Fallout Equestria: Hoof and Claw

by Keeperofthedark

Chapter 1: Into the Kingdom

Chapter 1

Into the Kingdom

I sat silently, drinking in the relative silence of the wastes. My two companions were asleep, bathed in the soft glow of the distant moon. Their breathing was the only thing making the relative silence of the wastes a complete one, adding a sort of rhythm and flow to the night. The soft noises were comforting. A reminder of life. Not that most ponies would dwell on that.

My magic is that of sound, in many of its forms. Whether it was silencing the sharp bang of a rifle, or crafting it together to try and fix Spanner’s horrible bartering, I’ve always shared an affinity with it. That was actually why I preferred the night to the day. In sunlight, sound is secondary, with most ponies relying on what they saw. In moonlight, however, sight was not always a possibility. Then, hearing could become a pony’s most important sense.

And of course silence was always something to be treasured. True silence, not counting my magically-induced silence, was nearly always a sound of safety and inactivity. If one could hear all, but there was nothing to hear, then it meant that all was well.

As if hearing my mental musings, one of the sleeping bags behind me rustled. I glanced at the moon, unsure of the time. Perhaps Spanner had woken and thought it was her turn to take watch. That was always a problem in the wastes. So hard to tell the time. Unless you had a fancy Pipbuck. “Pindrop?” came the feminine voice from behind me.

Called it. “Yes Spanner?” I all but whispered back.

“I think it’s my turn to watch. You can sleep now.” Almost regretfully, I got up from my perch in the wasteland, and turned back to camp, where I was promptly stopped by Spanner’s concerned face. “Pindrop… are you okay?”

I briefly considered the question before deciding to play a bit dense. Scope out what she felt. “What do you mean?”

The moonlight shone on her dull orange mane. “You seem… subdued. Unhappy. Is it… is it because of me and Slow Burn?”

And of course it would be the worst case scenario. Recently, Spanner and my other companion, the before mention Slow Burn, had gotten together. The reason this was awkward for me was because of how long I had known Spanner. We had… been through a lot together, to say the least, and while I’m not saying I am romantically attracted to her, we are still close. It was very odd for her to suddenly have another that close, especially in such a short time. We had picked up Slow Burn about a week and a half ago, finding him at a trade caravan that had been attacked as it had been crossing into the Griffon Kingdom south of Equestria. His condition then had been a cause for concern, and the time we took for him to rest was apparently good bonding time. For some.

Once again, I paused, choosing my words carefully. “It’s fine, Spanner. You like him, and he’s not a total mule, so everything’s good.” I then nudged past her, working to try and get to sleeping before she realized I sidestepped her question.

Apparently, my answer placated her, or she didn’t know how to respond, because I only heard a soft good night behind me before I crawled into my bedding. I only hope she drops the subject from now on. It’s… uncomfortable to think about. Things usually work fine when I just ignore it and deal with it as it comes. It also helps when I think about all Spanner and I have been through. …That can’t be replaced or taken away. She’s one of my closest friends. I know she is.

***

Morning passed uneventfully, if a tad uncomfortably due to some drowsiness on my part. Apparently, my gloomy if not a tad melodramatic thoughts the night before had tired me out. However, time waits for no mare (or stallion, in this case), so I just shook out my long brown mane and trudged on, the naturally rocky terrain of the griffons’ homeland passing me by.

My cohorts and I were heading to Plumesburg on business for Slow Burn. This errand suited Spanner and me quite finely, as we had little to no other place to go. Being busy with something was better than not knowing what to do, especially if we could manage to get some jobs. Caps and supplies, always at a premium, were starting to run very thin, despite our best efforts.

“So Burny, will there be any sort of demand for mechanics?” asked Spanner. True to her name and cutie mark, Spanner was an excellent engineer, though most of her jobs presently were patchwork repairs with our meager supplies. I bet she was dying to have a chance to do some real work.

Slow Burn replied in a deep, masculine voice,” Well, I know there isn’t any big machinery or anything. There might be some more gun or barding repairs though.” I could practically see Spanner’s face drop at the thought of more mundane repair jobs. She was eternally itching for work with some more glamour to it.

Maybe I could see if I could gather up some spare caps for some real tools when we got to Plumesburg. It might help her a bit. Make her know I’m not too upset…

My musings were cut short by the loud bang of a rifle. Immediately, everyone sprang into action, trying to locate the ponies shooting at us. “This way!” Spanner yelled.

Luckily, the rocky terrain nearby was able to give us some semblance of cover, so I followed the gray mare’s advice, ducking over a ridge. “A-are they raiders?” I asked nervously over the sound of gunfire.

Spanner quickly looked over the hill, and then let out a curse before answering. “Not exactly. They’re… well, remember when we were back in town a while ago, when caps were really bad? Before we met Burny?”

I nodded, a sense of apprehension rising. Adding caps into any equation was never good. Ponies never acted smart around money. “I kind of took a few bounty jobs without telling you. It was dangerous, but we needed the money.”

“So we’re being chased by some gang you pissed off?” I answered back as I finally thought to take out my rifle. Trying to still my fear, I popped off a few semi-automatic shots while Spanner took her time to answer.

“It’s a bit worse than that… One of the jobs went badly. Another bounty hunter got killed in the crossfire, and his buddies blamed me. I had hoped they had forgotten about the whole thing after I escaped,” Spanner explained as she took out her submachine gun, adding her automatic bang to my suppressing efforts.

“But they didn’t,” I replied as I eyed the quickly advancing mob. My rifle and Spanner’s SMG were doing little to slow their progress, her gun being less than accurate and mine not having enough bullets to fire for long without reloading. Slow Burn was finally feeling the impracticalness of his trademark flamer, sitting near us uselessly. Hopefully this would finally convince him to get a better weapon. If we got out of this alive.

“Slow Burn, you’re a local here. Is there any place we could go hide or anything?” I quickly asked him.

“I think there’s an abandoned shopping center, just a bit east of here. Or at least the remains of one. We could fall back there and regroup. Or there are always the mountains,” the light red stallion answered.

As I had mentioned before, The Griffon Kingdom was, for the most part, very mountainous. Being able to fly, and being able to carry a lot while doing so due to their bulk, allowed the griffons to colonize in a wide variety of places most other races, including the pegasi, would just pass up. Travel without wings was difficult, as one was limited to relatively sparse network of roads that connected the larger pre-war cities non-griffons used to frequent, or various air taxi services used to link the newer settlements together, though those were expensive.

Spanner thought a moment. “We need to split up. They’re armed too heavily to easily navigate the mountains, so I’ll head there while you two get to the shopping center. The majority should follow me, and then hopefully get lost in the mountains. You two should be able to deal with any of the stragglers that follow you.”

Despite the fear welling up inside me from the thought of fighting, I decided to trust Spanner as usual. While she was sometimes slow and weak, she was far lighter in both size and equipment than our pursuers, a huge advantage in bad terrain. Ignoring Burn’s look of complaint from being separated from her, I quickly weighed in on the plan. “Where should we meet up at?

“… I don’t know when I’ll be able to ditch these guys, so we’ll just have to meet up in Plumesburg in a week or so.” It made sense. Since we would be potentially taking different routes, we needed regroup at a known location.

We sealed our plan with a nod, and then took one last moment to chart our respective courses. The gang was almost on top of us, or at least I figured from the encroaching sound of gunfire, which was making me increasingly nervous. I hoped we could spring into action soon. It was easier to ignore fear when one was actively doing something. It occurred to me then that it was stupid of them to have taken the first shot when they were so far away. Hopefully that meant they were dim witted overall then. “You got any of those smoke grenades left?” I asked hopefully. Spanner, along with her miracle repair skills, was awfully fond of homebrewed explosives. A while back, we had come across some raw materials we couldn’t sell for much, so she had gleefully outfitted us with some heavier firepower.

Spanner grabbed said ordinance out of her saddle bag. “Just a couple.”

I reached out to them with my magic. There were three left, and I grabbed them all. “Then let’s go,” I said, pulling the pins and hurling all three at once. I heard the sound of loud cursing from the gang, surprised by the smoke. We seized the element of surprise then, Spanner taking off in the opposite direction of me and Slow Burn.

Every time I ran for my life, I always wished I was brown instead of dark blue. Brown blended in to the wasteland so much better. It was like having your own personal camouflage. However, these thoughts soon left, replaced by more important ones like “How many ponies are shooting at me?” or “Why is Slow Burn running off to Spanner?”

… Damn it. Luna and Celestia damn it. Despite the lumbering brute’s idiocy, I kept on running. He would slow down Spanner enough with his heavy equipment, and I would slow them down more. Hell, he might even be able to catch a bullet or two that would hit her. Due to our cash and equipment problem, Spanner and I had very little in the way of actual barding. It was light to travel in, but I doubted it could take more than a bullet or two. That was the reason for giving Spanner so much time to ditch these goons. One stray bullet was all it would take… Well, I would just have to trust her to keep them safe for now. And, well, focus on getting me safe. I spared a quick glance back to finally see a spot of good luck. The crowd of about twelve ponies had stopped, wasting time on deciding who to chase.

Unfortunately, that’s where my luck ended, because four peeled off from the main group to pursue me. Looks like I’d have to expect a fight. Hopefully I could get to the shopping center before then. I dealt better in close quarter fighting than anything else. My magic, along with my revolver and combat knife, allowed me to gain an edge close up. Not to mention my weaker eyesight was often a liability outdoors.

Then, just as their potshots were getting uncomfortably close, the shopping center finally came into view. Scanning the derelict buildings, I managed to spot a large super market. As it was large and with an intact roof, a feat not many of the other building could achieve, I choose it for my stand off.

Weaving through the debris scattered road, dodging bullets all the while, I finally ducked into the relative safety of the abandoned market. Once inside, my horn lit up almost instantly, muffling my footsteps on the loud metal floor. I sprinted past the rows and rows of fallen aisles, ducking into a storage room on the far side of the store. And not a moment too soon.

I heard the door slam open, and the loud clops of the ponies entering the store. “Scan the store. Foal couldn’t have gone far, so let’s get this done quick.”

A lighter, less intelligent voice spoke out,” But I thought we were hunting down the gray one?”

A loud smack filled the air. “We are, and whoever was with her! Little bitch killed the boss, so we return the favor. If a few other ponies get caught in the crossfire, all well. So get searching.”

I took a deep breath to steady myself as I readied my revolver. Even though close quarter combat was more my style, it still scared me. I then took one more deep breath to steady my pounding heart. It wouldn’t do if it was too loud for me to hear the gangers. Speaking of which, I decided it was time to pull another magic trick and make my bullhorn cutie mark proud.

Horn lighting up, I closed my eyes as I focused on my hearing, amplifying the noises around me. This was one of my fancier, if also more dangerous tricks. If I ramped up my hearing enough, I could usually hear where other ponies in the area were. Almost like E.F.S. on a Pipbuck, if a bit less fancy. There were some drawbacks however. A noise too loud, like a gunshot, could devastate my hearing, incapacitating me. It was a risk I needed to take however. My best bet was to take out the gangers one by one, and that required intel.

I could hear the one stationed by the door, nervously shuffling around. I’d have to deal with him for sure, preferably last. I also heard two sets of hoofsteps near the isles, scraping against the metal floor and other junk. I strained my hearing to find the last raider, but the other ambient noises were too much. Looks like I’d need a bit more practice.

At that moment, one of the raiders must have tripped over something, because a deafening metal bang soon sounded out. It felt like someone had slugged me in the face as I released my magic, ears ringing. I resisted the urge to rub them as I silenced my footsteps once again, and ran out of my hiding place.

Between the darkness of the store and my own magicked silenced, I almost felt like a predator. Or I would have had my limbs not been shaking with nerves. I walked down the rows of aisles, resisting the urge to tiptoe. I knew it was useless, but was having a harder time convincing my muscle memory. I peaked around the corner between the next set, spotting one of the gangers.

Releasing the magic on my hooves to conserve strength, I worked on silencing my revolver to make a clean kill. My nerves were a bit heavy right now to go in close with my knife. Magic done, I raised my gun, lining up the sights carefully. A clean and quick kill was most definitely preferable. It gave my target no time to react, and it meant I had to work less containing the sound waves from multiple gunshots. Or a scream, as a non-lethal hit would entail.

The revolver bucked in my magical grip as I fired, the sensation being odd without any of the noises associated with it. I was tensed up, ready to move to my next target, when the dead pony dropped, smacking onto the floor with an all-too audible thump. Damn. I forgot to consider that source of noise.

“Hey, what was that?” the first voice from before sounded out. “It came from the aisles. Someone check that out. I almost got this lock open.”

My ringing and sensitive ears were just able to pick up an exasperated sigh from the other pony stalking the aisles as he turned my way. Unsure from which end of the aisle he would appear from, I took my chances and ducked down the way I came, racing off to safety. It seemed my luck held, as I didn't run face first into the ganger. However, I soon cursed my quick escape, realizing that I left the body out in the open. Thinking quickly, I moved a bit away before bucking some cans on the floor, hopefully creating a loud enough noise for the ganger to follow.

As I ran back around to the relative safety of the storage room, I heard the guttural first voice from before bellow in triumph. “Ah! Finally got this lock. Now let’s see who’s in here… Oh, we got a live on in here boys!”

I started at this revelation. There was someone else in here? Before I could take that train of thought, the voices started again. “Not the little shit we’re looking for, but you’re a nice, pretty mare. Kind enough to corner yourself to boot. Looks like we got a prize after this job, boys.” I heard the door slam shut. “So let’s finish this up quick.”

Well this was a new development. Another pony in the mix complicated things… but hopefully in my favor. If I could sneak over to where she was locked up, I might be able to free her, and use that as an opening to escape.

My new course charted, I started making my way to where I thought I heard the whole exchange take place. This time, I had no qualms about nearly sprinting through the store. This stealth was taking a large toll on my magic, and I wasn’t sure how much more I could take. Keeping to the darkness as the locked door came into sight, I was disheartened to see the first pony, a dull colored earth stallion, guarding it. Apparently, he didn’t want his “prize” getting away. Or he just wanted first dibs after my death.

Steeling myself for the worst, I gathered up my remaining strength to once again silence my revolver. There was too much distance to cover to use my knife, even if I could. Once again, I aimed carefully and took fire, only this time the blast was accompanied by a sharp pain in my forehead and my gun clattering gently to the floor.

I froze at the noise radiating from my weapon, but relaxed a tad when it appeared that it had gone unnoticed. Ears still ringing and head now throbbing, I shakily cloaked my revolver in dark blue magic and holstered it. It looks like that last bit of suppressing had exhausted most of my magic. However, the door was now clear. Well, after I moved the body at least.

Summoning up my last bit of magical energy, I shaped the direction of my words, making sure they would only go into the room. “I’ve taken out the ganger outside your door, but there are still two left. I’m going to unlock it now, but be careful.” I unlocked the door as I said I would, and then ran as gently as I could away from it, now without the benefit of my magical silence.

I carefully made my way to the entrance of the store, planning my escape. With both my magic and my body exhausted, it was clear to me that stealth was no longer an option. I would just have to wait for the best time to strike, and then do it quickly.

As I was planning my escape however, I was flabbergasted to see the lead pony I had just shot waltz right into view! How did that happen? I knew I had hit him. I saw the blood. And even if he had somehow survived, doesn’t he look pretty good for someone who just got shot in the head?

“Hey, is something wrong?” asked the dumb-sounding one guarding the door.

The approaching ganger tensed up a bit, and then replied with some illegible muttering. “You okay, Quickdraw? If something’s wrong, just spit it out.”

Then, several things happened in quick succession that served to make me a very confused pony. “Quickdraw,” apparently ignoring the fact he was an earth pony, levitated his pistol free of its holster, and shot a quick burst into the chest of the stallion at the door. Not yet satisfied with that trickery, the earth pony’s form shimmered and faded, revealing a mint green unicorn mare, presumably the one whom I had just freed.

Finally seeing a chance at escape, I leapt from my cover to the exit. Unfortunately, in my haste to run, I forgot about the last ganger in the store. He had heard the commotion the unicorn caused, and had just come into view of both her and me. I desperately tried taking out my revolver, but my taxed magical grip slipped, sending the weapon skidding across the floor.

Terror finally overtook me at that point, and I froze. Seeing his opportunity, the ganger took his last action in firing his shoddy rifle at me before the freed captive gunned him down. His aim was true though, and I felt hot pain blossom in my chest as I fell to the cold floor.

Heartbeat filling my ears, I tried rummaging around in my saddlebag for a healing potion, but my grip still wouldn’t hold, and I forlornly watched it roll across the floor when my grip slipped, the mocking sound even overtaking my heartbeat in intensity. I then glanced back up at the unicorn stranger, pleading for help, and hoping she recognized who had freed her.

“Help…” I wheezed out, seeing recognition on her face at the sound of my voice before my sight was no more. My ever faithful hearing stood firm a bit longer, and I heard(or hoped I heard) her rummaging through a saddlebag, though I couldn’t tell whose. Eventually though, even my most trusted of senses failed me, and I sank into darkness.

Party’s SPECIAL stats

Pindrop

Strength: 5
Perception: 8
Endurance: 4
Charisma: 7
Intelligence: 6
Agility: 6
Luck: 4

Traits:
Phonomancy: Your proficiency in magic allows you to twist all manner of sound to your will. However, this is at the cost of a loss of sight, and a vulnerability of loud noises.
Talker, not a Fighter: Your way with honeyed words give you a permanent +15 to your speech and barter skills. However, combat makes you nervous, giving you -10 to all combat skills, and an additional -5 when you are in close quarters.

Tagged Skills:
Sneak
Speech
Melee Weapons

Footnote: Level up! (2)
New perk acquired: Keen Hearing(Rank 1): Using your fancy unicorn magic, you can amplify your hearing way up, almost like getting your own personal radar! However, you're still a rookie, so you can't always hear the subtlest noises, and louder ones all but knock you upside the head.

Spanner

Strength: 6 (-1)
Perception: 6
Endurance: 5(-1)
Charisma: 6
Intelligence: 8
Agility: 7(-1)
Luck: 2

Traits:
Stunted: Due to your past experiences, you suffer a -1 penalty to your strength, agility, and endurance stats. But this sacrifice has won the undying support of your companions, and they receive +10 damage threshold in your presence.
Make It Happen: Your die-hard attitude and survivalist nature always seem to make ends meet, and this is reflected in your combat, where an occasional saving roll may happen when you need it. Nothing’s free, however, and these dealings sometimes come back to bite you in the end.

Tagged Skills:
Repair
Small Guns
Explosives

Slow Burn

Strength: 7
Perception: 5
Endurance: 9
Charisma: 4
Intelligence: 5
Agility: 3
Luck: 6

Traits:
Built to Conserve: The flamer that burns twice as bright burns half as long. You are the other side of that maxim. Your equipment decays 15% slower at the cost at the cost of -3% to your critical hit rate.
Lumbering Brute: Your size, along with your endurance, is one of the most noticeable things about you. So noticeable, in fact, that you get shot more! This is good news for your companions, however, as most enemies will be too focused on you to attack them.

Tagged Skills:
Big Guns
Energy Weapons
Survival

(A.N.: I’d like to start off with a huge thanks Kkat for creating this wonderful universe for us to enjoy and tarnish. As always, any and all feedback is welcome, even if it’s just on that amateur cover image I cobbled together.)

Comments

[sargecadet]

I like this. I'm interested to see where this fic goes. Good luck!

[Deathpony]

interesting