When Twilight finds some artifacts from a dead civilization, she ends up in a world that she didn't think existed. Now with the help of a mysterious inhabitant, she searches for a way to get home and escape the hell that is the capital wasteland.
It was a bright and shiny day in the city of Canterlot; the illustrious and regal capital of Equestria. The streets of the city bustled with everyday ponies going to and from their homes and workplaces. If one were to stop and look upon the architecture of the city they would be envious. Great towers dominated the sky, the white walls that surrounded the city were looked upon with pride and valor. Shops of all kinds could be found everywhere throughout the majestic utopia, establishments of clothes, food and others unique in their own way could be seen if one were to explore all around. Celestia school for gifted unicorns stood proudly in the distance, dwarfed only in size by the Canterlot observatory with its large telescope. And today another many ponies stood in the streets bristling with anticipation as another fine establishment was only minutes away from opening. Among the excited crowd of ponies was the well know protege of Princess Celestia, prodigy in magic and current librarian of Ponyville ,Twilight Sparkle.
'It's here! I waited so long that I can't believe it's finally here!' Twilight grinned as she looked upon the Great natural museum of Equestrian history and mythology. Princess Celestia had sent a letter to her letting know about its immient grand opening a few weeks earlier, she knew full well how much Twilight loved studying history and mythologies surrounding pre-equestrian times. Twilight had then checked her calender for any other important dates and appointments before putting down the date of the grand opening. Twilight had with her a custom saddle bag designed by her friend Rarity and a few notebooks and writing utencils. She had also taken a camera, silently hoping she would be allowed to capture the moments.
She gazed all around her vicinity and then giggled. " Wow. Looks like I'm not the only one who decided to come to the occasion."
Everywhere she looked, ponies, zebras and other kinds of species who all looked like they came from the highest class of society were in attendance. Some of them try not to look excited while having no disregard for what others thought of them were happily smiling or cheering. As Twilight looked back towards the building she took into regard it's appearance. The museum was large, it's ceiling looked to be supported by great white marble columns with each having a different historical figure carved into it. The top of the building was in a upside down v-shape and on it were the words, 'our history is here and now time to seize it and go forth!' .
"Ohh this is so exciting! Can you believe it Spike? The grand opening is finally here!" Twilight eyes sparkled in delight. Standing right next her was Spike. He stood there yawning and looking uninterested despite his best attempts to show otherwise.
" I still can't believe you woke me at five in the morning just to get a good spot." He arched his back a bit to pop a bone back into place. "I barely got any sleep on the way here from Ponyville."
Twilight smiled and shook her head. "I did tell you sleepy head that we were going on trip to Canterlot and that you should get some rest before we left. But instead you decided to spend the day eating ice cream and spending time at Raritys home."
Spike blushed at the mention of his crushs name. "Yeah I guess your right."
Twilight nodded." Besides, you should be excited for the opening of the museum! It houses the greatest and most important artifacts and historical documents in Equestrian history!"
"Oh boy." Spike sighed as Twilight went into one of her historic fantasies. This tended to happen everytime somepony would ask her about anything magic and history related.
" Just think of it Spike! All those wonderful displays and exhibits dedicated to the most important ponies in history; like Starswirl the Bearded or Albert Stallstien! And thats just the tip of the horn, they will have artifacts from our ancestors and the remains of ancient creatures and tours, lectures and documents of mass importance-"
Spike fought to keep himself from sleeping on the spot.
" Furthermore, there will also be an exhibit detailing the possible origins of ponykind. Plus the revealing of ancient technology that up unto now was always kept secret. There is a possible chance that all life on our planet was created by-"
"Aliens. Yes, Twilight I know all about it. You haven't stopped talking about it since we got here." Spike crossed his arms in annoyance.
Twilight sighed in frustration. She knew Spike couldn't realize the importance of such an event, but she wouldn't let his attitude get to her today.
"Oh how much more are they going to keep us waiting. Seriously, it is rude to keep a lady waiting." Twilight and Spikes ears perked up and they both turned around to see a familiar face in the crowd. Spike day had just been lifted.
"Rarity!" They ran over to her spot in the crowds. She wore a fancy bonnet on her head and was carrying her saddlebag. She turned away from the museum and smiled at the sight of her friends.
" Twilight! Spikey-wikey! What a great surprise! What brings you both here ,darling. "
"I'm here for historic lectures and exhibits. The princess sent me a letter telling me about the museum. Why are you here?"
" I'm here to observe the glamorous and yet subtle art galleries. Their very essence inspires me." She said with a hoof raised in the air. "When one looks back, some fashions never get old! While many ponies can learn from the mistakes of others and improve on what they created."
"Twilight! Rarity! Spike! Over here!!" The three of them spun around to see three other familiar friends.
" Pinkie pie, Applejack, Rainbow dash! You guys too!" The three said ponies galloped to join their friends over in their spot in the crowds. They all hugged and shook hooves.
"What are you doing here ,Rainbow Dash? I thought you didn't like museums?" Said Twilight with a perplexed look.
"Oh I'm not here for that egghead stuff." She then pulled out a book from her saddle bag. "I'm here for the book sighing. The author of the Daring Do series is sighing books near the gift shop and will be giving out a short preview of her new new book 'The secret origin of Daring Do'!"
Twilight smiled and turned to Applejack and Pinkie Pie. " And you guys? I'm guessing your both for other reasons that don't really involve the museum?"
Applejack nodded. "Actually Twi, I got invited to sell my apple treats right outside the museum. The ponies in charged apparently got a 'tip' from the princess on how delicious my baked apple goods were and they sent us a letter asking me if I would like to set up a stand here. It would apparently be good for the crowds."
"And I'm here to help her with the baking!" Shouted Pinkie as she hopped up and down. "We're gonna have so much fun! We can make apple fritters, apple tarts, cheery changas and pickle berry cumquots!"
Her friends just stared as she continued to hop up and down. "Pinkie pie, your so random."
"Wait, wheres Fluttershy?" Twilight asked looking around the three.
"Meh. She decided not to come. Something about not wanting to see the dead remains of animals and being in huge crowds, anyway she decided not to come." said Rainbow in annoyance.
"Attention everypony!" Suddenly all the crowds in front of the museum turned to see the young unicorn mare that stood on its steps. She had a subtle tan coat and had small gold mane, she also had a quill and scroll for a cutie mark. She wore a beautiful yet subtle dress and a pair of glasses as she stood behind a microphone. " My name is Note taker, let be the first to welcome you all to this grand opening of the great Natural museum of Equestrian history and mythology!"
The crowds cheered. " While first I must apologize, Princess Celestia herself had planned to be here for the ceremony but couldn't make it due to royal matters. But she still sends her warm regards!"
The crowds continued to cheer, with Pinkie pie exploding confetti from her party cannon. Note taker then lifted into the air with her magic a large pair of scissors. " So without further ado, I gladly pronounced the Natural museum of Equestrian history and mythology opened!!"
She then cut the large red ribbon in front of the door and got out of the way. Suddenly as if the world was about to be consumed in fire, the crowds rushed in to the museum. A good percentage though had stayed behind to get a quick bite at Applejacks stand.
"Ah oh, here comes the food rush!" Applejack turned and ran towards her stand. "Come on Pinkie! We got some hungry customers waiting!"
"Wee lets go!" Pinkie pie hopped right behind Applejack. "Bye Twilight!"
"Well I gotta get this book sighed before the line gets to big. See you guys later!" Rainbow dash then flew quickly into the museum, leaving a trail of clouds behind. Twilight nodded and turned to her remaining friends.
"Come on everypony!" She then turned and galloped inside. 'Oh I can't wait to see what they have in store. Here I come!'
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"Come on Spike, the lecture is about to begin!" said Twilight as stuggled to find a seat in the crowded theater of the museum. The final part of the museum visit was the exhibit where they would be showing artifacts that had been discovered in the past centuries.
"Ugh. I'm coming, I'm coming." said Spike running close behind. The theater was large and was in the shape of globe. Many ponies and non-ponies had gathered for the occasion. The entire theater could house about a hundred ponies.
"Finally. Now to watch the show." said Twilight as she found a front row seat and sat down.
"Ms. Sparkle is that you?" Twilight turned her head to see Doctor Whooves, one of Ponyvilles great scientists.
" Doctor! Your here too?" Twilight said with a surprised grin. The Doctor pulled out a small notebook.
"Well yes. I don't think there is a single scientist, historian or professor who would want to miss this. Plus, some of my colleagues invited me." He said this with a smile.
"Tell me doctor, what do you think about the theory of ancient beings visiting this planet and possibly creating all life?"
The doctor thought it over while tapping his chin with his hoof. "Well all I can say is-"
Suddenly the lights dimmed. Everypony turned their attention to the stage and settled down, where a stallion emerged from the curtains. He wore a lab coat and glasses, his coat was blue and his mane was yellow. His cutie mark was a vial of some unknown chemical.
"Oh would you look at that. The show is about to start." The doctor said quickly returning his attention to the stage. Twilight did so as well but wondered what the stallion was going to say; the pony on stage then cleared his throat and began to speak.
" Greetings everypony. My name is Prof. Stables, I'm am the head of the scientific and historic community that studies the subject of pony origins. Today, we are happy to announce that we have uncovered a great deal since our research began several decades ago. And today, we are going to show you what we found, please take note-"
Suddenly near everypony in the theater took out a notepad, notebook and a writing utensil. They are leaned forward waiting for his next word.
"Eh metaphorically speaking of course. So without further ado, heres what we have discovered about our possible origins."
The curtains opened up to reveal a projection screen. The screen came alive with several images of strange devices appeared, some of them resembling watches but oversized.
A bunch of oo's and ah's could be heard though out the theater. Then it switched to an image of some suit; it was blue and with yellow stripes at the edges. On the back was the number thirteen.
"For as long as we have existed, ponies and non-ponies alike have always wondered begged the question. Where did we come from? How did we evolve from a primal animal state to the modern civilized pony of today? And finally, who created us?" The projection screen then switched to show a image of the planet. "Well everypony, I like to think we may found the answer to who created us.
The image switched and the audience gasped. On screen was a tall bipedal pale skinned being. It wasn't very detailed but one could make out the hands and feet and the face. Prof. Stables went backstage for a min, he came back holding a small box.
"For the past decades, we believed in a possible theory. That a species not from this planet, came here and planted the seeds of life here." The screen then switched to one showing a DNA strand. "Whether or not this was intentional, we have firm evidence that an advanced race had visited this world. For what reason we cannot yet determine but nevertheless, we believe that we are the result of their arrival."
He then removed the tape from the box, and lifted out with his magic an object that caused everypony in the audience to stare in awe or from shock. "And here is the proof of their exodus."
Twilight eyes widen as the good professor showed them the device. It was large and round and it bore a large screen on one side, with a series of buttons and dials located next it. It resembled an oversized watch. " This was dug up at a dig site in Zebrica, the technology is obviously above any current race and it's design is uncanny. Unable to determine it's origin, we struggled to figure out what it was for and how it works."
He then turned to the audience. "Do we have a volunteer?"
Immediately a series of hooves, claws and other appendages shot up into the air. Twilight could swear that near everypony must want to volunteer. Prof. Stables looked around while tapping his chin with his hoof until he finally found who he was looking for.
"How about you miss?" He pointed directly at Twilight Sparkle, catching her by surprised.
She looked around a bit to see if he wasn't confused. " Me?"
The professor smiled. "Yes you, come on up here."
Twilight nodded and came up on stage. She was initially nervous, but she got over it as she saw the device before her very eyes.
Prof. Stables trotted up to her. "Please hold out your hoof."
Twilight did as she was instructed and held out her right hoof. The Professor slid the device on to her hoof and adjusted it to make sure it fit. "All right, now I'm going to power it up with some magic to get it going."
The Professor aimed his horn at the device and shot out a small burst of controlled magic. The device was immediately covered in it's glow but it quickly dissipated. The audience waited and were leaning on their seats wanting to see what would happen next.
Nothing. Nothing happened. The Professor gave a small sigh and shook his head. "Oh no. I thought for sure that would be enough."
He turned towards the audience with a gloomy look on his face. "Ladies and gentlecolts, I'm am so sorry to say that we are having technical difficulties. And furthermore-"
Everypony in the theater didn't take the news well. They immediately got up and began to shout. Others in his defense and most against him, calling him and his evidence a fraud.
"Please, please calm down everypony! I'll figure something out, I promise." This did nothing to soothe but only anger the audience more. Right as the professor was about to call security, Twilight stepped forward.
"Everypony listen up!!" Suddenly everypony stopped and turned to face her. "Fighting is not gonna solve this problem and getting angry isn't helping anything."
The angry audience began to murmur and talk amongst themselves, eventually nodding their heads in agreement. Twilight then turned to the professor who was cowering behind a podium. "Now Prof. Stables. Can you tell what went wrong?"
He slowly got up and adjusted his outfit. "We never actually got the device to fully work. Every now and then it would show signs of life but only for a minute. We discovered that it runs on it's power from a small chip or tiny device located inside."
He pointed at it with his hoof. " Simply put, the device has run out of power and it requires a large amount of energy to start it again. A spark if you will."
Twilight looked at the device and nodded. "I can do just that."
She then closed her eyes and focused her magic, channeling it though her horn and to the device. It was enveloped in her purple glow and began to hum as she fuel it. Right when she could give no more, she dropped to the floor and panted. The audience kept their eyes glued on to the scene before them. Right as Twilight stood up, her ears perked up at the sound of . . . music?
She opened her eyes she stop and stared. The screen on the device showed a number of displays and on it were the words 'track 1 playing'. 'It's like a miniature music player!
She began to fiddle with the device and as she studied it, she found the name of said device. "The PIP-Boy 3000. Thats an odd name?"
The one time angry audience had suddenly begun to applaud. The tune was not only catchy but the device actually works, and they wish to see what else it could do. Prof. Stables stood there stunned but soon regained his composure and trotted up to Twilight who was happily fiddling with the device.
"Excuse me Miss-"
"Sparkle. Twilight Sparkle." She said with a smile. The professors jaw dropped.
"As in Twilight Sparkle? Personnel student to Princess Celestia?" He asked, Twilight nodded. " Well no wonder you were able to figure out the device so quickly. Please-"
He grabbed on to her hoof. "You must join me and my group in our research! You can help us greatly and help us study a lot of the tech that we have found and speed ahead our understanding of this ancient species!"
Twilight blushed but pushed the professors hooves away. "As much as I love to, I'm don't know if I can. I have matters to attend to in Ponyville and plus I have friends to spend time with. I could look at what you found in my spare time though."
The professor gave a sign but smiled. "Well while it's sad that you can't give your full attention at least take some of tech back with you to study if you please?"
Twilight nodded. " I won't let you down.
She shook the professors hoof as the audience continued to applaud, at the same time photographers were taken pictures of momentous occasion. The duo looked towards the audience and smiled for the cameras.
'I can't believe all this, this just keeps getting better and better that nothing can ruin this!' Twilight would soon regret her thoughts of that day many weeks later.
"Okay. I guess the trip wasn't a totally boring." Spike said as he came in the door of the library with Twilight trotting close behind, carrying in her saddle bags important cargo. "So what cool gadgets did they give you huh?"
Twilight gave a sign. "They're not just gadgets but great ancient technology. And it's not mine to keep but to study.
She levitated the two objects of importance and held them in the air. One was the wrist device from earlier that day and the other was new one. It had a handle on end and series of lights all around it, as well as scratches and dust marks.
"What does that one do?" Asked the little dragon as he went to the kitchen to retrieve a bucket of Ice cream. He was starving.
"I don't know Spike? It appears to have no function but I sense it has a deeper purpose." As Twilight slid on the pip-boy, she began to prod and study the other device for any distinguishable features. 'Maybe it requires a burst of energy too. It worked on the pip-boy.'
She lowered her horn and shot out a good burst of magic at it. It appeared to glow all sorts of colors, a loud hum began to emanate from it. 'Is it working!?'
Right as she gave one final jolt of magic the device fell to the floor with a thud. Silence followed as Twilight stared in disbelief. Spike had been watching from a corner and eating ice cream. "Well that was bust. I'm going to bed Twilight."
Twilight continued prodding at the machine in utter distraught as her assistant walked away. "I don't get it? Why won't you work?"
She lifted the device and with her magic pressed the button on the handle. "I know you do something and I won't rest until I figure out what it is. I will read you like a bo-"
She was caught off as a loud hum emanated from the device. And in an instant before Twilight could make another move, she was enveloped in a green light and vanished. Where she once stood were now scorch marks, with the other thing left behind was the device itself.
"Twilight! I accidentally spilled some ice cream on your bed sheets." Said Spike as he came down the stairs in a hurry. "Wheres the- . . . Twilight?"
He looked around for her but she was nowhere to be seen. "Twilight? Twilight where are you?"
Chapter 1: The Lone Wanderer and the Lost Stranger (Revised)
"War. War never changes. Since the dawn of human kind, when our ancestors first discovered the killing power of rock and bone, blood has been spilled in the name of everything: from God to justice to simple, psychotic rage.
In the year 2077, after millenial of armed conflict, the destructive nature of man could sustain itself no longer. The world was plunged into an abyss of nuclear fire and radiation. But it was not, as some had predicted, the end of the world. Instead, the apocalypse was simply the prologue to another bloody chapter in human history. For man had succeeded in destroying the world - but war, war never changes.
In the early days, thousands were spared the horrors of the holocaust by taking refuge in enormous underground shelters, know as vaults. When they emerged, they had only the hell of the wastes to greet them. All except those in vault 101.
Because in vault 101, no one ever enters and no one ever leaves. But 200 years later, a scientist escaped vault 101, leaving behind his 19 year old son in confusion. After narrowly escaping the clutches of the overseers men, the lone wanderer pass though the giant doors of vault 101 and into the the godforsaken hell that was the capital wasteland. Little did he know that he would play a huge part in the future of the wasteland. But most importantly, he would meet a lost stranger who would become his greatest friend.
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The great metal door closed with a thunderous roar as Albert watched. "Well. No turning back now."
He gulped and turned towards the opposite end of the tunnel. It was dark and water dripped from the rocky ceiling. His foot hit something as he took a step.
"What did I-," He looked down to see a decomposed skeleton. He jumped away colliding with the hard wall behind him. "Jesus christ!"
He looked around and spotted at least two other skeletons, they laid on the floor with drops of dirty water hitting them. Minor bits of what must have been their clothes were still attached to the lifeless husks. Underneath them were signs that had demands of entry written on them.
'They must have been people who were trying to get into the vault. He knelt down to look closely at one. 'These skeletons look extremely old. Must have been here for decades.'
He side-stepped them and moved to the end of the tunnel. There was bright light seeping in though the small holes of the door. The door itself was a simple wooden creation, cracks could be seen all over it. It was a miracle that it was still standing.
As he stood by it, he began to have second thoughts as sweat dribbled down the back of his head. Fear had begun to spike and a knot formed in the pit of his stomach.
'What the hell am I doing?! I'm about to walk into the wasteland for christ sake!' He turned back around clenching his fists in anger. 'Maybe this was a mistake. I should have never left the vault. There's no way I would survive out there!'
He collapsed onto the floor on his knees. 'Death by the guards doesn't seem so bad now. Maybe if I beg real hard, the guards will let me back in.'
He looked down. His hand reached down and pulled up the Overseers pistol. Amata had stolen it from her father and had given it to him to aid him in escaping the vault.
'I killed those men. Kendall, Hannon and officer Mack.' These were people who were supposed to protecting him and everyone else in the vault. Instead they killed Jonas and tried to kill him and they threatened Amata. The Overseer had threatened his own daughter. Maybe they did deserve to die, all of them. But as he looked down at his pistol. 'I never would have thought I have to do it.'
He did an ammo count. He had at was down to at least twenty five bullets. 'Heh, not bad.'
He placed the clip back in and reloaded his gun, he placed his remaining bullets in a pocket of his jumpsuit. He then glanced at his weapon.
'I could end end it all right now. Just one shot and it will all be over.' He then looked up at the ceiling. 'I could see mom again. Tell her what happened.'
He clutched the pistol as tight as he could, and in one swift motion he placed it back in it's holster.
"What the hell am I thinking?! Suicide?!" He stood back up and faced the door. "Hell no! I ain't dying now. Not in a fucking cave and not before giving my dad punch to his skull for leaving me behind! He's out there and I gotta find him."
He raised his right leg and kicked the door open. It came off and hit the ground with a thud. "Well, here goes nothing!"
With that he stepped straight into the light and into the outside world, ready to face whatever the wasteland had to throw at him.
Albert had only been outside the vault for less than thirty minutes and he was already in pain. Well, at least his eyes were.
He held up his hands to block some of the bright harsh sunlight until his eyes could adjust. "Should have brought some sunglasses."
As the pain subsided, he took in his surroundings. For a place that was called the wasteland, it sure lived up to it's name. Thats not to say that he didn't have a good view. Somewhat.
He was high on a plateau, everywhere he looked there was large and strange rock formations as well as dead trees as far as the eye could see. He could see the remnants of the past civilization as looked further down. He spotted a half destroyed road, the remains of what must have been a town nearby and a broken bridge in the distance. He then held up his pip-boy and checked the geiger counter. There was radiation, but the levels were extremely low that he could ignore them. "Little to no rads. Best news I've heard so far."
Before leaving the vault, he had hacked into the overseers computer and discovered some very peculiar files. But they were helpful in telling him what was out here. He lowered his pip-boy and began down the dirt path to the road when suddenly his pip-boy shook. He rose it up once more. "What the heck?"
His pip-boy had switched to the data display and showed that he had acquired five new radio signals. He looked at them with curiosity. "These look important. I should check them out and see what they are-"
He was then suddenly interrupted when a large explosion went off near-by, the ground shook causing him to lose his footing and fall down the hill.
"What the hell was that?!" He got back up and drew his pistol. On ground level he saw smoke rising up into the air from a source that was close by. "Okay Albert, go to the source of the explosion and find out what that was or walk away and find your way to Megaton?"
He had a choice to make. On one hand, if there was someone near that explosion he had to help them. Then on the other hand, he didn't know what did cause it, so chances were whatever did was near by and the last thing he wanted to do was get blown to bits. Actually scratch that, that was on his list of things never to do in life. But then again, someone could be hurt, but it could be trap and there may be an ambush waiting for him. He looked down at his lowly pistol and gave off a sign. "Ahh screw it."
He began to walk in the direction of the column of smoke.
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Twilight Sparkle awoke with a headache that felt as if a manticore had been chewing on it. She stood up, her legs wobbling a bit. She opened her eyes, she expected to find herself in her library with a huge mess to clean up. Instead she finds herself standing in the middle of nowhere.
" W-w-where am I?" She looked around, trying to get bearings. Suddenly her pip-boy started clicking. She held it up to her face and took a good look. The screen had switched, it then showed that she had acquired five new radio signals. And switched once more to display a map of where she was guessing she was now.
" What? Capital wasteland? What's that? Where am I?!" She began to look around frantically for anypony, yelling out random names.
"Spike! Spike where are you!?" She spotted her saddlebag and notepad over by a large boulder. She trotted over and picked them up.
" Just how did I end up here?" She cleared her thoughts and tried to remember what was the last thing she had been doing before . . . this happened. 'Let's see I went to the museum, saw my friends, had a great time over there and later returned back home to the library. When she got back she-
Her eyes widen. "That device! The device I was tampering with before I ended up here. It must have teleported me!" She quickly adjusted her saddle bag and thought it over. "It must have been some sort of teleportation device , when I pulled the trigger it-"
She looked around again and took in her surroundings. " Sent me here."
She was in a dry quick bed, in each distance she could see nothing but small rock formations and dirt. She also saw dead trees still standing, and a few other structures like a water tower and a wind mill. The sun was bright and and from the looks of it, begining to rise.
'The place looks like . . . . . . . . . a wasteland.' She thought to herself.
'I wonder if there was anypony nearby-' Her thoughts were interrupted by the sounds of heavy hoof steps. She quickly looked around for a place to hide, she spotted a large rock near by and galloped as fast as she could.
'What was that! Could it be some nearby natives? Maybe some civilized ponies that could tell me how to get home? No, as for as I know, there was no location in Equestria or on the planet called the Capital Wasteland!" She decided to peek over the rock to see what was coming.
Her eyes widened in shock. What she saw coming down a hill was something she had only seen once and it was nothing more than an artist representation. Coming down the hill was a tall pale skinned bipedal creature, It wore a blue jumpsuit with yellow stripes at the edges and the only sources of hair it possesed was on its head. It wore a Pip-boy on its right 'foreleg' and was carrying a strange looking device in its hands.
Twilight lowered her head back down and with her magic, levitated her notepad and a quill from her saddlebag and began to write down. 'No way. They're supposed to be extinct! But if what I'm seeing is true, I'm looking at an actual living alien!!'
She took a deep breath and took another peek over the rock at the human. She suddenly heard a loud bang as a small object zipped past her head but not before hitting the boulder she hid behind inches away from her head.
" Yikes!" Twilight took cover back down as another tiny projectile hit the side of the rock.
'Okay! Now we know that the device it's holding is a weapon. . . . . Oh Celestia, it's got a weapon!" Twilight panicked and began to look around herself for any way to defend herself.
" I know your out there! Show yourself!"
Twilight eyes widened in surprise. The alien could speak Equestrian! Or maybe Equestrian was an evolved form of language derived from their form of speaking and why was she thinking about this at a time where her life was in danger.
"I said come out! If you don't, I will come find you and shoot you!" The alien yelled.
'Ah oh.' She tried to think of a quick solution. 'Maybe if I stay absolutely still, it will go away.'
"I know your out there. My pip-boy shows me where you are."
' Ah pony feathers!' She looked at her pip-boy and saw that it was right. Near the bottom of the screen was a directional compass. On it, it painted the alien with a red mark.
" I'm going to count to three, if you don't come out, I'm coming after you!"
The threat sounded real. Twilight did not know what to do, she could try to talk to it, possibly negotiate a peaceful resolution.
". . . . One!"
The alien had begun to countdown. But what if she did come out and he still ended up 'shooting' her? She could tell by the voice, it was male.
" . . . . . Two!"
Twilight felt sweat coming down her face rapidly, she didn't had absolutely no idea what to do.
' Oh what would Rainbow Dash do in this sitution?" She asked herself.
". . . . . Three!"
" Okay! I'm coming out! Just don't hurt me!" She yelled.
There was no sound, so Twilight assumed that the alien was waiting. Having no other choice, she slowly rose out of cover and stepped out from behind the rock.
The alien stood there, only a few feet away with a look of shock on his face. Twilight had now had a better look at him. His face was young looking and his mane was short and a mix of black and brown. His eyes were hazel and he wore black boots, he kept his weapon pointed at her.
"Uhh. . . . Hello?" She smiled and tried her best to look as non hostile as possible. 'Genius Twilight! Your probably the first unicorn, let alone pony to make first contact with a alien and possible creator of all life on your planet and the first thing you can think to say is hello?'
Albert stood there dumbstruck. Before him stood a unicorn. A lavender colored unicorn that also had a big head. He had read about them in pre war books when he was still in the vault but as far as he knew, they were only myths. The unicorn smiled at him causing him to feel uneasy, he didn't know if this horse wanted to eat him or do some other strange insidious things to him.
" Umm. Hello." Both beings just stood there in silence, as if afraid that if the other made a sudden move, the other would turn hostile and retaliate. Twilight decided to break the stalemate.
" My name is Twilight Sparkle." Standing tall, she then pointed at him. "What's yours?"
Albert did not lower his pistol, but his look of worry had disseaperaed and he began to feel better. "Albert. My name is Albert."
"Fascinating!" Twilight levitated her note pad out of her bag and began to jolt down notes. She looked up, when she saw the Albert's expression change to anger she stopped.
"What! Did I do something wrong?!" She hid behind her note pad.
"How did the heck did you do that?" Albert had just watched the unicorn levitate a pencil and note pad out of its bag. 'Was it some form of telekinesis? Her horned glowed when she did it. What kind of tech was she using?'
Twilight looked at him with a puzzled look. "I just used a simple levitation spell. Wait, do you not have magic here?"
Albert shook his head in response, causing Twilight to look at him strangely.
'Wait, if he doesn't know what magic is, then how could his race have created all life on my planet?' She decided to take the direct approach. " How does your kind survive without magic?"
"We have a thing here called science. What your talking about just doesn't make sense. There is no such thing as magic." Albert had begun to lower his gun but kept a tight trigger finger.
"Of course there is. Everypony in Equestrian can use magic!" Twilight knew that there had to be magic in order for there to be life. Without it unicorns, pegasi and alicorns wouldn't exist!
Albert saw that he was getting only more confused each second he spent talking to this unicorn. Was he going insane? Maybe he was dreaming and all the events of today didn't happened. He was probably still in his bed snoring and his dad would soon be on him for not sleeping in late when he had work to do. He wish.
He signed and placed his pistol back in his holster. " All right, look. How you tell me all about who your are and where your from and in return, I'll answer any question you have."
Twilight Smiled. "Really! Okay. Well where do I start. . . "
Albert was sitting down on a hard rock, he had his mind blown from everything the unicorn named Twilight Sparkle had told her. First, turns out she wasn't hostile, that was good for his first day out in the wasteland. Second, she was apparently an alien for she came from a world ruled by more pastel colored ponies alongside other creatures. Third, she believed that the human race had once visited her world and created all life on her planet, and that her proof was in the devices that her people found which she happily showed one on her foreleg. Now Albert didn't know everything about pre-war tech and the stuff that people did back then but he was pretty sure they didn't have to power to travel to the stars or create life on another planet. Either way,Twilight was still extremely interested in Albert and his species ways. And finally, she told him her life story and how she came to arrive here. From things like Equestria, pegasi, unicorns, earth ponies, Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, Discord, Changlings and a bunch of other things that he would probably forget in a good night sleep. Though it all, there was much that Albert clearly did not understand, other stuff he just found weird and the rest some what interesting. Once again, it was suffice to say he had his mind blown.
"So you were fidgeting around with technology you never seen before and before you knew it , you were here?" Twilight nodded but at the same time looked down at having made a rookie mistake.
Albert stood back up, he checked his Pip-boy for the time. It was 12:57 PM. He needed to get to the settlement of 'Megaton' before it got dark. He began to leave when Twilight called out.
"Wait! Where are you going!" She put her stuff back in her saddlebag and quickly trotted up to him.
"Megaton. At least thats what the place is called on my Pip-boy map. I'm going there to look for my father."
"Well can I come?" She said with interested eyes.
"I don't know, where I'm going could be awefully dangerous and-" He stopped and saw Twilight was giving him a puppy eyed look. After such brief reasoning, he cracked under her cuteness. "Oh fine. Just stop giving me that look. As long as you stay close to me and do as I say, you can come along."
He was interuppted by Twilight hopping all around him saying yes. In a strange sort of way, she reminded her of little girl.
"Oh just come along will you. We got to get going." He said with a smile, despite this unicorn being from another world and acting mature just a second ago, when she acted childish it made him want to smile. Not that he never smiled of course, recent events had put a damper on his mood.
"Okay, but you still have to answer my questions." She said as she trotted along.
"I'll tell as we walk." He began to walk in Megatons direction, with Twilight trotting right beside him. "So what do you what to know?"
Twilight got sparkles in her eyes. "Absolutely everything."
" And so it was, that the two wanderers, strangers in a world they never seen, headed out together towards the settlement of Megaton in the distance. Unknown to the two however, were the challenges that laid ahead, obstacles and trials that would test every single part of their soul. Their destines intertwined the Lone Wanderer, the young man from vault 101, and the Lost Stranger, a being from a land of peace and prosperity both headed out into the unknown.
Astounding news! I have just made contact with a alien being and turns out, he's friendly! The rest of his race though called humans or homo sapiens, I'm not so sure. On our way to a near-by settlement know as 'Megaton', we told each other all about the history of each others species. What he told me about his race amazed me as much as it horrified me! He told me about how humanity was once a great and powerful people and how a war for dwindling resources caused humanity to enter this 'Great war'. In the Great war , that lasted less than two hours, humanity wiped itself out by using these terrible weapons of mass destruction called bombs. When they fell, near all the human race went extinct! Shocking right! I mean, couldn't the humans have found a way to talk it out peacefully?
Anyway moving on, Albert, that's the name of the human I was talking about earlier and befriended, told me next that thousands of humans mange to escape the destruction of the world by taking refuge in huge underground shelters called vaults. It was like a paradise underground, made to give humans a second chance, Albert told me that he lived in one, Vault 101 he said. It was nice for a while until he told me that his father had left the vault! You see, he told me that the biggest rule down there in vault 101 was that when it closed, no one was allowed to leave or enter. He said that the Overseer said that it was for the protection of the vault dwellers and to leave the vault was not only to defy orders but suicide in itself. But Albert left anyway for when news got out that his father had escaped, their leader ordered his soldiers to track him down and bring him before the overseer. Dead or alive! So Albert escaped his home and is now searching for his father.
He told me that he had to fight his way out and that he had to do things that he wasn't proud of, but he had to do it. I was scared of him at first, finding out that he killed others, but calmed down after understanding he only did it in self defense and that he had no intention of killing anybody, he just had the unfounate luck of having done it.
Albert seems nice enough, I know what he did was wrong but, he doesn't look like a murderer. So I've been traveling alongside him, leaning all I can about human civilization. . . . what ever is left of it that is.
I'll be writing all my findings into letters so that when you and my friends come get me,(you are coming to get me right? Of course you are!) I can show you them all and all that I've learned about humans! Gotta go now. We reached Megaton, it looks like a junkyard with giant walls surrounding it, at least I think it's a junkyard?
Your always faithful student Twilight Sparkle
P.S . . . . . . . . . . They have two headed cow's and giant ants here!!! Plus, we just conversed with a few other humans. One of them, a male by the name of Crazy Wolfgang said that he was selling crap. Who in anypony's right mind would want to buy droppings! Let alone the best of crap!?"
As Albert and Twilight walked past the twin doors of Megaton, the sight before was to say the least . . bizarre. Megaton was a city built from scrap, made from scrap and is a lovely little town where you can sell and buy, you guessed it, scrap metal. The buildings rose above as high as the walls surrounding the town, the houses looked old and rusted and yet new and had fresh new scent. The hill before them went downwards into a crater, so it was right to assume this town was built around a large crater from the bottom up. Pipes and walkways were seen all over town, connecting houses to other houses and went from high structures to ground floor. The town in the least was . . interesting? That much, Albert and Twilight were sure of.
"So this is Megaton?" Asked Twilight befuddled.
"I'm just going to nod and say yes." He gave a soft chuckle as he looked around.
"At least there's people here. And from the looks of it, their civilized."
" Would you look at that. Another one of them folks from vault 101. Haven't seen one of them in a while."
Both Albert and Twilight looked down to see a man walking up the stairs towards them. He wore brown trench coat and a hat that was similar to Applejack's stenson hat. The man was also dark skinned and had a rugged beard, he carried a weapon on his back and the way he walked gave off a sense of authority.
"And you are?" Asked Albert.
"Names Lucas Simms. I'm the town's sheriff and mayor if the need ever arises." The man named Lucas then looked down towards Twilight and smiled.
"Well lookie there. Nice pet."
"Excuse me sir, But I'm not a pet. My name is Twilight Sparkle."
" Aww, ain't that cute. You even taught it to talk. Can you say hi little fella?" He said petting Twilight's head.
If Twilight had not been taught proper manners and not to use her magic for her own personal gain, she would have teleported this human to a cliff or leave him hanging by a flag pole. But sense she knew better, she held her anger in and remembered her teachings of friendship.
"Once again sir, I'm not a pet. My name is Twilight Sparkle and I'm a unicorn. And as for your question, yes I can say hi. I can also do mathematical equations and read entire books in less than 10 mins but I take my time because I want to enjoy the book instead of rushing." She said this last part with a smile. Albert could have sworn that he heard a squeak.
" Whatever you say, I don't care as long as you-" He pointed at Albert. "Clean up after her."
Twilight looked as though as she was boiling in a pot of water or about to catch fire in a furnace. A tiny spark could be seen on her mane. Wanting to intervene and prevent trouble, Albert spoke up.
"Err, anyway. Have you seen my father? Middle aged man. Maybe you seen him?"
"Nope. Sorry, I got enough fires to put out around here to keep tabs on everyone that comes though here. You should ask around town."
"Aww. Well thanks anyway. Do you know where the nearest medical clinic is? Where we can buy supplies or get some weapons. And if possiable, a place to stay."
Lucas just looked at him with raised eyebrows.
"Please?" He said with best friendly expression he could muster.
" Hmm. Nice, smart and well-mannered. I think we will get along nicely. If your looking for the nearest clinic, Doc chuch runs one down by the crater, the man is rough around the edges but is good enough."
"Thank you, where can we get fresh supplies?" Asked Twilight, her anger now simmering down.
"Talk to Moira. She runs a shop called Crater-side supplies. You can restock and purchase good weapons and gear there, take a gander with it is." He said with a chuckle.
"As for a place to stay, you should talk to Nova up in Moriarty's saloon. She can help you out."
"Thanks. Oh and if you don't mind me asking, who could I ask for information about my father?"
"I would ask Moriarty up in his saloon. Word of advice, no matter what he says Moriarty is not your friend. So for gods sake, don't trust the dammed guy." He emphazied the last part with a glare.
"Why not?" Asked Twilight.
"Why, my little purple friend? The man would sell you out for a handful of caps than to be your friend. He is not to be trusted."
"That's horrible! Why would you let such a terrible person live here!?!" She exclaimed.
"I ask myself that question every day." Said Lucas looking up at a passing cloud.
" Oh and one other thing." Said Albert.
" Yes?"
"Is that a bomb in the center of Megaton?" He pointed down at the center of the town where a large nuclear bomb was visible.
" Yes. Yes it is. Why do you ask?"
Twilight immediately spoke up. "A BOMB!! I THOUGHT THEY WERE DANGEROUS!! WHY DO YOU HAVE ONE IN THE CENTER OF YOUR CITY!?!"
Lucas staggered back from Twilight's outburst.
"What she means to say is, don't you think you should get it disarmed or something?" Asked Albert as Lucas regained his composure.
"I don't trust any of the local's enough to tinker with it. Not many folk around here realize that the bomb is still a threat. Heck, the people from the church worship the dammed thing." This only made Twilight and Albert feel more uneasy. But then a light bulb went up in her head.
" Wait, Mr. Simm's."
"Hmm."
" What if we could disarm it for you?" She said with a smile.
"Say what now?" Asked Albert in alarm. Lucas on the other hand, seemed interested.
" Do you think you can do it?"
"Yes sir, back where I'm from, my friend Pinkie Pie taught me a bit about explosives. And my friend Albert here know quite a bit as well on the subject. Together, we can defuse the bomb with no problem at all."
Albert quickly grabbed Twilight and pulled her behind him.
"Just what do you think your doing! We don't anything about disarming a nuclear bomb!"
"We could try! You told me about how you like to test out explosives in the vault remember? That you once set up a series of self made fire-crackers in the boys restroom? So you at least have the basic and intermediate knowledge on explosives skills right?"
"That doesn't guarantee us that we can disarm it at all! Worst case scenario, we set the thing off and get our asses fried along with all of Megaton!"
Twilight frowned. "That's why we won't fail. Come on, these ponies, I mean people are in danger. Can you see it in your heart to help them out?"
Albert shook his head. "I want to help, but if we mess up then you know what happens to all the people here. There's just to much at risk here to-"
Lucas, who was still standing a few feet away, spoke up. "There is also a reward of one hundred caps if you can disarm it."
Albert froze and turned around. He then put on his war face. "Make it five hundred caps and you have a deal. After all, this is very delicate work, and it requires gentle care and sensitivity."
"That price is very steep. But if it gets the bomb disarmed then alright. Five hundred caps it is."
Albert struck a heroic pose. "We will do it. But only for the safety of the citizens of Megaton!"
Albert and Twilight now stood right next to the Megaton bomb that now lay in a puddle of radioactive water within the crater. The people who worshiped the bomb, the church of Atom they called themselves, were standing only a few feet away from the bomb. Their leader, Confessor Cromwell was standing in the puddle making speeches. The bomb itself was was quite large, but rusted and old looking. At a glance, it was hard to imagine that this large blunt object could wipe them all out in a instant if they did even one mistake. It sent shivers up Albert's spine and made Twilight gulp.
"Well. . . . . This is it." Albert said as he approached the bomb.
" Hold on, let me finish this."
"What are you talking about-" He saw Twilight had pulled out a book of some kind, and was sitting on her haunches reading it.
"Twilight! This is no time to read a book!! I need you over here now!" He emphazied the last part by banging his fist on the bomb. The bomb made a click noise and began to tick.
Albert spun his head back around towards the bomb.
"Oops. Not good, not good, not good!!" He then opened a hatch on the side of the bomb and began to work, reattaching some wires and removing others. The countdown continued despite his best efforts to stop it, Twilight on the other hand, was still reading her book.
"Twilight!" He yelled as he tinkered with the bomb.
"So if I did this then-"
"Twilight! I need your help!" He began waving his arms in frustration.
" But would it be better if I-"
"Twilight! Hope I'm not interrupting anything but, there's a doomsday device here ticking away! In short WE ARE ALL GOING TO DIE!!!"
"And there's the authors final notes." Twilight closed her book and lifted her head up. "All done."
"Good for you. Quick question, can your magic teleport this bomb away from here?" Albert had was literally trying to pull out a large cable to stop the bomb, his face a mixture of anger, frustration and fear.
"Don't have to." She said with a grin. She casually walked over to the device and with a simple gesture, kicked the nuke with her foreleg. The bomb's ticking died down and a series of clicks were heard.
Albert fell backward onto the ground with a thud. "Are we dead?"
"Nope. The bomb has been disarmed!" Said Twilight with a smile. Once again, Albert could have sworn he heard a squeak.
"Well I'a be dammed. You two actually did it." Lucas Simms came down the steps of of the hill and walked up to Twilight.
"To be honest, I didn't think you two could actually do it. Shame on me for thinking bad of ya."
"Oh it's quite all right Mr.Simms. I didn't think I could do it either until I read this." She used her magic to lift the book she had been reading the entire time. Pinkie Pie's Cookbook, the most explosive recipes at your hooves. Egghead edition. [Level Up] Welcome to Level 2 Level Up theme
Explosives: 35 Perk selected : Comprehension
" . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . What?" Said Albert, staring in disbelief at the book Twilight was holding.
"Ha ha ha. Well thanks anyway. This town can rest at ease now, knowing that the bomb will never go off when they least expect it. Here." He handed a large bag to Twilight. She levitated it up and down, the bag jiggled with sounds of clicking.
"There's your reward of five hundred caps and this-" He handed a key and paper to Albert.
"Is the key to your new Megaton house. Deed and everything."
Twilight and Albert looked at each other in disbelief, they saved the town and now they got not only money to live on but a home to stay at as well. They both rushed and hugged Lucas Simms as hard as they could.
"Thank you, Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!" They both muttered.
"It's - ugh. Quite -alright. Just please let go-." They did as he said and let him go. They asked him for directions to their new home and sped off.
"So this is our new home?" Asked Twilight as she put her things down by the lockers.
Their new megaton house was a run-down unclean sort of building. The walls had the tiniest holes in them, there was machinery that was old but still worked in the place and a floating robot butler who went by the name of Wadsworth.
As they looked around, they argued a bit over who would get to sleep where and and how they would change the place up. Albert won in the way that he would get the bed and Twilight would would sleep anywhere eles. Twilight won in the way that they would decorate the place to have a science theme. After that fiasco was over, they tallied up their money on the floor.
"Wait. They use bottle caps here as a currency?" Asked Twilight as she looked over the caps.
"Yeah, I talked it over with Crazy Wolfgang-"
"You mean the Crap-selling guy?"
"Yeah him. Apparently since the world ended, bottle caps became the new currency of the wasteland since their pletiful and easy to find. Well, depends where you look anyway."
"That sounds strange. . . but very interesting! I can't wait to write this down for Princess Celestia."
Albert stood up.
"You really look up to her don't you? This Princess of yours." Twilight looked up at him.
"Of course! She's my mentor and is like a second mother to me. She has me and my friends most deepest concerns in her heart and cares for everyone in Equestria." As Twilight said this, tears began to well up in her eyes.
"And thats how I know that she's probably working on a way to get me home. She just wouldn't leave her most faithful to-"
"Hey, don't cry." Albert knelt down next to her and gave her a hug.
"What's the matter anyway. Why are you so upset? You've only been here for only a day and a half."
Twilight moved her head down.
"Well its. . . its just . ."
"Come on. You can tell me." He said with a smile.
"I'm scared. From everything you told me and seen, this place is horrible. I still want to learn all about humans. But I'm not sure if finding out more about your kind and world . . . . What I mean is, I might not like what I find."
"Nothing is ever what we expect when we look for something. I mean look at me. I lived my entire life in a safe vault underground and I never did imagined what the outside world would look like. And meeting you, only pushed me to believe more unthinkable things. But I guess, is when we ourselves look for answers, we just keep going. Even if we don't like what we find, we do it because sometimes, knowing the truth, is better than not knowing at all and spending the rest of your life wondering." Twilight looked up at Albert, her face still covered in dry tears but no longer crying.
"Do you really believe that?" She asked.
"Hey, its one the only reasons why scientists do the crazy things they do. If for nothing eles, just to find answers." He said with a smile, while stroking Twilight's mane.
" But now your looking for your father and for the answers as in to why he left the vault."
"Yeah. Thats one reason I look for him. The other reason. To make sure he's safe."
Twilight nodded and smiled as she got up.
"Hey." Said Albert.
"What?"
" If it makes you feel any better, there was a passage from the bible that my father always told me, it was my mothers favorite. Let me tell you it."
"Okay." She sat back down on her haunches and listened. Albert cleared his throat and spoke.
" I'm am alpha and omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is a thirst of the fountain of the water of life freely." He said with a gentle voice.
"Thats beautiful." Said Twilight.
" Thanks. Well time to rest up, We got a busy day ahead of us. Tomorrow, we restocked on supplies, I have to train you how to defend yourself from danger and we got to go talk to Moriarty in his saloon."
"Alrighty, I'a make a check list of everything we need then I'm off to bed." The two of them went off in different directions, going to take care of their task then to bed.
"I still don't like using these things." Twilight said as she levitated assault rifle on to her back. They had awoken early in the morning around six am to get a head start on Twilight's survival training. The training in itself went . . . . okay. The other megaton citizens talked and whispered among themselves when news on how Twilight and Albert disarmed the bomb came around, so most of the talk were good things. Excluding the fact that no one other than Albert knew what Twilight was. Most of them believe that she was some sort of pre-war robot that had a mind of it's own, others were saying she was some sort of mutant creature from the wastes and that it was some mish mash of different creatures put together. And other rumors just plumed didn't make sense.
As for the training, Twilight had nearly blown her head right off when she held the barrel of a pistol towards her face with her magic. Albert had pulled the gun away just in the nick of time before she pulled the trigger, unfortunately they were unable to save the patch of hair that got blown off when she did pull the trigger. Since she did not posses hands, she used her magic to hold up weapons and shoot them. It was slow learning at first, but she quickly got the hang of it, she only agreed to the training on two conditions. One, was she would only use these weapons as a last resort and the second was she write this stuff down for further study. They had also visited the other locations in Megaton. They went to Crater side supplies and talked to Moira. Albert found that she might have had a few screws loose, while Twilight on the other hand agreed with near about everything she said. Thats how they ended up not only getting new weapons and armored gear, but a new job to take with them, to help her write the wasteland survival guide.
During this time in Megaton, Twilight had mange to help Leo Stahl with his addiction, Albert helped repair the pipe's around Megaton and made some extra caps selling scrap metal to Walter, the water plant operator and they got a quick meal at the Brass lantern. Twilight had made a huge fuss on Albert eating meat and decided that the two would only purchase food that had no trace of meat in them. And finally, as of now they were heading up to Moriarty's saloon to talk to him about the whereabouts of Albert's father, James.
"Yes, I know. But you have to keep with you at all times all right. As long as we don't cause trouble, we won't have to use them." Said Albert as he adjusted part of the armor on his new vault 101 jumpsuit. Twilight wore a similar one except her's was a different number. They arrived at the saloon and entered. The inside of the saloon didn't vary in appearance compared to the Brass Lantern. There were tables in the large room, glasses of wine and other alcoholic drinks could be seen all around. There were also a few patrons in the bar walking about sitting or drinking.
Albert and Twilight waked up to the counter. The man he assumed to be the bartender was cleaning a glass and had his head down.
"Excuse me sir." The bartender turned around.
"Yeah, what is it? Both Twilight let out a sheik while Albert let out a gasp at their glance of the bartender's face. He had a fleshly face with skin peeling off at places. He or it, barely had any hair and his voice sounded disoriented.
"Gah fuck! What are you." Exclaimed Albert.
"What? Ain't you ever seen a ghoul before?" He asked in annoyance. Both Twilight and Albert shook their heads. This apparently caught him by surprise.
"Really, what rock have you been living under?" The ghoul then looked at Twilight.
"And what are you supposed to be?"
"I'm T-t-twilight S-s-sparkle. I'm a unicorn." She said, obviously still scared of the being before her.
"Never heard of one. So you two gonna order a drink or what?"
"Well, sir. I'm here looking for Moriarty. Do you know where I can find him?" Asked Albert. The ghoul pointed him to the back of the shop.
"Thank you. Be right back Twilight. Wait here." Albert walked off towards the back of the saloon. The ghoul returned to cleaning his glass when he saw Twilight still staring at him.
"What?"
"If you don't mind me asking sir. What's a ghoul?" She asked innocently enough.
"What you don't know. Well heres the thing. When the bombs fell, not everyone got to take shelter in a nice cozy vault. Some of us that were unlucky enough to live got exposed to a lot of radiation and became ghouls."
"Thats terrible! Does it hurt to be how you are?" She asked.
"Well aside from the fact that I will probably live longer than the average human and radiation doesn't affect me, . . no, it doesn't hurt at all except for the fact that humans don't take kindly towards ghouls."
"But thats not fair. Your technically still human aren't you? I mean, you almost look the same, you eat like them and can do the same things they can. They shouldn't treat you like this." The ghoul smiled, this 'unicorn' was actually very nice.
"You know, I like you. You and your friend are the first two people who haven't tried to insult, hurt or yell at me. When ever you want, there's a discount just for you two." He said with a smile. Twilight smiled back.
"Thank you. What's your name by the way?" Twilight asked, she no longer feared the being before her.
"Gob. My name is Gob."
Albert soon returned and motioned Twilight to leave.
"Thanks again, it was nice meeting you." Said Twilight as she proceeded towards the exit.
"Thanks! You too." Said Gob.
Right before Twilight could exit the saloon, she saw a human girl sitting alone in a corner of the saloon. She approached her and asked her what was wrong.
"Excuse me, miss. What are you doing here."
"Oh. Hello there. My name's Lucy West. What's yours?"
"Twilight Sparkle. Are you okay? You seemed distressed."
"Do I? Sorry. I'm fine, I'm just looking for someone to deliver a letter of mine to a town called Arefu."
"I could deliver the letter for you." Twilight said happily. This brought a smile to the girls face.
"Can you? That would be great. I need it delievred to my family." She then told Twilight where the town was located, she in turn recorded the location in her pip-boy. She had been getting the hang of it since meeting Albert, he had taught her all about the device.
"Don't worry Lucy. I'a get this letter to your family. This I promise."
"Thank you Twilight Sparkle, I owe you one." Twilight then excused herself towards the exit, only to be called by another person in the bar. It was a human male, a man. He looked like the business ponies of Manehattan and Canterlot by the way he was dressed. He kept his eyes hidden behind a dark pair of glasses and wore a business hat on his head.
"*Pssh* Over here." Twilight came over to him slowly.
"Good. Thought I never spot a good fellow worth talking business with. My name is Mr. Burke." He said extending his right hand. Twilight shook it with her left foreleg and responded.
" My name is Twilight Sparkle."
"Charming name I'm sure. Anyway, I'm here to discuss important business matters here. Such as the nature of demolition, the removal of blight objects and taking care of certain problems."
". . . . . I'm sorry sir, you lost me. What exactly do you want?" She asked.
"You know the bomb in the center of Megaton?" He said.
"Yes. Yes I do."
"My employer wants me to remove Megaton from the Capital wasteland by oh say, detonating the nuke?" He said with a slight chuckle. Twilight stepped back in horror.
"You want to destroy Megaton!?!" She exclaimed. Mr.Burke only laughed in response.
"No, no. The fun part is up to you. I'm just the one who hires you and reports back to my employer. Once you done your job, I'a pay you a generous reward." Twilight could not believe what she was hearing, this human didn't care for the innocent lives here and only wanted to destroy Megaton because he was being paid to. It made her sick.
"No. I'm sorry Mr.Burke. But what your asking me to do is wrong and unthinkable in so many ways. I'm horrified that you would even ask me to do such a thing! Your nothing more than an evil crook who doesn't care for the lives of others. You can forget about destroying Megaton though the bomb, because I already disarmed it." This cased Mr.Burke to raise his eyebrows in surprise.
"You mean, the nuke is no longer a hazard here? Well, all I can say now is that I'm very dissapointed in you. First for rejecting my offer and second for actually caring for the worthless inhabintants here. Now if you don't mind, I have other business to attend to." He turned away from Twilight and motioned for her to leave him.
"Good day Mr.Burke. I hope you get what you deserve later in your life." With that, Twilight turned around and trotted away. As soon as she was gone, Mr. Burke pulled out a holotape and made a quick recorded message.
"Note to self, put out a bounty on the one know as Twilight Sparkle. Small, Lavender colored, a star mark on her flank and has a horn coming out of her forehead. The reward? 1000 caps, extra if they bring her head."
"So where are we going?" Asked Twilight as she and Albert walked though a road in Springvale, a town only a couple of yards away from Megaton. The town was deserted and empty of any life whatsoever, the buildings were old and rusted and the roads were cracked and the paint on them was fading. Much of the houses that were seen were barely standing and surrounded by dead trees. Albert kept an eye on his pip-boy as they passed several structures.
"Were heading to this house, owned by a woman called Silver. Moriarty says that if I bring the caps she owes him back to him. He will tell me where he last saw my father heading."
"So the guy saw your father?" She asked as she trotted alongside him.
"Yeah. But he won't tell me shit, unless I do this errand for him. Were here." He stopped at a house in the middle of town. Unlike the others, it appeared to be stable enough to live in.
"What makes you think you can trust the guy? For all you know, he probably just wants to use you for his dirty work." She said with a frown. Albert looked down at Twilight in surprise.
"Woh. Where did that come from? What happened to friendship is magic?" He said with a grin.
"Nothing. I . . just . . I just remembered what sheriff Simms said. The man is not to be trusted."
"I know. But the guy is my only lead on where my father is." He then turned to the door and opened it.
As Twilight and Albert walked inside, they took note of the inner workings of the house. It was old, the paper on the wall was worn out and coming off. There was jet and psycho all over the place. Twilight had learn that Psycho,jet,hydra and med-x were all drugs that had all kinds of different effects on people, she wondered at all why humans would do that to themselves at all. As the two were about to walk into the next room, they stopped in their steps at the sound of a click. They both turned to see a woman with blonde hair, wearing a pink sweater and white pants, holding them at gunpoint.
"Who the hell are you too? Did Moriarty sent you here!" She said angrily. Both Twilight and Albert held up their hands in peace. . . (well, hooves in Twilight's case.)
" No, no. Well I mean yes. But were not here to hurt you!" Shouted Twilight.
"Yeah, were just here to collect the caps you owe him. He said you ran off with his loot." Said Albert. This seemed to only make Silver angrier.
"Oh he did, did he? Well forget it. I earned those caps fair and square and he knows it!" She shouted.
"Really. Then why did he tell us other wise. Let me hear your side of the story." Silver looked at Albert and Twilight for a second and then lowered her weapon.
"All right. Here it is. I used to work for Moriarty, doing him 'favors', for him and his men. One day, I decide to leave, so I go up to the bastard and tell him that I'm going and that I'm taking my share of the caps I earned. Hell, I even slept with the guy to seal the deal. But turns out, come next morning, he starts telling everyone lies about me and tries to keep me from leaving. So I instead, cut my losses, took my caps and bolted. I've been hiding out here ever since." She finished her story on a sad note. Twilight as usual was having a hard time believing this. Albert on the other hand, had a different idea.
" Well, here's an idea. How about you give me half your caps. And I'a bring the half to him and tell him that you were killed and that you won't be a problem anymore. How's that?" Said Albert. Silver looked at him with surprise.
"You- you really do that for me? Well . . . . alright. Here- [Speech Success 200 caps obtained.
"There are the caps. Thanks you for this. Means a lot."
Albert only nodded and waved as he began to leave.
"No problem. Always happy to help. Come on Twilight." Twilight began to follow him but stopped midway.
"Hey Silver."
"Hmm. Yeah what?"
"Why do you hurt yourself with these drugs?" Silver only laughed in response.
" Who knows? Maybe I just do it to myself because I want to shoot myself up 'till I forget who I am. The wasteland sucks kid, unicorn or whatever the hell you are. You better get used to it."
"Sooo. You put that bitch down didn't ya. Good riddance." Said Moriarty as he collected the caps from Albert. Twilight was only disgusted by the man that had done terrible things. He was as ugly looking as the things he did. They were back in the saloon, making good on what they told Silver.
"Alright kiddo, heres the deal. Your father was here, now he's not. Said something about meeting someone in GNR down in the D.C ruins." He then told Twilight and Albert where that was located.
"Hmm. You look just like your father you know. Didn't think anyone would come after him from the vault. Especially you. Tell me, is your father the only reason you left the vault and came back to the wasteland?" Albert looked at him in confusion.
"What do you mean, come back? This is the first time I've been out here." Said Albert.
"Don't you remember? No, of course you don't. You were just a baby when I first saw you. Your father brought you in, him and that brotherhood of steel chick. It was sad really."
"What are talking about? Me and my father were born in the vault. We never came from the wasteland!" Said Albert, banging his fist on the counter.
"Oooh. Is that what what your father told you. I've heard about the brainwashing that goes on down there. 'All hail the Overseer!' and such. And it looks like you fallen for a big white lie." Albert couldn't stand hearing anymore. He bolted out of there, leaving Twilight behind.
"Wait, Albert! Where you going?! What's Wrong!?!" She yelled galloping after him.
'It couldn't be true! It can't be true!' He ran ran towards the entrance of Megaton, his mind ablaze.
'What secrets was my father hiding!? How much of my life is a lie!?!'
Author's Notes: Damn! This chapter came out longer than I intended. But the good thing was it showed me that I can write extremely long chapters on end. So let me know what you guys think in the comments. I'm in need of a pre-reader, to help me revise my work and check for errors. Plus thank you all who have favourited and and liked my fic so far, your comments and likings are the fuel that keeps me typing. So thank you all again. And as for the colored dialogue, I have thrown that out, since many ponies agree that it is unnecessary for reading. Even though it is too early, I want to ask you all who read this, that I'm going to be doing a vote on which of the fallout dlc should I do first. Let me know which one you think I should do first in the comments, I don't plan on doing anything on it soon, but I will incorparate it in to the fic. That's enough talking from me, CIAO!
