Fallout Equestria: The Blue Lightning

Inquiring ponies want to know.

FoE: Project Horizons, chapter 23

“You can stay at my place for now,” Life Bloom said, opening the steel door with magic and stepping inside. “Please.”

Following him, Cosmic entered the apartment – and stopped, looking at the simple decor.

Nothing superfluous: a table with a working terminal, a bed – perhaps a little wider than would be enough for someone living alone; at the side wall – cabinets with books and medicines.

But there was something here that caught the mare’s eye.

To the left of the entrance, a map of Equestria was riveted to the wall, looking pre-war, but with a lot of crayon markings that made it look current. But even that didn’t catch the blue earth pony’s eye. There were two small flags pinned to the map. The inscription next to one read, “Manehattan”, and the other was…

Cosmic blinked to make sure she wasn’t imagining it.

“The Republic.”

“…Also, I have a bathroom, so you can… Cosmic?”

Life Bloom came over and stood beside her.

For a while, the two looked silently at the flag that marked their home.

Then the unicorn sighed and shook his head.

“Yes… sad, of course. But I don’t regret anything.”

“It’s probably easier to find partners for your liking here, right?” Cosmic snorted unhappily, remembering all the talks in The Republic about Life Bloom and his… preferences.

“What? Oh, you mean that…” he jerked his head and laughed quietly. “Amazing how easy it was for everyone to believe that. And even now I can’t wash it off…”

“Wait, what?” Cosmic frowned, turning to him. “What do you mean?”

“I imagine what my father told everypony about me after I left… How’s he there, still running the village?”

“Y-yes, but… what’s this got to–”

“He never understood me,” the unicorn continued, staring at the wall. “Nor anyone else, to be honest. Neither in the family… nor in the whole Republic. Maybe you too, I can’t remember. They all saw me as the new head doctor of their small town. Someone who would fix their bruises from hoof beats, pull light bulbs out of their kids’ mouths, or help them throw up after a bender at the bar. That’s all they wanted from me. But infinitely less than I wanted from myself.

“I told my father many times that I wished I had studied more, that the city had more books in the library than guns in the armory. But he didn’t listen. Didn’t want to listen. Neither did my mother… nor any of the other relatives. You know,” he looked up, “I still think they were secretly jealous of me. Of my desire for something new, while they’d been surrounded by the same things all their lives and had enough of it. So it was easier to tell them that I liked stallions than to try to convince them of the need for change.”

“Wait, so you–”

Cosmic looked at him in confusion.

“Exactly, Cosmic! In that respect, I am the same as you, but my goals and ideals are completely different. You spend all your efforts to survive – I seek to explore. To discover the world. To learn new things. Including helping other ponies.

“And look at this!” he pointed to a bookshelf with his hoof. “This is where I gained access to the new knowledge I’ve been missing. Twilight Sparkle’s Library gives me unlimited opportunities to learn, with so much information saved from the apocalypse that I couldn’t even study in a lifetime on my own! And in my spare time, I work to spread it throughout the Wasteland, hoping to lay the foundation for a new, beautiful world!”

Life Bloom sighed sadly.

“Unfortunately, the process is going too slowly. Many aren’t interested in the whole thing. Most ponies seem to be the same everywhere… But I could at least bring this ray of light to my home township… if I could get some support. And with a mayor like my father, The Republic will never prosper. Sometimes I even think, just for fun, that I wish Murky would finally take power for the first time in twenty years.”

“That’s never gonna happen,” Cosmic shook her head. “Life Bloom… I’m not the same filly with a carbine on my ass who dreamed of defending the town and upholding justice. I think I’ve changed more in the last month than in my entire life. And I do understand you, Life Bloom. I do now.”

The unicorn, who had been staring at the wall, turned his head and looked intently at the blue earth pony.

“Well… all right,” he finally said. “I hope you’ll tell me how things are going. There’s very little information about that part of the Wasteland here. And… I’m sorry, of course, but you have a very strange team. I thought there was supposed to be at least one Republic pony. Snow Vision, for instance. How is he, by the way? He was the only one I remember who didn’t disdain my ideas. Even if he wasn’t very supportive…”

“He’s dead,” Cosmic replied. “And believe me: I really don’t want to tell this part of the story. But it seems I’ll have to.”

“So…” muttered Life Bloom, looking sad and thoughtful again.

There was an awkward silence, broken only by the low hum of the terminal.

Then the unicorn coughed and waved to a side door.

“The bathroom is that way. Don’t waste too much water, it’s expensive. And I should probably get back to my work now.”

Life Bloom listened to Cosmic very carefully. When the earth pony got to the part about Metal Dawn’s betrayal, he asked her to stop for a moment and sat silently on the bed for a while, eyes shut and teeth clenched. Then he came to his senses and asked her to tell him more.

“Well, that’s how we got out,” Cosmic finished her story. The only thing she didn’t mention was that Spike did have the Elements of Harmony. “I haven’t been to The Republic since, so I don’t know what’s going on there now. I think Mayor Silver Star has gone mad with worry… or…” She sobbed suddenly. “Or declared us… all… dead…”

And she burst into tears, covering her eyes with her hooves.

The past didn’t leave her. Again.

The unicorn staggered for a moment at the sight of the crying mare, and then apparently did what he thought was right – moved a little closer to her and gently stroked her head.

And that was the last straw that finally broke the dam of emotions that Cosmic had been unconsciously holding back all this time – even as she cried for her slain comrades in the Wasteland and at the abandoned farm. Both times, her feelings had not been fully expressed.

The mare clung tightly to Life Bloom, nuzzling her face into his chest, and cried out loudly.

“I… we… all the time… since everything… ch-ch-changed… I… go on… and everyone around me suffers…”

“It’s not your fault, Cosmic,” the unicorn replied, continuing to stroke her mane. “You couldn’t foresee everything. On the contrary, even from the most difficult situations you have always come out in the best possible way. It’s just that… no pony can control circumstances. Only Discord was able to do that… You can only act in them, one way or another.”

“That’s just it, Life Bloom!” Cosmic slammed her hooves into his chest. “I cannot change anything myself! Some black streak: no matter what I do – the bad catches up with me again and again! And it’s not just me, but everyone who’s with me! And I can’t do anything to get out of this vicious circle.”

“You know, at one time, even the Princesses couldn’t do that.”

Cosmic found nothing against it. And immediately, she almost calmed down – at least the sobs became less frequent and quieter.

Life Bloom sat next to her. And didn’t move away. Perhaps for the first time since leaving The Republic, Cosmic felt safe. Under someone’s sensitive protection. And this pleasant feeling warmed her heart and filled her soul with peace.

But the wounds still didn’t heal. No “Hydra” could help, let alone Med-X and simple potions.

“Life Bloom,” Cosmic said, no longer crying. “And you… had somepony for all these years? Remember, the last time you treated me, I admitted to checking you out… well, before you left the village…”

“No,” the unicorn replied simply. “I’ve never reciprocated with anyone here. To be honest, I never had time. I put all my energy into working and educating myself to help other ponies. I never had time for anything else. And why do you ask?”

“I’m so tired, Life Bloom,” the earth pony sighed. “Tired of being strong and leading everyone. What if I’m making it worse? This isn’t what I wanted when I took charge of my first squad…”

“Here you can be yourself, Cosmic. You can give yourself a break. You really need it right now.”

“Thank you.” Cosmic buried her face again in the fur on his chest. “And you don’t get tired of your work?”

“Sometimes it feels like I’ve reached the limit of my strength, and my efforts will lead to nothing,” the unicorn shrugged. “But only for the rest of the day. In the morning, I wake up thinking that nothing I’ve done has been in vain. And so I’m back in the fight, saving lives and bringing a better future.”

“You’re lucky: at least you have a purpose in life. And I’m –” Cosmic shook her head “– no longer sure of mine.”

“What was it?”

“Protecting ponies and upholding justice…” The mare grinned crookedly. “That’s funny. I tried so hard to bring my own light, and now that justice has fucked me in every hole. Well, I got what I deserved.”

“Once again, it’s not your fault. Look back – how many ponies… and not just ponies you have already saved, already protected?” Cosmic lifted her head and looked him in the eyes, as if grasping at straws, and Life Bloom continued, “Sometimes you have to look at the successes as well as the failures. Even if sometimes they don’t seem to mean anything.”

“Thank you, Life Bloom.” Cosmic snuggled up against him once more and closed her eyes. “What you said… it really means a lot to me. Thank you. Eh, I’m so tired…”

Her breathing evened out and became deeper. The unicorn gently stroked her back, but Cosmic just fidgeted with her head on his chest, choosing a comfortable position.

Life Bloom smiled slightly. After waiting for the earth pony to fall asleep, he got up and carefully laid Cosmic down, then covered her with a blanket.

And went back to the table where an unfinished book was waiting for him.

“Is it here?” Cosmic asked as they walked up the wide corridor of the Tower to the door of the cheese shop.

The mare had omitted Monterey Jack’s name in her story yesterday, referring to him simply as “the merchant”, but this morning it was as if she remembered him again and asked directly. Life Bloom replied that Monterey had been executed a few days ago for attempted robbery in the Wasteland, which amounted to raiding. Did Littlepip really come here to demand an answer from him? Cosmic thought in amazement.

She felt ambivalent about this unicorn filly she had never even seen with her own eyes. On the one hoof, the blue earth pony was impressed by Littlepip’s determination. But at the same time… if she was happy with the verdict, Cosmic had nothing to talk to her about.

When asked about Littlepip, Life Bloom was silent, and Cosmic decided to close the subject.

As for Lyra Heartstrings, the unicorn didn’t know anything either, but he promised to look for information in the local library, which also served as a data center.

In the meantime, after asking Dr. Helpinghoof for a few hours (there wasn’t much to do with patients anyway), Life Bloom led Cosmic to the shop that Monterey Jack had owned until recently.

Heavy metal shutters were down on the inside of the storefront, and a sturdy lock and “CLOSED” sign hung on the door. Luckily, Life Bloom had got the keys somewhere.

With a soft creak, the square casements opened inward. It was dark and silent inside, but the unicorn shone his horn and found the light switch.

A bright white light flooded the room, making Cosmic blink for a second.

And when her eyes adjusted, she saw a depressing sight.

The refrigerators where the cheese was stored were without power, with muddy puddles spreading out from underneath them. A pile of cheese heads in the display case, which had apparently been the hallmark of the place, had crumbled like a house of cards; some of the pieces lying on the floor had clearly been hoofed. Some of the merchandise, judging by the smell, had already begun to rot. The cash register was untouched, but clearly empty. Monterey Jack had to pay for his own execution and burial as well.

“What do you look for here?” Life Bloom asked, while Cosmic walked around, seeing the same picture of decay everywhere.

“I don’t know. Something,” replied the earth pony. “Monterey had something to do with all of this. First of all, I wonder how he came to have the blueprints that Lyra so desperately needed. This unicorn was hardly the simple merchant he seemed to be.”

“I used to come here sometimes,” Life Bloom muttered. “His cheeses were really good.”

“Sure – for caps like these.” Cosmic just snorted when she saw the penciled price tags.

“This is Tenpony Tower, baby. Nothing is cheap here.”

“Hey, look, what is this?”

Walking behind the counter at the far end, Cosmic stopped in front of a panel that blended in color with the wall and was almost indistinct in outline. It took a closer look to see that there was something here.

“Let’s check it out,” Life Bloom said, standing next to it.

His horn flared, and the panel, moved by telekinesis, slowly slid aside. It hasn’t moved since long before Monterey, Cosmic thought.

Behind the false wall was a real door – solid, metal, painted silver. On it was a relief drawing of a hexagon with the moon in the center and some pictograms on the tops. Looking closely, Cosmic was surprised to see that they were the cutie marks of the Ministry Mares, familiar to her from the statuettes.

On the right side of the door was a slot where something seemed to be inserted. But definitely not a simple key – it was about the width of a hoof.

“What is it?” she asked.

“The sign of the O.I.A.,” Life Bloom replied. Seeing the incomprehension on Cosmic’s face, he deciphered, “The Office of Interministry Affairs. An organization from the Great War. I only found vague references to it in books… I don’t know what they actually did there.”

“We have to open it somehow,” the earth pony tapped on the door.

“I don’t have the right keys.” The unicorn levitated a bunch of keys and rattled them. “And with magic, I’m afraid I can only damage the lock, and then only C-4 explosives will help us.”

“Wait a minute…” Cosmic muttered and turned on the sorting spell in PipBuck.

The strange card taken from the сyberghoul’s body in New Appleloosa was displayed by the device as the “O.I.A. Pass Card”. On the rotating greenish image, Cosmic could now make out the numbers 0174 and a pattern exactly like the one on the door.

“I think we’ll need this,” the mare said, pulling the card out of her bag.

“Where did you get it?” Life Bloom stared.

“From that ghoul merchant who contracted Metal Dawn… Well, it doesn’t matter, okay?! Now step back.”

Cosmic carefully took the card with her teeth and inserted it into the slot.

Nothing happened for a while, and the mare already thought that nothing would work, when suddenly she heard a sound that instantly dispelled all doubts.

The click of the lock opening.

Cosmic pushed the door, but it didn’t move.

“Maybe it opens by pulling?”

“I don’t think so,” Life Bloom shook his head. “Otherwise, only a unicorn with very strong magic could open it. Let’s try together.”

Pushing harder, they managed to open the heavy door.

And found themselves in another small, cluttered room.

Life Bloom’s horn illuminated the mess. The cabinets against the walls were lost behind stacks of documents and folders piled on the desk, where a terminal stood – probably working, just turned off. Cosmic couldn’t help but notice several sealed tubes against the far wall. Just like the one Metal Dawn had taken from Monterey Jack.

The unicorn found the light switch again. But apparently the spark battery in the ceiling lamp had died or gone bad, because nothing happened.

“Try turning on the terminal,” Life Bloom said. “Maybe that’ll make it a little brighter.”

“How long can your horn light up?” Cosmic asked, walking around the table, avoiding the piles of documents.

“Half an hour for sure. Maybe an hour. But then I’ll have to recover, and new patients may arrive in the meantime. So, let’s try to find what you need as soon as possible.”

“Got it.”

Life Bloom started to fiddle with the documents, and Cosmic sat in front of the terminal, illuminating it with her PipBuck. Surprisingly, pressing the power button caused the pre-war device to blink and bring up a loading screen.

With the O.I.A. emblem and a password field.

Well, of course, how could it not?

The mare had no idea what the code combination could be. But while playing in her father’s workshop, she had learned about one of the terminal’s features: two extra pins under the back cover. If they were short-circuited, the password was automatically reset. Apparently, the pre-war ponies were really stupid to have such a "back door" made for them.

But who knows – maybe the security of the Office was much tighter.

And indeed: inspecting the inside of the terminal in the light of the PipBuck’s screen, Cosmic found no evidence of an additional unlocking system. She knew from her father’s technical books and magazines that it was possible to connect from PipBuck and look through the configuration files for the password, but first, that could take hours, and second, Cosmic herself had no experience with PipBucks. So that option was out.

The only thing left was to pick a combination at random. And in this case, they only had four tries.

“Life Bloom, please try to find the name of who worked here,” the earth pony said to her companion. “I doubt that this place was just used as a wastepaper storage, since the terminal was placed here.”

“Well, wait…” There was a rustle of papers being shuffled. “Try ‘Gizmo Poindexter’. He might’ve been some kind of technical expert – some research protocols are signed with his name… I wouldn’t be surprised if he had something to do with the blueprints in those tubes.”

“It fits. The last name, I mean. Seems he was as confident as anyone that he wouldn’t get hacked. Thank you.”

After gaining access, Cosmic began to scroll through the list of files.

Most of them were text records and a few corrupted audio files that could not be recovered. And what might be interesting in them? Probably something work-related as well.

With a hoof under her head, Cosmic began to leaf through the notes, which were a kind of work diary. Most of them were about projects and prototypes, labeled with abracadabra of letters and numbers, and the mare had stopped going into all the technical details – many of which Gizmo had, of course, kept quiet about because of a gag order mentioned in one of the entries.

But the last entry, dated May 13th, 1032, in the pre-war calendar, caught Cosmic’s attention the most.

Entry 261

A new batch of blueprints for projects Sunshine, Rainbow, and Whirlpool has arrived from design offices #44, #67, and #72 respectively. These will soon be transported with O.I.A. stuff to the sites for practical implementation.

Sunshine – May 14 at 12 p.m. – Long Grass – to Stable Pi.

Rainbow – May 15 at 3 p.m. – Dazzling Shine – to Stable 88.

Whirlpool – May 17 at 2 p.m. – Lyra Heartstrings – to RC-13.

“Bingo!”

“Did you find something?” the unicorn asked as he approached the terminal.

Cosmic pointed at the last line.

“It’s the same name I heard from Watcher. A pony who lived two hundred years ago and, as it now turns out, worked for this Discord’s O.I.A., whatever it was… And now, someone with the same name is terrorizing the Wasteland for some blueprints, disabling cyberghouls from afar! What an incredible coincidence, don’t you think?”

“There’s something to it.” Life Bloom rubbed his chin. “On the other hoof, it could really be a coincidence. Or, for example, someone imitating a pre-war image. Either way, it has no bearing on what you’re going to do. Doesn’t it?”

“Well, after that incident, she obviously got her blueprints,” Cosmic sighed. “But with the witnesses, there was a bummer. I have survived. And she probably knows about it from somewhere. And if so, she’s quite capable of sending someone after me. But then,” she grinned wryly, “she’d have to take us all out. Me – and that whole motley crew.”

“I wonder what the names of the projects mean…?” Life Bloom muttered, looking at the terminal screen.

“Does it matter?” Cosmic pressed the off button and the room went completely dark again. “The main thing is that now I know a little more about who is the cause of my troubles. And I’m one step closer to dealing with her one day.”

The mare stepped out from behind the desk, and it was just in time for Life Bloom’s horn to light up again to keep her from bumping into the stack of folders.

“Alright, let’s get out of here. I’ve had enough of these fucking secrets.”

Soon they returned to Life Bloom’s apartment, where Cosmic had left her things. The unicorn didn’t allow her to take Last Argument to the Tower, but he didn’t know about the loyal Dan. Besides, an assault carbine was much more necessary for the aliens, who were actually unprotected in the middle of the Wasteland.

As the two packed their bags and prepared to return to the abandoned house surrounded by a minefield, Cosmic asked, “Do you think we could have… well, been together if you hadn’t left?”

“I don’t know,” Life Bloom shrugged and used his telekinesis to shift the load onto his back. “No, I guess not. You and I are too different, and… I’ve never really been attracted to you. Besides, you weren’t very interested in my desires either.”

“Okay, I don’t care.” Cosmic sighed and snapped her bags shut with her hoof. “Thank you, Life Bloom. For helping Cream… and me too, to be honest.” She grinned. “I think I passed out at the worst possible moment last night…”

“You’re wrong,” the unicorn shook his head with a slight smile. “You looked very… cute. And I just couldn’t help taking care of you. You really… really needed it.”

“I hope you’re not gonna charge me for it?” the mare asked mockingly.

“No. Never.”

Cosmic looked at Life Bloom – and suddenly she was breathless as she saw Snow Vision in him. Coming from the same extended family, the two were much alike in appearance – but so different in mind and occupation.

He sure beats Nightlight at medicine, the earth pony thought.

Metal Dawn, who had visited her on the evening of the day the adventure began, had asked her which of the team she would prefer in his stead. And between Spark and Snow, Cosmic would probably choose the latter. Yes, the knife-wielding unicorn scared her a bit during the battle… but something attracted her, too. However, she’d never had the chance to talk to Snow about any of it, let alone go any further.

And Spark Glider had a girlfriend of his own. And as they said in fairy tales, “they lived happily ever after and died on the same day.” How, this cruel world decided.

Wasteland always twisted fairy tales in its own way.

And now it was as if Cosmic found herself alone with one of her lost companions. As if his ghost stood before her and smiled kindly.

And she did something she never expected to do.

She walked up to Life Bloom and kissed him on the cheek.

The unicorn blushed slightly.

“Really, you shouldn’t have–”

He faltered as their eyes met by chance.

They were standing quite close to each other, so Cosmic could smell his scent. Perhaps for the first time in a long, long time, all the things she was used to fighting for receded into the background, fading away somewhere in the distance where they hardly mattered at that moment.

And unable to hold back any longer, Cosmic leaned forward and sank her lips into the unicorn’s. He unexpectedly responded to the kiss, and the earth pony closed her eyes in pleasure.

The stowed bags flew off their backs and headed for the corner of the room. So did the armor, which in an instant became an unnecessary and hindering obstacle.

Cosmic’s world narrowed to the sensations her body transmitted to her brain. There was nothing else: just a soft bed, herself, and Life Bloom.

Time, which had shrunk to an unbearably pleasant point, flowed again.

“…Well, that was not bad,” Cosmic grinned, stretched out on the bed, and looked at Life Bloom. “I see you’ve held back a long time.”

“You know there is nothing between us, right?” asked the unicorn lying beside her. “It was good for me too, but… I’d like to keep my lifestyle. What happened now doesn’t change anything in our relationship.”

“Yes, working is more important to you than anything else,” the mare quipped.

“I feel like I belong here. Something incredible would have to happen for me to break away and go to the Wasteland. Like you, for example,” Life Bloom added.

“Yeah, that’s right,” Cosmic sighed. “It’s time for me to go back. And you promised a repeat treatment for Cream.”

“Of course,’ the unicorn nodded and sat down with his hooves on the floor. “Let’s not take too long, then.”

Twenty minutes later, they were all cleaned up. Life Bloom even combed Cosmic’s mane with magic after the shower. “So you don’t look like a raider who’s reached the benefits of civilization,” he joked afterward.

Cosmic just smiled gratefully and took the ring she had taken out of her bag with her teeth.

“Well, let’f gho,” she said and tossed the ring into the air with a flick of her head, at the same time imagining a spacious hall of the abandoned building.

The portal opened and the two ponies went through it together.

When they found themselves far from Manehattan, the scene before their eyes was completely different from what they had expected.

Knuckles was strangling Shadow, holding him by the throat above the ground. The echidna’s fingers couldn’t bend anymore, so he had to wrap his straight palms around the hedgehog’s neck on both sides. But because of Knuckles’ immense strength, the effect was noticeable. Shadow was gasping for breath, dangling in a literal stone grip.

“…What are you doing?! Stop it!” Sonic yelled, standing nearby with a nine-millimeter Nige in his hand.

But the barrel was looking past: apparently, the blue hedgehog wasn’t ready to shoot his friends.

“Think about it, Knuckles: if that were the case, why did Shadow help us in the forest?” Tails agreed, also clutching one of the revolvers he had been given.

“To pretend to be our ally, sic Metal Sonic on us, and then help him take us down!” The echidna growled and shook Shadow, causing him to shake his feet helplessly in the air. “You’re not the Element of Honesty – how do we know you’re not lying? What if you are Eggman’s agent after all…?”

“Please don’t!” Amy wailed, running around them. “Stop it, please…!”

And then a burst of gunfire hit the ceiling.

The aliens all shut up at once and turned their attention to the new arrivals.

“What’s. Going. On. Here?” Cosmic asked sternly, letting go of Dan’s mouthgrip.

“So… just figuring something out,” Knuckles muttered and released Shadow under the mare’s stern gaze.

The black hedgehog fell to the ground and grabbed his throat, trying to catch his breath.

“Are you fucking crazy?!” the earth pony hissed, glaring at Knuckles with anger. Life Bloom helped Shadow up, apparently intending to examine him as well. “You’ve had enough of other enemies, now you’ve decided to kill each other?!”

“He is suspicious,” Knuckles said stubbornly.

“I bet.” Cosmic looked back at Shadow, who just nodded gratefully at Life Bloom. “But first, I trust him – as much as I can right now. And secondly, I want to ask him about it myself. In the meantime,” the mare leaned closer to the echidna’s face, “keep your stone fists to yourself, okay?”

“What’s that smell?” suddenly the unicorn’s voice could be heard.

“Huh?” Cosmic turned around and sniffed.

It didn’t seem to smell anything special. The air had the musty scents of dust, crumbling plaster, old wood… and something else.

Something the earth pony hadn’t smelled the last time she’d been here.

Opening her nostrils wide, she suddenly realized what that faint smell was.

The smell of rotting.

Life Bloom turned her head to determine the direction in which the smell seemed to be stronger, and slowly walked across the room…

And stopped right in front of Knuckles.

“What?” he grumbled. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Where is this from?” Life Bloom pointed at the echidna’s petrified knuckles.

“A cocatrix,” Cosmic replied briefly.

“Fuck…” The unicorn swore surprisingly foully. “Can you feel your fingers?”

“No.”

“For how long?”

“Since then… And what?”

“Oh, all clear. Necrosis of the soft tissue.” Life Bloom turned to Cosmic and explained, “Fossilization has stopped the blood flow to the directly affected areas of the metacarpal and the more distant phalanges. Hence the necrosis, which has already begun to turn into decomposition. And only the stone layer, behind which healthy tissue begins on the other side, saves the body from spreading gangrene and sepsis.” The unicorn shook his head. “But still – it is urgent to amputate his fingers.”

“Cut? No way!”

Knuckles put his hands behind his back.

“Then I’m not responsible for your health after you pick your nose and your head rots,” Life Bloom said calmly. “Now I’d like to get back to your friend. Can someone please help me…?” A glance at Cosmic. “…someone with fingers? Working, of course.”

“May I?” Sonic volunteered, putting away his submachine gun.

Life Bloom nodded, and they started to go upstairs together.

“Take my carbine on the way back!” Cosmic called after them.

The blue hedgehog showed her a ring made of two fingers with the rest sticking out - another fragment of alien culture – and winked. Then he and Life Bloom disappeared around the corner of the stairs.

“Well, and we will eat,” said Cosmic, sat down on the floor and began to unpack her bags. “All this research has made me terribly hungry.”

While they ate lunch (Knuckles was helped by Amy, to the echidna’s embarrassment), the earth pony told them what she had learned in Tenpony Tower. To Sonic and Cream, they decided to tell them later.

“Now, to get to this Lyra, I have to go I don’t know where and look for I don’t know what,” Cosmic muttered at the end. “Just what is this… what’s the name… RC-13?”

“Research Center?” Tails suggested.

“Well, that fits… But neither where it is, nor what that bitch is doing there, we never found out. Then there’s the Whirlpool, whatever it is…”

“I think it’s closer to Hoofington,” Shadow whispered. His voice was still a little raspy from Knuckles’ grip. “There’s a hotbed of all the scientific stuff in Equestria…”

Meeting Cosmic’s eloquent gaze, the black hedgehog sighed.

“I’ll tell you all about it. Let’s at least wait for Sonic…”

“…And here we are,” the voice of a blue hedgehog came from the stairs, and everyone turned in that direction.

Cosmic blinked, as if she couldn’t believe her eyes. But it was not a mirage: between Sonic and Life Bloom, carefully supported by the hedgehog’s hand and the unicorn’s telekinesis, the rabbit girl was coming down the stairs, even though she looked thinner and gaunt, but happy.

“Cream!”

Tails and Amy immediately rushed over to them and ran up to hug their friend.

Sonic went over to Cosmic and handed her Last Argument. The mare clutched her trusty weapon: without it, she felt naked even in her armor.

Life Bloom beckoned Knuckles after him, and the two headed back upstairs.

The rest of the aliens surrounded Cream, talking excitedly about something – probably how worried they were about her.

Cosmic stood aside and didn’t interfere. She was just happy to see the happiness of somebody else, so genuine and untainted.

Soon, Life Bloom and Knuckles returned. The echidna looked particularly grumpy, looking down at his stone fists with clipped fingers in confusion.

“So that’s it?” the unicorn said, stopping next to Cosmic.

“As it turns out,” she sighed. “Thanks for everything you’ve done for us. Really. I… I just had no one to ask for help. I don’t even know how to repay you.”

“Nothing is needed,” Life Bloom said with a smile. “Just promise me that you won’t get into any more serious trouble.”

“You know I will, one way or another.”

“I know it. That’s why I’m asking. Maybe when this is over, you’ll come back to The Republic and help make things better.”

“We’ll see,” Cosmic snorted and pulled out the last of the rings she had borrowed from Shadow. “Ready?”

“Ready.”

The ring flew up, spun in the air, and habitually transformed into a funnel that pierced the room.

Life Bloom moved toward the portal, then, as if forgetting something, turned to Cosmic and kissed her. Then he stepped through the portal and disappeared from the dirty old hall.

The mare looked silently at the place where the funnel had been for a while. Then she brushed a drop of unwanted wetness from her cheek and approached the aliens.

“I don’t mean to interrupt, but we have a few unanswered questions. You promised, Shadow. Remember?”

“Yes, of course,” the black hedgehog replied and looked up at the others. “Let’s go upstairs, it’s more comfortable.”

“Let’s go," Sonic grinned and was the first to run up the stairs before anyone noticed. He waved halfway up and then ran off in a blurred silhouette.

The group went up to the second floor and settled into one of the rooms.

“Make yourselves comfortable, ‘cause this is a long story,” Shadow said, sitting down on the bed and taking off his backpack.

The others sat on the floor and Cosmic leaned her shoulder against the wall in the corner.

“I think we should start with this.”

The black hedgehog took something out of his backpack and showed it to everyone.

Cosmic was surprised to see that it was a book. And even in appearance, it was much better made than the pre-war Daring Doo stories or the Wasteland Survival Guide by Ditzy Doo from New Appleloosa.

The cover depicted a short gray unicorn filly with a light brown mane against a backdrop of old houses and Canterlot Peak in the distance. The pony was wearing a blue stable-issued coverall with the number 02 on the collar; a PipBuck screen glowed green on her leg. And in front of her was a sprite-bot – at least very similar to the ones Watcher had used to talk to Cosmic and the aliens.

And at the top, in an empty space, was a stylized inscription.

Note: Level up.

Player: Cosmic Valor. Skill: Science – 50%. New perk: Cool Hacker – you get additional attempts for picking a password. Bonus perk: Sherlock Hooves (level 2/3) – you can make intuitive deductions based on a small number of facts.

Player: Sonic. New perk: Not selected.