Fallout Equestria: Blue Destiny

by MagnetBolt

Chapter 39 - Crime of the Century

“You want me to do what?” I asked, my voice carefully flat. “I must have heard you wrong because it sounds like you want me to murder somepony.”

“'Murder' isn’t the term I’d use,” Unsung said. “It’s not murder to kill somepony you’re at war with.”

“I don’t think this counts as war,” Destiny said. “And even during the war, we treated the zebras who assassinated officers as war criminals!”

“We can’t stand up to the Enclave directly, you know that,” Opening said, sounding a little less sure than Unsung. “We need to hurt them as much as we can with every action we take. Asterism would talk about maximizing our return on our investments. This is the best way to do it.”

I groaned. “Just… go over it again. And try to sell me on it instead of making it sound like the kind of thing I’d put myself in jail for.”

Unsung nodded to Opening, probably thinking I didn't see her smiling at browbeating me into hearing the details. He motioned for Unsung to take the lead.

“It’s not a complicated job,” Unsung said. “Right now, the Enclave feels safe in the city. They’ve suppressed most of the raider gangs in the area, and even the most drugged-out bandits are keeping their distance. They can walk the streets in safety because they’ve got a whole army backing them up. We need to take away that sense of security.”

I nodded, letting her continue. If there was one thing Unsung liked, it was making speeches. I wasn’t sure if she practiced them when nopony was looking or if she was just that good off the cuff.

“I want you to attack the Enclave’s base of operations in the city. Instead of a ship or fortified bunker, they feel all they need is the old police precinct. The fact they’ve taken it over and kicked out what few lawponies the city had before they came speaks volumes about how they view themselves.”

She started pacing, using her hoofbeats to give a rhythm to her words.

“We obviously can’t just run in, guns blazing. If we did, aside from being suicidal, all we’d be doing is hurting the few soldiers brave enough to try and stop us. Some of them are probably decent ponies, and even though I want the Enclave gone, I don’t want to mindlessly kill ponies en masse."

Opening nodded. "The best way to use our resources and time is to cause as much disruption as possible, and that means decapitating the chain of command.”

“Hopefully not literally,” I mumbled.

“I wouldn’t be opposed to it, but I don’t think you could get that close,” Unsung said, stopping to shrug. “All of my agents have Dashite brands. They’d be spotted almost immediately if we tried to infiltrate. You’ve still got your cutie mark, but you were just seen by an Enclave officer and I’m not willing to trust he didn’t report the encounter. They’ll be looking for you. If we can’t get close, that means we have to attack from far away.”

“And with DRACO, I’m the best pony for that?” I guessed.

"Nopony else here was trained as a sniper," Opening said. "It was a hole in our expertise."

“I don’t have anypony else with quite the right skillset,” Unsung admitted. “Split Moon is unbeatable, but only within reach of his wingblades. Klein Bottle isn’t a fighter. Grey Gloom… could probably get inside, since she’s an infiltration specialist, but she doesn’t like killing and she already did her part on this mission gathering information. You can use your rifle to snipe the base commander from long range. Big Barrel has volunteered to be your support and he has an exit strategy.”

“You’re still talking about shooting a pony when they don’t have a way to shoot back,” I said.

“Yes,” Unsung admitted. “Do you have a better idea?”

“You’re just trying to get the attention of the higher-ups, right?” I asked. “What if you did something showy that didn’t hurt anypony? You could… I don’t know. Launch fireworks and put up graffiti?”

“Those are the kinds of things children do,” Unsung chided. “They’d blame it on foals. This isn’t something we can do without hurting ponies, because hurting them is the point. They can ignore paint, they can ignore pamphlets, they can’t ignore a bullet.”

I mean, I knew she was objectively right. Rusty had been putting up posters all over the slums trying to get Kasatka’s attention. Everypony knew what he was doing, and the Enclave decided to just ignore it. Stuff like that wasn’t even worth the time it took to investigate it.

“Come now, little one!” A big hoof dropped onto my shoulder, and I looked back at a green and grey pegasus who smelled like vodka and gunpowder. “It is simple mission, yeah? We sneak in, you make one little shot, and go home. Who could ask for a better job?”

“Big Barrel, are you drunk?” Opening sighed. "Please don't do this again. I can only put so much idiot-proofing into my plans..."

“Only a little drunk,” the pegasus said, letting go of me and stepping away with only a bit of sway in his step. He had an uneven gait to his walk, and it took me a moment to realize why. He was missing his left wing. There was a massive scar running from his neck all the way down to the brand on his flank. “All of us have our own ways of getting through the day, no?”

Unsung sighed and rubbed her temple.

Opening gave me a pleading look. “Chamomile, we need you.”

“It’s up to you, Chamomile,” Destiny said quietly. “We can walk away from this. Do we even need to get back up above the clouds this badly? The other Exodus ships are probably down here somewhere.”

What she really meant was, she didn’t care if I ever saw my home again. I’d already lost it once, right? Cirrus Valley was wiped off the map and nopony cared except me. The pony who did it had my Dad, and I’d probably never see him again, and nopony cared except me. It was up to me. It was all up to me, because nopony else would bother doing it.

“Just… give me a picture of him so I don’t shoot the wrong pony,” I sighed.

Unsung grinned.

---

“You seem depressed,” Big Barrel said as we walked along the subway tunnel. He had at least six flashlights strapped to him, one on each forehoof, one on his helmet, and three on his battle saddle all hanging at crazy angles, making him cast enough light for a whole squad of ponies.

The lights were a little eccentric, but I had no idea what he was going to do with the bayonet fixed to the end of the rocket launcher on the left side of his barding. I hoped it was just for decoration.

“You want a drink?” He pulled a flask from his saddlebags and offered it to me.

I took the flask cautiously and opened it up, adjusting my helmet so I could sniff at it. It smelled like paint thinner and rainwater.

Whatever. I took a sip and swallowed before the taste could have a chance to hit me, then gave him back the flask. It was even worse than the bathtub vodka I’d had in the city.

“What is that stuff?” I coughed. The taste in the back of my throat was like dirt and smoke and lots of other dark things, very few of which were actually good for eating.

Big Barrel laughed and patted my back. “It’s made from mushrooms! They are one of the only things that grow down here, yeah? The ponies here, they do not get enough sunlight. Mushrooms can grow anywhere. Especially without sun! The smart ponies farm them instead of wasting time with crops that need more. But, perhaps those ponies who struggle have more hope?” He shrugged. “Hope can keep a pony alive, or kill them. It is medicine and poison. Just like alcohol.”

He took a big sip before putting the flask away.

“You do not want to do this mission,” he said frankly. “I understand. You’ve never been a soldier, yes?”

“I was a bartender,” I said, giving myself a promotion from bouncer. I’d earned it.

Big Barrel nodded. I’d expected him to laugh, but he didn’t. “We were all something else before this. I was a soldier. A good soldier. Maybe too good. There were many missions that were not for good soldiers. They were for soldiers who follow orders without thinking.”

“You refused to follow orders and got a dishonorable discharge,” Destiny said.

“No. That would have been, ah, maybe better. I stopped caring. Nothing mattered to me. It was like living in a daze. It is like this--” he tapped the flask. “--It numbs. And then, I found something I could care about, but it was too late. I couldn’t save them. And I couldn’t save myself. If I had been smarter...” He reached up to touch the huge scar on his left side.

I winced. “Sorry.”

“You should see the other pony!” Big Barrel laughed. He stopped and looked up. “Here we are.”

I looked around and saw nothing, then followed his gaze to the tunnel roof. There were boxes and wires blinking away happily. Some kind of electrical equipment? It didn’t look like part of the subway lights.

“Those are shaped charges,” Destiny said.

“Yes,” Big Barrel said pleasantly. “While our glorious leader was practicing speeches on you, I was getting things ready for the party!” He pulled out a detonator.

“Should we be standing here?” I asked. “This seems really close to the, uh, explosives.”

“Probably not!” Big Barrel squeezed the trigger.

I half-expected a giant explosion that would deafen me and throw me down the tunnel with a wave of pressure, but the charges were surprisingly sedate. There was a sharp crack more like a large-caliber weapon and a puff of dust and smoke. The concrete ceiling cracked.

“Take two steps back,” Big Barrel said, stepping back himself.

Dust rained down, the cracks spread, and… it all stopped. The big stallion frowned and triggered the detonator again, looking up at the expended charges and swearing under his breath.

“Stupid bucking knockoff semtex trash…” he growled.

“Something wrong?” I asked.

“Is nothing,” Big Barrel said. “It just needs some encouragement.”

I didn’t know what he meant until he grabbed the trigger for his rocket launcher and aimed it at the cracked ceiling.

“Wait--!” I shouted, and it didn’t matter that I was too late to stop him because he wouldn’t have listened even if I hadn’t been.

The rocket exploded against the roof, showering us with debris and shrapnel. The tunnel shook and groaned. Big Barrel stood there, stock-still, just watching it. I ran away because, guess what, I’m not insane!

Above me, the roof collapsed, something finally giving way with a squeak and snap, a huge slab of concrete swinging down, rebar straining and trying to hold it up, bending and twisting and finally giving up when one end of the slab hit the subway tracks with an almighty thump, a massive cloud of dust catching the early-morning sunlight from above.

The edge of it was only inches from Big Barrel’s hooves. If it had come down even a little differently, it would have killed him.

“There!” he said proudly. “I just had to knock a little harder. No problem.” He blew a kiss to the rubble. “Sometimes, the ones that play hard to get are more satisfying.”

“This is supposed to be a stealth mission!” I hissed, storming up to him. “Do you have any idea how much noise you just made?!”

“You worry too much,” he said, walking confidently up the ramp.

I followed him up to what ended up being some kind of parking structure. There were still a few wrecked carts and old skywagons rusting away, not worth the trouble of hauling away.

“The Enclave, always watching the streets and skies. So we come up inside a building! It’s brilliant, yes?” He grinned.

I didn’t even get a chance to say anything before I heard hooves on concrete. Big Barrel was just standing there watching, so I had to be the smart adult one and drag him into the shadows between two broken-down heaps. I swatted at his lights until he pressed a switch somewhere on his tactical gear and all of them switched off at once, leaving us in the dark.

A mare in uniform walked down the ramp on the far side of the parking garage. She didn’t bother looking around and just cautiously walked up to the big hole in the floor.

“Yeah, I found out what made that noise,” she said. There was a murmur as somepony replied to her over the radio headset she was wearing. “It looks like the basement floor collapsed.”

Big Barrel raised his rocket launcher. I scowled at him and shoved it down, giving him a look. He rolled his eyes and sighed, nodding.

“I’ll come back up in a second, I’m just going to check around to make sure this place doesn’t come down under our hooves.”

The mare cautiously stepped onto the rubble ramp, testing it with her weight and looking down into the gloom of the subway tunnel. She didn’t even notice Big Barrel was right behind her until it was too late. He held a machete in his teeth and swung it into her neck. It wasn’t a clean cut like one of Split Moon’s blades. The machete was heavy and dull and chopped halfway through her spine and just stopped.

She turned in surprise, shock keeping her from feeling pain. Big Barrel left the machete there, just stuck in her flesh, blood starting to bead around the edge. She tried to say something, but the only thing that came out of her mouth was a spray of blood. Big Barrel held up a hoof, motioning for her to wait a moment, then ripped the machete free, opening up her neck. He kicked her out of the way in a spray of blood, flinching and looking down at his gear, annoyed.

“Bah! Got it all over me…” he tried to wipe the crimson off his piecemeal combat armor. “You go to the top level, yeah?” He motioned with the bloody machete casually. “I will prepare the, ah, exit strategy.” He reached down and plucked the radio from the dead mare, putting the headset on. “I will be on frequency 140.48. It should be unmonitored. Call if you need help.”

“Yeah,” I said, mostly just wanting to step away from all the blood and death. It was a little low to fly, so I just walked up the ramp quickly, checking the corners as I started towards the top level.

“Chamomile, I’m starting to like this less and less,” Destiny whispered. “And I didn’t like it to begin with!”

“Tell me about it,” I said. I wasn’t sure how many levels it was, but they all seemed more or less empty, just concrete and garbage and shadows. “I’m starting to wonder if it would be less dangerous to apologize to Rain Shadow, turn myself in, and hope for the best. I mean… am I even technically a criminal?”

“Honestly? I’ve sort of been letting it slide and trying to pick things up from context clues, but I have no idea how your society works. Like, what even is a Dashite?”

I saw light at the top of the next ramp and a sliver of open sky. It was time to be extra careful. I practically crawled the last few steps, staying low so I wouldn’t be seen. Peeking over the edge, I spotted them right away. Three ponies, all of them with radio headsets. Two of them were sitting next to a kettle, probably waiting for it to boil. The third had binoculars and was looking over the edge.

All of them were in uniform. If I didn’t do something about them, I was pretty sure Big Barrel would. I couldn’t imagine he’d be gentle with them. Or leave them alive.

“How long do you think she’ll be?” one of them asked.

“Try to get her on the radio again. You know the range on these things is crap with all the concrete in the way,” another one said, poking the hotplate the kettle was sitting on. “I think we need a new spark battery for this. It’s taking forever to heat up.”

“We gotta keep them from calling for help,” I whispered.

DRACO beeped and fired. It was a soft subsonic thump, followed by a pop. A tiny burst of smoke puffed into the air over the three soldiers, and they looked up with surprise.

“Confetti?” one of them asked, looking at the rain of foil strips.

I had like, maybe a second to act. I surged into action, pushing myself hard, and I felt everything slow down, just like it had a few times before back outside of the Cosmodrome. The world was frozen in place and the air was as thick as jelly and cold like ice. One mare, two stallions. I kicked the first one, the stallion with the binoculars, in the side of the head, smashing the radio into their temple. Their eyes were rolling, and they slumped against the chest-high concrete around the roof’s edge..

He hadn’t hit the ground, and the other ones were already moving. They were on break around the kettle but had excellent reaction time. The mare was reaching for a beam rifle. I snapped out my knife and threw it, the unnaturally sharp metal slicing into the rifle and hitting the spark battery. Lighting crawled up her hoof and she spasmed and shook, collapsing in a heap.

The last one turned around. I forgot that I’d swapped the Junk Jet out for the cryolator. I bit down on the trigger, and instead of launching a relatively harmless can of Cram at him, I sprayed him down with liquid nitrogen. His coat turned white with frost, and he made a choking sound before he collapsed.

The world swung back into motion, the chaff falling around me and the fallen Enclave guards. I grabbed the one I’d half-frozen, and I was going to apologize until I saw what happened when flash-frozen pony fell on hard concrete. There were cracks. And chunks. At least it had probably been quick.

“Buck,” I muttered. “I meant to knock him out.”

I tied up the other two and ditched the radios, then rolled the dead pony down the ramp and out of sight. I trotted to where the soldier with the binocs had been looking over the edge. I could see right into the old police station from here. There were soldiers lined up in neat squares, all standing at attention and waiting.

I sighed and sat down with my back to the wall. I felt feverish and exhausted from pushing myself like that.

“You okay?” Destiny asked. “Your metabolic readings spiked. It looks like that one augment you grew is acting up again."

“I meant to do it this time,” I said. “I’ll be fine. I just need to sit for a minute or two and I’ll be okay.” The edges of my wings were burning hot. I spread them a little to try and cool down faster. “I think I’m getting better at this. It’s like a really annoying second puberty where you grow metal bits instead of getting pimples.”

“So…” Destiny said, after a little while, when my heart had stopped pounding and I felt a little more… present, less like I was floating. “You were going to tell me about the Dashites before you killed a pony by freezing his face off?”

“Why are you so curious?” I asked.

“I want to know if we’re killing ponies for the right reason,” Destiny replied.

“Mmm…” I wanted to know that, too. “When I was growing up I heard all kinds of horror stories about Dashites. They’re traitors to the Enclave. It started with Rainbow Dash, right after the bombs fell. She abandoned the Enclave.”

“Rainbow Dash? Known for her loyalty? Hero to millions? That Rainbow Dash?”

I blushed. “Look, I wasn’t there! I only know what I was taught, okay? Everything was in chaos, and the Enclave needed her, and she just… left. She abandoned her responsibilities when we needed her most. It’s the same for other Dashites. I was always told we were going to help eventually, once we got our own house in order.”

“Well, they’re here now, aren’t they?” Destiny asked.

“Yeah. But if Unsung is right, it’s not to help anypony. Like at the orphanage.” I tilted my head back, knocking it against the concrete. “What do you think I should do?”

“Leave and find something to do that doesn’t require asking yourself a ton of ethics questions,” Destiny said.

“Good answer, and extremely unhelpful,” I groaned. I was starting to feel better. Physically. My stomach was still just as queasy about this whole mess. I got up and gave the skies a wary look for stray VertiBucks and patrols, then leveled DRACO at the police station. DRACO was smart enough to zoom in on its own, highlighting one soldier after another in its display and displaying targeting information, range, and probably if I kept looking at options I’d find out how to get their horoscopes.

“Look who it is,” Destiny said. DRACO zoomed in slightly on one of the stallions in the crowd. Rain Shadow. He was standing next to Nova Stella and trying to look attentive and dutiful.

“I told you I ran into him,” I said. “That pony next to him is the one that helped Four.”

“You should shoot him,” Destiny said.

I balked at that, actually shoving the rifle out of alignment like it was going to fire on its own. Which it might. DRACO was more like a pet than a firearm. “What the buck is wrong with you?” I hissed.

“You’re already planning on shooting somepony else, right?” Destiny asked. “Somepony you don’t even know. Why not shoot Rain Shadow? He’s caused you a lot of trouble, he’s got a huge grudge against you, and he’ll definitely do something later that’s going to make you wish you took him out right now.”

“I can’t just… he’s a jerk, but he’s not evil. We both hurt each other. If we never saw each other again, we’d both be better off.”

“So this guy, even though he’s tried to kill you and definitely will do it again, you’re not willing to kill him? But you’re okay with the idea of shooting somepony you know literally nothing about?”

I swung the view over to the front of the troops when they all jerked to stiffer and more alert attention. A pony in a very elaborate uniform, with medals pinned all over half his chest, walked out of the police station with guards on both sides. He walked over to a podium set up in front of the crowd and started looking over them in critical silence before clearing his throat and speaking into the microphone.

“Good morning,” he said, his voice rough, the speech echoing from loudspeakers on all sides. I blinked and looked around.

“What’s going on?” I asked quietly.

“He’s broadcasting live,” Destiny said. “It’s not just on the PA system, it’s on a civilian radio channel too.” She paused.

“Such arrogance,” rumbled my radio. “Flower girl, are you in position yet? I have been listening to you complain about ethics, but I am not hearing a lot of shooting.”

“Big Barrel?” I asked.

“I can hear the arrogant muleson talking, so I know he is not dead yet. It is fine. Unsung wanted him killed during his pretty little speech.”

“Mmm…”

“I know that sound,” Big Barrel said, and I could imagine the grin. “You are having second thoughts! It is normal. I cannot blame you. It’s hard to kill a pony who has not wronged you, yes? He is not shooting you, he has not even called you rude names, and you are asked to put a bullet in him.”

“I didn’t think you’d care,” I said.

“I don’t. I made my peace with it already. But, I know more than you. I am not a smart pony, not a wise pony, but I am an old pony, and I know the Commander. I will tell you something of him so you can make the right decision. Commander Flywheel was part of my unit in the bad old days.”

“He was?” I guess he and Big Barrel were around the same age, but it was hard to imagine the Commander, with his pressed uniform and chest stuffed with medals, fighting side-by-side with the ragged, crippled pony I was talking to.

“Flywheel bought his way into being an officer. Most officers do. It is democratic, yes? Nothing better for votes than putting bits in the hooves of the ponies around you. Lots of old friends and family connections. So when some fresh new Lieutenants went missing around him, ones with no strong family behind them, it was covered up. Blamed on Dashites. Training accidents. Bad weather. Anything to avoid the dishonor, yes?”

“What?” I whispered, horrified.

“Eh. Why do you think a stallion with so many medals was sent here?” Big Barrel laughed. “They don’t care what he does to surface ponies. He can tie them up and have his little fun with them all he wants, and nopony cares. And if you do care, if you find out and you try to tell everypony what was happening in the back room of the officer’s bar… they gun you down, tear off your wing, and declare you a demon before casting you out of heaven.”

“I’m sorry,” I said quietly. “I didn’t know.”

“Bah. You have nothing to be sorry about! I was stupid. Not for trying to report what I saw. Those young stallions, cut up so badly they looked like zebras… No. I was stupid because I did not pick my moment. I lost my chance to stop him then.”

I zoomed in on Commander Flywheel. He had to be getting near the end of his speech. I hadn’t really been listening to it, but it sounded like it was wrapping up. Could I kill a pony like him? Somepony that might have done bad things?

If I didn’t, two other ponies had died pointlessly. More pointlessly, anyway.

I bit down on the trigger. DRACO thundered, and Flywheel’s head exploded like an overripe tomato being thrown at a brick wall. Ponies rushed over to him, but I could tell even from here that there was no way he survived.

“Hah!” Big Barrel laughed. “And ponies all over the city heard that. Sploosh! Much more exciting than listening to him tell the same story about being stuck alone in the eye of a typhoon.”

The sound of panicking ponies and yells for medics cut off when somepony remembered to turn off the live microphone on the podium. A siren started blaring a few seconds later, and I heard the dull thump of VertiBuck props.

“I think we got their attention,” I said, backing away from the edge. Somepony pointed in my direction and yelled. “And I think they know what direction the shot came from! Big Barrel, I hope you’ve got some kind of plan for getting us out of here!”

I bolted for the ramp and started charging down to the basement, hopping over the thawing corpse I’d tossed down there.

“It is funny, you know? Flywheel could not lead his way out of a paper bag. We might have done the Enclave a small favor by getting him out of the way. Much better for the ponies who he would hurt. They should all be thanking us!”

“I think they’re feeling more wrathful than thankful!” I yelled. “I count at least two VertiBucks and a lot of ponies coming right this way!”

“Eh. Don’t worry so much,” Big Barrel said. The light dimmed as I got down to the basement level. Big Barrel waved to me and smiled, punching my shoulder when I got closer. “Thank you. I know you had doubts.”

“If he was really hurting ponies like that, I had to do it,” I sighed. “I still don’t like it much.”

“Mm. Had to do it. Same reason I had.” He nodded and slapped my shoulder again. “Good! It is a good reason. It means you care! I spent too long not caring about anything.”

“So what’s the plan for getting out of here?” I asked.

“It is nothing complicated,” Big Barrel said. He motioned to one of the concrete pillars holding the building up. Blocks of explosive and wiring were lashed around it along with blinking electronics. “Building comes down. Enclave cannot find bodies and does not know you are safely away and running down subway tunnel towards home. Easy.”

“That should work,” I agreed.

“Exactly! And I even brought a little extra insurance.” He pulled something out of his vest, unwrapping it carefully from layers of padding. Inside was an oblong shape, a little smaller than a hoofball, a metal cage around something that hurt to look at. A green-purple glow shone in the darkness.

“What the buck is that?” I whispered.

“A balefire egg,” he said. “I asked Asterism for a launcher, but such is life. This is a better use for it. A little extra bang for my fireworks show!” He laughed and shook his head, then took a deep breath and sobered up. “Now, you go. You do not want to be here when this goes off.”

“Nopony should be here,” I said. “We need to--”

Something exploded upstairs.

Big Barrel looked up. “Mm. They’re starting to get into the building. While you were chatting with your ghost, I got some presents ready for intruders. We do not have time to talk. You need to leave.”

“But--”

“They will expect one of us in the rubble,” Big Barrel said, his voice quieter. “I told you, a pony needs to care about something. Go back to Unsung, tell her… I am at peace. She fulfilled her promise to me.”

“Chamomile, we need to go right now,” Destiny hissed. “There’s no time to argue with him!”

“She is right,” Big Barrel said, pushing me towards the open breach into the tunnels. He started up the ramp. “Go. I will hold them off. This was always the plan.”

I started to say something, and another tripwire bomb went off somewhere. I stomped in frustration and ran down into the dark.

“How big will the blast radius on that balefire egg be?” I asked.

“I have no idea,” Destiny said. “But I don’t want to be anywhere near it! The necromatic flux could be… really bad for me.”

I felt a chill down my spine. I don’t know if it was a sensation from her or my own dead, but it felt like somepony walking over my grave.

“Hey, Flower Pony,” Big Barrel rumbled over the radio. He coughed wetly. “Can you still hear me?”

“Yeah,” I said, slowing and looking back. “Do you--”

“Don’t come back. Are you far away enough? I don’t think I can fight much more. One of them got a little lucky. Muleson bastard!”

“Big Barrel--”

“It wasn’t my real name, you know?” he laughed. “I had another one back home. I gave it up, because I didn’t want anypony to know who my older brother was. He was a cruel monster, but I had some of that cruelty too. The world is better off without either of us in it. Don’t forget that, yeah? Don’t be a monster. Slay them where you find them, and don’t… don’t become one yourself.”

“I won’t,” I promised.

“Good. Now, it’s time for a real fireworks show!”

The radio cut to static. A flash of light strobed down the tunnel. The tunnel floor rumbled. Dust rained down, and the rad count shot up from zero to enough to worry even me.

“Chamomile!” Destiny yelled.

A wall of falling debris charged towards me, a cloud of dust and ashes and rubble flowing like water through the tunnel and hitting me with the force of an oncoming storm. I couldn’t run. I planted my hooves and let it wash over me, trying to ride it out. Chunks of concrete the size of hooves came down on my head and back.

I was blind for a solid minute. Then the rumbling slowed, the debris stopped falling, and everything calmed into a near-silence punctuated by the pop of pebbles rolling and tumbling down rock.

The dust cleared, and I was no more than a few steps away from a solid wall of rubble.

“They’re definitely not coming after us through this,” I said. I touched the rubble. It was packed tight. “I hope you had some peace in the end, Big Barrel…”

Comments

[Reese]

"battery. Lighting crawled up her hoof"
"battery. Lightning crawled up her hoof"?

"I don’t know if it was a sensation from her or my own dead, but it"
"I didn’t know if it was a sensation from her or my own head, but it"?

[Thought Prism]

Godspeed, Big Barrel.