“Ah gotta be honest, Ah was expectin’ this to be a lot tougher than it is,” Applejack said as she worked the handcart’s lever.

“Yeah, well, keep it to yourself next time,” Wernher muttered. Him and Adam were sitting at the back of the handcart, having some lunch and taking a well-earned rest. The guides they had hired back at the Skavver settlement, a laid-back young woman named Brux and an insanely cheerful ghoul who called herself Rottytops, were sitting at the front of the cart, taking it in turns to use the necessary track-switches to get them where they needed to go.

As they rolled along a particularly winding tunnel, Brux stretched and looked back at the others. “Best take it slow around the next corner.”

Applejack nodded. They had already been through a few areas where the tracks were damaged and worn, and even a section where the Skavvers had actually dug a new tunnel and built the tracks out of scrap, all of which had to be traversed slowly and carefully. “What is it this time? More dodgy tracks?”

“Nah, we’re coming up on the Hangways,” Brux replied calmly.

Wernher shuddered the moment she said it. “Damn it, already?”

“Yep, we’re making really good time!” Rotty said brightly.

It took Applejack a second to decide whether or not she even wanted to know, but curiosity got the better of her. “Alright, Ah’ll bite, what are the Hangways?”

“A fucking nightmare,” Wernher said gruffly.

Rotty’s laughter echoed down the tunnel. “Come on, they’re not that bad. Sure, they’re not as fun as the Hellcanal or Suicide Run, but they’re still pretty good.”

Wernher stared at her as if she’d grown a second head. “Fun?! There’s no fucking ground, the tracks are just held up by struts in the walls and chains dangling from the fucking ceiling! One wrong move and you just drop into the goddamned abyss!”

“That’s why they’re called the Hangways!” Rotty chirped, supremely unconcerned about it.

“Uh, can someone please explain why we’re going this way?” Adam piped up.

Brux raised a hand, “I can. The only other ways to the Pitt either take an extra day or two to travel, go through a giant ants’ nest, or go through the Hellcanal, which is super radioactive ‘cause of all the nuclear waste down there.”

“Fantastic,” Adam muttered.

“Let’s just get it over with,” Applejack said, keeping the cart moving slowly but steadily. What little confidence she had evaporated as the group reached the corner and she got her first look at the Hangways.

The floor fell away only a yard or so around the corner, leaving a yawning black pit where solid ground should have been. Just as Wernher had said, a rough series of metal struts jammed into the walls were all that held up the tracks, along with thick chains hanging from the ceiling to support the weaker ones. A makeshift walkway ran along the left wall for pedestrian travelers.

Brux casually slid off of the handcart and strolled over to the walkway. “I’ll get the levers. You guys just take it slow.”

“Right.” Applejack held her breath as she inched the cart onto the hanging railway. The tracks and supports creaked ominously as they took the handcart’s weight, but somehow it all stayed stable. Applejack let out a breath she hadn’t even realized that she was holding as the cart smoothly rolled along. “Well that ain’t so bad.”

“This is the easy bit, wait until we get further in,” Wernher warned.

Rotty giggled and swung her legs like a kid on a park bench. “Yeah, the first few miles can be a little boring. It depends on how frisky the Diggers are feeling.” She sat up eagerly and pointed at something ahead. “Look! They’ve been up here already!”

Applejack risked a quick glance. She gasped at the sight of a bloody corpse, wearing some kind of mining gear complete with gas mask, tied to one of the hanging chains with barbed wire. Just as Applejack opened her mouth to ask if the Diggers were a raider crew of some kind, Brux whipped out what looked like a homemade plasma pistol and blasted away at the corpse, green flashes lighting up the tunnel. “What the fuck?!” Applejack exclaimed.

“Gotta deal with them before you get too close,” Brux called back with a shrug.

“Before we- oh.” Applejack grimaced as what she had taken for a corpse wriggled and squealed, weird lumps rolling around inside its clothes until finally it went still again. The creature seemed to melt as it died, bits of clothing and rotten-smelling viscera sloughing away until the whole disgusting bundle slipped out of its wire and dropped into the abyss. “Well that’s fucking gross.”

“What the hell was that thing?” Adam asked.

Rotty shrugged. “A Digger. They tie their wounded up and leave them around as traps for the unwary. We think the Diggers are other ghouls who’ve gone crazy or something, but no-one’s really sure.”

Every word out of Rotty’s mouth somehow managed to gross Applejack out even more. “So there’s a chance we’re goin’ to have to deal with more of those things along here?”

“Maybe,” Rotty replied cheerfully. “We’re really more likely to run into radroaches, bloatflies, giant ants, thallids, raiders, or maybe even a trog or two. The Diggers spend most of their time lurking around the old Dunwich Digsite a few levels down, but they do come up to the top levels every so often, so you can never really tell what you’re going to run into. That’s what makes it so fun!”

As if to accentuate what she was saying, a raspy, gurgling hiss echoed up from the depths below.

“Not far now,” Anne said bracingly. “The outpost is just through this old building.”

Luna nodded, trying not to let her anxiety show in front of Sonata and Trixie. The group hadn’t run into any more Super Mutants so far, but the earlier attack had the Vice-principal on tenterhooks, expecting danger to strike from any quarter.

“Huh, look up there, there’s more Outcasts,” Sonata said casually.

Luna glanced at her then up where she was pointing. Sure enough, staring out of a third floor of the battered old office building ahead were a pair of Outcasts. Anne raised a hand in greeting, getting a curt nod from the sentries in return. “Looks like the outpost is secure. If the Super Mutants did attack, then they sure as hell didn’t make it through our defenses.”

“So we’ll be safe in there?” Trixie asked hopefully.

“As safe as anywhere else in the wastes,” Anne replied. She scowled as Hobbes snorted loudly. “You got something to say, trooper?”

He gave a nonchalant shrug. “I just thought all these magical girls were supposed to be badass.”

It took Luna a surprising amount of willpower not to tell him where he could shove his sense of smug superiority, but Anne showed no such restraint as she snapped at him, “Shut the fuck up, Hobbes, you know damn well these aren’t the Rainbooms!”

“Rainbooms or not, I’d say taking down a Super Mutant with a baseball bat is pretty badass,” the other soldier added.

Hobbes fell silent as he stomped into the building. His face was hidden by his helmet, but Luna didn’t doubt that he was less than happy about being shut down so forcefully.

The inside of the building didn’t do Luna’s mood any favors either. It looked like it might have once been an office building, but the interior was so ravaged and ruined that it was hard to tell for sure. On top of that, it was clear there had been an attack, as several Outcasts were working together to pile up Super Mutant corpses while others scrubbed at bloodstains or gathered up discarded weapons and armor. The group passed at least one room that had been set up as a field hospital, where a handful of soldiers were being treated by what looked like Outcast Scribes.

“I guess they’re not just gunning for Lyons’ people,” Anne said quietly.

Several Outcasts turned to stare at the group as they passed. Anne and her troops were unfazed, as was Sonata, but all of the attention made Luna feel horribly self-conscious. A quick glance revealed that Trixie wasn’t particularly enjoying being gawked at like this either. Thankfully, it didn’t take long for the group to get through the building and emerge in a small construction site of some kind. The steel framework of a half-finished building sat at the bottom of a ramp in the middle of the site.

Anne led the group down the ramp, into the unfinished building, and over to a construction elevator in the middle of it. “Hobbes, Jackson, wait up here. I’ll take these three down to McGraw.” She waited for them to take up positions on either side of the elevator before ushering the trio in. Luna suppressed a shiver as the gate clanged shut behind them.

“Is the outpost underground?” Trixie asked as the elevator ground into life.

Anne nodded. “It used to be a secret pre-war military research facility headed by one of the most prominent generals in the pre-war US army. Unfortunately, we’re having trouble getting into the facility’s vault to access the tech in there. Assuming there is anything in there.”

“And that’s where we come in,” Luna put in.

“Exactly. Protector McGraw will give you the details.” A few seconds later the elevator stopped with a bump and a set of heavy steel doors slid open.

Two more Outcast troops were waiting in the room beyond. One of them scoffed at the sight of the group. “These are supposed to be the infamous Rainbooms? I’m not impressed.”

“Play nice, Sibley,” Anne warned. “And no, they’re not the Rainbooms, they’re another group cut from the same cloth. They go by the Moons.”

“Do we?” Sonata asked.

Sibley took his helmet off, revealing brutally short black hair and an annoyed frown. “You’re joking, right? You let the traitors send you away with bargain bin magical girls?”

“Says the bargain bin Brotherhood,” Trixie said under her breath.

“If you don’t need us here, we will gladly go back to Rivet City,” Luna cut in quickly in an attempt to forestall any further insults.

Unfortunately, that was apparently the wrong thing to say, as Sibley sneered back at her. “We don’t need you. It would’ve been better for us to abandon this place entirely than go begging for help from traitors and outsiders.”

“Stand down, Defender Sibley.” Everyone looked over as another Outcast stomped into the room. This man had blonde hair cut into a stereotypical military flat top, and a far less condescending countenance. “I assume there’s a reason that Sarah Lyons hasn’t sent any of the Rainbooms to assist us?”

“They’re all on assignments and can’t get back on such short notice,” Luna replied simply. “We aren’t as powerful or experienced in combat as the Rainbooms, but Sonata is from the same reality as Sunset Shimmer and knows a thing or two about magic, while Trixie and I are from the same reality as the rest of the Rainbooms and I have one of the Pip-Boys you so desperately need. However, since your people clearly don’t want us here, I would appreciate it if you would arrange an escort back to Rivet City.”

“I feel like I should mention that Liberty Prime personally threatened retaliation if these three are mistreated, sir,” Anne added. “Also, they’re affiliated with the Enclave, not the Brotherhood of Steel.”

That last revelation got a scowl from Sibley, but the newcomer just raised an eyebrow. “Yes, I had noticed the insignia on their armor,” he said wryly before glaring at Sibley. “As for the other issue, Protector Casdin and I both agreed that we would accept help from Lyons’ followers in this regard. I should not have to remind our subordinates how the chain of command works.”

“None of us agreed to work with the Enclave,” Sibley shot.

“They’re allies with Lyons, and I’m not going to sit here and split hairs over whether allies count or not,” the newcomer countered. “This is our last shot at getting our hands on whatever technology remains in this dump. I’m not going back to HQ until I’ve exhausted every option available to us.” He turned his back on Sibley and addressed the trio instead, “I’m Protector McGraw, the commander of this outpost. I apologize about the mixed reception you’ve been given, but if you’ll follow me, I’ll show you what we’re working with.”

Luna briefly considered calling off the mission, but decided against it. She owed it to the Enclave and the Brotherhood to at least make a decent attempt at whatever this was.

The trio followed McGraw through a series of well-lit corridors, with Anne bringing up the rear. They encountered several other Outcasts in the outpost but, undoubtedly because they had been forewarned, few of them gave the group anything more than a passing glance. “I’ll get straight to the point,” McGraw began as they walked. “Records indicate there’s some high-value tech in this base, but we can’t get to it. The armory is sealed by a blast door and we can’t get it open.”

“If it’s down here, I’m not using my magic on it,” Sonata said bluntly.

McGraw looked back at her with a frown, so Luna quickly explained, “Her power is too destructive and indiscriminate to use in confined spaces like this.”

“I’ll take your word for it. In any case, the blast door isn’t why we need your magical knowledge.” McGraw gave Sonata one more concerned look before turning away. “This facility was built to house a state-of-the-art virtual reality training simulation. We’re pretty sure anyone who completes the simulation program will get access to the armory, but it requires a certain interface.”

Luna saw where he was going with this. “Let me guess, it needs a Pip-Boy, and since the biometric lock is already keyed to me, you’ll need me to go through the simulation for you.”

It was clear that McGraw didn’t like her assumption that his people couldn’t deactivate the bio-lock, but he couldn’t refute it either. “I see you have half a brain, so that’s something.”

“I thought most adults did until I came to this reality,” Luna said airily. “Where’s the simulator?”

McGraw glanced at her suspiciously, but quickly shook his head and pointed to a door at the end of the corridor. “Just through there.”

Inside was a low, wide room that was nowhere near as brightly-lit as the rest of the facility. A huge egg-shaped pod sat in the middle of the room, basking in the crimson glow of dozens of what looked like servers lining the walls. An Outcast Scribe was working on a small terminal in the corner of the room. She had blonde hair that might once have been well looked-after and, going by the slightly frenzied way she was tapping at the keys, seemed to be under a lot of stress.

“Specialist Olin, the help you requested has arrived,” McGraw called out.

The woman looked around and frowned when she saw the trio. “You’re not the Rainbooms, but going by those skin colors I assume you’re from the same original reality?”

“More or less,” Luna replied. “Is this the simulator?” She asked, gesturing to the pod.

Olin nodded. “That’s right, and I see you’ve got the Pip-Boy we need. Bio-locked?” Luna told her that it was, earning a heavy sigh in return. “Typical. Have you explained everything we need from them, Protector?”

“I explained to Miss, uh…” McGraw turned to the trio as if only just realizing that he hadn’t asked for their names.

“I’m Vice-Principal Luna, and these are Sonata Dusk and Trixie Lulamoon,” Luna told the Specialist. “I know that I need to complete the training simulation so you can access the armory, but we’re still not clear on why you need magical assistance. To be honest, the chance to try out a virtual reality simulation is pretty exciting.”

Olin looked from her to McGraw and back in surprise. “You are aware that the simulation’s safeties have to be disengaged in order to unlock the armory, right? Dying in the simulation will result in massive cardiovascular feedback that will almost certainly be fatal.”

A cold shiver ran down Luna’s spine as she realized the true danger of what she was signing up for. “I’m suddenly feeling less excited.”

“As for the magic issue, that’s a little more complex,” Olin continued. “There’s a bizarre shapeshifting entity that moved in here about a month ago. It tends to take the shape of a really messed-up suit of power armor, when it isn’t lurking in shadows or in the electronics, but we haven’t been able to get rid of the damn thing.”

McGraw nodded grimly. “Whatever it is, none of our weapons can hurt it. Thankfully, it seems more interested in scaring people than actually hurting anyone, but we’d still appreciate having someone with magic around in case it tries to interfere with the simulation run somehow.”

“A local radio station, Galaxy News, did a report on a similar entity that plagued Rivet City for a while, and we believe it may be the same creature. They called it the Boogeyman, if that rings any bells,” Olin added.

Luna and Trixie both turned to Sonata, but she just shrugged. “Don’t look at me, I’ve never heard of anything like that. The only shapeshifters I’ve heard of are changelings, but those gross little weirdos feed on love, and happiness, and bleh.”

“You worked with a changeling to sabotage the Diviner!” Trixie exclaimed.

“Yeah, and she was gross,” Sonata reiterated. She suddenly cocked her head to the side as a thought occurred. “Huh, I guess Discord counts, but I’m pretty sure he’s just a made-up old story.”

McGraw looked understandably confused, but Olin brushed the conversation off as if it were unimportant. “Well, that’s what we’re dealing with. Will you help us?”

“Yeah, I’m okay with that,” Sonata said calmly.

“This isn’t just about you!” Trixie spat.

Luna massaged her temples to soothe her rising headache. “What does the simulation entail altogether?”

“It’s a reenactment of the Liberation of Anchorage, a pivotal battle during the Sino-American War, though some of the documents I’ve found indicate that General Chase, the overseeing officer, added in some elements of his own invention,” Olin explained. “You’ll have to fight through AI-controlled facsimiles of Chinese soldiers and complete various objectives to reach the end of the simulation.”

“Oh, is that all?” Luna asked with just a trace of sarcasm. She was only a teacher, with some basic women’s self defense and the bare minimum of weapons’ training and actual combat experience, yet these power-armored nutcases expected her to handle what was essentially a military operation against fully trained soldiers. “Is there any way I can leave the simulation if I can’t handle it?”

Olin frowned and looked back at her terminal. “Probably? It’s doable, but I imagine the shock would make you feel violently ill for at least a few hours.”

“Better ill than dead.” Reminded yet again just how out-of-their-depth the Rainbooms must have felt when they arrived in this world, Luna took a deep breath and steeled herself for her next dumb decision. “Okay. I’ll do it.”

“Fantastic!” Olin gleefully hurried over to a cabinet at the back of the room and pulled out a weird-looking white jumpsuit covered in metal connectors of some kind. “You’ll need to wear this neural interface suit to enter the simulation. It’s adjustable, so hopefully sizing won’t be an issue.”

McGraw raised an eyebrow as he watched the woman hand Luna the suit and excitedly start typing away on her terminal. “Uh, Specialist Olin-”

“Don’t pretend you’re not as eager to get out of this place as I am,” Olin interrupted without looking away from her work. “Now, would you kindly wait outside so our guest can get changed in peace?” She waited for McGraw to leave before stepping over to Luna and helping her get her armor off. “So, Lyons really wants the Outcasts back?”

Her tone was almost casual, but Luna had spent enough time around angsty teens to recognize a subtly loaded question when she heard one. “The Brotherhood wants to build their numbers back up. They’ve been busy, changing the wasteland for the better.”

“You don’t need to bother preaching to me, I want back in,” Olin said flatly. “Hell, half of the troops stationed here have been considering quitting one way or another. Some of the guys were even talking about joining Talon Company until the Rainbooms fucked them six ways from Sunday.” The trio reacted with immediate disgust, prompting her to add quickly, “Don’t look at me! I’d rather join the Church of Atom than work with those assholes!”

Luna eyed her suspiciously. “Why do you want to go back to the Brotherhood?”

Olin sighed heavily. “The Brotherhood of Steel’s original mission was to gather and safeguard all dangerous pre-war technology, keeping it out of the hands of the common folk so the world wouldn’t tear itself apart a second time. Given how many raiders are out there I’d say we were justified. The Outcasts left the first Elder Lyons in the first place because we were committed to that greater good.”

“Committed to the greater good, or committed to feeling superior to everyone else?” Luna asked pointedly.

Olin opened her mouth to retort, only to close it again and deflate a second later. “Maybe that was part of it, but that doesn’t make me a monster, it just makes me human. In any case, now that Lyons is working with the Enclave and Rivet City to rebuild the Capital Wasteland, I think it’s safe to say that our original mission has failed. Spectacularly.” She shook her head in exasperation. “All that’s keeping the Outcasts going now is stubbornness and wishful thinking. If I’m going to be stuck with a lost cause whatever I do, I’d rather be stuck with the idealists than the idiots who insist the ship isn’t sinking.”

Luna listened patiently to the Specialist as she stripped down and put on the interface suit. By the time Olin was done, Luna was ready. “That was a very pretty speech, nicely done, but I’m not sure how I can help you. The three of us aren’t even part of the Brotherhood of Steel.”

“Technically we’re with the Enclave,” Trixie added.

Olin stared at the three blankly, as if trying to figure out if they were lying. When she realized that they weren’t, she groaned and put her head in her hands. “For fuck’s sake, that’s just my luck.” After grumbling for a few more seconds, swearing generously, Olin sighed again and headed back to her terminal. A series of panels on the pod slid out and back as it opened up, revealing a steel recliner chair inside. “You can go ahead and get in. I’ll get it running.”

Luna clambered awkwardly into the pod and sat down, not giving herself a chance to reconsider. Her hands were shaking as she gripped the arms of the chair but, seeing Trixie watching her anxiously, she managed to get herself under control enough to flash the poor girl a thumbs up just before the pod closed again with a hiss. The panels on the inside of the pod instantly flashed white before settling into rippling waves in different shades of blue. The strange light made her head feel fuzzy, along with a faint sense of nausea that she hoped would go away quickly.

“Fascinating,” a man’s voice suddenly said right next to Luna’s ear, almost giving her a heart attack. “Bring all three vith you. I vant to see vat zey are capable of.”

“As you wish.” The second voice was a sibilant hiss that made Luna’s skin crawl, but before she could react, black tentacles exploded out from under the chair and wrapped around her body, holding her fast as her vision faded entirely.

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