>>40524847
god I wish that OP photo was me

Being a pony would be pretty cool, that's all

>>40524847
finally, more pinkie pie tf representation

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had a dream I became Sweetiebelle last night, but only for a moment, god I wish it was real, anons

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>Why aren't you ponies?! Be ponies!

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>>40519104

>>40525441
This is a very good one.

>>40525177
Damn it. I only dreamed of giantess midna last night, and she didn't even crush me.

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As far as monster girls turning into ponies goes: It's always an upgrade even if they lose one or two powers. Centuar > pony has to be the biggest upgrade since you're just getting rid of useless parts.

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I like the idea of someone who's super opposed to ponification accidentally becoming a pony and they turn back... but afterwards they just really want to be a pony again. And they're all tsundere about it because of their past behavior.

>>40525767
Least obsessed tftranny, YWBAP, freak

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>>40525823
Like YOU! It'd be so awesome if you were a pony for like 6 hours and decided you liked it way better. And for months aftwards you'd be like 'noooo! I don't want to be a pony. That's misanthropic.' while secretly wanting it so bad!

You'd be adorable.

>>40525823
Least denying humanfag, you WILL love being a pony

>>40525829
Didn't read, but I know it's tranny shit, obsessed retard with your revenge fantasies, pathetic waste of human meat.

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>>40525840
>B-Baka! I didn't read your stupid post about being a stupid pony. I'm just in your pony TF thread because... becuase Shut up okay! You're the obsessed one, not me!
>It's not like I want to be a pony or anything.
>Baka.

>>40525390
This is why, after any transformation, the first thing to check should be your junk.

>>40525840
how do you know what it is if you didn't read it, doingus?

>>40525865
anon you might be retarded, fucking pathetic autistic freak.

At the end of the day, we all like ponies, so what's the big deal?

>catch roommate prancing around on ponE in the mirror
>Film it and blackmail them. Now every weekend is a ponE weekend, with pills provided by you
>At first they're too shy about their new voice because apparently horse mouths take a little getting used to so she's got a little horsey accent and already feels humiliated by how sweet and girly it is.
>So anytime you want to hear it you just tickle them
>You try a spank, which gets you moan and a shocked look
>Idea
>Decide to lay them back in your lap and hold their hoofsies, while training them to respond to "who's a good girl?" with a cute "m-meee."
>Failure to comply gets a spank or a tuft grope which causes involuntary lewd sounds
>Film it for extra blackmail
>Eventually train them to sound like the perfect little mare

continue story from previous thread

>I flinch in anticipation as the robotic arms approach.
>Despite seeing a needle on them though, I don't feel one when they make contact.
>Instead a mild sore and cold feeling pierces through my clothes spreading out form the part the arm attaches to.
>As I try to struggle against them, it feels like the arms are glued to my body directly through my clothes.
>I watches as the tanks slowly empty, the dark blue fluid must be inside me now, but I can't imagine how.
>The last arm funding my belt buckle in the way of the area where it connected with the LUNA-1, goes a bit lower, attaching to my pubes.
>The cold feeling spreads stronger and faster, and in a moment it feels like it's filled my cock entirely.

>>40522357
As it should be.

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>I'm thinking of ponifying this planet next.

>>40527018
Do it, faggot.

>>40526598
At that point why not just make it official and force an OD so every day is pony day? Cute though

>>40496819
That was pretty cute.

>>40527211
I want the rest to go pony though.

>>40527211
Thank you. I've started a continuation, and hope to have more cute scenes.
>>40527212
That will not be happening. Some characters will be staying their original species.
Well, maybe briefly a pony.

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>>40527573
Booooo!

Well here's hoping the hooves get as many of them as possible.

>>40527018
Next? There were others?

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>>40527675
Beleive it or not... Equestria was not originally a world of ponies.

Princess Celestia and Luna are cosmic goddesses who arrived on the planet a thousand years ago, took control of the sun and moon and remade the inhabitants in their divine image.

If you think it's odd that ponies would have fought one another so much in the Hearth's Warming tale it's because they didn't. They were three seperate species that became unicorns, pegasi and earth ponies under Celestia's supreme grace... ascended towards their new goddess if you will, becoming one more perfect species.

But now that Celestia has fully established her control over that planet it's time for her to spread her glory to more worlds. Humans will simply become a new tribe of ponies under the perfect guidance

>>40527717
I actually kinda love this premise. It's a really creative and intriguing concept. Props, please, do go on.

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>>40527811
I'd be willing to but not sure what part you want expanded on.

>>40527836
Well, who lived in equestrian before celestia came, why did she transform them, and what was the transition like?

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>>40527868
>The species that would eventually become unicorns were the most human like. They had an appearance similar to elves. I suppose we can call them that.
>Many are surprised to learn that elves couldn’t actually use magic themselves but they were adept at finding magic gemstones and unlocking their powers, not dissimilar to what Rarity can do today. They made staves that only elves could use and crafted spells with special runes.
>Before they came to worship Celestia, they were a people who valued knowledge and pleasure above all else. Whatever wasn’t geared towards lavish decadence or over the top splendor was for the sake of endless expansion of information. These two drives led them to crave ever more wealth and power and thus was the impetus to eventually build their empire.
>Without the guidance of Celestia nor the glory of her form, the elves had little care for what they destroyed in their quest for ever greater pleasure and knowledge. They committed crimes unspeakable to their unicorn descendants ranging from slaughter to enslavement and mass destruction of nature.
>Eventually they came into conflict with the other two great civilizations, just as rapacious in their own ways. No one at the time believed there could be any peace between them and war was a near constant reality.
>The conflict led them to focus their knowledge and science on ever greater weapons of destruction and terror. The culmination of elven society was cosmic magic, the ability to control the sun and moon themselves and thus terrorize the other species.
>Celestia later admitted that it was this activity that wakened the nascent goddess and turned her attention to the planet she would later rename Equestria. In her benevolence, Celestia saw the good that existed deep within the elves and the potential they could have as her servants. And so the goddess decided to come to this planet to mature from a filly to an adult.

gonna post an oldie until the captcha pisses me off

>You are Anon
>Your fellow stalkers call you Lucky, however
>It's a sarcastic nickname
>You came to the Zone for riches and freedom
>Within a day of sneaking past the border patrols, you were robbed of what riches you brought with you
>As well as what freedom you had
>It had been a long two years since then and finally you had wormed your way out from under that gang's thumb
>Finally, you thought, things might actually go your way here

>Hanging out around the bar
>The barkeep didn't have any jobs on hand
>All of the talk in the bar was dominated with how that Strelok fellow had disabled the Brain Scorcher
>Most assumed it was just gossip
>Whether it was gossip or not there was no way you could get to Pripyat
>Bandits weren't the sort to go giving their captives a goody basket when released
>You desperately needed to get to Pripyat
>It was an untapped treasure trove there
>Nowhere else in the Zone could make you anywhere as rich
>Hell if the rumors were true, there was even a Wish Granter in the center of the Zone
>All of this was beyond your reach, however
>All you had to show for your time in Zone was a shitty Makarov and two years of your life you'd rather forget
>At least the booze was cheap

>>40527982

>Yesterday you tried to do some artifact hunting solo
>That seemingly endless pack of dogs had other plans
>The Duty guys on guard duty just watched and laughed
>"Better luck next time, Lucky"
>You were really starting to hate that name
>Or well you already had a burning hatred for that name, this just didn't help
>Once the doctor was done sewing up your ass, you realized you had already spent the last of your roubles on vodka
>Surprisingly, Doc didn't just kill you right then and there
>Instead, he offered you a job!
>Do it for him, and he'll take the fees for his services out of your payout
>There was a stalker named Patches who had previously bragged about a new way to the center of the Zone, safer than the Brain Scorcher
>And even those strange cultists didn't know anything about it!
>Your job was to find Patches, confirm his rumor, then kill him
>Doc wanted this route all to himself
>It was either this or fight in the Arena

>First part of the job was easy, hit up the bar
"Barkeep, do you know where I can find a stalker called Patches?"
>You were met with a series of chuckles from everyone at the bar, including the barkeep
>"You wouldn't happen to mean Trusty Patches, would you?"
>Not knowing of any other Patches, you nodded your head
"Sounds like the right person."
>More chuckles abound as you were directed to a corner of the bar
>In that corner you saw only one person, a man squatting on the dirty ground alone
>Looking at him, his clothing was held together entirely by other pieces of cloth being sewn to it
>Guess that's why they call him Patches
"Are you Patches?"
>"Indeed I am, what gave it away?" he grinned
"I'm Anon, I've heard chatter that you might have some useful information?"
>"I've heard of you before, Lucky. I know all there is to know in the Zone! But I can only assume that you're curious about the Garden."
"Garden?"
>"Aye, my secret way of getting into the city proper."
>That was indeed what you were here for
>He looked you up and down before asking, "And just why would a rookie like you want to head into Pripyat?"
"To find the Zone's most valuable artifacts and get rich."
>He snickered, "Ain't that everyone's dream? Well, Lucky, consider it your Lucky day. I like you."
>Step one complete

Do you ever wonder what race you would be as a pony? Not what you WANT to be but what you WOULD be

>>40527984

>You and Patches had set off South
>You worried about the dogs but he just whistled and they ran off
>You weren't too sure you liked that
>As the two of you entered the Dark Valley, you got goosebumps thinking about your former 'employers'
>Patches assured you they would be no trouble at all
>When he told you to climb into a sewage pipe, he said "Relax, it's the only way to get to the Garden"
>Making your way through the shit pipe with him behind you, you could see why no one else had found this place
>Several lunches puked up later and you found yourself at a drying up river
>"Right, this way then, Lucky. And watch your step, lots of anomalies here."
>For a demonstration, he grabbed a stone from the ground and chucked it in a seemingly random location
>The air itself grabbed hold of the stone and swung it around in multiple orbits around some unseen center point before flinging it into the river
>"And trust me, if you thought that pipe was bad you don't even want to see the river."
>You took his word for it and filled your pockets with stones
>Bolts were a luxury you couldn't afford, even in the Zone
>Patches mostly gave you directions on where to step, but every so often let you find the way by chucking your stones
>A few kilometers later, you were pretty sure you could see some structures off in the distance
>Wait that couldn't be
>"And right up ahead you have the power plant. See, safe as can be, this route! None of them fanatics out this way."
>Considering some of the tales you'd heard about those Monolith freaks, you were glad to not have to deal with any of them
>"Right, come on then, we aren't gonna find any riches out here are we?"
>You moved up the river another kilometer before finding another pipe which Patches heralded you into
>At least this one was cleaner than the other one
>At the end of the pipe, you were spat into a man made tunnel of some sort
>Your headlamp started to dim and flicker out and Patches gave you a pat on the back
>"Can't use that here, pal. We need to go old fashioned."
>He withdrew a lighter and lit a couple of lanterns, handing one to you
>The lanterns didn't provide as much forward lighting as your headlamp did, but just from the sounds you could tell you the tunnel was large
>Watching your feet you noticed some railways on the ground as you walked along
>"This here used to be one of a thousand tunnels the Soviets set up to move around. Didn't want to be locked in Moscow all day in the event of a war."
>You weren't sure you believed him even though he seemed to be speaking with some level of authority on the subject
>"Anyway, up ahead is the Garden and then we're on our way to Pripyat."

>>40527989

>You actually felt butterflies in your stomach at the news
>This close to Pripyat? Surely Doc wouldn't mind if you just spent a bit of time grabbing some loot before heading back to him
>That and this Patches fellow was completely unarmed, you'd be able to take him out with ease!
>Best job you'd ever gotten, for certain
>Continuing ahead, Patches tapped your shoulder and in a hushed whisper commanded you to stop
>He then blew out both of the lanterns and commanded you to start walking forward again
>It was pitch black but he said you'd know the way just by feeling
>Moving forward, you weren't entirely sure what he meant
>But at some point, some base instinct urged you to make a sharp right and you obliged
>Continuing like that you eventually caught a blinding light in your peripheral vision and when you turned to look at what was causing it, it came into focus
>Looking out through the narrow hallway you had somehow found yourself in, you saw a large circular room with the ceiling missing
>Stepping forward, you could see why Patches called it the Garden

>>40527992

>Below you, the floor of the room had been covered in a thick coat of wild green grass more lively than anywhere you'd ever seen
>Along with that there were even flower patches and bushes and somehow even a tree all down here
>"Ain't she a beaut?" he asked as you took in the sight
>That was when you felt a kick to your ass and fell down that serene floor
>Luckily your momentum flipped you around so that you were looking up and could see Patches squatting over the edge
>"No worries, friend!" he called as you fell, "I'll be right behind you!"
>His cackling was the last thing you heard before landing on your back
>The pain was intense and you were pretty sure you had broken your back
>That fucking monster must have had this set up from the beginning
>Who needs a weapon when you could just kick your target to their doom
>You tried to get up and were met with another surge of pain jolting through your entire body
>Was this really how you were going to die?
>You wished it wasn't so but you saw no other way of getting out of here
>Sighing, you tried to grab your Makarov, just because you were dying here didn't mean that fuck would be leaving
>Alas, even trying to move just your arm was pain and you wondered how upset he would be to find that you had jack shit worth looting
>It hurt to chuckle, thinking of the look on his face when he saw that his efforts for this would be nothing
>At least you'd have that

>As you continued lying there, waiting for him to show up and finish you off, you found yourself feeling a warmth from inside you
>At first you thought you had pissed yourself but then realized it was emanating outward from your torso
>You tried to turn your head around to see what exactly was happening but found you couldn't move it
>That was when the weird shit started happening
>Your hands begin to curl themselves up into fists on their own
>And then you cried out in agony as they didn't quite stop there, trying to close ever more into themselves before they began burning up
>Were it not for the lack of any smoke or burning smell, you would have been sure they were on fire but from your head's affixed position you could briefly tell that they weren't
>Still crying out, as they heated up you could then feel the bones inside them melting into one another and solidifying as a single entity
>Trying to move your arms to get a look at just what the fuck was happening to your hands, you found you were able to move them and instantly wished you hadn't
>While you were focused on your hands, your arms had also shrunk
>And grown hair
>A lot of it

>>40527995

>All of it gray
>You glanced between both of the stumps that were formerly your hands on the ends of your shortened arms and cried out in horror
>You tried your best to move, to get up, to get away from whatever the fuck was happening to you, yet some force was keeping you pinned to the ground
>With your arms finished their transformation, you could feel the burning moving up to your head
>Accompanied by a sickening crunch, your jaws begin to jut outward, pulling your skin with them
>You grabbed your head with your stumped limbs, trying anything to mitigate the pain but it was hopeless
>The burning intensified and crossing your eyes, you found that your face was becoming covered in the same gray hair as your 'arms'
>Wait, looking at it this close, it looked more like... Fur?
"What the ffuuu-Aaaaaaaagh!"
>What the fuck had that rat bastard Patches done
>What the fuck kind of anomaly was this
>You'd spent two years in the Zone listening to every rumor you could and you hadn't heard anything about this
>Why did it have to be you
>Why couldn't you just get an actual job
>Tears rolled down your eyes and you desperately wished the pain would stop or at least increase enough for your body to shut down
>Instead it continued to stick to that delicate balance of so intense you wanted to die, but just not enough to push you into darkness

>After what felt like an eternity, the pain finally began to die down
>Once it was done shaping your head, it made its way down the rest of your body
>But even after it was gone, all you could do was sob like an infant taking its first breaths of air
>Locking yourself in the oblivion of your thoughts, you didn't hear the approaching footsteps
>What ultimately brought you back to reality was the sound of a *Click*
>Looking up, you saw Patches squatting over you
>"Well, lookit you! I didn't know you was Irish!"
"You, fucking... Bastard!"
>You tried to headbutt him but found you couldn't curl your torso up like that anymore
>Instead you floundered over onto your side, eliciting a chuckle from Patches
>"Ahh, you're all the same. Almost makes this little business of mine a bit boring. Either way, let's get you out of those clothes, hmm?"
>What the fuck did he just say?
>What the fuck was he going to do?
>Rolling over onto your stomach you tried to stand up straight but the instant you did you fell down onto your hands
>Wait what even on all fours you should be taller than this

>>40527997

>But there's Patches just grinning, "Come on now, don't make this harder than it has to be, buddy." He held up a remote and wiggled it in front of you
>You didn't know what the fuck he was going to do with that but you weren't going to find out and so you tried charging him
>That was when he hit the button and you instantly felt a shock on your neck, causing you to trip and fall over
>"Can't say I didn't warn ya," he chided as he pulled you over effortlessly and started humming
>Following his hands you found that more than just your arms had shrunk, but your entire body had!
>Your clothes were barely hanging on to your now petite form and so were easy for Patches to remove
>And once they were, you could see just what the fuck happened
>Somehow you were no longer a person but... A pastel colored horse?
>"I reckon now's the time I give ya a name, huh? How's about Lucky Clover, eh? Eeeeh? It fits ya, and ya still get to keep your old name!"
>He pointed lifted your ass in the air a bit and gestured towards the three clovers you now had as some sort of tattoo on your, well, flank
>"Now, c'mon Lucky Clover, my client's expecting the best damn sniffer I can get, so let's see if you got what it takes."
>Just what in the fuck was he talking about...
>Under threat of further shocking, you found yourself continuing your trip with Patches who had armed himself with an AK between your fall and... whatever the fuck it was that happened to you
>Surprisingly it didn't take long for you to get used to walking on all fours
>It somehow felt natural
>Unlike your black tail, that was
>You were sure you would eventually get used to it
>But for the time being you kept turning around much to Patches' amusement whenever it swiped against your ass
>God what the fuck were you thinking getting used to it
>You had to find out what the fuck happened and a way to reverse it
>For fuck's sake you were a fucking horse now
>Maybe if you got hold of that remote you could scare Patches into shooting you
>You were wishing for death earlier, right?
>While you had never heard of the Zone ever doing anything like this before, you had also never heard of it reversing its effects for people
>And as long as you were stuck like this, you weren't sure you could think of a life in which you'd want to live
>You glared back at Patches as he started casually whistling Danny Boy
>"What? Too on the nose for ya?"

>>40527998

>You didn't give him the courtesy of a response and continued on your way, head sunken down with your ears reflexively pulling back
>With a chuckle, Patches continued poking at you, "Oh is the Fighting Irish in town?"
>You tensed up to turn around and try biting him or anything
>But just you slowing down resulted in you getting another shock
>"Come on, giddy up, we ain't got all day."
"Well how's about you tell me where we're going?"
>"It's like I said, we're going to the Zone and you're gonna find all of the priceless artifacts."
"What good are they gonna do for me while I'm like this?"
>He laughed, "I dunno, maybe you'll get a treat or somethin', it ain't none o' my business."
>You were starting to wonder if you could pull a grenade pin like this
>Y'know, if you found a grenade
>Then you could take both of you out
>"Aaaand all right, here we are!"
>You looked around the tunnel, illuminated once again by Patches' lantern, and found only a ladder that was out of your reach
"Way to go dumbass, I can't reach that and I don't think I can climb it either."
>Again he snickered, "Don't you worry, I got my ways."

>A few minutes later, you were floating several feet above the floor
>Or well, you were suspended a few feet above the floor
>With another tug on the rope, you were another foot above the floor
>Apparently Patches' 'ways' were tying a rope around your midsection and just pulling you up through the manhole that way
>"You gotta stop eating so many Shepherd's pies, boy! You've gotta be the second or third heaviest one of yas I pulled up this way!" he called down
>You ignored him
>With the next tug you banged your head on one of the rungs of the ladder
"Ow, fuck, watch it up there!"
>"Well maybe if you was helping you wouldn't be banging your head!"
"I don't have any fucking hands thanks to you!"
>"Yeah well if you keep this up you ain't gonna have any teeth either!"
>You really, really hope they kept a circle of Hell reserved for him
>As you reached the top of the manhole, Patches pulled you out with a chuckle
>"And people say I don't work for my money."
>You rolled your eyes
"I'm surprised nobody's shot you yet."
>Another snicker, "Many have tried. Now let's keep it moving before I use this rope as a leash."
>You sighed and looked around, trying to get your bearings, and then realized...
>You were in Pripyat
>The center of the Zone
>Surrounded by the utilitarian architecture of the Soviet Union, you gasped in awe at the sight
>While taking in the scenery, the weight of actually being here, you were given a shock

>>40528001

was so close to getting back to the formatted spaces for posts fug

>"Come on, I don't want to just stand here waiting around for the Monolith guys to show up!"
>The threat of those zealots would have been more than enough to get you moving on your own and so you went, with a much faster pace than what you maintained in the safety of the tunnels
>Patches directed you through a series of back alleys, through a basement, out a window, and soon you found yourself inside a gymnasium, specifically a basketball court
>"Come on, we're close."
>Directed through a locker room, you soon found yourself at an indoor swimming pool, the pool itself having been drained years ago
>Without any specific direction from Patches after entering the room, you assumed this was your destination and looked around
>When you looked down into the pool, though, you saw... Something?
>Thinking back to your dealings with the bandits, it finally clicked together
"There's a battery down here!"
>"Heeeey, look at that! The rookie knows his artifacts!"
>Patches walked over and chucked a bolt down into the pool, the act setting off a discharge of electricity with a resounding crack
>"And that there is why nobody else has come for it. You may find this hard to believe, but people tend to not like getting shocked."
>You glared trebuchets at him
>"And that's where you come in. Now do you want to hop in or would you rather I kick you down again?"
"Wait what? You went through all of this just to send me to die getting you a fucking battery? They aren't exactly rare."
>"Kick it is," and with that you found yourself pushed into the pool with a swift mission of his foot
>You weren't sure if you were bracing for the fall or the shock
>All you know is when you hit the ground, you didn't get shocked
>Standing up, you looked around and could see the electricity dancing along the bottom of the pool, but it seemed to completely avoid you
>"Now hurry up and grab my bonus check! Clock's ticking!"
>You looked back up at him
"What the fuck is going on?! Why isn't it reacting to me!?"
>"Y'know, I don't think I've ever shocked one of you while you were in an Electro, I wonder if that'd cause it to activate..."
"Fine fine fine, how the fuck do I grab it with no hands?"
>"Just grab it with your mouth so that you shut up!"
>It was your turn to snicker as you saw how upset he was getting, but his thumb reaching for the shock button had you hurrying up and grabbing the strange helix looking object with your mouth and scurrying up the ramp out of the deep end to the shallow end of the pool
>Patches came over and lifted the battery up out of your mouth then tucked it away into a container on his belt
"Now get me out of here, I'm probably going to get mouth cancer or something thanks to you."
>"Eeeeh, we're still not sure about that but hey, maybe you'll be the first!" he said with some cheer as he pulled you out of the pool

>>40528006

>"Anyway looks like you're good to go. We're heading out this way."
"Wait, you're still not sure about what?"
>Giving you an annoyed look he replied, "Not sure about not shocking you, now let's go. I've got places to be after this."
>Grumbling, you lead the way to wherever the fuck it was Patches wanted to go

"So why didn't it react to me?"
>"Huh, what? What are you on about now?"
"That anomaly, I didn't get shocked or anything."
>"Oh, yeah. One day I was watching some bloodsuckers k-err just do their bloodsucker thing, and I noticed they didn't seem to mind the Whirligig they were running around. So when I found out about the Garden, I figured I'd see what happened and whaddyaknow, you little guys are useful for something besides blowing off steam."
"Wait... Blowing off...?"
>"You know exactly what I'm talking about, Lucky," he snickered with some malice
>You shook your head out, wanting to put those memories out of mind
>"By the way, I guess you'll find out when we get there anyway, I ain't just doing this so I can suddenly start actually working. We're on our way to your new owner who'll probably have you doing what we just did now."
"So what, I'm back to essentially being a slave?"
>"Eh, I wouldn't put it that way. Consider yourself more of a bloodhound. Or a bomb defusal robot. Whichever you want, doesn't matter, but this guy we're going to works with the science nerds a lot."
"Okay, and? What's your point?"
>"My point is, I know who your previous boss was, Lucky. We're good friends, actually," he chuckled. "If you start acting up for this new guy and he asks for a refund, I'm gonna have to let your new boss know I've got something to help his boys relieve stress, if you catch my drift."
>You had to stop in your tracks as you turned back to him
>He was grinning
"You fucking wouldn't."
>"I need to make my money somehow, and I'm not about to start letting morals get in the way of that. So I suggest you be on your best behavior."

>The rest of your trip goes without any sort of conversation
>Knowing what he was willing to do, you didn't want to talk to him
>Nor be anywhere near him
>Earlier you wondered if there was a certain circle of Hell for him
>Now you knew there definitely was
>The last destination on your trip with Patches was an apartment building
>Even with four legs, you were exhausted by the time you got to the ninth floor
>At least you were given a bit of time to take a break once you got to the door reading 901
>Patches reached over and knocked on the door then stepped off to the side

>>40528012

we're on page 11 out of 73 what the fuck

>And while you sat there, still panting, the door opened revealing a man wearing a SEVA suit, the domed mask hiding all of his features from you
>Yet you could still tell he was looking down at you as though expecting you to be there
>"And as always, Trusty Patches delivers a quality product. My money?"
>Patches made no move to present himself to the figure, instead just holding his hand out into the doorway
>The SEVA'd man squatted down and looked you in the eyes, studying you
>"What's its name?"
>Patches finally came down to the level you and the other man were at and spun you around, showing off your ass tattoo
>"Lucky Clover! Must've come here all the way from Ireland. By the way, if you want to keep the collar, that's an extra five hundred roubles."
"Five hundred!? That's practically robbery!"
>"Hey, I wanna see you make the trip out of the Zone to a pet store and back!" he shouted before giving you a shock
>While you seized up from the ever annoying shock, Patches chuckled awkwardly, "As you can see, he still needs a bit of work on discipline but that's what the collar's for!"
>God he was like a fucking used car dealer.
>"No, you can take your collar with you." The SEVA'd man reached into his pocket and pulled out a huge stack of roubles and handed it to Patches
>His eyes practically lighting up, he was quick to grab both the money and collar and pocket them both, "And as always, if you feel he isn't up to your expectations, I offer a full refund."
>"As you've said countless times before. We're done here."
>SEVA dude seemed to want him gone almost as much as you did
>"Rightyo, and Lucky Clover, remember. The Zone is a terrible place," he threatened before making his way back to the stairs
>With Patches gone, the nameless figure before you stood up and went back into the room
>When you didn't instantly follow, it turned around, "Come on, we need to rest up for tonight."
>Well... At least you were away from Patches


>With some trepidation, you stepped inside and the door was closed
"So you know my name. What's yours?"
>"Don't worry about it," was his reply as he began rummaging around through a rucksack tucked away in the corner of the moldy apartment
"Well what if I need to get your attention?"
>"You won't."
>You were almost starting to miss Patches
>What the fuck were you thinking no you fucking weren't
>While you looked around the relatively small room, you spotted a bed with a sagging mattress tucked in the corner and a bedroll next to it
>You tried lightening the mood a bit
"Sooooo, who has top bunk?"

>>40528017

>He turned his attention to you for a moment before returning it to the rucksack, "You get the bed."
>Score!
>Having apparently found what he was looking for, he turned around with a slightly stale looking loaf of bread
>"Hungry?"
>Looking at the loaf, you thought for a moment and found that yes, you were hungry
"I guess I could go for something to eat."
>He broke the loaf in half and tossed half of it to you, which of course landed on the floor
>"Eat up, then get to sleep. You won't have time to eat once you wake up."
>Looking up at the window, you could tell it had to be close to the evening
"So where exactly are we going in the middle of the night?"
>He stood up and leaned to the side of the window, staring outside in silence
>You could tell he was quite the talker
>With no other choice, you quietly ate your bread then climbed up onto the bed
>As pressure was applied to the mattress, it began to sink in and dribble water out
>Now you knew why he offered you the bed
"Well, good night, I guess."
>Like a statue, he made no acknowledgement of you
>With a sigh, you stretched out on the bed and found it not quite comfortable
>After some rolling back and forth trying to find a good sleeping position, you found that by curling up you could keep your center warm and use your flank as a pillow
>Better than nothing, you thought as you drifted off to sleep

>In the Zone, you were either a light sleeper or you got killed
>But somehow despite the bed leaking, that was some of the best sleep you got
>So much so you found yourself annoyed at having your rest disturbed
>"Get up. We need to leave."
>You grumbled out something you weren't entirely sure of before finding yourself yanked off of the bed by your hair
>Or well, your mane you guess
"Ow-"
>A hand was placed over your muzzle that held your mouth closed
>With the moon shining in through the window, you could barely make out the SEVA man gesturing you to shut your trap
>Glancing around you couldn't find anything exactly threatening in the room with you
>Y'know, except for possibly this guy
>He raised up two fingers and then pointed out the window
>Two, outside?
>You could feel your ears flicking around as you tried to listen for whatever it was that was outside
>That was when you heard some voices echoing through the city outside
>You shook your head negatively, as much as you could with him holding your mouth that was

>>40528020

>When he let go you corrected him in a hushed tone
"Three."
>Despite not being able to see his face through the visor, you could tell he was confused
"There's three out there."
>He paused a moment then gave a nod
>Rising to his feet, you could see that he had packed everything up including the sleeping mat
>Except for the rifle he grabbed from next to the door
>You had only seen one like that a few times before, it was something German
>He didn't give you much time to look at it as he eased the door open with one hand, the other keeping the rifle trained on the crack
>Seeing nothing outside the door, he glanced over at you and gestured his head out the door
>With not much other options, you entered the hallway, glancing to the opposite side before heading for the stairs
>That got him to snap
>Like, quite literally, snap his fingers
>Looking back, he pointed down the hall
>Giving the best shrug you could manage while still using your arms to walk, you turned and started down the hallway
>He exited and followed after you, each time you glanced back at him he was either facing ahead or behind
>Your ears started flicking around again and you stopped in your tracks
>He almost bumped into you and almost seemed annoyed when he looked down
"One ahead"
>You weren't sure how the fuck you were doing this, but apparently your senses had increased since you were a human
>With a nod, he hugged the left wall and began slowly moving up with his rifle at the ready
>Not wanting to get murdered at this exact moment, you decided to stay behind him
>Still unsure of how exactly you were aware of it, but you knew the bandit was going to round the corner an instant before he actually did
>Once he actually did, however, an almost dull sounding gunshot echoed out of the hallway and throughout the city
>The bandit dropped to the ground and SEVA man quickly turned around, walking backwards towards the corpse
>It took a moment for the ringing in your ears to calm down enough for you to move and once you did you went in a full sprint, or gallop, or whatever to the corpse
>Approaching it, you were smacked in the face with the metallic smell of the lifeblood which slowed your pace for a moment before you decided you didn't want to end up with a bullet in the ass
>You rounded the corner and contemplated running off without the SEVA man but some part of you felt that you should wait for him
>Probably the part of you that didn't want to be stuck in Pripyat without any fucking hands
>He rounded the corner a moment later and was followed by the familiar sound of AK fire
>"Keep moving!" he barked

>>40528021

>Not wanting to argue anything at the moment, you dashed for the end of the hall where there was another staircase
>Halfway down the hall, he stopped and turned around, firing bursts off at the corner as he backed up
>All of this gunfire was quickly giving you a migraine but you'd take a migraine over a bullet any day of the week
>Once at the top of the stairwell you called back to him
"Come on, this way!"
>He gave the corner another burst before turning around and sprinting the rest of the way to you
>And then didn't stop, opting instead to pick you up with his left arm while he held the gun with the right
>Not exactly having much to do at the exact moment, you kept watch above for when the other two showed up
>After descending two floors you could sense them coming
"Shoot, now!"
>Without any hesitation, he raised his left forearm, and placed the barrel of his rifle on it while still keeping you tucked under his shoulder and fired off a burst of fire
>A moment later you could smell a different metallic scent and were fairly certain he had scored a hit on at least one of the two remaining attackers
>Deciding this staircase wasn't safe, you were carried along the hallway, backtracking along an identical floorplan to the ninth floor
>When he started to slow down by the stairwell you used your spidey sense
"All clear above."
>That worked and he picked up his pace, heading down the rest of the stairs until the two of you were back on the ground level
>"How many are outside?"
>You tried to move your head somewhere where you could see outside and he gave you a slap
>Oh, right. You had animal ESP
>Listening around, you picked up the sounds of movement
"Sounds like... Five of them behind.... The building to the North."
>"Then we head South."
>Not trusted enough to keep up with him, you were carried out the building and across the street
>He didn't stop running for another couple of blocks and you had to admit you were surprised by his stamina
>Only once he came to a stop did he put you down and checked back the way you came
>"We should be good now."
>You could hear the exhaustion in his voice
"Who were those guys?"
>Not letting his guard down at all, he kept peaking around the corner
>"Probably friends of Patches looking to get one of you for cheap."
"One of me?"
>"You things are a nice tool for a stalker to have."

>>40528023

"So wait, I'm just a tool to you?"
>At this he looked down at you, and not just a simple glance
>"Are you saying you aren't?"
>Well, on that point you couldn't disagree
"Listen, I'm a person, damnit. Not some tool to be used by whoever the fuck picks me up off the ground."
>"No, not anymore you aren't. You're basically a really useful napkin."
"A what?"
>"It's an artifact. Not one many of the stalkers care about, especially nowadays, but the ecologists still keep a few around for study."
"And what exactly is a napkin and how am I one?"
>"Do you really want to talk about this here? We only narrowly avoided that Monolith patrol and they've definitely taken care of the rest of our friends by now."
>Torn between finding out just what exactly he thought of you and not dying, you found yourself shaking your head
"No, let's get out of here."
>"Before that, I have to do something."
>You tilted your head as he quickly threw off his rucksack and began digging
>It took him only an instant before he had found what he was looking for
>And in another instant you had a collar around your neck
>Except this one had a small metal ball on it, almost like a jingle bell or something
"What the fuck is this?"
>"That's so I don't die."
>What the fuck?
>He closed up his rucksack and pulled it back onto his back
>"You don't set off anomalies, that will."
"Wait, so now I'm both a valuable tool and disposable? The fuck is wrong with you?"
>"No, stupid, they'll react to that and ignore you. So I'll hear the whistle when they're attacking that. So you'll be safe and I'll be alerted. Now let's go, I've got work to do."
>You wanted to argue the point more but he didn't give you the chance to, instead opting to start heading East
>"Come on, Lucky," he called back, "I don't want to walk into a whirligig tonight and you don't want to hang around a bloodsucker nest."
>Okay yeah that got you darting off after him


>Leading the way by SEVA's directions, you couldn't stop fidgeting with the collar
>It wasn't a shock collar, luckily, just some leather
>But it was fit a lot tighter than Patches had tightened the other one
"Hey, can you loosen thi-"
>"No."
"Okay but I-"
>"No."

File: 12717__artist+needed_safe(...).gif (234 KB, 500x391)

234 KB GIF

>>40528028

enjoy some art i didn't commission it or draw it i just found it from a thread one day

>Okay apparently he was no longer in a talking mood
>You figured you were at least five blocks away from where the bloodsucker nest apparently was
>But you still didn't want to risk it
>You'd never actually seen a bloodsucker before
>Only heard the stories about them
>A part of you hoped they were just stories meant to scare rookies
>Especially n-
>"Left here."
>Taking the left, you saw that you were now along a highway of sorts, the road split into two different two lane roads with a median between them
"So where exactly are we going?"
>"To find a Moonlight."
>You paused and turned around, looking past him
"Okay done."
>He followed your gaze, looking up at the moon then turned back
>"Very funny, now keep it moving."
>You snickered as you returned to your walking
>Looking back and forth, you noticed there were a lot of buildings nice and tightly packed along this road
>As well as a lot of balconies and windows
"So, uhh, hey. Are there any other back roads we could be taking to get here?"
>"I don't wanna be here as much as you don't, and the sooner you focus on where you're going the sooner we'll be out of here."
"All right, all right, whatever you say..."
>You couldn't help but keep glancing up at all of the different vantage points that could be used to get a drop on the two of you
>You almost tripped when you wiped the sweat from your brow
>Three legs apparently doesn't work with this form
>After another two blocks, you were directed to take a right and were glad to be off the main road
>As you stepped off the road, however, you heard a faint whistling sound coming from your neck and paused
>Looking back at the SEVA man, he was already reaching into a pouch
>Thinking back to what Patches said, you really fucking hoped it wasn't a 'treat'
>Luckily it was not, it was a handful of bolts
>He tossed one towards you and you watched the bolt spin around in the air for a moment before shooting off
>"See, told you you'd be fine."
>He tossed a couple more until he had plotted a path through the anomaly
>"Now, come on, we're almost there."
>Another two blocks and you were told to stand still and keep watch in front of a very plain concrete building with very few, if any, windows

>>40528031

realizing i'm gonna be here for at least an hour with these anti-spam timer things

>Meanwhile SEVA reached into his pocket and pulled out a keychain full of keys
>Walking over to the door which had a shiny new padlock on it, he began trying a few keys on the padlock until it eventually popped open
>"All right, inside," he commanded while holding the door open
>Still having no choices in your life, you head on inside

>You were welcomed into a small reception looking room, albeit one that's been open to the elements for the past twenty or so years
>Behind you, SEVA closed the door and shut out all of the light
>A moment later a cone of light came from his hand and into your face
"Gah... Fuck warn me next time."
>You turned your head to your side and tried to clear your vision
>Once it was clear, you saw the light being cast to the side as he held it out to you while squatting down
>"Come on, you'll need this."
>Approaching, he pulled a strap and placed the headlamp on your head and then stood up, digging around a pocket
>A moment or two later, he pulled out a strange device that looked sort of like a combination of a PDA and a kitchen wireless telephone
>It started bleeping
>"Okay good, doesn't look like anybody else has gotten to it."
"Gotten to what?"
>"The Moonlight. Have you ever seen one before?"
"Errr, no."
>"It's like a static bubble with a white glow in the middle. You'll find it in an Electro anomaly somewhere downstairs."
"Wait, I'll find it?"
>"I can't get down to the basement, you'll see why on your way there. I need you to get the Moonlight and bring it here."
"What's in it for me?"
>"What?"
"I asked, what's in it for me? What do I get out of you getting this Moonlight?"
>The question seemed to catch him off guard as he looked at you, or to be more precise you blinded yourself in his visor
>"Well, what do you want?"
>... Shit you hadn't thought this far
"Hmmm, uhhh... I'm gonna guess you don't have anything that'll make me a human again..."
>"Well you'd better come up with something otherwise I can't exactly give you anything."
>Fuck he was calling you out
>Fuck fuck fuck it wasn't like you could hold roubles or literally anything anymore uhhh
>Wait, that's it!
"Your name. I want to stop calling you SEVA man."
>"... SEVA man?"

>>40528034

"It's not like you've given me much else to go off of."
>"Okay, fine. You get me the Moonlight, I'll tell you my name."
>It wasn't much, but you felt good about i- Wait!
>You held up your arm, or well front leg
"Shake on it."
>"God, what are you, five?"
"I don't know what the fuck I am, but a man's gotta live by his honor."
>"Jesus Christ you're like a boy scout."
>No matter how much of a boyscout you may or may not be, he took your leg in his hand and shook it
>"There, we good? You going to get me my artifact?"
"Yeah yeah yeah, I'll go get it."
>"Good, I'll keep our exit covered."
>Now, as you were about to think
>It wasn't much, but you felt good about it
>Actually negotiating for a payment for a job
>Hopefully it went better than your last job, though

>You made your way through a door on the side of the room and found a staircase leading down to the basement
>And pretty quickly you could tell why he needed you
>The ceiling had caved in some time ago and made it pretty impossible for a regular person to get down the stairs
>But you weren't a regular person anymore
>You were... Some fucking abomination of flesh and radiation
>Looking around you found a hole in the rubble that you figured you'd be able to fit through
>Though there was a dim green glow coming through it
>Only one way to see what the fuck that was
>You climbed up the rubble until you were in position to go through the hole
>Looking in you found some liquid that was bubbling on its own and also seemed to be giving off the glow
>While anomalies apparently didn't react to you, you wanted to avoid that on a hygienic level
>And also because you weren't sure if it even was an anomaly and not just some weird science shit
>Looking around, you found a block of cement you thought you should be able to move
>After a minute or two of trying to push with your head and your legs, you managed to knock it down and it banged down onto the floor with a crash
>It also splashed some of that shit up at you causing you to jump out of the way
>Fucking disgusting shit
>You made your way down the rubble pile carefully before hopping onto the concrete block and then over to the next set of stairs, outside of the puddle's reach
>Finally down in the basement, you saw it was...
>A narrow hallway

>>40528039

apparently i wrote this in 2018

>How wonderful
>Making your way along the hallway, you realized this was your first time alone since Patches turned you into whatever you were now
>It gave you some time to think
>Mainly about ways to find and kill Patches while you were still stuck like this
>Channel that hatred, it'll be sure to help out somehow
>Reaching the end of the hallway, you found a door to your right, and another hallway to the left
>... Fuck the door was closed
>And you lacked hands
>All right, let's see, maybe your stumps will work
>Propping yourself up on your rear legs leaning against the door you tried to grasp it with your two front legs
>Shit didn't work
>And the knob looked pretty fucking dusty
>You blew on the knob and a cloud of dust exploded over your face
>At least that was confirmed
>Your nose started tingling though
>Ah fuck no
"I'm gonna sneeze!"
>You shouted it out, remembering how that'd somehow often stop you from sneezing
>It didn't help and you sneezed, falling backwards from the motion
"Agh, fuck."
>You rolled back over onto your legs and looked up at the doorknob
>At least it was slightly cleaned off now
>While you had to use the one thing you had left
>You propped back up against the door and this time used your teeth to twist the doorknob
>Twenty year old doorknobs didn't taste good
>But hey now you're in the room!
>Scanning around with the headlamp on, you found no such object like the man described, nor even an electro anomaly
>All of that for fucking nothing. Shit.
>Having one other place to check, you went down the hallway and down there found a door on your left
>Luckily this was a glass door and at some point someone or something decided to break the glass on the lower half
>You carefully slipped your way through the hole in the glass, taking care to not cut yourself on it
>Inside the glass door was what looked like a science lab and you could definitely tell this was where you needed to be
>The entire floor had electricity dancing along it
>Having found your destination, you started walking around the lab, peaking around the first counter sort thing you saw in the middle
>Further down the room you noticed another light source and quirked your head

>>40528041

last ptfg thing i wrote i think, shortly after i started focusing on worldbuilding through vignettes for a steampunk setting

>What the fuck would be lighting up down here?
>It wasn't that green glow of the other shit, it looked sorta like a bluish white
>Heading over to it, you found that it was coming from on top of the counter here
>Along with a hissing noise
>Okay you needed to get up there, that was probably his Moonlight or whatever
>You took stock of what you had around in the lab with you to try and make a staircase up to the counter, some stools, a couple cardboard boxes, and some styrofoam containers
>The stool would work for the last step, you put a few there though to keep them from shaking
>The first step was a cardboard box with the second one being made out of styrofoam containers stacked atop one another with some ingenuity and actually grabbing things with your legs
>Climbing up your shakey staircase, you found that the light was caused by... A bunsen burner?
>Who the fuck left a bunsen burner on this long? How the fuck was it still burning?
>The Zone was a strange fucking place
>Wait, what was that over there?
>Behind the bunsen burner you found...
>That weird bubble thing he wanted!
>Okay well, they've been using people like you to move artifacts for some level of time, enough that Patches has made a business selling you
>And they didn't have any cases of mouth cancer yet, right?
>With a shrug, you grabbed the bubble in your mouth and were ready to leave

>However, when you turned to the door, you noticed something strange
>The pieces of your staircase started to float up in the air
>Huh, that was... something
>And then the cardboard box came flying at you
>You yelped and dived off to the side, falling off the counter with an "Oof!"
"What the fuck was that?!"
>Wait shit did you leave the Moonlight up there?
>Looking around the corner, no, it also fell, luckily
>But then a stool came flying at you and had you hiding behind the counter again
>God damnit what the fuck
>You looked around and couldn't see anything that would be throwing them
>Not wanting to have another stool thrown at you, you snuck around the other way
>As you looked around the opposite corner, you saw the Moonlight within reach, but also floating above it was a, well
>Floating torso of some... creature
>It looked vaguely human, besides the whole not having legs thing
>Reaching forward slowly, you kept your attention on the weird... floating... thing
>As you grabbed the Moonlight in your mouth again, though, it instantly turned its attention towards you
>It looked much less human from the front, its chin apparently having merged to its neck and pulled its mouth down with it

>>40528044

it only got like 2 or 3 more chapters since then lol

>It let out an inhuman roar as it spotted you, pointing its one arm at you
>Out of the corner of your eye, you spotted one of the styrofoam containers come flying at you
>Three for three on the dodges, you booked it for the door
>Glancing behind you, you saw the creature chasing after you over the counters, and the light from the bunsen burner following behind it
>The light then went out and was replaced with an orange glow accompanied by a *Woosh!*
>Having had more than enough of seeing the place, you focused full force forward and dove through the glass door
>You felt the glass cut a long scratch along your back causing you to cry out but you managed to keep the artifact held in your mouth
>After a moment to recover from getting cut, you once again were running, not looking back, until you got to the staircase
>With your mind moving a mile a minute, you initially tried just running up the stairs, getting some of that... stuff on you
>It felt warm for a bit but you were too focused on getting away from... whatever the fuck that thing was
>With a squeeze you made your way through the hole, agitating the cut on your back and with what you determined was enough distance between you and that... thing, you finally collapsed
>From your position on the floor, you saw the reflecting of your lamp on the SEVA suit's dome visor
"Hey! Over here! Come get me and let's go!"
>SEVA man rushed over, looking behind you, "What the fuck happened?"
"I don't fucking know, there was some... 'thing' down there and it fucking attacked me, let's just fucking go!"
>A groan came from the man as he pocketed the artifact into a special pouch on the suit, "Okay, let's go."
>It took you a minute to stand up and with the adrenaline fading, and once you finally got up you fell back over as you tried to walk
"Fuck... It-It hurts..."
>"What, what hurts?"
"I cut my back on my way out and stepped in some weird, puddle thing?"
>Looking over at the leg that landed in it showed the limb glowing
>Somehow looking at it made you remember it and become aware of just how much it hurt
"Ah fuck! Fuck fuck fuck!"
>"Oh God damnit, fucking shit."
>He quickly took off his rucksack and finagled through the side pockets
>"You're gonna have to deal with the cut for now but that hoof, eugh..."
>He withdrew a bottle and twisted the cap off "By the way this is gonna hurt, a lot."
"It fucking already hurts a lot fucking shit just hurry up!"
>He quickly poured the bottle over what had been identified as a hoof
>He didn't give you enough detail on how much 'a lot' meant when he said it would hurt
"Aaaaaarrrrrrrrggghhh ffffffuuuuuuuuuuuuuccccccck!"
>"I fucking told you!" he shouted as he capped the bottle again and stashed it back away

>>40528047

>He quickly threw the rucksack back on and lifted you up, holding you under his arm
>"God damnit this is why I hate working with rookies..."
"It ain't exactly a fucking roller coaster for me either fuck-o!"
>You were barely aware of him mumbling under his breath as he made his way out of the building


>You were doing your best to stifle your tears
>The agonizing pain still coursing through your hoof didn't seem to like that however
>At least you didn't have to physically run and put pressure on it
>Instead all you had to do was constantly focus on the burning sensation
>It had dropped off a lot since he poured whatever that was on it
>But looking at your hoof, you couldn't exactly see any of the fur that covered the rest of your body
>Nor any skin beneath it
>So that wasn't too good
>"Quiet, or else we'll both have more than a chemical burn to worry about" he hissed as he glanced around the next corner
>With it apparently being all clear, he rounded it and through your water drenched eyes you could tell you were back on the highway
>That was quite the motivation to suck it up
>You let out a short sob before taking a deep breath and slowly exhaling it
>Just pretend like you're at the doctor's and they're checking your breathing
>Hopefully that would distract you from the pain
>Looking up at him, you saw your moonlit reflection in his visor
>"Ready?"
"Y-Yeah, I think I should be good."
>"Okay then, I'm sure they're on high alert after all of that shouting so for the love of God keep quiet."
>You winced and stifled another sob as you nodded your head
>Rather than head out to the middle of the highway again, this time he hugged the edge of the building
>That was fine until you started coming up on some bushes
"H-Hey maybe we should go some other way?"
>"We aren't going back."
"Yeah but I-I'm kinda missing some skin if you hadn't noticed."
>He performed a double take before grunting in annoyance
>"Suck it up."
>With no other argument he pushed forward and you did your best to hide the exposed part of the hoof from the prodding of the branches
>That got you through the first two with only the occasional whimper
>The third bush, however, you thought he snapped a branch when he only pushed it out of the way

I want to be pinkie pie

>>40528049

>32k words
god damn

>And so it whipped right onto your hoof
"FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK!"
>"God fucking damnit!"
>With the seal broken, it became a shouting match
>The contestants being you crying out in agony again, him shouting about how much he hated rookies, and the sudden gunfire coming down from the rooftops
>"I fucking told you to keep quiet!"
>He sprinted off and out of the bushes, not turning any attention to your attackers while you bobbed along in the crook of his arm
"It's not my fault you whapped it with a fucking bush!"
>You weren't sure if he was just lucky or if the gunmen just couldn't see him but miraculously you got to the next corner without taking a single bullet
>As he rounded the corner and continued sprinting down the street, you noticed him slow down a bit and come to a limp
>While you had managed to avoid taking a bullet, he seemed to not be so lucky
>After a quick check behind the both of you, he turned another corner and slipped inside of one of the buildings along the highway
>You couldn't see anything but based on the pace he was limping at he could somehow
>Without any visibility you couldn't tell where you were going only that you ascended a staircase, got a brief glimpse of the highway where all gunfire had ceased, and then were back in total darkness
>You were then set down on your side and your headlamp was turned on, the glow from the light revealing that you were in a supply closet of sorts
>"Now, listen. I need you, for the love of God, to keep. Quiet."
>With your hoof lifted off the ground you nodded, trying your best to reel in your whimpers
>Turning your head, you spotted the gunshot in his thigh
>With a grunt of his own, he shrugged off his rucksack and plopped down beside it
>From a side pocket, he withdrew a roll of bandages and started wrapping up the bullet hole
>"This is coming out of your pay, you know," he delivered in a dry tone
>You had a nervous chuckle at the apparent joke but he did not return one
>After wrapping his wound several times and tying it off, he pulled himself and his ruck over to you
>"Now, listen to me when I say it this time. This is going to hurt. A lot. Do I need to gag you before I do this or can you keep quiet this time?"
>You started to say you would be fine but bit your tongue
>Then hung your head with a sigh
"You'd better gag me."
>Wasting no time on formalities, he grabbed half a loaf of bread and you briefly recognized it from before
>And then unceremoniously shoved it in your mouth
>With your impromptu food gag keeping you silent, he dug around his rucksack and pulled out some cream which he then applied to one side of the bandage
>All creamed up, he then started wrapping the bandage around the exposed flesh on your hoof

>>40528057

oh shit i found another break let's see how long i can follow these

>You were right to ask for the gag as you instantly had to shout into the bread
>He paused for a moment to grip your muzzle tightly closed and looked towards the door
>After a moment had passed with no disturbances he returned to wrapping up your wound while also holding your mouth closed around the bread with his elbow
>Finally he finished wrapping up and tied the bandage off and let out a sigh of relief
>"I hate moving around here during the day, but we're gonna have to give them a bit before we can leave," he started
>Continuing to talk, he made his way to the rucksack and began unstrapping his bedroll from the bottom
>"So we're gonna sleep in shifts. You've got first watch."
>With the bedroll freed from the rucksack, he laid it out then scooched himself onto it
>"Wake me if you hear anything, and I mean anything."
>His final command made, he turned onto his side with his back towards you and stretched his legs and arms out
>Making sure to use your good hoof, you pushed the bread out the side of your mouth and began idly chewing, having nothing else to do
>Besides, y'know, trying to ignore the burning on your hoof and the mild stinging on your back


>After the first few minutes, you worried you would fall asleep since you had nothing to distract yourself with
>This situation was resolved when your hoof first dropped onto the floor
>That seemed to wake you up quite a bit
>But then you were back to the issue of what to do
>Since SEVA man was asleep you decided to try to figure more out about him
>Your face was too big to actually look through his ruck so that ended quickly
>You found a way to walk without applying pressure to your hoof
>Though good luck if you had to move faster than a snail
>With some amount of mobility restored you looked around the storage room for anything useful
>Unfortunately all you found was expired food items and cleaning supplies
>You tried to get the collar off but working clasps with hooves was pretty much impossible
>Some morbid part of your curiosity gave you the idea to try opening the door but reason prevailed
>Shadow puppets didn't work without fingers to make the different shapes
>Eventually you came to accept your only distraction would be humming songs to yourself
>And applying pressure to your hoof whenever you felt yourself getting tired

>It felt like an eternity before SEVA man woke up
>Once he finally did it was your turn to nap
>He offered you only a couple of hours, however
>You weren't in any place to argue since he was going to be carrying you again
>So you took what you could get and curled up on the bedroll

>>40528059
god damnit we're gonna lose the breaks again

>You were right to ask for the gag as you instantly had to shout into the bread
>He paused for a moment to grip your muzzle tightly closed and looked towards the door
>After a moment had passed with no disturbances he returned to wrapping up your wound while also holding your mouth closed around the bread with his elbow
>Finally he finished wrapping up and tied the bandage off and let out a sigh of relief
>"I hate moving around here during the day, but we're gonna have to give them a bit before we can leave," he started
>Continuing to talk, he made his way to the rucksack and began unstrapping his bedroll from the bottom
>"So we're gonna sleep in shifts. You've got first watch."
>With the bedroll freed from the rucksack, he laid it out then scooched himself onto it
>"Wake me if you hear anything, and I mean anything."
>His final command made, he turned onto his side with his back towards you and stretched his legs and arms out
>Making sure to use your good hoof, you pushed the bread out the side of your mouth and began idly chewing, having nothing else to do
>Besides, y'know, trying to ignore the burning on your hoof and the mild stinging on your back


>After the first few minutes, you worried you would fall asleep since you had nothing to distract yourself with
>This situation was resolved when your hoof first dropped onto the floor
>That seemed to wake you up quite a bit
>But then you were back to the issue of what to do
>Since SEVA man was asleep you decided to try to figure more out about him
>Your face was too big to actually look through his ruck so that ended quickly
>You found a way to walk without applying pressure to your hoof
>Though good luck if you had to move faster than a snail
>With some amount of mobility restored you looked around the storage room for anything useful
>Unfortunately all you found was expired food items and cleaning supplies
>You tried to get the collar off but working clasps with hooves was pretty much impossible
>Some morbid part of your curiosity gave you the idea to try opening the door but reason prevailed
>Shadow puppets didn't work without fingers to make the different shapes
>Eventually you came to accept your only distraction would be humming songs to yourself
>And applying pressure to your hoof whenever you felt yourself getting tired

>It felt like an eternity before SEVA man woke up
>Once he finally did it was your turn to nap
>He offered you only a couple of hours, however
>You weren't in any place to argue since he was going to be carrying you again
>So you took what you could get and curled up on the bedroll

>>40528060

>The tone of his voice made it clear that he wasn't in the mood to chat now
>But besides marvel at the sights of the Zone you didn't have much to do as he carried you along
"Are they the ones who should be able to help my hoof?"
>"I never said that."
"Yeah, you definitely did."
>"No, I said they would look at it. Maybe they'll be able to help it, maybe they'll make it worse. But they'll definitely want to look at it."
>A groan was your only response
>At least it wasn't your old gang
>You shuddered to think about them
"Where exactly are they set up?"
>"Well, I was given the job from a scientist in Yantar, you know past Rostok?"
"Wait, we're going all the way back to Rostok?!"
>"Keep your voice down. With the Brain Scorcher shut down they set up an outpost closer to Pripyat and I should be able to get most of my reward there."
>That was good at least
>You really didn't want to head back that far South for a while
>Especially not like this
>As you seemed to finally exit the outer limits of the city, he got more calm about walking out in the open
>He even nodded his head to some of the passing stalkers heading towards the city
"Do you know those guys?"
>"Probably not."
"Then how do you know they aren't going to shoot you in the back?"
>"I don't really. And they don't know that I'm not going to shoot them in the back."
"You know, you seem pretty calm about getting shot in the back."
>"When you've been in the Zone for a while, you tend to get an intuition about who's going to shoot you and who isn't. You can usually tell who's a rookie purely by how often they glance at you."
"Huh, that's... interesting I guess. I also noticed they don't seem too surprised to see you holding me."
>"You aren't exactly rare this close to the city. Patches has been churning others like you out for a while. If anything, they'd be more surprised that you're coming out of the city than the fact you exist."
"Wait, you mean there were other... What the fuck am I anyway?!"
>"You're a tool, I told you. Though people have been calling you guys ponies since, well, y'know. You look like weird mutant horses."
>You rolled your eyes
"All right so where there any other 'ponies' in the city last night?"
>"I mean, probably. Like I said you aren't exactly a rare sight nowadays. Most people just don't like to move at night which is why I prefer it."
>That seemed a pretty reasonable explanation

>>40528060

>Not having any questions to bring up at the time, or just wanting to keep your mouth from drying out anymore than it already had, you decided to look around some
>Outside of the city, it looked more like the Zone you were used to
>Though most of the plant life here seemed to be more dried out than further South
>It made the landscape look rusted over and as you spotted a large antenna of sorts in the distance, it felt fitting for the area
>Even outside of the city it felt more developed here than further South for whatever reason
>Looking around for any more specific sights, you found yourself yawning and mentally kicked yourself for not taking the extra twenty minutes of sleep
>"Don't worry, we're almost there."
"Good, when we get there I'm gonna pass out again. Maybe when I wake up the egg heads will have given me a robotic leg or something."
>"Uh huh... I don't think they do that sort of thing. By the way, it's Caribou."
"Err, what?"
>"My name, or at least what everyone here calls me."
"Oh, that's uhhh... An interesting name."
>"Well it's all you're getting. You want anything else, you're going to have to hurry up and get well enough to do more work soon."
"Yeah yeah yeah. Let's just hope those nerds can do something about... Whatever this is."


>It wasn't that long before a large metal bunker came into view
>Though it didn't look like a static structure which made you wonder just how exactly it got here
>As far as you knew, any vehicle trying to drive through the Zone got torn apart by the anomalies and you doubted it was moved on foot
>"Are you going to be able to keep up if I set you down?"
"I mean, if a dog happens to show up I'm fucked but otherwise I should be able to get in myself."
>That seemed to be fast enough for him as he set you down and you began hobbling after him
>Caribou reached back and fastened his rifle to the side of his rucksack as he made his way up to the door and banged on it
>A short buzz emitted from the intercom next to the door that looked as though it would be right at home on a tanker
>"Yes yes, what is it?"
>You were still a bit behind but even you could tell the voice belonged to some tight ass in a lab coat
>"I've got a Moonlight."
>That was more than enough for another loud buzz to emit from the bunker followed by the door opening on its own
>Caribou waited for you to catch up and limp through the door before he followed suit
>Back down at knee level, you could see the bandage on his leg had failed and he was bleeding from the wound again
>The door closed itself behind the two of you giving you a bit of a fright before another buzz filled your ears

>>40528065

>"What is that there with you? Are you bringing another one of those creatures with you?"
>The voice sounded strangely excited as you looked around
>"Yeah yeah, hurry it up, my leg is killing me."
>You looked up at him with a cocked eyebrow
"Another one?"
>"You aren't my first... Though you're the first living one I've brought back."
"Great, glad to know I've beaten the odds."
>"Hey, you are Lucky."
>An annoyed sigh escaped from your lips as your old nickname had still managed to keep up with you
"By the way, you're bleeding again."
>"Yup."
>A hiss started from somewhere in the ceiling mere moments before some strange gas was pumped into the small room you were in
>Sniffing at it, it smelled vaguely like cleaning supplies but far more overbearing
>You raised your gimp hoof up and covered your snout with the leg
>Once the gas had settled on the floor another buzz sounded and the door in front of you swung open
>And standing right there was a man with a long lab coat and grey dress slacks
>Looking at his face, you were a bit ashamed to admit he looked more gruff than you ever did before this happened
>His eyes were instantly drawn to you, almost ignoring the relative giant of a man who stood next to you
>"Oh my God, it is alive! Dr. Popov, quick, prep the lab!"
>"Hey, you aren't taking him anywhere until I get my money."
>"Yes yes of course you'll be compensated, but we need to run so many tests!"
>You glanced between the two men arguing over what to do with you with an annoyed look
"Hey, can we hurry this up? I don't feel like standing here all day."
>"Ha! Ha! I told you Vasily, they can talk! Oh my God, of course, come in, tell me everything!"
>You accepted the invitation as he stepped aside and gestured you on past
>"Wait, Caribou, what happened to his back? And his hoof?"
>"I'm pretty sure he stepped in some fruit punch running away from a poltergeist."
>"Dr. Popov, we need some salve! Oh and get the clipboard!"
>You had to chuckle, for the first time since coming to the Zone, you were actually starting to feel like maybe things were going good for you
>Hell, the scientist picked you up and held you in both of his arms which was slightly more comfortable than how Caribou had been carrying you
>"Oh, tell me your name, I'm Dr. Sokolov!"
"Well, people have been calling me Lucky for the past couple of years, just the other day it got amended to Lucky Clover."
>"Ah, wonderful! Oh, don't worry, we'll have that cut flushed out and bandaged in no time, oh I wonder if the salve will work! Are you okay with staying awake while we work so you can tell us how it feels?"
>Okay this was starting to get a bit annoying
>Luckily Caribou had also gotten annoyed
>"Hey, I said he isn't going anywhere until I get paid!"
>"Yes yes, take the Moonlight to Vasily and he'll pay you."
>"I also brought you a live pony. Where's my payment for that?"
>"Agh, fine, just get it from Vasily! God, Lucky, how have you dealt with him this long?"

>>40528069


>You offered a shrug as you looked back at Caribou
"He's a lot better than the other fuck I was with."
>"Oh you must tell me your entire story, start from the beginning!"
"Well, all right. A couple years ago..."

>You omitted a few details but by the end of them patching you up you'd finished your story
>Dr. Sokolov had taken detailed notes of the entire story, you were sure he could read it back to you verbatim
>They started with cleaning up the scratch on your back and sewing that up
>Apparently it had been a lot deeper than you initially thought
>Then they replaced the bandaging on your hoof after applying the salve which didn't burn anywhere near as bad as the cream Caribou used
>With your injuries treated they began running some tests you didn't entirely understand
>Blood was extracted, you were hooked up to about twenty different machines, a bunch of different foods were placed in front of you for you to eat
>During the process you felt like royalty
>By the end of it you honestly weren't sure if you wanted to leave
>Being carried out of the lab, you were met by Caribou standing there
>He had removed the bandage from his leg and patched the SEVA suit and stood with the hood down
>"Sokolov, we're staying here until night if you want to spend more time with Lucky. But you're going to need to pay me if you run any more tests, and he needs to be ready to leave. I'm getting tired of carrying him."
>"Ugh, I swear, you mercenary types only care about the money. You don't understand what kind of breakthroughs we might be able to find from him!"
>"You're right, and to be honest I don't care. He's free to talk to you if he wants to, but if I see that pen of yours touch a single piece of paper while we're here, you're paying me."
"Errr, actually Dr. Sokolov, some rest sounds pretty good about now. After that salad, I'm feeling pretty full."
>"Oh, of course, Lucky! Please, let me put a bed together for you!"
"Well, I think I'd rather just use the bedroll so I don't get spoiled. Don't want to have any issues sleeping out in the field, y'know."
>"Well, are you sure? It wouldn't be any is-"
>"He said he wants the bedroll, Doctor."
>With a sigh of defeat, Dr. Sokolov handed you over to Caribou who then set you down on the ground
>"I already set it up in the barracks around the corner there, go lie down while I talk with the doctor."
"Are you sure? If it's going to be ab-"
>"It's not about you, now go."
>Hearing no room for argument in his voice, you followed his instructions to the barracks
>The word barracks made you think of a room that was larger than the bunker
>What you got was a sardine can barely fitting the four beds shoved into each corner and the bedroll next to one of them
>For a moment you considered climbing up onto one of the beds but your hoof made that too difficult to be worthwhile
>And so you just curled up on the bedroll, not entirely tired but glad to not be getting poked with strange implements

>>40528072

>Sleep didn't come to you
>But after a few minutes Caribou did
>"Not sleeping?"
"No, the stitches are itching like crazy."
>"They probably could've numbed that for you or given you some pills if you'd asked."
"Eh, I'd rather not have them shining a light down my throat trying to see how I swallow pills."
>That got perhaps the first chuckle you'd heard out of him
>"They pay good money, but these scientists are pretty damn annoying once you get them started. At least they have that Moonlight to hold them over for the meantime."
>Caribou plopped down to a sitting position on the mat next to you, resting his back against the bed, and let out a sigh
>"How's the hoof?"
>Not entirely sure yourself, you applied some pressure to it and found it hurt but it wasn't agonizing like before
"Probably not gonna be walking for a while, but a lot less likely to wake up a city block in Pripyat again."
>"Glad to hear it, though we aren't heading back there. I've got business down South."
"Wait, South? Why would you have business there?"
>"Well, I get my contracts from around Rostok, then head out for a few days taking care of them all, and then head back once they're all done."
"And you somehow end up in Pripyat doing contracts from Rostok?"
>"Hey, I go where the work takes me."
"Huh, okay then... What's a napkin?"
>"A wha- Oh, right. So, when the Zone appeared, it changed the properties of pretty much, well, everything. I'm sure if you really want to you can ask Sokolov specifically what it did, but the main point is most people know about these changes as artifacts. Your meat chunks, fireballs, goldfish, what have you. These are objects that are created by the Zone changing atoms or some such. A napkin is also an artifact, but the Zone didn't so much create it as alter it, and usually it doesn't have any effects that stalkers find useful. Sometimes it'll just be, say, a wheel that glows during the night or, a napkin that doesn't absorb water. Stalkers don't care about them because they don't help them survive and they don't bring in that much money, but scientists will pay a nice sum if you get them. It's basically become a term some of us use for anything that the Zone's changed rather than created, which is why you're a napkin. A rare one, that is."
>After having to rea- I mean listen to that wall of te- speech you regretted asking
"Need any water after that speech?"
>With a smirk he shook his head, "It's pretty well recited by now."
"From some of your other... ponies?"
>"Nah, just rookies in general."
"Did you used to train them or something?"
>He shrugged
>"Sometimes you needed more than just yourself for a job."
"What sorta jobs?"
>"You'll find out in time. For now, get some rest. I don't want you dozing off tonight and we've got a lot of ground to cover."
>You set your head down with a sigh
"Y'know, you should probably start introducing yourself as Night Owl."
>"There's already a Night Owl, he's a dick."
"Huh, all right."

>>40528074

"Huh, all right."
>With nothing more to say, you closed your eyes, trying to force yourself to sleep
>That is until you felt yourself being pushed and opened them
>"I need space to sleep too."
>Okay, fair enough
>Closing your eyes again, you kept them closed as he pushed you to the end of the mat
>His boots coming next to you caused your ears to flick about on their own
>And so you were left to fall asleep


>A kick to your side knocked you out of your slumber
>With a grunt, you looked up and found Caribou suited up and standing over you
>"Ready to head out?"
"Yeah, but you know there's better ways of waking me up than kicking me."
>"It seemed to do the trick, now let's go."
>Mumbling out some obscenities, you rose to your hooves and stretched out
>Surprisingly your one hoof didn't really hurt at all anymore
>Maybe those scientists were onto something
>After a quick roll of the shoulders or whatever they were called now, you felt ready to go
>As you two started to leave, however, you found your way blocked by Sokolov
>"Oh, are you two leaving already?"
>"Yeah, I'm expected in Rostok soon and I don't want everyone thinking I'm dead."
>"Oh, well, before you leave, myself and Vasily put together something for Lucky."
>At the sound of your name, you could feel your ears instinctively flex around
"Wait, something for me?"
>"Oh, yes, of course Lucky! Vasily, bring out Lucky's parting gift!"
>Even though Caribou had his visor on, you could see the annoyance in his posture
>After a moment or two, the man you assumed was Vasily arrived
>While Dr. Sokolov and Popov looked like book nerds, Vasily seemed more like the Igor to their Dr. Frankenstein
>Shuffling in with a hunched back and arms that strained against the lab coat he looked uncomfortable in, Vasily held out a cardboard box to Sokolov
>Sokolov reached in and removed something to which you quirked your head
>As he kneeled down in front of you, you saw it was a couple of leather pouches connected with a thick leather belt
"Uhhh.... Thanks?"
>"Oh, no no no, thank you! We based it off the saddlebags of actual equines, and the satchels here have a lead lining inside so that you can carry artifacts in them without worry of additional radiation exposure!"
>While you understood what you said, you were still a bit confused
>"How much is this going to cost me?"
>"Oh no, no charge, just a gift for Lucky."
>Caribou glanced between yourself and Sokolov, making Sokolov look nervous
>Finally he settled his gaze on you
>"Did he wake you up at all while I was asleep, Lucky?"
"Errr, what?"
>"Caribou, what are you ge-"
>"Did he, Lucky?"
"Uhhh, I don't think he did. I certainly don't remember being woken up before you kicked me."
>"Wait, you kicked him?!"
>"Yeah yeah, so what?"
>"So look at him, we don't know how strong his bones are, you might have broken something!"
"Err, no, I'm fine."
>"Whatever damage is done to him, it doesn't matter since he's mine, I paid for him."

>>40528078

>They didn't seem to be paying much attention to you
>"So what, he's just another piece of meat for you to burn through?! When are you going to realize the value these could have for the scientific community!"
>"Like I said I don't give a damn about the scientific community, I'm here for my own reasons!"
"Hey, uhhh, guys..."
>"Yeah, of course you are, you're just another mercenary burning through whatever resources you get for the most money you can make!"
>"Damn straight, Sokolov, at least I'm actually going out there and doing shit rather than locking myself in a bunker all day!"
>You looked up at Vasily who just hung his head with a sigh and started walking off
>Returning your gaze to the argument, you noticed just how close Caribou and Sokolov had gotten to one another
>"Well fine, then, how much do you want for him, huh? Ten thousand? How's about twenty? Name your price, Caribou!"
>"Please, I keep him for a week and I can make twice that off of him!"
>"When's the last time you managed to keep one for a week, huh? How long did the last one last, three days? I'm surprised you were able to get him out of Pripyat with your track record!"
"Guys, guys, calm down!"
>Caribou wasn't calming down as you could see his hand curl into a fist
>As he went to throw the actual punch, however, you seemed to find your voice finally
>"GUYS! CALM THE FUCK DOWN!"
>Finally you seemed to have their attention
"Ahem... Caribou, are we leaving now, or what?"
>Having broken the tension between the two of them, you could see the fire in their hearts start to die down
>"Y-Yeah... Thanks Doctor, I-I'll maybe be back sometime next week..."
>"Errr... Yeah, that'll, uhhh, be fine... Do you still, uhh, want the bags for him?"
>"Yeah sure, thanks Doc."
>Without much eye contact, Sokolov kneeled back down in front of you, fastening the strap of the saddlebags around your center barrel
>Then he made eye contact with you and smiled
>"Do you think you would want to stick around here, Lucky? You'd be safer here than out there, y'know."
>Looking past him, Caribou seemed all angered out for the time being based on his not currently strangling Sokolov
"Errr, no thanks. I'd probably be heading off and doing that field experimentation stuff you scientists like."
>Sokolov looked a bit upset as he stood up
>"All right, well. I hope to see you again, Lucky."
"Same here, Doctor Sokolov."
>"Let's go Lucky..."
>Without further words, you and Caribou exited out the airlock you took to enter the bunker and set off into the night


>After a couple hours of walking in relative silence, you finally felt you needed to have an actual conversation
"So uhhh... What was all of that about?"
>"Sokolov and I have a past, that's all I'm saying about it."
"All right, all right, fine. Can you at least tell me about what that track record was about?
>"No."
"So I'm left to just take it at face value of you not really valuing your past... What'd you call me before? A napkin?"

>>40528081

>"I said you were a pony earlier."
"I think I prefer napkin."
>"Well I'm sticking with pony. And I did value them, we just got into some sticky situations. Luckily I was on the end of my Pripyat trip by the time Patches had gotten you ready."
"Yeah, luckily..."
>Your voice was somber as you thought back to that fuck Patches
>God if only you could find him again and... and...
>Fucking hell what the fuck could you do to him like this
>Maybe get Caribou to kill him?
>Not as satisfying
"Hey wait a second, we're heading to Rostok."
>"Yeah, no duh, that's why I said we're heading to Rostok at the bunker."
"No I mean, isn't that where Patches tends to hang out?"
>"What of it?"
"Well why don't we see if there's some way he can change me back? Or fucking bring him to justice somehow for turning people into these ponies?"
>"For starters, I'm not turning you back, learn to deal with it. Secondly, no, Rostok has rules and he manages to adhere to them whenever he's there."
"So there's nothing we can to him for doing... This to me?"
>"Yeah, pretty much."
"Well, can we at least try to raise awareness as to what he's doing with the people he tricks into going with him?"
>"We wouldn't exactly be the first to try doing that. It's mainly why he picks rookies, they don't know any better."
>You had to stop walking as you sighed, any hope of somehow stopping the bastard who'd done this to you exiting along with your breath
>On the edge of your awareness you could hear the whistle sound blowing
>"And that there is why we aren't changing you back. Now if you wouldn't mind finding a way for me to cross, I'd appreciate not having to lob some bolts around."
"So this is all that's left for me? Walking around anomalies to save you from having to chuck bolts to find pathways?"
>"I mean, there's also squeezing into small places I can't, and who knows maybe once I've made enough money and retire from this I'll bring you along."
>You had to roll your eyes as you started patrolling in an oval type shape, waiting for the dull whistle to stop
"So it's live through hell here and then be a guard dog at whatever luxurious mansion you move to?"
>"I mean, it's not exactly a mansion and I don't think I'd trust you to guard a mouse, but I guess you could think of it like that."
"Yeah, sorry, but I think I'm going to have to pass on that."
>"Fine then, you can do whatever you want once I'm done with you. For the meantime, I still have to get to retirement from here."
>As your whistle stopped making its noise, you walked a straight path until you were sure you were away from the anomaly and Caribou followed your path
"And when exactly is your retirement?"
>"As soon as I have enough to pay off some bills, then I'm returning to my normal life. Probably another six months assuming I don't have to replace any expensive gear."

>>40528082

"Huh that's actually not that bad... Though, either way I'll have to stay like this until I die apparently, be that later tonight or right after you leave."
>"Well, offer is always open. Otherwise you'll have to find your own way to do whatever it is you want. Who knows, maybe Patches does have a way to reverse it."
>You offered what you could consider a shrug while having to use your forelegs for balance
"Knowing what little I know of the Zone, there's probably no real way to fix it."
>"Well, if you find a good enough crew you all might be able to get to the Wish Granter and maybe that'll change you back."
"Oh please, you believe in that? Even I know that's just some story you more experienced guys tell to fuck with us rookies."
>"Depends on who you ask, I've seen quite a lot of well established stalkers give their lives trying to make it to the Wish Granter."
"Sounds like some fools to me."
>"Hey, they died for their beliefs. I consider it a pretty noble gesture."
"Okay, now you're starting to sound sof-.... Hold up."


>Despite your idle chatter, your super pony senses had picked something up
>Whipping your ears around, you heard some chattering
>Your nose picked up the copper scent of blood, as well as the strong stench of urine
>Without moving you continued listening in, not quite able to pick out what was being said but being able to separate the voices
"There's five ahead... I think a sixth... I smell blood and piss..."
>"Sounds like bandits again, or some faction dispute."
"Should we head around it then?"
>"No, I wanna scout it out. I might be able to get some patches to sell."
"Selling patches?"
>"Grab a Freedom patch, turn it in to Duty for a bounty, and vice versa. Helps pay the bills, so to speak."
"I guess that makes sense."
>"Fuck yeah it does, now quiet, let's sneak up on 'em."
>Caribou crouched down and set his hand on your flank as the two of you advanced
>You weren't entirely sure what exactly he was doing until he physically moved your flank to the right and you found yourself being guided toward the shadow of a large boulder
>As you approached closer, the chatter became more defined, albeit those talking were using hushed tones
>"Well, we got what we needed. Should we take him out?"
>"The boss said we should wipe em out once we were done, but he might want to interrogate him more himself"
>"Yeah but if he gets free then it isn't exactly going to be an ambush, is it?"
>You tuned out the rest of the conversation, not needing anymore details when you should be focusing on getting to a good vantage point
>As you came to the edge of the boulder, Caribou stopped you then gave you a nudge forward
>With only your own wonder as to what he wanted, you snuck a peek around the corner and spotted five men in green camouflage huddled around one another with a sixth facing the boulder wearing black with red highlights
>Your recon being complete, you backed back behind the boulder and turned to face him

>>40528084

>First instinct was to raise up six fingers but that didn't exactly work out so well
>So you had to go with your back up plan and just whisper
"Five guys huddled around one another trying to decide whether or not to execute the sixth guy against the boulder here."
>Caribou nodded and started pulling you back until you both were opposite the boulder of the man put up against it
>"Stay here," he whispered out before climbing up the boulder
>Not being able to see, you relied on your other senses to try to keep up with what was going on
>You could hear Caribou making his way up the boulder as well as the green men coming to the end of their discussion
>They had decided to execute their captive, not wanting to deal with the risk of him getting away
>You didn't really know who the captive was but you found yourself unable to stand still knowing he might die purely due to shit luck
>First you just fidgeted in place
>Keeping track of Caribou's position and where the executioners were, you could tell he wasn't going to get there in time
>Fuck fuck fuck
>That's it you couldn't stay put
>You dashed around the boulder back to your previous recon point
>Looking around you saw their guns raised at the defenseless man who was pissing himself again
>You hadn't thought this far ahead in your mind and so lacked any idea what you were going to do
>So you did the first thing that came to mind
"Fuck you asshole!"
>"What the fuck was that?"
>"Is that a fucking kid?!"
>They all looked confused as fuck
>Confused as fuck was better than putting a defenseless man down
>"Dima, Peter, go check it out."
>Shit you didn't expect this to happen
>Glancing around you could only back up, trying to return to where Caribou had told you to stop
>But you couldn't run there with them already alerted
>Slowly you started backpedaling hoping maybe they'd not pay attention to you once they showed up
>Hey, you were grey, the boulder was grey, it might work!
>As they got closer and closer, your resolve seemed to fail you though
>Nervousness began to cloud your judgement maybe you should run
>Maybe you should stay still
>Run at them?
>Ultimately the decision was taken from you however by the sound of gunfire
>You didn't see their reactions only heard the confusion of the two coming at you
>That was quickly stopped however as their corpses fell into view
>Well, one of their corpses fell into view
>The other was still gurgling and stretched his arm out to you
>You paused and watched as he tried to drag himself towards you
>With his gasmask on you couldn't tell if he was angry or desperate

>>40528086

>Either way you felt sorry for him
>He might have been one of the ones voting to spare their captive
>Hesitantly you started to approach him as he gurgled more blood into his mask
>Once the two of you were close enough together, he brought his hand up and pet the side of your head
>Looking through the lenses of his mask, you could see the tears running down his eyes
>There was no way for you to avoid his death, and yet you still felt a bit guilty
>Suddenly his world was brought to an end with a bang
>Specifically a bullet through his head
>Some of the gore splattered onto your stunned face
>You didn't much care
>Looking up, you saw only your own reflection in Caribou's visor
>"I said stay put."
"I was just trying to save that other man, they were gonna kill him!"
>"Yeah, and I would've had more patches to turn in."
"Are you insane? You were purposely going to let him die?!"
>"I was, until I had to do it myself because of you."
"W-Wait, what?"
>"Yeah, congratulations, you made me spend one more bullet than I otherwise would have had to."
"Y-You what!"
>Not waiting to hear the words again, you ran past Caribou and sure enough there were four bodies where the firing squad formerly was
>You only then became aware of the fact that tears were running down your own eyes
>Hoping against hope, you prodded the body of the lone Duty member and were met with no response
>Anger replaced sorrow as you ran back to Caribou and flung yourself at him in what would be a tackle if you were still a human
>As a tiny horse, it looked more like you were hugging him
"You fucking bastard! What the fuck did they do to deserve to die?! You aren't a fucking bandit, I fucking know you aren't! But you just killed all of these men for no reason!"
>Surprisingly he didn't get into a shouting match with you, opting instead to just look down at you and speak calmly
>"You were okay with me killing five of them, why not the sixth?"
"W-What?"
>"I said, you were fine with five of them dying, why not one more?"
"B-Because he didn't do anything wrong!"
>"Listen, I don't know if you've heard, but Freedom and Duty have been at war for a while. Considering he was a Sergeant, I'm assuming he's killed his fair share of Freedom members."
"B-But..."
>"But nothing, this is how the Zone works. Everyone is fair game. Could I have gotten a reward if I returned him to Rostok? Sure. But then I would have to steer clear of the Army Warehouses and that puts me pretty far out of my way."
>You dropped your gaze down to the ground, suddenly becoming self conscious of your crying as he explained the situation
>Kneeling down before you, he grabbed your head and jerked it so that you were looking at your own reflection in the visor, even if you knew you were meant to be looking him in the eyes or vice versa
>Only now did you notice how much of that one man's blood had gotten on your face
>Kind of surprising you hadn't noticed it on your muzzle

>>40528087

>"I told you to stay back there because I knew you'd get personally invested in the matter. You need to not do that here in the Zone, it'll only end with you getting killed."
>His lesson over, Caribou let go of your head and stood up
>"Now if you can find the rest of the Duty bodies, I'd appreciate the extra roubles."
>You decided not to help Caribou find the rest of the corpses
>Instead you just sat there while he looked for them
>Thinking
>About just how cheap the human life was here in the Zone
>By the time Caribou was satisfied he'd removed all of the patches your tears had dried up
>You had begun to wonder if you had made a mistake coming to the Zone
>Despite your years with the bandits you still held hope for a better life once it was over
>Then you got turned into a 'pony'
>And now you were assisting a murderer
>This was definitely not the place for you
>Had you decided to stick to a normal life you might be a middle manager at some office job right now
>Not a pastel equine covered in gore
>"Well, thanks to you we're gonna be about twenty minutes late."
>You didn't really care about his schedule
>"So what, are you done talking to me because I told you how life is here?"
>That wasn't exactly your reason but you remained silent nonetheless
>What exactly was there for you to say?
>"Well, regardless, let's get going, lead the way South."
>At the very least you could do that
>Although it took a moment for you to pick up any momentum in your movement
>With your head hung low, all you could really see was the ground immediately in front of you
>Every so often, Caribou would have to tell you to turn left or right
>Despite that, he seemed to enjoy the relative silence compared to other walks
>As the sun started to make its way over the horizon, he had you pause
>"Well, here we are, the Army Warehouses."
>You had to pick your head up in order to see just what all of the hub bub was
>You had been to Rostok before, it was where this story actually started
>While there you had always thought of it as being impenetrable
>This area put that to shame, however
>Looking across the valley, there stood a walled off complex with large towers rising above all else in the area
>Towards the front you could see the gateway they used to enter, and a bridge over a canal immediately through the gate
>Over the walls you spotted the rooftops of a number of barracks buildings, what looked to be an administrative building, and the eponymous warehouses
>"By the way, keep your ears open. There's bound to be some bloodsuckers wandering around."
>That was enough to snap you out of your moral dilemma
"Wait, bloodsuckers?"
>"Yeah, you've heard of them before right?"
"W-Well yeah but I didn't realize they would be around here, I always thought of 'em as being more North."

>>40528089

>"Well, you're wrong. They go pretty much anywhere, but especially areas with a lot of cover. And that village over there has a lot of cover. Which is why we're avoiding the hell out of it and are heading straight south to the Freedom base."
"Then why do I have to look out for them?"
>"Because that's a tiny ass town and they aren't afraid to go off hunting when they're hungry, now just keep an eye out and let's go."
>Caribou punctuated his command with a shove of his boot against your rear end to get you moving again
>Evidently he didn't want to be hanging around waiting for the bloodsuckers either, which was perfectly fine for you
>As you two crossed the valley, you began to notice the guards standing at the front gate
>Specifically the two wearing mechanical suits
"Holy shit, what the hell are those?"
>"Exoskeletons, they're good for perimeter duty or if you feel like maintaining them."
"Why the hell don't you have one then?"
>"I don't do perimeter duty nor do I feel like maintaining one, that and they're way overpriced because of how annoying it is to actually find them."
"Okay, fair enough then."
>As you approached, one of the regular guards raised up a hand
>"Stop, what's your business here?"
>"Just looking to turn in some bounties and rest up before heading back out."
>The guard looked Caribou up and down
>And on the downswing finally noticed you standing around knee level
>"Gah! What the fuck is that thing!?"
>That was some introduction
>It got even better when all five of the guards started pointing rifles at you
>You weren't sure if talking would make the situation better or worse
>"Don't worry, it's not gonna hurt anyone, are you, Lucky?"
>Looking up at Caribou, you found him looking down at you, and you then turned to face the guards, slightly confused
"Nnnnope? No hurting no one here."
>"Holy shit it talks!"
>One of them seemed ready to pull the trigger right then and there
>"Wait, Lucky? Like the rookie? Hahaha! Holy shit, I didn't think the rumors were true!"
>All eyes turned to the one guard who had dropped his rifle and was laughing
>"Oh my God I have to call up my buddies and let 'em know what happened, this is fucking priceless! Yeah no you guys I doubt he'd be able to do anything even when he was still a person, let him in."
>You tried to let go of your annoyance through a sigh
>It didn't quite work
>Either way your reputation seemed to work in Caribou's favor as the two of you were allowed in
>Walking across the rather short bridge, you had to avoid a broken down jeep but otherwise found the it clear
>Which gave your eyes time to wander, looking up at the towers you had seen earlier
>Each one of which had at least a single sniper manning it, scanning the horizon through a scope
>Once across the bridge, you started running into actual people, mostly Freedom guys in their green camo, with the occasional Loner here and there
>And for once you were left to follow Caribou rather than guide him

>>40528091

spent too much time fact checking a lot of things in Shadow of Chernobyl for this story btw

>"Now Lucky, while we're here, try to not draw much attention. I just want to drop off these patches and get outta here."
"You're saying that to the only pony the scientists right outside of Pripyat have ever seen alive. I don't think I'm gonna be that good at avoiding attention."
>Looking around at everyone was evidence enough of how bad you were at not drawing attention
>Damn near everyone was looking at you in various states of shock and horror and general curiosity
>"... Okay, point taken."
>Caribou lead you to one of the administrative looking buildings, this one guarded with another four guards
>"Don't worry, we're just here to drop off some Duty patches to Lukash."
>Two of the guards looked at one another then back at Caribou
>"You guys are still paying a bounty per Duty patch, right?"
>"Wait here."
>The one that spoke turned and went inside, leaving the two of you with the three guards
>You weren't entirely sure what to do given the situation and so started rocking back and forth on your hooves, which was both similar and strangely different from doing it on your feet
>Caribou seemed to be staring at the empty space between the three guards while they all moved their gaze between the two of you
>More often than not resting their gaze on you for longer periods than Caribou
>After a couple of minutes the guard finally returned
>"You can head in and... This has to stay outside."
>Your complaint about being called 'This' was cut off by Caribou
>"Fine, Lucky I'll be right back."
>The guards parted and Caribou stepped inside, with the guards closing the doorway back up once he was inside
>Once again you were left to stare at the statuesque guards, except this time all eyes were permanently affixed to you
"So, uhhh, how's Freedom working for you guys?"
>You could see one of the guards tighten his grip on his rifle as you spoke
>Otherwise you got no reactions of any sort
>They seemed to have more discipline than the front guards at the very least
>Fortunately Caribou's time inside was much shorter than the guard's and he came out after only a minute or so
>"All right Lucky, let's go."
"That was fast."
>Caribou started walking off before replying, causing you to follow after him
>"Well we aren't leaving yet, we need to wait for him to get the payment together."
"Wait, there were only like six patches there, how much is it per patch?"
>"Only about two hundred roubles."
"And he can't get you your money? While they have all of this?"
>"Yeah, I don't like it either. But I don't think those guards at the front are gonna let us leave before I get paid."
"So what's the plan?"
>"The plan is we head to the mess hall and have a couple of drinks."
"Uhh, okay. Why the mess hall?"
>"I got an idea."

>>40528093

>The mess hall was a short walk away, maybe the length of one city block
>Outside you found a group of men squatting around a fire, mostly just chatting with one another about some topics that didn't quite interest you
>Inside the building, you saw that it was basically an emptied out barracks
>Really emptied
>Besides the man slumped over in his chair in the middle of the room, there was a table with some tools in the back left corner
>And that was really it
>At least at the back of the large room you could see a couple of back rooms which seemed to be locked up
"Uhh, this is the mess hall?"
>"Yup."
"I was kind of expecting there to be tables or something."
>"Nah, they usually eat outside. But we're here for him."
>Caribou gave a nod to the man slumped over and the two of you approached it
>"Sup Slavik?"
>The man shook his head out and gasped as he seemed to wake himself up
>"Wha-who's there?"
>"It's me, Caribou."
>"Wha- Oh shit, Caribou!"
>He wobbled his way up and the two embraced each other
>After a couple pats they separated and Slavik returned to his seat
>"So, what can I do for ya Caribou?"
>"I don't like the way Lukash is talking to me, I think he's got some shit up his sleeve."
>"That fuck's always got something up his slee- Holy shit! What the fuck is that?"
>At that moment Slavik finally seemed to notice you staring up at him from the floor
"Uhhh, sup, I'm Lucky?"
>"Holy shit, is this one of those ponies you've been talking about?"
>"Yeah, meet Lucky."
>Slavik leaned down and held a hand out
>"Nice to meet ya, people around here call me Chef."
>The gesture confused you, not so much because you didn't know what the fuck shaking hands was, but more that he was offering the gesture to you
>After the brief moment of confusion you smiled and extended a hoof, allowing him to grab it and shake
"So I guess that makes you the cook here?"
>"Yup! Only reason they keep me around here is because I'm a better cook than everyone else."
>With the shake done, Chef Slavik released your hoof and looked back at Caribou
>"Nice horse ya got, anyway what exactly do ya need me to do?"
>"I need you to hold on to some gear and get me a key for the brig here, soon."
"Wait, you think he's going to arrest us?"
>"Who's gonna arrest who?"
>"Lukash is gonna arrest me, most likely. Or just gun me down. But I know he likes to see if anyone is paying for people alive before offing them."
"But what's he going to arrest us for? Do you think he... knows?"
>"Probably, I'm sure there's scouts around that saw it."
>You had to grit your teeth as you thought back to his executions earlier
>Before you could voice your complaints about his actions again, however, he continued
>"Anyway I've been in worse pickles before, we'll get through this."
I really don't like you just gambling with my safety like this."
>"Yeah well I paid for you fair and square so get over it."
>"Anyway Caribou, I can hide your shit, getting the key might be tricky though."

>>40528094

there's some parts in this i'm not really proud of, feel they could've been done better. we're coming up on one, and i think it gets a bit better than a lot worse until the end. sorry not sorry.

>"I've got a bottle of vodka in my ruck with your name on it."
>Chef chuckled
>"Yeah I'll be able to get you the key then."
>"Great, now that that's settled, let's hit the hay."
>Chef started laughing as Caribou pulled his ruck off and the two of you stared at him
>"You just fucking told a horse to hit the hay."
>Caribou and you both shared a sigh before Caribou handed the ruck over
>"Remember, I'm gonna need that key. You might need to toss it in the window."
>"Yeah yeah yeah."
>With the ruck in hand, Chef was all business as he dug around and eventually withdrew the bottle of vodka and gave it a kiss
>"I'll keep your stuff here waiting for you when you're ready to leave."
>"All right, see ya in a few hours then, thanks again Slavik."
>"Mmhmm, whatever ya say Caribou."
>Chef seemed more interested in the vodka as the two of you left
"Uhh, hey, should I leave my stuff here too?"
>"Hmm, oh yeah. Might as well."
>Caribou reached down and removed the collar from your neck and grabbed the saddlebags then took them over to Chef
>"Hold onto these as well, I don't feel like replacing 'em."
>"Rightyo."
>Finally the two of you were on your way out of the building
>Despite your complaints with Patches, not having the subtle pressure on your neck anymore felt weird
>You skipped a couple of steps along the street to rub the bunched up fur on your neck and after you had fallen behind, Caribou finally took notice
>"What, missing your collar already?"
"Shut up, it just feels weird."
>"Uhuh, don't worry, I'm sure you'll be begging to put it back on once I've got my money and we're on our way out."
"Or when we get out of the jail cell."
>"Either or, I've still got other jobs to turn in so I'm still gonna be making money."
>You grumbled some more
>Just past the building with Lukash and the road to the bridge, you took a left into another barracks and this one actually had beds and mattresses in it
>With it being daylight, most of the beds were empty
>"Take your pick."
>While you briefly considered what the Freedom guys might say about the two of you stealing their beds, Caribou hopped onto the closest one and sprawled out with a yawn
>Considering you were both likely going to be arrested for murder, it was pretty silly to worry about such menial things
>With the comfort that no matter what they'll probably be pissed in mind, you clambered your way up onto an adjacent mattress and curled up in the center of it
>Finally lying down, you realized just how tired you were after walking all night
>Sleep came rather shortly and you found yourself thinking things would work out all right
>Hopefully your gut would be right

>>40528097

>You wake up to the sound of voices chatting amongst one another
>What they're saying doesn't interest you very much
>That is, until you start to recognize some of them
>Your eyes shoot open and you jump up
>But it's too late
>Surrounding you are three of your former associates
>Tima, the tall skinny bastard who first brought you to the factory in Dark Valley, supposedly to help save one of his friends
>Said friend was Vlad, also known as Bones, a literal mountain of a man who damn near killed you with his hands after your first escape attempt
>And last but not least was Rat, a skeevy bastard who took pleasure in his nickname, and perhaps the most regular of your... clients, when you were still under their employ
>You tried to shout out for Caribou but Tima was quick to the punch and wrapped a belt around your muzzle shutting you up
>"Nuh uh uh, Lucky, you don't want to go waking anyone up now do ya?"
>You glared, not daggers, not bullets, not even a fucking trebuchet, but a god damned unstable nuclear reactor at Tima
>"Whadyaknow, I think he remembers us!" Rat sneered as he flicked your ear
>You tried to snap at the offending hand, but the belt held true against your muzzle
>"Better watch out Rat, I don't think he likes ya," Bones laughed, his voice several octaves deeper than either of the other two
>"That's fine, it seems like he's gotten a bit of his fight back in 'im," Rat licked his lips with an all too familiar look in his eyes
>Even when you were still a person that look made you recoil
>You couldn't quite imagine what you looked like as a pony trying to somehow escape his sight
>"D'aww, you're scaring him," teased Tima, "We'd better hurry up anyway before Sultan gets angry."
>"Yeah, you're right, say goodnight Lucky."
>You turned to look at Bones who was holding open an old potato sack
>Though glancing past him you saw the bed where Caribou was
>Or well, had previously been, as it now lay empty
>Before the lights went out, all you could do was gulp

>>40528103

>It was surprisingly dark inside of the white potato sack
>Perhaps they had put a second bag inside of the potato sack?
>Thinking about the lighting was probably the last thing you should be doing
>Of course, what else was there you really could do?
>It had been a couple hours since you were bagged
>You put up a fight as best you could though the potato sack seemed too strong for you
>You tried to get the belt off of your muzzle so you could at least try calling for help
>Unfortunately hooves weren't the most dexterous of appendages and so that failed as well
>Which ultimately left you straining to try to hear why they had decided to stop moving
>"I don't understand why the fuck they're always standing around there."
>"Probably because that fuck Skull once managed to surprise Freedom and they're hoping to get another chance at Lukash."
>"Well, later tonight they should just have a ghost crew on guard and we can slip by them to get to the cemetery."
>"Fucking hell why don't we just go through Rostok?"
>"You think Duty's gonna let us pass through with 'Him?"
>At the mention of him, you felt yourself be lifted up then dropped back down
>Though whoever was holding you, probably Bones, decided to drop drop you
>Your burlap prison didn't offer much in the way of absorbing your hit with the floor causing you to cry out
>Or well try to cry out with your muzzle trapped shut
>"Well if we can't head out yet, I think I'm gonna have to, heh heh, check on the merchandise."
>Once you hit the ground, your initial thought was to worm your way out of the sack
>Hearing Rat, however, you tried to worm your way further into the bag
>"Listen, you really wanna do that shit here? Here of all places?"
>"What, are you still afraid of the bloodsuckers? You remember what Bear said, that fucking Strelok freak rolled through and wiped out the nest on his way North."
>"Well fine, you two can fuck to your heart's content, just do it somewhere else. I'm not gonna let no fucking bloodsuckers grab me this close to one of my biggest pay days yet."
>Nobody made any movements from what you could hear
>You least of all
>Some part of you was hoping that maybe if you didn't move they'd forget you exist and find something else to do to pass the time
>That hope came crashing down along with you as the bottom of the bag was lifted up and you once again fell onto the floor
>Finally being able to see where you were, you were in the middle of a decaying wooden house
>Tima had walked behind you to warm up by a barrel fire they had placed in the middle of the 'living room' you were in
>Past him there was actually no wall, leaving the structure open to the elements
>Opposite Tima were Bones and Rat with a doorway to a room behind them
>"Come on, Lucky, you know how this works," Bones said, the mere tone of his voice threatening you
>Not being able to actually say anything you sat down and shook your head negatively

>>40528105

>"Lucky, let's go," the annoyance in his voice was rising as he pointed towards the room
>You turned to look back past Tima at the open wall
>You might be able to slip out there
>Possibly get some distance using your size to crawl under a fence or something
>Though you weren't entirely sure where you were
>They had mentioned something about bloodsuckers
>Looking back up at Bones you could see his patience wearing thin
>"Well, are you gonna be a good whore or do I need to remind you what happens to bad whores?"
>You gulped and, considering your options, dropped your head
>There wasn't anyway this could work for you
>Fuck even if you managed to get away from these three and avoid any bloodsuckers, you'd probably just get killed by something else
>Maybe if you complied they wouldn't hurt you
>Maybe even go easy on you
>A sigh pushed out of your nostrils as you stood up and took a step towards the room
>And then you turned and fucking darted
>You weren't sure where the fuck the decision to run came from but you had to stick with it
>"Lucky you fucking bitch, get back here!"
>You could hear the two come running after you
>Hell you could even tell which one was on which side of you based on how much heavier Bones' steps were than Rat's
>It took Tima a second to notice what was happening and in your peripheral vision you could see him starting to catch on as you past him and exited the building
>Straight ahead was a cliff facing so that was a no, Tima was on your left
>Right you went and hopped in between the bars of the fence there
>It was dark out, the village you were in illuminated only by the moon above
>You ran forward and turned right into another wooden structure, another house
>This one still had its back wall but also had an open door for you to run into
>Taking a quick second to listen, you heard them hopping the fence
>It sounded like Bones had fallen behind and actually collapsed it
>However there was something else you could hear
>Some sort of roaring fire that kept moving
>Moving fire was better than those three, so you ran towards it, out the front door of the house you were in
>Out in this lane of the village you could see the glow of the fireball to your left heading inside of a tower with more village in front of you and to your right
>You took the right and ran past a couple of houses
>"Back over there!"
>You didn't turn around to see Tima outside of the house and instead turned left into another one
>"Across the street, get going!"
>This house seemed larger and slightly more elaborate than the other two, in that it actually had more than two or three rooms
>Or at least at one point it did
>Now most of the walls had decayed and some of the ceiling boards had fallen down
>Hey now that might work
>You cautiously climbed up the board into where the attic would be if the structure were still in-tact
>With some elevation, you made your way into a shadowed corner, that gave you a getaway trail in case they found you

>>40528107

>Now that you weren't focused on running, you had to come up with a long term plan
>There was no way you could just run around the village for the rest of your life
>Even if Caribou's plan to escape worked, there was no telling when he would find you
>Or if he would find you
>He might not even come looking for you
>No, no, you were an investment to him
>He'd show up
>But how long would it take him?


>After about ten minutes of listening to them get closer and further and closer to you, you still hadn't formulated a plan
>Ahead of you was another valley wall and based on some stargazing you used to to, you were pretty sure that direction was East, which put the tower at the North side of the village and where you started the West side
>Which meant the only part of the village you hadn't seen, and likely the exit, would be to the South
>So at least you hadn't wasted the ten minutes
>You just needed somewhere to go after you got out of the village
>Maybe you could look for whoever Skull was and see if he would help
>Perhaps go to Duty?
>Duty might try to kill you, though
>Or throw you into the arena
>That'd be one hell of a match, literally any poor desperate loner vs you
>"Come heeeeeeeere, Lucky, don't worry, we aren't gonna hurt ya!"
>Oh for fuck's sake does Rat really think you'll fall for that?
>Still, that was pretty close...
>Maybe you'd better check it out
>You scooted a bit out of your corner to be able to see downstairs and found Rat scratching his head directly below you
>"Hey, any of you guys see him?" he called out
>With a gulp you started backing up
>However, crawling in old wooden structures was a bad idea
>As you backed up, one of your hooves backed straight into a nail
>The pain shot through your entire body and you couldn't help but yelp into your closed mouth
>You froze as your entire body was chilled by the implication of your yelp
>"D'ohohoho, I think I found 'im boys!"
>You couldn't see Rat after having backed up a bit, but you could practically envision him
>And then you could quite literally see him as he started climbing up the same beam you had
>"Yup, here's over here!"
>With your cover blown you hopped up and backed up further into the corner
>Fortunately the beam rose up away from you, giving you a bit of space
>Glancing over to the side, you saw your escape path
>Which was less of a path and more of a jump
>While your escape plan hadn't changed, you weren't entirely confident you could urge yourself to do it now that you had to
>"Now now Lucky, you know it's inevitable, now let's just go and we can spend some quality time together," Rat chuckled with a shit eating grin
>You shook your head roughly, both in response to him and to try to at the very least get the belt off of your fucking muzzle
>There were some choice words you wanted to give him, though as he reached the top of the beam and started making his way over you figured they could probably wait

>>40528108

>As Rat got closer, you suddenly found your courage and darted off to the side, leaping out towards the hill
>"Aaaaaaaaaaand, gotcha!"
>FUCK
>There was never any plan for you to somehow fly your way to the hillside
>But smacking the fucking ground would have been better than this
>Rather than escaping, you had instead quite literally jumped into the arms of the enemy
>"That was a pretty fun game of hide and seek ya gave us, Lucky."
>This wasn't Bones, so you figured you might have a chance with your struggling to escape from Tima
>In response to the struggling, Tima held you tighter however, so much so that you started having issues breathing
>"But I think you've run out the clock on Rat's patience with it."
>As you lost your breath and your struggles died down, Rat came walking up
>"Nah, he just got me all pent up. Though I don't think he's gonna enjoy himself when we get back to the hut."
>Feeling your strength fail you, you seemed to lose all hope
>Seeing no path with a favorable outcome ahead, your eyes started to water
>Soon you were full on tearing
>Rat the miserable fuck licked his lips
>"Just the way I like 'em."
>With your escape attempt properly thwarted and your spirit visibly broken, the two decided it was high time to get back
>"I hope it was worth it, Lucky, because I am going to make you pay for each and every minute you made me wait for this."
>You couldn't do anything more than close your eyes and try to pretend like he wasn't getting to you
>God you just felt so fucking defenseless
>Would this really be the story of Lucky?
>A rookie who spent two years in hell, only to be turned into a fucking pastel pony and returned to hell?
>Maybe you'd have a legacy as a cautionary tale
>God you couldn't even kill yourself like this

>>40528109

>When you finally opened your eyes again, all four of you were back at the house
>Bones had taken hold of you while Rat had busted out some rope
>"We're not gonna be having anymore great escapes from you lil guy."
>You weren't sure you had the resolve to try resisting, especially not when you certainly didn't have the strength to
>While Bones held your forehooves to the bed frame, Rat tied them to it
>Unsurprisingly he seemed to have some experience with doing this, as the ropes dug into your fur and bandages while giving zero slack
>"There, now that'll keep you steady. Bones, go wait outside, I want some private time with my little whore."
>Bones bellowed out a deep chuckle as he left the room, leaving the two of you in the relative darkness compared to the main room
>With your hooves pulled forward you could only look so far behind you
>"Y'know, since you left us, I've started to get more adventurous with my whores, Lucky. Seeing 'em cry in pain is almost as good as fucking 'em," Rat started as he unbuckled his belt and pulled his pants down
>"And God damn after we caught you and you started crying... Mmf, I was about to just fuck you raw right there."
>You turned your head away so that you were facing the wall, until Rat forcefully turned you back the other way and stood with his erect member right against your snout
>"Go on and sniff it you whore, does it smell any different now that you're a pony?"
>You weren't sure if he was just talking to himself or what
>Whether you could talk or not you didn't plan on answering him
>Even though the smell of his dick was much more overbearing now than as a person
>God you wanted to throw up
>"Y'know, I wonder if you're still as loose as you once were, or maybe with a new body you're back to being nice and tight, heh heh heh."
>Jesus Christ he always fucking went on with his cringey fucking dialogue
>Listening to him try to get himself off was almost as bad as the rape itself sometimes
>"Well, only one way to find out, let me know if this is as good for you as I'm sure it's gonna be for me..."
>He released your head and went back behind you
>You felt your hindquarters be grabbed and forcefully lifted up causing you to whimper
>Your tail was pushed out of the way and you could hear the sick son of a bitch lick his lips again
>You closed your eyes tight, wanting the nightmare to end
>That was when you heard a crunching noise, followed by your rump dropping back down
>Another second later you heard a second crunch and then a thump
>You opened your eyes and looked back, seeing Rat lying on his side on the floor
>Eyes still open
>But most importantly
>Blood pooling out of his neck

>>40528114
>Staring at the face frozen forever in agony, you found yourself still
>Despite two years in the Zone, you still weren't super exposed to death
>And yet
>Looking at his face
>This death was too good for him
>Finally regaining control over your muscles, you turned to look out the window but found nothing waiting there for you
>"Hey, Rat, is your dick broken or something?" Bones laughed
>You could hear him walking over to the room
>Though you also picked up on something rustling some bushes
>And further away something else that you couldn't quite make out
>Probably the fireball
>You turned around just in time to catch Bones cast a shadow through the doorway
>"Rat, what's wrong with y- What the fuck?!"
>Bones ran up and kicked Rat over
>Seeing the pool of blood oozing out of his neck, Bones was immediately next to you with a hand wrapped around your neck
>"What the fuck did you do to him?!"
>Despite your inability to reply, Bones started to tighten his grip
>"Come on, spit it out!"
>You tried squirming to the best of your abilities, trying to get out of his grip despite knowing it was useless
>Fortunately you were saved by Tima walking in
>"What the fuck is going on in here Bones? Where's Ra- What the fuck!?"
>It was enough to get Bones to release your throat and turn back to Tima
>"He was like that when I came in here and this little shit ain't talking!"
>"Probably because you still have his mouth trapped shut!"
>Between your attempts to pant and catch your breath, you had to chuckle at Bones' dumbfounded look
>Hearing your amusement set him off though and you were rewarded with a punch to the side of the head
>Your vision got blurry for a bit as you could almost feel your brain rattle around your skull
>When you finally came back to your senses, the belt was removed from your muzzle and you reflexively spit out some blood from the punch
>"Lucky, tell us what the fuck happened," demanded Tima as he squatted down in front of you
"I have no idea, he just fucking fell over."
>Bones was once again grabbing your throat in an instant
>"Listen you little shit, you're gonna give us some answers or I will crush your fucking skull!"
>His booming voice and bulking muscles made you consider that he probably could indeed crush your skull if he wanted to right now
>Still there wasn't much more to the story than that
"I didn't see a thing, you fucks tied me down for that fucking animal, he pulled down his pants, and then he fucking fell!"
>The pressure started to increase again before the conversation was broken by a knocking sound on the wall
>All three of you darted your attention to it
>"Let him go, Bones, it must be that fuck out there."
>"Well that fuck made the biggest mistake of his fucking life."
>Once the two exited the room you started fighting against the ropes
>You weren't sure what exactly was going on but you now had a fighting chance to, at the very least, get away from these three
>Well, now two

>>40528120

the captcha bar is fighting me now oh no

>That was, of course, if you managed to escape the binds keeping you to the bed
>Which after a bit of flopping you figured wouldn't exactly work
>That was until a knife came falling onto the bed next to you
>This time you were quick to look at the window and saw the silhouette of a man in it
>"Cut yourself free, then run south. I'll meet you there."
>Holy shit it was Caribou
"Wait, how the fuck did you find me?"
>"Later, just get out of here."
>With that he disappeared from the window and you were left alone again
>Listening in, he ran towards the front of the house while Tima and Bones loaded rifles and went out the back
>Having some time to yourself, you grabbed the knife with your mouth and fumbled with it until you had a good position to cut the ropes
>It took a bit but soon you were free and without any cuts to yourself
>You tried flexing your fingers only to remember you had no fingers anymore and rolled your eyes to yourself
>Now that you were free, you had to meet up with Caribou and so hopped off the bed
>Then thought better of it and hopped back onto the bed to grab the knife in your mouth
>The handle tasted of leather and sweat
>Eugh
>Back off the bed again, you passed Rat's corpse, giving it only a cursory glance feeling that even that might be too much in terms of pity for him
>Better he be forgotten by the pages of history than to gratify him by giving him any sort of legacy
>In the living room, you listened in again and couldn't quite pick up any noises near you besides the crackling of the fire
>Which meant you were safe to head out the back and start heading to the south of the village
>You took your time, however, not wanting to get yourself shot, and so mostly stuck to the shadows and started relying more on your eyes than your ears
>Even still, you couldn't help but feel something tickling your ears
>Some sort of sucking sound?
>That must be some strange anomaly
>Or maybe...
>Oh shit
>Panic took over as your heart started beating a mile a minute
>Glancing behind you, you saw you were still clear for the time being
>Forward looked good so you darted
>Not entirely knowing where you were darting to may have been a bad idea
>But it sounded a lot better than staying anywhere near the bloodsucker
>Being guided more by the flow of the village than your own senses, you soon found yourself at a bottleneck in the valley
>The southern exit you assumed given Caribou's instructions
>Standing there in the open, you were pretty sure you could see one of the guard towers from the Freedom base in the distance
>So you weren't too far away from there
>Having reached your destination, you began to wait
>Even if that meant not continuing to put more distance between you and that sucking sound
>It didn't take very long before you got worried
>More for your own well being than whether or not Caribou could survive the likes of just Bones and Tima

>>40528124

>After seeing him take out that group of Freedomers, even if by surprise, two bandits should be easy pickings
>Though if that were the case, you likely would've heard gunfire by now
>Maybe he was getting the drop on them with the kni-
>Wait you had the knife
>It didn't seem unlikely that he would have a second knife
>But if that were true then where was he
>You moved up against the nearest structure, even if you weren't in the shadow, just for the reassurance that nothing could come from that side
>Then you closed your eyes and lowered your head a bit, trying to concentrate on your other senses
>They had helped you out before and they would help you out now
>You no longer heard the sucking sound and considered that a plus
>But you could hear some sort of conversation going on
>Which had to mean both Bones and Tima were still looking for Caribou
>Or for you
>No, there was no way he could be dead
>He was just waiting somewhere for them
>Had to be
>Casting a glance back south, away from the village and the bloodsuckers, you considered moving somewhere safer
>Just in case those two came around you
>Though, if you had the only knife, Caribou might need help
>He did come here to save you
>It was only right that you help him out as well
>Ultimately what made the decision for you was picking up another noise
>Some heavy, rasping breathing
>Coming from... something
>You could only assume the worst that it was the bloodsucker, looking for another meal
>Caribou could probably handle the bandits, but not even he could take on such a mythical creature without some sort of help
>You moved across the street to the East side of the village and started sniffing around
>Caribou might be silent but there was no way he could stop emitting a scent
>What scent you were looking for, though, you had no idea
>One thing that was fairly overbearing was the coppery smell of blood
>That was likely the bloodsucker
>Currently along the center road somewhere, but a bit too far away to really pick up on its exact location from scent alone
>Which meant it wasn't currently threatening you at the very least
>Some sweat from around where you heard Tima and Bones, so that was probably them
>Otherwise all you could really pick up on was the rotting wood that was everywhere
>Wait you could hear footsteps
>And not those of Tima and Bones
>They were close to them but they moved with a different sort of purpose
>Suddenly you heard a scuffle going on between the three of them
>You didn't exactly need Equestrian hearing to pick up what happened next
>"Let him go you son of a bitch!" Tima echoed through the village
>Only a few buildings away
>Of course, if you heard it, the bloodsucker must have as well
>That put a bit of pep to your step
>You moved around to the East side of the buildings and moved up until you came upon an alleyway between two of the buildings
>Here you saw yourself behind Bones who was pointing a rifle at Caribou, who held his arm around Tima's neck

>>40528126

>From here you couldn't see much of Caribou, who was effectively using Tima as a human shield, but one thing you noticed right off the bat
>He wasn't wearing his SEVA suit anymore
>That and he seemed to have some bruises on his head
>Apparently Freedom hadn't just let him go
>"I'm telling you, let me go, I'll release him, and we'll all go our separate ways. No one needs to get hurt tonight."
>Caribou was trying to negotiate with the wrong people
>"Fuck you, you killed Rat, we're gonna kill you."
>"You fire on me with that and you're gonna kill your buddy here."
>"Don't you fucking shoot me Bones!"
>"See, he wants to live tonight too."
>"Tima, he doesn't even have a fucking gun, we could kill him right now, easy!"
>Looking around, you spotted Tima's 74u sitting on the ground next to him and Caribou
>Caribou probably tried to grab it when he grabbed Tima but failed
>As you looked back at the two of them you noticed Tima's eyes catch onto you
>"Bones, behind you!"
>Before Bones could react you ducked back around the corner
>Good thing as well as you saw the 5.45 rounds go skirting past
>"It's fucking Lucky, he got free!"
>"Damnit Lucky, I told you to go and wait for me!"
>"What's wrong, Lucky, couldn't leave your buddy behind? What the fuck do you think you're gonna do, huh?"
>"Watch it Bones, I think he has a kni- Agh."
>"Enough talking you."
>Damn, you probably blew your one chance to actually help somehow
>"Get out here Lucky or your friend is dead!"
>"Lucky, get out of here, I'll be fine!"
>"Like fuck you will!"
>Listening to their bickering was starting to get annoying
>"For once just actually listen to me god damnit! I can get out of this!"
>You heard another shot go off
>"Like fuck you can stupid, I've still got a gun and you don't have shit!"
>Caribou was definitely lying
>You weren't sure how you knew, but you knew
>That was, unless, you came up with a plan quick
>You pulled back a building and ran around to the other side of it
>Then scurried back towards the same alleyway, but one building length away
>This time you took more caution when peeking around the corner and saw Bones rapidly aiming his gun between Caribou and the corner you were previously at
>His back was no longer open, but along the north of the alley
>That would work fine
>As he went to aim back at Caribou you darted across the alley to the north side

>>40528130


>The building here looked like a barn and you were able to move through it, saving you some time
>The next building was another house with an actual floor so you had to move slowly through it
>But providence was with you as you came along its south wall and spotted a hole
>Bones' knee right outside of the hole
>You took a moment to steel yourself, praying to whatever god you believed in to give you just this one shot
>Ever since you showed up to the Zone, your luck had gotten worse and worse
>For just this one moment, you needed Lucky to be your actual nickname
>Not just the butt end of a joke
>Empowered by a sense of purpose, you pulled your head to the side and then slammed it towards the wall, the blade of the knife leading the way
>As you heard the satisfying crunch a fraction of a second before you banged your head, you knew you'd struck true
>The bang made you release the knife as you grunted and stumbled off to the side
>Bones screamed out in agony and fell forward
>Then you heard the gun off and feared for the worst
>Had your plan failed?
>Was... Was Caribou dead?
>The train of thought left as quick as it had come
>Spying through the boards you saw a person come up and grab the gun out of Bones arms
>The act was followed up with a rifle butt to the face
>That had to be Caribou
>Quickly you hopped up and ran outside only to be met with Caribou standing over Bones, ready to put him out of his misery
"Wait!"
>Bones looked over at you, scowling
>Caribou refused to take his eyes off of the man
>"This had better be good, Lucky."
>Hearing the annoyance in Caribou's voice almost made you want to not tell him what else you saw
>Or well, didn't really see
"Caribou, we need to leave. Now."
>"Haha! Even when you win you're still nothing but a bitch!"
>Bones coughed up some blood as he cackled
>"No wonder you made such a good whore!"
>"Are you sure, Lucky?"
"I'm sure. Let's just... Let's just get out of here. Right now. Slowly."
>That piqued Caribou's interest who looked to his left
>Understanding washed over him as he lowered the pointed rifle and took a step back from Bones
>"I see... Let's get going then, Chef should have my stuff stashed away somewhere safe now."
>As Caribou made his way over to you, you continued to stare past him
>The glow of the yellow eyes were all you could see of the creature that currently lurked over the bloodied corpse of Tima
>But even Bones could hear that infernal sucking sound now that he wasn't focused on the barrel of his own gun
>"Wait, what the fuck is that?"
>No longer pinned down by any threats, Bones pulled himself up, using the wall for support where his one leg could give none
>His gaze darted around, obviously not knowing what to look for
>"What the fuck are you two planning, huh? Just gonna scare me and hope I don't come after you!? Fucking cowards, when I get my leg fixed I'm gonna kill both of you and I'm gonna do it real slow!"

>>40528131

>As he continued to shout, you and Caribou just turned and left without a word
>This would have been more fitting for Rat
>But you were okay with it going to Bones instead

(horizontal rule i think a time skip)

>It was morning by the time the two of you arrived at Rostok
>Approaching the checkpoint into the actual 'village' made out of a former industrial plant, the guards were apprehensive to say the least
>To put it more bluntly, the two of you had at least three AKs aimed at you
>Plus the big gun they had mounted on the sandbags
>"Ey what the fuck is that thing with you!?"
>Caribou didn't seem too phased and continued walking
>Considering all he had on was some ripped up jeans and a sweater, he didn't look anywhere near as threatening as he used to
>At least he still had his rucksack
>"Nevermind, we're going to see the Colonel."
>While two of them kept their guns trained, one dropped his and then pushed the other two down
>"Caribou, is that you?"
>Finally he paused and you felt safe enough to catch up to him
>"Yup."
>"Holy shit, what the fuck happened to you man? Where's your fucking suit?"
>"I ran into some trouble with Freedom, so I guess they'll have a new SEVA suit once they're done spray painting it. But they didn't get it for free, Lucky?"
>You glanced up at Caribou, quirking your head for a moment before realizing what it was that he wanted
>You opened up one of your saddlebags with your mouth and reached inside, pulling out the collection of Freedom patches between your teeth
>"Haha, I'm sure the Colonel's gonna love that. Yeah, you two can head on in."
>As you tucked the patches back away, one of the underlings started up
>"Wait, are you sure, Sergeant? Should we really let that... thing in?"
>"If it's with Caribou, it's okay."
"Hey, I have a name you fucks."
>They both looked down at you
>As did Caribou
"I'm not just a thing, my name is Lucky."
>The three all looked at each other then back down at you
>While the other two had masks on you could see Caribou's smile as they all chuckled
>"All right, sorry about that," the sergeant said
>The other Duty goer seemed a bit too perplexed to apologize
>"Anyway Lucky, let's get going."

>>40528134

>As you two passed, you could feel the two lower ranks staring at you
>Honestly you were too tired to care that much
>Even after that outburst
>Which to be fair was a long time coming
>After the previous night, it was time you started demanding respect from people
>And not just because you stabbed a dude in the leg
>More you were tired of being treated as an object to be used by others
>Be it for finding artifacts, to be used for scientific study, or as a fuck hole
>You'd keep working alongside Caribou but you weren't going to be a slave to him or any such thing anymore
>You'd make him see you as an equal
>It didn't take long for the two of you to reach the actual Duty base inside of Rostok
>Which once again presented its own checkpoint
>Though this one had much tighter security
>Not even Caribou dared try to force his way in
>He just grabbed the patches from your saddlebag and held them out
>"I'm here for my bounty."
>The one you assumed to be the head honcho took the patches from him, looking them over
>"Kill all of this yourself?"
>"Yup, they'd wiped out one of your patrols and I came up while they were executing the last guy."
>"Got any proof of the wiped out patrol?"
>"I mean there's still corpses out by the Barrier if you wanna go check for yourself."
>"Hmmm..."
>The man turned around and handed the patches to one of the others who ducked inside
>A few minutes later he returned with a folded wad of rubles, handed it to the head honcho, who then handed it to Caribou
>"There you go, now get outta here."
>Caribou nodded and turned back the way he came, you following along
"Are we not going to the 100 Rads? Don't you need to get some equipment or anything?"
>"Can't spare the money for it, I'll have to see if my Ecologist buds can help me out."
"Wait, you mean the ones in Yantar?"
>"Yup."
"So we're just... Gonna take a stroll through the Wild Territory with just a shitty AK and a couple of mags?"
>"Hey, you never know what you'll find there. I might find a merc corpse I can get another G36 off of."
"A what?"
>You could almost feel the eye roll
>"A gun, made by Germany."
"Why do you use a German gun? Isn't it more difficult to find ammo for it?"
>"No it's just more expensive, and I use it because I enjoy it. Less jamming than I get with the usual AKs."
>The best response you could offer was a shrug
>As you two came up on the first checkpoint, Caribou just offered a nod and the nod was returned by the Sergeant
>"Heading out again?"
>"Yup."
>"No gear?"
>"Nope."
>The sergeant shrugged
>"Well, hope to see you again soon."
>"Yup."
>An apt conversation
>Across the street from the checkpoint was a courtyard, with buildings continuing along the sides and at the far end a connector between the two buildings capping off the courtyard
>The way there you were both left unharrassed but could hear gunfire coming from the other side of the 'bridge' building
"Uhhh, are you sure about this?"
>"Positive."

>>40528136

>You were a bit doubtful but he hadn't steered you wrong yet
>Outside of getting you captured by Freedom
>And nearly getting himself killed by the bandits after freeing you
>Okay maybe he had steered things wrong a couple times
>But you both came out alive from those so at least there was that

>Entering into the building, you could see that the ground level was just a long hallway
>The floor was covered with all sorts of garbage and you suddenly began to miss having boots of any sort
"Hey, uhhh, Caribou? Errr, would you mind?"
>He kept trucking on forward without stopping
>"Mind what?"
"Well, I don't exactly have shoes or anything like that."
>"Ugh, you have hooves, don't you?"
"Yeah, I don't think they protect against much considering last time I was in an area as shitty as this!"
>It took him a minute to respond and you were pretty sure you'd bested him
>"Okay fine, whatever."
>He came back and lifted you up, grumbling
>"I swear, you're starting to remind me of my daughter."
"Wait, you have a daughter?!"
>"Yeah?"
"What the fuck, why didn't you tell me!?"
>"Sorry, do I also need to tell you that I was married?"
"It would have been nice to know!"
>"Why? Do you have a daughter too and want to set up a playdate or something? I don't think your kid is gonna recognize you when you go back home."
"I-I... I don't even know where to begin..."
>"Then don't bother."
>As he carried you out of the hallway he set you back down
>"And get back to walking."
>You huffed and pouted but did as you were told and resumed following him
"Okay, moving on from you having a kid, what are we gonna do about those gunshots?"
>"Well, they sound like they're over by the construction site. So I'll leave it up to you, do you wanna just push through there or take the anomaly tunnel? We pretty much have to pass the construction site whichever way we take, but we don't literally pass through it if we take the tunnel, just past it."
>You were caught a bit off guard
>Despite resolving to be treated like an equal just a few minutes ago, you didn't expect to actually contribute in some way to the planning this early
"Well... I can sort of help in the tunnel and not so much in a fire fight so I guess the tunnel?"
>"Sounds good to me, just watch for dogs."
"Wait, dogs? Here?"
>"Yeah they're pretty much everywhere in the Zone. If you see one, tell me. If I see one, I'll tell you to stand still."
>Fucking dogs
>That was how this whole god damned adventure started
>And if these dogs are anything like the ones South of Rostok, you'd literally be a chew toy for them
>Fuck. Dogs.
>From now on you were a cat person
>Okay, you couldn't go that far
>Maybe just deal with friendly dogs instead of wild dogs from now on
>Yeah that's a good compromise
>Back to the actual plot, the two of you passed what looked like a loading dock for a train and were walking along the tracks

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>>40528137

>Caribou had fallen back a couple of steps and after you started feeling your fur stand up you realized why
>Around you you could see arcs of electricity dancing around and every so often coming up to attack the collar on your neck
>"Mind taking a few steps to your right?"
>Turning back around you saw Caribou had climbed up onto a flatbed car and was watching you a bit impatiently
>Without much thought, you obliged and shortly found the whistle harassed no longer by the electricity
>Caribou then came over and stepped down right next to you
>"By the way, since I don't have my SEVA suit anymore, we're both going to have to be more alert if we don't want me to die to an anomaly."
"How's it feel to be back to the equipment of a regular rookie?"
>"I'd rather have my experience and a Makarov than no experience and an exoskeleton."
"Okay, I guess I can understand that."
>"Good, now a step to your left."
>The conversation had distracted you a bit and you found yourself once again in a metaphorical pool of electricity
>Despite Caribou asking only for a step it took about three before it stopped snapping at your collar
>He then hopped over to where you are and you both resumed walking
>"Like I said, staying alert."
>You rolled your eyes but still began looking around for any threats that wouldn't quite literally leave you alone but harass your collar
>It mostly kept like that until the two of you reached a bend in the track but continued forward
>A bit longer and you spotted a downed helicopter in the middle of a paved lot
>"That way and the tunnel is just on the other side of the helicopter"
>This helicopter wasn't like most you'd seen in the Zone
>It had actually crashed, not just never launched
"What the hell happened here?"
>"Some mercs shot it down, I think trying to wipe out the Ecologist team in it."
"Damn, they must have really wanted whatever they had."
>"Or more likely someone else did and just paid them to get it."
"Yeah... Or that."
>As you got further away from the tracks, Caribou began getting closer and closer until he had overtaken you and was leading once again
>Though even as he just walked past the wreckage, you took a wide berth, not wanting to step on any broken glass shards from the crash
>Once you caught up with him, though, you saw the tunnel, it looking like a vehicle tunnel
>"So yeah, take the lead. You should be fine to walk along the ground in there, I get the fun of jumping along everything since pretty much the entire floor is electrified."
"All right then."
>Taking the lead, you proceeded down the ramp and Caribou hadn't exaggerated
>Even with nothing seemingly down there to cause the anomaly to flare, every couple of seconds you heard a loud clap, almost like hearing thunder if the lightning didn't take up the entire sky
"Shit, are you sure you wanna go down here?"
>"It's not as scary as it sounds, you'll be fine."
"I'm more worried for you than me."
>"Nah I'll be fine too."
"I mean, if you say so."

>>40528139

>With no argument, you continued down into the shocking tunnel, finding various amounts of just random junk
>A couple of cars, a truck, a shipping container?
>You had seen some strange sights in the Zone
>But this tunnel seemed to take the cake for the most questions raised
>Like Caribou said, however, you were able to make your way along the floor fine
>No broken glass or anything to stab your feet
>Meanwhile Caribou hopped onto a car immediately upon getting to the bottom of the ramp and was clambering over what he could and jumping when he needed to to make his way through
>While you made your own way, you happened to notice something inside one of the shipping containers
>It was a mostly clear ball, looking like liquid held together by itself, with a bright light in the center
>You weren't entirely sure what it was, but hey, must be an artifact and worth some money
>Not having any real worries about the anomalies, you made your way to the back of the container, grabbed the ball, and deposited it into your right pouch
>Seeing nothing else of note, you then made your way out of the container and proceeded to the end of the tunnel, finding a waiting Caribou there
>"Took you long enough, what happened?"
"I think I found an artifact in there, figured it'd be worth some money."
>"What kind?"
>You fished out the artifact and set it on the ground
"One of these."
>"Oh, a flash. Yeah could be worth a bit, quite a few bullets for this shitty AK. A bit less for anything using NATO rounds, but hey, more than we would have otherwise had. Nice find."
>Look at that, you could actually do that thing you were literally bought for
>Had to keep the distinction of bought and paid for, since you probably wouldn't see any money from this
>But just the feeling of actually being capable of doing stuff helped out a lot
>Once the artifact was deposited you two were both on your way
>Luckily the gunshots seemed to stop while you were down there
>Hopefully whoever survived the shooting had cleared out of your way
>You both proceeded on and up ahead you could see the concrete skeleton of a building with a crane on it, likely the construction site
>As you got nearer, that coppery smell smacked your nostrils
"Well, we've definitely got more than a few people dead here..."
>"Do you hear anyone still walking around or anything?"
"No, I don't think so... A bit of chatter but I can't tell what's being said or where it is, so I guess it's pretty far away."
>"That's good enough for now, just keep those ears open and let me know if we're getting closer. If not they might be on their way to Rostok."
>Once again you two moved on, though slower this time, giving ample opportunities for you to try to pick up on anything ahead
>As you got to the base of the construction site, you found the corpses of a bunch of dead bandits
>Caribou gave a few of them a quick look over and shrugged
>"Nothing worth grabbing here."

>>40528140

>The next leg of the journey was a small labyrinth made by the buildings themselves as well as work trailers and fences
>Still, no sign of the combatants so you assumed you were in the clear
>Until you started hearing someone moaning
"Hey, there's someone wounded up ahead."
>"Is it just the wounded person?"
"I don't know, I don't hear anyone saying anything. Just a guy moaning."
>"Hmmm... Probably isn't a wounded person."
>Caribou made sure a round was chambered in the AK before moving ahead of you
>As he neared the corner of the next building, he peaked around then raised the rifle and let loose a couple of shots
>That got you wondering and so you ran up to see just who the fuck he shot
>As you neared him, though, he ducked down and held a hand back into your path
>"Wait there... Wait..."
>Then in an instant his hand was back on the rifle and firing, this time three shots
"They're not shooting back, what are you doing?!"
>"They're zombies, or close to it. They're all over Yantar and sometimes come spilling out this way."
"Really? Zombies?"
>"Yeah, there's weird shit north of Yantar that fries your brain. Basically a smaller version of the Brain Scorcher, though apparently Strelok turned the one down here off too. So nobody really knows where the zombies keep coming from."
"I'm not too sure I believe that the Zone is making zombies, Caribou."
>"Well fine then, stand here and wait for the next one to come around."
>You decided to take him up on the challenge and stood slightly out from the corner, waiting for the next one of his 'zombies' to appear
>After a couple of minutes, no such thing appears
"Well, where are they?"
>"Listen, they're zombies. They shamble around, I can't exactly just make one appear."
"Well if one doesn't show up in the next thirty seconds, we're moving again."
>"Fine by me."
>Thirty seconds soon passed and still no shambling horrors or anything appeared
"All right, let's go."
>He shrugged and stood up, moving along but keeping towards the wall with his rifle raised
>You were content in the middle of the alleyway you two were walking along, seeing no real reason to stick to the side
>That was until you came upon the first corpse
>It was wearing a military uniform
>Huh, okay. Caribou could have surprised that one which would be why he'd go down without a fight
>Continuing forward, you found the second body
>Another military uniform
"Errrr, Caribou..."
>"Starting to believe me?"
"These are soldiers, Caribou..."
>"No, they were soldiers. Then they were zombies. Now they're just corpses."
"So why aren't you looting them for ammo?"
>"They're zombies, they probably don't have any ammo and what ammo they do still have is probably covered in mud."
"Yeah sure, a likely excuse."
>From your spot in the middle of the alley, you could see around the next corner before Caribou
>Down the way you could see another tunnel, this one looking like more of an underpass than the previous tunnel

>>40528144

almost done

"Yup, no zombies this way. You ready to just confess that you killed some soldiers?"
>"Listen, if they were still soldiers, I would, because they'd have tried to kill me given the chance. But they weren't, they're fucking zombies and I guarantee you there'll be more across that tunnel."
"Yeah, wanna bet on it?"
>Caribou scoffed as he broke off from the wall and walked over to you
>"Yeah, sure, what exactly are we gonna bet?"
"Uhhhh, hmmm. Okay, if I win, we get rid of this fucking collar and just tie something around my foot!"
>"And if I win? Then what? You got anything to offer me?"
>Shit, did you?
>Wait, there's that!
"My half of what we get from the flash!"
>Caribou smirked
>"Your half?"
"Yeah, that's right. I found it, I should get at least half of the money for it."
>"Yeah, okay, fine, when we find the zombies on the other side of the tunnel, I get your half."
"And when we don't, you tie this collar around my hoof or something."
>"Mmmhmm, now let's get going, I've got some money to win."
>He seemed to be humoring you which had you a bit worried that maybe there were zombies
>Shit zombies would actually probably be the most normal effect of the Zone
>Especially compared to that tunnel you'd passed through earlier
>Still, it seemed almost comical that they'd somehow exist in the Zone
>Especially with that bullshit excuse of something melting their brains or whatever
>Getting closer to the tunnel, you were stopped by Caribou putting his foot in front of you
>"I'm not sure how a Scorcher anomaly is going to react, so we do this the old fashioned way."
>He bent down and grabbed a rock, chucking it down the right side of the tunnel
>Along its path, it somehow caused two pillars of flame to ignite out of the ground before returning to their inert state
>"You keep track of where those were?"
>To be honest you were stunned at how fucking violent the anomaly was
"Y-Yeah?"
>"Okay good, follow the general path and don't step where they came from."
"Wait, you mean I have to lead? What the fuck, you just said you weren't sure how they were going to react!"
>"Yeah, well you've got a better chance of surviving than I do. Shit, it might not even ignite with you there."
"That doesn't sound very confident, y'know."
>"You've got a better chance of being okay than I do, now git. Besides you're smaller, it'll be easier for you to slide between the pillars."
>You let out a groan before deciding to just get it over with
>Worst case scenario at least you aren't stuck living the rest of your life as a god damned pony
>You moved forward, making sure to weave around where you saw the pillars shoot out from until eventually you reached the stone
"Okay, now what?"
>Caribou squatted down and grabbed a couple more stones and chucked one, this one not setting off any flames
>"Follow that one."
>This continued for about thirty meters before finally you two were out of the tunnel
>And lo and behold, no zombies here

>>40528149

"Ha! Told ya! Now get to tying, mister!"
>Caribou merely chuckled
>"Hold your horses now, because I'm pretty sure I see some zombies right now."
"What? No way, you're lying."
>Caribou set the rifle down and grabbed you, holding you up above his head
>And down the road, there they were
>About three of 'em
>They looked like people
>But the way they shambled
>How they held their guns
>The moaning
"God fucking damnit."
>"Sorry, bub. Now if you don't mind..."
>Caribou set you back down and grabbed the AK, slowly moving forward and taking his time with each shot to drop the zombies
>While you followed after him you had to sulk
>You bet it all and you still looked like a fucking housepet
>God damnit
>At least you could see the swamp from here and would be able to take a rest
>Once Caribou cleared his path through all of the zombies that is
>Seeing how easily the zombies were dispatched, made the fact that you lost your share of the money sting that much more
>It wasn't even any sort of big revelation
>Oh well, not like you could really even spend the rubles yourself
>Shit how would you even reach the counter to talk to the barkeep yourself
>All in all there only seemed to be about ten zombies between that tunnel and the Ecologist bunker
>Caribou banged on the door and a short buzz came from the intercom
>"Who is it? It better not be more of you fucking brainless idiots."
>"No, it's me. Open up."
>"Ah, Caribou! Long time no see, what happened to your suit?"
>"We'll talk about it later, just open up."
>"Yeah yeah, just a second."
>While you waited for the door to open, you looked around behind you then up to Caribou
"This guy isn't going to be another Sokolov, is he?"
>"Nah, though he might be a bit confused by you. I don't think he even knows about you guys yet."
>As though waiting for you two to have your brief conversation, the door suddenly opened, inviting you both in
>Once inside, the door closed and a mindless drone came from the person on the other side of the comms
>"Y'know, you always show up at just the worst times. This place is a mess, I haven't had time to tidy or anything."
>The ceiling let out a hiss and just like the other bunker, a gas was pumped into the airlock with the two of you
>And just like last time you had to cover your snout to not start coughing from the smell
>Apparently Caribou wasn't used to having to actually smell it either as even he covered his mouth
>Once the decontamination process was finished, the door in front of you both opened and you both stepped in
>"Back here!" the voice called
>You both walked around the hall over to the booth and there sat a portly older fellow, only his head appearing in your gaze on the floor
>That was until he stood up, looking down at you
>"Eh? Where the hell did you pick that up?"
>Caribou cleared his throat
>"It's actually where did I pick him up, and Pripyat."
>That brought a bit of a smile to your face
"Hey there, I'm Lucky."

>>40528151

>The man looked between you and Caribou before sitting back down
>"He doesn't look too lucky, neither for him nor yourself."
>"Eh, we do what it takes to get by. Anyway, I've got those files for you and a flash."
>Caribou set his pack down and rummaged around in it before pulling out an aged manila folder and set it down on the desk
>He then grabbed the flash from your saddlebag and set it next to the folder
>You could mostly just hear the man flip through the folder, making agreeable noises, before closing the folder
>"Yup, seems to be all there. Let me get the money for you..."
>"Wait, would it be possible to just trade the files for a suit?"
>"Wha-? You mean like a Sunrise or something?"
>"Hey, they're worth more than a damned Sunrise suit. I need something like the SEVA again, or shit I'd even take a Berill if it's all you have."
>"Sorry, Caribou, but I don't really have that much good stuff anymore. Stalkers come through here all the time now trying to pick out their own fortune from the path Strelok cleared."
>Caribou dropped his hands to the desk, and you could see from his posture that it was the only thing holding him up
>"Doc, please..."
>Holy shit, he actually sounded...
>Desperate?
>"You know I hate charity, but I just need something, anything to be able to get back out there."
>"I'm sorry, Caribou, but there really isn't much I can do... Don't you still have your stash of rubles?"
>"You know I can't tap into that, especially not enough to get a new SEVA suit. I don't know how much longer I can stay here, and I need that money."
>The man seemed genuinely apologetic from his tone
>Looking between them from your lowered position, you sat down and started thinking
>They continued their back and forth but you blocked it out
>There had to be some way to help
>If only to stop seeing Caribou be a snivelling wreck
>After digging through the deepest recesses of your mind, you could only come up with one possible thing
>It was just a story told to trick rookies back when you first came to the Zone
>But then, that's what you thought about the Wish Granter
>And shit even the bloodsuckers
>Maybe
>Maybe it could work
"Caribou, have you ever heard of the Oasis?"
>They both looked down to you
>"Yeah, I've tried to find it before and it's just a legend."
"But what if it isn't?"
>They both looked at each other and back down at you
"Listen, it's risky, but I've got a plan."

another horizontal rule/time skip here

>>40528151

maybe one day i'll convert this to actual prose and put it on fimfiction. probably not.

>You are Patches
>Stalkers call you Trusty Patches, however
>It's a sarcastic nickname
>You came to the Zone for reasons you'd never tell another soul
>In the chaos of the Zone, you thrived
>You weren't sure how long it had been since you arrived
>Only that a month ago you sold a pastel equine to a repeat customer by the name of Caribou
>Life was as comfy as it got

>Squatting in your corner of the 100 Rads Bar
>If stalkers had need of your services, they always knew where to find you
>And you could feel it in your wallet that today would be a good day to be you
>Of course, your wallet didn't exactly have a throat to speak of
>A large man came into the bar, wearing a simple anorak
>He bee lined straight for you and within moments you were no longer squatting
>Instead you were lifted off the ground by his hand around your throat
>"I need another one," he barked
>Wait a second, was this...
"Caribou?!"
>"Yes, and I need a new pony."
>Even though you could feel your life being choked out of you, you had to appreciate finally getting to see his face
"What happened to your trusty SEVA suit, old bud?"
>"You know exactly what fucking happened to it you damned rat."
>You had to chuckle, as hard as it was without the use of your esophagus
"I have nooooooo idea what you could possibly mean."
>You weren't sure if it was just your own nature or the lightheadedness making you egg him on
>But his fist hitting your face was enough to wake you up
>"I'd kill you right here and now if I didn't need you, now you're going to get me another pony or the Zone is gonna lose the secret to making them."
"Okay, okay, fine, just put me down!"
>As he lowered you, you glanced around his person
>He didn't seem to be armed
>And you still had that open contract with Sultan...
"Okay I'll get you one, but I need you to come with me."
>"And why's that?"
"I'm gonna need someone to manhandle the volunteer I have in mind, besides how else are you gonna keep threatening me if you aren't there by my side?"

>>40528155

by the way this is one of the parts i'm not proud of

>His eyes narrowed as he studied your expression
>Unfortunately for him, you once had a fairly fruitful career as a poker player
>"Okay fine, we'll do it your way. But if you try to fuck me over, you're a dead man."
"Of course, of course! You of all people should know I settle my debts!"
>He didn't seem to entirely believe you but that was fine
>You just needed him to follow you

>You and Caribou set off South
>All it took was a whistle to spare the two of you from the pack of dogs you fed daily
>"Nice trick. Get 'em to like you and you can take your pick from the corpses, huh?"
"Oh, I would never do something like that! I just have a way with animals," you smirked
>"Uh huh..."
>Continuing on you entered into the Dark Valley and noticed Caribou tense up
"What's wrong, buddy? Bad experiences with bandits?"
>You couldn't help but chuckle
>"You know exactly what issues I have with this place."
"Y'know, speaking of, where's your little buddy Lucky?"
>"Dead."
>While the word itself had a finality to it, how he said it seemed like he also wanted the conversation to stop
>But that wouldn't do
"Come on, tell us more! You two seemed to get along so well together, you even survived a night in the bloodsucker village!"
>"So you heard about that?"
"Of course I did, word gets around, y'know."
>"Well, after *someone* tipped off a couple of bandits that we were at the Army Warehouses, I had to turn in what jobs I could after having all of my stuff stolen. And I found that I was lacking the funds to just buy everything again, until Lucky got me focused on trying to find the Oasis."
"Oooh, the Oasis? There hasn't been a stalker yet able to find that, I'm sure whoever found it would be rich beyond his wildest dreams!"
>Again you had to stifle a chuckle
>The Oasis was just one of many rumors made up to trick rookies into doing stupid things and getting themselves killed
>"Yeah yeah yeah, I said the same thing but I was desperate. It was the only way I saw out of the hole I was in."
"Well, I see it certainly got you up and out of the hole all right!"
>His eyes narrowed as he cast a glare at you
"Oh, sorry, sorry, please, continue with your enthralling tale."
>"Well, we set off from Yantar, making our way towards Yanov station since that's where most of the rumors claim it's around. It took a couple of days but we were able to rest up there and also consult the rumors, trying to piece together something useable. Eventually, we got something we could actually work with and made our way towards the cooling tower."

>>40528157

"Yeah yeah yeah, hold up. You're gonna wanna put the story on hold here."
>The two of you were by the sewage pipe now, and you gestured for Caribou to lead the way
>"And why exactly are we going through here?"
"It's the only way to get where we're going."
>"Through a sewage pipe? And just where exactly will this take us?"
"I don't see how that's any of your business, you told me to get you a pony and this is how we're gonna get you a pony."
>"Considering this pipe leads right into that facility there, I'm a bit doubtful this isn't some sort of trap. So again, where does it take us?"
>You weren't used to having to actually answer any questions during these little tours of yours
>It was honestly pretty annoying
"Fine, it takes us out by the river. Y'happy now?"
>"No, because crawling through shit doesn't seem appealing when we could head north and catch the river there, where you don't have any of your friends waiting."
"Listen you, if you know how to get yourself a damn pony, then you can do it alone. Otherwise, we're doing this my way."
>"Fine, but you're taking the front."
"Fine, ya big baby."
>You climbed into the pipe, mumbling about Caribou being a spoiled little princess demanding everything
>By the time you both exited on the other end, he seemed to be a bit more quiet
>"So where exactly is this volunteer of yours?"
"He's up ahead a ways, I keep 'em isolated a while so they're less likely to run off once they've changed ownership."
>"And what's keeping them from starving?"
"Hey, I head up there every day to give em a meal. By the way, you still know your way around whirligigs, right?"
>"Yeah yeah."
"Good, then let's head north."
>He reached into a pocket and pulled out a handful of bolts, deciding to idly toss them along the sides as he followed you
"So, come on, let's hear the rest of your story."
>"Hmm, which?"
"About you and Lucky, ya idiot."
>"Oh, yeah, that one..."
>His voice got a bit somber and you couldn't help but grin to yourself
>If he was gonna annoy you you might as well drag him down into the mud as well
>"So I think I left off with us heading towards the cooling tower?"
"Yeah that sounds right, so go on."
>"So on our way there we started to pick up radio chatter from a Duty patrol from some general I can't remember the name of. As we got closer, though, Lucky started to notice some strange noise and clouds hovering a bit off the ground. As we went to investigate, we were both blinded by a flash and regained our vision in the middle of some foggy forest."
"Wait wait wait, you what? You were at the cooling tower, and then were in a forest?"
>"Yeah."
"Yeah I don't fucking believe it, tell me the truth."

>>40528159

>"I swear, I haven't a clue how the fuck it happened but it did. Anyway we were both pretty startled and started looking around, but it seemed no matter how far we walked, we didn't really get anywhere. After what felt like a day but with no way to track the time, though, we ran into a Duty member, who was a jittering mess. We tried to figure out who he was or where we were, but he couldn't stop ranting on about shadows moving around in the fog."
"Shadows in the fog? Come on, Caribou, quit fucking with me."
>"I didn't see anything in the fog, but this guy seemed to believe it was there. Probably against my better judgement, Lucky and I decided that maybe sticking with the guy would eventually lead us out of there, though... Since Lucky and I were exhausted and the other guy didn't seem too dangerous, we decided to sleep in shifts and well, when I woke up from my nap, well... That's when I saw it."
"Ey? Saw what?"
>"The fuck was hiding a pistol apparently and while I was asleep he shot Lucky. He was raving on about how the Zone had brought him in order to free us from whatever hell it was that we entered. When I explained to him that we were still there, even after he killed Lucky, he claimed that we weren't and were instead back at Rostok... I had to put him out of his own insanity before he drove me to mine."
"So some crazy guy shot your pet while you were trapped in some spooky forest? And just how in the fuck did you get out of this place?"
>"I... honestly don't know. I just kept walking aimlessly, sometimes wondering if maybe I should just put myself out of my misery until eventually I found myself walking out of the woods and into the red forest. To make sure I wasn't insane I tried backtracking and found a cliffside that I definitely couldn't have walked over."
"So, that's the final tale of Lucky, eh? I guess his luck finally ran out. But hey, you're still alive! So at least there's that!"
>"Yeah yeah yeah, so how much longer do we have to go?"
"Eh, not much further, I can see the city from here."
>With Caribou's story done, it became quiet between the two of you, much more like to how you were used to
>Finally you came upon the next pipe
"Don't worry about this one, no shit here."
>"Eh," was the only reply you got out of Caribou
"What, back down in the dumps are we?"
>"I haven't really been thinking too much about that for the past week or so, so thanks for dragging it up."
"Ey, no problem, what're friends for?" you snickered
>Once through the pipe, you both emerged into the old metro tunnels that led towards the Pripyat
>In here you did as you always did and lit a couple of lanterns, handing one to Caribou
"I noticed you don't have a light, so this should help ya see a bit."
>"No flashlights?"
"Nah uh, tunnel doesn't like em for some reason, so we go back to basics."

why did i put "the Pripyat" there what the fuck

>>40528162

>"So, where exactly are we? One of those evacuation lines from back in the 60s?"
"Very good! And normally I'm the tour guide on these little expeditions."
>"Yeah... So where abouts is this volunteer?"
"Don't worry, don't worry, we're getting there."
>"We'd better."
"Of course, it's just right up ahead! Though, hold on a tick, we gotta leave the lanterns here."
>"And how the fuck are we supposed to see without them?"
"Listen, don't worry about it, the tunnel's really freaky, it'll guide you the rest of the way. You just gotta trust the tunnel."
>With that you blew both of the lanterns out and gave Caribou a blind shove to continue moving
>The tunnel would normally continue straight and slant off to the left in order to wrap around to the wheelhouse
>But by blinding people and setting up a dummy wall along the rails, you could usually coerce people to head to the right
>And as always, Caribou started to find his way to the vantage point
>"I still don't understand how the fuck we're supposed to get anywhere in this darkness."
"You should be seeing the light pretty soon and you'll see your volunteer then."
>"Uh huh..."
>He continued forward until eventually he finally caught the light of the wheelhouse and made his way towards it
>This was your favorite part, watching them savor in the sight before plummeting down
>As he neared the edge of the broken catwalk, he came to a stop and looked out
>"I don't see any sort of volunteer here."
>You started to approach him from behind, readying your tried and true kick
>But then something not in the schedule happened
>You heard a voice behind you
>Slightly higher pitched than you were used to hearing in the Zone
>"Boo," it echoed along the hallway
>You turned around and, mostly obscured by your own shadow, you could barely make out the form of a pony
>Wait a second
>Now the voice was familiar
"Lucky!?"
>As the realization escaped your lips, you felt your arm get jerked behind you
>And on you went past Caribou and down down down into the Garden
>You cried out in terror before smacking the ground
>Then you cried out in pain as you were sure your spine had broken
>Tears began to roll down your face as you tried to push yourself up only to send more jolts of pain through your entire body
"W-What the fuck?!"
>Through your tear filled gaze you were able to barely make out the form of Lucky up on the edge of the catwalk
>"No worries, friend!" he called, "I'll be right there!"
>Oh fuck
>You hadn't just fallen
>You fell into the Garden

>>40528166

>Once Lucky had disappeared you danced your eyes around
>It was the most you could do in your current state
>You'd seen this process happen too many times to count
>But you weren't sure at all what it actually felt like
>That changed as a warmth began to swell inside of your torso
>It continued to swell, up your chest and down your arms
>Up your neck to your head
>Down your legs to your feet
>This was when the freaky part started
>Your hands curled up into fists before the warmth became a burning sensation and your fingers began to melt into each other
>Each of the individual bones seemed to fuse together, causing you to cry out from the unnatural feeling
>While that happened, your feet also seemed to be going through a similar process with the same feelings
>To call it hell would be putting it lightly
>You closed your eyes to the world, wanting to block it all out
>But all that managed to do was make you focus even more on how your entire body was burning
>As you opened your eyes, your ears were filled with a sickening crunch as your jaw began to protrude
>And as your muzzle began to take form, you spotted white fur pushing its way out of your flesh
>Wanting to confirm the worst, you looked over at your arm, seeing it had shrunk and it too was covered in white fur
>After getting that metaphorical kick in the balls, you were sure you got a literal one with the next surge of pain
>Though to call it a kick in the balls would be putting it lightly, it felt more like they were being stomped on by a psuedogiant
>You were positive you could feel them getting pushed inside by some unknown force, along with your dick
>You'd seen this a couple of times with your victims
>Which meant you were going to end up being a chick
>You weren't sure what was worse, being tricked into your own trap, or having to spend the rest of your life as a fucking bitch
>Soon the burning began to subside and you were left panting on the ground
>A lesser man would probably still be crying from that pain
>But you were a seasoned veteran of pain
>It took you a minute to roll your way over onto your side but when you finally did, your mane fell into your face
>It looked like it was chestnut brown
>You didn't even want to bother checking what weird symbol the Zone had branded you with
>You just wanted to try to get out of here before those two made their way down
>As you shakily stood up on your new appendages, you looked forward and saw...
"Eggheads?"
>Four men in orange hazmat suits stood there
>They were quickly joined by Caribou and Lucky approaching from the left
>"God, you stink Caribou."
>"Yeah, you guys are lucky you got those suits. Anyway, my money?"
>"Head to Yantar and you'll get your money and your escort."
>"Great, anyway, catch ya later, Patches. Thanks for the trip."
>"Yeah, have a good one Patches."
>The two started off while the eggheads came over towards you
>For once in your life, you were actually speechless


final horizontal rule/time skip

File: 1350515__safe_artist-colo(...).png (852 KB, 1442x966)

852 KB PNG

>>40528168

>You are Lucky
>It's been several months since you were turned into a pony against your will
>Today, you find yourself resting on a carpet, staring at the fireplace in front of you
>Part of your deal with the ecologists was that if they found a way to turn you back into a human, they would
>You were starting to lose hope on that front
>Still, living here in America wasn't too bad
>Apparently Caribou's daughter was sick which was why he went to the Zone
>With the money he got for showing the ecologists just how the ponies were made, he was able to afford the medical bills
>Last month she finally came home from the hospital
>Which meant for the past month you'd basically become the family pet
>It didn't help that she didn't speak Ukrainian
>Speak of the devil, here she was
>Talking in her weird devil speak as she pat your head
>You had to sigh
"Why can't you just play outside like a normal kid?"
>Caribou cleared his throat from the couch and pointed towards the window
>It was fucking raining again
"Why is it always raining here?!"
>That scared the girl
>"That's Oregon for ya. By the way, apologize, it's not her fault you never bothered to learn English."
"It's not my fault she never bothered to learn Russian," you muttered before using their devil speak to say "Sorry."
>She came back and gave you a hug, saying more words you couldn't understand
>Despite sighing, it felt nice to be hugged
>"She's seven, stop complaining."
"Well when's your wife taking her back?"
>"Ex-wife, and next week, you know how it is."
"Yeah yeah yeah..."
>She was still hugging you
"Ugh, does she want to play fetch again or something?"
>"God you’re bitchy, here."
>Caribou went off on his English and the girl made an upset noise before heading off
>"There, go back to your nap."
>You rolled your eyes
"Thanks, Caribou."
>"No problem, Lucky."
>He went back to watching the television while you went back to daydreaming
>Life might not have been perfect, but it was still pretty good

the fucking end. thanks for sticking around, or y'know just reading this at a more reasonable time than four in the fucking morning.

(given 'current' events since 2018, speaking "Russian" has been corrected to the true, based, "Ukrainian.")

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>>40528173

FUCK IT COMES UP AGAIN

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>>40528799

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>>40528804

>>40525247
Make me!

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>>40527959
>>40527717
>Alicorns are turly cosmic beings, absolute goddesses. They are born amongst the stars as small filly-like creatures and immediately begin looking for a planet with intelligent life as this is needed to mature into an adult.
>Once she's landed on such a planet it's almost garunteed to become completely ponified. The alicorn filly will begin remaking everything in her own image (IE ponies) starting with the dominant intelligent species.
>This is invariably a step towards divinity for the species being ponified and few resist the change for long as it marks the dawn of a new era of unprecidented peace and prosperity as the alicorn slowly takes over as their goddess and perminant ruler.
>Once a civilization of ponies has placed itself under her she will begin to remake nature and the planeet itself in her image as well. Together with her little ponies, she will take control of everything from the sun to the weather, plants and animals.
>She will not become one with the planet, but the planet and all its inhabitants will become one with her.
>At this point, she has reached full maturity and can have a daughter of her own, a new alicorn whom she will send out into the cosmos to do the same to yet another planet.

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Title is Nemetona.

>Outside your window, snowflakes glittered down to the earth in an overwhelming silence.
>The forest outside your house was a perfect sheet of alabaster, stabbed through with voluminous green columns of black spruce and illuminated by the full moon that had caught your attention moments ago, as it broke through the clouds.
>Even as you stared, the snowfall began to wane, and the dim grey ceiling of cloud retreated.
>The moon beamed down, and its rays struck the shimmering ice glazed woods below.
>A smile crept over your face, and you felt that kind of comfort that you only get in the intermittence of reading a fantastic book.
>To read, stop, appreciate, then seamlessly begin to read again, and feel as if you never stopped reading.
>You swept your hair out of your eyes and scanned the room for a moment, checking that the fire didn’t need feeding.
>Then you shifted your posture a bit, while remaining comfortably sheltered under your wool throw and your fleece blanket.
>With your free hand, you grabbed your mug of Irish breakfast tea, and took a sip, before flipping to the next page.
>It was an excellent hardcover copy of Le Morte d’Arthur, with a nice weight and size to it that let you splay it easily upon the teak wood coffee table.
>The Questing Beast was passing by Sir Lamerok and Sir Tristram, before Sir Palomides, who’s quest it was to pursue the beast, threw them both from their horses and carried on pursuing.
>You laughed a little at the abruptness with which the knights were overthrown, and pondered the beast’s bizarre physique.
“Head of a serpent, body of a leopard, buttocks of a lion and feet of hart... With a belly that yaps like 20 hounds as it moves...”
>It made you think of what you’d seen on the news earlier, all those people transfigured irreversibly into bizarrely truncated horses by that mass tainting of Tylenol bottles.

>>40529124
>Some had even become “Changelings”, insect-like beasts that could transform further, and at will.
>The story was all like some fairy tale, even though it was true.
>It was like some wicked witch, or a mischievous sprite had been let loose to cast spells and sow confusion.
“...Ah.”
>Your thoughts had strayed a bit too far from your book, maybe it was time to take a short break.
>That was your last sip of tea anyway.
>You pushed your blankets off, and set them aside before getting up.
>The wood flooring was pleasantly toasty on the soles of your bare feet, as you walked over to the fireplace to toss a log in.
>Walking around the counter, and into the kitchen space now, you yawned and stretched your arms high above your head.
>For a moment you caught your reflection in the frosted up window across from the dinner table to your right.
>Your hair was a bit everywhere, black strands floating thither and hither from all the static the fleece had made.
>And your nightwear wasn’t really draping over your slight figure the way it should.
>You wrinkled your nose in passing frustration, and flattened out all the creases, so that the white nighty hung just right.
>While you worked on making your hair behave too, you made your way over to the kettle.
>Your speaker system booted automatically, and started up the playlist you’d set just for nights like this.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=URTaXcsUk3k
>First came the kettle, water in, flicked on...
>Dishes away...
>Spices back to the cupboards...
>As you were putting the cinnamon back in its place, you spied your vitamins and remembered you’d neglected to have your magnesium earlier.
>With how much vitamin D you were taking, that just wouldn’t do, so you grabbed the bottle and popped out a tablet.
>It was a simple, little white circle, with a crescent shape pressed into the face of it.

>>40529128
>Now you set the magnesium aside, to take with your peppermint tea, and set to work cleaning the rest of the kitchen up.
>Eventually the kettle was whistling away, just waiting for you to pour.
>It was half past 8 as you dropped another teabag in and topped up your mug.
>You had always been particular about that 7 minutes steeping time.
>The speakers were going to switch off soon after you left the kitchen, but the music had hooked you, so-
“Time set: 7 minutes.”
>You ordered the system.
>May as well ride out the rest of the song, and steep your tea just right.
>Humming along to the tune, you picked up your mug and your pill and returned to the comfort of your sofa.
>Your toes had started to cool so it was with a particular relish that you got back under your blankets.
>Just as you started to read again though, your phone buzzed and nearly vibrated off the coffee table.
>”Chad --- Calling...”
>...As much as you liked the guy, you weren’t really in the mood to hear whatever demented sounding, but probably true, take he had on this Pon-E business.
>With a sigh, you hung up the call, and shot him a quick text.
>’Reading. Text me now or call me in an hour, thanks. -Aisling’
>Now, it was back to the adventures of Sir Tristan.
>You caught your flow almost right away, and followed along with the brave knight’s travels at a cantering pace.
>Seven minutes later, the music stopped, and you didn’t waste any time swallowing your magnesium tablet with that first sip of tea.
>The fragrance of the peppermint was as delicate to your palate as it was calming to your nerves, an impressive feat, considering how calm you were already.
>You smiled at your own, kind of lame, joke, and set down your mug.
“Hmm...”

>>40529132
>Chad was blowing up your phone with texts, which wasn’t really unlike him at all.
>He was like a dog with a bone, whenever there was a news story developing.
“’PONY... PON-E... Masons... No pills... Globalist plot... 2050... South Pacific infinite oil... Mr Beast supplements...”
>You only glanced at the messages really, not taking in the full contents.
>Really, you just wanted to get back to your book.
“Whatever, I’ll check it after this chapter.”
>With a touch of regret for not responding to your friend when he was trying to reach you so desperately, even though it was for a cause that would likely never affect either of you, you set your phone on mute and put it back.
>Just as you started to flip to the next page however, a sudden twinge in your nerves made you recoil.
>You frowned and stared at your suddenly rebellious right hand.
>Even now it shook and underwent an additional spasm, sending a strange shock up your arm.
>With a rising panic, you realized your whole body was beginning to feel the same way, dulled in the extremities, yet electrified along the main nerveways up to your spine.
>Your hair stood on end, you breathed deep.
>And quelled your panic.
>And thought.
>Black fur was sprouting up and away from your wrist in a crooked lightning zigzag, as fast as crows flew up and away from cars.
>Chad must have wanted to tell you that it wasn’t just Tylenol bottles that were tainted with Pon-E.
>Your toes were stuck together, you couldn’t pull them apart at all.
>Pon-E took effect quickly, and came prepared in single doses of 500 mg, it was practically tasteless.
>You could feel two sensitive bits of flesh were pushing up past your hair, as your ears sunk into the sides of your already furry black head.
>Your magnesium tablets were 500 mg, and didn’t come with crescent shapes pressed in them.
>You sighed and fondled your hair-
“Mane.”

>>40529134
>...watching it turn a dim argent hue, you could feel strange crackles like pinpricks, all the way down the nape of your neck as more of your mane grew.
>Maybe it was just like you, to fall so easily into this, even with all the warnings in the world.
>A wholly new part of you at the base of your spine was wrenching its way out, making you sit up to avoid it getting squeezed.
“It takes two tablets, so this isn’t permanent.”
>You managed to utter, before your jaw painfully jutted forth along with the rest of your face.
>With a morbid kind of fascination, you shoved your blankets away, pulled your nighty up and ran your hands along your core, feeling it push out into that unmistakable barrel shape.
>The fur had started up your legs maybe 10 seconds ago, and it seemed to be toning your flesh as it went, it was hard to see past your snout though.
>You’d barely noticed that your feet were already silvery hooves, and your ankles already fetlocks.
>Your hands worked down your hips, grasping their new width, and rested a moment on your new ebon thighs.
>They really were rippling with muscle, it was like, just by touching them, you understood the muscle memories every horse is imprinted with.
>Bucking, galloping and cantering seemed like wholly different words now.
“Oh, a tail.”
>You picked it up in your hand and let the fine silver strands fall back against your buttocks.
>But now it seemed, that was to be the end of your explorations.
>You lost all sense in your fingers, and then they in turn lost all their shape, melting into a whole mass of keratin, before hardening into dense hooves.
>Your lower body gave way with a great jerk, forcing you to all fours lest you smash your head.
>Gruesome sounds began to worm their way out of you, and you couldn’t help but start to breathe heavier.

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>>40529138
>Must have been your lungs getting bigger.
>Your legs shrunk down like two taught elastics being let go, bringing your back down and parallel to the floor.
>This was really a strange sort of feeling now, like your butt was just too high, a sort of permanent yoga pose.
>Your insides squirmed so queerly, organs shifting to their new positions.
“Aaaahn... Ah! Ahhh...”
>The range of your voice had shifted too, you’d gone down, from your angelic soprano to a melancholic contralto.
>A few more fleshy noises...
“Done?”
>Just as you lifted one hoof, you were struck by lightning.
>You blinked, wondered where you were, then you were struck again.
>It was all you could muster to see the brilliant flash of turquoise, instantly burning off into a glaring white like aluminum burning confusions mustered instantly rising droning telling knowing overthrowing.
“Huh?”
>Another strike, and this time you smelled burning, knew burning, was fire, knew fire, knew beasts, knew floating, knew-
>You couldn’t really breathe, you were struck so dumb, or maybe smart?
>Ideas swept through your mind, as fast as that flash of light maybe a millisecond ago, yet you grasped each one completely.
>It was like walking through a library, and literally picking every book off the shelves to read, one at a time, or more like reliving a past memory of doing that.
>You clung to that idea, to rationalize what was happening in your head.
>The memory seemed to slow at parts, and you grasped more then, things like the principles of gravity, electro-magnetics and water were paid special attention.
>Gradually the slowed parts became less and less frequent, and you found yourself just speeding by vast conceptual matrices of thoughts and ideas that frankly you were more interested in than some lame understanding of gravity.

I'll try to keep this a weekly thing.
Hopefully someone can enjoy.

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>>40528173
>Reposts old story, presumably only in an effort to farm (You)s
I'd say this is annoying in most cases, but for once you actually have a chance to do right by it. Please, please continue the pet portion of this story, I've always HATED how short it was.

>>40525767
That's actually a really good idea.

>>40529252
Mainly did it because pastebin removed it and I couldn't get to sleep but that could be a fun idea. Maybe Lucky trying to learn English, explore a bit more about Caribou's life. I'll try planning some stuff out and do that.

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>>40529409
Thanks Anon, you're alright <3