Fallout Equestria: Enclave Dawn

Chapters

Prologue
Chapter 1: New Blood
Chapter 2: The Brotherhood
Chapter 3: Legacy
Chapter 4: Changes and Lies

Prologue

Author's Note

This story was created for the many friends I made during the hardships of 2020. Without them I don't think I would be the person I am today, nor would I be able to tell a story like this. The characters, regiments, and events are loosely based on events that transpired within roleplay and written into a story format for everyone to read.

Thank you for everything

Prologue

War. War never changes, The Three Tribes waged war to see who was better and built an empire from its lust for gold and territory. But war never changes. In the 21st Year on the planet of Gia, war was still waged over the land that could be acquired. Only this time, the spoils of war were also its weapons: Magic and Technology. For these resources, The Zeebra Land would invade, Equestria would annex, and the alliances between countries and nations would dissolve into quarreling, bickering factions bent on controlling the last remaining resources on Gia. Soon the storm of a world war like nothing the planet has ever seen would come. In two brief hours, most of the planet was reduced to cinders. And from the ashes of nuclear devastation, a new civilization would struggle to arise. A few were able to reach the relative safety of the large underground vaults, while others would take to the skies, and seclude themselves from the rest of the world.

The Enclave was built with the promise of restoring the wasteland to what it once was so that ponies could live together in harmony under order and peace. Operation Cauterize was officially started roughly 200 years after the end of the Great War- with the mass deployment of Enclave personnel and Raptor-Class Cloudships. Enclave assets moved to begin termination of previously-marked targets: Such as Dashites, Raiders, the Slavers, and Factions that were created to rule the wasteland. Before the formal start of Operation Cauterize, the Enclave was already in the process of performing recon and target-assessment within Equestria and it's related territories- with the express aim being of that to obtain information to allow the annihilation of any and all assets predisposed to the GPE and it's return to Equestria from above the clouds. It was also this recon that saw the deployment of Enclave Troops to the entirety of the Wasteland to begin the operation, however over time the Enclave would become divided, and units within the Enclave began to create their own factions, one's that ponies believed were the proper way to rule the Enclave. Among those factions rose the three superpowers. The Enclave Recon Corps, The Enclave Ashen Command, and The Enclave Defence Force.

After the three factions were formed, it was only a matter of time before a war would break out again between the Enclave and some wasteland faction, and soon that would come to fruition. A faction known as The Brotherhood threatened to wage war on the ERC, in order to decimate and kill all Enclave. In order to fight this foe, the ERC called upon its brother and sister factions, The EAC and EDF. However, tensions were rising between the factions, as their leaders did not trust one another, and so miscommunication was inevitable, if the Enclave does not act soon then all they stood for and risked their own lives would be for nothing. This is where our story begins...

Fallout Equestria: Enclave's Might

Chapter 1: New Blood

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 2: The Brotherhood

Enclave Recon Corps - Base

It had been a couple of weeks since Blue first arrived at the base. Since then he had developed somewhat of a schedule for himself, one that he had been keeping for most of the time he was here. First he would wake up and eat breakfast, then he would train. Next he would eat lunch and after that he would train. Finally he would eat dinner, train, then take a shower after training and head straight to bed to repeat the process the next day. Some ponies might think this schedule is tiring and repetitive however for Blue, it was the only thing that kept him busy. General Misty had made it clear to the recruits that due to recent events, patrols and missions would be on hold for a bit. However when asked what those recent events were she only said that "It's confidential" so not many ponies were asking about it. For Blue however, he could honestly care less as long as it did not affect him. Today however would become something different entirely. It had been about 5 hours since Blue woke up, since then he had been doing nothing but training, so due to this he was coming in for lunch. Normally Blue would eat in his bunk to avoid the other cadets, however today he had decided to sit in the main room. Not many people were in the base today, so he mostly had it to himself.

"Here I thought working for the Enclave would be more existing...guess I was mistaken" Blue said to himself, as he began to put his plate of food on the table in front of him. However as he was about to eat he heard the sound of footsteps behind him. Normally he would pass this by as a random Enclave person walking along the base however, these hoofsteps by the sound of them, heading directly to him.

"Excuse me?" A voice said. The voice was definitely that of a mare, she sounded tough yet sweat. Her voice was also a lot older as well. Blue turned around to see where it came from and was met by a mare. She had a brown curly mane with grey eyes, she also had a similar fur color like that Gem pony he met earlier "Are you Blue Crest?"

"Uh...yea that's me" Blue said, making sure to keep eye contact with the mare "Can I help you with something?"

The mare took a seat next to Blue. She looked friendly enough, and it was clear she had something on her mind. "My name is Topaz Myst, I'm a Sergeant in the ERC" she said, she was in an official uniform so her story does check out. However Blue was still unclear on what exactly a Sargent wanted with him.

"Oh I see, is there something wrong ma'am?" Blue asked "Do you need me for a patrol or something?"

"No no, it's none of that" Topaz said "I wanted to ask how you have been doing so far? joining up with us for the first time is rather stressful, and I wanted to go around and check in with all the new recruits" Topaz said, she sounded sincere in her statement, though Blue had this odd feeling there was more. However he had to push those feelings aside for the moment so he could focus on what his commanding superior wanted.

"Oh I see" Blue said, he put his food down and turned to face Topaz "Well, I'd say things are going rather well. I will admit it's not as exciting as I originally thought it would be, however I can understand why it might be slow" Blue said "I do have questions however about this Brotherhood group I'm hearing about from the other soldiers." Blue asked, with genuine curiosity. He has heard a bit of them here and there but he did not truly know who they were or even why they are such a big deal.

"Let's just say the Brotherhood is a faction that has it out for us" Topaz said, she looked like she was hiding some more info,. However Blue did not want to pry out any kind of information that was not needed. She was his superior after all, and he did not want to get on her bad side.

"If you say so ma'am" Blue said "Is there anything else I can do for you?"

"Actually, there is one thing" Topaz said "However it's got nothing to do with the Enclave."

Upon hearing this Blue was caught off guard. No one really ever paid attention to him when they did not need to. So it was rather strange that this mare was going out of her way to talk to him "Right...uh...what exactly is it that you need from me?"

"A couple days ago, you ran into a stallion by the name of Gem correct?" Topaz asked.

"Uh yes, I do recall the stallion by that name" Blue said "Why? did he ask for me?"

"Well, I can't help but notice you're wearing his sweater" Topaz said chuckling.

"I mean....he gave it to me as a gift. Also uh...I still don't have any extra clothes, I'm still waiting for my things to be delivered to me" Blue said, he had never really gotten a chance to thank Gem for that act of kindness. He had actually been avoiding the topic altogether, as he had no idea what he could even do.

"Well, you see I just happen to be Gem's younger sister" Topaz said, smirking a bit. She found this situation humorous, and it seemed like she had a plan "I just wanted to meet the pony who has seemed to catch my brother's eyes."

"I-..had no idea you were his-" He stopped talking upon hearing that second part "I caught his eyes? what do you mean by that?" He asked, his attention immediately taken by the statement.

"Well he won't stop talking about you, that's what I mean" Topaz said "Every time I'm around him he goes on and on about how your always training and how dedicated you seem to be to them. It's obvious he respects you for that."

"I...had no idea he thought that" Blue said, he was completely taken with surprise. Not in his own entire life had somepony taken a liking to what he did, and there was a stallion he did not even know talking about him. If anything it made Blue feel a bit embarrassed about the entire situation "But uh...ma'am if I can ask why are you telling me all this?"

"Well, as his sister it's my job to look out for Gem, and the way I see it. I think you are in need of paying back that act of kindness Gem did for you by giving his sweater to you" Topaz said.

"How did you-" Blue asked.

"Let's just say I have a keen sense of things like this" Topaz said "Look I will just get straight to the point, If you wanna pay him back then I know how. Take him out on a date to the local bar."

"You want me to take him out....on a date...." Blue said bluntly. If he was being frank it was the weirdest request somepony had ever asked him, not to mention the fact he was basically going out with a pony he had little to no knowledge about. How would he go about talking to him? "I...don't understand exactly how taking him out will help me pay him back. I don't know anything about your brother, won't it be a bit....awkward?"

"It's only awkward if you make it awkward right?" Topaz said "Besides, this is not just for you. My brother has a habit of falling for almost every single new stallion that walks in the door. After you go on one date with him, his crush on you will go away."

Topaz did make a solid case. While Blue did feel flattered somepony liked him, he knew that it would only lead to bad things if it continued, and what she was saying was basically the answer to his situation "Alright, I can see the logic in your idea. I will go on a date with your brother" Blue said.

"Alright then the date is tomorrow at the Clipped Hoof, around 8:00pm" Topaz said.

"Uh...where is the Clipped Hoof exactly?" Blue asked. He had never been outside the base and in the proper wasteland yet himself. While it was true soldiers could leave to go places while off duty, he has had yet to explore the unfamiliar land.

"Oh that's no problem at all" Topaz said "It's right near the docs, as soon as you get off the boat to the mainland turn right and you should see a big building made of old wood that's it."

"Alright got it" Blue said nodding, if he was gonna pull this off then he at least had to act professionally. Even tho it was a one-time thing Blue knew that he needed to make sure this was as real as he could make it, meaning he needed to just act himself.

"See you around Blueberry" Topaz chuckled at the nickname, as she walked away into The Generals office. She was most likely talking to Misty about some important work.

Blue thought to himself about what just happened. It was quite unique to say the least. He met one of his superiors as well as planned to date a stallion he only just met. Blue was definitely not prepared at all for this new life he was now stuck in.

Enclave Recon Corps - Training Area

It had been a couple hours since Blue had that talk with Topaz, the conversation still sticking to his mind. It was odd how some things always came back to Blue to nip him in the flank. He had made a promise to himself almost three years ago to never date or fall for someone, yet here he was about to go on a date with a stallion. However he had other things on his mind. Blue was currently occupied with his training, after the conversation and a quick lunch he figured that if he were to get back on schedule he could do at least a mile long run. So he was currently in the middle of that, however off to the corner of his eye he noticed a pony. If his memory served correctly his name was Silver Wing. He was one of the two ponies who was talking about the Brotherhood, before Major Onyx put a stop to their conversation.

"Um...excuse me? your Warrant Officer 2nd Class Silver Wing right?" Blue asked as he stopped his running to go and talk to the pony.

"Yup that's me, how can I help you Privet?" Silver Wing asked. Silver was not much of an out of the ordinary-looking pony. He had a very light cyan fur coat and stood at about 5'8, His mane and tail were made up of a dark blue and white pattern, with his mane all spiky, and his tail quite small, probably to make flying easier on him.

"Well, a couple of days ago you and your other friend Staff Sargent Shifting Trails were talking about the group known as The Brotherhood? I wanted to know if you could tell me a bit more about them."

"I'm afraid I can't do that, it goes against regulation for me to tell you about that stuff while on duty" Silver said, however then he smiled a bit at the pegasus "However seeing as I'm off duty now that means we can say what we want to right?"

"I would suppose your assessment is correct" Blue said.

"Follow me, it's better if we had this conversation where people can't hear us" Silver said, he then began to lead Blue to one of the smaller islands located near the base, it was still close enough where it was not forbidden to go, however it was a place Blue knew about himself. He had seen quite a few ponies go to this area for a long period of time and come back.

"So...who exactly are the Brotherhood?" Blue asked.

"Well first off, tell me something Blue. What do you know about The Wasteland?" Silver asked.

"Not much if I'm being honest. The Academy never really told us anything, they only said it was once where all ponies lived before the great war."

"Your correct on that assessment. The Wasteland was once our home, however now its a cesspool of wasties and slavers who use it to their own advantage" Silver said.

"So, then why exactly are we here? why not just leave the wasteland alone?" Blue said.

"According to Operation Cauterize, we are here in the wasteland to terminate marked targets: Such as Dashites, Raiders, the Slavers, and Factions that were created to rule the wasteland" Silver said "The Brotherhood is a Raider Faction that was created about four years ago."

"I see....and these Raiders pose a threat? How tho? it was from my understanding the Wasteland has no access to technology, and the little they do have can barely even power a building" Blue said.

"That should be the case yes, however if it were like that then we would not be here right now" Silver explained "The academy and the enclave council failed to tell us that the other factions in the wasteland have access to Power armor and technology that can withstand our own tech."

"So...that’s why The Brotherhood is such a threat?" Blue asked.

"Well that, and the fact they have access to our tech" Silver said "About a year ago an enclave supply vertibuck was shot down, and The Brotherhood looted it. The vertibuck had not only high-class weapons but also power armor."

"That...is indeed a troubling situation" Blue said "But, why does the ERC only have to deal with them? what about the EAC and the EDF?"

"After the vertibuck was shot down, General Misty Dawn went to the leaders of the EAC and EDF and asked them for help. However, the other factions don't necessarily like us" Silver said "They think we are weak and can barely stand our ground."

"But...we are all Enclave aren't we? why would they not like their own brothers and sisters in arms?" Blue asked.

"Well, the EAC is the most well-liked faction out of the three of us, and the EDF is basically the lapdog of the EAC, and will back them up with any claims they have" Silver said "They don't see The Brotherhood as a threat so they refused to help."

"So...we are basically on our own?" Blue asked.

"Seems like it at the moment" Silver said "Both Onyx and Misty believe that when fighting breaks out between us and The Brotherhood the factions will realize how wrong they where. However a lot of us don't have that same hope."

"That's why there are so many Dashites?" Blue asked.

Silver sighed and looked up into the sky "Somewhat yes, the ponies who go Dashite firmly believe The Enclave is a lost cause, and that we are the oppressors not the saviors as The Enclave said we are."

"So...what can we do then?" Blue asked.

"I honestly have no idea" Silver said "If war breaks out, I highly doubt the ERC will survive. We lack the necessary weapons and resources in order to win. According to Onyx, The Brotherhood is a faction of one hundred ponies, and the ERC only have about Sixty."

"I had no idea that we were this underprepared for War, the Academy never said this" Blue said.

"That's just the sad truth of it Blue, they don't care whether we live or die. They only care about the mission being completed, even if it means our own lives ending" Silver said, he then began to walk back to the base "I have some paperwork to do, you can feel free to do whatever you need to do. But be back before role call" Silver said.

Blue watched Silver go back. He processed everything he learned here, everything he was taught, everything he knew about The Enclave, was it even true? "No it had to be true. The Enclave would never lie about their intentions" Blue thaught, they were the heroes, The Enclave is here to save the wasteland. To protect it from those who want to rule it with an iron fist. Blue was here to save people and he would do that, no matter the cause. The Brotherhood might be a threat, but Blue knew in his heart. He needed to stand strong and show not only them, but the Enclave that he had what it took. He was going to be an Enclave Officer, Blue would be what he could never be. Blue was never going to be that pony, he refused to be. He just had to keep moving forward.

Chapter 3: Legacy

Enclave Recon Corps - Base

Blue waited near the entrance to the barracks, he had been there for a good 5 minutes now. Ever since his talk with Topaz, he had been a bit nervous. He had not asked anyone to go out with him in over three years, and now he was about to ask a pony out who not only had a crush on him, but also knew little to nothing about him. But then he remembered what Topaz said, how after he would go on one date with him, his crush on him will go away. Blue needed to be at his game, and worrying about romance and feelings don't have a place in that game. Then Blue saw Gem he was, walking to the entrance where he was standing. So it was time to make his move.

"Uh...Hay Gem. Could uh...we talk for a moment?" Blue asked, He rubbed the back of his head nervously. It had been a while since he had done this, so he was more than just a bit rusty.

"Yah sure, what's up?" Gem asked, he looked at Blue with curiosity, a soft smile on his face.

"Well uh...I wanted to know if you were free by any chance?" Blue asked.

"O-oh...uh...yah I'm free. Why? is there something you need me for?" Gem asked, somewhat surprised by Blue's question.

"Well uh...I was going to hit the bar near the docs, I have never been and I wanted to check it out. I thought...Mabey we could go together" Blue asked, his cheeks ever so slightly flushing red upon asking the question.

"I--uh..." Gem was completely speechless, he had no idea what to think about this. His words were caught in his thought and he was panicked, not knowing what to say he just nodded to let Blue know he said yes.

"Alright! um...ok I will...meet you outside by the docks at 0:1700" Blue said smiling as he backed up. However he was not looking where he was going, and he ended up walking into the wall. Hitting the back of his head as he rubbed it. Turning around and walking out the door. Gem could only chuckle as Blue walked out the door, then he walked over to his locker to see what kind of clothing he had available.

Enclave Recon Corps Base - Meating Room

The Meeting room of the Enclave. Every base location has one, always used for important meetings such as tactical talk, mission briefing, as well as casual talk when it's not occupied. However today it was being used for something much more important. Three ponies stood at the large table, one was General Misty Dawn of the ERC, she was in her power armor still and looked quite less than happy, while two other ponies deliberated amongst themselves.

"General Misty. Do you honestly think that my branch gives a flying fuck about this "Brotherhood" group? In all honesty this just sounds like a pitiful cry for help" One of the ponies said, he was a rather small-looking pony. He had a dark shade of green for a coat, and a lighter shade of green for his mane, with individual red, white, and blue stripes on his mane and tail. His eyes were yellow and soulless, like somepony who has seen war, and its consequences "Time and time again your department has asked for not only my branch's assistance but also General Solar's branch as well. Each time we come to these damn meetings it's the same damn thing, you need supplies and men."

"Windbreak you know damn well that if the Brotherhood keeps pushing us every time we go to the mainland, we will have a war!" Misty shouted, now looking properly pissed "All I am asking for is assistance from our fellow branches!"

"I hate to agree with Wind here...but he has a point Misty" The other pony spoke, General Solar of the EDF. She was a rather tall pegasus with a purple coat with a light orange and light purple mane, her eyes also pure yellow like Windbreak. She too looked like somepony who had seen war "You tell us every time we have these meetings that the ERC is on the verge of war, first it was the Desert Rangers, then it was the Steel Rangers, and now its the Brotherhood, this is just the Colt who cried Timberwolf at this point."

"Look I realize those last few times may have been... overdramatized. But I'm telling you that this time it's serious. I am running out of supplies and men, while you two are getting all of the necessary stuff for your department!" Misty said angrily.

Windbreak slammed his hoof on the table, his eyes full of rage and fire "Mabey that's because our departments actually do fucking something!" He shouted "Your the bloody fucking Recon Corps. Your main department is in charge of one damn thing. Recon in the Wasteland! Meanwhile our departments actually fucking do something!" He put his hoof back off the table and sighed, rubbing his head "Solar just....fucking tell her what we decided on."

Misty looked confused as she turned to Solar "What is he talking about?"

"Misty, myself and Windbreak have decided that from now on, your department is going to be getting its resources from other parts of the Enclave Territories" Solar said.

"What?! you can't do that!" Misty shouted "Thunderhead is where all of our departments get our supplies!"

"We are aware...but you have wasted your resources on useless endeavors, the Government is tired of reporting the ERC are broke and in need of loans from the banks, it makes us look bad" Solar said, sliding over a piece of paper "Your last official shipment of recruits and supplies will arrive in the following month. After that you are to report to The Enclave Capital in Thunderhead so you can work on a new place to get men and supplies."

"And what happens if I refuse to go or sign?" Misty asked.

"Then you will end up like the EID" Windbreak said with a shit-eating grin "The Enclave will consider you as a rouge Enclave Group and will no longer recognize you as a branch. All of your men will be recognized as traitors, and you will be considered an enemy of the Enclave."

Misty took in those words, she slowly sat down in her seat and thought for a moment. She then reluctantly grabbed a pen and signed her name on the Endorsement Paper "I'm doing this because I have no choice. Not because I agree with it.." She said.

"Whatever helps you sleep at night" Wind said, as he stood up with Solar "Now then, I hope that you have this whole Brotherhood issue solved, because if you don't then you going to need a lot more than just another location to supply yourself with."

"Misty, we will contact you if there's anything else we need to discuss. Otherwise, we will talk at the next summit meet" Solar said, as she walked out the door, closing it behind her. Misty could only just stare to the piece of paper, the thing she used to sign her rights away sitting next to it. She could only feel one thing. Hatred.

Mainland - Docs

The Wasteland. Something Blue would have never imagined being in, nor what it would be like in person. However, the thing most surprising about the wasteland, was there were actually ponies here. A lot of them too, all of them of all different kinds, Unicorns, Earth Ponies and even Ground Pegasi all living together without a care in the world.

"I know, it's a lot to take in" Gem spoke up, from next to Blue. Both of the ponies had decided to go rather casual. Blue wearing Gem's hoodie while Gem wore a spare grey one he had laying around. "I was surprised as well....the academy never really does prepare you for what it's really like down here."

"It's just...they are all walking around like it's normal...even the Mud Ponies and Horn Heads...they just...leave each other alone.."

"Well...to them it's normal for different kinds of creatures to co-exist with each other. Might even see a few Alicorns here too" Gem said as he began to walk forward to the bar, Blue noticing and following him.

They came across the docs and continued on for a bit of time, passing a lot of different groups of ponies and creatures alike from Griffons, to Kirin, to even Bat-Ponies. It was like nothing he had ever experienced in his life. As they continued walking, Blue could make out the shape of a rather large building. It was made of what looked like old Spruce Wood, the windows a dark shade of yellow, suggesting the building was quite old. There were cracks and dents in the wood as well, including a large sign on top of it, covered in what looked like old Harthswarming Lights, the words read out "The Chipped Hoof" in big black letters, looking to be written by hoof as well, given the letters were sloppy and not as big and bold as the most businesses would be.

"Well this is the place."

"Uh...wow...I have to say I did not expect it to look like this.." Blue said just looking at the building. It smelled like piss and vomit, as well as beer. So it was definitely a bar.

"Yeah, it may not look like much but it does what it was built to do" Gem said walking closer to the building "You coming?" He asked.

"Oh uh..yah sorry" Blue said as he rushed to Gem's side, pushing open the doors to the bar.

Mainland - The Chipped Hoof

Going inside the building, Blue would see that it was quite larger than it was on the outside. The bar was the same as the outside, an old spruce color. However it was much cleaner inside than out. With two giant pool tables in the entrance, with a piano close by, playing some casual bar music. The bar also had huge red booths with dark tables covered head to toe with beer. As the two ponies walked further into the bar they saw the huge countertop, with tons of wasted ponies sitting on the stools, shelves were behind the counter, as well as a huge glass cabinet full of drinks of every kind. With a scruffy yet friendly-looking bartender across the way, a huge Wanted Poster was hanging on the wall next to the jukebox, The bold words "WANTED" underneath the poster. It looked to be a large stallion with power armor on him. He looked like he had a horn, with some mechanical wings attached to them, above the picture was the bounty of $1,000 Caps. Whomever the stallion was must be important.

"Hay Blue, I found an empty booth come on" Gem said tapping, on Blue's shoulder. He looked away from the poster to see where Gem was leading them. A good-looking booth in the corner of the bar, between that booth and another was another jukebox and a dartboard. Above their booth were what looked like giant horns probably belonging to a creature of some sort. Blue took his seat on the booth part facing away from the wall. So he could see who was coming and who was leaving, while Gem took his seat on the booth part facing to the wall, and more importantly Blue.

"So uh...why did you choose to come here out of all places?" Gem asked "Not uh...not that I don't mind, I was just curious."

"Oh...well um...I heard from the other soldiers that this place is popular for hangouts so uh...I thought coming here would be a good idea?" Blue said, nervously chuckling.

"Ah" Gem simply said looking around. The waiter eventually came and Blue and Gem both ordered their drinks, as the waiter walked away Blue kinda looked at them oddly "Something wrong?"

"I'm just...a bit surprised to see a Unicorn doing a job like this..." Blue said "I heard from the academy that Unicorns are only used for labor and stuff."

"Oh...well around the wasteland, they usually do whatever they want. Some of them are waiters, others are hunters, you name it" Gem said "So uh..what academy did you go to?"

"Thunderhead....uh...I graduated a couple of months ago" Blue said.

"Oh cool, I went there too” Gem said "Didn't it make the news a couple of years ago? I remember hearing about it"

"Uh...yah...I remember that..." Blue said, slightly looking down at the floor, then quickly looking back up as he noticed the waiter returning with their drinks. Blue quickly took his drink and had a couple of sips from it.

“Seems like only a few years ago I chose to be in the ERC after graduation” Gem said

"Why did you choose to join the ERC by the way?" Blue asked “Most people go for the EAC”

"I had family in the ERC. So I made a special request" Gem said "I don't like to be separated from my family."

"I....get that.." Blue said "I have family in the EAC, so I can understand why you would want to stay with them."

"Why did you not just...join the EAC then?" Gem asked.

"Let’s just say I thought it was in my best judgment to stay away from the other students who I graduated with..”

"Are you close with your family in the EAC?" Gem asked, taking another sip from his drink, seemingly more or less toying around with it then actually drinking it.

"I guess? I...have a Brother and Sister, both are older than me. But...things have been a bit iffy between us, its always been like that since our parents passed away" Blue said.

"Oh..I'm sorry to hear...what happened to them?" Gem asked, eyes focused on Blue now more than ever.

"My mother was killed by a burglar who tried to break into the house. My dad too..." Blue said, looking quite saddened from telling the story "I was only five years old when it happened, so my older brother raised both myself and my sister."

"I...know what it's like to lose parents. I lost mine too" Gem said "They were killed in a house fire."

"My condolences" Blue said, not really knowing what to say he took another sip of his drink. Finishing off half of it, getting slightly buzzed.

"Hay so uh...I know you probably get this a lot but" Gem asked, kinda twiddling his hoofs "What...happened in the Thunderhead Academy" Gem asked, looking at Blue curiously "You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to, seeing as you were there when it happened, I thought it was worth asking."

"No no... it's..it's fine" Blue said, as he took a large drink from his glass "There was a student there who had Dashites for parents, and she thought that she could go Dashite too, but she planned on taking a handful of the most popular and well-trained students with her" Blue said "Her boyfriend found out and reported her, so she and a handful of the students she convinced to join her where arrested and branded."

"Really? that boyfriend of her's must have been really popular after that."

"Well..not exactly no...before she was arrested she found out he reported him. The student got a personal punishment by the Dashite Traitor. After that he fell off the rails" Blue said.

"What happened to him?"

"He graduated, though most students think he transferred to Manehatten. Sence going there is basically signing a death warrant" Blue said.

"That's a shame...I feel bad for him" Gem said "It must have been difficult for him after that happened. No one trusting you or even thinking your worthy of being in the clouds."

"Yup...one could imagine" Blue said, he looked at Gem to say something but...he stopped. Something about this all, it felt...right in a way. Gem was here, listening to him talk. No one had ever treated him like this in a long time. Not since his younger days in the academy. Yet this stallion somepony he had only just met. Was indulging him in not only his own time, but also Gem's as well. He took the time out of his day to be with Blue. It was...almost like he truly did feel sympathy for Blue. The way he listened to him about his parents, and his struggles at the academy. No pony would have done that unless they really meant it.

"Did you by any chance hear about the new briefing tomorrow? apparently the new recruits are going on their first recon mission" Gem said.

"Wait really?" Blue said "So...we will be doing our first mission then?"

"Mhm! although the general is not telling us what we will be doing. She said it's top-secret" Gem said.

"I don't care what it is, as long as I get to do something" Blue said smiling.

Gem then raised his glass and held it close to Blue "To new beginnings, and new legacies?"

Blue just smiled, and clanked his bottle onto Gem's "To new beginnings, and new legacies" Blue said. He looked at Gem one last time. That greyish-brown stallion, with a grape-colored mane. Smiling and enjoying his time with him. Blue smiled back, he... thought to himself, "Perhaps...another date would not hurt in the future" with that, he took a long sip of his bottle, excited for the coming days in the future.

Chapter 4: Changes and Lies

Enclave Recon Corps - Base

Blue was sitting in a small dark corner, the Stallion having taken some personal time to read up on some books. There was a debriefing of the next patrol coming up, and he was looking forward to it. He wanted to get out and finally see some action. He had been in this base for several days now and he wanted out. He looked around the main barracks noticing some of the ponies within it. He knew a few by now luckily. However he was more or less keeping to himself, well...other than talking with Gem every now and then.

"Attention!"

Everypony in the base suddenly looked up at Sergeant Topaz, who had walked into the room in her Power Armor, the mare already looking ready to go to the wasteland.

"Today there is a special ground mission. And from my understanding none of you have ever been to the ground before or at the very least haven't been outside of the main town area." There were nods and agreements in the room. “So listen closely because it is also of my understanding that you have yet to receive any information regarding this mission other than it being to the ground.”

It was true. None of the ponies had gotten any information about the mission due to it being classified. Blue was actually surprised given that everypony knew that the surface was nothing but disease and radiation, so who would want to go there? Especially on a mission they knew nothing about. But then again not everypony was of that meaning. "Before I go into details about your mission there is one thing you need to know about the surface, the radiation may be there but there do exist some factions." Topaz said

Blue tensed a bit. He knew about some of these factions already, and he knew of the reputation they held.

"In order to continue going to the wasteland on missions and patrols you need to know about them. The first you need to know about is the Steel Rangers. They have access to heavy-style power armor and very heavy weaponry. They are also well trained in using these. You should by any means necessary avoid engaging them in enclosed spaces since their armor is a lot thicker than yours. The other faction you need to know about is the Brotherhood, now usually these lesser factions consist of ill-equipped and half-starved wrecks that can almost be called ponies with basically no training at all. They rely on mass and shouldn't be a problem if encountered in even numbers. The Brotherhood however should not be underestimated since they are well equipped and very experienced. They have access to Enclave Tech and Armor...so do not under any circumstances try to take them on alone. Are there any questions on this so far?"

There were no questions, most ponies nodding and taking in the information. Blue was surprised to hear that these Steel Rangers were so well equipped, given the things they were all taught at the academy. It seemed the more he was down here the more he began to learn the reality of life down in the wasteland.

"Good, then I will proceed to explain your mission. Your job is to extract a certain unicorn scientist." The sergeant stepped to the side and let a small projection take her place. It showed a white and quite handsome unicorn stallion who was clad in a lab coat. He had a blue mane and tail with two green eyes. "What we need him for is highly classified and even I don't know. What matters however is that we acquire our target and get out. He was last seen near the abandoned mines, we believe he may have a laboratory there." Topaz would then turn off the projection and face the group again "Keep in mind that we have no idea what we will run into out there, so be on guard and stay close. We will re-convine in the yard in an hour, so get your power armor on, and prepare." She said, before the entire group saluted, Topaz saluted back and then left the room, almost immediately the ponies in the room began to rush around, grabbing their equipment and weapons to prepare for the mission.

Blue would sit up from his own bed and walk over to his locker, grabbing his undersuit to change into, as well as any other things he may need. Upon doing so he would rush to the power armor holding room, grabbing his suit and slipping into it. He had only ever been in test armor before, so being in the real thing felt so different. The tightness around the legs and wings, how heavy his wings began to feel, the heat he felt upon putting the helmet on. It was unlike anything he prepared himself for. He would make his way to the yard, strapping his laser rifle on his back and removing his helmet so he could get some breathing room. Everyone prepared for what was about to come differently. Most found a partner and did a little horizontal tango. Some tried to find the one pony in each section who stashed low-grade fuel in case of this exact situation. Some took a nap or just talked with friends. But no matter how it was dealt with it, they were all just trying to ignore what it meant until the time came to get serious again.

"How are we doing?" Gem would ask, the stallion approaching in his own PA, however, unlike Blue's it seemed to be more of a heavy set. Larger and with extra protection on the helmet.

"Well everything seems to be going alright, but I don't know any more than you do." Blue answered, the stallion looking to him with a smile. “You ever done this before?” he asked him.

“This is my fourth,” Jax told him. “But honestly, I’ve never been on the front line. I just come in after to mop up any enemies that couldn’t stay in the air.” He looked over at Blue with a strange look, like he didn’t understand, so he clarified. “If they get damaged but land safely and still shoot at us, my section goes in and takes them out. So usually one or two max.”

"Ohhh so your usually backup...got it" Blue said. “Well, at least you aren’t sitting here doing nothing” he admitted and grinned.

That got a laugh out of Jax, Blue feeling a little proud of managing to at least show him a good time before the mission. It may not have been the healthiest way to do it, but he felt plenty fine with how he was handling it. Besides, he was probably hovering around him considering he was the only pony Gem knew besides his sister.

Eventually everyone was standing at attention in the hangar. Nobody said a word, nobody moved a muscle; they all just stared across the lake to the mainland, waiting for the commanding officer to give the all-clear. A single door flew open, but before anyone could call attention, General Misty Dawn calmly walked over in her PA and faced the group.

"Alright ponies, you know your mission and you know your objective. Once we take off I want you all to split into groups of two or three. Locate the scientist and then radio over the coms your location. If you are attacked, jumped, or ambushed you will send an SOS signal to any pony nearby, am I clear?"

"Yes Ma'am!" Everypony shouted.

"Good, then let's get a move on!" she said, slipping her helmet on, and following that everypony else would do the same. Blue would begin to feel his wingbeats kept him suspended above the rotting visage of the Wasteland, the shell of his power armor guarding his body against the cold beneath the cloud cover, His light grey wings being the only exposed part of his body. Even the air he breathed was filtered through a respirator, a necessary precaution given the dangers of the ever-present magical radiation.

Given his patrol zone, he’d be lucky to even see any ponies, if they could still be called that at least. While he did get a close encounter with some of the ponies on his date with Gem, he’d never actually gotten close to a wasteland enough to have a one-on-one conversation, though he’d had plenty of opportunities to view them from a distance on the rare occasion he was on base survalence. The sheer barbarity of what he saw disgusted him, though he couldn’t help but sympathize with the seemingly normal ponies on the surface. he couldn’t help but wonder what it was like down here, but he doubted he’d ever know. It was a miracle that any of them had survived as he’d been shocked by the fact that any of them were alive at all, though that wore off quickly.

His musings were interrupted by the crackle of his radio, his ears perking up as soon as he heard the distinctive sound.

“Hay Blue?, uh, I think I’ve got something to the north?”

He spared a moment to glance to the right, looking over at his partner, Hazy. He’d been quiet for most of their flight, taking in the sight of the surface. He couldn’t blame him. He slowed his flight, cocking his head as he looked at him.

“Care to be a bit more specific than that?” He hovered alongside him, his unsure voice distorted by the helmet’s microphone.

“I’m hearing some pretty heavy gunfire…” Hazy said "You think it worth investigating?"

"I highly doubt it's anything to be concerned about...from what others have been saying that's quite frequent down here..." Blue said, sighing "Besides, we are about 10 miles from the cave, this isn't the target destination."

Suddenly, Haze stopped and leaned forward slightly, narrowing his eyes to make out an object through his helmet. The familiar magical glint of a horn peeked out from a hole in a tree, across an old overgrown dirt path. A spark of realization jolted the stallion, as he called out to the others in his radio “I have eyes on the target!”

Blue did a quick double-check, and sure enough there it was, the Unicorn. “Good shit, Haze,” Blue responded. “Let’s get this Unicorn pushed into a corner and await the others.”

“Got it” The stallion said as evenly as he could, trying to keep the idea that he was being patronized from taking over.

The two ponies made their way to the other side of the path methodically; Blue sprinted across while Haze covered him until all group members were soon enough on point. The Unicorn target, having seen the Pegasi fly down had retreated to an old sniper tower and was bunkering down in it.

"Right then, good work you two on spotting the target." Topaz said, as she walked past Blue and Haze. Blue himself felt a slight sense of pride in himself as he looked up at the sniper tower. It was a bit odd for a Unicorn to hide from the Enclave in a sniper tower out of all structures, but a desperate pony will do what it does to survive.

"Attention, this is the Enclave Recon Corps. We have you surrounded and will use force if necessary. Do yourself a favor and surrender." Topaz said in an authoritative voice.

The unicorn's head popped out of the tower. He was white with a yellow mane, dirty, and covered in blood and scars. He looked at the group of ponies and just...stared at them...with his green eyes.

"Are all surface dwellers like this?" Blue asked, turning his head to Gem who had walked up next to the stallion. "You'd think they would be smart and just listen..."

"Hm..." Gem softly hummed, the stallion looking back up to the tower.

“H-Hey, uh guys? hh gotta contact down the ol’ path, distance, 100!” Haze shouted, all pegasi immediately sprang into action, taking cover behind trees next to the path and bushes.

“Please don’t be more surface dwellers…” Topaz muttered, shooting a glance at General Misty Dawn, who gave the slightest shrug in return, then watched Gem as he peeked around a tree.

“The last time I checked, surface dwellers don’t glow from the eyes,” Blue said in a low voice, settling back behind his cover. Three ponies approached the group with glowing green eyes, and slight smirks.

“Pull back more, and be absolutely silent.” Misty said, moving further and further away from the path; no sooner had Blue’s tail rounded a tree than the others heard activity coming from the radio. Blue could just barely make it out as hoofsteps and muttering, before the noises stopped abruptly. All he could hear were the “normal” noises of the wasteland.

"What the hell are those three ponies doing, are they wanting a death wish?" Haze said, looking at Blue.

"How should I know, this is the first time I've ever even seen glowing green eyes on ponies.." Blue said, looking back to the ponies who were now looking up at the Unicorn target, who then began to climb down the ladder and approach the other ponies with a rather confident body language.

"Ma'am is this a trap or some shit?" Blue looked at Topaz, who looked at Misty.

"Impossible, that would suggest they knew we were coming..."

"So what do we do then?" Topaz asked her, the mare keeping her weapon locked on the ponies.

"We outnumber them seven to three, we should be fine taking on three wasties." Misty said.

Blue however noticed something off about the body language of the two stallions. “What are they looking back at us for…?” He said, the stallion confused slightly. CLIK. Blue's ears twitched upon hearing that.

CLIK CLIK.

“Whoa. Rad counter’s going off.” Topaz said, the noise shocked Blue, making her tunnel vision on it. Every click reverberated in his body; this wasn’t like being shown a recording or diagram of how it sounded/functioned. This was real, and the frequency of clicks was climbing steadily.

CLIK. CLIKCLIK CLIK. CLIKCLIK CLIKCLK.

The sound of the counter masked the way the group had approached the unicorn from behind. A slow, predatory pace, with measured steps and care taken to not make any noise.

CLKCLK CLIK CLIK. CLKCLKCLIK. CLIK CLIK CLIK CLK.

“Geez, it’s getting worse. Is there a radioactive zone we weren’t briefed on?” Haze said, Blue didn’t respond, his gaze still fixated on the three ponies and the Unicorn target, who were now all sporting glowing green eyes.

CLIKCLIK CLIKCLK CLKCLK CLIK CLIKCLKCLKCLIK. CLKCLKCLK.

“Misty, what do you think would cause a spike—” Was all Topaz managed to get out, before both of their rad counters really started screaming.

CLKCLKCLKCLKCLIKCLIIKCLKCLKICLKCLKCLKCILKCLKCLKICLKCILKCLKCLKCLKCLKCLKCLKCILKCLKICLKCLKCLKCLKCLKCLKCLKCLKCLKCLKICLKCLIKCLKCLKCLKCILKCLKCILKICLKCLKCLIKCLK.

A shadow fell over the group of pegasi, stopping Blue in his own tracks as he looked up to see what was casting it, but felt himself get slammed back hard. Blue could only watch as a bright green blur crashed into the ground in front of him, separating the light gray stallion from the target. The push caused him to stumble and land face-first in the dirt, but Blue quickly recovered. What he saw before him was something out of a nightmare, even worse than what the Enclave had taught him lived beneath the clouds. "Th-These are surface dwellers?!” Blue spluttered.

Before the group was a tall lanky buglike creature, its eyes glowing green. Holes in all of its legs and its mane and tail an insect-like coating, it sported wings and a daggered-like horn. Soon the other ponies suddenly began to glow green, as the three ponies and the Unicorn target were surrounded in a glowing flash of green, before their appearance resembled the taller creature before Blue, though less imposing and looking more like footmen. Their glowing eyes had no irises or pupils, making it hard to tell what had their attention.

“Stay back you fucking bugs!” Blue said in a much higher voice than intended, chills going down his spine every time the creature drew a labored breath. He found himself backing away, wings extended. This wasn’t part of his plan at all!

"General what the hell are those things?!" Hazy shouted as he pointed a gun at the taller one, the now four footsoldiers approaching the group.

"This is impossible, those things are supposed to be long dead!" Topaz shouted looking at Misty.

"Changelings..." Misty gritted through her teeth, the mare aiming her gun at the taller one "Identify yourself now!!"

The taller Changeling looked to Misty, chuckling softly "Well well well...it has been quite some time since we have seen ponies...let alone a large group like this~"

"Oh can we please take them my queen?~ Pleaaase~" One of the other lings said.

"Patience my child...you will get to feed soon~" The queen said, looking at Misty and approaching her "I am Queen Metamorph...you have approached my hive's location...and I'm afraid to say it has been ages since we last fed~"

"Like hell you're gonna feed on us!" Blue shouted, the stallion picking himself up a bit as he stood firm.

"Yeah what he said!" Haze shouted "We ain't gonna fall to some fucking bugs like you!"

The queen let out a sinister laugh as she scanned the group of ponies "Oh I love it when they fight back~" She said smirking "Attack them! Take them all prisoner!!"

"ERC, SPLIT UP AND RONDAVU AT THE MEETINGPOINT!!" Misty shouted as she took off into the air, a Changeling quickly following her as the rest of the group took off, simultaneously shooting into the air, Blue looking to Gem, who was looking to him as well, as both of them took off together, being followed by two lings.

Blue was fast to his hoofs, albeit bleeding from a nasty gash to the left side of his face, and the surrounding sections of his helmet were missing. But that bug, that worthless undeserving piece of garbage, was still after them, and Blue wasn't going to let himself be taken by any kind of creature, let alone a near-extinct bug.

There were about ten thousand things Blue wanted to do. Most of them involved telling Gem he should split off away from him for his own safety; a couple even went as far as Blue laughing at the situation to try and seem less nervous. But in the end, he settled on a simple “Fuck you, ya bloody fuckers!” with all of the venom he could slather onto it, and started his takeoff run away from the scene with Gem. The lings started to follow them, unfolding their deteriorated wings and making guttural noises, but were distracted by rocks hitting the head of the largest one. It immediately turned around at the thrower, who had gotten back on his hooves in a crouched position.

“Didn’t you want a piece of me first?!” Topaz growled, her taunt evoking howls of rage from the wretched beings in front of her. She then broke into a gallop towards the woods, away from the point and in the opposite direction the other pegasi had gone. The largest and smallest changelings followed her, while the third flew after Blue and Gem. Blue ignored the pain in his face, focusing on bracing himself for an even bigger lurch of acceleration as he sped up. It was like the whole world was a little sharper, a little more colorful when Blue flew. It just felt better. No longer was he stuck on the ground, he could move in any direction he wanted. A sense of absolute freedom.

That wasn’t the case with the route he and gem took in the escape.

Blue never found a chance to pour on the straight-line speed he wanted, and had to resort to tight turns around the seemingly infinite number of trees. He still did this quickly of course, but he wasn’t gaining the ground on the changelings, a point that was made when Gem stopped on a large branch to survey the forest behind them.

“Was…Was that enough to lose them?” He panted looking to Gem, unable to control the involuntary blinking of the eye adjacent to his cut. As if to answer his question, the changeling rose up before him, like a miniature green sun, teeth barring and ready to draw more blood. The gray stallion missed getting his face carved up by a hair, his momentum carrying him off the branch into freefall. This didn’t throw Blue off guard though; he simply extended his wings and let gravity do the rest. The Changeling, now joined by its partner, lurched itself into the air and followed the two pegasus, clumsily yet determined. Again, Blue had to focus more on agility than pure speed; ducking and weaving between branches, kicking off of trunks to quickly change angles, and avoiding anything that’d get in his way. All of this, plus the disregard for the same obstacles, meant his pursuers could gain on him.

"This isn’t working!" Gem shouted.

"We need to split up now! Meet at the rondeavu!" Blue said to him.

"Not without you!!"

"Fuck me! we both have a better chance at living if we split up!" Blue shouted His strategy had to change.

"You better not fucking die on me!!" Gem said as he took a sharp shot upwards, causing one of the Changelings to follow him.

Taking advantage of a particularly crowded section of forest, Blue put enough cover between himself and the remaining changeling to attempt to hide. The crunching of wood against flesh quickly subsided, and he let himself breathe some. It was probably best to travel on the ground, albeit in cover, so he darted from bush to bush to avoid being spotted. Upon passing through his third or fourth, the pegasus was greeted with a gruesome sight. Haze...his partner...in full power armor, had been torn to bits by…by something. Blood, feathers, and entrails coated every surface the soldier was on, painting the scene in horrifying shades of red, pink, and gray. All Blue could do was scream; this was worse than any nightmare he had had. At least those he could wake up from and maybe move on from them within a couple of days, but this…he wouldn’t forget this.

As much as Blue wanted to look away from the gore, his gaze was locked on it. Locked on it hard enough to only just notice the shadows and teeth arcing towards him from behind. Once again, the Changeling swiped empty air, as their prey rolled away and sprinted into another takeoff.

“Luna fucking goddess are they ever going to give up!!” The young stallion managed to mutter in between breaths. Then, almost as if the forest listened to him, Blue could see an opening in the canopy. Freedom. "‘Bout damn time" he thought, adding power to his flaps and climbing through the hole. He shot up, continuing to climb completely vertically. "If…if I can make these damn things stall, they’ll just fall back into the forest and I can find my way back above the rondevu" Blue said to himself, trying to rationalize the potentially dangerous maneuver to himself. "Ngh…I just have to outlast them in a vertical climb…COME ON!" Sweat poured in buckets, and his muscles started to scream as they burned, but Blue pushed towards the clouds. Below him, the technique seemed to be working; the wings on the Changeling gave out, and it spun ungracefully down towards the trees. But the stallion had underestimated the speed of these things, as suddenly another ling jumped out from the side and as he turned around at the peak of his climb, he was greeted with the sight of teeth that had tasted his blood, and wanted more.

CRASH!

The two collided and started to drop back down to earth. Blue, head ringing from the hit, struggled to pry himself from the Changeling's grip and avoid another bite at his body. He managed to avoid most of the attack, but there was a hard buck to his armor, drawing another gash from the bottom of his neck to the middle of his chest. He yelled and kicked hard, striking and breaking the wing root of his assailant. The Changeling wailed and released him out of reflex, unable to quickly regain its hold on the pegasus. Another kick sent Blue tumbling away from the ling, saving him from one threat but introducing another. The tussle had dropped them much lower than either combatant could recover from, and even as Blue tried pulling up, he hurtled through the canopy. White-hot pain erupted all over his body as trees caught his wings, torso, and legs; breaking more than just his fall. The last thing the pegasus stallion saw before slamming into the ground was a bed of unusually blue flowers, standing out from the rest of the forest floor.