Stealth

Chapters

The Hero Of A Whole Generation
A Single Hoof Can't Block The Sun
Tea And Smoking Pipes
Always In Another Castle
The Ground Beneath Her Hooves
Silver Dusk, Golden Dawn
The First Impression Is Always Very Appealing
Author's Notes + [BONUS]

The Hero Of A Whole Generation

His eyes never laughed when he laughed. It is either the sign of an evil nature or of a profound and lasting sorrow.

- "A Hero of Our Time" by Mikhail Lermontov

***

The Hero Of A Whole Generation

The blinding light penetrated into Silver Dawn's eyes through his eyelids, making him grunt discontentedly and roll over. Alas, he had already woken up and, no matter how hard he tried to snooze a little, he failed to fall asleep again. The black earth pony opened his eyes, adjusting to the brightness of the hospital. The hospital? Again? Silver experienced a severe feeling of deja vu: the bulb, the wooden bed, white walls, dark red curtains... He recollected the recent events. Lancy, the librarian, the Sphere, Stealth...

Stealth!

Silver quickly jumped up, shaking his whole body, standing on four hooves. He felt anxiety crawling through his insides: from the gut to the very heart. He had to act swiftly, before anypony could find him. He had to run - run very, very far away. He had no time to bide.

After making his mind run through a few dozens of various plans of escape - from most unpractical and idiotic ones to the brilliant schemes worth a genuine mastermind - he decided to escape through the window, breaking it. That way, the noise would attract the guards to the room, giving him a few priceless minutes.

Just as the black pony strained every nerve and muscle, the door opened and a familiar red unicorn entered the room. His face carried the usual shiny grin, as if nothing had ever happened between the two ponies: no excursion around Stealth, no revelation of the shocking truth, no sleep spell.

Lancy approached the black pony self-dependently, with the feeling of his undoubtful importance. He put a hoof on the frozen pony's shoulder, slightly patting it in an almost-friendly manner.

"Silver, pal, how's it going?" He asked excitedly, holding the black adventurer in place by the shoulder.

Silver Dawn quickly analysed the situation. At first sight, Golden Lance seemed either friendly, as though he had suddenly forgotten about every single event since Silver's arrival, or ignorant. But the experienced black pony knew the red unicorn wasn't forgetful and was by no means ignorant. In that case, what game was he playing? What scheme was he developing? What sinister plan was being born in the depths of the red his mind?

The black earth pony slowly took the red hoof from his shoulder and made a step back, facing the unicorn, keeping his back to the wall - a classical stance of defence. From the experience, Silver knew the golden rule of survival: Strike from behind, keep your back to the wall. So he did now, automatically, his body acting without consulting the mind, rejecting its leading role for a moment.

"No need to be so harsh, Silver, paaaal," Lancy sweetly cooed, taking a step forth. "We're pals, aren't we?" He asked, slowly moving towards the tense earth pony, who gritted his teeth, ready for whatever would happen. Silver was ready for torture, for pain, for death. But he would express his attitude towards the confounded unicorn first. Oh yes, he would tell that insane fanatic everything he deserved!

However, the very instant the black pony opened his mouth, he failed to emit any kind of imputable speech. He suddenly felt embarrassed and confused, unable to form his phrases properly. And, as it usually happens in such cases, he quietly mumbled:

"But you... enchanted me..."

The red unicorn chuckled.

"Well, I've just provided you with a few hours of sleep, Silver, pal! What's wrong with that?" He asked, raising a brow and smiling.

Although Lancy's reasoning was quite assuring (He really knows a thing or two about hypnosis... Silver thought), the horrible fact that the unicorn was a supporter of a merciless carnivore - the Sphere - immediately came to Silver Dawn's mind, giving him a weighty argument against Lancy's persuasive chatter.

"You worship an object that devours ponies!" Silver yelled at the top of his lungs, breathing heavily, ready to change his defensive stance into an offensive one any second.

Lancy widened his eyes in surprise and, as it seemed to the black pony, not a fake one.

"Silver, pal!" He exclaimed, shortening the distance between the two ponies. "I don't worship the Sphere! It's just the foundation of our economy. Without it, we wouldn't be able to survive - and with it, we not only survive but also let our citizens live in happiness and prosperity!" Lancy's voice was firm, articulate, his grin was assuring and confident.

Silver Dawn hesitated for a moment. So, Lancy wasn't a fanatic. But of course he wasn't! If he were, he would have acted differently, expressing fundamentalist views, not creating tirades about free-thinking and freedom of choice, as he did... yesterday? Two days ago? How long have I been asleep? Silver thought, but quickly perished the thought. He had some business to discuss.

"It's inequine, Lancy," the black pony emphasised the last word, savouring it, almost mocking the unicorn, who, as it could be clearly seen, either didn't notice the change of tone or decided not to notice it. "You are spending souls for energy. You imprison ponies in this place. And you still think you dare think of freedom?" Silver roared, stomping his hoof, perturbed by an overwhelming feeling of disdain towards the red unicorn. "You may torture me, you may kill me, but do believe me, the vengeance will come! Sooner or later, the ponies of Stealth will overthrow your dictatorship!" He finished his speech on a high note, glaring daggers at Lancy, ready to fight for his life and freedom.

That was it. Freedom. Freedom was the reason why he kept carrying on on his pointless journey. Freedom was his reason to live. Throughout his life, he had mistaken his feelings. He wasn't proud to be alone. He was proud to be free. And only now, before the inevitable death, he realised it. It made him feel warm and content. It made his undying fury flow in the direction of Golden Lance. It gifted the earth pony new powers that he felt deep inside, that were ready to break free.

However, Lancy's reaction quite differed from what Silver was expecting. The unicorn shook his head, looking offended, his grin faded. He sighed and shook his head once more.

"Silver, pal... Do I look like a dictator?" He raised his head, looking into Silver's eyes. Lancy's eyes were teary, staring into the black pony's soul. "I don't rule the town. I just found the Sphere and founded Stealth - I'm a mere... coordinator, if I may say," Lancy spoke in a tranquil voice, making the lavender-coated adventurer gradually calm down. "Next, you're accusing me of being inequine. Silver, pal, if you were a realist, you would see that the nature of the Sphere is not yet explained; thus, it takes ponies' lives without our help - it just happens... But it does provide the town with free energy. We cannot stop using such a powerful source of energy - we're no philanthropists. Think about it from a different perspective - sacrificing the lives of those over twenty-five, we grant protection to those under twenty-five. Were it not for the Sphere, much more ponies would have died," he continued, his words reaching Silver's ears, crawling to his mind, making him succumb to the unicorn's logic. "Last but not the least, you're accusing me of repressing equines' rights, right? But I assure you, Silver, pal, that those ponies are free. They have all possible freedoms and rights you can imagine. Freedom of speech, freedom of expression..."

"Freedom of dying at twenty-five," Silver interjected, almost defeated by Golden Lance's logical conclusions, but still somewhat biased towards the unicorn.

Lancy exhaled wearily. He tried to put a hoof on the Silvers shoulder, but the black pony prevented the action by stepping back, now leaning against the wall.

"Silver, pal, it may be hard to believe, but ponies do it freely. Most of them understand the importance of self-sacrifice, you see. They are happy with their lives and they don't want to live or, what is even more absurd, overthrow my non-existent tyranny," Golden Lance finished wearily - Silver could clearly see the unicorn was exhausted. But he also noticed Lancy was talking honestly. Either he was telling the truth (the black pony had already considered it as a possible option) or he really did believe in his lie.

There was only one way to find out, and the suggestion, to Silver's surprise, came from Lancy himself.

"Hay, Silver, pal, if you don't believe me, maybe you will believe them? Let's go in the streets and ask common ponies about how they are truly feeling and, I assure you, you will be very surprised," the red unicorn said, turning away from the black pony, slowly making his way to the door.

Why am I always the one who's following and not the one who's leading? Silver Dawn silently wondered before agreeing to test Lancy's theory and going outside after the self-proclaimed 'coordinator'.

***

The town of Stealth welcomed the two ponies with its usual bustle and business. Everypony seemed hectic, were they simply trotting along the road or actually galloping somewhere, towards their phantasmal destination. The sun was bathing in its own warmness high in the sky, though ready to descend, and the buildings were casting quite long shadows, letting weary citizens hide from the intense heat of the celestial body. Young ponies were everywhere, excitedly looking around, chatting or admiring the perfect town - the town of bliss, the town of action, the town of youth, the town of death.

Silver Dawn didn't share their vigour. He stood erect, looking around, waiting for Lancy to offer him at least a piece of proof to his weird, yet seemingly honest words.

Lancy huffed at the black pony's stiffness and, upon noticing an adolescent pegasus wandering aimlessly about the town, waved his hoof, gesturing for the young citizen to come up to him.

The pegasus noticed the two ponies and, smiling innocently, approached them. His coat was cyan, his mane was dark green. His eyes were shining with such hope and faith that Silver had to look aside, unable to see any more happiness.

The black pony couldn't say he was offended by seeing content ponies all around the place. Yet, somewhere deep inside, he envied them. He had wasted his life by trying to survive, whilst these greenhorns looked satisfied and glossy, unaware of the dangers of the rotten outside world. They were happy in their cage, in this heavenly prison. Silver envied them, true, but he never wanted to be similar to them. He knew the torments of the real word, real life, real challenge to sustain the weak dying fire of existence burning inside every creature. He was stringer. He was sturdier. He was hardened by the reality. They weren't. And that was Silver's superiority.

The lavender-maned adventurer managed to look straight into the young pegasus' eyes, then directed his gaze towards Golden Lance.

The white-maned unicorn shook the pegasus' hoof, grinning in the usual way.

"Hi, pal!" He said unconstrainedly, smiling first at the pegasus, then at Silver. The colt returned the smile. The earth pony frowned.

"Hey, Lancy! 'Sup?" The cyan pegasus smiled, looking at the red unicorn with anticipation. He was longing to hear from Lancy. He was yearning for the answer, not unlike a young colt desired a long-awaited autograph from a celebrity.

"You see, pal, this lad here..." Lacy pointed at Silver, making the earth pony shrug in displeasure. "...thinks I'm kinda evil dictator suppressing ponies' freedom," he finished, smiling indulgently. The smile was oriented at Silver, though the unicorn was addressing the pegasus.

The cyan colt chuckled, then snickered, holding a fit of laughter inside his gut. Alas, he couldn't help it and, in a moment, he burst out into laughter, wiping a tear off his eye. Silver noticed that the pegasus' laugh was natural, contrary to Lancy's. It seemed as though the whole statement seemed extremely funny to the colt, and he didn't hesitate to express his attitude.

"Good one, pal," the green-maned pony chuckled and patted Silver on the back, much to the black pony's astonishment. "Lancy - a dictator? Heh, hilarious," he finished, facing the black pony, admiring Silver's wit.

The black adventurer groaned and facehoofed, embarrassed by the colt's reaction.

"No, no, no!" Silver exclaimed, trying to reach the core of the pegasus' mind to explain himself clearly, so that the colt would realise the importance and gravity of the matter. "I'm serious, um... pal," he continued, still not used to the form of addressing in Stealth. which, to him, seemed not only unusual but rather meaningless. "Can't you see you're locked in this place?" He exclaimed, fortifying his question with a stomp of a hoof.

The pegasus looked at him in lack of understanding, raising his brow a little.

"Pal, what's wrong with that? You really sure you wanna live in the outside world?" He said, putting as much disdain in the last two words as Lancy did. Those ponies obviously had some serious issues with the outside world, Silver noticed. "What's more, it's dangerous as hay there and safe here. I'd like to see somepony trade living in Stealth to living there!" The colt exclaimed, concluding his unpretentious speculation.

The black earth pony couldn't decide whether the colt before him were mentally blind or plainly stupid.

"You will die when you're twenty-five, pal," he said, amazed by the locals' logic.

The colt shrugged, shaking his head, as if he were explaining the simplicity itself, and Silver were an ignorant student unable to understand the simplest fundamental points of life.

"Pal, that's life. You either live happily for twenty-five years here, or you live there and die in pain in a few years, or even months!" The pegasus still tried to make his point clear to the stubborn earth pony, who refused to learn.

"But I survived! I've lived for twenty-four years, twenty of which I've spent alone in the wilderness, trying to survive! And I managed to do it, and managed well, if I may say!" Silver tried to be gentle but he was beginning to lose his composure, almost shouting at the colt, who honestly couldn't understand the black stranger's point of view.

The pegasus shrugged again.

"Well, you're lucky, pal, what can I say? But most ponies want peace, not your deadly 'freedom'," he told Silver, when a pair of unicorns passing by hailed the pegasus by name: "Dusty, going to the cinema or what?"

Dusty. The name didn't suit him even a little bit, Silver speculated. Something like 'Shiny' would fit - the whole figure of the pegasus was shining with faith in the future and hope - feelings that the black pony had destroyed by his own device long ago.

The cyan colt gifted Lancy with a warm, almost loving, smile and even grinned a bit at Silver.

"Sorry, pals, my friends are calling me! Gotta go now!" He said and trotted towards the unicorns upon receiving an approving nod from Lancy and a confusing glance from Silver.

As the three youngsters walked down the road, Silver overheard a part of their conversation:

"And then he said Lancy's an evil dictator!" Dusty laughed, and so did the two unicorns. One of them said, chuckling and letting out a sigh:

"Oh, newbies can be so amusing! Lancy - a dictator? Heh, he's waaaay too awesome to be a dictator!"

The other unicorn shook his head approvingly.

"Yeah, he's like, the hero of a whole generation!" He exclaimed, receiving approving nods from his friends. As the ponies proceeded on their way, their silhouettes became illegible, their voices became quieter and quieter, up to the point when Silver couldn't hear a word they were saying.

The hero of a whole generation. That's what Lancy was for them. A hero. The hero of their generation, the only generation in Stealth. The hero of fake happiness. The hero of artificial bliss. The hero of voluntary, yet inevitable, death. Silver felt his face fade, his legs trembling, his mood collapsing into misery.

"They're just brainwashed... Simply zombified..." He mumbled, still not believing what he had heard. His ears could perceive the information but his brain could not. He wanted all of this to be a bad dream - one of those nightmares he was having from time to time. But it felt real and, as a matter of fact, it was.

The hero of a whole generation, however, felt as content as he had felt before. He patted the black pony on the back and, much to Lancy's surprise that could be noticed by his raised brows, Silver didn't hesitate this time.

"Silver, pal, you can believe in whatever makes you happy but we don't have brainwashing technologies here," Golden Lance said cautiously, stepping back from the black earth pony. "Besides, the overwhelming majority of Stealth citizens really enjoy their lives. They are happy because we provide them with all the opportunities to live happily!" Lancy exclaimed, once again in his element. "We give them free education, free entertainment, free food, free homes!" He talked like a native orator, his voice majestic, his gestures influential, his arguments weighty.

Suddenly, Lancy brought his speech to a halt, hitting his forehead with a hoof.

"Oh, I've totally forgotten! While you were sleeping..." Lancy said nonchalantly, as if it weren't him who put Silver to sleep in the first place. "...I found you a nice flat near the centre of the town. We simply must visit it!" He exclaimed, beginning to walk down the road steadily, but not fast, letting Silver make up his mind.

Silver Dawn was confused. He was utterly perturbed. The most awful discovery was that ponies actually liked Stealth and, to Silver's horror, not without a reason. They were leading happy lives for free - but they were living on credit, for they had to pay later - with their lives. Well, I haven't much of a choice, have I? The lavender-maned earth pony asked himself and sighed in misery.

He looked at Lancy. The red unicorn was slowly moving down the road. Step by step. Like he, Silver Dawn, was moving through the desert when his life was saved by this terrifying hero. The hero of a whole generation... Silver thought, looking at Lancy's back, inhaling deeply.

Embarrassed and disconcerted, he followed the unicorn with calm humility, dragging his hooves, his head hanging low, worse than the time he was struggling to cross the ghastly desert.

***

As Silver Dawn was following Lancy, his brain was trying to overcome the feeling that something was definitely amiss. Lancy was clear about their intentions: he never hushed up that they killed ponies - maybe without their will, but killed them nevertheless. He spoke about freedom - and he was right. As they were walking down the road, the earth pony saw placards reading 'We shall overcome the Sphere's tyranny!' and 'Down with Lancy!' The red unicorn only chuckled when he saw those posters. There were rebels, he said, but the local police weren't persecuting them, for the freedom of expression was a fundamental rule of Stealth. Silver couldn't help noticing that even those dissidents who were against Golden Lance still called him by his endearing nickname.

There was freedom, there was legal opposition, there was crystal transparency between the 'coordinator team' and the citizens of Stealth... But why was Silver in misery? Was it because he didn't approve of the way they maintained the place or... because he wouldn't have the opportunity to live there for more than a year? Such thoughts were contributing to the severe state of confusion the black pony had been experiencing for some time now.

His thinking process swiftly ceased at the sight of a magnificent four-storey building that appeared before his eyes. Silver raised his head, admiring the polished stone walls of the house, its wonderful window panes and luring curtains behind the windows that were creating a peaceful and calm atmosphere of being home.

Lancy stopped in his tracks, levitating a shiny object towards Silver. The earth pony took it in his mouth. It was a key. And Silver knew what it would open. As in corroboration of his thoughts, Lancy said:

"Fourth floor, flat number fifteen. Hope you like your new home, Silver, pal. I won't hinder you."

Silver Dawn tucked away his defiance and simply nodded, stupefied by the pleasant feeling of holding a key to his own flat. Since the Cataclysm destroyed his kin in its blind wave of destruction, the poor colt never had even his own room, not to mention a house or a flat. He felt warmness in his chest and even wanted to express his gratitude to the unicorn but Lancy had already left.

This place is strange as hay... I really do need to think about it later, Silver thought, brushing aside his speculations about the strange snag that inhabited the town. Now, they could wait. Now, he was on his way to his flat. His own flat.

It is sometimes so entertaining to see how one's sophisticated philosophy and convictions are outshone by something as simple as a new item - or place - or feeling. It envelops one whole, and all the fundamental beliefs remain outside for that period, while the rapture from something new still remains. Silver was no exception to this rule of life.

He opened the front door, only to see a simple staircase in front of him and a corridor on the left, leading to a small area circumscribed with four doors - undoubtfully, the doors to the flats. Well, what were you expecting - an elevator? Silver chuckled and ascended the stairs.

He reached the fourth floor, taking a turn to the left, where he saw a tiny area similar to the one he had seen before, on the first floor - four doors with numbers on them. Silver came up to the door that had number '15' on it. He reached it with a hoof and gently and lovingly stroked the wooden rectangle, feeling the coldness of the metal number and the door handle.

He had a strange feeling in his stomach. He was getting very excited and, without further hesitation, he opened the door and entered the flat.

A single room rose before his eyes. There was a simple wooden bed - a twin of the bed from the hospital, no less - and a cupboard made of the same material. The curtains were dark red. A single bulb was hanging from the ceiling. In the distance, Silver could see the switch. He approached it and turned on the light. The room looked slightly brighter, allowing Silver to realise the actual colour of the curtains was deep purple, not dark red. He saw another door, a smaller one, on the opposite wall. He came up to it, turning the door knob. It was a bathroom and, as it seemed to the black pony, a good one. There was a steel shower cubicle and a porcelain lavatory pan - not a rich interior, but functional enough.

Looking around, Silver noticed (not without a hint of delight) that the studio was extraordinarily cosy. He had never felt so attached to a place before, and he was savouring the wonderful feeling of warmness in his chest. He wandered around the room, stroking the soft sheets on the bed, opening and closing the cupboard for no discernible reason. At last, he resolved to put the key in the cupboard and go outdoors. First of all, the weather promised to be fine and, moreover, he still had to ask Lancy a couple of questions. And examine how well this place is guarded... He made a mental note.

After leaving the flat and closing the door behind him, Silver Dawn suddenly paled and looked at the shut door. The key! The key was inside, peacefully lying in the cupboard. Silver groaned and swore under his breath. Now he had another good reason to meet Lancy. The black pony silently wondered if the red unicorn had a spare key.

As Silver descended the staircase, he noticed an opened door on the first floor. Part of him told him to keep the urge to investigate, but another part was egging on him, persuading him to go explore. Giving himself up to his natural impetuous curiosity, the lavender-maned pony trotted in the direction of the opened door, standing next to it. There was no sign of action inside. Maybe somepony just forgot to close the door? Nothing special. None of your business, Silver, he thought. Such an idea was soothing enough and Silver walked towards the exit of the building, glancing at the door for the last time before leaving the building.

He stood in front of the house for some time. He was considering what to do next. The idea of checking the defence of the town looked pretty appealing; however, he still had to find a spare key somewhere. After a minute of mental discourse, Silver resolved to find Lancy first. Moreover, if the unicorn were really honest, he would simply tell the inquisitive newcomer whether the defence were weak or insurmountable.

As SIlver Dawn trotted up the stone-paved road, he couldn't get rid of the thoughts about that door. He could swear that it wasn't a mere coincidence - throughout his life, he had developed an impressive intuition that made him experience tangible premonitions each time something was amiss. And he had such a premonition now.

Cursing his light-heartedness, the black adventurer galloped back to his new house (his stream of consciousness caught hold of the word 'his' subconsciously) and swung the front door open, swearing he would kick himself if the door would be locked.

But it was still open. Upon letting out a relieved sigh, he approached it, trying to look through the hole.

He immediately felt something heavy hit him on the head, making him faint momentarily.

A Single Hoof Can't Block The Sun

Let me not look for allies in life's battlefield but to my own strength.

- Rabindranath Tagore

***

A Single Hoof Can't Block The Sun

It is said that ponies can eventually get used to anything: eating disgusting food, sleeping in tattered hammocks instead of proper beds, wearing torn rags... Silver Dawn was getting used to waking up with a severe headache, from a troubled sleep caused by somepony else, who, to Silver's displeasure, never asked for permission to provide him with such a sudden treatment. First, he fainted in the desert. Next, he fell asleep from a spell. Now, he awoke from a deep slumber caused by an unexpected blow on the head that made him lose consciousness.

To say he was dumbfounded when he opened his eyes was the same as to seal one's lips forever, never emitting a sound in one's entire life. The black pony was stricken. He was astonished. Perplexed. Bewildered.

Instead of waking up in a room similar to his own or, as it had already happened twice, in a hospital, he found himself in the most surreal and bizarre place he had ever seen. He was lying on a pile of torn sacks located in the corner of what seemed like the largest room in the wide world of Equestria. It looked more like an underground city from the novel Silver read when he was a colt - what was its name? The place was a tremendous space circumscribed by steel walls, floor and ceiling. It resembled a gigantic steely box, which wasn't empty - it was filled with ponies. Near Silver lay several ponies, sleeping in the conditions similar to the ones he had been in. Earth ponies, pegasi and unicorns were everywhere, not unlike they were in Stealth. But there was a crucial distinction. These ponies weren't happy. They were busy, hectic, sometimes delighted and cheerful - but not happy, flying in the airy ocean of rapture, like those ponies in Stealth. The black pony looked at the wall behind him and saw a copper sign that read: Sleeping corner. Upon standing up and exploring the surroundings, the adventurer found such signs everywhere.

There was an 'Eating corner', which, in reality, was a simple metal stand with a single unicorn behind it serving free food to a few ponies standing in a relatively short queue. Silver seriously considered joining them, for the hay fries that were being served looked greatly delicious, but resolved to move on, as he still had to find out about this mystical place. There was an 'Engine corner' - there could be seen a strange brass machine, which was placed near the wall, emitting such amounts of steam that Silver simply couldn't get closer to examine it. Such machines were all around the place, with wires attached to them. These were providing energy for the place, no less. Everything seemed so oriented around steam, copper and steel. Steampunk! Silver remembered. That was the name of that book and, presumably, the name of the style it gave birth to.

In general, the place was an underground city of steel, copper and steam, with ponies living all around the place. It looked rather dirty but far cleaner than Stealth or the outside world. The outside world? Silver stopped, freezing for a moment. He shook his head in shame. Great, now he was thinking like Lancy. His stream of consciousness tried to direct itself towards the red unicorn and his town but was rudely interrupted by a much more important question: How did I get here and what exactly is this place? The ponies bustling about didn't pay any attention to the black earth pony, minding their own business. Silver Dawn stopped and looked around, noticing (not without a bit of amazement) that he had already crossed half of the room... no, the city. He watched the ponies, admiring them. It had been such a long time since he saw so many equines in one place. Stealth was but a peaceful village compared to this monster born by steam-based technology. He saw ponies of all races, colours and ages... No, not ages. All of these were young, like Stealth citizens. Under twenty-five. Now he knew exactly. It could have looked as though the Cataclysm had never affected these ponies - if it were not for the obvious lack of cutie marks due to the horrible radiation that signed the invisible document entrusting the equine race to the post-apocalyptic world.

There were much more signs in the distance, more glorious steaming machines, more weird copper devices (like copper mechanical clocks that were hanging on the walls - only thanks to them Silver noticed it was the middle of the day - the steel lamp-posts were lighting the whole city perfectly and fully, so one couldn't tell night from daytime) and the earth pony was ready to go exploring - he finally felt he was in his element, eager for a new adventure - but was suddenly stopped by two hooves roughly put on his shoulders.

Silver immediately grabbed the foreign hooves with his two front hooves, respectively, and, balancing on the back legs, pulled the two owners of those hooves towards the floor, making them fall down on their backs. This reflex, amongst many others, had been cultivated for years - the black pony knew intuitively how to survive in the wilderness and how to deal with all kinds of enemies. Now that he was able to see his stalkers, he felt slightly proud of his abilities. Both ponies looked incredibly muscular and strong. One of them was a huge pegasus - a grey stallion with a silver mane, while the other one was more of a colt, despite his impressive size - a yellow earth pony with a similar silver mane. Hmm... Their manes and surely look like they've been painted... The colour's not natural, Silver speculated, watching the two brutal stallions rise on their hooves, whining like foals, rubbing their backs and hooves that were so harshly pulled by the lavender-maned pony. Silver Dawn let out a chuckle, admiring the strange couple. They looked like bodyguards; in fact, they were mere piles of muscles, with no decent ability to fight. Silver could see it - he read ponies like books. Most ponies. Lancy was an exception. It was so strange - being far away from the last remnants of the equine society, the black pony somehow could dive into one's character in a matter of seconds, analysing it and making a decent mental image of anypony. Almost anypony. The confounded red unicorn refused to leave Silver's brain, clinging to it somewhere in the middle.

As the ponies stood up, they exchanged a horrified look, frozen in place, unable to run away. Silver thought it to be a perfect opportunity for some mocking intimidation and almost opened his mouth but the grey pegasus spoke first, sending a pleading look towards the black earth pony:

"Please, don't hurt us! We were just ordered to find some black lavender-maned earth pony and you look like one and..."

"...And who are you and why were you ordered to find... that pony?" Silver interrupted him with a roar, standing erect, radiating fake fury, making the pegasus shiver.

"We're jes' workin' for Layla - she said she brought a black lavender-maned earth pony here and he left the Sleeping corner and ran off. She said he was probably eager to explore the place and told us to bring him to her..." The yellow earth pony mumbled, continuing his companion's excuse, pleading for acquittal, sniffing and shaking in terror. "Please don't hurt us..." He finished, looking up to Silver (which was difficult, especially considering the fact that both silver-maned ponies were significantly taller than the black earth pony) with teary eyes.

Silver Dawn reminded himself that he was addressing a young colt and softened his tone slightly, yet still expressing fake displeasure that was doing a perfect job of hiding his increasing curiosity.

"And who the hay is that Layla you are talking about?" He asked, trying to maintain a reasonable amount of disdain and disinterest, his face almost expressionless, apart from his frown.

"Layla is my name," a female voice came from behind Silver's back.

***

The black pony turned round and saw a unicorn. It was a purple mare with a mane and tail of red, which strangely reminded Silver of fresh strawberries that he consumed in fantastic amounts when he was a little foal. The mare's eyes were blue - not the dreamy kind of blue that is described in romance novels - instead, they were blue as the vernal sea that may seem welcoming in the beginning but eventually unleashes its might, showing who is the real dominatrix around here. Her mane was freely falling down, crawling down her slender neck, falling on her tender shoulders... Silver had to shake his head to get rid of that strange delusion that had overwhelmed him. That's just hormones speaking, Silver. Calm down, he said to himself.

It seemed that the mare noticed the sudden change in Silver's attitude - from the menacing victor, who had just beaten two ponies twice as large as him with a swing of a hoof, the black pony instantly metamorphosed into an embarrassed colt who saw an especially beautiful representative of the opposite gender. She chuckled.

"And who are you, mister I-Am-Good-At-Running-Away?" The purple unicorn asked Silver, who blushed for no discernable reason.

"Silver Dawn..." The black pony mumbled, instantly forgetting about his intentions to be the one who questions, not the one to be questioned. It seemed that this Layla had a hypnotising effect on Silver, somewhere on the subconscious level.

"So, hero of the day, you going to resist or what?" The mare asked, chuckling, making the black pony understand she was no treat or enemy to him.

"Um... I..." Silver muttered, mentally scolding himself for looking so meek in front of a mare.

One of the two stallions snickered behind Silver's back. The black earth pony immediately turned round, glaring daggers at them, gifting them with an earth-shattering growl:

"YOU THERE! Keep in mind I'm not done with you yet!"

Silver's words had a magical effect on the sturdy ponies, making them significantly shrink, primeval fear returning to their hearts, their eyes regaining the pleading look.

Upon turning round once more, he noticed Layla raised her brown, giving him an estimating look.

"Good," she said, moving slightly closer to Silver, making his face flash, his body getting hotter. "We need ponies of such strong physical and mental skill. Too bad you're afraid of mares, though," she finished with a laugh.

The last statement served as a cure for Silver's embarrassment, making him fully regain his composure, his blush fading, his face becoming austere.

"I am not," he replied sternly. "Let's speak openly: who are you and what do you want from me? Why have you kidnapped me? Where the hay am I? Make a clean breast of it, babe," Silver continued, rapping out each question, not rushing even slightly.

Layla didn't seemed half as impressed by the lavender-maned pony's speech as her subordinates that were slowly stepping back, ready to escape once a decent moment would appear. The purple pony leaned closer to Silver, almost touching his nuzzle with hers, her breath pouring on him.

However, the black stallion managed to stand erect and proud, his face nearly expressionless, his mouth sealed in majestic silence. I'm not falling for this again, he thought to himself, meeting the mare's gaze with his own look, not a defensive one, but more of a cautious gaze, the one which one uses against an Ursa to show it who is in charge. He suddenly remembered Shining Star, the librarian, mentally wondering why his brain decided to make such an association.

"I see you are worthy, Silver Dawn. Okay, I will explain. Come on, follow me," she said, trotting in the direction of the other half of the city, still unexplored by Silver.

The black stallion let out a groan and mumbled something under his breath, something like 'When the hay am I going to be the leading one?' and 'Why the hay are all the ponies here so confusing?" at the same time.

***

As the purple unicorn and the black earth pony passed the steel stalls where ponies were selling and buying various goods, Layla began to speak.

"Straight to business, Silver Dawn. This place is an underground city beneath Stealth. We brought you here because we were watching you and saw you didn't quite enjoy the perspective of dying at twenty-five," she began speaking softly, yet rather loudly, only to be interrupted by Silver.

"Oh, you could have asked me, you know. Making somepony pass out is not the best option," the black pony said, not angrily but disapprovingly nevertheless.

Layla shrugged. "Well, it's conspiracy, you know," she replied casually, making Silver wonder if that 'conspiracy' were worth it.

He looked around. The walls looked dirty but neither mud nor dust could be visible anywhere. It's rust. The steely walls turn rusty eventually, the black pony concluded. Copper decorations and devices occupied the place - there were so many and they were so unusual that it was very difficult, almost painful, for Silver to hold the rising urge to go and look closer, examining the items in a fit of pure curiosity.

"So, what do you need this conspiracy for? You're saying Lancy's subordinates don't know about this place?" As Silver said it, his eyes shone with excitement - it all so resembled the plot of that book he read... Alas, his hopes were crushed with a mighty fist... No, actually, a soft female voice:

"No, not quite. They know - why wouldn't they? They approve - freedom of expression blah blah blah... Hay, Lancy himself visited this place and left dumbstruck!" She chuckled upon remembering the accident of past times, but then her face became serious. "What they don't know..." She continued, dropping her voice to a whisper; Silver looked around to find out that they were standing near the wall, with no ponies nearby. "...is that we created and now rule this place," she finished, throwing a glance full of grave conspiracy towards Silver, who simply shrugged.

"And now we come to the final, and most important, question: who are 'we'? I mean, 'you'. I mean, 'you' in the plural form," he said, facehoofing as he realised he somehow managed to fail to ask such a simple question properly.

Layla snickered at such a failure to produce a question in a rather dramatic manner, but answered seriously nevertheless.

"You see, Silver Dawn, 'we' are in fact a group of scientists who had developed several steam-based technologies and founded this city when we came to Stealth. For one reason," she paused slightly at that point. "To break free," she finished, looking at Silver's face estimatingly.

The black pony returned the gaze. Contrary to Lancy, this mare was easy to read. She realised that he was a supporter of their views - hay, who wants to die at twenty-five? (They want. Those colts and fillies in Stealth, that's who, a thought crawled into his mind, only to be thrown away as swiftly as possible) - and wanted him to join them. Easy as hay. But he wouldn't join them right away. No, the outside world (Really? 'Outside world? A voice appeared in his head but for a second) taught him to be cautious. He would be prudent. He would be consistent and consecutive. Maybe those ponies were Lancy's spies? Or maybe *you** would like to be one?* The same voice asked him, and Silver waved his hoof to get rid of it.

Layla raised her brows in surprise.

"Something wrong, Silver Dawn?" She asked compassionately, patting the earth pony on the shoulder.

Silver felt warm and embarrassed at the same time. He hoped the sinister blush wouldn't appear on his face - unfortunately, it did. He tried to shrug it off - to no avail. He coughed, trying to hide his unwelcome reaction.

"So what part do I play? Why kidnap me?" He asked, regaining his proud stance.

The purple unicorn slightly lowered her head.

"You see, Silver Dawn... You are a so-called 'newbie', and you are against the Sphere, so you share our point of view..." She looked up to see Silver nodding and continued, gradually recovering her spirits. "So we thought you could become one of us and... you know? Assist us in a way?" She asked almost pleadingly.

Silver frowned, taking an intuitive step back.

"Not so fast, Layla," he replied, calling her by the name for the first time. "First of all, if you are so clear about your intentions and want me to join in, do tell me: how in the wide world of Equestria are you planning to escape?" He wondered, gesticulating with a hoof questioningly.

The red-maned unicorn sighed, shaking her head lamentably.

"You can't see it now, Silver Dawn, but there were a few tunnels we had been digging... We had to fill them up due to police inspections..." She chuckled sadly. "You know how they say? You can do anything but leave this place. That's the only rule, but the punishment for breaking it is severe - they kill you. They kill you to keep you in," she finished firmly, fires of justice dancing in her blue eyes.

Silver decided it for the best to change the topic for a while.

"So what were you planning for me to do?" He asked straightaway, making the purple mare turn a dark shade of pink, almost red. Great job, Silver. You are an adept in changing the topic. Silver mentally facehoofed, though in reality he didn't show a sign of embarrassment.

"You know... you are close to Lancy - he has an unusual interest in you, maybe that's because you can resist his hypnosis..." She began, her blush fainting as she returned to the familiar field of explaining business.

"Wait a minute. Are you saying you were spying on me all the time I've been in Stealth?" The black earth pony let out an interrupting yell, surprised to the bone.

"Yes, we've been watching you," Layla replied simply. She exerted herself, building up her courage - it was obvious to Silver due to her face expression - before continuing. "We decided to talk without beating around the bush, right? We want you to worm yourself into Lancy's confidence and eventually..." She made a pause - not a dramatic one, but a simple interval for lack of confidence.

Silver sent her a reassuring smile, which was also a warm one, being at the frontier of the type of smile only lovers and very close friends tend to exchange. "Let it out," he told her, patting her on the shoulder in the same way she treated him.

Surprisingly enough, it didn't make the red-maned pony embarrassed - in fact, it made her regain lost confidence and carry on.

"...kill him," she finished, her certitude betraying her after she spoke those words.

Silver's mouth momentarily fell agape. He blinked a few times, trying to process the statement he had just heard.

"You... want me to assassinate the ruler of Stealth?" He asked after a few moments of simply opening and closing his mouth.

The mare looked up to him, her eyes no more pleading, but still inquiring.

"I don't mean now," she said, gesticulating with a hoof, as if trying to reason Silver. "You will be around him, examining his weaknesses and when the time is right, you'll strike!" She said loud, yet irresolutely, not sure what kind of response to expect.

"And what do you think will drive me to do it? I'm not part of your... How is your group even called?" The lavender-maned pony roared with ardour.

"Operation Rescue..." Layla whispered, shocked by Silver's behaviour.

"Thank you, miss, but I'm not playing. You get that? Not. Playing," he hissed loudly, his eyes shining with anger. To tell the truth, if Silver were honest to himself, he wouldn't have found a single reason to be furious - but now, his reactions were determined by another values, which, in fact, even to him seemed quite meaningless. If he stopped for a second to speculate on the topic, he would most surely come to a conclusion that he, in fact, was extremely lucky to have found such confederates, and it would be wise to accept their offer in exchange for help which was so indispensable at the moment.

But Silver didn't speculate - in fact, he let his natural, almost primeval instincts take over him, his insatiable aspiration for independence beleaguering his thoughts. Since his very foalhood, he thought his parents to be too overprotective. Their benevolence seemed too restrictive to the black colt. After the Cataclysm, on a subconscious level, he shielded himself from any help. He was alone, so he acted alone. Any assistance - may it be ethereal, mystical warning signs from the surrounding nature or offers from other ponies, like now - should be rejected, thrown away, disposed of, violently and immutably.

Layla, seemingly experienced in meeting such reactions, regained her composure, her face gaining its natural colour once more.

"I'm not in the position to order you to do anything, Silver Dawn..." She spoke softly, her voice relaxed - and relaxing - and musical.

"But of course you aren't!" Silver interrupted her disgruntledly, yet feeling that his anger was slowly fading, as if the purple unicorn's voice were enchanting the black pony's very feelings and emotions.

"I know that, Silver Dawn," she continued soothingly, gently smiling. "But I also know that if - no, when - you calm down, you will realise you have to cling to us. We are no enemies, Silver Dawn. We are your allies, and you know that. You need allies, Silver Dawn," she said, putting a comforting hoof on the lavender-maned pony's shoulder, to which he didn't object. "A single hoof can't block the Sun, you know?" She finished with a smile.

Silver frowned. "And what if my hoof could block the Sun?" He asked stubbornly, acting not unlike a young colt who had just been proved wrong but didn't want to accept it.

Layla chuckled cheerfully, making Silver notice her cute wrinkles. "Well, in that case, you would be a marvel, Silver Dawn," she said simply, without a hint of flattery, and that attracted the black pony even more.

Silver felt his fury leave his body, replaced with his usual calmness. However, amongst the feelings that invigorated him at the moment, he felt something new - something more strengthening that anything he had experienced before. He scratched his head, realising he had exceeded his limit of impoliteness. He quickly calmed himself with the thought that it was by no means his fault: not only had he spent twenty years in complete loneliness, but also encountered such a strange mare in such a weird place - and the thing she suggested him to do! No, it wasn't his fault, clearly.

"Ahem, forgive me my... incivility - everything's just happening so quickly, you see..." Silver began, lowering his head slightly. Am I making excuses? Hay, *she** is the one to justify her bizarre ways!* A thought swept through his head.

The red-maned unicorn suddenly burst into laughter.

"Ah, Silver Dawn... First, you yell at me - and, may I say, that was completely justified - and now you're making excuses... You are a marvel, Silver Dawn..." She said, wiping a tear off her eye.

She wasn't being seductive or flirting - she was honest, and exactly that made Silver feel slightly embarrassed and proud at the same time.

"Anyway, is there any way for me to get out? I need to think about things, you know..." The black pony said, looking around. The tumult and dazzle of the underground city still hadn't ceased. Silver looked at the copper clock hanging on the wall behind him.

"Two hours?! I have been here for two hours?" The lavender-maned stallion exclaimed, regaining his lost time sense. He became slightly nervous: Lancy could have noticed his absence.

As if she were reading his very thoughts, Layla said, upon looking at the clock: "Oh, you're right, Silver Dawn! It's about time we sent you back to Stealth."

Silver shrugged, calmed by the purple mare's voice. It reminded him of long forgotten times when his mother would sing a lullaby, after tucking in the blanket and making sure the colt was warm and content - the song he couldn't remember but still felt inside his chest.

"How do you... hmm... teleport between here and Stealth anyway?" The black earth pony asked, not sure which verb to use in order to describe the way ponies relocated themselves between the 'upper level' - Stealth, and the 'lower level' - this strange place that Silver decided to call 'Steampunk city' for the time being - he was afraid that if he asked Layla about it, it would result in losing precious time.

"You are closer to the truth than you think, Silver Dawn." Layla chuckled, her horn beginning to glow.

A teleportation spell, Silver realised. Why can't we all just settle down and find some answers to my questions? He mentally groaned.

"Don't worry - every mystery is explained eventually," the mare said, making Silver sincerely consider her ability to read thoughts - his, at least. "Oh, the spell's an experimental one, so you'll faint for an hour," Layla concluded cheerfully, casting a magical orb upon Silver.

"What? Again? No wa-" The black pony shouted, immediately feeling light-headed, everything becoming dark. The last thing he saw was Layla's beautiful, shining smile.

Tea And Smoking Pipes

We each have enemies in this world,

But from our friends, good Lord protect us!

- "Eugene Onegin" by Alexander Pushkin

***

Tea And Smoking Pipes

Silver Dawn was slowly walking through the wasteland, looking around all the time. His ears were perked up, constantly rotating in the manner of locators - an automatic reaction to any foreign sounds, which had developed during the time Silver spent alone in the wilderness. His hooves were hitting the dry ground lightly, gently, as if they were too meek to stomp with all power. His eyes were teary and tired, for he allowed himself to close them only for a second per minute - or was the interval longer? He couldn't recall exactly. He had to be cautious, and he was cautious. His natural careful behaviour synthesized with the bitter lessons the sinister world had taught Silver, making the adventurer obsessed with his safety - an essential obsession in such times.

The surroundings were so familiar, yet strangely new, allowing the black pony to marvel at all the incomprehensible things that met his gaze. The wasteland looked the same as it had remained all the years after the Cataclysm: the lifeless barrens were imposing and silent, the small hills that were scattered all around the place resembled bad tumours on the deceased body of the land once called Equestria. Yet, there were unusual items that the lavender-maned earth pony had never seen since the terrifying Armageddon - the event that mercilessly took the lives of his kin and loved ones but somehow spared his - either knowing that the little black colt was special or simply forgetting about him in its blind wave of destruction. Silver could see debris of a water supply system created using long forgotten technologies. A steely object lying in the distance attracted his attention. As Silver approached the item, he saw it to be a metal stick - it was rather rusty, but judging from the curve of its tip, he could conjecture that it once served as a golf club. The adventurer was utterly excited: his eyes lit with passion, his mouth forming a smile, his ears falling, losing caution - a grave mistake in the lifeless world.

And the lifeless world was not dead, in reality - whilst its inhabitants ceased, the world itself - the ground, the hills, the nature - was seeking blood and death. The ground could easily crack open, swallowing one whole, never letting them emit a shriek of fear, for those who were afraid, or a sigh of alleviation, for those who got so tired of the surrounding misery that they were happy to be devoured by the ominous land.

Silver acted as an archaeologist of old times would act in such a situation. In fact, he was an archeologist. He imagined how ponies played golf at this very place, smiling at the shining sun, chatting happily and enjoying their simple, unperturbed lives, and a blissful smile crawled upon his face, only to fade in a moment, unnoticed and unneeded. Very carefully, he touched the stick with the tip of his hoof, to notice it was solid and quite hard. Trying not to breathe at the club (as if his breath could deplete sturdy steel produced in the old times, earth-pony way), he slowly grabbed the handle with his hooves, cursing himself for not being a unicorn. Suddenly, a magical flash enveloped the metal stick, making Silver let out a rather mare-like yelp and leap aside so quickly that even a renowned sportspony would feel envious. Upon turning round, the earth pony saw a unicorn, who was holding the rusty golf club in his magical grip, the strange, liquid-like spell flowing from the tip of his horn, circumscribing the steel object with transparent, yet somehow visible, glow.

***

The uncorn's white mane and tail refelected the light, shining brighter than the Sun itself. His red coat looked well-groomed and glossy. His eyes were laughing, but by no means derisive - wrinkles in the corners of his eyes were soft and good-natured. A familiar grin crowned the unicorn's face expression.

"Need some help, Silver, pal?" The red unicorn asked, still holding the steely object in his magical grip, but not moving it an inch.

Silver winced in shock and took a few swift absent-minded steps back. He couldn't believe his very eyes: how could Lancy find him here, in... Where exactly am I? Silver suddenly thought, casting a brief galnce around himself. All of this looked so surreal, so artificial...

"You're sleeping, Silver, pal, and this is your dream," the white-maned unicorn gave Silver an unneeded hint.

The black pony realised everything. He wasn't free; he was still in Stealth, probably lying somewhere in his flat, still asleep from the teleportation spell. It was all a dream. Just a dream. A wave of disappointment covered Silver whole, making his high spirits fall to the morose state called reality. Of course, it was it good to be true. It would be preposterous to assume even for a second that he could regain freedom with such ease. In any case, Silver had to make the best of this dream. But first of all, he had to ascertain something - something very important.

"What the hay are you doing in my dream?" Silver asked, his words not half as refined as he had expected them to sound.

The red unicorn chuckled, shaking his head, his short mane slighly swinging, bathing in the vernal breeze that had appeared from nowhere a mere second before.

"Silver, pal, that's the question for you to answer. I'm not Golden Lance - I'm just a part of your subconsciousness," he replied, maintaining a wide grin, which, to Silver's displeasure, was the most realistic thing in his dream, born, no less, due to the troubled sleep from the spell, the black pony assured himself. If one were to juxtapose the real Lancy with the imaginary one, they would come to an astonishing conclusion: they were identical - Silver Dawn's subconsciousness was working wonderfully well.

Silver groaned. Why did his mind always betray him in the most unsuitable manner? Just when he started to reminisce about the glorious life of the past generations, the confounded red unicorn appeared to ruin his wonderful dream, the kind of dream Silver had almost forgotten due to the endless strife between him and the world.

The black pony sighed lamentably. Why can't my subconsciousness be a beautiful mare? He thought, shaking his head. Somehow, the thought lifted his low spirits a little, to the extent of letting out a small chuckle.

The red unicorn before him, on the other hand, laughed loudly. Yet, his laugh still sounded unreal, artificial. Wiping a tear off his eye, he approached Silver and patted him on the back - a gesture that the black pony never appreciated.

"Silver, pal, that's the spirit! A mare... heh, still it seems that, subconsciously, you prefer Lancy over mares..." The unicorn began, smiling slyly and wiggling a brow.

"Just shut up," the black pony interrupted the naughty child of his mind. "Now let's just sit and think..."

Lancy (Silver decided to call the clone by the name, to ease the thinking process) immediately sat down, as obedient as a valet of old times.

"...Why are you here in the first instance?" Silver wondered, knowing there always was a reason for everything - a rather strange conviction, taking into consideration the chaotic randomness of the post-apocalyptic world. Yet, the black adventurer was a stalwart of that theory, despite, or maybe even in spite of his place 'under the Sun', as the ponies of ancient times used to say.

Lancy shrugged, shaking his head in complete lack of understanding.

"I don't know, Silver, pal. Seems like your sunconsciousness wants to tell you something," he speculated, making Silver sit down as well and rub his chin with a hoof.

The black pony started to deduce... something from something, or to be more accurate, nothing from nothing. He had no initial thesis to begin with, and completely no ideas to save him from an approaching wave of overwhelming ignorance, the kind that envelops one when they try to think about something really hard - and completely fail to bring even a tiny piece of order in the discord that rules over their thoughts. Oh, come on! He thought desperately. You are my creation or what? Give me a clue! The black pony mentally roared.

Lancy inhaled and exhaled deeply, seemingly dumbfounded by the black earth's pony temporary idiocy.

"Look around, Silver, pal. Think - what do you see?" He asked Silver, gesticulating with a hoof to make the black pony look around him.

The wasteland seemed comlpetely ordinary, if such an epithet could be used to describe the lifeless world that past generations would have never seen or imagined - even in their worst nightmares. The scorched earth was black and dry - the cracks covered it unevenly, like wrinkles cover the face of an old pony. But wrinkles on the face of an old pony would most likely be warm and welcoming, whilst these gates leading to botomless pits were ominous and sinister, greedy and ready to swallow a heedless traveller. The once prolific soil lost its fertility, resembling a landfill for toxic waste. The hills were rocky, looking more like small mountains somehow put there by an omnipotent, yet completely blind, divine being. The debris and ruins stretching for miles around were mere shadows of the old world - world of true prosperity, happiness and...

"Captivity? Unfreedom?" The red unicorn whispered into Silver's ear, making him turn round quickly.

"How did you..." The black pony began speaking, surprised, his eyes wide open, but then immediately facehoofed. "Of course, it's a dream, after all..." He sighed. "But what do you imply, after all?" He addressed Lancy, expecting an answer.

The red unicorn shrugged again, obviously not inclined to eludicate anything. He lowered his head in disapproval.

"Silver, pal, I'm a creation of your subconscious, nothing more. I only give hints. You have to develop the idea yourself," he explained to the black pony, who resolved to call upon all the resources his brain had.

"So... You are trying to tell me... I mean, I am trying to tell me..." Silver Dawn began speculating aloud. "...that the world before the Cataclysm was beautiful but unfree, while the world we live in - the world I lived in before Stealth..." At this point, he cast a side glance at Lancy, who gave him an approving nod, not even slighly looking guilty. But of course- he's not Lancy, he's *me** - why should he feel guilty, after all?* The black pony thought before continuing to weave the thread of his insinuation. "...is deadly but free?"

Lancy nodded approvingly.

"To simplify matters, that's the point," he said, stopping, waiting for Silver to carry on.

"Hmm... Basically, since the old world is dead now, its remnants can be found in Stealth!" Silver exclaimed, proud to come to such a deduction.

Lancy nodded again, smiling, not with his usual grin, but with a warm smile of a father guiding his foal though the depths of his adolescent mind.

"Exactly so. Now, Silver, pal, we've come to the final and, may I say, most important question: what is more important for you - freedom or happiness?" The red unicorn spoke softly, yet firmly, looking straight into the black pony's eyes, drilling him, trying to see his very soul. "Would you prefer freedom in a lifeless world, alone forever, or..." Lancy made a pause, during which Silver loudly gulped, already knowing what the red unicorn will say next. "...live - maybe, only for a year, true - but live in happiness, around other ponies, ponies you like... with Layla..." He finished, fires of mockery beginning their whirlwind-like dance in his eyes.

Silver Dawn gasped in surprise. "How do you... Ah, right. It's a dream. But I don't like her! She made me faint, twice, and offered me to..." He began, only to see the white-maned unicorn raise his brow, inclining his head to his shoulder in an indulgent manner.

"I'm your subconscious, Silver, pal. I know better who you like and who you don't like," Lancy said, his grin once more returning to the red face.

As the lavender-maned earth pony opened his mouth to object, the red unicorn brusquely interrupted him:

"Silver, pal, you are going to wake up now. Before you do, however, look into my eyes," Lancy said, dopping his grin, his face becoming unwontedly serious.

Silver Dawn followed the simple instruction and looked straight into Lancy's eyes. They were shining. They were wise. They were experienced. They were... red.

"How many red-eyed ponies have you seen in your life, Silver? Including those in Stealth?" The white-maned unicorn asked him, keeping the bridge between the two glances, not moving even slightly. "Apart from you and me?"

At this exact moment, Silver realised: no, they were the only two. The ponies before the Cataclysm - his kin and friends, strangers, acquaintances; the ponies in Stealth - those young content colts and fillies; the ponies in the underground city... Nopony had red eyes. Except for him - and Golden Lance. And, though asphyxiating the difference between the two ponies, Lancy's silhouette became blurred by the force of Silver's dreams, now resembling the black earth pony with a lavender mane. The newly created black pony grinned as only Lancy was able to.

We look so similar... How come I haven't noticed it before? Silver thought before waking up with a start, sweat running in rivulets down his face and body, his breath fast, almost asthmatic.

Only a bad dream... It was just a dream... He thought, shaking his head fervently, trying to eradicate any residues left of the troubled sleep.

The black pony looked around, to see that he was lying on his bead in his room. It seemed that the teleportation spell, despite being rather uncomfortable, was quite precise. He stood up, jumping a few times to fully wake up. Unfortunately, it didn't help: despite just waking up, he still felt extremely sleepy.

Silver approached the window, noticing that although the curtains were open, it was still dark. Upon looking out of the window, he realised it was still (or already?) nighttime. Resigning to his urge to fall asleep once more, he trotted towards the bed, heavily flopping down on the comfortable wooden piece of furniture that at the moment, to him, was the most welcoming item in Equestria, soon drifting into sleep.

***

Waking up in a normal way was all Silver could ask for in the previous few days, and it seemed that his prayers were answered: he awoke normally, not from a magical slumber but from the good old sleep - the kind one drifts into by one's own device, and wakes from it correspondingly. The black pony yawned and rolled in bed, letting out a blissful snort. He remained in a state when one is already awoken, yet still feeling sleepy. Upon opening his eyes, Silver realised he was in his falt, lying in a proper bed, with a pillow and a blanket. The earth pony smiled and closed his eyes. Finally. For the first time in the last twenty years he would sleep in - he would just stay in bed for the whole morning - hay, maybe for the whole day! Now that he didn't need to be on patrol all the time or seek shelter from the dangers of the outside world... just world... he could allow himself to finally experience such a luxury.

Alas, the cruel reality had other plans in mind for the lavender-maned adventurer. A loud knock at the door made Silver shift uncomfortably and sit up in bed. Another knock - a louder one - made him let out a deprecating groan and stand up, stretching his limbs. Making conjectures about who that could be, the black pony trotted towards the door, trying to open it. However, despite him pulling the door handle with decent strength, the door refused to open, remaining shut. The key! Where the hay is it? He thought, vainly trying to recollect the events of the previous day. The knocking recommenced, now supported by a familiar male voice:

"Silver, pal, it's me! Wake up, you sleepy-head!"

Silver sighed. The cupboard! He suddenly remebered.

"Coming, Lancy!" He shouted addressing the door, galloping towards the cupboard. After he had opened the cupboard and retrieved the key from it, Silver trotted towards the door again, now determined to open it for sure.

As soon as the door opened, the energetic red unicorn galloped into Silver's room, like a whirlwind, like a vigorous hurricane which would easily swallow anything that would stand in its way. He looked around and then cheerfully came up to the black earth pony, grinning in the usual way.

"I see you like your new flat, Silver, pal?" He asked the lavender-maned pony, patting him on the back in a friendly manner.

Just like in that dream... A thought flew through the black pony's head, quickly departing, yet leaving an ulterior trail in Silver's mind - a trail that compelled him to look straight into Lancy's eyes.

They were shining. They were wise. They were experienced. They were... red.

"Something wrong, Silver, pal?" Lancy asked, seemingly not noticing the black adventurer's shock.

Silver Dawn slowly shook his head.

"No..." he said quietly. "Everything's all right, Lancy..." Silver still couldn't believe his dream to be true - not only true but so accurate, so precise...

The red unicorn stomped a hoof on the ground in a good-natured manner and, making a circle around Silver, energetically galloped in the direction of the door.

"Come on, Silver, pal! We still have so much to see!" He shouted, vanishing the next instant.

Well, at least I'm getting used to it now... Silver Dawn thought indifferently. He shrugged, sighed and left the room, this time making sure he had the key with himself.

***

Stealth met the ponies with rain. It had been such a long time since Siver saw rain that he froze in place, looking at the sky that was covered with clouds, trickles of water falling on the stone road, forming small puddles and streamlets. To the black pony, they seemed like cities with a vast infrastructure, with roads connecting them - just like the old world, world of true prosperity, happiness and... unfreedom? Silver shook his head. The dream still refused to leave his mind, clinging to it with all might. He had to ask Lancy. Even if it would stupid - still, having a mocking answer was better than haing no answer at all. So many questions, so many decisions, so few answers... Silver thought. Life was so easier when he was... alone?

The black pony's thoughtfulness was interrupted by a sudden weight of a hoof on his shoulder. Snapping from his speculations, Silver saw Lancy pointing at a small stone building with a hoof.

"Silver, pal, I know rain's a rare occasion 'round here, but unless you want to get soaking wet, let's go there and wait till it's over!" He said, taking the hoof off the black pony's shoulder and swiftly disappearing behing the door of the mentioned building.

Silver watched the rain fall onto the ground, then observed a drop of water crawl down his neck, vanishing into his coat. He felt slighly cold and, depite the urge to admire the natural phenomenon one more minute, walked towards the one-storey building at a slow pace, casting a glance at his future shelter. Shelter... over the events that had occured to him, he forgot the word 'shelter', and, with it, the need to find a shelter each time he went to sleep in the wilderness.

The building looked by no means welcoming: its wooden door was cracked and lopsided and the windows were dirty and greasy. Silver's parents had always called such buildings 'shanties for equivocal entertainment'. The black pony braced himself and entered the dubious structure.

To his surprise, the stairsway lead him down, not up. Carefully descending the stairs, he found himself in a rather small room - more of a basement, to his mind. Off in the distance, he saw a bar counter, with a unicorn behind it cleaning a lustreless glass with his magic. The whole place was crowded with ponies sitting at tables, either in company, chatting and drinking some light yellow liquid from tankards, or loners, sipping a darker liquid from their glasses, silently, persistently, with utmost concentration. As Silver was scrutinizing the room, he saw Lancy waving a hoof from a table in the corner, trying to catch his attention. The black pony visibly nodded and trotted to the table, sitting on a dirty stool after a moment of squeamish hesitation.

Silver Dawn carefully looked around. The whole place didn't seem hospitable to him, yet he resolved to hide his disgust.

"Say, Lancy, what is this place?" He asked the white-maned unicorn, who simply chuckled.

"It's a pub, Silver, pal. Ponies come here to drink," Lancy replied simply.

Can't they drink at home? Silver thought, but decided to conceal his ignorance.

The unicorn behind the bar counter examined the room with a listless look. However, upon seeing two new faces, he smiled and lazily walked towards the table Lancy and Silver were sitting at.

"Hey, Lancy!" He exclaimed, shaking the red hoof.

"Hey, Barney!" Lancy replied in the same tone, grinning as always.

"Who's that with ya?" The bartender asked, nodding his head towards Silver - a gesture that didn't please the earth pony at all.

"Silver Dawn. Nice to meet you," The lavender-maned adventurer outstripped the red unicorn. He shook the bartender's hoof with hidden disdain and a visible fake smile.

The bartender was a big brown stallion. He wasn't ugly, but one couldn't call him beautiful either. His mane and tail were grey - a normal type of pony. Silver looked into his eyes. Green. Of course. Not red... The black pony thought automatically. He emerged to reality upon hearing the bartender's voice:

"So what'cha want, pals? Lancy, ya get the usual, right?"

Silver saw Lancy nod and considered what to order. He hadn't drunk anything but water over the past twenty years, which was his only choice, but he could still remember the taste of a wonderful treat his parents had always supplied him with - black tea.

"I'll have a cup of tea, please," the black pony said with dignity, maybe even bombastically.

The brown unicorn barked (Silver understood it to be a chuckle), then roared with laughter.

"Har! Ya made me laugh, pal! Dunno if we have this kinda stuff here, but Ah'll try ta fin' it," he said, trotting away towards the corner, laughing to himself.

Silver Dawn raised a brow questioningly, looking at Lancy, who let out a mild chukle.

"What's wrong with me having tea, Lancy?" He asked in complete lack of understanding.

The red unicorn shook his head indulgently, patting Silver on the shoulder.

"Silver, pal... pub is a place where ponies drink alcohol," he said with a fatherly smile, which, however, was instantly replaced with his usual grin.

The black pony got lost in thought for a moment. Alcohol... That's the kind of beverage his father used to consume during winter evenings... As Silver was only four when the Cataclysm destroyed Equestria - the old Equestria - he had never drunk alcohol in his entire life.

"Sorry, Lancy, I'm an... abstainer," the earth pony replied, remembering the right word to described ponies who didn't drink on principle. His face resembled tranquillity and confidence, and Lancy even dropped his head in approval.

"Good. I respect ponies with principles," he said, when the bartender came up to their table, magically carrying a glass of dark liquid that he put before Lancy and a cup of black tea that he put - almost dropped - before Silver.

"Seems like you managed to find some tea in this place of yours," the black pony said with a fake smile a small nod.

Barney clearly wanted to say something but instead simply shook his head and left the two ponies, returning to his place behind the counter.

Lancy nodded to Silver, as if never had happened.

"So, Silver, pal, how's it going?" He asked the black earth pony, sipping his drink with content.

The eyes. Come on. Ask him, a voice in Silver's head demanded immediate action, which was instantly rejected by the cold hoof of logic. The adventurer decided to start the conversation from another end, asking a question that was still of interest to him.

"In general, everything's all right. Say, Lancy..." The black pony began, taking a gulp of local tea. It tasted terrible - but it was not water, after all.

"Yes, Silver, pal?" Lancy said, grinning from ear to ear.

"Could you tell me anything about the underground city - you know, the one full of copper, steel and steam?" Silver wondered, expecting a deployed answer.

However, such an answer never came from the red unicorn's mouth. Instead, Lancy turned pale, whispering to himself:

"No, not you too... Silver, pal..." He shook his head sadly.

"Huh? What's the matter, Lancy?" Silver asked, surprised by the unicorn's unexpected reaction.

Lancy looked straight into Silver's eyes. They are red, like mine, the black pony thoughts again, rather stupidly and bluntly, mechanically. Just like in my dream. The unicorn put a comforting hoof on the black pony's shoulder, before beginning to speak again:

"Silver, pal... This may sound strange... Hay, this will sound strange but... You are insane."

Always In Another Castle

It took you so long to get here!

But at long last, I can tell you that...

The Princess must be in another castle.

I've never met her...

Are you sure she exists?

- "Braid" by Jonathan Blow

***

Always In Another Castle

Silver was in a quandary. His mouth fell agape as he heard Lancy's words, the words that had cut him like a sharp knife - or, to be more exact, fell on his mind like an axe falls on one's neck, slicing and smashing it at the same time. The black pony was utterly disorientated. His state could be best described as 'complete bafflement'. On one hoof, he knew very well he was sane, and he remembered exactly all the events of the previous day - he could sill feel them: the sound of steel hitting copper, the sight of steam covering the floor and the walls, the feeling of Layla's hoof on his shoulder... The warmth of her breath on his cheek... On the other hoof, Lancy sounded gravely serious - but... Layla...

Lancy coughed in his hoof, obviously not in order to simply clear his throat, but to draw the lavender-maned earth pony's attention, at which he immediately succeeded.

Silver turned his head towards Lancy, snapping from his dreamy thoughts, fear and confusion once more returning to his mind.

"Silver, pal, you're all right?" The red unicorn asked with a great amount of anxiety in his voice. His face expressed deepest concern, and even his grin had been dropped completely and resolutely.

Silver shrugged, somehow keeping his composure - probably, due to the remnants of total disarray in his mind. Anyway, from an outsider's viewpoint, it seemed that the black pony was calm and cool simply because of his natural imperturbability.

"You are the one who called me insane in the first place. If you ask me, I'm quite all right, and fully and completely sane, thank you," Silver said rather coldly, showing - actually, showing off - his character and absolute autonomy.

The red unicorn glanced at the black adventurer lamentably, almost painfully.

"Silver, pal, I may have overreacted, but you must understand me - it's not the first case of such madness. Quite a few ponies have had such... delusions..." He said carefully, trying to weigh each word, lest he should offend his interlocutor.

The lavender-maned pony huffed, shrugging again.

"Lancy, those are not delusions. Those ponies saw the underground city because it exists!" He exclaimed, slamming a hoof on the table, immediately riveting attention of a few ponies sitting at adjacent tables, some of them simply glancing at him with disapproval, making the black pony wince.

Way to go, Silver. Another reason for them to think you're crazy. Waaay to go. Somehow, this thought made the black pony chuckle, then laugh a little - only a little, but still enough to fulfil his worst apprehensions: Lancy really seemed convinced that he, Silver, was insane.

"All right, Silver, pal... Calm down, calm down," the red unicorn said in a caring tone, corroborating his words with a pacificatory hoof gesture.

"I. Am. Not. Insane." Silver said, punctuating each word, instantly realising his inadvertence: Lancy fervently nodded, widening his eyes and repeating the same 'calming' gesture.

"I know, Silver, pal, I know - and I believe you!" The red unicorn smiled indulgently, like a doctor smiles as his stubborn patient. "You're just tired, right? That... Hmm... 'underground city' wasn't a delusion - it was a fruit of your imagination, right?" He asked, putting emphasis on the last word, almost morphing his question into a statement.

"Wrong," Silver replied obstinately, shaking his head. "The 'underground city' is real."

The red unicorn sighed and faked a smile - not his usual grin but a weak smile whose only purpose was to assure one they were believed and trusted all the way.

"Well, Silver... I've heard of this 'city' before - alas, only from ponies who were considered... mmm... not in their right minds. Maybe your 'city' is different - mind telling me about it?" He asked, not unlike a skilled psychotherapist - and his calming, relaxing tone made Silver settle down.

The black earth pony sighed and lowered his head. He didn't know what to do - was Lancy playing a game to make him tell about the secret society, extraditing Layla?.. Why was he thinking so much about her anyway? Or maybe the red unicorn was honestly concerned with his mental health - but Layla said Lancy had been in the underground city before? Why the hay is everything so difficult? Silver groaned - both mentally and physically, making Lancy shrug in lack of understanding.

"Silver, pal, if you don't want to talk about it - fine. But in that case, I'd advise you to visit House of Health - we have a good psy-" The white-maned unicorn began, only to be interrupted by another groan - a louder one, and an intended one, this time.

"I don't need help, for I am sane," Silver managed to say dispassionately, his voice calm and unworried. "I was in that town yesterday - and it was for real. You didn't see me yesterday - so how can you say whether I were there or not, huh?" He continued, posing a rhetorical question before Lancy, to which, to his surprise, the red unicorn instantly answered.

"I can, Silver, for you spent yesterday with me, not in that... imaginary city of yours," he replied, trying to be tolerant and firm at the same time.

"What." Silver said flatly. It sounded like a statement, not a question - and, as a matter of fact, it was a statement: the black pony simply couldn't put the pieces of Lancy's game together, plainly allowing the red unicorn to continue.

Lancy deeply sighed, preparing for a complicated talk, slightly licking his lips, obviously considering what exactly he would say.

"Silver, pal..." He began, raising his hoof, trying to bring it closer to Silver's shoulder, but in vain: the black pony frowned upon the, it would seem, usual form of addressing and leaned back on his stool, almost falling - he forgot that there was no back to rest upon. "You see, I were with you all the time. I went to your place about an hour after I had shown it to you - but you were fast asleep, so I woke you up. We went for a walk around the town - remember?" Lancy continued, gifting Silver with a pleading look, apparently hoping that the black pony would recollect the lost memories.

The lavender-maned adventurer shook his head and shrugged emotionlessly.

"I see... Then, we went to our golf course - you said it was..." The red pony put a hoof to his chin, rubbing it. "...'lifeless', If my memory serves me right... You even compared it to the barrens..." Lancy chuckled. "And I showed you a golf club - you were so surprised..." He continued, looking at the black earth pony, who suddenly turned slightly pale and gulped.

"This... that... it was all a dream..." Silver whispered almost silently, though loud enough for Lancy to hear.

The red unicorn raised a brow questioningly, then suddenly hit his forehead with a hoof and smiled victoriously.

"A dream? No, no, pal - that was real! We could ask ponies at the golf course - they saw us: hay, they even talked to you - do you remember?" He said, visibly growing more and more confident with each passing second.

Silver Dawn paled completely, his black coat turning greyish-white. He felt forlorn. Desperate. Even if Lancy were tricking him, the red unicorn had proof - or... was he bluffing? The lavender-maned pony's spirits rose a little and he resolved to continue the discussion - Lancy had to slip - somewhere, anywhere - he couldn't be right! Or... could he?

"Silver, pal - I know what's wrong!" Lancy suddenly exclaimed, drawing attention from the neighbouring tables. "You aren't insane - it was a dream, right? That 'city' - it was a dream! Just a dream - and, since you were exhausted, your brain replaced the reality with the dream! You say you had a dream about us playing golf?" He asked, his grin once more returning to the red face.

The black pony nodded, slowly understanding the thread of Lancy's thoughts.

"Something like it..." Silver wanted to say aloud, but whispered again instead.

The red unicorn nodded.

"That wasn't a dream, Silver, pal. Your 'underground city' was, however. I've heard about it - it's not an illness. Sometimes ponies' brains do strange things - such as, replace grim reality with especially shiny dreams - and vice versa." Lancy spoke softly, but firmly - in his usual manner of an orator standing before a large audience, even if he were addressing just one interlocutor.

Silver felt like losing it: the integrity in the unicorn's red eyes made him reconsider the past events. Maybe twenty years of loneliness exasperated his state of mind, and the feeling of being around other equines aggravated that... But Layla...

"Lancy - that city was real." Silver's voice echoed across the table, reaching only the mentioned unicorn's ears.

"Silver, pal-" Lancy began.

The black pony waved his hoof disapprovingly.

"No, Lancy. It was real. I can describe it to you - you see, it's like a big steely box, and there are steam machines, and copper clocks-" He began, but was suddenly interrupted.

"-and 'Sleeping', 'Eating' and other 'corners', I know," the red unicorn said, smiling indulgently.

It seemed that Silver's mind, which was already standing on the brink of precipice, took a resolute step forth. He opened and closed his mouth a few times before yelling:

"So you were there - Layla was right! I knew you were pulling my leg all the time!" The black pony smiled triumphantly.

To his utter astonishment, the white-maned unicorn simply chuckled.

"Silver, pal, I know that because I read it in a book - 'Steampunk' was its name, if I recall correctly... Every colt read it around twenty years ago - it was a big hit!" He said, managing to keep the same indulgent smile and his speciality grin at the same time.

How the hay does he even do it? Silver thought, his thoughts leaping onto another topic for some reason.

"So, if we put the pieces together - you read about this place in a book, had a dream about it - and, due to fatigue - not insanity, of course! How could I be so demeaning! - somehow confused the dream and the reality: you thought that city of your dreams to be real, and you thought our small tour round the town to be a dream! Easy as hay!" Lancy said in a confident tone, reminding Silver of his late father for some reason.

"But..." The black pony tried to defend himself but realised that if he were to meticulously reminisce the past events, he would come to a great deal of contradictions: golf, the barrens, the book, Lancy's knowing about it all... His eyes... His eyes.

"Lancy, your eyes are red," Silver suddenly said.

"Um... yes, I've kind of noticed," Lancy snickered.

"Mine are red as well," the earth pony continued, not noticing the unicorn's mockery in the heat of his ideas flowing out of his weary mind.

"No, really?" The red pony wiggled his brow mockingly.

"How many red-eyed ponies have you seen in your life, Lancy? Apart from you and me?" Silver said resolutely, repeating the words he heard from Lancy in his dream - or not dream?

Golden Lance opened his mouth to say something witty but closed it immediately, rubbing his chin with a hoof.

"Now that you mention that, Silver, pal..." He said slowly, as if he were chewing his words thoroughly. "I'll definitely think about it later... By the way, you mentioned somepony Layla..." The red unicorn continued, not even slightly changing the tone or pace of his speech.

He sure knows how to change topics... Silver thought jealously. Why can't everything be simple? He mentally groaned one more time.

"She is a mare... from that dream..." Silver faked a smile, hoping that Lancy would buy it. He decided to play along for a while. Have you decided to play along or *admit** you were wrong?* A naughty voice whispered in his head, making him shake his head a little to get rid of it. He surely didn't need any more contradictions for that day... or was it already evening? There were no windows in that basement that those ponies called a 'pub', so the lavender-maned stallion had lost his time sense completely.

"Oh, a mare!" Lancy laughed - not with his usual fake laugh, but (as it seemed to Silver) with a honest, natural expression of delight. "A mare in your dreams - I see... Say, when were you with a mare last?" He asked, tossing Silver a conspirational smile.

The black pony blushed, his coat turning red. Hay, how many times am I going to change colour today? He thought disgruntledly, understanding very well what exactly Lancy implied.

"I... I don't..." He stammered, scrutinizing his front hooves that were lying on the table.

"I mean - when was the last time... you know?" The red unicorn winked.

"I... The Cataclysm happened when I was four so..." Silver whispered, embarrassed and contrite.

"Oh..." Lancy's eyes widened in realization. "I see..."

An awkward silence endured.

Silver looked around. The ponies were still sitting at their tables - there were a couple of new faces but the rest were still the same. The bartender was obviously bored, yawning and lazily cleaning a glass.

"I'll ask Star to do something with this..." Lancy muttered under his breath, momentarily commanding Silver's attention.

"Pardon?" He asked, having missed half of the unicorn's phrase.

"Nothing, Silver, pal, absolutely nothing!" Lancy exclaimed, grinning. "Say - you don't drink alcohol for the same reason or on principle?" He wondered unconstrainedly.

Silver shrugged, not paying much attention to the trap he was heading straight into.

"I was four, Lancy! Of course, I haven't tried alcohol before!" The black pony smiled widely.

So did Lancy - but his smile was more of a sly one.

"Why don't you try?" He asked and, before the black pony could reply, yelled towards the bar counter: "Barney! Bring us a glass of whiskey, will you?"

The brown unicorn turned his head towards their table and nodded.

"Lemon or somethin'?" He shouted back.

"No, no, just the old good stuff," Lancy replied and with that, the bartender trotted to their table with a full glass of dark liquid, putting it before Lancy.

"Thank you, Barney, pal!" The red unicorn said, grinning, and the brown stallion went back to his idleness.

Lancy nodded to Silver.

"Try it, Silver, pal," he said with an assuring smile.

Silver hesitated for a while. But everything was so strange anyway! A little bit of singularity wouldn't hurt, would it?

Silver gulped and took the glass.

***

Silver felt amazing. Everything was so clear - his head was pure, free of all unwelcome thoughts. He opened his mouth to breathe the fresh air. It was already nighttime. The moon was high above the ground, and, to Silver, it seemed that the celestial body was smiling at him - just at him! And maybe at Lancy. Lancy was such a great pal! Too bad he trotted away, leaving the black pony alone in that pub with whatever-it-was-th glass of whiskey. But now he was outdoors and everything was great. He felt happy. He felt confident. He felt good.

The almost empty streets inspired him - he wanted to go write a song, or a poem, or a book! But he still had to read some... Oh, right! The library! Yes, he would just go to the library and borrow a book!

Staggering, leaning at lampposts from time to time, the black pony walked towards the House of Wisdom - why had he called it 'library' before? - slowly, but steadily.

Words were jumping up and down in his head, ruining his once adamant stream of consciousness. Lancy... He's sooo good... Layla... Silver hiccupped. Why Layla? No - no Layla! That was a dream... Shining Star... He thought for some reason, remembering the librarian's shining blue coat, her beautiful orange mane... Even her horn seemed beautiful to him now.

Suddenly, he saw the very mare right before his eyes. She was standing in the doorway of the library, smiling at him... She was smiling at him!

That fact alone made the black pony even happier, and, proudly throwing out his chest, he approached her, waving a hoof.

"Hi, Lay- I mean, Star! You see, I was gonna write a book - no, I mean, read a book - I mean, I need to read a book before I can write one, right? Haha," Silver muttered, his tongue not fully obedient to him.

Shining Star simply listened to his nonsense with a smile, which was turning into a sly grin.

"In that case, you'd better come inside... Maybe I'll find something nice for you..." she said, winking and turning away from the black pony, and - purposely or not - slightly touched him with her orange tail.

Silver didn't feel embarrassed at all. Of course - it all seemed so simple! Silver snickered with content. He was a stunning representative of his species - every mare would desire him! Smiling dumbly, he followed the blue unicorn into the library, closing the door.

***

The first feeling that met Silver in the morning was guilt. Overwhelming guilt. Unforgiving guilt. His head didn't hurt - although he could still remember his father saying something about 'terrible hangovers' - but his heart did. Not literally, of course. But if he had believed in soul, he would have said that his very soul ached painfully. He rolled in bed, only to see Shining Star next to him. Her orange mane was glowing as the sunlight cast its warm glance at her - a tiny ray of light illuminated her nose, making the unicorn smile in her blissful sleep. Yesterday, Silver felt passion upon seeing her. Today, he felt disdain. Disdain and pity - pity for himself, for the mare he had spent the night with, for Lancy... Lancy? Silver shook his head slightly, noticing that his own mane was dishevelled, falling on his shoulders. Making sure that the blue mare was still sleeping, he carefully got to his hooves, left the room and then the library.

The sun was shining brightly, making some ponies smile and look up to the sky. Some ponies were lazily lying in the square, near the Sphere. The strange figure glowed with almost transparent light.

Resisting the overwhelming urge to come closer, the black pony resolved to go to his flat first. Maybe it was a blind instinct - but he wanted to go home. even if home weren't home at all.

Trotting along the road, he held his head high for a while but, observing all the happy faces around him, hung it low. He couldn't bear it. He still couldn't bear it. As he reminisced the events of the previous night, the expected headache finally appeared - they were painful to remember, but too important to forget. His mind was forcing its way through the subtle layer between dreams and reality. Golf, Lancy, Stealth, Steampunk, Layla, Star - all of these thoughts haunted Silver all the way home... all the way to his flat, to be more exact.

The black pony opened the door and slowly entered the house. He headed for the staircase, throwing an infinitesimal glance at the door - the same door which lead him to the underground world. It was open. No, I won't. I will. I won't. An array of thoughts rushed through Silver's head, making him take a few especially difficult steps up the stairs.

He looked at the door again. It was still open. No. He wouldn't go there, no matter what. He had strength of will. He suddenly recalled his father teaching him - when he was only three years old. The old stallion put a candy on the table, leaving Silver alone in the kitchen for some time. If the candy were still lying on the table upon Silver's father's return, the mature earth pony would give his son a hug - and another candy, as a supplementary stimulus. If not - he would just shrug, leaving the room. The worst memory of Silver's foalhood was his father turning away, leaving the room with contempt... Never in his life had the old stallion spanked his son, never had he shouted at him - but that punishment alone was enough for Silver.

Now he couldn't even remember his father's appearance: the colour of his mane and tail, the tint of his coat, the look on his face... He could only remember his eyes - they were green, like the pastures of old Equestria... His father truly was the very avatar of the old world, being conservative to the bone - while Silver was more of a nihilist. But who had he to blame? How could one find any meaning in a meaningless world, world of pain, death and destruction?

Silver's head suddenly bumped into a door. He raised his head and saw it was his door, waiting for its host to come. Silver rubbed his forehead, tousled his mane and, with a deep sigh, entered the flat.

Everything was the same. The door, the curtains, the bed... The lavender-maned adventurer still couldn't get used to stability. But did he really need to? Was stability his goal? Or he still wanted to return to the outside world - no, to the real world - world of freedom, independence and... fear? Pain? Constant exhaustion?

The black pony threw himself on the bed, hiding his face in the pillow. It was so soft... So good... It reminded him of his mother's gentle coat - as a foal, he would often bury his nuzzle in her coat, sniffing the aroma of mother's love, feeling her hoof brushing his mane and stroking his neck with utmost solicitude... Everything was so easy back then... And everything was so convoluted now.

Silver tried to fall asleep - to no avail. His head was aching, his whole body was filled with uneasy thoughts and feelings. All his principles and beliefs were being constantly changed by some puppeteer, who was pulling at the strings - the very strings connected to all ponies, and to him, Silver, as well. Was it a god? A goddess? Or... Lancy?

Silver had always been a non-believer. His parents were free-thinkers, despite his father's conservative cast of mind, and so was he.

Celestia, Luna, Star Swirl the Bearded - those were mere old mare's tales to him. He knew very well that the Sun and the Moon were acting by themselves, the seasons were changing by themselves, the nature was living by itself. The new world - the world after the Cataclysm - was the heaviest proof. But now Silver was in doubt. What if?.. He raised his head and looked out of the window, up to the sky. What if?.. No, of course not. Silver, my friend, you are losing it, he thought to himself, shaking his head and chuckling. Such internal monologues had always given his spirits a lift.

He got up, trotted to the bathroom and looked into the mirror. His aloofness vanished at the sight of his own face. He didn't believe in what he saw. Of course, while in the wilderness, he could only look at his face in a lake or a puddle - but now, he saw a fair young stallion. But for the mane, he looked rather handsome - and mature, for the wrinkles on his face were extraditing all the toil and strife he had to experience in the lifeless and cruel world.

He washed his face carefully, properly brushing his mane for the first time in the past twenty years - with a real brush that was lying on the dressing table, amongst other items, like various shampoos, soap and sponges. Suddenly, the black pony felt an urge to clean himself - maybe it was more of a mental desire? Maybe he wanted to get rid of the feeling of filth caused by the previous night? One way or another, he resolved to step into the shower cubicle, letting the cold water cleanse his mind. It felt good - it made his thoughts slow down, coming to his head one by one. The door... No, that was not the thought he desired now. The door... Silver sighed at his mind that refused to be obedient even for a second. He knew that if something had already caught his attention, it would be very difficult to cease thinking about it. Not just difficult - nearly impossible.

The black stallion groaned and turned the tap. Drying himself with a small towel - didn't they have bigger ones? He would ask Lancy later - he left the room, taking the key with himself, checking it twice before he departed from the flat, shutting the door behind him.

He descended the stairs at a slow pace, gambling with his impatience. He arrived at the first floor, purposely trying not to look at the door. He just stood there and waited up to the moment his impatience and curiosity would become unbearable.

Okay... Here goes nothing, Silver thought and turned his head towards the door. It was open. He gulped and shivered slightly. Still considering whether he were insane or not, the black pony approached the door, ready to be hit on the head again.

The door slightly opened and a purple hoof dragged him inside. The room he was in now resembled his perfectly. The same bed, the same curtains, the same pillows and blankets...

There was one crucial distinction, however. In this flat, right in the middle of the only room, stood a familiar purple red-maned unicorn mare, her blue eyes drilling him. Layla.

"Hello, Silver Dawn," she said.

The Ground Beneath Her Hooves

But love is what we want, not freedom. Who then is the unluckier man? The beloved, who is given his heart's desire and must for ever after fear its loss, or the free man, with his unlooked-for liberty, naked and alone between the captive armies of the earth?

- "The Ground Beneath Her Feet" by Salman Rushdie

***

The Ground Beneath Her Hooves

"Layla..." Silver Dawn exhaled. He was stunned. He was perplexed and disheartened. His dream wasn't a dream, after all. Or it was. Or, maybe, just maybe, his mind had lost its ability to comprehend and the dim remembrance of the underground city was a lie. A delusion born by a weary mind. But this 'delusion' was standing before him, smiling warmly, probably enjoying the black pony's mental turmoil.

It was the transcendence. The violation of all laws and rules that had ever been established. The dissection in reality. Silver couldn't find any more words. What would he say? Why would he address her in the first place?

"Layla..." He whispered again, pointlessly trying to find any discrepancy between the Layla from before and this Layla. There was none. It was the same unicorn, exactly resembling the one from that strange dream. Or not dream.

Realising that his eloquence had completely abandoned him, Silver silently approached the purple mare, slightly poking her with a hoof. She felt real. Her body was solid and very soft, not the kind of elastic softness, but a sturdy one.

Layla snickered, stepping back and covering her mouth with a hoof.

"Now what do you think you're doing?" She asked Silver, with perfunctory rigour but with a hint of natural curiosity in her eyes.

Silver stepped back as well, shaking his head. Great. Now he was making a droll of himself. Or, what would be much, much worse, Layla could consider it to have been a sign of infatuation for her! He had to think of something quickly, something smart.

"I was... investigating?" The black pony said half-questioningly. Smart indeed, Silver. Way to go, he thought the next second, mentally scolding himself for stupidity.

The red-maned mare raised a brow with an unspoken question in the corners of her lips.

"I mean, I was checking whether you were real or not!" The lavender-maned pony exclaimed apologetically, forcing himself to fall into the trap of his own device.

"And why would you need to do it, Silver Dawn?" The unicorn enquired deprecatingly. "Do I look like a ghost?" She wondered mockingly.

"Um... no," Silver mumbled. He cast a brief glance upon the mare. She looked real. She was real. Or not. In any case, he knew she was the only one with whom he could exchange his worries and speculations. If she were a part of his imagination, she couldn't give him advice, right? Silver recalled the dream about Lancy. Or not dream. Yes, life was very confused, after all.

Inclined to hear Silver expound his idea, Layla stomped a hoof in impatience.

"We've not much time, Silver Dawn. If you are in a mood for poltroonish mumbling, come another day," she said with an ostentatious glare.

That was obviously intended to foment sedition but had a diametrically opposite effect.

"I think I'm insane!" The earth pony blurted out, instantly regretting his action. Such a strenuous confession would not only plant a seed of doubt in Layla's heart but also assure her that he, Silver, was fully and completely mad.

Silence endured in the room. The sound of ponies laughing could be heard from outside.

"Those ignorant, blissful morons..." Layla whispered contemptuously, resembling Silver's thoughts, making him once more believe that she was a mere resemblance of his own subconsciousness.

"Anyway," she continued with a frown. "It's unsafe to stay here any longer. Let's get to the City, Silver Dawn - we'll discuss your... issue," the unicorn concluded demurely.

Upon seeing fear in the black stallion's eyes, she sighed.

"No, you won't faint this time. I've improved the spell, don't worry," she said before her horn lit and Silver started to feel light-headed. There was a flash of light and darkness enveloped him.

***

However, it didn't last long. In an instant, eyesight returned to Silver. After a few seconds of adjusting, he saw him to be in the 'Sleeping corner', in the underground city. By the way...

"Layla, what do you call this place anyway?" He suddenly wondered, following the mare, who had begun walking along some invisible path, manoeuvring between ponies with ease and grace. Silver couldn't help staring at her in awe - she seemed so elegant, yet so bold!

"We call it 'The City', why?" She replied, not looking back at the black stallion.

"Well, I think something like 'Steampunk' would've suited it better, don't you think?" Silver asked as he increased his pace to reach Layla and they began trotting side by side.

"Strange name... Strange word, I mean," the unicorn said in a bland tone. "Made it up yourself, Silver Dawn?" She wondered with visible disinterest.

Silver resolved not to answer. If she were a part of his mind, she would know about the book. Or was it an intended motion?

"So are we going to continue our saunter or finally find a quiet place to sit?" The black pony wondered with feigned vitality.

Layla suddenly stopped in her tracks.

"Already found, Silver Dawn," she said, finally looking in the red eyes, pointing with a hoof at a couple of pillows by the wall.

With a sigh, the black adventurer placed himself on one of the pillows.

Layla followed him, lying on another pillow, shaking her head.

"And I thought mares get to lie before stallions," she said, making the earth pony blush.

"So," she interrupted Silver's unspoken apology. "What's been bothering you, Silver Dawn?" She asked sympathetically.

She can surely change her tone, Silver thought. Though, she sounded honest; thus, he resolved to tell her all the truth.

"Well, in short... I had... a dream about Lancy, and when I told him about it, he assured me it was real. And..." Silver stumbled upon what he would say next. He looked at Layla, who gave him a reassuring smile and nodded. "And he also told me that this underground city was a dream, on the contrary," he finished in a sombre tone.

To his astonishment, the purple mare only laughed.

Silver raised a brow and already opened his mouth but Layla pressed a hoof against his lips.

"Wait, Silver Dawn. I know what you're trying to say. Don't worry - you're not the first one and probably not the last one," she said. "You see, Lancy's a powerful mage, and a pernicious one. He can easily manipulate the very mind of most ponies," the unicorn continued, taking her hoof off Silver's mouth, yet still leaving him in complete silence.

Layla moved closer to Silver and looked into his eyes. Her gaze was soft and tender. Her eyes reflected the artificial light of the city. She didn't blink but that look was by no means a superficial one. It wasn't drilling Silver but instead slowly sliding into the depths of his mind and heart.

"I'm real, Silver Dawn. Don't you see?" She asked, not moving at all.

Silver gulped. Yes, she seemed real. But... No, no more 'but's today. She felt real, therefore she was real.

"I do," he whispered, instinctively closing his eyes - he could still remember the last night and knew very well what came after such close intimacy.

"Great, now let's get straight to business, shall we?" a voice reached the adventurer's ears, making him open his eyes. The voice belonged to Layla, no doubt. Well, maybe not all affairs were the same...

"Um... What business, Layla?" Silver asked, recollecting his composure, hoping that Layla hadn't noticed his embarrassment.

"Escape, of course!" The mare exclaimed, throwing a hoof in the air.

Escape. Silver had already forgotten about it. Escape. It was so strange... Like he had truly already forgotten about it. Of course, he wanted to break free. But he thought it to be a rather distant future. He thought he had time for... For what? Talking to Lancy, the sinister doyen of Stealth? Sleeping with Shining Star - a mare he found physically attractive but had no romantic longing for? Spending the year he had left with ignorant youngsters whose only purpose in life was to live it? And what is *your** purpose, then?* A voice echoed in his head. He shook his head to get rid of such thoughts that were obfuscating him, crawling into his mind like desert snakes, deadly creatures that wait until the very last moment to strike - but strike incessantly, till their target would collapse on the ground, shaking from the venom, slowly and painfully dying.

Silver shook his head again, this time more fervently. He couldn't allow such ideas to ruin his already impaired sanity.

"So, how are you... I mean, we going to escape?" He wondered, returning on the familiar track of business talk. Easy, donnish and not tendentious. Like two partners would talk. Two allies. Two... friends?

"A wonderful opportunity turned up, Silver Dawn! I guess you won't even have to kill Lancy!" Layla said cheerfully, making the black pony snap out of his troubled reflections.

"Oh, really?" Silver asked mockingly. He had already forgotten about that stupid plan. "You guess, huh?" He turned his head towards the purple mare, who looked like a preceptor and a sentry at the same time: she looked recalcitrant yet indulgent, firm yet gentle.

"Well, you never know for sure, right?" Layla replied in the same merry tone.

Silver sighed. Right. Never know for sure. The exact feeling that had been haunting him for the past few days. He felt so insecure. He had lost his orientation. He couldn't be sure of anything any more. A valid point, Layla. You never know for sure, he thought.

"Anyway, here's the plan," Layla said, lowering her voice. "Tomorrow, the Earth Brothers will attack Stealth. This will be our chance. The panic will be exacerbated with each passing second, and, while the ponies will be fighting or screaming and running away in terror, we will escape and..." She continued in a conspirational tone but was interrupted by Silver's waving his hoof before her face.

"Hey, wait a minute!" He exclaimed, utterly dumbfounded and disoriented. "Earth Brothers? Attack? Tomorrow? What?"

Layla exhaled, turning so that she would be face to face with the black earth pony.

"The Earth Brothers is a nationalistic organisation whose headquarters is located to the East, in the outside world," the red-maned unicorn began her explanation, and Silver noticed her intonation: she wasn't pronouncing those two words, 'outside world', disdainfully; she didn't put any emphasis on them at all. "They attack Stealth from time to time, trying to kill all the unicorns and pegasi they can. This usually leads to chaos among Stealth citizens. All of their previous attempts were too weak and way too short: the Earth Brothers were just sounding the defence of Stealth - but now they're ready for a full-scale attack. That's our chance, Silver Dawn," she concluded firmly.

Silver felt his mind slowly rupturing, breaking into tiniest shards. There were other ponies in the outside world. They were going to attack. There was going to be a battle. He could escape. Maybe there were other ponies than those 'Earth Brothers'! Suddenly, he felt that breaking free was a marvellous prospect. He was not alone.

Somewhere deep in his heart, he felt miserable. He felt small. He felt impecunious. He wasn't special, after all. All those years of travelling alone were just a cruel coincidence. He could have met other ponies on his way but the sinister Providence decided for him not to. Providence? Was he truly that superstitious?

Silver began questioning himself - long, long ago. While he was sure he was a full-blown materialist and realist, he couldn't disagree with the fact that some mystical serendipity had assisted him throughout his adventure for survival. But serendipity comes from a pony's mind, whilst Providence is something of a godlike nature. No. Silver had tossed faith away before and he would toss it away now. Faith was an useless expenditure. Faith was for the meek and the weak. He, Silver Dawn, was by no means weak. Or meek. ...Or was he?

"So, how can you be so sure of it?" He asked Layla, trying to maintain a practical tone. He didn't want her to find him in a state of deepest confusion - he had an image to keep, after all! Or was there a different reason for it? Maybe you like her? The ever-vigilant voice in Silver's head whispered. No. He didn't like her. Even physically, not to mention mentally. She was an ally, just an ally. Oh, so now you admit she's your ally? The same voice cooed. Of course. Of course she was an ally. Maybe she would eventually become his friend. But that didn't prevent Lancy from being his friend. Lancy was his friend as well, right? Or wasn't he?

One way or another, he didn't have much experience with such complicated issues as making friends.

"We have ears in many places, Silver Dawn," Layla replied, smiling softly, yet letting a hint of self-respect touch her lips. "Very few things escape us," she concluded dramatically.

"You have agents among Lancy's troops, in other words?" Silver wondered, gifting Layla with an unamused look.

The purple unicorn sighed.

"Did you really have to ruin the moment?" She asked discontentedly but broke into laughter the next second. "I may have overreacted a little bit, now that I think about it." She wiped a tear off her eye.

Silver chuckled.

"Yes, you may have," he said, feeling slightly warm inside. Life had its positive moments, after all. Like his father had always said, life was divided in dark and bright periods. However, to Silver's mind, it was mostly grey.

"You are a marvel, Silver Dawn, you know that?" Layla suddenly asked, rising from the pillow.

Silver repeated her motion, standing on his hooves, rising a brow questioningly.

"It was a rhetorical question," the purple mare said with a fire of mockery in her eyes.

"I know," the black pony replied in the same tone.

In fact, it felt great - just talking to Layla, teasing her, getting teased... But they had a mission - a mission that needed to be either accomplished or... No, it needed to be accomplished.

"Say, Layla, what's my part in all of this?" Silver asked, regaining his businesslike tone.

"It's simple, really. Tomorrow, when you hear ponies shouting and gunshots, run towards the entrance to Stealth and find me. I'll tell you what to do," Layla told him, still smiling, despite all the affected formality.

The lavender-maned adventurer nodded.

"Now, I'll send you to your flat - you can't be absent for long, or else Lancy will notice," she said as her horn began glowing.

"Layla, wait..." Silver said, making the mare hold her spell. "One more thing."

"What is it, Silver Dawn?"

"You can call me Silver."

With a flash of light, the unicorn before him disappeared, but before the temporary darkness circumscribed him, Silver could see Layla smiling and silently whispering his name.

***

The room materialized before Silver with a flash, making the black pony wince and rub his eyes. He looked around, only to see his flat in the same state he had left it before. His head ached, however - the signs of the previous night still refused to abandon his long-suffering mind.

The earth pony proceeded to the bathroom with a clear intention to cleanse his worries under the stream of flowing water. He had one more day. The next day, it would happen. He would be free. But do you want to be free? The naughty voice kept bombarding Silver. The adventurer responded by turning the tap. Cold, invigorating water enveloped him whole, delivering the much desired pleasure both to his exhausted limbs and weary mind. It was amazing how he managed to be tired without much activity. Maybe the fact of being safe, protected, finally unleashed the tiredness that had been assembling in Silver's body.

Silver's staid state didn't last long - a knock at the door interrupted his sedated flow of thoughts. Lancy. That was most certainly Lancy. The red unicorn wouldn't leave him alone - after all, he probably wanted to enquire about Silver's condition after the previous night. Or was there another reason? He definitely shouldn't depreciate Lancy's wits as well as his abilities. The black pony remembered what Layla had said. It felt so strange: while Layla and Lancy were enemies, or at least opponents, standing on the opposite sides of the shed - but Silver experienced a friendly kindling while being with either of them.

Silver grunted and left the bathroom. Slowly making his way to the door, he shouted: "Coming, Lancy!"

It was not Lancy. When he opened the door, a blue orange-maned unicorn appeared before his eyes. Shining Star.

"Will you invite me or what?" She asked with a smile - but not with a friendly one; to Silver, it seemed cold, even arrogant.

He silently took a step back, inviting the mare with a nonchalant hoof gesture. He couldn't say he despised her; sure, he mentally decried her for taking advantage of him - in fact, of his drunk body - the previous night. But even more he abhorred himself: for getting drunk, for letting her abuse him... Why didn't he condemn Lancy? That was partly his fault as well. He would definitely talk to him about it later...

"So, that's your place, huh?" Shining Star asked casually. "Not bad, not bad - mine's better, though," she continued, making sure her insult (Oh really? You're insulted, Silver? The voice laughed) was audible to the earth pony.

Silver shrugged, countering Layla's offence with his disinterested face.

"Well, you live in a library," he replied rather coldly. He didn't use the local term purposely - 'House of Wisdom' was now a mere 'House of Lust', or even 'House of Shame' to him. Not 'wisdom', anyway.

The blue unicorn waved her hoof, laughing in a farfetched manner.

"Ah, sleeping with the Coordinator has its benefits, you know?" She said, wiggling a brow.

An overwhelming wave of disdain engorged Silver Dawn. He wanted this mare to leave - as soon as possible - and never dare to appear in his presence.

"What do you want from me?" He asked rather rudely, still not having closed the door, as if he were expecting the unwelcome guest to take her soonest departure.

"Why, my dear Silver..." The mare licked her lips. "Aren't you happy to see me? After the wonderful night we shared together?" She asked, moving closer to Silver - and to the door.

The black pony knitted his brow slightingly and inhaled deeply before beginning his speech:

"No, I am not. In fact-"

"Hey, Silver, pal, what's going on?" A voice echoed across the corridor.

A red white-maned unicorn entered the room. His red eyes shone with concern and... Fear? No, Lancy probably knew no fear. He wasn't the type of pony to be afraid of anything. And he, Silver Dawn, wasn't one either.

"Nothing, Lancy," Shining Star cooed. "Just on my way to leave," she said, tossing Silver a wink and leaving the flat.

After the blue mare had left, silence endured in the room.

Finally, Lancy whispered:

"Hot stuff, don't you think, Silver, pal?" He turned to Silver, making him lower his gaze.

"I don't want to talk about it..." He mumbled. "I hate her," he suddenly said, lifting his head and meeting the unicorn's gaze. The red eyes he looked into expressed genuine concern and sympathy. His look resembled the one Silver's father used to use whilst talking to him about the black colt's problems.

"Wasn't good enough for you last night, huh?" The unicorn asked, closing the door behind him. His eyes showed that he didn't mean that - the question was a fake, provoking Silver to express his honest thoughts.

Silver shrugged and looked through the window.

The sun had just reached its zenith, radiating warmth, casting its light on the whole town. The usual hustle never stopped: ponies were moving to and thro, exchanging smiles and glances, talking to each other, enjoying the fine day.

"No, not that, Lancy..." Silver finally said, stepping aside from the windowpane. "Just... I thought she would be more..."

"Mare-like?" The red unicorn finished the phrase exactly as the lavender-maned pony wanted to finish it himself.

Lancy chuckled and approached Silver, patting him on the shoulder.

"That's mares, Silver, pal..." It seemed that the unicorn got lost in thought, reminiscing events of his own past. "Don't take it close to your heart," he continued, his face expression becoming serious. "But never, I repeat, never let a mare in your life, Silver, pal," he finished, his look becoming somewhat doleful.

Surprisingly enough, Silver didn't question Lancy. He took his behest in his hear as a testament, believing the red unicorn completely. Lancy was his friend, and friends believed each other, right?

"I was a fool back then, yesterday," Lancy suddenly confessed. He hung his head low in sincere shame. "I thought you needed a mare for the night but it seems you need more than that," he said, moving towards the door. "I'm sorry," he concluded.

Silver nodded. it seemed so natural. Lancy offended him the previous night - indirectly, by setting him up with Shining Star, but offended nevertheless - and he apologised. That was exactly what a friend would do in such a situation. No words were needed. Silver only silently nodded.

Friends. Friends were Silver's terra incognita, his sear earth, the shaking ground beneath his hooves. He didn't remember about his foalhood friends - and he thought he didn't need to. The outside world, with its unforgiving pressure and sinister longing for blood had taught Silver to cling to himself, and only to himself. And now he was not alone. He had friends. It was a pleasant, warm, satisfying feeling. ...Or wasn't it?

"Silver, pal, I need to show something to you," Lancy added, opening the door. "Come on." With that, he left the room, holding the door for Silver to follow. The black pony trotted out of his flat, checking whether he still had the key with him. He did.

The door slammed behind them.

***

Never in his life had Silver thought that the world after Cataclysm would impress him. Sure, there were no animals or birds that would sing and impress ponies with their beautiful tunes. There was no grass or any plants at all - Silver had already forgotten their natural colour. Dark green? Light green? Lettuce green? Like it mattered now. The world was still dark, grim and cruel and the happiness in Stealth was a showcase, a fake. Yet... Yet Silver found that day to be extremely pleasant. Was it because Lancy had apologised to him? Was it beause he showed his character to Shining Star? Was it because he met Layla? Maybe it was everything at once? His father once said that all events in one's life leave an irreversible imprint on them, changing their attitude in most astonishing ways.

One way or another, Silver felt content with the day, and Stealth didn't seem half as repulsive as it did the previous day. He trotted with Lancy by his side, enjoying their silence for a while.

A group of foals ran past them, kicking a rubber ball in front of them. A game of hoofball, if Silver recalled correctly. He used to play it when he was a foal, too. He smiled and shook his head when an overwhelming urge to join the youngsters knocked at his mental door.

As if he were reading his very thoughts, Lancy smiled indulgently.

"We're a bit too old for hoofball, aren't we, Silver, pal?" He asked, still smiling. It wasn't his usual grin - instead, it was a lament, bitter smile of a pony whose life had been painful and sore, a smile of a pony who had wasted his time waiting to live - but never began to. It was his smile. It was Silver's smile.

Trying to get rid of the distressing thoughts, Silver resolved to keep the conversation flowing, no matter what direction it would take.

"By the way, how old are you, Lancy?" He wondered as they walked towards the town square.

The white-maned unicorn was silent. They approached the Sphere, accompanied only by the sound of hooves hitting stone.

The Sphere was constantly glowing. The light was intense and enticing, flickering and trembling but directing its steady flow all around the square, though it seemed that the mystical light was covering all town.

"Twenty-four, Silver, pal," Lancy said, stroking the Sphere. It reacted by slowly turning red. Now that Lancy turned his face towards Silver, the black pony could see that the Sphere perfectly resembled the unicorn's eyes. "Always twenty-four," he added after a moment of silence.

Silver opened his mouth in amazement.

"What..." He began.

"I'll explain," Lancy interrupted his stuttering. "But before it, Silver, pal, please, come here." He nodded in the direction of the Sphere.

Silver Dawn, dumbfounded and completely disorientated, came closer to the shining object.

"Touch it," Lancy said, taking his hoof off the object. The red colour immediately vanished. It didn't sound like an order; yet, Silver felt compelled to obey.

He pressed a hoof against the Sphere. He thought it to be cold, for it was made of stone - at least, some kind of stone. On the contrary, it was warm. Warm and solid. The second he touched the Sphere, it turned red again.

Lancy's eyes widened and his mouth fell agape.

"So it's true..." He whispered, staggering back from Silver.

The black pony raised a brow.

"What's the matter, Lancy?" He asked, coming closer to the unicorn and putting a hoof on his shoulder in what seemed to him like a friendly manner. "And what do you mean by 'always twenty-four'? Is it a local joke?" Silver wondered, knowing very well that it wasn't a joke.

Lancy gulped, his eyes expressing utter astonishment.

"It's complicated, Silver, pal," he said. "Or... should I say... brother?"

Silver Dusk, Golden Dawn

"My God - life! Who can understand even one little minute of it?"

"Don't try. Just pretend you understand."

"That's - that's very good advice."

- "Cat's Cradle" by Kurt Vonnegut

***

Silver Dusk, Golden Dawn

Lancy shrugged in his troubled sleep. His dreams were constantly haunting him but the worst part of the torture was that the tormentor remained unknown: as soon as the red unicorn awakened, the last remnants of the nightmare faded into day. And so happened now.

The stallion jerked up, his eyes wide open, a drop of sweat falling onto the plain bed. As Lancy regained his usual serene pace of breathing, he sighed and stood up. He had no habit of falling asleep again after waking up. Awoken means awoken, he had always said.

The sun still hid beneath the thick layer of clouds, mixed with highly dangerous radioactive dust. Lancy idly mused that the very air would have killed a pony of past times; fortunately, modern ponies were immune to the deadly substance.

The unicorn rose from his bed, trotting towards the bathroom. His flat was as plain as any other; he would have hated himself if he were to live in conditions different from what other Stealth citizens had to live in. He wasn't their ruler; he was a mere coordinator. The Sphere reacted to him - and he transmitted its holy energy to the ponies. Nothing more, nothing less.

As cold, refreshing water ran down his body, Lancy thought about Silver Dawn. The black earth pony was different from others: he was struggling. He kept a severe stance of resistance and, Lancy had to admit, managed to succeed. Yet.

The red stallion smiled as he washed his perfect white mane. Yet. Soon, the submission would be complete. Soon, Silver would join him. Lancy wanted the earth pony to join - terribly so. Lancy admired few things: beauty, courage, honour. But most of all he admired wisdom. And Silver had much wisdom to share indeed.

Having finished the morning routine, the Coordinator left the flat and headed for the main square. As it was still quite early, most ponies were asleep. The only ones that could be seen were couples exchanging kisses in the dark alleys which were no longer lit by moonlight but not touched by sunlight yet. Lancy smiled and tried to step more gently. He didn't want to disturb the lovebirds.

Approaching the Sphere, he felt the ever-present sensation of deep respect to the inanimate object. No! Not inanimate! The Sphere was alive, and Lancy knew it. He felt it. As he touched the Sphere, it lit with familiar light and shared its warmth with the unicorn. However, Lancy felt a sudden change in the sensation: like somepony else was draining the energy. Like the Sphere opened itself to another pony.

To another pony.

Another pony.

Another.

Another.

In a moment, the unicorn didn't feel so insecure. But of course! If the Sphere felt another Coordinator about the city, it could mean only one thing: it was the new pony that had arrived in Stealth recently.

Silver Dawn.

Silver Dawn - that was that another pony.

Yet, Lancy couldn't be completely sure about that. He had to check. And that was exactly what he meant to do. But first, he had some business to attend to. Silver must be still with Shining Star, Lancy mused. So, he headed for the House of Wisdom.

***

The House of Wisdom met him with cold and unwelcoming silence. Stepping inside, Lancy found not a single sign of Silver nor did he find the beautiful librarian.

Beautiful. He had never speculated about that word. Sure, Star was beautiful, in the common sense. She was a good mare to sleep with; but... was it the outside beauty or the inside beauty that made a pony really beautiful? In that case, was that strange rebel scientist - Layla - more beautiful than Shining Star? Anyway, he had to protect Silver from that kind of beauty. Sure, he lied to him about Layla and the City - so what? The stallion could have been influenced by those underground delinquents. Without him, they were powerless - Lancy knew how good his army and Intelligence was - but with him... let's say, they could stand a chance.

Finally, Lancy looked at the shelves and, without further thinking, took a book. He knew the book by heart; yet, he had to read it again, in case he were wrong.

As I have thought... the unicorn mused after a few minutes of reading.

Putting the book on the shelf, he left the library, carefully closing the door.

***

As Lancy ascended the stairs leading to Silver's flat, he heard two voices arguing over something: a stallion and a mare. Silver Dawn and Shining Star.

"Hey, Silver, pal, what's going on?" Lancy shouted, trotting through the corridor.

He entered the room. His eyes shone with concern. He was concerned about Silver, after all. Not about that cheap librarian whorse.

"Nothing, Lancy," Shining Star cooed. "Just on my way to leave," she said, tossing Silver a wink and leaving the flat.

After the blue mare had left, silence endured in the room.

Finally, Lancy whispered:

"Hot stuff, don't you think, Silver, pal?" He turned to Silver, making him lower his gaze. He wanted the earth pony's reaction. He wanted to know where his and Star's relationship ended - if it had ever started.

"I don't want to talk about it..." Silver mumbled. "I hate her," he suddenly said, lifting his head and meeting the unicorn's gaze.

Lancy noted that the lavender-maned pony looked into his eyes as a foal would look into his father's. Or... like a younger brother would looked into his elder brother's eyes.

Silver shrugged and looked through the window. Lancy copied the gesture.

"No, not that, Lancy..." Silver finally said, stepping aside from the windowpane. "Just... I thought she would be more..."

"Mare-like?" The red unicorn finished the phrase.

Lancy chuckled and approached Silver, patting him on the shoulder.

"That's mares, Silver, pal..." The unicorn got lost in thought for a second, reminiscing events of his own past. "Don't take it close to your heart," he continued, becoming serious. "But never, I repeat, never let a mare in your life, Silver, pal," he finished, feeling somewhat doleful. He learned that truth from experience; but he didn't want Silver to climb through the same hardships to get that knowledge.

Partly, he acted. He wasn't half as sorry as he showed it. Most ponies were mere actors, playing the parts they were given, weren't they? But partly, he was honest. It was his fault to put Silver to that test. Fortunately, Silver had passed it. He wasn't fooled by visible beauty; he craved for the inside beauty.

Silver silently nodded.

"Silver, pal, I need to show something to you," Lancy added, opening the door. "Come on." With that, he left the room, holding the door for Silver to follow. The black pony trotted out of his flat.

The door slammed behind them.

***

The ponies trotted side by side, enjoying their silence.

A group of foals ran past them, kicking a rubber ball in front of them. A game of hoofball, Lancy thought. He used to play it when he was a foal, too. He looked at Silver, who smiled and shook his head when a visible urge to join the youngsters knocked at his mental door.

As if he were reading his very thoughts, Lancy smiled indulgently.

"We're a bit too old for hoofball, aren't we, Silver, pal?" he asked, still smiling.

"By the way, how old are you, Lancy?" the black pony suddenly wondered, not answering the question, as they walked towards the town square.

The white-maned unicorn was silent. Should he tell him now? And how in Stealth would he tell him if he couldn't explain it even to himself? Twenty-four. Always twenty-four. That was the Sphere's doing, not his! It didn't want to consume him - so it protected him from ageing, simple as that. That was the only explanation he could think of.

The two ponies. approached the Sphere, accompanied only by the sound of hooves hitting stone.

"Twenty-four, Silver, pal," Lancy said, stroking the Sphere. It reacted by slowly turning red. Red. Like his eyes. Like Silver's eyes. "Always twenty-four," he added after a moment of silence.

Silver opened his mouth in amazement.

"What..." He began.

"I'll explain," Lancy interrupted his stuttering. "But before it, Silver, pal, please, come here." He nodded in the direction of the Sphere.

Silver Dawn came closer to the shining object.

"Touch it," Lancy said, taking his hoof off the object. The red colour immediately vanished. It didn't sound like an order; yet, Silver obeyed.

The earth pony pressed a hoof against the Sphere. The second he touched the Sphere, it turned red again.

Lancy's eyes widened and his mouth fell agape.

"So it's true..." He whispered, staggering back from Silver. He knew it. All the time since Silver appeared in the city, he had known it. He had read the book; he had heard the story his father told him. He knew it. And now... Silver knew it too.

The black pony raised a brow.

"What's the matter, Lancy?" He asked, coming closer to the unicorn and putting a hoof on his shoulder in what seemed to Lancy like a friendly manner. "And what do you mean by 'always twenty-four'? Is it a local joke?" Silver wondered, showing all signs of knowing very well that it wasn't a joke.

Lancy gulped, his eyes expressing utter astonishment.

"It's complicated, Silver, pal," he said. "Or... should I say... brother?"

***

All of a sudden, the world around them turned black. Lancy could sense a fleeting feeling of gunpowder penetrating his nose. He sneezed loudly, gradually coming to a realization that the whole town was enveloped in a strange, yet familiar, noise.

The noise of machine guns.

"Run and hide!" Lamcy yelled at the top of his lungs and pushed Silver towards the Sphere. The Sphere would protect him. It ought to protect him.

The red unicorn trotted towards the two-storey stone building, which was black, dark and unwelcoming to strangers. But Lancy was no stranger in his own town so he threw the large door open with a simple motion of his horn and entered the sombre place.

It was quiet and dark, with nopony around. The whole building, two-storey from the outside, was actually a single big room. The ceiling was placed so high that one couldn't simply see it due to the darkness that reigned regally inside. The walls were dirty and bare, without a sign of a single hoof ever touching them.

However, the red-maned pony knew exactly what he had come for. He swiftly approached the furthest wall and found a small device with a few buttons that was inserted into a small, almost invisible crack in the wall. The buttons were impossible to be pressed with a hoof, but Lancy, being a unicorn, encountered no difficulties.

He chuckled at the irony: while the town was meant for everypony, only unicorns could get access to its holy of holies, the key to protecting Stealth - or destroying it whatsoever.

"Nine... One... Five... Six... One... Nine..." Lancy whispered aloud as he pressed the needed buttons. Of course, he needn't have done it, for it was magic and not a mere password that protected the weapon from being activated. In a matter of a few seconds, a large red button appeared before the pony. He smiled and extended his hoof. He could have pressed the button using his magic but the moment was too glorious to do so.

Too long had he tolerated the Earth Brothers.

Too long had he planned this.

Too long had he been developing the ultimate weapon.

Sure, he had fooled the Brothers to attack Stealth. Sure, some ponies would die in the process of realization of his master plan. Sure, blood would fall.

But in the end, the Earth Brothers would be destroyed. Today.

And peace and prosperity would follow and remain for ever after.

Lancy smiled and pressed the button.

***

Silver got up from the ground. He had hit his head on the Sphere and it hurt greatly, though, he knew he had to act quickly. If life had ever taught him anything, it was the simple fact that if there is shooting around you and you don't have a gun. you have to run.

An array of thoughts rushed through Silver's head. Lancy running away, leaving him, abandoning him... Layla, alone in the underground city, unprotected, insecure... Shining Star... Why Shining Star?

The lavender-maned earth pony knew better than to stand in place and speculate. When a bullet whistled past his head, he took off, galloping towards the large fence that surrounded the town. It was his chance to get out, at last! In search for a hole, a small gap, a crack in the surface of the fence, the black pony saw a gate - a way out!

However, the way was blocked by a scene Silver had never seen before: dozens of ponies - maybe even hundreds - clashed in a violent battle. From the direction of the gate were running countless earth ponies with machine guns and knives, stabbing and shooting citizens of Stealth; from the direction of the town were defending the citizens, many of them in military outfits, with guns and rifles.

The thick black smoke covered the improvised battlefield and the scent of fresh blood was fearful and somewhat intoxicating. The air was filled with cries and shrieks and the whole place was so crowded with bodies, living and dead, that it was nearly impossible to get through.

Still, this is my only chance, Silver thought and, swearing under his breath, rushed off into the unknown with his eyes closed. In a few fleeting moments, a bullet hit his shoulder. The earth pony fell on the ground and groaned. He was in no condition to move. Well, this is what you get for being a fool, he concluded. He tried to open his eyes but sudden weariness enveloped him, and he couldn't move a centimetre.

He considered dying. He didn't feel bad about it, though. He knew that sooner or later he would have to die. The lifeless wasteland left no other option. But he wanted to die later rather than sooner. Only now he realised how much he actually wanted to live.

Suddenly, he felt being dragged by the leg. Somepony was moving him; somepony who was obviously not a unicorn, for he was being dragged by somepony's mouth. When Silver, suppressing the pain and fatigue, managed to open his eyes, he saw that somepony. A brown earth pony stood above him, his long black mane falling upon his shoulders, his red eyes looking at Silver with sympathy.

Red eyes.

The pony was accompanied by four tough soldiers. Though they were useless right now, partly because Silver was injured, partly because they were located beside a large house, with nopony around, everypony concentrated on the battle.

"Ah, what a fine day the Goddesses - may they be damned - had brought upon us, don't you think?" the brown pony said, smiling. "Never in my life would I have thought that I would meet another blessed victim of the radiation!" He carefully looked over Silver Dawn, paying attention to his wounds. "And what a victim it is!" he exclaimed, raising his hoof.

Silver blinked at the sudden display of affection, not fully comprehending the situation.

"You are ever so lucky, young warrior," the black-maned pony addressed Silver. "It is a marvel that I managed to see this red light in your eyes in the middle of the battle," he continued, tossing his mane to the side. "Or I would have killed you," he concluded plainly.

Silver groaned in pain and grabbed his shoulder. Warm blood covered his hoof immediately.

"Oh, I simply cannot let you die here," the stranger exclaimed. "I'm ever so interested to find another deadling, apart from me and Lancy, of course."

Deadling? Silver thought but never managed to ask, for his lips were sealed due to pain.

"Now about your treatment..." the brown earth pony began but his mouth fell agape all of a sudden. His guards were visibly shocked as well.

What is it? Silver tried to whisper but failed. Fortunately - or unfortunately - the answer to his question appeared right before his eyes. An enormous ball of bizarre red substance - much like plasma - was moving in the air towards the gate.

Towards the battlefield.

Most of the warriors didn't notice it. Some ponies noticed it but paid no attention. How they were mistaken! The ball, huge already, enlarged itself even more and enveloped the fighting ponies. Their deaths were quick and visibly painless: they simply vanished, easy as that. Nothing more.

After doing its deed, the plasma ball flew towards the Sphere and the glowing object - Lancy's idol - consumed it whole, glowing red for a moment.

The ball was gone. So were the warriors from both sides. Only the Sphere remained in its glorious beauty.

Somehow, the shock was so great that Silver had forgotten about pain for the time being. Now, however, after the whole performance had finished, the pain returned. The lavender-maned pony's groans made the brown pony and his guards blink and come to their senses immediately.

Clearly, the black-maned pony wanted to say something, for his mouth opened slowly - but another strange scene interrupted him.

From the slowly perishing black appeared a red unicorn, who was carrying a gun in his magical grip, a wide grin plastered upon his face.

"It worked," he said plainly, with a swift flash in his eyes, his red, bottomless eyes.

These simple words somehow managed to establish tranquillity inside the brown earth pony. He turned to see look into Lancy's eyes. His gaze was no longer surprised, his brows no longer raised, his body no longer tense. He reached for his saddlebag and took a cigarette out of it with a refined gesture of his mouth - a gesture only earth ponies were capable of.

"Would you mind lending me a light?" he enquired, addressing Lancy, with the cigarette hanging in his mouth.

Silver Dawn marvelled at how elegantly the stranger managed to speak, even with a paper cylinder in his mouth, looking neither like a bandit nor like a poser.

The unicorn cast a simple spell, lighting the cigarette, which immediately began emitting foul smoke.

"How many times I've told you that it's bad for your health..." Lancy shook his head disapprovingly, as though he were scolding an old friend... or a brother?

"A true actor never fears death, for death is but a fleeting moment in the face of eternity," the brown pony said grandiloquently. "The play is what matters, and I play my part as I see it." He took a deep puff of his cigarette. "You have played your hand, Lancy, it seems, and the joker was yours," he concluded, casting the unicorn an estimating look.

"Or was it?" he continued after taking another puff. "Sacrificing almost all of the town's population - just to achieve your ambition of getting rid of us?" He chuckled. "Passing bold, I say."

"There is a price for everything, Rising Curtain," Lancy replied with a lazy shrug. "We have to pay for what we want to achieve."

Silver Dawn couldn't get a grip on what was happening. Could Lancy... Could he have killed all those ponies? Just to deal with his mortal enemies? And how could he call them enemies if he was talking to one of them simply like that? What was the reason behind this? What is the sphere? Why was Lancy always twenty-four? These questions made Silver's head ache, adding pain to the already painful existence of his.

Lancy looked at Silver expectantly.

"Don't worry, Silver, pal," he said, chewing on his words. "I see you have quite a lot of questions and I'm the one to provide answers. But first of all..." he suddenly stopped and closer his eyes. His horn glowed red and a magic wall appeared before the five earth ponies standing before him. The unicorn jerked his head slightly and, in but a moment, the brown pony's guardians fell down, their throats cut open, blood leaving their bodies.

Rising curtain (if that was the brown pony's real name) didn't look afraid in the slightest. He huffed and extinguished his cigarette.

"What's wrong, Rising Curtain? I thought you adored fencing?" Lancy teased the earth pony, moving closer, his breath falling onto Silver in some way.

"I adore the fencing of the old world," the brown pony replied simply. "You, on the other hoof, managed to spoil it with that magic of yours," he said with a hint of disdain in his voice.

Silver groaned, feeling his shoulder no more. He honestly thought for a second he would die on the spot, with the two enemies too involved in their friendly talk.

Lancy turned his head towards the lavender-maned earth pony.

"Oh, Silver, sorry, pal, my bad. Here you are." He cast a healing spell and Silver's wound was automatically cured.

Too bad he can't restore my lost blood, Silver thought, feeling slightly dizzy, yet, still not on the edge of passing out.

Feeling a little better, Silver tried to rise to his hooves but his attempt was in vain: he fell on the ground with a groan.

"Why, Lancy?.." he only managed to whisper as pain returned to his shoulder.

"Better not to move, Silver, pal. The wound's only healed, not fully cured," the unicorn warned him.

"Why?... What's going on..." Silver said, addressing nopony in particular, mumbling to himself, like a foal who had just been told that Hearth Warming's Eve Pony is not real.

Unexpectedly, Rising Curtain turned to the black pony and looked into his eyes.

"What's going on?" he wondered. "You want to know, Silver... Dawn, was it?"

Silver managed to nod.

The brown pony nodded in return.

"Lancy, shall I?" he asked the unicorn.

"I can't see why you shan't," Lancy replied with a shrug. "Just try to make it quick."

Rising Curtain cleared his throat artistically and began speaking; though, now his speech didn't carry even the slightest hint of medieval antiquity. It was a simple explanation of simple events.

"Lancy used the power of the Sphere to create a powerful magical weapon, based on the technology that almost wiped out the ponykind long ago. Now almost all of his ponies-"

"Citizens," Lancy interrupted.

"Citizens," Rising Curtain corrected himself. "Almost all of his citizens are dead; so are my ponies. Our struggle is no more. It seems that the conflict is finally solved, for the parties have ceased. Time to drop the curtain, don't you think, Lancy?" the red-eyed earth pony turned towards the unicorn and extended his hoof.

"High time," Lancy said and pulled the trigger of his gun.

The bullet hit the heart directly. The brown pony didn't suffer. He fell on the ground as a big lump of clay, colour swiftly leaving his limbs.

"Good-bye, old friend," Lancy said sympathetically. A tear crawled down his cheek.

"Digest a little the wine, of which thou hast taken too much..." the brown pony whispered as he reached for his saddlebag and tried to take out a gun. But he needn't have done it - his heart stopped beating the very second he tried to do so.

"Book of Kings," Lancy stated with no intonation.

"Is... Is all of this true?" Silver asked pleadingly. He didn't want to believe this; yet, he knew this was true.

"Yes, it is," Lancy said blandly.

"Stealth... is no more?" Silver wondered idly.

Lancy turned his head towards the earth pony.

"Not yet. There are a few ponies that were alive when all of this happened. The City is no more, though," he added, knowing what effect it would cause.

Silver Dawn gasped in fear.

"How? How is this- You are lying!" he yelled, suppressing the sharp pain.

"No, I'm not. I had to draw energy from somewhere. And the City was an ideal source. Why do you think I let those rebels live?" Lancy replied with a smile.

"They all just played part in your play..." Silver whispered.

Lancy nodded solemnly.

"For many years have I studied the technology of the Old World - and I have succeeded. The Sphere, whatever it is, gave me immortality - always twenty-four..." he quoted himself. "...And it also gave me the means to put an end to this struggle between the Free City of Stealth and those nationalistic Earth Brothers. I am ever so grateful," he said dreamily and looked in the direction where the Sphere was located with frightening precision.

"But you begged to differ," Lancy said suddenly, turning his head towards Silver. "You were a rebellious actor who didn't want to play his part. No wonder Rising Curtain noticed you."

"He was your brother?" Silver asked, slowly crawling away from the maniacal unicorn, towards the brown pony's saddlebag.

"In the same way you are, Silver. 'Blessed victims of the radiation', he would say," Lancy said, lost in thought.

Using this opportunity, Silver collected all his strength and, with one swift move, leapt towards Rising Curtain's saddlebag and grabbed his pistol. The feeling of steel in his mouth gave him some courage - and power to stand up.

Shaking, stumbling upon the flat ground, the black pony pointed the gun at Lancy.

"Oh, quite rebellious indeed..." Lancy chucked. "Would you dare to kill an immortal?" he wondered, raising a brow.

Silver knew better. He staggered towards the exit - towards the way out.

"I'm not holding you, you know," Lancy said suddenly. His tone was serious. "The play is over; the actors can go home now."

To support his words, he dropped his own gun to the ground.

Not letting his guard down, his gun still pointed at Lancy, Silver moved towards the exit, step by step.

He reached the gate. The way was open. He dropped the gun.

Turning his back on the red unicorn, on the cursed town, on all the dead ponies and living ponies there, he took a few hesitant steps forth and left town. Staggering and stopping every few steps, he went away, towards the frozen wasteland, towards freedom.

His figure got lost in the deep sands of the desert.

Lancy sighed with a smile.

He looked over the empty town. Marks of bullets and the foul smoke of badly-mixed gunpowder were decorating Stealth, adding some dark, sombre beauty to the large lopsided sign above the entrance that read,

WELCOME TO STEALTH

The First Impression Is Always Very Appealing

The First Impression is Always Very Appealing

Step by step.

Through the frozen wastelands, corrupted by tremendous amounts of delicious yet poisonous ice - an acid that keeps you warm and full so long as you keep in that place. But start moving - and the toxin will deplete your insides till they rot and you die in pain, lost and forgotten.

Step by step.

Through the volcanic wilderness, flaming with radioactive fire that burns your coat and skin, getting to the very meat of your weary muscles. But then it stops, making you a living corpse - an unprotected moving pile of bones and muscles.

Step by step.

Through the desert, created by the last flash of Armageddon - a symbol of ceaseless struggle within nature. Born from dust, deceased to dust. The desert... The lifeless creature where the corpses of the valiant and traitors lie side by side, emphasising the insignificance of life.

Step by step.

Through the ruins of ancient towns and villages - the reiterated repetition of the same dull scenery: piles of cold stones and black dust that will never vanish, no matter how hard you try to forget.

Step by step.

***

The last remnants of night were still covering the lifeless waste ground when the unperturbed silence of that place was suddely interrupted by a sound of hooves hitting the ground. A shadowy figure that only slightly resembled a pony was moving through the wasteland. If one were to look closer, they would clearly see it to be an earth pony, of the common variety. His black coat was covered with dust that was almost hiding his true colour. His mane and tail formed a tangled mass, losing their natural lavender colour, as if they were pretending to be black as well, to conceal their owner in the night.

The pony dragged his hooves in exhaustion. It seemed as though his each next step would be his last. However, he gritted his teeth in unspoken pain and continued his pointless journey. His red eyes were dull, and the only light in them was the light of despair and humility. Despair that showed he stopped finding any point in that constant desert voyage. Humility that showed he kept struggling against death only automatically, not paying a single thought to the actions he kept performing. Raise a hoof. Move a centimetre. Stomp the hoof. Repeat the process.

All of a sudden, he stumbled over a rock. Under other circumstances, the small item wouldn't have been an impassable obstacle for the muscular and strong earth pony, but, considering the inconceivable fatigue that had been following him for days (or were they weeks? He couldn't remember exactly), he fell on the dusty ground, his head hitting the ill-timed rock.

He hoped he would faint. He didn't. So he had two choices: either to die, covered by sand that soon enough would be brought upon by the ill wind, impervious to everything surrounding it, or to remain alive and continue the pointless struggle.

The black pony let out a heavy sigh. He lay on the ground for some time, collecting the bits of energy he had. The waste ground was slowly changing into a desert, when the hot dry wind spread the ground with hot sand. The pony gritted his teeth. He couldn't lie there any longer, or else he would be covered with the deadly substance. He rose on his knees, lowering his head and breathing heavily. It was a great show of power for him: though it was not clear from the distance, his legs were trembling and it was extremely difficult for him just to keep his head straight, not letting it fall on the ground, attracting the whole body with it, only to forget his suffering and give himself up to the endless dream of Death.

A second later, he was standing erect, slightly shivering but remaining still nevertheless. The wind was blowing through him, almost penetrating his tissues, making him take a step back. That was nothing for the sinister wind but very important for the lavender-maned pony. A step back. A whole step. Gaining a small, almost insignificant amount of physical might from some unknown resources, the pony stubbornly took a few steps forth, only to prove that his pride still remained somewhere deep within his body.

Alas, the wind was not impressed - it hit the pony with increased might, making him swallow his useless pride and fall on the ground again. Now, the pony noticed, he felt light-headed, as if he were going to faint. And, to his deepest pleasure, he felt the valet of Death approaching him, making him lose consciousness.

***

He opened his eyes. A flash of bright artificial light was the first thing that met him, enveloping his whole body, warming his limbs. The light was so intense that he had to spend the next minute adjusting to it. When the black pony regained the ability to see things clearly, he realised he was lying on a bed - not a shadow of a bed, like he had seen in the shelters and abandoned towns - but a real bed, with clean sheets and a cosy pillow. In front of the bed stood a tall red unicorn, who was grinning widely. His teeth were completely white - so were his mane and tail. He looked young - presumably, in his early twenties - and, what was unusual for most ponies of those dark times, his eyes were shining with youthful vigour and he stood tall and majestic, shining with happiness, radiating hope.

The black pony mechanically glanced at the unicorn's flank, only to find no cutie mark. What did he expect - the radiation literally wiped out all cutie marks in the world, leaving the new foals... How to put it... talentless. No hope. No guide. No faith. No talent. Isn't it so beautiful to be alive?

Such thoughts didn't last long enough for the black pony to speculate about them, since his stream of consciousness was interrupted by the red unicorn, who waved a hoof before the bed.

"Hey there, pal! Feeling better?" He asked, somehow maintaining his grin.

The black pony nodded. He was too tired to say a word.

"The name's Golden Lance, but everypony around just calls me Lancy. Do call me so, please," the red unicorn continued.

Does he ever close that smiling mouth of his? The black pony silently wondered, while noticing that the grin was magically assuring. He wanted to call that strange unicorn 'Lancy', somewhere deep inside, maybe even against his will. The thought ceased in his mind, and the trails to it became muddled, disallowing the brain to make further associations.

He finally managed to open his mouth and, licking his cracked lips, said:

"Silver Dawn." Then he burst into an especially severe fit of coughing, tears streaming from his eyes, crawling down his face and finally losing their tracks in his black fur.

The red unicorn levitated a glass of water, bringing it to the earth pony's mouth, who gladly accepted the much desirable liquid, drinking it in small but fast gulps.

After such a treatment, Silver Dawn's throat became less sore and he finally felt able to speak properly. He let out a final cough and sat up in the bed.

"I'm in a hospital, right?" He asked, looking around, slowly moving his aching head.

The room was disturbingly bright. The white walls reflected the artificial light of a single bulb that was hanging right above the bed. The bulb was swinging but the light didn't flicker at all: it remained overwhelmingly blinding. There was no furniture in the room, apart from the bed, of course. Frankly speaking, it was a great achievement to keep the whole place clean, lighted and provide the room with a real wooden bed so there was no use complaining about lack of other pieces of furniture. The curtains were dark red, keeping the light inside while protecting the room from any other sources of illumination.

Lancy... Golden Lance grinned from ear to ear, before speaking again:

"Well, Silver... I may call you Silver, right?"

The black pony nodded but the unicorn continued talking without taking this silent approval into consideration.

"You see, Silver, pal, you may call this place a hospital but we call it 'House of Health' instead. A more inviting name, don't you think?" The unicorn carried on, still paying no attention to another nod from the earth pony.

"So let's call it 'House of Health', shall we?" Lancy finished, still keeping his wide grin.

Silver Dawn shook his head. Why not? He thought. Surprisingly, even to himself, he said aloud:

"Sorry, um... Lancy, but I'll keep calling it a 'hospital'. You know, I'm kind of used to old names."

The red unicorn raised his brow, not dropping the grin.

"Interesting... Such hypnotic protection... Where are from, pal, if you don't mind my asking?" He mumbled under his breath, sharply raising his voice at the end of the question.

The black pony shrugged, shaking his head.

"Before the Cataclysm I used to live in a small town called Ponyville... Like that matters now..." He said, his voice dropping to a sad whisper. When he raised his head, he realised the unicorn was no more grinning. Silver could see sympathy in his eyes - maybe even a sign of empathy.

"Everything matters, Silver, pal. Say, how old are you?" Lancy wondered with strange, unhealthy curiosity.

The black earth pony narrowed his eyes.

"Twenty-four... If that matters," he said, trying to break through that impenetrable mask on the unicorn's face to find out about his true intentions. Nothing is free - you have to pay your price for everything. That was what the dark, almost lifeless, world had taught Silver Dawn, and he always kept that in mind.

"Oh, it does!" Lancy exclaimed, his grin returning to the bright face. "But first of all, would you like an excursion around Stealth?"

"Stealth?.." Silver asked in lack of understanding, getting up and finally standing on his four legs, stretching his limbs.

"That's our town - Stealth!" The unicorn exclaimed, trotting in the direction of the door. "See for yourself, pal! Come on!'' He shouted, leaving the room.

Silver Dawn shrugged and slowly followed the strange unicorn outside.

***

To say that the town was breathtaking was to say nothing. It was a large town, not as big as Canterlot, of course, but twice as big as Ponyville. Two- and three-storey buildings were neatly put on the both sides of a wide road paved with polished flint. To Silver's astonishment, there were not only living houses, but also a wide web of infrastructure: hospitals and shops, schools and libraries, casinos and sports centres - they were everywhere, shining with all colours of the rainbow, luring ponies, who were passing by, with striking illumination and neon signs that read: Welcome to Stealth.

Ponies of all races and varieties were trotting up and down the road, chatting with each other or looking around, choosing where they should go first of all. There were unicorns, pegasi and earth ponies, who walked side by side, unperturbed by their obvious racial differences. However, something was bothering Silver: all the ponies he had seen so far were young - too young, to his mind, - but he decided not to concentrate his attention on such things yet.

As the two ponies began walking down the road, Lancy began speaking, sublimely, gesticulating with a hoof, like an orator standing before an audience.

"...And the best thing, Silver, pal, is that everypony is accepted here. Yes, everypony! Stealth is a town built by refugees for refugees. Anypony who is considered an outcast there..." The unicorn's grin faded for a second as he said that word, full of disdain, referring, no doubt, to the outside world. "...is welcome here. Assassins and terrorists, rebels and adventurers, victims of racism and political dissidents, colt-cuddlers and filly-foolers - everypony, I repeat, everypony is welcome in Stealth!" Lancy finished his tirade on an especially high note, raising both his hoof and head high in the air, almost beginning to hover above the ground.

The black pony couldn't suppress a mild chuckle, for the speech carried so much passion. But... All of this was so... unusual. So unreal. So similar to some of his dreams that he had occasionally, on cold nights, after a prayer for dawn to come faster, after fervent days of constant survival. But here happiness reigned. Happiness everywhere. Young faces filled with bright, almost narcotic rapture. There were excited faces, laughing faces, blissful faces, loving faces... But where were hating faces, faces filled with sorrow and despair, faces expressing deepest regrets about what happened to their poor planet? Those youngsters seemed so... content.

Suddenly, Silver found himself before a two-storey stone building, with no windows and a large wooden door with some bizarre symbols encrypted in it.

Lancy patted the black earth pony on the back, smiling as usual.

"Now, Silver, pal, if you would just stand back for a sec," he said, gently but firmly.

Silver Dawn obeyed and took a few steps back.

The unicorn's horn glowed with golden light, a small orb of magical energy forming above his head. He gently shook his head and the orb hit the door. The black pony awaited a destructive explosion but it never came: instead, the orb spread about the door, making the very structure of the wood glow - and then the door opened, revealing a single, yet insanely large, room filled with countless bookshelves.

"Welcome to the Library, or, how we call it, our 'House of Wisdom'," Lancy said, entering the building, waving a hoof to Silver, inviting him.

The shocked earth pony proceeded through the doorway, into the library.

***

Silver Dawn instantly realised that the place wasn't called 'House of Wisdom' for nothing: an unimaginable, even scary amount of books met the pony, surrounding him from all directions. There were large shelves with dusty, almost shattered books and there were bookcases with new shiny books in all kinds of covers, there were shelves with magazines hanging low enough for foals to approach them easily and there were such tall bookcases that it seemed they were propping up the ceiling. And they were indeed!

The black pony lost himself in the ocean of books surrounding him. How many of them had been brought here? Hundreds? Thousands? He had just opened his mouth to ask Lancy where they had received such a wide variety of such valuable printed production when the unicorn replied to his unspoken question.

"Impressive, huh? Every year, every month, sometimes every week ponies arrive here and bring knowledge with them. And knowledge is hidden in the depths of the books' pages, as you know. Got any books, Silver, pal?" The red unicorn asked, turning his head towards the black earth pony, who shook his head lamentably.

"No, Lancy, I'm an adventurer, I have no time for reading books," Silver replied.

Lancy shrugged, walking along the bookcases, gently and lovingly stroking the books' covers.

"Well, Silver, pal, you'll have a lot of time to educate yourself," he said.

Just as the black pony was going to say he would leave soon, a blue unicorn who looked like a librarian came up to them, raising her brow.

"Who's that, Lancy?" She asked, planting a small peck on the red unicorn's cheek.

"A newbie, Star. His first day here," Lancy replied, maintaining his speciality grin, softening his look a bit as he spoke to the librarian.

Silver Dawn couldn't help admiring the mare. She was a stunning representative of her species: her curvy body, smooth blue coat, orange mane that looked as if it were on fire all the time - the black pony simply couldn't turn his eyes away from the librarian. Star... That's her name... He thought, trying to be polite and stop staring at the beautiful pony.

"Librarian Shining Star," the blue unicorn said, paying Silver a curious look.

"Yes, I see..." The black pony mumbled, blushing slightly. "I mean, my name's Silver Dawn but you can call me Silver... if you want..." He recollected his manners suddenly, still mumbling at the end of his introduction.

The mare chuckled.

"Oh, I will, Silver..." She whispered seductively, winking at the young adventurer, slightly touching him with her flaming tail.

The black pony was glad that his black coat hid the deepest blush he had by that time.

"Say, Lancy," she addressed the red unicorn unconstrainedly, like she had instantly forgotten about Silver. "Could you check the Sphere today? Flicky is terribly ill - we had to take him to House of Health this morning."

Lancy nodded energetically.

"Sure, why not? I was just going to show the Sphere to Silver - here's the chance!" He said excitedly, immediately trotting out of the library, almost dragging the stunned earth pony with him, whispering: "Come on, you'll have the chance to get a closer look at the books later." He winked at Silver, who snatched out of his frozen stance and followed the red unicorn outside willingly.

For a moment, they stood outside, letting the fresh air fill their lungs.

"Gosh, she's hot," Lancy said to Silver, chuckling at how the earth pony immediately blushed.

"I don't know what you are talking about..." Silver Dawn mumbled, flushing. He liked the librarian mare but he surely didn't want to show his affection.

The red unicorn burst into laughter. He was laughing stiffly, unrealistically. His smile was strained, and this fit of laughter was forced as well, Silver noticed. The whole town looked strange enough to the adventurer and he was looking forward to leaving it as soon as possible. When he looked up, he saw that Golden Lance was at least fifty steps ahead, waving for him to follow.

Silver Dawn sighed and, looking around and still meeting the same whirligig of happy faces, trotted towards Lancy, ready to follow the strange red unicorn anywhere he would take the poor stranger, lost in the tangle of emotions of a big town - something he was dreaming of but at the same time something he was very afraid of.

***

As the recently acquainted ponies walked along the road, Silver Dawn ceased to listen to Lancy's constant chatter and delved deeper into his own feelings about life in general and this improbable place he found himself in so suddenly and so unexpectedly. Life had always been cruel enough to Silver. The black pony lost his kin and friends during the last great Cataclysm, and, for two or three months after the shocking occasion, he had wished he were dead, his body lying somewhere deep beneath the rotten earth, his soul flying high above the clouds, pleased and content with the feeling of being free and near his loved ones.

Years passed, times changed and the once naive colt changed with them. He lost his faith, throwing the unneeded atavism away, in the direction of the old life - life long forgotten, and life he once wanted but now never desired to reclaim. He lost his hope, burying it in the once fertile soil of Ponyville, which now served as a silent cemetery for those who lived there some time.

His muscles became stronger, his body felt firm and hard - a sign he was becoming a fair stallion. He could get no new knowledge, for he couldn't find any books, but he had received wisdom - a generous gift from the new world, world of dead nature, dead creatures and dead emotions. He set out on a journey - once he had a reason, but now he couldn't remember what it could be. He crossed the frozen wasteland, the volcanic wilderness, he passed ruins and deserts - and he remained alive.

He lived to survive and, to his embarrassment, he liked it. He didn't simply get used to constant struggling against the sinister world - he enjoyed it. It was like all his foalhood dreams of becoming an adventurer came true with a flash - a flash of destruction, a flash of eternal damnation, but a flash of a new dawn nevertheless.

He started to cherish his loneliness. When he lay on the frozen ground, using a pile of cold stones as a pillow; when he climbed the summits of mountains that seemed unapproachable for an equine creature, not to mention of the earth pony variety; when he walked along the craters, his mane and tail burnt and charred; when he cried in despair over the ruins of ancient towns whose inhabitants had passed away and whose knowledge was lost forever - somewhere deep in his heart, he was pleased with the idea that he might be the last living pony - maybe even the last living being! - on the corrupted planet once called Equestria.

He struggled with his weary mind every day, albeit he lost the very feeling of existence of time: one part of him wanted to remain alone forever, taking pride in the fact of his specialness, even uniqueness; the other part wanted to spend at least several years before his inevitable death with other living creatures, or (he had dreamt of it many times, smiling in his uneasy sleep) even ponies - equines, just as he was, of all colours and races, living together happily...

And now he saw it. He saw that wonderful dream come true. Stealth was full of happy ponies of all races and colours... Then why was his heart feeling saddening pain inside? Why was he anxious about meeting other ponies? Why was he keeping his head low, trying not to look at the cheerful red unicorn, who was telling him something excitedly? Was it... because he ceased to be unique the moment he found himself in this town?..

"Silver, pal, snap out of your dreamy dreams about Star - we've arrived!" A shout from Lancy, corroborated with an especially rough yet somehow friendly pat on the back made the black earth pony start and look around, swiftly regaining his ability to think properly and understand what was happening to him at the moment.

After a second of adjusting, Silver Dawn blinked and looked around.

The road had ended, and they were now standing in a square that was filled with ponies. The square was paved with finest marble - it was of a strange variety since it looked entirely transparent, yet didn't let a bit of light through. There were pillows neatly put all around the place, designed specially for comfortable sitting or lying. In the middle of this plain square, however, was some kind of a pedestal made of some weird material: it looked cyan with inclusions of dark blue, and the material glowed with mystical, otherworldly light - so did the large ball of the same material that was placed on the pedestal. It was a sphere, yet it didn't roll away, although it wasn't held in place by ropes or any kinds of fasteners.

"That's the Sphere, Silver, pal. That's it..." The red unicorn said dreamily, smiling blissfully, as a fanatic would smile whilst admiring his idol.

Silver Dawn looked at Lancy with circumspection. He was a non-believer, yet he didn't want to breed strife between the religious beliefs of others and his prosaic worldview.

"So... what is it exactly?" He carefully asked, trying not to cast a shadow on the influence the spherical object had on Lancy.

"It is the Sphere - a device without which we wouldn't be able to survive," Lancy replied, walking around the Sphere, checking it with utmost accuracy.

"And how does it work?" the black pony wondered in the same tone.

"You see, Silver, pal..." The red unicorn stopped. "This may sound bizarre to you but it's common knowledge for us citizens of Stealth..." He looked straight into Silver's eyes. "When a pony reaches a certain age... twenty-five, to be exact..." Lancy put a hoof on the black pony's shoulder. "The Sphere consumes him, giving us the energy to maintain our infrastructure. It's a source of energy for us - and, may I say, a reliable one." The grin faded, replaced with another one.

Only now Silver noticed what was shocking about Lancy - he left the impression of a successful manager united with a mad scientist, the most dangerous kind of pony.

Twenty-five... That's why only youngsters could be seen in this town - the older ones were wiped out - no, consumed alive by that device of happiness and torture. Happiness for the young, torture for the old. But what is 'old'? Silver reminded himself that he had one year left till he turned twenty-five - the frightening limit of Stealth.

Okay, don't panic. He's crazy. Everypony is this town is. Just step back. Then slowly leave the place, the black earth pony thought, following his mental plan as he took a few steps back, only to notice he was circumscribed by four pegasi wearing armour and guns.

"Heh, you see - such things... the Sphere and all that... they're not within my ken, you see..." Silver mumbled.

"Silver, pal, you weren't thinking of running away, were you?" Lancy asked, his mad grin turning even wider. "Once you get here, you can never leave. Don't you worry, though. Soon enough you will be happy to be living here," he said, approaching the earth pony, his horn glowing - he was undoubtedly preparing some kind of spell.

Silver Dawn was surrounded - he realised this instantly and didn't try to run - for the sake of his life.

Golden Lance lowered his head, shooting a yellow orb of magic into the black pony's chest.

The last thing Silver could hear before falling asleep - from a sleep spell, no less - was Lancy's sweet and cheerful, yet so dreadful and categorical voice:

Welcome to Stealth.

Author's Notes + [BONUS]

Well, that pretty much sums up Stealth. The story was utterly interesting to write and, I hope, was interesting to read. As always, I am looking forwards to your feedback. I have received varied opinions on the last chapter and, in my defence, I can say that it was intended to end so. It may seem incomplete or abrupt - but it is only because Stealth wasn't meant to be a one-shot story, so to speak. It was meant to be an introduction to the Stealth universe.

And now the part for which you're reading this: the bonus.

To begin with, I present you the sequel to Stealth: Stealth: the Messiah. Give it a look.

And here's the official theme for Stealth that I've written (youtube link): The official theme.

That being said, I thank you all for the comments, suggestions and opinions provided. I hope to see you on Stealth: the Messiah's comments page.

Peace.