> Fallout Equestria : MaelStorm of The Wasteland
>  by Harb
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> MaelStorm's life
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Sometimes withholding information is the road to death or exile." 




The little black unicorn colt with a silver mane and purple eyes followed his father down the stable corridor. "So where are we going dad?"

The colt asked with excitement. "You'll see soon enough MaelStorm."


The father, a muscular black unicorn pressed the door control. Lights flicked on, colts and fillies in party hats greeted him. 

"Happy birthday MaelStorm!"


They all cried in unison. MaelStorm instantly knew what it was, it was his birthday where he would get his new Pip-Buck. Calypso, a brown pegasus filly in a party hat walked over to him in the parlor. "Hey MaelStorm, I know how you like computers, so I had my dad fish this out of our back room."

She pushed a wrapped box toward him. He strained to use is magic, but after a few minutes he managed to unwrap the box. It was a thick book on computer hacking, a small footnote on the cover said there was also an article on energy weapons. 

"Well thanks Calypso, this was a very thoughtful gift." 

__________________________________________________________________________________________________



She gave me a nervous smile then walked off. She had seemed shy to me ever since I met her, perhaps it wasn't her shyness but more than that towards me. The Overmare walked towards me. She levitated a Pip-Buck towards me. My heart skipped a beat with excitement.

All of the ponies in the party crowded around me. The Overmare looked down at me. 

"MaelStorm, I take it you know what this is?"

I nodded with excitement.

"Good, then on behalf of the government of Stable 16 I present to you your own Pip-Buck."


My dad walked over beside me and took it from the Overmare, he manipulated it to fit it on me. He typed in some buttons with his hoof. The a hissing sound occurred and it clamped onto me. I felt a small amount of pain as needles from the device pricked my skin He leaned behind my ear. 

"Remember son, the release code is 34-54-64."

"Got it, 34-54-64."

He pulled back then smiled and patted me on the shoulder.



__________________________________________________________
-7 years later-

My dad stood over my bed in our apartment screaming for me to wake up. I got up with a shock. 

"What's going on?" 

"We have to leave, now, before they get here."

He said frantically forcing hidden weapons and supplies into a satchel. I was scared, he was usually calm and collective, not hectic and scattershot.

"Son, no time to explain, we need to leave the stable, if we can I'll explain later. Now grab a gun and get ready to run."

He looked into my eyes and said this with fear filling his pupils. 

"Ok." 

So I grabbed a laser pistol, slammed in one of the magical cartridges and clipped it to my suit. 

"Dad, before we leave, do you mind if I get some things, and get some pony?"


"Let me guess, Calypso?"

"Well I think she would welcome a chance to leave here, seeing as how she has no family here

"Hurry."

With his approval I got a satchel of my own and put the computer book she had given me at my birthday party. I ran to the door, opened it and went to Calypso's apartment, her father had died years ago of cancer and she lived alone. I knocked on the door. There was a grumble and she opened the door. 

"What is it MaelStorm?"

Her jumpsuit was wrinkled and hr long mane fell over parts of her eyes. 

"We have to leave, now."

"Wait, what do you mean?"

"I mean we have to leave the stable, my dad has been rambling that somethings coming. I asked if you could come with us."

"So wait, you expect me to leave the place where my father died?''

I nodded. 

"Of course."

A smile hit my face as soon as she said that. 

"Cmon, we don't have much time before they come."

We walked back to the apartment with each other.

We opened the door. My dad has two satchels full of supplies and weapons. 

We'll need these when we leave, now, follow me to the stable door."

He made his way past us then we went to one of the stable elevators.



The elevator stopped with a jolt. The door was massive. I got out of the elevator to look for the controls, a terminal with a wire link to the door motor was on a table with its back to the door. The elevator was going down.That meant that some pony was on the way to the door. We ducked into a large storage container near the entrance. 

"Why yes FallenWing, Stable 12 would be interested in joining the GPUC. But the earth ponies would have to 'weeded out'." 

A grim laugh of a stallion came from the elevator as it stopped. The Overmare and a black unicorn with a white mane where talking. He turned towards the container. He had an eye-patch on his left eye and a scar running down his face to his neck. His other eye was half blue and half red along the iris.

"Now, my dear, if you could please open the door, my escort squad is waiting outside.

The Overmare typed in a release door code in the terminal, a large motor began to spur and the door began to slowly peel back. FallenWind laughed then put a big ass magnum to the Overmare's head.

"Why?" 

I watched in horror as he killed the Overmare with a large bullet to the head. Blood, bits of skull, and grey matter flew all over the room. He put the gun back in a concealed holster in his leather jacket then walked away to the door. 

"Well I guess that solves the door problem."

FallenWing turned to our crate with a insane smile and a look of murder in his eye. He used his horn to open the crate we where in. This was it, I was going to die, all of my life, uncompleted, my genes unpassed. He gave a small chuckle. 

"Solstice, good to see you again."

He looked at my dad. My mind was racing, how did this maniac remember him?"

"The feeling is mutual FallenWing."

My dad said sarcastically. We got out of the crate at gunpoint. He knocked out Calypso with the but of the gun. We walked behind me and reared the but of the gun to bring down on my neck. He hit me with it and my vision went black. 




  
> Waking up
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"You'll have to go grow a separate part of yourself or you won't make it out here."





I woke up with a jolt. Snow fell around me on a frozen tundra So, this is what it's like outside of the stable. Calypso and I where left here to die, never learning what happened to my father, what had just happened, or the chance to pass on my genes. NO! I wouldn't go out like this, freezing on a tundra. No, if I fought then my body heat would dissipate quicker. The best I could do now was to let myself die painlessly. I let the feeling of unconsciousness wrap around me. As my eyes began to close a blurry shadow appeared in my field of vision. "Well, looks like todays your lucky day."




My eyes creaked open. I looked up at a roof of wood mixed with metal. A fireplace crackled near me. I was on an old bed apparently in the living room. A earth pony with light gleaming off of his hooves, was sitting at a desk in front of me, writing on notes. He turned his head to me. A light smile came onto his silvery face. "Well I see your awake. Your friend was wondering if you'd pull through."



I pulled the blanked off of me. He had me still in my stable suit. 


"Your friend has been up and worrying about you for some time. It's odd, she woke up faster and recuperated more, must be something with having to be a pegasus."


"Who are you?"


I asked rubbing my head.


"The names IronHooves, as most ponies know me, once you kill a couple of Enclave ponies, they don't take to kindly, they welded my weapon of choice, horse shoes dipped in arcane magic and poison, onto my hooves. So I screwed out the spikes, then I can use as a handy tool, like with surgery."


He said gesturing with it to the blood stained apron he wore.  "Bye the way, your jumpsuit won't do you no good out here, might wanna go to SteelHeart and Denny's place, they could insulate it for you, or get you a new coat."

"Wheres Calypso?"

"You're friend? She went to SteelHeart, I gave her the same suggestion to get a coat."



I nodded my thanks then opened the door I was next too. A gust of cold wind hit me in the face, it felt like the heat was being sapped out of my body. Snow fell around me like on the plane. I saw through the thick snow a sign saying IronHeart and Denny's saloon and blacksmithing. I shrugged as my body temperature lowered. I walked over to the ramshackle metal door and pushed it open. A roaring fire, a lighted room, a bar, 5 tables with 4 chairs each and 5 stools near the bar. Calypso sat at one the stools talking with a grey and silver maned earthpony stallion. "Hey MaelStorm, over here."

She said waving her hoof. I returned the greeting. I walked over there and pulled up a stool.

"Well welcome. I'm SteelHeart, back there in the forge is my cousin Denny. If you're here to rob the place I'll Denny back there shoot ya........ I'm just kidding, heres a drink on the house." 

He slid a drink of whiskey over to me. "No thanks, I don't drink." 

"Well if you don't then what can I get you, we offer any free service on your first time here, and by judging by your outfit, your here for Denny to insulate it or get a new one. Bye the way, whats with your qutiemark?"

"I am a philosopher, it represents how I pondered the thought that intelligence is like a maelstorm, a living entity never to be completely grasped, but to those who try it shall find their hooves singed from the fires of what they have tried to understand, but some of them, just some, can go through the cracks others have made and gain just a fraction of the fraction of what can be gained by the maelstorm of intelligence. that is why my qutiemark is a maelstorm as is my name."

'Well, if you ever get the chance, you might be interested in an old library about a mile south of here, it's huge and has a trove of books that no pony has ever seen, well any wasteland dweller has ever seen."

''I don't think that library would be of much use to you."

A gruff voice came from behind me, up against a corner was a dark green earthpony stallion in a leather hat and leather armor. His qutiemark, which was barely visible, was the number 13, it was also tattooed on his neck in black ink. A crossbow with a cylinder under it was slung across his back

"No pony gone there has ever returned, some say a guardian guards the knowledge, others say it's a curse that guards it."

''Who are you?" 

I asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I am 13, it's hard to have a name once you wake up in a frozen tundra with nothing but a qutiemark, a crossbow, and a tattoo."

I was about to say something then the door to the forge bursted open. A white earthpony stallion covered in soot and wearing a blacksmiths apron. 

"Well MaelStorm, this is Denny."

I raised a hoof in greeting.

He did the same.


"Hey Denny, would you mind getting him a coat for outside?"


Denny nodded then grabbed a bottle of sparkle cola then went back to the forge.

"So I take it he doesn't talk much?"

Calypso asked.

"Well he is a mute."

"Wwell I'm sorry that I asked, if it's offensive to him."

"Dont be, if he had wanted to talk he would have done it."

Denny came back through the door and placed two coats, each a black color with golden stitching around the sleeves and collar. 

"Well, is see he brought you your coats."

"So, as I can judge, your from a Stable, and it looks like you'll need a guide around here."

13 proposed.

"Wait, you said you had no memory, and you woke up on a frozen tundra. Sure."

I said with the feeling of hilarity welling up inside of me. 

I turned my head to Steelheart. 

"Where can we get a job?'

I asked.

"Check the mayors office, he may have some work."

So we put on our coats, armed our guns, then we set off into the night.

 

 







   
> Work for The Mayor
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I went back to SteelHooves house and retrieved my satchel full of equipment. As I learned that they use cap, as in sparkle cola, caps as a form of currency. Anyway 13, Calypso and I went to the mayors office, a two story building where sheet metal covering the holes. I pushed open the door. A small tawny mare with a white wane sat a desk, quickly stamping papers. She looked up and then made a frantic motion and fell out of her chair. 

"If your here to raid, take what ever you want, but just don't kill me or anypony else!"

She said while in a fetal position under the desk.

"What are you talking about?"

I asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Oh, you're not raiders?"

"No, my companions and I came here for work."

"As well as guns."

13 added in.

"Well work, I can give you that, guns, not as much, but, the raiders that I mistook you for have their hooves on a massive library in which they kept all of their weapons."

"Well, that's the library I told you two about."

"Well, I if you can clear them out, I'd be glad to pay you as well as give you access to explore the vault, which we are now doing an expedition on."

"How many are on the expedition?"

I asked.

"One, and I don't even know where she is, but that isn't even important right now, go and kill some raiders." 

She said making a shooing motion to the door. I held open the door with my hoof for 13 and Calypso. The mayor also poked her head out of the door. 

"Also, go to Steelheart's, ask for the monday special, he'll know what it means."

"Ok, what in Celestia's name does that even mean?!" I asked screaming as she went back into the office.

So after confusingly walking to SteelHearts, I asked for the 'monday' 

''So, the mayor told yah eh, well here it is."

He said as he went under the bar then pulled out a large pistol with the words '95 auto' scratched on the side.

"Denny and I found this while we searched an old supply dump we found this and several coats, as you're now wearing, it uses a special round, called the 95 auto, looks like this was made to kill anything it encountered, we also found two 50 bullet boxes for it. You can keep it, we showed to the mayor for any contingency, and since you're using to to kill some raiders, that's a contingency, also if it runs out of rounds, just beat em with it, it should work.

So after I loading it with a 10 round magazine. We went to the outer section of town in which I checked on my Pip-Buck for a marker. 

I whispered to myself. "How it does this I have no Idea."

We began to walk, this place was quite cold, snow fell in small flurries around us. We where  soon walking in a small valley. 

"Where getting close now."

13 said as he pulled a crossbow from his battle sack and a quiver of crossbows. He then put it over his back on a strap. 

"I'll provide sniper support with my crossbow."

I gave a nod of approval. He moved up on a ledge and knocked a stand down on it and then loaded an arrow, he then went down on his stomach and got into a sniping position. He slowly squeezed the trigger, then sent an arrow flying to a raiders throat. 






Note: It may seem short, but in the next chapter you'll see why.
> The Hall of Forgotten Knowledge 
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Damn artillery!"


"MaelStorm!, hang in there!"

13 said as he stood over me on the tundra, a piece of shrapnel had hit me in the back, just missing my spine. Apparently the raiders had an artillery cannon. So now I was, on my back on a tundra, unable to move. 10 of them where marching to us, all of them with bullet proof shields. The pain I felt was terrible, I couldn't move it was so bad. A greenish hue came into my vision Oh no descendant of the great scribe, you must not die, yet.  A eerie, yet warming, voice of am are brushed up against my mind. Then suddenly, mine exploded under the advancing ponies. Sending Celestia knows what around the area. In a nearby rock wall a door opened. Here you will find safety, here you will find THE HALL.

I strained to let out that one sentence. "There." 

I tilted my head to the opening in the rock wall. He nods, barely out of wonder of the mines. He gestured for Calypso to the door. She nodded, the 95 auto in her hooves. So 13 carried me into the cave by grabbing the back of my coat. The darkness of the cave engulfed my vision. As we went into the cave the door clamped shut 

"Someone light a torch." 

13 said. Calypso held her satchel open with her wing then bit down on a torch and she struck it up against the nearest wall. Light flooded from the room, we could see about 20 feet in front of us. Yes, blood of the great scribe, you are almost to your sanctum, YOUR INHERITANCE Again there was the voice, this time the voice of a booming stallion. 

"Holy buck."

13 gasped in wonder as we came into a huge amphitheater. 

"Welcome home, of blood of the great scribe." 

The voice, it seemed had a third manifestation, this time however, I could see it. It was in the robes of a scribe, red and vibrant. Its face hidden behind a cowl.

"Have you come for the walk of knowledge?" It asked.

"Ah, well, the shrapnel in your back won't do at all."

I heard those words, then I clenched my teeth, I felt the huge shard of shrapnel poking out of my back being pulled out. The pain was instant and even more incapacitating. 

"There, and since your blood cant be spilled now on this floor."

It said in a cold, mechanical voice.  

"I present and give you the vial of renewal."

The figure bit off the cork then pored a red liquid on my back. The relief and healing was instant. 

I still gritted my teeth as I got up, the shard and wound may have gone, but the pain was still there.

"Who are you, are you a ghost, a hologram, some damn thing that could have saved me?!" 

I asked through closed teeth. 

"Ahahahaha. No my dear colt, I am Mundus, the Keeper of the Hall of Forgotten Knowledge."

"And of saving my life? What of that?"

"Well, seeing as how you are a descendant of the great scribe, I am duty bound to save you."

"What do you mean, great scribe?"

"The scribe who after the nuclear holocaust, brought back knowledge in full. He built this hall, and you contain his blood, so I am sworn for your protection as long as you live in these grounds. Now that your all well and healed. Shall you prepare for you tests of you knowledge."

I slowly got up, pain streaking through my body. Though at least I could move. 

"What test?"

"Oh, just test of what all knowledge requires. Sacrifice."

A blue light flashed in my eyes. All three of use where in a large chamber. On a pedestal, a three chambered revolver sat. 

"Ok, why do I suddenly get a bad feeling about this?"

Calypso asked, next to my ear.

"Well, I have an idea. So before I ask, who's up for some draconian roulette?"

13 asked.

"Wait, by sacrifice, do you think he meant."

"Yes, yes I did, in order for you to leave, one of you must die."

'Wait, why do this, you where sworn to protect me."

"Well, it doesn't mean you have to die, just one of your friends."

I was shocked. Just as I met 13, he could be the one to die, or Calypso, or even me.

"Ok, I'll go first, might as well get my possible death of the way." 

13 said as he went for the pistol on the pedestal. He held the revolver in between his hooves pointing in his mouth. He pulled the trigger and I closed my eyes, expecting a loud crack and blood to go everywhere. But nothing but a click. 

"Ok, well, I guess I'll go next, I guess if I die, both of you can continue and find your father MaelStorm."

Again, pulling the trigger, and a click. Well this was it, the only possibility is that I'll die when I pull the trigger. So I did what anyone in my hooves would do, sacrifice myself so they could continue. So using my magic I placed the gun in my mouth, but before firing I looked at Calypso and 13. 

"I die so that you can continue."

After that I pulled the trigger, awaiting a bullet to rip through my skull. But only the dull click of an empty round. I pulled the gun out, staring in amazement, so it had no rounds in it the whole time?! I screamed to myself.

"Ah, well I see you have found the virtue of sacrifice, had you have refused, you would have all been cast out down a mountain side, you all sacrificed your own lives for your fellow pony. For that I allow you MaelStorm, who knew there was the last bullet in your chamber, well I grant you one book out of these halls, which contain completely unknown knowledge. So go and choose your book."

Mundus said from above us, probably a speaker system. A wall opened up in front of me. There where several bookshelves along the hall. 

"Also I should mention, if you take more than one book, the whole hall is rigged to explode. Just though you should know. Also, I believe after contacting some friends to help clean up your raider problem."

I went into the hall. The door shut behind me and lights flickered on. Rows of books where in front of me, at the end of the hall was a old and torn book. On it it had 3 titles. Ancient artifacts, One Pony MegaSpells, and The Thieves Guide. 

"Mundus. What is that book?"

"Oh that is a combination of three books, we couldn't find them separate, so we just had them in that form. I take it that's your choice."

"Yes. It is."

"Well go for it. Maybe the explosives have gone off."

I walked to the book and placed it in my satchel. The door opened, 13 and Calypso sat near the pedestal. 

"Well, if you ever need me, just load a bullet into that revolver, then I'll send my form to speak with you, I hope someone doesn't get killed by the large revolver shell in the air."

"Wait, what are you Mundus?"

Calypso asked. 

"I am the remnants of a pony who had a deadly disease, so they placed me in the mainframe of this hall. I can broadcast my thoughts around this area, as well as my old form, a scribe. Now off with you."

The same bright flash came then we where out on the tundra, piles of dead raiders. 

"Guns POINT!"



> A Break
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Bliss is Bliss, Crucible is Crucible, but you'd have to be insane to have both."



I held up my hooves in a gesture of surrender. 5 ponies each heavily armed and wearing small bullet proof vests. 

"Drop your weapons." 

"Wait, who the hell are you?"

13 asked getting in front of Calypso.

"My dear colt. I am General Avengus, leader of the EPLF. Now, who are you."

"I am MaelStorm, these are Calypso and 13."

"Well, you wouldn't have come from the town up the road, have you?"

"Yes, well, Calypso and I came from a Stable."

"I woke up on a tundra."

13 put in.

"Well, I'm sorry for the mix up."

"Wait, what is the EPLF anyway?"

"Why should I tell you two, a Pegasus and a Unicorn. I don't even trust you. You're lucky I'm letting you go without a bullet in your head."

Well, I guess predigest is abundant here.

"Well, lets get back and get our pay."

So after getting away from a band of highly armed and predigest earth ponies with saddle bags adapted to fire guns. We went back to the mayors office. 


"Well we took care of the raiders."

"So wait, you killed 50 raiders in total. There is no blood on you, and you got out without a scrape?"

"Well, range has it's advantages."

"Well, if you killed them or not, their still dead, as my scouts report. So you get your pay."

The Mayor reached under her desk. Pulling out an old key card and a bag.

"The key card is to the vault, the bag contains 750 caps."

"And with that, we leave."

So we headed out the door and sat inside a table in SteelHeart's bar. 

"OK, I say we devise the caps amongst ourselves."

Calypso suggested.

"That sounds good to me, I could use a drink."

13 said as he grabbed his share then went to the bar.

"As for me, I think I'll hold onto this, always good to save. If you need me, I'll be admiring this places beauty outside."

Calypso said as she got us and went through the door. Well, might as well as read this book, which I could have possibly lost my life over. Well, I didn't know I was risking it for this, well I knew I would die, or so I though. OK I'll just read the damn book! So I turned the cover.


To the pony which found my collection of books. You are about to
See somethings that are rarely ever known, my armor for example.
But you'll learn of that later. The first section of this book contains ar- 
tifacts, such as The Magazine of Plenty, BloodRose, and the recipe
for God Killer, as well as legends that could lead to fame and other
riches- BloodStone

A picture of a long barreled sawed-off shotgun with what looked as though it had a revolver chamber in the middle. A description was next to the picture- This weapon is known as BloodRose. It was made for Alicorn hunting since it's a bucking duel barreled sawed-off with a revolver chamber, but it's key edge is it's usefulness with the God Killer round, which is only made for a shotgun as well as the corrode enchantment I placed upon it. This weapon is being studied at The Royal Canterlot Testing Facility. Security's tight and I may not be able to steal it back but, eh you gotta try. 

So I closed the book and went to go get something to eat. I came back to my table with a bottle of sparkle cola and a fried bird with what looked like a third leg. So after gnawing off a leg of the bird I asked SteelHeart a question through a mouthful of bird. 

"How do you know this won't kill me?"

"Well if you think it's going to kill you, why are you eating it?!"

"But I'm hungry."

"Ok, it won't kill you because if it was, your Pip-Buck would have gone off."

"Wait, how do you know what?" I asked

"We found a stable full of Pip-Bucks, the door just wide open, but we never really went in there, just a huge box of them where strewn out on the cave floor. I though I saw an ancient creature from myth."

"And what did you think it was?" I asked.

"A hydra."


> Healing Potions and Balefire Cocktails 
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Note to self, never get in a drinking game in the Wasteland."


Well, a hydra, a harbinger of death, an almost inkillable monster, was, according to a bartender, alive and in an abandoned stable with an open door. So, in fear of a living hydra, I opened the book. I flipped through until I saw a page titled 'Bestiary'


Oh yah, I also forgot to tell you, this book also has a bestiary and an
alchemical guide, use these well.


The first creature is the hydra, a multi headed creature which breathed acid and fire. Once a head is chopped, two more will grow, so there is only one known way to kill it, you must chop off a head then use fire to seal the wound before two more heads can take it's place. There are two friends of mine that can be very useful in this, the clear cutter shell and The God Killer, see page 2 and 3.

So I turned to page two, a picture of a metal shotgun shell with a luminescent red line running long wise down the shell. 

This is The God Killer, it's something that is used to kill alicorns and any other types of creatures with exquisite regenerative abilities. The recipe for this round is 3 tea spoons napalm, 2 teaspoons white phosphorous, 3 pinches of black powder, and 3 small ball bearings. Then load into a fireproof metal shotgun shell, then fire, note: the black powder is placed near the back of the shell when fired to those of you missing half a brain.

I then turned to page 3. 

Now, this may seem like a normal shotgun shell, but within it, if made correctly, can decapitate a pony at point blank range. The secret is that the shrapnel within it is made from a special titanium copper allow, so when using this it can go through the density and thickness of a hydra neck, very useful when paired with the God Killer and the BloodRose, as it has a revolver set to it, and when paired with a dual barrel sawed off. This will provide 8 rounds in the large revolver chamber, so place the clear cutter shell in the first setting, then the God Killer in the next two, then repeat again then you have the bane of a hydra.

I looked up to see a Zebra, damn they can be silent if they want to. 

"Can I help you?"

"I am Infidus, and I see that you are reading of the God Killer round. I think I have something can you are also looking for." The Zebra said with a thick accent

"And what's that?"

I looked up to see the Zebra holding the familiar long barreled sawed off.

"Wait, how did you get that?"

"I know some ponies, who know some ponies, who robbed some ponies."

"OK, and what do you want for?" 

"My people crave knowledge,- He said eyeing the book desirably- your book would suffice, but if you are to attached to it. If you could beat my friend and I in a drinking game." I Looked away from him to see another zebra step out of the shadows of the bar.

"Ok, deal."

"Hey 13."

"What, want to get in a drinking game with some Zebra's?" 

"Sure. Hey SteelHeart, get the drinks."

13 said to SteelHeart.

"Ok, I'm going to get the Canterlot wine, it's very strong stuff."

Steelheart said as he opened the door to a wine cellar. He came back with a wine bottle which in tattered letters read 'Canterlot Reserve'

"Ok, wasteland rules, if you go three rounds without being knocked out, then you win what the challenger of the game wagers, if you win, you can also do anything you want with the loser." SteelHeart stated over our table with a row of three large wine glasses in front of us

13 leaned over and whispered to me. "Are you sure this will work?"

I laughed and said. ''I have no idea! Haha."

So I was first. I raised the glass with my hoof and said. "To the hopeful possibility that you won't do terrible things to me if I go unconscious."

So I poured it down, the taste was pleasant, the drowsiness was not. So 13 was up, he drank it down fairly easily. The first zebra drank the glass, he almost fell over, but gathered himself then stood back up, the second one, a much larger zebra, about 13's size. He had no problem, like 13. So my turn again ,fearing the terrible things that would follow, I just got it out of the way. 
Then the drowsiness hit me again with much more force. I almost fell off my chair, but through force of will I held my ground, er stool. "Isha thert arl yur ger?"

Oh no, the drunken slurs, speak correctly you fool! So, after five minutes and another round, I gave up all hope of not having terrible things done to me in my sleep by a zebra, dammit wasteland, why are so demented!?

So, last round, the probability of getting a shotgun when combined with two rounds, could take down a hydra, or ungodly things done to me. So I drunk it down. 

"You did it, you won BloodRose."

"Yuar derm reigh I ded."

Then I blacked out, before I did however I heard myself hitting the floor. 



I us to see the sun shining through a thatch roof. 

"Well, you're finally awake."

I looked from the bed I was in, well a small mat of straw, to see a small zebra female. 

"Who are you?"

"You may just call me Athena."

"OK Athena, where am I, where's 13, and you haven't by any chance seen two zebra's with a shotgun, have you?"

"You are in a small hut, which I dragged you to after you fell drunkenly on the floor, outside of that village, you're friend is in my storage closet, and you're shotgun is held by my brother,who leads a raider's camp a few miles down, your equipment is beside you, and I took off all your clothes."

"Great, this is what I get for getting into a drinking game."

Athena giggled at the joke.

"Well, seeing as the thatch your sitting on is fire thatch, if you wore you clothes in it, you would have baked."

"Oh, I suppose it has a form of capturing sunlight then holding it, so thus warming the pony, but if I had wore a coat already adapted to heat the body would have friend me in my skin?"

"Correct."

"And you can verify this how?" 

"While my brother was playing with his friends and being a bully, I scavenged for books on botany."

"Clever girl, now if you excuse me, I must get dressed, release my friend from you're broom closet, and then go get my gun. Why is he in the closet anyway?"

"I just wanted to do it for a laugh or two." 


So after putting on my clothes, getting my gun and loading it, and getting 13 out of the closet.

I slowly turned the doorknob. 13 was asleep, next to a broom, standing longways. 

"13." 

"13!!" I screamed.

He woke up with a snap then fell out of the closet and onto the floor.

"Where are we?" He asked.


So after explaining to him where we where, we set off. Me with the 95 auto, him with his crossbow. The hut was in a small niche, surrounded by the mountain expect where we exited. Athena came running out with a saddle bag.

"Wait, you'll need these."

"What are they?" I asked

"They're balefire cocktails, it's something my father taught me to make to survive, you'll need to light the cloth then throw them, nature will take care of the rest, there are also some healing potions in here. You may need them."

"Why?" 13 asked.

"I want you to destroy my brothers camp, by destroy, I mean burn it to the ground."

"Are you sure, I mean, he is you're brother."

"He stopped being my brother when he became a raider."

I game a solemn nod then took the pack. 



As we walked, the mountain went into a gradual decline and some of the snow began to reside. The sun began to set revealing the night sky.

"Ah 13, is their nothing more beautiful than the night sky. I mean, this is my first time seeing it, and it's fascinating."

"I'd have to say yes, it is so calming to see such beauty."

"Yes, the one thing untouched by destruction. I will cry the day it's beauty ends as well."

"Why do we even sleep at night?"

"Well, we could become nocturnal."

"MaelStorm, as you can see, I don't really understand you're large words."

"Nocturnal means to sleep in the day and live in the night."

"Oh, well, I think I can see the camp."

I was turned behind him, marveling at the night sky.       

"And how do you figure that?"

I turned around to see a camp with flood lights showing out from it a metal wall encompassing it, and several zebra's on patrol in the area. Beyond the camp was a frozen plain. 

"Ah buck." 

I whispered to 13 as I motioned to get down. He gave a nod then unslung the crossbow from his back. He loaded an arrow from the quiver then set it the crossbow. I pulled out the 95 auto then aimed down the iron sights on the head of a zebra standing on the wall. I squeezed the trigger with my magic. 

For some reason there was no sound, but the zebra went down easily. 13 aimed down the sight of the crossbow, on what I have no idea, then fired, an arrow stuck into the neck of another guard. Apparently he wasn't dead yet and he triggered the alarm. So a siren went up. I heard a bullet just wiz past my head, others hit the snowbank.

I did something with my Pip-Buck I have never done, I entered SATS. The world went into crawling speed. So I used this to organize the situation. There where 10 guards left, I aimed a shot for another one on the wall, and one on the ground near the wall. I let SATS go, zebra on the wall fell, I think there was a large hole in his stomach. The other bullet didn't exactly go well. 

Then I came to the realization, we where ether going to die here, or get out of here with as much experience as we have ever had. Just then 13 grabbed a balefire cocktail out of my pack.

"MaelStorm, if you please could light this."

I ducked behind the cover then lit the cloth. 13 threw it on the wall, a wall of flame sprang up on the wall and 3 zebras around them. So he got another and I lit it again, another wall of flame and death, soon there was one zebra left guarding the wall. I got out from under the bank, my gun trained on the zebra. 

"Drop you're gun, or I'll shoot."

"I don't think you have the guts for it."

"OK." I smiled, for some reason, then I put the gun up to the zebras head. 

"Look into my eye's, and say that I wouldn't hesitate to kill you."

I tried to make myself to look as crazy as possible. The zebra kept staring into my purple eyes. Then he dropped the gun. 

"Who are you?" He asked with fear

Who was I now, I couldn't risk having FallenWing knowing I was alive, I at least had that element.

"I am Vanguard. Now, know that I spare you for one reason, and one reason only, I wish to become known, so go, before I put a bullet in you're head."

The zebra, apparently being scared, nodded then ran off with a frantic expression on his face.

"Well that was fun." 13 complimented.

"Yes now, lets get my gun."

I went to the gate, a small fence between the walls. By now the fire had died out on the metal. I fired the gun at the latches holding the gate closed. In the middle was Infidus, looking very mad, holding BloodRose in his mouth, ready to fire. I went into SATS again, this time I aimed for his head, I went out of SATS, well, lets just say, we where scrubbing gore off of ourselves for some time. I went over to get my gun ,it seemed fitting, almost like it belonged with the 95. auto. Then my vision blurred out in a red haze. 




Energy Weapons increased to 24| Speech increased to 23| Sneak increased to 20|
> Lets Kill a Hydra
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"My mind is surprisingly empty."



I woke up on the floor of a room with walls made out of what looked like copper wire and blackness. In front of me was a unicorn with a jet black body and a shaggy bone white mane and strangely, one eye was purple like mine, but the other had a vertical pupil and it's iris was green with specks of red in it.

"Hello, and welcome to your subconscious, this is a recording on what has happened. When you got two of my guns to close with each other, this causes an influx of magical energy to exert, thus allowing me to speak with you. This will only happen once with each artifact. But within each one of my artifacts, I have placed the shard of a bloodstone which has had magical properties bestowed upon it by me, when all of them have been placed into a single stone, you will be able to learn of all of my memories, thus leading to my home, my armor, and my treasure, so far you have found two of them. P.S. This is from BloodStone, The Great Scribe, I bid you goodbye and good luck in finding my artifacts."


My vision flashed red again and I woke up in a bed with 13 and SteelHooves around me. 

"Why do I faint so much?"

13 gave a small chuckle.

"Well, I've been examining you, physically you seem okay, how do you fell mentally?" SteelHooves asked. 

"Well, I was in my own subconscious, a pony who called himself BloodStone spoke of what happened. That there was a fragment of a stone in each one of his artifacts."

"Well, how can we know?" 13 asked.

"I have just the idea."

I found the 95. auto then I concentrated on disassembling it. I saw all of the small screws, the barrel, etc, then in the glimmer in the fire light of SteelHooves house, I saw a small green stone, with a fleck of red garnet on a large piece of technology. 

"Anypony have any idea on what this is?" I asked.

13 got the book out of my saddle bag then looked in the artifact section for a picture. He this stopped the turned the book around to me. The exact piece of technology was in that picture. I reassembled the 95. auto, without the piece of technology. 



This is known as a Gauss Drive, if placed in a setting with a simple trigger, it will automatically attach itself to the trigger as well as setting, thus allowing it to fire anything. There where up to twelve made by a master craftspony after Discord was defeated. It is best know because it can silence a weapon, but still provide enough stopping power, I have placed one in my own gun. In order to remove the blood stone I've placed in it, simply pick it out with something sharp, no damage will come to the Gauss Drive. I've spoked with Celestia this morning about mass producing them for the war effort, she threw me out.

But I did get a snippet of information from Celestia about The Cyber-Pony project, I also spied on some of the ministries, they're making power armor to fight the zebras. Well, I'm going to enjoy stealing some of those. I some-times think why Celestia just doesn't kill me, maybe it's because I went on an expedition to recover The Eye of The Seer, or she finds me funny. But enough of my rambling, long story short, I learned that they couldn't armor the joints in order to hinder movement, so if they ever knock down my door, if they can find it, I now have a way to shoot them. The joints have slightly less armor making them more vulnerable, the eye slit is bullet proof, but a high powered laser can cut through it.

I shut the book then carefully got out the shard with my magic. I then dissembled the 95 auto then put the Gauss Drive back in it's place. Then I went to work on the BloodRose. It's design was like nothing I've ever seen, apparently BloodStone has been either crazy or smart enough to combine the ammo container of a revolver with the power of a sawed off. The shard was in the barrel, after removing it and placing it next to the other shard, I reassembled it then I watched in amazement as the two shards glowed then latched onto each other, creating a larger shard. Then it hit me. Where in the hay was Calypso.


"13, where's Calypso?!" I asked frantically.

"Relax, she's okay. She went to Athena's, apparently they share a green hoof. Also, SteelHeart told me to tell you once you wake that he has a special surprise for you."

"What?" I asked. 

"Well, remember those special shells that you read about?"

"Yes, I do."

"Well follow me."

I put BloodRose and the 95. auto in my satchel then I followed 13. He opened the door then I followed him into SteelHeart's bar.

Inside on a table underneath a flickering light, was a box of rounds marked 'God Killer' on one half of the box and 'Clear Cutter'  on the other half. I smiled in joy. Suddenly the lights came on. SteelHeart was in front of the table.

"Well, here's you're surprise, I hired some ponies to scour the mountainside, we came across an old forge where we found, and get this, a transmogrification machine, so we made ourselves some shells. I hope you'll do well, also, Denny prepared something else for this occasion."

"What is it?" I asked.

"It was a suit of armor used by our grandfather when he was a courier in New Pegus. He said you'll know when a pony will use it. I guess he meant it for you. So Denny dusted it off and improvised some of the missing parts, we also took the liberty of insulating it so that way you won't freeze to death"

Denny opened the door to the forge carrying a stable jumpsuit, with two metal pauldrons a thin layer of kevlar on the body, and four iron horseshoes, on his back. I took off my coat then slipped on the armor. It was comforting, to be back in a jumpsuit.

I took the box of ammo then put the ammo that I didn't use in my saddle bag. A light on my Pip-Buck had a highlight with the ammo count of the BloodRose, it had a small abbreviation next to it's condition, GK/CC.

"I can't thank you enough SteelHeart, but why go to all of this trouble for me?" I said

"Because if a hydra is endagering this place, then what better insurance than a stable dweller with two old guns and some armor."

I chuckled at the joke. Then the grim realization dawned on me, I could die, but what better way to die than to save a town. 

So I holstered my weapons then 13 and I followed SteelHeart out of the town. We followed him down the eastern slope, once we reached it's landing into flat ground. In the side of the slope, was the mouth to an enormous cave. 

"So this is it?" I asked.

"Yes. And a word of advice, try not to get killed."

SteelHeart walked off, back up the slope. 13 and I entered the cave, darkness enshrouded us as we went deeper into the cavern. I turned on my Pip-Buck for light. We where in a huge cavern, large enough to support a hydra. A large red blip was on the screen of my Pip-Buck. A large crashing sound was behind us in the large cathedral like cavern. In the distance I saw a light and a Stable Door.  I turned to see however, a large hydra, almost fully grown, running towards us. I quickly said 

"13, run after me to the Stable door." 

He gave a nod then I started off running for the door, the deep thump of a running hydra trailing us. Exerting all of my strength I ran to the stable door control panel. I started to press random buttons and levers then an alarm went off and the stable door began to open. I motioned with my hoof for 13 to hurry to the door. The door opened and I hurried in and 13 followed me. The door, as I learned, had a timer and shut just as the hydra was upon us. 

"Er, MaelStorm?"

"Yes 13?"

"Turn around."

I turned from the door. My jaw dropped and I was shocked. On a huge wall where several rows of chambers. 

"What are they?" 13 asked.

"I have no idea."

I stepped forward in awe, only to hear my hooves cracking on the skeleton of a pony. I stepped back. I noticed two knives embedded in the ponies ribcage, I carefully removed them and put them in my bag. I know that there's something bad about taking things from the dead, but as I learned from the wasteland, one pony's death can be another's life. But back to the point of what these things where.

The glow of a terminal pierced my vision. Perhaps you have answers. I sat down on a chair near it and began to hack the terminal. Thanks to the book Calypso gave me, I had learned that all pre-war terminals where set with a password and could be hacked, as well as there where dud sweepers hidden in the code. It displayed  4 letter words such as love, past, door, safe, and home. I typed in door, 1/4 words correct, 3 attempts left then home 2/4 correct 2 attempts left. Reveal to me you're secrets terminal. Love, exact match. Hmm, well I guess why love is the password. 



-ClockWork's entry #1-

They had to evacuate the Fluttershy Memorial Hospital of all non terminal patients because of the chance of mega spell attack, but they where placed in sleep containers, the non terminal fillies and colts where placed here, just in case the mega spells do fly. SapphireCream, if you're reading this, know that I love you. It'll be up to you to help lead all of the fowls here.   


-ClockWork's entry #2-


The Ministry of Peace send me down to check the Stable door as well as the system. They also told me to keep a log to help with the fact that I'll probably never see my daughter again. FlutterShy, being the only one who understands my loss, let me speak with Sapphire one last time to say goodbye, Luna bless her heart.


-ClockWork's entry #3-


Damn door's sealed behind me. Check the system one last time they said, it may have some problems they said. Well, the system is down, whoever opens the door from the outside will be doomed to the same fate. If you're reading this, I'm sorry, if it's you Sapphire, I'm, I'm sorry that I never got to see you grow up.

-ClockWork's entry #4-


Well, now use starving to death. With heavy hoofs I type this, I have retrieved two knives from the armor, with these I choose to end my life, why, well why not. 


I clicked off the log section then I saw a section labeled Stable 35 Purpose. I clicked onto it.


Stable 35 purpose is to preserve Fillies and Colts and once they are released will be supplied with a large amount of weapons, manuals, spell survival suits, and medical supplies, the purpose of this is to establish, if all of pony kind is destroyed, to restore and repopulate society armed with an abundance of supplies. The chambers are to be opened by either by timer that will start when the doors are sealed, or manually by a technician, the door will also open at the time.

Open containers Yes or No


I began to think, to release them would be to unleash more deaths, this place was a hellhole and this was just what I had seen. I clicked no, I had my own things to do here. I logged off the terminal.


"Ok, as I just learned, where sealed in here."


13's eyes widened then he fainted. Well, looks like I'm in this myself. I began to look around the vault. I saw a door marked armory. I opened the stable door was greeted with a large array of weapons, ammo, and armor. 

I spied a row of 12. gauge rounds then I put two boxes in my satcheI. I walked out of the armory then I noticed a small, almost destroyed grate. I took it off then I looked into it to see an air vent large enough for me to crawl into. I turned on my Pip-Bucks light then I began to go into the vent. It was fairly long, a few incline here and there, a few turns and then, another grate, I pushed off the cover.

I was in a small ledge, facing the back of the hydra. I smiled, then I got out both of the knives. I was crazy for doing this, but what the hay, you had to be crazy to survive out here. I gripped them with my magic and the Blood Rose tightly between my teeth. I started a running jump, then I propelled myself off the cliff. 

The knives met their mark, the hydra screams indicated that. I took one out then plunged it into the hydra's back, then the other, and so on, I kept on doing this until I reached the base of it's four necks, then, with the hydra flailing to get me off of it's back, I turned the Blood Rose in my mouth where I could shoot it. I put the Blood Rose at the base of the first neck to the right. I pulled the trigger, then like a phoenix covered in razor's, I saw as the hydra's head and neck toppled from the base. I heard the click of the next section coming to the barrel's.

I pointed the gun at another head, then suddenly the hydra thrashed the knives out of it's back, thus throwing me off it. Then, something amazing happened, the shoes of the couriers armor sprouted spikes. I quickly stuck them into the hydra's back and began to climb again, now I could carry the BloodRose with my magic since I lost the knives. I restarted the process. Soon I was back at the neck's base, another dual barrels, another falling hydra head, then the barrel clicked again, I fired at the next head, then finally, one final head, writhing and roaring in agony.

I fired the last shot. A headless hydra twitched on it's feet for a while, then it began to topple. Since the body was becoming horizontal, I began to slide down it's back and tail on my back hooves. It began to curl up and I went with it, soon I was on the ground of the cavern. I stood on my back hooves, then I popped out the empty the shells in the Blood Rose then I reloaded the normal 12. gauge. I put the blood rose on a clip in the armor then I walked over to the stable door control panel and I opened it up. 

"13, get up!"

I heard several thumps, what I took as 13 trying to get up."

"Wheart?" Well, looks like 13 has a bit of slurred speech.

"I've killed the hydra, now lets go."  

Footnote: New Perk Gained: Bloody Mess: You do 5% more damage with all weapons, and it will be a little more bloodier.


Small Guns increased to 24| 
> The Transmission
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Loading transmission number 1-2-4, operation frequency: 5 mile radius."


I sat on a chair outside SteelHearts. My Pip-Buck had been on the fritz ever since we had gotten back from killing the hydra. The map would not function, and the radio was stuck on a channel full of static. I had been trying to find a station to tune it to. Suddenly out of the static came a signal.

"Hello ponies of the frozen wasteland, it's me Hertz, you friendly neighborhood disc jokey, whats a disk, hell if I know, but I'm gonna keep talking anyway. To all of ponies need a bit of hope in the snow, looks like a pony named 'Vanguard' has taken out a group of zebra's recently, I'd have given him an interview, but I did speak with a local bar owner and he said this little pony has been, and get this, killing a hydra. So if you see this kid give him a big thanks for saving your ass out there

Then another signal came.

"To anypony who gets this transmission, if you see a pony with the number 13 on his flank, I am offering a bounty of technology, medical supplies, and weapons, dead or alive, once he has been captured I will come into you're town in a day or so and receive him."

The voice sounded just like 13's. He had to hear this. I opened the door to the bar and looked around for 13. I saw that Calypso had gotten back.

"Hey MaelStorm." 

Well that seems familiar.

"Hey Calypso, have you seen 13?"

"Hey MaelStorm."

13 leaned out from behind Calypso.

"13 listen to this."

I played him the repeating transmission.

He was about to speak but a brick nocked him unconscious. Calypso quickly took the BloodRose out of the holster I had on my side just as a mob was forming around 13. She held it on her hooves and screamed.

"If any of you so much as touch him I will blow you're bucking brains out!!"

Well, unknown to me, Calypso was beginning to have fits of rage when stressed, and by fit I mean anypony who was in them was in for a clusterbuck, this was one of them. I drew the 95. Auto from my other. Well maybe it would have been a smarter idea to play the signal to 13 in private. SteelHeart came out of the door to the forge with a shotgun in his hooves.

"Get in the back room, now."

I nodded then I holstered my gun and dragged 13 into the forge room. Calypso and SteelHeart followed and he bolted the door shut. A wave of heat hit me from the forge and I saw Denny working at a reloading bench. SteelHeart opened a small hatch.

"This will lead to a tunnel I use when the bar gets rushed."

"You get robbed often?" I asked.

"No, as the only bar in town, when we get to many ponies I leave, that or I set off some charges under the floorboards."

"Ok, that's our sign to leave." I went down into the hatch then Calypso slid 13 down where I could get him and she came down afterwards.

"Ok, so whats the plan Mael?" Calypso asked.

"We find the transmission, and stop whoever is sending it out. Hopefully they will stop trying to kill 13."

"Sounds like a plan."

I tried to turn on the light in my Pip-Buck, but it still wouldn't work. Damn it, SteelHeart, would it have killed you to put up some torches? Suddenly I felt a burst of magical energy come through my. Suddenly a floating magical light came from the tip of my horn. 

"Well, that is useful."

"Yah, magic can be quite useful at times."

The tunnel went on for my guess of about a mile. Without the maps on my Pip-Buck, we where blind in a snow storm. Then I was struck by a light of idea. My idea was that maybe the signal was interfering it's function, so, what if I used the only accessible part, the radio to see if I could trace back the signals position. Not only would I stop the signal but it would also restore function to my Pip-Buck, thus I could use the maps.

"Ok Calypso I have an idea, I'll trace the signal to it's origin, then we'll stop it."

She gave a solemn nod. Well, no use dragging 13 though snow, so I went over to him, and slapped him with my right hoof. He jolted awake just after I let it up.

"Where the hell are we?" He asked.

"Where in a tunnel SteelHeart let us use,  anymore questions?"

"Any plan to stop the signal."

"He's going to use his Pip-Buck to track the signal to it's origin."

"How are we going to get back?"

"We'll be able to use my maps to get back."

"Okay. Lets get the bucker."

"Also 13, what did you want to tell us?"

"That I had no idea what the hell it was and that we should check it out."

"Well lets get going." 

I gave a solemn nod then, I saw a ladder and a grate above it. I went first, Calypso second, and 13 last. When we where all out, I closed the grate and we set off, the signal was only a half mile to the north. I gestured with my hoof towards the direction, Calypso with the BloodRose, 13 with his crossbow, and me with the 95 auto. We almost there, all that was left was a snowy hill. 
I began to climb, 13 and Calypso followed suit. At the foot of the hill I saw a small camp, a tent, a camp fire that was amazingly still lit, and sitting at that fire was a pony who looked exactly like 13, except instead of a 13 on his flank was a 16. He looked up at us, and he spoke into a headset.

"Quantum, he is here, start the transporter, also, he seems to have some friends, I take it you'll want some dissection subjects?"

Suddenly a blue beam formed around all 3 of us, I tried to move but I was paralyzed in the beam. Within seconds I was over welled by unconsciousness. 






 


> The Eye
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Science and progress must always have sacrifice, but this, this is madness!" 






I woke up on a cold metal table in serious pain. I looked down where it was coming from. I was stripped down and it felt like I had been butchered, but the red scar running down my abdomen was a contrary to me thinking I was still cut open. On a table next to me was a set of surgical tools in a bowl of liquid. I turned my head to look at my Pip-Buck.

Well glad you're still with me. After I had my bearings I tried to get up, only to find that I my front and hind legs had been strapped down. Okay, how do I do this? The straps were made of leather, that much I could tell. I tried to force my way out, but to no avail.

Then it hit me. I closed my eyes and began to take deep breaths. I attuned the magical energies in my to one thing, teleportation, it was something magically gifted unicorns could do, to those that tried and failed, well, a bullet to the brain would have been a better death. The reason I had known this was that a unicorn in my class tried it one day. As I said, after what happened to him, a bullet to the brain would have been mercy.

Well it was either I became a pile of my own organs, or I waited to be operated on again. On the last of my deep breaths I focused the energies withing me, I concentrated on my destination. I felt for a split second the immense pain of being disassembled and reassembled and a blinding light. I landed on the floor next to the table. I vomited, a lot.

Every nerve, every twitch of a muscle was pain. Mental note: never teleport again! I looked up to see a camera staring at me. I looked for a way out before whatever was watching me came here. I saw a vent which I figured was large enough to fit in.

I crawled up to it with pain flaring through me. I used what little energy I had left to rip off the grate and climb into it. Once I had manged to get In I crawled in deeper, then I let the relieving embrace of unconsciousness wash over me. I woke up still in the vent, which was a good sign. My strength had been renewed to a point.

I was no longer in pain and I didn't feel like I was going to vomit anymore. I had two options, I could keep going in the vent, or come out. I went with the plan to keep going. Eventually I fell, a wave of shock went through me as I hit the ground.

I then looked up to see a earth pony in a brown jumpsuit and a burlap hood and goggles look down on me. He gave a monstrous growl then he ran at me with a pipe wrench. I flailed for a weapon then my magical grasp came across a lead pipe. Just before he was about to brain me with I hit him in the temple. Blood from the impact zone came spraying on me.

I took a few seconds, lying on the floor, breathing and covered in blood. OK, to recap the last few events, I was abducted, dissection and somehow revived, I teleported and I bludgeoned a pony, whose blood I was now covered in. OK, I had to find Calypso and 13, also some answers could help, allot. After I regained my sense and found something to wipe the blood off I began to follow a row of pipes in a small corridor. Then the room seemed to morph from a rusted brown to a chrome white that hurt my eyes.

I saw a window at a turn in the corridor and out of that window I saw that I was orbiting Equestria. For some reason I smiled, like the feeling that this place and I would have a history and for some reason I didn't seem freaked out. OK, back to finding Calypso, 13 and my gear. Then something popped into my memory. Mundas said that if I ever need an answer to ask him, now all I had to do was find that revolver.

My gear had to be around here somewhere. I kept on follower the corner and occasionally having to pick up my jaw from the fact that I was in space. Then I came to a security booth. In it was a large circular container and another one of the earth ponies in burlap hoods. He seemed to have his back turned to the door in a chair.

I slowly approached the door, it automatically and silently. I slammed the the lead pipe on his head. The satisfying crack of a skull caving in was enough for me to tell he was dead. I turned the chair around and pulled his body out. Maybe to avoid me having to cave in several skulls, maybe it would be a good idea to wear one of the jumpsuits and hoods.

So I took the clothes off of the body. I got the jumpsuit and the hood, when I tried to get the goggles I was horrified. Wiring was coming off the goggles into the wearers brain. The urge for me to vomit came back in strength. I pushed it down and I forced myself to put on the jumpsuit and bloody hood, it was most likely if they saw me without the whatever the hell these things where, they would attack, so if I stayed out of groups I think I could pull it off.

Now to dispose of the body. I encased a hoof of the pony with my magic then I dragged it through the halls trying to find a vent to stash it in. Eventually I found a vent the size of one in th operating room so I shoved the body in there then I put the grate back on and I walked back to the booth. I then searched the container, to my surprise all of my stuff was in it, including my satchel. I found the distinctive red .357 revolver, I searched the desk behind me for some ammo and I found a box of .357 ammo. I loaded it and then I aimed it at the glass in the booth. The bullet lodged in it. I waited for Mundas to appear, suddenly a voice came from my Pip-Buck. 

"Yes?" 

"Mundas, is that you?"

"Who else could go into you Pip-Buck?"

"Okay, where in the hell am I?"

"Hold on, let me search the system." I waited a few seconds.

"You're with THEM." 

"Who is THEM?"

"We are."

Another voice came from my Pip-Buck. This is getting even more confusing by the minute.

"I can't believe he escaped Quantum."

"Silence Neuron. I am not blind. Listen to me. You are to return to you're operating table."

I put the Pip-Buck up to my face.

"Like hell I will!"

"He refused. What should I do now Electron?"

"Let me try. Hear this, if you will not go back wiling, you will be taken back by force."

"'I'm in a heavily reinforced security booth. Just try and come at me."

"You seem to be intelligent, we weren't prepared for this. If you'll excuse us."

"Mundas, who where they?"

"Remember how I said I was dying and they fixed me. Well those are the ponies who made me the ghost in the machine."

"Okay, I've prepared a large list of questions in the short time I've been here. What are the ponies in the hoods, who just spoke to me, how can you speak to me like this, why am I in space, and how does all of this tie into 13."

"As far as you're first and last question, I can't help. For your others: They are ponies known as the Celestial Equilibrium, an organization founded in the name of balancing magic and science. The reason why you're in space is because the station couldn't have been built anywhere else. This is a project so secret, not even Luna knew about it. I can also hack into any digital device anywhere."

"Who's Luna?" I asked.

"It's a long story, maybe someday I'll tell you."

I began to formulate a plan. I probably couldn't use this disguise. Then I had the idea of rescuing 13 and Calypso.

"OK, Mundas, could you look for 13 and Calypso."

"On it." I waited for a a few moments then the mono toned voice of Mundas."

"Ok, Calypso appears to be in room 125 on the surgical wing, no pun intended, and 13, well I can't seem to find his location. But I did find something, and get this, a 1 terabyte file on something labeled: Plan 13. It's locked though, and the firewall is damn good if I can't hack it."

"Okay, store the file, we'll go get Calypso and then we'll try and find 13."

I slipped out of the jumpsuit and hood and I put on my armor. At the bottom of the chest after I was done rummaging all of my gear, I found a helmet. It had a black visor that was on level where eyes would be. It in the shape of a unicorns skull, around the mouth was contorted into a toothy and crooked grin, almost like it was made to instill fear into ones enemies. I put it on my head to see if it would fit. It slid on perfectly, almost like it was made for me.

Just as I took my hooves off of it I had a searing pain going into my skull. I tried to take the helmet off but it wouldn't budge. Next it felt like my right eye was being ripped out and something else replacing it. The pain went on for a while. At one point I almost blacked out. Once it was over, I felt like I had some strength added to me. I heard a beeping sound and I saw my stats from my Pip-Buck displayed on the helmet.

"Mundas, what the hell is on my head?"

"I don't know, I've cross referenced the helmets design with blueprints I have access to, and I have nothing on it. It's either one of two things. Something made here, or something BloodStone made."

"Again, that name, who is he?"

"I can't tell you. I was sworn to secrecy about The Eye. He said himself it would be something for you to learn."

"As I can guess, he's already dead, how could he have known about me?"

"The Eye, Maelstorm, it's something you'll learn of in time. Until then, I'm sorry."

"Well, we'll speak of this when we can."

"Ok."

I began walking to the door. As soon as I set hoof out of the frame, I was struck by a migraine. A large blot of pulsating light began to grow in my eyes. It swiftly encompassed my vision and I blacked out. 


"Hello Maelstorm."

I looked up, back in the black walled room, and sitting on a chair cross legged was the pony who looked exactly like me except for his right eye having a vertical pupil and the iris was mixture of a deep green and a blood red.

"Hello Bloodstone. I take it this is a recording?"

"Oh not at all. The helmet you wear is the first piece of my armor, the others you'll find in time. You see, when the war came, I knew I would have to keep a vigil for the next one who was compatible with The Eye. Several tried on that helmet. They either died from the pain of having the eye placed in, or their brain literally exploded. So my intelligence was preserved in this helmet until I found somepony who could withstand it. How can I store an eye in this helmet you ask. Well, I have a replication device in it, once it is put on, it'll rip out you're right eye and replace it with The Eye, like mine, but sometimes the iris is different."

"So wait. That was the pain I felt, my eye being ripped out?"

He smiled and then he nodded. Afterwards I snapped back into consciousness. I was still in the doors threshold. 

"Mundas, I need a mirror."

The screen of my Pip-Buck became reflective. My right eye had a vertical pupil and the iris was a black and silver. 
> Side Effects
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"You will either become a mindless beast or a pacifistic paragon."


I sat in the chair reviewing my options. I had my guns loaded and I was preparing to tear this place apart and plunge everything on it into the cold void of space to find my friends. I asked Mundas for a map.

"Listen kid, your in the living equivalent of hell. But I think you and I can scratch each others backs, well, if a potato had a back."

Came the voice of a stallion instead of the melodic monotone of Mundas.

"Who are you?" I asked the voice.

"The names Spud, which is ironic since I'm in a potato."

Well, I wonder if a side effect of The Eye is going insane.

"Did you just say you are in a potato?" I asked. Hopefully, since these voices where in my helmet, no one would hear me and figure for me a crazy bucker. 

"Yes, and yes I am. Damn Equilibrium, putting my in a root."

"Listen, we can dive into insanity and potatoes once you and I have done the deal I have in mind. I'll send a harbinger to escort you to the inventions wing."

"What is a-" As to answer my question, a large earth pony lumbering in a metal suit with smoke bellowing out of a canister hanging from its helmet with a single eye on its massive helmet came out with two miniguns on its saddle bags. Meanwhile in my mind a small hold tone sounded and a voice in my mind said "Well sorry Maelstorm, looks like your sanity is out to bucking lunch!"

"Behold the H-3.14 harbinger, this ones name is Pi. Play nice now, if you don't, he'll smash your skull in with his hooves." I creature looked at me through the security booth and gave a loud roar. 

"Hello?" I said as I raised a hoof in greeting. Pi motioned with a hoof to follow him. Since I didn't feel like angering a pony thrice my size with dual miniguns and full metal armor, I followed him. I could feel the vibrations from his hooves as I walked ahead of him.I felt myself almost wishing for some of the drones to attack this thing just to see what it could do. Well later I got my wish. a group of drones, three of them, encountered us in one of the chrome hallways. The monster gave a great roar and with that revved up his miniguns. My ears where filled with the scream of the guns and the screams of the drones a Pi crushed. I watched in awe as a massive creature threw off three drones and then smashed their bodies with his massive steel horse shoes. Soon they all lied dead in a pile and the chrome hallway was covered in blood. We continued on until we reached a doorway next to a window that overlooked the ruins of Equestria from its orbit. Again I was ensnared by both the beauty of it and the ruin it held. The sound of a mechanical door opening snapped me out of my trance and I followed Pi thought the door. I was in a room with red carpet along steel walls. Placed through out the room where several glass cases with devices placed in them. At the end of the room was a large window that overlooked space, and part of this window was covered by a large computer with five screens, and on the dashboard of it was a glowing potato hooked up to the machine.

"Well hello kid, Spud, at your service." The voice said in his helmet.

"So wait, your an actual potato?" I asked.

"Well I was a pony, up until Quantum put me in a potato for trying to tell the world of the Celestial Equilibrium. Do you know what it feels like to be a potato?" 

"It huts?" I responded.

"Yes, yes it does, but I'm also blind, well until Pi took pity on my and hooked me into the machine. Now I have access to all of the cameras and speakers of this station. Hell, all of this started from a pony discovering that a potato had energy!"

Like I said, things are getting stranger and more insane by the minute.

"Its funny since for years ponies studied magic and science. When the war began, a pony discovered the power of a potato. It then spread to discovering many things. Pi, for example, is a harbinger, a pony who has been through a large amount of surgeries and is a strong soldier that was built to be an idiot and a tool of war. For some reason he's peaceful until provoked."

"I saw that when he smashed several drones into dust."

"And I am now the potato that started this entire thing. Even your friend Mundas is a product of this realm, and your friend 13, he's part of Fallback."

"What do you mean by Fallback?" I asked.

"Project Fallback, the first and final solution to winning a war. It involves capturing several ponies, breaking down their biological material, and then reassembling it into a clone of a single pony. He was known as 1. I think that the total number is up to 100117. Fallback was what we where working on when hell was let loose. 13 escaped, and in the process of his escape, had his memory wiped. Now the Equilibrium want to use Fallback to reclaim the remnants of Equestria. With them at the helm, all of creativity will be strangled out of the population and they wont stop till all of Equestria is a mindless beast under their control. Now, I want to stop the Equilibrium, and you want to find your friends. I can help you and them off of this station, if you do a little job for me.":

"Whats the job?" I asked.

"You take a little space walk and disable the external security connections as to blind the Equilibrium for me, and in return, I'll give you the keys to the Equilibrium's command center. Sound like a deal?"

"What do you mean by space walk?" I soon felt that I was going to regret that question.

"I mean that, with the aid of a sealed space suit, go out into space." I gave a mental sigh at the notion of going out into space. Well at least it was a road to getting back.

"Okay, I'll do it." Well I guess I'm now beginning to question my own sanity.

"Great, Pi will escort you to one of the air locks. There you'll find a space suit that should fit you. If it doesn't, then you'll be screwed." 

"What?" I asked before the door closed in my face and Pi guided me to the air lock. Inside was a space suit sitting on a booth. I took off my helmet, which had caused my mane to sweat in the heat of it, and my current armor. I then took off the 45. auto and put it aside to clip onto the suit. I looked into the reflection of the suits visor and came across my Eye. I had grown use to it in the small time I had had it and I was enthralled by the depth it seemed to radiate over me. I snapped out of the trance the Eye induced and I continued to put the suit on and I put on the two air tanks then hooked those to the helmet of the suit. It felt tight and I was afraid that it would rip and thus kill me in the void of space. I picked up the 45. auto and clipped it to the belt of the suit and I swallowed my fear and I looked at the array of buttons on a panel next to the door. I pressed the largest and the door behind me closed. The one in front of me revealed a flight of stairs lit by a flashing red light at the top of it. I opened the door at the top of the stairs revealing a cat walk in space that overlooked Equestria. I felt enthralled at the wretched beauty of the landscape. It was interesting to see the planet in space. I would have stayed longer if the fact that I was running on limited oxygen didn't hit me next.

"Hey Spud, how do I know what the external security connections look like?" I asked, hoping that he wound't see it as sheepish.

"Two large cabled wires hooked with a large green coupling, how your going to get them apart, I have no idea." 

"Wait, how am I talking to you when I'm not wearing my helmet?" I asked, confused on the mater.

"The helmet of the space suit has a transmitter, that's why I can speak to and you to talk to me, now get your vandalism on and we pretend no one saw nothing." I was beginning to think of a notion by which I drive myself insane so that way the wasteland would make more sense. I put this notion away and surveyed the flat section of the station where I had a view of the lower sections and several pillars leading up to a large dome like room connected to a large rectangle made out of steel. I walked up to one of the pillars and found the large cable wire Spud was talking about. I levitated the 45. auto and aimed it at the coupling.
Sadly I had to learn the transition of force the hard way. I pulled the trigger and was shot back, almost off of the station. After I recovered from the shock and cursing the gravity of space and my poor decision to shoot the coupling off, I called Spud.

"The couplings out, now, for your part of the deal." I said as I clipped the 45. auto to my belt. 

"Okay, I'm initiating one of the teleporters in the A wing to teleport you from there to the command center." At the single word of teleportation I froze.

"No, whatever you do, do not, I repeat NOT teleport me." I screamed. But just as Spud was about to speak I felt the familiar agony of teleportation. 

I opened my eyes in the same excruciating pain I had the first time. I lay there, sprawling on a cold metal floor and my last sight where three ponies standing over, my vision blurred and I went into unconsciousness.


" Well Quantum, what are we going to do with them?" The voice of a stallion greeted me back into unconscious.

"We can always use more test subjects." Came a reply to the first voice. I slowly opened my eyes and saw three ponies standing a group with their backs to the table I was strapped to. They all wore white lab coats and for some reason, light seemed to flicker off of their heads. I turned my head as far as I could and I saw Calypso asleep on a table beside me. Her small frame was bruised and had several cuts along her abdomen. 

They turned towards me to see that I was awake. 
"Ah, your awake. Good, I'll have more fun slicing you up while your awake." One of them said. I panicked to think of something quick. Teleporting was not an option. I was about to think of more options until the lead pony added another word. "Well since it'll be the last sight you see." He said, walking up to my table. 
He wheeled it over to a glass window over looking a massive room filled with tubes. "Behold, Fallback." He said with pride. I looked down and saw 13 in one of them. I was filled with rage at this. "This will be an ample force for us to take back Equestria." He added. He turned the table to me. I looked him in his cold, soulless eyes. "What are you?" I asked. " I am the brain of a pony placed in a machine that resembled my old body, as have my associates." He replied.

I kept my eyes on his. I felt the same spark of rage welling up inside me. Soon I saw somewhat of a spark of fear in his eyes. Soon I felt so angry that this bastard had tried to kill me and my friends that it felt like welled out of me. I also felt like my Eye was burning. I looked back into the ponies eyes. They where alight with fear. "What in Celestia's name are you?" He whispered, still paralyzed in fear. 

"An angry mother bucker." I whispered back and let more of my rage flood out. Along with this came an intensification on the heat of my eye. "Bloodstone." He whispered back in awe. I felt, for some reason, powerful, like I could break through these bonds. I tried it, and I heard them begin to snap. "You better start running." I said to him.

I heard the other two scientists beginning to run. The first just stood there, still paralyzed. At this point I could feel the burning power of my Eye come to what felt like a fire raging in my eye. I shrugged off the pain with my new found strength. I stared back at him. 

I gave a devilish smile, and snapped through the restraints. The first I did was slam down on his body with my hooves. I found that it was made out of hard plastic. When I was sure he could no longer do me harm, I used my new strength to levitate him onto the table. I then held him in place with my magic and went over to a small table with surgical tools on it. 

I took up a scalpel. I turned to him, the same insane grin on my face. By this point his face was a contorted mask of horror, like he knew what I was going to do. I levitated the scalpel up to his right eye, and I stabbed it into it. Shards of glass and electronics went everywhere. 

He screamed in pain. "That's right, bucker, scream!" I yelled to him with a little more than eerie satisfaction in my voice. Next, after I had it pried out the scalpel, I levitated it to the other eye. "Do you know why I do this?" I asked, the scalpel a inch from his eye. He shook his head nervously. "I do this because I want to see you suffer." I whispered to him, and stabbed it into his eye. 

He screamed again, and I met that scream with a smile. Next I put down the scalpel, and I took what looked like a tool designed to crack a rib cage. It had a hammer on one end and a claw like machine on the other. I slammed the hammer down on his chest to hear the plastic cracking. I hit it again just to clear everything away. 

Than I put the claw in the circuits and wires that where placed in there. Once I had a good bit of it in the claw, I yanked it out. The scientists screaming stopped, I had killed him. I had no idea why but next I gave a horrible, spine chilling cackle. I felt devoid of all pity and mercy, something I had never felt before. 

I turned to Calypso. She was awake, and she had her eyes full of fear like the scientist. "Maelstorm? Is that you?" She asked timidly. I what I felt next was regret. I looked down at my hooves. They where bloodied and dirtied, and then I searched my mind.

I felt like I had become a monster then.I fell to my knees, has the wasteland changed me this much in the short amount of time I had lived in it? Had the Eye, the wastes disturbed some dark side within me? I had, for a period of time, been a merciless, pitiless monster. I was overloaded with emotions. I gave a sad chuckle, and I fell to the ground, blacked out. 

This time, surprisingly, Bloodstone did not come to me. Well I couldn't blame him for being ashamed of me. Here I was, most likely the last of a family of ponies who could use an Eye, and I had become a complete psychopath almost a few hours after using it. When I woke up, I was going to have to answer alot of questions, most of which I would have no answers for.




   
> First Goodbyes
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"We will meet again, under the Iron Sky."


I woke up on the cold metal floor. I slowly got up, and looked over at Calypso. She was gone, the straps broke open, and a note written on paper on the table. I weakly got up and went to it. Maelstorm, I saw what you did. We need to talk. P.S., 13 found me and let me out, we are trying to find a way back to Equestria.
I sighed. I had most likely just screwed up our friendship with my savagery . "Maelstorm, do you hear me?" Mundas asked, just now coming on the radio in my Pip-buck. 
"Yes, I do." I replied, my voice hoarse. 
"Okay, how goes the search?" He replied. 
"Well, I spoke with a pony placed in a potato, saw a creature called a Harbinger, and I have most recently discovered my capacity for hatred and violence." I replied weakly, recalling the recent event of me becoming pitiless. 
"Yikes." He replied.
"Yah, if it wouldn't be to much, I need some time alone." I said. 
"Sure, just call when you need me." He replied, and then the radio went to static.
I wandered around the room, looking for my gear. I walked out of the control room and down a nearby hallway, thinking where Calypso and my gear was. "Well, I see you've encountered some of the Eyes side effects." Bloodstone's voice said with an echo. "Yes, you could have warned me that it could devoid me of all pity and sympathy!" I said, enraged. "Yes, I did forget to mention that." He said, a bit of shame in his voice. "Forget!? You forget leaving food in the oven! You forget a keycard to get into a Stable security room! YOU DO NOT FORGET A BIOMECHANICAL DEVICE THAT CAN MAKE SOMEONE A EMOTIONLESS MONSTER!!" I screamed in fury, hoping that Bloodstone would leave and take the Eye with him. Bloodstone replied with a chuckle. "That is the beauty of it. It will make you a savage or a paragon." I sighed and sat in the hallway.
I looked down at my Pip-Buck, my Eye now a simmering blue. "Bloodstone. Kill me now." I said, tears beginning to well up. "The one pony who I've had a lifelong friendship with, now hates me. If you have any sympathy at all, you will kill me." I added. 
Through the tears of my eyes I began to see the Eye shift to a low purple. "I can't kill you, and even if I could, I would be destroying the last chance of the Eye ever coming back. Not to mention all of the other things that require the Eye to work. I'm sorry for what the Eye has brought you, but neither you nor I can take it back." He replied. "Well, what if I have someone cut it out. Stab me in this accursed part of me?" I asked, hate of the Eye beginning to well up. "You cant, as it is bound to you, its fully installed itself in your head. If you do, you will die anyway." Bloodstone replied. "Good, then this life wont be bothering me anymore!" I screamed back. I slid down onto the floor from the wall, weeping. I put my hooves up to my eyes, a massive flow of emotions welling up inside me.
I hear metal clinking on metal, but I didn't look up. If something of this place would kill me, let it. I took my hooves off my face after I stopped crying and looked up. A metallic pony in a lab coat was looked down at me. "If you have a gun, shoot me now." I said. The pony shook its head from side to side. "Why not? My entire friendship with a pony I've known has been ruined. Just because of this." I said, pointing at my Eye. He quickly motioned for me to follow him. I shrugged and got up to follow him. He walked down a hallway, signs labelled 'The Oracle' pointing down it. We soon came to a steel door. The pony knocked a series of hoof beets on it and the door slid open. 
I stepped into a dark room, and the door slid shut behind me, the pony beside me. Blue lights began to flicker on, in the room. What I saw next made my jaw drop and make me ask what the hell I was seeing. Before me stood a massive computer, with electricity sparking from massive coils on side of it, a large swath of keys before it on a keyboard that went up to my chest, and a label on it stating it as 'The Oracle'. The pony went up to the keyboard and typed in several letters. A small scroll of paper came out of a printer next to the keyboard. I went up and held it in my hooves. Hello, sorry I havent spoken, it said. I turned towards the pony. He nodded toward the scroll. "So, why cant you speak?" I asked. The pony typed in several other words. The speaker on my suit is broken. "Ah, so your wearing a suit Mr ?" I asked, leaning on the keyboard. Yet another series of words. Yes, all scientist of the Equilibruim wear them, its kinda required for us to work here, as for my name, its Oroboros  "As Interesting as that is, lets get to the giant super computer standing infront of me. What the hell is it?" I asked, my curiosity peaked. This is The Oracle, the central computer core and mainframe housing of this station. It also uses magic rivaling that of several Alicorns to activate its namesake. "And that it?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. Why are you being so bloody thick? It tells the future. Bad part is, the theory of using it to see the future would not only cause the entire station to collapse on itself like a sun, but it would bring the entire universe on with it. "Well, in the case it does, at least then I wouldn't have to live anymore." I said, looking down. Sorry, but I can't, I like my life. I grabbed Oroboros's lab coat between my hooves and pulled him up to my face. "Listen: my entire life has been destroyed in the past few days, and a major part of it just shattered." I whispered to him, my voice full of bitterness. Oroboros gave me a fearful nod. I let him go and turned to the keyboard. 
He began to type in several codes. Almost as soon as he took his hooves off the keyboard, the massive coils began to flare, electricity jumping and turning a whole myriad of colors. The lights flickered on and off, the bolts of electricity growing more and more rapid. Finally the glass bulbs on top of the coils shattered, electricity flying everywhere out of the massive bulbs I ducked so that the glass wouldn't hit me. It stopped all at once. The lights shut off "Is the universe dead?" I asked. The lights came back on slowly. I looked up, the chaos settling. A small piece of ticker tape came out of the printer. 
The two both shall meet again, under the sky of iron. THIS WAS IT!!! THE ENTIRETY OF WHAT JUST HAPPENED!!! JUST FOR A PIECE OF TICKER TAPE!!! "This is it? All of that, just for a little piece of paper?!" I asked. "Back up generators activating, Oracle repair process beginning." A computerized voice said over the intercom. I looked around and sighed. 
A brief flicker came on across a small screen on a shelf next to the keyboard. The flicker became the display of a security camera. "13, we need to find a way out of here." Came the voice of Calypso. "I know, but what about Maelstorm?" He asked. "13, Maelstorm's become too dangerous, we have to let him find his own way out." Calypso replied. The screen finally died, along with some more of my sanity. 
Oroboros typed in a few more words. Its not the size of the paper, but what it conveys. "Oh shut up, you just didn't have some more of your life die." I replied, downtrodden as I began to walk away, Oroboros timidly following me. After interrogating Oroboros about my gears location, he directed me to a closet in one of the hallways. I arrived at the door and tried to open it, but to no avail. I sighed, and began to concentrate my magical energy on the inner lock, turning its mechanism to open the door. It clicked, and I pulled back the door. Inside there was a crate with its top open. 
The Bloodrose was sitting on top of the pile, staring at me. I sighed, and focused my energy on it. I leveled with my head, and with a flash of every memory in my head, ending with the wretched stream of events that had occurred, pulled the trigger. 
A click came in response along with the suicidal urge fleeting from me. I sighed again and looked through the crate until I found my armor. I slipped into it, and after a series of rummaging through a crate, had each one of my guns, items, and ammo back where they where. 
I turned towards O. "Show me to the nearest teleport." I said. Without even meaning to do so, I raised the Auto to O's head. Odder then, I made no move to stop myself, like the feeling was something I was meant to do. O nodded timidly, and brought me down the chrome hallway.
We came to a door, after a series of intertwining hallways. Inside was a teleporter. I waived my gun over to what I suspected was the control panel. O obliged as I stepped into the middle of it, and raised my gun back to the direction of his head. "Send me back to where I came from." I said, hoping he knew what I meant. He nodded quickly and began to type in coordinates. When he stopped, lights began to flair up around me. 
Just as it began to get into full swing, I pulled the trigger magically, the bullet slamming in between O's eyes. I gave a grim smile. Killing him felt good. 
In a flash of light, I was in a torrent of snow, the lights of the town flickering. I had one thing on my mind: blood. I wanted the pleasure of what I got from killing O on everypony in that town. No thought, no reason, just blood. Part of me, granted an extremely small part of me, protested, saying I was better than mindless bloodlust. The rest of me, what my Eye had already gotten to, protested back. It put forward how Calypso and 13 had abandoned me, how I now had massive power in my hooves. With a grim smile, I began to walk off towards the town, one thing my mind: blood, precious blood.