//------------------------------// // War // Story: Fallout: Equestria- Chasing Stars // by not_me //------------------------------// War. “War never changes. Though the means and reason do, at the core since the first animal killed another to survive nothing has changed. It is a constant state; the struggle for continued existence at the cost of life of another. Peace is just a dream, a fairy tale told to the young to help them sleep at night. It is a spoil of war that the current winning side is allowed to enjoy, and for countless millennia the ponies enjoyed the victories of war lead by two godly beings. In time they were proven fallible and the world fell into chaos once again until war won out; neither side won. Both sides made the mistake of believing they could win and war overcame the land, altered nature and both sides died, including the goddesses. We are beyond the veil of hope, instead embrace the world as it is.” I had to stifle my yawn. This had to be the fifth time I heard this speech and although it seemed life altering the first time, it lost its edge after a while. Still the chief went on droning about ‘becoming one with the wasteland’ as the new warriors ate it all up. The Bison Tribe were a proud and noble race, but they could drone on if given the chance. As a group they remained neutral in the Great War some two centuries ago. Our land went mostly untouched when the mega spells spilt balefire across the world. Now we lived in a shithole world trapped beneath a permanent cloud canopy were scavengers and raiders killed, raped, and pillaged their way onto our land. Of course I am not a bison, but a pony, a unicorn to be exact; a nineteen-year-old blank flank unicorn to be exacter’er (and yes I know that is not a word). In our tribe there were four other ponies. A mated pair twenty-five years my elder, their daughter a year my younger, and the other was like me, an adopted male of the same age, though he was an Earth pony. The two my age both received their cutie marks years ago and despite what you might think, us being the same race and all, they had nothing to do with me. They call me Black Horse. I think cause my hide is black, go figure. They say I am cursed cause everyone I ever knew has died except for my sister. Cause of that every buffalo tends to leave me to my own devices. I wasn’t a warrior or a hunter but a scout. Not even a lead scout, just a member of a patrol. If we saw anything we would either take care of it or report it in to the warriors to take care of. In stampeding times of the year we were assigned a far flank to ensure the herd didn't get jumped. Right now the new group of recruits were being given the routine introductory speech well the rest of us watched in solidarity. My yawn won out in the end, a loud one too, before I felt a quick kick to my ribs. My adopted sister, Lightning Strike, glared at me. I fell silent for the rest of the speech. “…and we stampeded on this land like his father before him, and his Father before him, and His father before him, And his father before him, and…” At this point even the new recruits eyes started to glaze over. After it ended, Lightning turned to me. “You shouldn’t have yawned Black Horse. It shows disrespect to the chief.” “If he didn’t want me to yawn he shouldn’t give the same speech every six months, when the young’ens come of age! Also does he have to say how many times his father’s, father’s, father’s stampeded.” “What? You don’t think the rest of us are tired of hearing that same dumb speech, yet the rest of us don’t make a show of it in front of the recruits. Also he’s supposed to say it for the number of generations ago we came over here from wherever we were originally from. It tradition! Come on, I am hungry. I’ll make us some breakfast before we head out.” I followed Lightning to our camp, where she got to making us some sage salads. The ceremony got me thinking about the past. I was raised by my father, my real father, in a shack on the edge of the bison lands ‘til I was about four. My mother died before I could walk. I remember he would trade and hunt with bison, than one day Lightning’s pop, Thunder Head, came back from a hunting trip with out my father and told me to pack my things since dad would not be coming back. He never was one to mince words. Lightning’s mom passed away from radiation sickness when I was six and her pop didn’t return from another trip six years ago. The other bison were too polite to tell us that he was captured and killed by raiders, so he is still just gone officially. Lightning Strike is all I have left now. She is six years my elder and my scout leader. The other buffalos say they won’t chance a blank flank in their crew, I think its because they think I am cursed. Lightning says its buffaloshit since in the wasteland everyone has lost someone. We ate in near silence together. I noticed her looking at me, unspeaking. I looked at her and could see myself reflected in her eyes. Black fur, long blue mane, violet eyes. She smiled at me, and I smiled back, “What?” “Nothing, just thinking that’s all.” “About what?” “Oh, the past. Mom and Dad. I remember when they brought in a little foal and told me you were to be my brother. Mom was already pretty sick, but she never seemed happier. Now here we are both scouts complaining about boring military duties.” I smiled even wider. The truth was Lightning had started raising me when she was my age. Most bison her age were already married and with calf, but I think she never did cause of me. We finished up and headed out. The other two members of our group were waiting for us outside the village. We found nothing much, mole rats and bloat sprites. They posed no threats, but we killed them anyways just for the meat. The sun was starting to set and we were three miles east of the village. I was ready to call it a day, but Lightning wanted to pull one more patrol. “Come on there is nothing here lets just go already,” I complained. “Okay than, Horse. But only on the condition you climb that rock outcrop over there and scan the horizon,” she said with a sneer pointing at forty-foot outcrop a quarter of a mile northeast. “And hurry up your making us all wait.” The other two laughed. This was revenge for the yawn; I just knew it. But the joke was on Lightning, I was still a unicorn after all. “Alright,” I said with a smile before staring at the top of the cliff concentrating all my magic on it before my horn burst out blue surrounding my whole body teleporting me the distance in less than a second. I learned this trick last year when a rouge manticore managed to separate me from my group. Most days I was too lazy to use it, but right now I was too lazy to be bothered with the climb. She turned to me jaw dropping the other two snickered some more. I had every intention to turn back and gloat, but I saw something to the north. Without thought I winked out of existence and returned back to the Lightning. “Smoke to the northeast” “Smoke means ponies. Ponies mean raiders. At least out this far from Appleloosa.” She turned to the other two member of our group. “You two run back to camp and tell them to prepare a war party. Horse and me will go in for a closer look and make sure they don’t go anywhere. Hurry they might not know the village is here yet.” At that they ran off back home. She turned to me and nodded. “We move quickly and silently.” We tracked the smoke to small cave in the face of a cliff. There were four of ponies outside wearing spiked amour covered in dried blood. One was the largest unicorn I had seen with a sawed off shotgun and razorblades tied to the end of his tale. The other three were Earth ponies. One had a .38 revolver, another was armed with blood-tinged shovel sharpened to a spear, and the last one was a green mare unarmed and wearing a pre-war gas mask. Shovel turned to the unicorn and said, “this sucks! We always get guard duty. I am so hungry and how much do you want to bet when the shifts change they’ll have already finished eating that slaver from earlier.” This was the first time I ever felt sorry for a slaver. “Suit yourself. I don’t give a shit,” said the unicorn. He turned to the .38, “keep an eye out were near buffalo country.” He turned back to the first one, “put that shovel to use and put the fire out we don’t need to give our position away. Whose fucking idea was it to start the damn thing?” “The boss wanted us to cook up that fat slaver an hour ago and we were cold so we left it running,” answered .38. The big unicorn just glared at him long enough to shut him up. His horn glowed as his shotgun raised into the air. “Like I fucking care. You two get to work!” He turned pointed the shotgun at Gas Mask’s head. “I gonna have me some fun. Take off your close bitch.” The mare lifted the gas mask off her head to reveal her scared face as she cursed underneath her breath. She took off her armor and turned around as the unicorn started rape her keeping the shotgun pressed against her head the entire time. I turned to Lightning; she looked pissed. Shovel put out the fire out, and started watching the show while .38 tried to keep an eye out before getting bored and opting to join Shovel. “I got next,” he said as she started to cry out. Fuck waiting for the war party it was now or never. I teleported next to the unicorn and bucked him across the face. Lightning true to her name bolted to the two onlookers in a flash tackling them both to the ground before they could pullout their weapons. The unicorn was stunned but didn’t drop his grip of his gun. He was easily twice my size and made ready his aim. He was armed, but I had something better, magic! I flashed my horn blinding him. He fired wildly missing me. I wrenched the shotgun away from him with telekinesis, throwing it as far as I could manage, well out the reach of his magic. Lightning, meanwhile, proceeded to crush the head of .38 under her hoof. Shovel managed to get on his feet and to his weapon, but she ain’t called lightning without a reason. She quickly turned around and gored him in the chest lifting him off the ground before throwing his dead body off her horn. The unicorn was still blinded. He lifted into the air swinging his legs wildly, but I was ready. I slid underneath him and kicked him hard in his dick causing him to fall over in pain. I stood up and with a shimmer of my horn I twisted his neck hard and fast killing him. Then I had my legs kicked out beneath me. The mare we just saved was attacking me. Lightning just stood there amazed at the shear stupidity of the situation. She was getting raped and now was kicking me wildly. Fuck this I thought as I kicked her into the air as hard as I could get. She landed in a crouch, grabbed the shovel in her mouth and readied to get back into the fight. “Don’t touch my brother,” screamed Lightning as she slammed the full wait of her body on her back breaking her spine. She didn’t die; she just wriggled on the ground. I lifted the .38 revolver to her head and pulled the trigger three times. It was mercy. It was the first time I had ever used a gun. It was the first time I ever killed anypony in cold blood! I gasped for air and so did my sister, the pistol just fell to the ground. We looked at one another, I was a bruised but we were both unhurt. This was not how scouts were supposed to do things, but in the light of pure evil how could we not react. Before either of us could speak up we heard a group of ponies running up the cave. I readied myself for the fight, but there was none left in Lightning. She turned tail and ran away. I was shocked. She was my big sister, strong and always ready for any challenge. Yet there she was abandoning me to my fate. I heard a snap and a clank. I looked down to see a silver apple at my feet. It was a grenade. I lifted it up with telekinesis and flung it right to the mouth of the cave as a huge raider came barreling out. The explosion took him out and the roof of the cave causing a cave in. His blood splattered across my face. I heard muffled screaming and the crush of rock, than silence. I looked on in horror at the pile of rubble that once was a cave. Whatever survived the blast had been buried. It was over they were all either trapped or dead. I fell on my haunches and sat there staring at the aftermath. I killed them all. I was alone; Lightning Strike was long gone by the time I came to my senses. She hadn’t even turned back to see if I was okay. She just kept running home, to the war party. The clouds had long gone dark from the encroaching night. I made to get up, but I was not ready for what happened next. It was a miracle, a sign from the spirits. A loud explosion ripped into the sky parting the clouds. For the first time in my life I saw them, the crescent moon and the stars. I stood in the aftermath of the wasteland staring at the lost heavens. I finally realized for the first time all that was taken from us. There once was a world without battles, without the wasteland, and it was filled with stars! Just imagine it, an entire sky of stars ruled by only two ponies powerful enough to control the greatest bodies in the sky with just shear will, the royal alicorn sisters, Luna and Celestia. It was said under their rule the world knew ten thousand years of peace and prosperity. Since than they had fallen into the mist of legend, deified until they no longer felt like they could have ever been flesh and blood ponies. We knew they were real though, their emissaries the Elements of Harmony were part of our long history. They were there during our initial interaction with pony society. They brokered peace between bison and ponies but failed to do so with zebrakind in the Great War. I didn’t need to embrace the wasteland, if the world once knew peace it yet still could. The chief was wrong. Even if it was fleeting, peace was worth fighting for. Than it happened. A single star swept across the moon it went northeast towards the mountains on the horizon before breaking into a flash of spectral green. In that moment Equestria and the heavens had become linked. I watched in awe as the cloud cover stitched itself together, but it didn’t matter. I was shown a piece of the sky and given a heading; I could still take a piece of the heavens for myself. It was than that I got my cutie mark: A crescent moon surrounded by five stars bisected by a shooting star. I knew what I had to do. I felt a surge in power, like they act of getting my mark had strengthened my magic tenfold. I teleported back to the camp, further than any distance I had ever teleported before. The war party was getting ready to leave being lead by none other than my sister. Everyone stopped to look at me. “Black Horse what happened?” asked the chief. “Oh the raiders.” I forgot about the raiders. “They’re dead. I killed them.” All their jaws dropped. My tribe beheld me with a sense of awe. I just walked past them to Lightning. She looked embarrassed. I nuzzled her, “I have been given a sign. I am to follow the stars. It cannot wait. I must go as soon as possible.” “What?” “I have to leave soon.” “Not that. Did you say you are to follow the stars?” “Yeah.” “Come with me.” She broke away from the group and led me to our teepee. She grabbed a rag it wipe off the blood from my face, I forgot about it. Once inside she inspected my flank and sighed. She went to her parfleche near her bed and pulled out an old saddlebag. Handing it to me, “this was your father’s. I hoped I would never have to give it to you, but it seems destiny has marked you.” I opened the bag. Inside where four objects, the first was an old black flat brimmed hat with a griffins feather on it, next was a duster and an old barding labeled 77 on the back. Last was a mechanical bracelet labeled Pipbuck 3000. “Your name is not Black Horse. It is Star Chaser. You are the descendant of the only survivor of Stable 77. Your grandfather escaped that horrible place. We were to give this to you on the day you got your mark. I had planned on keeping it from you, but it seems your old name has found you. I know I cannot stop you, not even giving you a fake name could. You destiny is too strong. Sleep here tonight. Tomorrow I will go with you as far as Appleloosa, after that you will need to go on your own Star Chaser.” I looked down at all the objects. I lifted the Pipbuck 3000 to my right hoof and clasped it shut. I don’t know how, but I knew how to attach it. I looked up to Lightning. “Thank you sister.” The pipbuck displayed a map that had only one point, Bison Village. The next morning we awoke before sunrise. I put on the suit, jacket, and hat. Some how it all felt right. Together we left the camp, no one saw me off; the cursed dark horse was leaving. By sunrise we had come to the raider camp. She told me to gather all the supplies I could get. I found the .38 and shotgun as well as a handful of ammo for both. On the unicorn were a strange white orb and a knife as well as a bag full of bottle caps. I couldn’t imagine them being of much use but my pip buck kept track of all my possessions and their value. It seemed to rate the value of the caps quite high so I kept them. I found on the earth pony raider that used the shovel two pairs of iron horse shoes that Lightning helped me put on. I snagged the dead green mares gas mask while I was at it. We walked all day coming across three mole rats. They showed up as red on my compass, it was labeled Eyes Forward Sparkle for some reason. I entered this thing called VATS and time seemed to stop. I teleported beside them, bucking one hard in the neck. It only took three hits to take one down. Time resumed its normal flow. Lightning took out the second one killing it by crushing its face. I tried to use the VATS thing again but it didn’t seem to work, it needed to recharge I guess. So I dodged out of the way of the third one jumping past it. I used my magic to lift it up by the neck strangling it to death as its legs flailed helplessly. It looked funny so I laughed before dropping its dead limp body. “That looks so disturbing when you do that you know!” I turned surprised at Lightning, “And crushing in their skulls is not?” “That’s different.” “No its not.” “Yes it is.” “Whatever.” I pulled out the knife and proceeded to cut the best cuts I could get. She started a fire and we had meal of it before getting on. I was told in the days before ponies and bison were vegetarian. I liked meat though, never did see what was wrong with eating it. A few hours later we came across an empty cart with a cage built into it. This had to belong to the poor unfortunate slaver that got turned into dinner. Anything useful was already scavenged so we moved on. It was almost evening by the time we could see Appleloossa. I made to move towards it but Lightning held out her hoof. Stopping me. “I want to talk to you first Horse, I mean Star.” “What is it?” “I want to apologize for last night I never should have left you. Its just I got scared.” I was going to tell her I didn’t blame her. “I got scared of you.” That hit me like a ton of bricks. “Why the hell would you ever be afraid of me? I’m your brother!” “I don’t know. I always saw you as my little brother, but I saw how easy it was for you to take on the other unicorn. You just teleported right after him and broke his neck without touching him. I had to react to save you from the other two. Than you killed that mare without hesitation, and for a moment I saw you as not my brother but just another pony. Another raider. I wanted us to go back to camp, but as the other raiders approached you were itching to fight them. I just couldn’t watch you kill again. So I ran. I didn’t return to my senses til I got back. I convinced the war party to let me join ‘em, when you ‘popped’ back into camp covered in some pony else’s blood.” “Light, I am sorry for putting you into that mess, but I didn’t fight cause I wanted to. I did it cause I had too, and the mare was too injured; she could only move one of her hooves. It was mercy.” “I know. I know. Its just I need you to promise me you’ll never become one, a raider. I just need to hear you say it.” “I promise.” “Thank you. Now one more thing, you known we traded with Appleloosa, but we never told you was that this is a slaver town. If you’re with me I can get you in. Appleloosa and us have a history going way back. They don’t get in our way and we stay out of theirs, but if you come back here without us they’ll take you and their ain’t nothing we all can do about it. So I’ll stay with you here and help you supply up, but come ‘morrow I’m head’en home and you best get on your way.” I nodded even though the idea of doing business with slaver made me sick. As we headed into town we saw a several guns rise towards us, but at the site of Lightning they lowered their guns and let us in. As we got into town proper I heard a thud behind us. I turned around and saw standing behind me a giant dark green horned pegasus looming over my sister and me. It was an alicorn! Footnote: Level Up! Level 2 Quest Perk: Mark of Destiny: As a unicorn you are worth more than the sum of your parts. Unarmed skill points affects your magic damage output as well. New Perk: Iron Hooves: +5 damage to unarmed damage. Unarmed Level 50.