Fallout: New Pegasus

Chapters

I Fought the Law...
Guardian Angel
Decline
Welcome to Goodsprings.
Shadows

I Fought the Law...

{BEGIN DAY 2 LOG TRANSMISSION}

Day 2, July 25

0600 Hours

I woke up as I fell a bit before hitting the ground with a thud. "Gah... that... that smarts..." I groaned, wincing in pain. I stood up, and noticed the thin sheet still covering my midsection a bit. I draped it off, and turned to the desk. Not a very good bed whatsoever. I stretched my legs a bit, then my right wing. I wasn't planning on sitting around for long, and I approached the door to the office, pushing on it to open it.

The sunlight immediately flooded into the room as I did, and I squinted my eyes, using my hooves to open while I used my wing to shade me. I got used to the light, and I turned to my Pip-Boy, tapping the items and retrieving my sunglasses. I placed them on, and looked around the area. Yesterday, I only knew there was an intersection and an office. Now, there was an abundance of dry bushes, rock layers, sand, and a lone sign standing at the corner of the intersection. I trotted to the sign, and began to read:

<--- Las Pegasus 68
22 Primm --->

I thought for a moment. Sure, Speak Easy did say the asshole who shot me was headed to Primm, but if his final destination was New Pegasus, why not cut to the left and save myself some time? So I traveled up the Long 15, literally patting myself on my back with my wing for what I thought was a genius decision.

0630 Hours

After awhile, I found myself in some small town of some sort. I looked around, and noticed a few shacks on the side of the road. "Um... hello?" I announced clearly, hoping to be heard. After a moment of silence, I decided the town was either asleep or abandoned, and I turned back to the road to find myself face to face with a burly body. As my face bumped against their hide, I quickly backed away a bit, finding myself in front of a rather large earth pony, wearing a hard hat and carrying a sledgehammer in his foreleg. I immediately lowered my ears in complete fright.

"Hold on just a moment..." he said in a low, almost weary voice.

I trembled a bit, crouching low. "Look man, take whatever you want! My caps, my clothes, my dignity, just take it and let me go!"

The pony cocked an eyebrow, and chuckled a bit. "I ain't here to rob ya. Just to give ya a fair warnin'. If I were you, I'd turn back now."

I felt myself stand up, and I cocked my eyebrow. "Huh? Turn back? But I'm heading to New Pegasus!"

"Well, then head through Primm to the 95. You're signing your death warrant if you follow the road."

I was now more curious than terrified. "What's that way?"

"Dragons. You'd be mad if you went that direction. An entire wing of dragons is inhabiting an old mine and a plant just north of here."

"A wing of dragons? That doesn't sound dangerous! That sounds awesome!"

"You been living under a rock? Dragons will not hesitate to eat ya."

"I think I can manage. So... what are you doing way out here?"

The pony sighed, before speaking. "Well, I'm a quarry worker for the concrete plant north of here. Work proudly for the NLR. Well... not much working currently..."

"NLR?"

"New Lunar Republic. Led by Empress Luna herself."

I think I felt something inside my chest thump at that. Luna, when I was just a colt, was perhaps the most beautiful pony I had ever seen. Even it was just in murals and posters... it was like looking at something not of this world. "Em-Empress... Luna?"

"Yeah. You have been living under a rock, huh? No worries, friend."

"Um... yeah..." I said, a bit disappointed. I shook my head, and continued, "Well, I gotta head off now. Nice to meet you, Mr..."

"Stone. Lime Stone. And it was a pleasure to meet you. Emphasis on was."

...what a dick. I trotted further north along the Long 15, and eventually came across a small canyon entrance on the side of the road. I ignored it at first, until something stepped out of it; a small, green reptile. I turned to it, fascinated. "Hey there!" I hailed, waving my right wing at it. The thing looked once, and immediately bounded for me at a frightening pace. I backed away a bit, not sure what to expect.

When the thing was close enough, it made such a leap at me, and instantly, I saw it swipe. A sudden rush of pain flowed to my head, and immediately, I felt something warm drip onto it. In a moment, I realized I was bleeding.

I saw the little bastard, no taller than me, recover from their attack, and prepare to leap again. I wasn't going to give it the pleasure, and I galloped full speed away from it. I looked back once, and immediately wished I hadn't. The damn thing was chasing me as well... at an almost faster speed. I immediately turned back forward to find something red shoot past my ear. I ducked and hid under my hooves, just waiting for my death...

I heard a few zips and zaps, followed by a bellowing groan. I dared not look up. After a moment of silence, something lifted me up, and I shrieked, knowing this was the end. "Whoa, pardner... it's alright... you're safe..." That tinny yet friendly voice... I peered up, and saw AJ, holding me up. Her appearance was different, though... the machine she occupied seemed completely different than in Goodsprings. It wasn't the boxy looking pony it was before... it looked much more realistic and natural, with both actual limbs and a head.

"A-AJ? W-what are you doing here...?" I asked weakly.

"I'll explain it to you when we get outta here... you're bleedin' like a tractor with a gas leak. Didn't anypony ever tell ya not to play with dragons like that?" Speaking of dragons... I turned back to my attacker... but couldn't find it at first. AJ pointed me to a nearby gray spot on the road... and I recognized it as ash.

I felt extremely woozy, and before I knew it, I was out cold...

0800 Hours

I woke up to feel something prick my neck, and I gasped out, immediately reaching for it. I felt something metal stop my hoof, however, and the sting was taken out of my neck after a moment. "Glad you had a few stimpaks, pardner... otherwise, you're handsome face would've been permanently damaged."

I sat up, and stroked my face with my wing. The cut was still there, but the bleeding seemed to have stop. I was quite amazed, and I turned to AJ. "Hey... AJ... what happened to you? You look... you look different..."

"My personality module can be used in many Bronco makes. Right now, I'm inside a Guardian Bot."

I felt my head again. "What's in that stimpak? I mean, I've had them for a good while, but I haven't even bothered using them."

"Some fancy elixir made round these parts. But I'm glad to see you're doin' much better."

Though I shouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth, something bugged me. "Hey AJ... how did you find me?"

"I followed you. Didn't want to see anythin' bad happen to you."

I nodded. Sure, it was a little creepy... OK, a lot creepy to have someone follow you. But she did it for a good reason, and I couldn't be more thankful. I looked around, and found that I was inside the office once again. "Thanks, AJ. It means a lot for you to help me out."

"Maybe you can return the favor soon, Class."

"Yeah... maybe..." She seemed to notice the distress in my voice.

"You might not be able to make it to New Pegasus through the Long 15... but... what if I helped you go along the 95?"

I turned to her, her smile wide. I really felt I couldn't turn down her offer... for the reasons that her smile did seem reassuring and that everything out in the wastes probably wanted to kill me. I smiled back, and nodded. "You know what, AJ? I'd like that." She extended one of her mechanical forelegs, and I bumped her hoof with mine.

"Come on, then. If we hurry, we'll make it to Primm by sunset!"

I nodded, left the office room with AJ, and stared at the intersection once more. I turned my attention to the south, and nodded. "Alright... let's do what I should have done in the first place and head to Primm." The two of us trotted down the road, seeing a large wooden structure in the distance marking our destination.

1300 Hours

"So... that building over there is a... what?" I asked, both of us approaching a large dip in the road splitting off the town.

"A roller coaster. An Old Equestria doohickey that sure showed ponies a swell time!" AJ responded, until we heard a shrill whistle. We both turned to see a pony, wearing some strange olive garbs along with what I thought were a pith helmet and some sort of goggles.

"Hold up. Primm's off limits to civilians," the pony clarified.

"What's up in Primm?" I asked, hoping that it wasn't overrun by the same dragons.

"Some Stable 19 lunatics are holed up inside the town, threatening to blow up any civilians if we intervene."

"Oh, man... is it really that bad?"

"I'm 'fraid so."

AJ spoke up this time. "Anything that can be done?"

"While the toll would be too high if we do anything, sitting on our flanks isn't much better. You wanna find out what you can do, head down this road to the tents. You'll find our commanding officer there."

"Um... AJ, are you sure about this?" I asked, a little unsettled about hearing of lunatics from a Stable I didn't even know that had already shunned me.

"Yes, I am. Those poor folk are hiding in their closets and can't come out. It's also the only way we can hear more about that pony that attacked you."

"Well, if you insist..." The two of us trotted down the road, noting how much of the houses and stores around here were obliterated and ransacked. Large scorch marks painted each store's windows and what little remained of their crumbled foundation. "Sheesh... did the lunatics do this?"

"Seems like it, First Class. Look at the buildings... them's clearly dynamite explosions."

"Yeah... that's a little terrifying. Let's just hurry up so I can leave. Luna, I'm starting to hate Palomino more and more..." That last bit, I muttered to myself so as not to draw AJ's attention. After another minute of trotting past more rubble and charred homes, we both ended up in a small town square, where a barrel was lit and two more ponies in the same uniform stood around it, both helmeted as well. They turned to me, almost as if my presence alone was enough to diversify their day. "So... uh... who's the commanding officer?"

"You're looking for Matterhorn? He's inside his tent," one of them responded, pointing to a canopy on the left.

"Yeah sure, thanks," I said quickly. I really didn't care about wasting anymore time than I had to in this hellhole. I trotted to it, opened the flap, and saw the only pony inside, decked in the same olive drabs but instead of wearing the pith helmets I saw before, he wore a beret of some sort. Before I could say anything, he spoke to me.

"Captain Matterhorn of the New Lunar Republic, Dreadnought Squadron, Third Division. How may I be of service?" This guy was no nonsense right off the bat.

"Um... good afternoon... sir. I have urgent matters to tend to in Primm, but I heard it was in the hooves of some Stable 19... criminals."

Matterhorn nodded. "Poppers, they call themselves. Different gang than those in Stable 19 but trouble nonetheless. There's only four... but they're armed to the teeth with dynamite from the quarry further north of here."

The sheer mention of the place where I almost got torn to pieces made me shutter a bit. And the mention of being armed with dynamite from the quarry made it much more obvious why these demons now set up a wing there. "Well, here's what I have to say... I need to get into that town and find out some info of a... friend that passed through here a few days back. Where are the locals?" In retrospect, I really could have worded that much more subtly.

"Across the overpass, taking refuge in the Laden Saddle Casino. And before you do anything that risks either their or your life, you shouldn't cross." I really couldn't leave this town without knowing if my would-be assassin was still there or not, which made me all the more irritated.

"Anything that you can do?"

"Not without the Poppers noticing and tossing dynamite left and right. And nopony in this division is risking to go it alone."

Immediately, I wondered why these guys were even posted here to begin with if they weren't so dedicated to defending the town. Before I could respond, though, AJ yet again spoke her mind... or whatever she ran on. "What about the two of us?"

I felt my heart drop at that, and my eyes widen. "Wait, what!?"

"It's a dangerous task, and there's two major risk factors. The first is the safety of the residents inside the Saddle. If they end up as casualties, this town isn't going to be worth trying to defend anymore. The second is yourselves. One of the gangers is armed with a rifle, and patrols on the old coaster."

"And the others?" I asked.

"Pop Corn, the leader of this small outfit, has a flamer. With all the dynamite they have, him using it could end badly..."

I said nothing at that. The thought of an explosion like the one I witnessed in Goodsprings was not my idea of going out. "Uh... excuse me for just a moment..." I left the tent a bit quickly, headed to the nearest ransacked home, and sat on a bed, trembling. I turned sharply to AJ, who had followed me throughout my quick retreat. "OK... what I did in Goodsprings... I actually did because I was indebted to the town. What has this town done for me? Set me up to get shot in the first place!? Not something I take too kindly to!"

AJ snorted, some steam shooting from her nostrils, directly at me. "You know... I figured you for a guardian, First Class. A selfless one at that. But after seeing what happened earlier with the dragons and what you're telling me now, you're nothing but some Fiend who only looks out for himself."

"You know what I say to that? Tough shit. Up until now, I've traveled alone and have hardly ever run into trouble. The only reason I did this time was because that town gave me..." As I stopped, I tapped my Pip-Boy's Items, looked a bit for my delivery note, and selected it. As soon as it appeared, I pressed it against her eyes, moving it back and forth for her to get a clear look. "Whatever the hell an Obsidian Horseshoe is! I say we leave this town to its fate, just continue along the 95, and hopefully wander aimlessly until we find the asshole who did this to me."

"And you really think that's the best idea? To wander aimlessly? If it is, you're a bigger moron than I could have ever imagined. OK... think of it this way. You save the town... and they're indebted to you. How are they gonna pay that? Leading you to the ponies and their hides with a solid location."

"Doesn't seem all that fair a trade off, AJ. Again... this town could rot for all I care. Let the Poppers blow it-" I was cut off by a sudden blow to my cheek, and I was thrown to the floor, grasping at it as it stung. I looked up to see AJ's hoof extended, glaring at me, her teeth gritted.

"Don't you dare finish that. And again... this isn't going to be just about you, First! You need to look at the bigger picture here! Think about others!"

"Thinking like that is what's going to get me killed, AJ..." I groaned out, still trying to fix my jaw.

"No... thinking like that is gonna save your hide one of these days. And as soon as you see it, you'll understand. But right now, you will go back into that tent, and you will offer our help. Otherwise... you can travel on your own, friend."

I merely grimaced, clenching my jaw as I did. I spit out a bit of blood from my muzzle, and stood up. I confronted AJ, her glare matching my own. After a moment, I spit to the side another few droplets of blood, and I spoke in a low voice. "Fine... but as soon this town's OK... we make sure we get what we're looking for... and for the record, friend... go fuck yourself..." Without waiting for her reply, I pushed her to the side, stormed out the house, and reentered the tent. Matterhorn, now sitting in front of a desk and drinking something from a small mug, turned to me. "So what would be the best approach to do this?" I asked after a few seconds.

He stood up, setting his mug down. "Take out the pony on the coaster, Kernel. Follow the tracks until you can reach the second floor of the building in the back. Head down to the first using the first set of stairs you see, and take out Pop before he can use the flamer. Good luck, and goodbye."

I was a bit surprised he didn't bother to listen to whether I thought that idea was good or not, but at this point, I didn't really care anymore. "Alright. AJ... let's get going..." We both left the tent, and trotted until we reached the NLR's side of the overpass. Another trooper stood guarding the entrance, and he turned to me.

"Watch out for any traps. They've set up some charges around the Buffalo Casino."

Great... traps. I nodded, and slowly walked across the overpass with AJ behind me. I really didn't want to speak to her, but sooner or later I was, so I figured now would be best. "So... how should we do this then, oh great and powerful AJ?" If she couldn't detect the mockery in my tone, I'd truly be speechless.

"Two ways we can, oh big and amazing douchebag." ...fucking hell, I hate artificial intelligence sometimes... "We can either go in, guns blazing through the front door... or do what that there captain said and take out Kernel."

"Definitely the subtle route. I say we do like Matterhorn said and take out the pony on the coaster. The problem is... how to do it without getting picked off from a distance?"

We reached the other side of the overpass... nothing made a sound, and yet the buildings looked intact. In a moment, I added it up. "The townsfolk are the only reason these guys are still alive. Without them, the Poppers would have been taken out by the NLR troopers long before we got here. They're not going to do anything rash either. I don't think they know where they're taking refuge, though. Otherwise, it'd be a hostage situation instead."

"So what then?"

"The captain... he said the settlers were in the Laden Saddle Casino. I say we do whatever we can to get them out of there first before trying to take these gangers on. Safer for everypony."

AJ turned to me, and chuckled. "Hey... you're actually usin' your noggin for once!"

"Oh shut it, AJ. I'm still gonna get you back for that cheap shot earlier..." I warned. We both neared the Laden Saddle, a neon sign hanging off the wall revealing its name. The lights were shot out, and would probably never work again. We turned to an alleyway, and I entered it slowly, drawing my pistol out. With the silencer now attached to it, it was a bit more visible, but I felt much better about using it without letting anypony else know... well... not that they had a say in it.

"What in tarnation are ya doin'?"

"You never know how these ponies are gonna react to me and you just strolling into the casino, AJ. Better safe than sorry." She obviously wasn't too keen on that idea, but she knew I wasn't wrong either. She sighed, and I heard a whirring noise emerge from her. After a moment, I saw a panel on her side hide itself, and soon replaced with a small blaster. "That what you used against the dragon earlier?"

"Yeah. Automatic laser built on my left side. My right is a plasma caster!"

I noticed how happy she sounded revealing this, and I knew she was probably excited to use either. "Alright... follow me closely... and don't make a sound." I creeped slowly towards a large metal door, rusted from a century or two from standing still for so long. I grabbed the knob, turned the handle, and as I pushed it open, I winced as it made a constant yet obvious squeaking noise. As soon as the gap was wide enough, I slipped through the opening, and crouched low, alert and ready.

I looked around a bit, the room lit slightly from a flickering overhead light. It seemed to be a cashier's office... a lot like the ones in New Reno. The registers remained closed, so I assumed the building hadn't been looted yet. I aimed through the sights of my pistol, and slowly made my way to the window. Before I peeked up, I turned to AJ. "AJ... cover my back and watch that door," I whispered, pointing to the door leading into the casino.

She nodded, and turned her gun to aim in that direction. I turned back to the window, slowly raised my eyes to level the counter, and peered into the casino. The interior wasn't as large as others in New Reno, but the decor within made up for it. Slots lined the walls from edge to edge, some of them still functional and blaring a bit with cheery rings. A few feet more, moving towards the center, were roulette, poker, and blackjack tables all positioned in a square around the circle. And the piece of resistance... a cart, directly in the middle, surround on all sides by a fence. The cart itself was majestic; gold trimming lining the wheels, the metal encompassing the body a chrome of some kind, and upon a more careful view, some nice velvet seats.

The denizens of the casino, however, weren't as luxurious. Looking at them, I thought they were drifters without homes judging by the rags they wore. That thought quickly went south as I saw each of them owning a firearm of some sort, holstered onto their waists. These ponies were more than ready to handle any punk who trespassed in here.

I lowered my head, and turned to AJ. "OK... these ponies aren't helpless... so maybe we can leave them here. Let's get outta here and deal with the Poppers. Maybe then we can knock and announce 'Hey, you're problems solved! Now go home!'"

"Alright." We both slowly crept back to the back door... until I heard a loud thud. I winced, and turned back to AJ, whose body had just backed into a metal trashcan. A sense of dread hit me, and I felt my body tense up.

"Oh, dear Luna..." I said, terrified. I twitched my ears, hearing a hushing murmur from the other side of the window, followed by a series of clicks. It was obvious now that they were opening their holsters, and I turned to AJ. "Well, thank you for fucking us over!" I whispered harshly. "We gotta leave now!"

She nodded, and opened the back door widely. I sprung from the crouching position I had to a dive towards the door, landing on my stomach in the streets of the alleyway. I stood up quickly, dusted myself off, and turned back to the door. AJ galloped out a second later, and I heard a door to the office hit the wall, opened widely and a few of the citizens pouring in. I galloped out of the alleyway at a pace I could probably never repeat, coming up to the street quickly. As soon as I reached it, I immediately turned the corner, and hid out of sight from the alleyway, pressing my back and head against the wall of a store adjacent to the casino, breathing hard and feeling my lungs burning.

I heard a slight shouting from the alley, and then a few thuds. After a moment, AJ came tumbling out of the entryway, in the middle of a scrap between another pony. I rushed to the two, lifted the local off of AJ, and punched him as hard as I could with my hoof. I then pulled him out of the alleyway's entrance, and slammed him against the wall, holding my gun to the side of his head. "Don't you dare mess with her."

AJ trotted up to me, and turned back to the alley. "First... we're gonna have company soon..."

I paid no mind. I still held the pony, now struggling and squirming, hostage, my gun still against his temple. "Don't worry, AJ... I got a plan..." After two seconds, a group of ponies came out of the alley, and as soon as they spotted me, aimed at me. I merely glanced at them, and nodded to AJ. "Draw your guns, AJ..."

She hesitated a bit, before doing so, both her caster and laser ready and aimed at the group. They still had their guns trained on me. "OK... nopony move..." I cut AJ off and finished for her.

"You're going to get yourselves killed, you know. I don't care if I die... but if you really think you can take down my friend here... then you're sorely mistaken. So I suggest you all drop your guns, and listen to me." They obviously weren't too fond of that, and as a response, I pulled the hammer of the pistol. They flinched, and all of them lowered their weapons. I grinned. "There. Now listen! I'm not here to make enemies with Primm. If anything, I'm here for you. I heard you had a little problem regarding some ponies inside your Buffalo Casino. And I'll surely help you out on that... for one thing..."

"You ain't gettin' shit from us!" one of the mobbers said, and as AJ stomped her hoof at them, the mobber remained silent.

"No, I'm not asking for caps. No, what I want... is the name and direction of a pony. And I want it now..." I hissed out, glaring at the pony I now held. Silence... a slight wind the only disturbance of the desolate streets. Then the mobbers holstered their weapons. I released the pony I held, and he trotted back to the mob, stumbling as he did. "Listen... I'm not here to kill anypony but the Poppers. Now... we got off on the wrong hoof. I do hope we can start fresh... otherwise, if it does turn out ugly, AJ here won't take too kindly to that. Name's First Class."

Everypony stared at me in disbelief for a moment, then one of them stepped up... the same one who did before. "Deputy Nova. And... are you really here for the Poppers?" he asked skeptically.

I nodded. "So long as I get the information I want. AJ?"

She deactivates her weaponry, and her eyes, a blood red and her pupil slitted, now opened a bit more and returned to green. "Name's AJ. I'm just here to escort First Class here and protect him." I cocked an eyebrow, but said nothing.

Nova nodded. "OK... I think... I think we can arrange a deal... but only if you get rid of those damn Poppers."

"No... you're going to give me the name and direction... and then you're going to trust that I'll handle this."

Nova stood for a moment, then sighed. "...fine. You seem like a stallion of your word. So... who are you looking for?"

"AJ... what did you say he looked like?"

"Short stallion, black mane, white and blue suit, talked like a schmuck. Know of him?"

Nova nodded. "Yeah... we know who you're talkn' about. Bugsy, he called himself. Skipped town yesterday. Followed the Long 15 south, headin' towards Dodge."

I simply nodded, taking that into memory. I pulled the slide back on my pistol, and trotted down the street, seeing only a glimpse of the Buffalo Casino. I turned back to the others. "That sniper up there... Kernel... does he go to sleep at all?"

"Yeah. At dusk."

"Perfect. Why don't you invite me inside? I'm not gonna do anything until then, so might as well make the most of it."

Nova nods, and all of us trotted back into the alley... well, with the exception of the pony I slammed. He lingered behind a bit, following from a distance. I leaned over to AJ, and whispered, "I honestly didn't think that'd work..."

1800 Hours

I took another drag from the cigarette in my wing. I had checked out what the remaining sections of my Pip-Boy did, and I fiddled with it a bit. I had discovered a few radio stations other than San Palomino Music Radio. New Pegasus had its own radio station, along with a station called Mysterious Broadcast, a station labeled Shangri-La Broadcast, and a station named Equestria Now. I had tuned to each of them: SPMR played songs of the old country of Palomino, RNP played swing and big band music, MB played jazz and blues, SLB played a looping message that irritated me, and EN played a variety of genres.

I did favor how the Pip-Boy was organized, and how much weight it could hold before it became much more heavier to lug around. After a few more inspections and checks, I decided I was quite familiar with the device now, and I felt a bit more comfort wearing it around my foreleg. I checked my jumpsuit, and noticed the new hood I had stitched in. While I wasn't much of a repairman, I did enjoy the occasional tailoring. It was a remnant of an old life, and I slipped the hood over my head. I had also found a bandana to use as a face mask, and I had it wrapped around my neck in preparation.

I checked the time... and stood up afterwards. I turned to AJ, who had shut down for a moment to conserve energy. I trotted to her, and switched her back on. After a moment to get herself settled, she turned to me. "Hey, First. We ready to do this?"

"Yeah. It should be dark enough for us to get into the casino without getting caught." I was about to stand up and leave the Laden Saddle, when Nova stopped me. He handed me a firearm; a rifle, complete with a carrying handle, stock, pistol grip, and rather worn-looking.

"Service rifle given to us by Matterhorn across the bridge. I really don't need it, and nopony else around here does either."

I took it, and inspected it a bit. "Uh... it's a bit... brownish in color..."

"That's how it's made. Matches the desert environment out here. It's actually fairly clean."

I nodded, and again inspected it. It had the potential to be a good weapon, but for now, I didn't plan on using it. But I kept the weapon anyway, phasing it into my Pip-Boy and thanking Nova. I led AJ out the back door of the casino, and reentered the alley, putting out my cigarette as I did. "AJ, can you go further down the alley and get a good view of the coaster?"

"Yeah. I'll let ya know if I can see anypony." She trotted out of sight into the darkness. I waited a moment, feeling my face with my wing. The cut I received earlier from the dragon was no longer there... and I wondered how it could happen. After a minute, AJ trotted back to me. "Kernel is long gone. Let's get going."

I nodded, and followed AJ closely, a bit blind to the outside yet again. I placed a hoof on her back as she guided me through the alley, and onto the other street. She guided me until we reached a lone lamppost standing just in front of the casino, where I regained a bit of visibility. I let go of AJ for a moment, and she turned back to me. "Something wrong, First?"

I felt myself unable to speak at the moment, merely feeling... I don't know... useless. "AJ... be honest with me... am I really you're friend? Or just some asshole you feel sorry for?" She winced a bit as I asked this, and I turned back to her, my eyes filled with morose.

She walked up to me a bit. "Why do you say that?"

I looked all around me, the only visible light two or three feet in diameter. "AJ... I'm blind... I was close to the brink of death twice, and both times you saved me... and just now... you called yourself my protector. Am I just that, AJ? Just a runt who can't even take care of himself?"

She obviously knew she hit some sensitive grounds, judging by how she backed up a bit. She grimaced, and looked away for a bit. I shook my head, and just continued towards the silhouette of the coaster. I stumbled immediately as I did, and tripped. I landed hard on my muzzle, and groaned. I stood up, shook myself off, and continued. She galloped up to me, and stopped me with her hoof. "First, wait... please..."

"I know... I need your help..." I replied, closing my eyes. I wasn't going to let her see my tears... and I was a bit relieved I had my hood over my head to help with that.

"You ain't helpless, First. You helped out the folks in Goodsprings against the gang. And you're about to do it again. And I'm sorry for saying that. You're not under me, First. If anything... I would rather be you than myself."

"Why...?" I asked raspily, irregularly breathing a bit.

"You're an actual pony, First. You got things I'd only imagine... real emotions... real eyes... heck... I'd give up my personality to be like you."

I turned to her, and wiped my eyes with my hoof. I nodded, and simply turned back to the coaster. "Just... just lead the way... I don't... I don't feel like talking about it right now." She nodded, and held my hoof as she led me up the tracks, following them until we reached the back of the hotel. I had gotten a bit more control over myself, and I placed my bandana over my muzzle. I pulled my pistol out, pulled the slide back, and held it in my wing. The coaster had stopped at the second floor of the resort, and the doors leading into it led into a corridor. The hallways were dimly lit, and I could see much more clearly within. I trotted down the halls, AJ behind me. We checked each room quietly, yet found every single one to be empty.

I thought for a moment. "First floor... that's probably where they are."

"What do we do?"

I thought for a moment. "...I need you to find wherever they hide their dynamite. Take it out of here, and give it to Matterhorn across the way."

"And you? I can do that right quickly."

I tapped my Pip-Boy, selected my straight razor, and held it in my left hoof. "Just... just let me do this, AJ..."

She wanted to argue... I could tell by how she lifted her hoof up at first. But she decided not to, and instead left down the set of stairs. I would have followed, but considering I could put us both at risk doing so, I instead followed the corridor until I reached an elevator. I tapped the button calling the machine, and waited until the box ringed open. I stepped inside, holding both my wing and my left hoof upwards, weapons free. As the doors closed, I felt as though I was ready to die... completely different than earlier when I wanted to leave this town for dead. I saw the lights indicating the floor the elevator was arriving at flicker, and immediately, I used the side bars to climb to the ceiling, using my remaining three free hooves to hold my place, peering down.

As soon as the doors opened with a ding, and just like I thought, somepony came inside, carrying a machete. I released my grip, and fell on top of him. He was about to shout for help, but I used my right hoof to cover his mouth while I used my left to place the razor against his neck. With a quick and clean slice, I severed his carotids, and he began to instantly bleed out, soaking the elevator floor a bit. As soon as I felt his pulse was gone, I lifted his body up, holding it in front of me. I slowly stepped out of the elevator, dragging the corpse in front of me.

I crept slowly, making my way through a lobby I had now entered. I saw a set of double doors, and I drudged towards them. As soon as I reached them, I opened them, and another ganger fired a revolver at me. I held the corpse of the first directly in front of me, using his body like a sponge. I aimed my gun at the attacker, and fired two shots at him with a quick tut-tut sound, both landing between his eyes. He fell over, unmoving, and I continued my slow advance. I found myself in another corridor, leading to a small bar of some sort. Of course... they were getting drunk... made it obvious to find them.

I continued dragging the body in front of me, and as soon as I entered the bar, a loud pow rang, followed by a splatter of blood over my clothing and face. In a moment, I realized the cadaver's head exploded from a rifle wound to the left side of the head. I dropped it, and pressed my back against a wall just outside the bar. "Boy, you ain't gonna come in here without getting you're skull shot off. I fought the law!" I heard one of them declare.

I took a deep breath, yet again pulling out my razor. I made an immediate dive into the bar, another rifle shot ringing in my ears followed by a zip in a wall just behind me. I recovered quickly, saw the pony that shot at me pulling the bolt on his rifle, and without hesitation, fired a shot directly into his left eye. I saw him recoil a bit, fall backwards, and land on the ground, twitching. "And the law won..." I looked quickly, and saw the last pony, Pop, carrying his flamer. He stood on the other side of the room, and we both knew that fire wasn't going to reach me. But I couldn't get close to him either to make a surefire shot to take him out. He surprised me instead... he took a bottle in hooves, smashed it, and raised it towards me.

I accepted the challenge, drew my own razor, and raised it towards him. "Son... I'm about to teach you what happens when you fuck with the wrong gang."

"Yeah... they die..." I replied back, hissing. He charged at me first, and as he galloped, he threw a chair at me. I ducked quickly, and as he leaped to slam onto me, I rolled out of the way. He stabbed the sharpened of the glass into the floorboards, shattering it further. I took the opportunity to swipe my blade at him barely making a small cut into his hoof. He gasped out in pain, and punched me with his free hoof, knocking my face to the side. As soon as I turned back, I saw Pop grabbing the nozzle of the flamer again, preparing to use it. Quickly, I reached for it as well, and as soon as he pressed the trigger, I shoved it upwards, the flames flashing out to the ceiling.

I struggled as he attempted to bring the nozzle down towards me, grinning as he did. I felt myself gasping, trying as much as I could to prevent that from happening. "You ain't gonna win, boy... you're a pegasus. You're born weak..."

I twitched my ears a bit, and under my mask, gritted my teeth. Rather than try to prevent him from lowering it, I released it, and quickly slipped between his legs and behind him. I grasped at his tank before he could react, and pulled his head back. "That may be... but I'm much faster than you..." I shoved him as hard as I could away from me, and as he fell over a table, I shot at his tank twice, causing it to erupt in a ball of flame, and covering him in it. He shrieked as he began to feel his skin boil and melt around him, and his agony continued as he rolled on the ground constantly. After thirty seconds of what even I considered torture just watching, I saw as his limbs slowly curl unnaturally, and his back arch backwards. His smoldering corpse still burned brightly, and I shook my head at the sight.

I backed away a bit, and bumped into AJ. I turned to her, and she looked at the still bright pile of flesh. "Come on... let's get going, First..." I simply nodded, feeling a little lightheaded at what I just witnessed. I holstered my weapons, and we both trotted out of the casino, towards the Laden Saddle. We entered through the front door this time... considering the danger was now gone. I felt the townsfolks' eyes all turn to me, and for a moment, I thought it was my day of reckoning.

"Are they... gone?" Nova asked. I nodded, grasping my head with my wing. Nova slowly began to form a smile, and then he hooted in glee. "Hell yeah! Everypony! We can now rest easy thanks to this kind fella here!"

The others erupted in a roar of a cheer, and I sighed. Then I chuckled... I don't really know why I felt bad to see that happen... maybe because nopony deserves to suffer? I shook it off, and grew a bit more cheerful as well. "I preferred Pop Corn... burnt anyways..." I said to myself, still laughing. I turned to Nova. "I really hate to bring this to you after we made a deal but... do you have a place to stay for me? I don't dare want to venture the desert yet."

Nova nodded, and handed me a key. "Room in the second floor of this building. Room B5."

I nodded, and trotted upstairs. I found the room he designated, and opened it. The bed was a queen, the room was surprisingly clean with carpets that didn't have much dirt, and the light fixtures overhead worked. I slinked into the bed, pulled the blanket over me, and was about to sleep, when my Pip-Boy began to play the drums once again. I picked my head up, tapped the machine, and saw that I had yet again leveled up. Guns 42%, Energy Weapons 24%, Unarmed 18%, Melee 42%, Explosives 24%, Medicine 24%, Sneak 44%, Lockpick 37%, Science 24%, Repair 25%, Speech 22%, Barter 22%, and Survival 18%. Only my Lockpick increased this time. My HP raised to 190, my AP increased to 100, and my XP read 910/1050.

I tapped my Perks. Another glow appeared below Rapid Reload, and I tapped it. The needle inside the Pip-Boy yet again pricked me, and I winced as it did. After it was done, a new phrase appeared under Rapid Reload; Friend of the Night. I cocked an eyebrow, and tapped it. My eyes widened as I did, though... it read that my vision during dusk and night was improved dramatically, and that I could see even under low light conditions. I gasped a bit... and felt a smile cross my face. This was literally a dream come true, and I was living it. I shut off the lights, and true to word, everything seemed to appear a bit green... exactly like the Cat Eye I took. I smiled widely, laid in my bed, and with one more yawn, I closed my eyes, falling asleep for the night.

{END DAY 2 LOG TRANSMISSION}

Guardian Angel

{BEGIN DAY 3 LOG TRANSMISSION}

Day 3, July 26

0715 Hours

I woke up today much better than I did yesterday. I opened my eyes slowly, light attempting to flood into the room from a few slits in the blinds of the window. I covered my eyes with my wing as I let my eyes get accustomed to the sudden change. I blinked a bit, and everything seemed blurry. I wondered for a moment... then it hit me. Obviously, I was a Friend of the Night... I was still blind during the daytime.

I sighed, feeling both my hood and my mask still on me. I pulled the hood back, and lowered the mask back to my neck. I checked both, and noticed they were now stained with black splatters of dried blood. I really needed to clean them soon... I didn't want anypony to think I was some kind of butcher or something.

Before I stood up, I wondered how in the world I would remove my Pip-Boy from my foreleg before I took a bath. I fiddle with the dials on the side of the machine, but it didn't seem to work. After a few minutes of tampering, I shrugged, and gave up. "Oh well... I hope you're waterproof..."

I slinked off the bed, trotted into the bathroom, and shut the door, clicking the locks behind me. I pulled my wing back into the jumpsuit, and closed the zipper. I pulled my head back into the jumpsuit, for a moment as if in a quick retreat. I slipped my legs into it as well, and after every part of my body was inside, I undid the buttons in front of the suit. I pulled myself out of the suit, and stood, completely bare save for the machine still attached to my leg and the bandana still around my neck. I undid the fabric, and draped it along with the jumpsuit on a nearby counter attached to the sink.

I took a gander at the furniture inside. The counter tops, cracked at a corner, were made of marble, dusty but otherwise still visible and actually fairly pristine still. The metal the pipes for the sink used showed no rust, and I smiled a bit. Meant that the bathtub would be filled with some clean water. I took a gander at a slightly foggy mirror, and squinted. I saw myself, my hide and mane slightly coated with a cake of dirt and the same blood splotches from both Goodsprings and yesterday.

I slightly rubbed my face a bit. I noticed whatever I had gotten yesterday from the dragon wasn't there anymore. Thank Luna... I didn't want a scar on my face... it'd bother me forever. I ran my hoof through my mane, noticing it was a bit tangled. I nodded, and finally turned to the bathtub. There was a curtain still hanging around the tub, decorated with what I thought were flowers. I pulled the curtains to the side, turned on the knobs to release the water, and waited for the tub to fill.

As I heard the water rushing out of the faucet, I took the clothes from the counter, took a hoofful of water, and splashed the areas of the jumpsuit and bandana that were stained. After rinsing them and scrubbing them well with my wing, the clothing came out looking much cleaner. I smiled to myself, and placed the clothes back on the side to dry.

I turned back to the tub, filled with clear water that I could see my reflection in. I chuckled, and dipped a hoof inside. Deeming it warm enough, I pulled myself fully into the water, sighing in relief as I felt myself soaking inside what I thought vegetables soaking in soup would feel like.

The water reached up to my neck, and I splashed a bit over my mane until it drooped over my eyes. I then took a deep breath, and dunked my head into the fresh water, where I yet again used my wing to scrub my mane while underwater. After a few seconds, I drew my head back above the surface, gasping a bit. I never swam much... and even when I did, I couldn't stay underwater for very long at risk of passing out. I stood up a bit, making sure to grasp the side of the tub at risk of slipping. I checked the mirror, and saw that my hide was a golden yellow once again, and my mane was no longer ruffled. I chuckled... I did look a bit nicer to the eye.

I decided it was enough, and I pulled the plug within the drain in the tub, causing the water to recede with a gurgling noise... washing away the dirt of two days worth of trouble. I watched in awe as it did, listening to the drain swallowing the water greedily. I was glad to be rid of it. After every drop had disappeared, I shook myself dry, something I always chose to do rather than to use a towel. I took a moment to use my wing to fix my mane, and after it had returned to the style I always had it, I turned to my clothing, draping from the counter.

I placed the jumpsuit on yet again... and strangely... it felt at home on me. I didn't bother slipping the hood over me for now, but I did wrap the bandana around my neck again... something about being unknown to most ponies always made me more comfortable. I left the bathroom, exited my room, and checked my Pip-Boy. It still worked... why couldn't everything else be waterproof like it?

I tapped the Items and selected my sunglasses. As soon as they emerged from their safe haven, I placed them on, and trotted downstairs. I found the casino floor much more dormant than yesterday, and I figured nearly everypony had gone home. AJ, however, stood beside the glamour of the floor; the treasured cart. I trotted to her, and found she had yet again deactivated herself. I wondered how she could do so, yet not power herself back on, but that theory soon cleared as AJ slowly hummed back to life. Her eyes glimmered a slight yellow for a moment, and then back to green as she recognized me, yawning. "Hey, First... sleep well?"

"Yeah, but then I woke up..." I replied, pointing to my eyes as I did.

She cocked her eyebrows. "What's wrong?"

"Well... I solved the issue of being totally blind at night... but I'm still blind during the day. But hey... I'm actually fairly grateful of that."

"Well, that's good to hear!" She looked around a bit, noticing how empty the casino was. "Huh... wonder where everypony went..."

"I hope you didn't go on a rampage last night, AJ," I joked.

"Hehehe... of course I didn't." She answered this rather calmly, her chuckle a bit... off. I shrugged it off, though, and turned to the exit. We both trotted to it, but before we arrived, the door opened itself. After a moment, Nova stepped through the doors, smiling.

"Pardon my intrusion but... I really hate to dwell on your kindness, but..."

"Something the matter?"

"Well, yes. You've been across the bridge to the Lunar Republic's side of the bridge, right?"

"Yeah, why?"

"...we can't defend this town alone. While most folks here have a gun to help themselves, it ain't enough to stop any more troublemakers from coming. With the Republic's presence here, most would think twice before coming back here."

I thought about it for a moment. I tapped my Pip-Boy, checking what ammo I had left. I only had twenty-one cartridges left for my pistol... but then realized I didn't get any for the rifle, named the Service Rifle inside the Pip-Boy. I turned back to Nova. "Well first things first. If I had wanted to use the rifle yesterday, I would've been dead. So I want rounds for it... and plenty."

Nova nods, and chuckles sheepishly. "Yeah... my noggin ain't what it used to be..." I could tell he didn't intend to leave me to die inside the Buffalo, but I was still peeved at the prospect of standing with the rifle and the ready and learning I had no ammo for it. He reached into a nearby saddlebag, and pulled out two boxes. He handed both to me. "The full one has around forty rounds of 5.56. The other is what ammo the Poppers inside the casino had."

I took both, and pressed the Items on my Pip-Boy. They both began to glimmer before disappearing, and they both showed up in the Pip-Boy's screen. While the rifle rounds were enough for me, the pistol rounds that were added only amounted to four, raising the number to twenty-five. "Thanks, Nova. This'll help me out with... what was his name again?"

"Bugsy."

"Yeah..." A thought came to mind... what was so important about some horseshoe made of glass? "Is the Pony Express open?"

"It probably isn't, but I can get you in. Why?"

"I have an order form... specifically from the office here. I want to know why the hell I got shot over some hoofwear." I gave Nova the note, and he nodded.

"Yeah... it's from here alright. I'll take ya over there." He led me and AJ out of the casino and towards a building across the street. He knocked on the door, and after a moment, it opened to reveal the pony I had captured yesterday. At the first sight of me, he whimpered, and closed the door with a slam. Nova knocked once more. "Come on, Giddy Up. He ain't like that now..."

"G-git 'im outta here, deputy! H-he tried to t-t-take me out!"

"I only did that to get your attention. I never planned on killing you."

Nova glared at me, then focused back onto the building. "Giddy, come on. He saved your hide, remember? He's the one that took out the Poppers."

A silence at first, then the door opened with a creak, and Giddy peeked through it. "Oh... r-r-right... OK, d-d-deputy... please come in..." He opened the door much more widely now, and Nova smiled.

"Thank you. Come in, Mr..."

"Class."

"Class. Giddy... please show courtesy to Mr. Class here." Giddy, watching me closely, didn't respond, a worry on his face that was obvious. He then nodded slowly, and let us all in... even though it was reluctantly. Giddy led us to a set of chairs and tables, and we sat down at them.

"S-so wh-why are you here... C-C-Class?" he stuttered out. I wasn't sure if he had a speech impediment or was just that terrified of me. I really didn't want him to be. I sighed, turned to him, and gave him the best hint of reassurance I could offer.

"I was hoping you could help me out. Nova, can you give him the order form?" Nova nodded, and gave Giddy the slip. Giddy took it hesitantly, looked it over, and nodded.

"Oh... th-that order... well..." he stammered, and by then, I understood it was in fact a speech impediment.

"Yes?"

"Y-you weren't originally the o-one to deliver that h-h-horseshoe... another p-pegasus was assigned for that o-order. U-u-unfortunately... he quit when he saw the f-f-forms on who the P-P-Pony Express had hired. I don't kn-know why..."

Another pegasus? Weird. "Yeah... I had to come in from out west of here because I was called about that. I had finished another job I had and was ready to head on back to New Reno before I rushed here. Didn't know it would get me inside a grave and losing my wing..."

Giddy appeared to have something on his mind, but he didn't speak it. "I-I'm s-sorry to hear about y-your wing."

I chuckled, and waved a hoof in denial. "It wasn't your fault I ended up in a ditch. But thank you, Giddy. So, have any idea as to what the hell's so important about the horseshoe? Did some mare leave it at her ball?"

Giddy shook his head. "I-I'm not sure... I... I j-j-just thought it was s-something s-somepony needed t-to replace a l-lost horseshoe."

I nodded, a bit in defeat. I had one more question on my mind. "Where was I supposed to deliver that package?"

"N-N-New P-P-P-Pegasus..." he answered, struggling with the second part. I twitched my ears. That's where Bugsy was heading...

I stood up, and headed to the door. I turned back to Nova and Giddy. "Again, Giddy... thank you. This'll help me out big time. And Nova... I'll be sure to get the Lunar Republic troopers to occupy the town. Come on, AJ... we gotta go." She stood up, and headed to me as well. I waved farewell with my wing, and they waved back as well. I left the Pony Express building, crossed the road back to the Lunar Republic's side of the town.

The trooper from yesterday stood up readily, almost surprised. "Whoa... didn't think you'd pull that off singlehoofedly!"

"Yeah... and don't worry... there weren't any charges around the casino. Just dynamite."

"Yeah... you're friend brought in a shitload last night. It'd be very good to send it back to the quarry further north."

"Is Matterhorn in? I need to discuss something with him."

"Yeah, he should still be in his tent."

"Thanks. Let's get a move on, AJ." We both trotted back over to Matterhorn's tent, and entered. Matterhorn sat in front of his desk again, sipping more of whatever he had yesterday. He looked up at me but said nothing. "I assume you got the dynamite?"

"Yeah. Your friend there delivered it to us. Thank you for that, by the way."

"Listen... we needed something else." Matterhorn cocked an eyebrow. "The NLR needs to occupy Primm. The townsfolk are down with the idea as well."

Matterhorn set his cup down, and nickered. "Well we would occupy the rest of the town, but as you can tell, there's only five of us here. Five troops aren't enough to successfully secure and defend a town, even with the support of said town."

"Damn... and there's nothing that can be done about that?"

"There is... would you like to hear it?" I knew it was probably going to be a job I had to do. But if it was going to help Primm... and, to some extent, Luna... I would surely do it.

"Lay it on me."

"I'll need you to head to the NLR's outpost, further south following the Long 15. You'll know when you're there when you see a large statuette. There, talk to either Ranger Rough Rider or Major Quail. Ask them about sending more troops out here, and that should get them to do so. And if they ask, tell them I sent you."

I nodded. "Alright, thank you, Lieutenant Matterhorn." He nodded as well, and both AJ and I left the tent. We both left down the street back to the entrance of the overpass. We landed back on the Long 15, and began to head south, under the bridge and leaving Primm.

0900 Hours

Both AJ and I passed the time traveling by talking about the area. "So Dodge is another western town like Goodsprings? Have you ever been there, AJ?"

"Nah. At least... I don't remember..."

"I thought robots like you could remember everything."

AJ chuckled... but after hearing her sigh, it wasn't out of amusement. "No... we're just like any other pony... well, save for the fact we ain't ponies..."

"Oh, come on, AJ... don't... don't say that..."

"...no... no I will say that! You can't change that fact, First!"

"Come on, AJ... I'm... I'm sure maybe if you could find out... where you came from... maybe you can find out more about yourself. What did you say was your make?"

She remained silent for a moment, and then answered, "Bronco. Somewhere just outside of New Pegasus."

I smiled at her, and placed my wing on her shoulder. "Hey... I promise we'll visit that building. Sound good, AJ?"

She turned back to me, her eyes a blue now. She nodded slowly, holding her head low. Suddenly, she picked her head up, and twitched her ears a bit. Her eyes changed to yellow, and she stood absolutely still for a moment. Finally, her eyes flashed red, and she revealed her weapons once more. "Trouble nearby, First."

I was about to pull my weapons out, but she stopped me. "These ain't ponies, First... just follow me, and quickly." She galloped at full speed further down the Long 15, where we had seen another overpass ahead of us. I followed her closely, my speed nothing compared to hers. Finally, I had heard what she had; a shouting, followed by some shooting.

"Th-that sounds like somepony to me!" I admitted to AJ.

We both continued our advance, nearing the gap of the overpass now. As we did, however, we came across a lavender unicorn, her caramel mane barely reaching her neckline. She sat perched on a pile of rubble, a bit high off the ground. She used her magic to hold a pistol, covered in a golden veil, next to her, firing it into a dead... er... ant...

As soon as she took sight of us, I ducked behind AJ, who in turn drew her weapons and trained them onto the unicorn. The unicorn, in response, simply smiled, holstered her pistol, and slinked off the rubble, standing in the road now. "Not another step, stranger!" AJ warned.

The unicorn chuckled, and smiled at us. "Aw, come on! You can't already hate me! I haven't even introduced myself!" She approached us still.

I was pretty sure she wasn't going to kill us... at least that's what I told myself. I asked her, "What happened to you?"

She nickered, and pouted a bit. "Some bastards came up to me stole my rifle and a couple other stuff, and took off! Damn thugs."

"Are you alright?"

"No, I'm not. They left me here to fend against that giant ant. Not only that, but I used my last bullet taking it down."

Hmm... something about her... she seemed a bit pissed off... but almost like it was unnatural to her. "Um... just tell me exactly what happened to you."

"Well, they stole my rifle, Grace... they also stole my teddy bear, Frank! And, if that wasn't enough, they also stole my doll, Peaches! Can you believe it!? They stole my two best friends! They're a bunch of monsters!"

Boy, did I know how that felt. "Yeah...haven't we all? Need some help with that?"

"Yes! Oh, I'd love some help! If you did... I'd find some way to thank you! And it's like destiny you came in right after I got robbed! You're like... ooh! You're like my guardian angel!" She took a look at my left side, and stopped talking, shifting her foreleg awkwardly. "Well... you're a half angel... but still, an angel!" I sighed in disappointment as I was reminded of my severed wing. She seemed to notice my anguish. "Oh, um... I'm sorry Mr. One Wing... is that you're name?"

I nickered a bit. "No... my name's First Class. And... I used to have two wings. I had to get it removed."

"Oh boy... did that hurt?"

"No... which is why I'm worried... I thought it would hurt like hell."

"Hey! It's OK! You still have the other!"

I flapped my right wing a bit, and sighed. "Yeah, I guess... anyways, enough about me. Who are you?"

"My name's Shining Willow! And if you need it, I can help with nightwatch... critters... and I'm fun to have around! Hey... that's it! I hate being alone... maybe after we find these bandits, I can go with you! What do you say?"

She seemed more annoying than fun, but I wasn't going to tell her that. But then again... we could use a little relief on this trek to New Pegasus. "Er... I'm good with it. AJ, what about you?"

"If you trust her, I don't see why not." Her eyes flashed back to green, and she placed her weapons away. Willow, in response, jumped up and down in joy.

"Oh, wonderful! I know we'll get to know each other a lot better and stuff!" She galloped to both of us, and hugged both of us tightly... well, more like strangling in my case as I felt my chest slowly crush the air out of my lungs. I choked and gasped, struggling to take a breath.

"Too... wonderful...!" I strained out, my wing being crushed as well. She let go, and chuckled sheepishly, swinging her foreleg.

"Um... sorry about that... it's just been so long since I've seen a friendly face."

"It's OK... not often you do out here. But before we help you out, I have to make a quick stop at the outpost nearby. That OK?"

"Of course! You're talking about the New Lunar one, right?"

"Yes, ma'am. Know of it?"

"Know of it!? I came into San Palomino from New Moon! There's a lot less here though than New Moon, but New Pegasus did sound promising! Better than Old Pegasus back west." Most ponies were confused between what had been Los Pegasus and what had been Las Pegasus. I'm glad she wasn't one of them...

"Yeah... so did you come from OP, then?"

"Born and raised! Well, after all the minotaurs and dragons left." I flinched a bit... both at hearing minotaurs and dragons. While the dragons I had never ran into until recently, minotaurs were legends themselves. Many were docile and actually helped ponies back west... but those who weren't were some of the nastiest things anypony could... and couldn't see.

"So how did they leave? I'm sure it wasn't because somepony asked nicely..."

"We have Luna to thank for that! She finally saved the town with her big army, and finally made it so settlers and traders, like my family, could live there! That's why she's there... she keeps us safe." Living in New Reno most of my life, I couldn't really know what Luna did... but if Willow here was telling me, I couldn't really argue.

"So you lived in Old Pegasus... are you on a trade run right now?"

She shook her head. "Nope. I was looking for potential caravan partners, though! It, uh... it hasn't been successful so far, as you can tell..."

"It's alright. We can get your stuff back and you can go to... well, wherever it is you wanted to."

She shot that idea down. "Actually... I was planning to stay in San Palomino for a good while. My folks said to go for it, and I wasn't going to let them down." She was actually close to her folks. I honestly had no clue where mine were.

"Since you know so much about the New Lunar Republic, can you fill me in? What is New Moon?"

She suddenly burst out in laughter... hysterical noise at that. "Y-you don't know... what New Moon is?"

"No. I'm from New Reno."

She then stopped laughing. "Oh... that explains it. Well, see, New Moon is the biggest sector in New Equestria. Well, population wise. Area wise would probably be Everfree. But New Moon was made after the New Equestrian War, when Luna went west and Celestia went east. Although... as much as everypony believes, I don't think they fought against each other..."

"Yeah... I wouldn't know too much about that. So what's the NLR doing in San Palomino?"

"Haven't you heard? Between San Palomino and the Canterlot sectors is Everfree! There's a river... it goes all throughout Everfree... it gives us water... and near New Pegasus is a big wall that uses that river for sparky things!"

"I think that would be power, Willow."

"Yeah! Power! Without it, nothing would work in San Palomino!"

Makes sense as to why Luna would find this sector appealing. "Hmm... seems easy enough to occupy Palomino."

"Oh, it's not! I'll show you when we get to the outpost!" I cocked an eyebrow, noticing she sounded joyed even upon mentioning that.

"Um... OK... let's get going then." The three of us trotted down the Long 15 further, passing the overpass and the dead ant.

1000 Hours

The three of us trotted up a hill filled with abandoned and ransacked carts. Upon reaching the summit, I came across what Matterhorn called the "statuette." Rather, this colossal piece was about about two or three dozen meters tall. It depicted two ponies; one dressed in a trench coat and a gas mask, and the other in Lunar Republic trooper armor. Both ponies were shown hoofbumping each other, and grinning widely. Underneath the statue was a plaque, and I trotted up to read it.

Let all of New Equestria note that today, we made history. Palomino's Guardians of the Wastes and the New Lunar Republic's Grand Army have combined to strengthen both ties within the New Lunar Republic and within San Palomino. We shall purge the wicked, liberate the oppressed, and protect the good denizens of the entirety of New Equestria. Eureka... we have found it.

Seemed pretty bold for them to make such a big promise. I did wonder what wicked they were referencing, but it'd probably be best not to find out. As for now, I trotted further up the road, a large shade structure built over it. Further down was a large gate, that extended in two more directions; one towards a pen of some sorts and the other towards a large office building. "OK... AJ, where do you think we should go?"

She seemed to give me an exasperated expression, as if I was the dumbest pony she met. "Hmm... maybe the only building here?"

I turned to the building, as if I had not noticed it before when I surely had. "Huh... I, uh... didn't see that there..."

Willow seemed to find my cluelessness amusing, giggling under her breath. "Oh, First, you're so adorable when you're clueless!" I drooped my ears, staring back at Willow in complete shock.

"Oh, shut up, Willow..." She stopped, and shifted her forelegs awkwardly. I simply trotted towards the office, entered through the front door, and looked around. The building looked much like a post office, with many slots in a wall for both ingoing and outgoing parcels. I trotted to the front desk, where a unicorn stood, using his magic to hold a plume as he scribbled onto many forms.

He looked up, set his quill down, and smiled. "Welcome to the Palomino Outpost. Civilian or Military personnel?"

"Uh, civilian, I guess."

"Alright, thank you. If you need a bunk to stay in for the night, we can set up some of the barracks for you. If you need any repairs, I can set you up with the correct change for the parts."

"You didn't tell me your name..." I said, chuckling a bit.

"Oh... Quail. Um... it's not everyday somepony actually cares to ask for that. Sorry for being a bit surprised. You're new here, huh? It isn't very friendly around here."

"Whatcha mean by that?" I inquired curiously.

"Well, uh... the outpost here... uh... they're not too... keen on... companionship..."

I cocked my eyebrow at that. "So... um... what, uh... what does that mean?" I asked, a bit nervous.

"Well, I don't mind you sticking around but..."

I nodded, finally understanding what he was getting at, my hide tensing a bit. "Oh... it's OK, I guess..." I really wasn't into anypony like that yet. It didn't stop me from looking, though.

"Hey... turn that frown upside down... New Pegasus isn't that far away for the NLR. Endless opportunities."

"Yeah, I was actually headed there myself. I'm sorry, I didn't really introduce myself. I'm First Class."

Quail seemed to nod in conception at that. "Yeah. Matterhorn contacted me that you'd probably be coming."

"Really? How so?" I didn't see any radio or other means of communication in the office.

Quail sparked his horn a bit. "Old unicorn trick. So what did you need?"

"Well, Primm really needs some troopers there to keep it away from convicts and thugs. Do you think you'd be able to help with that?"

Quail placed a hoof on his chin for a moment. "I don't know... I'd need to radio in some more heads here if I sent the ones already present to Primm. But... I think we'll be fine with one day without too many guards here."

"Oh, that's great! Thanks!"

Quail chuckled. "No problem. Considering what you did for the town, I figure the least I can do is fix anything up for you."

"That sounds great! You'd be able to do that?"

"Of course. What needs to be repaired?"

I tapped my Pip-Boy, and selected my pistol. As soon as it appeared, I handed it to Quail. "You're too kind."

He took it, setting it aside for the moment, then turned back to me, smiling. "You flatter me." He caught sight of Willow, and his smile faded away. "Back already, Shining?"

"Uh, well... yeah, Quail... already..." she answered disappointingly.

Quail sighed. "I'd have thought you'd only come back to visit." He took a good look at her, and shook his head. "You got robbed, didn't you?"

She groaned, and nodded solemnly. "Yeah... Fiends... but, that's why First Class is here! He's gonna help me out!"

"As long as you came back in one piece, Willow. But are you sure you'll be OK?"

"Yes, Quail."

"OK. If you and your friends need some refreshment, head into the bar. I'll tell Rough Rider you're going." She nodded, and attempted to rush me and AJ out as quickly as possible. Before we left, Quail waved at us all. "See you all soon!"

"Yeah, you too!" As soon as Willow dragged us out, she led us to another door outside the same building. "Nice guy... you know him?"

"Yeah, I do. He grew up in Old Pegasus like me, but as soon as he joined the Grand Army, he's always been on the move. He hates it. I think you know why..."

I could take a wild guess, but I simply asked, "No... why?"

"He really wants to settle down with somepony but he can't. I do as well. I hated being a trader and always moving about!"

"Sounds unlike me. I really hate sitting still for so long. Without my wing, it just makes me feel irritated. Why do you think I'm a courier?"

"You lived in New Reno, right?"

"I still do. Why?"

"How come you've never heard of New Moon?"

"I don't stick around for very long wherever I head. I don't ask anypony anything and I'm probably sure I have visited it. I just wasn't sure what it was called."

"And San Palomino? Is that where you usually made your deliveries?"

"Yeah... just never as far out as here. Usually, most of what I did was local." I sat down at the counter, and waved the barkeep over. "Can I get... wait... I'm sorry, I really don't know what's here..."

"I'll just bring you some hay fries. Anythin' to drink?"

"Water... just water."

"Ooh! Me too!"

The barkeep turned to AJ. "And uh... you?"

"I suppose you'll expect me to say cider... but no. Just get me some oil." The barkeep cocked an eyebrow, but nodded. As they left, AJ turned back to the two of us. "I don't know why... but I've always found interest in a certain fruit... it bugs me. So I try to avoid it as much as possible."

"Bugs you how?"

"I can't eat it."

"Ah, I see." At the risk of treading some sensitive grounds, I asked, "AJ... are you one of those robots without actual internal organs?"

"Yeah, I am. But having those guts must get awfully cramped."

Boy, did it sometimes... "Can't argue about that."

"Oh, I know! You're lucky cause you don't get belly aches or indigestion... or even worse!"

"What could be worse?" Before Willow had a chance to answer, I placed my wing over her muzzle.

"Uh... not while ponies are eating, Shining." She nodded, and I expected her to remove my wing. She didn't, and instead sent out a muffled giggle, tickling it a bit and causing me to release her.

"I knew it!"

"What?"

"Pegasi are ticklish on their wings!"

"Oh... uh... good for you?" It wasn't just ticklish wings of a pegasi were... they were also extremely fragile and sensitive. It's why I was so worried with why I felt no pain on the stump of my left wing.

We received our food about two minutes later. I ate as quickly as possible... while the prospect of barracks and a bed to sleep in sounded pleasant, I didn't want to feel lazy and remain here the rest of the day. I think I finished not even two minutes after I got it. "Wow, First, you finished that before I even got to try my fries."

"I just want to get out of here. We should get to Dodge before sundown if we can."

"Dodge? Ooh! I know a few ponies there! Maybe after we go there we can find those jackasses that robbed me and take back my stuff!"

"Sure. Do you know where exactly they went?"

"Sure do... well... not..." she admitted, a bit embarrassed.

"...it's alright. I don't think they could have gone far off. We just gotta track 'em down quickly. Know at least which way they went?"

"Yep! They went east of here, down the 95."

"So we go down that path, then. Just finish up your fries and take your water and we can head out."

"I already did!" I blinked, and checked her plate. Within the few seconds that we were talking, she somehow finished them all. I stared, completely perplexed by the empty plate. How did she do that?

"Um... OK... well, let's hit the road then."

I downed as much water as I could and brought along two water bottles, and a few moments later, Willow followed suit... you never know when you'd run into it again in a desert. I slipped out of the bar, leaving some caps on the counter.

1400 Hours

I picked up my gun a few minutes after I had left the bar, before I set off on my way down the hill once more and now following the 95 branching off the Long. I turned back to Willow and AJ. "OK... most likely we'll reach Dodge by the end of today. We'll find a place to stay, rest, and gear up to find those ponies, Shining."

"Oh, goodie! Come on then, and let's get going!"

...I don't know how, or when, but I believe around the time we reached a ruined general store alongside the road, I had the natural instinct to inspect it. The others seemed to notice me subconsciously trotting closer to it. "Hey, First... I wouldn't be poking around in there. Who knows what could be there?"

"Exactly." I continued my approach to the ruins until I began sifting through the rubble, looking for anything. I picked through I believe three pounds of rock and concrete before I came upon a small, metallic case. I lifted it up, gazing at it as I turned it a bit. "Huh... it's a lockbox of some sort... and you know how we can open this?"

"With a key! Oh, but we probably won't be able to find the key under all this junk and stuff..."

I chuckled a bit, and turned to AJ. "Ever heard of a master key, Willow? We have one right here. Think you can get it open, AJ?"

She didn't respond with words. Rather, she extended her hoof, where I saw a blade switch out from it. She brought the container closer to her, made an incision onto the side, and pull out a sheet of metal. She handed the container back to me, smirking. "Oh, I think I can."

I checked inside the container, and looked at what I thought was a green pineapple. I removed it from the container, and peered at it. AJ quickly took it, keeping it away from me. "Hey, what the hell, AJ?"

"Do you seriously not know what this is?"

I scratched my head a bit. "It's a fruit... right?"

She shook her head. "No. This is an explosive. You pull the pin here, and after three or four seconds, it'll blow up."

Huh... from what it sounded like, it seemed just like what dynamite was. I extended my wing and she placed it back. Well, if that pin really made it go off, I didn't want to hold it at risk of it coming off. I tapped the Items key, waited for the explosive to get stored, and turned back to the road. "Alright. Let's get going. It's almost high noon, which means that we can reach Dodge by-" I heard a clink... clink... clink... come closer to us, and I turned to the source. I saw a small container... exactly like the one I had just placed away.

Not a second later, the device went off, sending off a large aura of a blue light. As soon as it did, I felt a bit blinded by the flash, but I heard the distinct sound of a crash behind me. As soon as I shook the white out of my eyes, I turned to the source, and found AJ slumped onto the ground. Willow had already began to shake at her, trying to wake her up. I rushed over to help her.

The last thing I did before blacking out was continue to attempt to wake AJ up, before I felt a sharp smack hit my head...

1900 Hours

I opened my eyes sharply, gasping for a breath. I looked around, the pitch blackness around me slowly radiating with a slight green as my eyes adjusted to it. I found a few wooden boards laid carelessly on the floor... walls so crooked and unnatural I felt like they'd collapse on me at any moment... and a small door along with a few more boards making up a fourth wall inside. After a few moments, I realized I was in some sort of cave. I stood up, but immediately as I tried to, I felt something restrain me with a slink. I turned around, and saw two pairs of chains clamping my legs together.

"Oh no... oh no oh no oh no oh no oh no!" I can't think straight in tight places, I just can't! I immediately galloped to the doorway and slammed into it quickly, but... ha ha... no surprise there... it didn't fucking budge! I slammed... repeatedly... dammit, why wouldn't this door open!? I don't know how many times I did, I lost count after one... and it still wouldn't open, damn it!

I prepared another charge hoping that somehow I could get it to grow a mind of its own and end the assault it had taken by swinging open. As I galloped once more, the door opened, light poured into the room, and I back away a bit, relieved and calmed. That relief soon turned to distress as the pony who opened the door... I couldn't see them well as the light filling the room messed with my vision... lifted me up and dragged me by my wing across the ground. I tried to hold in my cries, but the clenching from my wing was too much, and I gave out occasional shouts of misery. After a few minutes, somepony tossed me to the ground, where both AJ and Willow were strewn onto the ground as well.

AJ wasn't restrained, yet she didn't move whatsoever, and when I inspected her eyes, I saw why. She was inactive... I think... and her metal hide was cold. I turned to Willow, who lay awake and terrified, trembling uncontrollably. "Willow... what's the matter?"

She continued shaking and unresponsive, until she hid her face in her hooves and replied muffled, "W-w-we're in the lair... of some Fiends..."

...that wasn't good at all. I know I've mentioned this before, and I'll say it again; Fiends are a menace to what remains of society. I don't know what made them completely insane... Arcane magic, the Aura from the war, or whatever, but however it was... it did its job on these guys. They'd raid villages, towns, maybe even the outskirts of New Reno where the warehouses were... they'd pillage, murder, and kidnap others... many times we'd never see them again. And when that fact dawned on me, I crawled a bit closer to Willow. "Willow, listen to me... hey... listen..." I tried to persuade her, talking as soothingly as possible.

She turned to me with eyes filled with the fear of the unknown. "What is it, First?"

I didn't really know what to say to her. I couldn't lie to her and say everything was going to be OK... but I wasn't going to say it was hopeless and hope for a quick death either. As I thought, I wondered for a moment, and checked my chains. As I did, my eyes widened, and I noticed my Pip-Boy was still attached to me. I looked around a moment, nopony else around. I raised my left foreleg slowly to Willow, and whispered, "Willow... this is important... tap the screen... and tap the bobby pin..."

"Are... are you sure that'll work?"

I simply nodded. Fiends were dangerous and brutal, no doubt. But they were also stupid and lacking in anything too... how do I put this... high tech. The chains I had on were pretty rusty, and they could probably be picked easily. As Willow tapped the screen, the bobby pin dropped onto the floor with a soft tink. I winced as it did... noise like that risking our lives always made me uneasy. I quickly picked it up in my wing, turned to my forelegs, and inserted the pin inside the keyhole of the chains. I stopped immediately... and dared not to make another move with the pin at the risk of it breaking.

I slowly turned it left, and immediately I heard a small click... if that happened and the chains didn't fall off, it meant that was the wrong way. I turned the pin to the right slowly, moving and following the small pathway it needed to follow. I think I moved it through the path with only two sudden changes in the direction. It was then that the click rang to my ears as the chains slinked off of my forelegs. I tried to stand up once more... but I had forgotten my hind legs were chained as well. "That's OK... I can work with this... let's see..." I tapped my Pip-Boy, picked my razor, and held it ready in my wing.

"First, don't... there's more out there."

"How many?"

"Six."

...I never knew why, but that number was my reference for nearly anything I did. If it was six or more raiders, I'd not bother taking them on. If it was six hundred or more caps to bet at New Reno, I'd drop out. If I carried more than six bullets, I wouldn't have a revolver. Still, I needed to do something...

I turned back to Willow, and slowly but surely undid her chains as well. "Anything else I should know about them?"

"They plan to eat us..."

Sick. "No, I meant in regards to where each one is... where we are... where we could get something to help us..."

She nodded. "There's three in a kitchen... one waiting outside the door... and two guarding the cave..."

"We can work with that." I took out my service rifle as well, handed it to Willow, and gave her a clip of twenty rounds. She took it, inspected it for a moment, and readied it by pulling on charging handle. I was impressed... she seemed to know how to use guns well. Most likely more than I did.

I held my knife in my wing, crept silently towards the door, and peered through a small slit through it. I saw a burly earth pony, holding a large blade in his hoof, slamming it onto the table as he waited. "That's a fucking big knife..." I muttered out, trembling a bit.

Willow peered through the slit as well. "Oh, silly, that's not a knife! That's a machete! It's way bigger than a puny knife."

I sighed in annoyance, and turned back to the slit. Obviously, I wasn't going to take that guy down easy. Willow, however, seemed to have another idea. She raised the rifle to the slit, and aimed. "OK... I think I can get a clear shot. Whenever you're ready, tell me."

I turned back to AJ, and rushed back to her, trying to figure out how to switch her back on. But with no buttons, levers, switches, or anything on her, I couldn't really find a way to do so. With my razor, I struck the chains on my hind legs, breaking them as the corroded rust sifted into dust. I placed my head underneath her belly as I struggled to lift her onto my back, and as she rested squarely I tried my best to stand upright. I drudged slowly to Willow. "OK, Willow... if you think you got a clear shot, I guess you can-"

She cut me off with a bang as she immediately fired one shot out the door. I quickly looked through the slit as I saw what looked like a wasp darting through the air, and when it stung the pony directly in his jaw, he recoiled, slowly leaned back, and fell onto the ground.

"Luna almighty!" I shrieked out, terrified by the sudden ringing in my ears. Willow paid me no mind, and we heard another door open. I didn't bother to look through the slot again as she held down the trigger a few more seconds, sending out a volley of booms within the room, until her clip was dry and she lowered the gun. She handed it back to me, and I took it, my hoof shaking uncontrollably. She trotted out of the storage room, yet I didn't dare leave with AJ on my back.

...I waited a few moments, before Willow reentered the room, carrying another rifle and smiling widely. I didn't know whether to be terrified or happy. "Yeah, I knew it! These were the guys who took my gun and my other stuff! They would've gotten me too but thank Celestia and Luna for that giant ant, right?"

"Uh... yeah..." I was still a bit unsettled by how suddenly she had lighted up the cave with gunfire. I finally took it upon myself to step out of the room, and into the much larger den of the cave. I looked at the ground... small splotches of dark puddles here and there broken only by four immobile lumps on the ground, emitting an odor into the cave. I covered my snout with my wing as I approached each one. "Ugh... hey Willow... let's get these out of here..." I said, setting AJ on the table.

She nodded, picked up two with her magic, and lifted them towards the mouth of the cave. She dropped them carelessly just before the last doorway outside, and I dragged the other two carcasses towards them. I dropped them next to each other, and groaned in disgust. I backed away as my my nostrils reeked of that foul stench... and I galloped back to the den before I could lose my lunch. While I might be used to seeing death and such... the reek of it never ceased to haunt me.

As I looked from afar at the carrion, something came to my mind. "Hey Willow... didn't you say there were two others?"

"Hmm? Yeah, there were! But they're probably out raiding some caravans or other travelers. As long as one of us keeps watch, they shouldn't sneak up on us! Ooh! Can I keep watch? Please?"

I really didn't want to keep watch myself, so I simply nodded. "Fine... I'm taking AJ back to the quarters so she isn't in the crossfire. If you can, can you please see what these guys have around here? Maybe something useful?"

"Definitely! I'll wake you up when it's your turn to watch and I'm tired."

"Yeah, that sounds good, I guess." I returned to AJ and slumped her over my back once more. With a strain, I said, "Good night, Willow."

"Night, First!"

I trotted back into our quarters, setting AJ down beside me. I spun around in a circle a bit, trying desperately to find a good way to go about this... but obviously that wasn't going to work with a stone floor. I simply laid on my side as the realization came to me. I curled myself into an imperfect sphere to preserve as much heat as I could.... closed my eyes... and finally fell into hibernation...

{END DAY 3 LOG TRANSMISSION}

Decline

{BEGIN DAY 5 TRANSMISSION}

Day 5, July 28th

0507 Hours

I groaned as I felt something making small noises constantly. I placed my pillow over my head, thinking someone dropped some bits or something. However, the continuance of these tiny scattering pests continued without pause. I sighed in a bit of anger, my sleep now officially ruined. I stood up groggily, my eyes still capable in the darkness as dawn approached. I stumbled to the curtains inside the room, drew them back, and found the source of the noise. Something was tapping against the window... but I couldn't see it. However... that wasn't all I couldn't see. I squinted, trying to look through it, but to no avail. It was like a thick shroud was covering us... and it wasn't the blanket of night. No... whatever was going on... it blocked out the incoming sunlight in the horizon. But... was it responsible for those little noises on the window? I wondered if it was smart to open the window, but overall decided against it. I turned back to Willow and AJ, both holding each other close like siblings.

"That's... heh... that's kinda adorable," I whispered to myself.

I really hoped they wouldn't wake up soon. Seeing them like this almost made me forget they were trying to go at each other... almost... I sighed a bit, and just shook it off. We had to get past Appleloosa if we wanted to reach New Pegasus. I left my room, noticing most of the Grand Army warriors still resting in their cots. The only exception was the stallion in command, who watched through a window the perimeter of the Ranch. He glimpsed at me but immediately went back to his window. "Storm's coming... and hell's coming with it..."

"What's going on?"

He continued to watch a bit, before shutting the blinds attached to the window. "Sandstorms. Myths... legends... all of them circle around these blinding storms..."

I probably didn't want to hear this. "How long do you think it'll last?"

He shrugged, his nostrils blasting out air in preponderance. "I'm not sure... but that's the least of concern."

OK... I really did not want to hear this. "Should we leave? Or... stay? I'm not entirely familiar with being covered head to hoof in sand."

"Mmm... you'd do best to stay indoors."

I had no problem with that. I simply trotted back into my room and laid on the bed. While I couldn't sleep anymore, I guessed the next best thing was to simply stare up at the ceiling. It seemed rather higher up than I imagined. I reached my hood upwards, trying to grasp at something that was invisible to me. But... I couldn't reach it... as I felt my right wing brush against the bed sheets, I felt like I'd never reach it... I merely closed my wing, continuing to stare up at the ceiling with morosity.

I started hearing a few thuds hit the wall, turning to them. I twitched my head a bit, pointing my ears in the direction I heard them. They moved along the wall, before stopping. What was that…?

I slinked off the bed, noticing AJ and Willow still sound asleep. I remember conflicting whether to wake them or not. I nodded as I decided, trotting to both. I tapped Shining on her shoulder.

“Psst… Willow… wake up…” She didn’t seem to budge. I then pondered a bit, before glancing at her horn. Hmm… if pegasi have sensitive wings… does that mean unicorns have sensitive horns? I unsheathed my wing, neared it towards her horn, and flicked her horn.

She woke with a startle, her horn glowing suddenly yet dimly. After a moment the light faded, and she turned to me with a glare. “Five… five more minutes… is that so much to ask?”

“Willow, there’s something out there… outside…”

She sat up a bit, her ears pricked up. After a moment, she slowly reached for her rifle. "First... when I say so... I want you to book it through the window on the opposite side."

"Willow... what's going on...?"

She continued ignoring me, trotting to AJ and knocking on her shell. After a moment AJ's eyes flickered green, before turning yellow upon seeing Willow. "Oh... bless her heart, the caravan runner..."

"I don't need your pettiness now, Southern Bitch. We've got trouble. Descension."

AJ immediately stood up, turning to me as she readied her plasma caster. "First, you'll need to listen to me. On her go, we'll leave this place. Do you understand?"

"Wait a minute, the officer here said-"

"Now!" Willow didn't give me a chance to finish as she used the butt of her rifle to bash a window on the south end of the room with a smash. As soon as she did, she dove out through it, disappearing in the sand. AJ followed a few seconds after. What the fuck was going on? I don't know what they were thinking, but I for one was staying indoors.

One of the Grand Army soldiers burst into my room. "What was that!?"

"Nothing, just my friends being-" Another loud smash rang in my ears madly, as the window on the north side of the room shattered. As soon as it did, I saw something intrude into the room, and as soon as I saw it, I recognized it as the barrel of a gun.

"Get down!" The soldier shoved me to the ground, landing a second later as a burst of fire brightened the room and sharp bangs pounded in my ears. As I covered my head with my hooves, I heard the slights crackles of glass shards breaking, wood splintering, and bullets landing into the walls with thuds as I merely cowered. After a moment, the rain of fire ceased, before more crackling as I heard clear yet subtle hoofsteps approach me. I glanced to my side only a peek, turning to the soldier. As he raised his head up as well, a sudden bang disturbed the silence, followed by a shot hitting the back of his next. I heard him choking, struggling to breathe as he coughed up a bit of blood, before I gazed at him in terror, watching the light fade from his eyes.

Immediately afterwards, I felt myself jerked upwards, lifted by my wing. I winced a bit, my eyes cast onto a unicorn, clad in darkened and gray metal across his body. So much that the only part of the unicorn's body I could see was their horn. The unicorn's eyes, veiled by a pitch black visor, slowly raised his hoof, holding a large revolver in it. After, he slammed it down quickly towards me-

{TRANSMISSION INTERRUPTED. USER ERROR. TRANSMISSION OFFLINE.}

{CONTINUING TRANSMISSION. USER FRIENDLY INTERFACE RESTORED. TRANSMISSION ONLINE.}

0614 Hours

...I felt my eyes slowly opening, feeling something rough scratch along my back. The scratching moved up my back, but continued along as a new pattern of it creeped along...

My eyes were halfway closed... I couldn't tell what was going on... where I was...?

I groaned a bit, before I regained a bit more feeling. As I did, I felt something tugging my leg, as if dragging me. As my eyes opened more, I saw a clouded sky, as if I were on my back.

After a moment, I realized I was on my back, and I was being dragged. Where to... I didn't know. Where I was... I didn't know. All I know was that it was sandy and rocky, feeling both grains and pebbles roughly scratch and poke against my spine.

I winced as feeling came back to me, feeling a buzzing pain on my forehead and a soreness across my back. I struggled to not make any sound, glancing at my hind legs. Both were being pulled by the same unicorn from before, trudging onward without stopping. I didn't know where he was taking me, but after witnessing that NLR soldier die right in front of me, I didn't want to find out.

I glanced at my Pip-Boy, tapped the items button as quietly as I could. I stopped for a moment to make sure that, if he did hear that, he'd brush it off as a click from something in the desert instead.

He didn't turn around, or even bother to look around. I brought my Pip-Boy back up, tapped on my straight razor, and watched as it silently phased into my hoof. I clutched it tightly, flicked the blade out from its cover, and readied myself. As I reeled my hoof back, I lunged forward.

Without hesitation, I saw the unicorn drop my hind legs, grasp the hoof with my razor in it, direct it away from him, and turn to me. Without hesitation, he punched me square in the muzzle. I dropped my razor as I fell back onto the ground. As I hit hard, gasping, he picked up my straight razor, trotted up to me, gritted his teeth, and pierced my abdomen.

I let out a slight choke, trying to breathe as I felt the air literally leaking out from my stomach. I moved both of my hooves to the blade, only the handle visible as the rest was embedded into my hide, veiled by my hide, now stained with fresh blood around the wound.

He stood up slowly, reaching to his side. He drew his revolver, opening the cylinder. As he checked, he spoke. "New Moon... that's where the degenerates such as yourself emerged from..." As much hate as there was in that statement, he spoke very calmly.

I couldn't find the strength to reply... even if I had, I didn't think talking would be much use. He seemed to note that by reading me... somehow... and he spoke again. "Soon, there will be no Old Pegasus... no trace of New Moon... when you rot in Tartarus, you will understand..." He seemed to speak like an oracle... a prophet... sealing my fate in stone. He closed the cylinder on his revolver.

As he did, however, a spark of light appeared next to him, and as it blinded me a moment and cleared up, Willow appeared from the blue. She immediately tackled the other unicorn, causing him to fire the gun once into the sand near me. As he dropped the revolver a distance away from me, I glanced at it, before moving my right hoof onto the ground, attempting to drag myself towards it. I winced and groaned out in agony, my stomach cramping up even more as I did. I dragged on until the gun was in my reach. I grasped onto it, before feeling something crush my hoof. I rasped in anguish, seeing a metal clad hoof. I looked up, seeing the unicorn, much of his armor and his visor gone. He grinded his hoof roughly against mine, before I let go of the gun. He kicked it away, and kicked me in the gut once more.

I felt even more air knocked out of me, before lying back, barely conscious at that point. The throes were like hell on earth... I felt every bit of it yet I couldn't raise so much as a matter of a cry about it.

I watched as the unicorn turned back to Willow, now on the ground struggling to stand. The unicorn grasped her by the mane, punching her in the muzzle. As she fell to the ground, the unicorn straddled her underneath him, before using his hooves to strike her slowly yet powerfully. I felt myself on the verge of blacking out... maybe I was dying... but... like hell was I gonna let... Willow... hurt...

...darkness... saw it everywhere... s-so tired... m-must... close eyes... regained feeling in my hoof... glanced... left hoof wrapped around handle... n-no... no! I wasn't... going to let... her die...

I pulled... one hoof at first... before I pushed through the dark clouding my eyes, wrapping my other hoof around the handle. I pulled harder... harder... gritting my teeth as I breathed out heavily. I was mad... pissed... furious... that somepony like this existed...

After one long pull, I felt the blade slip out of my stomach, gasping as it did. The darkness started coming back to me. I wasn't gonna... let it take me yet...

I lifted the knife with my right hoof... holding it by... by the blade... I tilted it back slightly... and suddenly launched the blade forward, hurtling towards the bastard.

It landed in the back of his throat, blade halfway buried. But it was enough... he choked out... choked on his own arrogance... and fell over onto his side, off of Willow.

I felt my eyes slowly closing, nopony of us three moving. I sighed with what breath I could... I... I failed...

Darkness plagued my eyes now... no good... no use... let it take me... let it take...

{TRANSMISSION PAUSED. SLEEP MODE ENGAGED. TRANSMISSION OFFLINE.}

{CONTINUING TRANSMISSION. USER FRIENDLY INTERFACE ACTIVE. TRANSMISSION ONLINE.}

1639 Hours

...I woke with a gasp, taking in as much air as I could. Oh dear Luna... fresh air... I... I could breathe... but... a-am I dead...?

I hadn't opened my eyes yet... I wasn't sure I wanted to...

"First... your monitor's beeping... open your eyes... c-come on..."

...AJ died too? Wait a minute... a-am I...? I opened my eyes slowly, seeing a ceiling light dimly lit overhead attached to a metal sheeted ceiling. I blinked... twice to make sure I really wasn't dead.

Many sudden realizations hit me... what happened to the Ranch... what happened to everypony else there... where was I... where... how was Willow...?

"...w-where...?"

"Shh... it's OK... you're safe, First. You're safe..."

I didn't care about my sake... "W-Willow..."

AJ patted my shoulder, smiling. "Heh... her hard head is what saved you... and you getting that knife in that Shadow's neck helped her. She's fine, First. But she's gotta learn to not just teleport away... I could've found and helped you two sooner."

That put my mind a little at ease. Still... that attack on the Ranch unsettled me greatly... why...?

AJ trotted to a bed near mine, where Willow, much of her head, shoulders, and midsection covered in bandages, sat upright, slurping enthusiastically on a bowl of rat bit soup. Wow... this pony really didn't let anything get to her. She turned to me, part of her cheek and forehead covered by the bandages but her gesture otherwise giving off a luminescent smile. "First! You're awake! Dear Luna, I'm glad I got to you in time!"

"Willow... that stallion... he... he would've killed us... who was he...?"

Willow seemed to grimace a bit. "Those... are not stallions. They're evil. And it wasn't just him. The soldiers at the Ranch took care of the assault squad... although they lost a few good stallions... they're Descension followers. Specifically, their own armed force."

"So they have their own army..." I winced as I said this, clutching my stomach. I turned to it, now bandaged where my wound was. To be honest, it was a bit tiring to see bandages and wounds and such. But in a way... I guess they were signs telling me to be more careful.

"Ooh! That reminds me! The knife you threw into that guy's neck! It's on the nightstand!"

I turned, seeing it still open and stained with dried blood now. I stared at it... the blade seeming somewhat significant now... as if it had a mind of its own, proud to be stained in the blood of something wicked that was purged. I closed the blade, not bothering to clean it. I tapped my Items button, before the razor disappeared.

Before I lowered my Pip-Boy, I heard the crashing of the drums once again. Oh boy... what did the roulette of fate have for me in store this time...? I checked my Stats... Guns 42%, Energy Weapons 24%, Unarmed 18%, Melee 42%, Explosives 24%, Medicine 24%, Sneak 50%, Lockpick 37%, Science 24%, Repair 31%, Speech 22%, Barter 22%, and Survival 18%. Both my Sneak and Repair increased. My HP raised to 195, my AP increased to 105, and my XP read 1087/2000.

I tapped my Perks, seeing what gift I'd be bestowed. A new glow appeared below Friend of the Night, and I tapped it. The needle inside the Pip-Boy yet again pricked me, still stinging but not as much as it had before. As it receded, my new perk revealed itself: Toughness. I tapped the perk, reading the description. It read that my body would no longer give way so easy to "deathly death bullets, real steel, or lazahs and plazmah... because now your skin is as tough as brass! Polished to the nth degree!" I... didn't know what to get from that, but I guessed that it increased my durability by a great amount. I smiled... I was always known for being fragile and easy to break... maybe it'd be a nice change of pace to be the opposite.

I lowered my Pip-Boy. "So, tell me about Descension. Who are they? Where are they from? Why are they doing things like what happened in Dodge?"

Shining's good mood immediately disappeared, scaring me a bit. "Descension... where to begin on those demons..." She sat upright, facing me and AJ. "Descension is essentially a legion of unicorns... anything that isn't one is seen as an inferior species to them... species they declare they have the authority to extinguish."

"So it's some kind of supremacy group. How did they spring up? Where do they come from?"

Shining shook her head. "Nopony knows... tons of rumors saying they came from here and there... the most numerous I've heard is somewhere north. But wherever they came from, they're now settled in the Everfree Sector. Makes sense... not many ponies would dare go through it, much less stay."

"Everfree? What's in Everfree?"

"Trees. Trees everywhere. It's also home to many... many creatures that wouldn't think twice of slaughtering anypony that ventured inside. The Grand Army knows Descension's in there, but with all those things inside, they can't make a move on them. Otherwise, this war between them would've been over sooner."

War, huh? I had heard a few days wars that occurred after New Equestria was formed... between the Golden Wing and ground dwellers, the settlers of New Reno and the raiders that thought it a prize... even the wars of the Sun and Moon. Though the last was the one I knew least about. Heck... nopony I knew really understood that war either... confused as to why Luna and Celestia would raise arms against one another. Maybe somepony out there did know... but till then, I was left in the dark.

"So those creatures... are they a result of the Aura?"

"Nopony really knows. Considering their appearances and such, that's the most accepted theory in the New Lunar Republic. But I doubt that with some of those creatures... including the Smiley's... the Aura hasn't ever done anything like that before... I doubt it would now."

If the Aura couldn't cause that, what could? As far as I knew, nothing short of a metamorphoses spell itself could drastically change somepony, and even if that had been the case, the Shadows couldn't have used those... at least I didn't think they could.

"So if not the Aura... what?"

"I have no clue. Maybe it is the Aura... but who knows."

I sure as hell didn't. Most ponies don't know where the Aura came from, me included. Hmm... but that was ponies... I glanced at AJ momentarily before nodding. "Hey AJ... you know much about the war?"

"Which one?"

Wait... which one...? Did that mean she knew something about Old Equestria before the New Equestrian War? "Um... the current one."

AJ nodded. "The Pitch Black War. Named as such cause both the Lunar Republic and the Shadows have ties to some sort of darkness, Luna's bein' the night and such and Descension bein' Shadows. It only started recently when Descension emerged from Everfree, and made a base just on the outskirts of the woods. But it's near the woods enough that the Republic ain't done attack it yet. Too many risks of seeing those unworldly creatures."

"So the Republic wouldn't risk sending in forces... but the Shadows are free to do raids as much as they please?"

AJ nods. "'Fraid so. But the Republic isn't helpless either. Rumors spreadin'... Luna havin' some sort of fancy plan... to not only stop the Shadows in Palomino but wipe out the ones in Everfree!"

That seems like a bold claim. No wonder they were only rumors. "But how do you know all of this? Something like that... I don't think anypony, not even Grand Army soldiers, would know without being told by Luna herself."

Willow nodded. "I know... but... good to be hopeful, right...? And besides, there's always the chance that this isn't a fluke. It may very well be the real deal!"

Or there was the overwhelming odds that it was too good to be true. I didn't want to question it any further. Right now... I wanted to know where we were. "...so uh... where is here?"

Before Willow could speak, AJ placed a metallic hoof in her muzzle, stopping her. "Before we get ta that, I would just like ta say... I was right all along!" She giggled through her glowing muzzle piece. Right about what?

Willow groaned in annoyance. "OK, yes. You were right, I was wrong. Happy?"

AJ nodded, her eyes shimmering green. "Very. Anyways... you, First Class, are in the town of Appleloosa! Our little oasis in the Palomino!"

Wait... Appleloosa? If it wasn't some Aura death trap... were there others around? "AJ... listen carefully... what do you mean by oasis?"

AJ nodded, pacing back and forth as she spoke. "Where ta begin! We got nice folk here, the springs nearby are amazin', and the apple trees are just bloomin' and livin' life to the best here!"

If Appleloosa had both a water source and trees, that meant that this would be a good place to hole up. I didn't like the idea of not being on the road and risk losing track of Bugsy... but rushing off nearly got me killed too many times already. Dragons, raiders, smiling lunatics, and the Shadows were already cutting it close by now. I wasn't going to be in a hurry to see what else would try to murder me in the desert.

I sighed. "...sounds like a nice place to stay." Both AJ and Willow registered surprise. I merely nodded. "Yep... nice place to stay."

"Stay? But... I thought we were going to head to New Pegasus..."

"And risk being mutilated by some tribals? I'm not in any hurry to do that. I at least want to get my bearings first before getting back in the saddle."

I saw AJ smile a bit at that. Maybe it was because I was finally learning something. Maybe it was because this place had something special that only she knew. Whatever it was, I saw her eyes become as green as could be. I turned to Willow, meanwhile. She seemed to grimace a bit, glaring at me silently. As far as I knew, she should be grateful that she wouldn't be trotting around too much... that unicorn could've killed her if he didn't take a knife to the neck.

"...I hate that idea."

"Yeah, so what? Exploring the area already got us in trouble at least..." I counted using my right wing. There was... hmm... the dragon... Poppers... the cannibal raiders, plus the giant ant... happy-go-lucky demons... Shadows... "Five times already. Six if you count the ant separately to that cave that housed meat eaters."

Willow shook her head. "OK. Fine. Exploring could be dangerous..."

"Could be dangerous?"

"Yes, could be dangerous. But you know what? Sometimes it's very rewarding as well..."

"Yeah... yeah, very rewarding. And what's your idea of rewarding, Willow? 'Oh hey, we got through this canyon alive! That makes our bond so much stronger!' I barely met you, Shining. You don't know me, I don't know you. Heck, I barely know AJ. We are not friends... we are just three ponies... yes, ponies... because AJ is a pony unlike what you think... with mutual respect for another and willing to help each other with their goals. After that... we part ways."

AJ and Willow both turned to me. AJ's eyes flashed instantly from green to blue, and Willow stared at me, her eyes misty. After that... it hit me what I said... and I couldn't help but to realize what an asshole I am. I raised my wing, but... couldn't find the words to make this better. How could I? I just told them off for thinking that we were friends... what kind of friend does that?

Willow attempted to sit up, but found it painful to do so. After a few more futile tries, a now sobbing Willow turned on her side on the bed, completely facing away from me. AJ continued to gaze at me, before shaking her head. "...mutual goals or not, First... I plan on stickin' by yer side till the end... 'cause that's what friends do."

...that's what always worried me. Friends till the end... whose end? Maybe in Old Equestria... things were different. But here... here... friendships never lasted... I understood that too well. Maybe Willow and AJ were trying to live in the past when they did, but... I just couldn't. I sighed in defeat, turning on my side as well, facing away from the two. "...you have every right to be mad. And to do what you guys want to do without me. I'd just moan and bitch about it anyways."

I waited... maybe for AJ to leave. Willow couldn't go anywhere, so she'd have to stay in what I thought was her version of hell for a few. At least until the stimpaks kicked in. After a moment, however, I felt a cold and very heavy hoof touch my shoulder. "...you've been through a lot, First. It's normal to be upset. 'Specially when you lost something very important to ya. But ya know what? I'm helpin' ya through it. Maybe y'all don't think so, but I consider you both my friends."

Willow remained silent a bit. "...you're my friend too, AJ..." And then she stopped. She excluded me... I knew she did. But I really couldn't blame her.

I remained silent a bit, before turning to lie on my back. I sighed. "AJ... Shining... I... I want to consider you guys my friends... I just..." A memory was holding my tongue back. It stung me still. As it did, I felt my eyes water, and I felt myself almost forced to stop. While I didn't think specifically of it, just the fact that it was there... that's what made the sting worse...

Willow, her back still facing me, merely grunted. "We get it... you don't want friends..."

...it wasn't that at all. But... I just couldn't explain it to her without it making me stop dead in my tracks and continue to pierce and paralyze me. "...it's not that..."

"It's alright, First... not everypony has to get along with whoever they're traveling with. Even I learned that from my caravan runs. All you have to do is keep to yourself and I won't bug you."

...I guess I was keeping it to myself... and... I guess that meant Willow would ignore me. Wow... that... that hurt. That hurt me very much. Two sources of pain... both completely different yet somehow related... and... and now I had to deal with both... all because I couldn't deal with one or the other...

I sighed. I guess it didn't matter. She'd be gone... something I said I wanted... but... really, the thought of it...

"Hey y'all! Now's not the time to be down in the slums! We got a whole town to explore!" AJ said ecstatically.

Well... much as wanted to see the town we'd be staying more, I still needed a bit to let the stimpak heal me. I shut my eyes, before falling asleep.

{TRANSMISSION PAUSED. SLEEP MODE ENGAGED. TRANSMISSION OFFLINE.}

{CONTINUING TRANSMISSION. USER FRIENDLY INTERFACE ACTIVE. TRANSMISSION ONLINE.}

1851 Hours

I woke up, feeling... refreshed, almost. I stood up a bit, stretching my legs. I stood up from the bed, looking around a bit. I didn't get to see much of the room before, but now I saw a bedpan on the floor, clean, thank Luna. There were also some monitors and some machines here and there, and some medical apparatus on some chrome, wheeled drawers. I turned to the other bed... noticing it was empty. I sighed, shaking my head. Willow was already gone. Fuck...

I simply stared at the bed a moment, before shaking my head again, and heading out of the small hospital. As the light began to flood into my eyes, I felt blinded a moment, before I regained my vision. I looked around what I thought looked like some sort of frontier town... the towns I read about in the Old Books that were still around. Apparently, they had built these towns before the End War, another name for the New Equestrian War, for settlers of the area... they wore these clothes... and these hats... they looked really cool and vintage. Ever since I read them, I always wanted to wear some of those cool rags. Maybe there's a chance this town still had some... it looked very organized and sound all things considering.

I trotted a bit, some of the residents mingling with each other. What I found a bit out of the ordinary, though, was the fact that the residents were composed of donkeys, mules, buffalo, ponies, and cows. Not that I haven't seen each of them before, but the fact that all of them were a community together somewhat surprised me. Many different species formed communities among themselves rather dwell with each other. The fact this was the opposite was pretty amazing.

I didn't see AJ anywhere when I woke up or when I left the hospital bed. She was probably getting some kind of kick from being here so most likely she went to look around. So that meant I had to find my own way around as well. Hmm... it wouldn't hurt to ask somepony for directions, though. I trotted to a group of residents; two buffalo, two donkeys, one mule, and an earth pony. "Uh... hello?"

"Howdy!" they all said together, chuckling afterwards. One of the buffalo turned to me. "Ah... you're one of the new ponies that got brought into town! Welcome!"

Huh... I wonder if AJ brought me in after some sort of welcoming committee. Although I guess I should be thanking them. I rubbed the back of my head nervously, chuckling. "Heh... you uh... heard about that, huh?"

"Hard not to! When a newcomer arrives, it's pretty big!" one of the donkeys stated. He then chuckled again. "Yep! Big news! Most folk here are very open to visitors!"

The mule, seeming to have slipped out of the conversation as soon as I approached, rolled his eyes, grunted a bit, and trotted away. Huh... wonder what his deal was. The others noticed as well, turning to me. "Don't mind Stone. He's... quite a wild card 'round these parts. He might be angry one moment, then extremely giddy the next. We refer to him as the Broken Wall 'cause of it."

The Broken Wall? Huh... wonder how he got that nickname exactly. Or... maybe it was his real name. Whatever it was, it seemed to be used as some kind of insult to him. But anyways... I turned back to them. "Excuse me... where can I look for some supplies or clothes?"

The earth pony pointed down the street. "The general store down the street here should have just what you need! The good ol' Chord's run it, and a newcomer like you? They'll definitely help you with whatever you'll need!"

Well, so far this town seemed a lot like Goodsprings; full of good ponies that actually looked out for visitors. I nodded to them, a bit giddy. "Alright! Thank you very much!"

"Happy trails!" the other donkey said, before they resumed their conversation. I trotted down the street following the earth pony's guidance, before coming onto the store, just on the corner. It was pretty big, one of the biggest buildings I saw in this town. I trotted inside, seeing shelf upon shelf, all lined with goods of all sorts. Sitting behind a counter was a dark blue unicorn mare, a bit elder in appearance but still looking prime. "Howdy!"

"Hello there! Are you a Chord?"

"Yes indeed! Name's Serene Chord! Pleasure to meet you, Mr..."

"Uh... Class. My name's First Class."

Serene nods. “Yup! Took it over from my Ma a couple of years back! She still helps me out a lot, though!”

"Oh, she does, huh? That's good then. So it's like a family business?"

“Yup! This here store has been around as long as the Chords have been around and we’ve been here in Appleloosa way before the End War!”

Oh man. That must mean this family's somewhere like... nearly a century old at least. "Huh. That's... quite a long time! Nice to meet you then! Say, you wouldn't happen to have any frontier clothing for me, would you?"

“I’d love to see you without clothes, I think…” The voice came from the entrance to the store where a dark blue unicorn stallion, younger than Serene but similar in looks, trotted inside, undoubtedly related to her somehow. Huh... for their age this family looked really good and healthy. Heh... I wonder if that oasis AJ was talking about was the fountain of youth. But something about this stallion... he seemed really outgoing. And that comment he made... well... I wasn't really comfortable taking my jumpsuit off regardless. It hid the fact my left wing was gone.

"Uh... huh. Um... y-yeah, just some... frontier clothes..."

Serene laughed heartily as she shook her head at the stallion. “River, please! I’m trying to make a sale here! There’s no need for you to scare off customers with your…” She cleared her throat and rolled her eyes as she continued, “...Your ‘flirtatious charm’...”

The stallion, who I now knew was named River, shrugged and turned to me while still speaking to Serene, “What can I say? I can’t help myself around handsome stallions sometimes…” He then gave me a quick wink.

I gasped a bit, before realizing my face felt warm. Oh Luna... I was blushing. I glanced a bit to my left side, the zipper allowing my left wing... had I still had it... zipped up tightly. I... I think I wanted to change in private. Who knew what these ponies would say to a stumped pegasus like me...? I turned back to Serene. "Uh... i-is there a hat...? I-I just need a hat! I'm sure it'll look great with my jumpsuit!" Although I could've worn a vest over the jumpsuit, even risking to take off my suit was something I wanted to avoid.

Serene nodded and said, “Of course! We’ve got plenty of hats to choose from. You sure you don’t want anything clothes wise? We don’t have a dressing room but you could try them on either in storage or just out back.”

"Uh... maybe I will... let's see..." I looked a bit at one of the shelves, a great deal of hats lining it. I thought about it... maybe I could get AJ one too! She didn't have one, and it'd... kinda look natural on her. I picked up two Stetsons, one a blue almost like that of the jumpsuit and another a dusty tannish color. I then looked at the vests. Why not? AJ really had some sorta thing for Appleloosa, might as well. I picked a saddle brown vest and a soft yellow vest. "Alright, how much caps?"

Serene examined my selections carefully before she looked back up at me and said, “That’ll be 30 caps, sir.”

Cool. I tapped my Pip-Boy, seeing that I had 437 caps. I just hope she didn't ask where they came from. I tapped to withdraw thirty caps, and they materialized onto the counter. "Thank you very much! So, uh... where can I try these again?"

She pointed just behind the counter and replied, “You can either use that storage area behind me or, if you feel like you need even more privacy, you can keep going until you reach the exit and change in the alley behind the store.”

Wait... more privacy outside? Huh... maybe because they went into the storage a lot. But I think I needed all the privacy I could get. "Thank you, Serene. I'll be sure to come back if I need anything else!"

“Thank you, sir! Come again, soon!”

I nodded, before trotting towards the back. As I did, I tapped my Pip-Boy, placing the brown hat and vest away. The blue hat and yellow vest remained. I thought they'd go well with the jumpsuit. I exited the store through the back, noticing the alley was pretty quiet and between another building, so I had a bit of peace of mind. I began to place the hat on first. Heh... man, I felt like I was one of those settlers back in Old Equestria. I tried to place on my vest as well. At first it didn't fit, and I thought it was because of my jumpsuit. I hesitated a bit, before removing it completely, watching it drop near my legs. I nodded, feeling a bit... well... naked. I know I usually didn't wear clothes, but... that jumpsuit felt like home. Maybe I'd put it on after this. I tried to put the best on again. It still didn't fit. I checked on what it could be, and as I investigated, it hit me. I had mistakenly bought the earth pony vest, not the pegasus one. Dang... I hoped Serene could exchange it.

“Mmmmm… I knew you were more handsome without that jumpsuit on…”

I froze. Oh Luna... my jumpsuit! I hurried to put it on, not caring where that voice came from. The voice seemed to approach as it said, “Come now… somepony like you, you deserve to show off a little, you know!”

...it was River. That voice... it just made me want to put on my suit much faster. I wasn't going to let him see my stump. But I was merely squirming the suit in my hooves, failing to place it on correctly as it merely dangled from my legs. River’s voice stayed silent for a moment before it piped up again, “Whoa… what happened to your side, friend?”

I stood still, seeing River at the door to the store. I quickly turned my left side away from him. "Uh... n-nothing, was just... p-putting my clothes on..."

“Hey, is everything alright? That really does look like a real nasty scar you’ve got.”

I sighed. I turned to River, turning my side back to him. "Yes. Yes it is a scar. I'm missing my wing, and that's... that's all that's left of it. I... I don't take off my jumpsuit because of it..."

River nodded. “I guess I understand why you’d do that.”

...why'd he have to see it? "...I can't even fly anymore... all this right wing is capable of being now is an extra limb. A pegasus that can't fly... a courier that can't deliver a package... Luna, I can't do anything anymore..."

“Now who said you have to be able to fly just to deliver a package?”

"You need to when you're a pegasus. I... was supposed to deliver a package to New Pegasus by..." I checked my Pip-Boy. "August 7th. I could've gotten it there from New Reno by the 23rd of July. But... I got fucked over... if I can't get that package back and deliver it, the pony that hired me... they will cut all funding of the San Palomino Pony Express... my family's company... and we are finished in terms of trying to sustain ourselves. And if I can do this... my... my family will be able to live life normally. They'll get a fortune that they can use to be able to live happily. That's... that's why I need to do this, River." I realized I just told River about the package. Fuck... I was told not to tell anypony about that. But... it didn't matter. I didn't have the package anyways, so even if anypony wanted to steal it, I wouldn't have it.

River nodded and replied, “I think I understand what you mean. My family means a lot to me, too. I’d do anything for them. But listen… don’t think you’re useless just because you’ve lost a wing. You’re not. Most couriers I know would’ve just given up as soon as they realized they lost any part of them. The fact that you’re still trying to deliver this package…” River shook his head and chuckled before he continued, “You’re not most couriers, I reckon.” He nodded at me before he said, “Listen, I don’t expect what I’ve said to bring about some kind of immediate revelation. But think about what I said, alright? Maybe something good’ll come out of all this.”

As much as he was preaching about not bring some kind of immediate revelation, it... sorta did. Why else would I bother crossing half of San Palomino just for some horseshoe? River was right... I wasn't just any courier... I was a damned determined one. Even so... I couldn't have made it here without help. Huh... without... without AJ and Willow. I gotta find them as soon as I can. Maybe a rest stop is what we need, but I'm not going to shoot down Willow again. I turned to River. "You're pretty wise, you know that, River?"

River chuckled and shook his head. He said, “Nah, not sure about wise. Just been around for a while out there and did a bunch of stuff. And ponies, too!”

I cleared my throat, blushed, and looked away a bit. While I admit... he, uh... hehe... had a charm to him I kinda dug, I didn't know how long I'd be staying here. I didn't want to leave him in the dust. "Um... h-heh... is there anywhere to stay here in town...?"

River nodded. “Yeah! There’s Whiskey Pete’s just down the road a ways! Pete’s a great host!”

"I'll be sure to check in, then. Thanks, River."

River nodded and as he turned around, he swished his flank a little as he walked away from me. He purred, “No problem. And if you’d like some fun with me, just give me a call. I’m sure I can accommodate you…” He raised his tail a little as he continued to swish away from me.

I realized my entire body felt much warmer, and my right wing sprouted directly from my midsection. I turned to it, trying my best to close it. O-oh jeez... th-this must be really, really disrespectful... I entered back into the storage awkwardly. I just hope that nopony else saw that little... erm... exchange...

Serene turned towards me. “So, did everything fit you okay, sir?”

I didn't hear her for a moment, before seconds later I turned to her, almost startled. "Hmm? Oh, uh... y-yeah! I mean... actually... I seem to have picked up the earth pony version of this vest." I handed her the yellow vest. "Is there anyway I can get the pegasus one?"

Serene nodded and replied, “Yes, of course! I’ll get that right quick!” She trotted into storage and came back with another vest. “Here you go! That should fit you well!”

"Heh. Thank you very much." It was kinda awkward to speak to her after her relative... heehee... flirted a bit... a-anyways I got what I needed. "Thank you, ma'am! Have a good day!"

“Yup, you too!” She paused a bit before she squinted at me. “...River went out and flirted with you while you were changing, didn’t he?”

Oh shit, she knew. Uh... uh... I didn't know what to say. I was just standing here, probably with the guiltiest expression on my face. I coughed. "...m-maybe..."

Serene sighed and shook her head. “Damn him… I love my younger brother but I keep telling him not to flirt with my customers while they’re trying on clothes.” She shook her head again. “He’s been successful, too…”

...oh shit... younger brother? "Uh... I'm... so sorry about that, Serene. I-I won't bug you guys any further." I heard about what some of these settler ponies do to trespassers. I don't want to be the one they decide is one.

Serene cocked an eyebrow and asked, “What are you apologizing for, sir? He flirted with you. He does that with a lot of newcomers that appear to be single, stallion and mare. You’re not bugging us, I promise.” Serene chuckled before she continued, “The real question is if he’s bugging you.”

To be honest, I didn't know if I should answer that. If I said no, that'd obviously be a lie. If I said yes... she'd know something was up. "...I, uh... well, he isn't really... uh... bugging..."

Serene shrugged. “Well, just as long as he isn’t annoying you or anything. That’s up to your discretion, I suppose.”

...huh. I... might just take River up on his offer. But... I don't know where he was. Well... maybe I could expect him later. For now, I guess I'd take a look at renting a room. "Thanks again, Serene."

“It’s not a problem, sir! Be sure to check out the other places around town! I’m sure they’d love your patronage, too.”

I knew I had something to ask but I didn't know what at the moment. So I waved farewell, and trotted outside. As soon as I exited the store, I felt a hoof cover my muzzle, and something cold and metal slip near my throat. "Why did you come here?" a low, hoarse voice asked me.

I gulped, trembling a bit. The hoof loosened just enough for me to speak. "...I... I was brought here..."

"Yeah... I know... you're not a local... so let me warn you right now... you make one wrong step... one false move... one reason to believe that you'll hurt anypony here... and it'll be your last breath." I was shoved into the ground. I quickly turned around, seeing the mule from earlier with a large Bowie knife and wearing what appeared to be a very worn NLR military uniform, judging by the insignia. However, the uniform looked much different than the garbs the soldiers I saw before wore. It looked much more formal... and frightening on this mule.

“Stone Wall that’s not very nice he’s a guest in town and he seems like a really nice pony!” A blue unicorn stallion with a wide smile bounced up to me and the mule.

"Y-yeah man! I came here when I was unconscious!"

"No excuse. For all I know you could be enemies of this town. Enemies of Luna..."

“No I’m not I’m Jackpot!”

The mule, Stone Wall, sighed. "Not you, Jackpot. This nobody. Did you even ask what happened to him?"

“Nope I just met him now! Why? What happened to him is he alright I hope he’s alright he looks like an alright pony to me!”

"Not to me. The smug grin on his face..." I swear on my life, I was doing anything but grinning at this moment.

A buffalo trotted up to him. "Uh, Stone Wall... might wanna... ahem... take your herbs now..."

Stone turned to the buffalo. "Right now? It's too early!"

"Yes, now."

Stone sighed, before he turned back to me. "Count yourself lucky, punk." He reached into a pocket of the coat, and took out some piece of paper, a small wrapped piece. He placed it in his muzzle, and lit it with a lighter. After, he took a drag, blasting it into my face. I coughed, and as I sniffed it, I knew what it was; hash.

Jackpot frowned at the Stone. “Hey! You shouldn’t do that to others! River told me that we’re supposed to be helpful and polite to guests in our town!”

Stone raised a hoof, taking a deeper drag. After a moment, his eyes seemed to glaze, and a wide grin spread across his face. "Ah... that's some good shit right there!" Almost out of nowhere, his shithead personality turned into that of a pothead.

Jackpot shook his head. “That smells bad why do you like it so much I tried it once and I didn’t like how it slowed me down a lot I like having my head clear!”

Stone chuckled, turning to Jackpot. He placed a hoof on his shoulder. "Now now, kiddo... I... hehehehe... I told you why I smoke pot, ya know!"

“Yeah… River told me why too! He served with you for a bit didn’t he he wouldn’t give me too many details though!”

"That's... hehehehe... that's good... can't let him spill the beans now! Anywho, I'm off to... to... home... later!" Stone stumbled a bit in his trot as he went off.

I shook my head. "What's his deal?"

The buffalo sighed. "He's a case of manic depression, that one. We call him the Broken Wall because of it. It's not my place to say why, however."

Jackpot nodded. “Yeah River knows too but he won’t tell me even if he I ask really really really really nicely!” Jackpot paused before he shook my hoof. “I’m Jackpot Chord by the way I’m River’s cousin!”

Huh. This family is really quirky. Not in a bad way, of course. But... this guy had all the energy of a Fiend yet none of the hostility. That was pretty rare to find. "Um... nice to meet you, Jackpot. Name's First."

“Nice to meet you too First! What brings you to town what do you do is it fun?”

"Uh... I was... I was attacked... me and my two friends... by... by a Shadow. I'm actually looking for them but I think as long as we all stay in town we should be fine."

Jackpot gasped. “Oh wow that sounds frightening I’ve never seen a shadow attack anypony before it must not have been a very nice shadow but don’t you worry our shadows here in town don’t do anything like that and we’ve got great things in town to tide you over for a bit if you want something chances are that you can find it!”

The buffalo clears his throat. "Uh... Jackpot... he means Shadows as in Descension soldiers."

Jackpot stared blankly for a moment before it finally clicked. “Ooooohhh… okay! They’re not very nice!”

...you don't say? "Uh... yeah. So, can you guys lead me to Whiskey Pete? I'm afraid Stone will attack me again."

“Sure! I’d love-”

“We’d love to, First…” River’s voice purred as he trotted up to the group.

Jackpot turned to River, smiling widely. “Heya cousin! It’s good to see you again even though we see each other a lot and all!”

River chuckled, “So, how’s my sister and your dad doing?”

“Great! They’re really really happy together like they’ve always been and we can’t wait to have dinner with you Serene Placid Minor Single Grandma Grandpa Serene’s foals and am I forgetting anypony else I feel like I’m forgetting somepony for some reason…”

“Don’t worry about! I’m sure they’ll show up and you’ll remember!”

“Yeah you’re probably right River!”

Man, this family was huge. Mine wasn't anywhere near as big. It was only Mom, Dad, me, and... huh... I had a sister as well but I've hardly ever seen her. Even now, I hardly see my folks. I wish I knew where they were exactly, but... I hear from them often, at least. I chuckled. "You all seem like the perfect family, honestly."

River nodded. “We have our ups and downs but we love each other, regardless.”

"Well maybe I'll get to meet them in town!"

“Perhaps you will! But…” River purred softly, “Let’s get you into a room at Whiskey Pete’s, shall we…?”

I coughed a bit. I turned to my right wing, holding it tightly against my side. Sure it hurt, but... was better than letting everypony see. I chuckled, feeling my face flush red again. "Y-yeah... l-let's..."

River nodded and pointed down the road. “Just this way and we’ll be there in no time!”

...heehee... uh... we, huh? I... gotta admit, I was kinda looking forward to this... "Um... y-yeah... no time..." I trotted down the street with River, Jackpot, and the buffalo until we reached the motel. We stepped inside, and looked around. It was a pretty cozy lobby, one that I'd sleep in if the owner let me.

River placed his hoof to his muzzle and whistled shrilly. “Hey, Whiskey! We’ve got ourselves a traveller! Need a room for him!”

After a moment, a pony with a very shaggy beard and mane, and wearing a frontier hat I couldn't identify at first, trotted out to the front desk. "Now now, River! Remember I do have a bell, ya know!"

River chuckled and flashed a toothy smile at the other stallion. “Yeah, I know! I just like to do that to annoy ya!” He stuck his tongue out playfully at him.

The pony chuckled. "You haven't annoyed me since we were colts, River. So what brings you to the ol' business?"

“Well, my friend here needs a room! Need to get him away from another friend for a bit…”

...did River know where my friends were? "Wait... you saw AJ and Willow around here?"

River cocked an eyebrow. “I was talking about my friend, Stone Wall. After that altercation between you two, I figured that it’d be best to get you away from him for a bit. I don’t really know a Willow but AJ… how do you know who she is?”

...wait a minute... "...she's a robot traveling with me. She's been extremely helpful to us both, and without her we'd have died out there in the desert after being attacked by that Shadow."

River nodded. “I remember that a long, long time ago, there was a young mare that went by that nickname. Full name was Applejack. This was before the End War, by the way. Well, on occasion, there’s a robot that goes by that nickname that shows up, just wandering around. Nopony really knows what she’s up to but she seems harmless enough so everypony just leaves her alone. Supposedly, she looks an awful lot like that Applejack mare. If the legends are to believed, anyway.”

...I had no idea what to make of this, whether to believe it or not, or even ask AJ herself. But... if it was a coincidence that AJ was built to look like this... Applejack? Well, then maybe there's a reason why. But I'd have to find out from her factory. "I'll keep that in mind."

The pony, Whiskey, handed me a set of keys. "Room 27! Enjoy your stay!"

River trotted to the stairs and waved me along. “I know where that is! Let me show you…” He seemed to purr as he spoke.

The buffalo chuckled. "If you need anymore medical assistance, see me. My name's Dr. Roll." He trotted out with Jackpot, who waved at us both.

River smiled warmly at me. “So… shall we?”

...heh... I... I really couldn't keep my cool around River. He was just so... ah! I couldn't even put my wing on it! He was just that amazing...

I nodded, almost dumbly, and followed River down the hall. River turned to me and sighed, “Hey, I’m really sorry about Stone’s behavior towards you. He’s a bit… touchy ever since we got out of the service with the NLR.”

The NLR? What was with the uniform then? "Really? Why did the uniform look different than the ones I saw?"

“He never really took his uniform off since we left but he never took care of it. A long time ago, it was a lot cleaner and had less patches in it.”

"But... still... it didn't look like any I've seen. Is it really an NLR uniform?"

River was completely silent for the remainder of our walk to the room. Not that it was particularly long at that point. “Well, here it is! Room 27! Let’s check out the inside!”

I didn't like how quiet he was, but... I understood it must've been touchy. We both stepped inside, seeing how cozy the room was. It only had one bed, a couch, a restroom, and a closet, more than enough for some ponies. I liked it. "Seems really nice! Small but comfortable."

River nodded as he inched a bit closer to me, his side barely touching mine. “Yup… quite comfortable…”

Heh. I've, uh... only been with somepony twice in my life; a mare and a stallion. I was pretty young so I had my whole life to look for somepony. But it did get pretty lonely inbetween those times. I'm glad I could add this time as well. Hopefully it could last. "Yeah... comfortable."

River chuckled softly as he pecked my cheek. “I knew it, somehow…”

"Knew what...?"

He leaned into my ear and whispered, “Bachelor…”

Well... I guess he really knew his ponies. Heh. "Yeah... it... gets a bit lonely..." I sighed a bit.

River pecked me on the muzzle before he stroked my side softly. “Shhh… I understand… sometimes we crave some kind of closeness to somepony…”

I felt myself close my eyes a bit as he pecked me, kinda hoping to make it last. When he pulled away, I opened them, seeing him under the low lights of the bedroom. "...do you like having closeness to somepony...? Or... are these things just... well... one night only...?"

“Mmmm… I love the closeness… sometimes, it ends up being with several ponies. But I think I’d love to be close to you…”

...several ponies? I think I felt my heart twinge a bit, before glancing away a bit. I sighed, turning back to him. "...do you really mean that... or are you just saying it to make me feel better...?"

River wrapped his forelegs around me warmly and kissed me with more passion than I could remember. When he pulled away, he smiled. “Does that convince you I mean it…?”

...it did... but... heh... I could do with a little more convincing... I rubbed my wing on my chin, feigning thought. "Hmm... I think I could do with just a little more convincing..." I rubbed his shoulders, smiling back.

River purred as he rubbed my chest with his hooves. “Let’s get to convincing then, shall we…?”

"Mmm... yes please..."

River smiled warmly as he continued to purr. “Now… would you like to ravish the older stallion… or would you like the older stallion to ravish the young, impressionable stallion…?”

Uh... hmm... I've only really, er... ravished a stallion. I... guess I could do it again. Not risk displeasing River. I stroked his chest. "Hmm... you've ever... um... well... gone for a ride...?"

River swished his flank as he walked to the bed. He lay on his belly with his flank facing me. “Plenty of times…”

Mmm... wow... River might be older than me, but... he had a much... much better body than I did. It was evident merely by staring at his... his... beautiful flank... mmm...

I trotted to him, before a thought came to mind... my clothes... my Pip-Boy... I still didn't know how to take it off. "Uh... sorry to, um... delay this, but... do you know how to take off my Pip-Boy...?"

River scooched on the bed towards me and inspected the Pip-Boy. “Hmmm… maybe it could have something to do with that turning knob thingy?” He points to the knob on the Pip-Boy.

Hmm... that is what Doc used back in Goodsprings. I fiddled with them a bit, and as I did-

{TRANSMISSION INTERRUPTED. USER ERROR. TRANSMISSION OFFLINE.}

{CONTINUING TRANSMISSION. USER FRIENDLY INTERFACE RESTORED. TRANSMISSION ONLINE.}

Welcome to Goodsprings.

{BEGIN DAY 1 LOG TRANSMISSION}

Day 1, July 24

0800 Hours

I think the first thing I remember doing... was taking a breath. No, not the first thing I did since birth... the first thing since... since I woke up. I couldn't see at first, even though my eyes were surely wide open. Everything was too bright but I couldn't say a word about it. Somepony said something to me instead.

"You're awake. How about that?"

I don't know why, but as soon as I heard that calm voice, my head started relieving itself. I sat up on some kind of sofa I was laying on, looking across at a blurry figure at first, but only a second later my vision cleared to find myself looking at some earth pony wearing a black overcoat over his hide. He was obviously much older than I was, but not too old where he couldn't do much. I tried to stand up, but I felt a sharp pain somewhere... I couldn't tell where. The stallion stood up and placed a hoof against my chest, gesturing me to take a seat. I really didn't have a choice... so I did.

"Easy..." he reassured soothingly. "You know, it ain't everyday somepony like you comes in."

I felt myself utter a few words at that. "W-what are you... on about?" My voice sounded dry, cracked, weak; it was different from what I was familiar with.

"You've been out for a few days. At this point, I was about ready to return you to rest in peace in that ditch. But you're up and kicking, so that's good. So... considering the damage..." he stopped momentarily, before slowly continuing, "can... you... tell... me... your... name?" He did this very carefully so as to not stress me out.

It didn't take long for me to answer. "First Class," I groaned out, the words barely escaping my throat.

He hid a chuckle just under his breath. "Well, not what I would've gone with." He pointed to his overcoat, where I noticed something that I swear wasn't there before; a Red Cross. "Doc's the name. Welcome to Goodsprings."

"G-Goodsprings..." I repeated, almost trance-like.

He nodded, as if I had said my first word in life. He then glanced quickly to my stomach and back to me. I caught the glance, and turned to where it was pointed for the few seconds he looked. I looked at my dark yellow midsection, and saw a few black, dotted lines crossing over it. I panicked immediately, breathing heavy with quick breaths. He quickly stood up and placed a hoof on my shoulder. "Easy now... those are stitches. Do you know what stitches are?"

I really wanted to yell at him then and there that I knew what they were, but I still couldn't stop shaking at the sight of them. "I had to take out a lot of little fragments in your belly, so you may hurt bad after you eat for a good while." He then grimaced, and clicked his tongue.

"W-what now?" I asked, terrified of him now.

"Well... that wasn't the only place you got stitches, son." He pondered a bit about whether to tell me or not. He sighed, and pointed to my left side. I turned quickly... and I soon wish I hadn't. I saw my hide and only my hide, with a few of the same stitch marks dotting just under my foreleg. I felt sick to my stomach, my eyes widening.

"M-my wing!" I choked out.

He nodded. "That had to come off..." I really wanted this guy to have it now. Instead, he approached me. "Look on the bright side..."

"What bright side?" I hissed out. He handed me a mirror, and I checked it. I only saw my facial features: my eyes, still a pine green; my mane, a little bit ruffled and dirty but still recognizably long and dark brown; and my muzzle, still perfectly on my face. In a moment, I realized what Doc meant by his 'bright side' comment. I tossed the mirror back to him, and he placed it away.

"No use keeping you sitting. Try standing up." Still trembling, I hesitated a bit, before my rattling legs found themselves moving. I stood up on all fours, still breathing heavily as I tried to calm myself. "Good... now walk over to that machine in the corner."

"OK... OK..." I said in a low voice. I moved my right foreleg first, shaking as I raised it in the air. I placed it down firmly, and moved my left foreleg. The shaking ceased a bit, and I walked much steadier as I made my way to this device in the corner. As soon as I touched it with my right wing, Doc stepped close to the machine, turning it on.

"Now... with you being in a hole in the ground, I have to make sure you have everything accounted for in your noggin. Place your hoof there," he requested, pointing to a black circle on the wooden machine. I lifted a hoof, hesitating a bit, before placing it down. The machine flickered to life, where inside a thin sheet of glass, I saw a row of rectangular panels flip. In a few moments, the panels stopped, and the doctor inspected.

"Hmm... lightweight... big-eyed tiger... handle with care... cheery salespony... smartypants... knife catcher... coin flip..." After his analysis, he turned to me. "It's a damn marvel that you're still alive!" he blurt out, chuckling.

"What the hell's that supposed to mean?" I asked, annoyed at the doctor's cheerful mood.

"Nothing, nothing..." he said, still grinning. "Come on... I gotta continue with an examination. See if you can still comprehend things." I was surprised with how quickly he got me to calm down, and he led me back to the couch. "I'm gonna say a word... say the first thing that comes to mind..."

"OK. Is that it? One word?"

"For this, yes." He cleared his throat, and sat down on a chair across from me. "Dog."

"Dog," I repeated.

"House."

"House," I repeated again, chuckling a bit. He grumbled a bit.

"The point is to say something other than what I say. Let's try this again... dog."

"Cat," I immediately thought and replied.

"House."

"Target," I replied, then cocked an eyebrow as I wondered why I even said that.

"Night."

"Cover," I replied again, this time sure of what I wanted to say.

"Bandit."

"Stab," I replied, thinking a lowly bandit would probably be nothing to handle.

"Light."

"Dark," I replied. I never knew why, but I always had an obsession for Luna and her gift of night.

"Mother."

"Cookies." At that, my stomach rumbled, and I rubbed it a bit. I can't believe it... I actually missed my old life.

"OK... that's it for the one worded answers. Now I'm gonna give you some phrases, and you tell me whether you strongly, regularly, or do not agree or disagree."

"OK. Lay it on me."

Doc cleared his throat again. "Conflict just ain't in my nature."

I couldn't believe it, but I couldn't agree more. "Strongly agree."

"I ain't given to relyin' on others for support."

I really couldn't come up with an answer on that, but I might as well have for the doctor. "Disagree."

"I'm always fixin' to be the center of attention."

"Strongly disagree." I was never one to stand out. But I did get noticed now and then... sometimes by caravans... sometimes by Fiends. But again, I never sought their attention.

"I'm slow to embrace new ideas."

"Disagree." Maybe after a few mishaps or trials, I'd get something. But I always did learn it.

"I charge in to deal with my problems head on."

"Strongly disagree." I never looked for trouble, even if it came looking for me.

The doctor stood up again, and walked off. In a moment, he came back with a board of some kind, covered by a black sheet. "Almost done... I'm gonna show you some visuals now... tell me what you see." He uncovered the sheet, and I saw a paper, splattered with black ink splotches here and there.

I put a hoof on my chin. "Uh... looks like a shadow... against a door."

He wrote my response down on a pad, and flipped to another splotch.

"Looks like some kind of... what's it called... space cannon? Yeah, that! A space cannon!"

He wrote that response down, and turned to the next image.

"A sleeper. That's definitely a sleeping pony."

He wrote the final answer in the pad, and set it down. "Well that's all I have for ya." He extended his foreleg out to hand me the pad. "What do you think of the results?" I looked at everything he scribbled down carefully...

This stallion's a quiet sumbitch. If he wanted to, he could drift through an entire crowd without ever being noticed. Knows how to handle a gun but doesn't know how it works. He's obviously spent time playing with knives... but seems to have never cut himself judging by his reaction to the sutures. Final observation... First Class is a shadow.

I handed the notepad back to him, rather impressed by his observations. "Pretty accurate."

He chuckled a bit. "Well, it's my job to make sure. Come on, then." He stood up, and led me to a door. "Got anywhere to stay around Goodsprings?"

"No. But I'm not planning to stay... no offense. I just want to know what happened to me... and what I was carrying."

"Well, before you do venture out there, you might want this." He took a watch-looking thing from a shelf, and handed it to me.

"Uh... thanks?"

He took it back and turned a few dials on it, causing the machine to hiss. "Lift your left foreleg."

I hesitated a bit, before I actually did. He slipped the machine around my leg, and fiddled with the dials again. The machine suddenly wrapped around my foreleg, and at first, I freaked out. As the machine did, however, I quickly regained myself. The thing... it didn't feel loose... but it didn't feel tight either. It was a perfect fit. "That there's a Pip-Boy. Growing up in the stables, I had that thing on all the time. I don't go out much anymore, so it's really no use to me."

"What does it do?" I asked, perplexed as I moved my foreleg around to fully check the Pip-Boy out.

"Just about everything. You can check your current health conditions, detect radiation, use it as a map... that's just the tip of the iceberg. You won't even need to carry a pack anymore."

"Damn... really? I could've used one of these a long time ago." I checked the monitor, displaying what looked like an exact replica of me in an anatomical position, complete with my name underneath it. My right wing was present... but not my left. "Wait... are you sure there wasn't anything you could've done about my wing?"

"No... sorry. Your wing was falling apart at the base and it was going to tear off anyway."

I sighed, and I repeatedly extended and retracted my right wing. "Luna dammit..." Rather than sulk about my wing at the moment, I checked the Pip-Boy again. There were three red, glowing buttons below the monitor: Stats, Items, and Data.

Currently, the screen was on the stats. I saw multiple selections on the screen itself. LVL 1... HP 150/150... AP 94/94... XP 0/200... what the hell did all this mean? I disregarded it at the moment. The doctor handed me something else; a piece of folded cloth. "Might wanna wear this too. Better to have something on than nothing, right?"

I took the folded piece, and opened it. It was a blue coverall of some kind. I noticed on the collar, and upon later inspection on the back of the suit just on the flank, were two of the number 21. I turned to Doc questionably. "What's this?"

"That there's a Stable 21 jumpsuit. It's an old suit I had stored in my closet. Try it on." I don't know why, but I felt that not wearing it would perhaps crush the doctor's feelings. I slowly placed it on, and after my head slipped through its opening, I felt my right wing strain as it was pressed against the right side of the suit. Doc opened a zipper on the right side of the suit, and my wing slipped through it freely.

"Much better."

Doc handed me a few more objects: a small pistol, a box of cartridges, a straight razor, some bobby pins, some caps, and a few stimpaks. "This is all you had with you, apparently. Somepony generously found it next to your ditch and brought it to me."

"I... thanks, Doc." I held all the items cluttered in my wing, and Doc pressed the items button on the Pip-Boy. The clutter in my hands flashed a bit yellow, and disappeared.

"You'll find whatever you want to use under 'Items' in your Pip-Boy. Whenever you choose it, it'll re-materialize again."

"OK. Again, thank you." Before I headed out the door, I thought a moment. "Who found me in a ditch?"

"Ah, that... look for AJ..." he replied, a bit hesitantly.

"OK. See ya, Doc."

"Try not to get killed out there," he replied. He left back into his living room, and I faced the door. I turned the handle, and opened it.

A bright light immediately flooded my vision, and at first, I thought I was immediately going to die, and I shut my eyes. "Gah! It burns! It burns!" I shrieked. I collapsed on the floor kneeling, and I waited for my demise. However, after a moment, the brightness I saw in my eyelids dimmed, and I opened them. My vision cleared once again, and I looked around.

All I saw was dust. A dust-ridden expanse with a few houses here and there. And when I say a few, I really mean a few... I closed the door behind me, but not before seeing Doc cocking an eyebrow at me, a wide grin on his face. "So... where can I find this AJ?" I said to myself.

I looked around a bit, only a few ponies outside of their houses, raking their yards. I approached the nearest one, just across the street from a red building. I smiled as friendly as I could, and spoke to them. "Hey there!"

The pony turned, staring at me in a bit of confusion, before returning a smile. "Hello!"

"Um... hate to bother your... raking... but where can I find AJ?"

"AJ? You can find it down the street, where that shack is." The pony pointed to the direction, and I squinted. I saw a rather large rectangle silhouette just in front of the shack, which I assumed was a door. I thanked the pony, and trotted to the shack. In a moment, my vision recognized the rectangle not as a door... but as a mech.

I approached it, noticing its monitor was flickering the image of an earth pony mare with a wide-brimmed hat. I looked it up and down, not able to find words to describe what exactly I was looking at. It didn't take long for the mech to notice me. "Hey there, partner!" The machine seemed to whistle a bit... a wolf whistle. "Looking as healthy as a pig rollin' in mud." As it spoke, a few grilles under the monitor flickered blue.

I lowered my ears, mainly in confusion. "Uh... what?"

"Oh, I just meant you being fit after being buried for a good while."

"Oh... well... thanks for digging me out then, AJ."

"No worries. Always looking to help out a fella in need."

"So... how did you find me? I'm sure a buried pony isn't going to be easy to find."

"I was out ridin' the wheel that night. I heard a ruckus up near the old boneyard. I wandered and found three troublemakers... so I hunkered down. After they... wounded ya, buried ya, and left, I dug ya up. Turns out you were still breathin' so I hauled ya to Doc's."

"Wait, who were these ponies? I only remember how the three looked... two were decked in black... and one was wearing a blazer of blue and white."

"Can't help ya there, partner. Maybe some of the folks around here can."

I looked AJ up and down again. "So... how did you get here, AJ? You look like you could take on a gang of ponies... and this being some kind of ghost town, I doubt you really had to do much."

"I think I strolled in around... ten, maybe more years back. Don't recall much before that. But that don't mean I wanted to leave this here lovely town."

I really needed to get something off my chest at that moment. "Honestly, you look... way too cool! What are you?"

I heard it emit a sheepish giggle before responding. "I'm a SecuriDon. Bronco model. You ever see another of my kin, tell 'em howdy."

I really couldn't come up with anything else to ask AJ. "Well, thanks again, AJ. Bye!"

"Happy trails!" The robot continued to stand idle in front of the shack. I decided now was as good of a time as any to find these "folks" who might have had any clue about these assholes who robbed me.

I turned back to AJ. "Um... where can I find the good folks again?"

AJ pointed to a building with a neon sign in the distance. "Right there; Prospector Saloon." I nodded, and trotted to the building in the distance.

I walked up on the wooden porch of the saloon when somepony caught my eye. I turned to an eldery pony, bearded and all, sitting in a chair just near the entrance of the saloon, rocking back and forth on the chair. "Hey," I simply greeted.

"Howdy." He continued to rock, staring off at who knows what in the distance. "What can Whiskey Pete do for ya?"

I looked back at the bar, then back to Whiskey. It was pretty clear how he got that nickname. "Hey, you know anything about what happened a few nights back? At the boneyard?"

He nodded. "Three ponies. The one standing out most was in a suit. That's all I know. Maybe ask Speak Easy inside."

"Alright then. Later."

"Keep something on your side at all times." He continued rocking in his chair, and I was pretty sure this guy did nothing other than that all day. I entered the saloon, only to have a frightening bark ring in my ears. I immediately backed up to the wall, pressing against it as I saw a large... wolf... snarl at me.

"Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck!" I yelled out in sheer terror.

"Whoa there!" a voice called. A mare reproached the dog. "Easy, stranger. Guns only make her angrier."

"Get that damned thing on a leash!" I blurted out, panicking still.

The mare chuckled, and patted the canine, soothing it. "There we go." She approached me now, and I pressed my head back to the wall now, glaring at her. "Last I checked, a hoof pound was the proper way to greet somepony." She extended her hoof.

I stared at it, dumbfounded almost. I then quivered a bit, raising my right hoof to her. Our hooves pounded together, creating a rather clear and loud clop sound. "Alright... alright... so... who are you?"

"Speak Easy. I run the joint here. Need a drink, some grub, or some help with critters and I'm your gal."

"Yeah, OK, I was gonna ask about whatever happened to me in the boneyard."

"The cemetery? Yeah, I do."

I waited a moment, thinking she was pulling my leg. I finally had enough. "OK, so what happened?"

"Come with me to the cemetery."

I really didn't expect her telling me to head there. But what choice did I have? Me losing my wing and my delivery order wasn't something I was gonna let slip by. I sighed. "Fine..."

"Alright. Oh, one more thing."

"Yeah?"

"You got a gun with you?"

"Yeah... why?" I asked, only feeling stupid a second later.

"For the critters."

"OK, what exactly do we need to watch out for?"

"If we don't go guns blazing on the mound, just a few bark scorpions." I thought about it, then nodded. "Right then. Stay here, girl. I'll be right back." She trotted to a back exit, waiting for me. I followed her outside, where I literally saw the largest piece of dirt ever.

"That's a cemetery?"

"Yep. Boot Hill. Don't let the sandy texture fool you... that mound ain't worthy to be a cemetery."

"Really? Why?" I later regretted asking that question by literally punching myself.

"That mound there? That was made from manure of the bighorners."

I gagged a bit, my heart sinking. I felt really queasy... yet I couldn't throw up. "I... I was buried... in bighorner shit?"

Speak Easy nodded. "Come on." She trotted up the hill, but with me simply disgusted by the fact of being used as fertilizer, I merely stood shocked. She shook her head, clenched my tail in her teeth, and dragged me up with her. We arrived at the top rather quickly, a small plateau adorned with crosses here and there.

A disturbing thought came to my mind. "So... all these ponies here... are buried... here?"

"The land around here ain't made for digging. So we had to make it."

I simply nodded. "So... which one's mine?" She brought me to a grave site in the middle of the hill. It looked like it was recently dug up.

"Right here. AJ helped you out and brought you to Doc."

I looked around the site, the cross made roughly with two sticks tied together with some yarn. Seems the budget for my funeral was astronomical. I looked around a bit more, noticing something just sticking out of the small mud pile near the hole. I bent over and reached for it with my right wing. I grasped it lightly, and pulled out a small sheet of paper. The paper was bent a bit, and at the fold was a cigarette butt.

I checked the paper...

San Palomino Pony Express
Courier: First Class
Package: Obsidian Horseshoe
If lost or damaged, return to sender immediately.
Caution: Fragile

Suddenly, something came back to me. I knew I had picked something up from a nearby town, I just didn't know what. But now I can't even find out where these punks went. Speak Easy probably detected my frustration, because she spoke up. "I know where they went."

I turned to her, almost grimly now. "I want them... I want them... and I want them now."

"I understand. They went towards-" A large crackling, followed by a louder boom roared nearby. Both of us dropped to the ground, but Speak Easy stood up immediately. "Celestia damned sons of bitches!" She galloped quickly down the hill and back to her saloon. I trailed after her, stumbling a bit as I galloped downhill. I saw the backdoor to the bar open, and I stormed inside.

I found myself, along with Speak Easy, facing five ponies. All of them wore blue coats, and the one closest to Speak Easy wore a black vest underneath. "Uh... Speak Easy..."

"Shut up!" the stallion with the black vest roared. He pulled a cleaver out afterwards, raising it to Speak Easy.

"Easy, Cob... he's new in town. Let him be..." She turned with a glare to a large hole in her wall. "And you better fix that hole or you ain't getting anything from me."

The pony in the black vest, Cob, laughed. "You know either way we're getting those caps. How easy you hand 'em over will sway me to either fix that hole or not."

Speak Easy didn't respond immediately. "I'll have it ready by tonight..." she muttered.

"Good." He clicked his tongue, and another stepped forward. "Sweet Corn, help our lady out."

The pony nodded, and headed outside. Cob turned back to Speak Easy, then to me. "Who's the flightless Pegasus?" Had he been the only pony there, I probably would have punched him... well... maybe a sucker punch before he eventually beat me to a pulp...

"He's a traveler. And if you even think about it, I will skin your hide."

Cob chuckled. "Long as he follows the same deal you do." Cob turned to the wall, now covered with a flat, wooden board. "There ya go. We'll be back later..." Cob played around with the cleaver, dragging the broad sides along Speak Easy's hide. "Don't disappoint." He then placed the cleaver away, and left the saloon, followed by the others.

I turned to Speak Easy. "What was that about?" I asked.

Speak Easy snorted, before looking around. "Hugo? Come here, Hugo!" The dog came through moments later, shaking without a pause. Speak Easy clutched the dog, and rubbed her muzzle against its fur. "It's OK, girl." She turned back to me. "Those were Poppers. Bunch of thugs using dynamite to harass the town. All of them in that gang changed their names to something related to corn after their leader, Pop Corn. The jerk that came here was Corn Cob..."

"Really? They named themselves Poppers?"

Speak Easy slugged my shoulder. "This is serious! If I can't pay them, they'll blow this town off the face of the San Palomino Desert!" She then leaned back against the wall, sliding down. "And I don't have the caps to save this town." I thought for a moment, but she spoke up again. "Shit, my bad... I forgot to tell you where you're troublemakers headed... go down the road south here until you reach the Long 15. They headed towards New Pegasus."

I simply nodded... I don't know why, but I really paid that no mind at that moment. "When is Cob's crew coming again?"

She stood up at that, and reproached me. "What are you suggesting?"

I tapped the Item button on my Pip-Boy, seeing what I had. As I did, both the note I found and the cigarette butt phased completely out of existance. I looked at my current inventory, and chose my pistol, along with what ammo I had for it; twenty-eight cartridges. Both of them reanimated themselves into my wing, and I took a while to get eight bullets into the clip.

Finally, I loaded it into the weapon, cocked the slide, and held it in my wing. I checked the sights. "All I can really use my wing for now, I guess."

Speak Easy snarled at me, gritting her teeth. "Are you mad!? No, we will not put this town at risk!"

"You got any better ideas? Without caps, they're gonna attack Goodsprings anyway. Maybe we should be ready for it..."

Speak Easy was about to speak up, raising a hoof as she did. But she thought twice, I assumed, and lowered it. "You got a good point... but what are we gonna do?"

I raised my right hoof, knocking my forehead with it to come up with something. "Um... what about the townsfolk? And AJ? Would they agree to helping us?"

Speak Easy nodded. "But it's not just Cob. When they notice they're gone, the Poppers in the Buffalo's Casino in Primm will notice. They'd surely come back here for payback."

"And how much are in the rat pack?"

"Nine. Cob and his crew, and Pop and his three guards."

"Hmm... for now, let's focus on the five here."

"OK. I'll try to round up everypony I can. You can... um... actually..." she said, giving a small smile. I didn't know whether to be reassured or terrified.

"What?"

"Get AJ to help out."

"What? Why me?" I figured with AJ being here for such a long time, why would she listen to me rather than Speak Easy.

"She... sorry, it gives me the creeps."

I cocked an eyebrow in disbelief. "Really?"

"Yeah. Just talk to it, and meet with me back here."

"OK..." I stopped momentarily, before something came to mind. "Got any shades?"

"What?"

"Sunglasses. My eyes aren't very strong in sunlight." Speak Easy cocked an eyebrow, but trotted to a nearby storage closet. She came back to me moments later, holding a pair of dusty shades in her hoof.

She blew the dust off of them, revealing a pitch black pair of glasses. "Will these do it?"

"Oh yeah... those'll do nicely." I placed the glasses on, noticing how much better my vision was with them on, even inside the saloon. I turned back to her. "I'll go talk to AJ. See you in a bit." I trotted out of the saloon, a bit taken back by the encounter with Cob. I followed the path back to AJ's shack, but as I arrived, she wasn't where I had found her earlier. I wondered where she could've gone, considering she was standing here without moving earlier.

Then I realized... I'm standing in front of a shack. I knocked on the door, waiting for a response. After a few seconds, the door opened, and AJ's monitor faced me, the pony in the image still smiling as widely as ever. "Howdy! Good to see you again!"

"Hey, AJ. Listen... I don't know if you're... uh... programmed for this, but... care to help the townsfolk defend themselves against some thugs?"

The image on the screen flickered a bit. "That depends how exactly you want to deal with these hooligans, First Class."

"Well, I was hoping intimidation would scare 'em off, but if it comes to it... we'll have to fight 'em off."

AJ's grilles gave off some kind of whoosh. "Well, fightin' ain't in my nature, but I suppose for the people of Goodsprings, I can tip my hat the other direction."

I grinned widely. "Thanks, AJ..." I slowed down, pondering something. "AJ... is that short for something?"

The mech raised a mechanical hoof to its monitor as if it was thinking. "I'm not quite sure... it's been such a blur."

I shrugged my shoulders. "It's OK... thanks again for helping us out!"

"No worries! You can count on me!" The mech rolled back into its shack, shutting the door. And with that, I headed back to the saloon, waiting for Speak Easy.

1200 Hours

It took a while for her to return, and while I waited, I actually got along with Hugo. "Hehehe... you're a girl and your name is Hugo?"

The dog, completely unaware of what I said, licked my hoof. I heard the door open a few seconds later. "Ah, getting along with Hugo, I see!" She turned to Hugo, and lightheartedly and cheerfully scolded, "Hugo, you're supposed to bite off his hoof, not lick it like a horse!"

"If she really wanted to be a horse, I could've rode her..." I joked. "So... Hugo? What kind of name is that?"

She chuckled. "Have you noticed how large she is? Bigger than any Shepherd dog I've ever seen."

I nodded in agreement, amazed by the sheer mass of Hugo. "So what's the word? I do hope we're not alone as we take on these jerks."

She smiled. "This is why I love this town. We're always willing to help strangers and each other. I believe our little militia is more than enough to take on the Poppers."

I stood for a moment, kicking my hoof. "Well... we don't have to take them on... what about scaring them off?"

Speak Easy laughed. "Please, them? They're stupid enough to take on dragons if they were given a chance."

"Dragon? Really? Around here?" I've only heard of dragons living in caves dotted around the New Equestrian and the Everfree wastes. Never once did it cross my mind they could be located in the deserts around here.

She ignored my question. "Point is, we're not gonna be able to frighten them."

"Damn..."

She cocked an eyebrow. "I thought you wanted to fight them."

"No, not at all. I don't want to fight them, but I will if I have to."

"Ah... I was about to say that if you were a pacifist, you really must've been lucky to survive for this long."

"Oh, I've used the gun before. Didn't really feel bad, but didn't get a kick out of it either."

"That's hard to find in the wastes nowadays."

"I know, right?" Every time I said this... this time wasn't an exception... somepony would just move on to a different conversation. Always made me feel awkward afterwards.

"So have you ever been anywhere in the San Palomino area?"

"Nope. I've been to New Reno, though."

"Man, no wonder you've never heard of the demons around here."

"Is it really that bad? I thought only the ponies were dangerous."

"Oh yeah." She suddenly stood up. "Gosh, where are my manners? I never asked... care for a drink?"

I was never a heavy drinker, maybe the occasional pint here or there... mainly due to me being a lightweight. "Sure. Whatcha got?"

"Cider, bourbon, ale, draft, moonshine... I could go on."

"Eh, I'll stick with the cider."

"Oh, and uh... sorry to bother you, but... would you mind playing some tunes from your Pip-Boy? I had a jukebox, but it's shorted out."

I turned to her, baffled. "Tunes? From my watch?"

She chuckled. "Actually, it's a Pip-Boy. And yeah, you can listen to music. Don't you know how to do that?"

I shook my head. "Nope." She stepped closer to me, lifted my left foreleg, and tapped the Data button on my Pip-Boy. The screen flickered, revealing four selections: World Map, Local Map, Notes, and Radio. She tapped the Radio, and as the channels displayed on the screen, she chose one labeled "Palomino Music Radio." The machine sputtered to life, and string chords started playing. Speak Easy immediately lightened up at the music.

"Ah, I remember this tune... I listened to it as a filly. That's how I learned about the New Equestrian War..."

I flicked my ears a bit at the mention of the war. While I don't know anything about it... the only thing I did know was that the "Equestria" I'm living in was caused by it... somehow. "I never really understood much about the war... only that Equestria changed its name to New Equestria," I admitted.

Speak Easy seemed to understand, probably even relate, to my cluelessness. "Same here. Hardly anypony can." She brought me a mug with cider filled to the brim, and she set another mug beside her. We both lifted our mugs, clanked them together, and downed the contents as we waited for the imminent showdown.

1800 Hours

I cannot begin to explain how satisfying eating was... even if I did eat bits of squirrels in some broth. It took awhile to get used to the flavor, but it was filling. "I remember a time when ponies didn't resort to eating anything else that lived..." Speak Easy admitted, almost shamefully.

Still busy trying to slurp my stew, I turned to her. I set my bowl down, wiped my foreleg across my muzzle, and shrugged. "Well, grass isn't really so easy to find around here, it seems. I mean... unless the tumbleweeds are edible. Anyways, what's wrong with eating other things?"

Speak Easy sighed, something clearly bugging her then. "I don't know... it's just... I never imagined us... you know... ponies... eating anything else breathing. I don't know... is that weird?"

I pondered a bit, tapping my hoof on my chin. "Nope!" I bluntly stated. She nickered a bit, obviously put off a bit my my answer.

"You're not that bright, are ya?"

"Depends what you mean by that. I mean, I don't know shit about how my gun works... how robots like AJ run... how this wound inside my gut was removed... hell, I don't even know how I'm alive still. But you know what? I could open nearly any door that's locked, I could probably enter New Reno and get out after having seen all the damn signs without getting noticed, and even though I have no clue how it works, I can use guns and lasers pretty damn well. So in a way... no. I'm not that bright."

She didn't respond immediately... she looked shocked at how lengthy my answer was. She then shook her head. "I'm sorry for insulting you."

"You didn't insult me." She simply sat still, gazing into an empty mug. Every once in awhile she'd fiddle with it, almost emptily. "Small talk for the sake of small talk?"

She shook her head quietly. "Small talk for the sake of not talking about what we're getting ourselves into right now..."

I placed a hoof on her shoulder, and she gazed back absently. "Listen... Goodsprings'll get though this." I checked the small belt on my jumpsuit, still seeing my pistol holstered onto it. She took a glance as well, and cocked an eyebrow. "Something wrong?"

She nodded. "Your gun... it's... a bit rusty. Are you sure you'll be able to use it?"

I took another glance at it. It did look a little... brownish. But I shrugged it off. "I think it'll shoot." I was curious at the moment... "So... what'll you... uh... what'll you be using?"

Speak Easy whistled shrilly, and a few seconds later, Hugo came bounding in with some kind of piece of metal in his maw. He dropped it into Speak Easy's grasp, and she loaded two shells into it. "Ol' Reliable here."

"Ah, a caravan shotgun. I haven't seen those in awhile. So what's the plan then?"

"The plan is to stage an ambush. You and I will head to one of the homes on the way to the saloon, hitch there, and wait for the Poppers to arrive. Soon as they do, we take 'em down."

I nodded. "So what about the other townsfolk?"

"I already told them as soon as they heard gunshots to take cover and get ready. If we fail, they still have the element of surprise. And AJ's hard shell won't crack easily, so it can take quite a beating... long before they'll be able to break her, she'll break them."

"So we're the first assault? Oh joy..." I remember commenting satirically.

"Just follow me, and we'll get this done with as fast as possible." She led me out of the saloon, and swiftly across the dirt road to the closest house. I noticed the sun had already set, and the moon was just peeking over a mountain range in the distance. She knocked, and a few seconds later, Whiskey Pete answered the door, a bandolier wrapped around his midsection.

"Dear Luna, that is pretty awesome," I said in amazement.

"Pete, we're here for our little discussion earlier."

"Please come on in," he said, stepping out of the doorway. We both entered, noticing how dark it was inside to the point we could only see shadows of whatever furniture he had inside.

"Got the Cat Eye, Pete?"

"Right here," he wheezed out, handing Speak Easy a small vial. She popped the cap off, and took a sip. She then handed it to me. "Bottoms up."

"What is it?"

"Cat Eye. It lets you see in the dark."

I hesitated a bit, before I took the vial and downed the remaining contents. I blinked once... twice... thrice... until I noticed everything around me was easily visible... albeit with a bluish hue. Speak Easy nudged her head to a nearby window with two seats perched beside it, and I followed until we reached it. She sat down first, then I did soon after. We both drew our guns, but didn't raise them.

"So... do we take out Corn Cob first, or...?"

"Actually, even though he seems to be in charge of the gang when they come out here, he ain't much of a fighter. That cleaver he had is the only steel he has. It'd be smart to take out the others first."

"Alright." I don't really remember how long I looked down the road before I felt myself closing my eyes...

1900 Hours

Somepony shook my shoulder, and as I blinked a bit, I turned to see Speak Easy continuously disturbing my nap. I groaned, until I heard growling. I stopped, but the growling continued. "Get ready... Hugo smells 'em coming..."

I sat up, and readied my wing, grasping my pistol tightly. I squinted, and I identified five silhouettes in the moonlight, all of them blue. I crouched a bit low, so as to peek over the windowsill. As the figures drew closer, I slowly raised my weapon, the barrel following the trotting figures. I turned to Speak Easy, waiting. She raised her coach gun as well, but held her hoof up. "Not yet..." she whispered.

I nodded, and held my breath. As the figures got closer, I recognized Cob leading them, still wearing his body armor. As they walked completely adjacent to the window along the road, Speak Easy lowered her hoof, and nodded. I aimed my pistol at the last pony's neck, and pulled the trigger...

Click! I wondered what the hell happened, and I pulled again, causing another click to wheeze out. I was pretty sure they hadn't noticed, but Speak Easy and I surely did. "What... what the fuck?"

Speak Easy glared at me. "I told you! I fucking told you! 'Is your gun gonna work?' And what did you say? 'Oh, I think it will...' You're an idiot!" she whispered harshly.

"I told you I don't know how guns work! How was I supposed to know it would jam?"

"Because it was rusty and dirty! That's how you tell you're supposed to clean your gun!"

"Just use your gun to blast them! I don't see any problems other than you holding it!"

...I still don't know what gave us away... but we were cut off by a gunshot hitting the wall next to us, and we both ducked out of sight. "Nice job, loudmouth!" she scolded.

"I'm the loudmouth!? You and your nagging gave us away!"

Whiskey Pete chuckled a bit nervously. "Uh... hate to break a quarrel... but we have bigger things to worry about, like the thugs outside my house..."

We both nodded, and I tapped the Items button on my Pip-Boy. The pistol and ammo phased into it, and I tapped my straight razor. It reappeared into my wing a second later, and I flicked the blade out. "Stay here and shoot at them."

"And what are you gonna do?"

I turned to Pete. "Is there another way out of the house?"

He pointed to a back door in his kitchen, drawing a revolver as he did. I crept low as I approached it, and slowly turned the knob. I slipped through the narrowest crack I could through the door, and closed it behind me. I held the razor in my wing, and placed my back against the walls of the house as I followed the sounds of the gunshots. I turned the corner... very slowly... and I saw two of the five ponies from the gang on the ground, blood slowly pooling around them. I peeked around for signs of the others, and noticed one of them popping their heads out from a rock across the street in the desert.

Still crouching low, I quickly darted along the road away from them slightly, but towards the desert. I dove into some nearby foliage, the pony not noticing me. I looked through the brambles, and spotted the other two. Cob was firing from an abandoned trailer, while another of his cronies was with the first, beginning to light a stick of dynamite. I winced, and hurried out of the dry bush as I silently trotted to them. Without thinking, I tossed the straight razor forward quickly. Then it dawned on me that my stupid decision left me without any weapon.

The razor did, however, pierce the pony in the foreleg, and he dropped the lit stick. Frantically, he pulled the razor out, tossing it to the side and completely ignoring where it came from to pick up the fuse. The other pony found it, and positioned himself to toss it...

BLAOW! A quick burst of light, followed by a red mist, filled the area near the rock. Soon afterwards, I felt tiny droplets splatter onto my mane, followed by a foreleg hitting my side. "Ouch..." I said, more in disgust than pain. I peered to where my razor was thrown; onto the dirt street. I looked around a bit, noticing how still the night was. I stood up, and galloped to it, picking it up. As I did, Speak Easy peered over the windowsill, and saw me standing in the middle of the streets. I waved at her, and she stood up, waving back.

I then felt something cold press to the side of my head. Without turning or even glancing, I gulped, knowing what it was. "N-nice blade you got there..." I stammered out.

"Shut up..." he whispered out coldly. "You thought you could get away with this, didn't you? But see, we're Poppers. We don't take kindly to-" I really didn't want to hear it, and as he spoke, I immediately stabbed my straight razor into Cob's foreleg, causing him to shout and drop his cleaver. I neared him, pulled the razor out, and trapped him underneath my hoof.

"You're not gonna do anything to this town anymore." I turned to the windowsill again, seeing some movement. Speak Easy and Whiskey Pete emerged moments later from the house, surrounding Cob. "Wait wait wait! Don't kill him!"

"Kill him? What do you think we are, raiders? We're gonna make him properly repair the Prospector Saloon, otherwise he'll get flogged. Now then Cob... don't disappoint me..." Speak Easy commented. She lifted him up, wrapped a lasso around his waist, and tightened it.

I couldn't help but to laugh at that display. I shook it off, and then asked, "Hey... I know you told me earlier... but where did those guys who shot me head out to again?"

"They went out to New Pegasus by way of Primm."

"OK. New Pegasus... got it! Any directions you could give me?"

"Head down the road until you reach the Long 15. Primm will be further south of there, and you'll loop until you reach the 95. Follow that road until you reach Freeside. New Pegasus's entrance is inside."

"Alright... that sounds far... but OK."

Speak Easy interrupted me. "Before ya head out, at least let me repair your gun. It's the least I can do for ya." I nodded, and tapped my Pip-Boy again, bringing out the gun. I handed it to Speak Easy, and she left towards her saloon with Hugo. Soon, she emerged, and handed me two things; my pistol, and a small pipe of some sort. The weapon looked greased and much more healthy than before, but the pipe... Luna, I didn't know what the hell it was for.

"Uh... thanks?"

She shook her head, smiling. "That's a suppressor. It'll fit onto your pistol's muzzle nicely."

My ears twitched at that, and I grinned widely. I eagerly twisted the mod into place, and upon finishing, I aimed at the nearby rock. Tut-tut. Barely a sound. I placed my two weapons away by tapping the Item key on my Pip-Boy, and stood waiting, staring off towards the horizon. Before I could do anything else, I heard the sound of a crashing... kinda like drums. I ducked immediately afterwards, not knowing what it was. After a few seconds of lying on the ground, I peeked up to see Speak Easy laughing.

"Maybe you should take a look at your Pip-Boy."

I did so, and saw a large message on the screen... Level Up! it seemed to announce, quite triumphantly at that. I really didn't know what was up, until the Stats button shimmered brightly. I tapped it, and immediately the screen displayed a list of thirteen words and numbers; Guns 42%, Energy Weapons 24%, Unarmed 18%, Melee 42%, Explosives 24%, Medicine 24%, Sneak 44%, Lockpick 24%, Science 24%, Repair 25%, Speech 22%, Barter 22%, and Survival 18%. In addition, I noticed other changes on the screen... the LVL had now changed to 2, the HP had increased to 185, the AP increased to 95, and the XP now showed 298/550.

I still had no idea what had happened, and I don't think Speak Easy did either. "It's happened on occasion with other Pip-Boys, but we have no idea what it is," she replied.

I merely shook my head in confusion... what is this? I decided now wouldn't be the best time to investigate that, and merely lowered my left foreleg. I turned back to Speak Easy. "...th-thank you... for everything. I wish I could do more..."

She smiled warmly. "You've done more than enough." She then pointed to the horizon. "While you are venturing to New Pegasus... remember what I said... best to take the 95 instead of following the 15."

I nodded. I turned back to the road, and waving goodbye with my wing once more, I trotted down it, following the dirt until it became cracked asphalt, venturing out of the town's perimeter and strolling into the San Palomino wastes.

2200 Hours

After some time of traveling, everything started to ache. My legs... my sides... walking was never much of my thing. I looked around me... nothing but the road leading to and from my position, as well as the desert surrounding it. I wasn't sure where I was. Yet I still continued to trot... hoping there would at least be some sign of civilization somewhere.

The desert was eerily quiet. Everything Speak Easy told me about "critters" made me jump at the slightest sounds. During one moment, I even remember a tumbleweed rolling behind me, and I couldn't help but to gallop immediately further down the road frantically, not turning back. After a few minutes of my gallop, I suddenly stopped as I tried to identify something in the night. I turned to my left... then to my right. There were roads leading to both directions. But then I looked forward... where the road behind me was cut off.

I stepped a bit forward, squinting now, for the Cat Eye was long gone by now. I could only make out a black wall of some sort in the moonlight. I took a few more careful steps towards it... and extended a hoof to inspect. I felt a hard surface... wood, no doubt. Nothing around here would be growing like trees, and considering the wall-like structure, I guessed it was some building. I looked around a bit, trying to find a door of some kind.

I felt around with my wing, until I felt something extremely cold and solid. Doorknob. I twisted it, and pulled. The door budged only by a fraction. I twisted again, and pulled harder, the door slightly moving a bit more out of its frame. "Luna dammit, open already..." I said, exhausted. I strained one last time, using my hooves now to release the door from its position. The door opened slightly enough for me to slip in, and I did.

I closed it enough to prevent anything from entering but not fully enough to make it stuck again. I turned back... yet again viewing at utter darkness. I groaned in annoyance. Usually, I loved staying in the dark... some might even say I lived in darkness most of my life. But when I couldn't recognize where I was within it, it just made me feel completely blind... and adding to the fact that I partially was, it just made it worse.

I had long removed my sunglasses, but I was hoping on the off chance that maybe... just maybe... I could see a bit more clearly. I saw the dim glow of my Pip-Boy, and I peered at the screen, almost glued to it like a moth. The screen remained on my Stats... and I wondered... so I tapped the selections. I first went with my overall status... and I couldn't be any happier. Other than my completely severed wing, everything else about me seemed to be doing just fine, just a bit exhausted. It recommended a bit of rest, which I couldn't agree with more than I already did.

I tapped the next selection... something called S.P.E.C.I.A.L. Well, if I could name it something else, I would, because I didn't feel very special at the moment... or at all today. It showed what I had seen in Doc's house... my strength determined me to be a lightweight, which was true... I even had the small frame to prove it. My perception described me as a big-eyed tiger. Well, in most cases, if I had a fair amount of light, I could see pretty well, which was one of the reasons I was more of a night pony. I was deemed to be handled with care by my endurance, which, without wings, I couldn't argue about. Charisma placed me as a cheery salespony. My intelligence labeled me as a smartypants... my Pip-Boy was too kind. My agility placed me as that of a knife catcher, and my luck placed me as that of a coin flip. All in all, the machine read me pretty damn well.

I skipped the skills section... I had already checked it just before leaving Goodsprings, and I doubt it would have changed so soon... unless the thunderous drums played again. I tapped the next one instead; Perks. So far, I had three: Small Frame, Skilled, and Confirmed Bachelor. I chuckled a bit... whoever made this spared no expense in making it as accurate as possible. Apparently, my small frame made it so I was more agile... yet less durable than most ponies. Pegasi in general naturally are... but even then, I was smaller than the average pegasus. The Skilled described me as being naturally skilled... just not experienced. My bachelor status apparently made me much more talkative with stallions than mares, but I didn't really notice it so far. I noticed something underneath Confirmed Bachelor... an empty line. I tapped it, and I felt the Pip-Boy tighten around my left foreleg. "Gah! L-let go!" It did no such thing, and I thought I felt something embed itself into my hide just under it. Afterwards, the stinging feeling stopped all of a sudden, and I checked my Pip-Boy again. Under Confirmed Bachelor was a new phrase; Rapid Reload. I tapped it, and it sounded exactly like what it was... I could reload a weapon much faster.

The last selection under the Stats tab was Reputation. I tapped that, and the only selections that appeared were Goodsprings and Stable 19. Goodsprings set me as Idolized, while Stable 19 set me as Shunned. While I understood the praise for Goodsprings, I didn't know how I was connected to Stable 19 in any way. The only Stable I was familiar with was 21, and that's solely because I was wearing one of their suits. I shook it off... I'd check the rest of the Pip-Boy tomorrow. For now... I was extremely tired.

I still couldn't see much in the darkness, but my Pip-Boy's faint glow allowed me to see a bit. After a bit of exploring, I realized I was in an office of some sort... it had no windows, only one door, only one desk with a monitor atop of it, and a few lockers in the back. This was the most I was going to get for tonight, so I settled with it. I checked within the lockers, finding a few bobby pins, caps, and a small sheet. I tapped the Items tab to phase the pins and caps, and I cleared enough space on the desk to lie on, draping the sheet over me afterwards. I slowly closed my eyes, and before I knew it... fell into a slumber.

{END DAY 1 LOG TRANSMISSION}

Author's Note

This is my first crossover fic, ladies and gentlemen, so don't expect perfection. I did include the intro mission for the first chapter for reference, but many of the later chapters will be of different situations. Thanks for reading, everyone, and hope you stick around for later chapters!

Shadows

{BEGIN DAY 4 LOG TRANSMISSION}

Day 4, July 27

0218 Hours

I opened my eyes widely, suddenly finding the urge to wake up. I wasn't tired anymore... and I slowly looked around a bit. I stood up, not really seeing much else to do in these quarters. I stepped out, noticing AJ was still deactivated. I shook my head in disappointment... she'd been down and out for a good while now... I hope it wasn't permanent...

I slipped out of the room eventually, looking around the den. It still had the dark spots here and there... but by now they had already dried. I located Willow, trotted to her, and tapped her shoulder. She looked at me with dreary eyes. "Hey... come on, go get some rest."

She shook her head. "No... I can do it the entire night... just let me."

...stubborn. "You're only fooling yourself thinking you can stay up when you can't."

She looked down a moment. Well, longer than a moment. For a second, I thought she fell asleep with her eyes open, and I shook her shoulder a bit. She gasped a bit, and nodded. "Alright. Good night, I guess..." She slowly trotted towards the quarters, and shut the door behind her.

I sat down quietly in the middle of the den, looking around a bit at the formations inside the cave itself. Maybe it was the nap I took earlier... but something about them unsettled me. I tried to shake it off, but that omen of doubt still haunted me.

...I didn't want to think too much about it, so I stood up, headed to the entrance, and stopped. "Oh right..." I used my wing to cover my snout as I stepped over the carcasses, feeling some fur here and there. After climbing over them, I swung the makeshift cover off the mouth to the cave. I looked around the outside... it seemed we were held inside the face of a mountain base. There were two trails leading to the cave, both leading to opposite directions. I tapped my Pip-Boy, checked out the World Map, and saw the position set us about southwest from Dodge.

I turned to the trail on my left. That's the one that would lead us to the city. The other one led us back to the 95. I nodded, and turned back to head inside. As I did, though, I heard a light scamper. I groaned... I was really hoping for this night to be peaceful, but obviously that wasn't gonna happen. I turned back to the trails, trying to locate the source of the sound.

Tick-tick-tick-tick-tick

...the right. I turned my attention to the trail heading south, and drew the rifle on my back, holding the trigger with my wing and the rail with my left hoof. Not only did it help me to keep balance much better than if I stood up on my hind legs... but it kinda felt nice to use a wing and hoof together. I waited for about twenty seconds... before I saw a hoof slam onto the trail. The hoof dragged a bit closer, becoming a foreleg, and as it continued to drag, it became a pony's top half. I watched slowly, not lowering my gun as I saw the pony drag further onto the trail, where I saw him fully... or more accurately... what was left of him.

I slung my weapon back, and rushed to him. While I recognized the rags and armor he wore as the Fiends'... whatever happened to him was obviously terrible. As I galloped closer to him, he stared at me in daze... maybe it was dismay... whatever it was, he put up no fight as I lifted him over my back, and strained as I slowly drudged back to the mouth. I set him down, and inspected him again. His left hind leg was missing, and the stump had long ceased bleeding... the dirt coating it was the cause.

"Shit, man... what the hell happened to you!?"

He grabbed his stump with his forelegs, staring at it. Droplets of sweat dripped from his mane onto the dry ground as he clamped onto it. He slowly turned back to me. "Th-th-those..." he muttered out.

I cocked an eyebrow. "What?"

As I waited for a response, that ticking sound came up again. I twitched my ears, and unslung my rifle. The Fiend shivered a bit, and reached at me with a hoof. "Y-you... put that rifle to my chest... and..."

I shook my head. "Shut the hell up..." I whispered harshly. I turned back to the south trail, until some sort of wire somehow twisted out from the trail's direction. I cocked an eyebrow in confusion... that small thing was moving itself somehow... but how?

I soon wished I hadn't asked myself that. That wire... extended until the thing it was attached to reared its ugly head... literally. "W-what...?" I barely muttered out, before that thing hissed, and immediately started a charge at me on its six legs. Without any thought or hesitation, I ducked just enough to avoid being pierced by its mandibles. It hit its head against the mountain face, and stepped back a bit, almost in confusion. I recognized what it was by then... a bloody, giant ant.

Tons of things tossed back and forth within my head... how the hell did ants become giant? How do you keep from getting eaten by one? Do they eat ponies? How do I kill it? Those thoughts weren't gonna be answered anytime soon as that thing turned back to face me. I turned to the Fiend immediately. "H-how do I stop it!?" It bounded for me again, and I instinctively jumped over it, hoping to fly out of harm's way... but then that damn reminder of being a one-winged cripple came to me once again as I landed atop of its midsection.

"P-pierce its... abdomen... that's where its heart is..." he strained out. Abdomen... abdomen... damn it, where the hell is the abdomen on a bug!? I fiddled with my Pip-Boy as quickly as I could, tapped my razor, and saw it reappear in the air. I struggled to catch it but that ant kept moving and spinning so much that it kept bouncing around on its back. I knew this rifle wasn't gonna help me, so I slung it back on my back as I tried to get hold of the blade. I reached my wing for it, and had it until the beast bounced again and made me drop it again.

I frantically reached both hooves for it now, and held onto it tightly. I used my wing to reveal the blade, and as I aimed it down onto the ant, I plunged the blade as hard as I could into it. As I felt it embed itself into the ant's... skin... I felt the blade rumble a bit. Other than the usual spinning and trying to get me off, the ant didn't really take much notice to me trying to kill it. I winced, and continued to thrust the blade through the ant's hard skin. Dammit, why wasn't it working!?

"The abdomen... is its... ass..." the Fiend replied. As the ant twitched its antennae, it turned to the Fiend on the ground, and scampered towards him. I heard that loud snapping of its mandibles, and finally one more before hearing a thump following it. I held the knife with both hooves once more, and stabbed the blade into what I thought was the ant's flank. The ant finally reacted greatly, standing up on its four hind legs. I continued to pierce the flank as I screamed in a mix of a war cry and a fear for my life.

The ant fell backwards onto the ground, slamming on top of me as it raised its legs into the air. I struggled to escape from its sheer mass, and soon I squirmed out, covered in dust. I stood up, turning back to the ant... all six of its legs were raised into the air, twitching a bit as it began to curl its head and what I now realized was the abdomen towards its midsection. I laughed in a mix of hysteria and relief... I... I killed that thing! Me, a small fry, killed that fucking great thing!

"Luna almighty! Hey, man, did you see that? Did you see...?" I turned back to where I left the Fiend, where I saw him bleeding even more from a huge gash in his chest. I galloped to him, knelt, and checked his pulse. After a few moments, it was pretty obvious he didn't make it. "Damn... not quick enough..."

I placed away my things in my Pip-Boy, and lifted his remains. I dragged them to the fork in the road from the cave, and set him there, lying on the ground where he wouldn't be disturbed. I turned back to the ant... something about it still terrified me. I trotted away from it, and back into the doorway to the cave. I entered, shutting the door behind me. I sighed in disappointment... sure, it wasn't my job to save ponies... but it'd be so much better if I could.

I trotted back to the middle of the den, and merely stared at the mouth of the cave... watching... waiting...

0600 Hours

My eyes couldn't blink... I couldn't even take my stare off the mouth to see anything else. For whoever has the same job in New Equestria, I feel sorry that they gotta do this everyday. I... I don't know... maybe I was still trying to take my mind off of the watch earlier...

I felt something grasp my shoulder, and I immediately reached my wing for my gun, aiming it behind me. I turned to see Willow, hoof on my shoulder, merely gazing at me with eyes of some kind of worry... or maybe it was pity... I don't know. I was too weary to ask. "Hey, First... come on... it's morning."

"H-huh?" I asked, almost in a drone of a voice. I think I felt my forelegs again, and I used them to rub my eyes. "Morning... right..." I felt myself stand up, almost as if I had just received the ability to stand after years of being crippled.

"What's up?" Willow asked.

I merely scoffed a bit, and gave... or at least tried to... a grin back. "N-nothing... slept well?"

"Actually yeah I did!" She turned back to the quarters. "Anyways... your super cool android friend's lights went on. She hasn't gotten up yet, but she will soon!"

I think that bit of info there made me open my eyes much more. "Her lights went on? Th-that's amazing! Wait... you mean the lights on her eyes, right?"

"Yep!"

"OK... that's good! She'll get up in a bit then." I placed away my weapon. "Oh, and uh... sorry about the whole... pointing the gun at you."

"Well it's OK as long as you didn't use it cause then you wouldn't be apologizing unless it was over my lifeless corpse, huh? Ooh, would you clasp it dramatically!?" Wow... she seemed to look at everything in a bright light... I personally didn't see how anypony could do something impossible.

"Er... I... guess? Anyways... let's wait for AJ to wake up, then get the hell out of... wait, that doesn't work here..."

Shining Willow smiled widely at me. "The hell out of Dodge and to Dodge?"

I sighed, a bit disappointed. "...yeah."

She merely grimaced a bit, biting her lower lip in a bit of restraint. "It would've been funnier if you said it."

"Eh... probably not." I heard the door swing open, and I turned to the quarters, grinning. "Oh, thank Luna you're alright, AJ."

She stood in the doorway a bit, cocking an eyebrow. "Why wouldn't I be? Something happen?"

"Yeah you... you don't remember?"

"Hmm... not really. I reckoned I just caught a nap. Are you OK?"

I thought about whether I should short her circuits in worry and tell the truth or just let her take a moment to relax. Wasn't a hard decision. "Nothin' wrong with me. Just saw you shut down, got me a bit worried."

AJ seemed to giggle a bit, her eyes changing from green to purple. "Oh, sugar cube... that's awful kind of you."

I turned back to Willow. "AJ's up and ready to go. Think you can lead us out of here and to Dodge?"

"Heck yeah I can!" She trots to the door to the cave, seemingly stepping over the bodies there without any hesitance... it worried me. Me and AJ simply followed her, carefully avoiding the bodies as we exited the cave. As soon as I did, the sunlight blurred my vision for a bit, before I placed on my glasses.

"Holy moly what is that!?" Willow asked, her voice raised. I turned, and already guessing what it was, clicked my tongue.

"Hmm... looks like that one thing you ran into..."

"I know, right?"

AJ stepped near the corpse of the giant insect. Her eyes glowed a bit, and she turned back to me. "Huh... this thing seemed to have a struggle awhile back. It's been covered in piercings."

I merely shrugged. "Yeah, but... as long as it's not alive anymore... we don't have to worry about it."

"Oh, definitely." Willow looks around a bit, before turning to the trail heading north. "If we go down this trail, we'll hit Dodge by noon."

"Sounds good. Let's get outta here."

1126 Hours

"You know... maybe it's the fact that AJ switched back online and we actually woke up alive today... but I feel really good about this!"

"See? Nothing to worry about! Come on!" We all trotted up the last ridge, before coming into view of the town. I marveled at it... it wasn't a large town, but seeing how relatively sound it remained over the years was something to behold. All the buildings were intact, the streets slightly cracked but hardly noticeable, and the fauna drifting slightly in the way of the breeze. This was it... this was paradise.

I turned to see how Willow would react, grinning without any care. She merely stared on intensely, her eyes darting rapidly across the town. "Uh... something up, Willow?"

She didn't answer for a second... "Uh... y-yeah... hang on a sec, First..." She let gravity take her as the dune slowly shifted with her hooves until she reached the proximity of the town.

I turned to AJ. "I don't get it... the town looks spotless!"

AJ nodded. "...exactly..." She hopped down the dune and let it carry her down as well. I shook my head... how could they worry at a time like this? We made it to Dodge... what's the deal now? I got it over with and just let myself follow them. As soon as I touched the streets, I immediately realized I was missing something for myself... horseshoes. The pavement burned a bit and it took a good amount of both time and hopping on my burnt hooves to get used to it.

As soon as I did, I turned to both Shining and AJ. Both had seemed to stop nearby so I trotted close. "So, uh... why are you two freaking out for?"

Both turned to me, dead serious. I really felt like I either screwed something up or I was missing out on something obvious... maybe both. "First Class... doesn't the place seem... awfully quiet?"

I twitched my ears a bit. Now that she mentioned it... it was quiet... too quiet. I looked around just to make sure. They were both right... everything seemed... empty. "Weird... hold on..." Being a courier has taught me a few things... how to tell directions, how to read maps and charts and make them, how to use navigation tools... but this one always stuck by me and made me realize a being a courier wasn't always a bad thing. I closed my eyes, raised my ears, and stayed absolutely still.

"Uh... First?"

"I'm concentrating! Shush!" I focused once more, and waited... waited... waited...

...la...

What...?

...la la la...

Is that... that's not... singing... is it?

...la la la... la... la la...

I lowered my ears, perplexed. I turned to the two, my confusion very clear to them. "...so... I heard, um... what I thought was singing... I think..."

"S-singing?"

"Uh, you might be hoping to get your ears checked-" She stopped suddenly as her ears pricked up as well. After a moment, her eyes flashed yellow. "We ain't alone in this town..."

Willow trembled a bit, and she began to head back to the dune, desperately trying to climb it as her hooves sank into it. "W-we gotta get outta here! Right... flipping... now!"

I turned to AJ. "All it is is singing. Sounds like from a little foal."

"Well, considering these folk aught not take too kindly to us, I reckon we better giddy on outta here..."

I chuckled a bit. "Come on, it's just some fillies singing some kind of... bedtime song or something. I'm sure they're probably just... I don't know, playing a game or something."

"Uh... First..."

"Yeah?"

"Y-you can ask them yourself..." she said slowly, pointing just behind me. I turned around, looking until I found what she wanted me to see. It was a filly... literally dressed to go outside with a bonnet, dress, horseshoes, and everything. She strolled around a corner and began to slowly head toward us, crooning the tune I heard earlier as she did. I really couldn't see her muzzle from under her hat, and even if the hat wasn't blocking me, the shadow from the brim would have done the same. As she walked, three more fillies followed behind her, dressed in almost identical garbs with the exception of the colors and sizes.

I turned to AJ, cocking an eyebrow. "Is Willow really gonna freak out over this?"

"I... I wouldn't be so sure that they're OK, First."

Before I had a chance to respond, I saw the fillies stop, just a few feet away from the two of us. They stood absolutely quietly yet sternly, not speaking a word or crooning their tune anymore. They kept their heads lowered enough to have their hats hide their faces. Maybe AJ was right... maybe they were affected by the Aura. But that didn't mean we could just leave them there... did it?

I trotted a bit towards them. "Um... hey... you don't need help... do you?"

They stood still momentarily, before one of them shook their head. "No... no help... but thank you very kindly, sir."

...well, they seemed polite. But still... I couldn't shake the feeling that something needed to be done to help them. "A-are you sure?"

The one in front nodded quickly. "Yes... quite sure... why would we need help?" She picked her head up slowly, her bonnet no more covering her face. As she lifted it up, I felt my eyes widen a bit. What I saw in the filly's face was a grin... no... a smile... bigger than any I've ever seen. She reveled the full set of teeth, pristine and clean. But that wasn't what frightened me most... when I tried to find her eyes, all I could see were empty sockets within her face. "We are quite happy now... quite happy."

These fillies probably were affected by the Aura... residue of huge stores of magic or magic blasts that can drift and cause these... grotesque changes... to almost any creature, ponies included. Most ponies I had seen affected by the Aura became these... zombie... looking things. Some still had consciousness, others actually were zombies by that point. But I hadn't ever seen anything like this...

I galloped closer to the fillies now, not sure what to think... pity? Sorrow? Whatever it was... it wanted to get them out of here. I placed my hooves on the filly in front. "Listen... I don't know what happened to you... but we gotta get outta-" she cut me off short... literally. I felt something slash against my cheek, and after a second I felt something warm slowly drip onto my face. I didn't bother to rub my cheek this time... I backed away, seeing what caused it... a rough piece of broken glass in the filly's hooves.

"Oh... my bad... it seems I've accidentally slit your cheek. I was aiming for the throat!" she announced cheerfully.

"You... what... what the fuck!?" I stood up on my hooves, and galloped back to AJ. "Why are they going and slashing up ponies for!?"

"Don't know... but I'd rather not find out..." She activated her plasma caster from her side, and aimed it at the first filly. As soon as she targeted the filly, she fired. The green ball of plasma hurtled in the air a moment, before landing a direct hit on the filly. She screamed in agony a moment, before being consumed by a veil of green and disintegrating into little more than a pile of green mush.

The other three fillies turned to the pile, their smiles wide but their forehead gestures and eye sockets showing... what I thought was something of mourning. They placed their hooves into the pile, lifted a bit of the green mush, and slowly smeared it across their dresses, staining them with a radiant glow. As soon as they did, they turned to the two of us. They began trembling a bit, their smiles slowly turning upside down... literally. The muscles and skin around the lips ripped apart, and slowly their once snow white teeth began to turn red, slowly dripping blood off of them. As their smiles turned into frowns, their eyes also began to slowly leak a darkened liquid, as if sobbing. The deformation was complete, and the once somewhat recognizable faces of youth were replaced with the shadows of the damned...

AAAAAAAAAAIIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEE!

All three fillies shrieked at once, a piercing sound that could shatter even the serenity of water. As they did, a multitude of doors opening and closing rang throughout the town, and as they did, much more of these smiling freaks began to emerge from their shelters. All of them began to chant many unnerving calls. "Does somebody need a helping hoof? I can offer four to really take your mind off of things... like your skull!"

"Want to borrow my sugar? Or how about my knife set? Better keep it inside your hide so it doesn't get rusty!"

"Or how about a nice round of the Game of Life... and Death! I have a feeling it's gonna be a long game this time!"

I looked all around this town... all of them were coming from the front. I turned to AJ. "Climb up the dune!" Without any hesitation, we both ran as fast as we could, struggling to get atop the dunes. But with the sand constantly shifting underneath us it was damn near impossible to do so. "Run! Fucking run!"

I didn't dare look back. I didn't want to. Those psychopaths were too damn happy and it was creeping me right the fuck out! How did those ponies end up like that... and how the hell did they do that with their faces!? We both drudged on and on... until we reached the top. I took a moment to catch my breath, completely exhausted. As we both looked at the bottom of the dune, we saw the entire town, just under a few dozen townsfolk, standing and merely looking back at us. "Oh, darn! I really wanted to show them my new lawn mower... it cuts deep!"

"Fuck you, you fucking psychopaths!" I shouted down to them. Not like it would help... but... I just needed to think of something other than Dodge right now...

I lifted my head upwards, still panting heavily. "I have no clue what they were..."

I merely glanced at her, and still breathing heavily, nodded in exasperation. "I... I don't wanna... wanna know..."

AJ turned back to Willow, waiting for us at the top of the dune. "Why didn't you warn us about them!?"

"I did! I told you we needed to leave right now!"

"If you knew about them then you must've seen 'em before. What are they? And how do you know about them?"

"They're... I call them Smiley's... don't know what else to call them. They're... initially happy. Like... unnaturally happy. But then they become these... hideous creatures when they recognize death among themselves. When they get like that... they alert the entire colony with that screech."

"So, just avoid them at all costs? Don't sound too hard to do."

"Y-yeah... it is... and it's going to get harder... and harder... oh, dear Luna..." I heard Willow begin to sniffle, before sobbing to herself.

I turned to her, breathing a bit easier now. "What's up, Willow?"

"Th-those... Smiley's... they're not natural. They come from real ponies like us... but... they've been changed by..."

"Aura?"

She shook her head. "N-no... by... Shadows."

I cocked my eyebrow. "Uh... shadows?"

"Yeah... they call themselves Descension. Back in the NLR, we simply called them Shadows because we knew nothing about them. We still know little about them. But... they're dangerous... merciless... and... just... just barbaric. I've only heard rumors on the group... but... I've ran into some of their... experiments... which include the Smiley's..."

"...dear Luna... if they actually turned everyone into Dodge into these Smilin' Smiths... that means... well... I don't know what it means."

"It means... we can't stay here. We need to keep on moving... and at this rate we're not gonna reach the closest town, Appleloosa, until tomorrow."

"Tomorrow? Hmm... what about shelter for the night?"

"Got it covered. On caravan runs I'd do, I'd stop at this old ranch. It's desolate, but it's fairly intact. Hopefully, we can run into some NLR troops... get them to avoid this town like the plague."

"That'd be a good idea. Those things down there can really pack a punch..." I just remembered the cut on my cheek, and I dabbed at it a bit with my wing.

"Don't do that, you might infect the wound. Hold on..." Rather than grab a stimpak as before, she reached for something within her... I soon recognized it to be what remained of a red bandana. She slowly but gently wiped my cheek with it, and pressed on it for a minute.

"This thing looks old, AJ... is it clean?"

"Cleaner than the whistle on a steam engine." She removed the cloth, and glanced at it a bit, almost as if seeing something deeper within it. "I wish I could remember where I got it originally, though..."

"You keep it with you as a good luck charm or something?"

"Yup. Makes me feel... I don't know... like I had some old life before Goodsprings."

She probably did... but I don't know anything about that. But I did promise to take her to her factory. Maybe there'd be something there.

I glanced back down at the townsfolk, now having given up their pursuit and slowly starting to leave back to their homes. Better than having them stay down there and wait for us. I turned back to Willow. "Anyway we can get back on the highway without going through town?"

"Yeah... just follow me." She led us along the dune, heading north until we left the proximity of the town.

1348 Hours

After traveling further along the highway, we stopped momentarily at a junction. While there wasn't a formal rest stop, there was a large piece of rubble from an old bridge that we took refuge under, providing a good amount of shade. The three of us each sat underneath it, drinking what water we had. "You said you went on caravan runs before... how many places have you been in Palomino?"

"Most if not all. While I haven't been to New Pegasus yet, that's not to say I didn't enjoy the other locales."

"So about Appleloosa... what's that town like."

"Well..." She was stopped as AJ cut her off.

"I can tell you 'bout Appleloosa! It's the greatest town in San Palomino! Both buffalo and ponies have lived there, and both help to care for an orchard just nearby!"

Willow turned to AJ, eyeing her incredulously. "What? What orchards? All I know that's by Appleloosa is a large mine! Filled with a bunch of... I think they're glowing mushrooms."

"I think you're mistaken, friend... Appleloosa is plenty bustlin' because of those trees."

"And I think you're the one mistaken... Appleloosa is a shantytown. I mean, don't get me wrong, the ponies there are great! But... their homes... are shit."

AJ merely glared at Willow. Her eyes flashed from green to red, and she stood up. She trotted over to Willow, lifted her from the sand, and clutched her hide. "Say somethin' else about Appleloosa... go ahead! Say it!" Willow merely whimpered a bit in her grasp, squirming to get free.

I stood up, turning sharply to AJ. "AJ, stop now! Put her down!"

Clearly reluctant to do so, she held Willow for a moment more, before pressing her muzzle against Willow's threateningly. "I catch you running your mouth again, and you're gonna have a problem..." She then dropped Willow onto the dirt, and sat back down.

Willow took the moment to back away from AJ and hide behind me. "Sh-she's... she's crazy, First..." she whimpered out.

I shook my head. "Willow... whatever you do, don't say anything relating to Appleloosa. I don't want AJ to go stark raving mad on you. OK?" She nodded quickly, her eyes misty. I sighed, and turned to AJ. "And you, AJ... you really want to do something like that again, you're doing it without us. Because I'm not gonna have a raging android traveling with me or Willow, got it?" AJ turned to me, her eyes flashing from red to blue. She nodded slowly, grunting a bit as she did.

I was just going to have to accept that as her answer. I think it was five minutes later that we heard some hoofsteps in rhythm coming towards us. I peeked from under our shade, and recognized a few NLR soldiers trotting down the highway from the other road at the junction. I stepped out from the shade, raising my wing up to hail them.

"Hey! Over here!"

They all turned to me, drawing their weapons initially but keeping them lowered. "Name and business," one of them requested.

"First Class. Courier. I also have Shining Willow, caravan runner, and AJ, Bronco Guardian Bot."

The soldier nodded. "Sorry for the alert. Never know who you can run into in the desert."

How true that was. "No kidding. But there is something we need to let you know."

"What's that?"

"Know the town nearby here? Dodge Junction?"

"Yeah."

"You might want to get on the horn and let any other Grand Army soldiers know to stay the hell away from there."

"Any particular reason?"

"Yeah... Shadows." Right when I said that I saw the small unit of troops lower their ears and widen their eyes.

"Shadows? Dear Luna... they're already this far from Everfree... what did you run into exactly?"

"These smiling lunatics. Willow calls them Smiley's."

One of the soldiers coughed a bit, trying their best not to retch. The leader of the unit turned back to him. "Breathe nice and easy." He turned back to me. "Smilin' Jacks, huh? Definitely wanna avoid those... I'll let 'em know right away. Thanks for the heads up."

"No problem." I stopped a moment, and hatched an idea. "You going near Appleloosa by any chance?"

"Gonna make a rest stop there. You too?"

"Yeah, and it'd help to have a bit more ponies to travel with."

"Why not? I assume you've heard of the Ranch?"

"That the one you were talking about, Willow?"

"Yeah."

"Well, while it's not really an official rest stop, it's very convenient for troops to bunk there. Keep it nice and maintained and it gives back."

"Sounds like a good plan to me then. Let's get going."

2134 Hours

We didn't reach the Ranch until long after sunset. By then the lights within were glowing radiantly, a beacon in the night. The Ranch itself was a fairly large bungalow, comprised of redwood. Much of it looked as thought it had seen its day but kept going without a halt. A fence surrounded it on all sides; while it wouldn't keep out ponies, it'd keep in any livestock in.

We all entered inside the abode, a lobby leading into a few bedrooms. The soldier in command turned to us. "Each room has two bunks and a queen. You mind sharing one room among yourselves?"

I immediately turned back to AJ and Willow. Before either could raise any objections, I spoke up. "No problem at all with sharing. Come on, ladies. And good night to you sir." I led both into the room, shut the door, and before they could interject again, I raised my wing. "Both of you, shut up. Willow, you sleep in a bunk. AJ, you sleep in the other bunk."

"Oh, and you get the queen all to yourself?"

"I knew you were gonna say something like that. As a matter of fact, no. I'll sleep on the floor. That way, neither of you complain all night and keep me up." I retrieved the sheets and a pillow from the queen, fixing them onto the floor to create a makeshift nest for me. I used my hooves to stamp and press them a bit, before I roosted on it. "And please... don't wake me up." I saw both stand and stare at me in a mix of disappointment and a bit of contempt. Finally, they returned to their own beds, lied down, and covered themselves with the sheets. It was a few minutes later when I shut off the lights in the room, roosted in my nest once more, and closed my eyes...

{END DAY 4 TRANSMISSION}