Into Ashes: Act II

Chapters

Chapter One - Rude Awakening
Chapter Two - The New Order
Chapter Three - Friends in Low Places
Chapter Four - Back in the Saddle
Chapter Five - Escaping With Loyalty
Chapter Six - Seeds of Deception
Intermission 1 - The Rainy Days
REBOOT IN PROGRESS
ACT II - Where Loyalty Lies

Chapter One - Rude Awakening

Day…?

My eyes open full for the first time, but I am hardly any stronger or more energetic than before. My head is still foggy, full of gaps and holes to the recent events. My legs, still sore. Pins and needles stabbing them as I wake.

My vision clears just enough to make out my surroundings. I lay in a small stone alcove carved into cave walls, trapped behind jail bars.

Where the hell am I? Where’s all my stuff?

Just beyond the bars is a large circular room. Other cells similar to mine line the round wall. Sunlight pours in through a gaping hole in the ceiling. Two identical orange Unicorns stand guard at a door. The only visual difference between them are the icons on their flanks. One is of a sword, the other of a shield. They both wield spears fashioned from wooden poles and tipped with the pointed legs of salvaged drone parts. One of the spears, is not just a regular drone appendage, but is the leg bearing the powerful electric stun weapon from a JN88. It's core battery is crudely strapped to the bottom of the pole, and the power cable running between the ends. They both stand vigilant, occasionally muttering a short phrase between themselves but not loud enough for me to hear.

What the hell is going on here.

I lift my head and try to push myself off the ground. My whole body shivers as my weakened muscles come to. The moment I bring my chest from the cold floor, the guards spot me. “It’s time." I hear one say in a deep, growling voice. "Go and let Ivory know he has awakened, and bring the bucket.” The other guard leaves and closes the door behind him. The one with the stun spear continues to stand guard at the door, watching me with an angered glare. I crawl over to the jail bars to try and lift myself.

Some short time later, just as I’m lifting off my knees and to my feet, the other guard returns with a bucket full of water. They come towards my cell. The water sloshes in the bucket, and the stun spear hums to life. I continue to pull myself up, still disoriented and barely having the strength for it.

The moment the guards reach my cell, the stun spear is shoved between the bars and into my chest, sending an untold voltage surging through my body. Every muscle in my body locks up, paralyzed from the powerful current. The shocking lasts for only, but I feel its surge seem to never end. I fall to the floor, and the water in the bucket is thrown over me. The freezing wave sobers me from paralysis to almost full awareness.

“Wake up Human.” one of them says. “It’s time for your questioning.” I lay on the floor, still too weak to do anything.

They both grab me beneath the armpits and drag me out of the cell, zero concern for being kind or gentle in any sort of way. They drag me out of the door and down a dark, musty hallway. The smell of rotting plant fibers and wet stone fills my nose. We pass by several doors, hallways, all with sparsely placed lights strung up along the ceiling. I look into one of the open rooms we pass. Several Equine are inside, all glaring at me as I’m drug by. Some of them shield their children from the sight of me.

What. Is this.

At the end of the long hall, the guards stop at an opened metal door. Inside, a large vacant room with nothing but a lone chair seated in the middle. The room is poorly lit, faintly illuminated by a single red lamp attached to the ceiling. They drag me inside. I’m thrown chest first into the chair. The guards pick me up, spin me around, throw me back into the chair and bind my hands behind my back, my feet to the wooden legs.

In from the doorway comes another Equine. Female, unicorn, coat of white and mane of light gray. Her mane, fluffed and combed backwards. Her eyes of a burning, acidic yellow. She seals the door behind her.

“I hope you enjoyed your little nap… HUMAN.” she says. I can almost see the disgust dripping from her mouth at the end of every word.

“Who the hell are you-” I ask in an exhausted, feeling like I'm not breathing. “Where the hell am I-?"

“I’ll be asking the questions here, not you!” She strikes me across the face. “You speak only when spoken to! Got it!?”

She motions the guard with the stun spear to come to her side. “This can go one of two ways, human, the hard way or the even harder way.”

I have no idea why they’ve brought me in here or what’s about to happen. The one thing I know is, this bitch isn’t fooling around.

“Both ways will involve you telling me everything I want to know, and a lot of electric shocks. I suggest you answer my questions accordingly! It’ll save you a lot of trouble.”

The stun spear buzzes loudly into action, glowing bright blue against the dark red background. Their devilish grinning faces illuminate in it’s light.

“Now then, first question.” She presses a hoof against my chest and sends the other hurling right into my face. “Where are the rest of you hiding!”

I struggle to remain in touch with my bearings. This mare hits a lot harder than I anticipated. But I remain as stoic as I can as a show of defiance.

“I don’t know - what you’re - talking about.”

She punches me in the face again.

“Try again! I know it’s hard for you to rat out on your friend, but you WILL tell me! Where are they!”

She winds up for another punch and holds it.

“I’m alone! - There’s no one else!”

“Don’t lie to me! Where there’s one of you there’s always more around. Don’t think that I’m a fool, I know you’re hiding them! You monsters are never alone!”

She readies her hoof for another strike.

“How many more of you are there!”

“Wouldn’t - you - like to know.”

She backs away, staring at me discontentedly. “Zap him.” she says, rolling her eyes. Without hesitation, the guard smiles and jams the spear right into my chest again. I yell out, all the air is thrusted from my lungs and all my muscles constrict in one, agonizing jolt. He lets off after a few seconds.

“I told you. Like I said we could make this hard or even harder. That was only 60,000 volts. Next time you smart off, it’ll be 70.”

The guard backs away and the mare shoves her face in front of mine. “Now, how, many, more, are there..”

“I told you, there’s none! I’m the - I’m the only --- AAGGGHH!” The guard zaps me again.

“Lies! But I admit I respect your want to keep your friends safe. But we will find them, and we will kill them!”

“Just one - of my friends - could kill, all of y --- AAGGHH!”

“Quit speaking out of turn you bastard! You’re only here to answer my questions and tell me what I want to know. Back talk again and I’ll bump it up to 80,000!”

The spear thunders loudly as the guard flashes it threateningly.

"Won’t tell me where your friends are willingly? That’s too bad. You know what, Thunderhoof? Turn it up to 85. I think we just need to force it out of him.” Her use of the word “friends” sends flashes of Fluttershy through my head.

“What did - you do - with Fluttershy. - Where is she..”

She uppercuts me right in the jaw, followed by another powerful sack right to the side of my head. I and the chair fall over to the side. The guards set me back up like a domino, just to be knocked over again and again at their will.

“Don’t EVER mention that name! She’s caused us enough trouble and you bring her back!”

“Where - IS SHE?”

A solid punch to the forehead again sends me falling groundwards. And again, the guards lift me back up and set me back down. They zap me. My body starts to feel like it's burning, on fire. My organs feel as they’re boiling from the heat of the current.

“How many times do I have to SAY IT! Speak when spoken to! Now where are they!”

“I told you! I’m the only one! Everyone else left - a long time ago.”

“Then why are you still here? What are you monsters planning now!”

“There is - no plan!” I struggle to breathe, lungs cooked and on fire, burning with every constricted breath. “I’m telling you - There’s none of us left!”

“We’ll just see about that. I’ll save that one for next time. On to the next question.”

She gets in my face again.

“What did you do with the Elements of Harmony!”

“The - Elements of - what?”

Again, she plows her hoof into my across my face. I’m really starting to get tired of this. I don’t know what she’s even talking about and yet she keeps drilling into me! I’m fed up with all these accusations! If only I had my strength, I could tear her apart in an instant!

“Don’t play dumb! I can tell by the patches on your uniform that you were part of the attack on Canterlot. You destroyed the royal castle and scattered our only hopes in defeating you! Now where, are they!”

“--- Up yours.”

“Oh my poor, delicate little human. Why must you make things so hard on yourself?” She yanks the spear from the guard and shoves it to my chest, letting loose with 90,000 volts. The current burns through my eyes. I'm blinded for the entirety of the shock. I feel as if my soul, screaming in its own torturous hell is trying to pull itself free of my searing body. She doesn’t stop either. She just holds it to my chest mercilessly, unrelenting. Only when the water that was dumped on me begins to boil away to steam does she finally stop. Even after she stops, I convulse uncontrollably in the chair. A bloody foam starts to ooze out of my mouth and drips on my lap.

Exhausted, barely alive, burning from the inside out.. She still presses on with the interrogation.

“That was for all the lives you stole from us! If no one wanted to keep you alive I would have had my way with you already. You are a bold one though, aren’t you? But you know you’re defeated. Look how helpless you are against us. And no one can save you. Why don’t you just give up? Make things easier on yourself? All you have to do is tell me what you did with the Elements! It’s that easy!”

Barely able to speak, I still force myself to show that I won’t talk. Knownledge or not, this will go on until I am left as a husk to rot. Air wheezes in and out of my throat, barely getting enough through, feeling like I'm being choked.

“You’ll have - to ask - someone else. That wasn’t - what my unit, was tasked with.”

Knowing I won’t be able to take another shock, she turns the spear to the blunt side and brutally prods me in the chest. Hard enough that again, all the air is thrust out, along with a spoil of red ooze spilling to my lap. The chair falls backwards once more. The guards set me upright again. Thwak! Thwak! She whips me across the face and in my gut like the spear is a baseball bat. Thwak!

“Just wait! - until! - I get my strength back! - First thing I’m doing - is coming for you!”

“Hm-hm, cute. But that won’t be happening. We’ll be doing this every chance we get until we get everything we can from you. Nice try though, I was almost scared for a second. Now back to my questions! I know that once you destroyed the royal palace, you collected the elements and scattered them across Equestria so we couldn’t find them! Tell me, now, what you did with them, and you can go free! For today.”

The moment she gets close enough to me, I spit all the bloody mess in my mouth right in her face. She recoils violently, shocked and utterly disgusted. She stands still, wide-eyed, taken aback by my gross audacity. I look her in the eyes and grin smugly.

“Thunderhoof?... Go get the branding iron.” She says this calmly but still in shock. The other guard comes up nervously with a rag and wipes my spit from her face. Thunderhoof soon returns with a metal rod, the end of it glowing a bright red-orange, heated just below the point of melting.

“You’ve done it. You’ve really done it Human. I’ve never had to use this on someone before. Congratulations. As a reward, you can be the first one I try it on! And can you guess where this little rod is going?”

My grin disappears as I have a pretty good idea of what she’ll do as payback for the spit.

“Hold his head back and keep his mouth open. Yes, that’s right human. It’s going right in your mouth to DRY UP ALL THAT NASTY SPIT OF YOURS! Then we’ll see how you feel about doing something stupid like that again!”

She grabs the rod from Thunderhoof. Both guards rush behind me and yank my head back and jam my mouth wide open. I squirm as much as I can, but their tight hold is stronger than what I can muster. I try to shout “No!” but it all ends up coming out as a croaked, soupy gargle.

She approaches with a manic look in her eyes. She will enjoy this, and I will suffer every last agonizing bit of it! I try to break free but I can’t! She waves the rod back in forth in front of my eyes, just above my face. I can already feel my skin beginning to singe and she hasn’t even touched me yet. The searing heat from it's red glow slams against my entire face. I desperately try to squirm my way out, but the harder I try, the more the stranglehold of the guards clamps down around my head! She holds the rod just at the tip of my lips. My jaw is slightly freed from their grip. “Nnno!” I managed to yell out. The guards jam my mouth back open.

“YEESS! This is your last chance to tell me what you know about the Elements! WHERE ARE THEY!”

The guards release my jaw. “Please - don’t! I don’t know anything about them! I swear!”

“Wrong answer!” I see the fire in her eyes flash with enjoyment and she readies to shove the burning rod into my mouth!

“That’s enough!” A female voice rings out from the entrance to the chamber. A mare stands silhouetted against the blinding light that pours through the now open door. “You’ve gone too far this time Ivory. My orders were to see what he knows, not burn him so he can never speak again!”

“I - But you told me - I thought you -- Sigh Yes ma’am..”

“Now drop that iron and take him to the infirmary! He’s had enough for today.”

“... Yes ma’am.”

The unknown Equine leaves the doorway and trots off. The moment she disappears behind the wall, Ivory turns back to me with those fiery eyes. She drops the iron rod. It hisses and flames spark up as it bounces and rolls away on the floor. “Lucky break, Human.” She jumps up and spins around, landing only her front hooves. She gets one last shot square at my face with a potent buck from both of her hind legs. I fly backwards and slam my head to the ground, knocked clean out.

- - -

Darkness… Voices, muffled. Nothing but the feeling of cool air lightly passing over me. And the smell of wet stone… I can’t move. I try to lift my arms and legs but I have no energy. It feels like.. Something is holding them down as well.

I hear two voices, exchanging words with one another but I can’t make any sense of what they’re saying. Still no sight or vision. Not sure if I’m being kept in total darkness, blind, or just too weak to open my eyes. I try to wiggle my fingers. I can feel them. They’re there, but just barely. Toes… Also there, but I have no better control over them than the rest of my body. My whole body is numb to my control.

Suddenly I feel a pressure weigh down against the bottom of my wrist. And then, another pressure, this one against the side of my neck. Even more suddenly a flash of a shadowy figure passes through my mind like a bolt of lightning. For the brief moment that it existed, it reminded me of the same figure I saw as I was being dragged away by.. Fluttershy. A black mare with a mane that glitters in the darkness like the stars of the darkest night sky. But that’s all I see. It’s gone just as quickly as it came.

The pressure on my neck and wrist goes away, and a voice creeps in with the leaving pressure. Female… Talking to a male… I, I think I can hear them.

“...... working on him for three days now. He’s lost a lot of blood, I don’t know how he’s managing to pull through.”

“IIII’ve been sayin it. The Humans aren’t any kind of fragile like we are. What would kill me and you would probably be just a bruise or a scratch to one of them. And after what Ivory put him through? They can’t be natural… I mean just look at this, here’s another one!”

I feel a quick pinch pull out of my left leg.

“How many is this now?”

“67.”

“67! 67 pieces of shrapnel in his lower body and he’s still walking around.”

“We never stood a chance. Elements of Harmony be damned. The magic the humans use is far beyond what even our most powerful --”

“Now now Primrose, we mustn't lose hope. As long as there’s still magic in the world there’s somepony to carry on our torch. Check his pulse again.”

“What for? I just checked it.”

“Just check it again. I want to be sure.”

I feel the same pressures from earlier press down again.

“Yep, still beating. I don’t know how but..”

“We’ll give him a few more days to recover. Once he’s stable again we can lock him back up.”

“And if he wakes up before then?”

“Easy! Just give him another round of sedation and he’ll be out cold in no time.”

“Ugh, we’ve used so much on him already. We only have so many of those things left.”

“That’s fine, we can always make more.”

“But you know that doesn’t work as well.”

“That’s also fine. So long as we can keep him under, everything is fine. If we slip up, and he wakes up, there’s no telling how much damage he could cause. How many do we have left?”

“6 boxes worth.”

“Thaaaat’s plenty.”

“Yeah, but we’ve already used two-and-a-half boxes just to keep him under and we can barely manage that. The more we use on him, the more used to it his body is going to get. I’m really starting to worry. Why does she even want to keep him around so much? What could we possibly use him for? How do we know he’ll even cooperate?”

“Always pessimism with you Primrose, always pessimism! What she wants is what we are here to get for her. As our wise and knowledgeable leader who rescued us all and gave us homes, it’s what we owe. I’m sure in her right mind she knows what she’s doing.”

“I sure hope you’re right."

I start to get a slight amount of feeling back in my fingers. I.. I think I can feel myself starting to move them, though hardly at all.

“I’m sure she does. Has she ever steered us wrong before?”

“Yeees? Remember what happened the last time a group went out? She trusted Fluttershy to go with them and.. Well you know what happened.”

“Yes, you are right. That was a very dark time...”

“And all the sleepless nights we spent working?”

“Yes, I remember those too. But how could we have known Fluttershy would do that? --”

I gain enough control back over my fingers in my left hand to make a weak fist.

“-- Unforeseeable circumstances happen to the best of us. I’m sure both of us can recall many atimes where we have faltered from misfortune as well. And even now, with as little options as we have, why not hope this works? It’s the only hope we have left.”

“Because hope is a dangerous tool?”

“Pessimism Primrose! We just have to keep our heads held high and hope for this to --”

“Yeah, and what if it doesn’t work? Backfires? What if it fails so badly we can’t recover from it?”

“Sigh What choices do we have? We’re all slowly dying anyway. But tis better to have tried and failed in the darkest hour than to have never tried at all. This is most certainly one of those times. Why not keep trying when we have a chance, however small? The rewards far outweigh the consequences of failure.”

“We lost our chances when the Elements of Harmony disappeared!”

“You give up on yourself too easily! The Heroic 6 would never abandon us, so why should we abandon each other? Sigh… May they rest in peace..”

“Yes.. May they rest.. Except Fluttershy.”

“Except Fluttershy?”

“Except Fluttershy.”

“Sigh, Except Fluttershy..”

“But even if she - OH MY GOSH!” A metal pan loudly slaps and rattles on the floor. “Doctor Still Hooves, look!”

“What?”

“His hand is moving!”

“What!”

“His hand is moving, look! He’s waking up!”

“Oh dear. Quick Primrose! Get me eight needles from that box!”

I don’t feel any of the shots being injected. What I do feel is a gradual loss of control over my fingers. I keep trying to move them but I progressively lose their favor. The voices slowly fade back to a muffle.

“Was that eight of them?”

“Yeah!? I don’t know! I wasn’t counting!”

“Well his fingers have stopped moving. That was too close Primrose. --”

“How much longer do we have to keep this up!”

“We go until we succeed or until we fail. They’re all counting on us to..”

The voices fade away into nothing, and I feel myself slipping from the grasp of my conscience. Just at the moment I black out, that mysterious shadowed figure flashes through my mind once more..

Chapter Two - The New Order

“Human!” I hear a voice call out, unsure if it was a real voice or something in my head. I weakly open my eyes. They hardly come to, but just enough that I may peek through my own thinly parted slits. I try to move, but the familiar feeling of total paralysis prevails over me. Everything is still numb, but slowly, ever so slowly as the time passes do I gain semblances of control. I sluggishly win favor over my hands and feet and soon begin to win over my limbs. As with my vision and my physical control, my hearing begins to apply itself.

“Doctor we have to hurry up! His eyes are opening!” I hear the same feminine voice from earlier. It’s Primrose. I hear her voice, but I do not see her through my barely opened eyelids. My vision is directed exactly upwards to the stone ceiling, and I am unable to move my head to turn and look.

“I can see that Primrose.” I hear the old, crotchety voice of Doctor Still Hooves reply. “Are his arms and legs secure?”

“Yes now let’s get a move on!”

“Alrighty then, help me push him. We don’t have much time to do this.”

Whatever the two doctors have me strapped down to rumbles across the lumpy floor. I'm quickly wheeled through a large doorway and down another dimly lit hallway. Flickering lights, spaced out unevenly few and far between, pass over me. My eyes ache in their glow. The creeping roll of the cart I lay strapped to grows. The passing lights cease as I turn left and pushed down another hallway. This one unlit, the same hallway I have been drug down before.

THUD The cart is pushed through a wooden door, and the familiar round, open ceiling shines overhead with its blinding rays. Brilliant warm sunlight pours through it and onto my cold skin. In my lackadaisical state, I almost begin to smile in its welcoming comfort, but that comfort soon disappears as another stone ceiling eclipses the joy shining from above. As the cart comes to a stop, I see faintly in my peripheries an Equine come into view. She bears an off white coat of fur with a bobbed, dark red mane. This must be Primrose. She moves from my left side down to my feet, and back up my right side. Pressures around my wrists, chest, and legs are relieved. I feel the cart tip over sideways, and I fall shoulder first to the cold, hard floor. I roll to rest on my back before I see Primrose again return to view, a large needle wielded in her hoof. She drives it down into my chest. I feel it, the sharp pinch of my skin followed by a deep, hollow ache as the needle pierces my sternum. For but a brief moment a viscous liquid take up space in my chest cavity, pressing down against my heart and the top of my lungs. The pain subsides as the liquid is dispersed through my torso.

I hear the voice of Doctor Still Hooves. “Okay boys, we’re done here, lock him back up. Let’s go Primrose, we have to get this bed back to Nurse Redheart’s office and let her know we’re done with it.”

Slam! Latch, latch!

The liquid quickly works its wonders, warming up muscles throughout my body. Whatever I was just injected with is giving me a sudden surge of energy. My weary body, every fiber slowly waking up to rejuvenation. I feel invigorated, revitalized to get off this hard stone floor and find out just where the hell I am, where all of my belongings are, and how to get out.

The moment I sit up, a stun spear is thrust between the cell bars, stopping just inches from my shoulder. Thunderhoof glares at me with earnest spite. “Don’t you think of trying anything.” he says gruffly. “Just sit here and bide your time until Ivory gets back!”

Though I want to counter him with a cleverly rude gesture, I know it would be unwise. He has me caught, locked down under the threat of his spear. I am merely at the mercy of my captors. The spear hums with vigorous electrical anger just before my skin. If I make any sudden moves he will surely zap me before I have time to do anything. Unfortunately, just like Ivory mentioned during my last interrogation, I know when I’m beaten. I feel bitter knowing that I’m being held prisoner of something so weak, but I have no choice but to abide by their wills. For now.

I look past him to the open room. All the other cells adjacent to mine are completely empty. Needless to say I’m being held as a prisoner of war in the fresh aftermath of our invasion. They hold me to the smallest possible standards of fair treatment, so far electing not to provide me any food, water, or respite from their brutal questioning. I have been afforded time to recover at the mercy of who I can only assume to be their leader. But it seems that just as I have recovered, the torture may recommence. From what I’ve overheard, I’ve gotten an idea of why they want to keep me alive, but no mention for who or what they need me for. Other than just as a punching bag for questions which I do not have any answers. And no sign of Fluttershy. My captors do not seem keen of her either. I can only hope they aren’t treating her with the same disregard as they afford to me, if she's here. The pain it would cause me to see her so brutally abused by these tyrannical goons.. The moment I get the chance to make an escape I must take it, and if I can somehow find Fluttershy and rescue her, I must do that as well. We will run, escape back into the cold, abysmal fields of gray together. Back to surviving on our own. It would be much better than what we face here at any rate.

The door to the prison chamber opens. Thunderhoof’s twin enters the room with another stun spear. “Is she back yet?” Thunderhoof asks him.

“Almost.” says the twin in an equally gruff but lighter toned voice. He closes the door behind him before joining Thunderhoof's side. They both glare at me with the same earnest expression. An impassioned, burning fire glows behind their sullen blue eyes, their hatred for me only held back by orders to preserve my condition. Again the door to the chamber is thrown wide open with force. I hear the manic voice of Ivory call out from the other side. “Thunderhoof! Golden Bolt! Bring him in.”

They come my way, opening my cell to begin another round in the hot seat.

In my own passive defiance I decide to make a smart comment. “What already? I was just enjoying a nice --”

Thunderhoof amps his spear up to full power. A violent course of lightning surges between the spear’s two metal prongs. Sparks fly off in all directions and some land on my shoulder. The noise from this is intense. The air around me vibrates from the sheer power of the electric storm. But it’s merely a threat. He restrains himself from using it but his message is clear. They rush me as the bars open full, spears roaring and ready for action. They thrust them just before my neck to keep me controlled. I reluctantly raise my hands above my head in submission. “Let’s go Human!” barks Thunderhoof. I slowly rise to my feet. Golden Bolt counters my movement with a slow crawl to get behind me. They both continue to hold the spears around my neck, both staring at me with intent, and both ready to unleash their wrath should I make a wrong move. I feel every hair on my torso and neck want to rip free and cling to their spears, and the air around my heas quakes with vehemence. Once behind me, Golden Bolt gives me a small but powerful shock to my spine, just enough to make me involuntarily jolt forward and almost fall into Thunderhoof’s spear. It’s a close call but I pull back just in time. “Get going, you!” Golden Bolt yells.

“You will follow me and you will not try to escape Human! Do not look around and DO NOT disobey us!” yells Thunderhoof.

He turns around and Golden Bolt zaps me in the back again. “Fuck, I get it!” I call out in frustration. I have had it with this! I want so badly to show these two what real brutality is but oh how sad and frustrating it is to be in my position. An almost literal knife to my chest and a knife at my back. They have me cornered. I know I have no choice but to submit, but oh how reluctant I am to accept this.

Thunderhoof guides the way forward, watchfully checking back to me every few steps with his spear buzzing. We exit the chamber and down the same dark hallway as before. The bright glow coming from their spears help light the way through the musty, wet caves. My instincts tell me to check down any open hallways for an exit route, but the spear to my back says otherwise. They must know what they’re doing to have me so well under their control. I get the feeling they’ve done this type of thing before. Up ahead I see Ivory looking at me with a proud grin smeared across her ghostly pale face. She stands at the end of the hall next to the interrogation chamber with the door already opened. Her smile drops to a stern frown as I pass by. The guards bring me in front of the chair and order me to stop. “Turn around slowly!” I have no choice but to comply. The two guards make a deliberate stride to flank me on both side. They jab my knees from behind with the blunt end of their spears. The loss of balance drops me down onto the chair. This time however they do not tie me down. But just as strong as a deterrent, they keep their spears held at my neck.

Here we go again.

Ivory seals the screeching metal door.

“It’s been a while since I saw you last.” She speaks almost as if we’re casual friends. “I hope you enjoyed your little vacation.”

“I did. Being forced to stay under a drug induced coma was very nice, thank you.” I say this as sarcastically as possible.

“But the rules haven’t changed. You’re still here to spill out what you know and nothing else. Unfortunately I have orders to ‘be less harsh’ on you this time. Blech. I was almost enjoying myself last time. Now then, where were we? Ah yes, you were just about to tell me where the rest of your friends are hiding.”

“Not this again. I told you before I --”

“Quiet you! Like I said the rules are still the same. No smarting off! Thunderhoof!”

Thunderhoof briefly jabs me in the neck with a mild shock. Not enough to hurt me, but just enough to get my blood back to a tempered boil. I look to him and sharply glare into his eyes as he returns the same expression.

“So. Where are they?”

“My answer’s still the same. There’s no one else but me left.”

“Mm, I disagree. But very admirable of you.”

“Then you’re just wasting your time with me.”

“Oh I am am I?” She comes over and pounds me in the chest as hard as she can. My entire chest caves in, and all my air explodes out. She follows with a powerful uppercut to the jaw. I feel my teeth crunch as they’re violently forced to clash. “Don’t tell me how I’m running my job! My time’s not wasted as long as I’m enjoying myself teaching you some manners. The more disruptive you are, the more pleasure I get from correcting you.”

She goes on for the next half hour drilling into me over and over and over again about the same damn questions. Where are they? How many more? Back talk again! Of course all of this is accompanied by a series of progressively longer shocks and more punches. But the longer this goes on, the less cooperative I become. I don’t know how else to get the message across to her that I really am the only human left.

“You just won’t give it up to me will you? There must be some way to break you. Oooh if only I wasn’t so restrained!”

“What’s wrong?” My voice strains as I begin to struggle for air through my battered chest. “Afraid you might hurt m--”

Without hesitation, she jumps to my chest and sends me falling backwards. She stands on me, pounding me in the face with those iron hooves. My nose drains blood, and my mouth fills with it. Eventually, after I don’t know how many punches to the face, she jumps off and both the guards give me a powerful shock. Enough to disorient me while they set me back up. “I thought - you were told to - be less harsh.” I say after I come back to my senses.

“This is less harsh! If only I could use my magic, I’d have you begging - no - crying for me to stop!”

I try to spit blood in her face once more, but this time she was expecting it. “Nice try!” she yells before another very solid punch to the chest. The rest of the mess I had in my mouth is thrust out onto my lap. “You know if I were you, I’d stop being so grossly indecent. Your life would be so much easier if you just gave me what I want.”

“I don't have what you want! There is no point! I know nothing! These questions - you keep asking. I have - no answers! You’re just - wasting your time, and energy.”

“We will keep this up until you break!”

“You’re - insane!”

“Hm, I know.” She suavely combs her frizzled mane back with a hoof. “But let me remind you why you’re here. You scattered our most important possessions, and we want them back! We will use every tool we can to find them, and we will not stop for anything until we do. If that means beating you into a pulp until you tell us where they are, then that’s perfectly fine with me.”

“Well you’ll have to try - something else. I have - no answers for you, I told you.”

“Well you’ll just have to stay here then.”

“Just you wait, I’ll be outta here in - no time.”

“Ha! I didn’t expect you to make me smile. What a fool you are, how weak you are! I’d like to see you try.”

“Just like you, I won’t stop - until I win. And I’m taking Fluttershy with me.”

“Ugh, that fool? Pfft, take her. She’s almost more useless to us than you are. We can easily track her down, along with you and destroy both of you if we want.”

“-- I’ll gladly - take her with me then."

“You still haven’t answered a single one of my questions!”

“Maybe I just don’t know anything!”

“Or maybe you just --”

Three loud bangs are heard from the door. “UGH!” Ivory exclaims. “Times up for today. Take him back to his cell!”

The two guards grab me under the arms and whisk me from the chair with force. They rush me through the doorway and back down the hall. But just as I pass the door, over the sound of rushed hoofbeats and my own legs dragging on the gravel, I hear a voice speaking to Ivory.

“Did you get anything this time?”

“Ugh, no. He’s just as out-of-line as last time.”

“I grow tired of this waiting Ivory! We need to get answers from him soon! We have no idea when we’ll be attacked again!”

“Sigh I know ma’am. I’m trying everything I can! Maybe we just need to try something else...”

The voices fade away the further I get. With haste, the guards bring me back into the prison chamber and lock me back up. They return to their staunch guarding of the door. At the moment they look away I finally have a moment to tend to my pain. Face, bruised and bloodied. Chest, feeling like I had just been run over, crushed, almost fractured at the power of Ivory’s hooves. And of course, the splitting headache from all the attention she likes to pay to my skull. But I think I find myself hurting more from my desire to break out than I do from the torture. I’ll admit, Ivory has some power behind those rock-hard hooves of hers. I can’t wait to give her a taste of mine. I just have to wait, wait for the right moment. With Thunderhoof and Golden Bolt so keen to use those spears, I just have to keep biding my time until they slip up.

I spend the rest of the day quietly sitting in my cell, waiting, and watching. Carefully looking over the guards for any sign of either of them about to falter. The midday sun passes below the hole in the ceiling, high noon turns to evening, and soon evening turns to night. The moment the bleak night begins to take over the light of the sun, a few weakly luminant lights flicker on within the chamber. One above each cell so that the guards may maintain their attentive duties. Never once do the guards even come off as tired or feeble. No matter how much time passes, they both continue to stand stoic and unphased. At some point I pretend to fall asleep. But through most of the night, I keep out an eye for that slightest sign of weakness. But they show nothing, not even so much as a weary eye twitch. They both stand like statues, the only breaking from this is they occasionally mutter a quiet word between themselves. Eventually, I give up on my own watch and decide to get some sleep. I'll need it to be ready for tomorrow's session.

In my slumber I slip into a dream. The dream, the same dream I’ve been having for many nights. But this time it comes on much more intensely. I hear and feel a gale of wind howling loudly in my ears. That very same shadow Equine that’s been fettering through my thoughts finally comes to fruition. I see her dark blue face, and my vision is fixed only on her deep blue eyes. It’s the same Equine that I know to be the Moon Goddess. She gazes back at me sternly, and a storm of lightning flashes wildly behind her. In a voice just as powerful as the howling wind itself, she calls out to me. “HUMAN! It is I, Princess Luna, guardian of the night and sister to the princess of the sun! I have been trying to reach you through your dreams for many moons now. I come with a message that you must heed!”

I try to speak, but my dreamself is completely locked down into paralysis.

“There is not much time! You must speak to the one named Twilight Sparkle, a mare of purple who gleams with magic power! Find her and speak with her. Tell her of our meeting, that the message has been delivered! Go now Human! Time is of the essence!”

In a clash of thunder and lightning, she flashes away into the darkness. The wind quits its howl, and the cacophonous storm of lightning ceases.

- - -

I wake up, tired, groggy, and confused. Body still aching from yesterday’s beating. But quickly after the opening of my eyes do I bring myself to full alertness. That feeling of a calling, for someone who needs my help, it’s finally been answered! But from who? And why? Was it all just a dream or perhaps something more? It all felt real. I still feel it, feel the blowing wind and hear that bellowing voice still ringing in the periphery of my hearing. Though the mysterious feeling has been answered, it seems that only more questions have been raised. Princess Luna? The moon goddess? I was sure she was dead! And Twilight Sparkle.. Who would this be and how would I even find her? What kind of name is that anyway?

At the moment my thoughts clear free of the dream, my focus turns back to the guards. Much to my frustration, neither guard has even so much as wobbled off balanced from lassitude. They stand just as stern and alert as they did when they began their shift. Do they ever get tired? Do they ever swap out for a rest break?

There’s a hard knocking at the door. Three solid knocks, followed by an indistinguishable female voice. Thunderhoof opens the door, and two more guards enter the room. Just as I thought I could make an easy escape dealing with just two guards, two more have entered the room. However the are unarmed. One of them, the female, is sterling white with a long pink mane, rolled into curls at the end. The other a male, with a drab blue coat with a short, wavy blonde mane. But behind them my attention shifts to a third Equine following in tow. It’s Fluttershy!

“Fluttershy!” I quietly call out. I jump up and lean against the bars. She doesn’t seem to notice me, and so the two new guards proceed to take her into her own cell and lock her in, only to leave shortly thereafter. As usual, Fluttershy seems sad and dejected about something. But at least from what I can tell, she has been treated somewhat kindly unlike me. An upsurge of relief, and an even stronger desire to break free and rescue her. I press against the bars and test their sturdiness. They hold firm, clasped and nailed into the rock. I try to get her attention again, but the moment I raise my voice, Golden Bolt barks at me to remain silent. Fluttershy sits alone in the cell directly across from mine. She notices me by the sound of my voice and quickly presses herself against the bars as well. Here face comes alight with joy to see me once again. We’re both overjoyed, but just as equally mystified as to how we have met again. We look at each other with sincere surprise.

Ivory bursts through the door. “Good morning my little inmates!” she yells. “I’m in such a good mood this morning.” She looks straight to me. “Because I got approved to use my still untested method of torture by burning metal! Guards! Bring me the Human!”

Any sort of joy I might have been feeling about Fluttershy instantly dissipates at the sound of Ivory’s voice.

Fuck.

I got so close to being burned the first time and now she’s been approved to actually use it? Dammit! I would much rather take a beating with harsh shocking than even one session with the branding iron!

Thunderhoof and Golden Bolt quickly rush my cell, but before even opening it they both give me a potent zap. Enough to force all of the control of my body to slip from my grasp. As I lay convulsing on the floor, they open my cell and drag me away. I get one good look at Fluttershy’s appalled grimace before they drag me beyond the door, back into the dark and musty hallway. I struggle to come free of their grasp, shouting in protest. But they still keep me at bay with those damn spears of theirs. Ivory stands waiting at the doorway ahead, the glowing metal rod already prepared and ready for malicious use. “No! Wait!” I shout whatever dissenting idea pops in my head but my pleas are promptly ignored. I look to Ivory and her manic grin. Suddenly I’m reminded of the dream I just had, maybe if I say something about it, that’ll get her attention. Anything to avoid going in there with that metal! “Wait! What’s her name, Twi- Twilight Sparkle!”

Ivory immediately reels back with even more shock and surprise than when I spat in her face. “STOP!” she yells to the guards. She leans down and puts her face close to mine, looking into me with stern hatred and suspicion.

“Yes!” I continue. I seem to have triggered a response inside her, she must know something about what I’m talking about. “Yeah! And uh, fuck! Um, Pri- Princess Luna! Yes, that’s her name! Princess Luna!”

Ivory growls at me. “How do you KNOW THOSE NAMES!”

“I don’t know! It was a dream, I just heard them in a dream, that’s all!”

She quietly gazes at me, the flames of hate in her eyes pierce into mine. But she does not speak for some time. She somehow restrains herself from her usual sadistic attitude. “Take him back to his cell.” she finally says before walking away.

Just as quickly as before, but with less concern for my well being, the guards tow me back the way we came. They even seem to be just as disquieted of my knowledge as Ivory was. I don’t even know who or what those names are, but it sure does cause a strong reaction among these Equines.

Instead of simply dropping me back into my cell, they both lift me and throw me face first to the floor before beginning to close the bars. But I quickly notice that they make one fatal error as I turn to look back at them. Golden Bolt has turned away to return to the door they hadn’t bothered to close. Thunderhoof distracts himself with the task of closing my cell. They've both turned their focus away from me. Before I even begin to calculate a solid escape strategy in my head, I am overcome with adrenaline. Pure instinct kicks in, my gleaming moment to escape has just presented itself. I must take it! As Thunderhoof looks away to the mechanism to close my cell, I jump to my feet and tackle him, forcing the spear away.

Golden Bolt instantly responds to the commotion, flips back around and charges as Thunderhoof and I wrestle for control of the spear. He is easily defeated by my overwhelming muscular capacity, and one swift punch across his jaw knocks him right out. I feel his jaw snap and crunch from the brutal impact. I look up. Golden Bolt is just feet away. He thrusts the spear straight at me. I throw myself backwards and roll onto my back. The spear passes directly over me, and I quickly shoot my legs up and around it, catching the pole in the crook of my legs and snapping it in half. Golden Bolt, now suddenly without his dearly beloved tool of oppression, makes a fearful dash for the exit. I spring up and leap on top of him. I catch a fleeting glimpse of Fluttershy in the corner of my eye as I come crashing down on him. Being reminded of Fluttershy's delicate nature, I know I can’t, or at least shouldn’t be too violent. So, the moment I slam down on Golden Bolt’s back, I decide to spare him. Instead of delivering the same crippling blow I gave to Thunderhoof, as he struggles beneath my weight, I grab him under the neck and raise his head. All it takes is one swift blow to the temple. But not too powerful, only just enough to knock him out.

I jump off of him and run over to Fluttershy’s cell. She looks at me terrified as I examine the bars for a weakness. “Jax what are you doing!” she yells fearing for her own safety.

“I’m getting us the hell out of here Fluttershy! Are you hurt? What did they do to you?”

“Nothing! I’m fine! Oh I’m so glad you’re safe! Wha--”

“Okay, great! You have no idea what I’ve been through, which is why I’m breaking us outta here!”

I don’t even bother looking for a key. I order Fluttershy to stand clear of the bars. With a few powerful kicks I break off the latch holding the cell closed. I grab Fluttershy by a hoof and pull her behind me as I run for the exit. She lifts into the air and flutters behind me, coming free of my grasp. “Stay right behind me! This is going to get a little rough.”

The exit isn’t even locked, I just run right through the wide open door. Aways down the hall I see Ivory, who snaps a look back at the sudden commotion. Her jaw drops, and I run after her fueled with blind fury for revenge. “Oh shit! GUARDS!” she yells. She makes a break down another hallway and I persue, blasting through the hall like a train that can't be stopped. The moment I turn the corner she took, I find four more guards charging down the hall towards me, all of them armed with stun spears. I slow myself to a walk, ready and braced for the ensuing brawl. They file down the narrow hallway one after the other in a staggered column, spears and hooves thundering through the caves. This will be a moment I enjoy.

The first guard makes a brave charge straight at me. I easily dodge away and with a swift knife hand, brake his spear in half. With my forward foot, I kick him and launch him to the wall. I yank hard on the broken end of his spear as he tries to turn and run the other way. He trips and falls into the next guard, sending him too falling forward right in front of me. I stomp down on his spear, which snaps the power cable from the battery. I kick with my other foot straight to his jaw. In my rage I may have kicked too hard, as I see teeth and blood fly from his mouth and splatter against the wall. I hear a deep SNAP from his neck. The first guard tries to stand back up but I stomp down on his back and fracture his spine. The other two guards decide to bug out. They turn around and dash away, but I catch one of them by their hind legs before they can get away. “Oh no you don’t!” I shout, violently throwing him down the hall behind me, almost hitting Fluttershy. He goes flying behind me, tumbling out of control as he plummets and bounces along the ground all the way down the hall.

“Oh my goodness! Oh my goodness!” Fluttershy huffs behind me. Suddenly again am I reminded I can’t be too rough with these guys with her right here with me.

Instead of chasing after the last guard, I turn and run in the other direction in search of an exit. I wouldn’t be dumb enough to follow them, as I know they would lead me straight into more of them. Fluttershy and I run blindly down the dimly lit hall, quickly passing the guard I threw as he grovels in pain on the floor. We turn every which way down other halls in an unexpectedly complex network in search of the exit. Several severely frightened Equine, none of them looking like they want anything to do with me, all dive into open rooms and alcoves for cover as I charge down the hall. But I have no idea if I’m heading in the right direction. I come to a four way intersection and without thinking blindly turn left. But it’s a wrong turn, a flood of guards charge towards me down this hall. Some of them have stun spears, many others have regular spears and some of them aren’t even armed. I notice most of them are unicorns, and it slightly perplexes me as to why they don’t use their magic to stop me. I know how keen they are of using it offensively, but something prevents them from using it this time.

But it doesn’t matter, I don’t have time to think about that. Not wanting to face this hoard I turn around, but only to find another stampede headed my way from the opposite. My only choice is to go forward up a set of stairs. In my hesitance in which way to go, the guards make up a pretty good gain of ground on me.

I race up the shoddy stone staircase. Despite my swiftness, the hoard of guards behind me manages to keep pace. At the top of the stairs, the same white and pink Equine I saw earlier stands looking down at me. She’s instantly caught off guard by the unexpected sight of me barreling straight for her. She doesn’t even have time to lower her spear for an attack. But her being alone presents me with an opportunity to stall the guards behind me. I jump up into a spin and with a hearty kick to her sharpened metal spear, I break the pole where the severed drone leg is tied. The hoard of guards is right on my tail. But with just the right amount of luck, ahead of me down the hall I see a golden opportunity. There it is! An exit! What luck! I don’t know how I managed to find it but at the end of this hall I see sunlight pouring in! But with this hoard of guards behind me I need to do something to get them off my back!

Rather than simply dispatching this guard, I land from my kick, grab the sharpened drone leg, put her in a head lock and hold the point up to her neck. She is now my hostage, leverage I can barter with to get away.

The hoard comes to an abrupt halt, as they instantly recognize the meaning of my intentions. I care not for the life of this Equine, she’s just my tool to get out of here. They all know that, and that if they make the slightest move towards me, it’s curtains for my hostage. I keep a tight hold of her. She struggles to breathe, and I keep the pointed tip tightly pressed into her neck as I back up down the hall. All the guards at the front stand with their spears ready to attack, but none of them dare approach for they know one wrong move, and they’ll have even more blood on their hooves.

We inch down the hall backwards. Fluttershy’s still hovering just behind me. The Equine continues to struggle for air and to get free of my grasp but I am more than many times stronger than she is. I keep an ardent glare at the guards, just as ardent as the pressure of the spear against the Equine’s neck. I keep a slow pace down the hall, keeping most of my attention to the guards but glance behind me and find I’m already halfway between the stairs and the exit. The guards look on helplessly as I slowly gain mine and Fluttershy’s way to freedom.

Suddenly I’m stopped, paralyzed. A translucent red bubble of magic forms around me. I try with all my might to move but I can’t even manage the slightest twitch! I’m completely frozen in place by this magic. And somehow the Equine I hold hostage pulls free of my grip and I am powerless to do anything about getting her back under my control. She joins the rest of the guards, whom are still just standing at the ready for an attack. But they do not advance. Instead, weaving between the crowd from behind approaches a purple unicorn, her horn glowing bright and red with magical energy. She comes out of the crowd and towards me, but stops just where her magic bubble ends. She looks at me just as angrily and with just as much hate as the rest of the guards behind her. But she does not speak. She doesn’t do anything, just stares at me, sizing me up. But soon she turns around and walks back through the guards and down the stairs, taking me with her. Like being trapped in a big red balloon, I hover just above the guards who all lower their spears as I pass. They all go back to their business, whatever they were doing, and carry on like nothing had happened. A team of doctors comes rushing down the halls to tend to the casualties I inflicted.

Meanwhile I’m still fighting as aggressively as I can against her magic. But no matter how hard I try I can’t force myself to make even the smallest movement. She has me completely at her mercy as she takes me all the way back through the halls to my cell. When we arrive, rather than simply putting me down gently and closing the gate, she slams the bubble down as hard as she can. The bubble collapses, but I still carry all that momentum right into the ground and am knocked unconscious instantly.

Chapter Three - Friends in Low Places

Two days have passed since my escape attempt. In that time, the guards have become much more stringent, and security around my cell has increased significantly. Instead of just the duo of the twins, a total of six guards now stand watch in the prison chamber. Golden Bolt and a new unnamed unicorn partner both guard my cell, another pair of Unicorns guard the door, and a Pegasus-Common pair guard Fluttershy. Thunderhoof presumably still resides in the infirmary after our little altercation. Fluttershy and I have made a few attempts at communicating, but anything said from either of us is quickly hushed away by the guards. Though I tend to ignore their hushing, Fluttershy of course submissibly plays by their rules. They treat her much more kindly than they do me I notice, but this is somewhat expected of them. Though conditions for us have improved however, and there hasn't been a sign of further interrogations. I still get the very short end of the stick when it comes to.. just about anything. I've been fed twice since I got here. Fluttershy on the other hand is fed twice daily, receiving a bushel of apples delivered personally by Primrose. Meanwhile Doctor Still Hooves, though I know is not of his doing, presents me only with a small platter of mushed-up, lumpy, days old slop of some variety and a cup of water. I won’t speak highly for the food, but I have noticed a more “welcoming” attitude towards me. Despite that they now keep me chained up in shackles at all times. Primrose and Still Hooves come by periodically to make an observation on me. Mostly checking on my outward health along with Golden Bolt’s, but I get the sense of some skeptic attitude probing going on. I haven't received any punishments, and this has me thinking that perhaps they're trying a new method of “getting me to cooperate” with kind gestures. Testing my behavior, saving me for something more..

I will concede that I have been more cooperative lately, but less so from why one would think. It’s mostly to entertain myself. To block out the sheer boredom of being allowed to do literally nothing but sit and wait. Occasionally I’ll try to strike up a conversation with a guard, but their only responses are increasingly creative ways to tell me to be quiet. They're a tough bunch that's for sure.

- - -

The chamber door is pushed open, but no one enters. An unseen voice, one that I do not recognize, calls from the other side. “Bring him.” It says. But no mention as to where. Just the two lonely words. I assume it’s to take me back to the end of the hall for yet another session with Ivory. But if that were so, then Ivory would have brazenly made the announcement herself.

Without powering up their spears, relying only on my heavy shackles to keep me suppressed, my favorite guard and his new partner open my cell. “Follow us.” Golden Bolt says. I take a moment to stand as the bars open up and away from the floor. The shackles unfortunately restrict me quite heavily as I try to bring myself to standing. I know that I could break these chains with enough effort. But in that time, I have no doubt that the guards would thwart me yet again before I could break free.

Golden Bolt and his partner walk side by side towards the door. The shackles around my ankles jangle and drag across the floor as I follow them. The two Unicorns at the door pair up and follow behind me.

Outside the chamber and into the hallway. I’m surprised to see that the guards take a sharp right turn down another tunnel instead of forward to the interrogation room. Even more surprising is how sedate the mood is. No one seems to be too concerned for me, they just lead the way as if I'm one of their own. They take me down several dimly lit tunnels. Left turns, right turns, it's not clear where they might be headed. Some of the walls have many doorways leading into who knows what. Occasionally, through the glass on some of those doors, I see Equines glaring at me as I pass. I'm beginning to think that my passage through these halls was arranged, but where could I be going?

After navigating several cavern walkways, we come to a steep, winding, unlit staircase delving deep into the subterrane. Golden Bolt leads the way down with his spear active to light against the foreboding darkness.

We delve several stories further underground. The subterranean heat crops up slowly the further we descend. After quite some time of nothing but a curved, downward path, the stairs end. At the bottom, a short path that halts at two enormous crystal doors. The guards push heavily against the doors which only creep open under their immense weight. The doors give way to a grandurously ornate, brightly lit grand crystal hall. A complete contrast from everything else in the cave. The hall is decorated with an amalgamation of crystalline sculptures of Equine, paintings, mirrors, gems, glowing crystal lamps and pillars, everything is made of crystal. I am quietly caught at awe with the grandeur of it all as I roll my eyes around it's majesty. So open and so bright. Such beautiful juxtaposition from the dullness of the caves. In the middle of the hall, a lengthy dining table complete with a slew of plates, platters and saucers all decorated neatly with apple related foods. My stomach aches at the sight of so much to each. I've still been so malnourished the entire time I’ve been on my journey. And now just before my eyes, temptation to the highest degree. Temptation possibly masked under a sinister guise. Despite all the lavish glittering decor, the bountiful feast, I reserve myself to an indifferent silence. Avoiding showing any sort of outward emotion. The guards direct me to sit in a sparkling crystal chair fit for the grandest of throne rooms. “Leave us.” an unseen voice says, echoing off the walls. The four guards retreat back beyond the entrance, leaving me to my own inside the crystal cavern.

Slumped over in thrown similar to mine at the opposite end of the table, that same wretched purple unicorn who thwarted me earlier. Her horn glows a soft red, an apple levitates before her mouth as she bites into it. She stares at me, her eyes glazed over with indifference and discontent. She’s splayed out over in her chair. Head rested on her hoof and hind legs hang over the armrest. “Care for an apple?” She says monotonically. An apple from the plate in front of me suddenly glows and hovers just in front of my face. I grab it. The unicorn continues to stare, and eat.

I study the apple, suspicious of her intentions. In the bulbous surface I can see my own self looking back at me. I see no signs of tampering. “Go ahead. Try it.” she says.

I put the apple to my mouth and slowly take a bite. The moment my teeth pierce the supple red skin, immediately a delicious fresh juice pours out between my teeth. The flavor explodes as I crunch through the tough surface, and pull off an entire chunk. I’ve never tasted something so fresh before, so bursting with natural flavor. The taste has me stunned where I sit.

“I don't believe we’ve been properly introduced. My name is Twilight Sparkle. And you are?”

Her voice brings my attention back. Twilight Sparkle… That name… The one from the dream. Fluttershy also mentioned a Twilight once as well.. I offer no response and continue in my silence. I set the apple back on the table.

“I'm sure you have many questions.” she continues. “And to you I extend my hoof in cooperation.” She quite literally sits up and extends her hoof outward over the table for a handshake. But I, being many feet away from her, sit just as still and discontented as she did upon my arrival.

Unsure of my behavior, she goes on. “Ivory tells me that you received a message from Princess Luna in your dreams. Well I’m here to tell you that the message was real, and that was no ordinary dream… Do you have any questions?”

I finally decide to answer. “Yeah. What the hell is all of this. Why are you keeping Fluttershy and I here.”

“Well, like I said, I brought you down here to talk about forming a bridge of trust between us.”

“Why?”

She lets out a long sigh. “.... We need your help.”

I break out into a loud chuckle. Them? Needing my help? I find that hard to understand and somewhat humorous. “So you imprison me.. Torture me... Capture me with your magic, and now you ask for my help.”

“Yes! I admit, I must apologize for the way Ivory treated you. She went a little overboard with my instructions.”

“A little overboard?”

“Okay, very overboard. But I've talked to her and put a stop to the interrogations. And now this is my own attempt at seeing if you won’t help us with finding the Elements of Harmony. No more threats. No more harsh treatment. But I can't give you anything other than the bare minimum until you cooperate.”

I understand what she’s trying to do. She still wants something from me, information. Information that I do not have in exchange for fair treatment.

“I’ll give you the same answer I gave to Ivory. I don't know anything about the Elements of Harmony.”

“That's okay because I do.”

“What! You mean you had information on them the whole time and you still tortured me over them?”

“No! It's not like that! It's!..” She clears her throat. “The Elements of Harmony represent a large portion of the magic in our world. After your kind invaded the city of Canterlot, they've gone missing and it’s up to me to find them and restore the balance of magic in the world. Ever since humans started showing up, the balance of magic has been disturbed. Everything in this world revolves around the magical energy that binds it all together. Every living being has a magical aura around them, and every thing you've killed has played a part in removing that power. Without enough magic in the world, everything just.. dies. Unicorns like me are especially strong with magic, and the more of us die, the more our power fades away. The only way to keep the world alive is to reunite the Elements of Harmony with the crowns of the Royal Sisters, and use their combined power to restore the balance. That is my mission, and that is what I come seeking your help in accomplishing.”

“...No. ”

“What! But.. but this is so important!”

“It's a very touching story. But to me this sounds like pure lunacy. I'm not from this world, and I could survive on my own just fine without any magic. How is any of this my problem?”

“It's everyone’s problem! Both of ours! Everything in this world, even youwill die unless balance is restored and we’re running out of time!”

I laugh at how ridiculous this all sounds, but I'm no less intrigued to hear the rest. Inside I know she may be right, as I personally have encountered magic in ways I can't explain. But after the harsh treatments I've received, how I can truly believe in their cause given that I am still their enemy and they are still mine? “This sounds like it will be a very difficult task.”

“Yes. It will be. But I can't keep sending my own people out. I've lost so many already… There aren't many ponies left in the world, and I have to take care of those that remain. I wish I could go, but there's so many dangers out there, too many to risk sending out more search parties. I wish I could say this in a way that makes sense to you, but you have no idea how important you are to us.”

I laugh again. After all I've done to them, the countless lives ended by my hand.. Suddenly, their greatest threat is their only hope. But there must be more for me to hear. “How many Elements are there.”

“Well.. Including the two crowns of the Royal Sisters.. Eight.”

“And how many do you have?”

“... Just one.”

“What! Ha! You expect me to go out and find the other seven for you!”

“Well.. Yes. You're the only one strong enough to --”

“You're out of your little Equine mind. No, I’m not finding them for you. I'd rather take my chances out in the ash than with this. We’re done here.” I get up from the table and start walking towards the exit.

“But, but.. But the entire world is at stake here!”

“Yeah, your world, not mine. I'm not from here, I'm not affected by your shitty magic.”

“Yes you are! Everyone is!”

“Sorry sister, I can't really say that I believe you or that I care. Now if you don't mind I'd like to go back to my cell so I can continue planning my escape.”

“...Wait!”

I stop. “What.”

“.. We'll feed you. I’ll give you everything you need.”

“Getting desperate are we?”

“Yes, this is a very desperate time for us all!”

“Well thanks for the offer but I've had enough of your hospitality.”

“..You're not leaving.”

“Well who's going to stop me?”

“I am!” She leaps from her seat and projects a magic barrier between me and the doors. I press against it. It holds as solid as stone. “You don't want to say no. If I have to play the hard cards with you then I will. I can make your life a living hell if I choose to! Up there they can't use magic, but down here I can. You're not leaving here until you and I reach some sort of agreement! Choose your words wisely Human. You may be strong, but down here, you're in my hooves!”

The unfortunate truth is she's right. I don't doubt the powers of her kind. Me? Alone and unarmed? Bound with these heavy shackles? I wouldn't stand a chance. I need to find out where they're hiding all of my gear. That will ensure my escape to go over smoothly if I can get a hold of my weapon.

“Now sit back down!” she commands.

Begrudgingly I return to the table, sitting down with my arms crossed and my feet propped up. I am very unenthused with this situation. She re seats herself as well.

“So let's get back to negotiating. I have what you need to survive, and you have the skills to hunt down the remaining Elements.”

“I don't know if you knew anything about how long I've been here, but before I was captured I was surviving just fine on my own.”

“On the contrary, I've spoken to Fluttershy. She told me everything about you, Jax. It didn't sound like there was much hope for you two out their on your own. But it's very kind what you did for her.”

“What did you do to her!”

“I've made sure she received adequate treatment. After all, she is one of my closest friends.”

“..What?”

“We’re getting off subject. The Elements of Harmony are out there, and I need you to help us find them. What can we do to make this work?”

“I told you, I’m not going out there to find your damn Elements!”

“That's not an answer I’m willing to accept! If you're not going to help me then at least do it for Fluttershy! I know how much she means to you. She means as much to you as she does to me. If you can't help us or her.. then I can't let you go.”

“I'm not hunting them all down for you.”

“Okay then! Maybe at least help find some of them!”

“..One of them.”

“Excuse me?”

“Those are my terms. I will help you find one Element in exchange for my freedom.”

“That's not enough. I need more Elements than that before I can start reshaping Magic.”

“Nope! I refuse to go through so much for that many.”

“Fine then. Help me find two Elements.”

“One Element.”

“Two Elements and Fluttershy can go free with you.”

This offer has my interest piqued.

“.. You'd really let her go with me? I thought she was your closest friend?”

“She is.. But if it means you’ll help us, I’m willing to let her go.”

“How do I know I can trust you’ll follow through?”

“Well how can I trust that once I let you out to recover the Elements you won't just abandon us?”

“I’ll go and get them. But only for Fluttershy. Not for your damned crusade to save the world.”

“Well then considering what you're up against and how much of a help it would be to us, I can't help but make sure I hold true to my end. Two Elements it is then. But just to make you aware, if you truly care about Fluttershy you’ll help us find more. Unfortunately there is a time limit to find these Elements. I don't know how much time we have left, and I know even less how long it will take to find the others.”

This was a point that I had overlooked. But then again, after hearing how dangerous finding the others could be, who's to say she or I wouldn't die in the process anyway? Would it make a difference if I died in the hunt or when magic meets its end? “... Yes, just two of them.”

“..You’ll really help us?”

“No, not you. I’ll help for Fluttershy.”

“Uh, you do realize she's one of us right?”

“It sure does sound like she's been disassociated.”

“And after what she did, it's only a precaution.”

“What did she do?”

“That's a story for another time. We have more pressing matters at hand. I have your word that you’ll help us then?”

“... Unfortunately.”

“Okay, then we need to get down to business. My scouts located one of the Elements not too far from here just the other day. Well.. sort of. They found where it might be but they were unable to retrieve it. Unfortunately even after The Inferno, a war between surviving factions has been going on, and it's one that I've been losing. I face an enemy with a much stronger power than mine and it's only growing stronger. They've began their own hunt for the Elements and they’re just about to discover the Element of Loyalty, the same one my scouts found. They've already set up an excavation site around where it's supposed to be, and they might find it before we do! We can't let that happen. I'm sorry to just throw you into things like this but we’re running against the clock! Like me, their leader already has one of the Elements, and we cannot allow another one to fall into their hooves!”

“Who exactly is their leader? I might be able to take him out. I enjoy a good hunt.”

“He calls himself Prince Mustang. He used to be one of my most loyal supporters. He and I never really saw eye to eye but he was always one of my biggest helpers. And one day he just.. snapped. I can’t explain it, just one day out of nowhere he suddenly started acting like I was his enemy. He broke off from our first underground fortress and used his magic to manipulate many of my own followers to join him. Somehow he's managed to turn that into an army, and more and more survivors flock to his cause. He too seeks the Elements, but not in the same way that I do. Because he has risen to so much power in this new world, he doesn't want to give up control. He wants to find the elements and make sure no one is able to use them!”

“He doesn't know about the so called balance? And that everything supposedly dies without it?”

“It would appear that he doesn't.”

“So you want me to kill him and steal his Elements?”

“Well, not exactly. Only fight him if you must, but I must warn you. He is very powerful in the ways of magic. --”

“Magic is no use against a metal slug moving at seven times the speed of sound.”

“That may be so, but do not underestimate him. He can use his powers to influence the minds of others without them ever knowing. Be careful when you find him. He should be at the excavation site right now, personally overseeing finding the Element. You may have a chance to stop him, but avoid it if you can. As troublesome as he is for me and my followers, he plays just important a role as I do in keeping the balance.”

“So you expect me to stand against an army, alone, just to find these two Elements?”

“No. I was planning to send two of my best scouts with y --”

“Oh boy, see, I’m not exactly in good with any of your friends.”

“I know that. You've caused us a lot of trouble. You sent five of my guards to the infirmary the other day. You were already hated enough.”

“It was self defense what can I say.”

“Nevermind that right now. Since you've agreed to help us, for now I’ll keep you in your cell until we can make a better place for you to sleep. In that time I’ll call a meeting together and let everypony know that you're on our side.”

“Well isn't that just kind of you.”

“It'll take some time for everypony to warm up to you. But I need you to do your best to get along with them, especially with who I’m sending with you on this mission. Teamwork and friendship is important.”

“I don't plan on staying long enough to make friends with all your little cronies.”

“You’d be surprised how much power there is in strong friendships. But for now I’ll release you back to your cell while I prepare the others.”

“I'm going to need my gear back if I'm going out there.”

“You'll get it back, but not until it's time to leave. Guards! You may return and escort our guest back to his cell.”

The guards re enter the room and trot towards me. “Just one question.” I add. “You use your magic but no one else does. Why?”

“Prince Mustang has his own scouts out just like I do. Many of them have been trained in the art of magical sapping. They can detect traces of magic from a distance and oftentimes are able to cancel it and report back where they found it. Inside this crystal sanctum, it's impossible to detect unless you're in here with it. But up there, it's not hard for them to detect. So to keep us all safe, I made it a law for no pony to use magic. We’ve had to relocate several times to stay hidden from Prince Mustang's forces because of this.”

“Hmm.. makes sense.” I think. Except for that time she used her magic to prevent my escape. Though then again, what choice did she have? The guards surround me at the table. I stand up and they escort me all the way back through the cave to my cell.

- - -

Once securely locked back in my cell, four of the six guards leave to attend Twilight's meeting. This time they're kind enough to remove my shackles and leave me with a plate of apples and a large goblet of water. I ask myself where in this world they have all this food, but those thoughts are short lived as I indulge in the feast of fresh fruit and water. Fluttershy is not in her cell.

Sometime later however, the same two unarmed guards return and lock her back up. I wait for them to leave before I speak to Fluttershy, now that we finally have a chance to catch up seeing how I am no longer the enemy.

“Fluttershy!”

“Quiet you!” Golden Bolt yells out.

“Didn't you hear what Twilight and I talked about? I'm on your side --”

“I said quiet!”

“Oh shut up Golden Bolt! Twilight and I came to an agreement so you can ease up on your little pretend guard thing you're pulling.”

Golden Bolt grunts but doesn't try to interrupt me again. “Fluttershy!”

“Jax! Oh I’m so glad you're okay!”

“Fluttershy, where are we?”

“Um.. Well, remember when I said I didn't want to take you back to my own home?”

“..Yeah?”

“We’re basically underneath it right now..”

“What! You mean this place has been just outside Ponyville the entire time!”

“Yes! Um, I'm sorry. I couldn't tell you about it because I didn't want you to get captured! But.. these are also my friends, and I didn't want you hurting them either.”

“Wait.. So this is where you got the water from then?”

“..Yes..”

“But if these are your friends why are you locked up here with me? Why does everyone seem to hate you like they hate me?”

“I may have.. Done something horrible… I - I - Oh please don't ask about it, it's too much guilt for me to relive!”

“Ugh, fine. But listen. Twilight and I made an agreement and I’m.. I hate to say it, but I’m going to help find some of the Elements of Harmony.” I spend the next several minutes explaining what's happened to me over the last few days. The torture, the meeting with Twilight, everything. She doesn't seem at all pleased to hear any of it except that I’m helping find two of the Elements. In turn, Fluttershy reveals everything that's happened to her. I’m relieved to hear that the only unfair treatment she's received is not being aloud to speak to any of the other ponies. But the mystery as to why she is regarded so negatively still remains. I won't pressure her into telling me like I've done before. Perhaps this is an answer I must wait to find out, or one I just have to get from someone else. But she has told Twilight everything she knows about me. It's all starting to make sense now. At first they were afraid there were more humans like me still roaming around. We obviously still stand as a very imposing threat to their survival. But Twilight in all her desperation must have hatched the idea that I could be bargained with to help them. After all, I am well suited for the kind of mission she's about to send me on. Infiltration with a small team is my specialty. The thought of being back in action is almost exciting, but given that I now must work on the side of what I have been raised from birth to be my soul enemy.. Things for me are going to be a little uneasy. Especially having to coordinate and work with Twilight’s goons, whom I highly doubt even know what they're doing when it comes to these types of things. They lack the lifetime of training I have beneath my belt.

After quite some time, Twilight finally returns from her meeting. She barges into the room. “Golden Bolt! Please open Jax’s cell and come with us to the sanctum.”

Without a word, Golden Bolt and his partner open my cell, both of their spears pointed at me. “Don't think of trying anything Human.” Golden Bolt warns.

“Oh come off it already!” I bat their spears out of the way with my hand and follow Twilight. “But, what about Fluttershy?” I ask.

“She’ll be here where it's safe.” She closes the door behind us as we leave the prison chamber, and head back down to The Sanctum as she calls it. “Let’s be honest though.” She continues. “Would you really want her on this mission with you? Fluttershy's not exactly the best at being aggressive.”

“A fair point. But I have to ask. What exactly did Fluttershy do that has all of you so on edge?”

“I won't tell you exactly what she did. --”

“Ugh, would someone please just tell me!”

“Fluttershy has recently become.. unstable. Since the start of your invasion, we’ve all seen and done things we used to think of as absolutely despicable. But no pony has been affected by that trauma as much as Fluttershy.”

“She seemed perfectly fine to me when her and I were out there together. For the most part, at least.”

“Well that's partly why I said I was thankful for what you did for her. Somehow you showing so much kindness to her managed to calm her down. She's been experiencing extreme mood swings ever since Ponyville was hit and she lost all her animal friends. And then she had to make her way all the way to Canterlot on her own to protect the Elements alongside me. I can’t imagine what she had to go through to get there, but whatever it was it certainly has changed her. But that's just the start, there's more to the story that I'll explain later. One day she seemed to nearly lose her mind altogether. I had no choice but to exile her until whatever had overcome her had gone away. That's probably how you two ended up meeting each other.”

Ponies still look cautiously at me through the many doorways we pass along the way to the sanctum. I ignore them. Their opinions of me matter so little. Eventually, the three of us arrive back at the crystal doors. We enter, and already inside, standing around the center table, the same two unicorns who were escorting Fluttershy around. One of those two is the very same pony I had held hostage during my escape. “You!” she shouts as she jumps away from the table, her horn building up with magic.

“Twinkle, stand down. Jax, I’m sure you two have already been acquainted but I’d like you to meet Twinkleshine and Buddy Duke.”

“Twilight you can’t be serious right now! I am NOT working with him!”

“Twinkle please calm down, we don't have time for this! You're going to have to put aside your hate for each other for now.”

“But did you not see him try to kill me!?”

I cut in. “Oh relax, I wasn't going to kill you. I was just using you to get away. Ending your life was just an afterthought.”

“Quiet you two!” Twilight yells. “I've gathered the three of you here for a very important purpose. All of you have to work together and put aside your petty differences to accomplish this mission. But before we can set out on our mission, we need to come up with a plan. Everyone, please sit around the table.”

Twilight flashes her horn, and the table transforms from an elongated dining table into the shape of a six-pointed star. Four crystal chairs rise up from the floor at four of the table’s points, two on each side. I take the nearest seat to me, and Twilight takes the seat next to mine. Buddy Duke and Twinkleshine sit across from us. Twinkleshine keeps a fixed glare at me for nearly the entire time she sees me.

“So.” Twilight begins. “We don't have a lot of time. Jax, Twinkle and Duke have already been there and mapped out what they could.” The table flickers to life and on its surface projects a holographic map of the compound around where the Element is supposedly located.

Buddy Duke chimes in. “Unfortunately we weren't able to get inside the central area where they have everything set up. They built a huge wall around where they're digging. There's an excellent lookout point on the opposite side of the compound across the road.” He flashes his horn and a star appears at Hill 514. “They had a roof built over the excavation site, so seeing inside was impossible. But I can post up at Hill 514 and be a look out for Twink and.. Jax until they make it inside the compound. I'll come down and join them when they do.”

“And how do you supposed we stay in contact?” I ask Buddy Duke.

“Well we have one thing Prince Mustang's dude’s don’t have. Grease.”

“Grease?”

Twilight answers for Buddy Duke. “Grease is one of our most talented engineers. She's created all sorts of useful tools to help us from salvaged nightcrawler fragments. One thing she's created that gives us an edge over Prince Mustang is handheld radios.”

“You've been, salvaging, parts off our drones?” I ask.

Twinkleshine cuts in. “Ugh, of course we have. How do you explain the powered lights? The electric spears? We’re not as dumb as you think.”

“Well that explains why I was never attacked by a drone while I was out there.”

“Nightcrawlers. They're called Nightcrawlers.”

“I don't care what you call them!”

Twilight interjects to avoid another tangle between Twinkleshine and I. “We’ve been out hunting them down. They're actually quite easy to fight and they're full of useful components and materials.”

I'm stunned that she describes them as being “easy to fight”.

“Let's get back on subject. So, radios, yes. Grease has made enough for each of you to have one of your own as well as a pair of binoculars. So, Duke, I want you to start on the backside of the hill and provide a look out for the other two. Once they make it to the compound entrance, try and see if you can't join them. Jax, Twinkle, you should be able to sneak past the main gate if you stay in the low ground between the main road and Hill 514. Both of you will follow it together until you reach where the road splits off. Follow the trail heading up to the compound. But try to find a way to keep off the main roads, they most likely have guard patrols running all over the place. If you find a short cut, use it. And if you have to, take out any guards along the way, but be careful not to kill any of them unless you have to. it's important that Duke and Twinkle avoid magic, they're bound to have sappers with them. You need to remain silent and go as unnoticed as well as you can. I can't stress enough how important this mission is. But once you make it inside the compound.. We don’t know what they have in there so unfortunately you'll have to make it up as you go. Don't stop for anything even if things get tough. But it's also just as important that you all come home. I'm counting on you three to work together as a team! That means no fighting with each other!”

“So long as he doesn't get in the way, we should do fine.”

“Twinkle I don't think you know who you're dealing with.” I say

“And I don't think you know who you'redealing with! I've been fighting this war for months! This isn’t my first rodeo!”

“Months? Ha! I've been training my entire life for missions like this!”

“Just stay out of Duke and I’s way! We don't need your help!”

“Stop it you two!” Twilight blurts out. “Both of you are going to have to get along until the job is done. Once it's over, you guys can go back to hating each other. But for now, you're friends so start acting like it. I expect you two to work as a team to --”

I interrupt Twilight. “I don't need a team. I could handle this mission on my own.”

Twinkleshine slams her hoof on the table. “BUDDY DUKE AND I DON’T NEED YOUR HELP EITHER!”

“Twinkle stop it!” Twilight yells. “As one of my oldest friends, I expect better of you! What none of you realize is how much danger there is in entering the compound! We have no idea what or who could be in there. That's why Jax is going with you. We’ve all seen how powerful and effective humans can be. I'm sorry to say this Twinkle, but as capable as you are I think this mission is a bit over your head.”

“Thank you, Twilight.” I say.

“Both of you need to stop being so bitter towards each other. Equestria and the entire world is counting on you. So, once you're inside the compound you'll have to make it up as you go until you find the Element. Prince Mustang is also said to be there, so the entire place is going to be heavily guarded, especially within the walls.”

“I'm sorry I couldn't get more intel on the inside Twilight.” Buddy Duke says.

“It's okay Duke. You did what you could and we’re all thankful for it. What time is it?”

“6:40 PM.” says Duke.

“Then we leave in three hours. Does anyone have anything else to add before we go?”

“Uh, yeah.” I say. “What kind of gear are we going in with? Explosives? Wire cutters? You're not just sending us in with communication as our only weapon are you?”

“Jax, I’ll make sure you have your weapon and plenty of ammo before you leave. You're going to need it. Unfortunately radios and binoculars are all we have to work with for now.”

“No, unacceptable. We need some sort of explosive. You don't have any?”

“Well.. No.”

Twinkleshine cuts in. “Isn't the point of this mission to be quiet? Last time I checked explosives weren't very quiet.”

“That's exactly why we need them.” I say.

“.. Wow. Just when I thought you couldn't be any more out of touch.”

“There's a reason why I’m asking. Do you have any combustible materials Twilight?”

“Not that I’m aware of. I’m sorry Jax. We’re just going to have to go without them.”

“What about a geologist? You live in a cave and have it carved out pretty well. I assume one of you has knowledge in geology.”

“..Yes. We do. His name is Igneous Rock Pie. He's our only geologist.”

“Excellent. I need to speak to him then. And Grease, I'll need to work with her too. I have an idea.”

“Okay, well, is everyone comfortable with the plan?”

“I’m comfortable.” says Duke. “Twink? Think you'll be able to manage?”

“Ugh, since I have to. So long as he doesn't get in my way.”

“Jax?”

“Sure. Whatever gets me out of here.”

“It's settled then!” Twilight says proudly. “This is a very important mission for the three of you. And if you can find the second Element, take it. But don't put yourselves in the path of danger if you can avoid it. I’m counting on you. Equestria is counting on you. This meeting is adjourned. Duke, please take Jax to see Igneous Rock. Twinkle, help me get everything ready.”

While Duke and I get up from the table, Twinkle and Twilight stay seated until we leave. The heavy doors slam closed behind us. “Well at least you seem more sensible than Twinkleshine.” I say to Duke as we climb the stairs.

“She can be a bit of a bummer sometimes but she's pretty cool. Her and I grew up in Canterlot together. We've been friends since we were foals and have always worked well as a team.”

“Why aren't you so despising of me as the rest of you are?”

“Anyone who's willing to help save Equestria is my friend. Pony, Human, Griffon, Dragon, they're all the same to me so long as they help.”

Pfft. Equestria. I'm only doing this for Fluttershy's sake. But so long as he thinks that, there's one less problem I have to deal with.

Duke guides me up the stairs and into a room just to the left, not far down the hallway away from where the deep dark plunge began. Inside, toiling away alone with a small pickaxe, an elderly orange pony with a black hat and a decayed gray mane picks away at a small clump of rocks. On his flank, an icon of a pickaxe. No doubt this is the geologist Twilight spoke of.

“Igneous Rock?” I ask. He jumps slightly, startled at the sound of my voice before turning to look at us. Being of such age and wisdom, he should know exactly how to help me.

“I’m sorry, I did not hear you open the do-- Ahh! Human! Buddy Duke what's this vial being doing out of his cage?” His voice is old and croaked.

“Easy there old timer. He's a friend. He needs your help with.. wait, what exactly do you need from Igneous?”

I look to the old pony and speak to him sternly, but calm and approachably. “You're a geologist are you not? We could use your help, I need to find a certain mineral.”

“Ah well uh, I supposed I could be in the business of helping you.” He says this completely ignoring me and looking at Duke. “What exactly are you folks looking for?”

“I need to find some sodium. You should have dug up plenty of it while digging out these tunnels.”

“I beg your pardon, Duke?”

“Uh no, not me. It's Jax talking to you. The human.”

“Oh, well, what does he need?”

“I need to find some sodium. Have you stumbled across any since you've been digging?”

“Sodium eh? Yes, I have come across some sodium in my digging. The rock here is sodium deprived you see, but I have found some. There's some right here, would you look at that.”

“Fantastic, I need it. Can you metallize this for me?”

“Can I do what now?”

“He lost his hearing in an explosion Jax.” says Duke. “Plus the dude is old. You'll have to speak up.”

“Metallize this sodium! Can you do it?” I enunciate each word clearly and loudly.

“Metallize it? What for?”

“I need it for a bomb we’re building. Sodium is more reactive when it's in a metallic form.”

“Well, I suppose I could. I’ll need you to bring me an electrolyzer and I can handle the rest on my own.”

“An electrolyzer? Where are we going to get one of those? Do I even know what that is..?"Duke asks.

I think for a moment… The drones, the JN88s, they use up a lot of power at night and have back up hydrogen fuel cells. “You said Grease salvages parts for you from nightcrawlersright?” I ask Duke.

“Yeah? What about 'er?”

“Does she have a workshop somewhere?”

“Yeah, it's just down the hall. But what are we going to do about an eel-ec-tro-lyzer?”

“We should be able to salvage one off of a drone. We’ll need Greace’s help with that.”

“Oh. Awesome! You know Jax, I have to say you're pretty smart.”

I say nothing, but I slightly appreciate his comment.

“Stay here old timer, we’ll be right back with that electrolyzer.” says Duke.

Duke takes me just a few doors down to another room. Inside, a mint green pony with a forest green mane. Her cutie mark is two wrenches crossed over on each other in an X. She’s working on welding something together with an arc welder, hooked up to a bundle of drone batteries on the right side of the room. It flashes brightly, almost too bright to look at. “Hey! Grease!” Duke yells out against the chuttering of the welder.

Grease turns her head to look and lifts her welding goggles. Her face is coated with streaks of black from burns, everywhere but her eyes. She doesn't say anything, but her face instantly lights up into an gasp when she sees Duke. But it just as quickly shoots into a wary frown as she notices me. “It's okay Grease. He's one of us. Jax, this is Grease. You already know what we love her for. She can't speak though. Like Igneous she was also hurt and lost her voice because of it.”

Grease turns around and continues welding.

“Hey! Grease! We need your help with something!” Duke yells. Grease quickly turns around and throws a wrench straight at my face. I dodge it, but only just.

“Take it easy Grease! He's on our side. Sorry Jax. That's usually her signal for “Go away, I’m busy”. But I guess she just doesn't like you.”

“I can't imagine why any of you would like me.” I say.

“Grease listen. We've got another mission coming up and we need your help with something. Well, a couple of things.”

She pulls out another wrench and points it at Duke. She smiles at him, and then points to me and waves the wrench back and forth with a frown. She throws the wrench at me again but I catch it in the air. I almost want to snap it in half and throw it on the ground, but I'm trying to get her to help me.

“Grease stop, it's okay. Jax what she said was she's okay with helping me but wants you to get out --”

“I know what she means Duke don't worry. I get the hint.”

“C'mon Grease, just helps us out. He's got an idea for you but only he knows what it is. Please help us? For me?”

She shrugs her shoulders and rolls her eyes, then motions me to come over.

I walk over an kneel down to eye level with her. She puts her goggles back on as I do so she doesn't have to look at me.

“Grease, I have an idea for a bomb that's going to help us on our mission. And I need your expertise to build it.”

She lifts her goggles back up, and looks at me with a raised brow.

“I need some parts first. I need a sturdy metal box of some sort, but it can't be made of a thick metal. I'll also need a thin watertight sheet, another radio and some parts off a dro - nightcrawler. Do you know where we can find those things?”

She brushes past me and canters over to the door. She motions us to follow, and she takes us into much larger room just across the hall. Inside this room, piles upon piles of mangled drones, scattered metal, and litters of bits and components of all kinds. Again I find myself silently at awe, and silently confused as to how they managed to amass such a huge collection of drones in such a short time.

Grease looks to me and lifts her hoof to present to us, Her Salvage Room. I’ll admit, I am slightly impressed at the sight.

“Okay Grease.” I begin. “I assume you know all the technical terms so I’ll just say it. I need an electrolyzer from one of the fuel cells. Also, I need the pneumatic launcher from one of their harpoon cannons. And of course, the things I mentioned earlier.”

She confidently swipes her nose with her hoof and dives elegantly back first into one of the heaps. She disappears amongst the parts. Occasionally she pops back up out of a random pile with a part in her hooves. She’ll inspect the part for a brief moment before disappearing again. It's almost as if she's swimming amongst the salvage in search of the right parts.

“So what exactly do you need all these parts for?” Duke asks.

“It's an idea for an improvised explosive I came up with. Let me describe it to you. We need a relatively large chunk of sodium for this. Metallic sodium reacts extremely violently when in contact with water. The sodium will be held above a thin sheet of something waterproof, and under that sheet will be water. A signal to the radio that'll be attached to it will send another electric signal to the pneumatic launcher, which will be placed next to the sodium. The launcher will blow the sodium out of place and it'll drop through the sheet, mix with the water, and then pressure will build inside the box until there's enough to blow the whole thing apart.”

“Wowo, that is totally smart! But.. what would we use that for if we’re trying to be quiet?”

“It might help make our job easier or we could use it to blow a hole in an obstacle. You'd be surprised how versatile explosives can be for more than just pretty fireworks.”

“Wow. You're like a genius or something.”

“No, I’m not. I just have a lot of years of experience doing this kind of thing.”

“Call it what you want, that's still pretty genius.”

Grease pops up and throws an electrolyzer at my feet. “Ah, perfect! Duke, take this back to Igneous and get started on metalizing that sodium. He'll know what to do."

“Right!” He grabs the electrolyzer in his mouth and runs out of the room. Just as he leaves, Grease pops up again and throws the pneumatic launcher to my feet. She leans against her front leg on top of the pile and smiles at me smugly. I thank her for finding it, and we gather the remaining parts that I need, and head back across the hall to her welder.

We take a medium sized box made of a thin metal, and she cuts it in half. With her own supply of water, she fills the bottom portion halfway, and then we place a film of thin glass over it, melting the edges to the metal with a blowtorch. Some time later, Igneous and Buddy Duke return with a rough looking chunk of metallic sodium, about the size of my fist. That's a lot of sodium, I didn't expect them to have gathered so much so quickly.

Grease makes her own modification to my blueprint. Instead of the sodium being pushed from a nest into the water, she tapes the chunk to the end of the pneumatic launcher. That way instead of falling onto the glass and possibly not breaking it, the sodium will be shot through and into the water. We cut a large hole in the top half of the box. Grease melts a band of metal around the launcher and the box to keep them together. We then place the two halves of the boxes on top of each other and Grease welds them together. Finally, the last step. Grease splices a radio into the circuits of the pneumatic launcher. I ask her what frequency she set the radio for the bomb to. She writes a number in a pile of dirt with a wrench. Humorously enough, she set the frequency to 321. A countdown. How fitting.

The entire process takes us two hours. We would have built more bombs or a prototype to test my theory. But given that we are running with everything with a strict budget, we decide that this untested device will have to do for the mission. We’re all hoping it works, but there's always a chance something might go wrong. The radio might die, or the pneumatic launcher might fail. But all of us are impressed with the combined ingenuity with which we used to put it together. Even Twinkleshine seems slightly impressed by our work when we present it to her.

The time to set out on our mission approaches. We all make our final preparations and run through the mission several times. Until each of the three of us understand every facet completely and can perform competently with minimal chances of failure.

Chapter Four - Back in the Saddle

I take the bomb, placing it carefully into my backpack. The water sloshes inside, and the whole thing wobbles about between my hands. Some part of me fears that at any moment, it could explode right in my face. But as it comes to rest in the pouch, my confidence is restored, and our handywork proves sturdy. Buddy Duke comes down the tunnel with a basket between his teeth. Cradled in the shoddy woodwork, three sets of radios and binoculars. He hands a set to me, but I turn away the binoculars as my rifle is quite superior. He hands a set to Twinkleshine, and saves one for himself.

I will admit, this type of infiltrate and extract mission was not something I was able to apply much after my training. Everything is always different when it’s the real deal. The team of three other scouts I worked with, not months ago, often found ourselves performing sets of much less intensity. Never anything with so many unknown parameters, so much unpredictability and such little intel. I am used to working with unfamiliar faces, but in The Rainy Days, I could rely on knowing we had all done the training. All of us knew our places and always knew what to do and when. But now I’m an ace matched with two wildcards. I know I can only hope they know what they’re doing. But I also know that nature always sides with the hidden flaw. Hopefully Twinkleshine and all of her bullheadedness won’t interfere with our chances of success.

Ahead of us down the hall is the cave’s exit. I see the moon cropping up just above the smooth hills in the far off. Its dim light shines down on us through the mouthy exit. I had come so close to leaving through here before, freedom was just within my reach. But now I’ll leave with an obligation to remain imprisoned.

Twinkle and Duke take a moment to look to the moon and bow their heads. They whisper “Luna, grant us strength. Guide us through your hallowed realm. Give us your grace so we may return.” I abstain from joining them in such a ridiculous notion, but I do keep my lack of interest in their hokey religion to myself. I stay strong knowing I am righteous by my own light. No divine intervention can be found with me, not here. Even if it did I would ignore it. I am more than competent enough to make it through it all and come back. Even when all seems lost, and the end is but seconds away, a fighter with his two hands and nothing to lose can always turn the tide. Should things go south, we can always fall back on our bomb.

Twilight joins us just as I finish strapping my bag shut. She pulls a cart behind her. And on that cart, my promised gear; my knife, my rifle and silencer, but only two ten round magazines. “As we agreed,” she says, “Here are your belongings.”

“Where’s the rest of my ammo. I had more than this.”

“It’s all I’m willing to spare. I still have my reasons to not give you everything back yet. Remember, you can’t just go around killing everypony. This should be enough, if you run into trouble.”

“Trust goes both ways, you know.”

“Yes, you’re right. But I have presented you with my side of the deal, and now it's your turn to present me with yours.”

“..Fair enough. Just one question. What exactly am I looking for? What does an Element even look like?”

“It won’t be hard to notice. It’s a golden necklace with a red jewel shaped like a lightning bolt in the middle. You can’t miss it. Good luck, Jax. Good luck to all of you. I know this is just a start but it puts us much further ahead than we’ve ever been. Do what you must. But please do everything you can to come back home. The excavation site isn’t far, but time is running short. The fate of Equestria lies with you, and may the wisdom of the solar and lunar princesses guide you. Now go.”

With that, I take my gear and Twilight leaves. What a relief it is to finally have my lifelong friend back in my hands. I load a magazine, a revel in all the ticks and clicks as I chamber a round. I let the bolt slam forward, the round locks in place and is ready to be fired with just my squeeze of the trigger. 20 rounds? I could do a lot of damage with that. But not without sliding on the silencer over the barrel, and twisting it until it locks. There, now she’s ready for war.

Twinkleshine and Buddy Duke both thank Twilight as she walks away, both of them smiling and filled with hope. Duke is the first to leave the safety of the cave. I walk to his left, and Twinkle to his right. And now, back out into the ashen hell we go, our spirits high, and our confidence at full. I take a deep breath. Finally, after so many days held captive in that musty cave, the smell of freedom is all around me. Crisp and clear, just like the night in which we stroll towards our target. Not a single bit of dust floats around, and no wind to sully the stillness. My companionsalso enjoy the quiet night. They seem so much more alive with the light of the moon shining down upon them. “Can you feel it Twink? Can you feel her spirit?” Duke asks, presumably referring to Princess Luna.

“Yes, I feel it Duke.” she says somberly. “If only she were still alive. This whole thing could have been avoided.” She makes a sharp glance over to me. I keep my head and eyes forward, ignoring her snide tactic. But I know there are no spirits left. Princess Luna was killed long ago. But somehow their unshaken faith in her seems to me to be so.. authentic. Even after the world has been burned, ruined beyond any point of recovery, they still hold true to their faith. And along with the unexplainable apparitions I’ve been experiencing, I find it all… Unanswerable.

For several crawling minutes, we walk in almost total silence. Their hoofs clot against the ash, my boots crunch into it, the water on my back sloshes, and we listen to our own private thoughts. It is all that staves off the quiet awkwardness of our trio that prevails over our supposed comradery.

“So where exactly is this place?” I ask, finally putting an end to the sound of silence.

Duke answers “It’s not far. It’s to the southeast, just passed where the Everfree Forest touches Ramble Rock Ridge.”

“Whatever those places are.” But I notice that based on the position of the moon, we are headed in a different direction. “Wait, southeast? Aren’t we headed northeast right now?”

“We are, but we have to head wide to the east so we don’t have to cut through the Everfree Forest.”

“There are no forests anymore.”

“There aren’t, you're right, but the Everfree isn’t your typical forest. It still creeps with the dark spirits of evil magic. Even after The Inferno.”

“We know what we’re doing Jax.” Twinkle says.

“I sure hope you do. I’ve got a lot riding on this mission.” I reply.

“What and you don’t think we do?”

“I’m sure you do. I’m just not interested in it the same way you are.”

“I don’t know why you wouldn’t be! You’re kind of stuck here with us now!”

“True. But I have my own agenda to follow. As soon as I’m done getting these Elements, I’m out of here.”

“Well good. Let’s just get there faster then so you can leave sooner.”

“Well let’s also do it quietly.” Duke says to keep us at bay.

“What’s got you so upset with me anyway?” I ask sarcastically. “We’re a team now aren’t we?”

“What do you mean what has you so upset?! You destroyed my home! You tried to kill me!”

“I was just following orders. I did what I had to do. Never thought I’d end up here though. Plus, I wasn’t going to kill you.”

“Jax I swear. If this mission goes south I’m blaming it on you. I might just kill you myself and --”

“Aww cheer up Twink.” Duke interrupts. “There’s no need to be so sour! We’re a team!”

“Ugh you keep saying that but it’s only true on paper!”

I chortle. “What paper?” Twinkle grits her teeth and growls at me for that joke about how any sort of paper is now ash.

“You just think what you did is so great don’t you!” She says. “I lost everything! Everypony lost everything!”

“Twink, keep your voice down, come on! We’re supposed to be quiet! I mean I get you two hate each other but can we at least put it aside for now until the mission is over? Please?”

She lets out a huff and distances herself from us. We go on for the next few kilometers without even a whisper.

Eventually we come to a dirt road. “Alright now we just have to follow this road all the way there.” Duke says. I look over to Twinkle who is much farther away from Duke than I am. She walks with her head down, a saddened expression covers her face as thoughts of something dark takes her focus away from the task at hand. It brings out my curiosity to see that there is a mood other than Hate inside her. Whatever that mood may be, it distracts her enough that I have to get her attention back on track with us as we change course. As we follow the road, I have us space ourselves away to decrease any chances of detection. The weather may be nice, but it only aids our chances of being spotted in the open. But the entire way we’ve come, I’ve noticed a distinct lack of any guards or patrols. I also keep my eye out for drones, but they come up just as absent. Duke and Twinkle both seem fairly relaxed, no fear of running into either at all. The situation has me on edge. My instincts tell me that being so blatantly out in the open, we are sure to be spotted before we even get there. And yet nothing happens. We just walk freely over the moonlit ash. The peaceful night air still holding clear. No wind, no swithering dust, the vista is just as clean as it was before we ever touched this planet.

We follow the road for a while until it splits in three directions. We take the road heading north. With our change in direction comes a change in terrain. Soon, the smooth plains give way to jagged rock. The road itself is enveloped between the mountains, flanked on both sides by tall, crumbling hills. It winds and cuts through the land like a slithering snake as we enter Ramble Rock Ridge. We all gather our wits, and focus on our senses as we crawl deeper into hostile lands. We stop occasionally and use the higher grounds as lookout points to survey the path ahead, in case we are to run into any wandering patrols. I put my rifle with its advanced optics to great use. But still, for all of our journey, all scans come up blank. As we get closer to our objective, more and more do we become keen to the dangers. We soon take turns bounding forward. I go ahead of my team, and scan around the sharp corners to make sure it's clear. Then they go forward to the next point under my cover. Over and over again, always watching and always careful. Between these jagged hills and valleys, the light of the moon is all but blocked out. Our approach is silent, and grows slower as we gain more ground, until finally, we come to within sight of Hill 514.

We all crouch down behind a toppled stack of stones. “Okay, we’re here.” Twinkleshine says in a hard whisper. “Duke, it’s time. The way ahead is clear.”

“Alright, finally!” He whispers back. “I’ll head up the hill. I’ll let you two know when I’m ready and I’ll cover your guy’s way in.” He crawls up the hill, but after just a few feet of sneaking, he stops for a radio check to ensure all of our radios are working.

They all work. We all take a deep breath, and set our sights on victory. Duke continues his slow crawl up the rocky hillside with his binoculars and radios at the ready. Twinkle and I wait as we watch him disappear into the shroud. We both sit just next to each other in almost pitch-black darkness. The tension we feel builds the longer we wait for Duke. “Something’s not right.” Twinkle says. “This area used to be a lot more built up.”

“Well doesn’t that just sound like a promising start. Means there’s less to deal with.” I reply.

“Yeah, but it also means they’re packing up! They might have found it already!”

We wait. And wait.. And wait. There is only our chances to diminish as time stacks against us. Until finally we get a call from Duke telling us he’s in position. “Okay. I’m here. Got a great view from up here, not a lot of dudes out tonight, not as many as last time. Jax lift your head up so I can see you.” he says.

I know he won’t see me in this dark, but I raise my head anyway. “See me?”

“Uhh.. I think? Is that you? Move around!”

I stand, and move away from Twinkle. This is pointless. Never have I ever relied on such crude equipment for such a delicate operation. “See me now?”

“Uhh.. Nope, unless you turned into that boulder right there.”

“Well that’s just great.” I shove my radio back into my pocket. “Well Twinkle, we’re gunna have to move up with his cover.”

“I see some light down the road to the left, if we hurry there, Duke can pick us up.”

“What’s the rush? We got all night, we might as well wait until the moon rises over the cliffs.”

“What good would that be! The just makes us easier to spot! Come on, we need to get moving.”

I lean around the rock, looking ahead for signs of trouble. My scope reviels every last detail, nothing can hide from its electronic eyes. But all is cold and blue, not a single hint of yellow of something warm. No towers, no guards, it’s clear.

As I motion Twinkle forward, she takes off in a bold canter. Brave, but brash. Clearly she still wants to distance herself from me at the expense of teamwork. But I follow crouched behind her. After just a few softened steps, a huge blot of yellow fills my scope. A cart pulled by three equine, with eight more as passengers passes ahead of us from left to right, leaving the site. “Twinkle get down!”

But she ignores me. She only crouches down and keeps trotting. What is she doing!

The cart passes only 150 meters away. I know the darklight eyes of the equine are more keen than my own without aid. But with good luck, none in the cart ahead look our way. If they did, they might not have seen us this far, but Twinkle does not slow. Once the cart passes, I catch up to her. “What are you doing! Are you trying to get us caught!”

“We don’t have time to be slow! This place used to be way more built up than it is now. It looks like they’ve taken everything that was here down. They’ve probably already found the Element, we need to get a move on!” She keeps up her canter. Not far ahead, the road splits into a T, and we follow left to enter the compound. We stay away from the road, crawling flat on our bellies as we climb a shallow hill. The moment we crest the hill, we see it. We see the entire compound. Everything is set up just like in the briefing. The guard towers stand tall, the main gate has its two sentries, and wooden crates are scattered all along the roadside. I see another guard standing near a crate under a flickering floodlight, just across from the lowground we’re supposed to use. Light pours from the first tower, a unicorn uses his horn as a spotlight to scan the entire lowground. The terrain ahead of us drops steep, like a natural staircase all the way down until it flattens out to the lowground.

I hear Twinkle speak over the radio. “Security’s dropped a lot since last time.”

“I see it too.” says Duke. “I really hope they haven’t found it yet.”

“There’s only one way to find out. We’re moving in.”

I crawl over to Twinkleshine. “So how do you suppose we get passed the two at the main gate?”

“I don’t know. Those guards have pretty good visibility of our way in.”

“What’s wrong? You seemed pretty confident you knew what you were doing earlier.”

“Oh, stop it! This is not the time!”

“I could just use my rifle.”

“No! Look, they’re moving anyway.”

As the two guards chatter between themselves, they walk down the road away from the gate, but right our way. They follow in the same path as the cart did earlier. “Welp. That’s our ticket.” I whisper.

We keep low as they pass us, laying flat on our backs and watch them. They’re close enough I can almost hear their hushed voices. Twinkle starts breathing heavy, fearing we might be spotted. All we can do is stay still and hope they don’t look our way. But they pass, never thinking to check around.

We crawl over the hill. Now, we have our chance. We go steep step by steep step to the lowground. Our only worry is that wandering spotlight. It scans back and forth, not an inch of ground is not covered wherever its light sets. But it's our best way in, the main gate still has eyes covering it.

Twinkle hops down the first step. Her hooves hit with a hearty C-Clot! and she stops to wait for me. I, keeping in good noise discipline, set the bomb down and carefully climb down.

C-Clot! She drops to the next. Clearly different in our definitions of Stealth, but it almost seems as if she’s testing me or our luck. I’m not sure which.

We go down drop by drop, all the way to the bottom. Just as I pick up my bag for the last step, the searchlight flows our way. I freeze, seeing Twinkle right in its path. But she darts behind a stone ramp, barely saving herself. The light comes to just inches from my feet, and stops. I scoot away, holding my breath, but there’s hardly any room to move away. My heels glow faint near the light’s edge, the guard knows there’s something here. But the light swings away, no alarms are sounded, and I make the final drop.

I join Twinkle at the ramp. Before I even settle in, she’s already crawling her way up. But as she crests the ramp, she shoves herself right back down beside me, alarm and fret on her face. She breathes heavily, she had not been prepared to find a guard standing just across the road looking her way. She continues to lay there. I have no idea what's going on over the hill, but Twinkle’s unchanging expression has me concerned that she's already blown our cover. But nothing other than her breathing is heard. Still no alarms, and no shouting.

When she sees me crawling up beside her, her mood fires back to uncaring angst. I try take a peek across the road for myself. But before I even look over, Twinkle’s hard hoof clots down on my head, and she pushes us all the way back down the ramp.

“What was that for!” I whisper, wholly annoyed.

“There’s a guard right there! He's right across the road!”

“Well no shit! Sit back, I can take him out.”

“No! I’m not letting you kill him! Didn't you hear Twilight? We can’t just go around killing everypony!”

“Well how do you suggest we get passed him then?”

“I can take him myself!”

“What are you, crazy? That’ll get us spotted for sure! Stay here, I can deal with him with my weapon.” I crawl up at get ready to fire. Finally, now's my chance to put my pride and joy to use. I power down to the lowest setting, switch off circuits two through ten. At this low setting, a shot to the head will fracture his skull, and put him to bed for a nice nap. He won’t even know what hit him, might not even remember it when he wakes up.

“No no! What are you doing!” she huffs as I get set. I come up just enough for a good angle, judging all factors to land the bullet center mass on his head. I know how far he is, and I know how fast the bullet will drop. I line up for the perfect shot.

But my heart drops as I see Twickle charge across the road, in full view beneath the floodlight. She tackles the guard, he lets out a loud Oof! She holds his throat down with one hoof, gets in a few quick jabs with the other, and darts off to the shadows behind the crates. I still find myself at awe that alarm has yet to be raised.

She waves me over. I can’t believe how irrational she is! She's becoming more and more of a liability the longer this goes on!

I consider sending a round at her head myself, it might save me trouble in the future to take her out now. Something in her ego compels her to put her pride before everything else, and that could quite possibly be our downfall.

I’m already lined up for the shot. My finger rests on the trigger. It has an itch, and I so dearly want to scratch it, but I stop myself. Though I can easily follow through and say she was taken out by a guard, it wouldn't be right. Plus, I might end up needing her later. Possibly as a way to cover my ass as I escape with the Element.

I look across the road both ways, and see no one. The way across is clear. I run low, smooth, and quick across, and make it without being spotted. “What. Is your. Problem.” I say as I meet her in the shadows.

“Look, we’re fine. I took out the guard, we’re fine. And now we’re where Buddy Duke can see us.” She raises her radio. “Duke you see us? We’re just past the main gate on the far side of the road.”

“Yep! I see you now. Might wanna hide that body though, but good job taking him out. They still look like they have no idea you're here.”

“Jax hide the body.”

“What!”

“You heard me.”

“Oh no, I do not take orders from you!”

“What, do you really think I can lift him by myself!”

“FFFine.” I take the body with one hand and drag him beside us behind the crates. There aren’t any other places to hide him, this will have to do. I let go of the body, and Twinkle’s already moving away to cause more trouble. I force her hard against the crate. “Twinkle stop. Whatever you're doing, just stop. You can't keep this up and expect us to stay hidden!”

“Don't you get it! We’re almost out of time! It may not be as big a deal to you as it is to me, but we can’t just keep crawling around like you want to!”

“I get that we don't have a lot of time! But --”

“Look, if you're going to be slow and afraid like a baby and not take the right risks, then I’ll take them for you. If we run into trouble we can just fall back on your bloodthirsty instincts to cover our escape.”

“I can see you two arguing down there.” Duke says. “Get a move on!”

Twinkle trots away behind the crates. I look at her, still completely aggravated at just how irrational she is. “Heads up guys, there’s a patrol coming down the road towards you two!” Duke warns.

We shove our backs to the crates. We are well hidden, sandwiched between the cliff leading up to the excavation site, and the crates themselves. The road is just behind us. Soon we here the cart wheels rolling along. Duke keeps us filled it, it seems like they’re heading out of the compound. Good, that’s just less trouble to deal with later.

Looking up, I can see the entrance to the excavation site peeking over the cliff. From what I can tell, rather than a gate or something keeping it closed, it appears that the entrance is merely just a gap in the wall. No doubt there will be a significant number of guards on overwatch around it.

Twinkle and I wait silently side by side, listening in on the cart rolling over the road. It passes behind us, from our left to our right. “Okay, you guys are clear.” Duke says. Before we go any further, we have to cross a large gap between this crate and the next. Twinkle's up first. She checks around the corner, and sees the tail end of the cart. She looks to me, nods with certainty, and makes a silent dash across the short space. I take my turn, and just as I’m checking around the corner, I hear the cart come to a stop some ways down the road. “Uh Jax, you two need to hurry up, the cart’s stopped. Oh no, they’re getting out, I think they know something’s up because there’s no guard at the gate anymore.”

Fantastic.

I dash across. Ahead of us now is open ground. The road bears straight until it forks off to the trail, leading up the hill to the site’s entrance. Around the corner of this crate is the guard tower, set up just on the other side of the road from us. If I were to go out now with this noisy bomb on my back, it might tip off the guard in the tower. I don’t see any obstacles between here and the excavation site, so perhaps here is just as good a place as any to plant it.

As Twinkle slowly skirts down the crate, I set my backpack down, flat to the ground. In the darkness, I fumble around in search of the clips holding it closed. I find them, open the bag, and very carefully set the bomb in place. Twinkle shoots a look to me as if to say “Why here? I thought we were going to need it?” But this is exactly where I want it.

With the guards searching the area around the gate, Twinkle and I have no choice but to move forward into the open. We check our corners, paying the most attention to the guard tower that’s not even 20 meters to our left, and both crawl along beside the road. We take it as slow and quiet as we can. Our sneaking silence through the inky black raises no attention to the tower, who still keeps his focus on the low ground. Duke warns us about a guard ahead of us walking down the road.

We both stop dead, and see her coming straight at us. I ready my rifle. Through my thermals I see her, walking alone in the middle of the road just beyond the fork. She does not take the trail leading up to the site, she’s coming right at us. Twinkle and I have no option but to remain still and hope we are not discovered. If I fire now, the tower guard might hear it. I also hear the voices of the patrol behind us. “Spread out and find him!” one of them yells.

We’re boxed in.

Up ahead, halfway between us and the fork, I spot a low hanging rock. If we can get to it, we can use it to climb the cliff and avoid the hazardous trail all together. Trouble is, is that the guard ahead has full view over it. I have but one option, to finally put my rifle to use.

Twinkleshine starts crawling forward.

You’ve got to be kidding me.

“Twinkle stop! Stop right there, there’s a guard coming right for you.” I hear Duke loudly whisper into the radio. But she ignores it and continues forward. My only idea for why, is she plans to take the guard herself.

But I take aim, just over Twinkleshines head as she moves like a slug over the ground. I press a button with my thumb to get a range. She is only 40 meters away. I line the crosshair up with the guard’s chest. An impact there will minimize any vocalizations she could make as she’s hit. I wait for the right moment, but Twinkle’s own body covers most of the guard and prevents a clean shot. 35 meters. Twinkle continues forward just the same as the guard. Duke continues to try to sway her from moving, but she continues to ignore him. 30 meters. Twinkle turns her radio off. 25 meters. I see just enough over Twinkle’s head that I might make the shot. Her horn still blocks most of my view. As she crawls, it moves side to side. A perfectly timed shot will be required to not hit her on accident. Even in my annoyance with her I must prevent myself from doing so intentionally. 20 meters. It’s amazing the guard hasn’t seen us yet. She must not be paying attention.

I use the rangefinder once more and make my own corrections. This is a shot I cannot afford to miss. A red dot hovers at the guard’s chest which I use to align my crosshairs. I take the shot.

Ss-thook.

The silencer does an excellent job suppressing the weapon, but not completely. The round graces Twinkle’s mane, but finds its mark dead center in the chest of my target. In what sounds like a stifled cough, she’s knocked backwards off her hooves and she falls to the road. I throw myself on my back and take aim at the tower, now all too concerned that the guard therein may have heard us. And it would appear that he did. He waves his light around frantically in the lowground. Luckily for us, he may have heard the noise but he does not know where it came from.

With the guard tower on full alert, and the other guard now lying motionless in the wide open, Twinkle and I rush forward. We keep a watchful eye to the tower, fearing he might look our way. But with just enough luck and in just enough time, we make it to the climbing point I spotted earlier. Twinkle continues forward to the fork. I grab her back hoof. She snaps her head back with a spiteful gaze, but I direct her attention to the rock face to our right. Rather than following the undoubtedly guarded trail, we can climb these rocks and cut our distance to the excavation site more than in half. I creep up onto my feet and grip the first hand hold I can find. The rocks are low and jagged, just enough for me to find my grip and hoist myself up. I turn to assist Twinkle, who is unable to climb it on her own. She is not well suited for any kind of rocky escalation, not without my help. I yank her up beside me.

While the guards hasten with their investigation, Twinkle and I retreat up the cliff, climbing foothold by foothold towards our goal. We make it half way up, and ahead of us now is a raised concrete platform with a tarped-over fence lining its edges. It is impossible to see what is beyond. The rock face ahead is almost too sharp to climb. With that in mind, here might be our only way up the rest of the trail. Just as I reach the concrete, what Twinkle and I feared as only being inevitable happens. A horn is heard blown down below. There is shouting, the whole compound is now on high alert. Guards scurry up and down the trail and Twinkle and I press our backs to the concrete, and hope they don’t decide to look around it.

Several groups come galloping up and down the trail, cutting off our way forward. The risky, rocky cliff is now the only option. I reach back, and grasp firm to the cliff. Swinging down, I catch myself, holding as best I can with my hands and feet clinging where they fit. Twinkle makes the same move, but with nothing to grip, she slips, and falls straight over. Somehow she holds in her scream, but I see all of that fear in her frightful eyes. But I catch her by a hoof, struggling to keep my hold on practically nothing with one hand less. Her weight nearly pulls me too far, my fingers cramp, straining to keep hold. I swing her ahead of me, and her hind hooves luckily find a place for her to stand, just barely. Both of us are on our last edge. All it would take is an ill fated gust of wind to knock us off. But we slowly find our bearings, just enough to keep moving. We climb up, finding a firm place to stand just below the trails edge. Duke advises us on when and when not to move. As a patrol passes by over our heads, he stops us. But as they go, he gives the all clear and we carry on. Along the rock face we go, our backs pressed to its stabbing sheet tightly, and moving in stutters. Soon the trail above makes a sharp left. The rock face follows it, but evenly levels off just where the entrance meets the trail. We are forced to keep ourselves low to the ground the further we go on as, what used to be a sheer cliff now flattens into smoothened ground. Patrols sweep by mere meters away, completely unaware that we are just below them right at the edge. Twinkle and I both look to each other afraid, unsure of how to advance through the entrance. It’s right there, we’ve come so close and now the shining gate to our victory is within reach. But we see no way in, too many eyes cover it. Keeping my head low, I take a quick peek over the edge to see what sorts of defences and obstacles they have set up inside. The area just beyond the entrance is lit by weak torchlight. There are no obstacles, the first several meters inside are flat and open. I see behind that, is a concrete barrier. And much to my surprise, or lack thereof, that barrier is manned by a lone equine who keeps his eyes fixed on the entrance. But passing in the open in front of him, dozens of Mustang’s cronies all scurry back and forth, all frantic in their galloping to find out what’s going on. This is it. This is what is supposed to be the hardest part of the mission, getting passed the gate and into the site. And indeed difficult does it seem, as I myself see no way of getting inside while still keeping our stealth. But we’ve come so far, everything until this point has gone relatively smoothly and none of us have been discovered. There has to be a way, I refuse to give up now as I am so vigorously energized by the tension.

How could there be so many equine left in our wake? How did we miss so many? I was sure at first that we had killed them all.

Another cart patrol comes barrelling out through the gate, bolting right passed us and down the trail. As they pass I have to keep my head down, but once gone, I hear Duke coming in quietly over the radio. “Hey, it’s clear, the entrance is clear, go now! Wait - shit, they might have found me. There’s a team coming up the hill, I have to move. I’m sorry, I’ll get back to you when I can. Just stay there!”

“Duke! Duke!” Twinkle whispers hard into her radio, trying time and time again to hail him but to no avail. We look out to Hill 514, but through the darkness, we see nothing but its blackened figure against the glittering sky. Twinkle looks to me worried, as we now face a dilemma. Security at the gate is tight, but less now than any other time. Duke is now in a position to possibly be captured. We no longer have his cover to guide us. We could abort the mission altogether, Twinkle and I still have yet to be discovered, and can use what slim surprise we have left to make an escape. Or we could abandon Duke and let him fend for himself, with no clear answer to his fate. But we have to make a move now.

Twinkle and I share the same look and same thought. The only way to go is forward, without Duke. There is too much to be lost for the value of one soul. Right now, there is only one guard that overlooks the way ahead. We must move quick, our only window to make it in is sliding shut. If I can take him out, and some of the torches, we should be able to finally get in. That’s exactly what I’ll do.

I rest my rifle on the trail’s edge. It stock rests comfortably notched to my shoulder. I couldn’t have a better angle. He’s only 60 meters away. I line up the shot..

But just as all comes into place, another guard bursts onto the scene, headed right for me. He slides to a stop as I duck down. No doubt he’s seen me. I hear him trotting our way. And as I look left, I spot another guard coming back up the trail towards him. “Hey, cover me!” the guard yells. “I think I found one of them!

“Gotcha covered, go check it out!”

Here it is, our efforts to remain undetected have expired. I have no choice but to eliminate these guards, and any others that now stand in our way. To think we’ve come so far, avoided so much, and we’re not even halfway done. Only halfway to being killed, for sure.

I know Twilight gave me orders not to kill, but I have nothing else to resort to. This is not a good angle for my rifle. I slide my knife from its sheath. It had been peacefully tucked away against my belt the entire time I’ve had it. But now I must let its fangs swing free.

I hear the guard right over me. Suddenly, his head looks over the cliff, and down. Our eyes lock. Just before he yells, I swing up with the knife. It drives right into his chest. I feel his bones crack and grind against the blade. Muscles tearing and ripping as I plunge straight and deep. Warmth leaks all over my hand, running down all over my arm. The guard falls limp in and instant. I pull forward. His body comes with it, and the knife rips away as he falls over the cliff’s edge. Twinkle gasps, holding a scream in behind her hooves as we both watch him tumble and flop against the rocks. Yet again must she witness the gruesome death of one of her own, before her very eyes.

The other guard sees her brother vanish over the edge. She shines her horn light right at us. She’s too far for a knife strike. I aim my rifle one handed, and take the shot as she raises alarm. There’s an audible crack! as the bullet finds its mark against her head. Her light expires, and she too meets the same fate as she tumbles over the edge, hitting every rock on the way down.

With no one else in sight, I take my aim back to the barrier sentry. He had been alerted to the commotion, and is leaving his post to investigate. He does not see me aiming at him, cloaked in blackness. But I pause, and have an idea. No doubt there are other wandering eyes covering the gate. If I can use this guard as a distraction to divert those eyes, we just might make it inside. I power my rifle up by one circuit. It softly whirs as more power is supplied to the coils, pulling more energy from the chambered round’s battery. Just as the guard comes from behind the barrier, I take aim at his shoulder joint. Another squeeze of the trigger, and the round shreds into its target. But it does not kill him, as intended. A bright splash of red spurts from his shoulder as the bullet buries deep. He falls to the ground, his agaony can be heard by all. Two more rounds, and I knock the torches off their mounts. They extinguish in the ash, and the once lit entrance falls dark and cold.

The guard wails on the ground, yelling, screaming in a pool of his own blood. The entrance is clear, the time is now or never. Twinkle makes one more attempt to raise Duke, but no response is heard. We must press on without him. We hop up onto the trail, and crawl to the gate. Our pulses ramp up on high, our heart beats louder than our shaky breaths as we struggle to restrain ourselves from making an all out dash to get inside. We watch the guard as he flails about, his shrieks can be heard all throughout the excavation site. It’s a haunting and harrowing experience for Twinkle, having to crawl on the ground as one of her own cries out in pain not far in front of her. But we manage our way in, and take cover in the veil of an exceedingly dark corner, just to our right. We huddle in its shadow in good timing, for just as we enter the site, several other ponies come galloping to the aid of their fallen brother, who screams now dwindle as bloodloss takes its toll. They do what they can to help him, and all the while Twinkle and I watch. I, in a calmed silence, and Twinkle, in horrified distress.

About a dozen or so other ponies of all kinds, Pegasus, Unicorn and Common all converge around the fallen guard. They try in speedy desperation to calm him and stop the bleeding. He pleas to them for the pain to stop, slurring his words but begging for help. A female pegasus holds his leg down to the ground, wrapping the wound with bandages. Her hooves and mouth shake violently as she too is wrought with fear for her brother’s life. He clings to her with one hoof on her shoulder, coughing blood onto her face as she fumbles with the bandaging. The shaken pegasus tries her best to wrap the wound, blood pouring out onto her hooves. I look on, she’s doing it all wrong. Soon the cries of the guard die down, his voice becomes soft as he breathes out his last futile words. He fades away to silence, falling limp in the care of the pegasus who had been so urgent to help him. His hoof slides from her shoulder, his head tilts slowly to the side, and he too perishes in the eyes of those who cared for him. Dead in a pool of his own deep red blood.

A strong looking Common Equine leaves the group, anger on his face and vengeance in his heart. He now presses himself with finding who was responsible for this crime. It just so happens that he begins to walk our way, to a crude metal door at my side. Once more my heart drops, it’s obvious to me that he means to pass where we lay. I couldn’t possibly take out all of these guards with what low stock of ammunition I have left. There’s simply too many, and there’s bound to be more still hiding within these walls. There is but one option. The bomb, I can finally use the bomb. I slowly pull the radio from my pocket. The equine continues marching slowly towards us, just on the cusp of seeing us in the dark. I keep my gaze locked onto him, ready to possibly kill as well should he get too close. I tune the frequency to 321, press down on the talk button, and listen. Nothing. No loud pop, no horrific explosion. Seconds pass, but still not a sound is heard. The guard continues to clamber. I jam the button several times, but still nothing. I drop the radio and pull my knife from its sheath once more.

At the very moment all hope seems lost, a titanic boom blasts from outside. The focus of every last equine ahead funnels to it. I watch through the gate, brightly shimmering fragments blast out in all directions from where the bomb was planted. The chunks of burning sodium pop and crackle into pieces smaller still, all sparkling and hissing as they scatter across the ground. Everyone files out the gate to confront the new threat, leaving the dead pony where he lie.

They always were so easy to distract.

A heavy sigh of relief. My lungs fill full as if I hadn't taken a breath the whole time. Despite all the brazen risks taken by Twinkle, we have managed to breach all defences, slip passed all guards, and now may begin our hunt for the Element. But it’s only a matter of time before they figure out the bomb was a ruse.

We now have a moment to survey the area within the walls. Directly behind us, a wooden wall with a door in the middle. Behind that, a set of several poorly constructed houses. To our immediate front facing north, several concrete barriers lined up one behind the other, all the way to the far wall of the site, and leading out another entrance. Halfway between the eastern wall and the northern entrance, an old, dilapidated castle in ruins. Much of it has fallen around where it once proudly stood, leaving only the first two levels and much of its stone framework as its legacy.

Twinkle tugs at my leg. “Now’s a good time to split up.” she says. “If we stick together we’re more likely to be caught again, but we can cover more ground and find the Element faster apart.”

It’s the first time I’ve ever agreed with anything she’s said. “Right. I’ll take these houses behind us.”

“Okay, I’ll go forward and search around the castle. Keep close to your radio, but only talk if something important happens.”

With not a guard in sight, she makes a break for the far side. I come to my feet, and slowly push through the door in the wall, my rifle drawn and finger with its itch. The moment I open the door, I see the tail end of a frantic guard disappear around the corner of the farthest shanty house. A door is heard swinging open and then slamming shut. Perhaps he saw me as I made my entrance. The houses are arranged in a two by three grid, he so happened to run behind and into the one just across from the shanty directly to my left. I fully emerge through the door, letting it close quietly behind me with one hand, my rifle in the other. I hug the wall, crouched, slowly making my way along it and stopping at the corner. I peek around. It’s clear, no guards down this alley that separates the two rows of houses. Just across the gap, on the front of the shanty the pony had slipped into, another door. I hop the distance, pressing my back to the wall and listen. Listening for any noise that might allude me to the numbers inside. I hear nothing, but this is a moment I cannot ignore. Should this pony be alone I can capture him and question him. He may hold knowledge of the Element’s exact whereabouts. It’s a risky decision, as just as likely, the shanty could be a barracks, and be filled with other equine ready to strike at me the moment I breach the door. I could handle this however. They are no match for me in such close quarters.

I shimmy up to the door and bring myself to my feet. Once more I listen in, my ear against the thin wood. I hear a lone set of hooves, clotting away from the door where I stand. I grab the knob, turning it slowly. All the while I prepare myself for whatever I might meet inside. I take a deep breath. Here I go.

In a wild blaze of flowing fury, I charge into the room, blind to all senses but my instincts. I tackle him before he can even react, knife drawn and ready for anything. In an instant, I overpower him and grab his snout like a vice, pulling his neck straight up and forcing the knife against his skin. He squirms and fights, but all the futile flailing gets him nowhere as I lock him in a rear choke. He fights more, and I let him cut himself against my blade until he gets the message. All of this happens before the door could swing back shut.

“You scream, I kill you. You cooperate, I’ll let you live. Think very carefully about your next move, Equine. It could be your last.”

He still struggles in my clench. I press the knife even tighter, drawing blood from his neck until he forces himself calm.

“Now then, I have one question for you. You better spit it out without yelling. You’re here for the Element of Loyalty. Where is it.”

I release just enough pressure to let him talk. “I don’t know anything about where it’s at! We haven’t found it yet!”

“Not the answer I was looking for.” I constrict all around him, so tight that even his bones grind together. I get tighter and tighter until he’s blue in the face. “I bet you’ve already found it. Don’t think I can’t see you’re all packing up to go home. Wouldn’t it be nice to go home like everyone else? Where. Is it.”

“W-w-who are you.”

“Someone you shouldn’t trust with your life in their hands. And right now, my hands are closed around it. Now where is it.”

“I don’t knOW -”

I slide my arm under his chin and squeeze tight. “You sure you want to play this game with me?”

I hold the knife to slit his throat, cutting it as a threat. All of the sudden I’m interrupted by shouting outside. They sound close, and they’re only coming closer. With the equine still in my hold, I scoot to press my back against the wall and listen. The pony hears it too, and does all he can to cry for help. I silence him by driving the point of the knife slightly into his belly, the tip digging through his skin. He holds his breath, knowing the more he moves, the more he impales himself.

I keep my ear pressed to the wall. I hear hoofsteps clocking by outside, headed towards this very building we’re in right now. But they pass, they run right past us and down the alleyway outside. And so I press on with my own interrogation.

“Alright, that’s enough stalling.” I bring the knife back to his throat. “Where is it.”

“It’s in the castle. Bottom floor! We haven’t dug it up yet, just please let me go!”

“Now that wasn’t so hard was it?”

I let go just enough to make him think I’m about to release him. Soon as he feels free, I crank down all around, choking him until he falls blacked out.

I drop the limp corpse and sheath my knife. Once more, rifle ready, I exit the building through the door and back out into the dimly lit compound.

Bottom of the castle. Hmm, sounds pretty sketchy to me. But it’s my best lead. I’m sure I can handle whatever they throw my way. If I could make it through all of what I faced in the war, what they can trial with me now is simply childsplay.

I head down the alley to the last house. All has become too silent. But timidity will cause me more damage than boldness. Whatever may be going on, he who dares, wins.

I check around the corner. Nothing. The path to the castle is clear.

The castle is straight ahead, not more than 100 meters. A steel hill drops right down to the castle’s base. I head to the crumbling ruins, all is still silent as before.

Halfway there, a guard emerges from the 2nd floor. He sees me instantly, and without hesitation blows a horn to let all know I’m here. I quickly silence him with a chestshot, but the alarm has already been raised. I run for the castle, and behind me, two more equine come tearing around the corner to respond. I can’t keep spending ammo so frivolously, there’s got to be a way to out run them.

I make it under the castle's shadow, the two guards hot on my tail. I shoot round around the corner to see a huge whole in the castle walls. I catch its edge just as I blow by, stopping myself and without thinking, throw myself inside. Rampant unease courses through me, it was a risky move but it pays off. The two in tow pass me by, and I once again slip away as a ghost in the shadows.

Inside it is dark, and eerily silent. So quiet that I almost hear Nothing itself bouncing off the walls, filling my ears with a void in noise. It is also cold, I almost see my gray breath against the darkest black. My rifle again is my saving grace. Always at my side, and always ready to make seen what hides itself from all light.

The interior is full of scaffolding, sheets of plywood, and tools for digging. Straight ahead along the wall, a path delving deeper into the unknown. But this is where I must go. I didn’t come this far only to come this far. Whatever lies ahead will surely only bring me closer to my goal, and closer to my freedom.

I walk down the hallowing path.

It takes a sharp right turn, leading down and further underground. Certainly the point of no return. But at the bottom lay my prize. I will let nothing stop me.

Thoughts of my comrades enter my head as I tread the path invisible to light. I have not heard word nor whisper since we split, but surely if Twinkle or Duke ran into trouble, they would let it be known.. Or so I hope.

The path leads into an ever darker empty room. Each wall with is own path leading to who knows where. I stand in the middle, only able to guess which path might lead me closer to the Element. The deathly silence continues to echo in my soul. But a move must be made. I pick one path, and enter between its walls.

Out of nowhere, my scope fills with the yellow signature of a warm body. Before I even have time to pull the trigger, a telltale srinnng! of a summoned magic barrier kills the quiet. Two unicorns stand beforeme, working together to hold a layered shield to halt my advance. The other paths are quickly blocked off by the same bright blockades. It was a trap all along, I have been deceived! Though I saw this coming, my enemy knows me too well, they know my semi automatic weapon cannot fully break these powerful wards. I fire a round in futile frustration. It easily shreds the first layer apart, but the backups stall enough for it to be resummoned.

A voice rings out from behind me, filling the whole room as if spoken through a megaphone. “Well well well. Look who finally decided to quit their game of shadows.” it says in a smooth, cultured accent. I look behind me, and standing between a pair of unicorns, a deep orange pony with a suave brown mane, and an eager grin of contentment. “I’ve been expecting you, Human.”

I have no doubt in my mind that this smiling unicorn is their ring leader. This must be him. This is Prince Mustang himself.

Chapter Five - Escaping With Loyalty

“Prince Mustang!” I say aloud.

His eager smile only grows at the mentioning of his name. “Hm-hm, yes, you are a smart one aren't you?” he says, accent sounding fine, his voice just as smooth and suave as his short, neatly groomed mane.

I look to the blooming magical barricade, glowing bright but transparent just in front of me. I have no chance, I wouldn’t have the ammunition or the time to break through this before being brought down by swift retaliation. A single bullet would simply melt away as the barrier absorbs and diverts its energy. Again, I find that I am beaten. And how bitter it is to face this once more, to not only be at the mercy of my enemy but to know I got myself here in the first place. But also just as self evident as my lack of sight to freedom, a feeling of unsure questioning. Mustang has me where he wants me, no way in or out of this. But he continues to stand there smiling.

“Don’t be alarmed.” he says calmly. “I came to you in peace, and with no quarrel. Please, relax. There is no need to fight, we all have reason to remain calm and collected don’t we?”

“What is this!”

“This for you my friend, is but a chance. A chance to find yourself a better life.”

A better life.. “Oh not this shit again. Mustang, let me go. Now. You don’t know who you’re dealing with.”

“Ahh but I do. I know of your plight all too well.”

I fire once at the barrier to my front, and of course the round simply disintegrates as the barrier falls and is quickly brought back to glowing life by the other unicorn. It was a threat, a message to show him I am armed and ready to fight.

“Such a useless weapon in the arms of someone so desperate.” says Mustang. My rifle shines with a light green aura, and is suddenly pulled away by the unseen force of his magic. Behind the his own protective blockade it floats, laid down on the floor before him. “As I said, I bring you peace, and I bring you a chance. There is no need for such barbarity.”

“Give me back my rifle! I’m not playing Mustang!”

“Give it back or what?”

“Or --”

“Exactly.” I feel my hands suddenly become alight with the same green aura. They slap together, bound at the wrists and completely out of my strength to control. Prince Mustang now holds me as his hostage. “I’m sorry for this. But you leave me no other choice but to have you restrained. I just want to talk, that is all.”

I struggle to slip free of the braces. “Go to hell!”

“Oh, so unkind. What did they do to you? How cruel could Twilight have been to you for you to display such ill tempered aggression?” His horn flashes softly with his last words.

Suddenly I feel calm and stop resisting. All my frantic thoughts seem to flash away with his light. I find myself somehow captivated by his calm and amiable demeanor. But, how could he have known of my dealings with Twilight? What more could he be aware of, and how could he have come across it? “.. How do you know all this? How did you know I was coming?” I ask, my mouth shaking slightly, feeling hollow as focus slips from my mind.

“News of humans in Equestria travels fast nowadays. Faster than it used to, certainly.”

“But you knew I was coming?”

“I have my ways, grounded in mysticism of course.”

“You’ve been spying on us!”

“No, not true. Not true at all. You have much to learn my dear friend, much to learn. Come, bring him to the crypt, where any stragglers he might have brought won’t disturb us.”

Against my own will I feel some phantom aberration place its ghostly fingers around my shoulders, pressing me forward. The unicorns before me tread backwards down the hall, still careful to maintain their shield in a wary disposition. Its glow is all that lights the hall so absent of visibility. And so blinded am I to where it leads as well as to what propels me forward. But we soon come to a halt. The unicorns enter a vast but vacant room. All that lies inside is a sturdy wooden table, dressed with plates of apples. A familiar sight, a familiar feeling. Again the phantom forces push me forward into the blackened room. But soon, the entirety of space gleams with the faint glow of candles, all burning in the same ghostly green hue as Prince Mustang’s aura. I am politely seated in a chair. A unicorn is even so kind as to have pulled it out for me as I approach and rest in its cushioned fabric. The Prince sits opposite of me across the table.

“Care for an apple?” He says, still holding that bold smile of satisfied confidence. His words, like the setting and the tactic, ring just as homely in my ears. I can almost hear Twilight’s own voice speak as he mutters this conversant phrase. But I abstain, my hands still bound together prevent me from opening on the offer.

“I see you have taken a more tranquil way of thinking to this all. Here, let me get rid of those awful bindings for you.” A bright flash of the horn. The glowing and flowing ribbons swirling around my wrists wisp away in an evaporating cloud. “Leave us.” he says once more, and with that all of his entourage exit and head back out of the castle.

“Now, isn’t this better? Just the two of us? No distraction, no foul play. Just an honest unicorn trying to make his way, and a wayward human finding his life anew.”

Ever more do I feel my mind seeming to travel down its own trail of thought, free of my cognition. In my mind I am torn, a struggle to think want I want against what so naturally fetters within. “What is all of this.” I ask, fighting whatever it is that obscures my cogitation.

“All of this? Why this is but a negligible fraction of my dominion. My voice and word carry far across these lands. Magic has a profound effect over those who are emotionally vulnerable, you know. But content are those who follow me, their lives made so much easier in my care. What a pitiful sight this world has turned to. My only goal is to help those in need. I’m sure you can see why I present myself so agreeably.”

“Twilight tells me otherwise. Don’t think I don’t know who and what you are. You’re a warmonger, Mustang, a control freak. I've heard enough about you.”

“Oh dear troublesome Twilight. She’s really broken you from seeing the truth hasn’t she? Poor you. But I do not blame you for falling under her misguided facade. She plays a hard game doesn’t she? Indoctrinating you to her order with such brutish force. Unlike myself, however. I go to great lengths to take care of my own, those who are willing to put aside their fears of this dead world and live in a new harmony. I am no villain.”

“But you want to take the Elements for yourself! So Twilight can’t use them to balance out the magic or whatever.”

“Quite the contrary. It is true that my own quest is to seek them, but for a much different purpose than you have been so polluted to believe by Twilight’s own selfish ploy. I have tasked myself with reforming them under a new epoch. One that would repair so many of our shattered lives, and help us rebuild our culture in a kind of new harmony.”

Through my fogged mind I manage to find but a sliver of my own personal ideation. “Lies!” I shout. “I see what you're doing! You're trying to turn me against them!”

“Turn you against them? By whatever do you mean? My wish is to unite our forces and finally bring peace to these wildlands.” His horn flashes once more, brighter than before. And again, my own thoughts disappear into a cloud of murk. “Look how poorly they’ve treated you, how aggressive and barbaricthey are. Keeping you locked up in that prison, beating you senseless. What kind of life is that for you? I would never let that happen. Have you not noticed how nourished those around here are?”

Harder do I push my thoughts through the fog to become alert, aware to his plan. For that brief moment, my thoughts reign free. “I see what you’re doing!” I shout, slamming both fists on the table. “Don’t think I can’t feel you using your magic to control my mind!”

“But what good would that be? All I ask from you is your.. Communion. Turning your mind into a husk would do me no good. I only mean to keep you subdude from taking hostile action. Your thoughts are otherwise free to your own will.” Once again his horn comes alight, and I feel a calming relief wash over me. It puts away my negative thoughts. No, no! It’s a trick, he’s in my head! But.. I can’t, quite.. disagree with what he’s said. Yes, I have received hardly anything kind in the several days I’ve spent in Twilight’s care. Even without my thoughts being in the hands of another, it’s a fact I simply cannot ignore. “So what is it you want?” I ask. “If you’re after the Elements, what are you going to do with them?”

“The Elements are dangerous tools in the hands of the unfit. Twilight is the unfit. Look at all she’s lost as their caretaker. So many innocent lives wasted, so much of their magic is now forever lost. She’s lost control of the Elements, scattered them, corrupted them, their magic runs weak and dry. It is my only hope that I may somehow restore their impunity and reshape them. In a better image, one more suited for this new world.”

“That’s exactly what Twilight wants.”

“No, not true. Do not forget that her and I used to form an accord. There is still more for you to learn. Twilight still holds to the old ways, ways unfit as I said. Magic simply isn’t the same in this fresh apocalypse you see. She only brings us closer to our downfall with her ignorance, just as she has done to four of the six keepers of the Elements. Such tragedy, such incompetence. We simply cannot allow her to follow through. We must usher in a new era of magic, one that shuns the way of old and is better suited for these abysmal days of gray. That is why I want them, why I need them, why I must have them. And it is with this that I need your help.”

I find myself chuckling at this, being in the exact same position for the second time today. “But why me? Why is it always about me finding them?”

“Your strength, your heart, your character! It’s far more potent than even our mightiest sorcerers. We can all agree that with our lack of knowledge of their locations, that reacquiring them will be a task of the highest difficulty. You and you alone possess the strength and courage to find them. You also have a great advantage we are all envious of. You have no connection to magic whatsoever, which aids you in ways I cannot explain. All I ask from you, is your hand in assistance.”

“But what’s in it for me?”

“Just think of it, think of all you could have if you were to have found me first. You’d be treated like pure royalty, given whatever whenever you asked for it. I feel so horridly disgusted knowing what they did to you. And look, you see all that have joined me. So many have abandoned Twilight and her failed society, and for good reason I must point out. They see my logic, they understand it, they see how much better their lives can be in the aftermath of The Inferno by living in this new era by my side. You could have it all the same.”

It.. does.. seem.. undeniable. Twilight once mentioned that Prince Mustang had created a force much stronger than her own, and it is now that I begin to see why. Somehow, whatever he offers them is just.. Better. Better for their lives. They don’t have to struggle and fight to survive anymore. This could be better for me as well. And it makes sense. We’ve caused so much havoc to this world, upset the balance on such an incredible, incomprehensible scale. Who’s to say that with the reshaping of the world, there WOULDN’T need to be a reshaping of magic to compensate? “I.. see your point. But if I choose to side with you, I have one request I'd like to make first.” I say, feeling guilty, feeling as if I am the betrayer. But I do not hold to these thoughts, the evils I’ve faced in captivity are a great tool of separation. Still however, there is but one facet I must tend to. One loose end I must make sure is tied for my own personal closure.

“Yes, anything you want. Whatever it may be I can make it so. What is it you want? Name it and it is yours my friend.”

“.. Fluttershy. She deserves her own freedom. She shouldn’t have to be so caught up in this. She’s allied with Twilight, and I feel their friendship is something that might.. Keep her tied to the old ways. I don’t need you to convince her to join your side, I just want to know she’ll.. Be okay.”

Mustang begins to act sheepish, unsure of what to say. I can see it in his face that he is attempting to form a response in his head. He tries to speak but his words start as incomprehensible babbles. “Umm, yes, Fluttershy, of course of course. Yes, I can, erm, somehow show her the light of the situation.”

“But is it a guarantee? You don’t get anything out of me unless there’s a guarantee.”

“... Yes, I am sure, that after time, she will want to side with you and live in new harmony as well.”

“But how can you be sure?” Just as quickly as he fell into a sheepish posture, his confidence in his own words bolster back into fruition.

“Fluttershy herself is a key, one of the six Elements. I’m certain that after some convincing, she too will see my ways, my light, and will feel compelled to join our cause as well. She might even spread this view to Twilight, so that we can finally put an end to this tragic strife and once again find ourselves united.”

“Fluttershy.. Is an Element of Harmony?”

“A conduit more or less. But yes, along with Twilight she does hold a quite significant landing in the realm of magic. She is just as important as Twilight, who, with Princess Celestia’s good grace may one day see the truth as well.”

“A conduit? What does that mean? I thought the Elements of Harmony were some sort of necklace or jewelry?”

“This is a true Element.” From out of nowhere, he raises his hoof and on it a sparkling golden necklace. In the center, a vibrant jewel, lightning bolt in shape, glittering red as the dim light bounces off its lustrous surface. An exact match for what I was instructed to find earlier. Prince Mustang is already in possession of it. This mission was a failure from the start. “Is.. Is that, the Element of Loyalty?”

“Has she not told you anything?! Oh my goodness, she sent you here with so little knowledge just expecting you to follow through? Oh, oh how corrupt could she be. She’s just using you, abusing your ignorance for her own gain. How could you stand for this, for being played as such a fool?”

“Now that you mention it, it does kind of seem that way..”

“It IS that way. What is she doing, how foolish can she be! I feel for you. But you have to set things straight. You have to make things right. Don’t let her bully you, control you. Join us. Do what is right. Help us find what we have lost, help us mend the world.”

Hesitance plagues my mind. But, it does somehow seem that I could have more for myself. I could have the closest thing to what I have been dreaming of for so long. A life, a home to call my own, a chance. But how can I be sure this is what he can provide? “I don’t think I’m entirely convinced.”

“..Is that so?”

“Well. How can you prove to me that you can give me what you say? How do I know you have what I want?”

“Hmm, I see where you are headed with this. But please remember back. Remember that I said I have come to you with a chance. A chance, singular. Not more than one. This is your time to decide, this is your chance. Don’t make the wrong decision. This is the one time you’ll be able to make it. Take it now, or take it never. Do I, or do I not have your word?”

“Jax!”

“I..”

“Jax! Come in! Jax where are you!”

“I..” Wait, that’s my name, that’s Twinkle’s voice, calling me over the radio. I hear it, but Mustang does not. “Jax, I’ve been found! I need help! They’re coming! Shit!” The radio goes silent. Twinkle’s in trouble! But what can I do about it here. I’m still trapped, but with the Element just out of reach.

“Prince Mustang! Sir!” A frightened unicorn bursts into the room, sweating nervously and frantically out of breath.

“Yes, what is it! Why must you interrupt my meeting of grand importance!”

“W-w-we’ve found more of them sir! There’s fighting! My team is already engaged, but they’re being held off by one of Twilight’s warriors! Another team reports a similar contact outside the walls!”

Shit. Both Twinkle and Duke have been found! And now they’re fighting for their lives, waiting on me to come to their aid. But here I am held captive with a weighted decision and the inability to break free.

“Well go get them! Send everyone if you must! But do not harm them unless you are forced to! Go!”

The unicorn scrambles away, and Mustang and I return to our discussion. “Time is fleeting human. I need your answer now. But please, just think of all the good that could come your way.”

I’ve already sworn my allegiance to someone, to Twilight and Fluttershy. But at the end of the day, I know that my own needs come first above all others. Survival and Idealism rarely work well together.

“So do I have you? Or do I not?”

I continue to think, but the choice is only clear. If Mustang’s dominion has grown so large there has to be a benevolent factor behind it. Perhaps there is room for me as well. “..... Yes.”

His grin widens exceedingly. “Hmmmm Excellent! I assure you your decision will meet you well. There is much to tend to of course. But with you at my side, my influence will only further in increase!”

Further his influence.. Influence.. His influence over others..

In my head I hear yet another calling back to earlier today. Twilight’s voice, it resonates in my mind. Hazy at first but becoming clear as my memory protrudes itself against the fog. Do not underestimate him. He can use his powers to influence the minds of others without them ever knowing. I know he’s been playing with my mind in some way, I know I’m acting outside of my own character. It’s his magic. He’s been using it to control my thoughts, but to what extent? How much of my agreement was of my own doing? How much more does he plan to.. Corrupt me to his will?

Once again, that resentful beast I have for their kind comes forth within my soul, eating away at the calm and raising me to a boil. A boil of anger, of hate, of distrust. He’s just trying to use me as well! The same as Twilight has tricked me. The only difference between them is their tactic. Mustang has been using his own abilities to keep my control, while Twilight simply plays on my ignorance of her plight for the same. Both of them want to use me for their own gain, but who is the greater of the two evils? The one who promises prosperity to all but has them under his psionic spell.. Or the one who’s lost everything to incompetence and now leads a failing society, keeping their own intelligence locked away in the shadows? Both disgust me, both are evil. Both are my enemy as they have been since my birth. I still cannot deny that this is the home that I now live in, and must play my part to protect it. But I find myself not wanting to align with either side, as neither of them are deserving of my creed. My trust goes solely to that of my only friend. She is all that matters to me still. Perhaps, for now, I must continue to play on the side of Twilight, so that I might someday find myself free on my own path with Fluttershy. She doesn’t deserve to be caught up in this war either. To hell with Mustang, and to hell with Twilight.

“The moment we clear this place of hostiles we can begin integrating you within our great society, and your prosperous future will be set in motion!”

“I hope you don’t plan on hurting those hostiles, Mustang. I brought them here with me. I hate to say it but those are my friends.”

“They-They’re your friends? Well of-of-of-of course I knew that already but, I am displeased to admit it myself but, these are my enemies you see. They’ve killed my own, and the more time passes the more I fear I might lose another to them.”

“They fight you only because you treat them as hostiles.”

“Where is this coming from? I thought you had sided with me, with my side of this great quest?”

“I might have, but somehow I just can’t quite see things the way you do.”

“.. You’re beginning to sound like I don’t have your full trust. You’re beginning to sound like you’ve lied.”

Powerfully does his horn begin to glow, I can feel his influence burrowing into my brain like a worm. But I remember back once more, to something he mentioned about his magic. Magic has a profound effect over those who are emotionally vulnerable. Emotionally vulnerable. I see more now, he’s been playing against my emotions, building them up so that he can have high levels of control within my subconscious. What a heinous act of distrust. If there is one thing I detest it’s being manipulated. Mustang has gone too far with this since the start. But I cannot allow my anger for him to manifest further, I must calm myself. To break free of his power.

I take a deep breath as he stares into my soul with displeasure, clearing my mind of all thoughts, focusing only on peace. But as I do, I feel his grasp clenching tighter. I put all my effort into my breathing. In.. and out. In.. and out. Slowly, calmly, putting aside all feelings for everything, relying only on my personal resilience. In.. Thoughts of the war come to mind, the horrifying experiences, the loss.. Out, peacefully, kindly coming to terms with all that pain, blocking it out so it can’t be used against me. In.. My wife, my daughter, both their lives cut short.. Out, they deserved a better life, and at least they are now free from all pain and suffering. In.. My hatred for Mustang and Twilight, all the lies, all the manipulation. Treating me no better than a disposable tool.. Out, I do not blame them, for as myself they are just trying to survive and maintain control. I repeat this until I am at peace. Peace will self, mind and body. At peace with any of my negative history that could be turned to darker usage.

Mustang continues to subdue my thoughts. I feel it all slipping away as I fight back for inner peace. But a hollow region of thought lay untouched and to my own. The smallest portion of myself is still free It is this that holds the only line of defence against his authoritative allure. If I am to free myself completely, I must cease his gaining flow, I have to stop him somehow. He will not stop until he is defeated, and I cannot gain my freedom until then. I must take his life.

There is a single oversight, one monumental failure on Mustang’s part. Though he has done away with my rifle, he has left me with one crucial tool hidden away within my belt. My knife. It’s still there, I feel the sheath against my waist.

As the ravaging fight for control continues, Mustang keeps his full focus on his attempt to completely destroy my psyche. But with that last dwindling sliver of thought, my hand finds itself reaching down and grabbing that comfortable, recognizable handle. From the sheath it slides, stuttering in and out as the civil war rages within. To hurt Mustang, or to help him. The last free thoughts I have continue to shrink, but further does the knife slide to its own freedom.

I put one more heavy push into keeping myself in tranquility. Almost entering a dull trance with the only thing still keeping me tied to conscientious alertness, is the struggle I wage against he who sits before me. But this is enough, this is all I need to pull the knife completely free of its cage. I grip it behind the backwards blade, throwing my arm over my head and with one powerful forward swing I let go. In the swiftness of the motion, Mustang does not see it coming. Through the air flies the knife, spinning with grace and elegance before finding its resting place deep within his midsection.

His eyes explode open, but his head drops limp. A steady stream of red drains from his jaw, spilling and splattering to his lap and to the floor. From his hoof the Element falls, clattering and dancing on the hard stone floor before becoming still. All the candles that light the room extinguish with his death. There is silence, only faint echoes of fighting magic from somewhere outside. But then, erupting cacophonously from Prince Mustang, a ghastly phantom figure. Red and dark just as his spilled blood, rising from his body. Screaming, bellowing with a demonic voice the likes of which shatters even my own calmness and rattles me to the bone. It’s own blood-light fills the room voluminously. It fully leaves him, appearing as a tortured face. Distorted, eyes beaming, its screaming rings ferociously in my ears as it swiftly shoots through the ceiling and is gone from sight. It’s voice disappears. I continue to sit, my thoughts now free and to myself. Free to contemplate what they hell I just saw.

But at the noise outside I divert my thoughts. There’s still a task, there’s still a mission to be accomplished. Now that my head is free of clouded extortion I remember what I came here for. For.. Twilight.. But more importantly to gain my freedom.

Lying just across the table on the floor is the Element, clear and mine for the taking.. If I can find it in this dark. I get down on all fours and crawl around until I brush across its smooth but cold metal plane. The ringing and pinging, zipping and zapping of spell conjuring still rages on outside as my fist closes around my prize. I’ll leave Mustang where he lies, the knife has him pinned to the back of the chair. Upon retrieving my knife, his corpse slumps forward, splashing down in his own blood as he hits the floor. A fitting end for someone so twisted. Given that once I killed him and my thoughts were freed, I begin to wonder why others haven’t been freed as well. Perhaps they believed in him so truly that they had been completely indoctrinated over time. Or maybe, like me, they’re just not sure what they.. Want to believe in anymore. But nevertheless, the two I brought along are now under siege. This does present me an opportunity to abscond alone with my prize, free of all conflict. But.. How would I find my way back without at least one of them? And what if they somehow escape as well and return after me? How would I explain that? That means I unfortunately have to further my time to their aid, despite not wanting to. As Twilight said, it’s important that we all come home together, so maybe I can use saving them as added leverage for my own emancipation.

I fumble around and down the hall I came from, back into the square room with four exits. To my surprise and luck, it would appear blatantly obvious that all guards within the vicinity have gone to fight, giving me a shining opportunity to slip away with my Element and not attract much attention. Also to my surprise, my foot stumbles upon the hard knock of my rifle. Still where Mustang had laid it on the floor, untouched and untampered. With it now firmly back in my arms I can use its optics to find my way back out of the darkness and into the shallow light outside.

I quickly find the exit, and a hasty ammo check is in order as the zipping and zapping only grows in volume. 5 rounds left in this magazine, one in the chamber, plus another ten in my final mag. Hardly enough to take on so many foes. Just another reason why escaping with my team to cover me is a good idea.

The moment I look outside, back out into the dusty, rocky excavation area, I find the northern exit wide open. No guards, but no sign of Duke or Twinkle either. But there it is, a gaping hole is all that stands between myself and my inexorable elusion. Out of the castle I come running, up a small hill, and back out into the ash which falls black under the night sky. To my left I notice the light show that had been causing so much commotion. About 200 meters away in the lowground, a flurry of brightly glowing bolts in all colors shoot across the ground. Most of it directed at one point in particular where sporadic blue bolts are firing back. That’s got to be either Duke or Twinkle, possibly both making a last stand under fire. I see a single bolt fired too close to them, a glowing shield flashes its light and deflects the bolt away. The shield holds, and whoever casts it appears to be making a hasty retreat away from Mustang’s forces. Again, I am faced with the decision to simply abandon whoever may be over there in favor of a wide open escape.

“Jax I see you don’t move!” I hear the voice of Duke call over the radio. In no time later I see him galloping towards me out of the darkness. “Jax! Jax!” He shouts as he runs. “Twinkles over there! We have to help her out!”

“How the hell did she get all the way over there.. Wait, Duke, I have the Element --”

“You do?! Awesome dude! But we can’t leave yet, not without Twink!”

“Duke now’s our chance to make it out with no trouble on our tails! I’m sure she can hold her own to cover us.”

“No way dude, I’m not doing her dirty like that. We have to go help her, now! Let’s go!”

“Wait Duke --” He runs off back towards the firefight. *Sigh* Perhaps I shall assist him, after all he’s my ticket home and it would look better if we all made it back in one piece. “Sit tight Twinkle” I say into my radio. “Help’s on the way, just hold them off a little longer.

“Twink! We’re coming Twink just hold on!” shouts Duke as he runs.

There is no response from her as the fighting rages on.

From here, through my scope I find all of Twinkle’s opposition in cover behind scattered rocks. All of which block any shot I might have. Based on their firing positions I count about eight of them, all aimed a Twinkle as I watch her dive behind a rock in an attempt to distance herself. But it does look like it’s working. Everytime there’s a break in fire she manages to hop behind another rock and gain space. Though I don’t have a shot at any of them, I can still scare the living daylights out of them with my own fire. I promptly remove my silencer, power the weapon to full, and take aim to a random pony behind a random rock.

St-KYOOSH!

The single round with such power behind it turns the rock into nothing but dust. Every pony scatters at the sound. It blasts with such a magnitude it briefly knocks the wind held within me. Feeling like an ardent punch across my whole body. It is unclear what happened to the one behind the rock. The impact cloud is so thick that not even my optics can pierce it. But it is enough to buy Twinkle some time, as her opposition now cowers behind cover with their shields raised. With them suppressed, I sprint into the fray. Jumping over slabs, vaulting over boulders, sliding down hill with such speed and grace to Twinkle’s last known position. I make it all the way to her in a matter of seconds, excited urgency flowing like a broken dam. I slide to the ground behind her, resting on the same cover with both our backs to the enemy. She’s excited to see me, but in a less than enthusiastic manner. “Jax what are you doing here!” she shouts, surprised by my sudden appearance.

“Tried to get you over the radio. You didn’t answer.”

“I lost my radio! In case you didn’t notice I’m kind of tied up at the moment!”

Duke comes running up out of the darkness. “Twink! He’s got it! He’s got the Element of Loyalty!”

“What! But, how’d you find it?”

“Long story.” I reply. “And in case you didn’t notice, I have them kinda suppressed at the moment. Now would be a good time to leave yeah?”

“Well if you have it then go! I’ll hold them off while you get back to the enclave!”

“This is no time for heroics Twinkle, we have a perfect escape route to the north.” As I say this I can see in her face, hesitance. She wants to prove me wrong somehow, not wanting to agree with me but she knows that I am right.

Duke, ready to make a hasty beeline to freedom looks to us. “Come on Twink! Remember our style our motto, let’s get outta here before they pick back up!”

I come to my feet, looking over our cover to make sure it’s still clear, and it is. “Let’s go Twinkle!”

The three of us clamber to a full sprint away from the scene. In this dark it is unlikely they will be able to keep a steady bead on us as we move like shadows. We head north, which at this point is our only known way out of here. Behind us, the entire compound alive with sentries frantic to gain closure on us. In no time we come to a trail, and follow it away. But just as we get onto its dusty lanes, we run right into a patrol of three returning from duty. We come sliding to a stop, diving into a ditch beside the trail just as they open fire. Likewise they fire a flurry of suppressing bolts as they too take cover in a ditch opposite the trail from ours. Their suppression flies just inches overhead as we hug the ground. They smash and spark against the ground all around us, hissing and whistling as they disperse their exploding energy. While my own weapon certainly is dangerous to them, their magic also poses a significant threat to me. I am lucky enough to never have been hit, but I’ve had enough close calls and seen others fall to know of its searing heat. I’ve never fought alongside the Equine kind, but we must work to eliminate them before we can advance.

“So what’s the plan.” I say, panting, looking left to Twinkle and Duke. Surely with they’re experience they’ve dealt with this before as well. I personally know I could take them out, if we weren’t pinned down.

“What-cha thinkin’ Twink?” asks Duke, somehow happily exhilarated to be in this situation.

“I’m thinking.. I’m thinking I can hold up a barrier. We can crawl along this trench until we run out of ground or make it out of here.”

“You sure you got enough left in you for that?”

“Yes, hold on, get ready to move.”

She rolls on her belly, crawling up over the ditch to project her shield. But just as it comes up it sparks out of existence. The very same bolt that hit her barrier passes through, striking her directly in the face. It sizzles like a hot pan of grease as she screams out in pain, drops flat, and covers her face with her hoof.

“Twink! You alright? Please tell me you’re alright!”

She grunts. “I’m fine Duke. Not the first time I’ve been hit there.”

“What was that?” I ask. Usually a barrier would be more than strong enough to deflect any conventional weapon.

“I’m out.” she says, still covering her face.

“What do you mean you’re out! Out of what!”

“I’m out of magic! I used it all up to get away from the compound!”

“Out of ma- what? How does that even happen!” In my dealings I’ve never seen a unicorn run out of magic, nor have a seen such wide use of their weakest attacks and defences.

“It happens okay!” She is angrily embarrassed. “Don’t worry about it right now!”

“Okay, then Duke. Do the same thing.”

“I can’t! I’m not good with shields!”

“What does that even - how can - ggrrm.” I groan in frustration. Looks like it’s down to me to finish the job. Maybe if they too run on limited magic, I can just wait until they run out as well. “Will they run out anytime soon?”

Twinkle continues to tend to her injury. “No! They won’t! Don’t worry about why, we need to get out of here! There’s more coming!”

“Certainly would be advantageous to know why!”

“Fine! They can back each other up, the more of them align their auras, the more access they have! There’s a lot of them, they won’t run out. And there’s just two of us.”

“And I’m running low myself!” says Duke.

“Well that’s just great.” I look down the the length of the ditch. There isn't much distance before it levels off to meet the trail. Think think think.. You have one unicorn with no magic, the other can’t hold a shield as is running out. And then there’s me.

The hail of sizzling, sparkling bolts wizz overhead incessantly. What could I do to subdue them? I could risk taking a hit myself but somehow humans are more susceptible to damage than unicorns. It’s not something I’m willing to risk….. Perhaps a modified Battle Drill 1a is in due order. Yes, that should work. If I can use Twink and Duke as a distraction to divert their fire, I can strike at their flank!

“Alright I got a plan!” I say, clapping my hands together.

“Let’s hear it!” Duke says, still all too unnaturally excited by the danger.

“Duke, you can’t hold a shield but can you at least project one?”

“I can try!”

“Good, take Twink with you. Crawl down away from me a little bit, then throw your shield up and get their attention.”

“But it won’t hold!”

“I know that, just get it up long enough to get their attention! They’ll think all of us are moving that way.”

“Ahhh I see what you’re planning! Sure thing! Come on Twink!”

“Good! Just wait till I give a signal!”

“Right!”

They both crawl away, low and slow, safe from being hit but just barely. The bolts fly over so close we can all feel their heat as they crackle on by. I crawl away from them, securing a nice spot in the deepening trench. Duke stops and looks to me, ready to try our untested plan. Untested and unanticipated seems to be the theme of the night. But he looks ready and confident, he has his arm around Twinkle to comfort and protect her. “Now!” I shout. A bright green bubble flashes in around them, and immediately most of their fire is directed straight their way. All it takes is one hit to knock his shield out, but he summons another which falls just as quickly. But they haven’t fully taken the bait. Aimless bursts still impact around me too heavily to get a shot off myself. Duke starts firing back with his own weak bolts, not with any aim to hit them but just to further the distraction. Once their fire is lifted from around me I look over to them. They are completely distracted. They all focus cautiously on Duke and Twinkle, unaware that I’m still over here. I crawl up, taking perfect aim at the closest unicorn to me. Full power is not necessary, and would only damage my rifle if used too often. Half power should suffice. That’s usually standard. Just as I’m lining up my shot, with the enemy only 25 meters away, the same unicorn I aim to kill spots me. But I take the shot. And at the same instant of the trigger pull, he projects a shield to counter me. It’s a direct hit against it. An outbreak of sparks fly from the impact, turning the metal slug into molten slag as it bounces off and shoots skyward. But his shield breaks, sending my opponent staggering in powerful disorientation. For them, holding a shield against such kinetic force is like wearing a mask to protect against a punch. Though it doesn’t hit them directly, they still absorb some of that dissipated energy. This is why they often work in pairs. But I have no time to waste. Another quick pull of the trigger. A direct hit just below his neck. His entire chest implodes, his head falls completely severed. As the bullet leaves his body, everything in the rear half of his body explodes outward in a shower of gore.

Three rounds left. Before I take aim at the next, he’s already aware of my position and retaliates. His aim is all over the place. I can tell just how shaken he is after being showered by the bloody mess just beside him. I take cover anyway. These Equine are smart, smart enough to only allow themselves to be fooled once. So much for that plan, but at least I have taken out one of three remaining foes. More are soon to arrive, I must take out the other two before that happens. If only I had a grenade.

The enemy’s fire is now split in half against myself and Duke. How to handle this.. A diversion could work well here. The same unicorn who engages me is still quite shaken. If I can keep drawing his fire and gain the attention of the other, it might give Duke a chance to fire back.

I take an aggressive stance, trying to make myself look as if vying for a firing position. I keep my head barely above the ground, rifle pointed their way. They switch between holding a shield and returning fire, unsure of our next tactic. It’s quite a challenge to keep my head up, the shaken unicorn’s aim only increases with time. But it does catch some attention of his partner. The one I am to kill taps the other on the shoulder, directing him to my threat. His partner fires at me like a machine gun. I’m forced to keep my head down as vibrant red streaks graze just above me. But I have their attention, they direct ¾ of their fire straight at me. A few bolts land just to my front, the sparks they explode into rain all over my back. It singes and tingles all the same as roasting neath an electric fire. I look to Duke. He has his head down as well, avoiding the all to inaccurate fire. “Now Duke! Take a shot!”

He sees his opportunity, poking his head up just enough to aim. But he misses, firing and firing again, his aim countered by their own. But he lands a lucky hit, the fast firing unicorn falls off balance and is stunned. Now's my chance. In not even half a second I'm on target and I pull. His back half explodes out in a similar fashion as with the other, drenching the remaining unicorn with his innards. I keep watch, he screams with utter horror and disgust as he wipes himself off, pushing away the leg that had landed on top of him. He retreats, staggering and shaking as he crawls out of the trench. But we can’t let him go back. He’ll only give us away to reinforcements.

I power my rifle down, admitting to myself that half power has always been grossly unnecessary. I tone it down just enough to cripple him, aiming at his back leg. I take the shot, and he falls to the ground unable to walk. He now cries with a mix of disgust and dismay, but we don't have time to listen as we make our fleet footed escape to the north. We hear shouting behind us, they have our scent and know our trail. They fire at us from afar. Twinkle takes another hit but she keeps running, only slowed for a moment. She brushes it off entirely, too gleefully excited to finally break away to notice the pain. The streaks fly on by with vigor, they only light our way as we slip into the darkness. The still glowing embers of a bolt freshly smashed scatter around us. It's just enough to give us hue against the black as we blaze across the serrated ground. But we make our distance, the force in trail fades away as our effervescent exhilaration shines. We look back we see them giving up the chase. We’ve made it too far too swiftly for their over coordination to ever have a chance.

After some time running we come to a stop. Through my sites I see nothing but the endless blue tone of the evenly cooled ground behind us. None have followed, we’ve done it. We’ve escaped with Loyalty, all that remains is our journey back. I hold the Element, staring into it as I pridefully congratulate myself on a victory well earned against the odds. “I can't believe we did it.” I say. The others breathe heavily to regain their composure.

“I can’t believe we killed all those guys. Damn.” says Duke. He flops to the ground and continues to respire.

“We did what we had to.” Twinkle says. “We lost more today but at least we’re one step closer to fixing this. Jax I.. I didn't expect you to come back for me.”

“I didn't either. But hey, we’re a team right?”

“Yeah.. We’re a team..”

Duke throws himself upright. “We totally smoked those dudes! They’ll never find us out here, we’re just way too fast! Ah, man, what a day. Twink you did awesome! Holding off all those baddies by yourself!”

“Yeah.. Awesome..”

“And you too Jax!.. Something wrong Twink?”

She lets out a hard sigh as her pain finally sets in. “No, nothing. Let's just get home so I can get my magic back. And give the Element to Twilight.”

With that we head on through the abyss. Back towards the enclave, back to Twilight so I may return half of my owed favor.

Chapter Six - Seeds of Deception

Twinkleshine carries on at a distance as we trundle over the rocks. The Moon is now high in the sky, rising over the ridges and giving us just enough vision to keep moving forward. Duke hops along excitedly, singing to himself and practically dancing as he trots. I look to him humorously. It lifts my spirits somewhat to see that one can still be so chipper in these dark times. But I also look to Twinkleshine. She looks distraught, a heavy burden weighs her mind. She does not speak, and does not look our way. She only keeps her distance as the pain from her fight grows as she hobbles.

As we further our way back home, I can only think back to my encounter with Prince Mustang. Everything he said, every point against Twilight he brought up.. I may not be under his mind twisting psionics anymore, but it all feels all too real. It all still hangs fresh in my mind. He knew so much. He knew exactly how I had been treated and exactly when I was coming. But.. how? Does he have an inside man? A spy working against Twilight and her plight? I still think of Twilight as my captor. I still look at her and see my enemy. But.. somehow I understand. I can't blame her entirely.

I think back to how lucky we were. It strikes me sternly to realize how little control we had. Everything was out of our grasp. We only made it out because not everything had gone with the plan they set for us. But it came close. The true hero of the night was luck.

That.. ghost I saw.. when Mustang passed. Its face still haunts me. Those burning eyes still jab through the windows of my own soul. Whatever it was, ghostly in nature or otherwise, there’s obviously too much I do not understand about magic.

Speaking of magic, my attention swings back to Twinkle. Twinkleshine is obviously one who does not give up easily. I subtly admire how she could have taken so much and kept going. This trend surprisingly holds for many of her kind. I only saw her hit twice, and though the attacks were faced we weak, it’s unclear how many more times she was hit while I dealt with Mustang. But from the way she's limping it looks like she took quite a few. I've seen so many creative spells in my time. I wonder why they do not use them. Those we ran into could have use telekinesis, paralysis, a whole host of other spells and yet they revert to such simplicity.

We thought unicorns would be weak when we first arrived, but we were sorely wrong. They turned out to be our greatest threat. Our only weapons against them were sheer numbers, and how efficient we are with swift, deadly dispatching. I've seen some incomprehensibly powerful attacks. I heard of entire units being held back by just a handful of them. But in the end, once our main force had arrived with jets, “Thunder Birds” they called them, and tanks, it was all over. A total of 80 million soldiers landed in the Equine Theater alone. And that's not to include vehicles, aircraft and the heavy guns that covered them.

But now for some reason, their magic is weak. Bolts and shields are only the most basic of their scopious repertuar. Perhaps it's to do with the dwindling energy that persists in their world. Twinkle mentioned something about access, but to what? They must draw their energy from somewhere or something, but I doubt that in my scientific capacity, I will ever understand it completely. Still though, it surprises me to see how much Twinkle could take and keep going. She must be very powerful. Something I’ve learned in my trials about unicorns, adeptness in magic works both ways. It affects their skill and how much they can unleash at once, but also how much they can absorb as punishment. It almost works like body armor, which is something I unfortunately was never given the luxury of being issued. My only defence was a stealth cloak, and my training. With our cloaks we were almost invisible when motionless. But it didn’t take much for a proficient unicorn to cripple one of us. Given that humans have absolutely no bearings on magic, we have zero natural defence against it as a powerful magic wielder would. But they didn’t just have magic on their side. They were pretty crafty, too. I lost my closest teammates to one of their more.. creative defences of a small village sat in the middle of a forest.

The entire way we’ve come, I've been on constant look out for Mustang’s goons. Every few hundred meters or so, we’ve stopped to make sure we aren’t being followed. All scans come up negative, but I just can't shake the feeling we’re being watched. Perhaps it's just my paranoia getting the better of me, as it always does.

- - -

Duke looks to Twinkle as she trots along solemnly. He noticed her sad and slightly pained expression, her eyes barely open. “Something wrong Twink? You look a little upset.”

“Sigh, Don’t worry about it Duke. I’ll be fine.”

“I'm sure you will, but come on, nothing better than sharing it with your best friend.”

“It's fine, Duke.”

“You always say that when it really isn't. Come ooooonn. Is this about running out of magic? Or getting hit again?”

“Ugh, Duke you know I'm not that shallow.” She smiles softly, playfully batting Duke away with her hoof.

“You can tell us Twink. We’re all friends here.”

“Well, most of us are friends at least.”

She looks to me, but her face is hard to read. I'm not sure if it shows a natural spite for me, or if she means something more.. friendly.

“Nah we’re all friends. Ain't that right Jax?”

“Woah hey don't bring me int-- I mean, sure. Friends, why not. We did work well enough to get through this in one piece.” I say.

“You see Twink?”

“Fine. I'll tell you when we get back home.”

“Nope. You're going to tell me now because I know you, and you're just going to keep holding it down like it doesn't matter. Come on Twink, I care about ya. You did so well tonight. We totally wouldn't have pulled that off without you. What could you be down about? Be proud of yourself, you did awesome.”

“Well, I can't say that I’m proud of what I saw and.. what I did.”

“Nah, like you said you did what you had to. At least now we’re one step closer, right?”

“I know, Duke. One step closer. I just.. wish there was some other way.”

“Some other way than what?”

“Some other way than fighting. Than killing. This war for peace is pointless. It doesn't do anything for anyone except get more of us killed, on both sides. I just.. wish Prince Mustang would see that and finally give us a break.”

I want to say something about Mustang but I know I shouldn't. I can't be sure how either of them would react if I told them I had more than just a word with him. Perhaps it's something I should bring up privately with Twilight.

“I.. feel the same way.” Duke replies, now calmed to match Twinkle’s mood. “But, well this is just how things are, and it's what we have to deal with until we get all the Elements back.”

“IF we get them back.”

“Cheer up Twink. I mean look at us, you and I, plus Jax of course, we’re the best of the best. Prince Mustang ain't got nothing the three of us can’t handle.”

“Yeah, except numbers Duke. He's got at least 20 times what we have. I don't know how he's managing to keep getting so many, or where they're even coming from but.. Have you ever thought we might be on the wrong side?”

“Twink he gets them by kidnapping from wherever he can find more. Then he makes them join.”

“Yeah but how does he make them? They all seem so willing and ready to just jump on the train. I don't think he’s forcing any of them. Maybe.. maybe they just have it better..”

“You're starting to sound a little.. strange. I don't like it.”

“There's just a lot going on Duke, I.. I just need a break.”

“Well make sure you get plenty of sleep tonight. There's gunna be a lot of downtime till we have to go out again. Take a break Twink, you've been working hard, you need it. I'll even cover your guard shifts for you.”

“Thanks Duke..”

“It's his magic.” I say. “That's how he gets so many to join him.”

“His magic?” Twinkle says looking at me. “But.. how? And why would you know?”

“.. Twilight told me. She said something about him being able to use it for mind control. She didn't tell you that?”

“No, Twilight doesn't tell us anything. Aside from where to go and what to do. Like we’re her pawns or something. You'd think she'd be a little more honest with us, let us know a little more.”

“.. Well then. Well she told me a lot. I wonder what else she's hiding if that's the case. But yeah, as a soldier I'd agree. If you're her best I think she should be telling you more.”

“Maybe she just does it because she's got a lot going on as well.” Duke says in honest defence. “I mean, we all know she's got a lot on her plate being in her role. Maybe she just forgets sometimes.”

“A good leader wouldn't forget things like “Hey, Fluttershy’s still crazy so watch out” or “There’s gunna be a hundred guards around Loyalty so be careful”. Sometimes more heads up would be nice.”

“Maybe.. maybe she just doesn't always know either. She's not psychic, you know.”

“She really doesn't tell you that much? Is it that bad?” I ask, now further questioning Twilight's leadership. And also questioning Twinkleshine's character.

“Yeah. Maybe Twilight just isn't the right pony for the job.”

“Twinkle Shine!” Duke exclaims, taken aback.

“What! We’re all thinking it! I'm just the one who's honest enough to say it!”

“You're starting to sound more like one of Prince Mustang's goons! Totally not cool Twink. Twilight's doing her best! Even if her ideas are a little sketchy, it's better than being under a psionic spell, like Jax pointed out! Come on, pull yourself together. You know your mind’s not in the right place right now. When we get back, I'm taking you straight to Primrose to get checked out, and then you're going to bed.”

“This is why I didn't want to bring it up.” She trots ahead, distancing herself. Duke and I look on as she leads the way. He carries on muted, while I study in on Twinkle. Her words seemed.. questionable. Perhaps underneath how she spoke are seditious motives. The early, or possibly late stages of seeded betrayal. It's already known to me that somehow, through some pony or some way, Prince Mustang is spying on Twilight. Certain things would be explained about the character I see in her if this were true. I should bring this up with Twilight as well, it could be her.

As we go on through the chilling night, the craggy valleys of Ramble Rock Ridge gives back into the smooth plains south of Ponyville. Our return journey goes undisturbed, though a watchful spirit is always held between us. We soon see a hill in the distance. A boulderous caveway marks the entrance to the enclave. I can see Twilight up ahead. She paces back and forth uneasily as she awaits news of our mission. But she spots us, and gallops towards us with excitement.

And so there she is. She looks different now that I've uncovered more about her. What joy I had from our success quickly dissipates as I look into her eyes. They gleam with hope, but shine just as equally with apprehension. Fearful of bad news as she notices our ragged condition the closer she comes. “You're back!” She shouts, sliding to a stop. “How’d it go? Did you find the -- Oh my gosh! Jax, what happened!”

“What?”

“You’re covered in blood!”

“Oh. Things got a little.. Out of hand. I tried to avoid it but, I did what I had to do.”

“It wasn’t his fault, Twilight.” Twinkle interjects.

“Twinkle.. What happened out there..?” Twilight asks, saddened to see our bumps and bruises.

We all stare at her in silence, our bodies tired, and our spirits exhausted. She looks to me. “.. Did you get it?”

I pull the Element from my pocket without saying a word. Twilight’s face grows bright with joy. “You, you actually did it! Jax, I --” She clears her throat. “We need to get this down to the sanctum now. I need to make sure it’s still.. On our side.”

“On our side? What does that mean?” I ask.

“I’ll explain more when we get down there. Twinkle.. You’re hurt, are you okay?”

“I’m fine. I’m going to see Primrose right now. Come on Duke..”

They leave, their heads down low. We follow them back into the caves, but our paths soon split as we go off with different missions in mind.

- - -

The sanctum doors slam shut behind us. Now that we’re alone, I finally have my chance to speak with Twilight. “Okay Jax, now we need to --”

“What the hell’s going on here Twilight.”

“I - Jax, w-what do you mean?”

“You sent us into a trap! They knew we were coming!”

“What! But, how can that be?”

“Don’t act so surprised. You’ve been at this for a while now, you should have an idea of the battlefield. And I know you’re hiding things from us. If it wasn’t for sheer luck, we wouldn’t have made it out of there alive!”

“Jax, I --”

“Start talking, Twilight. You’re going to tell me everything and you’re going to tell me the truth.”

“You want the truth..? But I’ve told you the truth!”

“No, you told us only parts of it. I want the whole thing, the whole story, and I want it now or I’m out.”

“Jax I’ve told you everything! I don't think you know what you’re --”

“Yes, I do! I learned a lot while I was out there, had some time to think and now I see the bigger picture. You’re keeping us in the shadows, you’re forcing your own people to live under ignorance!”

She looks at me frightened, and confused. Backing away, her face of anguish says more than words. She’s afraid I’ve found out her lies, she’s afraid I see through her guise. But she looks away, summons a chair and crawls up to sit. She looks back down to my feet, her face now overcome with grief. “The truth? The truth is..”

She bows her head, and the Element leaves my hand under her control. It floats away, glowing as she sets it in the center of the pointed table. As she speaks, her horn glows. She’s casting a spell on the gem, I can tell. “Yes. I haven’t been honest with you Jax. I haven’t been honest with anypony, for that matter. There’s so much going on, I don’t think I even fully understand it.”

A swarm of ghostly wisps loop and swirl around the element. It rises inches from the table, and there is a bright flash before it slowly floats back down.

She sighs with relief. “Good. It still has enough magic to remain stable. Jax.. The truth.. The truth is.. I’m afraid. I don’t know what I’m doing. I don’t know what the right steps are or what to do next. I don’t have my guidance anymore. I’ve lost control of myself, and now I’m losing control of everything around me.” A solitary tear rolls down her cheek. “The world is falling apart in ways no one can imagine, and I’m powerless to fix it. I thought if I kept the truth from everypony, they’d be less afraid and have more hope. I don’t tell anyone everything because I’m afraid I might lose them. I’ve lost so many.. So many close friends.. Family.. Everyone I’ve ever.. loved..”

I stand and listen, not muttering a sound or word. But I have one question I must ask. “What is going on?”

Losing control of herself, she falls into tears. She tries to keep her hold, tries to hold back her falling droplets but fails. “I don’t know Jax. That’s the problem. The invasion was hard enough, it was impossible - But now I face something even worse and I don’t even know what it is!”

This isn’t acting. I know that this really is the truth.

She summons a chair for me, and I take the offer. Now sitting across from her, I rub my hands together and think of what to say. “So.. You and I are practically the same then.”

She looks to me unsure, wiping her face. I go on. “I don’t know what I’m doing either. I have no plan. I thought I did, but everything kinda changed when I met Fluttershy. I still don’t understand anything about you, your magic, or what comes next. I’m kinda just.. Playing it by ear and hoping I’m still alive in the end.”

There’s silence. I look to her, her eyes dart around, and we both think carefully of our words. Both of us are calm, especially myself though I’m still not sure what or who to believe in. I still have things I’m hiding from her as well. Equal pay for equal sin I suppose. I.. know I should tell her about Mustang but.. I don’t know, I guess I’m afraid of what might follow. I know that he was important to keep alive, but with all Twilight’s been through, maybe it’s too much. I’ll let it slide.. For now. “So what do you know.” I ask.

She wipes her face, and takes a deep breath. “I know.. That we’re running out of time. Everything I said earlier was true, but there may have been a few minor details I left out. Things that, might make the situation seem more dangerous if the others knew.”

“Well it’s just you and me now. Apparently we’re still working together so, perhaps we should be more honest.”

“..Yes. Well, the most important thing I left out earlier was the nature of fading magic. I’m sure you’re wondering what the Elements of Harmony are. I probably should have told you that already too but -” She goes on in depth, explaining their purpose, and what each of the six represent. I find it a little silly that friendship is the key to everything, but I push that to the side. As much as I want to joke about it, I understand its depth, its effects, and its dire importance.

“- But they still have a weakness. They can be turned into the opposite of what they represent. And when that happens, it starts, how do I describe this.. I haven’t had much time to research this. All the archives of their history have been destroyed so I have no way to study into it. But what I’ve learned is that as their magic fades, they become corrupt and begin exuding negative magic to those around it. You asked about why we’re all so afraid of Fluttershy earlier. It’s because she came in contact with her own element after it had been corrupted. Her Element is Kindness, and the opposite of that is Cruelty. She went.. Out of her way and it led so many brave colts to losing their lives. I’m amazed to see she’s turned back to normal. Whatever you did, whatever you two experience out their on your own somehow reverted her back.”

“Fluttershy, killed her own people?”

“Well, not exactly. She’d been acting strange for a time but never anything awful. I sent her and a large group of my best colts to retrieve Kindness, but before they could even get to it, Fluttershy.. Broke. From what witnesses told me, she led a night crawler to them and.. Of the twelve I sent out, only two made it back. We tried our best to save the others, but we lost them too. I had no choice but to exile her. And now Kindness is lost.”

“..I see..”

“Look at this.” She changes the table’s face into a display with one number showing. “74. That’s how many ponies I and Equestria have left to count on. It includes everyone here, except.. Well, you. But that number keeps dropping. It hasn’t gone up once for the last two months. We’re up against the clock to keep everypony alive, and to keep the elements from being corrupted. I can’t thank you enough, Jax. You brought Loyalty back with just enough magic that I could keep it stable. It’s still weak, but I have no way of restoring it.”

“How are you going to fix it then? Don’t you need it’s magic to restore balance?”

“I do, but.. One step at a time. I don’t know if there’s a way, I just need to make sure we get them all before it’s too late. That’s why I also need the crowns of the Royal Sisters. Maybe somehow I can use their magic to assist me, if it’s not too late for them as well.”

“That’s going to take some time. And you’ve only managed to get two so far --”

“I know.”

“How long before the magic dies?”

“I.. can’t say for sure. But you’ve put me farther ahead than I could have gotten on my own. One step closer. I owe you a debt of gratitude.”

“Well I still have one more I can find before I, leave.” I say this knowing.. Maybe it would be wiser to stick around. But I keep stopping myself from believing it. What is truth? Where do I fit in? Who was more right, Mustang or Twilight? I guess, looking from the outside, both can be seen as righteous. The world is full of truths, just as much as it is with lies. It just depends on which truth I expose myself to more. “So how do we find the next one?” I ask. “Any idea where it is?”

“I’ll have to spend more time meditating before I find it. I would send more search parties out, but I risk losing them more and more every time. My only hope is that I can look through the ether to find where they’re hidden.”

“How long will that take?”

“Days? Weeks? I don’t - It all depends on how much of their magic remains. I should start now. In the meantime.. Here.” All the stains of dried blood covering me glow. As that light fades, the blood disappears. “Start introducing yourself to everypony. They should like you more now that you’ve brought back an Element.”

“One more thing.”

“What is it?”

“You said as the elements fade, they start corrupting those around them, yes?”

“Correct.”

“I think the loyalty of someone you know is in question.”

“What do you mean?”

“Mustang knew we were coming. He set a trap for us. I think you have a spy on your, hooves.”

“A spy..?”

“And I think I know who it might be. I can’t be for sure though.”

“Well tell me. Any information you have is greatly appreciated.”

“Twinkleshine. I noticed from the way she acts, and some of the things she’s said - I think Deceit is beginning to get a hold of her.”

“No.. Not Twinkle.. I’ve known her since we were students at the Canterlot School for Gifted Unicorns. She’s been by my side this whole time.” Her mouth begins to quiver. “Are, are you sure? Do you know she’s really turned against me?”

“No. Like I said I can’t be sure. But I’d keep an eye on her if I were you.”

“Twinkle..” She lets out an unending sigh of worry. “I need to get back to meditating. I’ll send for you when I find the next. Until then.. Watch over Twinkle for me, but don’t make it too obvious. This quest keeps getting more and more out of hoof…”

Meanwhile

“It just doesn’t stop, Primrose.” Twinkle says, her legs hanging over the side of a crude hospital bed. “All the killing, all the missions, just one after the other. It never ends!” She speaks quick, her voice straining in distress. “I feel like Twilight treats me more like a tool than an actual living, breathing, Unicorn.”

“Twink, she relies on you so much because she knows she can count on you more than anypony else.” Says Primrose as she organizes bottles of medicines.

“I KNOW, I know.. I just, wish I could get a little break. But she sends me out there almost every day! I’m starting to go crazy!”

“Twinkle, --”

“I keep getting caught, I keep having to end so many lives! I don’t know how much more of this I can take Prim!”

“Well, maybe now with that Human around, things will finally change.”

“I sure hope so.”

“How was he? I hear that you wouldn’t have gotten it back if it weren’t for him. Is he really on our side?”

“No, he’s just in it for himself! But.. It’s true. He’s the one who got the element. If he wasn’t there, I don’t think I would have made it back. Or Duke. He would have tried too hard to save me.”

“Duke likes you, Twink.”

“Really? I couldn’t tell.”

“Don’t be sarcastic Twink. I’m --”

“I know, you’re just trying to help me. I’m under a lot of stress right now.”

“I have medicine for that.”

“Ugh, no thanks. I can deal with my problems on my own.”

“Okaaay, whatever you say. Can’t force you to take these… What about Duke? How do you feel about him?”

“Prim, you know I’m not into that kind of stuff. He’s like my brother. I could never fall for him. Plus he’s too optimistic. He’s always overly hopeful and doesn’t see the world for what it is like you and I do.”

“Maybe optimism is something we need.”

“You sound like you hate saying that.”

“I do. But am I wrong?”

“Well, no. But maybe.. I don’t know, I shouldn’t say it.”

“Well now you have to say it.”

Duke enters the room, holding a plate of steaming food. “Oh Twiiink, look what I brought! It’s your favorite, Apple Blueberry Coooobblerrr to cheer you uuup!”

Twinkle smiles warmly, with a light chuckle. “Thanks, Duke. You’re always so kind to me.”

“Of course!” He says as he passes the plate to Twinkle.

“Wait, where’d you get the Blueberries from?”

“Duplication spell.”

“Duke! You’re not supposed to use magic, you know better!”

“Aww come on, you know I’m good at covering it up! Did you get your magic back yet?”

“Sigh, not yet. I was going to do it with Twilight when she wasn’t busy with Jax.”

“Prim can do it. I’ll shroud you while she does it. Prim, do you mind?”

Primrose lets out a quick, heavy sigh knowing she shouldn’t but will anyway. “No, I don’t. Let’s get it over with.”

Duke casts a field of dispersion around Twinkle and Primrose, cloaking their magic as they touch their horn tips together. Both of their horns shine as they align they're auras. After a short time, Twinkles magic is restored to normal.

“Welp, you’re all set Twinkle.” Primrose says, returning to her duties.

“Duke if you don’t mind, Prim and I were having a private conversation.”

“Oooh, oops, sorry. I didn’t know I was interrupting. I’ll just leave you two to your maretalk then.”

Duke leaves, bouncing happily as he trots. Primrose and Twinkle wait until he is gone from earshot.

“He liiiiikes yooouuu.” Primrose says, a chime in her voice as she grins suggestively.

“Ugh, stop. I have my eyes set on another colt anyway.”

“What were you saying?

The mood falls back under tension as Twinkle’s stress sets back in. “Forget about it. I shouldn’t say it.”

“Saying you shouldn’t means you have to now. It’s just you and me, I can keep my mouth shut.”

“Do you ever think we’re on the wrong side?”

“Uch, I think about it everyday. They have it so much better over there.”

“You ever think about.. Leaving?”

“Still Hooves and I almost did at one point. That’s a secret, don’t tell anypony.”

“What stopped you?”

“Morals. As unicorns who specialize in medical treatment, we couldn’t just leave. It’s our duty to take care of the sick and weak. Over there? They’re not sick or weak. You guys needed us more than they did.”

“I’m thinking I should.. I don’t know Prim! I don’t know if I want to keep fighting for Twilight if Mustang keeps it up like this..”

“That sounds very selfish of you.”

“I’m a selfish mare, what can I say.”

“Oh please. You know you’re not selfish. You know there’s more at stake here than just your life. You fight for the greater good, you love a good underdog story because that’s what you are.”

“I don’t know.. I just don’t trust Twilight anymore.”

“I trust her more than I’d ever trust the slimey gelding Prince Mustang is.”

“You’re just saying that because you want me to stay.”

“Of course I want you to stay. And you want to stay too. We have your back Twinkle, everypony does. We all look up to you. You have everything you could over there, right here with us. You’d be more of a tool to Mustang anyway. Twilight actually cares about you.”

“She has a funny way of showing it.”

“I think she’s under more stress than you are. Just keep your head up, Twink. It’ll all blow over eventually and you’ll be the Heroine of Equestria.”

“It won’t blow over. Not for me, not until I’m dead.”

“Stop talking like that and lay back down. Get some rest. Your head’ll be clearer when you wake up, I promise.”

“Whatever you say, doc…… And.. Thanks. For your advice.”

“Of course. And thank you for taking it.”

Primrose smiles proudly at Twinkle as she lays back down. Twinkle calms her own troubled thoughts as she brings her eyes to a close. She still worries, she’s still afraid and unsure. But she rests under Primroses dutiful care.

End of Act 2.

Intermission 1 - The Rainy Days

Author's Note

So this is the first of many intermissions that will be placed between each act to give me a little time to catch up. They'll all have something to do with events prior to or during to the main story, and all tie in in some way. So here you go.

Intermission 1 - The Rainy Days

Drip.. Drip.. Drip, drip drip…

A light fall of rain drops down from the clouds above. It gently paddles down against the forest brush below. A storm of growing strength is rolling in. Its heavy clouds bring much needed life back to the suffocating trees and bushes. The falling water rolls from the leaves off which they splash, dripping down into the soaked, muddied ground. The air is cool, a fresh and gentle breeze rustles all around. The rain pats, and the leaves dance.. The soothing music of a springtime shower. This steady rain falls endlessly across all Equestria. But these misty days of ceaseless drear are not of the natural courses so carefully maintained by the Pegasi. These rainy days, drizzling on forever, are the closings of a hard fought battle for home.

Thunder bellows softly in the distance. But it is the rumbling of far off artillery and high yield explosives. Their rumbles echo quietly through the wooded grounds of White Tail Woods. Beneath the falling skies, their heads open to the dismal gray, a small band of four exhausted unicorns hold their position in a flooded trench. They are all weak, tired, and have been left feeble after many weeks of fighting. They now reside in these acres as a lookout point far from the fight. They still hold true to their faith, refusing to give in to even the heaviest falls of rain or gunfire. One of them, the strongest and bravest of the group, stands atop a moldy, dilapidated wooden crate. She peers just over the soggy trench edge, as a thick brown soup pours in all around her. She stands vigilant, on guard, staring deep into the forest beyond. She listens.. The rolling thunder grows louder with the passing moments. Something is headed her way, but as she watches, she sees nothing.

Her three comrades lay in the mud beside her, their backs rested against the walls, and their eyes closed. The rain falls down onto their uncovered heads, soaking them all to the core as it has for weeks, but it is ignored. It is something they’ve come to grow used to. With their eyes closed, their minds at ease, the three finally have a moment of peace to themselves to recover their strength lost to the war. As they rest, the unicorn on guard continues to stand her ground. She is ready. Ready to do her job. To defend, and to kill.

A rifle’s barrel protrudes unnoticed from a bush. It holds steady and still. Water splashes against its cold, smooth metal curve. But the barrel does not move. It endures the monsoon, never wavering or faltering, just the same as the Unicorn at which it aims. Holding relaxed to the rifle, its stock resting in the nook of his shoulder, a human scout. He peers through his scope, watching the unicorn as her tired eyes begin to droop. His muscles are completely still, and he breathes in a slow, calm rhythm. He too ignores the rain pouring down upon the cloak that keeps him dry and warm. He keeps the crosshairs in perfect alignment, and waits. Waiting for the tired unicorn to be relieved by another. A voice creeps up in a whisper behind him.

“How many you got MRS?” says the voice, kept under silence beneath the growing storm.

“Still just the one. But she looks tired. Any minute now, they’ll get their head back up.” replies MRS.

“Well they better hurry. First wave’s only three klicks behind us.”

The unicorn begins to waver in a tiresome stupor as her shift comes to an end.

A second barrel slowly emerges from the bushline next to the first.

Two unicorns awaken to relieve their drowsy sister. They stand up, all three them unknowingly exposed for the watchful scouts. One of them taps the shoulder of their sister. They begin to trade the duties of guard, so she may gain respite as well.

“There they are..” MRS and FMC both steadying their weapons. “You take the guard, I’ll take the other two.”

“..Roger…”

They both take aim, all three targets are presented perfectly in the open for them… They fire.

Ss-thook-thook, Ss-thook.

The silenced rifles go unheard neath the rain and thunder. Before the unicorns even know what's going on, the three splash into the trench floor, dead. Their blood pours out and mixes with the muddy brown. In the confusion, the remaining unicorn jumps from his slumber, and raises his head.

Ss-thook.

He too falls at the unheard burst.

The music of spring continues to sound throughout. The peaceful mood of a quiet, rainy forest in evening light goes on undisturbed.

“Two more for you, and two more for me. Good shooting MRS.”

“How many positions is that today? Fourteen? Fifteen?”

“Sixteen.”

“Ha, yes! Radio up to Battalion and tell 'em we earned ourselves some medals!”

“Easy now MRS. We still have enough time before sundown to get a few more. Let's get moving. JAX and ROM can take the next one.”

Jax and ROM both lean against a tree with their eyes closed. “Finally done playing around?” Jax asks snidely.

“Roger, we are. Now it's your turn for the fun. Get your ass up here!” FMC barks.

FMC. The leader. Also known as Fully Mission Capable as many jokingly refer to him. He is twice the age of who he leads, but more than twice as experienced. His 3 subordinates - MRS, the senior scout of the team. ROM, the top lieutenant of his class in heavy weapons, demolition, and first aid in the field. And finally, JAX. A scout just like MRS. Though a few years behind, he is no less capable.

Jax and ROM take point as the team emerges from the bushes, and continue ahead through the forest. This team, Bravo Team, has been scouting ahead to clear the way of entrenchment for the last seven days. Following them, not even a few miles behind, the fighting forces of the 21st Combined Arms Division. After a successful siege and take over of the Capital, to include all her satellite cities, the talents of Bravo team have been relegated to missions of much lower intensity. Despite their propensity for success, having never been spotted or taken casualties, the war has changed and they are now on call for situations many would consider milk runs.

Bravo Team emerge from the bushes in which they hid. Their thick slick boots sletchwith each marshy step as they advance on the trench. It’s small enough that they step right over it. As they pass, Jax takes a moment to look on as it fills with water, and blood. The soup is dark red, almost black. Dripletts splash around the slumbering corpses. He looks at them with a subtle frown, remorse light on his mind. He always found it sad for anyone to be cut down in their prime when they never even saw it coming. He thinks about it He imagines falling asleep knowing he’ll wake up as he always does, but it not coming. It all just ends, and one never knows when or why. But that feeling passes as the trench becomes nothing more than another memory behind him. The team carries on, their minds all set on finally making this place their home.

MRS looks to the skies. There, he spots a formation of Pegasi flying in a V. They weave in, out, and through the bleak gray tufts. Their smudged silhouettes are too distant to make out details. He raises his rifle, and zooms in for a better look. The team stops, dropping to a crouch as his weapon aims skywards. “Get on the radio.” he says.

FMC pulls a hand mic from his shoulder pad. “Wha-do-ya got?”

“I got 30 wings moving west, bearing 287°, at 70 km/h.”

FMC calls over the radio to a wing of two aircraft attached to them as support. “Phantom, this is Bravo 4, over.”

Coming in clear, only tiny pops of static in the background, the jets of Phantom Squadron call back. “Bravo 4 this is Phantom, I got you, send your traffic.”

“Phantom I got 30 wings for ya headed back to the Home Force.”

“Roger that Bravo 4, do you have a grid for their location?”

“Just head to my grid and you should run right into them nearby.”

“Alright Bravo 4, I’ll be on you in 2 minutes with guns ready.”

“Roger Phantom, good hunting. Bravo 4 out.” FMC puts the hand mic back in his shoulder slot. “Welp, they’re in for a rough day.”

“Amazing how they just keep fighting even though they're losing.” Jax says aloud.

“Just more lambs for the slaughter.” ROM replies. “People should know when they are conquered.”

“Would you?” FMC asks, loud enough for all to hear. “Would I? They don’t give up because they know it wouldn’t be any different if they surrendered. If you knew that, would you quit?” he asks looking at MRS to his left.

“No.”

“Would you stop?” looking to Jax.

“I’d keep fighting.”

“Well that’s where they’re at.” FMC continues. “We won’t quit until they’re dead, and they won’t quit until they’re dead. We’re all locked in a slaughterhouse. The only difference here is we all die for something we value.”

“Home.”

“That’s right. We’re all fighting for our home.”

“Too bad it was theirs to begin with.”

“Well it’s ours now. JAX, you ever look down at the dirt at all the worms? You don’t move out of the way for them do you? Well that’s all these Equine are. They’re just worms to us, crawling around in the mud in our way as we step all over them. And that’s what we are. We’re the boot.”

“The old man’s a poet.” MRS says. Jax and ROM both scoff with a smile.

“Just hold on to that smile. This’ll all be over in a little while.”

“And he’s got rhymes.”

Even FMC has a small grin at his mouth’s edge.

MRS walks closer to FMC. “Hey Fully, you remember those first few nights we were here?”

“What about em?”

“How’d you get out of that nest of ‘worms’? You haven’t told us that story yet.”

FMC chuckles as this is brought up once again.

“The man’s a legend.” ROM says sarcastically under his breath.

“No ROM, it’s just like I keep tell you.”

“Oh no no Fully, I wanna hear the real thing this time.” says MRS

“You did hear the full thing. I just kept my hopes high and I made it out. I kept telling myself the only way was forward, and so that’s where I went.”

“Oohh no. So you’re telling me all you had was a wish, the wind at your back, a you just walked right outta there?”

“Yep. I just put one foot in front of the other and kept on walking.”

“Well where’d you walk too?”

“Home.” FMC says smiling.

“You cryptic old bastard.”

“He likes to keep us guessing.” says Jax. “He thinks it’s funny to torture us with riddles.”

“You’re damn right it is. There’s not much to laugh at out here except you clowns.”

Thunder and rain are replaced by a gaining rumble. Deep, bellowing, it shudders in the ground. The scouts all feel it rattling in their bones as the endless booms magnify. Two jets streak by just over the treetops, their intakes screaming and their engines splitting the air with their power. They blast by over head. A hurricane of rushing air, pelting leaves and stabbing twings slam into the scouts as they watch the jets pass. “Love it when they do that.” ROM says as they all look to the jets that now disappear into the distance.

“That’s Phantom for you.”

“Gimmie that mic!” MRS yanks the hand mic from FMC’s shoulder. “HEY! You almost blew us off the ground! Go back and pick up all that shit you just tore up, we need that! We don’t have trees on the ship, they’re special!”

Everyone laughs. FMC shoves him away and sets back the mic. Their mood as they walk is light, lifted by the jokes and Phantom’s entrance. But only seconds pass, and another booming brings stark reality back to each of them. The engines are but whispering echos. Now, the deep, reverberating, almost buzzing sound of Phantom’s rotary cannons throb through the air. The jets have engaged their target. Bravo Team stares off to where they hear it all going down. It is too far to see, the canopy of leaves too thick to view anywhere but straight up. The all have the same look on their face. All are at a loss for words. They almost feel remorse as they listen to that deep, droning buzz. They can almost empathise with the Pegasi, imagining what it must be like for them as they are swiftly torn apart just out of view. But it all stops, the buzzing ends as if turned off by a switch. The music of spring returns as it fills the void in noise. The team carries on.

- - -

Bravo Team continues eastward through the forest in pairs. ROM with Jax, and FMC with MRS 50 meters to their left. The torrential downpour dampens their steps. Birds chirp in the trees around them. Their advance is peaceful. Were it not for the thoughts of war on their minds, they would enjoy this peaceful walk through nature. The world’s light is dimming down, the evening blues set in. All is tranquil around them, only the paddling rain fetters away. But they have a mission, and they must remain focused, the enemy could be anywhere ahead. They don’t know how far, they just know more positions lie ahead. But as light fades, they will close their mission until day’s return. The humans, so prideful of their progress, see the night as opportunity to rest. The pause at midnight’s sheath is also a welcomed break for the Equestrians.

Some time later, through thick layers of timber but no far ahead, Jax spots a very small, barely noticeable shift. He raises his fist, and the team stops. Jax had seen a unicorn's head peek over a trench, and drop back down. The team holds still, unsure if they have been spotted. While motionless, their cloaks perfectly blend and match the surrounding brush. They are invisible, until they move and the cloak must to its best to seamlessly blend back in. Only they can see each other. As they stand, they wait. But nothing happens. They have not been spotted.

They all slowly drop to their knees, weapons up, and continue down laying flat.
Jax and ROM lay side by side in the open. They both train their weapons to the same target ahead. It is yet another entrenched position held by unicorns. It all feels and looks the same as each and every position before it.

“How many you think JAX?” ROM asks in a low whisper.

“Just the same as the last one. Four. They always have four.”

“You never know.”

“And you do?”

“It’s always better to expect the unexpected.”

“I suppose so. Then again, sometimes you just know.”

A loud thunderclap breaks the peace of the forest. “Dammit. That’s another man down. That one sounded close too. I wonder who the poor fellow was this time.” ROM says.

“Probably some poor soul in Alpha Team. I will admit, their use of weaponized lightning came as a bit of a surprise to me.”

“Always expect the unexpected.”

“They must be nearby. We better take these guys out quick before their spotters find us as well.”

“They won’t see us down here. Not when we’re still. It’s the ones up ahead that are marking us. If we take them out, the wings can’t get an accurate strike.”

Jax and ROM continue to watch the unicorn ahead. They assess, and they calculate.

The unicorn drops down from his post and vanishes from sight.

Bravo team continues to watch, wait, and listen. As Jax and ROM scan the top of the trench, MRS and FMC report over their team radio that there’s another position on their left flank. This one angled straight on at the team. ROM looks to the right and finds another close by. They’ve unknowingly walked right into a killzone, flanked on all sides but their rear. They were lucky enough not to have been spotted, but now they are pinned in a trap.

“What-do-ya think JAX? Think we can up our score to 17?”

“Of course.”

“Your time to shine. How do you want to take this?”

Jax takes a moment to think. He takes into account every tool at his disposal. He looks left to FMC and MRS. Both teams are within grenade distance of the trenches on their flanks. “The only way is forward.” Says Jax. “Plan G?”

“Plan G it is then.” ROM says, calmly setting his Arc Rifle in the mud, and unstrapping a grenade from his belt.

Jax lets the other two know of his plan. FMC also readies a grenade, and they all settle in.

They continue to watch and wait. Another thunder clap shatters the peace but is quickly muffled away.. All lay motionless, all breathing slow as they prepare themselves for a fight.

The unwitting unicorn raises his head once again. He does not see the scouts settled ahead, less than a stone’s throw away. Their cloaks keep them completely hidden.

The unicorn stares through the trees, looking at every little movement in the leaves. How they shake, how they flutter down as they fall. He looks for the slightest sign of something out of place. And he listens. Listening to the soft, deep rumble that grows louder with the passing minutes. He uses all his senses to his aid. He is careful, and he is cautious.

He drops back down to write a message. Written on a moldy piece of paper, he marks his words with magic. The message reads, They’re coming this way. I don't know how far but they're close. I can hear them. I haven't heard anything from Violet Spice up ahead but I’m sure she’s ready to fight. I too am ready. - Comet Tail.

In a glowing wisp, the message shoots out of the trench and darts away deep into the woods behind. He peeks over the trench once more as he awaits a response.

Jax picks him back up. He studies the unicorn through his magnified scope. He sees the unicorn’s stern face, sees the water dripping off his chin. A bead of rain hits his eyelashes, and he winces and blinks but stays focused. His eyes are blue, wide, and hopeful. He is young, probably only in his teens. Though Jax could take the shot now and initiate Plan G, he hesitates. The unicorn drops back behind the trench.

“Something wrong JAX?” ROM whispers.

“.. No. I'm just waiting for the right moment.”

“Well you better hurry. I can already hear FMC thinking up a reprimand.”

“He can wait.”

“No, he can’t.”

“Better to wait for the right moment to strike, yeah? Something unexpected might happen.”

“Always expect it.. I don't mean to be rude but you had your chance and wasted it. Come on, next time he comes up, do it. Or MRS will do it for you and take the lead.”

“It's all fun and games until we get spotted. You’ve seen what these Equine are capable of, and they have strikers above us. I don't want to risk getting into a fight with these guys. These cloaks aren't exactly the best defence when they do see us.”

“They won’t see us.”

“Always expect the --”

“Oh just shut up and shoot.”

The unicorn looks up

“Do it JAX.”

He aims to the ground just in front of the guard, and fires. Plan G is underway.

The bullet bounces from the dirt and strikes the unicorn down. It blasts a hole, throwing mud around everywhere. The sound of it all smuttering down on the wet brush muffles the T-klick! of grenade pins pulled. As all Equine look to the dirt, caught off all guard, the grenades are thrown right into the flanking pits unnoticed. FwPOOFF, The whole ground jumps, bodies are hurled from pits and flop down mangled. Panic breaks out, all out madness in fear of death grips the hearts of the Equines. They all scatter, thinking it comes from the air. They leap from the safety of cover, right into the prying eyes of Jax and MRS and are all cut down one by one.

Ss-thook, Ss-thook, Ss-thook.. Four, Five, Six.. Seven.

The entire ordeal is over in only eight seconds.

Seven Equine had bailed from the trench. Only two of them were unicorns. The rest were commons, completely unable to defend themselves in any way. The four scouts continue to lay in the mud. Jax scans around, slowly. His crosshairs trim the top of each trench. Nothing moves. Only twitching leaves. And nothing is heard, not a single voice or whimper calls out a cry. Only falling rain.

Jax looks up from his scope. Cold water splashes off it and sprinkles his face. Drops run down his cheeks. “Everyone feel safe? Everyone ready to move?” FMC says over the radio.

“Keep your guard up. There might be more.”

“I’m lookin for ‘em..”

A whole minute passes as they wait. They stay wary of some sort of counter set for them. But nothing happens.

“Nothings here. We’re clear to move on.”

“Alright. Everyone, back on your feet.”

They slowly rise, and continue their walk.

“How many was that?”

“I got five.” says Jax.

“Damn and I only got three.” MRS says, lowering his weapon. “What are our totals?”

JAX - 22
MRS - 19
FMC - 16
ROM - 14

“I guess that puts JAX in the lead then?” asks ROM.

“Yyyep.” MRS says, in all his competitiveness, feeling cheated. “I still got the highest total for the week.”

“Looks like you got some competition.”

“Oh shush. Ol’ Rookie over there needs to work on his aim. All those kills were sloppy.”

“Oh calm down.” Jax says, rolling his eyes.

“Alright boys, that’s enough.” FMC orders calmly. “ Keep your voices down. You all saw that wisp right? That little puff of light that flew out of the trench? That was a signal. There’s more nearby. We still have time to hit a few more places. Let’s get moving.”

They trudge quietly through the forest.

After some time spent walking, all of them relaxed as the examine the woods ahead, MRS speaks up. “I don’t know about you guys but I’m pretty beat. How far have we come since last night? 25 klicks?”

“Round about.”

“Phew. We’re not up to beat any kill count records today, but I’m pretty sure this has gotta be a record distance.”

“Yeah..” says Jax. “Things haven’t gone this smooth in a while.”

“I bet they’re running out of bullet sponges to throw at us. 17 in one day is pretty high.”

“We could have gotten more.” says ROM.

“How? That doesn’t even make any sense ROM. We’ve been movin’ at a pretty steady pace all day.”

“ROM’s right.” says FMC. “There’s always opportunity --” FMC gets traffic over his radio. “Hold on - This is Bravo 4, go ahead.”

The team stops. MRS continues talking. “All I’m sayin is, if we made it this far and only hit 17, if we went any faster we probably would have hit the same.”

“Coulda been 18.”

“Oh shut up, you know you’re just riding that FMC train.”

“It’s a good train to be on. The man knows his stuff.”

“You know what train I’m on?”

“What..”

“The most kills of the week train. Woo-woo!”

ROM and Jax both roll their eyes.

“Nah, I’m just kidding. JAX over there’s doing pretty damn good!”

“Thanks.. I guess.”

“What do you mean I guess?”

“I can’t tell if you’re being sarcastic or not.”

“No dude, I mean it. You’re a fantastic soldier. A real natural with that DSR.”

“..Thanks.”

“You know, I just can’t wait till this is finally over. I think I’ll open up a little juke joint right in the middle of town, once we finally get a chance to take a load off and settle in.”

“Well we’re already halfway across the continent.”

“Yep and things are only getting easier. What do you boys reckon? Two months left? Three?”

“Less than that, for sure.”

“Fuck, we might even run out of things to shoot before then.”

“Looks like it. We might have to resort to shooting each other.” ROM says, shooting a snide grin over at MRS.

“ROM, I swear. If you shoot me with that Arc Rifle.. I’m not gunna be too happy.”

“Won’t be too happy? You’ll be dead!”

“Then I’ll haunt your ass. Until you die, then I’ll kick your ass in the afterlife.”

“IF I die.”

“You’ll die.”

“And you know this?”

“Yeah! I already got 40 on you getting struck by lightning wings.”

“That’s fine. JAX and I both have 60 that you’ll blow yourself up.”

“I bet you do. Cocky bastards..”

FMC puts his hand mic away. “Welp. We got another mission boys.”

“Another mission? Like.. an actual actualmission? Or just a milk run?”

“A real one. As real as it gets. What’s that thing you keep saying, ROM?”

“Always expect the unexpected. Let me guess. They want us to lead the attack on some village?”

“Close. But not quite. Everyone, take a guess.”

Jax - “They’re reassigning us to an infantry division.”

MRS - “Everything we’ve killed came back from the dead and we have to kill them again.”

“Nope and nope. ROM was the closest. No guard shift for him tonight.”

“So what do they got for us?”

“Well. We got quite a big one on our hands. Apparently, one of our tanks has been hijacked and they made away with it.”

“They stole an entire tank?! Wow.. that’s a actually kind of impressive.”

“And guess whose job it is to get it back.”

All their faces drop, the mood turns sour.

“Oh no no no no, no.” MRS says, waving his hands. “You mean to tell me, that a tank’s been hijacked and we’re the only ones who can stop it?”

“Just about.”

“Why don’t they get some heavy weapons team on it? Or blast it from the sky? Why the fuck do they want us?”

“They want the tank back.” FMC takes a drink of his water. “And we’re the closest ones to it.”

“You can’t be serious.”

“Mm-hmm.”

They all stare at each other in frustrated disbelief.

“Well, how are we gunna take it back?”

“We’ll have to do what we do best. Improvise.” FMC says.

“I can always use my Arc Rifle. Finally put it to use.” says ROM.

“The fuck is that gunna do against a tank?” barks MRS.

“Fry the electronics.”

“Yeah but at what range! You get close enough with that rifle and that tank’ll splatter you halfway across the planet!”

“It’s our best shot.”

“Yeah, sure it is. You try that. I’ll be sure to pick up what’s left of ya when I go to the beach on vacation.”

“Well what ideas do you have?”

“I don’t - we - HHRrmm.. Hey, Fully, what --”

“Looks like we have more boarding the Fully train.”

“Oh shut up ROM. Fully, How do we even catch up to one of those things?”

“We won’t have to. They’ve parked it just outside a small village to the north east.”

“Oh, great. So they’re already entrenched.”

“Not likely. But we should get a move on. It’ll be a rough day for the first wave if we don’t neutralize it.”

“What kind of tank even is it?”

“Vangaurd.”

“Damn that thing’s got like four machine guns on it.”

“Well let’s just hope they don’t know how to use them. Move out.”

The team carries on through the forest in silence. Their direction has changed, and so has their morale. As they walk, all think of ways they can take down the goliath beast they now hunt. A pack of four wolves, against prey they have never encountered before. No one is prepared, no one has been trained to fight or play against their own game. But it is their mission, they know they must not fail. In living for the greater good, the only way is forward.

The village is only three klicks from their last encounter, well within the engagement range of the Vanguard’s rail cannon. But the thickness of the forest keeps both the team and the tank hidden from each other. The Equine know this. Blocked by the canopy above, and surrounded by walls of drowning trees, they hope it will be enough as they take full advantage of their new tool. But they are not prepared to have to deal with the talents of Bravo Team. But, those four brave scouts are just as unready to deal with their own technology used against them.

They approach the village, now not more than a few hundred meters away. They can see the wooden shacks ahead of them, candles burning inside, glowing through the windows as the evening light fades. But no sign of the tank. Now only 500 meters away, they all drop to their bellies, and begin the arduous crawl forward. They remain invisible to any wandering eyes.

“Okay. The village is just up ahead. Anyone see it yet?” MRS says over the team radio.

“I see it.” says ROM. It’s all the way right, just beside the rightmost building.”

“I don’t have a shot. Damn trees.. See anyone around it?”

Rom carefully scans the entire front line of the village. Through his advanced thermals, he sees nothing. All ahead is cold and wet, nothing but blue to his electric eye. But he does see the warm, yellow glow of the engine as it cools. He studies the tank. He looks to every minor detail for anything out of place. The four broad tracks, one at each of it’s corners, lay still. The track pads are full of forest debris. He looks to the remote operated rotary cannons, one mounted above each track. They are unloaded, no belts of ammo feed into their hungry chambers. The twin rails of the main cannon point away, aiming up and to the right. “Nothing. I see nothing. It’s powered down. It looks like they just pulled it in and left.”

“Keep your wits about you, boys.” FMC says calmly. “They might be hiding inside, using it for shelter.”

“What do they even want a Vanguard for.. These things are only good on the open plains!.. So how we gunna do this?” asks MRS.

“ROM you said it’s shut off?”

“Roger.”

“Okay. Here’s the plan. ROM, I want you right in front of it. If things go south, hit it with the Arc. JAX, you take the right flank, I’ll take the left. MRS, give us overwatch. JAX and I will get up close and take out the crew inside. Keep us covered until we figure out how to get this thing outta here.”

“You ever drive a tank before, Fully?”

“No, never.”

“Looks like you gon’ learn today Boss.”

“We’ll all learn something. And these Equine are about to learn why they should never steal from us.”

“They steal our hardware, we steal their lives. A fair trade.”

“Move out.”

Jax, ROM, and FMC all begin their slow approach. On their knees and elbows, they take it inch by inch. Meanwhile, MRS positions himself with a wide view through the endless walls of rotting wood. The storm, as heavy as it ever has been throughout the last few days, finally calms down. Hardly any rumbling. Only the tiny drips and pips as tears of the sky roll from the canopy above.

The bodeful night creeps in. The team’s approach is long, but silent. They have seen no activity, or any indication at all of Equine ahead. Nothing has come out of or entered the leviathan. They begin to think that, as the night sets and the unspoken truce begins, that their enemy has closed their weary eyes for the night. A perfect opportunity to sneak in and reclaim what is theirs.

“Alright I got a good angle.” MRS informs the team. “How far are you all from the target?”

“300 meters. Still got a ways to go.” ROM replies in a whisper.

“Damn you guys are slow..”

“We’re not slow. We’re just not as brash as you.”

Suddenly, activity in the tank causes the whole team to stop dead where they lie. They all hear it. The monstrous turbine engine powers up, its deep whirring climbs in pitch as the turbines spool into action. The turret snaps hard to the left, aiming straight down with an unending gaze right to MRS.

“Shit. They’ve turned it on.” ROM says.

“Well no shit.” Jax replies in frustrated surprise.

“Hey guys..?” MRS says faintly. “I don't like this. It’s looking right at me.”

The team is stunned. They are unsure as they look around to each other, all sharing the same thought. No one is sure what will happen next.

“MRS just keep low. Just hope they don’t actually see you.” says Jax.

“I don’t know man, they’re lookin’ right at me!”

“Fully - They can’t see us with those optics, can they?” Jax asks, fearing that now, all their lives are in danger.

“I don’t know. I’ve never fought against our own equipment before.”

“Fuck what do I do!” MRS says frantically.

No one has any words.

“Just.. Hold on, M.”

All begin to shiver, wrought with the chilling wet, and anxious terror.

MRS’s mouth quivers uncontrollably. “I.. I don’t see any of them.”

“Everyone just stay still! It looks like they might know how to use it. But if they saw us they would have fired already.”

“M you’re fine. We won’t let them hurt you.”

“I don’t know man.” MRS is on the verge of a teary breakdown. “I’m lookin’ right at it, I see straight down the rails.” He stares with his unaided eyes right between the main cannon’s twin rails. He sees the soft blue glow of the electromagnetic coils. They are primed, powered, and ready to fire. But the tension builds. Confusion amongst the scouts grows as still nothing happens.

“Move.” FMC says, his voice low and calm.

“What-!” MRS’s voice comes out in a strained whisper.

“Move. Get behind a tree. Find any sort of cover you can. Just try to get out of their line of sight.”

MRS remains petrified. He still stares right down the rails as he struggles to make sense of the order. But he reaches out with his left hand, slowly pulling himself to the nearest cover. He keeps his jittering rifle aimed towards the beast that continues to stare him down. Left hand, left foot.. Pull. Left hand, left foot.. Pull.

Inch by inch, he slowly skirts away and towards cover.

ROM studies the tank. He notices the turret tracking MRS’s movement. “Stop, stop!” he whispers hard.

“What!”

“They definitely see you.”

“Fuck!”

“M?” says FMC.

“Fuck man!”

“M. Keep, moving.” His voice is soft and fatherly.

“I can’t!”

“Yes, you can. Just keep moving, get out of its line of sight.”

MRS keeps stuttering sideways. He jerks and twitches as dread tears his insides apart.

The turret keeps tracking. Like an all seeing eye, it follows him as he squirms closer and closer to cover.

The other three watch it all unfold, their eyes darting back and forth. They silently urge him on, their whispers of cowed support in his headset. It keeps him going, and with one pull at a time, he comes closer to safety.

BZZZRRRT The cannon fires. Louder than the strongest thunder, its deep electric growl shatters the forest. The blast is so powerful, everyone drops their weapons, hugging the ground as all that fills their heads is that horrifying pulse. The shockwave of the round’s blasting impact punches them. Air is kicked right out of their chests. Their ears ring, their vision is blurred. They have no thoughts. Not a single voice pops into their minds, as all they know to do is curl up and cover their heads. But as the echoes fade, their heads clearing and the thrown up ground ceasing to rain, they look to MRS. But he is gone. There is nothing but a black, ovoid crater in his place.

“Nobody fucking move!” FMC yells. The turret holds in place, as the crew inside takes time to reload.

Hidden within the village, dozens of Equine charge into the woods. With the humans suppressed, now’s their time to assault. Three Unicorns lead, spreading out with the hoard that follows them. They all hold layer after layer of shielding as they blindly gallop into the fray, protecting all the Common Equine behind them.

The crew inside the tank dismounts, using their bought time to load the machine guns.

“Open fire!”

The scouts hold their ground. They fire right into the shield. FMC with his automatic rifle, Jax with his scout rifle and ROM with a light assault rifle. But now the Equine know exactly where they are. The shield bearers split up, diverting the oncoming fire. The humans hold, but their weapons cannot break the thick wards.

As he fires, Jax glances to the tank. The machine guns are loaded, and the crew return to load the main cannon. He knows they have to get some distance, they have to get away from that tank!

“Fall back!” he yells, the impenetrable wall of brightly glowing wards approaching ever closer. They all dash in retreat with good timing. All the tank’s rotary cannons open up and tear into the forest. The bullets fly right over the advancing Equine, covering them further. They all charge, vocals on high as their fueled rage propels them forward fearlessly.

The bullets zip by the scouts, feeling like buzzing bees stinging their eardrums. They crack and scratch all through the trees, splinters flying everywhere and limbs falling.

But the humans, their bodies larger and their muscles stronger, quickly outrun the Equine in tow. “Phantom, Bravo 4, Bravo 4! Need immediate suppression at my location now!” FMC fills them in on the situation as he runs.

Within seconds they can already hear the gaining roar of the Phantom jets. Their throttles open, afterburners at full, blasting them through the air as they rush to the rescue. The scouts drop, they know what’s coming. But they look on with their heads covered as the glowing walls come their way.

The jets are already on them. The entire world around the scouts seemingly erupts into the apocalypse. The turrets below each jet decimate the Equine charge. Their lines break, and they all dive for safety.

The scouts pick off stragglers as they try and hide. But several of them make it, and they know they have to get in close with the humans to avoid another reign of terror from above. As the dust settles, they charge once again. Some of them behind the returning shield, many of them in the open but using the trees.

They’ve gained the ground, they now swarm the humans in brutal battle of hands and hooves. Each scouts faces a dozen at a time, all are too overwhelmed to help each other. The Equine topple the humans, and with all their might do what they can to keep the giants down. But the humans fight back hard, many times too strong for the delicate creatures. Knives and fists swinging, hooves clash against metal, there is no clear winner in the epic struggle. The two races couldn’t be more different. There is no compassion. Neither look to the other and see a single shred of sympathy . Each one views the other as soulless, evil, and savage. There is no honor, there is no care for the other. Only the fight to kill as fervent rage blinds all. In the brawl, ROM takes a direct hit, pierced through the chest by a stray bullet. But he keeps on. Though mortally wounded, he puts out no less of his raw strength. FMC appears to be winning, but just as he gains the upper hand, magic throws him up and slams him down. The Equine on him back off, and a single magic bearer knocks down the trees to crush him. He dodges one after another, rolling in the mud as he struggles to get on his feet. But each falling tree sends him diving again and again.

Jax fights on, swinging his rifle like a bat, dodging bolts left and right. His reflexes are too quick, the Equine can’t get close enough to pin him down. Though he himself cannot fire back, he gracefully dodges all that come at him in a dance of offense and defence.

All of this happens while the Phantom jets rip by for a seconds pass. But they cannot fire, as they cannot pick friend from foe in the mosh below. The circle overhead, banking their wings as they orbit. The pilots urge the scouts to gain distance but all efforts are for not. The gunners start pounding the ground around them, hoping to suppress all to give their comrades a chance. And it works. The Equine charge breaks yet again as they are forced to run for cover. It gives Jax and FMC a chance to finally stand and fire. They look in all directions now surrounded, taking potshots at whatever they see. ROM lays on the ground. His wounds are too great, but he raises his weapon and fires back nonetheless. They all keep this up, the struggle seems endless. But ROM’s strength slowly fades. Despite his heroics, he is gunned down where he lay. All it takes are a few quick blasts to finish him off.

High in the clouds above, Pegasis have been hiding and watching it all unfold. They’ve been waiting for their moment to strike. But it’s not the humans they’re after. They seek to destroy the Thunderbirds. “ATTACK!” they all yell in unison, diving straight down from high sitting clouds. Their wings beating, speed gaining, they descend on the jets like arrows from space. Shock cones forming, they all push faster, almost breaching the speed of sound. They aim for the jets as they fly. They come careening right through their formation. Many miss, but a few punch straight through the thin wings. The unseen blindside devastates the jets. Phantom Lead spirals out of control, his entire left wing ripped completely off. He and his gunner crash in through the trees and smash into the ground in a great ball of fire. The jet cartwheels for hundreds of meters, knocking over all in its path with a wall of flames following. It passes right behind the tank. The bright orange flare and plumbing smoke silhouettes the tank. The humans look on to that black hulk shrouded in flames. Suddenly it becomes real. That behemoth figure of darkness, black against the burning, raging light. They realize at the very moment what it must feel to be the Equine. They now look at what tens of thousands have seen as their last vision.

The other jet takes heavy damage but keeps control. The crew bug out, their harbinger of death from above too injured to keep up the fight. Pegasi follow, desperate to finish it off. But they come too close. The throttle mouths opens wide, spewing out flames as the jet blasts away, blowing the Pegasi right out of the sky.

Voices cheer at the downed bird, and thick smoke smogs what little sunlight was left. The fiery fuel turns the battlefield into dark night, illuminated only in heat and glow. The fight rages back on, no holds are barred. It is savage, nasty, and brutal. The two remaining scouts soon overpower their rivals. They are too quick, too strong, and too well trained. All they use are knifes. They jump from Equine to Equine, blades driving and cutting deep. A retreat is soon sounded, and what few Equine remain all dash back to safety near the tank. Finally the two have a chance to catch their breath as they fire at the fleeing hooves. But they don’t aim, both are too shaken, their minds and bodies too unnerved to shoot straight.

They finally stop, no more of their enemy in sight. But the battle isn’t over. They don’t get a moment to think or plan as the tank becomes mobile. Heading straight for them, flattening all in its way as if nothing was there. Jax and FMC look on at the beast, feeling outwitted. This defence was too well coordinated. Now, with half of their close knit team out of action, they no longer see victory in sight. Only survival. There is no backing out, no retreat. They’re only objective now is to somehow endure against the metal monster steamrolling towards them.

Jax looks to ROM, unaware of his death. In his weary haze, he barely makes sense that his brother, his friend, is now gone from life. But he sees a tool where he lay. It’s the only chance they have left. The Arc Rifle lay out in the open. Jax knows what he must do.

But he has to avoid the Vanguard on approach. With a clear mind and a sight-set goal, he makes a run for it.

The roaming eyes of the turret gunners spot him. As soon as they open fire, Jax comes back to his senses. He drops, barely any cover, and crawls behind a tree with bullets flying all around. It’s right there, the Arc Rifle is just a few meters away. But if he moves, it’s curtains. The second he falls from cover, he knows he will be cut down.

FMC lays as well, thinking and waiting. He feels beaten. He ponders and plans, but sees no way out. He quietly admits his own defeat. He had come so far, made it through so much, and thought he had seen it all. But now, two of his children lay dead, and a third on his way, and all his calm collective is lost.

Jax stares down the rifle. It lay just next to where ROM made his final stand. It seems so close, just out of reach. It wouldn’t take him more than a moment to reach it. He wants it. All rational thought leaves his mind. He must get that weapon.

He looks around the tree’s trunk. In an instant, the thumping cannon send a burst right at his face. A round blasts to the ground right beside his head. All that it uproots flies right in his eyes. For a moment he lay grovelling, wiping his eyes of all that mud and grass. But he feels no fear, all rationale is absent. He’s going to do it, he knows it’s the only chance to survive and he must take the risk. It’s the only way forward.

Jax steadies his nerves, coming to his feet behind the dense tree. The tank is still rolling, he can feel it battering the ground. He takes a few deep breaths. He becomes calm. All feeling leaves his body. His back against the tree, the rifle off to his left. He slowly creeps right, just enough that his shoulder peeks out of cover. But this move is merely bait. The second those ravenous guns fire, he bolts left out of cover. Tunnel vision blinds him, all he sees is the rifle. The immense rounds fly by, missing as the gunners must abruptly adjust their fire. Jax makes the run, all his strength into his striding legs and swinging arms. One round almost brushes his nose as the lead gunner throws his aim too far. But Jax doesn’t even see it. He dives down to the ground, clutching the rifle to his chest and he slides to a stop. The endless spray buzzes his neck. He hugs down as tight as he humanly can, and then more. He completely drops all senses as all he can think is “Don’t get hit! Don’t get hit! For the love of all things good, please don’t get hit!”

The world falls quiet. The pounding guns fall silent in unison. He hears nothing, and sees nothing. But he feels something cold and hard in his chest. Something wet soaks through his shirt. His eyes open. He looks around. He finds all as it should be. Looking inwards at himself, he sees the Arc Rifle. It’s body, drenched with mud and slush, sticks to his chest under his locked muscles. There it is. He did it. He has it.

The hungry guns have finally run out of ammo.

Jax looks over his shoulder. The Vanguard is still rolling through the trees. But as the guns have ceased, he sees his chance. He readies the rifle, but he must be point blank with his target for the weapon to have any effect. He stands, not even a tremor of terror as he stares down the goliath. All the he feels now is, it’s time to get down to business. It’s time to end this fight.

He walks forward, the tank now just 100 meters to his front left. Towers of timbers falling in its wake. Jax looks to it, his face scrunched with anger.

The rail cannon turns to look at him, the crew has finally loaded the titanic projectile. But Jax braves on unaware. He is now within the crucial 50 meter distance. As those two long rails, powered up and glowing look straight at him, he drops to a knee, steadies his aim, and fires.

A thunderous blast of dense lightning streaks from the tesla weapon. It’s blinding light flashes for only an instant, but its angry roar of raw electric power echoes for eternity. The strike finds its mark, right to the Vanguard’s front left track. It’s volatile heat melts rubber and metal alike. It fries all wired connections that keep it rolling. The entire track seises up, the tank jolts and it careens hard to the left. The cannon fires, missing Jax as the whole thing turns on a dime. They driver slams on the breaks, knowing he’s lost control. But the gunner swings back on target. Jax, dazed from the blast, fires again. He hits the turret. A storm of sparks explode off its metal skin. But the beast remains still. He fires again and again, lightning strike after lightning strike. The tank shutters and sputters as the driver tries to get it moving. But the barrage of electric thunder is too much. Jax keeps firing. The engine overblows. All tracks screech to a slow, grinding halt and the beast comes to a groaning stop.

The engine finally dies. It’s loud whining spools down from a blare, to a cry, to a whisper, and then to nothing. Smoke gently floats up from all openings. It’s finally dead. The tank has been stopped.

But there’s still the crew inside to deal with.

FMC sees his chance. He finally comes out of cover and clambers onto the tank. The hatch was left unlocked, and he opens it with his side arm at theready. He doesn’t even open it all the way, he lifts it just enough to fit his pistol through and opens fire. Five rounds, all in quick succession. He throws the hatch open, still firing. He doesn’t aim, he’s still too shaken and he just fires indiscriminately at those inside. The tank was built for four humans, but FMC is now laying in on 14 screaming Equine.

He fires every last round in his magazine. He takes a moment to reload, but a huge blast of energy erupts straight up out of the hatch. Jax sees it. He thinks it has killed his leader, but it was merely a grazing blow. FMC continues to reload, his cloak torn and his chest black and burned.

As he put his pistol to action once more, a streaking pegasus swoops in. It slams right into his chest, throwing his limp body far from the turret’s top. His back slams against a tree, and he falls from high to the ground.

Jax watches him fall. But he tries to track the swooping striker as they streak away, but they are too quick. While he waits for a second strike, the heavy rains once again returns as it always has. But the pegasis does not return. They have gone and joined the others in the clouds, to quell the inferno that now rages.

Jax runs to FMC. As he makes his way, the few uninjured crew leave the tank and escape into the village.

“Fully!” Jax yells, stooping down to lift his back. “Fully, are you alright!”

“I’m fine - Just got the wind knocked outta me - that’s all.”

Jax fearfully looks to the skies. Another one could come down at any moment. There has to be some place to hide. But with all these fallen trees, and with so many wings still looming above, he has no chance by staying outside. He carries FMC towards the village, seeking refuge in the first house they come to. A little over half way, FMC drops to walk on his own, not wanting to let his veritable son have to haul him all that way. They limp together, always keeping an eye on the sky until they finally reach the first wooden shack.

They both lean against it, listening… Nothing, they hear no one inside. But there’s no door on their side either. Jax peeks around the corner. He sees no one. The village seems empty, though both scouts know this is not true. The Equine want to keep themselves hidden just as much as the humans do. Neither want another battle to ensue.

Just around the corner is the door. Once again, Jax leans against the wall to listen.. Nothing. No voices, no hoofsteps, no noise. Only pouring rain. He pushes open the door, weapon drawn. He sees no one inside. There is only a dark, empty room. The floor is made of mud and straw. No furniture and no ownership. A perfect place to hide and wait out the storm until morning.

Both settle in. FMC collapses, but crawls and props himself against the wall. “It’s finally over.” He says, his voice croacked from his wounds.

“It’s not over yet. They’re probably coming for us, or thinking of some way to ambush and finish us off right now!”

“Keep your voice down. They don’t know we’re here.”

Jax sits down, opposite of FMC.

“It’s finally over JAX.”

“Almost. I.. Can’t believe we did it.”

“Not that.”

“What?”

“I mean for me. They’ll probably retire me now. I’m old, I’m injured, and I’m tired. When the first wave catches up tomorrow, it’ll be the end of my journey. And what a journey it was.”

Jax isn’t sure what to say.

“I did what I could..” FMC goes on to say, his mood down now the things have settled. He looks to Jax with a bout of sorrow. “.. But I failed you. And I failed your brothers.”

“You didn’t fail us. You got us in and out of so much! I doubt we could have gotten a better team leader.”

“I promised the three of you, I would make sure that all of you would make a home here one day. But.. Now there’s only one of us left. You. I’m done for. I’m not worth the time I’ve devoted anymore.”

“But Fully --”

“Promise me something JAX. You’re going to be put in a new squad. You might even see yourself finish this out in a different theatre. But promise me you’ll keep going. You’ll continue to see evils you never thought possible. These Equine are just as dark and merciless as we are. But our two evils can’t coexist. One must be destroyed so the other can become good once more. Keep fighting JAX. Rid the world of evil, do everything you can for the greater good. So that we can finally end our own suffering. I might as well be dead. Consider this my dying wish.”

“I will do what I must.”

“You’ll live here someday, and you won’t need to fight anymore. But until then, keep going. Just keep putting one foot in front of the other. At times, when you run into moments like today - they’re only going to keep happening as they get smarter - just remember these words. No one comes this far only to come this far. There’s always a way to keep moving forward. The only impossible task, is the one you never begin.”

“It won’t be easy.. Not without your guidance.”

“I’m not here to tell you anything’s going to be easy. I’m only here to tell you everything you do will be worth it.”

There’s a pause.

“It was Commandos by the way.” FMC says as he tends to his wounds.

“What?”

“Commandos. That’s how I got out of that mess we were talking about earlier. They found a stray unicorn wondering the streets who just happened to know where I was, and they rescued me.”

A door across the room opens. In with the pouring rain, blinded in the dark, walks a lone earth pony. “Dandy Lion? Dandy, you in here? It’s me, Junebug.” She lights a candle.

Now they all see each other. All three freeze. The pony stares at the humans, who return their gaze just as unnerved.

Jax immediately tackles the intruder.

“Close the door!”

Kush!

The candle falls to the floor, but remains lit.

The pony falls to heavy tears, her mouth held shut in a muzzled grip. She does not fight. She only struggles to plea for mercy as Jax clasps around her from behind.

“What should we do with her?” asks Jax. A mild panic sets within him as he fears the commotion has given them away.

“Kill her.”

The pony now screams in muffled cries as she struggles to break free.

“But.. why? She can’t do anything to us. We could let her go.”

“You sit, having two of your brothers killed, and now you want to let them go?”

“She can’t do us any harm.”

“We can’t let her go. Soon as she gets out, she’ll let every last one of them know we’re here.”

FMC slides a knife across the floor. “Do it quick. Do it quiet. I’m sorry, Jax.”

Jax wields the knife, the point held right to her gut. But all the while, Jax looks to FMC with hesitation. “No.” he says, shaking his head. All his built up pain for their endless slaughter finally takes over his mind. “This, this isn’t right.”

“But it is necessary. We’re in her home, and now she needs to leave so we can stay. It’s a perfect metaphor for this whole ordeal.”

Both Jax and the pony look to each other. She sees that spite of hope in his worried eyes. And Jax looks into hers. He has never been so close to one before. Never seen that look of sorrow as her windowed soul speaks to his in a familiar voice. She sees his good, and tries to talk with her eyes so it might prevail.

“We should keep her as a prisoner.” says Jax.

“We can’t. It’s not our job to take them in. Those whose job it is have stopped for the night. It makes no difference who guides her to the end. If not you, then it will be someone else. But unfortunately for her, her number’s up already.”

“But --”

“No Jax. I’m sorry, I know it hurts. But you have to do it. Remember what I told you, and what you promised me.”

“I - can’t. It’s not right. We should let her go!”

“I can’t let you do that JAX.” FMC says as he pulls his sidearm from its holster. “If you let her go, she’ll have to catch one of these. It’s loud, and everyone will know we’re here, but if I have to use it I will. Now, do you want to make it out of here alive or not?”

Jax keeps his fretful gaze to FMC. The knife quivers just above the crying pony’s heart. Jax knows what must be done. But, despite all the running thoughts, he keeps himself at a pause.

“I.. Can’t”

“Yes you can. She’s no different than the others. Do it JAX, or you might be on the receiving end as well.”

The knife pokes just into her skin. Jax breathes heavy, his nerves shot. He looks into those wide, fearful eyes one more time. She still struggles and pleas beneath his vice. But Jax calms himself. Staring right down into those hazel eyes, he does it.

One last gasp. Her last breath bursts through his fingers. Her eyes roll back, the light of her life blows out cold. She falls limp in his arms. But now, with such a close, emotional encounter, all of Jax’s quiet guilt reaches a fever pitch. He saw those thriving eyes, he saw her soul and in it he saw himself. How far must this go? How much more must he endure, just to have a home?

The crying skies continue to let fall their weeping tears, all over the wooden top of the quiet shack. Not a voice is heard, not a rumble nor whisper. Only that dripping, dropping, dabbling beat.. of the rainy music set in spring.

REBOOT IN PROGRESS

Over the chapters, I've noticed my writing style has changed drastically. I find myself constantly looking back at my amateur work and wishing I did it all differently. I feel so held back by how I wrote this fanfic and want to move on to better works. But I couldn't just abandon this project, so I've decided to Reboot it. This started off as a fun little hobby but recently, behind the scenes, I've been committing to it on a professional level. For those of you still reading, please stay tuned for a reboot of the entire story. You can wait until I catch back up in Act 3 (that'll take a while), the plot will more or less be the same but the level of work will be radically higher. There'll be a few new ideas thrown in, but nothing that really changes the plot. So yeah, stay tuned. It'll be slow, but it's coming. Thanks for staying with this.

ACT II - Where Loyalty Lies

Eyes open. Halfway. Head pounding like a drum. Can’t move. The horizon, still orange and sideways, shudders. The side rails of a wooden cart blocks my view. Everything shakes and rumbles as a cart, with my corporeal self aboard, trundles across the ground. I can’t see what pulls the cart. I can't see where the cart is going. I can’t see who or even what else has become cargo. All I know is the horizon, sweeping from left to right. I can’t tell if it’s morning or evening.

Fade to black.

Eyes open halfway. A dark sky of stone above. No energy. No feeling. Only a splitting pain in my head, coldness in my legs. My body lay on its back. The stone sky rumbles overhead. Dark.. Moist.. A drop of water falls from the ceiling and lands on my forehead. A solitary glow lights the way ahead.

Fade to black.

Eyes open again. Blurry. Head, continuing to pound. No energy to move. Only fogged vision and muffled ambiance.

My body is tossed into a dark and stony alcove. Voices chatter, figures move about as my body rolls to a stop, head facing towards a wide open entrance. Two orange figures of Equines approach. Their voices grow louder but no less distorted as the distance closes. One of them lowers a grate of metal bars down over the entrance. Slam! Latch, latch! The figures walk away, the sound of metal jiggling fades with them as they leave my sight. Their voices are heard. Both male, speaking to one another. I fight the urge to fade again into the returning black. My eyelids waver up and down as I combat the heavy pull of exhaustion. But just as before, I eventually fail and once again succumb to the welcoming, painless embrace of the dark.