Fallout Equestria: Wasteland Jewel

by Ruin Queen of Oblivion

Five years after the adventures of Littlepip, Stable 26 is opened and a Medical Pony named Ruby Starlight leaves on a mission for her Stable. She is thrust into one of the worst wars Equestria has seen in centuries. Can she come out of this alive and with her morals intact? Or will the Wasteland swallow her?

4. Ghosts

Yes, last chapter I ended on a cliffhanger before you got to see what happened with the Memory Orb, but I promise it'll be covered in this chapter. You're all probably wondering what was on it, so I won't hold you in suspense.

Disclaimer: I only own the characters I created.

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CHAPTER 4:

GHOSTS

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For a moment I couldn't see anything, I thought that maybe my host was blind, but I realized that she was just hiding under a blanket. The blanket was pulled off her head as I saw a yellow furred Unicorn looking at me worriedly.

"Come on Scootaloo, you can't hide under those covers forever," a voice said and the covers where pulled off me to reveal a yellow filly. "You're not going to let those bullies get to you, are you?"

"I don't know Honey, what if they're right?" My host asked. "I'm useless... my wings haven't ever worked... who would want to adopt me?"

My heart went out to the little Pony who's memories I was reliving as she pulled her covers around her again. I couldn't believe that ponies could be so cruel to another Pony, especially to one so young. I wished that I could just wrap my foreleg around the Pegasus filly.

"Don't worry about it Scootaloo," Honey said as she hugged my host. "You're a great filly, you'll find a family to adopt you one day."

"You really think so?" My host asked as she peeked out from under the covers.

"I know so Scootaloo," Honey said with a reassuring smile on her face. "Come on, you're one of the nicest fillies I know, ponies are crazy to not want to adopt you."

I felt my host's face go warm. "Thanks Honey," she said and slid out from under the covers. I felt a strange sensation from my back, and realized that it was coming from my host's wings, she managed to lift off for a moment before falling down onto the bed. "Darn it, I almost had it!"

"Come on Scootaloo, they're expecting us downstairs," Honey said and got off the bed, my host followed.

We walked downstairs where all the other fillies and colts where playing. An older mare was leading a couple around, I didn't need to be told to realize what was going on. Scootaloo's excitement grew at the prospect of being adopted as she and Honey went to join the other foals.

These events had to be well over 2 centuries old, Scootaloo was just a filly, unlike the full grown Pegasus mare I had seen earlier. She didn't have the same confidence that I had seen in her either, I wondered what had happened to this Filly.

"Aww, look at this one, she's precious," a mare's voice said and I felt my host perk up in hope, but then felt a surge of disappointment. The Mare was looking at Honey, not her. "What do you think, Rocky?"

"I think she's perfect," her husband said with a smile. Honey looked at them, trying hard to smile. "Would you like to come home with us?"

"What about Scootaloo?" Honey asked as she looked at my host. "She's my friend, I can't leave her here."

"I'm sorry but we can only adopt one foal..." the mare said regretfully. "Why don't you talk it over with your little friend?"

"Okay," Honey said as the couple backed away and she turned to look at my host. "Scootaloo... I'm sorry... I wish they had picked you..."

"Honey, I..." my host said, tears welling up in her eyes. "I don't want you to go... but... maybe you should."

"Are you sure?" Honey asked.

"Yes..." My host replied. "Just promise me we'll be friends forever, okay?"

"I promise," Honey said and hugged her friend, this time Scootaloo hugged back, tears streaming down her face. "I'll write to you every day"

"You better," my host said, trying to put on a brave smile as Honey let go and went to the couple. They left and Honey took one last look back at Scootaloo, waving to her sadly.

My host couldn't take it anymore, she galloped up the stairs and buried herself in the covers again, breaking down crying. And with that my vision faded to black, the memory was over.

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My eyes snapped open as I found myself back in my quarters in the NCR forward base. I could see Bluesky still sleeping next to me as I checked the time on my Pipbuck, 0032 hours.

I was tired, but I wasn't ready to sleep just yet, I switched the light on my Pipbuck on and levitated the book that Midnight had given me out of my saddlebag and opened it up to read it.

"A General History of Equestria," I read the title to myself, then I noticed who wrote it. "By Twilight Sparkle?"

That raised a lot of questions in my mind, Twilight Sparkle, the Princess of Friendship had not only owned this book, she had written it. I was holding a true relic of the old days in my hooves, most likely the only book of its kind still surviving.

Why had Midnight given it to me? For that matter why was this in a Stable like she had said? This belonged in a museum, or at the very least a library up in NCR territory. I gingerly opened it to the first page and started reading.

Chapter 1: Discord.

I don't know when I fell asleep, but I found myself back in Stable 26 once again. This time I was trotting through the Stable Door to the waiting crowd inside. I was about to say something when liquid started falling from the ceiling all over them. I watched in horror as they all grew wings or horns and mutated into Alicorns as they advanced on me, the same look of madness in their eyes.

I tried to escape through the Stable door, but it had vanished as the Alicorns descended on me, forcing me into the liquid and...

"AHHHHHHHH!" I screamed as I bolted upright. I was breathing heavily as I checked my body, thank Luna I was still me.

"Ugh, what's wrong Doc?" Bluesky groaned as she looked over at me. "I was having a nice dream about... umm, lets just leave it at that, what's wrong with you?"

"I had a nightmare, I'm sorry," I said, I was breathing heavily as I spoke. "I'm going to get some fresh air."

"Okay, see you in the morning," Bluesky said and with that she was asleep again. I slid my pipbuck and holster on and opened the door as I trotted outside.

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Outside I felt the cool night air brush against my fur as I sighed and looked out. I could see a series of lights in the distance that I supposed was the Crimson Empire camp, there where several NCR Rangers nearby, keeping a constant vigil to protect their base.

"Couldn't sleep huh?" The voice of Midnight asked as she trotted up next to me.

"Yeah..." I admitted. "I had a nightmare, what about you?"

"I've never been able to sleep well out here, not since I left home," Midnight admitted.

"Where's home for you, Junction Town? Some village up north maybe?" I asked curiously. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to."

"Ruby, every Ranger in this base knows my story," Midnight said. "They're good ponies, but they had to earn that kind of trust. You, you I'm not quite sure what to make of yet."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Ever since the Lightbringer came, some Ponies have seen the arrival of a Stable Dweller to be a sign that the tide is changing," Midnight said. "At least usually, most forget that the old Redeye was a Stable Dweller too."

"Redeye?" I asked.

"He was a slaver who ran things in Fillydelphia up until 5 years ago," Midnight said. "He was from Stable 101, he tried to bring his own twisted idea of peace to the wastelands."

"So, you're afraid that I might turn out to be like him?" I asked. "I'm not like that, I'm just trying to survive and help Ponies."

"I don't know what to make of you honestly, Ruby," Midnight admitted. "I know that not all Stable Dwellers are like Redeye, and so far you've proven yourself worthy, but we'll have to see if you keep it up. Did you want to ask me anything else?"

"That book, the one written by Twilight Sparkle, where did you find it?" I asked. "You said it was in a Stable."

"Stable 13," Midnight said. "The inhabitants left it years ago to make a home in the Wasteland, it was used by the Ministry of Arcane Science during the war as a testing facility, so Twilight Sparkle probably left it behind there."

"I see," I said, that did make sense at least. "Look, Midnight... I'm going to have to be out here for a full year, I can't go home, but I want to try and find a place here in the wastelands. I'm no soldier, but, if there's anything I can do to help the NCR out, I'm your Pony."

"There is something you might be able to do," Midnight said. "There's a town not too far away called Oat Grove, there's a group of ponies that call it home now, they're friendly enough but they've been having a Ghoul problem lately."

"The zombie kind I'm guessing," I said, Midnight nodded. "I'll talk to Bluesky about it in the morning, if she's in, I'm in."

"Sounds good, now you should try to get some sleep," Midnight said as she walked off, her curled tail swishing behind her. My eyes may have rested on her flank a little too long, I was starting to wonder if Bluesky might be right.

I shrugged and trotted back to my quarters and fell asleep again. My dreams where more pleasant at least, but there was little I could do to truly enjoy them. I felt the warmth of a hug as the mare of my dreams once again wrapped her forelegs around my neck.

"Its going to be okay, Ruby," she said reassuringly, then leaned forward and planted a kiss on my lips.

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I woke up the next morning, embarrassed to realize that the covers where slightly wet. Bluesky was already awake and stretching out when I climbed out of bed.

"How'd you sleep?" Bluesky asked, for a moment I wondered if she knew what had happened, but then realized she was being sincere.

"Fine," I said as I brushed my mane. "Hey, would you maybe be willing to do another job today for the NCR?"

"What kind of job?" Bluesky asked as she took a swig of water.

"Midnight asked if we could go help a town called Oat Grove," I said. "Apparently they're having a Ghoul problem."

"Ah, yeah, that would do it," Bluesky said. "Figures really, I'm surprised we haven't run into Ghouls already."

"So are you up for it? I told her that I'd ask you first," I said.

"Of course I am, but are you?" Bluesky asked. "Non-lethals don't work on Ghouls, and if they're zombies, you're going to have to shoot to kill."

I hadn't thought of that, I had maybe hoped that I could incapacitate them like I had the Alicorns, but that sounded like it was going to be impossible. If these Ghoul Zombies where attacking ponies though... I knew what I had to do.

"I'm up for it," I said, I sounded more sure than I really felt.

"Okay then, lets go tell the Colonel and get going," Bluesky said and we walked outside together.

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Midnight was happy to hear that we had decided to go to Oat Grove. She directed us again to the Quarterpony who was able to restock some of our supplies and we where back on our way.

"So, what was on that other Memory Orb?" Bluesky asked curiously as she flew above me.

I paused a moment, should I tell her? It almost felt like what was on that memory orb was something personal and I shouldn't just go sharing it with everyone. After thinking on it a minute, I figured she could at least know who it was.

"Scootaloo, it was one of Scootaloo's memories from when she was a filly," I replied.

"Really, Scootaloo?" Bluesky asked as she looked at me curiously, her ears perking up at the mention of the Pegasus' name. "Like the Vice President of Stable-tec Scootaloo?"

"Yeah, that's her," I answered, I gave the blue Pegasus a strange look. "Why do you ask?"

"Scootaloo was the first Dashite, the first Pegasus to follow Rainbow Dash to leave the sky and try and help the Ponies down here," Bluesky said.

"What happened to her?" I asked, Bluesky frowned a little at that. "Oh..."

"Yeah... she died not long after," Bluesky said sadly. "Come to think of it we don't even know what happened to Rainbow Dash."

We walked and flew and silence for awhile longer as I started listening to the radio once more.

"Hey all you ponies out there in Pony Post-Apocalyptia, this is Melody coming at you with a news broadcast," Melody's voice said over the radio. "It seems that our new Stable Dweller, the Jewel of the Wasteland herself managed to rescue the survivors of the Starlight Caravan from a group of Alicorns in the Badlands."

I froze in my tracks, she was talking about me, she had to be. Jewel of the Wasteland? Why would she call me that? Oh goddesses, this was so embarrassing, I couldn't believe that this was being broadcast all over the wasteland.

"And get this my little ponies, it seems that she even managed to scrounge up a Hellhound pack to help her do it," Melody continued. "Well done Jewel, my hat's off to you."

I could hear nickering above and saw Bluesky watching me as she flew backwards. "What's so funny?"

"Come on Ruby, I know that look on your face, you're embarassed about something someone is saying about you aren't you?" The Pegasus nickered. "Maybe you should switch to Imperial Radio, they won't be singing your praises as much."

I rolled my eyes at that and just kept going forward, ignoring the Blue Pegasus.

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It was mid afternoon by the time we finally reached Oat Grove, of course we'd have been there a lot sooner if Bluesky hadn't insisted on stopping to eat twice. Oat Grove was a pre-war town that had a makeshift wall and gate surrounding it, probably to keep attackers out. We approached the gate, and where met by two guards, a Unicorn stallion and a Pegasus mare.

"Halt!" The Pegasus said as she held up a hoof. "State your names and business in Oat Grove."

"I'm Ruby Starlight, this is my traveling companion Bluesky," I said, introducing us to the guards.

"Yo," Bluesky said and waved a hoof at the two.

"The NCR sent us here to help with your Ghoul problem," I continued and levitated a piece of paper from my saddlebag and passed it to the Pegasus who read it. I noticed that the Unicorn's horn was glowing, he was probably using magic to determine whether or not we where being honest. "Colonel Midnight said that everything should be in order."

The two guards exchanged glances and the Unicorn nodded as the glow faded.

"Very well then," the Pegasus said and the gates opened as she handed back the paper. "Go down the main street to the building in the center of town."

We both nodded and went inside. As we trotted down the street, we saw shops and vendors selling their wares, other ponies noticed us and I could hear whispers among them. There was a large building on the far end of the street with a crumbling sign with the words "CITY HALL" painted on it.

We opened the door to find several ponies, zebras, and what I assumed where griffons inside. A white furred Earth Pony with glasses resting on her muzzle was seated behind a desk working at a terminal.

"Uh ma'am?" I asked as we stepped up to the desk and I placed the paper on it. "We're here from the NCR Forward Base to help with the, uh, Ghoul problem."

"Oh good, you can go right in then, the Mayor is expecting you," the receptionist said and waved a hoof to a nearby door. We trotted up to it and pushed the door open.

The office inside was smaller than Midnight's, but it was cozy in its own way. There was an old couch propped up against the wall and a desk with a white furred Earth Pony seated behind it. He looked up when we entered and smiled.

"Well aren't you two a sight for sore eyes?" He asked with a smile. "You must be the two mares that Ranger Colonel said she was sending, I'm Mayor Lightwind, welcome to Oat Grove."

"Thanks," Bluesky said, and I nodded.

"You're not exactly what I was expecting from Rangers," Lightwind continued.

"Err, we're not Rangers," I admitted sheepishly. "We're freelance agents, the NCR couldn't spare any troops."

"I see..." Lightwind said with a frown. "Well, I'll take all the help I can get, especially with these Ghouls."

"What can you tell us about the situation?" Bluesky asked him, she was all serious again.

"They come at night, we're still trying to figure out just how they're getting into town," Lightwind said. "We've searched for underground passages, but nothing, not even a Stable."

I frowned a little at that, I was actually a little curious so I raised my foreleg and checked my PipBuck's map. Oat Grove was actually pretty close to Stable 26, but not close enough that something could've happened there and the ghouls where my friends.

"What I suggest is that you spend the night here tonight, help out our ponies in defending the town, then maybe we can take another crack at finding their tunnels or whatever tomorrow," Lightwind said. "Does that work for you?"

I exchanged glances with Bluesky and we both nodded, and Lightwind's smile returned. "That's great, we have a house in town that should suit your needs nicely, its been fixed up, but that's about it, no one's ever lived there."

I nodded, but I found that a bit odd. "Why not?"

"We mostly use it as storage, haven't had enough ponies to warrant using it as a residence again," Lightwind answered. "Is that alright with you? I know they're not exactly the best accomodations."

"Its okay," I said, and Bluesky nodded.

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It didn't take long for us to get to the house, it was a one story building not too far from city hall. Inside was like nothing I had seen before in the Wasteland, it was falling apart, but it was at least roomy.

It looked like a family had once lived here, I poked my head into the kitchen, there where three places set out, but it looked like the inhabitants of the house had left in a hurry, probably from the apocalypse.

"There's a couple of beds down the hall," Bluesky said as she trotted up to me, her goggles on her forehead again. "It looks like we won't have to sleep in the same bed at least."

"Don't sound too disappointed," I said with a smirk before shuttering a little. "Does this feel weird to you? I mean before the war, this was someone's home, and we're intruding on it."

"Doc, its okay, we have to make do with what we can in this world," Bluesky said reassuringly as she ruffled my mane. "Now come on, lets go have a look around."

I nodded and trotted into the living room of the house. Most of it was still covered in dust, but I could see a series of photos up on the mantle. This family was likely long dead, but I felt like I should at least see what they looked like. I levitated a photo in front of me and blew the dust off it, that's when I stopped cold.

I recognized this family, in fact there was an almost identical photo sitting in my quarters back in Stable 26. It was of a happy family of Unicorns with a filly with purple fur and a blue mane, with a golden star with a heart in the center for a cutie mark.

"What do you have there?" Bluesky asked as she peeked over my shoulder at the picture. "Nice looking family there."

"Bluesky, call me crazy..." I started to say.

"You're crazy," Bluesky said nickering.

"Very funny," I said with a groan. "But seriously... this house belonged to my ancestor Star Heart and her family, before they came to Stable 26."

Bluesky turned serious again. "Wow... that can't be easy for you..."

"Yeah..." I said as I looked around.

For my whole life, Stable 26 had been my home, but it was weird. Standing here, knowing who had once lived here, it felt like I was returning home. Maybe if the war hadn't gotten so bad, this would've been where I grew up, fallen in love, maybe had little foals of my own...

Goddesses, why had the war gotten so bad?

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"So then Councilmare Carrot went galloping out of her room at full speed, screaming about a giant rat," I said as Bluesky's musical laughter filled the room.

"Did she ever figure out it was you and your friends who did it?" Bluesky asked.

"Nope," I said as I chuckled a little at the memory. "In my defense, it was Candy's idea not mine."

"Yeah, but you shaved that cat," Bluesky said, laughing more. "Oh, you must've been quite the little hellion when you where a filly."

I smiled, it was a few hours later, it was dark, but we had a few lights on. My third day in the wasteland was almost over, and goddesses I wish I could just go to bed and sleep for a month.

"Do you think the Ghouls will come tonight?" I asked Bluesky as I loaded ammo into my guns.

"Probably," Bluesky said sadly. "Who knows though, maybe tonight we'll get lucky and they'll leave us alone.

"I kinda doubt we'll be that lucky," I said as I holstered my pistol and slipped the rifle back into my saddlebag. "You'll have my back, right?"

"Of course Doc," Ruby said with a reassuring smile that just seemed to light up the room as she ruffled my mane again. "I wouldn't let my favorite lesbian in denial get away from me before she admitted it."

"I'm not a..." I said with a blush, but was cut off by the sound of somepony screaming outside.

Me and Bluesky exchanged glances, we both knew that the time for teasing was over, it was time to act and we galloped out of the house.

And into a warzone.

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Most ponies where indoors, but there where guard ponies outside, trying to fight off the encroaching Ghouls that seemed to be coming from all sides. I heard the crack of Bluesky's battle saddle and a nearby ghoul fell, that's when I got my first good look at it.

I now understood why they where called Burning Pony Ghouls. They where on fire, literally, they blazed with this aura of burning energy like the Firerain, their bodies rotting in several places.

Another Ghoul approached me as I drew my pistol and leveled it at the Ghoul's head. I hesitated, goddesses help me I hesitated. I couldn't bring myself to pull the trigger, even as the Ghoul Pony lunged at me.

There was a sudden crack of gunfire and the Ghoul collapsed in a heap. I looked towards where the shot had come from to see the Unicorn guard from before give me a nod, he had saved my life.

"Come on Doc, this isn't the time to hesitate!" Bluesky shouted as she fired at another Ghoul. "These Ghouls aren't Ponies anymore!"

I nodded, but I couldn't bring myself to respond as I turned around and fired a shot into the skull of a Ghoul Pony that was advancing on Bluesky.

"You owe me one, Bluesky," I said, then something caught my eye, it was attached to the wall that surrounded Oat Grove, but it looked almost brand new unlike the other pieces of junk that made up the wall. "Watch my back!"

"Wait, what are you doing?" Bluesky shouted as she put another bullet in the brain of a ghoul.

"Just do it, I have an idea!" I replied and galloped for the device.

I was right, it was new, but it was built to look old so at a passing glance you wouldn't think it was anything more than part of the wall. It was a broadcaster of some sort, and it was sending a signal out.

"Doc, if you're going to do something, you better do it fast!" Bluesky said as she poured more bullets into the approaching horde. "These things going to have Bluesky for dinner if you don't stop this!"

"Hold your horses, I've got this!" I shouted back over the sound of gunfire and turned back to the device.

It was definitely a transmitter of some sort, I was getting a strange frequency on my PipBuck radio. There didn't seem to be any sort of off switch though, so I had to make my own.

I stepped back, aimed my pistol at the device, and squeezed the trigger. The frequency suddenly went quiet, that had done it, I hoped. I turned back around to see the ghouls just standing there confused.

It didn't take much longer for all the ghouls to be rounded up and removed from the town. They didn't seem to pose any further danger to Oat Grove, and once that was done Lightwind approached us.

"Well, its lucky you two came along," Lightwind said sheepishly as I holstered my pistol. "At least this is all over now."

"No, its not," I said. "Because someone in this town, is working for the Crimson Empire."

I tossed the transmitter down on its side, and in the light we had, everyone could see the bird symbol of the Crimson Empire etched into it.

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"Why would someone want to lure Ghouls to attack Oat Grove?" Lightwind asked. We where in City Hall again, talking with the Mayor and the town's sheriff, a black furred Unicorn mare named North Star. "And for that matter, why would the Crimson Empire want it?"

"I think the answer is obvious," I said. "They want control of this town because of its strategic location in NCR territory."

"But why would you think that someone in town would do that?" North Star asked, she had a point, I didn't have any actual proof. "You can't actually prove your allegations, can you?"

"Not at the moment, no," I admitted. "But I can find proof if you give me the chance."

"Yeah, Ruby here's great, she'll figure out who's behind it," Bluesky said, I cleared my throat at that. "Sorry, WE'LL figure out who's behind it."

"You two have until tomorrow night to figure it out," Lightwind said. "If the Ghouls don't attack again tomorrow night, we'll consider the matter closed and move on."

I frowned a little, they had a potential threat in their midst, not just from Ghouls, but I was confident that there was something else going on in this town.

"Just in case, I'm going to double the guard tonight," North Star said. "And if you're right, whoever did this isn't going to be happy you found out."

I nodded, I got the feeling that none of us where going to be getting much sleep that night.

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I was laying on the couch in the house that had once belonged to my ancestors, but I couldn't sleep. I tried reading the history book again, but I couldn't focus, I was still worried about the possibility of the Crimson Empire infiltrating the town.

That's when I felt a pair of hooves on my back and I nearly jumped out of my fur before I realized it was Bluesky again.

"Not funny, Bluesky," I said as I rolled my eyes.

"I'm not trying to be funny, here, just relax," Bluesky said as she started rubbing my back. I couldn't help but relax, it felt so good. "You're too tense, you know that?"

"Its been a very rough few days," I said, shivering a little from the Pegasus' touch. "Wow, that feels really good, is giving back rubs a normal trait of daughters of Dashites, or am I just lucky?"

"You're just lucky I guess," Bluesky said. "So, think Doc, who could have planted it there without arousing suspicion?"

"Probably one of the guards," I said. "They're patrolling the outer wall all the time, I noticed while we where outside."

"Good, good," Bluesky said. "Okay, put yourself in the horseshoes of a traitor guard, your device has been found, but if you run it'll make you look guilty and you'll probably be caught by the others, what do you do?"

"Good question," I said, more shivers going up and down my spine, she was really good at this. "Tomorrow, we need to go and check that spot again, I'll bet my caps that its going to be the key to everything."

"Good idea," Bluesky said as she finished. "Come on, lets get you to bed."

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My dreams tonight where normal, at least as normal as they could get. No monsters, no mysterious mares, just normal dreams. I finally woke up the next morning as it got light out and was surprised to find Bluesky in bed with me, her forelegs wrapped around me.

I blushed, and was about to cry out when I realized, this was kind of nice. The feeling of another pony close to me, I smiled, and just relaxed. Bluesky's blue eyes flickered open and she smiled at me.

"Well Doc, I guess you did get me in bed with you after all," she said with a smirk.

"Oh come on, we where both tired," I said as we got out of bed and I put my stable barding, saddle bags, and PipBuck back on. "Come on Bluesky, lets get going."

We both left the house and returned to the spot that I had found the device the night before. We both started searching around before finally Bluesky spoke up.

"I've got something here!" She said and I rushed over, it was a clump of fur from a Pony, one with a very distinct color that I had only seen on one Pony in Oat Grove.

"I know who it is," I said definitively and Bluesky nodded in agreement, we galloped off to city hall.

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Half an hour later, we where sitting in the Sheriff's office and waiting for the suspect to come in. The door opened, and the Unicorn guard from yesterday came in.

"You wanted to see me, ma'am?" The Stallion asked.

"Yes Brave Heart, please have a seat," North said, gesturing to a chair, the stallion took a seat while me and Bluesky watched. "Now, you've worked for me for a little over a year, correct?"

"Almost a year and a half, ma'am," Brave Heart said with a nod. "Before that I helped guard caravans."

"And last night, where where you during the attack?" North asked.

"I was at my assigned position, near the Storage House," Brave responded, I knew this was true, he had saved my life after all.

"I see... I see..." North said, examining the stallion closely. "Can anyone confirm this?"

"Yes, uh, those two ponies over there," Brave said and nodded to the two of us. "I shot a Ghoul that was about to kill the red one."

North looked at me and I nodded in confirmation.

"And what about your partner?" North asked.

"You mean Strata? She was, elsewhere..." North said, tensing up a little all of a sudden. "Why did you ask me here, ma'am?"

The door opened and two more guards came in, holding the unconscious green Pegasus Strata between them.

"What happened to her?" Brave said, suddenly getting to his hooves.

"She tried to resist arrest, ma'am," one of the guards said, directing the comment at North. "We had to restrain her."

"Arrest, on what charges?" Brave demanded.

"Suspicion of treason and sabotage, we have evidence that puts her at the scene," North said. "Unless of course you can tell us where she was last night."

"She was... she was, yes, she was at the north gate, I remember now," Brave said. "Please, let her go, she had nothing to do with the device!"

"You heard him, let her go," North said as the two guards nodded and undid the hoofcuffs. "Now Brave, I just have one more question for you."

"What's that?" Brave asked.

"Why did you plant that device to attract the Ghouls?" North asked him.

"What? How did you..." Brave said.

"You left behind a clue," I said and levitated the clump of fur that matched his mane color perfectly. "And your hoofprints all over the ground, I recognized them from our first meeting."

"I didn't have a choice, the Crimson Empire said they'd kill my family if I didn't do it!" Brave protested. "They have my parents in slave labor camps in the empire!"

"Really? Because according to my records, your parents died 10 years ago in a raider attack," North said, Brave was caught in his own lie.

"Fine... I admit it, I've been working for the Crimson Empire since I came here," he said. "They will bring order and stability to this wasteland, more than your precious NCR ever could!"

"Take him away," North said and the two guards dragged the squirming Stallion away. She turned to the two of us. "Thank you, both of you, maybe now we can finally have some peace and quiet around here."

"I'm just doing my duty, Sheriff North Star," I said.

00000

"Its funny, I always thought he was a nice guy, you know?" Strata said as she escorted us to the edge of town. "He was always so polite."

"Yeah, I'm sorry he didn't turn out to be like you thought," I said. "And sorry about the ruse."

"Its okay, only thing you hurt was my pride," Strata said. "Oh, before I forget, the mayor wanted me to give you this."

She took something out of her saddlebags with her teeth and handed it to me. I took it and opened it up, it was a deed to a house.

"Now you own your own little slice of Oat Grove," Strata said with a smile.

"Tell her I said thanks," I said with a smile.

"Come on Doc, lets get back to the base before lunch, I'm starving!" Bluesky protested. I laughed as we started back through the wastes, waving back as we went.

00000

The walk back to base was mostly uneventful, we got jumped by a few creatures, but they where quickly dealt with. Finally the base was within visual range, but it had a strange glow about it.

I took out my binoculars and focused on the buildings in the distance, and what I saw made my blood run cold.

The NCR Forward Base was on fire.

Days Left: 361

LEVEL UP!

Perk Received: Wasteland Detective.

Effects: You've proven yourself as an effective detective to the ponies of the wasteland. You get an extra 5 points to Speech and Charisma.

00000

Yes, yes I am evil.

Next chapter, find out what happened, not going to say more than that, just stay tuned for chapter 5, "Broken."