Oh boy, another "The X of the Y" chapter, strap in, this might take awhile. in fact, this is so big, and there is so much to discuss and talk about I'll be making this chapter's review a two parter. Keep the size at least partially manageable.
And it opens with Li'lpip learning that there are no magic answers, that despite her hopes that meeting DJ-PON-3 would answer all her questions, give her some direction, Homage doesn't have any for her.
They do talk about Li'lpip, and what she's done, as she gets obviously embarrassed over what DJ had been saying, thinking she doesn't deserve it, to which Homage replies.
"You might not think of the things you do as anything special, but they are. Simply by treating the way you risk yourself to help others as something anypony would do, you show the wasteland a way to be better."
This pretty much sums up, entirely, the effect Li'lpip has on the denizens of the wastes. As Homage goes on to say, this IS the way ponies should act, though precious few do. And it's not that they are evil, or nasty, or even really being to selfish. The Wasteland often rewards altruism and help, with death and pain. As Li'lpip found out her very first night in it. It's simply a matter of survival, which everypony simply accepts as the truth, no matter how wrong it is. While Li'lpip does NOT accept it, will not simply stop helping ponies out of fear for herself. And in doing so, despite it not being what she's trying to do, gives the ponies of the wastes an example, showing them that it doesn't have to be this way, that they CAN make things better. Yes it would be a risk, but a risk well worth taking. Proving to the Wastelanders that ponies ARE still good at heart, (for the most part), and that the world still has enough good in it to be worth trying to save.
They move on to Monterrey, Homage explaining why the laws are so strict, to deter not just the ponies of Tenpony from engaging in banditry and raider-like behavior, but to send a clear message to the raiders and slavers out there that they will not be tolerated, and as much as Li'lpip dislikes it, she admits that it does make sense, though she's still flustered by why he admitted to it in the first place, knowing the punishment.
Homage takes her on a tour of her home, leading into Twilight Sparkles Athenaeum, which, like nearly every living space Twi has ever owned or lived in no doubt, is filled with books. And homage shows her a recording from Rarity to Twi, letting us know that Rarity's Ministry was apparently the propaganda arm of the Equestrian government, purging libraries of "ideologically incompatible books" though while it seems the intent was to destroy them, Rarity pulled some strings and instead sent them to Twi to be preserved safely.
I'm, really not sure how to feel about this. On the one hoof the fact that Rarity knew how wrong it was, and made sure to save the books is good, showing that the Mane 6 haven't gone off the deep end, but the fact that Equestria was censoring itself so harshly in the first place, it just leaves a bad taste in my mouth, and while most of what went on in the war I can understand, that seems like going to far. Though it does fit into the other mistakes made, and harsh reactions. I'm just curious that if Rarity's Ministry was in charge of deciding what is and isn't right, and she hated the idea of destroying the books, why do it in the first place? The only pony above her in rank was Luna, and I really have a hard time seeing her ordering this over the mane 6's objections.
Before leaving to let Homage get back to work, Li'lpip gives her the records she found in Vinyls room in the Stable, much to Homage's delight. Though Li'lpip's good mood is dashed when she gets back to their rooms and overhears Velvet and Calamity talking about getting her in to see a doctor that claims to be able to help treat addiction, which pisses her off, both the fact they were talking about this behind her back, and fact that they thought she had a problem when she very clearly didn't. It had been a whole two days since she'd taken a PTM, that had to prove it. Though it's clear, if not to her, that her friends are doing this out of worry, even trying to figure out to bring this up to Li'lpip, worried over losing her if they do this wrong.
Yet another amazing facet of the addiction subplot, her friends know she has a problem, and she won't admit it, but also know pressing the issue will do more harm then good, and are struggling to find some way to help her without alienating her.
She goes back to Homage, looking through her library while she worked, then listen to the new songs, getting a feel for them before putting them on air. While there they talk about a rather odd painting of a desolate valley, which we learn was called "Splendid Valley" and why Twi would put a picture of it up is beyond Homage, only that there was a MAS base there, that was apparently a dumping ground for magical wastes from MAS experiments, and that something was being done there near the end of the war, something important enough that it was the the second target to be taken out by megaspell missals.
She listens in on a DJ broadcast, mostly giving some solid exposition about radiation and taint, in the guise of making sure all the ponies out there knew. Giving the reader our first real idea of what "taint" is, something had been mentioned before but not expanded upon. Though it's really very little, only that it is dangerous, can't be stopped by suits, can't be detected, and seemed to be rather mutagenic.
She ends the broadcast by telling the Wastelands that the legendary Stable Dweller loves them all, and has sent a toaster repairpony to her with a package, new music for the wastes to enjoy. This makes Li'lpip cringe, still not comfortable with being treated like a hero, and confronting Homage about her saying she simply tells the truth like she sees it, while having a secret identity, and she simply replies that, if the ponies in Tenpony knew exactly who she was (already not happy about her not hating ghouls) it might effect her ability to tell the more important truths.
“Sometimes,” she said, “being honest means knowing when not to be
Before leaving, Li'lpip asks Homage about hat she meant by needing her help earlier, but Homage says to forget about it, it's stupid now, and only after Li'lpip forces her to does she say that she had wanted Li'lpip to bring her some new music, which she already did. Though she had meant a specific place she had heard had some unreleased recording from Sweetie Belle. The main office of Red Racer, a company founded by Scootaloo in Manehatten, but the area was to heavily infested with manticores for anypony to get to it. And Li'lpip instantly agrees to so it, despite Homage telling her she doesn't have to. Both because she wants to help homage, to make her happy, and also out of hopes that it would distract the other two from their plans regarding her addiction. And Homage promises her a reward for it, needing to give her something. The part Calamity needed to fix up that sky carriage they had found. And Li'lpip can hardly contain her bounding enthusiasm at the thought of Calamity and vehicular transport. (yes that was sarcastic)
Before going back to her friends, she decides she needs to talk to Monterrey, to understand why he did it. And proving she may be able to go two days without a Mint-al, but not three, she downs one to talk her way past the guard-ponies. And Monterrey gives he a lecture on how much life in the wastes sucks, the things that ponies do just to survive, killing, robbing, simply turning a blind eye to the troubles of others. Slowly sacrificing more and more of who they are, of their essential...ponanity? equinity? what ever the ponified version of humanity is...and the only was to keep something of yourself, to not become totally lost is to find a virtue, something that is yours, something that you will not sacrifice, no mater what. And his virtue was honesty, he was an honest pony, never lied, never cheated a costumer, and that knowing he had tried to rob the hero of the wastes, a pony many, including his kids idolized, was eating at him, not saying anything,
but a lie of omission is still a lie
Okay this part, this, is out first real, major illustration of virtues, and also gives us a very good view of Li'lpip and why she is so important to the Wastes. because she WON'T compromise like the rest, yes she will accept somethings as being necessity, but others, no. She will not ignore the suffering of others, will not turn a blind eye, will not kill an innocent pony, or rob them, or hurt them, or even just let them suffer if she can do anything to help. No matter how much it might cost her. She doesn't simply hold on to one single "virtue" and say the rest doesn't matter. She tries to be as good a pony as she can be. And yes Velvet is often proven wrong about acting just like that, but the difference is in degree, Velvet has trouble making her ideals conform to reality, she doesn't want to hurt anypony, at all, see any pony suffering, but she doesn't accept that there ARE ponies out there that simply cannot be reasoned with, that will go on hurting, killing raping, murdering, till they are stopped. Li'lpip, really does have the same ideals as Velvet, just not to the same degree, and is able to be practical enough to know when something that may against their ideals (like killing a pony) is required to save the lives of even more ponies.
The difference between the similar ideals of Li'lpip and Velvet can be seen in the differences between Homage and Monterrey. Monterrey deals in absolutes, this is right this is wrong, looking at the decisions in and of themselves, not really looking at the bigger picture. While Homage, while believing in the same thing, sees that sometimes you do have to make small little compromises, a tiny thing that is against your ideal, in order to have a much bigger impact in upholding that same ideal later.
Diverting into Word of Kkat for a moment, there are two things a pony needs to really and truly survive in the Wastes, a virtue, and friends. And right here we see why. Monterrey was right about needing something solid, something that you simply will not let the wasteland corrupt, something that is you, and you will not sacrifice. But he takes it to extremes. There is solid, then there is inflexible. Something that is two rigid will simply shatter if hit to hard or two much. You need to keep SOME flexibility, not to much but some. And friends are what would allow that, without losing yourself. Ones who will help you, pull you back if you start to bend to much, be there for you, help you see when you need to bend, to give you another perspective, and to give you somepony else to turn to. Without her friends, Velvet would either be dead, or still helping the slavers, being so caught in the momentary need not to turn away from her virtue, that she blinds herself to the harm she is doing in the long run by helping the slavers operate better, till finally she can't ignore it and it breaks her. Her friends helped to show her what she missed, supported her as she tried to adjust, and gave her another safety net, something else she could turn to for support, without truly compromising who she was at the core.
Still high on the PTM she talks her friends into their quest, Velvet putting up a small half-heated struggle when Li'lpip mentioned doing this would impress DJ and help her get her songs recorded and on air, mentioning she's a medical pony, not a singer, though Singing remain her real talent so it's not really that big a fight. while Calamity is in it for the reward, and Steelhooves. Simply follows along regardless....umm I'm sure in a very badass fashion.
She crashes while on the way, and immediately has to fight the urge to take another, not thinking she could even fight while being so stupid and slow, holding off only so that she can take one right before the fighting, not risking crashing again mid battle.
While walking, the group passes a war poster of a pegasus in an altered version of Steel Ranger armor, designed for flight, and Calamity snorts at the posters message "Fear not Equestria! We Will save you!"
Calamity finally nickered, scoffing. “That’s right. One day, the Grand Pegasus Enclave will come swoopin’ down outta the skies t’ rescue all y’all little ponies. Maybe after they’re done with their naps.”
And every reader that knows anything about Fallout emitted a collective Oh, Crap! at learning the Pegasus forces were called The Enclave.
They finally get to the Red Racer building, which was right next to the Manehatten hub of the Ministry of Morale. Which also doubled as Manehatten's biggest nightclub, and I am not surprised in the least. They finally spot some manticores, the building being covered in them, and to make matters worse, Steelhooves lets them know they are being followed, though they can't tell who or why. Sneaking another PTM, trying to make sure the others don't notice. She sees a way into the building past the manticores. Part of the Red Racer building had fallen creating a bridge high up between it and the MOM building, letting them get above the manticores without disturbing them.
They split up to try and avoid putting to much weight on the floors of the already weakened building at once, especially since one of them weighs more then the rest put together. Velvet going with Li'lpip, Calamity with Steelhooves, since the pegasus could fly and not put any weight on the floor. And Velvet promptly almost gets herself killed. A security robot (shaped like an owl, which just makes Li'lpip pause in wonder till it starts shooting) ambushes them, Velvet jumping in front of Li'lpip and spearing it on her horn, nearly giving Li'lpip a heart attack since in doing so she lept right in front of her shotgun as she was about to fire.
As they explore the Ministry building, Velvet talks endlessly about Calamity, mostly the things she dislikes, or listing his flaws, until suddenly she starts flirting with Li'lpip, who instantly see's through it, yelling at her, she knows Li'lpip has a crush on her, and it's not right playing with her emotions like that, at all.
I really don't think Velvet meant to hurt her. She knows how she feels, but i don't think she really knows just how deep it goes, between her being older then Li'lpip, and also not having an interest in mares. It's possible that she really just doesn't know how much Li'lpip loves her, not having any feeling at all in return except friendship. It doesn't make it right, but I really don't think she was trying to hurt her, just play a bit, not knowing how bad Li'lpip would take it.
((To be Continued.))
Comments
