Author's Note

Sorry for the delayed chapter. I've been writing 'Bones for the taking' because ideas are flowing!

Smith must have some kind of brain damage. Damn.

'Minor' Complications

"So... What's the route we're taking?" MetalSmith asks Gabby, stopping her from leaving the cabin.

"Oh... Yeah... That's something we have to find, huh?" She says, giggling embarrassedly, turning around to look at him. Smith nods, attempting not to catch the contagious laughter.

Smiling sheepishly, Gabby closes the door and heads over to the cot. Smith follows suit.

Grabbing the saddlebags of her flank, she places them onto the cot. The buckles unsnap and the bags open. Digging around until she finds the rolled up paper.

"This here is a map of all Equestria. Nabbed it from a store after I escaped Griffinstone." She tells Smith while unrolling the map.

The map was well worn. So much that Smith doubted it was 'nabbed from a store'. In the center was a tower like mountain holding the royal castle off to the side.

"Here's where we are." Gabby points out, placing a claw on the forest just outside of Manehatten. "Our best bet of not dying and possibly meeting more survivors is here." Her claw then moves up the map and stopping on the railway tunnel.

"The railroad?" Smith asks, looking up at her in disbelief. She looks up to meet his gaze with a nod.

"The railroad. With luck. Nopony will be hostile."

"Yeah..." He says. Hoping for the same luck. With that, Gabby puts the map away, closes the bag and throws it onto her flank.

"Ouch!" Smith exclaims as a branch smacks him in the face.

"Ooh. Sorry!" Gabby giggles, walking through the brush. Smith behind her.

Continuing in silence until they broke through the brush, ending up in a small clearing that contained the tracks in the middle of it.

On the other side where the forest started again was a few Trotters.

"Oh thank Celestia they're Earth ponies." Gabby says, pointing to the four across from them. Smith nods.

"You have a knife or something I could use? All I have is my forty-four." Smith whispers. Gabby shakes her head.

"I've got nothing. We'll have to sneak past them." Gabby informs Smith, waving him back into the woods.

"Where are w-"

"Shhh!" She silences him. They walk to the left of where the Trotters where seen. Being careful to keep silent.

FBOOMFBOOM!!

The sound of an over-under shotgun rattles through the forest, making Gabby jump. Smith already has Reliable in his mouth.

Crouching low, Smith starts to make his way out of the woods.

FBOOMFBOOM!!

"Smith!" Gabby strains to be quiet. "Smith! Don't!"

He blows her off with a flick of his tail, continuing to walk to the tracks.

Brushing of the remaining branches, he stands up and looks over to where the Trotters where.

With those gone, he looks to the tracks.

FBOOM!

WIZZ!

The pellets from the shotgun fly above Smith.

CRACK!

Smith shoots his gun towards where he last heard the shot.

"WOAH WOAH WOAH!!!" A stallion runs out, holding the shotgun with a wing. "Hey w-"

CRACK!

Smith pulls the trigger again, hitting the stallion In the chest, dropping him close to instantly. Smith trots over and picks up the shotgun with a wing.

He breaks the top open and checks the load. Both live.

"Wha-" The stallion tries to speak, causing him to hack up blood. "Why?"

Smith looks down at the stallion sadly.

"What's your name?" Smith asks, causing the stallion to look up at him confusedly.

"What?" He cough up more blood.

"Name. What's your name?" Smith repeats.

"Sandy Beach." This time the blood came up as clots.

"I'm sorry... Sandy Beach." Smith says, closing the shotgun. Placing the muzzle over Sandy's head.

"What? W!" More hacking.

"I'm sorry." He says again, pulling the trigger, killing Sandy.

Smith and Gabby walk down the tracks, smothered in silence. Gabby staying a safe distance away to Smith's right.

"I can't believe you did that." Gabby says, not closing the distance between them. Smith just looks away.

Another ten minutes pass, the silence becomes defining to Gabby.

"Why is it you did that!?" She shouts, looking over to him. He keeps his gaze ahead.

"The first shot, the shot that crippled him, was unintentional. The second shot, when I killed him, was a mercy shot. Not only did he not suffer, but he didn't turn into one of those.... Things." Smith replies, placing the over-under in his bag, along side the shells and bandages found in Sandy's bags.

"He was trying to talk! He was trying to become friends!" She insists.

"By the time that registered, I had already pulled the trigger. All that was in my mind was that he tried to kill me. I could feel the BBs on my mane." Smith says calmly, doing his best to not lose it.

"He was trying... To talk...." Gabby says, looking down and sniffling.

The tunnel they have been heading for has been in view for at least an hour. Growing closer painstakingly slowly.

The two walked in silence, not a word said since the argument.

Stopping at the opening of the cave, Gabby hisses, grabbing MetalSmith's attention.

"How much ammo you got?" She asks. Smith turns to look at her.

"Why?" He asks.

"Just... Answer me." She growls.

Smith sighs and grabs his saddle bags of his flank with a wing and sets it on the ground. Opening the bag with the gold plated shotgun sticking out, he counts the shells.

"I've got ten shells, twelve counting the two in the gun. Then I have four left in Reliable." He informs Gabby.

"Ok." She watches him close the bag and put it back on.

"Why did you want to know?"

"Taking inventory. We don't know how many are in there. Or how long it is. So it's good to be prepared!" She fakes a smile.

"Uh huh..." Smith said, unconvinced. "How many bandages yeh got there?" He asks her, pointing to her saddlebags.

"Well... Let's see." She takes off her bags and digs through them. "Enough, in case you get bitten or hurt yourself."

He nods at her then looks towards the tunnel.

The tunnel was dark, and because neither MetalSmith or Gabby had anything to light it, it would stay that way.

Slight raspy breathing could be heard, far away enough to not cause worry. Water dripping gave a tempo for them to walk. Which was a hasty speed.

"Hold on." Gabby whispers, both of them stopping. "Do you hear that?"

Straining to hear, Smith closes his eyes, concentrating on the sounds. The dripping of water, creaking of stone, breathing of Gabby.

The faint hoofsteps of Trotters.

"I hear it. Doesn't sound like they're very close." Smith tells her. But just to be safe, he removes the shotgun from his bag with a wing. Keeping it pointed forward.

"What we going to do?" She asks worriedly. Eyes straining to look at Smith.

"You're going to stay behind me. And since we can't see very well, if I'm taken down, you run. Run back to the entrance of the tunnel. Find another way to Canterlot." He says, looking in her direction.

Gabby nods, realising he can't see her.

"Ok."

Turning back towards where they're walking, they notice something. It's a red Dot, moving slowly back and forth far ahead.

"Let's be careful." Smith says, starting forward.

As the light got closer, the snarling got louder. Soon, MetalSmith was smart enough to put two and two together.

"Those are Trotters." He says quietly to Gabby.

"What!?"

"Those lights. They're Trotters." He repeats.

The amount of lights grew. From two to countless.

"Well... We'll have to find a way through them. Mabey over. You can fly right?" Smith asks Gabby.

"No, these wings are decorative."

If he could see her, she would be smirking.

"Anyway. Lets try and fly over them. I just hope they can't see in the dark."

MetalSmith expands his wings, hearing Gabby do the same.

"Alright Smithy, i'm--"

"Never going to call me that again."

"Fine, MetalSmith, I'll fly alongside the right side of the tunnel. And to avoid colliding with each other, I suggest you fly alongside the left." She tells him.

"Alright."

Simultaneously they shoot into the air, causing a large gust of wind to make it's way down both sides of the tunnel.

"And Gabby. See you on the other side."

"You shoulda said that when we entered the cave." She jokes.

Smiling, Smith flies to the left. Finding the wall, he flies alongside it. Quietly as possible, watching the red lights pass below him.

Slowly, carefully, slowly, caref-

Crack!

Smith slams his head into a giant rock.

"AH! SHH!!" he hushes himself, falling to the ground, holding his head.

The growling gets louder, Smith unable to notice, his head throbbing and bleeding.

Pushing harder onto his head trying to stop the bleeding, Smith thrusts his wings, attempting to get high enough to stay away from the Trotters.

His wings twitching as he ascends, the pain becoming too much. Needling down his spine, into his wings. Spasming, his wings falter, causing him to fall and slam against the ground. Hitting his right side, he feels something snap, but the pain doesn't compare to the skull fracture.

FWOOM!

The sound of a spotlight turning on, followed by the crack of a rifle, effectively causing Smith to go temporarily deaf. Only now and then does a louder shot make it through to Smith, deafining him even more.

Holding both hooves on his bleeding head, he looks up. Dead Trotters are scattered around, their blood painting the walls. Standing above him a grey earthpony stallion. Holding an assault rifle.

"It's you." He says flatly, hitting Smith in the forehead with the gun, effectively knocking him out.

Gabby exits the tunnel, breathing in the fresh air happily. A small breeze ruffling her wings.

Then a muffled crack eminates from the cave. Whipping around, she listens carefully.

"Smith?" She lightly shouts, getting no response. "Smith!?" Louder this time. When no response comes, she runs back into the cave. "Smith!!"

Running to where she thinks they split up, she feels around.

Squelch.

She feels something wet and warm. Panic coursing through her. Is this Smith?! Is he dead!?

She feels up and down the corpse, unintentionally putting her hand into a bloody hole in it's torso.

Taking no attention to it, she feels around to the flank.

No saddlebags. That's good.

Moving her head up, she looks all around.

She knows something's different. Something's, off.

No more red lights. All the Trotters are dead.

"METALSMITH!!" Gabby yells, her voice echoing throughout the cave.

"Please don't be dead!"

Smith groans, the headache head splitting. Close to literally.

MetalSmith tries to sit up, but the straps on the cot prevent that from happening. Not so much as a wiggle is possible.

Taking note of what he's in, Smith looks around. Tan tent, scraps of cardboard and plastic scattered around the room. Boxes stacked close to the ceiling. Floor was dirt, and no sunlight made it through the fabric of the tent. The only light being the oil lamp next to Smith's restraints.

"Well well well." A voice drifts from the front of the tent. "Look who's come to."

Snickering can be heard, as well as the staccato crunch of hooves on the dirt.

"Mmmph!!" Metal attempts to speak, but suddenly realizing that the bandage around his muzzle be is preventing that.

"Don't bother." The voice calls. Now coming from the left of the tent.

The bandages holding his snout closed prevent his jaw from moving at all. Forcing him to breath through his nose.

The grey stallion shows himself, appearing from behind a stack of boxes.

"Your awake." He says again, looking at MetalSmith, who's Beginning to hyperventilate.

"Careful now. Do that and you'll pass out. You're lucky I don't just kill you now. Seeing as you killed Sandy." He says coldly, glaring down at MetalSmith.

Smith's nostrils flair, trying to get enough oxygen to his racing heart. Not enough.

Smith's vision gets black around the edges, seeping into the middle. Until finally,

Darkness.