Fallout: Equestria - The Storm

Fallout: Equestria - The Storm

Chapter 23: A Stormy Road to Canterlot

***** ***** *****

Peace talks brought a lot of things to light. For instance, the reason the Remnants had been contesting the region for so long. Due to Vanhoover not being a military target, it had great swaths of land untouched by radiation and taint, making it a prize for surviving zebras after the bombs. The western Enclave had noticed this as well, and seized the opportunity to claim the area from the settling zebras alongside the griffons emerging from Stable 14. Still viewing each other as enemies, the territory dispute became very bloody very fast.

Gardens of Equestria broke the status quo, and both sides started to wonder why they were still fighting. Then atrocities sprung up overnight, reigniting the hatred. After the events of last week, it’s fairly obvious the crimes were orchestrated by Cozy Glow. ‘Gourmand Mignon’ even turned out to be one of her machinations. She took advantage of Falchion’s apparent mental illness to take Seaddle’s xenophobia to new lows, shortly after arranging her mother, Flyssa Whiteclaw, to be killed and the body to appear to be cannibalized by zebras. Pierre would be keeping her in therapy and out of the restaurant for the foreseeable future, and paying reparations.

It would take a long time for the bad blood to subside, and some zebras simply couldn’t stomach the idea of peace after everything. Zaire told them if they could not respect her decision and follow her, they had no place in her tribe. Not wanting angry zebras running amok aimlessly, I told those who left about Glyphmark and Tenochtitlan.

*****

Slash and I made a trip back to 14 to secure the Dragon Staff. The remaining western Enclave gave it up freely, admitting no headway was ever made with its research. Considering Cozy’s plans, that was very good news. Curious, I asked how they got it in the first place. It was the eastern Enclave that attacked Dragon Mountain twelve years ago. Evidently, Cozy Glow had been keeping tabs on Spike for some time, knowing he had it, and had a spy network in the east skies. When she caught wind of a pending assault on his home, she sent her own troops to infiltrate the attacking force and take the Staff during the chaos.

My dragon companion held the artifact reverently… then started trying to break it. Slamming it across her knee did nothing but injure her. The floors and walls did equally no damage. Breathing fire on it had no effect. When she expressed a desire to let Knight try to vaporize it, or get the Enclave to shoot it with Gustave, I demanded an explanation.

“It’s too dangerous,” she started. “Something like this just shouldn’t exist. I can’t entertain the possibility of someone using it against my people, or anyone else’s.”

“Don’t you need it?” I asked. “To start the Gauntlet of Fire? Slash, this Staff is the whole reason you came out here. It’s your only way home, and the only thing that will rally your people.”

“Yeah, but…” Her eyes started to water. “Rosegold, I’m not sure I’ll have a home or a people to go back to. My father and uncle were among our strongest warriors, and the pegasi still killed them. By the time I get back…”

I pulled her close, wrapping myself around her. “Don’t think like that. If the situation really is that dire, the Storm King might step in on his own fruition.” I frowned. “He’d help. For selfish reasons, but he’d help. He doesn’t want your kind going extinct.”

She narrowed her eyes and huffed. “Because we’d make good slaves.”

I took a step away from her. “We don’t… Slash, I spent two weeks getting the slavery experience. Nothing like that would ever be allowed in Hippogriffia. Besides, I promised we’d find a way to keep the Dragon Lands independent.”

My friend pondered a while before she was at ease, and we flew back to the Gull.

*****

We found ourselves amidst a medical emergency when we arrived. Crimson was convulsing below deck, with Knight administering antitoxins.

“He overdosed on Med-X,” she quickly explained. “I don’t know if it was an accident, or a deliberate attempt to… I can’t be sure if he’ll make it.” She turned her gaze towards Gritt as he came down to check on them, then back to me. “Rosegold, Slash, can I speak to Gritt in private? There’s something he needs to know.”

My little friend crossed his arms. “Whatever it is, you can tell all of us.”

Knight frowned and sighed. “Gritt, Crimson is your father. He didn’t want you to know, but now I may need you for a blood transfusion. You’re the best match.”

Gritt’s demeanor changed in an instant. Shock, disbelief, and realization played through all of our minds. I recalled how Crim told me how he ended up this way. Crimson didn’t take on Red Eye’s cybernetic punishment just to save Stern. He was saving his unborn child. His sacrificial stunt on Reinier didn’t come out of nowhere, and neither did his efforts to get Gritt out of Fillydelphia. All of it was a father protecting his son.

The young griffon didn’t say a word. He simply took off his jacket and sat beside the medical android, letting her set up the transfusion. Gritt just found out he still had a parent, and he wasn’t going to lose them. The rest of us gave them privacy.

*****

Sitting at the bow of the ship, I recalled how much pain Cozy’s attack put the old merc through. It was likely the first time in years he’d been that hurt and had to endure his repair talismans that severely. I sympathized with his suicide attempt. If I was in that much agony, I’d want to die too.

Eventually, Knight told us he pulled through and regained consciousness. I felt relief, more on Gritt’s behalf than Crimson’s. Making my way down the wooden stairs, I made out a conversation between the two.

“Why didn’t you tell me, you asshole?” Gritt’s voice was shaky.

“Tell you what?” Crim’s voice was weak. “That both of your parents were monsters? It was better you thought your dad was just some rando. So you could pretend you didn’t have the most fucked heritage in Equestria.” He let out a pained laugh. “I did tell Gawd, though, when I vouched for you.”

“She… I’m surprised you got in touch with her at all.” I heard Gritt light a cigarette. “And why would me being your kid make me look better in her eye?”

“Because it meant that Regina had a brother again.” At Crim’s second bombshell, I heard Gritt coughing on his smoke. “I’ve never met her, and I never got to meet Kage, but I hear Gawdyna raised them right.”

Gritt eventually regained his composure. “Yeah…”

*****

Slash and I helped Purser get the Gull sailing east. We were taking a northern river that led straight to Canterlot. The seadog, Crimson, and Gritt were quick to inform us that the region we’d be traveling through was Zarrow’s territory. Raiders, more civilized and organized than most, but raiders nonetheless. We’d need to pay tolls or be ready for a bloodbath. I was somewhat surprised when they voted for the tolls.

“They’re raiders. They could just take the caps and attack us anyway.” I argued against trusting their word.

Crim shook his head. “Zarrow’s not a moron. They survive off of these tolls. If caravans thought they’d get butchered either way, they’d stop coming through here at all and go for a longer, safer route.”

“And disrupting trade that much would hurt Glyphmark, which is where they buy most of their chems from.” Gritt explained.

“Glyphmark openly trades with raiders?” Slash seemed repulsed.

Gritt shook his head. “They openly trade with Zarrow, because he’s from there and keeps all the raiders in the area from misbehaving. Before him, the raiders were disorganized and violent, aside from Atlas’s group. He was organized and violent.”

“Atlas?” I asked.

“Rogue Steel Ranger turned raider boss, and a brutal one at that. Had a crew of over a hundred, and was pillaging his way across the wastes. Calamity and I got sent to Glyphmark when the NCR heard he was heading that way. One of my earliest jobs.” He snickered. “Remember that helmet in my room at Tenpony?” I nodded. “Cocky bastard never stood a chance.”

“So, Zarrow filled the power vacuum?” I surmised.

Gritt furled his brow. “It’s more complicated than that. After the botched raid, Atlas’ second in command, Achilles, snuck into Glyphmark to take some sort of revenge. She kidnapped the most unique thing she could find, a half-zebra-half-unicorn colt. Barely eleven years old. Search parties went looking for the missing foal, but never turned anything up.”

Crim took the lead. “Until a couple weeks later, when little Zarrow came back with Achilles’ severed head and an announcement.” He laughed cruelly. “I can’t imagine his parents’ faces when their colt declared that he’d be the Overboss of Galloping Gorge.”

*****

As I was told to expect, it wasn’t long before a pair of rough-looking but surprisingly healthy and well-equipped raider ponies flagged us down and took their tribute of caps and food. Soon after that, we started seeing ramshackle villages along the riverbanks. The residents were very diverse. Besides all three flavors of pony, there were also griffons, zebras, diamond dogs, seadogs, and even an occasional alicorn. Purser gave her kin a howl, and they returned it.

What I didn’t notice were any elders. All of the raiders were in their prime or younger. One doesn’t grow old in that life. We were mostly ignored, though I caught plenty of gawks and jeers from creatures trying to figure out what I was. Even an occasional catcall, which made my hide stand on end. A few weeks ago, It wouldn’t have bothered me.

An accented young voice called out through the crowds, and they started moving out of the way. “Hey, where you newcomers going in such a rush!?”

A whistling magic buzzed through the air, creating an atmosphere of sudden dread. A tiny streak of violet whipped through the air, weaving between raiders and towards our ship faster than I could track it. In a moment, a narrow triangular blade covered in zebra runes was inches from my face, backing me towards the ship’s railing as I called out for the anchor to be dropped. By the time the Gull lurched to a stop, the enchanted arrowhead was pressed uncomfortably between my eyes.

I glanced towards the shore as a striped hybrid stallion leaped onto a boulder overlooking my ship, his horn glowing with runes matching his weapon.

Zarrow gave me a crooked grin. “First time passing through Galloping Gorge, you gotta pay respects, not just the toll.” The arrowhead whistled back to a holster strapped to his otherwise bare thigh, and I relaxed. The Overboss wore no armor or barding whatsoever, aside from a bit of jewelry, showing off his teenage physique. He was skinny, his ribs clearly visible, both otherwise very fit. The coloration of his stripes were inverted, making him more black than white, with the latter vaguely resembling bones. His mane was spiked and styled, and his eyes were a bright purple. The ‘glyph’ on his flank could be described as an abstract bow and arrow.

*****

The entire crew was taken to Zarrow’s large hut in the center of the main village. The young buck displayed no fear towards any of us, even Knight and Crimson. His confidence put me on edge. He had us take seats around a table carved from a massive tree stump, while he took his place on a makeshift throne of scrap. A gray griffoness his age, with orange-tipped feathers and matching eyes, leaned on his side as he put his hoof around her shoulder. Others began bringing out food and drink to everyone but Knight.

It wasn’t the Gourmand, or even Gwen’s humble food stall. The meal was all preserved snacks and sodas, and blandly cooked meat. It dawned on me that the village had no farms. Of course it didn’t. Farming is hard work, and raiders hate hard work. If there was any produce, they were getting it from farms under their ‘protection’.

“So, what brings you this way, Wanderer?” Oh, cool, he listens to DJ Pon3. “Your ship’s not stocked for trade.”

“We’re stopping at Canterlot on our way back east.” I did my best to sound mundane.

He chuckled. “For what? Going on a pilgrimage to-”

We were interrupted by the doors busting open. I could hear a thunderstorm forming outside, so maybe it was best that Zarrow stopped us.

“Sir, newcomers! There’s a boat… and…” A short, ghoulified hedgehog stared at us. What was a Abyssinian creature doing here?

Zarrow face-hoofed. “Grubber, you are, as usual, slow on the uptake. I swear, what do I even keep you around for?” He laughed at the cowering creature. “I’m kidding, you know I love you!”

Grubber chuckled nervously, more so when he saw me, his eyes going a little wider at the sight of a hippogriff. “S-Sir, is he here for…”

“I was about to ask him, before you barged in.” Zarrow cleared his throat. “You looking for Skystar and Tempest?” The raider smirked at my shocked expression. “I used to crawl around Canterlot’s rubble all the time as a foal. Found my way into the catacombs. Found them.” He took a long swig of a Sparkle Cola. “Skystar’s just bones, but Tempest is an angsty chatterbox of a ghoul. She was my best friend growing up, I’d visit her as often as I could. She couldn’t leave, being fused into stone and all.” He suddenly looked sad. “I’m too big to fit through the holes now, though. So this little twerp runs messages between us.” He gestured to Grubber.

“Did she ever give you anything shiny?” My question made Zarrow cock his head. Grubber eyed me with suspicion.

“Shiny? No, we always just talked. If she’s had some kind of treasure this whole time, she’s kept it to herself.” He chuckled. “It would be like her to hold out on me.”

“She won’t give it to the likes of you!” Grubber snapped at me, before catching a scowl from Zarrow and cowering.

“Don’t be so sure.” I glared down at the small ghoul. “She and I serve the same master.”

Zarrow evaluated me again, rubbing his chin as he looked at me, narrowing his eyes as he inspected my armor. “You do have similar taste in fashion.” He smiled. “You’ll have a hard time finding them without a guide, and I need help with something. I’ll come along.”

*****

Grubber was flabbergasted when I told him that hippogriffs work for the Storm King. He apparently was Tempest Shadow’s right hoof, and came with her when she tracked Skystar. The last news he ever got from down south was of Novo’s execution. I filled him in on how my people were civilized and modernized by the Storm King’s rule, and now serve as the backbone of his empire through labor and military service. Slash informed him of his current campaign against the dragons. The martial strength we now possessed seemed to shock him.

“We had a handful of airships back then, but they weren’t the kind of thing that could fight dragons.” Grubber went on as we trotted through the cliffs. “Storm King could probably fight some himself with his lightning, but the rest of his army? They’d go up in flames.”

Slash smirked at the comment, then blushed when Zarrow met her gaze and winked. He’d been eyeing her up since we arrived. I was a little surprised that the interest was mutual, but the hybrid is attractive. If she ends up getting in bed with the Overboss, that’s her business. Personally, I’d make him get checked for infections first. He looked healthy, but he’s a raider.

We were making our way to a farm that stopped paying its dues. Zarrow learned that another gang had started encroaching on his turf, and wanted to nip the problem at the bud. Everyone but Crimson found the whole situation dubious at best. We were driving out a group of ‘bad’ raiders so a group of ‘good’ raiders stayed in control. I imagined the farmers would prefer ‘no’ raiders. But while Zarrow and his gang stayed civilized, I couldn’t justify murdering them.

*****

The inclement weather made our trek through the cliffs a bit treacherous. A strike of lightning only a dozen meters away made everyone but Crim, Knight, and Zarrow jump. The young raider trotted through the steep and wet terrain as easily as if it were a calm meadow. Slash was shivering in the cold, and on all fours to keep her balance, often using her claws to keep a grip on the ground beneath her.

Zarrow smirked at her pitiful state. “Don’t worry. When we’re done here I’ll happily warm you up.” Slash blushed again.

Over the next crest, we spotted a greenhouse and an adjacent shack built into what was once a powerline tower. Bodies wearing Zarrow’s gang colors impaled on poles were put on display around the farm’s border. The hybrid frowned and readied his arrowhead, the enchanted weapon floating beside him.

Crack! Ping!

A shot rang out from the top of the shack, but Zarrow swatted the speeding bullet out of the sky a few feet from him. By the Spirits, he can block bullets with that thing.

“O-Oh! Overboss Zarrow! I’m so sorry!” An earth pony stallion awkwardly holding a poorly maintained varmint rifle in his hooves descended. A mare followed him. Both wore ratty farming clothes, and were as skinny as the raiders. The stallion set the rifle down on his porch and trotted to Zarrow before bowing his head.

“It’s fine, it’s fine…” Zarrow approached him, his voice oddly casual as he holstered his arrowhead. As the farmer stallion started to relax, Zarrow’s demeanor shifted in an instant. After taking a hoof hard across his face, the earth pony fell into the mud, whimpering.

Zarrow pointed his hoof at the bodies. “Next time another gang kills my people and takes my property, YOU. TELL. ME.” A flash of lightning showed the rage on the Overboss’s face. “I had to hear about it from a patrol days after the fact!” He regained his composure and put his hoof on the farmer’s shoulder. “This relationship doesn’t work without communication. Now, tell me where this other gang is, then get up and bury those bodies.”

“T-They took Tulip!” The mare on the porch spoke up. “They told us they’d kill her if we stepped a single hoof off the farm! They even broke our radio.”

“They took her northeast, towards the caves.” The stallion coughed, rubbing his bruised face.

Zarrow’s demeanor shifted towards concern. “I’ll get your filly back.”

*****

The zony continued to surprise and confuse me. He’s willing to butcher caravans who don’t pay their tolls, and subjugate farms with violent intimidation, but he’ll drop everything to rescue a foal. As far as raiders go, he seems to have high standards. It may explain why the NCR has let him be all this time. While they’d never officially recognize Galloping Gorge as a sovereign territory under Zarrow’s rule, they couldn’t deny that this was a semi-stable community with its own law of the land.

When the caves came into view, I saw a few dozen of what I normally perceive as raiders. Filthy, diseased, and ready to shoot us on sight. There were probably a lot more inside. I put Gritt on overwatch, and had Purser watch his back. I’d given her back her sword and pistol, more than trusting her ever since Reinier.

The rest of us crept into attack positions, and waited for Zarrow’s signal. Which turned out to be him trotting into the open as he sang an upbeat Velvet Remedy song. The cave raiders stared blankly at him for a few moments before opening fire, their volley of bullets getting intercepted by his arrowhead as easily as the farmer’s rifle. Skill couldn’t account for it, there must be powerful magic at play with that thing.

Our sniper started picking off the shooters, and Crimson opened up with his machine gun when they tried to return fire. All the exterior guards were dead in less than a minute.

*****

Slash took point moving in, burning raiders out of cover for me to blast them. Fire was a painful way to die, so Grapeshot quickly put an end to their suffering. I told the dragon to be careful as we went deeper, not wanting the stolen filly burned.

Some of the raiders were in no state to fight back, incapacitated by chems. At my suggestion, we tied them up. Zarrow broke the horns of any unicorns, while holding their muzzles closed to muffle their screams. One couple was wrapped up in the makeshift hammock they were embraced in.

*****

The last of the raiders were waiting for us, their hostage at gunpoint. Tulip, the poor blank flank… She was in a bad way. Not much of her bright pink coat was visible past bruises, blood, and the most vile of stains. Much of her yellow mane had been ripped out, and what was left was filthy. Tears ran down her cheeks as a rusty sawn off shotgun was pressed to her skull. A tall, old, skinny griffon was behind the trigger, his bloodshot eyes swapping between us as he squawked orders at his remaining goons. They surrounded us, taking places behind cover.

“I’ll give you one chance to clear out before I paint the rocks with her brains! Then all of yours!” The griffon made it clear he wasn’t up for negotiating.

Zarrow ignored him, instead giving Tulip a comforting smile and mouthing the words “Close your eyes.” She obeyed.

The putrid raider pulled the trigger, but it was too late. Zarrow’s arrowhead had already sliced through the shotgun and banked into his brain. The other raiders could barely let out screams before their lives were ended just as efficiently. Our guide didn’t need our help at all. He could’ve handled all of this by himself, effortlessly.

The Overboss trotted to the filly before the last corpse fell over, wrapping her in his hooves. “It’s okay. Keep your eyes closed. I’ll get you home.”

*****

Zarrow asked Tulip if any of our captives had hurt her, then promptly executed each one she pointed a shaking hoof at after she closed her eyes again

Zarrow carried Tulip on his back. Her parents squealed in joy as they embraced their daughter, ignoring the thunder and pouring rain. Grubber watched from the porch, having been waiting here for us. Needing to keep up appearances, the Overboss of Galloping Gorge smacked the farmers around a bit, ordering them to get their radio fixed ASAP and be ready to use it next time trouble shows up. He also told them to inform his people of the captured raiders in the caves, intending to bring them into the fold.

He shared one last comforting smile with Tulip, then set off with us to the Gull. Canterlot awaits.

***** ***** *****

Footnote:
Welcome to Level 18!

Perk Added: Lawgiver! Sometimes, justice is best served at muzzle velocity. Damage against raiders, slavers, and other filth is doubled.