Chapter 4: Same Journey, Different Problems (Good Karma)
I couldn't just leave her there to bleed out. I need to help her, and fast. I tried to run out to help her but a barrage of bullets came my way forcing me to fall back. I'm not going to lie, that wasn't very smart of me. These guys are literally using her as bait if I was going to get to her I was going to have to shoot them even if I couldn't see them, or at least at them.
I pull out Lorenzo's SMG, using my magic to levitated in the direction in which they were shooting. They immediately started to shoot at my gun. Looks like these guys were a little bit smart to try and disarm me, but that wasn't going to work. As my submachine gun shot, I ran out from cover to go and help Midnight Huntress. Without a second thought, I use my front hooves to drag her behind cover. Once we were behind cover I sat her up against the wall. She was fatal condition. Blood was rapidly pouring out of her neck, some ounces of blood was even leaking out of her mouth. The worst part, she look like she was about to fall asleep. Now I may not be a doctor, but I'm smart enough to know that someone in a condition like this should not fall asleep and maybe the last time they even close their eyes.
"Come on Midnight, don't give up on me now. Stay with me." I said as I placed my hoof on her neck in an attempt to stop her bleeding. It wasn't working. The blood still rapidly leak out from her neck. She was going to need to healing potion and stat.
I use my magic to lift up my satchel and try to pull out a healing potion. But, my magic isn't picking up anything. Why? Why was it my magic picking up the healing potion? I turn around to look at the left side of my satchel; where I kept the healing potions. To my horror there was a giant hole in my satchel. Even worse, when I turned around to look at the opening, where the Hunter Confederacy was shooting from, the healing potions were right there.
I use my magic to pick up one of the syringes. A bullet goes through the syringe. I try to pick up another one, and a bullet goes through that one too. I wasn't gonna be able to get the healing potion like that, so I ran out to grab the last one. As soon as I got close to the healing potion, a bullet was sent through my hind leg. The momentum of how fast I was running caused me to fly forward. I was still in the open, and hind hoof was bleeding. I look up to see a few H.C members advancing toward me. I use my magic to shoot back at them. I killed three before hearing a click.
"Shit." I silently exclaim. I see a griffon aiming an assault rifle at me. My eyes widen. That's when a bullet went through his head. I turn around to see Buckshot Billy with a scoped lever action rifle in his talons. He cocks it back and shots another one. Cabela Cassidy comes out with a shotgun battle saddle on his back. He too began shooting.
"Guys! *pained grunt* Huntress! Help her!" I grunted out. Billy and I look at Huntress who had fallen over, blood still pouring out of her neck.
"Shit! I'm on it!" Billy said rushing to her aid. Cassidy stood in front of me shooting with his battle saddle.
"Get to cover! Quick!" He commanded. He did not have to tell me twice. I quickly began to crawl behind the wall. As I did, I sat up against the wall and looked at my leg. Luckily, the bullet went straight through my leg, so I won't have to worry about digging it out. I look over at Midnight to see Billy with a Talon over her neck, trying to stop the bleeding. It wasn't working. She then closes her eyes and slump over. Billy then looks at us and shook his head.
"Fuckers." Cassidy exclaimed. He said what I was thinking. These guys are gonna pay for they did. I took the ripped bandages from my satchel and wrap it around my hoof. I see it glow yellow for a second. That will be brought up in question later.
I reload my SMG and get ready to start shooting back. That's when I saw a griffon land on top of the gate overlooking Billy. I shoot the SMG at the griffon and managed to kill him causing him to fall of the gate. Billy looks at the dead griffon, and then back at me.
"Billy! Those griffons are trying to fly over the gate, see if you can keep that from happening!" I ordered.
"On it!" He shouts back. He flies up and lands on the building beside the wall and began to shoot his rifle. I stand up and look at Cassidy.
"Cassidy, we gotta keep them from getting close to the entrance!" I said. More of the armed settlers began to make their way to take care of the invasion. What the absolute fuck took them so long?
"I'll try my best to do so! Try to-" I grabbed him and pull him behind the wall as a bullet zipped past where Cassidy's head used to be.
"Sweet Celestia, What the fuck was-"
"I saw a muzzle flash in my peripheral vision! One of these assholes have a sniper!" I explained.
"Oh shit, thanks!" He said.
"Thank me later! Let's deal with these guys firs- Watch out!" I shouted as I noticed a H.C pony member with an assault rifle saddle rush into the settlement. I'm surprised he hasn't been shot by any of the settlers. I push Cassidy to the side and shoot at him with my shotgun saddle, which blasted him back. Killing him.
"Stay here! I'm gonna find a way to deal with that sniper!" I said.
"There's a sniper on the guard post on top of that building, see if you can get to it. I'll cover you." Cassidy said pointing to the top of Bronco's Bar. Sounded like a plan. Not a good one since I had to save Cassidy twice because he wasn't paying attention, but there wasn't enough time to think of something else.
"On it!" I said making my way to the building. I run to the building and opened up the door. Upon opening the door, I heard something fast moving toward the left of my head. I lower my upper body entirely and use my tail to grab whatever object it was being sent at my head. I quickly lift up and pin whoever it was holding the object to the wall with my hoof at their neck. Immediately after doing so I see that it's Bronzequill.
"Bronzequill!?" I exclaimed releasing him, he falls to the ground. "Sorry, I didn't know it was you."
"It's alright. What's going on?" He asked.
"The Hunter Confederacy is attacking, and one of those assholes has a sniper. I gotta get to the roof." I said. Solar Kisses stands up from behind the counter.
"Quickly, follow me!" She said. I began to run after her, but stopped and turned to look at Bronzequill. I then take my SMG out of my satchel.
"Bronzequill, take this. Just in case an H.C member comes through that door." I said tossing him the gun. He catches it, looks back at me and nods. I then run after Solar Kisses.
I follow the amber bat pony up the stairs and to a ladder leading to the rooftop. I use my magic to open the trapdoor leading to the rooftop and proceeded to climb the ladder.
"Kick their asses for us kid." Solar said.
"That's the plan." I replied as I finished climbing the ladder. On top of the rooftop, I was able to see the sniper on the guard post. I quickly run and pick it up; taking cover behind the guard post as I did.
The sniper currently in my hooves was a high powered one, bolt action, and looked like it was military issue. This would go through heads nicely. I peek up over the guard post, and scope out every thing. The casualty count was big on our side, but it was bigger on the theirs, not by much those. It didn't help that their white combat armor made them easier to see in the grey sky and rain.
I see that muzzle flash aimed at me, I quickly duck down and a chunk of the guard post came flying off. I peek out to the left of the guard post aiming down the scope. I look in the exact spot I saw the muzzle flash previously. I see a unicorn with a cocking his bolt action sniper back. Now was my chance.
I took the shot, and the bullet managed to hit him in the neck. He collapses and began to die from loss of blood. I pull back the lever and aimed again. I saw a griffon running for the sniper. I took him out before he got close. I move my head away from the scope and look at Billy. He gives me a thumbs up. I nod. He then shoots me a wide eyed look and points behind me. I turn around and got slugged in the face by a very heavy and very powerful blunt object. I fall off of the roof and land on my stomach. That was extremely painful.
I recover and sure enough, my nose and forehead was bleeding. Blood was dripping from from my forehead and nose onto the ground. I turn around to see a griffon wielding a giant sledgehammer on top of the roof. I recognized this griffon, and I was sure he would've been dog chow by now.
"Remember me?" He gritted.
"Of course I do." I said back. I stumbled onto my feet and looked back at him. I let this guy live, big mistake on my part.
"We've got some unfinished business. And this time, I won't be leaving with crippled legs." He said.
"You're right. You're leaving in a body bag, cause you're dead motherfucker." I replied. He jumps down and approached me. I bite down on my mouthpiece trigger only to hear a click come from my shotguns. Out of bullets? No matter, more suffering for him. He runs toward me and swings his sledgehammer. I move dodge underneath it and tackle him to the ground causing him to release the hammer. I landed on top of him and began to punch him the face, multiple times.
After ten punches he grabs my hoof and punches me in the face and flips me off of him. Now he was on top of me. Before he could punch me, I punch him in the face, causing him to stumble off of me. I then get up and run towards the sledgehammer. He grabs my leg, tripping me. I kick him, and run towards the sledgehammer and pick it up with my magic. I turn around to see that the griffon now had a machete in his hand.
"Come on you stupid bug. Show me what you got." He said. I run over to him and he swings the machete at me. I block with the handle and hit him in the face with the bottom of the handle and then swing the sledgehammer, hitting him in the ribs. I hear a satisfying crunch sound coming from his ribs. He falls to the ground screaming in agony, that's when I dropped the sledgehammer and go for the machete. Once I picked it up I looked back at him. He looks at me with a remorseful look on his face as I walked toward him. As I got close I lifted up the machete and got ready to finish him off. But.... I couldn't do it. I can't kill him like this. It was so much easier to think about killing this guy when he was attacking me, but while he was here injured and defenseless, I couldn't do it.
I put the machete into my satchel and ran back towards the from of the gate. I was stopped however as something tackled me to the ground. Whatever it was fell off of me as I hit the ground. I try to recover, but the culprit pounced back on top of me. It was the griffon I just let live. Now he was on top of me, clasping my neck with his claws.
My lack of hands or talons put me at a severe disadvantage. I was gonna need to think of something quickly. I tried punching him in the face, but that wasn't working. I tried using to my hind hooves to lift him off of me, but his grip increased. I felt my tail swipe around, as well as my consciousness begin to slip away from me.
"Die you worthless bu-" He was interrupted by me punching him in the ribs. He yells in pain as he took his talons off of my neck to tend to his pained ribs. He remained on top of me, so this was my chance to take him off of me-
*shroom, splat*
A bullet goes into the right side of his head and didn't come out the other send. He slumps over to the left, dead. Who shot him? I look to the right, where the bullet came from and I see Apple Bloom. She had a 10mm pistol in her mouth, and tears in her eyes. The gun drops from her mouth. This wasn't good. I get up and began to make my way toward her.
*rumble, thump, crash*
What is that?
"Oh shit. HELLHOUND!" I heard a Red Phoenix merc shout. I see the ground in front of the entrance start to break.
"Apple Bloom! Run! Now!" I shouted. She didn't move. Her eyes were still on the griffon she had killed. She was traumatized. I saw a large claw come out from the ground. Both sides stopped shooting and ran away.
"Apple Bloom, for Pete's sake, Snap out of it!" I shouted. She remained still. Half of the Hellhound's body come out of the hole. Everyone was running, but Apple Bloom. That Hellhound was only half way out of the ground, and it was already menacing to look at. Blood on his claws and around it's snout. It was terrifying. Apple Bloom was just standing there. I began to reload my battle saddle, rear kicking the magazines out and loading new ones in with my magic. I then aim at the hellhound.
"Apple Bloom Please! Snap out it! You've gotta run or it's going to kill you!" I shouted. Apple Bloom still didn't move. The hellhound was now fully out of the ground. It was only slouched over, but it was gigantic. It let out a roar that was so terrifying, it was understandable why the first part of its name was hell. It looks at me and then looks at Apple Bloom. It started to run towards her.
"HEY!" I shouted. I bit down on the mouthpiece trigger and fired a few shots at the hellhound. The barrage of bullets punctured his skin, but did nothing to damage him. He then switches his attention onto me. I keep shooting it. I may not be doing a lot of damage. I may be the only one shooting. And I may be so scared that it surprises me how I'm not dead from a heart attack. But the only thing going through my mind is this thing is going to get worst than it can give if it thinks it's going to hurt Apple Bloom.
He gets close enough to bring his claw back in an attempt to slash at me. I dodge it underneath it and dash behind it. I began to shoot it in the back. That just pissed him off. I look where Apple Bloom was, and I saw Solar Kisses picking her up and carrying her away. I gave a sigh of relief.
*Smack*
The hellhound back clawed me in the face, sending me to the ground. I recover to see the monster run towards me again. I stand up and began to shoot at it again. This thing was not budging one bit. It brings back its claw and gets ready to slash at me. I run to the left to try and avoid its momentum. That's when it slashed me with its other claw. I was sent flying back, now bleeding from the chest with three claw marks. I stumble back to my feet and I was more terrified that I had ever been these 35-40 something hours I've been awake. I stand back up as the beast began to run my way.
This fucking thing is going to kill me, very, very, VERY quickly. I was gonna need to think of something fast. I then felt liquids come out of my tail as I thought of a plan. I think the best course of action for this sit-
Wait. What's coming out of my tail?
I turn to look at my tail and see a purple liquid coming out of my tail. If that is what I think it is, it would help a bunch to keep me alive.
I began to shoot hellhound as it approached me. I back up as it got closer and closer. It then brings up its claw, and that's when I ready my tail. The hellhound slashes it towards me and I strike my tail toward its paw and grazed his arm with my stinger. It lets out a loud roar that was absolute poison to my ears. I couldn't tell if it was out of pain, or out of anger, but he wasn't exactly in the mood for a chat. Now I had to-
*Slash*
Right across my left side, I was slashed once again as well as knocked on the ground. This one actually broke my battle saddle. One side of it anyway. I try to get off of the ground, but the hellhound picked me up off the ground and lifted me up, bringing its claw back ready to deliver the final blow. I looked in its eyes as it brought back its claw. It was ready to kill me. Ready to tear me apart. If I am to die here, my only regret, is not getting to Blackridge.
I clenched my eyes shut, bracing for the final blow.
...
...
Nothing happened.
I open my eyes to see the hellhound looking back at its own arm, which was slowly turning purple. It then drops me causing me to land on my side. I look back up at the hellhound to it falling to its knees. It then lets out another roar and collapses at my hooves. It's eyes remained open, but it didn't move, didn't blink, it didn't even breathe.
It was dead. I killed this thing. I'd jump into the air with joy, but I am bleeding from five wounded parts of my body. Six if you count the hind hoof I wrapped bandages around. I check my PipBuck, and my health was on.... wait that can't be right.
35/210 HP?
Wasn't my health a max of 175 last time? When did I get this more resistant- you know what? That's not important. Neither is finding a healing potion.... okay that is important, but not as important as me needing to talk to Apple Bloom.
"Holy shit." I heard Bacardi's voice say. I look up to see him along with Billy, Cassidy, and Solar Kisses, who was holding a crying Apple Bloom. I couldn't see Apple Bloom's face, because it was buried in Solar Kisses' chest, but I heard her sniffles. I made my way straight to her. Bacardi said something to me. 'Good Job' or 'You really are a brave one' or something like that. I didn't listen to him. My main priority was talk to Apple Bloom. So that's what I'm going to do.
"Apple Bloom? Apple Bloom!" I called. She sniffled and didn't even bother to look at me.
"Apple Bloom, please. I know this is difficult for you to do but please talk to me. I'm here for you okay?" I reassured. Blood from the three claw marks on my chest began to drip onto ground. It was concerning the others I know.
"Mr. Shade, we need to get you some medic-"
"Shut up." I interrupted Billy with venom in my voice. I know it was harsh, but Apple Bloom needs my help more than I need anyone else's. Regardless, he shut up.
"Apple Bloom, listen to me. I know in the eyes of a young filly such as yourself, what you did, you see it as murder. But you didn't murder anyone, you saved my life." I said. Her sniffling reduced.
"Apple Bloom, please, answer me this. Were you scared when you picked up the gun?" I asked. Apple Bloom moves a hoof to her eye to wipe away a tear before nodding.
"But you did it anyway. You know what that means Apple Bloom?" I asked.
"*sniff* That. *sniff* that ah'm an idiot." Apple Bloom replied.
"No. That means you're brave." I replied. She looks at me in teary eyed confusion.
"Ah... ah am?" She asked.
"You're ten year old filly that was scared to shoot a dangerous griffon, but you overcame that fear in order to save my life. If that's not the definition of brave, I don't know what is." I said. She sniffs again and looks at me sadly once more.
"Most foals your age would just sit and hope for the best. But you; you took matters into your own hooves. You made a very difficult decision, and for that, I am very proud of you." I said. Apple Bloom jumps out of Solar Kisses' hooves and runs to me. Hugging my front right hoof. I smile at the moment, and gladly returned the favor, wrapping my left hoof around her.
"Thank you, Nightshade." She said in a barely audible whisper.
"No problem kiddo." I said. I look back up and see Billy handing me a healing potion. In which I gladly take and stick it into my shoulder. Sealing my cuts shut and stopping the bleeding. I mouth the words 'Thank you' to which the tiger striped griffon nodded.
"Nightshade, do you have a minute?" Bacardi asked. I looked at Apple Bloom, who looks back at me and nods. She releases my hoof and I walk with Bacardi towards Midnight's body. She had unfortunately, died in the altercation. Even if she were to have gotten a healing potion, she had lost too much blood to survive. It was very unfortunate. She was nice, she was funny, and she cared for Apple Bloom. Not as much as I did, but enough to give her a hoodie. I wonder why she was so willing to do that though.
"I'm sorry about Midnight. She didn't deserve this." I said. Bacardi shoots me a sympathetic look.
"It's alright kid. There was nothing you could do." Bacardi said looking back at Midnight. A silence feel between us for a good minute. I wasn't sure what to say. I was sad too, but not as sad as Bacardi tried to hide.
"She took a liking to you, ya know." Bacardi commented.
"Yea. I know." I replied. Bacardi looked at me with a semi shocked expression.
"You did?"
"Yea, when I was ready to leave she kissed me on the cheek. Said she wanted me to come back when I could." I answered.
"That sounds like her. Sees what she wants and always try to take it." Bacardi said.
"I wish I could've done more to help."
"Look kid. I appreciate your nobility, but sometimes things just happen." Bacardi said. I still felt upset about not being able to help her.
"Nightshade, look around. We've lost a lot of mercs, but they lost more of theirs thanks to you. Hell, you took on a hellhound on your lonesome. Something our bravest piss themselves at the thought. Try not to beat yourself up about it, okay?" Bacardi said. I remained silent at that. I look at her and the location of which she was shot. There was a long blood trail, wide in width. She lost a lot of blood. Would a healing potion even be effective at that point. I didn't know.
"I'll give you a minute kid. See me at Recoil Remington's shop when you're done okay?"
I nod. Bacardi walks off as I remained in front of Midnight Huntress. I didn't know her that well, but I could tell she was kind, funny, and from how she spoke with Bacardi (as briefly as that was), she struck me as the time to have some sass to her. But now she's in a better place, I know that for sure.
"Rest in peace Ms. Huntress. I wish we did get to know each other more." I said, Dogmeat caught me off guard with a howl. I haven't seen him since the firefight started. He had blood around his muzzle, indicating he was dealing with the H.C from a different part of the settlement. His howl, I noticed, was a mournful one.
After that, I close her eyes using my hoof, stand up and walk toward Apple Bloom. Apple Bloom looks behind me, and then back at me.
"She's in a better place Apple Bloom." I reassured. Apple Bloom nods sadly. I look at the undamaged part of my satchel and take out the hoodie Midnight gave me.
"She thought you looked cold and wanted me to give you this." I said. Giving Apple Bloom the hoodie. The rain began to come down a little harder. I hold Applejack's hat over Apple Bloom to shield her from the rain as she puts on the hoodie. When the hoodie was fully on, I couldn't help but notice how adorable she was in that hoodie. Hoodies looked unusual for ponies to wear, but in an adorable kind of way.
Hmm, Adora-bloom. That's a nickname to soon call her by. But that'll be later at a much lighter moment. Right now, she needs time to let all of what happened sink in. We both do.
I began to make my way to Recoil Remington's shop. Seriously, what's up with the alliterative names. I feel Apple Bloom's hoof touch mine. I moved my hoof due to instinct. I wasn't used to her doing that, which was why I reacted like that. But upon realizing it was her, I place my hoof back on the ground, allowing her to grab it. We make our way to Recoil Remington's shop.
Upon entry, I see Bacardi giving a bag of caps to a griffon. The griffon walks away, and Bacardi turns around to look at me.
"What did you want to see me for?" I asked.
"I know that you need to be on your way to Blackridge, so I'm not gonna take up too much of your time." Bacardi said.
"Okay." I said in response.
"There's an old train station about seven miles east of here. One of the places it was routed for was someplace that used to be called Manehattan. Most now know it as of course, Blackridge. If you could get it working, you can turn a five day to a week walk to a one day train ride." Bacardi explained. I honestly don't know how that worked, but if it's a faster way for us to Blackridge, then I'm all for it.
"Sounds like a plan." I said. That's when I realized, I don't know how to operate a train.
"Glad you think so. But here's the problem." He started. I already know what he's going to say. I need a new satchel, I some armor, and I need someone to watch my back or something.
"You're gonna need three things before you head back out. A new satchel, some armor, and probably most importantly, someone watching your back."
Called it.
"I kind of knew that already, but I'm not too sure who will come with me. Besides, I think it would be better if I did this alone. Wouldn't want another reason for death on my part." I explained.
"Don't worry, I respect that. You don't want someone else to die within your group, but it would be wise to have someone watching your back as a just in case things are too difficult for you to handle on your own." Bacardi said. That was a very valid point. It would be wise to have a second gun to help me through this hell. If I'm gonna get to Blackridge, Dogmeat and I shouldn't be the only ones being shot at. A pretty fucked up way to look at that, but the most honest way. Then again, if that's how I look at a situation like that, It would be wise if I did this alone, for the sake of anyone who wants to stick by me.
"I'll remember those words if I change my mind, but right now, I prefer to be alone." I said. The griffon that Bacardi paid earlier comes back with some folded clothes and another battle saddle. An assault rifle type rather than a shotgun.
"Consider it a gift. A thank you for helping us." Bacardi said. I looked at him and raised an eyebrow.
"What're the clothes for?"
"Leather Red Phoenix armor. Better than the average leather armor you'd find on Caravan Guards. You'll have better defense against bullets and laser shots." Bacardi said. Wait? Lasers?
"Lasers?" I asked.
"Yea, raiders and/or slavers sometimes get lucky enough to find Laser rifles or saddles. Luckily, their aim's normally worst than a blind folded griffon shooting with his feet." Bacardi said. That was his attempt at a joke, it wasn't funny. What was funny, however was the glare the griffon shot him while he was looking away. As much of a struggle as it was, I managed to keep a straight face.
"Well, thank you for the armor and battle saddle." I thanked.
"Hey, don't mention it. And if you ever change your mind on going alone, you know where to find us." He told me. I nodded with a small smile.
Apple Bloom and I walk out of Recoil Remington's shop with the leather armor on. I had to admit, the leather armor suited me. More specifically, the jacket with a missing right sleeve that came with the armor. The armor was light, and felt like it wouldn't protect against that much damage. But still better than nothing.
The battle saddle was the same weight as the combat shotgun saddle. Which was around 14 pounds. 30 if you count the two guns, the machete, food, and water I transferred into the satchels.
I tried to get some ammo for the 'Last Words' lever action rifle, but the vendor said that the bullets for my gun was custom made. Meaning he didn't have the bullets, or the materials to make the bullets. Or the schematics.
I also put an earth pony 10mm pistol in my bag to teach Apple Bloom how to shoot some more. She already knows how to shoot, but now she learn the kill or be killed mentality when things get bad. There will be a moment where she'll either not be able to hide, or she'll be found to easily. She needs to be ready as a just in case.
The rain had gotten mildly harder. Something told me that it might be a thunderstorm soon. Hopefully it won't be so bad before dark. I look at Apple Bloom, who was trying to put her hood on. I save her the time by using my magic to put her hood on her head. I looked at the front gate to see Dogmeat sitting there.
"Dogmeat!" I called. Dogmeat turned around and ran toward me happily. I pet his head as he panted.
"Come on fur ball, it's time to go." I said. Dogmeat gives a playful bark in response. That's when me, Apple Bloom and Dogmeat walked out of the gate. I check my PipBuck for the location of the train station. It was indeed marked on my map to the east. I also look at the time, it was 10:21 am. No better time to get a move on than now.
The travel to the train station was a lot farther than it looks on the PipBuck. It had been two hour, and I was barely halfway there. It was also pretty hard to walk as Apple Bloom walked underneath me to shield her from the rain. It was very hard to walk without stepping on Apple Bloom. So it wasn't easy to get where I needed to go.
As I walked, I made sure to check all of my surroundings. In the two hour walk, I had been attacked by giant flies, giant mole rats, and wild dogs. All of which I only managed to hear at the last second, so I need to be on guard for anything, or anyone willing to attack me. Luckily for me, Dogmeat would be able to warn me of anything dangerous. Thank goodness for that nose and those ears, right?
"Nightshade, how much further do we got?" Apple Bloom asked.
"We're halfway there Apple Bloom. I think it would be faster if you weren't underneath me. It's not exactly easy to walk when I'm trying not to step on you." I said.
"Aw, but it's so comfy under here." Apple Bloom complained.
"Maybe for you, but up here it's very uncomfortable. I'm trying my best not to-"
"Ouch!" Apple Bloom said as I 'accidentally' stepped on her tail.
Okay I did that on purpose, but I'm sure that'll get the message across.
"-step on your tail." I finished. I stepped back as Apple Bloom tended to her tail. "You okay?"
"That hurt." Apple Bloom said, glaring at me as if she knew I did that on purpose.
"Eh, you'll live. *ruffles Apple Bloom's mane* Come on kiddo, we still got 3 and a half miles to go." I said. Apple Bloom puts her hood back on and joins me in a side by side walk. As we walked, I couldn't help but replay what happened at Wolfwater in my head. I was happy I was able to calm her down, but I need to teach her more on guns and survival.
"Apple Bloom, do you know how to reload a gun?" I asked. That's when Apple Bloom stopped. I hope I didn't trigger any PTSD. Oh please tell me Apple Bloom has PTSD.
"Do ah have to?" Apple Bloom asked.
"Well, if you're gonna be carrying one, this is something you need to know." I replied. Apple Bloom shot me a saddened look.
"Look Apple Bloom, I know it might be uncomfortable for you to have to carry one, but this is how we have to live now. It's always wise to have a backup plan. What's gonna happen if you can't find a good hiding spot and I can't get to you in time?" I asked. Apple Bloom's ears flop.
"Ah understand Nightshade." She said. She said she understood, but did she really? Only time will tell. I use my magic to take the 10mm pistol out of my satchel. I then give it to her. She holds it.
"It's pretty easy. You just take that clip out and pull the barrel back to empty the chamber." I explained. Apple Bloom does exactly that. I catch the stray bullet before it hit the ground.
"Good job." I said.
"Do ah put it back in?" Apple Bloom asked.
"Not just yet. You're gonna need to put the bullet back in the magazine." I said. I gave the bullet to Apple Bloom. As she held it in her hoof, I couldn't help but wonder how she held something that small in her hoof without her dropping it. She sets the gun aside and puts up the magazine. She was struggling with putting the bullet back in the magazine.
"Apple Bloom, try tilting the back of the bullet closer toward the magazine." I said. Apple Bloom tilts the bottom of the bullet and it presses down a lot easier. She still struggled, but less.
"Okay, now what?" She asked.
"Now, put it in the magazine back in the gun." I said. Apple Bloom does what she is told and then looks at me again.
"You're doing good, now just pull the barrel back to put the bullet in the chamber." I said. Apple Bloom pulls the barrel back, and with both hear a small click sound.
"Good job." I said. Apple Bloom beams a smile my way. "I'll try to find a satchel you could fit, or a backpack so you can carry the gun yourself."
"You trust me with a gun?" She asked. A give a little chuckle.
"Well you did save my life, so yea. But I'll carry the gun for now until I find something you can carry it in." I said.
"Okay."
"Come on, we gotta get a move on if we wanna get to the train station." I said. Apple Bloom nods with confidence. We continued walking though the rain and began to make some progress.
"Nightshade?"
"Yea?"
"How do ya do it?" She asked, confusing me.
"Do what exactly?"
"How do ya kill somepony? Doesn't it bother you that ya took somepony's life?" Apple Bloom asked. I knew this would come, and I was ready to explain..... sort of. We didn't stop walking though.
"Apple Bloom, remember the griffon from Borderville that I killed." I started. I see Apple Bloom nod in my peripherals. So I continued. "Remember the raiders from the Scrapyard and the Hunter Confederacy when they attacked Wolfwater."
"Mm hmm." Apple Bloom said.
"Do you know what they have in common with the Hellhound, the wild dogs, and the mole rats?" I asked. Apple Bloom was quiet for about four seconds.
"They all smell bad?" She asked. I'm not gonna lie, that was funny enough to make me laugh lightly, even if Apple Bloom was serious about saying that.
"No. Well... maybe, but that's not the point. They all tried to kill me." I said. Apple Bloom stayed silent for a moment.
"It's easier to take someone's life when you're not thinking of them as an innocent living creature, but as something trying to kill you. The weight doesn't necessarily stick to your back when you see it in as self defense, or the defense of someone else instead of murder." I explained. "Is that easy to understand?" I asked hoping she'd say yes. That was the simplest I could explain it.
"Well, sort of." She said. Meh, close enough. The two of us continued walking. We come across a road area with a few boxes on the other side of the it. Those boxes looked new and could have supplies in it. I hope so, we're running low on water.
We get closer to the boxes, and upon closer inspection, we see that there were three of them. They were wooden. Should be easy to break open. I walk toward one of the boxes and pull out the machete and use it to pry open the first box. It was a bit of a struggle, but somehow that did the trick. After prying the top half off of the nails, I stick my hoof in there and pry the entire thing off.
"What's inside?" Apple Bloom asked. Inside the box was a bunch of medical supplies. Healing potions, RadAways, orange pill bottles labeled 'Rad-X', and a couple of boxes labeled 'Magical Bandages'. Must've been the same type of bandages Bacardi and Midnight used on me.
"Medical supplies. Lots of them." I said. This was a bit of a confusing encounter. This crate, along with its supplies, it looked like it belonged to a military force.
*click*
What was that?
I turn around to see Apple Bloom opening the second box. She had a bobby pin in her mouth and a screwdriver in her hoof. She picked the lock on the box. I'm impressed.
"There's water in here." Apple Bloom said removing the bobby pin from her mouth.
"Bottles or gallons." I asked.
"Both." She said. I walked over to where she was and looked for myself. Sure enough when I walked over there, there was a bunch of water bottles and one big water jug. This definitely felt like this was a shipment to a military force, or something with a lot of occupants. There was one more box to check out. What could be in it? Weapons? Ammo? Documents? Time to find out.
I do the same thing I did to the first box in order to open it, but when I stuck the machete in between the top and middle, something prevented anything beyond the tip to go in.
"What the?" I asked.
"Maybe I can pick the lock." Apple Bloom asked. I looked at the lock and two things caught my eye. The lock being coded, and a bloodstain on the box and a blood trail leading to somewhere. The locks on the other boxes were normal locks. This one wasn't gonna open unless I had the code. Maybe that blood trail could shed some light on what's inside.
"This isn't the kind of lock you can pick A.B. It's coded. I think this blood stain could lead us to the one who had the code." I said. I began to follow the blood stain, Apple Bloom and Dogmeat following behind me. The blood had a bit of an irony smell to it, and the blood was still wet. This indicated that the blood was fresh. Whatever happened, had happened recently.
I continued walking for about five minutes, following the blood trail to where ever it was leading me. I was bent on finding out what was on the other-
*clank*
Huh? I just kicked something metallic. I look at what it was I just kicked and see a piece of scrap metal. There was a bloodstain on it. This must've been on the blood trail. I pick the scrap metal up and observe it.
"Hmm. This looks like... armor." I said.
"Think it used to go on that power armor Mr. Bacardi was talkin' about?" Apple Bloom asked.
"Since I've never seen power armor before I can't be too sure. But great observation." I said. I didn't need to turn around to know that she had smiled at my comment. I continued following the blood trail.
"Nightshade and Apple Bloom, wasteland detectives. Hey! Maybe ah'll get my cutie mark for problem solvin'." She said. I chuckled at her enthusiasm. Then I got an idea.
"*clears throat* Elementary my dear Apple Bloom, we must continue our investigation to figure out what's in the box." I said putting an english voice on myself. What shocked me is that there was no metallic echo or anything. I literally changed my entire voice.
"Wow! That's impressive. How're you doing that?" Apple Bloom asked.
"(metallic echo) I have no idea." I said. Surprisingly enough my voice randomly changed back. Does my voice just change whenever I think about a different voice or something. That could be useful at one point.
"Could you do it again?" She asked so innocently. I just couldn't say no. Besides, I needed to experiment with this anyway.
"(English accent) Right! We shan't halt our investigation. We must gather more clues." I said. Apple Bloom giggles at my voice mimicking.
"Yes! We shall continue to look for clues." She said. In all seriousness, we continue to follow the trail until it just... stopped. The blood trail stopped. Nothing was here. No dead bodies, no dead animals, not even a bullet shell. What happened?
"There's nothin' here." Apple Bloom said.
"(Normal Voice) I can see that. But why?" I asked. They're wasn't even a single lead. Had they all been killed and a group worked as a clean up crew?
"Nightshade. There's a holotape over here." Apple Bloom said. Dogmeat barks in acknowledgement. I looked at Apple Bloom, and saw the holotape at her hooves. I walk over to it and picked up the holotape. I then put it into my PipBuck and let it play.
"Knight-Commander Rocky Road, September 17th 2277, Escort team Bravo. It's been Five months since this whole 'Project New Moon' nonsense had began. I don't know why I thought it was a good idea to rejoin the Steel Rangers. This was just me sticking my nose in something that's not even my business. I have no idea how Twilight's Coltfriend managed to persuade me, but for the past five months I've been in fighting a war that's not even mine to fight. I'm too far into this madness to quit though. I hope this ends quickly. The things I've went through, the things I've seen. Horrible. The sooner this is over, the sooner my son gets to see more of his father. Don't worry Pipsqueak, I'll be coming home soo-"
"Commander, what's the code for the box?"
"1-2-5-7."
"Got it."
"*sigh* This job's gonna be the death of me one day. Gotta get the packages to Blackridge. This project better be worthwhile. Knight-Commander Rocky Road signing out."
The holotape ended there. So now I knew the code for the-
*Beep*
There's more?
"I knew I'd regret coming back." This part of the clip sounded like he was injured. Badly. Even worse; I heard growling. It sounded like something was hunting him or something.
"Fuckin' Enclave bastards sent their damn dogs after us. Those damn experiment got to my team. I'm badly injured. I know one of them will come after me. I'll be damned if I don't go down fighting. To any Steel Rangers out there, if you find this holotape. Tell my son, I lov-
*Growling Roar*
The tape ended there. That was... I've got no words for that. I was three things. Scared, Angry, and I was nervous. A least I got the code for the box, but... my goodness that was hard to listen to. What the hell happened to Rocky Road?
"W-what happened?" Apple Bloom asked. I sighed in response.
"I don't think Rocky Road made it." I said. I look at the ground and see big claw marks. Beside the blood trail. They were different from the Hellhound tracks. They were feline front claws. This is belonged to a quadruped feline. But where were the hind legs?
"Well, from what I can observe. Some kind of creature with large claws attacked Rocky Road and his team. From what I can interpret from the holotape. One of the Enclave's experiments consisted of large front feline claws capable of ripping apart strong metals. From the claw marks on the ground, the feline was most likely a quadruped. And since the marks was only on one side of the blood trail, the creature had killed Mr. Road first, and proceeded to drag him off." I said.
"You think a Manticore got to 'em?" Apple Bloom asked.
"Nope, something bigger, and differently built. I don't know what, but it's pretty dangerous. Come on, let's head back." I said walking the other direction. Apple Bloom took a minute but caught up. I decided that whatever's in that box should stay in until we get to Blackridge. Or at least until we get on the train.
We walk back to the boxes and I start stuffing water bottles in the left of my satchel, and the medical supplies in my right. I then pick up the coded box with my magic in order to carry it in an appropriate manner. It would not fit on my back, and Apple Bloom... well that's self explanatory.
As we made progress, the rain had gotten progressively worst. The skies was grey, and the rain was hitting hard. Apple Bloom even put the hood further onto her head. The sooner we get to the train, the better.
*Jingle, Rattle*
Okay. I am beginning to grow sick of these sounds drawing my attention. You know what? Not today, unless the sound is in front of me, I'm not gonna-
"H-h-hey! Can you help me? Please?" A voice called from in front of me. I look over to see a light blue Pegasus stallion with a dark blue mane and green eyes with some kind of chained trap around his hind hoof. Lucky for him he was in front of me, otherwise I probably would've left him. Probably not, but I'd be pissed he would've been wasting my time.
I roll my eyes and put the box down.
"Dogmeat, watch the box." I said. Dogmeat barks in response. He stays next to the box and I move closer to the Pegasus.
"Oh thank goodness, I thought I was done for." He said. His voice was a bit hard to describe. It sounded young and rough. Hard to pin my hoof on, but that's not important.
I take a look at his trapped hoof and immediately got confused. His hoof had a metal shackle around it, and the other side was buried in the ground. I tug the chain. It was buried very deep. How did this happen.
"What's your name?" I asked.
"Um.. Soarin." He answered.
"Okay Soarin. You mind telling me how you got like this?" I asked. I heard him gulp silently.
"W-w-well I-"
"Don't tell me you got trapped, this isn't exactly the kind of chain you get stuck on while conscious." I said. He stopped right there. He stayed silence for a minute. Before speaking up again.
"I passed out from dehydration at one point, when I woke up I was chained up. I've been like this for three days." He said. That's when I raised an eyebrow. Normally if you pass out from dehydration and wake up, you don't last three days. Something's up.
I take out a bottle of water and took the cap off.
"Here." I said. He shoots me a wide eyed look. "Take it, you seem thirsty."
"T-thanks." He said. He takes the water and drank it down. "It's been too long since I drank purified water. It's hard to live off of this irradiated shit."
"I bet. Let me see if Apple Bloom could pick this lock." I said. That made him nervous for some reason.
"Who's Apple Bloom?" He asked.
"Apple Bloom!" I called. Within seconds, Apple Bloom was right next to me.
"Yes Nightshade?" She asked.
"You think you can pick the lock and free this poor guy?" I asked. She beams a smile.
"Course ah can!" She exclaimed. She then takes a bobby pin out of her pocket and put in her mouth, and proceeds to grab her screwdriver.
"Is that your filly?" Soarin asked.
"Yea." I said. Then he got terrified. He didn't show it but I could see it in his eyes.
"O-on second thought, I think I'll be fine." He said. Okay, why was he begging me for help before and start to deny it now?
"Nonsense Mister, ah'll have you atta here in no time." Apple Bloom said.
"No. Just leave me here." He said.
"But ah'm tryna-"
"Leave!" He shouted, causing Apple Bloom to jump back.
"Watch who you're-" I stopped right there. A foul stench hit my nose. I started sniffing. I didn't make it noticeable, but both Apple Bloom and Soarin knew something was up. That's when I pulled out the 10mm pistol.
"Take this and get back to the box." I whispered to Apple Bloom. She nods as I gave her the pistol and she runs off.
"What's going on?" Soarin asked. I glare at him.
"There's a foul stench in the wind, and it's not coming from you." I replied.
"Huh? He asked. I turn in the direction of the smell and see a metallic barrier
"One big advantage about the lack of hygiene." I started. "Is that you can smell bad breath a mile off!" I shouted. The barrier falls down revealing three ponies in raider outfits. One of them, A brown unicorn with a spiky mane Mohawk, looks at me with a toothy grin.
"That is impressive!" He said. Three more raider's came from behind a giant boulder behind me.
"The bug's got the nose of a blind pony, he could smell us. You could be a valuable asset." He said. 'Valuable asset'? These guys weren't raiders. They were slavers. Just my fucking luck. "Good job Soarin. This'll get us flowing in caps." The slaver said.
"I don't think that's a good idea." Soarin said.
"He's right. I know we just met, but you should know I don't play nice with slavers." I said.
"Oh ho, really. Well I'm not giving you a choice."
"No you're not. I'm giving you one, Fuck off, or die off." I said. I hope Apple Bloom didn't hear me say that, but her developing a swearing habit is the least of my problems right now.
"Hmm, we've got us a fighter. We could be looking at the next Slave Scarp Champion. What do you guys think?" He asked.
"Heavy Moonshine, I think you should just-" Soarin started before a whip held by the Mohawked unicorn struck him in the face.
"Hey!" I shouted in defense of Soarin. This, 'Heavy Moonshine then pulls out a magnum and aims it at me.
"Whoa now. You don't own Soarin, I do! I'll do whatever the fuck I please." He stated. I growled in response. "Unless. *Chuckles* You wanna buy him off."
"What?" I asked.
"For a thousand caps, You can take Soarin off our hooves. Either that, or we'll take you. Lucky Star would pay a fortune for you." He said. That was one hundred and fifty thousand percent not gonna happen. I didn't have that amount of caps. Maybe I could talk him to a lower price. Or I could lead him to the supply boxes and give that as payment, and avoid conflict. Or I could just kill these guys. They do have it coming.
"What's it gonna be buggy?" He asked.
Trade supplies for Soarin (Good Karma)
Talk him to a lower price (Neutral Karma)
Kill them (Evil Karma).
Footnote Level Up!
New Skills: Bro code- Easier to persuade members of the same sex. 25% more damage done to Stallions. Venom- Venomous melee attack.
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hhmmmmm....Nightshade doesn't have 1000 caps....Why is rescuing someone and eliminating slavers evil Karma? it should be neutral at least.
i say talk to hi, i know they will bite and attack him after, they aren't going to let him go, they probably have someone going to get AB. so he will still have to kill them but in self defence after his negotiations fail.
ps, the way Midnight died was kinda bullshit, shooting tiny vials at at least 20 yards without scopes and plenty of time aiming? just no. and night shade would bring it over quickly, not as slowly as you had him do so.
P.s.s why didn't he take the vial he had and take it to midnight before he left, he still had it and never used it.
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As I played Fallout 3, there were some instances where despite characters that deserved to be killed, upon doing so results in loss of karma. Even though the slavers have it coming, for some reason, starting conflict or escalating it further is not seen as 'morally right' for some reason. This choice is considered Evil because as you've seen, word gets around the wasteland surprisingly fast, so by attacking the Slavers, he'd be making both he and Apple Bloom targets in the future.
In addition, although he doesn't have 1000 caps, he knows the location of the box of supplies, which was headed to a militaristic group. Even though to the said militaristic group, it's not enough; to a group of 6, is well worth 1000 caps.
To your P.S, yes, Midnight's dead was kinda bullshit. But keep in mind, the sniper wasn't the only one with a scope possible. And in addition to that, whenever unicorns, or in this matter, Changelings use levitation, an aura forms around the horn, and the item they're levitating. So the H.C aren't going, 'Shoot the vial', they're going 'Shoot whatever he's picking up.' With multiple ponies and griffons shooting, no one really needs to stop shooting. They just need to change direction. And a glowing red aura is pretty easy to see in the open from 60 feet (20 yards).
To the P.S.S, he never grabbed the vial. He was shot and the momentum sent him flying past the vial causing him to miss the opportunity. If you're referring to the vial Billy gave him, he did use it. To heal his wounds from the fight with the griffon and Hellhound.
I hope this clears up any confusion, and I'm sorry for killing off Midnight.
Worry not, there will be another Bat Pony mare.
Chapter 6
Tough one. If we're going by fallout 3 logic paying them off should get them to leave you alone, but he doesn't have the money. I'm torn between trying to talk them down to a lower price and giving them the supplies. Each has their pros and cons. Giving them the supplies in the box might not be enough, after all in my experience of playing fallout not all locked boxes have things of value, so they might not take the items and he'll be forced to fight them either way and they might see Applebloom. Trying to talk them down to a lower price might work since he has the bro code skill, but if it backfires he'll just make them mad and have to fight them anyway.
All this being said I say he should try to talk them down to a lower price, this way if he does end up fighting them Applebloom will be safer.
In all honesty it's a bit annoying how Midnight just died. I'm fine with her dying but we've had other characters, the characters in the first town, just die without the reader even thinking that there could be a chance for them to be alive. I think it might have been better if Midnight was alive at the end of the battle, but in critical condition and no matter what they tried to do she was just too far gone to save. Having her just up and die "off screen" detached the reader from the character, especially since we didn't know her all that well. Having her alive at the end, barely holding on, but still dying in the end would have allowed for the other characters to express their worry for her giving the reader a better idea of what kind of character she was. Having characters who we are supposed to like die without the main character seeing it isn't always a bad thing, but in this case I think it might have been a missed opportunity. If Midnight was a character we'd known for a long time, like Applebloom, it would have had more of an effect to have her to die the way she did, since we already had an emotional attachment to her. That's how I saw it anyway, I guess I just like knowing characters who die if they have a name, otherwise I'm not as picky about how their death is presented.
But overall I enjoyed this chapter, Night reacting to Applebloom's needs first was a nice sign of their relationship, and Applebloom's reaction to having killed someone seemed fitting of a character who was never exposed to the idea of killing another, even in self defense. And the addition of the poisonous stinger to Night's arsenal can open some unique avenues for combat. Your story always manages to bring a smile to my face even after it puts me into a small panic of whether they will live even though I know it's still the beginning of the story and they wouldn't be killed off so soon. Hope to read more of Night and Applebloom's journey, and I hope you have a good day/night.
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BTW what do you think of Soarin's introduction. How he was brought up? How he reacted? what do you think? I was watching the Book of Eli while I was writing this. I also like asking reader's opinions.
I'm glad I made you smile at least. I'm sorry I killed of Midnight Huntress like that. Her death was actually suppose to be how you described, but when I went to ctrl+s, i accidentally hit ctrl+w and deleted everything and forgot what I wrote. Sorry
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Soarin's introduction is okay. Mostly because it could have been just about anyone in his place and it wouldn't have changed much, introduction wise that is. As for his reaction it seems fitting for his character that although he is scared he'd want to protect a child, if it was just Night though he would have been alright with letting him get captured. This seems realistic to me, after all if I was in his position I would do what the slavers said, and hopefully retain enough of my morals to want to protect a child and their caretaker from the same fate as me.
Although I am curious as to how he was captured, but I'm pretty sure that if he survives and stays with Night and Applebloom we'll find out.
Happy to answer all the questions you have, if I have an answer for the question that is. I can't tell you the meaning of life or other silly things like that, but I can tell you my "wonderful"(note the sarcasm) opinion.
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Sorry for not participaying in chap 3. I havent got time to read lately...
8109297
It's okay. Hope you enjoy Chapter 4
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Chapter 5 is up. Apologizes in advance for the length.