Change of Fate

My wheelchair creaked horribly as I walked towards the town’s centre. The noise was no surprise, really, given how primitive and rusted the device was. Just two wheels, connected a couple of rusty pipes haphazardly welded together, and a few leather straps to support the weight of my back side.

Still, surprising or not, the constant creaking made it utterly impossible to forget my current state for even a second. It was bad enough that I had to get used to the lack of feeling in my hind legs, and to having my backside strapped into a rusty frame on wheels, but every single screech from it drove the nail in that much further.

Worse yet, ponies were staring at me. I wasn’t wanted in Dodge City, and they made that abundantly clear. I would have obliged, but I was stuck here.

I had to remind myself that not everypony here hated my guts, even if it seemed that way. Enough influential citizens believed in my innocence that I was never directly shunned. Adrenaline Shot had vouched for me, and I’d explained the situation to the mayor. Still, the majority of ponies had heard of me as Iron’s accomplice who’d gotten what he deserved.

But I hadn’t come here just to earn nasty glares. In fact, I was looking for a pony, and once I entered the central plaza that contained the market, it didn’t take long for me to spot him. After all, pegasi stood out like sore hooves.

Adrenaline Shot had told me about him. I knew he was a courier, and that he went by Airdrop, but that was all she’d mentioned. I watched as he finished putting away his purchases—a couple of cans of pre-war food and two apples. When he started walking towards the next stall, I called out, “Excuse me?” However, my voice didn’t carry, and failed to get his attention.

While he looked at the merchandise in front of him, I had time to walk up a little closer. “Excuse me, Mister Airdrop?”

“What is it?” When he replied, I felt a chill run down my spine. I couldn’t tell what, but something about him struck me as odd. Normally, that would have been enough for me to avoid him like a ghoul. In the moment, though, I was desperate and really did not care. I had barely slept since my injury and couldn’t stop worrying about Petal and Lockpick. Sending that letter was the only thing on my mind, and I was willing to deal with shady individuals to finally send it.

“I, uh, heard you were a courier.” My voice was weak, and my tone hesitant, as if I was a young colt looking for his mother. I just didn’t have the strength to put on my usual confident front.

Airdrop nodded. “Do you have a letter, or perhaps a package, for me to deliver?”

“Y-yeah.” Why was it so damn hard to steel my voice and sound normal?

“Well, I shall gladly take it off of your hooves then. I suppose you do not have it on you, along with my payment?” He stretched out his wing towards me, as if it were a leg.

“A-actually, I do. I came here specifically looking for you.” I reached into my saddlebags and pulled out a scrap of paper alongside my wallet. “Adrenaline Shot told me you would be in town again one of these days.”

“I see. Very well, then.” He paused for a second, looking me over. Or at least making a show of it. “Although—and do forgive my curiosity if indiscreet—would you mind telling me how you were injured? Your scars do look rather recent, if you will excuse my pointing it out. Were you perhaps involved in the battle a few weeks ago?” I could tell he was exaggerating, as if playing a role. He knew more than he let on. Either he was testing me, or he wanted to hear it from my own mouth.

I simply nodded. Trying to defend myself too early might make me look suspicious; better to let him ask the questions before answering them. If he was resorting to manipulative behaviour, I could do the same.

“Unfortunate, unfortunate indeed,” he said, nodding all the while. “You were not involved with that bandit, were you? I have heard rumours about you, but would not dare judge your character preemptively.” Another shiver ran down my spine. This pegasus was incredibly shady and couldn’t be trusted. And yet, he was my only hope at the moment.

Before my silence got suspicious, I replied, “N-no!” I made sure to start off upset, but then let my tone droop as I continued, “Well… Yes, but not knowingly.” If he was insisting on playing around, I could do so as well. Tired or not, I wouldn’t let this stranger try to beat me at my own game. I swallowed and pawed at the ground. “I didn’t know she was a bad pony, I swear…”

Everything I said was true, but I made sure to let him know he’d opened a fresh wound. I wanted to guilt trip him for suggesting it. Not only would it clear my name, but it would also turn the tables and cement me as the leader of this conversation.

It did exactly that. I saw his eyes go wide for a fraction of a second, but he hid it well, gesturing with his wing for me to continue.

Good. For the past few weeks, all I’d felt was anger, spite, and despair, and I didn’t have the patience to be nice with ponies trying to manipulate me.

However, I wouldn’t gain anything from continuing this charade. At least not for now. “She… tricked us, you see? She said there was a loan shark that wanted to enslave her. She didn’t mention a word of what she actually did to this town.” I sighed, all my spite turning to regret. “Told us she was just a mercenary looking to retire and do something more peaceful with her life. And like the idiot that I am, I fucking believed her.”

Airdrop frowned and took a few moments to think up a reply. “I see. If that is true, you were just as much of a victim as the inhabitants of this fine town. Who are these other ponies you speak of?” Before I could respond, he quickly added, “Perhaps we should find some better place to discuss this.” He was right, of course. Ponies were starting to stare.

We started walking towards the southern part of town, where Adrenaline’s clinic was. After we left the marketplace, there were fewer ponies around, and I said, “The two ponies I was talking about are Lockpick and Petal, and they’re basically my family. About a month and a half ago, Iron joined us and made the claims I mentioned earlier.”

The right wheel of my harness got stuck on a small rock, and I paused to pull through. “I had a bad feeling about her, but there were a few reasons why I didn’t immediately tell her off. She was very sick, and I knew Lockpick wanted someone her age to talk to. Plus there was that part of me that wanted to believe her. Neither Petal nor I are experienced fighters. We can hold our own in a fight, but the idea of an added safety net was alluring.”

Airdrop slowly nodded. “I assume they are the ponies your letter is addressed towards?”

I hummed a response. “After the attack, they had to leave town while I was left behind in Doctor Adrenaline Shot’s care. I’m trying to get back in touch with them, but it’s hard to travel longer distances like this.” I motioned to the wheelchair strapped to my backside. “They’re supposed to be waiting in Riverbreak.”

“Do you know what happened to that bandit?” He hesitated for a moment. “I am very afraid of running into her and would perhaps have the chance to warn some ponies of her approach.”

I winced, despite my best efforts not to. “That’s the entire issue, she left with them. My letter contains everything I was able to gather about Iron, to hopefully convince them to split from her…”

Airdrop frowned when he heard the first sentence, then remained silent as his brows furrowed. Finally, he spoke up, “That does sound rather problematic. I assume you are worried that she might enact some kind of violent retribution?”

I nodded.

“I see…” He tilted his head and turned his eyes towards the sky, not really focusing on anything. “I could perchance consider delivering the letter at an opportune time.” His speech mannerisms were starting to get on my nerves, but I pushed that feeling to the side. If he was willing to help me, I shouldn’t judge him like that. “Or, I could even envision helping the ponies of Dodge finally bring her to justice, by delivering a letter to the mayor of Riverbreak. After all, it would make the wasteland safer for everypony, including my wife, foal, and myself.” I felt myself relax a little. Maybe he wasn’t as shady as I’d originally thought. Something about him made me uneasy, but I could tell he wasn’t a bad guy at heart.

“Precisely, and your help would be greatly appreciated.” For a moment, I considered leaving it at that, but decided against it. If he was truly willing to help, then he should know the full scale of the problem. “However… there’s more. I’m worried about Lockpick. Specifically, I’m afraid she might not want to leave Iron, even if she learns the truth.”

I took a deep breath and sighed. “She was always more… pragmatic than us, even if it meant not necessarily doing the right thing. A true wastelander attitude that’s sometimes needed to survive.” I felt bad for telling that to a stranger, but it had been a point of worry for Petal and I for a while now.

I stopped and pawed at the ground. “I know it’s unlikely she’ll choose Iron over us, but there’s a lingering doubt in the back of my mind. Even then, forcing her to choose would definitely sour our relationship, and I just can’t find a way to not paint myself as the bad guy.” I stared at the ground, disappointed that I needed to ask somepony I didn’t know for advice like this. “I was tempted to be as harsh as possible to truly get the point across. But like I said, Lockpick might be more understanding than me, and to her it would seem like I’m exaggerating.” I needed to be subtle here, but without a face-to-face discussion with Lockpick, I didn’t know how to tiphoof my way around the topic.

Airdrop remained quiet for a while, and I couldn’t read his face. After maybe a minute of staring at the sky in thought, he spoke up again. “I was not planning on remaining here for longer than a few days, as our goal was to make it to Skybridge before my wife becomes unable to travel due to her pregnancy.”

He turned back towards me. “However, what you have said has led me to realise that I should take matters into my own hooves.” He paused for a brief moment. “You see, I did not tell the entire truth. Iron Sights is no arbitrary bandit, for she has dearly hurt my beloved. I have been trying to avoid settlements where Iron was sighted, so as to not bring back painful memories for my wife.” A shiver ran down my spine. I couldn’t really agree with sheltering an adult in such a way, but I was hardly in a position to judge; I’d do similar things for Lockpick, and she no longer was a small filly. “She is a very pure soul and harbours no ill will for Iron.” He broke eye contact and started trotting again.

I could see where this was going. “And I take it you do?”

To my surprise, he shook his head. “Only slightly. I despise Iron for what she has done to my wife, but would not seek vengeance for its own sake.” He paused for a moment and looked me in the eye. “As a result of my scouting, I have become familiar with just how dangerous Iron is. I am not seeking any sort of retribution; I simply want to rid the wasteland of a vile bandit.” He turned his head forwards again before adding, “Besides, it is time I take a permanent solution to the problem of avoiding her.”

His words seemed too grand to be believable, but my gut told me he was entirely sincere. “That makes sense, I guess.” I turned to face him, and he met my gaze. “I take it you have some kinda plan? You mentioned trying to convince the inhabitants of Riverbreak to band together with those of Dodge?” I doubted that this would have any real chance of success. “And what about Lockpick? Convincing her that I had nothing to do in this might be pretty difficult, depending on how things go.”

Again, Airdrop shook his head. “That would be the easy option, yes, but you and I both know how lethal Iron can be, particularly when cornered. I doubt she would surrender, and that would result in needless death.” He took a breath and continued, “Even then, they might not succeed in capturing or killing her. While she might not be able to win against a large group, she is capable of teleportation and would likely escape.”

He didn’t answer my second question, but that was fine for now. “Good to see we’re on the same page. What’s your actual plan then?”

“It will take some time, as well as your direct cooperation, but it should produce satisfactory results,” he said with a proud smirk on his muzzle, the first show of emotions I’d really seen from him.

Over the next week, I saw him twice. The first time was just two days after meeting him. We talked a little, and even shared a few drinks. He even offered that I meet his wife, sister, and niece, but I declined after finding out who exactly he was married to. I simply wouldn’t be able to lie to Candy about who her sister had become, not even by omission.

Besides, the four of them were staying quite far away from Dodge itself. For a normal pony, it would have been a day of walking. For me, it was closer to two. For Airdrop, it was only a few hours.

Officially, that choice had been made to avoid the detour through Dodge itself, as they were aiming to go directly to a town well north of Manehattan. Candy really wanted to give birth there, and it was overall a nice location for a nomadic family to settle down for a few months.

While he made preparations in town, I worked on rewriting my letter into something more suitable to our plans. I mostly just needed to get them to meet up, and then my special talent would make the rest of the scheme easy. I decided to mostly write down the truth and lie by omission when I could.

After he delivered the letter, he still had more to do, further away from town. Contacting ponies who usually didn’t come around these parts, but who were still nearby.

However, it was during that time that disaster struck. One day, a winded Airwaves flew into Adrenaline’s clinic. I needed a few moments to convince her to calm down and catch her breath. I’d met the mare a few times in New Detrot, but seeing her this upset about something was odd.

And indeed, she was bringing grim news. Candy had gone into labour, almost six weeks before the predicted due date. The next day, Airdrop came back and immediately left for their temporary home when I told him what happened. Three days later, Petal and Lockpick came to fetch me, and I didn’t get to find out the foal’s fate.

“Is compassion, misguided as it might be, really such a bad thing?” I said to Iron. I knew she needed to hear this right now.

“No, I guess not.” She let out a sigh of relief and fell asleep as the drug finally set in.

Despite having been given the biggest dose, she’d been the least affected. Perhaps it was due to her various drug habits? Even then, she wasn’t nearly as built as Petal, and she was a unicorn to boot, so it should have been more effective. Yet, the two others went to bed rather quickly after ingesting it, while she stayed up. Maybe it was just a question of staying up despite the drowsiness? I really didn’t know the details of how the drug was supposed to work.

Lockpick had gone to sleep first, unsurprising given how small she was. While still overall safe, the dose might have been too high, in hindsight. But then again, I really couldn’t afford either Lockpick or Petal waking up, or it would ruin the entire plan, and why I was going so far for this.

I shook my head. It was obvious what my mind was doing; desperately trying to avoid the painful reluctance I felt. I didn’t like going behind my family’s backs.

In fact, I didn’t like treating Iron like this either. She had opened up to me and been completely sincere for the first time since we met her. She genuinely regretted that her actions led to me getting hurt. She was ready to accept being abandoned, to accept the consequences of her deeds.

Just a week ago, it was all too easy to see her as just a bandit who’d duped us for her own personal gain—whatever that may have been. Now, though? The line in the sand had vanished in one big gust of wind. She wasn’t a good pony; in fact, she was downright evil by many standards. But she regretted her actions, and ultimately was just a lonely pony trying to find her place in the world. Despite everything, I could sympathise with her.

On the other hoof… letting her stay with us was a mistake. Sympathy or not, I needed to protect my family. There were many ponies who wanted justice for what was done to their loved ones, and we were at risk by associating with her. Besides, no matter how much my heart wanted to forgive this poor filly, some actions were simply inexcusable.

I leaned to my right and pulled a small, folded sheet of paper out of my bag. Opening the note, I read it over once again. It was written in clean and elaborate cursive, as one would expect from a pony like Iron—at least for those aware of her education. It read:

‘Dear Lockpick, Banter, and Petal,

It pains me to leave you so soon after joining, but when I saw the state that my actions left Banter in, I realised this couldn’t continue. I need to leave, lest I hurt you all in a similar fashion.

I will not go into details, but know that I wasn’t truthful when I mentioned the loan shark. I am an outlaw in Dodge, as well as many other settlements across Equestria. Do not follow me, please.

Goodbye,

Iron Sights.’

Would this really be good enough to convince Petal and Lockpick? No, that was a dumb question; they had no reason to doubt me, of course it would. As long as I told them this letter came from Iron, they would believe me.

Above me, I heard the flap of wings, slowly descending closer and closer. “Good evening, Banter,” said Airdrop.

I nodded to him. “Hey.”

“How are you doing?” Even though he was trying to keep his tone level, he couldn’t hide the confusion seeping into it. He kept hovering about a metre off the ground.

I grimaced and shrugged with my left shoulder—Iron was leaning on the right one. “Could be better. I’m still not fond of deceiving my family’s like this, even if it is necessary.” Then, I nodded to Iron. “She was a little emotional, and I figured calming her down would make her fall asleep faster.”

His expression softened slightly. “I see, that makes sense. I understand how you feel, for I have done similar things to my wife and sister. The only advice I can give is to never forget that it is for their own good, even if they would not see it that way.”

My ears perked up. “You have? I mean, I know you’ve been sheltering Candy, but it doesn’t sound like something this drastic.”

Airdrop nodded. “However, it is neither the time, nor the place to discuss such matters.” He thought about it for a second before adding, “Or perhaps it would be more adequate to say that I would prefer not to speak of it.”

“Alright, then.” I shrugged. “How long do we need to wait?”

“I do not know. They should arrive within the hour.” With that, he slowly descended, sitting down next to me.

This close, I noticed the dark bags under his eyes, and immediately remembered what he was going through. “So, uh, how is the foal?”

He managed to give me a weak smile. “Adrenaline Shot thinks that she will be alright, if we take care to keep her body temperature in check and don’t let her trot around too early. Still, Ah recon she ain’t out of the woods just yet, and that’s got me worried sick.”

I stared at him in shock, not because of what he’d said, but rather how he said it. He noticed, cleared his throat, and immediately added, “Apologies for that. I am a bit tired and slipped into my childhood accent by accident.”

I gently snorted in amusement. “I don’t mind, I’m not here to tell you how to speak.” After a short silence, I said, “What’s her name?”

“Moonwing. I wanted to call her Silverwing, given her coat’s colour, and the fact that my own name is Platinum Down.” I was a little curious about that, but decided not to interrupt. I’d get around to asking about it later. “However, Candy had good reason to avoid the name Silver. We almost named her Greywing, but at night I remembered the large hole in the cloud cover around here.” He pointed to the west. “Right there.”

I let my eyes wander over the sky, where he was pointing. I quickly spotted the hole. I wondered for a moment how I’d not seen it before, but that train of thought was broken when I realised that I could see the moon through it. It was but a thin crescent, but it looked exactly like the old descriptions.

After a while, Platinum continued, “When it crossed my mind that she had been born in moonlight, dim as it was, there was no longer a question.”

I nodded, and we fell quiet for a moment. While the silence between the two of us would normally have been quite comfortable, it only led my mind down the path of second thoughts again.

In an attempt to distract myself, I tried to continue with some small talk. “So, how did you learn to write like that?”

He shrugged. “I have been a courier for many years, and it occasionally happens that a letter gets damaged and becomes hard to read. In cases like these, I tend to recreate it to the best of my ability.” He gave me a sheepish smile that I couldn’t have imagined on him during our first encounter. “I promise I do not forge letters for a living.”

I laughed out loud at that, and so did he. The movement caused Iron to stir in her sleep, but she didn’t wake. Platinum gave me a look of concern, and I tried to reassure him, “She’s had the biggest dose of them all, but it took a while to kick in. If what you’ve told me about the drug is true, then she shouldn’t wake up anytime soon.”

His face told me that he wasn’t convinced. “Are you sure? How much did you put in her drink?”

I rolled my eyes. “More than enough. Three tea spoons, enough that she commented on the taste of the wine.” Saying that shot a pang of guilt through my heart. She’d known something was off, but trusted me enough to ignore her gut feeling.

“You are right, that should be enough.” However, his expression betrayed his concern. “In fact, given her build and species, it might outright kill her. Perhaps not though, if it truly took such a long time to kick in.”

While we could have killed her while she was out like this and then disposed of the body, neither of us would have wanted that. I wasn’t fond of getting her killed, even back during the height of my hatred for her. It just wouldn’t teach her anything. Not only that, we wouldn’t get anything out of it.

No, selling her off into slavery was the better way to go about. She didn’t deserve death, but maybe without her freedom she would need to learn to be a better pony. Platinum, on the other hoof, thought that killing her was too soft; that she deserved so much worse.

This sudden juxtaposition made my blood freeze, as I realised just what I was about to do. She’d trusted me… and I was about to sell her into a fate that some ponies consider worse than death. What did it matter that she would learn to be a better pony if she never saw freedom again?

I was not okay with that, and I couldn’t believe how long I’d avoided that thought.

Especially after our earlier heart-to-heart, how could I even still consider going along with this? She already understood she’d done things wrong. She was already learning to be a better pony. And instead of giving her that opportunity, I was just condemning her to a life as a slave. She wanted us to pull her up from the cliff she was hanging onto, and I was about to kick her off it!

I turned towards Platinum and waited for him to meet my gaze. When he did, his casual smile was replaced by a look of worry. “Platinum, I know this is very sudden, but I think I’ve changed my mind over these past few days. I just didn’t realise it until now.”

The next few seconds felt like an eternity. Shock, betrayal, anger all flashed across his face, as if I’d just killed somepony he loved.

“It’s just… I’ve talked to Iron, and I know she’s genuinely trying to change. I want to give her an opportunity to be better, even if it means taking a risk.” I sighed deeply. “I’m not completely sure, but I think Petal and Lockpick are willing to give her that, so why wouldn’t I? We will keep her out of trouble, and I swear on everything I hold dear that you will never hear of her misdeeds ever again.” I gave him my best reassuring smile.

He stared at me for a moment longer, but then his features relaxed. “Alright.” His voice was ice cold. “I cannot say that I appreciate having invested so much time for no reason, but I shall take your word for it.” Taking to the air, he kicked up a cloud of dust that almost made me cough. “I shall inform the slavers of the change of plans.” His tone was perfectly curt, but sent a spike of sheer terror through my heart.

I thought he’d understand!

Before I could respond, he was already flying away.

“Wait!” I called out in panic, but he didn’t react, simply continuing eastward. Perhaps he didn’t hear, but perhaps he was merely pretending.

Immediately, I started assuming the worst and strapped myself into my wheelchair. Over the next ten minutes, I somehow managed to get Iron, Lockpick and Petal onto the cart, despite my pitiful condition. After attaching myself to it, I started pulling as fast as I could.

I was slow. With only my forelegs providing strength, I just couldn’t pull it as fast as the others might have, especially not given my weakness. But it was all I could do. I had no idea if my panic was right, but I did not want to find out.

Only, I did find out. I wasn’t able to keep my top speed for anywhere near as long as I would have needed. Eventually, the slavers caught up.