Fallout Equestria: Brass Sentinel

by Chemtest

Boots that Jingle-Jangle

We move along on the old, damaged road in silence. Only the shifting of hooves and equipment fill the silence. The signs say we are headed to Raven AFB, all mentioning at how any pegasi should stay grounded or get shot down. I’d say they were paranoid, but seeing what happened because of that war, I think they had good reasoning.

We crest a hill, and I see it in the distance. A bunch of planes left out on the tarmac, and one building, that isn’t a hanger blown in. Guess that decides where we’re going. We stop, and Sure Shot takes out her rifle, and aims down at the place, “Nopony around there. No motion or defenses at all.”

Hail starts to walk forward, “Then let’s get down there and start searching.”

She puts her rifle away, “Yeah, let’s go ponies! Remember, just because I didn’t spot anything outside doesn’t mean there won’t be anything inside. Don’t be stupid.”

I nod at my two friends, and we move forward after Hail, “Hunter, be prepared to open fire, just in case. Keep an eye out.”

Hunter slides out his revolver with his hoof mechanism, “You didn’t think I wouldn’t have already did that, did you? Like, that’s just common sense.”

Rattle snorts from beside us, “You say sense is common, have you looked around you? It seems common sense is more uncommon than stupidity. Therefor, your common sense would be stupidity, and not smartness.”

Hunter shakes his head, “Yeah, sure it is. Just be prepared to use that superpony strength. Save that physiological, philosophy, whatever the name is for later.”

Our group makes it into the compound, and we move towards the one building. We pick our way around ruined airplanes, and carefully step over bones of the pilots. Sure Shield moves in front of the door to the building, and takes out a screwdriver, “Get comfortable, this may take a minute.”

Rattle takes out Crusher, and moves up to the door, “We don’t like waiting around. Move out of the way, Shield, this will take but a moment.”

Shield looks at Rattle for a second, before moving out of the way, “Go ahead then.”

Rattle nods thankfully, and moves up to the door. He puts his sledgehammer all the way back, before swinging with all his might.

The sledgehammer connects in the middle of the door, and the entire thing is broken in half. The two broken pieces go flying inside. Rattle smiles happily, and makes an exaggerated bow to all of us, “After you, friends.”

I prepare my punching hooves, and rush inside before anypony else. I look around, ready to spring at any defenses that show themselves. Nothing appears. It’s not that the turrets were destroyed, it’s just that they never existed to begin with. No foundations, no holes in the wall, nothing to show any turrets or defenses. No robots either, somepony was confident about their safety. I look back at the others, “It’s all clear.”

They enter one at a time. Sure Shot looks around the building with apprehension, “Not even a single turret? I don’t have a good feeling about this place. Let’s scavenge and get out quickly.”

Hunter moves out, “I’ve got the armory!”

Hail moves after him, “I got the armory as well!”

Rattle prys a door off it’s hinges, “I can search any locked things.”

The pegasus and the other pony just spread out and start searching. Sure Shot looks over to me, “What’ll you get?”

I start to move out, “I can check the office.”

She shouts out, “Alright ponies, let’s get to searching!”

I don’t know where they went, as I duck into the office. The design is just like the one in the factory. Except this one has pictures hanging up. The pictures are all of a main group of six ponies, in differnt times and differnt places. A changeling and pegasus smiling together as they wear sliver and gold medals, respectively. Two stallions, one in a blue cape, and the other wearing a black cloak, singing happily with a white unicorn mare. The pegasus, unicorn, and a earth pony smiling together as they wear faded capes. The changeling and two stallions playing cards. And a final one of the cloaked stallion kissing the unicorn mare on the cheek.

There’s a photo laying by itself on the desk. All six of them gathered around each other, giving happy, but still worn smiles. At the bottom of the photo, there is writing, ‘Remember what you fight for, or you will be lost. We can’t afford to be lost before we’ve won, remember that, look at this and be reminded of better days. One day we won’t need Ministries anymore, fight for that day, fight for the others.’

I pick up the photo, and it goes into my Pip-Buck. Then I notice a orb lying near the desk. I decide to pick it up. I forgot not to pick it up with my magic, so I’m sucked into it.

———

My host seems to be that stallion in the cloak. I can feel his eyes are closed, and yet we can still see. For some reason, I can’t feel the majority of his legs. And the feeling inside of me, it’s not pain. Something hard to describe, somewhere near being comfortably numb. We’re facing a camera, and I feel the other five next to me.

*Click!*

With the flash gone, I’m able to see where we are. In the middle of some apple orchard, that’s where. The camera them floats over towards me, and I check the photo on it. The same one with the note on it. I smile, and look around at the others.

We all start to sit, and watch nature around us. I ask the other stallion, “So, hows the Ministry going?”

He smiles, “Princess Cadence and Prince Armor we’re happy to allow us a position in the city. Pinkie decided to apply last week, and she’s already my right hoof pony.”

The changeling says over to me, “Leave the talk of that until later.”

The pegasus, speaking in a rough voice nods, “We need to take a break from the war.”

Then the earth pony smiles, “I’m so glad my family is still at work. If not for the new foals helping, we might’ve run out of food. It’s this orchard that’s allowing us to still live comfortably.”

I nod, and look around, “This place is still so beautiful, uncorrupted from the war. Just like the day we met.”

Then the unicorn mare speaks. Her voice like an angles, almost singing each word, “When this war is over, we are going to come back to this treehouse, and we are going to party harder than Pinkie’s wet dreams.”

I soak in the beauty of the pre war orchard, and friendship, “It’s been fifteen years, we should get them done and over with by the end of next year. Then, we will do as you said.”

Nopony else speaks as they just sit in silence, basking in the presence of friends.

They’re relaxed, safe. A feeling I have never felt before. This is what pre war ponies felt like.

The memory draws to an end as we bask in the orchard.

This is what I fight for from now on. So ponies can do this in the future, without worrying about raiders or other unsavory types.

This is where I find myself, and know what I fight for.

———

I awake from the memory to hear a mares voice shouting. Not one that I recognize, “You have property of Celestia’s Legion, profligates! Give us the slave and we might not lash you to a cross!”

I hop up instantly, and prepare for a fight.

———

Footnote: Level Up.

New Perk Added: Soul Seeked — For your life you’ve been searching for reason to fight. Now, you have found it, to give safety to others, just like before the war. Nopony will stand in your way. Endurance and Strength will always be at 10, and can go past the limit for them.

Comments

[Zapper Frost]

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[Chemtest]

9177869
Wonderful input.

[Zapper Frost]

9178032
Meh, had to comment something