Hard Times in the Future

DiscoBiscuits'

The Crepuscular Tale of a Manehattenite

Author's Note: "Appalachia" (app-a-lay-sha)

Monday, July 9, 0027 NM

"Get up Appalachia! They're coming!" said the brown pegasus, her wings clung to her side.  Appalachia wiped her eyes with her hooves, pushing her mane out of her face towards her horn, and stretched her neck out, letting a loud snap shake her out of her hazy state in between consciousness and slumber.  Last night, her sister, Wind Dancer, had told her of the next apartment search, which was apparently happening today.  She was never too good at listening to her sister on account that she never had anything too interesting to say.

Appalachia's day consisted of the same ritual activities she had been doing ever since she was assigned to work at Factory #9 down the street.  Manehatten hadn't changed in over twenty years, but the security was as elevated alert on account of the rebels trying to overthrow the government.  She counted the steps in her head as she went along; step one, get out of bed.  Step two, wash up.  Step three, get dressed in the bleak grey uniform tagged a number she had heard a thousand times.  To her family, she was Appalachia, but to the state, she was Citizen 6,000,107.

When she was first assigned that number, when she was born, her father had worked in Factory #64 and her mother, #116. The time was six in the morning when she finished breakfast, and the sound of door being smashed in down the hall outside was nothing out of the ordinary, neither was the sound of screaming and thumping of batons.  One time, she even heard the sound of an anti displacement rifle and the sound of what might have been body hitting the floor.

"Wind, I'm gonna' head out now," she said to her sister, trotting towards the door.

"Don't forget to have your pass stamped by the UP on your way out."

"I won't, I've been doing it for ten years."

Appalachia opened the door and was stopped by a UP officer.

"Halt, pass?"

"Right here, buddy," she handed him the small booklet and he stamped it.

Outside, the sun, now controlled by the UEA, gleamed down on the dystopic city.  thousands of other ponies bustled too their assigned factory before seven o'clock where any ponies without proper identification would be shot in the streets.  There was no such thing as freedom of speech in this world, but nopony thought about it, so the term 'freedom' drifted off into the annals of Royal history.  There were many new laws being made each day, but the main ones applied to pegasi and unicorns.  The number one rule was 'NO TELEPORTING'.  It was written on every building, every billboard, and every train station in the country.  If a unicorn would try to teleport, the UP would be on their flank in a matter of minutes.  Plus, the UEA have Magical Interference Stations set up all over Equestria.

When she arrived at the factory entrance, she got in line and waited for her turn to enter.  Between getting up and working for eight hours, waiting in line was a slice of pie that couldn't be resisted.  Like a beating from a UP officer, work was long, brutal, and left bruises, big ones.  The specific job of a factory worker was rotating from making weapon parts to making train hulls to making other weapon parts.  Equestria had become a fully weaponized country and one of the most dangerous ones in the known world.  Appalachia held her head down as the guards in the watch towers looked over her and the rest of the line.

Not because she didn't want too, but because it was a law never to look at a high ranking officer in the eyes unless you wan't to be shot.  As for the rest of the laws, they mainly included where and when you can use the train system, when you can buy food and other necessities, and when you can get a promotion from factory worker to factory worker number two.  To be a manager, much like in any other job, was an award that everypony strived for because it meant less beatings, and a chance to get out of Manehatten and closer to the capitol of Equestria, New Trottingham, where the big dogs (metaphorically speaking) run the entire country.

It was also illegal to utter the name 'The Lord of Tyrants' because the lower citizens are not 'worthy' enough to reference him.  If somepony were to reference him, then the consequences were death, like all laws that are broken.  As she approached the entrance, the small pill box attached to the electric fence contained one of the factory manager's second in commands.  Being a pass checker was much better than a worker on account of being outside which was a godsend.

Another stamp on the passbook, and she was in.  She got to her post at six forty, so she had time to look at the clock for the next twenty minutes while under constant surveillance.  Her partners for the day consisted of Citizen 6,000,408 and Citizen 6,000,783.  Appalachia was in the six million group, so all the ponies she worked with are in the six millions, which is how the system keeps track of them.  The Lord of Tyrant likes to keep things organized, some rumors have gone around saying that he has OCD.  The origin of that rumor, meaning the ponies who made it up, are probably dead now.

The manager walked out from the balcony of the second floor from his office,

"Attention workers, check your holocards for the next updates on the civil laws."

He turned to his equine resources, "Have all the workers checked in?"

"Yes, sir."

"Good," he turned to the factory again, "now get to work!"

The manager was a real jerk at most, he had ordered the death of over a hundred workers, some of which were Appalachia's friends.  It was hard work melting down the metal and shaping it into the weapons used to enslave other civilizations, but Appalachia would just pretend she was out of Manehatten, a successful billionaire in New Trottingham.  Apart from her dream of becoming an enemy and hating it, she wanted to fight the enemy and love it by joining the Renegades, who are on a never ending battle to overthrow the Tyrant.

Her entire life, ever since her uncle told her that story, has been aimed towards those two possible outcomes, if they both failed, then she would live her life the same way it is until she couldn't go on any longer, then her body would be incinerated instead of buried to save land on cemeteries.  The day went on and on, and next up was the break time, which was basically ten minutes in the courtyard.  As she wiped the sweat off her brow and headed outside.  It felt good to unbutton the grey uniform for a few minutes to show her snow white coat.  Pushing her blond mane out of her eyes once again, she was approached by another mare, a yellow earth one, the lowest of the low.

"Hi, I'm 6,000,566, I'm gonna' be your partner next shift."

"Appalachia..." she trailed off.  Never had she actually met one of her partners before because she would probably never see them again.  In this world, it was hard making new friends since everypony was constantly under the death watch.

"Well... Appalachia, where are you from?"

"Apartment complex 40."

"You have any family?"

"My sister, Wind Dancer.  How come you call yourself by your number?"

"Oh, I don't really even remember it, I have been called that number all my life, and I seem to have forgotten it," she smiled an odd smile.

Appalachia wanted to say that that was one of the most ridiculous things she had ever heard, she was about to ask her if her family even called her by her real name, but that might have been the problem. A lit of ponies where orphans at birth and raised by artificial parents. She let it slide, she didn't feel like judging anypony today, she was saving that for her sister.

"Whatever, try not to slack, I don't want to have a beating for lazy partners," Appalachia told the mare, who was hesitant to respond, but the siren went off and it was back to work.  While pressing the metal down, she wondered what Wind Dancer was doing at her job.  Probably the same thing as what she was doing.  Near the end of the day, she was thirsty, hungry, and tired.

Crying over it wouldn't help, she tried it before, and it resulted in a beating. A normal unicorn like Appalachia didn't deserve the life she was living.  She was generous, kind, and caring, three traits that could be pros as well as cons.  The intercom bursted out the managers voice;

"Attention, will Civilian 6,000,107, Civilian 6,000,566, and Civilian 6,000,857 report to the manager's office... Immediately."

Appalachia's heart skipped a beat.  This was apparently going to be an extraordinary day.  Five sixty six and eight fifty seven were the two partners she was assigned to and they met up at the bottom of the stairs leading to the entrance of the manager's office.  He was a colt to be feared, which a clop of his hooves, they could all be killed.  Celestia knows why he chose her group to meet him.  They opened the door and there were three chairs facing towards the manager's desk and he looked up and smiled at them.

"Come in, have a seat."

They all took seats in front of him and the sterile room brought on a comfort only found in ones home.  It felt right to be in that room, but something foul was stirring behind the gentle eyes of the strict manager.  Nopony even knows the managers' names because all past history of their lives are erased. A manager could have once been even one of the most interesting ponies who ever lived, but after the brainwashing and severe discipline, that was all gone.  Appalachia looked calm, but the other two looked scared stiff.  The manager took out a holocard tablet and placed it on the desk.  A hologram of the city showed up.

"Do you see this?" he asked with a grave change in his tone.

They all nodded.

"Let me tell you the news of what happened just a few minutes ago. In this area," he pointed out on the hologram map, "there was a bust by the Unit Protection discovered an extremely large amount of weapons cached in the basements of a few abandoned apartment complexes.  You three all live in that general area, which make you all prime suspects.  Do you all know the punishment for harboring weapons for rebels?"

Nopony moved.

"It's death, immediate death.  I could have you all killed, but I don't think it would be a good idea to waste any innocent workers.  We have a UP carriage on its way now to come and get you," said the manager.

Appalachia didn't know what to say.  She was going to jail?  She hadn't done anything... Had she?

"Sir, I have nothing to do with this.  You have to believe me when I say I didn't know about those weapons, I mean, how could I even get any, I'm just a normal citizen!" she said.

"I will not be the judge of that, the UP will," he returned, "Now, which one of you is five sixty six?" the manager asked.

Five sixty six raised a hoof.

"You seem to be slacking in the factory.  You seem tired, tired from carrying all those guns down into the basements?"

"No sir, I have nothing to do with this."

"What about eight fifty seven?"

She raised her hoof.

"I don't know too much about you, eight fifty seven.  I bet that is just what you want, so you can sneak out at night and meet with your Renegade friends!" the manager taunted.

"No sir," she said frightfully.

"Then you must be one zero seven, am I right?"

The shock of being blamed for something she didn't do and the possibility of being killed over took her once again, and 566 nudged her out of the trance.

"Yes, sir, sorry, I'm trying to run this over in my head," she said nervously.

The manager studies her from every angle as her got up from his seat. He rubbed his bottom chin and hummed slowly.  He looked into her eyes as if he thought he knew something that she didn't.  Sadly, this was not the case, Appalachia could here the carriage pull up from outside the window and the clicking of hooves coming down a cobblestone pathway.  The doors opened up and the workers stopped the machines. Factory #9 was in a lock down and Appalachia plus two were held down and slapped with hoofcuffs.  They were led outside in front of the carriage where a baton came down on all three of their heads, and the warm feeling of unconsciousness overtook them.

The hazy vision of Appalachia returned as a bucket of cold water splashed over her.  Her soaking wet uniform became heavier after soaking up the rest of the liquid.  From where she could tell, she was in a small room, maybe seven feet by seven feet.  She was in a chair (well, restrained in a chair), and two other UP officers were in there with her.  One holding a baton, the other slinging an anti displacement rifle. They didn't look like any sort of high ranking officers, just normal patrol units, who take up the job of beating the citizens and interrogating. A small window was situated at the top of the room, letting the sunlight shine in and penetrate the darkness of the room when it's shades were drawn.  A glowing halo of light danced around the stock of the rifle which was now being pointed at her from a small distance away.

There were no words to be said, only small grunts Appalachia noted that the chair was hooked up to small switch that lead to a small electric generator.  It did not have enough volts to kill somepony, but really mess them up.  The switch was activated with the baton as her body conversed for a few moments and then relaxed.  Finally, she worked up enough courage to talk.

"Where... Where am I?"

Tuesday, July 10 -

After a long day of interrogation without an answer, the two UP units switched stations, and only one unit came in.  She couldn't tell if it was one of the two before, their masks covered their faces, and their flanks were covered with the rest of the uniform.  Appalachia passed out somewhere between the fine line of night ending, and dusk rising. The only satisfaction the UP were able to get out of her was the thought of knowing how much pain she was in.  The morning sun came in through the window and her face was dawned with new bruises and cuts.  This was the hell that thousands of unlucky citizens went through each day, but this was futile, she had nothing to do with the weapons.

"Wind Dancer, get me out of here," she said to herself.

The officer heard her, "You want out?", he taunted.

She sat still, soaked in her sweat until he repeated what he said in a more angry tone. To this, she nodded her head as tears strung down from the corner of her eyes. She wouldn't show tears, she wouldn't give them any more satisfaction.  She held them back.

"I want out," she said, looking towards the window.

The UP smiled and switched the lever, sending another jolt of electricity, then shut it off and slammed the door behind him, leaving her alone with the morning sun. No matter how much she begged to Celestia II, who was probably in as deep trouble as she was, she was just another pony, nopony special.  These thoughts plagued her mind as she sat, alone.

Afternoon -

A plate of grub was served to her.  They were probably trying to keep her alive.

Wednesday, July 11 -

Appalachia noticed something that day, through the window.  There was one of those teleportation stations that block the spells that help unicorns travel. The door opened up and this time, they let her out.  She was escorted outside of the small room and down a hallway filled with other doors.  Some of them where open with a few other UP officers looking out.  They slammed them shut as she walked by, but she could get a glimpse of some other citizens in chairs similar to hers.

"Where are we going?" she said.

"To the warden."

"Why?"

"You do not have permission to any further information."

"But-"

"You do not have permission to any further information!" he yelled and brought the baton across her face, cutting her lip.  She spat out some crimson liquid.

She was brought out into a large courtyard, now she was sure this was a prison, a warden, the cells, the torture.  It all made sense, the gates opened, and she was hit on her four knees and she went prone.  The gates opened a few minutes after and the two citizens she arrived with walked in.  What was their numbers? 566 and 857 came down next to her and knelt, nopony said anything.  The gate in front of them opened up and a pony dressed in robes and a hood came out, being escorted by six officials.  Now Appalachia was scared, the morning sun shined down on the warden's brown robes. He was carrying an old Equestrian sword, one used to decorate an esteemed war hero back in the Old Millennium.  It was refurbished and silver, but to her it looked like a sore thumb sticking out.

The warden approached them, and the hood came down, revealing her to be a mare.  She was, amazingly, not quite the same as the others.  She looked like a normal citizen, with a long mane and a bright coat.  She started to speak;

"One of you, or maybe all of you, have taken part in the trafficking of illegal weapons suspected to be used for the Renegades against the United Equine Aristocrats.  This charade is going to stop... Now. Are the cameras off? I don't want any of the higher powers seeing what is about to happen..."

One of the UPs confirmed they were.

She drew the sword and 566 started to whimper and cringe.

"We are going to do this the old fashion way," and she put the blade up to Appalachia's throat.  The UP officers behind them took out their ADRs and aimed for the other two heads.  Now she started to cry, she wanted out, and she wanted it badly. She wished that freedom would swoop down and save her.

"Who was it?" the warden asked.

857 coughed hoarsely, and the sword that was once pressed up against Appalachia's throat came down into the chest of 857.  The rest was history as the eyes rolled to the back of her head and she fell over.  More cries came from Appalachia, and 566 was also crying.

"I had a hunch it wasn't her, but you..." she pointed at 566, "You are the odd one out of the bunch."

"I didn't do anything!"

Slap!

"Do not talk unless you are given permission!"

This warden obviously had a passion for murder, there was no justice in this act, and all that Appalachia could think about was to run, just get the hay out of there, to escape.  She would be gunned down in a minute, but it wouldn't matter, she would just need to get away from that one spot, next to that dead body, just for a moment.  The UP officers aimed down their sights, and the warden spoke again;

"If you aren't going to talk, I'll have to kill you both."

She got ready to strike down on Appalachia's head, but then, as if Celestia II was looking down on them, a miracle happened.

The teleportation station in the background, with its large antenna, exploded and fell in the fields on the outskirts of Manehatten.  The sirens went off and the radio hooked onto the UP officers acted up.

"All personnel report to their immediate stations, the city is under attack by the Renegades."

"I'll deal with them later, we must evacuate," the warden told the UPs, "take these two back to their cells and then report back to me."

"Yes, ma'am."

There was a mass panic among the UPs, and Appalachia was thrown in her cell, but she was not locked in the chair.  There was many moments of silence, except for the occasional sound of explosions and gunfire from the background.  Suddenly, the door unlocked itself, and opened.  She had nowhere to go but out, so she did, and the rest of the prisoners.  A panic drove the crowd across the prison, slaughtering the UP personnel and breaking down the gates.  Appalachia ran for freedom, and when she bunched up with the crowd of other ponies, and pushed their way out, they found themselves among the fields on the outskirts of Manehatten.

Some of them ran for the hills, others waited, but Appalachia had to save her sister.  The city was a mile away in the distance, whilst thick black clouds overhung the buildings, and smoke was bellowing from most of the high skyscrapers.  Millions of citizens began flocking into the hills, running for cover. Manehatten was returning home, to the Homeland.  As she raced, galloping valiantly into the battle, she tore off her uniform, finally being able to show her true coat.  Even if she was covered while in prison, her white coat was stained with dirt and blood.

As she approached the streets, dead UPs lay in the cross sections and the windows of most of the buildings were smashed. Carriages were overturned, and the train stations she passed were destroyed. When she made it to her apartment complex, she kicked in the door, finding her sister hiding under the kitchen table.

"Appa... Appalachia?  Is it really you?"

"Yeah, but we have to go, now!"

"I thought that they killed you, you didn't return two days ago, and I thought that they took you!"

"They did, I spent the last two days in jail, but I'll tell you the rest later, I need you to..." she stopped, somepony was coming down the hallway.  She could hear radio chatter.

"Get under the table, quick!" she whispered harshly to Wind Dancer.

"What?"

"Now!"

Wind did so and Appalachia pressed herself up against the wall between the door hinges, hiding herself. When the UP came into the room, he immediately spotted the hiding Wind Dancer under the table, which gave Appalachia time to grab a lamp from the coffee table next to her and smash it over the his head. He was carrying a anti displacement rifle, which she grabbed.  She knew how to operate one on the count of having to learn how to build them in the factory.  After she raided the rest of his body for ammunition, they set off.

Outside was mass chaos, gunfights erupted in the streets and death lay around every corner.  Citizens across the city have picked up enemy weapons and are fighting back, pushing the United Equines out of the city.  Appalachia did the same, the adrenaline pumping through her, she had no idea what she was doing.  She was shooting at other ponies, but she didn't even realize it until it was all over.  She didn't even know if she was hitting anything.  After fighting their way through the street, they were back out in the fields, about a half a mile away. A large boom erupted and they turned around to see one of the tallest buildings crumble down in the city center.

In the center of Manehatten, there was a main reactor which powered all of the buildings in the city.  If that was to melt down, the entire city would become a massive crater under the circumstances.  Manehatten was an industrial city, not a war fortress.  The Renegades had been saving up for an attack like this, scavenging and building weapons powerful enough to do this much damage must have taken a long time.

"Let's hide out in the plains, I saw most of the citizens retreat back there when I went to get you," Appalachia pulled her sister.  The rifle was empty now and it was of no good use. They galloped far.

Time passed and it was the late afternoon, some citizens packed up blankets and spare food.  They formed tiny camps that dotted the plains to shelter them, some of the UPs must have gotten out and were probably searching for anypony who got out.  If the reactor in the hadn't blown up by now, then they were safe.  The lights on the horizon over the hills were the flames erupting from the city.  Appalachia looked around the small camp and met a few more citizens, some where in the five millions, which she thought she would never meet on account of the citizens being arranged according to number.  The six million sector was the only sector Appalachia ever knew.

During her time earning how to make guns, she also read books and looked at maps at her apartment, so she knew that the surrounding cities and towns must have heard the bombs going off, but she wasn't sure if anypony would send help. She acquired a few blankets, some rope, and some sticks to build a tent and some bedding for her and her sister. When the moon came up, they sat by the fire next to each other in blankets.

"Appalachia, you're shaking..."

"I know, I haven't had time to be scared yet.  I have been away from home for days, and when I get out, I find that it's gone? It's too much to believe."

"Don't worry, we'll find another home."

"No, we wont, Wind Dancer, we are enemies of the state, if any UPs find us, it's us or them.  Back in the city, I don't know if I killed anypony, and I don't want to, I just want to keep you and I safe," Appalachia put a hoof the the back of her sister.

They rested their heads up against each other and waited for something to happen, maybe the city would blow up in a fireball, or maybe an UP unit would come over the hill and mow them all down.

"Sis, I saw the teleportation station blow up, can you teleport now?" Wind asked.

"No, I don't even know that spell."

"What do you mean?"

"That spell is illegal, most unicorns don't know it, and if they do, they must be very old," Appalachia explained.

"Illegal spells... What has this world come to?"

"Greed... There is one thing that still bothers me."

"What is that?"

"I was thrown in jail for the accusation that I was smuggling weapons and keeping them in our apartment complex basement.  Why would the Renegades attack the city if they knew that a shipment of their weapons were going to be destroyed?"

"Maybe a distraction?"

"Maybe..."

Same time, New Trottingham -

"My lord, Manehatten has fallen to the Renegades and the main power reactor is entering the first stages of a catastrophic state."

"Yes, I have heard."

"Then, my lord, what are we to do? Manehatten was one of our main resource cities!"

"You are not one to tell me what I know and do not know."

"A thousand apologies, my lord."

"Manehatten has been lost, these... Rebels are resisting.  The time has come to take serious action."

"My lord?"

"Any citizen who does not have a pass will be killed and all the cities will be on full alert. The Kingdom of Aris is now on lockdown."

"And what about the Private Guard?"

"Warn Noble Osirus that 'it' is happening, he will know what to do. The day is over, it is time to rest."

"Yes, my lord."

The servant left the room.  The Tyrant looked out the large stainless window towards the frozen tundras of his kingdom.

"I think it's time to tie up some loose ends."