Chapter 4: harsh past and surprising future

We had made it back to Baleville and had given the parts to Rustbucket, a red and orange earth-pony with a paradoxically clean sliver bucket for a cutie mark, so he could fix up the purifier while Glitter and I went to her house to rest up and recover. 
The house had used to belong to her adoptive father Lawman but as he was mostly on the road with caravans now he let her have it. It was a large shack at the back of the town made of a train car and lots of sheet metal. 
Sitting on the one bed I decided it was time to ask the question that had been bugging me since the firefight “Hey Glitter, how come we needed to fix the purifier? Is all the water out here in the wasteland irradiated?” 
My blue mare friend jumped up to lay down next to me “Na not all the water or plants are tainted, it’s been two hundred years, but some places still have lots of taint and this place is one of them. We’re not sure what exactly but something leaking out of the Everfree Forest taints and irradiates all the ground water around here so we have to purify it.” 
That seemed to makes sense, to me at least, and I was about to pester her some more to learn about this taint that was in the ground water when I felt her hoof brush my side. Looking over I saw her staring at me with an intense worry in her eyes “Snowy… are you going to be ok? Ya’ve only been out here for a day and you… well.”  
One day out of the stable and I had already killed seven ponies. I thought about a raider’s head blowing apart in the slow-motion of S.A.T.S. and came to the conclusion that… no I was not ok. But Glitter had killed more than I have and she looked ok so I decided to just say “yep… I’m fine… just fine.” 
The blue mare looked as if she wanted to argue with me but then she saw just how exhausted I was when I leaned over to grab an apple from the nightstand and fell off the bed flat on my face. Glitter helped me back onto the bed “Oops sorry I forgot you aren’t used to fighting ponies all day. Ya look worn out so let’s get some sleep.” she said as she started to ease off my barding. 
My eyes bulged and I skittered away from her, almost falling back off the bed “Um wait were going to be sleeping in the same room? Isn’t there anywhere ells to sleep at, like maybe an inn or something?”  Glitter’s confusion was evident on her face but I couldn’t sleep in the same bed as her, she was a mare… a cute mare. 
“What’s wrong Snowy I have already seen naked so there’s nothing to worry about.” I started to stammer out some response when the blue mare’s eyes widened “Oh…Oh! I understand what the problem is. You don’t have to worry about that hun it’s not a problem.”
It took another ten minutes to convince me that Glitter was ok with the fact that I liked mares and thought she was pretty.  After helping me out of my leather barding and talking off her outfit my friend slid under the covers with me and snuggled up to my back, I had to admit that while the act made me intensely embarrassed it did feel really nice to have somepony so close to me. 
I felt breath on my mane as Glitter lifted her head up above mine and asked “Are ya sure you’re ok Snowy? I know how hard the fist kill can be especially to one so young and your shaking way more than a pony with a crush so talk to me.” 
I still wasn’t quite ready to talk about my murder spree so instead I said “Um well I’m just worried about Emerald no one saw him in town and he wasn’t in the school.” Glitter didn’t looked convinced but replied “Well he’s got to be out there somewhere so we should find him soon. If you’re sure your ok it’s time to get some sleep.” Nodding to her I laid back on my pillow and Glitter put her foreleg over my side, this made me blush but I ignored it and went to sleep.
*** *** ***
At fist my sleep was uninterrupted but soon my slumber was marred by visions filled with dead raider ponies. Their body’s blossomed in red, their heads exploded in gore, their chests heaved up and down as they gasped their last breaths. 
I tried to escape to… somewhere, anywhere that wasn’t the scene of horror before me but no matter how hard I ran I couldn’t get away from them. 
Soon the raiders stopped dying and slowly rose to their hooves and began to shamble towards me saying “You killed us Snowy, we’re dead now all because of you. Are you happy now Snowy, now that we’re dead?” They crowded around me trapping me in a circle, as one they screamed, swore, and gurgled at me. 
I curled up into a ball as they tightened their circle my body shaking in terror as I cried out “I’m sorry I’m sorry! Go away, leave me alone I’m sorry I killed you!” 
Suddenly the screams and gurgles stopped and the most beautiful voice I had ever heard called out softly “Shhh hush now little one it will be ok.” A large warm hoof gently touched my shoulder as my quivering stopped; looking up at the hoof’s owner my eyes bulged in disbelief. Before me stood the two goddesses I had prayed to since I was a foal. 
My mouth opened but no sound came out, I tried harder but… nothing. The goddesses just smiled at me as Luna spoke this time, the midnight blue alicorn’s voice as beautiful as hir sisters but slightly less mature sounding “Hush now little pony don’t try to talk. You’re not quite strong enough for that just know that it will be ok.” 
Calming for a moment I caught sight of the room around us, it was a large and elegantly dressed hall with two large gold thrones that the princesses sat on in front of me. It looked a lot like throne room in canterlot but there was one major difference, on either side of the hall were large windows full of light that showed lots of ponies and… more alicorns walking, flying, and playing together. 
Looking back at the goddesses I saw that both of them were smiling at me but also crying softly as Celestia lifted her hoof from my shoulder and then gathered me to her chest for a warm soft hug. Luna joined in and I thought I might just explode from joy, but then I thought about what I had done this very day, all the ponies I had killed and I suddenly felt that I didn’t deserve to be held like this. As that realization sunk in I found that while I couldn’t talk I could cry and so I did, I sobbed silently and tried to pull away from the two princesses. 
Seeing this Celestia took a hoof from around me and used it to bring my tear filled silver eyes to her gorgeous amethyst pair “Shhh now my little pony it will be ok we’re not mad at you, we’re just sad that there are so many ponies that are so full of hate. I’m sorry you had to do what you did but I can promise my sister and I will be here for you.” 
Luna smiled at me as well using her velvety soft wing-tip to dry my tears “My sister is right little Snowy we will be here when you need us, but right now you have to wake up.” 
Confusion ran through me, why would I want to wake up this hug was the happiest I’ve ever been. 
As if reading my mind Celestia nuzzled my forehead and whispered into my ear “There is still much you need to learn little one and you need to see that while we can’t be with you in the wastes you won’t be alone.”
Suddenly the world shifted and I found myself in some other pony’s forelegs. Glitter was holding me tightly and nuzzling my ear while I cried into her coat. 
Sniffling myself into silence I looked up into her aqua eyes “I…I’m sorry. I just couldn’t talk about it… I was so scared.” 
I felt Glitter rub my cheek with a forehoof as she replied quietly “Hey now that’s ok I know it’s hard to come to terms with it sometimes.” Rubbing my teary eyes I asked “How can you be so ok with it? I … I feel like I’m a bad pony.”
Glitter pulled me back into her chest and nuzzled the top of my head before replying “Well the truth of it is that ah been fighting raiders for a while now so I’m more used to killing than you are. But more than that dad used to take me out hunting all the time, in fact that’s how I got this.”
Looking at her flank I saw that a rifle scope, its lens glittering in the sun, was her cutie-mark. The blue mare beamed at her flank.
My curiosity was piqued so I asked her about it “Dad and I were hunting for some radhog meat to sell and we had gone real close to the Everfree forest. I was back up on the small ridge by the town and he was below me when all the sudden a big timberwolf charged out of the forest and attacked dad. I had tried to get a clean shot but he was holding it off with his hooves and a knife so he kept getting in the way.”
I was on the edge of the bed as I waited for her to continue “I kept looking down my scope, hoping that dad would move or do something when all of the sudden dad fell flat on his back and I got a clear shot. The thing was as soon as I could see the timberwolf everything just kinda slowed down and I found I could pick my shots while time just seemed to crawl by.”
My brain reeled at the prospect that this earth pony could do something naturally that I could only do with the help of my pipbuck’s targeting spell. Then again after what had happened when I got my own cutiemark I probably couldn’t argue with her story. As if reading my mind Glitter nudged my shoulder with a forehoof “Well you heard my fascinating story so now you get to tell me yours.”
Saying that my story was nowhere as exciting as hers didn’t deter her so I gave in “Well it only happened three days ago so I haven’t really had time to think about it very much. It all started just before school when I was heading to class.”
That day had started much like any other; I was running late for school and had been just about to go inside when Bolts and his gang of miscreants stepped in front of the door and blocked me. Bolts was a unicorn buck a few years older than I was and was a complete jerk, he and his gang terrorized all the young foals of the stable but I had always been his favorite target because to him I was a freak.
After stopping me he started on his whole tirade about me and my parents which wasn’t anything new. At least until he attacked me that is.  Since I didn’t know a thing about magic at the time I haven’t a clue as to what spell he used but his horn glowed a bright orange and a ball of flame shot out of it.  My wings were the only thing that saved me form getting cooked as they snapped open and I almost hit the ceiling. Once that happened security swarmed in from all over and dragged Bolts away as he was screaming at me that he knew what I was. After that my parents and the overmare showed up and everyone was yelling at everyone so to get away from it I ran off down to the orchard where we grow our apples and hunkered down just wanting to feel better and not feel like a freak, that’s when the weirdest thing happened.
Glitter’s eyebrow rose with curiosity as she asked me to continue.  Truthfully I wasn’t exactly sure what happened I but I explained anyway “It started to snow in the orchard. There were artificial clouds in the orchard but the only thing they could do was cover the fake sun and occasionally rain a little.”
The blue mare looked incredulous but after thinking for a second she seemed to have an idea “So ya made it snow somehow. Well ya are a pegasus, ain’t that what you’re supposed to do?”
I had heard that a long time ago that pegesi had controlled the weather by moving and even walking on clouds but I hadn’t even touched them so I didn’t think that was the case. Besides if that was what happened it wouldn’t have explained the strange surge I felt flowing through me or the fact that when everyone made it down to the orchard and my parents saw what was happening they had a look of absolute hatred on their faces.
After that story we both seemed to look for something to say till Glitter nudged my shoulder saying “So what exactly were ya dreaming about? Ya were shaking like mad and screaming then ya just got all calm and started to cry and whimper about how somepony shouldn’t be so nice to ya.”
Deciding that it couldn’t hurt talk about it I told her everything about the dream I had. After asking me a few more questions about it Glitter dropped the subject but I noticed that she looked confused as she went to sleep and with a little time to calm myself down I fallowed her in the land of dreams
*** *** ***
That morning it took us a little while to get going as I still didn’t sleep to well after wakening up. But eventually we started off towards the job Clara had given us. As I thought about the yellow mare I had an idea that would help if we ran into trouble with raiders or somepony ells.
Breaking off from Glitter I headed back into town with a promise to meet up with her outside of the Super Pony-Mart in Bucktown. I had two stops to make and as much as I would love to get Anesthesia look at my head and see if she could stop my headache I needed caps to do it so first it was off to Clara’s.
Once inside the emporium the yellow mare and I got down to bartering. Most of the gear and guns we got from the raiders was complete crap but I did manage to get her to repair my armor and install an add-on into my battle-saddle. Clara smiled over at me “You be careful with the addition to your battle-saddle. We wouldn’t want to have anypony get hurt accidentally right?”
I smiled and thanked the kind but slightly ditzy mare then made my way over to Baleville’s clinic so Ana could look at my head and make it stop hurting so much. As I entered the elder pink pony gave me the same scathing look “Hello there Snowy I don’t suppose your coming in here to tell me that you decided to stop adventuring and getting shot at.”
I wasn’t sure if I should be frightened or angry but before I could really say anything Ana continued her speech “I do understand that life is very tough out here in the wastes but you’re just a little filly.” 
“Well yes but…”
“You’ve only been out of your stable one day and you have already killed at least half a dozen ponies.”
“But I didn’t have a…”
“Not to mention been seriously wounded twice.”
Sensing a pause in her rant I finally got a word in edgewise “I understand that you’re worried about me Miss Ana but I have to try and find my friend Emerald and do the job Clara gave me.”
The older mare seemed taken aback for a second before she continued undauntedly “Somepony ells can do those things, your just a filly you shouldn’t be out searching the waists for a ghost or leaving other ponies in pools of their own…”
I had had enough, slamming my forehoof down I practically screamed at the medical pony “SHUT UP!! Do you think I like what I had to do because I don’t, I hate it, I had nightmares about it but what was I supposed to do let them kill me?! I don’t like having to kill ponies but that won’t stop me from finding my friend and helping anypony who needs It.” as I ended my outburst the dam finally broke and I curled up began to sob.
Suddenly I felt a hoof on my mane “I... I’m sorry I didn’t mean it like that it’s just that I don’t want to see another young filly get hurt.”
Feeling rather embarrassed at how hateful I had been I hid my face behind my hooves as I squeaked out a reply between sniffles “W-well if you wanted to keep me from getting h-hurt I think you’re a little late. But I’m sorry I shouted at you like that it just scares me that I could do something like that… and it was so, so easy. It was like I was back at the stable’s practice range all I had to do was line up the sights, tongue the trigger and bam… except it wasn't paper targets this time it was ponies.”
The older mare was looking more embarrassed by the second my continued distress “Um I do understand what you mean, I remember the nightmares I had after I killed my first pony… they weren’t pleasant.”
I was about to ask her when she would have had to kill somepony but another thought struck me as curious so I decided to ask her about it “Hey miss Ana you said you didn’t want to see another filly hurt so was there one that you knew?”
“Well yes actually, the story behind it is one that still pains me to this day but I suppose I owe you an explanation for my outburst.”
“Oh no you don’t have to tell if it’s going to upset you.”
She looked like somepony was stabbing her in the heart but she smiled tiredly at me none the less “Thanks sweetie but I really should talk about it. She was my niece, my sister and I lived in a larger town out east called Freetown. It was an ok town but a bit too rough and tumble to raise a family so when we had enough bottlecaps between us we planned to move out west where there wasn’t as much trouble.”
Suddenly she stopped mid story and glanced confusedly at me “Uh not to be rude but I just realized, why are you here?”
“Um well I was here because of my head; it’s been hurting for days and just seems to be getting worse.”
Ana nodded and promised to look at my head after she finished her story “But before we could leave the wasteland got my sister. She…s-she was out by the Everfree forest when she ran into a patch of… killing-joke.”
Curious about the name I asked “I don’t mean to interrupt you but what in Equestria is killing-joke?”
“Well you’ve heard of poison-joke right?” when I answered yes she continued “Killing-joke is what happens when the flower is exposed to large amounts of magical radiation. As a side effect it becomes much more deadly.”
The thought that there just wasn’t any good left in the waists crept through my head at that morbid little fact… but no that wasn’t true, look at Glitter and the ponies of Baleville and Emerald… wherever he was, there was good in the waists it was just a lot harder to find.
“She always said she wanted to help pony medical science, it was the reason we got into being medical ponies. Well the joke thought it would be funny to have her help by spawning a new, incurable, disease in her. After that it only took a day and a half for it to finish her off.”
“Oh Miss Ana I’m so sorry! I never had a sister but I couldn’t imagine losing her if I did.”
“It’s ok Snowy it was a long time ago and she was a grown pony who knew the dangers of the Everfree…her daughter on the other hoof.”
The medical pony took a second to calm herself “After my sister’s death Shimmer Blue, her daughter, got more and more depressed and despondent. I tried my best to cheer her up but nothing worked so finally I decided we would move out west like I and my sister were planning. Shimmer Blue was extremely upset at first but after I told her it was because her mother wanted her to grow up in a place where she could be happy and help everypony she could she agreed wholeheartedly.” 
Ana suddenly stopped in her tale to sigh heavily and gaze at the floor “I just wish she hadn’t taken my words so much to heart.”
I leaned forward to lay my hoof on her shoulder to comfort the grieving mare “Please tell me what happened her.”
“We had signed on with a caravan heading west to Baleville and had only been on the road two days when we ran into an abandoned carriage full of goods. Since the carriage wasn’t destroyed and nothing appeared to be missing it didn’t look like raiders so we crowded around it to see if we could salvage anything. But while we were doing that another pony crept up to us and got my niece’s attention. I don’t know what he said but he must have asked for help because she ran off with him right away and by the time I noticed she was long gone. We did manage to track her down but when we got there we found… w-w-we found… OH GODESSES!”
The mare before me broke into open sobs and it my turn to comfort her. Eventually she ran out of steam and just slumped into me, I was feeling like such a mule for making her go through this story but before I could even bother asking her to stop she pushed herself off me and continued
“We found out that it wasn’t a pony at all, the imposter had been a changeling and it had drained her completely dry.”
“Hang on I thought changelings fed on emotions like love or fear?” I asked in confusion
She smiled grimly “They do but the can also feed directly off a pony’s life force. It fills them up faster than emotions but it will kill the pony their feeding off of. Needless to say when I figured out the truth I personally slaughtered the thing but…but killing it didn’t bring back my Shimmer. After I lost her too I just wandered without purpose till I wound up here. When I became the town’s doctor I swore I wouldn’t let any other fillies get hurt if I could help it then you came along and well… here we are.”
“I’m sorry Ana I didn’t mean to upset you so much.”
For a second I thought she might break down again but she seemed to steel herself and instead smiled pleasantly at me “It’s ok Snowy the fault was mine, I got so caught up in protecting fillies I forgot that sometimes those fillies need to be out there in the wastes so they can help and protect other ponies. Look at you for instance out of the stable but a day and you already saved the town and I know you will go to the ends of Equestria to find your friend.”
My cheeks grew rosy as I listened, sure I had helped Glitter get the purifier parts but she had done most of the work. And looking for Emerald was just something anypony should do for a friend right?
Ana just smiled at my blush “Be modest all you want but you’ve done more for this town in two days than I ever did. I’m sorry for snapping at you like I did it was uncalled for, now how about we take a look at that head of yours.”
I let myself relax onto the bed while Ana busied herself readying a scanning spell to see what was wrong with me. Admittedly it was nice to find out why she was so upset with me but the mare did have one thing right I was quickly becoming a mass murder, and while it was more or less self-defense and the goddesses in my dreams said they weren’t mad at me for it I was still upset that I had to kill so much.
But before I could get to down on myself I felt the warm tingle of the medical pony’s magic on my head “Ok now just try to relax it will probably take me a while to… wait… this can’t be right.”
Feeling Ana’s magic abruptly cut off I looked over to see her backing hurriedly away, her eyes wide with worry. I was about to ask her what was wrong when she finally spoke up “U-um Snowy… w-what are you?”
“I’m a pegasus silly… why… is something wrong.”
Still seeming worried she replied “N-no nothing’s wrong my spell just malfunctioned a bit that’s all. You should be just fine so don’t worry… but please be more careful out there ok?”
There was definitely something she wasn’t telling me but seeing as I just got on her good side… more or less I really didn’t want to press the issue, besides one lecture a day is enough.
I was slightly surprised to find that Glitter had waited on me. As I approached she stopped tapping her hoof and gave me a slightly scathing look “Where the hay have ya been?”
“Well uh I went to get something for my battle-saddle and sell some stuff then I went over to Ana to have her look at my head.”
“Why did it take so long are you really that thick skulled?”
Frowning slightly I nudged her with a forehoof “No… she just kinda had a… grievance she wanted to express.”
  She frowned back at me and seemed to ponder for a second before replying “Let me guess she was upset because you’re a filly?”
When I nodded my head Glitter sagged slightly “Well come on we need to get going so let’s talk on the way.”
*** *** ***
As we made our way through the battered skeletal remains of Bucktown for the second time I explained my argument with Ana while Glitter recounted her own encounter with the medical pony. Turns out she was only a little older than I was when she met the older mare but Ana never said much on account of Lawman.
“That reminds me.” I said hoping, I wasn’t stepping on another social landmine “I was meaning to ask you… is Lawman you’re…”
Glitter chuckled at my nervousness “Ma real dad? Naw I don’t remember where ah came from or ma real parents. Ah was only a little filly when Dad found me outside of the Everfree Forest of all places.”
While I wondered to myself what Glitters real parents were like I felt her bump my side “Well” she said with a mischievous grin “I told a bit about my life so now it’s your turn. I want to hear what life was like in a stable.”
I wasn’t exactly sure what to say other than life in the stable sucked but I always got the feeling it could have sucked more.
At my friends confused glance I decided I should go into more detail. “Life in the stable was pre set, you when where the overmare wanted, when the overmare wanted. There was a set time for work and school, set times for meals, even set times for relaxation, it was all set up and made routine… I hated it.”
Glitter tilted her head slightly “So uh… what happened if ya broke the routine?”
“Well I didn’t get caught much since my small frame meant I could slip into the ventilation system by when most ponies violated stable law they would get sent to ‘the box’.”
The Blue mare chuckled softly “The box huh? That don’t sound too bad.”
I frowned darkly at her; the box was much nastier than it appeared to be. I still remembered the time our teacher was caught drinking in class…her pale and huge eyes as they drug her off gave me nightmares. I found out why it was terrifying when I got in there… it hadn’t been a punishment or anything, the security guards never did more than give me a stern talking-to for some reason, but instead I found it by accident while crawling through the vents.
‘The box’ as it was called was small steel room near the stable’s reactor… at least I think it was steel, one of the things that made it so bad was a magical darkness spell you couldn’t see your own forehooves even whit your pip-buck’s light on. I found that out when I tried to activate it and fell into the room, I couldn’t see my muzzle let alone the vent, so I started trotting around franticly and that’s when the noises started. To this day I’m not sure if the sound was from the reactor or some other spell but as I ran around there was a terrible roaring and grinding noise. It scared me so bad I lost my bladder and started flying into the walls.
Glitter put a hoof on me “Whoa easy there Snowy, just relax ok. Look ya don’t have to tell me any more I think ah got it… besides there’s the Super-pony Mart.”
The building was only one story and looked like it had been through hell, most of the walls had bullet holes of various sizes and all the glass in the windows and doors was shattered. However I was more interested in the fire built in the store’s parking lot and the two raider ponies standing beside it, they hadn’t spotted us but if we stayed in the open they just might.
As we slid ourselves down into the ditch at the other side of the road from the store Glitter braced her forehooves on the side and flicked down her scope. She was just about to pull the trigger when I taped her shoulder and she looked over at me “What?”
“Don’t take the shot. The glass on the whole front of the building is gone so any raiders inside will hear you.”
The mare raised a brow “Inside, outside does it matter? We still need to get through them to get what we want.”
“Well yes but if they have any ponies locked up inside they might kill them before we can get to them. So we need to take these two out quietly.”
“Raiders don’t usually take prisoners… unless there for ‘entertainment’ but.” she sighed “I suppose your right but how do we get them. I do have a suppresser for my rifle but it’s bolt-action so I couldn’t get them both.”
I smiled and flapped my wings “Just let me get airborne and wait for my signal.”
The wind rustled my mane as I hovered over the raider pony’s heads. It had taken me a while to find a spot where they wouldn’t see my takeoff but now that I flutter over their heads it became apparent that raiders, like most non-flyers, never thought to look up. 
Waving my hoof I snapped my wings shut and plummeted down onto the head of the earth-pony raider, his neck snapping with a sick crack as my rear hooves connected with him. His body fell flat as I rolled off him onto my hooves and spun around to face the other raider. The other buck, a unicorn, gaped at me for a second but still had the sense to levitate up the shotgun he had leaning on some rubble… not that I did him much good as there was a dull thunk and half his head disappeared.
As Glitter made her way up to me I checked over the dead raider’s shotgun but it was near broken and was cambered in twenty-gauge not twelve. Still I took the shells he had on him as my companion checked the other raider. We both froze as we heard a gruff voice form inside the shop “HEY!! You fuckers keep it down out there or Thorn will geld your asses when she gets back!”
We glanced at each other and decided we should wait till they were all dealt with before we looted. Creeping soundlessly up to the door I noticed several posters, I had seen some at the school but all of them were torn or unreadable. These seemed in much better condition except for one that had been painted over.
Remember bad ponies are everywhere so report any suspicious activity! 
The M.O.M is always watching and we will find the bad ponies.
Poster made by the M.O.I
The one that had painted over read 
End the tyranny!
Down with the ministries!
Join the Free Equestrian Legion today!
Making a mental note to ask about that later I crept up to the shattered door and poked my head inside. If the outside looked bad the inside was worse, the shelves were mostly destroyed and what was left of the produce was littered all over the floor. Off to the left of the destroyed check-out lanes was a small hallway that seemed to, at one time, house bathrooms. On top of one of the destroyed shelves and milling around an open space were several raiders.
Nodding over to Glitter she sighed readied her rifle and I taped the second toggle on my battle-saddle as my shotgun kicked the shell from the chamber and loaded in another one. Steadying myself I rolled behind the checkout counter as I heard the crack of Glitter’s rifle and saw the pony on the Shelves fall with a crash. The other raiders in the store grabbed the weapons and charged the front door. Sliding out from the counter I tongued the right bit of my saddle making my pump-action coughed out a cone of steel spikes from the flechette shell I loaded into it, the leading raider went down in a bloody heap as several spikes sunk into the skin of the three fallowing him causing them jump for cover.
Unfortunately before I could take aim again two more raiders, both unicorns, galloped in from farther in the store levitated weapons at the ready. I was really getting tired of the whole magic thing, I mean it must be nice to have but it really unbalances the playing field. There wasn’t any cover as they both opened fire with a pistol and a SMG, thankfully my armor held up better this time taking the impact of most of the rounds with only one or two punching through while Glitter’s rifle cracked again and the SMG raider fell with hole in his chest. The second unicorn tried to backpedal while reloading his pistol, as his magic clicked the slide catch open I wheeled to him and entered my targeting spell putting two shots from my rifle into his shoulder and neck.
The other three raiders had just started to peak from their cover when Glitter ran up to me, kicking the bit of her battle-saddle down in favor of her revolver for close combat. Pulling the bit back I ejected the spent shell and loaded buck-shot from the tube. Seeing one of the raiders start to charge I leveled my shotgun till I was forced back into cover by the wild firing of the other two. Hearing the pony getting closer the blue mare beside me twisted so that when the buck hopped up on top of the chewed up counter he got all six of her .45caliber slugs in his throat.
While my companions tongued open her revolver’s cylinder to reload I decided to go on the offensive, rolling from cover I charged down the two remaining foes. One of them loading a revolver of his own, without the good sense to do so from cover, I took him down with a burst of twelve-gauge pellets. The final pony franticly turned to me trying to bring his rifle to bear but I was much to close now and the shot missed by a mile. Deciding to save ammo I instead pivoted on my forehooves and kicked my back legs out right into his face. I heard the same crack as before and he fell to the ground twitching.
I was shocked as Glitter limped up to me, I had thought I was the only one hit but she had taken a grazing shot to the chest and a small caliber round to the leg. Fortunately her wounds, like mine, were minor so she just tossed me a healing potion as she drank one herself while we got down to looting. We had barely started when a tiny anguished cry echoed through the place. As one we rush toward the bathroom that appeared to have been its source, I arrived first and was greeted by a sight which still haunts me to this day.
Chained up in the mare’s room was a little earth-pony filly even younger than I was and covered in filth. What I could see of her coat was deep blue… except for the areas around her mouth and flanks; they were stained yellow, brown, red, and worst of all white. I rushed forward and took the traumatized little pony in my hooves as I heard Glitter walk in behind me and swear “Sweet sky-fucking Celestia NO!”
Looking over at her I saw a look on her face that promised slow and painful death to anypony in her way. I was about to say something when the little one griped me tighter and wailed into my chest “Please my momma you have to save my momma! The mean lady said if I let them play with me she wouldn’t hurt my momma, please you have to find her!”
Checking my E.F.S I thought of something, the rider had mentored some mare named Thorn and the little filly talked about a mean lady but all the dead raiders were male… and if there went any females among them that meant, I heard hoofsteps and raised voices as my Eyes Forward Sparkle flamed with red “Well fuck”
*** *** ***
I had changed my mind I didn’t just dislike magic I hated it, especially when that magic was holding an assault rifle which pinned me behind the door of the bathroom. Glitter had made a break before the shooting started, nearly getting her head blown off in the process, and was now across the hall from me. I looked out into the hall at my shotgun lying where the same sniper had sheared it from my battle-saddle as I had tried to cover Glitter. There was no way I could get out the door to use my rifle so I just shrugged the torn saddle from my shoulders and drew my pistol from its holster all the while thinking about how Clara was going to kill me.
Seeing a hoof-wave I looked over to see the blue mare’s rifle braced with her hooves as she slid around the door to fire. When I went to cover her I was surprised to see that in my distraction one of the raiders had gotten close to us with an upraised crowbar. My friend tried to reline her shot but there was a loud crack and she fell to the floor with a scream as her stomach splashed red. The crowbar raider continued to close as I hit S.A.T.S and put ten rounds into his body as it skidded past her in a heap. Turning my gun to the other two my heart went cold when I heard the small clink and saw the locked slide of my empty gun. The sniper pony, a female unicorn with half the coat on her face missing, smiled grotesquely and lined up another shot at my friend
I’m not sure to this day if I caused it or if it was just blind luck but whatever the case I felt a strange electrical surge run through my body like it had at the stable as one thought went from my very core to my lips “NO!”. Suddenly a glittering golden wall cover the whole hallway in front of us as I ran to Glitter in time to see her chug down all she could get of a healing potion. Turning my head back to the wall I was surprised to see both the rifle and sniper rounds bouncing off it, looking out at the two raiders a new feeling replaced the desperation I had been feeling, anger, I was going to make them pay for what they did. The glittering wall dissipated and the same glow outlined the shelf the sniper was on as it was pulled out from under her then dropped on her flailing body with a satisfying crunch and shriek.
The last raider’s eyes bulged in fear as I advanced on him my shotgun floating beside me. He dropped the weapon and fell to his knees begging for mercy. Seeing the buck up close gave me pause, he didn’t look much older than I was and I just couldn’t bring myself to kill a young colt so I racked my pump-action and pointed it at the door, not needing to be told twice he fled screaming something about the goddesses trying to kill him as I continued my advance. 
Finally I arrived at the trapped mare that had been the leader as she screamed at me “Fuck you stupid mule! When I get out of here I’ll fuck’n gut you!” Not saying anything I just pushed the muzzle against her forehead making her grin psychotically “Do it then ya fuck if ya got the courage.”
I pressed my gun more firmly against her but hesitated, I had just spared a pony that was helpless now I was going to kill one? Sliding my gun back I whispered softly “No…I – I’m not an executioner.” 
The mare just laughed “Typical weakling, guess you just don’t hav…”
That was all she got out before her head disappeared in red mist. Glitter trotted up beside me, her rifle back in her saddle and the little filly in tow “She might not be but I certainly am.” She spat out at the corpse. I had expected the filly to be scared of all the bodies but she didn’t even seem to notice them, instead she was looking at me, her eyes filled with something close to wonder. I was about to say something when Glitter looked at me, her own eyes going round, and answered my unasked question “Um Snowy she’s starring at w-well at your horn.”
“My…WHAT!”
Footnote: Level up
Quest perk added: Alicorn blood- - a sudden surge in power reveled your hidden heritage and given you some unique advantages with it (+1 to all s.p.e.c.i.a.l. attributes. skill scores now go up based on use. unlocks magic and flying skills regardless of original body type.
New perk: rapid reload- - with quick reflexes you can put a round in the camber when it counts (all guns now reload 45% faster.)
Skill notes:
Magic skill unlocked!
Magic now at 25
New spells:
Telekinesis - level 2
Shield spell - level 2  

   
Fallout Equestria © to Kkat
My Little Pony: Fim © to Hasbro
Snowy flanks and other oc’s © Me