Part 1 - Chapter 1
Fallout: Equestria - Rapture
Part One - Welcome to Rapture
Chapter One - Welcome to Rapture
Well, that's awkward. Two months in Rapture Hydrostable and I already can't look on the daylight lamps. Huh.
On a side note, I hate dentists. I HATE HATE HATE DENTISTS. As if we can't get enough misery because of the war, we must go get our teeth drilled, erased or whatever else you do with your teeth when they hurt.
"Steady, mister!" the Luna-damn hell spawn said. "I'm going to give you a shot of Med-X in the gum. Then we'll proceed."
Med-X. For all your little ouchies. How I loved and hated this ad. Loved because of a beautiful motherly pegasus mare looking at me from a poster. Hated... Come on, when a colt trips and falls flat on his face and gets a bruise, you're supposed to kiss it and apply some bandage, not give him freaking drugs! Sick, Ministry of Peace, sick!
How can you be mad at this timid smile?
"That's all, mister!" the monster put all her torturing tools away. "I hope you won't return!" She smiled.
"Me too," I groaned. I can't deny, it felt much better.
The lonely lighthouse was the only sign of civilization in sight. Stable-Tec logo glowed in an unsteady light on the creme-colored wall.
"Alright, yew! Get outta there 'n go inside!" an old captain shouted towards our little group. "We ain't got much time left! They can fall any second now!"
We obeyed. The little ship went away towards the war-torn land. We were left alone in the middle of nowhere. Maybe it was for the better after all.
"So..." Some mare shrugged. "What next?"
I just stepped forward and opened the door. My armor was shimmering in the light of the lamps. I was met by Scootaloo. No, not Scootaloo, of course. Just a picture of her in a formal attire on a huge screen. Her lips suddenly moved.
"Struggling through the war didn't do us any good. We lost more than just ponies and resources. We lost a little bit of our souls. To regain all that, we at Stable-Tec built the most advanced and the most comfortable Stable yet."
Little whispers crawled through our little group of refugees.
"To proceed, simply get inside any of the available bathyspheres and pull the lever. I will guide you forth."
Bathyspheres weren't the biggest kind, to say the least. Each one had enough place to fit just two ponies. I crawled in one of them with a pretty young mare. If only I wasn't wearing this piece of power junk...
"Everypony has their special talents. Somepony can be a great researcher, somepony can be a xenobiologist, somepony can be just good at loading boxes. It is up to ponies to use their talents.
"'No way!' they would scream in the Ministry of Arcane Science. 'They have to contribute their talents for the war effort so that we could win enough gems!'
"'No way!' they would scream in the Ministry of Wartime Technology. 'They have to contribute their talents to our facilities so that we could create another technological monstrosity!'
"'No way!' they would scream in the Ministry of Awesome. 'They have to contribute their talents to our secret pro--"
The tape seemed to jam. Then, a second ago, Scootaloo's voice got back.
"But fear no more, everypony, for this horror is over! 'How?' - you would ask. 'Like that!' - I would answer!"
The screen blinked and retracted away, opening a window in the bathysphere. We looked into the dark void outside.
Rapture's windows were glowing as I looked at them from the passageway. Where does this city - sorry, Hydrostable - get all this energy?
"Bad day?" she asked and gave me a little nuzzle.
"No. Just thinking," I answered and returned the gesture. "There must be a freaking fusion reactor somewhere."
"Why's that?" she smiled.
"They are always glowing!" I pointed at a lamp. "They are always showing something!" I pointed at a TV screen. "There is always music in the radio! Where else could they take the energy from?"
She giggled. "I don't know. But we can find out!"
"I don't think it's a good idea..." But she was already dragging me somewhere by my hoof.
"Come on, let's go on a little adventure! Don't be so boring!"
"Where are we going?"
"I have no idea!" she laughed happily. I couldn't stop myself from chuckling too.
We were finally safe.
There were buildings. Under the sea. Freaking houses and skyscraper-high towers! Under the freaking sea!
"Fillies and gentlecolts. I give you the place, where you can finally be yourself!"
"Unbelievable..." the mare whispered in awe.
"Yeah..." I agreed.
"Behold the magnum opus of Stable-Tec! The Rapture Hydrostable! And welcome!"
Being chased by a flock of crazy pegasi mutants would be really sickening. Being chased by the pegasus you love was just amazing.
"Hee-hee! Why are you so slow?" she giggled on top of me.
"Oh I don't know, maybe because of armor?" I smiled.
"Oh, sure!" She rolled her eyes and got off me. "Anyway, good luck!"
I nodded and lowered my visor, connecting the air mask to the air talismans. The airlock whooshed me with streams of water and when it opened, I stepped outside.
Before me was the city - sorry, Hydrostable - full of ponies, zebras and even griffins, who decided to buck their authorities in the jaw and live a happy life. Just like me. Just like my Featherbrains.
Behind the seascrapers was a hot glow, which reminded me of my cutie mark - a pair of tangerines. It was Celestia Power Plant, standing on a volcano of some sort. I didn't care much about it. When it was working properly, that is.
"Running late again, Tangerine?" the other Ranger asked from the edge of a coral reef I was standing on.
"Sorry, Salad. That freaking mare is quite... Catchy."
We both chuckled a little.
"So, what's the deal?" I asked as we jumped down from the reef and went towards other Rangers. "Another leak in the core cooldown systems?"
"Better," he answered. "But not too much."
He raised his rivet gun and sent a heavy piece of metal towards a too curious shark. Of course he missed. He always misses. Rivets instead of bullets. Underwater, for Luna's sake!
"Damn!" he stomped his hoof.
"Okay, chill, just tell me what we're gonna do."
"There was an order from the Overpony. The Streamer fucker just can't have enough fisheries."
"What, he wants us to build one? Let him lick my tail." I looked at the building site. The ugly house was already drained of water and pressurized. "We aren't just some engineer unicorns. We're freaking Steel Rangers!"
"I know, right! And he doesn't want us to actually build it. Streamer isn't involved, actually. But... There are rumors that he holds some kind of smuggling operations in these fisheries. We have to install the cameras over there all around the place."
"Pfft. Bo-oring!" I trailed off as we went through another airlock and entered a little mobile shack.
"Yeah, but it's important to Overpony. Remember whom we get our paychecks from now, Tang."
"I hear you. Just... Argh. I think it's easier for Overpony to feed this Streamer to the sharks," I received my own rivet gun from the armory.
"What are you talking about? It's Rapture. Nopony gets eaten, shot at, blown up or killed in any other way, remember."
"Yeah. Sometimes I think it's not exactly what Scootaloo wanted this Stable to be."
"Maybe. But who cares? She's days from blowing up to little chunks, if not already. I don't envy her."
"Neither. But still..."
"Tang, shut up and get to work, seriously." Salad helmet-booted. "You'll have plenty of time to ramble afterwards!"
"Okay, okay, whatever!" I loaded my rivet gun and went outside. "Dumbass."
We received a cold 'Welcome-to-Rapture' Sparkle-Cola upon arrival. I was never a fan of carrots, but this one tasted pretty cool. They said they added seaweed to it. Then we got a big and tasty meal and even some beer. These ponies were treating newbies like they were already good buddies. And after some time everypony relaxed and felt at home.
That cute mare I was in the same bathysphere with? She was positively shocked to find a pony under the power armor. She seemed to think that I was some kind of Robronco tin can.
"Y-you..." She tried to say.
"Well, freaking surprise!" I grinned and put on my helmet. "BEEP-BEEP, I'm a scary robot!"
She laughed. She had a really nice laugh.
"Sorry!" she said. "I... I've never seen a Steel Ranger so close before. I thought they were... Smaller?"
"You gotta be big to be able to wear a power armor. The thing is heavy," I explained as I neatly packed it into one of my suitcases. Not the best place to keep a high-tech armor in, but it was better than dumping it on the floor. "Plus, I'm a paladin. I have endured waves and waves of zebra invaders. I have slain two dragons. I have kicked my elder brother's butt when he was still alive. Do you think Rangers are small-framed?" I smirked looking at her jaw hitting the floor with a force of a balefire egg going kaboom.
"You..." Her wings started stiffening. Uh-oh...
"Just some Steel Ranger, milady, serving Equestria, as usual." I smirked even wider.
Then I went inside my quarters and closed the door. I heard a squeak and sound of hoofsteps trotting away.
"Mares..." I smiled to myself.
I caught myself thinking that I liked this Stable more and more.
Author's Note
IT BEGINS
Fallout: Equestria - Rapture
Part One - Welcome to Rapture
Chapter Two - Rapturous Routine
Being a Steel Ranger of course had its perks. You get to wear a badass armor and a battle saddle full of enchanted death machines. You get to fight off those zebras, griffins, dragons and other monsters who threaten Equestria. You get covered in chicks every time you show off your battle scars. You even get a free beer can for every ten zebra ears you bring from the battlefield, courtesy of MoM.
But today I understood that it had its downsides too. Especially in Rapture. Especially when Overpony needed something done about Streamer and his antics. Especially if that something was freaking boring. Especially if it was very freaking super close-my-eyes-and-fall-asleep boring.
"Hey, Tang?" Salad yawned beside me.
"Yeah?" I responded.
"You done?"
"Nah. Five more cameras. And you?"
"Three. I dunno. They seem useless. Targeting talismans suck. Armor is thin. It would take an elementary school unicorn filly to reprogram it."
"So what?" It was my time to yawn.
"When Streamer starts using them against Overpony, he'd want us to fix it. More work."
"And your great idea is..." I looked at him.
"Dunno. Just saying." Salad shrugged.
"Then shut up and spare some rivets."
Who would've thought that recycled and reproduced air of my armor's air talisman would be so welcoming and pleasant after Streamer's fishery and its stink. I was almost certain that there was something... fishy going on. No matter how this place sucked, ponies were carrying bags and crates with an unexpected care. They almost looked like they liked their jobs. But there was no 'almost' in how they looked like they wanted us gone. Badly. They were freaking me out.
"A-hem." I heard from the radio.
"What?" I asked, flicking the switch on my mask. Now I could only be heard from the speakers in Rangers' helmets.
"I don't like how they look at us, you know," Salad said.
"Chill. We have rivet guns. And armor."
"Have you tested how rivet guns shoot on the open air? Do they shoot at all? How do they tear through tissue? What if Streamer's guys have guns? They can just..."
"CHILL!" I roared. "Don't be such a wussy! Like we have any choice anyway!"
"But we do! Screw Overpony! We can just, like, hijack our mobile shack and live off seaweed!"
"There's a tracking device in the shack," I sighed. "And there are Elder Rockstone's private quarters in it too. We can't just hijack Elder's house."
"Oh..." He fell silent for a moment. "Right. Totally forgot about that. Endure the psychological pressure then?"
"Endure the psychological pressure." I nodded. He couldn't see me though.
Giggling and fluttering ball of wet white fur was rolling on my bed, dampening it and trying to squeeze some words out of wherever its mouth was.
"Would you stop?" I groaned.
"O... Oh... Oh-ho-ho!.." Featherbrain laughed and finally sat relatively upright. "Or w-what? Ar-he-he-heee... Are you gonna throw more water at me?"
I got my wet mane out of my eyes. "Look, I'm wet. You're wet. What's so freaking funny?!"
"Have you s-seen yourself?" She managed and went into her laughing frenzy again.
I took a peek at the mirror and couldn't resist a little laugh. "Okay, I get it. Just... Calm down and watch the bucket. I'm gonna go outside and fix it, okay?" I opened my suitcase and quickly put on my armor. "And I'm gonna screw the living snot out of you when I get back. Prepare yourself, Ms. Featherbrain." With that and a little smile I went away.
A stroll to the shack for my trusty tool and some spare steel plates later I was standing before a tough challenge. How the hell would I get up to the eleventh floor to fix the window?
"Hey, Tin Colt, need a lift?" Salad's voice chuckled in my helmet. A yellow service bathysphere was hovering above me. There was a rope hanging from it. I clung the shackles on the rope and on the armor together.
"I'm okay to ascend," I said and my body took off from the bottom. "How did you know anyway?"
"You woke Elder Rockstone up. He told me that you took the steel and the rivet gun. And I was like 'Hmm... What would Tangerine need these for? Of course some emergency repairs!' And so, I'm here to lend a hoof!"
"Thanks a lot, Salad," I said.
"It's Smasher!" He countered. His full name was Salad Smasher. He preferred being called 'Smasher'. Everypony else, of course, preferred him being called 'Salad'.
As I got higher and higher, I finally saw Featherbrain, swapping the buckets furiously. "Stop here. Get me closer."
I was as close to the wall as the bathysphere could manage to get me. I raised my hoof to the window and it, slowly at first, then faster and faster, moved me to the window. Then it stuck on the steel frame. Magnetic boots, a very convenient enchantment. I waved. She smiled from behind the reinforced window and I got to work. It was impossible to tell where exactly the leak was, so I decided to fix the whole slit between the windows. I had more than enough scrap metal and rivets. A piece of metal made a little 'click' upon connecting to the wall. My high-tech toolbox saddle buzzed to life and a rivet gun appeared just below my withers. Its barrel stuck forth just enough to connect it to the metal. THWAP! THWAP! THWAP! THWAP! THWAP! THWAP! THWAP! THWAP! Okay, this will be enough. Next plate coming right up!..
Featherbrain was so stupid. No, she was actually really smart when she wanted to be, a PhD in biology was the proof of it. But she was still very stupid. She could run. She could hide. She could fight me off. But all she did was just lying on the still damp bed in the most suggestive manner. She was just screaming 'Take me now, oh brave Steel Paladin (who (temporarily) works as a Stable maintenance guy)!'
And take her I did!
"What's your problem?" I asked, panting.
"Huh?" She rolled into my sweaty hug.
"Why driving me mad so that it feels like I punish you for being a freaking featherbrain?"
"Heh... E-he-heh..." She smirked tiredly. "You fuck better when you're angry."
"Oh you and your dirty mouth!" I rolled my eyes and smiled back.
Life in Stable would never be boring with this mare.
Streamer.
This buck was just disgusting. No, he wasn't a legless zombie, soaked in blood and other bodily fluids. He was very attractive and charming, actually. This was exactly the catch. His deceiving smile never touched his eyes. He could manipulate you into blowing up a balefire egg in your pants and you would be glad to do it for him. I couldn't help but admire his skills. I kept a distance from him though.
His pale yellow hide and cherry-colored groomed mane and mustache looked good together. His casual shirt created a 'country buck' image. Could you tell that he owned one of the biggest businesses in Rapture ci--Hydrostable? I couldn't. But he actually owned 'Streamer Fisheries' and, with that, a few hundreds of employees, who might as well be bandits and robbers. I knew that 'I will gut you and sell your lungs to griffins' look from when I was in Manehattan Police Department and had to deal with gangsters and backstreet kings.
"So tell me, Mr. Smasher..." Did I mention how freaking sneaky the bastard was? "What does the Overpony want from us? We merely expand our fisheries to a more profitable place. Doesn't he want Rapture to grow?"
"He does," Salad Smasher said. "He just doesn't trust your methods. How can you get so much profit from catching fish and harvesting seaweed?"
"This stinks like screwing with Overpony from a mile's distance, Streamer, and you know it!" I stomped my hoof against the wooden floor. "You better stop whatever illegal you're doing until he sends us to clear the place from you and your mobsters. I really doubt they have power armor."
He just smiled. "What are you talking about, Mr. Tangerine? Since when fishing became illegal? And I'm not sure if it corresponds with Scootaloo's idea of the free trade."
I gave him a stare with my armor's visor (I hoped it looked scary enough). "We both know you're one lying son of a gun, Streamer. You've been warned. Let's go, Sa...Smasher!"
He obediently followed me to the airlock.
"Should we flood them with acid?" I heard (thanks to my enhanced hearing enchantments) one of Streamer's gangsters asking.
"Let them go. They're just Overpony's errand boys." He answered through gritted teeth. "They're nobody to me."
I turned 'radio only' mode in my mask. "Something tells me we're not welcome."
"Uh-huh. Should we tell Overpony?" He pulled the 'Flood' lever and I felt my insides loosening when I saw water instead of acid.
"Why would we? Like he's better than this Streamer bastard." I stepped outside.
"He pays us," Salad argued.
"Would he pay for that info?" Salad fell silent. "Yeah, that's what I'm talking about. We let Streamer know that Overpony knows he's the bastard foal in Rapture. Let's see what he does next. Popcorn and beer are on me."
"You're an awful influence, Tangerine, you know that?" Salad chuckled. "I just hope Overpony won't throw us into this mobster swarm again."
"I'm gonna ask Elder Rockstone about giving us battle saddles. They sure won't dare to attack Steel Paladins with freaking grenade launchers."
Salad chuckled again. "Oh yeah! I'll stick to the anti-dragon shotgun though."
And with a carefree chit-chat about modern battle saddles, we picked the best path to the Rangers' shack.
"...And then they thought about flooding us with acid, but Streamer talked them out of it. We really need some better weapon than these toolbox saddles!" I finished.
"I see..." A big gray elderly stallion with a white mane said. "This must've sucked."
"It did, sir Elder Rockstone," Salad said.
"Okay, paladins, I'll think of something. Dismissed," He said and waved us to go.
"Thanks, sir!" We said in unison and left the shack.
Our Elder was the best Elder you could ask for. He had gone through an awful lot of fights and battles, starting from a private soldier in army and, little by little gaining higher ranks, became a brave and thoughtful Star Paladin of Steel Rangers. He noticed me on papers after I destroyed a zebra mob in Manehattan, back when I was just Officer Tangerine, Manehattan Police Department. I gladly accepted his offer and became a Novice Ranger Tangerine. Rockstone, unlike some other Steel Paladins, really cared about each one of his subordinates. He was like a father for all of us, all the time.
Then, somehow, we all ended up in Rapture. All paths lead up to Rapture.
Everypony has a virtue and a vice. An undying good quality and an undying bad quality. For example, Applejack was trustworthy - virtue - but very stubborn - vice. Twilight Sparkle was very good at magic and science - virtue - but easily upset and overreacting - vice.
Salad's virtue was finesse. His vice was alcohol. Today, on Rapture's 20th anniversary, he combined them. A fast music track with a powerful bass was playing in the bar as he showed his bartender skills. Shaking, throwing and twisting bottles, he mixed some amazing cocktails, showing off to public. He was a little drunk already, but that seemed to only help him.
By the way, do you know why his name was Salad Smasher? Because he loved to get drunk while eating. Guess in which dish he loved to sleep after a good drinking?
"Twenty bits say you can't perform the same trick after a Wild Pegasus!" I yelled to him.
"Oh, say goodbye to your bits!" He laughed. I hoofed the bottle to him and he took a swig. "Y-yeah!!!"
He took a bottle of Flank Merlot and threw it high in the air. Then he tried to catch it with his hoof, but this resulted in falling head first on the counter. The bottle smashed against the floor and his flank got soaked in wine.
"You owe me, buddy!" I smirked and helped him get up. The crowd roared with laughter and applause.
"Yeesh! Just... Hold on..." he slurred, blinking out of sync. "Do I know you, mister?"
I was lying in my bed with 'Twilight Sparkle and You'. And no, it wasn't a magazine jam-packed with hot pictures of her, like 'Wingboner Monthly' or 'Playcolt'. It was a thick tome about magical energy weapons and devices that feed from spark batteries with big detailed pictures and schemes. Though I preferred more traditional guns, beam rifles and plasma sidearms were pretty neat. They could even reduce a creature to ash or green goo with a well-placed shot!
Featherbrain emerged from a bathroom. Her white coat was radiating a soft glow.
"Bookworm!" She teased.
"What? It's interesting! Did you know that the first beam gun was invented by Starswirl The Bearded and that Twilight Sparkle and M.A.S. just used his ideas when designing modern ones?" I smiled.
"Wow, you really are a bookworm!" She jumped on a bed and stood over me. I put the book away.
"Can you ever get enough?" I asked. She silenced me with a kiss.
"Hush. You know the answer," she answered with a smile. I stroked her cutie mark, which depicted a pair of feathers. "Besides, don't you... want?"
"I do. Always. I'm just afraid that you can become a sex fiend."
She giggled. "No, I don't think so. I have a very strong will."
"Prove it!" I grinned.
"How?" She grinned too.
"Keep your wings under control," I whispered mischievously.
A look of concern touched her face. Then she smiled challengingly and nodded. "Easy-peasy!"
I pressed my hoof against her cutie mark a little stronger. She gasped just a little, but it was enough sign for me that I was going in the right direction. My second hoof began messing with her left pair of feathers.
"That's... Not fair..." She whimpered under her breath.
"You wanna know what's not fair?" I asked her and, not caring much for answer, tenderly bit her ear and ran my tongue around in a little.
A quiet 'nnngh' was answer enough. She buried her face in my coat, white looking great on orange, and held my sides with her forelegs. I decided to leave one of her cutie marks alone and gently stroked her wingtip.
"Ah! St-top!" She mumbled into my chest. I gave a few more strokes. Her wing was trembling, but clutched strongly to her side. My hoof brushed just a little under her tail...
"Nice stiffy!" I smiled, looking at her wings standing firmly up.
"Oh yeah, nice stiffy indeed. Ha-ha-ha," she said with a poker face. "Now just take me already, you dumbass! I'm sore!"
"Wait, wait, let me savor my victory!"
"Savor this!" She yelled and slammed her crotch against my face.
Life underwater wasn't really easy, wasn't really hard and definitely wasn't safe or dangerous. But it certainly was interesting and fun. It was pure Rapture.
Author's Note
Why writing this chapter? Because I wanted to show you the routine in Rapture and a daily life of our protagonists, e.g. leaking walls, Streamer's thugs and so on and so on.
Next one is gonna bring what you've been (maybe) waiting for. I've certainly been.
