//------------------------------//
// Chapter 25: Undivided 
// Story: Fallout Equestria: Our Will (rewrite) 
// by AngryPenguin 
//------------------------------//


"Whatever caused our fates to intertwine would never let them unravel."


I know there comes a time in every mare's life where she should probably figure out what she really wants in life. Personally, I had no clue what it was I really desired. The Equestrian dream was out of the question, for obvious reasons. If it was still an option, I wasn't sure if it was something I'd want. I used to like boring. I used to fear change. And while I wasn't exactly embracing change, it was still not the end of the world, yet. I always thought I had my future planned out. I guess everyone eventually has some idea of who or where they want to be. The military thing was in the past, now. I was in the damn wasteland. Any form of major government was gone. Maybe my goal in life was to just survive, now. It was a really bad time to think about all that. I was on my way into the lion's den, and I was still scared.

"Pepper, are you sure-"

"Yes, dummy. I volunteered to do this. You can't jump into anyone else's body and ask them to go." Pepper sighed. I guess my questions had gotten pretty predictable.

I felt so guilty, dragging her down there. "I know, I just don't want it to seem like you didn't have a choice. We could have found another way, if we really needed to."

Our hooves almost sunk into the muddy earth as we walked towards the silo. Fields spread out on either side of us. They were exactly like the ones we saw near the barn where Gladys and her griffons were holed up. I just wasn't sure if this place was radiated or not. The barns and farm houses were a little worse for wear. Some of them looked like they were still under construction. I guess the workers had a hundred and sixty year lunch break. The sun had gone down behind the cloud curtain, making it difficult to see the dreary property. A light fog had blanketed over the area. Just thin enough to make out the shapes of the buildings. I could see the soft glow of a couple of fires.

"Looks like Hope has gathered her goons here. Are we going to sneak past them or make a run for it?" My body-buddy asked.

I halted our steps and evaluated the scene. She was right about Hope's followers. There were at least a couple dozen situated around the silo and the nearest barn. I knew who they were because of the eerie cloaks. They were scattered about, pacing or just watching for intruders. I wanted to avoid as much attention as I could until we were face to face with Hope, herself. Blight had been here, too. My Pipbuck was last tracked, here.

Squinting through the mist, I could see there were plenty of places to hide. Thankfully, nopony bothered to clean the place up. Several, tall stacks of hay sat next to the silo. There were old carts and wagons scattered about in different stages of decay. Large storage crates were knocked over in the right places where we could sneak by. That had to be the best way to go.

"You see those stacks of hay next to the silo? If we can get there, we can sneak past the followers. We can use your magic to silence our hoofsteps. How long can you hold the spell?" I whispered.

I felt her tail flick. "Since I haven't been able to take any Luna stone, my magic lasts a lot longer." Her ears folded. "I guess... I guess that's one good thing about you sharing a body with me. I can... get clean." I held back a grin. Was that a "thank you"? She inhaled. "So I'll be able to hold it an hour, at least."

"That should be more than enough time to infiltrate." I told her.

We both attempted to take another step, but we faltered and almost ended up on our face.

"Okay." We sat on our haunches as she spoke. "How about you focus on the legs, while I focus on the horn."

"Sounds good to me." I said. I didn't care how interesting it would have been to control magic, I was not going to attempt to use it myself. 

Once we were behind the closest wagon, Pepper ignited her horn, covering the aura with her mane. I stomped, softly, to make sure it was working before I brought us to the other side of the wagon. Once there, I noticed two cloaked ponies standing side by side about four yards away. They had their backs to us, thankfully. I crouched as low as I could and scurried along a steep bank. No sound came from our hooves. It was working! Ducking behind one of the steel crates, I looked out to see if there were any goons on that side.

Of course there were.

A group of them stood next to a fire barrel, speaking in hushed tones. One of them seemed nervous.

"They're saying that other mare is Hope's daughter."

"She doesn't address her as such. It's probably just a rumor. That pegasus showed up all but at the last minute. Besides, Hope's foal was killed years ago. It can't be her."

"Do you think they really came to an agreement, yet?"

"You saw the giant metal thing in there. If what that scary, gray mare says is true, nothing will stand a chance against them. I think Hope would be crazy not to side with her."

"But what if she's lying?"

"Hope is not going to base her choice on a lie, idiot. She's going to want proof that it's true and leverage in case that thing betrays her."

"What could Blight possibly have for leverage?"

"Everypony has a weakness. Don't you read?"

Oh shit.

They were talking about my mother and Blight teaming up. Would Hope go for that? No. Even she had her limits, I'm sure. She didn't want the same thing as Blight. Blight wanted to be evil for the sake of being evil. Hope had some reasoning. Even if that reason is reckless and misguided. If they joined forces, we would all be completely fucked.

I snapped out of it and looked around for a way to get passed them. A broken bottle caught my eye. Before I could do anything, Pepper had already picked it up in her magic and tossed it far away from us. Once the glass shattered, the cloaked ponies drew their guns and rushed towards the sound. I made sure they were all gone before I hurriedly cantered behind a fuel tank. I looked out, once again, to see where we were.

The silo was only about twenty yards away from the tank. The down side was that the henchponies were denser in that area.

"Great. I don't think we can sneak by them without being seen, even if we made no sound." Pepper whispered.

I moved our head to a cloaked pony walking to the back of the silo. He (or she) was alone. 

"So, let's stop sneaking and hide out in the open. We can steal that pony's cloak and just walk through the door. Between the fog and the dramatic hood on those robes, nopony would recognize us. Then, we could get in and get our information with no problem." I said, way too enthusiastically.

It took a lot for Pepper to hold back a laugh. "That is the most cliche thing I have ever heard. The ol' disguise and blend in trick, huh?"

I made our cheeks blush with embarrassment. "Pepper, this whole 'good guys versus evil witch' thing is a cliche in itself. Besides, do you have a better idea?"

She rolled our eyes, but said nothing. 

"Okay, so we are going to knock them unconscious, take the robes and cover up the body until they wake up." I instructed.

"What if they wake up while we are in there?"

"If we hit them hard enough, they won't wake up for a while."

She said nothing as we turned and snuck towards the back of the silo. I looked around to make sure nopony else was there before I crouched and got ready to-

Stab the guy in the stomach with my knife wrapped in a magical aura.

The stallion made no sound as Pepper clenched his mouth shut until he was lifeless. The horrible gurgling sound made me nauseous. The corpse hit the ground, blood pouring from the slash. I couldn't do anything while she took off the cloak and wrapped it around us. She also went through his pockets and found a few caps.

"P-Pepper, why did you do that?!" I hissed.

She scoffed. "You want to knock out a pony that could probably wake up. That might work for a smaller mare, but the only thing knocking this guy out is a damn execution."

I stared down at the salmon colored stallion while she picked up his gun and slung it over our shoulders. He was dead. Pepper didn't miss a beat while he was dying in our grasp. I didn't want to kill him! He was probably brain washed for all we knew. Ever since I had attacked Pepper, I was very adamant about taking another life. But Pepper did it, this time. She killed somepony!

"Are you done?"

I shook our head. "I-I didn't ask for this..."

She let out a low growl. "Don't turn this on me. Do you see this guy doing anything good? He was working for a couple of murderous hags, for crying out loud!"

She had a point. Odds are he knew what he was doing. I still felt extremely guilty. What if he had a family?

"Now, come on. Let's get this over with."

I let out a shaky breath and went back to where we were just hidden. Keeping our head low, I walked as casually as I could towards the door. 

You are a follower. Be a follower. Do not fuck up and hesitate like you constantly do!

I repeated this in my head as we walked by several more of the minions. They didn't seem suspicious of us, but they didn't seem friendly, either. I nodded a greeting to a pony who I assumed was a mare. She did the same, but kept her eyes on me. I spotted three of them walking through the silo door, so I went to join them. It would make the cover even better. Through the first door, the interior of the storage unit was just a plain, round building. What I didn't see at first, was another bigger door that opened from the floor. It was huge. A war tank could definitely fit through it.

"Hope will not be lost." One of the cloaked ponies said to another one standing guard next to that entrance. The rest of them said the same as they went through. I swallowed before repeating those words to the guard, trying to stay calm. After he accepted, I was through the gate, descending into the bunker.

Holy road apples.

The bunker itself was basically just a giant square room, similar to Violet's home. The exception was that this one was ten times bigger. That was not what took my breath away. At the far end of the place stood two, humongous, red machines. They compared in size to Silky and probably weighed tons more. The silver and red outer shell didn't even have a scratch on them. If they were up and running, they would have been moving on tracks like an old war tank. That's not all: The utility extensions were terrifying even if they were just for farming. They stretched out like sharp claws, trying to grasp at the closest ear of corn. The huge wedge plow in the front almost looked like the front of an old train. I had to swallow back the knot forming in our throat. Even Pepper seemed taken aback.

That is definitely overkill if they were just harvesting cabbages.

The last thing I noticed was a pod-like chamber in the corner of the room. Inside, was a tiny foal. He looked like he had just come from the womb. The slumber he was in appeared almost peaceful, except for the fact that he was basically growing in a jar. Pepper noticed, too. She grit her teeth at the sight of the poor baby floating in the stasis fluids. There was a pony in a white coat monitoring him. At least Gale was true to her word about his care. He still needed his mother, though.

"Where is she?" A familiar voice called.

The group of ponies I was with directed their attention to the source. A yellow mare with a softer yellow and mahogany mane glared at us  Her green, piercing eyes were barely aged enough to match the, very scarce, gray in her hair. My mother. The pony who gave birth to me stood only feet away. I wanted to run to her, embrace her and tell her there was a better way. But she wasn't my mother, anymore. Just a hardened criminal built by the wasteland. Our chest began to ache from my breaking heart. It took a while before I realized she was speaking to the mare next to me.

"Blight is close by. She wanted us to bring a message." The voice by my ear said.

"You may relay it, now." Gale nodded.

The mare began speaking. "She told us to let you know that you can return the body once she has fused with the machines."

I knew exactly what she was talking about. A wave of nausea made our mouth water. Gale kept her stance, eyeing the metallic monsters. "Blight drives a hard bargain. However, giving her the chance to take these combines will only put us all in danger, unless we have collateral on her."

"Come now, Hope. I would never betray those who help me conquer." My voice startled all of us, except Gale. Pepper threw her gaze towards the front of the shelter before I could even move.

I was there. Well, not me. It was Blight, with my identity. She had changed my appearance, though. My coat had darkened to gray and my mane was almost devoid of color and brightness. I also noticed that my cutie mark had disappeared. My eyes weren't green anymore, either. They were just... gray. She swooped in, flapping her (my) wings and coming to a stop on the other side of Gale's table.

"Blight." Gale addressed her. "You had no reason to send me a message if you were coming back, anyway."

Blight grinned, wickedly. "I wanted to be sure they would deliver the right message. Besides," She turned towards the equipment. "I couldn't wait for these beautiful wonders of pony-kind, any longer." She trotted towards them, placing my hoof on them. "At least one good thing came from you animals."

"Yes, they should still be functional. However, I want to make sure that once you... fuse with them, that you take into account my conditions." The cloaked, yellow pegasus walked around the table.

"Stupid pony. You are mistaking me for one of your followers. You think you have some sort of control over me? Even in this body, I could defeat you."

"I do not wish to control you, nor am I implying that I do. I simply do not want that body destroyed." 

Blight's grin disappeared. "I don't care if you return this putrid body, as long as you stay out of my way. No one will be able to stop me, so do what you will."

"There's also one more thing I ask of you."

Blight turned to her. "Tell me, Gale: Why should I do you any sort of favors? I can take these mechanical beings whenever I want, you know."

"Not without the pearls." Gale narrowed her eyes. "The Enclave. All I ask is that you destroy them. They have technology that you may want to take, as well."

My body bared her teeth. "You think I don't know what revenge looks like? I am revenge! Do you know who I truly am?"

To her credit, Gale didn't bat an eye. Instead, she gave the smallest of smiles. "I know that they have ways to take you down, easily. The Enclave are not as primal as those who live down here. You'll need me."

For a moment, things were silent. Blight flapped her wings and hovered next to the tractors, thinking. Why would Gale think that Blight would ever keep her word?

"Do we have a deal? You give me that weak body back and destroy the Enclave. In return, you will have unlimited power and my followers will serve you, as long as no danger comes to us."

Why does Gale want my body, anyway? This is bad!

Blight landed in front of her, grabbing the cloak and ripping it off of the yellow mare. I saw it, then. The Dashite mark. I could feel a jeer of pain in Pepper's flank as the memory orb flooded into my brain. The burning pain was almost real. "This hunger for revenge, it starves you. I can see your darkness. You're tainted by the pearls and you are only just getting your hooves on them. No, you were tainted long before that. You were taken away from your family. Stripped of your identity because you wanted to help these poor creatures." Blight circled her. "Your hate runs too deep to even stop your plans and see that you could still have a family in this land. No, you'd rather kill those responsible for taking your... 'better' life from you. You're willing to give me more power, willingly." Blight cackled. The entire place echoed. "It's so beautiful! You are feeding the literal embodiment of hate!"

Pepper stomach rolled, again. I felt our chest tightening as Pepper began to shuffle.

Blight continued, "I will graciously accept your offer, but I want you know something, Gale."

"What is that?" Gale stood, still as stone.

"You do not have that motherly instinct that you think you possess."

As if she had teleported, Blight flashed in front of us, snatching our own cloak from Pepper's body. "Your daughter has been here the entire time." She gave a throaty laugh. "Even without her vessel, I can still taste her. She has a unique fear to her."

Gale's eyes went wide for a split second before she gained her composure and gestured for her followers to clamp Pepper's horn with some kind of metal device. I felt the tingle in her forehead but it instantly burned out, leaving us with a mild headache.

"She put a dampener on my horn!" Pepper growled.

They threw chains around us, crippling Pepper to make sure we wouldn't run.

"I don't know how you got in here, Sienna. You shouldn't have intruded." Gale's tone was bitter and cold.

"Don't do this! Blight is going to betray you!" I shouted.

The entity chuckled, again. "Did you tell her where we will soon move our temporary base of operation?"

Gale never said a word. She just turned and faced that evil witch. "It shouldn't concern her. She would only try to stop you if she knew. As soon as you fuse and get your adjustments, we will surprise them with our visit."

Blight's delighted expression switched back to sour when she looked back at the mare. "Be careful, mortal one. Your emotions might get you killed."

"Your threats don't scare me. I'm only sticking with our plan so it goes smoothly." Gale deadpanned.

Blight grinned, again. "Very well. You're lucky that I'm so eager to become whole. Give me the pearls so I can begin the transformation."

Gale didn't hesitate to take out the purple bag. I could feel the magic radiating off of them. Blight snatched them away, her eyes lighting up. Once she opened the bag, she started to glow. Her giggles started out quietly, but eventually grew into a crazed howl. I felt tears fall from our cheeks. Dread filled Pepper's lungs and throat. She was too shocked to speak.

The pearls levitated from the bag and hovered between Blight and one of the red and silver machines. She touched her hoof to the pearls, starting a series of fireworks. Her eyes glowed like the rainbow, just like they did when it was me. The machines rumbled to life, giving a dragon's roar a run for its money. Light poured from the pearls, making all of the followers back away. The chains fell from Pepper's body. They must not have secured them. We could have ran, but I was not about to run without that foal.

While everypony was distracted, I bolted behind the many tanks and utility boxes. "Pepper, the sneak spell!" The tingle in our forehead burned.

"This thing prevents me from using any magic! I can't conjure any spell!" She replied.

Damn it!

"Then we have no choice! Let's grab the foal and run out as fast as we can!"

She faltered. "What about your body?"

"It can wait! The foal is more important, right now!"

Gusts of air swirled around the bunker, behaving the way a rogue tornado would. I dodged flying papers, skidding to a stop in front of the pod, just out of sight. The lab coat mare was transfixed on Blight, so I quickly pushed the button on the side that said "eject". One hiss later, the pod drained the fluid, leaving the foal suspended on a gel-like pillow. I grabbed the baby and the pillow, making a run for it. I bolted past everyone, not paying attention to the large number of ponies in the entrance watching the whole thing go down. They didn't bother to come after us.

Up the ramp, I galloped past a few stragglers hurrying to watch the show. When we were outside, I could see the silhouettes of two pegasi. Redd and Violet flapped their wings, speeding towards us. I didn't stop running. They circled around, eventually leveling with me and flying at my pace.

"Sia! What the hell is going on?! It looks like they're making another sun in there!" Violet yelled.

"Blight is... using the pearls!" I panted.

"Oh Goddesses... Where is Hope?"

"She is still in there. I have the foal!" I told her.

She looked back as she flew. The area was already lit up like a Hearths Warming tree. "I saw your body! Except... it wasn't your body!"

I skidded to a stop, Violet and Redd following suit. "Yes, it's in there, still. Blight is fusing with one of those machines, so my empty vessel is just... there, now."

"We have to get it back before it's injured!" Redd started for the entrance.

"Wait!" Violet grabbed him. "Let me. I'm faster. I'll fly in, grab it, and get out of there."

"No! It's too-" I didn't get to finish before she flew at supersonic speed into the silo. "Violet!"

"Let's go before those henchponies catch us!" Pepper yelled.

Tears fell from my eye. True fear. Something that hadn't showed its face to me in a while. The post-traumatic stress from Nico in that cavern began to engulf me.

"Violet!" I called.

"Come on! She'll be alright!" Redd screamed. 

Pepper moved for us. She forced her muscles to work and ran alongside the pegasus stallion. I should have scolded him for using his wing, but at the time, I was a nervous wreck. He led us over the fields and through the maze of dead crops. I could finally see the hill where the others were waiting. Pepper's tired legs pounded the mud with every gallop. Tears still fell from my eyes.

Luna, keep my best friend safe, please!

Nico and Dad met us halfway down the hill, next to Zephyr's grave.

"You got the foal!" Nico exclaimed.

"We did." I breathed.

I turned, watching the silo entrance as Redd filled them in on the bright glow. It wasn't as bright as it was, but it was still wrapped in a rainbow aura. Blight had completed her transformation. I could hear the low rumble of an engine. It was eerie, to say in the least.  She was going to kill so many ponies. Guilt wrapped itself around Pepper's windpipe. So much guilt. What was I supposed to do about a giant, robotic, doom-tractor-tank? It felt like the end. Seconds passed as I watched for Violet. I waited for a sign of her.

I didn't even see a loose feather.

"No..." I whispered. Tears formed in my eye. She was dead. My best friend, again, was gone.

Redd put a hoof on my shoulder. "She will be here. Just give her a few more-"

Something landed behind us, making me jump. We spun and saw Violet, panting and sweating.

Thank you, Luna! Oh, thankyouthankyouthankyou!

"Hey... Sia! I got... you... back!" She gently laid my lifeless body on the ground. I gulped, remembering when I saw myself after those raiders had taken down Wick and Chaser. It felt the exact same. This time, though, my eyes were white and glazed over. I stared at myself like I was an alien. I saw a coward lying in the dirt. Same as back then. A hesitant pony who couldn't do anything. Color wouldn't even reside on her hide. She was just... boring. I snapped out of my self-hatred long enough to realize that I had changed and I was going to keep it that way. I would not hesitate. I would not let my emotions and fear control me anymore.

"How do we... put you back?" Dad said.

"The necklace. That must be it." Nico replied.

"What if she stays in my body when the necklace is taken off?" Pepper said.

"I don't know what else we could do." He told her.

I felt something nagging in the back of my mind. Rarity was giving me a clue. "I have to take a mind nap while you take the necklace off and move it to my body."

Nico rubbed his mane. "That... could work."

I nodded. "Give me a few seconds to go into that state, then take the necklace off and put it on me, okay? If I'm not back in five minutes, it... didn't work."

"O-okay." Violet said. She had finally caught her breath.

I took a deep breath, then let the empty, stale void take me. I expected to stay that way for a minute until they got the necklace around my neck. Then I thought I'd just open my eyes and be myself, again. That didn't happen, though. I did, however, feel the same immense pain that I felt when Blight took my body. The burning chill ran down my spine. I didn't feel like I was being ripped apart, but it was like glass was pressing against my body, forcing it back together. My eyes shot open, but I was still in so much pain. I let out a scream, probably loud enough for Gale to hear. I was cold. No, I was hot. Needles stuck under my hide, attempting to sew my soul back to it. I finally felt my heart. It beat once. It pounded twice. Air filled my lungs like an implosion. The thundering roar in my ears took forever to quiet enough to where I could hear my herd.

"-enna! It's okay! I got you!" A familiar stallion's voice. I couldn't tell who it was, yet. All I saw was white, like a flash grenade had went off.

My scream faded into a cry, then into a whimper. The glass finally pulled out of my hide and I felt warm hooves around me. All of my senses went back to normal, slowly. I blinked, shaking too bad to move. Eventually, I could see clear enough to see Redd holding my head up. Dad was holding the other side. Pepper, Violet and Nico surrounded me. My mind was so foggy. I was instantly exhausted to the point where I felt weak.  At least my burns and other injuries were gone. The magic even repaired my black, Enclave armor. When I looked around, the haze had already settled.

So warm. Warm is good.

I did manage to get out one thought, though. "Redd... How is... the wing?"

The sound of relieved sighs filled the air.

"It flies perfectly." He said, softly. 

"You got your cutie-mark back!" Violet cheered. "And your mane is orange, again. No more gray!"

"It worked, thank Celestia." Nico spoke. "Let's get her to Fleece to make sure there's no internal damage. Redd, Violet. Can you two return the foal to Zangth? You're the fastest and Sia is not able to travel."

"Aye aye, cap'n." Violet said. She already held the tiny colt in her hooves. 

"Wait... Is he alive?" I tried to quickly ask.

"Yup! He's breathing, alright!" She said. She held the foal up so I could get a look at him. He was adorable. A beautiful, blue colt with a head full of black hair. He was no bigger than a cantaloupe. How he still slept, was beyond me.

I laid my head back as Nico levitated me onto my father's back. "Sia, get some sleep. You've been through an ordeal. We'll wake you up when we get to Fleece's clinic."

I let out a groan. Maybe it was an objection? I wasn't sure. All I knew was that I was going to sleep so hard, I wasn't even giving my brain a chance to dream. 





REBOOTING......
SUBJECT IDENTIFIED
WELCOME BACK LIEUTENANT SIENNA!





Level up!

S- 3
P- 6
E- 6
C- 4 (+1)
I- 5
A- 4
L- 5

New Perk
Good advice - You now have a 25% chance of convincing enemies at a lower level to stand down.