry,” the griffon said sheepishly as he poked his head out.

Ironshod raised an eyebrow at the young griffon. “Why are you smiling?” he asked.

“Nothing, nothing,” he said quickly before disappearing from view.

“Thanks for fixing my arm.”

“Hey, it was nice to see something so damn advanced. Seriously, where did you even get that?”

“North of DC, there’s a place called the Commonwealth,” Dominica explained. “I think it’s what’s left of Massachusetts. Anyway, they kept making things. They have robots that look and act like people.”

“So they sold you the tech?” Thomas asked as he dismantled his anti-materiel rifle.

“No, a few guys from there came to DC looking for a rogue android. I killed them, and the Brotherhood ended up taking the bodies. One of them was an android, so they pulled him apart,” the ghoul explained. “They mangled the parts, though, which is why it’s all in this,” she said, tapping her left arm.

“Wow,” Veronica said unhappily. “And to think I had to be born around xenophobes.”

The three wastelanders were sitting in the castle courtyard, not far from the griffons’ tents. They had brushed aside the griffons’ attempts to get them to join in their small revelry, not truly seeing the point. It had been a minor victory, not worthy of celebration in their minds. As all three had seen actual, bloody war, this was nothing more than progress.

They sat and watched the sun set in the west. “You weren’t kidding,” the ghoul said softly. “It is different.”

“Yeah,” Veronica agreed quietly. “It’s so beautiful.”

“I am glad you feel that way.” The three turned their heads to see Princess Luna standing behind them, wearing a small smile. Thomas backed away slightly when he saw who it was. The alicorn didn’t seem to react. “Not many ponies truly appreciate just how much effort my sister puts into her work.”

“Her work?” Veronica asked as she rose an eyebrow. “What are you even talking about?”

“My sister moves the sun as part of her duties,” the princess calmly explained. “Before my return, she also moved the moon.”

The Scribe’s eye twitched. “There are so many things wrong with everything you just said,” she said.

The indigo alicorn was confused. “How so?”

“The... the sun doesn’t orbit a planet! It can’t! The mass, and gravity, and and and...” She trailed off, muttering incoherently.

“Veronica,” Thomas said loudly, getting her attention. “We are in a magical land filled with talking ponies. They can do whatever the fuck they want.” That managed to calm her down, though she now sat with her arms crossed and wore a frown. She muttered something about “shitting all over physics”, which the others ignored.

They sat there for some time, just watching the sky. Thomas tried, and failed, to quash the sense of impending doom being around the princess was giving him.

Author’s Notes:

Yes you can launch an ICBM from Fort Constantine. No I don’t know where it went. China is the obvious answer, though. The code is 00000000. No, really.

Nothing anywhere says there aren’t other places like Cloudsdale.

OMAKE THE SECOND

Location Unknown

“God damn it!”

“Well, that hurt.”

Thomas held up the Transportalponder. “At least it’s not broken this time.”

“Where are we?” Veronica asked, achieving the rather incredible feat of sitting up in fifty pounds of armour.

“Looks like the middle of a courtyard.”

“Thomas?” a fourth voice called out. They all turned to the source and saw a large, winged, horned, indigo equine with a mane and tail like the night sky approach them.

“Hello Luna,” Thomas said as he stood up. “Long time no see.”

“Mommy?” Another, smaller voice made itself known. A small, indigo colt poked his head out from between Luna’s legs, a small stubby horn poking from under his rich black mane. He stepped out, revealing a pair of tiny wings, folded at his side. “Who are they?”

“I don’t know, Mercury,” she answered softly, bending down to nuzzle him.

“Luna, who is that?” Thomas asked softly.

“Mercury, say hello to your daddy,” Luna replied, nudging the colt forward.

“Daddy?” he asked, his green eyes wide with wonder and confusion.

“Buh-buh-buh.” That was all the Courier could manage.

“Argh!” he exclaimed as he sat up in bed, his entire body covered in cold sweat. As he sat there, panting, he smiled a little. “Just a dream. Just a dream.” As he lay back down again, he muttered “Jet and Whiskey is a bad idea.”

29: Words of Courage and Dark Changes

Luna looked calmly over the amassed Guard. So few... Before the time of Nightmare Moon, the yard would have been a sea of gold and ebony, countless soldiers ready to fight. Now, though, she saw ponies that were nervous, scared and of far fewer numbers than she would have liked.

She cleared her throat, amplifying her voice to quell the uneasy mutterings. “Guardsponies,” she began. Luna paused, trying to find the right words. “I do not have to tell you what has happened. Nor will I command you to fight.” Muttering broke out anew. “I simply ask that you help defend your homes, your families, your country. The Diamond Dogs have been empowered by some dark force. They will show no mercy. They must be stopped. We cannot allow them to win.

“For too long, Equestria has been peaceful. Six months ago, we nearly paid a heavy price for that. We have been forced, yes, I will not deny that. But we are stronger than they think. They have angered Equestria. They have riled her sons and daughters. In times of old, those who made that mistake found themselves facing a rampaging stampede of a million hooves, bearing down on them with righteous fury.” Luna punctuated her statement with a stomp. “Our foes were left broken, our strength undeniable!

“Once, the proud griffons feared the might of our military! The mighty minotaur tribes would surrender upon seeing even the merest gleam of our armour! The cunning of the Changelings was no match for our own! Even the ancient dragons dared not challenge us!” Luna’s shouts echoed throughout the yard, filling the minds of those listening with the images of past glories. “The dens of Diamond Dog raiders were made into their tombs!

“In the past, those curs have attacked towns, taken slaves and even abducted foals! That ends NOW!” she yelled. “No longer will we let those mongrels fight on their terms! We will take the fight to them! We will force them onto the back foot and crush their resolve! We will find whatever dark being commands them! We shall make them pay for their crimes, with magic and steel! And any who stand in our way shall fall!”

Luna took a deep breath. “I ask only one question of you. Will you fight, or will you run?”

There was a very tense silence. After ten seconds that seemed to stretch forever, one of the guards stepped forwards. A quick glance told Luna that he was a simple pegasus private. He walked up to her, stopping three feet from her. “Your Highness,” he said, his voice shaking slightly. “When?” he asked.

Celestia watched from afar, her expression one of sadness. “Oh Luna,” she asked quietly, “what have you done?”

Thomas looked down the barrel of his assault carbine. “Whatcha doin’?”

He fumbled to keep his grip on the piece of weaponry as he turned around. He frowned when he saw Apple Bloom. “What are you doing here?”

The filly shrugged. “Ah got bored.”

Thomas rolled his eyes and turned back to his table. “Weapon maintenance.”

“Why?” the filly asked, rearing on her hind legs and leaning against the table to get a better view.

“Need to make sure it works,” he stated, putting the barrel back down and grabbing the stock. “I think it goes like this...”

“Hmmm...” The filly watched as the man reassembled his gun. As the man rested the stock against his shoulder, she spoke up again. “How’d ya do that?”

“Practice.” Thomas pulled the trigger, producing a click. He seemed satisfied with that and set the rifle back on the table. He then grabbed his Industrial Hand and flicked a switch on the side. The small circular saw blade came to life, a high-pitched whirring sounding throughout the room. “Hmm.” He turned it off and reached for his screwdriver, unscrewing one of the covers.

“What’s that one do?” Apple Bloom asked loudly.

Thomas turned to the filly. “You don’t want to know. It’s messy.”

“Can’t be any worse than when Ah ended up covered in a barrel of cider that went bad,” she answered, sticking her tongue out at the memory.

“It’s a weapon,” Thomas answered bluntly.

Apple Bloom rolled her eyes. “Ah ain’t stupid, Ah already knew that.”

“One designed to be as painful as possible for whoever’s unfortunate enough to come up against it,” he elaborated. “No, looks fine,” he muttered to himself.

The little pony seemed perturbed. “Why would ya use somethin’ like that?”

“Intimidation. If they see someone they know screaming in pain, and a madman standing over them, they’re gonna run. Means less fighting.” Thomas closed the panel and turned on the Industrial Hand again. He smiled grimly as the little saw came to life, spinning with enough force to slice through bone like paper. “Makes what I’m gonna have to do easier.”

“So... you just wanna scare them away?” Apple Bloom asked hopefully.

“Yeah. I don’t want to kill any more than I have to. If this is the way to go about it...” Thomas turned off the Industrial Hand and put it on, moving his fingers to get used to the feeling of the protective glove. “So be it.”

Dom replaced the panel that covered the electronics that allowed her arm to move. “Yeah, I really need someone to teach me how to fix this thing myself,” she muttered.

“Fix what?”

The ghoul very nearly lashed out at the voice. Her hand was halfway there when she stopped herself. “How did you sneak up on me?” she asked the filly.

Sweetie Belle shrugged, blissfully unaware of how close she was to being backhanded across the room. “My sister asks the same thing,” she answered innocently. “What were you talking about?”

“My arm,” Dom stated as though that explained everything.

“What about your arm?”

Dom went over to her laser rifle and picked it up. “I lost my arm a few years ago. This is just a prosthetic, a replacement.”

“Why didn’t you just grow a new one?”

The pure childish innocence behind the words made the ghoul chuckle. “What do you think I am, some sort of lizard? I can’t grow back body parts.” Dom’s smile disappeared. “At least, I think I can’t. Hmm,” she grunted, caught off-guard by this line of thought. She had never really tested her regenerative abilities before. Could she?

“Rarity said you were gonna fight the Diamond Dogs.” Sweetie’s voice sounded sad. “Why?”

“There are two things I can’t stand.” Dom picked up her rifle and pulled out the microfusion cell. “Bullies and slavers. The Dogs are both.”

The filly stood there in silence as the woman went about readying her weapons for the fight. Eventually, she broke the oppressive silence. “Ms. Dominica? What did you mean before?”

“Call me Dom. I’m not that old,” the ghoul replied. “And what do you mean ‘before’?”

“You know, when I said you were good, and you said you weren’t,” Sweetie clarified. “What did you mean?”

“I... probably shouldn’t say,” Dom said evasively, going to her sword. She didn’t like explaining the idea of grey morality to someone who seemed to see the world in black and white.

Sweetie Belle jumped onto the bed and looked at the ghoul. “Please?” she asked, her eyes going wide and her bottom lip trembling.

Dom just stared. “Dear God that has to be criminal,” she said loudly. “All right fine, just stop that,” she added, waving her left hand at the filly. She missed the smirk the filly gave as she turned to sit down. “Okay, firstly, there’s something you have to understand. Where I’m from, it’s... well, it’s a dump.”

“A dump? What, like where rubbish goes?”

“No. Well, sort of. Most of the buildings are in ruins, the ones that aren’t are usually filled with giant bugs that want to eat you, the ones that aren’t are raider bases where everyone wants to... well, kill you, there isn’t much food, and the only real water source has to be purified so you don’t poison yourself.

“And then there’s what’s outside the city ruins. Scorpions the size of sheds, mutant bears, packs of wild dogs, rogue military robots, Deathclaws...”

“Deathclaws?” Sweetie asked, eyes wide in alarm.

“The less said the better,” Dom muttered. “The point is, where I’m from is dangerous. One wrong step, and you’re being attacked by something that you can’t fight off. I’ve done what I can to make it safer, but...” The ghoul sighed as she rubbed her right arm with her left hand, looking at both the metal armour and gaunt appendage. “Everything has a price.”

“But... what does this have to do with being good?”

“Because to be a good person in the Wastes, you have to do a lot of bad things. I have... a lot of blood on my hands. Most of it, people who deserved it. People the Wastes was better off without.”

“Really bad ponies?”

“Downright evil. Rapists, murderers, slavers,” Dom clarified. “Some, though... I’ve made mistakes, and others paid the price. It doesn’t stop hurting.” She closed her eyes and faced down at her lap, taking a deep breath. “Some of them, I really cared for.”

The ghoul was caught off-guard when she felt something grab her around the waist. “Huh?” She opened her eyes and saw Sweetie Belle giving her a hug. “Why are - ”

“You said you were hurting,” the filly replied, cutting Dom off. “You looked sad too.”

Dom just sat there dumbfounded, unsure what to do about the pony clinging to her. Eventually, she awkwardly petted her. “Thanks.”

“Why do you need all that armour?”

Veronica turned around and saw a small orange pegasus looking at her weirdly. “Well, it keeps me alive.”

“But it looks so bulky. How do you even move in that stuff?” Scootaloo asked.

“It’s called power armour for a reason,” the woman smirked.

“How does it even work?” the filly asked loudly, head tilted as though that would let her see the internal workings.

“It’s kinda complicated. All that matters is that it makes up for its own weight, and then some.”

Scootaloo looked at her weirdly. “That didn’t explain anything.”

Veronica sighed. “Okay, an example. Umm...” She looked around aimlessly for a few seconds before snapping her fingers. “Ah! Without the armour, I can only lift you. With it, I can lift you and your friends easily.”

Scootaloo frowned. “So... it makes you super-strong?” she asked.

“Something like that.” Veronica shrugged. “Why are you here, anyway?” she asked.

The filly sighed. “My parents had to go to some thing to do with this stupid war.” She jumped onto the Scribe’s bed and lied down. “First time I see them in months and I can’t even spend any time with them.”

“Really?” Veronica asked, sitting next to the filly. The weight of her armour made the mattress creak and groan as it held her.

“Yeah, I live with my aunt. Aunty Cloudchaser’s nice, but... well, she’s always bringing home stallions.” Scootaloo pouted. “They’re usually nice, but a few of them were jerks.”

Veronica sighed and started petting the little pony on the head. Then she stopped. “Err...”

“It’s okay, I don’t mind,” Scootaloo said around the blanket covering half her face. “It’s kinda nice.”

Veronica resumed her petting. “Have you talked about this to anyone?”

“I try, but nopony ever listens. They think that because I’m just a filly that nothing I say matters,” Scootaloo muttered.

“They’re wrong. Everyone has something say. People just need to listen. Maybe I can talk to your parents for you?” Veronica suggested.

“They’ll probably listen to an adult so...” Scootaloo mused on the idea for a moment. “Thanks.”

“Hey, it’s nothing. At least you still have your parents,” the Scribe responded breezily.

They sat there in silence for awhile, enjoying each other’s company. “Hey, I’ve been meaning to ask something. Those marks the other ponies have.”

“Y-you mean cutie marks?” Scootaloo asked sleepily.

“Is that what they’re called?” When the pony nodded, Veronica continued. “What do they mean? Do they mean anything?”

“They show what a pony can do best. Some ponies get theirs’ really early. Some...” She glanced at her flank.

“You’re upset that you don’t have yours?” Veronica asked. The pony nodded again. “Maybe you shouldn’t try forcing it.”

“That’s what everypony else says!” the filly exclaimed angrily. “You don’t even have a cutie mark!” she pointed out.

“Well maybe they have a point,” the Scribe said calmly. “Why else would they say that?” she asked with a smile.

“I just want my cutie mark already!” Scootaloo yelled. She slumped down and pouted. “I’m sick of being a blank flank.”

“Everypony gets a cutie mark, right?” Veronica asked. “Then what’s the problem? It’ll happen when its ready.”

“I’m ready,” she grumbled. “Why can’t it be?”

Alone in the barracks, a mare lay on her bed, focusing intently on a pile of papers. Among them were various intelligence reports, lists of resources, maps and weather forecasts. She needed every single piece of information she could get her grubby blue hooves on.

As she grabbed her woefully large glasses and put them on, pushing her midnight blue mane out of the way, she pulled out a piece of paper. On it were printed the various magics known to be utilised by Diamond Dogs. It had seen some addition in recent times, most notably after the botched assault on the den outside Ponyville. “Lightning. Definitely outside the norm. How are they utilising it?” she muttered. “Wands? Staves?”

She grumbled when she looked at the map. It was an aerial map, showing nothing about what to expect underground. “Astral Gaze will need to perform some remote reconnaissance before we even think of putting a hoof in there. It’d be suicide not to know what we’re walking into.”

She shuffled the papers again, this time looking at a report about the three ‘visitors’. “Hmm... The male is unquestionably dangerous, as are the females. The fact that one of them has regeneration and can walk off crippling injuries is incredible. Not sure about the other female, though her armour does seem impenetrable...”

As she muttered to herself, her ear twitched when something shifted next to her bunk. “What have I said about interrupting me when I’m working?” she growled.

“No reason to snap, Gambit.” Gambit turned and looked at the passive smile of one of her fellow Knights.

“Oh, Shade, it’s you.” She turned back to her work. “I thought it might have been Blink.”

“You look ridiculous with those on,” the other mare said, gesturing with a hoof at the pair of ludricously-oversized glasses.

“Doesn’t matter,” Gambit muttered, ignoring the ivory-white mare’s jab. “Things aren’t adding up.”

“What do you mean?”

“The Diamond Dogs are aggressive, but it’s never been this bad. Every other record of anything like this, they never initiated it. Even the Gem Colony Massacre, that only happened after a settler killed a Dog for the gems she wore.” Gambit frowned. “They’re always defensive.”

“But they take slaves,” Shade pointed out uncertainly.

“They have been recorded taking travellers, but those are isolated cases. They usually go for trespassers. And they tend to release them after a few years anyway,” Gambit explained. “Which makes the fact that they’ve been attacking towns for slaves really disturbing.” She passed a piece of paper to her comrade. “According to this, a number of Dogs stopped by griffons were found with nets, vials of knock-out gas and manacles. One of them was wearing a set himself, probably some odd fashion statement, but the rest were the perfect size for ponies.”

“So...”

“So something has changed the centuries-old habits of Diamond Dogs, and whatever it was isn’t natural.” Gambit took off her glasses and stared at Shade. “I think something’s controlling the minds of their leaders, maybe the entire population.”

Shade blinked. “We need to tell somepony.”

Author's Note

The fires of war have been lit. Only blood can extinguish them now.
For the record, Dom cannot grow back lost limbs. She is not Littlepip.
And there are the last two Knights. Haven't given you full names yet, mainly because I'm not too sure what to make Shade's... Again, have fun guessing what they can do.
And I thought it'd be clever to spin the Dog's slave-taking in a somewhat different way.