Fallout Equestria: Wounded Hare

Sitting here, I still tremble at what I have just committed. Yet, I can hardly remember much of it. The Applejack whiskey certainly isn’t helping. But, I’ll start at the beginning, of why I’m here.

I was once a part of the Lunar Crescent Army, the militant arm of the rising Lunar Crescent Commune. A once small settlement of unicorns grew into its own small nation-state, where their worship of Luna is at the core. Known as the Lunar Mother’s Gospel Commune. The Commune is massive compared to many settlements, even some attempted governments after the Great War. Having several thousand ponies under their influence across the Wasteland, with unicorns being the ones that they consider the most superior. While they consider unicorns the most superior, they know that relying on Unicorns alone wouldn’t be enough to spread the word of Luna’s Gospel. Dividing into Sects in different regions of the Wasteland, where they recruit ponies through words or swords. I was a part of the latter. I didn’t have a choice in joining them, but that was because I was a young unicorn. Otherwise, my head would’ve been splattered on the cracked pavement of Manhattan. I was only sixteen when they took me, having only left home a few months prior with a caravan to see the world.

Well, see the world, I did. Having been taken into Crescent ranks, I was fed, clothed, educated, and ultimately indoctrinated into their ways. After my initial years of training until the age of eighteen, I was sent to my first frozen hell. Stalliongrad, where the Crescents waged war against what I once thought were solar cult savages. Due to my experience in that campaign and the objectives I helped achieve, I was requested by name to help out this new Sect that wanted to head into the far northwest. To a city, that was barely touched comparatively to the rest of the Wasteland. Vanhoofer.

I was sent here with a decently sized squadron of ponies, twenty or so if my count was correct. It was a part of a recon group from the 112th Hunting Corps. They were made up of the non-commune-born Crescents, originally wastelanders who were taken in as outsiders who proved themselves through their dedication and loyalty in combat and to the Lunar Gospel in their hearts and rose through the ranks. That was the most surefire way to ensure you were supplied with better gear in the Crescent Arsenal. Better than the crudely made bolt action rifles that non-unicorn conscripts were forced to use.

That gear also included access to vehicles repurposed from the old Equestrian Army. Repaired, refueled, and rearmed, these hulking beasts transported small numbers of troops to hard-to-reach places such as Vanhoofer. The convoy I was a part of had three vehicles, troop transports, and supply trucks full of Crescent-made ammunition and food.

I remember standing on the side of the road when they picked me up at the Manehatten Operational Base; they threw me towards the rear troop transport vehicle. Covered in white paint and white camo tarps over the back, it looked like a white brick on wheels. It was also my first time actually being able to ride on one of the few working vehicles. We made our way through the Wasteland either through the retrofitted troop trains or by hoof. Seeing these made my stomach sink.

I climbed to see the squad of twenty or so ponies sitting on the bench seats. Many were either sleeping, smoking, or shooting the shit with each other. My presence quieted them while their mouths weren’t saying anything; their eyes eyed me like a chew toy. That was when my gut feeling was right that these ponies were no good.

The trip up here had taken several days, often stopping due to engine malfunctions or needing to replace the sparkle batteries that powered the ancient machines. In my hooves was a book about a knight taken on the filthy hordes of Zebras and their gryphon collaborators; having grown up near Zebras in the southern plains of Equestria, I knew it was mostly hogwash. I have read this book so many times, I practically knew the pages by heart even knew the pages of specific scenes. It was one of my keepsakes from Stalliongrad. Well, the only keepsake I wanted to keep.

I was so engrossed in the well-turned pages that as we entered the mountains near Vanhoofer, we began to slow to a crawl. At first, I thought it was just another engine failure, but the toothy grin of the Platoon Sergeant by the name of Steel Knuckle told me otherwise. The dull cyan unicorn with a flashy steel grey mane stood up and bellowed, “Alright, Gentlecolts, I’ve got some news for you, sorry lot.”

Steel Knuckle walked down the aisle, looking at each of us, pointing at random ponies with an indication to get ready. I was hoping to be left out of whatever plan this stallion had, but those thoughts were dashed when his hoof pointed at me. “Those I selected will participate in an early Hearth’s warming gift given to us by our friendly neighborhood Vulture unit. Get ready for a hike! That means you too, new Fish.”

The grins on everyone’s faces upon saying those words gave me chills. They were excited as if they were wolves finding a wounded deer. They smelt blood, and they wanted to feast.

A few moments later, the truck slowly came to a stop, and everyone filed out and began checking their gear. When everyone was good to go, the convoy started to leave. Lt. Knuckle looked at the vehicles while they continued up the road before gazing towards the eight ponies he selected, making ten of us. We all got in line with our gear as he inspected all of us, spouting confidently. “We will be heading up this mountain through the pass, checking out a small village marked for…” He paused, thinking of a word. “Harvest.” I felt my heart beat like a drum on the inside of my armor. “We will meet up with the convoy in approximately three days after we have done our little side mission.” He got us into patrol formation with a whistle and a hoof twirl.

I was set to take my position in the rear, but Lt. Knuckle stopped me with a magic hand. “You’ll be next to me, New Fish. I’ll be sure to teach you everything on our way up there.” If I could feel anything in my legs but the cold, dread would surely take its place. I didn’t want to be with these ponies in the first place, let alone on a mission with them. I didn’t like the way they all seemed eager for a fight. If I didn’t know any better, these ponies would look like raiders from the bloodlust in their eyes.

The journey took about one and a half days, only stopping in a small cave for rest during a bad storm blowing through. The entire time Steel Knuckles told me things I already knew, combat formations and protocols. Even getting into some of his illicit exploits of peddling Dash and other chems to the bottom feeder caste. Bottom feeders, that name for the ponies at the bottom of the caste system, always bothered me. I ignored it, just trying to make it through this and figure out what assignment I’m needed for in Vanhoofer. Eventually, we came atop the crest of a hill; I could see the large wooden gate made of felled trees and logs that made up the entrance of a village. My heart sank at the sight enough that my legs buckled, plunging my ass into the cold fluffy snow.

Lt. Knuckle came beside me where I sat, taking a pair of binos from his vest. Glassing the village, that yellow toothy grin of his appeared once more. “Take a look through your scope, New Fish. Tell me what you see.” He ordered, patting me on the back.

Putting the optic of the old Equestrian sniper rifle to my eye, I told him all I saw. It was a small village, hidden from the rest of the world. It was a small series of cabins with a larger, longer hut-type cabin, a large open front door, and ancient wood making its foundation. There was a small school, from what I saw, and a few children were there. This was a thriving tiny village, hunting and farming where they could. The gate of the village wall was impressive and sturdy. But, they were lightly armed, boasting two guards at the entrance. They looked more well-trained, possibly mercs. He grinned at my assessment. “Good, New Fish. Now, follow my lead, and this will go smoothly.”

Keeping the grin plastered on his face, he looked at the other soldiers in the formation. He bellowed, “We are humble Guests.” And with that, as if with a switch, everyone’s blood-thirsty demeanor vanished, and they acted as if they were just being careful.

We would head down, keeping rifles at the low ready while walking. We just looked like a band of mercs roaming around. The group began to disperse, pretending to be sloppy with their movements and weapons handling. I realized they were wolves in sheep’s clothing as we marched towards the gate ahead of us.

The guards at the gate looked up from their conversation and pointed their rifles at us. We scared them a bit, considering our uniforms and camouflage. One of them put out a hoof, keeping his rifle trained on Lt. Knuckles. “Halt! Who are you, and why are you here?!” The guard was clearly taken back by our presence, not used to ponies wandering up here.

Clearing his throat, Lt. Knuckle bowed. “My name is Steel Knuckles. I am afraid that my companions and I are a bit lost in these mountains. We are trying to make our way towards Vanhoofer. Would you happen to know the way?”

“It’s a two-week walk from here to the west. Now scram! Before we feed you to the timberwolves!” the second guard interjected, trying to sound intimidating, but by the looks of it, he was relatively young—maybe just a hair over eighteen. My dread grew further as I said nothing.

Lt. Knuckles would raise a hoof cautiously. “We mean you no harm; we would also like to stop and barter for supplies. Is there somepony I could speak to in order to arrange that?”

The older of the two guards looked at his younger partner. “Go get Broadhead. This is his decision.” The younger one looked apprehensive about leaving his partner with us. I would be, too, if I were in his situation. Seeing a bunch of heavily armed and armored ponies walking through the snow out of nowhere would get any pony spooked. “Go now, Thunder Spike!” The older one bellowed, keeping his rifle trained on Lt. Knuckles. This prompted the Thunder to quickly open the door and head in. Leaving it slightly ajar, I saw the ponies slowly gathering on the other side, wondering what the commotion was. I internally pleaded with them to run, to hide, but I only stayed quiet.

Lt. Knuckles kept his calm, friendly demeanor. He acted and looked like a totally different stallion than the one talking my ear off on the way up here! He wasn’t bothered by the fact that he had a rifle pointed at his face. That aura of confidence was rather unsettling. He knew that we had the upper hoof with firepower. Should I say something? Anything? I knew if I did, I would just be gunned down right here like it was nothing.

After some uncomfortable silence, with the guard training his rifle on us, the other returned with a very elderly pony. His weathered face and narrow eyes told me he lived here his whole life. The picture of a Broadhead tipped arrow crossed with a bow made me think he was a great hunter. “My name is Broadhead; with whom am I speaking?” He said.

“Steel Knuckles, Mr. Broadhead. We are a small band of independent mercenaries looking to make our way to Vanhoofer. Just some honest ponies looking for some honest work.” Lt. Knuckles replied with a polite bow of his head.

“Well, I’m sure Thunder or Butter would be able to point you gentlecolts in the right direction,” Broadhead said, eyeing everyone in front of him. His eyes settling on me, I tried to plead with my eyes to shew us away. To tell us to screw off anything. But he didn’t seem to notice it.

“Well, they have done so, and we are grateful for the directions. But, since it is a rather longer trip than expected, we are running short on supplies and would be indebted to you if we could do some trade.” Lt. Knuckles said, spinning the tale further. Putting a lot of truth into the lie seemed like second nature to him. The trip was longer than expected, but he was leaving out the fact that we had a supply chain coming back for us on our journey down the mountain.

He pondered this for a second before sighing. “Well, Rock Candy is a bit late this month and we could use the extra supplies. Especially ammunition; if you can spare some of that, then we could do some trade.” I was shocked at how open the old stallion was; he didn’t see the evil before him. This made the stallion guard named Butter take a deep breath and lower his rifle, following the limping stallion back into the village. Opening the gates for all of us.

Lt. Knuckles would smile, holding back his cruel smirk. “That is something we have spades in. We would be happy to give you some ammunition. Isn’t that right, boys?” He would say, looking back to all of us. We walked in tight formation while we entered the village, all of the villagers either gathering to our sides or looking through their windows to stare at us with wonder. My heart was thumping with anticipation; I wanted to call out to them. To run, to hide, to get weapons, and to fight. But with the click of his tongue, which perked the ears of everyone in the platoon. Lt. Knuckles would draw his pistol, uttering not a single word as he fired into the back of Broadhead’s skull. His face is devoid of emotion, but the glee signals the beginning of the slaughter.

Everything began to run in slow motion; the two mercs guarding Broadhead were quickly shot down before they could react. The entire village was engulfed in chaos, and everyone in our group began blindly firing on the villagers. Sending splattered blood and viscera against the ancient wood and stonework. The ones that ran were shot in the back; the ones that were hiding in their homes were dragged out by their manes and hide legs, only to be put down with rounds to the head once they were revealed not to be unicorns. The few that did put up a fight, armed with only hunting rifles and a few rusty assault rifles, were quickly snuffed out by the barrage of return fire. This squad of the 112th Hunting Corps didn’t spare any ammunition, peppering ponies to the point of being unrecognizable flesh heaps.

Once houses were quickly searched and all occupants either dragged or out killed, the houses were set ablaze with lighters and the flamer that was with us. While it felt like an eternity, time was only felt with each of my heartbeats as I sat there and watched. It was over in a matter of minutes; the bodies of the villagers covered the ground, turning the frozen earth red from their weeping blood. Only a few were spared from the carnage; the ones spared were the youngest. Taken from their homes and having their parents shot in front of them…

My ears rang from the pistol that Lt. Knuckles fired, I saw everything unfold, and I couldn’t do a single thing to stop it… I would get slaughtered like these villagers and left to freeze in rigor mortis. The saying my father told me growing up popped into my head then. ‘Life before virtue, you can’t save everyone, only yourself.’ That didn’t make me feel any better; it only made me feel like what I truly was at that moment.

A coward. Luna, have mercy…

The squad members that survived began to loot, shooting any survivors and feasting upon this village’s last meal. The food was still hot from the ovens now engulfed in flames and ash. They all smiled and laughed at the fate of these poor villagers as if this was a vacation and stress relief. These ponies’ lives were nothing to these animals; they were feasting on an easy kill.

I was stuck in my own thoughts, standing where I was when the massacre started. I didn’t hear Lt. Knuckles approaching from behind. With a harsh grip, he took my rifle from my magic and checked the chamber, still oiled and clean. He realized I didn’t fire a single shot on his command. “New Fish, why didn’t you follow the order?”

I stuttered as I tried to think of a response. “I-I... What order, sir?” I managed to meek out.

“The order to kill these fucking troglodytes, New Fish. Are you fucking stupid?” He shouted; he bulked his more immense mass over me to encase me in his shadow. Then, a whistle drew our attention; the source was Lt. Knuckle’s second in command, Sstg. Willow.

“Hey boss, the round ups are at the school and waiting.” Willow shouted over the crackling fires next to him. I could barely see him through the smoke, but I could make out the shape of the school behind him. Lt. Knuckles huffed before his expression changed, and he turned his gaze back to me.

“New Fish, I might have been too harsh on you. Since this is your first outing with a real Crescent unit, I’ll give you a way to pop that stubborn cherry of yours. Consider this a courtesy not many outside our unit get to enjoy.” My heart began to be at a million paces a second; enjoy? What did he mean by cherry? Is he... Oh no…

Keeping my rifle as we trotted past the burning corpses and house fires. The smoke burnt my lungs, but that stench is something that I will never forget. The heat of the fire, popping and blistering the corpses of villagers who were alive not even twenty minutes ago, stung my soul. I did notice that there were two of our own dead in that. Stripped of their gear and tossed aside alongside the others. My heart didn’t ache for these monsters, but all I did was keep my head down while we made our way to the school.

When we were far enough away from the fire consuming the village, I could hear the muffled crying of ponies… not just ponies but fillies and colts. Willow stood over them with a rifle pointed at their backs while they knelt against the stonewall foundation of the school. Their hooves bound behind their backs at painful angles; I could see blood seeping past the thin twine that kept them there. I felt something hot in my chest at the sight, despair rolling over to something else.

“Are these all the children that we could find, Willow?” Lt. Knuckles asked.

“I’m afraid so, boss, and they don’t meet the criteria of our quota,” Willow responded, checking over the oldest of the five children with a jab of his rifle. The filly squeaked in fear before the bag began to moisten from her tears, which quickly froze.

I looked at the two Stallions having their casual conversation. “Quota?” I asked, trying to hide the growing anger in my voice.

“That’s right,” Willow responded. “Command tells us that if we find ponies who don’t meet our criteria and are too far away from a Sect HQ for reclamation and reeducation, we liquidate. Don’t need wannabe heroes trying to interfere with Crescent operations now do we? Pretty sweet gig if you ask me.” He finished with a shallow laugh.

“That’s enough, Willow. You’re not the only one that is allowed to have fun. I’ve decided that our New Fish here will pop his cherry by finishing our little mission here. Give him your rifle; I want to see if this New Fish can handle a real rifle.”

“If you say so, Boss.” Willow came over and pushed the rifle into my hooves. “Don’t drop it, or you’ll join the trash in the fire.” He whispered, pushing me towards the backs of the children before he trotted to stand next to Lt. Knuckles. A shit-eating grin on both of them. Looking back at the two, I couldn’t even tell who they were against the backdrop of the fire. They were just silhouettes made of smoke and shadow. Yet, I could see their grins. The sight caused the heat in my chest to overtake me, getting hotter than the flames surrounding us.

I looked down at the children in front of me, fillies and colts no older than nine. Just starting their lives in a relatively peaceful place. The rifle in my magic felt almost too heavy to hold, threatening to slip loose. It trembled in my grip as I looked down at it.

“Luna… Celestia… please help us…” I heard the oldest filly mutter.

“I…” I couldn’t think of the words to say; what could I say?

“Come on, New Fish. We don’t have all day. Just take out the tra-” Lt. Knuckle began to say, but I couldn’t hear what else he said. My heart felt like it stopped before I turned, pointing the rifle at him. Everything began to slow in what my first Lt called Combat Focus. Adrenaline coursing through my veins, my magic slipped the fire selector to fully automatic. To say Lt. Knuckles was surprised would be an understatement, but it didn’t last long. With the first pull of the trigger, a bullet pierced his head. After his body limply hit the ground, Willow, in a state of panic, tried to fumble with my rifle. Putting a burst of rounds lacing up his torso, piercing my old rifle in the process. I gave him the fate that he least deserved. A quick death. I began to move towards the rest of the squad, hearing shouts of concern. The anger at my own inaction and cowardice ignited by the pleas of the children and the mockery of my now former brothers in arms. I don’t remember anything after those initial steps; I blacked out in rage as my body went into autopilot.

I wasn’t sure for how long I was unconscious for, but enough time had passed that somepony else had arrived. This was evident by the rifle muzzle pointed at my face. Entangled with the cold and sweat, I could sense the familiar stickiness of blood soaking my fatigues. My body ached; it hurt to breathe. I knew I had gotten shot a few times, my armor taking the blows for most of them. Trying to peek my head up, I only got an angry shout. “Don’t you dare fucking move! Move a single hair, and I’ll have you join your buddies!” The muzzle of the cold rifle pressed against my cheek, pinning my head against the ground. I didn’t dare move like he said. My vision began to focus; behind the rifle was a weathered earth pony in leather barding.

Another set of hoof steps crunching through the snow approached; I couldn’t see who it was. It’s not like I could try to look if I wanted to. “Candy, we got a live one here! He looks to be one of the fucks who killed the villagers.” A gruff-sounding stallion shouted away from us.

I heard more hoof steps approaching, but before I could try and look, I was flipped over to my back. Both sets of my hooves were tightly bound together before I was roughly thrown against a smoldering stone foundation to sit up.

In front of me were five ponies… and a brahmin? Three of them had their rifles pointed at me. All of them dawned with cold resistance cowls, goggles, and bardings. Then it hit me, these were caravan guards that traded out here. The one approaching was the smallest of them all, but her face was out, the valleys that creased her face showing the years of weathering she had endured out here. I could make out the soft bubble gum pink coat underneath the soot that covered everypony here.

Her eyes blazed with a burning anger that could’ve melted the snow around us. Silently crunching through the snow, she stopped before me and lowered herself to my eye level. “You’re going to tell me everything that happened here. Every Celestia damned detail, I want to know why one of my best customers is dead and who else is responsible.” She looked up at the guard next to her, the rifle still pointed at my head. “Shoot him when I say so.” She turned back to me. “If you lie even a little, your head will be splattered against the wall.” This wasn’t a threat but a very, very serious promise.

“Where do I start?” I asked, making sure there was no playfulness or sarcasm.

She pondered this for a moment, sitting on her haunches. “Who are you, why are you here, and who are you with.”

“My name is Jack Rabbit, I’m…” I paused, trying to make the words come out. The reality of my situation slowly came crashing down on me. I took a deep breath before continuing. “I used to be with the Lunar Crescent Army, the militant arm of the Lunar Crescent Commune. I was sent here to go to a newly established Sect of the Crescent army based in Vanhoofer, but the squad I was transiting with decided to take a detour for their own sick games.” I gestured with my head around us.

The mare that the guard referred to as Candy quirked an upwards eyebrow. “What do you mean used too?”

I stared her in the eyes; defiance and confidence returned at this next set of words. “I killed the ponies of my squad who were responsible for this massacre.”

“Why didn’t you stop them beforehand? You could’ve prevented all of this! You knew this would happen! Didn’t you!?” One of the guards interjected, getting closer and pushing the barrel of a revolver into my nose. “Why shouldn’t I just blow your brains out right fu-”

“Enough, Batter!” Candy barked. “Killing him right now won’t bring your sister back. We need answers, and we can deal with him afterward.” I felt another sting crest against my soul at her words.

“He is right, you know,” I muttered, looking down. They both looked at me in sync. “I thought about trying to warn the villagers and speaking up but knew that would only have kicked it off sooner and with me dead. I understand why you’re angry, but I didn't have any part in it, for Luna’s sake!”

The guard named Batter grunted. “oh, you’re a filthy fucking yellow-bellied coward who stood by and did nothing as if that makes up for all of this. You're just as guilty as the bastards who pulled the triggers.” He gestured to the smoldering remains of huts and houses around us, ending on the pile of smoking skeletons and burnt flesh.

“Enough, Batter, go look after the Brahmin. Have Solvent go search the houses for any survivors.” Candy ordered with an even voice. He looked taken aback by that, but with a huff, he obeyed and left. Candy sighed while she turned her gaze back to me. “Do you know of any survivors that they missed?””

Smiling slightly, I nodded my head. “That was the one good thing I could do from all of this. I managed to save a group of fillies and colts from the carnage. My former lieutenant wanted me to slaughter them as a sort of rite of passage.” I spat at the very mere mention of the lieutenant. “That’s when I started battling my former squadmates. They were near the school last I checked, I don’t remember much after the shooting started.”

Candy turned her head towards a pony poking through rubble. “Solvent, head towards the school; there are kids there.”

“On it, ma’am!” Solvent said, dashing off behind the building and out of sight.

Candy turned back and leaned closer, reading my face as I spoke, before she asked a question that I was really prepared for. “Why did you save them?””

Then, a word I remember reading a lot growing up popped up in my head; it was always in those books my mother read me when I was a colt. The ones about ancient knights who fought against evil. “Honor.”” I said, falling silent for a moment before continuing. “That kept me from becoming one of those evil bastards that led me up here. Even then, it doesn’t make up for my own inaction.”

Her eyebrow rose up again, trying to get a read on if I was bullshitting her on that. Sighing, she stood back up and motioned for one of the guards to come close. “Get the kids over here once you find them. I want to check something out.”

I was left sitting there for a while after she trotted off to speak with her guards about what to do with me. I looked up at the cloud cover, watching the darkness overhead flow around in the misty swirls. My chest felt heavy staring at the darkness: I yurned to see the stars and the moon. As I was letting my mind wander, I heard a filly cry out in joy; it dragged my attention down to see the oldest filly from earlier nearly tackling Batter from earlier. They hugged in embrace, I wondered why then it clicked. It was his sister that he thought died in the carnage. It felt bittersweet knowing that I at least helped a pony who needed it.

I saw Candy kneel down to the filly, quickly crowded by the others. Each of them was crying and hugging the ponies of the caravan. They started talking for a while. Candy pointed a hoof in my direction before she fully stood. She trotted over with the children in tow, looking back at them. “Is this the Stallion that saved you?” She asked, and all of the kids started nodding their heads.

The oldest one came up to me a bit sheepishly before wrapping her legs around me in a hug. “Thank you mister…” I didn’t know what to say; even if I did, the words wouldn’t get out as my throat began to catch. My eyes began to blur as I fought the tears that tried to escape.

Candy came over to my side after the filly pried herself off me. Candy watched her return to her brother before looking down at me. “Where do you plan to go after this?” She asked, kneeling down with a knife.

I looked at her for a moment with a raised eyebrow. “You’re letting me go?” I asked while she sliced the rope from my hoofs.

“Only because you saved the kids, especially Batter’s sister. Plus, having someone owe me something for a change would be nice. Consider yourself a lucky stallion, Mr. Rabbit.

Rubbing my legs where the ropes were tied, I looked up at her. “So, who do I owe this favor to? Never got your full name.”

She offered a hoof to me, which I gladly took. “Name’s Rock Candy.” She replied, getting me up on my hoofs. I was about to respond before a singular gunshot reverberated through the echoing mountains around us. We looked at each other before running towards the source.

Getting around the ruined central hut, we saw one of Rock Candy’s guards standing over one of the Hunter Corps members. He turned his head towards us, lowering his rifle from the fresh corpse. “Looks like you missed one. He was muttering something in this gizmo right here.” He pointed his rifle to a working radio pack laid against a tree stump. My heart immediately sank, seeing that it was active; in fact, there was somepony on the other side asking for a response.

Without thinking, I took the dead radioman’s rifle and began to bash the rifle against the radio, swinging it like a hoof ball bat by its barrel. The radio sparked and whined with each hit until it was a crumpled heap of scrap metal. Even then, I kept bashing it until the rifle stock splintered and shattered. My heart pounded as I stood there with sweat beading down my face. I looked at the caravan guard and Rock Candy. “What did they say?”” They stared at me briefly as if I was a savage beast.

“They said something about a Jack Rabbit?” The guard said apprehensively, taking a slight step back.

“FUCK!” I roared, throwing the rifle at the ground and having it clatter across the ice. I huffed and puffed as I sat on my haunches. I felt like my world was crashing all around me; not only did I kill my squad members, but the Crescents know now.

I heard the light hoofsteps of Rock Candy come up behind me. “Is everything ok?” I looked up at her, not hiding the dread in my eyes. “I’m guessing not.”

“No, everything is absolutely fucked. This piece of shit, by the radio, told the local Sect of Crescents that I betrayed them.” I uttered, dread unyielding at the impending doom this meant.

“I assume they will go after you,” Candy commented.

“They will come after me with everything they have or send a kill team to slit my throat in my sleep. Depends if they want to try me for this crime or just kill me like a dog. Which means I won’t have a wink of rest until then.” I declared. Groaning from the injuries, I got back up to my hooves. “I need to run as fast as I can and hide…”

“I’m afraid that hiding out in the mountains won’t help as much as you think.” Candy stated, motioning me to follow her with a hoof.

“Why not?” I asked, following.

She walked over to the Brahmin and began tearing into the towed cart. One of the two heads looked at me with mild curiosity, while the other couldn’t look more disinterested as it chomped on some feed. It snorted a bit and sprayed mucus and spittle on my face. Looking at it deadpanned before I wiped off my face with my sleeve. Rock Candy continued rummaging through the cart for a few moments before she took out a saddle bag and some other items. “Well, for one. You don’t know shit about these mountains; there are critters out here more dangerous than those ponies you are going to be running from.” She opened the bag and shoved a set of clothes into my hoofs; I looked down at them to see that it was a set of generic mercenary barding. “Two, the cold out here will surely kill you quicker than the animals. So, I’ll do you another favor since doing what you did has gotten you in such boiling water.””

I quickly removed my blood-soaked fatigues and promptly put on the new clothes that Rock Candy had given me. “What would that be?” I said, pushing my head through the shirt, my horn nearly getting caught on the stitching.

“I’ll show you where to hide, at least for a while; I won’t be able to get you there all of the way, but at least off the mountains.”” She then gave me a snow-covered IF-88 Assault rifle, one of the Crescent-issued ones, along with a bandoleer of magazines. “The pack is empty, but I’m sure you can scavenge enough off your kills to get by.” Finishing off the wardrobe change by flipping my mother’s scarf around my neck, I wandered back to the slaughter.

My kills… I mentally sighed, searching for the first body. Going through each of the Crescent corpses to search for anything that survived. A couple canteens, a couple MREs, a few more magazines worth of ammunition, a bayonet for the rifle, and a few other odds and ends. Enough to make it to wherever Candy wants to take me.

I returned to Candy and the others; they prepared the kids to leave. Bundled up and inside the cart, the kids were eyeing me with curiosity; I leaned down to my discarded uniform. Taking the knife to the sewing, I carefully pried off the Crescent patch that used to be on my shoulder. The crossed horns floating above a Crescent moon with the all seeing slitted eye of Luna within the shadow. She knows what I have done and even I’m not sure she will ever forgive me for what I’ve done.

“You ready?”” Candy asked at the head of the Brahmin, ready to head back down the trail they used to get up here. Their old tracks are already softly hidden underneath the ever-falling snow. The cart weighed down with what they could scavenge from the huts and bodies of the villagers. I looked back at the smoldering huts, their flames still licking the air, giving off its noxious breath trail into the night sky. It wouldn’t take the Crescents long to see where they should look first.

With a somber nod, I looked at her. “I’m ready. Let’s head out.”

It would’ve taken me a day or two to get down here by myself, but with the help of Rock Candy, we made good time. She was right about one thing, she absolutely knew these mountains. I didn’t say anything, and neither did anyone else, for that matter. What was there to really talk about? The somber mood really stuck with us all.

The few rays of dawn light cracked through the break in the horizon before it was swallowed by the cloud cover. Its brief shine cast the outline of the city before us; while small, it was there. Once my hoofs touched concrete and pavement, I knew my time with Rock Candy was ending. She reached into a pocket, took out a small paper pad, and scribbled on it with a well-chewed pencil. She tore off the page she was writing on and handed it my way. “This is the place you’ll need to head to. Once there, ask the barkeep you’d like a Green Applejack Whiskey on the trio of rocks. He will give you a place to stay, but I’m afraid the grungy bastard will have you pay for the food if he doesn’t like ya.”

I looked down at the paper in my magic, the crystal blue aura illuminating it so I could read it. 'Vanhoofer Heights Inn' "How do I get there?”

She gestured towards the road leading to the city. “You’ll head down this road; we call it the merchant’s highway due to the towns that dot this road. Be sure to keep your head down, going past some of them. There are some raiders between and an equal number of bounty hunters.”

I looked down the road, anxiety shaking its way down my legs as I saw before me was uncertainty. I looked back to Rock Candy, feeling grateful I offered a melancholic smile. “Thank you, Rock Candy. Hopefully, we will meet in better circumstances next time.”

She looked up and down, giving a soft chuckle. “I doubt it, you look like you attract trouble. You have a safe journey, Jack. I’ll be looking to call in that favor eventually.” They began to leave off in the opposite direction, heading to only Luna knows where.

It was a relatively quiet journey from then on; I avoided the bars and inns in the towns that Rock Candy told me about. I avoided them even more when I could see bounty posters with my face crudely drawn on them. The Crescents have been here and were taking every chance to find me. The price was ridiculously high at a staggering five thousand caps for my capture, but from what I could see, glassing the posters from afar with Steel Knuckles’ binos, there was nothing about a kill order. I chalked it up to being unable to read it thoroughly from the distance I was at. Hopefully, if that was the case, it would dismay many bounty hunters with an itchy trigger.

I walked, walked, and walked some more. It wasn’t until I stumbled upon an abandoned house in a small rural town that I had gotten my first sight of trouble. I was trying to lockpick a pantry for potential food to conserve my MREs when engines rumbling echoed off the valley walls and through the broken window I crawled through.

Staying silent, I slithered my way up the rotting stairs on my stomach to stay out of the sight of windows. My heart raced with the anxiety and anticipation of what those engines meant. Using my magic to take off a piece of shattered mirror, I slowly levitated it towards the bedroom window. Making a conscious effort to ignore the trio of skeletons that lay on the bed, I peered through the glass.

The mirror showed the white-painted trucks and armored vehicles with the Crescent Moon with a sword going down the center painted black for contrast. That was the wartime symbol with which they adorned all vehicles in active combat. These were the ones that I was on before Steel Knuckles had us get off to relieve his boredom. Just thinking of the bastard put a sour taste in my mouth. The troops dismounted and began to search the building next to them. I cursed, thinking that I was going to have to fight these fuckers here and now. Outnumbered, Outgunned, and nowhere to go but up sheer valley walls. I was trapped.

“Luna, if you can hear me, please, as a humble servant, protect me in this trying time.” I muttered, hoping that my prayer would be heard. As a trio of soldiers approached the front door of the house I was in, I realized I had left my bag in the kitchen. I cursed myself again as they approached the door knob. I angled myself towards the door, rifle ready. I was made the moment they opened it. I would be damned if I was taken alive, having seen the treatment the Crescent gave to prisoners; death was a better alternative.

They were talking about something I couldn’t make out before they could open the door. A scream was heard from the opposite side of the road, drawing their attention. They quickly ran in its direction before a rush of gunshots sounded. Then, it was silent; all I could hear was the blood rushing to my ears as I waited.

Then a massive roar sounded, wood and glass shattering with a fury of gunshots at something. Panic yells sounded only to be overtaken by another roar. Curious, I crawled back to the window to peek into the mirror again. What I saw astounded me, and I nearly gasped; a Yaoqai was attacking the patrol. I already saw two bodies on the ground, groaning in pain as the rest of the platoon tried to fend it off.

It didn’t last long as the Crescents, still standing, managed to take it down with unrelenting gunfire. There was a brief period where the Crescents performed triage on the wounded soldiers before putting them on gurneys and loading them onto the trucks. The convey quickly peeled off, squealing rubber as they pushed down the road at breakneck pace. My luck held, but for how long is the question.

I decided to stay here for the rest of the day and spend the night in this hovel. I managed to get into the pantry and get a few snacks, but nothing substantial. At least the haycakes taste better than the MREs I’ve been scarfing down lately. While I sat in the living room, munching away on the snacks I couldn't help but think. Will I ever be able to make it home?