Cursorial Hunter

Chapters

2 Bonding with things other than duct tape.
3 Family can be such a pain.
4 The obligatory beach scene.
6 Crazy Cultists
7 Unwelcome to the family.
8 Home again, home again.
1 One celebration, hold the Smooze.
5 Blah! Blah! I vant to eat your love!

2 Bonding with things other than duct tape.

“Yards? I'm done. Now what?”

“Did you milk the cows too?” Yards was under the Cider Squeezy 7000. The new vacuum line had come in and he was fetlock deep in oil trying to replace it behind some heater hose. He knew if he took off he'd never get it back together today, but trying to get it lined up was proving extremely difficult. He wished, not for the first time, that he had more sensitivity in his hoof. Being able to actually feel where the nipple was would make this a whole lot easier.

“Yeah.”

He grunted as he finally got it lined up. “Can you hand me the 8mm socket and ratchet?”

“Which one is that, again?”

“The clicky one.”

“Ah!” There was the sound of metal scraping around metal as she dug though his tool box. It stopped, then there was more rustling.

“The sockets are outside the box on the ground by my left hoof.” He moved his hoof for emphasis. There was a moments pause while Yards moved the hose clamp into position, then something thunked onto his stomach. He looked down and saw the ratchet sitting there. “Thanks.” He floated the tool over by his head and started cranking the band tight.

“I wish I could do magic.”

“All ponies can do magic.”

“Yeah, but not like that.”

“Yeah, that's the horn again. It lets us externalize our magic. It's no different from a pegasus's ability to walk on clouds.”

“Yeah, but us earth ponies, we don't have nothin'.”

He sighed. “Well, your magics are more subtle.”

She huffed.

“What? Rocks don't grow on their own. That's magic. Having these apple trees bearing fruit constantly, that's magic. Cooking as good as your mom's?”

“Mamma's cookin' is good. Too bad I don't have no talent.”

Yards slid out from under the machine to see a pouting filly. Such a common sight in his life, yet it still almost broke his heart.

“It's okay.” He stopped from putting his grease soaked hoof around her shoulders. First he wiped away the oily goo, then put his hoof on her head. “Look, I know how hard it can be. I didn't get my cutie mark until my last year in school.”

She looked at him in disbelief.

“It's true, and it happens a lot more than ponies think, especially when your special talent isn't as simple as 'going real fast' or 'caring about things'. How do you think all those ponies who's special talent is accounting figured out their talents before taking an accounting class?”

She seemed to consider the idea. “So you didn't know you were going to be an engineer until you graduated?”

“My cutie mark isn't in engineering. It's, uh, multi-study disciplining.”

She gave him a confused look. “Wha?”

“My special talent is in knowing about a lot of things and how to combine them together.”

That explanation had apparently not helped.

“Okay, you know about all the renaissance masters, right?”

She nodded. “Raphael is the best! He has sais, and he doesn't take crap from anypony.” She quickly covered her mouth with her hoof.

“Ninjas aside, they, the real masters, not the mutant ones, are considered masters because they combined things like a mastery of the understanding of things like anatomy with art to create such life like works, or art with engineering to create amazing buildings. Their talents are in combining things.”

“So how did you know that that was your talent?”

“I didn't. Not until I knew enough about two things that I could combine them, then realize that was what made me special.”
He started putting away his tools. “What do you want to do now?”

“Swimmin'?” asked the foal.

“Well, we need to clean out the loft first, then we can go, okay?”

The filly agreed.

_____________________________________________________________________________

They were wearing ski masks to hide their faces, and most were wearing pants to hide their cutie marks. The ones that weren't were wearing barde. They were wearing the gold and the silver from both factions. One held a large knife in his teeth, and two others were on their hind legs with rifles in their forelegs. A grey one in Lunari armor planted himself at the front of the car. He was carrying a huge, belt fed, multi-barreled machine gun on his back. He held the firing bit firmly in his teeth. There were two mares. One was in barde with a rifle, the other was in a long trench coat with a mask and a fedora. She was standing next to another barded stallion in a half helm who had a pistol and officer's markings crudely painted onto his armor.

Starfall walked up to them, her forehooves held up in surrender. “Please, there's no need for viol-” The knife pony slapped her, grabbed her mane and slung her over the small bar in the corner.

“EVERPONY SIT DOWN!” he shouted, grabbing a hold of his weapon. They all did as ordered. Strangers sat down next to Toffee and Apple. The two looked around for Delta but she was no where to be found.

“All right, I'm going to say this once, so everypony be quiet and remain calm,” began the officer. “We've hijacked the train. IF you behave then you have nothing to fear. We're going to take the train and stop it in a remote area, but you're on a train track. They WILL be able to find you once we're gone. We are looking for one of you. So long as she behaves, then we won't have to hurt anypony. If she disobeys, then we will kill anypony sitting with her. In the meantime, I would like the staff to resume work. From here on out, all food and drink are free. Nopony should have to pay to live.” The last sentence carried a strong sneer.

One of the martial ponies in the back shouted and began to open fire. The passengers screamed.

“OH CELESTIA! SNAKE! A SNAKE!”

“Hey!” shouted the stallion in charge. He stomped over to his subordinate.

“It was HUGE!”

“That is unacceptable.” He slapped his helmet.

“It was almost big enough to eat a pony.”

“Knock it off!”

“But...but...it was a snake,” he whimpered.

Pony Dredd shook his head. “Everypony sit up.” Slowly they rose. There was a low murmur of whimpering and foals crying. A pair of soldiers from each end began slowly looking at each face going down the lines. Everypony looked around in terror. There were several who were just sure that it was going to be them. Nopony was ready for when they shouted: “Found her!” They all turned to see who the unfortunate mare was, only to find them looking at Apple Rhubarb, holding a photo next to her. The fedora clad mare walked over, looked at the photo and then looked at her. She nodded. The rifleponies moved to flank her.

“Me? Why would anypony want me?” Apple asked. The only answer was to point their guns at the stranger sitting beside her. Quicky they both put their forehooves in the air. “You may want to move so I can get out.” Apple tried to be calm, but the fear was in the corners of her voice. The stranger got up and the guards moved. Apple whimpered slightly, looking at Toffee. Toffee could only look on helplessly, crying for her friend. Nopony in the car knew who they were, but they all knew she was dead.

Slowly she slid to the end of the bench.

“Move, Apple,” said the mare.

There was no doubt now. They knew who she was and they were here for her. There was no case of mistaken identity. She hung her head in sorrow. She didn't want to die, but there was no way she would let somepony else die for her. Not again. Not after her husband had sacrificed himself to protect so many others. The only right thing to do was to give herself to the terrorists to save all the others.

“If I go, you swear you won't hurt the others?”

“If they mind themselves,” answered the officer.

There was no other option. She tried to think of one, but nothing came to her. She looked over at Toffee. “Good bye.”

Toffee whimpered. “Good-goodbye, Apple.”

“Tell the others for me?”

Toffee could only nod.

“Help watch over Rhu, please?”

Toffee whimpered and started crying again. Her wail was small and pitiful. There was a hoof under Apple's foreleg pit, pulling her up.

Apple stood, scooting to the walkway, then fell on all fours. The fedora mare walked in front, followed by one of the riflestallions, then Apple, the other riflestallion, and finally the officer. Apple heard the fedora mare talking while holding a hoof to her ear. “Praying Mantis to Red Wasp. Target is secured. Contact Army Ant for pick up.”

They walked forward to the next car, the heavy turning around to open the door for the procession. This left the barded mare, the knifestallion and the heavy in the room. Starfall slowly pulled herself up on the bar, rubbing her head.

Inside this new car was two more hijackers who hadn't gone into the room.

“The rest of the train is secure, Mantis.”

Gun fire erupted behind them. Apple Rhubarb spun in terror.

“You said you wouldn't hurt anypony.”

“Mantis” put a hoof to her head. “Target Neutralized? Did he have a seatmate? I thought they'd be trouble.” She grunted and put her hat on a nearby table. Then she pulled her mask off. She had a dark green coat, orange eyes and her muzzle was a light green. Her teal mane was short and somewhat spiky. There was some sort of small horn in her ear.

“Mi...Mantis, we're not suppose to remove our masks.”

“I'm not going back into that room, so they won't see me,” She put the fedora back on. “And Apple here will never see anypony else to describe me to.” Gunfire roared in the compartment behind them again.

Apple was paralyzed in terror, yet she couldn't shake a sense of familiarity about this “Mantis.”

3 Family can be such a pain.

“That's my sister, Miduri. I told you she was an earth pony.”

The loft wasn't that big. It was mainly used for critter feed through the winter and some personal use. But still, it was full of crap.

Most of the stuff in the loft was Yard's. Stuff he didn't have room for in his room that didn't warrant the protection of the basement. There were boxes of old phonograph recordings, his college papers, formal wear, a box of magazines he had to quickly hide from the foal, and other odds and ends. One of those things was a photo album of his family buried at the bottom of a box. Rhubarb Salad had completely lost interest in sorting when she'd found that. Not that she was that useful to begin with, but the idea of his mixed heritage shattered her world view.

“She's purty.”

“Uh, okay,” Yards was unwilling to discuss the attractiveness of his sister.

“So this is...”

Yards looked over at the picture of the sea foam green unicorn. “My grandma. Her special talent was detecting water. She lived in Phillydelphia. It took forever for her to get her cutie mark, too.”

“An this earth pony beside her is your grandpa?”

“Yup. Oh hey! My college saddle bags! I thought I lost those. Oh, spiders, lots of spiders in there. Going to need to fumigate that.”

“Muskrat Tonic University?”

“It's a magic college. They focus on thaumaturgical theory.”

“I've never heard of them.”

“Not surprising. It's a small, very focused college.”

“Is this your mom?”

“Yup, that's my mom.”

“Are they all earth ponies?”

“Yup. Her side are all earth ponies.”

“So if you and ma got hitched, I could have a unicorn baby sister?”

“Well...uh...” It was getting really warm up here. “What about your family?”

She shrugged. “Granny an Grampa Rhubarb live in Dodge Junction.”

“What do they do there?”

“What else?” she asked before her voice dropped into thick sarcasm, “They farm. Like all earth ponies.”

“Hey, that's not true. Earth ponies can be other things.”

“Sure, so long as it doesn't involve flying or magic.”

This wasn't his kid, so why was he feeling so bad for her?

“Well, there are ways around those limitations.”

She giggled. “Wouldn't it be somethin' if I got my cutie mark in flying?”

“Well, maybe not flying, but piloting, sure. We've been working on things like mass conveyances as well as personal flight.”

“Personal flight?” Her eyes light up.

Uh oh. Apple would kill him. He would be so dead. Not just dead, dead dead. With a capital “D” Dead. But she was so sad. “Look, your mom would kill me, and we can't do this during the day, but I've got a flight pack. MAYBE if your good, after dark, I'll show you. But you have to promise me that you won't tell your mother.”

“But momma says I'm suppose to tell her anytime a stallion says to keep something a secret.”

“Well, that's horribly sexist.”

“Huh?” She flipped the page and she quickly lost interest in the conversation.

“Where's this?”

“It's a spring my Grandma found that saved the town of Blue Twig.”

“My Uncle found an aluminum mine.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. He farms boxeyes nauw.”

“Bauxite?”

“Yeah, that's it. Cause, he's an earth pony. And we farm...” the sarcasm was back in her voice.

“With all the hungry ponies there are, it's important to farm, so we can feed them.” She hrumpfed but went back to the book while Yards tried to figure out where to put this stuff.

The things that had been damaged and he decided he didn't need anymore he just tossed out the hayloft door into a pile. Some things, like his photo album, he was going to have to find room for in the house. Fortunately it had been buried under old text books so Delta had never found it. He shuddered to think what would happen if she'd ever seen his sister.

_____________________________________________________________________________

Delta lay coiled on a pallet she had found in the next car back. Apparently this one was a combination food preparation area, storage area, and employee break area. The pallet she'd found was hidden away behind three steamer trunks strategically arranged to create a private area. Uniform jackets hung on pegs on the wall in the sheltered area. There were bins filled with cut up vegetables, breads and other quickly assembled foods on a counter along the far wall. Beside that were large scale freezers she presumed were full of things like cheese sticks, hay fries and onion straws. On the other side was a deep fryer and a bank of toaster ovens. There were boxes of disposal utensils and food containers secured against this wall.

Absently she flicked her tongue, smelling honey roasted peanuts somewhere in the room. Food was the last of her interest, though. She'd abandoned them. Her only friends and she'd run out when their lives were on the line. She told herself it was for their own good. If the Inquisition caught them with her then their lives would be ruined. She only prayed she was right. If she could hide long enough then they were all safe.

She waited in her current snake form. It could get around easily and was hard to notice. Now if only that idiot didn't see and shoot at her again. Luckily fear had spoiled his aim. Ponies were such a fearful lot.

She wasn't sure how long she should wait before moving, let alone where they were or how many she was facing. Now she wished she'd paid more attention to that explosion movie Yards had taken them all to. There was terrorists that the idiot had to stop, but she had been more occupied with overtly flirting with Toffee. Feeding off the stallion behind them was far more tasty than those nasty hard caramels they were passing back and forth. Toffee was a little freaked out by it, but then, virgins often were. It wasn't anything serious, just some hoof-holding, suggestive word play, and playful nuzzles. Just enough to get him going and to make her squirm with humorous embarrassment.

The movie, what happened on the movie? She tried to remember. Improbable set-up. Hero improbably flaunting authority. Explosion. Explosion. Bad one liner. Explosion. Mare shows up in stockings. Plot shot with an explosion. Plot shot, explosion, plot shot, explosion. Chase scene. Half-flanked sex scene. Fight. Explosion, with an incredibly long and boring fight, then the final explosion. So, she had to, what? Find a way to blow stuff up and a slutty mare?

The room ahead vibrated. What was that? She waited for the car she was in to hit the same bad spot on the tracks. that's all it was, surely. The forecar vibrated again. Okay. Surely it was...it couldn't be... right? No, they'd have no reason. She didn't want to, but she had to know. She stuck her tongue out to taste the air. Blood. It was unmistakable. How could they? Why would they? She stayed in snake form so she couldn't cry.

The door in the back opened and heavy hooves marched across the car to the door in the front. It was another one of them. It was a he, he was dressed in black and carrying heavy saddle bags. He didn't even seem to be looking around for anypony. His eyes were focused straight ahead and did not waver as he left the coach.

Eventually the door reopened. This time a dark purple pegasus walked through the doorway. She walked to the refrigerators and broke down crying. Delta recognized her as their waitress. She turned and moved directly to Delta's hiding spot. The changeling transformed as quick as she could, but still the stewardess saw her.

“CHANGELING!” she screamed, jumping back.

Delta held out her hooves. “SHHHH! Please! Look, I don't want to hurt anypony.”

Starfall looked up above the doorway, seeing the revelation charm firmly affixed there. It should have blocked her shape shifting powers.

“How?”

“It doesn't matter right now. You remember me, right?”

She looked at her. “The mimosa. Yeah, I remember you.”

“See, I've got a paid ticket, I'm not a stowaway.”

“Are you with the terrorists?” Her tone was sharp.

“What? NO! I'm here with my friends! We're going to Lyra's party. Well, we were, before...”

“I'm sorry.”

Delta hung her head in sorrow. “I can't believe they shot them. How could they?” Tears welled up and blurred her vision. The pegasus moved to come beside her, then pulled away. Then changed her mind again and wrapped her long wing around her body, coming beside her and resting her chin on the other side of her neck. She smelled of blood, but her body was warm.

Delta broke down and cried, cleansing the pain from her heart. A song came in from the other room. It was up beat and about a thinly veiled euphemism using food for mare anatomy. It wasn't the sort of thing she'd choose for such a tender moment. The two mares broke their embrace and laughed nervously.

“I'm sorry, but I need my spare uniform.” She moved past the changeling and to one of the steamer trunks.

“This is yours?”

“Yeah,” she wiped her feathers over her lips, smearing fresh gloss. “I lost my house in the war. Afterwords I got this job. I spend so much time on the rails that, well...”

The song ended and the female DJ's voice came back on. Delta's ears perked up.

“You won't believe what we've just been told!”

“It's an open bar!” cried the foil.

“And we have confirmation that none other than Chuck Wagon will be playing Brilliant Lance!”

A couple hours ago her heart would have skipped a beat, now it just made her sadder.

A wing came over her side.

“He was so hot, and he was going to be mine.”

“I'm sorry. I can't imagine what it'd be like to loose someone like that. I haven't had a coltfriend in,” she sighed, “wow, it's been a while.”

“Well, it's not like I could guarantee I'd win the drawing. It's just a pipe dream.” She sighed.

The pegasus gave her a confused look. “Wait, so, those stallions up front they shot. They're not your coltfriends?”

Delta looked at her with confusion. “They didn't shoot the mares I was sitting with?”

She shook her head. “Well, the good news is they didn't shoot them.”

“What?”

“They took the white earth pony.”

“Where?”

“Up front.”

“I've got to do something.”

“There's still a bunch of heavily armed thugs in the next car. You go in there and they're going to shoot you, too.”

Delta shook her head. “Hang on now, what exactly happened after I left.”

“Well...”

_____________________________________________________________________________

Two stallions were quarreling. “Those take three seconds to get up to speed, I can get there before then. We can't let them kill her.” he whispered. The stallion beside him tried to pull him back down into his seat but he shook him off and charged, leaping into the air.

The barrels were spinning before the heavy even turned around after closing the door. The first bullets caught the stallion in the gut, eviscerating him. He didn't have time to die from his guts spilling out. The next few punched through his intestines as they came tumbling out. The rounds worked their way up in a controlled burst, turning the brave fool into a pink paste of shredded meat that was sprayed over everypony in the car. Everypony screamed in horror. The battered corpse fell on the heavy's body but he shook it off.

“Yellow Jacket. Yeah, we had a hero. Dispensing punishment.” The gore soaked monster walked patiently to where the stallion had been sitting. “Yeah. Stallion. Yeah. Stallion too.” He was holding his ear while talking. His target was looking on in terror, shaking his head.

“No, no. Please, Celestia, please! I tried to stop him, no, d-” The gun began to turn again. He cried for his mother. The gun screamed at him. The stallion jerked in a macabre dance as the bullets punched his chest repeatedly. Huge holes were punched into him, the seat behind his body, the pony behind him and the side of the train. There was even more screaming and crying.

“Yellow Jacket to Mantis. Yeah. There's been some over spray. We need some medical. Send Mosquito.”

There was a lot of foal holding and crying in the car. Toffee didn't have anypony to hold. She missed her friends. She only hoped that they were safe. The stranger beside her clung to her. Everypony was just sitting there. Somepony would have to come up with a plan and she was the smart one. She was always the smart one everywhere she went. If anypony else was to survive this it was going to be up to her to make sure of it. She set her face to a grim mask.

Alright. Notice, what do all of these ponies have in common? Well, they all are named after insects. She watched the stallion with the huge weapon replant himself at the front of the car. They all seemed to have military training, as well as military weapons and/or armor. She looked over at the sword wielding stallion. That was an odd one there, but they still had ceremonial, if not last ditch uses. Why didn't he have a gun? Were these privately owned weapons?

The door in the back opened and a stallion trotted in, took a quick look around and started working on the injured mare that had been sitting behind the two stallions. He tried to apply pressure pads and hygiene products into the wounds but his expression was grim.

Starfall walked over to her cart, raking off all the bottles and boxes off the top before wheeling it over to the medic. He grunted a thanks before lifting his patient up and laying out most of her body on it, giving him a better area to work. He lifted her with his forelegs. There was another thing they all had in common; so far all Toffee'd seen were Earth ponies. Was that a relevant enough a sized group to compare or were there more than that elsewhere? She glanced out the windows to see if there were any pegasi outside, keeping up with the train. There weren't any she could see, but that didn't mean they weren't on top of the train, or watching from high up.

She'd never been good at being a pegasus. Her whole life she'd rather read a book than fly around kicking clouds. As such she'd never even gone to flight school. Sure, she'd taken the field trip to the weather factory in grade school, and had read about how it was done. So she understood how and where the weather was made, but rain and snow never really interested her. The sun was only there in her mind so she didn't have to light a candle. She had been teased about it, and her family was rather disappointed, but it wasn't that she was afraid, like everypony kept telling her. It was that she just wasn't interested. It sometimes made it difficult to interact with other pegasi, but she refused to allow herself to be defined and limited with her life just because she had wings. Learning new things filled her with an exhilaration that no flight ever could.

She guessed that was why she'd stayed around Delta. After she'd found out that she was a changeling, she had been terrified. Yes, she'd saved Rhubarb Salad and that had stayed her hoof from immediately calling the Inquisition. Then she grew curious about changelings. Delta was a perfect chance to study them. The librarian had always hoped that was the reason Yards had been keeping her, for study. Still, for a duplicitous species, she was a most honest specimen and Toffee always respected ponies that were honest and not afraid to say things that were right. Even when she disagreed with what they said. If more ponies were honest about what they felt there'd be a whole lot less pain and confusion in the world.

If only some things weren't so hard to say.

Mechanically she watched as the new stallion worked on the patient. The mare and sword pony hovered around him. They seemed almost concerned. They were giving the big pony occasional annoyed or disgusted glances. Was this the chink she was looking for? Hmmm, maybe, oh maybe. Could she trigger a case of Stableholm Syndrome, reverse it, and get the captors to release them? She wasn't that good at being the life of the party, but she wasn't exactly a wall flower. Well, not anymore. She was quite used to public speaking and edutaining. She should be able to do this.

All she needed was-for there to not be a sword at her throat.

“Hooves where we can see them.” Hissed the melee stallion.

“I'm sorry- er -what's your name?” She put her free hoof in the air, while slowly pulling her other out of her bag.

The stallion looked at her like she was the dumbest mare in the world.

“Well I can't just call you 'sword-colt' all train ride, now can I?” Her other hoof had a tin box she gently sat on the table. The other mare snickered.

“Cutter.”

“Atta or Acromyrmex?”

He looked at her. “Parasol,” answered the mare. Toffee did not laugh at her joke. Instead she pulled a small board out of the tin and folded it open. Then she pulled a deck of cards out of the box. “Well, Mr Atta, I knew it was going to be a long trip without your detour so I came prepared. Would you and your friends like to play some cribbage?”

“Mosquito” took the cart from Starfall and pushed the injured pony up into the car ahead of them.

Starfall moved to the back of the car when “Yellow Jacket” shouted at her. She immediately stopped.

“I'm sorry, but if I'm going to feed these people then I need to get lunch started. Lunch is currently being stored in the next car. May I please go?”

He talked into his ear. So. That confirmed that whoever was in charge wasn't in this car. Why was Pony Dredd marked as an officer, but Yellow Jacket called out to Mantis when Mantis was apparently the fedora wearing pony? She would have to figure that out later, right now she needed to start giving lessons on how to play cribbage to the ponies around her.

4 The obligatory beach scene.

After a quick lunch of peanut butter and carnation sandwiches, made by Rhubarb, and lemonade, made by Yards, they sat out for the swimming hole. The afternoon sun in the late spring day was warm enough to entice many into the first dip of the year. As such the small lake was packed with ponies all over the beaches and water. The foal's heart fell.

“Hey, it's alright. I'll find us a less crowded place to go swim.”

Others undoubtedly had come to the other conclusion and would be heading up stream the small river that fed it. As such that direction would be little better. He began to look for the underground trickleways and paths that his grandmother had shown him. To find a spot that others wouldn't notice. He felt his horn vibrate softly, attuning to the flow of water. The faster the water flowed, the faster his magic vibrated his horn, creating in him a dowsing rod. Then he saw a foal that he though he'd recognized from around the farm. “Isn't that your little friend? Whatshermane?”

Rhubarb looked where his hoof was pointing. “Wild Flower? Yeah, we're naught friends no more. She gaught her cutie mark. Says she can't be friends anymore 'cause I got a blank flank.”

Ah, so this is where all this is coming from.

“Well, forget her then. If she's willing to let something like not having a cutie mark come between you and her, then she doesn't need to be your friend anymore.”

The cream colored foal looked down, pawing at the grass under her hoof. “Yeah, but nauw nopony wants to be my friend.”

“Why not?” Yards started walking in the direction of the strongest vibration. It was away from town, towards the Everfree, but from the vibrations he was getting, it should surface well before they got close to anything dangerous.

“I don't know. Normal ponies keep callin' me spoilt and rich. But da rich ponies call me stupid and dirt farmer.”

“Well, did you try kicking them in the face?” Yards asked, half listening.

The filly was aghast. “WHAT? I couldn't do that!”

“Why not? You're an Apple. You're easily stronger than any three of them put together.” His head was low, there were multiple streams crossing here.

“I don't want to hurt nopony!” She was almost in tears.

Yards shrugged. “Well, if you're not willing to play to your strengths... wait, why do they think that you're rich?” He was paying more attention to her now. They were about to the new pond he'd found. It was reading clean with a soft current. Should be good for swimming.

“I have food everyday that mamma fixes and ain't just grass, an I has that new baull, an I try an help like Mah does but ponies just seem to get upset wit me.”

“Yeah, being generous is hard. It's one of those things adults argue about because there's no one good way to do it. If you're always butting into peoples lives and making them take stuff, then they resent your help and think you're attempting dominance over them. If you always give to some ponies, then they'll always just take and never learn to do for themselves. Personally I find it's easiest to just help the ponies that ask for help. That way they don't get mad, and if they ask too often you tell them to quit mooching.”

“What's mooching?”

“It's when you just lay around all the time without helping with chores, but still expect people to take care of you.”

“Like Delta?”

Yards shook his head. “Delta's not a mooch. She cleans the house and my work areas.”

“Yeah, but she's always laying around.”

“She can't do as much as we do. How much you do isn't as important as you do what you can.”

“Why can't she do more?”

“She doesn't know how. Imagine trying to fit in if you moved into a changelng hive. You wouldn't know what to do, would you?”

“No.”

“Well, she's learning. Like you are.”

“Am I a mooing?”

“No you're a foal. Your job is to perpetually ask questions. Which you're really good at.”

“What does perpetual mean?”

“See?”

“Huh?”

“Aren't there any other foals in your school that don't have their cutie marks?”

“Yeah...” Her voice was hesitant, but he missed it as they came over a knoll and he saw the spot he'd been looking for. The spring was a little more grown up with weeds than he'd liked, but the bottom was a gentle slope with plenty of room for her to safely splash about.

“So be friends with them.”

“Well, Crop Duster, well, she smells.”

That got Yard's full attention. As foul smelling and filthy as foals were, when they said somepony else smelled bad the stench must be atrocious.

“An Drybrush is a colt. Momma says I ain't allowed to have a coltfriend until I'm 22.”

Yards laughed as he rushed into the spring. The water was incredibly cold. He dove down to see how deep it got and to help him acclimate to the cold. It eventually went well over his head, but there didn't appear to be anything dangerous.

He surfaced with a “Wooo!”

“Is it okay?”

“Well, any colder and I'd be a mare, but don't go over your head and it'll be okay.”

She waded in, shivering when she got to her knees.

“Well, what do you like to do?”

“Swim, color.”

“Well, find somepony who likes to do that too.”

“But that's not what my cutie mark's in.”

“It doesn't matter. You don't have to have everything in common with your friends. Celestia's sweet flank, you don't even have to agree with your friends.” He swam back to her. She splashed at him. He ducked under the water to hide then came up and spit a great gout of water in her face. She squealed.

A cloud streaked in between them, spun 180, drifted to the right in a half circle and skid to a stop in between the two.
Riding the cloud with her hooves at the front end was on orange pegasus with purple mane and tail. Her wings were stunted and her mane had a feathered look as if it had been blown back by the winds. A reddish-orange butterfly with pink wings and a gold starflower on each side decorated her flank.

“Hey, Yards, been looking for you.”

“What's up, Scoots?”

“I've got to decline your request for rain.” She sat down on the edge of the cloud, dangling her hooves in the water. She looked down at the rippling reflections, rather than making eye contact.

“Scoots, you're killing me! Our corn is making. We need that rain.”

“Not as much as the Mazes, and I've only got enough pony power to make enough rain for one of you. Corn is their main crop so I've got to give it to them. I'm sorry.”

He sighed and dipped his head, before running a soggy hoof across his brow. “So this means we get precedence during apple season?”

“Of course.”

“And I don't suppose there's anything else you or I could do?”

“I'm already putting in more overtime than Cloudsdale's willing to pay us. Unless you can find some more pegasi there's just nothing I can do. Though, you may want to check with your librarian friend.” She elbowed him conspiratorially. “I'm sure there's something the two of you could do to help out with the pegasi population problem. Uh? Eh?”

Yards slipped on the bottom, submerging himself to hide his embarrassment. The cold water pushed the blood from the surface. Slowly he rose up. “Well, that means I've got about two weeks to come up with something. Thanks for the heads up.”

She looked down at the foal. “Is she-?

“This is Rhubarb Salad. Apple Rhubarb's filly.”

“Oh hey there. Are you out crusading?”

For the first time since Yards had ever met her, Little Rhu was silent.

“Huh, so not getting your cutie mark for talkin' to strangers. That's good.” She rubbed the back of her head in embarrassment.

“Rhu, say hello,” Yards chided.

“Uh, hi,” she pawed at the water.

“So, how's the ol' clubhouse?”

She looked at her curiously.

“Awh, you haven't found the Cutie Mark Crusader’s Clubhouse?”

That had them both curious. She scoffed. “Alright, you know the third hill of apples, there by the grove of non-fruit trees? Yeah, it's out there.” She sighed. “I misspent a lot of my youth there. Hope it's still up there, for your sakes.” She gave him a sad smile. “Well, I guess I better get back to work.” She climbed back on top of her cloud and kicked it in the back. Her tiny wings began to move at hummingbird speeds and she dashed out over the spring, her cloud climbing in a steady incline.

“Yards?” asked Rhu.

“Yes?” he asked, annoyed at her rudeness.

“What's wrong with her wings?”

Well, she wasn't as rude as he thought. “Ultimately nothing. They're just small. The problem is her magic.”

“Wha?”

“Scootaloo is the local assistant weather manager. She's responsible for dealing with all our requests for weather. She has a birth defect. Her body doesn't generate enough magic to allow her to fly. So she has her cloud-chair to help her fly.”

“She's a pegasus tha' can't fly?”

Yards nodded.

She almost burst into tears. “Tha's horrible!”

“Yet she doesn't let it get the better of her.” Deep down he hoped the filly'd be able to hold on to that level of compassion as an adult. The world really needed more ponies like that in it.

“So, they can't give her bigger wings?”

“It wouldn't help. A pegasi uses their wings more for steering. The ability to fly comes from their magic. A lot of pegasi develop a psychosomatic cognition that there's a correlation, so if you damage their wings they think they can't fly so they actually can't.” The foals eyes glazed over.

“H-h, they can fly without their wings?”

“If they believe they can, and their bodies produce enough magic, then yes, they can fly without wings.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, there was this one pegasus in the war, Messer Wind. He flew from Marephis to Canterlot to warn Celestia of Dash's route. He almost made it there without his wings.”

“What happened?”

“His wings were shot off in the battle by anti-air weapons, he flew off with Lunari hot on his tail. He made it to the Everfree before he passed out from the exhaustion and blood loss. Then Astro Rey, the only Lunari still following him was so moved by his acts that he picked him up and flew him the rest of the way.”

“Wow,” she looked down thinking. He splashed her with a kick from his hoof into the water. She squealed and splashed back.

6 Crazy Cultists

“And one for crib?”

Army Ant and two other passengers had agreed to play cribbage with Toffee. Amazingly, none of them knew how. She'd always heard that it was a very common game in the Navy. While the other guards watched, they never called Muggins or even seemed to understand pegging. That meant they were neither navy or marines. They weren't pegasi, so they were either army or one of the guard forces.

“Yes,” Toffee confirmed.

They were opening up to her slowly. The meal had been alright, but the psychological act of eating with them instead of rotating the guards out of the room had help build the beginning bonds that she would need to exploit for everypony's safety.

Of course, then there was the message of her friend in the kitchen giving her some of the apple sticks that gave her hope that Delta was still alive.

The next pony began to shuffle the deck after Toffee scored everypony's cards. “So, why?” Toffee asked finally.

Everypony looked at her confusedly.

She began to elaborate. “Well, clearly you ponies are well equipped and highly trained.” A little flattery never hurt anypony. “This sort of thing doesn't just spontaneously happen. Why? I'm sure everypony here would appreciate an explanation.”

The terrorists looked around at each other. Then finally the mare cleared her throat. “We're here to help Equestria throw off the shackles of enslavement to the unicorn oppressors.”

The lunacy of the statement flattened her. “I'm sorry, what?”

“We just got done fighting a bloody civil war.” She slammed one forehoof into the other, hard to express her point. “Do you know why?”

“To stop the changelings.” Toffee answered.

The mare scoffed. “Sure. Some mythological bogeyman designed to scare and divide ponies. Have you ever seen one?”

Toffee looked around self-consciously. “How would I know?”

The mare took off, believing she was winning the debate. “Exactly! All we really see is somepony with good illusion magic and then 'BOOM' the Inquisition shows up. They come in and take control of everything and everypony. They rule by terror and ultimate authority. And who are they? Unicorns!” She stopped and waited for Toffee to digest her story.

“So,” the librarian began to poke holes into her story. “I could understand this sort of logic from a Lunari, but there's a lot of Solari uniforms here.”

The mare nodded as her voice fell. “We followed the orders for the good of Equestria. But the longer the fighting went on, the more we began to notice. All the higher echelons, most of them are unicorns. All the specialists? Unicorns. They sent pegasi out to be slaughtered almost to the stallion. Earth ponies were killed by the platoon, while unicorns stayed in the back in MASH units, communications, and artillery with only token amounts of low borns sacrificed to obfuscate the truth.”

“But, Princess Celestia wouldn't allow her loyal subjects to be slaughtered so casually.” Somepony else in the car added. The conversation was growing and others were giving voice to the doubts of loyal Solari.

The mare sighed, her head hung low. “We're not sure. Some say she's in on it, others of us think she's been corrupted by unicorn magic.”

Toffee scoffed. “Unicorns don't have that kind of power.”

The mare turned on her, her muzzle up against hers. “One unicorn turned Nightmare Moon into Luna. Changing a princess is certainly in their power to do.” She pulled away. Toffee had to admit it had a certain verisimilitude. Had she not known who she knew (presumably in the kitchen) and what she knew about the others...well she understood why they could think that way.

“So the unicorns, they, they've started the civil war to gain power?” asked somepony else in the crowd.

“Well, power and money. After all, who owns all those companies that enchanted all those implements of war both sides used?” Her smile shown through her mask hole.

“Not to mention who stayed nice and safe in a factory making them rather than being on the front line having them used at them?” egged on Cutter.

There was a low murmur through the car as people began to consider the terrorist's plans.

“So then, why take Apple?” asked her friend.

The terrorists looked around at each other again, this time with a trace of guilt. This was a subject even they didn't like.

“We were told to take her, preferably alive.” Cutter finally said.

Toffee pressed the issue. “But she's an earth pony.”

“We're following orders.” They were starting to stonewall.

“Who's?”

“He, she, or they are not ready to be known publicly at this time,” was the final answer from the masked mare. Clearly this wasn't the first time she'd diplomatically danced around a subject in her life.

“What's going to happen to us?” asked a brave soul.

“There's an old abandoned switching station not too far away now. The train is going to pull in there, where we will get on our new train with our prisoner and we will leave you all here, safe and sound. Unlike the unicorns, we have no interest in harming any of you. Provided of course that you don't threaten us or our mission,” comforted the mare.

This seemed to mollify most of the ponies in the car. Well, those that weren't related to the mare that had been shot through her seat.

“Cockatrice feathers!”

They all turned and looked at Starfall. Her eyes were blazing with a checked ire. “You talk about how wrong unicorns have treated you, yet you come to us with guns and weapons, killing ponies that have nothing to do with your quarrel. You perpetuate violence for violence’s sake That will bring nothing but more violence.” She stamped her hoof on the floor as her wings subconsciously flapped. The long wings making her look almost like a miniature version of the princess of the night.

“If you want to effect change, if you want reparations rather than retribution, then you have to open your heart to love and truth. Only then can forgiveness truly save ponydom because only then can we move past the anger that causes the violence.” She huffed, catching her breath as the terrorists looked on at her.

As one, they all started to laugh.

It was Yellow Jacket that spoke first, tears streaming down his face. “Oh, Celestia. I-I-I are you-do you have a coltfriend? I promise not to put it in your pooper!”

They laughed harder. Star's cheeks flamed in shame.

“I'll call you in the morning, I swear, you're really special!” At this point, Cutter was crying on the floor. He tried to stifle his laughter while standing and holding his ear.

“What? Please repeat.” He concentrated at nothing. “Right. No. I haven't heard from them either. No, nopony has left the car except the pegasus stewardess. No. No, she's been here most of the time after dropping off her cart with you guys. Yeah, she left after that and came back about an hour ago with tea and coffee.” He nodded, listening to ghosts. “Okay. We'll stay here.”

He looked over at Toffee. “Okay, what are you up to?”

“What?”

“You've distracted us with your jokes and your pegs. Now we've lost contact with some of our group. What are you up to?” He began to pull his blade.

“Nothing! I swear! I'm just trying to keep you from shooting somepony else, I swear!” Her panic was clear.

The soldier considered her attitude, before slowly nodding. “Alright.”

_____________________________________________________________________________

Soaked, chilled, and starving, the duo stopped in town for a pizza. Swimming had made them ravenous. The two looked at the topping listing, Yards made Rhu read off the list aloud. She managed with only slight difficulty. It made her feel important, and channeled her incessant talking into a productive exercise.

Yards ordered a white pizza with spinach and feta. Rhu wanted onions, a thin crust, red sauce and normal cheese. Oh, and sweet pickles, not the gross kind, acorns, and zucchini.

Yards only shook his head as the waitress walked away. “They're never going to know when you're pregnant.”

“Why?”

Yards only shook his head.

“Why?”

“So what did you learn in school Friday?”

“Nothin'.”

“What'd you do?”

“Colored.”

Yards nodded. Getting more than a one word answer from a question from her that didn't involve food was an ordeal.

Beside them was an earth pony. Her table was covered in papers and prints with a supreme pizza in the middle getting cold. She was young, and her purple coat had a house for a cutie mark. Her bangs were short and pink while a blonde wave flowed down her neck.

Rhu's attention was slowly drawn to her. “What's she doin'?”

“I don't know. Why don't you ask her?” Yards, answered.

“I'm not allowed to talk to strangers.”

The unicorn rolled his eyes. He was going to have to talk to a strange mare if he couldn't think of something. Swallowing hard, he took a drink of water to hide his trepidation. “Excuse me,” he said before he could think better of it. The mare looked up at him.

“Uh, my, uh,” his brain had shutdown. She was starting to give him that look. That look that told him she believed he was a gibbering idiot. Mostly because he was.

“She wants to know what you're doing,” he told his chest.

The mare put on her glasses and looked at the foal. “I'm working on building Ponyville.”

“Hauw?”

“By planning it out. Setting down zoning and laying out the grid work and support utilities.”

Rhu stood up in her chair and looked over “So you're not growin' nuthin'?” She seemed to perk up.

“Of course I am. I'm growing homes, communities, and cities themselves.”

Rhu slumped down.

Yards grinned. “Looks like earth pony magic can grow more than apples.”

The other pony looked back at him. “So, is she yours?” she asked with a slow smile.

Before he could speak he started stumbling over himself. “Yeah, well, no. Uh, I uh, I'm watching her. For my boss, friend. Friend boss- friendly boss.” He gave her a weak smile.

She giggled. “I'm Snickelways.”

“Yards, and uh, Rhubarb Salad,” he pointed at the filly.

“He's not very good at talking to girls.” Rhubarb shook her head in a good imitation of somepony twice her age.

Snickle laughed. “Well, I bet you're in good hooves.” She smiled at him and he took another drink as she went back to work. The crisis was averted.

The waitress came back with their pizzas. A few minutes later she refilled their glasses. Yards looked down at their meals. Her pizza was little bigger than his hoof. His would have been called a small prewar. Now it was the new large.

“I remember when you could buy a pizza as big as my head for what we paid here.”

“Yeah? Did you have to walk uphill in the snow to get it?” Rhu giggled.

“Okay, you're definitely spending too much time around Delta.” Yards sighed again. “There's just not enough food being produced yet.”

“Why not?”

“I don't know, Rhu. We're releasing the tech as fast as we safely can. But it seems that it's not increasing production over all.”

“Why?”

“I don't know. I'm not in charge of that data.”

“Who is?”

He took a bite of his pizza, using his psychokinesis to hold both the piece in the air and the cheese to stay in place with his bite. Slowly he chewed. It may have been small, but it was still tasty.

“So who's in charge?”

“Eat your supper.”

She started picking at her toppings.

“What now.” That filly was exasperating.

“I don' wanna be an earth pony. I wanna be a unicorn. I don' wanna grow things. I don' wanna be a dirt farmer. I-I wanna be different. I wanna be special.”

Yards floated his food down. It was time to be tough with her. “How will being a unicorn make you special?”

“They, I-I don't know.”

“They? They? Growing up different doesn't make you special. Special doesn't make you any more accepted. If anything, it makes it worse. I was the only unicorn in my class. My two cousins were the only other ones in the school. Want to know what it was like? Horrid. Nopony wanted to play with me. If I ever did anything cool on the playground or in class it was always 'Oh, he used magic.' or 'It wasn't fair.' or 'Cheater!'”

She was starting to cry, but this was something she needed to learn. “You know what? If you were in Canterlot right now, even as an earth pony, you'd be different, but do you know what you'd spend most of the day doing? Coloring, because you'd not be able to do the magic lessons. You'd be alone and ostracized. Know what would happen if you were in Cloudsdale? You'd fall to your death. Yes, childhood is hard, especially the social aspects. But this is when you're learning how to deal with a problem. If you spend your whole time blaming others and hiding from problems, that's going to always be your solution. I know, and I want better for you.”

That last bit surprised even him. He reached over with his hoof and pulled an onion off her food then ate it.

“Look, mixed foals, like me, there's a reason we're rare. I've worked for a long time to overcome a lot of issues. I hated growing up. If you want to be special and different, then be who you are. The sooner you find that, the more time you'll have to be happy. Embrace everything you can do. Because it's not only one thing that you do that makes you special. Too many ponies get hung up on their cuties marks and never learn about themselves past that one aspect.”

He floated up another bite of food and waited for the bawling. To her credit, she didn't start wailing. The tears were flowing almost as well as the snot, but she stayed silent. Great, the silent cry was the most formidable weapon in a mare's arsenal.

“But I don't know what to do.” Her voice was a tiny squeak.

“Well, finishing your food is a good way to start.”

She smiled and nibbled.

“Then we'll check out that clubhouse Scoots was telling us about. Maybe your talent is finding cool hangouts.”

She giggled then wiped her snot encrusted muzzle on her foreleg. “Is that why you don't date Mah? Cause earth ponies picked on you?”

He laughed before finishing his slice. “No, I don't blame you or your mom for how other earth ponies act. Unfortunately, the rest of my family isn't as forgiving.”

“They're mad at how earth ponies treated you?”

“No, mom's family was very upset for her marrying dad. They considered him a shiftless lay about because we weren't up late nights working still. Cause we got our work done early.”

“Like today?”

“Basically, yeah. Granted we didn't have that much to do today, but yeah.”

“Why would that upset some ponies?”

“We're highly automated, so we have more free time while producing more than the Applejack era of Sweet Apple Acres ever could. If we keep at it, soon we'll be able to provide food for the entire central region. Then, maybe, just maybe, I'll be able to get a decent sized pizza.”

7 Unwelcome to the family.

Apple picked at her enchilada. The others in the car had already finished theirs. Mosquito was sitting next to a sheet draped body. The Dredd pony was talking with the other guard while Mantis was apparently coordinating something with somepony invisible. The two rifle ponies had gone up further into the train. There was only basic security on her, a set of hobbles on her forehooves. They knew she wasn't going to try to escape with the others being held captive.

“Do you always wear that hat?”

“What?” Mantis turned to the other mare.

“That hat, do you always wear it?”

She felt for her fedora. “What's wrong with it?”

“Well, it makes you look like one of those old jazz singers.” The stallions in the room started to snicker.

“Zappa dip dap datta wap, schoobiedoowup, bezow!” laughed Dredd.

Mantis glared back at him.

“Yes, I like my hat. I wear it often.” She pushed her hat forward and huffed at her. To Tartartus with her if she liked it or not. After all, she was going to just kill her anyway.

“So, what am I in for anyway?”

“Treason,” answered Mantis bluntly.

Apple Rhubarb looked around. Did they know? How much did they know? What did they think she knew.? Was Yards lying to her about what and or who he was working for? “Can you be more specific?”

Mantis walked up to her. “We know all about your plans to destroy the economy and starve everypony.”

“What?”

“It's quite obvious, really. First your unicorn overlords crash the economy in the civil war. Next you drive down the cost of food to the point that the other farms can't compete. All this done by using unicorn magic powered machines you sell to other unicorns so you can drive more and more earth ponies and their farms out of business.”

“That's absurd!”

“No! What's absurd is that you're being subsidized by the government to destroy so many lives!”

“Princess Luna reimburses us for our research costs. We spent the money from the companies to get Sweet Apple out of a crippling debt. Without it the Apple family would have lost our farm.”

“So, you sold out your own kind for money?”

“I didn't sell out anypony! Yards and I are trying to save everypony!”

Mantis's eyes narrowed. “Oh, that's it, is it?” She trotted around Apple giving her a hard look. “So, it's not money, but love?”

“Wha?”

“Is Yards still playing the bumbling idiot? Is that what's attracting you? That bumbling inoffensiveness?”

“How do you know him?”

“Why would a high and mighty unicorn bother with a lowly earth pony? Do you know why they call us that? Earth pony? Because we're nothing but dirt under their hooves. He doesn't care about our kind.”

“That's not true!” Her tone was sharper than she'd meant to be. She needed to dial it back. This mare was getting to her and she knew it.

“So you think he cares about you? Really cares? What makes you think he could possibly care about you?”

“I know he does.”

“Has he said he loves you?'

Her silence answered the question, and an angry blush filled her whole face.

“Does he hold your hoof regularly?”

“...Sometimes.”

The green mare laughed. “Has he even kissed you?”

“That's none of your business.”

She stopped and looked at her. “Okay, but he's not gone past first base with you? How long have you been around each other?”

“A...a little over a year.”

She nodded. “I know he's shy, but, really a year and he's not even holding your hoof in public? Do you know why? He's embarrassed of you. You're a lowly earth pony. He doesn't love you, he's just using you.”

Tears were starting to flow. The green mare's smile wasn't one of gloating, but of growing sorrow. “It's okay. I know how he is.” She tried to wrap her hoof around Apple's shoulders, but the farmer bucked her off.

“You don't know anything about him.”

“I don't?” She held her hoof to her chest in mock surprise. “We are talking about Yards, right? Yards McCanter. I've known him for a very long time. One could almost say most of his life. I've seen how thoughtless he is. How callow he can be to others. It wasn't the military that did that to him. He always looked at other ponies like they were bugs in his collection.” She nuzzled the fellow farmer. Apple pulled away, but not nearly as fast as she would had before the conversation.
“Did you know he didn't even show up for his Nan-Nan's funeral? Earth ponies mean that little to him.” Apple looked down.

“Who is she?” the terrorist asked. “Is it the pegasus mare you were sitting with? He's always had a thing about their wings.”

Her head hung low but she looked up at her captor. “She's smarter than me. They get to talk about the things he wants to with her. When he does it makes him happy. He doesn't sound like he's a professor lecturing students.” Mantis came along side her. “She doesn't have children, either.”

Mantis only nodded.

“And she's who he's really interested in, isn't he?”

She closed her eyes. “No,” she whispered. That seemed to catch Mantis's attention. “It's my best friend.”

“Is she interested in somepony else?”

Apple shrugged. “Chuck Wagon.”

“Well, that I can understand. What's her name?”

“Delta. She's magical, enigmatic, and, well, very...amorous.”

Mantis shook her head. “A slutty unicorn. I'm kind of surprised he fell for that kind of mare. You would have made a much better addition to the family.” She walked away. “Provided you'd survived this weekend. If it's any consolation, I'm sorry.”

Apple picked at her last meal. It wasn't what she'd hope for. It seemed like nothing since she got on this train was what she wanted.

“Has anypony heard from Chigger, Louse, Silverfish or Rock Lobster?” Dredd asked.

Suddenly the car exploded in activity.

_____________________________________________________________________________

Delta yawned. Ah, that nap was just what she needed. She had digested the power she'd gotten from him. Absently she wondered what physical changes it'd wrote to her form. Well, she'd slip inside and find out. She crawled through the damaged air vent into the overhead luggage compartment area and transformed into her true form. She immediately knocked over a suitcase as her legs were now much longer and gangly than they were before. Hmm, she was growing quickly now, but she was still nowhere near as powerful as Chrysalis.

“Who's up there?” There was the sliding of a gun bolt. Crap on a tortilla. Quickly she converted back to her pegasus form. Whipping up changeling tears she stumbled out.

“Please don't hurt me!” She held her hooves in the air.

“Who are you?”

“I was the third stewardess!”

“What's your name?”

“He, he attacked me!” Crap, she was having to think back. What name was that she was using? She looked around and found her shredded coat. The tag was for a “Sunny Daze.” She clung to her jacket, miming shock.

“What is your name?”

“Sunny,” she said, unfocusing her eyes while turning to the mare. This might work. She looked at the torn jacket and at the still obvious bites on Delta's neck.

“What happened to the others? Where are they?”

“He, he attacked me on my way back. He made me do things...” the shudder of revulsion wasn't faked.

The mare scowled. “Where is he?”

“He went back into the room after and I pulled the pin. He went away.”

The mare sighed and put her hoof to the ear the other two had their mini horns in. “Silverfish to Mantis. Yes. I found the missing waitress. She was hiding in a luggage rack. It looks like Louse raped her. She pulled the coupling pin and they're apparently in a valley somewhere.” She paused. “They don't have long range transmitters...Yeah.” The mare paused again and turned away. “Well, is that necessary? I mean, we all know what Louse was, right. I'd have done worse to him if he'd done that to me. Bite marks all down her neck. Okay. Okay.” Silverfish looked over at Delta. “They want to see you up front. Come on.” She put a hoof under Delta's elbow. Her voice was firm, but understanding.

Delta allowed herself to be escorted. They made their way through the passenger car, where she kept her head low, clutching her jacket as if ashamed. There was a murmur from the passengers. There were even some horrified looks from some of the terrorists. They made their way past the kitchenette. Delta made a motion as if to stop and grab another of Star's jackets but Silver kept her moving.

They made it into the car where it had all started. The sun was setting through the mountains and in the western facing windows. It seemed like months since they'd first gotten on this thing. Toffee smiled at her with obvious relief. She tried to walk by without giving too much away, but she was pretty sure the long glances were noticed.

A forgotten voice spoke up, breaking the silence.

“And here's the part we've all been waiting for! The drawing for the dream date with the actor playing Brilliant Lance, the talented and handsome Chuck Wagon!” There was a rustling sound. “The number is #863432. That's #863432. If you've got ticket number 863432 then you've got ninety six minutes and eight seconds to come on by and claim your prize.”

Delta stopped. No. No, it couldn't be. Cover be damned. She spun around and grabbed her saddlebags, pulling out all her tickets. She slammed down ticket after ticket, until she found the one she was looking for. The winning one. The others fell from her dead hooves. Her lower lip quivered. A single, honest tear rolled down her cheek.

“You, you foalnapped my friend.” She turned to look at Yellow Jacket. “You killed innocent ponies.” A wind began to churn around the car, and small objects began to float. “You've terrorized countless ponies on this train!” Green fire surrounded her and began to roar around her. “But now you've done something truly unforgivable! You made me miss my chance to have a date with CHUCK WAGON!” Her hair flew up in the breeze as her eyes blazed with power. The halo flashed around her. In her place was a great bronze bull that was very angry.

The other ponies all looked on in disbelief. Cutter was the first to react, his sword drawn, and he was standing next to her. He took a great double hoofed swing right where Delta's neck would have been. The blade bounced of the hot metal hide.

Delta's long horns speared him through his chest. The heat of her new body cauterized the wound, filling the air with the sick smell of grilled meat. His sword slipped from his hooves right before Delta twisted her neck and flung the dead body into Silverfish. She pawed the ground, setting the carpet on fire, as she charged Yellow Jacket. He bit down on the control bit and the barrels began to spin. Three seconds later bullets began to pelt into her new metal hide. One second later she collided with him sending him flying through the door into the next room. She continued after him.

The doorway caught flame as she rubbed her massive shoulders through. She roared a challenge to the occupants of the car. Yellow Jacket collapsed into a heap in the far side wall. A gout of flame covered his body. His scream was long and agonizing as his hair burned away, filling the room with the stench.

Somepony came up behind Delta, but she was so filled with rage that she no longer cared. Bronze hooves planted through a body and sent something flying. Delta charged Yellow Jacket again. His ammo cooked off and she was hit by a huge volley. She wasn't the only one though. The round ripped through Mosquito and one of the rifle stallions, shredding their bodies and the one under the sheet.

Delta stayed on the floor. There were a few penetrations, but the damage was minimal. Dredd pony grabbed Mantis and shoved her past Jacket's charred form.

“GO!” he shoved her into the next car.

“But-”

“Forget her! Just save yourself and the others! She's not worth your life.” Delta began to breathe in as she stood. Two pegasi raced into the room. Toffee and Starfall began untying Apple's bonds.

“Delta, NO! They're running, you don't have to!” Apple shouted.

Mantis looked at Apple, then to the Khalkotauroi. “Delta? That's no illusion, and that's no unicorn!” She turned to run just as Delta began to breathe again. The flames engulfed the officer. He screamed, but stumbled foreword, grasping the connector pin and pulled it out. The engine pulled away, significantly lightened. Dredd fell under the train. There was a heavy “Kchunk!” as the momentum of the cars crunched him under the wheels. Delta, her rage spent and no threats left, collapsed. With the last of her consciousness she reverted back to pegasi form.

“Apple, are you okay?”

“Yeah.”

“Great. Make sure Toffee 'n' Star are okay too. I'm going to take a nap now. Kinda tired.”

8 Home again, home again.

The night sky was always so beautiful. The princess did such amazing work. It filled Yards with vicarious pride, that he'd served her.

He tightened the harness as tight as it would go. It had been intended as a harness for a passenger. One smaller than the pilot, so a mare or an ectomorphic unicorn. Little fillies were a little smaller than what it was designed for. Her foal sized head rattled around in the adult sized helmet he'd put on her.

“Are you ready?” he asked her.

“Are we really gonna fly?”

“Yup.” He slapped his old helmet on, feeling the enchantments change him. His pupils elongated and his night vision improved. The color washed from his pelt, turning him into a misty grey. He began to charge the Eso-battery on his back.

“Here we GO!” He started to run. As he did so he sent a magical charge into the engine and started up the turbines. They started to lift him off the ground. He wrapped his hooves protectively around his cargo as he sent a charge to the secondary engines. The scramjets kicked in and the protective shield encased them from the wind. He pulled into a power climb. He could hear her giggling over the comms in the helmet.

“It's getting my belly!”

He took a lazy circle as he leveled off, letting her see all around. “WOW! It's amazing!”

“Do you like it?”

“I don't wanna ever go down.”

“Oh, you will eventually. Where do you want to go now?”

“What's that there?” She pointed at a group coming up the drive. It was too early for them to be back. This was bad. He swooped down to get a better look. There were three ponies pulling a fourth in a cart. He cut the scrams as he came in for a landing. He ran up beside the ponies. It was Apple, Toffee, some looker of a pegasus, and Delta in the cart.

“What happened?”

“Yards?” Apple asked, looking at her daughter.

“MOMMA! I FLEW!” She tried to wriggle out of her restraints. “Yards took me! It was the greatest day ever! Thank you, Momma!”

Tears started to roll down Apple's cheeks. The tears quickly turned into sobs, then a body wracking breakdown. Yards looked at the others in confusion while he held the crying mare.

_____________________________________________________________________________

The stars were beautiful. There was a crescent moon hanging low in the sky. The breeze blew softly. “Greetings, my Loyal Subject.” The voice resonated all around her.

Apple curtsied to her majesty. She was unable to see where The Princess of the Night descended from.

“Arise.”

“Your majesty. Thank you for coming...I have questions.”

“Certainly. I understand thou hath had some difficulties of late.”

“It seems that a lot of farms are having trouble with staying afloat.”

“Yes. We hath been trying to save as many as possible. That is part of what thou and Yards hath been working upon.“

“Are we purposefully destroying the economy?”

“WHAT?” Her usual decorum was gone as she reared in alarm.

“The terrorists on the train, they said that we were purposefully destroying the economy to force earth ponies to starve.”

Luna closed her eyes. “Truly these are times of great change. There are always those that would want to cling to ways that no longer apply. Change is scary. Rest assured, fair Apple, we are doing everything we can to help everypony. Yay, though these changes are going to upset some ponies, ultimately we will be much stronger for them.”

“Why are we called earth ponies?”

She looked at her confusedly.

“Is it because we're just dirt?”

Luna picked up a hoof of the earth. “Earth ponies are the bedrock of everything. Without the earth, life couldn't exist. There would be nothing for food to grow upon. There would be nowhere for the water to collect, so there could be no clouds. Without mine earth ponies, Equstria would crumble. There will always be a place for earth ponies both in our society and in Our hearts.” She held her hoof to her chest to reinforce her sentiment. She then smiled at her farmer. “So, ye met Starfall?”

“Yes, she seems nice-?”

The princess winked. “It would be a good to become very good friends with her. I must go now. I'm needed elsewhere.”

Apple curtsied again as her Highness flew off into the night.

She woke up with a start, looking around the dark room. Yards's chest rhythmically rose and fell at the far end of the bed. It was amazing. She'd asked him to stay with her, and he'd readily agreed. Of course he'd slept on top of the covers, but what was truly amazing was that Rhu, worried for her momma, had snuggled into bed with them and he'd snuggled next to her. Maybe, just maybe. Maybe she should talk to him about sleeping there more regularly.

She slid out of her bed quietly and walked down the hall. Delta was sprawled out on her back on Yard's bed, stoned off her flank on pain killers. Her snoring was rocking his room. She'd saved them again. She'd saved a lot of ponies. The surviving terrorists had ran away, escaping into the wilderness.

Going down stairs, the pegasi were asleep in the living room. Toffee was too exhausted to walk home and had crashed on her couch. Apple threw the blanket back over her. Starfall was sleeping on a palette in the middle of the floor.

She'd heard about her not having a home, and what she'd done to help her. In payment she'd offered her an abode in her home. She'd get Yards to finish out a room down in the root cellar. That way Starfall could come and go as she pleased. She'd have two weeks to decorate it to her taste since the rail company had given her time off to deal with the trauma.

The dark coated pegasus rolled over in her sleep. She'd welcomed her into her home, then the Princess had told her to make sure to become friends with her. Maybe it was just getting foal napped or what Mantis had said, but for some reason she couldn't get over the feeling that she wasn't in control of her life anymore, and she didn't like it. Something was going on and she couldn't help but feel like a pawn in somepony's elaborate game.

Seeing that at least everything was in order in her home, she turned and went back to sleep.

_____________________________________________________________________________

The sound of hooves quietly walking away in the night woke up Toffee. She looked down at her new friend. Their shared horror had bonded them.

Quietly she walked over to the phone. The device was going to be Ponyville's salvation. Too bad if she did this she'd be the villain. Her ire boiled. Why should she consider herself a villain when she was saving the whole town? Because it meant betraying a friend who'd just saved her life. She took the phone off the cradle and dialed a number. “Hello, Inquisition, I-I need to report a changeling...”

1 One celebration, hold the Smooze.

“I don't have time for this,” Yards McCanter snorted. “The fate of Equestria-”

“Can wait one day.” Delta's tone was slightly patronizing. The changeling had swapped her default form to that of a pegasus with a fuchsia coat and a lavender mane and tail. Her cutie mark was a comet with two stars above and one below the tail. Her mane was extra long, with tresses, but her tail was short and almost shared the form of fire.

“When the world is covered in Smooze, you'll think 'wait a day',” he muttered under his breath.

“Yards, please,” Apple Rhubarb cooed, trying to sooth over his anger. “It's just one day.” Her magenta eyes begged through her red and pink bangs. It was not a good thing that she was hanging out with a mind manipulating changeling. Her exploitation skills were getting better.

They were outside the main house at Sweet Apple Acres. Toffee Chips had found out about Lyra's new book release: Cursorial Hunter. Not only would she be signing copies of her latest Opus, but they would be introducing the cast of the movie they were making of her first book: Thumbs. The mares were ecstatic. Delta, Toffee and Apple Rhubarb had planned out a trip to Canterlot to spend the day full of were-human debauchery. There was just one wrinkle:

He sighed. “Why not let Delta take-”

“Oh there is NO way I'm missing getting to meet the stallion playing Brilliant Lance.” She swooned slightly. “I'm hoping it's Chuck Wagon.” She growled appreciatively.

“Sweetie Swirl?”

“Is at the market, doing her job,” said Apple.

“The train is leaving soon; we need to go now.” Toffee added. Her wings gave her an elevated position that allowed her to see the smoke plumes of the train station.

“Alright,” Yards sighed. The mares squealed.

“Wow, look at you! How many stallions can say they pleased three mares at once?” Delta kissed his left, spotted cheek, and grabbed her bag, heading out the gate.

“Thanks,” Apple beamed “Now Rhu needs to go to bed around 8 so she will actually be in bed by 9. There's some dinner mixes in the cabinet by the stove.”

“It'll be okay,” he assured her.

She kissed his other cheek and grabbed her bags as well.

“Do you need anything from Canterlot?” asked Toffee with a sigh.

“Nah, well, nah, it'd get cold by then. Thanks anyway. Go meet your author.”

She smiled happily and leaned down to kiss him, missing the top of his head and hitting the side of his horn. She blushed deeply then flew away.

“Why was she embarrassed?”

The light green unicorn turned around to find his charge, Rhubarb Salad, wiping the rheum out of her pink eyes with the sleeves of her floral footie pajamas.

“Some ponies mistake a unicorn's horn for an ero-er-er, no-no zone.” Yards still had trouble talking to children, even though he'd been around her for quite a while now.

“It's naught?”

“Well...ask your mother.” He turned and walked into the house.

“She's naught a unicorn,” she followed behind him into the kitchen.

Yards tied to deflect her question. “Pancakes?” he asked while levitating a box.

She beamed while jumping in place. “Yay! Can you add strawberries in the inside?”

He looked around for knives and fruit. “Okay.”

“So why do they think it's a no-no zone?”

He sighed. “Alright, if your mother asked I did NOT tell you, okay?”

She nodded and poked herself in the eye.

He started floating the things around him, measuring out mix and water while holding a whisk at the ready. He enjoyed having multiple things floating around him. If nothing else it helped hide him from his charge while he talked about a delicate subject.

“Well, you know how unicorns use their horns for magic, right?”

She nodded while she retrieved the syrup.

“Do you want anything else in here?”

“Strawberries.”

“I've got that.”

“Peanut butter.”

“On the inside?”

“Inside the two.”

“Well, that answers the next question.”

“What about da horn?”

“Well...those, the horn, it's a focus. It focuses all the power of our bodies, spirits and minds into one point. If it goes out that way things can go in, too.”

“So why is it wrong when Toffee does it, but not when Delta does?”

He flipped the pancake with the spatula. Moving a spatula was easier than lifting a semi-liquid like a half raw pancake. “Well, Delta feeds off of emotions, so using my horn makes it easier for her to draw it out. She's not putting something in. See,” he put the pancake on the plate and poured out the next one. “Sometimes when a couple is, uh, well, playing around...one of them will grab the horn and inject..ah...feelings or emotions.

“Do you want juice or milk?”

“Coffee!”

“Yeah, not happening.”

She pouted.

“Chocolate milk?” She smiled again. While the other pancake cooked he poured her a glass. She climbed onto the table.

“Well, not everypony understands the intricacies of unicorn flirtations. It's not the act of playing with my horn, it's the intent behind it that makes it naughty.” With a peanut butter flourish he presented the two pancakes to his ward. He cut them up real quick for her then floated the fork down to her.

“I can do it myself,” she pouted.

“Sorry. Let's get the boring stuff out of the way first. After you eat and get out of your 'jamas, go take care of the critters while I work on the repairs, okay?”

A great gob of sticky maple flavored spit ran down her mouth as she nodded her assent. Foals were so gross.

“I can't believe we're going!” squealed Toffee, the happiness showing in her blue eyes. The three mares were settling down to a table in the dining cart with a light brunch. The ponies each had a melon bowl and the changeling a mimosa. The train lurched as it began to pull away from Ponyville station. The other girls joined into a group shriek of excitement. “I'm finally going to get to meet Ms. Heartstrings.” She pulled a remarkable stack of books out from her bag and dropped them on the table with an authoritarian “THUNK”. “I'm going to have her autograph the entire set for me.”

Delta, who was sitting next to the pegasus, pulled out a double hoofful of tickets. “I've got fifty bits worth of tickets for the chance to win a date with the leading man of the movie.”

“What are you going to do if it's not Chuck?” teased Apple. She was working her new radio in between sticky bites of strawberries, cantaloupe, and watermelon, trying to tune to her favorite station.

Delta glared at the white coated country girl. “That's not funny. It will be Chuck. I will meet him, we will fall in love, and I will have his foals.” She put her hoof to her chest and closed her eyes in a dignified pose. “Yards will just have to understand.”

The other girls giggled.

“I don't think he likes foals.” Apple's tone was slightly sad.

Delta scoffed. “Yards doesn't know what he likes. That's his problem.”

Apple quit fiddling with the knob as a female voice came over the speaker.

“We're here LIVE at the Parchment and Parts with Lyra Heartstrings for the celebration of her NEW book, Cursorial Hunter. I'm sure everypony can understand the excitement, right Bit?”

“No, I'm a straight stallion,” said a bored male voice.

“Well, there's stuff for them here too.” Stammered the female voice, trying to stay on topic. “We've got drinks, prizes-”:

“And lots of lonely, desperate mares.”

The female announcer, audibly flustered, tried to stay on script. “Yes, there's quite the crowd here, and more little ponies are expected. We'll be having more coverage throughout the day as we make big announcements, like who is playing Heart Sworn.”

“Who?”

“That's what we'll find out.”

“Is everything alright?” asked a voice outside the radio. The trio turned to meet their waitress. Her coat was a very dark indigo. Her cutie mark was a silver star with a different color streaming from each point. Her tail was a soft silver that just curled away from the ground, and her mane was tucked under her uniform hat. Her dark blue uniform with gold trim was well pressed with a double shift frump. The jacket stopped just before her wings. Her name tag called her “Starfall.” “Would you like some caramel sauce, or maybe a refill?” Her smile was genuine, if tired. She was pushing a cart with condiments, juices, soft drinks, and niceties.

“I'm good for now, maybe in a few minutes.” Delta answered. Apple took the offered caramel.

“We thank you for traveling ERL and hope you enjoy your trip. If there's anything else you need, just let us know.”

She moved her cart down to the next table and greeted them with a smile. There were a lot of ponies on the train. Everypony who had any disposable income of measure in Ponyville was there, heading to the party in Canterlot. She was a very busy pony. The door opened and more ponies came running in.

That struck the others as odd. That some were shouting “Dear Celestia, they've got guns!” alarmed them.

5 Blah! Blah! I vant to eat your love!

A pegasus and an earth pony frantically worked the bank of toaster ovens. The changeling posing as a pegasus worked the fryer.

“Where is Fondue?” grumbled the earth pony. Her yellow coat was mostly hidden by her uniform, but her light blue mane spilled out from under her lopsided hat. Three mint leaves was her cutie mark. Her brow was glossy from the foam of her sweat as she frantically moved enchiladas from the freezer, to the oven, to the service tray.

Starfall worked beside her, trying to minimize getting into each others way. “With any luck, hiding.”

A timer went off behind them and Delta pulled a basket out of the deep fryer. “Mushroom, mushroom,” she intoned. Then she filled the basked with onion petals before setting it back into the grease and twisting the knob again. Happily she hummed to herself as she portioned out the fried goods into small cups and placed them on a second cart.

The other ponies glance back at her. “Have you ever seen a new girl enjoy her job this much?” asked the Earth pony. Her name was Mint Julep, and she worked the other side of the train. The missing pony, Fondue, was apparently the cook and the one that took care of the middle in between their rounds.

Mint yelped as she dropped the tray back into the oven. “Ouch! It really would be nice to have someone with magic to do this.” She pouted slightly. She waved her hoof in front of her mouth, trying to cool off her burnt lips.

Delta conspicuously looked away while she pulled a basket of apple fries out of the oil with her magic while nobody was looking. She wondered how they got the cinnamony, chunky apple sauce inside the breaded filling. Quietly she snuck one, savoring the sweet flavor before the hot goo burned down her throat. Tearfully she quieted her yelp of pain, but they were so good. All they needed were some ice cream or whipped crème.

“They're sinful with a little caramel sauce.” whispered a voice in her ear. Guiltily she turned to see Starfall grinning.

Slowly her eyes grew. “Oh, that would be AMAZING!”

She turned back to the array of toasters with a smile. “Remember four to a box, there's 43 in a bag, we go through two bags, one for lunch, one for supper, so there's going to be more later.” Her wing pulled two of the apple sticks to her as she walked away. Mint took her's from the feathers, holding it in her mouth like a cigar.

Quickly lunch was loaded onto three trays. Most of the ponies were actually in the back. Mint and Delta would be taking two carts while Starfall would take the front. Delta had seen most of the guards up front, this would be her chance to find the ones in the back.

The changeling sighed, trying to calm her nerves. She gave a nervous grin to her compatriots. “Well, girls, it's show time!”

“Be careful, you two,” Starfall hugged the two going away.

“Hey, I've got back-up, you're the one going into it alone, er, going out alone.” Delta hugged her back.

“This job isn't worth getting killed for. Please, watch out.” Mint hugged her coworker. The group broke up and started pushing their carts to the doorways.

“Remember,” started Mint, “we only have enough enchiladas for one for each customer. If they want anything else push the onion petals. They're cheap and plentiful. Be courteous, polite, and don't give them a reason to hurt you or anypony else. 'Kay?”

Delta nodded as she walked into the new room. There was three guards in this room. All stallions. One sword, two rifle. This room had more Lunari than Solari. There were also some terrified ponies. Slowly Delta and Mint began to dispense Cheese or bean enchiladas, drinks and sides, working their way down. Delta smiled and tried a few jokes to try and break the sorrow. The room went uneventful, passing out food to captive and captor alike. The two stewardess breathed easier after they moved into the next room.

This room was a sleeper. Inside were the badly beaten bodies of four unicorns. Mint ran to one, a blonde unicorn with a lilac coat. “Fondue!” She cradled her head in her forehooves. “Fondue. Why? Why would they do this to you?”

Delta walked over to the bodies. They were still warm, but dead. They had been beaten, kicked, and violated. Fury began to burn in her heart. This was a brutality beyond the pale. One had been strangled. Two had had their horns cut off and been stabbed repeatedly throughout their body. Gently the two tucked them into beds and closed their eyes, laying them to rest. Delta held Mint while she cried for her lost friend.

“Hey,” she said after a short break, “they're waiting for us. We need to go.” Slowly she pulled her back to her cart. Taking a deep breath they walked into the next room. This was another sleeper that they had turned into a barracks. There were two more guards but there was gear for a lot more ponies scattered around the room. These guards were both stallions, both Solari.

Mint struggled with giving out the food so Delta came foreword. “Would you like cheese or bean sir?”

“Both.”

“I'm sorry, but we only have enough for one per customer.”

“That's okay,” a hoof smacked her flank, “you've got less mouths to feed.”

“We've got some onion petals, fried mushrooms and some very tasty apple sticks,” she turned to face the hoofy stallion.

“I'm a big stallion. It takes a lot to fill me. What about you?” He leaned in, violating her personal space. Physically she giggled and pushed him back with a wing. Inwardly she groaned to herself for how incredibly horrid this stallion's lines were.

“The last two are for your friends in the back. If I give you them then they don't get to eat.” She bent over pulling a bottle out of the bottom shelf of the cart. Inevitably the stallion grabbed her flank and didn't let go. She came up with a bottle and turned, gently forcing his hoof away from her rear. She moved the bottle from her mouth to her hoof. “I can offer you an extra bottle of juice. Personally I recommend the kiwi passion fruit flavored Coollage.” She smiled slyly at her target though her eyelashes. From his grin and blush it was clear he understood.

“How about the two of us...”

“I still have a couple more cars to wait on. On the way back...” She snuggled close to him. His buddy scoffed. Good to see some being had some sense. That one was dangerous. Mint was in quiet disarray. As they walked through the door to the next cart. Over the rumble of the train on the tracks she could hear her target say: “What? I told you pegasi mares were easy.”

The next two carts were baggage carts and empty of any passengers. The caboose held the last two guards. The final two were a mare and stallion. Both Solari. They took their meals without fuss. Delta read some sexual tension from the stallion that might come in handy later. After they returned to the baggage cars, Delta began to pile up the remains onto Mint's cart.

“I need to break away here. I'm going to try and deal with these ponies. See if I can't thin the herd down some.”

Mint rolled her eyes. “What are you, a commando or something? These ponies have weapons and armor. They could kill you.”

She nodded. “I've got to do something to help save my friends. I've got a plan. I'm not sure just how many I can do or how well, but just head back to the kitchen, heck, maybe see If one of the guards will help you and Starfall with the dishes. That way you've got a witness to your innocence.”

“You're crazy.”

“Yeah, I've been called that too.” She smiled at her compatriot. “Be careful, I'd hate to have to see something happen to you on a day you weren't supposed to be here.”

Mint shook her head, but pushed the cart back to the kitchenette.

Delta sighed. Now for a slow witted brute to seduce.

She sighed and prepared herself for the inevitable onslaught. With her head held high she walked back into the room with the two stallions. Mr Macho was waiting.

“Got rid of your friend, eh?”

“Yeah,” she walked over to him. “So, do you want to go to another car or do we send him out of this one?” There was no need to play coy here. She was committed to the path of violence, and there was no stopping now.

“You want a bed? We can go to the next car.”

“Sure, it makes it easier on me.” She walked over to the door, swaying her hips at her prey. He laughed, slightly self-consciously. He cantered up to the door before her and opened it. Well, at least he had some manners. His hoof caressed her rear as she walked through the doors. He was so consumed with lust for her that he didn't even notice they had cleaned up the bodies.

He grabbed her and pulled her to him. She lost herself in the power of his embrace. For a moment, at least, she took pleasure in submission. In not having be in charge. That somepony else was making the difficult choices and that none of it was her doing. There was no responsibilities, she was unencumbered by obligations and authority, free from the pressures of her changeling birth rite. Utterly lost in the moment, she didn't notice him ripping her coat, just him biting her neck.

Clumsily she started pawing at his armor, trying to touch his coat. He realized and began to pull the heavy plate to lay bare his body while she tossed her hat to the wind and pulled off what was left of her blazer. That's when she noticed his coat was bubble gum pink. That explained a lot. In his armor he'd been white. He grabbed her again and kissed her hard. She had no more time to think about it. Deftly she slipped his charm off from around his fetlock, her lips distracting him from noticing. His thick tongue invaded her mouth. Excellent, it was time for her to spring her trap. She needed to take control and become the hunter she was born to be. She breathed in from his lungs, filling her body with his breath.

Then she began to feed off his love. It was hot and spicy with lust. Typical stallion. Tendrils of magic snaked through his mind, obscuring his fate from him. Also like a stallion, his love was quickly expended. Still she continued to feed. The Martyr's Charm that would have protected him from her mental assault was on the floor, kicked over to the beds of his victims. Lust was almost as good as love and the power of his emotions filled her. Soon the lust was expended, but still she fed.

This was a dark act she had rarely performed before. Rarely did changelings feed this deeply, but this beast deserved it. Surely this was retribution for his heinous acts. Delta continued to pull from him. There was resistance, as it should be. She was ripping his soul free and such things tended to be difficult. With all her might she pulled, feeling it slowly pull free. She could taste the sweetest nectar coming. The sensation was almost like snapping a bone and sucking the marrow inside. Sweet and delicious it filled her like a heavy meal. She wanted to sleep, to digest, to absorb this new power, but there was work to do.

She pulled the rest of his gear off his desiccated husk. There was a quick study of the body for part two then she summoned a ring of green fire to sink the body through the car. The fire came much easier this time. The train car jumped and slammed slightly as it ran over the body. The final indignity she should could preform to the monster.

The halo surrounded her as she took his form. An earth pony with pink coat and brown, short main and tail. Then she donned his gear. It took some time, but that was fine. It was expected that he would have taken awhile. The armor tickled her when it was on, almost like it was providing feedback. Strange. It was almost like when she pushed through the doors protected by Trixie's Wards now with her new charm.

The changeling walked into the room. His compatriot was engrossed in a magazine. “Done already?” He didn't even look up. Could it really be this easy?

“Yeah, she was really hot. Wouldn't believe what she could do with her mouth.” Delta walked up behind him. This monster was even worse. The last one was an emotional brute, but this one, he was smart. He should have known better. The dagger lifted itself into the air.

“Did you want a turn with her?”

“No, Banana Sorbet is waiting for me.”

“Yeah, but nopony else would know.”

“I would.”

This brute. How could he? How could he be so...moral yet so evil?

The tip of the blade wavered slightly. No, no. It had to be done. They'd find out about the one she'd killed sooner or later. Killing him now meant less danger to her friends. She shoved the blade at the base of his skull. There was a gasp as he died. Again she stripped the body, looking for anything of use.

She found another one of those ear horns again. They had similar armor and both had a rifle and two clips of ammo. There was a fighting knife, about a hundred bits between the two of them. The one had had a picture of an earth mare with a yellow coat and a blond mane with dark roots. This was the mare that would cry herself to sleep for years because of her actions. She tucked the picture away, along with the bits to remind herself of this fact.

Delta wasn't a soldier. She wasn't really even much of a killer. She hated this with every fiber of her being. Did she really have to keep doing this? The train stuttered as it started up another slope in the mountains. Ah, yes, maybe now would be her chance. With a bolt she shot back to the sleeper car and waited for the train to hit the apex of this incline before hitting the emergency release between the cars, sending the back four careening downhill. They wouldn't be a danger anymore.

Now, needing a nap to clear her belly and soul she transformed into a snake again, crawled up onto the roof and curled around a pipe in the lee of the air vent to the overhead storage. A safe place to sleep in a safe form. Snakes were a good choice. They couldn't cry.