And here we are. The REBIRTH of Project Rebirth. I hope you guys like it, cause it's gonna be a little different. That's about all I have to say besides the summary so let's get to it.

200 years after the Great War, things in Equestria have gone a little bizarre. Trees are different, dead, and some are dangerous, the animals have warped and twisted into monstrous versions of themselves, and the once beautiful land of Equestria is now a barren Wasteland. For Artemis Sparkle-Shadow, his new home in Stable 215, a Stable that Stable Tech didn't let known to the public, is even more a wasteland than Equestria itself. Situated in the middle of the Southern Wastes, known as the Badlands 200 years ago, Stable 215 catered to every sentient creature of Equestria. Donkeys worked the fields along side Earth Ponies, Minotaurs, Diamond Dogs, and other creatures, as well as all manner of Changelings in their natural forms. Red Changelings, Blue Changelings, Pink Changelings, the list went on. But above all that, above all of the citizens of the Stables were the Overmare and the Head of Maintenance and Security. This is their story. Their story about how war... no matter how brutal or peaceful, war never changes.


Chapter 1: Escaping the Monotony.

(Memory Orb One)

Scootaloo wrapped her arms around Artemis' shoulders, her hips grinding into his, her wings flared out behind her even as her head tossed back and her eyes rolled back in their sockets. His teeth, sharp as they were, were gentle in their teasing of her right nipple while his fingers tweaked and teased her left, his own hips grinding up into her, his wings flapping ever so slightly to keep them stable. His gold and silver eyes focused on her head as he made love to her, his love, his wife, his Vice President. Strewn around the room were their clothes and various articles of paperwork that they should be going over instead of enjoying each others company. They'd just finished construction on Stable 112 and were preparing Stables 1-50 for inhabitants in the extreme circumstance that something happens that requires the use of Stables. "Yes... ah... Artemis... I love you... I love how you make me feel..." She said and he smiled up at her, tracing her nipple with his tongue.

(End Memory)

Artemis sighed as the orb was pulled away from his head, his horns in plain view with his hair parted. "Oh come on guys, I liked that one." He said, smirking at his captors. His wings were cuffed to the chair, keeping his arms pinned behind him and his ankles were shackled to the legs of the chair. Grinning as one of the, very poorly, disguised Changelings slammed the chair across the table from him into the wall, leaning across it and shoving a picture in his face. It was a mobile platform with possibly the biggest Mega-Spell anypony had ever seen on it, in the middle of Ponyville. On the picture behind it was the same exact scene, only difference being the platform wasn't there.

"Where is Project Desolation!?" The Changeling disguised as one of Celestia's former guards shouted at him and Artemis turned his gold and silver eyes on him. His left eye wasn't exactly gold, more a bright yellow, but his right eye, due to magic, was bright silver. His hair, though parted at the moment, usually flowed back from his forehead and down in perfect spikes of black and navy blue highlights. The two horns usually hidden by his hair were jet black and tight against his head, far enough forward in the thickest part that headbutting someone would land them with either a split skull or a splitting head ache. A slight beard graced the wolf's chin, as he hadn't had a chance to shave in a couple weeks. Even his hair was a little long. His outfit was one he wouldn't have picked for himself, bright green was not his color, and having the upper part of the jumpsuit hanging off of the bottom, which was belted around his waist, made for a very uncomfortable seat. After a few moments, the changeling's eye twitched and he leaned back a little. Grinning, Artemis got as comfortable as he could.

"I don't know. And it's Operation Last Resort, not Project Desolation. That's the name given to it by the psycho who's looking for me." The young wolf said as calmly as he could but without his Beta Pip Buck, he couldn't use S.A.T.S (Stable Assisted Targeting System) to aim a psychic bolt at this morons brain. He also couldn't tell what time it was. His Pip Buck, along with the rest of his gear, had been confiscated upon his capture.

"You're lying, I know you are. You designed it's movement plan! How could the President of Stable Tech not know where his ultimate weapon is going!?"

"Former President forced into retirement by bombs going off." He said and he Changeling backhanded him. Hard. "Alright, alright. If you want to know what I know, I'll have to start from the beginning. So sit back boys, this is gonna take a while."

(Two Years Prior)

Artemis pulled hard on the wrench he'd latched onto the nut keeping the water pipe from bursting, pulling it tight and true. Standing back and wiping the sweat from his brow, he looked around. All throughout the water main tunnel, the maintenance crew was tightening bolts, straightening pipes, and welding connections. Two Blue Changelings had turned into girders and were holding up a particularly large pipe that a young dragoness was welding to another pipe of the same size. Fire breath tended to come in handy for welding jobs, and the Blue Changelings that could become inanimate objects were really helpful. As soon as the pipe was welded, one of the Changelings changed back into herself, wiped some sweat from her brow and grabbed a wrench to start tightening the bolts on the other end of the pipe she'd just been supporting. As soon as the dragon reached her to help and support the pipe, the other Changeling turned back into himself and went to work in another section. "Hey Chief, we've got a situation in the boiler room." One of the maintenance crew said, walking up to Artemis with a clip board in hand. Artemis took the clip board as the two of them headed in that direction.

"What's the deal Steam?" Artemis said and Steam Well looked up at him.

"Well, for one thing, the boiler still isn't working, so it's a good thing you've got those fire talisman things that warm the bath water. For another, we caught a couple younguns in there being dirty." Steam said and Artemis released a sigh. It was common knowledge in the Stable that the boiler didn't work because it wasn't connected to any water pipes. None that worked anyway. They were working on fixing it, but considering Stable 215 was the last stable built by Stable Tech, there were still some bugs to work out. They'd gotten all the basic furnishings in and installed the boiler before the door was slammed shut behind them and several hundred others. The bombs had fallen and they'd been locked in by the Stables security protocols. Today was the day they'd get the boiler working. Today was also the day that Artemis had been waiting for. He'd grown tired of the every day, day to day grind of keeping the Stable running. He was over 200 years old, though he didn't look it or feel it, but he felt he'd run his course. Even Steam Well at 35 could practically work circles around the prince. No one knew his plans, no one needed to know or it'd cause a panic.

Reaching the boiler room was easy after getting out of the construction area and away from the pipes that were being welded and connected to the walls. Pushing open the door, Artemis saw two of the security guards sitting on raised ledges at the edges of the room and two young ones sitting cross legged in the middle of it. Blue Belle and Golden Rich had been sweet hearts since they were younger than they were at the present moment. Their families had once been the richest families in Ponyville, but in the Stable, you were only as rich as the skills you brought to the table. As a prospective farmer, Blue Belle could bring food and cooking expertise while Golden Rich would soon begin training to work in Maintenance. A good pair, but still too young to be getting in the way of the maintenance crew while they worked on the boiler system. Sighing again, Artemis gestured to the two of them to follow him and, exchanging worried looks with each other, the two stood and followed him out of the Maintenance level and up the stairs.

"You guys know you're not supposed to be down there. I'm going to have to report you to the Head of Medical to get you checked out and then I have to file a report about you two sneaking down there, and then I have to take you back to your parents. On top of trying to get the boiler working." He said as they walked down the hall on the main floor of the Stable.

"We're sorry Artemis... we just never get a chance to be away from our families." Blue Belle said, her voice lilting and serene. She wanted to be a singer, and she had the voice for it, but she also wanted to keep up the family business. Even her cutie mark was a farming tool in the shape of a musical note. Golden Rich's cutie mark was a golden wrench, and he was one of the lucky ones. Some members of Maintenance had toilets for cutie marks. Though each toilet is different, they're all still toilets.

"I know you're sorry. Come on, into medical." He said as he pressed his thumb to the locking mechanism on the door to medical. No one but the head of the department would be in at the moment. As the door swung open, Artemis smelled something off and pushed the two teenagers behind him. Grabbing his walkie talkie, he pressed a button on the side. "Artemis to Security, send a team to Medical. I've got two teens that need escorting home." He said before clipping it to his belt again. "Stay put." He waved over his shoulder and heard the two of them press their backs to the wall opposite the door. Slipping into the room, he turned on his Pip Buck lamp and looked around, swinging it from side to side. Illuminating over turned tables and a chair that was still spinning in the back corner, Artemis reached for the pistol strapped to his belt. "Sugar Snap, are you in here? It's Artemis." He said as he unfastened the clip on his pistol holster. Hearing the other members of the security team arrive, two of them herding the teens away, he gestured them in and signaled them to turn on their Pip Buck lamps. As five other lights lit the room, it became more and more clear what happened. Staining the back wall was a splash of fresh blood, on the floor next to that wall was a scalpel that had clearly been used like a knife. Swinging his Pip Buck lamp to the corner, he released a sigh of relief to see Sugar Snap, the head of medical, cowering in the corner, clutching her shoulder. "Easy Sugar, it's ok." He said as he crossed to her slowly. As soon as he reached her, she jumped into his arms, cowering, her eyes locked on the other corner. Looking over, Artemis jumped and pressed his own back to the corner she'd just been hiding in. Slashed open from throat to crotch was a Red Changeling, but there was something different about him.

Moving his Pip Buck lamp over the Changelings body, Artemis saw what was wrong. The teeth were far too long and the eyes had lost their whites. They were pure red, like this particular Changeling was just a larva, only fully grown with massive teeth. One of the security officers radioed up to the Overmare's office and within minutes there was a disposal team, the Overmare, and the Red Changeling queen. As a couple other members of Medical tended to Sugar Snap, Artemis walked over to his sister and the queen. "Laval, what is that?" Melody asked as he approached and Laval, the Red Changeling queen, shrugged.

"I can honestly say I am unsure. All of my Changelings have adapted to life here in the Stable, as I have, but the only Changelings that should have eyes like those are larva or..." She trailed off there and Artemis clasped her on the shoulder.

"Or what? Don't leave anything out Laval." He said and she nodded.

"The only other kind of Changeling that would have eyes like that would have come from outside. But even in the hive chambers this Stable was built into, the walls separating the interior from the outside world are several layers thick. For something to have gotten through them would have taken either Stable Tec tools or years of effort that would have been noticed." She said as two other queens arrived. Chrysalis, one that Artemis still didn't trust entirely, and her baby sister Coco. Coco was the queen of the Pink Changelings and there for more stable as they could generate their own love, while Chrysalis was the queen of the Green Changelings and needed to gather love from others.

"That's impossible. There is nothing outside but destruction and death." Chrysalis said and Artemis looked over at her. "That's all that could be left after those monstrosities were set off."

"Mega-Spells were an Equestrian design that was stolen by the enemy. Devastating in their power, there's still one thing more powerful out there, isn't there Artemis?" Coco asked him, looking at him innocently. As the other three sets of eyes turned on him, he glared at the youngest queen. She had a knack for ferreting out information. Seeing his glare, her eyes widened and she slapped her hands over her mouth. "Oops. Sorry... I mean... Uh... wouldn't there be? Wouldn't Stable Tec know about it if there was?"

"They would have, two hundred years ago. If there was something more powerful out there, it's either lost or already went off." Artemis said and the two other queens and his sister nodded in thought. Artemis shot a psychic bolt at Coco, telling her he wanted to see her in his office in security later, and she frowned and nodded subtly.

"Either way, we need to figure his out before something else happens or someone else gets hurt."

"I'm leaving the Stable." Artemis said, half way through his sister's announcement and the four of them turned to him.

"Wait, what?" Laval asked and the other two Changelings stared at him as if he'd grown another head.

"Today. I'm leaving the Stable today as soon as the boiler room is up and running. Which, if my calculations are correct, should be any time between one hour from now and one and a half hours from now." Melody started towards him, her eyes wide. "The Maintenance crews know to switch off with someone else before taking a break. I figure if something is getting in from outside, it's high time someone went out to see if there's a breach in the layer of this Stable protecting us from radiation."

"That's the problem Artemis... Radiation... if the outside is as irradiated as the Stable seems to say it is, going out there is suicide." Melody said and he let his right arm flash with power, the spell he'd been using to conceal it shattering. She let out a gasp as the three Changeling queens back pedaled a little. His entire right arm was made of solid gold, magic holding it together at the joints. As he flexed the arm, more gold seemed to materialize out of thin air to keep it together and relaxing his arm caused the gold to disappear. In spots along the arm, marks could be seen in shapes and designs that looked vaguely like writing.

"That's..."

"My father's gauntlet, the Realm Gauntlet. When he died, or disappeared, or whatever, the Gauntlet stayed behind and when I found it, I put it on. And I've been practicing a new spell. Radiation Purification. I'm the only one capable of surviving out there." He said and Melody sighed.

"If you're sure Artemis... just... at least take enough gear and supplies with you to survive until you come back." She said and he sighed in turn.

"I'm not coming back Mel. I can't do this anymore. We're over two hundred years old, Chrysalis you and your sisters are older still. It's time to retire and leave things to the newest generation. I figure I can go out there, find a place to live, and spend the rest of my days watching the sun filter through the radiated sky until whatever happens." She sighed and hugged her brother tight, kissing his cheek.

"Alright. Be safe. I'll... I'll come find you if something happens and we can't fix it. You know I will so don't argue." She said and he nodded, heading towards the security hall. Coco followed him, knowing she needed to talk to him before he left. As he entered the Security hall, he swung a left and headed straight for the armory.

"Ok. I know I almost screwed up. You didn't think you could keep it secret forever did you? Operation Last Resort? What's it for?" She asked as he packed up a shot gun and some spare ammo and armor. Extra ammo for his pistol went into the bag and he walked into his office with it. In the corner was a small refrigerator with plenty of purified snacks and drinks, but what caught Coco's eye was the case he went too. Sitting at the back of the room, behind the desk, was a glass case big enough to hold twelve guns. Inside it was a single gun, but enough ammo to make the weapon a one weapon armory.

"Operation Last Resort is exactly that. A last resort for all of Equestria. When I put on the Gauntlet, I saw several different futures. One of them was shown to me in a spell long before I used the Gauntlet. Equestria, dead, desolate, and uninhabitable. All of Eques like that. I couldn't sit back and let that happen, so in secret, separate from Stable Tec, I built something. Mega-Spells are big, Balefire Bombs are deadly. I used my magic to contain the power of seven Balefire Bombs and three Mega-Spells into one bomb. Enough power to destroy the entire planet. If Equestria can't be saved by one of the futures I saw, Operation Last Resort goes off. Bye bye Eques." He said as he walked over to the case. "And this... this is the key to the whole damn thing." He said as he typed in a code that she memorized for later. As the case swung open, she gasped. The gun inside was the most beautiful piece of artwork she'd ever seen. Pure silver, the weapon looked to be made from the hands of Celestia and Luna themselves, carved for the gods. Picking it up as though it was fragile, Artemis replaced the pistol at his belt with the weapon and it changed. The barrel of it thickened and lengthened, getting thicker and wider and becoming strong enough to handle firing a weapon. The cylinder to hold the rounds changed into a chamber mass and each round in the case changed into clips with the bullets sliding into place. Picking up the clips, Artemis put two of them in his pockets and the rest in the bag.

Deciding to help him, Coco walked over and unpacked his fridge, putting the food and drink in another bag. "That gun is beautiful. What's it called?" She asked and he looked over at her.

"Harbinger. Three of them exist in the world. One given to me, one to Scootaloo, and one to my dad. Hopefully the one my dad had was destroyed when whatever happened to him happened. Scootaloo's is out there somewhere, and this is the only weapon strong enough to destroy it. If it gets near enough to Operation Last Resort, it goes off early." He sighed as he pulled on his long coat. Strapping the first bag over his shoulder, he pulled the bag she'd filled with food and drink over his shoulders, slipping his wings through the wing harnesses.

"Well, take care. I hope you find them before the big bang takes out all of Eques. What should I tell the others?"

"Exactly what Melody said. That I went out to check on the external structures of the Stable and I probably won't be coming back." He said and she nodded as he turned and walked out the door. "Oh, and Coco, don't tell anyone about Operation Last Resort." With that, he disappeared down the hall, heading towards the Stable Door.


And yeah. Chapter 1. Woo. Moving on.

Perk Received: Compassionate Hunter. You're a kind soul, but survival is survival. You do what must be done, even if it means sparing someone evil.