Fallout: the Return

Chapters

Chapter 2: Visit
Chapter 3: Spa
Chapter 4: Recordationem
Interlude: Rarity
Interlude: Rarity Pt2
Chapter 5: Chaos
Interlude: Raul
Chapter 7: Findings
Chapter 8: Peace
Chapter 9: Party
Chapter 10: Ulysses
Chapter 11: Ghosts
Chapter 12: Ghouls
Chapter 13: Retribution
Chapter 14: Spearhead
Chapter 15: Endgame
Chapter 1: Leo's Playdate
Chapter 6: Rescue

Chapter 2: Visit

“Friendship multiplies the good of life, and divides the evil.”– Baltasar Gracian

Chapter 2: Visit

I was on the ground, staring up in horror at the black haired brute named Orion. I tried to stop him from grabbing my hair and pulling me to my feet, but I felt the sharp, nerve ripping sting of the shock collar I wore.

I could only cry as Orion pulled me up by my hair, wrapping his thick arm around my head and neck, before practically dragging me towards the mattress in the other section of the tent…

<~-~>

I awoke with a scream, my heart pounding as I began thrashing my legs fruitlessly. I was pinned down and unable to move much more than my head.“Fluttershy, stop!” Jason yelled, pulling me out of my nightmare as a Legion slave.“I’m sorry; I promise I’ll be a good girl,” I cried in a low, confused tone. My brain hadn’t quite caught up with what was happening.Jason’s tone was nothing but firm as he said, “Fluttershy, I’m here, look at me.”I felt my heart beat a few times slower, and I opened my panic-closed eyes. Jason’s bedside lamp was on and I could see him holding down my forelegs with his. I had already busted his lip before he could stop my wild thrashing.He let go and I broke down. With my forelegs free, I hugged him tightly, crying into his shoulder. It had been months since my last breakdown, I never had enough time to dream since Leo was born.“Shhh, it’s okay Fluttershy. Orion is gone,” he whispered quietly, patting my back with a hoof as he embraced me. He may sleep like a rock through Leo crying, but if I so much as sniffled in my sleep, he was there.“I know… but-,” I couldn’t finish because of my sobbing.“Fluttershy, you’re safe now. We have a beautiful son, and the Legion was defeated by the NCR back at Hoover Dam. They probably tore down the Fort by now and burned it.”My husband and the thought of that place in ruins put me at ease, especially if the NCR torched Orion’s tent. The things he did to Applejack and me were… unpleasant, and I’ll leave it at that.Feeling slightly calmer, I released my tight grasp from my husband, and lied back down.As he rolled over to turn off the lamp, I gasped, “Leave it on,” then I hid halfway behind my mane as Jason looked at me. I added meekly, “Please.”Jason nodded and pulled the white sheet and fluffy green quilt back over us.And even with the nightmare and horrid memories plaguing me, my exhausted mind and body quickly drove me into sleep.

<~-~>

My sleep was interrupted once again by Leo crying. A quick trip to his room revealed that I needed to give him a diaper change, as well as feed him.One tuck in and lullaby later, I was sitting at my kitchen at 4:30 in the morning with the light turned on. Even if the nightmare wasn’t fresh on my mind, I was scared of the dark in my own house.Grinding my left hoof against my temple, I chomped down on a spoonful of cereal puffs. My sleepy mind has already forgotten the name of the brand, but I do know that I’ve had them so long that they went stale. But I didn’t care; it was something sugary to eat at 4:30 in the morning.I gasped and dropped the spoon in the glass bowl when I heard a scratching sound, but let out a sigh of relief when Angel Bunny hopped into the light.“Can’t sleep either?” I asked. I had tried going back to sleep, but since I had just enough rest for my brain to coherently work, I was remembering things I didn’t want to.Angel shook his head before swiftly hopping away. I felt a pang of sadness knowing that we had grown apart, but ever since the Mojave Wasteland, Jason, and Leo, I have changed. I no longer let Angel push me around like I was his servant.Then after he assaulted me with a cookbook in front of Jason, he was warned by him if he ever did it again that Mr. Bear would have a new chew toy.I never had a problem with Angel again.After finishing either my extremely late night snack, or very early breakfast, I looked at the clock: 4:41 it read.I guessed it was time to figure out what to do today. I wondered if my sleep addled brain will forget this list within an hour.Oh well. And with that, I thought of things to occupy my time.Rarity usually opens at eight – haven’t had a spa day with her in forever - and Sugarcube corner opens at nine. I can take Leo to see Pound and Pumpkin for a little while after Rarity takes his measurements. Then I can come home and feed my animals.The measurement at Rarity’s would be for a winter jacket. I can’t have Leo getting a cold when the pegasi decide to drop snow on our heads. And he would also look soooo cute in a jacket made by Rarity.I just wonder if Leo is still scared of her scars… or her voice, and the fact she sounds pissed all the time.Did I really just think that?I probably did since I’m trying to figure out if I thought it or not, meaning I would have to have a reason to think of it in the first place.My face hit the table as I did the stupid thing of thinking with my brain when I was clearly suffering from lack of sleep. As my head hit the table, my sleep deprivation made the sound of my forehead hitting the wooden table echo in my skull like a gunshot, and the scraping of silverware on the glass bowl sounded like a symphony of broken… whatever instruments that makes a sound like a spoon sliding on glass. Seriously why in the heck am I staying up again?Leo crying again gave me the answer. I swear, he has a near Pinkie Pie level of coincidental timing.

<~-~>

With a smile on my face, Leo and I made our way towards Carousel Boutique. It was probably around four minutes before Carousel Boutique opened, so I made a quick pass by Raul’s Hardware and Repair. I didn’t stop, opting to wave at the ghoul from a place called Mexico.Raul was wearing his faded and grease stained blue jumpsuit that proudly showed off the name Miguel. It had taken Raul quite some time to get used to walking on four hooves and learn magic, but with Twilight and Rarity’s help, he was able to lift a whole carriage, as well as disassemble it with ease. He also had to get used to ponies yelling zombie and running away screaming when they caught sight of him.Thankfully, everypony was quick to accept him after an explanation on what he was, and the fact he was over two-hundred years old explained why he quote ‘looks like a walking corpse.’As I pushed the stroller back towards Carousel Boutique, I blushed and waved to the other mares eyeing Leo. It had taken me a while to get used to the stares of strangers and the random pony baby-talking to Leo, but it wasn’t that bad anymore.Trotting briskly down the cobblestone road with Leo’s stroller, I looked towards Rarity’s boutique. The red sign in the window told me it was open, so I parked the stroller beside the door, and carried Leo inside.Upon the bell above the door chiming, Rarity turned away from a ponyquin dressed in a half-finished ensemble and waved a hoof at me. I waved back with the hoof on the leg holding Leo, keeping him tucked close to me as he held onto my shoulder.Rarity’s coiffed mane was topped by a red beret she constructed from her near photographic memory for fashion. It was nearly the same as the one she wore during her brief time in First Recon. I could also clearly see the muscle deep scars over nearly half of her face. They were a constant reminder to her of what happened to us.Sadly, she never was able to do her singsong greeting after she accidentally ended up in a horrid place called the Divide; which was the place she got the scars.From what she told me, after being turned into a human, a sandstorm had ripped flesh off her face, arms, and legs. She didn’t even try and hide the scars, and surprisingly her business hasn’t taken a drop in customers. Figures, since the townsponies accept Raul.Rarity smiled as she trotted over to me. “So, how are you and Leo doing today?” She asked in a scratchy voice as she smiled at Leo. Leo just looked at her cautiously, which was a big improvement than attempting to run away from her like last time.“Oh, I’m doing fine. Leo keeps me up all night while Jason sleeps like a rock.”Rarity let out a hoarse, dry chuckle, “I’m glad you’ve taken to being back in Equestria, as well as motherhood so well.”I blushed and shifted Leo to readjust the strain on my foreleg, he happily cooed from the bounce and looked around the boutique.Rarity put a foreleg around me and pulled Leo and me closer as she asked, “So, what brings you two to Carousel Boutique? I doubt you would visit a ghoul like me without needing something.”“Well um, I kinda need you to make Leo a winter jacket.”Rarity let go of me and rolled her eyes, “Say no more,” then she added a bit nervously, “I need things to do to keep my sanity if my pills decide to stop working.”It was a sad but true fact. Rarity was on several different medications. Without them, she battled with bouts of extremely violent thoughts and brief periods of depression. Even though she was a teensy-tiny unstable, I still trusted her to not hurt Leo.But if she did… don’t think about it, Fluttershy.We both walked towards a small stage in the boutique. I placed Leo on the stage and tried to keep him still as Rarity levitated measuring tape with her magic, which, after the Mojave, has taken on a slight, changeling green hue.As Rarity was taking Leo’s measurements he was smiling and giggling at me. I couldn’t help but notice that Rarity smiled as well, but had a sad look in her eyes.“Are you alright?” I asked. Stupid question, Fluttershy.Rarity shook her head, “Yes,” she said with only a slight hesitation as she set down the measuring tape to swap it out for cloth, “What color?” she asked as she levitated different colored samples of fabric.I tapped my chin, wondering which I should choose. “That one,” I said as I pointed my hoof at a strip of bright blue cloth.“Excellent choice darling,” she rasped out.I nodded in thanks and picked Leo up. “So how are you doing?”She chuckled, “I’m a half crazy, ghoul dressmaker with a little sister who keeps asking questions I rather not answer. Quite peachy in fact.”I winced, “What is she asking about this time?” We could talk freely since Sweetie was currently at school.“What’s in the locked box under my bed. I’m not sure she’s ready to see the red eyed helmet or the bloodstained duster yet; and I’m never going to let her see the guns or the knife I killed Legionaries with,” I could see her shiver, “I still see them sometimes… the Legion men I killed. Pinkie, Rainbow, Twilight… we all have nightmares. Do you still have trouble sleeping?”After what Orion did to Applejack and me. “Yes,” I muttered as I lowered my head and hid behind my mane, “But it’s been awhile since I woke up screaming.” I lied as I shuddered in fear. The memories of Orion using Applejack and I like we were worthless pieces of meat swam back. I gently set Leo down as I went a little lightheaded and nearly lost balance.I pushed the horrid memories to the little place in the back of my head where I shove all the bad stuff as Rarity gave me a hug. “Fluttershy, you don’t have to worry. Jason told me he had killed that dreadful Praetorian. And trust me, I fought the Praetorian Guard myself. They are tough to beat, but Jason did it to protect you two.”‘Funny thing is, it technically made me and Applejack his slaves, then Lanius gave that downright absurd decree, then Applejack and I got pregnant from him’. And even while I thought that, I found the guts to smile and joke, “You can’t say he won’t kill for me.”Rarity’s lips cracked into a large grin as she laughed a hoarse laugh, “Fluttershy cracking a dark joke? What unexpected phenomenon will come next?”“Maybe Rarity Belle will gain her singsong voice back?” I saw her wince. I knew I screwed up, oh please don’t be mad, “Sorry,” I apologized as I hid behind my mane again.She pulled away from our hug and bumped me with a hoof, “It’s nothing really. I’ve grown used to sounding like I swallowed flaming glass.”She then looked at a clock on the wall, “I’m sorry to kick you out, but I have work to do. The jacket should be ready by tomorrow.”I understood that she needed to work without a foal bothering her; so I picked up Leo, said a goodbye, then left out the door to get the stroller.

<~-~>

A few minutes later, I stopped at Sugarcube Corner. Though I found it locked up with the ‘Closed’ sign in the window of the door. So, with nothing else to do, I sat on a nearby bench and took Leo out of his stroller so he could prance around.To my surprise though, shortly after I set him on the ground he simply hopped up onto the bench with me to give me a nuzzle and several happy coos.I looked right into his teal eyes and smiled. Running a hoof through his hair, I said in a low, motherly tone, “You are going to do great things, Leo.” I kissed him on the forehead and he giggled.Looking back to the door of Sugarcube Corner, the sign was flipped to ‘OPEN’. Looking back to Leo I said, “Ready to see Pound, Pumpkin, and Pinkie?”Leo’s joyful squeal was loud enough to hurt my ears.Entering with the stroller, Mrs. Cake greeted me, “Hello Mrs. Brody. How’s motherhood working out for you?” she asked with just a hint of a smirk. With kids of her own, she was an invaluable source of tips and pointers.“It’s going great, Mrs. Cake,” I said with a smile as I looked around the small waiting area of the bakery, “Where’s Pinkie?”She smiled, “She’s out making a delivery. She should be back soon”“Oh, okay,” I replied with a small a nod.I then pivoted my head to the sound of a yell. “It’s mine!” It was a colt’s voice.“Nuh-uh!” I heard another, a filly this time. Then there was the sound of clamoring hooves before Pound and Pumpkin tumbled through the kitchen door. A cookie shaped toy was the source of the commotion. Pound snatched the cookie toy from Pumpkin before running like crazy out the door.Something told me Leo and Tigris will be like that soon enough.Mrs. Cake laughed and blushed, “I’m going to have to settle this.” She turned her head back to the kitchen, “Carrot you are in so much trouble for letting them fight!”I heard the sound of air being sucked rapidly between teeth and a few mutters of profanity. Mr. Cake walked out of the kitchen, his face twisted into a nervous grin.“I’ll get them for you, honeybun.” Mr. Cake said, and before Mrs. Cake could reply, he bolted out after Pound and Pumpkin.Mrs. Cake shook her head, “Does your husband try as hard to weasel his way out of punishment?”I let out a giggle and a blush, “Noo,” I drawled out with extra emphasis and a roll of my eyes. Then Rainbow crashed through the window, glass shattering to the floor as she smashed head first into the counter.Leo laughed his wittle heart out, but I was staring in horror as Rainbow’s head leaked crimson.As I made a motion to rush over, Rainbow slowly got up with a grunt, stopping my advance in its tracks. She shook a few bloody glass shards out of her mane as she placed a hoof on her head, then looked at her hoof. The sight of blood must have made her realize it hurt. “Ow, dammit, that fu-”I covered Leo’s ears and stopped her, “Language, Rainbow!”She grimaced as she kept touching the spot on her head, “I just smashed my blimen skull into the wood at nearly rainboom speed, and you expect me not to cuss!?” I could tell her coltfreind’s accent had rubbed off on her. His name was Nolan, and he was one of the humans that came through Twilight’s return portal with us. He had turned into a chocolate brown Pegasus.As Mrs. Cake left to fetch a first aid kit, I asked with as much nonchalance as possible, “So, how are you?”“I’m bleeding from my friggin head,” Rainbow replied hotly, “I need band-aid or gauze.”Okay, Ms. grouchy.Mrs. Cake returned with a first aid kit and promptly went to work. But stubborn Rainbow Dash had to patch herself in the bathroom mirror. As she did that, Mrs. Cake cleaned up the broken glass.A minute later, Rainbow returned from the bathroom. Mr. Cake also showed up, entering from the front door with two foals covered in dirt.Mr. Cake left with Pound and Pumpkin upstairs, and Rainbow showed off the gauze that wrapped neatly around her head. Looking at the slightly bloody bandaging, I never expected that Rainbow could pull off patching herself up so neatly, “How do you know how to bandage like that?”“When I was in the NCR, I may have done something to deserve a whiping with an actual whip. No one wanted to help me, even as I bled, so I had to clean and bandage my own wounds.”“W-What?” I stammered out. That was downright horrible. No, worse than that. It was cruel.Rainbow took on an annoyed and defensive tone, “Well, the guy kept insisting I was gay. So I repeatedly asked him to stop - nicely, I might add - and yet he still friggin kept goin’ and goin’. So, I broke his jaw and a few ribs. They flogged me five times in front of the entire platoon,” She then chuckled, “Still have the scars under my fur.”I heard a gasp of shock and looked at Mrs. Cake, who, was a pale color. “Pinkie was in that army?” She asked, on the verge of fainting.Rainbow simply replied, “As a cook, which is a lot less demanding than infantry.”Mrs. Cake regained some of her complexion and shook her head, “Oh, thank goodness.”Mr. Cake came back downstairs with two relatively clean four year olds.“Leo!” Pound and Pumpkin beamed. Leo sat and held up his hooves for one of them to pick him up. The end result was Leo riding on Pound Cakes back.As the foals played, I looked at Rainbow, “Want anything?”She nodded, “One half-loaf of cinnamon swirl raisin bread please.” I heard the scratch of a pencil on paper.I looked to Mrs. Cake behind the counter. She had a notepad and pencil to figure up the price.Seeing that she was ready to take my order, I said, “I’ll have a box of a dozen regular glazed donuts please.”“That’ll be one hundred and ten bits.”“What?!” I gasped. I didn’t even have fifty bits on me.Mrs. Cake looked flatly at Rainbow, “She broke a hundred bits worth of glass and window frame.”I saw Rainbow’s ears fold down as she chuckled defeatedly, “I’ll go get the money,” and with that, she flew out the broken window in a streak of rainbow.“Ow, ow, ow, ow!” I turned my head to see Leo pulling on Pumpkin’s long, orange hair. He was giggling like crazy, then began to chew on the orange locks.“No way Jose,” I protested using one of Raul’s sayings. I grabbed Leo under his forelegs and tried to pull him away from Pumpkin, but to no avail. “Now Leo,” I said softly, “please spit it out.”And of course, he didn’t understand me and kept chewing.“Gross! Mama, Leo won’t stop drooling,” Pumpkin complained.I looked at a chuckling Mrs. Cake, who seemed to find the whole situation funny. “How do I make him stop?” I pleaded.Mrs. Cake sighed and gave a playful roll of her eyes, “Just raise your voice a little and tell him no. Worked for my kids.”Was it really that simple?“Leo, no. Do not eat Pumpkin’s hair.” I said in a much louder tone. And to my surprise, it actually worked… sorta.He was now gumming on my hair while Gummy was biting his tail.Leo let go of my hair, stared at the alligator biting his tail - with a very confused expression - for nearly four seconds, let out a squeal, then began to bite Gummy.I let out a panicked gasp and separated the two. Seeing how Leo wanted to bite everything, I went to the diaper bag under the stroller and retrieved every mothers’ best friend. A pacifier.A few seconds after I gave him the pacifier, Pound and Pumpkin galloped over, then the noise grew to headache inducing levels as the three done their best to impersonate a tornado, knocking everything that wasn’t too heavy or bolted down, over.My heart was nearly bursting with joy as I watched my son play.Rainbow returned a few minutes later and paid Mrs. Cake for the damage she caused. She even paid for the donuts I ordered. I ate one, Rainbow ate one, and Pound and Pumpkin split one in half. That left me nine for later.At the sight of us eating, Leo decided to be hungry, and gulped down both bottles of milk I packed within the space of an hour.A belly full of milk, as well as playtime had him out like a light as I pushed the stroller towards the house.Jason got off work around six, helped with feeding my animals as well as chores, and finally gave Leo a bath.We all were in bed by nine; ending another wonderful day.

Chapter 3: Spa

Saturday. In my opinion it was the best day of the week. Jason didn’t have to work at all today, and Leo gave me a full night’s rest for once. Nothing could wipe the smile off my face as I lay on my couch in the living room.

I was resting for a bit while Jason played with Leo. My two stallions were playing with wooden blocks with different letters and colors on them. Leo letting out squeals of joy as he repeatedly knocked over Jason’s block fortresses.My resting nearly caused me to fall asleep before there was a knocking at my door.“I’ll get it,” I said as I shook sleep from my eyes and hopped off the couch, yelping in pain as a hoof came down on top of a block.I limped the rest of the way to the door. When I opened it, I saw Rainbow Dash with a large smile plastered on her face, a pair of what looked like tickets in one hoof. She didn’t have the bandaging on her head from yesterday.“You ready?” She asked.Jason groaned, “Rainbow, you’re early. I haven’t told Fluttershy yet.”That piqued my curiosity. “Told me what?” I asked with a curious tilt of my head.Jason facehooved, “It was supposed to be a surprise, but Rainbow showed up early. I’ve managed to get ahold of two coupons, and the rest of the bits you need to pay for your spa trip I have right here.” He got up, and retrieved a bag of bits from under an overturned bowl on the coffee table. He handed the bits off to Rainbow which she put in her saddlebags.I looked to my husband, blushing a bit, “Oh you didn’t have to do that. I’m perfectly fine staying home with Leo.”Jason let out a laugh, “Nonsense, you run yourself ragged staying up all night while I sleep like a rock. You deserve this, honey.”I looked to the coupons. Then back to Jason. Then it was back to the coupons again.I do stay up a lot, and I am sore… but what if there is an accident, what if I’m not here for Leo’s first word. What if-“Honey, take the day off and enjoy yourself. Leo and I’ll be fine for a few hours.”I let out a wide smile and I swore I made something akin to ‘squee,’ before jumping right out the door. “I’ll see my two stallions in a few hours. Spare milk is in the fridge.” I called as Rainbow and Jason laughed at my antics.As Rainbow and I walked away from my house, she nudged me with a hoof, “Wanna race to the spa?”“No, even though I had a nice sleep for once, I’m still tired.” I gave a forced yawn for extra emphasis.“Oh, bummer.” With that idea gone, she changed subject, “How are you coping with… you know?” She said hesitantly while waving a wing like it was going to magically tell me the words left unsaid.I gave a sigh, she was my oldest and best friend, so I could tell her anything, “I woke up screaming night before last,” I hid behind my mane, “I busted Jason’s lip before he could wake me up.”I saw Rainbow wince, “Don’t worry, Orion’s dead and you’re husband was originally from the NCR, not the Legion.”I rolled my eyes, “I know that, he is my husband after all,” I then gave a small giggle, “You thinking of marrying Nolan and having a foal?”Her face turned pink, “Um... so tonight is Nightmare Night. What are you going as?” Rainbow asked, changing subjects.I shook my head, “Can’t tell you, it’s a secret.” Now it was my turn to change subject. I didn’t get a good look at her hair after she crashed through the window, but now that she was up close. “You’re growing your hair out and making yourself more girly for Nolan aren’t you?”Her blush deepened before she lowered her head and squeaked out quieter than I ever could, “He says it makes me look pretty.”I nearly fell over laughing.“Oh hardy har, har, laugh it up why don’t you.” She said through clenched teeth and an extremely red face.I suppressed my laughter and gave one last giggle before I asked, “So how have you been the last few months?” I asked her that because, truthfully, I hadn’t talked with her for quite a while. Between housework and Leo, I didn’t have as much time as I used to.“Besides the occasional dream about Hoover Dam, I’ve been fine.” She said with a forced and totally unconvincing tone. Oh Rainbow, I’ve know you the longest of all of our friends. You are definitely a bad liar.“Tell me the truth, Rainbow.” I said in a stern, motherly voice. It was the same I had used to get Leo to stop chewing on Pumpkin’s hair.She let out an explosive sigh, looking down dejectedly, “I wake up six fifteen sharp, dress in my old uniform, do three flights around my house, a set of fifty push-ups, and three more laps around my house before I undress and arrive at work at seven exactly. Once at work I never slack off.”She let out a laugh and looked back up at me with sad eyes, “Remember how I always slept till I cleared the clouds at the last possible second? Nope, not anymore. I’m still stuck in this soldier mentality and it’s driving me bonkers.”“Huh?” I half mumbled in confusion.She let out another sigh, “Remember how after you and Applejack were taken, the other girls and I joined the NCR. They stationed us at Hoover Dam, and being so close to the fort and you drove me crazy. I trained my blimen flank off to keep myself from charging across Hoover Dam towards the Legion by myself. Now I can’t slack off because I have to be on the move constantly or I get jittery.”“Oh,” I said hiding behind my mane, “Well maybe this spa trip will help you break out of that rut.”“Hopefully,” She muttered.I then remembered something, “Wait, don't you hate the spa?”She rolled her eyes, “Yes, but I won’t pass up a trip with my best friend. Plus I may even like it.”Good enough for me.

<~-~>

It took us only a few more minutes of silent walking until we reached the spa, and once inside our ears were greeted with the sweet sound of a piano accompanying Nightmare Night decorations.A lone mare with a bright orange mane was sitting behind a counter, reading a magazine, totally unaware that we walked in.“Ahem,” Rainbow Dash faked coughed.The mare behind the counter put down her magazine and gave us a beaming smile, “Hello, and welcome to Calm Waters spa. What would you and your friend like Miss Fluttershy, or should I say, Mrs. Brody?” she asked in a thick accent. It was the same accent spoke by Aloe and Lotus; Eastern Equestrian if I was correct.I gave a blush and hid behind my mane. I just never understood why my new last name made me blush.“Oh the usual, a full spa treatment please,” I gave a smile as I made a motion for Rainbow to give the mare the coupons, “We have two special offer coupons.”The mare scrutinized the dates and information before smiling, “Two half-off coupons. You lucky mares only have to pay twenty-five bits each.”Rainbow forked over the bits and the counter mare chimed a bell. From the speed Aloe and Lotus responded, I swore they beat Rainbow for a land speed record. I could almost see a faint trail of dust from how fast they moved.“Please follow us,” The both said in a creepily perfect unison.I followed along with Rainbow to a mud bath. Rainbow shed her saddlebags and we were each directed away from each other to our own tub of steaming earth.It had been over a year since I last had a spa day. My pregnancy and Rarity’s new… look, had stopped our old routine get together. I enjoyed every last second of my stay.

<~-~>

About three hours later, Rainbow and I trotted out of the spa side by side.I lost count of how many times my body was popped and acupunctured… but at the end of it all, I felt like I was a brand new mare. My once dull coat was now shining like new, and my constantly bedraggled mane was back to its slight curl. Every ounce of stress and fatigue was brushed away by the expert massaging of Aloe.Looking over to a smiling Rainbow Dash, I noticed how new she looked. The spa day stripped away her rough, sweaty, tomcoltish look, and replaced it with a more feminine one. Her longer than average mane was combed down and her hooves were filed down slightly by the Spa Sisters during one of their trademark hooficures.I heard Rainbow take in a deep breath of air, “Whoa, I feel awesome!” She exclaimed, “I never knew why you and Rarity would pay fifty bits each for all of that, but now I do.”Maybe I can ask her later if we can do this again.I giggled, still drunk on the feeling of newness I felt from myself. “Yeah, a few hours with the sisters and you’re feeling just like new.” I went quite often to help relieve the stress from caring for several animals, and the pain from hauling around all the heavy bags of feed.“Heh, yeah. Catch ya later Shy!” Rainbow exclaimed as she rocketed off.“See you later.” I replied, but she most likely didn’t hear me due to having already flown halfway to her house.A brisk ten minute walk later, I was back at my house. I could see Ponyville’s clock tower in the distance reading 3:17. I still had a large portion of free time left before tonight’s celebration.Opening my door… I let out a loud squeak in shock.Everywhere I looked I saw red. My walls, furniture… just everywhere.And sitting right in the midst of all that red, was my son, playing with a large pack of crayons.“Ohhhh Jasonnnn,” I cooed out.My husband was by the coffee table, watching Leo color. At the sound of my voice he instantly looked nervous for a second before crying out, “I tried to stop him… but he was just too strong!”I gave him a flat, unamused look. We both had just paid for this house with our own bits.Jason shook his head as he looked down, “I’ll get a bucket and sponge.”As soon as he reached the kitchen, I walked over to where Leo was playing with the crayons. He looked up with a toothless smile and a loud giggle, before going back to coloring the tan carpeting red.I laid down before nuzzling Leo.After almost four seconds later, I had a sleeping foal under my chin. It seemed that destroying the walls and carpet tuckered his wittle self out.Fluttershy, you’re thinking in baby talk again.Jason returned after a few minutes of searching the kitchen cupboards for the cleaning supplies - I obviously had them under the sink. Since the bucket and sponge didn’t immediately jump out at Jason, I had to leave Leo sleeping on the floor to get the supplies for him.After retrieving the supplies, Jason and I trotted back into the living room, and Jason stopped dead in his tracks when he saw Leo.I giggled at my husbands proud smile, “He’s a little cutesy wootsy. Just like his father.”Jason gave a snort in mock annoyance, and in a posh accent replied back, “I’m not cute. I so happen to be a devilishly gorgeous stallion with the most lovely and kind wife ever.”My plan to embarrass him backfired as my cheeks lit up in a blush, my ears folding back slightly.“Guess what Fluttershy?” Jason asked with a confident grin.“What is it?” I asked back with a smirk.“Well, while you were out, Derpy dropped off some mail,” his smile grew even wider, “I got a job. An actual job!”I gasped, “You didn’t?”“I sure did, honey. No more odd jobs to pay the bills.”I nearly tackled him in a hug, planting several kisses on his neck before giving him a real big kiss on the lips.Separating from the kiss, I was blushing pure red. “Sorry… I got excited,” I apologized in a low voice, rubbing the back of my head with a hoof.Jason rolled his eyes, “You’re my wife. We can kiss all we want to.”I smiled and gave him another light peck on the lips, then whispered sultry in his ear, “I’ll go put Leo in the crib. Then we can kiss all day and all night long.”“Really?”I put on a flat expression, “No, you still have to clean up Leo’s mess.”I was super glad Leo was asleep, otherwise he would’ve heard Daddy say something he shouldn't, and Mommy hit him over the head… really, really hard.

<~-~>

I was a little scared, but I had Jason right beside me as Nightmare Night started off at exactly eight o'clock. The loud chime of the clock tower’s bells echoing throughout the town started off the celebration in the town square. Colts, fillies, and even adults were dressed in a wide variety of scary and bizarre costumes, as games with spooky themes were played.I was dressed in a white labcoat made for me by Rarity with my mane tied in a ponytail. A red cross in the middle of a red circle decorated my shoulder.I was dressed as a doctor from the Old Mormon Fort in the middle of Freeside. Jason, was in Legion armor made by Rarity. I know what that uniform meant on other men - well stallions now - but on Jason, it meant I was safe. Leo was in his stroller, dressed as a lion, but squeaking like a mouse at everypony that passed us by.Rainbow had told me earlier that the rest of our friends would be at Twilight's library. It took a few minutes to get there, and when I did, I saw all my other friends, standing outside the building with their costumes.Raul was dressed in what appeared to be tissue paper. His dry and near leather-like skin gave him the perfect illusion of being an undead mummy. Rarity was dressed in her Veteran Ranger outfit, complete with red-eyed night vision helmet. Nolan, Rainbow Dash, and Pinkie Pie were dressed as NCR soldiers, no doubt using their real uniforms. Upon seeing Jason in a Legion uniform, Rainbow and Pinkie tackled him and play wrestled.Looking to Applejack, I realized she just wore her normal attire; her stetson, blue jeans, and a red checkerboard shirt. She grimaced at the sight of Jason’s Legion uniform, but calm down a bit afterwards. Tigris was in a stroller next to Applejack, looking at all the other ponies walking around with a happy smile on her face. Like Leo, she was dressed up as an animal; a tiger.The last of our group that I saw was Spike, leaning against the door of the library with a bored look on his face as he checked the length of his right hand’s claws. He was dressed in red robes with a quill tucked behind one of his ears.I looked and looked, but I couldn’t see Twilight amongst us. Turning my gaze to Spike, I was about to ask him where she was, but the front door flew open and sent him sprawling across the ground in front of us.Twilight stepped out of the library, or at least I thought it was Twilight. From head to hoof, the pony on the porch was covered in dull-grey armor. The large grey helmet had two black hoses running to oxygen tanks on the back.“Whoa,” was everypony's collective response.Twilight spread her armored wings and jumped up. As she hovered I heard her mumble, “Power armor flight compatibility, check.” Then she saw Spike sprawled out on the ground. With a panicked gasp audible to all of us, Twilight landed with a metallic clang and immediately began apologizing to Spike.“Scribe Spike, reporting for duty,” Spike said with a salute as his eyes spun. I could almost hear the birds tweet around his head. He shook his head rapidly before getting up.Applejack let out a whistle, “That’s some fancy getup Twi.”Twilight shrugged with her wings, “I based it off my old T-45d armor. I even integrated a self-repair enchantment and a single use shield talisman. Also, give Spike some thanks, he helped me forge most of the metal.”Spike nodded, “Nothing better to stop a magic blast than Dragonforge steel.”Pinkie popped up behind Twilight, making most of us jump in shock at her sudden appearance. A hoof was on her chin as she narrowed her eyes to a squint, “For some odd reason, I think an alicorn in power armor is ironic. Anypony else think that?”I gave Twilight a good long look, “No, I don’t think it is. Should I?”Pinkie shrugged, “Probably not. Now let’s get us some candy!” Before anypony could stop her, Pinkie disappeared in a flash of pink colored dust.“Pinkie,” everypony in our group groaned in unison, except for Leo and Tigris, that is.“No, let her partake in the festivities of this night as she pleases,” with a gasp, I turned my head to see Princess Luna walking towards us. I wasn’t scared of her any more… much… okay, maybe a teensy tiny bit slightly terrified of her.“Princess Luna!” Twilight nearly yelled. I could tell she had an expression of pure joy on her face, but it was hidden under all the metal she wore.“I see thou has partaken in studying and building human armour.”I barely heard Spike mutter under his breath, “That’s almost all she does.”He, of course, was ignored by Luna in favor of listening to Twilight rattling on about ‘pneumatics’ and ‘hydraulics’ as well as all sorts of technical words I didn’t understand.Twilight then said something that caught my attention, “Oh, I have an update on my reverse engineering of human weapons. The powder we use in our cannons fouled the grooves in the barrels of human weaponry, so after several tests, I managed to make my own propellant based off ammunition we brought back with us. I also managed to make a magic version of my laser rifle, with only a thirty percent chance of blowing up in your face.”Luna was a bit reluctant, based off her expression, “We do not understand why my sister has encouraged your study of these… guns, but nevertheless We will update her as soon as We can, but for now, We have children to scare.”I looked at the two in confusion before there was a flash. Princess Luna took on the form of Nightmare Moon before flying off. The sound of screaming children and maniac laughing off in the distance told me Luna was enjoying herself possibly a bit too much.Rarity gave a ghoulishly dark chuckle. The red eyes of her helmet scanned us slowly before she said obviously with a smirk, “Well girls, lets show these amateurs some true costumes.”Raul smacked his own face with a hoof, “Dios mío, Rarity! You forgot the men.” Spike and Nolan then stood by his side, glaring at Rarity.“Oh hush, you can tag along as long as you don’t slow us down.”Twilight interrupted us, “Actually, I think we should split up. That would maximise the area we cover before the festivities is over… who want’s to draw straws?”Rainbow Dash gave a groan, “And proof once more that Twi’s an egghead. Also, someone that jolly in armor like that is downright creepy.”I had to admit, Twilight was intimidating in all that armor.We split into groups, Rainbow, Rarity, and Raul were in one group while Nolan, Spike, and Jason were in another. That left Applejack, Twilight, and myself, along with Leo and Tigris in the final group.Looking at the armored alicorn, I felt confident that the mare under the armor would protect me, no matter what.“Follow me, girls,” Twilight giggled out as she levitated an empty bag for candy. She didn’t know it, but half the town was staring at her as she walked. I could tell that the local princess dressing up in strange armor was quite shocking from all the confused expressions. The confused stares made me want to hide behind my mane, but I didn’t because, ‘When the going gets tough, it’s time to get rough.’Following behind Twilight with my own candy bag tucked under my wing, I pushed Leo along, Applejack right beside me with Tigris’ stroller.As we were side by side, I swore the two foals’ babbles were them talking to each other.For around a minute, we followed behind Twilight - who was silent the whole time - before Applejack spoke up, “So I see Jason was in a Legion uniform.”“Yep. Rarity made it,” I said with a bit of pride. It had taken quite a lot of convincing to get Rarity to make a Legion uniform.I could almost hear her face redden, “Did ya forget what the Legion done to us?” She hissed loudly.We both stopped and let Twilight continue on without us, oblivious to our impending argument.Did I forget the slavery and rape I was put through? “No, and I never will.”Applejack gave a sigh as she faced away from me, “They’re the reason I’m too ashamed ta be undressed in public, knowing that I’ve- I’ve been used that way.” She let out a sniffle, “I’m scared to be around any stallion except my brother. How do you do it, dealin’ with all of this?”I’ve dealt with all of this before, ever since I was a young girl with an abusive father. I already knew the answer, “I don’t. I try and try to deal with it all, but no matter what, I can never fully cope. I still have nightmares and days that I break down, but Leo and Jason keep me going.”She nodded, “I know what ya mean. Every time I see Tigris smile, my heart melts an’ all that pain does go away. So, thats how you cope, your new family?”I nodded.She wiped a tear away with her hoof, “Come on, Twilight’s probably noticed we’re gone by now and is worried sick. I doubt her having a freakout in that armor would be good, we all remember the Smarty Pants incident.”I gave an eep and took off after Twilight.

<~-~>

I didn’t know what time it was when I finally gotten home with Jason and Leo, but Jason had collected more than enough candy by himself to give even Pinkie Pie a sugar rush. And trust me, after living a large portion of her life in a near constant sugar rush, it took quite a lot of candy to give her a buzz.Leo was asleep, cradled in my right foreleg. I changed him, set a bottle of my mare’s milk into the crib with him, then I made my way to my room before falling asleep right next to my husband.

Chapter 4: Recordationem

My eyes opened slowly, and even with sleep clouding my eyes, the lack of heat next to me told me that Jason was no longer in bed. I rolled over and hopped out of bed before checking the time: 6:45.

I looked into the tall mirror that hung on our bedroom door. My mane wasn’t disheveled enough to warrant brushing, so I made my way to Leo’s room. He made sure I paid for Friday night’s peace by waking me up about five times - three for food and twice to change - and I was sure he needed something.Opening my bedroom door, I exited into the hall and made the short trip to Leo’s room. Inside, Leo was standing in his crib, leaning his forehooves against the cage to keep himself standing on his hind legs. Upon seeing his mommy, he let out an ear splitting squeal that made me wince.“Well, good morning to you too.” I said sarcastically with a large smile. I jumped into the air, flew over to the crib, and picked Leo up - who laughed and flapped his tiny wings happily at being airborne - then gently landed on the carpet.I quickly checked his diaper, changed him once again, and then fed him. At the rate he was going, two more feedings and I would probably be nothing but a dried up husk of a mare.Making my way towards the kitchen with Leo, I noticed that Jason was by the stove cooking us breakfast. From the smell, I knew they were daffodil flavored pancakes. I could also see the box on the counter that had the directions on the back on how to make them.Jason left from his spot in front of the stove to give me a kiss on the cheek and nuzzle me, saying, “Morning honey, how did you sleep?”“So-so during the parts where Leo wasn’t crying,” I answered truthfully.“Oh,” he said backing away and turning back to the stove. As I was turning to leave, Jason shouted to get my attention, “Hey, can you put Leo in the playpen so we can eat together?”“Sure thing, Jason,” I replied, quickly setting off to do as he had asked.While Leo was attacking foam blocks in the playpen in the living room, I made my way back to the kitchen, sat at the table which Jason had already set, and began to eat one of the best batches of pancakes ever.Jason was sitting at the head of the table, reading the Sunday paper, while I was at the opposite end. Jason put his paper aside and we both began to eat. I decided to start a conversation, “So, how did your first Nightmare Night go?”He shrugged, “Luna tackled me, called me an Imperial spy, right before yelling something about a cloak and literally shouting me out a window. Afterwards she shook my hoof and told me it was fun playing with her…How was yours?”I blanched slightly, “Applejack was scared of your uniform last night.”Jason swallowed a big gulp, “Oh no. I knew it was a bad idea.”I swallowed an unusually large-for-me bite of food, “It was my fault. The costumes were my idea.”Jason sighed, “And I agreed to put the uniform on. I should have considered if Applejack would be unsettled by it. It shocked me that you even suggested it.”I didn’t give a reply, just a shrug. Jason already knew my reasoning and that was that he makes me feel safe, even dressed as a Legion soldier.I changed the subject, “Twilight nearly freaked out last night when colts and fillies began to run away from her screaming monster.”Jason laughed, “I didn’t see it, but I could clearly imagine that happening to her. I wonder if Twilight has freaked out over not freaking out.”I gave a playful roll of my eyes, “Yep, she sure has. Rainbow has a nickname for her freak-outs.”“And that would be?” He asked, raising his brows and lowering his fork away from his mouth.I nearly burst at the seams when I said, “Her adorkable moments.”Jason, however, nearly choked on his own saliva from laughing so hard.A few seconds of laughing later, Jason had calmed down enough to speak, “So, what are you planning on doing today?”I shrugged. I didn’t really have my day planned out yet since I just woke up a little while ago.Jason just nodded his head, “I see. I’ve got nothing planned yet as well.”Well then, time to feed my animals and have another lazy day.An hour after feeding my animals and lazing around, there was a rapid knocking at my door.I opened it to see Scootaloo panting for air, her mane disheveled and her coat shimmering with sweat.“What’s wrong?” I asked worriedly at her appearance.Scootaloo looked at me, “Rainbow, Ponyville Dam, shaking badly.”I told Jason to take care of Leo, and I flew off with Scootaloo in my forelegs.

<~Earlier~>

Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, and Applebloom were enjoying an early Sunday morning, trying to earn their cutie marks sketching Ponyville Dam. From the hilltop overlooking the dam, they had a perfect view of the relatively small structure of concrete that spanned the canyon.After several books-worth of paper, Sweetie let out a frustrated groan after dropping her pencil from her magic, “That’s it, I quit!” she yelled as she pushed over the drawing easel she stood in front of.Scootaloo threw down the sketchpad and pencil she held in her hoof. “I’m done as well,” she admitted with a sigh.Applebloom threw the notebook she was drawing in over her shoulder. The book landed with the doodle of Ponyville Dam facing skyward, though Sweetie thought different. “It looks like a macaroni noodle,” she said as she criticized the work.Applebloom glared at Sweetie, “At least I wasn’t the first ta give up.”Sweetie shot back, “Well at least mine is more artistic.”Scootaloo turned over the easel, which had landed drawing-down. She let out a chuckle, then a snicker, then a full out laugh at the rectangle in-between two large squares.Sweetie blushed and growled angrily, “At least it doesn’t look like macaroni.”Scootaloo made a suggestion. “Instead of fighting over something as simple as drawings on paper, let’s talk about Nightmare Night.”Sweetie and Applebloom nodded, their smiles coming back. Applebloom faced Sweetie and asked, “What in the world were you dressed up as last night? You looked like you, just dressed up in tinfoil”Sweetie shrugged, “I tried to make a robot costume on my own… I may have overused the tinfoil though.”Scoots let out a gigantic laugh, “You looked like a conspiracy theorist dressed up like that,” she let out a smaller chuckle when Sweetie stuck out her tongue, “What, are you afraid Celestia uses her sun-controlling magic to read your mind?”Sweetie let out a laugh at that one. Looking to Applebloom, she asked, “And why were you dressed up as a pirate?”Applebloom rolled her eyes, “I wasn’t a pirate, I was a highly trained assassin aboard the mighty sailing ship Buckdaw.”Sweetie just giggled, “You wanted to impress Button or Pipsqueak, didn’t you?” She asked with a grin.Applebloom shook her head, “Pipsqueak is waaaay too young. I was just trying to see if Button would notice a mare from one of his games. And if I remember correctly, he was too busy talking with you.”Sweetie giggled evilly, “He’s a colt; they’re stupid so you have to distract them with shiny things.”Scootaloo let out a laugh and roll of her eyes, “Like that tin-foil Sweetie-Bot costume.”Sweetie nodded, and then in an imitation of a robot, asked, “What was your costume Scootaloo?”She sighed, “I tried to copy Rainbow Dash and the other’s costume, but Rarity wouldn’t make it for me so I had to improvise. Seriously, what was so special about dressing up all alike that I couldn’t?”Sweetie sat down on the grass and let out a long, sad sigh before saying, “I know why.”“Why?” The other two fillies asked, Applebloom continuing where Scootaloo ended, “Is it about them disappearing fer half a year?”Sweetie nodded, “It has everything to do with it.” Sweetie took a big breath of air in preparation for a long explanation, “Rarity doesn’t tell me much, but everypony knows she’s not…” Sweetie paused to try and find a word that best fit, settling on, “Normal anymore.”Scootaloo then said, “What, that she’s half zombie and friends with a full zombie?”Sweetie frowned at Scootaloo’s words, “She’s not a zombie. Apparently, she’s what they call a ghoul, and a special one at that. She didn’t go into detail, but when she disappeared, she woke up in the middle of a sandstorm. By the end of it, a lot of her skin got cut badly and she still hurts.”Applebloom interrupted, “When does this story get to the part with my sister. I’ve tried getting’ her ta talk after all of her nightmare’s, but she’s as stubborn as a damned mule. I really want to know how in the Tartarus Fluttershy’s husband got mah sister pregnant.”Scootaloo also interrupted, “And the part where Rainbow Dash became a no-fun, always-serious pony.”Sweetie shouted out before anypony could interrupt her again, “That’s just the thing! If a simple sandstorm could hurt my sister so badly, how do we know what other things could have hurt the others? Pinkie isn’t as happy anymore, and some days, she’s actually not running Sugarcube Corner. We all saw that armor Twilight was wearing, and I don’t think those costumes were costumes.”Applebloom scratched her head, “The costumes weren’t costumes? Now that don’t make ah lick ah sense.”Sweetie groaned, “What I mean is that the costumes weren’t for show. They were the real deal. I know my sister, any costume she builds has to have at least one sequin, and an over bright color palette. What she was wearing wasn’t her design, and didn’t look like it was just for show and tell.”Scootaloo raised her hoof like she was in class, Sweetie nodded for her to speak. “So you’re telling me, Rainbow and all the others joined some sort of military, or at least I think they were military from the helmets and stuff, while they were gone?”She nodded, “I think so. And they saw things nopony should ever see. Why else would they act so different?”Both Scootaloo and Applebloom asked, “Like what?”Sweetie shrugged, “I don’t know, but that Jason guy was wearing a different costume, that Fluttershy had to beg Rarity to make. I think it was for the ponies they fought while they were gone.”Applebloom interrupted, “Whoa, hold up! So yer tellin’ me, the stallion married to one of the nicest ponies ever was a bad guy?”“I didn’t hear much of the argument between Fluttershy and my sister, but I repeatedly heard them mention something about a legion.”Applebloom asked another question, “Was Jason with Fluttershy?”“Yeah, he was saying something about the costume being a bad idea, and the only reason I could guess is he didn’t want to be dressed as a bad guy anymore.”Applebloom tapped a hoof to her chin, “Mah sister was right upset last night. Ramblin’ to herself about what was goin’ through Fluttershy’s head.”Sweetie nodded, “I saw she was upset as well. But back to the part about our sister’s joining some army. I broke into Rarity’s trunk where she keeps her costume and found a few things.”The expression on her friends’ faces told her to continue, “Green paper with numbers on them, gold bits with a bull on them, and a large knife two sizes too large to use on just vegetables. The blade by itself was over a hoof long and razor sharp. I also saw this really big thing in the bottom of the chest, had something like a telescope on the top.”“That would be her gun.” The three fillies jumped in the air and turned to face Rainbow Dash, hovering above them. She smiled friendlily, “You are a bunch of little detectives, aren’t you? And yes, we did join an army.”Scootaloo stared and said, “How long have you been there?”Rainbow Dash laughed and rubbed the back of her head, “I tried my hoof at sleeping half the day like I used to, so I heard it all from atop a cloud.”The three fillies turned pale, Applebloom asking, “All of it?”“Especially that part where you almost yelled, stubborn as a damn mule, little miss potty mouth.”Applebloom balked defensively, “But she won’t tell me anything that happened. She goes missing for months, and turns back up ready to have a foal, which is the daughter of Fluttershy’s husband. How did that happen?”Rainbow Dash landed on the ground and looked towards Ponyville Dam, pointing with a hoof, she said, “You see that?”The three fillies glanced over to the dam to get a good picture before facing Rainbow and nodding. “Good, now imagine it ten times bigger and blown half to bloody Hell.”Scootaloo raised her hoof, “Hell?”Rainbow Dash groaned, “Human curse word, don’t repeat what I say.” The fillies nodded again.Rainbow looked past the fillies and out to Ponyville Dam, envisioning a fort of wooden walls and red tents on the other side, “Fluttershy and Applejack were taken by an army that called themselves the Legion. I can’t tell you much about them, I can only say is that they done some horrible, horrible things.”“We’re big fillies, we can handle it!” Scootaloo shouted.Rainbow shook her head, “No, you can’t. I have nightmares about the things they’ve done, and I only saw a little bit of it. Fluttershy and Applejack were right in the middle of their camp!”Rainbow continued, “After Applejack and Fluttershy were taken, the others and I joined an army called the New California Republic. We were marched out to a place called Hoover Dam to defend it against the Legion. All I’ll say is when everything went down, we all walked out different mares than when we went in.”“What happened at Hoover Dam?”“Something that made the changeling attack on Canterlot look like a playground fight. People were hurt, people I knew died right in front of me in bad ways.” Rainbow suddenly began to shake never taking her eyes off Ponyville Dam as tears began to well up in her eyes, “So much blood and screaming.”She flopped over and curled into a ball, crying like a foal.The three fillies panicked slightly, especially Scootaloo, who had never seen her hero break down so quickly. Shaking off her shock, Applebloom looked to Scootaloo with urgency, “Get Fluttershy, she knows medicine and lives nearby.”

<~Present~>

I landed by Rainbow who was crying and mumbling. She was shaking badly and murmuring something about Hoover Dam, so I did what any sane pony would do. I panicked.“Rainbow,” I shouted. My outburst only made her whimper in fear and curl up tighter, as she choked out loud sobs. Applebloom and Sweetie Belle were staying their distance away, looking at Rainbow and I with concern.“Rainbow,” I said quieter as I reached out a hoof.“We-we killed them. Why can I still hear them laughing as they hack us to pieces!?” She yelled as she held her head in her hooves. I looked into her eyes; pure terror looked back as the owner of the eyes hyperventilated.I was way out of my league… my best friend was breaking down right in front of me and I was powerless to do a thing about it. With no other ideas, I just lay a hoof on her head, brushed her mane, and quietly sang.“Hush now, quiet now, it’s time to lay your sleepy head. Hush now quiet now it’s time to go to bed.”The three terrified fillies joined me, “Drifting off to sleep leave the exciting day behind you, drifting off to sleep let the joy of dreamland find you.”Rainbow uncurled slightly, but still sobbed. I did the only thing I could think of at the moment. I lay down and used a wing to cover Rainbow like a blanket. My best and oldest friend snuggled close, a semblance of soundness returning to her wild eyes.She became a stuttering mess as she looked down, “I-I’m sorry Fluttershy. W-w-we tried to save you-you, b-b-but-”I gave a sigh, no words able to voice what exactly I wanted to say to end my friend’s grief, so I did the next best thing and tightened my wing’s embrace. I looked to Scootaloo who was no doubt the fastest of the three fillies. All I had to do was mouth the words, ‘get help’ and she was off again. Most likely this time to the hospital.Scootaloo hesitated, however, when Rainbow waved her hoof, “I-I’m fine now.” She said as she shook in my embrace, “I just need a breather.”Applebloom looked at Rainbow with a large look of concern, asking slow and quietly, “What happened?”Rainbow rolled her shoulders and I moved my wing, allowing her to stand, “I’m... One minute I was fine and dandy, but the next I was talking about Hoover and looked at the Dam,” she fell back onto her haunches, breathing in sharp, shallow breaths, “It was like I was back on top of Hoover fighting the Legion.”“I knew it!” Sweetie Belle yelled while pointing a hoof at me, “Your husband was a bad guy.”I froze where I stood. Did they know what the Legion did? How much did Rainbow mouth off about them? How should I respond? I opened my mouth but closed it. How could I explain that I fell in love with the man who killed Orion without scarring them for life?“He wasn’t one of the bad guys,” Rainbow said with a slight grin. It seemed that her breathing was on track to being back to normal. “The real bad guys just forced him to work with them.”The three cutie mark crusaders gave an ‘Oh’ expression and looked to me, expecting me to speak.With the three pairs of eyes on me, I felt the urge to hide behind my mane. I didn’t, because I may not look like it, but I was a strong mare. “Jason was from a different army called the NCR. Four years prior to us disappearing, the Legion attacked a place called Hoover Dam. They captured Jason and made him a part of their army.”Sweetie raised a hoof and asked, “So they assimilated him?”I nodded while Scootaloo and Applebloom looked at sweetie with a groan, Scootaloo muttering, “Dictionary.”Five minutes later, Rainbow had recovered enough from her panic to go back to work.Scootaloo, Sweetie, and Applebloom stayed on the hilltop, talking about what all they heard. I hoped that they didn’t hear too much.

Interlude: Rarity

With an unladylike groan, I opened my eyes to roll away from the dreadful sound of an alarm clock buzzing its horrid tune. Every muscle in my body felt stiff, and half my face burned where my skin was stripped away by the Divide, causing me to let out a pained grunt.

I couldn't go back to sleep, I had to work today.Taking in a whiff of the cool, near-morning air, I got up from the mattress I had on the floor, while using my blue and green-tinted magic to flip the alarm button to the off position.I looked between the mattress on the floor, and my old bed. After so long sleeping on bedrolls, dirt, concrete, and mattresses, my actual bed felt too comfy for me to use. It was as if some fluffy monster was trying to swallow my body.I looked in the tall mirror that was by a wooden chest near the far wall. My white fur still didn’t show signs of ever returning, letting the entire world see the cut and battle hardened muscle in patches over half of my face.Walking over to the nightstand beside the grand, four poster bed I didn’t sleep on, I opened the single drawer. Inside was a bottle of pills to mellow out my violent mood swings, a .357 magnum revolver, and the ammo for the revolver. Using my magic, I pulled out the pill bottle, unscrewed the cap, and gulped down a pill with the water from a canteen I had sitting on top of the nightstand.Gulping down a few more swallows of water for my parched throat, I retrieved my First Recon beret from the hatrack by the door and walked out into the hall. It was still dark, since I usually wake around five thirty, and as I expertly moved through the darkened halls, I heard crying.More importantly, I heard my sister crying. Opening her room door silently, I saw her curled into a small ball, crying as she held an old doll against her chest.I knocked, causing her to gasp through a sob and look at me through the darkness with teary green eyes. “C-come in,” she squeaked.I entered and took off my beret, “What’s wrong, Sweetie?” I asked as I walked over to her bed.She looked away from me, “I had a dream you were gone again… I was so scared I would be all alone.”My little sister always knew how to tug at my heartstrings. Sitting on her bed, I wrapped her in a hug. “I’ll never leave you again, Sweetie,” I said gently, though it was hard to sound soothing when my voice was like I had swallowed shattered and flaming glass.She tried to crush herself harder against me, like if we separated I would disappear from her forever. “Yesterday, Rainbow Dash was so afraid. I’m worried for you, sis,” Sweetie said, her voice wavering from tears.I had heard of the incident from Sweetie; Rainbow Dash suddenly breaking down, months of guilt finally coming back to haunt her at the sight of Ponyville Dam. What would it take to bring every Fiend and Legion soldier rushing back to the front of my mind, crushing me with guilt?I tightened my hug, “I was worried for you too. When I disappeared and this,” I motioned a hoof to my face,“happened to me. I was worried Mom and Dad would take you away. That was even if I could return.”As a matter of fact, they did. It had taken a lot of arguing from Sweetie, and a lot of me asking politely, to get my sister back.“You were scared?” Sweetie asked me. Since I was ‘big sis’ she looked up to me. I guess she never really seen me scared before.“Oh yes, I was absolutely terrified I wouldn’t see you again… or lose myself before I could say goodbye.”That made her ears perk up and her face to scrunch to a look of confusion, “Lose yourself? What do you mean by that?”I gave a sigh, loosening my grip on Sweetie, “You know Raul and I are special, right? That I’m something called a ghoul now?” She nodded. “You’ve also seen I’ve been taking medicine?” another nod.I gave a sigh, hoping I could choose my next words carefully and not scare her. “I’m not the mare I used to be. I’m a lot more angry, and I take the medicine to help control my anger.”Sweetie nodded, “I know you’ve been through a lot. Rainbow was telling us about how the Legion took Fluttershy and Applejack away from you.”I gave a snort, “Ruffians, that lot. The Pretorian guards put up a good fight.” Wait… why did I just say that?“Praetorian guards?” She questioned.“I’ll tell you when you’re older. The stories aren’t for young ears.”

<~Sweetie’s PoV~>

And just like that, Rarity released me from her tight hug. “I’m going downstairs to make breakfast,” she said as she began to walk away.I didn’t hear her, I was still trying to figure out who were the Praetorian Guards. I could tell they were part of the Legion, but why did Rarity fight them herself?I didn’t get to use my sad-eyes to make her talk before she left the room. Even if she had stayed I doubt it would have worked on her because of how secretive she’s been about what happened when she disappeared.Breakfast was a quickly thrown together fried daffodil sandwich, which I downed no problem. With breakfast taken care of, Rarity became engrossed in working on her dresses and I told her I would be playing with Scootaloo and Applebloom.I was, but I had to make a quick stop first.Sneaking up to her room, I retrieved the metal trunk out from under the bed, noticing that there was a mattress and covers on the floor. Was she having a guest over… or did she sleep on the mattress?The lock was a joke, a bobby pin from Rarity’s room and a bit of twisting with my magic had it unlocked. Opening the grey metal lid, I pulled out a few things.One was the large knife in a - I swallowed nervously - leather sheath, the next two were the strange gold bits and paper with numbers with strange faces on them. The fourth was her helmet, and the last, a strange ‘L’ shaped thing made of black metal with gold letters reading “For honorable service” on one side and “Against All Tyrants” on the other. The wooden part of the ‘L’ shaped thing had Rarity’s cutie mark; I also found a note with the object, laying on top a small cardboard box.

You’ve been feeling down waaaay to long Rarity. I hope this new gun makes you feel better. It even has your cutie mark. There’s also a box of ammo with it.

Pinkie.

So thats what it’s called, a gun. I looked in the chest again, seeing the thing Rainbow Dash called a gun before freaking out. So… more than one size?Looking in the chest again, I levitated out the faded tan box. ‘Silver Star’ it proclaimed in bold black lettering over a sheriff's badge. The numbers .45-70 and the letters Gov’t were in the corner.Stashing the items in the part of the helmet the head would occupy, I closed the chest, locked it, and proceeded to sneak out to show what I found to Scoots and Applebloom.It didn’t take long to find Scootaloo and Applebloom at the clubhouse. As usual they were waiting on me to plan our next crusade. The sight of the helmet full of items had both of them scratching their heads.“Um, Sweetie, what is that?” Scootaloo asked, pointing a hoof at the items I carried.I smiled widely as I levitated the helmet, “Rarity’s stuff.”Scootaloo blanched, “Oh crap! Return it now before she finds out!”I set the helmet down, “Relax. My sis is busy working on clothes.”That mollified her, “Okay, so what is that stuff?”Applebloom and Scootaloo moved closer to see what I had brought. The first thing I brought out was hoofs down the largest: the knife.“Whoa,” was both of their reactions. With my magic, I slid the blade out of the sheath, showing off the bright silver colored blade. I slid it back in it’s sheath and passed it to Applebloom, who naturally decided to fully unsheath the blade.“Darn this thing is huge,” She then felt the blade with her hoof, “And when you said it was sharp, you meant it.”Was their any doubt Applebloom? I thought as I wordlessly retrieved the gold bits and paper. Passing them around, only Applebloom looked them over as Scootaloo played with the knife, slashing at the air.Next came out the box with the sheriff's badge painted on it and the strange gun thing.I didn’t look at them right away, with the helmet void of items, I put on the helmet.The inside of the helmet smelled strange, a mixture of my sisters sweat and other scents wafted into my nostrils. Then Scootaloo pressed a button, causing my vision to take on a sepia tint, chasing the early morning shadows away.“Woah,” I muttered, “This thing can see in the dark.”“Can I see!?” Scootaloo asked while tackling me over. A flurry of hooves in a battle for the helmet ensued as Applebloom watched. I could see her messing with the gun.Scoots won and promptly took the helmet off of my head to run around, seeing how much darkness she could see through with the lenses.I looked to Applebloom, who had found out something interesting about the gun. A cylindrical piece of the gun slid to the side, revealing five holes.“What’cha think this is fer?” Applebloom asked.I studied the holes in the cylinder, and looked at the box that was under the gun. Levitating it over, I opened the box.Inside I found oddly shaped metal cylinders. They seemed to be made of brass and pointed with another type of metal. At first glance, I could easily tell they went in the holes of the cylinder.With my magic, I took one of the tubes and put it in the cylinder. It slid in perfectly with a soft scrape of metal on metal. I closed the cylinder back into the gun, and continued to inspect it.Passing it back to Applebloom, I said, “See if you can fig-”I didn’t get the chance to finish when there was a loud bang and pain wracked my body.

Interlude: Rarity Pt2

Interlude: Rarity - Part 2

Blackness and pain; that’s all I saw or felt. Over the loud ringing in my ears I could hear Scoots and Applebloom yelling for me to get up. They both sounded like they were crying, and I began to register I was lying on the grass, with four hooves shaking me.

I opened my eyes, my right one tinted slightly with red as I stood and faced Scoots and Applebloom. Their gasps of shock told me something was wrong.“What is it?” I groaned as I rubbed my face with a hoof, blinking a few times to get the red tint out of my eye.They didn’t answer me, but I looked at my hoof. Black soot mixed with red liquid, a liquid I knew was supposed to stay inside my body. Then I connected the dots. The explosion, the red tint in my eye, and the blood on my hoof.Scootaloo finally spoke, “You look a bit like your sister,” she said slowly as she handed me the knife.I looked into the blade like a mirror, the shiny metal clearly reflecting the image of a filly. Said filly’s face had been blackened, and several patches of fur had been singed away; a few places even bleeding.I groaned, but not because of the minor pain, “Bloody Hell, Rarity is going to kill me.”“Hey, Rainbow told us not ta use that word!” Applebloom complained.I rolled my eyes, “It sounds like it fits the situation,” I said as I put the knife down and looked at the gun on the ground, “What in the hay did that thing do?”Applebloom looked at the gun fearfully, “I pulled a little lever on the thing, and fire shot out the end. Now my hoof hurts and my ears are ringin’; that thing sounded louder than a cannon.”Scoots laughed, “And then you passed out like your sister would have done.”I laughed along with Scootaloo, getting nervous chuckles from Applebloom, and I said, “No, she only passes out due to,” in a Rarity impression pre-ghoulification, “fashion emergencies.” I placed a hoof on my forehead and fell backwards.I quickly got back to my hooves when Applebloom started both laughing and crying. I looked at her, concern clearly present on my face to anyone, “Applebloom?”“I-I nearly killed you!” She said, making me finally realize I was on the receiving end of a dangerous weapon. Seriously, the minor pain in my face wasn’t enough to tell me what hurt me was supposed to hurt me.I sat on my haunches, “Well, you didn’t. Heck, Scoots has almost killed all three of us at once. I didn’t even know my leg could bend that way.”“Hey!” Scootaloo protested, “Hang gliding is a popular activity amongst earth ponies and unicorns.”Applebloom gave a snort, “And I’m sure it’s popular to not have their bones poke through skin.”Scootaloo blushed, “Sorry about the leg.”Applebloom rolled her eyes, “Now you apologize.”“Hey, I did the chores for you!” Scoots retorted.“Badly,” Applebloom said rolling her eyes and pointing a hoof at me, “Sweetie could have done a better job making a dress, no offense.”I already know the clothes I try and make deserve to be burned. “None taken,” I said with a smile. Okay, now my face is starting to hurt worse.Scoots laughed, rubbing the back of her neck with a hoof nervously, “Probably.”I looked by Applebloom’s hoof, looking at the weapon that nearly killed me. With a bit of magic, I levitated it up to me, “How did you open the side?” I asked Applebloom.With a bit of hesitation, Applebloom moved a piece of metal that was near the cylinder and opened the side of the gun. The little brass tube falling out, showing us it no longer had the metal tip to it. Looking at a tree that was behind me when the weapon went off, I let out a gasp, “Holy shit!”I was hit in the back of the head by Scootaloo, “Don’t-”Instead of letting her finish, I grabbed her head and pointed it towards the tree. Her mouth dropped open and she muttered near silently, “Whoah.”The jagged hole in the tree was at least the size of my hoof, nothing but a maw of cracked pine and splinters.Applebloom looked at the brass tube, to the tree, and back again, “That piece of metal did all of that?”“Consarnit ya fillies, what’s goin’ on down here? You three better have a good explanation for wakin’ up Tigris. Granny can’t help as much as she used to.”Okay, now I was dead. Forget Rarity, Tartarus hath no fury like an angry mother; and with that scowl, I could tell Applejack was beyond furious.When Applejack neared us, Applebloom didn’t even attempt to lie, “Sweetie stole some of Rarity’s stuff. We started playing around with it and were wondering what her gun did and I’m sorry sis!” Applebloom began to cry as she charged forward and wrapped her sister’s leg in a hug.Applejack’s mouth was agape “You, did, WHAT!?” She then saw my bleeding, burnt face.Applejack gasped, “Hells bells, your sister is gonna flip.” Oh, yay, new cuss word. Totally ignoring the fact my sister is going to kill me right now.Scootaloo looked at me and smiled, “In that case, I think Mom and Dad are calling me. You know how much trouble Dinky can get into.” Then off she went, faster than a speeding firework to her adoptive mother and father.Applejack watched Scootaloo run off, muttering, “You can run, but Derpy will hear about this,” Then she turned her gaze back to me, “Give me the gun and anything you stole. I’m taking you straight to your sister.”With my ears splayed down, I levitated all the stuff I stole back into the helmet - Scootaloo must have threw it down when I passed out - and began walking back home with Applejack and Applebloom just behind me.

<~Rarity’s PoV~>

Wrong, I’m doing it all wrong. The sequins are supposed to go there, not there. Why can’t I just do one simple dress right!? I screamed in thought as I jabbed a sewing needle through a ponyquin’s false eye. Lithium might mellow me out, but I can still get a teensy tiny bit violent.Still in a huff, I walked out of my boutique and onto the porch. With my magic, I levitated out my lighter and a cigarette out a pocket in the duster coat I wore. I had grown quite attached to the heavy piece of dirty clothing, and like my beret, I wore it with pride.Biting down on the end of my cigarette, I lit it with the lighter. Sure, I could use my magic to light it, but there was something subliminally satisfying about striking a lighter. With a lit cigarette, I levitated the lighter back into my coat pocket, scanning the town as the clock tower in the distance slowly crept its minute hand closer to marking it the afternoon.Not a soul in the streets. A peaceful silence… then I saw Applejack trotting up with Sweetie and Applebloom walking up the street. Instantly, I saw my helmet sitting on Applejack’s back, and Sweetie’s face was blackened and burnt.I could only let the cigarette fall from my mouth and dramatically bounce off my right hoof.Applejack gave me a stern glare, “Put a better lock on your stuff.” She then threw my helmet at my hooves, the contents spilling out.Sure enough, sitting in a pile, was a few NCR dollars, two gold Legion coins, a box of .45-70 ammo, and Ebony, my black and gold Ranger Sequoia. From the burns on Sweetie’s face, I could tell a mere fraction of a hair’s width over would have led to the unthinkable.“Sweetie-” I said, completely dumbstruck by her injuries. I saw a few cuts were still bleeding, so I scooped up the items from the porch and raced inside for a first-aid kit.Inside, I dumped the helmet and other stuff on the floor, retrieved a first-aid kit from the upstairs bathroom, and made it back downstairs where the others were waiting on me, having entered sometime after I did.“How bad does it hurt, Sweetie?” I asked as I took out antiseptic, burn ointment, and bandages.“It hurts just a little,” she admitted as I applied the medicine, “The gun going bang made me pass out.”In a few seconds I was done I looked at Sweetie, her face wrapped up in white strips of bandaging. Then I turned my gaze to Applebloom. The fillies had no idea what guns could do, and all the secrecy only made them curious. It was my fault Sweetie got hurt.Looking to Applejack, I cleared my throat and motioned with my head for her to follow me into the kitchen. Once there, I looked Applejack in the eyes and said quietly, “Applejack, we need to tell them.”She shook her head, “They’re too young to hear about… about what happened to me,” Applejack said as she looked down, scrunching her face as she pressed her tail tight against the jeans I made for her.I put a hoof on her shoulder, unable to imagine what the mare felt like after what Orion done to her. “Then we don’t. I’ll just talk about the gun and hopefully the story tied with it will sate their curiosity. Based off the burns, if the barrel had been that much closer...” I held my hooves just a tiny bit away from her, “I don’t think pills would keep me from snapping.” I shivered at the thought of going feral as well as pairing with the thought of my sister missing parts of her skull like so many Fiends or Legion soldiers I killed. Both made me wince and feel sick to my stomach.“Okay,” Applejack relented with a nod before hastily adding, “but please keep it below nightmare inducin’.”I gave a devilish smile, “Aww, I can’t tell them how to properly disembowel a Fiend with a sniper rifle?”Applejack gasped, “You did that!?”I shook my head, “No, It was a joke, an extremely ghoulish joke.” I smirked at my own pun.Applejack sighed and rubbed a hoof against her temple, “Who are you and what have you done with Rarity?”“It’s not my fault my jokes fall dead,” I said with a small, gravelly laugh, “But come on, we need to talk with the girls.”

<~Sweetie’s PoV~>

I was waiting for about five minutes on the couch with Applebloom. Our sisters were talking in whispers. Occasionally, Applejack would exclaim something loudly, but I couldn’t hear what she had said clearly enough to figure out how they were going to punish us.When my big sis reentered the room, stopping right in front of the couch, I tried to hide my wounded face. Just this morning, I was so worried that she would disappear again, and now, I was stealing from her. My cheeks were burning with shame as I stared at the floor, as if it were some infinite white void that would hide me from my disgrace.Rarity stepped closer, and then sat on the couch in that weird way I saw only Lyra do. Applejack hopped onto the other end of the couch beside Applebloom, who hadn’t spoke to me since nearly accidently killing me.The silence and tension were so thick you could practically cut them with the knife that still laid in its sheath on the floor.Finally, after what felt like an eternity, I spoke, “Sorry, sis.” I rubbed the bandaging the covered my face, feeling a slight sting in the few patches that were actually bad enough to have bled. The sensation made me wonder how Rarity could handle the constant stinging of the wounds on her face.Rarity gave a small sigh, “I know you are, sis. You could have been hurt badly, or even killed by this,” she said as she levitated the gun from the floor to us.I stared at the thing. The bear on the wooden bit, pawing at three blue diamonds practically screamed ‘I am dangerous’ now. I gasped when she opened the spot where the explosive thingumajigs went.“Seemed you figured out how to load and unload Ebony, huh?” She asked casually in her raspy voice.I tried to make myself shrink down, but still answered, “Applebloom got it open the first time.”“.45-70 rounds; they are as expensive as they are powerful. A single one can kill you.”I shivered, “I saw what it does to trees.”She gave a hum in agreement, “Now imagine that happening to you.”I pictured in my mind a wooden copy of me exploding in a flash of fire and splinters. Which in turn lead to me thinking of what it could do the real me. I gave a shudder.She obviously saw me shake, saying, “That’s why we don’t talk about where we went. We fought the Legion with guns and knives. Imagine a dozen going off at once, screaming to people beside you just so they can hear you as bullets pass over your head.” She noticed my confused look, “Bullets are the lead pieces that fly out the end of a gun.”Scoots used a slingshot on a clay pot, and I barely could see the rock since it was flying so fast. If bullets are designed to fly fast, and are propelled by an explosion, how fast can they go? My guess was that only Rainbow Dash could keep up with one.“Applebloom, Sweetie; you’re not in trouble. It was our fault we didn’t tell you what happened to us, but please, stop trying to find out on your own. You came close to being killed, Sweetie!” Rarity said in a loud rasp as she gave me a loving hug.I hugged back, “Sorry Rarity. Can you forgive me for stealing your stuff?”Rarity let out a gravelly laugh, “I can, you’re my little sister after all.”I gave a light-hearted laugh and looked at Applebloom. She just looked down, managing to sniff out, “Sorry… I’m sorry, Sweetie.” As she began to sob, Applejack took her in a hug.After a few blubbery minutes, everypony had calmed down – actually Applebloom and Rarity; I felt perfectly fine after almost getting killed.Rarity got up from the couch and stood in front of us, Applejack following suit. Then they told us all about New Vegas and the strange creatures called humans.

<~-~>

“And that’s when Twilight used the gauntlet that gave her magic to bring us back to Equestria!” My sister shouted out for showmanship. It had probably taken less than an hour to explain all that had happened to them.Looking to my left, I saw that Applebloom looked confused as Applejack began to carry her on her back to the door, preparing to leave, it was getting late and Applejack had Tigris to attend to. About midway out the door, Applebloom began asking Applejack questions, but I didn’t hear what her answers were.Turning my head to look at Rarity, I blushed and looked down towards the floor, “I can see why you didn’t want to tell us, and after all of that, I shouldn’t have pressed. Sorry for stealing your stuff Rarity.” I’m probably going to list today as, ‘craziest day ever’. I was nearly killed by Applebloom with my sister’s gun, learned that guns were dangerous, found out that my sister did in fact fight the Legion, and I also learned not to attack her… she got a little too descriptive with the knife fight against some person from a group called the Fiends.Rarity grinned and levitated over her helmet, putting the device on my head, “You don’t have to apologize. I may just be able to stitch together your own Ranger outfit.”I gasped… Me, dressed just like my big sis.I felt the helmet where my bandages were. I even had the scars.

Chapter 5: Chaos

“Momma! Momma! Get up, get up!”

I opened my eyes slowly to look at the teal eyes of Leo. He blushed and grinned, giggling happily as he practically bounced at the edge of my bed.“What is it?” I asked nicely before yawning widely. I savored the warmth of the covers over me as I let sleep slowly wash away to clarity.“Daddy make breakfast,” He replied, whispering through a goofy smile and blush.Three and a half years old… where did the time go? It seemed like only yesterday I dropped Angel’s plate of food when Leo first said ‘Ma ma’.With a wide smile, I scooted forward on the bed and kissed Leo on the forehead. He rewarded me with giggles.“Get up, momma. Get up! Daddy make breakfast,” then, as if it would encourage me to get out of bed, he took off running out of the bedroom.I really didn’t want to leave the warm bed, but I guess I had no choice.

<~-~>

My husband’s cooking over the last few years had improved tremendously. Even though ponies are vegetarian, we had fresh eggs from my chickens, with toast and grits - basically ground up corn mixed with butter, salt, and pepper. Applejack taught Jason how to cook them just right so that they practically melted in your mouth with buttery flavor.Sitting in his high chair next to me, Leo was stringing together simple sentences too fast for me to keep up. The pediatrician remarked that he was developing fast.I looked at Leo, grits clung to the fur around his mouth in sticky globs. With my wing, I tried to use a napkin to clean his face, but Leo gently slapped it away with one of his wings.“Mommy no! I do it,” he protested as he grabbed the napkin in his hooves and wiped his nose, completely missing the food.As Leo began to chow down on more eggs, I rolled my eyes, and smiled. Then I looked over to Jason at the head of the table, “So, how’s work at the mail office?”Jason shrugged, “Meh, the usual. Derpy’s totaled yet another wagon that I had to haul to Raul’s, and Nolan’s still complaining about his wing.”“Does he ever stop?” I asked with a sarcastic smile.He laughed, “Only when his wife threatens to give him another broken wing. I tried to tell him not to accept that race, but did he listen?”Yep, Rainbow Dash and Nolan Triplett, married not even three months ago. She told me at the spa that she would prefer dodging Legion bullets than stand on the alter again. I didn’t share the same opinion, standing at the alter with Jason was the best moment in my life. Actually, no it wasn’t. Leo makes every day of my life better than the last.Jason sighed as he looked past me at the clock on the far wall. “Guess I have to get to work. See you later, honey,” Jason said as he got up from his seat, quickly washed his dishes, and gave me a blush inducing smooch. Leo giggled at us as we did.With Jason having left for work, I smiled and looked at Leo, “So, what do you want to do today?”“Angel, play!” He said loudly. It was cute when he spoke, his voice like gold to my ears.I saw Angel Bunny looking out the window above the sink, his grey ears drooped down. I felt a pang of sadness, he was getting along in his years. He just recently turned eleven, he probably had one more year in him before...The corner of my eyes filled with tears. “Not today. Angel’s tired,” I said softlyLeo looked down, “Aww, I wants to play.”I tried to smile, “Well, maybe we can play with the other animals. I haven't fed them yet.”Leo gave a shout that resembled a ‘Yes’, then ran for the door, leaving his plate of food behind.I got up from my seat, and collected the dishes to put in the sink. Angel turned and looked at me, a milky white film covering both eyes. He let out a few squeaks that I only could understand.I sighed, “He’s too young to know you’re getting old.”The old bunny rolled his blind eyes, then pawed at the air. I stretched out over the sink so he could touch my face. His paws felt around my eyes, and upon feeling the tears, Angel gave a frown, making a few more squeaks.I nodded at his question, his paws feeling my head move.He shook his head, making a few more squeaks and turning his head towards the window.That made me let out a small sob. Going blind had been the hardest for the both of us. Him having to re-learn how to move about the house, and me, powerless to help his failing eyes. Angel then turned his body completely towards the window, feeling the sunshine rather than seeing it.And to think, almost four years ago he wouldn’t speak to me because he felt ‘replaced’ by Leo.Sometimes my special gift is a curse, being able to hold conversations with cute animals with shorter lifespans than myself.Sighing, I trotted towards the back door, leading out into the yard where Leo was harassing the chickens. It took him a while to stop calling chickens cats, because to him, every other animal was either a cat or a dog.Next to the door, I kept a large wooden box with assorted animal food. Opening the top, I reached into the open bag of chicken feed, retrieving the scoop I usually left in there with my right hoof.Turning around, Leo was staring at me, a large smile on his face as he tried to imitate a squawk, “Look mommy, I’m a chicken!”I smiled widely, my heart melting with love as I made my way over to the pen and hugged Leo with a wing.It lasted about four seconds before Leo pulled away, distracted by a butterfly landing his nose. “Wow,” he said slow and quietly as the blue butterfly opened it’s pink wings widely.Wait… blue body, pink wings?The butterfly disappeared in a flash of bright light and dark grey smoke, and Discord appeared in his true, serpentine form a few hooves distance away. Leo just looked confused, then slowly backed closer to me.His voice was low, as if Discord was going to gobble him up if he raised his voice, “Mommy… what’s that?”Discord’s jaw dropped like it was weighed down by an anvil, and his eyes bulged so much the fell out of his skull to shatter on the ground like glass.The instant his eyes popped back in his skull, Discord mouthed, “Mommy?”I nodded, pushing Leo forward with a wing, “Leo, meet your uncle, Discord.”Both Discord and Leo looked at me confused. “Uncle?” Discord said like it was a question.“Yes, uncle.” My face then twisted into one of slight anger, “Where have you been the past four years Discord?” I was pretty sure Discord would have found a way to get us back from the human world.Discord sighed, “I sent a letter explaining that I would be asleep. Draconique like myself have erratic hybernations. Sometimes it’s only a month, other times years on end. I guess my letter never arrived.”Discord then gave a heavy sigh, “When I woke up, I teleported to your cottage to find it abandoned… I thought I outlived you.”“So how did you find me?”Discord smiled a wide, toothy grin, “Well, I kinda flew up to a cloud to see if I could spot somepony, then I saw that you moved closer to town. It never occurred to me the foal’s nose I was landing on was your son’s. How long has it been?”I shook my head, “It’s been four years,” I said again, “I’m married now, and this is my son, Leo.”Discord snapped his talons and shrunk down to Leo’s size. The Draconequus receiving wary looks from Leo, who tried to bury himself in my wing.“Why, he’s a handsome young stallion. Who’s the father?” “Jason Brody,” I replied simply.Discord disappeared in a flash and reappeared as a grey unicorn with a silver-blue horn. He hummed a few times as he stroked his white goatee, before saying, “Jason Brody. Strange name.”I shrugged, “I don’t know, Mrs. Brody has grown on me over the years.” It was the truth. I can’t really remember when I started liking my new last name and the title of Mrs. but by golly I’m no longer embarrassed by it.Discord looked his mismatched red eyes into my teal, confusion etched on his face. “You’ve changed Fluttershy… a lot. What happened?”I shook my head slowly, quickly trying to change the subject by saying, “I still haven’t fed my animals.”Discord’s unicorn horn flared with magic, and all the bowels of water and food were filled with the exact amount of feed and water.With that excuse blown, I gave a sigh, “That’s cheating, Discord.”Discord shrugged, “All’s fair in love and war,” he said with a sarcastic smirk, before his face became serious, “But really Shy, I have four years of catching up to do, as well as four years of being an uncle to catch up to as well.”I nodded. Discord was a friend, I could tell him. Looking to Leo, I nudged him with a wing to catch his attention, “You want to go play with your sister?”Leo began jumping up and down, “Yes, yes, yes, yes, I get to play with sissy today!”I caught Discords confused expression. He didn’t even have to ask before I said, “Half-sister.”He nodded, “Well then, let’s take a walk and catch up on old times.” With a flare of his horn, we were on the road, pointed towards town. Discord gave a chuckle, “Can we go through town first. This Disguise should keep me incognito.”I nodded and smiled at Leo, “Okay, Leo, we’re going to go to town for a few minutes.”“But sissy play now,” He complained. With the pouty face he was giving me, I could swear the Stare was genetically passed down and mixed with cuteness.“Sorry, Leo, your uncle has been gone for a while. He wants to talk with me, so we’re going to town.”Leo gave a disappointed ‘aww’. With Leo in the front, Discord beside me, the three of us began to walk towards town. Out of the blue, Leo decided to ask, “Why uncle weird?”I shook my head, raising my voice a little I said, “Leo, it’s impolite to call others weird.”Discord let out a whistle, “Wow, Fluttershy as a proper mother. What next, Rainbow Dash in a wedding dress.”He looked like he was preparing to charge his disguise’s horn before I laughed, “Too late. You slept through the wedding.”And his jaw dropped once more, actually stretching and trailing behind him as we continued to walk forward.“Yep, it was around three months ago,” I stated nonchalantly, “And we both go to the spa every third wednesday of the month.”Discord’s jaw slapped back in place like a rubber band as he slapped a hoof to his face, “And here I thought Rarity was the spa lover.”Just to tease him to want more information out of me, I said, “She hasn’t been to the spa since her accident.”Discord looked at me, concerned, “What accident was so bad that she no longer goes to the spa?”“It’s hard to explain, and it would be easier to show you all my friends and how we changed than try and tell you myself.”I was going to say something else, but a flash of brown and grey tackled Discord.“First Recon, you’re under arrest, Discord!” Sweetie Belle shouted through the helmet she wore. She must have been ‘sniping’ me - again - and saw Discord. I really need to discuss her behaviour with Rarity, she’s starting to act too much like her older sister.Discord, who didn’t recognize her, hit her with a bolt of magic that sent her flying through the air, landing in front of Leo and making him jump in surprise.The young mare just got up, shook with a few audible pops, and looked Discord dead in the eyes with the red lenses of her helmet, before disappearing in a green flash. Hmm… since when could Sweetie teleport?Discord just looked at me flabbergasted and panting in shock, “What was that?”I rolled my eyes and said sarcastically, “First Recon Ranger Belle.” I then chuckled and smiled as I helped him to his hooves, “Ever since Rarity made her and her friends those costumes, she’s been a bit more rough and tough than the other girls.”“And that surprise attack didn’t even scare you?” He asked. “I demand you tell me what happened to the shy mare from four years ago.”“As I said before, I believe it would be easier to show instead of tell.”Discord gave a nod and asked, “Which of your friends are you going to show me first?”I tapped a hoof to my chin, which one should I go to right away. In an instant, I made my decision, “Twilight. She’s the closest and can explain everything ten times better than me.”

<~-~>

As usual for the library, Spike answered the door when I knocked. In the last three and a half years, he had grown to the height of an average pony, and his maturity matched a full grown stallion. His allowance had turned into a paycheck, and I even overheard a little rumor he was already tired of the room Twilight gave him in the library, and was looking for his own place to stay.“Hey Fluttershy,” Spike’s deep, mature voice said as he ushered me into the library from the open door.“Hello, Spike,” I replied gently, getting a quick look past Spike before turning my attention to him, “is Twilight available?”He rolled his eyes, “She’s in the basement lab, being a mad scientist.”“So, may we come in?” I gave Spike a wide smile.“Sure, she needs to get out that workshop more. You brought Leo with you right?” He looked past me, first spotting Discord.Leo didn’t let Spike spot him before squealing, “Spike!” and charging past me to jump-tackle Spike at the mention of his name.From the ground, Spike gave a laugh, “That answers that. Who’s the stallion?”Discord either used magic to disguise his voice as well, or he does a real good impression of an average Canterlotian, “My good sir, I am Hinge, Stone Hinge. I’m a proprietor of unique and chaotic statues.”Spike got up from the floor and gave Discord a hoof/handshake as I rolled my eyes. Ego much, Discord?With Leo around, Spike had no trouble regressing to child-like behavior to play hide and go seek in the library. As Discord and I neared the basement door, I called out to Spike, “You wouldn’t mind entertaining Leo for a while, will you?”Leo jumped on Spike’s back, tackling him once again. Spike gave me a wide grin, “Sure.”So Leo wouldn’t try and follow us, I swiftly entered through the basement door. I wanted Twilight to be able to give Discord the ‘uncensored’ version of our time in the Mojave, and an almost four year old foal shouldn’t overhear what truly happened there.As we walked down the steps, Discord gave a chuckle, “Fluttershy, a mother with a husband and a house close to town. I would have never guessed.”I gave my own chuckle back, “The sheer normality my life has become is frustrating. I remember back when every other week some wannabe villain was giving us a monologue.”I caught whiffs of smoke, oil, and earth as we neared the bottom of the steps. When we did, what greeted us was so chaotic, Discord did a double take.In the circular basement, chalkboards had formulas and ideas about how to save the Wasteland written out, crossed out, wrote over, or all three. Papers littered the floor as scrap metal and junk electronic pieces were scattered like somepony had let a tornado lose inside. I gasped at what I saw against the far wall, a reloading bench with several different bullets. Beside it was a workbench, and beside that was a shelf with a half-dozen laser rifles - some complete, some not - with a seventh in a glass case above the rest. But what caught my attention even more, was the nine sets of complete power armor, and an unfinished tenth beside an alicorn mare sleeping on her hooves.“Twilight?” I called out concerned. She jerked awake, her head whipping around in slight panic. When her eyes landed on me, she gave a sleepy smile.“Oh, hey, Fluttershy,” she greeted with a stifled yawn, “just catching some sleep before I finish up this suit.”Discord walked past me, inspecting the power armor. “Holy Sheogorath in a cheese factory,” Discord muttered as he put a hoof against the first set of armor, the same one Twilight wore on our first Nightmare Night since returning.When I looked at each individual set more closely, I noticed that each one was slightly different. The first looked bulky and unwieldy; the last finished one looked a lot slimmer and was painted a brighter color; more silver than dull-grey.“Hey, Discord,” Twilight said as she yawned again.Discord groaned, and slapped a hoof to his face, “How did you know it was me?”“The expression you used,” She then smiled widely, “Seriously why are you disguised in the first place? Everypony doesn't seem to care that you once were evil.” Twilight chuckled and blushed, obviously sorry about how she acted towards him before I managed to reform him. “So what brings you two here to my humble workshop? I haven’t forgotten to eat again, have I?”I shrugged, “Most likely you have, but Discord was in hibernation the whole time we were gone, and I was hoping you could give him the real truth. I may be less meek, but I can’t go into as much detail as you can.”Twilight shrugged, “Fair enough. We disappeared for months, Discord. None of us really remember what happened on the day we left Equestria, but I either botched a spell, or Pinkie’s telling the truth about some crazy storm in the fabric of time itself.” She gave a scoff. “I think it was just an overdose on that whole tin of Mentats messing with her Pinkie Sense.”“So, you disappeared? Where too? What happened? Fluttershy won’t tell me and it’s actually scaring me,” Discord then blinked a few times, “Wait, does it have anything to do with the scar on your forehead?” He was referring to the very visible scar working its way from over her left eye towards the right one.Twilight nodded, “It has to do with a lot actually. We were transported to a world wrought by destruction of an apocalyptic scale and all turned into humans. Once I woke up, I was captured by skeletons in spacesuits, and put into some sort of weird sugery machine. They tried to remove my brain while I was still conscious. The head trauma induced amnesia, and I forgot who I was for a while.”Discord nodded, “Wow,”“I won’t bore you with details. Jamie – a human who rescued me – helped me meet up with Applejack and Fluttershy running a Caravan with a woman named Cass. We also had Rarity with us at the time, who was too afraid to reveal her true identity to us because of what happened to her, and I’ll let her explain all of that. While traveling, we bumped into Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie, along with another human.”After taking a breather, Twilight continued, “There was a group called Caesar’s Legion. They attacked us right outside an abandoned New California Republic Ranger station, the NCR being the military opposing the Legion.”Discord just stared. There was some sort of surrealism with seeing an immortal being awestruck.“Veronica, the human with RD and Pinkie, as well as Cass, were wounded badly. Cass was hit in the neck, bleeding everywhere, while Veronica was hit in the stomach. We had to drag them both to the Ranger station to get away, but in our panic we left Fluttershy behind, but Applejack stayed with her.”Now Discord was a mix of emotions, confused, concerned, and… angry?“We tried to save the both of them, but there were too many Legion soldiers and not enough time. Both of them were dragged off by the Legion.”Discord winced and I could hear teeth grinding. He looked to me, the fire burning in his eyes scaring me as he asked, “Did they hurt you?”I wanted to tell them that they did hurt me. Over, and over, and over, but I just simply nodded, looking down to the ground.Twilight placed a hoof on my shoulder, “Should I tell him?”Discord was a friend, maybe he could help me or Applejack, so, I nodded before saying, “I’m going to sit on the steps and catch my breath.” Four years and I still wasn’t over it. I was never over what my father had done to me either.Moving over to the staircase, I sat on the steps, catching my breath as I tried to push the horrid memories of slaves crucified on crosses, and Orion to the back of my mind. Twilight wasn’t that far away, so I could hear her as clearly as if I was standing right next to her.“Fluttershy and Applejack… the Legion took them as slaves, and… well you see… one of the soldiers raped-”“Stop,” Discord demanded in a firm tone, his voice sizzling with anger, “Why would they allow that?”Twilight answered with her own anger, “Because they were evil, and he was less than a villain. Scum deserving a plasma grenade up his ass.”Okay, that got both Discord’s and my attention, “What?” We both asked.Twilight blushed, “Sorry, it’s just… what he did to you and Applejack, it just makes me so… uggh!” I could practically see steam coming out of her ears. “Also I may have modified a few Microfusion cells to explode like plasma grenades. Darn things are a bit finicky when it comes to direct manipulation with magic. I was lucky I was wearing power armor and Spike can belly-flop into lava.”Discord let out a long sigh, “And I was sleeping the whole time I could have just magicked you back…” Discord let out a dejected sigh, “Some friend I am.”I shrugged, “Then I wouldn’t have met Jason, or wouldn’t have had Leo. In some messed up way, the whole thing worked out for the best for me.”Twilight gave a hum and tapped a hoof to her chin, “Plus, I don’t think you could have brought us back Discord. Celestia herself couldn’t find me after I disappeared, and even if she could locate me, how could she have brought me back? It was just sheer luck I knew a spell that could.”Discord looked like he was lost in thought for a second before asking, “So Princess Twilight, how have you been over the years?”“I work so long in a room with no windows, I often lose track if it’s day or night, I rarely eat, and when I do sleep, I often have nightmares involving plasma shooting skeletons.”Twilight then proceeded to teeter on her hooves for a few seconds, before passing out.I didn’t panic, I’d seen that coming. I just calmly looked at Discord and smiled as he looked shocked. “Would you mind teleporting her to Ponyville General? She passed out from lack of sleep.” I groaned as I added, “Again.”

<~-~>

Two teleports later, Discord, Leo, and I walked out of the library and towards Carousel Boutique.We all walked into the shop together, Discord saw Rarity, and once again his jaw was agape.Although it was a lot less than from finding out I was a mother.“Darling, you look like a stallion who knows it’s impolite to gawk,” Rarity rasped out in her ghoulish hiss.Sweetie chuckled. Her custom built Ranger helmet was off of her head, revealing the small, off colored patches of fur where her coat and skin had grown back. “It’s Discord, sis. He also shot me with a magical bolt.”Rarity rolled her eyes, “So that’s why your armor was smoking when you got back. I’ve told you time and time again it’s impolite to attack ponies.”“I was just playing, and he shot first,” Sweetie huffed as she sat down and crossed her forelegs.Rarity sighed and shook her head, “You’re getting too old to pout like that Sweetie, plus we have guests. Tea anyone?”We nodded our heads - Leo so fast his mane was a blur - and Rarity ushered us into the kitchen where a kettle was already boiling.“So Discord, what finally brought you around here?” Rarity rasped as she pulled three chairs out for each of us to sit. The fourth, Leo had already pulled out in anticipation of Rarity’s tea. I may have spoon fed him a few times when I wasn’t really supposed too.Discord took a seat, conjuring up a menu like he was at a restaurant, making Leo giggle. “I woke up after a long, four year hibernation. I guess I missed quite a lot.” He then chuckled, “Twilight shared a lot of her story before passing out from exhaustion. What’s your story?”Rarity tisked as she stood by the stove, waiting for the kettle. “Twilight is going to run herself to the ground if she doesn’t stop obsessing with trying to find ways to help the Wasteland.” Rarity let out a long sigh, “As for my story, my flesh was torn asunder by the sands of the Divide, and my muscle tempered with the invisible fires of radiation. I’m unsure what exactly I am. Am I a ghoul who just looks like they’re still living, or a Marked Man with a bit more skin and somewhat sane?”“Ghoul? As in the living dead kind?” Discord asked, shocked.Rarity shrugged, “I wouldn’t call my kind ‘dead’ exactly, but we sure as-” Rarity had to stop herself at my glare, “-heck, are not living either. Ghouls, in a sense, are stuck in a perpetual irradiated limbo between life and death.”Discord stared at Rarity. I guess his attention was captured by Rarity’s flair for storytelling, “Since when did you become so philosophical, Rarity?”“After I died, came back as something else, killed something, went crazy, killed even more stuff, teetered on insanity, and finally tried to kill myself playing what the humans called Russian Roulette.”I hid my face in my hooves half out of embarrassment, and half out of anger at myself, “And I was none the wiser since I was resting in a tent, my belly way out to here with Leo.” I stretched a foreleg as far away from my stomach as I could before I burst into giggles, “Well, not that far.”“I was in your belly, mommy?” Leo asked, tilting his head to the side with the cutest confused expression on his face.I blushed bright crimson from all the laughs, shrinking behind my hair as far into my chair as I could lower myself.

<~-~>

The talk with Rarity went well. After the chamomile tea was finished, Sweetie Belle – no longer imitating her sister – kept Leo busy and out of earshot as Rarity gave Discord a, “Riveting tale of heroism and hardship.”After her tale of disemboweling skinless monsters with a knife, and shooting people in the head, Discord looked pale. “And you’ve stayed sane after doing all of that?” he asked as his paleness turned to shades of green. She could have been less descriptive of every headshot she made. I definitely won’t be sleeping soundly tonight.Rarity let out a near evil chuckle, “Who says I have stayed sane?” She paused, looking down and sighing heavily, “I’m on lithium to keep my mood swings under control, otherwise I may do something… messy.” Rarity shivered heavily.Discord flashed back to his normal body and placed his talons on Rarity’s shoulder. “I wish I could help, but I’m not good with heads, unless I’m turning them into cabbages,” He joked, trying to lighten the heavy and depressing mood that befell us.We all shared a small, disheartened laugh at that one.As Rarity was filling in Discord on the last four years of gossip, Leo grew tired of playing around with Sweetie, and began to rush Discord and I to hurry up. I gave in to Leo and we left around two o’clock.When we were on the way to Applejack’s, I was walking beside Discord, Leo behind us. I turned my head to check on Leo. I gasped as my heart skipped a few beats before almost stopping……where was my son?

Interlude: Raul

<~Raul’s PoV~>

I was dreaming. I knew that since the star-filled plane of Luna’s realm blanketed me as I dreamt; the princess of the ethereal realm was standing before me, smiling like a kid. I liked Luna even though we only see each other every now and then. In my four years of being in Equestria, she had helped me deal with my recurring nightmares of the day I lost my sister Rafaela.

I smiled in her presence, nodding in respect, “Hola, Princess Luna. How are you today?”She chuckled, smiling even more as she trotted close, “Thou art dreaming in the middle of my sister’s day.” She said in the way I loved to hear her talk. It was like she was always speaking from a pre-war movie about knights and castles. It made this old ghoul smile and chuckle.I gave a shrug, “Of course. I’m an old man taking a nap.”That made the Princess of the Night laugh, “You’re not old. Wait till thy hit a thousand and forty.”I rolled my eyes, “I’m just shy of two hundred and fifty…sixty,” I said uncertain. “I so old I forgot,” I said with a chuckle, but the reality of it hit me, causing me to look down and sigh, “And I don’t know how much time I have left in me.”That caught Luna’s attention, “What does thou mean?”I sat on the floor of the dream world, a black expanse filled with stars, “It means I’m old. Ghouls are long-lived, not immortal like you or your sister.”She looked down at the black and starry floor, her eyes betraying her sadness “I wish I could change that, thou art such a nice stallion.”I chuckled at that one, my mood no longer downtrodden, “Do I detect the Princess of the Night has a crush?”Luna hid her face with her hooves and flowing mane, no doubt concealing a blush. “No,” she said defensively, “You’re just a good stallion. What you’ve gone through, I wish it didn’t trouble you. The memories of finding your sister… how could anypony do that to another?”I gave a sigh the memories threatening to come back to haunt me like ghosts. “They were Raiders, and you saw what I done to them for killing my sister like that.” She knew exactly how I killed each and every last one of them; a single .44 magnum through each of their heads. The Vaquero struck down his righteous fury that day.Luna nodded, looking pale, “Yes, I saw that dream as well. I do not know why my sister let Twilight and the others keep their guns, even after I showed her a less graphic memory.”I wondered which one of my memories of a bombed out Mexico city, or the Wasteland, she had shown. Or it could have been my lonely time on the Petro-Chico oil rig where I nearly went feral from the loneliness. Ignoring my previous thoughts, I gave my opinion. “Probably because Twilight would just build another one,” I joked, but was somewhat serious, “That girl is crazy smart. She builds power armor in her basement, and still finds time to work on other projects.”Luna nodded, “Yes, Twilight has sent letters to my sister detailing her inventions. The defensive armor is worrying enough, but her reports on what she calls laser rifles…” she trailed off, and I saw her give a shiver.It was strange to be here chatting with her like we were friends. I guess a thousand years on the moon makes one eager for friends, but still, Princess Celestia seemed nice as well. The two of them, to me, seem much more down-to-earth with their subjects than the old world government. I suppose they take pride in having everyone--everypony’s, best interest at heart.Or they were hopelessly doomed to outlive anyone they loved, so they try and make their subjects mortal lives as enjoyable as possible.I couldn't ask her myself, since the dream world faded away when the bell above my shop’s door chimed. I jerked awake sitting in my seat behind the counter, instantly seeing three ponies had entered the store, looking at me with worry.“S-Sir, are you alright?” A stallion asked me fearfully.“Si, gracias for your concern. New in town?” I yawned out as the three nodded, causing me to smile and lean against the counter with my forehooves - took me forever to finally walk again on these things. “Welcome to Tejada’s Hardware and Carriage Repair. I’m the owner, Raul. And yes, the handsome devil you see before you does look like a corpse.”The mare of the group shook her head, “First we hit that thing on the road, now this? Maybe moving here was a bad idea, this town is a little crazy.”I chuckled since I shared her sentiments on Ponyville. “I’m not from here, but the town still is crazy,” I said jokingly before asking, “So what do you need?”I motioned with my hooves behind me, my olive green Petro-Chico jumpsuit keeping the newcomers from seeing my whole body looked like beef jerky. On the shelves I was motioning to, I had several tools, boxes of nails, and other items on pegs and shelves, displaying most of what I sold. I kept the lumber and carriage shop in the back shed and the garage next to it.A younger stallion - who looked more in his teen years - asked me, “What are you exactly?” His mother gave him a disappointed and angry glare, but I held up a hoof before she could tell him off.After living here for four years, I was used to that question. I answered without hesitation, “I’m a ghoul. It’s like a zombie, but we don’t eat brains or infect others… well the non-feral ones do have a tendency to bite.”The mother and father traded worried looks while the teenager laughed, “Wow, that is pretty awesome. How old are you?”I tapped a hoof to my chin, “Two hundred and fifty...ish. Hard to remember exactly since I lived so long. Princess Luna has the same problem.”That caused them all to chuckle, except for the teen who looked amazed, “Wow, you’re that old? What’s it like to live so long?”“Honestly, I couldn’t tell you. Each ghoul has their own opinion, mine’s in Spanish as well as a little jumbled. Not as bad as Harold’s memory though, or was it Bob?”“Who now?” The mare asked, confused at the human name. I nearly die laughing when I meet a new face with a pun to match their flank. Me… I have a wrench on my ass.“Another ghoul I met with a twig growing out his head. That was probably,” I paused a second to let my memory catch up, “a little over sixty years ago in a town called Gecko.”The teen mouthed the word ‘wow’ before complimenting me, “You must have some interesting stories, sir.”That's one thing I like about Equestria, just like what little I can remember before the war, kids were respectful and well mannered. I gave a chuckle, the sound of a ghoul laughing visibly unnerving the teen’s parents who winced at the sound, “The stories I could tell… but I doubt your mother would let me tell them.” I turned my head and was rewarded with a loud pop, my old joints aching again, “So, enough chatter, what would you fine gentleponies like?”The stallion hesitantly stepped closer towards the counter, looking embarrassed at his wife’s newfound glare of disapproval. “Well,” he started off, rubbing the back of his head with a hoof, “I was pulling the family cart, since we were moving, and I may or may not have hit an animal out near that forest and broke our right-front wheel.”I winced, “Darn, did it survive? Fluttershy will never forgive herself if it didn’t.” I sure hoped it didn’t die. Poor mare’s an emotional wreck with all that’s happened with Leo. I was just glad he made it back okay. I would have helped rescue him, but I’m old, have a store to run, and with my eyesight, I might have accidentally shot somepony.The teen shook his head, “No sir. Mom, Dad, and I wrapped it in a tarp and carried it to Fluttershy’s after a mailmare flying upside-down spotted us and told us where to go.”Must have been Derpy; the only mailmare around who flies upside-down, seems to be everywhere at any given time, and is very helpful. “Well now, guess I’m going to have to haul the thing back to my shop with these old bones,” I joked, smiling widely as I laughed. I sure hope they didn’t expect me to haul it back with me. I would honestly rather fight Deathclaws with Rarity again.The stallion shook his head, “Nope. I managed to drag it with three wheels back to the only cart repair shop in town. Guess in the country, everypony knows how to fix their own cart?”“That’s about right,” I answered with a nod, “I make most of my money from selling hardware supplies and sharpening plough blades.” That was when I caught on to how the stallion worded his last sentence, “City ponies, huh?”The three nodded, and I gave a small chuckle, “Welcome to Ponyville then.”Upon muttering those accursed words, I summoned El Demonio Rosa De Los Partidos. In English, that meant Pinkie Pie. The sugar fueled mare burst through my door, making the three ponies jump in fright. She then gasped at the new faces - ones showing nothing but shock at her oversized smile - before pulling a cannon the Boomers would be proud of, and ruined the interior of my shop with confetti. I shook my head, rubbing my forehead with a hoof.“¿Por qué, Pinkie?” I asked in Spanish, which meant ‘Why, Pinkie?’She smiled, and, in perfect Spanish, she replied, “Porque soy Pinkie Pie, por eso.”Which meant ‘Because I’m Pinkie Pie, that’s why’. Honestly I had no counterargument to that one.I was surprised to find out Pinkie was fluent in Spanish, and knew a few Pre-War Spanish birthday songs. Getting older had never been so much fun.My first birthday party here in Equestria was at Sweet Apple Acres. With Pinkie playing Spanish music, and singing right along, It was almost like I was back at Hidalgo Ranch, my little sister Rafaela dancing, clapping, and humming along.I sighed, Pinkie frowning and backing away as the three shocked newcomers began brushing off their confetti covering.“Thinking of your sister?” She asked. Guess she inferred it since we were talking in Spanish.I nodded, “I wonder what it would be like with her here, over two hundred years after I turned into… this. Would she even recognize me?”“You have an unmistakable voice. I know she would remember it.” I smiled at that, Pinkie returning her own smile, before zipping around in a flash of pink. All the confetti disappeared and my shops door slammed shut as I heard a sonic boom in the distance.The stallion stared at the door, his mouth opening and closing before he found a word to say. “Okay,” and that was it. Just a completely stunned reaction on his face.I laughed pretty hard at that. “That was Pinkie Pie, expect a party later, and avoid her if she’s pulling her welcome wagon,” I warned. Seriously, cake batter covered in confetti is a nightmare to get out dry skin.The three nodded, the stallion giving me a regretful look, “Sorry you had to outlive your sister.”Would she have turned to a ghoul, or would she have died an even slower death of radiation poisoning. God help me if she had turned feral. “It probably was for the best,” I sighed out, my old heart aching with slow beats. I shook my head and forced a smile, “So, let’s pull that wagon into the garage in the back of the store.”It didn’t take long for the stallion to pull his overloaded wagon into the garage. Upon inspecting it, I realized why the wheel snapped off, the axle holding the wheel to the cart was corroded with rust. I was surprised the wheel managed to hold the various chests and other heavy looking amenities the cart contained. I swore I saw a fridge in there, which could have been possible, since Equestria seems to be stuck in the middle ground of futuristic and archaic.To my left was a toolbox, covered in more rust than the cart’s axle. Taking a deep breath, I focused my thoughts to the spiraling horn jutting from the middle of my forehead. In an instant, the box was surrounded in a radioactive green glow of my magic, allowing me to effortlessly float the box over to the cart.While the three watched me begin to work, the teen spoke up again, “So, Raul was it? You sound like you're from Mexicolt.”“My accent is a giveaway,” I said. I was completely blown away by Mexicolt, especially Mexicolt City which I saw postcards of. It was crazy how Equestria used a lot of city names from before the war, but turned into horse puns.“What part?” The teen asked.I began inspecting the broken and corroded axle, trying to figure out how best to repair it. “A little place called Hidalgo Ranch, a few miles from Mexico City,” I said, leaving off the lt intentionally, “Haven’t been there in over two hundred years.”“Wow, you must have some serious homesickness,” he replied. His mother gave him a slap to the back of the head.“Stop pestering Mr. Tejada as he works Chatterbox.” I nearly lost it at the kids name, but managed to keep my laugh in.“Yes mother,” he replied, looking down like a scolded dog.I smiled and kept thinking, then I spotted something. A tuft of fur leading out of a patch of scales.Don't tell me, “Did you hit something that looked like a coyote and a snake mixed together?”“Yes, why? It seemed to freak out Fluttershy.”Mierda!

<~Fluttershy’s PoV~>

When the day started, I had no idea I would get my son back. When it started, I was depressed and then angry with Chrysalis. After Leo was returned to me, I was planning on spending the entire day curled up with him, hugging him along with my husband.However, I had a Nightstalker in my living room. Days ago, when I told Discord my life had become boringly normal, I wasn’t expecting all of this. Sometimes it feels like my life gets screwed up on sheer coincidences for some deity’s sick amusement. First it was Leo’s foalnapping, and once that was resolved, I get a deadly Nightstalker.“Jason, take Leo back to his room,” I whispered like the merest sound would rouse the species brought forth by mankind. The Nightstalker’s chest slowly rose and fell as it gave weak breaths; its tan-scaled head sporting a bleeding gash in the shape of a ‘V’.“You three might want to leave,” Jason said to the ponies that brought the creature, not obeying the instructions I gave him, “That right there folks, is a very dangerous and rare animal from the Everfree.” He’s the one that told me about them since I had never seen a Nightstalker before. Although, what lied before my eyes fit Jason’s description of one: Canine-snake head, coyote body that blended fur and scales together, as well as a furry, dog-like tail that shifted to sand-brown scales, and ended in a rattle.The three ponies quickly departed without a word, leaving Jason, Leo, and I with the Nightstalker.“Jason, take Leo to his room, now,” I said in a firmer tone. “I don’t know when it will wake-”Its ears twitched… shit.The Nightstalker jumped to its paws, and let out a bark-hiss sound. A dazed expression was on its face, as its forked tongue tasted the air. It took it only a second for it to spot me with the reptilian eyes it possessed. With a single bound the Nightstalker leapt upon me, knocking me down even though it was just a little bit larger than Wynona.Jason tackled the beast off of me. I yelled for the Nightstalker to stop, hoping that it would understand me.It didn’t and bit at Jason, who had to let the Nightstalker go or get bit in the neck.“STOP!” I heard Leo’s voice yell through sobs, “Don’t hurt mommy and daddy.” The Nightstalker stopped, turned its hungry eyes towards Leo, let its forked tongue flick the air, and then… whimpered and cowered like a scolded puppy.“Mommy says be nice, so stop it!” Leo chided, rubbing tears from his eyes. The Nightstalker only whimpered more, its wounded head still dripping red drops of blood on my white carpet.“Leo… it understands Leo,” I stated in disbelief, my heart was pounding as I was sweating bullets. It understood Leo, but, why not me?The unintelligible whimpers and barks told me why. It was because I couldn’t understand it.“Sit, doggy,” Leo ordered, the Nightstalker complying, its forked tongue lolling out like a dog’s as its pants were laced with hisses.Out the corner of my eye, I could see Jason’s shocked expression, “Honey, did our son just talk to a Nightstalker, or did I get bit and its venom is making me hallucinate?”I gave a weak, totally unamused and totally nervous chuckle. “I think he did, honey,” I said sarcastically, trying in vain to calm myself. “It also seems our son has my gift for talking to animals.”My heart stopped beating when Leo jumped off the couch and used his wings to glide a few hooves away from Jason, the Nightstalker, and I. He patted the floor with his hooves. “Come here doggy,” He ordered with a large smile.The Nightstalker did as Leo asked. It was no longer showing any signs of aggression. That became crystal clear when the Nightstalker was just a few inches away from Leo; it flopped on its back and pant-hissed.Then Leo started rubbing the ‘Doggies’’ tummy. I would have grabbed my son and got him as far away from the Nightstalker as equinly possible, but I feared I would only get Leo bit. First he was crying over it trying to kill me, now he wants to get close to it? Twilight was right; the ponies in this town were crazy.Jason moved closer to the two, both of us were shaking in fear. “If that thing bites him, it takes Nightstalker venom only seconds to kill human children.”“How are we going to handle this?” I asked Jason, fear on my face.“You’re asking me? You’re the one who can hold conversations with jealous, blind ninja rabbits.”Said bunny was standing at the door to the kitchen, right past the possibly hungry Nightstalker, possibly totally unaware of the beast a few hooves distance away. Leo was probably the only thing keeping the Nightstalker from making a meal of us all.“I can’t understand it,” I explained with a hint of worry. “It’ll take me a while to learn how Nightstalkers talk. It’s like they’re both rattlesnake and coyote, with both languages jumbled up worse than the Sunday crossword.”Jason then gasped, “Not to change subject, but look at our son.”I didn’t want to take my eyes off of the Nightstalker, but I did. Looking at Leo, I spotted a big difference. His flank sported a lion’s head as a cutie mark; it’s mouth open wide in a ferocious roar.Lion, king of the jungle. My three and a half year old son’s special talent was being king of dangerous animals.You hear that sound Fluttershy? That’s the sound of your blood pressure spiking to critical levels.

<~-~>

When I came to after fainting, I had a long, snake-like tongue licking my face, Leo and Jason laughing, the latter rather nervously.“Mr. Rattles likes you, mommy.” Leo said with a bright smile, “Can I keep him, can I keep him? Please?” Leo pleaded. With the large-as-saucer eyes he was giving me, I was wondering if he had some sort of ‘cute’ version of ‘The Stare.’“How long was I out?” I asked Jason, ‘Mr. Rattle’s’ tongue relenting its wet and abrasive assault on my face.“Ten seconds,” Jason replied, before brushing the carpet with a hoof as he chuckled, “Long enough for Leo to come up with a name.”Great, now Leo’s attached to him. Why couldn’t he just want a puppy like every other foal his age?I groaned and sighed and thought; only coming up with one thing to say, “Maybe.”“Yes, yes, yes, yes!” Leo hugged Mr. Rattles tight enough I could see the Nightstalker’s eyes bulge, then let out a whimper that I swore was ‘help me’.Oh boy, Twilight’s going to have an aneurysm when I show her Mr. Rattles.

Chapter 7: Findings

After a quick application of gauze, Mr. Rattles was ready to visit Twilight. I doubt I needed to hide his identity; it’s common knowledge I worked with strange animals, such as manticores. Mr. Rattles looked like a textbook example of an Everfree animal.

With Leo’s help, I managed to slip a dog collar on Mr. Rattles; the Nightstalker completely calm with Leo talking to him in somewhat confusing sentences.When I added a leash to the collar, Leo decided to ask Mr. Rattles a question. “What’s your favorite color? Mine is green and purple and blue and red,” the list continued for all the other colors I taught Leo, which were quite a few.Rattles - adding ‘Mr.’ to the beginning every time got redundant quickly - let out an almost dog like ‘aroo?’ and cocked his head to the side.Leo wrapped Rattles in a hug and taped his nose with a hoof. “You’re silly, that’s not a color,” Leo giggled out.I couldn’t help but smile at the two, my mind finally made up, “I guess you can keep him, Leo.”“Yay!” Leo squealed, a look of pure joy on his face. Rattles winced from the colt yelling in his ear.Jason fake coughed, “Fluttershy, shouldn’t we have discussed this together first.” I turned to look at him, and he looked worried. “I know you have a soft spot for animals, and I wouldn’t be surprised if you hugged a Deathclaw or something; but you’re considering letting our son keep something, for lack of a better word, evil?”I sighed, frowning while looking at Jason, “I know from experience that animals are never evil, just misunderstood.” I gave a laugh and smiled, “In the Everfree on the day I met Twilight, I helped a poor manticore get a large thorn out of its paw, even though it attacked us. The big kitty wasn’t evil, just in pain.”Jason rubbed his face with a hoof, “But Nightstalkers aren’t manticores, honey. I’ve seen whole packs of them attack without a reason.”There was never a ‘random’ attack. There was always a reason behind their behavior. “So have manticores, but it was always a female defending cubs.” I looked to Leo who was still hugging Rattles, “Leo, can you ask Rattles if there is more of his kind around?”Leo did as I asked, and translated the saddened whimpers and hisses back to me, “No pack, all alone.” The Nightstalker’s language was getting clearer and clearer to me, but Leo was doing a great job as translator for the time being.I was going to give Jason another reason why we should keep Rattles, but there was a rapid knocking at the door. Jason answered and was nearly bowled over by Raul, who was talking a mile-a-minute in Spanish.Rattles shook his tail, making a rattling sound while crouching low and growling. I didn’t need Leo to translate that for me; it was a clear warning to back off. Leo managed to calm the Nightstalker down with a few whispers and a scratch behind the ears.Raul gasped out something in Spanish before speaking normally, his fear visibly leaving him, “Should have known you’d use your gift for talking to animals to tame it, Fluttershy.”I gave a proud smile while glancing at both Leo and Raul, “Well, Leo was the one who used his gift.”Raul shook his head, somewhat amused by that information. “Of course,” he groaned with a roll of his eyes. “Guess magic powers are genetic. Why do I even worry sometimes?”Jason shrugged, “Maybe it’s because we were humans once, and magic was the stuff of pre-war books.”Raul nodded, “Guess you’re right. But oftentimes it feels like… oh wait, peaceful non-post-apocalyptic wasteland. It’s supposed to be worry free.”Jason and Raul shared a laugh, Leo joining in though I doubt he understood why the stallions were laughing. As for myself, I was feeling guilty for not being able to help the Mojave, but I had my unborn son to think about. Still, the Followers of the Apocalypse were on the right track, I wouldn’t have been able to contribute any more than I already had from my bedside.Before we could say anything else, there was another knock at the door. Raul answered it, jerking sharply in surprise as a pink muzzle quickly found his cheek with a smooch.Raul looked dazed for a second, “Uh, Pinkie, what was that?”I heard the mare giggle from outside the doorway, “A kiss, silly. I thought you might like it. Did you?” I could hear the uncertainty in her voice as she asked the question.Raul smiled widely, “Of course, but it was unexpected… why are you here?”“Why am I here?” she asked herself, tapping a hoof against her chin. Suddenly, she was bouncing with that unexplainable high-pitch ‘sproing’, “Oh, oh, I know what it was now. My Pinkie Sense was going crazy, so I followed where it led, and it led me to you.”“Uh,” Raul murmured uncertainly while backing away from the door. “This was unexpected,” He murmured to himselfAs Twilight once stated, ‘Pinkie wraps the integer of unexpected right around the product of reality, to equal random’.Pinkie bounced inside, the door closing itself behind her, “I know, Raul. But you look so lonely and unhappy at times. Everypony else is happy with their special somepony, and I figured, why couldn’t it be us?”Jason swallowed in surprise, and from the coughs following afterwards, his spit had gone the wrong direction. Jason’s coughing didn’t distract the two, Raul just rubbing the back of his head, his leather-like cheeks appearing redder than usual, “Heh-heh, wow. I don’t know what to say. I’m hundreds of years older than you, and I’m a ghoul.”I saw her shrug, “Age and looks, just numbers and philosophy. Everypony says it’s what’s on the inside that counts.”Raul laughed and waved his hoof, “Knowing my luck, my insides look worse than the outside of me.”Pinkie pulled a stethoscope out from behind Angel, who was listening to the pair. Pinkie placed the stethoscope to Raul’s chest, making the ghoul wince. She smiled warmly, “Don’t know about you, but I hear a heart, and hearts are meant to be loved.”Raul smiled, blushed, and eventually laughed, “I guess I can be your special somepony. But answer this question first; have you been having strange dreams?”Pinkie sighed, her shoulders slumping as her eyes gazed to the floor. “Not really. The Battle at Hoover Dam doesn’t show up as often in my dreams, thankfully,” She muttered darkly. Pinkie then looked like she was thinking, tapping a hoof against her chin. “Although, recently after Rainbow and Nolan married, I’ve been dreaming of having a special somepony, and living a quiet life with somepony along with a few foals. It’s silly and totally not, well… me.”Pinkie shrugged, “I’m supposed to be random and unpredictable, but the mare I’ve seen myself as, is quiet and… and… she’s happy.”Pinkie sat her rump on the floor, her hair deflating, tears welling in her eyes; Leo, Rattles, and everypony else just keeping back. Rainbow told me she could get violent when she was like this.She looked like she was on the verge of an emotional breakdown. “I’ve been putting a happy face on for four years straight… but life sucks,” Pinkie said through tears as she tried to wipe them away, but left damp streaks in her fur, “Most nights I dream I’m in the kitchen back at Hoover Dam, everything exploding before I ran out to war. Now I see a happy me with foals of my own, and I’m tired of being unhappy and lonely,” She gave a hurt sob mixed with a laugh, “I want to be the mare I’m dreaming of, and I want to be that mare with you Raul. You’re funny, tell great stories, and you’re just a great stallion. I’ve never seen you angry with anypony or yell.”Raul wrapped Pinkie in a hug, who, broke down into full sobs at his touch. Years of held in emotion began rushing out in a torrent of sniffles and tears. Leo and Rattles walked over to the two, and Leo placed a hoof on Pinkie while Rattled rested his head on one of Pinkie’s legs.With Pinkie sobbing openly, and looking like she needed a cheering up, Jason and I moved closer to comfort her.We stayed with Pinkie for around a minute as she cried out the pent up depression. Raul and the rest of us backed away when she calmed down, sniffling.Raul looked at Pinkie, his face neutral. “You should have told us you were hurting like this, Pinkie. We’re your friends, I could have been you’re special somepony years ago.” He blushed, “Wow, the term special somepony sounds weird.”Pinkie shook her head, “You mean, you’re still saying yes, even though I’m doing this to be happy?”Raul nodded, “Finding happiness in love isn’t selfish. I like you as well, Pinkie. You reminded me of Mexico before the war with your parties, helped cheer me up when I was feeling like a useless old man, and you make others happy, even though inside, you’re not.”That’s when Raul gave Pinkie a hesitant and unsteady kiss on the cheek. The pink mare smiled while her mane reflated slightly as she blushed.The lovely moment was shattered when Leo yelled, “Get a room.” A phrase used often when Rainbow and Nolan were around. The two laughed, and decided to leave after saying goodbye.When the door closed, I gave a sigh before facing Jason, “Ready to leave for Twilight’s?”

<>~<>~<>

“So, that’s one of the things from the world you disappeared to?” Spike asked me nonchalantly as he took a sip of tea. Twilight was busy at the police station, so we were waiting at the library.I looked over to Leo, seeing him and Rattles sit together, completely inseparable from each other, “Yes, and if what Jason says is true, uncharacteristically docile.”Jason shook his head, “No one has really tried training Nightstalkers before, except Red Lucy, but they were for fighting.”I had learned about Red Lucy and the Thorn from Jason, and though I don’t get angry often, and it’s super rare that I curse, but that bitch… How could she make animals fight each other for money? It’s cruel and unethical. “If we ever go back to the Wasteland, I’m personally going to throw her off of Hoover Dam. Or get Maud to do it.”Jason gave a nervous chuckle, “How about no. A simple rock caused a mushroom cloud the size of a super-sized mini-nuke.”Spike scratched his head, not knowing what a mini-nuke even was. He opened his mouth with a claw pointed, like he was going to ask. However, he dropped his arm as he shook his head, dropping the question. “At least her visit made Pinkie happy again,” he stated with a shrug.Pinkies actions in my house spoke otherwise. “It didn’t cheer her up, Spike. She was talking about being lonely at my house after asking Raul to be her special somepony.”Spike shrugged, “Meh, if there’s a problem with that, I don’t see it. I’m in love with Rarity. The side effects of her being a ghoul actually work out for us since she gets to live over two hundred more years.”Jason added his opinion, “That just leaves Twilight and Applejack who’s not in a relationship, or married.”Spike rolled his eyes and scoffed, “Twilight works too much to get romantically involved with anypony. She did talk a lot about that Cour-” A purple flash interrupted him, and a drowsy looking Twilight appeared, letting out a massive yawn, which Leo and Rattles copied.She wasn’t facing us fully when she spoke, her voice strained with another yawn, “Hey Spike, hey Fluttershy, Jason, Leo, Night-” She spun to face us, “Nightstalker!”Rattles let out a happy bark and rolled over. Leo, who was holding onto his new best friend like a tick, was flipped over by the roll, presenting his belly with a wing pinned under the Nightstalker’s back.Leo was unfazed by the sudden change in direction, just giggling as he spoke, “Princess Twilight, this is my new best friend, Mr. Rattles.” Leo pulled himself from under the Nightstalker and began to rub Rattles’ belly, who, kicked and panted like an actual dog.Twilight shook her head rapidly to wake herself up, “Did you get your son a Nightstalker? Where did you even get one in the first place?”Jason answered for me, “A family moving to town hit him with their wagon. Leo managed to prove that Fluttershy’s gift for talking to animals is genetic.”Twilight did a double take, her mouth opening in surprise, “That would explain the cutie mark.” She then smiled, “You should be proud Fluttershy, he’s one of the youngest foals ever recorded to figure out what their talent is at such a young age.”Leo gave a chuckle, “Mommy says I’m special.” Leo stopped rubbing Rattles’ belly long enough for the Nightstalker to lick his face and be rewarded with laughs and a belly scratch.“And for once,” Twilight sighed, “I’m too tired to react like the world will end if I don’t do something. Chrysalis was probably leeching off my love for you guys the whole time I was talking with-” She stopped abruptly and quickly teleported away.Then, just as fast as she left, she returned, “Okay, whew, for a second I thought she somehow managed to feed with a null-ring on her horn, but I’m just fatigued. I’ll worry about this when I’m not ready to pass out from exhaustion again.”Suddenly, Rainbow Dash crashed through the window and managed to hit Twilight. Leo and Rattles made yelps that sounded similar to each other’s, I dove to protect Leo from shards of glass that never came, and Spike and Jason stood there like they knew it was going to happen.The crash didn’t stop the cyan mare from speaking to Twilight, who was pinned under her on her back, “Twilight, thank goodness you’re here. I’ve got a problem, a big one.”“Changelings?” Twilight gasped in shock, shoving Rainbow off of her and standing up.Rainbow shook her head, “No. Some unicorn is passed out on the edge of town, and from the twelve-gauge on her hip, I doubt she’s from here.”Twilight shook her head, groaning in frustration, “I’ll grab my power armor. I’ll worry about the Nightstalker later.”“I’m coming with you,” I shouted, as I followed Twilight.

<>~<>~<>

It didn’t take long for Twilight, Rainbow, and I to get to the unconscious mare, everyone else staying behind at the library. It seemed that nopony else had found her, as she was still lying on the side of the road. She was dressed in a skin-tight brownish-yellow suit with four black boots and black armor, as well as a double barreled shotgun in a holster on her left flank.Her fur was a soft blue, almost the color of Rainbow Dash, and her short mane was black as pitch.I gasped when she groaned, then looked towards us. Her face a jigsaw puzzle of scars, even her neck wasn’t spared from a dull pink line running across it.I couldn’t see Twilight’s expression under her power helmet, but her voice shook with fear, “Oh no, those scars…” She shivered in her power armor. Removing her helmet, Twilight rushed over to the mare who was struggling to get onto her hooves.As soon as the mare looked at her forelegs and saw her hooves, she screamed in fright and fell on her side, fainting.Twilight levitated the shotgun away from the mare, passing the weapon to Rainbow Dash. Levitating the mare in her magic, she floated the Wastelander over to me, and set her on my back.To my surprise, once she was laying on me, I could tell how small she was. She was much shorter than average, probably halfway between the size of a teen and an adult pony.“Twilight, is she hurt?” I asked.Twilight shook her head, her horn still casting a spell, “No, I can’t detect anything wrong with her. It appears she just passed out.”Going from human to equine must be a real shock.Speaking of shock, instead of walking back to the library, Twilight teleported all four of us back to the middle of it. Scaring everyone except Leo and Rattles, as the former was busy riding the latter, yelling “Giddyup,” blissfully unaware of the mare we brought with us.I carefully set her down on the table, which Twilight had cleared of the wooden horsehead statue, allowing Spike to get a look at the several cuts lining her face.“Whoa, what happened to her?” Spike asked, then jerked at her outfit, “Another one of the ponies you brought back with you?”Twilight shook her head, “We found her outside of town, and when she looked at herself, she screamed like she didn’t know what she was.”The mare groaned and tried to roll, but I placed a hoof against her shoulder so she wouldn’t fall off the table.She looked around, blinked twice, then spotted Leo riding Rattles. For some reason, she let out a loud laugh, “Oh man, what did I get drugged with?”Twilight stepped into her view, “I’m afraid this isn’t the effects of drugs. You’re now an entirely different species in a completely different world.”She groaned, rolled her eyes, and sighed, “Guess that explains the hooves.” She tried to get up, but fell. I managed to catch her and set her upright.She looked around while I propped her up, but her eyes kept drifting back to Twilight. “Answer me this question: How did a Brotherhood Paladin get here?”That confirmed it beyond a shadow of a doubt, the Mojave Wasteland was coming back to haunt us.

Chapter 8: Peace

“You know,” Jason said, pulling closer on the bed to give me a kiss on my cheek and stroke my mane, “It’s times like these where I almost forget I was a human once.”

We were both in bed, Leo sleeping by himself in his room with Rattles guarding him. It was the day after all the craziness of both Rattles and the new mare from someplace called the Sierra Madre arriving. Christine Royce is who she had called herself.Hopefully today would be uneventful, so for the moment, we were just savoring a little ‘normal’ time under the covers. I smiled, pulling him closer as well, “I know. You say that often.”“I do?” He asked with a small laugh, “I must be the most forgetful stallion ever.”I quickly rolled and bopped his nose with a hoof, “You are,” I dove for a quick lip kiss. Pulling away, I blushed as I said, “But you make me the luckiest mare ever.”Jason leaned in for a kiss, but our bedroom door flew open. Leo charged through, along with Rattles, his collar rattling with a brass name tag. Both of them pounced upon the bed in unison, Leo snuggling against me, Jason getting a faceful of Nightstalker tongue.“Mommy, mommy, get up, get up!” Leo shouted, making me wince at the noise. Rattles barked and went back to licking Jason, who had an un-amused expression on his face.“Seriously?” Jason murmured as he pushed the overeager Nightstalker off of him. Rattles hopped off the bed, and then found his own tail more interesting than Jason. The big puppy ran in circles trying to catch up with the rattling appendage.Leo started pushing me out of bed, through struggling quite a bit. “Mommy, you promised,” he said disappointedly, before renewing his efforts, “Get up!”“And what was it you promised him?” Jason asked, arching an eyebrow.“Mommy promised to help me fly,” Leo answered with a large smile, his overeager energy not allowing me to get a word in edgewise.Jason smiled, “Oh, that was today? Guess it’s a mother’s responsibility to train their foals how to fly.”“Yes,” I nodded, “Leo does well on his own, but I need to start teaching him.” I motioned my hoof over to him, then I smiled at Jason, “You being an earth pony makes it hard for you to teach him.” I looked to Leo, “Are you ready?”“Yay,” Leo giggled, but stopped suddenly, rubbing his belly, “But breakfast first!”I rolled my eyes. He sure is his father’s child, the two mouths can eat one out of house-and-home.

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Jason and I made breakfast, asparagus with scrambled eggs and cheese, with a side of toast. The whole combination was a delicious dish that I had to try ever since Rarity lent me her cookbook. I had forgotten to return it so many times, that I probably had it for around a year.Once our breakfast was settled, Leo was bouncing off the walls with anticipation - quite literally since pegasi are capable of flight. He would run, jump, glide to a wall, then push himself back at high speed, while also getting air. A trick he taught himself, much to my horror.Gliding down from a wall jump he performed, I felt like I should at least see if he can manage indoor flight, before trying outside, which in hindsight was completely backwards. “Remember to flap your wings, Leo,” I shouted. Leo nodded mid flight and began flapping his wings. Unfortunately, they were off time with each other, and he spun out in the air, crashing into the living room couch and on top of Rattles, who was sleeping like a house dog would.The Nightstalker took his head and used it to nudge Leo off the couch. After landing on the floor, Leo sat on his haunches and crossed his forelegs. “That was mean,” Leo complained in a loud whine.Rattles let out a few barks and hisses.“That is not your couch, that’s mommy’s couch,” Leo complained with a small pout. The Nightstalker rolled his eyes, before rolling over to face the couch cushions.“Come on, Leo,” I said as I shook my head from side to side at the two’s antics. It was cute, my son and his first pet playing together. Luckily for me, Twilight was able to defang Rattles, as well as remove his venom glands. Now Rattles is just an above average on the dangerous list, not topping it off.Leo gave a nod, spun away from the couch, and lost his hoofwork. Only my son would be able to trip on nothing but air. To his credit though, he recovered and quickly sprinted over to me, grinning. “Can we fly now?” He asked innocently, but his eyes betrayed his dizziness.I laughed and led him out the door and onto the wooden porch with a wing, “Sure Leo, we’re going to fly far and fly fast.” Where on Equus did I hear that saying before? No, wait; it was a poster in the Mojave.“Is Daddy gonna watch?” Leo asked with an innocent smile as he practically pranced in place with enthusiasm, his little hooves clopping on the wood. His teal eyes were so full of wonder and excitement; I hated to give him the answer.“Sorry, but Daddy has to work.” My son’s smile disappeared as he frowned, leaving the comfort of my wing to mope on the grass.I walked off the porch and onto the green turf, hearing my son let out a sniffle. “But… Daddy promised,” Leo said as he looked up; a disappointed tremor in his voice. I could see tears in those eyes, and it was heartbreaking. Hugging him with my forelegs, I sighed.“Leo, I’m sorry Daddy has to work. But think of it this way, when Daddy comes home today, you can surprise him by flying.” I folded my back legs under me so I could crouch to eye level with my son.“Okay,” Leo said, nodding as his smile returned, but halfheartedly. I could tell it didn’t eliminate his disappointment, but managed to relieve some of it.“Now Leo, let’s start with the basics.”

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The two of us practiced for over an hour. After helping him get his wing flaps in sync with each other, Leo learned quickly the basics of how to take off, fly, and turn.I felt my heart soar when Leo jumped in the air own his own, flapped both of his wings in unison to gain height, then glided in a circle around me, laughing for the entirety of the trick. When he landed – a little roughly - I wrapped him in a hug, proud of him.“You can fly Leo!” I announced loudly with excitement.Leo broke away from my hug, singing loudly, “I can fly I can fly,” Before jumping in the air, flapping quickly to gain altitude. “I can fly, I can fly,” He continued to sing, but as fate would have it, he lost his wing work and crashed into the nearby dirt road. Sliding hard, I could only watch in horror. Leo quickly picked himself back up off the dirt, and scrunched his face in pain.Flying over to him, I nearly panicked when I saw the bleeding cut on his foreleg. He may have crimson fur, but any injury somehow stands out. “I have a boo-boo,” Leo said, tears of pain forming in his eyes as he sat on his haunches, showing me the small bleeding cut above his left forehoof. I could tell the cut stung as I wiped the dirt off as best as I could, and I gently kissed above the injury.“There,” I said softly, taking my son under a wing, “Mommy will make it all better.”He choked out a heart wrenching sob of pain, but tried to smile nonetheless. “Can Rattles kiss my boo-boo too?”“No,” I said with a laugh, “But Rattles can come to town with us to show off your new flying skills.”“Yay!” Leo shouted, my heart thudding with love as he punctuated his excitement with a jump into the air, and a flutter of his wings. I didn’t even have to teach him much, just work on his wing technique. He had watched enough of the other pegasi to figure out how to hover in the air.“But first, let’s get a bandage on that cut.”

<>~Leo’s PoV~<>

Inside our big house, Mommy wrapped one of my favorite smiley-face bandages on my boo-boo. It was after Mommy put this cold stuff on it, though. Ant-tie-something, Mommy called it. It was one of those words that made my tongue dance in my mouth and made me giggle when I tried to copy her.Mr. Rattles was still on the couch. The silly doggy was lazy, and could be a little mean – he pushed me off the couch - but I knew he was my best friend forever. He made my mark appear after all… butt tat-yous, Daddy called them. Mommy didn’t like when I called them that, but Daddy laughed whenever I did. I liked Daddy’s laugh, it made me feel like laughing as well.Since Mommy taught me how to fly, I spread my wings and jumped into the air; Mommy’s voice reminding me, “One, two, flap; one, two, flap.” Every time I thought ‘flap’ I was supposed to make both my wings move together, but it was hard to do. Still, I did it, and landed in front of the couch and my best friend.“Mr. Rattles,” I called out slowly, reaching a hoof out to touch him. I poked him once and backed away quickly. I wasn’t scared of my best friend, but Daddy didn’t seem to like him that much, and that made me worried. Did my best friend do something wrong? Should I not poke him when he is sleeping?Was it that he knew the bug lady? I shivered… why did the bug lady take me away from Mommy? I didn’t need to worry; my best friend would protect me with his sharp teeth.Trying to forget the bug lady, I poked my best friend’s side again. He rolled to face me and licked my face, causing me to giggle, and Mommy laughed. See Daddy, Mr. Rattles is my best friend.Daddy? I looked around, feeling sad now that I remembered he was at work… stupid work. Why does Daddy have to go there?“Mommy?” I asked, looking her in the eyes. Mommy said it was polite to look other ponies in the eyes when they spoke with you, and I didn’t want to make Mommy mad.“Yes, Leo?” She asked with a gentle smile.“Can we go to Work? Daddy’s there almost every day. I miss Daddy, and I want to show him I can fly now.” I said, only mixing up a few words. Mrs. Redheart says I can speak better than most other colts my age. I could tell; it was sometimes hard to understand Sissy when she talks… Mommy says it’s her act-scent.“If Daddy’s at the post-office, Leo,” Mommy told me, making me forget to ask her something about Sissy.“Yes!” I shouted, making Mommy wrap me in a warm hug when I flied again.

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The town was busy today, and I made sure to walk with Mommy instead of flying. Mr. Rattles was in front of us, keeping watch out for the bug lady amongst all the ponies. I didn’t want to get taken away again; it was scary in the dark cave. Mommy had to buy me a nightlight after I came back… I kept seeing bug lady in the shadows with her one, scary white eye. I didn’t tell Mommy bug lady bothered me though, it made Mommy sad.Feeling like bug lady was watching me, I shivered and stepped even closer to Mommy, bumping into her legs. “Sorry, Mommy,” I apologized after I made her stumble… it was an accident; I didn’t want her to be mad with me.“It’s okay, Leo,” Mommy said kindly as she put her soft wing over me, “Are you alright?”I shook my head, “No Mommy. Bug lady keeps scaring me.”Mommy stopped walking, and I heard her cry. Did I do that? I didn’t mean to make Mommy cry. “I’m sorry, Mommy,” I apologized.“No, don’t be,” Mommy said, hugging me harder with her wing, “I should have been watching you. Can you forgive me?”“Yes,” I said, though I didn’t know why. Why would I need to forgive Mommy? She wasn’t bug lady. I saw the bug lady hiding as Mommy, but I didn’t know it was bug lady. I just wanted to ask how she could look like my Mommy so well, even matching her hair and cutie marks.Bug lady magic, that’s how. Green as Mrs. Rarity’s magic… wait, does that mean she’s a bug lady too?“Thank you, Leo. Now let’s go see Pinkie for some treats.”“Yes!” I shouted, hoping I could get a cupcake with green and blue and red and white and yellow sprinkles. Wait…what was I thinking about before?Not important; I’m hungry.

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I had a cupcake; it was vanilla with chocolate frosting. I ate it while Mommy talked to Mr. and Mrs. Cake, along with Auntie Pinkie and Mr. Tejada. I was disappointed to find out Pound and Pumpkin were on a camping trip, so I sat quietly and listened to the grown-ups talk.“And you’re okay with this?” Mommy asked Mrs. Cake as I licked my cupcake paper clean of crumbs. She was talking about Auntie Pinkie and Mr. Tejada, but I didn’t know what it was about.“He may be an older stallion, but Pinkie’s old enough to make her own choices,” Mrs. Cake said.I had no idea what they were talking about, and I sighed. I was alone since Mr. Rattles and Chrome were busy chasing each other. The old grey dog could still keep up with Auntie Pinkie. He had to; Auntie was always acting silly and moving around really, really fast.“It’s strange,” Raul said, “But she feeds me cake. I’m not complaining.”All the adults laughed at Mr. Tejada’s joke, but I didn’t get it. Cake tastes good, why would you ever complain about it. Even though he was a little strange, I liked Mr. Tejada. He was nice, but looked funny, and sometimes spoke really fast backwards with Pinkie.Hole-ah, cola s-tah; Like that… but super-duper fast.Mr. Cake was the one who spoke next, “Raul, you’re a good stallion. Been here four years and my wife and I haven’t heard no ill about you. Isn’t that right, honey-bunny?”“Yes,” I heard Mrs. Cake say as she smiled, “You’re well mannered, respectable, and though you may be older than all of us combined, we know you’re a good stallion for our Pinkie Pie.”“Wow,” Mr. Tejada chuckled, “Is this washed up old man really that good of a stallion?” How old was Mr. Tejada? He told me once when I asked, but I couldn’t count that high, and I can count to a million-billion-zillion. Oh, a bug.“Hey there,” I whispered as the little beetle crawled over my cupcake paper, “You hungry?” I asked.The little bug stopped, and nodded. Mommy said animals understood me, that’s why Mr. Rattles and I are able to be bestest friends. At first I only thought Mr. Rattles could understand me, but then I was able to talk to Chrome.When we walked in, Chrome growled at Mr. Rattles, which was strange since Mr. Rattles is my friend. I told Chrome to calm down, and he said something about Nightstalkers to me, but Mr. Rattles was a dog.I’m getting distracted, my little bug friend is hungry. Looking back down, I let out a disappointed ‘aww’. My bug friend was gone. But then I felt better when I thought about him returning to his own Mommy.Wait… what if his Mommy is the mean bug lady?I really wanted Mr. Rattles close to me right now. He could protect me.“Leo, time to go,” Mommy called out; distracting me from the dark cave and bug lady.“Mr. Rattles,” I called, “Let’s go!” I hopped out of the booth I sat at. My best friend tackled me and gave me a lick. Then he sat on his haunches, wagging his rattle tail, letting me get back on my hooves. I patted his head as he panted his long fork-tongue, “Silly, doggy.”“We’re going to see Applejack and Tigris next; they both should be at their stall.”I nodded and hopped on Mr. Rattles back. He was a lot bigger than me, but that meant I could ride him when my hooves got tired. “Giddy up,” I said.Mr. Rattles said something about me being a silly hue-mane. I didn’t know what type of pony a hue-mane was, but Mommy tells me I’m a pegasus, and Mommy’s always right.

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“Sissy,” I called out as I jumped off Mr. Rattles and walked beside Mommy, keeping close until we reached the stand. I was taken by the mean bug lady disguised as Mommy when I tried to find the apple stand and Sissy on my own.Mommy says were half-siblings, and that Applejack is Sissy’s Mommy, but why if we’re brother and sister? How can my Daddy, be Sissy’s daddy, yet our Mommies be different?“Mommy,” I asked as we walked together towards the apple stand, “Where do babies come from?”Mommy stopped walking and her face turned red. She looked like that a lot when somepony asked her something. I didn’t know why. Though, Daddy likes to ask her things that made her turn red a lot.

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My face burned red with embarrassment. I could feel other ponies looking at me as Leo waited patiently for my answer. Why did he have to ask that question now?“Um,” I muttered, “I’ll tell you when you’re older.” I was going to tell him. But not right now.“Okay,” Leo muttered, but he instantly perked back up when ‘Sissy’ called his name.“Hey, Shy,” Applejack said, “What brings ya by my stand?”“I’m actually here to ask if you can watch Leo tomorrow.”“Why?” Applejack asked, leaning closer curiously.“Surprise Cutie Mark Party for Leo,” I whispered, “Pinkie already had it planned out, she just needed the where and when.” Our stop at Sugarcube Corner wasn’t just for treats. I most likely would never stop just to get treats; Leo gets a little wound up after a load of sugar.The kamikaze pegasus colt I had to duck out of the way from only proved my point. Said colt landed in a patch of flowers belonging to Lily, one of the town’s florists.“By gosh, he’s flying now ain’t he?” Applejack asked with a small chuckle.I nodded, “Just taught him how to beat his wings in time, and he literally took off on his own.” I gasped when I saw an angry florist, “I have to go, Lily doesn’t look to happy to have Leo in her garden.”Running over to the patch of lilies Leo landed in, my son was acting like he was sleeping, letting out fake snores as Lily glared at him menacingly.“Leo, what are you doing?” I asked, Lily still glaring at us both.Leo sprang to his hooves, “Look mommy, I’m Rainbow Dash!” Leo announced loudly as he jumped into the air once more. Looking at me, Leo smiled, “Catch me if you can, Mommy.”“Sorry, Lily,” I said quickly as I took off after my son, the florist laughing as Rattles chased us on the ground.All that the chase through town needed was some fitting music.

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I feel old. I’m only twenty five, and my three and a half year old son can outfly me. I was currently panting for air as I landed, Leo prancing around me, laughing in the middle of the street. At least he seemed to have forgotten about Chrysalis, for now. Unfortunately, Leo accidentally knocked into Christine, sending her to the ground, before I was able to catch up.“I am so sorry Leo ran into you, Christine,” I apologized to the light blue unicorn mare as she got back to her hooves, albeit shakily. It took me a while to readjust back to walking on four legs after my time as a human, and I guessed it took her a while to learn how to walk.She just stayed silent, only giving me a nod in response.“So, Christine,” I said, trying for small talk, “How is it at Twilight’s?” Twilight had offered Christine a place to stay in the library after her arrival. Rainbow Dash, the others, and I didn’t stay to talk with her long after we brought her to the library. Twilight wanted to give her some time to adjust, away from others.I could guess she was adjusting well, already foregoing clothes, which revealed a cutie mark in the shape of a pony outline. I could guess her special talent was being invisible, or silent, since she hadn’t spoken a word to me yet.Christine shrugged, smiling. I guess it is silence that she was good at.“Read any good books?”Christine shook her head no.“And why not?” I asked, arching my brow, “It is a library after all.”She sighed, shaking her head, “Because I can’t read,” she said in her soft, beautiful voice. I let out a sharp gasp, “I try to, but all the letters and words get jumbled up. Twilight says it’s my head trauma.”“I’m so, so, sorry. I didn’t know,” I apologized. I didn’t want to offend her, because if I offended her then we would never be friends, and I wanted her as a friend.“It’s alright,” She said in a forgiving tone, much to my relief, “You couldn’t have known. Twilight’s already set up an appointment with a…” she paused for a brief second, “Nurse Redheart.” She said, speaking slowly.I smiled widely, “She can be a bit grouchy, but don’t let that spoil the first time you meet her. She’s the best nurse around, having more experience than most of the doctors, and the long hours she works wear on her nerves. She’s a really nice mare after you get to know her.”“I’ll keep that in mind,” Christine said with a nod, before turning to walk away.“Hey,” I called, catching her attention. Leo was a good distance away, riding Rattles like a pack Brahmin so he wouldn’t overhear, “Leo, my son, is having his cutie mark party soon. Maybe you should come? Twilight will most likely be there.”She shook her head, “I don’t like crowds. Or noise.”“Please,” I said, smiling, “It will be a good way for you to adjust to Equestria. Get to know everypony who will be there.”Christine rolled her eyes, “Fine,” she said chuckling, “How can I resist attending the party of a kid? Just don’t let that Pinkie Pie get ahold of me, I nearly had a heart attack from her attacking me with party supplies,” she chuckled, rubbing the back of her head and knocking some confetti out of her mane, “She’s worse than the Ghost People on a Tuesday… never knew why that day always had them riled up.”“Have you asked Twilight about going back… to the Madre?” I asked at her mentioning of the Ghost People. From what little time the others and I were with her, she mentioned a horrible, horrible, scary place called the Sierra Madre. It was filled with poison gas, zombies in suits, killer holograms, and radios that only played static.Christine nodded, “Yes, but since that Nightstalker your son keeps as a pet and I appeared randomly, she doesn’t want to compound the problem by sending me back. Plus she doesn’t know where the Madre is. I probably couldn’t find it again on my own, so I may never see it again,” she sounded… sad that she was away from the Madre.“Do you want to go back? From what you said yesterday, the Sierra Madre is super scary.”Christine shrugged and sighed while shaking her head, “I’m not actually sure. I do, then I don’t. The Sierra Madre is a lonely place, but after all I’ve been through and done, and having Vera Keyes’ voice, I feel like I belong there, silently watching as I have for the past four years. But this town, I’m starting to feel welcomed. No one here knows my past, or what I’ve done, and they don’t ask. Even with these horrid scars, they treat me like family. I walked into the Café, and the owner didn’t even give me a second glance.”I gave a chuckle, “This is Ponyville, strange and unusual seems to happen on a near weekly basis. My three and a half year old owns a Nightstalker, and nopony cares. The local princess builds armor in her basement, and the Everfree sends us the occasional monster. You’ll find that we’re quite jaded to the unusual.”Leo jumped on my back, “What’s a Nightstalker?”“Mr. Rattles is a Nightstalker. As a matter of fact, where is he?” I asked as I didn’t see him anywhere.“He’s right between us, sitting,” Christine said with a small chuckle.Looking down, I saw the shimmering air, just before Rattles reappeared out of thin air, “Wha-?” I mumbled out, more confused than shocked.“Nightstalkers sometimes can turn invisible.” Christine told me.Oh, lucky me. My son owns a coyote-snake dog that can also turn invisible. I do not need Rainbow Dash or Pinkie Pie teaching Leo how to prank.

Chapter 9: Party

<>~Applejack’s PoV~<>

It was morning at around six thirty when the rooster crowed, causing me to open my eyes slowly. My sleep faded some more as the rooster crowed again, giving me enough energy to shift in bed. The smell of cooking eggs, fresh brewed coffee, and the crackle of a frying pan woke me up completely. Looking to my right, I let out a sigh at the empty place next to me.

For almost four years since my daughter was born, I had been waking up to a bed without a stallion to act as her father. Big Macintosh was just fine, but he was my brother.Rolling out of bed, I landed on my four hooves and walked over to my bedroom mirror. My long blond mane and tail were let down from their usual ponytails, and needed to be combed from tossing and turning, my dreams ranging from sweet as sugar to horrid as Hell.Ignoring the bad dreams - they weren’t really nightmares - I asked myself something important… Could I do it today? Make myself presentable, go outside without my clothes, and try to find a stallion to help raise my daughter?My exposed orange coat in the mirror only made me look down with a pained wince. I couldn’t… no stallion would ever want me after what Orion did to me.A few steps over to my dresser, I pulled out a pair of pink panties, jeans, and a blue button-up shirt, courtesy of Rarity. Without clothing, I just felt exposed, like anypony could see under my tail and tell what happened. Worse, not only was I the toy for Orion’s pleasure; I had failed to protect Fluttershy. My failure ended with both of us in that same cage.I had been ashamed of myself every day since then. Every time I look in the mirror, I only see a pony who failed miserably to defend herself, and her friend.I had already dressed in my panties and jeans by the time Tigris opened the door. My daughter slowly trotted in, unsure if I was awake. She spotted me and ran while I was partially done buttoning up my shirt, hugging my bright orange forelegs with her own rust-colored reddish-orange forelegs.“Mornin’ Mommy,” Tigris said in her cute accent, almost sounding like Applebloom at her age. For that moment, I forgone my self-loathing and smiled.“Good mornin’, Tigris,” I said, my mood brightening with every second she was with me. Tigris was probably the only thing keeping me together; reminding me that I wasn’t a total failure. So far, everypony – especially Granny – was telling me I was raising her up right. Granny might not have approved of me having Tigris out of wedlock, but after I broke down and told the truth about what happened, Granny understood and set her stubbornness aside to help me with my daughter.The heavy clip-clop of hooves outside my door alerted me to Big Macintosh’s presence, and my old door creaked open once more as Macintosh entered.He nodded and spoke, “Sis, breakfast is ready.” He looked down and smiled at his young niece before leaving. Words couldn’t describe how shocked, horrified, and excited he was to be an uncle after I returned home. He also was angry with Jason for obvious reasons, but then the anger towards him turned to seething hatred for the Legion.Finishing with buttoning my shirt, I crouched low, Tigris hopping on my back for a ride with a smile inducing giggle. Fluttershy was right about family, they help make the pain bearable. She deserves Jason, and I know he wants to help raise his daughter. A selfish part of me wanted a stallion as well. Somepony to wake up beside and know that no matter what happened to me, he’d love me.Shoving those thoughts to the back of my mind, I left my room, went down the stairs, and entered the kitchen. In our kitchen we had a large dining table and five chairs. Applebloom was already in her chair, dressed in that brown duster coat and fake Ranger armor Rarity had made for her. Granny and Big Macintosh were humming together, working at the woodstove cooking what smelled like pancakes.I didn’t have to tell Tigris to get off my back. When there’s food around, she moves faster than lightning. My daughter hopped off my back, ran and climbed in her chair, patiently awaiting her food. Even though she was running a mile-a-minute, her hooves didn’t even make a sound on the wooden floor.She may not speak that well, but she learned fast how to move quickly and quietly.As I sat at the table, Big Macintosh and Granny set the plates down. Each one held scrambled eggs and grits, along with two pancakes, so my sense of smell told me right. Tigris’ plate only had one small pancake, covered in butter and syrup.We didn’t speak while eating breakfast; we had to go ahead and chow down our food to beat the coming daytime heat. Well, most of us didn’t speak. “Uncle Mack, drink coffee?” Tigris asked, holding out her forehooves like she was reaching for the mug my brother held.Big Macintosh chuckled and took a sip from his mug, “Enope.”“But-”“Nope,” Big Macintosh restated. Tigris looked down, pursing her lips in an almost cute pout.“Big Macintosh,” I asked, catching his attention before I continued, “why don’t we let her try it? She might not like it.”My brother rolled his eyes and slid Tigris his half empty mug across the table. He liked it black as tar, but me, I prefer iced-tea over that bland mug of bitter that he calls a suitable drink.Tigris took the cup in her hooves, taking a big sip; she made a spitting sound as she scrunched her face at the bitter taste. Then she drank the rest down and asked for more.“My great granddaughter is a country girl through and through,” Granny commented with a few chuckles, taking her own seat at the head of the table behind an almost literal mountain of pancakes.

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Breakfast was finished shortly after I discovered Tigris liked coffee. We all headed outside to do the day’s work, Applebloom running off towards my old treehouse ready to try and earn her cutie mark again with her crusader friends. For land’s sake I hoped she didn’t try and get her cutie mark as an NCR Ranger again.Still, they no longer had trouble getting called Blank Flanks by Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon. Shortly after donning their Ranger Armor for the first time, Sweetie Belle broke Diamond Tiara’s nose after she made a snide comment about Rarity’s scars.I’m not one to promote violence, but the filly had it coming after all the grief she gave my little sis. Still, they’re fifteen, they should have had their marks long ago.Ignoring the notion my sister may never get her cutie mark, I neared the barn, there Tigris and I began dragging out buckets to take to the orchard as Macintosh loaded the apple cart. It was his turn to stock and run the stall in town today. After dragging out twenty buckets, we set them in groups of five under different trees.Shortly after placing the last bucket, Tigris did something she never done before. Spinning on her forehooves, she bucked, completely missing the tree and falling flat on her belly. “Whoops,” she giggled, “I misted, Momma.”“You missed,” I corrected with a humourous grunt. According to Nurse Redheart, her speech was developing at an average pace, but not as fast as Leo who was speaking in fluent sentences. Fluttershy was supposed to be bringing him around twelve today, so the party could get set up and started around four o’clock and end a few hours later.“I missed,” Tigris said correctly. Planted her little forehooves on the ground, she bucked again, hitting the tree. A single apple fell, hitting me square in the hat. The reason it was ready to fall from the soft buck was because it was rotten, and splattered to applesauce when it hit me. The result was Tigris rolling on the ground in a giggling fit.“Apple hit you, momma.”“Yes, an apple hit me,” I laughed, shaking bits of rotten apple off of me and smiling with pride, “My daughter, a true Apple to the core.”Together under the hot summer sun, we bucked the apple trees, every one of the red fruits falling down and collecting into the buckets we had placed around. Midway through finishing up our second tree, Tigris stole an apple from a bucket and took a large bite of the fruit.My heart jumped when she started hacking, having bit off more than she could chew. Thankfully by the time I reached her, she coughed up the wad of apple.“Slow down,” I warned, “Take small bites, ya nearly gave me a heart attack.”She nodded, catching her breath after all the coughing, “Yes, momma,” she responded. Then she took a smaller bite. A really small bite; almost to the point I wouldn’t consider it a bite, having broke the skin of the apple and barely bringing any of the fruit with it.

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After half an hour and ten buckets of apples later, Granny walked up with glasses of iced tea on a plate she carried, Winona following her and barking happily. Four years ago she was a playful puppy. Now she was an even bigger, playful goofball the size of my daughter, which was smaller than the human world’s dogs. Twilight figured up that ponies averaged waist height when compared to a human, and the now adult Winona was only knee high to me.“I brought some drink for my grand-fillies,” Granny said with a motion to the plate resting on her back.“Thanks, Granny,” I told her as I took a glass.“Thanks, Granny,” Tigris said, taking her own glass in hoof.Granny nodded, “That’s some mighty fine work young’uns. Do ya’ think you could go ahead n’ paint the barn?”Aw shucks, that was on today’s chore list? If I go ahead and stop picking apples, since we have more than enough for tomorrows cart to town, I could get the barn painted.“Okay,” I said with a nod. “I guess we can since you went through the trouble t’ bring us this delicious iced-tea,” I said jokingly.Granny rolled her eyes and laughed, letting us finish our tea before taking the glasses back inside.

<>~<>~<>

Two or three hours later, it was hard to tell since we had no clocks outside, our coats were a different array of colors. It varied from our natural coats, to red, white, and a bit of yellow. Even after our new coats of paint, we were only quarter-way finished by the time Fluttershy arrived with Leo and that Nightstalker.Fluttershy trusted it, and with her ability to talk to animals, as well as Leo’s ability, I had no reason not to. Still, I kept a watchful eye on the thing.Upon our two kids seeing each other, screaming, playing, and all around chaos happened as they ran around the barn.“Howdy, Shy,” I greeted with a wave, Leo flying over my head to tackle Tigris. She retaliated by kicking him off with her hind legs, sending the pegasus into a tailspin that landed him in a pile of hay.Fluttershy winced at the roughhousing but greeted me, saying, “Hello, Applejack. I’m so sorry I forgot to mention you’d have to keep Rattles as well,” she shrunk to hide behind her mane, ears splaying back.I looked at the Nightstalker, who yawned and rolled on his back, showing me his fleshy belly while scratching his scaled back on the grass. The thing could be cute, if you could ever call the slap together of two varmints cute. All the dangerousness of a rattlesnake, and the tendency to eat your chickens of a coyote, all shoved into one animal. Nightstalkers, I realized, were an animal derived from a farmer’s worst Nightmare.Still, it somehow managed to look maybe possibly a-little-bit cute.“I don’t mind, Shy,” I said, waving my hoof. The still somewhat shy mare looked back from behind her mane, her old scar showing slightly before she could cover it over with mane, “How’ve you been?”“Leo kept me up half the night on a cupcake fueled ceiling crawling spree. He used to do that when he was a little colt, but he got too heavy for his wings. Now I created my own personal monster,” She giggled, “I loved every minute of it. At first it was annoying, but as soon as he started giggling, it turned into a fun game of upside-down chase. Jason, being the heavy sleeper he is, slept through it all.”The bright, motherly smile on her face was contagious, showing on my face as I told her, “Tigris tried apple bucking today. She knocked one apple off the tree.”“Oh my, that’s wonderful!” Fluttershy exclaimed in joy as her eyes went wide.“Well,” I said blushing and rubbing the back of my head, “It was a rotten one, and splattered on my head.”“Oh,” Fluttershy said, her smile fading slightly. It returned along with giggles, “But you have to admit, that’s so adorable.”If she thought a single rotten apple was adorable, she should see Tigris trying to paint. She had put almost as much paint on herself as she did the barn.Fluttershy looked down and shook her head slowly, “Sorry, Applejack, but I have to go help set up the party. Sugarcube Corner at four, I’ll come and pick up both Leo and Rattles… oh, and he can turn invisible.”“What?” I asked, arching my brows, but Fluttershy took off in a hurry. I swore she said – Rattles appeared out of thin air – invisible.Did Fluttershy just pull a Rainbow Dash so she wouldn’t have to explain the question?I shook my head while grinding a hoof against my forehead, “This is gonna be one of those day’s ain’t it?” I asked the Nightstalker.Rattles just flopped over and presented his belly to me again, Leo and Tigris were still playing in circles around the barn.I sat on the grass a few minutes, absentmindedly scratching the Nightstalker’s warm belly while watching Leo occasionally fly to get an edge over his faster sister. For a full blooded earth pony, Tigris was built for speed: fast as well as powerful.“Hey, Momma,” I jumped in surprise, turning to face Tigris. She was also built for stealth, easily sneaking up on me on multiple occasions.“Hey, little sugarcube,” I said. I was too focused on Leo’s almost graceful flying to notice her sneak up behind me.“Tag!” Yelled Leo as he tapped his sister on the head, flying off at high speed. He attempted to turn mid-flight. He failed spectacularly with an almost filly-like squeal of shock, and landed in the same pile of hay Tigris kicked him into. Tigris ran past me, dove into said pile of hay, yelled ‘Tag’, and ran back out.

<>~Fluttershy’s PoV~<>

“So Fluttershy,” Pinkie said with a smile, “You want this party to be great, or abso-positutely-beyond-all-shadow-of-a-doubt the best-gosh-darn party ever?” She had to pant upon finishing the entire sentence, Raul chuckling and patting her on the back.“Dios mío,” Raul groaned, “Hablas Pinkie rápido.”“I do not talk fast,” Pinkie shot back, her smile growing impossibly wide, cluing me in on what Raul had said, “I just get super excited.” Pinkie was practically bouncing with enthusiastic energy, “This is Leo’s one and only cute-ceañera, and in the words of a neurotic Twilight, ‘Everything, must be,perfect.’”“The second option please,” I said with a nod, “If that isn’t too much trouble.” I let some of my old timidness resurface for effect.“Okie-Dokie-Loki!” Pinkie Pie beamed as she leapfrogged over Raul, eliciting a chuckle from the ghoul. Now standing beside me, Pinkie pulled out her party cannon, pressing the oversized pink button on top with a hoof. The relatively large cannon roared with the sound of party horns as confetti and other party supplies landed perfectly on tables.It took only minutes for the entire party to be set up. Pinkie was a flurry of movement with her cannon, Mr. and Mrs. Cake started baking new treats for the coming party, all the while Raul and I stood with nothing really to do but talk.“So,” I began, “How are you and Pinkie doing?”“Well,” Raul started, smiling at the question, “So far, I feel better with her than I felt in over two hundred years. Pinkie actually manages to make me feel like I’m the young man I used to be. Last night, we sat for hours in one of the booths talking about everything. I have no doubt in my mind we can work as a couple.”“That’s great,” I said, looking down to the floor to see Chrome curled up.“Hey Chrome, how are you feeling?”The silver colored ex-Legion Mongrel didn’t even regard me, making Raul chuckle at my dissapointment.“Don’t fret about Chrome. Pinkie told me he sleeps half the day. He’s old and worn out, a bit like me,” Raul chuckled at his own remark about his age.Pinkie zipped over to us, giving raul a light kiss on the cheek, and whispering quickly in his ear something Spanish. I couldn’t understand it, but from Raul’s blush, I could tell I didn’t want to know.Going back to her party cannon blasting, Pinkie had the entire decorations of the party set up in minutes instead of the hour or so I thought it would take.

<>~<>~<>

Walking into the farmhouse of Sweet Apple Acres, I looked to the couch beside the door and gasped. Applejack was clothless, covered in dry red paint, and caked in dirt. All the while my son and his half-sister were chasing each other around the house, occasionally stopping to fight.They did a lot of that, tackling and grappling unlike other foals their age I knew of. My best guess for their constant tussles was that it was the human in them showing.Looking down at Applejack, I started giggling. I was going to say something witty…“Please don’t start with me,” she said, both tired and annoyed, “I had a long day.”I wasn’t offended by her tone of voice, I knew what it was like to be worn out and have your temper on a hair trigger. The terrible twos with Leo was the most stress I had ever felt, even going above the stress of participating in the tornado to get water from the reservoir to the clouds.Applejack let out a groan, and the retelling of all that happened began, “First, their tag game lasted a solid five minutes before I was trespassing in the land of King Rattles. Leo and Tigris used a few empty apple baskets and Applebloom’s wooden wagon to construct some sort of a hasty fort against the side of the barn. I don’t know which young'uns idea it was, but Leo crowned Rattles king with a old metal lunch pail.”I let out a laugh, Leo was in the fort building stage of foalhood, constantly stealing covers, pillows, and couch cushions to form plushy walls and barricades to defend Baron Daddy from Mrs. Eagle. I was the villain responsible for tearing down the walls, my son running away from me in a screaming and laughing fit.As I was reminiscing, Applejack continued, “Then they started playing tag again, deciding to drag me into the game. I tripped over one of the paint buckets we had set to paint the barn, accidentally coloring myself red even through my clothes.”I had to suppress a giggle so I wouldn’t make the tired mare angry.“After that, it was hide-and-go seek, which was extremely difficult since we added Rattles to our little game. I only found him by tripping over him, which the still-then wet paint collected a gosh-darned absurd amount of dirt and leaves.”“Where is Rattles?” I asked, arching my brow when I realized he wasn’t in here.Leo overheard my question and ran over to me, “With Winona Mommy; I played preacher so they can be mommy and daddy now.”I let out an “eep,” that matched my priceless look of of horror. Tigris and Leo ran off again to play some more.“Eeyup,” Applejack said in the trademark style of her brother, “Be careful what you say and do ‘round your son. Kid’s got an imagination on him.”I shook the dumbfounded look off my face and rolled my eyes, “I know. Why don’t you think I haven’t brought him to Rainbow’s cloud house?”“Other than the fact that when Rainbow and Nolan ain’t ruttin’, they’re sleepin’,” Applejack’s voice dripped with sarcasm, “I have no idea.”It was extremely awkward when Rainbow began giving me ‘tips’ on how to do certain things; but hey, Jason’s not complaining.I winced at the crash of something heavy sounding, running off to catch the kids, all the while Applejack tried to peel herself off the couch with a grunt.

<>~<>~<>

I couldn’t find Winona and Rattles, so Leo, Applejack, Tigris, and I had to run to Sugarcube Corner without them, which disappointed both Leo and Tigris.Opening the door to the sweet shop, the inside was dark, but not for long.The lights snapped on with a loud clack, followed by the cliche, “Surprise,” from everypony already in attendance. A banner attached to one of the decorative interior archways read, “Congratulations on the Cutie Mark, Leo!”“Wow,” Leo exclaimed in awe as he looked around at all the balloons, bright colored boxes, and ponies, smiling like the colt he was.Leo ran past me to hug Jason, laughing and smiling. I noticed a small grimace from Applejack, but she tried to hide it by smiling.Also in attendance were Rainbow Dash and her husband Nolan Dash – they both decided to keep Dash as their last names – were talking. I nearly gasped upon seeing Rainbow’s combed and evenly cut mane and tail, along with a simple dress for social events. To me it seemed that the girliness Rarity lost on becoming a Marked Mare – she often referred to herself as one – found the normally tomcoltish Rainbow.Discord also made an appearance while disguised as a normal pony, and apologized about leaving after Leo was taken. I, of course, forgave him and Leo’s shout of uncle could be heard over the sound of the crowd and music.My eyes then landed on Rarity. Even with half her face torn down to muscle, she was unafraid to be seen, and was talking with Christine, as well as Twilight.I stayed near the wall, watching my son enjoy himself with his hard working father. Being an mailpony without the aid of wings requires a lot of walking, meaning a lot of times Jason was too tired to play with Leo, but he did his best. A few minutes in the door opened and I cast a glance towards whom it was, gasping as Princess Celestia stepped inside.The music cut off, stopping the party as most ponies bowed low and respectful, leaving Jason, Raul, Christine, and Twilight standing. The former three had no idea it was custom to bow to Celestia, and the latter was of equal status.“There is no need to bow, my subjects. I am here to enjoy the company of my wonderful little ponies,” Celestia said as she waved a hoof, allowing Luna to enter.The party started off full swing again shortly after Celestia and Luna’s arrival. Leo was smiling and dancing as the CMC’s congratulated him, Tigris keeping close to Leo.Applejack was sitting on a barstool, sipping a glass of punch as she kept a watch on Tigris.Music and games were had, Pinkie playing the same song she performed on a phonograph when parasprites came to town, and danced with Leo, his giggles of joy their own music to my ears.Walking closer to Rarity, Twilight, and Christine, Princess Celestia joined us. I wanted to cower away from Celestia, but I knew I didn’t need to fear.“Hello, you must be Christine,” Celestia said. Her eyes didn’t read judgement or curiosity, they held the same love she shown all of us. Even with Christine’s horrible facial scars, her eyes passed no judgement.Christine gave a nod, even with her shorter than average stature, she held no fear in her tone, “Yes. I am honored to speak to you, Princess, Twilight wouldn't stop giving me every little detail about you.”“Oh, I’m sure she has.” Celestia asked with a chuckle, “I nearly helped raise her from the amount of times she refused to leave school grounds to sleep. If I am not mistaken by Twilight’s almost constant stream of letters the last few days, you yourself have taken a grasp to magic quite quickly.”Christine nodded, “I wanted to help her try and understand why I appeared in this world, so I learned magic. Surprisingly, I haven’t had too much difficulty understanding the basics under Twilight’s tutelage. It’s all concentration and focus.”Celestia nodded, “Good. Are you enjoying the kingdom?”Christine shrugged, “It’s strange seeing the sun again, but I’m adapting. Your subjects are very well mannered and unconcerned with my scars.”“LET US PARTAKE IN THE DANCING!” Luna bellowed with a raise of her hoof, making me cover my ears. Celestia rolled her eyes and apologized, making her way over to Luna to teach her how to act in public.

<>~<>~<>

It was almost an hour into the party when everypony froze in shock. Out of nowhere, a blue light, like that of a firefly, appeared hovering almost a meter off the floor.Princess Celestia and Luna scanned the blue light with their magic, coming up with the only conclusion of it being solely magic in origin.Squinting to get a better look, the blue light grew rapidly in size, making me - and most of the other ponies - gasp as it shifted to an eerie blue glow. For the briefest of seconds, I saw a strange human turning to white-blue ashes. The ashes shifted as if a wind had caught them, sending them flying toward the blue. The ghostly blue light winked out just in time for the newcomer turned pony to slam into Applejack, pinning her in a compromising looking position.With a pained grunt, the human I saw turn to ash and reform like a phoenix blinked, looked at Applejack with dark brown eyes and spoke in a low, rumbling voice, “What in the name of Joshua Graham’s God just happened?”“You tell me, but first, get off’a me!” Applejack yelled, pushing against the stallions chest with her hooves. He looked down, seeming to notice for the first time that he had her pinned. His black and white striped cheeks turned red as he hastily backed away from her.Wait... black and white?The human turned zebra got off of Applejack quickly, but had trouble trying to move his legs. His long, sleeveless black duster bore saddlebags: one had a black respirator - like a painter would wear - attached to it, and the other bore a golden bull against a red flag.Sweetie Belle - I guess Rarity had told her who she fought - noticed the symbol just as soon as I did, gasping in shock and pointing.“Legion,” she seethed as she pointed a hoof threateningly at the golden bull plastered to the saddlebag.A dark blue aura ripped the zebra into the air by his neck, Princess Luna staring him right into the eyes. The zebra clawed at the aura of magic with his hooves, desperately trying to breath. Luna barely gave his struggles a glance, tightening her hold if anything.Her voice came out low, seething with barely contained hatred. I could almost imagine Nightmare Moon speaking the words Luna spoke as her eyes narrowed to slits, “Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t trap you in an endless nightmare for all the pain your Legion has caused.”“Sister, calm down!” Celestia warned, stepping towards Luna, “There are children here. Withhold your temper.”Luna grit her teeth and I could see the zebra’s skin clamp tighter around his neck as he struggled for air. She blinked, and let go of him with a heavy sigh. The zebra fell to the ground, coughing loudly as he massaged his neck with a hoof.“The rage in you burns like fire,” the zebra wheezed, breathing hard as he glanced up to Luna, his eyes holding regret, “and it is true that I deserve it.”“I know that voice,” Rarity said, walking through the crowd of ponies with a look of astonishment, passing Luna to stand a few feet away from the zebra.The zebra weakly faced Rarity, staring at her for a moment. “The half-marked from the Divide,” he noted with a grunt.“Darling,” Rarity spoke slow and coolly, a small smile forming, “It’s been far too long… Ulysses.”

Chapter 10: Ulysses

Chapter 10: Ulysses (Celestia’s PoV)

The wind whipped in my mane as two of my pegasi guard ponies flew Luna and I towards Ponyville on our royal chariot. I stared off into the distance, my mind wandering as we passed the rolling hills and fields of crops around us.

“Something on thy mind, sister?” Luna asked, slipping up with her proper speech as she tapped a hoof against my shoulder. Her face wore a look of deep concern for my absent minded gaze out the carriage.I nodded, “I’m stuck on what to do with Chrysalis.”The Changeling Queen was still in the Ponyville jail, her magic nulled by an enchanted horn ring. I also had to address the issue of the human and animal arriving from the Wasteland just two days ago.“Chrysalis attacked you, caused mass panic, and damaged half of Canterlot,” Luna pointed out with a sigh, “Then she foalnapped a mere thrice year old child.” I could feel her anger rising at that crime. In truth, that was the main one I felt she should be punished for.“Yes, she did,” I told Luna with a small sigh, “But she was desperate and mad from all the power she gained.”“Are you seriously considering pardoning her?” Luna gasped out in shock.“No, Luna,” I started, feeling regretful for what I was about to say, “We tried searching her out and attempting diplomacy, but she refuses. Those in her hive were following orders she gave, and I shall let them integrate into our society. As for Chrysalis herself, she must choose her words carefully in our next meeting. I would rather not have her hive to die out due to losing their queen.”“A most dreadful thought indeed, sister,” Luna said, her tone even but laced with a thought she considered. Luna was bad for not looking at ‘the big picture’ and not judging actions to their fullest.The changelings need their queen to reproduce, and without her or a replacement, the hive dies out. The frailty of the hive system was the thing keeping them hiding in the shadows all the years, the queen never making direct confrontation, Chrysalis being an exception.Luna smiled and waved a hoof at a gray pegasus flying upside down while carrying mail towards Canterlot. After the quick pass, Luna faced me, “Cheer up sister, we have a party to attend. Discord said that Fluttershy’s son attained his cutie mark at the age of three and a half.”Our trip was more than just dealing with Chrysalis. I was also going to meet with Christine, and the party served as the perfect lie/excuse to the nobles why I had to leave Canterlot. If I were to tell the truth and say I was leaving because beings from another world were coming through, Parliament would have my head.At the thought of seeing Twilight at the party, however, I spoke with a small smile, “I shall cheer up, my dearest Luna.”With our brief conversation coming to a close as we enjoyed the ride, I lost myself in thought once more.It’s been nearly four years. Four years my former student and her friends have suffered through their experiences. Just the mere glimpses of their nightmares let me know why Luna was sick and irritable for months after their return.And it was because of that which caused me to repeatedly deny Twilight’s plan of going back and fixing the broken world. It was poisoned and broken beyond help, and those I do send will most likely come back changed.I don’t want to send my little ponies to war. Luna could barely handle fighting nightmares, what could a mere pony do in an actual confrontation with the enemies of Rarity’s dreams.I gave a shiver at the severed limbs, bloodstained corpses, and bodies hanging from chains and hooks.Rarity, out of all the other mares, concerned me the most. Twilight, in a letter retelling the events of the Mojave, said that Rarity temporarily went insane to a condition some ghouls suffer: going feral.Rarity turned uncharacteristically aggressive, callously disregarding others life, and at times was suicidal. Now that she was back, her dreams weren’t nightmares, as she could handle remembering how many she killed. To be so calm at night with so much death…It’s been far too long since I’ve seen Twilight or her friends, I need not worry myself and spoil our reunion.

<>~<>~<>

The guards landed us outside of Sugarcube Corner, Discord having disclosed the time of the party to us since he was Leo’s ‘Uncle’, so to speak.I held a genuine curiosity about Leo. He was conceived when Fluttershy was a human, and he formed a near instant bond with the creature from the Mojave. I was surprised Twilight hadn’t made that connection in one of her letters.Our arrival went unnoticed as music from the small shop echoed through the wooden door, signaling festivities were being held. No doubt most, if not all, of Ponyville was cramming into Sugarcube Corner. Pinkie made sure every square centimeter of space was used for ponies to party.After a few strides off the carriage, I was at the door, Luna behind me. Taking a breath, I prepared to see my little Twilight again after a long time apart.The door swung open at my bidding, and I entered. Out of shock at my presence, the assembled crowd fell silent in a bow, save for the children and the former humans, as well as my equal, Princess Twilight.“There is no need to bow, my subjects. I am here to enjoy the company of my wonderful little ponies,” I said, quickly stepping aside and gesturing for Luna to enter.When Luna and I shut the door, leaving my guards outside to protect the entrance, the party started off again as if I had not interrupted. A welcome feeling as I didn’t want to infringe on anypony’s fun.Music and games were being played by all, even the adults trying their hoof at pin-the-tail-on-the-pony. Off to the left of the door, Pinkie was playing a song she referred to as the Parasprite Polka on a phonograph. It was an annoyingly happy sounding tune, heavy on the tuba and harmonica.Stepping further into the building, I scanned my gaze over to a large glass punch bowl on a table. It was there that I noticed that Princess Twilight, Christine, Rarity, and Fluttershy were talking to each other in a small group. I looked to the newest guest in my kingdom, Christine, her face a roadmap of old and healed-over scars.“Hello, you must be Christine,” I said, paying no heed to her disfigurement. I wanted her to feel as welcome as any other of my little ponies.Christine gave a nod, even with her shorter than average stature, she held no fear for me in her tone, “Yes. I am honored to speak to you, Princess. Twilight wouldn't stop giving me every little detail about you.”“Oh, I’m sure she has,” I said with a small chuckle, “I nearly helped raise her from the amount of times she refused to leave school grounds to sleep. If I am not mistaken by Twilight’s almost constant stream of letters the last few days, you yourself have taken a grasp to magic quite quickly.”Spike must have a terrible stomach ache from all the letters I had sent Twilight back. I did inform her I was going to be in town today, as I planned on dealing with Chrysalis. My appearance at the party however, was a surprise.Christine nodded, “I wanted to help her try and understand why I appeared in this world, so I learned magic. Surprisingly, I haven’t had too much difficulty understanding the basics under Twilight’s tutelage. It’s all concentration and focus.”As good of a point to absorb oneself into a new study if there ever was one, “Good. Are you enjoying the kingdom?”Christine shrugged, “It’s strange seeing the sun again, but I’m adapting. Your subjects are very well mannered and unconcerned with my scars.”I took pride they already accepted Christine into the town. After the incident with Zecora years ago, I was glad the townsponies remembered their lesson.“LET US PARTAKE IN THE DANCING!” Luna bellowed. She managed to shake the walls with the royal Canterlot voice. I rolled my eyes and apologized before making my way over to Luna.“Sister, that was unnecessary,” I scolded like I would a small child. Luna blushed and muttered out a simple, and somewhat half-hearted, ‘sorry.’Sometimes she can be such a foal.Luna moved away from me and began to dance, albeit most ponies vacated the dance floor after Luna’s outburst.With my sister distracted, I turned my head to observe Leo. Levitating a nearby glass of punch from the table, I began to scan him, using my levitating cup to disguise that I was casting another spell.It was just a simple diagnostic spell used by most unicorn doctors. Said spell came back as a normal, healthy, pegasus colt with earth pony genes. Christine came back as full unicorn. No rouge DNA that wouldn’t be found in a normal equine.Interesting. Considering as humans, Twilight and the others still possessed cutie marks.Slowly, I walked closer to Leo, his unbridled mirth heartwarming as he danced with his sister, then Pinkie, then back to his sister.A scan of Tigris came back normal for a full earth pony. I didn’t need a spell to tell me later on in life she’d be stubborn.Finding nothing strange about the children - although they were once humans themselves in the womb - I set my eyes on Raul Alfonso Tejada.His dreams were of the war that destroyed his world. A brilliant flash wringing out death and destruction, trapping him in a state of living death as the world went to Tartarus around him.His outward appearance certainly reflected it; Furless coat, dry cracking skin, no mane, and only a few errant hairs of a black tail.Seeing the destruction, the warped corpses, the shambling wrecks of insane ghouls, it scared me to think such an event happened… but it did.Maybe Twilight was right, we need to help that world. I’m just too afraid of bringing it’s destruction down upon us. I argued in my own mind.I was propelled out of my thoughts when Pinkie snuck close to Raul, giving the ghoul a kiss on his cheek. The both of them smiling and laughing in the way only two lovebirds could.Okay, time to find something more interesting. And frankly, less gross.

<>~<>~<>

“So the entire casino is covered in the Red Cloud?” I asked Christine. I had been captivated by her tails of the Wasteland for the past forty or so minutes. She was telling me about the Sierra Madre, and the horrors it held.Christine nodded, showing off her newfound magic by levitating a cup of punch to her lips to take a sip. Lowering the glass, she said to me, “Before arriving here, I hadn’t seen a good glimpse of sunlight in four years.”I winced at her statement. A day without sunshine is… well a day without sunshine. Depressing, bleak, and cold. I didn’t ask her who controlled their sun and moon, I knew from Twilight that their planet worked similar to that of other planets besides ours.The forces of gravity and planetary rotation kept the planet orbiting their solar system’s sun, as their moon travelled around the planet.“It wasn’t that bad,” Christine said, “I felt like I was home there. I share the voice of Vera Keyes, and I let my hair grow out to resemble hers. I was as much as a part of that place as Vera was, even singing in her voice to unlock the way for Courier 6 to trap Father Elijah.”Christine had told me many things about him. How he was a father-like saint.A saint who fell from grace and descended into madness.It was a lot to think about. Would I ever eventually get so caught up in power and making things what I think is the best, only to become a tyrant?I was keeping Twilight from going back to help the Wasteland. For four years, I had been making excuses. Anything from cost of resource to claims of keeping foreign diseases out of Equestria.“If I ever fall,” I whispered to low for the other to hear. I felt the cold grip of fear, pestering me of the harsh reality that could bring. Shaking my head, I smiled, “I’m just glad you've given Twilight something to focus on other than working herself to death.”“Yeah,” Twilight stated, “I may have been going overboard with the whole armor project, but it was something to keep me occupied.”I could tell Twilight wanted to add “And it also keeps me awake.”Luna sharing Twilight’s nightmares had hurt me the worst. She was so scarred, locked in a dark machine as it cut and sawed into her. Twilight was afraid of the dark to the point she worked herself into a dreamless exaustion. She had Big Mountain to thank for that.The dreadful place, bastardizing science into some sick twisted mockery just so the scientists there could play as Gods. From what Twilight found in her thankfully short stay, was that the scientists experiments were unethical, cruel, and utterly pointless as they failed to save their world.A sharp gasp, a quivering of the magical energies in the air, and a light alerted me to turn around.Oh, that’s not good.The blue orb of light began to expand in size. Luna and I quickly scanned it, coming up with nothing.A few seconds later, the sphere became clear as glass, showing a human to a backdrop of destruction turn to blueish-grey ash before reforming in this world.“What in the name of Joshua Graham’s God just happened?” The newcomer asked with a surprised, yet authoritative voice.There was a flash of purple as Twilight teleported off, quickly returning in armor.An awkward moment was stumbled through, as the fresh new arrival had landed on Applejack, pinning her. He stumbled back as Applejack said something, and managed to back off of her without assistance.Things rapidly went from relatively good, to unimaginably bad.“Legion!” Sweetie Belle yelled in anger as she pointed one hoof towards the zebra.I barely had time to see the golden bull on the stallion’s saddlebag before my sister’s dark blue magic ripped the zebra into the air by his neck.I had little time to react before Luna was staring him right into the eyes as he clawed at the aura of magic with his hooves, desperately trying to breath.I saw the look on my sister’s face only once before… right before she tried to kill me. I could see her scowl growing as she tightened her grasp.A voice came out low, seething with barely contained hatred, but it wasn’t my dear little sister. The little part of Nightmare Moon still left in Luna was speaking as her eyes narrowed to slits, “Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t trap you in an endless nightmare for all the pain your Legion has caused.”“Sister, calm down!” I yelled in fear of losing her to darkness once more. Stepping towards Luna, I knew my next words would get through to her, “There are children here. Withhold your temper.”Luna grit her teeth and I could see the zebra’s skin clamp tighter around his neck as he struggled for air. She blinked, and let go of him with a heavy sigh. The zebra fell to the ground, coughing loudly as he massaged his neck with a hoof.Nightmare Moon was no longer in control, my sister was back. Luna still held a scowl, but I could see the corner of her mouth twitch… she was just as afraid as I was.The fact Luna was nearly consumed by rage kept me from harming the zebra.“The rage in you burns like fire,” the zebra wheezed, breathing hard as he glanced up to Luna, his eyes holding regret, “and it is true that I deserve it.”“I know that voice,” Rarity’s voice rasped out as she walked through the crowd of ponies with a look of astonishment. Passing my sister, Rarity stopped to stand a few feet away from the zebra.The zebra weakly faced Rarity, staring at her for a moment. “The half-marked from the Divide,” he noted with a grunt.“Darling,” Rarity spoke slow and coolly, a small smile forming, “It’s been far too long… Ulysses.”I nearly sputtered in shock at how she so casually greeted him.“Sis, get back,” Sweetie belle shouted, “He’s Legion!”Rarity rolled her eyes, “Oh hush now Sweetie,” Rarity tittered, “If he was, I would have saved Luna the trouble of killing him.”The collective gasp from a few of the ponies around us told me my little ponies weren't expecting her to say that.I moved to stand beside my sister, and as I walked I spoke, “Rarity, you know this stallion?”Rarity nodded, “He saved my life in the Divide. The Marked Men had me trapped inside a building, and if it wasn’t for Ulysses’ help, I wouldn’t be here.”I glared at this Ulysses character, slowly studying his braided mane and the red white and blue flag painted on the back of his black duster coat, “Is that true?”He nodded.“Then tell my why you are wearing a Legion Bull.”Ulysses looked down, as if he was a scolded child, “Past memories carried in the mark,” He spoke in low monotone, “I am Ulysses, Frumentarii of Caesar, Messenger of the Legion,” his tone dropped low, “Or I was.”“Pardon me Princess Celestia,” Mr. Cake said as he stood beside his wife, shaking in fear at the recent turn of events, “But weren’t the Legion the ponies our little Pinkie Pie fought against when she disappeared?”Twilight - in a suit of her power armor - answered for me, one of her laser rifles aimed at Ulysses, “Yes, they were. Please note, Ulysses,” Twilight spat, “That you are on a very thin sheet of ice right now.”“Twilight!” I scolded, “Put that thing away. Let’s just all be civil, and think of the children.”Leo, Tigris, and a few other foals were cowering behind Fluttershy, Applejack, and the other parents. Fluttershy and Applejack were crouched low, observing the scene like hawks, ready to spring into action to defend their young.I could see the kids, scared as well as curious to what was happening.Twilight lowered her weapon, drawing a few stares from most of the ponies around us.Seeing the situation defused, if only a little bit, made me sigh in relief. “Now,” I said, with a look over to Ulysses, “can everypony please go home. I have much to discuss with this zebra.”

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And just like that, as if nothing strange happened, these pony beings began to file out of the shop I was in…. as one of them. Or whatever a zebra was. Four hooves, strange walk, I knew I was an animal. Trapped here by some twist of odd fate.The leader figures, Luna and her sister Celestia, I could guess they were leaders from the fact they were referred to as Princesses, and the regalia they wore. Both of them were glaring at me in pure hatred for my past.I wasn’t going to waste my time wondering how Luna nearly snapped my neck without touching me, I needed answers.Almost everyone left, save for the two leaders, a Brotherhood Paladin, a few NCR Rangers, the half-marked, and a few others. The NCR Ranger that pointed out my Legion flag looked too young to be a threat. I was still armed with a 12.7mm SMGI looked to my new hooves and blinked twice.So, fighting’s no longer an option. Time to talk, “What am I?” I asked. It was a logical question, almost pointless as I heard them call me a zebra. I was asking because I needed more to go on than one word.“You are a zebra. Normally a welcomed guest in my kingdom, but you, with that Legion bull, are not,” Celestia said, cool and even. I could tell she was one that had a lot of experience keeping her emotions in, but I could see subtle twitches alerting me to her anger.“I take it the Bear, the Bull, and the Sword have been here,” I said, nodding towards myself, one of the three NCR Rangers, and finally the paladin… who had wings and a horn.“In a way, Ulysses,” Celestia explained, “Do you know how you got here?”I nodded. The brief flash of immense pain before being spit out here. Less hardened individuals would most likely have been rendered unconscious.I tried to stand, but my newfound legs proved too unstable to stand upon, “I was digging through the ashes of Ashton and Hopeville, trying to find pieces of the old world there.”“Why?” Luna asked.“Because I left the Legion, found a new flag to wear on my back. I kept the legion satchel as a reminder of the pain I caused. There are symbols and memories even in the smallest of things. After Courier 6 destroyed everything there, I was driven to destroy him in retribution for those he caused to die.”“Wait, that doesn't sound like Jamie!” The one in power armor, Twilight, I believe Celestia had called her, yelled at me. She took aim with her laser rifle, a purple cloud surrounding it and keeping it suspended in the air. The same purple cloud surrounded the metal horn protruding from her helmet.“He delivered a package that woke up the nukes hidden under the earth. In a single moment, the Divide was formed, all the original inhabitants dead. I only survived because of the old world medical robots keeping me alive.”The rifle was taken from her purple cloud by a golden one, Celestia telekinetically snatching the rifle away, “Twilight, like your friend Applejack, I can tell he’s telling the truth.”The paladin froze in place, shocked at the news. The Courier was careless with what he delivered, and he created the Divide through that carelessness.“He did talk me out of a stupid revenge plot, and I forgave him for the Divide.” I said, chuckling as I remembered the battle. The countdown to the launch ticking down, the Marked Men swarming in, us two Couriers battling the swarm as the little robot he so loved stopped another armageddon.In hindsight, launching nukes wasn’t the best of plans.Celestia looked back to me, “So, you left the Legion.”I nodded, “I did. I was fed up with the destruction and death. I found myself a new place to call home. It was destroyed and people know it as the Divide now. But that’s not important, what is, is how I managed to arrive here.”I turned to the floor, remembering what I was doing before I arrived here, “I was digging through the ashes of Hopeville, trying to find anything that served as a reminder of what the place used to be.“Out of the ashes I was digging through, a machine awoke and set its sights on me. It looked like a scorpion, and when it shot me, I saw myself turn to ash, shortly before I arrived here.”Twilight gasped in shock, “I should have known. Those so called scientists of Big Mountain are responsible!”

Chapter 11: Ghosts

“It all makes sense!” Twilight proclaimed before looking to me. “Fluttershy!” She called out as she teleported away her helmet, armor, and laser rifle. Her eyes were as wide as saucers.

“Yes?” I answered slowly, backing away slightly from her crazed gaze. I hated when she got like that - super happy that she found an answer to a hard question and got in your face about it. But I would never tell Twilight that and hurt her feelings.Twilight got really, really close, making Leo and I both back up some more until we bumped into the table, tempting me to tell her she was getting too close, “Big Mountain created the Nightstalkers, so that explains Rattles. Christine also told me she had learned from Jamie that Big Mountain also had their hoof in the Sierra Madre.”“Those old world abominations had their hand in the Divide as well,” Ulysses proclaimed, stepping forward as he eyed Twilight warily. “The markings on the machine that awoke the nukes was from Big Mountain. I’ve been there myself. Seen how the scientists twisted and spliced so carelessly, then let their creations run amok.”“Then based on the facts, all evidence points to one conclusion!” Twilight shouted, catching all of our attention.“And that is...?” Celestia asked tilting her head slightly. Everypony in the room set their eyes from Twilight, to Celestia, then back to Twilight. We all were giving our friend expecting gazes, eager to hear what she had to say.Or at least I thought that was what everypony else was doing. I wasn’t really paying that much attention to how the others were reacting, except Leo and Jason. The former held a confused and fearful look at the current turn of events, while my husband seemed to be leaning forward in anticipation.“That the scientists at Big Mountain are indeed responsible,” Twilight explained with a firm nod. Then her crazed look was dropped as she stared at the floor in thought. “Though, I have to wonder why they would send a Nightstalker and two humans.”Celestia turned her gaze to Ulysses, “Whatever crimes you committed as a soldier of the Legion, keep them to yourself. We have a zero tolerance policy for the crimes the Legion is known to have committed.”That statement sent nearly everyone into shock, staring at Celestia like she had gone mad. Why would she set a Legionnaire free? I knew Princess Luna and Celestia knew what they’ve done! Many restless nights Luna was a shield to hide behind in a torrent of nightmares. Twilight and Luna were the only ones to respond to Celestia, and it was an appropriate response, “WHAT!?”The only ones who weren’t surprised at all were Raul, Christine, and Jason. They just raised their brows as they looked at us with mild confusion. Based on their reactions, it must have been somewhat common for a few Legionnaires to go free. It made a little bit of sense, considering Jason, but Ulysses was totally different!Celestia cast a glare at Twilight and Luna, not the least bit happy with their behavior. Both of them glanced away from her piercing gaze. “Though he may be Legion, Ulysses is a free stallion. Luna, you yourself know that whatever crimes he may have committed were outside of our jurisdiction, as we have no political contact with the New California Republic.” Celestia looked back to Ulysses, her glare intensified as Twilight and Luna sighed in defeat, “But if I hear that you so much as looked at a mare the wrong way…”Ulysses nodded, “Understood, Princess. I left that life behind me, but I still carry it in my history. There are meanings in symbols, which I see many decorating each of you.”Pinkie zipped over beside Ulysses, making him jump in surprise and reach for something in under his duster. “They're called cutie marks, silly,” Pinkie said, gesturing to his flank with a hoof, “Even you have a zebra glyph mark.”Keeping my eyes on Ulysses, I dropped my wings to my side and crouched to let Leo hop onto my back. Applejack did the same with Tigris, her eyes narrowing all the while. We both had realized it was a gun that Ulysses was reaching for, and if we needed a quick escape, we would have our children with us.Luckily, Ulysses tilted his head in curiosity and moved his hoof away from his gun. With his hooves, he carefully shedded his long leather coat and saddlebags with the air respirator, to the shirt, pants, and a few belt pouches underneath… along with a strange looking gun.He quickly stripped himself of his pants with some effort due to being unable to stand like a human. When Ulysses did manage to remove his pants, he already had a cutie mark, as did the humans that followed us through the portal.On Ulysses’ flank was a single large brown star shaped glyph, surrounded by eleven other star glyphs. Like the jacket he wore, his black and white zebra stripes formed perfect flag.“Would you look at that,” Ulysses said in surprise. His monotone breaking slightly to almost sound… happy?Celestia nodded before sweeping her eyes over the room as she addressed everybody. “With that settled, why don’t we all just go home,” She said, looking at each of us in turn, “I know this may be a lot to ask, but I would like to know who will shelter Ulysses, given his past.”There was a tense murmur from everypony as they quietly spoke with one another. I knew I couldn’t do it. I had to put Leo’s safety in front of my kindness. Jason may have been in the Legion, but I put my trust in him, not Ulysses.“Sorry, I live in the sky,” Rainbow Dash said. Nolan stood beside her and gave a nod. How he got up to the house with his still broken wing, I haven't the faintest clue. Well, Rainbow could carry him.“Spike’s going to move in with me,” was Rarity’s excuse, drawing an odd look from Twilight. I could see Rarity blush as she mouthed, ‘We’ll talk later.’Pinkie’s mane seemed to deflate slightly in disappointment as her tone sounded genuine, “Sorry Ulysses, but Raul and I have absoposilutely no space left.”Twilight groaned and shook her head, “I already have Christine staying with me.”“I’ll do it.”There was a collective gasp as we all turned our wide eyes to the source of the voice.“Applejack?” I questioned as her face was a stern glare, “He’s Legion. What about Tigris?”Applejack’s face softened to a smile, “He hasn’t met my brother yet.”Ulysses nodded, “Thank you, for allowing me into your home.”Applejack let out a laugh and smirked uncharacteristically evil, “Oh, not my home. I’ve got ah barn with haybales.”

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It was sevenish-eight o'clock when everypony decided to leave and go their separate ways. Due to the time when we left, it was night upon exiting Sugarcube Corner.I still couldn’t believe Applejack was letting a Legion soldier even near her home, and most notably, near her family.With Leo on my back and Jason at my side, we waded through the darkness, the streetlamps remaining unlit for the time being. A sudden bark from my left made me gasp and jump in fright. Leo jumped off my back before I could fully turn to face the dog, and when I did, I could faintly see Leo hugging his nightstalker friend around the neck. Wynona walking right up to my legs, wagging her tail happily.“Well, hello there,” I commented after my initial shock, taking a few deep breaths to calm my rapidly beating heart, “You two a thing now?”Wynona’s happy barks as Rattles ran up to her to playfully bite at her ear was all I needed to see.“That’s some good news out of today,” I said through a groan. My son’s cutie mark party was going great until Ulysses had shown up. I didn’t blame him for ruining it though, Ulysses was shot and disintegrated – how that brought him here I could only guess was a horrible experience under normal circumstances – and he most likely was in pain for a while after appearing here. A sheer twist of fate ruined my son’s special party.Whatever god that likes screwing over my life, please stop, I absentmindedly thought.“It’s okay, honey,” Jason said, kissing my neck, which made me blush and squeak, “We can have Pinkie throw another one. I’m sure she’ll be happy.”“Stop it, Jason, we’re in public,” I hissed, failing to hide the small smile on my lips as he kissed my neck again. I felt the burn of embarrassment on my cheeks as I playfully pushed him away from me. The little happiness that I had gotten suddenly left as I dipped my head low as I sighed, “And as for another party, it won’t be the same.”“Come on, it will,” He stated with a nonchalant wave of his hoof and a smile, “And what, I can’t show my lovely yellow mare I love her by giving her a kiss?” He questioned, wiggling his brows.I laughed, “Stop it, you goof,” I playfully pushed him again and smiled, but once again my happiness faded for a more somber mood, “Aren’t you the least bit worried Pinkie will invite Ulysses?”“I don’t know what to think of him,” he admitted, shrugging his shoulders, “But I will tell you that I was in the Legion, Graham was Legion, and Ulysses was Legion. We weren’t all bad, though I guess my NCR background did predispose me to not being a total jerk.”“Good point,” I said, agreeing with him.“Mr. Rattles!” Leo exclaimed in mock anger. I turned my head just in time to see a free-for-all between the unbreakable pair of owner and pet.Leo may be small, but he had one heck of an impact. I was frozen in shock as Leo flew backwards a few meters, then quickly forward to tackle Rattles, knocking him down. All the while, Rattles was letting out grunts and growls, thrashing playfully as Leo tried to pin him.“Do you think we should intervene?” Jason asked.“Let them tire each other out. I would rather not stay up all night chasing him when I could have let him burn out all that sugar he had earlier.” It looked like Rattles was nearly free, but Leo managed to keep his grip.“Oh, you don’t want to stay up all night?” Jason asked slyly.I failed to get the joke before I fell for the trap, “No.”“Well I can keep you up all. Night. Long,” Jason whispered seductively in my ear.Jason burst into peals of laughter as my face turned beet red.Jason, you are so dead for that one. I thought, trying to hide behind my mane as I felt trapped under a tidal wave of embarrassment.“Come on honey, let’s go,” Jason said, tempting out from behind my mane. We both looked down at the two fighting boys, but Jason was the one to speak up, “Leo, stop fighting with Rattles. Time to go.”The flurry of growls and childish laughs stopped suddenly as Rattles used his front paws to pin Leo down by his wings, keeping Leo stuck on the ground while on his back. The two looked towards Jason and I like a moth would stare at a light. Their ears were pointed up in surprise like I had caught them doing something they shouldn’t.I found the whole display too cute and began giggling as I shook my head slowly, “Come on, let’s get home. It’s been a long day.”

<>~~<>

“Wait, Celestia, what do you mean?” Twilight asked, making sure she had heard right. Spike had been sent to Rarity’s when Celestia and Luna arrived at the library via a quick teleport, shortly after everypony left from Sugarcube Corner. The occupants of the main room being Twilight, Christine, Princess Luna, and Princess Celestia.“What I mean, Twilight,” Celestia said “Is that I’m sending you on a special mission. The fate of Equestria may rest in your hooves, as well as Christine’s,” Celestia said, nodding towards the two mares.“But I don’t have any charts or maps,” Twilight sputtered out in shock as her eyes widened, “I don’t know much about the location. That place is one of the most dangerous areas I know of.”“I’ve explored Big Mountain and I know some of the terrain,” Christine said with confidence in her tone, “I think I even remember where I left my sniper rifle.”Luna nodded, “That’s why were sending Christine with you, Twilight. Frankly, as a former human, she has more experience. And even though we are asking a lot from you two, take comfort in the fact you shall not go alone.”“Luna is right,” Celestia said acknowledging her sister, “The other elements will not be going. It’s far too dangerous. Especially now that Applejack and Fluttershy are mothers. That’s why I’m sending a volunteer detachment of my guards with you. They will need training, but be swift, I do not like the idea of mad scientists having the power to send hostile creatures to our world. Mr. Rattles, I believe you said he was named, is an unusually docile specimen.”“He is,” Twilight said with a nod, “He also ran off with Wynona. And I know Applejack wasn’t telling a lie when she told me about it.”Celestia winced at the concept of the Nightstalker breeding. From Twilight’s letters, they could be quite dangerous, “Hopefully the pups, if the two are even compatible that is, are just as docile as their father.”Twilight was about to say something, but her ear twitched, swiveling to detect some far off sound, “Did you hear that?” Twilight asked in a whisper.It happened again, louder. A sudden, soft thump, followed by silence.“Tia,” Luna whispered, her body tense as she slowly lowered her frame in nervousness.Celestia’s face was a look of horror, “I feel it as well.”“What is it!?” Twilight answered in a panic as more thumps were heard. A sudden whooshing sound in the air.“There ar-” Celestia was cut off as something crashed through one of the library windows. Something brown. Something pony shaped. Something with a green eyed gas-mask and a bear trap on a hoof.The Ghost Trapper was confused. A yellow metal scorpion sent it here, away from the red mist of home which was nowhere to be found. Maybe the big creature with wings and a horn sent the scorpion to take it! It wore the same color of gold. He would have it’s head for stealing the comforting mist of home.He raised one of his new legs to level his weapon, a bear trap he placed there like many of his ghostkin, ready to take back the home mist from the tall menace.Crouching down slightly, the Ghost Trapper used his new back legs to leap towards Celestia.Slamming against the wood floor, it took a second for the Ghost Trapper to realize that he had been tackled out of the air.He began to resist, but stopped. Mother Ghost’s voice reached through his hood. His eyes recognized her face, even though it was changed like he was. He knew it was her. She was back, she was here in this strange place. He forgot the lost red mist.Mother Ghost spoke again, her voice soft as an angel as the Ghost stared into the beautiful brown eyes of the ghost from the fountain, admiring her long black hair that dangled over him.She was still pale blue, like he remembered her, though not standing silent and vigilant at the fountain as her voice echoed throughout the Madre. She had come down off her pedestal for some reason. Maybe it was to get the red mist back from the tall white creature who was staring at him strangely.Mother Ghost spoke once more, and he finally listened. She was speaking to the others, and he listened.“It’s okay, the Ghost People worship me, or at least avoid me when they can,” Christine said as she pinned the Ghost Trapper down onto the floor. Twilight, Celestia, and Luna were looking at the creature. It’s filthy hazmat suit a dirty brown, with a gasmask with baleful glowing green eyes. Every breath it took was a wet wheeze, and the air of the library was filled with the unbearable stench of decay.There was a scream from outside the library, as the sound of shattering glass could be heard. There were more. And if Celestia and Luna’s sense of magical disturbances were correct, a lot more.

Chapter 12: Ghouls

Leo and Rattles. Like two peas in a pod, somehow, they just meshed together perfectly for each other. It had to be my ability to understand animals passing down to him. But it was more than that, animals aren’t always friendly, even when I speak with them.

Especially the beavers.

It might be the fact that they are the animal kingdom’s version of construction workers, or it might be that I offend them every time I near them, but they can come up with some mean, mean words.“Stop it, Mr. Rattles,” Leo said, laughing and bringing me out of my thoughts as Rattles tugged on his tail like a playful puppy as we walked. Rattles didn’t listen, and continued tugging on my son’s long brown and pink colored tail. I could barely see the two’s forms in what little light Luna’s moon provided for us.That was something odd about the human world, the moon changed just a little every night… though I didn’t get to see it much before Jason freed me from Orion.Rattles suddenly stopped and let go of Leo, making my son fall forward. Sniffed the air Rattles let out a whimper.“What is it boy,” I asked. Although I was not fully able to communicate with Rattles yet, I hoped it got the point across.“Aroo,” Rattles whimpered, slow, almost fearfully. I felt a chill of my spine as Rattles crouched low, his ears twitching to a sound I couldn’t hear. If a ferocious Nightstalker like Rattles was jumpy-“Mommy, what’s a-” Leo tried to ask before Rattles was tackled, making him shriek in horror as a giant blue bug with big orange and black wings leapt upon the Nightstalker. Its beady red eyes full of an almost tangible malice.I reacted on pure instinct; a primal, animalistic urge to protect my son casting everything but the feeling of adrenalin coursing through me to the very innermost depths of my mind. Spreading my wings, I let out a powerful flap. I had little to no time to think as I propelled forward, letting out a fierce battle cry.Using my shoulder I scored a direct impact against its chitinous form, tackling the giant bug as it wrestled with Rattles. I stood on the massive bug’s thorax as my hooves instinctively found a thrashing, screeching head made of shell. Grabbed it, I twisted until there was a loud snap, like that of a dry twig mixed with a pulpy, wet sound.Quickly the bug fell limp under me, curling up slowly as it died.I felt an flaring pain spread from my hips to everywhere else. A raging inferno of pain, one that I hadn’t felt before. My vision suddenly blurred I felt my stomach twist around in nauseousness, my legs began to wobble.“Fluttershy!” “Mommy!” Jason and Leo yelled as I fell off the bug, landing on the cold hard dirt with a heavy thud. I could see blood gushing from a large gash on my inner thigh. The stinger of the bug, no doubt, covered in my blood.My stomach lurched and my vision blurred again, the fiery pain subsiding to a cool numbness.I barely registered my son crying as he wrapped his forelegs around my neck, Jason at my side.Everything felt numb from my hooves to my mane. I was tired, and I let the world just simply slip away.

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Jason could only stare as Fluttershy closed her eyes, succoming to the Cazadores sting. He should have done something, reacted faster, saved her life.But he couldn’t. He didn’t.Fluttershy’s lips let pass a simple two weak words, slurred as if she were drunk. “Save... Leo.”Looking frantically towards his son, still hugging to his mother’s neck, Jason knew he needed to tear himself away from his beloved wife and get help. There was still time, still a way to save her, he just knew it.Jason’s eyes filled with heartbroken tears as he made decision, “Rattles, stay with her,” He choked out, sobbing, and praying that the Nightstalker stayed with his wife to watch over her.Grabbing Leo with his forehooves, Jason threw Leo across his back, tearing the child away from Fluttershy as he ran towards town. Her head rose then fell limp after leaving Leo’s grasp. All the while Leo was screaming in horror, holding firmly onto Daddy’s neck as he ran away from Mommy who wouldn’t get up, no matter how much he pleaded to her.Running for a solid two minutes, Jason gasped in shock as he skidded to a halt, his horror and confusion only growing.“No…” Jason whispered as what appeared to be dozens of blue orbs forming a meter off the ground close to town. Each one bringing with them horrors beyond belief for the residents of Ponyville.Gunshots began to ring out in the town itself as the ponies there let out an almost unison scream of terror.

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Ulysses stopped suddenly, his new zebra ear twitching as he heard a familiar sound carried in the wind. Panicked screaming, followed by a gunshot or two. He was unarmed and clothless, but held no embarrassment in his new form.“Applejack,” he said - having learning most of the townsponies names from Pinkie Pie earlier - to the mare that was keeping a close eye on him.“I heard screamin’,” Applejack replied, shifting nervously as she worried for Tigris, who, was sleeping quite peacefully on her back. Unaware of the growing danger.“Take your daughter and go,” Ulysses ordered with stern monotone, “I’ll make my way back. Help anyway I can.”Applejack wanted to hesitate, but the sound of more gunshots and Ulysses’ honest words spurred her to drop Ulysses saddlebags and run away with Tigris, leaving Ulysses behind.Walking over to his discarded saddlebags, Ulysses opened up one of the pouches. Inside the cloth was his 12.7mm SMG, and a black respirator made to fit his now equine shape.Using the magic his hooves possessed to grab the respirator as if he still had hands, Ulysses placed the respirator over his muzzle, smelling the scent of the Divide permanently fused into the rubber.Looking at his SMG, Ulysses thought solemly, ‘If I die, let my sacrifice save one life, even though it won’t pay for those I’ve taken.’Scooping up his saddlebags with a hoof, Ulysses placed the bags over his back, clipping a few straps together under his barrel. Reaching for his SMG, ulysses made sure to secure the weapon in its holster as he ran towards town.This place, this world, so full of life and hope. He’d sooner let himself be damned then stand idly by and let it turn into another Divide or Dry Wells. One that he would have helped create by inaction, not Courier 6 or Vulpes.Following the dirt road illuminated clearly in the moonlight, Ulysses was stumbling as he tried to run for the first time as an Equine, but determination to save the town carried him on. He had to prove himself to the others, had to prove himself to himself. If he could prove his worth, a small part of him felt like he could plant his flag down once more. He wouldn’t fail this town as he had the Divide.Off in the distance, he already saw one opponent. A lone Nightstalker standing over the corpse of a pony… Fluttershy if he remembered correctly. A light yellow coat barely illuminated in the moonlight, and glistening pink hair that seemed to shimmer.However, something was off about the Nightstalker. It was just sitting there, ears folded down like a scolded dog. There was even a collar around it’s neck.So that’s Mr. Rattles, Ulysses thought, remembering Pinkie Pies energetic introduction.Seeing that she was hurt, Ulysses ran forward, the Nightstalker growling at his approach but relenting and whimpering, nuzzling the mare on the ground.Ulysses remembered she had a foal, mostly because he was the reason the party dedicated to the child was ruined. Leo, he remembered was the name of the child, his father Jason was a former Legionnaire. It gave Ulysses hope he could restart, again, and possibly find happiness.But those thoughts would come later, now, he was focused on the barely breathing mare. Her chest was rising and falling so slow, one could mistake the mare as being dead already. It didn’t take long to see the corpse of the Cazadore and guess what had transpired.Reaching into his saddlebags, Ulysses brought out a green colored bottle. It was potent anti-venom. Carrying several doses of the potential life savers became habitual from his time as a Frementari on long and dangerous missions.Uncorking the bottle with his teeth, Ulysses pressed the bottle to the mares lips as he forced her jaw to open, pouring the ichor down. It didn’t matter if the fluid went the wrong way and she drowned, she would be dead soon anyways. Especially with the size difference of humans and ponies, letting the poison work faster on the smaller equines than large humans.With the bottle drained, Ulysses waited until the mare sputtered out a cough.

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My head… sweet merciful Celestia my head! I screamed in thought, groaning and thrashing stiffened muscles. I registered something foul tasting like rotten vegetables on my tongue, but my head hurt to much to care.Opening my eyes as I thrashed around on my back, I saw a zebra holding a potion bottle and stopped with a gasp, my chest heaving upwards. Looking around, I spotted the Cazadore that nearly killed me. Looking back to the zebra I quickly recognized it was Ulysses and I tried to speak, but my throat burned from whatever he forced me to drink.“Go, keep your son safe,” Ulysses ordered in the monotone he mostly used in our meetings.All he had to do was mention Leo before I was running in the direction of town. Rattles following close behind.…I, I had no words to describe the horror of seeing several buildings in Ponyville burning. The sound of gunfire now loud as the air grew thick with smoke. The moonlit night and the fires of the town helped me see my two boys close to town, just standing as Jason was frozen in horror. From where I was, I could hear the heartbreaking cries of my son over the constant screams of townsponies. Rattles overtook my pace upon hearing Leo, and I redoubled my efforts to reach them.Using my wings, I propelled myself faster than I had before, I easily passed Rattles to reach Jason and Leo, and I hugged my husband’s neck. Leo gasped, and began hugging mine. Just for a moment, a slim moment, the screams didn’t reach my ears, and I didn’t see the town in flames.“I thought I lost you,” I heard Jason mutter as his voice cracked with tears, “I tried getting help, but there was nowhere to go.”“I know,” I said, “Ulysses gave me some sort of potion.” While it helped me wake back up, I still felt the horrible pain resonating from my inner thigh, right where the stinger pierced my flesh.“You wouldn’t get up Mommy,” Leo wailed, nearly breaking my neck with the strength of his hug, “Mommy please don't go again, please don't go, please Mommy!” Leo pleaded.We all stood there, together, on the sidelines of destruction.“We need to get back home,” Jason said as Ulysses ran past us in a black and white blur. He fell behind since he couldn’t run that fast because of his unfamiliarity as an equine, and my speed to get to Jason and my son must have rivaled even that of Rainbow.Tears were streaming out my eyes as I was torn; help my friends in town, or stay with my family?I had the crushing revelation that I almost lost Leo again, this time with my own possible death. Even as I stood there, I could still feel blood leaking from my leg wound.For a mother, there was no choice, “Let’s go, I don’t want Leo witnessing this,” I said low as I chose the selfish act of abandoning my friends to protect my son.

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Celestia ducked under another throwing spear launched by one of the berserk Ghost People turned pony. The satunite knife tipped projectile impacted the wall of Sugarcube Corner with a resounding crack, and buried itself into the wooden outer wall.Pinkie was upstairs, taking potshots from Pound and Pumpkin’s window. The two eight year old twins hiding elsewhere in the house.Telekinetically ripping the spear out of the wall as hot brass from Pinkie rolled off the roof like rain, Celestia used the knife spear to cleanly decapitate the Ghost that threw it, ensuring he wouldn’t get up again, as Christine had warned.Unfortunately, when the attack started, the Ghost Pony Christine had under control went wild, having to be put down. Celestia didn’t know she had it in herself to disintegrate something with her magic, even if it was attacking her.Unluckily for it, however, it chose to attack Christine, who currently was taking refuge in the Library, as she had no weapons.“Where are they coming from!” Somepony shouted as a Ghost prepared to stab him, just in time to be saved by Twilight’s laser rifle. The powered armored alicorn flying off to fight even more abominations.Twilight was barely a half-second gone before Celestia gasped in horror as the head of the stallion Twilight had just saved explode in a shower of blood, following a loud boom that filled the air.Looking for the shooter, Celestia saw something that made her stomach lurch violently. A pony without any skin, holding a smoking anti-material rifle. She had seen them in Rarity’s dreams that Luna shared with her, but to see one in the flesh was nightmarish.A golden flash of magic, and nothing but a pile of ashes remained, tears running in streams down Celestia’s eyes and anger surged through her veins.“Target sighted, all noncombatants are adv-” the tripod mounted robotic sentry didn’t even get to finish it’s sentence before golden light touched it, disintegrating it to ashes.Screams echoed throughout Ponyville as more of the skinless ponies began to appear.Celestia’s eyes narrowed in rage as she poured magic into her next spell. The knife spear she held in her telekinesis elongated as the saturnite knife fused with the shaft and grew into an axe head. Disintegration would strain her magic after a while. Celestia knew she had to fight full-force as long as she could.

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Rarity fired another fifty-caliber AM round through the door of Carousel Boutique, blowing the Marked Man outside the door away with a new hole in it’s chest. An army was outside, and Sweetie was hiding in the storage closet with Spike. Rarity was dressed completely in her Ranger Veteran armor, and protected herself by an overturned wooden table she used to steady her rifle, as the heavy weapon put a strain on her magic.The sound of crashing glass behind her made Rarity turn to bring her rifle to bear, having to telekinetically wrestle the weapon to look behind her. That split second of delay allowed for a spear to sink into her foreleg, pinning it to the overturned table while a Ghost charged at her.She only had the length of an eyeblink to fight through the pain, levitate out her bowie knife, and slice the foreleg off the Ghost Pony bearing down on her, ensuring it wouldn’t rise again.“RARITY!” Sweetie screamed from down the hall as there was a loud bang. Rarity had been so focused on guarding the front door, she didn’t think they would come in someplace else.Sweetie Belle ran into the showroom of the boutique, a Marked Man following her with snapping jaws as it laughed, Spike following with Rarity’s Ranger Sequoia. The gun was smoking, and Spike tried to raise it to fire again.Eyes narrowing, Rarity ripped the throwing spear that was pinning her against the table out of her leg, and threw it with her magic. The spear sailed true, slamming the Marked Man in the head.Spike jumped in fright, confused at what was happening. First there was screaming, Rarity gave him a weapon, and then both he and Sweetie were hiding in a closet as Rarity told them to stay put. They were found by a Marked Man, and in the confusion of the moment, Spike shot like Rarity had instructed, but missed and Sweetie bolted.Sweetie ran over to Rarity and hugged her sister, “You’re hurt,” she whimpered.Rarity levitated the spear, “Just a scratch,” she said, unconcerned for her own safety, but rather Sweeties as she gave her frighted younger sister the spear, “Now, stay with me, that goes for you too, Spike. We need to get to the library, Twilight will know what to do, she always does.”

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Twilight didn’t know what to do. Her magical energy cells were being depleted at an astonishingly fast pace for her homemade laser rifle as she followed Celestia, and they soon would run out. Scratches and bullet dents covered her power armor, and Twilight could feel the machinery straining to stay together.All the while she struggled, Celestia, with visible ease, used her magic saturnite battle-axe to outright slaughter the hordes of foes who kept appearing out of nowhere. Heads literally rolled in the street as Twilight witnessed a sight she wished she never would see.Celestia on the warpath.A blue sphere appeared but the new arrival lost their head as soon as they appeared. Twilight had never seen Celestia so… angry. A scowl was on the Princess’ face, and tears left damp spots in Celestia’s alabaster white fur, stained with blood from the axe.Twilight had the urge to look behind her and screamed as a giant, tan-colred dragon-like creature charged at her with hoof long claws, crushing a pony with a sack hood and a hatchet under its feet.It was stopped short when another one of the creatures used its claws to attack the first, stabbing the long talons through it’s chest.Blinking as the black deathclaw stood silently for a second, Twilight had to shake her head a few times in confusion when, in a flash of green fire, Chrysalis stood before Princess Celestia and Twilight, her right hoof coated in blood up to the first set of holes in her chitin.Chrysalis looked at her bloody hoof in disgust, then to Celestia, “Can anypony explain what the Tartarus is going on here!? What was that thing!?” She pointed her bloody hoof towards the DeathclawTwilight ran to stand beside Chrysalis, “I’ll explain everything else later… and how did you get out of jail!?” Twilight asked in a loud yell.“When these things started showing up, one of my changelings Celestia released, released me and removed my magic dampener. When I made it out here, this happened!” Chrysalis shouted, her good eye wide as she motioned around with her hoof.The sound of trumpets cut off further conversation, slicing through the chaos like a knife as they played in the skies above.A bright light shown above the town of ponyville, bright as the very moon itself. Luna, in a chariot of dark black steel pulled by two bat ponies from her guard. She was clad in a suit of armor of silver, gold, and pearlescent white. The very stones of the Moon intricately crafted into the heavily engraved armor itself, making the stones shine like radiant diamonds from their home celestial bodies glow shining upon them.Every head, pony, Marked Man, Lobotomite, and Ghost, turned their head skyward.And each and everypony’s gazes fell upon the army that followed the radiant goddess of the moon, who, carried a spear as she led her troops.“THY CRETINOUS FILTH HAS DESECRATED THE TOWN OF PONYVILLE,” Luna bellowed as her eyes glowed white with immense power, her voice amplified to the Royal Canterlot Tone, “PREPARE TO BE DRIVEN TO TARTARUS!”And with that, a legion of night guard descended upon the ever growing number of formerly wasteland-residing attackers.

Chapter 13: Retribution

I couldn’t believe my eyes. It was sometime past seven o’clock and I had returned to town to see what I happened during my cowardice. I was thankful I hadn’t let Leo come with me, even as he begged me. Rattles walked beside me, Leo having made sure he would keep Mommy safe.

It was a cute and heartbreaking gesture that my son, my four year old son, was worried for my safety. So worried, that he ordered his best friend to guard me.And now, walking through town, I was grateful for my personal escort. Nightguards in bloodied armor walked around, dragging corpses of skinless ghouls, ponies in brown suits and masks, and a few others in sackcloth hoods and hospital gowns. I had heard Luna yell last night, as well as the mighty trumpets of her guards.It was like the Arena in the Fort. So much noise, death, and blood spilled on the ground. The air was thick with the smell of smoke, and many buildings had burnt down through the night.“Oh, thank goodness, Fluttershy, there you are!” yelled Twilight, causing me to look in her direction. I gasped in shock. Her armor was a battered wreck, it clanked and rattled as she ran forward. Even a few pieces fell off of it as she approached, leaving a shoulder exposed. “Where were you?” She asked, tilting her helmeted head. The visor was cracked and chipped to the point I could see one of her eyes, which held nothing but worry.“Home, hiding under the bed with my son,” I said, wincing at the state she was in. Looking to the ground I slowly admitted, “I was a coward and ran, even as I watched the first buildings go up in flame.”I felt a hoof against my back, just above the base of my left wing. It felt reassuring as I looked up to see Twilight’s cracked power helmet lenses. Even though I couldn’t see her face completely, her words and hoof showed her reassurance, “No, you’re not. You put motherhood first, and I have no right to say you should have helped because putting you or your son in danger was out of the question.”Her gaze slowly fell to the large amount of gauze wrapped around my thigh.“Oh my gosh, what happened!?” Twilight asked, jerking in shock. As if a thigh injury was cause enough to ignore that half the town was ruined. It hurt worse than the Cazadore sting to see so many ruined homes.I briefly wondered how many homes had been wrecked before I finally responded. “It was a Cazador,” I said, remembering the harsh pain that ran through my body, and the fearful thoughts of losing my son, “I was stung and nearly died before Ulysses managed to save my life.”Twilight gasped and hugged me, “I’m so sorry, Fluttershy. Is Leo okay?”I shook my head, “Of course not. I nearly died in front of him, and the battle throughout the night kept us all awake. Is Tigris and Applejack safe?”“I made sure of that,” spoke a voice from my left side. Turning my body, Ulysses limped towards us, his hide peppered with scars that were covered with fresh bandages. “I sent her and her child home, safe and sound.”I breathed a sigh of relief, “Are the others safe?”Twilight nodded, “Pinkie’s back at Sugarcube Corner, trying to calm Mrs. Cake and the twins, Rainbow and Nolan are fine, and Rarity is in the library with Christine, Sweetie, and Spike. I wouldn’t advise talking to her, she was stabbed and is in an easily pissed off mood.”“Oh my gosh,” I said quickly in a panic.I was about to say more, but the sight of Princess Celestia silenced me. A bloody axe was held in her flickering golden magical grasp as her white coat was stained crimson with blood. To see her in such a state amazed and horrified me at the same time. The half-scowl half-frown she wore with her tired eyes made it seem as if her thoughts were elsewhere as she neared.“Princess Twilight,” Princess Celestia muttered, weakly, her magic failing and the axe falling to the ground, “I no longer feel the magical disturbances. We’re safe, for now. How many dead of the town?”Twilight looked towards the ground, “The coroners report seventeen Ponyville residents having lost their lives, with thirty-plus more hospitalized with serious wounds... I failed them, Celestia.”“No, you didn’t. After four years, none of us expected something like this to happen. Let’s gather your friends at the library, I need to speak with you all.”

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Pinkie Pie’s hair was a flat, matted mess. Sweat dampened the tangled strands under the brown helmet she wore as her fur felt sticky under her NCR armor. She was laying down in a booth at Sugarcube Corner, trying to catch some rest after hours of fighting. Across from her in a separate booth, Pound and Pumpkin gazed at their ‘Auntie’ fearfully.Mrs. Cake stared in fear at her as well, or more importantly, at the Service Rife Pinkie had resting on the booth’s table, spare magazines and loose bullets covering the top. Mr. Cake had been one of the civilians shot and hospitalized, right in front of Mrs. Cake.“I see you staring,” Pinkie said solemnly as she closed her eyes, resting her head on the body of Chrome who was with her. The old ex-Legion Mongrel was contempt at being a pillow. Hours earlier, he ripped the throat out of a Marked man that forced his way through the door, and he was finished with fighting.“You killed other ponies,” Mrs. Cake said in fear directed towards the niece she barely recognised as her Pinkie Pie, “And you did so without hesitation.”“Is that why you were gone so long, Auntie…?” Pound trailed off his question. Even at the age of eight, he still referred to her as Auntie. A little childish habit that hadn’t yet given way to a more proper way of referring to her.Pumpkin, Pound’s tandem twin sister since birth, finished his question, “To kill ponies like the ones that attacked us?”Pinkie had no answer for the two. For so long she hid what she done as best as she could, but at that moment, the battle was rushing back to her. Firing from the window in Pound and Pumpkin’s room was a mistake. After almost a minute of silent contemplation, she spoke, “There’s a saying back in the NCR, the ponies I got the uniform from,” Pinkie let out a tired, hurt laugh, “War, war never changes. War is always Hell…”Pinkie gave a ghost of a smile, “Heh, it just took four years to catch up to us.” Letting out a shaky sigh, pinkie tried to let the exhausting hours of firing her gun leech away her consciousness and lull her to sleep, but the sound of hooves clopping into the store from the kicked-down door made Pinkie look up.“Raul!” Pinkie said with a quick revigorating jolt of energy, her hair almost reinflating.“Pinkie,” Raul said lowly in acknowledgment a relieving smile on his lips. His marefriend leapt out the booth, heading straight for him as Chome followed behind lazily. Raul had no time to react before Pinkie threw her hooves around his neck and kissed him.When she pulled away, she backed away a little to get a better look at him. “I had no idea if you were safe or not,” she said, noticing he was wearing an oversized sombrero and cowboy getup with a .44 magnum by his flank. Raul had told her stories about the costume, “Mi valiente Vaquero.”“Out with you!” Mrs. Cake seethed, causing both Pinkie and Raul to jump. Turning to face her, they saw how livid she was, clutching Pound and Pumpkin tightly, “My husband was hurt by one of your kind, Raul. Get. Out.”Taking a few steps towards her, Pinkie tried to protest, “But Mrs. C-”“Not going to hear it,” she snapped, with a quick shake of her head, “My husband is out there with the doctors, hurt, and could possibly die. So, Raul, get out of my sight.” She had finished with such finalization in her tone, Raul winced.“Meirda,” Raul cursed under his breath, lowering his head, “Marked Men?”Pinkie nodded, “One busted through the door. Chrome bit him in the neck, but not before Mr. Cake was shot. I heard the commotion from upstairs.” Looking down, she knew Mrs. Cake was inconsolable at the moment, “Let’s go someplace else.”

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“Nolan,” Rainbow Dash said flying over burt buildings as she carried her broken-winged husband through the air. The both of them had sitten through the firefight, and that was the reason Rainbow Dash was so anxious at that moment.“Yeah,” Nolan responded.“We need to find our friends. Like, now.”Nolan nodded and began to point ponies out in the crowd below.

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“Does it hurt, Rarity?” Spike asked, looking at the gaping wound in Rarity’s leg that she herself was sewing up. Having found a needle and thread somewhere in the library, Rarity refused to let the Lunar Guard medics that roamed the town help with the wound.“Like Hell,” Rarity responded with an out of place chuckle. She didn’t even grunt in pain as she used her magic to manipulate the needle through her own flesh, quite literally sewing herself together.“Wow, Sis,” Sweetie said as she observed, now dressed in her Ranger Armor, “You’re one tough mare.”“My exposed skin constantly burns,” Rarity explained with a small shrug, “Any touch to my exposed muscles sends fire coursing through me. Pain nearly made me feral, and now, I’m tough as nails.” The words didn’t horrify Sweetie, though, as the events of the previous night were fearful enough. While Rarity was speaking, Christine came down the steps from the bedroom, a first-aid kit in her light blue magical grasp.“You’re getting stronger,” Rarity commented before nodding towards the first-aid kit. “but I don’t need it.”“It’s not for you,” Christine replied back, walking towards the door, “The medics of the Lunar Guard weren’t ready for these wounds. Half the town is out there hurt, Rarity, they need all the supplies they can.”The front door opened, and a large group consisting of Pinkie, Raul, Ulysses, Fluttershy, Twilight, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Nolan and both Princess Celestia and Luna walked in.

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I’m going to be sick, I thought at the sight of Rarity sewing her own leg wound together. It was sickening to the point I turned green, and nearly fainted. But I stayed strong. Applejack and I stood close to the door, Twilight took a seat on her couch, Princess Celestia and Luna stood off to the side, and everyone else ambled to various locations in the main room of the library. Only shattered glass and a pile of ashes in the room gave warning that something had happened.“You okay there, Sugarcube,” Applejack asked, showing concern.“Yeah,” I muttered, my eyes glued to the floor, “How’s Tigris?”Applejack shook her head, “My little darlin’ slept through all of this. Only Luna’s trumpets woke her, and I had to outright lie to her.” Her face twisted into a disgusted expression of guilt at having to do that.“At least she’s safe,” I muttered, “Leo and Jason nearly ran into town when I was almost killed by a cazador.”“What!?” Was the general outburst, causing me to shy behind my mane. Applejack looked at my thigh and muttered a curse word.“Ulysses saved me,” I said in hope she would stop staring. She did, but tilted her head in confusion.“He did what?” she asked.“Ulysses saved me,” I reiterated, making the zebra in question remain stiller than before, “And then he ran into town.”Princess Celestia and Luna stepped close, Celestia’s bloodied coat shimmering in the light, “I saw him fighting the skinless ones, Marked Men, if Twilight’s letters were correct.”Ulysses didn’t comment as Rarity answered for Twilight, “Yes, Celestia, they were. I’m at least somewhat a marked one myself.” She had finished sewing her wound closed, her white coat marred with her own blood, adding yet another future scar on her body. It was a surreal sight to see both Celestia and Rarity just as bloodied as each other.It was also frightening at the same time, that Celestia, the kindest ruler who ever lived, had to kill. But in a sense, it was out of kindness to protect her subjects.“Well,” Princess Celestia started, gathering everyone’s attention as she scanned the room, “Now that we have all been gathered together, I would like to discuss what we shall do next.”“What do you plan, Celestia?” Twilight asked, voicing the question we all held.“I’m sending troops to destroy Big Mountain,” Celestia said flatly, like all her energy had been drained by the words, “The scientists sent these creatures here.”There wasn’t even a gasp of shock. She felt like a mother to us all, and vice versa she had lost many ponies she viewed as children. I myself desired the same thing when Chrysalis kidnapped Leo, a word Jason had told me the Legion used often…Retribution.“Is now a bad time?” Rainbow asked her husband. The question drew the attention of everyone in the library.“I don’t know,” Nolan said with a shrug, seeing the eyes of everyone on them, “But now everypony’s staring at us.”I saw Rainbow Dash tense her muscles, before she took a deep breath, looking off to the side as she croaked out, “I’m… I’m going to be a mother.”I deadpanned, my jaw falling open …What!?The silence in the room showed that everyone was just as shocked. Even Ulysses was surprised, though hardly showed it as he simply raised an eyebrow. Rainbow and Nolan could only fidget from where they stood.Rainbow lowered her head and blushed, “I… Nolan and I, we-”“What Rainbow is trying to say,” Nolan said for her as he nuzzled Rainbow affectionately. His voice, despite the current condition of the town, carried an undertone of pride, “Since we lived with each other for four years, and married a couple months ago, we decided to have a child together. Around a week ago, Rainbow took a pregnacy test, and I learned I was going to be a father.”Rainbow nodded, “It was going to be a big surprise, ya’know. A big shocker that a mare like me is going to have a foal. I was just waiting for the right time, and well, the attack and I never shown up.”Silence reigned over the room.…“Baby shower!” Pinkie squealed suddenly, bouncing up and down on the tips of her hooves, each hop making some kind of sound I could only describe as ‘sproing’. Even though there had been so much death in one day, everypony was able to give a weak smile for our favorite party pony.

Chapter 14: Spearhead

Private First Class Gleaming Spear couldn’t believe his eyes, his heart still beating with nervousness as he tapped his hooves against the bloodied shaft of the spear he held. The harrowing fight lasted all night against ponies so strange that they must have come straight out of a nightmare. The taste of bile reached his tongue as he remembered ramming the head of his weapon through the heads one of the skinless freaks.

His thoughts were interrupted by a gruff looking thestral in purple armor with silver highlights. A Guard Captain. His guard captain. Stowing his weapon at his side, the Captain of the Lunar Guard gave Gleaming Spear simple orders. He was to report immediately to the town library. Princess Celestia herself was waiting with the other princesses.With a nod, spreading his large, leathery bat wings, Gleaming Spear took off towards his destination.

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It didn’t take long for Spear to reach the library, Celestia and Luna waiting patiently inside with a variety of others, including the Elements of Harmony.The Element of Loyalty, Rainbow Dash, was sitting on a couch with a brown pegasus. There were others as well, and the most shocking was the Element of Generosity, Rarity. Seeing her half-skinless face sent a screaming Marked Man flashing across Spear’s memory, and the night-grey thestral paled a little.Princesses Celestia and Luna were talking in whispers to Princess Twilight, a zebra stallion, what looked like a zombie, and a blue unicorn mare with heavy facial scars.That peaked Spear’s curiosity over the sombrero wearing zombie. The scars weren’t from the previous night’s fight, they were old. How a mare got her face turned into a rendition of a jigsaw puzzle must have been an interesting story.“Guard,” Celestia said as she turned around, locking her eyes onto Spear’s.“Yes, ma’am?” Spear replied, quickly shaking out his thoughts as he saluted, “I reported as per my orders from Captain Darkwing. How may I be of assistance?”“At ease, my little pony,” Celestia replied with a wave of her hoof, facing him fully. Spear did so quickly, lowering his hoof and relaxing his body slightly. “My sister, Luna, has told me good things about you.”“She has?” Spear asked, confused as to what good things there was to say about him. Nervously shifting on his hooves, he cast a glance towards the armored Princess Luna, who was standing with a blank expression behind Celestia, but came up with no solution.“Yes,” Celestia replied with a nod, drawing Spear’s gaze back to her, “She has told me you volunteered for several missions, is that correct?”“Yes, ma’am,” Spear replied, then added hesitantly, “Though, I was never deployed, despite volunteering. May I speak freely, your Majesty?”“Go right ahead,” Celestia replied, giving a slight gesture with her right hoof.“From the question, I guess you want me to volunteer for a mission. From those... things outside I guess it involves them. So tell me, Celestia, where do I sign up?”Celestia smiled warmly, “And that’s another thing. Luna told me about, your enthusiasm and natural tendency to observe your surroundings and speech. It is true, I want you to go on mission. I will say it now: this is a covert operation. I have had no previous contact with these personnel or their government before now. I don’t even know who ‘they’ are beyond Twilight’s description, but sending a retaliation would be nothing short of an act of war. Parliament would have me indicted for violating laws I set over a thousand years ago to keep my own power in check.” Celestia lowered her head and half muttered, “I feared I would become a tyrant after Luna’s fall from grace.”Spear saw Luna close her eyes in a small grimace. Spear raised a brow, wondering who Celestia was referring to. In his years in the Night Guard, Spear had never seen such abominations. Where they came from must have been some dangerous, far-off land. But why would they attack Ponyville of all places? They seemed to be using some type of teleport magic the night prior. It was all so confusing to him, and he eventually settled with not thinking about it and doing as he was ordered.“With that said,” Celestia said as she rose her head and continued, “I shall send a small team of volunteers to accomplish the task of ensuring attacks like this won’t happen again. There is a team of Scientists who have sent these creatures to attack us without provocation. You’ll be trained and informed by Princess Twilight herself. If you do, or do not accept this task, do I make it clear that our conversation is to be kept entirely off the record?”“Yes, ma’am.” Spear replied, nodding his head. A gut feeling told him he’d be regretting his decision, but this was the chance to go on a high profile covert mission, trained by Princess Sparkle herself no less.“Good,” Celestia said with a nod. Turning her head to face Twilight Sparkle, Celestia spoke, “I shall talk with Mayor mare before returning to Canterlot with Luna. The nobles are no doubt going to riot in the courts over this.”

<>~<>~<>

Gleaming Spear stood in the basement of the town library, awestruck by the sets of armor displayed on ponyquins before him in the midst of a sea of mechanical parts. Christine, Ulysses, and Rarity were also with them, each one armed with weapons Spear saw the night prior.A shiver ran up his spine, seeing some of the weaponry. The large one the Element of Generosity carried was the same as a few of the skinless ponies, and Spear had witnessed one of his fellow Night Guard’s head explode into paste.“You built these?” Spear asked Princess Twilight, running a hoof carefully across one of the suits of almost alien looking armor. He half asked the question to distract himself from Rarity’s long trench coat and Tartarishly red-eyed helmet.Twilight gave an idle shrug, her own hoof rubbing one of the sets of armor, “It took my assistant Spike and I a lot of time to craft components and replicate the electrical systems, but yes. I also improved upon it by redesigning it, several times.” She had finished with a hint of pride in her tone. She levitated a boxy shaped weapon and a golden hoof boot as she teleported pieces of the shattered armor she wore onto a bare ponyquin.Spear could see with each set of armor, the design became slimmer and more refined. The first was a set of clunky armor with air tanks resting on the back, and a helmet with hoses connected to it. The last one seemed the closest to the knight-esque plate armor Spear was familiar with, though the helmet completely enclosed the face, hiding the eyes of the wearer behind dark-black mirrored glass.The armor was gone on a purple flash, Twilight having teleported the set of armor he was looking at onto herself. The gold hoof boot rested on Twilight’s right hoof, and the boxy weapon floated in a purple cloud of magic. What he didn’t expect, was Princess Twilight to float the weapon over to him.“Take it, it’s a laser rifle,” she explained casually yet seriously.Spear gave the princess a black expression. “Um… a what?” He asked, grabbing the weapon out of the purple cloud with a wing.Christine chuckled, “It’s a laser rifle. Goes pew-pew and disintegrates stuff. Twilight somehow made her own, and produced energy cells for it.”“And it’s totally compatible with micro-fusion cells…” Twilight added before sighing, “I hope.” That didn’t bode well with Spear, even though he had no idea what she was talking about. “Oh, and we also need to get you trained with how to use power armor.”“Uh… okay,” Spear replied, tilting his head to the side. What in the name of Tartarus did I volunteer for? Spear wailed to himself in thought as Twilight began levitating armor pieces off of a nearby ponyquin, gently removing his own.“Now, as I get you suited up, let me tell you a little about humans, and the wondrous sensation of cross-dimensional teleportation.”Cross-dimension what now!? Spear thought in alarm, but couldn’t move on account of the magic restraining him while replacing his armor.

<>~~<>

Rattles walked with me towards my house, occasionally turning invisible. Pinkie, Spike, Sweetie, Raul, and Applejack were following along with me, as the trail we took eventually forked, one path leading towards my house, the other to Sweet Apple Acres.I had no idea why Pinkie and the others decided to tag along, the tense air and the attack having kept our conversation to simple mumbles.It… it was just so unfair. Our town had been attacked by literal monsters, and ponies had been killed. I was just glad Caesar’s Legion had never showed up.The things they would do…I shivered from the repulsive thought.“Applejack, is Applebloom okay?” Sweetie asked, finally breaking our silence. I was thankful for a little distraction.“Mhmm,” Applejack muttered, not meeting anyone’s gaze.“We should be happy,” I said, “Rainbow Dash is pregnant.” Please, let there be anything to distract me from all that had happened. A sliver of a normal conversation, that’s all it would take.“Yeah,” Pinkie said with a smile, chuckling with some honest joviality, “I do get to plan a baby shower.”“¿Y nosotros, Pinkie?” Raul spoke in his language, “¿Alguna vez planear nuestra?”“You’re a ghoul,” Pinkie said as she gave a rare frown, “I wont be planning our baby shower.” She sounded so hurt by her own words, like she was also part of the problem.“Heh, yeah,” Raul chuckled humorlessly, “I often forget, sometimes, you know? I feel normal enough that it’s easy to think we can.”“I just hope we can salvage your reputation with Mrs. Cake,” Pinkie said solemnly, her head lowering in sadness. That comment set off a few alarms in my head, causing me to face Pinkie with a hurt expression.Oh no… what happened? I kept from voicing my concern, hoping the conversation would naturally reveal what happened. I didn’t want to intrude on their discussion.“She’ll come around. Mr. Cake’s a tough stallion, and he likes me.”Mr. Cake was hurt?“Yeah,” Pinkie said, smiling again, “And we could always adopt a foal.”“What’s got you so interested in kids all of a sudden?” Raul asked, arching his brow, stopping his walk to scratch the back of his head, then running forward to catch up with Pinkie, “We’re only novio y novia, not married. You feeling left out?”Pinkie shook her head, “No, it’s… it’s just that last night, any of the two of us could have died. It scared me to think of losing you, and that got me thinking about after we're gone. Who’s going to be the one to carry on us? You’re the last Tejada. It’s just my crazy brain is getting too caught up in all the death is all.”“Yeah,” Raul simply replied.“You know,” Spike said, his voice a deeper tone since he had matured, “I wonder if Rarity and I would have been able to have kids, even if she wasn’t... whatever she is. The only reason she never accepted my advances was that she didn’t want to leave me alone after she died, but now, she can live for a couple hundred years.”I chose that moment to add to the conversation, “Well, if I’m not mistaken, there is a race called Draconies. They usually live near the mountainous regions where dragons and ponies have more opportunities to mingle.”Spike chuckled, “Sweet. A half-pony, half-dragon, half-ghoul. Shame it won’t happen.”Pinkie bounded beside him, hooking a foreleg around his neck to give him a noogie with a forehoof, causing most of us to laugh, “Who knows? Weird stuff always happens to us.”Finally, we reached the forking paths.“Well, Applejack, I guess this is where we part,” I said as I turned towards her. Pinkie, Raul, and Sweetie stuck with Applejack, leaving me with Rattles and Spike as we diverged our paths, not even slowing our steady walk.“Later, Sugarcube.”“Bye Applejack. Feel free to bring Tigris over, we should let them distract each other for a little while. Little ones like them shouldn’t have to deal with the Wasteland…” I trailed off, thinking of Twilight and Rarity who were going off to Big Mountain to fight.Applejack and I were mothers, we couldn’t just leave and abandon our children. Rainbow Dash is pregnant now - a very big shocker - so that kept her from going, and Pinkie stayed behind so she wouldn’t have to deal with even more death. I just hope they know what they’re doing and get back safely.

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“So…” Spear trailed off, “Would you mind running all that past me again? Humans, nuclear war, brains in jars!?” Spear said, his pulse quickening as his alarm rose, “Just what did I volunteer for?”Having been wrapped in a heavy suit of power armor, he’d been asking himself since Twilight started talking about portals and someplace called the Wasteland. The laser rifle he’d been instructed to use rested across his back, ready to use with one of Twilight’s remaining energy cells.“Just follow our lead,” Christine said, wrapped in a yellow and black set of Sierra Madre police armor, her sawn-off shotgun resting in a holster on her flank. Ulysses was donning his duster, respirator and 12.7mm SMG already in their respective places.“Trust me, and pardon my uncouth language,” Rarity said, tapping a button on the side of her helmet, the eyes lighting up even redder, “But you’re about to see some mind blowing shit.”“Why did I even volunteer for this?” Spear asked, shifting in his power armor nervously, “And why am I the only guard coming?”“I don’t know, guess it has something to do with covert-op,” Christine suggested with a sarcastic undertone lacing her words.“Let’s do this,” Twilight announced loudly.Private First Class Spear expected Princess Twilight to use her horn for magic, not the gold gauntlet on her hoof to open a blue spherical portal. On the other side, all he could see was brown dirt and dry weeds, but even that made him consider backing out.Until Christine grabbed him with her magic and jumped through.

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Having ripped off his helmet, Spear let out another long, wet, wretch. What little contents in his stomach vacated his body, and the Night Guard coughed, trying to get the sickening greasy taste of bile out of his mouth.Staring at his new hand as he lay next to the puddle of vomit, Spear could only laugh in horror.Just what in the fuck did I get myself into?

Chapter 15: Endgame

Gleaming Spear opened his eyes slowly, his head reeling at the sight of the bright blue sky above him. Wincing at the utter blueness, Spear rolled to his side, his head feeling as if it would explode from headache alone.

“You didn’t have to push him,” Spear heard Princess Twilight complain.“I didn’t have to, but it was fun,” It was Christine. He recognized her voice as the one who pushed him into the portal. Flailing his limbs, he tried to stand to take revenge against her, only to thrash in the sand under him.“I’ll fucking kill you for that!” Spear cursed, losing his nerve as he tried to maneuver his new strange limbs. With the armor on, he felt like an upside down turtle. After a few futile minutes of struggling, Spear relented with a loud curse, relaxing his muscles.“You finished?” Christine asked flatly before reaching a hand down to him, surprising him at her new form. Her face and armor was the same, but not her body. It was the exactly the same, he realized, for Princess Twilight… and him.Spear didn’t move, and with the helmet still resting next to his head and puddle of vomit, Christine could see his clenched jaw and narrowed expression of anger. As well as being extremely angry. Spear was also confused, but too mad to care.“Come on,” Christine cooed, “Take my hand you big baby. You only just had your body magically ripped apart then put back together as an entirely different species. Rarity and Ulysses have already got a head start on us.”“Their head start,” Spear said tersely, “is not my problem. What is, is that I can’t move!”“Take my hand, and I’ll help you move,” Christine ordered sternly, suddenly turning serious, “There's shit out here that I don’t want to deal with, and you’re making a fat fucking target for them.”Spear had no idea what she could be referring to, but if it meant dealing with more of those monsters back in Equestria, then he had better listen. Taking a deep breath, he moved his arm upwards - it was shaking heavily but he still had control over it - and grabbed the hand of the yellow armored woman standing above him.With a firm pull, Christine had Spear standing on his feet, surprising him of her strength. Looking down to his new body, he felt like a clumsy foal as his knees wobbled and threatened to buckle. He spread his arms to balance himself out, not wanting to fall back down again.“Heh,” Princess Twilight laughed as she picked up Spear’s helmet and placed it back on his head. She adjusted it a bit to make it comfortable, and Spear was silently grateful for that. “I remember when I first turned into a human. I face planted into a door.”That was an expression Spear didn’t hear often, or at all for that matter.“Welcome to my world, Spear,” Christine said, changing the subject as she motioned her hand around in a small circle, “It’s a shithole. If you ever wonder about my scars, I got them here.”Spear followed Christine’s moving hand, looking past it to the crumbling buildings, tall pillars of concrete, and seemingly endless craters. In the middle of it all, a massive dome shaped building. They were standing in the middle of open ground, a green vehicle of sorts with a long flat bed and arches for a canopy nearby. Spear was speechless, taking in the strange sights of the brown, lifeless land that surrounded them.Wow, Spear thought, this place is a mess.There was a loud buzz in the air, causing Spear to perk his head, “Dr. Klein, page me when I give a damn!”“Oh, who’s the big voice on the intercom, Zeer-Oh!? In other news, I SOUND LIKE GOD!!”Spear was shocked at the sudden appearance of the voices and began shifting nervously on his feet, taking the laser rifle weapon that was given to him in his hands. Though the rifle was boxy, it still sat comfortably in his hands. Somewhat calm being able to defend himself, he caught sound of Christine gritting her teeth, letting out a growl afterwards.“Those incompetent excuses for scientists,” Christine seethed, “Bastardising the field of study for quick results that never come to fruition.”She definitely had some history with whoever had spoken, and it certainly wasn’t a friendly relationship. However, a different question popped into his head.“I take it you’re a scientist?” Spear asked, although shakily. Dealing with Luna’s Royal Canterlot Tone on a regular basis kept him from outright shaking in fear of the loud voices that had seemed to boom from everywhere.“I was a Scribe,” Christine said softly, her voice nostalgic, but then rapidly turned hostile, “until a group of skeletons captured me and ripped my head open. I was near dead by the time the machine was done with me, and my brain was permanently damaged.”Spear recoiled from the sudden revelation. It came out of no where, and if he wasn’t in this alternate world, he would swear she made it up. He glanced to Princess Twilight, who had let out an unexpected curse. “Sorry,” she apologised to him, “They hurt Christine, and now she can’t enjoy reading. They also are the ones that use the scorpions. We need to stop them, any way possible. If we can’t talk sense into them - which is possible since I was here when the Courier, Jamie, talked them into letting us go - then we’ll have to kill them.”Despite what was said, the bitter coldness of Princess’ tone told Spear they weren’t here to talk.From the amount of guards not returning to their mares back home, Spear didn’t have a problem with taking them out. He’d like to do it personally, if possible. A little recompense for those slain just the night prior.Before their conversation could continue, Rarity ran up to them, cradling her rifle in her arms with Ulysses following behind.“You need to look at this,” Ulysses said in his rattly monotone as they stopped in front of the group. He may have wanted to put up a bold front, but his eyes betrayed an emotion that rocked Spear to the core. It was nervousness, maybe even a hint of fear.Oh, that doesn't sound like it will bode well.

<>~<>~<>

“I’m a little teapot short and stout,” a young colt sang in a sandbox. Another child, this one a filly, sat next to him watching her brother’s work. “Here is my handle here is my spout. When I get all steamed up hear me shout, just tip me over and pour me out.”When Leo ended his song, he also finished his small, simple castle. It was nothing more than a mound of dirt piled up with more piled dirt representing walls, but to Leo, it was an impregnable castle of grand architecture.Then, without warning or advocation, Tigris jumped on it. Perhaps it was out of jealousy for her brother’s work, or just plain sibling meanness. No matter the cause, the walls came tumbling down.“No!” Leo wailed. Angry at the destruction of his fortress, Leo ponced on his sister. Both their mommies gasped, but Leo didn’t care.Hooves flailed and combat raged. It was a truly epic great sibling battle… until their mothers separated the half-siblings, scolding the children for their rowdy behavior.

<>~<>~<>

“Fuck,” Spear cursed quietly as he lied atop a large boulder with the others, eying the dregs of humans around the central dome building through a pair of binoculars. Most of the humans wore sackcloth hoods and paper-thin medical gown, whereas others were dressed in grease stained jumpsuits. All of them were armed with an assortment of weaponry ranging from simple knives to deadly shotguns. Robotic scorpions patrolled between the humans, who, for the most part, were standing stock still.“Lobotomites,” Christine commented as she held her own pair of binoculars, “Not the most intelligent bunch, but they know their way around a weapon. I’ve never seen this many before.”“They’re just standing there,” Twilight said as she held a hand to her helmet. An enchantment on it allowed her to zoom in and out with the headgear. No binoculars required. It was a neat modification, and Spear made a mental note to ask her more about it later.“Can I please kill something?” Rarity asked, lining up headshots with her Anti-Material rifle, waiting to pull the trigger, “I haven't taken my daily anti-bitch pill, and the feral in me really wants to kill something.”“What?” Spear asked in shock, pulling his gaze away from the mob of enemies to stare at Rarity in disbelief.Rarity chuckled at his surprise, saying with a smile under her helmet, “Yep, I’m on meds to keep my anger suppressed. I nearly went feral ghoul and now I have to take extra-strong doses of antipsychotics to keep my anger in check.” Rarity’s tone changed to regret, “If I don’t, I get urges. Violent ones.”Rarity made a nod with her head, towards one of the seemingly hundreds of Lobotomites, “He would look good dissected.”Though Spear couldn’t tell which lobotomite she was referring to, it still made him slightly pale. The mares and zebra stallion with him had seen more horrors than he could even begin to think of, and it obviously changed Rarity. So exactly what did this horrible world have waiting for him?Christine chuckled, facing Spear specifically, “I have a plan. I call it… Operation Spearpoint.”Why does that sound like it involves me? Gleaming Spear internally groaned.

<>~<>~<>

Queen Chrysalis walked the streets of Ponyville, minding that she didn’t disturb the dead. And there were many of them. Corpses discarded like trash as stallions sorted the civilians from the soldiers before placing sheets over them.The previous night’s fighting had been the most brutal combat the Changeling Queen had seen in all of her long life. Even her invasion of Canterlot resulted in zero deaths between the ponies and changelings. Her casualties came after the failed attempt left her and her drones stuck in the Badlands north of Equestria, starving.She lost her vision in one eye due to a subordinate trying to lead a coup d'etat. A lucky attempt on his part that nearly led to her death.The emotions in the air around her were tense. Anger and distrust were all Chrysalis could detect with her magic, some even directed towards her. She knew that everypony remembered Canterlot, and the fact a large portion of Lunar Guards with fresh Solar Guard reinforcements were in town, made the large Changeling uneasy.What now? The Queen asked herself in thought, what do I do now?As she aimlessly wandered, her thoughts kept drifting back to the form she adopted to combat the hordes of enemies. What was referred to as a Deathclaw. The name held no meaning to her, but the draconic form was fierce in combat, capable of rending limbs from bodies in a single swipe.And, of course, that’s what the Queen had done in that form. Stopping, Chrysalis looked at her bloodied hooves that once were massive claws.Screaming overhead interrupted her thoughts, followed by a large weight landing on her back, smashing her chest to the ground with legs splayed outward in a near comical way.“Bloody ‘el,” the pony that landed atop her cursed, a stallion with an accent that sounded like it came from Bridle or Manechester, “I am so sorry. My wife lost her grip.”Turning her head to look at the pony on her back, Chrysalis bared her fangs in a forced smile, “That’s okay,” she growled with forced friendliness.The brown stallion atop her jumped away, wings spreading out as he did “Whoa!” he exclaimed, “Didn’t expect to land on the fuckin’ equivalent of this world’s Cazador.”Standing up to her full height, she was prepared to tell the stallion with the Bridleish accent off, but a pegasus she recognized as Rainbow Dash flew overhead, stopped, and hovered. She crossed her forelegs and looked at the stallion, “Well, Nolan, it’s not my fault you weigh, like, a ton. You’re the one eating all my pickles and ice cream.”“I do not, Love,” the stallion replied back, “Why do you even have those anyway? You’re not even that far into your pregnancy. You knackered in the head or somethin’?”“I’m just preparing,” Rainbow Dash shot back, rolling her eyes and groaning.As the couple began to debate back and forth, Chrysalis closed her eyes and shook her head, before walking further into town.Maybe I should talk to Celestia, though, I doubt she’d be in a good mood after... Chrysalis stopped her thinking to gaze around the half-ruined town… this.

<>~<>~<>

Spear didn’t like the plan. He really, really, really, really didn’t like the plan. He knew it would most likely get him killed. It was probably the reason Christine had volunteered him for the job. Sneaking from rock to rock, the thestral turned human was glad for the helmet keeping the bright sunlight out of his eyes. It would be one less thing to distract him from getting caught. He got over to his position, which was a small makeshift road leading to a nearby canyon. The very large mass of lobotomites lumbered around, unaware of his presence, but it wouldn’t last long. His nerves were faltering as he stared at the enemies, but he held strong. He didn’t want to feel the wrath of Rarity, or Christine, or Ulysses, or Princess Twilight...As he shifted his weight between his feet, Spear cupped his hands to the front of his helmet. His mind replayed the words Christine had instructed him to shout. “Come and get some fresh meat, you fucking no-brains!” he yelled, nearly out of breath from the exertion.The heads of the lobotomites turned towards him, some were sluggish while others faced him with amazing speed. They all knew he was there, and that meant he got their attention. And this, in turn, meant he could execute the next part of the plan.With adrenaline pumping through his body, he turned on his heel and took off in the opposite direction, running for his very life. Though his heavy armor was weighing him down considerably, he didn’t dare slow down. The sound of hundreds of people chasing him showed that they were definitely on his tail.I hate my life! he shouted in his head repeatedly.

<>~<>~<>

“You know, I learned something in the NCR,” Pinkie Pie said to Raul. The pair had decided to meander on the edge of town, patrolling for any more nasty surprises. Though there was none to be found, the opportunity to converse was abundant.“And what’s that, seniorita?” Raul asked, levitating his sombrero off his head to wipe sweat with a foreleg. He fell behind only slightly, having gotten used to keeping up with others while using his forelegs.“I can handle the pressure of… well, all of it really. Last night, I was fearful, yes, but I was also in the zone. It was cray-cray,” Pinkie said, no hint of remorse or fear in her voice, only happiness.Raul chuckled at Pinkie’s childish expression, a toothy smile playing across his lips. He then returned to a neutral expression, his thoughts thinking back to the eventful night. “Yeah,” Raul said with a nod, “I guess you were. You kept Pound and Pumpkin safe.”There was a bark, and both Raul and Pinkie looked back down the road. Running in leaps and bounds was the old Legion mongrel, Chrome. Firmly biting his grey furred tail was Gummy, Pinkie’s pet toothless alligator. The baby alligator’s paws dragged in the dirt as he kept a firm bite on Chrome’s tail.The display had Pinkie smiling, who then returned to her conversation with Raul as they continued their walk. “I did, didn’t I?” Pinkie picked up from where they left off, “But, I find it strange that I feel totally fine after all that. The only reason my mood is crummy is because good ponies died last night. But, war will have casualties. I knew and cooked for almost every NCR trooper at Hoover Dam. I guess I’m jaded to death now.”“What are you getting at?” Raul asked, arching his brow.“I’m thinking of enlisting in the Royal Guards,” Pinkie replied, a small, sad smile playing across her lips.Raul nearly choked on air, suddenly stopping in his tracks to look at his marefriend incredulously. She kept walking however, unfazed by his reaction. “¿Qué!?” Raul said incredulously.“No ‘Whats’,” Pinkie argued, his voice tense as she stopped a few feet ahead of Raul. “It’s something I’ve already made my mind up on. A lot of good mares and stallions died last night because of what my friends and I went through four years ago. I’m going to enlist. I’m going to go from a baker's apprentice to a soldier, Raul. Maybe even as a cook for familiarity’s sake.”Raul winced, looking to the ground with shock. “Dios mio,” he groaned, “And you think it will be the same as the NCR?”“It doesn't have to be,” Pinkie said, trotting back to Raul. She placed a hoof on his shoulder, lifting his chin with the other hoof to gaze into his eyes, “All that matters is that I’m going…” Pinkie looked to the ground, tears dampening the corners of her eyes, leaking out to stain the dust covered fur under them, “and that this is goodbye.”Raul was shocked to hear those damning words. “Wh-what?” he stammered, too afraid to move like he would miss the precious words that it was all just a joke. His old heart was racing, more so than any Deathclaw could instill, and he could feel his gut tighten in despair. “What about us, Pinkie, what about us?”Pinkie gave him a puppy-dog-eyed look, “Please, don’t be mad at me, I’ll write you every day I’m gone.”“But we’ll be apart,” he explained, his voice just above a whisper. “Who knows how long you’ll be gone?”“I don’t know,” Pinkie softly replied, her uncertainly making Raul’s reassurance take a dive, “But I’ll write. Please, keep Chrome and Gummy safe for me.”And with that, Pinkie dropped her hoof away from Raul’s shoulder, slowly walking away from the petrified stallion with her head slightly lower than normal, mane limp.She’s leaving. She’s actually leaving. Say something, you stupid old man. Convince her to stay. But what can I say?Raul looked down to Chrome who had caught up with him and was patiently waiting on the side of the road. Gummy still chewed at Chrome’s tail, and the duo were seemingly oblivious to their master’s departure. Or perhaps they somehow knew they needed to stay.Please, Santa María, please let her come back to me.

<>~<>~<>

Fear. A great motivator to push one’s body to the absolute limit. In the case of Spear, this was most certainly the case, as he ran like an army was chasing him.Because it was.The rocky terrain worked against him as he made his way to the canyon. At that point, his legs had a mind of their own, working hard even though his brain protested against it. Entering the mouth of the canyon, Spear momentarily took note of the toppled railcars and boxes of supplies littered the ground before turning his attention back at the matter at hoof, or hand. The train tunnel beyond the small line of cars was locked tight, forcing the trailing Lobotomites to funnel their way through, narrowing their numbers as they pushed and shoved to get to Spear first.The predestined spot was chosen by Twilight, and Spear saw a glint on the top of the canyon wall from Rarity’s rifle scope. Spear barely had time to see the glint before there was a flash of light, and he was suddenly atop the canyon wall, running away from Twilight with Rarity prone by her legs, lining up rifle shots.Twilight had teleported him, and he gratefully took the moment to fall to his knees, enjoying the air much more than before. Despite his tired muscles, he forced himself to wobble over to the the ledge Twilight stood upon, stuck between a crawl and a shaky walk. When he arrived next to Twilight, he saw the legion of Lobotomites fill the canyon. It was a scary picture, especially since he would have been in the center of it all if it wasn’t for Twilight.The Lobotomites were still staggering along, still chasing Spear who was no where in sight. It reminded Spear of how dumb these things were. They shambled along, right into the minefield set by Ulysses and Christine. The two of them, specifically, had taken positions on rocky outcroppings on the side of the canyon, with weapons Ulysses had stored in his hide out. A couple of Marksman Carbines; deadly accurate, and perfect for taking out straglers.A resounding boom echoed through the area, the canyon filling with explosions, as well as a multitude of limbs. The gore was understandable, but that didn’t stop Spear from looking away. He was lucky he had already dumped the contents of his stomach already. When the noise had settled down, he glanced back, only to find a mess of blood and body parts, scattered around the area like a psychopath's decorations. There were a few stragglers around, but they were quickly taken down by Ulysses and Christine, their gun shots reverberating after the large blast only seconds before.Spear didn’t feel disgusted or revolved as he scanned the ruins, but with glee, as his lips curled into a happy smile. He would’ve considered if he had lost his mind, but he was just glad those things were taken care of.“Ha ha! it worked, it actually worked!” Gleaming Spear cheered, giving a fist pump as the last of the shots from the three snipers died down. Twilight couldn’t fight back a giggle at Spear’s celebration. The sound did snap Spear back into reality, and made him realize he was in the presence of a princess. Clearing his throat, he quickly contained his excitement as he tried to forget his loss of control. That only made Twilight giggle more.“It worked alright,” Twilight said with a nod, sounding serious as she looked upon the carnage below. “I have to hand it to Christine, she can be amazing at times.”“Most certainly,” Rarity commented, surprising Spear a bit as she stood up. He had forgotten she was there. Without any movement, she stared out into the canyon, her next words sounding hollow. “Let’s end this.”Hardening his features, Spear couldn’t agree more; he was tired of all the craziness.

<>~<>~<>

It didn’t take long for the small group to make it back to the Dome and to defeat what robotic scorpions that wandered around, especially after taking out the main force of the Dome’s defenses. And at long last, the group stood right outside the metallic door to the home of the scientists responsible for their recent trouble.Everyone’s weapon was loaded, ready to dispense various lead and high voltage justice to the Think Tank. Their revenge was coming, and they could feel it in the air. It was an unsettling sensation, one that made Spear very glad that the four were on his side.“Ready?” Twilight asked the group, standing at the head in front of the door. Rarity chuckled, holding a sinister tone, before nodding.With a few brisk steps, Twilight flipped a switch on a lone panel, and the door opened with a loud hiss of air without any resistance. Spear couldn't’ believe their luck; The incompetent Think Tank hadn’t even locked the door when their army had been destroyed. He had to wonder if they were really dealing with ingenious scientists. As far as he understood from everyone and what he had seen, they were about as unintelligent as a year old foal.Without further ado, Twilight charged inside, laser rifle at the ready, followed by Rarity and Ulysses, then Christine. They had all run inside with no thought about what may lie ahead. Or perhaps they already had, and Spear was just two steps behind them. It would make sense, considering his track record so far.Feeling somewhat confident with these killers with him, Spear sprinted after them, leveling his own weapon as he took note of his surroundings. He definitely had entered a dome, with gray paneling swallowing the ceiling the adjacent walls in a fluid pattern. It was dark, but Spear could still make out objects pretty easily. The group ran along a metal path right up to a platform, which was occupied by…Brains suspended in floating jars, with televisions holding the scariest looking eyes and mouths he had ever seen. And he thought the lobotomites were messed up, these Think Tanks weren’t even ponies- er, humans anymore! He was expecting flesh and blood enemies to face, not machines with creepy smiles and unblinking eyes.Although he wasn’t as terrified as he was with the lobotomites - as they felt more of a threat - he still had a natural feeling to get the hell away from them. however, in the process of the three others, he was much braver. This is what they came here for, and he wasn’t going to wuss out at the last moment.“WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS?” The scientist brain-bot floating in the middle of the room bellowed. Spear concluded he was Dr. Klein, the person in charge of the Think Tank. Considering all the other brain-in-a-jar’s were observing from afar, it was a valid guess.“We’re here for payback,” Twilight shouted, pointing an accusatory finger at him, “You caused the death of many ponies you... you hypocrites! This place isn’t a science facility, it’s a freak show that’s been going on long enough!”“DR. DALA, WHAT ARE THESE LOBOTOMITES YELLING ON ABOUT?” Dr. Klein asked, his voice perpetually stuck in a yell as he turned his attention to another scientist to his left.The brain-bot Klein addressed floated over to him, the monitor’s lips shaped more feminine than the others, with a seductive voice to match. “I do believe the little teddy bears are from that place we’ve been purging the failures to. That realm Dr. Mobius’ notes spoke of.”“I KNOW WHERE THEY CAME FROM, DALA.” Klein retorted in a huff, “THE Y-17 FACILITY TESTED THE ONE THAT STARTED YELLING. MY BIOMETRIC SCANS MATCH THE RESULTS. THE BIG QUESTION IS, WHY ARE THEY HERE? I THOUGHT THE CRACKPOT JUST INVENTED A NICE DISINTEGRATION RAY, NOT A... WHAT DID HE CALL IT?”“Tele-cineration beams,” Dala replied calmly, unaffected by Klein’s volume, “mounted on the robo-scorpion prototypes we have here, the Sierra Madre, and the Hopeville Military Base.”Twilight was fuming, her finger itching to pull the trigger. She could practically feel steam inside her helmet as she glared menacingly at Dr. Klein. “So you just used our home town as a waste bin for your failures!?” Twilight yelled, her very core shaking with rage.She was done talking. Done seeing the brains float and pretend to do science. In a split second, she aimed her rifle and pulled the trigger, sending a hot crimson beam sailing towards Dr. Klein, striking the glass dome but not leaving so much as a scratch.Surprised, Dr. Klein attempted to dodge, knocking into Dr. Dala with enough force to send the two robots clattering to the ground. Twilight kept on firing her rifle until she started doing damage. Each shot melted through metal and wires, making the screens and arms holding them spaz out. By the end of her assault, two piles of ashes and metal slag were all that was left.Two other doctors, Zero and Eight, didn’t have a chance to react. Rarity ended Zero with a single shot from her rifle shattering the glass dome that protected his brain, killing him instantly, while Christine pelted Eight with carbine bullets until he was full of holes.Dr. Bourous tried to run, but Ulysses had already lined him up in his 12.7mm SMG’s sights. It took only half a magazine before the doctor responsible for the cyberdog program, nightstalkers, and cazadores was killed, crashing to the floor in a spectacular clamor of grinding metal and shattering glass.The one-sided firefight lasted roughly the span of eight, maybe nine seconds before all five of the scientists had been killed.Spear was surprised how they just… killed them. So easily and without remorse. It wasn’t like with the lobotomites or the invaders back in Equestria. These were thinking beings, ones that could have been talked out of doing what they did. Sure, Spear had admitted he wanted to end them as well, but that was before he met them. In some ways, he felt regret and guilt. He didn’t even pull the trigger, yet he felt responsible nevertheless. Based off how everyone suddenly went gung ho on these robots, it was probably for the best if he just hid these thoughts away. Glancing over to Twilight, he saw her stand and stare at the two melted scientists she had killed with herself, her expression unreadable.“It’s done,” she said quietly, almost emotionlessly. “We killed them. Ponyville, and the rest of equestria, is safe.” He wording was simple, but it delivered the same meaning as any speech could. Twilight released a sigh before facing the electrical equipment that made up most of the room. “Let’s make sure we turn those scorpions off.”As Twilight finished her sentence, the elevator door behind the group opened with a loud rattle. Everyone spun on the spot, all their weapons aiming at the elevator entrance and ready to take fire if need be. Standing in front of the elevator, however, was a rather baffled human, not a lobotomite, and certainly not another floating brain in a jar.With raised hands, the human exclaimed in a loud, authoritative tone, “Twilight, you better have a good explanation for this.”It was Jamie, or more commonly known around the Mojave as the Courier.

<>~<>~<>

In the center of Ponyville, a large blue sphere suddenly appeared, causing quite a stir for everypony in the vicinity. The guards in town grabbed weapons and prepared to fight another battle, a few managing to acquisition firearms off the corpses of Marked Men. The air was tense as the Guards surrounded the blue sphere, ready for round two.However, a fight never came. From the sphere emerged Christine in her yellow Sierra Madre police uniform, Ulysses dressed in his duster, and Rarity in her Ranger gear. Following behind was the night guard, Gleaming Spear, in his power armor, and Princess Twilight in her own set. Upon their return, the guards eased up, lowering their weapons.However, some guards were wary, staring at the Princess’s group as the portal didn’t close behind them. A few guards nearly panicked as another pony stepped through.The guards knew a warrior when they saw one. His body was young but his features weren’t. Scars barely hidden by his armor told years of fighting, some fights resulting in him losing. His mane, black, had subtle wisps of gray seeping out from the roots, most noticeable on his goatee. A few of the older guards saw that his face was wrinkled slightly, worn by sand and stress. It was odd to see the face of a veteran soldier on a young stallion.Jamie’s heart sank as he saw the destruction Big Mountain had brought onto the town. His lips curling into a sad, disappointed frown. The town would have fit any of the other towns he’d been to in the Wasteland, and seeing such destruction on a peaceful place like this tore him apart internally.“I am so sorry I let them live,” Jamie spoke softly in apology to Twilight, seeing the many sheets lining the sidewalk and the blood covering the streets. “They sent the Wasteland to you.”Jamie gasped when a tall, majestic pony landed in front of him. Her mane was made of colors the wastelander had never seen before, and he couldn’t stop himself but to stare in awe of the white unicorn with wings. He thought back to what Twilight had told him, years in the past.It was Celestia, one of the Princesses in charge of the land. Bowing in respect, Celestia spoke to him.“Hello, Jamie,” Celestia said, surprising him as she knew his name. She knew it because Twilight had described him to her in the past, describing looks that he possessed as a human. It wasn’t hard to change it over to a pony’s body. The black mane and goatee, as well as the desert-camouflage combat armor over a beige coat.“Princess,” Jamie responded courteously, looking back up.“I hear you are a courier, is that true?” Celestia asked, her tone almost motherly sounding to the hardened warrior.“Yes, your majesty,” He replied, a playful smirk escaping his lips, “I am when not adventuring.”Celestia gave a humored chuckle, “Good. I need you to take a message to your NCR’s president. I have spent four years denying the problem you people have faced. It took getting threatened by your world to realize I can no longer sit idly by. It is time for Equestria to lend a helping hoof to the Wasteland.”

Chapter 1: Leo's Playdate

Chapter 1: Leo’s Playdate

My eyes shot open quickly to the sound of my son crying. I sprang to my hooves a little too quickly and bopped my husband Jason with a hoof to his nose, before groggily stumbling my way to Leo’s room with a yawn. It wasn’t far, my brand new house had a child’s bedroom right next to the master bedroom.

In the dark, I nearly stepped on Angel Bunny's tail. Thankfully, he scampered his little self out of the way before my hoof could harm him. And as he scampered away, his soft paws resounded off the teak wood floor with light scratches.I opened the door to Leo’s room and walked in, the mere presence of me calming his cries. He watched me with his teal eyes in the pale blue light of the nightlight that stood as the sole decoration on top of a cribside stand.Walking further into the room, I looked into Leo’s crib and reached in to pick him up, holding him in the air for a second to check his diaper before setting him down on the floor.From there, he walked under me and did as instinct told him. Finding a teat, he began suckling on it for milk. It had been a few hours since he last ate.I couldn’t help but blush as my foal tugged and pulled to nurse off of me. I would have preferred to use formula, but Twilight told me my natural milk would be better for him. Out of concern for my child’s health, I did the responsible thing and took the healthier choice.A few seconds later, Leo’s tiny belly was full and he eased off and let out a tiny burp of satisfaction.Picking him up again, I wiped a splotch of milk off his lips, then gently placed him back into the crib, making sure he was nice and comfy. After that, I walked back towards mine and Jason’s room.Leo was a lot like me, but so much different in the same way. His cute little body was covered in fur as red as a Legion flag, and his mane was as brown as Jason’s, but the ends were tipped in pink. It made a peculiar shape akin to an upside down fireflame.Like me he was a pegasus, and had the same teal eyes. Well... not really.Unlike my eyes, his eyes hadn’t seen the horrors of the Mojave, or the cruelty of the Legion.Entering my room, I took a few steps into the dark room before flopping down unceremoniously onto the rather large and comfortable bed next to Jason. He didn’t even do so much as twitch since he was such a heavy sleeper. Rolling onto my back, I stared at the ceiling in the dark.Leo was innocent. A child whose ears hadn’t heard the screams of men as they hacked and slashed each other on bloodied sand in an arena. I gave a shiver remembering being trapped in the cage with Applejack while Orion fought others from the Legion for our ownership.I hated remembering those things.It has been almost three months since Leo was born, and nearly six months since we returned to Equestria from that horrid place called New Vegas and the Mojave Wasteland.Twilight still worries about those we left behind in the world that was destroyed by bombs of apocalyptic scale.I tried not to think about them. It kept me up at night the same way I worried for Leo.I knew I was the element of Kindness, but that world was so firmly rooted with strife and pain that it was too far gone to help. And I couldn't abandon my son.Rolling over again, I threw a foreleg over Jason and pulled myself close. His warmth banished any bad thoughts I previously held.As I drifted to sleep quickly for around the third time that night, I thought, ‘Maybe Leo can play with his half-sister tomorrow?’

<~-~>

The sun was warm against my fur, Jason trotting along with me as I pushed our stroller down the road towards Sweet Apple Acres. I couldn’t help but let out a wide, loving smile every time Leo let out a playful coo. He really liked bouncing along in the stroller.Jason looked into the stroller and smiled at his son before looking to me, “Nice out today, isn’t it?”I nodded, then looked up to the sky to see clouds burst to tiny puffs from being impacted by the cyan hooves of Rainbow Dash. She either didn’t see us, or just let us be as she flew off to impact more clouds with speeding fury.Jason, Leo, and I made it to the white wooden picket fence and large unpainted wood gates of Sweet Apple Acres. In the distance, I spotted Big Macintosh plowing the field with that old rusted plow he refuses to replace.Since the gates were unlocked and hinged to swing both ways, I pushed the stroller through with ease. Following the slightly winding and worn dirt path to the Apple Family house, I stopped short of the front step.“Fluttershy!” Applejack yelled as she slammed open the large white front door of the two story house like she hadn’t seen me in years. Truth be told, it was around a week since we last saw each other, and that was just a quick pass by in the market.I felt the stroller jerk when Applejack burst out of the house, but Leo didn’t cry. He never cried unless he needed a fresh diaper or milk. Both of which I had plenty of in the diaper bag under the stroller.While ponies are almost always nude in public - something I had to readjust to after being a human for so long - nursing a foal where others could see was frowned upon. It wasn’t illegal, just too many young colts and fillies asking too many embarrassing questions to parents for society to accept it.It had taken me several attempts and Jason’s help to use the pump the doctors gave at the hospital when I decided on natural milk for me to use it for the first time. I say it was, oh, a little over two and a half months ago.Brushing off the thought of diapers and milk, I smiled at Applejack, “How are you?”Applejack’s face had changed a lot. Stress clearly shown on her face, and dark circles from lack of sleep shown below her eyes. Gosh, now that I think of it, I must look the same way.She chuckled, “Little miss Apple’s been keepin’ me up all night. How’s Leo doin’ this fine day?” She asked as she leaned in close to the stroller. She leaned a little too close and Leo grabbed her long ponytail in his tiny hooves.Her expression changed from a smile to flat-out deadpan neutral. “Really?” she asked Leo as a gentle tug on Applejack’s part made Leo release his grasp.As all of this was happening, I answered her question, “He’s doing just as fine as any foal I guess, but I’m not sure. Motherhood is still new to me.”Applejack chuckled, “You speak for the both of us with that one. So Jason, why don’t you come around more often?” I heard Jason stammer a few words as Applejack smiled, “Don’t worry Jason, our daughter has enough family ta raise her right. Spend as long as you can with your son and wife.”I heard Jason let out a breath he was holding as Applejack walked back onto the porch. Unlike most ponies, she wore clothes. Jeans, a checkerboard print red and white shirt, as well as her old stetson.“I will,” Jason said as he looked to both Leo and I, “So can Leo play with Tigris today?”“Sure can. Me and Granny were workin’ on supper. Applebloom’s at school so Tigris is all by her lonesome in her play corner.”Taking Leo out of his stroller I cradled him lovingly in a foreleg. Now that the precious cargo of the stroller was now safely protected in my embrace, Jason was able to fight and push the stroller up the steps.Keeping Leo firmly - but not tightly - in my grasp, I walked up the stairs and gently placed him back in his stroller once again. As I leaned back from putting him in, our teal eyes met and he giggled with a wide toothless grin.I literally could feel my heart melt with warm bubbly love as I smiled gently.Walking around to the back of the stroller, I pushed it through the open door, Applejack and Jason following behind me.As we walked in, I heard Applejack quip, “Why ya makin’ her push the stroller around Jason?”He let out a chuckling sigh, “Fluttershy loves doing all the work, making sure everything is perfect. Almost like a less neurotic Princess Twilight.”We all laughed. Even Leo was laughing with us with his cutesy-wootsy wittle giggle.I jerked back like I was struck by something.Did I just seriously think in baby talk?I couldn’t answer myself before Applejack asked Jason, “Speakin’ of work, whatcha doin’ fer bits, Jason?”Jason sighed, “Still odd jobs around town. But it pays the bills and gets us by.” He hated doing odd jobs around town for money. I knew it made him feel like he wasn’t providing for his family.Applejack looked like she was going to say something, but her daughter began to cry as we entered the living room.In the living room there was a simple wooden table and an old green couch sat in front of a fireplace by one wall, as a black and white T.V. sat next to a gramophone near another. The light-blue painted walls were decorated with old knick knacks on shelves, along with large family photos of the entire Apple clan, minus their newest addition.Tigris Brody Apple. Applejack wanted her daughter to have Brody in her name since that was Jason’s last name. But due to the fact I was now Mrs. Brody, that would cause some very awkward situations.The filly in question was in a corner of the room separated by a filly sized wall to keep her pinned in, but was now being carried to another room to be changed.As Applejack passed with Tigris in her grasp, the all too familiar smell told me she was in for a really dirty diaper change.Walking over to the play area, I looked in. Gigantic soft foam blocks and plush toys populated the space. I picked Leo up out of his stroller, but there was a yellow hue to his diaper and a wide toothless smile on his face.I frowned in a mix of amusement and frustration. Babies seem to know when to do stuff like peeing right at the exact moment you pick them up, or decide to cry just as you fall asleep, or poop again after you change them, or- I was mentally rambling like an old lady.Oh well, I have a kid, thus an excuse.Grabbing the diaper bag from the storage section under the stroller as well as holding onto Leo, I made my way towards Applejack and Tigris’ room. Since all the other rooms in the two story house were taken, they had to share.It took me around a minute to get to Applejack’s room on the second floor of the house. I was careful not to trip, as well as not let Leo slip, which is hard since he squirms like a cute worm.Hmph, I just realize I call everything about Leo cute. Well, most of everything; his diaper changes are far from cute.Walking through the open door into Applejack’s room, I spotted Applejack with Tigris. Applejack had her daughter laying on a bright orange towel on the four-poster bed while she changed her filly’s stinky diaper.“Uhm, Applejack, can I change Leo on your bed?” Normally I would have asked that in a much meeker way; but after everything that has happened to me over the course of the year like the Mojave and parenthood, I’ve really lost most of my meekness.“You-” she yawned, “sure can sugarcube.”“Thanks,” I said, taking the diaper bag and laying it on the bed. I took Leo and laid him on the bed so he would lay on his back. One quick motion with my hooves, and his diaper came off.I unzipped the diaper bag to look through it as he laid on his back, diaperless. Then I heard him giggle. That gave me just enough time to turn my head to see him with a wide toothless smile.Then he peed on me.I yelped and quickly found the diaper in the bag I needed and stopped the stream of horrid smelling bodily fluid. All the while Applejack was laughing like crazy as she held Tigris.The little bit of comedy on my expense seemed to wake Applejack up enough to speak without yawning, but lack of sleep was still clouding her head, “And that, Fluttershy, is why I’m lucky ta have a filly.”Said filly was a rusty orange-red colored earth pony, with brown hair tipped like Leo’s but with blond instead of pink. She also had Applejack’s jade green eyes.One could easily tell that Leo and Tigris were brother and sister.“You won’t be saying that when colts start chasing her,” I replied back as I retrieved another diaper, powder, and wipes from the diaper bag.She laughed causing Tigris to giggle as she stared at her brother, “I have Macintosh to discourage ‘em. Meanwhile, you’ll have to stop your son from chasin’ the fillies.”Crap, “You do have a point,” I replied nervously. I was going to worry myself to death when Leo starts getting interested into fillies… but that would be anywhere from ten to thirteen years from now; no sense in worrying about it now.Applejack just agreed with a monosyllabic, ‘mmmmm’ and a nod of her head.A quick wiping with the disposable wipes, a dash of talcum powder, and a new diaper later, Applejack and I were back downstairs watching our foals. And of course they were now in the little play area.Leo was contently gumming on a red foam block, while Tigris was attacking a tiger plush doll with her hooves… squealing in a near imitation of a mouse.Applejack and I just stood by the wall of the play area, watching with motherly smiles of joy on our faces. A Changeling could have gotten sick from the amount of love in the air.Jason had told me once that human children take months to learn how to move, but for fillies and colts, they practically are prancing around once cleaned up after birth.Then I wished I had a camera because Leo’s wings began to flutter rapidly on their own. The cuteness of the look of utter confusion on Leo’s face as he tried to use the foam block to weigh himself down made me laugh as he rose higher and higher. The cuteness was way beyond the ability to make one diabetic.Then he dropped like a stone towards the floor. My heart stopped beating as he hit the ground with a solid thud.Then he laughed… my son fell out the air, got up, and laughed like I told him a joke.Then he done it again, but his wings moved on his own accord this time.I was frozen in panic, but lucky for my heart and blood pressure, he aimed for the foam block. Then spongy cube absorbed the impact as Tigris watched. She herself now chewing on the right arm of the tiger doll.“Stubborn as an earth pony, yet can take a fall like a pegasus,” Jason muttered.Applejack laughed and punched Jason’s shoulder with a hoof, “He inherited it from you, I know that from Tigris. You know she’s got it bad on account of bein’ both parts earth pony.”I gave a nervous and amused chuckle, staring at Leo as he bounced up and down on the block on his belly like it was a trampoline.“Honey, you’re brain has locked up again,” Jason said. That snapped me out of my fear induced trance and I gave a sheepish smile and blush.He looked me sternly in the eyes, “Don’t worry too much about our son getting hurt. Pegasi and earth pony bones are nearly unbreakable. You and I both watched Rainbow epically fail her stunts and crash. You say the most she’s been injured is a broken wing after a high speed trick.”I don’t know what it was, but I said otherwise, “Jason, you’ve only been a pony for six months and you already talk like you know what colts and fillies here can and can’t handle. That’s like me heading to the human world and saying that little boys and girls are capable of fighting the Legion. I know my son’s not made of glass, but I can’t help but worry when I see him do things like that.”He placed his left hoof on my shoulder, “Shy, I know I haven’t been a pony that long, but I’m observant. Sorry if I’ve made you mad, but he’s our son. That means I also have watched him. When you’re out feeding the animals, he gets into all kinds of mischief, but do I panic every time he gets a boo-boo?” He waited a second like I was going to answer before saying, “No, I don’t. Shy, you need to quit worrying so much. That only leads to an early death.”He took the hoof off my shoulder and backed away. I knew he was right and I was wrong. So like I seen Twilight do before when she was feeling stressed. I took a breath then sighed out my fear, frustration, stress, and that slight bit of anger in one deep breath. It felt good to feel calm, and a smile touched my lips as Leo and Tigris let out a happy squeal in unison.Applejack gave me a light punch to the shoulder – well it was more of a playful nudge, before saying, “You’re a great mother, Shy. Don’t let anypony tell you otherwise.”“Thank you, thank both of you,” I said. Looking back over the wall of the play area, Leo spotted me and ran over to the wall. With a flutter of his wings, he actually managed to grab the top of the wall with his hooves and pull himself over.After that, he walked under me, going for a teat.“Sorry, not this time,” I said gently as I moved, careful not to hit him with my legs.I heard him plop down on his rear so I turned. He looked confused that I wouldn’t let him nurse. It made me feel bad, and I did hurt slightly from the added pressure of my milk, but I couldn’t feed him in front of Applejack like that. The swift retrieval of a bottle of milk from the diaper bag that I placed back in the stroller’s storage section rectified that problem.With the bottle of milk in his hooves, I placed Leo back in the playpen. He flopped on his back and stared at the ceiling as the contents of the bottle were sucked down in moments.Taking the empty bottle away, Leo burped loudly, making Tigris giggle. Somepony was really hungry.As I went to put the empty bottle away, Applejack looked to the clock on the wall which read 3:17.We talked and watched Leo and Tigris play for two minutes before Applebloom walked through the door.“Oh, howdy Fluttershy,” Applebloom said as she set her saddlebags and books down on the couch.“Hey,” I replied.Applejack then asked, “Sis, is it alright if you babysit ‘till supper is over? It may be an hour or two.”Applebloom made a ‘pshhh’ sound with her mouth and waved her hoof, “Piece of cake. I’m sure they’ll both be sweet to their Aunt Applebloom.” Applebloom took pride in watching over Leo and Tigris when she could. Even though I wasn’t related to her, she acted just as much of an aunt to Leo as she did to Tigris.Still, I couldn’t help but ask, “Applebloom, remember where I put everything?”She nodded quickly while smiling, “Yep; under the stroller, blue bag with green polka-dots, and for the love of all that is holy, do not try the milk for myself,” I blushed really deeply as I nodded sheepishly.Applebloom then added, “Honestly, the one time I taste check to see if it was going sour you freak out. Whats so special about that milk anyway other than it tastes a little funny?” She didn’t know, Applejack used powdered formula for Tigris.If I thought my blush was bright, it increased tenfold at the question, “Applejack?” I squeaked.“No no, you tell her, she needs tah know these things.” If I wasn’t embarrassed beyond belief, I could have bucked that cocky grin right off her face.“Well um…” I stumbled but found the words I needed, “when a mare has a foal, her body starts to make milk for her foal,” I took a big gulp, preparing to likely scar this poor young mare for life, “Since I can’t let Leo nurse off of me in public, I put my milk into bottles for him.”Applebloom went from bright yellow to embarrassed pink in seconds. Then the thought processed through her young mind and she turned a pale and sickly green. Not four seconds later, I heard the sound of puking from the upstairs bathroom.Applejack chuckled as she patted me on the back, “You going to stay for supper, Shy?”It was an Apple Family meal, not a two bit attempt at food by either myself or my husband. “Of course,” was my reply. Seriously, whatever food I try to cook up turns out to be more edible for animals than ponies, while most of the dishes Jason knew called for meat – which is obviously a problem for me. I’m surprised when he came to Equestria he wasn’t turned into a griffon.Applebloom returned from the bathroom, a little pale but chipper as always. I could see she was clearly staying as far as equinly possible away from the diaper bag.I looked to Applejack who nodded her head towards the kitchen, mouthing ‘Granny needs help’.Nodding my head, I asked, “Jason, would you mind helping Applebloom with babysitting while Applejack and I cook supper with Granny Smith?”Jason, who was sitting on the couch like a human, got up and nuzzled me before saying, “I’m sure Aunt Applebloom is perfectly capable of handling two foals.” Looking to Applebloom, she saluted us with her hoof while Tigris was pulling on her oversized bow. “Why don’t you two kick back and rest while I help Mrs. Smith?”I was a little apprehensive at first, but Applejack had already brushed Applebloom’s books aside and lay down on the couch.Trotting over, I hopped onto the rough fabric with Applejack.Naturally, the ensuing conversation between Applejack and I was about our children. Applejack wasted no time in asking, “So, I noticed Leo suck down that bottle like he was starved. How much does Leo eat, and how often do you feed him?”I knew she wasn’t implying I was being a bad mother and not feeding my child, but the way she worded it sounded like she was. “Not much,” I said with a shrug, “but he eats every few hours. Honestly I haven’t worked out a feeding schedule with him yet.” I let out a disappointed sigh, knowing I was supposed to keep Leo on a feeding and sleep schedule. I then changed subject, “So, how’s Tigris?”“You saw her with your own eyes. She’s happy and loves when Leo is around. I know they're too young to know, but I do believe that somehow, they understand they’re brother and sister.”“I saw it too. I wonder what they will be good at.” I said, tapping a hoof to my chin.Applejack yawned, “Time will tell darlin’, time will tell.”We both decided without saying a word that it would be a good time to take a nap.An hour later, Applebloom woke us up for supper. She had no trouble with the foals, but of course, Jason had to overcook the carrots while working with Granny Smith.As Granny sat at the head of the table, Jason to my left, and Applejack sitting across from me, Applebloom served us before skipping supper to watch Leo and Tigris, as well as keep them occupied.The dishes on the table consisted of different combinations of vegetables like carrots, broccoli, and cauliflower. We also had an apple pie for dessert.We didn’t talk at the table. As an old earth pony, Granny Smith is dead set with her traditions. That meant the table was a place for eating, not conversations.Unfortunately, with all the time it took for us to eat, it was time for Leo, Jason, and I to make our way back home before it got too dark.I may be braver than I once was, but I was still scared of the dark and nighttime. Not because of the darkness itself mind you, but the fact that I can’t see what’s in the dark.As we walked along the road back towards our house, I gave a shiver of fear, imagining Legion soldiers in the shadows.“I’m here, you’re safe,” Jason said as he noticed my expression. He was so kind and considerate, that it was hard to imagine that he was once part of the Legion. Then again, it wasn’t by choice.My new house was closer to town than my older one, and built to look the same as the ones in town. With my son in the house, all my animals now slept outside. I knew it was cruel to keep all my animal friends except Angel Bunny outside, but Leo was more important. I couldn’t have potentially dangerous animals sharing living space with my family.As we walked in silence, I looked into the carriage in the waning light and gave a light sigh. I was thinking back to being at my new house with all the girls except Applejack – she couldn’t help the other girls move furniture for me since we both were around eight-and-a-half to nine months pregnant.As fate would have it, my water broke around two or three o'clock that day, and I began dilating. From there, Twilight flew me to the hospital carrying me in her magic. Eight hours and twelve seconds after admittance into Ponyville General, Leo was born.My smile grew even wider when the memory of all the pain I felt fading away after the final push and hearing Leo cry for the first time.It’s said that when mothers hold their child for the first time, they know exactly what to name their child. For me, it was Leo, or Lion in ancient Equestrian, as well as the language of the Legion. It meant courage and bravery, something I knew my son would have.Then half a week later, Applejack gave birth to her daughter. She decided that since Leo and her daughter were half-siblings they should have something in common. I agreed and she decided on Tigris, which like Leo is for Lion, was the ancient word for Tiger.We reached home just before dark, and we were all tired, except Leo who constantly seemed like he could burst from the sheer amount of energy he had at any moment.Jason brought Leo inside to give him a quick sink bath as I set food out for my nocturnal animals. By the time I made it inside, Jason had finished with Leo. Taking him to his room, I put a diaper on him before tucking Leo in his crib. As his eyes closed slowly, I sang a sweet lullaby, then found myself beside Jason in our bed.Closing my own eyes, sleep overcame me quickly.

Chapter 6: Rescue

I was a broken mare, sniffling like a record skipping as I cried. The Town Guard was at my house, asking me the same questions over and over, “Where did you last see Leo?” and “When did you notice he was missing?” It was like I was a suspect. Why weren’t they using the time they took to question me to look for Leo?

I had spent what felt like eternity looking for Leo in town. At first, I was sure he just wandered away from me, so I quickly took flight into the air. I didn’t see him, and I spent the next half hour looking as Discord helped. It was only when Discord tried teleporting Leo back to us that I was sure he’d been foalnapped… Discord’s magic had been blocked.Back at my house, two pegasi in the blue armor of the town guard finished questioning me, and left after saying, “Mrs. Brody, we will keep a lookout for your son.”It was like they weren’t taking it seriously. A nearly four year old child, foalnapped in Ponyville, unbelievable. Chalk it up as the yellow pegasus is just overreacting to her child having wandered off.On the couch, Jason had me wrapped in a hug as tears were in his eyes as well. I was too broken up to give Jason the news, so Discord had helped.Jason stroked my mane as he promised, “Fluttershy, I’ll find him.” I knew he was trying to calm both of us down, but it didn’t help.Even Discord was visibly upset, and depressed looking. I guess when you had as much power as he did, and couldn’t use it to help somepony close to you, it would be devastating.In my grieving I lost track of time. Just an endless sea of depression as I waited for somepony, anypony, to come to my door and tell me they found my son.

<~-~>

For three days, I lied on that couch, sobbing for my son. Friends came and went; Discord having teleported off because my incurable sadness was making him physically ill.I was ill too. I wouldn’t eat, I barely drank. I was just laying on the couch, sobbing. My friends were taking turns keeping me from outright stopping everything and withering away. It was Rarity’s turn today, and she answered the door when there was a heavy knock.I heard Jason mention something about a package for me, passed it to Rarity, then continued on his route. He may be grieving, but the ponies at his work aren’t. They only gave him two days off, and that was it, back to work.Rarity laid a brown package in front of the couch on the coffee table.“Jason said it was specifically for you,” she explained, looking between me and the package, “The pony who dropped it off was very specific that it get to you only.”“Probably junk,” I said through sobs as I rolled over, facing towards the back cushions.I heard Rarity open the package. “What’s this?” She asked, prompting me to glance over my shoulder.I saw in Rarity’s magic a crystal ball. A crystal ball swirling with green mist. From that green mist came cackling, a familiar laugh of a certain Queen.“My my, what happened to you since we last met Rarity?”“Chrysalis,” Rarity growled, her face reddening as she glared at the ball in her hold, “You’re the one who foalnapped Leo, aren’t you!?”The misty crystal sphere let out a cackle, “Yes. The little brat is filled with so much love, I couldn’t resist.”At news of my son, it was as if life returned to me and I jumped up from the couch, snatching the ball out of Rarity’s magic with my hooves.“Where is my SON!?” I screamed into the ball, quivering from aggression.Chrysalis let out a laugh that was cut off by a hacking cough, “With me. And it will remain that way until you do one simple thing. Come to the quarry in Gem Hills, alone.”Then the crystal ball shattered like glass in my hooves, the mist swirling slightly before disappearing on contact with the air.Rarity was steaming, the unwounded side of her face was redder than the scarred side. “That bitch!” She yelled, slamming a hoof down on my coffee table in rage, “I’ll show her what I do to scum like her.”I began to feel sick as Rarity went on a tirade, described giving Chrysalis something she called the ‘Fiend treatment’. I didn’t doubt for a second that Rarity would go through with what horrors she described.I interrupted her when she was at the point of pondering where she would get large metal hooks from. “No, Rarity. Leo may get hurt if we go and attack,” I said before swallowing, my head tilting down, “I-I’m going to do as she asks.”Rarity gasped, her mouth hanging open slightly, “But Gem Hills is Diamond Dog territory. She’s making you walk straight into a trap.”“There's a chance I can talk her into giving Leo back, safe and sound,” I explained rather softly, but the small kindness of my voice melted away as I furrowed my brow, “But if not, I’ll show that bug why you don’t get between a momma bear and her cubs!” I raged, fire burning in my eyes. One way or the other, I was getting my son back.I flew so fast up to my room that I must have been a blur of yellow. The first dresser in the nightstand contained a nine millimeter pistol. Safety on, unloaded.With the gun in hoof, I quickly remedied those two problems, and quickly slipped on the holster I kept from my re-arrival in Equestria. I kept the gun and holster as a reminder of how violent the wasteland was. I wouldn’t kill Chrysalis, I may even miss her completely, but it was probably enough to get my point across.Rarity made it up the steps and to my room just as I slipped the holster and loaded gun on, before I concealed it with my wing, and she gasped, her eyes widening, “Oh my.” She definitely wasn’t expecting me to arm myself with the only gun I owned.“If it’s a trap,” I said, standing motionless as I stared at the wall, “and she will not give me back my son, I just may drop her dead. Like one of those poor bloatflies in the Mojave.” I hated killing them, but they were just so sick and mean, so I had no other choice. And unfortunately in this case, I may have to repeat those events.

<~-~>

Gravel, dirt, and sand. Barely any plants, and as far as the eye can see… rocks. Maud would love this place in that weird way she loves all things sedimentary.I had been walking towards the quarry, abandoned by the miners because of some strike for better wages. It’s been thirty years and the machines still lay dormant, as if waiting for their workers to come back.It was chilling how close this place resembled the Mojave Wasteland.Craters were scattered all around from Diamond Dogs digging around, who were nowhere to be seen. What I could see, however, was a small cave entrance burrowed into the quarry, beside a long and rusted section of conveyor belt. There were still rocks waiting to be shipped to carts on the tracks.Taking a deep breath, I gave no hesitation when I shouted louder than Rainbow Dash, “CHRYSALIS, I’m here!”She must have been waiting for me. A laugh began to echo from the entrance of the cave, Chrysalis stepping out with a terrified Leo in her forelegs. Chrysalis had seen better days. The tip of her horn was chipped, her shell was covered in cracks and scratches, and one of her eyes had a film over it.“Momma!” He shouted, kicking and thrashing as he fought the Queen’s grasp.Chrysalis let Leo go, simple as that. My son ran to get to me like we hadn’t seen each other in forever… and in a way, we hadn’t. In a quick sprint, he was in my forelegs, hugging me as he cried. He looked the same as when he was taken - albeit more dirty - but wasn’t thin from lack of food. The fact saved Chrysalis from my gun… for now.“Now that you two are reunited. Drones,” she ordered loudly, smirking as a few black shelled changelings exited the cave. Two were dragging a fresh cocoon. “What, you seriously thought I’d let you leave? You two are practically a love factory, and after I capture you, the Elements of Harmony won’t work like they did for Discord.”I sighed, motioning with my wings, but not revealing the gun I concealed. My son was swept away by an invisible Rainbow Dash - who had to almost peel him off of me - using a Stealth-boy from Pinkie.Rarity had actually been the sensible one, talking me out of going alone. It didn’t take long for Twilight to form a plan, who now had teleported right beside me. She was dressed head to hoof in power armor, two laser rifles attached to the sides.Pinkie jumped out the cab of one of the shovel cranes, a Fat-Man on her shoulder as she was dressed in her NCR armor. Her hair was flat as a scowl was set across her face. A totally alien look in comparison to her normally bubbly attitude. “Game over, Chrysalis,” she declared with a dangerous tone, “Surrender now, or face immediate party cannon!”Applejack trotted up in her usual stetson, blue jeans, and shirt. Her face read nothing but barely kept in rage towards Chrysalis. She was unarmed, but we all knew her kicks could crack trees if needed. With a growl, Applejack pointed a hoof threateningly at the Queen, “If you so much as hurt a single darn hair on Leo’s head… I’ll remove yours.”Rarity didn’t so much as appear, as fire a warning shot into Chrysalis’ crown, knocking it off her head with a loud bang followed by the metal crown disintegrating to scrap bits. She must have used the Anti-Material rifle, instead of her smaller Hunting Rifle that she usually carried.Chrysalis and her guards froze when the shot destroyed the crown. Chrysalis’ eyes shrunk to pinpricks as she ducked low and covered her head with her hooves.Chrysalis began shaking fearfully, and I drew my gun with my hoof. With the weapon in hoof, I felt confident, and that confidence must have unlocked some dark part of me as I spoke low to the lying Queen, “You foalnapped one of two ponies who have helped me feel normal after the Mojave. More importantly, it was my young son. I have half the mind, and all the right, to kill you right now.” I growled menacingly, sending a shiver down my own spine with my words.Chrysalis shook even more, whimpering like a puppy as she cried in a language I didn’t know. The drones looking at the weapon I held with fear as well, frozen in their spots.“But I’m not going to,” I said taking a deep breath afterwards as I lowered my gun. Chrysalis took a peek through her hooves, her eyes holding nothing but fear. “I’m better than Caesar’s Legion, or the Fiends if half of what Rarity tells about them is true.” I replaced the gun to its holster and looked over to Twilight who stood silently in her armor, “I’ve said my piece, she’s all yours.”

<~-~>

Chrysalis surrendered without a fight. We found twenty seven malnourished drones hiding in the cave, along with several diamond dogs in cocoons. Guess they didn’t hold enough love to feed the remainder of the hive.I was pondering the small hive back at my house, Leo sleeping against my chest with his legs wrapped around me. She wanted me to feed her drones, her children. Was Chrysalis just a desperate mother?Jason gave Leo a kiss on the head, then looked me in they eyes with a knowing expression on his face, like he knew what I was thinking. “You’re thinking about that bug aren’t you?” He whispered so he wouldn’t wake Leo.“I was just thinking why she would do this. Revenge against Twilight for the wedding? Necessity for food? What?” I stroked Leo’s hair gently, “Why wouldn’t she just make a treaty with Celestia and not have to steal love?”Jason gave a light chuckle, “I couldn’t answer that. Ex-human remember. I may have been here for years, but I still don’t know a lot about magic. Love eating is one thing.” He shivered.I stroked Leo’s mane some more, “I know, but have you ever been in a battle that felt too easy? I mean, last time Chrysalis brought an army. I was expecting we had to fight through that cave to get to Leo.”There was a loud knocking at the door, Jason trotting over to open it so I wouldn’t disturb Leo.Opening the door, I heard a stallion asked in a rushed and panting tone, “Is Mrs. Brody here. I heard she takes care of injured animals.”I saw Jason give a nod, ushering in the stallion as two more ponies, a mare and another stallion, came in with a blue tarp, sagging from weight.I gently separated myself from Leo, who whimpered slightly before settling back to sleep. Walking over to the tarp that was on my floor, the stallion spoke as he uncovered the tarp, saying, “I hit the thing with my cart and knocked it out. My wife decided I should bring it to you instead of letting it die.”I gasped at what was in the tarp… a cross of rattlesnake and coyote, the very dangerous, very deadly, and totally from the Mojave Wasteland. A Nightstalker.