Green Valley was greener than anything else I had memory of, but I don’t think that it was green in the way the founder of the city had planned two hundred, or more, years ago. The few trees left along the road were as dead as the trees in the rest of this wasteland, and the same was true for the grass. Dark green ivy crept, to some extent, on nearly every building I could see.
But most surprisingly were the patches of green I could see in the ruins from the road down the hill. Circles of them grew up from the city, stretched up towards the sky, grew in a lighter green color than anything else I had seen here. According to the gasps I could hear from beside me, both Dust and Precious were surprised as well.
“That… It’s beautiful,” Precious breathed. “Are those living trees? As in real, growing trees?”
“I’ve heard caravan guards talk about places like this. Where trees grow instead of just a few patches of wheat and maize. But I never thought there’d be this much. It must be even bigger up close!” Dust said, as breathless as his sister.
I couldn’t help but smile myself as I started to trot down the hillside, the rain around me finally stopping. The trees growing in the city seemed so right, like they should be a natural part of my surroundings instead of the dead and decayed logs that stood around.
“Do you think they’re hard to get to?” Precious asked as they followed me down. “I want to see them up close. Can you believe it -- real trees? Just like the ones in the radio!”
Dust didn’t answer before we had gotten so far down the valley that the trees were mostly hidden behind the ruins of the building they grew among. “I don’t think they’d be very hard to get to,” he said, raising his hoof to keep his sister silent. “But we’ll do that after we get some food and ask around about Vigil.”
“You’re no fun,” Precious teased as we walked under the ivy clad arch that seemed to be the gate into the city.
Although there weren’t many ponies out here, there were more than what I had seen in one place since I woke up. Each and every one of them seemed to cease what they were doing and look up at us when we entered the town, before they stepped out of our way or hurried past us with their heads down, not saying a word.
“That’s weird,” Dust mumbled. “It’s like they’re running from us.”
“That is weird,” Precious added as she looked around at the ones hurrying past.
The street quickly cleared out. Ponies hurried inside the ruins that probably served as their homes and closed their doors and windows tight around them. I could see some of the inhabitants peek out between the curtains, but they closed them as soon as they realized that I saw them.
Dust stopped in the middle of the street, looking around us. “What’s with everypony? In Marvel, they at least say hello, or something.“
“Green Valley was like that once,” a raspy voice spoke up behind us. We spun around, and I found myself looking down a double barreled gun into a pair of hard, brown eyes that glared at me from the shadows of a hat. “But then your kind came.” The owner of the voice spat at my hoof. “Taking what you wanted, killing those who oppose you. Are you surprised that we’re afraid o’ you?” He raised an eyebrow and smirked at me. “Or are ya surprised that one of us finally is standin’ up t’ you again?”
“What do you think you’re doing?” Precious snapped. She embraced the weapon in her own magic with the intent of pulling it away.
The unicorn who aimed the weapon against me didn’t even look away from me as he spoke. “Try anything, missy, an’ I’ll shoot. I got a hard-slug and a pulse-slug in here. That should do t’ kill one o’ his kind.”
“What do you want?” Dust growled.
“Justice -- like everypony here does -- justice for the sons who stood up against his kind.”
“M… My kind?” I stuttered. “What do you mean?”
“Oh, don’t try an’ play dumb, Cyborg. Call yourself what you want; you’re just fancy raiders, killin’ an’ takin’ what isn’t yours.”
“Cyborg?”
“Short for Cybernetic Organism, a collection name for being with both biological and artificial parts. These parts aren’t necessary visible, instead they can be parts like an artificial heart or lung,” Spitfire answered.
“Robo-ponies,” the unicorn spat.
“You mean there are others like me out here?” I asked.
The unicorn raised an eyebrow at me. “O’ course! What’s wrong with you? You’ve been raidin’ this town for the last week!“
“Cogwheel is not a raider, mister,” Precious said. “Not even close.”
“He looks awfully much like one of ‘em. All metal an’ armed t’ the teeth,”
Precious raised an eyebrow at the old unicorn. “Armed to the teeth? He’s not armed at all.”
“O’ course he is! All of ‘em are,” the unicorn insisted as he took a closer look at me. “He… He’s not armed.”
Precious smiled at the unicorn as she gently moved the weapon to point completely down in the ground. “He isn’t, and I can assure you that he’s completely harmless. Like a fly.”
“So he’s not one o’ Exo’s thugs?” the unicorn said as he looked between me and Precious, pointing a hoof at me.
“Exo?” Precious mirrored. “As in—“
“Who’s Exo?” I asked.
“Oh my,” the unicorn said as he gently pulled the weapon out of Precious’ magic and placed it in a holster. “You younguns have to forgive me. It seems like this old man’s made a mistake, what with all the trouble we’ve been through. Easy done, too, when y’ look like that...” he muttered. “Name’s Radio Flash, self-appointed sheriff here.” Tipping the hat, he smiled at us, the wrinkles in his face helping his grayed-out mane to prove his age. “Let me try this again. Welcome t’ Green Valley.”
“Thank you,” said Precious, bowing a little. “I’m Precious, and this is Cogwheel and Dust.” She pointed at each of us. “You said something about Exo? The Exo that DJ Pon3’s talked about these last few months, right?”
“The same.” The smile on the old stallion’s lips died as he sighed. “Walk with me,” he added as he turned around and started to walk towards the core of the living part of the town. “It all started ‘bout a week ago—“
“Is it safe, Radio?” a mare, who stuck out her head from one of the houses, asked worriedly.
“It’s safe, Rose, dear,” the unicorn answered. “Like I said, it all started a week ago. Outta nowhere, five or so heavily armed cyborgs entered our town from the old ruins. They said they were here for supplies an’ picked up as much as they could carry. When the shopkeeper asked about payment, the biggest o’ the cyborgs laughed and put a bullet in his head, sayin’ ‘You should have been happy with your life as payment’. Poor Clip didn’t deserve t’ die like that. He was a good pony.” The stallion hung his head as he opened a door. “Now, now, step inside. You look hungry. I think I’ve got somethin’ in here for you t’ eat.”
“What did you do?” I asked at the same time as Dust, while Precious just stood there and stared in the distance.
“I asked ya t’ come inside?” the stallion said, raising an eyebrow.
“No, not that,” I said. “About the cyborgs.”
“That’s not somethin’ the whole town needs t’ hear,” Radio said. “Come on in, an’ I’ll tell ya ’bout it.”
Surprisingly, Dust was the first to enter the small house. I followed him in, and Precious trailed behind. The door lead into the kitchen, where a table took up most of the space, illuminated by the light that flowed in through the window that was placed over it. Another door opened up to a bedroom.
“Aren’t you comin’ in, miss? Or do you wanna stay outside? I don’t mind if y’do.”
Precious shook her head and quickly stepped inside. “I’ve heard about this,” she said before Radio had even had time to close the door and walk in himself. Either it was my imagination, or she had tears in her eyes. But even if they were there, her voice was steady as she spoke. “DJ Pon3 hasn’t talked about anything but Exo and his gang for the last few months. But I didn’t think he’d be this close...”
“What are you talking about?” Dust asked, looking at her sister.
“Haven’t you listened to the news, lad?” Radio said as he stepped over to the fridge and started to float out a couple of vegetables. “Those robo-ponies have been terrorizing parts o’ the country side for months, wandering from area to area, not stoppin’ for longer than a day or two anywhere. But they set up shop in the ruins here and have been there since.” He sat down at the table, motioning for us to do the same as he turned on the radio standing there, a low song filling the room. “Take a seat an’ have some food. You all look hungry.”
“DJ Pon3 said something about twelve new victims,” Precious said as she sat down beside me and started to nibble on a carrot. “But it doesn’t sound like Exo’s been here for long. What happened?”
“Green Valley underestimated those robo-ponies. We don’t normally let ponies mess with us. We make sure raiders an’ the like never get too close. So, we did as we’ve always done; we fought back.” The unicorn sighed as he went silent, tears in his eyes.
We didn’t say anything to make him continue talk, instead allowed the food to keep us quiet. Is that the answer to everything out here? Weapons? Everything I have heard out here seems to revolve around them in some way...
“Survival of the fittest,” Spitfire said. “When there isn’t enough food or room for everypony, likely the later in this case, the strongest can take what they want and survive.”
I sat there stunned as the song on the radio ended with a drawn out note. Survival of the fittest. Was that what the world had turned to? Or had it been like that before the war as well? During the war?
The old unicorn turned off the radio. “The day after Clip was killed, a lot more of those ponies showed up -- maybe twenty-five of ‘em. But we didn’t back down. A stupid choice made by the ol’ sheriff. Fifty stallions, most of ‘em nothin’ more than lads like you, armed with whatever they could find, against twenty five robo-ponies. It was a lost battle before it began.” He took a deep breath, the tears continuing to run down his cheek.
“You don’t have to continue if you don’t want to,” Precious said as she brought a hoof across the table to pat the older stallion’s hoof. She had tears in her eyes as well.
I sat there completely still, not believing what I heard. This was worse than I could have imagined.
“No, no. I’m tellin’ the whole story. I’m makin’ sure I at least get this right, for their sakes.” He flashed Precious a smile before he continued, his voice heated with anger. “That idiot Trigger fired a shot as soon as he saw somethin’ move. Maybe somepony could’ve stopped him, but he shot one o’ the robo-ponies’ heads clean off. That’s when we crossed the point of no return. They shot back, an’ in the blink of an eye, five bucks lay dead in a pool of their own blood, Trigger one of ‘em. I an’ some younger stallions took cover. It was awful. Seven more bucks died on our side in less than a minute, but we only took down one robo-pony.” He paused as he floated up a bottle and took a deep sip out from it before he passed it over to us.
Dust sniffed on the bottle before he shrugged and passed it over to me without drinking himself. I mirrored Dust and inhaled the aroma of the bottle. Unable to pinpoint the smell I took a light sip of it and nearly coughed it up again, unprepared for the strange, yet fairly familiar, strong taste.
“Too strong for you, lass?” Radio laughed as he took a deep sip from the bottle before he continued. “After that, we heard a deep voice roarin’ to the robo-ponies to lay down their weapons immediately. He told us t’ come out, said there wouldn’t be any more killing. Old as I am, I told the younger ponies t’ stay down while I got up. That was the first time I saw Exo. He was big, bigger than your friend here,” he said, pointing at me. “Completely clad in metal, like a Steel Ranger. But he could move like he wasn’t wearing anything. He had this fog around him, too. He looked right at me an’ said he came here with peace in mind. Even though some o’ his ponies were dead, he still wanted peace.”
“Peace?” Precious interrupted, her voice thick. “After that?”
“Remember that we shot first, lass. Exo didn’t shoot anypony, either. He barked some orders, an’ got the pony that killed Clip bound up in a bunch o’ metal wires on the ground. He said that pony overstepped his rights and that justice’d be done. And then that fog around him got thicker and darker an’ covered the poor pony.” Radio paused again as he brought up the bottle for a new sip, before he banged it down in the table. “Now, don’t think I feel sorry for him for what happened, but... As soon that stuff started to surround him, he started screamin’. Not a normal scream. It was like it wasn’t natural... Then the fog disappeared, an’ you could see the wires melted into him everywhere.” The stallion shuddered. “An’ he was still alive, but he couldn’t move. An’ he was still tryin’ t’ scream, but he couldn’t, ‘cause the wires sealed his mouth shut. Then Exo stepped forward and crushed the his skull against the pavement. Just like he was steppin’ on a bug.”
The unicorn’s word made me feel sick.
“That’s… outstanding,” Spitfire said. “Now, I’m not saying that the act was right, but to crush a skull like that… it would require that he had enough power in that blow to move around five to six hundred kilogram at a rate of one meter per second, and that is taking into account that the hoof is metallically reinforced, as well as the damages that might have occurred to the skull during the fusing--”
Thanks, but I really don’t want to know, I thought as I once again fought down the food.
“That’s… How…” Precious stuttered, unable to form the words. Her eyes still had tears in them.
“He got what he deserved,” Dust spat.
“Nopony deserves that kind o’ death, lad,” Radio sighed. “Not like that... Exo kept talkin’, said he wouldn’t do anything t’ harm us as long as we gave him what he wanted. Before anypony said anythin’, I told him that we would. He seemed t’ like that, but he told us t’ give up our weapons. When I asked about protecting ourselves, he told us we didn’t have t’ worry. He said he’d keep the town safe ‘till he found what he was lookin’ for an’ left. He didn’t say what he was lookin’ for, though.”
“So you gave up your weapons?” Dust asked in disbelief.
“It was that or die tryin’ t’ keep ‘em,” he said, giving Dust a hard look. He continued. “The day after, we buried our dead. Even buried the poor robo-fella. Since then, most ponies have stayed indoors when any of ‘em show up. A few of us give ‘em supplies, but sometimes they need somethin’ fixed an’ they go to Bolt. She was the one who gave me the shotgun.”
“So, you’re okay with them being here, but you point guns at us?” Precious asked. “Why now?”
“We thought they’d only be here a few days. But they want food and water, too, and we’re runnin’ out. We’re gonna die if we try to keep feedin’ ‘em. I’d never shoot one of ‘em, I just wanna get the message to Exo. We’ve had ponies promise they’d say somethin’, but they never do. I thought I could scare ‘em into talkin’.”
“You could have gotten yourself killed!” Precious shouted out.
“At least that’s one less mouth t’ feed,” Radio deadpanned.
“You can’t be serious!” Precious gasped.
“Lass, I’ve lived a long time, more than anypony should out in the Wastes. Death is common out here.”
“But throwing away your life like that?”
“Is it throwin’ away when your food might go to those that need it more? When the younger might get a chance for a nice, long life? I don’t think so.”
Slowly the realization hit me. “So you mean that this,” I said, pointing at the few vegetables left on the table. “Is close to all food you have?”
“That’s the ration I was given for today. Don’t worry about me, lad. It’s not the first time I’ve gone hungry to allow the younger t’ eat.”
“Remind you about somepony?” Spitfire asked.
“But—“
“I said, don’t worry about it,” he said, wiping his eyes dry. “But I’m done with my story now. Tell me, what brings you younguns to Green Valley?”
Dust looked at his sister, before he sighed and turned his attention to the elder unicorn. “My sister and I are looking for our brother, Vigil. He traveled in this direction a month or so back.”
Precious nodded, before she looked at Radio, whose smile had disappeared and been replaced with a worried, scared frown. “What’s the matter?” she asked.
“Vigil… he didn’t happen to be a young lad, unicorn with a light green coat and an aqua mane?” Radio answered.
“That’s him,” Dust said as he lit up. “Have you seen him?”
Radio sighed. “I’ve seen him alright. He was here ‘bout a month ago, said he was hunting someone down, repaying an old debt. I’m sorry, but I don’t think your brother’s alive anymore.”
Both Precious and Dust looked like they had been slapped right across their muzzles. “No,” Dust whispered before he raised his voice. “He can’t be dead! He can’t! How can you even say that!”
“Dust,” Precious said, holding back her tears. “Dust, please. Listen to him.”
“He can’t be dead, Precious. He can’t. Not Vigil.” Dust slumbered down, tears dripping from his muzzle.
“I’m sorry, I truly am. Vigil didn’t stay here for long, but he was kind an’ helped the ones he could while he did. He only planned t’ stay here for a night, but stayed here for a week as soon as he realized we need some help. But I don’t think he’s still alive.” Radio had tears in his eyes as well. He rose from the table. “Wait here, I have something for you.”
Precious leaned closer to her brother, hugging him tightly. “It’ll be okay, Dust. We’ll find him. I know he has to still be alive.”
I raised my hoof to pat them both, but lowered it again. There’s nothing I can do will help them with this, I thought as I felt the tears run down my own cheek. Nothing at all.
It didn’t take long before the unicorn returned, carrying an envelope in his magic. “Vigil told me t’ give this to you. Told me that you would probably come through here searching for him. I guess I should’ve recognized you, but my memory seems t’ fail me in my old age,” he said as he floated over the envelope to the siblings. “He gave it t’ me and said that if you got here before he returned and picked up it, he was most likely dead. I’m sorry.”
Precious took it in her own wavering magic and slowly opened it. She read it aloud. “To Precious and Dust, whom I know will try to follow me. Turn back. What I’m about to do is something you might be able to understand, but I cannot tell you what it is. If I can’t do it, then I don’t want either of you to try. I’m most likely marching to my death. I’m sorry that I said that I would come back, because I knew that I most likely wouldn’t. Dust, take care of your sister.” Precious paused to wipe her tears as she carefully patted Dust on the back and draw a ragged breath. “She might be tough on the outside, but you know that she needs your support. Precious, take care of your brother. And to both of you, don’t follow me. Go home, be safe, continue your lives. You are both strong. With love, Vigil.”
As soon as she had finished the last sentence, she dropped the envelope to the ground and clutched Dust tight to herself, crying out in his mane.
Once again I lifted my hoof, before putting it down on the table again. Nothing I can say to help. Nothing I can do that wouldn’t make it worse, I thought bitterly as I took a deep breath.
“The best might be to let them take care of each other first. They have grown up together, they most likely know how to solace each other. You could, however, make sure that they have somewhere to be, so they don’t have to care about a place to stay during this recovery. Sorrow can be a wound like anything else, and can take time to heal. The first time is crucial for the healing process, and it’s never certain how long time it will take.”
I nodded and, wiping away my own tears, raised my head at Radio. As I opened my mouth, he motioned me to be silent and pointed at the door. I followed him out to the street, where we stayed just outside the closed door. Before I could say anything, Radio started to talk.
“You’re all free t’ stay here as long as you need. Those poor kids will need some time t’ recover. They’re not the first ones this week who have gotten some bad news...”
“Thank you,” I whispered. “But, are you sure you can take us in? I mean, we’ve already eaten your ration and—“
“Vigil helped out a lot before he left. The least I can do is make sure his family has a place t’ stay.” Radio looked at me, the tiniest of smile on his lips. “Now, tell me lad, where d’you get into the picture?”
“Maybe he knows if there are any SAT buildings in the region,” Spitfire said. “And after promising to take you in and make sure the siblings have a safe place during the time, I think you can tell him.”
I nodded. “I woke up yesterday at the Fluttershy Clinic a little more than a slow day’s walk from here. My memories about how I got there, or what happened to me… how I became this,” I said, motioning with my biological limb over my cybernetics. “I don’t know. But on the head doctor’s terminal I found a note about how I should be transferred in a week,” I sighed. “But something interfered, the war ended in all this before I could be transferred. The receiver of the mail was a Chief of SAT, and I’m now trying to find out why I was supposed to be sent there. Maybe I’ll regain my memory in the process.”
Radio looked with a raised eyebrow at me. “A pony from before the war? Who isn’t a ghoul? Now I’ve seen it all,” he exclaimed. “But you didn’t tell me how—“
“What’s a ghoul?”
The unicorns face darkened at my question. “A ghoul is a feral killer, killin’ everythin’ that gets close. They’ve been around forever. They’re decaying corpses walking around as if they were alive. Monstrous creatures,” Radio spat. “Have been hearing stories about ‘em sneakin’ around in the ruins, both day and night. I’ve heard a lot o’ ponies have died because of ‘em. ... But don’t avoid the question. How’d you end up travelin’ with those two?”
“I met them not far from the clinic and gave them some food,” I said, avoiding the part about the raider. Something told me that Radio wouldn’t be very glad to hear that kind of news. Or, if I had understood what Precious had said during the short talk we had about it when we walked yesterday, no one in the wasteland would be glad to hear it. “I’ve traveled with them since, and they’ve told me about the life out here.”
“There’s somethin’ you aren’t tellin’ me. But,” he added and raised his hoof, silencing me before I had the time to say anything. “That’s okay. Everypony has the right to keep secrets. Now, let me see if I can help you. What is this SAT you talked about?”
“I don’t know, not more than that they created these legs—“
“Robo-part company then? Now, that’s not somethin’ I can help ya with, but I know somepony who might. Go an’ talk with Bolt; she lives just down the street. When you hear the sound of metal against metal, you’ll know you’re in the right place.”
“How will we ever be able to repay you?”
“Nothing to worry ‘bout lad. This is me repaying for things Vigil’s already done, nothing you need to worry about,” Radio smiled at me. “As I said, it’s the least I can do.”
“Thank you,”
“Now, you go an’ ask Bolt about what it is you need. I’ll make sure the younguns get the time they need. You just come back if somethin’’s wrong,” Radio nodded.
I smiled at him as I turned around and walked down the street. Ponies once again walked on the street, and this time they didn’t run away from me. Sure, some of them might have been looking strangely or hateful at me, or took a step extra just to be sure not to be too close to me, but they stayed and continued with what they were doing. Most of them kept their eyes away, all their focus on their work except for some. Some looked straight forward, their eyes unseeing but their hooves working on the task in front of them, whatever it was. A few foals were around as well, the ones old enough to work doing so, while the younger jumped around in the dusty road. As soon as they saw me, however, they quickly hid behind their parents, looking wide eyed at me from their cover.
“The mothers and fathers, the sisters and brothers, the widows and widowers, all mourning the death of their loved ones. Some of them have started to move on. Others don’t know how. And some… some will never manage.”
Looking out over the ponies around me, I noticed details I hadn’t seen before. None of the adults or foals old enough to understand the concept of death were happy. The hate in the eyes of the ones looking at me was mixed with fear. A foal, a smaller earth pony, crawled up in the embrace of one of the elder ponies. Unseeing eyes started to see again, smiling down at the little one in their embrace.
Green Valley was a town that had been through a tragedy. A town that had lost nearly a tenth, at least counting the ponies I had seen, of its inhabitants. But still they continued living. Still they continued to care for each other.
They will manage, I thought as the sound of metal against metal reached my ears. Smiling I turned towards the door where the sound came from. A sign reading ‘Bolt’s service’ hung in the door’s window just above a sign saying ‘Closed’. Ignoring the second sign, I opened the door and stepped inside.
Six benches stood spread out in the workshop, only dimly illuminated by lamps that hung on the wall. Various objects in metal, plastic, or wood lay scattered, alone or in small piles, on both the floor and on the benches. A couple of toolboxes stood in the room as well.
I wasn’t alone in the workshop. In front of a bench stood a unicorn with her back to me and five different tools floating in the air around her.
“I’ll be with you in a sec,” the brown mare said as she brought down the hammer on whatever she worked on. The sound of metal against metal filled the workshop as she continued, until she seemed satisfied. “Now, what can I—“ she started as she turned around, but stopped as soon as she saw me. She removed the goggles from her eyes and put them on her forehead as she looked wide eyed at me, blinking a couple of times.
“I’m looking for—“ I started, but was interrupted as the unicorn walked closer. She looked wide eyed at my legs, before her eyes wandered up to my mechanical eye.
“Beautiful,” she whispered as her eyes returned to my legs. “Just beautiful.” She slowly started to circle me, her eyes fixated on my legs. “Are these… SAT’s certificated and patented P-prosthesis? I can’t believe it. The magazines said that they were phased out and replaced years before the war ended! How did you get a hold of these?”
“I—“ I tried, but was quickly interrupted by the mare hitting my leg with a hammer, causing me to take a step back as I yelped out something that might have been “What was that for?”
“Sturdy,” she commented. “Just as the magazines said! Sure, a lot of ponies thought they weren’t durable enough for a combat prosthesis, especially not when it came to being shot at. They said amputees that got them would be back in the hospital just as soon as they left ‘cause bullets would tear straight through them. When it came to EMP attacks, though, they were glorified. While the built-in energy talisman wasn’t protected, a core with the ability to restart the energy talisman was. They also said it was a painfully slow process, but who knows?”
“EMP—“
“They seem a little off color, but it’s hard to tell. I’ve only ever seen pictures of them before.” She stopped circling me, only to raise her head and stand at the tips of her hooves to stare at my eyes. “And then we have the eye. The P-prosthesis I had at least seen in pictures before, but that? Never seen anything like it. No pictures. Nothing. What is it?”
“What?” I asked.
“Sure, Exo’s thugs come around every now and then since they arrived last week,” she continued as if she hadn’t heard my question. “And most of them have a replaced leg or two. I know of one who even has a replaced wing. But I have never seen an optic prosthesis before. Yeah, sure, they say that Exo himself is a complete cyborg, with nothing but the brain left. But I have yet to see him myself, though. Was out of town when they attacked.” She looked into my eyes another moment, before she turned away and started to sort up some of the objects that lay scattered over the floor. “Now then, you’re obviously not one of his thugs. If you were, then I would have a weapon up my rear by now. That brings me to my question. What’s an independent cyborg doing here?”
“I’m searching for information regarding SAT—“
“Oh, there are a thousand and one things to know about SAT. You have to be more precise,” the unicorn interrupted me.
“I just want to—“
“I don’t know everything, of course. I don’t think anypony does. But I might know the answer for your specific question.”
“As I tried to say, I want to know where SAT’s headquarters are.”
The unicorn was silent for a moment. “Sorry, can’t help you there,” she finally said. “The only building I know of that might have had something to do with SAT in this area is this service place,” she said as she motioned to the room around her. “Or maybe the workshop that stands in the ruins.”
“A workshop?”
“Yeah, standing somewhere in the east side of the ruins. Found an old record when we broke up an old safe in the other room, told us about how the business was going down after the workshop had opened. I can’t say for sure that it has anything to do with SAT, but it’s the only place I can think of.”
“Any idea how to get there?”
The unicorn whirled around and looked at me. “You—“ she started, before she looked me from head to hoof with a thoughtful frown. “You’re planning to travel into the ruins?”
“If that helps me get closer to SAT’s headquarters, then yes.”
“You, travel into the ruins? Alone?” She laughed. “I give you ten minutes, if even that.”
“Wha—“
“You aren’t armed,” she remarked, interrupting me. “You’re soft. You didn’t try to interrupt me when I interrupted you, allowed me to finish instead. How could you survive out there?”
“Hu—“ I quickly ducked down at the floor as her horn started to glow and a hammer suddenly flew towards my head.
“You have decent reflexes, at least,” she smirked as two pointy metal objects started to float in the air, tips against me. “Maybe fifteen minutes.”
“What are you—“
Without any warning one of them rocketed towards me where I lay on the ground. This time I was to slow, the object plinking of a mechanical leg as I rolled to the side. “But not good enough, thirteen minutes.” Not letting me get any ground, she sent the second object against me, brushing up a swallow gash on my cheek as I once again was too slow. “Definitely not good enough, eleven minutes.”
Instantly, the pony body appeared in the corner of my eye, indicating the damage on my cheek. “Try to block instead. If she sends the projectiles out in a constant speed as my calculations shows, without varying it, your prosthesis will be able to take a direct hit without any problem,” Spitfire said as the unicorn pulled the objects back, aiming them down on me again.
When the first of the object came down I raised my metal front hoof and deflected it, causing it to rocket deep into the wall. “Adaptation! Good, you learn! Seventeen minutes.” The second projectile came down towards me, and I couldn’t move before it hit my organic leg. “Know your weaknesses!”
I continued to dodge and block the single object that she slashed towards me multiple time as she forced me back. Spitfire talked with me, coming with small tips or just cheering me on. But in the end I found myself in a corner, panting heavily, with the cold object pressed against my throat. The unicorn stepped closer, until she could look me into the eyes. “Are you sure you want to go into the ruins? You can’t even take me on, a simple repair pony.”
“I’m going into those ruins if that’s what it takes to find SAT.”
“Determined, I like that. Well, then, count me in,” she said as she removed the metal from my throat and took a step back, offering a hoof to help me up. “The name’s Bolt.”
“What?” I asked, staring at the unicorn’s outstretched hoof.
“Hey, you didn’t think I would send you to your death, did you? You need somepony to look after you, and I might be able to find some useful spare parts in that workshop. So I’m coming with you.”
“What?”
She sighed. “Slow fella, huh? Tell me, what do you know about the ruins?” she asked as she put down her hoof again.
“That Exo and his thugs are there, and that there are ghouls living among the ruins as well.”
“Do you know any safe routes in there? Any way to get into and out from this workshop?”
“No, but—“
“And still you are determined to go in there, knowing only a few of the dangers awaiting you?”
“Are you really sure about this, Cogwheel? We could travel to another town and see if somepony there knows about SAT. Maybe stay here for a couple of days until Precious and Dust feel that they want to move on and then go with them? Maybe go to Marvel and ask around there?”
“If that workshop has any connections with SAT, then I want to see if they have any location information about the headquarters. Or something else I can continue after instead.” I need to get my memories back, Spitfire. This is a chance to maybe find out a location. Precious and Dust will most likely need a couple of days, I can go into the ruins during that time and then return to go with them back, should I not find anything.
“I don’t know—“
“Exactly. No matter what I say, you would enter those ruins knowing that you might find out something about SAT, even if you died trying. I could just give you the little I know about how to get to the workshop, which would cover maybe half the way and then you would have to guess the rest yourself, and send you to your death. Or I could go with you. I have knowledge about the ruins and traveling alone is not something I highly recommend. And at the same time I would get the opportunity to scavenge some spare parts from the workshop.”
“If you decide to really go in there, I highly recommend taking that offer.”
“Why would I trust someone who just tried to kill me?”
Bolt looked surprised at me. “Just tried to kill you?” she laughed. “Boy, had I tried to kill you, you would be dead. No offence. I barely proved that you aren’t fit to go in there alone. Both the ghouls and Exo’s thugs, as well as everything else that might run around in those ruins, will try to kill you. If it makes you feel better, you adapted faster to blocking instead of dodging than I thought you would.”
“And who do you have to thank for that?” Spitfire mused.
“But, to be honest, you don’t stand much of a chance going in there. Now, are you going to get up from the floor today? I didn’t hurt you that badly,” the unicorn said as she reached forward a hoof, a smirk on her lips.
“But why would you want to go into the ruins with me if I’m that worthless?” I asked as I accepted her help.
“You’ve already decided to enter the ruins, so you’ll probably go there no matter what I say, even alone. Don’t try to deny it, I know that look. My brother had the same once he had decided on something. Sure, I could just trail you, stay behind and maybe bolt past whatever wants to kill you and hope that I won’t run into something myself, but, to be honest, I would prefer to have some company instead. And, besides, I was planning on going into those ruins and search up that workshop anyway. Now I don’t have to pay someone to come with me.”
“Your brother?” The question slipped out of me before I had time to think.
The smile on Bolt’s lips died. “Trigger. Got himself killed when I was out of town. I heard it was he who shot first. Doesn’t surprise me one bit.”
“I’m sorry to hear that.”
“Don’t be. My brother was an idiot to shoot and think that there would be a different outcome, and he killed eleven of his friends doing so. He never listened, only acted,” she said, a ghost of a smile returning. “Now then, you aren’t armed. Tell me, what weapon can you use? A shotgun? Revolver?” She brought a hoof to her head, scratching her chin. “Not that I have any of those. Come to think of it, my weapon stock is kind of non-existent right now. Unless—“ Her eyes wandered over me one more time. “Well, you sure look strong enough.”
I shook my head to clear it as I tried to keep up with the unicorn. “For all I remember, I have never used a weapon.”
She looked at me, an eyebrow raised in disbelief. “How old are you? Forty? Forty-five? And you haven’t used a weapon? What part of this hell hole did you grow up in? Candy land?”
I raise my head. “Forty?” Can I really be that old? I thought, looking around in the room for something to look at myself in.
“Well, your late-thirties at the least. The important thing is: how have you survived all these years without any weapon knowledge?”
“You aren’t young, Cogwheel. The years might have been kind to your appearance, but you should be around your mid-forties.” Spitfire paused. “Or, technically, mid two-hundred and thirtyish.”
I sighed. “I said that I couldn’t remember using a weapon. I woke up yesterday without any memories, and—“
“And somehow a pre-war company is the way to regain those memories?” She asked, the eyebrow traveling even further up on her brow. “On a scale of one to ten, that is a minus five in believability.”
“Actually, I had been in stasis for nearly two hundred years.”
Bolt snorted at me. “Whatever,” she said as she started to walk towards a door leading deeper into her workshop. “If you don’t want to tell me the truth, then so be it. ... I might have a weapon that you can use in here.”
“But I was telling the truth!” I called after her as I followed.
“Whatever.”
The room was a little smaller than the workshop had been, filled with shelves in cold iron. Most of the shelves were empty, but some of them had various objects, that I wouldn’t call anything else than junk, spread out on them. The only illumination we had in the chill room was the light that Bolt’s horn radiated as she moved various objects with her magic.
“It should be here somewhere,” she mumbled as she moved down everything from a workbench onto the floor and started to quickly sort it through.
“What are you looking for?” I asked as my eyes wandered over the dusty shelves.
“This,” the unicorn proclaimed as she levitated up a strange device from the mess she had caused on the floor.
The device was made of metal, painted yellow and black, with two clasps and an adjustable strap to keep it steady on the hoof. A set of cylinders connected the metal bracelet with a metal fitting holding a saw blade. The blade’s teeth were rusty, but I didn’t doubt that they were still sharp. From under the cylinders, a metal plate stuck out a couple of inches. At the bottom of the plate some wires were connected and ran back to the base of the bracelet.
“What is that?” I asked, taking a closer look at the device. Just above the cylinders a small switch was placed, now set on ‘off’.
“This is a pre-war beauty. It was a tool created to help in industries with cutting up materials like plastics or metal to the required sizes. A powerful tool, got this one working just the other day. Try it on,” she said, floating the device over to me and placed it before my hooves.
“A cruel tool,” Spitfire remarked. “It would easily be able to saw through both flesh and bone, taking lives in the blink of an eye. Are you a killer, Cogwheel? Is this something you can see yourself use against others?”
I hesitated before I put down my hoof in the bracelet, slowly fastening the claps and the strap. No, it’s not. But if something attacks me, don’t you want me to be able to defend myself?
“Not like this, not with a weapon that would bring pain and suffering, as well as leave wounds like this one will.”
“Now,” Bolt said as soon as I had fastened it. “Flick the switch to on, and be careful to not put down your hoof on the floor once you have.” She paused for a moment. “Actually, don’t flick the switch. Put up your hoof in the air, and see how balanced it is.”
I did as I was told, nearly falling over at the extra weight on the hoof I held in the air.
“Good, good. Now, try and flick the switch.”
As I changed the switch from ‘Off’ to ‘On’, a low humming emitted from the bracelet. “Now what?” I asked as small metal pieces on the sides opened up and dust started to blow out.
“Now, you stay completely still,” the unicorn said as she floated over a piece of rusty metal to me. “As you push down the pressure sensors under your hoof, the saw will start to spin and merge forward, sawing through anything that you have under your hoof. It will not, however, saw further down than a couple of inches from the tip of it. Try it,”
I looked down at the rusty metal lying in front of me, and brought forward my hoof to connect with the cold metal. The moment my hoof came into contact with the metal, the saw spun up with a high screech. I jumped back, not prepared at the sudden sound, and put down my hoof on the floor. The saw sank down in the floor with an even higher screech, sparks flying in all directions. I suddenly realized that the metal plate between my hoof and the saw was protection from sparks and flying debris.
My hoof jerked upwards and to the site, causing me to fall over on my back with my hoof up in an awkward angle, stuck in Bolt’s magic field. I could feel the coat on my back singe against the warm floor where I had held the saw just a moment ago. The saw quickly slowed down and came to a stop with a final screech.
Bolt looked at me with a frown. “Take it off again,” she said as she started undo the clasps and the strap. “You aren’t fit to use a thing like this.”
“But—“
“You didn’t have any control over it. What would have happened if it decided to go to the side instead of down in the floor?” She sighed as she threw the industrial tool back into the heap she had taken it from. “It was my fault, really. Thought you could handle it. Instead you jumped like a colt that someone finds with his hoof in the cookie jar.”
“Maybe it is for the best,” Spitfire said. “That kind of tool should never be used against another living being.”
You’re right, I thought as I sighed. “Now what? I can’t go into the ruins unarmed, can I?”
“Give me until the morning. I will come up with something, and then we leave. Deal?”
“That long before we leave?”
“Trust me, you want to spend as much of the times in those ruins with the light illuminating them,” she said as she shivered. “Nasty place. Now, help yourself out, I need quiet around me as I work.”
“What a strange pony,” Spitfire remarked with an amused tone. “Pleasant, but strange.”
I couldn’t help but agree.
{A-A}
More and more ponies had emerged onto the road during the time I had been in the workshop, most of them working with one thing or another, keeping the community alive. Some stopped and talked with each other, their voices low so to not disturb the others.
Sure, they still avoided eye contact with me or took an extra step around rather than pass close by, but the town felt so much more alive now than it had before. A couple of foals ran past me, chased by a young buck in a game of tag. The buck, a mint green unicorn with ears that seemed to hang down over his eyes as he ran, was braver than the others and ran under me, effectively reducing the distance between himself and the other foals.
The only thing that really could make it all better would be if the sun had peeped out from the cloud cover that still hid the sun from my view. But the clouds hadn’t changed at all since earlier. Come to think of it, the only difference I’ve seen in the clouds was when they got dark before the storm, I thought, shivering slightly at the thought of the lightning.
“Well, maybe the pegasi have kept them in place?” Spitfire joked. “But it is strange, isn’t the sky supposed to be clear, or at least visible, after rain?”
I’m not sure, I thought as I stepped up to the door leading to Radio’s house. Maybe I could ask Precious or Dust how long it usually takes before the clouds disappear? It feels like they should have disappeared long ago.
I softly nudged the door opened, but stopped dead as soon as I had taken the first step into the room. Dust and Precious sat close to each other, a blanket wrapped around them, looking at the radio. Radio Flash sat there as well, and he lifted his eyes as I entered the room, his eyes burning.
“—Now, I’m not one to say that violence is the solution, but saving a raider? Really? That’s all for now—“ a voice I didn’t recognize said from the radio as Radio turned it off, his magical field nearly breaking of the button.
“Saving a raider?” he hissed as he slowly rose from his place on the floor. “You saved a raider!?” he raised his voice as he took a step closer, the shotgun floating up in front of him. “A. Raider?”
Footnote: Level Up!
New Perk: Like a Fly: Maybe, it’s the way you walk. Maybe, it’s the way you talk. Either way, ponies like it when you’re not walking around with weapons out. You receive a +5 bonus to all social skills when you are not armed.
First, a really big thank you to Masquerade313, not only for proofreading and editing, but for giving the story a hell of a lot more life than it had from the beginning. I can’t thank him enough for all the time he devoted helping me with this! (Seriously, I soon have to move him to Co-Author for all his editing work with dialogues) (I suck at dialogues)
Secondly, thanks to Rising_Chaos for
proofreading and listening to my never ending babbling.