Fallout Equestria: Shaping Shadow

Fallout Equestria: Shaping Shadow is written by Mindrop. It Chronicles the life and change of Shadow Flare, a cloud farmer, as he goes from his small community into the Enclave military and then below. It begins around ten years before Little Pip begins her adventures.

Synopsis

The Enclave survives because of it's cloud farmers. Shadow Flare was raised on one of the oldest and largest cloud farms known as a homestead, way in the north at the edge of the Enclave. Shadow Flare has the heart of a farmer, but not the size. Shadow Flare stopped growing at a young age and looks like a small mare. His voice isn't much better. Still, he does his best, no matter what, to do his duty and feed the Pegasus Race.

The Enclave is running low on raw materials and the wasteland below has more than enough. Shadow Flare found it his duty, his fate, to not only join, but to help the Enclave begin to first reach below the clouds. What they do below will impact the wasteland forever, good or bad. What he does, shapes the wasteland for Little Pip and beyond.

But hardship and struggle isn't just below in the wasteland, but above as well. A broken heart, and a lost love, is universal.

Setting

The story's setting changes as time goes. The first setting is Shadow Flare's home, the Turnip Homestead. The second is Fort Wind, where a lot of the military training happens. Third is the wasteland, based out of the Rosemary Outpost.

Characters

Shadow Flare

Born in the northern reaches of the Enclave, to the Turnip Homestead Cloud farm, he is small for even a normal pegasus. Crisp white coat contrasted with a jet black mane, Shadow Flare is often mistaken as a mare, both visually and with his voice. When he joins the Enclave Military, he is sized as a mare for uniforms. Size aside, he is cloud farmer in every other way.

Community and family are the most important things in his life. Duty to the Pegasus Race comes in a close third. To his family and community, their duty is to feed the Pegasus Race. Shadow Flare doesn't know when to quit and gives it his all. Endurance was part of growing up. A job had to be done, no matter how skilled you were, everything was given until the job was done. Shadow chose to pursue the military in part because he was having a problem finding his place in the community. He was not much help on the farms.

Shadow Flare grew up doing acrobatics. He is more familiar with his hooves than his wings. His father, Lance, began training Shadow at an early age. The acrobatics are trained through obstacle courses forcing Shadow to think quick and act fast. They do not stay on one level, but go up and down.

Shadow Flare earned his Cutie Mark on the obstacle courses. Three arrowheads with a sword in the center of each. Each sword has three lightning bolts cutting across it. It represents the key to acrobatics and life. Speed, Power and Agility. Each key aspect helps Shadow Flare excel in the military. They stand out perfectly against his white coat and compliment his black mane.

Shadow Flare's foundation is his family and his community. With them as his foundation, he can push himself to the limit and hold it there. While he may not be suited for life in the harsh cloud farming where his family lives, Shadow Flare learned the essential skills for farming. Those skills go beyond plants and into work ethic. He is stubborn, doing what he has set his mind to, when he needs to.

Shadow Flare builds friendships and deep connections with the soldiers he trains and works with, like the community back home.

Cardinal Spitfire

An actual descendant of the Spitfire, Cardinal Spitfire joined the military the same time as Shadow Flare. She has the same drive and much of the same upbringing as Shadow Flare. Initially set against Shadow Flare, she sets it aside when there is more important things to deal with in training. Paired up with Shadow as battle buddies, she quickly helps push their team and then unit further and to set new records.

Cardinal Spitfire is named for her heritage and her coat. A cardinal coat with a soft yellow mane. He Cutie Mark is a lighting bolt who's head is a flame. She is small for a mare and slightly smaller than Shadow Flare.

New Locations

Major new locations found only in Shaping Shadow. (Under Construction)

Officers

Red River

Wind Whisper

Trivia

• Fort Wind is, in part, named after Retired Wonderbolt Wind Rider from Season 5, Episode 15, Rarity Investigates.
• Mareland Joint Operations Base is based on Lackland Air Force Base which is part of Joint Base San Antonio where all branches of the

U.S. military have personnel stationed there.

• Fort Strong is based on Fort Strong from Fallout 4.
• Equestrian Naval Academy is based on the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis Maryland, just south of Baltimore.
• Ponypsco River is based on the Patapsco River which Baltimore is centered around.
• Dry Dock City is based Rivet City from Fallout 3.
• Sanctuary is based on Sanctuary from Fallout 4.
• Vault 68’s location is based on Vault 111’s location from Fallout 4, outside and above Sanctuary. 68 also is one of the author's special numbers.
• Super Ponies are based on Super Mutants from Fallout, specifically Fallout 4.
• Crystal Kiss is based on Lily Bowen, a companion in Fallout: New Vegas.
• Stable 50’s experiment is based on Vault 81 from Fallout 4 and mixed with the Forced Evolutionary Virus (FEV/F.E.V.) from Fallout 4. 
• The Glowing Sea is based on the Glowing Sea from Fallout 4.  
• Baltimare is, in part, based on the commonwealth from Fallout 4.