Strength and heroism has always been a pillar of respect and courage. Strength is what most people see, and are silently jealous of. Heroism isn't what you are, it's what you do and accomplish. It's what separates right from wrong, and utterly depicts the image of who you are.
I am considered the strongest and most heroic of my comrades even though I know that's certainly not the case. I am not the perfect pony everyone makes me out to be.
* * * *
Surveillance. One of the most tasking and quite boring jobs of the entire STASIS. A STASIS is pretty much just hundreds of underground apartments, rooms, corridors and storage units jumbled into a puzzling maze. The full STASIS is overall extremely large and has many sections.
At least one fourth of all STASIS ponies work with the Surveillance team, and their job is to protect their specific section from other sections: like an army. A section is one independent area that relies mostly on itself and the provisions of other STASIS's. They control the ponies within the area and can take over sections using military force. Overall these areas are like the countries from our textbooks.
I am one of the heroic ponies in the section's security unit and just adore my job. I hope you can tell I'm being sarcastic because it's boring as fuck. Trust me I know from first hoof experience, but it can also be a very troubling job.
I inherited my Surveillance job from my father, he did as well, and so on. I was last in line so I was the one to get his role as the head of Surveillance. My mother and father whom I loved dearly died in a severe security breach when I was younger leaving me to fend for myself.
Of the five major sections there are I live in section three, STASIS number two in the fourth quadrant of the section. I am always on duty so I don't have to be at my lonely little apartment like living space.
I don't remember much about my parents since they died such a long time ago but I do remember fragments of their broken lives.
My father, who's name was Diligence Dare was the strongest, most heroic stallion that STASIS three had ever known. He earned absolutely everything in life, including his role as head of Surveillance.
When he died his position was shifted to my shoulders, but I was just a filly without training or the ability to lead. So, the baton was passed from me to the next competent colt in line. I don't remember his name but he was a better leader than yours truly.
My mother, who's name was Courtesy Dare was by far the most impressive mare I had ever known. She juggled motherhood, her job, and my father on a daily basis. Sometimes she did lack cooperation or even compassion but I loved her nonetheless. She made sure I was a mare of virtue.
Hence my name, Virtue Melody Dare.
"Beep. Beep. Beep." sounded my alarm clock from my bedside table. With an audible grunt, and a smack of my lips I tapped the snooze button before rolling out of bed. I went to my closet and threw on the first Surveillance outfit I could find. That's when I headed to the bathroom to brush my teeth and mane.
I staggered in front of the mirror my bathroom provided to find the disheveled female version of my father staring back at me. With the same gait, height, and appearance, I looked exactly like him. I yawned and fixed my magic on my manebrush to give my hair a good untangling. I sighed as my brush slid easily through my locks of black and dark blue.
I then pressed a warm washcloth across my silver coat and dark blue eyes before I wiped my face dry and headed out the door for morning briefing.
Morning briefing consists of assholes who assign and reassign Surveillance jobs to the ponies of the STASIS. Not only is it boring and quite repetitive but you have to sit in the Atrium and listen to "bearded" Sunshine who talked propaganda about our jobs and other shit. Even though you sit there for at least an hour the moral is 'stay in your designated spot until somepony tries to kill you'.
For your information...that never happened.
"Shit." I grumbled, as I looked at the STASIS clock. I was going to be late to briefing, and being late meant severe consequences.
With that in mind I set out through the smooth hallways. I took turns and rights I knew by heart until I reached the Atrium.
The Atrium was a large cafeteria with a stage and many seats that were currently occupied. About three fourths of the Atrium was reserved for Surveillance and in use while the other fourth was in use by hungry ponies working on other shifts. I could feel my tummy growling at the promise of food but I figured it could wait.
I scanned the room for a quick second before my eyes met the empty seat I was looking for. I reclined back in the chair before giving the stallion next to me a playful punch in the arm. His name was Pepper Flake, and he had been my best friend for as long as I could remember. I never thought of him as anything else either.
"Ow." he said with a smile before giving me a hoof bump. I gave him one back only to receive a quick punch as well.
He was a rust colored Pegasus buck with an floppy orange mane I always liked to make fun of. With mahogany hued eyes and a pepper shaker for a cutiemark he could have easily been a chef of some sort but...was stuck in a crummy Surveillance job with me. He poked a hoof into my side, arousing a chuckle from me.
We spent the rest of briefing fooling around and giggling at our own (terrible) jokes about "bearded" Sunshine.
"I think she's a guy." Pepper Flake snorted , obviously trying to hide his amusement.
"Wanna milk her to find out?" I smirked, jabbing him in the side before falling into a fit of stifled laughter.
Little did we know our playful antics were being watched by the eyes of a few certain ponies.
* * * *
"Hey horseshoe butt! What was so funny?" a familiar voice called after me as I began to trot to my designated station. By 'horseshoe butt' he was referring to my cutiemark (a plain horseshoe). In embarrassment I covered my flank with my tail in a vain attempt to hide it.
"She's so cute when she blushes!" the voice taunted again as a barrage of male laughter joined in. I felt heat in my cheeks as I turned to face my bully. Just as I had figured, it was Briar Flex.
Briar Flex was a worker on the bridges connecting our STASIS to the others. His special talent happened to be with steel wire and other objects used for structural support. This in turn gave him the cutiemark of a steel cable that looked more like a grey snake. Now Briar wasn't a unicorn like most would expect since unicorns are good with details. He was a Pegasus that worked well with welding and attaching supports higher than most others could reach.
He had a white coat with an short cropped indigo mane and tail. His eyes were unmistakably green with sparks of mischievousness about them. While he was cute I had no intention of liking him since he harassed me on more than one occasion.
"Where do ya think you're going?" he asked, swooping in beside me. He eyed me for a quick second before giving my flank a hard slap with one of his wings. That's the kind of harassment I was talking about.
I yelped, jumping a good few feet in in the air as Briar and his posse snickered at me. I covered my stinging flank with a tail as the raucous laughter grew even louder. I could feel my cheeks burning from utter humiliation.
"That's what you get when you disrespect morning briefing with your stupid giggling!" a voice shouted from the pack of stallions. I should have figured that somepony would have seen us goofing off. Even though briefing may have been boring...there were still ponies who took the thing very seriously.
"And that's just a warning." Briar sneered leaning closer to my muzzle. His breath smelt like musk, alcohol, and sweat. "I hope you do it again, too."
I found myself shivering at his comment, since I was pretty sure that it had been a sexual threat. I instantly felt uncomfortable keeping my back turned to a pack of rowdy stallions.
I whirled around to see that most of the stallions had dispersed but he still remained, and he was closing in fast. Briar gave me a proud little smirk that made a whimper grow in my throat.
"Ya know I'm tired of warnings, so I think it's time to deal out the consequences." he grinned, pushing me into an abandoned storage STASIS. I scrambled across the cold linoleum tile trying my best to put any kind of distance between us.
I looked up to see Briar's piercing green eyes filled with a firm malice towards me. He stepped even closer, forcing me to step back until my rump hit the concrete wall of the storage room. I looked for any way to get out of the small space but was pushed up against the wall with brunt force. I didn't want to but I tried to use my magic against him, only to find I didn't know any combat spells.
Briar hungrily licked his lips as he gave out a low throaty chuckle. I whimpered as I squirmed under his iron grip. The smell of musk and booze filled my nose once again as he pressed even closer to me. No matter how hard I struggled I knew there was only one outcome to the position I was in. Thankfully his session with me was interrupted by a familiar pony.
"What the hell is going on here?!" a voice spoke from the doorway. Briar Flex looked up, momentarily forgetting I was there and allowed me to squirm out of his loosened grip.
I slipped past them and hid behind my saviour. Pepper Flake, examined my state before glaring at the buck who only seemed slightly annoyed. His expression darkened at the sight of the dark bruise forming on my flank.
"What did you do to her?" he growled through gritted teeth as he glowered at the stallion.
"Nothing the little cunt didn't deserve! Maybe I'll let ya have a turn when I'm finished with her." Briar sneered at us with his eyes still full of unbridled hatred towards me.
"Virtue. Stay out here." Pepper Flake commanded as he stepped into the doorway.
* * * *
"Thanks." I whispered as Pepper Flake continued to clean himself up in the mirror. He was remarkably unscathed, except for the minor graze on his cheek and the blood on his hooves (which thankfully wasn't his).
"You're welcome." he said bitterly, keeping his gaze away from mine. Using my magic I pressed a wet washcloth to his cheek. He closed his eyes and shrugged me off at first but let me clean the graze on his cheek. For a moment we just sat there together, neither one of us saying a single word. I was starting to drown in the realization of what could have easily happened to me.
"I'm sorry." I croaked as I pulled the cloth away from his face. I stared at the floor, unable to meet his gaze. I could feel his presence in front of me even though I couldn't see him. He had protected me when I had needed it most, and I was glad he was my friend.
"It's okay Virtue." he sighed quietly as he hung his head in defeat "You just need to be more careful. He was going to..."
"Rape me." I swallowed, finishing his sentence. He looked at me with sympathy before leaving the STASIS without another word. I followed behind him, the image of a bloodied and beaten Briar etched into my thoughts.
* * * *
"Tap. Tap. Tap." went the terminal Pepper Flake was typing away at. While I wanted to get his attention I could see his face was firm in concentration. So (being the wonderful pony I am) I decided against interrupting him.
Even with his fluid movements I knew he was keeping a wall up. That way he wouldn't have to recount the actions of earlier events. I didn't blame him though, what he did to Briar Flex would give me nightmares for the next month.
I crept closer, keeping my head low and my eyes trained on him. I continued to creep my way over to him, hoping wouldn't sense me.
With an exasperated sigh he reclined back into his chair and pressed the tip of his hoof to the bridge of his muzzle. His eyes fluttered open as he suddenly regarded me. I felt my cheeks burn as he looked at me with an emotion I couldn't name. I immediately averted my gaze in an attempt to shake the jitters from my spine.
"You know I could hear you, right?" he smiled contently at me. His eyes showed the same emotion as before (fondness is the correct word for it).
"It's because of your tail." he said quietly. A moment passed as he realized his statement could be taken as somewhat of a lewd one.
"I uh...I meant that your tail was dragging on the floor so...I could easily h-hear you." he grinned sheepishly as the beginnings of a blush began to form on his russet cheeks. I chuckled slightly at the awkwardness in the air.
"Um...what are you doing?" I queried, creeping closer to his terminal. I took a glance at the screen to see it was full of jumbled number code.
"This? Oh, I was trying to break the encryption on this," he said, pointing a hoof to the USB drive connected to a port in the terminal. "so we could see the files on it."
"I didn't know that you were a professional hacker." I smiled teasingly at him before my eyes continued to examine the screen.
"First off, I'm not very good at this. And second, you can't really call this hacking since I'm just trying to break an encryption." he said quietly. There was just a hint of frustration in his voice and I wasn't sure if it was from me or the encryption.
"Well, I guess you could say tha-" I spoke before cutting myself off. Pepper Flake automatically switched his attention toward me and our surroundings. He gave me a quick look over before his ears began to swivel around, looking for any disturbance in the area.
"Is something wrong?" he asked quietly, obviously trying to mask the alarm in his voice. I was taken aback how hew dropped everything to make sure I was safe, even when there was no threat at all. In hindsight, that should have been my first clue.
"No just...what's this?' I asked, pointing to a jewelry chain wrapped around the USB, making it an an efficient necklace (of some sort). Pepper Flake gave a barely audible sigh as the tensity in his body relaxed.
"I found it on the floor after that guy was...knocked out. I really don't think it was his though." he swallowed quietly. I could tell he was hiding some of his emotions but I tried my best to ignore it.
"Hmm." he grunted curiously. I could tell his concentration had returned once again. His hooves tapped the desk the terminal occupied as his eyes hungrily devoured every number on the screen.
"Got it."
* * * *
"W-what was that?" I stammered as I turned to him. Once again his eyes were firm in concentration. I forced myself to stare back at the blank screen.
"I don't know... images maybe? Better slow it down." he murmured, almost as if in a trance. His hooves typed happily on the keyboard once again. He abruptly stopped though, meeting my gaze one last time before my life would ultimately change (for the worse).
"Let's do this."
What had once been a blur of black, blue, and grey, turned into a set of clear images. The pictures that had been taken were shots of yours truly doing regular everyday stuff. Some where in my head I was wondering who would take pictures of me.
My jaw dropped to the floor as Pepper clicked furiously through them. I felt disgusted with the fact that some one had taken the liberty to capture me in some of my most private moments. At least I had thought they were private.
"Virtue?" Pepper murmured gently as I began to pace the room and whisper under my breath.
"W-who in all of the STASIS would do something so...vile! I-I no...I..." whimpered, tensing up as he did his best to calm me.
"Look...It's probably some creepy stalker who doesn't have the guts to tell you how he really feels." he said quietly, trying his best to make me feel more comfortable.
As much as I wanted to believe him, I couldn't. In my defense, I considered myself a marked mare. My father had known secret information and there was no doubt that somepony else thought I knew it too. Even though I was scared I wouldn't tell Pepper Flake since I didn't want him to worry.
* * * *
Pepper Flake's concern grew for me daily since I became more withdrawn than usual. I didn't laugh or smile, I only spoke when spoken to, and I didn't eat very much. Some nights he would sleep on the floor of my STASIS just to make sure I got some sleep. I was just grateful he didn't give up on me.
Even with all the kindness and reassurance he would give me I still felt hollow. Like there was something hiding from me. Something I didn't understand just yet. That led to conclusion that the only one was against me happened to be the only one helping me.
* * * *
"Get out! Get out of my STASIS you back stabbing son of a bitch! I knew it was you! Get out!" I bellowed as Pepper Flake advanced on me.
I had completely avoided him for the past week. I changed the password to my STASIS, my schedule, and my thoughts about him. Was he selling me out? Nopony had access to my STASIS except for him. Right?
"Virtue. I'm not going to hurt you." he chirped between dodges of furniture and other assorted items I had thrown at him. I looked into his sad eyes and wanted to believe him but...some where deep inside me, I knew he was lying about something. In hindsight, that should have been my second clue.
"You're lying! I know you're not telling me everything!" I spat bitterly. He looked at me like a kicked puppy before averting his gaze to the ground. He gave a small defeated smile and shook his head in mock disbelief.
"Virtue...I thought you were better than this. Blaming me for paranoia you accumulated over the last few weeks is kind of low when I'm trying to take care of you. What have I done to betray your trust in the last few days for you to start avoiding me? How could I ever do something behind your back? I'm with you practically all day everyday! I'm sorry but...I thought you would be stronger than a coward." He stated coldly.
Part of me knew he was right. Why would he have any incentive to harm me, or sell me out? Part of me though, knew he was lying. He had every incentive to rat me out or hurt me. I decided to push the thoughts of betrayal out of my mind because he would never do something like that. At least I tried to believe that was the case.
"Y-you're right. I shouldn't blame you for my own paranoia. It's just that... all this is going to my head. I feel like I'm being watched... all day... everyday... no matter what." I whimpered, giving a broken piece of furniture a closer examination.
"It's alright. I forgive you." he whispered quietly as he gave me warm hug. I could feel my cheeks starting to burn but kept quiet. Even though we had gotten everything cleared up I...still didn't believe he was telling the truth. He had accepted my apology a little too fast.
"Pepper? You'd never sell me out. Would you?" I mumbled into his neck.
"No." he whispered back in a small tone. "I certainly wouldn't."
"Enough of the gushy stuff. Wanna help me clean this shit up?" I giggled as I broke the hug and gave a broken piece of furniture a light kick.
"Certainly."
* * * *
About an hour of cleaning later my STASIS was completely spotless. I yawned and checked my STASIS watch even though I knew it was starting to get late. My stomach gave a small growl, letting me know it was dinnertime.
I trotted into my small kitchen, hoping to find Pepper throwing out the trash or (to my hopeful tummy) making a sandwich. Instead I see him downing a large shot of whiskey. I chuckled as he made a face and stuck his tongue out in pure disgust. He refilled the glass and offered it to me.
"Trying to get drunk, huh? Why?" I asked, floating his full shot glass up to my lips. I downed the liquor in one gulp and gave a face as it burned my throat and warmed my belly. He gave a chuckle before refilling the glass and swallowing it's contents down.
"Ugh. This stuff tastes terrible." he coughed as he poured himself yet another drink. I yanked the glass out of his hooves before he could gulp down anymore of the strong booze.
"You didn't answer my question. Why are you trying to get drunk?" I asked again, this time with a little more force. He snatched the glass out of my telekinesis and gulped down it's contents before slamming the cup down hard against the counter.
"Why not? It's not like you can help with the pain." he growled angrily before his gaze seemed to soften a touch. "Sorry...I just..." he blushed before filling yet another glass.
"What pain?" I asked quietly, my curiosity getting the better of me as I looked at him. He knocked back the intoxicating amber liquid and gave me a drunken smirk.
"I might as well show you then."
* * * *
Pepper sat down on the edge of my bed, his floppy apricot mane falling in his eyes. I looked at him in confusion as he began to unzip his Surveillance jacket. He carelessly threw it on the floor and began to unbutton his shirt. This action caught my attention and caused me to blush very hard
STASIS ponies always wear clothes, unless they're in the privacy of their own STASIS. Usually their outfits consist of jackets, undershirts, and uniform jumpsuits. Pepper's happened to be laying on the floor in a messy heap, leaving him sitting completely naked on my bedspread. Before I could say a word or blush even harder, he was laying on his stomach with his chin resting neatly on his crossed forehooves.
"My back. Hurts." Pepper garbled as he tried his best to relax on my comforter. I would need to give my bedding a good washing after he left. I swallowed hard and took a step closer to examine his back. I nearly shrieked at the sight of crimson gore stained into his cinnamon hued coat.
"W-who would do something like this to you?" I whimpered silently, unsure of how to feel about the bloody mess that was my friend. He hadn't shown any signs of pain the entire evening, and judging by the freshly clotting blood, the wounds had been caused very recently.
He gave me a sad little smile and a shrug before wincing at the movement. I swallowed hard and ran into my bathroom to look for anything I could possibly clean and bandage the injury with. Sadly, all I found was whiskey, an old rag, and some thin bandages. It would have to do.
I didn't have any experience with cleaning lacerations on somepony's back, so more than once Pepper yelped out in pain. I wasn't sure if the liquor I was using was helping or hurting him by the way he was groaning. The cuts were long and (thankfully) not too deep, this meant they didn't bleed through the bandages like I had thought they would.
When I'd finished cleaning and swathing the injury, I decided to take a further examination of his back to make sure I hadn't missed anything. He had multiple scars from the same type of cuts to his back. While the fresh wounds had been on his lower back these discolorations had been closer to his neck. In one small area right where his neck met his shoulder there were three small scars.
I brushed my hoof across them, arousing a small grunt from sluggish my friend. I pulled away, my cheeks burning slightly from the embarrassment of touching him. That's when my eyes spotted something I hadn't noticed before. Something he had obviously been trying to hid from me.
I felt the sensation of tears in my eyes as I spotted the attempted mutilation of his wings. The feathery down and coat where his wings met his body had been cut away, leaving a bloody mess dripping down the sides of his body. I nearly retched at the sight of the slightly infected wounds. Who would do something like that? How was he not showing any pain?
When I finished cleaning his back, belly, and wings, they were completely wrapped in white gauze. He seemed a bit more relieved that his injuries had been taken care of but he would definitely need to rest up before doing anything strenuous. I threw away the bloody rag and put back the whiskey and gauze before heading to the bedroom.
I stopped short of the doorway, remembering that he was laying stark naked on my bed. I certainly didn't want to see my best friend exposed and decided that sleeping on the couch was a much better idea than the alternative. I walked by the doorway to see him staring expectantly at me but continued to walk down the hall.
"Hey! You're just gonna leave me here?!" Pepper cried out. I swallowed hard and turned around before sticking my head through the small corridor.
"Yeah well...I'm just gonna sleep on the couch tonight. Okay. Bye." I squeaked, trying my best not to look at him. He sat up a bit before moving over and patting the empty bedding he had occupied not a moment before.
"Come on. It'll be fine. This bed is much more comfortable than that lumpy old couch anyways." He smiled, patting the soft surface. The rational part of me was screaming to just run down the hall and apologize later but...the curious part of me wanted to know what it was like to sleep in a bed with somepony.
"A-alright but...only cuz you're right about the couch being lumpy." I stammered bashfully but immediately crawled into my bed. Judging by the look in his eye, he was just as curious as me about the whole situation.
"You never told me about how you got those cuts on your back." I stated simply, hoping he would just answer my question like I wanted him to. He seemed to ponder this for a second before looking at me with a devilish smirk plastered across his muzzle.
"I tell you what. If you take off that itchy STASIS jacket and get comfortable...I'll tell you everything." he said smoothly without showing any regret for his offer.
I rolled my eyes and unzipped the ugly cerulean jacket before I threw it on the floor with a resounding 'thump'. With that, I plopped onto my side and looked up at him expectantly. I cleared my throat to grab his attention away from my undershirt.
"Oh yeah...um...it happened yesterday. I told Snapdragon about how you were avoiding me and she told me to forget about you. Then she dragged me into the tunnels so that we could collect some scraps to trade for some contraband items." he whispered quietly. Snapdragon was one of Pepper's galpals and the only pegasus mare in the STASIS with a terrible attitude. I think she classified as a whiny bitch but Pepper seemed to like her.
"That's when the 'things' came out and...they tried to get her. Luckily, we'd run into a group that couldn't fly and...I was able to get us out of there before they mauled her to death. When we got to the medical ward they said she would be in there for a few months. They tried to examine me but I I wouldn't let them touch me because I don't trust them." he murmured quietly, letting his eyes drift across my face.
Funny...I thought somepony had tried to hurt him and I had been correct. None of it would have happened if it hadn't been for my stupid paranoia. Out of guilt, I wrapped a foreleg around his neck and buried my face into his warm chest.
"I'm so sorry Pepper. None of this would have happened if I hadn't been avoiding you." I whispered quietly. I felt a warm tear spill down my cheek only for Pepper to lick it away. I felt myself tense up from the confusion of the tender gesture.
"You actually saved her life. She probably would have went without me and gotten herself killed." he cooed softly in my ear, in an attempt to calm me down.
"Well when you put it like that..." I trailed off. Pepper was looking at me with fondness in his eyes and a small sleepy smile that made me feel...weird. I was confused to say the least since I had never seen anypony look at me like that before.
"Why are you looking at me like that?" I asked in utter bewilderment. He leaned in even closer to me, brushing my bangs out of my eyes. The unnecessary touching was just little to much for me but I didn't shy away. Why he was acting so strange all of a sudden?
I looked into his dark maroon colored irises and could feel even more unease bubble up from inside me. Was he drunk? That would certainly explain the odd behavior, but he didn't seem inebriated enough for that.
"Can I try something really quick?" he whispered breathlessly into my ear. The smooth tone of his voice made me shiver but I was still able to give a curt nod in response. Some how I knew what he wanted even before he asked for it. All of the thoughts and emotions running around inside my head made me want to run but all I could do was give in.
He tilted my chin upwards, letting his mouth fall slightly agape. Our breathing grew slightly heavier as he leaned in to push his lips to mine. The feeling was exhilarating as it was frightening for me. I had never felt anything so loving and yet lascivious in my entire life.
He took great care to keep the kiss gentle so that I could adjust to the feelings throughout my entire body. I felt an unfamiliar muscle clench in my belly as he slowly began to caress my back in an affectionate gesture. I moaned lightly against his lips as I felt him adjust his maw to suit mine better, an insatiable feeling welling up deep inside me.
We broke away, craving the sensuous touch of each other's firm lips. While he may have been swimming in the pleasure of kissing me, I on the other hand, was feeling more conflicted than ever. He was supposed to be my best friend...not my lover. Yet I loved the feeling of him touching me and showing me the intimacy I had never dreamt of feeling. Was I some how a bad pony for enjoying it?
He tried to lean in for a second kiss but I shied away. His eyes seemed a bit dejected by my small act of defiance, but he seemed to come to a realization very quickly.
"You've never been with anypony. Have you?" he whispered warmly, without any hint of prejudice. All I could do was nod and look away with a feeling of shame slowly washing over me.
Of course he would know about my inexperience when it came to lovemaking.
"If you let me...I'll show you a few of the ropes when it comes to feeling good." He murmured hotly against my neck. I moaned lightly at the sultry feeling slowly growing in my nethers. Even his voice was provoking me!
"Y-yes. Show me."
Author's Note
Welp. Things are gonna get a little juicy in the next chapter.
