“Away with the old, embrace the new, right?” I clopped my hoof on the counter again. “Apple Whiskey, another of your specials, please!”


Apple Whiskey, the bartending unicorn who owned and ran Turnpike Tavern, poured me another glass. Then, as I watched, he lined up seven apples on the counter — beautiful golden apples quite unlike the pale and flavorless ones back not-home — and waved his horn over them, magically transforming them one-by-one into bottles of the most delicious, pain-numbing, mind-easing fermented apple beverage. Beside me, Calamity clopped his hooves on the floor in applause and several mares in the tavern let up a whoop.


“Dunno why I was surprised,” I half-whispered, leaning near Calamity. “Your leader is a stallion, after all.”


Calamity’s ears perked up and he gave me a look of shocked confusion. “My leader? Ah don’t have a leader!” I couldn’t tell whether he sounded more offended or worried.


I hoofwaved. “I heard him. Over the sprite-bot. When it wasn’t being Watcher.”


Calamity looked at me with deeper confusion. And then broke into a too-riotous laugh. “What? Red Eye?” He turned to the rest of the bar. “Hey, everypony. LilPip here thought Red Eye was our leader!”


The whole tavern joined in on the laughter.

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Fallout:Equestria — Chapter Six: The Truth of the Matter