A Roegadyn in Equestria

A Roegadyn in Equestria.

Chapter 82: What’s That In The Air?

*Point of view: Engineer*
*Location: Ponyville train station*
*Time: Eleven in the morning. Two days after The Ghastly Gorge incident*

The train that was coming from Canterlot, was now stopping at Ponyville to offload and pick up additional passengers, along with resupplying the materials needed to keep the engine running for an extended journey down to the south parts of Equestria. With this process taking longer than simply allowing the passengers to come and go so the train could leave right away. Engineer could be seen coming out of the sliding doors and stepping a few paces onto the boarding ramp. Daring Do was following close behind as she was giving a good stretch for not only her arms, but also the pair of wings on her back now that she had some additional space when compared to that of inside the train.

Daring Do even gave a noticeable pop from arching her neck to the side, which got a few of the passerby's attention as they all flinched due to the loud volume that was produced. And for some reason their attention was brought to Engineer, as Daring Do gave off an air of sophistication due to her civilian disguise. With an immediate relieved tone to her voice as she spoke under her breath. “I can never get used to riding on these for too long. Although, it'll get better now that we’re dropping off quite a few of the others. Who knows. With less, we might even have a whole car to ourselves.”

The pair started to make their way into Ponyville while engineer replied to continue their conversation. “Hmm, I could get us both here in a matter of seconds if this was a place we’ve both had already been too.”

“If it's all the same to you, I'd rather not go through such an experience if it can be helped. Flying and getting a ride is so much better.”

“At least you all around here have ways of traveling so that it doesn’t involve sneaking under the cover of night so your head doesn’t get taken off by a lucky shot or the occasional beast. Back where I came from, we didn't even have carriages, much less trains. Besides, you can't tell me you're still terrified after seeing that rotating Deathclaw image? Just think of it as you walking around a stuffed kill that's been put on display in someone's house.”

“I was not expecting us to teleport and suddenly have that things face appear right up in front of mine without any warning. He was way too realistic.”

“She.”

“Pardon me?”

“She was way too realistic. Deathclaws for some strange reason are born as both male and female, yet they act more like the second as they all can lay eggs and produce more offspring when its needed.”

“I am so very glad that you told me that their nowhere near Equestria. The description before we reappeared gave some fairly disturbing info.”

“Eh, they're not so bad. So long as you got enough bullets to mow them down into moldy green Swiss Cheese. Swiss Cheese that’s bleeding all over the ground and gives off a powerful vomit inducing smell. Also, a couple of well-placed mines ahead of time does one wonders. But really, you got nothing to worry about so long as you have a place to shoot at them from and they can't fit inside to grab and bite you in half. The ones you really have to worry about are the kind that prefer to hide and sneak up on you. Ran into a few that could go all ghost in the shell camo.”

“No idea what any of that even means, but I would appreciate it if you would stop.”

“What? It would be a great character to add to one of your books. I could just see it! Daring Do and the nest of the Deathclaw.”

“I would if it actually happened. Each and every one of my published works is based off of what I have really done in my travels. Yes, they are marked as fiction. But I’ll have you know that not one line has been fabricated. Some hype perhaps, but it’s one hundred percent the truth.”

“You really love to keep your character in check when you're not in your normal clothing. If I didn't know any better, I'd say you might even have a split personality.”

“All a part of keeping my private life from being disturbed. I would call it as keeping a retirement plan in place. Wouldn't want to keep getting hounded by my competitors or have my house destroyed out of spite. Even I would prefer to have a place to hang up my hat every now and then.”

“Oh come on! What better way to wake up then to have someone break in and attempt to stab you in your sleep in the early morning. It's a whole lot more effective than a simple alarm clock going off. Hahahaha!”

“I'm just going to assume that's a joke. I can't see anyone having to go through that.”

“Hey, take it all however you want.” Engineer gave a quick yawn before continuing. “You all got it way too easy here.” He then whispered the following to himself. “Its still weird to see an open shop that you don’t have to trade bottle caps for ammo and some bits of scrap.”

“Easy? You call monster attacks being on the rise and nearly getting killed awhile back after meeting a high-level demon being easy? Mister! You and I have two very different ideas of what is seen as easy.”

“Hmm? Is it normal for there to be a flashing orb of light that is obviously in the middle of zooming between buildings in a small town?”

“No. why?”

“Then I strongly suggest we duck, BECAUSE THERE'S ONE COMING RIGHT NOW!!!”

Engineer grabbed on to the back of Daring do's shirt near the neck and forced the mare to duck down at the very last second when a glowing purple or passed right over their heads and into a nearby building thanks to an open window. There was a bunch of oddly made sounds within that were close to that of a ricocheting bullet. There must have been close to half a dozen before the sound of glass shattering on the far side of the structure could be heard. As the two stood straight back up again. Both heads were turned to the house that obviously got ransacked, before Daring Do brought her attention back to Engineer and gave him a distinct look that screamed that she did not need his help.

He was just about to make a retort when the same orb came back on his blind side and struck Engineer squarely in the back. Whether it was due to the strength behind this strange spell. Or the fact that Engineer only wore civilian clothing for today. But everything right above his belt was instantly torn to shreds when his body was pushed hard enough to collide with Daring Do. This was immediately followed with the mare tripping on her elegant red Victorian style dress and causing them both to tumble down and on to a patch of grass next to the sidewalk with a heavy thud and twin sets of grunts.

By the time Engineer got around to opening his eyes. He found himself to be laying on the ground and in an odd position as Daring Do Was now laying over his body. Both of their faces were almost touching one another while the mare's glasses were now slightly off center and tilted. The Pegasus placed a hand onto his now exposed chest to hurriedly push herself up abruptly after already showing signs of a blush to be creeping onto her face. However, this now shifted her body so that she was now straddling his pelvis as her legs were completely spread. It would have been a simple matter of climbing off for the mare. But her attention was obviously drawn to something else as Engineer noticed her lingering gaze being glued to his now exposed six pack.

The stallion made a nervous swallowing sound as this predicament was already stimulating his natural responses. Said natural responses were soon known to Daring Do when her eyes shot wide and in time with a small “Eep” to escape her lips. This only caused her entire face to turn bright red and nearly glowing with clear embarrassment. Her eyes slowly trailed up at an agonizingly slow pace until they met Engineers as she began to whisper in a strained voice filled with astonishment. “Wa-wa-what do you think you're d-doing?”

In an amused and cheeky Frenchman's voice. Engineer responded with a smirk plastered on his lips. “Madam, I should be asking you. If you mean the little mini-me down there? Then all I could say is that it's out of my control. And I don't exactly see you getting away either. Not to mention, you're cupping a feel of my pecs right now.” The so-called mini-me that was hidden underneath Daring Do's dress, was pressed snugly against her panties while also twitching so much that it threatened to break the zipper keeping it from being exposed to the outside world.

Engineer smirk only evolve to a Cheshire cat's grin when he saw the way her eyes were beginning to do that cartoonish swirly pattern while steam was beginning to be produced from the top of her head. It was also paired with incoherent babbling that even Engineer was having trouble with deciphering. In the beginning it came slow, yet the broken words were picking up pace as though she was a kettle that was about to blow her top. Their little moment was interrupted when Engineer heard the sound of a young boy fast approaching. “Come on Twilight! Hurry up, it must have gone this way!”

A female's voice immediately followed while sounding rather distressed. “I knew I should have been practicing inside today. It's already broken so many things around town. I don't even wanna know what it would do if it hit-. Oh, my Celestia! What did you do to that stallion!” This turned out to be just what the Pegasus needed to snap out of her state and whip her head to face the one called Twilight. Daring Do also took this chance to look over how she was sitting on top of Engineer and immediately straightened up while waving her hands frantically to explain. “I-I assure you it is not how it looks!”

She was attempting to fix her dress with both hands while continuing in a panic filled voice. “We fell after getting struck by a weird orb! I was not doing anything, I swear!” Even with Daring Do attempting to diffuse the situation. The purple Unicorn was not having any of it and stomped even closer as her horn was already flaring up. She then said in an accusing tone, “Then how about we hear all about why you're straddling him and holding on to his chest? Just because you're wearing a dress, it doesn't mean you can get away with hiding the act in plain view of the public. That poor stallion must be traumatized with being mare-handled.”

With the situation growing more volatile by the moment. Engineer finally raised his right hand as if getting the attention of a teacher in class and spoke up with an uninterested tone. “Yeah, nothing really is going on here.” But as he was saying that. The stallion was winking towards the Pegasus when he saw how Twilight was eyeing Daring Do with a suspicious look behind her eyes. He even went through the trouble of carefully shifting his lower region around to cause his still contained member to rub against Daring Do's private area. Knowing full well that it was only going to get worse for the mare if she showed any kind of reaction while still being a primary suspect of a possible attempted rape charge against a male.

She was already fidgeting with a very worried expression that threatened to break into either a scream of protest towards his actions or possibly a noticeable moan if this was to continue. Even so, the adventurer in disguise managed to hold a poker face of calmness while Engineer continued. “We just got here and there was this weird ball of energy. We lost track of it when it flew into that house over there. A few seconds later it came up from behind and knocked me into her. Even my shirt was blown away.” It took a couple of seconds before the dangerously bright amount of magic being generated was snuffed out and the Unicorn was now expressing a calm atmosphere before lending a hand to Daring Do to stand up.

When they were back on their hoofs and Twilight was in the middle of talking to Spike over some issue’s that was regarding better locations to the practice the Unicorns spells. The Pegasus was staring straight ahead and just off to the side of the two newcomers and whispered the following to Engineer in an emotionless voice. “I am so bucking going to get you for this. Mark my words...” Although, the threats were brought to a stop when Engineer leaned in and began to casually whisper into her ear. “Really now? Hmm, the top mouth says that. But your lower one was giving a different impression if I were to go off of how much heat I was feeling on my crotch.”

Daring Do's face was heating up as her cheeks filled from an intake of air. He could even tell that her right hand was bawling into a fist and quickly flattening out to show that she was wanting very badly to strike him as hard as she could. Though this was an act that she would not hesitate to go with as Daring Do the adventurer. She was very hesitant to show any unlady-like behavior while in her disguised persona and held it all back with pure willpower. Even with this, the mare was giving a clearly forced smile that gave off an underlining murderous intent as one eye twitched but once.

After another moment or two past of even more silent threats being sent towards the stallion. Twilight finally got around to introducing herself and Spike. At the same time, she even profusely apologized and explained how the spell was a forceful levitation misfire that went out of control and the two of them were chasing it down. Oddly enough, the magic was originally used nearly on the other side of the town and the charge kept it going for far longer than the pair had expected.

Twilight even asked to make sure that he was okay. Especially with how much magic she inadvertently put into it. He just laughed at all and quickly said that he had been hit with a lot worse which clearly confused the mare and young Drake. He even went so far as to dust off his chest which showed a couple of small scars here and there to reiterate that he was just fine. However, there was suddenly a very loud gasp that erupted from behind and this caused them all to look in the direction that it emanated from. When Engineer turned his head enough to look. He found a pink pony with a dress covered in balloon patterns.

The mare was pointing straight at his exposed back which none of the others were able to see with the direction he was facing. Her left hand was covering her mouth. Unlike the front, where it was so much easier to conceal. Engineers back was riddled with so many scars and missing patches of fur along each of their edges, that it may as well have come from a horror movie where the main character was being tortured to death. There were short and long straight cuts among a few jagged ones that curved. There was even one that showed a set of three gouges that would run close together to signify that some creature had slashed at him. Out of these, was a particularly nasty one that was located right behind his right shoulder in a circular patch.

These were all accumulated through his travels in the world based off of Fallout. Knives, blunt objects and the remains of bullet holes were visible. Burn marks from either flamethrower’s lasers or plasma-based weapons left some type of mark. There were even trophies left behind after defeating creatures such as Mirelurks and Deathclaws. Engineer was not going to say it allowed, but his entire body was really one big scratching post for everything that could possibly do him harm in that other world. Just name a weapon or creature and he could point it out somewhere on his body through memory alone. Sure, these could have been taken away or made to be mostly faded through the surgery option. But he chose to keep them as a reminder.

Daring Do was about to move into position to see his back after seeing the commotion being brought up about it. Instead, Engineer went into his Pip-Boy and equipped his armor. Which instantly covered his body and replaced not only the missing shirt, but also the rest of his remaining gear. Gone was the civilian clothing and now replace with a mixture of leather and dragon scales. The only part of him that was still exposed was his head. And even then, he was looking away from the others. With an uncharacteristically distant voice. Engineer said the following while taking a certain direction towards the southeast.

“Don't make such a big deal. And before you ask. I got them all from surviving and let's just leave it at that.” He did not even bother to look behind as he could hear Daring Do excusing herself to catch up with him hurriedly. The pair remained quiet as they took one turn after another down one of the streets of Ponyville. It was not until they came across a general good store and he was about to go in before the Pegasus grabbed on to his right shoulder from behind. This started a conversation between the two as she pulled him aside so that they could have a private talk.

“What exactly is your deal back there? You would always bring up little things about where you're from. Sure, I've seen the scar on your hand. What's up with that reaction when that one mare got to see your body?”

“Talking is one thing. Yet showing it off is not exactly as fun as you would think. Now can we just get our supplies? We got a long way down to the south part of Equestria. I could load them all into my inventory so we won't have to worry about getting off the train and searching for another general good store on the way down.”

Daring Do slowly I'd him up and down before she replied. “You know, I've been wondering why you haven't been taking Spitfires invitations. I guess this is the reason.”

“You're looking way too much into it. It's really simple.”

“Oh yeah? Fine, why don't you go ahead and explain it for me then.”

“Do you really want to know?”

“Yes I do.”

“Are you sure you want to know?”

“I will punch you!”

“Okay okay! Sheesh! Is there a law that a stallion can't have any fun? Long story short, I just like to see the way you two struggle.”

The once angry Daring Do was now clearly flustered as she was having trouble with coming out with a reply before Engineer continued. “It's that. That right there! What you're doing this very moment is what I love seeing.”

This earned a right hook from Daring Do. However, Engineer dodged it with ease and continue to do so with the second. He even got in so close that his own muzzle was nearly touching hers before booping it and whispering the next line in a clearly seductive tone before running off like a madman. “Miss me miss me! Now you got to kiss me~. Hahaha!” This led to the mare chasing Engineer deeper into the back streets where most of the citizens of Ponyville barely even went to. Even with Daring Do being hot on his heels with wearing a dress. Along with fire in her eyes that displayed how much she wanted to do him bodily harm once she was close enough.

A part of his attention was drawn towards the end of the alley that they were running away from. Even though there was clearly no one there from a glance. Engineer had this feeling and activated his targeting ability which was a very important aspect of his Pip-Boy. Time literally slowed down to a rate where his eye could literally follow a bullet that was in mid-flight. It was during this time that he noticed a number of highlighted forms that were hiding in the shadows. He counted four in total. And judging from their outlines, he could easily tell that they were all female.

Two he could tell were wearing a type of cloth or perhaps leather armor. While the others had jagged edges around the shoulders that led him to believe they were wearing scale or metal. Either Daring Do was a good actress to where she could fool him, or she probably did not even know that they were being followed. The pair kept this chase up after taking several more turns and somehow managing to return to the front of the general good store that they originally started at. By which point he was standing with a smirk while Daring Do was clearly out of breath after trying to keep up while wearing a very thick dress.

After she proclaimed that she would eventually get even with him. The pair calm down and went with doing some bulk shopping inside. When the appropriate amount of goods was stored away. Daring Do was about to lead them both back to the train station to wait until the departure time when Engineer wandered off towards the end of town. When she inquired as to where they were going. He just mentioned that they needed to see a friend to say hi. They exited the edge of town and were walking across a wide grassy meadow. Off at the distance they could see a large Mansion style house that bordered the edge of the forest. A tall brick fence surrounded a good portion of land and only displayed a single entrance.

Engineers’ eyes went wide as he let out a very loud whistle that carried on the wind. He even brought up his right hand to act as a visor to block the sun to make sure that he was seeing properly before he spoke up in amazement. “Dang! My boys got a house! No wonder he was willing to give up his old place. Really! Just how much does he make in a year?! The property taxes alone must be through the roof. I wonder if he's willing to lend some money out on a low interest loan.” His partner was clearly confused as to what he was saying as her eyes were lingering on the structure ahead with a slacked jaw.

Even with the impressive sight. The pair could not help but to notice that there were some figures in front of the gate and they were apparently talking to someone on the inside. Engineer was clearly confused as he drew closer and closer. Daring Do on the other hand was in the same boat until they were nearly a hundred yards away and could make out just who it was. She shakily said under her breath two distinct names that resonated with him. “Princess Celestia and Princess Luna? Why would they be here?!”

It was indeed the two co-rulers of Equestria. And they were apparently begging to get within the property line as another person with jet black hair wearing a maid’s outfit was in the process of sending them away if one was to go off of the conversation that was going on in the distance. Luna was standing just a few paces back while allowing her older sister to talk with the one at the gate. Even from that distance, the solar princess was appearing to be a bit frazzled if one was to go from the mane not being kept in a pristine condition when compared to the photos.

“Please, we merely wish to see if Sir Gambit is doing well.”

“And I have already said more than a handful of times already that my Lord is not accepting visitors at this time. Perhaps another day.”

“Are you sure that I cannot at least come in just for a short time? I promise it will be brief.”

“Until the Lord has recovered fully. Strict orders have been put into effect that state no one, and I mean no one is allowed to come on to the premises. These orders were given by my Lord and I do not intend to go against his word. And to quote the mistress, “Sorry, but not sorry. Not even the princesses are allowed to come in.”

The maid had a very cold look in her eyes as she was addressing Celestia. Yet the princess of the sun was giving this impression that she was about to blow her top and instantly reached out for the bars to take a hold as she shouted. “I’M GOING TO GO IN THERE AND SEE SIR GAMBIT WHETHER YOU-.” Princess Celestia's sentence was cut short when a couple of things happened all at once. First was this devilish little smile that was barely creeping on to the maid’s lips at the very instant that the bars were touched by the mare. The second was a mouth being formed along the circular metal section in the middle.

The mouth then screamed out in a demonic sounding version of Gambit's voice. “SUNBUTT!!! GET YOUR BLEACHED WHITE ASS OFF THIS FUCKING GATE!!!” Luna's eyes shrank to small tiny points after having this expression of recalling something very important. Celestia on the other hand had this awestruck expression of her own that just displayed pure disbelief after the blatant mentioning of her bleached white ass and being referred to as Sunbutt. A section of the ground right underneath the front of the gate fell to take on the impression of a trap door as an opening quickly showed itself between the princess’s legs. Unfortunately, not only was it Celestia who fell in, but so did her sister as they both screamed in panic once their forms began to fall.

They had only disappeared into the shadows for but a split second when two noticeable sounds were made by the pair after landing in some type of fabric. Whirling sounds of machinery could be heard in the darkness as the two protested very loudly as to their treatment and demanding what was going on. Soon, both of their voices became very muffled as a fast paced clicking sound was made. Which was proceeded by a cartoonish coiling sound right before a large brown sack was catapulted high into the air and over the entire mansion. Distant screaming from the two princesses could be heard as it rocketed clear into the Everfree Forest.

Those still standing near the gate could just barely make out the distant thud as the sack finally landed at quite a distance. Engineer and Daring Do were standing stiff as a board while watching all of this unfurl. The Pegasus was slowly pointing between the trap door that was being concealed and the far-off distance behind the mansion while silently opening and closing her mouth. Engineer on the other hand had fallen back and onto his tail in order to let out a continuous set of laughter as both legs were literally kicking in the air.

Eventually, she snapped out of it and started to yell at Engineer. “What the BUCK?! This isn't something to laugh about! Both of the princesses were just! Just… I don't even want to know what I want to call that! Who in their right mind would do that to the princesses?! We should just get out of here before we're pulled into this mess too.”

“Hahaha hahaha! Just relax already. Those two won't do anything. Anyway, it looks like it's our turn. We better go up there before that maid leaves to go back inside.” He then called out to the Unicorn that was still at the gate after getting back to his hoofs. “Oi! What's the deal with no visitors?” The maid only stood still as she was carefully eyeing him from where she stood on the other side of the gate before slowly responding with a shifty gaze at the pair. “You must undoubtedly be Engineer. My Lord has filled us in on you. As well as your current circumstances.”

“Ah good! Then we can get right down to the nitty gritty. Any chance that we can see him today?”

“I'm afraid that it will not be possible. If you would like, then I may be able to pass along a message.”

“Shoot... and here I wanted to catch up before I headed out again. I’m going down south to check on a new dig site and thought I'd drop by for a quick visit.”

“If the situation were different then I would allow the both of you to come in. However, my Lord has given strict orders as you may have already have noticed when dealing with those two, how shall I say... uninvited guests.”

“Eh. Guess it can't be helped.”

The maid was just about to turn around when she suddenly paused while looking straight at the mansion. After a few seconds she turned around and called out to Engineer. “It would seem that my Lord is willing to see you for the time being. As for your companion, she may enter the grounds but will need to wait outside.” He glanced over to Daring Do who merely gave him a nonchalant shrug of the shoulders to show that it did not matter to her. Afterwards, Engineer went inside and was guided thanks to another maid with silver hair that wore a big smile.

While passing through the hallway and towards what could be a side room on the first floor. He released a long whistle as he transitioned every now and then between walking straight and then switching to going backwards. “Dang, I'm surprised Gambit's not got it going on with all the bling bling with how much money he's got. I bet more than half the town could come in here.” This earned him a small giggle from the maid as she covered her mouth for a second as she replied. “Very close. Every resident of Ponyville can in fact fit in this very building.” This got another long whistle from Engineer as they arrived at a door and the maid opened it for him to enter.

Sitting at a desk on the far side was Brex as he was wearing his typical robes. There was a stack of papers to one side of the desk as another shorter set could be seen on the opposite. A quill was held in his right hand as the free one was being used to pinch the part of his mask where a nose should be. An almost in perceivable noise escaped Brex's lips as he released his grip and put the quill back in the holder before addressing Engineer. “Well? Don't just stand there, come on in already. Oh, and Rin? Please make sure that we are not disturbed.” The silver haired made bowed and closed the door without making so much as a sound once the request was made.

Engineer raised an eyebrow to this and pointed a thumb towards the door as he gave Brex a cheeky grin before taking a seat nearby on a couch and sparking up a conversation. “You're tapping that ass, aren't you? You can't tell me that you're not doing that.”

A small chuckle came from Brex before he answered. “You stay long enough in Equestria and you'd be crazy not to indulge at one point or another. To be honest, it was more Rory's doing than anything. It was her idea to involve them in more intimate matters. Now enough about that. I'm interested to know on how you're doing with Daring Do.”

Engineer gave a nervous laugh before leaning into the back of the couch as he put his legs up on the coffee table as he spoke. “It's a little complicated. Let's just say that I like it more when there’s a little challenge. Been around long enough to see how these mare's get all worked up over the littlest things and I have to say it's so damn funny to watch.”

“Oh by the way, I heard through the grapevine that you got a bounty on your head after having a go at some gang in the capital.”

“Hahaha! Shouldn't be too surprised that the word already got all the way down here. Yeah, I even got a couple of stragglers that are following me right now.”

“Does Daring Do know about them?”

“Hmm... nah! Once she gets all worked up, she can get a little tunnel visioned on everything else that’s going on around her.”

“Just be careful that's all I'm asking.”

“By the way. Did you know that you just sent a couple of royalty members up and over your house like a sack full of garbage that was being thrown into a truck speeding away?”

“Oh? So that's what that sound was. The security system was mentioned, but I never got a chance to see it in action. I'll keep it in mind. Let me guess. The one who touched the gate was the solar princess, wasn't it?”

“I'm getting the feeling that you really don't like to say the name Celestia.”

A small grunt escaped Brex before he replied. “Easy to tell that she is not my favorite person.”

“Okay okay. I could see why you wouldn't want to see them, but why are you turning away everyone else?”

“It's not really all that complicated. Got caught up in a fight, then injured. Had to back off and now I'm just laying low. I'm pretty sure they got a good glimpse of my state and I'm just giving them the impression that I'm recuperating. I know I know, it's kind of stupid, I guess. It's another part of my paranoia. It's just to give them the impression that I'm not as powerful as they all believe. Also, there was a few things that I needed to look into after everything was said and done without being hounded by questions. Oh and by the way, I want you to take a look at something.”

Brex took a folder that was tied closed with a string and tossed it across the room to be caught by Engineer who started to look through it. It showed some documents that were handwritten by Brex himself. There were also included a number of photos. These showed a tunnel at first and soon it would transition to a large cavern filled with strange objects. Smashed open glass containers and various equipment were strewn around. Most of which were smashed to smithereens or melted due to a mixture of acidic properties being applied or intense heat. A number of which also exhibited signs of being the unfortunate substitute for a chew toy by large teeth marks shown on the metal surfaces.

Brex then continued as he was now holding his head up by placing both elbows onto the desk. “Someone was obviously experimenting on monsters to improve their combat effectiveness. One large specimen and two smaller ones were held within that cave. Hard to tell if that was meant to be a storage facility or the experiments were done at that location. Aside from the containers, there weren't that much equipment around. So, there's a good chance that everything else that would have been needed to perform such experiments were removed already by someone a long time ago.”

Engineer got to go over half a dozen pictures by this point and came across one of a Chimera. Said monster was kneeling down with Rory standing nearby and petting it with a peculiar grin on her face. When he lifted up the photo to show to Brex. An amused laugh came from the Roegadyn before he answered the unspoken question. “Oh that? It's safe to say that Rory's claimed that one in particular as her personal mount. It's pretty much an oversized kitten whenever she wants it to be. There was another of similar size but she already killed that one. I'm really not entirely sure as to how she got the second to yield, but she seems pretty happy.”

The stallion was not sure, but he was almost positive that he heard Brex mumble something from under his breath. “They really ran Rory hard... I can still feel it.” He was also reaching around to slip a couple of fingers under his hood to lightly touch an area of his neck before retracting his hand to continue. “I searched every inch and found absolutely nothing to lead me in figuring out who was involved and what exactly was their end goal aside from pulling the mad scientist route. But it's certain that whoever they are, there's definitely a big grudge against the royal family. The monster’s stats and abilities are already written right there for you to see.”

Engineer hummed to himself as he reviewed the part about the larger Chimera and what it was capable of before he responded. “If I didn't know any better, then I'd say this had Fallout written all over it. Not too much out there in the ways of advanced science. Television isn't even a big thing yet. Aside from some flying ships, I get the impression that I should be seeing a lot of people saying the word jitterbug with how lacking they are in modern comforts.”

“Yeah, I get you there. Can you believe I had to introduce microwaves to them? Anyhow, if you happen to find any advanced technology that clearly does not belong, then I want you to let me know. By the way, where are you heading too anyhow?”

“It's down near the southern end of Equestria. I believe it's called the Bone Dry Desert. We just got word of a new dig site that was discovered and the locals are having some trouble with trying to get in.”

“Bone Dry Desert you say huh? Now that's a long way to go. I take it you'll be using the train?”

“Yep!”

“Even by train, it's going to take you a while. If you count stops for refueling and possibly adding some extra time for unpredictable matters to come up during the trip. I'd say that it would take you nearly... two weeks. Give or take a couple of days. Think you could handle the boring life of being a passenger for that long?”

“I ain't gotta worry about that. Daring’s coming with me and I have no doubt that those bounty hunters are just going to back off just because I'm out of their jurisdiction. Oh yeah! Didn't you say that you were running a class for the Element Bearers? Think I went and had a run in with them on my way up from the station.”

Brex gave a long sigh before responding. “Let me guess. Was one of them a pink pony that was extremely excitable and has a knack to show up where you least expect her too?”

“That was one of them. Tell me, does the purple Unicorn of the group have a habit of blasting clothes off of other people?”

“Huh? Okay, I feel like there's a story behind this.”

It took a handful of minutes for Engineer to explain his arrival and introduction to Twilight, Spike and Pinkie. By the end, Brex made a comment on how much Pinkie must have been shocked to not suddenly throw a welcome party and just allow him to walk away without so much as throwing a confetti bomb within his vicinity. The two even went on to discuss a few more topics before engineer realized that Daring Do was still waiting for him outside and immediately rushed off.

When he found Daring Do. The Pegasus was sitting at an outdoor table and enjoying some tea that was being served by the dark-haired maid from earlier. When he called out to her. He received a harsh glare that just screamed that if he had been any later, than there was going to be Tartarus to pay. She gave her thanks for the drinks before the pair headed back into Ponyville so that they could catch the train that was going to be leaving very soon now that it had the time it needed to resupply for the long trip.

Although, when they were nearly halfway down through Ponyville and could see the train getting ready to depart. Daring Do surprisingly grabbed onto his arm and pulled him into herself while her gaze was still locked straight ahead at their destination. He was just about to ask something when she immediately shushed him and took a quick glance at their surroundings before whispering the following to him. “Just keep looking straight ahead. Whatever you do, don't make any eye contact with anyone at all until we're on that moving train.”

His eyebrows furrowed as he was about to open his mouth to find out what was going on with her sudden behavior. But as soon as he did. There was this odd taste in the air that he just could not place. His nose flared up after taking in a strong mixture of intoxicating aromas. This caused his eyes to slightly dilate as a stupefied expression began to cross his face for a couple of seconds before he shook his head rapidly to return to his senses. With a deeply confused look now plastered on his face. Daring Do gave a small grunt of annoyance before she spoke in a whisper yet again.

“Sheesh… Lived under a rock much? You really don't get it do you? This is why I can't leave you alone! If it hasn't gotten through that warped head of yours, then I'll just spell it out. The mare's in this town are entering their estrous cycle. In other words, we need to get the buck out of town before we get swarmed. I can already feel that a couple of them are looking at us. So just shut up and do what I say. Keep your eyes forward and pretend they don't exist.” As Daring Do was giving this advice. He can feel the grip of her arm onto his tightening as the urgency was growing in her tone.

With all this time in the Wasteland. Engineer could plainly see the amount of urgency and trepidation that was eating away at the usually calm adventurer. He then recalled some of the information that was in that weird guide to Equestria book that he arrived with. There was one particular passage that specifically warned him about the mating cycle of the females in the world. His eyes quickly darted over to the Pegasus before returning to the train as he thought the following with some caution in his inner tone. “Uh… Speaking of estrus. The two of us are going to be stuck on a train for a while. When is she due for hers?”

His inner voice turned into one of amazement when he felt Daring Do tightening her grip even further to cause even him some discomfort. “Ouch! And since when was she this strong to hold me this tight? Damn she's really worked up about these mare’s coming after me.” They were nearly passed the last set of buildings before crossing the short distance to the train station when he saw a figure at the edge of his peripheral vision. They were wearing a dark black cloak while crouched down on top of one of the houses to keep from being noticed.

*Point of view: Third Person*

Not too far away was a group of mare's who were standing next to the entrance of one of the local shops. They had this growing look of hunger on their eyes as their attention was solely glued onto the stallion that was leaving. A few of them grumbled that a male was not going to be staying in town before breaking off to go on with their day. As they were moving along. They passed a notice board with a number of papers stuck on that would advertise some job wanted postings.

Soon the board had a shadow being cast over a particular note before it was quickly snatched up by a black gloved hand. The shadow instantly dashed off to the right and disappeared into a space behind the buildings that was just a couple of paces away. While being far enough from the street to not be noticed by any would-be passerby's. The note was brought up to the hooded figures head. Yellow eyes could be seen glowing in the shadows being provided as they carefully started to read what was written.

After a few moments past. The person stuffed it into their coat pocket and disappeared into the shadows after taking a couple of steps back. The scene then shows the same mysteriously hooded figure dashing from one part of town to the next with the grace of an invisible phantom while going from one shadowed area to the next. Sometimes, it would dash between objects as people walked by. Other moments would have the person leaping from one rooftop to the next whenever the locals had their heads turned away.

Eventually, they stopped right outside of a door that belonged to a building decorated with dancing horses. It was mostly painted white with purple acting as the accents and borders. The door was slowly pushed open with one hand as the other now held on to the piece of paper that was plucked from the notice board earlier. From a quick glance there was some writing along the top that said, Help wanted. Maid position open for both full-time or part-time employment. Pay is negotiable and live in options available. Work would require the following. Cleaning, cooking, possible lawn care and handling of animals maybe asked of. Bonus will be given for those with combat experience to perform security matters.

The rest of it could not be made out as it was quickly put away yet again after taking a few steps inside of the building. At which time there was a melodious tone from a mare that said the following from somewhere deeper in the store. “Welcome to Carousel Boutique, where every garment is chic, unique and magnifique. I shall be with you in but a moment~.” But before the door could fully close. The figure could be heard muttering the following in an alluring voice with a unique Transylvania accent that was just barely detectable. “The things I do for my princess. If the target won't come out, then I'll just have to go to where the target is.”

Somewhere else on the other side of town. There was an elaborately made house of clouds that took on a Roman feel to it just a couple dozen meters off of the ground. Inside and sitting on the cloud shaped couch was Gilda. While laying back and holding on to a magazine to read. There were some odd noises being emitted from upstairs. The Griffin lowered the magazine to show her eyes before giving them a quick roll as the article was brought back up to cover her vision. There was yet another series of noises before she grunted and tossed the magazine over the edge of the couch and quickly stormed upstairs in a huff.

Once up there, she made her way over to a door and began to bang on it a couple of times with her fist and call to whoever was making the noise on the other side with an indignant tone. “Rainbow! What in the Seven Hells have you been doing in there all day?!” This time there was a clatter of objects that obviously fell from somewhere high within the room before there was the sound of footsteps rushing to the door. Gilda took a step back as the door was forcefully open till this allowed just a couple of inches to be viewed of the bedroom.

Gilda arched an eyebrow as she crossed her arms to address rainbow who had only exposed her head. Judging from the angle of only seeing the face and not the body. It was easily surmised that the Pegasus was leaning over to keep the rest of her form hidden. There was this strange smile as the Prismatic Pegasus kept darting her eyes from Gilda and back into the room repeatedly. There was even that obviously fake chuckle that one would make when trying to hide something as she attempted to answer the Griffin.

“Oh-uh, hi there! Sorry I just got... Things. Yeah that's right! I got some things I need to do. Hehehe I'll try to keep it down.” By now, Rainbow’s expression was becoming a little creepy with how she was smiling so much that it nearly caused Gilda's feathers to ruffle after a couple of seconds of silence came from that odd explanation. In a cautious, yet curious tone. Gilda said, “Mind filling me in?” This only got her a rapid head shake that nearly caused rainbows face to become a blur as she really did not want Gilda to know by the looks of it.

With a very long and drawn out okay. Gilda stepped away from the door and headed towards the stairs. However, when the sound of the door being closed was made. The Griffin waited till the count of five before quickly taking flight towards the door and kicking it down with all her might. The door made of clouds was not exactly torn off from its hinges. But instead, it went up in a puff of smoke which obscured the room for a couple of seconds. By the time it was clear enough to see. Gilda was standing there in an aggressive stance while her eyes were bugging out. Even her beak was hanging so low that one could probably have driven a car right into her mouth.

Her entire body slumped over as she just could not believe what she was looking at. Right in front of her while stuck in a frozen state of her own was Rainbow. What's more was that she was wearing a very odd outfit and standing next to her bed as one leg was lifted and placed on to it. The Pegasus was heavily blushing while in the middle of pulling up some very long fishnet stockings. There was also more as she was wearing a black and white outfit that took on a similar style to that of a maid’s uniform. However, this one was greatly lacking when it came to the material meant for the fabric.

With a nearly emotionless tone behind the Griffin's words. She said the following very slowly as she was clearly having issues with forming the sentences. “Rainbow. Is this what all the noise has been about?” This got her a slow head nod from the Pegasus.” Are you wearing stockings?” Yet again, she got a similar head nod, although it was slower. “That's not normal... did you order that from a sex shop?” Rainbow was now nodding so slow that she may have needed some oil to keep her head from sticking midway.

The clothing was made and such a particular design that most of her body was practically exposed. Her breasts were barely being held in place thanks to the fabric just being a few millimeters from allowing her nipples to poke out. The top was basically going around as a strapless bra. The neck had a dress up collar and a two-inch-long black-tie dangling from it. Frilly armbands and leg bands were already in place on the upper arms and thighs. Just below her exposed belly button was an extremely short black skirt with a white trim that would easily expose more than half of her panties while standing. Although, those panties in question were on full display thanks to her current state of leaning over.

Even the base of her tail was carefully wrapped up in a black ribbon that caused it to hike up a little bit after going out by a couple of inches. There were also some hoof covers that took on the shape of black heels. Her arms had fingerless gloves that ran up just passed her elbows. And to finish the look off. Was the combo set of not only the French maid’s cap on top of her head. But her mane was tied into a high ponytail. Nowhere at all could be seen was the signature roughed up hair of Rainbow Dash. Instead, all Gilda could see was a pony that was going all out and could have easily have been confused for a sex shops poster girl.

The two of them had their eyes glued to the other as neither one moved a single inch. It was not until Gilda said the following question, that Rainbow stumbled and fell face first into the rug next to the foot of her bed. And thereby resulting with her ass sticking straight up and causing the docked tail to fall over her face. “You're estrous cycle is starting, isn't it? And is all this for me?” Rainbow nodded to the first question, but gave a firm head shake on the next. Much to Rainbow's surprise. Gilda placed both hands on her hips before saying the next part with a resigned tone. “Help me order myself one of those. Gambit's a hard nut to crack and were going to need to double team him to get any results.”

*Point of view: Brex Mith*

While in the midst of getting through the last of the paperwork that was brought over from HQ. A small list could be seen that it displayed the following business names that he put into effect.

Always Away Foxholes.

Apothecary Medicinal Traders.

Cross Species Bridge.

Eco Growers.

Endless Enlightenment.

Renegade Brewery.

Roads and Beyond.

Krispy Supplies.

Tech Hex Institute of Science.

There was also a letter sent by Sir Fancy Pants along with it, which gave a quick report that the new project was up and running and would be open for VIP's that were meant to arrive early. Knowing that it was going to be a hotspot when word got out. The Roegadyn took this opportunity to keep his promise to a certain pink party pony. He looked over to his right and saw that Rin was standing nearby as tentatively as usual and gave her a note that he hastily put together and asked her to get the arrangements made. After giving a quick bow and exiting the room to leave him alone. Brex got up and walked over to the fireplace and placed a hand onto the banister right above the lit flames.

He quietly stared into the dancing lights as he began to run over the course of events once he disappeared into the Shadow Realm after the fight was concluded with the giant Chimera. The scene from the room quickly transitions to a dark place with Brex drifting along as glowing weight specs escaped his mouth. His body gave uncontrollable shutters as his limbs continuously tensed up with hardly any time between spasms. Suddenly the motion that he was going in was reversed and he came out of a white light that opened up right above his head.

This turned out to be the exit point in which he appeared in front of the Tree of Harmony after exiting the floor just several paces away and to the right of the entrance. He then fell onto his hands and knees and began to cough up even more of his now glowing white blood. Thanks to how damaged the mask was by then. The blood was able to easily cover the ground right underneath his form as it was so strong with its glow that it was starting to illuminate that section of the cavern and cast his shadow onto the ceiling.

His insides were both burning and freezing as the nerves were being brutally assaulted by the influx of foreign Aether that overwhelmed his bodies limits on containing the power. His eyes were still giving off the combination of burning flames and clearly visible mist of frost. A few more coughs led to his mask coming loose as the remains fell to the floor and shattered into dozens of pieces. This revealed that not only were his eyes giving off the strange overflow of power. Yet even more veins were popping out of his eye sockets and running along his skin. Blood was even beginning to escape from them and slowly dribble next to what was being expelled from his slack open jaw.

Eventually, any control over his limbs was lost and his body fell face first onto the stone floor with a heavy thud, along with a small splash. The Roegadyn was face down as more violent twitches erupted. Soon, this just developed into a full seizure as his body became almost erratic. A silent guttural scream attempted to escape his lips as more of his glowing white blood gushed from not only his mouth and eyes, but from even his ears. He wanted to scream, he wanted to yell, he wanted this sensation that his body was being ripped apart cell by cell to come to an end right here and now. However, this continued for nearly half an hour as his bodies out of combat auto healing function was already kicking in.

But the poison being paired along with the toxic levels of Aether currently churning inside was preventing it from making any leeway. Instead, all it did was to delay the process to a crawl. A feudal attempt was made to change his class to that of any of the healer jobs to see if something could be done. Yet his lack of concentration was preventing any such feat from being accomplished. In the end, his face froze in pure pain as the final moments brought upon his death. Suddenly it was all gone in a flash and he felt his consciousness slipping away. It even went so far as to where he could not even remember who he was and why he was even there before his vision turned black.

When he came too once more. He found himself to be sitting and leaning his back against the Tree of Harmony. After glancing over to the position he was only just at before waking up again. He saw that his body was no longer there, yet the glowing white blood that came out had coded a sizable portion of the ground. Although, the glow had died down enough to where it could have been perceived as a variation of white glowing moss that could just barely be made out. After checking himself a little bit. Brex got back up to his feet and began to wonder about how that fight was concluded.

The last thing that he can remember before finding himself being propped up by Rory. Was the image of watching Celestia coming close to the battlefield. For him, everything just went hazy and he quickly grabbed onto his head as a sharp pain came back as he was attempting to recall those missing moments. While fighting through the ensuing migraine. More effort was put into remembering. The biggest issue was that with every passing second that went by with him doing this. Was the sharp pain in his head growing with each debilitating burst of agony that threatened to cause him to fall over.

The scene then reverts to him looking into the fireplace back at the mansion as he quietly said the following to himself with a stern frown on his face from underneath his brown mask. “Just what in the Seven Hell's is going on? Quick little blackouts are one thing, but now I'm even doing things that I can’t remember? And all that coughing up glowing white blood. It reminds me of the cutscenes from around the end of the Shadowbringers patch for Final Fantasy fourteen that I played with at the other side.” He then looked at his free hand as his fingers curled into a fist as he recalled one other matter.

No matter how hard he tried over the last two nights. Brex was unable to fall asleep. Whenever he did come even close to succeeding. An unknown force would suddenly cause him to become wide awake and to be covered in a cold sweat. If that was not enough to give him cause to worry. Then it was the frequent pains he would get in his chest with Princess Celestia teleporting over without any kind of warning. Yesterday, she showed up for a total of five times throughout the entire day. Of course, earlier when Engineer came by and informed about the trap being set off. It counted visit number seven when starting from when breakfast was served in the morning.

Though, he found it humorous that Celestia and Luna both fell into a hole and got trapped into a gigantic burlap sack to be catapulted clear over his house. A part of him was wondering if he would ever get any use out of it and promise to talk to the Changeling that came up with the design to give his thanks. That was when Rory came in and sauntered over towards Brex. She jumped into his arms while having this half-lidded expression on her face. He then quickly responded in a playful tone. “This better be for more sex, because I've already given you the full amount for the month earlier than normal.”

She rolled her eyes at that as she opened her mouth and slowly ran her tongue over her teeth before replying in an equally jovial tone. “I'm still full from being filled up. But I do want to be filled up in another way if you get what I mean~.” Her expression turned a little more serious as she got down before continuing. “I finally got Applejack to spill what they saw in your dreams. We should sit down because this is going to take a bit.” He gave a quick sigh before saying, Oy vey! Why is it that I'm getting the feeling this is going to be a doozy?”

*Point of view: Daddy*
*Location: On the other side*

Daddy, along with Jet and the rest were all sitting at a long rectangular shaped table while having something to eat. This sort of activity was not a regular occurrence for this odd group, yet all the girls decided that they should do this more often after coming back from their trip on planet Earth. Apparently, all those snacks sparked the craving to eat and this led to a family get together for meals. They were all waiting for what was going to be served by Little Light who took the initiative to make something in the kitchen, which was in the next room over.

The food was nearly ready if one was to go off the sound of clanking plates. It was mother who spoke up next as she glanced over to the duo that remained behind as they were all gone and asked the following question. “Well? Any progress on the repairs?” This got a shifty glance to be sent to one another by Daddy and Jet before giving a quick set of nervous chuckles. Daddy then said, “There… were a couple hiccups, but I think Jet is getting close to a breakthrough.” When the word breakthrough is mentioned. The taller man gave a quick flinch as his face turned crimson for a few seconds. Even his eyes turned into tiny dots to show that he had some thoughts to flash in his mind.

This got an unamused stare down from Mother as she slowly turned her attention to Little Light who had just came in while holding two platters being covered by large silver lids. When they were placed on to the table. Little Light went back into the kitchen. Honey Lemon began to comment on how she could not wait to try what Little Light had made and was completely giddy with excitement. Another tray was put onto the table by the one in question and she began to pull the lids off one by one.

The first revealed a tall stack of hot dogs already being set into their respective buns. As everyone else was enjoying the thought of biting into the familiar food that they had experienced at the theme park. Both Daddy and Jet were inwardly cringing while holding on to a fake set of smiles that showed off their pearly whites. Sweat was even trickling down their foreheads as they glance to one another yet again. Daddy was thinking the following as he intently stared at Jet and back down to the food in hopes that he got the message without the others realizing it.

“Just eat the food dammit! They're just hot dogs, okay? I swear, if they find out what happened, then you are in a world of hurt.” This apparently caused Jet to have an even more strained smile that threatened to twist into a grimace. Little Light then said as she pulled the next lid off, “After seeing the aquatic show, I wanted to try my hand at making this dish.” This showed a bunch of skewers with grilled squids on them. This scrunched up Daddy and Jets faces so much that they were about to jump out of their seats and run out the house with how much their eyes were nearly bugging out of their skulls. Their lips even sunk in to where they were nearly pulled in side of their mouths with the sourest expression imaginably possible.

Little Light then said the next part while lifting the final lid that she had just brought in. “There's this human saying that I really want to find out if it's true or not.” What came next was a gigantic jello mold with pieces of fruit in it. Coincidentally, it had the exact shade of blue as the gelatinous mass that was produced by the table when the self-defense system was activated through Jets rage fit by kicking the electronics and sending a strong electrical jolt into the table he was working on.

This turned out to be the metaphorical straw that not only broke the camel's back. But may as well have dropped a mini nuke down its throat with how Daddy and Jet reacted. After turning completely bleached white and taking on the expressions of that one painting of the farmer and the wife screaming. The pair bolted out of their chairs while knocking them over in the maneuver. Without even looking where they were going with how their eyes were glued onto the jello mold. The wall that was dividing the eating area from the kitchen was completely demolished as the pair broke through no differently than a set of bulldozers.

The kitchen itself fared no better as Daddy ran through the stove and Jet did the same with demolishing the fridge. It only ended after they broke through the outer wall and continue to run across the lawn and away from the house at a breakneck speed. The next thing that they knew. Daddy could no longer feel the ground underneath his sandals and look straight down. When he did, the pair fell into the deep hole and right on top of the still being worked on table that was sitting while they were away. A set of jolts were made when they bounced off and landed on the equipment. Their eyes went comically wide when they saw a series of bright lights being sent straight to the table in a similar fashion as before.

The scene then shifts to how they were now huddling together and holding tight as a large shadow loomed over the pair. It was then accompanied by a bone chilling underwater roar as Jet screamed the following as tears were streaming down his face uncontrollably. CAN WE CALL FOR MOTHER'S HELP NOW?!!! All Daddy could say as more of the shadows appeared around them was, “WE ESCAPED IT ONCE, WE CAN DO IT AGAIN!”