Chapter 30 Reunions

“The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well.” ― Ralph Waldo Emerson

Hoofington Grand Hotel, Hoofington, Lunar Commonwealth: Ginger Snaps.

Shortly after breakfast, Papa Archer tells me, “Ginger, as security team leader I am letting you know we will be needing you to escort a group of us to Mega Mart today.”

I nod my head, and as it is official business I answer, “Ok sir, anything else we should know?”

He nods his head, “Most of the group will be staying behind today. I believe Aunt Purple mentioned preparing for the negotiations later this week. Windy, while interested wants to hit that new market at the Rainbow Dash Skyport if possible, to pick up some special equipment for 2nd Regiment.”

“Ok, that makes sense. So do you want all three of us today?”

He nods his head, “Yes, in fact, if you need to, hire a guide as well to lead us there.”

I smile, “Actually, I think we can do that well enough. It isn’t more than a few miles from here.”

He smiles ruefully at me and says quietly, “You guys got to know this area pretty well last time you were down here, didn’t you.”

Without meaning to, my face slips to resting mare face and I tell him, “Sir, I am not at liberty to tell you about any other times we may have been down here. Just know we are familiar with the area.”

He nods his head and smiles again. “Good answer kid. You make an old warhorse proud. I would like to leave in an hour.”

I look at my PipBuck and notice the time, “Sounds good. We will meet you then.” I then get up and tell Xochitl and Epona what the plans are for the day.

We have our kits on and are ready within the hour. It is then that we receive the surprise that Mama Sutures is also going with us, along with Millie and Moon Lily.

Sutures smiles and asks me, “That will not be a problem, will it?”

While I keep a straight face, I am thinking maybe having Moon with us as a backup is not a bad thing. Then I tell her, “No, that should be fine. They are old enough now to know what to do if there is trouble.”

Once we reach street level, we are to grab the carts. I notice all the adults are armed so I do not argue when Xochitl offers to pull the cart. Once he is harnessed up, Mama Sutures and the fillies climb into the back of it and we are on our way to Mega Mart. As we go I look back at Epona and see that while she has a serious expression on her face, her body language shows she is excited. She sees me looking and shrugs, to which I just nod back before returning my attention to the road and buildings ahead of us.

As we walk I notice that Ma and Badger are looking all around. Then I hear her say to him, “It looks so different from the books. Where is the Core?”

He shrugs and tells her, “I don’t really know dear, but it was over by where that big lake is when I was here last. Something big must have happened to it.”

Epona then tells them, “I heard that happened about six months after the Day of Sunshine and Rainbows. But no one could tell me just what happened. Lots of rumors and speculation.”

As we get close to Mega Mart, Papa Archer starts to notice the defenses around the perimeter and the roof of it, pointing them out to the others. Finally, when we are close enough to read the sign on the side of the building, I notice Mama Mollygirl is snickering at the words Finders Keepers.

Xochitl then tells her, “I would not laugh too much about that. I almost got into a fight last time we were here. It seems the Finders Keepers are one of the powers in the region. In fact, the pony who runs this place is a member from what I have been told.”

Smiling I tell her, “Yeah, she is about your age ma, maybe a bit younger. Her name is Bottle Cap. If we can’t find what we need we can ask her and for a finder’s fee she will help us find a source.”

After hearing me say this she replies, “So, she only finds a source, she does not necessarily provide what we need? That sounds like a racket.”

By then we are at the gate of the fence around the perimeter and I hear a familiar voice say, “Well if you can find it yourself then do so. Why should anyone else find it for free for you?”

I turn to look and see Purchase Order, now wearing a battle saddle for her shotgun as well as her normal light blue vest and name tag. I also notice she looks better than the last time we saw her.

“Oh, hey Purchase Order. Good to see you again.” I call out to her.

She smiles back and then asks us, “It’s good to see you too Ginger, now if I can ask, why did you bring a pony with you who does not understand how we do business here?”

I cannot help but be embarrassed that she overheard Ma and I feel my face heat up a bit. Then I tell her, “Well she is one of my adopted mothers. She and my fathers and one of my other adopted mothers are all here to shop for equipment for the troops back home.”

Purchase Order nods her head slowly in understanding, “Ah, ok. Now I get it. Well, make sure she and the others know it cost 7 caps a pony to get in.”

After hearing the cost, Mama Mollygirl almost squawks and says, “I thought it was only 5 caps a pony?”

Purchase looks at her and explains, “Well it used to be. But we needed to up the price to pay for the repairs from the fight here. I mean it costs a lot to replace Gun as well as the turrets that were damaged. Plus, the walls. We are not even starting to think about all the merchandise that was lost. I am certain Bottlecap thanks the Goddesses that it is all sold on a consignment system here and that she does not have to purchase it all to sell it.”

In reply, ma nods her head and Papa Archer says, “That really makes sense to me.”

As we walk toward the main entrance Purchase accompanies us, even waiting while we drop the cart near the door. She talks to Epona and me the whole time. Once we are to the guards there, she tells us, “Remember Ginger, no gunfire inside the building. Gun 2 is just like the original in how it will open fire on anyone who starts gunplay inside Mega Mart.”

When she says this, I smile as I know all about Gun 2 from when Twinks and Tater worked on it last time we were here. I then tell her, “Yeah, I understand. My birth mother told me all about having seen it happen one time when we were sitting around the campfire.”

Xochitl adds, “Yeah, I remember her talking about that. She seemed pretty shaken up by it.”

Purchase looks thoughtful and then tells us, “I forgot you said your mother was here back then. I was still a foal myself. Those were some rough times back then. I ended up living in Chapel for a while after the battle for Mega Mart.”

It is about then that I notice Moon Lily has wandered off to the side. Purchase Order looks at her and asks, “Ginger, what is she doing?”

When I look over, I see Moon is finishing a hoof movement and I hear her whisper what I recognize as the last bit of blessing of the dead. Mama Mollygirl answers for me and tells her that she is giving the blessing of the dead.

I notice that Purchase goes pale as she quietly whispers, “That is not funny, my parents died over there.”

Moon Lily walks over to her and gently lays a hoof on her foreleg, telling her “I am not being funny, I felt some souls who were ready to crossover, but were afraid and did not know how or which way to go. I helped them.”

She is skeptical and as she begins to make a sarcastic remark, she hears our friend Tek coming out the door asking in his broken Equestrian, “Where are they, where is the necromancer? Tell me, I felt their magic.”

Purchase Order looks back and forth between him, Moon Lily, and the corner. She shakes her head, and quietly whispers, “Maybe it won’t be so bad to stand guard in that area anymore.” She shakes her head again and says, “I will see you later, and Epona, remember, if you ever want a date, look me up,” then she enters a side door that says employees only.

Tek on the other hoof looks at us and I see him stare at Moon Lily and shake his head. He utters something in Zebracan and before he walks off, Epona begins to talk to him in his native tongue. I almost smile as she tells him, “Good to see you again, these are my parents and siblings, my parents do not understand zebra and do not know what we did last time we were here.”

He nods with a slight smile and half-closed eyes. “Ok, I understand. And the little ones?”

She shrugs, “They are fluent, so watch what you say around them.”

Again, he nods his head and we tell him where we are staying and invite him for dinner. He nods his head and tells us, “It is good to see you again my friends. I have missed your company. It has been boring without you.”

After we shake hoofs a final time, he continues on his way. I can tell my parents are curious so I turn to Ma and tell her, “We will meet him later Ma. Epona told him to meet us for dinner at the hotel.”

She nods her head, grins a bit, then shaking her head follows Badger and the rest of us into the Mega Mart.

Once we pass through the door into the main market area, all my parents stop in their tracks and stare at the cannon hanging from the ceiling. Papa Archer starts to laugh and says out loud, “They got one on me with that one. I never would have even thought of it. Celestia, look at the size of its bore.”

From the side, Papa Badger calls out, “Hey Sutures, look over here. I found some medical instruments that look in good condition.

From behind us, I hear Millie say, “Look Moon, they got more Daring Do books. And a couple of comics!”

I look at my parents and tell them “I got the fillies Ma. Go do what you need to do.” After all, we have been here before and we are not here to shop ourselves, just to provide an escort as needed.

As we wander the aisle with my younger siblings they are nearly vibrating with excitement. Soon we are joined by Purchase Order again. This time she has her battle saddle off, but her shotgun is loose across her back.

“Hay Epona, how have you been?” she asks.

Epona is almost grinning like a cat who caught a mouse as she replies, “Much better now. How have you been doing?’

“Well, I must admit I did miss you while you were gone. I was afraid you might not come back.”

Epona’s ears slide slightly at that. Then she tells her, “Purchase, I gave you my word.”

“I know.” She pauses and asks her, “Epona, would you mind going for a walk with me for a bit?”

Xochitl and I look at each other and I tell her, “Go ahead, sis. We got Moon and Mills.”

She gives a brief kiss on the cheek to my husband and then a hug to me and tells us, “Thanks a ton. I owe you one.” Then the two of them head back outside.

As we walk, I hold Xochitl’s tail in mine with my little sisters wandering along before us. Occasionally I see them stop and look at the merchandise. I find it interesting to see what they look at compared to each other. The most common thing I notice is that they choose books. Finally, I see the photographer’s booth where we had our engagement photos taken. As we approach it, Millie excitedly asks, “Can me and Moon get a picture taking? Of just us?”

“I don’t know Mills; it is kind of expensive,” Xochitl tells her. Finally, he tells her, “We can see, ok.”

As we approach the photographer turns and sees us. He grins, “Ah, it is good to see you again. Welcome back. Would you like to do another sitting?”

Millie and Moon look a bit confused at this and I tell him, “Well, not me and my husband, but my little sisters are interested, depending on the cost of course.”

I see him think briefly and he tells them, “Young mares, normally I charge 40 caps a photo.”

I see both look very disappointed. Then Millie nods and says, “Sorry sir, we can’t afford that, but thank you for your time.”

He smiles sadly and replies, “I am sorry young mare, but with the cost of chemicals and all, I have to charge that much.”

Moon nods and tells him “We do understand sir. Thank you.”

As we continue our browsing, I feel some guilt but as we were told last night this will not be our last time here on this trip, so maybe at a later date we can do so for them.

Soon as we walk, they are giggling again as they find some other things that pique their interest instead. At one booth they are looking at some fancy jewelry when we are rejoined by Mama Sutures who has already found several tools for her and her mother's midwife business.

We are just coming to the end of an aisle when we see the Colonel, Archer, and Badger talking with Salvage Value. It is then that I take a deep breath and ask him, “Did you warn them about him?”

He shrugs, “No, I thought you would have if you felt we should have.”

“Ok, let us go talk to them.”

As we approach, we hear him talking to the Colonel, He then looks at us, “And how do you plan on getting them home?”

Smiling she replies, “Well once we get them to the railroad we can manage from there. I would be happy to pay you for your assistance in getting them that far.”

He has a look of disgust on his face at this answer It is then that Xochitl comes up along his other side laying a hoof on his shoulder and says, “Salvage Value, it's good to see you again.”

He is obviously nervous as he questions us, “That blue, she ain’t with you right now, is she?”

I cannot help but grin as I tell him, “Maybe, you know how they are, sometimes they just like to stay invisible. She is like family to us. And those ponies you are haggling with are my mother and my two fathers. Now, she may not like it if you tried to trick them out of caps.”

He begins to look around for her, and when he does not see her, he answers back, “Look I swear I was not going to try to take advantage of them. Just keep that blue away from me. Them alicorns make me nervous.”

It is shortly after he says this, that we hear Moon Lily’s disembodied voice say, “Why is that? Are you afraid we may catch you trying to cheat us?” she finishes this by laughing like Choo Choo does. At this point, we can see him become paler as he looks around franticly for her.

After this Archer turns to him and asks, “Ok, now why are you so nervous?”

“I, I am not. I, I just don’t trust Alicorns, ever since a few years back. They are dangerous, pardon my honesty ma’am,” he says as he nods in the direction, we heard Moon’s voice coming from.

Before much longer Sutures comes around the corner with Millie and Moon Lily. Moon is whistling and trying to look like she is innocent and I have to fight the urge to facehoof as she seems to be so like her Great Grandmother in her behavior when she is up to something.

Archer then asks, “Ok Salvage Value, all I want to know right now is do you have any artillery pieces readily available? If they are in decent enough condition to use, I will pay you more for them. If you have a spare gun or two that are not functional, but that I can scrap to get the others running, I will even consider purchasing them, at what we both consider a fair price mind you.”

Salvage Value grimaces some before he answers, “Ok, I may be able to get a couple of them here by tomorrow. How about you meet me here when the place opens and I will show you them.”

Archer nods his head and tells him, “That is agreeable to me. I will see you then.”

The merchant then asks, “Well how about a holding deposit then?”

That is when I see Papa Archer finally show he is starting to have his patience tested as he sighs while turning around and tells him, “To be honest, I would have earlier, but after hearing how nervous you are about one of my wives Great Grandmother being able to find out you cheated us, you are lucky I am not going to the local head of the Finders Keepers to have your membership revoked. Sir, please understand I am a gentlecolt because I choose to be, not because I have to. I have killed much bigger and tougher than you with my bare hooves.”

When he hears this Salvage Value visibly gulps.

The Colonel turns to look at him and simply queries him, “Serenity Valley?”

Those of us who were there all nod our heads in understanding and we leave. As we go Archer tells him, “I will see you then Salvage.”

He nervously nods his head back and I hear him reply, “Yes sir. I will see you then.”

Once we reach the cart. Papa Archer harnesses up as the fillies climb into the back with all the merchandise that was purchased today. I must smile as Epona tells Purchase Orders, “I will see you tomorrow, ok?”

Purchase smiles back at her and tells her, “I look forward to it.”

As we head back Epona tells me, “Sis, I took your advice. She will be joining us for dinner as soon as she can. Thanks.”

I smile as warmly as I feel for her happiness and tell her, “I am glad to hear it Sis. She is a nice mare.”

*****

Hoofington Grand Hotel, Hoofington, Lunar Commonwealth: Xochitl

The morning after our trip to Mega Mart we escort Archer and Badger as we receive the new artillery pieces and transport them to the train station for shipping. Overall, it goes with few problems. Although I notice Salvage Value keeps looking around, I assume trying to see if Choo Choo is around. She must have really spooked him.

That afternoon we are escorting a delegation of both lieutenant colonels and the civilian delegation to the Collegiate. For this, we will be wearing our black barding and matching hats. It is as we are getting ready that Windy and the Colonel discuss visiting the Rainbow Dash Skyport's new Exchange soon.

The Colonel is dressed in her uniform with full weapons including her battlesaddle when I hear Purple Haze tells her, “Really Colonel, perhaps you should only take the pistol and saber.”

From the other room Purchase Order adds to the conversation, “Honestly Miss Haze, it is probably best for her as a military leader here, to come fully armed and with an escort. It lends credence to her authority.”

This seems to have settled that. Then Ginger’s little sister Moon Lily asks if she can go with us. We must tell her no, but we explain it in a manner that I do believe soothes her ego while letting her know we do understand how much power she has.

Finally, we are ready and begin to head out. As we make our way down the streets of Hoofington to the old university, I am on point. Ginger is directly alongside the delegates and Epona has drag. As is our normal routine when traveling through this area we are on the lookout for any trouble. I smile to myself as I know that the Mayhems Mares and the Broken Clock’s territory is not close. But there is always the chance for a surprise here and there.

Once we reach the University, I see Epona smile and wave back to one of the farmers who is tending the plots there, as we are led by one of their security ponies to the Chancellor's Building. Once there we are led to an antechamber to wait.

As the delegates and military officers take their seats to wait, Purple Haze tells us, “Remember to wait here while we are inside. This is only our first meeting with them so it should not take more than a couple of hours.

I shrug and nod in response, as it is about what I had expected. Ginger replies to her, “Yes ma’am. We understand.”

They are only in there for a couple of hours while we stand outside the door. As we wait, I see Epona looking out the window and ask her, “Good to be back?”

She smirks, “Yeah, it is. I was just noticing that it looks like they took some of my advice from the last time I talked with them about their crops. I see them using the three sisters’ method of growing food as well as when we were crossing the common area, I saw a wagon with material to rebuild their soil.”

“I noticed that too. Not the most pleasant smell but it will help them in the long run.” Ginger tells her. We maintain our bearing while we wait, but we also chat a bit back and forth.

Once the delegation is ready to leave, as a group we head back downstairs. I lead the way behind the security pony and as I go out the door, I see the Volunteer Corps office is still open. However, I notice that they have a new wagon in front of it and that I do not recognize any of those around it.

It is while we are on our way back to the hotel that we have our first run-in with any of the old gangs we ran into before. Epona notices them first and uses her ears to signal Ginger and me. I must grin when I see that they are wearing old worn-out firefighters’ coats and are carrying what appear to be modified flame throwers.

As the first one steps out of the doorways and sprays flames across in front of us to get us to stop. Another one calls out, “Now that we have your attention, give us what you got.”

Both Ginger and I begin laughing as the Colonel simply asks, “Really?”

Epona next calls to them, “Hey Tinder, Hey Kindling, are you saying we can play again?”

That is when we hear one of them asks, “Ah shit, where is Big Blue?”

Ginger grins and sweetly replies, “She is not with us today, or maybe she is behind you. You know how she is.”

I notice it was Flameover who cussed as he looks around nervously, Then Kindling calls back “Yeah, we know how she is, that is what has us worried. I guess you can go, next time, let us know you are in town will ya? We still owe you for teaching us how to make those Fuel-Air bombs. Mare those are impressive.”

I nod my head and laugh lightly as I tell him, “Yes, and they are only a few of the tricks of the trade. Now, aren’t you glad you worked with us last time we came through here?”

The Burner Boys look at each other and they nod their heads. "Yeah, you were fun to work with. I still want to meet the pony that taught you how to make them things,” Kindling says.

This gets me to grin and I tell him, “Well he is stationed back home in Manesville in the NCR, so sorry. But he learned a lot of those tricks from some ghoul buddies of his.”

We find ourselves bantering back and forth for a bit then finally Tinder tells us, “Ya go on through. Seriously Chotil, Gin, and Pona let us know when you are here. It avoids such misunderstandings.”

Ginger responds to him, “Ok, we will keep that in mind. Oh, and if Big Blue has a job for ya sometime, would you be up for it?”

The gang members look at each other, then Tinder answers, “Possibly, as long as it does not cause us and the gang a problem with the LC heads. Don’t need the Reapers, the Zodiacs, or even the Brood coming down on us.”

Ginger nods her head with a serious expression on her face. “Tinder, that sounds good and makes sense. Oh, just so you know we will be in town for a while, if you see any of us, or those with us, I am not asking you to give them a hoof, but how about not giving us grief either.”

They look at each other and Kindling says, “Deal, we will pass the word with the others. Just keep Big Blue away from us.”

Ginger still grinning tells him, “Ok, sounds good. See you around, and try to keep out of trouble.”

That is when one of them says, “Ah, but where is the fun in that.”

We all wave to each other and are then on our way again. As we continue, I hear the Colonel whisper to one of the others, “Just what were they up to down here last time.”

I hear Purple Haze answer back, “Honestly Moll, I do not think we want to know. But I bet it is an interesting story.”

Once we arrive back at the hotel we are met in the lobby by Badger and Magpie. As she steps forward, she holds out a letter and tells Purple Haze, “Ma’am a few hours ago we received a message from the First Citizen out in Elysium.” She then hooves it to Purple who opens it and reads it silently.

When Purple is finished with it, I see her eyebrow has gone up and she grins as she says, “Ok, we all have an initial meeting in three days. At Elysium.”

As she says this, I see Badger cringe slightly. I do not know if the others notice it, but I do and I understand it all too well. I too cringed slightly when I heard that.

Then after he is asked if he is ok by the Colonel, I hear him say, “Yeah, it is just the last time I was there, was the day I received the scars on my back and decided to make a run for it.” He is silent briefly then he continues, “It is just hard going back there, but you know how that is.”

That night as we relax, I am on the balcony looking out over the city when Magpie leans on it next to me, “Thanks Xochitl for helping us set up the meeting. In part, it is so we can meet Badger’s mother.”

“Your welcome Mother Magpie,” I tell her.

Then she puts a hoof on my shoulder and asks, “I saw you cringe a bit today when you heard we were going there, can I ask why?”

I find myself looking down and a feeling of shame comes over me briefly. Then I tell her, “Because I know what it means to him to go back there. It would be the same as the farm my family escaped from.”

She puts a hoof over her muzzle in horror. Then she asks, “It is not that bad still, is it?”

I smile sadly, “No Mother Magpie, it is not. It has changed a lot according to those who live there now. But the pain of the memories will still be associated with it. Perhaps this will help relieve some of his pain.”

She smiles sadly, “I hope so dear. And thank you for sharing that with me. I never thought of that before. If you do not mind, I will share those thoughts with Sumac, so she can be ready for him as well.”

“I think that would be best, and again, you are welcome,” I tell her and after she goes inside, I stay out until the sun begins to set. That is when I think I see them. I see a white form flying in the sky and I smile as I wonder how the batponies are doing. Well, the way this trip is going so far, I am sure we will meet up with them before too long.

*****

Foal Mountain, Ministry of Peace Supply Depot, NCR Territory: Choo Choo

As we go further into the tunnel, I notice by using the Eyes Forward Sparkle on my PipBuck that all the defense turrets are off or they do not consider us hostile. This makes me wonder what is going on.

Soon ahead of us, we can see a large door that is half open. We slide through it as a team followed by the Trouble Shooters. As I slide around the door I almost run into Sunny as I hear him say, “My goddesses Boss. Look at all those self-propelled carriages and wagons.”

I am stunned myself as I look at the large cavern of them all sitting there covered with dust. As we get closer, I notice many of them have markings for the Equestrian army. Some are private vehicles, but most are marked for the Ministry of Peace. There must be nearly a hundred of them in here. Over my radio set, I hear Mort asks, “Choo, what is up with all of these vehicles?”

I think briefly before replying, “Mort, I think these have all been here since the Last Day. We may have live company ahead.”

I hear several of my team members squawk as well as Mort then he asks, “You serious Big Blue?”

“Affirmative Mort. This feels like a first contact situation to me.”

As we pass through the vehicles, I suddenly feel a tugging on my barding. I look down and see Twinks pointing up ahead of us as she says, “Boss, will you look at that?” As she tells me this I am looking to our left and see a large maintenance area with several security bots either being charged or repaired by several Mister Hoovsies. At the tone of her voice, I turn my head and look ahead to where she is pointing.

As I look ahead, I am stunned to see a stable-style door only a few vehicle lengths ahead of us. However, instead of the typical number molded onto it, I see the symbol for the Ministry of Peace.

Beside me, I hear Mort asks, “What the?”

From my other side Twinks says, “OHHH, I think I can get this.”

As she trots up to a control panel off to the side. I watch as she types in a couple of passwords first, both of which fail. Then I see her grin and hear her mumble, “I knew my interest in the ministry mares would pay off.” Then I watch as she taps in a final pass word and steps back grinning as we hear a groaning of the door and it soon begins to retract and roll to the side.

A walking platform advances from behind the doorway and across the threshold. When it stops, I tell Mort, “Let me go first.” His eyes wide open and his ears forward he only nods his head in agreement.

I notice that all the turrets are tracking us from inside of the entryway. I also see blurs of movement in the shadows and when I bring up my EFS I see several flickering yellow dots ahead of me.

I hold up my one forehoof and tell the others, “Stay here.” And I cross the threshold. I slowly walk forward, the bit of my battle saddle stowed. Once there I use my best Luna impression voice and say, “I come peacefully, show yourselves.”

At first, nothing happens. Then shortly afterward I see five ponies flicker then fully appear before me. Two are earthponies and the other three are unicorns. They are all wearing Ministry of Peace barding, but it also has a tag on it that states that they are security. Each of them is armed with either a pistol, shotgun, or submachine gun.

The eldest of them is a unicorn mare who has her gray mane tied in a braid that hangs down from the back of her helmet and along her neck. When asked this, she replies, “I am Terra Amare. I am in charge of this team. Who are you and what do you want?”

I smile and nod in her direction as I have seen Luna do both on the television and now in person. Then I tell her, “I am Choo Choo, I was sent to prevent members of the Grand Pegasus Enclave from taking over this facility. However, we did not know it was occupied still, so we are also here to make contact with your leadership.”

She looks surprised at this and asks, “What is this Grand Pegasus Enclave? Are you with the Equestrian Government?” she hesitates and asks, “Princess?”

I shake my head negatively as I tell her, “I am not a princess, though I have met them and received their blessings, they were not of our reality.” I pause when I see the confused look on her face and tell her, “I will explain more about that later. But I would like to answer your other questions first.”

She nods her head and cautiously says, “Ok.”

“Terra Amare, the Equestrian Government ceased to exist after the Last Day. It was during these death throughs that the Grand Pegasus Enclave was born. The Pegasi that survived the initial attacks closed the skies and left those of us below under constant cloud cover for about two hundred years.”

I hear several members of her staff gasp. Then she asks, “Did the princesses survive? After we lost contact with the outside world, we waited for contact from them.”

I shake my head, “In this universe, no, they did not survive.”

She looks at me funny and tells me, “Perhaps you should come with me to see the director.”

I nod, “That sounds logical. What about the rest of the ponies on my team.”

She shrugs, “Have them come in here and wait for you. Please have them stand easy with their weapons though as we do not want any accidental misunderstandings.”

I call on the radio, “Twinks, Mort, bring them in.”

As they come into the light, I see a bit of a surprise on the security ponies' faces when they see Cowlick. Then I hear one of them say, “So the cattle survived too.”

I nod my head, “Yes, some did. Most who were not in a stable, well, they are now the cousins of the cattle and are known as brahmin.”

Behind me, I hear one of Mort’s team members say, “You mean he is how they are supposed to look?”

I chuckle lightly at this, then I hear Cowlick say indignantly, “I keep trying to tell you that.”

“Well, you are the only one-headed, hairy brahmin we ever saw.”

Soon they have settled down and I am led by the security team leader and another escort past the main entrance of the facility and follow them through some winding corridors before we come to an elevator.

The security lead pony tells me, “Please get on the elevator. Once the doors open you will be met by another section chief who will take you to see the director.”

I nod my head and tell her, “Thank you for your time.”

She shrugs and tells me, “No problem, ma’am.” She pauses then asks, “Just curious, what did you do before you were changed?”

I smile as she knows the truth about my kind already, so I tell her, “At one time I was a train engineer. I still miss it occasionally. Why?”

She smiles, “Well since you went through the effort of marking yourself with Luna’s cutie mark and then adding to it. I figured it was something along those lines.”

I slowly shake my head, “My good mare, I have to say, that this is actually real. My original one was just the locomotive. However, I recently had the opportunity to, let us say, make some travels abroad and I regained my cutie mark and added to it.”

She seems stunned, “You mean it is real?”

“Yes, it is. And I have not had it for long, but I am very pleased with what I was doing and who I was with when I gained it.”

“If I had time, I would like to hear it.” She tells me.

I smile, “If I could tell you, I would.”

She nods in understanding as the elevator door closes between us. The elevator ride takes longer than I had expected it to. Finally, it stops moving and the doors open. As I come out, I enter another hallway and am met by a light green unicorn stallion wearing a black business suit. I also notice his yellow mane, while kept short is well groomed. Beside him are two more security ponies. Both in formal police attire, such as that used before the war.

I feel like shaking my head as it is not what I was expecting. He holds out a hoof and tells me, “It is not often we get royalty here milady. Welcome on the behalf of our director. Please follow me.”

As we walk down the hallway, I notice how much it looks like a prewar office building rather than one of the underground bases or the stables I have been into. There is an entirely different feeling here, that I just cannot explain.

Soon ahead of us, I see what looks like a tunnel between buildings with windows in it. As we pass through it, I look out the window and I am stunned. It looks like a brightly lit city below us. Housed in a gigantic cavern. I say nothing but I do nod my head toward it.

“Most impressive, isn’t it princess.”

“Yes, quite impressive. How many ponies do you have here?”

This time he grins as I see a pegasus and a griffon go flying by the window. “Well, your highness, we currently have over one thousand beings living here.”

Again, I am impressed. “SO, what exactly was the purpose of this facility?” I ask.

About this time, we are coming to a door with a plague on it that states, Facility Director. He turns to me and with a serious expression and demeanor tells me, “Please go inside, the director will discuss that with you.”

As I enter the office, I see behind a large wooden desk a rather petite pegasus mare. Her mane and tail are both pink and her coat, what I can see of it from under her medical coat is an orange color. As She looks up from the computer terminal that is on her desk and then stands up I notice how she has a heavy overbite.

She steps around the desk and bows to me and greets me, “Your Highness, thank you for coming to visit us. How can I help you today?”

“Before I answer that, two things, first, what is your name? Second, I am not a princess. Though I have met them and have received their blessings.”

She seems flustered, “How can you not be a princess, you are an alicorn with a true cutie mark. I even heard one of your team leaders calling you princess on our microphones.”

I smile, “Mort just calls me that. However, I was once a unicorn who was transformed into what you see before you. However, I did lack my cutie mark.”

She turns her head as she asks, “Who are you?”

I sigh, “As I have said earlier to my escorts, I am Choo Choo. I work indirectly for the New Canterlot Republic. We did not know that this facility was occupied still when I was sent here. However, now that we know so, I am here to make an informal contact with you, and see about setting up a formal diplomatic meeting between your facility and the NCR government.”

“I see, and what will that government want from us?”

I shrug, “Honestly, it depends on what you have to offer.” In the back of my mind, I am shaking my head and wishing that Purple Haze was here as well as Ginger or Twinks. I ask again, “What is your name, Madam Director? Or do I have to use a memory spell to get it out of you?”

She smirks as she tells me, “Ha, your kind cannot do that.”

I grin evilly back at her, “Oh, but I have been trained in the ways of the Pinks. If you do not know who they are, I will elaborate, then demonstrate. I am being nice because I want to, not because I must.”

Finally, she looks at me and tells me, “Fine, my name if you must know, is Spiral Notepad.”

The name rings a bell for me. I step back and look at her more closely, then I ask her, “Is that a family name?”

She shakes her head and replies, “No, it is not. Why?”

I think to myself the only pony I met with that name before was at the cons before the war went bad. She sees me smiling and asks, “Why, what is so funny.”

I then tell her, “You probably would not understand. I just had a friend who had your name that would attend the cons and come dressed as Daring Do.”

I see her stumble back somewhat. She looks at me more closely and asks cautiously, “Choo Choo? Really Choo Choo from the cons?”

I nod my head, “Yes Spiral, it’s me,'" I pause then asks, "But how? You look the same?”

It is then that I hear a loud humming that is now becoming familiar to me. My eyes open wide and I ask her, “You have a doorway here?”

She looks at me confused and this time I ask, “You have a portable portal?”

“How the buck do you know what one is, much less how they sound?

“I have not only seen one, but I have been through it. That is where I got my cutie mark back, on the other side of the Doorway.”

She waves towards a chair and as she goes to sit down, she says, “Choo, please take a seat, I think we really do need to talk.”

I slowly nod my head, “Yes Spiral, I think we do.”

Once I am seated, she laughs lightly and tells me, “Sorry about laughing, but back when we were cosplaying I never expected you to take it, how shall I say this, quit so far.”

I chuckle back, “Yes, I never expected this either. I became a blue on the last day. Now, how about you, did you use a cryo-pod or something?”

I see her head tilt again as if she is examining a surprising specimen. She then asks, “So you know about those as well.?”

I nod my head, and she asks, “How, may I ask?”

So, I explain to her about our recent visit to the former mega spell launch facility at New Gallop. To this she slowly nods her head, “That makes sense, and yes in part, that is why I look this young. The other part is explained by the Doorway as you call it.”

This time I am surprised and ask her, “How does that explain it?”

She sighs and tells me, “We were testing it and I was one of the researchers to go through with a team. The portal closed behind us and we tried to open it for an hour. Once it was open again and we came back, we found out that over one hundred years had passed on this side.”

“So, what was it like on that timeline?”

“Choo, it was pre-Celestial. Literally, we observed the three tribes still fighting each other.”

“My Goddesses,” I say to myself, then I ask, “Have you visited many other timelines?”

She nods her head, “Yes in fact we have had a few visitors as well. A couple did not go so well. In fact, I have a team right now that was captured when they went through. The passage of time is almost on par with this one, so it is safe in that manner. However, I would not want to be stuck over there.”

I nod my head. “I am sorry to hear about your team.”

She looks down briefly and asks, “Choo, most of us here are researchers; scientists. We are not cut out for combat. We saw how you and your medic treated your wounded enemies, so, along with my having known you in the past, I trust you more than I normally would. Choo, could you lead a team to go through and bring my ponies back?”

I nod my head, “I think we can. Bring my people down and we will, but it will be for a fee.”

She looks at me with surprise and a bit of disgust, “I never expected you to be mercenary Choo.”

“I am sorry, but for a dangerous job like this, we will need to be paid. We can discuss a fee and what you can afford once you have my people down here Spiral.”

I hear her sigh, “Ok, I will do it.”

As she calls for her security head over an intercom. I call Twinks and tell her, “Twinks you and the team are not going to believe this. Tell Mort about the doorway and tell him we are going to go through one.”

*****

Rainbow Dash Skyport. Enclave Territory: Ball Lightning

As I wake up, I can hear the sounds of the merchants beginning to arrive at the Skyport for the day. Yep, another here for me and my troops. Soon I hear my people starting to roust the next section to go on watch. It is during this I begin to smell the first scent of food cooking for breakfast.

I look at my watch and shake my head. Almost time to get up. Thank the Goddesses I was smart enough to drink lots of water last night before I went to bed. The last thing I need is a hangover on duty. But at least it helped me to not have that dream again last night.

Lately, I have been having the dream of seeing my mother again. It is like it is a repressed memory from when I was wounded, and in the hospital, last time. I wish I had someone I could talk to about it, but sadly I do not even know if I could tell Sundancer.

As I finish putting on my uniform the orderly for the facility commander approaches me. He quickly tells me, “Sir, after you finish your breakfast, the Colonel would like to meet with you.”

I nod in confirmation and tell him, “Very well. Tell him I will be there as soon as I am done with breakfast.”

“Yes sir,” he replies as he salutes me and quickly departs.

After a quick breakfast fortified by hot black coffee, I head straight to the Colonel’s Office. Just before I enter, I make sure my uniform is proper and adjust it slightly. Then I knock and enter.

“Good, I am glad you took the time for a good breakfast before you came here. I just wanted to give you an update. We have received word that the representatives from the NCR that have been going around are planning a shopping expedition here in the next couple of days. No matter who is part of that party, you are not to interfere with them. I do not care if they are dashites, you will not stop them or try to arrest them unless they are in process of committing a crime.”

I feel myself raise an eyebrow at this. “May I ask why ma’am?”

She smirks and asks me, “Do I, of all ponies, have to explain that to you?”

I find myself laughing, “No ma’am. You don’t.”

“Good just goes to show you are as intelligent as we thought you were. Now, if they do show up, if you get the opportunity to talk with them, I want you to do so. Build up a friendly business relationship per se, you know something we can work with at a later time.”

I nod my head, “Got it. Any idea where in the NCR these ponies come from?”

She smiles at me, “Yes, in fact from the reports we have been given, they come from Manesville. I do believe you are familiar with that region?”

I feel myself blush and my ears go down to the side. This time her eyebrow goes up and she tells me, “I will take that as a yes.”

“Yes, I have met some ponies from there in the line of duty, but I am not free to talk about it.”

She tilts her head as she nods, “OK, well said. Well, you know what I want. Also, let your 1st Sergeant know as well. Got it?”

“Yes ma’am. I am already on it.”

“Good, now please close the door on your way-out Lieutenant.”

As I walk back towards my office I stop briefly at the banks of screens for the cameras. I watch them for a while then I notice some familiar youngsters on it. They have a small cart behind one of them and are just reaching the main terminal. I then think to myself. Perhaps I should say hello and see how they are doing.

As I begin to head in that direction, I hear my 1st Sergeant call my name. I turn to her and ask, “What do you have for me, top?”

She has a clipboard in front of her, “Just the usual sir. Watch reports to be signed. A letter from your wife, a report on a fight between two of our guards after hours, you know the usual.”

I catch myself smiling, “The usual, eh? OK, anything else?”

“No, not really, it has been a fairly quiet night it seems and hopefully will be a quiet day as well. So where are you heading sir?”

I smile as I tell her, “Just going to take a walk through the main vendors' hall.”

Walking alongside me she asks, “Any particular reason sir?”

This time I nod my head and smile. “Yes. I just saw a group of orphans I had escorted to the VC office a while back coming toward the terminal on the cameras. So, I figured I would go see how they are doing.”

She suddenly looks concerned. “Sir, you aren’t going native, are you?”

I shake my head, “No First, I am not. But if we want to improve our situation down here, we need to win their hearts and minds, not just have them fear us.”

She still looks skeptical as she answers non-committedly, “If you say so, sir.”

She continues to talk with me about our paperwork as I continue on my way. Soon I am passing one of my favorite scrap vendors. I wave a wing to her as I walk by and call out to the middle-aged gray and white mare, “Good morning Alizée, I hope all is well today?”

She simply shrugs her wings and calmly calls back, “We will see what the day shall bring, eh Lieutenant?”

“That we will. I stop briefly and ask her, “Are you looking for any particular scrap today?”

She again shrugs and tells me, “I will trade what I can. This week has been ok, but I could use a few more magical tools and electronics if you see any coming in.”

I smile at her and tell her, “I will send them your way if I do.”

“Thank you very much, sir. Stop by for tea later if you would like, I have a few items that came in late yesterday I would like your opinion on.”

“I will do that,” I tell her, then I continue along my way.

Once out of earshot, I hear Bulls Eye Squall quietly say, “She wants more than your opinion if you ask me, sir.”

I chuckle lightly, “Top, if she wants that, she is too late. I am a married stallion now.”

“Sir, that doesn’t stop a lot of them.”

“No, it does not. But Top, it stops me.”’

We are just entering the main entrance of the gallery as the group of rough-looking foals and a griffon enter. The Griffon holds the door open for the others, as she looks ahead. The large colt they called Scout is pulling the cart behind him.

As I approach, I smile and I see them all look nervous. Then I say to them, “Good Morning, how are you doing today?”

They stop in their tracks and I see the fear flash in their eyes. Then Scout stands as tall as he can. “OK sir, but is there a reason you stopped us? We haven’t done anything wrong, have we?”

I smile at him, which makes him cringe slightly, and makes me wonder what these kids have been through. Then I tell him, “No, you have done nothing wrong, I just recognize all of you and wanted to say hello.”

The griffon looks me up and down cautiously and says, “You have us at a disadvantage did we meet before?”

I nod my head, “Yes, a while back my squad and I caught you sneaking onto the base, I vouched for you with the VC that night.”

I watch as they all visibly relax, but I notice Bulls Eye Squall is surprised. Then I hear the little pegasus filly who was with them that night excitedly say, “Oh thank you, mister, you saved our lives that night.”

Bulls Eye then asks, “Why because he kept his squad from killing you?”

They all look surprised at that and the young filly says shyly, “No, because we were starving and cold. We had nothing left. He got us warm, some food, and blankets. He helped us survive.”

Scout then asks, “You were the officer in the power armor, I guess? Cause I don’t recognize you.”

Again, I nod my head, “Yes, I was. I had hoped you all were doing well son, and I am glad to see you here. But I have kept you from trading long enough, please let’s talk as we walk.”

I feel my heart warm as the little pegasus filly smiles at us and we continue to walk. I next ask, “do you come here often?”

Scout nods his head, “Whenever we have a cartload, we do.”

I nod my head, then I ask, “Do you ever stop at any of the Finder’s trading posts?”

He nods his head, “Chapel occasionally, we can’t afford Mega Mart. We don’t need anything they have or want to give us at Paradise.”

I nod my head, “What about that stable with the Applejack Rangers?”

He shakes his head, “Too far. Too many gangs. We would lose more of us.”

I nod my head, “You are wise to consider that.” I pause, “May I ask what you have today for trade, I may be able to guide you to some of the better traders.”

“We got a couple of guns and bullets we found, we found a robotic wing, plus we found several boxes of food and some electronics.”

The mention of electronics gets my attention. I then ask, “Do you have any particular merchants you deal with?”

He nods his head, “Usually we deal with Two Caps. But we also deal with a few others, why?”

“Have you ever dealt with Alizée?”

He shakes his head and looks down, “No, we haven’t she has better stuff than we find.”

“Well, I know she is looking for magical testers and electronics, so, how about I introduce you to her?”

He stops in his tracks and asks, “You would do that for us? Really?” then he cynically asks, “What do you want for us to do that?”

I stop and quietly tell him, “To grow up and be good people.”

“Why are you doing this?” the griffon asks.

“Because I remember losing my mother when I was young and others found me and took me to the hospital my father was recovering in. I remember what it felt like to feel like I lost everything and to have someone help me have hope again.”

They all seem lost in their thoughts and really do not say much as we arrive at Alizée”s shop.

As we pull up in front of the old Skyport shop that she now uses as her store, Alizée steps out. “What do you have here Lieutenant?” she asks.

“My friend, I would like to introduce to you a group of young scavengers who might have some of what you are looking for, and they may be able to find more of what you are looking for if you tell them what you want.”

She nods her head to me and then tells them, “Well if you are friends of the Lieutenants, then you are friends of mine. Now you, the big guy, please take off the cart and introduce me to you and your friends here. Then you can show me what you have, and I can tell you what I am looking for, and why.”

I smile as she begins to learn their names. I notice that Bulls Eye Squall is still standing next to me. I see her raise an eyebrow as she looks at what is happening and quietly asks, “Hearts and minds sir?” As she asks this, I notice the young pegasus filly they call Little Bit looking at me with a smile and hope in her eyes.

“Top, sometimes we have to play the long game.”

*****

Good evening to all of you HOOF listeners, this is Chromed Microphone coming to you once again. You have just heard four in a row and that last song was an oldie but a goody by Countess Coloratura.

Just a reminder that in addition to our three Finder’s locations for trading the Enclave has fully opened the Rainbow Dash Skyport terminal for all your buying and trading needs.

Also, for those listeners who are ghouls, a new shipment of Aqua Pura has arrived and is available at Meat Locker.

As a public service announcement from the Collegiate, remember that we are starting to come into the Radscorpian breeding season, try to avoid their breeding grounds if possible as they are extra aggressive during this time of year.

Now for another four in a row, we are starting off with Desert of Wishes

Author's Note

Again I would like to thank those of you who are reading this story. I hope you are still enjoying it. Once again part of the team is back in Hoofington and this time they are starting to put what they have learned into practice.

For those of you wondering, Spiral Notepad is not fully my creation. She was actually a background pony in the episode Stanger Than Fan Fiction. However, her background and Choo Choo's relationship are fully my own creation.

For those of you who would like to listen to this chapter's song the YouTube link is: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M3i_rLnHGdg