“Got it, let us know if anything changes.” Sunset lowered her Pip-Boy and looked around the crew compartment. The rest of the Rainbooms were watching her expectantly, unable to hear the conversation over the sound of the Vertibird’s engines. “The Super Mutants have managed to get hold of Sonata.”

Everyone reacted with shock and confusion. “How the fuck did they manage that?!” Rainbow exclaimed.

“They didn’t attack Rivet City did they?” Rarity asked anxiously.

Sunset sighed and shook her head. “As far as we can tell the dumb bitch managed to sneak out of Rivet City and wandered into the metro network. Knights at a Brotherhood outpost in the middle of the D.C. ruins spotted her getting kidnapped by a Behemoth not long after we left Rivet City ourselves.”

Pinkie groaned loudly. “Please tell me they didn’t take her to Vault 87.”

“Thankfully, no. Elder Lyons received a tip-off that the Super Mutants are holding Sonata in an old school facility called Roosevelt Academy,” Sunset explained. “Apparently they have a couple of hidden labs there, and are already making progress on improving their stock of FEV.”

“Wait a minute, are they planning on turning Sonata into a Super Mutant?!” Rainbow exclaimed.

“Hell if I know,” Sunset replied honestly. “Either way, she probably doesn’t deserve to be left in their hands, and we can’t risk them learning anything about magic from her. We’ve got to get in there and rescue her.” The others all nodded, though Sunset wasn’t sure which reason they actually cared about.

Rarity rolled her eyes and gave an exaggerated sigh. “I suppose we don’t really have a choice. Will we at least have support this time?”

Sunset nodded, understanding the sentiment all too well. “Star Paladin Cross is bringing a squad, and the Enclave are sending one of their new mage-ops fireteams. The Academy has three buildings. The plan is to meet the other Vertibirds just outside the perimeter, hit any Mutants guarding the outside in an aerial strike, then each team will take a building and hit them all at the same time.”

“Can we at least bitch-slap Sonata when we find her?” Applejack asked with a grumpy frown.

“Only if the Super Mutants haven’t already,” Sunset replied. “Also, while Becky and Elder Lyons would prefer if we don’t destroy too much of whatever research the Super Mutants have done, our priorities are to rescue any and all captives and take out as many Super Mutants as we possibly can.”

“In other words, fuck up the bad guys and save the day,” Rainbow called out with a wide grin.

The others whooped and shouted in agreement. “Just remember to keep your wits about you,” Sunset cut in. “The tip-off came from Talon Company, of all people, so there’s a good chance that this is a trap or some sort of bullshit power play.”

“Wait a minute, we’re doing this on Talon Company’s word?!” Fluttershy spat incredulously.

“I know, I don’t like it either,” Sunset admitted as the others all glared at her. “Elder Lyons said that they provided compelling evidence as to what the Super Mutants are planning, and she thinks this is worth checking out. That doesn’t mean we trust them, though, so-”

“Keep our heads on a swivel,” Applejack finished. She frowned and crossed her arms. “Do we know which building Sonata is being held in?”

Sunset grimaced and waved her hand in a ‘so-so’ gesture. “The intel from Talon Company says that she’s in the Arts and Athletics building but, again, take it with a pinch of salt.”

The rest of the journey passed with the girls idly speculating about what would happen if Talon Company were lying, or, just as concerning, if they were telling the truth. No-one dared to ask what was to be done if Sonata had already been infected with FEV.

All too soon, the pilot called over the intercom, “We’re approaching the LZ. The other birds are already waiting for us, so we’ll move straight in with the aerial assault.” The girls waited in silence after the announcement. A few minutes later, the pilot called through again, “We’ve got Muties ahead, please be aware that the Vertibird may experience some mild turbulence while we blow them to kingdom come.”

Rainbow cheered and yelled out encouragement while the others gripped their harnesses a little tighter. It wasn’t long before explosions and the distinctive whine of gatling lasers could be heard even over the Vertibird’s engines. The gunfight only went on for what felt like a few seconds before the light in the crew compartment turned a dark red. “LZ is almost clear, get ready to disembark!” The pilot called out.

“You heard him, Rainbooms, lock and load!” Sunset hadn’t even finished her sentence before everyone was undoing their harnesses and scrambling to their feet. It only took a few seconds for everyone to gather up their weapons, then they just had to wait as the gunfire stopped and the Vertibird began to descend, the ramp opening up before they were anywhere near the ground.

The instant the Vertibird touched the ground, the light turned green and the Rainbooms piled out of it.

A huge building rose up ahead of the girls. It looked like it had been a magnificent building once, but now, with its roof and much of the top few floors missing, not to mention the vile add-ons favored by Super Mutants, it was a shadow of its former self. Charred mutant corpses littered the ground around the entrance only a few feet in front of the girls. They lined up around the main door as the Vertibird peeled away and gained altitude once more. With everyone ready, Sunset nodded to Twilight, who used her magic to rip the doors from their hinges and toss them aside.

A storm of bullets and lasers filled the empty doorway. The Rainbooms waited for it to stop, then Pinkie stepped up and returned fire. The floor rumbled as Pinkie’s Party Cannon did its deadly work. Before the blast had faded, she switched to her shotgun and led the charge into the building.

Inside, pink smoke rose from the remains of a large circular reception desk. A handful of Super Mutants were still standing around the room, but even as the Rainbooms cut them down more emerged from other doors around the room, forcing the girls to take cover behind pillars and Rarity’s magic. Sunset flinched as a bullet tore a chunk out of the pillar she was crouching behind, then popped out and hit the offending Mutant with three bolts of plasma to the chest.

“Reloading!” Sunset ducked back behind the pillar as Twilight stepped forward, hurling debris at their attackers. Just as Sunset finished reloading there was a loud crack and something grabbed her shoulder. She flinched and whipped her plasma rifle up, but before she could fire there was another crack and a purple flash, and her whole body lurched with a sickeningly familiar sensation.

“Got you, yep.” The owner of the gravelly voice shoved Sunset to the floor. There was yet another loud crack and a flash of purple light, and she was left in darkness.

Sunset’s heart pounded as she looked around wildly. A couple of buzzing lights in the ceiling provided very faint illumination, and as her eyes adjusted a low, wide room slowly materialized. There was a large generator in the middle of the room, and dozens of thick concrete pillars in a grid spaced about five feet apart, but there was no sign of any enemies in the room. A quick look behind revealed that there was a doorway, but metal sheets had been welded together to block it entirely. She tried to raise someone on her radio, just in case, but all she got back was static.

Teleportation. Sunset knew more about it than almost anyone she knew, save perhaps the Princesses, but she had never expected to encounter it among Super Mutants, let alone weaponized.

Shoving those thoughts to the back of her mind, at least for the time being, Sunset stood and raised her plasma rifle. She didn’t know if there was any way out of wherever the hell she was, but anything was better than just sitting around and waiting for death.

Treading as carefully and silently as she could, Sunset crept around the pillars, keeping her eyes peeled for any threats or a possible way out. She found another doorway, but that one was blocked by some sort of heavy machinery piled across it. The terrifying possibility that the Super Mutants had just dumped her in a sealed room, hidden somewhere deep in the wastes, was slowly seeming more and more likely.

A muffled yell almost made Sunset leap out of her skin. Whipping around, she spotted a shadowy figure sitting awkwardly against the wall. “Sonata?”

Sonata let out another muffled yell and squirmed on the spot. A closer look revealed that she was cruelly gagged and bound, with thick rope binding her to a fire hose reel in the wall.

“Hold on, I’ll get you out of there.” Sunset shouldered her plasma rifle and whipped out her combat knife. Instead of wasting time fiddling with knots, she very carefully used the knife to cut through the gag.

“I-it’s a trap!” Sonata gasped as soon as the gag was gone.

“No shit.” Sunset jammed a hand into the siren’s pocket and pulled out a gorgeous crystalline torc. She had sensed the Equestrian magic inside when she had approached Sonata, but now that she was holding it, she could feel immense power thundering through it, as if she were holding a literal nuclear reactor in her hand. “Care to explain what the fuck this is?”

Sonata paled and started straining against her bonds. “It’s my new amulet. I’ll tell you everything, just please don’t leave me here!”

“Why would I-” Sunset snapped her head around as she heard the machinery blocking the one doorway being shifted, along with guttural grunts of effort. “We’ll discuss this later.” She shoved the torc back into Sonata’s pocket, then quickly slashed through the ropes and helped her to her feet. “If you know any other way out of here, that would be really helpful.”

“There’s a big metal door that way, but those things did something to it,” Sonata hissed, pointing away from the sealed doors.

“Good enough.” Sunset drew her Nova pistol before throwing Sonata’s arm around her shoulder and helping her hurry in the direction indicated. It didn’t take long to find the door; a heavy-duty mechanical thing composed of three siding metal panels. Sunset smacked the button, but only the center panel moved, grinding and screeching as it slowly sank into the ground.

One final loud slam echoed from behind as the panel suddenly stopped opening. A moment later, a loud squealing sound started coming from the motors beneath the door panel. Sunset instinctively shoved Sonata through the door a split second before it slammed shut again.

“Come on, come on!” Sunset jabbed the button again, but nothing happened. “Shit.” She pounded a fist on the door in frustration, trying to control her thundering heart as she heard a chorus of heavy footfalls approaching. Pounding the door once again for good measure, Sunset sighed, took a deep breath, and turned to face the inevitable.

Seven Super Mutants surrounded her in a semi-circle. All of them were bigger and bulkier than the average Mutant, and each of them was wielding a sledgehammer, a stout metal pipe, or a wooden board festooned with nails. “You die now, Rainboom,” the closest Mutant said with a vicious grin.

“Bigger dipshits than you have tried and died,” Sunset said defiantly.

The lead Mutant snorted and raised his hammer. “Get-”

A blast from the Nova Pistol punched a hole through his chest before he could finish. The others stared in blank surprise as their leader keeled over, giving Sunset a chance to swap the pistol for her plasma rifle. She managed to shoot out the knees of two more Mutants before the others gathered their wits and rushed her.

Sunset risked one last shot at the closest one’s face, then ducked under its wild swing and dove into a commando roll just before the others reached her. As she rolled to her feet she dropped a frag grenade and hurled herself amongst the pillars. The blast made the whole room shudder. Sunset didn’t dare look back as she sprinted towards the door the Super Mutants had come through. It was possible that the grenade had done in all of them, but she wasn’t about to take that risk.

As she darted around another pillar, something solid slammed into Sunset’s back, sending pain surging through her shoulder and knocking her sprawling. A metal pipe clanged to the ground next to her. It was pure reflex that made Sunset roll over and start firing backwards. The storm of plasma pulverized the chest of an oncoming Super Mutant. She changed targets before the body had hit the ground, bringing one more down in a hail of green death.

“Shit!” Sunset barely had time to scramble to her feet before the next one was on her. The Mutant bellowed and brought its hammer down in an overhead smash, narrowly missing Sunset as she stumbled aside. It followed up with a backhanded slap that knocked her into a pillar. She shook her head to clear it, then ducked as the Mutant swung again. The hammer smashed a chunk of concrete from the pillar where her head had been.

Sunset snapped her rifle up and fired before the Mutant could attack again, vaporizing half of its face, only for the rifle to run dry after that single shot. Before she could reload, the Super Mutant lashed out blindly with its hammer. The wild swing caught her in the side and slammed her off her feet.

Agony tore through Sunset’s whole body. She hit the floor hard, her plasma rifle flying out of her hands and clattering away into the darkness. Every ragged breath Sunset took made the left side of her chest feel like it was filled with broken glass. Even so, she gritted her teeth and pushed herself to her knees. She couldn’t see her plasma rifle, so she reached out and grabbed a discarded metal pole and used it to help force herself to her feet.

The Super Mutant was just gathering its senses as well, and glared at her with its one remaining eye. Both of them stared each other down, then the Mutant roared and swung at her head. Sunset barely managed to skip back out of the way. She waited for it to swing again before lunging forward, smashing the steel pipe into the weakened part of its skull. Ignoring the rising pain in her chest, Sunset kept swinging, hammering away at the Mutant’s head until it finally keeled over.

“Got… you…” Sunset forced out. She coughed wetly, tasting blood as she struggled to catch her breath. After glancing around, hoping that she had killed all of her assailants, Sunset stumbled over to where her plasma rifle had fallen, suppressing a groan as she put one foot in front of the other. Just as she was psyching herself up to crouch and pick up the rifle, a huge figure stepped out from behind a pillar.

The nailboard shattered across Sunset’s breastplate. The force of the impact drove her back, while the pain almost brought her to her knees.

“Why this fing broken?” The Super Mutant stared at the remains of its nailboard in annoyance, then tossed it away with a huff. Sunset immediately took the opportunity to hurl her pipe at its head and draw her Nova Pistol. She reloaded it in a flash and snapped it up just as the Mutant charged.

A blazing lance of raw power tore through the Super Mutant’s torso, dropping it to its knees right before Sunset’s feet. She instantly set about reloading it once more, ready to finish the monster off, but the beast grabbed something from its belt and surged to its feet, lashing out before she could react.

Sunset yelled and fell back as the right side of her face exploded with agony. She staggered away and clasped a hand to her eye, finding it slick with blood.

“Now… die…” Sunset looked up as the Super Mutant advanced, blood streaming from its mouth. Adrenaline surged through Sunset and she whipped her Nova Pistol up just as the monster raised its knife.

The Super Mutant fell to its knees, a second fist-sized hole burned through its chest, and finally toppled over.

Sunset stood in place, still pointing her Nova Pistol where the Mutant had been standing. After a moment she swayed on the spot, the pistol slipping from her fingers, and tottered sideways to slump against a pillar. Excruciating agony, worse than anything she had ever felt before, radiated out from her ruined eye, making her entire body shake. With trembling hands, Sunset slipped a needle of Med-X from her belt, discarded the protective cap, and jammed it into her arm. She let out a relieved sigh as the pain went from unbearable to somewhat tolerable, then clamped a hand over her eye to try and staunch the bleeding.

“Impressive.” Cold fear trickled down Sunset’s spine as heavy footsteps approached, accompanied by slow, mocking applause. She reluctantly looked up to see a massive Super Mutant lumbering towards her. With a sick sinking feeling in her stomach, Sunset recognized the Equestrian magic thrumming in its chest. “It seems I underestimated you.”

“You’re no… not going to… get away with… this,” Sunset gasped, flecks of blood splattering across her lips. “You do-”

“Don’t know who I’m dealing with?” Shephard asked sarcastically. “Oh, but I do. I’ve been planning this for some time. You Rainbooms are all absurdly dedicated to each other. When your friends hear that Sonata Dusk, rescued by you, overheard me saying that they were summoned and their precious leader isolated, beaten, tortured by Super Mutants, all on the orders of Commander Jabsco of Talon Company, how do you think they’ll react?”

Sunset’s heart sank at those words. She could tell from Shephard’s expression that it was a lie, but the girls would have no way of knowing that.

“Naturally, I’m not fool enough to tell you all of my plans,” Shephard continued. “I have probably said too much already, but I only really need you out of commission for the next day or so, so I’m not too concerned. I just want a quick souvenir before I leave. I assume you don't mind.”

Shephard pressed Sunset against the wall with one hand, eliciting a groan as her ribs shifted in her chest, then wrapped its other hand around her right bicep. Blinding pain lanced through her body a second later. Blood and tears fogged the vision in her remaining eye, so it took her a second to recognize what was now dangling from the Super Mutant’s meaty fist, but even then she couldn’t quite process it. The monster said something else to her, but she didn’t register any of it as she looked down at the empty space where her arm had been. Shock finally set in at that point, and the room spun as Sunset collapsed into blessed darkness.

Next Chapter: Chapter 172 - Restraint Estimated time remaining: 7 Hours, 25 Minutes