Chapter 1: Flux
Fallout Equestria: Project Nightmare
A fanfic by Tetrisol
Chapter 1: Flux
I’ve never seen a unicorn with your raw magical abilities.
As I waited backstage for the ponies of stable 0 to get seated so the show could begin, I sighed. Out of all the filly’s that had me booked to sing for their cutie mark party, it had to be that obnoxious brat Ruby. Ruby and I never saw eye to eye, and that might have been the age difference, after all, I am several years older than her, and she is jealous of every filly and mare in this stable. The reason I hated her was far simpler than that. Ruby’s mother was the stable 0
Overmare, and being the Overmare’s filly means that you can do whatever you want and no pony can say a word to you without fear of the Overmare.
I was brought out of my revelry by my music teacher Soprano, a unicorn mare with a white coat and a blue mane, “C’mon Clair, everypony is ready for you to start.” I sighed and put on my fake smile “Sure thing Soprano, tell them it’s time.” I looked myself over in the stage mirror, making sure my stage dress was nice and neat. I glared at my mockingbird cutie mark and then turned to the stage curtains. I smiled and sauntered out onto the stage to a loud applause from the crowd. I used my magic to magnify my voice loud enough for everypony to hear as I playfully said “Why hello there, is everypony ready to have some fun?”
I was greeted by a cry of yes from the crowd and motioned for the band to strike up a tune. They obliged me and played a lively and fun song “Now let’s kick this party into action!!” I stomped my hoof in tune with the music and soon the crowd followed my example. Once they got going I smiled and used my magic to chirp like a chorus of birds, dancing around in time with the music and smiling at the crowd. They in turn were dancing around, and even Ruby was dancing and having fun. I scanned the crowd and saw my mother Lunas dancing with my sister Sprocket.
As the music died down the band motioned that I could step down and go with my family. Sprocket and my mother met me as I stepped down off the stage, and Sprocket hugged my neck looking up at me “Wow sis, that was awesome!!!” I smiled and felt a bit embarrassed with her hanging off me. As I looked around the room at the celebration, my eyes fell on a group of five stallions muttering to each other and looking at me. It sent a shiver down my spine as my mother motioned for us to come with her.
As we trotted down the halls of stable 0 to our room I let the humming of the generators soothe me. It was a calm and boring hum like always. It was my job to alleviate the tedium of stable 0 with my music, but in all honesty I hated that fact. I wish that I could have gone into security like my mother; at least I could contribute something to the stable other than my stupid bird sounds.
I was walking, deep in thought, when I felt a little tug on my dress. I looked down at a little red filly with a black mane, cherry tomato if memory served me right. She looked like something was bothering her as she stared at me “Umm, Miss Clair, can you come to see my mommy? She’s a big fan of yours, and was too sick to come see you.”
I felt uneasy about the whole situation, but I couldn’t say no to the poor filly, after all, her cutie mark party had to be moved to next week because of the Overmare’s filly. I smiled warmly “Sure thing, just wait here and I’ll go get changed. Then I’ll say hi to your mommy.” The filly smiled as I dashed to my bedroom. I changed into an evening shirt and said to Sprocket “Ok Sprokey, I’ll be back soon.” We hugged and I walked out, finding Cherry sitting in the hall.
I followed Cherry down a set of corridors I had never seen before, and when she stopped I looked at the door and asked “Is this it Cherry?” She nodded and I stepped in looking around for Cherry’s mother, but there was no pony anywhere to be found. “Cherry, where’s your mom?” I was answered by a loud smack sound and a bursting pain on the back of my head. I fell to the ground and everything went dark.
. . .
I came to and tried to get up, but to my alarm I was chained to something that kept my hind legs apart and my tail raised. I tried to scream but felt a hard ball in my mouth that I couldn’t get out. Panicking I looked around and saw some of the stallions from earlier. They grinned and motioned for one of the others to come forward. When he walked in front of me he drug a quivering mass into my field of vision.
I looked down and my eyes widened in shock and horror. There, lying in front of me was Cherry Tomato. As I looked at her I couldn’t help but notice that there was fresh blood dripping from her flanks. This filled me with a rage I had never felt before. If I could speak I’d have been cursing them all and promising that I’d personally see them sentenced for their crimes. The largest buck chuckled at me “He he he, oh dear sweet Clair, does this upset you?” yes you asshole, it does “Don’t worry about her; you’ll soon be joining her in our services, just like her mommy. It’s a shame we had to kill her.”
Prison was not good enough for these slime bags, They would never see the light of our stable ever again, it was way too good for these scum ponies. Cherry was sobbing, and I tried to reach out a hoof to comfort her, but the chains stopped me. I stiffened up as I felt his muzzle in my black mane, sniffing deeply and longingly “Mm, You’ve been flaunting your plot around on that stage for years now, and we finally got you all to ourselves. I’m goanna enjoy myself tonight.” He was stopped from anything else creepy when a smug voice from the doorway
“Sir, we have another volunteer.” I looked up and froze in terror, there, next to the stallion that spoke, was my sister, Sprocket. Oh, no, Luna No!! Sprocket flinched looking at Cherry but said in a shaky voice “Leave my sissy alone, Take me and let her go.” I looked up at the ceiling and prayed for someone to help. For anything to happen that would spare her from having to go through what Cherry went through. I looked back in time to see a stallion look down at her and say “Oh, we’re going to have some fun.” Whatever else was said I didn’t hear.
In school we were told about unicorn magic, and that, in very rare occasions, our magic can spike out of control and we can only watch what happens through our eyes, like a computer monitor. I watched as my magic enveloped me, undoing my body from the restraints and I turned on the buck that had my sister. I screamed in my head as I saw my hoof smash his skull in. I wish that it had ended there, that I only had the blood of one pony on my hooves, but sadly, there was more.
As I watched in horror, I picked up the one I had just killed and threw his body across at one of the smaller stallions, crushing him under the weight of the dead stallion’s body. Leaping across the room I killed the third by breaking his back and then bucked the fourth one’s head clean off. I sauntered over to the fifth and stood over his cowering form. I raised a hoof to strike him down, but suddenly I felt a hoof on my shoulder, and looked over to see Sprocket looking at me in terror. All of a sudden, I regained control and looked down at the stallion. He ran screaming as I began to shake violently, unable to stop I pulled Sprocket into a hug and sobbed “I... I’m so sorry. I... I completely… lost control. I never... never wanted this to happen.”
She stroked my mane comfortingly “Sis, I followed you and when I saw you get captured I was so scared that they would do something I had to act. These scumbags don’t even deserve to be called ponies.” I looked at her lovingly, but before I could say anything, the gravelly voice of the security chief, “Hold it right there Clair! You’re under arrest for the murder of 4 stable 0 stallions! Come with me, or I’ll have to use force!”
I turned to see chief Holster glaring at me with a baton in his magical grip. I nodded and followed after him, seeing my mother looking at me with disapproval and shame. I held my head low as I was walked to the detention area I thought over what happened. If they saw the camera footage then they would know that it was not my fault, but I doubted that the area I was in had any. Holster motioned for me to get into one of the holding cells. I did as I was told and jumped at the slamming of the door.
I don’t know how long I was alone in my cell, a minute? An hour? But I was surprised when Sprocket appeared on the other side of the bars, looking at me like I was a dead mare walking. “Tell me Sprocket, what have they decided to do to me?” I was about to make a joke when I saw her eyes, filled with tears. She looked up at me and said, in an empty voice said what I had been most afraid of “They decided to throw you out of stable 0, and never let you back in. I tried telling them that it wasn’t your fault, but they wouldn’t listen. I’m so sorry sis.” Sprocket began sobbing and I reached my hoof through the bar to comfort her. “Shhh, don’t worry sis, it’s ok. Please don’t cry anymore Sprocket, you’re a big girl, and you did everything that you could. Though I’ll have to leave for my crimes, I will always have your memory to keep me going. Just do me a favor and stay strong.” Sprocket nodded and we hugged through the bars.
. . .
It was several hours later, when the stable was in sleep mode that I heard someone come in. I waited for them to open my bars, but instead I looked down as a metal apple with a purple band bounced against my hoof. I tried to move as purple smoke funneled out and my body went limp. I looked up as the Overmare and Holster came in with masks on. I tried to yell as they put me in a large sack and levitated me out of my cell and down the halls. I was panicking, is this it? Is this when they were going to exile me?
I was regaining a little of my mobility when I felt a thud, and I was on the ground. Shakily I got up and out of the bag in order to see Holster with a blade. I couldn’t move as I felt his knife rip into my flanks and carve 4 cuts on either side of my cutie mark, destroying my little mockingbird. I was shaking and sobbing as the Overmare opened the stable door “Claire, you have been found guilty of the murder of 4 stable 0 Stallions, your punishment is to walk the outside, devoid of your identity. There is no Clair Bellows any more, only a pathetic excuse for a unicorn. Go forth, and never return.” I sobbed but slowly walked out into what felt like a cave.
As I looked back the stable door was closing, sealing everything I held dear into total isolation. All I knew was that I needed to find some way to heal myself, or the infection could kill me. I was surprised into stopping when I heard and felt a crunching noise. And when I looked down I had to suppress a scream. Bones, the skeletons of dozens of long dead ponies lay strewn about. The skull I had stepped on and crushed was no bigger than a filly.
I must have stood there for hours when suddenly I noticed bags and other assorted garments laying around the pony skeletons. I needed healing, and they weren’t using any of this. I looked through the bags, finding a comic book, a box of something called Sugar Apple Bombs, and, if my pip buck labeled it correctly, a sapphire necklace. I was about to give up hope when I finally found 2 first aid boxes, the pink butterflies were the only thing here that made me smile.
Looking in I found two syringes of med-X, a purple healing potion, which I scarfed down immediately, and a bottle of Buck. I looked at the both of them and thought to myself that if these had survived 200 years, then it was probably safe to say that they are strong enough to protect my injured flanks. I strapped them onto my flanks and proceeded away from the stable. It took a while, but I finally found a door out. I closed my eyes, prayed to the goddesses that it wasn’t too bad, and opened wide.
I opened my eyes and almost shut the door again at the brightness; this was much brighter than any stable lighting. Once my eyesight returned to normal, I had to stop myself from screaming. It was worse than even the craziest ponies worst nightmares could conjure up. It looked like I was staring into the pits of hell. Twisted up carts and blackened pony skeletons lay everywhere, not to mention that the air smelled like rot and decay.
I took several steps outside and looked up at… at nothing, nothing but a blanket of clouds, covering the sky and blocking out the sun. I had to check that my hooves were still on the ground and I came to terms with how Luna damned big this place was. I checked my pip buck and saw a button labeled E.F.S. and clicked it. I jumped up in surprise as I saw some dots on it; thankfully they were not red as I shakily trotted in their general direction. While I was walking I decided to check my pip buck again and, to my delight, I saw that there was a new radio station.
I flipped it on and was stopped dead by the most beautiful mare’s voice I had ever heard in my life. She sang of love, of loss, and of the rain. It was at that moment that I could take no more. I sat down and wove my magic, backing her up with the sorrowful cry of a phoenix. Once the music stopped it was replaced by a deep voiced stallion as he began to address anyone listening He seemed to be a good pony, telling tales of other good ponies, like Security out in some place called Hoofington, and the stable dweller.
Finally he gave a sendoff to his listeners and I got up. When I looked down at my EFS I saw that there were a few red dots close behind me, and I started running. Who, or whatever they were, I did not want to mess with them. I was running so long that I wasn’t paying attention and collided head long into the backside of a cow. I was about to apologies when I saw 2 heads coming off of this cow. I blinked and fainted from the shock, ok 2 headed cows is where I draw the fucking line.
. . .
I awoke next to a campfire, with a bucket of water next to me. I heard voices and jumped up, looking around for hostiles. I saw 2 earth ponies, with stripes? Shaking my head I looked at these two and asked “Wha- where am I?” The older one started speaking in an exotically strange voice “Do not fret, my silly pony friend. The stars have guided you to us, and we will not bring harm to you.”
OK, so these two weren’t ponies? I cleared my throat and said “Thank you, for taking care of me. Are we in hell? Because it certainly doesn’t look like the equestrian in the books, but then they said there was a war.” The oldest one nodded and said with a smile “The name I go by is Zeten, and this is my younger sister Tecris. We are a meager caravan, making our fortune by going from settlement to settlement, bartering for food, weapons and caps.”
“Caps? You mean the things that are on top of soda bottles?” at their nod I scratched my head and followed it up by saying “Is there any settlement or town that needs helping? I need to repent for some sins I committed, though nothing can change what I did.” I closed my eyes, refusing to cry as they thought for a moment “Well there is a town, New Appleloosa if my memory serves correct, that could always use a helping hoof. We are traveling that way ourselves, if you wish you may tag along.”
I smiled weakly at the two of them “I’d love to.” I blushed as my stomach growled loudly and I levitated out the box of Sugar Apple Bombs and wondered about the condition of this food, but shrugged and opened it up. I took a hesitant bite of what was inside, and immediately scarfed down the rest of it. Licking my lips I smiled “Hot damn that was tasty!” to the laughter of my two companions. I sighed and took a drink of the water next to me and looked to Zeten “So, are we headed out soon?” He shook his head “In the morning we will go, you and my sister need your rest.
I nodded and said “Thank you, so much. I know you have no reason for helping a stranger, but I wish to thank you anyways.” He smiled as I lay back down and drifted off to sleep
. . .
I awoke the next morning and felt that something was off. I looked around and saw that I was in a cage. Ok, something was really off, as I looked around, I saw that I was inside somewhere, and that there were 2 lumps of half eaten equine bodies around me. I had to suppress vomiting as I realized that these two equine bodies looked very familiar.
As I examined them I saw a flashing light from one of their pip bucks. A little message on it called, beware Project Nightmare. There was an audio file that I copied onto my own pipbuck. I was about to play the audio file when I heard maniacal murderous laughter getting louder. My eyes darted around as I saw a blue earth pony buck about my age in the cage next to mine. He looked like he had given up on living before he caught my look, and he whispered “Please, get us out of this. If you don’t we’re goanna die.”
I looked around the room looking for anything that could be used as a weapon, and there it was, resting up on a mantle, was a steel hoof ball bat. I levitated it up and waited for some pony to come through the doorway. Fortune was on my side, as a purple earth pony buck came walking in with the keys in his muzzle. I gulped and used SATS to knock him in the head. I must have hit a soft spot for his skull caved in and he dropped to the ground dead.
Shivering I pulled the key out of his mouth and undid my cage doors lock. The door swung open as I walked over to the other cage. I opened it and sat down as the buck walked out. He looked me up and down saying “What do ya say we team up and whip some raider ass.” I sullenly nodded and we turned around, only guessing what came next
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((Foot note: Level up))
((New perk added: Dark Mare: Your experiences with stallions in the past have been less than ideal. When dealing with Stallions, Bucks, or any male opponent, you deal extra damage in combat))
(Special Shout out to Kkat for writing Fallout equestria and Somber for horizons. You two kick undeniable ass)