//------------------------------// // Stage 5: Cloverfield // Story: Fallout Equestria - The Mirror Project // by Senwyn1 //------------------------------// Calling Cloverfield a town was a bit of an exaggeration. It was a three hour walk from West Mareton, on route to the larger urban area in the south. As far as things went, the place was pretty basic to look at. The only buildings consisted of a large abandoned shopping mall and a few small houses surrounded by a long concrete wall, regularly patrolled by New Lunar Republican troops. Cloverfield had a strong NLR presence, being one of the larger NLR barracks in Vanhoovia, and was set up as a backup defence against the oncoming New Amazonia threat. As a result it was very popular with civilian ponies looking for protection from raiders, though personally Ratchet couldn't stand living in it for long. The NLR were suckers for rules, worse than the Children. The town was a stopping point for most merchant routes and like West Mareton, it was a major pit stop for hunters on their way to tackle the challenges of the south. Not that that made it easy to get in. “Can I see your licenses?” a gruff earth pony clad in power armour asked at the entrance, flanked on either side by even burlier stallions, all wielding the same energy guns. “What is this, the brotherhood?” Ratchet joked, but the earth pony's face remained deadpan and serious. “Fine” she grunted, dumping her bag on the ground and rummaging through the various grenades and mines. Eventually, she dug out a torn and stained piece of paper with the NLR stamp clearly visible across the top. “Satisfied?” Ratchet asked. “Perfectly” the earth pony replied coolly, “But I will ask you to leave your weapons at the gate.” Ratchet bristled at this, shoulders hunching as she glared at the guard, standing over her haul protectively. “And if I refuse, Thunderhooves?” she hissed, walking closer to the guard and pressing her face closer to his. “Then I will kindly ask you to leave, Ratchet” the guard replied without so much as a blink, “And will use force to achieve this aim. As I did last time.” Ratchet opened her mouth wide, eyes flashing with anger, then slammed it shut, kicking the bag at them. “I hope they go up in your face” she snapped. The guard checked the contents and passed it to one of his flunkies. “If they do, I will be sure to let you know” he replied with a nod, allowing her to pass. Ratchet stalked under the concrete arc, kicking up gravel in fury and moved to the side, allowing a couple of other ponies to go through before it was Orion and Wagtail's turn. Orion had the same fuss, Ratchet noted with a grit of her teeth as the Ghoul argued with the guard. Unlike Ratchet, she ended up being allowed to keep her gun. Apparently one weapon with hundreds of bullets was less dangerous than a bag full of bombs. They obviously didn't know Orion. Wagtail was in trouble though. “I...I don't have one” she stammered as the stallion asked for her license, “I just became a hunter so I haven't had a chance to register yet...” Thunder hooves looked down his nose at her as his two guards moved to block her way. “No papers, no entry for hunters” he said coolly, “Please move on, Ma'am. Next.” Wagtail shot a panicked look at Ratchet as a snooty pink pony pushed past, flashing her papers at the guard and strolling into the city. “Look” Ratchet said quickly, stumbling forward, “Can't you make an exception? She's with us and we have passes, right?” Wagtail nodded in agreement, batting her eyelashes at the soldier as she bit back tears. “Can I not be allowed in by proxy? Or as a civilian?” she asked desperately, ears drooping back against her skull, “I'm scared of being out here by myself all night. What if a death claw eats me?” Her voice was like sweet treacle mixed with just the right hint of sadness. Heck, even Orion looked bothered by the whole thing, Ratchet thought, and she didn't even like Wagtail. The guard met her gaze for a few seconds then crumpled and with a curt nod to his officers, he allowed Wagtail to pass. “I'm really surprised that worked” Orion said frankly, glancing at Ratchet as they strode towards the mall entrance. Gravel crunched under their feet as they passed the two houses. The buildings had been adapted into two manned outposts, with wooden towers protruding from the ceilings. Currently there was a unicorn perched at the top of one, horn glowing as he used a spell to magnify the horizon. “Birdie flaps her eyes and old Thunder Fart lets her in?” Orion added, “He never breaks the rules.” Ratchet snorted and glanced back at Wagtail. “Everyone knows puppy eyes are the ultimate fail safe” Ratchet replied, nodding to the smaller unicorn. The yellow pony gave her a faint smile, whistling to herself as she trotted behind them, glancing back at the guards curiously. The three followed the road up to the mall, walking past the shells of abandoned wagons and the blinking light of an advertisement. Nearer the mall, they passed lines of NLR troops as they practised drills and ran laps around the mall. The only sign of a civilian presence were a few non-NLR outside the confines of the large mall: a couple of merchants shoving dried rats and stringy looking leaves in their faces. “Well, if it isn't Ratchy” a drawling voice called and Ratchet turned slightly to see a sky blue pony unfold herself from the wall of the mall. She had a sleek silvery mane twisted into a knot on one side of her body and her tail hung down in curls. “Dragging yourself down here for a slice of New Amazonia pie?” Downpour purred. Ratchet smiled stiffly, mane bristling as she turned to face the other mare. “That's right. So why are you still here, Downpour?” she shot back, tilting her head slightly, “Don't tell me you beat the new Amazons already.” Downpour flicked her silvery blue mane over her shoulder with a smile and looked over at Orion and Wagtail. “Ooh, is it someone new?” she exclaimed, clapping her hooves together, “I so love new people”. With a chirpy smile, she trotted over and looked Wagtail up and down, eyeing her expression, body and then her cutiemark. Her face went sour. “Looks like raider-bait to me” Downpour said bluntly. Wagtail flinched, taking a few steps back as Downpour turned her back on her, “I won't bother introducing myself to a walking corpse.” Wagtail's mouth fell open and she shot a look at Ratchet, whose face was growing darker by the second. Orion let out a snort, raising a brow at Ratchet. Downpour strode back to Ratchet with a swirl of her tail. “Downpour, you're seriously misunderstanding something here-”Ratchet began, but Downpour interrupted in a low hiss “I have to say, you are full of surprises. I didn't expect this of you. Maybe of the ghoul, but not you. Not very sporting, is it? Ah well. You know what they say about war!” She smirked coolly at Ratchet and then at Orion. Actually, Ratchet didn't know, but she wasn't going to antagonise Downpour any more by asking. War was death and misery, period. It never changed. What else was there to know? The mare swished her tail in Ratchet's face and stalked off, body trembling all over. Ratchet let out a low sigh, hitting her face with her hoof. “Great. Now she's going to tell everyone I use a decoy. That stupid mare always jumps to conclusions” Ratchet groaned, “ and now I won't be able to get a drink anywhere for weeks.” Orion sniffed, cocking her gun lazily. “We could just murder her” Orion said casually, aiming down her sights at the other pony. With a soft sigh, she went pew-pew and lowered the weapon again. “Shame the NLR would carry out martial law against us before the bullet even hit her.” Ratchet frowned and turned away, watching the blue pony stop to talk to someone in a rapid tone, head turning back towards Orion and Ratchet in sharp jerks. “Too late any ways. The virus has been spread” Ratchet said glumly, “Wags, if anyone asks, you're an expert in guns. Capeche? You did shoot that raider in the house, remember?” Wagtail nodded, though judging by the filthy look one of the NLR shot her as she pushed open the mall doors, they weren't having any of it. Once, the mall had doors made of clear glass, but that had since been smashed through and replaced by metal grating, nailed into place and emblazoned with the moon of the NLR. “I bet fifty bits you're arrested before half an hour has gone” Orion chortled as they strolled through to the main walkway, “You know how the NLR is about pony rights”. Ratchet growled, shooting a glare at another mutterer a few metres away. When most news was bad news, idle gossip spread like a cold in the wastes. The entrances to the mall consisted of narrow corridors that widened into a broad street meandering from one side of the building to the other. On the ground floor, there were dozens of small shops lining the walkway that had been converted into makeshift officer barracks. Each was lined with cots against the walls and make shift paper barriers had been put up to preserve the illusion of privacy. They tended to be flimsy and had a short lifespan, especially as the soldiers insisted on falling through them when drunk. Upstairs were the civilian homes and they were even more cramped than below. Every shop was laid out with blankets and cushions on the floor and was shared between three or four families. Bearing in mind that a family could mean anywhere from two to twenty ponies, it wasn't always ideal. Ratchet walked east through the mall, passing groups of ponies huddled together and chattering away. The mall opened up into a square that had once been a food court but was now a market, filled with different types of products. Ratchet was lured by a stall selling different kinds of explosives and she peered down at them with interest, eyeing. “Got an offer on today” the stall minder said. He was as scruffy looking unicorn colt with a load of wires for a cutiemark, stamped onto light brown fur that was singed and eaten away in places. “Oh really?” Ratchet said flatly, looking at the burn scars on his face. The colt had a large patch of fur eaten away from his left ear down to his nose and the skin was bright pink and shiny. “That's right, Missy!” the colt said, grinning from ear to ear as he trotted forward, “Buy three grenades and get two free! Bargain!“ Ratchet looked down at the grenades, eyes picking out the ill-fitting casing and protruding wires. “They don't look particularly safe” she said suspiciously. “They're BOMBS. What do you expect?” The colt retorted, raising himself onto his hind legs as he put both front hooves on the table, “They're not like guns. Bombs are temperamental, dangerous and effective.” Ratchet rolled her eyes and looked around for Orion as she signalled to Wagtail that they were leaving with a curt nod. Orion was over at another stand, arguing over some new kind of bullet. Ratchet started to walk away. “Um...Did you make all these yourself?” Wagtail asked, smiling at the unicorn. He grinned, rubbing his head bashfully. “Yep! My dad was an explosives expert in the NLR. Taught me almost everything I know” the colt replied, grinning at her, “Name is Haywire by the way.” Wagtail smiled back. “Nice to meet you, Haywire” she replied politely, “So do you still run the store with your dad now?” Hay wire's face fell and he slumped back, lowering his eyes to the table. “Um, no. He left” he replied quietly. “So you're all by yourself?” Wagtail asked, reaching over to pat him with one hoof. “Not exactly. I got my ma” he said brightly, “She works at the hotel, keeping people company if they're lonely. My ma is really popular!” Wagtail's eyes widened. “You mean she-” “He means she keeps people company” Ratchet said bluntly, shoving a hoof in front of Wagtail and muffling her voice, “Just chats with people and makes them feel at home, right kid? That what she told you?” Haywire nodded brightly. “That's right!” he said. “She works insane hours though, so I thought if I could earn something, it would really help her out. No one's bought yet though...” His ears drooped and he looked down again, nudging one bomb with his nose. “Argh. Fine. I'll buy one” Ratchet muttered, slamming a couple of bits down and grabbing two of the less dodgy grenades from the table. Haywire looked at the bits with wide eyes and scooped them up, shoving them in a pot. “Thanks Missy” he said gratefully, and Ratchet nodded back to him. “Take care of your ma, kid, and I'll see you around.” Ratchet grunted and turned, trotting over to Orion. Orion slammed 30 bits on the table, muttering under her breath as she saw Ratchet approach. “Can you believe this one?” she snapped, waving her hoof at a crispy green mare with a sharply cut black mane dressed in a ragged suit, “Charging me thirty bits for a single pack of rounds. Claims they're running low here. Running low my ass!” Ratchet chuckled and Wagtail stepped forward, smiling at the stall tender. “Excuse me, but could you please lower the price for my friend?” Wagtail asked sweetly, flicking her ears back against her scalp. The mare laughed, tossing the bits into the air and catching them in one hoof. “Sorry, kid, business is business.” Wagtail's body drooped and she turned back to Ratchet and Orion sadly. “That's a shame” she mumbled sadly, “There must be other places to buy ammo. We'll just go there and tell everyone how expensive this place is.” “N-n-now hold it a sec” the mare snapped, vaulting the table to stand next to them, eyes crinkled in fury., “You spread bad words about me and I'll mess you up” she threatened, raising her front hooves. Ratchet looked her over and snorted. “Oh yeah? You against two seasoned hunters?” The mare looked between them and went pale. She turned and rummaged in her money bag, shooting them looks of loathing over her shoulder. “Here. I'll give you a 10 bit discount” she said, shoving it into Orion's hands, “And in exchange you tell everyone what a bargain I offer?” Ratchet looked at the money for a moment and raised an eyebrow at Orion. “Hmm” the ghoul murmured, levitating the coin and rotating it mid-air. “Ten bits for free advertisement?” Orion said curtly, “Are you kidding?” The mare grimaced, shooting a glare of dislike as she hooked another five cents from her bag. “15 then. I won't go any worse than that.” Orion looked it over then pocketed it with a malicious grin, bowing her head to the mare. “Nice doing business with you, Iron Filings” the ghoul purred. As they walked away, she lightly tapped Wagtail in the side. “Good work, Birdie” Orion hummed, “You may have uses yet.” Wagtail beamed with pleasure as they approached the Purple Unicorn, main bar in the NLR. It consisted of an old, branded coffee shop that had been converted into a bar for tired ponies after a day of training. Alcohol wasn't strictly legal in the NLR, but if you told the guards it was apple juice, they normally smiled, nodded and helped themselves. You needed alcohol in the wastes. Fact. And there was no one who liked alcohol more than Ant. “I'm going to stay out here” Orion said, sitting down against the wall, “Alcohol fumes make me want to puke.” Ratchet shrugged, looking around as she pushed open the door. Inside there were half a dozen tables and chairs, almost all occupied, and a long narrow bar that went up the side of the room. Against the wall were dozens of bottles labelled cheery names such as Bloody Marey. Ratchet spotted Ant a mile off, wearing a distinctive brown, hole ridden fedora as he slumped against the bar, snoring loudly. With a small grimace, she fixed her face into a smile and nodded to Wagtail as they slowly wove through the groups of laughing people. Half a pint went down Wagtail's flank and Ratchet had to keep her temper as two drunks broke into a fight in front of her, over a popular card game in the wastes. It was called Nancy and Ratchet had never quite worked out the rules. At this point in time, she was convinced the winner consisted of whoever could cheat and shout the loudest and that suited her fine. Right now, someone was invoking some backwards country rule about picking up a card if your hand ran out and the other was protesting venomously that it didn't apply, even as their quiet friend sitting opposite them scooped up their money and walked off. Ratchet snorted and shoved past, almost knocking one guy into his glass as she approached the bar. “Sorry, excuse me, coming through” Wagtail simpered, wriggling and worming her way between people until she was at Ratchet's side. Ratchet shoved her hooves onto the table next to the fedora, waving the bartender over, a cutesy pink earth pony with short spiky blue hair and cutiemark in the shape of three bubbles floating from a bottle. “Can I help you?” the pony asked politely, as Ratchet eyed her silently with one brow raised. “Er, yeah, Spritzer” she replied gruffly, “Get me a bottle of your best cider plus a bottle of cola for the lady.” Spritzer nodded and trotted up the bar, tugging an old bottle out from under the counter. With a deft tug of her teeth, she twisted the lid off and popped the open bottle on the side. The label read Sweet Acres – an old brand that was quite rare now due to its taste. Spritzer poured the amber liquid into a pint glass and shoved it with her hoof towards Ratchet. Ratchet caught the cup deftly and took a sip, savouring the taste of honeyed apple gliding down her throat. It burnt as it hit the stomach, filling her with a hot fire that made her shiver. “Delicious, thanks, Spritz” Ratchet grinned, raising her glass to the other pony. Spritz smiled warmly and got out another glass, pouring a dark brown liquid in. “Coke for you, Miss...?” Spritz asked, shoving the glass towards her. “Wagtail” Wags said with a warm smile, “Thanks!” She had a quick sip of the drink then glanced curiously across to the fedora wearing chump. “Is he our person?” she asked curiously, peeking beneath the tilt of his fedora, “But he seems a little...drunk.” Ratchet grimaced, glancing sideways at the body. “If you ever catch him not drunk, that's the time to be surprised” she replied in a low hiss, gulping down another mouthful of cider, “It's his fuel, alcohol. Without it, he gets shaky and freaks out easily. Hasn't been the same for him since leaving his home stable. Excellent shot though!” “You know, just because I'm drunk, that don't mean I'm deaf” a low grumbling voice rippled out from under the hat. Ratchet turned as the body heaved itself upright and Ant turned to them, a look of displeasure on his rather long face. Wagtail started in surprise, “Oh, you're a-” “Mule?” Ant replied, tipping his hat up to better look at her and immediately his manner changed, “You have that correct, pretty lady.” He ducked his head. Like most, Ant had a long, broad face, with a pronounced muzzle covered in grey fur. The rest of his head was covered in beige, including long floppy ears that hung down on either side under his hat. One twitched constantly at every noise and his brown eyes flicked from Wagtail to Ratchet. Immediately, his face widened into a grin. “Why, if it isn't old Ratchy!” he exclaimed, patting her on the back with one hoof, “Decided to leave that backwards town of yours and head south to where the action is?” Ratchet grinned back, clasping his hoof tightly. “You could say that” she admitted with a shrug, “I hear the New Amazons are playing a messy ballgame around here.” Ant frowned, glancing at the ponies behind him, then lowered his voice, bending towards her, “Be careful what you say here. People are sensitive. Lots of deaths lately.” Ratchet frowned, glancing at Spritzer who was gazing fixedly at a glass in her hooves, polishing it over and over. “Point taken” she said with a small grimace, glancing at Wagtail who mimed zipping her mouth shut. Ant looked her over for a second then slumped back in his chair, crossing his hooves. “So?” he asked, “You want me in on something, don't you?” Ratchet chortled and took another gulp from her cider. “Is it that obvious?” Wagtail asked curiously, looking at Ratchet. “Honey” Ant said, reaching out to pat her once on the head, “Ratchet only ever comes to see me when she wants one of two things. And I bet it's not the first one, not after last time.” Ratchet reddened and slammed her glass down on the table, shooting evils at the mule. “I thought we agreed never to speak of that again” Ratchet snarled, ignoring Wagtail's curious looks. “Sure we did” he smirked back and leant forward, turning back to Wagtail, “So, sweetheart, the only other thing Ratchet ever wants is combat support. Because of this.” He drew back his cloak, revealing a metal armband clamped around his left foot. On the upwards side, a green screen glowed softly in the dark bar, a map blinking on its surface. “Stable-tec” Ant explained as Wagtail's mouth widened, “I grew up in one. This here is a pip-buck and it's pretty useful. Especially as it has an auto-aim feature. It also shows how many enemies are near by. Which is pretty darn useful if you're carrying out a hunt on a New Amazonia haunt, am I right, Ratchet?” Ratchet's mouth narrowed and she looked down at her drink, swirling it. “You're not wrong” she admitted begrudgingly. “So” Ant said gamely, “You're going after some raiders camp taken over by Amazons and you want me to act as walking radar. I'm cool with that. Count me in.” Ratchet frowned suspiciously, turning her head towards him. “And?” she prompted him, “What do you want in return?” Ant shook his head lightly. “Nothing much. Like I said, we've been affected by New Amazons here lately. I can't wait to kill a couple of those bitches. But now you mention it...” Ratchet stared at him flatly. “But?” She prompted again. “Weeellll” he said, leaning back in his chair, “A 40% share of profits wouldn't be bad either.” “25” Ratchet snapped. “30” Ant replied coolly. “28?” Wagtail butted in hopefully. “Done” said Ant with a grin. Ratchet swallowed the last of the cider and pushed her chair out, getting to her feet. “We're planning to head out tomorrow morning at dawn” she told Ant, “Gives you a chance to sober up a bit.” Ant nodded, slumping back against the bar. “Suits me” he said, “Though I work better on a bottle of whiskey.” Ratchet nodded to Spritzer and walked out, followed closely by Wagtail. “So what'd he say?” Orion asked. “Agreed to 28%” Ratchet informed her and Orion cocked her head. “Pretty good deal for Ant” she commented. “Yep. You can thank Wagtail again” Ratchet commented, grabbing the smaller pony with one arm. “Her pretty face is coming in useful!” Orion snorted. “So, dawn is it?” she asked. “Let's go buckle down then.” Ratchet nodded. They approached a hostel ran by a stout earth pony named Dreamy days. He showed them to a cot in a room occupied by thee other ponies and they made themselves comfortable. After the other pony showed discomfort, Ratchet allowed Wagtail to sleep top to tail with her. “Just don't kick, okay?” Ratchet warned as they lay down for the night. Wagtail got off to sleep fairly quickly, letting out little whistling snores as she buried her head in her pillow. Ratchet lay on her back, thinking about tomorrow until she couldn't take it any more. She flipped onto her side and squeezed her eyes shut, trying desperately to get some sleep. They had a long day ahead in the morning.