> Fallout Equestria: Tales of Transylvania
>  by MeetSouder
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> Introduction
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Fallout Equestria: Tales of Transylvania



Introduction


There was a time, where the all the races of Equestria lived in harmony. Throughout the entirety of their existence, Equestria had very few conflicts that threatened the relations between the ponies, the griffons, the zebras, the thestral ‘bat ponies,’ and all of the other races that comprised the utopia under the diarchy that governed her. But when technology grew, demanding for more unreplenishable resources, so did the tension between the borders of Equestria and the resource-rich Zebralands.

Soon, war broke out, starting with minor conflicts over shipments of the life sustaining coal that Equestria burned in her raging inferno of industry. The zebras refused to continue to trade with Equestria’s ridiculously low economic terms, and began to recall shipments to the pony dominated country. Small conflicts cultured into a full scale war after acts of terrorism began to erupt in both countries’ cities. Industry in technology and science quickly turned to factories and research for the tools of war. Boats for exploration quickly donning armor plating and large bore guns to defend the shipments, ceremonial swords and armor ditched for scrap and replaced with ‘Ironshod Firearms’ rifles and other small arms, simple chariots upgraded with arcane motors and plated with steel to defend the vastly growing army as they rode into battle by the thousands.

The war continued for years and as time progressed, the situation between the countries deteriorated. Soon only Princess Luna found herself in command of Equestria’s armies, and a blood soaked stalemate formed between the countries. Desperate for peace, Princess Luna turned to Equestria’s greatest; the government Ministries of Arcane Science and Wartime Technology. They quickly began research for a weapon that could end the war in one foul swoop, taking the lives of thousands, to end the war of millions. They produced the Megaspell. A weapon of highly concentrated destruction magic that would bend the laws of arcane science and warp the physics of their universe. The spell was capable of creating an exothermic reaction of such magnitude, it ripped apart the fundamentals and composition of nature.

This weapon was not built, however, without the zebra operative’s espionage on the research. The zebras quickly learned of the Equestrians motives and raced against the clock to create a weapon to match the Megaspells shear power. Using their vast resources and ancient alchemical techniques, the zebras were able to manufacture a slurry of chemicals deemed Balefire that would match the destruction to what the Equestrian’s Megaspells were capable of.

As both countries built weapons of mass destruction, an arms race ensued, forcing both sides to divert all resources to build more and more Megaspells and Balefire bombs. With each new weapon pointing at a new city, a countdown to the end of their existence soon began.

On a regular day during the week, in the evening when most ponies were sitting in rush hour tuning into the day’s most recent broadcast about the war, hushing crying foals in the backseat, or eating a quick on-the-go meal in the chariot waiting for traffic to start up again; the world simply ended.

Balefire bombs rained out of the sky in a ferocious attack, quickly igniting the skies around Equestria into a blazing inferno. Many cities didn’t get a chance to sound off the early warning alarms, as they were eradicated immediately upon attack. Those lucky enough to be outside of the city when the bombs erupted, only had hours to live as their bodies were quickly deteriorated by massive swaths of magical radiation. The fallout clouds created artificial storms that drenched the entire country in a radioactive storm. Many tried to hide in their homes, or in the subway tunnels, but soon found nothing but the thickest concrete and lead could prevent their dying bodies from being further exposed. Mothers clenching their foals as their bodies melted from the immense heat soon turning them to ash, lovers embracing in the metro tunnels as the radiation slowly tore their flesh away, leaving nothing but blackened skeletons. The existence of Equestria came to an end.

But not all of the inhabitants of Equestria perished that day. During the arms race, a company of scientists came into existence, tasked by Princess Luna herself, their goal was to create a series of shelters that would house millions of ponies in the inevitable event of a Balefire strike. Their name: Stable-Tec. Stable-Tec quickly ramped into overdrive to develop a shelter that would withstand a direct hit, they experimented with many designs opting out of any form of surface structure, they ultimately came upon one plan, an underground vault-like structure with a giant sealed entrance that could hold roughly six-hundred occupants. They named these structures Stables, and quickly sent out tickets of admission to certain families of all races that were deemed genetically desirable of living within one.

Stables were quickly built across equestria, many of which were built simply to protect their inhabitants. But some of the scientists, however, needed answers. Answers they could not obtain nor will they ever in their lifetimes, but answers nonetheless. As an experiment, many Stables were built with intentional flaws in their systems to test the ponies and see how they could survive in confinement.

Some Stables, however, were not built by the evil minds of mad scientists, toying with the end of the world in their last effort to discover. Many were built by engineers with honest intentions, trying to save what remained. One such stable was Stable 17.

Located on the far northwest coast of Equestria, built into the base of Smoky Mountain, Stable 17 overshadowed a region of the White Tail Forest called Transylvania. A swath of land untouched by the industry of war, the region still retained its classical look of Equestria. It was populated entirely by the rarer breed of thestral pony, unceremoniously called ‘bat ponies’ by others. These nocturnal ponies weren’t quite the same as their pegasus, unicorn and earth pony cousins, sporting darker colored coats and manes, two sharp fanged teeth, leathery wings, tufts of fur on the tips of the ears, and golden colored eyes with vertical pupils.

With its economy driven mainly by the farming of fruit bearing plants by its residents, the region of Transylvania saw little to no action in the war, and was blissfully left out of any attacks during the balefire bombing that consumed Equestria. Unfortunately, even though they were not predicted to be struck directly, the effects of radioactive fallout was still a threat.

The Stable-Tec engineer charged with creating Stable 17, built it with honest intentions. Working alongside the various government ministries, she took the necessary action that she believed would save all of thestral kind.
> Chapter One: Saddest Little Pony in Stable 17
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Chapter One: Saddest Little Pony in Stable 17


I ran through the checklist over a dozen times, and yet every time I looked at it I could have sworn a new item was listed somewhere on it. The lights suddenly went out and bathed me in total darkness, I sighed and let my forelegs drop off the desk and onto the steel floor. Turning to the generator, I flicked the dim light bulb hanging just over the control console with a wingtip-feather and it gently stuttered back to life. I scanned the array of buttons and switches, the entire console had a label across the top:

I.M.P Outflow Bus 1

Yeah. Whatever that meant.

It can’t be ‘that’ bad if I don’t follow the procedure right? I reasoned as I reached up and tapped a broken gauge with a hoof. The needle bounced with each tap, but returned to zero every time. I had no clue what it even measured.

This ancient technology was falling apart around our ears, yet they still expected us to keep up with what we had. ‘Doing our part as Stable Technicians for the greater good of everypony’ is what they always said.

I frowned at the thought of my boss looking down at me over her glasses. I had everything to prove, anything to show her that I was capable of more than the most basic and menial of tasks. It so happened that today she assigned me to fix this damn generator in the bottom-most sublevel of the Stable, probably ‘cause nopony else would do it. And I was the ‘disposable’ one.

Look, the thing was, I wasn’t exactly what somepony would call a ‘thestral’ or ‘bat pony’ as you Equestrian folk would insultingly say. Now, don’t get me wrong, I am a thestral, but only about halfway-ish there? You see, apparently way back before the war, one of my ancestors must have had the hots for a pegasus and had a happy little family. Good for them, not so much for me.

Fast forward to today and boom suddenly two thestral ponies in an entirely thestral Stable have themselves; me. A ‘pegabat.’ Apparently my genes were a bit mixed and suddenly decided to come out generations later. 

A pegabat? What would make up such a thing? Well It’s pretty simple really, I have the wings of a pegasus – fluffed up in lovely feathers mind you – but also the golden eyes, ear tufts, even fangs of a thestral. Whatʼs worse; my coat was light blue and my mane and tail were both evenly split between black and red. I looked like a freakin’ clown compared to the relatively dark-coated and plain-maned thestrals all around me.

Because of this, I was made fun of, ridiculed, or outright ignored by the majority of ponies in the stable. I condoned their behavior however, and just let the bullying give me a tougher hide. If there was anything I’ve learned about ponies, it’s that they’re no different in this Stable than the ones who fought in that damned war to begin with. At least what we know of them in the books.

My lovely little job as a Stable Technician began about a week ago. Usually when ponies graduated from the 12 years of education they gave us, we’d all apply for jobs that we learned about and reflected greatest with our talents. That’s great and all, unless you’re me, the odd one out. Then of course nopony really trusts you and brushes you aside to the Stable Technicians Corps., a.k.a the bucking janitors.

Without a name for myself and with both my parents gone – my mother from a plague that swept through the stable shortly after I was born, and my father who drank himself to death only a few years ago – I was quite literally the most frowned-upon sad little pony in this Stable. Boo-buckin’-hoo. Honestly, it all just made me mad, angry enough to try and prove myself and rise up the ranks. One day, I was gonna become the Overpony and nopony was gonna stop m-

“Mi’night!” A middle aged stallion barked behind me. I flinched, quickly scattering my dramatic monologue.

“Yeah, what’s up?” I turned and tried to peer into the dark abyss that made up the Stable’s fusion reactor floor.

A pair of slightly glowing golden eyes waded through the inky blackness and a dark gray thestral stallion, dressed in Stable Technician-blue overalls, stepped through the premise of the door.

“Yer shift’s up, ‘parently da’ top banana wants to talk t’ya,” the stallion droned, his Braytish accent bouncing around the room as he attempted to speak coherent Equestrian. Typical Stable Technician, probably failed out of school.

Braytish? Yeah, the northern ponies from Braytain. See, there’s a reason thestrals don’t look like our usual pony cousins, it’s cause we all came from a tiny island off the coast of northwest Equestria. Eventually we made it onto the mainland and inhabited it, but for the most part the accent kinda stuck. I didn’t really have one, since my father’s side of the family took after more Equestrian culture. Just another thing odd about me to single me out.

“You’re kidding me. I just got down here!” I moaned. Honestly I was glad to cut my shift early, it’s not like we got paid in any meaningful way for doing our jobs. But something bothered me about being called to talk to my boss, that was nothing but trouble.

“Yah,” he deadpanned and trotted over to the desk, looking over the checklist.

Figuring that’s about all he had to say, I gave him a curt nod and trotted out the door. Immediately upon entering the darkness, I felt my eyes tingle as the passive thestral magic in my blood took action.

Normally, thestrals can see in total darkness about as well as anypony could see on a moonlit night, but being a mixed blood, I didn’t really get the total benefit. My night-vision, hearing and sense of smell was ‘above average’ to an Equestrian pony, but not as good as a purebred thestral. Suits them, I had my feathered wings, which I wouldn’t trade for anything.

I slowly increased my pace and spread my wings, feeling the cool damp air fill my feathers. When I felt I had adequate support, I flapped powerfully and took off in a gentle glide. The good thing about pegasus wings was their speed and maneuverability. Sure it was harder for me to hover in one place than for a thestral, but my wings were nearly silent compared to theirs, not to mention I could turn on a dime.

The sublevel where I was working was basically the bottom of a ten story pit. Normally ponies took the elevators, but I embraced any opportunity to spread my wings. It was much better than having to trot everywhere in the confined hallways of the stable anyway.

As I flapped in a lazy ascending circle, the walls around me began to appear in the growing light, soon I could make out the cracks and rust spots in the ancient concrete while conduits and pipes passed me.

When I came upon the threshold of the pit, I grumply tucked in my wings and alighted upon the edge in a soft landing. That was unfortunately all I had for spreading my wings that day.

I squinted in the bright fluorescent light and began trotting out of the reactor room, making my way past the heavy steel doors that would seal the room in the event of a magical accident – don’t worry, it only happened six times so far. As I climbed the stairs two by two, I made my way into the atrium, a large three story room that acted as a ‘courtyard’ to various doors leading to sections of the Stable.

Stable 17 was lucky enough to have access to high-quality agricultural technology when it was built. It allowed us to keep growing plants like trees and bushes from the inside, which wonderfully adorned the atrium along the center or in the corners. The best part, however, was the massive apple orchard that was situated in the middle of the stable. Apples and anything apple related became a staple of our cuisine, which kinda sucked the more you think about it.

As I trotted across the atrium, making my way towards the executive offices, ponies all around me went along their merry way, fulfilling whatever job they were assigned to do to keep this place barely alive. As usual, they gave me a wide berth and turned their attention to other things when they spotted me. It was almost worse than being ignored.

“Outa’ my way ya’ bloody freak. You’ll be seeing me soon enough.” A huge stallion butted past me and pushed me off to the side. He was dressed in the telltale barding of the Security unit. Not far behind him, a convoy of five more security ponies pushed passed, all armed with batons and shotguns.

What’s with all the security today? Wait, ‘Iʼll what?’ I furrowed my brow and slowly made my way to the offices.

“Hey, is Turkish Delight still in?” I asked, walking into the office labeled ‘STC’ for the Stable Technicians Corps. I was on the evening shift, I doubted any big-wig boss pony was interested in staying late, especially just to see me.

The young mare sitting at the secretary terminal quickly looked up and pointed her wing at the door on the far corner of the office, not uttering a word. Her bat wing quivered as she quickly avoided eye contact.

“Right… thanks,” I muttered, giving her a cross look and trotting over to my boss’s room.

Upon reaching the door, I saw Mrs. Delight taking a call using the speakers of her PipBuck, hastily flipping through a huge binder atop her desk. She nervously tucked her violet mane back as she tried to read lines quickly before her.

Now a ‘PipBuck’ was a hoofheld computer that every Stable inhabitant received when they graduated from their primary school. It was a nifty device that sat holstered to your left foreleg, it sorted everything you carried in an electronic inventory, and even read out your vital signs. I hardly ever used mine though. In reality, there was little use besides an alarm clock or paperweight.

I raised a hoof and tapped on the frame of the door, causing her to flinch and look up in surprise.

“You wanted to see me?” I mouthed quietly.

“N-no! You shouldn’t be here, go to the Overmare’s office immediately!” she fervently whispered, placing a dark gray hoof over her PipBuck’s microphone.

I quickly dropped my foreleg, a feeling of worry starting to creep into my chest. “Overmare? What for?”

“Go!” she frantically shooed me away.

I nodded and hastily trotted out of the offices, making a hard right and gazing up at the ominous circular window that overlooked the atrium. Behind the pale glass was the Overmare’s office; the one pony in charge of the whole shebang. If she wanted to see me, then things were much worse than I imagined. 

I cantered over to the stairwell leading to her office and practically galloped up the stairs, pivoting when I reached the top and coming face to face with two huge double wooden doors nestled on a red painted wall. The room was guarded by two Security ponies who did little to heed my existence.

I cleared my throat and was about to ask about the Overmare, when the doors suddenly opened and out sauntered the mare herself.

She was a thestral mare with a white mane and tail, a very dark gray coat, and cutiemark of gears laid atop a dark purple flower. I never stood so close to her before, only seeing her from afar during assemblies. She was pretty, but she also had that ‘pretty crazyʼ look about her too. Something didn’t feel right about how she approached me, never breaking eye contact. 

“Midnight Wind,” she spoke softly.

I felt my wings shuffle nervously and took a timid step back. “Overmare, Night Shade,” I nodded. She was named after her great-great-grandmother, the original Overmare of Stable 17.

“Don’t be shy, please follow me,” she smirked and pivoted around with a flick of her tail. She seemed irritated, but was trying really hard to hide it.

I nodded again and slowly followed her into the room. Through the doors, it was obvious that being the Overpony definitely had its perks. A large wooden desk sat in a ‘U’ shape in the center of the room, soft red carpet was underhoof and beautiful wooden paneling adorned the walls.

Night Shade took a seat on a heavy wooden chair and motioned for me to sit on a fluffy cushion on the opposite side of her desk. I decided to stand, feeling way too uncomfortable sitting beneath her.

The doors closed behind me and another mare trotted up next to me, she looked outright pissed-off and didn’t spare me a glance.

Like everypony else in the Stable, she was also a thestral. She looked probably around my age, her mane and tail a startling red that contrasted to her dark-gray, almost black coat. Her cutiemark looked like a bullet sitting on a bed of rose petals. Her fangs were also small for a thestrals, barely peeking past her upper lip.

Realizing I was staring, I quickly shifted my gaze to Night Shade, “So, um, why’d you need me?” my voice cracked – damn nerves.

“Yeah, and me?” the mare to my left spat, glaring at Night Shade. She had guts to be speaking to the Overmare like that, that’s for sure.

“Now, now, both of you, no need to be riled up,” Night Shade smiled too calmly. “I’ve summoned you both here, because I have a proposition to offer.” 

“You could have just asked me earlier,” the red-maned mare blurted, “what, am I some random janitor to you now?” she gestured to me.

Ouch, my pride and joy. I frowned internally.

“Perhaps, Scarlet, in the past,” Night Shade deadpanned, “but no longer… You’ve been relieved of your position.”

“My… what? I’m your sister for Luna’s sake, my ‘position’ was to sit under you and file your bloody paperwork. Now I donʼt even have a job?” Scarlet stamped a hoof, clearly hurt.

“Letʼs be honest, you hardly had a job to begin with,” Night Shade dismissed. 

“Maybe because you made it that way?” her younger sister raised a brow critically. 

I just stood there; watching them exchange petty comments back and forth, not really feeling the need to say anything. Turns out this chick was the Overmare’s sister and I was just invited to a formal family feud – lucky me.

The younger thestral continued, “Nopony wanted you to be Overmare to begin with. Since the plague took mum–” 

“Okay that’s enough!” Night Shade snapped and slammed her hooves on her desk. Eliciting and ‘eep’ from Scarlet, and startling me. “I’ve summoned you both here because something dreadful has happened.” She took a breath, and fixed a lock of her mane that had fallen out of place. “As you two know, when you both graduated from your primary school lessons, and with the end of every graduation, new jobs were hoofed out to ponies.” She paused and looked at us.

I nodded for her to continue, but Scarlet kept her glare in silence.

“And so,” Night Shade continued, “Apparently that opens up the position of Overpony. Even before the previous one resigns or dies. Now, I did not know of this protocol, having inherited it from mum and being the older sister. But whenever the computer system registers that a new pony is ‘more qualified,’” she waved her hooves in the air sarcastically, “then all administrative rights are handed over to him or her,” she pointed to me and Scarlet respectively.

“Wait, so you’re saying my scores led to this?” I asked, genuinely curious. Turns out my dream might actually come true.

Night Shade spoke behind clenched teeth, “It appears so. You are to be the Overstallion, effective in the next day or so,” she pointed to me. I widened my eyes in excitement and realization.

“Him?” Scarlet finally looked me over and then back to Night Shade. “Okay so what? You step down, he takes over. Why does this concern me? Not like I’d ever be selected anyway,” she huffed.

“‘Why does this concern me,’” Night Shade mocked, “It concerns you because you're also selected to be Overmare!” She hollered, causing me to flinch again.

Wait what? Both of us? Scarlet and I briefly looked at each other, baring the same confusion. 

“I’ve been a patient mare, I’ve watched over these ponies for ten years now,” Night Shade took an eerie calm. “And what does this grant me? Nothing!” she suddenly shouted. “So that’s,” she took a breath and sat down, crossing her forelegs atop each other on the desk, “why I have a proposition.” 

‘Kay, this lady lost her marbles, I raised an eyebrow. “So what do you have in mind?” I asked, still excited with the idea of actually becoming an Overstallion. I mean, hell I knew I did well in school but not this well! I never thought this day would come!

“Leave the stable, or die,” Night Shade hissed.

And there went my excitement.

Scarlet sputtered and visibly paled, “You would not! I’m your last bloody family!”

“Yeah, no seriously, you can keep the position!” I panicked and raised my hooves.

“Silence!” Night Shade shouted, effectively shutting us up. “It doesn’t matter. The system has sent it over and itʼs processing the new codes as we speak. If Midnight were to die, it would then go to you,” she pointed at Scarlet. “I refuse to step down! I have done too much for this Stable for so little in return!” she yelled, stomping her hoof on the desk repeatedly.

Scarlet took a step forward, bristling with anger. “You entitled twat! I knew youʼd eventually stoop this low if push came to shove. You always stepped on everypony to get your way, you two-faced, buck-sucking, limp-tailed bitc-” her stream of profanity was abruptly cut short by the sound of a pistol being chambered.

Night Shade pointed the gun at Scarlet’s head, her mouth fixed around the trigger plate; ready to fire. The room fell silent aside from the heavy breathing coming from Night Shade.

Scarlet jerked her head in a terrified nod, utterly defeated. 

“Right.” Night Shade spoke around the grip of the pistol, her words muffled slightly. “You both have 12 hours, pack up your things, or face execution.”

“They’ll get you for this, the Security ponies aren’t blind, they know murder when they see it,” Scarlet muttered. I nodded, opting to take the side of the sane-pretty-one.

“I have ponies who will follow me, we’ll run a coup so be it.” Night Shade narrowed her eyes, “Leave, I’ll see you both at the Stable door tomorrow morning at nine. Be thankful Iʼm gracious enough to let you prepare for your new life in the outside world.” She beckoned us out with her pistol, taking a seat once more. 

I turned around immediately, panic and confusion swimming in my head. One moment, I was just another janitor wishing for a better life, now, I’m about to be an exile. Execution certainly wasn’t what I had in mind for breakfast tomorrow morning if I suddenly got cold hooves.

Scarlet and I slowly trotted out of the Overmare’s office, the doors having been opened and closed by the two security ponies. Night Shade had us perfectly played, it wasn’t like we could run anywhere before tomorrow.

“Follow me,” Scarlet whispered the moment we entered the atrium.

I nodded and she took off in a brisk canter toward the apple orchard, I followed close behind her, ponies passing by us in a blur. I felt absolute dread rising in my chest, we were condemned.

Once we made it downstairs and into the orchard, Scarlet took off and headed toward the middle of the massive orchard. I spread my wings and quickly followed suit, flying silently next to her. A small clearing sat among dense apple trees, their pale orange leaves indicated it was sometime in the autumn.

“Right, we’re here,” Scarlet spoke softly. Clearly this was somewhere she spent a lot of her time, it was only visible from the air and most ponies who worked in the orchard did so on hoof.

We both landed atop the soft bed of orange leaves, the air was a bit chilly, our climate control machines were working as intended. Scarlet sat down on her haunches and sighed, looking around her.

“S-so, what now?” I broke the silence, terrified.

“I don’t know, let me think,” she whispered, closing her eyes, “we need a backup plan.”

“She’s not going to let us leave is she?”

“No.”

“She’s just going to kill us.”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“Because, that’s how she is.”

“Then what do we do?” I began to panic.

“I’m thinking, please!” Scarlet moaned and laid down, hiding her muzzle between her forelegs.

Though it was almost certain death outside, I would obviously rather chance that. Our teachers always said that Equestria was completely eradicated during the war with the Zebras. But personally, I’d rather live a few miserable months in an irradiated hellhole than just be shot and thrown away in a concrete sarcophagus.

I sighed heavily and tried to clear my mind, sitting in silence for a long moment.

“Have we met before?” I quietly broke the silence.

“What?”

“I mean, I donʼt think Iʼve ever seen you around the stable.” I tilted my head, “I didnʼt know Night Shade had any family left after the plague.”

Scarlet sat up again and slowly looked me over, this time not out of judgment but curiosity. “I’ve seen you about. You’re hard to miss, being the way you are,” she waved a hoof. 

I felt my ears lower, “Oh I know, thanks.” 

“N-no! I mean… I’ve just seen you,” she replied lamely. 

“It’s fine, I’m used to it,” I smiled wryly. “Weʼre about the same age though, you didn’t attend class?”

“No, I was taught privately,” Scarlet sighed impatiently.

“So you were pretty much isolated your whole life, just like me, eh?” I snorted in laughter, trying to lighten the mood.

Scarlet furrowed her brow and stood up, “Look, mate, now is not the time for pleasantries. I- I should hate you!” she stamped a hoof. “None of this would have happened if you…”

“If I what?” I asked defensively. “If I didn’t exist? You and everypony else would wish the same.”

“That or if you at least didn’t do so well in bloody school or whatever!” she cried desperately.

“Look sister, I’m sorry I’m the root of your problems, but I’m no better off either!” I huffed. “We need to come up with something quick, or we’re both going to be bodies in the incinerators tomorrow.”

“And what do you propose? We waltz out of the stable on our own?” Scarlet stepped up to me angrily, looking up – nose to nose. She was a head shorter than I was. Hardly intimidating.

“That’s… a good idea actually,” I detached, an idea popping into my head.

“That’s what I bloody thought!” she approved, tossing her mane.

After a moment, she suddenly looked up at me once more, this time with wide eyes, “Wait, no, that’s not a good idea Midnight! We should try to stop Night Shade, not escape! How on Luna's moon would we even get the door open?”

I smiled and raised my left foreleg, looking at my PipBuck, the screen winked to life at the sense of movement. Using my nose, I pressed the button labeled “DATA” and scrolled to the ‘connection’ settings with the side wheel.

“If what Night Shade said was true, then I would receive administrative rights within the next few days right?” I asked rhetorically.

“Yeah, a few days we have a few hours, mate,” Scarlet retorted, but not without hope in her voice.

Ignoring her, I continued, “But there’s a thing or two that you learn about the computer system that runs through this Stable, being a ‘lowly janitor,’” I smirked. “If the data is already processed, that means something is just holding it back; be it a wait time for official paperwork to go through or whatever.” I paused, tapping another button on the PipBuck.

“So what’re you getting at?” Scarlet stood on the tips of her hooves to look at my device.

“Well, being in the Stable Technicians corps, we have a LOT of paperwork. So much that we just cut corners by skipping it all and going straight for the downloadable data. We’ve figured out a way to make it load faster; just – like – this,” I replied, poking buttons respectively. 

“And?”

“Wait for it.”

“It’s not doing anything,” Scarlet grumbled after a few seconds.

“It’s a slow system,” I shrugged.

With a beep, my PipBuck shut off.

“You broke it,” Scarlet deadpanned, hope disappearing from her eyes.

“I- I broke it,” I stuttered, disbelief in my voice. I had never seen a PipBuck shut off before, these things were arcane powered! Panic began to plant itself in my chest.

Just as quickly as it shut off, my PipBuck emitted another beep and re-booted. A happy cartoon Stallion danced across the screen as loading bars moved across the bottom. I breathed a sigh of relief, at least it wasn’t actually broken. Finally, when it was done booting up, a new message appeared on the screen.

Congratulations on your promotion to Overpony! Stable-Tec is excited to have a qualified individual such as yourself lead your ponies to the future! We welcome you to be a part of the team and hope that one day you and your Stable will help reclaim Equestria! 

I smiled brightly and lowered the device so Scarlet could see. After a few moments the message disappeared and my PipBuck resumed normal function once again.

“Luna above it worked! You actually did it!” Scarlet exclaimed, a smile falling upon her features for the first time since I met her. It suited her well.

“I didn’t think it would actually work!” I beamed, all emotions finally replaced with hope. “Okay, now we just need to make it to the Stable doors.”

Scarlet’s excitement died down in thought, “That wonʼt be easy, Shade’s got to have the place bristling with security by now. Leaving the Stable should be ‘plan B.’ We should try and arrest her or… something.”

“Do you think we could talk some sense into security?”

“Not likely, she’s bound to have put those ponies loyal to her in charge,” she frowned.

“Damn. If only we had a way to get rid of them, or prove to them sheʼs insane,” I thought aloud, looking around us.

Scarlet’s titled her head, “We just take her down then. It’s risky, but it might work.”

“Take her down?” I raised an eyebrow.

“Well tomorrow, Shade’s probably going to want to do the deed by herself, try to get as few witnesses as possible right? It’ll be easier to convince everypony it wasn’t murder,” she explained. “She might be banking on us thinking we’re exiles, just shoot us in the back.”

I nodded along, “She won’t be expecting us to try anything, the two of us could overpower her.”

“Exactly. Then we can try to detain her.”

We both stood up, determination and hope taking over.

“Tomorrow then.” Scarlet nodded, her eyes bright with fire.

“Tomorrow.” I agreed. 

Scarlet spread her wings and was about to take off, I quickly raised a hoof, “Wait, do you want to stay at my place and prepare?” I offered.

Scarlet rolled her eyes and continued to fly away “Tomorrow, Midnight, Stable door.”

I watched as she flew away. When her brilliant red tail disappeared I sighed and took off, heading the opposite way toward my living quarters.

You tried. I comforted myself as I flew to the edge of the orchard and made my way home.

When I reached my single-pony living space, I slapped the door release button and entered the room. It was simple, just a bed, kitchenette and bathroom attached. I looked at my PipBuck and saw it was almost ten at night. Figuring I would rather be well rested, and not feeling particularly hungry, I let the door close behind me and opted to sleep. I’d wake up early tomorrow and gather what few things I had before heading out.

I stripped off my greasy overalls and let it fall to the floor, climbing into bed. Laying there and letting myself think of just what exactly awaited me tomorrow.

I was scared, admittedly, but determined. If things didn't work out, I was prepared to high-tail it out the door. It was about time I left the Stable anyway, not like anypony wanted me to stick around. Besides, it’s been two-hundred years since the bombs fell, maybe there was life out there.

After a few minutes I felt myself slipping, my worry and fear disappearing as I fell into a light and uncomfortable sleep. Dreams of anxious questions and a scarlet mare soon filled my imagination.

	XXX

> Chapter Two: Flying Out of the Pan and Into the Fire
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


	Chapter Two: Flying Out of the Pan and Into the Fire


I woke up slowly to the sound of my PipBuck alarm going off, thankfully the thing was set to go off every morning at 8am. Groaning, I slapped it against my face, unsuccessfully trying to shut it off with my nose. After a few brutal misses, the alarm finally chirped to a stop. I sighed and rolled out of bed, my determination from yesterday all but forgotten and replaced with nausea and uncertainty.

The night had been terrible, what little sleep I actually got was spent with worrisome nightmares. I was convinced that even if we did escape, there would be nothing but a radioactive hellhole outside. I shook my head to clear the horrible thought – no sense bogging myself down, not while there were things to do.

With a stretch of my wings and limbs, I finally trotted over to my closet. Inside, there was an embarrassingly small amount to my possessions. Like I said earlier, my parents had passed away leaving me with little behind, I wasn’t exactly rolling in cash here.

I grabbed one of my Stable-Tec standard issue jumpsuits and began putting it on, the things were seriously over-engineered, like everything else in the Stable. It sported thick fabric and even minor protection from radiation. Whoever decided to issue this to everypony in the Stable was either thinking far ahead, or had too much money on their hooves. These clothes weren’t even close to the barding that the security ponies had however, but anything acting as a barrier between myself and danger was well appreciated.

Rolling my shoulders with the fit of the jumpsuit, I grabbed my single saddle bag and slung it across my back. I took a quick look around the closet for anything that I figured would be useful in a post-apocalyptic survival situation. I opted to bring a hoof towel. Yeah. That’ll do it Midnight.

Leaving the closet door open behind me, as if I’d ever return to it, I trotted over to the kitchenette and selected any food I could find; apples, boxed preserved snacks, whatever, all into the saddle bag. With one final sweep of the room, I was satisfied with the fact that I had absolutely butt-buck nothing and I would die the first day outside of the Stable. We seriously needed to succeed with plan ‘A;’ taking out Night Shade. 

Rolling my eyes, I cantered out the door and headed straight for the main entrance of the Stable.

Now, I’ve never really been to the main entrance, there really wasn’t a need to. But I knew if I kept on going up, I’d eventually reach it. I passed closed door after closed door as I made my way through the living quarters, most ponies happily asleep over the weekend. None of them remotely aware that two of their fellow Stable residents were about to overthrow our insane leader or run away from the concrete tomb we called home.

Not like they’ll be missing the pegabat clown anyway. I furrowed my brow and pressed forward. Leaving the Stable was starting to sound like a better idea after all.

I wound my way through the seemingly endless corridors, taking stairs when the hallways came to an end, and slowly approaching the surface level of the Stable. I was in completely unfamiliar territory, the walls began to lose their bright gray color and more signs of wear began to show on the floors. 

Soon, there were no rooms at all, and I found myself walking up a slightly inclined hallway. I was close, the rusty air felt damp, and I could almost feel the presence of the surface nearby. I shuffled my wings and started cantering, my anxiety taken over by determination. I was not going to die today. 

The hallway came to a dead-end, a single reinforced door sat silently at its source. The heavy steel was caked in dust and grime, clearly it had seen little use. Above it, a sign illuminated from behind simply read Stable Door. Like Scarlet and I had predicted, there were no Security ponies at the door, instead sat the red maned mare herself, busily poking away at her PipBuck.

“Took you long enough,” Scarlet groaned, lowering her foreleg with a toss of her mane.

She too had a single saddlebag on, it was bulging with supplies. Being the sister of the Overmare probably gave her a lot more access to random supplies in the Stable. Instead of wearing the Stable jumpsuit like myself, she instead wore a warm jacket, it was the standard blue with yellow trim like everything from Stable-Tec. It only covered her front half however, so it was cozy, but far from practical. Her red mane was tied back behind her ears with a single plain navy bow, something she hadn’t been wearing earlier.

I rolled my eyes and came to a stop before her. “Going for a winter stroll, are we?” I poked, looking her over.

“It’s autumn in the orchard, so it’s probably autumn out there,” she pointed to the door, “better warm than sorry.” With a sigh she faced the door, “Now that we’ve had our banter, are you ready?”

“Right, as if I’d be rushing head-first into my potential… demise.” I tried to reply sarcastically but the words fell hollow halfway. The gravity of our situation was more pressing than I could hope to make light of.

We sat quietly for a few moments, our expressions faded as we both stared at the floor without words.

“I don’t want to die,” Scarlet softly broke the silence, her eyes not focused on anything.

“We wonʼt,” I paused as she lifted her head and met my eyes. “Whatever happens, whatever lies outside, we’ll face together. We will survive.” The words felt empty leaving my mouth, how could I expect to comfort her when I didn’t believe them myself?

“Right,” she nodded, taking a breath, “I believe my sister is waiting inside, we’ll take the first opportunity we can to overpower her or escape this Lunaforsaken place. If anything goes awry, we’re leaving, no hesitation.” She flipped like a switch, whatever emotions she had were buried and replaced with cold hearted strategy.

“Let’s do it then,” I nodded, taking her example and bracing myself to charge in the room, planning to tackle Night Shade the moment I saw her.

With one final nod and breath, Scarlet reached forward and tapped the door release button on the frame. The thick reinforced barrier let out a mechanical groan as it quickly lifted. I tensed my legs and wings, ready to pounce forward at any moment.

Just as the door cleared my muzzle, I saw her. Standing patiently, looking perfectly like the evil villain in a story waiting for the protagonist to make his next move. As expected, she was alone, pistol holstered on a leg strap. I wasted no time and spread my wings, locking onto my target. I pushed as hard as I could, boosting my legs as I shot forward, faster than any thestral could without feathers.

Suddenly, I felt as if I slammed headfirst into a concrete wall. The air was knocked out of me as I tumbled across the floor of the entrance, slipping down a few shallow steps that stood before a massive cog shaped door. Completely dazed, I staggered, trying to rise to my hooves, only to be lifted up by my collar and pinned against a wall.

Scarlet let out a yelp and was placed in a similar situation next to me, we were pinned by two huge security ponies dressed in full riot gear. Four of the bastards were waiting for us on either side of the door, having ambushed our ambush. 

Through my blurred vision I spotted the stallion who I bumped into earlier in the atrium, his sinister glare masked by his shaded riot helmet. I guess we finally met those “allies” that Shade was boasting about.

Night Shade sauntered over to us, tsking her tongue. She reached down and unbuttoned the flap on her holster, her pistolʼs mouthpiece gleamed in the fluorescent light.

“And you thought I was going t-” Night Shade began.

“Yeah, fuck you,” I spat.

Only I got the dramatic monologues. Not this bitch.

I was quickly greeted by a hoof to the face. I clenched my teeth and shook my head, matching eyes with Night Shade.

She slaps like a bitch too.

“Just let us go, Shade! What’s the bloody difference to you if we leave or not?!” Scarlet fought against the guard holding her in place.

“The difference is; here I get to know for certain that you two have been put down,” Night Shade spoke, wiping my spit from her hoof onto my chest. “If I let you two waltz out of the Stable together, you might actually stand a chance to live and carry the authority of Overpony with you. How could I ever go about life knowing that?” she pouted sarcastically.

My ears flicked. “What the hell are you talking about? We're not even a threat to you! At least hold your end of the bargain!” I seethed.

“I never promised you two that I would let you leave, I merely suggested it,” Night Shade smiled, flicking her ears and grabbing her pistol.

I struggled against the security pony holding me down, managing to drop to all fours before being powerfully slammed with my side against the wall. I felt my ears flick again as I glared at the demon mare before me, pistol in mouth.

“So, goodbye once and for all, and say hello to your permanent Overmare,” she muttered around her pistol grip, ears flicking.

I felt my own flick once more. I finally gave into my irritation and quickly looked around me.

Just what the buck was making that damned noise?!

I locked my eyes onto a security camera in the far corner of the room, it was waving back and forth, it looked like a white flame was flickering inside the lens. When I matched its gaze, the camera turned and focused on a console behind Night Shade. The ancient computer had a simple button and lever with a PipBuck connection cable hanging loosely off the side. Along the wall, several security terminals displayed camera footage from around the Stable.

I spotted us in the Stable entrance, then particularly, the hallway just beyond the now closed door that we came through. Stacked in a line, three security ponies sat beyond the door, shotguns drawn. The remainder of the security team.

I quickly matched gazes with Scarletʼs fearful pleading eyes.

I had a plan.

“Wait!” I exclaimed, trying to buy enough time. “Before you shoot us, can we at least say our last words?” I smiled sheepishly.

“What?! Are you bloody daft?” Scarlet blurted.

Night Shade furrowed her brow and pointed the gun right at my head, “Well I don’t see why not?”

“Perfect!” I laughed nervously, stealing a glance at Scarlet, trying to tell her with my mind that something was about to happen. “W-well you see, a long time ago in the land of Equestria, there lived two princesses-” I began quoting ‘A Brief History of Equestria’.

“Okay, time’s up,” Night Shade rolled her eyes and cocked the hammer of her pistol.

Without warning the door to the Stable Entrance opened up; two cylinders rolled into the room and exploded. Blinded by the blast and with my ears ringing painfully, I took the opportunity to drop straight to the floor. The pony holding me had flinched just long enough for me to make my escape and roll away. Moments after the explosions, a chorus of gunfire opened up above me. Each roar of a shotgun caused me to twitch my eyes closed, but not stop me from tackling Night Shade.

She yelped as I smacked my hoof against her face and slammed her to the ground, the mare was barely strong enough to resist. I kicked the pistol out of her mouth and picked it up, pointing it directly between her eyes. Behind me I could barely hear Scarlet screaming my name over the shots being exchanged, yelps of ponies being hit or killed hung beneath.

I glared right into the terrified eyes of Night Shade and felt my grip tighten around the firing bit. I could have ended her right there. But something inside me couldnʼt do it.

Clenching my eyes and swearing I would regret this decision, I leapt off of her and dove to the control console, spitting the gun onto the floor. Scarlet was already crouching next to it, PipBuck cable in her hooves.

Good she somehow got the memo.

I took a quick peek behind me and saw that of the three security ponies trying to liberate us, only one was left still standing, the others sat in pools of blood, their eyes glazed over. I turned around, my stomach lurching with fear, struggling to guide the cable into the dock of my PipBuck. The cable finally found home, and a BIOS screen popped up onto the device.

-Welcome Overpony. Exterior climate: suitable. 

-Stable door release override: would you like to open the door? Y/N

I looked over my shoulder again, the last security pony was slouched over behind me, blood pouring out of a leg but still alive. Three of Shade’s hench-stallions were still alive, but taking cover from the pony's barrage of shotgun blasts. The shotgun clicked empty, and the pony tossed it aside, drawing a pistol. For a moment the pony looked back at me, under the visor I could see it was a mare; fiery determination in her eyes.

“Get the fuck outa here, what are you waiting for?!” she hollered around her firing bit, turning back and landing a bullet on the head of one of the other security ponies. The shaded visor of his riot helmet shattered and he crumpled over.

I mashed the button on my PipBuck, the screen lit up green with a smiling cartoon stallion in Stable-Tec apparel. The console lit up with green lights and I jumped up, hitting the only button on the panel and yanking the lever.

A massive crane swung over the heads of the corrupt security ponies and latched onto the cog door. Klaxons blared and a twirling yellow light bathed us all in a pulsing glow. With an ear splitting screech, the cog shaped hatch was dragged from its housing, sparks igniting in the air all around it.

I quickly grabbed Scarlet by her waist and spread my wings, stealing a glance at the mare behind me. She had been hit in the head by a shotgun. I closed my eyes and felt my stomach turn in rage and grief. That mare had bought us precious time, she deserved more than this.

“Stop them!” Night Shade howled as her Security ponies began to aim at me.

Amid Scarlet’s protests, I held her tightly against my stomach and pushed with my wings, taking off like lightning.

Adrenaline pumped through my veins and fueled my muscles, I shot past the ponies beneath me and made my way for the now-opening cog door. The cog wheeled along a track at a painstakingly slow pace, barely opening enough for a pony to squeeze through.

With the grace of a pegasus, I flipped into a barrel roll and hugged my wingtips in a tight span, diving through the narrow gap sideways and rolling back level on the other side.

Behind me a hail of shotgun blasts erupted, only to spark harmlessly off the narrow opening. I pumped my wings harder and harder as I dragged myself and Scarlet through a tight tunnel carved into the rock. Off the corner of my vision I saw a PipBuck notification display in my vision.

-Overpony has left the premises. Evacuation complete, sealing Stable.

The massive cog door stopped with a howl, and quickly began rolling back to its original place. I could faintly hear the screams of Night Shade furiously crying out at us just before the cog slid back into its housing with a solid bang. 

I sighed in relief and finally looked forward again, only to hear Scarlet let out a scream as I widened my eyes in realization, smashing head first into rotten wood paneling.

We both tumbled through the cave and I felt my wing catch something with a sickening pop. Pain flared up my left side shortly before feeling a sensation of freefall then a solid hit to my head. I began to lose consciousness the moment my body came to a rest. The last sensation I remembered was the gentle whispering of wind through my mane.


	ooOOooOOoo

“Midnight.”

“Who’s there?” I cried out, my voice died off into the woods around me. 

I woke up in a forest, or at least what I thought a non-apple-orchard forest was supposed to look like.

Tall ancient trees surrounded me, all bare and black. Through the canopy far above, I could see it was night out, but thickly overcast with clouds. I watched as my white breath was carried gently away in the frigid breeze. The air was cold and light, it was sometime between autumn and winter. Small white flakes danced around me as the wind picked up, rushing through my coat.

I struggled to peer through the whipping wind, my cheeks and nose stinging from the sharp snowflakes. Before me, the flurry gathered and seemingly took an equine shape.

“Follow me.”

I shook my head as the male voice echoed in my brain.

The tall pony-snow-figure stood up and began trotting down a path into the frigid forest.

Sure, follow the snowpony. You hit your head and finally went insane. I scoffed internally, as I rose to all fours.

Something felt wrong. I was taller than before, not that I was short or anything, but I felt different. I looked up and noticed a-

Horn. I had a horn.

“Gah, what the hell?!” I hollered as I fell upon my rear.

The snowflake-pony-thing stopped briefly and watched me.

Upon my head was the unmistakable protrusion of a unicorn. The blue horn spiraled clear from my head, more lengthy than any unicorn’s normally would have been. At least I imagined so, I never saw a unicorn before. I quickly stood up and turned a circle, looking myself over. I still had my wings too, but they were the bat wings of a thestral. I stretched them out and inspected the thin blue skin membrane. Was I an… Alicorn-thestral? An alibat?

I felt around my mouth, gingerly scraping the tips of razor sharp fangs, not too different from my usual two fangs, but still different nonetheless. I was taller, slimmer, and definitely not in my normal body.

“Do not worry, Midnight, your body is not lost. Follow me, I will attempt to explain everything,” the voice echoed in my head once more, this time I was certain it was the snowpony in front of me. 

With a trepidatious nod, I trotted forward. My large hooves made dull pats on the dead leaves that littered the path before us.

The flurry-pony led me through the forest, winding down a narrow path. As we trudged along, we came upon a cliff to my left. Spanning across for miles, the forest continued hundreds of hooves beneath the sheer ledge. I gulped, never having seen an expanse of land so large before. This was certainly not the apple orchard from our Stable.

As we continued along the cliff I began to spot ruins in the forested growth beneath me. Seemingly ancient buildings made of stone were dotted among the trees.

Where possibly a beautiful city once stood, rubble and lumps of stone took its place. A somber tone fell upon the land, whatever the fate of that civilization, it was not simply age that took it. I frowned as I remembered the war before the Stables were built, perhaps this was the result?

“We are not in Equestria,” the tall pony-shaped-cloud before me spoke into my head without looking back. “Though, your prediction is not far off.”

Great so this thing can read my mind, I thought, rolling my eyes as we trotted along.

“Yes, I can,” the voice chuckled. “You may address this ‘thing’ as Orpheus.” Though it had no facial features, I was certain the snowflake-stallion was smiling.

“Okay ‘Orpheus,’ tell me what’s going on. Where are you leading me?” I asked.

Orpheus took a path that turned away from the cliff, into the forest once more. We began a slow ascension up a hill.

“One moment please,” he replied, stopping atop the hill.

We were in a small clearing in the forest, a single ancient tree twisted up into the canopy, it looked far older than anything else around us. Just to the right of it, an unlit stone brazier sat atop a pedestal.

Without warning, the lithe pony shape erupted in a mass of brilliant white fire. I let out a yelp and fell back on my haunches, back pedaling with my forelegs until I came to rest against a tree.

Out of the flames stepped a black Alicorn stallion, his golden eyes seemingly staring directly into my soul as his enormous bat wings flared behind him. He had a long silky mane of red and maroon that sparkled in the nighttime wind like embers from a campfire. With a whoosh, cool white flames collected around his long black horn into a spiral and shot over to the cauldron, igniting it and bathing us in a moonlit glow

“Is this, perhaps, a better way to address you?” Orpheus smiled, for once actually physically speaking to me.

I scrambled to my legs and flapped my wings of the dead leaves that clung to the blue membrane. I shot him a glare. “Yeah, you could have done that earlier! What’s with all the theatrics?” I spat, embarrassed by my own reaction.

Orpheus sighed and sat down next to the cauldron of fire, beckoning me to come closer with an oversized batwing, “You see, I could not have shown my true self until this point,” he flicked his muzzle toward the flame beside him. “As I promised, I will attempt to explain some things, however the rest will have to come later. We have little time.” 

I didn’t trust the guy one bit, sure he hadn’t attacked me, but the whole thestral-alicorn thing was creeping me out. However, choosing to humor him and perhaps get some answers seemed like the right idea. I nodded and took a seat before him, keeping my distance.

“Right,” Orpheus sighed. “To begin, you’re in a completely different land from whence you came.”

“Yeah, you told me that,” I rolled my eyes.

“Do you want answers?” Orpheus frowned. “As I was saying, you are not in your native land. This land was once known as Umbris to the former inhabitants,” sighing, he looked past me into the part of the forest we came through, “I could not reveal my body earlier because the forest we just traversed marks the distance between Equestria and Umbris. Had I done so, terrible consequences may have unfolded.”

Vague, but okay. So he’s a world traveling bat pony, I reasoned internally.

“I am no mere bat, Midnight,” Orpheus explained, locking his piercing golden eyes with my own. “Bats are creatures of caves and solace. I am Orpheus Noctis, the reigning prince of twilight and ancestor of all thestral kind. We are not very different, you and I.”

“So that explains the magic fireballs?” I asked, flushed with embarrassment that he had heard my inner comment.

“Precisely, and our magic is not limited to such spells,” Orpheus blinked. “I digress, as I mentioned before, there are more pressing matters to discuss.”

“So then tell me, why am I here?”

“I took the opportunity of your unconsciousness to summon your spirit. I do not wish to reveal the exact nature, and I pray that you may never need to know. However, you must be aware that your spirit, and that of those close to you, are intertwined with what became of this land and what may become of your own,” Orpheus explained cryptically.

“My spirit? How do you know me?” I pressed, standing up, anxious to grasp the situation.

“Just know that I am watching you and that no matter the cost, you must guide the scarlet maned thestral to this very spot. In your world, there are those who wish to do her harm in more ways than physical. I do not know their methods yet, but I am beginning to think that they are aware of her presence. Take caution,” Orpheus frowned looking up at the sky.

Above, the clouds began swirling, darkening by the second and showering us with a billow of frigid snow.

“Since this is your first visit and I have not yet taught you, I have to supply this spell with my own strength. I grow weak holding it. You must return to your real body,” Orpheus explained quickly. “Keep a careful eye out for me. If I wish to speak to you, you will know.”

Orpheus’s voice began to fade, I looked around myself and saw that I was starting to become transparent, swirling white flames began crawling up my legs. I glanced up at Orpheus, terror in my eyes. 

“I apologize this meeting was so brief, we will discuss more in the future,” his voice died as I felt my stomach lurch. The world around me faded to black, the sound of rushing wind battered my ears. Feeling nauseous, I shut my eyes tightly.

Suddenly, the wind died down to a quiet breeze. All that could be heard was autumn leaves rustling in the wind as I felt myself fall seemingly through nothing.


	xxx

> Chapter Three: The Friendly Neighborhood Ponies
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


Chapter Three: The Friendly Neighborhood Ponies


I snapped my eyes open, arching my back and exhaling sharply as if somepony had punched me right in the stomach. I rolled over and fell upon my side, eliciting an excruciating pain up my spine. I did all I could not to vomit from the displeasure and sat for a few moments clenching my teeth, waiting for the grinding sensation to die down.

“A-are you okay?” I heard a feminine voice ask beside me.

With a flutter of my eyes I dared to peek them open, the pain having dulled down to a swollen throb. Struggling to see through teary eyes, I saw that I was laying on a ledge of some kind, a broken wooden door sat far above me on a cliff face. Whatever the case, that must’ve been the reason I was knocked unconscious.

Further above, the rocks ascended into a spire, higher than anything I had ever seen before. I felt so small in comparison to such a massive display, no Stable hallway or even the apple orchard was so impressive. But what really got me, was what rose beyond the spire.

A crystal clear night blanketed the sky above. I had learned about the weather and sky during my time in the Stable, but I never imagined it would look so vast. I felt oddly comforted looking at it, as though that sky was exactly where I belonged, flying freely through the endless air. The stars twinkled gently, framing the nearly-full moon that lazily drifted above. As splendid as it all looked, something felt off about it all, as though the moon showed only a fraction of the brilliance it possibly could. An air of dreadful unease encompassed the scene around me, though bright and unscathed, all I could feel from the moon's pale glow was the presence of death.

I recoiled as something poked my side, shooting up new bolts of pain. “Gah! Stop that!” I hollered, swatting the hoof away and craning my neck to look at my assailant.

Scarlet was sitting just off to my right, our saddlebags were piled up behind her, hers open and a first aid kit sprawled across the smooth stone that we sat upon. She looked like a mess, her red mane disheveled with her bow just barely clinging on. She was holding a half used roll of bandages. For a moment I thought I saw concern in her eyes before she took on a scowl.

“Well you were staring with a look on your face! I thought you passed out again!” Scarlet huffed, throwing the roll of bandages at me.

“Well I’m not!” I flinched as the bandages bounced harmlessly off of my head. “Thanks for poking me exactly where it hurts!”

Scarlet stood up, “Well that’s plenty thanks for keeping you from bleeding out all over the place.” With an irritated flick of her tail, she trotted over to the fallen bandages and began packing up her things.

“Bleeding out…” I trailed off, finally looking down at myself.

My coat was caked in dried blood. Horrified, I tried desperately to find the source of damage. The blood looked old, and with no visible wounds, I guessed Scarlet had done the job well. I gingerly rolled back over to my stomach, being careful to roll on my good side. Rising to all fours, I tried to stretch my wings, only to have my right one rise up and my left one succumb to more excruciating pain. I tightened my jaw, holding back tears, and looked at my left wing.

The appendage was stained with blood, but aside from the bandage holding it to my side, it actually looked okay. It seriously didn’t feel okay however, and I was certain that something was broken in the complicated skeleton. I let out a whimper as I realized I couldn’t fly, if ever at all again.

“It was ten bloody times worse than it looks now,” Scarlet called out from her packing, “you had a bone poking clear out of your skin, I managed to relocate it best I could.” She paused to sling her saddlebag over her back, “I don’t have anything better than bandages, so until we can figure out what to do about it, try not to move it.”

“I can’t fly…” I mumbled.

“No, you can’t, mate.”

“It’s broken.”

“Yes, we can see that.”

“My wing…” I said, trying desperately to come to terms with the fact that the only thing that made me a pegasus was now broken.

Scarlet rolled her eyes and fixed her hair into a half-up with her bow. She stood and began walking away.

I widened my own eyes and cantered after her, “Hey, wait up! Where are you going? Whoa shit!” I skidded to a stop.

Ahead of me, the ledge that we sat upon came to a sheer drop. Far below, a forested landscape draped in fog continued on for miles, stopping at the base of a mountain range that seemed to surround the edge of the forest in all directions. The trees were all brownish-green and covered in thin needles, reminding me of the crazy dream I had while unconscious. I looked back over to Scarlet, only to see her tail round a boulder as she worked her way around the mountain face.

“No, wait! Don’t just freakin’ leave me here!” I hollered, galloping after her. I scooped up my saddlebag and slung it over my back, wincing as it grazed my injured wing. Catching up behind her, I slowed to a trot and caught my breath, “What, so you just get up and leave me?”

“If I wanted to leave you, I’d have just glided down the mountain,” Scarlet shuffled her wings. If wings could be sarcastic, hers were.

“Right,” I replied lamely, falling into step just beside her.

An uncomfortable silence fell upon us as we cautiously trotted our way down the mountain face. The cliffs were jagged drops, the only way down was a narrow path cut into the stone, probably used by the first generation of Stable inhabitants. The descent was rather easy, the smooth path practically spiraled to the base.

When we eventually got to the bottom, the path continued into the forest. Loose cobblestone clopped underhoof as we made our way among the dead trees. Around us, the ancient trees sat sparsely packed, allowing moonlight to illuminate the ground. Thick wisps of fog coiled along the forest floor, trickling around our hooves as we followed the path. We really didn’t have anywhere else to go, but it was bound to lead us someplace right?

I coughed, grabbing Scarlet’s attention. “So, uh, I was dreaming about you,” I said, trying to break the ice as we trotted along.

Scarlet gave me a cross look without saying anything.

“No! Nonono, not like that!” I flushed, heat rising in the tips of my ears, “I mean, it was about a pony made of snow and magic, and I was an alicorn, then the magic snow pony turned into an alicorn too! Then he read my mind and told me how he was like, the prince of all thestrals, and he spoke about you…” I desperately blurted.

Scarlet stopped and reached up on the tips of her hooves, resting a hoof up against my forehead to take my temperature. She looked at me quizzically.

“Don’t tell me you hit your head so hard, you went looney on me,” she sighed.

I swatted her hoof away and glared at her “I’m not crazy! I’m serious, my spirit was taken away from my body and I was transformed into an Alicorn in a land called Umbris!” I explained desperately.

“Luna above, the last pony in Equestria to be stuck out here with and heʼs completely mad!” Scarlet cried out to the sky, trotting along the path once again.

I hopped out in front of her, stopping her with a hoof. “No, really, hear me out?” I pleaded.

“And why should I?” Scarlet spat, lowering my hoof off of her. “In fact, why should I do anything for you? All you’ve ever done for me is get me kicked out of my home and nearly killed! Hell, bandaging your wing and listening to you ramble is more than what I think you deserve of me!”

“Hey that Stable was my home too! Why do you blame me for all of this? It was your crazy sister who instigated it!” I shot back, my temper flaring. “We’re both out here like it or not. All I’ve done was try and at least be friendly!”

Scarlet stamped her hoof in frustration, groaning as she began trotting again. I followed close behind.

“You could at least thank me for keeping you alive for however many hours you were out; you dense, inconsiderate, buck!” she cried out in front of herself.

“Hours?” I paused, “You seriously looked over me for that long?” My anger began to fade, humbled by her actions. 

“Yes, Midnight, hours.” She stopped and turned around, poking my chest, “And to make things worse, I’ve never even touched a bloody bandage before in my life, I was panicking watching you bleed like that.”

“Really?” I asked softly. I was touched by her concern for me.

Scarlet’s own features softly fell too, “O- only because you’re the only other pony out here!” Her tone died down, “It’s not like I’d make it far alone anyway.”

“Well, thank you then,” I said genuinely. “If it wasn’t for you, I might not be here right now. I’m sorry I hadn’t said it sooner.”

“You’re welcome,” she nodded, straightening her bow with a sigh and regaining her composure, “Right, shall we carry on then?” 

“Only if you let me tell you my story,” I smirked, eliciting yet another roll from Scarlet‘s golden eyes.

“Fine-” Scarlet’s retort was cut off when her tufted ears perked suddenly. “What was that?”

I tilted my head. I hadnʼt heard anything. She must have heard something deep within the forest. My sense of hearing wasnʼt nearly as keen as her own. 

“REEEEEE,” a sharp howl echoed throughout the woods.

I definitely heard that.

Scarlet flittered her wings and jumped over me, effectively putting me between her and the source of the un-equine noise.“What the bloody hell was that?!” she screamed in my ear.

I winced. Yup, heard that too. 

I scouted the forest desperately, equally terrified. “I have no bucking clue, why ask me?!”

“Well maybe you saw where it came from!” she hollered and slapped my back. 

“Is this really the time to be arguing?!” I scoffed.

Off our left, I spotted a silhouette as it began pushing its way through the mist. Trees shook as it barreled its way directly toward us.

“Holy shit, run!” I cried as I galloped down the path.

Scarlet took off and flew above me, that lucky mare still had working wings.

“What the hell is it?!” I asked, not daring to look back.

“It’s a zompony!”

“A what?!”

“A zompony!” Scarlet repeated desperately. She flipped over and gestured vaguely behind us. 

“What the buck is a ‘zompony?!’” I yelled, leaping over a fallen log on the path.

Just behind me, the rotten log made a crashing noise, followed by another ear splitting, “REEEE.”

Whatever it was, it was gaining on me. I gulped back my fear and stole a glance over my shoulder. 

A massive pony was galloping a dozen hooves behind me, it didn’t have wings, so it must’ve been some other Equestrian pony. But the thing was, it was barely held together. Whatever was left of its coat, hung loosely as dull patches of hair, its skin was torn and rotting, muscles and organs showing through its exposed skeleton. I held back my stomach in horror and disgust, watching as its yellow beady eyes locked onto me.

“It’s a half dead pony! You know, from books like Nightmare Night of the Living Dead!” Scarlet tried to explain, looking down at me from between her legs.

“You know what? I don’t care! Just look ahead and tell me if there’s any way I can lose this thing off my tail!” I looked forward once more, desperately pumping more into my tired legs.

Scarlet peered far ahead of us, “Uh, uh, look!” she pointed a hoof, “The path comes to an end, there’s a clearing up ahead!”

I didn’t acknowledge her, saving any strength to just focus on galloping. Pegasi were not meant to run, that was one thing I knew – and felt – for sure.

Soon, I spotted what Scarlet was talking about, the cobblestone path came to a stop and intersected a much wider road. The new road was made of solid stone, white painted lines separating it into two halves along the length. On the well-moonlit road, I could have sworn I spotted the figures of ponies trotting along, a large canvas covered wooden cart being pulled by one.

“Oh my Luna, Midnight, I think those are ponies! I didn’t think there were any left out here!” Scarlet gleefully cried out above. I let out a grunt in acknowledgement, exhaustion taking over.

Let’s see if these guys are willing to help me out then, I told myself, pushing the last of my strength into my legs and galloping straight out onto the road.

See, the problem with galloping full-tilt meant that all my weight was going forward. Meaning I was going forward. I galloped right onto the road, directly in front of a very confused mare, across, and back into the forest on the other side. All while screaming the entire time.

Scarlet had already flared her bat wings and was hovering above the road, crying out my name as I ran further; the damned zompony still behind me.

I dared to slow my pace enough to circle back around a tree and onto the road again, this time coming up behind the travelers.

There were four of them, all an assortment of colors, something I previously thought that only I looked like. I knew that ponies came in all shapes and sizes, hell I was half pegasus, but I had never seen a unicorn or earth pony in person before. All but one were earth ponies, the last being a unicorn mare. Unfortunately for me though, they were all taking cover behind the wooden cart.

My ears perked as I heard a crack snap above my head. The zompony behind me unexpectedly slumped over and tumbled to a halt, its head taken clean off with a burst of chunks and pink mist. It was followed by a soft boom that echoed into the forest around me as I too skidded to a stop, desperately gasping for air.

Scarlet fluttered over to me, coming to a landing, “Holy goddesses, that was some bloody shot!”

“Some… Bloody… wha…?” I asked, staring at the ground, my breath still long behind me.

“The pony who saved you!” she pointed off into the foggy darkness ahead on the road. “They shot the zompony, and from that far no less,” Scarlet spoke, seemingly proud.

“That was a gun? What the hell?” I asked in utter confusion, having finally filled my lungs with enough air.

“So it was,” an older stallion’s voice spoke in front of me. “You don’t see ghouls like that around these parts often.”

I raised my head up, coming face-to-neck with a large earth pony stallion. He stood over me, smiling through crooked teeth. He had to have been middle aged, his orange coat and brown mane were fringed with gray. He wore a patched brown coat over some worn clothing that looked old enough to be pre-war.

“Who are you ponies?” I asked, taking a look past him. The others had climbed out of hiding and were once more ready to trot along.

“Allow me to introduce myself, my name’s Pumpkin Spice, I run this fine caravan up and down the Transylvanian trade route, right up to Vanhoover herself!” Pumpkin explained, his accent definitely Equestrian.

A canteen seemingly levitated itself before my muzzle, masked in a green glow. I recoiled and stared criminally at the magic bottle.

“It’s alright, it wonʼt bite, it’s just water,” a new voice, this time a middle aged mare spoke from behind me.

I turned around to find that same mint green mare I had nearly tackled earlier. Atop her head sat a horn, glowing a matching green to the bottle. She also wore clothing; some faded denim overalls. Did everypony wear clothes out here? 

I nodded in appreciation and snatched the canteen out of the air, gulping down its contents. My PipBuck let out a few chirps as I drank, suspiciously sounding like a geiger counter. The water tasted awful, like algae and rusty metal.

“You know, you’re lucky you two came across us out here. Not so many ponies are as kind or friendly as us.” Pumpkin explained.

“Yeah, no kidding, if not for your help, Luna knows where I’d be now.” I smiled, hoofing over the canteen back to the unicorn mare with a ‘Thanks.’

“Oh-ho-ho that was not any of our doing!” the stallion chuckled, “Me and my wife, Pea Leaf, we run our caravan unarmed. Carrying guns usually causes nothing but trouble. ‘Specially on one of these safe routes you know?” 

Scarlet had been quietly sitting beside me this whole time, just watching us speak. I guessed she didn’t like talking to strangers all that much. She shared an equally confused look as my own however.

“You know…?” the stallion repeated, raising an eyebrow.

We shook our heads in unison.

“Right.” Pumpkin shouldered his leather jacket awkwardly, “Between the brand-new Stable-Tec clothing and those fancy PipBucks you got there, Iʼm gonna go on a whim and assume you two are fresh out of a Stable, eh? Didnʼt think they ever built one for you bat pony folk.”

“Itʼs that obvious?” I frowned and looked down at my uniform. The blue suit looked practically fluorescent compared to the drab and worn colors of everything else out here.

“Mhmm,” Pea Leaf drawled from her seat in the back of the covered cart, “Stable ponies like you two are rare breeds. So innocent and new to this world. Best be careful, yʼall might be highly sought after ‘cause of it. Especially the red maned bat.”

Scarlet flinched and looked up at Pea Leaf. The minty green unicorn casually sipped her nasty water and watched us with an emotionless look. 

“Well why don’t you two come with us,” Pumpkin spoke suddenly. “It looks like you two have been through tartarus and back. Town’s just up ahead anyway.” He beckoned us toward the covered wooden cart.

Scarlet and I nodded thankfully, and trotted over to the two ponies near the front of the caravan. Both were earth pony stallions, one rigged up to pull the cart, the other carrying a large saddlebag of supplies.

I came up to one of them and smiled, only to be met with silence and terrified eyes.

What’s his problem? I shrugged, I guess a zompony did just try to kill us afterall.

“Why don’t you two come on and take a seat inside the cart, I’m sure you’re tired from the running an’ all!” the unicorn mare smiled, calling to us from afar.

“Oh, uh, I’d rather fly above. New sky and all,” Scarlet laughed uneasily and took off, shooting me a worried glance.

“Well, I’ll gladly take that offer!” I smiled and began to move toward her.

“Midnight, just trot for now okay?” Scarlet whispered, hovering just over my head.

“But I’m exhausted! You weren’t the one galloping this whole time!”

“Look, just listen to me for this one, okay? Please?” she pleaded. She looked genuinely concerned. I couldn’t help but nod.

“Actually, ma’am, I think I’ll just trot along outside for now,” I called out to the Unicorn. “After all, the town's just up ahead right?”

“Mmm, suit yourself, pegasus,” she eyed me then looked away. 

With an ‘Alright, let’s move!’ from Pumpkin, the caravan began moving once again.

We trotted along the road for a few moments, the fog having lightened up enough for me to spot some dim lights glowing up ahead. It surprised me that these many ponies had survived the war, from what we were taught, there was nothing but a giant molten crater left of Equestria.

I took a moment to eye Scarlet, who uneasily glided above. She looked tense, like there was something she wanted to tell me. I figured if it was important enough, she’d have said it by now.

As we approached the town, I spotted two ponies flying toward us in the fog. They landed, coming before Pumpkin Spice. From what I could tell, both of the ponies were thestrals, but they were wearing some kind of matching black barding with a multicolored dark uniform underneath their vests. They both had what appeared to be rifles, drawn and ready to use. They began conversing with Pumpkin just out of earshot.

Scarlet landed beside me and was as tense as ever, she poked my shoulder, drawing my attention. “This isn’t good, those ponies up there have explosives around their necks,” she whispered, eyeing the pair of silent earth ponies pulling the cart. 

I blinked in confusion and looked more closely at their outfits. Under the rags they wore, I spotted some sort of makeshift collars, each with a glowing red light.

“Are you sure? How do you know?” I asked softly.

“It’s my bloody special talent, Midnight. Thatʼs homemade P4 explosives,” Scarlet whispered  desperately. 

“Aw come on, you’re just being paranoid, these guys are friendly enough. They even offered me water!” I chuckled nervously. I didnʼt want to believe Scarlet, but she could absolutely be right. 

“Is everything okay there honey?” Pea Leaf called out from within the covered wooden cart, poking her head out to see.

Before us, Pumpkin began nervously shuffling, whatever they were talking about clearly was making him uncomfortable. Suddenly, the thestral pony on the left began shouting, pointing his gun at Pumpkin. I nervously stole a glance at Scarlet who was equally as afraid as I was.

Pumpkin suddenly drew a pistol from under his coat and pounced forward, only to be peppered by automatic gunfire by the thestral on the left. His body slumped to the floor, and both of the thestrals pushed forward towards us, guns drawn.

“Aw dammit!” the unicorn cried from the cart. Her horn lit up and she leapt out the back, brandishing a rifle with a drum shaped bottom and letting loose a long sentence of automatic fire. 

Scarlet and I both yelped and dove off the road, trying to keep ourselves out of everything. The spray of bullets ran across the earth pony pulling the cart who slumped over as his body was filled with lead. The pack-carrying earth pony jumped in fear and tried to run for cover, only for a soft beep to come from his collar and his head evaporated into mist with a loud explosive crack.

I stared with terrified eyes as everything unfolded, flinching as more gunfire sputtered from Pea Leaf. A line of dirt puffs scraped across the thestrals making their advance. 

The thestral on the left cried in pain and fell over, clutching his leg. The other one on the right began firing controlled bursts toward the Pea Leaf. Striking her in the side as she galloped toward us.

She rolled into the dirt and grabbed onto Scarlet, who screamed and flailed against her forelegs trying desperately to knock her off. I tried to dive forward and stop her, only to be knocked on the head by the butt of a levitating rifle. Dizzy with pain, I fell back, watching as Pea Leaf stood up and pressed the barrel of her gun against Scarlet’s head.

“We had a deal!” the unicorn screamed, facing the thestral on the road, rifle aimed at her.

“We don’t deal with Slavers, you know that!” the thestral spoke around his rifle bit, his accent Braytish. I could see a few wisps of white mane poke under his helmet, contrasting to his dark red-gray coat.

“But we thought you’d let us through if we didn’t take bat pony slaves on your land!” miss-unicorn-terrorist hollered, shoving the barrel of her gun harder against Scarlet’s head.

I felt utterly helpless, Scarlet and I weren’t exactly friends, but dammit it would suck to lose her!

“Aye, and so explain the slaves right here?” the uniformed thestral asked, not once breaking his aim off of the unicorn.

“We found these two just here!” the green mare exclaimed, shaking Scarlet desperately.

Scarlet tried biting into the mare’s leg with her fangs, but it either went unnoticed or did nothing substantial.

There it was again, that crack. The mare’s head suddenly exploded in half and she limply fell over with a meaty slap. A soft boom echoed once more throughout the forest. The white maned Stallion rushed forward and kicked the body off of Scarlet, letting his rifle fall onto his chest by a sling. He helped Scarlet to her hooves, who was shaking and looked like she was about to vomit from all the brain matter splashed onto her coat.

“Are you two okay?” he asked, trotting over to me and offering a hoof, helping me rise to all fours. I winced as my wing ground uncomfortably.

“Lunaʼs moon...” Scarlet muttered, staring wide eyed at the bodies littered around the cart.

“Aye, we’ve been having problems with Slavers these past few weeks,” the stallion explained, trotting back over to the caravan with us in tow. “Name’s Lieutenant Silver Dusk, guard of the Night Watch, you two?”

“Midnight Wind.”

“Scarlet Rose.”

Both Scarlet and I said in unison, then looked at each other.

So that’s what her full name was.

“Um… right,” Silver eyed us crossly, and trotted over to where his comrade was tying some kind of rope device around his bleeding leg.

“You holding up okay?” Silver knelt down and cinched the device more tightly for him. 

The wounded thestral winced, “No! I just got bloody shot mate, whatʼs it look like?” 

Silver helped him stand, “Can you fly yourself to the hospital?” 

“Should be able to, well enough,” his friend flapped his wings and carefully made way towards town.

Silver watched him for a moment, then adjusted his rifle across his back and faced me and Scarlet, “How’d the likes of you two wind up in the company of Slavers?”

“Well, it’s kind of a long story,” I sighed, scratching my mane.

“Mmm, perhaps save it for later. I need to report this to my boss. Are you fit for a bit of a… trot?” Silver asked, eyeing my wing.

“Eh, couldn’t hurt.”

“Brilliant, let’s go.” Silver took off in a brisk canter down the road, followed by me. Scarlet, of course, opted to fly overhead. Silver cast a glance over his shoulder, a wry smile upon his face, “Oh, by the way, welcome to Renaissance.”


XXX

> Chapter Four: Renaissance
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


Chapter Four: Renaissance



Scarlet Rose


<><><>

I watched as Midnight’s two toned tail bobbed along below me. We were slowly making our way towards the town, thankfully giving me some time to gather my emotions. I beat my wings softly, absentmindedly weaving in thought.

Leaving the stable, trying to save Midnight’s life, the chase, being held as a bloody hostage, all in the span of not even a night. I sighed audibly, all of this seemed to be happening so quickl-

“Like what ya’ see?” Midnight derailed my thoughts.

Refocusing my eyes, I matched Midnight’s as he playfully craned his neck up at me, shooting me a wink. I realized I’d been staring at him this whole time.

I snorted and beat a gust of wind on him from my wings, “No, Midnight, I was just thinking.”

“Oh? And what crossed your mind?” he pressed, smirking coltishly. Insufferable.

“Just, this. Everything that happened. Nowʼs not the time to be cheeky, mate.” I rolled my eyes, gesturing vaguely around us.

“Right.” His tone fell somber, casting his own eyes down the road.

Clearly I wasn’t the only one with mixed emotions about our situation. How he even managed to stay positive was beyond me. 

I came to a gentle landing beside Midnight as we approached a massive medieval wooden palisade that surrounded the town. Along the length, the wall expanded, pocketed by four stone and wood guard towers set up around its perimeter. Each tower stood as a sentinel over a gate that led into the settlement where two main dirt roads intersected the massive town. The roads lead out clear into the surrounding forest.

The town looked like a medieval fortress, with battlements, a wooden gate, even sporting some faded regalia. I would have been impressed if it wasn't obviously a facade. The stones that made up the towers were barely a hoof deep and everything was built on crumbling scaffolding. What was actually still standing upright was held together with bits of scrap and rubbish.

“Hey Silver, did ya see me marksmanship?” a young stallion’s voice called out from one of the guard towers  we passed beneath.

“Aye, you shot two targets, congratulations,” Silver deadpanned, not bothering to look up at the tower.

“‘Shot two targets,’” the younger voice mocked.

I looked up, just as a white-coated and black-maned thestral, in identical uniform to Silver, poked his head over the railing of the tower. He didn’t look a day over fifteen. “That was two head shots at six-hundred and twenty-four meters you unimpressed bastard!” he yelled down at Silver who never once broke his stride.

“Go wank yourself off somewhere else,” Silver dismissed, looking over at me and Midnight. “Don’t mind the colt, he’s just as cocky as he sounds.”

A stream of profanities soon fell behind us as we came up to the main gate.

“Was he the buck that saved us?” I blurted, trotting past Midnight to Silver’s side. I could practically feel Midnight roll his eyes behind me. What? It was a bloody impressive shot!

“I hate to admit it, but yes. Ballpoint’s the sharpest sharpshooter we have,” Silver shrugged, coming to a stop and waving to a pony who manned the gate house.

“Ballpoint…” Midnight played with the word, “Like the pen?”

“The bullet,” I corrected him.

“They make bullets with ballpoint pen tips?”

“No, it’s just a solid shot; ball ammunition,” I sighed.

“Oh.” Midnight turned to Silver raising an eyebrow, “The colt’s got some attitude huh?”

“We let him run around with his big head – annoyingly enough – but he’s not boasting.” Silver paused, briefly giving us a serious look, “Everything he says about himself, that’s only half of what I’ve seen him accomplish.”

As the wooden gate began its slow ascension, I stole a glance back over my shoulder to the guard tower. Ballpoint had settled back into his watchful position, silhouetted against the bright stars. I could only make out his gentle breaths being carried softly in the chilly wind. He seemed to be eerily calm, not breathing more than once every few seconds. Whatever Silver seemed to say about him, I was curious to see more.

The gate released an agonizing groan on its ancient sprockets as it came to a stop. I turned around and quickly cantered up to the stallions, taking in the sights around me. As we trotted down the road, I realized Silver wasn’t kidding when he said ‘Renaissance.’

Around us, classical Equestrian houses stood tightly packed together, unsurprisingly mimicking a ye olde Equestrian village. The white buildings were held together by dark painted timber accents. Colorful signs and decals were painted onto the wooden houses, each advertising wonderful things like fried daisy sandwiches on a stick, or fried corn on a stick, or fried sticks of butter… on a stick? It was obvious none of the adverts were still relevant, but the posters were cheerful enough.

All of the buildings were such a lovely design, despite every building sporting obvious wear and age. Some even looked as patch-worked as the guard towers; every crack or hole was filled with some sort of scrap gathered from across Transylvania. 

Throughout the town, Hearthʼs-Warming lights decorated the streets, arching lazily across the rooftops or between buildings in a random array. The town was bathed in a dim glow, hardly brighter than firelight. The lights were possibly too dim for Equestrians but the perfect lighting for us nocturnal thestrals.

As Silver directed us throughout town, thestral ponies passed by, busily making their way through the town. It was past the middle of the night and everypony was certainly in the middle of their working schedule. I cast a glance to Midnight, dropping my cold shoulder I usually gave him to share our awe of what we saw around us.

We entered Transylvania believing not a single soul was left alive. Instead, it was teeming with life, and not just any, but our own thestral people. A spark of hope grew in my chest, we might actually be okay out here. 

“Move’t freak,” a stallion suddenly shoved Midnight, nearly toppling him off his hooves.

“Hey, whatʼs your problem?!” Midnight spat, regaining his balance and baring his fangs.

The stallion came to a stop and turned around. He was a thestral, like everypony else, but he was dressed in a uniform similar to Silver. Upon the shoulder pauldron of his bulletproof barding, a blue crescent moon sat. Slung over his back was a cobbled together bolt action rifle. His golden eyes glared at Midnight through locks of dark purple mane.

“Enclave feathered freaks arenʼt welcome here. What’eva tha’ hell you are, mutt, itʼs best ye leave.” He pointed his hoof to the gate where we came in.

“Are you for real?” Midnight cried, turning to me. “And here I thought all of that was left behind at home!”

“What’s going on here?” Silver trotted back over to us, having just noticed we stopped following him.

“Ah! Sir, look at what came sludgin’ through our gates!” the guard guffawed. “A cloud kicker, half thestral no less. Let’s show ‘em the way out, just like any other ‘Claver.” 

Silver eyed Midnight for a moment then nodded to the guard, “That’ll be all private, get back on patrol.”

The guard recoiled, looking at Midnight with disgust. “So we’re lettin’ fuckin’ birds roost in our town yet? Wh-”

“Patrol,” SIlver cut him off and raised a hoof down the road, “March.”

“Aye, sir,” the guard spat a dark glob of Luna-knows-what and shrugged his gear. He resumed trotting along the road once more.

“Yeah, you better bucking march ya lousy-ass!” Midnight suddenly hollered.

“Midnight!” I hushed, punching his shoulder. “That’s enough, Luna above, you’ll just make him come back!”

“Alright guys, give it a rest.” Silver sighed. “Striker’s still sour about the Enclave, I promise not everypony here is like him.”

“Enclave?” Midnight asked, rubbing his shoulder.

Damn right that hurt!

“Yeah, you know: Pegasi, abductions, cloudships, magic towers blocking the sun before it suddenly cleared it up?”

We both shook our heads.

“Right.” Silver smirked looking us over, “Stable 17 I take it?”

“Exactly, how’d you know?” I furrowed my eyebrows.

Silver chuckled and turned around, trotting down the street once more. “It’s plastered all over your Stable-Tec uniforms of course.”

Midnight and I looked down at ourselves, it was painstakingly obvious what our origins were. I held back a gag as I saw the stains of blood and other things I didn't want to think about smeared on my jacket.

We both cantered up to Silver and continued our path.

“Well, if you couldn’t tell, we know butt-buck nothing about Transylvania, care to fill us in?” Midnight asked.

I shot him a look for his strange use of words, only for him to stick his tongue out at me. Ugh that colt.

“Like I said earlier, I need to bring you to my commander, Aurora Borealis. Not only because you’re both representing a mountain of paperwork for me, but also ‘cause he’s probably the only pony in town with the patience to explain everything,” Silver replied, shrugging in step.

We fell under silence as Silver led us through town, the road we had been following widened until it came upon a large circular square in the center of town. As Silver directed us around the perimeter, I gazed at the massive statue of a pony in old fashioned armor that sat in the middle, it was adorned with pale brown bushes and a non-functioning fountain. Along the outside of the square, multiple shops and kiosks sat with vendors advertising their goods. However, upon closer inspection it just looked like a bunch of junk.

As we crossed what looked like a bar, I caught a whiff of something delicious smelling when the door opened. I felt my stomach grumble as a reminder that I probably hadn’t eaten since that morning.

Silver came to a stop and turned to face us, a bright smile upon his face. “Right we’re here!”

I cast my eyes up at the building behind him, it looked like the others, though it sported an extended tower out the top that was bristling with antennae and loose cables. Hanging above the door, on a suspended sign, read ‘Transylvanian Renaissance Faire!’ in red letters, beneath them in white, the word ‘Armory’ was painted.

“This is the Night Watch’s headquarters. We’re essentially the guards of Renaissance, but recent events have us extend out as a militia for other towns as well,” Silver waved a hoof in the air, “I digress, let me gallop in and grab Aurora for you, be right back!” He ducked into the front door. His mood had visibly brightened, a stallion that loved his job, that’s for sure.

A moment passed. “Well,” Midnight coughed awkwardly, taking a seat on the road.

“No snide remarks about his cheerful mood?” I raised an eyebrow, bracing for his usual annoyances.

“Nah, I’ll let it go,” he shrugged.

I sat next to him, looking at the bustling ponies around us.

“Lot more of us out here,” Midnight spoke softly, seemingly to himself.

“More than just the two of us,” I replied with a sigh.

“You sound relieved.”

“Should I be disappointed?” I scoffed, eyeing him. “You’d rather us be the only two bloody ponies left in Equestria?”

“Youʼd have me all for yourself,” Midnight smirked. Ugh that smirk again!

I stood up with a groan, “Oh grow up you dumb colt!” Stamping my hoof, I turned around and tried to distract myself by watching the other ponies. They looked so different. 

“Am I really that bad?” Midnight chuckled behind me.

“You’re worse. Youʼre not taking anything seriously! How could you not be relieved to see the world like this?” I gestured around us.

“Maybe because itʼs a world that still hates me?” Midnight deadpanned.

I began to speak but held my tongue. To him, the way ponies looked at him and treated him; this world wasnʼt a hopeful beginning. It was the same story he’s seen his whole life. He wasn’t welcome anywhere. Maybe thatʼs why he hid behind an obnoxious personality. Though we were safe here, he was still a stranger to his own kind. 

I tried to soften my tone, “Look, mate, I’m still trying to get over our situation. I’m just glad we’re both still alive at this point,” I explained. “At least I’m focusing on what really matters and not playing ‘pick up’ with the attractive stallion I was kicked out with.”

“Oh, the attractive stallion.” Midnight sat up.

I groaned, feeling heat rising in my cheeks from embarrassment and frustration. I rubbed my head with a hoof and sighed, “It was a metaphor. I was talking about you hitting on me instead of actually focusing on important matters. Like living.”

“RIght, I’ll remember that metaphor,” Midnight winked, his bloody smirk never leaving his face.

Oh, I wanted to slap that expression right off his cheeky, stupid, handsome, face–

“So here be the new Stable ponies eh?” a low and hearty voice called out.

Midnight and I both turned to see SIlver, and what I assumed was Aurora, exiting the headquarters.

Aurora was an older stallion maybe in his late fifties, he had a short dark blue mane that was graying at the temples and a gray coat to match. He wasn’t in combat barding like I had seen Silver and the other guards wear, instead he simply wore the multi-colored dark camouflage that seemingly every guard wore under their barding. He had a small wedding clasp around his left wing root, apparently ponies still had it in them to get officially married out here.

Upon his collar sat two brass crescent metal pins, possibly the only thing distinguishing him from other guards. He wasn’t unarmed however, carrying an ‘Ironshod Firearms’ IF-21 pistol holstered on his left foreleg.

“Sir, you think you can fill them in? They’ve got plenty of questions, believe me,” Silver said, flicking his long white bangs out of his eyes. 

“Will do, Silver. Ye have your orders, we’ll debrief at daybreak,” Aurora spoke, more seriously this time. “Goddesses guide you.”

With a salute in confirmation, Silver took off and flew over the palisade wall, into the surrounding forest.

“Where’s he gone off to?” I asked, watching him glide out of sight.

“That’s classified lassie,” Aurora winked, not suggestively like the feathered-bag-of-stupid next to me, but charmingly. “Right, I’m famished, care for a bite?” he offered, motioning his head to the bar we had passed earlier.

I nodded excitedly, my hunger catching up to me once again. Midnight wasn’t faring much better and he stood up immediately at the sound of food.

Aurora chuckled and led the way. Despite the events that happened earlier that night, I felt better. I was alive, safe even. And with how Aurora and Silver treated us, I knew we were finally in good company.

I stole a quick glance at Midnight trotting next to me. Somewhat good company. 


<><><>


“If ye don’t slow down you're gonna get a bloody hernia, lad.” Aurora stared wide eyed at Midnight, who was busy inhaling his fourth order of hay fries.

“Buf es soo gfuud,” Midnight mumbled around another mouthful of fried hay.

I rolled my eyes at his antics, seemingly for the hundredth time since meeting him. At this rate I was going to pull an eye muscle.

Aurora took another shot of whiskey, ‘Wild Pegasus’ as it was printed on the bottle, supposedly shipped here from a desert south east of us that had a city dedicated to gambling and shows. He had gone through half of it already and hardly seemed phased.

We had entered the bar and found ourselves a table earlier. The interior was just as thematic as the exterior, decorated and furnished in dark wooden accents while old suits of armor and various bits and bobs of medieval Equestria decorated the place. A staircase along the back wall led to a lofted interior balcony which apparently housed an inn for travelers. 

Aurora was kind enough to pay for our meals, using bottle caps as currency – oddly enough. The food here was bland, though I couldn’t really have expected anything to grow fruitfully in the seemingly lifeless landscape that Transylvania was. Apparently the hay-fryer survived the war. It was a ‘must see’ attraction around these parts. Midnightʼs reaction proved that well enough. 

We had spent the better part of an hour just shooting questions and getting answers from Aurora, he was an excellent storyteller, and I began to feel like I had a slightly better grasp of the new world around me.

Transylvania, the homeland of thestrals, was a small region in northwest Equestria that went otherwise unnoticed during the war. It was left relatively untouched from the Megaspells and Balefire bombs that fell around Canterlot and larger cities like Vanhoover further west. Thankfully the surrounding mountain range meant very little damage was dealt. That didn’t mean the forests were safe however; magical radiation from Vanhoover found its way in and tainted a lot of the wildlife and unfortunate ponies; explaining the ‘ghoul’ we encountered earlier.

Next, a few years ago, the Grand Pegasus Enclave – a splinter of the pegasi military that locked themselves above the clouds when the bombs fell – recently disbanded. Not much was known about them, but a lot of pegasi were beginning to show up across all of Equestria. Nopony really appreciated the pegasi since historically, they terrorized anypony on the surface in hopes of securing pre-war technology or outright ‘cleansing’ the surface of any mutations. Thestral-pegasi relations were rough even before the war, we had some conflicts over sky territory. We lost. The Enclave supposedly held any pre-war thestrals by indentured servitude above the clouds and even went so far as randomly abducting us throughout the years like bloody aliens.

Among other things, Aurora finally explained the different factions of ponies in the area:

The Steel Rangers: a mysterious and powerful group of ponies to the east whose local chapter were neutral with us but couldnʼt be fully trusted. Their interests were unpredictable and stories say they werenʼt fond of non-typical ponies; thestrals included.

The New Canterlot Republic: even further away, a government that rose into power in Canterlot after the so-called ‘Day of Sunshine and Rainbows.’ That day was when the clouds that eternally blanketed Equestria suddenly vanished. Nopony around here really understood why, but rumors spread that it was the downfall of the Enclave. The NCR's influence was limited by the distance, but the local economy was on an upswing from the increased amount of trade coming from Canterlot.

The Raiders: more or less a diseased and sadistic group of ponies across all of Equestria. They were violent, unorganized, and were broken up into gangs. Some were moderately approachable to conversation, but the running rule was they shoot first and ask questions never. 

And finally, and most notably, the Hailstorm; a former Grand Pegasus Enclave cloudship that parked itself over an old Equestrian military base not far from here. This was recent – like ‘last week’ recent. The Night Watch was still figuring out who, what, and why they were here.

The Night Watch and the ponies of Renaissance never really knew what sat outside Transylvania, since many didn’t dare travel beyond the mountains. But one thing Aurora warned was to watch out for Equestrian ponies. They were used to seeing mutated beings and they didn't fully understand what we were. Most knew about ‘bat ponies,’ but outside of Transylvania, we were more of a myth than anything else. The sight of a thestral might scare them into fighting. He cautioned us to carry and learn how to use weapons. Anything and everything was a threat.

“So Aurora,” I paused, taking a sip from the ‘Sparkle Cola’ bottle the waitress presented to me. It was bubbly. “What do you think we should do? I mean, now that we’re stuck out here, how do we live?”

“Well, the first thing ye need is caps lassie. Nothing is free, and I think with a wound like that,” he gestured to Midnight’s wing. “It’s best ye go to a doctor as soon as possible.”

Midnight stopped his fiendish eating long enough to look down at his bandaged wing. He gave it a little wiggle, wincing, “It’s not that bad really, I think it just needs a few days rest.”

It looked bad. The bandages were filthy from our tumble through the forest, dried blood, and my piss-poor attempt at emergency aid. I wasnʼt confident that I even set the bone correctly. I was too busy trying not to retch from the blood or shoving a bone back in his wing.

“Aye, get it checked out though, okay laddie? I canʼt imagine a fate more cruel than clipping me wings, especially for a pegasus.” He semi-drunkenly spread his own wing and looked at the faint lights through his translucent membrane. “Look, I’ll give the innkeep a premium so ye two can stay a day. Before though, just head over to the armory and they’ll lend ye some protection until you make enough to buy it. I already have it set up,” Aurora offered, standing up. 

“Aw wait but I’m not done!” Midnight pouted looking at his half eaten food. The fourth serving, that is. 

“You’re done, we’re going.” I stood up as well and tried to push him. “Thanks for everything mate, you’ve really, oof, been a great help!” I thanked Aurora, barely nudging Midnight an inch. Damn everypony for being bigger than me.

“Anytime, for the both of ye. It’s the end of me night and about time I go home and see me family. You two lovebirds find me in the house left of the Armory if ye need me  aye?” Aurora smiled and placed a bag of caps on the table for the innkeep.

“Two lovebirds…?” I mumbled, falling straight onto the floor when Midnight finally stood up. “Hey wait! It’s not like that!” I cried out to Aurora as he chuckled, exiting the building.

“You heard him, lovebird,” Midnight cooed, trying to help me stand up.

“Oh, bloody can it, will you?” I felt my face burn as I shoved him away and stood up on my own.

Stallions, I swear… I fixed my bow and mane and cantered out the door with what dignity I had left. Thankfully the cold air outside helped cool down my burning face.

Midnight laughed behind me as he galloped to catch up. While we both made our way back to the Armory, I pointedly ignored any attempts in conversation Midnight brought up.

Could he not shut up for five seconds? Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t hate him. But there was one thing he was good at, and that was pushing all the right buttons to get me frustrated, flustered, or embarrassed. Constantly. It was a bloody game for that one wasn’t it?

Admittedly I was beginning to appreciate his light-hearted playfulness, when it was appropriate. Nothing out here seemed to phase him, it helped me too. But I was still far from comfortable enough to tell him that, it'd just get to his dense head. 

We came back to the Armory and entered through the front door. It was similar in layout to the inn but instead of tables and furnishings, a large wooden table covered in maps and smaller office spaces with computer terminals dotted the room. It was surprisingly empty but since it was almost dawn, most ponies were probably headed home for the day. Thankfully there was an orange maned mare behind a terminal at a desk, most likely the receptionist.

I opened my mouth to speak, only to have Midnight clear his throat.

“Aurora sent us to pick up some weapons.”

I closed my mouth, I’d rather he do the talking to strangers anyway.

The mare paused her typing, condescendingly looking up at us over the rim of some retro purple – and distasteful – glasses. She pointed a gray hoof to a caged corner of the room and went back to typing without uttering a word.

“Um… Thanks,” Midnight mumbled as we trotted over to the corner. “Iʼm sure you make a lot of friends.” I heard him whisper to himself. I couldn’t help but smile at that one.

The caged-off section was unlocked and Midnight opened the fence door with a metallic whine. Inside, sat the most beautiful assortment of equipment I had ever laid my eyes on.

“Oh my goddesses, this is amazing!” I squealed, butting past Midnight and prancing around, studying each rack and shelf with glee.

Lining the shelves sat boxes of ammunition; all different densities, calibers, velocities, payloads. In racks along the walls sat rifles; bolt action, semi-automatic, fully automatic. This was heaven. I could have died a happy filly right then and there.

“We can have anything?” Midnight stared quizzically at a line of pistols on a shelf.

“Buck yeah we can!” I pranced up to him and placed my hooves on his shoulders, boosting up to see the shelves above his head. “Do you see any signs saying otherwise, mate?”

“Well, guess not,” Midnight shrugged, nearly tossing me off balance. “What’s got you so excited about this?”

I gasped and came down to all fours before him. “This is all my special talent, Midnight!” I exclaimed, turning around and showing him my cutiemark. The bullet on a bed of roses visible where my winter jacket came to a stop.

His eyes grew wide as I essentially shoved my butt in his face. I couldn’t care less, guns now, embarrassment later.

“Right.” Midnight cleared his throat, prying his eyes away from me and turning around. He picked up a Colt Tidus 11, semi-automatic pistol. “So is this any good?” he asked around the firing bit.

“That’s a fantastic one! It uses fourty-five automa-”

“Great.” Midnight tossed it into his saddlebag and selected a box of ammunition for it, tossing it in as well.

“B-but… okay. It doesnʼt have a large magazine capacity thou-”

“How about this?” He grabbed a Neighmington 700 bolt action hunting rifle and showed it to me.

“That’s good too! I mean, it’s a bit slow but it’s really powerful. It shoots .308. You might wanna put an optic on-” I tried to blurt as fast as I could, but he already turned around. 

“Awesome.” He slung it over his back, grabbing two boxes of .308 ammunition, tossing it in his bags as well.

Whatever. I shook my head. I knew exactly what I was after anyway. I quickly scanned the lines of automatic rifles, there werenʼt many, but hell I wondered how they even got all these guns. They were all pre-war military, I couldnʼt imagine they were common across Equestria.

In the Stable, the most I’ve ever seen were the combat shotguns or pistols used by the Security Corps. Itʼs how I earned my cutie mark; helping the gunsmiths as a hobby. All of my knowledge came from books or the old movies they played in the Atrium. But this was the real deal! 

My eyes locked onto one of the shortest barreled rifles, a carbine. I picked it up and checked the chamber, an IF-4 'Nightwing,' chambered in 5.56 caliber. These automatic carbines were spectacular. It was lightweight and most importantly: versatile. I wasn't a big mare, so anything longer would require my hooves to hold or a battle saddle to mount it on. I wanted something that I could brace on my shoulder with just the firing bit and use on the move. 

I slung the carbine over my back and looked around for any kinds of accessories I could add. Unfortunately the Night Watch lacked any serious hardware like electronic sights and suppressors, but at least they had some decent ammunition. I scanned the shelves and settled for the green pointed 5.56cal ammunition. Green paint meant steel-cored, good for heavier targets, especially for what awful mutated creatures Aurora had described.

I grabbed a few spare magazines for my carbine, as well as for Midnight’s selection of weapons. They were pre-loaded, saving us the painstaking process of loading cartridges one at a time. However, I grabbed a few stripper clips for the future, to make it easier whenever that inevitable task finally came.

I quickly scanned along the remaining shelves and spotted some medical supplies. Health potions and magical bandages were stocked in small yellow boxes with pink butterflies painted on them, far superior to my pathetic first-aid kit. I cautiously stacked the ammunition onto one of the boxes and balanced them in my mouth, carefully trotting over to Midnight and opening his saddlebag with my nose.

“Hey whoa, why do I have to carry everything?” he complained.

I snorted in annoyance as I dumped the heavy supplies into his bag. “Cause you can actually carry it perhaps?” I raised an eyebrow, poking his shoulder. Re-thinking my actions, and poking it again. Oh those were strong...

“What and you get to canter around with virtually empty bags?” Midnight pressed, following me as I trotted past him.

I ignored his comment and trotted out of the building into the autumn night once again. It was just about twilight with the moon setting below the forested treetops to the west. I was definitely feeling exhausted at this point, sleeping in the inn was beginning to sound like a wonderful idea.

Across the street from the headquarters, a similar building was squeezed among the houses. A wooden sign adorned with pink butterflies creaked in the gentle breeze, the words ‘Hospital’ were written in yellow paint. I guessed one more thing couldn’t hurt.

“Alright, we’re gonna get that wing of yours checked out,” I halted and faced Midnight.

Midnight gave me a frown.

“What? You want it fixed don’t you?” I pressed.

He sighed and nodded, reluctantly leading us toward the building. “It’s just, doctors. I don’t do doctors.”

We entered the hospital and it was, yet again, similar in layout to the others. I was beginning to notice a pattern here, perhaps before the war whoever built this ‘Renaissance Faire’ cheaped out on architecture. The differences were obvious however, a line of curtained off beds populated the main room, with medical equipment and supply cabinets sitting at each cordoned off section.

At a desk near the entrance a dark sage coated mare sat at a terminal wearing a white lab coat, her mane was periwinkle highlighted with white. She was maybe a few years older than us but it was hard to tell from how absolutely exhausted she looked. She held her head up with a foreleg as she scrolled page after page in the green glow of the terminal screen. 

I awkwardly tapped my hooves on the ground, hoping she’d notice us. Her gold eyes quickly shot up and she grabbed a pair of glasses and pushed her loose mane behind an ear. She tried to smile past her embarrassment, “Good evening! My name is nurse Penumbra, how can we help you?” 

“Um, hi. My friend here needs somepony to take a look at his wing, if you could please,” I said, motioning to Midnight.

Penumbra looked over Midnight and nodded, standing up and gesturing down the beds, “Right this way, please.” She spoke over her shoulder, “So what happened?” She beckoned Midnight to one of the beds.

Midnight sat down as Penumbra undid the bandaging and inspected his wing. “Well, I donʼt know actually,” he scratched his head. “I was flying along and must have clipped my wing on something.”

Penumbra pulled out a clipboard and began taking notes as she delicately inspected the joints.

“What he means to say is: he flew full speed into a wooden barricade while getting shot at and then fell two stories,” I corrected. “I tried my best to help but, Iʼm no doctor. The bone was broken clean out of his wing,” I grimaced remembering the scene. 

I realized I never thanked him for saving me. As much as I liked to imagine that I could have flown out of the Stable on my own, I knew I wouldnʼt have been as fast or precise as he was. I guess he and I were even.

Penumbra hummed to herself as she gingerly prodded the bones in Midnightʼs wing. He winced but let her extend it slowly.

“So, whaddya see?” the blue stallion nervously laughed.

“You're lucky I know the anatomy of pegasi wings. Theyʼre actually very different from thestrals’,” Penumbra said softly and turned to dig through a medical cabinet. “You may need surgery, but if I do this correctly and with a little bit of magic, it should be a simple fix-” she was cut off by another pony walking up to us.

“Ah, patients! Finally!” A sophisticated sounding buck came over from a back office. He was middle aged with a brown coat and off-white mane. He wore wire frame glasses, a frayed lab coat, and a stethoscope. I could only imagine he was the doctor. “Nameʼs Broken Bone! I can take over now darling, thank you.” 

Broken Bone pointedly pushed past Penumbra who just began to gather some magic chemicals and a surgical tray.

“Oh, Doctor I think I can-” Penumbra protested, but Broken Bone was already all over Midnightʼs wing.

“Oh. A pegasus,” Broken tried to hide his frown, “donʼt see feathers around these parts too often…” His voice fell to a mumble, “Who really wants to anyway?” 

I stared at him. Did he really just say that? Was everypony that hateful of pegasi around here? 

Broken unexpectedly yanked Midnight’s wing straight out to full extension. “There!”

Midnight cried out in pain, squeezing his eyes shut, “What the hell?!” His explative was short lived when Broken shoved a health potion from Penumbra's tray into Midnight's mouth and forced him to drink it. 

“It wasn’t set properly,” Broken shrugged, reaching over to a drawer and pulling out a metal contraption with his teeth. “Now hold still.”

Midnight gulped and sputtered. His wing was locked fully extended, and I could almost see it pulsing through his feathers. Broken extended the metal skeleton-like contraption and encapsulated the base of Midnight’s wing. He then tapped the metal with a hoof, and the object sprung down to the wing’s resting position. This, of course, elicited another painful yelp from Midnight.

Penumbra sighed and slowly crossed out the notes she had taken on her clipboard. She had a look that told me this was a common occurrence between the two medical ponies. She didnʼt intervene but she gave Midnight a genuine look of pity. 

“There. All done,” Broken clapped his hooves together gleefully. “Now, depending on how many health potions you drink, let it sit in the splint for two days to two months and you’ll, hopefully, be flying before you know it!”

“Hopefully? Two months?!” Midnight exclaimed, blinking away his tears.

“Precisely. About five potions should do the trick, but youʼll have to source them elsewhere. We’re all out for pegasi, sorry. Oh, todayʼs visit will be five-hundred caps,” Broken curtly nodded, extending a hoof.

“F-five-hundred?” I stammered. “We don’t have any at all!”

“I beg your pardon?” Broken scratched his ear and turned to face me. His demeanor changed entirely as he glared down at me through his circular glasses. They seemed to catch the light and glow with a sinister tone, “You can’t possibly expect free service.”

I slowly backpedaled. Honestly, I forgot about payment altogether. The thought of currency never crossed my mind. Everything was free in the Stable except some rare luxuries, even then most ponies paid with trades or favors. 

“I- I-, um.” I mumbled as Broken stood over me.

“We’ll set up a payment plan,” Penumbra stepped forward and began cleaning up. “They can pay us back later with interest, right Doctor?” 

“Splendid!” Broken chortled sweetly and trotted back over to his desk. “You have three nights. See you then.”

Midnight snorted and stood up, giving me a look, “Geez, that was hardly worth it.”

I glanced back at him, guilt pouring in my chest for making him do this.

Penumbra pushed up her glasses and grabbed the clipboard again. “Here, Iʼll waive the interest as a ‘first visit’ discount. You two should check out the notice board by the armory to see if anypony needs a job done for some caps.” She began writing with a pencil in her mouth.

“Does Broken normally-” I began to wonder aloud. 

“Yes,” Penumbra spat out the pencil and tore off the paper. She gave it to me, on it; a bill for the caps with a small discount. She pushed her mane back behind her ear again, looking at Midnight with sincerity, “Sorry, Midnight.”

The pegasus just shrugged and looked away, his jaded expression said it all.

“Weʼll pay you back. Thank you,” I mumbled, eyeing Midnightʼs ‘fixed’ wing. 

“Come on, let's leave,” Midnight said curtly and made for the door.

I followed closely behind him, not sparing Broken a glance in his office. I felt entirely responsible for costing us this debt and hurting Midnight so badly. But what alternative did we have? 

I nudged Midnight’s shoulder as we trotted down the street together, making our way to the inn. I spoke gently, “So, how’s the wing feeling?”

“Eh, it’s been better,” he chuckled halfheartedly, looking down at the splint. “I kinda look like a cyborg pony don’t I?”

I smirked at his humor but my expression slowly fell, “Iʼm sorry, Midnight.”

“You’re not the one who barreled through a wall,” he said reassuringly. “I needed it, regardless of the quality ‘serviceʼ I received. Seems on par with what everypony thinks of me.” 

I stared at his wings while we walked. They were so different from thestrals, but I knew that that wasn’t the problem. It was what they represented. Pegasi must have done horrible things to these ponies. But, this particular pegasus hadn’t done anything wrong to me. 

“I donʼt mind your feathers,” I said softly, more to myself than anything.

He glanced back and met my eyes with genuine appreciation. I wanted to say more but just felt my face warm lightly and looked away. 

I couldnʼt believe it mattered so much to everypony. If anything, I thought being half-pegasus was really interesting.

We trotted in silence and came up to the inn. Once inside, Midnight asked about the room, mentioning Aurora’s premium. The barmaid led us up the stairs and to a door, just down the hallway from the loft.

“Well. This is… Comfortable,” Midnight coughed.

Inside, there was one sunken bed and a small couch that looked like it was hit by the Megaspells. The only other indication of this being a bedroom – and not a prison cell – was a window and a tattered purple curtain.

“No,” I deadpanned, trotting over to the bed and claiming it as my own.

“‘No,’ what? I didn’t say anything!” Midnight pleaded.

“We’re not.”

“Not, what?”

“You’re sleeping there,” I pointed to the saggy couch, “I’m sleeping here,” I laid down.

“Oh so you think I was gonna try and pull something, huh?” Midnight defended, plopping down on the couch. The ancient springs gave a pitiful squeak in protest.

“Exactly, no funny business mate,” I shot him a pointed glare. I was going to nip any of his antics in the bud. I didn’t think he’d be so brazen to actually try anything, but I did not plan on sharing a bed with that colt.

Midnight laid down on the cushions, shrugging his shoulders, “Hey, I wasn’t the one thinking about that. That’s all you sister.”

I felt the tips of my ears begin to heat up, damn him for always turning this on me. “No, I- I mean, you always make some comment! I just stopped you this time.”

“I’m flattered, but you’ve gotta at least take me out to dinner first,” Midnight yawned, baring his fangs, “G’night.”

I groaned in frustration, turning my back to him.

Ugh, he’s still Midnight, I thought to myself. Despite his friendliness, he was still such a pain in the flank. 

I closed my eyes and let myself forget his annoyances, there was no sensibility with him anyway. I felt myself calm down and slowly drift to sleep. For the first time since before any of this happened, I began to feel at ease. 


XXX

> Chapter Five: Trouble in Transylvania
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


Chapter Five: Trouble in Transylvania



Midnight Wind


***

I opened my eyes, finding myself in the dreary forested landscape of Umbris once again. Just like before, I was in my new alicorn body, waking up beneath a chilly canopy of bare trees. With curiosity in my step, I trudged along the path that Orpheus had shown me prior, taking careful attention not to stray far.

Upon cresting the hill, I spotted Orpheus laying underneath the ancient tree, his head resting gently on a hoof as he carefully read what looked like a giant book. Like before, his crimson mane flowed brilliantly around him, like the comforting embers of a hearth. 

“Ah Midnight, I see you’ve arrived precisely on time,” Orpheus smiled up at me from the pages.

“Uh, yeah I didn’t exactly choose to come here?”

“It was a joke,” Orpheus sighed, “I summoned you while you were asleep.”

“Really, you, a joke?” I snorted, Orpheus was probably the last pony that I’d imagine to pull off any kind of humor. Was he even a pony? What were alicorns anyway?

Orpheus stood up and gently closed his book with a magical aura of white light, marking the page with a dead leaf. “You don’t find me humorous? Understandable.” He turned around and began to casually trot down a path that continued beyond the hill. 

“Hey, wait up!” I galloped after him, slowing down as he silently led me deeper into the forest.

Orpheus continued to lead in silence, I was left with little more than avid curiosity – and a bit of annoyance – about why he even wanted me there in the first place. 

As we trudged along the dirt path, trees became much larger, their ancient branches crooked and weaving between each other. A silent breeze gently snaked between the trunks, wisps of fog tickling my fur and causing me to hunch my shoulders as we continued.

“The reason I brought you here,” Orpheus’s somber tone broke the silence, “Was because something has come up. Something equally as ancient as it is terrible. I was hoping you and Scarlet would have been able to avoid it entirely.” He sighed, seemingly reflecting upon himself.

We entered a dried and grayed grass clearing in the forest, the dead grass added little contrast to the gray sky and trees around us. In the center of the clearing, a lone tree stump sat, its top smooth like a table. Orpheus fluttered his massive bat wings and leapt up upon the stump, sitting and facing me.

“So, I wish to explain as much as I can and assist you in any way possible,” he concluded, waiting for my response.

“Sooo…” I droned, taking a seat below him. “You decided that the ‘ancient-story-telling-stump-of-wisdom’ was the best place to do this?” Again, this guy – so cliche.

“Well, I had more in mind. You’ll see,” Orpheus blinked.

Without warning everything turned black and I felt myself hit the dead grass beneath me.


ooOOooOOoo


“Your highness I highly advise we wait until dawn. The eclipse happens tonight,” a younger male voice spoke behind me.
 
We were hastily trotting through a firelit tunnel, the smooth carved stone around me glistening brilliant colors of white and black as dancing flames caught the marble walls. It was clear I was still in an alicorn’s body with lithe movement powerfully placed in every step. The heavy clicking of armor resounded over the echoes of hooves on stone, its metallic song matched by whoever was walking just behind me. 

Without control, we suddenly took a left turn down another tunnel. I saw my single shouldered cloak whip out beneath me, silk of dark crimson, embroidered with a golden symbol of a setting sun and rising moon above a lone maple tree. Whatever was happening, it was clear that I was no more than a witness, a pair of eyes watching this unfold.

“We should not strike tonight,” the voice continued, “if we are caught under the effects, a quarter of our forces will be useless.”

I felt myself, or rather whoever I was inside of, snort with annoyance, pressing harder into stride. We passed two thestrals standing off to the side of the tunnel, both wearing beautiful sets of dark armor, their backs sporting matching crimson silk capes and the slight glimmer of sword pommels sticking through the folds.

Both ponies stood to attention, barking, “Hail, Prince of Twilight.”

I heeded them a nod, brushing past them without hesitation.

“As you were,” the voice behind me ordered them.

I refocused my gaze to the tunnel entrance that approached before me. The chilled air carried the sweet scent of an autumn night.

“Your thoughts?” the young one behind pressed as we exited the tunnel.

We came upon a magnificent sight, though oddly familiar to me. The tunnel we exited was attached to a natural outcropping on the side of a mountain. Out here, the tunnel widened to a large stone ledge. Ornate marble railings decorated by a creeping ivy provided a barrier to a steep fall down the mountain face. Below, lit seemingly by hundreds of campfires, a massive military camp sat in the valley.

Every tent was pitched in a perfect row, their crimson clothed walls ordained with the same symbol of twilight that decorated my cloak. Hundreds of ponies, of every color and race sat before their tents, conversing, sharpening swords, waxing crossbow strings or cooking meals. Despite the diversity, thestrals made up the majority of their numbers. It was a well fed and well prepared army. I couldn't help but feel impressed by its strength. 

“As reigning patriarch, your orders are the final say,” the unknown pony reminded me, trying desperately to keep in step with my long strides.

We came upon a pedestal that sat in the middle of the stone platform, two torches were braced unlit on either side, and a bouquet of roses lay upon the middle. I felt myself sit down on the cold ground, flicking my nose towards the torches. They instantly erupted in furious white flames, dying down to a gentle orange glow. It dawned upon me that this was no pedestal, but instead a marble tomb.

“Orpheus…” the young pony spoke as he sat down beside me, his eyes growing sorrowful.

I could see he was a young thestral stallion. He had a light gray – almost white – coat. His cropped mane was pitch black, outlining large innocent golden eyes. He wore identical armor as myself, though his white fur stood in stark contrast to the nearly black of my own.

“I know this is no easy task,” he continued carefully, “nopony should bear such a loss and keep going… especially after-”

“Do you know why we must strike tonight?” I interrupted, tilting my head to match his eyes.

“C-certainly because we wish to end this war, is that not the case?” the youth stammered beside me, tilting his head quizzically.

“Yes, but more importantly, the mages of Daylight grow ever closer to their summoning.” I stood up, facing the white thestral, “Without-” I choked, stealing a glance at the tomb. I couldn’t feel the emotions of whoever I was in, but I could tell that whoever laid within that tomb caused great grievance within him. He was trying his absolute best to remain strong and commanding.

“Without the Oracle,” I continued, “we stand no chance of stopping the ritual once it begins. We have the location, we have the numbers, and we have the Queen cornered. Our only option is to strike hard and fast, interrupting, or better yet, killing the unicorn mages before they can complete their spell. Once they have fallen, the entirety of the Daylight formations will break. Those enchanted by Disillusion will awaken and stop fighting. And those who loyally follow their wicked path,” I felt a rumble in my chest as I growled, “will be eradicated.” 

“Striking the mages? They’re holed up in the castle of Harmony!” the younger thestral exclaimed in disbelief, “Dragons, demons, Nightmare Moon herself tried and failed to penetrate its defenses before her banishment. What makes you think a bunch of bats fare a better chance?”

“The eclipse of the moon affects all magic users equally,” I stated flatly, “when the world overshadows the heavens, all magic stops for just a moment; including that ‘Elements of Harmony’ nonsense. Unlike Luna, we do not hold the hubris of the moon on any pedestal higher than the sun. If neither celestial body shines, we are in our element. We will have a window to breach their defenses and we will cease it.”

I stepped closer to the younger pony, “You wanted orders? Here are mine. Take your regiment and prepare them for battle alongside my forces. We will be the ones to enter the deepest chambers of the stronghold ourselves. Spread word to the other Centurions beneath you that I am ordering all Centuries of the First Cohort to act as support on this maneuver. We will coordinate with the spellcasters of the Fifth Cohort to open a portal before the walls of the castle mere moments before the eclipse. The moment our dearest moon is shadowed, the forces of twilight will finally put the sun to rest. For good.”

“Aye sir!” The young First Centurion came to sharp attention, about facing and marching back through the tunnel we came.

“Also, Apollo!” I called his attention. He turned around, motioning for my response, “Tell the Legatus to remove his tail from his quivering balls for me,” I smiled as this elicited a snort of approval from him, “we need all ‘bats’ on deck.”

“Aye, sir,” Apollo replied with a grin.

I watched as he trotted down the tunnel, taking a turn and proceeding to the valley below.

I felt myself sigh as I refocused upon the tomb, “This war has gone too long. But we’ll stop them,” the alicorn I was within closed his eyes, nearly whispering to himself, “I’ll do anything to make up for your sacrifice my love,” I spoke as my vision faded once again


ooOOooOOoo


I blinked a few times, groaning as I sat up on the couch. My head was throbbing something fierce, as if a hangover decided to get drunk and hungover.

I carefully rolled off the cushion, avoiding my aching wing. An agonizing squeal twinged my ears as ancient springs were forced back to life. Through the purple curtains, I could see it was just past dusk, the moon had just begun its ascension. Thankfully I had managed to sleep soundly throughout the day.

Images of my dream played in my mind, everything about it felt so familiar, but I was convinced that my imagination was overreacting to whatever was in this new world I found myself in. I knew Orpheus had ‘summoned’ me again, but at this point, I wasn’t even sure if that was reality, or just me slowly slipping into insanity.

The door to the room softly creaked open just as I steadied myself to all fours. Scarlet stepped in, wearing nothing but a frayed towel wrapped around her head, her fur still glistening with remaining droplets of water.

“I see you’ve finally decided to come about,” she quipped sarcastically, unraveling her towel and letting her damp red mane fall loose upon her shoulders. “What, are you going to gawk, or are you going to get yourself cleaned up too?” she distastefully eyed me.

I shook my head as I caught myself staring. I was still waking up, okay? Pretty mare or not. However, Scarlet’s sarcasm played a reminder to the standing we had between each other.

“Youʼre the one putting on a free show,” I forced a smirk, cantering out the door and leaving Scarlet to snort in annoyance behind.

Buck this, I internally groaned, dropping my facade and spotting an open door with puddles of water beneath it. First visions of a different world and now the only pony who actually knows me low-key hates my guts. Wonderful start to my evening.

To be honest, I didn’t know how I felt about Scarlet. On one hoof, I considered her a friend – even if I wasn’t entirely sure if she reciprocated – but on another, she and I were abrasive and different. I hardly knew her and yet here we were; forced to depend on each other.

There was only so much out here in this wasteland and we needed to work together to make the best of it. I knew my pestering probably drove her away from me, but I couldnʼt help but feel defensive. Everypony in town had me on edge. Maybe I should start to ease it up on Scarlet, she was the only one who seemed to look past my differences. 

Besides, I was probably beginning to go insane with all this ‘Orpheus’ bullshit and it kept mentioning her too. I needed to talk to her about it but I was doubtful she’d lend an ear unless I started treating her better first. 

I shook my head to clear my thoughts as I entered the bathroom. Inside, there was a simple mirror-sink combo and a standing shower head. No curtains. No toilet. Nada. Just a drain on the ground. Hell, there wasn’t even any soap.

I took a brief moment to look myself over in the dirty mirror, recoiling in disgust as I traced a line of bruises, cuts and scrapes, even blood down to my bound wing. My two toned black-red mane and blue fur were matted in a disarray. My poor stable uniform was muddy and ripped along the shoulder. How I managed to comfortably sleep in it was beyond me.

I carefully slipped the fur-tight uniform off, tossing it into a garbage can beneath the sink. What I thought was rugged proved to be hardly any good keeping me warm, let alone offer any reasonable protection. I’d have to go out into town and find something else.

I trotted over to the showerhead and looked around for some valves, spotting only one. I silently prayed as I turned it, yelping as cold water rushed onto my back. No relaxation here, it looked like it was just clean-up-and-leave.

Stepping out of the bathroom – towelless thanks to Scarlet – I trotted back to the room feeling much more refreshed and clean, and thankfully, more sane than I was before. I reasoned that whatever I had dreamt about, I could put aside for now.

“Ah, a few more of those and we might make a proper buck out of you yet,” Scarlet chided over the winter jacket she was cleaning.

“And a few less of those and maybe I’d actually call you a lady,” I coughed, trotting to my lone saddlebag. I rummaged around until I found my small towel from the stable. The bag was healthily loaded with Scarlet’s unreasonable amount of ammunition and gun-care.

“A few less of what?” Scarlet eyed me dangerously.

“Hey, I’m not the one constantly instigating everything with sarcasm,” I raised a hoof defensively, slinging the metallic sounding bag over my back and tightening it securely. This bag was gonna be loud and annoying as hell with every step I took.

Scarlet sighed, buckling her own bags and donning her winter jacket and rifle. “I meant it, Midnight. You look rather dashing after cleaning yourself up a bit,” she explained in a more formal tone, hoofing me my own rifle before trotting to the door. “Honest and simple. Shall we?” she gestured out.

I just stared at her with the gun strap still in my mouth, taken aback by her compliment.

“Right,” she rolled her eyes and led us out the door.

As soon as we exited the inn, I was reminded exactly why ponies preferred wearing jackets in the fall. The chilly air blew into my fur, exposing my skin underneath to its bite. I hunched my shoulders as we sat next to the street, unsure of what to do.

“You look good after showering too,” I awkwardly blurted, trying to return the compliment. 

Scarlet gave me a cross look, “What?”

I kicked a hoof, “I mean… Thank you for being honest. I'm sorry I was so prickly earlier. I've just been on edge about everything.”

“Oh.” The corners of Scarlet's lips curled in a faint smile, “I know you have been. But, you're getting better.” She fixed her bow on her head and looked into my eyes genuinely, “Keep talking like that and less like a dumb colt and maybe we can actually be friends, huh?”

“I really like your mane.“

“Don't push it, mate,” Scarlet sighed.

“Right,” I felt my ears warm. Making friends was hard. “So…” I droned, peering towards the center of town. “We need to make... caps?”

“Yeah, bloody bottle caps of all things,” Scarlet furrowed her brow. “Maybe we can find something nearby, I've been getting map notifications non-stop since we left the Stable.” She sat and lifted her left hoof to check her PipBuck.

“Why not just go to a Sparkle Cola factory or something and grab, like, freakin’ crates of them?”

“Come on Middy, don’t be so dense. You know those places must’ve been picked clean ages ago,” she groaned while scrolling through her PipBuck's map function.

“‘Middy?’” I jerked my head at her.

“W-what?” Scarlet slowly looked up at me. “Your full name is a mouthful!” her ears dipped in embarrassment.

I fought back laughter and just shook my head.

“Okay, mate, I get it, maybe that’s too cutesy,” Scarlet petted her mane. She quickly buried her muzzle behind her PipBuck, “Caps, we need caps. And no, a factory probably won't cut it.”
 
“Okay Scar,” I pointedly replied, “for all we know, only the ponies here use them as currency. First factory I see, I’m diving in,” I shrugged, standing to all fours. “Come on, it’s buckin’ cold out. I’m gonna try and find something to wear.”

“And pay with what? Your silver tongue?” she scoffed while trotting beside me.

“Nah, I’m just gonna sell half this junk. Not like we need this much ammo and you know it.” I bounced my back, eliciting a metallic crunch as twenty pounds of bullets and equipment rattled in my saddlebag.

“Oh you are not!” Scarlet growled, trying to reach for my bag.

I smiled coyly, picking up my pace and keeping away from her. She groaned and flapped her wings after me.

“Wasn’t this stuff lent to us?” Scarlet pleaded from above me. “We have to give it back.”

“Yeah, I'll make sure to pick up every bullet I shoot and give it back when we're done,” I quipped. “We can just sell the extra ammo.”

“Arrgh, dammit fine!” Scarlet exclaimed, landing back in stride as we entered the town square. “You’re absolutely insufferable, you know? Let me at least try and pick out what’s essential.”

I spotted a stall nearby selling what looked like clothing. The crimson colored salespony had been flailing his hooves to grab my attention.

Whatever remained of my smile quickly disappeared as we approached the stall however. What appeared to be a vendor selling clothing from a distance was instead some kind of shop for animal hides. I felt my stomach tighten as I looked over the ‘clothing’ they had. Tunics, pants, coats, all made of the skin from whatever unfortunate soul it had been torn from. I tried to remind myself that it couldn’t have gone so far as to be made from the skin of ponies, right?

“Welcome, welcome! Finest hides in wasteland!” A gruff looking earth pony spoke in broken equestrian, his accent reminiscent of Stalliongrad.

“Finest… hides?” Scarlet asked, looking equally disgusted as I felt.

“Da! Da! They of highest quality, skinned from young Brahmin! Smoothest finish!” He enthusiastically offered a sample for us to feel.

“Uhm…” I took a step back. “Do you have anything made of something that... wasn’t alive?”

“Wasn’t alive?” The Stalliongrad stallion tapped his chin, mumbling as he looked beneath his stall. “Da, da, hide not for you? Then hide not for me!” 

He crouched down behind the cracked wood, all but his swishing tail disappearing from sight. The sounds of items rustling and falling over, radio static, metallic clanging, a cat yowling, all came from beneath the stall.

I stole a glance to Scarlet sitting beside me. She raised an eyebrow as I shrugged.

“Aha! Here be of not alive, yes?” His crimson hoof held up an old olive green Equestrian Army fatigue. It was well worn, but looked sturdy enough to me.

“Is that all you have?” I pressed, taking it into my hooves for closer inspection. The sleeves were rolled up ending with a colorful patch on the left shoulder, perhaps some kind of flag? The pockets looked functional enough, and it would at least cover my forelegs down to my back. Not to mention the material was much warmer and more durable than my stable jumpsuit was.

“Ehh, yes…” the vendor sighed, scratching the back of his head. “I do not sell anything but hide see? That is all I have made from not hide. I found two weeks ago in old bunker. In Motherland. Fit you, yes?”

I put the fatigues on, it fit comfortably enough and came to a stop just at my saddlebags, giving me plenty of mobility. I smiled and gave him a nod.

“This’ll do nicely! How much for it?”

“Two-hundred cap!” he grinned, holding a hoof out.

“Two-hundred?!” Scarlet choked to my left. “I don’t even know anything about caps, and I can tell you that’s a bloody rip off!”

“Is fair price!” the vendor defended angrily. “That is rare find. Quality Stalliongrad design, no?”

“Look, we don’t even have ca-” I was cut off.

“‘Don’t even have cap?! You come to my shop and expect free?! Nyet! Go! No clothes for you!” He stomped a hoof, reaching for the clothes on me.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, hold up!” I backpedaled, “We have stuff we can trade! I’ve got a bag full of gun parts and ammunition!”

The vendor paused, thinking about the bargain. “Ammunition for what type of gun?”

“I’ll take it from here,” Scarlet pushed me aside and unbuckled my saddlebag. “I’m not about to let you sell off all my children.”

I sighed and sat down, letting Scarlet and the Vendor do their thing. Hopefully she’d at least let one thing go.


***


“You know, I’m actually proud of you,” I teased as I took a bite out of a stale apple. Well, if fresh produce could be stale. Wasteland-grown food was just bland. 

After nearly half an hour of Scarlet ‘uhm’ing and ‘er’ing over every single item to sell, she managed to bargain the price down and sell nearly all of the useless junk we accumulated. We were on our way back to the armory to check out that notice board Penumbra mentioned.

Now, I wasn’t sure if our sale was entirely ethical, given that we’d gotten all that for free. But hey, we managed to get the fatigues as well as an additional one hundred caps on top. We were actually able to buy some breakfast and snacks from one of the food stalls too.

“Proud of me? For what, you thought I couldn’t bargain a deal?” Scarlet stuck her tongue out and bits of apple fell out of her mouth next to me. She had, as usual, opted to wistfully fly above.

“Yup. And here I thought you were entirely incapable of speaking to anypony!” I pushed, flinching when an apple core sailed and smacked the top of my head.

“Oh shut up!” she groaned.

“Hey!” I shouted up at her.

“Wait, shut up.”

“Now listen here, you can’t go arou-”

“No, no, seriously be quiet,” Scarlet landed next to me, placing a hoof on my shoulder.

I shut my mouth and flipped my ears around, trying to figure out what Scarlet meant.

“I don’t…” I trailed as I heard some kind of deep booming. “The hell is that?”

Ponies around us had also stopped too. All being purebred thestrals, of course they heard it before I did.

Scarlet quickly took off and climbed up above the houses, many others joining her as well. I cursed silently to myself as I was stuck on the ground, my damned broken wing taking away the one thing I was good at doing.

“Well?” I cried up to her. “What do you see?”

“I don’t know!” She glided back down to me, equally as confused. “Whatever it was, it’s well beyond the forest.”

Around us, ponies began murmuring, clearly this wasn’t something normal for them either. We followed the crowd of ponies out of town square, nowhere really to go. Around, families escorted each other to their respective homes, probably not willing to take any chances.

According to Aurora, Renaissance was one of the safest havens left in Equestria. The ponies who lived here weren’t your run-of-the-mill wastelander. Transylvania was fortunate enough to survive the worst of the war, right? So ponies who lived in settlements like these weren’t battle-hardened warriors. Hell, most of them only carried protection for caravan duty between towns. During situations like these, they depended on the Night Watch to protect them.

As we trickled into the surrounding streets, I spotted a familiar black-maned-white-coated colt in uniform, waving ponies out of the square. I nudged Scarlet and we pushed our way over to him.

“On yer way, come now, keep calm,” he spoke as he urged ponies out of the bottle-necked streets.

“Hey, it’s Ballpoint right?” I asked, finally making our way through the quickly trotting and flying civilians of Renaissance.

“Aye, I remember you two, it’s best you return to the inn for now,” the younger buck gave me a nod, continuing his crowd control.

“Wait, can’t you explain what’s going on?” Scarlet pressed, shuffling her wings nervously.

“Nope, not a bit. Carry on,” he continued ushering us to move.

Just as we reluctantly turned toward the inn, my ear flicked back and I heard Ballpoint’s radio fuzz to life, a panicked stallion seemed to be yelling over the sound of gunfire.

“This is Squad Bravo, we’re taking heavy fire! Daylight hostiles, ambush, they’re pushing straig-” Ballpoint quickly lowered the volume.

He locked eyes with mine, quickly slinging his rifle off his back and spreading his wings, flying towards the Night Watch’s headquarters.

“Hey! Wait!” I cried, starting to gallop after him.

Something in the back of my head told me there was more to this than I thought. I felt like I had to make sure for some reason, as if someone was telling me to find out.

Scarlet suddenly bit onto my shirt, yanking me back and on my ass with a yelp.

“Are you bloody daft? There’s got to be some kind of battle going on, we should find somewhere safe!” she pointed to the inn.

“I just want to know what’s going on, okay?” I stood up, and began trying to canter through the crowded street.

I stole a glance back at Scarlet, she stood there for a few moments, cursing to herself as she began prancing back and forth. She looked like she was going to head back to the inn but quickly turned around, galloping after me.

“Ah, hell,” she swore, taking flight just above me. “I hate you Midnight. I swear by Luna I do. You and your damned curiosity!”

“Then why are you following me?” I furrowed my brow, reaching a full gallop once the streets cleared.

“Because I’m just as curious as you are,” she admitted. I looked up at her, stealing a small smile.

As we approached the final street corner, I slowed down to a halt, peering around the cracked brick of an abandoned store.

At least a dozen armored and armed ponies were at the door to the Night Watch’s headquarters. Scarlet landed next to me and peeked around my shoulder.

“Whatever’s going on out there, it’s attracting everypony on and off duty,” she whispered, giving me a glance.

“You think this is normal?” I whispered back, “I mean, the wasteland is dangerous. Silver said they’ve been busy protecting other settlements recently.”

“And it’s also bloody dangerous to be sneaking about official Night Watch operations,” a familiar voice spoke behind us.

Both Scarlet and I jumped and turned around, coming face to face with Silver Dusk and Ballpoint next to him.

“You two really should head back to the inn. We have this under control,” Silver spoke, though he didn't sound like he believed his own words.

“What’s going on? Be honest, if it wasn’t that bad then why is every single guard at the headquarters?” I pushed.

Silver pushed his white mane back, “It's another settlement a few miles to the west, they're under attack.”

“I-is that normal?” Scarlet asked nervously. 

“Yes and no,” Silver sighed. “It’s becoming more frequent lately.”

Ballpoint glanced at Silver, giving him a nudge, “Ye know of the legend,” he murmured.

“Fuck that legend!” Silver suddenly exclaimed, shooting a quick look at me and Scarlet, “Sorry.” He turned back to Ballpoint. “Give it a bloody rest, you’ve been yapping all of last day about this nonsense!”

“But ye have to admit that everything’s falling into place, is it not?” Ballpoint gestured toward us.

Scarlet and I sat watching the two argue like colts, not really sure how to approach the argument.

“Yes, but it’s bloody nonsense.”

“We haven’t had any major attacks by other ponies for years, this is coordinated and you know it. Consider what they might be after laddie!” Ballpoint pleaded.

“Uh-” I raised a hoof.

“Fucking hell, we’ll take them to the Captain and let him decide then,” Silver stepped in front of me, giving me a whole lot of tail and a whole lot of ignore.

“Aye,” Ballpoint nodded.

“So-” I peeked around Silver.

“Come on then, we haven’t the time,” Silver interrupted, turning and trotting around the corner, trailed by Ballpoint giving us a nod to follow.

Scarlet and I shared a look and followed them silently into the armory.

Unlike last time, the cozy medieval space was bustling with activity. Guards in all states of uniform – one even in pajamas with a nightcap – were pouring over terminals and maps. A cacophony of noise filled the room, from unintelligible radio traffic to shouting as guards relayed information to each other and desperately plotted points on the massive map in the center of the room. 

The dark gray mare at the secretary desk who coldly greeted us last time was in a total state of disarray. Her orange mane was unkempt and her purple glasses struggled to stay centered on her face as she typed at her terminal with enough speed to make a pianist proud. 

“Where’s Capt-” Silver began. 

“Missing,” she shot quickly. 

“What?” Ballpoint stepped forward, “Whaddya mean missing? He was just here last night!”

“Did I stutter?” the orange maned Thestral glared at Ballpoint. “Bring it up to Major Starline, she could use all hooves on deck.”

Silver turned to Ballpoint and for a brief moment, I could have sworn I saw that tough buck’s confidence waver. But his expression quickly hardened. 

“Let’s go,” he walked down to the center of the room and pushed past the chaotic scene. 

“Uh, do you still want us-” I began. 

“Yes, yes, stay close,” Ballpoint waved a hoof for us to follow.

Scarlet and I weaved through the crowded room, catching glimpses of various maps and terminal screens. I overheard a radio fuzz to life as I bumped past its seated operator.

“Twenty or so this time. They’ve got uniforms now, where the hell did they get uniforms?”

The radio operator, a young buck, paused his writing as he watched us pass. His golden eyes darted between my wings then to Scarlet's mane.

This behavior continued a few more times as various thestral guards looked up at us, their expressions ranging from displeasure from seeing me, to curiosity from seeing Scarlet.

I shuffled my good wing uncomfortably. Whatever Ballpoint was referring to earlier was clearly on everypony's mind. I was certain word had already spread around town about our arrival too. 

We finally came to the massive table recessed in a depression in the center of the room. Around it stood a group of fervently discussing ponies. A tall mare with a dark gray coat and navy blue mane seemed to be in charge.

“Do you expect us to defend all of Transylvania? We're down to fifteen guards left in Renaissance, we canʼt afford to send any more!” a black-coated purple-maned stallion, the one in pajamas, poked the map angrily. 

“Weʼre the best outfitted settlement east of Rafael, if we donʼt help then who will?” another mare cut in, she was actually in uniform. Her coat was the usual dark-gray and mane a muted green. Thestrals, they all look similar. You get the idea. 

“Defending Railtown means we have one more buffer between us, and them. So unless you want to be next on the list, send five more guards. Now,” the head mare stamped a hoof on the map.

Scarlet suddenly nudged me and pointed at my PipBuck. I tilted my head and raised it. On the top left corner of the screen, the letters EFS were written with the number fifty-seven beneath it.

“What’s that?” I whispered.

Scarlet rolled her eyes and grabbed my foreleg, tapping a few buttons. Suddenly, magic floating green letters painted across my vision. I flinched and looked around desperately. Nopony else seemed to be hallucinating with me.

EYES FORWARD SPARKLE ENABLED


57 NEW NOTIFICATIONS


The message appeared in thin air, then a massive wall of text scrolled down as updates were pushed from my device into my vision; locations, items, my vital signs, a compass, perks?, the weather, radiation levels. I mean everything was listed before me. 

Finally, all of the updates cleared and the interface settled to a permanent display of a compass and my vitals. The last update was the location ‘Railtown’ being uploaded to my map. 

I sat and stared at a wall, trying to understand everything floating in my vision. I'm sure I probably looked insane to the guards around me but they either didn’t care or didn’t notice.

“You have your orders, Sergeants Strafe, Tipper. Now go,” the head mare finally ordered.

The other two guards nodded and turned to spread the information across the room, joining the chorus of shouts and orders around us.

I was too distracted by the magic floating words to have caught the end of their conversation. 

“Major Starline, where's Captain Borealis? We need him-” Silver stepped forward.

“Like hell if I know. You should head over to Railtown too,” she interrupted without looking up. “Ballpoint, you’re my last junior officer in town. Stay here and help out the garrison.”

“Er, ma’am, if I may-” Ballpoint tapped the table.

Starline sighed heavily and finally looked up. She raised a brow when she noticed us but her eyes quickly darted to my wings and she set her jaw firmly.

“Oh, the pegasus,” she mumbled. “You colts better have a good reason for bringing him in here, now of all times.”

Silver pointedly looked at Ballpoint. The white colt shuffled his wings nervously and tapped the table. 

“Um. Well, as I’m sure you’ve probably heard… Remember that old mare’s tale? The Eclipse? I think it’s actually happening,” he explained. 

“You’re seriously telling me that a pegasus and some random mare who decided to dye her mane red is suddenly the reason we’re losing thestral settlements every month now?” Starline pressed a hoof to her brow. “Ballpoint, you're young and you have a lot to learn. But I promise you that this is not some fairytale legend. We’re being attacked by an organized adversary and we need to focus on who they are and what they want. Not some scribbles found in a cave.”

Scarlet glanced at me with a look of equal confusion as my own. I couldn’t tell if I was insulted or confused by what Starline was saying.

“But ma’am if you think about it-” Ballpoint sputtered. 

“What I’m thinking is that I need more bodies and I need more bullets. So unless you can solve either of those issues, I need you to leave,” Starline said sternly. “Lieutenant Dusk, take your squad to Railtown immediately. Captain Borealis was sent on a different mission at twilight and obviously hasn’t reported back. I need you to fulfill his role and get me as much intel as you can on the attackers.”

Silver nodded, “Yes ma’am.”

Starline eyed me and Scarlet, “If you two want to be more useful than paperweights and make some caps. I've got a job for you.”

I looked at Scarlet then back at the Major, “What did you have in mind? “

“I need somepony to go to the Ironshod Firearms warehouse northeast of here and see if you can scout out some weapons and ammunition. That place hasn’t been picked through because the damned security system is still running. But with those,” she pointed at our PipBucks, “you stand a chance at hacking in without much trouble.”

IF MILITARY SURPLUS DISTRIBUTARY ADDED TO MAP 

I flinched as a notification appeared on the top left of my vision. I had a feeling it would take me a while to get used to that. 

“How much will you pay?” Scarlet piped up. 

“Five-hundred caps and a good word with the townsfolk about our resident pegasus,” Starline offered. 

Scarlet nodded to me. That would cover my debt with Broken bone and help our relationship with the ponies out here. Hopefully it wasn’t too dangerous. 

“Alright, we’ll do it,” I said. 

“Good, now get moving,” Starline turned and trotted over to a group of guards arguing around a terminal. 

Silver ran a hoof through his long white mane and turned to us, “I’m sorry, I’m sure you have a lot of questions.”

“No kidding,” I huffed. 

“Look, just stay away from Railtown until this blows over. And be careful out there, Transylvania is still a pretty hostile place if you don’t pay attention. I’ll fill you in later when we get this sorted,” Silver sighed. 

“That’s real right?” Ballpoint quickly blurted, pointing at Scarlet’s mane. 

“Yes, it’s real. Why does everypony care all of a sudden?” she shuffled uncomfortably.

Ballpoint nudged Silver, “I’m telling you lad, it’s gotta be…”

Silver shoved Ballpoint off and made way for the door, “It’s just a legend, mate, give it up.”

The younger colt cantered after him, spewing nonsensical details about whatever he was trying to convince everypony about, the two already exiting out the door. 

“Wait, what legend?” I cried after them. “You guys realize you’re talking about us right?” But they were already gone.

Scarlet shook her head, “Let’s get outta here. Ponies are staring…”

We slowly made our way out of the Armory and into the eerily quiet streets of Renaissance. Compared to the bustling activity from the Night Watch headquarters, the calm chilly breeze felt almost out of place.

The moon was still rising and we had the whole night ahead of us. Curiously, I noticed that my PipBuck’s clock had advanced twelve hours since being out here. Apparently our ‘daytime’ in the Stable was reversed, we were nocturnal and didn’t even know it.

“Does it really look fake?” Scarlet frowned, inspecting her mane in a hoof.

“You’re the only thestral I’ve ever met with vibrant red hair,” I shrugged, looking at my PipBuck map for the first time.

“That didn’t answer my question,” Scarlet replied

“Come on, let’s go,” I began trotting toward the north gate of town. 

“Wait, Middy, that didn’t answer my question!” Scarlet repeated. She flapped her wings and took off after me.

“I know,” I smirked to myself and didn’t say anything further. Truthfully, I thought her mane looked natural and beautiful, but that wasn’t anything I needed to tell her.

“You’re insufferable,” Scarlet huffed and settled into a gentle glide above me.

We soon came across the north gate where two guards spun giant levers and raised it, exposing us to the Transylvanian wasteland once again. We trotted beneath one of the towers and toward the treeline that surrounded the settlement. 

“Oi good luck out there! There’s been a rise in ghoul activity to the North East!” A guard in the tower called out as we trotted out into the open field. 

We were bathed in full moonlight as we slowly made our way back into the forest. We were heading the opposite direction of whatever attack happened in Railtown, surely that meant we were leaving trouble behind, right?


XXX

> Chapter Six: We Check Some Things Out
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


Chapter Six: We Check Some Things Out



Scarlet Rose


<><><>

I flapped my wings gently as I weaved around another dead tree. The path that cut through the forest was probably once a road but nature had nearly reclaimed it all.

It still blew my mind that the world entirely stopped nearly two-hundred years ago. There were ponies still around, yes, but we were sparse now. If anything, we were more like caveponies again. Kinda like that comic I read once, it was about a barbarian mare in skimpy clothing, ‘Sword Mares’ or something like that.

Midnight and I had been traveling for a while now. It was painfully slow with him stuck trotting on the ground but I didn't have the heart to complain about it. I imagined the poor bloke was just as frustrated about him being grounded as I was. I made a mental note to shove every extra health potion we found down his throat. 

I brought up my PipBuck and began to check the map for the location of the Ironshod Firearms warehouse. Using the wheels on the sides of the device, I panned the screen from the little marker that read ‘Transylvanian Renaissance Faire’ to the similar shaped marker reading ‘IF Military Surplus Distribution.’

I turned on my EFS and smiled as the magic spell activated in my vision. A little indicator appeared on the compass in the direction we were heading. What a useful tool when you're anywhere bigger than a stable. 

“So it looks like it should have been an hour of travel,” I said. “We're almost halfway.” 

Midnight nodded and slung his rifle across his chest, “So do you think we’ll actually have to use these things?“ he looked disdainfully at the gun.

“Was it that zompony trying to eat you or the slavers who tried to blow my head off that makes you think that?” I spoke sarcastically.

“I believe they're called ‘ghouls’,” Midnight stuck his tongue up at me.

He grabbed his rifle and propped the forty-five degree angled stock against his shoulder. He held the gun by its firing bit protruding out of the left side. These earth pony designs were convenient, but for fliers like Midnight and myself, I could only imagine a battle-saddle would be far superior. Mounting the gun to our sides with a fixed sight would allow us to fly and shoot at the same time. But I doubted we’d ever find that kind of custom hardware.

The barrel of Midnights rifle wobbled to and fro as he trotted. He aimed down the bright green fiber optic sights, pointing it at random trees in the darkness. 

“I hevth ner ideth hew tew useth dis thing,” he mumbled around the bit. 

“You’re kidding, mate,” I stared down at him. “Firearms class was held every weekend in the orchard, didn’t you go?” 

Midnight spat out the bit and let the rifle hang loose, “You think anypony trusted me with a gun? They didn’t trust me with a job.”

I pursed my lips in grim agreement. The poor buck really was an outcast everywhere. 

“I actually have no clue though,” he looked up at me as I flew lower under the dead pine canopy. “I know you line up the sights and bite down on the bit?”

“Luna above, we are going to have a long conversation about this…” I sighed.


<><><>


“Just like flying, everything is affected by gravity. Bullets too. You want to remember to aim above your target if you’re at a decent distance. You can change your sight elevation to make up for it.” I explained to Midnight as we trudged along the forest.

I had landed earlier to point out different functions of his rifle and pistol; how to load it, magazines, jams, maintenance. He was surprisingly paying attention. Maybe he’ll actually start paying attention to our survival for once too.

The ground was covered in a thick layer of dead pine needles, dampening our hoof clops to soft crunching. The forest in these parts was relatively open, with the trees spaced out at least twenty hooves from each other. According to what our PipBucks said, a small abandoned town should have been up ahead where the warehouse was located.

“Okay, but what if I’m moving instead of my target?” Midnight asked, peering at a group of boulders off the trail.

Moonlight was leaking in through the cracks of the pine canopy above, providing ample light for us to scan the forest. Well, at least for me. I couldn’t imagine how much Midnight actually saw in the darkness. But, so far things had been pleasantly quiet. 

I smiled at the opportunity to flex my knowledge, “Oh well that’s simple, you actually aim behind your targe-”

I was suddenly cut off by a blood-curdling choir of un-equine roars that filled the air behind us.

The fur on my back stood on end in familiarization. That was definitely the sound of a zompony.

We both stopped and whipped around to face the boulders we passed, just as three ghoulified ponies came charging around, howling in their horrendous voices.

“Shit! Midnight, kill them, kill them, oh my Luna they’re so messed up!” I screamed, reaching back to unsling my IF-4.

I wasn’t fast enough. The lead ghoulish pony was only a few hooves away and was already galloping at its nearest target: me. My rifle was still only halfway off my back. I could see in stark detail as the ghoul approached. Its black beady eyes, cracked and sharp teeth; I froze in fear.

“Get down!” Midnight commanded around the firing bit of the Tidus 11 pistol in his mouth.

I flinched and found my muscles again. I dove to the side and out of the-

*BOOM*

The .45 cal round rocketed out of the barrel of the pistol. I saw my mane fly in front of my face as the bullet passed through the falling hairs. It penetrated clean through the skull of the ghoul and imbedded itself into the dirt behind it, sending a micro-sized mushroom cloud of pine needles into the air. Scarlet threads gently floated down around me.

That was way too close, I thought to myself. My rifle thumped across my chest as I landed on my back.

Midnight leaped over me as he dodged an uncoordinated strike from ghouly-number-two.

I took the firing bit of the IF-4 in my mouth, moved the fire selector switch to the ‘automatic’ position, and bit down on the pressure plate. I felt the plate click as it released the hammer inside the carbine.

The gun was so loud, all I remembered was feeling it rattle in my mouth five times as it sent hell into the ghoul that was about to jump over me. Its body tore apart as I struck at its ancient bones and tissue, killing it before it hit the ground… Or in this case, me.

“Oof!” I grunted as the heavy-arse bugger landed right on top of me, throwing my carbine off to the side.

The rotten stench reached my nose and tears welled up in my eyes. I tried desperately to buck the huge earth pony off of me, but the blasted corpse weighed twice as much as I did. 

Midnight, who was galloping away with the last ghoul close behind, quickly flared out his right wing. The broad feathers caught the wind in his momentum and spun him around one-hundred-eighty degrees. The blanket of stars peeking through the canopy caught his feathers and they shimmered through  silky thin threads. A trail of white sparkles flashed in an arc around him as he flipped around. 

I stared with wide eyes at the spectacle before me.

*BOOM*

The Tidus 11’s mighty roar echoed into the night, fading into a ‘crack’ then a low ‘hum’, as the soundwaves were caught by the forest and surrounding distant mountains.

The ghoul that was trailing Midnight fell over into a heap on the ground, the back of its skull ruptured from the immense force of the pistol’s large caliber bullet.

I watched in stunned silence as Midnight threw his pistol into his saddlebag and quickly trotted over to me, stopping and heaving the dead ghoul off of my body. He held out a hoof for me to take.

That was… incredible. The battle scene replayed in my mind as I took his hoof, mumbling a small ‘thank you’ before getting on all fours.

I stared at the corpses around us. The way he moved wasn’t like anything I’ve ever seen. It was almost like starlight itself propelled against his wings.

“W-what was that?” I stuttered. His folded wings looked perfectly normal now, albeit the left one was still splinted up. 

Midnight tilted his head, “What was what?”

“The way you moved…” I trailed, shaking my head. “Nevermind.”

I met his eyes and felt a particular feeling, something I wasn’t familiar with. He saved me. Sure, if I had gotten a hold of my shock earlier I would have been fine. But I didn’t. If he wasn’t here, Luna knows what would have happened to me.

This battle brought the thoughts I had back in Renaissance; this world was hell. One of us could have died at any moment from those monsters and we wouldn’t even know what was going on. I needed to steel my nerves if I wanted to pull my weight.

“Are you okay?” Midnight brushed himself off and examined the corpses of the ghouls. “Foul creatures, eh?” he nervously laughed.

I don’t know if it was out of panic or relief, but I quickly leaned forward and nuzzled Midnight’s cheek in appreciation. I stepped back and pet my mane nervously, trying to regain my composure. “You, um, you did a good job with that pistol.”

“Oh, uh–  you smell bad,” Midnight sputtered.

 Really? I stared at him for a moment.

I quickly smacked my hoof against his shoulder. Oh the nerve of this dense buck. Yes, I may have just had a dead corpse collapse on me, but there were other times for those comments!

“S- sorry,” Midnight stammered, “I mean, I’m glad you’re not hurt.”

I slung my rifle over my back with a relieved sigh, “Thanks. I guess I do smell pretty awful though, huh? I’m sorry for rubbing it all over you like that.”

“Don’t be.” Midnight straightened and grabbed his gun. He ejected the magazine from his pistol and began the arduous process of hoof-loading bullets from his bag back into it, just like I taught him. “For my first time shooting, I guess it wasn’t that bad.”

“Not bad at all, mate.” I shook myself off and flapped my wings, climbing above him. I hovered a healthy distance above one of the ghoul corpses, “What do you think causes this to happen to ponies?”

Its deformed and rotten figure was beyond recognition, all you could tell was that it was an earth pony at some point. The muscles that hung loosely on its exposed skeleton was more than even the toughest body builders could hope to gain. It was obvious that something had mutated this creature. Dark blood tainted with a sickening rainbow tint oozed out of its head. The marred colors painted the blood like an oil slick.

Midnight holstered his gun on his saddlebag strap and carefully approached the body. He reached a hoof out to poke the shimmering fluid. 

“Don't touch it!” I hollered and dove down, smacking his hoof away. “Are you kidding me? Middy, we don't know what that stuff is.”

“Good point,” Midnight grimaced and put his hoof down. “Why do you think they're all earth ponies? I thought Transylvania was just us.”

“There were probably plenty of ponies all over Equestria during the war. They had powered chariots and such. These poor bastards probably got hit by balefire and that was that,” I shrugged, ushering us to continue down the path and away from the ugly scene.

We began down the trail once more. My confidence wavered but I was glad to put the attack behind me. I was careful to keep my rifle at the ready and I was certain I wouldn’t freeze like that again. Not just for my sake, but our sake.

After a short while, the forest rapidly cleared as we approached the rocky base of the mountains that surrounded Transylvania. I could barely spot the twenty or so ruined pre-war homes of a small settlement ahead, the cracked asphalt road winding its way through town.

Near the left side of the town was a three story concrete building in decent repair. I could only assume that was the Ironshod Firearms warehouse since there was an abandoned lot out front surrounded by a broken and rusted barbed wire fence.

The building had three visible garage openings, two of which were closed with enormous rusted steel-slatted doors, the last one was open. A large powered chariot with a storage container in tow was parked before the opening, probably loading supplies when the bombs fell and radiation bathed the area. 

We probably had another fifteen or so minutes ahead of us but I was glad to take it slow with Midnight’s trotting. After that ghoul attack, I wanted to be doubly sure to check our surroundings.

The moon was just barely reaching its halfway point in the sky, bathing us in a pale glow that made every structure look equally important. I pulled out my IF-4 magazine and checked how many rounds I had left; it felt mostly full.

I slapped it back into the rifle. I wasn’t going to freeze again. Next time a zompony or whatever the hell the wasteland threw at us attacked, I was going to be the one to save Midnight’s sorry flank instead. I owed him that.


<><><>


“I don’t see a bloody thing, Middy, what the hay are you talking about?” I mumbled as I squinted my eyes.

From our position on a hill, we could see more closely into the buildings. The little neighborhood lined the asphalt road and around a circle drive. This group of abandoned houses was between us and the warehouse that was nestled along the base of the mountain on the other side. 

“I could have sworn I spotted movement down there. I didn’t get a good look at it, but it was alive,” Midnight affirmed.

The various pre-war houses were the generic Tidus 50s suburban dream. They had their dead little front lawns, tiny cracked little white picket fences, and pretty blue collapsed walls. Only about eight or so of the houses were still standing, all of which were covered in a variety of grotesque spray painted images of pillage, murder, and… stallion parts.

I guess ponies still need to express their feelings through art, even after the fall of Equestria, I reasoned. 

“Somepony’s definitely been here recently. Walls don’t paint themselves,” Midnight nudged my shoulder.

“Well, mate, those houses had two-hundred years to get decorated. Anypony could have traveled through between the bombings and now and just, um, prettied up the place,” I said nervously. I wanted to believe that anyway.

Midnight sighed and unslung his hunting rifle from his back. “Let’s just be ready for anything, Scar. I really don’t feel like knowing what the afterlife tastes like.”

He spoke as he pulled his gun’s bolt half-way out to make sure it was chambered, just like I instructed him to do earlier. He was a fast learner.

“Tastes… like?” I quizzically tilted my head while I did the same checks with my carbine. 

“Yeah, there’s obviously going to be food in the afterlife?” he responded in confusion. “Luna’s gotta have some cake on the moon or something.”

I stared at him for a moment, slowly mouthing what he just said.

He did get brain damage from that fall.

“Okay,” I shook my head and stood up. “C’mon let’s head on down and follow the road to the warehouse.” 

We cantered down the hill, my rifle bumping softly against my chest as it swung on its sling. When our hoof steps contacted the asphalt, I heard the familiar clopping that was ever present in the Stable. I didn’t realize I missed the sensation of hard ground until now.

Looking around, I inspected the houses that were completely caved in. Nothing but burned-out wooden frames stood amongst the pile of rubble that comprised their foundations. The houses on the main road leading to the warehouse were all standing, however.

As we slowly made our way through the neighborhood, I began to see bloodstains and twisted bodies of dead ponies decorate the sides of the standing houses. Their torn limbs hung on hooked chains and their heads were shoved on pikes in the front lawns. It certainly wasn’t art.

I felt my throat tighten as the stench of it all finally wafted our way.

“I think I’m gonna be sick…” I moaned and fought the urge to look away from the houses. Whatever monster that did this to ponies may still be around.

“I think we should check it out,” Midnight said, holding a foreleg to his muzzle.

“What?!” I shrieked. “Are you bloody mad, mate? Don’t you see what happened to ponies who wanted to ‘check it out?’”

“That’s exactly why we need to see what caused this, I don’t wanna walk past only to be flanked by whatever creature killed these ponies,” he said and slowly began picking his way through the gore covered lawn. 

“Luna’s moon, Midnight. If I didn’t depend on you staying alive, I’d kill you for making me do this,” I groaned and followed close behind. 

We trotted toward the first bloody mess of a house to our right, rusted-out junk covered the front yard and organs of ponies decorated the edges of the roof. It was like a demented Hearth’s Warming display.

Misha carefully walked right up to the front door.

“Are you sure this is a good idea?” I whispered. “Why not look for the back door or something?” I shook myself off; fear was beginning to freeze my legs again.

“We’ll be fineee, when have I ever been careless?” he winked.

I rolled my eyes. 

He grabbed the door knob with his teeth. It was caked in dried blood and rust, which looks the same, so I really hoped it was just rust.

Midnight opened the door nonchalantly and stepped in. We were greeted with the smell of alcohol and cigarette smoke wafting out the door.

I peeked around Midnight. He walked further in, but I couldn’t bring my legs to move. They were trembling as I fought to stay courageous. I stood outside and peered into the house from the safety of the porch.

Down the entryway was a lantern-lit room, it looked like there were a few ponies sitting around a worn out poker table. Each pony was wearing some form of Luna-knows-what for body armor: leather jackets, cooking pots, washboards, even a lampshade completely over one of their heads. Every single one had ridiculous spikes sticking out somewhere just begging to poke somepony. 

The ponies themselves were all Transylvanian, their coats dark colored and their manes held up in fugly mohawks and spikes. I could see most of them; mares holding lewd positions on gambling stallions, some snorting questionable powder off the table, one chewing on a piece of raw meat. They all froze and looked at Midnight in unison.

Raiders. The words from Aurora Borealis echoed in my head as I felt my stomach drop.

They were all armed with the shittiest cared for guns I had ever seen. SMGs and pistols made from scrap and literally held together with bubblegum and duct-tape.

“So are you guys the talking kind, or the shooting kind?” Midnight asked everypony in the room.

A chorus of clacks filled the room as everypony grabbed a gun and racked slides, closed bolts, or shoved a makeshift bullet into a tube.

“Uh, I take it you’re-” Midnight began to shuffle back to the door.

*BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG*

The room erupted into chaos as bullets flew in practically every direction. Midnight galloped down the hall and straight toward me. A line of bullets trailed off the hallway behind him as he yelled.

“Shooting kind! Shooting kind! Luna’s-fat-cake, shoot them Scarlet!”

I felt my legs freeze in place again. We were so screwed.

“RUN!” He yelled into my ear. Waking me from my fear and causing me to yell because he was yelling.

I lost my balance but quickly flapped my wings, taking off after Midnight who barreled past into the yard.

We bolted back down the road and across the street, toward the first house on the circle drive. I dove inside the wreckage, quickly followed by Midnight who jumped and rolled behind a mummified sofa. Our commotion caused the ash around us to kick up and fall atop us like snow. I braced my back on a wooden beam and shakily tried to peer out the hole in the wall.

I couldn’t help talking nervously, “Why do they want to fight us? Were we imposing on their festivities? Were they decorating a tree with guts? Oh Luna, I really hope they’re not celebrating Hearth's Warming Eve this early with guts… Actually, I really hope nopony would ever decorate a tree with guts.”

“No, Scar, there were no trees or holiday celebrations, though there were a lot of guts…” Midnight trailed in thought. He shook his head and continued, “There are five Raiders in that house, all armed, though their guns have seen better days. Get your gun up and let’s take em’ by surprise when they come looking for us.”

Huh, for once he actually has a pretty solid plan.

I nodded and propped my IF-4 next to his rifle. My carbine barrel only reached half the length of his. He could probably feel the nervousness radiate off me, but I still held my gun steady. I reached a hoof forward and flipped the gun’s fire selector from ‘auto’ to ‘semi.’ I needed to make these shots count. 

The door to the Raider-cave opened and out stepped one of the bucks, donning a machine pistol of some sort. He wore a leather jacket and was the one with the mohawked mane.

“C’mere lil’ pegasus, I wanna show you how much of a good neighbor I am!” he sang into the darkness as the rest of his gang poured out, all armed with literal rubbish for firearms. 

I lined up the rear peep sight with the front post of my carbine. It was a small aperture but I could barely make out my target. I held my breath, were we gonna shoot first?

“Oi, we don’t have all nig-” the leader didn’t get to finish his sentence as a .308 round promptly ruptured his head.

*KA-POW* 

Midnight’s rifle roared next to me, the muzzle blast blew some of my mane into my eyes and rang my ears. I sputtered and tried to clear my vision. 

Wait, my mane is loose? Where’s my bow? I felt my head. My mother’s bow was completely gone. I felt a pang of worry; that was the last reminder I had of my family.

Midnight lowered his gun stock and used a hoof to cycle the bolt, ejecting the spent casing and rechambering the next one from the internal magazine.

“Scarlet, we could use more shooting please!”

Right! I blinked and snapped down to my carbine.

*BANG, BANG, BANG*

The steady shots of my IF-4 followed up in Midnight’s absence. I kept constant slow fire suppressing the Raiders as they quickly dove for cover behind the junk in their front yard.

The brass casings steadily ejected out the open dust cover of my carbine and lightly bounced off Midnight’s side. He lifted his gun back up to the beam and searched for a target.

The foreleg of one of the mares popped out behind a huge steel rubbish bin. She blindly sprayed an automatic hail of lead toward our general direction, forcing Midnight to take cover as the bullets struck the beam in front of him.

I held my aim and quickly lined the sights up on her hoof, biting down on the bit repeatedly and rocketing bullets across the street. One of the small caliber rifle rounds ripped right through her foreleg and into the house behind her. The Raidess stood up screaming in pain, only to be silenced by Midnight’s incredible aim; his bullet piercing clean through her throat. She fell to the ground gurgling in her blood.

Midnight repeated the process of cycling the bolt and brought his gun back up to face the Raiders. The gang quickly learned from their fallen companions and none seemed to risk shooting back at us again.

We had a moment to breathe. I mentally berated myself as I shook fiercely around my grip on my gun. I promised myself I wasn’t going to freeze up and I did it again at the house. If I couldn’t control my fear it would get us both killed. 

Now was my chance to prove to myself that I was capable. Right then, somepony needed to make a move. And it was going to be me.

“Middy, cover me, I’m gonna fly over to that building on the left and surprise their bloody arses,” I said confidently. Or at least I hoped I looked confident to him.

I dropped my carbine on its sling and dug into my saddle bag, replacing my near-empty magazine with a fresh one. I really needed a way to hold magazines out and ready.

“What? Are you sure?” Midnight’s glowing golden eyes glimmered with worry behind our natural night-vision magic.

“Don’t worry, mate. I’ll be back before tea,” I winked and spread my wings, taking off through the collapsed roof and I flew toward the building.

The sounds of my leathery wings noisily flapped in the air. They weren’t covered in feathers like a pegasus’s and unfortunately, it was a sound every thestral was very familiar with. The remaining three Raiders looked up at me and began to take aim. I felt my throat tighten in panic.

Well this was a terrible idea! I widened my eyes as I flapped harder to cross the street.

The buck wearing cooking ware as armor was the first to stand but just as quickly, a bullet sparked off the cast iron pot on his chest, causing him to tumble over but not kill him outright. 

The single shot was enough to force the other two Raiders back into cover, but not before one of them fired a pistol.

My right hind leg kicked violently inward as what felt like a sledgehammer punched into it. I yelped and tumbled down into the wreckage of the house just left of the Raiders. I managed to flare my wings just before impact and rolled onto my belly, my head dazed and leg throbbing with a dull ache.

“Shit! Scarlet!” I heard Midnight’s faint cry, followed by two more large caliber shots.

I blinked and wiped the smear of ash and sweat from my eyes, looking in horror down at my leg. Blood was pouring steadily just above the hoof but the bullet didn’t go all the way through. Oddly enough, I didn’t feel much pain. But I knew that was just the adrenaline talking and I was about to be in a world of pain soon.

I was about to be dead soon if I didn’t buck up.

I gulped and brought my gun up, looking out of the wreckage. The Raider who shot me was flopped over a post box. Midnight’s crack shots seemed to be working.

The other two Raiders gathered themselves and began pushing toward my position. Unfortunately, Midnight didn’t seem to be shooting anymore and I was about to be overrun.

I quickly flipped my fire selector to ‘auto’ and let out a long burst toward the pony with a lampshade over his head. I must’ve shot at least fifteen rounds but one finally found its mark. The dumb stallion didn’t see it coming, literally, and flopped over ungraciously.

The last Raider mare paused briefly at her companion’s death but stood still for just a moment to point a pipe at me. A literal pipe. 

*BANG BANG*

Two shots rang out simultaneously.

The Raider’s pipe erupted suddenly as buckshot flew into the roof above me, miraculously sparing me as her aim buckled upward and showered me with rotten wood.

The mare crumpled to the ground as Midnight’s Tidus 11 ripped a hole in her chest.

That was the last of them. I sighed as I let my carbine drop, my legs still shaking but I couldn’t tell if it was from fear or pain.

“Scarlet! Are you okay?” I heard Midnight’s panicked voice approach.

I wearily stood up and began to crawl out a hole of the wreckage. Midnight suddenly jumped through the hole and nearly tackled me over. I unintentionally let out an ‘eep’ in surprise.

“I- I’m fine mate, don’t worry,” I groaned and pulled myself up to all fours again. I tried to sound calm but hissed as I put weight on my rear leg.

“Don’t worry?! You just got bucking shot in the leg!” Midnight exasperated as he reached into my saddlebags and rummaged around, finally pulling out our only healing potion from the medical kit. “Here drink this, it will still be sore and itch a lot, but it should stop the bleeding,” he said, holding the healing potion in his mouth.

I sat back and grabbed it with both hooves, wincing in pain as my weight shifted back. I popped the cork off with a fang and chugged it down. I scrunched my face as a… lemon… flavor kicked in.

“Blegh, that’s bloody awful…” I scowled and set the bottle down.

“I kinda liked em’,” Midnight smirked as he packed up the medical kit and saved the empty bottle.

I felt a warm sensation grow around my leg and I slowly stood up and looked back, watching as the wound stopped bleeding and a bullet slowly pushed itself out of my skin and onto the ash covered floor. The wound closed up entirely, leaving nothing but a pink spot on my skin where my fur was taken off by the bullet.

“Bloody hell… that’s amazing,” I stared wide eyed and gently set my rear hoof down. It was still sore but nothing compared to before.

“The pain goes away in an hour or so,” Midnight nodded. “Luna above, Scar, I thought you might have gotten seriously wounded back there.” His voice wavered as he looked me over.

“Midnight, you don’t have to worry about me all the time. I can handle myself,” I waved a hoof. I could be a tough mare! Even if I didn’t feel like one.

Midnight looked at me for a moment more, his eyes reflected genuine care and concern for me. It was a look that made my face warm lightly.

“Okay, you can worry a little bit…” I pet my mane absently. “Thanks for saving me… Again.”

I mentally kicked myself for feeling the way I did. If every damned fight ended with me giving this colt a nuzzle or whatever, then ponies might get the wrong idea. I was just thankful, okay?

Midnight snorted in amusement and slowly began climbing back out to the road. “You’re the one who charged head first into battle. I should thank you for being a war hero.”

“Trust me, I won't be doing anything Iike that again,” I mumbled. 

We climbed out and back toward the battlefield. The ground was littered with fresh bodies joining the grim and bloody decorations.

I felt a complicated pang of guilt knot in my stomach. We killed these ponies. Not ghouls this time, but ponies just like us. Our kind. I knew I should have felt worse, but I also knew it was out of self defense. Not to mention the horrible things these ponies clearly did to others. 

Midnight began to nose his way around the bodies of the Raiders. Flopping them over and going through their pockets. 

“Uh, Midnight, what are you doing? That’s probably not very sanitary…” I scrunched up my muzzle in disgust as he used his mouth to pick up a makeshift revolver.

“Wert kernd of reverver ers ders?” he asked as he held it up for me to inspect.

“Thirty-two caliber, Neighmington, maybe?” I tried to identify the make but it was in such bad shape I couldn’t even tell. “Why?” I looked at him in confusion.

He placed the crappy piece of junk in his saddlebag and turned back to the next Raider. “We’ve gotta make caps one way or another. If we collect these guns from the Raiders, maybe that Stalliongrad buck will have mercy on us and give us enough to buy our stuff from the Night Watch,” he replied, shoving the dead Raidess’s SMG into his saddlebags.

I sat on the curb and let Midnight raid the Raiders. I didn’t exactly have the stomach to put those things in my mouth. I lifted my PipBuck and checked the map, we were close, that large building at the other end of the neighborhood was undoubtedly our destination.

I peeked up at Midnight as he went about collecting scrap from our fallen foes, “You handle guns better than I imagined mate, how’d you do it?”

Midnight paused and looked at me, “I used that S.A.T.S thing. Isn’t that what you do?”

“S.A.T.S?” I annunciated each letter of the acronym.

“Yeah, like, the targeting spell from our PipBucks.”

I stared at him for a moment then looked down at my PipBuck. I scrolled through the device and eventually found a setting called ‘Stable-Tec Arcane Targeting Spell.’ The setting was blocked behind an Overpony permission code.

“Huh, well whatever that is, keep it up I guess,” I shrugged. I wouldn't know the slightest thing about that, but whatever it was, it obviously helped the clumsily pegasus kick some serious tail.

I scrolled through the tabs of the device, landing on a ‘Radio’ page. I bit my tongue curiously as I selected it and remarkably found a station labeled ‘Moonlight Serenade’s Sweet Sounds.’ I huffed in doubt and clicked on the station. I didn’t think there would be any kind of working radio out here.

Smooth big band jazz suddenly crooned out of my PipBucks tiny speakers, followed by the sultry voice of a mare singing about being ‘fly like you;’ something about a unicorn being upset with a pegasus.

I smiled brightly, “Hey, Middy! I found a radio station on my PipBuck, who’da thought there would still be radio stations out here?”

I swayed to the sweet sounds of the mare’s voice as I watched Midnight finish up his foraging, more than content with this new discovery. Eventually, he sat down beside me and caught his breath from cantering all over the front yard collecting various things.

“I’m pretty sure both my guns are empty…” he said lamely as he reached back and grabbed both his rifle and pistol, laying them out before him.

“I burned through two mags too,” I sighed in agreement. 

We both began the painstaking task of reloading our magazines. I was careful to stick them in my winter coat pockets which would hopefully be much faster than digging in my bag each time. 

When we finished up our reloading, we got on all fours and trotted down the road toward the intersection. I highly doubted anything else in this town wanted to kill us, otherwise they would have joined the battle earlier.

When we came to a crooked stop sign, we hung a left and proceeded down the main road into the parking lot of the Ironshod Firearms warehouse. The rusted-out barbed wire fence and dilapidated roadblock was hardly an obstacle as we crossed into the lot.

We passed abandoned security booths meant to police chariots entering and exiting the property. Midnight curiously peeked into a broken window, stopping and motioning for me with his right wing.

“Hang on, Scar, let’s check this out really quick,” he trotted into the small one-room sized building.

“You know, last time you said that, we got our arses blasted by some Raiders, yet here I am following you again,” I sighed as I trotted in behind him, barely fitting us both into the same space.

Inside, a small desk before a thick window held a single computer terminal. Remarkably it was still powered. The office chair had rotted away and fallen over, laying next to a peculiar looking black square on the ground. Along the walls, faded posters displayed various pre-war slogans, all made by a supposed ‘Ministry of Image’:

Let the Bats show em’ where it’s at! A picture of a thestal soldier manning a machine gun.

Princess Luna wants YOU to join the Transylvanian Pals Battalion! Several thestral mares and bucks marching proudly down a road with a dark blue flag sporting a moon proudly waving behind them.

“Lot of good that did for ‘em all, eh, Middy?” I scoffed.

I watched as Midnight poked the ancient terminal keyboard with a hoof. Surprisingly, it booted up to where it last left off two-hundred years ago. The green monochrome screen flashed to life and a series of commands came up into place.

Robronco Industries Terminal. Serial: 14B6A7 
Command executable:
-Open main security gate.
-Unlock floorsafe.
-Contact police headquarters, Vanhoover detachment 14.

“Well considering the main gate doesn’t exactly exist anymore,” Midnight said, looking out the window to the hinges of where it once stood. “And I reeeally doubt there are any police still in Vanhoover, we might as well go for the floor safe?” he offered and used a hoof to guide the selection box down to the appropriate line and hit the ‘enter’ key.

A soft ‘beep’, followed by the sounds of a lock disengaging came from the black square on the floor. It gently popped open a few inches. Green letters wrote ‘unlocked’ in my vision as my EFS spell did some crazy unicorn stuff.

“Huh, is your EFS saying that too?” I tilted my head.

“Nope, I turned that shit off the first chance I had,” Midnight shook his head and reached for the safe.

He opened it up and we were surprised to find… a bobby pin and some bubble gum.

“Seriously? Who the buck locks up bubblegum and a single bobby pin?” Midnight skeptically looked at the pathetic treasure.

“Hey, maybe it was meant for a mare like myself to find because somepony oh so kindly gave me a manecut,” I sarcastically smirked and took the bobby pin. 

I placed the bobby pin in my mane, effectively keeping my bangs behind my ear again. I smiled and turned to Midnight.

“Well, what do you think? Does it work?” I tilted my head each way.

“You look ghastly, as usual,” he replied and turned to leave the room.

I began to frown slightly but caught his sarcasm and rolled my eyes instead. “We may as well take that bubble gum too, I mean, it probably has just as many preservatives as anything else in this wasteland. So it’s probably edible,” I said, reaching in and taking the bubblegum in my hoof.

I unwrapped a piece and popped it in my mouth, Yay, generic bubblegum flavor.

“Want a piece?” I offered Midnight, who nodded and took one as well, promptly chewing on it.

I waited for just a moment, deep down hoping some crazy thing would happen to us from taking the special bubble gum from the safe. Hoping that since we spent so much time in that room and there was so much narration involved for such a small object, that the bubble gum obviously had importance to what we were doing, or perhaps would change something in the future, drastically altering our story.

Nothing happened, it was just plain bubblegum. 

Welp, I thought to myself as we made our way out of the security booth and across the abandoned lot.

We approached the huge chariot that was parked in front of the open warehouse loading bay. From here, I could barely make out ‘Ministry of Awesome’ painted on rusty light blue paint.

What a presumptuous name, I huffed to myself.

When we rounded the abandoned vehicle, I took a peek inside the cargo container. It was relatively empty, save for a few pallets here and there. But a few crates stacked toward the back caught my eye.

‘S.P.P Transylvania Division’ was written on them in black ink.

The crates were busted open and clearly ransacked of whatever the hay that stuff meant. It looked like this place had been picked clean of all the goodies it once held.

“Well, this isn’t very promising,” I grimaced, looking back at Midnight.

“Starline said things were still up and running inside,” he gestured up the loading ramp with his head. “Based on that terminal still running, this place still has power. I’m betting there’s more to find. We just have to disable the security system.”

“The Security System doesn’t sound too friendly to me,” I frowned and followed him out of the trailer.

We clambered up the steep rusted steel loading ramp and entered a huge interior room of the warehouse. Empty shelves lined the room and various cracked and toppled-over metal crates littered the floor. Overhead, a few fluorescent lights flickered occasionally as they barely illuminated the abandoned structure. 

My PipBuck’s pathetic speakers softly played a song about not wanting to set the world on fire. The cheerful song echoed ambiently around us as we walked down the center aisle.

At the back of the room, a single door was illuminated by a spotlight. It looked shut tight and probably led further into the warehouse. A lone terminal sat next to it. As well as some peculiar looking scraps of metal littered around it. They kinda looked like metal ponies. Like cyborg ponies…

“That terminal is our ticket in. Let’s check it out,” Midnight smirked and began trotting down the center of the room.

“Middy, wait-” I tried to grab his shirt but it was too late.

A bright white spotlight suddenly clapped on and lit Midnight up like a stage performer.

“INTRUDER DETECTED. DEFENSE PROTOCOL INITIATED,” an ominous automated voice echoed around us.

Midnight slowly turned and looked at me, “Well. Shit.”


XXX

> Chapter Seven: I Reconnect With My Other Half
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


Chapter Seven: I Reconnect With My Other Half



Midnight Wind


***

“Okay, how about ‘lighthouse’ or ‘doghouse?!’” I yelled over a hail of gunfire as Scarlet fended off another wave of protectrons that were slowly lumbering our way.

Scarlet grunted and ejected her second magazine, loading another from her jacket and slapping a button on the side of her rifle. The bolt slammed closed and chambered the smoking carbine with another episode of hate.

She paused and looked at me with one of the most ‘I am so done with your shit’ looks I had ever seen from a mare before turning and unleashing another hail of gunfire at the robots.

These metal robo-ponies were hardly threatening with how slow they moved, but something about the repeated ‘exterminate’ that they were shouting at us made me a little nervous. That, and the very bright electric arcs sparking from their artificial horns.

“Right! Doghouse!” I chuckled nervously and queued the terminal screen again.

See, I never thought I was a smart pony. But for one reason or another, I was now the one in charge of hacking into this terminal to open the door and save our lives. Problem was, I didn’t have a single bucking clue about how it was done. I managed to sync my PipBuck to the computer and I somehow stumbled my way into the file system, the same way I did in maintenance back in Stable 17.

The hacking software was somewhat easy to use; it accessed a file tree and then the entire terminal screen would completely fill with unintelligible gibberish. All I had to do was guess which random phrase among the fifty or so phrases was the correct password and I would have full control. So far, my guesses were less than ideal.

I looked at the ‘attempt’ counter at the top right of the screen. Two of the four boxes were already spent and I knew failing them all would mean total lock-out. I wiped my brow nervously and punched in the word ‘doghouse.’

>Entry denied.
>Likeness=5

“What does that even mean?!” I cried and smacked the screen.

The gunfire behind me suddenly came to an uncomfortable silence. I flinched when I felt Scarlet grab my holstered pistol in her mouth and start firing that instead.

“Luna’s. Bloody. Flank. Midnight. Figure. It. Out!” she hollered behind me with every shot. She ejected the magazine, reaching into my pocket and reloaded the gun with my last mag.

I looked over my shoulder nervously. A pile of no less than ten smoking and sparking protectrons were laid out around us. Despite it all, five more were still coming from Luna-knows-where and Scarlet had completely run out of rifle ammo. She was now resorting to using my own pistol.

Why the buck does this place need so much security?! I mentally screamed and stared back at the terminal screen. It’s just a stupid warehous-

I froze as I realized something.

No way.

I bit my tongue and started typing in the entry. I hit enter and watched as the terminal beeped and the hacking program vanished. 

>Password Accepted

I blinked in surprise. I was not a smart pony.

The terminal unlocked and prompted three commands:

>Unlock door
>Disable Loading Bay Protectrons
>Reprogram Protectron Targeting Algorithm

I quickly selected the first option, sighing in relief when the door next to me hissed as internal locks unlatched. I then selected the second option. My ears swiveled as I heard a high-pitched whine and then silence behind me.

Turning, I saw the remaining protectrons had stopped and their glowing white eyes winked off. Scarlet was panting heavily, my empty pistol turned around in her mouth like a batton as she was getting ready to start smacking the robots once they got too close.

“Luna’s moon, mate,” she huffed and sat down. “What was the password?”

I cleared my throat and slowly trotted to her, taking my gun back and opening my bag to grab more ammo, “It was… *mumble,*” I coughed.

“What was that?” Scarlet absently asked as she collected her three spent magazines from the floor.

“It was, um,” I cleared my throat, “*mumble*-house.”

“Middy, speak up,” Scarlet moaned and began reloading her magazines. It looked like she only had enough bullets for one more.

“It was… ‘warehouse,’” I sighed in embarrassment.

Scarlet stopped mid-loading and slowly looked up at me. There was a lot to be said about what her golden eyes were communicating, but the general gist of it was: ‘You’re an idiot.’

I packed up my pistol and awkwardly stood. “Thanks for, uh, that,” I used my good wing to gesture to the waves of dead robots. “Why in Equestria would this place need so much protection?”

Scarlet stood and slung her rifle over her chest, “Well, let’s bloody find out, shall we?” she smacked the door release.

I followed her inside, greeting a much smaller room than the enormous loading bay behind us. This area was more like an office space with a secretary desk and a small hallway that led further into the facility. The overhead lighting flickered uncomfortably. I felt my vision magic struggle to adjust to the occasional bouts of darkness. 

I followed Scarlet as we picked our way around fallen chairs and general junk. The office had been decorated for Nightmare Night, with faded plastic jack o’ lanterns knocked over and paper bats hanging along the walls. I noticed that unlike other places in the wasteland, this wasn’t your run-of-the-mill-garbage, but rather it looked like things were tossed around in a panic. I guessed Nightmare Night was only a few days away before the bombs fell.

Scarlet suddenly hissed and stiffened. I bumped into her dark gray flank and tilted my head, looking around her. On the floor was a blackened skeleton wearing a faded pink dress. The spidery bones protruding from its spine clearly meant it was a thestral at some point.

“Scar, she probably died from balefire radiation,” I pushed around her. “I don’t think it’s recent.”

“I get that, mate,” she shook her head. “I-it’s just different. She was innocent,” her voice faded in sadness.

I hummed in agreement. These ponies didn’t deserve what happened to Equestria. They were just making a living at their office jobs. But we had a job to do too.

I carefully stepped over the skeleton and picked my way to the rotting security desk. The terminal here was also still running. These things must have been magically powered.

“What are you doing?” Scarlet joined me.

“We need to find out if this place is worth scavenging for Renaissance and there might be more security,” I said, tapping away at the terminal. Thankfully this one was unlocked.

I scrolled through the memos and various files that the computer stored, looking for any sort of inventory report or security commands. I smiled as I spotted a ledger.

IF1 Shipment delivered WinterTidus 76 
IF14 Shipment delivered Winter Tidus 76
*REDACTED* received on *REDACTED*
IF16 Shipment delivered Summer Tidus 77
Stable-Tec Shipment delivered Fall Tidus 77
Stable-Tec Shipment returned Fall Tidus 77

I tilted my head and selected the line that contained all of the redacted information. The terminal winked to a password screen. I groaned and rested my chin on a hoof.

“I don’t want to go through this again,” I mumbled.

“Hey, at least this proves there’s something of worth still here,” Scarlet nodded down the hall. “Looks like they received something from Stable-Tec and whatever the hay that ‘Redacted’ stuff is just before the bombs fell.”

I stood and made for the hall, “Let’s see if it’s worth grabbing then.”


***


I sputtered and coughed as I swallowed yet another health potion that Scarlet seemed to find in every Luna-damned bathroom, office drawer, or break room we passed. The chipper mare was fluttering door to door, eagerly finding first aid kits and shoving the sour potions down my throat at every given opportunity.

“Middy, I found a fifth one!” she cried from an adjacent hall.

I groaned and tucked the last potion’s empty bottle into my bag. She and I had split up to explore the maze of offices that made up the back half of this warehouse. Sure enough, the place was completely untouched. The army of security bots out front must have fended off looters for centuries and nopony seemed to have the tech to get through that terminal. Too bad everything left in here was generic office junk.

We had covered the entire hoofprint of the building looking for a storage room of some kind, save for the upper floors. Something about the holes in the ceiling and the sagging walls made me uncertain if we should climb any stairs.

“Scarlet, I don’t feel any different,” I burped and grimaced from the sour taste. “I think we’re just wasting them.”

“Nonsense, mate,” she flew back down my hall and gently alighted next to me. “Remember what the doctor said? It’s just gonna take a few more.” She reached into her bag and produced another pink potion.

I groaned and took it, staring distastefully at the contents. The pink liquid shimmered slightly under the flickering lights with a rainbow tint. 

“Broken Bone’s probably trying to kill me. What’s in this stuff anyway?” I uncorked the bottle with a fang.

Scarlet pranced next to me, “I don’t know, lemons, magic powder, hopefully nothing addicti- whoa!” she vanished down a hole in the floor.

I halted and nearly dropped the potion, sighing in relief as she flapped back up to me. I almost forgot what it was like to instinctively fly.

“Oh my Luna, that is one deep hole.“ Scarlet landed on the edge and peered down. 

The hallway we were trotting down looked worse for wear compared to the others. Somehow we missed a crumbled space in the concrete floor. Maybe it was because of the calculated poisoning Scarlet was busy subjecting me to. 

I carefully peeked over, it was pitch black down there. Darker than even my magic could see. I quickly drank the last health potion and tossed the bottle into the abyss. 

We waited an uncomfortably long time for any sound to come back.

“There,” Scarlet’s tufted ears perked, “it just splashed. There’s water at the bottom.”

“I didn’t hear anything,” I blinked. “You think it’s worth checking out?”

Scarlet eyed me critically, “First of all, mate, I think ‘checking stuff out’ has quickly proven to be a terrible idea.” She stood and trotted up to me, “Secondly, you’re not going anywhere vertically with your wing stuck in that thing,” she poked at my splinted left wing.

At her touch, the contraption suddenly undid itself, springing my wing outward and causing me to yelp in pain. The splint sailed into the hole and clean out of sight.

Scarlet’s eyes widened and she brought a hoof to her mouth, “Oh no. I’m so sorry! I’ll get you another one!” 

I squeezed my eyes in pain, my wing still throbbing from the jerked movement. But the throbbing continued to grow in intensity. My wing began to quiver and was starting to feel like burning. 

I gasped and stepped back, collapsing into an adjacent room. Writhing on the floor as the appendage felt like it was on fire. 

“Middy!” Scarlet fluttered over to me. “Are you okay?! I’ll go find another health pot-” 

My left wing involuntarily jerked, bending a sickening ninety degrees in the wrong direction. The sound of bones snapping echoed in the room.

I screamed. 

Scarlet covered her eyes with her wings and sat back, “Oh my Luna, Broken Bone was trying to kill you!” 

I blacked out momentarily from the pain. Blinking in a daze as my wing fell limp next to me on the ground. Steam was rising from the feathers as I sweat profusely and whatever magic in my blood nearly boiled.

I gasped for air, the burning quickly fading but a lingering pain still shooting electrically down my spine. 

Scarlet slowly peeked through her wings, “Midnight?” 

I propped myself up, wiping my brow with my good wing. I was absolutely drenched in sweat. I felt like I just broke a fever.

Scarlet dropped her wings and continued to stare at me, “M-Midnight…” she mumbled. 

I finally caught my breath and flicked the sweat drops off my wing. A cloud of feathers blew into the air. The familiar leathery sound of a thestral flap filled the room. 

I looked up at Scarlet. She wasn’t flying. I froze and twitched my wing. I wasn’t using my ‘good’ one like I thought. I was using my left one. The broken one. 

“Y-your wing…” Scarlet pointed at me. 

I quickly looked down and almost fainted again. 

My left wing was different. Something wasn’t right. That wasn’t my wing. That was a thestrals wing. Where blue feathers used to be, a thin membrane of skin pulled across wiry thin bones. The skin was a dark blue, similar to the light blue of my fur and feathers.

Around my hooves, a pile of cerulean feathers littered the floor, blowing about in the breeze kicked up from moving my wings. They had all fallen off. Every single one of them.

I jerked my head over to my right wing. I lifted it and spread the feathers, it was entirely a pegasus wing. I quickly jerked my head back and flapped my left. It was a thestrals. 

I repeated the motion a few times, staring in cold realization of what’s become of me.

I shakily looked at Scarlet, “I’m a pegabat.”


***


“Maybe that’s what happens when you overdose on health potions?” Scarlet gently held my left wing in her hooves and spread it, peering at the flickering lights through the membrane. 

I twitched at her touch but let her continue. It didn’t hurt anymore. In fact her touch actually felt really nice. But what made me massively uncertain is that it felt different. 

“I’m unbalanced…” I said slowly. I spread my right wing too and looked between them. “Luna help me, I’m completely asymmetrical.”

Scarlet gave me a look of pity. As a fellow flier I knew she knew exactly what I meant. Flying was a delicate act of balance and precision. Having two entirely different wings meant I had two different lift profiles, two different stall speeds, two different levels of propulsion, two different angles of attack, the list could go on. 

“Does it feel okay?” Scarlet gingerly rotated the wing around its joint. 

I had asked her earlier to help me see if everything was normal with it, well as normal as one wing could be. Everypony knows wings are a no-no zone for ponies to randomly fondle. They were delicate and sensitive. But I felt like this moment warranted a few social taboos being broken. Scarlet knew infinitely more about thestral wings than myself. 

“It feels completely fine,” I said, tucking it back in against my side, “natural, even.”

Scarlet spread her own left wing and inspected it closely in comparison, “It looked perfectly normal too. Which is odd, because pegasi skeletons are different. Your new wing must have a whole new set of bones.”

I gulped and nodded. I was relieved that I still had a wing after all of that. But I fought hard to suppress the worst thought imaginable… 

“What if I can’t fly ever again?” I whispered, more to myself than anything. 

Scarlet stepped in front of me and locked her golden eyes with my own, “You will fly, Midnight.”

“But-”

“You’re gonna learn from step one just like a colt again. It won’t be easy. But you’ll fly. I promise,” she said confidently. Her gaze was unwavering.

“Will you help me?” I asked shakily. I was embarrassed, saddened, hurt even. But I didn’t even know how to begin to approach this. 

Scarlet quickly leaned in and nuzzled me. I blinked in surprise and felt the tips of my ears warm at her touch.

“I’ll make sure we’re soaring under the moon together,” she flashed a small smile and stepped back. 

I nodded and shook myself off, longingly gazing at the pile of feathers at my hooves. I gingerly grabbed one of the primaries and stuck it in my bag. I would never have a left wing feather ever again. I was going to try and keep at least one. 

I slowly trotted out of the room, careful to avoid the giant chasm in the hallway. I began down the hall, but noticed Scarlet didn’t follow. I looked back and saw her standing in the room. She was staring at the pile of feathers with a terrible look of guilt. 

“It’s not your fault,” I said honestly. 

“I made you drink like, a liter of health potions, mate,” she looked up at me. “Of course it’s my fault.” 

“Health potions don’t mutate ponies,” I asserted. “I’ve seen Doctor Red give a pony ten of them in the Stable. It wasn’t that.”

“Then what was it?” Scarlet slowly stepped out of the room. 

“I don’t know. Where did you find that last one?”

“Around the corner,” Scarlet nodded up the hallway. “Follow me.” 

We trotted down the hall, turning down a new hallway and into one of the mare's restrooms. 

The room was pitch black without a working light overhead. I felt my eyes tingle as I could barely make out some shapes in my magic vision. I felt cracked tiles shuffle under my hooves as we approached the vanity of a sink. The sound of dripping water echoed off the porcelain walls. 

“How can you see anything in here?” I squinted, spotting what looked like an open box in one of the sinks. 

“I can’t see great either, this is dark, even for me,” Scarlet shrugged. “I can see objects but no colors.”

I lifted my PipBuck and fumbled with the controls. I flicked a switch and turned on my seldom-used flashlight. 

We both flinched and squinted when the whole room violently lit up in pale green light. 

“Yup, that works. Thanks for the heads up, mate,” Scarlet’s normally rounded pupils were vertically constricted. She rubbed an eye and looked down at the sink. 

A typical first aid kit sat within the cracked sink. It must have fallen from the wall years ago. The yellow box with pink butterflies looked innocent enough, but what caught my attention was the dark oily stream that marred its surface. 

“What’s that?” I leaned in closer. 

The faucet was slowly dripping a wicked looking rainbow fluid. Its dull colors looked more sinister than I felt like it should have. The rainbow fluid had spilled into the kit and sat in a little pool where a health potion would have been.

“Maybe it absorbed that stuff through the cork? What is it?” Scarlet scrunched her nose.

“It kinda looks like the stuff that leaked out of those Ghouls…” I grimaced. “Why’s it in the pipes?”

Scarlet’s ears suddenly perked and flicked around. “What was that?” she whispered. 

“What was what?” I sighed. Having less-than-thestral hearing was becoming really inconvenient. 

I craned my ears and slowly trotted to the door. I felt them flick as I finally heard some sort of movement. Almost like slithering?

I peeked my head out into the hall, looking left then right. I froze as I could have sworn I saw something slither around the corner.

“What is it?” Scarlet whispered behind me. She tried to lean forward but accidentally slipped on a tile. 

She yelped and fell over, falling into a metallic heap as her gun and saddlebags hit the flooring. The porcelain tile she slipped on skidded out beneath her and smashed into the wall, shattering into pieces.

*Groan* a monstrous sounding voice echoed down the hall. The sound of slithering picked up its pace.

I stared at Scarlet as she laid on her back, our expressions matched with fear.

“S-sorry?” Scarlet whispered with a wince.

I helped her to her hooves and peeked out the door again. Recoiling as I watched six tentacle-looking appendages writhe forward and clasp the door frames of offices in the hallway. They slowly inched along the floor and walls, wrapping around any standing object and dragging something behind it.

It must have been a pony at some point, maybe. The tentacles protruded from the back of a mound of flesh. A bloated and lopsided head tumbled to and fro on top of the creature as two creamy eyeballs aimlessly scanned the hall. Four frail and mangled legs dragged behind the creature, completely useless as the ten-hoof long tentacles inched it forward.

Scarlet let out a soft ‘eep’ as she peeked around my shoulder, “Luna’s grace, we need to go!” she fervently whispered.

I nodded and shakily stepped into the hall, drawing my pistol and motioning for Scarlet to go behind me. The monstrous being didn’t really seem to notice us, it was still slowly sliding along the ground like an octopus out of water.

“Maybe we can kill it,” I narrowed my eyes and aimed the gun at the creature.

“Maybe we should leave,” Scarlet smacked my shoulder.

The creature slowly came to a stop. Its tentacles braced along a hole in the ceiling, a doorframe, and cracks in the wall. The mangled head flopped over and its disfigured eyeballs rotated to us.

“Hahh- I seee, y-you.” an unequine voice escaped a gaping hole in the center of the mass.

What I thought was its body was instead a giant mouth. It split and opened slowly in a terrifying grin as wicked sharp bones lined the gaping maw. It was easily big enough to swallow a pony.

“Oh, shit,” I froze.

Without warning the creature lunged forward, throwing itself down the hallway at incredible speed. The tentacles shot out in every direction, flinging the mass at us as we both screamed and turned tail.

“Okay, you can shoot it now!” Scarlet cried as she flared her wings and took off, leading us down the maze of dark hallways.

I peeked over my shoulder and activated the S.A.T.S spell. The world seemingly froze as my reaction time was shifted to a magically heightened speed. I willed the spell to select the giant mound of flesh behind me and I felt my aim move to where it needed to be before the PipBuck timed out. I bit the trigger as fast as I could.

The Colt Tidus 11 roared in the hallway, striking the mutated monster several times. To my horror, my bullets just smacked into the flesh and seemingly absorbed into the skin. Rainbow goo leaked from the holes, but the creature was otherwise unfazed.

“Oh no,” I panicked, “oh nonono, Scarlet, I think it’s invincible!”

My PipBuck light flashed the hallway around us as I galloped after my red-maned friend. My hooves slid and kicked skeletons apart as we darted down another hall.

“Nothing is invincible, mate, keep shooting!” Scarlet looked down at me between her legs.

I looked back and tried to line up my pistol sights again as I ran. The handy targeting spell was on cooldown for several minutes.

Without warning, the monster quickly reached up and shot into a hole in the ceiling, vanishing from the hallway.

I skidded to a halt and looked around. I panted heavily as I tilted my ears, listening to sickening slithering all around us but I couldn’t pinpoint where. I felt my grip tighten in fear, this was something out of a horror film.

Scarlet grabbed her rifle and landed behind me, pointing it down the other way. We stood back to back, catching our breaths as we slowly scanned the walls. Scarlet’s ears suddenly shot up and she turned, grabbing my collar and yanking me backward off my hooves.

The ceiling above us shattered and the creature flopped, mouth first, exactly where I had been standing. I yelped and aimed over my belly, unloading the remainder of my pistol into the horrid beast to no avail.

My firing bit clicked once and I looked down at the pistol. The slide had locked back with an empty chamber. I spat the gun out and tried to unsling my rifle, only for a tentacle to wrap around my hindleg and start reeling me in like a fish.

“Midnight!” Scarlet screamed and shot a stream of automatic fire over my head.

The supersonic bullets cracked above me while I squirmed and flapped my wings, trying desperately to fight off the tentacle nightmare.

“Here b-birdie birdie,”  the creature crooned, fighting to pull me in.

Another tentacle grabbed my other hindleg, doubling the force and quickly sucking me toward the now open maw.

Scarlet’s gunfire suddenly stopped and she looked down in horror at the open bolt of her empty carbine. She quickly let the gun sling down and reached into her saddle bags, producing anything she could find and tossing it into the mouth of the creature.

“Let him go!” she hollered, throwing an empty first aid kit, a stale apple, and empty boxes of ammo into the creature's mouth.

“Luna, save me! I don’t wanna get eaten!” I screamed, bracing my hindlegs on either side of the fleshy mouth and straining as I tried to keep myself out of certain digestion.

A pack of bubblebum flew over my head, landing square on the bloated and tumor-filled tongue of the monster.

The white eyes of the monster suddenly opened wide and I was ungraciously dropped onto the floor. I scrambled to all fours and flapped my wings, unsteadily leaping back toward Scarlet.

I panted heavily and watched as the monster reached a slimy tentacle into its mouth and gently picked up the bubblegum pack. It brought it up to the swollen eyes and inspected the pre-war treat.

“P-pony Pop Triple B-bubble?” The creature slowly read the container. I could have sworn I saw its massive mouth curl into a faint smile. “I- I love Pony Pop T-triple Bubble.”

“Middy!” Scarlet latched onto me in relief. “We need to go!”

I looked behind us, only a water cooler and small table sat at the end of the hallway. It was a dead end. I scanned the floor and spotted a pile of rubble. We were in the hall with the massive hole in the floor. I yanked Scarlet after me as I galloped to the edge of the hole.

She skidded her hooves and looked at me in shock, “No way, you can’t fly!”

“Where b-birdie?”  the monster’s gurgled voice called out behind us.

“This birdie’s gonna learn today!” I gulped and leapt into the dark abyss.

The world around me rushed by at alarming speed, only the green spotlight from my PipBuck illuminating the walls gave me any idea of how fast I was falling. I flapped my wings, flipping end over end as I tried to steady myself.

“Midnight!” Scarlet’s voice cried behind me. She dove in after me, tucking her wings close to her body as she tried to catch up.

On one of my rotations, my PipBuck light shined downward and I spotted the very fast approaching ground beneath us. It had to have been hundreds of hooves buried beneath the warehouse above. The space under the hole was perfectly lined up with a massive tank of water.

I flared my wings as I normally would have and felt myself begin to decelerate. The leathery skin of my left wing strained and I looked over, the trailing edge buffeted as it failed to catch the air and stalled out.

I felt my stomach drop as I lurched into an unintentional barrel roll, yelling in panic as I lost my sense of up and down.

“Oof!” I yelped, feeling hooves wrap under my chest and hoist me into rapid deceleration.

I instinctively flapped my wings, looking up as Scarlet squeezed her eyes closed and strained to hover with the weight of us both. Soon, I was able to gather a rhythm and help provide some lift.

I looked down and saw my rear hooves were mere inches away from a vat of water, the same rainbow-y substance slicked across the surface like some sort of oil. I nervously gulped and flapped harder, letting Scarlet guide us over the side and onto the stone floor beside the vat.

We tumbled atop each other, groaning and kicking up dust in the stale air. My wings felt sore from the stunt we pulled back there, but I was alive. I slowly stood up, coughing while the dust settled and took a look around us.

Stalactites lined the ceiling of some sort of cave. Far above, the light from the offices outlined a hole blasted through the stone. Beside us, an enormous container with pipes protruding from it was built into the floor of the cave. The pipes led further in the cave beneath a metal catwalk.

“I hate you,” Scarlet moaned beneath me, “get off my tail, please.”

I quickly stepped off of her and helped her to her hooves. She flapped her wings gently, clearing the layer of dust that caked our fur. 

“Do you think it’s gonna come down here?” I asked, peering up at the illuminated hole above us.

Scarlet squinted and looked up, shading her head with a wing, “I bloody hope not. Bubblegum of all things. Luna’s arse.”

I patted my army fatigues off and then patted off Scarlet’s jacket, “Thanks for grabbing me, I don’t think I would have stopped in time.”

“We’re even then,” Scarlet smirked and nosed through her saddle bags. “Two for two.”

I huffed in agreement and trotted toward the vat. In the glow of my PipBuck, I could make out the words ‘Trans-Transylvanian Sewage Line’ written along the metal container.

“Ugh,” Scarlet scoffed and flapped her saddlebag closed. “I’m completely out of ammo. But, oh look,” she pointed at my bag, “thank heavens we have a hundred useless bottle caps instead!”

“Hey, bottle caps are money, remember?” I guarded my bag with a wing.

“Maybe we can pay off the monsters instead of shooting them then,” Scarlet rolled her eyes, looking up at the vat before us, “Oh, ew, sewage?”

“Yeah and it’s got that gross rainbow stuff in it too. You think the pipes around here are filled with it?” I grimaced, “is that how ghouls are made? Anypony who drinks from the water?”

“Well. That’s the general idea,” a new voice spoke behind us.

We both yelped and turned around. I unslung my hunting rifle and pointed it right at-

“Aurora Borealis?” Scarlet and I both said in unison.


***


“What happened to your wing, laddie?” Aurora eyed back at me as we followed him further into the cave.

Earlier, he was equally as surprised to see us down here. He was sent here by Major Starline on the very same mission, to look for supplies. He had another guard come with him, but the poor buck didn’t make it past the monster that roamed the warehouse. Apparently it took its victims to upper levels, never to be seen again.

For the past night, Aurora was stuck down here trying to find a way out. The tunnels were massive and probably extended clear under the mountains. He was contemplating flying back up through the hole and risking sneaking out by the time he heard all of our commotion. 

“I drank a potion,” I spread my new left wing and shrugged.

Scarlet scoffed from beside us and spoke up, “He drank a potion mixed with that weird rainbow stuff, is what he means.” 

I nearly bumped into Aurora as he halted and spun around, “You drank Taint?!” 

I looked at him quizzically, “Taint?” 

The older stallion took a defensive step away from me, he was unarmed from his fight with the monster earlier but I could imagine he’d be reaching for a gun at that moment. 

“Taint, lad, makes mutants,” he eyed me dangerously. “Do you still feel its effects?”

I felt my heart quicken with worry, “W-what do you mean? I feel fine!” 

Scarlet stepped in front of me defensively, “All it did was fix his wing, just, not like how we hoped. He drank a lot of health potions and one happened to be a little polluted. He’s not a mutant.”

“I don’t feel anything at all, honest,” I added over her shoulder.

Aurora eyed me for a moment longer, then nodded, “Nopony knows how it works.” He led us up a catwalk that shot off the main pipeline in the tunnel. “All we know is that Taint was yet another pre-war relic that continues to ruin the lives of ponies centuries later. It’s rare, but it’s incredibly lethal. Maybe all those health potions you drank saved your life.” 

The catwalk came to a rusted automated door, above it a flickering sign read Deep Storage. Aurora hit a button beside it and the mechanism groaned as it slowly opened. 

We followed him inside the dark room, our eyes faintly glowing as we adjusted to dim light.

“I scouted around, looking for a way to the surface that didn’t involve a tango with tentacles up there,” Aurora explained, “and lookie what I found.”

The room was heavily reinforced, reminding me of the walls of our Stable. Around, dozens of metal crates were stacked on shelves, each labeled with various Ironshod Firearms model numbers. They were in surprisingly decent condition.

Further into the room, a dilapidated forklift was halfway loading a wooden crate off of a huge yellow cargo elevator. On the wooden crate, the words ‘Stable-Tec’ were written. What was concerning however, was the slick of rainbow goo that was leaking out of the bottom.

“The source of our woes, it seems.” Aurora reached into his saddle bag and pulled out a carton of cigarettes. “Stable-Tec strikes again.” 

I traced my eyes down the rainbow slick. It led under the cargo elevator and dripped through the steel grates. Far below, more of the sewage piping was laid. The taint must have gotten through to the water system of the building.

“So it’s polluted all of the pipes…?” I asked carefully. 

Aurora lit his cigarette with a lighter and took a long drag, “That’s not even half our problem, lad. Read the crate.” He flicked a wing toward the forklift. 

Scarlet and I cautiously approached it. On the back side, a label was written ‘Order 4 of 4, Stable 17, MoA approval number 77-41.’

“This is one of four Taint deliveries from our favorite bastard ministry,” Aurora spat. “Why is this one here? And more importantly, where are the other three?” 

“Stable 17…” Scarlet said slowly. “Why would we need something like this?” 

Aurora sighed, holding his cigarette carefully in his wing while he ran a hoof through his graying blue mane, “Look, I know it’s hard for you two to understand. But there was nothing good about any of the pre-war companies. They were each evil in their own little ways. Stable-Tec… well, they were fond of using ponies like lab rats. They tested horrific magical experiments on their ponies for the sake of science.”

“Stable 17 never did anything wrong to us!” Scarlet stamped a hoof, “We didn’t test anything. We treat our ponies fairly.” 

Aurora shrugged, “Yet you’re out here with the rest of us, lass.”

Scarlet’s expression wavered, “that’s different.” 

I trotted over to the cargo elevator. Far above, light was visible through the yellow cage. It must have led straight to the surface. I inspected the controls on a column next to it and saw a small terminal screen among the buttons.

“It’s locked behind a password,” Aurora flicked his spent cigarette on the floor and trotted over it. “Trust me I tried, but unless you’ve got some power tools to cut through the lift cage, we’re not getting out this way.”

I cracked a cocky smile and dramatically stretched my wings like a warmup. “Well, if you’ve got the hacking skills like me…” I approached the controls and typed in ‘warehouse.’

“Please save your applause until the end,” I held up a hoof and leaned against the cage. “Check this out,” I nonchalantly hit ‘enter’ with a wingtip. 

The room suddenly lit up with spinning yellow warning lights and a blaring klaxon screamed in our ears.

A white spotlight clapped on, highlighting me as my eyes shot wide in surprise. 

“INTRUDER DETECTED. DEFENSE PROTOCOL INITIATED.” 

“Midnight!” Scarlet wailed and covered her eyes with her hooves.


XXX

> Chapter Eight: Sins of Our Past
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


Chapter Eight: Sins of Our Past



Scarlet Rose


<><><>


“They shoot now!” I cried, shaking behind a metal crate as sparks flew in every direction. “Luna's bloody flank, why do they shoot now?!” 

After Midnight’s carelessness led to the beginning of our demise, a wave of protectrons suddenly marched out of a hidden panel in the wall. Unlike last time however, these tin cans were armed with laser weapons shooting from their horns. 

Blinding beams of red shot around us like some kind of deadly dance party. Every impact from the lasers dug deep pock marks in the metal crates and flooring around us, showering us with molten metal and sparks. 

Midnight had dove behind a crate on the other side of the room from myself and Aurora. Our biggest problem was that the only gun we had belonged to that stupid colt. 

Midnight’s hunting rifle roared in the metal room, sparking harmlessly off of the much thicker armor of these improved robots.

“Aim for their combat chips!” Aurora yelled over the hail of laser blasts.

“The buck is a ‘combat chip?’” Midnight ducked down and racked his bolt. 

Aurora face-hoofed and stretched out his foreleg, “Just, toss me the gun!”

“No, I’ve got this!” Midnight peeked up and aimed at the closest protectron.

He shot at its glass-topped head, rupturing the circuitry and shutting it down. The protectron crumpled over but another one casually walked over the heap of metal. There had to be at least ten of them.

“You won’t have enough bullets to kill all the buggers, give me the bloody gun!” Aurora hollered, ducking as a laser almost took his hoof off. 

“But-” Midnight clutched his rifle to his chest. 

“Give it to him Luna-dammit!” I screeched. 

Midnight sighed and tucked the rifle in his pegasus wing, he crouched and flung it across the room. The gun clattered and slid at Aurora’s hooves. 

The experienced guard quickly snatched it up and galloped behind a line of crates, getting behind the lead protectron. He slammed into a crate and braced the rifle on top of it, aiming carefully before biting on the firing bit. 

The rifle round smacked into the back of the protectron, causing the robot to stumble but remain standing. The glass dome on top of its fake-pony-head flashed from white to red and it suddenly turned around, doubling its rate of fire and shooting at the remaining robots. 

The laser beams sparked off of the armor of the other protectrons but the overwhelming fire began to do much more damage than anything we could have, tearing limbs or cutting important wires of its comrades. The other robots didn't seem to notice one of their own was even shooting them, they were probably programmed to only shoot certain targets. 

Soon, the rogue protectron had mowed down the entire robot squad and stood alone, spinning in place and blasting every corner of the room with careless fire. The metal horn on its head was glowing nearly white-hot from the intensity of its attacks. 

The glass dome on top of its head suddenly ruptured, toppling the final robo-pony over. Its white eyes flickered off with a high-pitched whine as its red-hot horn sizzled in a pool of oil. Aurora had waited until the last moment to finally put it down. 

“Combat chips, lad,” Aurora ejected a shell from the rifle and crossed over the pile of smoldering robot corpses, “are how you deal with anything made by Robronco.” 

Midnight took the rifle from Aurora and nodded. I gulped as I noticed the bolt was open. It was empty. We were completely out of ammunition, not to mention Midnight lost his pistol earlier too. 

“Well, now what?” Midnight slung the gun over his shoulder. “I can try hacking into the-” 

“No,” I smacked his shoulder, “you’re not touching any more computers.”

Aurora hummed and began searching among the weapon crates around us, “Water, water, everywhere, yet not a drop to drink.”

He paused and back peddled, wiping a hoof along the dusty label on one of them. It read ‘Flash Industries, Hoofington Equestria.”

“Now we’re talking. Com’ere lad, I need your young muscles,” Aurora tapped the crate with a wingtip. 

The two stallions braced behind the steel crate and shoved it off the bottom shelf of the rack. I took a step back as It landed on the floor with a cloud of dust. The contents made a metallic rattle. 

“What’s Flash Industries?” I sat down, watching Aurora fiddle with the lock on the crate. 

“Another bastard company,” he sat back and sighed, “Hoofington was the magic tech hub of Equestria before our Zebra friends decided it needed to become a crater. But right now, they may be our saving grace. You mind if I borrow that bobby pin, lass?”

I tilted my head and grabbed the pin out of my mane. The red hair fell across my face and I blew it aside, “What for?” 

“It’s a miracle you foals made it this far out here,” Aurora sighed as he took the pin in his mouth. “Pay attention now because I only teach this free of charge once,” he winked. 


<><><>


I aimed down the sights of the laser rifle. It was bulky, almost too much for me to hold without reaching a wing out and supporting it.

The crate contained a whole stack of these things. I never saw laser weapons before and frankly, I wasn’t impressed. They were closer to fragile computers than the mechanical marvels of traditional firearms. But, I guess it would get the job done. 

Apparently these things used raw magic crystals and condensed them into bursts of laser energy. The ammo was rare but really efficient if you ever found any. I didn’t know all the details though, that’s unicorn stuff.

Aurora showed us how the protectrons each had a crystal stored in that glass dome in their heads. We could take them and load it into our rifles, effectively giving us hundreds of shots before needing to reload. 

What was more important though, is those crystals could power all sorts of things, including the cargo lift. If you had a hoof for magic tech. 

“So what makes you so good with all this kinda stuff?” Midnight asked as he pointed his rifle at invisible targets around the room.

Aurora was on his back, tinkering with the controls of the cargo lift. “My wife’s a unicorn, if you'd believe it. Only one in town,” he grunted and grabbed a magic crystal and some wiring from a dismantled rifle, shoving them into something beneath the controls. “She’s our resident scientist for any pre-war tech we get to before the Steel Rangers do. I learned a thing or two from her.”

I smiled down at him, “Who is she? I’m glad you two could get married, despite everything.”

Aurora closed the panel and rolled out from beneath the control system, “Amber Night, fitting for a mare who’d fall for a bat, eh? I’ll introduce you to her when we get back.” He slapped a button on the control panel and the lift cage rolled open. 

“In ya’ go now,” he gestured with his wing.

Midnight and I stepped aboard, careful to avoid the puddle of Taint that trailed off the side. The cargo cage rolled back shut. 

“Wait! What about you?” I hit the cage with a hoof. 

“I’ll meet you topside,” Aurora pressed the lift button and we jerked upward. “Somepony’s gotta get rid of the Taint and purge the water system.”

“But we could help-” I was cut off as a wall of concrete filled my vision through the metal mesh.

I looked at Midnight worriedly.

“He’ll be fine,” he waved a wing, “he can obviously take care of himself better than we can.”

The lift ascended at an agonizing pace. Only the light from the slowly approaching door above us gave us an idea of where we were. I flinched as the cables groaned and popped along their ancient rusted spools. I’d much rather fly than use some stupid lift in a cage.

Soon, the lift rolled up to the top level and a pathetic bell rang twice before giving up, letting us know we reached our destination. Through the metal cage, I could see we were back at the warehouse. The flickering fluorescent lights illuminated another loading dock.

“Mr. Bubblegum may still be around,” Midnight lifted his laser rifle as the cage rolled open, “look alive.”

I gulped and tried to lift my own. The heavy rifle was too unwieldy for my taste.

We slowly trotted out of the lift. Pointing our new weapons at every corner as we made our way into the massive empty room. Like the main dock, this one was filled with empty shelves and destroyed crates. Clearly these outer areas were picked clean by looters centuries ago.

A low groan rumbled beside me and I jumped, pointing my gun at one of the closed loading doors. I breathed a sigh of relief, it was just the wind outside.

“B-Birdie came back?” a slimy voice echoed across the warehouse.

Midnight and I both yelled in surprise and faced the opposite wall. The disgusting lump of flesh that was ‘Mr. Bubblegum’ slithered out of a hole from the ceiling, flopping down on a catwalk with a meaty slap. His tentacles writhed around him as he pulled himself across the rickety metal walkway that passed overhead.

“You have got to be kidding me,” Midnight groaned and aimed up at the undulating mass. “Hey, ugly, obviously you’re smart enough to talk, so do you mind just letting us slip by?”

My legs began to shake as I watched the creature slowly approach our position. I steeled my nerves and took a slow breath. I wasn’t going to freeze. We were either gonna shoot this poor bloke or walk out in peace.

“Hah… Birdie, f-friend.” Mr. Bubblegum slipped his way directly above us. His deformed and slick body drooped partially through the metal grating. “H-help us, friend.”

“‘Help?’” I coughed, catching the stench of his rotting flesh. “After what you did to us?”

“Bat friend,” it said slowly, “Birdie friend… Help us. End us. End… this.”

I furrowed my brow as I heard that. The creature was breathing heavily, two of its tentacles acting like forelegs as it gestured to itself.

“You want us to – kill you?” I lowered my gun.

“E-end… us. End. This.” Mr. Bubblegum repeated without any change of vocal inflection.

The mound of flesh suddenly launched itself over the railing. Midnight and I both yelped in surprise and I fluttered my wings, flapping off to the side as Mr. Bubblegum splattered onto the ground at our hooves.

The mound of meat slowly crawled itself back together, rearranging itself into a similar, but different form. The tumor-ridden head was now in a new location, the withered legs sprawled out in a star pattern around it. I took a timid step back as one of its milky eyes looked at me. I could almost see the pain behind its dead expression.

“I-I cannot,” its body-mouth said solemnly. “I cannot… end us.”

I felt my heart drop as I realized what this creature was trying to tell us. It was invincible. Or, close to it. Despite falling nearly two stories, this mound of flesh didn’t die. Nor did bullets do any measurable damage. It had no say if it wanted to live or not. Luna knew how long this thing had been around, aimlessly wandering the halls of this warehouse. It was a sentence worse than death.

I flinched as a tentacle gently raised in the air. The tip of the fleshy appendage touched the barrel of my laser rifle.

“This.” it took a labored breath. “This. Destroys… molecules.”

Midnight gave me a sidelong glance. He was pointing his rifle at Mr. Bubblegum the whole time. “What’s he trying to tell us?”

“He wants to die.” I said slowly. “He can’t do it himself. But, maybe these guns can?”

Mr. Bubblegum gently pressed the barrel of my laser rifle against its head. I quivered at the thought of how certain this poor thing was. I tried to let go of the firing bit, but felt a tentacle tap on the barrel again.

“Friend,” it said slowly, the hole in the middle of its body opened and closed as it articulated its words somehow, “showed us… showed me, life. From before.”

A tentacle reached into its mouth-body and pulled out a large wad of partially chewed bubblegum. It delicately placed the slobbery piece of gum on top of my rifle.

“Are you sure?” I almost whispered. I couldn’t believe I felt pity for such a vicious creature. But, how couldn’t I?

“P-Please” Mr. Bubblegum’s white eyes stared at me.

I looked at midnight around the grip on my firing bit. He lowered his gun, watching me with a concerned expression.

I nervously looked into the eyes of the creature before me. He stared back, his unfazed eyes hiding a mixture of pain and desperation.

“Why?” I whispered, staring into his gaze. 

“T-too long. We… I hurt too many,” he replied slowly, “Want to go… Home. Home before bombs.” He pressed the barrel of the gun harder against his head and closed his eyes. “Been r-ready… Too long. Please.”

I felt my jaw tighten as I stared down the barrel of my weapon. This was a mercy kill. It was different. I wasn’t hurting anypony. I had to do the right thing, no matter how much I felt he didn’t deserve this after what he did to ponies… Or how much my heart ached at the thought of what good he probably did deserve before becoming this abomination.

Regardless of what I felt; I wouldn’t let myself freeze this time, not for my sake, but for his sake.

I bit on the trigger.

A percussive blast shot from the barrel of my gun, momentarily blinding me as a flash of red zapped the flesh that was pressed directly against the focus-point of the energy weapon. Mr. Bubblegum’s body lurched backwards from the magical impact but suddenly began to glow like an ember. Its body quickly disintegrated, crumbling to ash as a wave of magical energy overcame it.

I stared wide eyed, watching the pile of ash spread across the concrete at my hooves. Its entire fleshy body had completely cremated. I had no idea how powerful these weapons were. I dropped the gun and let it clatter on the floor. The world blurred as I felt tears well in my eyes.

I sat down and began to cry. 

“Scar,” Midnight slowly approached me, “hey, Scar, it’s okay,” he wrapped a wing around my shoulder. 

I leaned my forehead against him as I stared at the cracked concrete below. His gesture helped more than I cared to admit, but I still kicked myself internally for how ridiculous I was being.

“Why am I crying?” I coughed, “that thing was a mutant that tried to kill us.”

Midnight backed up and looked at me, “I know,” he said softly then looked down at the ashes, “it’s not sad because of what it was. But it’s sad because of who it was. He didn’t deserve this fate, but you helped him.”

I wiped a foreleg across my face and cleared my throat. I didn’t need to cry over something like this. This world sucked. It was awful. But this wasn’t the only thing so terrible. I picked up my laser rifle and watched as the wad of chewed gum fell atop the ashes.

Maybe his world wasn’t so bad before ours. Maybe that was why I felt the way I did. Ponies from before the war didn’t deserve any of this yet were dealt the worst cards of all.

“Let’s go,” I sat straighter and tucked my rifle around the strap of my carbine across my back. I tried to compose myself and began trotting toward the stairway of the catwalk. I needed to see what was upstairs.


<><><>


Midnight and I scoured the upper floors, gently flapping our wings as we tread around precarious holes in the floor. It wasn’t hard to find the ‘home’ of that creature, all we had to do was follow the slick lines of Luna-knows-what that coated the floors, leading to its nest.

We came upon a room that was completely filled to the brim with junk. Tables, terminals, picture frames, lunchboxes, all arranged in a way that almost enshrined the objects. The dimly lit room was a sort of organized chaos, with a table featuring stacked cups around an old radio, or a skeleton of a thestral propped up in a seat with a birthday hat on its skull. This was clearly the doings of Mr. Bubblegum as he remembered the life he had before his gruesome purgatory.

“Yup, this is creepy. Are we done now?” Midnight cringed from the doorway, watching me pick through the piles of rubbish.

“Not until I know his name,” I said flatly, scooping piles of refuse off of a table. “He’s got to have something around here.”

“Or not, it’s been two centuries, Scar,” Midnight deadpanned.

He suddenly sat down and fumbled his hooves as I tossed him his Tidus 11.

“See? Now this trip was worth it,” I spat, reeling from the questionable taste of the pistol grip. “Now shut your trap and help me give this bloke a proper send off.”

Midnight and I picked through the junk and eventually uncovered some things of note. We found a horseshoe box that easily contained twenty empty cartons of ‘Pony Pop Triple Bubble.’ Inside the box, a slip of faded paper had some kind of password and a small hoofwritten note that read: Save one for a rainy day~

I could only imagine the password was for that safe outside. Nestled in the bottom of the box, a faded and yellowed plastic ID card finally gave me what I was looking for.

At the top of the card was a picture of a smiling young stallion. He was an earth pony with a bright pink mane and a light blue coat. Apparently he was a security pony and had only been hired a few months before Tidus 77. He’d probably barely been in Transylvania a year before the world fell apart, maybe even traveled far from home and family for this job. Along the bottom, the words ‘Officer Bubble Pop’ were printed.

“Bubble Pop,” I stared at the ID card, “he was our age.”

Midnight inspected the card and pointed below it, “it’s got a barcode on it. Think we can access anything?”

I flipped the card over and nodded, “maybe the terminal downstairs. Come on, let’s go.”

I placed the card into the horseshoe box and tucked it under my wing. We carefully made our way back out of the room and across the perilous upper floors, eventually finding our way to the catwalk that led to the second loading dock below. I was curious to see if we could find the remains of the other Renaissance Guard that came with Aurora, but there wasn’t anything to be found.

We crossed the floor of the dock and I paused briefly at the remains of Bubble Pop. His ashes were scattered neatly across the floor. I set the box down and scooped some of the ashes in my wing, pouring them into the box and sealing it up again. Midnight looked like he was going to say something, but kept it to himself.

Midnight and I crossed another door from the dock back into the wandering halls of the ground floor offices, finally making our way back to the front security desk. The blue pegasus was about to sit at the computer before I shoved a foreleg in front of him.

“No more computers,” I gently pushed him back and sat before the old terminal. Midnight rolled his eyes and watched over my shoulder. 

I looked along the bottom of the terminal and spotted a slot that looked about right. I carefully inserted the aged ID card and smiled as the computer beeped and a new screen appeared.

Ofc. Pop, IF security Badge ID BP-1176

The screen flashed back to its original layout and I queued the cursor down to the lines that contained the redacted information. I hit the enter key and read as new lines wrote across the screen.

I.M.P Delivery Received on 10/18/77
Client: Ministry of Arcane Sciences - Transylvanian Division 
Courier: Ministry of Awesome

Below it, a few file logs were available to read. I selected each of them as I read:

FROM: Chief Rock Bottom
TO: Sgt. Nova
CC: Ofc. Bubble Pop
SUBJECT: Storage for Stable-Tec
“Nova, we’ve got another one of those glasses-pushers asking to bring this shipment downstairs. It's due for that new bat pony project they’ve been building out of Smokey Mountain. Apparently our FIREARMS warehouse is becoming a trash heap for every government goon in the area. Send the new guy to do it, I know he’s not cleared on the forklift yet but we can’t afford any of the experienced guards away from their posts since those terror attacks in Vanhoover last month.”

FROM: Mr. Turner
TO: All Employees
SUBJECT: Maintenance
“All, please be aware that our faucets and toilets will be out of order from 12pm to 5pm this afternoon as maintenance works on the pipes again. I don’t know how many times I have to say this, but FLUSHABLE wipes are NOT FLUSHABLE. Don’t believe everything you read on a package.”

I smirked at their issues and moved down the line:

FROM: Sgt. Nova
TO: Chief Rock Bottom
CC: Ofc. Bubble Pop 
SUBJECT: Ofc. Pop
“Hey boss, the new guy’s been out sick for a week now. I told him he’s got to show up tomorrow or he better book the next train back to Appleoosa. Though I have to admit, it’s been nice not hearing the constant lip smacking in the guard shack recently.”

FROM: Mr. Turner
TO: Chief Rock Bottom
CC: Ofc. Bubble Pop
SUBJECT: What did you do?
“Rock. Meet me in my office immediately.”

I frowned and tried to queue further down the list. There weren’t any more entries after the last one.

“Bombs fell,” Midnight spoke over my shoulder.

“Yeah, I guess so.” I stood up and yanked the ID card out of the terminal and placed it back in the box. “I guess we know what happened to Bubble Pop afterall.”

“I wonder what they meant about Stable 17,” Midnight spoke behind me as he followed me out to the loading dock. “I mean, obviously they were delivering that Taint stuff, but look at what it does to ponies.”

“It’s called ‘I.M.P’, whatever that is,” I tilted my head. “It was from the Ministry of Arcane Sciences and was mishandled by poor Pop back there. It was just another chemical spill that went wrong. The Stable probably used it for fertilizer or whatever. It’s not like the Ministry wanted ponies to turn into mutants.”

I wanted to believe the words I said. So badly. Because truthfully it bothered me to no end imagining that our Stable had some sinister motive behind it. I pushed it to the back of my mind as we stepped over the cold metal carcasses of the protectrons in the main dock, walking back out to the loading ramp.

I led Midnight out into the frigid night and to the corner of the lot, where a pile of rubble from a collapsed wall was spread across the tarmac. I carefully set the horseshoe box down and began sorting through the pile of stones.

“What are you-”

“What do you think, Middy?” I sighed, collecting anything larger than my hoof, “I’m burying him.”

Midnight watched me for a moment and then began to sort through the stones too. Soon, we had enough to cover the box entirely as a miniature burial mound. It was a small gesture, but it was the least I could do for a pony who put his life in my hooves. It was my responsibility to see it through to the end.

I stood and brushed myself off with a wingtip. I looked at Midnight, his face contemplative as he stared at the mound as well. His mane was unkempt from everything that transpired tonight. I reached my wing up and brushed his black and red mane back from his face. He started and looked at me.

“Thank you,” I said softly. “I know, it’s ridiculous.”

“It isn’t,” he shook his head. He locked his golden eyes with mine, speaking with sincerity, “I understand.”

I looked up at him and smiled faintly. 

“You lovebirds ready to head out?” the familiar voice of Aurora startled us both. 

“Ahh!” I chirped, “We’re not–!”

“You really have to stop sneaking up on us like that,” Midnight interrupted. “Where were you?”

Aurora tightened his saddlebag and new laser rifle around his back. “I shut off the send line from the building. Nopony really uses tap water these days – not like we have any pressure – but it should keep the Taint from spreading.”

I sighed and regained my composure, “You mean the I.M.P?” I asked. 

Aurora paused and looked at me, “I.M.P?”

“That’s what it’s called,” I shrugged, “we found out in one of those terminals. Nothing about where the other shipments are, though.”

“Right,” Aurora ran a hoof through his mane and looked at the moon. It was just barely peeking above the treeline that surrounded the buildings. “We should report back to Major Starline, mission accomplished. Mostly thanks to you two, but I knew you both were special from the moment I saw ya.”

I tilted my head at him. Did he really mean that, like everypony else being so surprised to see us back in Renaissance? Or was he just being a nice buck?

Aurora spread his wings and took off, hovering above us as he waited expectantly.

Midnight nervously shuffled his wings and looked back up the road, “I, uh, I think I’ll trot back.”

I felt a frown tug at my lips as I looked at Midnight’s new set of wings. He had a perfect thestral left wing and a perfect pegasus right wing. Yet together, they were nearly useless. Whatever mutation overcame him didn’t necessarily harm him, but just further drove the idea of him being half of each. It was like some kind of cruel joke.

“We’ll trot back together,” I pat Midnight’s shoulder reassuringly. “Maybe we can point out some flying tips?” I looked up at Aurora.

Aurora gazed up at the moon one more time and sighed heavily, landing on the pavement with soft hoof clops. “Fine, we’ll teach the lad how to fly like a bat.”


<><><>


“Nay laddie, your other wing!” Aurora shouted from above midnight.

“Don’t listen to him, lean into your feathered wing!” I shouted from below him.

Midnight flapped desperately and spiraled out of control, barely getting his hooves beneath him as he landed on the dirt path and galloped off the landing. His right wingtip, the feathered one, stalled that time. But, oh who’s gonna listen to the mare? Nopony apparently.

“You know what? Maybe I won’t use either wing,” Midnight groaned in frustration and trotted further ahead to blow off steam.

I leveled my wings and looked up at Aurora who flew above the forest. I rolled my eyes. This wasn’t going anywhere, especially if Aurora and I disagreed on everything.

“Just, let me handle this okay?” I cried up at him.

Aurora looked down at me and shrugged, climbing higher to the low hanging clouds that were gleaming with the setting moon.

We had spent the last few miles trying to get Midnight to take off and glide in a straight line. Foal stuff, really. But the poor buck couldn’t get his wings level. It was like he had to hold them at two different angles all of the time. That may not sound difficult but imagine trying to write your name forwards and backwards with both your hooves in opposite directions. It's sorta like that. 

Thestral wings, and I imagine pegasus wings too, were built to work in tandem. It was like they were wired together in our brains or something. That meant that we always had equal and symmetrical control of the small things like edge angle and flapping in synchronization. Talented fliers figured out how to control those small things separately and could pull off some crazy acrobatics. Kinda like how everypony can trot but not everypony can dance. Unfortunately, the only way to get to that point was a lot of practice.

I spread my wings wide and let myself descend slowly, flapping as I leveled off at my usual height just above Midnight’s head.

“Middy, you’ve just gotta keep trying. It’ll click, I promise!” I tried to encourage him.

Midnight just huffed and kept looking along the path, “easy for you to say. I can’t do the one thing I was so good at doing. Do you know what that feels like?”

I drew my lips, I guess I didn’t really know. They always said that flying for a pegasus was more natural than even breathing. Rumors said they could even glide for miles along the air currents above the clouds while fast asleep. I couldn’t imagine the frustration he felt, but I wasn’t going to give up so easily.

“What if I hold your wingtip for you?” I flapped above him. “I know what the bat wing should do, you know what the bird wing should do. So we each focus on the things we know and we do it together.”

Midnight recoiled and looked up at me, “Hold my-... Scar, are you serious?”

I began to pet my mane absently. Like hoof-holding, flying wing in wing was pretty normal among… couples. It was an intimate gesture, I know, but it wasn’t like we were gonna be all over each other. I’d just be grabbing on and wrangling the dang thing! I just wanted to help!

Midnight sighed heavily and spread his wings, arching them over his back as he picked up speed, “Don’t drop me, okay?”

I looked at him in surprise but smiled, descending to just a few inches above the path and flapping my wings to stay in line with him.

Midnight galloped, spreading his wings to full extent and letting them fill with air. He quickly flapped them at the same time and I reached a hoof out, gently nudging the leading edge of his thestral wing to where I knew it needed to be for take-off.

“Okay now keep flapping,” I fluttered higher and flew directly above him, holding my hoof at the base of his thestral wing to keep the angle on course as he repeated the motion. 

Midnight flapped and gained altitude, continuing to flap steadily as we rose a few hooves off the path and gained enough speed to fly at a proper pace.

Once fast enough, Midnight spread his wings to glide but immediately began to wobble again. I quickly banked left, lining up beside him and tipped his wing tip with my own as necessary to keep level flight. I was careful to only trim the wing up or down very subtly, letting him balance himself.

“Flap again, our wings are slower than feathered ones,” I reminded him as he began to rapidly lose altitude.

Midnight’s expression was completely focused as he flapped his left wing harder than his right to maintain level propulsion.

He began to climb higher and pick up speed again. I smiled as I glided beside him, only occasionally nudging his wing with my own as we flew tens of hooves above the path, nearly level with the forest canopy.

“Luna’s grace,” Aurora called from far above us, “did ya finally figure it out, lad?”

Midnight’s focus broke and he almost rolled completely over on his left wing but I quickly banked into him and laid his wing atop mine. We leveled off together, our wings supporting each other as we glided through the night.

I looked over at him and smiled brightly, “See! It’s working!”

Midnight took a moment to look back at me, his eyes softened and he finally broke into a smile in return. His wing felt nice as it was held on top of mine. I never flew like that with somepony before but I quickly understood why it was considered such a close thing to do. We depended on each other to stay aloft while our wings were essentially flying together as one between us.

He held his gaze a moment more, his tufted blue ears bent back and a hint of a blush fell on his features.

I felt my own face warm as he looked at me like that. I knew I said we wouldn’t, but we flew wing in wing together. The stars and moon around us almost made this a beautiful moment if we weren’t rapidly descending toward the forest again.

“Middy, flap!” I widened my eyes in realization and peeled my gaze from him. 

Midnight blinked and looked forward. “Whoa, crap!” he shouted, banking away from me as we let a tree pass between us. We had flown clear into the forest.

I inverted my wingtips and rolled to the side, dodging another tree as we flew clear off a bend in the path. I fluttered and desperately looked for Midnight through the thick brush, I felt my heart quicken as I couldn’t see him at all.

“Midnight?” I cried into the forest, flaring my wings and hovering as I craned my ears to hear him.

I felt my ears perk as I heard… laughter?

I looked up and a streak of white light passed over the forest canopy. White light that trailed behind a blue pegabat flying gleefully above. Ethereal looking plumes of white embers glittered behind him and gently spiraled into the forest around me. I quickly climbed out of the forest canopy, hovering above the treeline and felt my jaw drop as I stared at him.

He was flying.

Just like I had seen him before, when he fended off the ghoul, he was being propelled by something that could only be described as ‘starlight’ itself. He flapped his wings and rolled, white streaks flaring from his feathers off his right and from the membrane tips off his left. If he wasn’t half pegasus already, I wouldn’t believe I’d ever see a thestral fly as gracefully or quickly as he was then.

I quickly flew after him, catching up as he banked in a circle, laughing in glee and flipping inverted.

“Scarlet! I’m flying!” he cried and flapped harder, flying vertically up towards the clouds.

“Yes, I can see that,” I huffed, flapping desperately to keep up, “now can you slow down please?!”

“I don’t think I can!” Midnight chuckled and pulled into a vertical loop. 

I circled around and joined him on his dive back down, I wasn’t going nearly fast enough to do something like that. Heck, I didn’t think I could even if I wanted to. It’s not like we had enough room in the orchard back in the Stable to practice stuff like that.

“Holy Luna, I don’t even know how I did that!” Midnight flared his wings and slowed down slightly, finally giving me a break.

His wings were glowing along the leading edges, like some sort of magical aurora was wrapped around them. I would have been impressed but I was too distracted by the fact we kept flying higher and higher.

I nervously looked down at the ground. I never flew this high before in my life. And neither did he. We were already past the first layer of low hanging clouds.

“We should land,” I gulped and looked over at him, “I mean, I’m glad you’ve figured this out and all but this is kinda scary.”

“What?” Midnight looked down and his eyes widened, “Oh, wow.”

The light around Midnight’s wings suddenly winked out. He did a double take on either side and then looked at me, “Oh… wow.”

He began to wobble and I quickly banked over to support his left wing, but the air was thinner up here. My EFS happened to have a handy-dandy altimeter and right now, it was saying we were over five thousand hooves off the ground.

“Luna’s moon, mate,” I strained, trying to keep us level as we both flapped our outer wings against the air, “we need to descend. Now.”

Midnight and I slowly circled down, maintaining our glide as we held each other up. Eventually he was able to glide on his own and I separated from beside him, using my wingtip to correct him occasionally again.

Far below, I spotted Aurora sitting… on a cloud? We continued our spiral until we were within earshot.

“In all me days,” Aurora called up to us while he was quite literally laying on the cloud. “Never thought I’d see that.”

“Same could be said here,” Midnight strained as he fought to keep his wings level, “how’re you doing that?”

“Doing what?” Aurora leaned over the cloud as we descended past him.

Midnight and I shared a look, “Scar, do you think we can…?” he began.

An excited smile slowly crossed my lips, “let’s find out!” 

We pushed together and climbed back up to Aurora. Already, Midnight was able to climb up with only the slightest little nudges here and there. He was definitely getting the hang of his new hardware.

We approached the edge of the cloud and I timidly reached a hoof out and tried to place weight on it. I yelped as I fell through and my vision was obscured by frigid droplets of water that clung to my fur and mane. I quickly flapped back up and grabbed Midnight, who had involuntarily begun to descend again.

“Lass, you’ve gotta will it,” Aurora smacked his forehead with a hoof above me. “What, you never saw a cloud before?”

“What do you mean ‘will it?’” Midnight screwed his brow, “like, this– whoa…” he alighted on the cloud beside Aurora.

I carefully lined up beside them and tried to land on the cloud, imagining it was some kind of solid platform, like a branch, or a porch–

My hoof touched down on a cool soft surface. 

“Luna’s moon…” I mumbled, delicately setting my weight on the cold pillowy substance.

It felt like a cold damp mattress – which doesn’t sound appealing at all, but I promise it felt amazing. Midnight and I carefully trotted around on the surface of the cloud, pushing down on it and swatting the vapors of air around like fog.

“Good goddesses, you two really are foals,” Aurora sighed. “Well, now that you two had a romantic flight and got to play on a cloud, I believe we’ve got somewhere to be,” he gestured over his shoulder.

Midnight and I looked over the side of the cloud. From where we were, hundreds of hooves above the ground, we could see miles into the horizon. The ground below us slowly moved by as the frigid autumn air pushed the cloud along its path. Around, the sickly brown forest expanded in every direction, only the slightest clearings and rooftops of abandoned settlements gave any idea that Transylvania was inhabited at all.

Following the path far below, we could see the dim glow of Renaissance in the distance. The moon had nearly set and bathed the night in a brilliant pale aura. Twinkling lights and blossoms of fire danced around the perimeter of the town and from within.

“It’s beautiful,” I said softly. 

“Yeah…” Midnight whispered beside me, though I could have sworn his gaze was mostly on me. 

I tilted my head as I looked at the town more closely, “why’s it twinkling?”

“What?” Aurora sat up quickly. He stiffened as he caught sight of the town. He quickly spread his wings and looked back at us, concern splayed across his expression;

“Because Renaissance is under attack.”


XXX

> Chapter Nine: A Renaissance Faire
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


Chapter Nine: A Renaissance Faire



Scarlet Rose


<><><>


Aurora’s dark blue tail waved in the wind far ahead of us. The older stallion had elected to fly straight toward town with Midnight and myself far behind in tow. I felt my chest tighten with fear as the occasional bright flash and following deep ‘boom’ would resound across the dark forest below us. The town slowly grew bigger as we approached and it became clear that the twinkling I saw earlier were fires set across various houses.

Though Midnight still struggled to fly, the leap from the tall cloud gave us precious altitude for a straight but wobbly flight as I helped him stay true. Earlier, I was so elated to fly alongside him; watching him smile as we flew wing in wing, the feeling of him against my side, it warmed my chest in a way I wasn’t familiar with. But the cold realization of what may be happening to our new home quickly washed that all away.

“Look,” Midnight pointed a hoof below us.

We were flying a few hundred hooves above the forest and nearly made it to the treeline that bordered Renaissance not far ahead. I glanced down at the treeline and spotted a group of ponies gathered in a clearing.

We flew by quickly, but from what I could tell, they were all earth ponies. Every single one of them was clad in black and yellow combat armor. They all wore similar styled helmets with some kind of respirator and visor combination sporting a solid metal cap and a yellow symbol painted upon them. Every earth pony carried a battle-saddle mounted weapon.

I flinched as a chorus of cracks and booms suddenly erupted from the treeline below us. I widened my eyes as hundreds of white smoke plumes erupted from the treetops and screamed up toward us!

“Midnight, dive!” I shouted and banked just in time for a small rocket to shoot between us.

“Whoa!” Midnight almost lost control, “The hell is that?!”

Midnight and I both descended, as quickly as the poor bloke could with his unsteady flight, and leveled just at the tops of the dead pine trees. Our hooves and wings barely skimmed the thin branches as we watched the salvo of rocket artillery fly overhead.

The rockets’ engines sputtered and burnt out as they continued their parabolic trajectory over us. I watched with wide eyes as they made their terminal vector, clearing the wooden wall at a steep angle and littering the buildings and streets of the medieval town with a crackle of explosions. Thermal warheads shot white hot sparks in every direction, setting the thatched roofs of houses ablaze. 

“Good goddesses,” I squeaked with a hoof over my mouth in horror.

Who knew what sorts of victims fell to such a careless barrage. The town had mothers and foals for Luna’s sake.

We cleared past the treeline and just made it above the swath of dead plains the town sat within. I spotted the telltale armor of Night Watch guards within the town walls. They began rushing toward the buildings, guns at the ready and pails of water being passed down from one of the nearby wells. We were dangerously close to the city at this point.

I pumped my wings and flew before Midnight, turning and halting him into an unsteady hover. I stared into his eyes worriedly.

“We need to leave,” I looked at the dark forest we had come from, “we can hide, they won’t know-”

“No, we need to help,” Midnight said firmly.

“What?” I shrieked, “Middy, are you mental? There’s a goddess-damned army attacking!”

Midnight flapped harder as he began to lose altitude, I grabbed his shoulder and hoisted him back level. He held my hoof and looked at me determinedly. He was serious.

My jaw began quivering in fear as I watched the town burn not far behind us. “How can we even make a difference?” I pleaded, “I- I don’t know what to do.”

Midnight’s eyes softened as he looked at me, he opened his mouth to say something but was cut off just as all hell broke loose.

A roar of battle cries and hoof stomps rushed from the forest. We looked down in surprise to see a group, maybe sixty to eighty strong, gallop out into the open field and charge straight toward Renaissance. The crowd hadn’t noticed us, but it was only a matter of time before we were singled out flying above them. We were stuck out in the open.

Midnight took my hoof and pulled me in close. I yelped as he tucked in his wings and we fell straight down toward the thick grass. Being a flier, I wasn’t exactly used to uncontrolled falling. I squeezed my eyes shut as I felt my stomach lurch from zero gravity.

“Oof!” I grunted as Midnight suddenly flared his wings and tried to slow down, too late, and we crumpled as a heap atop each other.

Midnight rolled off of me and laid low, “Stay quiet and duck in the tall grass, they won’t see us.”

We were in the middle of an open field between the forces of Luna-knew-what and the only safe haven left in Transylvania completely ablaze. ‘Staying quiet’ was not an easy task.

Midnight had a valid point though, the entire force was made up of earth ponies. They didn’t have the advantage of night vision. The grass was nearly half my height. Maybe we had a chance.

I knelt down lower and my world suddenly became enveloped by the smell of dry grass. For just a moment, I could only hear the sounds of the dead blades softly swishing in the gentle wind. I felt Midnight tense against my side and I laid my head down lower, even flattening my ears hoping that would somehow help our stealth.

The ground started shaking. The distant sound of a small army of hooves galloping came closer and grew in intensity. A lone high caliber gunshot pierced the night, swiftly followed by a salvo of rifles echoing afterwards. The Renaissance Night Watch began their defense.

I flinched while the supersonic bullets cracked overhead, followed by cries of pain as the incoming forces were laid under fire. The watch towers and natural night vision of those that were within offered a massive advantage. The guards had some serious trigger discipline, spreading out their fire to leave a constant barrage of lead.

“Midnight,” I whispered and flinched, fighting to keep my eyes from twitching at every crack of a bullet passing overhead. “I think they’re gonna cross on top of us!”

The thunderous wave of sound came upon us, I saw hoof steps part the grass before my eyes as dirt and grass were kicked onto my back. My heartbeat raced while I tried to stay still.

Oh Luna, please don’t step on me, please don’t step on me.

I felt a sharp pain at the base of my back followed by a grunt as a charging soldier slipped on my bloody tail of all things and stumbled into the grass.

I involuntarily let out an, “Eep!”

Ouch! That bucking tosser! I mentally screamed and felt tears well up on the edges of my eyes.
 
Midnight shoved a hoof on my mouth. I looked up to him and caught his panicked eyes in the moonlight.

Maybe he didn’t hear that?

“What the hell was that?” the fallen soldier yelled as he slowly rose to all four hooves, allowing his comrades to pass him. His helmeted head leaned forward in what I believed was a squint in the darkness.

Oh, shit! I gripped Midnight’s foreleg with my hooves.

Just as the soldier probably spotted my scarlet mane in the fading light, a familiar thestral took the moment to pounce.

“Hey-” the soldier was cut off when Aurora suddenly popped out of the grass, wings flared.
 
The experienced stallion gripped the handle of a combat knife in his jaw, baring it to full extent the moment he made contact with the soldier. They both collapsed in the grass and disappeared from sight. 

“Did he get him?” I whispered.

“I- I’m not sure, be ready to gallop if we have to,” Midnight responded, squinting as if we could see anything through the thick grass.

Around us the sound of the charge trailed off, followed by ponies barking orders and the chatter of gunfire. The attacking ponies must have gotten close enough to see and began trading a crossfire with the defending guards.

The grass ahead of us jumbled and swished. I felt my heartbeat in my ears. I hoped to Luna the soldier didn’t win and was coming back for us. I held even tighter onto Midnight.

“He’s down,” the accented voice of Aurora softly spoke, “let’s crawl to the west and try the main gate.” The gray stallion nonchalantly stepped out of the grass and past us.

Midnight and I let out a massive sigh of relief and nodded. I had no bloody clue where he had gone earlier, or why he came back, but I was glad this old bloke cared enough about us to save our skins.

We turned tail and began crawling through the field. The assault force was about two hundred hooves away with all of their backs turned from us. We had an opportunity to get the hay out of here.

Aurora suddenly lifted a hoof. We halted our crawling and I peeked my head over the grass. 

Ahead of us was one of the ponies launching rockets into town and terrorizing our new home. He had a huge-arse tube strapped onto a battle saddle, and quite frankly, I had no idea what it was. I only knew about guns, not bloody rocket launchers!

Aurora sat on his flanks and reached down, unslinging the laser rifle we salvaged from the warehouse. He moved some sort of dial on the side of the weapon before raising it to his shoulder. He gripped the bit lightly and aimed for the one-pony-artillery-force.

*Blang*

A disturbingly bright yet quiet shot rang out into the frozen night. The brief blast of red light pierced the darkness as the laser instantly struck the artillery-pony’s head. The burning beam punched a clean hole in the side of his helmet, leaving only a smoldering red ring in the metal as he crumpled over.

Thankfully nopony seemed to notice the shot. It was barely louder than the chatter of the battle reflecting back from the surrounding mountains and every eye was turned toward town behind us.

I blinked in shock. I had seriously underestimated these energy weapons. They were quiet and they melted bloody steel. Maybe I’d have to give them another chance.

Aurora hit a release on the side of the rifle and ejected a red-hot magic crystal. A trail of steam followed while it fell onto the dirt and cooled, resembling a lump of coal more than a magical gem. He reached into his bags and replaced it with a new properly glowing white gem.

Aurora had made his rifle single-shot with that dial, somehow upping its power. But those crystals were rare enough as is. Maybe energy weapons were still kinda gimmicky after all.

He swung the rifle onto his back, looking over his shoulder and nodding. Midnight and I returned the nod and we continued our hunched-over canter towards the west.

We maintained our awkward low running until we were on the opposite side of the town, where we stood up and galloped full speed along the well-worn dirt path that led to the front gate of Renaissance. We just barely made it past a watchtower before a group of three guards intercepted us, rifles drawn. Midnight and I immediately halted in our tracks but Aurora kept approaching.

“Stop right there or we’ll open fire!” a gruff buck sounded into the night. It was Striker, that pony who gave Midnight a hard time when we first arrived yesterday.

“Stand down private, we’re on the same side,” Aurora barked as he slowed down to a trot and stopped only a few hooves before the guards.

“Cap’n Borealis! Bloody norah we thought you were dead!” Striker lowered his weapon in disbelief.

“I knew he ain’t easy to kill,” a young mare smiled behind Striker.

“What’s the situation?” Aurora asked as he unslung his laser rifle and tossed it to Striker. “Gimme that,” he gestured to the private’s IF-4 carbine.

Striker reluctantly parted with his gun and ammunition and another stallion stepped forward. We had seen him in pajamas earlier, Sergeant Strafe, if I remember correctly. This time, he was in proper combat barding.

“Sir, it’s the Daylight. They skipped past railtown and came straight for us; it was a diversion. We’ve barely got enough guards to cover town. Fighting is primarily to the east, they’ve been barraging us all night and finally made a push not long ago. Medical personnel are collecting the wounded at a makeshift field hospital in the southern sector. Dr. Bone’s hospital was too close to the fighting to treat civilians,” Sergeant Strafe reported as Aurora absorbed all the information.

“Where are my ponies currently?” Aurora asked absently while he loaded magazines into various pouches of his armor.

“Your squad is stalking on the northern edge of town, they’re flanking the main assault force. Lieutenant Ballpoint is currently in charge of them and moved to take out the rocket launchers,” Sergeant-Pajamas reported on a dime.

“Good, that colt knows what he’s doing. Continue with whatever orders were given to ya’ and prioritize saving civilians,” Aurora commanded and returned the salute that the sergeant gave before they all took off flying towards the front lines. 

He turned and faced us, “I’m going to rendezvous with Ball and assume command again, you two… Uh, just do what you can to help. Most importantly – stay safe. Hide if you have to,” Aurora ordered us.

“Who are the Daylight?” I quickly asked, “What do they want?”

Aurora paused mid wing-rise and looked at us, “They’re evil bastards is what they are. They’re some fanatical sun-loving cult that got too powerful for their own good. They think us ‘bat ponies’ are a sore sight and want to take Transylvania for themselves.”

Midnight sat silently while he listened, his expression was grim with familiarity.

“Don’t get caught by them, lass,” Aurora flapped his wings, “You’d be a terrible loss to us all.”

I furrowed my brow as I watched him fly to the north. 

“What’s he on about?” I looked at Midnight.

The blue pegabat sat still a moment longer before speaking, “Remember my dreams about you?”

I sighed and rolled my eyes, “Mate, now’s seriously not the time. I don’t even want to hear what sort of messed up-”

“No, Scar, really,” Midnight explained, “I’ve almost had like, visions about this.”

I stared at him for a moment but nodded for him to continue. I sincerely hoped he wasn’t going to enter a brain-damaged ramble again.

Midnight explained the last few dreams he had. About the alicorn, Orpheus, the world of Umbris and the vision he had being in the so-called ‘Prince of Twilight’s’ head. Supposedly this 'thestral prince' faced a war against the Solar Empire during princess Luna’s banishment. At least that’s what Midnight’s description sounded like if it followed the timeline of history correctly.

I sincerely doubted any of it was true to history though. We never heard anything about any other alicorns besides our two goddesses, Luna and Celestia, and their entourage of alicorn princesses. If there was an alicorn who reigned over thestral kind and commanded the same celestial power as a goddess, I was certain we, the thestrals, would have heard about it by now.

But, the way Midnight explained it sounded like he really believed what he saw. Normally, I’d dismiss it, but recent events had me wanting to believe him more. It aligned with what ponies were talking about out here and might even explain whatever strange magic Midnight accidentally discovered. Not to mention this attack tonight.

“Is that why your wings did that… stuff?” I asked.

Midnight shrugged, “Probably. I can’t control it, it just sorta happens whenever.”

A resounding whoosh and boom had us both jump. We were still in the middle of a battle that could only get more terrible. And unless we wanted to see our only home get destroyed by these sunshine-worshiping fanatics, we had to start lending a hoof where we could.

“Midnight,” I looked around at the orange glow lighting up the night and sighed, “Look, I believe you, okay? But right now, we need to focus on Renaissance. We can delve into your fever dreams when this is all said and done. I promise.”

Midnight cracked a small smile at my reassurance, “You don’t know how much I needed to hear you say that.”

“I still think you’re looney, mate,” I spread my wings, “but this whole world is looney too.”

I helped him take off into a hover and we crossed over the wooden walls.


<><><>


We wound through the houses until we spotted a series of olive drab tents laid out in the middle of an intersection. The sounds of moaning, crying, and screams of pain filled the night air, complemented by distant gunfire of the battle.

We landed and trotted through the makeshift hospital. Stretchers of ponies were laid out in an unorganized array; guards and civilians alike all sharing severe burns or bullet wounds. A few were even missing limbs from the rocket strikes.

I let out a small cry when I saw the bloodied form of a filly carried on a guard’s back. She was being taken away from the field hospital, which certainly meant she was dead.

“Luna above, Middy, these poor ponies didn’t do anything to deserve this…” I whimpered, I felt my ears flatten against my head.

“C’mon let’s go find the pony in charge and see what needs to be done,” Midnight spoke softly, nudging me towards a tent in the center.

We ducked under the suspended flap and into the wooden-supported tent. Inside, there wasn’t much in terms of furnishing besides a simple wooden desk. A large map of Renaissance dominated the center of the table, with a few stacks of messages scribbled on parchment stacked off to the sides. 

Standing behind the desk was a thestral mare with a white mane and tail and a light gray coat to match. She had armor similar to Aurora’s, even sporting the same rank. The main difference however, were the two pink butterflies on her shoulders. I could only assume this mare was in charge of all the medics.

“Who are you ponies and why are you in my tent?” she looked up from the map laid before her.

Midnight cleared his throat, “Captain Borealis sent us to find you and assist you in any way we can,” he somewhat told the truth. It sounded convincing enough.

The medic looked at us with a cocked brow, sizing us up, “I recognize you two, you stumbled down that mountain and into town yesterday. Stable dwellers, right?”

“That’s us!” Midnight nodded.

“Weren’t you supposed to be a pega- oh,” the medic sat up in shock when she noticed Midnight’s other wing.

I stepped forward before she started asking Midnight uncomfortable questions, “Look, we can help, okay? We’ll do anything if it means saving our new home.” 

The light colored mare sighed and nodded, “I have a few urgent tasks, but are you willing to put yourselves in danger?”

Midnight nodded without hesitation and I quickly followed suit after seeing he did. My willingness very much depended on how much danger there was, however.

“Okay, consider yourselves temporarily under my command, welcome aboard the Night Watch. I’m Captain Angel,” she nodded.

“Midnight, Scarlet,” Midnight pointed at himself and me with a wingtip.

“Fitting name,” Angel smirked at me. “I’m going to be brief, there are ponies that I need to attend to.”

She looked down at the map and pointed a hoof at the eastern edge of town. A red line was drawn from the surrounding forest all the way through town center, where an ‘X’ was marked. “The Daylight has pushed into the town, down Command Avenue, where they currently have control of the hospital and the ruined headquarters. Our guards have them stuck in a bottleneck at town square. We’ve got teams currently flanking from the north and south to keep them pinned.”

She shifted her hoof to the bottom edge of the circular town, a green ‘O’ was drawn on one of the streets, “This is our current position,” she continued, “I need somepony to squeeze past the assault force and sneak into the hospital. Inside, there is a cabinet upstairs with vital chemicals that will help stabilize some patients in critical condition. One of you needs to gain access to that cabinet and bring them back to us,” Angel looked to both me and Midnight expectantly.

“One of us?” Midnight asked, “Why not send both of us? We can cover each other and carry more together.”

I nodded my head vigorously, I didn’t like the sound of separating at all.

“With our radio tower down, we’ve lost all communication. I need the other one of you to relay an important message to Aurora and Ballpoint, the old stallion took off too quickly. I can’t afford to send any of my own ponies with all the wounded to take care of,” Angel traced a line to the northern side of town to a blue ‘X,’ “this is particularly difficult because the messenger will be forced to gallop. We cannot afford to give away their position if the messenger is spotted from the air.”

“I can’t gallop that fast or that far…” I looked worriedly at Midnight while he thought about the tasks.

“Scar, you’re probably way better at sneaking than I am. I can barely fly anyways. We need to help if we want Renaissance to have a fighting chance. You should go to the hospital and get those chemicals. I’ll meet up with Aurora and tell him the message,” Midnight concluded, shifting his gaze to the Angel who nodded in affirmation. 

“What?! Middy, we always stick together! What if one of us gets hurt?” I asked pleadingly, “Can’t we do one at a time?”

“I need both of these to happen right away,” Angel said grimly, “you two came at the perfect time. But I won’t force you to do anything.”

“We’re both gonna die if we don’t try,” Midnight shook his head. “Look around us, the Daylight won’t stop until every single one of us is dead,” he gestured a wing at the wounded outside. “We have to try, Scar. If we lose Renaissance, we lose Transylvania. We already lost our Stable. What else would we have left?” His expression showed his determination, but his eyes betrayed him. He was just as concerned as I was and I could see my pleading probably tore him up inside.

Dammit… let’s help this town.

I steeled my nerves and nodded. He was right, we had to set ourselves aside to help everypony. It was my new home. Our home. Thestrals always got the short end of the stick throughout history. Hell, we only had one Stable. Transylvania was a dream come true for us. If I wanted to live in that dream, then I was going to have to fight for it just as much as Midnight was. 

“Okay, Captain, I’ll sneak into the hospital and retrieve the medical supplies and Midnight will relay the message,” I spoke with determination.

“Very well, Midnight your task is simple, give them this piece of parchment and follow through with any orders they give you, you most likely won’t be able to return due to their covert position,” Angel hoofed over a folded piece of parchment to Midnight, who took it and stored it in his saddlebag. 

She then turned to me, “Scarlet, when you get into the hospital, I need as many IV bags of anesthesia and syringes of Med-X as possible. Skip the health potions, we need the stronger stuff. You can access the supply wagon outside of my tent, take what you need. Luna guide you and good luck to both of you,” Angel concluded and returned to reading the orders posted on her table.

Midnight and I exited the tent and turned to one another. We looked at each with a mixture of concern and fear. I hesitated a moment.

“Don’t die on me, okay, mate?” I nearly whispered.

Midnight winked, “I’ll be back before tea.”

I caught myself staring into his golden eyes. That unfamiliar sensation grew in my chest again, it kept me from wanting to look away. I didn’t realize how much I grew to depend on this stupid colt since leaving the Stable only two days ago.
 
Midnight cleared his throat and stood taller, looking down the road before glancing back at me one more time. His ears fell back as he paused like he was going to say something, but he quickly shook his head and galloped toward the north without another word.

I sat there and watched him until the thick trails of smoke obscured his waving two-toned tail. The sky was now bright with the burning flames of the houses near the frontlines. 

I let out a sigh and turned toward the armored green chariot parked outside the tent. Faded paint was written along its side: ‘Transylvanian Pals Battalion.’ 

What a load of rubbish, I huffed as I read the line.

Our history books explained that during the early war, Princess Celestia was desperate to conscript ponies from across all Equestria to join the ranks against the zebras. One of the programs she made was the ‘Transylvanian Pals Battalion,’ a company made up of soldiers who would be grouped together if they enlisted together. Fight alongside your friends, as it was. That sounded like a dandy idea, until you realize that companies of soldiers tended to fight in the same battles together. Meaning they all died together if they lost.

The blasted ‘pals battalion’ wiped entire local towns of residents and left mothers and spouses alone with nopony returning home. To top it all off, of course the princess of the sun made it so only thestral ponies were a part of this program. As if she was trying to keep us separate from the others. It was no-pony’s surprise that we were the first asked to be fed into the grinder and the first forgotten for our sacrifice.

At least this explained how Renaissance was so well equipped. I wouldn’t be surprised if the majority of surviving thestrals today were descendants of those brave volunteers during the war. We were practically a standalone army by the time Luna took over.

Trotting up to the chariot, I climbed onto the bed and saw supply crates were filled with weapons and ammunition. If I was going to go stealthily I needed to change up my gear.

I looked around until I spotted a small black steel box labeled: ‘Suppressors.’

Perfect, I devilishly smiled.

I opened the container and nosed around, grabbing some tools and eventually finding one that fit my gun’s caliber. It was a shoddy thing, obviously made from pre-war scraps, but hopefully it would work. I grabbed it in my teeth and let my carbine slip off my back and fall before me.

I propped the gun up and used my hooves to unscrew the flash hider on the end of the barrel with one of the wrenches from the crate. I plopped the small piece into my saddlebags and screwed on the suppressor in a similar manner.

I looked around the bed of the truck again and found an ammunition crate labeled ‘5.56.’ The small bullets would still break the sound barrier, but hopefully the suppressor would help me out if I needed to shoot and scoot without ponies figuring out my exact location. At least, that’s what they did in the action movies I watched in the Stable. That was all I had to go off of for tactics.

I opened the crate and sighed in relief when I saw bandoliers of pre-loaded magazines. Not only did it save my poor hooves from shoving hundreds of bullets into mags but I finally had somewhere to store them all too. I grabbed a bandolier and strapped it over my shoulder. I made sure to grab six magazines to fill the pouches. Three was obviously too little if I came across another onslaught of robo-ponies.

Unfortunately, I still couldn't find any good optics. Unless I wanted a huge-arse hunting scope on my little rifle, which was all they had. I guess electronic sights were just a thing of the past. Maybe they were too delicate or difficult to keep powered out in the wasteland. Or maybe Princess Sunbutt was too cheap to give us thestrals any good equipment during the war.

I ditched the laser rifle in the bed of the truck. It was a silly weapon for silly ponies. I didn’t care how advanced it was; it was heavy and not nearly as sensical as good old fashioned firearms. Maybe some lucky guard will find this thing in the truck and disintegrate a bunch of sun cult fanatics. But that pony was not gonna be me.

With my carbine finally loaded against my back, I glided off the tall bed of the chariot and lifted my left leg to look at my PipBuck. Using my nose, I shifted to the ‘DATA’ tab and pulled up the map function. 

It looked like my best bet was to head east and through a huge clearing near the edge of town where I could only assume the apple and pear orchards were located. Then, I’d go back up another road and cut through the alleyways around the hospital where I could hopefully find a back entrance and avoid everypony.

Satisfied with my plan, I lifted off into the cold night air and headed toward the orchards.


<><><>


I dodged and weaved between the buildings as I flew over the alleyways that connected the spider-webbing main roads. I was careful to keep my altitude below the rooftops in hopes of not being spotted.

The alley I flew down suddenly opened up to a large expanse of sickly looking deciduous trees. I pulled my wings in and dove to match level with the treetops, flaring them out and sped among the branches.

I reached a hoof down and grabbed an apple off one of the high branches. I hadn’t eaten in hours! Don’t judge me for stealing.

We had been on the move non-stop since twilight. I was definitely feeling hungry and exhausted. I slowed to a gentle glide as I gratefully munched on the apple. It was a bit bland but it was the best bloody thing I had all day.

Far above, the moon just barely hung over the mountain tops. I had a good hour or two of concealment before the sun began to rise. If I wanted to keep sneaking, I’d have to make this quick.

In my moment of dietary distraction, I felt my ears swivel. I heard the modulated voices of stallions beneath me, down one of the alleyways. I jettisoned my half-eaten apple and banked towards the rooftop above where I heard the voices. I gently alighted on the opposite side of the triangular roof and knelt down to peer over the side.

Two stories below, I saw two stallions clad in the yellow and black trimmed armor of the Daylight. Up close, I could see the symbols on their helmets; a rising Equestrian sun. They were trying to navigate the complex alleyways of town and must have somehow separated from the main force before they were cut off the flanks of Command Avenue.

For a moment, I was afraid I was going to have to hurt these two unsuspecting ponies. But the images of the field hospital replayed in my mind. The innocent filly; killed simply because she was born in a different land. These earth ponies were monsters, their hooves were drenched in the blood of innocent civilians.

I grabbed the firing bit of my suppressed IF-4 and debated how I was going to go about taking two ponies at once without raising an alarm. I was nowhere near a good enough shot to just pop both buggers in the head. I looked around and my eyes fell upon an overhanging porch supported by two cables, perfectly in line with where they were trotting.

“I don’t know where the buck we are, Lamplight, now shut your mouth and keep trotting,” the soldier on the left grumbled through his helmet.

“Yeah, but if we keep goin’ too far, we’re gonna get surrounded,” Lamplight droned in a heavily rustic Equestrian accent.

I let them pass beneath me and waited for them to trot underneath the porch. Once they were in position, I spread my wings and glided down to it. My leathery wings rippled in the air while my hooves made a metallic clomp on the steel overhang. Both guards stopped and looked up at the swinging structure.

“The hay was that?! Ya think it was one o’ them vampires?” Lamplight tried to peer at the dark silhouette of the porch against the night sky.

“Aw shit, if it’s only one of those bloodsuckers then we can take em,’” the first one responded. He unslung his assault rifle and pointed it up at me.

We don’t drink blood! What the buck? I angrily thought to myself as I bit a pin holding both cables in place with my teeth.

Drink some of this you bloody cunts! I quickly yanked the pin and flared out my wings, flapping rapidly to keep me aloft while the porch fell beneath me.

“Whoa! Watch out-” the cries of both ponies were cut off by a sickening crunch as they were crushed by the enormous weight of the steel porch.

Two down, Luna knows how many more to go…

I glided forward slowly to gain momentum and then banked to my left, pumping my wings as I continued east toward the hospital.

I didn’t have time to think about those ponies. If they were good or bad, why they were here, or whatever Luna-damned reason it took for me to fight off the guilt of taking lives. All I knew is that innocent ponies were depending on me. I was not going to freeze up this time from the weight of it all. I was not going to let anypony down ever again.


XXX

> Chapter Ten: A Series of Unfortunate Events
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


Chapter Ten: A Series of Unfortunate Events



Midnight Wind


* * *


I pumped my legs as quickly as I could. The soft thumping of my hoof strikes were muffled by the dirt road beneath me as I bolted down the streets of Renaissance. Ruined and smoldering houses lined either side where ponies were fighting fires or trying to find loved ones buried in the rubble. I tried to push the horrid sights aside. Only the image of leaving Scarlet behind burned in my vision while I made my way toward my objective.

I don’t know what suddenly overcame me but I couldn’t stop thinking about her. I was worried. A lot more worried than I had ever been. The way she looked at me, the feeling I felt that gripped my chest when I met her eyes; I just hoped she was okay. She was the only pony I had out here that seemed to have an ounce of care for my existence. I was growing to have a whole lot more for hers too.

Buck, you’d think I had enough with galloping, but nope, let’s have the town besieged before I figure out how to fly on my own, I complained in my head as I raced past bloodstains in the road and fluttered my wings over craters from the rocket barrage.

When the road came to the northern gate, I quickly spread my wings, flapping like Scarlet showed me and leapt over the enormous wooden walls. I wobbled as I glided past a guard tower, scraping my hooves on the timber siding and kicking off the railing to realign myself. A pair of startled guards quickly ran over and pointed their rifles at me.

“Hey, watch it!” a mare shouted from the gate tower, she lowered her gun when she noticed my wings.

“Urgent-message-for-Aurora-sorry!” I blurted as I shot by, flaring my wings and landing on the dirt road on the other side.

I grunted and galloped on, plowing straight into the tall grassy field off the path. I kept my course northwest while I struggled to remember the directions from Angel’s map. I really, really, hoped that these ponies wouldn’t shoot the blue pegabat running toward them from friendly territory.

When I reached the edge of the pine forest, I slowed to a brisk canter and looked around for any signs of the flanking team. Nothing seemed to give away their location, but Angel’s map said they would be right here-

*KA-POW*

I jumped when the telltale report of a Neighmington 700 rifle resonated from behind me. I whipped around and saw… nothing.

“Target down. New target, east on the berm,” a familiar northern Braytish accent sounded from…on top of me? 

“Visual,” a similarly accented young voice responded.

The sound of a bolt racked somewhere in a tree above my head and a shell tumbled down, landing right in front of my hooves.

“Same windage, elevation naught point four up,” Aurora’s voice calmly said.

“Naught point four up,” Ballpoint replied, “on target.”

“Send it.” 

*KA-POW*

The mighty roar of the .308 round split the air and I finally saw the muzzle flash through the branches. The sniper team was perched in a tree far above my head. Bat ponies, we like our ambush spots apparently.

“Clean hit, looks like it entered the bastard’s right shoulder,” Aurora reported.

“Hey, I have a message for Captain Borealis,” I called up to the two ponies. 

“Shite!” both ponies cried from above, followed by a thump behind me and the sound of a pistol chambering.

I whipped around to see the barrel of some sort of gun before me, it had what looked like a sausage attached to the front. I remember Scarlet told me they made guns quieter when she was complaining about the lack of gear at the Armory. The pistol quickly lowered and I saw Aurora was the one behind it.

“Bloody moon… Midnight what the buck are ya doin’ out here? I almost shot you.” Aurora returned his sausage pistol to its place in his leg holster.

“Captain Angel sent me to give you a message,” I replied and reached back into my saddlebags, pulling out the folded parchment and letting Aurora take it in his hooves.

Aurora sat down on his flanks and opened the paper. I took a moment to look up at Ballpoint as he read. The black and white thestral was prone along a tree branch far above us. It was odd for a thestral to have such a light colored coat, but he was only a colt, maybe it’d darken up a bit when he finished puberty. Regardless, I thought Ballpoint ‘Pen‘ was quite a fitting name.

“Luna-dammit, Ballpoint, we’re moving into town to cover the northwest sector. It looks like the Daylight took control of Command Avenue. We need to prevent them from flanking us instead. They’re only about thirty strong now. Looks like they lost nearly half of their force during that slaughter in the fields,” Aurora informed us.

“Aw hell, and I was just beginning to enjoy pickin’ off the rocket ponies,” Ballpoint’s young voice cracked from above me. I really wondered how a colt could become a lieutenant in the guard.

“That’s too bad laddie we’re going to cover what remains of the Night Watch. We’re still at a quarter of our own because of that bloody Railtown fiasco,” Aurora sighed.

Ballpoint groaned as he strapped his rifle to his back and glided down next to me. He looked me over briefly, “Didn’t you have two feathered flappers?”

“Long story,” I knitted my brow, I didn’t have it in me to explain this to everypony. “Weren't there supposed to be more of you?”

“There were, until North got shot and Mythic took her back to the medics,” Ballpoint spat. “We’re dropping like flies out here.”

“Which is why we’re repositioning,” Aurora confirmed. “Midnight, you’re sticking with us for now so watch our backs. Try not to give us away.” He stepped off on a brisk canter toward town.

“Wait, if you cared so much about stealth, why were you just randomly firing off into the night without a sausa-... suppressor?” I quickly caught my nickname for the fancy gun stuff.

“Oi, first mate, it wasn’t random,” Ballpoint yapped, “Me shots were right on target every single time,” he boasted as we crossed the tall grass. “An’ second, when we’re past a certain distance, my bullet is the only thing they’ll hear before their stupid cultish lives are taken away. The gunshot practically fades into the forest before the bullet reaches em’.”

He’s got the gun knowledge like Scarlet and the cocky attitude like me… is this colt our son or something? I thought to myself. Then I realized what that entailed and shook my head of the thought.

“Okay, okay, ‘writing-utensil,’ I get it. Let’s go defend Renaissance.” I was not willing to argue with somepony so much like myself. I knew I would never win.

We continued into town, passing beneath a hastily raised gate. The two guards from earlier gave me a look but I just kept my head down. Aurora directed us onto a road that ran parallel from the main street, Command Avenue. He quickly spread his wings and flew two stories straight up one of the buildings, followed by Ballpoint.

I sighed, Okay, leave the flightless bird behind.

I looked around for an alternate way up. Without a running start, flight wasn’t exactly possible for me yet. I was in no mood for slamming into walls and falling on my flanks. I soon spotted a fire escape ladder with a steel grated landing. I guessed before the war, this Renaissance Faire was open to more ponies than just us fliers. But, I had never climbed ladders before and I had no idea how to do it. 

I trotted up to the rusted-out rungs and experimentally placed a hoof on the bottom one. It seemed stable enough so I put my weight on it and began to slowly inch my way up.

By the time I reached the top, I was thoroughly exhausted. My heavy breaths blew in the frigid air as I inched my way over the shingles of the triangular roof. Since I could fly, I never really had to climb anything. Ever. So this wasn’t exactly the easiest thing for me.

I crawled my way slowly to Aurora and Ballpoint who were surveying the battlefield from the rooftop. Below us was the front line of the battle.

It reminded me of the images I saw in my ‘History of Equestria’ textbooks; The Battle of Stalliongrad. Ash was raining down from the nearby burning buildings and sprinkled the ponies who were entrenched behind cover. 

On one side, Night Watch guards were prone against the rubble. They would occasionally prop their guns up and take a shot, only to quickly duck back down from a hail of automatic fire.

A few hundred hooves up the street, the Daylight were fortified behind their own rubble, taking cover behind two houses that made up the intersection. They would occasionally lean out from either side and return fire only to duck back too. It was a stalemate.

“I’ve got eyes through a window in the hospital. Looks like their leader is the one with the plume on his helmet,” Ballpoint spoke as he peered down his scope. The rifle was propped on the crown of the rooftop we were laying on.

I perked my ears at his comment. Hopefully Scarlet made it through the building before the Daylight took it over.

“Hold your fire, lad, we don’t want to give away our position. We’re smack dab in the middle,” Aurora spoke softly, he was using a pair of binoculars held up in a hoof strap.

Ballpoint let out an irritated grunt. He continued to peer down the scope and I could see he was grinding his teeth against the trigger plate. The colt was just itching to shoot. He finally spat out his firing bit and let his rifle rest on the rooftop, “Okay, sir, then what do you suggest we do? Wait till they run out of ammunition?”

“Nope, we’re going to the demolished headquarters and we’ll try to see if that old ham radio still works. We’ll contact our sister town, Rafael, for support,” Captain Borealis explained, dropping his hoof and turning to his subordinate.

“Aw, bloody tartarus, the last time we contacted those arseholes we owed them four thousand caps for their ‘services,’” Ballpoint moaned.

“Nothing’s free in the wasteland, Ball. I just hope they’re not too busy with that cloudship parked overhead their base. But take a look lad, there aren’t too many options about,” Aurora gestured around us.
 
The headquarters at the end of the road was miraculously still standing. Half the building was caved in and the top floors were exposed to the night. The radio tower had crumpled over and laid suspended on the rooftops across the street. The flames that previously engulfed the building had subsided, leaving only the charred and smoldering husk of a building.

“Wait, what’s Rafael again?” I asked looking between the two, there were too many damn factions in Transylvania.

“Let’s get movin’ then,” Ballpoint groaned and rose to his hooves, completely ignoring my question as he slung his rifle across his back.

“Right,” Aurora nodded and they both glided down the road behind us. Once they landed they cantered off toward the back of the headquarters.

“Hey wait!” I cried as I inched my way back down the steep slope of the roof, gulping as I looked over the edge.

I shuffled my wings nervously. It wasn’t that high up, but without Scarlet’s help, I wasn’t too sure about gliding down a narrow road. I spread my wings and prayed.

I lept off the roof and ungraciously tumbled down in a ball of screams and flapping, landing harshly on my back and staring at the night sky far above.

Buck this crap, I should have gone for the damn hospital mission, I sighed, hoping to Luna and all things holy that Scarlet was okay.


Scarlet Rose


<><><>


I should have taken the messenger mission… I thought as I ducked behind yet another hospital curtain.

I made it all the way through the lower floor of the hospital only to find that the bloody building was absolutely filled with Daylight soldiers. They seemed to be patrolling the area for no Luna-damned reason at all.

A group was mumbling in a nearby corner, hunched over a levitating map illuminated by their head torches. I was surprised to see a few unicorns among their numbers, but it didn’t faze me. Equestrian ponies were all the same anyway.

One of the ponies was trotting around as if he was thinking to himself, his helmet was tucked on top of his saddlebags and I could finally see one of their faces. He was a middle-aged stallion with a red coat. He had short white hair and a white beard to match. The scarring on his face made him look just about as menacing as I imagined these monsters should have. I hoped whatever pony did that to his face got away with it. 

They didn’t seem to notice me yet so I continued in the shadows and ducked behind curtains, hoping to find the staircase leading up. It looked like the rocket artillery destroyed the power leading to the building, leaving the interior pitch black. Nopony could see a thing.

Well, the soldiers couldn’t. I could see just fine. Unfortunately that didn’t mean I was silent, nor did it mean their stupid hoofheld torches weren’t still working.

Ugh, here he comes again. This is the third bucking time, I internally groaned as I ducked even lower behind a bed. The pondering soldier came to a stop before my curtain as he began to mumble incoherently to himself. He had a small torch mounted on his fancy armor, powered by some wiring that led down his back.

I needed to act quickly. If he decided to turn my way, the torch’s white light would easily silhouette me against the curtain. I seriously doubted this buck would overlook a ‘bat pony’ shadow in the corner.

I couldn’t just shoot the bugger, a suppressor only did so much. The report of my carbine would grab every tosser’s attention in the building and then they’d all rush downstairs…

That’s not a bad idea, actually.

I slumped my shoulder and let the carbine slip off my back and into my hooves. I slowly lowered my head and grabbed the firing bit, bringing the gun up on the mattress. If I was going to make some noise, I may as well make it worthwhile; I carefully moved the fire selector to ‘auto.’

I peered down the iron sights and lined them up with the torch light on the other side of the curtain. I took a shallow breath, waiting for the soldier to sit still but he was too busy trotting about like a supervillain plotting his next move.

I lifted a wing and tapped the bed rail with the claw.

The stallion paused and the torch light turned my way, momentarily blinding me through the curtain as he inspected the sound.

Gripping the bit tightly, I pressed the pressure plate, feeling it click beneath my teeth.

*Crack crack crack crack*

The gunshots were muffled by the device on my barrel but the supersonic bullets still rocketed through the air with their sharp report. The bullets easily tore through the fabric and embedded themselves into the soldier who was standing behind it. The bastard let out a cry of pain as four bullets hit his upper chest. He wasn’t going to make it far. 

I flinched as I heard the shouts of ponies upstairs and all around me. The sounds of galloping hoof stomps resonated throughout the small interior as everypony came rushing down the stairs. Soon torch spotlights all began to convene on the laying form of the soldier I just shot. I noticed his helmet had rolled off to the side, it had a funny blue plume on it. Nopony seemed like they knew what to do. 

I took advantage of the confusion and flapped my wings as hard as I could, rising above the hospital curtains. I clung to the dark ceiling and bolted over the group of soldiers inspecting their slain comrade. The contrast from their bright torches was probably too much for their earth pony eyes, but they sure as tartarus heard my flapping wings.
 
“Assassin!” I heard somepony scream as the torches began to spotlight everything around me.

I’m not a bloody assassin! I grumbled internally as I reached the staircase on the far side of the room. Their spotlights did no justice, nopony had the bright idea to look up.

I pumped my wings twice and nimbly flew up the stairs, alighting at the top and fervently looked around. This room was much like the one downstairs, with hospital curtains and beds lining each side, but it was well lit by a row of windows along the length of a wall. At the very back, illuminated by the dim flames outside, sat a large steel cabinet with a pretty cheap looking padlock on it.

I quickly undid my mane, holding my bobby pin in my mouth, and cantered over to the cabinet with a toss of the red hairs from my eyes. I knelt down at the padlock, carefully pinching the bobby pin in my teeth as I tried to mimic what Aurora had shown us. I moved it about, shook it, raked it, even spit on it and shoved it back in. It was like trying to please a bothered mare; nothing bloody worked.

My ears perked and swiveled back as I heard hoof stomps moving below me. A bead of sweat ran down my brow as I jerked the bobby pin around, trying to undo whatever ‘pins’ Aurora was talking about inside the blasted contraption.

A soft click rattled my teeth. The bobby pin broke.

“Oh buck this,” I spat the broken pin out and grabbed the firing bit of my carbine.

I shoved the barrel against the lock and pressed the trigger.

*Crack crack PING PING PING WHUMP WHUMP*

Luna’s-fat-flanks! I mentally screamed and quickly let go of the carbine. It fell back down on my chest by the sling.

I forgot the blinking thing was still on ‘auto’ and the recoil not only made me shoot off the lock, but also punch bullets through the cabinet and up the wooden walls.

I checked over my shoulder. None of the soldiers made it up the stairs yet, but I knew they soon would be after that stupid stunt. I whipped the cabinet open and began shoving anything that wasn’t broken into my saddle bags. Once I grabbed everything I could, I quickly turned around…

Only to notice a line of torch lights on me.

I froze before the soldiers, each of them pointing their rifles directly at me. My scarlet bangs slowly fell before my eyes.

I blew them aside awkwardly.

“Grab her,” a unicorn mare ordered.

Just as two of the soldiers stepped forward, a rapid ‘chomping’ sound filled the air outside.

Everypony in the room, myself included, stopped and looked out the windows. My eyes rapidly adjusted to the dim light and through the billowing smoke of the nearby buildings, I saw a formation of two thestral ponies burst through the acrid cloud. They were pulling up out of a dive and gliding towards the hospital’s second floor.

The rapid ‘chugging’ grew louder and soon the window by the soldiers exploded in a hail of glass and wooden splinters, followed by meaty ‘slaps’ as the soldiers were torn apart from an incoming barrage.

The volley of bullets zoomed through the window and walls, tearing chunks out of soldiers before easily penetrating the floor and out the back of the hospital. A few of the bullets had tracers on them, leaving visible lines of smoke in their wake.

Shell casings rained onto the roof and through the shattered windows. One of the smoking brass cases rolled and stopped at my hooves. I recognized what caused this incredible carnage. The chugging roar of the Brownie M2 .50 cal machine gun. A weapon made for shooting at chariots and other light vehicles, not ponies. Though, it obviously did a pretty good job against ponies.

I stood in front of the cabinet, my legs still shaking as the adrenaline began to subside. All of the soldiers were splayed about; missing limbs or cut in half. Their body parts were a scattered mess in front of me. Some of the torches were still working and randomly illuminated parts of the walls or ceiling. I was saved by a brutal miracle. 

I’m not telling Middy this ever happened… I gulped as I slowly began to trot over the bodies.

I scrunched my muzzle and tried not to look down at the horrendous sight. I tried my best not to lose that apple I ate on the way here. But just as luck would bloody have it, I felt my rear hoof glide on the slick blood, causing me to lose my balance and trip onto the severed torso of one of the soldiers.

I let out a disgusted scream and shut my eyes as I rolled off the torso onto the stinking blood. I felt my stomach twist from the pungent rusted smell in my nostrils. I slowly rose to all fours and snapped my eyes on the stairs, quickly bolting down and out the back door I came in.

I took a massive breath once outside. The air out here was cleaner, albeit filled with the smell of burning wood. I looked down at myself. I was miraculously unscathed but my jacket was drenched in blood and Luna-knew-what fluids. I tore off the jacket and tossed it aside, shivering in the cool night air. I’d have to find something else because I was not cleaning that.

The houses across the street had several chipped holes in them, a few of the decorative walls were even partially collapsed. The road leading to the hospital was pitted with small craters in a double line and littered with huge brass bullet casings. Those flying ponies probably each had a battle-saddle mounted M2 on them. I didn’t know what made them decide to strafe the hospital, or more importantly where the buck they came from, but I was thankful they did what they did.

I stretched my wings and flapped them once again, taking off into the night sky and directing myself back toward the field hospital. Captain Angel better be bloody pleased with my work.


Midnight Wind


* * *


“Rafael, this is Vampire Four-two. Strafing run on the hospital complete, torch lights all winked out,” a female voice crackled over the radio.

“Affirmative. Bank southbound to regain altitude and clear of Vampire Three’s attack run,” an older male voice responded.

“Copy, Vampire Four,” the mare confirmed.

Aurora, Ballpoint and I managed to climb the rubble of the headquarters and locate one of the backup radios. Aurora quickly went to business, throwing together a makeshift antenna from some loose wiring in the ceiling and contacting Rafael of our dire situation. It wasn’t long before a squadron of thestral ponies arrived and began to paint the town with their impressive aerial gunnery.

While Aurora manned the radio, Ballpoint and I guarded the windows within the burnt-out office, letting the old buck do his work.

Apparently Rafael was that old military base to the west of us, the place where the G.P.E cloudship, the Hailstorm, recently parked above. They were about three miles away in a small settlement that used to contain parts for the Royal Equestrian Air Forces during the war. For whatever reason, they decided to keep all of the goodies left behind for themselves and rent out their talented fliers as mercenaries.

Most of Aurora’s explanation was just plain annoyance towards Rafael. He said they were a bunch of cocky bastards who thought since they flew all the time, they deserved to inhabit the air base. But considering every single thestral in Transylvania could fly, it was just a scheme to pander for mercenary work. 

Radio chatter continued over the air as the squadron of ponies provided air support across town. It was an absolute force multiplier that we couldn’t have gone without. I didn’t know how much money it’d cost Renaissance but I figured it was worth setting their differences aside if it meant saving the settlement.

“Rafael, Vampire Four, on station,” the mare returned to the radio.

“Four, take your wingpony to the headquarters and link with Captain Aurora Borealis, authority is switched over to him. Rafael out,” the older voice spoke with finality and the radio returned to its regular battlefield chatter.

“Wait, wha-?” Aurora turned around in time for eight hoof thumps to hit the ceiling.

“Welp, Captain, it looks like we have personal air support,” Ballpoint chuckled from his position at the window. 

“Luna’s moon, I didn’t ask for more ponies to follow us around. It’s just a hassle at this point,” Aurora sighed as we walked out the door and to the half destroyed ceiling in the next room.

We waited for two mares to glide down from the rooftop. They let down before us and promptly saluted Aurora.

“Captain, Vampire Four-one and Four-two reporting as requested!” the lead pony spoke sharply.

She was around my age and about a head shorter than myself, or a few inches taller than Scarlet really. Her coat was the usual dark gray and her mane and tail were a shade of sage. Her wingpony was similarly colored but her mane and tail were lighter green. They looked strikingly similar, I could only assume these two were sisters.

The pair wore flight goggles and helmets. The soot from flying through the smoke was smudged across their faces and left ringed imprints on the fur around their eyes when they pushed the goggles up. Each was equipped with light combat barding that was probably pre-war, given their hometown. 

Across both of their midsections were battle-saddles with the most mean looking guns I’ve ever seen. The massive half-hoof long cartridges were fed through a caged belt that crossed over their back from an ammo can on their left to the gun on their right. The long barrels stuck almost two hooves in front of their chests and the weapons were activated by a firing bit held by a cable. Large crosshair iron sights were folded up on the side of the guns, ready to deploy for action. 

On their chests they had a pair of spray painted bat wings, fitting for their squadron’s namesake. 

“Uhh, at ease lass. We’re trying to get situated for now,” Aurora distractedly waved his hoof as he looked over a map that Ballpoint pulled out from his combat vest.

“Yes sir, sorry,” Four-one said, dropping her hoof and sitting on her flanks. She began to quietly speak with her sister.

“Should we tell ‘em?”

“I dunno, they’re in charge…”

“Yeah but it could help with planning.”

“Well, what if it just distracts them?”

“You’re right, they probably already know. We’ll just get in the way.”

“Oh fer the love of Luna herself! Ladies, if you’ve got some input then let me hear it,” Aurora groaned, interrupting their quiet conversation.

Both mares jumped and quickly got to their hooves.

“The Daylight’s on the move. They were able to flank the barricade by crossing behind your building,” Four-one explained, pointing a hoof at the back road we came down.

“The Night Watch are being pushed back to town square and are nearly surrounded,” Four-two spoke up quickly.

Aurora sat there with an unreadable expression as he processed the information.

Oh, that was ‘my’ job. I stared wide-eyed out the window. I forgot to look out for ponies moving behind us.

“Yer tellin’ me, lassie, that they just frolicked whoop de-do past our building, and not myself, nor Ballpoint, nor Midnight saw twenty ponies trot on by?” Aurora spoke with a dangerous edge.

“Y-yes sir… We watched the maneuver from the skies above,” Four-one spoke nervously.

“Shite! We need to get to the fountain and give ‘em everything we’ve got!” Aurora stood and shoved the map back in Ballpointʼs face. “I need you and yer wingpony to hunt and kill the ponies with plumes on their helmets. They take cover in buildings behind the lines but if you spot ‘em, light them up. We need to disrupt their chain of command,” he quickly ordered, gesturing to the street out the window.

Both Vampire sisters nodded and kicked levers near their hind legs. The battle-saddles racked a bolt and chambered the massive machine guns for action. They lowered their goggles and quickly took flight into the nearly-dawn skies. 

“So… did we just let the bad guys slip between our hooves?” I asked while we leapt onto the pile of rubble and slid down to the streets below.

Aurora skidded to a halt before us and turned with a solemn expression, “Winds, Ballpoint, I hate to ask this of ya lads, but they need as many guns as they can up at the square. I need you to join the front lines and try to hold off the assault while I look for Lieutenant Dusk and the rest of our guards.”

I felt a pang of fear begin to grip my stomach. I looked over at Ballpoint who shared a similar expression.

He wants us right up front? Like, where all the fighting is? 

“This wouldn’t be happening if we didn’t send three quarters of our bloody ponies to Railtown over a false alarm,” Ballpoint spat.

“Aye, exactly. I have my doubts about that call, but right now somepony needs to find them and bring them back,” Aurora spread his wings. “Be careful, Midnight, and give ‘em hell.”

I saluted like I saw all of the other ponies do it, “Yes, sir, we’ll give ‘em hell!” I said sarcastically but not without my voice cracking from my nerves.

Ballpoint saluted with his own affirmation. Aurora nodded silently, and quickly took off toward the walls. Wherever the hell Dusk and the guards were, I hoped he found them soon.

I turned to Ballpoint and he quickly began to speak, “Okay, I have no plan whatsoever. You can’t fly for bugger all, and I’m no good in an open firefight. We’ll play it by ear and watch each other’s backs. Luna-speed to you, friend.” 

“You too, Pointy, let’s get moving,” I nodded and began galloping toward the town center.

“Don’t call me that! I said we were mates, not special someponies!” Ballpoint hollered and galloped after me toward the battle.

I chuckled to myself, despite the fearful emotions that festered within me. I guess I was so scared I couldn’t do anything but laugh about it all.

We bolted down the street and entered the crazy fray of town center. I could spot muzzle flashes from the remaining ten or so guards holding their last stance on the far side of the square. It looked like the battle was near its end, the Daylight were attacking from the southern half with over twice the numbers of our own, shooting across the fountain and inching closer. I watched a stray bullet take the tip off the statue’s sword. 

I skidded to a halt and propped myself against one of the angled buildings that surrounded the center of town. We were in a position where I could see all of the guards behind cover, they were being commanded by both sergeants I saw at the headquarters earlier this evening, Strafe and Tipper.

Wait a second, where’s Major Starline?

Ballpoint quickly caught up and slammed to a halt beside me. His heavy pants were visible in the frigid air. The moon had fully set by now and the cold skies above were beginning to lighten in a purple hue.

“Pointy, we need to find Major Starline,” I stated plainly as I began to scan the battle. Looking for signs of where she might have gone.

“Hah- wha-?” Ballpoint caught his breath, “who bloody cares, mate? She’s the reason we’re losing!”

“Exactly,” I narrowed my eyes. The nagging feeling itched the back of my head again, the same one that made me want to go to the headquarters when the whole town was panicking from the Railtown battle.

My eyes settled on something that seemed out of place, but oh too familiar. I squinted as I focused on some kind of navy colored ribbon on the door handle of a house.

Wait a minute.

I realized I was looking at Scarlet’s bow, neatly tied around the door handle. What the buck was that all about?

“What? Are you working for the bloody Daylight now? Major Starline made a tactical error, but she’s not a traitor,” Ballpoint exclaimed then paused, “she isn’t… right?

“Maybe. No time to explain but we need to get into that house,” I pointed a hoof across the square.

“Aurora’s house?” Ballpoint peered across the battlefield.

You’re kidding me, I shook my head. “Yeah, I guess so. Let’s go,” I said and took off into a sheer gallop straight down the middle of town square. 

“You guess? Mate, wait up, what the hay is wrong with you?!” Ballpoint cried after me.

The moment I cleared our cover, I heard the report of twenty rifles open up and bullets began to chip away at the cobble road around me. I ducked my head and flapped my wings, taking off explosively to cross the entire battlefield.

I felt the familiar pull of something within me and I suddenly maintained level flight at speeds I’ve barely flown before. I didn’t look over, but I knew my wings were alight with that strange magic.

“Luna, buck me into oblivion, you’ve gone mental!” Ballpoint swore behind me, the colt decided to follow me afterall.

I felt a dull sting as a bullet grazed my back, I ground my teeth and poured more speed into our mad dash. Ballpoint barely kept up to my right, the smaller buck was trying to use me as cover.

I braced my shoulder and slammed into the door, Ballpoint soon followed and we both tumbled into the building. The sounds of gunfire died off with the last hail of bullets peppering the doorframe. Ballpoint was already on his hooves, unscathed, and he began to look around him in a paranoid fury.

“Celestia’s cursed reign,” he swore as he panted, “we did that. We just bucking did that! How the hay did we not get hit?!”

I groaned and rolled onto my hooves, I suddenly felt exhausted. I slowly stood up and looked around.

We were in an entryway with a small kitchen leading to the ground floor off our right and a staircase before us. The old building had seen better days, with light peeking through patched windows and faded wallpaper barely clinging onto the walls.

Despite the age, the building was well loved. Various family heirlooms decorated old furniture and even a foal’s toy sparkle-cola chariot was left on the kitchen floor. I sincerely hoped I made the right call, otherwise I owed Aurora an apology.

I stepped off the collapsed door and spotted Scarlet’s bow. I quickly untied it and put it in my saddlebag, she’d probably want it back after all of this. But why the hell was it here? She lost it during that ghoul attack we had earlier.

“Let’s head up the stairs,” I quickly said, “I can bet you a million bits… err caps, that we’re about to find some answers.” I began to trot up the staircase, unholstering my Tidus 11. 

At the top, a small hallway shot left. We passed an empty bedroom and came to a closed door at the end of the hall. My ears perked at the sound of hoof clops and a muffled voice on the other side. 

“It’s got to be in here, come on!” the familiar voice of a middle aged mare resounded on the other side. 

I looked at Ballpoint and whispered, “Starline.”

The colt looked at me in disbelief, “how’d you know she’d be here?” 

I shrugged and trotted up to the door, jiggling the handle. It was locked.

The voice behind the door quickly hushed, followed by the sound of a window opening and the telltale sound of thestral wings flapping. 

I turned around, double bucking the flimsy door open. I rushed into the room, quickly followed by Ballpoint, who was now armed with the same kind of gun Aurora had, sausage and all. 

Inside, the room was clearly a place of higher study. An architect’s table sat against one wall with a massive magnifying glass propped over charts and diagrams of cave paintings. Various bins and boxes were filled with arcane tech and components along another. Overhead, a brass celestial globe and constellation spun ambiently in the still air, it reflected the cool blue light cast from a homemade stain glass window. 

The craftily made window dominated a wall, featuring the symbol of a setting sun and rising moon blanketed across a field of stars. The symbol felt eerily familiar to me for some reason.

Shadowed among its cool glow, sat Starline, one leg out an open window and eyes wide like a filly caught with her hoof in a cookie jar. 

She wasn’t wearing the same outfit since the last time I saw her. Instead she wore the telltale yellow and black-trimmed combat barding of the Daylight soldiers. Upon her flank, a blue plumed helmet was pinned to her armor.

Ballpoint was first to break the silence. His voice shook with both hurt and betrayal, “M-major… Why?” 

The thestral mare slowly stepped back inside the room. I raised my gun at her head. She was armed. Across her side was some kind of energy weapon. Along her chest, a bandolier of hoof-sized objects I didn’t recognize.

“You’re hard to get rid of, feathers,” Starline slowly sat, glaring at me but not daring to move too quickly. Her gaze traced my left side and she raised a brow, “Former feathers, how’d that happen?”

I held my aim, I wasn’t going to let her dodge the question. “You sent us away on purpose. You sent everypony who could help this town away! For what? To help the ponies who despise our existence?”

Starline shook her head, “Nothing in this wasteland is free.“

I felt an eye twitch. “Caps? Really? Innocent ponies died, Starline.”

A frown itched at the corner of her mouth, “No. Life isn’t free. The Daylight are inevitable. Can’t you see that? They’re going to save Equestria and we’re just in their way.” 

“Bullshit,” Ballpoint spat beside me. “Tell us the truth or you’ll get one between the eyes,” the colt growled around his pistol.

“Think about it!” Starline pushed. “This all happened because of us! Nightmare Moon returning, Luna taking power during the war, the bombs! Equestria was wiped out because of us!”

“How the hay are a bunch of bat ponies responsible when we didn’t have any say during the war?” Ballpoint asked. “Celestia used us as cannon fodder until the good goddess of the night put a stop to it!” 

“History, colts, history!” Starline pressed a hoof to her brow, “you have no idea what Aurora and Amber discovered. I don’t love the Daylight either but they’re right. And it’s join them or die…I wasn’t going to throw my life away under their hoof while trying to protect what should be destroyed.”

My chest gripped with disgust. This mare willingly sold out an entire town of innocent ponies because she thought they’d lose a battle. She was singley responsible for the dozens of dead families that laid in the rubble around us. But one thing she said gave me pause. 

“What did Aurora and Amber discover?” 

Starline’s eyes darted around the room. They widened and she did a double-take between me and the table behind me.

“Y-you…” her voice quivered. 

I furrowed my brow, “What?” 

Starline quickly grabbed the bandolier across her shoulder and tore it off, she had a panicked look in her eyes that made me almost bite the trigger. But I held my fire. 

“Starline, what’s going on?” I pressed, “What did they discover?” 

She began mumbling to herself about ‘the ghouls’ and how ‘they actually worked.’ She suddenly grabbed a pin on one of the round objects and yanked her head, pulling it free and holding the thing between both her hooves.

“You need to die, Midnight, do you understand?!” Starline’s voice was shrill with panic, “you’re a mutant, you shouldn’t exist!” 

“I really don’t understand!” I took a timid step back, “what are you holding? What were you saying about Aurora and his wife? A mutant?”

“It’s always the bloody ministries,” Starline rolled her eyes and continued her ramble. “They forced things to happen when they shouldn’t have! They were on Luna’s side the whole time… it all makes sense. Good goddesses what has this world come to.”

Ballpoint holstered his gun and grabbed my shirt, “we need to leave Midnight!” 

I looked back at the colt trying to pull me over, “we need answers!” 

“She’s holding a bloody bomb! Move your flanks!” Ballpoint cried, turning and bucking my legs. 

Oh shit! I widened my eyes and aimed my gun back at Starline. I began to squeeze the plate of the Tidus 11.

“NO! You idiot!” Ballpoint slapped my head, causing me to hit the trigger and my shot went wide, shattering the window behind Starline. 

“I’m sorry Midnight,” Starline spread her wings and held a paddle on the side of the bomb tightly, “you don’t understand. You weren’t supposed to exist. I’m sorry!” she began to flap out the shattered window. 

Ballpoint was hollering in my ear, “Midnight! She’s holding-”

I activated the S.A.T.S spell and readjusted my aim. I let the spell drop and the Tidus 11 jarred my teeth. The bullet rocketed clean through Starline’s head.

“-the trigger! If you kill her, it’ll blow!” Ballpoint finished his exclamation. 

“What?!” I reeled on Ballpoint. 

Starline’s body slumped onto the ground and a small metal paddle ejected from the object she was holding. It shot across the room with a percussive pop. 

“YOU FUCKING KILLED US!” Ballpoint screamed and ran for the door.

Buck.

I looked down at the bandolier and watched a small puff of smoke pour out a hole from the top of one of the bombs. It would cause a chain reaction down the bandolier. All of them would blow up. I spread my wings and tried to flap backwards, stumbling and slamming into furniture as I instinctively flapped incorrectly.

I felt a gust of wind followed by the sound of flapping wings, shattering glass, and chorus of gunfire erupting outside.

Then the whole world exploded. 

It seemed like the bombs went off below me, causing the floor to buckle and groan as it began to give.

I looked back quickly enough to see the smoke from the cluster of explosions erupt out the window. The floor quickly gave out and I felt myself plummet down to wreckage beneath me.

I took a sharp hit to the head and my vision began to blur, a high pitched ringing sang in my ears. 

Moments before I felt my consciousness slip, I watched Scarlet’s navy-blue bow gently float down on top of me. 

For a moment, the chaos of war and destruction was tuned out by the ringing in my head. Images flashed behind my eyes:

A dark blue mane made from a brilliant field of stars.

The moment of stillness that existed between moonrise and sunset.

The red eyes and scarlet mane of a thestral prince. 

‘It’s time,’ the low and soothing voice of Orpheus whispered in my ears. 

My limbs fell numb and the world faded to darkness.


XXX

> Chapter Eleven: A New Dawn
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


Chapter Eleven: A New Dawn



Scarlet Rose


<><><>


I folded my wings and dove to gain more speed while I raced toward town center. After Captain Angel thanked me for my service, she immediately ordered me to the front with some ponies from a settlement called Rafael. Apparently the heavy-machine gun wielding ponies that saved my arse were mercenaries that came to help us just in the nick of time.

Unlike the mercenary fliers, the Renaissance guards just weren’t equipped well enough for aerial combat. The majority of guards had bolt action earth pony rifles which were nearly impossible to operate under wing. The Night Watch were forced to fight on the ground, and because of this, the Daylight managed to out maneuver them. Not to mention we were outnumbered two to one.

Luckily for me, I had a small automatic carbine, meaning I didn’t have to cycle the bolt and I could hold it with just my jaw. So airborne I was.

I banked and wove along the road below the rooftops. Ahead, two mercenary ponies led me toward the battle. Both stallions carried battle-saddle mounted IF-16 'Blackwing' rifles with drum magazines and tracer ammunition. The long guns were basically the bigger cousin of my IF-4 carbine; lightweight and fully automatic, perfect for aerial combat. Their tracers helped their aim when strafing the ground at high speed, no need to line up any sights.

I didn’t know how I felt about fighting alongside ponies who made money from killing, but these bucks were trained in combat, which was infinitely more than myself. I figured I’d save my ethical introspection for later if that meant these ponies kept me alive right now.

We suddenly climbed and skimmed over a rooftop, diving back down a new road and out of the dawn’s early light. This road led directly toward the fountain in the middle of town. I quickly scanned a group of guards below as they took cover in the street corners. I couldn’t find the telltale blue fur of my pegabat companion.

I fought to keep the creeping sense of worry for Midnight out of my mind. I hadn’t seen him for hours. But, I couldn’t let my emotions take hold of me. He was doing his part and I sure as bloody tartarus was gonna do mine too.

One of the thestral stallion’s guiding me looked back and nodded, his expression unreadable behind the shaded visor of his flight helmet. Their job to lead me here was done. They both banked and peeled off, heading toward their own targets. I narrowed my eyes and dove lower into the alley. This was the last stretch before the town center.

The close confinement quickly gave way to the open center, I flared my wings and softly let down just at the street corner. Ahead, I could clearly see both sides of the fight as ponies traded a crossfire. Bullets struck the statue in the middle, even chipping the sword held in its jaw.

As I peered across the battlefield, I caught sight of a blue stallion and a shorter white colt. Midnight and Ballpoint. They were completely on the opposite side of the square but they weren’t taking any fire. I sighed in relief, I didn’t realize how much it mattered to me to see Midnight was okay. I needed to regroup with him, for no other reason than just being by him again.

But how am I supposed to get over there… With the crossfire, I was sure to turn my flank into holed cheese. I nervously watched as Midnight and the colt seemed to be bickering silently.

I shifted my gaze to the Daylight forces briefly, watching a pair of thestrals dive out of the skies and strafe the ranks, causing them all to take cover in the buildings. The light rattle of their IS16s told me they were the stallions I flew in with.

The Daylight soldiers quickly redirected their fire upward and I could see the tracer ammunition streak into the sky around the pair. Bullets tore through the wings of one of the ponies and he plummeted onto a rooftop, striking it at high speed and sliding off, falling two stories below.

I felt myself begin to tremble slightly, Good goddess, I’m not cut out for this kind of stuff. 

I quickly averted my gaze back to my friends but before I was able to think of a plan, the two idiots across the street suddenly charged right down the middle of town square.

I muffled a cry of shock with my hoof while I watched them take fire from everypony in town. Amazingly, Midnight’s wings ignited with a magical aura of white light, just like before. He suddenly kicked forward like a rocket, bullets seemingly bouncing off of the glowing air around him and saving Ballpoint who struggled to keep up with him in tow. 

The two of them darted clear across the open square and slammed into a building near me.

I hate that buck, I breathed heavily, relieved he was unharmed but hurt by how careless he was. Heʼd get himself killed one day if he kept this up. 

I had no bloody clue why he did what he did, but at least he was on my side of the battlefield. I peeked around the corner of the building and guessed my chances seemed probable. But I was going to be a smart pony about this.

I spread my wings and flew backwards until I was behind enough cover. I turned and climbed over the rooftop to my right, directly on top of the cluster of buildings where Midnight had gone in. From my vantage, I spotted a formation of four ponies quickly diving towards me.

I hurriedly raised my carbine, but immediately huffed at my own paranoia. Flying ponies were the good guys. I watched as they let down on the street below, spotting Silver Dusk, Aurora Borealis and two other ponies I didn’t recognize. A black-maned gray mare and a dark blue stallion.

“Oi, lassie, you alright?” Aurora called up as they quickly cantered over to my building.

“Aurora! Silver!” I cried down at them, “Luna’s grace, am I glad to see you guys. I’m trying to get to Midnight, he’s inside,” I explained and gestured to the roof below me with a wingtip.

“In my house? Well, I know I extended an invitation but now’s hardly the time for tea and Fancy Buck cakes,” Aurora chuckled, “let’s get in there and help your special somepony, eh?” he winked and unslung his rifle.

I rolled my eyes but didn’t say anything. Nothing was going to change the old stallion’s mind and we had more important things to worry about.

Silver turned to the other thestral guards with them,“Sergeants Orion, Breeze, take your squads and try to flush out the culty-bastards. We’ve got the numbers and the element of surprise on them, so make it count.”

“You got it sir, c’mon Breezie,” the black maned mare, Orion, saluted and both ponies flew back up the road toward a group of a dozen new guards.

“Alright let’s head on-” Aurora was cut off when the report of a familiar gun went off in a room below me, followed by the sound of shattering glass.

I leaned over the rooftop, watching a multicolored shower plummet toward the streets below. Silver and Aurora fluttered their wings and jumped back, avoiding being maimed by a rainbow of splattering glass. 

“That sounded like Midnight’s pistol!” I yelled and we all took flight towards the window.

*BANG*

Another shot echoed into the night. This time accompanied by a spray of blood smattering the broken stained-glass. I could only assume things were not going well for Midnight. Oh Luna, I hoped it was Midnight who did the shooting and not vice-versa.

Just as we cleared the windowsill, Aurora suddenly stiffened and planted both of his hind hooves on the shoulders of myself and Silver. He powerfully bucked us backward and pushed off of us. We both yelped in surprise as we fell back toward the street below.

“Hey!” I screamed as I tumbled backwards and hit the ground, hard, followed by Silver off my right.

I rolled and came to a stop against the glass window of a storefront, groaning as I laid on my back. I wearily watched Aurora fold his wings and dive into the shattered window.

What the bloody tartarus is wrong with him?! I mentally yelled to myself. Middy could be hurt!

Suddenly, Aurora burst back out of the window. His wings were folded in a near-suicidal dive for how close he was to the ground. Then something in his teeth caught my eyes: a bandolier of magical high explosives. It dawned on me just what Aurora was doing.

The world seemed to slow down as I focused on him; the faint report of rifles firing from my left, Silver’s desperate voice yelling from my right, the Daylight fighting off a surprise attack down the street. All ignored as I watched Aurora dive vertically downward, his eyes shut tight.

The explosion fell on deaf ears. I wasn’t able to register the sound as the enormous shockwave washed over me. Aurora’s figure simply vanished within the fireball. I shut my eyes from the blast, rolling over against the storefront and shivering as shattered glass rained onto my back.

I laid there for a moment, my ears ringing and my heart pounding in my head. The shock from the explosion left me completely stupid, I couldn’t open my eyes no matter how hard I tried.

Sound suddenly rushed back all at once as I began to process what just happened. Aurora must have seen the bomb up there. It would have killed us all. He sacrificed himself for us. My chest tightened with grief and terror. I fluttered my eyes open, coughing from a thick cloud of dust, trying to get my bearings.

I was shaken from my thoughts when I spotted the figures of ponies emerging from the quickly collapsing house. A young buck, nearly all black covered in soot, limped from the smoke and flames. Upon his back was a bloodied heap of blue fur and feathers. I quickly scrambled to my hooves, flapping my wings to keep my balance as I dashed over to the colt.

Ignoring the incoming fire from the Daylight’s retreat, I galloped next to the young guard and helped prop him up with my shoulder. We cantered as quickly as he could toward one of the many alleyways that connected the streets.

I began blurting in a panic, “Please tell me he’s alive, please, please don’t let Aurora’s-” my voice caught in my throat. I couldn’t believe it was even true. “Don’t let his sacrifice be in vain…”

We stopped in the alley and I stared down at the bloodied form of Midnight, his eyes closed as he lay unconscious. My heart ached, don’t let me lose the only pony I have left.

Ballpoint began to go through his saddlebags for medical supplies. Midnight was covered in a series of wounds that bled readily, shrapnel must have raked up his side. I began to prance around them in a panic, I had no bloody clue what to do.

“Oi-” Ballpoint coughed and began to rapidly stuff bandages into the bleeding wounds that dotted Midnight’s body. “Oi! Move your flanks, lass! Cover me! Can ye do that instead of prancing about like a useless filly?!” he yelled in a hoarse voice.

I awoke from my shock and blinked rapidly, nodding. For now, Midnight was alive. If I wanted it to stay that way I was going to need to keep the Daylight off of us until he was stable enough to move to the field hospital. I was not going to let him down.

I grabbed the IF-4’s bit with near-practiced ease and peered around the corner of the alley, watching the remainder of the Daylight’s forces head toward us. With Silver and the other guards’ return, the battle had severely tipped in our favor. The Daylight had lost a considerable number and it looked like victory was nearly upon us.

The remaining seven or so soldiers were galloping full speed on the street our alley intersected. My heart raced as I looked at them. It pounded in my ears with anger and grief. I took the opportunity to enact my revenge and made sure my fire selector was still on ‘auto.’

I propped a hoof on the corner of the building and braced my carbine, lining the sights right onto the chest of one of the soldiers who was fearfully galloping my way. I pressed the trigger.

*crack, crack, crack, crack, crack.*

I held the trigger on him, sweeping the sights onto the mare beside him when he stumbled over. Shell casings rang onto the cobblestone at my hooves as I relentlessly unloaded the entire magazine. When the bolt locked open, I quickly ejected the magazine and slammed a new one in from my chest sling, slapping the bolt release and repeating the uncontrolled automatic fire into the group.

The citizens of Renaissance took advantage of the retreating soldiers, now that they were no longer a force to be reckoned with. From rooftops, windows, and cellar doors, ponies began to fire from the spots they were previously hiding within. Countless small arms fire sparked off the combat barding of the Daylight soldiers.

I continued to empty magazines with a barrage of lead, reloading for the fifth time as a bloody bastard stumbled and fell just a few hooves away from me. I aimed the carbine, point blank, and held the trigger. The suppressor at the end of my barrel was nearly red hot, smoke and gas blasting in my face and mane as thirty more rounds rapidly left the rifle. Sparks and flames shot out of the overheated suppressor but I barely paid attention to it.

“Scarlet!” Ballpoint’s voice was washed out beside me.

The carbine ceased fire and I grabbed my last magazine, shaking as I struggled to shove it into the gun. The firing bit in my mouth was so hot, it almost burnt my tongue. The last mag found its mark and I slammed the bolt closed, aiming at the bloodied corpses of the Daylight that littered the street and pressed the trigger again.

“Scarlet, hold your fire!” Ballpoint hollered into my ear, but I ignored him.

Thirty more rounds slapped into their dead bodies and chipped at the cobblestone streets. Bullets ricocheted past them, sparking off into houses and toward the morning skies. The suppressor had nearly given up on me, barely muffling any muzzle blast and blinding me with bright flashes as the last of my ammunition erupted from my fiery barrel.

The recoil finally halted and I stumbled forward from bracing it so hard. I screamed in frustration and threw the smoking gun at the corpse in front of me. The cherry-hot suppressor sizzled and steamed in the pool of blood on the street, its white vapors carried away silently into the frozen autumn morning.

I collapsed against the wall, my legs splashing the hundred brass casings that littered around me. I sat, staring at Midnight’s laying form. The poor buck was barely alive. Tears were falling freely down my muzzle. I shuddered as I closed my eyes and cried.

This was too much. Aurora. Midnight. The ponies of Renaissance. The only ponies out here in this Celestia forsaken hellhole that gave me any hope. Ruined, battered, bleeding, dead. Why? What was so important to those bastards that would lead to all this?

“Scarlet,” Ballpoint's voice gently said before me, “we need to get him to the hospital, lass, come on.”

I opened my eyes and sniffled. The battered colt was sitting before me, his face smeared with soot and blood. His expression was solemn with understanding but determined. Midnight was laying behind him, covered in blood and bandages. His chest moved slowly as he took shallow breaths.

The growing morning light cast long shadows on the silent streets. The town was finally quiet once again, only the chirping of morning birds and the soft clopping of hooves echoed from the buildings as ponies began to emerge from cover and squint in the early sun’s light.

The citizens of Renaissance began to slowly mingle back out into the streets to grab a firm perspective of what happened. Many began to loot the soldiers, others attended to the wounded or bodies of those that didn’t make it. The battle however, was not over for me yet.

I stood and wiped my face with a foreleg, nodding to Ballpoint. He had managed to bandage the superficial wounds that covered Midnight’s body, but his condition was only going to get worse if we didn’t move him soon. 

Without a word, the young guard and I lifted Midnight across both our backs and we quickly began cantering toward the field hospital. My legs and body protested from the weight, but I shut it out as I steeled my gaze on the road ahead. Captain Angel had better have an open bed for Midnight, otherwise I’d throw her maps on the ground and use her own bloody table myself.

The piercing morning light tickled my exhausted eyes. Dusk felt like forever ago. When the night began, I never would have expected events like this to unfold. It was all happening too quickly.

I looked over at Midnight as he laid across my back, his eyes shut tightly. I took solace with his presence in my life. I couldn’t do this without him. I felt a few tears begin to slide down my face thinking about what Aurora did for him. For us. It was a deed so noble, yet so wrong at the same time. Aurora was the first pony who accepted both Midnight and I. Now he was the first friend we lost. How many more would soon follow?

We bobbed and weaved through the rubble and crowds of thestral ponies. All around, families were silently looking upon the destruction of their homes. There weren’t as many civilian casualties as the guard, but there were enough for every street to be filled with mourning of the wounded and deceased.

Somehow, Renaissance successfully fended off the Daylight’s attack. A force of well armed, well trained, and determined soldiers. But at the cost of maybe more than half the guard, it didn’t feel like a victory at all. The unknown motive from the Daylight just added salt to the wound and made their actions hurt so much more.

If this was only a fraction of the Daylight’s many waves that were destroying thestral settlements across Transylvania, I feared this was only but a taste of the war that was soon to come.


<><><>


The next day was a blur of activity around me. Captain Angel and Nurse Penumbra worked around the clock, caring for as many ponies as they could while the citizens of Renaissance attempted to rebuild. Dr. Bone was absent, I could only imagine the worst had happened. 

After leaving Midnight in the care of the medics, I immediately fell asleep in the straw packing of an empty explosives crate in the supply chariot. I was too physically and emotionally exhausted to keep my eyes open a moment longer.

I slept clear through the day and part way through the night before Silver and Ballpoint paid a visit. The two bucks barely had a chance to rest themselves. I awoke to the bed of the chariot swaying as both ponies hopped up to have a seat. Far above, the nearly full moon was halfway across the sky and the air was absolutely frigid. I missed my winter jacket.

“Howʼs your pegasus doing?” Silver asked ambiently. He was sitting on the tailgate of the chariot, drinking from a canteen. 

He had stripped his uniform and barding down to just a bag and a rifle. His white mane and maroon coat was disheveled and filthy from the clean up efforts. I finally got a chance to see his cutiemark, a quill and paper, of all things. Maybe he was a writer. 

“Pegabat,” Ballpoint corrected beside him, flicking ashes from a cigarette balanced on his wing claw. The colt was in a similar state, his own cutiemark was unsurprisingly a red crosshair. I doubted a colt his age should be smoking, but at this rate, who cared? 

I groaned and rolled out from the crate and onto my hooves. My body was so sore I could barely move. I fluttered my wings, clearing straw that clung to my matted coat and tucked my loose mane behind an ear. I delicately stepped past the resting bucks and down from the bed of the chariot. 

Silver cocked a brow down at me and offered his canteen. I gratefully accepted it and took a swig, sputtering and coughing as the foul fluid stung my throat and nose.

“Luna’s moon, what is that?” I choked and shoved the canteen back at the chuckling buck. 

“Apricot moonshine,” Silver took another swig and capped the bottle. “What, never had alcohol before?” 

“No, I’m not old enough,” I said plainly. Ponies weren’t allowed to drink strong alcohol in the stable until three years after graduation. Obviously. 

Ballpoint slapped Silver’s shoulder and cackled in laughter, coughing from his cigarette smoke and wiping his eyes, “the lass isn’t old enough! You hear that, mate? How old are ya, Scarlet?”

“Eighteen?”

“Ah! She’s fair game for ya, lad,” Ballpoint nudged Silver, who just shoved him back in return. 

I rolled my eyes and stood up, “I’m gonna check on Middy.”

Ballpoint and Silver shared a look from the chariot bed. 

“Ooo, you hear that, mate, ‘Middy?’” Ballpoint cooed.

Silver smirked, “maybe not fair game after all.”

I groaned and waved a wing at the chuckling pair, making my way toward the hospital tents. They were just stupid colts. 

“Oi, lass, we’re joking!” Ballpoint cried from behind me. “Besides, Silver fancies himself a particular nurse-” his voice was cut off with the sounds of a struggle.

I looked back at the two, Silver had tackled him, grunting that Ballpoint ‘keep quiet,’ and they began wrestling against the metal flooring of the chariot. Colts. 

I cantered past the dozen or so tents that made up the field hospital. Each of them was filled with the lucky ponies who survived the battle. Most of the injuries were from the artillery barrage, others from direct fire from the sun-loving bastards. I couldn’t wrap my head around such a careless and unnecessary attack on innocent lives.

I nosed my way into one of the tents, passing cots and makeshift beds of sleeping patients until I came across the furthest corner. A blue stallion was laying on his back, his eyes closed gently with various bandages wrapped around his head and body. Midnight wind. A stallion I never imagined I’d grow to care this much about, yet here we were.

I lit an alcohol lantern on the tent post by his bed, bathing us in a warm orange glow. I sat and looked him over, this wasn’t the first time I stood by while he was unconscious. He was in decent condition, no major wounds thankfully. But he must have hit his head hard. He hadn’t woken up for an entire day. Captain Angel mentioned that these bouts of unconsciousness, comas really, could be life threatening. Thankfully, his breathing was normal and he was at least stable for the time being.

I frowned as I watched him, he looked like he was just asleep, like the slightest thing could wake him up at any moment. I carefully reached a hoof forward and nudged his shoulder, “Midnight,” I whispered. “Midnight, please wake up.”

I felt my lip quiver, he completely ignored my touch. I prayed that Luna would finally release him from his slumber. He belonged in this world, not hers. Not yet at least.

“I tried that, Scarlet,” the familiar voice of Penumbra startled me. I found it odd for a thestral like herself to have an Equestrian accent unlike the rest of us.

I quickly stood, and faced the dark green mare. Her white-highlited and periwinkle mane was pinned up in a ponytail. Her golden eyes were exhausted behind her black glasses, she had probably stayed up all day and into tonight. She wore a faded lab coat down her whole body and had a surgical tray with various instruments balanced on her back.

“Is there anything we can do?” I asked, stepping aside as I let the nurse check up on Midnight.

Penumbra set the tray down on a nearby table and held a stethoscope in her mouth to Midnight’s chest, listening to his heart and breathing. She shook her head and undid the device, letting it rest around her neck. “No, not here with what we have.”

I felt my ears dip at her words, watching as she pulled out a syringe and took his blood from a foreleg.

“But,” she drew the crimson fluid into the cylinder. Pulling it and inspecting it closely, “I have my predictions on what may be going on.”

“Like?”

“Magic, of course.” Penumbra ejected the needle onto the tray and capped the syringe. She eyed me curiously, “What happened to his wing? Last I remember our stallion here was mostly pegasus. Now, he’s a little bit more like you and I.”

I sat back against the tent wall, “O- oh,” I tapped my hooves on the cobblestone. “Um, I was giving him lots of health potions, you know, like Dr. Bone said.”

Penumbra hummed as she tinkered with what looked like an older model of our PipBucks on the table. She attached another device to an input port and began scrolling through the mini-computer’s functions. She paused and looked at me over her glasses, “And?”

“Right,” I looked down at my hooves, “well one of the potions was, uh, tainted.”

Penumbra’s hooves froze, she spoke without looking back at me, “Tainted? How so?”

I gulped nervously, I knew this was going to sound terrible out of context. I tapped my hooves together, “W- with, I.M.P.”

Penumbra reeled and whipped around, nearly knocking over the side table with her tail, “You fed him Impelled Metamorphosis Potion?!”

I fluttered my wings and quickly stood, “it was an accident!” I blurted, “there was a taint leak at the firearms warehouse. I couldn’t see that it seeped into one of the first aid kits. I was so busy trying to help Midnight but instead I-” I looked down at his thestral bat wing, “instead it did that.”

Penumbra stared at me with a panicked look, she quickly turned and began inspecting Midnight’s wing then his whole body. She pushed her glasses back straight across her muzzle and quickly began scrolling through her old PipBuck.

“It’s bad, isn’t it?” I whispered.

“You have no idea,” Penumbra spoke, “but somehow, he’s alive. And that means something.”

She grabbed the blood filled syringe in a wing and uncapped it, delicately placing a drop on a shim of plastic and inserting it into the device attached to the PipBuck. She selected a program and a loading bar began to slowly crawl across the screen.

Satisfied, she left the device on the table and packed up the rest of her medical supplies. “I’m going to take a nap while this processes. Don’t touch it.”

I felt my throat tighten as she looked at me with untrusting eyes. She had to know I didn’t mean to do that to Midnight. It was an honest mistake. But if it was part of the reason he was in this extensive coma, then Luna knew what damned fate I gave him.

“I recommend you make yourself useful and help out around town,” Penumbra spoke as she made her way to the tent flap. “Midnight isn’t going anywhere.”

I watched her leave, shaken by her distaste for me. I felt responsible, yes, but the buck hit his head when falling through a  bloody building. Surely she didn’t blame everything on me, right?

I took one more look over Midnight’s laying form, my heart aching in a way that felt so foreign to me. He had to pull through. He was all I had.

I cantered out of the tent and followed Penumbra’s advice. If I wasn’t able to help my companion, then the least I could do was help the ponies around me.


<><><>


Over the next few nights, I did everything I could to help rebuild Renaissance to a fraction of its former cheerful splendor. From ferrying water from a nearby river – which was questionably safe given the clicks emitting from my PipBuck, to shoveling rubble and helping ponies lift new wooden beams upon their repaired houses. Everypony was involved one way or another in saving the settlement and I slowly began to feel like a part of the community.

I spent time with the Night Watch, listening in on their dawn meetings before everypony went to bed. They were worried, understandably so, that the Daylight would mount an offensive and catch us while we were busy repairing. New ponies at the top of command were stewing up a plan to get more help from across Transylvania, and whatever they were planning, I was going to make sure I was a part of it.

Despite the new command, Starline’s betrayal hit every guard hard. It raised questions nopony had answers to and Ballpoint’s testimony only made everyone more skeptical about my unconscious pegabat friend. The only one in town who may have had an inkling of understanding was Amber Night, but out of respect for her family, we gave her the space she needed to mourn.

The loss of Aurora Borealis was impossible to ignore. His cheerful mark was left on the minds of every guard in town. Each of us dealt with our grief in our own ways, myself just trying to bury it under more work and doing good where I could. His wife and daughter, Amber Night and Aurora Australis, were seldom seen. Their house was one of the first to be repaired but nothing could replace the missing piece of the loving father that once held them together.

When all was said and done at the end of each night, I would return to Midnight’s tent and tell him about the progress happening around town. It had been four nights and his condition hadn’t changed at all. Penumbra told me she was on the brink of understanding something big, but she wouldn’t explain further until she could speak with Amber about it. She decided to move him to the repaired hospital where she could study his condition more closely to her lab. Most of the ponies in the field hospital had either recovered or perished anyway, he was practically the last one left.

For now, on the fifth night, I sat by Midnight’s side in late Dr. Bone’s hospital. The doctor was one of the first killed by the blasts. I should have felt worse than I did for him, but the sudden loss of a debt and one less hateful pony in the wasteland didn’t feel as bad as it probably should have.

I sat alone on a tall pile of pillows I had set up next to Midnight’s bed, hoping to lay a bit more level beside him. We were the only ponies on the upper floor of the hospital, so I felt comfortable rambling about whatever things came to mind. It was therapeutic in a way. I liked talking to him, even if he couldn’t understand me at all.

“You’d hope this stuff is made of fish or something,” I chuckled, spooning another salty mouthful of ‘Flam’ with an aluminum spork in my wing. These preserved pre-war canned goods were simultaneously delicious and disturbing.

“I mean, you pegasi eat fish, right? Well, I guess your great-great-great-” I took another bite and continued with a full mouth, “great-great grandmare probably ate fish. Like, before civilization and all.” 

I looked down at the tin in the dim firelight emitting from a lantern. I read the words written on the side, ‘Flim-Flam Brothers Presents: Flam! Now made with 100% protein (some ponies were harmed in the process of making this product).’ I skewed an eyebrow at it and set it aside, maybe I had enough of that. I opted to try the ‘Fancy Buck’ snack cakes instead.

“Well, maybe your thestral half would prefer one of these, eh? Look, it even says cherry on it, surely that’s real. Us bats like fruit you know,” I tore open a package and took a bite. My eyes widened in wonder. “Oh no, you’d hate this, trust me. You definitely don’t need to eat any of these and you can give them all to me,” I giggled and took another bite. The preserved cherry filling was absolutely divine.

“These sure beat the bland apple-everything we had back in the Stable,” I mumbled and laid down. I snuggled my back into the musty pillows, staring at the ceiling while I ate. “Back in the Stable…” I trailed in thought.

With recent events, I almost forgot about life in our concrete home. Or maybe I intentionally buried it. I sighed and spoke my thoughts aloud, “Life wasn’t great for me there either. Shade’s an overbearing sociopath and I was always kept in seclusion because of her or because of my ‘condition.’”

“See,” I took another bite and continued, “even in the stable, ponies were wary of my scarlet mane too. Dr. Red said it’s a genetic anomaly brought by leaked balefire radiation. Others thought it was some omen for the end of times, as if that didnʼt happen already,” I rolled my eyes, “Regardless, Stable ponies are more than happy to hide the things they’re scared of, as I’m sure you know.”

“Mum used to always say it was special though,” I spoke ambiently, staring at the red threads of hair I held up in a hoof. “She said it meant ‘the goddess chose me to be a shining star’ among everypony else.” I popped the last bit of snack cake in my mouth and shook my head, “I sure don’t feel bloody chosen right now.”

I looked over at Midnight’s laying form beside me and rolled over, hugging a pillow between my forelegs as I watched him, “I miss her. Mum, I mean. She would have loved to see the world out here. Despite the worst of it, this place is everything she said it should have been. The stars, the moon, the forest. She always told me about how thestrals thrived in these woods, how we were more in tune with the magic of the night sky than even pegasi and their clouds.”

I reached a hoof and gently tucked a red lock of Midnight’s mane aside, “kinda like you, now that I think about it.”

My hoof stopped near his still head and I felt my eyes begin to water lightly, “I miss you too, Middy,” I huffed and cracked a small smile, “I’m glad you can’t really hear any of this, cause Luna knows how much I’ll deny it. But,” I cleared my throat and laid my head close to his, “I need you, Midnight. You’re all I have left from home. I’m sorry we started off on the wrong hoof, but you’re a great buck.”

My smile faded, “I’m leaving tomorrow night. The ponies in charge want a few of us to go to Rafael and spread the word about the Daylight and see what can be done. I promise I’ll be right back, but in case things get complicated, I just need to let you know… how I've been feeling.”

I felt my ears warm while I ambiently pet my mane against the pillow, “I- um, I think I'm starting like you... a lot. So please wake up soon, okay? Maybe one day I’ll tell you again, when you can actually understand me, but you’ve gotta keep treating me like a mare. No more of that coltish snarky stuff, alright, mister?”

My words fell on his deaf ears but my chest clung onto the warm feeling of hearing them aloud for the first time. I said them more for myself than anything. This world was awful. Death stood at every corner and reaped any soul unfortunate enough to cross its path. If things were bleak in my future, I wasn’t going to waste my time now being a nervous filly around the colt I fancied. We only knew each other for such a short time but I knew what was happening in my heart. I wasn’t going to stop it.

I leaned forward and kissed Midnight’s cheek gently.

“I’ll see you when you’re awake,” I sighed softly.

Midnight’s gentle breathing and the rising morning light creeping in from the curtained windows weighed my tired eyes until they closed. I held the pillow lightly in my legs as I drifted to sleep. For the first time, wishing it was Midnight’s embrace instead.


XXX

> Chapter Twelve: Memories
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


Chapter Twelve: Memories



Midnight Wind



***

I opened my eyes, feeling wind rustle under my extended wings. The familiar weight of my suspended body almost made me forget that I couldn’t fly. I looked around drearily, it was nighttime with the sky covered in an unending expanse of thick overcast clouds. 

Okay, last I remember, I wasn’t flying, or really capable of flying, or over blue ground. Wait, why is the ground blue? 

I peered far down below at a wide expanse of greenish blue. The ground seemed to be moving and swaying as I flew level.

My stomach lurched and I instinctively tried to match level with the ground, I must not have been flying correctly. But no matter how much I tried, it looked like the ground was moving on its own. Frustrated, I folded my wings, diving down to get a closer inspection.

I flared my wings just ten or so hooves above the ground and felt a spray of water coat my underside. My eyes widened upon the revelation and I flapped as hard as I could, regaining my altitude in only a few pumps of the large thestral appendages.

Luna’s-fat-flanks, that stuff is all water?! I silently exclaimed as I eyed the seemingly infinite body of water below. I breathed in deeply, taking in the… salty air?

The powerful thrust of my wings felt unfamiliar. I looked over my shoulders and rolled my eyes. Of course I was in ‘that’ body. My massive bat wings extended steadily to either side, easily keeping me aloft as I glided along a steady current of air. I was surprised by how these membraned things were actually supposed to operate, now that I had two of them.

Looking right, I saw the water extended until the horizon. I even began to see the curvature of the world. The waves seemed to swell upwards and lick the clouds that blanketed the sky above. I blinked a couple of times to try and process the distance I was witnessing. I heard stories about the ocean, but to see it in person felt surreal. Well, if this was real.

Glancing left, I did a double take and spread my wings, slowing down into a smooth flapping hover.

I was along a coastline of some kind. A gleaming white cliffside kissed the ocean along its sheer drop. Cold gray waters splashed against the white rocks that lined the shore as far as the eye could see. The whole scene was bathed in a blanket of fog that rolled steadily inland. I wasn’t an expert in geography, but I knew this wasn’t mainland Equestria.

My sharp eyes caught the telltale crimson glow of a familiar alicorn. Orpheus. The black-coated red-maned thestral stood atop the cliffs, its bleak winds waving his magical mane around his black horn as he looked up at me.

I leaned forward, gaining speed until I tucked my wings in and dove toward him. At the last moment, I flared my bat wings and alighted next to the tall stallion, flapping quickly and gently touching down on the dead grass that hugged the hard ground underhoof.

“And you said I was the theatrical one,” Orpheus smiled at me.

“You’re the one standing dramatically on a clifftop,” I patted my coat off with a wing and faced him, “did you ‘summon’ me again?”

“Yes and no,” Orpheus turned and began trotting toward a forest edge. “Your body is… less than conscious. I just took the opportunity to speak with your spirit while you were here.” 

I couldn’t remember how I wound up here. The last thing I remembered was arguing with Starline, then – nothing. 

“Wait, you said my spirit?” I watched Orpheus trot away. I sighed heavily, obviously I was meant to follow him again. “Off to the ‘tree-stump-of-wisdom’ again?” I asked, following the prince.

“Though that is a fitting place,” Orpheus looked at me over his shoulder, “I have something I want to show you.”

I followed the thestral alicorn under a dark canopy of deciduous trees. I couldn’t help but look around at the beautiful orange and red leaves around me. The trees in Transylvania were all brown and dying, but here they were vibrant and beautiful, even under the gloomy overcast skies.

Soon, a worn and dilapidated stone structure came into view among the overgrowth. It was a massive building, perhaps once a castle in its heyday. Sunken walls and toppled towers dotted the dense forest as we trotted along a small path. I took in our surroundings with wide eyes, it was clear this was a forgotten place.

“This is home,” Orpheus said solemnly, “or perhaps it was once upon a time.”

“Where are we?” I carefully picked my footing among piles of collapsed stone.

“Umbris,” Orpheus kicked a rusted piece of metal underhoof, “or Braytain, depending who and when you ask.”

I looked down at the old piece of armor. To the careful eye, the faintest bit of color was painted beneath its rusted surface. The orange and red sun of Equestria was proudly encased by two alicorn wings and a long red alicorn horn down the middle.

“What happened?”

“Can you guess?” Orpheus gestured toward one of the destroyed towers.

Along what remained of the battlements, ivy-ridden ballistae and toppled catapults were wrecked in a disciplined line. The more I looked, the more I saw the signs of battle. Piles of munitions, rusted arrow heads, craters from catapult impacts. This place was intentionally destroyed.

“War never changes,” Orpheus hummed as we crossed beneath a raised wooden gate. “Even so long ago.”

We crossed the ruined courtyard and toward the castle structure itself. Here, the enormous stone fortress was more intact, standing proudly among the potholed and collapsed outer walls. Faded regalia and banners waved ambiently in the cool wind, all sporting the unmistakable mark that adorned Orpheus’s flanks; a setting sun and rising moon among a field of stars. The symbol of twilight.

The gargantuan wooden doors of the castle were bashed inward, perhaps from a battering ram. We slowly trotted into the building when my thestral magic kicked in and illuminated the space in a way I had never seen before. The darkness faded to a cool white glow, like starlight on a clear night – was this how Scarlet saw the world? Inside, the walls were decorated with countless paintings, suits of armor, banners, elegant furniture, and notably: lines of skeletons. 

“They died protecting what they thought was right,” Orpheus spoke without looking down at the grim scene.

I frowned as I passed over the broken bones. The spidery wings, sharp fangs and hollow bones clearly indicated that they were thestrals. Rusted gray armor was scattered throughout but also tarnished brass as well. The more I looked, the more I was able to differentiate the skeletons and noticed earth ponies and unicorns among them. This was the last-stand between two forces who hated each other greatly.

We wound our way through the ornate castle, passing portraits of notable ponies and even some of Orpheus himself; who still looked barely a day older than the handsome stallion depicted in the ancient works.

Eventually, we passed through another collapsed door and into a throne room. Enormous stained-glass windows lined either wall, each depicting beautiful events of a land I was not familiar with. A beautiful oak tree standing proudly atop a sole hill, an extensive fruit orchard, two alicorn ponies bowing toward each other: prince Orphesus and the good goddess Luna. This last panel was broken however, with the space between their bowing forms shattered and allowing the cold whistling air inside. 

At the head of the room, chasing a torn and faded red carpet, sat a throne of black marble spotlighted by the cool white light that crept in from the shattered glass. Its back was ruptured and toppled over, like some kind of powerful impact had hit it long ago. Orpheus stood before the throne for a moment and then turned, facing me with a look that commanded my attention.

“Midnight,” he sat, his scarlet mane waving in a mystical glow like the embers of a fire, “it’s time.”

I held my tongue. I was about to say some kind of snarky remark, but I could see the alicorn was serious. I sat before him and tilted my head, “time for what?” 

Orpheus closed his golden eyes and took a deep breath. When he opened them again, his irises were alight with a crimson glow. “First, you need to understand the past to know why you stand before me in such a manner.”

“I’d like to know, please,” I shuffled my wings nervously, “‘cause, truthfully, I’m beginning to think I’m insane.”

Orpheus’s horn erupted with white magic and I felt my eyes droop, soon collapsing among the cold stone below. A series of events passed under my eyelids in quick succession. Like before, I was only along for the ride. I was simply a witness in the body of Orpheus as he showed me what were undoubtedly memories of his past:


ooOOooOOoo


“Today marks the day where I pass my inheritance and duty to the stars to these two sisters,” an old gray unicorn stallion spoke from a lectern.

I stood among a line of uniformed ponies, all proudly at attention. The old unicorn before us wore a dark blue wizard hat and cape adorned with a gleaming field of moving stars. His jawline had a long white beard and it was clear he was well advanced in age. Around us, beautiful crystal walls of blue and purple constructed a gorgeous atrium filled with similarly crystalline ponies and normal ponies of all kinds.

To the right of the wise stallion stood two unicorn mares: one with a pink mane and white coat, the other much younger with a light blue mane and light purple coat. They looked nervous, but stood tall and elegant with practiced royal decorum.

I stole a glance to my right. In line with me were a row of smartly dressed guards, all in brilliant white enameled armor as we stood at attention. Unicorns, pegasi, earth ponies, crystal ponies and thestrals, all proudly representing the races of this land.

“All hail crowned Princess Celestia, the keeper of the sun,” the old stallion cried, followed by a thunderous applause as the crowd of ponies thumped their hooves on the ground. “And crowned Princess Luna, the keeper of the moon,” he gestured toward the darker mare, soon followed by equal applause.

His horn suddenly erupted into a rainbow spectrum of magic, igniting the air around us and shooting a brilliant multi-colored beam toward the crystal ceiling. The beam split into two, one of warm reds and orange, the other of cool blues and purple. Each beam encased the respective sisters, granting either unicorn an ancient magic I could never begin to fathom.


ooOOooOOoo


The scene quickly faded and a new memory played in my eyes.

“Orpheus, do you understand the task at hoof?” the same old stallion asked, leading us along a shelf of ancient looking books.

I was standing in an old library of sorts. Dark wooden paneling decorated an extensive line of bookshelves illuminated by candles and arcane torches along stone walls. It was clear we were no longer in the beautiful crystal colosseum, but instead in a more intimate study of a traditional castle.

“Star Swirled,” I took a timid step forward, “are you certain? I’m just…” I trailed as I looked down at myself.

I was a young thestral stallion. Average in height, simple black coat, normal bat wings and a medium scarlet mane that framed my vision. No indication of the commanding alicorn I knew Orpheus was.

“Just what?” Star Swirled paused before a shelf, selecting a tome with an opalescent magical aurora. 

“Just a bat, sir,” I said lamely. I felt my ears droop as I watched the old unicorn hum in thought.

“You are no mere bat,” the wise unicorn spoke plainly, opening the tome and flipping rapidly among the pages. “I watched you grow from a spunky colt in a cave to the commandant of the imperial guard. You’ve led thousands of ponies to war,” the old buck paused and looked up at me with his teal eyes, “and you brought them home every single time. You’ve talked down the leaders of warring nations, exposed the treacherous mischief of a corrupt ring of mages, convinced the dragon king to extend trade with our people, and a whole repertoire of more astounding feats.”

“Sir, if I may,” I sat and sighed heavily, “I just don’t think I could live up to what you ask. Luna, Celestia, they’re unicorns born among an ancient line of incredible magic wielders. But, my kind are not creatures of magic. When was the last time you ever met a thestral who could do more than simply… see in the dark?”

“I’m looking at one,” Star Swirled smirked. “Orpheus, you are more than a warrior. You are a warrior of the mind.” The old wizard smiled as he came across the page he sought, turning and levitating the book to a table in the center of the room. “You have countless victories both on the battlefield and the courtroom, each of them won through cold strategy. You’ve led your ponies toward peace and tranquility with a balanced hoof of compassion and logic. That is precisely why I ask this of you. You are the embodiment of equilibrium.”

“Sir-” I began.

“Orpheus, please,” Star Swirled sat and looked at me with sincerity, “My time is near its end. I must entrust the future of all ponies to those who I deem worthy. I’m not asking, I’m begging. Take this position. The sisters are capable of the duties I ask of them but they need somepony to be the voice of reason. Entropy demands the chaos of the stars and you are the one most suited to resist it.”

I slowly stood and trotted over to him, looking curiously at the page he saved. On it, constellations and celestial diagrams outlined the orbits of solar bodies. The sun, the moon, our world, and most notably an event that occurred every so many years; an eclipse. Both lunar and solar.

“The magic of our world is governed by the stars from beyond. Should either sun or moon ever be eclipsed by another, their respective magic will vanish,” Star Swirled explained. “Either celestial body is capable of becoming overshadowed by another, just like their princess counterparts. However,” he waved his hoof and a brilliant field of magical stars appeared around us, “starlight will always prevail.”

I looked around in wonder. Even in its artificial form, the influence of the stars plucked a magical harp string deep within me. The beautiful pinpricks of light encased us both while Star Swirled smiled at my reaction.

“Thestrals are beings of starlight. Your magic lies within their power, so easily outshined by both the sun and the moon, yet always present. The stars are an everlasting source of balanced magical energy that cannot be broken, no matter how much the sun doth shine, or the moon doth glow.”

I looked at the old stallion and felt my shoulders give, “I understand. I… I accept.”

“Thank you, Orpheus.” Star Swirled stood and touched my shoulder, “do not be the force of good nor evil. Be the force of balance.”

I nodded and watched as his horn erupted in a rainbow glow once again. A blinding white light shot from it and impacted my chest. I flinched, but quickly relaxed as a familiar sensation grew within me. The feeling that I felt when watching the sun set and the moon rise. The moment of solace and tranquility that only existed in the briefest moments of twilight.


ooOOooOOoo


The world around me changed once again.

“Your highness,” a thestral mare announced loudly at the door of a throne room. “Princess Luna of Equestria.”

I was sitting on the black marble throne within the castle Orpheus had shown me prior to these memories. But now, the room was brilliantly alight with the warm glow of candles and braziers, every corner and wall in immaculate condition. Around me, tens of thestral ponies dressed in royal garb were trotting around as they tended to their duties. The crier by the ornate oak door stepped aside as two armored thestrals opened it, revealing our esteemed guest.

A beautiful alicorn mare stepped forth. Her dark blue coat was well kept and adorned with an elegant cloak sporting the symbology of the night: a black swath of the night sky and a crescent moon proudly square upon it. The same symbol that she bore on her body since her ascension. 

I caught myself staring at her brilliant blue mane which gleamed with a field of stars, eternally flowing as though propelled by magical wind. It was pinned up in a youthful ponytail, held in place by a simple navy blue bow.

She trotted down the red carpet of the throne room, head held high and shoulders square, as elegant as her position commanded. I sat up on my throne and heeded her.

“Princess Luna of Equestria,” I said clearly.

“Prince Orpheus of Umbris,” she replied plainly.

I looked around at the ponies in the throne room. Dukes, ladies, knights, and servants all stood in awe as they watched the princess of the night walk among my halls. Princess Luna’s own entourage of pegasus guards stood expectantly by the doors, watching me keenly as they looked for the slightest hint of wrongdoing among my halls.

“Shall we retire to the study, for private discussion?” I stood and gestured to a door with my left wing.

“If his excellency so desires,” Princess Luna elegantly nodded.

We both slowly trotted to the room held open by a guard posted in the doorway. When we entered, I lit my horn with white light and gently closed the weighty oak door. It settled with a soft boom and both the princess and myself shared an expectant look.

I grunted as Luna suddenly rushed forward and embraced me.

“Orpheus, I’m so glad to see you,” her melodious voice sighed in relief. “It’s been too long.”

I smiled warmly and hugged her back with a foreleg, “It’s been, what, a century now?”

Luna scoffed and stepped back, brushing her mane with a pegasus wing, “sixty years.”

“Who’s counting?” I winked and invited her to a table in the study.

We both sat on plush cushions and I levitated a carafe of water to two porcelain cups, boiling them instantly with magical heat. I opened a jar and selected two silk bags, steeping them in the cups as I offered her my island’s best luxury; fruited tea.

“So tell me prince Orpheus, how is your kingdom?” Luna gestured her elegant feathered wing toward a large round window that dominated the wall off my left. 

The brilliant night outside was beautifully lit by her extravagant moon. Perhaps brighter than usual for just this occasion.

“I don’t command any kingdom, your highness,” I sighed, knowing she was pushing my buttons. “I chose this island because I specifically wanted to leave the governance of Equestria to you and your sister.”

“Oh, speak plainly you silly colt,” she blew on her own levitating cup, magically floating two cubes of sugar into the drink, “it’s just us in here.”

“Fine. You know I hate politics, Luna,” my shoulders dropped with a chuckle, “I’m content on my green isle of the sea, it’s where I was born and the homeland of my kind. But don’t ever underestimate me. I have vast and powerful armies of fruit trees.”

Luna giggled and sipped from her cup, “your armies are delicious, as always.”

“Grown by the finest ponies,” I sipped my own.

Luna hummed in agreement, “Your ponies adore you. You’re lucky to have such support.”

“If they ever look past you,” I poked her shoulder with a wing, “if I’m not careful, I’m afraid they’ll start forming a religion around you and your moon.”

Luna huffed and took her levitating cup in her hooves, carefully warming them as she stared down at the red liquid, “I’m glad for you, Orpheus. And I love your ponies too. Things aren’t exactly the same for me back home.”

I felt my ears lower at her change of tone, “Is Celestia-” 

“She’s fine,” Luna spat, flashing her blue eyes at me quickly, “sorry. She’s fine. It’s just…lonely. To the ponies of the mainland, the realm of the night is better spent tucked quietly away at home rather than under the brilliant skies I craft for them.”

I nodded slowly in understanding. Ponies were not nocturnal. Not all of us at least. Luna was tasked with the duty to guide the moon across the skies and live among the world of dreams. Which sounded lovely, if you were content with living forever in solitude. 

“We adore your night,” I said truthfully, sitting back and finishing my cup. “Your artistry isn’t completely ignored.” 

Luna sighed softly and looked back at me, “I appreciate it. It’s why I came here really, to visit the thestrals. It’s nice to spend time with ponies in my realm once and a while.”

I tapped a hoof in thought. It had been decades since I hosted company. “Why don’t you stay a while? I’m sure the thestrals of Umbris would love to watch how you raise the moon, we could make an event of it.”

The corners of Luna’s mouth tilted in the beginnings of a smile “I’d love to, but…” 

I felt my own expression falter, “But?” 

“You have to promise you’ll show me your armies, I’ve been dying to try it from the source!” Luna giggled at my sigh of relief. 

“Of course your highness,” I bowed dramatically, “you may even indulge in my private collection of elite apricot knights.”


ooOOooOOoo


The world shifted to a new scene. I was beginning to feel less like a witness, and more like Orpheus himself as I felt his emotions and read his thoughts.

“Orpheus of Umbris,” a stallion announced as I trotted into the royal chambers of the Castle of the Two Sisters.

The stone halls were similar to my own residency in Umbris. Along either wall, stained glass windows depicted the notable events that lead to Equestria’s creation and the ascension of the sisters. A long gold-frilled red carpet led to the twin thrones where both alicorn mares patiently awaited my arrival. To either side, a line of Equestrian guards watched me keenly. My own thestral protectors were forced to remain outside in the courtyard. As usual.

I fought the urge to roll my eyes. I wasn’t one for the theatrics of the royal court, but the announcer could at least refer to me by my status. Like it or not, I was a crowned prince of the kingdom just the same.

“Both your highnesses,” I stood before the sisters and bowed.

I caught the frown already splayed across Celestia’s face, she was displeased with my presence. The faint smile that tickled Luna’s, however, kept me from spoiling my mood. She and I had seen each other much more frequently as of late and it helped me maintain these relations.

“Why are you here?” Celestia asked plainly.

“I caught word of the doings of Sombra, my sincere apologies for the loss of the Crystal province,” I stood and spoke truthfully. “The events that unfolded in the frigid north were a true travesty across the whole kingdom.”

“No thanks to you,” the white alicorn of the sun spoke without hesitation.

“Tia!” Luna reeled on her sister, “are you serious? You explicitly forbade any assistance from him and our allies. Prince Orpheus, should I mention, is more than an ally. He’s of our own kingdom.”

I gulped back my frustration and continued, “Thank you, Luna. I came here today because I want to extend a proposition. With the loss of the Crystal province, there is a notable gap in the workforce and economy of the mainland. I would like to request that we work toward a state-sponsored immigration plan that would encourage my ponies to come here and fill that gap. It could benefit us all.”

This proposition was the result of a long discussion between myself and Luna. Though it was true that populating the mainland with thestrals would benefit the kingdom – if they were offered enough pay to move in the first place – the ulterior motive was to provide Luna a population of ponies who would accompany her in the night. It would take decades for any meaningful result, but it was important to both her and myself that she have the proper representation of a population that witnessed her.

“That is a great proposition, Prince Orpheus,” Luna jumped on my words, “can you imagine how much it would help us to have ponies who could work through the night without any issue?”

I watched Celestia’s withering stare as she processed my words. I knew immediately that she read between the lines.

“Is this the result of your galavanting with my younger sister?” she completely dodged the topic.

I cleared my throat, “there has been some discussion about this in private.”

“‘Discussion’ is quite the euphemism,” Celestia raised a brow.

I felt my face warm at her suggestion. She wasn’t wrong in her assumption, but the personal business between myself and Luna was hardly relevant in today’s hearing. I was being sincere with my offer.

“Celestia!” Luna stood quickly, “now is not the time-”

“Orpheus,” Celestia cut her off and stood, slowly stepping down from the elevated throne and facing me coldly, “I do not approve of you or whatever you intend on doing with my family. I do not want you near my sister. I deny your proposition and I want you out of my castle.”

“Princess Celestia-” I began, but took a timid step back as the older alicorn glared further down at me.

“You’re insufferable!” Luna screeched and stomped off of her throne, galloping between me and her sister. “Does it matter what choices I make of my own free will? Who I choose to spend my time with? How is that relevant to the prosperity of the kingdom? What he proposes may be a significant change that we need in Equestria and you would deny it simply because of our own private affairs?!”

For a moment, I caught the slightest glimmer of worry in Celestia’s eyes as Luna furiously stepped toward her. Though the older sister was cold, I knew that it came from a protective side of her.

“This is our kingdom. Our castle. And he is our prince,” Luna’s voice wavered, “and he can be my Orpheus if I so choose.”

I quickly looked at Luna, my chest warming at her defensive words for me. She and I had no official proclamation of our relationship. Things just… happened. But hearing the validation of her feelings hit me in a way I didn’t expect.

“Please,” I stepped to the side, trying to alleviate the situation, “we can discuss private matters another time.” I glanced nervously at the guards who bore witness to this, the rumors were sure to spread far and wide. “But, consider my proposition.”

Celestia’s eyes darted between me and Luna. Her expression wavered briefly, but soon set coldly and she furrowed her brow, “Your ponies are foreigners, your rule is obtrusive to our governance, and your relationship with my sister is inappropriate. You are not recognized, nor ever will be recognized in this kingdom.”

I felt my blood run cold at her words. I knew she was overbearing, but this was excessive.

“Celes-” Luna took an enraged step, but was silenced as a golden aura of light encased her, holding her in position.

“Leave, Orpheus, before I make you,” the ruler of the sun narrowed her eyes. Her white horn was dangerously alight as she held her sister in place.

I nodded nervously and turned toward the door. I wasn’t about to escalate this any further. Maybe another day, years from now, I could try again.

“Luna, you are forbidden from seeing that mongrel ever again,” her voice cut behind me.

A magical burst suddenly erupted behind me and I quickly turned around, watching as Luna’s horn shot a beam of black and blue light across the throne room. It dispelled the magic holding her in place and shattered the stained glass windows, raining glass daggers onto the guards who dove away from the uncontrolled blast.

Luna flapped her wings, tears streaming down her face as she glared at Celestia. She stole a glance my way before yelling in frustration and taking off through the shattered window.

I watched as Celestia stood in place, watching her younger sister go. She had completely forgotten my existence. I turned to leave while she stood as still as a statue, her face strewn with heartbreak.


ooOOooOOoo


More memories continued. I felt fully enraptured by Orpheus’s spirit as I witnessed the events. The more I saw, the more I felt as though he and I became one being.

Thunder boomed outside the window of my study accompanied by a splash of rain from the gale that swept across the island. These nighttime storms were frequent from the warm sea air that rolled over the ocean during the winter months. I was sitting at my table, head in hoof as I poured over a ledger.

“Tariffs increased on fruit shipments by two fold,” I read aloud, groaning as I wrote numbers across the parchment with a quill in my magical aura. “That is the second sharpest increase in two years. What is wrong with her?” I mumbled to myself.

Relations with the mainland have gotten worse as time went on. As one could imagine, Celestia was not withholding her distaste for me and decided that punishing thousands of ponies in Umbris was justifiable retribution for my intrusion on her family.

Despite her orders, Luna and I continued to see each other in secret. Though recent events had her more on edge than ever before. Oftentimes, when she did visit, it would be simply to vent about the insurmountable rules and restrictions that Celestia would impose on her in an attempt to quash our relationship or control her life in a microscopic way.

I was worried about her. So much so, that the idea of ending our relationship wasn’t a distant thought if it meant sparing the poor mare from a horrible life at home. Obviously it would break my heart too, but I wanted what was best for everyone.

A flash of lightning erupted outside followed by thunder and the sound of hoof stomps on my balcony. I started as I realized what I heard and stood, grasping the window with my magic and leveraging it open against the harsh winds outside.

Standing on the balcony, mane and coat sopping wet from the frigid air, stood my beloved alicorn of the night.

“Luna?!” I rushed outside and helped her in, slamming the window closed behind. “What are you doing here? Did you fly all the way here?”

The shivering mare nodded while I ignited a hearth along the back wall with magic and ushered her toward it. I used my telekinesis to pull water from her mane, the magical threads no longer flowing as it was weighed by the frozen droplets.

“Orpheus,” her expression was downtrodden, “we need to talk.”

“And we will, after you’re warmed up,” I levitated a cup of boiled tea toward her and wrapped a wing around her side.

“Listen to me,” she took the tea in her own magic and set it down, “please.”

I matched her turquoise eyes. Behind them was a multitude of emotions that pained me to witness. Grief, anger, betrayal. She was hurting so badly. So much more than she could handle. I nodded for her to continue.

“I’m going to do something that must be done,” she began slowly, looking down at her hooves with an expression set in determination, “but I want you to help me.”

“I’ll do anything,” I held her closer, “what are you thinking?”

Luna paused for a moment as she mulled over her next words. “I will no longer yield the sky for the sunrise.”

My ears perked as I interpreted what she said, “you’re not saying…”

“If the ponies of Equestria cannot see what I am, I will make it so,” she said with a growing tone, “I am sick of Celestia’s reign. She has completely cast me aside and buried me beneath her hoof. I’m going to show her that I will not be disregarded. That I can take control of what I see fit.”

I stared at her. My emotions on pause as the words from Star Swirled echoed in my head. This was ludicrous. The cycle of the sun and moon were essential for more than just night and day. It was the very embodiment of the magic that flowed across our world.

“Luna-” I began.

“I want you with me,” she turned and looked into my eyes, “I want you at my side. You and I, we can finally be together. Publicly. Married even! We could be king and queen of Equestria under an eternal night, dominated by the thestrals of Umbris!”

“Luna…” my voice softened, “I- I don’t know what to say.”

I was shocked. Too shocked to respond. Of course I would have loved the idea of an eternal bond with her. I knew what I felt about her, yet it pained me to hear the words leave my mouth.

“I love you,” I whispered for the first time to her, “b- but… not like this.”

Luna’s expression shot from elation to confusion, “what do you mean?”

“We can’t,” I gulped and shook my head, “I won’t begin a life together like this. It’s wrong. We cannot eclipse the sun and make these demands. If we are to be together, we’ll have to do it the right way. With reason. Diplomacy.”

The light behind Luna’s eyes immediately vanished and she shoved me from her side, “there is no diplomacy with that wretched mare!” She stomped a hoof, “I thought you were on my side!”

I stood and held a wing out disarmingly, “I’m on your side!” I pleaded, “but I swore to protect the balance-”

“Is this balanced?!” Luna hollered, gesturing out the window, “Celestia is crushing my very existence!”

“No, it’s not fair,” I sighed, “but it’s also wrong to seize the heavens for your own. I- I cannot allow it.”

I flinched as the words left my tongue. I knew immediately what would follow.

“Cannot allow it?!” Luna took a defensive step back, she looked me up and down, her face screwed in fury, “allow what? What do you possess that might influence what I can and cannot do?”

I stared at her, my voice dying softly, “your heart.”

Luna’s gaze faltered for a moment, before she shook her head, “what are you imply-”

“Our relationship is the problem,” I blurted what came to my head before I could come to reason, “I shouldn’t have let this happen. I should have stopped us before it came to this. The balance of power was too skewed. I’m responsible for the balance between both of you! I’ve gone too far.”

Luna sat silently, watching me as I said the words I never wanted to say.

“Maybe Celestia is right,” I choked, “maybe you and I should not be together. If it means putting an end to this.”

“I trusted you,” Luna’s voice cut dangerously, “I trusted you’d be by my side. I confided in you. I gave myself to you. And you want to throw it all away because that witch disapproves?”

My chest tightened, “No, I don’t want this but what alternative do we have? You won’t try to reason with her!”

“I told you my alternative,” Luna spread her wings, “and you denied me.”

“Luna!” I cried as she tore the window open. “Where are you going?”

The princess of the night paused at the window, looking back at me with tear filled eyes that were hurt beyond comprehension, “To take what is mine.”


ooOOooOOoo


A final scene melded in my vision. Agony, grief, anger; all erupted within my chest. Years-worth of anguish that I could never imagine washed over me as I watched events unfold through the hateful eyes of Orpheus.

I sat on my black throne, tapping a rear hoof impatiently. The throne room was empty. The braziers and candles all snuffed out as the afternoon sun cut through my delicate stained glass windows. I sat alone. All of my ponies, save for the closest of guards, fast asleep for the day as I expected the company I never wanted to see again in my life.

“Orpheus.” The cold voice of an alicorn mare boomed through the open door to my atrium.

A line of golden-clad ponies cantered into the room, their swords drawn, aggressively staring down my own guards who quickly brandished their own. At their heels, the fury of the sun itself trotted in slowly. Her fiery hoofclops singeing my carpet with every step, her once beautiful multi-colored mane now an orange tempest, her body adorned with golden armor embossed with the new symbol of her Solar Empire.

“Why are you here?” I spat coldly.

I knew the answer. We all did. She blamed me for Luna’s actions. She blamed me for the collapse of the kingdom, the rebellion of the zebras, the declaration of war from the dragons, the opening of the gates of tartarus which brought the return of monsters to the mainland. If there was a single negative thing that happened within the last decade, her hoof was swiftly pointed toward the direction of our small isle of the sea. 

Every single thing that occurred upon her soil was an echo of what she did to my late beloved; the banishment of Luna’s soul to the moon for a thousand years. A swift and decisive punishment that eradicated lunar magic and upset the balance of the world, allowing the forces of evil to prevail and claw their mangled bodies back from their tomb in hell.

We now faced a reality where the princess of the moon would be absent for an entire alicorn lifetime that I had lived once already. I couldn’t even fathom spending the next thousand years awaiting her return. If I would even be the same stallion I was today. If I would even be alive to embrace her return. The sentence was practically fatal.

There was only one truth that she and I both agreed on. I was responsible for Luna’s final downfall. I let my love for her cloud my judgment and let my emotions get in the way of my mission to preserve balance. I allowed our feelings for each other to blossom instead of nipping it in the bud and preserving peace for all pony kind.

“Surrender your command of the stars,” Celestia slowly approached me, her orange eyes alight with an everlasting inferno, “or I will take it from you.”

“What good would it do?” I stood, facing the taller alicorn.

I was unarmed and unarmored but I was unafraid. This mare was my eternal enemy. She destroyed the only thing I had ever known in this world to be truly beautiful. Without the moon, myself and my people were distraught.

“The gates to tartarus have opened. The Elements of Harmony are not able to contain it,” Celestia explained, “your starlight is the missing key to unlocking the Element’s full power.”

“My starlight?” I openly mocked her, “or perhaps we are missing something more obvious?” I gestured a wing to the stained glass window depicting the Princess of the Night.

“I will eradicate you where you stand,” Celestia’s horn ignited with a gleaming roar of fire, “You are immortal to age, but your flesh may still perish.”

“Which makes two of us,” I surrounded myself with a shield of light, narrowing my eyes to her, “you are far from invincible.”

“I am inevitable!” Celestia roared, pointing her horn at the very same window.

A beam of orange light erupted through the glass in an ear splitting blast, striking my throne and shattering the solid marble like nothing. The intensity of the heat left a molten red-hot pool of lava where her smite struck. Her spell shattered a hole in the stained glass, symbolically cleaving the images of myself from my beloved mare. A lump caught in my throat as I witnessed her disrespect for her late sister.

“GIVE IT TO ME,” Celestia screamed, pointing her horn at me.

I closed my eyes, reaching out to the heavens and looked beyond the blinding glare of Celestia’s sun that plagued our skies. Far outside of her reach, an infinite field of energy radiated from the cosmos that surrounded our world. I pulled on the cool flow of magic, opening my glowing white eyes and casting a blanket of starlit energy across my throne room.

White light encased the Empress of the Sun and her entire group of soldiers. Before anypony could blink, the spell clapped and every single one of them vanished into thin air. I nearly fell over as a wave of exhaustion wobbled my knees.

“Your highness!” Apollo, the captain of the guards of Umbris, rushed from the door, “are you okay? Where did they go?”

I coughed and struggled to stand. “A half hour’s flight offshore.” The immense distance of the mass teleportation spell took its toll on me, but I had to muster my strength for what was certainly about to come. “Awaken the garrison, we defend castle Noctis this day.”

“Yes sir!” Apollo nodded, quickly taking flight and barking orders to the guards who all stood dumbfounded, swords loosely hung in their slack jaws.

I stumbled against my collapsed throne, falling on my knees as I looked up at the shattered remnants of the stained glass window. The elegant mare of the night stood alone across a jagged chasm of daylight that rift her apart from the stallion of twilight. I never felt further from her than at that moment. But one thought steeled my nerves.

“I will restore balance,” I whispered to myself, “Celestia will fall.”


XXX

> Chapter Thirteen: The Moon Will Rise
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


Chapter Thirteen: The Moon Will Rise



Midnight Wind



***


	My eyes fluttered open and I winced from the bright daylight streaming in from a nearby window. My eyesight really was the worst of both worlds; I didn’t have the vertical pupils of a thestral to ward off bright light but I had all the sensitivity to make it hurt. So pain was the flavor of my morning.

Speaking of vertical pupils, I started when I noticed a small pair of purple thestral eyes peeking over the foot of my bed. They quickly widened and the blue-maned head ducked out of view in a tumble of hooves and wings.

“Mum-m-m! He’s alive!” the shrill tone of a filly cried as she ran downstairs.

It looked like I was in Dr. Bone’s hospital in Renaissance, so that was probably good news. The hospital had seen better days since the last time I was here. Some of the windows behind my bed were shattered and covered with makeshift sheet metal and wood, allowing a chilly draft inside between the patchwork. Bullet holes lined the walls and floors and there was even some staining near the stairs that looked suspiciously like blood. I couldn’t remember how or why I was here, but I knew that this was the result from the Daylight’s attack on this thestral settlement.

All that swam through my head were the multiple centuries of memories Orpheus subjected me to that left my thoughts foggy, like I was struggling to shake off the feeling of being in somepony else’s body. Parts of me still believed I was the thestral prince of twilight himself.

I tried to sit up but every muscle in my body burned from the sudden movement, like I was breaking a fever. My heartbeat quickened when I recognized this kind of pain. It was so familiar but I couldn’t remember why.

A series of hoofclops slowly climbed the stairs, followed by the scrambling of a little pony who was blurting with too much energy for this time of day.

“I’m-not-joking!” she enunciated with the sound of small wings flapping at every word, “he’s really awake this time!”

“Midnight? Are you sure?” Penumbra’s familiar Equestrian accented voice tickled my ears.

I slowly turned my head, watching as two mares and a filly made their way to me.

Penumbra was in her lab coat and looked about as disheveled as anypony could tolerate. Her mane was a bird’s nest, pinned up with a pen and her raised glasses. A line of damp fur ran from her mouth down her cheek where she must have been drooling. Maybe she fell asleep at her desk.

Off her left was a mare I didn’t recognize. She was a burnt-orange unicorn with a black mane and purple eyes. She wore a faded pink nightgown that she clung across her body with magic. Her eyes were dreary, like she was suddenly woken up.

Hiding behind her rear legs was a thestral filly, she hadn’t earned her cutiemark yet and couldn’t have been a day over eight years old. She too had a dark orange coat but she had a familiar shade of blue for a mane pinned up in a ponytail. Interestingly, her eyes were also purple, despite being ‘bat pony’ eyes. The unicorn she clung by was probably her mother.

“Holy thunder, he is awake!” Penumbra shouted the moment she saw me, quickly cantering to my bedside. I was pretty sure she just used an old pegasus saying.

A cup of water magically floated from a table nearby in pale orange telekinesis. I weakly reached with my forehooves and grabbed it. “Th-thanks, who are you?” I asked before taking a sip. Compared to the last unicorn I met, this magical floating water didn’t taste nearly as bad.

“Amber Night,” the unicorn sat before me, reigning her filly before her, “and this is Aurora Australis.” She had an Equestrian accent I wasn’t too familiar with. Prance maybe? Like from the movies.

“I told you he was awake!” The filly flapped her wings and crossed the height of my bed. She saw that I was watching her and she quickly darted back behind her mother.

Australis was definitely half thestral, like myself. She had a more colorful coat and mane than most others but she still had bat wings and tiny fangs poking out from under her lips. I didn’t know enough about pony genetics to guess what parts of her were unicorn, but she stood out about as much as myself.

These two must have been Aurora Borealis’s family. He mentioned them earlier. I bet he was glad they made it out oka-

I flinched as Penumbra wasted no time shining a flashlight in my eyes, poking and prodding my head and body, and shoving a potentially unneeded health potion down my throat.

I sputtered and tried to swat the dark green nurse away, “gah, stop it!”

“Unless you want to turn into a pile of goo,” Penumbra uncorked another potion with a wing claw, “keep drinking.”

“Wha-” I choked as she popped the bottle in my mouth and tilted my head back.

“We exposed you to more Impelled Metamorphosis Potion,” Amber explained, hovering a tray of three more health potions from a metal cabinet that was ridden with bullet holes. “We’re repeating what we know works, and that was your red-maned friend giving you five potions.”

“Wait, you exposed me to what?” I tried to fend off Penumbra, but she pinned my head back with a wing and popped another potion in my mouth.

“Do they taste good?” Australis peeked over the side of the bed.

“No!” I shouted before magic clasped my jaw and poured another one down the hatch.

I suffered my medicinal waterboarding at the hooves of these cruel mares for a moment more before they were satisfied I wouldn’t turn into Mr. Bubblegum 2.0. I coughed hoarsely and winced as my body protested in every way. I felt exhausted, despite having just woken up.

“Good grief,” I shook my head and reached for the water to wash down the awful sour taste. “What was that about meta-morphin’-whatcha-say?”

“Impelled Metamorphasis Potion,” Penumbra explained while packing up the empty bottles, “I.M.P, or taint as it’s more commonly called.”

I stared at her for a moment then quickly kicked off the bed sheets and looked down at myself. I looked fine enough, I had all of my important parts and the mess of feathers under my back told me that my pegasus wing was still a pegasus wing.

“Okay, but why?”

Amber floated a clipboard from the table beside me, flipping a few pages and turning it to face me, “we have a theory about you. The fact you’re not just alive, but up and talking to us confirms it.”

I squinted as I looked at the page. It was a cartoon drawing of a blue pegasus with ‘X’s’ over his eyes, followed by a syringe injecting a very carefully crafted rainbow into his neck. The pegasus then stood up and flew away with a bunch of dotted lines shooting out from his flanks.

“Uh…” I stared at it.

Amber tilted her head and flipped the board around. She rolled her eyes and used her magic to flip a few more pages, “Australis, please don’t doodle all over mummy’s work.”

“They’re not doodles!” Australis groaned, “I’m working too! I wanted to see if he’s still a bird or if he’s all bat now.”

Amber found the page she intended to show me and levitated the board back over. I took it in my hooves and tried to interpret the science mumbo-jumbo. The gist of it was that my body reacted to I.M.P in a positive way, acting more like a healing potion instead of sudden death, like it normally should have. As long as I had enough healing magic flowing through my veins, the metamorphosis potion didn’t cause any damage; hence the need for a liter of health potions.

It looked like the nurse and the scientist had been busy testing my blood and trying to determine what caused my coma. They discovered that I had surges of magic running through my body while I was unconscious, almost like I was held in a stasis; it was all tied to I.M.P. They eventually decided to inject a small amount of I.M.P they had in their lab into my blood, hoping to heal my head trauma. Given that I couldn’t remember buck all, I’m sure my head must have been pretty traumatized. Regardless, the trick seemed to work because I was awake now. 

My eyes paused on the last few words of the document. “‘Mutagenic evidence found in DNA?’” I read aloud.

Amber gave Penumbra a knowing look and gently stepped forward, “Midnight, do you remember what your life was like in Stable 17?”

I furrowed my brow, “of course, it sucked. Everypony hated me for my feathers there like they do out here.”

“I’m sorry to hear that Midnight, but was there anything else?” Penumbra clarified, “like, did anypony ever do something to you? Medically.”

I scratched my head as I tried to remember, “well, before the plague-”

“Plague?” both mares interjected simultaneously.

“What’s a plague?” Australis quietly asked from below us.

I looked down at the little filly, “It’s a kind of sickness.” I gave the mares a shrug, “We had a plague that wiped out nearly half of the population when I was a colt.”

Amber took the clipboard out of my hooves with her magic and began taking notes with a pen floated from Penumbra’s mane, “tell me everything,” she ushered.

“Um…” I trailed, “well before it all began, I remember Dr. Red, our resident doctor, would always have me in for my daily ‘medicine.’” I tilted my head, “that stuff always burned, now that I think about it, kinda like how taint does.”

“Micro-dosages,” Amber mumbled to herself as she wrote, “and the plague?”

“Oh,” I continued, “well, it sorta happened after our agriculture ponies were trying a new fertilizer. Dr. Red said that bacteria must have gotten to the food and made us all sick. It was awful, ponies dropped dead within weeks.”

“Mass testing,” Penumbra nodded to Amber who agreed and wrote more notes. The dark green mare looked at me, “and what about Scarlet Rose?”

“Scarlet… Rose?” That name woke a part of my brain that was still foggy. I quickly shot up, “Scarlet! Where is she? Is she okay? The fighting-”

Penumbra put a wing on my shoulder, “she’s okay. Did you ever hear about any of Dr. Red’s testing on Scarlet?”

I felt my chest tighten with worry for my red-maned companion. I completely forgot about her. How could I forget about her?

“I don’t know,” I said truthfully, “she was always isolated from the rest of us. Her mother died in the plague and her sister, Night Shade, took over the Stable. Shade was the reason we were kicked out.”

“Right,” Amber nodded and stuck the floating pen back into Penumbra’s mane, who jolted in surprise. “You should get some rest today. We can talk more tonight.”

I nodded and settled back into my bed. I wanted to get up and find Scarlet but the aches that spread across my muscles told me otherwise. “Good goddess,” I moaned, looking at myself, “I’m glad I’m in one piece after everything that happened last night.”

Penumbra and Amber shared another look.

“Uh oh,” Australis squeaked, “he doesn’t know.”

“What?” I asked.

“Midnight,” Amber said gently, “it’s been a week.”

“A week?!”


***


I finally settled into bed after the unicorn and thestral mares calmed me down. They explained everything that happened since the explosion: the Daylight’s defeat, Scarlet and Ballpoint rescuing me, the rebuilding efforts and the death of a beloved father; Aurora Borealis.

My heart went out to Amber and Australis for pushing through all of this, even going so far as helping me. Amber made it clear that Borealis wouldn’t want me to feel guilty for his sacrifice, he was just that kind of stallion. But I still felt responsible for the death of their family member. If I wasn’t so brazen maybe I could have prevented it all.

My actions had further consequences too. They reminded me that the Night Watch were wary of me. Though confronting Starline was necessary, they weren’t impressed with my decision to kill her, even though the crazy mare tried to kill us all. The only thing that kept them from outright arresting me was my condition and the pleas from both Scarlet and Ballpoint who defended me the entire time.

Apparently my magical coma put my body in a complete state of stasis. I had no symptoms of muscle fatigue, malnourishment, hell I didn’t even use the little-colt’s room. A part of me wondered if it was Orpheus’s doing. At this rate, that was the most likely answer.

Penumbra told me how Scarlet stuck by my side like wonderglue; spending every day with me and even talking to me while I was in my magical coma. Just last night, she took off toward Rafael with some of the guards to look for help, promising she’d be back by tonight. But with the new looming threat of the Daylight, I was skeptical about how easy of a trip it was going to be.

For the time being I opted to sleep until nightfall, hoping she’d return by the time I woke up.


***


I woke to the comforting darkness of nighttime and the bustling of Penumbra going throughout the hospital. I checked my PipBuck, it was early in the night. The smiling cartoon stallion on the tiny green screen seemed happy enough, so I guessed my vitals were okay. I sat up and watched the sage thestral mare, rubbing my eyes and stretching stiff muscles. My right wing was a complete mess of misplaced feathers.

Penumbra was almost frantic, cantering up and down the stairs as she consolidated supplies and loaded crates with everything she had. She was talking to herself, mumbling about ‘not wanting to deal with pegasi’ and something about her father. She caught me staring from the bed while I preened my feathered wing and she paused.

“Midnight,” she cleared her throat and pushed her glasses, “you’re up. That’s good.”

“Am I a burden?” I asked softly, carefully stepping off the bed and testing my weight on sore legs.

“What? No, of course not,” Penumbra set down a stack of papers with her wing and grabbed a duffle bag in her mouth, slowly approaching me.

“Well you said-”

“No, not about you,” Penumbra kicked the bag toward me and sat before me.

She wasn’t wearing her lab coat anymore. Instead she had her own set of black saddle-bags over her flanks, covering her cutie marks, and she wore a cropped leather bomber jacket. Faded colorful patches adorned the brown garment, all resembling thunder bolts and clouds with various organizational names on them. Holstered to her leg was a pistol I didn’t recognize, the barrel pulsated with a magic-tech green glow.

Penumbra looked well rested for once. When she wasn’t disheveled and stressed to tartarus and back, she was actually quite a pretty mare. Her two-toned periwinkle mane was held up in a bun with some strands floating down her face. She was obviously a few years older than me, but only just. The wrinkles I saw earlier were undoubtedly because of how overworked Dr. Bone and the attack had her.

“This is for you,” she gestured toward the bag then sat next to me. “You’re doing it wrong, here, like this.”

I jolted when she took my pegasus wing in her hooves and combed the primary feathers, beginning to set the jumbled mess straight. I felt the tips of my ears warm at her unexpected touch but fought the instinct to pull the wing back. I never had anypony show me how to take care of feathers, but whatever she was doing was working way better than what I normally did.

“Thanks,” my voice cracked. I knew like everypony else that this was an intimate gesture, but she was a nurse. She’s probably seen everything about me at this point. I busied myself with inspecting the bag.

Inside was my old equipment plus some extra barding and a heavy cloth bag that rattled with a metallic crunch. I took the bag and dumped it out, widening my eyes at the small fortune. There were easily multiple hundreds of sparkle-cola caps.

“Ballpoint dropped it off a few days ago,” Penumbra spoke ambiently, using her hooves and a wing claw to set my stubborn feathers in line, “payment for completing the warehouse job and some Raider scrap Scarlet sold.”

I slowly grouped the caps together and set aside a large sum into the cloth bag, dumping the remainder in the duffle. I pushed it toward Penumbra.

“For the hospital,” I said awkwardly, avoiding eye contact as she busied herself with my sensitive wing.

The nurse paused her preening for a moment to look at the bag, then at me, “you don’t owe me anything. Dr. Bone’s dead and I can’t run this place on my own. I’m closing for now. Captain Angel Wing’s gonna take over medical while I’m gone.”

“Well then, take it for putting up with my unconscious body for a week,” I insisted, “please.”

Penumbra fanned out my now perfectly-aligned feathers, satisfied, and nodded. “That’s generous of you, most ponies out here would gobble up the cash and high-tail it the first chance they got.”

“Well I’m not like most ponies,” I shrugged. 

Penumbra stood and looked me over, pressing her glasses with a hoof and a small smile, “you certainly are not.”

I looked at her work. It was impressive, every feather would catch the wind at a better angle than before. I may even have a better shot at flying on my own now. 

“Where’d you learn how to do this?” I asked, flapping the wing and smiling at the amount of thrust it made.

“A past life,” she replied simply and tucked the money into her own bags.

I waited for her to say more, but it was clear that that was all she had to say. I gestured toward her saddle bags, “What’s got you all dressed up?”

Penumbra sighed heavily and gave me a wry smile, “I have bad news for you, Blue.”

I tilted my head while I busied myself with donning my gear. Ballpoint was nice enough to provide some leather shoulder barding and even a chest rig with some kind of hard armor in it. I slung my rifle over my back and placed my trusty Tidus 11 in a proper leg holster for once. Between the army fatigues and the armor, I felt like I finally had some decent protection.

“Scarlet didn’t make it.”

I shot a look at Penumbra, “What!?”

“No, sorry! That came out wrong,” she slapped her head with a bat wing, “I mean, they all didn’t make it. Wait, that sounds worse-”

I felt myself begin to hyperventilate while Penumbra flapped over to me and placed her hooves on my shoulders.

“They’re probably alive, calm down and take a breath, Midnight, it’s gonna be okay,” she cooed. “Orion said Rafael Air Base hasn’t reported them arriving yet. It’s a short flight there so everypony’s a little worried about their whereabouts.”

I shook her off, “I need to go find her, what if she’s hurt?!”

I pulled up my PipBuck and frantically scrolled through the map function, panning the cursor in every direction but the blasted thing only showed me locations I’ve already been to. I bit at my stupidity. We should have set up trackers or something. I knew this goddess forsaken wasteland was dangerous.

“I’m gonna bring you there,” Penumbra gently lowered my foreleg with a hoof. “But don’t worry. Ballpoint and Silver Dusk are with her. Between those two, nothing in the wasteland stands a chance. They probably just got held up on something along the way.”

I looked up at her golden eyes. She was worried too, but she meant what she said. I relaxed a little at her gentle touch and words.

“Ball and Silver are the only ponies I know out here,” she continued, “I don’t have a family, my home was destroyed, and hell,” she kicked a rear leg, eliciting a metallic crunch from her bags, “you just gave me the only caps I have. I’ve got nothing left for me here so I may as well help where I can.”

“But the hospital…” I looked around at the packed crates.

The hospital was in ruin. The ancient building had taken a beating during the fighting, leaving nothing but dusty cots and bullet-ridden equipment behind. If anypony was going to be treated here, it’d only be after some serious renovation.

“I’ve been to Rafel before,” Penumbra insisted, “we’ll go together and find your marefriend. Then we’ll all come back and figure out this I.M.P nonsense with Amber.”

“She’s not my mare-”

Penumbra smirked knowingly, “Oh, she’s not? That’s a shame.”

Whatever she meant by that flew over my head. I just sighed and nodded, “Okay, yeah, I could use the help. I appreciate it, Penumbra.”

“Call me Penny,” she smiled reassuringly and made her way to the stairs. “We’ve got something going on in town square. I think you’ll want to see it before we leave.”

We cantered out of the hospital and into the frozen night. I breathed in the gusty autumn air, taking in the scents of pine and wood smoke. The sky was overcast with clouds and lit by Luna’s hidden moon that bathed the world in pale light.

The town was alive with activity. Thestral ponies flew around as they put the final touches on their repairs. Somepony even managed to get the Hearth’s Warming lights working again. I missed so much since the battle, it felt surreal to see the world days later.

Penumbra spread her wings and took off toward town square, pausing halfway to the rooftops and giving me an expectant look.

I nervously extended my wings, looking between the uneven pair. The nurse’s work had my right pegasus wing in flawless condition, but it was the bat wing off my left that had me worried. The memory of flying above an ocean on thestral wings shot through my mind. I knew what that was supposed to feel like. I could do it again.

I steeled my gaze and flapped both my wings, letting my body guide me and trying not to overthink it. Before I knew it, I was airborne and climbing steadily, picking up speed with a growing grin splayed across my face. Something clicked in my head. I could do this.

“Midnight, town square’s that way,” Penumbra pointed behind me as I shot past her.

I ignored her while I laughed in mirth and pumped my wings, gaining altitude well above the glowing city below.

Luna above, I’ve missed this!

I didn’t think about what I needed to do. I just let my wings fly independently. Like the alicorn wings of my memory, I didn’t need to force it. It just worked. Whatever dreams I had left a lasting impression on me that carried into the real world.

I closed my eyes and inverted my wingtips, spiraling upwards, feeling myself slow as I climbed higher and higher. My feathers silently cut the air off my right with only the faintest of rustling from the skin of my bat wing off my left.

I felt my weight disappear at the top of my climb. I opened my eyes, spreading my wings to full span and caught myself just as I was about to fall. I rode a gentle air current and lazily flapped as I looked out around me. The cold air rushed over my membraned wing, my neat feathers sliced the air – it felt extraordinary.

I was probably a few hundred hooves in the air and I could see the expanse of pine trees all around, extending to the very edges of the mountain range that protected Transylvania. Where the mountains opened to the west, I could barely see the hazy concrete monoliths of Vanhoover. Even with my thestral blood, it was hard to focus on such a distance. The distant city seemed like a world away.

Ahead of me sat my Stable, my former home, carved into one of the mountains. It was so inconspicuous yet it housed hundreds of ponies for generations. All trapped within the concrete walls and under the hoof of a terrible tyrant. If only they knew what the world was like out here.

I glanced down and banked my body to circle back around. Penny was only a fraction of her size. She was hovering above the street, watching me.

A thought came to mind and I smiled. Sure I could fly, but could I really fly? I was going to push this new wing to its limit. I was half pegasus afterall.

Showtime.

I reached back and made sure my saddle bags and rifle were properly secure. This new barding was made for flying ponies, everything had a buckle to strap stuff down.

Feeling certain that none of my items would clonk some poor buck in the head below, I flared my wings and did a mid-air backflip, folding them in slightly at the bottom of the loop. I began to dive toward the ground at a blistering pace.

I’ve never done this on my own before, not without that weird magic at least. But everything felt natural. My wings moved on their own as I willed myself to do what I imagined was possible. Penny quickly grew bigger and bigger as I dove at a breakneck speed. I could feel my bat wing begin to lock up from the wind compressing on its leading edge, but my feathered wing was far from its limit. I’d push it as far as I could.

Just as I saw Penny widen her eyes in realization, I flared out my right wing and spiraled in a rapid corkscrew around her, slowing down enough to shoot out my left wing and overcome the compression. My feathered wingtip gently brushed her mane as I barreled around her, causing her to yelp in surprise.

I quickly leveled off below her and rocketed down the street just a few hooves off the ground, hearing the whoosh of wind pouring off my straining bat wing. I suddenly extended to full span and hurled upwards, kicking a cloud of dust off the road.

How was that? I coyly smirked and looked back at Penny.

Her expression of awe was now mixed with shock and excitement. I felt my chest swell with pride. Yeah, I’m a show-pony, kill me.

I rolled inverted and dove back down to her, this time with more control. I flared and flapped powerfully into a hover next to her. My bat wing was sore, but it kept up with my bird-like shenanigans. With more practice, maybe I could push it even harder.

“Luna be my witness,” Penny shook her head, “I’ve never seen a bat pony do that before.”

“I’m not like most ponies,” I smiled knowingly.

“You definitely are not,” Penny’s blushed expression hinted at how impressed she actually was. She fixed the loose hairs of her mane that I brushed during my stunt then gestured down the road, “As much as I appreciated the air show, Blue, we need to head to the square. No more lollygagging.”

I lazily flapped beside her, “Fine, fine, playtime’s over. Let's get this over with.”

Though I trusted that Scarlet was probably safe, the sooner we left to find her, the better.

We glided toward town square while Penny began to describe the events that happened around town as we flew past. Tonight was a special night apparently. It was going to be the commemoration of the attack and a show of solidarity that our ponies would not be snuffed out by the Daylight.

A part of me wondered just what that would entail. A show of peace? Or a call to war?


***


“Today, my fellow soldiers, citizens, and family; we remember the fallen and vow never to forget the evil that ravaged our peaceful corner of Equestria,” a well-worn buck spoke to the small crowd of ponies in the shattered town square. His long white mane and tail contrasted his charcoal coat, covered by an aged looking military uniform. 

I was perched on a rooftop next to Penny overlooking the scene. Thirty or so ponies I had seen around town stood in rank and file facing the middle aged buck. They were all in matching uniforms, sporting crescent moon insignia on their shoulders. It wasn’t the uniform of the Night Watch, but something entirely different. Between the clothes and spiffy military caps, these ponies must have served generations from some pre-war battalion.

The townsfolk of Renaissance were perched among the rooftops and balconies that surrounded the square. I spotted Amber Night and her filly standing by the small group of Night Watch guards off to the side. She was dressed in black and surrounded by other mourning families. She clutched a triangular folded navy-blue flag to her chest in her magic, a symbol held by all of the wives and husbands of the guards who perished.

According to Penny, the speaker was Colonel Sterling Skies, the commander of Renaissance’s local militia. Historically, the six independent settlements across Transylvania agreed to unite under one flag, the Order of the Rising Moon, if things ever got dire. It was a reservist militia that consisted of more than just town guards, but a whole swath of ponies who swore to protect Transylvania if the need ever arose. From simple farmers, to merchants, and mechanics; If there was a call to arms, they would lay down their tools and pick up their guns to defend the region. For almost two hundred years, the Order was never activated. Until tonight.
 
Next to Colonel Sterling stood a hoof-full of the local Night Watch guard commanders, all sporting the new uniforms as well. Whatever politics involved made it clear that the local guards would be adopted into the rising army. The Night Watch now had a higher purpose than just manning the gates of Renaissance.

We were late to the ceremony, thanks to my little airshow, and decided the roof was better than simply dropping in the middle of the crowd. Besides, with what everyone seemed to think of me, especially after the whole Starline fiasco, it was probably for the best that I didn't show my face around town yet.

"... be remembered for his valiant efforts to defend Renaissance. In honor of his last moments, sacrificing his life for others, Aurora Borealis is hereby awarded the Lunar Cross as a testament to his valor,” the Colonel continued.

There was a pregnant pause as one of the guards stepped forward with a black box under her wing. She approached Amber Night and presented it to the unicorn. The guard opened the box and inside I could barely make out a black cross with a silver crescent moon accent perched atop a small cushion.

“That’s one of the highest awards in Equestria, or was at least,” Penny nudged me with a whisper, “it was given by Princess Luna herself during the war.”

“I’m surprised they had one laying around,” I raised a brow.

Penny shrugged, “bat ponies were the usual recipients. With how many of us died under Celestia’s rule early on, we probably had hundreds passed down among families.”

Below, the high ranking mare stiffened to attention, followed by the crisp sound of every guard and soldier mirroring her actions. She raised her right wing and gave a sharp salute to Amber and the line of ponies who were next of kin to the fallen.

“Pree-zent... wings!” A gruff stallion’s command somewhere up front echoed into the night.

The entire group quickly followed by snapping a salute in return.

I couldn’t help but start to tear up at this point. I didn’t have time to process what happened to Borealis until now. The first pony Scar and I met, who selflessly helped us at every turn, was dead. I barely knew him and he was willing to sacrifice his life for me. What did I ever do to deserve that level of dedication?

I shook my head and looked away in shame. He didn’t have to die because of my stupidity, I should have been more patient, or more tactful, or something.

“H- Hey, Midnight, don’t beat yourself up,” Penny gently placed a hoof on my shoulder. “Nopony blames you.”

“That doesn't change… Look, nevermind,” I sighed.

With a nod, Penny let go of my shoulder and sat back a little. I returned my gaze to the ceremony. Colonel Sterling was making his closing remarks.

“This is not the end,” he spoke clearly over the silence that swept the frozen night, “but the beginning of thestral-kind’s finest hour. Evil has reared its ugly head once again in Equestria and seeks to eradicate what it deems ‘unholy.’ We do not seek hostilities with our earth pony, unicorn, or pegasi brethren… but we are unafraid in the shadow they cast upon us if they so wish for us to bear arms.”

I watched him keenly. Everypony did. This was something far bigger than I ever anticipated out here in the wasteland.

“The battles we may soon face transcend recent history,” he continued, looking each and every soldier before him in the eyes, “it is an ancient battle wrought from the hatred of a dead empire. From a time well before balefire and megaspells. Before bullets, bombs, wars with zebras or griffons. But from a time where our race was tested under the hoof of the tyrannical mare of the sun.”

My fur stood on end in familiarity of his words.

“We do not know what motivates the Daylight’s forces today. Why they target our ponies, why they swept across our land and burned our settlements. But we know where they are headed; west. Toward the ruined city of Vanhoover. Toward the Arcane Constellation Continuum which governs our heavenly skies.” Colonel Sterling stomped a hoof, “We will not stand idly by and allow them to terrorize us in their self-proclaimed crusade of ‘light.’ We will fight back and put an end to this millennia-long battle. The sun will set and the moon shall take its place once and for all.”

I gave Penny a nervous look, “What's the Arcane Constellation Continuum?”

She shook her head, “I have no idea.”

The thestral ponies of Renaissance stomped their hooves in approval, hooting and cheering from the streets and rooftops. I looked around and saw the faces of ponies who suffered generations of mistreatment and hurt. This was an old wound. It was something thestrals have been dealing with well before events that ruined Equestria during the war with the Zebras. They wanted revenge. 

“They seem to know,” I mumbled uncomfortably.

Penny drew her lips, “I'm, um, not really from around here… Like you, Blue.”

The memories that Orpheus gave me made sense now. Our homeland, Umbris, was taken by force long ago. Our land was renamed, our population dispersed, our people forced to fight in a war we didn't start. We only briefly had a moment of hope when Luna returned from her banishment, but that quickly ended when she disappeared with the loss of all civilization.

This was a holy struggle between the sun and the moon that spanned millennia. The balance of the cosmos was forever tipping back and forth between the two sides, threatening to overtake the other.

A war was coming to Transylvania, hoping to end this battle for good. But if there was anything that I learned thus far: it was that war never changes.


XXX