The whole of the throne room was silent. Everypony was looking at the three people standing in front of Celestia, who was silent for what seemed an eternity. She looked upon the three with an even stare.
Finally, she spoke. "Very well then. You are kind enough to give us your names, it is only polite we do the same. I am Princess Celestia. I govern the day and rule alongside my sister, Princess Luna. But I must warn you," she closed her eyes. There was a flash of bright light, and when they could see again they saw that Celestia had teleported down from her throne to face the three. When she opened her eyes, the even stare was replaced with a fiery glare, "If you dare make any kind of threat towards my ponies once more, I will make sure you never see day or night ever again."
The room fell silent once again, before being broken by a short laugh from the one that called herself Shepard. "Good, we needed to see how you'd react." She stopped glowing.
Celestia was bemused. "Excuse me?!"
The one named Zia spoke this time. "I believe that the three of us share the same opinion: If a ruler doesn't care for their subjects, they aren't fit to rule. I control a city, but I make sure to treat everyone with respect and dignity. Even those who see to take it away from me. You care about your people, er, ponies. And I am sure your sister does too. In that case, we have no quarrel with you or any of your people."
Celestia fixed her a look that demanded explanations. "Then why exactly did you engage in a fight with those two that resulted in damage to these ponies village?"
The man, Darvish, spoke. "I believe the purple unicorn put it best. We didn't exactly have all our bearings, so it went a bit like this: We wake up in an unfamiliar land."
"Not exactly uncommon for me, but whenever I wake up I'm usually in the same world," commented Zia.
"Indeed. As I was saying, unfamiliar world. So, we see two other humans-"
"Ah, so that's what your species is called" interjected Twilight.
"Yes," answered Shepard, "but where I come from there are many different species which are sapient."
"Same as my homeland, Tamriel. I believe there are at least eight other intelligent species. Well, eleven, but I'll talk about that later" remarked Darvish
"And so it seems that only my Earth is normal. Oh wait, it isn't, but that's for another time." Zia had a dark look on her face as she said this.
"Anyway," continued the man, "We see two other humans and start to talk. Then we finally look around to see where we were. And realise that we are surrounded by horses."
"Ponies" Twilight corrects him.
"Wait, so these are ponies? How do you two know so much about them?" Asked Zia.
Shepard was confused. "But... you said you're from Earth. Aren't there ponies or horses in your world?"
Zia was nonchalant as she spoke. "There could be, but I've never seen any. It's most likely that they've all died out."
You could have heard a speck of dust hit the floor in the silence that came. Everyone, from the two other humans, to Celestia, to the crowd, even the guards-ponies were all staring at the Courier in shock, mouths wide open.
It was Celestia who broke the silence. "Would... would you care to explain what happened to your world that could result in that?" Everyone was horrified, and a few ponies even had tears in their eyes.
The Courier sighed, taking off her glasses and rubbing the bridge of her nose. She turned to Shepard. "I think it's obvious you are from a more advanced time-line than mine. What year is it there?"
Shepard was startled slightly at the abrupt question. "Erm, I come from the twenty-second century, the year... 2185 I believe."
Zia spoke again. "I'm not completely sure what year it is, but I do know that it's the twenty-third century, and that two hundred years ago, there was a nuclear war that devastated the earth." Shepard was the only one looking horrified now. The others just looked confused.
"Excuse my ignorance if you will, but, what exactly is 'nuclear'?" asked the Princess.
"A nuclear missile, to be more precise," answered the Courier, "Is... well... think of it this way: The result is a rapidly expanding fireball that vaporises everything within at least a few kilometres of the blast zone." There were cries of horror from the crowd, coupled with looks of disbelief. "But that's not the worst part!" She shouted above the yells. The congregation of ponies fell silent again.
"No," said Shepard, "The worst part is the aftermath. The radiation." Her voice was low.
"Yeah, radiation," sighed Zia, "The explosion is bad, yes, but all you would have to do for a normal one is just wait for the smoke and fire to clear to rebuild and re-settle. Not with nuclear missiles, not with radiation. If you're lucky, you were either caught in the blast and instantly killed, or absorbed so many rads so quickly that your death was quick and painless. Radiation would taint an area for centuries, slowly killing or mutating anyone living near it. It was effectively a 'salting the earth' type of weapon. If anything grew, it grew wrong."
Silence once again fell on the entire room. This time, it was Rarity who shattered the oppressive silence, tears staining her alabaster coat, voice trembling as she spoke. "I-If you d-don't mind me as-asking, how l-long have you lived in s-such a ter-terrible place?"
Zia gave a small smile. "Thirty three years. Damnedest thing is, as bad as it sounds, it's actually a lot better."
Now, the room was filled with puzzled expressions. Twilight spoke next. "But, everything you just said sounds horrible. How could it be better?"
The Courier gave a tiny laugh. "Heh, you know the old saying 'a pessimist see's half a glass of water as half empty, and an optimist see's it half full'? Well, that's how I see the place. A world half-full, because civilisation is getting back on its feet. New Vegas is just one beacon of hope in the world. Besides, I'm not gonna be leaving it behind until I see good progress."
It was then that Celestia remembered what this whole thing had originally been about. "You have obviously had a harsh life, and I wish you no more hardships. However, we managed to go off on a massive tangent. Please tell me I'm not the only one who remembers the reason we started discussing these three."
The crowd looked slightly embarrassed, though still felt sympathy for the Courier.
"Yeah," said Zia, "Our punishment. You said you were going to compensate these ponies. May I ask how much that would cost?"
"Okay then." Celestia looked back to the damage report. "The combined total would be... 10,000 Bits."
The three looked at each other, then Darvish spoke. "We did a lot more damage than I had thought."
Shepard glanced at him. "Were any of us actually paying attention to the damage we did?"
The other two looked sheepish, but then Zia spoke up. "Well, if you would give me a moment, I might have something to help with that."
She started rummaging around the various pockets and carry bags on her person. What she pulled out made everyone gasp in amazement.
There were murmurs in the crowd of 'No way' and 'Unbelievable'.
"Is that really what I think it is?" asked Twilight.
Zia couldn't help but grin. "Yep," she said, "Thirty-five pounds of pure gold."
Darvish could only stare in awe. "By the Nine."
Shepard just whistled in admiration.
Celestia just stared, mouth wide open, for a few moments before shaking her head to regain some composure. "You... are you really willing to just give that to us? Most people would guard that much money with their lives!"
The Courier gave a small smile. "A friend once told me that, sometimes, you just have to let go. Even then it doesn't really matter when I have about thirty of them lying around. Though that was the only one on me."
"This will certainly pay for that compensation, and there'll still be enough left over for repairs. Even still, I can't just let you go. If I did that, then any criminal would get it into their heads that all they have to do is pay off their crimes. I have to find some way to reprimand you."
Darvish spoke up. "Well, during our fight, I couldn't help but notice that some ponies looked very amused. How about we give you a show?"
He could feel the entire room staring at him, though the other two were in thought. It HAD been a while since they last met anyone their match. It would be a challenge, which all of them would welcome, and it could be fun.
The man gave his neck an awkward rub. "I mean, one without breaking any more buildings. This castle is big, surely there has to be an arena of some kind?"
The Princess thought about it for a moment. "Very well. I would like to see exactly just how you three managed to cause so much damage. The guards sparring arena is big enough."
She then addressed the crowd. "Those who would like to see the fight, follow me. If you would like to claim your compensation, please talk to one of the ponies in the main hall, they will be able to help you." She started walking through the crowd, which parted for her, the three following close behind.
FUS RO good chapter.
dead money so much money
717000 Eeyup.
Yeah, the fight is gonna be so badass.
It's a shame that the Lone Wanderer isn't there, though.
Very nice chapter. Absolutely love it. *Does more flattery*
717071 Actually, I never really thought of villains from other video games. The Overlord might be good, but now I'm thinking of, say, a commissar or Space Marine from Warhammer 40k, you know, to add the contrast of good humans nice towards ponies and bad humans thinking the ponies are xenos scum that have to be purged in the name of the Emperor.
Also it would give me a valid excuse for the Courier to have a chainsword.
'Cause chainswords are boss.
717135 I think that if I did have a Spess Mahreen, he would be a normal one. And would be friendly towards the three. Until he started talking about 'purging the xenos scum', at which point he would be evil/ an antagonist. And maybe a follower of Tzeentch that turns the Mahreen to Chaos when he's desperate.
You know, if you have any more ideas, may as well PM me. Don't really wanna clog the comments with discussions for villains.
meh this was ok. Then agian I can't say very much since all my stories are apparently shit because of what other people think.
It didn't really make sense when they went like "HUR HUR just testing ya ruling status."
regardless it was an ok chapter. Kinda hoped there would be more.
717397 Okay that actually made me laugh. But if ya think about it, they kinda have good reason. They all know that appearances can be decieving, and both The Courier and The Dragonborn have dealt with bad rulers (Caeser for the Courier, and from my PoV at least Jarl Ulfric for the Dragonborn. And before anyone says that Ulfric did care for his people, he was incredibly racist towards anyone that wasn't a Nord or Imperial. Though he has a good reason for hating High Elves. Fuckin' Thalmor). As for Shepard, really I can only think of the Council. I know they weren't bad, but they have been kind of dicks to her for almost as long as she's known them. Taking out anger, maybe?
Twenty bucks on Shepard
717453
No i understand the reasons behind it but it seemed...wrong for some reason. Like something just wasn't right about how it played out. I get they would feel that way but the way they expressed it by testing her in such a remedial way was just......Not saying they shouldn't feel that way. I personally believe it felt just a bit off and out of character in a way. I mean both those characters did judge leaders but they also judged them over time. And i think their simultanious 'hey we should test her' without talking to eachother felt wrong to me...That is what happened right? I didn't skip a important detail?
717112
You call marines bad again and I will have this whole god-damned planet ordered for exterminatus.
FOR THE GOD EMPRAH! YOU WORTHLESS XENOS LOVER
2 thing first 3 word yes times infinite seconde 3 letters WTF and yes again
anyway keep it up
717837 'EY BOYZ! DIS 'UMIE FINKS DEM SPACE BEAKIES ARE TUFF!
LETZ SHOW 'IM A PROPPA WAAAGH!!!
Orks FTW
717867
AND YOU WILL DIE BY MY BLADE, XENOS SCUM
LOOK AT MY AVATAR, DOES HE NOT LOOK WORTHY ENOUGH TO SLAY 10000 ORKS?
717869 ORKS IS MADE FER FIGHTIN' AND WINNIN'. WE GOTZ SHOOTAS AND CHOPPAS AND STOMPAS. WE GOTS MORE DAKKA DEN EVEN DOSE PANSY TAU. WE GOTS GORK AN' MORK.
BUT BEST UV' ALL, WE GOTS DA WWWWAAAAAAAGHHHHHH!!!!!!
BOYZ, SHOW DIS' 'UMIE GIT WHY ORKS IS DA BIGGEST AND DA STRONGEST!
717886
The thing is Xenos, even with the power of the "mighty" waagh, it is still no match for the astartes, we will find you and hunt you until there is no soul left in our god-emperor's body, and when we do, even Khorne will look away in terror.
My Armour is Contempt
My Shield is Disgust
My Sword is Hatred
In the Emperor's Name, Let None Survive
717910 *What results is a massive and glorious battle between the mighty Adeptus Astartes and the ferocious Orks.*
But in the grim darkness of the 41st millennium, there is only war. Standing in the bloody and broken battlefield, the Space Marines Chapter Master and the Ork Warboss engage in mortal combat.
They both failed to notice the Imperator class Titan that was hidden behind one of the many corpses, until they were staring the guns in the barrel. They both wondered how they had missed it. I mean, it would take some kind of tactical geni-
And as the battlefield erupted in fire, a scream was heard throughout the entire universe. One of pure malice and anger:
"CREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEDDDDDDDDDD!!!"
717910
717952
Excuse me my good sirs, but I represent the firm of Brass & Moore, a company specializing in battlefield enhancers for the discerning buyer. We believe everybody has the basic right to kill each other, as bloodily as they see fit, and we hope to help them live that dream. Might I interest you in some of our products?
I just came up with an enemy idea.....
encrypted-tbn3.google.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTKIPKu0alD37pfF4DksJdkns62mXV8SuqmOZK5z0WMYajgnhUx
Trapped In Space Time - Priestess
Alright, so Dovahkiin is the typical Nord smashy-smashy guy. I'm guessing Shep is rolling soldier. A biotic class would have been interesting with the magic interplay, but a sentinel tank could be interesting.
That leaves the Courier. Sneaky assassin backstabber would be interesting for the difference from the rest, and given the background, since being Indie in New Vegas requires backstabbing or pissing off all the other major factions.
719338 Or just a 'walks in and shoots until everyone else is dead' kinda Courier. But I would love it if the Courier still has her holdout weapons...and Celestia forgot to take her ammo.
I would love it if some companions showed up too (mainly Veronica!)
I am putting my Money on the courier mainly because i love Fallout :3 And she better have a plasma rifle ! (Oh, and she might have mini-nukes :3)
719338>>719438>>720119 Actually, my Shepard is a Vanguard. Really, after importing my Vanguard Shep into ME2, I realised that every class would just be boring. And the Dovahkiin has some offensive spells, but he is more of a 'whack you upside the head with a bigass hammer' kind of guy.
The Courier? She's the wild card. I always play them unarmed if possible, mainly so I can punch peoples heads off, but she's also quite good with ranged weapons, particularly her magnum revolver. However, her biggest advantages will be her intelligence and stealth, as well as a couple of perks and implants.
Gonna be hilarious when Shep Biotic Charges her and she doesn't budge an inch because of Stonewall, and then Shep is punched across the room or paralysed thanks to Paralysing Palm.
Also Relevant Heavy Metal I just got your name.
Clappie, The Courier will rarely be using energy weapons, though she does carry the YCS/186 (the unique gauss rifle) for any tougher enemies. If I do decide to bring in companions, like DuFresne is suggesting, then I might bring in Arcade Gannon to offset the lack of plasma-y dakka.
717062Lone Wanderer would win, though.
This, kind sir, is the best crossover in the whole history of the ponyverse.
Where the hell are Ezio and Master Chief?
Son, I am dissapoint.
717867
GIT! DA ORKZ ARE ALREADY HERE!
suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/17580591/images/1326856933545.png
READS YOU THIS THREAD! BECAUSE THEN YOU KNOWS, AND KNOWING IS HALF THE WAAAAAGH!
suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/17580591/images/1326862336211.png
725302 Why does this make so much sense.
And why did I never think about it like that before.
That is amazing.
SHIT IS GETTING REAL
.........Where's the Master Chief, or Samus, or Gordon Freeman? You need a least one character with Bassas power armo.r. But that's just opinion
another male
I hope to see a FUS RO DAH! later. That is my favourite thing about Skyrim. I haven't played the two other games, so I'm might be a little confused
How'd he survive? The glitch? Did he come back and mini-nuke the door open?
720331 Oh yes. One hundred Unarmed, Paralyzing Palm, all of the Unarmed special moves, and Piercing Strike (others optional, these are the main ones to add to damage.) means that everyone basically becomes red mist as soon as you punch them in the face.
717062 Who's the Lone Wanderer?
I think the citizens of Equestria are managing the psychological onslaught of these peoples' presence rather... well. Particularly given the "warrior culture" and "nuclear devastaion" aspects...
Nothing mechanics-wise stuck out, and it seems interesting, but the story seems to gloss over certain, well, factors.
717508 I'll take that bet and raise you 50 towards dragonborn, BECOME ETHERIAL BITCH!!
793446
the Lone Wanderer was the protagonist of fallout 3 (the character here (Courier) is Fallout New Vegas). the lone wanderer (with enough time and tactical perk/level/weapon choosing) could become an unstoppable power house that would curb-stomp even the toughest Courier (because Fallout 3 had a much higher level cap, 60 I believe, while New Vegas maxed out at 30)