Fallout Equestria: Dust

by Mr Foster

Chapter 3: PonyVille

“Dust, get up!” Said an aggressive voice in my ear. I opened my eyes open slowly, and I saw Sophia staring at me angrily.

“What up, sweetie?” I asked in a mocking tone, slightly smirking.

“That’s what’s up!” She shouted, pointing at the bullet hole in my chest armor.

I groaned. She was always thinking wounds were so much worse than they actually were. I used my magic to pull off my chest piece, so she could make sure the wound was clean and uninfected.

“Grab a belt. I’m going to do live surgery on this.” Said Sophia, and I levitated a belt into my mouth, biting on it.

Sophia cut into my stomach, using a scalpel, and I bit down hard on the belt. The pain was unbearable, but it wasn’t the worse I had experienced. Sophia pulled the bullet out, and then healed the little incision and bullet wound closed.

“Thanks, I owe you one.” I said, putting my chest piece back on.

“You owe me a whole lot more than one.” Said Sophia, walking over to the sink to clean off her tools.

“Say, this is off topic, but is there anyone special in your life?” I asked, fastening the chest piece snugly, so it wouldn’t fall off.

“Uh, well there’s this one guy, why?” Sophia asked, turning to me, her gleaming blueberry eyes gleaming in the darkness.

“Oh, no reason. Stupid Darin’ asked me why I haven’t settled down yet.” I said, looking around the wooden cabin. It was empty, which was a relief. I didn’t like seeing wounded ponies, and it always made me cringe.

“Oh, well, he asked me the same thing.” Said Sophia, looking at the clock.
“I better go and check on those mares, make sure they’re settled down.” I said, walking towards the door.

“Wait, Dust! Where are you going to sleep tonight?” Sophia asked, slightly chasing after me.

I didn’t exactly know. Most of the time I slept in whatever town I was staying in’s tavern. I didn’t have a place at base.

“I don’t know. I’ll figure something out. Don’t you worry.” I said, walking out the front door, into the pouring rain. I sighed, pulling my gasmask from my saddle bags, and fastening it on. I walked over to the Stable 57 hotel, my red lenses glowing bright red. I entered the hotel, which was once a vault, and had now been turned into a hotel.

“Excuse me, can you tell me where the 5 mares that checked in about 3 hours ago rooms are?” I asked kindly, pulling off my gasmask.

“Yes. They are in room 204, second level.” Said the earthpony at the front desk.

I walked over to the stairs, and opened the door. I felt a whoosh of cool air hit my face, and I remembered that the stairs were hanging on the edge of oblivion. I walked up, not looking down into the never ending darkness, and into the second floors lobby. From there I took the left corridor down the hall, which had a disgusting wall paper on it, to room 204. I heard some talking from inside and the constant sound of Rarity’s complaints about not being able to wash her “glorious mane”.

I knocked on the door, and I heard Twilight shushing the ponies.
“Who is it?” Asked Twilight, looking through the peep hole.

“It’s Dust. I got some food for you guys.” I said, looking in my saddle bag. It was filled with pre-war delights, such as cupcakes, pie, and even a golden delicious apple. Then there was the crap I had to put up with, like bloat sprite meat, fire crocodile steak, and other such things.

The door opened and the girls looked at me worriedly. I then realized they wanted to know about Fluttershy.

“She’ll pull through. Here, I got you some food.” I said, pulling some of the Pre-war sweets out of my food compartment. They all walked over, and started to eat them, ravaging the multi-colored foods. It wasn’t enough to feed them all, so I brought out the nasty stuff. I laid out several cooked steaks, and some purified water.

“What is this?” Asked Rainbowdash, touching one in disgust.

“Sorry for the terrible food, but it’s all I could find that didn’t taste like dead people.” I said, pulling out the last golden delicious apple.

They all dug in, and surprisingly, liked it. All except Rarity, who was too busy pouting about her ruined mane.

“My goodness, it’s disgusting! It has dust, and dirt, and grime, and is uneven!” Said Rarity, who was using her water to clean out her hair.

“Oh, will you shut the buck up?” Asked Applejack, who was trying to cope with the stress of the hell hole she was in. I sighed, looking at all the ponies, when my radio crackled.

“Dust! Where the buck are you?” Shouted a voice through the speakers. Darin’.
I pressed the button with my lower jaw, and talked into it.

“Darin’! What’s wrong?” I asked, looking at the ponies, who had taken no notice to what I was doing.

“Chrysalis’ legion found about them ponies! Now she wants them, and she’s on the edge of what were sweet apple acres.” Shouted Darin’ through the radio. Applejack flinched at that, and immediately stood up.

“Alright, I’ll be there as soon as I can. Ponyville, right?” I asked, pulling my gasmask over my face.

“Eeyup. Get here as soon as you can, aight’?” asked Darin’, the sounds of gunshots in the background.

“Acknowledged.” I said, turning the radio off.

“Well, excuse me girls, but I must cut our visit short. Duty calls.” I said my rifles action cocking.

“I’m coming.” Said Applejack, who was now standing up.

“No you aren’t. There is no way in hell, that a civilian pony is gonna go in to battle, thinking that she can take the pain, just to get shot through the head by some Pegasus with good aim.” I said, abruptly walking out the door. I heard her sigh, and I walked out of the hotel.

In the front of the hotel was a Humvee, ready to go. I walked over, jumped onto the roof, then into the gunner’s slot. We sped off the night surrounding our small car.

It was near 9 o’clock when I got to Ponyville. The place was a hellhole, filled with the explosions of rockets, and the sound of gunshots. I got out of the Humvee, pulling my rifle over my shoulder, and walking over to the library tree house. I climbed to the top, nesting myself in the branches. By now, the legion had made its way into the town, and was wreaking havoc. I turned on my night vision, and slid the silencer onto the rifle’s barrel. I aimed down the scope, finding a target, and firing. I felt the rifles kick, and I saw the blood spatter out of the Legionaries’ chest. He fell, still alive, screaming for help.

Bait.

I watched as his friends came over, and I fired more shots into them, killing these ones. The one who was incapacitated slowly bled out, as I watched his pulse of light in my scope slow to a stop. I then moved, seeing a bunch of unicorns holding machetes attack the flank. I turned my body around, firing into them. Most of them were killed off the bat, but there were an unlucky few who had their spines shattered by the bullets. I then heard a slight whistling, and I saw a mortar impact a group of NCR soldiers, scattering and dismembering them. I grimaced at the sight, and then scanned to see the mortar squad. I saw them, there heat signatures masked by the long dead apple trees on the edge of Ponyville. I fired a single round, and then the group exploded. I had hit their mortar box, and it obviously left devastating results.

Then, the legion’s cannon fodder came. Hundreds upon hundreds of soldiers walked over the hill, all carrying long range weapons. I took a deep breathe, and then aimed into the darkness. It was going to be a long night.

I woke up, the sunlight poking through the grey clouds. It was a rare spectacle, but it was enjoyable. I stood up, being wary that I was still in the tree. I stood up, looking across the barren landscape. It was a mix of blood, bullet casings, and bodies. The stench of burning flesh lingered in the air, and I noticed the pile Legion bodies. I didn’t have a good look at the enemy in the dark, but I presumed they were changelings, seeing as how Chrysalis is one. Instead, they were ponies. Piles upon piles of ponies. From the oldest hag, to the youngest filly. It occurred to me that the brutality of the legion was limitless, using slaves, and children to fight. I even saw a filly without a cutie mark. I pulled off my mask, and jumped off the top of the tree. I hit the ground with a grunt. I walked over to the pile of bodies, and I saw Darin’ crying over a body of a purple mare.
I very well knew who he was crying over. It was his sister, Violet Sun. She had taken a rifle round to her chest, and her breathe was shallow.

“Darin’ I’m so sorry.” I said, putting my hoof on his shoulder.

“Just… just go away.” Said Darin’, his voice choking.

“Look, Rose. Relax.” I hadn’t used his first name in a long time.

“Please… just put her out of her misery.” Said Darin’, who was holding a handgun in his hoof. My eyes grew wide, and a tear erupted from my right eye. I couldn’t just very well kill Darin’s last family member. I grew up with them, they were lifelong friends.

“Wait.” I heard. It was barely a whisper, but I knew who it came from.
“Violet?” Asked Darin’, who held her hoof-in-hoof.
“Rose. I wanted to say that you’ve been a good big brother too me. You taught me the ropes of life. You kept me alive and well after ma and pa died.” Said Violet, and then I heard Darin’ crying once again.

“Don’t do this to me, Vi.” Said Darin’, looking Violet in her dying eyes.

“I want you to know, you are my big brother. And you will always be my big brother. No matter what comes between us. Whether it is death, hate, or a wall, you will always be my big brother. I want you to know that. That no matter what, you are my family, and it will always be that way.” Said Violet, her eyes slowly closing.

“Violet? Vi?” Asked Darin’, his eyes watering up again. She didn’t respond. She drew her last breathe, and then rested, eternally.

I pulled my gasmask over my heart, and the rest of the NCR troops standing around did the same, pulling their masks and hats over their chest. I sighed, and I looked around, when I heard a chuckling.

“Pussy ponies. You are always so weak.” I heard, to look down and see a Legion Zebra, laying there, his right for hoof blown off.
Darin’s eyes grew red with fury.

“What did you say, you piece of Legion crap!” Screamed Darin’, raising his hoof in anger.

“You’re so weak. You should have never joined the NCR. At least you will see her soon, when the legion kills you all, and takes back rightful glory of canterlot!” Screamed the Zebra, laughing insanely.

Then he was screaming. I kept on slamming my hoof into his face, smashing it into pieces. I felt his skull cracking beneath his skin, the blood spattering across my hoof. I kept slamming my hoof into him, until it was just the sound of crunching bones, and blood splattering.

“Captain! That is enough.” Yelled a voice.

I turned, and saw Chief Mallow. He was a purple earth pony, whose coat had been scarred so much that half of it was white lines and holes, and the other half was a shade of purple that had sat out in the desert sun too long. His mane was a clean shaven hue of blood red, and his cutie mark was a pure white star, with cross hairs in it.

“The Zebra’s dead. You can stop making brain salad now.” Said Mallows, not trying to hide his accent. It was a slow drawl, like the type you hear on drunks from Apploosa.

I stood up, blood spattered all over my chest and hooves. I sighed, looking around the brutal battlefield. I looked at what was once a beautiful town, full of happiness. Even some of the skeletons from the mega-spells lingered. I saw a skeleton of a mare Pegasus, holding a much smaller colt Pegasus in her hooves. I sighed, and then picked up a shovel with my magic.

“I’ll help bury the dead.” I said, waving the shovel around.

“I’m sure the pasture will be a nice place.” Said a voice from behind us. I turned around, seeing that Apple Jack had made it all this way, with Twilight.

“I thought I told you to stay put.” I said, my eyes narrowing.

“Well, I thought those were unjust orders, so, with a little help of Twilight’s amazing seductive skills,” Twilight blushed. “We got over here.” Said Apple Jack, giving me a defiant look.

I sighed, looking up at the barn on the top of the hill, which was surrounded by long dead apple trees. I sighed, smelling the blood in the air. I looked at Apple Jack, who was staring sadly at the barn house. I put the two and two together, and realized that she was once the owner of sweet apple acres. I sighed, remembering this is where the 6 ponies of harmony had hailed from. I looked in my saddle bag, for something I had found while looking around the barn house.

It was a revolver, a pearl grip with the words “Forever Faithful” written on the side. It was black steel, gleaming in the sunlight, and it had gold engravings on the side, of a pony with a cowboy hat sitting underneath an apple tree, a reed hanging out of her mouth.

“Here, I believe this is yours.” I said, levitating the handgun over to her. She looked at it with dis-belief, and then her eyes welled up in tears.

“Where did you find this?” asked Apple Jack, her eyes still filled up with tears.

“I found it by the side of a skeleton of a big colt. Up in the barn house.” I said, my eyes wavering.

Apple Jack started to strait up bawl. I had never heard of her do that in the collection of stories I had read. Usually Fluttershy was the one who was crying, but I guess the revolver had sentimental value.

“Thank you. It means a whole lot to me.” Said Apple Jack, who was smiling through her tears.

“You’re welcome.”

Throughout the next 5 hours, we dug up holes all around the battle field to bury our dead. It was hard work, having to soften the ground. The strong colts pulled the hoes over the ground, pulling up the ground. We then dug up the now soft dirt, and put the bodies’ in. after we covered them back up, and planted apple seeds over the graves. Each tree would show a soldier who died. We then gathered the bodies of our enemy by the hundreds, and then burned them in piles. Afterwards, we planted poison fruit trees over the ashes, each tree showing a unit of 100 soldiers of the legion who fell to us. It was harrowing work, and I was glad to go back home to Camp Alicorn. I rode in the same Amtrak as Apple Jack and Twilight Sparkle, so I heard their first person accounts of the royal wedding, and such.

“It was so funny when Chrysalis was sent into Oblivion by Princess Cadence! The look on her face was priceless!” Laughed Twilight, who was buzzed on Apple Whiskey.

“A’hm tellin’ ya’ll whut’, her face was number one for idiotic look contest!” Shouted Apple Jack, who was also buzzed on Apple Whiskey. I could tell they weren’t going to have a good morning tomorrow, but we would worry about that when the time came.

The Amtrak stopped, and the door opened, and we stumbled out, laughing insanely. I looked up, and I saw an annoyed looking Sophia looking at me.

“Gal’s, I suggest you head to your room. I’ll bring you some food when I *hick* get some.” I slurred, stumbling over to Sophia. I had had a fair share of drinks myself to get over the death of Violet.

“Violet dies, and you are drunk?” asked Sophia angrily, her eyes filled with rage.

“Calm yourself, Sophia. It’s to numb the pain.” I said, acting serious. While it was hard to do when drunk, it is an attribute I have gained after years of practice.

“Fine. If you or any of the other ponies have a hangover, don’t come running to me.” Said Sophia, turning around, and walking to her shed, her Pipbuck shining in the night.

I walked quickly over to the food storage area, paying up front in bottle caps for a feast of good food. One of the traders had found fresh apples and some actual steaks from Fire-gators. I bought them all up, and stumbled to the hotel, keeping my balance fairly well. I walked to the second floor, and knocked on the door of the 5 ponies.

“Hellooooooo?” Asked a voice, who I identified as Twilight’s.

“It’s Dust, with a large amount of *hick* sultry treats! Come one, come *hick* all!” I half hiccupped, half laughed. They opened the door, and I had found all of them wasted off of some type of liquor. They were all laughing, blushing, and completely, and utterly out of their minds.

“So, did you bring us anymore sweeeeeets?” slurred Pinkie Pie, who was now a weird shade of pink purple.

“Nah’, but I got some of them golden delicious apples!” I shouted, and they all cheered.

The night was just a blur. Nothing I ultimately regretted happened, just, conversations, except, drunk. Everyone talked about how Rainbow Dash was hot for Soarin’, how Twilight had a crush on (the late) princess Celestia, and how come I hadn’t found a mare to spend the rest of my short life with.

“Now, ladies, come on. I’m not old enough to have a family yet!” I said, looking at them.

“Well, I think that you should try and court that Sophia girl. She seems nice enough.” Said Rarity, who was trying to style my long, yet unkempt mane.
Not if I wanted to keep my ass from being torn apart by Darin’s dual mini-guns.

“Well, I thought Fluttershy had an eye on him! Isn’t that what she said?” Asked Rainbow Dash, who was lying on the couch, leaning on her for hoof like she was bored. That made my ears perk up, but not too much.

“Oh, poor Fluttershy. She’s never been able to find a nice stallion in her life.” Said Rarity, who had finally combed out my mane.

“You have a really thick mane, you know that?” Asked Rarity, who started to twirl it with her magic.

“Never really cared for it.” I said, slightly tired due to the lack of sleep I had last night.

“Well you do. I’ll deal with it tomorrow morning. But I need some beauty sleep. Goodnight, darlings.” Said Rarity, who lay down behind me. I then realized that I had no place to stay for the night.

“Ah, well buck.” I said, rubbing my eyes.

“What’s wrong, Dust?” Asked Twilight, who was yawning herself.

“I don’t have any place to stay tonight. I’ll just check in on Sophia, see if she has a free bed.” I said, standing up, and walking out the door.

“Alright, I’ll be awake for another hour or two.” Said Twilight, pulling out a book from her saddle bag. All the other ponies were asleep, so Twilight could enjoy some piece and quiet for once. I closed the door, and walked outside into the rain, and across the parking lot to the small cabin where Sophia slept. I opened the door, and I immediately knew I should have never opened it up. I heard Sophia panting quickly, and I immediately knew what she was doing.

I quickly opened the door again, slightly embarrassed. It was quite well known that her and Darin’ were a couple, but I hadn’t realized they had gone this far. I decided that I should go back to the hotel, see if I could find a room.

Footnotes: Level up! You are now Level 8!
Perk: Wakey, wakey, shakey! You can now go up to two days with sleep, and still have the well rested bonus.

Thanks to Kkat, Somber, and No-one.

Comments

[MrTarven]

love it

[Mr Foster]

773585 I get where you're coming from, but Dust isn't a pony who is new to combat. As explained, hes a battle hardened combat veteran.
While I probably do some tweaking to him in later chapters, he's going to stay the same for the time being.

[Grey Warden]

WHY arent the main six freaking out aboutbeing in the future.

[batran]

789565 I asked the same thing