Tempest awoke to the suns rays peering in through the window and falling right onto her closed eyes. With a groan, she rolled over until she was facing away from the light and pushed herself off of the bed. A tired yawn escaped her lips before she hopped out of bed and landed on her hooves. The wood panels creaked slightly as they accepted her weight, but she ignored their protest, and walked over to her gear to adorn her armor and saddlebags.

Not far behind her, Jason woke up to the sound of her moving around with a start, and quickly pulled himself out of bed. He glanced back and forth as if some evil creature was about to kick the door in, before sighing and looking down at the floor, much to Tempest's confusion. For a few moments, he just stared at the ground as if he was contemplating the pros and cons of going back to sleep. Eventually, he rose to his feet and dressed himself in his armor and gear.

"Um... are you okay?" Tempest asked, with some concern.

"Yeah. Sorry about that. I, uh... Waking up isn't always fun for me." Jason replied, his voice filled with melancholy.

"Are... you sure?" Tempest pressed.

"Yeah. Don't worry, I'm good. It's just a morning thing. I'm used to it." Jason responded as he grabbed his chest piece.

"Alright... If you say so..." Tempest conceded, not believing most of what he'd said.

Several minutes passed in silence, save for the sound of the man and mare donning their gear. When Tempest was fully dressed and wearing her saddlebags, she turned to Jason to find him strapping on his pack. She glanced down at his rifle and, after a moment of thought, walked over to it. She grabbed the metallic hand-guard with her hoof and held it out for him to take. It was surprisingly light, given its materials and design, and she couldn't help but eye it curiously for a few moments before Jason accepted it from her hoof.

"It's an M7X1 carbine." Jason said, suddenly.

"What?" Tempest asked.

"This rifle. It's an M7X1 carbine. Eddie and Rebecca have the same model and Mike has an MG2070." Jason elaborated.

"Oh... I see. How exactly do they work? I've never seen anything like it." Tempest continued, with genuine curiosity.

"Why the sudden interest?" Jason teased.

"I guess I just never really looked at it this closely before. It almost looks like a magic staff of some kind with all the edges and length, but I know that it's not." She replied.

"Well, it's a pretty long story. I'll tell you another time. For now, we need to get going." Jason said.

"Right, right."

The pair quickly opened the door and headed out into the hallway. Jason quickly made his way over to the other two rooms and knocked on the doors until he heard movement inside. He stepped back toward Tempest, and after a few minutes, both doors opened. Mike, Midnight, and a much healthier looking Sky walked out first, before Eddie and Rebecca walked out of their room.

"How're you doing?" Jason asked, looking at Sky.

"Feeling a lot better today. Thanks." The crimson pegasus gratefully replied.

"Good. Alright, let's get out of here before something stupid happens." Jason instructed.

They all quickly filed down the stairs and out the front door without a word to the reptilian creature behind the front desk. Jason barely paused long enough to throw the three room keys onto the desk before stepping outside with the rest of the group.

"Have a pleasant day." The creature chuckled as it grabbed the keys and returned them.

Once outside, Jason and the group headed back to the water tower once more and filled their canteens. Just like the day before, the reptilian creature gave a predatory smile and charged twenty bits per canteen. Once Midnight, albeit angrily paid, their canteens were filled, and they proceeded onward.

"I hope we never have to see this stupid town again." Midnight muttered as she walked.

"We won't. Promise." Sky replied, giving her a soft nuzzle.

She leaned into the affectionate action, before they broke apart and continued forward. Within a few minutes, they were at the complete other side of the small town, and an imposing mountain range greeted the group. Sharp, jagged cliff sides and towering rock formations blocked out the morning sun, casting a long shadow over the group and most of the town.

"Welp... it's gonna be a long hike." Mike sighed.

"If we can make it over the mountains in a week, we'll be on time. I hate to say it, but since we're gonna be pretty much out of food for most of this, we should probably only eat one MRE a day." Jason announced.

"Well, so much for my gains." Mike pouted, flexing his bicep in disappointment.

"We'll get them back. Just gotta survive this first." Eddie replied.

"Yep... wooohooo." Rebecca sarcastically added.

"No sense in waiting here forever. Let's start climbing." Tempest chimed in.

With that, the group headed forward to the first mountain in their way. The pace was slow going, and as they gradually increased their elevation, the town behind them grew smaller and smaller. The early morning sun gently warmed the world around them, but compared to the heat of the last few days, it was a welcome relief from the cold desert chills during the night.

As they trailed up the mountain, the air gradually began to grow thinner and thinner, slowing progress more and more. Jason's legs burned from the effort of carrying on uphill for over a thousand feet, and each step shot pain all the way from his thighs to his calves. He panted for breath against the thinning air and pushed forward, even though he knew they still had thousands upon thousands of feet to go before they would reach the top of just this mountain alone.

.

.

.

.

.

Eddie dropped his pack off his back and unceremoniously dropped to the ground in exhaustion. Sweat dripped off his brow as he gasped for air in the high elevation, and his legs burned with enough severity to make him wince with each step forward. The rest of the group fared no better, with each member dropping their respective packs and saddlebags to the ground before flopping onto their backs or stomachs in a heap of exhausted pony and human.

"Okay... that's... five thousand feet down... three thousand more to go..." Jason wheezed.

"I... hate... mountains..." Midnight whined from her sprawled out position on the ground.

"If it makes anyone feel any better... we're making good time." Tempest optimistically chimed in.

"If you guys want, I can fly on ahead and look for more places to camp for the night or just take a break." Sky added, surprising not out of breath.

"How the fuck... are you... in such a good mood?" Rebecca asked, gasping for air all the while.

"High altitude does nothing to me. Just one of the perks of being a pegasus. The desert was my kryptonite, but up here, I'm in my comfort zone." Sky explained, a big smile on his muzzle.

"Well... Maybe you can carry me the rest of the way then... big guy..." Midnight managed through deep breaths.

"If you need me to carry you, I absolutely will." Sky said, leaning down until his muzzled was just an inch away from hers.

They shared a cheeky smile before gently pressing their lips together and kissing.

"Oh, get a room, will ya?" Mike breathed.

"Hehe, sorry about that." Sky apologized upon breaking the kiss.

"All jokes aside... Sky should go ahead and find us a good place to make camp for the night... It's going to get dark up here pretty soon." Tempest pointed out.

"Agreed... Sky, go find somewhere up ahead that isn't too far away and mark it... Once you get back, we'll make our way over there and set up camp for the night." Jason ordered.

"Alright, I'm on it." Sky replied.

He unfurled his wings and gave one powerful flap, sending him soaring into the air. He beat his wings a few more times and quickly disappeared into the clouds, leaving the group behind to rest.

"So... Now what?" Mike asked, having caught most of his breath.

"We wait for him to get back. Didn't you hear what I just said?" Jason asked, looking confused.

"Wait, you said something? I thought we just got here." Mike replied, glancing around in equal amounts of confusion.

"Do you not remember the last five minutes at all?" Eddie questioned.

"I... we were just... n-no... I don't." Mike realized, his eyes falling to the ground.

Jason turned to Midnight and gave her a fearful look. She merely nodded and frowned at Mike's sudden memory loss. After a moment, Jason turned back to Mike and gave him a friendly nod.

"Hey Mike, don't worry about it. Once we get to the island, we'll be fine. Just gotta get over these mountains first, okay?"

"Y-yeah... yeah... Roger that, boss." Mike hesitantly replied, his eyes still glued to the ground.

"Hey, you're gonna be fine, okay?' Jason said, placing a comforting hand on Mike's shoulder.

"Yeah... thanks, Sarge." He replied.

A few minutes later, the sound of flapping wings could be heard over the gentle mountain breeze, and all eyes turned to see Sky flying toward them. He gracefully came to a stop just above their makeshift camp, before dropping to the ground with a low 'thud'.

"I found a good spot just a few hundred feet ahead. There's an overhang and a ton of grass all over the place. It should be a good spot to rest for the night and get ready for tomorrow." He explained.

"Good. Take us to it." Jason responded as he got to his feet.

The rest of the group quickly followed behind, and soon enough they were on the move up the mountain once more. The tall rocks and boulders along the way made the travel difficult, but as each member of the group progressed forward, they felt their motivation increase just a little bit at the process of getting to a place where they could rest and recover for the night.

As they traveled along a particularly narrow ledge, Rebecca took a step that crumbled away beneath her foot, and she lost her balance for just a second. Right as she was about to lose her foothold on the ledge and fall, a mulberry hoof shot forward and caught her by her pant leg. She was quickly pulled back to the relative safety of the ledge, albeit with a massive pit in her stomach.

"Jesus... thanks." Rebecca gasped.

"Are you okay?" Tempest asked, quizzically staring at the woman.

"Yeah, yeah. Sorry about that." Rebecca replied.

Rebecca pressed forward with Tempest coming up right behind her. It only took a few more steps, but Tempest kept a close distance until they reached the end of the ledge and found the rest of the group waiting for them.

"You okay?" Jason asked.

"Yeah. Thanks to Tempest." Rebecca smiled, looking down at the mulberry unicorn next to her.

Tempest blushed slightly at the praise, before Jason's grateful smile made her blush even harder.

"Glad you're with us, Tempest." He said.

"Glad to be here... Hey, um, Jason. Can I talk to you real quick?" Tempest asked, motioning away from the group with a nod of her head.

"Uh, yeah. Sure." Jason replied, stepping away from the group with the mulberry unicorn coming up beside him.

Once they were just out of ear-shot, Tempest turned to Jason with a concerned look on her face.

"Okay, I'm not sure what just happened back there, but Rebecca just walked off the edge like it wasn't even there." She explained.

"What?" Jason asked, a concerned frown forming on his brow.

"She just... walked off. It was bizarre. I watched her just turn right and take two steps before the third... well, if I wasn't there to grab her, she would be dead right now." Tempest elaborated, looking past Jason at the woman in question.

"Jesus... and she didn't even notice?"

"She had no idea... I'm worried that something like that might happen again, only next time..." Tempest trailed off.

"Yeah... I get it. Looks like this magic is affecting us more than I expected," Jason replied, glancing down at his bracelet. The color was still blue, albeit a slightly greener blue than before, "Fuck... Alright, I'll keep it in mind. Thanks again, Tempest. I really am glad you're with us."

A sheepish smile found its way onto the mulberry mare's face, and she gave a small nod before turning back around with Jason and heading back to the group.

"What was that about?" Eddie asked as they returned.

"Just something else to look out for. Everybody watch each other's backs. That goes double for Chief." Jason announced.

"Wha? Oh come on, I just took a bad step, it was nothing major." Rebecca defensively replied.

"I'm just looking out for you, Chief. It looked like you just started walking off the edge on purpose." Jason rebutted.

"W-what? I... I did?" Rebecca questioned.

"Yeah... It must be the magic in your head... You just... walked off." Tempest added.

"Fuck me..." Rebecca muttered, her eyes falling to the floor in contemplation.

"Hey, don't worry about it, Chief. We're gonna get everyone out of here. We just need to get through this mountain first." Jason comforted.

"Y-yeah.. Okay. Thanks." She slowly replied, giving a small nod.

"How much further is this place?" Mike suddenly asked, looking at Sky.

"Just past that peak over there." Sky replied, pointing at an angular rock face a hundred feet ahead.

"Alright, let's get there already." Mike said, readjusting his pack and heading toward the peak.

It took another dozen minutes before they were able to scale the peak and find the spot Sky had indicated, but upon cresting the last few inches, the group found the perfect shelter. A large slab of rock covered what appeared to be a large cave with one side holding a massive view over the desert below. Just as Sky said, there were small patches of greenery growing nearby, and even puddles of water formed all along the rocky path.

"I guess this is gonna be our little base-camp for the night." Jason shrugged.

"It's better than anything else out here." Rebecca replied, taking the first step forward.

"She's got a point. I could go flying around for a bit and find another place, but I don't think we'd get anywhere else before nightfall." Sky chimed in.

"Right. Let's get some tents set up." Jason ordered.

The rest of the group hastily made their way into the cave and surveyed possible locations to set up camp. Quick enough, they found a wide area about thirty feet into the cave with a large, dry area for their tents and other belongings.

"Okay, this looks good. Here, Mike, Rebecca, Midnight and Sky, you guys set up the tents. Tempest, Eddie and I will start up a fire." Jason instructed.

"On it boss." Mike replied.

The group quickly split into two, and before long, three tents were erected inside. Jason pulled a small packet out of his pack while Eddie took what appeared to be a black wooden log out of his and placed it on the ground.

"What's that?" Tempest asked.

"Forever log. Just something I picked up a while ago when I was on Horizon V. It'll burn and burn forever as long as you have some fire jelly packets." Eddie explained.

"And I take it that that's what those are." Tempest replied, eyeing Jason's packet.

"Yep. All we need is a little spark, and this puppy will burn all night." Jason said, giving her an expectant look.

"Ah, so that's why you needed me for this." Tempest chuckled.

"Well that and I like your company." Jason grinned.

Tempest's cheeks heated up once more, and she darted her eyes to the floor for a moment, before giving Jason a playful look and smiling.

"Wow guys, I'm right here." Eddie chimed in, eyeing them both.

"Sorry. Here, put your log down." Jason replied, suppressing a bit of laughter.

Eddie did as asked and put the log down in the center of the half circle of tents. Jason quickly followed up by opening the jelly packet and pouring the viscous liquid all over the log until it was completely covered. Once he was satisfied, he gave Tempest a nod, and she leaned down to the log before bringing a spark to her horn and igniting the jelly.

Fiery heat quickly bloomed outward from the fire and warmed the three as they sat around the fire and waited for the rest of the group to finish with the tents. Just a few minutes later, they were joined by Sky, Mike, Midnight, and Rebecca as they sat down around the fire as well.

Jason glanced outward at the setting sun to find that a blanket of darkness was quickly settling over the world around them, and before long, the firelight was their only source of warmth as the cold mountain air picked up and the temperature dropped.

"Alright, we shouldn't need to have a fireguard set up, but I still think at least one person should be up and making sure nothing happens while we're up here." He said.

"There shouldn't be anyone else up here except for a few random creatures." Midnight replied.

"That's what I'm hoping for. I just don't trust this place. For all we know, some of those lizard dudes might have tracked us up here or something." Jason responded.

"I'll stay up for a while," Sky chimed in, "I got a full night's sleep last night anyways. You guys should all get some rest tonight."

"We'll figure it out in a bit. For now, let's eat some food." Eddie said, pulling an MRE out of his pack.

"Agreed." Jason nodded.

Everyone in the group grabbed their packs and quickly removed one of their MRE's and ripped into the packaging. Within a few moments, they had all of their food laid out in front of them on the open MRE bags and wrappers.

"Hey Mike, whatcha' got?" Eddie asked as he slid his meal into the provided heater.

"Uh, I got the cheeseburger flavored paste... why? What did you get?" Mike replied, raising an eyebrow as he held his food.

"I got the fettuccine Alfredo. Wanna trade?" Eddie asked.

"Aww... I love Fettuccine Alfredo..." Midnight whined from a few spots over.

"Well what do you have then?" Eddie replied, turning to face the graphite mare.

"Uh... I have a daffodil sandwich with some carrots..." She sheepishly offered.

"Uh... thanks... but daffodils aren't exactly... my preference." Eddie declined as politely as he could.

"Heh, I understand." Midnight replied before taking a bite out of her sandwich.

"Carrots and daffodils... sounds like it'd go bad within a matter of days." Rebecca pondered aloud.

Midnight swallowed her bite before replying, "Well, our food pouches are enchanted to keep everything inside cold for almost a year." She explained.

"You're gear is enchanted?" Jason inquired before biting into his own meal.

"Not all of it, just the food pouches. I tried to get Twilight to enchant our canteens with something to make them colder or hold more water than they normally could, but she just didn't have enough time or magic to do that and keep our food pouches cool." Midnight shrugged.

"So basically you three have refrigerators on your backs?" Mike asked.

"Kinda. Twilight had to do a rush job and that level of magic is unfortunately, a little above Midnight's level for the most part." Sky chimed in.

"It's just really hard to get the mana fields to align right for the cold to be trapped inside..." Midnight pouted.

"Well either way, it's good to know. Glad we won't have to worry about your food spoiling any time soon." Jason replied.

Midnight simply gave him a smile in return, and went back to her sandwich.

"So... just out of curiosity, why is your food just a... paste?" Tempest spoke up, eyeing Mike's food curiously.

Mike raised an eyebrow as he looked over at the mulberry unicorn holding a sandwich in her hooves.

"Well... it's a nutrient paste. Has all of the calories, sugars, proteins, and whatever else that your body needs, but it's more portable and doesn't go bad anywhere near as quickly. I mean, one of these has two thousand calories in it." He explained.

"Ah, okay... And you said yours is a... 'cheeseburger'? Is that like a hayburger?" Tempest pressed, clearly interested in the subject.

"Well, yeah. It's flavored like a cheeseburger, but it's nothing like the consistency of a real cheeseburger..." Mike elaborated, before a realization hit him like a truck, "Uh... what's in a hayburger exactly?"

"Mostly just hay and some other deep fried junk that makes it taste good. What about a cheeseburger? I assume there's more in there than just cheese." Tempest chuckled.

"Uh..." Mike trailed off. He glanced to Jason, Eddie, and Rebecca for help.

"Well... you see..." Eddie chimed in, obviously looking for a way to explain the concept of eating meat to a vegetarian species.

"You guys can tell her, you know?" Sky spoke up, directing all eyes to him, "I ate meat for a long time after I got here. Hell, I still eat meat every now and again. Tempest knows that. She's not gonna get all freaked out." He explained.

"Wait, what? Really?" Rebecca asked.

"Mmhmm," Tempest nodded, "Sky told me all about how humans need meat a while ago. A lot of species in Equestria and beyond need meat to survive too, so it's not exactly world shattering to me."

"So... you're okay with it?" Jason asked, looking at her curiously.

"Of course I am. I couldn't hold that against you. It's just a part of life. So long as none of you try to eat any sapient creatures, I have no issues with it." Tempest shrugged.

"Hehe, well you won't have to worry there. None of us would ever eat a creature that could talk and think like us." Jason chuckled.

"I thought as much," Tempest smiled, "So what is in a cheeseburger then?" She asked, turning to Mike.

"Well... it's mostly cow meat... unintelligent cow meat. Where we're from, cows can't talk." Mike explained.

"Okay. Interesting." Tempest gave a nod, apparently satisfied with his answer.

For a few moments, the group lapsed into silence, as everyone continued to eat their meals and rest in the firelight. Jason took to laying on his back, using his pack as a makeshift headrest while he gazed up at the ceiling. Mike finished his food and leaned back against his pack. He tiredly yawned before looking down at the fire and scratching his chin while appearing to be in deep thought. Eddie and Rebecca both took to kicking their boots off and warming their feet by the fire, while Sky and Midnight laid down beside each other, content to simply lean on each other for warmth and support. Lastly, Tempest stared at the flames in front of her with a curious look on her face. She leaned forward toward the warmth until the heat soaked into the soft and short fur of her muzzle, and warmed the skin underneath.

"So..." Mike spoke up, getting everyone's attention, "Does anyone have any good stories?"

"Stories... like?" Midnight replied, motioning for him to continue.

"You know, stories. Like, crazy shit you did or something insane you saw that happened. I know you guys have to have some awesome stories. What about you, sarge? You got anything?" Mike answered, turning his head to Jason.

"Mike, you were there for most of my stories." Jason deadpanned.

"Well yeah, but what about the ones I wasn't there for?" Mike pressed, giving a toothy grin.

"I don't know, Mike. I can't think of any good ones right now." Jason shrugged as he scratched at his beard.

"Midnight? Sky? You got anything?" Mike asked, turning to the couple across from him.

"I mean... we have some stories about us and when I first got here... but they're probably not what you're hoping for." Sky admitted, giving an apologetic smile.

"I think I have one." Eddie spoke up.

"Finally! Let's here it." Mike excitedly exclaimed.

"Alright, this one's good," Eddie said as he sat upright, the firelight catching in his hazel eyes. Everyone in the group leaned forward slightly with anticipation as he began, "Okay, so Sky, Midnight, Tempest, and Rebecca, you don't know him, but our old buddy Johnny was the craziest son of a bitch you ever met-"

Sky, Midnight, and Tempest nodded, clearly invested already and listening attentively for more details.

"-Alright, so one night, when we were heading to Horizon V, we were all pretty tired of the war. Everyone just wanted it to end, but command kept saying 'one more mission, this is the last mission, and then we can go home'. We all believed it, because you know, who wouldn't? Anyways, the four of us were in our bunks that night, just waiting for the big battle. Most of us couldn't sleep, and that was normal, but that night, the captain decided he wanted to skulk around the ship when we were all supposed to be asleep." Eddie continued, a wide smile forming on his face as he recounted the tale.

The rest of the group was all leaning forward and intently listening for the inevitable punchline to the story. Even Jason, who knew the story by heart, gave Eddie his full attention as he continued.

"So this guy comes into our sleeping bay and starts walking through the hallways of bunkbeds. Now, something you need to know about Johnny- he was a mad lad. This kid went into the forest with nothing and came back with six enemy dog tags one night. To this day, the thought of pissing him off scares the crap out of me. Anyways, our commanding officer thought, in his infinite wisdom, that he would fuck with Johnny while he was getting his beauty sleep before the mission. He brought his flashlight over Johnny's face and turned it on. Now, one more thing about Johnny- He's a light sleeper. Any bright light or loud noise at all, and he's up-"

"Oooooh..." Midnight whispered, already piecing together where this story was going to go.

"-So when captain dumbshit turns this light on right in Johnny's face, well... I've never woken up to a more terrifying scream than that captain when Johnny smacked the light out of his hand, twisted his wrist until it broke, and threw him on the ground so hard that he fractured his jaw." Eddie had to stop for a moment as the memories brought a genuine laugh out of him and the rest of the group.

"But- hehe, but that's not the best part. See, Johnny, he liked to sleep in the nude. So, imagine this, a butt-ass naked twenty four year old with tattoos all over his body, holding a captains face to the ground like he just stole his lunch money, and I swear to god, the kid looked like he was about to shit himself! Hahaha!" Eddie broke into a laughing fit. He was quickly joined by the rest of the group, and for a few precious moments, only their shared laughter filled the night air.

"Ah man, I forgot about that one. I fuckin' miss Johnny." Mike said after catching his breath.

"That kid made everything better. Especially when he bitched." Eddie chuckled, a mirthful smile on his face.

"Really?" Rebecca asked, tilting her head to the side.

"Oh yeah. See, when Johnny bitched, he always did it in the funniest way you ever saw... and he just had this voice that he would always do that was just so, damn, funny. I dunno, it's hard to explain, but he made every mission hilarious. Best guy you could ask for in that shit heap of a war." Eddie replied, smiling widely.

"You guys remember when he stole that German captain's ramen and we had to hear that dude running around for half an hour going 'vhere are mine noodles'!?" Jason added with a cheesy German accent.

"Ahaha! Oh my god, that guy was about to court martial all of us!" Mike threw his head back in laughter.

"Ah man, I miss that kid." Jason replied, shaking his head and sighing.

"What happened to him?" Rebecca asked, genuinely curious.

It was as if all the joy left the group, and a darkness settled upon them. Eddie glanced down into the fire while Mike chewed his cheek and Jason simply frowned. For a few moments, there was only silence,

"He died in Bellruse... Didn't do anything wrong, or anything we hadn't done a thousand times before, he just... wrong place, wrong time." Jason said, albeit with some sadness in his voice.

A blanket of sorrow cloaked itself over the group, and everyone present felt a trace of sadness cling to their hearts. Mike's eyebrows knitted together as his pursed his lips and looked down at the fire. Across from him, Eddie bit his lip while absentmindedly tapping his fingers on his knees and slowly shaking his head.

"I-I'm sorry. I didn't know." Rebecca replied.

"It's fine, chief... Just miss him is all." Mike shrugged.

"If you don't mind my asking, how... how did he die?" Tempest hesitantly spoke up after several seconds of silence.

Although the question was directed at Jason, it was Eddie who replied first, directing the mulberry unicorn's attention in his direction.

"Sniper... All it took was one shot and... that was that." He sadly explained.

"I had a running bet with him," Mike spoke up, chuckling slightly, "A thousand dollars that I'd outlive him... I never got that money... Heh, never really wanted it, I guess." He finished, choking up slightly and blinking back the beginnings of a tear.

"We'll see him one day. I'm sure of that. Be it heaven or hell, we'll get our old boy back." Eddie said, smiling slightly.

"Here's hoping that when we do, first pint's on him. Bastard had to leave us too soon." Mike chuckled.

Jason glanced over at the horizon and watched the moon as it slowly crawled into the night sky. He quietly sighed to himself before getting to his feet and heading to his tent.

"Alright, I'm gonna get some sleep. Sky, you're on first watch. Everyone else, figure out a rotation. Just throw me somewhere in there." He said as he stepped into the tent.

"You got it, Jay." Eddie replied.

For another few moments, a slightly uncomfortable silence reigned over the group, before eventually, and one by one, they all left their respective seats and made for bed. Sky sat out for his shift with just the fire to warm him, until it was time to change shifts.

Author's Note

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8AHCfZTRGiI

Well here you all go. The backstory on Johnny. I hope that you all enjoyed this chapter and the character development we got going on in here. The next chapter is going to have a pretty... interesting beginning. I hope that you're all not too taken aback by it ;)