"So, where are we going, anyway?"

Dirt and Fizzy were trotting out of New Appleloosa now, making their way to their next destination. It was early afternoon, only a few hours after Fizzy had had the encounter with the rogue Enclave agent. They hadn't seen her since, but most of the town was still gone in their pursuit of her.

In response to Fizzy's question, Dirt craned his head behind him and looked at her. "Northeast."

"How far? And why?"

"Not far," replied Dirt. "There's somepony I'm looking for up there." He still didn't want to go into too many details, especially considering he didn't know how Fizzy would react. Perhaps she never needed to know.

Fizzy seemed happy enough with his answer and left the subject as it was. Just then, the two of them heard faint gunshots in the distance. Probably the New Appleloosans on their chase, Dirt thought to himself.

The mare seemed to be slightly concerned with this, however. "Shouldn't we get guns soon? You know, to protect us from bandits?"

Dirt looked back forward and focused on the road. "Your parents ever tell you that you ask a lot of questions?"

"..." Fizzy closed her eyes, remembering something unpleasant.

He realized that her parents were probably still a sore topic. "We'll find something eventually. We would just have to go scavenging if we wanted to get a gun. After all, we can't go and buy one without any caps." If Fizzy didn't feel safe unless they owned a gun, though, then he would get one somehow.

They walked along the railroad tracks for a time. Dirt knew that the nearest safe town northeast of New Appleloosa was Dust, a small settlement just a day's trot from Manehattan. However, that was practically on the other side of Equestria, with few safe havens between. The journey would be nearly impossible, especially considering the amount of manticores, alicorns and raiders they might encounter on the way.

"Let me see that PipBuck for a second," Dirt said to Fizzy, deciding that he needed to double-check their direction.

"Okay," said Fizzy, lifting her foreleg so Dirt could view the screen.

Dirt squinted at the screen, which faintly glowed green thanks to Stable-Tec magic. He didn't know a lot about these things, but it was simple enough for him to check the map. They were in the right direction, but judging by the map key, they were quite a distance away. Just as he had suspected. "It's gonna be a long walk," he told Fizzy, looking her in the eyes. "If you want to turn back, Appleloosa's right behind you."

The filly shook her head. "No way. I've got nowhere else to go. I told you that before, and I'm sticking to it."

Dirt smiled. She was certainly determined. But if she really wanted to follow him, who was he to complain? "All right, kid." Then his expression turned serious. "But you've gotta do what I say if we're traveling together. I know the Equestrian Wasteland better than you do, and I don't want you getting hurt on my watch. Got it?"

She nodded, sobered by his non-humorous manner. "Got it."

They continued on the trail, occasionally stopping and splitting up to search the area for valuables and caps. It had been one of Dirt's pastimes, a trick taught to him by his old man when times were tough. "You should never be too proud to scavenge," his father had told him once. Unfortunately this particular search held nothing of interest for them.

After their fourth stop finding nothing interesting, Dirt was preparing to call Fizzy back when he heard a shuffling noise in a nearby bush. He stopped abruptly. It may have just been an old dog or a mole rat or something. However, there was always the chance it was some bandit, making an attempt to sneak up on them. Dirt crouched low to the ground, sneaking around the bush to get a closer look. He rounded the bush and found the source of the noise: a lone crow, pecking around the bush in search of scraps of food. He eased himself, breathing a sigh of relief. Perhaps he worried too much.

A grey hoof wrapped around his head from behind, covering his mouth before he could shout. Dirt felt the pressure of a knife blade against his vulnerable throat. Then, a cool and collected feminine voice spoke through gritted teeth next to his ear:

"Keep your mouth shut and you'll live. Nod if you understand."

He nodded.

"You from Appleloosa?" the voice asked, its hot breath on his ear.

Was this the Enclave mare? He shook his head at her question, but the knife scraped against his neck, allowing a few droplets of blood to escape from him. He winced.

His assailant considered this for a moment, then spoke again: "Are you alone?"

He shook his head again, this time much slower to avoid getting cut.

"All right. Call for your friends, nice and easy. Any funny business and they get it too." At this, his eyes widened. The hoof left his mouth, but the knife remained.

He wanted to try and break free, but he had a feeling he was outmatched. Without further hesitation, he called out, "Fizzy! Could you come here for a moment?"

"Okay!" Fizzy called from behind a pile of rubble, trotting over to him. When she rounded the corner and saw Dirt, her jaw dropped. The stallion's assailant seemed surprised, slightly loosening their grip on the blade. He saw his chance and kicked out a back hoof, tripping the mare. The knife fell to the ground. Without hesitation, he whirled around and pinned his attacker down with a powerful foreleg. She was trapped.

While she squirmed under his hoof, he managed to get a good look at her. She was indeed a pegasus, but one of her wings was bandaged. Her long mane was clinging to her forehead with a mixture of sweat and blood. "So, you're the one who stirred up all that trouble in New Appleloosa," he remarked. He noticed her cutie mark wasn't branded; the rumors of her being a spy must be true.

The pegasus said nothing. She was preoccupied with staring at Fizzy. Angered by this, Dirt pressed down harder on her chest to wind her.

"Give me one good reason why I should let you go," he commanded.

The mare finally looked up at him. "I don't have one." She seemed incredibly exhausted, both physically and emotionally. No wonder she'd been so easy to overpower. "Celestia knows that I've done some bad things."

Fizzy was uneasy. "Maybe we should let her go, Dirt."

"Why?" he asked sharply, turning his head to face the unicorn.

"Well... I mean, she didn't kill anypony. And the whole thing wasn't her fault." Before he could ask her to explain, she continued: "I saw her in that alleyway, being beaten by a gang of stallions because they thought she was a part of the Enclave. But she said that she had changed." She looked at the pegasus. "What if she really has changed?"

"We can't know that for sure. For all we know, she's rotten like the rest of them. And besides, a real Enclave deserter would have their cute mark branded." Dirt maintained his pressure on the mare's torso.

"Do what you want with me," said the pegasus. "I tried to change, but nopony wants me to forget my past. So if I have to die, then die I will." She closed her eyes, preparing for her ultimate fate.

Dirt felt unsure of himself. He knew a liar pretty well, but this mare was telling the truth. He looked at her for a moment, debating in his mind about what to do. Finally, he released his hold on her.

She sat up at once, trying to get the breath to return to her lungs. She breathed heavily for a while, then looked up to the stallion. "Thank you." The mare stood up and began to trot away.

Fizzy called out to her. "Wait! Why don't you come with us?"

"Are you crazy?" cried Dirt and the pegasus simultaneously.

"She tried to kill me!" Dirt pointed to the pegasus. "You're just going to invite her to come along?"

"Why not? She's not evil. She's trying to change. Why not give her the benefit of the doubt?"

The pegasus shook her head. "It wouldn't work. I hardly even know you. And you hardly know me."

Fizzy gave her a smile - An honest to Celestia smile! - and offered a hoof for her to shake. "Let's fix that. My name is Fizzy Pop, and this is my friend Dirt. What's your name?"

The mare looked at the filly's hoof, then sighed and shook it. "My name's Night Shade. It's a... pleasure to meet you."

Dirt groaned. "Fine. You can tag along, Miss Shade." Then, he stepped close to her and whispered in her ear. "But if you do anything to hurt me or the kid, I will fucking end you."

Author's Note

Done! Sorry for the long wait. It's finally here. Expect the next chapter tomorrow or the day after.
-Endless Madness