Dirt, I want to say I've learnt a fair few things in the Wasteland but the thing I never thought to learn was how much dirt will be suddenly painful when hitting it repeatedly. I got up and climbed up the crashed skywagon along the road side. We had since moved from the hospital to continue heading towards the Royals. At every rest stop, camp site or scavenge house, Torchlight was more than ready to kick me off the highest point to teach me how to fly.

"Now tighten up your posture. A proper glide involves maintaining balance with both front and back to balance out; to much in the front you go into a dive, to much in back the wings cause drag now again."

Taking in breath, I jumped from the skywagon, stretch my wings out, got my posture right and proceeded to hit the ground like an earth pony. All Torchlight could do was facehoof.

"I swear you have no natural flying ability at all."

With a fidgeted look, Torchlight waved me off to rest. I walked over to a pile of burning scraps of decaying wood we called our camps fire. I could cook up something. Nightlight had taken over carrying my saddlebag and battle saddle just in case Torchlight tried to kick me off a cliff (again).

"Hey Torchlight, done with all that flying junk?"

I gave her a quick nod, "It's important I learn. I am a pegasus after all." I gave my wing a little pointless flap. Nightlight's response was to throw my jacket over them.

"Well, I say you make for a better earth pony." Her smile was warming and I felt we were becoming closer (hopefully). I grabbed my utensils. I was able to get into my real job in the group as the chef. After all, in our merry group of six, five of us were well armed with our best possible gear and one of them was able to wage her own great war on a grenade level. So I was happy to spend my time over a hot campfire with my nose stuck into 'Dragon's Guide to Wasteland Cooking.'

I felt whoever Dragon was must be a master chef. The recipes he has written down have vastly improved every meal. Things like canned sweet potato become fried wedges, or some radgator and wine become a tasty steak. I feel sorry for anypony who has to eat just plain 200 year old food with a cook book like this around. Looking at my own task, I feel as if we as a whole are a well organized team. Stitch obviously is our best healer but can handle himself in a firefight. Boom not only knows her way around explosives but has a good grasp of the Wasteland. Sunny can fight up close or far away depending on her mood. And Torchlight obviously has leader abilities but can also fly. The only one of us I don't get is Nightlight. I could understand just wanting to stay safe while recovering from her cem addiction (and maybe to get closer to me) but as far as skills, go I can't really tell.

The meat roasting away nicely. It gave me room to focus on other things like, uses for the leftovers in a stew. I looked around the camp again for the eighth time. I don't know how long it for me to finally realize Torchlight was missing. The last time I saw him was when I was preparing to cook but since then he up and vanished. The cloudy sky proved to be no help in seeing him and the others didn't seem worried. So most likely, he was doing something just out of sight from my campfire view. My nose indicated the meat in all it's addictive glory was ready to be added to the pot. With a quick flick of my wings, I took the meat and threw it right in.

Serving up to everypony was, I admit, easier with wings then by hoof. A life time of neglect on my part but then what's a stable pony need wings for underground? Mum and dad always said I should focus on my skills I could use everyday (or was it find a nice mare?). So that's what I did. But this wing work Torchlight was teaching me did improve how fast I could to things, like serving food.

Sunny clopped her hooves together and was quickly followed by Nightlight. "So Slashy, what's on today's menu?"

Smiling, I passed a bowl full of lunch over, "Just a simple take on bloatspirit stew. Since the radhog was going to go to poisonous levels of bad soon I used it up. I had put it on a quick simmer roast over the fire to kill off anything bad."

Sunny paid no mind after I said radhog. Nightlight on the other hoof listened until the end before eating. Boom gave a few nods before finishing off the bowl of stew.

"So that covers all four of your identites then, Sunny is a tenpony resident, Stable and Nightlight are the cook and assistant, while Stitch acts as both her body guard and doctor. That should get you in."

Everypony nodded but this was news to me. As I raised my voice for an answer, Torchlight walked in and provided it.

"Slashwing. As far as Boomageton and myself go, after taking out the mercs the Royals hired, we are most likely wanted for some upbeat crime. Showing up with you blows the cover, it's up to you to get in and get us a way in past the gate."

"Rain. It has to be raining. Maybe if the feather brains could do their jobs rather than fight, the skies wouldn't be raining all the time."

Sunny, to my personal annoyance, had put on her tenpony attitude since we left Boom and Torchlight. It was loud, constant and effective for as we traveled closer to the Royals, we became more annoyed with Sunny. The Royal's castle was a fascinating building. It had been part of some ministry hub placement before the war but was occupied by the Royals for generations. As we approached the walls, an earth pony stallion in the strangest golden armor I've ever seen left some kind of small covered area and pointed a spear at us.

"You are now on the grounds of their majesties of Trottinghame. State your business."

Sunny walked forward head held high, "I am Sunny Trails, daughter of Lost Trails of tenpony tower. Here to seek rest, relaxation and information with my party."

The guard nodded and lead us into the shelter area. There, Sunny spoke with somepony through a window. A slip of paper and a huge pile of caps where traded for a set of strange chips which Sunny gave one to each of us. The one I had read, 'Three Day Pass', after we where allowed into the walled area.

Our apartment was quite nice, not stable nice. A stable room has just enough to make it a home and still enough template design to allow it to change it constantly. This was a different fancy. Sunny explained that we would be assigned better rooms (like this was bad) once the payment had be received from tenpony along with a permanent pass so while we had free rein during the day, we had to be in our room by the set time or be shot at.

The rooms were two pony so Stitch and Sunny stayed in one while Nightlight and I stayed in the other. It was a pretty nice set up if I do say so myself. I spent the day upgrading my cookware from Wasteland useable to actually useable. I didn't see much of Nightlight. She had seen something she wanted to get so I let her. As it got closer to the 'get shot at time', I headed back to the room.

Thankfully Nightlight had made it back, and was now wearing socks. Just socks, no other clothing. What's more, the smile on her face was a little off putting like a stable cat ready to jump on a mouse. Using my back foreleg, I slowly closed the door. Nightlight made her move, wrapping her hooves around my neck and kissed me. She started blowing some kind of smoke in my mouth and I gave of a cough.

Nightlight stepped back, handing me a strange puffer device. I looked up at her. She just kept smiling.

"Don't worry, I cut everything right. Just inhale and let some Zebra magic work."

I looked at her expecting eyes. I closed my eyes and bit down on the inhaling device and I started coughing madly. But then something happened. Colors felt brighter, I felt stronger. What's more, I felt a surge of energy like nothing I had felt before. What was that smell? The smell coming from Nightlight. The smell was irresistible and I had to have more, more of Nightlight. I don't know what that was I inhaled but it made tonight a fucking good night. "Rain. It has to be raining. Maybe if the feather brains could do their jobs rather than fight, the skies wouldn't be raining all the time."

Sunny, to my personal annoyance, had put on her tenpony attitude since we left Boom and Torchlight. It was loud, constant and effective for as we traveled closer to the Royals, we became more annoyed with Sunny. The Royal's castle was a fascinating building. It had been part of some ministry hub placement before the war but was occupied by the Royals for generations. As we approached the walls, an earth pony stallion in the strangest golden armor I've ever seen left some kind of small covered area and pointed a spear at us.

"You are now on the grounds of their majesties of Trottinghame. State your business."

Sunny walked forward head held high, "I am Sunny Trails, daughter of Lost Trails of tenpony tower. Here to seek rest, relaxation and information with my party."

The guard nodded and lead us into the shelter area. There, Sunny spoke with somepony through a window. A slip of paper and a huge pile of caps where traded for a set of strange chips which Sunny gave one to each of us. The one I had read, 'Three Day Pass', after we where allowed into the walled area.

Our apartment was quite nice, not stable nice. A stable room has just enough to make it a home and still enough template design to allow it to change it constantly. This was a different fancy. Sunny explained that we would be assigned better rooms (like this was bad) once the payment had be received from tenpony along with a permanent pass so while we had free rein during the day, we had to be in our room by the set time or be shot at.

The rooms were two pony so Stitch and Sunny stayed in one while Nightlight and I stayed in the other. It was a pretty nice set up if I do say so myself. I spent the day upgrading my cookware from Wasteland useable to actually useable. I didn't see much of Nightlight. She had seen something she wanted to get so I let her. As it got closer to the 'get shot at time', I headed back to the room.

Thankfully Nightlight had made it back, and was now wearing socks. Just socks, no other clothing. What's more, the smile on her face was a little off putting like a stable cat ready to jump on a mouse. Using my back foreleg, I slowly closed the door. Nightlight made her move, wrapping her hooves around my neck and kissed me. She started blowing some kind of smoke in my mouth and I gave of a cough.

Nightlight stepped back, handing me a strange puffer device. I looked up at her. She just kept smiling.

"Don't worry, I cut everything right. Just inhale and let some Zebra magic work."

I looked at her expecting eyes. I closed my eyes and bit down on the inhaling device and I started coughing madly. But then something happened. Colors felt brighter, I felt stronger. What's more, I felt a surge of energy like nothing I had felt before. What was that smell? The smell coming from Nightlight. The smell was irresistible and I had to have more, more of Nightlight. I don't know what that was I inhaled but it made tonight a fucking good night.

Author's Note

oh this chapter done at last big thanks to my editor who is going though some stuff herself

also im getting a few more dislikes if you say why unless its just general dislike of FoE stories in which case please don't dislike leave a reason I know I cant make you but I do want to get better and I feel ever dislike is a way I can improve so please explain what you did not like