Fallout: Equestria - Pushing Daisies

Fallout: Equestria - Pushing Daisies

Chapter 1: Immortal

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

Preparing a body for its final rest was a task I was all too familiar with. Just the body, mind you. The soul, my soul, would never rest.

With a shovel in my teeth, I gauged the depth of the hole I’d dug. It wasn’t quite six feet, but it didn’t have to be perfect. It was a far better grave than most wastelanders got. Hopping out was a bit of a struggle. I was never very athletic, which was unfortunate considering I was an earth pony. Physical prowess was the only gimmick we had, and I was lacking.

Dropping the dirty tool, I trotted a few steps to the grave’s future resident. The mare laid on her side, her eggshell coat battered with cuts, bruises, and a couple bullet holes. Her curly yellow mane was stained with dry blood running from a ghastly exit wound in her skull. There wasn’t any need to play detective. I knew exactly how she died.

My eyes fell to her cutie mark, a tombstone adorned with a bouquet of daisies. There were… stains on it. I guess those raiders enjoyed the spoils after the fact. After shuddering away my revulsion, I took solace in the fact I was already too dead to suffer through that.

That’s right, this corpse belonged to me. I definitely knew this one was mine, and not another Daisy Pusher roaming around. The river pumped one of us out each time we died, and made a brand new one once a year. Each of us only kept our own memories, though. We’re not a hivemind like those damned alicorns. Hate those things… There was no telling which of us was the real one, if any of us were. How many were there now? Close to two hundred, if I my sense of time wasn’t completely scuffed.

It took me a few day’s travel to get here from Splendid Valley, so the body had already started to rot. Ignoring the stench, I dragged it to the hole and dumped it. Given the circumstances, there wasn’t any need for a eulogy. I just picked the shovel up and started dumping dirt back where it came from.

In case it wasn’t obvious, this wasn’t my first time going through this. It’s been a while since I took the time to actually bury my previous body. Lately I’ve simply burned them, or left them to rot if they were somewhere too dangerous. This time, I guess I just didn’t have anything better to do. No nagging, foreign thoughts telling me to go somewhere or do something.

*****

Which… left me with nothing to do again. The raiders didn’t leave anything valuable behind, and all I managed to scavenge on my way here was a ratty denim jacket that was slightly too small, and a few cans of food. Apples and peaches, I assumed, based on what little remained of their labels. I never bothered carrying much water with me. Drinking from irradiated ponds and streams wasn’t an issue. Being a product of Flux and Taint had its benefits. Either that, or I never lived long enough to develop cancer or something.

I guess I should be thankful the Goddess has been staying out of my head. She’s really fucking annoying. Great and Powerful Asshole. There were a lot of deaths I could have avoided if she didn’t insist that I go where no sane pony would, just to take a look or grab some random prewar junk. Thank Celestia I wasn’t one of the poor Daisies she was trying to send through Canterlot’s Pink Cloud. How many of us had to turn into puddles before she realized we weren’t immune to it like her precious children?

Whatever, I’ll just head to a town. New Appleloosa was the closest, and maybe I could find an odd job to keep myself occupied. Old Appleloosa was just as close, but… fuck that. I’ve been both a slave and a slaver in the past, and hated both. I had no interest in repeating those mistakes.

Despite the grave I was trotting away from proving otherwise, I felt that the trip would be pretty safe. The area around both aforementioned towns was kept relatively free of raiders, thanks to guards and freelance do-gooders. Speaking of which, I inspected myself to make sure I didn’t look like a raider. That alone was enough to get shot, thanks to the ‘policy’ of a particular pegasus. My coat was pretty clean, I looked healthy, and I wasn’t wearing random scrap as armor… I should be fine.

*****

I still flinched when I heard the faint crack of twin rifles way off in the distance, on the other side of my destination. I could barely make out a dot that was probably a trade wagon. If a raider tried to jump a caravan that close to town, they had to be the dumbest moron in Equestria.

It took the better part of the day to reach the town gates, and I was greeted by a bizarre sight. A raider, the smallest excuse for a raider I’d ever seen, was being rushed to the town clinic. Since when does Calamity try to save somepony he’s shot? Unless… Oh, she had a Stable suit. And a PipBuck. She wasn’t a raider.

“Daisy!” A vaguely familiar voice called out to me through the commotion. “Back so soon? You just left!”

Shit, did another me pass through recently? I turned to the voice, and… Yeah, I didn’t know this stallion. This is one of those times I wish we were a hivemind.

“Figured you’d be halfway to Old Appleloosa by now.” The black-maned, purple unicorn began. “Wise up and realize that was a bad idea?”

“Uh, yeah,” I sheepishly replied. Whelp, that Daisy wasn’t going to last very long. Although, if she did live long enough for us to cross paths, it’d be nice to chat. If she was new, maybe I could give her some advice. Not that it would mean much if the Goddess was sending her to certain death.

The stallion put a hoof around me and kissed my cheek. Oh, okay then. Other me got around, it seems. “Well, I’m glad for it. I’d miss you.”

This was wrong, but… I let myself enjoy the affection. This poor bastard would probably not see his Daisy again any time soon, if ever. Though there was always the chance she’d come back here if she died, try to enjoy some semblance of a normal life before she got sent on another goosechase. It was something we all tried to do. I guess I was trying to right now.

“Nice jacket,” he smiled. “And where’d that cut on your lip go? That certainly healed fast.”

I stammered a little. “Y-Yeah, I found a potion. Look, can we… get something to eat and turn in for the day? I’m pretty worn out.”

The stranger cocked his head and raised a brow. “Already? You slept in pretty late this morning before you left.” He chuckled and smirked. “Though I guess you didn’t get that much rest.”

Naughty, naughty, other Daisy. Then again, looking this stud over, she certainly had good taste. Eh, but I was way too tired for that. Nothing wrong with cuddling, though.

*****

A couple of days went by, and I tried to find little tasks around town for meager amounts of caps. I noticed the other new guest talking to Railright, then she headed to Absolutely Everything. If she was fresh out of a Stable, Ditzy was going to give her a fright. Hmm, no screams… Maybe she was tougher than she looked. She did survive getting shot, after all.

I winced at a sudden and familiar ache in my mind. Oh, great, she was checking in. I found myself involuntarily trotting to the general store’s window to spy on the little gray unicorn, finding that Ditzy was taking her measurements. Getting some new duds? Certainly a good idea to wear something other than raider armor.

Why the Goddess would show interest in this pipsqueak wasn’t too hard to piece together. A healthy unicorn out of a Stable. She’d be hard-pressed to find a better potential candidate for Unity. Eh, it wouldn’t be my job to direct her to Maripony. If she was deemed worthy, an alicorn would be sent after her.

The ache went away, and I went to the bar to soothe the lingering throbbing. I hated being a puppet, but there was no escape from it. Not even suicide worked, for obvious reasons. All that would do is waste time.

I really needed enough caps to get out of here. The more I thought about it, the more I decided I did not want to be here if that other Daisy showed up. We’d end up having to explain ourselves to the locals, and I doubt they’d buy that we were twins. Not even twin ponies had perfectly identical cutie marks.

Prostitution crossed my mind, but that would probably piss off Moonlight, and make things difficult for my counterpart. I had learned the stallion’s name as subtly as possible from others in town. Selling myself would have been easy money, but oh well. Maybe a few drinks would spark an idea…

*****

Heading outside a little tipsy, I overheard Crane asking the newcomer to clear out a Stable. Fuck. That. I’m desperate for caps, but not that desperate.

It was a morbid thought, but maybe I could get paid to help with funeral services if she failed. The… original Daisy Pusher, to the best of my knowledge, worked at a mortuary before the war. Her life was one memory we all collectively shared, even if it was fuzzy. Making corpses presentable, building caskets, and digging holes were the talents we inherited from her. One would think, with the amount of death in the wasteland, that would make it easy for us to find work. Problem was, death was so common that ponies barely bothered with funerals.

Only pony I ever buried was me, and I did that for free. Well, assuming my corpse didn’t still have caps in her pockets. If I was killed by an animal or mutant, that was usually the case. If a pony or griffon killed me, I was usually stripped clean. I really have become jaded to dying, haven’t I? Unless the cause was particularly gruesome, I thought of it as nothing more than an annoying loss of time.

*****

After spending all afternoon looking for a job, I gave up as storm clouds rolled in. Sheesh, maybe the other me did go to those slavers voluntarily. There really wasn’t much work around. At least Moonlight was taking care of me, making sure I didn’t go hungry. His strong, warm body made it easy to sleep each night, keeping the nightmares at bay. I still felt pretty guilty being a homewrecker. Hopefully the other Daisy would only be mad at me, if she found out.

The ‘Stable Dweller’ as DJ Pon3 already took to calling her returned with Calamity sooner than I expected. Another pang in my skull had forced me to follow her to the bar. I would have anyway out of curiosity, you impatient bitch.

An unpreventable groan escaped me as my remark was punished with a much sharper psychic attack. Moonlight gave me a pat. “You alright?”

I shook myself and nodded. “Yeah, just a migraine. It’ll pass.”

“Hey, everypony. LilPip here thought Red Eye was our leader!” Calamity’s sudden announcement was met with whooping laughter, which Moonlight joined.

Red Eye. I died in his fucking Pit once. Sure as shit didn’t go back for that body. At least my demise wasn’t as bad as the mare that went before me… Gutted and strangled with her own intestines. It was bad enough that even one of the Talon guards threw up. I was thankful to just get my skull caved in, nice and quick.

The sad Sweetie Belle song that filled the air when Apple Whiskey turned the radio on didn’t make my thoughts any brighter. The charismatic DJ thankfully replaced it soon.

He spoke about how the Stable Dweller took out the raiders of Ponyville. By herself. I am staying the fuck out of her way. Avoid dangerous ponies. That’s my motto. He also said another Stable pony went to Old Appleloosa. Clearly, not everypony follows my mantra.

*****

Word spread around town that the Stable Dweller and Calamity left to rescue slaves. I’d normally assume that they’d fail, but that little unicorn already surprised me. Other Daisy, if you’re still over there, keep your head down. I know death doesn’t mean much to us, but it still sucks.

In the meantime, I carried on as I had been the last week. Things started to turn around, as I found a job doing some carpentry work to buildings damaged by the recent storm. It felt good to finally have a decent amount of caps to my name. The following days were downright pleasant.

So, of course the Goddess had to ruin it.

The Great and Powerful Goddess demands that you travel to Old Appleloosa. NOW.

Fearing reprisal, I buried my angry, seditious thoughts deep. Sorry, Moonlight, it was fun.

I galloped out of town quickly, avoiding questions, following the railroad that led through the mountains. Alone. Again. At least I had a weapon now, a dinky pistol strapped to my chest so I could easily reach the grip with my teeth in a hurry. Unfortunately, I could only afford one magazine’s worth of ammunition.

Since I was being sent, my counterpart must have died. I… hope she goes back to New Appleloosa. If I were her, I would. Moonlight was a good stallion.

*****

I spent most of my journey staring at the railway planks, absentmindedly counting them. I’d only hurry if her majesty made me. At any rate, I was making good time. Already halfway up the mountain. Also… Is the railroad shaking?

Looking up… “HOLY SHIT!”

Leaping out of the runaway train’s path, I nearly sent myself off the cliff entirely. Just like the train. And… the Stable Dweller?

A breath sucked into my chest as I watched the little unicorn tumble through the air, followed by a relieved sigh as her pegasus companion scooped her out of it. She was a stranger, but I nevertheless did not enjoy seeing ponies die.

Should I follow her? I assumed she was why I was going to Old Appleloosa. …No update from the Goddess, so I guess not. Guess I’ll keep walking.

Walking, and throwing up. After the train’s detached caboose passed me at a much more reasonable speed than the rest of it, I started finding bodies. The worst was easily what was left of a griffon. There wasn’t enough of their body intact to determine gender. They had to have been hit by the train, dragged under the cars, and chopped up by the wheels. Shit, at least their death was probably instant. Fuck, that was almost me.

Part of me wanted to put them all to rest, but the nagging in my mind forced me to press on. I did stop long enough to scavenge caps, chems, and compatible ammo.

*****

Old Appleloosa eventually came into view, and it was a mess. It looked like a whole minefield had gone off all over, one building was completely demolished, and there was a blood-soaked train car where it clearly shouldn’t have been.

There were also a lot of slavers… and alicorns. Hopefully the latter would keep the former from giving me trouble. Wait a minute, if they were here, why the fuck was I!?

Do not doubt me!

The pain nearly doubled me over, then directed me to a pile of bodies. Sticking out of it, sure enough, was me.

Put her armor on.

There was a very noticeable shotgun blast in the chest piece, but okay. I guess I’m here to blend in with the slavers?

Getting dressed, the realization dawned on me. I’m going back to Fillydelphia, aren’t I?

My, aren’t you the perceptive one? Play your part. Be eyes and ears where my children cannot go. Red Eye grows suspicious of us. He will not suspect you.

Fine, whatever. At least I’m not going as a slave this time. At least, not as Red Eye’s…

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

Footnote:
Flux clones don’t get levels.

Quest Perk Added: Thought You Died… +10 Health per 100 Karma; -10 Health per -100 Karma; Karma reset to 0