After a botched experiment involving both chaotic and standard magic, Twilight is stranded in a strange new land, her only help coming from a man who knows just as little about the world as she does. His blue clothing proudly displays the number 13.
Twilight believes that her theory on the potential of crossing chaotic and standard magical energies could lead to some major breakthroughs in the field of magical development for the kingdom of Equestria. Enlisting the help of the recently reformed Discord, Twilight, sure of her formulas, decides to skip several steps in the scientific process and jump straight to the experimental stage.
Needless to say, things don't go as planned.
And so, with a case of major magical backlash which could take weeks to fully heal, Twilight awakens to a sweltering desert environment with an odd creature staring down at her. On the creature's blue clothing is a large, yellow number.
13.
________
I've seen quite a number of Fallout crossovers, but never one about the first Fallout. I decided to start working on this at 4 am one morning, and surprisingly it still sounds like a good idea now. So here it is.
Were the quill which was furiously being scrawled across a piece of parchment to move any faster, Spike was sure that both the paper and the desk on which it rested would catch fire.
"I'm a genius! I can't believe I didn't think of this before!" exclaimed a lavender-coated alicorn. An aura of matching color surrounded the quill which was moving at presumably mach speeds. Twilight held her head high, not even bothering to look at what she was writing, so sure she was that it was correct.
"Uh, Twilight?" asked Spike, staring at the parchment Twilight's levitating quill was still abusing with a furrowed brow.
"The potential is virtually unlimited! Discord's raw, unrefined and yet excessively powerful, not to mention plentiful—"
"Twilight?"
"—chaotic magic, completely in opposition to standard unicorn magical applications of carefully constructed spell matrices in which a large amount of energy is used and mental strain is placed on the caster—"
"Twi," Spike stated as he tugged on his dear friend's wing.
"—could completely change the way we use magic! If I could somehow—"
"Twilight!" Spike gave a harsh tug on the pony in question's wing, twin streams of smoke bellowing from his flared nostrils.
"Ouch!" yelped Twilight as she ceased her writing, bringing the appendage to her face and rubbing it gently, adjusting any stray feathers with her magic. "Please, be gentle, Spike. I still don't know how to use these things very well, and I doubt I'd fly any better if you sprain one of them trying to get my attention. In any case, can't you see that I'm busy? I'm working on something that could alter the future of magical sciences as we know it!"
"Twilight, your quill ran out of ink about ten minutes ago," the dragon deadpanned.
"What?" Looking to the excessively long roll of parchment she had been writing on, she did indeed notice that her quill had entirely failed to mark down anything of note for at least several feet of the scroll.
"...oh," she at last stated, prompting Spike to smack a claw to his forehead.
"It's OK." Twilight shook her head, reviewing what she did manage to write down. "I remember most of it, and whatever I don't explicitly recall should come back to me exactly as it was once I start working on the parts that come before them." Dipping the quill into an ink well (after a quick double-check to ensure it was not a prank bottle of invisible ink), the alicorn once more returned to her rapid quill strokes.
"Whatever you say. " Spike shrugged as a harsh growling sounded from his gut. He rubbed his empty stomach. "Hey Twilight, I'm going down to the kitchen to get something to eat. Do you want me to bring you anything?"
"A daffodil sandwich would be lovely."
Spike shook his head. "You're a princess, with your own personal army of chefs, and you still eat food you could have gotten anywhere in Ponyville?"
Not turning away from her work, a small smile played across Twilight's face. "What can I say? It reminds me of home."
"Well I'm getting me something tasty, with lots and lots of gems," he replied with a lick of his lips as he left the room, the soft rasping of a quill on parchment being replaced by the quiet echos of the Canterlot Castle halls.
________
With a bowl of variously colored gem scraps balanced on his head, a glass of water in one hand and a plate with a daffodil sandwich in the other, Spike walked cautiously back into Twilight's room, teetering this way or that in an attempt to keep the bowl and its contents from spilling. With a sigh of relief, he set the plate and glass on the desk next to Twilight, who was reviewing what she had written with an occasional scribble of her quill on the parchment.
"Thank you, Spike," Twilight said without looking away from her work, taking a bite of the sandwich and a long sip of water.
"So, how's your whatchamacallit coming along?" Spike asked, his voice muffled by a mouthful of gems.
With a final punctuation mark written, Twilight set the quill down and once more read the scroll through, not noticing Spike's question. Taking another sip of water, she nodded. She was absolutely sure this would work. There was no way anything could possibly go wrong.
"Spike, take a letter," Twilight said. Almost instinctively, Spike grabbed the nearest available blank parchment and quill, ready to copy whatever Twilight said.
"Dear Discord," Twilight began.
"Discord?"
"Yes, Spike. I'm going to need his help with this," Twilight said.
Spike shrugged and readied the quill and parchment once again. Twilight took that as her cue to continue.
"Dear Discord, I, Twilight Sparkle, as both a princess of Equestria and, more importantly, your friend, formally request your assistance. I have constructed a number of theories and spell matrices which require your chaotic powers in order to function properly; ones which, if they work as I believe, could be of benefit to the entirety of ponykind. I won't bore you with the details, but these experiments cannot function without your help. Though I don't have much to offer in way of returning the favor that the avatar of chaos himself can't procure of his own accord, I can tell you that this is an opportunity to work your chaotic magic in a way that you have been unable to do since before your reformation.
"Not to mention you'd be helping out a friend.
"I await your response. Sincerely, Princess Twilight Sparkle. Got all that, Spike?"
"And... done," Spike said, rolling up the scroll.
"Thank you. Now send it, please."
Spike inhaled deeply before blowing a plume of green flame on the letter, the ashes speeding their way out of the room and through the castle halls.
"And now we wait," Twilight said as she began to return her writing materials to their proper places.
"Wait for wha—" Spike started, before the claw of an eagle and paw of a lion emerged from his mouth, holding his jaws open and preventing him from finishing his sentence.
"Did somebody call me?" asked a voice emanating from Spike's mouth which was not his own.
Spike crossed his arms and attempted to speak, managing only incomprehensible nonsense.
"What's the matter? Cat got your tongue?" asked the voice from Spike's mouth with a snicker.
"Funny," Twilight said with a roll of her eyes, lighting her horn and pulling Discord in his entirety out of Spike's mouth.
"You ever do that again, I'm biting you," Spike said to Discord.
"Well excuse me, but I didn't particularly enjoy the trip myself. It's not exactly roomy in there. I was stuck in third class, with an annoying little foal kicking the back of my seat the entire trip. And the service was simply awful!" Discord shouted, raising his arms.
Spike snorted.
"Oh, fine. I'll pay for my ticket. But I expect some bonus miles added to my frequent flyer's card for the terrible trip!" Discord said as he snapped his fingers, a large diamond appearing in the empty bowl at Spike's feet. Spike nodded his thanks, biting into the large gem without hesitation.
"And now, oh great Princess Sparkle, how can a humble little draconequus such as myself ever be of assistance to your royal highness?" Discord asked, bowing before Twilight in an exaggerated manner.
"Can the garbage, Discord. I just need your help with a little magical experiment I'd like to try. I'd like you to feed your chaotic magic through my horn. If my theory is correct — and I don't see how it couldn't be — if I merge my magic with yours, the output will be at least ten times greater than anything either of us could accomplish individually."
"You want me to fill you with unrefined chaos magic? Are you mad?" Discord shouted. "The only reason I can survive such a thing is because I am practically immortal. I am a harbinger of the very chaos I create!"
"You're forgetting that I am a princess now." Twilight flourished her wings. "That comes with more benefits than just a room in the castle and a pair of wings, you know."
Discord paused before he could continue to rant further, pondering Twilight's response. Finally, he conceded, "Alright, fair enough. But don't expect me to glue you back together when you explode twice."
"B-b-but I thought we already agreed a while ago that exploding twice wasn't possible?" Spike added with concern.
"Ah, but chaos is a fickle mistress, my little friend," Discord said, patting Spike on the head. "Nevertheless, she is right. She should be fine. Probably."
"I don't like the sound of that..." Spike trailed off.
"Relax Spike, I'll be fine. I've checked my work," Twilight reassured. "OK Discord, you can start. I'll process your magic, merge it with mine, and if this works out accordingly I should be able to perform magic with at least a one thousand percent increase in energy and magical efficiency."
"How are you going to test it?" Discord asked.
"By using one of Starswirl the Bearded's simpler trans-dimensional probability viewing spells."
"...what?" asked a very confused Spike. Twilight sighed. "I'm going to open a 'hole' through which we can view another universe."
"A 'simple' universe-bending, reality shattering spell, said the prodigy child whose special talent is magic and who was student to the most magically talented pony in Equestria turned alicorn," Discord remarked.
"Be quiet and hit me with your magic already," Twilight said hastily but not without humor, excited to start the experiment. She readied her stance.
Both Twilight and Discord closed their eyes, concentrating on the task at hand while Spike stood back, eyes as large as dinner plates, fearing the outcome.
The air between Twilight and Discord began to shimmer like the horizon on a hot summer's day. Before long, a sound of ripping fabric could be heard, and a transparent floating image of a vast, seemingly endless desert appeared in the shimmering air.
"Alright Discord, that should do it," Twilight said, opening her eyes and examining the image as her horn continued to glow.
Sighing, Discord cut the flow of his magic, opening his eyes and falling backwards onto a couch he had willed into existence. "Interesting, I suppose, but all in all quite boring," He yawned as he stared at the unmoving ghostly image of the desert.
"Where is that?" Spike asked.
"Nowhere in this universe," Twilight said as her horn grew brighter. She circled the image, but no matter where and from what angle she viewed it the picture appeared the same. Bringing her hoof forwards, Twilight tentatively touched the ghostly visual. The moment she did, her horn erupted in a blinding glow as an explosion sounded, knocking various books and other items off of shelves and tables. Discord and Spike heard her scream for a split second before it was abruptly cut short.
As the light faded and vision returned to the two, they examined the scorch mark left on the stone floor where both Twilight and the image of the desert now stood absent.
"Well, that was unexpected," Discord said.
________
The fluorescent lights buzzed incessantly in the metallic corridor, their endless hum calming the man's fraying nerves. The symmetrical walls repeated seemingly endlessly. Looking up, the man sighed. The ceiling; a solid concrete and stone barrier separating the ruined world above from the safe heaven below within the Earth's very skin. Just what was a place without a ceiling? Sure, he had read about the outside world. "Sky," "sun," "moon," "stars." These were all words he knew, with pictures he could mentally associate them with, but he didn't have anything he could personally relate to them. The sky was blue due to refractions of light in the atmosphere, the sun was a large flaming ball of gases located millions of miles away, stars were of the same composition only even further, and the moon was just a giant rock held above the planet by the force of gravity.
All that and more was simple common knowledge; one of the first things the education system in the Vault taught children. Pointless, really, since less than one percent of the Vault's population would ever directly relate to or even see such things, but it was taught nevertheless. He looked up again.
The ceiling remained unchanged.
The sky had clouds; evaporated patches of water, waiting to distribute their life-giving lifeblood to the land below. They moved about in winds felt only at extreme altitudes, making the vast canvas of the sky seem alive.
The ceiling, on the other hand, had light bulbs.
Water. Water was important. Generally, things needed it to live. The Vault had water, and this was good. The Vault's water purifier chip, though, was broken. If the purifier chip was broken, no new water could be introduced into the system without contaminating their supply. Water, for the first time in the Vault's life, was limited. This was bad. He looked up again.
The ceiling was still there.
He reached upwards, stretching his arm to the limit, brushing the tips of his fingers against the rough concrete. Retracting his arm, he examined his fingers. The ceiling. The ceiling was a solid object, a shield protecting him and the other denizens of the Vault. He could, and just did, reach out and touch it. Unmoving, unrelenting, it stood still.
What was a world without a ceiling?
He was not supposed to know about the situation with the water chip. He had overheard a conversation the Overseer was having with one of the maintenance crew members, and he heard everything. He didn't say anything; if the Overseer wanted people to know, he would have told them himself.
At last, he reached the end of the corridor. At the end, by a door which had been closed once and never opened again, the Vault's Overseer, Jacoren, stood waiting. He was their leader. He was the driving force of the Vault. He was the chieftain of their tribe, the president of the country of Vault 13. His word was final.
Jacoren's gray hair and beard stood out on his wrinkled, pale face. Everyone in the Vault was pale; the sun was a thing of the past, in the sky, the ceiling of the entire planet.
Nash tilted his black-haired head upwards to stare once more at the ceiling before returning his focus back to Jacoren. Resting on the floor next to the Overseer was a bag, odd little protrusions poking their way through the material. The bag was clearly stuffed to its limit.
The Overseer smoothed his blue Vault jumpsuit out as Nash approached. Nash could only begin to guess why the Overseer had called him, before his eyes darted to the bag, to the door behind the Overseer, then back to the Overseer himself. Nash realized why he had been called here.
The Overseer knew Nash had heard about the purifier chip being broken. He was being exiled from the Vault. It was the only possible solution.
Nash couldn't decide if he was happy or not about that. Of course, he'd always wanted to see the world. The sky. Moon. Sun. But this was his home, one he had been in since birth. If he was exiled, he would never be allowed to return to here, to his family and friends.
The Overseer's blue eyes met Nash's green ones. "Odd place for a meeting, if I may say," Nash said. "But you wanted to see me?"
The Overseer heaved a sigh, starting his explanation, "We've got a problem. A big one. The controller chip for our water purification system has given up the ghost. We can't make another one, and the process is too complicated for a work-around system. Simply put, we're running out of drinking water. No water, no Vault."
Nash tilted his head in confusion. If Jacoren was explaining this to him, then the Overseer didn't know that Nash already knew, which meant he probably wasn't being exiled. That still didn't explain their unorthodox meeting by the Vault's only, and sealed, entrance to the outside world, or the bag beside the Overseer.
Taking Nash's silence as a cue to continue, the Overseer said, "Now we both know we've had our differences as you've grown up. You've got the wanderlust in you — desires for things the Vault just can't satisfy. And you know, I think this just might be the last safe place anywhere, so I'm always worried about those who want to take off on adventures. Hey, if everyone left, I'd be out of a job!" the Overseer chuckled dryly.
Shaking his head, his voice returned to a more serious tone as he continued, "But, in all honesty, this is crucial to our survival. And frankly, I think you're the only hope we have. You need to go find us another controller chip."
Nash stood still. This was quite a shock. Him, a simple peacekeeper in the Vault, was being tasked with a job this vital to the Vault's survival. He was both honored and frightened.
"We estimate that we have four to five months' worth of drinking water remaining. We need that chip," the Overseer said gravely.
"Why me, sir? Why send me? What have I got that others in the Vault don't have?" Nash asked, finally speaking up.
"I've seen you down in the shooting range. You're the best shot in the Vault. We're not sure what's out there, but if it's dangerous, I'd rather send someone who stands a chance at fighting back." Kneeling down, the Overseer dug through the bag on the floor, removing a ten millimeter pistol in a holster and handing it to Nash, who took it tentatively.
"We've taken the liberty of packing some equipment you'll probably need. Food, water, stimpaks and other basic items. Just as well, we've marked the map on your Pip-Boy with the location of another Vault. Not a bad place to start." Heaving yet another sigh, Jacoren went on, "If we didn't have to do this, I'd never ask. And if you don't do this, I don't know who else can. Please, help us."
Nash was once again silent.
"If you need help, come back here. Obviously, we'll do whatever we can. But we don't have a lot of time. Please, find that chip, and get back here," Jacoren concluded.
"I... I understand, sir. I will do everything in my power to help the Vault. I may want to see the world, but this is my home, and I'd never abandon it."
The Overseer smiled, holding out his hand. Nash took it, and they shook. "I knew we could count on you. Look... just be safe, OK?" The Overseer handed Nash the bag, which he shouldered. After strapping the holster to his belt, Nash placed the pistol in it, adjusting it until it was in a comfortable position and easily within reach.
Walking forward with his gear in tow, the rectangular metal doors with the "13" etched into them slid into opposite ends of the wall, revealing an antechamber with a grated floor.
"Nash!" Jacoren called out. Turning around, Nash met eyes one last time with the Overseer, who said with a nod, "Good luck."
Nash nodded back, and the doors sealed shut. Walking towards the center of the antechamber, he faced the gear-shaped metal door. The two tons of metal were all that separated him from the outside world.
A hissing filled the room, and a metallic hand reached forwards, grasping the door and rolling it to the side with a screech of metal on metal. When the door was finally opened, Nash walked forwards, a hot blast of air rushing past him.
What he saw at first was entirely unimpressive. A cave of dark stone, the occasional drop of water falling from stalactites on the ceiling. Nash looked up. A cave, a ceiling. He wasn't quite outside yet.
Nash crossed the threshold of the Vault door, which was once more grasped by the hand and sealed closed again, locking him out. Looking back for the last time, Nash met eyes with the camera above the Vault door, which was focused on him. With a smile that spoke of confidence leagues more impressive than what he actually felt, he gave a mock salute before walking into the darkness of the cave.
With a final crack of his pistol, the rodent of unusual size that was chasing Nash halted in its run and skidded forwards on its momentum before finally stopping, dead. With no more violent creatures in sight, Nash stopped to rest as the lit flare he was carrying died out, leaving him in near total darkness. Not even out of the cave yet and he was already beset upon by hostile critters. Rats. Gigantic, mangy rats, twice the length of his foot and about midway up his calf in height, and with a nasty disposition to boot. He limped towards a cave wall and slumped against it.
"I'm not liking this adventure much anymore," Nash whined to the nearby rat corpse. Digging through the bag he was provided, Nash found what he was looking for. Removing the protective covering from the needle, he flicked the stimpak a few times before jabbing it into his leg and pushing the plunger. Almost instantly, his leg went numb as the wounds began to slowly scab up and shrink. Nash grunted in discomfort at the odd feeling. Those pre-war doctors sure knew what they were doing, he thought as he tossed the now empty needle away and flexed his leg experimentally. Several minutes later and using the wall as a crutch, Nash stood up and cautiously placed weight on the leg. To his satisfaction, it worked as though he had never been bitten by a horde of giant angry rats, though it was still particularly numb and uncomfortable. With a strong kick, Nash punted the dead rat towards the way he came, saying, "Hasta la vista, you furry fuck." He shook his head and turned around.
Outside world, here I come, he thought. Loading spare rounds from an ammo box into his pistol's nearly depleted magazine, Nash continued carefully through the bowels of the cave on the little light there was, not wanting to waste another flare. From around the bend he spotted ahead, Nash saw light. A bright light, illuminating the walls and floor of the cave.
His breathing intensified as he slowly made his way to the cave's mouth. Sunlight. Actual, natural light. No generators, or light bulbs to replace. And no ceiling.
Every step seemed a laborious effort as Nash trudged his way through the dank cave and towards the beautiful light. After what seemed like centuries, Nash was standing outside the cave on the dry and cracked ground. He looked upwards.
The most beautiful shade of blue, easily outshining that of his Vault suit, was all that he could see. Completely uninterrupted by any blemishes, barring that of the difficult to look at circle of light which he deduced to be the sun, was all that Nash saw. His bare skin radiated with a warmth the lights in the Vault could never match. The horizon stretched far, broken by the rare rock, dried up shrub, or mesa in the distance.
Slowly, as though afraid of what he might find, Nash raised his arm in the air as high as he could stretch it. Feeling nothing, he stood on his toes to give himself several more inches of leeway, with still no contact. Finally, he tried jumping, waving his arms through the air as though swatting a fly... or perhaps, trying to fly, only to encounter still nothing but air.
With these actions completed, Nash fell to his knees and cried. He wasn't quite sure why, as he didn't feel sad, or particularly happy after his encounter with the rats in the cave for that matter, but he still cried. And he enjoyed it. The tears dried quickly as the warm sun fell upon his face.
Nash rose unsteadily to his feet after a while. Checking the blocky device on his left arm, he searched for the location of the Vault he was supposed to find. Vault 15, due east of his home.
Gonna be a long walk, Nash surmised, looking at the map and data it provided.
Taking a deep breath, he began to walk into the path of the rising sun.
________
Twilight didn't know who had authorized the use of her head as a jackhammer, but she was going to find whoever it was and banish them to the moon. She wasn't exactly sure if she could do that, but she'd be darned if she didn't try.
Something poked her in the flank. Using her wing, she shooed the intruder away. After a pause, it prodded her again, much to her royal chagrin. Groaning, she attempted to sit up, asking, "Is this what a hangover feels like? Because if it is I'm glad I never touched the stuff."
"Jesus goddamned Christ!" she heard something annoyingly close to her shout obnoxiously loud, infuriating her pulsing head further as whatever it was made a scuffle attempting to move away. She didn't care anymore, but whoever was in her royal bedchambers without her permission was going to get severely—
She cut her train of thought, recalling the events that had last transpired before opening her eyes wide. The invading light assaulted her mental faculties further, forcing Twilight to shut her eyes again. But she saw something sitting there, among the all-encompassing desert.
Slowly easing her eyes open, Twilight managed to investigate her surroundings without blinding herself. Sitting in front of her, she saw what appeared to be a hairless diamond dog, wearing a blue garb of some sort. She noted a large yellow "13" on its back when it turned, as well. Her violet eyes probed its green ones, searching for any hostile intentions, and judging by its face she was sure it was doing the same to her. This, coupled with the fact that it was wearing clothing of some sort, lead Twilight to believe that the creature was sapient and not simply a wild animal.
After a bout of silence, she cleared her throat and awkwardly began, "Who... or what, are you? Where am I?"
"OK, so it's not a heat stroke," the creature said to itself. "Unless it is, in which case it's damned convincing."
It shook its head before facing her and saying, "Assuming you're not a side effect of a mental breakdown I may or may not be having after walking this featureless desert for almost eight hours, my name is Nash. Are... are all of the people here on the surface like you?"
"'People?' Do you mean ponies?"
"Ponies, huh? I remember reading something in the Vault library about horses. No, it couldn't be..."
"What couldn't be?"
"Did the war really wipe out humanity? Were you horses the only things to survive?" he asked, before mumbling under his breath, "Horses and damned rats."
"I told you. I'm a pony, not a horse," Twilight said, moderately insulted before jolting slightly as she realized what Nash had just said. "Wait, did you say war? What war?"
"Then your ancestors must have been the horses I'm thinking of and the radiation mutated you all into this twisted mockery of evolution," Nash concluded, ignoring her question. "It makes sense, I suppose, but all in all it's a very horrifying prospect." He put a hand to his chin.
Twilight's feathers ruffled. Bringing a hoof to her chest, she took a deep breath before extending the hoof and exhaling. Slightly calmer, she said in a still-agitated tone, "Next to nothing you are saying is making any sense to me. We ponies are not, and never have been, the descendants of 'horses.' 'Horse,' to us, is an insult. Just as well, we are not the products of any sort of radiologically-induced mutation either; our evolution was entirely natural — although technically evolution is based entirely on mutations, but I digress. Furthermore, I don't know where I currently am, or what this war you continue to mention is. I'm not even sure what species you belong to! You certainly don't look like anything I've ever read about in a zoology or genealogy book. I would very much appreciate it if I could get some answers."
Nash scratched his head. "Uh, wow. Where to begin?" He paused. "Well, I suppose the obvious answer is with myself, I guess. As I already said, my name is Nash. I am a human, or homo sapien if you want to get technical. As for location, the best thing I can tell you is that you are in post-war California, approximately an eight hours' walk from Vault 13 — my home — and quite a lot farther from Vault 15. That's where I'm heading now."
"And what about this war you keep mentioning?" Twilight asked, mentally shelving the topic of "Vaults" and their numerical values for later discussion. Though it was pretty simple for her to connect the "13" on Nash's back to the place he had mentioned which was assigned the same number.
"Well, I don't know much about it myself. I lived my entire life underground, in a bomb shelter called a Vault. I do know, though, that in October of 2077, which according to this Pip-Boy was almost a century ago assuming it hasn't broken," he said, pointing to the blocky contraption attached to his arm. "the United States launched a series of nuclear missiles in a retaliatory strike against China. Or maybe they fired the first shots, it was never clear. Anyway, thanks to a concept called 'mutually assured destruction' every other country on the planet decided, 'hey, if those jackasses are using nukes, why don't we?' And that's the story of how humanity fucked itself with city-annihilating explosives. In a nutshell. That's not to mention the far more harmful fallout radiation that those bombs gave off. The Vaults were made to protect humanity from the explosions and radiation. That's the gist of it, anyway."
Twilight stared blankly, shocked at both the man's casual use of profane language and the story of how his race had nearly made themselves extinct. Though she was unsure what a "nuclear missile" was, the "city-annihilating" bit was clear enough when she assumed that those were the 'bombs' he had mentioned. Plus, she knew enough about radiation to understand its deadly properties, so she got the essence of his meaning. The "United States" and "China," Twilight surmised, were probably the names of countries, similar to Equestria.
"Not too sure how much of that is entirely accurate," Nash added quickly. "I didn't pay much attention to history. I spent most of my time as a child in the library, looking at data about the outside world. I had always wanted to go outside the Vault, to see the sky. I've read that the night was a beautiful thing to behold, and I wanted to see more than blurry pictures on a computer screen. I wanted the real thing. But it wasn't until..." he looked at his Pip-Boy, "Yep, eight or so hours ago that I've ever left the Vault." Squinting, he stared up at the sun which was well below its apex by now. "The first time I saw the sun, I cried. It was just so beautiful," he said quietly, smiling wistfully.
"You're telling me that you've never seen the outside world until today?"
"That's right. Nobody still alive in the Vault has. Well, maybe one or two of the old timers, but they must have been young when they came in."
"Well, you're in for a treat when that sun sets," Twilight said with a smile, slowly warming to Nash's presence. "The nights in Ponyville were absolutely beautiful. Luna does a great job."
"You say that as though the night sky is controlled by someone," Nash noted with confusion.
Twilight nodded. "Somepony actually, but that's right. Princess Luna raises the moon at night and controls the way we see the night sky. She does fantastic work. Her older sister Princess Celestia — and my mentor, I might add — raises the sun."
Now it was Nash's turn to stare blankly. "You're telling me they fly up there and push those things?" he asked with disbelief. "Because I find that hard to believe. Nothing in the Vault library ever mentioned that. Gravity does all the work here." he said.
Twilight began to giggle, attempting to and failing at choking back her laughter. When she finally recovered herself, she said with humor, as though it were the most obvious thing in the world, "Of course they don't push them! They use their magic to move them."
In response to that, Nash began to laugh. "Now you're pulling my leg. Magic? That's all fantasy crap, though I will admit I've read several fantasy books back in the library..." he said.
And so the unlikely duo traded stories back and forth, swapping information about the other's respective world, and all the laws — physical, natural, magical, governmental or otherwise — that came with them. Within that time, Twilight explained to Nash her predicament: how she had gotten there, and how badly she needed to return home, while Nash explained the situation with his Vault, and about the water chip he was searching for. Nash agreed to help Twilight in any way he could, and she the same to him. Nash took the concept of magic with more than a grain of salt, while Twilight found it hard to beleive that she was in a magic-less world.
After an unsuccessful attempt at showing Nash her magic, and a resulting return of her headache with a tenfold intensity from the strain, Twilight determined that her experiment with Discord was perhaps too successful. She believed that her thaumological magic reserves were completely burned out, which left her without her magic for an extended period of time.
When the sky finally faded from blue to black, Nash was absolutely awestruck. The stars were every bit as beautiful as he had read, and then some. For the second time that day, he cried.
The two of them were lying on a blanket Nash had laid out, Twilight pointing out constellations which were strikingly similar to ones she saw on her world. When Nash finally fell asleep, he did so with a smile on his face.
________
The morning sun, in conjunction with his roaring stomach, woke Nash from his dreamless sleep. The gut-wrenching pain reminded him that he hadn't had anything to eat since midway through his journey the day before. Rationing smartly wasn't exactly his strong suit, so he ended up eating far less than he should have for the amount of walking he did. It was a miracle he didn't pass out. Remembering the night before, he looked to his left. To both his confusion and relief, Twilight was still there, sleeping, proving to him beyond a shadow of a doubt that she was real.
A growling emanated from Twilight's stomach as she began to move.
OK, so she wasn't sleeping anymore.
When Twilight was fully awake, she looked at Nash feeling, he imagined, much as he did when he woke up. "You're probably hungry, aren't you?" Nash asked.
Twilight's stomach replied for her. She grinned sheepishly.
"Thought so. So, what do you eat? Assuming you're in any way close to the horses of the pre-war times, you're probably herbivorous. Am I right?"
"Well, not strictly speaking. We do eat eggs and rarely fish as well," Twilight stated. "We don't eat meat ourselves, though we respect those who do. I actually live with a dragon, and diamond dogs are carnivores too, as well as griffons and numerous other races."
"I see. Well, I'm afraid I don't have much, and what I do have we'll need to ration carefully. Will dried apple slices do?"
"While I'd prefer a daffodil sandwich, that sounds great. Thank you," Twilight said with sincerity as she accepted the small package with her hooves, her magic still useless.
"Alright, great. Just one question, though... what the hell's a daffodil?"
Twilight looked perplexed at Nash's lack of knowledge about such a common plant before giggling, giving the simple answer of, "Well, it's a flower."
Nash looked around at the featureless desert. A tumbleweed blew past the pair, giving them their first sight of a moving object that wasn't either of them since they both entered the wasteland. "You'll have to forgive my lack of botanical knowledge," he said with a smile. "Growing up in a hole in the ground under the most boring desert on this god-forsaken planet will do that to you."
Twilight scanned the surrounding area as well, her eyes resting on the now motionless tumbleweed before nodding her understanding.
After their meager meals and a short sip of water for each, they continued their trek towards Vault 15. Silence reigned for approximately two hours before Twilight abruptly said with a wavering voice, "I'm sorry."
"Sorry? For what?"
"Well, you have such a limited supply of provisions as it is. I'm only a burden, stretching that limit further than it should safely go," she responded sadly.
"Relax, Twilight," Nash said, ruffling her mane. "You're the first living thing I've met that hasn't tried to make a snack of my legs since I left the Vault. That more than qualifies you to travel with me, in my book."
"A-and dare I ask what it was that you encountered?" Twilight asked with a sniffle, holding back her tears.
"Rats," Nash said harshly. "Gigantic. Fucking. Rats." Using his hands, he pantomimed the approximate size of the vermin he had encountered.
"Wow," Twilight said, smiling slightly at the man's over-enthusiastic gesturing. "They must have been terrifying. The largest rodent I've ever seen back home was a mouse, and my friend Fluttershy takes care of animals of all shapes and sizes." Twilight had told Nash about her Ponyville friends the day before. "In fact, I remember one in a tiny little wheelchair with a small bandage on one of its paws. It was rather cute, actually." She giggled, the conversation lifting her spirits.
"Lucky for you," Nash grumbled. "Anyway, Twilight, don't worry about the food or water. You're more than making up for it with your company. I think I'd probably just walk off the nearest cliff if I had to do this trip alone."
"What cliff?" Twilight asked jokingly. "There's nothing out here but—" she was cut off as Nash yanked hard on her tail.
"That one," he said before Twilight could protest, pointing downwards. Twilight's hoof was hanging precariously over empty space.
Situations such as that, among other things, happened often to the pair during their three day trek through the hot wasteland, broken only by the occasional rock, cliff or mountain in the far distance. They encountered no living creatures. Eventually, though, Twilight spotted something out of the ordinary in the distance. Pointing it out to Nash, she asked frantically, "Do you know what that is?"
Squinting his eyes against the harsh light, Nash shrugged, saying, "Looks like a really low cliff from here. Don't know who'd set up all those round rocks along the end like that though. Looks too even to be natural."
Twilight shook her head. "That's not a cliff, and those aren't rocks, Nash. That's sandstone, forming what appears to be a wall or barrier."
Both Nash and Twilight frantically sprinted towards the wall in the distance, disregarding the unnecessary waste of energy running was in return for reaching the bastion of civilization sooner. When they finally arrived at the wall, they saw no visible entrance.
"It must be... on a different side," Twilight panted as Nash leaned on the wall to catch his breath.
"Whyyy?" droned the man as he attempted to catch his breath as well.
"This is... what we get... for running," Twilight huffed, collapsing on the ground.
Nash looked at the prone form of Twilight before saying between rapid intakes of breath, "Good idea." He, too, fell to the ground, his legs refusing to support him any longer.
After several minutes of rest, they rose unsteadily. Looking left and right, they opted to go right, a decision that rewarded them with a visible gap in the walls created by an archway which would allow them to enter the town. When they finally arrived at the arch, they were greeted by a young man holding a rifle, and woman, on the left and right sides of the arch respectively. They stared at Twilight with perplexed looks.
With their breath regained and new people to meet, Nash walked forwards, a stupid grin plastered on his face which he just couldn't seem to lose. His first contact with a surface human, and they didn't even look mutated! He held out his hand to the man, saying, "Hello there, my name's Nash."
"They call me Seth," he replied, taking Nash's outstretched hand.
"And I'm Katrina," the young woman said with a smile almost as beautiful as the sun, Nash thought as she bowed slightly. She was wearing long, loose clothing and a sash across her chest. Looking back at Twilight, Seth asked Nash, "That's a real funny looking brahmin you've got there. Can't say I've ever seen anything like it. So why are you carrying your stuff and not it?"
"I can't rightly answer that question, considering I don't know what a brahmin is," Nash replied.
"Judging by the phrasing of his question, I'd assume it's a beast of burden; a creature used to transport a large amount of supplies a long distance," Twilight said. That threw Seth and Katrina for a loop.
"Can't say I've ever seen a talking brahmin either," Seth said, resting his rifle on his shoulder and scratching his head.
"Oh! You mean her. She's not a brahmin, she's a pony. Her name is Twilight," Nash responded.
"A pleasure to meet you," Twilight said with a smile and nod of her head.
"Same to you," Seth replied, still confused, as he had no knowledge of anything called a 'poe-knee.'
"Interesting place you've got here," Nash noted, surveying the town behind Seth and Katrina. A woman with a jug balanced on her head entered one of the small stone hovels, while several deeply tanned children were running around a tall monument, chasing each other.
"Thank you," Seth replied with a smile. "This is Shady Sands. We're a quiet, peaceful community. Self-sufficient, too. We have our own irrigation system and grow our own food."
"Agriculture must be quite difficult with climate and conditions like this," Twilight added.
Seth nodded, his confusion at Twilight's presence slowly fading. "Quite right, but we make do. Have been for a few years now. We trade any excess food we grow to traders from Junktown or the Hub for supplies we can't make ourselves. Bullets aren't exactly the easiest things to make, and there isn't any place even remotely close that we can scavenge."
"A peaceful town like this? What could you possibly need ammunition for?" Nash asked.
"We aren't entirely problem-free. There's the radscorpions, to start with. They manage to poison someone at least once a week, and they're always after our brahmin. They're difficult to keep out of the pens. Last week they took my brother, Jarvis. Razlo, our doctor, is working on an antidote as quickly as he can."
"Then there's the raiders," Katrina said. "They harass us almost as much as the radscorpions do. There are several different groups, but we get most of the damage from one in particular. The walls help somewhat at keeping them out, but they're far more prepared than we are, and they have experience. We're just a simple community with very little knowledge in combating a threat like them. They take many of our supplies when they come. Sometimes... they even take people," she said sadly.
Twilight gasped. "They take villagers? That's horrible! Why would they do that, for slave labor?"
"They're slaves alright, but of a different kind," Seth spat. "They always take women."
"Humanity is a very depraved race," Katrina said, shaking her head. Twilight's face was one of pure horror and disgust.
"I may have left the Vault to find a new water chip, but I'll be damned if I just stand by and let this continue. I'll help you with your problems, both the raiders and the radscorpions," Nash said with confidence.
"While we'd appreciate any help you can offer, I don't want you getting yourself killed trying to solve our problems," Seth said.
"Nonsense!" Nash shouted. "I've got a gun and damned good aim," he about-faced, quickly drawing his gun and pointing it at the empty desert beyond, as though scanning for any hostile activity. Twirling it on his finger before smoothly holstering it, he turned back to them before continuing, "How bad could a few bugs be for a start? Bang, bang, and they're dead."
"If it were that easy, don't you think we would have been done with them already?" Seth asked, annoyed at the stranger's dismissive attitude towards the creatures that were able to harm his brother and many others so severely.
"You say they're scorpions, and judging by the 'rad' prefix, I'm assuming they are in some way mutated by radiation. Is one of the reasons why they're so dangerous because of their tough, chitinous exoskeletons? I'd also have to assume they've increased in size from the unmutated garden-variety scorpion in order to be a threat." Twilight asked, pushing her feelings about the raider activity to the back of her mind.
"That's right," Seth said, impressed. "They've got these tough plates covering their entire body. Takes a few rounds of a decent caliber weapon to damage them, unless you get a lucky shot in one of their softer parts, not to mention they're damned big buggers. You know, you're pretty knowledgeable about the wasteland for a Vault dweller."
"Oh, no," Twilight said quickly. "I'm not from a Vault. I was actually performing an experiment back home, which backfired on me. When I woke up, I was in the middle of this desert with nothing around me except for Nash. We've been traveling together since then while I recover the energy I need to get home."
Seth nodded, not quite understanding Twilight's definition of "home." "I see. Well, in that case, welcome to the wasteland, where trouble never sleeps."
"I plan on solving as many troubles as I can while I'm here. What sort of able-bodied man would refuse to help a town in need?"
"Well, there's any random wastelander, to start," Seth responded.
"But as you can see," Nash retorted, putting an arm around Twilight's neck, "we are not your average wastelanders. We'll solve your scorpion problem as a start, no sweat."
"Wait, 'we?' Since when did I volunteer to join your pest control squad?" Twilight asked jokingly.
"Since you started eating my food and drinking my water," Nash responded with a smile, ruffling Twilight's mane, much to her chagrin.
"You're either the most generous or idiotic person I've ever met. No offense," Seth said. "Like I said before, we'd greatly appreciate any assistance you can offer, but just note that sometimes generosity can be wasted on those who don't deserve it."
"Generosity is a virtue," Twilight added. "It's a great thing to have no matter who you're dealing with."
"I'm sorry to say that people with views such as yours don't have a tendency to last very long out here," Katrina said. "I'm sure you'll find out soon enough what I mean, if you plan on traveling the wasteland."
"That reminds me," Nash said. "I mentioned before, but I'm looking for a water purifier chip for my Vault. Ours is broken, and the water supply in the Vault is limited. Would either of you happen to know of anywhere I could find one?"
"Well, I actually came from Vault 15," Katrina said. "We all used to live there years ago. But the when Vault was growing overpopulated, people started to leave, taking supplies we needed with them. Eventually, there weren't many of us remaining, and we had little left to survive on. When we were attacked by raiders, the last thing I recall is being shot, then waking up here in what eventually became Shady Sands. I've been living here ever since, helping travelers understand our town and ways of life."
"So, do you think your Vault still has the purifier chip?" Nash asked hopefully.
"It's possible. I doubt anybody who raided the Vault would know of its significance, and the Vault itself has been abandoned now."
"This is great!" Nash exclaimed. "That was actually a lot simpler than I was expecting it to be. Just gotta grab the chip, then head home. Simple."
"I wouldn't be so sure," Twilight cautioned. "What Katrina knows is several years outdated information. Who knows what could have happened since then?"
Nash pouted. "You're spoiling my heroic pride." He pouted, crossing his arms. "But never mind the Vault for now. I still have a few months of leeway before I really need to worry. The more pressing concern is helping you guys out right now," Nash finished, looking to Seth and Katrina.
Seth sighed before saying, "Look, if you're really intent on helping us out, go to the guard barracks," he pointed towards a not too far off building on his right. "Look for Ian. He's got some real wasteland experience. He used to be a caravan guard for the Hub."
"You also mentioned another place besides the Hub, Junktown I believe? These are other other towns in the wasteland?"
"That's correct, though the Hub is probably more of a city than a town. Biggest one I've ever heard of at that, with a population of over a thousand people."
"Wow," Nash said, surprised. "That's even more than the Vault had. Any chance you can direct me to them?" he asked.
"Easily," Seth said as he gave Nash the directions, which Nash marked on his Pip-Boy.
"Thanks a lot for this information. Nice to know that my first contact with surface humans was a friendly one. Come on, Twilight, let's go have a chat with this Ian guy."
"Be careful out there," Seth said. "The wasteland is a dangerous place. Oh, and before I forget: Aradesh, our leader, likes to talk to any travelers who stop by. Be sure to see him when you get the chance, he's in the town hall." Seth then pointed to the building in question.
"Thank you for the warning, and we'll be sure to see him before we leave," Twilight said as she followed Nash to the barracks.
"Overall, not a bad place so far," Nash commented as they were walking.
"I'd have to agree. I'm a little insulted at being considered a pack animal, but I can't fault them for their lack of knowledge. Though I do hope it doesn't become a recurring thing. What he said about those raiders, though... how they take prisoners, slaves, I just..."
"Don't worry, Twilight. We'll give those sons of bitches what's coming to them," Nash said harshly.
"How? You're not going to... kill them, are you?"
Nash stopped walking. "I — I don't know. I really don't know. I hope it doesn't have to come to that, but you heard what they've done. We can't let this continue, and no matter what it takes, we need to stop it."
"Killing rats or crushing bugs is one thing, Nash. Taking the life of a sapient being, especially one of the same species as yourself, is entirely different. Do you really think you'd be able to do it?"
Nash began walking again, with Twilight at his heels. "To be honest? I don't. The worst I've ever had to deal with in the Vault was breaking up a few brawls. Never has anyone in the Vault died of anything but natural causes, barring an extremely rare accident once in a while."
"So, if it comes down to it, and they attack first with the intent to kill, how would you retaliate?"
Pausing outside the curtain-covered entryway to the barracks, Nash looked Twilight dead in the eyes. "With hot lead," he said, gesturing at his pistol. Not waiting for a response, Nash pushed the curtain aside and entered the sandstone building. The interior was surprisingly cool compared to the outside heat of the lowering sun. The floors had woven rugs, and some basic furniture was also present, while thin wooden walls created separate "rooms" with curtains blocking any prying eyes from viewing inside. A woman was stationed at a stone stove in a corner, stirring something in a metal pot, while several men sat at a table idly chatting, some wearing turbans tightly wound around their heads. Finally, sitting on a ratty-looking couch against a wall, was a man in a black leather jacket. The jacket had only one sleeve, and wrapped around his sleeveless arm was a bandage. He picked idly at his fingernails with a knife.
"Hey, get that brahmin out of here!" shouted one of the men at the table. Twilight pouted at the comment while Nash snickered.
"For your information," Twilight said, attempting to mask her irritation, "I am not a brahmin. My name is Twilight Sparkle, an—"
"Holy shit! A talkin' brahmin. Well, I'll be damned," interrupted a different man at the table as he downed a glass of dark liquid. Looking at the bottom of his empty glass, he said, "Or maybe I'm hittin' the booze too much." Shrugging, he poured another shot from a bottle in the middle of the table.
"Didn't you just hear it? Just said itself it wasn't a brahmin," said a third man. "I could have told you that."
"And how would you know?" asked the first man.
"Don't smell like a brahmin. You been near the pens recently? Those things smell nasty this time of year. That thing smells kinda sweet, actually," replied the third.
The first and second speakers sniffed the air. The second said, "I don't smell anythin'," to which the third replied, "That's 'cause I got a nose like a dog." He tapped his nose for emphasis.
The first commented, "No, it's because you got a nose bigger than a deathclaw's dick," eliciting a chorus of laughter from the men at the table.
"And just how many deathclaw dicks have you been looking at recently to be able to make that comparison?" the third asked, earning more laughter from the others.
"Alright guys, settle down. Swearing and hollering isn't the best way to introduce these strangers to the guards of Shady Sands," said the man in the leather jacket. Tucking the knife into a sheath attached to his leg, he rose from the couch. He held out his bandaged right arm, saying, "Hey there. Name's Ian, pleasure to meet you," he shook hands with Nash before offering his hand out to Twilight. She paused a moment before placing her hoof in the outstretched hand and shaking as well.
"Nash," the Vault dweller introduced himself.
"And I'm Twilight," she said.
"You don't look like a local," Nash said to Ian. "What's your story?"
"I was a guard for the merchants of the Hub a while ago. However, I was shot during a bad raid by some bandits. The wound got infected, and at one point it was so bad the Doc thought they'd have to amputate. But as you can see, that wasn't necessary. I've been staying here, since the people have helped me recover. My knowledge of the outside world and my experience make me useful here. Shady Sands is my home now, but occasionally, I even get to visit Junktown or the Hub to do some trading since I'm the only person here who has ever really left town. And yourselves?"
"I'm afraid my story isn't nearly as interesting," Nash said. "Born and raised in a Vault, our water purification chip broke, limiting the supply of water we have. The Overseer sent me out to find a new chip. Found Twilight on the way to Vault 15, where I was told another chip could possibly be found. Then we saw your little village here on the way and decided to stop by."
"As for me," Twilight began, "an experiment of mine sort of exploded. When I woke up, I was in the desert, and Nash was poking me."
"Ah, good times," Nash said with a smile.
"That was less than a week ago," Twilight deadpanned. "I don't think that gives you the ability to reminisce about it."
"I'd recommend you don't go poking everything you find out in the wasteland. But come, sit down," Ian said as he made his way back to the ratty couch. Nash plopped down next to him while Twilight sat on her haunches, facing the two.
"So I doubt you're just barging randomly into buildings to talk to everyone. Something you need from us?" Ian asked.
"From you, actually," Nash said.
"Oh?"
"We were told that the wasteland is a very dangerous place, and—" Twilight said.
"Dangernus dodn't... dooen't... dontn't..." interrupted the man who had forgone the use of a shot glass and was instead drinking straight from the bottle.
"Doesn't," input another at the table.
"Yeah! Doesn't even bergin tuh describes it. And — and lemme tell yous somefin elshe. That — that washeteland's very janederus," he slurred, his voice rising. "And sometin elshe, too!" he shouted, rising from his chair, still clutching the empty bottle. "It'll kills ya, and... and it'sh not very nice either!" he lurched a step forwards before falling flat on his face, the empty bottle rolling out of his grasp and clinking against Twilight's hoof.
"Uh, he gonna be OK?" Nash asked.
"He'll be fine. He's been like this ever since his wife died from a radscorp sting two years back," said a man at the table. "Still, he knows when he needs to sober up, and he's a pretty good shot with a pistol at that."
Twilight attempted to levitate the bottle, strain evident on her face. While everyone else was watching her glowing and sparking horn, both her and Nash were focused on the bottle. It rose shakily a few inches off the floor before falling back down as the glow on her horn died, sparks sputtering out of its tip.
"Still no good then, eh?" Nash asked.
"No, but it's getting better. I was able to hold it for a few seconds, at least. At the current rate, I'd guess my magic should be good enough to levitate light objects normally within a few days. This world doesn't have nearly as much ambient magic as mine, so my magic is recovering at a fraction of its usual speed," Twilight said.
A number of murmurs and concerned voices from the table asked various questions and statements, such as,
"How'd you do that?"
"That was magic?"
"'My world?'"
"Are you an alien?"
"I heard about a crashed alien ship from a caravaner once."
before Nash raised his voice above the din, saying, "Quiet down! Just... be quiet for a minute. I'm not exactly feeling up for this hour-long discussion, so I'll cut to the chase. She is not an alien, she did not arrive in a ship of any kind, and she can perform magic. That's about all you need to know. So please, just—"
A woman's scream echoed throughout the small village, her frantic shouts of "No, let me go! I have to get find my son! James? James?" could be easily heard in any building across town. Ian rose instantly, while Nash, Twilight and the other guards — the sober ones, at least — followed suit. Quickly exiting the barracks, they saw Seth struggling to hold a woman back while Katrina attempted to calm her. Ian and the rest jogged over, with him asking over the woman's screams, "Seth, what the hell's going on?" A small crowd was beginning to form, watching the spectacle with concerned faces.
Before Seth could respond, the woman looked at Ian, tears in her eyes. "My son, James," she said in a much quieter voice. "He said he was tired of the radscorpions always harming the people here. He saw what happened to Jarvis. He — he wanted to help get rid of them. This was hours ago, and I haven't seen him since. His BB gun, the one his father gave him, is missing. He must have taken it and gone to the caves. Oh please, for the love of Dharma, save him!"
"Where are these caves?" Nash asked.
"A few hours' travel north," A voice from the crowd said as the woman broke down in tears. The group of onlookers parted, forming a path as a man with a tanned, wrinkled face wearing a long brown robe walked through. The situation with the frantic woman put the oddity of Twilight's presence aside for the time, though she still recieved numerous bewildered glances.
"What is the trouble?" spoke the robed man, revealing himself as the owner of the previous voice.
"Oh, Aradesh. It's Celine's son, James. Sounds like he went to try and wipe the scorpions out with nothing but his father's BB gun," Seth said, still holding the woman, though she was no longer struggling.
"I've got an idea," Twilight interrupted, earning even more confused looks from the townsfolk. Ignoring them, she continued, "Ian, Nash, and I will go to the caves. Leave the rest of the guards here, but be on watch. If these raiders you mentioned before were to find out about this situation while the town is in panic, they would have a massive tactical advantage. We'll save James and eradicate these radscorpions, once and for all." She stomped her hoof as her wings flared.
Aradesh hummed in thought, looking up at the setting sun before nodding to Twilight and Nash. "Very well, you wanderers two. Ian will lead you to the caves. You do not have much time before dark, by which time it will be most difficult to locate the den of these accursed creatures. May Dharma watch over you."
Ian looked up as well, before saying, "Come on, then. We'd better hurry."
With that, the leather-clad ex-caravan guard, a Vault dweller and an Equestrian princess ran once more into the desert.
The scorch mark was still smoking as Spike and Discord investigated it further. Twilight's crown, necklace and bejeweled shoes sat empty and unworn in the center of the scorched floor.
"W-w-where'd she go? What happened?" Spike stuttered, terrified.
Wiping a claw through the ash, Discord brought the blackened appendage up to his eyes. He sniffed it before sticking it in his mouth and sucking on it for a moment. Spike continued to stare in shock at the epicenter of the incident.
Pulling the claw out of his mouth with an accompanying pop, Discord said, "If I had to guess, I'd say she was just transported to that desert we saw. She is still alive, I can tell you that much."
"H-how can you tell?"
"That tear she opened? It's still there. Closed, but there. I can sense her magical signature coming from the other side."
"If it's still there, why can't we see it?"
Discord pinched the bridge of his nose, pondering an appropriate analogy to explain the situation to a child. Finally, he said, "Think of it like a cut in your skin. When that cut heals, there will still be a scar. That scar might have once been a wound, but it no longer is. It's sealed, but visible. If the actual sight of that desert was the cut, then my being able to sense its presence is the scar."
"Well, if it's still there, then open it! We have to get Twilight back!" Spike demanded.
"I can do no such thing. I lack both the power and necessary knowledge to reopen that wound. I may be a master of chaos, but I am not a traveler of universes. That far exceeds any of my capabilities. Perhaps next time she'll double check her work."
"That isn't funny, Discord. Bring her back!"
Discord sighed. "Did you not just hear what I said? I don't have the power to do so. That's out of even my league."
"Well, there's got to be something we can do..." Spike said dejectedly.
"I suppose it would look bad to sunny-butt if she thinks I just lost her newest princess like loose change," Discord said as he investigated Twilight's desk. On it were a number of papers and notes, most relating to the experiment they had just conducted. Discord attempted to read the excruciatingly long scroll which housed a majority of the details relating to the incident, but could make no sense of Twilight's writings. The large watery stain and runny ink caused by the glass of water which was knocked over during the explosion probably didn't help matters either. Glancing about the desk in search of something a bit more sensible, Discord's eyes settled upon a small note, which read "Remember to prepare speech for conference!"
"Oh, that's bad," Discord noted. "I completely forgot about the conference!"
"What conference?"
"Ambassadors from across the globe are coming here. Many species are angry at Celestia's decision to grant Twilight Sparkle the status and power of an alicorn."
"What—" Spike started before Discord cut him off.
"As you are no doubt aware, Twilight's power has increased significantly since she became an alicorn. The rest of the world wanted to be sure that Equestria wasn't trying to alter any balance of power by raising an army of alicorns, or by expanding Equestria's territory to give Twilight a province to rule. And what with my... reformation," Discord said the word with distaste, not wanting to recall the times when he was completely alone and friendless, "it might look like Equestria is preparing for a war."
"So, this conference is about Twilight?"
"More or less. As I said, they were interested in Twilight's new alicorn status; some worry that the sudden amount of power and responsibility she has might cause her to have a mental breakdown, and while I'm all for a little crazy every now and then, that would only result in an incident comparable to Nightmare Moon's reign. Only this time, the Elements wouldn't be able to stop it. It's not often that somepony gets granted such power."
Spike gulped. Bending to make eye contact him, Discord asked, "Spike, I have a very important job for you. Twilight's, not to mention my, fate could depend on this. Do you think you can handle that?" Spike nodded vigorously. "Anything to help Twilight," he said with false bravado, puffing out his chest.
"I need you to go get the princesses. All of them, including Cadance. Shining Armor as well, I hear he's an exceptional magic user, not to mention that the family connection between him and Twilight could be of use. Then, gather the Elements — both your friends and their jewels. If the time of the conference comes, and the main attraction isn't present, things could get messy very quickly, and I really don't want to be on the receiving end of any blame for this."
"How messy could it get?" Spike before Discord said in a voice which left no room for argument, "We've wasted enough time. I'll stay and try to figure out Twilight's notes, now go!" Discord snapped his claws, and the stone tile Spike was standing on popped out by the force of a spring beneath it, sending Spike flying into the hall.
Discord did not want to be turned back to stone because of a misunderstanding.
________
The light of the setting sun was just fading into obscurity when Ian pointed to a rising cliff in the distance, a visible hole in its face being the entrance to the cave. "There it is!" he said, exhausted. The three of them had been doing more than a simple fast walk in order to catch up on the several hours' head start the boy had.
The last of the sunlight faded as they reached the cave's mouth. Sparks flew futilely from Twilight's horn as she attempted to light it to see in the dim moonlight, to no avail. She sighed.
"I've got this one," Nash said as he pulled and lit a flare from his bag. Small bones could be seen littering the entrance to the cave in the light cast by the flare, while against a wall by the cave's mouth were the bleached bones of an entire brahmin skeleton. Twilight grimly examined the skeleton, with its two heads in particular. She mentally noted to examine and interview the bi-headed animal once they were back at Shady Sands, wondering if both heads were completely sapient and separate entities.
Nash drew his pistol in his right hand, holding the flare with his left. Ian drew his pistol as well, while Twilight looked about cautiously, thinking of ways she could be of assistance without a weapon or her magic. She was drawing blanks on that particular train of thought, though.
"If this cave is so far away, how do the scorpions manage to get into town? You've got that big wall, too. There's only one way in," Twilight commented.
"They must smell the brahmin, or something. And my only guess is that they somehow climb over the walls. There isn't much else between here and Shady Sands for them to feed on," Ian replied.
"We should stick together. Looks dark in there," Nash commented. They nodded, walking together in the small circle of light cast by the flare. The sounds of their steps echoed throughout the cavern. Slowly making their way through the dark tunnel, they entered a large opening that branched in two directions: forwards, and right.
"Shit," Ian swore. "Splitting up might be better. How many more flares do you have?" Ian asked Nash.
"Four, I believe, not including this one," he waved the glowing flare he held in his hand.
"Give me one. I'll check this part on the right, you follow the tunnel forwards."
"Good thinking," Twilight said as Nash handed Ian a flare. "Safety in numbers for us, while you've got experience to handle yourself."
"That's the idea," Ian said, twisting the cap on the flare to ignite it. He jerked his head backwards to get his long brown hair away from his deeply set eyes. Rolling up the lone sleeve on his jacket's left arm, Ian readied his pistol as the light from his flare was lost from sight around a bend in the tunnel he traveled down.
After a minute's walk forwards, Twilight and Nash heard a loud pistol shot echo throughout the cave from behind them. Twilight began to turn around before being stopped by Nash as several more shots sounded. The flare Nash held cast intimidating looking shadows on his face as he said, "No time, he can handle himself. We need to look for James." To this, Twilight nodded hesitantly. They continued further down the path before a chittering sound froze them in their tracks. Just outside of the visible light given by the flare, a shadowy shape moved about.
Nash and Twilight took several cautious steps forwards, illuminating the radscorpion in full. Its body was large, reaching about midway up Twilight's legs in height, while its tail curled overhead, reaching a height taller than Nash. It had thick, brown plates covering its body, and two large claws which it clacked in anticipation. The combatants examined each other, waiting for the other to make the first move. Nash quickly brought his pistol to bear and fired, aiming at the tail with the curved, pointed stinger. The stinger, as it turned out, was lightly armored compared to the rest of the radscorpion's body.
The bullet struck, causing the scorpion to squeal in pain. Thick green ichor leaked from the wound. It backed away a few feet before charging at the duo, flinging its stinger forwards in Nash's direction.
"Move!" he cried, diving to the right while Twilight went left.
Deciding between its two prey, it turned towards Nash, once again swinging its tail.
"Oh no, you don't!" Twilight shouted as she leaped at the tail, using her wings to glide herself several feet forwards. Twilight's weight as she connected with the tail threw the aim of the scorpion off, causing the stinger to chip away at the rock floor of the cave instead of at Nash. Thick ooze leaked from the pointed stinger, which Twilight could only assume to be poison. She'd have to get a sample of it later.
Grappling and attempting to hold down the flailing stinger, Twilight cried, "Its eyes! Hit it in the eyes!"
Nash complied, firing at the beady black eyes of the scorpion which reflected the flare's light. With a hard toss of its tail to the left, the scorpion finally managed to dislodge Twilight, which caused it to move in a way that threw off Nash's aim. This resulted in his bullet embedding itself in a plate above the scorpion's eyes, but not doing any real damage.
The scorpion skittered forwards, and with a swipe of its claw, knocked Nash off his feet. Once again, the stinger lunged at Nash. Staring his impending doom in the face, he didn't have the drive to move. All he could think was, I've failed the Vault. I've failed Twilight.
The rapid clip-clop of galloping hooves was met by a pained screech from the scorpion as Twilight skewered its tail with her horn. The scorpion backed up, moving in Twilight's direction, which only further implanted her horn in its curved tail. Nash could see the tip of her horn sticking through the cracks between the chitin plating on the scorpion's tail. With a quick jerk of her head, Twilight tore the tail off completely, freeing her green-coated horn from the scorpion's now stinger-less body.
Nash, broken from his revere, took aim and fired his pistol one last time at the scorpion's eye. It didn't even screech as it slumped dead to the ground.
"Eww, this is disgusting!" Twilight cried, frantically rubbing her horn and hair in an attempt to remove the ichor, but only managing to spread it further.
Finally giving up the futile effort, she stomped over to Nash and glared at him. He began, still on the floor, "Twilight... I — I don't know how—" before she slapped him. The large red mark stood out on his face from where her hoof connected with his cheek. He couldn't find the words to respond.
"Next time, move!" she shouted. Turning around, she took two unsteady steps forwards before falling to her knees. Nash didn't need to see her face to know she was crying. "You... you could have died. You could have been killed, and you would have left me here, alone. Nothing is out there for me in that... wasteland, Nash. Nothing! I..." Nash crawled from the position the scorpion had knocked him into and over to Twilight. He gently lifted her chin.
And slapped her.
Gunshots went off behind them again. "Look," Nash started. "I appreciate the save. I do. And I probably deserved the slap, too, though it felt more like a punch with that hoof of yours..." he said, rubbing the cheek she had slapped. "Anyway, you can have your mental breakdown later. Right now, we have a kid to save, and some bugs to squish." Nash stood up, holding out his hand and asking with a cocky grin, "So, you with me? I'll be sure to move next time."
Twilight looked up at the man. The stupid, strange, generous, wonderful man. He could have killed her when he found her. He could have just walked right past her, and she would have died in the hot, bland desert, alone and friendless. He shared his food and water. His company and secrets. They shared their shock and disgust at the deeds of the more depraved parts of the human race, and their interest in the world at large. They were both oblivious to the ways of the wasteland, and every experience was a new one. They were, for all intents and purposes, friends.
She put her hoof in his hand, and he pulled her back to all fours. "Fancy legwork, by the way," Nash commented with a grin, flicking Twilight's horn and eliciting a pained yelp from her. Twilight cautiously rubbed her horn, saying, "Don't do that! Horns are very sensitive to outside stimuli."
Nash ignored her retort, saying, "We'd better get moving." He picked up the still-glowing flare that he had dropped during the commotion. Keeping his pistol leveled ahead of him, they slowly worked their way through the cave, checking every nook and cranny for any hidden scorpions that wanted to surprise them. Apart from saving the boy, they also had the task of eradicating all of the radscorpions, despite its secondary importance in relation to saving James.
Making their way around a large support-like stalagmite which reached from the ground to the ceiling of the cave, they were greeted with another split in the cave.
"Separating is far too dangerous," Twilight said, trying once again to wipe the thickening goop off of her horn.
"I agree with you there. Let's go... uh, eeny-meeny-miney left," Nash chanted as they turned left. The light given off by the flare illuminated an alcove. It was a dead end, in more ways than one as two more radscorpions approached them, clicking their claws in disapproval of the intrusion.
"Ah, shit," Nash swore. Without giving them a chance to get closer, Nash immediately fired three more rounds at the nearest scorpion, two of which glanced harmlessly off of its plating while the third got it right in the eye. Even with a pulverized, bleeding and useless eye, the scorpion only managed to look even more pissed.
"They are abnormally resilient," Twilight commented with an unnatural calm stemming from shock. If Nash's weapon was anything like the flintlock pistols the griffons back in Equestria used, as she suspected it was judging by the odor of gunpowder which lingered after every shot, then these scorpions were shrugging off an unusual amount of damage. She began backing away with Nash as the scorpions approached them.
"Soon to be abnormally lifeless!" Nash barked, firing at the wounded scorpion. In response to Nash's movements in bringing the pistol to bear, it raised its claws to its face, leaving the three bullets to penetrate the lightly armored claws but fail to kill it. This managed to anger both of the scorpions, causing them to run full speed towards the pair.
Nash and Twilight, realizing their situation, quickly about faced and began running as well.
"Never try to make a one-liner again!" Twilight chided as they ran into the area of the cave they had yet to explore.
"I'm sorry, I liked the feeling of false confidence it gave me!"
Turning back awkwardly as he continued to run, Nash fired three more rounds at the scorpion. The scorpion's corpse tripped over itself as its legs stopped moving.
"I got it!" Nash cheered.
"You got one, there are two. Keep running!"
They skidded to a halt as the straight line they were running in ended at a dead end. The narrow passage out was blocked by the scorpion, which stopped its run as it carefully approached its cornered prey.
Nash pulled the trigger of his pistol several times, eliciting nothing but hollow clicks.
"Nash," Twilight asked slowly as the scorpion continued to approach. "What's wrong with your weapon?"
"I, uh, think I ran out of bullets."
"Well I think it'd be real swell if you were to do something about it!" she shouted.
Nash looked at the gun in his hand for a moment before throwing it at the scorpion. It clunked uselessly off of its chitinous hide. The scorpion paused in its tracks, as if attempting to comprehend how the human could possibly be so stupid.
"That was your plan? Throw your gun?" she asked frantically.
"I panicked!"
"Try something else!"
Nash opted to throw the flare he was holding instead. It bounced off of the scorpion ineffectually, which prompted Twilight to fall to her haunches and facehoof, saying "We're doomed."
The scorpion was upon them now, rearing its tail back to sting when several pistol shots sounded. Bursts of green blood exploded on Twilight and Nash as its tail fell limply to the floor. The scorpion turned to face the new threat, its useless stinger dragging on the rough stone ground.
Behind the scorpion stood Ian, his ordinarily black jacket coated with more green gore than Twilight's horn was, a sight which made her sick to her stomach. She wondered how the human was faring with that amount of fluids on him as a fresh chunk of scorpion gore dripped off the tip of her horn and onto her muzzle. She went cross-eyed to stare at the offending globule of flesh as she clamped her hooves across her mouth in an attempt to hold back the rising bile in her throat.
Clicking its claws in anger, the scorpion began to charge Ian, its limp stinger scratching on the cave floor. Before it could get within ten feet, however, Ian fired two more shots, ending the abomination's life.
"Run out of ammo?" Ian asked as he approached Nash and Twilight.
"Uhh," Nash stammered, remembering he still had his bag. "Not quite..."
"Then why, dare I ask, did you not reload?"
"Because I, uh, sorta kinda might have thrown my gun at it," Nash responded sheepishly.
"And why did you throw your gun at it?"
Nash shrank away from Ian's glare, reminded of times in the Vault when he was young and being lectured for his bad behavior. "I... I panicked, when the magazine ran out."
Ian sighed. As he had seen on the way to his present location, Nash had killed two of the scorpions, which proved that he was at least halfway competent. The problem, though, was that he had absolutely no wasteland experience. Or hell, any experience in general.
"Rule number two to surviving in the wasteland. Don't panic," Ian said.
"Two? What is rule one?" Twilight asked.
"Don't die," Ian responded as he pulled a cigarette from the inside of his jacket.
"Well, that's helpful," Twilight responded sarcastically as Nash bent to pick up the pistol and flare he had thrown.
Flicking closed and pocketing the lighter he used to ignite his cigarette, Ian said, "Hey, it works." He walked off deeper into the cave as Twilight and Nash hurried to catch up to him, with Nash loading a fresh magazine into his pistol.
It wasn't a long walk before the trio heard a soft sobbing, along with various squeals and clicks originating from a number of radscorpions. Hurrying towards the source of the commotion, the trio's dual flare-light illuminated four radscorpions clicking their claws and thrashing their stingers at a small outcropping of rock jutting from the cave wall on which a tiny form lay prone.
"Get ready," Ian said to Twilight and Nash. Before either could respond, Ian put two fingers in his mouth and blew a shrill whistle. This caught the attention of the scorpions, causing them to cease their fruitless attacks on the wall below the boy in favor of more accessible game.
Without hesitating, Ian began to open fire on one of the scorpions. Nash lagged for just a moment before doing the same. By the time the scorpions were close enough to give the three cause for retreat, the collective firing of their two ten millimeter pistols had terminated one of the hostile arthropods. The others, realizing the manner in which their comrade had been killed, raised their claws to their faces, creating an effective and rather nuisance-some shield, blocking their faces from the harmful projectiles.
The three were retreating back to the tunnel which lead to the section of the cave they were currently in when Twilight said, "Draw them away, I'll get to the child."
Looking at her two companions, they nodded in confirmation of her plan. As Ian and Nash went down the tunnel on the left, Twilight awkwardly flapped her wings, shakily gaining altitude in an attempt to make herself seem a less interesting target as she flew right. Her plan worked. The scorpions followed the humans, completely disregarding Twilight's hovering form.
Twilight flapped her way over to the outcrop of rock on which the still-sobbing boy lay curled up. A small object which Twilight likened to an elongated version of Nash's weapon, as well as a spilled box of round metal spheres, were next to the boy. Gunshots echoed throughout the cave as she landed, breathing a sigh of relief. She still wasn't a very good flier.
The boy chanced a look up at the sound of Twilight's hooves connecting with his tiny stone sanctuary. Uncomprehending of what he was seeing in the dark cave, he crawled further against the wall, clutching himself even tighter as his bawling increased in frequency.
"Shh," Twilight said softly as she slowly approached the boy. "It's OK, I'm not here to hurt you. You'll be just fine." Laying down next to the child, she tenderly ran a hoof through his hair, consoling him. "Those scorpions won't hurt you or anything else again," she reassured.
James, realizing Twilight's non-hostile intentions, clutched his arms around Twilight's neck, sobbing into her fur. She continued to stroke his hair as more gunshots resounded throughout the cave.
"Your name is James, right?" Twilight asked, trying to ignore the gunfire. She felt the crying child nod his head against her chest. Taking that as her cue, she continued gently, "Well, my name is Twilight. I came here from your home town. Shady Sands, it was called?" She felt the boy nod again, his sobs slowly subsiding to broken, heaving sniffles. "I came from there with my friend Nash and a person we met in town, named Ian. We heard your mother calling out for you when she realized you were missing."
Twilight's voice took on a teacherly, lecturing tone as she continued kindly, "She was very worried about you. A boy your age should know not to go off on his own, especially not out into the wasteland, and definitely not when your mother says otherwise." Twilight didn't quite know what she was saying, since she couldn't be sure just how old James was, and didn't know how humans aged in comparison to ponies, but she hoped her lecture (with the use of local terminology to simplify it) was comforting. It seemed to be working, as he was no longer crying, though he was still grasping her neck with his face pressed against her chest.
Finally, the blackness of the cavern was broken by the approach of a light from the tunnel Ian and Nash led the scorpions down. From out of the tunnel limped Nash, holding a hand to his side as he sluggishly moved, while Ian was attempting and failing to get Nash to let him examine the wound. Nash trudged to and slumped against a wall, Ian following suit.
Ian looked in the general direction of Twilight and James, as he couldn't see them outside of the circle of light cast by the flare. He called out, "Twilight! It's safe to come down now. We checked everywhere, got all of them. Even smashed all the eggs we saw."
"Alright," Twilight called back. "On my way." She looked down at James, who was looking up at her. She smiled as she stood up, lowering her neck and saying, "Climb on. I'll fly you down."
James tilted his head in confusion as Twilight flapped her wings, indicating that she did, indeed, have the necessary appendages required for flight.
"H-hang on," James stuttered his first words to Twilight, as he bent down to scoop as many of the scattered BBs as he could into the box, picking up both the box and his BB gun before carefully climbing onto Twilight's back.
Looking over her shoulder, Twilight asked, "You ready?"
James nodded in response. "OK. Just make sure you don't bump into my wings," Twilight said as she hopped off the outcrop of rock, pumping her wings frantically to compensate for her lack of flying skills and the extra weight on her back.
After a short time of what can more accurately be described as "madly flailing about" through the air, Twilight landed not-so-gently onto the cave floor in the circle of light given by the flares. She quickly ran up to Nash, asking with concern as he clutched his side, "What happened? Are you alright?"
"The damned fool took a stinger meant for me," Ian said, sounding more annoyed at himself than Nash.
"Ohmygosh, Nash, are you alright? Where does it hurt?" Twilight asked as James leaned a little left to look past Twilight's head.
"Everywhere," Nash said through gritted teeth.
Twilight's eyes widened. She opened her mouth to say something before closing it again, the words dying on her lips. Finally, she managed, "Ian, on our way out, cut off a few of the scorpions' stingers. A doctor might be able to make an antidote from the poison."
Ian shrugged. "That doesn't make much sense to me, but if you say so. Razlo would be the one who knows more than I do on that sciencey doctor stuff. Let's get going. Can you walk, Nash?"
"My blood is like magma," Nash responded with more hostility than was strictly necessary.
"I don't know what that is, but from my experience with radscorp poison, it's probably something very hot," Ian responded.
"Magma is a complex, high-temperature fluid substance made of molten or semi-molten rock which can reach temperatures from seven hundred to—" Twilight began in full-lecture mode before Ian stopped her, saying, "Cut the crap, I'll carry him. You and James seem to be doing fine as you are. I'll cut a few tails on our way out and we'll make our way back to Shady Sands."
"We... we're going home? Really? And — and you killed all of the scorpions?" James asked, unbelieving.
"That's right, kid. We're going home," Ian said, carefully lifting the groaning Nash up in his arms.
They began walking towards the exit to the cave, when barely a few steps later, Nash started laughing and groaning in pain. Ian looked down at the load in his arms, asking, "Just what do you find so funny?"
Nash choked up a few more pained laughs before saying with a smile that was more of a grimace, "If you're gonna hold me like this, you could at least buy me dinner first."
Looking forwards again, Ian said, "One more crack like that and you'll be walking."
"Alright, alright," Nash said before returning to his relatively silent moans of pain.
Several minutes' walk and a few cut stingers (with James hiding his face in Twilight's mane to avoid looking at the deceased scorpions) later, the four of them found their way to the outside of the cave. The moon was high in the sky as they walked their way back towards Shady Sands.
Nash jolted upright, sweat pouring down his face, black hair matted to his head. Looking upwards, he saw a ceiling, which caused him to think he was still back in the Vault and that his entire wasteland experience was an all-too-vivid dream.
He looked around frantically. He was laying on a thin mat on a stone floor. To his left was a shelf against a wall with various books and knick-knacks on it, while a bucket full of reeking muck was on the floor by his head. To his right was a person he didn't recognize laying on a mat similar to his. A break in the wall on his left revealed itself to be a window, the blue sky and a rising sun proving that he was still in the wasteland. Looking forwards, he saw a curtain covering the doorway out of the room.
He felt his insides proceed to flare up, prompting him to lean over and vomit into the bucket.
At least now he knew what the bucket was full of.
After several failed attempts at spitting in an effort to rid the taste of bile from his mouth, Nash gave up, falling with a thud back on the mat. He stared at the ceiling, lost in thought.
The last thing he could recall was a blurred mishmash of memories. Getting slapped by Twilight. Running. Shooting. Shoving Ian away from a stinger. From there on all he could remember was pain.
Nash wasn't sure how long he had been laying there, but by the time a man with white robes and a goatee of matching color pushed his way past the curtains, the sky was a bright blue.
"Ah, so you're finally up, Mister Nash. I was wondering when the antidote would start working."
"Antidote?" Nash grunted.
"That's right, antidote. I was able to make several doses of a poison-neutralizing antidote with the radscorpion stingers Ian gave me. He told me it was your companion who suggested collecting them in the first place. But, where are my manners? I am Doctor Razlo, resident physician of Shady Sands, the town you, Ian and that curious companion of yours saved."
"Companion...? You mean—" Nash's eyes widened. "Twilight! How is she? Where is she? Is she alright?"
Razlo chuckled. "Relax, relax, she's alright. Currently resting in Ian's room, from what I hear."
"And what about—"
"Ian and the young boy? They're both perfectly fine. James and his mother were reunited with no issues, while Ian carried you here with surprisingly few complaints on his end. Ian and Twilight then retired to the barracks while I tended to both you and Jarvis with the antidote I brewed. All in all, the only casualties had were on the end of the scorpions, for which the entire town is grateful."
"Well, in that case, I'm — I'm..." Nash paused, putting a hand to his chest for a moment before leaning over and vomiting into the bucket again. With the (what he hoped to be) last of the bile rid from his mouth, Nash flopped back onto the thin mat, muttering, "The wasteland sucks."
Razlo once again chuckled as a middle aged woman carrying a cup pushed past the curtain. She glanced at Razlo for a moment before kneeling down at Nash's side to hand him the cup. "Water. Should help a little."
Nash took the cup gratefully. The first mouthful he swished in his mouth for a moment before spitting it into the bucket. The second mouthful contained the remaining contents of the cup, which he drank with gusto.
Nash slowly sat upright, handing the cup back to the woman with a nod. She took the empty cup without a word and exited through the curtain. Running a hand through his hair, Nash said, "I appreciate your help, Doctor. How can I repay you?"
"You already have repaid me, Nash. Your ridding this humble village of the radscorpions was payment enough. And, with Ian's retrieval of the radscorpion stingers and my subsequent creation of an anti-venom, I was able to save Seth's brother Jarvis as well."
"So that's who that is?" Nash pointed to the man on the mat beside him. "Seth said something about him when we first met. I'm glad to know he'll be alright."
"'Alright' is subjective, I'd think," Jarvis said with a groan as he rolled to face Nash and Razlo. "But I'm still alive, so that's a plus."
"And your brother will be glad to hear it, I'm sure," Razlo said as he made his way to the curtain. "If you two will excuse me, I need to fetch something."
Jarvis looked at Nash, saying, "So you're the person I have to thank for the life of both the town and myself."
Nash held up his hands. "It wasn't entirely me. I had help from a friend, and Shady Sands' very own Ian helped as well."
"Still, you were a part of it, and that's enough to warrant my thanks. If there's anything I could help you with, just ask."
"Well... tell me about your brother. And Shady Sands, for that matter. I don't know much about this place's history."
"Seth? He's a very good fighter, and very determined. A little too much, sometimes. Still, he's devoted to the welfare of our village. As for Shady Sands itself, it was founded by Aradesh years back. We're all mostly leftovers from Vault 15, and unless you happened to pick up that suit from somewhere, I'd say you're from a Vault too."
Nash smiled. "That I am. Vault 13, born and raised. The Overseer sent me out to look for a water purification chip, since ours has broke. The first place I plan on checking for a replacement will be Vault 15."
"Well, I wish you luck. You'll probably need it."
"Alright you two, time for another dose of antidote," Razlo said, entering the room again with two glass bottles full of a viscous red liquid. He handed one to both Nash and Jarvis. Nash studied the bottle and its contents, giving it a light shake. Several sizable chunks of something brown floated within, prompting him to ask, "Uh, Doc? What are the... floaty bits?"
"Radscorpion flesh," he responded with a smile. "Drink up!"
Nash froze for a moment before gently setting the bottle down on the mat as though it were a volatile explosive. He stood up quickly, swooning for a moment from light-headedness before he found his footing. With a smile and a wave, he said with a nod to each of them, "Well Doc, Jarvis, it's been a pleasure. Bon voyage!" Nash sprinted to the nearest window and dived out it.
Razlo and Jarvis stared out the window, where they could see Nash sprinting madly into the town. Jarvis turned towards Razlo. "Uh, Doc? You sure that's the guy who killed the scorpions?"
________
What Twilight expected to see of Nash that morning was him still bedridden, perhaps turning over in a light and fitful sleep, or sweating profusely from the effects of the poison.
What she did not expect to see was him diving out of the clinic's window and running towards her as if the grim reaper was on his tail. When Nash had finally caught up to her, he doubled over, resting his hands on his knees and breathing heavily.
Concerned, Twilight asked, "Nash? Is something wrong?"
He answered quickly, "What? No! Of course not! Doc gave me a clean bill of health and to prove it I jumped out the window, nothing to it! Now let's go, we've got things to do." Twilight eyed Nash suspiciously but said nothing as he quickly started walking in the direction of the town hall, where Ian had told them Aradesh usually was.
Trotting at a brisk pace, Twilight caught up to Nash and together they entered the building. Its interior was similar to that of other Shady Sands buildings they had seen, though much more spacious. They saw Aradesh sitting behind an old desk in a corner, talking amicably with two other people. Twilight and Nash waited out of earshot until the two strangers left, and Aradesh gestured them over. Nash took a seat in a chair facing Aradesh, while Twilight opted to rest on her haunches.
"Thank you for your patience, wanderers. As you are no doubt aware, I am Aradesh, leader of Shady Sands."
"Name's Nash, I hail from Vault 13, to the east."
"And my name is Twilight Sparkle, newly crowned princess of Equestria."
Aradesh nodded. Addressing Twilight, he said, "You are a most unusual sight, Sparkle. Never have I laid eyes on one such as yourself. Is this 'Equestria' very distant from here?"
"I get that a lot," Twilight said with a smile that faded as quickly as it arrived. "As for Equestria, it's about as far away from here as you can get."
Aradesh clasped his fingers together and hummed in thought. Unknitting his fingers, he said, "Shady Sands may not be a village of open hospitality, but the two of you have done more than enough to earn its trust. You are welcome here at any time, and we will be glad to accommodate you in any manner possible. But, what is your purpose here? I am doubtful that it was solely to aid us, though we are not ungrateful."
"I was on my way to Vault 15 to get a water purifier chip from there. The one from my home Vault broke, limiting our water supply. If I don't find a replacement soon, the entire Vault will die of thirst. I found Twilight on the way, then we just happened across your village and figured we'd stop in for supplies," Nash answered.
"And I'm just tagging along with Nash until I can get the strength to return home. He saved my life, so I plan to return the favor somehow," Twilight said.
"You are a most honest pair. Quite uncommon in the wasteland. I wish to personally thank you for your assistance in the matter of the radscorpions, and more importantly the safe retrieval of young James. Our village would be nothing without its young. As Dharma said, 'Many sticks can be broken. A bundle cannot.'"
Twilight put a hoof to her chin. "I hope I'm not crossing any lines in asking, but who is Dharma? Does he live here? I've heard his name several times prior, and you speak it with the same sort of reverence that ponies back in Equestria give to princesses Celestia and Luna."
"Dharma was a great, religious man, from many years ago. You would do well to listen closely to his sayings. And now, if there is nothing else, you are free to go. May the water you find in the desert not shine at you in the dark."
Twilight nodded as she rose to leave before Nash stopped her, saying to Aradesh, "Actually, there is something else. What can you tell us about the raiders?"
Aradesh sighed, the wrinkles on his leathery face deepening in his distress. "There are two bands of raiders that we know of. They call themselves the Khans and the Vipers. The Khans are nastier than the Vipers, and they attack us from the southeast, with spear and gun alike. But, you mustn't concern yourself further with our problems. As Dharma said, 'tough times tan the human hide.' We will persevere. You, though, have your own quest to fulfill. I wish you luck in your journey."
Nash locked gazes with Aradesh for nearly a full minute. Finally, seeing no give in the old man's face, Nash stood from his seat, with Twilight following suit.
"One more thing," Nash asked. "Where might we be able to pick up some supplies?"
"When you exit this building, follow the path around it on your right side. That shall take you to the market."
"Thanks. Goodbye, Aradesh," Nash said with a nod as he turned to leave.
Twilight gave a short bow, saying, "So long, Aradesh, and may your village prosper."
"Farewell, wanderers. May you find what you seek."
________
After learning the basics of the bartering system the wasteland used from various locals, as well as a method to gauge the value of most common items, Nash and Twilight got the hang of the market's dealings and purchased what they needed for only a moderately overpriced sum.
Not that they knew the difference.
Included in their hagglings were discussions about which possibly irradiated fruit looked the least deadly, how many bullets a lighter was actually worth, and an argument over the necessity of purchasing a 15 meter coil of rope which went something along the lines of,
"Rope is always handy."
"I don't know, Nash. We're going to be traveling through the blank desert, how often are you going to need rope?"
"It's always good to be prepared! You never know when—"
"When a child might fall down a well? Please, Nash. Don't get the rope."
"I'm getting the rope."
"Well, I'm not carrying it!"
In any case, they got what they needed.
"I'm surprised we got so much," Twilight began as Nash packed away several lumpy green fruits he had picked up at the cost of one of his flares. "This bartering system is fascinating. Ancient Equestrians used to barter like this, until they moved up to trading various gemstones as differently valued currency before finally settling on the gold bit we use today."
Nash patted his now even more overstuffed bag, struggling with the straps a bit. "I'm willing to bet that our helping out with the scorpions probably had something to do with the deals. Word got around, and we got some 'friends of the family' discounts or something," Nash said as he jumped to the side, narrowly avoiding being bowled over by three running and giggling children. "Sure is a friendly little place though, once you get on their good side."
"I'll say. Though it isn't even half as big as Ponyville, they're still quite lively here. And everyone seems to know everyone else."
They wove their way through the throngs of dark-skinned passerby, many dressed in extravagant robes and gowns. The market seemed so alive that one could almost forget there had ever been a nuclear holocaust. "Most of these wares must be hoofmade, considering the terrain we encountered on our way didn't have much of anything but desert," Twilight noted as they dodged around a man balancing a large pot on his head.
"'Hoofmade?'"
"Er, what are those things you have? Claws?"
"Hands."
"Right. Handmade. Sorry, I'm still getting used to your human terms. The only other race I know of that has hands would be the minotaurs, and they're a rare sight at best in Equestria."
Nash stretched, lacing his hands behind his head as they walked. "Well, at least you managed to stop using 'everypony' and such. So that's a start."
"Still, I wonder how they made all these beautiful clothes. I'll bet even Rarity would be impressed."
"Brahmin hairs," spoke a young voice behind them. The duo stopped, turning around to see none other than James, clutching a small sack. "Most of the clothing here is handmade from woven brahmin hairs which are treated with a chemical that makes them less uncomfortable to wear, and then dyed. Other times we manage to find or trade for scraps of prewar clothes and use those to make new clothing."
James suddenly looked down, embarrassed. "Um, my mother is a seamstress. She has a stall here at the marketplace."
Nash ruffled James' hair, which only further reddened his cheeks. "Glad to see you're doing alright. Just don't go running off again, I'd hate to have to save you a second time," Nash said with a cheeky grin.
"Says Mister Confident who was crying like a baby on our way back from the caves," Twilight said with a grin of her own.
Nash gave an exaggerated pout as he crossed his arms and blew a raspberry at Twilight. He turned back to James, asking, "So, what brings you out here? Shopping for your mother?"
"Um, well, I was looking for you, actually..." he said quietly.
"Us? Why?"
"Well, um, first I wanted to, um, thank you. For..." James trailed off, unable to finish.
"I think we get the idea, kid. Don't sweat it. Second?"
James seemed relieved that he wouldn't have to say what was on his mind. Continuing with a little more confidence, he said, "Second, Doctor Razlo asked me to find you, and he told me to give these to you." James put his bag on the ground and dug through it, pulling out four glass bottles of a red liquid Nash recognized very well.
Noting the way Nash was cringing away from the bottles, Twilight asked, "What's in them?"
"Some of the antid—"
"The most vile, despicable, unpalatable 'medicine' that has ever been concocted!" Nash interrupted James.
Twilight paused, mentally connecting the dots as she examined a bottle's contents. "Is that why you ran from the clinic earlier today? Because the doctor told you to drink this?"
"Yes! I mean, no! Or, uh..."
Twilight facehoofed. "You're such a foal, running away because you don't want to take your medicine."
"It has radscorpion flesh in it! You don't just casually drink the meat of a giant goddamn scorpion like it's nothing!"
Twilight faltered in her confidence a little, but still said, "While I admit it would be a little... distasteful, that's no reason to not take it."
"I happen to think it would give me every reason not to, thank you very much," Nash said, still looking indignant.
Twilight sighed, but smiled as she said, "Well, we aren't about to turn down a gift. Thank you for bringing this to us, James. Was there anything else?"
James looked down again, abashed. He kicked his foot in the dirt, focusing intently on the ground. Nash crouched to James' eye level, putting his hands on the young boy's shoulders. He said with a smile, "Look, kid, if there's something you want to say, you can say it. We're not going to hold anything against you."
Taking a deep breath, James sighed. Digging into his sack once more, he pulled out his BB gun, and handed it to Nash, followed by a box of BBs. Holding one in each hand, Nash looked the rifle over. He noted the worn out brand marking "Red Ryder." Confused, he asked, "What's this for? Wasn't this—"
"A gift from my father? Yes. I — I want you to have it. My mother has moved on since he's been gone, and I think I should too. So, I... I hope it helps. Somehow."
Nash looked at James' expressionless face, but the boy's watering eyes said all he needed to know. Nash nodded, carefully packing the box of BBs away while shouldering the Ryder by its strap.
"I'll take good care of it, don't you worry."
Unable to hold back any more, James choked out a sob before he pushed past Nash and ran through the crowded market, being lost among the veritable sea of legs.
Twilight looked downtrodden as she stared in the direction James ran, saying, "I can't help but feel like that was somehow our fault."
