Streets of Trotson
Day 2
Apparently finding a place to burn the cloud nine packages wasn’t that hard. Somepony, most likely a merchant if I were to guess, had set up a bunch of old, unused canisters along the road to the quarry with flames burning bright. Considering the apparent lack of anything that could be considered civilization, it must have been used to make a safe path across the city. As safe as it could be, anyways, with the surface as fucked as it was.
After tossing the cloud nine into one of the canisters I backed away and used the cloak to hide my nose. I watched as the smoke grew quite large, creating a small blanket above the canister before spreading out into the air. I wasn’t quite sure if I had gotten rid of it the right way, but it seemed to prove effective enough. Nothing in the package of cloud nine had exploded too, which I was more than thankful for.
With the most dangerous of the drugs destroyed and out of the way, I turned my attention exclusively to reaching the quarry. I looked up at the stars in the sky, knowing for a fact what I was looking at shouldn’t have been there. The night sky was beautiful, belonged only to the pegasus, and here it was being shown to ponies unworthy of seeing it. That was what I had been raised to believe.
Wasn’t as bad as knowing I was being watched, and I didn’t mean by Shadow Corp. Some time after leaving the Grand Trotson Hotel I noticed something flying over a building in the distance. That alone wouldn’t have been weird, and I even considered the low possibility of it being Angel Hair, but then I saw it again. It hopped from distant rooftop to rooftop a couple more times, always staying in sight of me but far enough away where I couldn’t make out a decent silhouette. My only real guesses were that it was a pegasus or griffin, but seeing as they hadn’t attacked me yet I decided not to attack them.
As for how I was so certain it wasn’t Shadow Corp: they had somehow separated control of an S.P.P Tower from the central hub; that had long been considered an impossibility. It was the only way they could clear the cloud layer and make the sandstorm, and that meant they didn’t need somepony following me. They could do it all from their base of operations, and this mind-PipBuck-thing was likely sending them information.
When I had gotten relatively close to the quarry the barest amount of light had started to peak out from the horizon. I had been lucky to not run into anything wanting to kill me. I looked at my mind-map (I had nothing else to really call it at the time) again, noticing that the Trotson quarry wasn’t actually listed as a quarry. Instead it was called ‘Sandstone’, which was as accurate a name for a settlement if I had ever heard one. Far more sophisticated a name than I had expected.
Something else caught my eye, however. There was another location labeled on the map, right next to Sandstone. My eyes went wide as I saw the name of the location that was marked before me: Stable 71. I’m honestly not sure why I hadn’t expected there to be Stables in Trotson, or just on the ground in general, considering there had been ones in the clouds. A piece of me wanted to ask if ponies got to it in time, if it had actually saved ponies from the bombs, and if those still inside hadn’t been twisted by the world outside of it. Considering the kinds of experiments I later learned that Stable-tech had put in some of those places, I highly doubted it.
When I closed the map, I got the first actually good look at what was before me. There were two mud ponies guarding the entrance wearing armor that could only be described as mangled metal and leather. Behind them was the path leading down to Sandstone, though you couldn’t see much of a settlement from the ground. The marble and stone in the quarry built a natural wall around it that protected the Sandstone from everywhere but directly above.
“Guess it is time to say hello,” I muttered as I looked up to a far off building. The creature watching me was still there. “Perhaps then I’ll find a space for some true privacy.”
The hope was that I wouldn’t need the drugs currently occupying my saddlebags. If they just let me through without question everything would work out. I wasn’t exactly good at pretending to be somepony I wasn’t. I took a deep breath as I approached the gates, noticing that both the grounders were eyeing me. Calm and unflinching, I walked up between the guards silently hoping that they would leave me be.
It didn’t happen. The moment I was almost past a hoof stuck in front of me and one of the guards sniffed the air. His eyes looked me up and down, and then scanned the road behind me. Perhaps he also sensed the individual that had been following me up, thinking we might be up to some trouble. After a couple of moments, he looked back at me with a devious smile on his face. There were two possible things he was about to ask, one more perverted than the other.
“Whatcha got in those bags, sweetie?” He asked me in a young voice that was clearly meant to sound sultry and alluring. Considering how bad such a simple line came out, anypony could tell he had no idea what he was doing.
“Dash, Mint-als both normal and party-time, and some other things,” I replied, countering his putrid attempt at a pick-up line (at least I’m pretty sure that it was meant to be a pick-up line) with a stone cold stare. “What do you want and how much are you offering?”
Instead of backing away, the guard leaned in. “As much as it takes for two mint-als and a night with yo–“
“I got a husband,” I told him, looking away from him and to the other guard. They rolled their eyes and started moving around me to their friend. “And I’m not polyamorous.”
“Aw come on. You say that now but I bet you’r-“ The young colt’s words were cut off as his friend dragged him to the side. “Hey! Come on Guardian you’re ruining me.”
“Shut up you fucking moron,” Guardian replied as he smacked his friend over the head. “Listen, she’s a Dashite. Clearly not one that came down here willing. She probably still has it in her head that she might be able to see him again somehow,” As happy as I was to see him get the young stallion to stop, I couldn’t deny his words made my eyelids twitch a little. “Just let her figure that out and then act like the creepiest motherfucker this side of the wasteland.”
“Heh, if I do get with her that would be literally.”
Guardian gave him another hit on the head for that. With that he turned away and started walking back to his position, letting out an irritated sigh. The difference in both experiences in professionalism was jarring and surprising, considering what I had expected from Sandstone. The Enclave would have knocked that mindset out of the colt quickly if he had tried to join.
“Apologies about Razor. You know how colts can be,” Guardian said. I gave him a nod, inwardly chuckling as I remembered the few stallions I had dated before Anchor. “He’ll learn one way or the other. I just hope the way he learns isn’t gonna cost him his life.”
“Some ponies here would really be that bad?” I asked.
“Miss, Sandstone might be the most civilized area in Trotson but that doesn’t mean we have any written laws,” Guardian explained, Razor sheepishly nodding along as he returned to his post. “It’s mainly a mix of ‘don’t fuck with Bone Breaker’ and ‘don’t fuck around, or you will find out’, if that makes sense.”
“Anything is technically permitted, but not everything is smart,” I summarized. Guardian smiled and gave a nod. I looked past the hodgepodge gate that led to Sandstone, and then back to him. “Don’t worry, I’m not interested in finding out what happens to those who cause trouble. I’ll likely be in and out within the day if all goes right.”
“Whether it be a day or more, stay on your best behavior,” He replied, holding a hoof out. “Also, uh, if you wouldn’t happen to have some Buck on ya, I’m willing to pay for it.”
A short exchange later, and I found myself short two containers of Buck and a couple caps richer. I bid Guardian goodbye and made my way through the gates, letting out a sigh. It had gone better than expected, though I made a mental note to tell Bone Breaker about Razor’s choice of welcoming words. Guardian himself had said it was only a matter of time till he tried to woo the wrong mare.
As I worked my way down from the top of the quarry, I got to see Sandstone for what it was. The first thing anypony would notice was the sudden increase in ponies wandering around before them. While there weren't many awake due to it still being earlier in the morning, it became increasingly clear that all of them were grounders. There wasn’t a single pegasus in sight. It lends more credence to what Odka had said back on the train about the lack of pegasi in Trotson overall. I felt like, to reuse an earlier analogy, an alicorn in an orgy of grounders, and while not at all shy it certainly made me more aware of my wings.
There were only a few pony-made buildings in the quarry, and judging by the signs hanging from most of them they weren’t residential. I didn’t bother to read any of the shop names, but for what Ironsight had called ‘raiders they seemed surprisingly more civilized than I had expected. I quickly realized I would need to reevaluate how I talked and interacted with most of them. The drugs would likely still work out in my favor, given things at the gate, but talking with Bone Breaker might not be as uncivil as I originally thought.
One building was a little bit bigger than the others, and had a pony with a battle saddle on the outside of it. I knew immediately that I had found Bone Breaker’s place of residence. Looking up, a pony saw a barely illuminated sky, the rising sun still not reaching high enough to turn it from black to blue. It also left the entirety of Sandstone cold and dark. Nopony would likely be awake for some time still. Didn’t mean it wasn’t worth trying to get the discussion over with now, at least.
I closed the gap between myself and building, using the time to consider how I would explain why I needed to see her in the first place. No written rules or not, Bone Breaker was still the one in charge. She would be a busy mare, and some fresh-of-the-clouds Dashite like myself would need a very good reason to get her audience. By the time I had reached the guard in front of her residence, I had a decent idea of what I would do.
“Excuse me,” I said, instantly getting the guard’s attention. “Is this Bone Breaker’s place? I need to talk to her.”
“Yeah, but she is still asleep,” He replied with an exceptionally harsh and exhausted tone. He clearly was too tired to deal with anypony’s shit. “Like every other reasonable pony in this place is doing this early. If you want I can pass on whatever you have to say but I’m not about to let you make the boss cranky. Ponies tend to get hurt when she gets cranky.”
“Fair enough,” I said as I started to turn around. “Let her know a pegasus needs her help finding two ponies. I’ll come back at a better time.”
He nodded, and I trotted off into the rest of Sandstone. If I had time to explore, might as well use and maybe see if any shops had a battle saddle available. Goddesses know it would make using this damn rifle far easier.
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“I know the map said one was close by but… I didn’t expect it to be here.”
All the shops had turned out to be closed, which I should have expected given the time of day. It led me to wander aimlessly around checking out every nook and cranny of the quarry. It had been uninteresting at the start, with the only things around me typically being the marble walls. It made for great defense, especially since they didn’t have to worry about the GPE attacking from directly above. Didn’t make for an interesting surroundings.
Then, I turned around one corner and found something very clearly not made of marble before me. It was a giant, metal, cog-like door with ‘71’ in giant, faded letters. It was slightly ajar, allowing me to see a bit of what was inside. It was placed in an alcove, a marble ceiling sheltering it from the light of day. I knew exactly what I was looking at, a part of me curious as to how the stable door had managed to get stuck in a half-open state.
A curiosity that was immediately driven out of my head as I felt something staring at me. I turned around and looked up, watching what I assumed to be a unicorn go wide eyed. All I could make out was a pure white coat and a long mane that was a white at the top and dark blue at the bottom. That was all I managed to see before their horn lit up and they vanished from sight. At the time I had believed it to be teleportation, and thought it was just a local intrigued in me being here. No way it could have been the individual that had been following me earlier that day, given they had horns instead of wings.
Well, I had thought so anyway, but I’ll get to that later.
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I turned my attention back to Stable 71, the first stable I had seen in my life. Considering how they were typically placed in more out of the way locations I never saw them on any missions to the surface. The sheer size of its door alone would have intimidated any civilian, but all it did to me was make me feel small. It was huge, probably so it could allow multiple ponies in at a time. I doubt anyone was calm down here minutes before the Balefire Bombs hit.
I wasn’t entirely sure how long I stood there, taking in the wartime wonder before me. All I knew was that I was pulled out of my stupor by a meek yet harsh sounding voice.
“Quite the spectacle, isn’t it?” A pony said from behind me. I looked to see an earth pony, brown coat and blond mane, making her way to my side. “The current Invisible Mare said this is where she came from. Apparently they hooked her up to some machine, and spent most of her time inside it in a fake version of the stable,” I raised an eyebrow, something she took notice of and snorted at. “Yeah, makes no sense to me either.”
“I’m surprised you met the Invisible Mare,” I commented, looking back to the stable door. “Didn’t think anypony would know what she looked like.”
“The current I.M. has been in charge for only five years. I owe her a lot,” the mare explained, a small smile on her face. “I’m free because of her. Most of us here in Sandstone used to be slaves meant for the personal pleasure and enjoyment of one group of raiders or another. When she and that griffon of hers freed us, she asked us to watch over her parents grave.”
“That grave being here?” I asked, getting a nod in response. I closed my eyes for a second, and then looked at the mare again. “My condolences. Nopony, even you grounders, should live like that.”
I heard her chuckle, then mutter quietly. “Yep, definitely not down here willingly.”
The two of us stood there, my mind turning to learn more about the Invisible Mare. There was clearly a bigger story behind them than I was aware of. My interest in learning it would have been higher if I hadn’t realized a few correlations. Namely that the current Invisible Mare took over around the same time as that disastrous mission. Whether they were responsible or the previous one was, I wasn’t sure. The fact she had a griffin companion, however, gave me a decent idea of how it was.
“The name is Bone Breaker,” the mare to my side said. “You are the pegasi that was looking for me earlier?”
“Singing Rhapsody, and yeah that was me,” I said, looking up at the sky. Light was starting to make its way into the old quarry. “Apologies if I woke you early. First day here has been… quite the experience.”
I took a step to the side and spread my wings, showing off the area Gold had plucked my feathers. I could see Bone Breaker flinch at the sight, letting out a sound that was a mix between a hiss and sigh. In the short amount of time I had been talking to her, the mare had shown herself to be nothing like I imagined. She seemed a lot saner than I figured anypony named Bone Breaker would be.
“Yeah, Gold ain’t exactly the most gentle of individuals,” She said. The grimace that had formed on her face from the sight of my feathers shifted into a soft smile. “Hey, you're alive at least, and I heard you got a MentaBuck. Most pegasi here can’t say the same thing.”
“MentaBuck?” I asked, hoof reaching for my forehead. “I’m guessing that is the name of the device Shadow Corp shoved into my head.”
“All the convenience of a PipBuck without needing to actively carry it,” Bone Breaker explained. Her face shifted into one that I couldn’t place as a frown or a smile. “That is what Shadow Corp says, anyways. You are the first pegasi who has been given it and not suffered the affliction known as death.”
I blinked a couple of times, not quite sure how to gauge what I had just been told. Even when it hit me that I could have died yesterday my brain refused to compute what it was being told. That was, and probably still is, the most lowkey near death experience I had ever had in my life. I did now know I had been more correct than expected earlier about Gold shoving a PipBuck into my brain.
“Huh, got it,” I said after several seconds of silence. I shook my head, clearing my brain of the fact I had nearly died and focusing on what was important. “Anyways, I need your assistance finding some ponies. Think you can help?”
“Maybe. I don’t know everypony in this city,” She said. Bone Breaker turned around and motioned at me with her head. “Join me at my place. We can discuss things there with assured privacy. Had anything to eat today?”
I shook my head as I started to follow her back to Sandstone proper.
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Bone Breaker’s hooves slammed into the table, and to my surprise it didn’t crack. I had certainly been surprised at the action, as she had been calmly listening to me recount the reason I was down here. She got up from her seat, paced around the table for a bit, and then sat back down. Her muzzle fell in between her forelegs, a position she decided to stay in as she slumped forward.
“A raider,” She spoke, defeat clear in her voice. “The Enclave thinks I’m a goddess damn raider.”
“I take it you have an issue with that,” I replied, taking a casual sip of the Sunrise Sarsaparilla that I had been given. She had tried to give me a Sparkle-Cola but I couldn’t bring myself to say yes.
“Yes, because I do my literal best to be the opposite of that,” Bone Breaker replied, slumping even further. She spread her forelegs slightly so I could see her face better. “I mentioned I was a slave to them, right? I have no interest in becoming like the murdering, abusing piles of garbage that owned me half a decade ago.”
“I will say, it has definitely seemed incorrect for what little time I’ve known you,” I told her, taking another sip. A somber smile made its way onto her face as I said that. “I’m guessing it is either the name or the fact you are well known in Trotson that led them to that conclusion.”
She went from slumping forward to leaning back in her chair. “The first one I can see. Bone Breaker isn’t the name I was born with. I took it to make myself seem scary and intimidating. I wanted to feel less weak.”
I let out an involuntary ‘hm’ at her words, setting down my Sunrise Sarsaparilla. The name made a lot more sense with that in mind, as did the behavior of the pony before me. Until she had started talking it had definitely played me for a fool, and I’m sure she had an act that she put on when in public. Would explain the way the settlement’s guards talk about her.
“The second reasoning confuses me,” Bone Breaker said. “Mind explaining what you mean?”
“You heard of a stallion in the east named Red Eyes?” I asked her. The mare gave a confident shake of her head. “He’s a raider, and the reason that slave trading is as big as it is in the east. He also has his own radio station. In other words, he is a really well known pony, and not a good pony.”
“So because he was really well known, when my name came up the Enclave thought of me as similar,” She stated, getting a nod from me as confirmation. Bone Breaker looked into the distance for a bit, then looked back at me. “Anyways, I hate to say I haven’t heard of another pegasus in the area. Can’t help with Angel Hair. What about the other pony you are looking for?”
“A unicorn ghoul named Sharpshot. Apparently owes the Enclave a favor or two,” I said before closing my eyes, breathing in, and preparing for the far more ridiculous part of it all. “He also, apparently, has managed to hook up with one of The Unity’s alicorns.”
“This is where I step in and say that Willow is not a member of The Unity,” Bone Breaker said, the sheer speed at which she responded caught me off guard. It was enough for the new name to not immediately register. “I’ve talked with Sharpshot a few times before, and got to know his wife. From what I know something caused that alicorn making thing in the east to malfunction on her. Made her ‘defective and uncontrollable’ apparently.”
I leaned in, my interest having been piqued by Bone Breaker’s words. I didn’t know a lot about the alicorns; a lot of what the mare before me said was new information, but I knew the basics. They had a hivemind of sorts, came in three flavors, had no cutie mark, and had an extremely limited spell pool. We had to fight one of the ones with the shielding ability a few years ago on a scouting mission gone wrong. I think I mentioned it before.
Another moment where I survived instead of better, more emotionally adept ponies. We had been sent to investigate a war-time military facility and were told to scavenge a list of parts if we found them. It went FUBAR, we encountered an alicorn, and next thing I remember it had killed twelve ponies. The things were utterly terrifying, and to this day the events are such a blur that I don’t know how we actually took it down. Perhaps it was better that way.
“Has he ever told you what caused this defectiveness in her?” I asked.
Bone Breaker shook her head and shrugged at me. “Nope. All he said when I asked him was ‘long story’ and refused to elaborate further.”
“Then I guess I’ll ask him when I find him,” I muttered to myself. I allowed silence to envelope the room for a couple of seconds before speaking again. “Do you know where I might find him? The Enclave is cashing in on one of the favors he owes us.”
Her eyes darted to the ceiling, a slight chuckle coming out of her throat for no reason. Bone Breaker got up and made her way over to a makeshift countertop behind me. She grabbed a paper and then trotted back over to me, dropping said paper in front of me. I looked at it, noticing that not only was the paper far newer than expected but that it seemed to be a letter. It was clear Bone Breaker wanted me to read it, so I did so.
> Ponies of Sandstone, your next dropoff will be located at the Whickerbury Apartment Complex. This will contain food, water, ammo, as well as spare material. All raiders and other sapient creatures of Trotson have been informed of the drop off as well. You know what to do if you want it.
>
> Invisible Mare
“This came in late last night. In case it isn’t clear, everypony in this city is the Shadow Corps plaything,” Bone Breaker said, a downtrodden look on her face. “Trotson doesn’t have a lot of places to grow food, and even less to collect water. We do what we can with Stable 71 to make us somewhat independent, but we are as reliant on them as the raiders here.”
If I could see the S.P.P. tower at that moment, I’m sure I would have stared at it. Gold’s treatment of me and my wings already made Shadow Corps’ beliefs clear enough, but Bone Breaker had been bold enough to say it. Sandstone, the raiders of Trotson, and everypony else was a rat in the Invisible Mare’s city-wide maze. That would include both Sharpshot and Angel Hair too. They would need the supplies just as much as Sandstone.
“You want to meet them, then you help me secure this package,” Bone Breaker replied. “I have no doubts the son of a bitch will be there. Be prepared for things to get bloody.”
I couldn’t say no, especially when it was likely my only path forward at the moment. I looked at my rifle, which I had been very surprised to have been allowed to keep as I met her. I had ammo, but not a lot of it. If it was likely we were going to run into a giant mess of raiders, I needed to be as prepared as possible.
“If I’m gonna do this, I’ll need a battle saddle,” I explained getting up from my seat. “That and a gun with more common ammo.”
Bone Breaker gave a warm smile and nodded at me.
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“I’m guessing you're happy to have one again.”
I smiled and nodded at the earth pony next to me. The weight of the battle saddle on my body as I walked out of one of the stores was comforting. It made me feel like I was prepared to fight for the first time since descending from the clouds. On one side was my novasurge rifle, fully loaded. On the other was a newly acquired semi-auto rifle that I had purchased myself from one of the shops. It wasn’t in great condition, but I had more than enough ammo to use it in case the novasurge ran out.
It was the best thing I would be able to get next to Enclave power armor. The chance of finding anything like that in Trotson was close to zero. For the mission in question what I had would serve well enough, however, and it wasn’t even my only resource. Bone Breaker had similarly armed herself with a pair of odd, seemingly electrical horseshoes and a double barrel shotgun. The usefulness of the former would be decided based on if we encounter raiders at the supply drop or not.
“You could say so. This is how these weapons are supposed to be fired after all,” I replied, allowing my smile to grow. It wasn’t typically good to show cockiness but with all the shit that had happened over the past few days I was taking what happiness I could. “You sure you want to come along. You’re the leader of this settlement after all.”
“Yeah, especially since Sharpshot and Willow will likely be there,” Bone Breaker said, a just as cocky smile on her own face as she holstered her shotgun. “Besides, these ponies need a leader of action more than a leader of words. If I stand up and fight, then so will they.”
“Many of us leaders in the Enclave think the same,” I said, turning away from the mare. “I doubt a surface pony like you could live up to them, but I like where your heart is at.”
She walked past me, taking the lead as she knew our destination. She turned her head back and flashed a look that was a strange mix of disappointment and confidence. The expression left me confused, not knowing what was wrong about the words I had said. She turned her attention forward after a couple of seconds, the only thing I was able to see being her eyes closing in thought.
“Let's get moving,” She said before opening her eyes again. “The sooner we get there, the better chance we have of encountering those two outside of a firefight.”
I didn’t nod, but I followed her hoofsteps as we made our way back up the quarry. As we reached the gate, I watched as she turned to the stallion that had advanced on me earlier. The stallion's expression fell, as did Bone Breaker’s. For some time I had thought about the two lovers, which was surprising considering the age gap. Then she rubbed the poorly made helmet he wore as if ruffling a mane. That told me everything I needed to know about the relationship the two had.
“Momma is heading out. Don’t get into any trouble while I’m gone,” She said, her son giving her a quick and firm nod. Bone Breaker then turned to Guardian. “Keep him out off any of the fillies. You fuck up, and we have ourselves a little talk.”
The tone in her voice had shifted from that of a loving mother to cold as ice in a matter of seconds. I was impressed at how quickly she got her guard in line; her act seemed less like a performance and more like a darker half of her. If that was how she portrayed herself, it only made sense that ponies stayed in line. I think, while she obviously wasn’t as bad as an actual raider, there was a little bit of that mindset in her. Likely due having spent so much of her life being a slave to one.
With whatever business she had at the gate taken care of, she motioned me to follow her. We left Sandstone behind, my eyes watching every direction possible for anypony eavesdropping. I couldn’t see anyone, including the unicorn that had been following me, but I still felt a pair of eyes staring into the back of my head. Whoever it was, I made sure to keep both my guns prepared in case of an ambush.
“So that was your son back there?” I asked as I watched Bone Breaker’s flank. Not literally, mind you, but I’m sure some mares would say it was a very nice flank.
“Yes. It wasn’t my choice to have him, but he is my boy,” She replied, her voice setting back to her normal town now that nopony was around. “I wasn’t happy to have a foal forced on me, but I couldn’t find it in me to abandon him. I felt like if I gave him up I would become like those I hurt.”
I fell quiet, unsure of how to respond to the information put before me. Rainy and Clear, my own foals, were my choice to have. I couldn’t quite imagine the situation Bone Breaker was in. A part of me felt unable to tell her about what Razor had said to me earlier, and after several seconds of attempting to speak I gave up. Another part of me asked if she had made the right choice in the end. Perhaps it would have just been better to abandon a foal that she had had no interest in calling her own.
As a parent, a part of me found that hard. As a mare, I understood her plight.