Fallout Equestria: Inertia

Fallout: Equestria

Inertia

Homecoming

“I'm sorry. You're a hero... and you have to leave.”

Sunlight was gone. Instead was a sickly green cloud blanket smothering the land. The joy of Nature’s warmth is gone, shattered by the pounding rains and harsh winds. I never realized how beautiful it was. My eyes flicked open. The morning haze lingered still, slowing my mind. Rubbing my eyes, I sat up. I gazed around the cave. Everypony was still sleeping, and I decided that waking them up would result in a hoof to the face. Instead, I pulled myself up and shambled to the cave entrance.

As I stepped outside, a wave of serenity washed over me. I should be worried, but being in my old domain made me feel... alive? A cool breeze passed, sending shivers up my spine. My body’s aching, but it felt good. Made me feel real. Inhaling deeply, the surface air felt musty in my lungs. I’d get used to it. On the small perch I was standing on, I could see a vast expanse of the Badlands below me.

This was our home now. But where would we go? Back up into the clouds would be suicide, and cities like Friendship City were too far. Manehatten was a long trek, but Tenpony Tower would be a beacon of security. I furrowed my brow. Sighing, I look back at the vast expanse below me. The Badlands was basically a series of canyons and depressions, with rivers, albeit irradiated, flowing through. I don’t know how my parents did it.

“Why don’t you go find your house, then. Dumbass...” My subconscious snapped. I didn’t know I could be that rude.

Though I was right. My parents made a life out here. Why not? We didn’t have any other plans. Besides, what if my family is there? That means we’d have a safe haven, at least for awhile. I nodded to nopony in particular, and trotted back inside the cave. Maybe this will all work out, at least for my friends. That’s all that mattered.

As I trotted into the ever-darkening cave, faint sounds of movement made my ears perk. Turning a corner, I saw Spare Part putting her armor on. Next to her, Gunpowder batted at the air, wondering where her marefriend went, and mumbled incoherently.

Tesla knelt by Ballista, nuzzling her neck. As her eyes fluttered, she blushed and pecked Tesla on the cheek. D’awwww. BallistaXTesla OTP. Chuckling, I began to pack my gear as Tesla turned a shade of red visible from under his black coat.

“You two need to get hitched.” I said as I smirked at the two.

They tried to reply, but their words got jumbled, which only made me laugh more. I slipped into my barding from Calamity’s knapsack. It was actually just riot armor, but it did the job. It felt cool to the touch, yet still welcoming. It fit wonderfully. Before I fully immersed myself in the vest, I checked the label. It’s a mare’s size 5. Yep. I rolled my eyes and shimmied into the rest of the armor. After that was done, I slipped my saddlebags over my shoulders.

I felt bad for carrying so little. Even Ballista had more than me. But I couldn’t carry all that much, so I was left feeling like a jerk. Gunpowder was still snoring loudly. Spare Part chuckled and nudged her awake.

“Wake up, hon. We’re goin’ on an adventure!” She cooed.

Suddenly the slate-grey mare’s eyes shot open, her salt and pepper mane flopping wildly.

“I LOVE ADVENTURE!” She squealed, hugging the silver unicorn tightly.

Spare blew her rust colored mane from her eyes, and everypony started roaring with laughter. It was a good sign. The laughter slowly petered out, and Tesla looked at me.

“Are we ready?” He asked, his deep voice rumbling.

Everypony nodded. I didn’t say anything. Instead, I looked around at my team. A black stallion with a white mane named Tesla Bolt. A silver mare with a rusty mane named Spare Part. A grey mare with a salt and pepper mane named Gunpowder. An apricot unicorn mare with a dark orange mane named Ballista. Each one of us with our quirks and talents. We were ready.

“Let’s go.” I said.

I turned around, the light of the dull sky shining at me. At that moment, it meant more to me than that. It was a new beginning. I began to walk. The determination built up into a trot, and off we went. Climbing down from Loft Cave was simple enough. A small path guided us down from our perch. Behind me, I could hear my companions going ‘ooh’ and ‘ahh’ at every little detail. Couldn’t blame ‘em. Canyons were impressive when you thought about it.

“So tell me, Jury. Where are we going?” Tesla asked.

“That, my friend, is a question worth answering. We are currently traveling to my old home, before the Enclave. Hopefully my family is there.” I replied wistfully.

Tesla ruminated over this for a second and nodded. Soon after, Spare Part spoke up.

“Hey, you never did tell us about your family.”

I winced. It wasn’t a thing I liked to speak about, but I figured I owed them that. Sighing in defeat, I began to speak.

“My family consists of seven ponies. Mom, Dad, and four siblings, not including me. My mother is a unicorn named Honeydew, born in the Hoof. My father is an earth pony named Red Eye. He came from Stable 101, an all earth pony stable. He had a bunch of cybernetic enhancements, specifically a glowing cyber eye. I have two brothers and two sisters. My brother Scoutwing was a pegasus like me, he was with me in the Enclave, for awhile at least. My other brother was the youngest, being four years old when I left. His name was Soot, and he was a unicorn. My older sister, who was the eldest of my siblings, was named May Lily, also a unicorn.”

“My last sibling’s name is Homage. A unicorn, and the sibling I was closest to before the Enclave shit. And that’s it for the members of my family, really. We were generally well off for wastelanders. My mother’s special talent was gardening. She had a spell to purge a small portion of land permanently, making it safe and fertile. We had fresh food! Well, most of the time.”

“My father had brought university level learning materials with him from the stable. By the time anypony reached age 13, we were geniuses. He had this idea of “Unity,” that he wanted to spread. Something about a Goddess and a divine truth. I thought it was dumb. I never knew how it turned out.”

I finished my explanation, and everypony nodded.

“Wow! You have a pretty nice family, it seems!” Gunpowder piped.

I smiled and nodded. We had been walking for about an hour or two. I checked my Pipbuck map, disappointed that it had not updated. However, the mini hollow arrows were closer, and deciding to see what it was, I changed direction. Nopony questioned my guidance, which was a bit of a relief, since I had no clue where I was going. Looking around, I never really noticed how tall these canyons were. The dry and arid ground had taken most of my attention.

We still had a large quantity of water from Calamity, but it slowly was depleting. It annoyed me. The Badlands was the only area in the wastes that didn’t have rain all the time. Even though clouds covered everything, nary a droplet of water was given. Didn’t matter, because a multitude of rivers flowed through the canyons.

Truthfully, I didn’t know where I was going. Loft Cave was new to me, and there weren’t many landmarks in the Badlands. Maybe at this little arrow held the answer. Every once in awhile, I checked the map. Still maintaining a good course. There was also a clock, which was probably my favorite feature of the Pipbuck. It was a cute little computer.

An hour passes with little excitement. There wasn’t much out here. When I was a colt, the Reapers would sometimes pass through, and raider clans would stampede on by every so often. I understand why my parents chose here. It was quieter than most. My father always liked Fillydelphia, which confused the hell out of me. It was an irradiated pit.

“Look!” Gunpowder shouted, hopping around.

Up ahead, a small building lay just off the side of a decaying road. My Pipbuck hadn’t updated, but from the looks of it, the arrow was on top of the shack.

“Ok. Be careful, everypony. We don’t know what's in there. It could be raiders, slavers, hellhounds, anything!” I warned, taking note of their widening eyes at the word “hellhound.”

I smirked, and resumed trotting towards the building. It looked abandoned, but after a nasty run in with two raiders engaging in some inappropriate behavior as a colt, I learned my lesson. Ugh. As I stepped across the road, my Pipbuck blinked. Rock Break’s Rest Station appeared on the screen over my indicator. And suddenly I knew where I was.

Motioning to my companions to quiet down, I slinked towards the door. I pressed an ear to the worn wooden door. Nothing. I looked at Tesla. He had the bigger guns on his battle saddle. He nodded in understanding, and motioned for me to move away. I stepped aside, and no later did a black blur demolish the door, leaving me dazed.

I looked around the corner, and found Tesla giving me a goofy grin. I returned the grin, and trotted in. Ballista, Gunpowder, and Spare followed suit. In the corner lay a stained mattress, along with two bottles of whiskey, one empty, one full. I took the full one.

“Nothing here.” Spare Part spoke.

“Actually, babe, you’re wrong! There could be a safe behind the counter, or ammo boxes, or GRENADES. I LOVE GRENADES!” Gunpowder observed, zipping around the room at speeds unimaginable.

“She’s right. Let’s take a look.” I followed through.

There actually was a pretty decent find here. Old preserved food from before the war and miscellaneous junk mostly. Sugar Apple Bombs were in abundance, though, and were my personal favorite. Squee! Looting had the effect of making you feel powerful. Like the world was a large tree with fruit perfectly ripe and succulent. My spree was made when I discovered a small floor safe. Locked. Nothing a bobby pin and a screwdriver couldn’t remedy.

My lockpicking skills were average. My father found it necessary to give me the means to access hidden caches of goodies, and for that I sent a small thanks his way, wherever he was. I had a screwdriver, a necessity for an engineer such as me. Bobby pins, however, were not something I needed or had in supply.

“Anypony got a bobby pin or two?” I called.

“What, you finally embracing your feminine side?” Spare Part retorted.

“Shut up!” I yelled, voice cracking horribly. “I need to pick a lock, for your information.”

“Ok, sure.” She replied, drawing out the last word sarcastically.

She trotted over and handed me a box of pins. About fifty pins in the box, according to the label. Nice. I pulled out my screwdriver and a pin with my teeth and got to work. Holding the bobby pin with my hoof, I moved it around until I found a spot with little resistance. Slowly easing the screwdriver into forcing the lock, I tried my best not to snap it.

A small snap sounded, and I groaned. Round two. I moved the pin to roughly the same location, I tried once more. This time, I was more attentive to the distinct resistance you could feel when the pin was about to snap. I got close, but felt the pin bending, and let up. Adjusting a little bit, I tried once again. An extremely satisfying click echoed through the tiny shack.

“You get it open?” Spare Part asked.

I popped my head up, grinning wildly.

“Eeyup!”

Slowly opening the safe, as to savor the feeling of victory, I wondered what could be in the lockbox. Before I looked, something tickled my mane. I looked up and saw Gunpowder breathing heavily on me.

“Um, can I help you?” I asked, trying to hold in my terror.

“Nope! Just watchin’!” She replied giggling.

I paused, raising an eyebrow, and started chortling. Turning back to the safe, I flipped the hatch open. Inside, a 10mm pistol and a rather heavy bag of bottle caps. Pumping a hoof, I grabbed my loot and turned back to my companions.

“Spare! Heads up!” I yelled, tossing the pistol at her. She squealed.

“Are those bottle caps?” Tesla asked.

Grinning, I nodded.

“Why do we need those?” He asked, perplexed by the rituals of the surfacers.

“Money!” I replied, giddy with the thought of a shopping  spree. For guns, of course.

He raised an eyebrow, and shrugged. I put the caps in my bag, and a beep from my Pipbuck informed me of the total amount. Six hundred and fifty caps. Not a bad sum in the slightest. I was a little detested when Tesla underestimated the power of caps. Everything seemed to have been picked clean. Except one thing.

By the door, a small pouch labeled “Maps” held the promise of figuring out where we’d go next. I trotted over, and pulled open the envelope. Buck. Yes. Inside was a tour guide’s map, and marked every natural and ponymade structure. As I scanned the map, a series of beeps blasted from my Pipbuck. My ears flattened against my head, and I examined the noisy little device. Several map locations had appeared, though not yet filled in.

Mostly pre-war tourist centers, canyon entrances, and rest stops. I sighed, saddened that my house wasn’t on the list. As I put my foreleg down, another beep sounds.

“Anchor Cliffs...” I whisper, my eyes widening.

Looking up, I smiled and left the building, companions in tow. When my parents had first settled down, they told my Anchor Cliffs was what made them stay. It was a beautiful outlook of the other canyons, and my folks built a house right across the canyon, under an overhang. The only issue was getting to the top of the canyons from the gulch we were in.

Ballista, being the only non-pegasus, had a severe mobility impairment. Instead, she just hopped on Tesla’s back. Rolling my eyes, I took his saddlebags off and placed them over mine.

“Thanks.” He said as he took off.

The rest of us followed suit, flying up the cliff face. We touched down, and Ballista was too petrified to move. Tesla shook her off, which she had not prepared for. This caused a giggle fit between Gunpowder and I.

“Why’d we go up? I thought we were trying to lay low.” Spare Part asked.

“We’re heading to some cliffs near here. But before we do that, why don’t we eat something. It’s just past noon.” I suggest, feeling my stomach rumble.

At that, everypony’s stomach growled. Tesla chuckled as he shucked his bags. Sticking his head in, he pulled out some MREs and bottles of water. I inspected the bag of Enclave issued feed bags. 100% hayseed. It wasn’t my favorite, but it did have a pungent aftertaste that was quite lovely. Breaking the silence, I decided to ask how my friends were doing.

“So. How’re you guys handling this?” I asked.

“Well, it’s not so bad, honestly. I thought it was just a toxic deathtrap down here, but I’ve seen some sights, like these canyons. What I’m worried about, though, is having to fight. I- I’ve never killed anypony before.” Spare Part replied, choking up at the end.

“I agree.” Ballista added, staying succinct as always.

Tesla only nodded.

“Well I for one LOVE this! I mean, it’s not everyday you get to explore a whole new world. But it IS everyday for us! This is great. But I really, really, really wanna use this new ‘Splody Launcher!” Gunpowder finished, her bubbly personality ever present.

“Well, it’s good you guys are taking it well. I’ll warn you now, though. You will eventually have to fight. It’s just the wastes. When that time comes, don’t let it get to you.” I said. “I suppose it’s time we get going. Just leave your trash wherever. It’s not gonna need to be cleaned.”

And the trek started once more. Walking for a long time gave some peace and quiet that was quite nice for thinking. So far, nothing’s gone wrong, and that irks me. You know the rules. If something is good, it’s gonna go to shit soon. That’s how it always worked. At least for me.

Another hour passed, and another after. I took glance behind me. Tesla walked side by side with Ballista, and Spare Part and Gunpowder did the same. I felt kind of lonely. I’d only ever had one pony in my life. And he killed me. Seeing a happy couple and a budding romance just put me down. No. I can’t make this about me. Keep them safe. Do what Calamity wanted me to do. Shutting all thoughts from my mind, I walked.

“Uh, Jury? You’re gonna walk off the cliff.” Spare Part shook me from my melancholy.

“Oh, yea. Heh, thanks. We’re pretty close, and all we gotta do is cross this space and reach that mound over there.” I explained.

Repeating the process from flying up onto the cliffs, we crossed the chasm, painfully slowly, might I add. Pegasi got antsy sometimes. Once we all crossed, we kept a brisk pace to the cliffs. Time seemed to slow as our destination grew closer. I could almost taste it. I could imagine it, now. Walking in, my siblings and parents embracing me. Introducing my friends, explaining the situation. Hopefully.

We were at the base of a small climb. Once we reached the top, we’d be above the other canyons with a view of everything, including my house.

“You all ready?” I asked my companions. “We’re arriving shortly!”

Wide smiles met my question, which I returned. I blew my mane out of my eyes, and started trotting. It was a short climb, but I made sure to stop. There were some red bars on the compass of my Pipbuck, which was new to me.

“Here we are!” I announced, and stepped up to the edge.

No.

It could not be.

Instead of a welcoming home, with a loving mother tending her garden, a father playing with foals, and a warm hearth, I was greeted with splayed torsos and entrails. Corpses and blood stained the cracked ground around the door. I started to tear up.

“No. No. No, no, no! NO!” I shouted in rage, tears now freely flowing. “Th- Th- No!”

I bucked at a rock, and a sharp pain erupted through my leg. I collapsed. I couldn’t speak. I didn’t want to. All I wanted was death. A voice broke through the snuffing darkness. Scoutwing.

“Jury Rig, don’t do this. You’ve been through enough. Don’t shut down. Don’t let your friends die. Don’t let their blood be on your hooves.” He spoke, soft voice echoing through my head. He was right. But those ponies desecrated a safe haven. They were going to die.

I shot up on my hooves, and swung around, tears still fresh in my eyes.

“Alright. You four, go down and draw the raiders out of my home. Don’t get caught. Just bring them out. I’ll signal you to attack.” I said as I turned.

“What’s the sig-” Tesla asked, but I cut him off.

“You’ll know.” I replied, acid running in my trembling voice.

My companions soon disappeared from sight, and I took a breath. Blowing my mane out of my eyes, I trotted up to the stone I had bucked. I was mad. Beyond mad. I was death itself. Slinging Judicis over my shoulder, I fit a round into it’s action and closed it. It sounded beautiful. Taking a moment to look at it’s trigger, I realized there was no mouth grip. Instead, a wedge shaped lever was there. It fit it into the cleft of my hoof. A perfect match. I grinned. That was wonderful, as I loathed mouth grips.

I lay down on my belly, and fit the butt of the rifle into my shoulder. Peering down the scope, I could see my friends slowly approaching my home. Old home, at least. Tesla picked up a rock in his hoof, and whipped it at the door. Soon enough, two crudely armored stallions stepped out. Through my scope, I could see their pinprick yellow eyes.

They were infected. Some disease that started out by a place called Yellow River awhile ago, turned nice ponies into sadistic fucks. It’s a shame, but they have to be put down. My friends were hiding behind a boulder, waiting for my signal. I’ll send a signal all right. I focused down my scope. Perking my ears, I felt the wind blowing strongly from my right. It had to have been at least four hundred meters.

I was the best sniper in Thunderhead. Fuck your physics. Aiming up and slightly to the right, I took a deep breath. Time slowed. I pulled my hoof towards me. A flash. Without missing a beat, I flicked another bullet into the chamber, closed it, and fired. Time returned to normal. Through my scope, I saw what was once a head be reduced to a pulp, splattering the pony next to it, who suffered the same fate. Two faint smoke trails marked where the bullets curved from wind and gravity.

And then explosions. Gunpowder opened fire, and I swear to Luna I could hear her giggling on the wind. More raiders poured out of my old home. Tesla and Spare Part were picking shots carefully, albeit missing most of the time. Green plasma bolts and magnum rounds filled the battlefield, accompanied by a chorus of raider weapons.

“How many of them are there?” I say aloud.

It didn’t matter. Enough had poured from the shack to level the playing field. The raiders returned fire, from 32. pistols to the terrifying roar of a minigun. The pony operating said minigun was a brute of a stallion. Fully armored in what appeared to be brick fucking walls. A fucking building guarded this buck. I peered down my scope to see if a weak point was to be found.

As I looked down the sight, on the top of the peripherals was a red bar. It was slowly extending. I moved the sight off of the buck. Red bar gone. Moved it back on. Red bar appeared. Curious, I let it charge. When it reached the other end of the scope, it began to blink. I think it was indicating me to shoot. I pulled the trigger. Instead of a normal flash, a gold pulse emanated from the barrel. I pulled away from the scope, in time to see a gold trail following my shot.

Peering back down the scope, the brute’s corpse lay lifeless on the ground, releasing a soft glow. His helmet was gone, and his head was nowhere to be found. Well, sit me on Luna’s horn and spin me like a record. It WAS enchanted! Realizing my friends were still shooting, I left my perch and took off. I slung Judicis over my shoulder as I flew. Gaining height, I slowed. I began to dive. I gain enough speed so I don’t get hit. Speeding towards the earth, I slowed at the last second, behind the boulder where my friends were.

“WE GOTTA PUSH FORWARDS!” I yelled to Tesla. “START STRAFING.”

He nodded and took flight. Swooping around, he peppered the raiders with pure energy. He managed to pick off a few, and just suppressed the rest. Gathering Spare Part, Ballista, and Gunpowder, I laid out a battle plan.

“Gunpowder. Keep launching ‘nades! Spare and Ballista, when Gunpowder shoots, flank the raiders! Shoot ‘em in the back! They’ll be too busy with Tesla and Powder to deal with you.”

They nodded. A resounding explosion cued the pair to gallop to different cover. The next volley of grenades caught an unlucky mare in the torso, pulping her, and showering me with gore. I couldn’t hold back. I hurled. The stench was terrible. Shuddering, I wiped what appeared to be a chunk of kidney from my eye.

Next to Gunpowder, a small formation of stones provided cover. Pulling out my 44. Magnum, I nestled myself in between a rock and a hard place. The scope was not nearly as long range as Judicis. Still, a scope was scope nonetheless. I took a few shots, all but one missing. It merely clipped a mare in the back. Taking the chance of getting killed, I peeked over the rock. Ballista and Spare were now behind the raiders. It would be a slaughter.

Spare readied her pistol that I found in Rock Break’s, and Ballista froze behind her. My heart caught in my throat. A raider wielding a rusty hunting rifle was approaching her, a wild look in his eyes. Ballista’s magic failed, and her revolver dropped. Spare was dealing with the raiders she was flanking and didn’t notice. Ballista was dead. My voice wouldn’t work. The raider tightened his grip on the mouthpiece.

I clenched my eyes. I couldn’t see her die. A distinct shot rang out amongst the chaos, and a familiar voice yelped. Oh no. I leaped over the boulder I was behind. I trucked a mare out of the way, and slipped through the wreckage Spare and Ballista were behind.

Instead of a dead Ballista, I saw a familiar black stallion cradling the apricot unicorn. She was breathing heavily, and bleeding. I was panting. Tesla was crying. A new resolve took over me. Keep them safe. No death. Promised Calamity. I tore the bottle of whiskey I had found from Break Rock’s and tossed it by Tesla. He began to give first aid.

Whipping out my magnum, I threw myself against the wrecked wagon. Gunpowder’s grenade rifle was still shooting, and my revolver sooned joined her. I hit a mare in the chest, blood spurting from the large hole in her torso. She looked down, and back up. She fell, dead.

Two raiders turned around to try and find me, and instead got a grenade courtesy of Powder. Their armor and bodies were disseminated across the dry ground. Only four to go. Galloping from the wreck to a small boulder, I condensed my small frame into the small cone of protection the rock offered. Peering out, I bit the mouth trigger, catching a stallion in his right eye. Dead. The remaining three were stationed by the brutes minigun, firing it off with much less ease than their dead buddy. With Gunpowder bombing them with explosive ordnance, Spare Part and I approached the trio of ruffians, whilst avoiding a scythe of 5mm carnage.

They had no idea we were above them. In a small ditch, the three remaining raiders were trying to pick off Gunpowder, who was still running around somewhere. I looked up and nodded at Spare. She dropped down, pistol whipping one raider and shooting him in the brain. As she looked up, another raider was charging which she deftly sidestepped and plugged with a round.

She wasn’t quick enough to stop the last raider from knocking her down. She flopped on her back as I jumped down and galloped over. The raider was forcing a shiv down onto Spare, but she was resisting. I came up behind the raider and pulled him off. I felt his neck snap.

“Did I do that?” I thought as I stared at my hooves. It was one thing to quickly end a ponies life from half a mile away, but to do it up close and with your own hooves. That was unholy.

“No. Don’t do this to yourself.” I whispered to myself. “It had to be done.”

Spare Part got up and was knocked down as Gunpowder rammed into her, planting a kiss on her lips. I smiled. Spare looked roughed up, but ok. Oh shit. Ballista. I took off back to the wreck where Tesla cradled her. Her breathing was steady. I began to tear up and sniffle. Tesla looked up, his eyes red and puffy.The bottle of whiskey empty by Ballista’s injured leg. He gently lay her down, and I walked over.

“Oh Celestia. I- I’m so sorry. I d-didn’t want anyp- pony to get h- hurt.” I said. I think I just managed a series of blubbering and squeaks.

“I shouldn’t have made you risk yourself like that. I- It was stupid. I’m stupid. I’m so sorry.”

Ballista opened her eyes and smiled at me.

“Don’t be. It was my fault. I’ll be fine.” She rasped. “I need a nap.”

She closed her eyes once more, and I looked back to Tesla. I got up to scavenge whatever the raiders had. Tesla cut me off with a reassuring embrace. I hesitated, but returned it.

“Go into the house, and see what’s up.” He whispered. “I’ll take care of scavenging and Ballista. Spare and Powder will help.”

I nodded, and faced my old house. I took my first steps into a new chapter of my life. I pushed the door open, and stepped inside. I expected a raider shack, with corpses and and blood everywhere. A wave of relief rushed over me when I discovered that the inside of the shack was not tarnished.

And then as soon as it came, it went. Memory upon memory bombarded my already thin emotional shell. It closely resembled what it looked like when I left. A few pictures were moved, and some old furniture thrown out, but it was still home.

“Mom? Dad?” I called out, praying for a reply. “Soot? May Lily? Anypony?”

I shook my head. I should have expected this. It was nice to have something to hope for, though. I trotted around, reminiscing in old memories. I felt a small smile spread across my muzzle. My old home wasn’t that big, but still had more than one room. A kitchen, and two bedrooms. There was an outhouse by the garden.

The kitchen wasn’t looted, much to my surprise. The raiders were probably very recent tenants. I let out a sigh of relief. That open up a few more doors on where my family could be. I made a mental note to loot everything. Scratch that. Salvage. Loot was too harsh a word for this place. I trotted into a bedroom. My old bedroom.

Five beds in total, three on one side of the room, two on the other. They were arranged like a piano, almost. One bed, switch sides, one bed, switch sides, another. Rinse and repeat. I chuckled wistfully. Oh, the times we had. I looked where I used to sleep. The first bed on the left of the room. I think I wanted it from Soot at one point. Probably to get breakfast first.

I came in here for one thing. I walked over to the dresser. We didn’t own any clothes, so we just used it store toys and whatnot. On top of the dresser, though, a small frame containing a picture. My family. I loved this picture. I think it was everypony’s eyes. My family was all blue eyes, not including my father’s cyber eye. It wasn’t a dull blue, it was an icy kind of blue. The blue that stared into your soul.

My mind ran over a list of my family. I hadn’t forgot anypony, I just wanted to remind myself that they had to be out there.

“Red Eye; Dad. Honeydew; Mom. Scoutwing; Brother. Soot; Brother. May Lily; Sister. Homage; Sister.” I whispered, the names of my past stinging me with every syllable.

I opened my saddlebags and placed the photo in. My father said that my mother carried a camera everywhere. He never told me why. I stood for a moment, keeping a short vigil over the empty altar. I turned and exited the room. The only remaining room was my parent’s. I’ve never gone into that room before. Never needed to.

They had an old Stable-Tec terminal in there, though. I remember asking what the box like contraption was as a colt. They told me it was a computer, and being a foal, I had no clue what it was. With my current education, I was fairly certain I knew the machine inside out. Entering the room, I spotted the glowing green screen on a desk to the left of the bed.

Pulling out a small stool from under the desk, I sat down and stretched my wings. I had no clue how complicated this might be, so getting comfortable was in order. I poked a key with my hoof, and the screen awoke from it’s hibernation. As the ancient machine woke from it’s slumber, an orchestra of whirs and beeps played as the computer warmed up.

The screen displayed strings of characters with words thrown in, ranging from adjectives to participles. Nouns were usually the passwords, more specifically names. I squinted and blew my wayward mane from my eyes. I was seriously considering sacrificing a bobby pin to tame my luscious locks. The first column of code held no likely passwords.

I rolled my eyes as soon as I glanced at the second column. I selected “Unity” and pressed enter. My dad must’ve picked the password. As the screen loaded, I checked my Pipbuck’s clock. 3:14 PM. It felt like it had been two days since we left the cave. The screen blinked and I looked up.

A beep sounded, and the screen displayed a screen welcoming me. A large list of files showed up. I guess my parents kept good logs. I read down the list.

Home Sweet Home

Foals?

Food and Water Problems

New Unicorn Filly!

The Goddess

Unity

More foals?!

Raider Issues

A Pegasus Colt?

Another Pegasus Colt!

She. Wants. More. Foals.

A Unicorn Filly!

One more, she says.

Unicorn Colt.

No more foals.

Cutie Marks!

Shooting Lessons?

Enclave

Jury and Scout are gone.

Leaving

I stopped. Selecting the file, I downloaded it onto my Pipbuck. Damn, this thing had a lot of space. It only took a minute or two to finish, and when it did I played it. A gruff voice spoke, not unlike my father, but older.

“I hoped something like this would never have to happen. With Scout and Jury gone, scavenging has gotten difficult. The garden isn’t enough to feed this family. I know what I have to do, but I don’t like it. The Goddess promises everypony will be saved, but I’m not so sure.”

“She says to follow her advice. What choice do I have? I can’t do this anymore. She wants me to scatter my family! ‘It is the will of Unity!’ I must do what she asks. But- Agh, fuck! Soot is only a child! He doesn’t even have his cutie mark yet! I just don’t know what went wrong...”

“I must follow the will of the Goddess. I know what I’ll do. Vault 87. It’s in Hornsmith. They’d take Soot in, hopefully. It’ll cost me, though. Homage? She... She can go to Tenpony. She’s smart, and her ancestry might get her in. May Lily... Friendship City. Yes, that would work. And Honeydew... Oh Celestia. I’ll take her with me to Fillydelphia.”

“Honeydew is my wife. I won’t let her fall victim to the wastes. Not after Bleak Ear. It’s settled then. I’ll plan a route for each of us, and by Unity’s blessing, hope that nopony gets hurt. And on the off chance that Scout or Jury return... Well, they’re smart. I- I’m going to go to sleep.”

The recording ends. I grit my teeth. Did he really do what he said he did? Did he give up an easy and happy life, for a Luna damned cult? My anger swelled. I swung around and bucked a cabinet. It barely shook. Fuck my puny legs. Opening my eyes, a mass of purple hair clouded my vision.

Ok, Spare, you win. Reluctantly drawing a pin from the cardboard box, I tucked a bit of my mane behind my ear with the pin. It was better than having to blow hair from my eyes every damn minute. It was time to face the outside once again. I trotted out the door, but not before hitting my kitchen for some food. Any vegetables were completely rancid. I guess my family was gone for awhile. I did find an unopened Sparkle-Cola. Yum.

I trotted outside. I squinted as my eyes got used to the light. It was actually pretty dark in the house. A breeze flowed through my now tamed mane, and I scanned the area for my friends. A rust colored mane poked out from behind a wrecked wagon. I smiled and took flight. I could have trotted, but feeling wind beneath your feathers is spectacular.

I landed with a minor thump next to a ragtag group of ponies. Ballista looked better. She was safely napping in the embrace of Tesla, who also had fallen asleep.

“How’s she doin’?” I whispered to Spare Part.

“She’s fine. A little spooked, though.” She replied.

“Those two should really get together.” I told her.

She chuckled and nodded.

I trotted over to Gunpowder, who was staring at the sky.

“You ok, hon?” I asked her. “I hope that fight didn’t get to you.”

“Oh no, Jury. Just thinkin’ is all. Y’know, I never knew what to expect! I kept my chin up and things turned out right so far. I really think this is for the best. We could actually make a name for ourselves! With explosives, if we wanted! Spare and I might have a future here.” She replied, with a gleam in her eye.

I gave her a quick hug and trotted back over to Ballista. Emptying some water bottles I got back in the house, I cracked one open and drank. Tick tick tick. Sounded like a geiger meter. It was my Pipbuck’s. It was barely moving, so I shrugged and drank more. We’d get some Radaway soon. Ballista rustled in her sleep, waking up Tesla. He groggily blinked at me.

Reaching into my pack, I pulled out the crowned king of refreshment in the wastes. A warm Sparkle-Cola. I rolled the bottle over, and he inspected it with a look of hesitation. Slowly, he popped the cap off, and took a small sip. His eyes widened in delight, and I grinned a victorious smile. I took a few gulps, stopped mid-swallow and looked at the apricot mare who rested upon him.

He nuzzled her until she awoke. He chuckled as the short orange mane on Ballista’s head turned up incredibly frizzy. She looked upwards and scrunched her nose. She fixed her mane, and then winced when she tried to move. She looked down her flank, a bloody bandaged mess. Tesla brought her chin up with his hoof and nodded towards the bottle of cola.

She raised an eyebrow.

“Go on. Try it.” He said, a smile plastered on his muzzle.

She raised an eyebrow, but brought the glass bottle to her lips. As the amber liquid dispersed on her cracked lips, rejuvenating the flesh, she began to grin. She slugged the entire bottle down in ten seconds flat.

“This is amazing.” She said, after gasping for breath.

I smiled. She and my friends had much to learn about the wastes. It was bad out here, but the flame of humanity was still glowing.

“When do you think you’ll be able to move again?” I asked her.

“Probably within a day or two. We have Med-X from the raiders if need be.” Tesla answered for her.

“Was your family in there?”

“No. They left and were scattered. I know where they could be, though.” I replied.

“Well, we’ll help you find them. We don’t have anything down here, and the best thing that can be done right now is find something to do.”

“I can’t ask you to do that, Tes. First we’re gonna find a town where you, Ballista, Spare, and Powder can stay. Start over. This is my job to do.”

“If that’s what you want.”

I turned away and sighed. As much as I didn’t like going alone, I knew I had to. I couldn’t put them at risk. I’d find my family and return to the Badlands with them. Then I’d find a place to settle. It was a loose plan, but a plan altogether. My plans had worked so far, and I hoped this would be the same.

I took off from the ground and flew up to Anchor Cliffs. I looked into the distance, and even through the cloud clover, I could see the sun spreading its light. I wondered what Borealis was doing. Probably sitting at his desk, scowling. I checked my Pipbuck clock. 5:53 PM. Day one of the wasteland was almost done.

I flew back down to my companions, my hooves clicking on the arid ground.

“They know the plan, and they agree.” Tesla said.

I nodded.

“It’s getting late, everypony. There’s more than enough beds in the house.” I deadpanned.

We all slowly walked towards the shelter. Tesla was carrying Ballista who still hurt too much to walk. Once we entered, my companions began to look around. I suppose it was more welcoming than Loft Cave. A few ponies retired to my old bedroom, Ballista and Tesla included.

“Why don’t you and Ballista take the other room? She could use the bedspace for her leg.” I insisted, smirking at Tesla.

Everypony flopped on their respective beds. I did the same, albeit slightly less floppily. Grace is essential. All of us wallowed on our mattresses for a bit, savoring the softness. I rolled over onto my hooves, planting them on the dirty floor. I was incredibly hungry.

I trotted into the kitchen area, checking my Pipbuck’s clock. 6:15. Dinner time. I allowed myself the luxury of more than a hiking lunch. I pulled out a box of Sugar Apple Bombs. I looked at the box, and then one of the mess kits that Calamity had left us. Shrugging, I shoved my muzzle into the box and wolfed the entire box down.

“I have never tasted sweeter ambrosia such as this in all my life.” I moaned.

Spare Part and Gunpowder walked in and sat at the round table I was at. They pulled out some MREs and I quickly intervened.

“Oh no, this will not do. When in the wastes, it is customary to eat the cuisine of it’s people. Sugar Apple Bombs and creamed corn for you!” I exclaimed, appalled at their choice of food.

I whipped out a can of corn and box of Apple Bombs, and slid them over the table.

“Bon Appetit!” I say, in a foreign sounding accent.

They began to eat, consumption increasing as they realized how hungry they were. Some time later, Gunpowder piped up.

“Hey... Notice how Ballista and Tesla have not emerged from their room in quite some time!”

I raised an eyebrow, and so did Spare. A roaring laughter broke out, and tears began streaming from our eyes.

“Oh- Oh my!” I managed to croak, my lungs struggling for breath. I think my sides were in another dimension.

The laughter died down, and I checked the time. 7:00. I looked up at the couple across from me.

“It’s bedtime.” I said, yawning as I spoke.

They nodded and we retired to the small room in which we were to slumber in. I looked at the first bed on the left fondly, and prepared to fall with style upon to it. Just a hop, skip, and a jump away. I hit the mattress with a soft thud, shucked my armor. I left my jacket on. It was more for sentimentality rather than comfort.

As I closed my eyes, I skimmed over memories of the day. Rock Break’s, Anchor Cliffs, the fight, Ballista getting shot, finding out the fate of my companions. It was a good start for a plan formed as it happened. I stopped on that thought, and shut down my mind. Sleep now. I swear that as I slipped into the warm embrace of sleep, I could hear a certain apricot mare moaning a certain energy weapon expert’s name.

Perk Gained: A Good Night’s Rest - Sleeping in your old bed has given you a wonderful sleep! +1 to Perception from 6 AM to 12 PM.