And we start at breakfast the next morning where Velvet finally addresses something that some people might of noticed and others simply not even noticed as being an issue till now. With Li'lpip being on of those that hadn't even thought about it. The fact that meat seems to be a staple of the Wasteland diet. Li'lpip hadn't even thought twice about it, simply seeing it was what other ponies ate, and assuming it was perfectly normal, they simply only ate apples and maybe a few other plants in the Stable because that was all they had. With Calamity siding with Li'lpip that ponies can eat meat, it's a bit hard to digest, but better then nothing.
Really like that they addressed it, especially since Li'lpip didn't even think twice about it the first time she found some cooked meat, and probably a lot of readers just ignored it or didn't notice, so calling attention to it was nice, even better to wait a bit, possibly hit some readers with the fact as well after they just shrug it off and not think about it, especially given what happens later.
She then heads off to talk to Gawd, who keeps her word and offers them an escort out of the area before the fighting begins with the Salver army, but Li'lpip hesitates, unsure what to do, on the one hoof, this really was none of her business, and if she stuck around she'd stand a good chance of getting shot at, likely fatally, and she admits the sane option would be to leave. But on the other hoof, she really has no definite goal yet, nothing pressing, and her only real objective she had in mind was confronting Redeye and ending his slave trade, and right here was some of his slavers about to trap and enslave more innocent ponies. So she decides to stay
I really like this, she works out the options, considers them logically the pro's and the con's but in the end, she simply cannot walk away, there are innocent ponies at the mercy of slavers, and she will not just abandon them if there is anything she can do.
And Gawd immediately knows how she can help, kill Deadeyes. While Gawd is more then willing to do it herself, having Li'lpip do it could help avoid a bit of political issues with the various factions in the region, making it easier for her to take charge and rally to defeat the impending slavers.
And to her credit, she doesn't jump at the chance. Despite her feelings last night, she is not a murderer, that was the anger talking, the rage, which has cooled down, she's simply not sure how she'd feel about going out to kill another pony directly, not in self defense, but knowingly setting out to kill him. And even wonders about if she's Jumping Off the Slippery Slope.
Trying to buy some time to think, she asks about payment, not because she was really interested, or even wanted anything, but just to try and delay Gawd, and because she figures it was what Gawd would expect her to ask. And the answer, is Deadeyes has a key to a room under the prison, kill him, and whatever is in the room is hers. but as she says
But then, if I killed Deadeyes, it wasn’t going to be for the reward anyway.
If she does it would be because killing him is the best course of action, the "right", in her mind at least, thing to do, to spare many many many more ponies the fate of Silver Bell, and keep the innocent ponies at Shattered Hoof from being enslaved.
Velvet is utterly horrified that Li'lpip would even consider this, and surprisingly, even Calamity thinks it's wrong. Right up until he first reminds them just what Silver Bell went through, and then lets them know that it was Deadeyes that was responsible. Calamity instantly switches to side with Li'lpip, though Velvet is still against it.
"Ain’t murder no more,” Calamity stated without reservation. “It’s justice.”
Velvet shook her mane. “Revenge, you mean.”
“Nope. Ah mean justice. Pure ‘n’ simple.” Calamity nodded to me. “Ah’m in.”
And that line is important, cause that IS what this is, justice, they ONLY justice there is in the Wastelands. this is not revenge, this not bloodthirstiness, this is simply justice, and preventing others from having to go though the same fate. And Li'lpip even addresses "why not just kill them all then?"
“Actually, not everypony here is bad.” I was thinking of the rock-breaker I had talked with while he escorted me out. “I think… I believe this place could be turned around. Maybe become a trading town instead of a raider fortress.” Even as the words came out, I knew they were stupidly idealistic. But I pressed on. “I’m thinking: kill Deadeyes. Find Mister Topaz and deal with him — amiably if possible, lethally if not. And leave Gawd in charge.”
That right there, yes she's willing to take out Deadeyes, both for what he's done and what he WILL do if not stopped, but it isn't about revenge, it is about giving the good ponies in that place a chance, let them be free of the raiders in charge. And she even straight out says she'd rather deal with Mister Topaz peacefully, but she will get physical if needed. She's not doing this for money, or revenge, or enjoyment, she is doing this because to her, it is the best option, the one that saves ponies from slavers, gives them a chance to build a real community, safe, and without having to pray on others to do so.
She heads back into the prison, just waltzing in since Deadeyes did ask her to come back the next day for another mission. but instead of going right to him, she pokes around a bit, finding the door to the mines where she's sure Mister Topaz is, and while trying to find a way to open it, finds the armory (devoid of weapons this time) and on the wall an old news clipping. We find out just what happened to Big Macintosh, that at Shattered Hoof Ridge, the Zebra's tried to assassinate Princess Celestia, and he lept in front of them, taking the bullet for her, instantly becoming a national hero and martyr. And, as sad as it is to know he died in battle, he died a hero, and I can't help but see him there, seeing the Zebra assassin lining up their shot, uttering one last "Nope!" before leaping in the path of the bullet. Dying Moment of Awesome indeed.
While looting some ammo she found locked in a safe, she overhears two ponies talking, and it seems that the impending slaver attack Deadeyes was planning to aid, was a trap for the slavers, the path they were supposed to be safely attacking from (at least as far as the two talking knew) having been heavily mined. Li'lpip figures that this is all a trap for Gawd as well, get her to act against Deadeyes, thinking he betrayed their boss, while he was actually working FOR him thus breaking the contract and giving Deadeyes reason to attack her and her company.
He checks in with Deadeyes, seeing what his task was, knowing he knows she works for Gawd, but knowing that he doesn't know she knows he knows. And that task, kill Gawd. Li'lpip feigns ignorance on who it is, buying sometime to come up with a plan, and finally finds one. making a show of having to give him an alibi for this, he talks him into the plan
Velvet will put on a show, (turns out Deadeyes is a massive fan of Sweetie Belle), and during the performance, Lil'pip will be in the balcony with a sniper rifle, firing two shots, on into Gawd's head, one a near miss on Deadeyes, making it look like they were both targets, and letting him blame the attack on a raider assassin. She then goes back to Gawd, telling her the same plan, only reversing who ends up dead.
And Velvet, actually has no issues with this. I still don't think she likes the idea, but knowing Deadeyes was responsible for Silver Bell, probably keeps her from getting to against the idea, plus the idea of putting on a show is just to much. As much as she likes being a medic and helping ponies, singing and performing for others is still her special talent.
We also get a rather funny misunderstanding,
“Every eye! I’ll need a bath! Oh no, what am I going to wear!?”
“I can help with that.”
Velvet cocked her head. “No thank you. I can bathe myself quite well enough, dear.”
I stammered, flushing hotly. That wasn’t what I meant, but now that she had said it, I couldn’t drive the image out of my mind. My heart fluttered in my chest.
yes she still has a crush on Velvet, though the "help" she was referring to was the dress she had found the first night out of the stables that she was to small to wear.
Though, turns out as much as Deadeyes really wanted to see a show by Sweetie Belle's descendant, he wasn't totally stupid and realized it might be a trick, leaving a note for Li'lpip that the stage was rigged to explode should she shoot any thing except his table and Gawd's head. Which gives Li'lpip a pause, but she quickly works out a solution. Though once Velvet starts up a really energetic song, dancing on stage and setting so heavily she shakes the whole thing, Li'lpip has to shoot sooner the expected, simply out of concern she might set off the explosives on her own. using SATS she sends a bullet into Gawd's cup, shooting it out of her talons, and then into Deadeyes' brain, while using her TK to throw Velvet to safety before the bomb can go off.
And while running, she finds out that things just got worse. The Slavers were attacking early, before the trap was set for them, and while nearly all the defenders were distracted and in one place. She finds Velvet, perfectly fine, and only a little (playfully) miffed at not being allowed to finish her song first, soon joined by Calamity, who shows us what a TRUE Kleptomaniac Hero is. first having stopped to get the key from Deadeyes' corpse, even though the reward wasn't the reason they did this and then giving us this gem.
“Dependin’ on who wins out there, Ah’m already makin’ plans t’ swoop back in an’ loot the bodies.”
Which gets a sigh and an eye roll from both of them
Getting into the previously sealed off mine entrance they find a small stockpile of Ministry stuff, giving us the name for another one, Ministry of Arcane Sciences, or Ministry of magic (three guesses which mane 6 headed that one.) and the initials for another MWT. And then they meet Mister Topaz.....who turns out to be a dragon........Oh, Crap! ensues.
Though luckily not a full grown one, though plenty big enough for them to immediately engage in Plan B, trying to evade him in the mine. Eventually getting back out the way they came, getting Mister Topaz hit by a few gun turrets that Li'lpip had hacked on the way in and losing him, though also losing track of Calamity. And Li'lpip getting hit by the trailing edge of a fire burst, getting some pretty bad burns.
While hiding from the dragon, Li'lpip puts together a few clues she'd seen around the base, and realizes where Mister Topaz was going to emerge from the mines outside, just in place to roast all the ponies outside. She tries to rush off, but Velvet makes her wait till she's tended her burns as best she can, including a shot of painkiller. And, at Li'lpip's insistence, a dose of buck, the FOE version of Buffout. (A kind of temporary, instant steroid that increases strength and endurance.) And the general attitude, makes it clear this wasn't an addiction thing, this was a desperation, give her any edge she can when going back to face a dragon issue.
While trying to reach the secret vault of Deadeyes', in the event it had weapons in it, Li'lpip runs into another pony, who attacks with a magic energy lance, with such surprise and in such close quarters Li'lpip doesn't have time to get a weapon to bear, taking a painful though superficial cut to her neck, before charging and impaling the other pony with her horn, mortally wounding her. As she watches the other pony slowly dying from the wound, begging not to die, she cringes, and briefly consideres finishing her off quicker, if only to ease her suffering, but.
I just couldn’t do that. No matter what I was allowing the wasteland to make me, I hadn’t changed that much yet.
Instead she makes her as comfortable as she could before moving on. Now in this situation, everyone is different, is it better to simply help a mortally wounded person die faster to spare them, or not. Really there is no right answer, but again, Li'lpip cannot and will not kill a totally helpless pony, unless there was no other choice, at all, and it needed to be done, as with sniping Deadeyes. Again the "right" thing to do in a situation like that, is up to each person and pony individually. But for Li'lpip it reinforces that, there are lines the Wastes will not make her cross, limits she will not willingly break.
Getting to the vault, she manages to open it without the key Calamity still had, cause, well as she said to Velvet
“When have I ever needed a key to get past a lock?”
but, turns out she did need on not to trigger an alarm, the bring mister Topaz right to her, and to her dismay, there were no weapons in the vault, just stacks and stacks of memory orbs. luckily, Mister Topaz is your standard villain, and so begins to gloat and monologue while he has her trapped, he had planned all if this, building up Shatteredhoof, getting in a large amount of mercenaries, and even getting a small army of slavers, all here at once so her could have a nice large meal before settling down to a century or so nap. As evil plans go, that one is both ridiculous, practical, sick, and just weird enough to be interesting. But he is at least partially Genre Savvy, despite the gloating, since when asking Li'lpip what she hopped to find in the vault
“Or was it weapons? Did you hope to find a magical shotgun of dragon slaying, perhaps? Because there would ever be any dragon suicidal enough to keep something like that around the house.”
And during the gloating, he reveals what the memory orbs were, confessions, any pony accused of crimes serious enough to sent to the prison would have their memories examined and recorded to prove their guilt, and from the way the dragon describes it, even the innocent ended up getting messed up by the process sometimes. He gloats about how ponies willing to do that to each other, and what the ones above were doing to each other right now, were proof they didn't deserve anything except being dragon food. Taunting Li'lpip with it. her only response, forced out as his breath was quickly turning the room into a hot box even without breathing fire
“N-not all… of us… are bad. Some… of us… are good.”
That pretty much sums up how li'lpip views her kind. Yes there are ponies that are evil, who have given into rage, greed, hatred, anger, pain, loneliness, despair, and just stopped being good, who take it out on others or are just plain evil. but there are still those who are good, who remember what being a pony means and still uphold it, and those are worth fighting for, no matter what.
Mister Topaz just mocks her some more as she comes close to passing out from the heat when she's saved by Calamity, blasting the dragon hard enough to knock him away with a massive magical energy canon that had been mounted as a turret back at Gawd's camp, now awkwardly rigged to his battle saddle. though it doesn't kill the dragon it gives them time to run. Though Li'lpip was to wounded to run, so Calamity ditches the canon and picks her up, flying them both out, the wounded, and VERY pissed off dragon right behind them.
They fly out of the mine, Mister Topaz right on their tails, about to eat them, when Li'lpip pulls out every grenade she has left, arming all of them and sending them into his mouth. realizing as she does so that it was a VERY long shot, a creature that big, that could eat gems and breath fire, odds are a grenade or two wouldn't do much. And she's partially right, but the blasts Calamity had given him with the canon wounded him enough the grenades were able to finish him off.
Calamity sets her down outside the prison before going back for Velvet, while Li'lpip passes out from exhaustion.
Perk-Increased head shot accuracy in SATS, again any SATS boost is a great perk for her.
Thoughts. in a word AWESOME!. this chapter was just amazing, and is where the story really started taking off for me the first time. Before, it was good, but this was where it hit's it stride. real dilemmas for Li'lpip that are addressed, our first real major villain, some world building and more info on the past, and the best action sequences so far, including an absolutely EPIC way to kill a dragon. Overall, this is the first major turning point of the fic, it's first major climactic fight. (the Alicorn in New Appleloosa is the only thing close and that wasn't really much of a fight, epic but not in the same way.) And again, this is where the story begins to take off, and it is a great way to close out the first act and set the stage for the rest of the story.
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