(October 19th: 5th Day Since Capture)

"C'mon Neil! Just ten more wing-ups and you're done for the day. Ninety-one, ninety-two, ninety-three..."

Neil collapsed onto his chest, his breath partially expelled by the force before he gulped in more air to replace it. His wings and back felt like they were literally on fire. To an average person, that meant they pushed themselves too far with their training. Unfortunately for Neil, Dash didn't think like an average person.

No, for her, the burn was a good thing. And the worst part of it all, she was there by his side every step of the way.

After teaching him a new exercise, she would set an arbitrary number and join him. Pushing him to the extreme while she remained barely winded.

Even now, after hours of sprints, flaps, push-ups, wing-ups, and other pony-specific exercises Neil didn't even want to think about, there was barely a hint of moisture running through her patches of exposed blue fur. Was this just a warm-up to her? That was possible. It was a much kinder thought compared to the other option. He did not want to imagine what it was like underneath the skin-tight suit if that was the case.

"Just seven more. Or are you going to lie down and give up right at the end?" She asked somewhat condescendingly, "You really want to show all these guards you're a quitter?"

Whether it was his lack of breath or a stray amount of dust from the training grounds, when Neil went to respond, the urge to cough caught his words in his throat. Still, he persevered and garbled it out near the end of his fit. "-Uck, cough, you."

"Buck me?" She continued, going so far as to get right up in his face with her best drill sergeant smirk. Given her pony features, it looked absolutely ridiculous. "Too late pretty boy. You had your chance on the balcony and passed it up. Now give me seven more wing-ups!" She jeered as she lowered herself onto the ground with her wings.

Neil remained on the ground, panting, doing his best to reclaim all the oxygen his body demanded. Still, she didn't seem to care about the dust blowing into her face. Her eyes were locked on his, challenging him. Waiting for him to lift himself up once more, against the better wishes of his burning appendages.

Deep down, as he forced his wings to straighten out, something boiled within him to prove he wasn't just another Equestrian stallion. That he was something else. Uncomfortable jolts passed through his trembling wings and up his spine as he slowly, shakily lifted himself up once more. And Rainbow was there, imitating his slow momentum, until he finally crested.

"Ninety-four!"

What should have taken less than a minute ended after six when Rainbow called out his one-hundredth wing-up. As if she flipped a switch, the hard-ass drill instructor she tried to imitate was gone as Rainbow grinned and stood up. She didn't go far, only taking a few steps before she sat down at his side and extended a wing to rub his protesting back.

"You did really awesome today! Not as good as me, obviously, but better than I was expecting for your first wing session."

Neil wasn't really listening to her words, however. He was far too focused on her circular wing motions that lessened the aches and pains along his spine. Until the movements stopped, and she lightly tapped the side of her hoof against his shoulder a few times.

"Let's get you back to your room," She offered while looking off to the side. "Um, Guard Dude, mind helping me with Neil?"

He may have been run into the ground at that point, but Neil wasn't incapable of standing on his own. He shifted his splayed legs underneath himself through sheer stubbornness to protest Rainbow's suggestion. But his wobbly legs only managed a few painfully slow inches before he felt Rainbow's wing wrap under his left side. Bulk copied the action on his right, and they both lifted him up with ease.

Once he was standing upright, the wings released. "I was managing fine on my own, you know." He pointed out, giving each of them a look that showed how much he appreciated being manhandled.

Bulk just shrugged placatingly, "You were-"

"But you were taking waaay too long." Rainbow flippantly finished for him. "So, which way are we going?"

"I don't know where my room is from here, but Bulk does," Neil told her, giving Bulk an obvious head gesture to lead back to the infirmary.

Bulk took his regular position by Neil's side, then pointed towards one of the open arches to Neil's left, leading into and out of the training yard. With the correct direction, Neil eased forward. He did his best not to flair the pain in his abused muscles and ignore the watchful eyes of the off-duty guards.

"The better question is, why are you following us?" Neil asked as Rainbow fell in on his other side, shoulder to shoulder.

"I'm not going to let my new trainee break a wing by falling down some stupid stairs." She answered as if her explanation was a foregone conclusion. "Besides, I need to know where you are for tomorrow's training session."

"Tomorrow's training session." Neil deadpanned, not wanting to believe the audacity of Rainbow's delusions. Did she expect his body to miraculously heal all the strain he underwent overnight and become as good as new?

She must have found his lack of faith humorous as she took one look and failed to stifle a snerk. "Trust me, you'll be perfectly fine by tomorrow; Twi was during her flight training."

"Well that's good; there's just one little flaw, though. I'm not her." Neil pointed out as they exited the training area into an unfamiliar and secluded area of the castle grounds. At least he recognized the outer edge of the hedge maze on his right.

"Obviously. Twilight's still normal sized, but you're a little taller than Big Mac is," She explained. He didn't know who Big Mac was, but he didn't care as he felt Rainbow's eyes tracing over his body. His tail unconsciously pressed into his rump.

"You've got way more muscle than she does, and your wing span is bigger, too. Once your control is good enough you'll be an awesome flyer- Just not as good as me."

He tuned out her following boasts as his thoughts turned inward. The most annoying premise kept a prominent space at the forefront of his mind. Did he want to become an awesome flyer as Rainbow said?

His final lesson on the balcony had been how to properly lock his wings during a glide. After that, Rainbow concluded their warm up as she put it, and told him to hop up on the railing. Like an idiot, he did just as she asked.

When she pushed him off the balcony to glide without warning, that was one of the most terrifying and exhilarating moments of his life. However, the true addiction came after the spike in adrenaline that shot through his body.

The subtle allure of wind flowing over his sensitive feathers, teasing him to alter his trajectory with a single flap, or to fold them in and increase his speed. Anything to turn that tingly little caress into a raging river of sensations. That feeling was definitely a top three life experience, right up there with the first time his Dad took him flying in a helicopter.

His body might have automatically followed the siren call if not for the terror keeping his wings locked in a glide. Seconds later, Rainbow took up the position in front of him as the lead flyer while keeping her eyes locked on him. She wasn't shy about barking more orders, either, taking his mind off his fears as she directed him to glide in a lazy circle around the perimeter wall of the training area.

Bulk, also joined the flight about five to ten feet below Neil, likely as a safety measure in case he needed to be caught.

At that point, he started to understand the joy of flying under his own power. Of course, it was just a little taste as he followed Rainbow's orders without question. The sky was her domain, and he was the untrained idiot waffling about in the air.

He locked his eyes on Rainbow's wings and immediately imitated their movements to the best of his abilities. Not long after, Bulk flew up to his right side as the ground grew closer.

Once his hooves made contact with the well-packed dirt, with only a light stumble, and his wings were no longer carrying the bulk of his weight, he couldn't repress the delightful shivers that travelled along his back. His wings also unconsciously ruffled his feathers back into alignment.

However, Rainbow didn't give him much time to revel in his newfound feelings as she started her beginners training program.

The training sucked, obviously, as he trudged along. Each of his legs and his body protested against moving with each step. But; he played sports as a teen, he was sure he could get used to a regimen again.

As long as his trainer didn't push him off the deep end like Rainbow's preferred method.

Tuning back in, Rainbow was boasting about a wonderbolt's performance of some sort. Going from a triple wing blitz, whatever that was, into a sonic rainboom. Neil didn't understand any of it, but he knew what a basic sonic boom was. The speed required for such a feat and the sheer force of the air flowing over his wings...

His wings ruffled against his sides, forcing Neil to stop and regain control of them. For being little more than an immovable accessory just that morning, they were a little too active for his tastes now.

Rainbow also must have noticed as she prodded his shoulder with her hoof. "Yeah, I'm that awesome. If you do well tomorrow, I might even show you some of my tricks," She promised.

"If I don't feel like absolute shit tomorrow," He added, catching a glimpse of her ears twitching as he looked around the grounds. Thankfully, Bulk was there to point toward the perimeter corner of the hedge maze. Once they rounded that particular corner, his view of the infirmary wing of the castle was no longer blocked by the hedges.

As they approached the main entrance, Bulk was kind enough to trot ahead and open the door for the group before taking up his original position at Neil's side. This entrance hall was smaller and less grand than the main palace entrance. But that was to be expected, given its status as a side wing of the castle. After that, it was a simple matter of following Bulk's directions back to his room.

Surprisingly, Rainbow kept quiet as they traversed the building. And despite her predictions, he didn't trip on the stairs as they made their way up to the third floor. But soon enough, the three of them found themselves at his door without any problems.

"Welcome to my cage," Neil offered neutrally as he pushed into the room with his snout. The first thing he looked at was his bed. True to Celestia's word, his cloak sat there, folded and looking freshly cleaned. Even from the door, he was surprised by the faint scent of marigolds. Not the most pleasant-smelling flower, but one that reminded him of his grandmother's garden.

"Eh, at least they let you out of your room," Rainbow said from the door, looking the room over before she walked over to the table piled with books. "Last time I broke my wing, they almost tied me to the bed until it was healed. So what'cha reading?"

"Anything that catches my interest," He told her as he approached his bed. Once there, he bit down on his cloak, confirming it was the source of the marigold wafting through his room. Not that he could do anything about it, as he set it aside on the nightstand beside his bed.

After that, he practically collapsed onto his bed. Was he filthy? Yes. Did he care at all? No. Despite his body's protest at the impact, the following ease of tension in his sore muscles more than made up for it.

A moment passed as he curved his neck upwards to keep an eye on the mare in his room.

Not that he really needed to, as she looked over the books in his current collection. "History books, Princess biographies, boring. I guess Roam is kinda cool since Daring Do and the Ruins of Timbucktu covered it a little..."

Her ramble was paused momentarily as Bulk slipped Battle for the Crystal Empire out of his armour and placed it on the table.

"Uhg, you need better interests than that," She complained as she turned away from the table. "I still remember Twilight reading those battle reports out loud on our first trip to the Crystal Empire."

He couldn't really disagree with her as he recalled his morning reading. "Did she say anything about Alicorn battle tactics?"

"Nah," Was all she offered at first as she hopped onto the folding chair. "She was focused on Sombra and his mind-controlled soldiers. Not that it mattered since we kicked his flank easily."

"I'm sure you did," He offered, having recently read that Cadenza was the one to vaporize Sombra's shadow form in the Crystal Empire. "So now you know where I am. Are you going to put me through more torture? Or do you still have time for some Wonderbolt drills?" He asked, hoping she took the second option.

"Nope. Drills ended over an hour ago, and there aren't any night flights planned," She told him, looking over him and out the window. "But there's still a few hours of daylight left, so I guess I could practice some tricks. Want to watch?"

The newly awakened, flight-addicted part of his brain was tempted. But the rest of him smothered the urge with the soreness of his muscles. "I'm staying right here until the pain stops."

"No problem. Just means I get to show off my awesome tricks tomorrow," She said, hopping off the chair and heading towards the door. "See you later." And with that, she slipped out, leaving him on the bed and Bulk positioned by the door.

After a few moments of silence, Neil addressed Bulk without moving. "I'm probably going to pass out now. Mind waking me up an hour before your shift ends?"

Given his current situation, Bulk's response was short, to the point, and as reassuring as possible. "Can do Neil."

With his impromptu alarm set, Neil closed his eyes. Even with the daylight streaming through his windows to brighten up his room, it didn't take long for him to pass into the realm of sleep.

~~~

... Only for something hard and vaguely hoof shaped to press into his shoulder and shake him lightly. "...il. Neil? Are you awake?"

Neil's first impulse was to tell off the person trying to wake him, but as his mouth rushed in before his brain could think, his articulate response was muffled. Something was clamping down against his muzzle, preventing him from speaking. His eyes shot open- Only to see his own fur.

Sometime during his sleep, his body took the initiative and curled itself into its preferred sleeping position like a dog. His muzzle was lodged between his body and one of his rear legs. He exhaled forcefully through his nose, venting his alarm again for waking up in a panicked manner.

"'M up." Neil told the pony, whose voice sounded like Bulk's, before removing his snout from the crevice it found in his sleep. He ignored the smell of stale sweat and dust that had marinated into his muzzle's fur as he craned his head towards the voice. A set of golden armour shimmering in the light of an evening sun met his gaze, forcing his eyes to blink before he focused on the pony encased in the armour, Bulk.

Bulk must have noticed since he stepped to the side and removed himself from the direct beam of sunlight. "It's a touch earlier than you wanted to be woken up, but I figured you might wanna eat before we go out drinkin'."

At the mention of food, Neil's stomach let loose its opinion with a commanding rumble, answering for the half-asleep Alicorn. In fact, now that he thought about it, he skipped lunch entirely. Whether it passed while he and Bulk were in the waiting room or Rainbow worked him through it, he couldn't recall.

But, he hadn't eaten since breakfast this morning, and right next to Bulk was the movable table with a huge sky-blue salad bowl sitting on it.

Neil still couldn't wrap his head around the concept of Alicorn-sized meals. Sure, an Alicorn was slightly larger than the average pony, but not to an insane degree. But, thinking about the sheer volume Celestia put away that first night? The image of Celestia as the Ghostbuster marshmallow monster strolled through his head, and he couldn't help but snicker.

Of course, the thought of marshmallows triggered another, lesser response from his stomach, drawing him back to the food. Sitting up, there were a few noticeable snaps and aches throughout his body. But less than he was expecting compared to earlier that day. That might have veered his mind towards another improbable tangent, that Rainbow could be right about his recovery, if not for the sight of his dinner.

Salad bowl was proven to be an apt description since his expertly cooked meal for tonight wasn't cooked at all. Large leaves of lettuce and a few other sliced vegetables topped with croutons and shredded cheese greeted him. Despite the quality, he couldn't help but feel a little disappointed at yet another salad.

"No worries. Gives me more time to get ready I guess." He offered as he shuffled across the bed towards his meal.

Bulk simply nodded, then turned to go back to his post. "Call me when you leave the shower; I'll do up your mane again."

Neil nodded in return automatically, despite his muzzle already being buried in his evening meal.

Now that his stomach's demands were being met, his mind drifted back to his body. He experimented lightly, shifting this way and that to bend his spine or stretch a leg. He noted the general soreness still in his limbs and then compared that to the pain he remembered earlier that day. There was a noticeable improvement, far more than he was really expecting...

Was Rainbow right? Would he be perfectly fine for more training tomorrow? He spent about five minutes contemplating the benefits of rapid recovery and the cons of seeing Drill Sergeant Dash with her smug smirk.

The audacity that any pony felt they could look threatening, given their overall adorable features. He couldn't help but snort as he shovelled another mouthful of salad with his fork...

It took a full second before his mind clicked that he was, indeed, somehow using a fork. With his wing. Just like he would a normal hand, even considering the odd angle his new limb was stretched at. Now that he was conscious about his wing, the two primary feathers holding the fork twitched and dropped the silverware into his half-finished salad. As if they were caught and throwing away the evidence.

Intrigued by his newfound ability, Neil abandoned the fork to its fate. He turned his attention to something bigger and a little easier to manipulate, if a bit more precarious. The glass of water off to the side was the perfect size to experiment with. Neil slowly extended his wings, then flexed the various muscles that interacted with his feathers.

They shifted precisely as they should have- if he was flying. Not a single feather curved as if it was a finger, though.

Was he overthinking it? He didn't have to consciously think about every little twitch of a finger or twist of the wrist. And his own wings just acted like hands without conscious thought. An odd idea struck him. Rainbow made it clear he needed the desire to fly to actually fly. That, or the desire not to fall and die at the very least. What if he desired to pick something up?

So he closed his eyes and focused on the placement of the glass. Just the distance between him, the drink, and the simple desire to pick it up. He did his best to exclude everything else but still suffered from the occasional distraction when his wing twitched. Time passed, and nothing significant happened... until he felt his fingers wrap around the cooled glass.

Shocked, he opened his eyes only to see his wing extended and his longest primary feathers wrapped around the drink. How his success came about didn't matter at the moment. The sudden endorphin rush of pride swelled up within him. He wasn't completely helpless or invalid by pony standards.

He also didn't need to pick things up with his mouth anymore! Of course, it would take some fine-tuning, but it could be done.

He immediately willed his wing to lift the glass, only for his rush to lessen as the wing did not comply with his order. In fact, that may have been the wrong thing to do, as a few feathers started to straighten out and lose their grip. Closing his eyes, he focused once more on what he wanted and desired: to take a simple sip of water.

The sensation of glass against his feathers, or fingers as he thought of them, never left. But soon enough, a cool touch against his lips brought him out of his intense focus. So close and yet so far as his wing held itself steady as if waiting for something. Going all in with a shrug, Neil parted his lips as usual for a drink, and as if it was an automatic reaction, his wing finished its task. Tipping the glass far enough for a small sip.

Desire, without thinking. A novel concept that would make his time here much more manageable. In a way, it reminded him of typing, having your fingers dance across the keyboard with both speed and accuracy, without thought. He was never good at that, so he was going to practice with this new ability of his nice and slowly, beginning with his fork.

It was an easy enough task, munching on his salad until the handle was uncovered. After that, he kept his eyes open to watch this time as he desired to pick up the fork and use it for the rest of his meal. Amazingly, he watched as his wing extended on its own, far enough for his feathers to reach the utensil and pick it up. He felt both the metal and the vinaigrette dressing on his feathers. It was one of the weirdest things he'd ever done.

'Was this how Doc Ock felt? And now I'm comparing myself to a fictional villain. Great.' At least his wings didn't have a corrupt A.I. brain to alter his mind, right? With those types of thoughts and his newfound skill, Neil slowly finished his dinner before checking the clock.

He still had an hour and twenty minutes before Bulk retired for the night and switched with the two lunar guards that patrolled around his door. There was plenty of time to wash the sweat and grime of his training and the salad vinaigrette away.

Hopping off his bed, Neil did just that. It was a strangely invigorating experience, with the hot water leeching away even more muscle soreness and his newly regained abilities to do basic hygiene tasks. He even managed to wash his hair and tail independently after picking out the least feminine scent from the various bottles.

In fact, out of the fourty-ish minutes he spent in there, over half of his time was used up by brushing. His coat ended up good enough by his standards. A single pass from spine to belly was all he needed to do, then adjust his wing a few inches over and repeat.

But his hair and his tail? Those were two annoying beasts to tame since he didn't have Bulk's finesse. He managed to untangle roughly half of the knots in his hair. The other half felt like they were accidentally ripped out at the end of his ordeal. But he managed all the same.

Now that he was looking at himself in the mirror with his damp hair straightened out, Neil couldn't help but feel like he was looking at a cross between an 80s hair band and an emo singer. His monochrome colours leaned into the style, though it wasn't his preference. Still, it was better than doing nothing as he spun around and exited into his hospital room.

A quick look at the clock told Neil he still had half an hour to go as he crossed the room. Bulk wanted to know when he was ready to go, so he might as well keep his guard informed. But first, he used his new replacement hands to properly cloth himself with his cloak. Placing it on his back was a breeze, though the clasp was still fiddly.

He had to bite down on the metal to hold it still while his left wing struggled to properly latch the clip. He knew Bulk could do it, and eventually, he persevered with a satisfying, metallic click.

Unfortunately, when he pushed the door to the hallway open, things didn't go as expected.

Bulk turned his head at the sound of the door opening and gave him a quick look over. Before Neil could say anything, he offered a firm "Nope." Neil was then corralled back into the bathroom, where Bulk touched up his mane.

The pegasus only used the same brush that Neil did, but somehow, instead of lying flat to his neck, looking plastered on, his hair came out looking more elegant and with far more volume, as if a tiny pillow was hidden underneath. In the middle of his repairs, Bulk was also kind enough to comment positively about Neil's attempt. But overall, it felt like a compliment made out of pity.

He could not deny that Bulk's styling looked far better than his own attempt.

So, with less than ten minutes to go, Neil joined Bulk in the hallway and sat down. The wait was tedious but manageable, given his recent experience sitting in storage crates all day. Before long, a bat pony mare with golden brown eyes, or thestral as they were properly called, came around the corner on his left and into view. Followed by a second, then a third, and finally a fourth.

Typically, only two lunar guards would replace Bulk for the night, so having double the amount of guards sent up a few red flags in his mind. Looking to his right, Bulk took it in stride as the lead thestral quickened the pace of her approach and broke off from the group.

"As the Sun sets to rest, the Moon rises to continue our everlasting vigil," The mare offered in a perfectly posh Canterlot accent once she faced Bulk.

And to Neil's surprise, Bulk matched it, "May your vigil be forever peaceful," Then finished with a salute.

When the mare returned the gesture, Bulk visibly relaxed his stance, and as if a switch were flipped, his entire demeanour became more casual as he turned to Neil. "Well, we're free and clear. I'll drop my armor off, then we'll head to the bar." He turned to leave, only looking back long enough to make sure Neil followed.

Neil quickly fell in behind the pegasus, though after his first step, all four thestrals fell into a protective detail around him with two guards on each side. He might have been taller than all four of his new guards, but their formation gave him the feeling of being walled in. Two of the mares were far enough to the front that their heads were aligned with his own. A quick look at the other two revealed they were only half a foot behind the front two mares and flanking his... well, flanks.

As they walked, he couldn't look back to see what the back two mares were doing without making it obvious. But the front two mares? He kept an eye on them while Bulk led the way. By the time they exited the infirmary wing of the castle, he caught the guard on his right looking at Bulk's rump twice. He could only imagine how many innocent glances he would have earned without his cloak.

Instead of heading towards the main castle, Bulk turned towards one of the stone buildings fused into the perimeter wall. The square front face was comprised of medium-dark purple stone. As far as Neil could see, there weren't any windows on the ground floor. The only way in or out was a broad, white marble stairway leading to a single set of wooden double doors.

A pair of lunar guards stood at attention on either side of the stairway. The next floor had four slim windows as far as Neil could see, but they were too thin to allow a pony to squeeze through.

Above the second floor, also melded into the wall, was a small, stubby-looking, turret-styled watchtower. If not for the fact that Bulk led them directly towards the building, Neil might have missed the three lunar guards decked in purple armour amongst the ramparts.

Why would the barracks be stationed outside, away from the main throne room? Neil thought keeping the garrison as close to royalty as possible made the most sense. But the ponies felt otherwise, apparently? And five guards for a single entrance? That felt excessive.

Bulk didn't seem to care about that as he walked up the stairs and pushed through the thick wooden doors. After a cautious look at both guards flanking the stairs, Neil followed. If he wasn't allowed in, then at least one of the nine guards surrounding him would stop him, right? None of the guards made a move to do so.

If anything, the mare on his right perked up a little as the group passed through the doors and into the castle barracks.

Why, though, Neil couldn't tell as the inside hallway felt the most... barren of all the castle interiors he'd seen so far. With only a few torches anchored to the wall that burned brightly, along with a single expansive golden tapestry that had the garrison unit's emblem stitched into it.

There were no other decorations, leaving much of the old and chipped stone walls bare. In fact, the only smoothed stonework on the inside was the floor itself, and Neil suspected that was only due to centuries of use.

Neil didn't have long to contemplate the sparse decor before a single, sturdy-looking oak door appeared. It had a simple brass door handle and a golden plate in the center. Soon after, a second and a third door appeared, revealing a decent-sized grouping down this particular hallway. As Neil passed the first door, he noted the name Lt. Heavy Metal etched into the plate with unified cursive.

Neil's best guess identified this area as the officer's quarters since only one name was etched into each plate. Either way, Bulk walked right on by. After the cluster of doors, the hallway returned to its blank, rough-cut stone walls, with only the odd torch to keep things adequately lit.

A minute later, another set of double doors appeared, with a torch on each side and a sign above it that stated in thick unified script, Cafeteria. No need to guess what that was for as they passed by. Muffled conversations interspersed with booming laughter came from behind the door, hinting at where most off-duty guards went after shift change.

It was another minute or so before they ran into another much more extensive cluster of doors that were a little more spread apart than the officer's quarters. As Neil passed the first one, he noted the change in writing, as the golden sign was etched with the earth pony rune for the letter 'A'. The next door was a 'B', and so on.

Bulk slowed as the door labelled 'H' came up and turned long enough to say, "I'll just be a few," Before disappearing behind the door. Leaving Neil alone with four lunar guardsmares in an empty hallway.

Neil opted to sit and wait since his legs still felt worn from earlier. None of the guards saw fit to copy his action, leaving him surrounded by mares that were thankfully still below head height even in his new position. But a certain amount of awkwardness crept into the following silence, which was only made worse by the two random ponies that walked by.

The first was an older, rusty red earth pony. He walked by as if a small guard detail taking up most of the hallway was a regular, everyday occurrence. But as he did so, he looked Neil in the eye with a raised eyebrow, almost as if he was questioning whether or not Neil could handle his current company.

The second was a pumpkin orange unicorn with a jaunty gait, lost in a melodious hum. The unicorn gave Neil the impression of a pony that swung for the same team, though he didn't know the proper pony term. When the stallion looked where he was going, he blushed at the large group he nearly ran into and quickly trotted past, presumably to the cafeteria.

Thankfully, it wasn't long after that when the door opened to reveal... Bulk? The stallion coming out of the room was a pegasus, and he was also the right height and build to be Bulk. But the pegasus' pinewood-coloured coat and his short, curly, dark brown hair were entirely wrong.

His surprise must have been evident since the pegasus just smiled. "The white's part of the uniform, just like gray is part of the Lunar guard." He said, sounding precisely like Bulk while gesturing towards Neil's current guard detail.

Neil knew that, at the very least. It was impractical and unethical to think about the kind of hiring practice that required only white or gray coated applicants. But he assumed that a guard had to dye themselves the proper colour. Now that he knew it wasn't the case, his mind immediately jumped to solve it. Was it some sort of mini perception ward, but tied directly to the armour?

He shook his head before he dug too deep into those thoughts. Now wasn't the time for speculation. "Well, you're ready. And I'm definitely ready to get wasted. Let's hit the fucking bar already, eh?"

Bulk nodded in agreement as the stallion exited his room and walked by the group to take his place as the lead once more.

Neil quickly followed but couldn't help but notice Bulk's emblem as he strolled by. In reality, ponies called them cutie marks, but Neil couldn't get past how juvenile that made them sound. Either way, emblems tended to match the pony's name. How or why that happened, he couldn't figure out. Donut Joe, for example, had a donut. Simple.

Bulk Order's emblem was strangely fitting since it was a simple wooden crate with the top popped off. The sharp end of a spear and the plumage crest of a pony helmet were also poking out of the opening.

It gave him something new to think about as they exited the barracks. His list of ponies with names and an emblem tied to them was small, but he worked with what he had. Parsing the information behind the name and the picture stamped to their butt as a sign of destiny.

Donut Joe was easy. His name was Donut, his mark was a donut, and on top of everything else, he made donuts in a donut shop.

Bulk was also easy to guess since Celestia mentioned his specialty in logistics. He probably dealt with shipping supplies and arms in and out of Canterlot before taking up his current position.

Celestia wasn't so cut and dry. Yes, her name likely alluded to celestial bodies like the sun. And yes, her emblem was of the sun itself. But was it just the sun she could control? History books referenced her control of the moon as well multiple times. And, if she could move both at once, what about the other celestial bodies? The stars? The very planet he was on, at that very moment?

He shivered. At least the other princess only had access to the moon, apparently. Though given Nightmare Moon's desire to tidally lock the sun and moon, it only limited her potential to kill off all life on the planet. Or she could just slam the moon into the planet like a toddler smashing building blocks together.

He shoved that cheerful thought out of his mind as they approached the main gate.

At least, he thought it was the main gate? His perspective from the Canterlot market district only allowed him to see the top half of the castle walls. The horseshoe-shaped gate they were currently approaching definitely did not reach that far up the wall. In fact, it was only a quarter of the height by his guesstimate. A third of the wall, at most, if he was generous and added the pointed gatehouse roofs into the equation.

Whether it was or not, Neil managed to pass through the gate and the six guards that stood watch without hassle. As they crossed the drawbridge, a small thought managed to worm its way to the forefront of his mind.

Maybe, if he was hopeful, he was allowed to exit the castle whenever he wanted? But, it was quickly squashed because he would still be surrounded by guards. That had to be the only reason he was allowed to leave, with the expectation of returning later.

After the drawbridge and moat sat a small nature park that only took five-ish minutes to pass through. It held a pleasant tranquillity that reminded him of the other park he frequented over the weeks. But this one had plenty of naturally running water instead of just a simple fountain feature.

And then, as if hitting a brick wall, they transitioned into the upper shelf of Canterlot. The area was reserved for the highest tier of nobility and the rich, alongside designer shops and custom boutiques, if the fragments he heard from the market were correct.

At that very moment, they were entering a high-end neighbourhood with what could only be described as miniature mansions. Each building was three or four floors high and walled off with tall perimeter fencing.

Some of those walls were topped with decorative bars, and a couple were low enough for him to peek over. Allowing him to see immaculately trimmed lawns and bushes. Nothing looked out of place, no matter how gaudy of a decoration. Even the cobblestone roads they were walking along looked premium compared to the streets of the lower shelf he lived on. It felt... wrong, in a manner he couldn't place at all.

And then there were the groups of ponies since the rich only seemed to travel in groups at this time of the day. All the mares wore fancy night dresses and gowns, usually topped with jewellery he couldn't even dream of affording back home. The stallions, what few were out then, wore full tuxedos (at least, full for ponies) and tophats.

Most of the groups stared. Whether they thought Neil might be important or a criminal under guard, he couldn't even fathom. But they usually gave a wide berth, except for the more snobbish ponies that turned up their noses with a prim and proper 'hmph!' in contempt.

Not that Neil cared.

After his fascination with the architecture wore off, he focused more on the guards surrounding him. Or, to be more specific, their reactions to the nobles. Which amounted to nothing in the end.

Bulk took notice, though, and sped up a little. It took the group about ten minutes at his increased pace to move out of that wealthy neighbourhood and abruptly halt in front of... A tall, wide church-like building with a bell tower? It had simple wood siding painted white, and from what he could see, two large arched windows on the front of the building that were... blacked out?

At the base of the steeple, but above the front doors, hung a rather large sign with two stylized brass bells mid-swing carved into the painted wood. Underneath that, written in golden unified cursive with a black outline, the sign read The Brass Bells.

Neil couldn't help but groan.

Bulk either didn't notice or care as he waved Neil towards the front door. "This here's the only bar in Canterlot exclusive to guard stallions and whoever they bring along."

Neil reluctantly followed though he noticed his guard detail coming to a halt five feet from the door. Confused, Neil stopped and looked at the guards, then at Bulk.

"The odd mare gets invited in from time to time, but normally it's guard stallions only." Bulk explained before opening the door. Muted bass thumps usually reserved for dance clubs flared out from the door. He waved for Neil to enter a second time.

This time, Neil didn't stop. As he crossed the threshold, he couldn't help but look back and notice two of the lunar guards taking up a position flanking the stairs. The other two took off into the night sky and out of sight, their destination unknown.

The inside of the building didn't feel like a bar. It was warm and inviting with its assortment of rich, varnished redwood accents and painted yellow walls. Along the right wall was a large wooden bench made of the same redwood and a polished wood counter to his left. Behind the counter sat a single forest green stallion with a book floating in his purple aura.

He had just enough time to put his book down before the front door closed, and Bulk walked up to the counter. "Private Bulk Order signin' in with a plus one."

"So good to see you again, Private, and your plus one is... Ne-il, was it?" He asked, without any hint of surprise.

Which meant the stallion was in the know for some bullshit reason. "Close enough." Was all Neil offered, as the green unicorn wrote both names down in what he guessed to be a visitor log book.

The stallion quickly finished with a flourish of his quill, then closed the book. "Very well. I hope you both have a wonderful night and please drink responsibly."

'Not if I have any say in the matter,' Was all Neil could think before the stallion's purple aura enveloped the door leading into the bar and opened it. Allowing the dance music at full volume to flow over Neil's ears without overwhelming him. It was definitely club music, but at sports bar levels instead of being set to migraine-inducing.

Neil could live with that as he closely followed Bulk into the business proper. The first thing that caught his eye was the odd C-shaped layout.

The right side was set up as a restaurant, with about ten tables that he could see and likely more that he couldn't. A few were occupied by ponies eating and chatting despite the music volume. And at least one server was walking around, wearing a frilly uniform similar to the castle staff.

The left side was more like a club, with most of the space dedicated to a large, empty, square dance floor. However, the closest corner of the dance floor had been replaced with a hole sunk into the floor, with what looked like plush pleather-like seating circling the entire area. Both walls were lined with semi-private booths, except for two doors between some of the booths on the far wall.

In the center, less than fifteen feet from the door sat an excellently crafted fourty feet wide bar that could have been ripped straight out of an English pub. Two ponies stood behind the bar. One was a cyan pegasus stallion who wore a simple tuxedo collar.

The second was a peach-coloured mare with light grey hair and a tail wearing a barmaid's uniform. Behind them, the entire wall was covered in shelves and bottles. The only exception was a single door leading into the storage area, or so Neil presumed.

In fact, Neil took a few steps into the club section of the bar to confirm the storage area ran all the way to the back wall. He also caught sight of two separate stages. A small triangular one with a single microphone stand. The second one was raised near the roof and sunk into the storage area.

The D.J., a white pony with blue hair seemed to be jamming to their music, oblivious to the lack of dancers.

Now that he thought about it, it wouldn't surprise him if the kitchens were also set up in the storage area. Either way, he slowly returned to Bulk, who was now sitting at the bar and conversing with the pegasus.

Which left Neil with the mare as he approached. "Welcome to the Brass Bells! I'm Mousey Poise; what can I get you today?"

"I'm not sure, exactly," Was all he could say as he scanned over the shelves. He wasn't expecting to see a brand he would recognize. But he at least expected something with a similarly named horse pun?

Unfortunately, their liquor seemed exempt from that cursed aspect of the world. "What's the strongest drink you have?"

"Our strongest?" She questioned before diving behind the counter. Seconds later, she popped back up with the tip of a menu booklet held in her hoof. She placed the book on the counter and quickly shifted through it until she found the drink she sought.

"Well, our iced fireball is really popular at the moment. That's got a nice, spicy kick to warm you up even with all the crushed ice." She offered, pushing the menu to him.

The picture reminded him of all the times he went to 7-Eleven after school just to cool off with a slurpee. Except the dark red, fruit-punch flavoured slush was poured into a large-looking glass instead of a plastic cup. But a drink to get wasted on? Neil was sure he'd suffer from brain freeze before any sort of buzz set in. His opinion only solidified as he looked at the ingredients list.

One ounce of spiced dragon-breath, whatever that was, for a sixty-ounce, pitcher-sized glass?

"That's not exactly what I'm looking for," He told her as he clumsily flipped through the menu with his hooves. Every drink he came across was a fruity cocktail of one sort or another, and all of them were stingy on the alcohol. Or held no alcohol at all, judging by the apple cider he stumbled upon. Eventually, he gave up and flipped the menu closed as his hidden wings ruffled in agitation under his cloak.

"Do you have any drinks that aren't mixed? Even if they're just whisky or vodka shots."

"I've never heard of whisky or vodka before, Sir," She told him apologetically before he picked up a hint of confused trepidation. "But it sounds like you want something to drink from the mare's menu?"

Neil felt a solid urge to slam his head into the bar but restrained himself. It wouldn't do to have his horn get stuck in the wooden countertop or, worse, break. "I would like to look over those drinks, Please," He offered, exasperated that even drink menus were separated by gender.

She reclaimed the stallion's menu, then ducked under the bar again. When she came back up, she held another booklet in her hoof. It was noticeably less thick and had a light amount of dust on the cover. She quickly placed it down in front of him.

"There you go Sir. I, um, also couldn't help but notice some trouble with your hooves and horn. Are your wings also hurt? If so, I could page through the menu if you want me to?"

Neil paused for a moment after being called out in such a casual manner. The greeter might have been a coincidence, but the bartender as well? "Does the entire bar know about me?"

"Yep!" She answered casually before catching his less-than-impressed look and explaining in detail. "We received a royal missive a few hours ago, which was quite a shock to the staff, let me tell you. A new, male Alicorn? Oh, I can't wait to see how some of the uppity mares around town react.

But, don't worry, we're all retired guards or under NDA, so your secret's safe with us." Once she finished explaining, she flipped over the cover to a list of thirty-some drinks to peruse.

A quick look over confirmed that he didn't recognize any of them. "Let's look at this one," He offered, as his hoof pointed to one of the first ones labelled Applejacked.

As she flipped the pages, his thoughts were elsewhere. How many more ponies was Celestia going to tell? Or was this a subtle hint that wherever he went, Celestia would forewarn all the ponies about the new Alicorn?

He had little time to think before Mousey flipped to the proper page. Unlike the other menu, which had a single cocktail per page, this one showcased the barrel-like bottle of liquor in the top half, then listed the drinks available on the bottom half of the page.

The applejacked page listed the details for five separate, proper-looking drinks. The old-fashioned, jack rose, appleshine, and applejack-rabbit were served in normal-sized glasses. Applejacked shots were also listed at the bottom of the page.

"I'll start with that one," Neil told her, pointing at the appleshine. It was a half-and-half mix with a drink called moon shine and a touch of lime juice. Whether or not it was the same moonshine as Earth, he didn't know, but he was about to find out.

Mousey flipped the menu closed and put it back under the bar. "I'll have your appleshine ready for you in just a minute," She turned around and disappeared into the back.

"Finally found somethin' you like?" Bulk asked, drawing Neil's attention away from the door slowly closing.

"Yeah, something called an appleshine," He told the pegasus before noticing the large, orange drink in front of Bulk. "What did you get?"

"A Manehatten Skyline, it's one'a my favourites from home." He explained, just before wrapping the drink in his wing and taking a big gulp from the brightly coloured straw. "How about we go find some seats while we wait for yours to finish?"

This was Bulk's home turf, so Neil just shrugged and nodded as he went along. The pegasus headed into the louder club portion of the bar instead of the restaurant side, which Neil thought Bulk would have preferred. Soon after, a wing shot out from the seventh booth away from the main entrance and started waving excitedly.

An exuberant voice followed the wing, calling above the music, which caught Neil's and Bulk's attention. "Hey Bulk, what'cha doing here tonight?"

Bulk immediately altered his course, heading towards the booth with a smile. "Showin' a friend the best place to order drinks that ain't in Manehatten. How about you two?"

The scarlet pegasus with a sky-blue mane and orange eyes was easy to spot since he was waving his wing like a maniac to get their attention. But as they got closer, the second pony Bulk alluded to came into view. He was a river blue unicorn stallion with a grey mane just a little darker than Neil's fur and green eyes.

He was resting against the red pegasus with a serene-looking smile. The calm yin, to the energetic pegasus' yang. Or more, if the close physical contact meant anything significant.

"Oh, you know us. We're either enjoying a quiet night drinking here or having a rowdy night of free drinks at Star Light's." The pegasus answered with a smooth tenor.

"You get free drinks, Brother, by teasing all the mares." The second stallion chimed in, sounding almost exactly the same, "I pay for mine at the very least."

The pegasus looked aghast at the mere idea of passing up free drinks. "But, freeeeee!"

By that time, Neil and Bulk made it to the table. "Squall Rider, Calm Water, you likely already heard about my new charge Neil," Bulk offered, waving his free wing close to Neil's chest. "Neil, these two are the most dependable pair of pansies I've had the pleasure to work with," He finished by gesturing to the open side of the booth, offering to get in.

"So you're the new Alicorn twisting the Captain's tail?" Calm Water asked as Neil slid into the booth a little clumsily, finally ending up at the back apex of the curve. Bulk quickly slipped in afterwards, inadvertently locking him in while setting his drink on the table.

"You know it's not that, Calm. The Captain was antsy before Neil showed up." Squall paused to take a sip from a similar-looking drink as Bulk's, though half finished before he snorted loud enough to be heard over the music. "I bet she hasn't had a good bucking since her promotion!"

"Squall! She's the Captain, for Celestia's sake," Calm said, pushing off his brother and settling an equal distance between Neil and his brother. "With everything that happened over the last year, Captain Armor's elevation, and now the new Alicorn, I'm sure she's just dreading when, not if, the next horseshoe is going to drop." His point finished, the unicorn took a small sip from his clear margarita-looking drink.

"If the next horseshoe is going to drop," Squall countered, shifting a few inches into the booth. "We've had enough excitement for the next century or two. What do you think Bulk?"

"I worry one day at a time," Bulk brushed the question aside before taking a large gulp of his drink. "Don't need to waste my focus on some new Tirek or Eris poppin' outta shadows someday."

Even without Bulk's introduction, it was clear that the three ponies knew each other quite well. Had they worked together before he was captured? And who was Tirek? Something niggled at the back of his mind as if he'd heard it once or twice throughout his time as a pony, but he couldn't remember why.

"Nope, you just have to worry about the first stallion that's bigger than you for once!" Squall jeered playfully, ending with a tipsy giggle before looking at Neil. "And speaking of the newest big boy of Canterlot, what's your story?"

"My story?" Neil asked, confused. What story was he digging for, specifically? His life story? That was long, personal, and something he would never tell a pony. Or was he asking for something else? "What do you mean by that?"

"Y'know, your story. How you ascended." He explained, lazily waving a hoof at Neil's hidden wings. "Celestia's student recently earned her wings by discovering a new type of magic, so how did you do it?"

"Not that you need to tell us," Calm butted in while looking at Neil. "If you don't wish to. My brother is just being nosy."

Squall didn't seem to mind as he bounced against his brother again, leaning into the unicorn's side. "How else are we supposed to learn about the new guy if we don't ask?"

"Sticking to small, safe topics like a normal pony?" He answered, while otherwise ignoring the red pegasus' antics.

"But that stuff's boring." After a few seconds of silence, however, Squall seemed to concede without a care in the world and looked to Neil. "Fine, you can stick to the boring stuff if you want to."

Thankfully, the play-by-play gave Neil more than enough time to decide what he was going to say. Going with the same information he gave Celestia would be good. "I went to sleep in my bed at home, where there isn't any pegasi, unicorns, or magic."

He gave a pointed look to each brother, respectively, and watched their reaction to his words. Given Squall's incredulous expression, that tidbit about him wasn't given to the guards. Calm, however, held true to his name.

"The next thing I know? I'm waking up changed in a back alley. You also mentioned a name, Tirek. Who were they?"

However, Squall wouldn't let him change the subject, "Forget Tirek for a moment! You only have Earth Ponies where you're from?"

"Yep." Was all he needed to say, as it was the truth. Earth did have regular ponies. He'd even had the good fortune to ride on one when he was nine. They just couldn't think or speak like the ponies in Equestria.

"Wierd," Was all he had to say before firing off another quick question. "But how would you get anything done without magic?"

Neil was tempted to tease a few advanced technologies, particularly ones he missed about home, but then thought better of it. The point of being here was to get wasted and forget for a while, not dredge everything he missed from home. "Technology. Now, who is Tirek?"

Calm thankfully jumped in before his brother could and answered the question. "The latest tyrant to trample through Equestria, with the help from a certain chaotic spirit. He could syphon the magic from a pony, leaving them barely alive while bolstering himself. Princess Twilight and the Elements eventually defeated him."

Siphon magic? To do that, a pony required a horn. Which meant Tirek had to be... "Another power-mad unicorn like Sombra?"

"Tirek ain't a unicorn," Bulk corrected, "He's a centaur from the Monstrous People's far to the south and a big one at that."

A centaur? Neil was just about to ask for the specifics to make sure they were talking about the same mythological creature, when Mousey Poise came into view with a large drink tray in her mouth.

"Sorry to interrupt your night, Gentlecolts," She apologized perfectly as if her mouth wasn't occupied with an object hanging precariously from it. She was still quick to place it on the table before she continued speaking, "I have an appleshine and a group-sized order of cheese toast here."

Bulk was quick to grab both off the tray with his wings. The left wrapped itself around the drink and passed it down to Neil, while his right placed the food in the center of the table. "I think that covers everything Ma'am."

She gave him a bountiful smile for his actions. "Thank you Bulk, you're always so helpful."

While that exchange was happening, Neil gave most of his attention to his new drink. Even in the room's low light, he could tell the tumbler full of liqour served to him was a clear, darker brown liquid, but that was the only thing he could discern.

The next step was to try it and see if this mare drink measured up to his expectations.

Despite everyone in the bar knowing about him, it still felt wrong as he extended his right wing from underneath his cloak and into view. But he ignored that feeling and focused on the drink he ordered. It also wasn't hard to notice the entire table watching him as his feathers wrapped around the small glass.

Even Mousey stayed to watch, her eyes shifting from him to the drink with a hint of worry. Why, though, Neil could only guess. Was she worried the drink would be too strong for him? Once the cool glass reached his lips, he took a small sip. He was immediately hit with the strong taste of apples, but harsher, with an added, simmering warmth of alcohol on his tongue, much milder than some of the drinks in his Dad's liquor cabinet.

Whatever Equestrian moon shine was, it wasn't the fabled Louisiana moonshine he'd wanted to try for years.

Or was it due to being an ali-bullshittery-corn? If this body ruined drinking as well as everything else... Well, there was only one way to find out. With a shrug, he tipped the whole glass back, swallowed- and immediately regretted the action a few seconds later, as the burning kick of spiced apple roiled back up his throat.

He somehow managed to keep hold of his glass during the ensuing coughing fit. Once he regained control of his breathing, he slowly placed the tumbler back on the table and slid it around the food platter towards Mousey. "Another appleshine, please."

Her eyes flickered one last time between himself and the glass before she placed it back on the tray. "I guess I'll be right back, Gentlestallions." She then bit down on the tray's slight overhang and turned to leave.

"You gonna be doin' shots like that all night?" Bulk asked after taking a sip of his own drink.

"I don't plan to," Neil told the pegasus truthfully, now that he knew what he was getting into. "Why?"

"Makin' sure," Bulk offered with a shrug before nabbing a slice of cheese toast. "Just in case I need to carry you back to the castle."

"You won't need to carry me back to the castle Bulk," Neil told his guard as the pegasus bit down on his snack. "That first taste was deceptively mild. Now I know better."

Before Bulk could swallow, Calm jumped in on the conversation. "Is that normal where you're from, to just down a whole drink in one go?"

"Not really... unless you're really drunk," Neil said with a chuckle, as the topic sparked a particular memory from high school. "I remember waking up one morning after a bush party with an almost empty bottle of pineapple sourpuss. Pineapple's disgusting, but Kris and Abby told me I drank the whole bottle on my own."

"Sourpuss?" Squall asked immediately, ears perked. "I haven't heard of that before."

"Yeah, I didn't recognize anything from the mare's menu either. Tell you what, stop me if you recognize any of these drinks. Vodka, whisky, tequila..." Neil listed everything he could think of off the top of his head, from brandy to grog, but they only stopped him twice for wine and champagne. Even beer passed by without a sound, leaving one last drink on the list. "... And cider, which I saw in the stallion menu."

"That's an extensive list," Calm noted as he grabbed a slice of toast with his green aura. "Have you tried them all?"

"Oh hell no," Neil answered with a slight chuckle. "We'd drink whatever we got a hold of. Cheap beer mostly, but if we were lucky, we'd get something like sourpuss or cheap vodka."

Squall lifted his glass up to that. "Any drink's a good drink if you're drunk enough, hehe!" He then lowered it back onto the table so he could latch onto the straw and take a long sip. "But if you want to drink with us full-time, you need to give up some vital intel." He stated, waggling his eyes.

Neil could only wonder what sort of vital intel he would be looking for and how it would tie in with drinking? With his curiosity piqued, he took the bait. "What would you like to know?"

"Nothing too exciting," He stated before taking another long sip. "I'm just wondering if you prefer plump, plush, or perky?"

Before Neil could even begin to wrap his head around the question Squall asked, Mousey appeared with his refill. "There you go!" She cheered as she quickly set down the tray and passed his drink as far as possible. His wing took it from her, pulling the glass closer until it was a few inches from the edge. "Should I stay until you need a refill?"

As she spoke to Neil, Squall surreptitiously gestured his head towards the mare, but Neil still couldn't figure out his meaning. Sure, plump and perky drew his mind to less-than-clean thoughts about a lady's chest. But he wouldn't say plush was an apt descriptor for boobs. That, and mares were not equipped in that regard, as he quickly looked over Mousey's extra fluffy chest. So, what else could it mean?

Once she finished speaking, he pushed that thought aside and gave Mousey a shrug. "No need; I'm going to take my time with this one."

"Okay. I'll be back in a bit. Or you Gents can just give us a wave if you need anything." She told them as she left, with a bounce in her step that Neil was pretty sure hadn't been there before.

As she turned to leave, Squall made one last, overt gesture with his wing outlining... something round.

It was at that point Bulk leaned towards Neil and quietly told him, "He's askin' about a mare's rear end."

Neil groaned. While sitting in his crates, he'd seen more than a few mares without clothing walk by an alley entrance. Once he got used to the idea that fur acted as clothing around Equestria, he hadn't given them a single thought. But that was always at a distance.

After his time in the castle, with maids, nurses, and guardsmares? Frozen memories he'd rather not see flashed unbidden into his head. Others were not so still. Even Mousey's soft-looking rump joined the mix before shifting into the largest-looking backside of them all- Celestia herself, when he was forced to walk behind her.

Instead of looking at the other stallions at the table, Neil leaned over and looked down at his drink. The perfect angle for his hoof to lightly smack into his forehead, thankfully to the right of his horn. A small part of his mind urged him to just forget the question and down the whole drink in one go. Again. But he resisted. "No comment."

"No worries Neil," Squall brushed the topic aside at first. "With the way you were looking at Mousey's chest, you're clearly a fluff stallion," He added with a girlish giggle.

At this rate, tonight was going to be a long night.

~~~

Hours later, with six more drinks down his gullet- or was it eight? Either way, Neil was feeling pretty good at the moment. His surroundings were just starting to go out of focus if he wasn't concentrating, and the familiar happy numbness finally settled into his head, silencing many of his errant, unwanted thoughts. Most of which were spawned from Squall's inappropriate topics.

After delivering their third order of cheese toast, Mousey Poise had just left. Neil vaguely recollected, wondering out loud if an alicorn could over-eat. He even mentioned the insane amount of food Celestia devoured in front of him and Bulk, shocking both Calm and Squall after Bulk reluctantly confirmed his statement. After that, Squall challenged him to see how much cheese toast he could devour.

After one and a half platters all to himself, he couldn't really say he was full. But he wasn't hungry at all. Neil downed the last half of his drink and looked around at his drinking buddies, "I think'm good. The rest of the toast is yours, but I, uh, gotta empty the tank, eh? Bulk, mind moving?"

Bulk nodded and quickly hopped out of the booth. Allowing Neil to slowly and clumsily crawl out. Once his hooves were back on solid ground, he stood a little straighter, masking his tipsyness. Unfortunately, a quick look around the club half of the bar revealed nothing that looked even remotely like a bathroom.

Bulk must have known what he was looking for and pointed directly behind Neil. "Turn left at the far end'a the bar, and go straight. Washrooms are past the door in the corner."

Neil nodded and promptly spun around slowly so he didn't make himself dizzy. He stopped just long enough at the bar to drop off his glass and request another refill from Mousey. Something she was more than happy to do, and she hopped to it right away as he continued onwards.

As he passed into the restaurant half of the bar, the volume of the music cut in half immediately, making Neil pause mid-step. He hadn't been expecting that at all. But then again, it made a weird sort of sense. Who would want loud, pounding dance music while enjoying a meal? After a few seconds he continued forward, keeping the dark wood swing door Bulk mentioned in his sights.

Once Neil pushed beyond that, he was met with a small, sparsely decorated hallway. On his right were two more swing doors, each with a sign. He was fairly sure these were the bathrooms, but he couldn't understand the signs themselves. The left door was a simple teardrop-shaped oval, while the right had two symbols. A curved 'L' that was flipped and laying on its side, with an oddly shaped 'U' to the right.

But he didn't focus on either of those signs for long. At the end of the hall was another door, and above it was a sign he immediately recognized. It was a red exit sign, which was almost exactly the same as the ones from home.

Immediately, his plan to escape popped into his head. He was alone, without guards to watch him for the first time in days. They were all at the front door, waiting for him and Bulk to leave. This was precisely the opportunity he was looking for!

... Once he finished in the bathroom, of course. His bladder was feeling quite full at the moment. In his haste, he picked the closest door to the exit and quickly took care of his business.

When he returned to the hall, Neil gave the exit door and the surrounding area a good look. As far as he could tell, there wasn't any fire alarm or any other type of alarm. There weren't any apparent locks either. It looked like a simple, if sturdy wooden door. He put his hoof against it and applied a small amount of force. The door swung out easily, without any type of latch to stop it.

Looking through the crack, it was obviously dark outside. Allowing the moon to bathe the surrounding buildings in faint moonlight. But even then, he recognized the colour of standardized cobblestone used throughout the alleys of Canterlot. He was back on his home turf, in a manner of speaking, as he slowly pushed his neck through the door.

Looking to each side, the alley was completely empty except for a few trash bins. Most importantly, there wasn't a single pony in sight. Good. He could just slip away, hunker down, and eventually escape Canterlot. The old castle where Nightmare Moon reappeared could hold some ancient, forgotten knowledge on Roam.

It was a better shot at getting home than listening to gossip, at least, or looking at a restricted list of pre-authorized books.

As he slipped out the door, and the gap expanded to allow his body through, an odd squeak emanated from... the door? The surrounding area? Neil froze, and his hackles rose. Something felt off, but he couldn't explain what, exactly.

He looked up only after a second, thorough look to the left and right. His eyes first caught sight of some loose strands of hair hanging through the metal grating of a fire escape above him. Following that, he quickly passed over the rump sitting on the metal and all the exposed parts before finally focusing on the slitted, golden brown thestral eyes looking down at him. "Do you require any assistance, Sir?"

Before he could even answer, two more silent shadows swooped over the roof of the building to join the first thestral right next to the fire escape.

Neil pounced on the first idea that came to mind and did his best to sell it. "Just, uh, taking a moment for some fresh air."

The thestral's fanged grin widened. Whether that was a good sign or a bad one, Neil couldn't tell. But the mare took just enough time to look at the hovering guards and give them a sharp nod. They immediately landed, their hooves clacking against the cobblestone flanking each side of the door. He vaguely recognized the guard on his left by her blue eyes. She was the same mare that kept stealing glances at Bulk's ass.

A few seconds later, the mare on the fire escape also swooped down. It looked like she was going to land just like the other two, loud and hard, but at the last second she halted her descent with a broad sweep of her wings. This left her hovering about a foot off the ground, at eye level. "Well? Will you join us for some cool, refreshing air this lovely night, Sir?"

Neil was caught in his own lie. Whether it was the buzz of the alcohol in his system or her knowing smirk, he also felt compelled to meet her challenge as he stepped out of the doorway and into the alley. He barely heard the faint rub of the door against its frame as his only escape fully closed behind him.

"So, you all know who I am," He said slowly, trying his best not to slur any of his words. "Who are you three?"

"You may call me Sergeant Amber Sight, Sir. May I also introduce Private Ice Fang," She gestured a hoof towards the blue-eyed pervert, then to the guard on his right with gray eyes. "And Corporal Silent Wing. Still stationed at the front door is Private Night Wish."

"Ah. Well it's good to meet you then, Amber, ladies." He offered, giving each mare a slight nod. "It's also good to have real names instead of stupid nicknames to go by. I hope I didn't, uh, interrupt anything?"

"Only another quiet, yet beautiful night given to us by our Princess," She offered before her perfect Canterlot accent slipped a little, hinting at the odd accent he heard the night he was captured. "But is not the night also full of surprises?"

Neil could only shrug since the only experiences that came to his foggy mind were bad ones during his Equestrian stay. "Only bad ones over the last few months for me."

"That is such a shame," She began, touching down lightly on the cobblestone without a sound. "But, tonight perhaps is the night to change such luck?"

"Besides getting shit-faced drunk, I don't see how I can." Neil flat-out told her, hoping she wasn't suggesting anything amorous.

"A good night drinking with a friend is always one way, yes." She offered before she held her bat-like wing straight up to the sky. "Another, I find, is to sit, relax, and enjoy the stars in the sky. That is what I was doing, before your... not unexpected escape attempt."

Neil immediately tensed at her words but didn't say anything, allowing Amber Sight to continue.

"Normally, it is the Corporal Silent wing and Private Night Wish one night," She explained, raising her right wing. She then dropped it to raise her left, "Then myself and Private Ice Fang the next. However, upon hearing of your desire to leave the castle, the Sun Princess asked for your nightly detail to be doubled."

At that point, she raised both wings together with a slight shrug. "Add to that your first reported escape attempt, and here we are, enjoying the night together, yes?"

Given the fact that his horn hasn't been bashed in so far, it wasn't his worst night spent with a guard. But he couldn't truthfully say he was enjoying that exact moment of the night. "So what happens now?"

"That is up to you, Sir. We may escort you to the front door so that you may rejoin the nightly festivities with Private Bulk Order. Or, we could remain here for however long you may wish..." Her ears perked up, and her eyes shifted slightly to look at the building behind him. "Or the Private may have become worried, to the point of looking for you."

Seconds after her statement, the back door slowly opened to reveal not Bulk's but Squall's muzzle poking out. "Well hello there, Gentlemares. I hope you don't mind if I borrow Neil for a moment?"

"If he wishes to go with you, then be our guest," She answered before looking Neil straight in the eye. "We shall remain outside until your night of festivities has finished. Until that point in time, enjoy yourself very much Sir." Neil gave her a nod, which she, in turn, gave a nod to Corporal Silent Wing and took off, with the second thestral following right after her.

This left just Ice Fang and himself in the alley, with Squall giving them both a confused look as if things weren't what he assumed they were.

Either way, Neil did not want to be left with the pervert of the thestral group and reached for the door with his wing. Squall was also quick to step aside as he entered the bar again. "So, what did you need me for?"

"Well, Bulk was starting to get a little antsy, aaaand I needed to get a refill. So I offered to help ya out," He explained before brushing up against Neil's side. As they walked down the hall, he quickly put a red wing over the Alicorn's cloak-covered shoulder.

"And it's a good thing I did. One of my bunk mates recently got with a bat pony. Don't get me wrong, their wings are exotic-looking. But those fangs? He said she nibbled him with those in allll the wrong places. And you were gonna try your luck with three at once?"

"Are you saying...? Of course you are. I wasn't going to fuck any of those mares," He told his companion vehemently while noting how the wing on his shoulder partially jerked away when he swore. "I just wanted some fresh air, and they're my guards."

"Whatever you say," Squall offered as he trotted ahead to push open the door. "Your refill showed up while you were away, and mine should be ready by now, so let's go!"

Neil shrugged and followed behind Squall at a sedate pace. If he really wanted his drink so bad, he could run ahead. Instead, the pegasus cycled between looking back and fluttering his wings impatiently as they crossed through the restaurant section.

Once at the bar, Squall quickly ran ahead to pick up his refilled drink in his wing. He also exchanged a quick word or two with Mousey that Neil couldn't hear above the music. Still, a few exaggerated brow wiggles told him Squall was probably flirting with the barmaid.

"... Anyway, now that the slowpoke made it back, we're off to enjoy our drinks." Squall finished just as Neil came up to his side.

Mousey had a few parting words of her own as they left. "And don't forget to call if you need a refill, Gents!"

However, as they crossed into the club section, Neil was reminded of something odd. "Hey Squall, what's with the second stage? Is it for karaoke night or something?"

"Karaoke?" He asked, sounding genuinely confused. "I've never heard of that before. But the small stage in the corner is for heartsongs. Y'know, if a stallion is feeling sad, lonely, or depressed and just wants to get it all out?"

A pony just singing out their emotions? That reminded him of the musical he almost suffered from a few weeks ago. "Isn't that when everyone is compelled to sing along?"

"Sometimes," Squall conceded without a care, "But those are usually big, emotional celebrations. They're pretty fun most of the time."

Fun. Sure. Only if you grew up in a world where ceding control of your body to an unknown force was normal. "And ponies go up there and do it voluntarily?"

"Yep," He answered bluntly as they neared their table.

Neil shook his head and did his best to ignore the shivers going up his spine. At least the bar was pretty much empty of patrons tonight. Otherwise, he'd have to keep a strict eye for any ponies willing to initiate one of those heartsongs. "I'd have to be stupid drunk to even think of doing that."

~~~

It might have been two or three hours later. It was so hard to keep track of time without a clock. Not that Neil would be able to tell the time without putting his muzzle right up to it. Everything was blurry. Hell, the only reason he could tell his drinking buddies apart was due to their colours. And even then, three separate pairs shared a colour out of the six.

It was very inconsiderate of the Bastards, but being the excellent drinking companion he was, he put up with it.

"I wash shaving up to learn how to fly, y'know? At leasht, one way to fly," Neil told the group as he zoomed his half-empty glass through the air in front of him with daring feats, sound effects included.

"But I thought you said no pony had wings?" The two red blobs asked, sounding far too drunk for his own good. Neil idly wondered if Mouseley was going to cut them off soon? "You can't just fly without wings!"

"Hells yesh we can!" Neil immediately countered while also putting his drink down. "Sho, let me tell you alls how to fly without flappy wings, shokay? You start with, ah... yoush have trains, right? Okay, think of a reeeeeally long train car. Like my body." He offered as he climbed onto the table. They needed to see his body clearly for the demonstration, right?

"Then put a really long, flat rectangle on each shide, but shwooped back kinda like ma wingsh," He extended both wings out from under his cloak and held them out at the... relatively correct angle, with only a little wobble. "Then have an engine on each shwoopy fake wing shucking air in and pushing it out back. Add in shome compla... complica... fanshy physhics, and wala, flight!" He decreed, pointing a hoof forward... And suddenly, he felt as light as air, given the ticklish green aura covering his belly.

"Is that the way you were learning to fly?" Calm asked, drawing Neil's attention to him and the fuzzy green and blue blur growing out of his head.

"No, it washan't. My Dad's a pilot. He flew hella... helio... Choppers. He flew choppers. Think of a shmall, bubble-like shape with a big, sharp fan coming out the top that shpins really fasht. Yeah, my Dad's a hero!" He told them all as he was tipped over, back into his seat by the fuzzy green aura that disappeared immediately.

"He took sheriously injured peo... poniesh from shmall towns to bigger shcity hoshpitals. I wanted to fly with him, sho bad. But now I can't," He admitted to himself and the others around him while a sudden, deep sadness filled his chest. He wanted the fuzzy green aura back to replace the sad.

"You've got wings now," One of the two red blurbs said, though Neil couldn't tell which one. "Why can't you fly with your Dad?"

"I can't get home. And if I did?" He asked, more to himself as his vision became even blurrier and warm all of a sudden. "The govort... Governen... Libs or Cons will call me a fucking freak and cutsh me up into teeny tiny piecesh, jusht to shee how I work!"

The next thing he knew, he was lying on the table. But he couldn't understand how or why. Just that he almost tipped his drink over... Or maybe he did. His face and chin were feeling pretty damp.

Something pressed against his shoulder, and he was sure it was one of the Bulks since it was a tan hoof. It felt... comforting? But it wasn't enough. "I jusht wanna go home. But no, I get locked up inna cashtle inshtead."

He also didn't want to feel like this anymore. Drinking helped fix emotions, right? Or was it drinking that made him like this? He couldn't remember, but he felt his wing fumbling around the table until it found the glass near his head. Encasing the entire glass with his whole wing, he carefully brought it to his lips and found it empty.

He set the glass down with a drunken moan of despair and looked to the tan blobs, "Refill Pleashe."

One of the Bulks took the glass but set it aside in the blurriness beyond his vision. "Neil, I'm thinkin' you've had a mite too much as it is tonight."

He was immediately reminded of Abby. She always told him when he drank too much, and she was usually right. But then she moved out of town to university. And there was no way in hell she could see him here. Not that he wanted her to see him as a freak of nature. Those blurry thoughts increased the sad feeling in his chest. But if he couldn't drink it away, then what?

And then it hit him. The stage. Squall said he could use that to get rid of the sadness. And if he was the one singing, he couldn't be sucked in to sing along, now, could he? It was a perfect idea, as he turned to the Reds. "Shinging helpsh, you shaid?"

"It does," They both said. "Sounds like you could use it too, Bud."

"Then I'm gonna shing," Neil declared, putting one, then both of his front hooves onto the table. For a moment, he contemplated climbing over the table. It would be the easiest way to get out of the booth without making anyone else move for him. But then he saw both Bulks slide out for him, giving him enough room to stumble and slip out of the closed-in seating.

Once free, he took a good, long look around the empty club. He vaguely recognized the bar, with its blurry, multicoloured bottles, and the main stage, with its flashing club lights. But he couldn't pick out the smaller stage from the otherwise hazy background. Going off his fuzzy inner-compass, he chose a direction and started going.

"Hold on, I got this Bulk," Squall said from behind him, and the next moment, one of the reds was pressing into his side. Diverting him more to the right, towards another corner. It was that corner! Not the other one. Stupid memory.

With one of the Squalls guiding him, it didn't take long to get to the stage while avoiding the comfy-looking giant hole in the ground. Why anyone would put something like that near a dance floor, Neil would never know.

But, that wasn't important, as he was now climbing onto the stage. For some reason, Squall stayed off the stage, and he was now joined by the other red blob. Odd, Neil didn't remember being guided by both of them. But he was on the stage, ready to remove the sadness choking him!

He stumbled towards the microphone as the overwhelming beat of the club started to fade away. Neil paused and looked to the main stage. Were the D.J.s staring at him? He couldn't really tell at this distance. Was it a good thing if they were? He didn't know, but he was so close to his goal that it didn't really matter one way or the other.

Once he reached the all-powerful artifact, he planted his butt on the stage for some much-needed stability. It wouldn't do to fall in the middle of his song, now, would it?.. After a few seconds, he lazily blinked and looked at the only multicoloured booth. Shouldn't he have started by now? Or was something wrong?

There probably was. He wasn't a real pony, after all. You probably needed a proper pony soul to start one of their stupid songs. But no, he was just a foolish human lost in another world... He needed a drink.

That was the only way he knew how to get rid of his emotions. The better, human way! Instead of whatever he was doing up here. He suddenly didn't want to be there, didn't want to be in Canterlot or Equestria at all. He wanted to be home but couldn't, bringing another resurgence of sadness and despair to overwhelm his strained emotions...

And then he heard it. A slow, mournful-sounding string. He had no hope of placing the instrument in his current state, but the second instrument sounded like a synth piano, adding a hint of hope to the otherwise depressing rhythm. As more instruments joined and the volume grew a sudden clarity came over Neil's mind. Words and thoughts strangely formed in his mind, giving him a direction to take if only he was willing to do so.

That was the whole reason he was up here, right? The moment he accepted, a second, more mellow-sounding string instrument joined along as he felt something take over.

~
When I fall asleep, I see it in my dreams,
The answer of it all.
~

Words were coming out of his mouth, but he wasn't the one in control. It would have been terrifying if not for the knowledge that these were his words and that this was his song, straight from his emotional core.

~
Just blend into the crowd, but I'm compelled to stand out,
And answer to the call.
But everything is changing, the winds that I've been chasing, got me suffocating,
To live up to the name.
But what did I get into? I can't seem to break through, playing by the old rules,
But you changed the game.

There's so much I can prove.
And I don't wanna lose!
~

With a deep thrum, drums finally joined the medley. Triggering an increase in speed and excitement from the accompanying instruments, as well as Neil, who was singing.

~
All the songs have been sung, but I don't hear a sound.
All the noise is the same.
All the air in my lungs, I'll finally let it out.
Let the wind show the way; the wind will show the way.
~

Seconds passed as the uplifting feeling from the previous chorus bled away. The song scaling back down to its more depressed base, except for the added deep, ominous rumbling from the drums.

~
Lying wide awake, everything is changed,
A stranger in my skin.
Broken from my past, fallen from my path,
A poison deep within.
But what if it all breaks down, struggling for air now, need to find a way out,
Fighting through the pain.
But what did I get into? I can't seem to break through, playing by the old rules,
But you changed the gaaame~
~

For a second, the instruments cut out entirely. Giving a slight glimmer that the song might have finished, only for Neil to continue singing alone.

~
There's so much I can prove.
And I don't wanna looose~
~

As if they were summoned by Neil himself, the more uplifting string of instruments came back with force.

~
All the songs have been sung, but I don't hear a sound.
All the noise is the same.
All the air in my lungs, I'll finally let it out.
Let the wind show the way; the wind will show the way.

Oh-oh-oh-oh,
The wind will show the way,
Oh-oh-oh-oh.

The bridge might burn down,
But my spirit won't burn out...
~

As the final word faded from his lips, so did all the instruments in the background. Whatever took hold of Neil released him from its fluttering wiles while leaving him just a few seconds of pristine clarity. Two whole seconds, which he used to look at the booth where Bulk and Calm were seated and gauge their reactions.

From what little he could glean, Bulk was watching him intently, though he couldn't guess why. As for Calm, the unicorn was holding a piece of cloth or a napkin in his aura, and he was using it to dab the bottom of his eyes? Was what he'd just done really that sad? He didn't think so, but as he thought back to the words, things started getting fuzzy again.

Perhaps his last good idea, before the blanket numbness of being drunk settled in, was to jump from the stage while he still had some coordination remaining. He managed to stumble only a little when he landed and bumped into Squall's side, which held firm. Or trigger his trap, as both wings wrapped around Neil's larger form.

"You sounded like you needed a hug, so here's a hug, Bud."

For the first time since he came to Equestria, he didn't really mind the contact. In fact, Squall was right. He could really use a hug. So he leaned into it and wrapped a wing around Squall as well. "Thanksh," Was all he could say as his happy drunkenness finished settling in for the night.

Author's Note

Well, it's the end of another chapter. The end of training for the day, more castle exploration, and a bar scene that I had no idea how to write since I don't drink or visit bars!

Going to be completely honest here. While doing the chapter formatting here on Fimfiction, and re-reading it one last time, I can't help but feel that something is off with this chapter. Like it's 97% there, but I don't know what that last 3% is. Really hoping this wasn't the chapter to kill the story. XP

As a heads up, I'll be doing Nanowrimo starting today, and ending on Nov. 30th(or whenever I hit the minimum required 50K). At which point, I shall continue on with chapter 6! So I'm still expecting a December chapter, but likely around the middle/end of December. We'll see how it goes.

An interesting tidbit. After posting this chapter, AAA has officially become my longest story(Beating out Just Luck, a Nanowrimo concept that was 62.5K words).

Also, the song is a light edit based on this one from Nerdout. I'm an idiot when it comes to song writing, and most of the verses tied in with Neil so much there really wasn't much to change.

Editor: Dat_Random_Fur <--- Send love, or guns, or something American-ish.