Fallout: Equestria - Operation Killjoy

“In your eyes every friend can be seen in the shape of a tiny star.”

The bullet tore half of the diamond dog’s head away. The body slumped to the ground and the ponies next to it sought cover behind the dead trees. Midnight aligned his rifle and fired again. The shot pierced the weak wood and killed the pony behind it.

“Run!” Midnight shouted again when he noticed that Key was still in the kitchen.

“What about you?”

“I can’t set the trap with you around. Run south and stay away from the fire! Run to the mountains!”

Bullets tore the wood of the cabin apart. Some stray shots were enough to make some of the cupboards fall. Midnight ducked briefly, changed to the other side of the window and fired again. He saw how flesh was torn out of the body when the bullet fully pierced through the gunner’s body.

“Run, while they are not shooting! I’ll cover you!”

Key finally galloped to the entrance. Midnight shot the Cicada again at any shape he saw moving. He felt a rush in his body that he hadn’t felt in decades. He shot, a neck torn open. Another, a leg ripped off. A weapon made to kill Steel Rangers in full armor pierced through flesh and made Everlast’s advance stop. The last shot felled another dog.

Midnight had to reload. He ducked and rushed to the bedroom, while Everlast’s soldiers returned fire. The first salvos were blind suppression fire, followed by aimed shots at the window. A grenade brought the kitchen to collapse.

He changed the magazine of his rifle and took position at the bedroom window.

Everlast’s ponies were still hesitant. Midnight aimed at a pony’s head and fired. The helmet wasn’t able to protect the wearer. A group of ponies returned fire immediately. The bullets tore through the wooden wall and into Midnight’s body. He felt his muscles torn and bones cracking. He had to seek cover behind the bed.

Below him he heard a deep rumble in the ground. A clawed hand broke through the wood. Midnight grabbed his knife and impaled the claw. The diamond dog whined in pain. Midnight took the rifle, aimed it at the ground and fired. The claw stopped moving.

More bullets peppered the cabin and Midnight felt some digging into his back. A glimpse out the window told him they were surrounding the house. He had to flee now. He left the bedroom and crawled along the floor to have cover from the collapsed kitchen.

Midnight heard another dog digging through the floor. He quickly shot at the creature. The bullet tore the muzzle and parts of the skull away. The body bent backwards and remained in that undignified position.

Midnight fled through the entrance and placed the balefire egg on a windowsill. Another grenade shook the cabin and the egg fell. He put it back and noticed two ponies slowly rounding the cabin.

He fired at the first and hit the rump. The mare didn’t even have a chance to cry out in pain when the bullets made her lungs collapse. He had maybe one or two shots left. Shooting again was too risky. He ran. The other pony was firing with its heavy assault rifle at him. Midnight felt the impacts but he couldn’t stop.

The soldier called out to the others that Midnight was fleeing. The chase began. He ran and ran. Hooves and bullets were whirling up ash and dirt all around him. The mad escape through the trees and smoke gave him cover, leaving only a few lucky shots to pierce him.

He finally jumped behind a fallen tree, turned around and took aim. He hoped he was far away enough. He fired at the balefire egg and prayed that it would explode. The corrupted gem splintered and released the necrotic magic in a huge fiery blast.

The sight of the green fireball rapidly expanding filled Midnight with a fear long forgotten. He was not far away enough. He tried to duck but the shockwave already caught his frail body and hurled him away. He lost his orientation of what was up and down, his body nothing more than a puppet. Heat burned his clothes and fur away. When he finally hit the ground the warm radiation was laying on him like a blanket. The smoke filling the sky glowed green from the flames and drowned out the red haze from the forest fire.

When the rush of the explosion ended, green embers and burning debris were raining down on him. He couldn’t move. He felt the ashen snow landing on his eyes. He blinked. His eyes felt tired. He felt that the ground was soft beneath him. The radiation reminded him of a warm home.

For the first time in decades, Midnight felt truly tired.

Fade hadn’t arrived at the peak when she saw the green fireball. Her thoughts were immediately with Midnight. She couldn’t remember if Midnight took a balefire egg.

She noticed a pony on the path, staring at the green fireball below. She folded her wings and went into a nose dive to gain speed and quickly reach her. Fade landed harshly and skidded over the gravel. “Shibboleth!”

She rushed to Fade. “Midnight took Key to lure Everlast away!”

“Fuck.” Fade dropped the launcher and gave Shibboleth the Holodisk. “Take this and go back to the cave!”

“What about Feather?”

Fade was already heading for the cliff but stopped briefly. “She… She is okay.”

Fade jumped and spread her aching and tired wings. She rushed down the mountain. The forest fire created such a heavy updraft of wind that Fade felt like she was flying against a storm. She tried to see anything but the smoke was drifting south and made it impossible to discern any details.

Fade circled above the green flames where the explosion occurred. She saw burning bodies all around it, some twitching from the necromantic effects of balefire. She couldn’t see Midnight or Key. She flew low over the treetops, hoping to find her sister or her friend.

“Help!”

The auditory systems of the helmet filtered out enough of the noise that Fade heard something. She stopped, flapping her aching wings.

“Swift! Midnight!”

It was Key. She hurried but the exhaustion was already returning and her chest burned. The effects of the drug were getting shorter. The irradiated smoke from the balefire explosion surely made things worse.

At first she saw a yellow signal on her E.F.S. She found Key, but then a second signal appeared. It was red.

Maverick was already running at her. Before Key could turn the beast grabbed her in its massive claws.

Fade yanked the rebreather off her face, took another dose of the drug and followed the routine ingrained in her mind. She didn’t wait for the chemicals to kick in and flood her body. Fade took the Ripper knife into her muzzle. She wanted to taste the foul blood. She wanted to tear that beast out of Everlast’s life! If that ghoul feels anything for that monster, she wanted him to feel the loss.

She closed her wings, sped up and rammed her armored body into the massive creature. The momentum and the weight of the armor threw Maverick off his feet. Fade rolled over the ground. Her legs were shivering when she got up, indifferent to whether the impact had broken any of her bones.

Maverick got up. He was covered in grime and ash. He stretched his body to his full size and let out a harrowing roar that echoed off the mountains.

The hellhound charged at Fade. She grabbed the Ripper tighter in her mouth and ran at him. Maverick raised his claw and Fade jumped aside at the last moment. She slashed the knife into its leg and felt how the mutated skin was capable of withstanding the blade.

Maverick turned around, faster than this massive creature had any right to be and lashed out for Fade. She barely dodged and stood her ground with a firm stance. A murderous rage was in his eyes but so it was also in Fade’s.

She waited for the right moment and it came fast. Maverick stomped forward and reached with its claws for Fade. She jumped up, flapped her wings and let the armor carry her many feet into the air. Another swift move and Fade was rushing down towards Maverick’s back. She hacked the knife into the leathery skin. The hellhound yowled in pain and flailed its claws to grab her.

Fade jumped away, barely escaping him. Maverick reached for the wound and looked at the blood on his claws. It enraged the creature even more. Fade anticipated an attack and focused on the movement of his arms.

But Maverick leapt forward. Caught off-guard by this, Fade got hit by the massive body and was knocked aside, the force of which made her lose the Ripper. Maverick didn’t stop for a second. Fade wasn’t able to get up in time. The claw aimed for her face. She tried to protect herself with the armored wing. The claws pierced through it and tore her wing apart.

Even the drugs couldn’t dull the pain anymore. A quick glance showed her the mangled, bleeding feathers. It didn’t matter to her. All that mattered was getting the knife back. Fade tried to keep her distance to the hellhound. Maverick was hunting her, tearing trees apart when one got into its way.

Slowly, painfully slowly, she circled around the beast until she could pick up the Ripper from the ash covered floor. The dry taste only increased her anticipation to strike the monster again.

Maverick charged at her again. This time she dodged aside and let Maverick stumble. She grinned, proud to not have fallen for the same trick twice. While the beast was still huddled over, Fade jumped on its back and rammed the knife deep into its shoulder.

The hellhound roared again. It reached back and picked Fade off his back before she could jump away, not falling for the same trick either. Fade lost hold of the knife and Maverick held her tight, pressing his claws through the armor plates on her back.

He dug deep into her flesh. The pain was unbearable and Fade cried out in agony, a noise that made Maverick grin. Its healthy eye glared at her with sadistic glee, while the mutated eye was staring blankly into the void. The colossal monster hurled Fade several feet before slamming against a tree. The impact took all the breath out of her lungs. She tried to breathe but couldn’t. The ash on the ground was covering her mouth and nose. She tried to move but her body could no longer listen.

Key rushed to Fade, tears streaming down her cheeks. She pushed Fade on her back so she could breathe again. Fade gasped and coughed. Bloody spit ran over her muzzle as her body fought with the sickness, radiation and her injuries.

Key heard the dull footsteps of Maverick approaching. She turned around and his bloodstained claw already picked her up by the neck. She choked and wrestled with her hooves at the massive claws to no avail.

Fade tried to move. Not even her hooves were reacting to her wish anymore. All she could do was watch how Maverick grinned at finally obtaining the desired price.

Suddenly Key’s expression went blank. Her horn and PipBuck glowed. The Ripper was surrounded by Key’s magic and tore itself out of Mavericks shoulder. The knife aligned itself and cut once, twice and a third time into Maverick’s deformed eye. The magic glowed a bit brighter and twisted the blade to cut deep into Maverick’s brain.

His muscles grew weak and the monster fell to the ground. Fade felt it shake from the impact. Blood dripped from the pierced eyes into the ash.

Fade focused on breathing. Each attempt was filling her with more pain and she wanted to stop. But she couldn’t. Not now. Not when they were so close.

Key stood up. Her breath was shaky and her body covered in ash. “Fade… Are you okay?”

Key heard the pained breath and saw the blood spreading in the ash. She turned to Maverick and searched for anything. A healing potion, bandages, anything.

But she couldn’t continue her search. Everlast was only a few feet away, staring at the dead hellhound. He too was covered in the dirt from the battle. His pink eyes were locked upon Maverick’s body.

When Key noticed him she trembled in fear. She tore the knife out of Maverick’s eye socket and held it in front of her. The blade was shaking. The Ghoul didn’t show any sign of interest. He drew his revolver, the weapon that killed their father.

He was heading for Fade. His eyes were now locked onto hers.

Key stood her ground. She placed herself between her sister and the ghoul.

Everlast only tilted his head as if Key was nothing but a curiosity. His pink magic quickly raised the revolver and crushed it down on Key’s horn. She cried in pain, but Everlast didn’t stop until it began bleeding and Key fell to the floor. The Ripper dropped into the ash. Everlast levitated it away and proceeded to Fade.

He held the revolver at her face.

With a groan Fade lifted a hoof, placed it on the muzzle and pushed it away.

Everlast let her until her hoof fell back. He aimed the revolver at her again, no expression on his face. Fade cried and lifted her hoof again.

A loud thunder cracked and Everlast’s horn splintered. The ghoul looked around, confused by what was happening. A second shot tore into the back of Everlast’s head and tore its brain out through an eye socket. When he turned around, the third round destroyed what remained of his skull down to the muzzle. The Ghoul collapsed on the dead hellhound, the limbs still twitching.

Midnight emerged from the treeline. Every few steps he stopped to make sure that the Ghoul wouldn’t get up again. He kept the rifle primed at the twitching corpse.

“Is he dead?” Key asked, shaking from pain and fear.

“No. But the fire will make sure of it,” Midnight said.

He turned his attention to Fade and Key noticed the worry in his eyes.

“Will she survive?”

“We’d better make sure.” Midnight turned and looked in Everlast’s bags and suit for anything. He found an old parchment scroll and gave it to Key. “Keep this.”

Key couldn’t use her magic and she shoved the scroll into her clothes. She helped Midnight with searching and they found a healing potion in Everlast’s jacket. Midnight helped her drink, so she could breathe again.

“Her back.” Key said and she tried to move Fade, but the armor was too heavy.

“Three… pats…” Fade croaked and tried to move one hoof to the other. “Below screen.”

Midnight tapped the spot three times and the armor loosened and opened up. Together with Key they pulled Fade’s weak, sweaty body out of the armor. Midnight held her while Key poured the healing potion on her back to close the wounds as much as possible.

That was all they could do. Midnight lifted Fade onto his back and stood up. “We have to hurry. It’s a long way up.”

“Will she make it?”

Midnight nodded. “Tell her about your father. She surely wants to know who he was.”

Shibboleth was walking up and down for hours. The sun had already set and each passing minute made the wait more unbearable. When Shibboleth looked down the path she saw them. Slowly and carefully Midnight put one hoof in front of the other. His body appeared weaker than ever before. Key was at his side and tried with what was left of her meager strength to share the burden.

“Key… They are back!” Shibboleth rushed at them and when she saw Fade her worries grew. “Dragon! We need medicine!”

When the dragon arrived and saw Fade’s body, he took her from Midnight’s back and carried her inside. He put her down inside the cave and brought any medicine he had left.

When Midnight and Key made it inside they found Shibboleth and the dragon trying their best to treat Fade’s injuries. Key sat down a few feet away and leaned against a wall. She was about to fall asleep.

Midnight laid down on the cold floor. He closed his eyes for a short moment and enjoyed the dizziness. He blinked a few times and looked at Fade again. The dragon was getting water for her. In the brief moment Fade looked at him, Midnight glimpsed a spark of victory in her eyes.