This story is a sequel to We don't go to Sub-Level Five
With the nightmares of the Silos behind them, Astral and Sassi begin to adapt to a world that lacks any understanding of the horrors now buried underneath glass and stone. The only creature in their life who can serve as a confidant is Arcane. However, the chaos-unicorn is busy learning to adapt to a world and society now alien to him. But they have each other, and their lives start to settle into a form of pleasant normality.
As life in Equestria and the Gryphon Empire continues on, Twilight and Tanzil are forced to confront troubles both within and outside their borders. Sometimes peace is but a thin, false veneer over chaos, and the two rulers quickly discover that their budding relationship may be the least of their troubles.
When a familiar horror emerges from the shadows, Astral, Sassi, and Arcane are forced to confront a terrorthat looms not only to engulf their new home, but all of Equestria and beyond. With their nightmares no longer confined to their minds, the three ponies desperately try to save who they can from the oncoming storm. When faced with some threats, all you can do is run and pray that it doesn't find you.
But for the two Thestrals, a unicorn, and their friends, they're sick of running. And they've got lots, and lots of ammunition.
Spoilers for We Don't Go to Sub-Level Five, Timeless, Sunspots, and Cure for a Toxin
You know I've been casually asking if my character would show up but honestly I think Steelheart would be better, even as another RASP survivor as one of Twilight's new friends. I mean sure she would be friends with Sassy and Astral as I initially suggestedbbut maybe she would volunteer to be Twilight's new personal guard so that way she has a friend nearby, considering the first half of the chapter itself. Seriously considering how long people with RASP modifications are supposedly able to survive I would think she would be the perfect person to be Twilight's guard considering Fizzlepop passed so long ago.
11683674
To be honest, I am not sure who Steelheart is; I thought you were referencing Steelhooves from Fallout Equestria. If it's from another fic, I'm not aiming to do any crossovers as this all stays within the Radverse.
11683686
The Radverse. Otherwise known as the Bad@$$verse!
Ah!! Can't wait to read this one! The title is gold!
-Harpy
11683712
As yes, Floor-E and his gal AvA.
Wonderfully relaxing note to end the first chapter on.
11683780
Nice start to the story!
11683686
I've mentioned her before she's a minor OC of mine who is a guard in most stories. In this case, I had suggested she be a RASP test subject like Arcane who survived and was hidden by the company She's a super strong and big earth pony (think Trouble Hooves' size with Maud Pie level strength before RASP enhancements) I was hoping she would show up in the first story but oh well.
her name has a few meanings it references her physical strength sure but like with G1 Optimus Prime she's strong enough to be gentle.
11683844
Aaaah I gotcha. There aren't going to be other OC's in the story/any crossovers- just the existing characters.
11683809
Pretty good so far
11683916
Thank you!
Havent even read the intro yet and i know its deserving of a favorite.
👍
11683986
Thank you!
11683869
oh okay
Then get a bigger vampire.
11686849
"I AM A MAN WHO OWNS FIVE OVENS!" comes to mind
11687873
HUZZAH! A FELLOW USER OF QUALITY!
I was wondering if anyone would get that reference!
It took me a reread to realize that the button isn't for if she needs someone to talk to. It is for if she needs supersoldiers. The "bat signal" to make an only somewhat accurate analogy.
I am reminded of a Rescue Rangers fanfic where a pair of Mice lived at the CIA. They solved problems with, when necessary, more lethal violence than the Rangers. They referred to the dedicated line through which they got their missions as "The Phone That Should Never Ring", because whenever it did, it meant there was something deeply, horribly wrong with the state of the world, and given the nature of their work, also the people in it.
11688106
Oh man, that brings me back. I grew up on that show!
And it's...oh my gosh it's literally a bat signal
SL-5...
They don't have an equivalent of Jack O'Neill
11688640
Indeed
and now we wait for it to all go downhill
Based on what you say later, this should be "teal".
11721871
Thank you!
DOH
11721851
I'd never do THAT....
The calm before the storm... but *boy*, do I enjoy this setup! <3 Lock and load!
11722471
..... click-clack,,, Hell, It's about damn time.
cue the next chapter that will immediately escalate everything
11746330
Oh, not for a while. This here is a slow burner. Gotta give our poor heroes a bit of a break!
But when it does kick off...oh boy.
11746353
Glare Suuure, slow burn. I've heard that one before. I'm doublin' up on the munitions deliveries.
11746531
This is a nice 'day in the life' tidbit, for the most part... I'm actually really curious to see how the Q&A started out!
11746531
I'm custom-ordering some SAP-HEI and S/AP-HE rounds, courtesy of an old contact of mine. Trying to get in touch with another friend to see about hiring some mercs to add fire support.
I've got the C-bills, and they've gone into nasty fights before, so I don't expect them to break contract without a damn good reason, and by that time (if it comes) I'll have other assets ready to roll once things start getting that bad.
Need to spend on some nuclear strength blinds for such occasions? Come to that, if the armor shutters on the windows are quiet, and low wear enough... or are they not at home or is their permanent residence still under construction?
As in he gets exhausted and doesn't have the energy to deal with it every time? Or is it that sometime it is a bullet-resistant vest worth of social self-control vs an anti-tank sabot worth of emotional torque behind the idea that wants to be said?
11747399
Trueeee.
And more like he'd like to say something, but knows the receiving party needs it to be filtered down a few notches.
Hmm, so, an "enemy" is out there and the whole country needs to be ready to deal with it? Not directly linked, but there are some "Fallout Equestria" vibes in all that. Is Twilight working on any Mega spells or Balefire bombs?
11751945
#relatable
11781407
Well, this was a pleasant surprise before the holiday! But *boy*, was this a rough chapter...
11781592
A bitter sweet one to be sure...
Sometimes a little WD-40 works.. but sometimes, you really just need to hit them with a mallet. Or a hammer. Astral and Flask was sweet, but Sassi dealing with Astral's parents was a LONG time in coming, and nicely cathartic besides!
11809763
The goal is to show how Astral's parents aren't evil, they're just stuck in a mindset of "this worked for us and made us happy, therefore it is right for our kids." And breaking out of that can be a painful process.
11809802
Oh, absolutely. And that was on fine display here. Well done~
11809921
Thank you! I'm glad I nailed it!
11809989
You didn't just nail it, you got in a good example of accepting indifference. "I don't care what you think, but I'm doing this for him, and his sake. If you don't like me I can live with that, and I have. But I did it all, and would do it all again for him."
Did notice they didn't respond to her mentioning them both being sterile, or at least unable to conceive now, even if they did make an attempt. That's not a small thing. Even when (because I think it's a matter of time now) he patches up with his folks, he's not giving them grandchildren because he can't.
And last I remember of this discussion you said adoption is not on the table for the Elemental-sized lovers, since they're focusing on each other (makes sense, not gonna debate that) more than anything else.
But it's on a similar level to Samus Aran. She was given Chozo DNA to help her survive at an early age, and as a cross-breed she cannot bear children, something I believe she has considered at least once (not counting the unsubtle language aboard the Bottle Ship (fuck that place, seriously, BSL and ZDR did it better)), and is likely to consider before she retires.
It's not an easy discussion by any means but it's not something to overlook. They've not considered it as much, but that doesn't mean his parents won't, once they understand that (I'm not convinced they do yet), which will further help them understand what he wants in life once they do.
The cycle ends with him, whether they wanted it to or not. Not just the line, but the generational trauma with it. (In exchange he deals with his own personal trauma! Yay! (Boo. (But Sassi's there for him, so...)))
11810084
Exactly.
It was already mentioned to them when first meeting- they just blew it off/didn't believe her. Just another manipulative fact about her (same as not believing Astral's view.) Since it had been mentioned, that was a slight oversight on my part- basically it just amounted to them not believing her. But it can certainly come up as an issue later. (I added a bit of a blurb to clarify that!)
It's going to be amusing to see who wins in this contest of "The First Proposal". Astral appears to have the upper hoof in preparation but Sassi is not one to count out.
I was pleasantly surprised with how the initial conversation and the private one between Sassi and Edge went. It was far better than I expected at this point in time, especially since I had anticipated that it would take Equestria witnessing for themselves the horror that Sassi and Astral endured for them to start to come around. It may still be awhile yet before reconciliation happens but things are moving in the right direction for that. For now, it's good to see that the care and concern is there for Astral and I would think that he would be at least a bit happy to hear that (if he didn't already from her thoughts with that hive mind they've got going that I forgot about for a brief second).
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