[FO:E] The Northern Wasteland of Equestria 1

[Lycan 01]

Tenpony Tower - Shopping!

Flim and Flam grin. And begin talking over each other enthusiastically.

"It's amazing!"

"A thick, cold drink!"

"Milk, ice cream, chocolate, all mixed together!"

"Total deliciousness!"

"They use old MoM supplies!"

"Pay scavvers good money to dig up caches..."

"They come in different flavors!"

"Chocolate! Vanilla!"

"Strawberry! Other stuff!"

"Kinda costly."

"We can treat you to one though."

Miss Lace watches in amusement. "I would go with the chocolate," she quietly tells Gwendolyn with a wink.

[Benson]

Tenpony Tower - Shopping!


"Chocolate you say?...Hmmm..." Gwendolyn sported a look of thought over this until she straightened herself out. "Very well. You may treat me to a chocolate milkshake. Thank you."

[Lycan 01]

Tenpony Tower - Shopping!

Flim and Flam practically drag Gwendolyn off, while Miss Lace cheerfully waves them farewell.

The twins take the griffin bodyguard a few floors upstairs, where there's an old "retro" diner with a bar, booths, a functioning jukebox, a soda fountain, and waitresses in bright pink serving outfits. The twins guide Gwendolyn to a red bar stool, before taking seats on either side of her and beginning to point out the various menu options.

Poor Gwendolyn probably soon finds her head spinning...


---
Tenpony Tower - DJ Library

Homage giggles. "Yes, you heard me right," she grins. "It's alright, you're not being negative. It's..." she looks up and ponders, idly waving a hoof, "Complicated..."

She raises said hoof to her chin, and looks thoughtful for a moment. "How do I put this..."

After a moment, she leans back and clops her hooves together. "Yes, I have had lovers. And you're concerns are valid. It can be unsafe, and it can be quite draining for the other party, in multiple senses of the word. Granted, lovers can be lovers without the actually act of lovemaking, you know. One does not need to be intimate in such ways to have such a relationship. But..." she flashes a wry smirk, "It helps."

Homage sighs. "But yes, it can take a toll on the other party, but sharing and returning the absorbed sentiments helps to reduce the net loss for the 'victim,' to some extent. Especially if the Changeling is already sated before such acts. It's usually not something agreed to lightly or done for fun, obviously. It's..." she looks off to the side, her expression unreadable. "A dangerous act for both parties. Meaningful. Symbolic. And a powerful expression of trust, emotion, and... love," she observes with a sad smile.

Homage sighs. "As for the legitimacy of such feelings... That, too, is complicated. Yes. I know it feels hollow. And if you're anything like me, you have at times wondered and worried if such feelings are even real. And I am sorry to tell you, those books will not give you answers. For some reason, pony scholars were reticent to study personal relationships with Changelings in great detail," she remarks with a bemused roll of her eyes.

"It's general accepted, even among our kind, that it is impossible for a Changeling to feel emotion. True emotion, at any rate, beyond a hollow 'shadow' of a feeling," the incognito shapeshifter explains with a small sigh. "Well, just because something is impossible, doesn't mean it can't or shouldn't be attempted, striven towards, yearned for. And even if that emotion is still but a shadow of its true self, it still has... backing. A desire for it to be real. A need for it to be real, in some cases. And for some, that's... close enough. You know the old saying..." she smiles sadly. "It's the thought that counts."

Homage slowly drops her gaze to the floor. "There's... one other thing..."

Her shoulders slump slightly, and Swiss may see a certain sadness creeping into her eyes. "A certain truth I have learned. It is both painful... and comforting, in a way..."

She inhales, and releases a deep sigh. "Loss... it's painful. The loss of a friend is agonizing. The loss of a lover... even more-so. It hurts... Truly, it hurts. Worse than any wound, worse than any hunger. It leaves you feeling more hollow than you ever were before. So you have to wonder... You have to ask..."

There's a tremor in her voice.

"How..."

She sniffs.

"How can you miss something... if you never had it?"

A single teardrop falls.

[TheAmishPirate]

[Outside Girdershade]

"When?! Back there with Fizz and Bucky 'when'!" Fleetwing gesticulated wildly. "Why'd you go and tell her that Bucky was gonna kill me? Why'd you go and tell Bucky you told her that he was gonna kill me? And why oh why did you mention 'love' again?! Y'dang near gave the poor stallion a heart attack! Didn't that cause enough problems for me t'fix the first time y'did it?" All the stallion's anger and frustration boiled over, having finally found the pony responsible for his plight.

[Benson]

Tenpony Tower - Shopping!

Flim and Flam practically drag Gwendolyn off, while Miss Lace cheerfully waves them farewell.

The twins take the griffin bodyguard a few floors upstairs, where there's an old "retro" diner with a bar, booths, a functioning jukebox, a soda fountain, and waitresses in bright pink serving outfits. The twins guide Gwendolyn to a red bar stool, before taking seats on either side of her and beginning to point out the various menu options.

Poor Gwendolyn probably soon finds her head spinning...

Tenpony Tower - Shopping!

"Slow down boys...don't try to get me confused...I came here for a chocolate milkshake apparently. Let's not stray off the path." Though, the other options did look yummy too.

[Rebonack]

[Tenpony Tower - Homage's Pad]

Swiss... listens.

She knows that feeling of hollowness well enough. She remembers what love felt like from Strawberry Tart's point of view. And she knows that what she feels now is nothing but an empty echo compared to it. No emotions of her own. But in feeding on them? Consuming the love and friendship of other ponies? For a time. For a moment. She feels whole again. Full. Right.

But sadly that feeling of wholeness never lasts for long.

It's what drives the changelings to feed. And what drives so many of their kin to simply devour ponies to feel complete again for as long as possible. A horrible trap to fall into. Thankfully one she's managed to avoid.

And yet... for as hollow and empty as her own emotions seem...

She knows loss.

Pain.

She knows how much it hurts to lose a friend.

Homage is right. And she has considered much the same. If her love for her friends is really nothing but a shadow then how can it pain her so much to lose them? If they're nothing but food then why does the thought of them leaving her fill her with so much dread?

She cares for them. Loves them. Wants them. Needs them. Swiss couldn't be more sure of it. And yet... why does it still feel so hollow?

"You can't lose something you never had..." Swiss mutters, looking down at her forelegs as she allows her disguise to partly burn away. She lifts the limbs and touches them together, two large holes forming the perfect outline of a heart.

"A hollow heart full of emptiness... yearning to be loved..." the mock-unicorn says, her tone absent as she gazes down at the holes in her legs. "Even if my love for my friends is a shadow... I can still give them back the love they freely give me. That has to count for something."

A small smile tugs at the corner of her mouth. "I'm sure you must have felt the same way about your very-special-somepony. Even if the feelings are just a phantom we can strive to make them as real as we're able."

The smile grows a little wider, showing off the changeling's snaggle-toothed grin.

"Too bad those two hundred year dead ponies didn't get a little more daring with their research. I'm sure our kin could have taught them quite a bit."

[PurityIcekiller]

"When?! Back there with Fizz and Bucky 'when'!" Fleetwing gesticulated wildly. "Why'd you go and tell her that Bucky was gonna kill me? Why'd you go and tell Bucky you told her that he was gonna kill me? And why oh why did you mention 'love' again?! Y'dang near gave the poor stallion a heart attack! Didn't that cause enough problems for me t'fix the first time y'did it?" All the stallion's anger and frustration boiled over, having finally found the pony responsible for his plight.

"Well... When you ask what I was thinking, I probably wasn't. I'm not used to so much thinking." Violetta sighed. "And I still don't know why I can't say 'love'."

[TheAmishPirate]

[Girdershade]

Fleetwing smacked his forehead so hard, it'd be little surprise to see it bruised by the end of this. "Were y'not paying attention when I explained all this t'Fizz? Or did you forget when she nearly squealed her head off when you mentioned the L-word?!" How much 'not thinking' could one filly do? "I ain't got a clue what y'think love is, but let me tell you; it's got a heck of a lot more implications than y'seem to think. It means you're thinking you want to be with a pony for life. Their face gets blown off? You're there. They get their tongue cut out? You're there. They get old and crazy in the head? Guess what? You're still there. For better or for worse, sick or healthy, easy or hard, you're by their side. And you want t'know what else? That's only barely scratching the surface of what all it entails."

He paused to let that little nugget of information sink in. "So? That a good enough reason not to go chucking that word out whenever y'please?" he asked dryly.

[PurityIcekiller]

Fleetwing smacked his forehead so hard, it'd be little surprise to see it bruised by the end of this. "Were y'not paying attention when I explained all this t'Fizz? Or did you forget when she nearly squealed her head off when you mentioned the L-word?!" How much 'not thinking' could one filly do? "I ain't got a clue what y'think love is, but let me tell you; it's got a heck of a lot more implications than y'seem to think. It means you're thinking you want to be with a pony for life. Their face gets blown off? You're there. They get their tongue cut out? You're there. They get old and crazy in the head? Guess what? You're still there. For better or for worse, sick or healthy, easy or hard, you're by their side. And you want t'know what else? That's only barely scratching the surface of what all it entails."

He paused to let that little nugget of information sink in. "So? That a good enough reason not to go chucking that word out whenever y'please?" he asked dryly.

"That sounds..." Violetta thought for a bit. "...kind of over the top. Like the kind of thing that doesn't happen. But then again, throwing someone aside just because they lost their tongue or whatever is rather petty.

"I guess I won't use that word again, then, if it describes something so impossible to most. I'll try to find a better way to phrase it. Perhaps 'possesses notable romantic inclinations'?"

[Chaotic Bob]

[Tenpony Tower - Jail]

Yeah.
Down?
Not surprised at all.

Just Lucky Break catching another "lucky break".

Somewhat more dryly than necessary, Down makes her request as she stands.
"Yeah, okay. Now that we're establishing that Tenpony has questionable lines of communication, I can probably take that sack of bad luck off your hooves."
That sack of abused, neglected, and goofy bad luck.

"While we're on the topic, I don't suppose unwarranted beatings are particularly legal here, hm? Probably permanent damage to his face, for no good reason."

[Rebonack]

[Tenpony Tower - Jail]

Aaaand Iron Cuffs begins to sputter. He doesn't seem very fond of the idea that he's going to get into trouble because he was doing his job.

"I'll... tell Chief Silver Star what happened," Grey pipes up. "I'm sure he'll be able to work something out to make up for your friend's... inconvenience..."

That sure is an interesting word to describe getting beaten in the face!

Though... come to think of it...

If Lucky is going to get some sort of freebee for getting bashed in the face by a guard... does that make his run-in with the law lucky or unlucky? Or maybe both?

[Lycan 01]

Tenpony Tower - Diner

Flim and Flam nod, and order Gwendolyn a chocolate milkshake. Soon Gwendolyn has an old fashioned chocolate malt milkshake in front of her, with a straw and whipped cream. No cherry, though.

"Don't drink to fast, though," Flim observes.

"You'll get a brain freeze," Flam frowns.

"And you'll want to savor it."

"Enjoy the deliciousness."



---
Tenpony Tower - Jail

Lucky mutters something incoherent and gives a small wing twitch. Yup, still out.



---
Tenpony Tower - DJ Library

Homage smiles sadly. "Exactly, Swiss..."

And then she flashes a small smirk. "And I think the ponies two hundred years ago were wise to be wary. They had little reason to believe that any of our kind existed who were not under the sway of Queen Chrysalis, so there would have been no way to safely identify a 'friendly' Changeling from a manipulative one."

[TheAmishPirate]

"That sounds..." Violetta thought for a bit. "...kind of over the top. Like the kind of thing that doesn't happen. But then again, throwing someone aside just because they lost their tongue or whatever is rather petty.

"I guess I won't use that word again, then, if it describes something so impossible to most. I'll try to find a better way to phrase it. Perhaps 'possesses notable romantic inclinations'?"

Fleetwing sighed in exasperation. "Sure, that works I suppose. Provided y'actually put some thought into when y'use it. But you're still missing the point!" The pegasus stomped the ground for emphasis. "I thought I made it plenty clear yesterday that y'had to be careful, but I guess all that talk of death, violence, and Equestria going t'Tartarus weren't enough. Bucky could've just shot us dead right then and there if he weren't so merciful. Not t'mention distracted by what y'told Fizz. I've seen it happen over much, much pettier disagreements."

He shook his head disapprovingly at the filly. "If you're going to last much longer here, you're going to have to drop that bad habit of not using your head. 'Cause sooner or later, that's gonna get you killed."

[Chaotic Bob]

[Tenpony Tower - Jail]

Down doesn't seem to be feeling any particular pity or mercy towards Iron, but she doesn't accuse him any further.
Merely arranges those law books into a neat little out-of-the-way stack, before maneuvering along that way.

"That sounds agreeable, Mister Stetson. In the meantime, do you have a medical facility? I'll deliver him there, since he likely needs it."
No wait, just a teensy bit more accusing.

She'll also be trying to push her way over and finagle the pegasus up onto her back. Power armor strength!

[Rebonack]

[Tenpony Tower - Jail]

"That would be doctor Helpinghoof's clinic," Grey replies without a moment's hesitation. "Tell him that the treatment fer gettin' his face fixed is going to be on the Tower Guard."

Woohoo!

Free facial reconstruction!

Lucky is fortunate after all!

Assuming something else horrible doesn't crop up in the mean time. That would be... just horrible!

Iron makes no comments about anything...

[Tenpony Tower - Homage's Pad]

Hmm... under Queen Chrysalis' thrall...

"I don't really know much about her. Just the little bit of history Lucanes told me about her. The story of Hearts and Hooves day was her fall, that's how the changelings were made. She was their Princess. Like Celestia or Luna were for the ponies. And she died during Fallout. Other than that..." Swiss gives a shrug. "Maybe a history book would be useful too..."

Another tome is pulled off the shelf by her magic and added to the stack.

"I guess most changelings must have been enthralled to her back in the day? Suppose that would make sense..."

[Benson]

Tenpony Tower - Diner

Flim and Flam nod, and order Gwendolyn a chocolate milkshake. Soon Gwendolyn has an old fashioned chocolate malt milkshake in front of her, with a straw and whipped cream. No cherry, though.

"Don't drink to fast, though," Flim observes.

"You'll get a brain freeze," Flam frowns.

"And you'll want to savor it."

"Enjoy the deliciousness."

And so Gwendolyn took her first sip of a chocolate milkshake, and it was delicious.

She smiled, a real child-like smile. None of her small tiny smiles that take a microscope to see. But a genuine smile, it was kinda cute.

[PurityIcekiller]

Fleetwing sighed in exasperation. "Sure, that works I suppose. Provided y'actually put some thought into when y'use it. But you're still missing the point!" The pegasus stomped the ground for emphasis. "I thought I made it plenty clear yesterday that y'had to be careful, but I guess all that talk of death, violence, and Equestria going t'Tartarus weren't enough. Bucky could've just shot us dead right then and there if he weren't so merciful. Not t'mention distracted by what y'told Fizz. I've seen it happen over much, much pettier disagreements."

He shook his head disapprovingly at the filly. "If you're going to last much longer here, you're going to have to drop that bad habit of not using your head. 'Cause sooner or later, that's gonna get you killed."

"So only say just as much as they need to know, and no more? I suppose I can do that. Yeesh, this place is complicated. I still don't quite understand myself, much less anything else."

Violetta then brightened up. "Of course, I doubt Bucky could really have pulled that sort of thing off. He was outnumbered four to one and we had Gleam with us, so he would most likely die as well. Plus, it would have cost him his reputation with Fizz. I think he's got enough sense to know that."

[BladeofObliviom]

Spoiler

Show

If Swift looks to a side, Gleamy would seem... Odd
More or less like a statue, standing still and seemingly distracted

[Tag: BladeofObliviom]

[Girdershade]

Swift merely watches for a moment smiling as Fleetwing flies off. It's admittedly partially curiosity; It's not like she's never seen a pegasus before, but they're not exactly common in the Wasteland.

However, after that short moment, Gleamy's the only one left to talk to.

"Crazy kids."

...

"...Gleamy?"

[Lycan 01]

Tenpony Tower - DJ Library

Homage nods. "From what I understand," she explains, "The majority of all Changelings were under her sway, to varying degrees. I actually do not know what became of her when the bombs fell, but presumably nothing good since our kind has been scattered to the wind."


---
Tenpony Tower - Diner

Flim and Flam both grin. "Aww, look at that smile," Flim croons.

"Looks like she likes it," Flam observes.

"Well, once you're done, anywhere else you want to go?"

"Gun store? Doc? Fine culinary repository?"



---
Tenpony Tower - Jail

Lucky lets out an amusing squeaky noise as Down flops him onto her back. Hopefully he doesn't drool...

[Rebonack]

[Tenpony Tower - Homage's Pad]

"Nothing good..." Swiss echoes, staring absently at one of the books in front of her. The History of the Changeling Menace. What a cheerful title. But then again one can't really expect the pony account of their race to be terribly positive. Swiss cracks the book open and begins skimming it.

"Kind of a strange thought. We might have been the only race that had some kind of positive benefit from Fallout since it freed us from Chrysalis. Just looking at these chapter headings and it doesn't sound like she was very nice... And Lucanes told me about the whole 'trying to enslave Equestria' thing that happened at Canterlot."

Swiss isn't terribly keen on the whole 'enslaving ponies to use them as cattle' idea. It's pretty solidly horrible in every way imaginable. The thought of her friends being treated like food instead of ponies makes her stomach turn.

An idle thought crosses Swiss' mind as she turns a few pages. "Does anypony else know what you really are? I would imagine you keep this secret pretty close."

[Chaotic Bob]

[Tenpony Tower - Jail]

Down chooses to ignore said noise.
Mostly because she isn't sure if she just smiled or grimaced.

No wait, it was a grimace.

Halfway through the action, the pegasus twitches rather severely.
"Point the way. Quickly please."

So that she may fly down the halls, drop the idiot into the clinic, toss out a "GreyStetsonsaidhisfaceisfree", and then fly back out.

[Rebonack]

[Tenpony Tower - Jail]

The twitch is noticed.

Boy. Pegasus sure are weird aren't they? Wonder what the hurry is? Grey just shrugs. "Well... let's see... I think Doctor Helpinghoof's clinic is two floors up, right Iron?"

The other pony glances at his co-worker and fidgets a bit. "Uuh... I thought it was two floors down? You know? Next to Doughnut Joe's shop?"

"What? No no. You're thinking of Healing Hooves you big dunderhead. She wants to go to the doctor, not to the spa. Two floors up, hang a left down the main hall. You should see it, nice big sign. Can't miss it," Grey Stetson says, waving a hoof in the proper direction.

...

Should Down follow Grey's directions she'll find herself at the Healing Hooves Spa.

Whoops!

[Lycan 01]

Tenpony Tower - DJ Library

Homage smirks. "Well, you'll find these texts to be quite enlightening then? Did you know Queen Chrysalis actually defeated Princess Celestia in one-on-one combat? That particular piece of information was likely the first thing the Ministry of Image expunged from history," he observes with bemusement.

She then gives a shrug. "A few ponies know, beyond your little group. Trusted contacts, the previous DJ Pon3, an old traveling companion or two... How many know about your own identity, beyond your team?"



---
Tenpony Tower - Jail ----> Clinic Spa

Upon arriving, Lucky yawns. "Ow. My face hurts," he mutters. "Big surprise. Where am I?" he groggily asks, before looking down and trying to blink his eyes into focus. "And who's heavily armored back am I on?"

He looks down at Down, eyes unfocused. "Oh... Is that you Shadow Stride?" he mutter softly, before wrapping his hooves around Down's neck and giving her a gentle hug. "I missed you..."

[Chaotic Bob]

[Tenpony Tower - Jail---->Spa]

"Wait, that isn't-"
Wham!

Down just flew face first into the wall next to the Healing Hoove's Spa.

Why yes, Down. That isn't the face-fixing clinic.
Walls tend to be very bad clinics.
Also you should probably move or something in a way that isn't a twitch.

You probably hurt Lucky with that impact, either when you hit the wall, or when you fell to the ground.

[Rebonack]

[Tenpony Tower - Homage's Pad]

"That part I remember," Swiss comments as she turns another page. "The defeating Celestia part. Lucanes made a really big deal about it. Heh... they were all just ponies I guess. Really strong, really old ponies. But still ponies. Not infallible goddesses. Just ponies trying to do their best."

Certainly different from the common belief that Celestia is basically the sun incarnate.

"Not a very popular opinion these days. Nearly everypony wants to believe that the Princesses are still watching over us. Wouldn't hurt my feelings much if Chrysalis were just dead dead instead of scheming somewhere."

Changelings are good at scheming.

Then a question! "Who I've told...? Well... just a few ponies here and there. Usually those that I think I can really trust. Or those that I think might be willing to join the team. Though... there's this pegasus who was traveling with us? Lucky Break? I accidentally pushed myself into burnout and my disguise failed. Considering that he's from the Deadlands he took it pretty well."

A beat.

"Apparently they believe that the old changeling pass-phrase is some kind of incantation to ward us off. He caught me in the middle of drinking a cola and I snorted it all over him."

[Tenpony Tower - Healing Hooves Spa]

Well!

Isn't this going just swimmingly?

More than a few ponies are giving the pair of pegasi odd looks now.

[Benson]

Tenpony Tower - Diner

Flim and Flam both grin. "Aww, look at that smile," Flim croons.

"Looks like she likes it," Flam observes.

"Well, once you're done, anywhere else you want to go?"

"Gun store? Doc? Fine culinary repository?"

"Well, Mister Lucky did want me to find a doctor to fix him up," She said, her beak still wrapped around the straw, sucking up delicious milkshake of chocolatey goodness.

[Lycan 01]

Tenpony Tower - Diner

Flim and Flam ponder. "Well, there are a few clinics," Flim shrugs.

"Helpinghoof is probably the best," Flam observes.

"Want us to take you there first?"

"Or go there once we're finished everywhere else?"



---
Tenpony Tower - DJ Library

"Ah yes, the ironically named pegasus," Homage smirks. "And you trust him with such knowledge?"



---
Tenpony Tower - Spa

Lucky winds up clobbered yet again, and stuck under a power armored pegasus. "Hurk... blek..." he coughs, blinking his eyes back into focus and trying to find space to breath. "Ow. What just-"

His eyes go wide as he realizes where he is, and who's twitching on top of him. "AH!! Crap! Are you okay, Miss Down?! I'm sorry! I don't know what happened but it's probably my fault! Please be alright!" he frantically exclaims, not sure if he should push her off or crawl free or try to hold her stable in case she's injured.

[Rebonack]

[Tenpony Tower - Homage's Pad]

That question gets a snerk out of Swiss. "You don't know the half of it. So apparently he was sneaking around in some old building and set off a mine. Which set off a whole bunch of other mines. The explosion flung him clean across the old railway and into a different building. Somehow all of this without getting a scratch."

It's crazy!

"And... well. I probably wouldn't have told him. But he found out unintentionally and so far thing seem... fine. I told him that changelings are about as likely to eat a pony as a griffon is. Which... is sort of true I guess? That seemed to help him calm down. That and I shared my cola with him."

Everyone likes free soda!

"Have you ever had anypony find out on their own? How did you hoofle the situation?"

[Chaotic Bob]

[Tenpony Tower - Spa]

There's no Down twitching on top you Lucky, what are you talking about?

She's standing a couple feet over that way, rigidly staring into the spa!

Admittedly, she's bolted to that position some point after Lucky started verbally flailing, but the point remains!
It seems she snapped out of that twitching daze pretty quick and has...moved on to whatever this is.

She's even talking, in a halting, embarrassed sort of way.
"...are you okay, Mister Break?"

[Benson]

Tenpony Tower - Diner

Flim and Flam ponder. "Well, there are a few clinics," Flim shrugs.

"Helpinghoof is probably the best," Flam observes.

"Want us to take you there first?"

"Or go there once we're finished everywhere else?"

"Yes, I would like to get in contact with this doctor helpinghoof as soon as possible." The griffon stated firmly.