Chapter 5: Allegiances.
Chapter 5: Allegiances.
“What were you busy doing? Spying?”
“D-Death... I’m dead, aren’t I?” I asked, blinking, trying to fight back the shock. “Y-you’re here to take me to the other side.”
“Death... No,” the figure replied in a gravelly voice. “I’ve been called many things, but I am not a pony of the apocalypse.” He tipped the brim of his hat, revealing his eyes.
My eyelids were forced open by the big blob's cracked hooves. I could barely make out his eye as he leaned in close. My mind must have been playing tricks on me as they seemed reptilian.
I remembered those eyes! Those reptilian eyes! “You... you saved me... out on the dry lake...” I was really losing it now. One can only lose so much blood and I was fading fast.
“Yes, and I’ve just done it again, amigo,” the dead pony said as he pulled out a tiny purple vial and a roll of bandages from his coat pocket.
He emptied the vial into my wound and started applying the bandage. “The potion will accelerate the healing process and the bandages should do the rest.”
Why was he helping me again? He trotted behind my chair and undid my binds. The straps holding my head in place loosened and I slumped down, finally able to relax without the restraints.
I think I’ll just lie here and rest. The chair was just so comfy on its side. I could feel sleep starting to seep into me, driving my conscious state away.
“No time for sleep,” the dead pony instructed, prodding my wound and making me yipe in pain. That certainly woke me up. I shifted my weight and slowly got to my hooves, wobbling slightly. He was right, I couldn’t sleep now, too many murderous ponies around.
I looked up at the new pony through teary eyes. “W...what are you?” I asked. “Are you a...a z-zombie?” I backed away from the thing. Whatever it was, it wasn’t natural.
“Zombie?” He asked with a chuckle. “Naw, kid. I’m a pony just like you.” Just like... what? I gawked at him. I think he got the point.
“Alright, maybe not ‘just like you’. I’m a ghoul. We ghouls soaked up balefire radiation and didn’t have the good fortune to die. Sure, we look like we’re dead, but we live far longer than any pony. Take me for example. I’m almost two hundred and forty years old.”
“T-two hundre-” I gawked at him. “Impossible!”
Shouting and the sound of thundering hooves resounded from down the hallway, breaking our little... whatever it was.
“No time, I’ll explain later,” the ghoul pony calmly said, moving to the door, his large revolver levitated in front of him. “We’ve got some pandejos to exterminate, amigo.”
I had no idea what to do, I was quaking in my new barding. I had no gun, no wits, and no clue. The only thing I knew was that I was inside a big communications building full to the brim with Separatists and a demo donkey even Gaz was scared of. This wasn’t going to end well.
The ghoul slid his head around the corner and fired off 3 shots in quick succession with wet thuds that were followed by screams echoing cruelly back down the corridor to us.
The ghoul pony grinned, standing in the middle of the hallway, and twirling his revolver. He pulled out a cigarette, lighting it as he turned before waving me out of the room.
I was very hesitant. This wasn't actually happening, was it? If I hadn’t already, I was going to have to seriously grow a pair and get shit done. I picked up the interrogator’s revolver and the ammo pouch he wore on his hip. Today wasn’t going to end without me drawing blood again. I wasn’t going to make it out of here if I didn’t accept that notion as fact.
“W-what do we do?” I asked, poking my head around the corner. Three corpses lay at the end, each with a hole right between the eyes. Who was this ghoul? An old timey gunslinger or something?
I entered the hallway and saw that there were no windows, only the bright lights above me. How this place was in tiptop condition so long after the bombs had fallen was beyond my ability to comprehend.
The ghoul pulled out his revolver and reloaded it, filling the cylinder and slamming it back into the gun. “I need to get to the command center and clear out this building.” He... wanted to clear this whole building. Every Separatist soldier?
“Clearing this whole building is going to be impossible!” I whined. “Even with me here. You need at least a group of qualified po-” I stopped mid sentence.
“Qualified ponies?” the ghoul asked, finishing my sentence. “Sure, I could use some help, but where the hell am I going to find allies in here, eh? I was lucky to find you, kid. Or, was it you who was lucky that I came along?” He started making his way up the hall. “Do you know where I can find a band of fighters on short notice?” he asked, sarcastically.
I guessed he was the lucky one. “As a matter of fact, I do,” I replied with a small smile forming on my face. That got his attention, as he turned his ugly mug in my direction and raised a rotting eyebrow.
“Oh really now?” he asked.
I spent the next few seconds explaining everything I had done prior to turning up in that room, not stopping for questions. From the weird code in the cubicle to the equally weird bullets and finally to the spec ops squad I had foolishly agreed to help.
I really didn’t need to tell him most of what I did, but spilling the beans made me feel better. My head was in a better place, knowing that just maybe I would see them again. They may not have been friends, but none of them wanted to kill me. Well, maybe Gaz, but not as much as the Separatists. Besides, as long as Dare was around I was safe. Except for the time I had been tied up and had a gun to my head.
“...alright, how do you suppose we get them in here?” the ghoul asked, mockingly. “This whole building is under lockdown, and when lockdown is in effect, nothing gets in or out. How else do you think it’s as pristine as it is?”
That made loads of sense, lockdown keeping a building clean. I should keep an eye out for any way that would work, other than keeping dirt outside.
Priorities, Clover. You want to live, don’t you?
Okay, maybe my conscience isn’t always a bastard that insults me and is always wrong. Priority one is getting Adrenaline Rush and her squad in here, then helping out the ghoul. One good turn deserves another and all that jazz.
“How do we lift the lockdown?” I asked, finally starting to think about the current situation, because I’m a solid tactician like that. Yeah, didn’t think so. “That’s the only way we are going to get help.”
The ghoul looked up and down the hall. “The override has to be in the security station on level two, we’re in basement one.” the dark yellow, rotting pony started trotting down the hall. “Just a hop, skip, and a jump, amigo.”
That was easier said than done. With my injured leg (which hurt like a bitch) I couldn’t hop, skip, or jump, let alone fight through narrow corridors. I stared at the revolver I had taken from the interrogator, which I had absent-mindedly slid into one of the empty holsters on my new barding.
Couldn’t fight through narrow hallways. But dammit, I was going to try. I pulled out the revolver and set it comfortably between my jaws. “Less ‘o” I slurred around the handle. Damn my lack of magical skills, but hooray for my genetically superior strength!
We slowly made our way to the end of the hallway, making sure not to make a sound, lest we alert anypony to our presence. We had narrowly avoided a squad of Separatists heading to the interrogation area by hiding in a janitor’s closet. It may have been fairly spacious, being empty and all, but I got a lot closer to the ghoul than I would have liked. It didn’t seem to faze him though.
Maybe I was just being childish but, up close, ew! I never wanted to focus on his deathly physique, but seriously, ew. Why weren’t maggots crawling all over his face? Okay, I may have been overreacting; he did look okay for almost two hundred and fifty years old. Didn’t smell too bad either. Wonder how he managed that...
We tried to sneak around silently, avoiding most of the patrols or groups heading to the interrogation area. The stairs were a welcome sight after the bland, white concrete hallways on this floor.
This level I had been rescued on was sparsely populated, had no windows, and was completely boring. Or I could have just been feeling sick from the pain in my bleeding left hind leg. Not as much as before, and the bandages soaked it up, but bleeding none the less. I couldn’t put any pressure on it or pain flared with every step.
Getting up the damned stairs was hard, but not impossible. It may have taken a wee bit of assistance from the ghoul, but we made it to the next floor.
Windows! There were windows on this floor! Even if they were covered by large metal plates that seemed to swing down from the ceiling.
I saw a sign that merely said ‘Ground’. I guess that meant I had been interrogated in the basement. Or basement one as there was apparently a basement two. That was where the security system died out, right? I think that’s what that pony who interrupted the interrogation said...
“What’s in basement two?” I asked the ghoul, curious. I thought it was a good time, as there was nopony around. None that I could see at least.
“Prison cells,” the ghouls replied, looking down the hall. “We need to be one more floor up. Damn these Coalition buildings and their confusing plans!” He huffed and walked down the hallway, looking for potential targets.
It was eerie, really. I saw quite a few ponies while looking through the binoculars from the building we were planning in, but now it was a ghost town. I turned a corner with the ghoul. Maybe they had taken up- oh look, there they were. Wait. There they were!
I was jerked into an empty storage room when I saw the ponies loitering in defensive positions down the hall and around the main door I had been pulled through when I first arrived. I spotted the heavily-armoured pony I saw on my way in standing in the middle of a group of around ten to fifteen ponies playing cards. Thankfully, they didn’t notice me.
“I guess we found ‘em,” the ghoul whispered, a tad annoyed.
I think I understood what they were doing. The facility was under lockdown, which was probably why the windows were blocked by those huge metal plates. Those soldiers were taking up defensive positions to gun down anything that came through the front doors. The fact that they were so slack about it seemed to indicate their confidence in the security.
I looked at my revolver. “Do we kill them?” I asked, trying to sound confident. Real stallions choose fighting over sneaking. right?
“Nope,” the undead buck responded, peeking out the office door. I guess I was wrong then. “We shouldn’t telegraph our presence until the lockdown is lifted,”
The storage room itself was not very big. Just a desk and a chair, a few filing cabinets, and a shelf with a bunch of junk on it. The walls were the same cold, white concrete as the rest of the building.
“Should we send them a letter then?” I asked quietly. The ghoul raised an eyebrow at me like I was insane, or stupid; probably the latter. “You know, as in we shouldn’t telegraph them?” The ghoul rolled his eyes and looked out the door again.
“Okay, maybe this turn wasn’t a good idea...” he whispered. I had to agree. We should have just turned back around the corner instead of ducking into this office. If we walked out of the office now, there would be a high chance of one of the Separatists would spot us from down the hall and we’d be fucked. I bet it was just pure luck that stopped them from spotting us the first time.
I clicked my hooves together nervously. “So... Are we trapped?”
The ghoul looked at the contents of the room. After a few minutes he grinned. “Stand back, I’m about to be brillia-”
“Attention!” a loud, authoritative voice boomed over the building’s intercom. “Prison break on basement two, we are now on high alert! I need a squad down there now, dammit!”
“You heard the boss!” the heavily-armoured pony (who seemed to be in charge) by the entrance barked. “First and Second, get moving! Ain’t nothin’ getting through this door!”
Several of the ponies nodded and scampered past the room, heading for the stairs the ghoul and I had come up.
“Nevermind...” the ghoul mused, looking back down the hall. “Stroke of luck, only a few of them left. We can probably get out of here now.”
I peeked out of the door and looked down the hall. Only four ponies remained, buried in their card game. “And the security station is upstairs?” I asked.
“Mhm,” the ghoul confirmed. Alrighty, so, we need to go up one more flight of stairs, find the security station, deactivate the lock-down, get the Resistance in here, then kill the boss-pony. All the while avoiding Separatists who know we’re on the loose, getting lost, and the demo donkey I had seen before. Great.
“Okay. On the count of three, we sneak out of here. How’s the leg?” the ghoul asked with a tone of slight authority. I figured knowing how much it hurt would help him plan our next move. Or, it would allow him to use me as a distraction and get away home free. Bastard.
I glanced at the bandage around my left thigh. It hurt, but not as much as it did before. Fuck, I was actually shot! “S’okay...” I muttered.
“Bueno. Ready?” the ancient pony asked. He seemed a touch excited. Like he was reliving the past or something. I nodded. “One...two...” I steadied myself behind the ghoul. “...three!”
The ghoul dashed out of room and down the hall, almost silently. Now was my turn. I snuck out of the room and...
...tripped over my own Luna-damned hooves and face-planted. I didn’t have time to lose, so I settled on using my hind legs to propel myself forward, crawling along the floor. Stealthy. As. Fuck.
At least, I thought so before a bullet grazed my mane. “Fuck!” I yipped and hightailed it out of there, turning a corner and almost ramming into the ghoul.
“You fucked up, didn’t you?!” he asked, frustrated. Well, more grabbed me, shook me and then asked.
“No!” I replied quickly, scared out of my mind..
“He went that way!" a voice shouted down the hall. "Get him!”
“Yes!” I corrected myself, getting free. “We need to go!” I dashed down the hallway, passing offices and storage, desperately looking for a place to hide- uh, I mean, stairs. Gunshots and shouts started ringing out from behind me as the ghoul caught up.
I felt the surge of adrenaline course through my body as we found the stairs. A bullet implanted itself into the wall beside my head. If I had been any faster it would have ended up in my skull. I...I grinned as I made my way up the stairs. I was enjoying myself?
What. The. Actual. Fuck.
I was a coward! I should have been pissing myself! But something was giving me the confidence I was feeling, but what? I felt the pain in my leg flare when I scrambled up the stairs.
Adrenaline?
That was it. The feeling of adrenaline! It was just so much, so fast...it was glorious. The new power streaming through me, making me faster, stronger. I loved it. I felt like I could take on the world.
“Halt!” a large, grey earthpony yelled at the top of the stairs, his gun pointing right at us.
Yeah, no. There were ponies shooting at us down there. No way was I stopping for anypony, bozo.
I leaped from the stair and slammed my hooves into the pony’s chest, knocking him back into the wall. I heard a gunshot and a bullet whisk past my flank, but I was unharmed.
I looked over my shoulder and saw the ghoul fire a few shots behind him, then he put the gun to the slammed pony’s face. I turned away to look for the security office as he fired and speckled me with bloody mist.
The ghoul galloped up beside me, looked down the available hallways and hummed. The wall behind his head exploded in a shower of concrete pebbles as a shot narrowly missed him. Without even flinching from his narrowly avoided, ballistic lobotomy, he galloped down the nearest hall, leaving me in his dust.
I blinked for a moment, then screeched in pain as a bullet tore through my right ear. I took off in a heartbeat as the blood trickle down the side of my face. I didn’t like this anymore. Somepony get me out of here!
I wanted to cry. I wanted to just curl up and break down. I had been shot twice! Well, the second time was just my ear, but still, twice!
You can do this!
I was right! I can do this! If not for myself, then for Shamrock!
A burst of gunfire peppered the floor under me, scratching my hooves.
Who the fuck was I kidding? Even as we ran, I was looking for hiding spots. Somewhere I could just tuck myself away and die.
No! You will not give up! What would you say if Shamrock was in the shit?
What would... I would tell him to not give up. My conscience was right again. I needed to do this. I couldn’t fail. Dammit, I wouldn’t fail.
I felt my muscles tighten as the pain in my leg flared along my spine. I felt the primal need to tear shit up. Fuck being a coward, I was pumped! Talk about mood swings...
I charged down the hallway, catching up with the ghoul. The alarm was definitely on now. Or was that just a ringing in my ears? Whatever, they knew we were there.
We turned the final corner. Before us stood a reinforced room protruding out of the wall in a large lobby, with long glass windows, and wires snaking from it. The surrounding area had more of a blue metallic surface instead of a white cement like the rest of the building.
Three ponies, (two mares and a stallion), were frantically poking at buttons and watching screens. None of them noticed us until we passed a security camera and they saw an angry earth pony and a ghoul sprinting down the hallway on their monitors.
One mare screamed, another frantically searched for his gun. Were we really that dangerous? I didn’t think so...
We skidded to a halt outside the door, and the ghoul started frantically tapping at the controls. The rest of the ponies were still following us. I never looked back to get a good look, but we had about six ponies on our trail, each in patchwork armour. They looked really pissed. I mean, murder-eyes pissed. Pissed to the point where a single-
“Got it!” the ghoul yelled as the door opened. He fired down the hall as I dove into the security room. At least two ponies fell into heaps outside as the door slid shut after the rotten pony.
I had my gun in my teeth and pointed at the three ponies. “Dun moof!” I muffled around the revolver. I didn’t want to shoot them. I hoped I wouldn’t have to.
“Okay, my little ponies,” the ghoul said in a sly tone, addressing the security station attendees. “We’re going to have a little fun...”
--- --- ---
It had only been a few minutes, but the attendees were all bound up with some spare cables I had found, and the dark yellow zombie pony sat at a console, turning off the alarm system. The ponies after us were barking to each other as others banged on the glass, or tried to hack the door controls. The ghoul had already jammed them, and assured me the glass was unbreakable. How? He just said “Because it was,” then ignored me as he focused all of his attention on the terminals in front of him.
“Na-na-nana-naa,” I taunted the ponies outside and pulled faces. I think I was high on a drug the moustached ghoul had given me for my pain. It wasn’t Med-X, but a coarse brown powder. He called it ‘Healing Powder’. Fancy, huh?
“Okay, I can lift the lockdown so just let me know when your friends are ready to do their part.” the ghoul said, rolling away from the console on a wheely-chair. I wanted a go on the chair. He pointed at a radio on the table.
I tapped at the thing, shaking my head clear of the residual effects of the healing powder. My ear didn’t hurt anymore, but it felt...weird. “I don’t... wait... I think I got it...” I tapped at buttons, seemingly at random (probably because I had no idea what I was doing), before I came to the channel switcher knobby thingie. I started turning it and put on the headset.
“Dare? Dare, come in. This is Clover, are you still out there?” Oh please check in. Please, please, please. Maybe I wasn’t getting through? Maybe I was on the wrong chan-
“Clover? You’re alive?” Adrenaline Rush’s voice came through the speakers. “Thought you’d be dead by now.”
“You and me both,” I muttered. “Anyway, things have gone bad. Way bad.”
“So I noticed. We can hear the alarms from here. Making it hard to plan our next move. Breaking the lockdown is proving a bitch to do...”
I huffed with pride and amusement. “Well I can do that. I am sitting in the security station after all.”
There was a few seconds of silence. “...How did you... Know what? Never mind. I can ask you when we save your ass. Lets get this lockdown down, eh?”
I looked at the ghoul, who was just watching the ponies try and get in, a huge amused smile on his face. Whoever built this place sure built it to last. By now, loads more Separatist ponies had turned up.
“...uh...sir? Mr. Ghoulie-pony?” I asked, trying to get his attention. “How do we uplock the lockdown?” Was uplock a word? Fuck it, it is now.
The ghoul chuckled at the snarling ponies outside. They had decided to use one of their helmeted companions as a battering ram. He didn’t seem to be enjoying it. The door and glass held steady, even when they shot at it. We were safe as houses. Then again, a lot of houses were knocked down by the balefire bombs...but we were safe. Right?
“Mr. Ghoulie-pony?” the ghoulie-pony asked. “My name is Snake Eyes.” Well, that made sense, considering his eyes. “Do your friends know what they’re doing?”
Err. I dunno. I turned to the radio again. “Dare? You still out there?”
“Yup. Waiting for the lockdown to lift,” the orange pegasus responded through the speaker.
“So you have a plan.”
“Yup. Security is on the second floor, right?” she asked.
“Yes, should be,” I replied.
“Then yes, definitely. Lift the lockdown, and sit tight.”
I took a deep breath. “Okay, lifting it now.” Here we go. It’s go time. Zero hour.
Just lift the lockdown...
I was starting to hate my conscience. Then again, wasn’t my conscience me? Woo, I still hated myself...
I nodded at the gho- Snake Eyes. He approached one of the consoles and started tapping in commands with a cracked hoof.
The building began to shudder while a green light started to blink on the console. I looked outside to see the ponies (and one dazed, helmeted stallion) looking around. One of them was livid and began shouting at the others, flailing his hooves down the hall. Quite a lot of the ponies had got the message and fled down the hall. To defensive positions, I’d assume.
“And now we wait,” the dark yellow, rotten pony sighed. He was locked in staring contest with the leader.
Their leader, a white unicorn in a fancier set of Separatist armor, was absolutely livid. Murder was the only thing in his eyes, and I swear his mouth was starting to froth. Mad pony was mad. Lucky we were untouchable in here.
A few seconds passed and my leg and ear were starting to burn. I sat down on the ground and started tapping my hoof against the harder armoured bits on my barding. I was, like, really bored now. It was almost unreal. The ponies outside had given up and only a few remained. The others must have run off to reinforce the defenses.
I looked over to the Separatist technicians we had bound up. All of them were staring at me with fear in their eyes. I reached over and pulled the gag off one of them. This techy was a little younger than me, and had a red mane with a pale blue coat. His mane flopped over his face from under his hat as he stared up at me with green eyes, similar to mine.
“‘Sup?” I asked. The tech whimpered. Was I scary now? When did that happen? “I ain’t gonna hurt you. At least, I don’t want to hurt you.”
The tech lightened up a little. “W-who are you?”
“My name is Clover,” I whispered, trying to reassure the poor buck. “And you’re tied up because we didn’t want to shoot you.”
“Why are you here?” he asked.
“I don’t wanna be here,” I sighed in response. “I was taken captive and I escaped.” I prodded the buck’s nose. “Why are you here?”
The buck looked ashamed. “I don’t want to be here either. Nor do my friends.” He nodded at the ponies behind him. “Our base was overrun by the Feds. It was either be captured or join Short Stack, who came to save us. We decided to join. We... I don’t think we are the only ones...”
Well this is new. I wondered how many ponies out there didn’t actually want to be in the Separatists. Interesting.
“What’s going on, Snake Eyes?” I asked. Well, more like whined. “How long are we gonna be here for?”
Snake Eyes tutted. “Patience, amigo. We can’t do anything until your friends get here.” He turned to me. “It's all riding on them.”
I sighed and put my head against the wall. This waiting was going to be boring.
Three ponies were gunned down where they stood by a hail of bullets erupting from down the hall.
I guess it wouldn’t be so boring after all.
I covered my eyes, knowing what was coming next. I heard muffled screams and gunshots coming from outside. I knew exactly what was tearing through them, and I didn’t really want to watch. Gaz’s minigun was devastating at midrange but in the tight-packed hallways? Forget about it, you were dead no matter what.
“Ew,” Snake Eyes said when the fighting dissipated. “These your friends, kid?”
I uncovered my eyes (wincing at the blood splats on the white walls outside) and saw the giant griffin, minigun smoking. He looked through the glass and started tapping on the window with an armoured talon.
“That’s Gaz,” I told the moustached zombie pony. “He’s with us.”
Snake Eyes looked at the giant griffin, back to me, then to the door. “You sure?” I nodded. “Well...if he kills us, I’m blaming you.” He started typing in commands into the door release and eventually it slid open.
Gaz, the oversized griffin walked in, almost bumping his head against the doorway. He put his minigun on his back and pulled off the black-visored helmet from his desert camo armour. “Hey kid,” he said coldly. By the tone in his voice, I still didn’t think he approved of me being a Federation citizen. “You did well, but who’s this?” He pointed an armoured talon at the ghoulie-pony.
“My name is Snake Eyes, Señor Gaz,” the ghoul replied with a nod. “Its a nice surprise to see someone making use of the Mark 1 TG-90 Griffin Power Armour. Suits you, sir.”
The giant griffin frowned. “And what exactly do you know about my armour?” he asked, unamused.
Shouting and gunfire erupted from down the hall.
“All will be revealed, my heavy amigo, but for now.” The dark yellow ghoul looked out the door. “We’d better get moving.” Right, big building full of baddies, got it.
Gaz put his helmet over his yellow-tipped head feathers and locked it in place. I could almost see lights turn on in the inside of the visor. “Lets go then. Don’t want to keep Dare waitin’.”
“Vámonos!” the ghoul barked and waved a hoof outside. “We’ve got a job to do.” He trotted outside. Gaz was about to leave the room too.
“Hey!” I piped up. Gaz turned and Snake Eyes popped his head back in. I pointed at the three terrified ponies in the corner, each bounded up with wires. “What about them?”
“We leave ‘em,” Gaz rumbled from under his helmet. “The Seps can just stay here and rot.” The ghoul pony nodded in agreement.
I was disgusted. “We can’t just leave them here!” I said, poking Gaz’s chestplate. “They don’t want to be Separatists, but it was either this or Fed capture!”
The griffin stared at me blankly. At least, I think he did. The black visor covering his face didn’t help much. “Is that so?” he asked.
I nodded. “Tell them, mister.” I said to the red maned buck, who was still tied up.
The buck looked at me, then to the griffin, then whimpered. Had I been that much of a coward? I didn’t like to think so. He gulped and took a deep breath. “None of us wanted to be Seps.” He nodded at the others. “We were taken in by Short Stack after the Feds raided our base! Only a few of us survived, but it was either Seps or Feds.”
The griffin took a step forward and read the buck’s dogtags. “PFC Daydream,” he rumbled to himself. “Is this true?” he asked the others. They nodded. They all looked around my age or younger. How do kids get involved in a war?!
Because they aren’t kids?
My conscience was right. They must have been over eighteen, but that was still too young for warfare. Hell, I was too young for warfare, and I was three years their elder!
“Alright...” the desert camoed griffin said, standing back up at full height. “If this is true, then we should get you back into friendly hooves. Get to the roof and wait for us.” He took the minigun off his back. “But if I find out you’re all Sep loyalists...” He made tutting noises before spinning up his oversized gun. “Things are going to get messy for you.”
All three ponies winced. Snake Eyes and I started untying them as Gaz stood by the door, waiting for the Sep ponies.
“The roof is the fifth floor,” Gaz said. “The command center is on the third. Get moving and we’ll meet you there later.” The ponies nodded and ran off, but the pale blue buck turned.
“Thank you,” he whispered, smiled, then...winked? Wait, what?! He turned and ran off. I think he waggled his hips in my direction before he left though. Did he...no, no way...me? So now I have a griffin AND a stallion who have the hots for me?!
The ghoul was chuckling and I think Gaz had turned off his internal helmet microphone, but by his body movements I could tell he was laughing. Bastard.
“Where’s the rest of the team?” I sighed, trying to change the subject.
Gaz turned his head to me. I assumed he was talking, but the lumbering behemoth still had his mic off. He realised this after a few seconds of me staring at him.
“The earth ponies are outside providing sniper support, the unicorns are clearing the lower levels, and Forsythe, Dare, and Ace are waiting for us on the third floor,” he said calmly. “They have managed to remain undetected so far.”
“How did you get in?” Snake Eyes asked. To be honest, I was wondering the same thing. “Surely you must have made some noise, or been seen.”
Gaz spread his wings. “I flew in through a window up here, Dare and Forsythe flew in above, and Ace was carried.” He turned to me. “Your friend has quite a mouth on her. Must have poked fun at me four times on the way in here.” Yeah, that sounded like Ace. Bitch.
Snake Eyes trotted out the door, revolver at the ready. “Let's not keep your amigos waiting.”
Gaz and I followed, and by the goddesses I was right. The ponies outside stood no chance at all against Gaz’s minigun. They were torn to bloody ribbons. Yeah, didn’t think I would be sleeping at all for the next... lifetime.
I averted my eyes and narrowly avoided stepping in the pony sludge that coated the hallway. When that big Resistance heavy wanted something dead, it fucking died. Horribly. Gruesomely. The smell itself was enough to turn your insides to mulch.
We made our way forward in silence, except of course for the heavy footfalls of the ten-ton-talon-toting griffin behind us. We could only hear faint, sporadic sounds of gunfire coming from outside and the floors below. The earth pony snipers and unicorn gunners were certainly doing their jobs.
There we were. The stairs to the third floor. This was it, the last floor we needed to hit before going home. Well, the Resistance ponies were going home, Ace and I were going to Iron City. I wondered how far out of the way we were.
We cautiously started our ascent. I had the revolver in my mouth and it was trembling. Odd thing for a gun to do, tremble. It's almost like- oh. It was me, I was trembling. Right. That made much more sense. Who could blame me? The way the Resistance ponies talked about Short Stack almost made him seem like the boogeypony.
The third floor was quiet. A long, white hallway extended before us with several rooms on each side. At the end stood two ponies, guarding a huge metal door, but still hadn’t noticed us. That could have something to do with us just peeking over the top step and being quite a distance away.
“Heh, easy pickings,” Gaz chuckled, spinning up his minigun.
That got the guard ponies’ attention. “What’s that... Hey, you!" one of them yelled, spotting the giant griffin’s head poking out over the step. "At the end of the hall!” He pointed his shotgun down the hall. “Come out with your hooves up!”
“Hah!" Gaz laughed, charging up the stairs. "As if!”
“Oh shi-” The guard pony couldn’t finish his sentence. Not because Gaz had torn him apart. Gaz didn’t even get the chance to fire.
Like a blur, one of the ceiling panels shifted and two figures darted down. I heard the sound of metal on metal as two long blades slid out and plunged into an exposed throat.
The other figure jumped over the other guard, grabbed his head from behind, and twisted. As far as we were, even Snake Eyes winced at the pop.
It only lasted a second, but the guards were dead and nothing stopped us from reaching the door at the end, which Forsythe and Adrenaline “Dare” Rush were standing on either side of.
Forsythe smiled at me as we approached. “Thought you were dead, cutie," she whispered with a wink. "Had me worried.” That was so unfair. Being in the middle of danger frazzled me enough without griffins trying to seduce me. Or toy with me.
You love it.
Do not!
Anyway, so unfair.
“But he ain’t,” a familiar voice sounded from above me. I yelped when a certain unicorn mare fell from the ceiling and landed on my head. “A mixed blessing, I guess.”
I shoved her off and gave her my best glare. It didn’t work as she started to giggle.
“Though, you’re not as cute as you were before...” Forsythe said with a sad smile. “Not with your ear clipped and a bloody leg...” My ear was clipped? Forever? Like, permanent? Oh man, I must’ve looked like a freak! At least she wouldn’t be all over me anymore. “But I think it makes you look rugged.” She winked. Never mind.
“Shut up, the lot of you,” Snake Eyes grumbled. “I need to get through to the command center, and you need to kill Short Stack. Lets get it over with.”
“Same old Snake Eyes,” Ace snickered. Of course, she knew him didn’t she? I remembered her calling him Snakey back in Westwood. “What are you doing here?”
“All will be revealed,” the ghoulie-pony announced. “Time is of the essence.”
“The ghoul is right, we need to get shit done,” Dare said, digging in her tactical vest.
The spec ops ponies (and griffins) all nodded and prepared themselves to breach the huge, metal door. Gaz hunkered down and readied his minigun, Forsythe had her two pistols ready, and Dare was planting a device on the door. Ace and Snake Eyes seemed to know what to do as they got themselves ready. I hid behind Gaz. I was sure they’d get the job done without me.
“Everypony ready?” Dare whispered over her shoulder. The ponies and griffins nodded. “Alright. Breaching in three...two...one...” She ducked to the side and everypony looked away. Except me, of course.
The device on the door started to glow, then spark, then it erupted into a green flame as it exploded and blew the door clean off its hinges; blinding me in the process.
I heard shouting and gunshots as I rubbed my eyes, trying to clear my vision. They should have warned me this was going to happen if I looked. Not like it was self-explanatory or anything.
My eyes started to clear, but I could only see blurs. My head was pounding, but I could still hear. I mostly heard ponies groaning and some shouting from the Spec Ops team.
“Short Stack!" Dare announced. "You are charged with treason, murder, and crimes against pony kind... you have been tried and been found guilty!”
I dragged myself through the door and squinted to get a clearer view. The spec ops group seemed to be in control. I could barely make out Ace and Snake Eyes amongst the ponies scattered in the large room.
There were grey blobs along the walls, scattered over the floor of the large room, and hanging from the ceiling. This was definitely the command center. I rubbed my eyes again.
“Any last words?” Dare asked. I could make out Dare’s knives, Slashy and Smiley, on her hoof gauntlets. They were pointed at a unicorn’s throat.
The unicorn in question looked familiar even in his blurry state. It almost looked like he was wearing a suit, but that would just be plain silly, why would he be wearing a suit? Damn I wished I could see!
“Yes,” a gruff voice sounded from the blurry unicorn. What was it that was so familiar? “I have no regrets over what I did, Dare. I did what I did so that we ponies of the Ponave can be free. We didn’t have a government before, why do you insist on installing one?”
Dare seemed adamant. “We are trying to install a government to bring peace! You saw the Ponave before hand! Gangs of bandits, raiders everywhere, mass starvation, the Ponave was hell. A government can fix that. If everypony works together then we can get rid of those problems for good.”
“How is that different from what the Federation is doing?” Short Stack asked smugly. He had a point. That was what the Federation was trying to do, wasn’t it? That’s what they told us, at least.
“They are corrupt, fascist bastards!" Dare yelled. She was obviously very passionate about this. "They are working the core towns to the bone and giving nothing back! They destroyed the griffin tribes to the north, forced the bison to integrate with them against their will, exploited damn near everypony out here, and are working with known criminals!”
Now, I was never told this, so I could neither confirm nor deny any of it. I did know a bison though, Steve was his name. He and his father used to transport some of the apples we grew on the farm out to other cities in Federation territory. I wondered where he was now...
“And how do you know you won’t end up doing the same?” Again, a good point. Did they have contingencies against that happening? Maybe the Federation thought they were doing the right thing, but hadn’t set up safeguards.
Dare was starting to get pissed. “Because the Federation is just one big fat country. They don’t need the resources out here, yet they work our people to the bone to bleed this desert dry!”
“So the Resistance wants the Federation to starve. How heroic,” Short Stack mocked.
“They have a huge surplus of supplies, they...they...” Dare groaned in frustration. “Enough talk, time to die, Short Stack.”
“Indeed it is,” Short Stack purred.
Through the blurred haze I could barely make out the unicorn swinging around to buck Dare, keeping the momentum going and coming around again to wrap his forelegs around her throat. He levitated a pistol as he finished his spin and pressed it against her head with his glowing horn. I could see why this pony was in charge.
“Nopony move, or she gets it!” he bellowed. The other spec-ops ponies, Ace, and Snake Eyes were all pointing their guns at Short Stack and Dare.
“Shoot, damn it!” Dare shouted. Nopony moved in fear of hitting their leader.
“We may be bad ponies, Dare, but the Separatist movement is going to succeed,” the unicorn purred into her ear. “You know why?” He grinned. “Because the bad live good...”
And the good don’t live at all.
I picked my revolver from my barding and fired.
The two ponies stood still. Nopony or griffin made a sound. Who did I hit? Did...did I hit Dare?
Short Stack fell to the ground, lifeless.
I remembered who he reminded me of. He reminded me of the same pony who had murdered my brother in cold blood. The same pony who had ordered me to be buried alive.
He reminded me of Double Down.
I was breathing heavily in a revenge induced rage, revolver clenched between my teeth as I felt the surge of adrenaline dissipate. My vision began to clear and I saw everypony and griffin staring at me.
I saw that the grey blobs were actually monitors and terminals were monitors and terminals, sitting on tables and counters in a large room. All sorts of wires snaked along the walls, all leading to a huge screen on the far wall. This was the command center all right. There weren’t any windows though.
The first to approach me was Forsythe, who slung an arm around me. “Hot damn, cutie! You’ll be an expert sharpshooter in no time!”
I clipped the revolver to my barding and took a deep breath. Normally, I would be a wee bit awkward about this, but fuck it. I was awesome. “N-Nothing to it.”
“Nothing to it?!” the female griffin laughed. “You had a ninety percent chance of hitting Dare, but you didn’t! You took the shot like a pro, cutie!”
“Oh Forsythe, you’re gonna make him blush,” Ace chuckled. “Whoops, too late.”
I wasn’t blushing! No way! All this praise meant nothing to me at all!
“Oh, stop it you,” I squeaked.
“Hey, she’s right y’know,” Dare said as she trotted up to me. “That was one hell of a shot.”
“Thanks...” Okay, maybe this praise was getting a little much.
I saw that Snake Eyes had moved over to one of the large terminals, I couldn't tell what he was doing, but it looked fancy. Nevertheless, it seemed that the situation had been resolved, as the spec ops ponies were tending to the Separatists who had surrendered (the ones who hadn’t piled in a bloody corner), and I had some questions.
“Mr. Snake Eyes,” I said, squirming free of Forsythe and trotting to the ghoulie. “You saved my life a few days ago and I had questions but you ran off.”
“We also have a few questions,” Gaz interjected, walking up beside me. “But the little guy should go first.” Gee, thanks.
The ghoul shrugged and turned to me. “Well we have the time now, shoot.”
Now came one of the biggest, and hardest parts of my journey so far. This wasn’t the time or place to back down. I had to stay strong.
“Where’s Shamrock?”
A question that had been haunting me for a while now. I died a little inside, but I didn’t show it. I couldn’t show it. I didn’t know why, but I refused to show weakness. I almost failed, but I felt something inside, making me stronger.
“Who might that be?” the dark yellow ghoul asked. I barely held in a whimper.
“My... my brother... he was killed before I was buried...” I was starting to lose it.
Snake Eyes gave me a sympathetic look. “The other pony... unfortunately, in order to keep you alive, I had to leave him behind.”
Oh Goddesses...
Tears were welling in my eyes. “He’s s-still... tied to the tree?” The ghoul nodded. I couldn’t hold it in anymore. Tears started flowing down my face. “Please tell me you’re lying... please...”
The dark yellow ghoul shook his head. I felt a reassuring hoof on my back. I looked to see who it was, and it was my beige, leather-clad travelling companion. I was going to turn and cry on her shoulder, but before I could, I felt a cold rush and the feeling of revenge swept through me like an icy breeze, killing almost all the sorrow I was feeling.
“The pony who did this to me...” I seethed. “Double Down. He will pay for this.” I looked back at the moustachioed ghoul. “Do you know where the fiend is?”
The ghoul shook his head. “Sorry, amigo. I don’t. But I do know where you can find out.”
“Iron City?” I asked, already knowing the answer. The ghoul nodded. “We’re already heading there. Isn’t there anything else you can tell us?”
The ghoul smiled. “No, but I think I can get you the information you need. Just head to Iron City and I will see if I can find anything while I’m here.”
“Why are you here?” Dare asked. I guessed my question time was over. I didn’t care, I asked what I needed to. I was too filled with rage and sorrow to ask anything else anyway.
“I need this communications building to carry out my mission,” Snake Eyes said, matter of factly.
Dare raised a brow. “Mission? Who are you with?”
“The Equestrian government. At least, I was until the bombs.”
“That doesn’t answer much, ghoulie,” Forsythe said flatly as she finished tying up the Separatist survivors.
“I need this array to make a connection between the surviving government databases back east, and contact a few friends about the issue.”
“Friends?” Gaz asked. “Everything over the Great Dividing Range is just about dead.”
Everything over the Great Dividing Range was Equestria. Was Equestria really dead? Every last bit?
“Almost, but not entirely,” the ghoul said. “Still places like Dise and Flankorage that are still alive. On their last legs perhaps, but still alive. I just happen to have former colleagues in both.”
“So that’s why you need the tower,” Dare mused. “I’m guessing you got it operational?”
The ghoul nodded. “Got it operational right before I was caught and captured. It was complicated, but I just happen to have the know-how.”
“So Short Stack made use of it? That can’t be good...”
“He didn’t use it," Snake Eyes said proudly. "He couldn’t use it.” He trotted to the biggest console and opened a panel under it. The rotten stallion stuck his head inside and routed around a little before pulling out a small, strange device. “Signal Jammer.” He showed us a rictus grin and put it on the ground. “Never let me down. When the Ministry of Wartime Tech makes something to last, it lasts.”
Dare nodded. “Well, Mr. Snake Eyes, this communications center is just as beneficial, if not more, to the Resistance. I must insist that you allow us to set up a base of operations here.”
The moustached ghoul shook his head. “I’m sorry, amiga, but my mission is far more important than the war right now. I will, however be willing to work with your people, as long as they help me.”
“Help you?”
“Yes. Security, analysts, runners, anything really.”
Dare thought about this for a few moments. “One condition, when you’re done with this mission of yours, you will assist us in the war against the Federation.” The old ghoul nodded in agreement.
“Then we have a deal,” Dare said, extending a hoof. “I will confirm with command, then send for the appropriate personnel. I’m guessing your mission is classified?” The ghoul nodded and shook her hoof. “Alright then.”
The ghoul turned to the monitors and started tapping in commands. The room started to hum as more monitors and terminals came to life. “We’re online,” Snake Eyes announced with a smile. “Is there anything else any of you want to ask while you’re here?” He looked around at the rest of us.
I was sitting by the door for the duration of their conversation, silently planning what I was going to do to Double Down when I found him. I glanced at the corpse of Short Stack. He wasn’t wearing a suit, just a darker uniform than the rest of the Separatists. I stared at the hole I put right between his eyes. “Double Down is going to get a lot worse than that... I swear to Celestia.”
I killed Short Stack. Took his life. Yet, I didn’t care. Why should I? He was a bad pony, and bad ponies needed to die. That expression about the bad living good and the good not living? I was going to change that. I was a good pony, and I was going to live good. Bad ponies? They weren’t. I would have to kill to enforce this, and damn it, I would do it proudly.
I spied a small note poking out of his uniform and picked it out. I unfolded it and read it. “The local- 39-73”. I hummed to myself, got up, shuffled to Snake Eyes and gave it to him.
“I have a question,” I said as he looked over it. “What does that mean? I found some numbers like that in a nearby building and my Pipbuck even copied them down.”
“Speaking of which,” Ace piped up and started rummaging through her saddlebag. She pulled out my Pipbuck and my SMG. “Here’s your Pipbuck and grease gun.” I slipped on the Pipbuck, pulled the duct tape down tight, and slung my 9mm SMG over my side.
The ghoul studied the note for a moment, then pulled a matching note from his coat pocket. “Found a similar one down in the basement.” He showed it to me.
The note read “Flavours show the way. 85-97.”
“I don’t know what it means, but I don’t have time to find out.” He levitated both notes into my riot barding’s pocket. “You keep ‘em, and tell me what they mean if you find out.” I nodded.
He smiled and turned to Dare. “Is that all, Miss...”
“You can call me Operative Rush.”
“Very well, Operative Rush. Is there anything else you need? Or can I get to work?”
“Carry on, Mr. Snake Eyes. My ponies will be arriving by Vertibuck ASAP.” She turned to the door and looked at the Separatist survivors they had tied up and lined up by the door. “Get these ponies moving.”
I looked up at the zombie pony. “Thank you, Snake Eyes. For saving me again.”
“That’s two you owe me, amigo,” the dark yellow coated stallion chuckled. “It was my pleasure, kid. Good luck on your journey to Iron City.” He turned to Ace and removed his hat, revealing an almost intact almost-black blue mane. “And Miss Ace, I look forward to seeing you again in the near future.” He took a small bow.
“As do I, Mister Snake Eyes,” Ace giggled and copied his bow. We both turned and headed for the exit.
“And, kid,” he said as we were passing through the doorway. He levitated his old coat off and slung it over my back. “Here, for helping me clear this place. Would have been tough without you and your friends.” Friends? I didn’t think I could consider those ponies my friends. The only friends I had were either back on the plains or enlisted in the Federation military.
“But... I owe you don’t I?” I asked, bemused and looking at the old trench coat.
“Yeah, but those are big owes,” the moustached ghoul chuckled. “I would rather cash them in at a later date.”
“Fair enough,” I muttered. “Thanks, Mister Snake Eyes. See you in Iron City.”
Ace smiled at the ghoul and followed me out. We saw Forsythe and Gaz shoving the Separatist ponies down the hall and were met by their unicorn comrades. “Did we miss anything?” One of them asked.
Both of them had a few scuffs and bruises, but were still relatively intact. I bet that had something to do with their heavier, plated armour and the huge machine guns on their backs. The ponies on the lower floors stood no chance.
“Short Stack is dead,” Gaz announced. “Killed by the bait. Who knew?” He turned to me as Ace and I followed. “Not bad for a Fed civvie.” I blushed a little. “Have any trouble with Happy Jack?”
“We didn’t see him,” the second unicorn responded. “We thought you would have gotten him.”
Gaz shook his head. “Then he’s still around.” He seemed to tense under his armour.
I looked up at the ceiling. “One more floor to go.” Judging from where Dare, Ace, and Forsythe fell from, they were crawling along ventilation and such. “Is this going to be a problem?”
Of course it was. That demo donkey had Gaz spooked. If Gaz was spooked, I was terrified.
“The top floor is the temporary armoury and storage,” one of the captives said. “Raid it so nopony else can get their hooves on it. Especially not the Federation.” Of course, if the Feds took this base from the Resistance, the front line soldiers would probably get a boost from the armouries.
Gaz shrugged. “As we’re passing the next floor for extraction, why the hell not? We’ll just have to be extra careful of Happy Jack.”
“Agreed,” Dare said. “Now let’s find that armoury, and go home.”
--- --- ---
Three rooms with nothing but scrap electronics and spare parts. This floor was starting to put everypony on edge. Forsythe and one of the unicorns had left us to take the captives to the roof, which just left the other unicorn, Ace, Gaz, and Dare. So far, we’d been accessing every room in a very tactical manner. Ace and Dare would stand either side of the door, Gaz and the unicorn would take up spaces behind them, as I sniffed around outside. I say sniffed around, more like stood far-ish away and provided ‘cover’. Don’t judge me. You try having your ear clipped and your leg shot. They still bloody hurt!
“What’s behind door number four, I wonder...” Ace mumbled, taking up position opposite Dare. “Lets see what goodies we have in store for us tonight.”
Dare counted to three, then flung the door open. Ace was the first one in, levitating her shotgun ahead of her, followed by Gaz and Dare, then the unicorn. Ace groaned as we entered a tiny, empty office.
“Damn, dagnabbit, damn it!” she spat, stomping on the ground. “I want to see the damn armoury already!”
“Patience is a virtue, young one,” Gaz chuckled. “We’ll get to the armoury soon enough, but not so fast. Heppy Jack could blow us all to pieces if we go in unprepared.” Ace grunted then nodded. She must’ve been tired. Judging by my pipbuck, she had been up close to twenty hours. The sun would be coming up soon.
Hold on a second. Other than the obvious white ticks of my allies, I saw another one further down the hall. Now, if my memory serves me correctly, white meant non-hostile, and red meant hostile. Should I have mentioned this to the others? I tried to, but they shooed me away as they stacked up on another door. Well, to name names, Ace shooed me away. No surprise there.
I decided telling them could wait. There could be a pony in distress up there. Maybe even a damsel! Imagine that, me coming to a damsel’s rescue. I would most likely lock up and freeze if she were beautiful, but at least she would be happy to have gotten free, right? I trotted down the hall.
The door the captive was behind was a nice polished oak, and had a shiny brass knob. There used to be a word engraved on the door, but it had decayed beyond comprehension. How the door stood, and the word didn’t was a question for the ages. Or a smarter pony. Probably the latter. They key to the door had been carelessly left in the lock by some half-assed guard. This was going to be easier than I thought.
“My name is Clover and I’m here to resc-” I announced as I opened the door. I was met with a large, weird looking pony sitting in an old leather chair so covered in cracks so that the stuffing peeked out while he gave a big, toothy... and kinda drunk grin.
A certain eye-patch wearing donkey to be exact.
Of course. I had seen him on this floor earlier, but when I had seen him through the binoculars he was sitting in one of the smaller chairs along the side of the large desk that filled most of the room. I couldn’t have cared less about the pristine green wallpaper and red carpets. The only thing I could focus on, was the one eyed donkey in his oversized vest and collar, grinning as he pointed his giant revolver things at me. They each had a huge drum feeding into the wide barrels and a long rectangle on top of the barrels that served as sights. Almost looked like they were made to shoot apples instead of bullets
I quivered on the spot, only producing a whimper when I called for help. I started trembling like I was on a cart going over cobblestones.
“Hullo there, laddie,” he said with a huge grin. “Here ta ‘rescue me’ are ya?” I couldn’t help but gulp. “Or are ya here ta execute me?”
“I... Execute?”
He got up, picked up a bottle of beer, and chugged it. He slammed it on the table and burst into tears. “Aye,” he sobbed. “You must know by now that I did’nea want to be a Separatist arsehole, and Short Stack wants me dead. Just make it quick.”
“I’m... not here to, uh... execute you,” I stammered, taking a cautious step forward. “You don’t want to be a Separatist? That’s fine. But if they thought you were, why did they give you those guns?”
The cyclops looked up at me. “They’re mocking me. They did’nae give me any ammunition.” He sobbed a few times before taking another swig, and belched deeply. Even I cringed at the smell and I was a good few meters from him. “If’n you’re no’ here t’ kill me. Why are ya here?”
“I guess to get you out?” I responded awkwardly, scratching my chin. “We’ve cleared the building of Separatists, if you don’t want to join them, why not come with us?”
The donkey blinked. “So ya are here t’rescue me?” I nodded. He straightened out and breathed in deeply. “Aye. That would be grand.” He trotted to me and caught me in a hug. I was scared witless by the sudden display of drunken affection. “Thank ye! I thought I was dead fer sure!” He broke his hug. I stood motionless. “Er, sorry for the mood swings. Its the drink ya see...”
“No... no problem...” I managed to utter. “L-lets just go...” I turned and zipped out of the door.
I found the others about to barge into another room. “You can stop that now,” I said, looking cautiously over my shoulder at the donkey stumbling out of the room. “I found him.”
Everypony turned and raised their weapons. The donkey stopped and flung his hooves up into the air. He promptly fell on his back and his battle saddle clanged against the floor.
“Don’t shoot,” I said. “He’s with us... and he’s drunk... So. Very. Drunk.”
“How do you know?” Dare asked. “He seemed pretty happy being here when we saw him through the scope.”
“Dare, I can assure ye,” Happy Jack said as he got to his hooves. “I’m a Resistance demolitions expert to the end. The Separatists just seemed preferable to being shipped t’some prison back west until I found a way out o'me predicament.”
Operative Rush seemed to think for a moment. “Stand down,” she ordered. “But Gaz, tie him up until we process him. We don’t want any nasty surprises. And take his saddle too.”
The donkey sighed and unclipped his saddle. He waited patiently until Gaz had finished securing him and stood him by the staircase. That was nine captives total. Good catch, if you ask me.
The rest of the ponies broke through the last door, opposite Happy Jack’s holding place.
Jackpot.
They had breached the armoury. No wonder the office down the hall was small, this room was huge, with ammo stores, weapons, everything. I could hear Ace squeal with delight as she made a beeline for the shotguns.
Gaz whistled under his helmet. He took it off with a hiss and pulled out a large cigar from a pocket on his armour and chewed on the end before lighting it. “Would you look at this... we’re gonna need another vertibuck.” He picked up a note on a table and cleared his throat. “‘Sir, I need more men to transfer this equipment to the secure storage in the basement.’” I guessed that explained why the armoury was up here where it was harder to defend against incursions coming from the roof
Still, I wondered why the armoury was left unguarded even if it was a temporary one, then I saw a note on the door reading “Grabbing a snack. Back in five.” They must have gone to get around about the time I had been captured and then been needed to shore up security.
I wondered why Short Stack didn’t have much security up here, knowing that his enemies could fly. I guessed there was some sort of defensive stuff on the roof.
Another vertibuck or no, I was uninterested. Shotguns, Assault Rifles, Explosives, nothing tickled my interest. Most of the room was just ammo crates anyway. I sighed and turned to leave while the others gawked at all the boxes, but then something caught my eye.
I trotted over to a long box on top of an ammo crate and nudged it with my nose. “Death's Breath Sniper Silencer,” I muttered to myself without looking at the label. I cocked my head and my face scrunched up in confusion. “How the hell do I know that?” Scratching my head and shrugging, I whispered to myself. “Must've read about it or something.” I poked at the box again before tucking it into my new coat's pocket. I would have left it behind but something about it just felt right. Felt like I needed it. Like I wanted it. Odd.
Ace was in complete gun-nut ecstasy. She was slobbering of the rows and rows of elaborate shotguns, accessories and boxes of esoteric ammo. A look of despondency crept over her face as she slowly realised that she couldn't possibly take them all with her. She pulled her pump-action shotgun closer to her chest.
“I'm not leaving you,” she whispered lovingly to it, like it was her own child. “Never ever ever.”
She glanced over the other shotguns again. “But you're all so beautiful...” She looked like she was about to cry before her eyes fell on a smaller double barreled shotgun. She smiled broadly. “You'll do.” She picked up the shotgun. She also picked up a few spare parts for her pump-action, a longer ammo tube and few more parts that I couldn't identify.
I sighed and sat on an ammo box. Today was hell. That's for sure. The worst part was finding out that my brother was still tied to a tree out there, all alone, rotting away. Tears were flowing down my face, but I didn't make a sound. I couldn't really bring myself to cry. I couldn't cry. I was just too tired and hurt. My leg was throbbing, my ear stung, and every muscle in my body ached.
It felt like eternity before Ace trotted over to me. “Still bummed about your brother, huh?” she asked. I nodded, numbly. Of course I was, you'd have to have the intelligence of a rock or three, to not notice that. “Well we're gearing up to get going. You still want to come with me to Iron City?”
Was she actually asking me to go with her instead of dragging me? I looked up at her and saw her giving me a sympathetic look. I think she was starting to get it.
“Sure. Best way to find out about Double Down.” I hopped down from the ammo box and followed the spec-ops ponies and griffins out into the hallway and shuffled up the last set of stairs.
Gaz opened the roof access and strolled out, enjoying his cigar in the open air. I took a deep breath and sighed, watching the skies to the east start to take a purple and orange tinge as the sun began its lazy crawl over the desert.
The roof was covered in gravel and stone with heating and ventilation pipes and conduits. Behind us stood the giant antenna of the facility while a large gun turret looked out over the Ponave protecting a huge landing pad which could easily house two or even three vertibucks. It looked like it was used recently, and not by us. The Separatists must have had a vertibuck of their own up their sleeves. Which would explain the top floor armoury.
“Hey hey!” Forsythe called with a wave from her perch on an old ventilation unit. “'Bout damn time! Find me anything good for me?” She held out a hand to Gaz as if she was a child expecting a gift.
Gaz huffed in amusement and pulled a package out of his armoured pockets. “Thermal scope for Gilda's Fury.” He placed into her outstretched hand. “Enjoy.”
Forsythe squealed, hopped up off her perch and gave him a peck on the cheek. “Thanks brother o' mine. Just what I always wanted.”
I was dumbstruck. The lean, nimble Forsythe was the sister of the huge, teeming behemoth of a griffin, Gaz? No way. “You're siblings?”
Forsythe clambered up onto Gaz's back and stood on his shoulders. “Yep!” she chirped, finding her balance. “Gaz is my big brother. Always has been, always will!”
“Unfortunately...” Gaz smirked and glanced down at me. “So don't try anything, tiny.”
I gulped and shook my head violently. “No, sir. Not at all, sir. Not me, sir.”
Gaz raised his armoured hand and narrowed his eyes. I clamped mine shut and waited for the blow I felt coming.
The armoured hand patted my shoulder. “You're alright, tiny. Obviously not Federation material, risking your life for us Resistance 'terrorists' or 'scum'.” He crossed his arms as his sister fell off his shoulders and wrapped around his neck in a piggyback. “I still don't want you snooping around my sister. Even if you were a griffin.” He bent down low. “I'm watching you, tiny.”
Forsythe pouted. “You never let me have any fun, Garry Thornclaw,” she imitated an authoritative figure.
Gaz shook his head. “I will never understand why you prefer ponies over griffins,” he sighed. “You're weird.”
“What?” Forsythe asked, pouting again. “Griffins are too rough for me. Ponies are nice and gentle.” She pulled herself up to whisper in his ear. “They have bigger dicks too,” she cooed as my cheeks began to burn.
Dare pulled a device from her ear. “Alright, vertibuck is inbound now,” she barked and turned to our abundance of captives. Each one seemed a little more relaxed than before as they sat in a neat little row, and the buck from the security station was staring at me. I didn't like him. He creeped me out.
I turned and sat beside Ace as she looked out over the desert. “Why are you such a bitch?” I asked.
Ace sighed. “Because I need to. It’s nothing personal, just a defence mechanism. I'm sorry, I shouldn't be so mean to you, considering what you're going through.” She turned her head to me and smiled. “I'll stop being such a bitch, if you do something for me...”
“What might that be?” I asked, tilting my head.
Ace thought for a few seconds. “What can you do?”
“Uh... well... I was a farmer, so...” What did I do on the farm. Oh, right. “I have a mean buck from bucking apples, I can use a scythe for wheat, I’m decent at carpentry and repairs, and I’ve worked with food all my life and can cook basic meals.” That ought to cover it. The amount of times Shamrock and I would break something and be made to fix it was ridiculous. I think in the end, we mostly just broke things for the chance to put them back together. We had good intentions!
“You... can cook?” Ace asked, obviously flabbergasted. I nodded in response. “I can’t. I’ll be nice if you cook from time to time,” she said with a smile.
“So you'll stop being such a bitch to me if I cook on our way to Iron City?” I asked. She smiled even broader. “Deal.”
We shook hooves as two vertibucks touched down on the middle of the roof. We turned and saw the captives all lined up and ready to board while a line of Resistance soldiers filed out to be briefed by Dare, who must have called in early to arrange troops to occupy the building. Gaz clipped his helmet over his face before taking up his position at the rear while taking no note of Forsythe, sprawled over his back like a feathered cape.
Everypony boarded the now over-cramped vertibuck (no more available seats meant Ace, Forsythe, Gaz, the earth pony snipers we had picked up, and I had to stand) and took off, leaving the communications station and its occupational force behind. The lights on the tower were all lit up in full operation. I looked forward to seeing Snake Eyes again. Hopefully then, he might have some information for me.
“Where are you heading?" Dare asked, calling over Gaz, who stood in her way. "Want us to drop you off?”
“Iron Ci-” Ace started, but I had to take this opportunity.
“El Diablo Drylake,” I interjected, cutting off Ace. She looked at me like I was mad. “Ace, my brother is still out there. I need to find his body. Please.”
Ace's look softened up and she nodded. “Right. El Diablo Drylake.”
“Really?” Dare called over. “Alright, up to you. El Diablo it is.”
The vertibuck lurched as we adjusted course. I was going to find my brother.
--- --- ---
We landed with a dull thump on the dry, packed ground of the drylake and the rear cargo hatch slowly hissed open. We turned to the ponies inside. Dare was standing in front of them and extended her hoof.
“Mister Clover, Miss Ace," she said with a level of authority. "Thank you very much for your assistance in neutralizing one of the worst warlords in the Ponave.” We shook her hoof. “I think we can consider you two friends of the Resistance and we treat our friends well.”
We stepped off the vertibuck and turned once again. Forsythe was right in my face, having scrambled over Gaz.
“Don't be a stranger, cutie,” she cooed and gave me a peck on the cheek. “See you around!” She giggled and flew back into the vertibuck.
I froze completely. I got a kiss on the cheek from a griffin. What should I be feeling? It was a griffin, but she was a female, and she was kinda cute. Should I be repulsed? Cause I was feeling a wee bit aroused. Thank goodness I was wearing full body armour. Oh! The armour!
“What about the armour?” I called to Dare.
She smiled. “Keep it!”
Yay! My own armour! That wasn't pink!
The vertibuck lurched and hovered above the ground. “Hope to see you again!” Dare called down as it turned. The front of the vertibuck dipped as the pegasus pilots and unicorn operator up front nodded to us through the view ports. The flying machine took off, arced over us, and headed east into the sunrise.
“Sorry about your armour,” I said, turning to Ace. “We left it in that building we set up in.”
Ace smiled and shook her head. “Don't worry about it, Daisy. I hated that armour anyway.” She looked me over in my new look. I must have looked like hell. My mane was a mess, my ear was clipped and bloody, I was wearing an old trench coat with a set of riot armour, and a bloody leg. “Can't call you Daisy anymore... you look a bit too badass for that...” She shrugged. “Fuck it, you will always be Queen Daisy to me."
I scowled at her until a small, treacherous, but warm smile crept through. “Whatever.”
“Y'know, you and Forsythe look pretty cute together,” Ace purred. “Why don't you like griffins?”
Well that was a change in subject but I shrugged anyway. “The talons. They must be, like, really sharp or something.”
“There's a way around that, y'know,” Ace said as she trotted into the drylake.
“Oh?” I asked, shuffling after her while my leg and ear throbbed.
“Let her be on top.”
Footnote: Level Up!
New Perk!
"Stable Shot"
Your attacks are smooth, graceful and precise. You have a higher chance to score a critical hit on an opponent in combat, equivalent to 5 extra points of Luck.
Special thanks to Kashin, Kal, Menti, and Julep for editing and art.
Thanks are in order for the great and all powerful Kkat for creating the FoE Universe that I implanted my work into.
This chapter was split pending new ToaC:R policy.
Stats
Page generated in 0.023 seconds
Total duration
649 users online
834,085 hits today, 2,561,572 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
Excelent , Kid Got Balls, Also Possible Appearance Of Some Know Characters Of Other Foe Fics ?, Snake Is Still A Spy, Ace Is Cool
And I Now Added A Like N' A Watcher Great Work Dude
Iron City= Boulder City
ahahha Ace always picking on Clover cant wait for the next chapter
Lol even in an alternate universe, Clover's ear still gets clipped. Great job! You sure took your sweet time. But hey, to each his own. Also glad to see the major development in the characters and their relations with eachother.
.....if I didn't already know that Clover would eventually end up with Ace, I would've sooooooooooooooooo shipped him with Forsythe. Good chapter, and even better internal conflicts and monologues. I approve.
sweet Celestia update more often!
I can't help but think that the donkey is a reference to the demoman from Team Fortress 2: both are drunks, both are Scottish (I think that is the donkey's accent at least), and both have one eye. Oh, and both of them use a lot of explosives.
Good chapter either way.
710075
I didn't mean it to be Boulder City. They hold no likeness of each other. Still, nice try.
710163
He's 21.
710175
Its gonna be fun! There's stuff. OH! And things, too!!
710219
Hey, this was actually chapter 4 part 2, they were split during editing, its editing that took forever.
710270
SSHHHPPPOILERSH!! And it would have been cute. Ah, but the story is still young. Anything could happen...
710545
He's not their favourite character, but he's one of them. Most people REALLY like Knife Ant....
710999
TELL THAT TO MY EDITORS
711530
Yes, he is modelled after the demoman. I thought it would be fun!
711955 Your Agument Is Invalid Because...
puu.sh/yLVA
711972
But... I'm straight...
Do not want Molestia penis...
711985 Too Late
puu.sh/nLAi
711992
... uhh... I don't have a bed... I have a box!
Toobadsosadbyebyegoaway.
712003 SHE'S COMING puu.sh/opTH
712013
...eep.
711955That makes sense. And I wasnt saying it was a bad thing
711955
If so, then sorry. I didn't mean to.
Wait, it's a spoiler?
712013
HA! That picture gets me every time.
712039 Don't worry I'll save you Mr. Friendly Hobo! *Swoops down and scoops him up*
Oh my Gawd
Molestia NOOOOOOOO!!! 
711955 i'm an editor. and a proofreader. and i get chapters back in a week or less.
Cool keep up the awesome work
All right, sorry I don't comment more. I read mostly on my Ipod and commenting there after reading is difficult. So I want you to know your story is one of the few worth bothering to look up later and comment on.
I LOVE this. There are only four Fallout Equestria stories that are worth reading. And yours is one of them. I love how the main character is a bumbling load of tears and cowardice.
And Ace is awesome too. Let's not forget Ace.
And a straight character? Seriously? Thank Celestia I thought the day would never come! YAY!
My main complaint, is that it takes a long time between chapters, which wouldn't be too bad, except the length of time is so long, I never quite remember everything that has happened previously until the end of the new chapter.
Great work, can't wait for more.
713663
oh man, I write like the wind, cranking out 2k an hour somtimes, its just editing that takes forever!! All of my editors are very busy with other stuff, so I don't mind.
712519
yay! *is scooped away*
713263
I intend to. Come hell or high water, I will continue. Demon Hunter's got my back (come HELL or etc. Diablo reference. No? Kay...)
713663
You just made my day.
Oh ho you funny guy I kill you third last
714581
...uh...
Nice, nice. Didn't expect the donkey to go so willingly... nice anticlimax :)
A few minor corrections:
>Heppy Jack
"happy"?
>Find me anything good for me?
Double "me"
What time is it? It's... ah, hell, not gonna even bother with the intro this time. Let's get straight to it.
I've gotta say that this story keeps getting better and better with each progresses. Clover's responses are becoming more and more appropriate and natural now. Before, I felt they were more than a bit overblown, even for a sheltered pony. Now? Good to me. By this point, Clover's a character I can relate to in some sense. He's still intimidated in the face of adversity, yes, but he does have his moments where he sucks it up and gets it done. He's easily flustered, yet he can be bold and forge out on his own (...somewhat). Also, we get to see that luck come into play again this chapter what with the extremely lucky shift in guard positions and Happy Jack (overly hyped much?). I also must say I like the notion that Clover's trying to fight against the "bad live good, good don't live" concept laid out by Double Down. It gives him some staying power, something to latch onto- something he'll need in the road to come.
Hm, riot armor and a trench coat. Clover the Resistance Ranger!
Your other characters are also something to note this chapter. So this time Ace and Snake Eyes have already met. That makes things... interesting. I'm waiting on an explanation behind that. The bit about her saying the "bitchy" attitude is a defense mechanism seems a bit too forthcoming for Ace, but eh, we'll see how that plays out. Trading it for cooking? Something tells me this can't end well. Or at least, end in the way we expect.
So much innuendo. Clover must have the Sex Appeal trait or something.
Small note- I got total Borderlands vibes when they looted the armory. Just saying.
That's it for this review. Waiting on the next one, Hobo.
Wishing you luck,
Adder1
716018
Wooo! Review! Me gusta!
Oh man this actually made my holiday in Spain perfect, sitting on the balcony of a hotel in Spain reading the latest chapter of ToAC:R? That's a good feel.
Anyhow! Excellent work my friend! Loving how Clover has developed so far, seeing as him and Ace are flying solo I'm looking forward to a Wasteland cuisine courtesy of the trench coat badass himself ;) I'll miss the teasing from Forscythe though, can't wait to see the Sepc Ops team again. Overall I felt the level of drama and action was wonderfully communicated, I could literally feel the adrenaline rushes and the cold dread when Clover finds out where his brother is. Also the bit in the armoury with the silencer? Am I taking it too far by wondering if Clover may not remember his past as clearly as he believes? ;P Interesting nevertheless!
Keep it up you box-dweller! ;D Looking extremely forward to (while drama and possible twist laced Shamrock bits) some more Ace and Clover one on one!
Update soon!
759068
Shveeeeet! Super glad to hear that!
Hell of a way to start a conversation.