Second chance
Blue skull Roamed down the dirt path. Deep cuts covered his body head to hoof that stained his once dark blue pelt. He was hurting. Everything taken away from him; he only had a one sided saddle, and a switch blade. His life had passed by him, and know he faced a long walk. He had no medical supplies to heal his bleeding wounds, and for all he knew the raiders could be still following him.
Blue skull swiftly turned his head; there were no raiders behind him, just a long dirt road. Blue skull felt tears, but he held them back. The one thing he learned with the raiders, never show tears. If you do, your weak, and if you’re weak; the enemy will kill you with zero chance of survival. The raider life was a good life, lots of killing. There was never a shortage on pony’s to kill.
Blue skull passed a sight laugh as he saw a pack of cigarettes on the side of the road. “It’s about time!” he levitated the pack of cigarettes. “Know all I need is a lighter!” Blue laughed at that. He slid the pack into his saddle.
“You need a lighter?” A voice came from behind Blue skull.
Blue skull shot around, He was thinking it must be a raider. Standing behind him was a mid-age male pony; with a cowboy hat on, and a wheat stock in his mouth. “What the hay you want?” Blue skull shouted.
“Easy there partner, I just saw you walking down the road. I saws you were hurt, so I figured you needed help.” The earth pony was calm, and he kept his ground.
“Well if you can see mister, I have had a hay of a day. I’ve gone through shit!” Blue Skull still shouting.
“Easy mister, I’m just a helpful pony.” The orange coated pony looked at Blue skulls wounds. “You look really hurt, I can help you?”
Blue skull looked at the country pony. He wasn’t the kind of pony that excepted help. He did everything on his own. The other raiders never helped him, and he never helped them. Even when his pipbuck shut down they didn’t help. He had to travel to another raider camp to fix it. Know his pipbuck was in horrible condition. “Yah, if you can help.” Blue said regretting excepting help.
“Well you can just follow me mister, and will have you fixed up in a jiffy!” Wheat box said happily.
Wheat box lead Blue skull off the road, and entered a wheat field.
“So, where are we going?” Blue skull asked in a ruff voice.
“Well mister, I’m taking you to my farm; me and my family live there.”
The happiness in this ponys voice was pissing Blue skull off. “Well that’s great, more ponys!”
The country pony looked at Blue in a confused glance. “Don’t you like pony folk?” He was confused.
“Well, with the bad day I’ve had, I just don’t want to see any pony.”
“Aww, I see.” He said sarcastically.
“What!” Blue shouted.
“You have had a bad day, so you take it out on other folk.” The pony said in a still sarcastic voice.
“You know what, being attack by you friends; then having them take away everything is bull shit!”
The orange pony stopped walking, he looked concerned. “So you got attacked by your friends?”
“Yah!”
They both stood still for a few long moments, staring at each other.
“My name is wheat box.” The orange pony hesitated.
“My name is Blue skull.”
Wheat box looked kind of confused at his name. Like something was out of place. “When did you get that name?” He asked.
“When my mother gave birth to me!” He said looking angrily into Wheat box’s eyes.
“I’m sorry, just thinking out loud.”
The two walked through the wheat field to a small house. The house was made out of timber, looked like it was recently built. It had two stories, and it had a stone chimney.
“My wife is inside; she will help you with your wounds.” Wheat box opened the wood door, and let Blue skull in. “Honey I’m home!” Wheat box said happily.
“Dad!” Two small foals ran down a set of stairs. They didn’t even notice the large unicorn standing next to their dad. “Did you find anything for us?” The kids jumped up and down in excitement.
“I Shure did, I found a toy cart for you Ginger bow.” He handed a toy cart to a young orange filly. “And for you ice hoof, I have a vintage star bottle cap!”
“No way, a star bottle cap!” The young colt grabbed it out of his dad’s hoof. “This will be my tenth one!” The colt sounded joyfully.
“Yep, know go put it up in your room.”
The young foals ran up the stairs with joy.
“You all ways give your foals trinkets?” Blue skull looked at the father.
“Na, only when I find something in the fields.” Wheat box walked into the kitchen. “Hey darling, were is Wheat run?” He asked his wife.
“She is out in the barn messing around with that pipbuck you found him.”
“Ok, I’m going out to see her, can you help are guest?” Wheat box asked his wife.
“Who?” She asked walking out of the kitchen. Her eyes widened when she saw the blood seeping out of cuts covering Blue’s body. “Oh dear, your hurt!” She said in a frantic voice.
Wheat box looked at his wife. “This here is Blue skull, I found him walking down the road.” Wheat box looked at Blue skull. “And this here is my wife Marta Stich; she is the best cook in all of Equstria.”
“Well hey there Blue skull, come with me.” She told the unicorn.
Blue followed the filly into a large living room. The room was nice; it had a stone fire place, an old coach, and a lamp.
“Lay here; I’ll go get my medical supplies.” Marta ran off into another room.
Blue laid on the stained coach. It was comfortable, much better than the blood stained mattress back home. His mattress back home was some sort of clean; but then another raider used it to tenderize some colt’s ribs. It soaked his mattress with blood. Ever since then, Blue woke up to the smell of blood.
Marta trotted in the room with a metal box in her mouth. It had three butter flies on it. “I got the kit.” Marta said opening it on the floor. She pulled out a sarsaparilla bottle. She poured it into a small, wooden bowl.
“What’s that for?” Blue asked watching her pour the orange soda.
“It’s for the medicine, I found out if you mix a stem pack with sarsaparilla. It’s better for cuts and burns.” Marta pulled out a half empty stem pack, and poured it into the sarsaparilla. “And you don’t drink it, you rube it on the cuts.” Marta dipped an old sponge in the bowl. “It will sting.” She said pressing it up on the deepest cut.
The burning feeling made Blue skull flinch slightly, it was a horrible pain. When she said stinging, Blue thought it would be like lemon juice in his cut. This felt much worse. He felt embarrassed when he saw that Marta saw his flinch of pain. After all he was a raider at heart, not some wussy.
Marta pulled the sponge away; Blue turned his head to see the cut. In about three seconds, the cut closed shut.
“Wow, that’s amazing!” Blue said looking at Marta.
Marta passed a quick smile. “Just hold still while I finish with your other cuts.” She mumbled though the sponge. Marta dipped the sponge, and got back to work.
Marta took about ten minutes patching up the wounded Raider. After she was done, she saw his cutie mark. She was puzzled at the sight of the cutie mark.
“What is your cutie mark?” She asked wiping blood off the cutie mark. She examined the cutie mark very closely.
“It’s a hook.” He said smiling.
“Is your talent fishing?” She asked him happily.
Blue skull opened his mouth to correct her, but then he remembered something. What the hook went was when he would hang up dead or living ponys. He would be the one to break a bone if it was in the way; or just hang up the living ponys for fun, but if he told her that it meant that. Would she kill him? He couldn’t risk it; he would have to lie for now. “Yes, it’s a fishing hook.” He said trying to hide his lying voice.
“That’s a good talent, but how do you get so buff fishing?” She said feeling his hind leg muscle.
Blue was kind of surprised, none of the raider fillys noticed anything spectacular on Blue; but Marta was right, how would somepony get buff fishing. Blue said the easiest answer he could think about. “I work out a lot.”
Marta left the laying raider. “Well I hope you will stay for dinner. It’s getting dark, and at night the wolfs come out.”
“Well, if I can stay here, Shure.” Blue skull felt filled with joy at the kindness of the filly. Were all fillys so nice? He wanted to know if they all were nice. The only other fillys Blue skull had ever seen; were the other raider fillys, and the ones that begged for mercy. He thought of all the fillys he had killed. If they were all like Marta, then Blue would have killed so many nice ponys. Blue looked at his damaged pipbuck, it needed repairs that was for Shure. The map wasn’t even working. Blue sighed.
“You ok?” Wheat box asked
Blue hadn’t noticed him coming in the room. “Yah I’m fine, it’s just, my pipbuck, its broken.” Blue held up his pipbuck.
“My daughter has one of them fancy things! I bet she could help.” Wheat box sounded cheerful. “Come with me, she is in the barn.”
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“Hey Wheat run, can you help Blue skull?” Wheat box asked
“Who?” She asked turning. Wheat run saw Blue skull. “Oh hi, you’re that pony that my father found. Good to meet yah!”
“Hey.” Blue star replied. He examined the filly. She had green eyes; just like her mother, but she had a reddish coat. “Do you know how to fix a pipbuck?” He asked putting his hoof up on the table.
The ponys work table was covered in scrap metals, hard drives, and wires. There were coils of copper and just random junk spread all over the table.
“Let me take a look at it.” Wheat run examined the pipbuck for a few short moments. “I can see your problem with it.” She said happily.
“What’s rong with it?” Blue asked
“Your hard drive is destroyed.” Wheat run trotted over to a metal box.
“What!” Blue said in panic, just the thought of it being broken raced his heart.
“But its ok, I have another hard drive right over here.” Wheat run pulled out a small chip out of the box. “This might work.” She said pulling out the old chip, and placing the new one.
Blue skull lifted his hoof to his face. The pipbuck turned a bright green light on in side.
“Loading new chip data.” The pipbuck sounded off.
Blue skull watched in amazement, as everything on the pipbuck worked again. “It works!” Blue said with joy.
“Location discovered: Wheat family’s farm.” The pipbuck sounded off. A small dot appeared on the map.
“Wait, why did it say that out loud?” Blue asked Wheat run.
“Well, I didn’t have a pipbuck hard drive, so I used a radiation suit’s chip.” Wheat run looked embarrassed. “So, it has restarted all your data.”
“What!” Blue shouted. Anger filled him.
“Easy, that’s a good thing!” Wheat run lifted his hoof. “Look, it comes with a time blog!” Wheat run turned a switch on the pipbuck with her mouth. It turned to a blank page. On the top it read time journal. “So now it will keep track of where you have been, and look, it also has a voice.” She whispered into the pipbuck. “Where are we?”
“We are at Wheat family’s farm.” The pipbuck sounded off.
“Well that’s cool and all, but what happened to all the places I’ve been?” Blue asked Wheat run. “Those have to be somewhere?”
“Well the new chip has never been used; I found it new in an old building.” Wheat run placed her hoof on the table. There was a pipbuck on her hoof. “I found my pipbuck used, so it has locations on it already.”
Blue looked at her pipbuck, then back at his. It would be a good idea to reset it; after all he was starting a new life. So this was his time to start fresh. “Fine this will work.” He said in a gruff voice. Blue looked over to Wheat run again, but his eyes stopped on her side. There was a wing. She was a Pegasus! “You’re a Pegasus!” Blue said in shock. The last Pegasus he had seen was dead on the road. Pegasus didn’t live on the ground anymore; they lived in the clouds.
“Oh well, this is how I was born.”
Blue could tell she was lying. “What’s the truth?” He asked glaring at her.
Wheat run sighed; she didn’t want to tell the unicorn. “The truth is Wheat box found me as a baby. I was in one of the fields. He took me in, feed me, and raised me. I’ll never know where I came from.”
Blue spotted a tear run down her face. “What about your eyes, they look like Marta’s?”
“They don’t look like hers! They look like my mother’s!” She yelled at Blue skull.
“Easy girl, I just saw your wings and wanted to know!” Blue said calming her down.
Wheat run wiped the tears off her face, moving her orange mane to the side. “I’m sorry; I blow my top when ponys talk about my parents.” She apologized.
“It’s ok; now we have to go get inside. We don’t want to be out here when the sun goes down.”
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DAY 1- TIME approximately 7:00 P.M- location: Wheat family’s farm.
Blue roamed around the guest room, seeing if there was anything that would be worth taking. He had already eaten dinner with the Wheat family. It was a good dinner, they served daisy sandwiches. Then showed Blue his room, and left him to be alone. He sat on his bed, knowing that it would be a good idea to see what his pipbuck could do now. Using his magic he turned the switches to see what new pages he had. It had a map page of course, the journal page, and a few other pages. “Where is nearest city?” Blue asked the pipbuck to see how smart his pipbuck was.
“Checking for new satellite updates….. No updates….. Nearest city is Sarsaparilla Plaza; location fifteen miles away. Do you wish to set as objective?”
Blue thought for a moment before responding. In the morning I could head over to this city, and start a new life, Perfect to start fresh. “Yes set as priority.” Blue said to the pipbuck.
“Setting as priority……. Objective: go to Sarsaparilla Plaza, is now new priority.”
Blue was pleased at his new pipbuck chip; it worked way better than the last chip, and was twice as useful. After a while he went back to trying to find useful things to take. He found a few pens, pencils, and a magazine named “Zebra, know your enemy.” Blue knew this was stealing, but he needed everything he could get to start his new life. As he rummaged through a dresser; he found four shot gun shells. This was something he had to take. He was known by the other raiders that he horded ammo. The other raiders couldn’t offer him caps for his ammo.
He also found five caps under the bed, along with a bobby pin. He was happy with what he found. Stuffing them into his saddle he fell asleep. Normally he would stay up playing poker with the other raiders, but after the day he had; he needed the sleep.
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DAY 2-TIME approximately 6:30 A.M- location: Wheat family’s farm.
“Good morning Blue skull!” Marta said setting grass pancakes on the table.
Blue sat down at the table. “Good morning.” He said putting a fork in his pancakes. Everypony was already sitting at the table eating the pancakes.
“How you doing this fine morning?” Wheat box asked
“I’m doing fine; I haven’t slept like that for years.” Blue said feeling great. It was true, back at the raider camps; they didn’t sleep much, every four hours oh so, there would be a fight. Raiders often got drunk, so there would be fight on and off all night.
“Well that’s great!” Marta said bringing a plate of hay bacon strips.
Blue ate for a few moments without saying anything. “I was thinking about heading over to Sarsaparilla Plaza.” He said to the ponys at the table.
“That’s a good city.” Wheat box said to Blue. “But you have to be careful there; there are a lot of drunks there, and if you’re not careful you’ll get in a fight.”
Marta sat down her fork. “Are you Shure you don’t want to stay another night?” She asked.
“Oh no, ill head into town after breakfast.”
“Well, you can leave whenever you want.” Marta said.
“Can I come with you?” Wheat run asked nervously.
Everypony stopped eating. “Are you serious?” Wheat box said surprised.
“Yes I am, I want to find my real parents, and going with Blue might help me.” She said worried that she would be punished.
“Were your family.” Marta said putting a hoof on her shoulder.
“No you’re not!” Wheat run said hitting Marta’s hoof off. Her voice started to rise. “I want to travel across Equestria, not live my life here.”
“Wheat run, calm down.” Blue said trying to calm her down.
“No, I want to find the answers!”
The table was quit for a few moments. Then wheat box spoke up.
“Do you really want to do this?”
“Yes, I want to live my life.”
Wheat box looked at Blue skull. “Is this all right at you?” He asked.
“Wheat box!” Marta yelled.
Wheat box just glared at her. He turned back to Blue.
Blue thought for a moment. Why would he want her to fallow him? She would just slow him down. He would have to feed her, shelter her, and protect her. The wastelands are a dangerous place, and she would mean for Blue that he had to protect two bodies; but at the same time it would be a good thing. Being in the wastelands alone is dangerous by its self. Having a pony with you is safer. Even if Blue had to protect her, two is better than one. In raider school you learned this. You never go on a raiding party alone. This could be considered a raiding party, right? Blue looked at the Pegasus. She was dead serious about this. “Well I guess it wouldn’t be a bad thing to let her tag along.”
Wheat run’s face turned into a smile. She looked over to her step farther. “Can I?” She asked.
Wheat box knew if he said no, she would still go. So he accepted the fact that she was going to go. “Yes, you can go with him.”
Marta seemed shocked at his words that came out of her husband’s mouth.
“Thanks!” Wheat run said standing up. She ran to her room without finishing her breakfast.
“Will you take care of my daughter?” Wheat box asked in a sad tone.
“Yes I will protect her.” Blue said finishing his breakfast.
“If you’re taking her with you, then I want you to have this.” Wheat box stood up, and walked over to a closet. He grabbed a two barrel shot gun in his mouth. He sat it next to Blue skull. “Take this; it has two shells already in it. Stop by the barn when you leave, there are a few more shells on the shelf by the door.”
Blue levitated the shot gun into his saddle bag. “Thanks.” He told the pony.
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DAY 2- TIME approximately 8:45 A.M- location Wheat family’s farm.
Blue grabbed the two shells of the shelf. He also found a box of four bobby pins. He would have taken more, but Wheat run was in that room grabbing stuff to take. “You ready to head out?” Blue asked the Pegasus.
“Yes I am, let’s go!” She said happily trotting out of the barn.
The two said goodbye to the Wheat family, and headed though the field. When they got to the road they headed east, towards Sarsaparilla Plaza.
“This your first time traveling?” Blue asked Wheat run.
“Yes, I have never passed the fields before.” She said looking at the land scape.
Blue walked along the road, looking out for any danger that might pop out. They had only walked six miles when they spotted two figures heading there way. “Wheat run, go behind that rock.” He commanded the Pegasus.
“Why, aren’t they just ponys?” She asked.
“Hostiles fifteen miters… scanning for data.” Blue’s pipbuck said.
“I’m going behind the rock.” Wheat run said running for the rock. Wheat run knew what hostile meant.
Blue skull pulled out his shot gun. He started walking towards the figures. “Hey you!” Blue yelled.
“Warring, hostiles are armed, I advise you take cover.”
Blue kept walking towards the ponys. One stated to run, Blue could see them clearly know; they were slavers. He raised his shot gun.
BLAM! BLAM!
Blue fired his weapon, hitting the running pony in the leg. It stumbled the ground. Blue aimed again to kill the wounded pony, when the far pony fired.
BLAM! BLAM!
One of the bullets scraped Blues flank. Blood poured from the new wound. “Danm it!” Blue yelled firing at the new threat. Blue dove behind a rock to reload his weapon.
“Get out here!” A firm voice yelled.
Blue stuffed two fresh shells into his shotgun. He turned around the rock firing his two shots.
“AHHHHH!” One of the ponys yelled falling to the asphalt.
Blue reloaded his gun, ready to fire at any time. Blue looked around the rock, one pony laid dead on the ground. The other one crawled for its life. Blue stood up, and trotted over to the wounded pony. Blood gushed from its leg.
“No, please don’t kill me!” The pony shouted turning on its back.
“Too late.” Blue raised his gun and blasted the head of the pony. He opened his shot gun and slid a shell into one of the barrels. Know he only had four three shots left. This is not how he wanted to waste his first shot gun shells. “You can come out!” Blue yelled to Wheat run. She solely came out from behind the rock.
“What happened?” She yelled seeing the dead bodies.
“Slavers, I had to kill them.” Blue started to loot the bodies.
“What are you doing?” Wheat run said disgusted.
“I’m getting the armor.” Blue stripped the bodies of their armor; finding caps, shot gun shells, a revolver, and ten, forty caliber bullets. He slipped the supplies into his saddle, and started to put on the armor. It was basic armor, leather armor. A very weak armor, but he needed something to protect his skin. He kicked some leather armor towards Wheat run.
“Ewww, I’m not touching that, it has blood all over it!” Wheat run pushed the leather padding back to Blue.
“It will protect you in the wasteland.” He said levitating the armor.
“No, I’m not touching that.”
Blue slipped the armor into his back, and started to walk away. He would find somepony to buy it in the city, get some caps for it.
“Where are you going?” Wheat run asked.
“Where we were going before the slavers ruddily interrupted.”
“Ha, ha, very funny.” Wheat run fallowed him down the road.
Footnote: Level up
New perk: Double the barrel, double the fun. You know cause 10+ damage using double barrel shot guns.