• Published 28th Jan 2019
  • 2,385 Views, 91 Comments

Fallout: Equestria - Resistance - tom117z



One small change can alter the course of everything you know. One small change, and the Enclave have won.

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2 - The Legacy of the Lightbringer

Chapter Two: The Legacy of the Lightbringer

“War Never Changes. But the world has.”


Darkness.

Massive, solid, all-encompassing darkness was all I could sense.

A darkness that seemed to fill me from the inside out; to flow through me and repress my entire being.

A darkness that felt… familiar, yet strange at the same time. Like it had been there all my life yet was new.

I couldn’t remember anything outside of this darkness; I didn’t know if there was anything out there at all. All I knew was this ever-present darkness. A darkness that felt so soothing; so … comforting.

A darkness that was only occasionally broken by… images. Images seen through the eyes of a pony; a unicorn mare.

Images of that pony would pop up in the darkness every now and then, most of them vague and barely more than rough, blurred shapes.

Sometimes I saw that pony walking through a deserted landscape, accompanied by one, two, sometimes three other shapes. Sometimes I could hear them talk, though their voices sounded blurred and utterly unintelligible.

There was, however, one clear image. And that was the only image that had appeared more than once, and that would repeat itself over and over again.

The pony was standing in the middle of a ravaged town – burning houses, ruins and rubble. Big, hovering machines filled out the sky, accompanied by flying ponies in thick, black armor. The unicorn mare, accompanied by several ponies on the ground, was exchanging shots with the ponies in the air; a furious, merciless fight of life and death.

I saw that pony running across the battlefield, a revolver held in her magic grip as she struggled to find cover against the fire from above. I had seen this memory often enough to find out that she was heading for a blasted ruin across the road that divided the small village, her eyes darting from the armoured ponies filling out the sky to the battlefield surrounding her. I had noticed a limp in her step, which I could eventually conclude belonged to a bullet wound in her left foreleg; based on her heavy breathing, she was already nearing the end of her power reserves.

I noticed her bite her lip, gathering up what power reserves she had left as she was approaching the safety of the house… then stopped abruptly.

A pegasus, hulled in jet black power armour, had dropped from the sky and blocked her way into the house. Panicking, the mare slid to a halt, watching with horror as the tips of the magical energy rifle integrated into his armour lit up.

Then came a flash of red light, filling out her entire vision. She let out a scream of pain, then there was silence.

And it was back to this ever-present darkness.

I don't know how many times I had re-lived this memory. I don't know where it had come from; I don't know where the battle had taken place, and I don't know who this pony was or who she was fighting against.

All I knew was this darkness.

This time, however, something seemed off.

The darkness seemed… incomplete. It was… interrupted by something. Something that looked like… a light?

Slowly, gradually, I could feel the world around me light up, the omnipresent and all-encompassing darkness replaced by this incredibly bright light.

I forced my eyes shut, covering my face with a hoof. I was feeling so … exposed! So… lost without this familiar darkness surrounding me.

Even now, the light just kept growing. I could feel it flow through me, replacing any darkness I might have left within me, blinding me with its excruciating brightness.

I clenched my teeth, giving a groan as my eyes grew tired of being pressed shut so tightly. My body convulsed, protesting against the light, before I finally opened my mouth to scream, felt it getting flooded with air… and woke up.


I awoke with a gasp, choking and fighting to breathe as my lungs struggled to provide my body with the oxygen it needed so desperately.

Slowly, I could feel how my bodily functions began to pick up again, my ragged and hasty gasps gradually turning into a more balanced breathing cycle.

Still breathing heavily, my bodily instincts kicking in and fighting hard to pump air into my lungs, I lay there. It took me a few moments to realize that I couldn’t see anything. My eyes were open, but all they could see was this wretched, blinding light.

I cringed, pinching my eyes shut again, and blinking wildly. I raised my hoof to cover my face and-

I couldn’t move. I couldn’t move!

I felt panic overcame me as I realized that I had no feelings whatsoever in my body. I could blink, and move my head ever so slightly, but anything that went beyond that felt completely numb.

With a sigh, I closed my eyes again as my breathing started to calm down.

I could feel my mind drifting off again, but I perked up as I felt a twitch go through my right foreleg.

Seconds later, one of my hind legs moved by half an inch, and slowly but steadily I felt the feeling in my limbs return.

I could hear my mind give a groan as my head drifted to the side. Slowly, carefully testing out the limits of my newfound ability to move, I tried rocking my body to the side. It seemed to work, and I could feel my torso roll to the side by a few inches. I clenched my teeth, still keeping my eyes shut to protect them from being blinded again. Biting my lip and gathering up what little power I had in my body, I gave it another try, convulsing my body to make it roll to the side ever so slightly.

It worked, it worked it worked, it work-

I could feel my heart stop for a second as my body’s centre of gravity shifted, and I noticed with horror that whatever I was lying on had ended about two inches ago.

Instinctively, my mouth opened to scream, yet all that came out was a raspy hiss, barely louder than a polite cough.

My body fell for a bit less than a second before I belly-flopped right onto what felt like a cold metal ground.

Luna fuck me with an iron rod, that hurt...

I gave a groan, annoyed by the ache spreading over my belly, yet at the same time somewhat relieved that I could actually feel the metal against my fur.

Slowly, carefully, I rolled over, forcing my hooves underneath my body in an attempt to push myself back up.

As it turned out, my legs were nowhere near ready to support my full body weight, and they merely replied with a dull pain shooting through my body at my attempt to apply pressure to them.

Instead, my other hoof blindly tapped my surroundings for something to hold on to, and finally got a hold of the ledge of whatever it was I had been lying on. Slowly, very slowly and carefully, I pulled myself up, tentatively increasing the stress on my four hooves until I finally had a safe stand again.

Still panting heavily from the immense stress, the simple task of getting back to my hooves had put me under, I supported myself against what had served as my makeshift bed, and lowered my head, directing my gaze at what I suspected was the ground in front of my hooves.

Let’s try this again…

Carefully, I cracked an eye open, relieved to see that this time around, there was no glaring light blinding me, but just a gentle darkness greeting my eyes.

I blinked a few times, then slowly let both my eyes drift open as my vision began to clear, and my eyes focused.

As expected, greeting me was a plain, simple metal tile.

Taking a deep breath and daring to turn my head to the side, I carefully cast a look around.

I seemed to be in a small chamber of sorts. Plain, grey walls were right in front of me. A table to my right, along with a closed door and-

My breath caught in my throat.

Hung on the wall, less than a foot away from where I was standing, was a large mirror. And standing in that mirror and staring right back at me was… was me.

Only that that pony there didn’t look one bit like me. Granted, I had no real idea of what I looked like. Or even what I used to look like, for that matter… Hell, I didn’t even know my name. But even then, the pony I saw looked nothing like any of the ponies I had seen in my dreams, and I swear it was as if there was a complete stranger staring back at me.

The pony in the mirror was a unicorn mare. Pearly white fur and a long, bright yellow mane surrounded her green eyes that were looking me over in the mirror, before finally travelling back upward and locking with mine again.

For a whole minute, I just stood there in a staring contest with what I guess was… was me. Then, slowly, I could feel myself sink back to my haunches, then onto my back, needing a moment to just rest still and… breathe.

Where was I? How had I gotten here? And most importantly, who was I!?

I could feel my body begin to tremble as my breathing became ragged. I was… I was in the body of a stranger, in a place I didn’t recognize, brought here by ponies whose intentions I didn’t know.

I opened my mouth, closing my eyes and drawing in a shaky breath to calm my pounding heart. As my eyes drifted open again, they slowly wandered over to whatever it was I had been lying on before falling, and I could feel another rush of adrenaline flood my veins as my eyes, slowly getting used to the ambient light that filled the small cell I was in, recognized just what that thing was.

Slowly, hesitantly, I fought myself back to my hooves -which was easier the second time around, but still quite the challenge-to stare at the device.

A metal contraption, its shape and form similar to that of a futuristic bed, but the dome-like structure on top of it made of a clear synthetic material, was all too quick to give away the real purpose of the device in front of me.

I was looking at a cryogenic stasis pod.

And even though my mind was still feeling drowsy from shock, I could feel myself being thrown into ice water all over again as it became clear to me: I had been locked in there. Comatose in an artificial sleep, for how long I could only guess.

My lips began to tremble, shortly followed by my legs, and soon enough my entire body was shaking.

I had been locked away for… for Celestia knows how long! I had no idea where I was or who I was, and anypony I might have ever known could just as well be long dead.

And once again, I could feel my legs wanting to give in, making me sink back to the ground again. I could feel my mind race, overwhelmed with thoughts, feelings and emotions. However, it seemed to stop as that memory popped up again, and the images of that unicorn mare being shot filled my mind, blocking out anything else.

I still didn’t quite know who that pony was, but just seeing how she was the only clear memory I had left I had hoped that she might help me answer at least some of the many questions floating around my head. But now I could feel another jolt run through my body as the realization finally hit home: she was dead.

Hell, I had seen her get shot in my memory! I had seen her die right there!

And even if she hadn’t died, for all I knew this had happened a thousand years ago, so she had probably died a long time ago anyway.

Bearing that realization in mind, I let my head fall back against the stasis pod, watching the only straw I could have ever grasped at go down in flames.

Now, I realized, I was truly alone.

It wasn’t until a few moments later that my eyes had finally adjusted to the lighting in the room, and I, blankly staring into the nothingness, spotted something else in this small chamber I had spent Celestia knows how long in.

There, right next to the mirror I had spotted after falling out of the stasis pod, was a small table, and on it a small colourful orb, as well as a strange silver tube.

Breaking out of my trauma-like stupor, I raised an eyebrow, my curiosity awoken. With a light groan, I pushed myself back to my tired hooves, walking over to the table in a somewhat shaky manner.

I narrowed my eyes, leaning forward and inspecting the orb. That thing… did ring a bell, but I couldn’t put my hoof on it. Was it a weapon? A tool? Or just some form of pre-war toy? My eyes went to the ceiling, my mind straining to produce an answer.

Then, finally, it became clear to me, and I could feel my jaws move, mouthing the term now dominating my mind.

“Memory orb.”

It took my still-tired mind a few moments to compute, but I quickly realized just what that meant: sitting on the table in front of me was the memory of somepony! And try as I might, I couldn’t help but to think that I would find maybe not all, but at least some answers to the countless questions on my mind in there.

So, I clenched my teeth while narrowing my eyes again as I focused on the orb. Gradually, I watched an aura of magic form around the round object, and after a strained groan coming from me, it slowly lifted off the table and floated over towards me.

I levitated it in front of my eyes, reflecting. How were these things activated again? Did you need to… push a button or something, or…

Thinking, I turned the orb in my magic. Was it a good idea to activate it right now, anyway? I didn’t know where I was, and who might come for me while I was out of it. Just because I had been here for a while didn’t mean it was safe now, did it?

With that resolution in mind, I shook my head, levitating the orb back to the table. Trying to carefully put it down and not break it, I focused on the orb, only realizing what a fatal mistake that had been as the world around me turned to bright white, and I could feel myself lose consciousness.

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

Well, crap. That didn’t work out as expected.

The memory I found myself in a few moments after was that of a stallion; a suspicion quickly confirmed by that… strange feeling of something being where there was supposed to be nothing.

In any case, I found myself in the body of a stallion; a stallion that looked… strangely familiar.

The unicorn pony was standing in front of a full-body mirror, focusing on himself in it. His coat was white, partly concealed by something that looked like a doctor’s coat, and his mane appeared red with a pink streak to it in the semi-dark room he was standing in.

Looking at his own reflection, I felt him give a brief sigh.

“Hello, Littlepip,” I heard my (or rather, his) mouth speak, seeming to address his own reflection. “I’m not precisely sure how much you will remember after all this, so allow me to re-introduce myself.”

The stallion took a curt, polite bow.

“My name is Life Bloom, I am… was the assistant to Doctor Helpinghoof of the infirmary at Tenpony Tower.” He paused, then wanted to continue, but... He hesitated, doing a double take.

“I… know you must be confused. That’s perfectly understandable after everything you’ve gone through, trust me. If you can see this memory, it means you have successfully spent the last forty years in a cryogenic sleep; an artificial coma, so to speak,” the pony continued to explain. Helpless as I was, being trapped in his memory, I just listened, trying to understand just what he was telling me.

“You probably don’t remember, but you were severely wounded in the battle of New Appleoosa. A magical energy rifle based on the severity of the burns....”

He paused for a second, slowly shaking his head in what looked like he couldn’t believe it himself.

“Really, you were this close to being disintegrated,” he said, before he cleared his thoughts, continuing: “Your friend, Calamity, managed to bring you to me before you bled out. Your life was hanging by a thread, but… we managed to bring you back. However…” His face darkened noticeably. “It wasn’t safe out there anymore, especially not for you. The Enclave knew where you were; they knew how to track you down, so it was only a matter of time until they would find you and end your life once and for all.”

Again, the unicorn shook his head, his face going back to its regular expression. “So, I made a decision to spare you from that dim fate; at least for now.” He bit his lip, seeming to hesitate, but then continued. “I decided to put you in here, allowing you to rest safely from the Enclave, until things looked better for us. Which, as a matter of fact, is now. At least, I hope so.”

“Look, I don’t have too much time. A lot of things have happened since you passed out in New Appleloosa. Far too many to explain them all here and now. Next to this memory orb you should find a PegWing, it's similar to a PipBuck…”

He bit his lip again, seeming to search for the right words. “It's basically a glorified version of a PipBuck; though it should work similar to yours, really.” Again, he looked over his shoulder, seeming to get increasingly nervous. “All you need to know is on there. Just put it on like a normal PipBuck, and it should answer all your questions.”

A loud, resounding crack came from somewhere in the room behind him, and I could feel a jolt of shock go through my… through his body.

“Fuck,” he cussed under his breath. “Sorry, I really need to go. We’ll see each other again… hopefully. Just… remember, they all think Littlepip is dead, so please follow the instructions on your device. Don’t let this plan fail!” he finished, his eyes seeming to beg with, well, himself.

Seconds later, I noticed him turning away from the mirror, and felt how that familiar wave of bright light washed over me again, indicating that the memory was over.

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

Coming back around, I found myself lying on the cold metal ground. My head was feeling dizzy, my vision swimming, but I still felt relieved that apparently nothing had happened during the time I was in the memory.

I pushed myself back to my haunches with a soft groan, blinking as the words of … what was his name? Life Bloom? As his words echoed in my mind like ominous thunder.

I couldn’t remember everything he had said. In fact, most of it felt like a blurred pile of mush in my mind. However, one word… one name seemed to stick out like a light in the darkness.

Littlepip.

That was the name he had called me. What he had addressed me as. Of course, there was the chance that this memory has not been addressed to me at all, but looking at the integrity of things, that possibility just seemed too unlikely.

Besides, just recalling that name… it gave me a really weird feeling. It sounded so familiar; so… intimate.

With a gentle moan, I closed my eyes, pressing my hooves against my temples as I repeated the name in my mind. Gradually, I noticed images popping up. They were blurred and vague at first but becoming clearer with every time I repeated that one name.

I saw various ponies use that name to address somepony I couldn’t see just yet. A charcoal unicorn mare, whose gentle and caring voice seemed to fill me with a calmness I hadn’t felt since waking up. A rust-colored pegasus stallion who looked weathered and toughened from years in the wastes. A stallion in thick, heavy metal armor who looked, for lack of a better term, threatening. A zebra mare, scars across her body indicating years of hardship, who gives wisdom whenever it is needed. Then a steel-grey unicorn, whose mere memory caused an all-new wave of emotions to come over my mind.

All those ponies… all those ponies I saw use that name, addressing somepony whose image I was now struggling to rebuild in my mind.

I gave a groan, rubbing my head as if it would help me remember. I saw… I saw a unicorn mare. She looked a bit like the one I had seen before, yet different at the same time. She was standing in the middle of a battlefield, her magic aiming a large, heavy-looking revolver at something I couldn’t see; her face contorted in a mixture of bloodlust and determination.

She looked… she looked exactly like…


I was standing in New Appleoosa, just as the Enclave’s final, devastating attack had begun. Half the town was lying in debris, the other half seemed to be on fire; Sky-tanks and Enclave soldiers filled out the sky almost entirely, exchanging shots with those residents of New Appleoosa that were willing and able to fight back.

And in the middle of all was I. Stressed, exhausted, and at the end of my tether, I dashed from side to side, doing my best to dodge the fire coming from above. The ground around me was barely visible anymore; mostly debris from surrounding houses that had been blown to bits, and from one crashed Sky-tank, but also... blood, and the remains of those unfortunate enough to have been turned to dust.

Even I had been struck a couple of times. My barding had held off most of the damage, but I was limping on one leg an Enclave soldier had gotten a lucky shot on. It was clear that I couldn’t stay out here for too long; the Enclave had the better technology, the better technique, and outnumbered us by a long shot.

“Littlepip!” I could hear a shout tear through the air, making me look up. Up ahead, in an only partly-destroyed house, was Calamity, waving his hooves to get my attention. “Get over here, we need to go!”

I groaned, panting, but realized he was right. Even in the short amount of time that had passed, the dozen or so ponies around me had been reduced to a mere eight, and with the at least three dozen Enclave soldiers above our heads, the battle seemed lost.

Shaking my head and muttering a curse, I turned to the side, limping over to the building Calamity was in. If he has any healing potion left, he could heal my leg, I could go back out there and turn this thing around after all!

Time seemed to run in slow motion as I made my way over to her, dodging fire from all directions. I saw the building coming closer with every step I took, but then stopped abruptly as the ground in front of me shook. A solid mass of black power armor had dropped from the sky. No, not dropped. Had landed right in front of me, standing safely on his four hooves.

My eyes widened and without thinking about it, I floated Little Macintosh into his direction, pulling the trigger without so much as thinking about it.

The shot missed.

In turn, I saw the soldier’s magical energy rifle light up in a menacing red glow.

“Littlepip, watch out!” I could hear Calamity shout from behind the soldier as he quickly began aiming his Spitfire's Thunder at the soldier.

Then there was a flash of red light filling out my vision entirely; an excruciating pain spreading over my entire body before my world went black, and I fell to the ground.

The horrified shouting of my name coming from Calamity was the last thing I remember, then everything went dark.


Petrified, I sat there as the memory repeated itself in my head, hammering the conclusion into my mind.

I… am Littlepip. The Stable Dweller. The Lightbringer. The Hellmare.

And I died forty years ago.

An intense shiver ran through my body as my mind drew the inevitable conclusion. But… but this was impossible! I… I had seen myself die! How could I be back again just like that? Fully restored? Without any restrictions? And most importantly, alive!

My body continued to tremble as my mind struggled to cope with that realization, and it took a few minutes until I had finally calmed down enough to raise my head again.

My look went back up to the table where I had found Life Bloom’s memory orb, and my eyes rested on that other device standing on the table next to it.

Looking up, I reflected, struggling to remember everything the Life Bloom had told me. I looked at the device… the word PegWing was engraved into it. And it was supposed to work similar to a… to a…

My thoughts came to a halt as, instinctively, my gaze went down to my right foreleg, where I remembered my PipBuck had been almost all my life.

Only that there was nothing now.

A new wave of shock overcame me as I looked at my… my blank leg.

But how!? Where… where had it gone!?

I could feel myself wanting to panic again. Hell, where was I? How did I get here!? Why was I looking… so different!? And how was I still alive?

However, just as I felt confusion get the better of me, my look went back to the… PipBuck-thing, and Life Bloom’s words echoed in my mind, saying that it should answer all my questions.

I hesitated for a few moments, but ultimately couldn’t stand the tension, and had to give in to curiosity. Slowly getting back to my hooves, I walked over to the small table and picked the device up in my magic.

Eyeing it sceptically for a few moments, it looked more like a long steel cuff bracelet then an actual computer, I wondered if putting it on just like that was a wise idea. It… really didn’t seem too trustworthy.

However, curiosity beat caution like it did so often, and I soon found myself slipping my right foreleg through the strange device. It seemed to lock in place in the very same spot my PipBuck had been before, and I gave a startled gasp as I felt it tighten around my leg, the metal-like structure moulding itself to perfectly wrap around my hoof.

“What the fuck…?” I muttered softly, bewildered by this new technology.

However, to top things off, the device sprang to life a few seconds after it was done adjusting around my leg. A soft ping came from a hidden speaker, and a computerized voice squawked from the device.

“Initial configuration - complete. Welcome, Sparkplug,” the voice declared, gaining a raised eyebrow from me.

Curiously, I lifted my foreleg to inspect the device, but felt myself flinch and backpedal hastily as a bright cone of white light shot from the device around my ankle, lighting up a square of sorts in front of me, similar to a holograph.

On it, (after getting over my initial shock and looking back at the holograph) I could see a small orb of bright light, that quickly grew to fill out the entire screen. Seconds later, it vanished, replaced by a video, showing an idyllic-looking city made of clouds - pre-war Cloudsdale, I presumed. The sun filled out the sky in all its glory, a rainbow was looming at the horizon, and happy, cheerful pegasus ponies fluttered about. A jolly soundtrack served as ambience.

“Beautiful, is it not?” the voice of a stallion spoke up as the camera slowly moved to the side, capturing all of its surroundings. “The city of Cloudsdale, almost three hundred years ago - a perfect city in a perfect Equestria. Of course, the great war has affected us all, and even a civilization as glorious as the Grand Pegasus Enclave could not escape from the effects of such a devious, spineless attack.”

The pictures on the holograph changed, now showing what I quickly identified as the crashed, burned remains of Cloudsdale, lying on the ground somewhere out in the wasteland.

However, we have not been sitting idle during the past two centuries. After withdrawing from the surface to gather our resources, we, the now Grand Equestrian Enclave, have now returned to the surface to share with you our blessings.” Again, the screen changed, now presenting the ‘blessings’ in broad, pompous letters. “Peace, technology, food, and so much more! Thanks to our combined efforts…”

The screen changed again, this time showing what looked like a… fairly well-rebuilt city. A settlement based on the ruins of a pre-war town, filled with ponies in Enclave uniforms - not only pegasi but also unicorns and earth ponies were wearing the sleek, futuristic uniforms.

“We have managed to grant tens of thousands of ponies formerly living in misery access to not only basic requirements like water and food, but also secure jobs, and a regulated life in a safe environment.”

The music silenced abruptly, the screen going black all of a sudden.

"And you are now among them," the voice declared boldly. “You are seeing this educational video because you have applied for a job as a…” There was a brief cut in the audio recording. “Technician. In… New Appleloosa! And it is with great pleasure that I welcome you to the Grand Equestrian Enclave. Welcome to a better life.”

The screen flickered for a second, then showed a cartoon pony presenting me its... PipBuck-thing.

“Applied to one of your front legs, you will find your very own PegWing 6000. This engineering marvel is just one of many great inventions brought to ground-dwellers by the Grand Equestrian Enclave. Similar to the so-called ‘PipBucks’ used by the company Stable-Tech before the great war, it serves as your own personal assistant. When started up by a simple tap with a hoof…”

The pony on the screen did just that, causing its device to start up and project a holograph similar to the one I was looking at right now.

“It will show you all important information - your health, radiation level, and your current position. It also has a built-in radio receiver, so you can always stay up to date with recent events happening in the Grand Equestrian Enclave, or just listen to your favourite tune,” the narrator finished with a light chuckle; the pony on the screen did a little dance to confirm that last part.

“So what are you waiting for? The first day in your new job, and your new life within the Grand Equestrian Enclave is waiting for you! Just follow the marker on your map to your nearest superior and report back to them to get your first assignment in your new job as… Technician.”

“Once again, welcome to the Grand Equestrian Enclave... Sparkplug.”

The camera zoomed in on the pony’s face, showing it give me a broad, beaming smile.

“And welcome to a better life!”

With that, the movie faded, leaving me looking at, what I suspected, was the… PegWing’s main screen, of sorts. A simple menu coloured in various shades of grey and blue greeted my eyes, revealing that, indeed, the PegWing had a lot in common with a PipBuck. In front of me, I saw three different subitems at the top end of the screen - stats, items, and data.

I looked at it blankly for a few moments, wondering how I was supposed to access this thing, as the actual device around my foreleg didn’t seem to have any interface whatsoever.

Cocking an eyebrow, I slowly raised my left leg, leading my hoof to a point in the holograph, as if I would push it like a button. This felt more than just a little stupid, but…

It worked!

I couldn’t contain a surprised gasp as I was now looking at my inventory - unsurprisingly, it was empty.

I cocked an eyebrow, eyeing the PegWing sceptically. So, this was what the Enclave was capable of? Damn…

For a brief moment, I found my inner PipBuck technician surface, wanting to take this mysterious device apart and figure out its secrets, but that thought was quickly overwhelmed by a far more intense desire: I wanted answers!

Quickly shaking my head, I focused my attention back on the holograph in front of me, my hoof instinctively going to the 'data' tab, and felt my eyes widen as I found an audio recording titled 'R.I.P. Littlepip'.

I swallowed, fighting with myself for a moment, but then felt curiosity prevail like so often before, and lightly tapped the air in front of me with my hoof, covering the ‘PLAY’-button on the holograph.

“Dear Calamity, dear Velvet Remedy…” My ears perked up as I again heard Life Bloom’s voice.

“What I am about to tell you is… really not easy for me.” He swallowed, sounding genuinely nervous. “I’m sure by now you both know of Littlepip getting wounded in the battle of New Appleoosa. I was able to treat her injuries quickly thanks to Calamity’s help, but…”

Again, he hesitated.

“Her injuries were… really quite severe. The weapon she was struck with is some kind of prototype laser rifle that I have never seen before. I…” he cut himself off, and I heard a faint sob. “I’m so sorry, but… I couldn’t save her. Littlepip is… she’s dead.”

I heard him choke back a sob. “I am so very sorry. I know she meant a lot to both of you, and to others as well. I swear I did everything in my power to save her, but…” He swallowed, gasping for breath. “I couldn’t do it. I’m so sorry. Feel free to come see me if you want to talk, but I’m afraid you won’t be able to… see her. I know this must be hard for you to take, but her remains were incinerated due to Tenpony Tower’s strict health guidelines. Once again, I am so very sorry, but sometimes there’s nothing I can do.”

The sound of the audio recording faded with a click, and for a few moments, there was nothing but silence as I stood there, motionlessly, letting the fact sink in that I had just listened to my own declaration of death.

I could feel my mind reeling.

So… Life Bloom had saved me after being shot; had put me in here, and had led not only the Enclave but also my closest and best friends to believe that I was dead.

…But why?

I closed my eyes, lowering my head. Thinking wasn’t easy when you’ve spent four decades in a cryogenic sleep.

So… the Enclave… had won?

I thought back to that video I had seen, my look going down to my new PipBuck. That thing had been addressed to a certain Sparkplug. Who that pony is I still wasn’t sure. That PegWing I was wearing seemed to belong to her, and through the video I had found out that she had started working for the Enclave, but…

Really, who was she?

But that aside, what that narrator had said… about the Enclave having dozens of settlements on the ground now… so they actually had won!?

I screwed my face up, giving a sigh of exasperation as a feeling of deep discomfort spread through my guts.

But… but how? How could it be that… my friends; Applejack’s Rangers, hell even Red Eye’s army… they all lost to the Enclave!?

I sank back to my haunches, feeling tears form in my eyes.

The Enclave had won! The Enclave won!

And that means I… and all those ponies I was fighting alongside with… had lost.

Again, I could feel my head sink in sheer exasperation, only looking back up as my eyes spotted the PegWing’s Heads-up-Display in front of me I saw that the single audio file in my PegWing’s data-centre had been replaced by a new note. A text message titled ‘Instructions for Sparkplug’.

Raising an eyebrow, curiosity overshadowing any exasperation for the moment, I once again raised a hoof and tapped it against the message.

Dear Sparkplug,

Congratulations on being accepted into the Grand Equestrian Enclave’s workforce. I am positive you will be of good use to us and all of Equestria in your new position as a technician.

In order to finalize your employment and deploy you on your first assignment, please see me at the Big Hoof Diner at your earliest convenience. You will find it in the Upper District. If you are unsure where to find it, I’m sure you know you can use the map on your PegWing to guide you.

Best regards and Glory to the Enclave!

Your instructor, Steampunk

I read the note again a second time, then let my head sink. I had been hoping to get some answers out of these documents, but now I was even more confused than before!

Who was this Sparkplug, and why did I have her PipBuck-thing? And who had left that note for her?

It took me another moment to think before a new resolution popped up in my head.

Whoever these ponies were, that stallion wanted to meet with whoever pony’s PipBuck I was wearing at the moment.

Granted, I didn’t have the slightest idea of where that was -or where I was to begin with- but if that pony was right and that… PegWing had something like a GPS integrated, I could simply let it guide me there.

And maybe, just maybe, I would finally get some clear answers there.

Shaking my head and taking a deep breath, I turned to the side, my look going over to the single door that separated the room I was in from whatever was out there.

I felt a slight weightlessness rise in my guts at the realization that I still had no idea just where I was. Even worse, that door appeared to be made of thick metal and heavily secured-what… what if I was locked in here!?

Feeling my pulse quicken, I took a step forward, resting a hoof on the door and giving it a gentle shove.

Nothing.

My breathing quickened gradually as the thought of being locked to die in here cast itself over my mind like a black cloud.

However, I felt myself perk up as my eyes went to the side, and I spotted… some form of device hanging on the wall next to the door.

Cocking an eyebrow, I took a step closer, casting a sceptical look at the thing. I was sure I had seen one of these before. It looked like a… scanner of sorts.

Could it be that…

I gave a groan of disapproval. No, that would be too easy.

Still, I couldn’t help it, as curiosity led me to slowly raise my right hoof and place it on the smooth glass surface of the small device.

I flinched as a green light flashed over my hoof for a second, and with a gentle ping, I could hear a click come from the door as I watched it slide open.

My look rested on the… hoof-scanner for a few more seconds, before it went over to the now opened door, and I could feel my mind getting overwhelmed with impressions as, for the first time in decades, I could feel a gust of fresh air hit my face.

Well… time to get some answers… right?

Swallowing, I looked over my shoulder one last time, casting a glance over the room I had been in for so long to see if there was anything I should be taking with me.

My gaze lingered on Life Bloom’s memory orb for a few moments, before I picked it up with my magic and took it with me. With everything that had happened, it felt good having something remotely familiar with me.

Confident that I had, if not everything I needed, but everything I could take from here, I turned back around again. I then took one last breath of the musty air in my chamber, and then I stepped out into the unknown.


Footnote: Game Over.

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Author's Note:

New chapters shall be released over the next few weeks, up to chapter six. From there, there will be a longer wait as new chapters are written.