Truth.

No matter how much ponies had lied to get themselves out of trouble, the truth would always be found at some point in their lives, one way or another. Trouble is inevitable, even when you think you have gotten away from it for good, after you had lied your way out by showing innocent smiles to the judge and the jury, trouble would always catch up… And the trouble would be followed with punishment. No matter how much the truth hurts, you always have to come out with it…

If you had done what I did, if you had broken so many rules, killed so many ponies and destroyed so many families and broken the trust of so many ponies - if you had killed your friend because she had tried to kill you - if you did what I did, it would be hard… But remember, the truth is always set free even if it is the closest pony to you who finds out. I had broken the hope for the Wasteland; I had weakened the friends and strengthened the enemy. And that is the worst of all deeds to commit when a nation’s life is at stake.

But I was not alone -- history had thousands of ponies like me. And I was far from the worst.

"Good afternoon, everypony, Autumn Breeze here bringing you another update of what's happening in the Wasteland... Yay? I hate the Wasteland as much as you do, believe me...

"For those traveling up from the south to Manehattan, be sure to stop by Stable 55 and give the Steel Rangers a visit. If you're looking to handle heavy weaponry, grab some heavy armor and get your own slice of action be sure to head to Stable 55. All newbies to the Steel Rangers are guaranteed a warm bed and free food upon signing up! Believe me, listeners, I ain't lying, these Rangers are doing their best to make sure the Equestria we live in has a better tomorrow.

"In other news, the search for our infamous Little Blue Buddy continues. Reports have come in suggesting that he has been sighted within the Destiny area - if this is true, grab all the guns and weapons you can find, and find him. If you kill him, bring his head to Mist and you will be rewarded. Bring him back alive, and your reward will be even greater.

“I know it’s a bit silly chasing after one pony, but the Steel Rangers know what they’re doing. This pony they’re asking you to chase after used a Bale Fire Bomb on Sunnyvale, killing all of the Steel Rangers inside of it -- taking the homes of what could have been thousands of ponies away from them with one big multicolored blast of death. Imagine if you were those ponies… If somepony turns a blind eye to it, no doubt it will happen again…

“He is a dangerous threat… Believe me…”

They knew… They knew what I had done. They knew the truth, and there was no point in hiding from it. All of the ponies who were against me, all of the ponies who I had met on my travels in the areas I had visited were no doubt going to become my enemies. And not only that, but no doubt the Alicorns, Hellhounds, Slavers… Raiders… Everypony who I have encountered, every faction I have fought against, all of them after me, hunting me as if I was some wild animal.

Maybe I was. I had just been let out of the cage, I had just strayed too far away from it and now it was impossible for me to be locked away inside of it yet again. I was a dog, a rabid creature, watching and waiting for my predator… Eyes always open. And they were my predators… All of them hunting me down, waiting for me to make one small mistake which could jeopardize the life of both my companions, and me.

You can’t teach an old dog new tricks… I could only do so much. I wasn’t perfect.

As I peeked through the small gaps in the boards which covered the shattered window at the backend of the office, I began to count the Raiders who sat out in the cold and heavy rain which threw itself down onto them like a blizzard of bullets would, the sound of the rain slamming against the building and the dirt outside one of the only things audible. One... Two... Three... Three soon turned to ten, and ten turned to fifteen. We were surrounded.

Fifteen... Sixteen... Seventeen... Twenty, twenty-one.

The count kept rising, too many Raiders for us to handle. Cyclone looked ready, yes, but something told me that she wouldn't last either. I was just a young wanted buck with a pistol... Nothing special. Nothing at all. And she still needed to know - about what I had done, my crime. But now wasn't the time for that. But when would the right time be, when this is all over? No. It wouldn't be worth saying then...

"We have to go," I said, glancing back to the heavily armored mare in the far corner by the door as she took a swig of Sparkle-Cola. I stepped away from the window and began walking towards the open door way at the end of the room...

"Like now?" my sister queried. "How many Raiders are out there? How many as of now?"

I gulped upon hearing her ask that... Twenty-one. "Uhm... I'm not sure..." I lied, looking to her with a shy stare. "A few..."

"Come on, Tornado... How many?" Cyclone stared back into mine as there was quite a distance between her and me.

Twenty-one... Or more... Say it! "Just a few... I'm not sure, I lost count..." I spoke shyly, looking away slightly, back towards the darkened doorway.

Cyclone gave a gesture of disbelief, and looked away. "How did you get in alive anyway?" Cyclone asked with a lift of her hoof as she looked back at me. "I assume you came alone..."

"Stealth Buck..." I simply responded, looking back at her with no expression. "And no... I didn't come here alone..."

Cyclone soon stood onto her hooves slowly, walking to me with a dismal look. The sound of her hoofsteps echoed around the room loudly, as each of the armored hooves slammed against the concrete tiling below us, some of the Pre-War posters falling from the cracked and battered walls. She soon blocked my path.

"Where are they then?" Cyclone grunted, "I am not leaving until they arrive."

But before I could speak, the Raider shouts which were once audible fell silent... The only sounds I could hear were my own breathing and the rain which slammed against the building and also the sound of the strong winds whistling and weaving its way through the Wasteland. There were no voices, none at all... Just the sound of the rain, and the wind. But that was it. I had a gut feeling the Raiders knew that I was here - that we were here. All of them, every single one of them.

The silence was almost deafening… But it made me feel somewhat safe… Yes. Safe. I slowly began to take small and slow steps towards the doorway, my hoofsteps creating little noise but still managing to echo off of the cracked and damaged walls which surrounded us. My sister didn’t move, in fact she stayed there, her eyes the only movement she was making as they followed me.

As I reached the doorway, my ears were suddenly pierced with a loud bang which surged its way through the empty building, and I soon found myself cringing back as more and more of the loud punches to the doors and boarded up windows. They knew we were here… They had heard us. My heart began pounding as the sound of what sounded like thousands of hooves knocking at the doors and windows with power got louder, and louder, before I felt myself collapse from all the noise.

“T-they’ve found us!” I regrettedly said with a clear tone of fear to my voice. Cyclone stood on her hooves, walking to the doorway, the metal clanking of her armor drowned out by the rapid banging which washed over the sound of anything else. I felt myself begin to curl up in a ball of cowardness…

“We know you’re in there, ponies, open up!!” a Raider’s voice screamed from outside as the pounding continued. “We ain’t gonna hurt ya’... Much!!”

Cyclone stopped at the doorway, before glancing back to me. “Stop being such a baby, and listen…” Cyclone leaned down and moved closer to me, whispering and holding me close. “You came here to find me and take me with you, right?”

I nodded the loud ruckus below seemingly getting higher and higher in volume as the cries of Raiders echoed loudly throughout. The sound of wood shattering, the sound of locks breaking… The sound of hoofsteps rushing into the building stopped my heart yet again, but I couldn’t stay here, waiting for them to kill me… I shouldn’t…

“Then get off your silly flank, and help me fight our way out of here!” Cyclone showed a sly smile, before playfully swinging a hoof into the back of my head. I smiled back. She soon grabbed her rifle, before slotting it into the battle saddle attached to her Enclave armor. She soon wrapped her mouth around the lever in front of her, as she soon walked out into the corridor.

Lifting myself, I noticed that the healing bandages which had been applied to my wound had more or less healed the damaged caused by the shotgun trap I ran into earlier. I reached for my pistol with my jaw, before yanking it out and having a firm grip on the mouth piece. Cyclone stood there, waiting for me, before I followed her out into the darkened hallway, hearing the Raiders search the place, begging for us to show our faces.

My PipBuck’s flashlight lit up a small portion of the claustrophobic hallway, the cracked and broken walls and ceiling looking like they would crumble at any minute as dust slowly poured its way out from the cracks above. Pre-War posters were attached to the back wall of the staircase, and as I proceeded to take a hoofstep down them, a dirty and blood covered Raider came into sight, his combat shotgun loosely in his mouth. As my eyes met with his, his eyes widened and he was about to call out, but before he could, I entered S.A.T.S. and targeted his head. Once… Twice… Three times!

BANG! BANG! BANG!

The first shot pierced his skull. The second fractured it… The third delivered the killing blow which sent the Raider backwards as his head removed itself from his body. Thick, gooey blood splattered all over the wall behind him, and as his body was sent tumbling back, as I exited S.A.T.S., the cries of what sounded like thousands of Raiders rung out throughout the building.

“They’re upstairs!!” I heard one of the voices call, as the sound of hooves scrambling were heard coming towards the staircase. I began to trot down the staircase, but before I could reach the bottom of the first series of steps, a Raider darted around the corner, almost dropping the rifle which was within his jaw's grasp.

I fired two quick shots without S.A.T.S. at him, only managing to cripple him. The shots I had fired had both been directed at his forelegs, and he fell as soon as the blood came gushing out of the wounds which had been placed there, slamming into the nearest wall with a thud. Trotting up to him, the gun still in my mouth, I fired one more shot at his head, blood and brain matter splattering all over the wall he leaned against and soon trickling down it.

I leaned down beside his body to loot the rifle from the dead Raider. As I did however, the sound of what sounded like a Raider screaming at the top of his dry lungs was soon interrupted by a loud, echoing gunshot from beside me, before I heard what sounded like somepony drowning in their own blood. I glanced back to see a Raider holding their throat, choking and coughing up blood violently, before tumbling down the stairs behind them.

"Sorry about that," Cyclone giggled to herself, trotting down the small series of stairs stairs, standing beside me. "You were too busy stealing from a dead guy."

I chuckled at her remark, taking the rifle. I noticed that it has a leather strap, as if it was meant to go other somepony's neck. I lifted it, comfortably placing it over my head and onto the back of my neck so it could dangle from it, so it could be there whenever I needed it the most.

I quickly walked to the top of the second series of stairs, seeing another brutally damaged Raider who carried a large rifle in his jaws which had two barrell mags at either side. I was about to flip into S.A.T.S. but I wasn’t fast enough. Before I could do so, I felt a spree of Shotgun shells just skim my Stable jacket, barely missing me by an inch. I quickly ducked down and dived out the way as I heard the Raider’s hooves slamming against the stone slab staircase. I waited on the ground, and as his face turned around the corner, another gunshot from my sister echoed loudly, blowing the Raider’s head off of the shoulders of its body.

I lifted myself onto my hooves, glancing back to my sister who soon trotted passed me and down the staircase, the armor which covered her hooves clanking against the stone on the staircase. Another few loud bangs heard, but within the gunfire were conflicting gunshots. Machine guns and rifles being fired at her. I quickly rushed down the stairs, the pistol firmly in my mouth and as I reached the bottom of the staircase, I saw Cyclone ducking behind an overturned metal table.

“Ooh look, it’s the blue bastard that mare on the radio talks about, grab him!!” I heard a Raider’s voice within the obscuring darkness call out, obviously noticing me in the PipBuck light which shined up into my face.

I quickly scurried for some cover, a little too fast. I ended up knocking the table Cyclone was hidden behind almost back onto the crooked metal legs which kept it standing. Luckily it fell back onto its side and supplied me with the cover I needed. As I made contact with the table, a sound of echoing gunfire was heard being unleashed at the table, shots ricocheting and hitting the wall as the sound of crumbling stone was heard right after the ‘ping’ which was given off from the table.

“Radio!? What are they talking about!?” Cyclone asked, peeking over, a shot just missing her head before she returned to cover. I was afraid she was going to ask that at somepoint… But now wasn’t the right time to tell her, especially since we were deeply under fire.

I didn’t answer the question. Instead, I popped into S.A.T.S. and targeted the closest Raider who was a Unicorn. She had an SMG surrounded dark, blood red aura which her horn gave off and it was pointing directly at me, the bullets which had been unleashed scattering all over the place, none of them managing to hit me… yet.

I selected the torso twice and the horn once. If I could take out the horn, then she’d be useless with firearms.

BLAM! BLAM!

Two shots were sent at the Raider’s torso, the first missing and hitting the wall behind her and the second shot piercing the spiky Raider armor and then puncturing the skin, the sound of her yelp ringing out in the room. I aimed towards her horn to take out the horn to deliver the third shot targeted with S.A.T.S., hoping that I wouldn’t miss.

BLAM!

I sent a bullet towards her horn, and luckily it hit it dead on. The bullet carved its way through the bone, and then cutting horn clean off to deliver an unbearable pain that would make her useless for long ranged combat. The Raider soon collapsed in a world of pain, the gun’s aura soon disappearing and dropping to the ground as she did. She held what was left of her horn in pain, ignoring the wound which had been created in her chest as it leaked blood.

Gotcha! I grinned in accomplishment, before vaulting over the table and slowly walking towards the helpless Raider mare with the gun still in my jaw’s grip. I walked over to the helpless mare who was screaming in pain from the horn she had lost, and as I stood in front of her, I prepared to shoot her in the head as her eyes which begged for mercy stared up at me, tearful with a facial expression that pleaded mercy.

“P-please… D-don’t kill me…” she begged surprisingly, closing her eyes and hiding in her own ball of cowardness. “I-I promise you, I… I won’t turn you in to the Steel Rangers, honest!”

I didn’t want to take that chance… But… She was begging for her life, begging for me to spare her pathetic life. I wanted to pull the trigger; I wanted to see her brains splattered on the floor. Usually, I would have no regrets… Usually, I would pull the trigger and it’d be over. But… I had never seen a Raider beg - this Raider had a heart, maybe she was doing what she did for the sake of her family. If she had one.

I couldn't think… Part of me needed her dead, the other alive. I was stuck. For the first time in my life, I was deciding if I should spare or kill the Raider right before my eyes. Why? Why did it have to come to this? I wanted to decide quickly… No doubt there were other Ra-.

“I see him, he’s over here!” I heard the sound of what sounded like a Minigun spinning, unleashing its fury on me… And me only. I felt what felt like a thousand rounds puncture my bandaged wound, feeling many ribs and other bones break as the bullets pierced everything inside of me. Everything went silent… I collapsed with a loud grunt as I gritted my teeth, feeling tears develop in my eyes.

The female Raider looked down at me worryingly, barely scraped by the Minigun as if the enemy wasn’t after her. I looked towards the direction of gunfire to see a squad of Steel Rangers, and leading them… Elder Lockhart. In the corner of my eye, I noticed my sister struggling helplessly as a couple of heavily armored Rangers attempted to seduce her with some sort of drug which would weaken her. Elder Lockhart’s twisted gaze looked towards me as he slowly walked towards me.

As he grew closer, I noticed a small group of Rangers head their way out of the room as two guards accompanied Lockhart as he walked over to me. As the sound returned to my ears, he leaned down in front of me, his wrinkled face bearing down on me as his two fully armored Steel Rangers glared down at me. I saw my own reflection in their visors…

“Hello, Tornado,” Lockhart began. “Long time, no see. I had figured you were here…”

“H-how did you know?” I asked weakly, coughing violently and holding my wound, applying as much pressure as my weak little hooves could. “W-what are you doing with my sister?”

“We found you mainly through your friends, the rest of it was instinct. But… Wherever you go, they follow. They were all stood outside in the rain alone, as if they were waiting for somepony to come out from inside the gates,” Lockhart stated, lifting a hoof. “Your sister will be in good hooves, as will you… And as will your friends.”

As they dragged my sister out of the building, the Rangers who had left dragged my friends in, all of them contained in a rusty metal cages, their hooves bound together. Swift, Cyber… Crystal… Their mouths were taped over as the Rangers stood by them, Miniguns spinning. Oh… I hated them even more now… Seeing my friends locked up because of me made me feel rage and guilt. A rage which had to be dealt with on him…

“Where’s Violet? Did she do the smart thing in abandoning you?” Lockhart reached into his saddlebag for something, taking his time in finding it.

“I killed her…” I said with no shame. I had no choice; I couldn’t be shamed in something I had to do. “She’s in a better place now…”

“Yeah, I thought you might say that,” Lockhart responded glumly, before pulling out a pistol from his saddlebag. “Y’know, Tornado… It is a shame that it has come to this, but you’ve left me no choice especially since you destroyed our last beacon of hope.”

I closed my eyes, waiting for him to take the shot. And he did. I heard a gunshot, a loud one, again restricting me of my hearing for a few seconds… But I felt no impact. I was breathing, I was living… Had I died and instantly come back in some sort of afterlife? Did I wake up? Was this all a dream? The obvious answer was no. I opened my eyes to see the Raider who I had shot the horn off of with a large portion of her head missing, and blood and brain matter splattered all over the cracked cobble wall behind her. My hearing returned, and Lockhart put the gun back in his saddle bag.

“You just can’t keep out of trouble, can you?” Lockhart sighed. “Just a typical Stable Dweller who has no idea what it is like to be out here, a typical Stable Dweller who doesn’t know right from wrong… Rangers! Take them all away - forgive me for this… But it has to be done.”

I felt my hooves suddenly become bound to each other by some sort of spell, before Lockhart taped my mouth to silence me. His bodyguards soon left the building, only to soon return with a cage which was identical to the ones my friends were held captive in. Lockhart nodded to his two Steel Ranger bodyguards, before stepping back into the shadows and out of my PipBuck’s light as the two bodyguards lifted the cage I was contained inside of onto their backs…

“Return to Stable 55 and put them in their cells,” Lockhart commanded as the two Rangers who held me on their backs nodded to him before beginning to take their leave, following the Rangers who carried my friends.

I looked at all of my friends. All of them covered in scars, and deep wounds… It broke my heart to see them like this. I didn’t want to see them like this, and it hurt me internally to see them in this much pain. I had endangered them again… Guilt just flooding back into my body like a plague, making me feel like the villain as if my friends were the victims. And in this case they were. I had led the Steel Rangers to them by letting them stay outside, it was my fault this had happened and if they were going to say otherwise, they had no right to.

I always found my ways in endangering my friends… Always. One way or another I’d make a mistake which would send us back to square one… Only this time, we might not get out. Returning to Stable 55 which of course was now a Ranger base was probably one of the last places we would want to end up. But it was nothing short of what I deserved. I just wanted them to be free - if they would have to be set free, and I stay then so be it. I’d have it that way, but not any other way.

Autumn Breeze knew the truth, and she was just guessing. I could tell. But she knew it better than anypony else -- the previous host didn’t watch closely enough, but Autumn knew exactly what went on without even witnessing it. I was pissed off, I wanted her dead and I wanted to stomp her head in so much that it’d be nothing but a red mush… But she was right in doing this, it was what I deserved, not my friends.

Footnote: Level up!

New perk: Bullet Sponge - Your resistance against guns has improved by 10% when not wearing armor, however, when you do where armor your agility falls by 10%.

Current level: 20 - Maximum level!

Sorry if this chapter isn't good, believe me... it's been a while. I need to get back into the swing of things. Also apologies about the short length too, considering this is my first serious FOE chapter in a while I didn't want to make it too long by overworking myself.

Well, we draw ever closer to the end. I'm getting near my aim of how many chapters I want, and things are working out nicely in my eyes. However, I will have to go back and improve one or two things when I do eventually complete it. Just think, I would have been writing this for a year come June. It doesn't feel like that at all. I aim to get this finished by Summer at the very least!

Thanks for reading!