Anon, Javelin, Tempest, Dusk, and Echo trudged through the swamp for hours, the hot sun beating down on them through the openings in the swampy canopy overhead. The sloshing of their legs through the knee-deep water was accompanied only by the sounds of heavy breathing as they all struggled to make progress through the thicker mud they'd found themselves walking through. Eventually, Dusk and Echo took the air, flapping their wings just next to the rest of the group to both keep themselves out of the water, as well as help cool everyone off as well.

Anon wiped his brow, his hand coming back covered in a sweat as their progress ambled forward, one step at a time. He let out a heavy sigh as he followed behind Javelin and Tempest, finding that to his surprise, the mulberry unicorn was hardly struggling to wade through the water.

"How much further do we have to walk through this shit?" Javelin asked, glancing over his wither to Anon.

Anon quickly procured his map from his chest pocket and looked over the Hayseed Swamp. He glanced up at the sun before shrugging, "I'd say about another hour for today. We're just supposed to head East until we reach the coast, then head south and Hoof City should be right at the edge of the swamp."

"You getting tired already?" Echo teased.

"I don't wanna hear it from those of us who don't even have to endure it." Javelin turned his muzzle up.

"You should all keep your muzzles shut. You're making too much noise as it is." Tempest announced, earning several irritated glares that she didn't even bother to glance back at.

"I'm sorry, since when do you of all ponies get to tell us to shut up?" Javelin scoffed.

"There are creatures in the swamp that are attracted to noise. You're already making enough noise to alert everything within three hundred hooves with how much you're splashing, so adding to it with your mouth is just unnecessary." Tempest shot back, finally turning her head just enough to give Javelin a side-long glare.

"That's just a little filly's tale. The real reason they stopped building the train tracks was because they ran out of bits. Everypony who knows their history knows that." Dusk rebutted.

"Fine, suit yourself, but when one of those monsters come, just know that I'm not saving you." Tempest shrugged.

A collective yet tense silence settled over the group as they continued to wade through the swamp. Anon found himself struggling with some of the denser mud as his more top-heavy physique and lack of two extra legs to distribute his weight, made him sink into the mud that much more. On several occasions, he found himself stuck, needing Dusk and Echo to pull him out or Javelin to use his magic to assist. Somewhat surprising to all of them, Tempest halted in place each time, waiting patiently for the stallions to unstick their prince without complaint.

Finally, after another hour of trekking through the swamp, they found land. Just as the sun began to crest the horizon, and darkness fell upon them, the group stepped onto a raised portion of land that, while not fitting the descriptor of dry, per se, was infinitely less wet than anywhere else around them.

"I think this'll make a good place to hold up for the night." Anon announced, dropping his rucksack on the mossy ground.

"Ugh... remind me why we couldn't take an airship again?" Javelin muttered, dropping his saddlebags just a few feet from Anon.

"Well they're all deployed at the moment, for starters. Plus I let Fancy and Fleur borrow the royal airship for that photoshoot they wanted to do in Zebrica last week... not to mention the Storm King's fleet is still out there and this lets us maintain a way lower profile so we don't get boarded or attacked by his goons." Anon explained.

"And Fancy and Fleur wouldn't give it back for something as important as this?" Dusk raised an eyebrow as he and Dusk landed beside Javelin.

Anon quickly shook his head, "No, no. They'd give it back if I asked. Thing is, Photo Finish got a bit of a wild hair up her ass and now they're somewhere near Shire Lanka, last we heard. We can't even reach them via Celestia's scroll spells since they're so far away." He explained with a chuckle.

"Too bad. Would've been more relaxing than this." Echo bemoaned, laying down on the wet ground.

"Well where's the fun in that?" Anon grinned.

At the collective deadpan stares he received, Anon frowned, "Oh, come on! Where's your guys' sense of adventure?! We're going on a journey to dangerous lands, just like the pioneers used to! There's so much to see and experience! It's just like an Indiana Jones movie!" Anon exclaimed.

"Firstly, none of those pioneers had to deal with a traitor that they can't afford to take their eyes off of and speaking of which, where the buck is she?" Javelin quickly questioned, glancing around for any sign of the Storm King's commander.

Before any of them could panic or even start searching around for her, Tempest cleared her throat, making them all turn around as she deposited a few thick branches onto a small pile of kindling.

"Right behind you." She muttered.

"Tempest, where did you even get that?" Anon asked, staring owlishly at the size of the branches she'd returned.

"You'd be amazed what you can find if you even bother to look for more than one second." Tempest replied, flatly.

"She may be a snarky bitch, but she's got a point. Fire would be a good idea for the night, especially if there's something else out here that we just haven't seen yet." Javelin noted.

"You're the ones who can't see at night. Fire is only good for keeping warm to us." Dusk replied, shrugging slightly.

"Swamps get cold at night, especially this time of year." Tempest noted, her attention focused on trying to start a fire.

Anon tilted his head to the side as he watched her lean down to the kindling, what appeared to be a small rock on one of her hooves. With the other, she quickly struck the rock, sending a spark flying onto the tinder. Almost immediately, it fizzled out, leaving nothing but a bit of smoke.

"Step aside. We're gonna be here all night waiting for you to start a fire like that." Javelin ordered, walking over to the kindling.

His horn ignited in a blue light, before a small beam of white-hot energy shot forth. He held the beam of intense light on one specific patch of the kindling until it started smoking. Moments later, a small flame burst from the flammable material, quickly catching the rest on fire almost instantly. As the flames grew and consumed the larger firewood Tempest had brought, Javelin gave her a smug grin.

"You're welcome." He stated.

Tempest's frown creased her brow quite considerably, "Wouldn't need your help if I didn't have this ring on." She explained, some hostility bleeding into her voice.

"Well get used to it, cause it's not coming off the rest of the trip." Javelin shrugged, taking his seat beside the fire.

"Hey, let's not start fighting each other. Everybody relax. Let's set up sleeping arrangements and then we can just enjoy the fire." Anon diplomatically cut in.

"Anon's right. Let's just get situated. We can focus on kicking each other's flanks tomorrow." Dusk added, dropping his saddlebags as well.

Albeit with a few moments of tense hesitation, the group conceded and dispersed to conduct their individual tasks. Dusk and Echo set up their sleeping bags while Anon changed out of his pants and boots, allowing his socks to dry off. He grimaced as he flexed his toes, the hours of waterlogging having turned them extremely pruny. Meanwhile, Javelin, having been able to quickly set up his sleeping arrangement with his magic, focused on keeping the fire alight. As darkness settled in around them, it became their only source of light.

Tempest unraveled her own sleeping back and took out one of the bags of food in her bags. Once she was set, she sat down beside the fire, using her hooves to open her meal while the rest of the group similarly decided that it was time for dinner. As they all took their seats around the fire, it quickly became apparent that everyone except Anon wanted to sit on the opposite side of the fire from Tempest. While the decision was subconscious for him, mostly because there simply was no room on the other side of the fire, Anon found himself sitting just a foot away from the broken unicorn while they all dug into their meals.

Dusk and Echo had daffodil sandwiches with extra oats for dinner while Javelin ate a cucumber version of the same meal. Tempest had an alfalfa sandwich with some extra carrots on the side, the orange coloring sticking out even in the firelight. All of their meals were fairly standard fair for Equestrians, though as Anon opened his sandwich bag, a familiar scent wafted out to his nostrils, making him sigh in happiness as he looked down at his BLT sandwich. Said smell quickly filled the air, catching the attention of everyone else around him while they ate.

"What... is that smell?" Tempest asked, sniffing the air.

"That's Anon's sandwich." Echo noted.

"What do you have?" Tempest inquired, glancing over to Anon, curiously.

"It's a BLT sandwich. Bacon, lettuce, and tomatoes. Looks like Celly packed this one. She knows how much I love bacon. She practically stuffed this thing, haha." Anon chuckled, before taking a bite out of his meal.

"Bacon... I haven't had bacon in years." Tempest wistfully replied, her eyes falling slightly.

All three stallions and Anon gave her a quizzical look.

"Wait, what? You've had bacon?" Anon questioned, curiously.

Javelin physically recoiled with disgust, "What the buck?" He muttered.

"When you're stranded in the badlands with nothing green for miles, you have to make due. Be glad it wasn't still alive when I ate it." Tempest replied, darkly.

"I'm feeling a little attacked, too." Echo muttered, some offense in his tone.

Seeing his small gaff, Javelin quickly held up a hoof in a placating manner, "Woah, woah. I know you guys eat meat. You're omnivores just like Anon. We-" He gestured to both himself and Tempest, "-are not. Unicorns, Earth ponies, and pegasi aren't really built for eating meat." He explained.

"Actually, I remember an article from back home about this. At least on my world, tons of herbivores are actually considered 'opportunistic carnivores'. I'm pretty sure Lulu and Celly said ponies are in the same boat. If I remember right, even pegasi eat fish from time to time. Something about the fish oil being good for their feathers?" Anon recalled, scratching his chin in thought.

Javelin quickly shook his head, "What? No way. That can't be true. I've known dozens of pegasi over the years and not a single one of them ever told me they eat fish."

"Actually, there are quite a few in the guard that do." Dusk mentioned, making Javelin whip his head in his direction.

"What!?" He exclaimed.

"Yeah, dude. I think Spear Tip does pretty regularly. Says it's how she always comes first on the flight quals." Anon replied, taking a bite out of his sandwich.

"Wha-how... why do I not know this?" Javelin questioned, a bewildered expression on his face.

"Probably because of how you just reacted." Tempest replied, rolling her eyes.

Javelin opened his mouth to retort, but quickly found that she had a point and bit his tongue. Albeit with a huff, he returned to eating his sandwich without anymore complaint or argument. The rest of their meals passed in relative peace, save for the strange sounds of the swamp in the evening. A croak here, a splash there, and the incessant chirping of every insect known to Equestria filled the air around them, reminding all of them that while most of them certainly couldn't see very far into the darkness, the swamp was very much alive around them.

"Whew, that was good. I think now's a good time to get some shuteye. We got a sleep schedule figured out?" Echo asked, upon finishing his sandwich.

"Not yet. Given that there's only three of us, we'll probably do three hour shifts." Dusk replied.

"What do you mean 'three of us'? There's five of us." Anon replied, before taking another bite out of his sandwich.

"We're referring to who's going to make sure she-" Dusk began, nodding toward Tempest, "-doesn't run off in the night."

Tempest rolled her eyes but said nothing while Anon frowned, "Even still, there's four of us. You three and me." He rebutted.

"Anon, you're our friend but still our charge. We don't expect you to pull a guard shift." Javelin replied.

Anon quickly shook his head, "Nah, fuck that. I'm not gonna ask you guys to get even less sleep than absolutely necessary. I'll take a guard shift every night too. It's the least I can do for you guys even doing all this with me in the first place."

"Anon-" Dusk began, but halted as Anon continued to shake his head.

"Nope, not hearing any of it. You three are saints for helping me and I'm gonna help you as much as I can. Now go get some sleep, all of you. I'll wake up... Dusk, in two hours." Anon dismissed, shooing the three stallions away with his hand.

"Anon, are... you sure?" Javelin worriedly pressed.

"Sure as shit. Go on, git. Get some sleep." Anon grinned, continuing his shooing motions.

Despite heavy hesitance, and clear indications that they all wanted to protest, the three stallions finished their meals and went back to their beds, trying to catch a couple hours extra of sleep. Though they didn't say it, they all gave a grateful look Anon's way before crawling into their sleeping bags.

Meanwhile, Anon was on the last few bites of his sandwich when he noticed that Tempest was still sitting beside him. He felt her eyes on him and glanced in her direction, finding her quickly looking away. Amused and confused by her reaction, Anon raised an eyebrow and continued to stare at her until she looked back at him.

"Something on your mind?" He asked, curiously.

Tempest bit her lip as she glance away once more. After a few more seconds of painfully awkward silence between them, she finally glanced back over to Anon.

"Are... you going to finish that?" She asked, meekly.

It was a surprising turn of character for her, appearing to meek and subdued compared to the previous few times Anon had seen her. He'd grown used to seeing her scheming or plotting, or avoiding any kind of outward expression altogether, but to see her looking like an embarrassed filly, trying her best to avoid eye contact, was definitely new for him. Despite her reputation, despite her previous actions, and despite the things she'd said to him, Anon couldn't help but find her absolutely adorable in that moment. Even her scar and broken horn did nothing to dampen the sheer level of cuteness just radiating off of her as she tried her best to not drool over the sight of his sandwich.

Stifling a chuckle of amusement, Anon shook his head and handed over the last bit of sandwich, "You can have it- on one condition." He intoned, pulling it back as Tempest excitedly reached for it.

"What?" She asked, the despair she felt at her prize being so close yet so far, almost filling her voice.

"Tell me one thing about your childhood." Anon replied.

Tempest recoiled slightly, "What?"

"You never would say anything while we were interrogating you back at the castle. I never got my answers. Why not something simple? Just tell me how you got your cutie mark?" Anon suggested, gesturing toward the colorful explosion that made up Tempest's cutie mark.

Following his hand with her eyes until she was looking at her own flank, Tempest's brow knitted. She pursed her lips for a few moments before looking back up to Anon, the sight of the bacon sandwich hanging just out of reach, filling her vision. As the flames flickered in the fire, the shadows danced back and forth, making the bacon appear as if it was moving on its own accord. With a heavy sigh, Tempest accepted defeat.

"Fine. I don't know why you want to know about my past so badly but if it'll get you to shut up about it, then fine," She relented, pointedly ignoring the smile on Anon's face, "I got my cutiemark when I was thirteen years old. I was playing outside with my friends and accidentally charged a simple levitation spell too much. I was trying to push myself... see what more I could do with my magic. The spell became too much for me to hold onto, and when it started lashing out at everything around me, I had to bleed off the excess. We were in my backyard, houses all around and ponies in them, so nowhere to aim it except up. So I shot the magic straight up into the air and it exploded like a firework. Next thing I knew, I had my cutiemark." Tempest explained.

Though she tried to hide it, the edges of Tempest's lips curled up in the tiniest facsimile of a smile as she recalled the tale. Anon found himself smiling at the explanation, images of little fillies staring up at an impromptu fireworks show, their starstruck eyes wide in awe, filling his head.

"Well that's quite a good one. I've heard dozens of cutiemark stories and that's gotta be one of my favorites. Here, a deal's a deal." Anon replied, handing over what was left of his sandwich.

Curiously, Tempest eyed the sandwich warily, as if she expected him to be bluffing. She slowly reached out with a hoof, grasping it in that same invisible force all ponies seemed to have with their hooves, and returned it to her person. Her mouth watering, she stared down at the remnants of sandwich, before quickly glancing back to Anon. At his encouraging nod, she took a bite out of the BLT, and almost moaned in delight as the taste filled her maw.

Anon snickered at her reaction, shaking his head in amusement as she quickly scarfed down the rest of the sandwich in seconds.

"Damn. Did you even taste it?" He teased.

Tempest nodded as she swallowed down the last of it, "I... haven't exactly been eating much the past couple of weeks, if you recall." She admitted.

Anon gave a sad nod, "Well, we did offer you a bunch of good food. Why did you barely ever touch it?" He asked, curiously.

Tempest frowned and looked away, "Um... I'd rather not get into it. Thank you for the food, but I should get to sleep now. We've got another long day ahead of us tomorrow." She replied, pushing herself to her hooves.

Anon nodded, slightly disappointed by her response, but accepting of it nonetheless, "Alright. Go ahead and get some sleep. I'm sure Echo or Javelin will wake you when it's time to go."

With a simple nod of acknowledgement, Tempest crawled into her sleeping bag and went to bed, leaving Anon alone with his thoughts and the quiet crackling fire for company until it was time to wake Dusk.

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The Next Morning

With the early rays of sunshine piercing through the overgrowth of the swamp canopy, the group continued on toward their destination. The sloshing of water and the heavy breaths of the ponies and man were accompanied by the sounds of bugs chirping all around them, along with the early morning tweets of a few birds that happen to inhabit the trees.

"You know, I was hoping that today would be better than yesterday, but nope. This place still sucks." Javelin bemoaned, whipping yet another few bugs away with his tail.

"At least you have fur to keep these bugs from biting you. I think I woke up with a hundred mosquito bites today." Anon grumbled, swatting a gnat that flew too close to his face.

"At least you managed to sleep at all. I slept on a knot of wood that dug into my back the entire night. I'm sore as Tartarus and it's only day two." Echo whined.

"Will you all be quiet? You're going to attract a lot of unwanted attention." Tempest muttered over her wither.

"Oh, we should all be quiet? Did you hear that, guys? Tempest is saying we should all be quiet. Tempest. Telling us what to do. Can you imagine that? That's crazy." Javelin sarcastically remarked, rolling his eyes.

"It's not like we're talking louder than the splashing we're making with every step through this muck." Echo added, splashing his hoof into the water to emphasize his point.

"It's called 'acoustic localization'. The splashing is one thing, but adding more soundwaves to it only helps predators find us easier and quicker." Tempest explained, her voice just a hushed whisper compared to Javelin and Echo's volume.

"What?" Javelin questioned.

"Proving my point, if anything. I can't even hear her over our splashing even with my hearing." Echo rolled his eyes.

"We may not like it, but she has a point. Let's keep it down, guys." Dusk ordered.

"Yeah. I mean, I'm not really sure what is in this swamp, but if it's anything like Earth-" Anon began, but before he could continue, his legs were suddenly taken out from under him, knocking him onto his side in the water.

Anon landed with a loud and startling *splash* making the entire group whirl around on him, but before any of them could react, he was quickly and fiercely dragged away, under the water.

"Anon!" Javelin cried, charging after him.

Both Dusk and Echo followed suite, taking to the sky to give chase to whatever had taken Anon. Meanwhile, Tempest galloped off ahead, leaving them all behind. Seeing her going the opposite direction, Javelin came to a screeching halt.

"Tempest! Get back here!" He shouted, turning to give chase.

However, the sound of Anon's flailing and splashing was still filling his ears, making him pause. As much as he wanted to give chase to the mulberry mare, his friend needed him, and he couldn't bring himself to abandon him, even if Dusk and Echo were already chasing. So it was with grit teeth, and a snarl of fury, that Javelin reared back on his hind legs, turned back toward Anon and charged after his friend.

It was easy for him to follow the trail. Beyond the creature leaving a literal wake in its path from where it dragged Anon off to, the sounds of splashing were indeed so loud that he was able to easy give chase. The path winded and weaved, going back the direction they'd come from, then back toward the direction they were heading. It twisted and weaved with no real rhyme or reason to it, but eventually, Javelin did finally catch up to Dusk and Echo.

"This way!" Dusk called waving Javelin over.

He chased as hard and fast as his legs would allow, covering the distance through the swampy water until the group came to a clearing with an elevated portion of dry land. Once they passed through the thicket of trees obscuring their view, they finally say what had Anon in it's jaws.

Large and menacing, its scaly hide filled with actual stone and rocks, the Cragadile held Anon by one of his legs in its mouth. Mercifully, its long and thick teeth hadn't punctured his flesh, though with it's bite force, Anon would be lucky to escape with no broken bones. He was struggling to free himself from the jaws of the beast, though his mere mortal human strength was nothing compared to the bite force of one of the most voracious predators in Equestria.

"We've gotta get him out of there!" Javelin barked, charging his horn and making several mana bolts appear overhead.

None of them were expecting to see Tempest leap down from one of the trees overhead, landing squarely on the Cragadile's head.

Author's Note

Well I couldn't put edgehorse in here and not have her and Anon have a moment... also she's a badass so of course she's going to have a fight scene... or several.