Fallout Equestria: Shadow Games

by Cenkic

Chapter 4:Terrible Plans

“I don’t like this plan at all.” Gil grumbled over the radio.

“Do you have a better one?” I asked.

He muttered something indistinguishable which gave me my answer. With that said, I looked down at my hoof work and felt rather pleased with myself. I had salvaged the power cells out of all the damaged and destroyed robots that I could, and with plenty of scrap material I had managed to create a makeshift battery. That had been the easy part.

“I have to agree... with the gryphon... Gildann was it?” The Twilight AIs voice spoke with shallow breaths, “This is too risky… for a verified... Stable Tech Employee to attempt-”

I sighed, “Look, I get it. It’s a super risky plan, but I’m the best candidate to take the risk.”

The next part had been jury rigging the elevator to be able to accept the questionable power supply separate of the Stables systems. I’m certain somepony somewhere would scoff at the exposed wires and missing panels that were connected to a ramshackle battery, but meh.

Gils voice came over the radio again, “Everypony is out, including Pincer and that other pony, Tea-something-or-other.”

“Rerouting power… for the elevator… means you are down here… longer.” The AI spoke.

“I’m going to have my hooves busy enough as is making all of this work.” I said as I took a relatively clean cloth and wrapped it around my face, “I really can’t afford to foalsit those two during all this, and they wouldn’t be much help anyways.”

“That… is sound logic.” She replied.

“Alright, now comes the ‘fun’ part.” I then took a deep breath and exhaled slowly as I walked back to the AI room, “Shut down all systems and reroute everything to your terminal.”

The T.E.A.R. gave me a concerned look, which I returned with a narrow stare of my own. She let out a sigh, “Very well. Shutting down all systems.”

I watched on the terminal as lights began to go off throughout the Stable. While I knew it was impossible, I could swear I could almost hear each section going offline. Worse still was that it sounded eerily like a heartbeat slowing down. With some hesitation, the AI shut down the last item of power within the Stable, one that almost everypony overlooks, yet is as vital as a water purifier talisman.

“Life support systems shut down.” She spoke softly, “Estimated time before air quality drops is five minutes. Estimated download of the file is ten minutes.”

I nodded silently, aiming to keep as much air as possible to myself. Turning on my Pipbuck light, I walked into the robot maintenance bay and looked at the remains of the robots that had been left behind. Their sorry state was like a small mockery of the Stable itself. Chunks of armor plating and wiring were missing when I had done my ad hoc repairs to the other robots, made all the worse when I salvaged their power cores for the elevator. Still, perhaps there were still a few bits that I could possibly-

My train of thought stopped as I noticed a dull glow on the edge of my vision. Looking up, I noticed that there were still lights on one of the maintenance pods. Curiosity got the better of me as I walked over to it and saw there was still a robot inside.

‘That’s right, these things have their own batteries.’ I thought to myself as I pulled up the terminal.

‘ERROR: MAINTENANCE POD JAMMED. ERROR: PERSONALITY FILE MISSING. ERROR: GENERAL PROGRAMMING MISSING. ERROR: OVERMARE CODES REQUIRED FOR ACTIVATION.’

I couldn’t help but faceplant on the screen, “What kind of idiot sends a broken pod-” I let out an involuntary cough as I tried to speak.

The air began to have a nasty taste to it. It wouldn’t be long before the breathable air was replaced with whatever nastiness that had gathered for the last 200 years. I couldn’t help but be impressed that, short of forcing the system to shut down, the water and air purification systems were still able to run and support the Stables. But with all of that shut down, it wouldn’t be possible for near anything to survive the place.

Which also included silly earth ponies that were thinking of really silly plans that could further put them in danger by staying in the place longer than needed. Somepony should really talk to those silly ponies about common sense. Of course such silly ponies would actually have to listen to said advice. Until then, I had a plan that needed completing.

“File transfer...complete.” T.E.A.R. strained through the terminal a few minutes later.

“Just in time.” I coughed hard as I went back into the terminal room and ejected the disk, “Well done.”

Her library was all but gone, and while I hadn’t really noticed before her coat color had become a dull grey. The AI looked at me with a tired smile “I’m happy...to have...served...” Her eyes started to close.

“Well you’re not done yet.” I said in between coughs as I plugged my Pipbuck back into the terminal.

“Wait…” T.E.A.R. forced her eyes open and looked at me worriedly, “What are-”

Before she could finish, the AI disappeared from the computer screens as her program began to download to my Pipbuck. While I was mentally set on my path, my burning throat and lungs were yelling at me to abandon my mad scheme and get out of the Stable. The itching in my eyes were also making a compelling argument.

“Ow!” I said involuntarily as I stuck myself with a syringe labeled ‘med-ex’ to counter my bodies complaints.

Its effects were almost immediate as the pain my body was feeling began to dull to a point of tolerance. Still, at best it would only make things more comfortable for me, and not deal with the fact that I was breathing… well, whatever was left in the Stable.

Her data transfer completed after only a few minutes (which made me wonder why exactly the ‘special’ file took so bloody long). I made my way back to the pod and began working on getting past the last major obstacle in my stupid plan: getting the pod doors to actually open. There was something physically wrong with the bloody thing, and I couldn’t correct the error with normal methods. I looked down at my laser pistol holster as another idea came to me...

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I wasn’t sure what time it was, and honestly I didn’t care to check: I was far too comfortable to care. I felt rather safe and warm in my comfortable bed, and my motivation to get out of it was 0%. Besides, father or Gildann could get me out of bed if the caravan actually needed me. Just as I started drift back to sleep, my ears picked up a sound that I was rather unfamiliar with. It was the the sound of an opening door; specifically, an old squeaky wooden door.

“Alright, let’s see how our patient is doing today.” An unfamiliar mares voice spoke.

“Nuuuu, let me sleeeeeep.” I whined, “I don’t wanna get outta be-EEK!” I yelped as cold metallic arms wrapped around me.

“Designated Stable Official!” A strangely familiar yet robotic voice squeed as a purplish blob came into view, “It's so good to see that you are alright!”

“What's going on?!” I asked as I flailed my hooves helplessly.

“Please refrain from scaring my patients.” The unfamiliar mare spoke again, “She doesn’t have her bearings yet.”

The metallic arms released me and the purple blob moved away, “Ah, my apologies.” It said as it bowed (I think).

My brain tried to comprehend what was going on, since the caravan never had a robot and I didn’t-the flood gates of memory opened as the last few days flowed back to me. I rubbed my head as I began processing everything, though things were a bit fuzzy. I tried looking around at my surroundings, but like everything else it was little more that a blur of color with a dim light on above me, “Where are my glasses?” A chill passed through me and I hid deeper in the blanket, “For that matter, where is everything else?”

“I’ve been doing my best to clean and inventory your items. In fact, here are your glasses.” The robot(?) said as I saw a blur of movement as I guessed it was holding them in front of me.

After a few unsuccessful attempts of reaching out, the robot helped me. I put my glasses on and an interesting world came into focus. The metallic arms that had glomped me before belonged to a Mr Handy robot, though this was a custom design. Whatever questions I had fell to the wayside as I marveled at the design.

“Ooooh, you’re a unique one aren’t you? I mean beyond the purple paint job rather than the boring grey. Manipulators with extensions for fine motor control that would make even the most dedicated housekeeper jealous, a unique ring control ring that allows multiple arms to work in unison in a single direction, enhanced engine for extended flight, and a radio antenna! You are a beautiful piece of art!” (continuity problem...when did she have time to put TEAR in the robot, and why wouldn’t she remember the design...no mention of it being purple before)

The robot seemed to be flustered as two of its claw manipulators seemed to be fidgeting, “Oh! Umm, thank you very much. Though you were the one that put me in this body after all, which I am rather grateful for.”

I stared for a moment as the sound of her voice finally sunk in as well as my targeter bringing up her name, “T.E.A.R.?’

She nodded, “Indeed! You downloaded me into this Diagnostic and Repair Prototype unit. After some discussion with some of the people in town, I have decided to combine the various acronyms to spell Teardrop.” she said proudly before bringing her ‘hands’ together and looking at me nervously, “Does that meet with your approval?”

I nodded, “Seems fine to me.” As I said that, I watched her name tag change accordingly. I couldn’t help but smile as I patted her on her domed head, “I’m glad you made it.”

Teardrop fidgeted her manipulators together again, “I’m glad that you survived your ordeal as well.”

I cocked my head, “Ordeal?”

“Yep, the one I’ve been treating you for a little while now.” I turned my gaze to the other in the room. A dark colored mare that approached wore a red jumpsuit that wouldn’t be out of place for a mechanic, made complete by a deep red bandanna tied over her head. We looked at each other for a moment before she let out a sigh, “Can you remove the blanket? I promise you’ve got nothing I haven't seen before.”

I hesitated before finally removing it, “So who might you be?” I asked.

She turned on a flashlight and looked at my head, “I’m Red, currently the only doctor of Riverpoint Junction.”

My ears perked up, “Riverpoint? Oh, that’s the town Teacup said he was from.”

“Teacup?” She asked.

“Teen unicorn with a stupid long name-”

“Oh.” Red thought for a moment, “That is a better nickname isn’t it?” She then flicked off the flashlight and chuckled at the same time, “He was talking about you a lot, guess you made a good impression. More importantly, it seems you recovered from that concussion nicely, just need to check your breathing.”

I looked at Teardrop with confusion, “You turned your laser pistol into a makeshift grenade to get me out of the maintenance pod, but it detonated earlier than you anticipated.” I listened silently as Red had me take in deep breaths, and Teardrop continued, “You took a bad hit to the head, which combined with the toxicity level that was quickly rising, you passed out as we reached the elevator. Luck would have it that the protectrons were still in the Stable, so I took them over again and used them to carry you out.”

The mare took a step back from, “Alright, looks like you have a clean bill of health.”

“Well that’s good.” I said, “Now, where is my stuff?”

“Ah, I’ll fetch them for you.” Teardrop said as she floated out of the room.

Red let out a chuckle, “She’s quite loyal. Been sticking around while you’ve been recovering like a mother hen.”

I shrugged, “I just made sure she wasn’t abandoned was all. Leave no pony behind right?” I said with a smile.

Red chuckled, “You Stable types are an odd bunch.”

“Not half as odd as the group I travel with.” I looked around, “Speaking of, where are the delinquents?”

“If you mean your other companions, they left two days ago.” Teardrop said cheerfully as she floated into the room and set my bag down.

“Ah.” I said as I started gathering my items, “At least they aren’t causing trou-wait, WHAT?!”

As it turned out I had been out for the last three days, partly due to a mix of carbon monoxide and chlorine poisoning, the rest being that I was a heavy sleeper. Given that the town had limited resources, Pincer had traded five of the seven days worth of our water in order to keep me at the hospital (apparently they were not grateful that Steelhead was killed). While Gildann had been hesitant to leave, Teardrop had assured them that I would be protected between the two protectrons and herself. So they decided to take the file that we’d risked our lives for and headed to Friendship City to meet our contact. Without me.

“Celestia help me.” I groaned as I put on my Stable suit, “I better get going.”

“I’d recommend taking it easy for a few hours before you get on the road.” Red began, “You did just recover after all.”

Before I could say anything, the light in my room went out, and we all looked up at it, “Is that normal?” I asked considering none of us had hit the light switch.

Red let out a disgruntled sound as she left the room. I looked at Teardrop who just shrugged. Grabbing my saddlebag, I followed the pony out of the now dark hospital building. Exiting the building, I finally got a good view of my surroundings and realized that River Point Junction was well named. The hospital complex sat right next to the main waterway that separated Manhattan with the rest of Equestria. Besides the main hospital building, there were at least five other buildings that I could see that made up the complex, not counting the two-story one I came out of. A wall built out of scrap seemed to surround the ‘town’ to protect it, and I could see a small harbor that had only a single rusted boat in it. I guessed that if there had been additional boats, they had most likely been scrapped for the wall.

In the center of ‘town’ I could see several ponies gathering, all of them yelling out a litany of complaints. One of the things I noticed was a rather bad smell that came from not bathing for several days, either themselves or their clothing. While hygiene couldn’t be as well kept in the wasteland in comparison to a stable, it was still something that most town ponies did to some degree. It made me realize just how bad their water situation was, and-

“Whats going on?” One of the ponies yelled, interrupting my thought process, “Generator shouldn't have been turned off for another hour!”

“I’m trying to prepare a meal here!” A mare with three bouncing kids yelled, “It’s only half-way done!”

Red leaned in closer to me, “Besides the water drying up, our generator has been giving out too.”

An old and tired looking pony came out of a smaller building and waved a hoof for silence, “Please everyone, listen to me carefully. The generator has shut down, and we are doing everything we can to fix it. Just be patient and we should have it up shortly.”

“How?” Another asked, “Vanilla Cream was our tech, and she got killed in that Stable!”

My eyes went wide as the memory of the dead mare flashed through my mind. At that moment I also noticed a few angry glares come my way. The elder was silent for a moment before speaking again, “We all feel her loss, believe me. But her children are quite talented and doing their best, so please-” A litany of complaints drowned his attempts to be heard further. After about thirteen seconds of him failing to regain control, I had enough of it.

“QUIET!” I commanded.

As everypony stared at me with confusion, annoyance, and expectation, I suddenly felt very out of place. Taking a deep breath and calming my nerves, I thought about how Pincer would handle such a situation and decided to give it my best shot, “Look, I’m sorry that Vanilla Cream was killed by Steelhead, but that can be discussed later.” I gestured at the elder pony, “You’ve got techs working on the generator, so further yelling isn’t going to help the situation be dealt with any faster. If nothing else I can help too, so I suggest going back to your homes and handling what you can until the issue is solved.”

The entire crowd was silent, and the dirty glares I had been getting were gone as well. I couldn’t help but feel rather pleased with myself at how well I had handled the situation.

“What in the name of Celestia is that accent?” One of them asked.

My composure shattered along with my pride, “Oh come on, really?! That’s what you-”

“If I may?” Teardrop cut me off as she floated ahead of me. I puffed my cheeks in annoyance as I nodded, “Thank you. Now I understand that you all have been going through some terrible ordeals, and this latest issue is not helping those matters any. Part of my programming does include maintenance of power generators, and this chassis is well suited We are not seeking monetary gain for our services, but merely a thank you for allowing the Designated Stable-ahem, Repair Pony Amber-”

‘Really?’ I mentally asked, ‘She’s calling me that too?’

“-To recover in your town.” She then brought up her claws and held them in a stance not to different from a filly asking for candy, “Please allow us to show our gratitude for such kindness.”

At her words, the crowds mood seemed to soften as they whispered in a more controlled tone, ‘Isn’t that what I said? Basically? Ish?’ I thought to myself.

“It couldn’t hurt, and I can make sure they don’t get into any trouble.” Red said as she walked next to Teardrop, “If nothing else, they have tools and parts that could help. I’ll keep an eye on ‘em to make sure they stay out of trouble.”

He looked between the robot and myself before he let out an exasperated sigh. “Very well. We have nothing left to lose, but be careful all the same Red.” He then turned to the crowd, “Head back to your homes. If luck is with us, things will be back to normal soon.”

Murmuring started going through the crowd again, but they started to disperse and head back to their homes as a message appeared on my Pipbuck.

‘Down on their luck:’

Main objective - Find alternate water source for River Point Junction.

Secondary Objective - Fix Power Generator

I puffed my cheeks in annoyance, first at the fact that Teardrop handled the crowd better than I, secondly that there was now a delay to get back to my traveling companions. Most important however was that my Pipbuck seemed to know what I was doing, and was even giving titles to the ‘quests’ it liked to pick up for me.

I was seriously convinced that somehow, somewhere, someway an AI controlled the satellite network that I assumed controlled the Pipbuck information and abilities.

“Are you displeased?” Teardrop asked as she looked at me with concern, knocking me out of my train of thought, “Should I have asked you first before offering your services? You did say-”

I held up my hoof, “Nah, I’m not mad at that. I’m just surprised-no, impressed on how well you handled that crowd.”

“Well, if you do remember I was designed to handle the Stable in case the B.F.S. program failed to handle itself properly.” Teardrop said proudly without any condescending attitude, “In fact, I have a wide variety of functions that I would be happy to go over-”

“Are you two coming or are you going to stand in the middle of the road?” Red asked.

“Coming!” We said in unison as we moved to catch up.

We entered into the main hospital, and I was utterly shocked. I was used to depressing scenes inside most buildings; floors littered with debris, plaster wearing away, windows darkened or broken, and a seemingly never ending miasma of dust.

Yet, this place defied all expectations, and I was ok with that. “This is...amazing!”

Teardrop stopped to look at me, “What do you mean?”

I lifted a hoof to point out the room, “Trash-free floors, re-fitted windows, and that air!” I took a deep breath, “It’s clean and even refreshing to smell! I haven't seen a place like this since I left my Stable!”

“And it’s not going to stay that way if we don’t find a new water supply or keep the generator going.” An exasperated Red said, “Seriously, are you always this distracted?”

“I’m not used to this, don’t judge me!” I said, then stopped as Red started going upstairs, Wait, why are we going up to the generator room? Isn’t it in the basement?”

The mare shook her head, “It’s on the fifth floor, though not sure why its up there. Annoying to get to it though when the elevators are out.”

“To protect it from flooding.” Teardrop piped up, “Buildings so close to the water would want something as important as a generator on a higher level to prevent water damage.”

I grumbled under my breath at whomever thought riverfront property was a good idea as we finally got to the fifth floor.

A young vanilla colored unicorn colt was crying near an old but well kept toolbox, clutching a small picture close to his chest. A slightly older dark grey unicorn filly appeared from behind the generator with a foul look on her face.

“Oh will you stop crying and help me?!” She yelled, causing the colt to flinch and scoot away from her. She let out an exasperated grunt as she threw a tool on the ground, “Come on! You can cry later, for now we-”

“I-I-I-can’t help it.” He said between his sobs, sniffing as he did so, “Mom is-”

“I KNOW!” She yelled, “She friggen got herself killed just like that ass-chaser dad of ours! Now unless you want to live on the streets, get off your ass and-”

“Be calm and stay focused.” I said.

Both sets of eyes turned to me, the colt trying to sink into the corner. The filly on the other hoof mustered a glare that would give a Hellhound pause, “The hell are you?” She asked before pointing at Red, “And the hell are you doing bringing them here?”

“My name is Amber.” I spoke softly as I offered a friendly smile, “May I have your names?”

“None of your fucking business outsider.” The filly responded, “Seriously, the hell is that accent? You know what, never mind.” She gestured to the generator, “I’ve got a metric ton of shit problems I have to wade through, so why don’t you just sh-”

“Hmm, strange.” I interrupted, “I thought there was a filly in here, but all I hear is a foul wind.”

The filly stopped dead in her tracks and looked at me with her mouth hanging open, trying to find a comeback while the colt tried to suppress a snicker through his tears. I walked up to him and lowered myself to the ground so we were at eye level, “Hey there, what’s your name?” I asked softly.

He looked at me with puffed red eyes as he spoke, “Custard. My mom… mom didn’t come back.”

“No shit she didn’t. Crying about it isn’t going to fucking help.” The foul-mouth said.

I shook my head, “It is ok to cry when sad things happen. Some ponies may say that crying shows weakness-”

“It is-” The filly tried to cut in, but I kept going.

“But in truth, it shows character. It shows that you're alive, and that you have a heart.” I placed a hoof on his shoulder, “But right now, this town needs a hero.” I offered a gentle smile, “That means holding your tears back until your done being that hero.” I then reached into by bag and pulled out the teddy bear I had found in the school. I took a deep breath as I prepared myself for a little white lie, “But no hero should be without a sidekick. Winnie was mine for a long time, always there for me when I needed him most, especially when my own mom passed away.” His sobs slowed down as he looked at the old teddy bear, “He’s a tough one and has been lucky for me. But now he’s ready to help a new hero.” I then held it out to him, “Ready to step up to that challenge?”

Custard took the bear and looked at it for a long moment before nodding, “Yeah… yeah I’m gonna be a hero!” He said as he set it to the side and went to get some tools.

“Huh.” The filly began, “Got him to stop bawling, but that was really cheesy sh-”

I put a hoof on her mouth as I mustered a more serious look at her, “Now you have to be the dependable sister that he can count on. That also means commanding the respect of your elders, even if you are smarter than them.”

“Oh?” She asked annoyingly, “Why the hell should I do that?”

Given the lack of denial, I was glad that my guess that the two were related was accurate, “Because right now, everypony will see you as just a little raider pony.” I let the words sink in, and I saw her expression sour, telling me I was on the right track, “You really don’t want to be some idiot raider do you?”

“Fuck no, but what's your point?” She asked.

I mustered the best troublemaker smile I could, “But you use intelligent words against ‘em instead of swearing like a sailor, you’ll get far more respect while looking good at the same time.”

The filly stared at me with a stunned look before a smile crept on her face, “Funny thing is, I know you’re playing me. But I suppose you got a point you bi-” She stopped herself and coughed, “Right, so why are you here?”

“Figured we could take a look at the generator as payment for taking care of me.” I gestured to Teardrop, “Her and me will follow your lead, if you share your name of course..”

She closed her eyes and started pondering, only opening them when the younger colt held some tools near his sister,with a new fire of motivation in his eyes. She nodded, “Fu-,ugh, I mean frag it. Coco is my name, but if you get in the way I’m throwing you out.”

“Agreed.” Smiling I turned to Teardrop, “Let’s get to work.” As I said that, I noticed that she and Red were giving me surprised looks, "What?"

"How did you do that?" Teardrop asked, "You couldn't talk to that crowd, but you got them to help so easily?"

I shrugged, "Always been good with kids I guess. But come on, this generator isn't fixing itself."

The five of us got to work on the large generator, and I found myself surprised at how well the two kids were handling themselves with the tools and their knowledge of the generator. Teardrops design also made things easier, as her already thin manipulators had very flexible extensions that allowed for fine manipulation. Even Red knew her way around, which made me glad there was another pony besides myself that was multi-talented. Between the five of us, the tools and equipment available, the work went quickly even with the small talk we were making. The fact that maintenance had been kept on the generator prior to this point also helped. After about ten minutes we had the generator up and running, but we had discovered a complication.

“You’ve got to be fu-I mean-you know what, screw it-fucking kidding me!” Coco yelled as as she stamped a hoof.

Custard shrunk back from his sister and bumped into Winnie the teddy bear. He looked at it, and a surge of confidence went through him as he walked up to his sister, “Well, we at least got it working right?”

“You are f-” Coco looked at her not-so-cowering-brother, and took a deep breath to calm down. “It’s working for now, but it’s alternator is worn out and it won’t last much longer.”

“She is correct.” Teardrop said as she floated nearby, “It’s what converts the FC energy into electricity that can power the area, though this generator was never meant to be a long-term solution to power. But the modifications made to it, along with constant maintenance has kept it going for far longer than the warranty-”

“We aren’t stupid, we know what it does!” Coco snipped, “The problem is we can’t fix the damn thing with what we have on hoof!”

“The boats in the docks have already been stripped of anything useful that could have been an alternative.” Red said.

I clicked my tongue in frustration as I was just about to ask on that front. “The protectrons systems are too different to properly convert for the generator, at least not without time River Point doesn’t have… aha!” I tapped my hoof lightly on the ground, “I’m going to be heading to Friendship City anyway, I can check for the parts there. Alternatively, there is a pony that likes anything history related, including old maps and stuff. I can use that to find a place that should have-” I stopped as I thought about it for a moment. “Oh…”

“What is it?” Custard asked.

Pulling up my inventory menu on my Pipbuck, I switched to the menu that kept track of all holotapes that I was holding. After going through about twenty three files, I found a spot where five holovids that I had picked up from the Drive-In were still intact. I let out a sigh of relief. “Thank Celestia…” I then looked up at the others who were giving me odd looks, “Ah sorry, kind of forgot about a side-job I was doing with the others before everything happened.” I shrugged, “Still I better gather my things and head out quickly.”

“Shall I prepare the Protectrons for travel as well?” Teardrop asked.

I thought for a moment before shaking my head, “No. Leave them in the town, the ponies here could use any support they can get. It shouldn’t be hard to reroute their command functions to a terminal that can be controlled. Coco and Custard’s skills should be enough to keep them operating.” I looked at Red, “That’s if you want them of course.”

Red stared at me for a moment in surprise before nodding, “I mean yeah, we’ll take them if you really don’t want them, but how much-”

“Consider them a gift.” I said, “They will do you more good than me. Which then leaves one other question…” I then turned to Teardrop, “What do you want to do?”

“What?” She asked with a confused tone.

“What do you want to do?” I repeated, “You can travel with me, help the town here, or go off on your own if you like.” I offered her a smile, “That’s what free will is about after all.”

“I… I’m not sure.” She said, “I’m designed to help run a stable. I’m not really sure what to do beyond that.”

I pondered for a moment before tapping my hoof on the ground, “Why don’t you stay here for the time being then? I think your skill set would do the town some good.”

“Have I displeased you?” She asked.

I shook my head, “Not at all. But you handled yourself well with the ponies here, and you're more designed to help with tech than getting shot at. Which tends to happen to me. A lot. Frequently.”

Teardrop chuckled, “Well that is true on most fronts.” She then lowered her audio volume, “But I am surprised your words reached those kids.”

I glanced back at the two. Coco was reorganizing the tools to her liking while Custard was holding his ‘new’ teddy bear, fighting to hold back tears as he hugged it. “Well, I guess I’ve been good with kids, though I’m not sure why.” I said quietly before looking back at her, “But thanks again for saving my hide in the Stable, I really-”

Whatever words I was about to speak were lost as a message appeared in my Pipbuck, one that I had never seen before. The others tried to speak to me, but they might as well been yelling through the doors of a sealed stable as I reread the message over and over again.

Watchers Mission: Hope of Tomorrow - ‘Deliver Military Grade File’

Mission Failed.

~~~~~~~~~Hoofnote~~~~~~~~~

95% remaining til next level

Did you seriously expect to gain another level? You FAILED your primary mission!

Author's Note:

All of this, including Teardrop, was created to help explain the ONE session I missed. -.-;