As the alicorn turned deathclaw strode out of the cave, she noticed that her companion was sporting a new, larger backpack. One which had several brown circular objects poking out the top, each one with a thin metal handle on the top. Twilight wasn't sure that they were, or what the button in the middle of them did, but clearly the human had acquired more then a few of the things.
As if sensing that her companion’s gaze was upon her back, Janey adjusted the load subtly, hiding the round things. Putting that thought out of her mind, Twilight let her gaze wander over the immediate area, the deathclaw realizing she didn't know where she was. Upon looking around, Twilight found that they werent far from the road which would lead to Goodsprings.
Before her the hills and mountains were lit up by the rising sun which was emerging from a cloudbank behind them. Twilight idly noted that the solar body was about the same size and rose in the same direction as the one on Equestria did. Not only that but a good amount of time had passed since her little episode given that it was likely early morning now. Twilight wondered just how long she had crouched there in the dark, trying to suppress her new urges but quickly put that thought out of mind.
There was no point in ruminating on such terrible things Twilight told herself. Instead, Twilight considered the circumstances she now found herself in, letting her mind wander. Plans and ideas were considered and discarded one after another in rapid succession, the former alicorn’s mind whirling with possibilities.
As they neared the edge of town Twilight realized something important and gave her foot a stomp in order to grab her companion’s attention. Turning around, Janey raised an eyebrow expectantly.
“What is it?” asked the human.
“I want to be able to go into town and speak with the humans there. Can you help make this possible?” Twilight tapped out on the broken asphalt.
Janey winced and ran a hand down the back of her neck. “I don't know if that's the best idea. The folks in town are mighty jumpy especially considering what just about happened to ‘em.”
“If we are going to travel together we will need to be able to go into human settlements together. Plus maybe if we spread word that I’m friendly that it will reduce the chance that we will get shot at by scared humans while travelling,” Twilight explained.
“That would be mighty helpful,” Janey admitted. “I don't wanna stumble across a prospector who panicks and starts hucking grenades.”
“So, you’ll do it?” Twilight pressed.
The human sighed. “I suppose it would be for the best. Sneaking isn't really my strong suit, nor is it yours given how big you are. Plus the mojave is fairly populous and it's only a matter of time until someone sees you and that could lead to some unpleasant misunderstandings.”
Twilight nodded, the deathclaw having already considered everything her companion had just mentioned.
Janey let out a long breath. “I can't say for certain if it will work but I’ll try talking to them.”
“Thank you so much!” Twilight replied, the deathclaw doing her best to smile.
“Just stay in the schoolhouse for a bit. I’ll discuss things with the town and try to prepare them for your arrival,” Janey declared before walking away only to pause. “Oh and don't worry about breaking anything. I formalized everything with easy Pete so we own the place outright. This way we can have a sort of safe house when needed.”
Twilight hummed to herself, silently quite happy with the turn of events as the thought of being some kind of murder hobo made her feel unpleasant. Focusing on the task at hand, the deathclaw slipped away from her human companion after they neared the town proper. Which seemed relatively empty save for the big horners grazing lazily in their pastures and the few ranch hands who tended to them.
Not wanting to risk her chance of getting a good first impression, Twilight slipped further away from her companion, circling around the town. Following the now familiar path, Twilight rounded the oddly shaped shack at the end of the road and was about to slip inside the school when she noticed something. The strange and apparently helpful robot Janey had mentioned earlier was standing in the middle of the road and seemed to be watching Janey as she strode towards the bar.
The entity's bulky body faced north until Janey disappeared indoors, its bulky monitor displaying the face of a grinning cowboy the entire time. It then turned and began to trundle away on its solitary wheel, bouncing along the rough, uneven terrain with surprising ease. Its long tubelike arms hung loose at its side, the robot seemingly secure in the knowledge that it wouldn't be attacked.
Twilight watched it disappear around the south side of a house.
With it gone, Twilight slipped inside the schoolhouse, silently hoping that no one had seen her lollygagging outside. Once the door was shut securely behind her, Twilight looked around to find that most of the junk had been cleared out. The broken desks were in a neater pile in the corner, and by the looks of things someone had given the entire area a once over with a broom.
The air was still stale, the ground still dirty and the entire place was still not in the best shape, but it was a vast improvement over what it had once been. Standing in the center of the room, Twilight was even able to stretch a little before plunking down on the ground. Quickly growing bored, and not wanting to be alone with her thoughts for too long, Twilight looked for anything to hold her attention.
Her gaze quickly settled on a box she recognized as a radio, though it was much smaller than the ones she had seen in Equestria. Plucking it from the counter it sat atop, Twilight began to fiddle with the dials as gently as she could, the deathclaw now quite aware of just how sharp her claws truly were. After a few minutes of struggling she was met with the sound of static, and only a few seconds after that, was able to find a station.
The music which belted out of the radio made Twilight wince, and she quickly turned the volume down to a more bearable level. Once her ears were no longer in pain the deathclaw was able to make out the sound of singing, as well as the soft strumming of a guitar. Unfortunately for her the song didn't last much longer before it ended, leaving the former alicorn disappointed at having missed it.
That feeling didn't last long however, as a smooth male voice suddenly came over the radio.
“I’ve got some news for you. A package courier found shot in the head near Goodsprings has reportedly regained consciousness, and has made a full recovery. Now that is a delivery service you can count on,” exclaimed the voice on the radio. “Troubling news from Primm, as merchants report a large presence of armed and unsavoury figures patrolling the town. Residents are nowhere to be found.”
Twilight wasn't exactly sure where Primm was but she hoped that Janey would make a stop there as she didn't like the sound of the broadcast.
“There will be more news at the top of the hour. Now I’ve got a song for you right now that's about a man that's cold on the exterior, but deep down ya know he's a good man and his name is Johnny Guitar,” continued the voice which was replaced by the almost melancholic strumming of a guitar a second later.
As the song began Twilight couldn't help but feel strangely calm given everything that had happened. Partly because the smooth dulcet tones of the man on the radio, partly because the slow strumming set her mind at ease. As the seconds ticked by Twilight found herself drawn into the song, which she hoped had a happy ending.
As the bouncy tune faded into silence, and the man ceased singing about someone named Blue Moon, Twilight found that the spell which had kept her captivated had faded. She briefly wondered if there were some humans who shared similar naming conventions as ponies before her thoughts were interrupted.
“Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to our program. This is Mr. New Vegas, and each and every one of you is wonderful in your own special way,” announced the increasingly familiar voice. “Whoops, I better put on my newsman fedora, here.”
Twilight couldn't help but lean a little closer to the radio, curious as to what else was happening in this strange world she found herself in.
“Citizens of Outer Vegas are flocking to the Strip in droves amid a wave of terror caused by a band of raiders known as the Fiends. Those who can afford passports say that the added security is well worth the price of admission,” announced Mr New Vegas. “This program was brought to you by Gomorrah. Gomorrah: It'll be our secret.”
And with that the music returned, this time the guitar was quicker, and after a few seconds a man began to sing about the town of Agua Fria. The deathclaw quickly tuned that out however, as she just then realized how much time had passed without word from Janey. Standing up, Twilight worked the kinks out of her legs before striding over to one of the windows and peering out onto the town.
Only to be met with empty streets and seemingly empty homes, without a single face visible from Twilight’s poor vantage point. Pushing down the bit of panic that threatened to overwhelm her, Twilight reminded herself to trust Janey. With that thought in mind, Twilight trundled back over to the radio and sat back down, a hand scratching a pained spot on her back.
Her new instincts told her to move, to get out of there but Twilight ignored them and tried to calm down only to nearly jump out of her skin the second she heard a knock at the door. Pulling her horns out of the ceiling, Twilight strode over to the nearest window and after realizing it was Janey, turned the lock. With the door now open the human strode inside, a worried look appearing briefly on her face before it quickly vanished.
“Well I have good news and bad news,” she announced.
Twilight rolled her hand, telling her companion to continue.
“They have agreed to hear you out, but they are both armed to the teeth and have a reporter with them. Apparently he was here to get the account on what happened with the powder gangers and was about to leave when I showed up,” Janey finished.
Twilight blinked. “Okay the first one is bad, but why would the presence of the press be bad.”
“Because the news is controlled by Mr. House who is many things, but the one thing he is not is a good person,” Janey declared.
Twilight hummed thoughtfully before tapping out her response.
“Do you worry he may lie about me?” Twilight asked.
“Not outright,” Janey replied. “Though he may skew things in his favour or attempt to use you in some way.”
After a moment of silence Twilight gestured to the door, indicating that she was ready.
Janey meanwhile, seemed deep in thought for several seconds, her finger caressing the handle of her revolver. Twilight clearing her throat seemed to startle the human out of her bout of introspection however.
“Sorry about that. Let's go,” Janey declared, turning and walking back out the door.
Twilight followed a moment later, being careful not to put another dent in the door frame due to her towering height. Once outside, the deathclaw turned to Janey, and found that on the other end of the dirt path was a large group of humans. Most were openly carrying weapons while others had them within easy reach and a select few didn't seem to bear any obvious weapons at all.
The deathclaw recognized a few from what she had heard from Janey like Doc Mitchell who was standing nervously off to the side. Sunny Smiles and her dog Cheyanne stood at the forefront of the group, a long gun cradled in the young woman’s grip. Beside her the white and black dog laid on the ground, seemingly unbothered by the deathclaw approaching it.
Easy Pete and Ringo were also easily noticeable, with the younger man standing near the center while the bearded human stood off to one side. The rest were unknowns, but seemed to be residents given that Twilight had seen a few of them tending to the big horners. The only person that stood out from the rest was likely the reporter given that they were speaking animatedly into a small device in their hand, eyes sparkling with barely contained excitement.
Gulping down her growing concerns, Twilight walked as confidently as she could manage, though the deathclaw couldn't help but try to make herself a little smaller. She didn't want to startle anyone, but it was hard to keep her nerves under control when the former alicorn felt like she was walking herself to the chopping block. Upon getting within twenty feet of the crowd, the human she recognized as Sunny Smiles raised a hand.
“That's close enough,” she declared.
Twilight stopped in place, shrinking down even more until she was nearly crouching.
Janey meanwhile took position between the two groups, a weary smile on her face. “See? She's intelligent.”
“Or well trained,” muttered an overall wearing male.
“Here, let me show you,” Janey offered, pulling a thin section of metal from her backpack and tossed it at Twilight.
Who caught it delfly.
“So it can catch, what does that prove?” asked a voice.
“It's not that. She knows english and morse code. Which means that although she can't speak the language she can still communicate,” Janey explained.
“I always thought a deathclaw could talk given their mimicry,” Ringo remarked.
“Her eyes do seem to contain the spark of intelligence,” Doc Mitchell added, rubbing his chin. “She would not follow our conversation if she did not understand it.”
“Wait, are y'all really thinking about not killin this thing?” asked a disgruntled voice. “A giant hyper intelligent apex predator is standing in front of us and we have the chance to end this threat right here!”
“Quit yer yammerin! You heard what Janey said. This one saved our whole damn town from powder gangers,” exclaimed a female who smacked the previous speaker across the back of the head. “Least we can do is hear her out.”
The male muttered something under his breath but ultimately stayed silent.
Janey cleared her throat. “Now then. Does anyone else know morse code?”
Most people shook their heads while Ringo and Doc Mitchell both nodded.
“Good. That means you can independently verify her response. For everyone else, my pipboy will translate what's being said,” Janey continued before turning to the reporter. “Now then, what would you like to ask her?”
The scrawny man in a well worn suit pressed a button on his recording device before clearing his throat. “This is Alan Stock reporting for radio New Vegas. It is may the third, and I am standing before the first reported intelligent deathclaw in almost a decade. Before we get into the meat of the interview could you state your name and age for the record?”
Twilight nodded, and quickly tapped out her answer. “Twilight Sparkle. Age twenty three.”
Janey’s pipboy translated her response to english.
“Janey’s right. She knows english,” Doc Mitchell declared in a shocked tone.
Ringo nodded. “Sure is. Though I’m more concerned as to what she's doing here.”
“I am not here by choice,” Twilight quickly replied. “It is a long story.”
“Fascinating,” muttered the reporter. “Considering you haven't butchered the town yet. I presume you are peaceful?”
Twilight stuck out her tongue in disgust. “Stars above. Why would you even say something like that? Yes, of course I come in peace.”
“That's a strange turn of phrase,” Doc Mitchell muttered.
“Glad I’m not the only one who thought so,” Ringo added.
And with that, the damn seemed to have broken, with most individuals lowering their weapons and relaxing. Some still clutched their guns to their chests but they were in the minority. For the majority simply seeing such disgust on the deathclaw’s face and hearing her affirmation was enough.
Though it would be a long time for trust to be built, at least for a moment curiosity beat out fear.
“Where did you come from?” shouted someone.
“Why is its horns so big?” asked another.
“What do you want with us?” whispered another.
“What kind of deathclaw are you?” yelled someone else.
“One at a time people,” Janey interrupted, raising her hand.
“In order. A different dimension. I don't know. Nothing, and I have no idea,” Twilight replied.
“A different dimension? Isn't that a little out there? How do you expect people to believe that?” asked the reporter.
“It wouldn't be the first time,” Twilight pointed out. “I don't expect you to believe me.”
“Look, we’ve clearly established that Twilight is friendly. So can we all just put away our guns and relax a little?” Janey encouraged, flashing the crowd a winning smile.
A few voices grumbled, but the remaining nervous hold outs did as the courier asked.
Sunny Smiles unexpectedly broke from the pack, and approached the deathclaw, who flinched from the intensity in the young woman’s eye. Upon getting a few feet away from the towering death lizard, dog in tow, Sunny Smiles glanced up at Twilight before down at Cheyanne. Who walked up to Twilight, sniffed her leg a few times and then sat down next to the deathclaw, her tail wagging slowly.
“Whelp, that's all I needed to see,” Sunny Smiles declared. “Cheyanne’s a better judge of character than most and if she thinks your good people then I’m inclined to agree.”
Twilight smiled, and as gently as she could manage, pet the dog’s furry head.
This seemed to ease the townsfolk more than even the confirmation of her intelligence, and the crowd began to spread out. Some approached Twilight with curiosity in their eyes while others hung back, appraising the situation from further away. The good majority simply stood there in mixed expressions of shock, fear and curiosity, though Twilight noted that it was mostly the last variety.
“Whew that was close,” Janey muttered.
Twilight’s companion stood next to the deathclaw and reached down to pet Cheyanne as well. Only for the creature to growl at her, prompting Janey to recoil her hand quickly.
“Cheyanne, stay. Don't worry, she won't bite unless I tell her to,” Sunny Smiles offered with a chuckle. “Strange that she would react this way though.”
“I never was a fan of animals,” Janey murmured.
The reporter muscled his way to the front of the deathclaw before sticking the recorder up to Twilight’s face. “What did you mean by it's a long story?” he demanded.
Twilight spared a glance at Janey who sighed. “I suppose I could tell it. Well you better have an open mind for this one folks cus its a doozy.”
“That is the single most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard,” Easy Pete remarked, crossing his arms over his chest. “Though with that being said I’ve seen plenty of ridiculous things in my time.”
“Whether or not you are some sort of mystical princess from some medieval nation you seem to be here to stay,” added the reporter. “What do you plan to do now that you can't return home?”
Twilight thought long and hard on the subject, her gaze passing over the many faces staring curiously up at her. Some were still fearful, others clearly distrustful, but none contained the hate Twilight had expected to see. It was a surprise to be certain, but quite welcome given the welcome Twilight had imagined herself getting given her monstrous appearance.
It also spoke to the character of the town that they would at least tolerate her so readily. She briefly wondered if accepting Victor into their midst had helped paved the way for Twilight’s own favorable reception. Either way Twilight was happy that they viewed her so positively, even if that was due to her having killed their enemies for them.
No, not her, it killed them.
“I need to find my friends. I know not what bodies they may find themselves in, but in the end I know we’ll be reunited,” Twilight replied, Janey’s pipboy replaying the message in english a second later.
“Very noble. If you could say one thing to the people of the Mojave, what would it be?” asked the reporter.
Twilight briefly considered reemphasizing the point about her friends, but quickly thought better of it. Instead, she leaned down, and gripped the small metal plate tightly in one clawed hand.
“I would tell every raider, gang member, and evil doer out there that your days are numbered. If you would steal from the weak, or hurt the innocent, know that I am coming for you,” Twilight tapped out before rising back to a stand.
The reporter gulped dramatically. “If any of you nutjobs out there are listening to this broadcast you had best reconsider your life choices. The princess is on your trail now and if that ain't enough to scare the pants off you, why don't you ask your dumb ass buddies what happened to Joe Cobb’s gang.”
“Woah that was harsh Twilight,” Janey remarked.
“I liked it,” Sunny Smiles declared with a grin. “If I didn't have to look after Goodsprings I’d join you two on the road.”
“If you do what you’ve told us you will then you’ll have earned my trust,” remarked Easy Pete before spitting out a wad of chewing tobacco.
“I didn't mean to be that rude. I just wanted to scare them a little,” Twilight hastily responded. “Could I get a do over?”
Janey laughed. “I think it was good. The bad guys should hopefully fear us while the decent folk of the Mojave know not to shoot us on sight.”
“I don't know about that,” remarked the reporter who put his recorder into a jacket pocket, his voice having lost the slight dramatic flair it had a second earlier. “You’d be real dumb not to shoot a deathclaw on sight.”
“You didn't,” Twilight pointed out.
Alan Stock chuckled as he lit a cigarette and took a long drag. “That they didn't. But not everyone is as kind as the people of Goodsprings. Nor are they as open minded.”
“Did you just say something nice about someone?” remarked trudy in an incredulous tone. “Cus the last time I read an article written by you which said something kind was probably ten years ago.”
“Now that you mention it you have been more even handed then I remember,” Janey pointed out. “Though that doesn't rule out you going back to the studio and editing this in a manner to make us all look like assholes.”
The reporter exhaled slowly. “We are in strange times. A war is brewing and people are going to need something to look up to. Something larger than life and maybe that thing is you. We’ll just have to see.”
“When are you going to air this?” Janey asked.
Alan shrugged and started digging around in one of his pockets. “Don't know, probably pretty soon though. That being said, it depends if the boss man reinterprets what I’ve said and cut all the recording I’ve done. Either way I owe you one. Here.”
Janey watched curiously as the reporter produced a gambling chip, one marked with the words ‘Lucky 38’ in the center.
“What is this?” Janey asked.
“Show it to the guys at the entrance to the station and they’ll let you in. If this story ends up being as big as I think it is then I’ll owe ya one and will pay ya back however I can,” Alan explained before turning to the deathclaw. “That is if you turn out to be the force for good that we all hope you are.
“I swear to do the best I can for the good people of the Mojave,” Twilight replied, giving the reporter a confident nod.
“I sure hope you’re everything you say you are because it seems like just about everything is sitting on the edge of a needle, just waiting for someone to push it one way or the other,” Alan Stock remarked, crushing his cigarette beneath his boot.
Janey grinned. “Don't you worry. I’ll make sure of that.”