Fallout Equestria: The Light Within

by FireOfTheNorth

Chapter 50: Direction

Chapter Fifty: Direction

“He was here just two days ago. You barely missed him,” Sheriff Pumpernickel told us over breakfast, “Clear Rivers, he said his name was. Unicorn, yellow coat, wearing an old Equestrian Army officer’s uniform with buttons polished to a shine, if you can believe it. A real strange feller.”

After returning to The Strip for the night after Timbervale and our run-in with Rogue and Gertrude, our party had decided to head south, to Bitter Lake. Several things had motivated that decision instead of going after Boring, the last NLC settlement in Vanhoover that we knew of. I wanted to see how the trading alliance and defensive pact between Bitter Lake and Burnside were holding up, and if it might be time to try for a stronger alliance between the settlements. Also, with some much-appreciated help from Sage, The Strip’s leaders were open to alliances with other settlements against the Northern Lights Coalition. A concern I shared with Rare Sparks had brought us here as well. DJ Pon3’s reports on the Steel Rangers establishing dominance south of Vanhoover continued with Sage now at the helm, and we needed to know how Bitter Lake was holding out, as well as how the Steel Rangers really were behaving.

An additional reason I hadn’t considered, but really should have, was what Sheriff Pumpernickel was talking with us about now, as we prepared to leave the settlement. I should have expected that a new settlement would draw the NLC out sooner or later, especially with my companions and me taking out their previous members. On the same day we’d been dealing with Timbervale, Clear Rivers, Lord Lamplight’s recruiter now that Mr. Bucke was dead, had been here in Bitter Lake, offering them the chance to join the Northern Lights Coalition.

“I had to refuse his offer, of course,” the sheriff continued through a mouthful of haycakes, “Lord Lamplight ‘watching over us at all times.’ How stupid did he think we are? If we wanted to live under a steel hoof, we’d have surrendered to the Steel Rangers, no offense to present company.”

“None taken,” Rare said, though she did look worried, as she did whenever she thought about what had become of the Vanhoover contingent of the Steel Rangers.

“He threatened us,” Deputy Breaker said, as she levitated a coffee pot that had seen better days and poured herself another cup, “When his fancy words didn’t work, he went ‘join or die’ real fast.”

“I’ll say,” Pumpernickel said, “The one good thing about being nearly surrounded by the Steel Rangers is that if they want to ‘wipe our settlement out completely,’ they’re going to have a hard time getting a big enough force here to do it without getting stomped by the Rangers.”

“Well, be careful. The NLC has a way of getting to settlements. They’ve wiped out two so far, and that’s just that I know of,” I told the sheriff as I rose to leave, “Thank you for the breakfast, but we should be on our way. Think about what I told you about The Strip.”

“Sure, sure, we’d welcome the help, but they’re pretty far away,” Pumpernickel said, “If Crate City was in on it too, that would make me feel a lot better.”

“Thanks, maybe we’ll head there next,” I said.

I wasn’t sure exactly where we were going, but Crate City was as good a place as any. I meant what I’d said on the road back from Timbervale, about finding Lord Lamplight, but we had no idea where to even start looking. Clear Rivers probably knew, but he was long gone by now, and finding him would be just as hard. Maybe somepony in Boring knew, or somepony in one of the Stalliongrad settlements, though I didn’t want to leave Vanhoover until I knew it was safe for the moment. A four-way alliance between Burnside, Bitter Lake, The Strip, and Crate City would be a good start to ensuring the settlements’ safety against NLC attacks.

We’d left Bitter Lake well behind us, though the lighthouse was still clearly visible, when something broke through the cloud ceiling ahead of us. It looked like a missile, though from the distance it had to be far larger than any missile I’d ever seen. Leaving a fiery trail behind it, it plunged over us and toward Bitter Lake. I shielded my eyes as the blast went off, and the explosion seemed to fill my ears with cotton. When I looked back, Bitter Lake was completely gone, a fiery cloud rising over it. It wasn’t a megaspell, though for the result on so small a settlement, it may as well have been.

“Goddesses,” Rare Sparks swore, and Zherana turned to look at her momentarily before turning back to face the destruction with the rest of us.

“‘Wipe our settlement out completely.’ That’s what Sheriff Pumpernickel said Clear Waters told them,” I said in a daze, “Could the Northern Lights Coalition have done this?”

“Well, it wasn’t the Steel Rangers, not unless Elder Sagebrush has been very busy,” Rare Sparks said, “Maybe the Grand Pegasus Enclave, but why?”

“It was the Northern Lights Coalition,” Roaring Thunder said with certainty, and the rest of us turned to look at him, wondering what made him so sure, “Everything makes so much more sense now.”

“Makes sense?” Rare Sparks asked, “It sure doesn’t make sense to me. Care to illuminate the rest of us?”

“During the last days of the War, Equestria began development on a space program,” the Thunderbolt explained, “The griffins were well ahead of us by then, and they were selling weapons to the zebras, so we couldn’t let it stand. Equestria began launching satellites into orbit around Equus to gather and disseminate information. To launch something into space, rockets were built, and it was inevitable that some of these rockets would be used only as weapons. There are several missile sites I know of scattered across the north, but they’re all inoperable, and even if their missiles were undamaged, you couldn’t guide them to their targets without control of Equestria’s satellites. There must be another missile site somewhere, and the NLC has it, as well as where the satellites are controlled from. I know where Lord Lamplight is. He’s at Sat-Con.”

“You’re telling me that Lord Lamplight could just drop a missile on us whenever he wants?” Rare asked incredulously, “It’s a miracle we’re still alive!”

“Where is Sat-Con?” I asked earnestly, before thinking of another question, “What is Sat-Con?”

“Satellite Control, and I don’t know where it is, but there were few who did,” Roaring Thunder answered me, “It was a carefully guarded secret, and a pony foalnapped and experimented on against his will wasn’t exactly trusted. All I know is that it’s somewhere in the Ruins of the Old World. Where that is, I’m not sure, though it’s somewhere north of Frostpoint … and the Crystal Empire, I guess, though I never knew that even existed until recently.”

“That’s where we have to go, then,” I said with certainty, “General Shining Armor lived in the Crystal Empire. Maybe he left some clue as to Sat-Con’s location.”

“I must admit it’s possible,” Roaring Thunder considered, “It will be a long trip, and we’ll need to be well-prepared. We should also get out of here quickly. A missile streaking through the cloud ceiling is bound to attract the attention of the Grand Pegasus Enclave, and I’d rather not be here when they show up to investigate.”

***

Roaring Thunder explained as much as he could on the way back to The Strip, and we began to plan our journey. The Clinic would need to be stocked with plenty of supplies, which we could all get at The Strip. We also managed, with Sage’s help, to get a map of Equestria that pointed us toward our first destination. Frostpoint (the Crystal Empire, not marked of course) was far northeast of Stalliongrad. The rail lines that ran from Vanhoover to Stalliongrad continued on to Flankorage even farther east. About halfway between Stalliongrad and Vanhoover, the tracks were crossed by another set running between Flankorage in the north and Ponyville and Canterlot in the south. Where the railroads met, the map was marked as Northern Cross, which Roaring Thunder explained was once a large station town.

With our plan shaping up and everypony working on preparations, I decided to take another look into the mind and past of our enemy. The third Lord Lamplight memory orb sat ready for me to experience. I hoped that this time I wouldn’t be injured quite so severely as I reached out and touched its glassy surface with my magic.

<-=======ooO Ooo=======->

Lamplight had aged a few more years since his last memory, or so I felt. The soreness that seeped into his flesh had to come from somewhere other than just age, though. He’d been beaten recently. Two ponies held him up, ponies wearing gray-and-red Stable security barding. The room I was in was very familiar, as was the pony frowning at my host. Chairmare Peach Cream sat behind her desk in Stable 124’s Overmare’s office, hooves steepled in front of her.

“Your little ‘workers’ revolution’ is over,” Peach Cream said with disdain, “Really, what did you expect to accomplish?”

“Only espousing your own principles,” Lamplight said cheekily, which earned him a kick in the ribs.

“The Ponies’ Republic of Stalliongrad only works if each gives according to their ability,” Peach Cream lectured, “That means that the workers in The Stacks must do their jobs there, not try to overthrow their overseers and spread into the rest of the city.”

“You know my abilities have nothing to do with demolishing buildings or clearing out Wasteland filth,” my host said, “The same is true of many of the other ponies there. And the raiders you round up. Face the facts, they’re a slave labor force laboring under a different name.”

One of the ponies holding Lamplight up made to kick him again, but Peach Cream raised a hoof to stop it. She rose from behind her desk and trotted around to come face-to-face with my host.

“You don’t understand,” the chairmare said with a sorry shake of her head, “You will never understand that what we do, we do for good. We can’t send you back to The Stacks to sow more trouble, but neither can we execute you and turn you into a martyr. So, exile it is. You are to be expelled from the Ponies’ Republic of Stalliongrad. If you ever set so much as a hoof even within Traders’ Lane, you will be shot on sight. Take him away.”

“All I wanted was to join you!” Lamplight objected as the guards dragged him toward the door, “I wanted to be part of the PRS, and you enslaved me! Is this what you call civilization? If so, I want no part of it! I won’t forget this! I’ll tear you down one day! Mark my words! I’ll tear! You! Down!”

<-=======ooO Ooo=======->

To be thrust from that back into reality was a little jarring, especially since I woke up to Sage’s face hovering over me.

“Sweet dreams?” she asked, planting a peck on the tip of my muzzle before backing away.

“Uh … no,” I answered, before sitting up and regaining my composure, “But what else is new?”

Everypony else was also in our room in The Strip now. Zherana sat in a corner, staring intently at Sage and me, though it was impossible to read her expression (and not just because her face was rotting off the skull). Rare and Roaring Thunder were nearby, packing supplies into saddlebags to make them easier to carry. It wasn’t difficult to read their expressions as they grinned at the two of us.

“Rare said those are Lord Lamplight’s memories,” Sage said, “That true?”

“Yeah, and none of them pleasant. I’m beginning to see where he’s coming from,” I said, and Sage raised an eyebrow, “I don’t agree with him, I’m just saying I understand how he got to the conclusion he did, based on what’s happened to him. Do you all have everything we need?”

“Nearly, but there is a problem,” Roaring Thunder said, “If we end up going beyond the windigo fence, we’re going to need lots of winter weather supplies.”

Roaring Thunder had explained the windigo fence on the way back from Bitter Lake. Apparently, the land to the north of Equestria was inhabited by windigos, ethereal creatures that fed on disharmony and brought intense winter storms with them. A constant blizzard raged in the north, and as the War brought disharmony to Equestria, it had begun to move south. The Ministries of Magic and Technology had banded together and built a massive barrier along Equestria’s northern border to keep the windigos at bay, bottled up in the north. Now, everywhere north of the border was a relentless storm filled with windigos and out of the pegasi’s control.

“The Clinic won’t make it, not with the kind of conditions we’re expecting,” Rare Sparks said, “That means we’ll have to advance on hoof. We’ll need heavy-duty shelter and attire if you want to survive, and there isn’t anywhere we’re guaranteed to find something like that.”

“Me?” I asked.

“The rest of us can survive the cold and the weather,” Roaring Thunder said, “I have my suit, Rare her Steel Ranger armor, and Zherana will be completely unaffected.”

“Not completely, but I’ll be alright,” Zherana said.

“I see. I need protection against the storm of a similar caliber to yours,” I said, before smiling, “Good thing I know where to get a set of Steel Ranger armor.”

***

The Vanhoover MWT Hub. The last time we’d been here was over two months ago, when Elder Manticore’s Fury had been buried and Rare had left the Steel Rangers. Ache had been with us then, and though I’d “met” both Roaring Thunder and Zherana, I’d been unable to call either traveling companions. So much had changed in so short a time.

My friends weren’t the only ones who had changed. The camaraderie and vigor that I’d seen among the Steel Rangers previously was diminished. Judging by reports on Radio Free Wasteland, the Vanhoover contingent was nearly constantly involved in policing their territory now, enforcing Steel Ranger rule in the area. Those who’d believed in Elder Manticore’s Fury’s vision couldn’t be having a good time.

Only I was permitted to enter the MWT Hub, while everypony else in my entourage had to remain outside. At least one of the Steel Rangers on guard duty chatted with Rare, at least. I was a little worried about entering the Steel Rangers’ headquarters on my own, especially with a PipBuck strapped to my foreleg. I had to trust that they wouldn’t simply imprison and rob me, though. The Steel Rangers couldn’t have fallen that far that fast. If they did, I also knew that my friends would attempt to come to my rescue. How successful they’d be, I couldn’t say, but they would try.

Elder Sagebrush received me privately, in the office she’d taken after becoming Elder. It had once been a conference room, like many of the rooms here, but she’d cleared out the table and chairs and replaced them with a sturdy desk. She sat behind it, eyes narrowed, as I approached.

“Please, take a seat,” she said, gesturing with her prosthetic foreleg.

I complied, choosing the central of the three chairs facing her desk so that I could look her in the eye.

“I know what you’re here to ask, and the answer is no,” Sagebrush said, staring me down.

“Elder Manticore’s Fury promised me that armor once you were done researching and altering it,” I said, jumping right into the issue, “I think a hundred days is long enough for me to be expected to wait.”

“You must understand that I must act in the best interest of the Steel Rangers, the Ministry of Wartime Technology, and Equestria,” Sagebrush lectured as if I were merely ignorant, “Turning over Steel Ranger armor—a unique and advanced suit, in this case—to a Wastelander is unthinkable and irresponsible. The Steel Rangers are the only ones with the right to possess Shining Armor’s power armor.”

“That was my reward for completing Operation: Flankorage for you,” I fumed.

“Half your reward,” Sagebrush reminded me, “And I daresay that was still more than you deserved. All we needed was your PipBuck, and I still say we should have just taken it from you. It would have been much simpler.”

“What’s wrong with you?” I asked, and the elder’s eyes widened in surprise, “You claim to act in the Wasteland’s best interest, but if that was true, then you’d be out there helping ponies like Elder Fury wanted, instead of hording technology and building your own little autocracy.”

“The Wasteland doesn’t know what’s in its best interest, and that’s the point. Equestria destroyed itself once with technology, and it’s the Steel Rangers’ duty to make sure it doesn’t happen again.”

“You probably don’t put any weight in my opinion since I’m an outsider, but you’re going about it in the wrong way,” I said, “I’ve seen the good that can be done by the Steel Rangers when your technology is used to help ponies. I met a pony in Stalliongrad with a prosthetic like yours, given to him by a Steel Ranger scribe. I bet that same scribe built your foreleg for you. They helped the Wasteland, not like you.”

Elder Sagebrush stood, letting her chair roll back and bang into the wall, and I wondered if I’d gone too far. Lifting her mechanical foreleg up onto the desk, she considered it. The expression on her face didn’t change, but something in her eyes was different when she looked back up at me.

“I built this prosthetic, and I was the scribe who gave that pit-slave his leg and his voice back,” Sagebrush said, shocking me, “That was a long time ago. I was a foolish idealist back then, following another foolish idealist. Head Scribe Straight Paths took me under his wing, tried to teach me that Wastelanders deserved Steel Ranger protection, deserved our help, and I ate it up. I was on a field mission with him when a landmine took him, the same landmine that took my leg. That changed my perspective. That landmine was left by Wastelanders, and Wastelanders we had helped, hoping to get their hooves on some Steel Ranger armor to settle a feud or some such nonsense. We can only trust ourselves and our own ideals. Trying to help the Wasteland on its own terms just gets you shot in the back.”

“You won’t be getting Shining Armor’s power armor,” Sagebrush said with finality, “Now leave, before I decide you’re unfit to own that PipBuck and that magical energy rifle, too.”

I was too surprised by Sagebrush’s revelation to do much more than stand there. I thought about saying something, maybe that she hadn’t been wrong when she was younger, but I was sure that it wouldn’t be accepted. Likely it would end very badly for me, so I turned and left.

I’d been counting on acquiring that set of power armor for protection in the Frozen North, but now it looked like I’d have to find another plan. The thought crossed my mind to steal the armor, but I doubted I’d get very far before the Steel Rangers stopped me. No, I’d have to find something else that would keep me from freezing to death in a windigo-infested wasteland.

“What did she say?” Scribe Pestle asked as she trotted up alongside me, jerking me out of my introspection.

“Does everypony know why I’m here?” I asked, and Pestle nodded, “What do you think? She said no.”

Pestle looked thoughtful for a moment before beckoning me to follow her into a side hallway. Intrigued, I did, until she turned into a nook. She motioned for my PipBuck, and I raised my foreleg, letting her tap away at it. I watched as she added information to the map my PipBuck had auto-generated of the MWT Hub.

“Tonight, after sunset, go to Outflow Vent #3. Rare Sparks will know where to find it,” the scribe whispered as she continued to work at my PipBuck, “Follow the instructions, but don’t make any noise. This will lead you to the workshop where your armor is held. Everything will be unlocked to let you through.”

“You’re helping me steal the armor?” I said softly, and Pestle winced at the word “steal,” “Why?”

“It’s yours, isn’t it?” she said as she looked up at me, “Elder Manticore’s Fury promised it to you. Elder Sagebrush has no right to deny it.”

“Thank you,” I told her.

“Don’t thank me until you have the armor and are well away from here,” she replied, “Now go, before somepony wonders why you haven’t left yet.”

***

That night, I was right where Scribe Pestle had said to be. The headlamps of patrolling Steel Rangers flashed through the night, forcing me to stay low and move quickly and quietly to reach Outflow Vent #3. I was on my own, but the others realized I had to go alone again. Zherana had wanted to come, and I almost considered it, since she was probably stealthier than me; truth be told, though, I was a little worried she’d try to kill any Steel Rangers we came across (and maybe succeed). I didn’t consider them to be my enemies and didn’t want to hurt them unless I had to.

The outflow vent was a massive cylinder that jutted out of a hillside behind the MWT Hub, just as Rare had described. I hopped in and made my way over to the gate that barred the way. As Pestle had promised, it was unlocked, and I hurried inside. I fumbled along in the dark at first, until I was sure that the light from my PipBuck’s lamp spell wouldn’t be seen by the patrols outside. I checked the map of the tunnels under the MWT Hub constantly as I followed Pestle’s instructions.

I left the tunnel I was in once I got close to the workshop, passing through a door whose electronic lock had been disabled into maintenance passageways. Pipes and cables lined the walls here, and every so often a grate overhead let light in. Following Pestle’s directions, I reached the workshop. Most of the floor here was grate, and I could see my armor, as well as the two scribes who’d been working on and studying it. Pestle hadn’t mentioned Bright Beam being in on this conspiracy, so I waited a few minutes to see if she’d leave. When it appeared that they were both waiting for something, I decided to risk it and displaced one of the grates to the side so I could climb out into the workshop.

“There you are,” Bright Beam said, “I was beginning to think I’d forgotten to unlock one of the gates.”

“We have to hurry,” Pestle said.

This set of power armor, designed for Shining Armor and stored beneath SAS, locked by his Flankorage simulation, was different from most other power armors I’d seen in the Wasteland. It was lighter but also more advanced, more similar to Roaring Thunder’s suit than what Rare Sparks wore. Consequently, it didn’t need a rack and a hoist to get me into it. The belly of the suit slid aside, as did the front of the hindlegs and the back of the forelegs. Pestle fitted me with the neckpiece before I crawled underneath it. It was a bit awkward, especially getting my tail into the armored portion at the back, but I managed. As the neckpiece slid into place, a soft chime started sounding and a light flashed next to a button on the collar.

“Don’t worry, ponies are used to hearing that,” Bright Beam said as the chime started, “Press that once you’re ready to close the armor up.”

I made sure I was well and truly in place before pressing the button with my magic. The leg and belly pieces of the armor slid into place, snugly closing me in. Pestle and Bright Beam had done a good job at altering the armor to my measurements: it fit perfectly. They’d even added a personal touch, likely done in the last few hours. The cutie-mark of Shining Armor that had adorned the flanks of the armor had been replaced by the symbol of the Ministry of Peace in yellow. It had been the symbol on the shoulders of the Yellow doctor’s coat that was now stuffed into the saddlebags draped over my neck, and it felt good to know that I would continue to display the symbol in this armor.

Strength surged through me once the armor closed up, allowing me to lift the heavy armor as if it were no more than average barding. Like Rare Sparks and Roaring Thunder, it seemed I didn’t need to be wearing the helmet in order to use the armor. With her magic, Bright Beam lifted the helmet onto my head anyway, the horn on it sliding over my own. Displays sprung up across my vision to let me control the armor and view my PipBuck without taking off the armor that now encased it.

“I didn’t ask before, but you came back for the armor because you’re headed for something dangerous, aren’t you?” Pestle asked once I was all suited up.

“I am,” I admitted. If charging into the Northern Lights Coalition’s headquarters in the Frozen North to pick a fight with Lord Lamplight wasn’t dangerous, I didn’t know what would be.

“Good luck,” the scribe told me.

“With your help,” I said as I gestured to the armor while headed toward the hole in the floor, “I may not need it.”

[Max Level Reached]
Unique Equipment acquired: Shining Armor’s Power Armor – A unique, advanced set of power armor built for but never worn by General Shining Armor and then customized by the Steel Rangers.
Lord Lamplight Memory Orb (Civilization, Such as It Is): +1 to Charisma
New Quest: City on the Edge of Equestria – Travel to Frostpoint and the Crystal Empire.
Charisma +1 (5)