The tent went silent as Hero, Misty, Tidbit and Emjay waited for the large brown earth pony stallion to continue. He gestured to the collar wearing purple mare and patted his couch as he laid back down on his side. The purple mare tittered as she sashayed to her Master. The couch shifted slightly as she slid her body onto the cushions and snuggled up to him. Idly the Praetor stroked the mane of the female with a gentleness that belied his size. Hero watched avidly as she sensed the emotions from the slave and Master fill the air with love and devotion.
“You two”, the Praetor gestured at the still blood stained bug pony and bat pony “have cost me two good stallions, “He paused and smiled at them all. “But yet if you succeed I would consider their lives and the supplies that your survival and return would cost me as an acceptable price.” He smiled generously. “As a bonus, I do have some of the herb that I can smell your slave partakes in. I might be willing to part with a generous amount.”

“Not a ssslave!” spat Emjay. Pride in her freedom now warring with her pleasure in the weed.

Ignoring her, Tidbit spoke “How can we be sure you will keep your end.”

The Praetor looked down and traced the jaw of the slave lying with him with his large hoof. “I may have done many things that others see as evil to benefit myself and the empire. I may also have my own little desires, predilections, eccentricities and even fetishes that others may see as cruel or vile.” He smiled at the slave as she nuzzled into him. “Don’t I shmoopy-doo”, his voice was tender and playful.
The slave giggled and nodded happily.

He turned back to Tidbit, his face now hard and his eyes flashing with anger. “I am also honest, and honorable. My word is law, and the law stands. You will be free, you will gain your possessions back, and you will be given the provisions you need. Torture and death now. Or the possibility survival with provisions and safe passage should you do so. That is the deal”.

There was more silence broken only by the soft cooing of the Praetor’s slave. Hero looked at each of her companions in turn, getting a feel for each of them. The irradiated Tidbit gave away nothing, Misty was worried for her friends, and Emjay was radiating waves of jealousy. This surprised Hero, especially when she worked out that Emjay was envious of the purple slave mare.

Her voice was steady when she addressed their captor. “What do you want us to do?”

“Oh it’s nothing really.” The brown stallion shifted slightly in his couch, dislodging his companion who fell to the ground with a thud. She looked up with a pout. The stallion continued as he sat upright again, dangling his hind legs over the mare, using her as a hoof-stool. “There is a small town that has been, shall we say,” he paused again as if in thought, “-resistant to our approaches. I would like you to, let us say, remove the towns resistance.” He nodded, “Yes… remove the towns resistance, by removing its head.”

Misty gasped at the inference “WHAT? You can’t mean…”

Hero pressed her hoof to the shocked unicorn’s muzzle.

Tidbit spoke instead “Your stallions are not able to do it?” he asked with a slight steel edge to it.

“They have proved most insistent, and unusually capable in resisting our very reasonable demands” the Praetor smiled.

Hero’s eyes burned as she thought about their chances of fighting their way out, or simply accepting the quest.

“Oh and one more small, ever so un-important detail” the Praetor’s voice broke through Hero’s thoughts. “One of you must stay here with us, as a token of trust. They will be treated as our guest.” The face of the brown stallion darkened, taking on a look of malicious glee “However if you fail this task, take longer than a day, or betray our hospitality then our guest will find themselves on a cross.” He then smiled beatifically, “Just something to inspire you on your task. And to make it easier on you all, I will choose whom we will have as our guest.” He feigned disinterest as he dragged his gaze over the group before him. Tidbit keeping still as only a ghoul can, Hero watching him intensely, with a gaze he found slightly unsettling, Misty who looked like she was about to burst into arguing, but holding her tongue, and the slave bat pony who was staring daggers at his slave.

“The blue one” he said finally, a small smile across his face. “You start at dawn, and you will be back with the troublesome mare’s head before sundown. Or…” he did not need to finish his threat.

Tidbit and Misty exploded with shouts, just as a group of the Praetor’s guards burst in and pointed guns at them.

“We will do it,” Hero told the lounging pony.

“But- “, Misty and Tidbit objection died on their lips when Hero faced them both.

“We will do it, and we will succeed. We promise you” Hero’s strange voice emphasized her conviction.

Misty gaped at the black changeling. “You can’t be seri- “

The black hoof was thrust into Misty’s mouth. “Trust Us” the changeling whispered.

Misty’s wide eyes looked into the bright blue featureless eyes of Hero. She paused for a moment, then lowering her eyes, she sighed around the hoof in her mouth, and nodded.

Hero removed her hoof from Misty’s mouth with a slightly moist pop. A sudden sensation of envy washed over the changeling. She shot Emjay a startled look when she worked out that the bat pony was the origin of that feeling. Emjay quickly looked down and muttered to herself.

The praetor coughed, drawing everypony’s attention back to him. “My stallions will show you to your tent where you will remain as our honored guests until tomorrow. I will have some of my guards at your tent, for your protection of course.”

Surrounded by armed stallions, the group were ushered out of the tent, leaving the brown stallion and his purple unicorn slave alone.
Hero’s group stood briefly outside the tent taking in the scene before them. Leather and metal clad stallions drilled with various weapons. Mares and stallions wearing metal collars ran about doing their duties, some showing signs of heavy labor, and others at sating their owners more carnal needs. A cart bearing a crude cage full of shackled and dirty ponies was being dragged out the main gate to places unknown.
A brief shriek from inside the tent they had just left startled them all. Meaningful glances from the stoic guards made sure they did even think of looking inside. Silently the group followed the guards across the packed hard dirt to a tent. They entered silently with the guards waiting outside.

Three filthy sleeping pads had been tossed carelessly on the floor of the tent. The batpony grumped her way over to one of them and flopped her body carelessly down on it. Misty on the other hand gingerly lowered herself down and tried to avoid the worst of the rust red stains, her muzzle wrinkled in disgust. Hero sat on the ground and closed her eyes, while the ever stoic and strangely naked ghoul stood near the tent flap. Soon only the sound of breathing filled the tent.

“I cannot believe this.” Misty broke the silence. “You are going to simply go and kill, no, MURDER, somepony we have never met!”

All eyes turned to Hero. She slowly opened her own and turned her head to the indignant medical unicorn. “Yes.”

Misty spluttered “How can you say that so easily? This is wrong! Can’t you see that?” She turned to Tidbit “And you, are you going to go along with this? The batpony I can understand, she is a violent psycho-case, but YOU?”

Tidbit opened his maw to respond but was interrupted by the bug-pony’s chorus like voice. “We value your life, our life, and our friends lives. We will do what we need to, to preserve those lives, and if our friends will help Hero, then good, but we will do it on Hero’s own if Hero has to.”

Misty’s eyes flashed with anger. “This is NOT how we should be doing things!” she yelled so hard her voice cracked.
“This is the wasteland,” Tidbits gravelly voice boomed “It does not care how you think things should be done. “ His voice turned gentle as he sighed. “I know it’s not fair, but if you don't play by its rules, the wasteland will kill you.”

The unicorn snarled at Tidbit before turning her head away, refusing to look at any of the companions as she settled herself down and sulked. Tidbit sighed again and walked over to her slowly.

As he approached Misty lifted her head slightly, keeping her eyes downcast. “Just leave me alone,” she muttered, “I don’t know if I can…” her voice trailed off into incoherent murmurs. Tidbit sat down near her while Hero made a hollow in the dirt, and curled herself up. Emjay yawned and splayed herself out over her mattress. Soon light snores came from her fanged mouth.
The rest of the day passed in relative silence, broken only by a guard entering with food as the sun began to set.

There was a brief fluttering of leathery wings as Emjay woke up, finding that she had abandoned her mattress in her sleep and had draped herself over Hero. She quickly bolted back onto the stained mattress, hoping no one had seen her over the changeling. Misty, however, lifted her head from her fore legs and watched the batpony move around. Emjay, feeling the unicorn’s eyes on her, tried her best to look nonchalant while her green messy tail twitched nervously.

“The Praetor wishes to see you” a unicorn guard threw back the door flap of the tent and barged in. His horn glowed as he carried some rough raider barding in his magic. “The black one, dead one and the slave, put these on. Be quick”. He sneered at them as he tossed the crude and dirty looking armor to the ground. With a spurious humph the roamish guard turned his back and stalked out into the predawn chill.

“NOT A FUCKING SLAVE,” Emjay screeched loudly. Hero pushed herself upright just as Emjay shot over her head. With a snap of chitin jaws, she caught the batpony’s tail, causing Emjay to crash to the ground with a thud. Shaking her head, she picked herself up spun herself around to face Hero, snarling.

A black hoof filled her vision, as Hero booped her nose.

Grey fluffy butt slammed on the ground as she sat back and covered her nose with her front hooves. She looked at Hero with wide eyes. Hero’s face betrayed no emotion, but Emjay could see steel in the bug pony’s blue orb eyes.

“Uh, I could do with a bit of help putting this stuff on...” Tidbit had taken the largest of the barding and was trying to slip it over his head. Misty frowned as she looked and she used her hooves and magic to settle the thick leather and material over the rough flesh of the ghoul.

Hero lifted a second set of barding, and watching Misty and Tidbit, copied them as she dressed a wiggling and bitterly protesting Emjay. When the last buckle for the wither pads was fastened, Emjay escaped from Hero’s grip and took off to the other side of the tent, growling. Hero took the last set and slipped on the ragged barding and with Misty’s help strapped on the armor padding.

Tidbit led the group out of the tent. Three figures dressed in rough armor and a naked blue unicorn. A pair of roamishly armored and heavily armed guards formed up each side of them and guided them towards the Praetor’s tent. As they approached they saw the Praetor in his armor with his guard. His armor shone like gold in the flickering lights of flaming torches. As they approached him the purple unicorn slave mare appeared and knelt before him. She gently placed his helm on his head before bowing deeply and slinking away. Misty’s trained eyes caught the slave was now favoring her rear leg.

“Good morning my friends,” the Praetors voice cheerful voice was a contrast to the grim visage of his helmeted face. “I trust that you had a good sleep.”

Hero churped.

“Wonderful, wonderful”, he gushed ignoring anything anypony else would have said. “My men will take you close to our little problem, and then you and your most excellent companions can do,” he paused briefly, “whatever it is you do.”

Tidbit grunted “We will need our weapons.”

The brown stallion waved it away as unimportant “Oh my ponies will give you your weapons when you arrive.” He looked over to the horizon where the sun started to peek. “Ah it’s sunrise.” He smiled at the group as two of his guards isolated Misty from them. “I am sure you will want to be off. Daylight is burning, and I know that your friend will want to see you back before sunset.” With that he turned his back and re-entered his tent, soon followed by the limping purple mare. Just before she went in, she turned her head and winked at Emjay, sticking her tongue out at her. Then with a flick of her tail she joined her Master.

The two guards gestured with their rifles for Tidbit Hero and Emjay to follow them, while another pair bundled their ‘guest’ away. As they approached the main gate they could hear Misty yelling at her guards.

“I never want to get her that pissed off,” Tidbit chuckled.

Heavily armored guards swung the heavy gate open letting the small group into the wasteland.

“Are we there yet?” Emjay’s voice was petulant as she followed behind Hero and Tidbit. Beside her one of the guards rolled his eyes and sighed.

“No we are not, we will tell you when we are there”

Emjay ignored him.

“ARE WE FUCKING THERE YET?!”

The sun was high when the guards stopped. The larger of the two turned to the small group and shrugged off the saddle-packs he had been carrying. The contents spilled out: two small mouth revolvers, some loose ammo, a pair of half empty canteens, some old apple chip packets, and a switchblade.

“The bitch is in the compound just over the hill in front,” he said in a low voice, “I’d wish you good luck, but I am looking forward to enjoying your friend when you fail,” the guard sneered.

Tidbit lunged forward snarling. There was a loud crack as the guard smacked the butt of his rifle into Tidbits skull.
“Cool it, lover boy”

Hero snapped her jaws at the strands that remained of Tidbits tail and tried to pull him back.
“If, and I mean IF, you get that whore’s head. Just follow this trail back to camp. Get there before sundown, and the pretty little unicorn will be safe. If not, she will be ours.” With that the stallions turned their backs on the small group and trotted away.

“Well this sucks,” Tidbit snarked bitterly.

Hero churped, took a canteen by its strap, and looped it over her neck. Remembering Misty’s teachings, she took one of the guns, a rusted pipe revolver, checked it, and loaded some of the spilled bullets into its cylinder. She passed it to the earth pony ghoul who took it from her magical field and slipped it into one of the straps on his barding. Hero repeated it with the second one, and followed Tidbits example with sliding it into her own barding.

Emjay’s eyes gleamed as she picked up the switchblade knife in her hooves. Pressing the button on the handle the blade flipped out, the metal shiny in the sunlight. She stared at the blade like it was a long lost lover. She folded the blade back and tucked it under one of the metal plates strapped to her body.

“I don’t think they may know what you are, Hero,” Tidbit told the changeling, “You may want to change.”

Hero nodded, then sticking her tongue out the corner of her mouth, she concentrated. Her eyes closed as green fire danced over her hard shell. The flames passed over revealing a very fluffy pink earth pony.

“NO!” Both Emjay and Tidbit looked at Fluffy Hero with horror.

“THHHBBBBBBT,” Hero responded.

With a far cuter tongue action Hero concentrated again. The green fire enveloped the bright pink fluff burning through it leaving a rough looking, sickly, green unicorn mare, with a bright blue messy Mohawk mane.

Tidbit blinked a few times, while Emjay’s eyes bulged out.

Hero turned her head and looked at her companions, cobalt blue eyes shining with insane glee. Her left pupil a stark pinprick, her right pupil round and full. A manic grin showing all her rough teeth split Hero’s face like a jagged wound. “That better,” Hero’s new voice cracked, squeaked and wavered.

Tidbit nodded, not trusting himself to speak.

“Good”. Hero then giggled, her grin widening.

Tidbit and Emjay exchanged worried looks.
“Are you feeling- “

“Let’s do this,“ Hero interrupted, cutting Tidbit short and prancing off over the rise.

“We are so fucked,” Emjay muttered, as she trudged after the crazy.

Corrugated iron and scrap metal formed a tall fence, topped with rusted barb wire. Raising above the wire, heavily armed ponies in watch towers trained their binoculars and gun-scopes on the approaches. In one of the tower’s a unicorn stallion and an earth pony mare watched as a small group of ragged ponies came up the dusty trail.

“I see what looks like a ghoul earth stallion,“ the fuchsia watch stallion looked though the scope again, “a strange winged Pegasus?” He hummed to himself. “I didn’t know there were any pegasi around here,” he mused to his companion, “And it has a unicorn mare on a leash?”
The female earth pony beside him was a powerful figure of ponydom. Huge muscles moved like snakes under her cream coat. “Kinky”. She turned to the ramp leading down to the ground and swatted the stallion’s rump with her tail. He leapt and swore, while she winked and blew him a kiss. “I will let the gate guards know. Don’t get too jealous of the unicorn, I will make sure you have some fun time on my leash tonight baby.” With a nickering snicker she headed down the ramp to the ground.

Tidbit stood next to the pony Hero at the gate. A rough wooden sign hung in front of them “Republic of Sunny Skies,” he read aloud, “Weird”.
Hero giggled around the rope bridle that Emjay had earlier forced on her face and tugged at the rope leash that the bat pony had her on. Her character of a crazed raider still disturbing her companions. “Well we can’t do anything out here,” She said as she raised her hoof to knock just as the gate began to swing inwards.

“Welcome Strangers,” a jovial unicorn mare greeted them with a grin as wide as Hero’s, “If you come in peace the please enter.”
Tidbit stepped forward. “We come in peace,” he said. Emjay and Hero walked in with him, Hero’s head swiveling to the left and right as she took in the sights. Beside her Emjay kept her head low.

Hero watched as different ponies: unicorn, and earth pony, male and female, alive and ghoul lived and worked together. Some clad in different armor and weapons, others naked, but all seemed to be living in peace. Sounds of metal being worked came from a smoke billowing shack, from another building came the smell of cooking, and a third they could hear the sounds of…

Tidbit’s dead face flushed darkly as ichor flooded his cheeks when he identified the sounds of multiple ponies engaged in pleasure.
“We do ask all newcomers and visitors to our republic to please hand over their weapons”, the unicorn was very polite yet firm. The fact that there was plenty of armed ponies behind her was all the backup the unicorn needed. Tidbit nodded then pulled his pistol out from his armor and hoofed it to the unicorn. Hero followed his example. The unicorn smiled and looked expectantly at the morose bat pony. “And you too please”

“Oh we never let her have anything more dangerous than a wooden butter knife.” Tidbit kept his voice level.

Psycho Hero giggled insanely. “The bitch be CRAAAZY!” Her grin seemed to grow even bigger.

Emjay yanked on Hero’s leash and snarled at them both.

“Yes well, thank you”. The unicorn looked a little uncertain at Hero. Sideling up to Tidbit she whispered to him, “The unicorn… is she safe?”
Tidbit snorted and grinned. “When she’s fed.”

The unicorn sighed. Putting on a professional smile she addressed them all again, “If you are just staying temporarily, your weapons will be returned to you when you leave. Until then I will leave you in the hooves of one of our best ponies. “
With that she levitated their guns before her, turned her back and trotted towards one of the longer buildings.

“Well… that is something,” Tidbit remarked.

“Yes she is.” A blue earth pony mare trotted up to them. “She is the vice president and chief welcome mare of our republic”

“And you?” Tidbit’s voice showed his caution.

The mare eyes hooded as she looked him up and down. Then with a toss of her long red and white striped mane she smiled. “You can call me Kandy Cane. I’m here to show you around, see if you like what you see here.” Her voice turned saucy. “And then I can be whatever you want.”

Tidbit blanched. “Uh, I, uh…”

Kandy pressed a hoof to her lips and giggled. “Come on hot-stuff, you and your girls follow me”

Twin sharpened candy canes stood out from the blue fur on her flank as she wiggled her hips while walking ahead of blushing Tidbit, psycho Hero and suspicious Emjay. Behind them two large stallions wearing improvised armor followed.

“The Republic of Sunny Skies was founded by our President about 10 years ago, and named after the promise of the Goddess Celestia, for the skies to clear one day. After much worship from us of course”. Kandy started talking like a guide with a gaggle of tourists. “We live in peace and harmony with each other, regardless of anything. If you are a pony, you will be welcome here.”

“Just ponies?” Tidbit enquired as they passed some ghoul unicorns who were tending to a large garden.
“Well, we do get the occasional griffin passing through, and they don’t usually try anything.” She wrinkled her nose. “We have a live and let live policy here. But if anyone tries to upset our way of life, we will defend ourselves”.

Hero’s raider persona cackled. Behind her, one of the guards narrowed his eyes distrustfully.

“And this is our chapel,” Kandy smiled. She had already shown them the workshops, single pony dorms, family accommodations, eating areas, and huts that she had euphemistically called “Game rooms”. Hero found them most satisfying with the excess of emotions swirling around the game rooms as ponies engaged various mutual pleasures. “We owe everything to the Goddess Celestia. It was she, after much prayer and sacrifice, who decided to clear the skies and let her glorious sun shine on her ponies once more.”

Tidbit saw Kandy’s eyes gleam with zealous glee as she gazed at the statute that loomed over them.

White marble peeked out from rust colored staining of an alicorn raring up majestically with her wings spread proudly.

“That is very, uh, interesting.” Tidbit shot Hero and Emjay a ‘and I thought you two were nuts’ look.

“Yes, yes it is.“ Kandy’s voice dripped with unconcealed lust. She turned her full bedroom eyes to Tidbit and swished her tail seductively while ignoring everypony else.
“Is there anything... ANYTHING, that you would like to see, or do?”

Tidbit coughed as his leathery face darkened again.

The sun continued its slow decent into late afternoon. Under a canopy outside an ornate tent, Misty and the Praetor ate as they watched soldiers practice in the large yard before them. The magic null ring flashed in the sunlight as the unicorn did her best to bring a small carrot to her mouth with her hooves.

The Praetor smiled at Misty as his slave held a small pile of berries before him. “Such a trial, isn’t it, when one cannot use one’s magic for simple tasks.” As he took a bite from the berries he lifted his eyes upwards. “Seems time is marching on. I do hope your friends succeed. Really I do. It would be such a shame to see you hanging from a cross.” He looked sadly at her. “It would be such a terrible waste.”

Misty shuddered but said nothing, pointedly ignoring the sound of hammering behind her, as legionary engineers prepared her cross.

Tidbit looked up at the sky with a worried look, as he saw the sun dipping closer to the horizon. One of the stallions following the group shot a quick glare at Tidbit. The mare, Kandy Cane, had led them through a gardening area, a small sports ground and even a small water treatment plant.

Beside him, Hero whimpered slightly, her manic grin wavering as sweat rolled down the fuzzy brow of the changeling’s alter ego. Tidbit and Emjay cast her a quick glance.

“Look, I don’t want to be rude, but we have somewhere to be by sunset” Tidbit told the unicorn guide. “Can we just see your boss and pass on a message that we have for her?” He gestured at Hero who was prancing in pace, her mismatched eyes rolling. “Not to mention my friend is starting to get a bit bored.”

Kandy smiled at Tidbit, “I can take you there now, if you wish. But you had better promise me that you will see me as soon as you finish.” She leered at him “So I can send you off with a proper farewell.”
She flicked his muzzle with her tail as she led them all towards a squat grey building.

Emjay trotted next to the fidgety changeling, bumping her hip against the fake furred and leather clad faux-raider unicorn rump. Hero glanced back at the batpony and gave a small nod, feeling reassured by the grey fluffy presence. Ahead of them Tidbit glanced back at the mares, his face set with worry.

Kandy Cane’s horn shimmered as she magically opened the age ravaged door. She stepped to one side, and then with a flourish ushered them in. Tidbit blinked as they entered into a rough looking waiting area. Dirty wallpaper peeled from the corners of the rooms walls, and a dirty worn carpet partly covered grimy floorboards. Across the other side a bored looking ghoul unicorn mare sat at a wooden desk idly filing a hoof. She flicked the shredded remains of a long mane out of her face as she turned her attention of the new comers.

“Daisy Shine,” Kandy called from the door, “These ponies need to see our President. Be a sexy darling and see them in for me?”

The ghoul, who was obviously known as Daisy Shine, snorted once and rolled her rheumy eyes. “Yes, of course”

Kandy leered at Tidbit, “And I will see you later, big boy.” With a final teasing flick of her tail she shut the door and left them in the room.

The female unicorn ghoul slowly came out from behind her desk and gave the three visitors a professional smile. “I will see if the President is free”, her voice was husky with the radiation damage as she addressed them. “Please be patient, this may take a few minutes.” She turned away and gently rapped on a door next to her desk, then let herself though.

Minutes passed slowly as Tidbit kept glancing out the window watching as the sun continued its descent. Hero was sweating heavily as her figure rippled while green flames licked around her hooves as she struggled to maintain her disguise. She turned her insane grin to the batpony sitting next to her. “I can’t maintain” she hissed.

Emjay nodded, then after a quick look around, took the faux unicorn raider by the ear in her teeth, and gently pulled her to a darker corner of the room. Green light flashed burning away the guise of the unicorn leaving only the hard black shell of changeling.
The door to the office rattled…

A tall shaft of sturdy wood was imbedded into the hardened earth in the middle of the parade ground. Laying before it was a shorter crossbeam. Near each end of the beam, rust red stained the pale wood. A short distance away roamish engineers busied themselves erecting heavy stocks. Blood soaked cross beams shaped to hold a pony’s fore hooves and neck lay on the ground, awaiting their turn to be bolted to a pair of uprights. The Praetor lounged on his chaise watching his soldiers working with a small genteel smile across his muzzle.

Nervously sitting on the ground near him Misty nibbled on a small bar while she averted her gaze from the looming instruments of death.
The praetor looked up at the sky and hummed tunelessly to himself as he took note at how far the sun was dipping towards the horizon.
“Your friends better hurry up,” he said quietly to Misty. “It would be such a shame to put such a beautiful mare like you to death.”
The nervous unicorn remained quietly, but prayed to Celestia that they would be back soon.

Tidbit looked out between ragged curtains over a grubby window of the office waiting room to the sky outside, watching the sun continue its inexorable descent towards twilight. In one of the dark corners, Hero was in her natural state, her head bowed in exhaustion. Emjay muttered to herself while she kept her wings spread as a barrier to stop anypony seeing the black shelled figure of the changeling.
“how much time” Hero’s familiar buzzing voice made Tidbits ear twitch.

He pulled his head back in looking worried “Not long, the sun has nearly started to touch the horizon”

The shadow like figure of Hero nodded. “We may need to barge in and kill them both”.

Emjay’s eyes narrowed and her lips pulled back in a sharp toothed grin.

To the mummified stallion it seemed like hours had passed since the ghoul mare had entered into president’s office, save for a brief moment soon after she entered when she stuck her head out to inform them quickly that the president is busy and will see them as soon as possible.
“This is getting boring,” whined the bat pony as she kept her stance in front of the changeling.

A flash of green from behind her, and the crazed mohawk wearing unicorn Hero stepped around the fluffy batpony. The jagged toothed grin split her face as her wide eyed manic look made Tidbit shudder.
“I think I like this form.” Hero’s voice cracked with insane glee while her ears flicked back and forward as the buzzing in her head reached a crescendo.

The handle to the door leading to the office rattled as it began to move. The door opened to reveal the ghoul unicorn. A strange wet sheen on her muzzle and horn glittered in the light as she smiled at the trio. “The president will see you now”. She stepped back into the room and gestured for the rest to follow.

As the door closed behind Hero with a soft click, she looked around the room, her movements jerky and her eyes rolling. Red paint peeled off the wooden walls, and candles were burning in all the corners and the windowsills, even though the sunlight still streamed through the large dirty glass. Behind the desk a black pegasus with red and black mane smiled serenely at the three. “In Celestia’s name, I greet you all”, her voice was smooth and pleasant. “I am Sunny Skies”. She gestured towards the decaying unicorn beside them. “I hope you do not mind that Daisy Shine will stay here with us, I like all my meetings to be recorded”

The ghoulish receptionist’s horn lit up with a soft green halo as she levitated a pencil and notebook from the pegasus’s desk, then sat on the floor next to the desk and looked expectantly up at her boss.
“What can I, or my Republic, do for you three?” Sunny’s eyes glittered as her wings fluffed themselves as they lay across her back, the feathers fluttering softly.

Hero nodded to Tidbit and Emjay then let the Stallion lead forward towards the desk. Tidbit stood near the undead unicorn, with Emjay beside him, then the still leashed crazy unicorn Hero. “We have been asked to deliver a message” Tidbits gravelly voice contrasting with the pegasus. Beside him the ghoul unicorn assistant’s pen scrawled out every word onto yellowed papers. Tidbits face was stern as he turned to the leashed raider unicorn Hero.

Hero leapt. As she threw herself at the black and red Pegasus green fire flashed over her body burning away the ragged fur and tattered mane and tail leaving black chitinous armor and bright blue frills. Her jaws opened widely then as she crashed into the startled pegasis closed down hard around the black furred throat cutting off any chance to scream. Blood splashed out, painting the wall behind the struggling pair. Daisy Shine eyes widened at the sudden attack on her boss before a huge hoof smacked her in the side of the head snapping her neck. She crumpled to the ground before Tidbits hoof shattered her jaw. Black ichor splattering from the splintered maw. The batpony jumped onto the pegasis back as the pegasis tried flapping her wings to dislodge the fanged changeling from her throat. Blood splashed across Emjay’s face as her own fangs bit deep into the jugular.

Daisy Shine croaked as her undead eyes watched as her boss’s throat was ripped out by two rabidly crazed ponies. Blood splashed over the desk as chunks of flesh torn from the twitching gurgling pegasis disappeared down the maws of the changeling and bat pony. Tidbits eyes widened a fraction as he took a step back from the feral display of feasting.

“Uh, don’t forget, we just need to take her head back to save Misty” Tidbits voice caused Hero to jerk up from her feeding, her muzzle red with blood and a string of muscle hanging out of the corner of her mouth. She looked over at the ghoul stallion with a look of confusion.
“Uh..” Hero looked a bit guilty that she had forgotten their quest, then nudged the still feasting fuzz ball batpony. “Can you cut off her head?”
Emjay ripped a final chunk of black furred flesh from the now dead pegasis and shot an annoyed glare at the black changeling. Then sighing she fished out the knife she had hidden in her barding then holding it in her wing, began laboriously slicing the neck. The wet sound of the knife slowly cutting into the flesh filled the air.

“Hurry up” Tidbit growled.

Emjay snarled as she tried to cut through the neck bones, angling the blade to cut through the spinal cord between vertebrae. Sweat poured off her brow and mixed with the blood that covered her face leaving grey trails in the red soaked fur.

Hero took the corpses mane in her teeth and pulled as the final cords of flesh were finally severed, pulling the head free from the rest of the body.

“Quick, out the window and fly back as fast as you can” Tidbits voice cut the silence “I will take care of things here. DON’T WAIT FOR ME”
Emjay and Hero simply nodded, then shot towards the window, the hardened carapace of the changeling crashed through the glass sending shards flying as a black and a grey blur shot into the sky.

Tidbit looked around the room frantically before resting on the papers on the desk, and the lit candles littered around the room.
The ghoul smiled.

“What a shame.” The Praetor looked over to the blood red sky as the sun sank into the horizon. “I have so enjoyed your company, but it seems that time is nearly up.” He nodded to two of the guards.

“Wait! It’s not sunset yet!” Misty’s protest fell on deaf ears as she was seized in the magic of the two unicorns, who carelessly lifted her flailing body and carried her over to a large cross beam laying the ground. Near the ends of the beam rough ropes were looped. With no gentleness one of the guards guided her forelegs though the loops then pulled them taut.

Misty screeched as she felt her shoulders painfully pulled backwards as the ropes bit into her forelegs. A dark figure loomed over her, an earth pony wearing a black hood over his eyes and ears, and a large hammer in his teeth. Another hooded figure appeared on the other side of her, a blue unicorn horn jutting through a rip in the top of the hood. Suspended in a blue aura was a large iron spike.
Beside the Praetor, the unicorn slave giggled as she watched, her eyes wide with glee.

“Maybe tonight the nails Master?” she purred to her owner.

The large pony chuckled, “If you are a good slut, then maybe” he promised.

Stars started to show in the twilight as the sun was all but gone. The Praetor lifted his hoof ready to signal the executioners. The hooded unicorn pressed the point of the first spike into the flesh just above Misty’s left hoof. The earth stallion executioner lifted his hammer wielding head high ready to strike. The world seemed to hold its breath as the Praetor kept his eye on the horizon as the final rays of sunlight began to fade. He turned his head to his executioners with a grin.

A loud crack filled the air and the hammer holding stallion fell to the ground. A black mare's head rolled on the ground after it had bounced off the head of the stallion and came to rest next to Misty. Misty screamed as its sightless eyes pointed right at her.

Shortly after the dark body of a changeling landed heavily beside the gory head, picked it up off the ground in her mouth and brought it to the Praetor.

Daylight faded completely.

Dropping it at the hooves of the large stallion she looked up at him as the blood stained bat pony landed behind her.
The Praetor grinned as he looked down at the bloody head. “Well done,” he chuckled, “And your sense of timing is impeccable.”

Smoke drifted from the smoldering remains of the office, the corpse of the ghoul smoldered in the piles of ash and burned beams. There was a flash of green fire around the body leaving a black shattered exoskeleton. Another wave of green flame, and the body disintegrated into the ashes surrounding it.

Author's Note

Many apologies to the creator and fans of Fluffle puff I just couldn't resist.