Brothers Forever

Fives's P.O.V

As we walked, we reminisced and made small talk, nothing amazing or entertaining ever happened on our little travel anyways. Soon, our conversations gave way to the sounds of nature, and we were silent. As we walked further and further down the windy road, the sun began to slowly get lower and lower in the west, and soon a glorious yellow light shone upon the landscape. I have to admit, sunsets have always been a favorite natural phenomenon of mine. On Kamino, sunsets were rare due to all the constant stormy weather, and, according to an old Kaminoan myth, any couple or friends who meet under a sunrise or sunset on Kamino will have an everlasting relationship or friendship. Dunno why I thought of that. The rest of the journey was continued in silence, and day silently transitioned into night, the sky turning from yellow, to cobalt, then to deep purple. A strange, unfamiliar set of stars began appearing in the sky, twinkling and forming unfamiliar constellations. Also, as we walked, an orchestra of night sounds began, unknown animals and insects and animals all raising  their voices towards the heavens, praising the moon and stars. And, speaking of the moon, it was a yellow waxing gibbous. And... on the moon, if you looked at it just right... it looked like a pony head was on its surface. For some reason, I wanted to call it the 'Mare in the Moon'. There was plenty of ambient light coming from it and stars but, I turned on my night vision just to be safe.

"Look, over there!" said Echo.

"Where?" I exclaimed, lowering my rangefinder and sweeping the horizon. Then, I saw it. "Oh, you mean the girly castle-city hanging dangerously off a mountainside?"

"Yeah, that. I think that's the place we should go to," said Echo. "At least it's civilization."

"Yeah, but... does it have to be so girly?" I complained. "It's degrading. How can this race live with any pride, living in the background for a freaking girl's toy line holomercial!"

"I don't know, you might as well ask why we're in the form of them," replied Echo.

I let out a nervous sigh and said, "Well, at least it's not... the Citadel..."

"Well, yes... you could say that. You make it sound just as bad," said Echo.

"You're welcome," I said, not even putting effort into a sarcastic tone.

"Come on, it can't be that bad," said Echo.

We began galloping towards the city but were stopped by what appeared to be a drawbridge and two... oh for Yoda's sake! Who the hell uses gold for armor?! It's one of the most malleable metals out there, and used to be one of the most precious, too!

"A race of idiots..." I mumbled under my breath. "Oh, and we have to deal with Morons #1 and #2."

"How are we gonna get in? We'll look really, really weird and I doubt the guards will be as friendly as Key Lime," whispered Echo.

I was about to answer that I didn't have a plan, but then a cart filled with large bags of produce being pulled by a pony stopped in front of the guards and drawbridge, and I got an idea. "See that cart? We're going for a ride in it," I whispered.

"So, we're going to sneak into the city by hiding underneath some bags in that cart and hope no one spots us?" said Echo with a concerned tone. He suddenly dropped it and then replied confidently, "Sounds like plan to me. Beats being frozen in carbonite."

"Let's move!" I said.

Thanks to all of our training and battlefield experience, we managed to sneak onto the cart and comfortably conceal ourselves inside the large mound of bags without any of the ponies (I decided to call them and us in our current form for some reason), without noticing.

"Have a good night, Morons #1 and #2!" said our unsuspecting smuggler.

"G'night! " said one of the guards. "I hate our names, brother..."

Echo nearly went into hysterics and I did the same. "WHAT, WHAT?!?!" I thought. "Who seriously names their kids Moron #1 and Moron #2?!"

Suddenly, I heard what must've been the drawbridge open and we began to slowly move forward. Green Palm's Coffee Beans; Grown Naturally in New Canterlot, Hayti, for Eight Years, that's what I read on one of the bags. I wondered what use these coffee beans had, but I came to the conclusion it was used in some kind of culinary endeavor, probably a key ingredient in a popular dish. Then I wondered why I was even thinking about such a minor and irrelevant thing. It was like I was starting to become like Echo for a moment. Terrifying. Anyways, we kept moving for a few minutes, and then, the cart abruptly stopped.

"Now?" asked Echo quietly.

"Yes," I said.

"Now?" whispered Echo again, sounding a bit unsure.

"NOW," I replied softly but strongly.

"Right!" said Echo quietly.

With that, we slowly and quietly crawled out of the bags of coffee beans, clutching our carbines tightly.

"The coast is clear, let's move!" I whispered.

We stuck to back alleys and close to walls, trying to avoid the streets, which, were mostly empty. However, we suddenly walked straight onto a large boulevard, packed with ponies.

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Echo's P.O.V

"What do we do? We stick out like a sore thumb I mean, hoof!" I whispered.

"Act natural, get on all fours, we're going to stick out if we walk like bipeds," said Fives. "Tuck your blaster into your munitions belt."

I followed Fives's instructions and we began the slow, awkward walk down the packed boulevard.

"Who wears such absurd outfits?" said a passing pony in high-end clothes.

"Oh great, we're in the stuck-up nobility neighborhood..." I heard Fives mumble.

Nonetheless, we continued. We received many criticisms and insults, from being called weirdos, to insane, to the scum of Equestria, to homeless wackos, to even 'Changelings'... whatever those were....

After a few minutes, we both were up the wall. What was wrong with these ponies? They were more demeaning and judgmental than any other race I'd ever come across! Sure, I figured they weren't all jerks, but I think that this particular demographic would have fainted if we were in human form. However, we made it through the street and galloped as fast as we could away from it.

"Now what?" I asked.

"We find a place to stay," Fives. He looked around for a moment before reading aloud, "Gold Clover Inn."

I looked in his direction and noticed a small wooden sign above a door that had the words: Gold Clover Inn painted on it.

"Ack... looks like a bit of a low-end establishment, don't you think?" I said with disgust.

"Better than nothing. Just don't know how we'll pay," said Fives. "That's usually how these establishments work."

I sighed and we both entered. Immediately we were greeted by the strong, pungent odor of alcohol and burning wood. It was dark, smoky, grimy, and dirty: and many a drunk pony was either sitting on standing around or. The floorboards creaked with every step we took. One was singing what I think was a song... but the lyrics sounded like his head was in a 'fresher, so I didn't try to listen. Another pony standing close by... Oh fierfek, was he urinating?! One pony who was probably swimming in ale actually took his mug lowered it underneath the whizzing one and... I don't want to talk about it anymore. Needles to say, I was so disgusted I thought I'd actually hurl on the bar counter. And I was about to. I gagged a few times and I hurriedly asked for a bucket from who I assumed was the innkeeper. I hastily removed my helmet and then... well, hurled.

Upon wiping bits of dinner off my muzzle,  I turned to the innkeeper and said, "V... vacancy for two?"

"Sure... I've got a room. That fancy getup means you probably got lost on the way to the palace and have wandered all day. Tell you what, since you're already so well behaved, and since I've never had classier clients, I'll give you one night free of charge," said the inkeeper. "Here's your key. Checkout's at nine in the morning."

"Thank you... sir," I said, taking the key. Either this guy was desperate for attention or drunk. I hoped it was the former... he didn't really show any signs of intoxication anyways. "Sorry about your bucket."

"Thanks," replied Fives.

"You're both welcome." replied the inkeeper.  "I hate my job..."

We quickly exited the area before anything else happened and finally our escapade was over; time for some sleep. At last, the bed which I had begun thinking about now lay before me.  I quickly took off my helmet and crawled in, Fives squirming in on the other side.

"See you at 0800 hours," said Fives.

"Sleep well, brother," I said. Now, I gave myself up to the subconscious and my mind seemed to forge another world. One that was just as scary as the real one.